Sorry it took so long to have chapter 3 done. I had a hard time figuring out what I wanted to happen in this chapter, but I think I finally got everything I wanted to include down. Enjoy!

A few days later the group came to the edge of the forest overlooking a small muggle village. During the night, Thorn sent a few men to steal some supplies and the rest of the group set up the campsite.

Pansy and Ron always stayed far enough from the group so their conversations would not be heard by the others. They would plot how to help the next group of runaways they encountered so they would not seem to be letting them of on purpose. Today, however, Pansy decided to steer conversation in a different direction.

"So why did you break off with your friends, Weasley? Why weren't they with you the night we caught you?" Pansy asked as she started a fire to cook their dinner with.

"That's none of your business Parkinson."

Pansy was slightly taken aback by Ron's abruptness. "I was just trying to make some conversation. Pass time you know."

"Yeah, well that's not something that I want to share with you. I already told you I'm not going to tell you their location."

"I wasn't asking to get their whereabouts. I was just curious as to what you were doing wandering the forest all alone that night."

"Well I'm curious as to why you are here?"

"I've already told you why I'm here."

"Yeah you've told me why you came to be here. Why are you still here, helping muggle-borns though?"

Pansy thought about his question for a while. She really wants to confide what she's been through with someone and Ron is willing to hear her out. Why, she is not sure since he doesn't seem to be too keen on fully trusting her yet. Maybe he wants to trust her and so he keeps questioning her motives. This thought makes Pansy relent and she decides she will tell him about her time wandering around before she came to be with these Snatchers.

After they are both done with their meal Pansy begins her story. "When I escaped from home I headed north. I was only able to grab my wand when I left so I pretty much had nothing on me. I walked for days with little to eat or drink. One night, I was being chased by a wolf or a wild dog; I don't know it was a huge beast. I came across a cliff and I slipped. As I fell I hit my head on a rock and passed out. Next thing I knew, there was an old lady treating my wounds and giving me water. Her name was Agnes. She nursed me back to health. She told me she was on the run because of her muggle-born blood status. She had been trying to help as many runaways she encountered to prevent them from being captured by Snatchers. She heard lots of horrible things happened to those captured like torture or death. I felt like I owed Agnes my life so I started to help her. My pureblood status helped me go places and gather supplies without being caught."

"Then one day while I was out," Pansy continued wiping away a few tears. "Agnes was killed by death eaters. When I returned to the shack we stayed in I saw the Dark Mark above it. I ran and soon came upon this group and I had to convince them of my blood status so they wouldn't turn me in. They didn't want to let me go so I told them I would help. I wanted to keep helping muggle-borns in memory of Agnes and being with this lot has been useful to help others."

"So that's why you're still here. To help the muggle-borns that Agnes devoted herself to help?" Ron said in a whisper, more to himself than anything. He was still trying to process all of Pansy's troubles. He found it hard to believe that the Slytherin girl would ever have any problems. The girl in front of him, so broken and humbled, was nothing like the girl he knew at school. Yet her actions proved to him that she was indeed a changed person working to redeem her past wrong doings.

That last thought made Ron think about his own faults. Maybe he could also use some redemption himself. He had after all just left his friends to carry on with the ever impossible task of finding and destroying the remaining horcruxes. Not to mention all of the other things he had done while at school.

After a while of silence Pansy spoke up again, "Yes, Agnes saved my life so I want to finish her work."

"Well in a way, you kind of saved my life too. At least, you helped me from being taken to the ministry or to you-know-who. So I guess I'll help you with the muggle-borns. But I will eventually have to get back to my friends."

"Once it's safe to do so Weasley, you will. I promise."

After their conversation over dinner, Ron and Pansy gained a little trust in each other. They were now working for the same cause. The memory of Agnes kept Pansy focused and Ron inspired on the task ahead.

The group moved through the woods again, Pansy and Ron in the lead.

