A/N: Hey everyone, hope you're doing alright and I hope your weeks going good. Real quick I just want to say, thank you for all of the support you've given this story. Never think it is unappreciated, as it always is. Now without further ado, on with the story!

Changing My Life

Chapter 23: Taking A Chance

After flooing out of Amelia's office, Harry replaced the cloak over himself and exited the Three Broomsticks. He then made his way to the castle.

Entering the castle, Harry went up to Gryffindor Tower and into the boys dorm. Going into the apartment that the trunk stored, Harry exchanged his current cloths for a black t-shirt, black slim jeans, dark maroon and white midtop Nikes and his black slim leather jacket. Exiting the apartment and the trunk he made sure everything was in his trunk and then shrunk the it.

Satisfied that he had everything, he turned towards the door. Once he reached it, and his hand on the handle about to open it, the door opened and was pulled from his hands. Hermione was standing there in front of the door making sure he couldn't get through. She was dressed in skinny dark blue jeans, a grey and black long sleeved shirt with a beaded bag.

"Hey Hermione, what's up? You going somewhere?" Harry greeted nonchalantly with a grin and gestured to her beaded bag and her street clothes. She tilted her head to the left.

"Wherever you plan to go." She answered with a smile gesturing to his own clothes. Harry's grin disappeared.

"Hermione, look I…" Harry started.

"No Harry. Amelia floo called me. Actually the room of requirement but only Neville and I were there. She told us what you planning to do. Well more like who you were planning to find." She interrupted.

"She said she was going to turn a blind eye." Harry mumbled not happy.

"Maybe a blind eye in law terms but she's not an idiot Harry." Hermione remarked.

"No I'm not taking you and Neville with me, end of story." He stated firmly before pushing past her.

"No you're not, you're taking me." She grabbed his eye and pulled his arm to turn him back to face her. Looking him in the eye, she didn't let him go.

Jaw clenching, he replied. "I don't have much of a choice in this, do I?"

"Nope." She grinned, knowing that while he may not like it, he wasn't going to fight it.

Nodding in acceptance, Harry turned and walked down the stairs with Hermione behind him. They made their way through the common room and to the room of requirement where they used the floo and disappeared.

Reappearing in The Three Broomsticks floo, Harry pulled Hermione out and they made their way to the edge of Hogmeade. Reaching it, Harry warned her.

"Hold on." He said as he grabbed a tight hold of her hand. He waited until she nodded before disapparating.

Once they arrived, they separated as Hermione looked around. "Where are we?" Hermione inquired as she looked around the room. It was not a big room, there was a bed in the corner next to a desk. There was papers scattered on the floor. It was very dimly lit. From what Hermione could tell, it looked like it would be apart of a small flat from the cheaper, older buildings.

"Where he was last spotted." Harry answered while checking around the room.

"Why would he be here? Why not at Malfoy Manor?" She questioned incredulously as she bent down and picked up a stray piece of newspaper off the ground.

"He's not a Malfoy anymore." At her shocked look at his statement he paused before continuing. "Are you Draco?" He asked without even turning around.

At his question, a person walked in through the door that was behind and angled to Harry's left. "No I'm not." He sneered as Harry turned around to face him. Draco wasn't wearing wizard robes but rather street clothes much like Harry's and Hermione's. He was wearing jeans similar in color to Hermione's, and a untucked dark grey dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up.

"What are you doing here Potter?" Draco questioned, with little malice in his voice. He obviously wasn't thrilled to see Harry again but he wasn't in much position to do anything.

"I need your help." Harry answered honestly.

"My help?" Draco asked surprised even though he tried to hide it. "And why the hell would I help you?" He drawled, raising an eyebrow.

"Because you know what I can do for you." Harry answered. Hermione was looking between the two trying to understand what they were talking about. Putting the pieces together, her eyes widened and she sucked in a sharp intake of breathe.

The slight noise caused Draco's eyes to turn to her. "Ah I see Granger's figured it out. A bit slow today aren't we?" He smirked.

