"Are...are you sure he's alive, Ron?" Hermione asked, staring down at Draco's motionless form. The blond young man lay upon the thin blanket where they had placed him the previous evening. He hadn't stirred all night. Shrugging, Ron knelt on the ground and awkwardly placed a finger on Malfoy's wrist. After a few seconds, he nodded.

"Yep. He's alive." He sighed, standing up. He sounded almost disappointed. Taking his place on the floor, Luna knelt and began to press a wet cloth to Draco's sweating forehead. Malfoy was a very sorry sight. When they had found him, he hadn't been wearing a shirt and two long scars were visible across his bare chest. His left arm was black with burns and a blood stained, yellowing rag was tied around his wrist where the Dark Mark was surely lurking. Sweat poured from his body and his skin, which was always quite pale, was ghostly white.

"What do you think happened to him, Ron?" Luna asked, dipping the cloth in cold water once more.

"I don't know, but in all honesty, I really don't care. Whatever it was, he probably deserved it." Ron glared down at Malfoy. "C'mon. Let's get ready to leave."

"Already did that." Dennis appeared in the door of the tent, smiling. "Me and Ginny have everything packed up."

"Oh, brilliant. Thanks mate." Ron grinned. "Well, where should we put ol' Malfoy?"

Hermione's eyebrows knot together in confusion. "What do you mean, put him?"

"Well we aren't taking him with us!"

"And why do you get to decide?"

"Well, why the Hell should we help him out? He's a Death Eater!"

"He was a Death Eater. But you saw that wanted poster!"

"I did. But unlike you, I wasn't convinced by it. It would be just like You-Know-Who to try and trick us into believing that one of his cronies was-"

"Look at this, Ron." Hermione interrupted, pushing a newspaper into his hand. Sighing, Ron scanned it with his eyes.

"What am I supposed to see?"

"Look in the death notices."

After a moment, realization came over his face.

"What is it?" Luna asked, looking up at them.

"Ahem." Ron cleared his throat and began reading. "Malfoy, Lucius. Father of Draco Malfoy (Undesirable #7) and husband of Narcissa Black. Lucius Malfoy was executed on the morning of June 8th. His crimes included; keeping crucial information about Undesirable #7 hidden, assisting a wanted criminal, and ignoring the commands of Lord Voldemort."

Luna let out a sad whimper and glanced down at Draco, a look of pity in her large eyes.

"See?" Hermione asked, giving Ron a pointed stare.

"You-Know-Who has never been afraid of disposing of his followers as need be." He shrugged, looking down at the paper in his hand.

"Ron, I understand why you might be doubtful, but I think there's no reason why we shouldn't take him with us. We can always preform a memory charm on him if necessary. In fact, I think it could be quite useful to have a Death Eater around. I, for one, am eager to get some questions answered."

Ron's eyes flickered down to Hermione's finger, where the ring he'd given her rested. Slowly, he sighed and nodded.

"You've got a good point, 'mione." He admitted weakly. "Just promise me that if we need to, we'll ditch him."

"Of course." She took his hand and led him outside of the tent. "Goodness, you'd think that by now you would have learned to trust my judgment!" Her voice was teasing.

"You know I do. I just worry." He gave her a small smile. "I wouldn't survive a day without you, Hermione. You know that, don't you?"

In response, she kissed him lightly on the cheek.

The burning in his arm was unbearable. Every second felt like an eternity. Each painful bolt which shot up Draco's wrist seemed as if it would split his arm open. He felt the beads of warm sweat pout down his neck and onto his bare chest. Someone, some wonderful person, was dabbing at his forehead with a cold cloth. He didn't know who it was. He couldn't see them. It was as if he couldn't force his eyes to open. Suddenly, a fresh batch if chills ran from his left forearm through the rest if his body. The mystery person dabbed his neck with the cloth. Somewhere, deep inside, he thought that they might have been his mother. Or his father. When he was a young boy, before he'd even gone to Hogwarts, he had been ill quite often. When that would happen, his parents would take turns staying home from work to take care of him. His mother would hum and sit beside his bed, sewing and his father would read to him from "The Tales if Beetle and Bard". But no. It couldn't have been either of them. He'd told them not to come looking for him. He'd made them make an Unbreakable Vow. He knew that if they did go after him, Lord Voldemort would kill them as well. They were safe as long as they stayed in the Dark Lord's good graces. That was his only source of comfort; knowing that they were alive. That his betrayal hadn't caused their deaths.

Another stabbing of pain shot through his body, causing his head to explode with ringing and his body to flinch.

Somewhere, a muffled, distant voice cried out. "He moved! Dennis, go fetch the others."

The voice was familiar to him, but he couldn't place it. Soft, high, and flighty. He soon heard other voices, but didn't understand any of their words. Slowly, he felt himself falling back into a deep sleep.

A/N Hey y'all! Thanks for reading! Sorry it took me longer than usual to update this time. I was in a play and theater week was last week. Anyway, I hope you liked this chapter! Please be sure to review. :)

Also, a special thanks to notsing, Nikki Pond, and ElsaElphieGinny for reviewing! You guys are totally awesome. :)