"I still don't see why they always send you up ahead. Can't they find anyone without your help?" Ron complained after having walked for hours.

"Actually, I volunteer to go ahead and do the searching. That way if I see anyone before they do, I can warn them and give them a chance to run," Pansy answered with a smirk at Ron's foolish question.

"Oh," was all he could offer after realizing that going ahead was indeed the best move.

The group found a small clearing and decided to set up camp there. Thorn ordered Pansy and Ron to go gather some wood and find some water.

They had finished filling up the water bottles and were moving on to find the wood when suddenly Pansy came to an abrupt stop and pointed "Look, up ahead. That looks like a fire. Weasley, you go and tell them to get away, and I'll keep Thorn and the others busy."

"Why do I have to go warn them alone? What if Thorn suspects why I'm missing?"

"I'll take the water with me and convince him I sent you to gather the wood because you're better able to carry it," she said as she ran back to the others.

Pansy made it back to Thorn's tent and starts suggesting plans to move out of the forest and on to the nearby town the next day. Just as Pansy is explaining the need of supplies Thorn catches on to the fact that Ron is not with Pansy as he is supposed to be.

"Pansy, where's the Weasley kid? He's supposed to be with you at all times!" he yelled at her.

"I left him to finish gathering the wood," Pansy said in a panic. "I'll go get him." She hoped that she had given Ron enough time to warn those people and start his way back to the camp.

Thorn hears people running off in the distance and fears they are about to lose a valuable catch.

"That's probably him running away. You three," he points at three of his men, "go after him."

"No. I'll do it! I'm in charge of him." Pansy runs off faster than the other Snatchers in hopes of reaching Ron before them. She finds him just moments before Thorn and the other men arrive.

"Weasley, did they get away?" she whispers.

"Yeah, but just barely."

"Well, well Weasley, so I see your attempt at escaping didn't work," Thorn taunts Ron as he grabs him roughly by the arm. "Come on everyone back to camp."

The group makes its way back to the campsite and Thorn is not happy with the night's events.

"Ya can't be trying to escape boy. You won't get anywhere without a wand," Thorn laughs. He turns to Pansy and says, "Pansy I would like a word with you in private."

They reach the campsite and Pansy and Thorn head to his tent.

"Would you mind explaining why the boy was off on his own?" he asks her.

"He was just supposed to be off nearby gathering wood. It's not like he can really go anywhere we can't find him again."

"He is a valuable tool to getting us in the Dark Lord's favor and you were careless to think he wouldn't try to escape," Thorn yells at her exasperated at the girl's carelessness.

"But he didn't," she squeaks, afraid to say anything else to anger the angry man.

"But he did manage to warn others about our whereabouts and let them escape. Don't think I didn't notice what the boy did. You keep a better eye on him or I will personally start doing it myself. And get him to talk. So far he hasn't given you a clue about where Potter may be hiding."

And with that Pansy was dismissed. Back in the tent she shares with Ron he was waiting to hear what Thorn had told her.

"What did Thorn tell you?"

"Just that he wants me to keep a closer eye on you and to start getting information on your friends from you."

"Oh well that's not so bad," Ron says nonchalantly.

"He knows you warned those people. He might be on to us," Pansy said still nervous about Thorn's words. Pansy was starting to panic with the thought that they might get caught. "I can't let him find out what we're really doing."

"Relax; we'll just be more careful next time."

"No, it's not that simple, I'm afraid we might have to catch whoever we run into next time. I don't want to but Thorn's starting to catch on to our plan."

By this point Pansy was ready to break down. She had not had a close call so far and this incident left her feeling scared of the consequences that may occur if she and Ron were to be caught helping people escape. Ron noticed the panicked state that Pansy was in and decided it was best to come up with a different plan in the morning when they had a good night's rest.

"Let's think about that tomorrow when we're rested. I promise you we will come up with a plan to keep fooling Thorn and the others."

Let me know what you think.

-Ale