"Harry, you can not be seriously thinking about helping him, can you?" Hermione remarked, glaring at Draco.

"If he can help get me what I want." He answered though it was directed at both of them.

"As I said before Potter, why would I help you?"

"Because you and I both know that being disowned is just as worse, no it's actually considered worse than being a squib in the pureblooded community. Especially for someone like you. I can change that. I can't change your allowance to do magic but I can give you protection. Protection you're going to need, badly." Harry supplied.

"I doubt you could protect anyone Potter. After all, look at what almost happened to Greengrass." Draco mocked.

"Oh trust me, if I wanted to, I could've kicked your arse. Don't make me want to." Harry warned.

"Technically it wouldn't be him protecting you, it would be his house name. Everyone knows not to mess with Lord Potter. Only people looking for trouble have." Hermione commented from her position angled to Harry's right.

"Which name?" Draco asked.

"Black." Harry answered with no hesitation.

"So I would be a member of House Black. As I don't have any better offers at the moment, what do you want Potter?" Draco decided.

"I want your help breaking into Bellatrix's vault." Harry answered. Draco's eyes widened, he certain hadn't thought it was something like that. Even Hermione was surprised, she hadn't known what Harry was trying to do, only who he wanted help from.

"Excuse me?" Draco asked not sure he heard right.

"You heard me. And don't say you can't help because I know you can."

"Um Harry, how can he help break into a Gringotts vault?" Hermione wondered drawing Harry's attention to her.

"He may not be a Malfoy anymore but he can still think like one. And right now, that's the thinking I need." Harry answered before looking back at Draco. "So what'll it be? You help me and I help you or I tell exactly who you don't want to know where you are, where you are. Your choice."

Draco looked between Harry and Hermione trying to find something he could exploit. Finding nothing, he sighed before answering. "Where do we start?"

"It's moving day. Get whatever you care about." Harry told him. Draco nodded stiffly, before moving towards Hermione. Harry's eye followed his every move. Draco continue right past Hermione and to the closet behind her. He grabbed a suitcase from the top and throw whatever cloths were in the closet into it before closing it and exiting the room.

He returned a few minutes later with a sling bag across his shoulder. Holding the suitcase he nodded to Harry. Harry then grabbed Hermione's hand and put his hand on Draco's shoulder. Seconds later, the three vanished from the tiny flat along with the luggage.

They landed in front of gates. Draco and Hermione looked around, both trying to figure out where they were. One of the pillars had a serpent on it.

"We're at Slytherin Manor? Aren't we?" Draco exclaimed, turning to look at him with wide eyes. With a slight smile, Harry nodded.

Harry stepped forward and the snake that was on the pillar came to life and burst out and landed in front of him. While to Hermione and Draco, it just looked like the snake and Harry were looking at each other. They couldn't see his eyes. Harry's eyes glowed for a second before returning to normal. The snakes eyes glowed a second after before the gates opened and the snake returned into the pillar.

"Let's go." Harry said with a hidden smile.

The trio walked through the gates, Harry leading with Hermione and Draco trailing behind him. Once they got to the doors, Harry turned to face Draco.

"Draco, just so you know you can't speak of this places location to anyone I don't allow you to. And not just because you don't actually know where it is, but rather you physically can't. So don't waste your energy trying." Harry not waiting for a response, turned back around and opened the doors before entering the manor. Hermione, glancing at Draco, followed behind Harry with Draco bringing up the rear.

After the last of them entered the house, the doors closed automatically behind them. Standing in the foyer, Harry stopped.

"What're you doing?" Hermione questioned coming up behind him. He glanced at her before a slight pop could be heard. It drew the trios attention.

"Master Harry, welcome to Slytherin Manor." A elf wearing a uniform with the House Slytherin emblem on its shoulder. As soon as Hermione saw the elf, her eyes blazed with anger.

"How could you?!" Hermione raged, jabbing Harry in the chest angry.

"How could I what?" Harry asked unsure as to what she was angry about.

"Make an elf call you master! Have an elf!" She exclaimed.

"I didn't make him call me anything! He just does! And as for having one, well it's helpful and it saves them." Harry explained.

"How the hell does making them a servant save them? That can no-." Hermione started.

"Jeez Granger, that's exactly why purebloods dislike muggleborns." Draco interrupted causing her to spin to face him.

"Oh because we care?!" She retorted.

"No because you don't understand how this world works. House elves need masters to live. It's the bond with a master or family that gives them their main magic and they rely on that bond to live. Maybe if you actually learned about our world you would get that." Draco stated a matter of factly.

Hermione's mouth gaped, and her eye wide. She looked between Harry and Draco, to see if what he was saying was true. When her eyes stopped on Harry, she waited. He nodded in confirmation that what Draco had said was true.

"But it that's true, how is Dobby still alive? Where is he anyway?" Hermione questioned Harry.

"Wait a minute, Dobby as in my families old elf?" Draco interjected.

"Yes." Hermione answered before looking back at Harry still waiting for an answer.

"I honestly don't know how he still alive. Maybe he's just been living off his stored magic? As for where he is, I don't know that either. I'm not his master. And I never really paid attention to when he stopped popping about." Harry admitted.

"Seriously?" Hermione asked incredulously.

"I had a few things on my mind!" Harry defended causing Hermione to hmph.

"What are we doing here Potter?" Draco questioned.

"And here I thought it was obvious. This is going to be all of our residence until we pull this off." Harry informed him.

"Well last I checked, the Hogwarts year isn't over. Yet you two are what?"

"Right now, Hogwarts is on the back burner. I'll go back when it's time." Harry answered.

"And what about you?" Draco gestured to Hermione.

"Someone's got to stop him from making stupid decisions." She remarked.

"Anyway, this is Jake. He's head elf here in Slytherin manor. Most things in this house are done manually. There is a fully functioning kitchen and it will be used. If you need something you can't get or do on your own, call either Freddy and Blain. They will help you. Draco, Freddy will show you to your room." Harry paused and seconds after he said that, another elf appeared. He was wearing similar clothing to Jake. "Hermione, I'll show you to your room." Harry finished. The other two nodded and Freddy beckoned Draco to follow him. He followed, bags and all.

Hermione and Harry made their way up the stairs in the foyer. They walked through the halls until they pasted the master bedroom. They stopped at the room right next to it.

"This is yours." Harry informed her.

"Thanks, Harry?"

"Hm?" He beckoned for her continue.

"Do you really think this is a good idea?" She asked curiously.

"Not yet, but it will be."

"Why are you doing this? What are you hoping to gain?"

"The truth on something." He answered, before continuing, "Talk later?" At her nod, Harry turned and returned down the hall.

The night flew by for the trio who after dinner were all doing there own thing. They had decided to get started tomorrow. Though working with Draco was going to be interesting and sometimes difficult, Harry was fully willing to do it as a means to an end.

Meanwhile At Hogwarts

Dinner had ended hour's ago and the head of house staff were having a meeting.

"Has anyone seen Potter, it seems his arrogance has grown thinking he can skip meals and classes." Snape remarked.

"Wait, Harry wasn't in your class?" Dumbledore inquired.

"Or mine. He wasn't at lunch or dinner either. Miss Granger was also not in attendance." Professor Sprout informed them.

"Have any of you seen either of them?" Dumbledore asked the heads of houses. They all shook their heads in answer.

"I fear they may be missing. Keep it quiet for now but please do find them." Dumbledore persisted. All of the teachers nodded, though Snape's was reluctant as he couldn't care less.

"Meeting dismissed."

McGonagall's first thought after she left the office was, This is not good. Potter predicted this reaction though, let's hope he predicted the outcome as well.

A/N: Hey everyone, just so you know polls still open. I know Draco probably seemed different but with everything he's gone through and the few options he has, he saw what he needed to do for his own sake. Thank you for all of the support! Hope you enjoyed! Happy reading! -DS