When Harry woke up the next day, he felt more relaxed than he did in weeks. Perhaps months. The bed he slept in was soft and wonderful. It was almost like he was back at the Grimmauld place. He yawned sleepily as he opened his eyes. Out of habit, he reached to the right side of the bed to get his glasses and his wand from the night stand. He could find his glasses but there was no wand. And that's when he fully awakened and recalled everything that happened.

They were in the Greengrass manor.

Their wands were taken from them because, despite the luxurious room they were currently in, they were prisoners. He took a quick look at the other two beds and was relieved to find both Hermione and Ron in them, still sleeping peacefully. He let them sleep while he sat up fully in the bed and pondered their situation.

It seemed that their fate was in the hands of one of their classmates. Harry was ashamed to admit that he knew nothing about Daphne Greengrass despite going to the same school with her for six years.

It seemed ridiculous but wasn't entirely his fault, he thought. After all, Draco Malfoy and his hostility towards him made sure that he kept well away from anyone wearing the green tie. And in the end, it wasn't just Daphne whom he did not know but virtually all the Slytherins. Now that Hermione pointed out who she was, he could recall seeing the blonde witch at various points over the years, usually in group of other Slytherins. But as far as he could remember, he never spoke to her or interacted with her in any way.

Harry still did not know what to think about their situation. They were obviously in trouble, perhaps a great trouble. According to Hermione, Daphne was a strong supporter of pureblood supremacy and she hated muggleborns. That would make her a picture-perfect supporter of the dark lord. But if that was the case, why weren't they handed to Voldemort the moment they arrived? Harry was positive the Dark Lord gave orders to summon him immediately if they were ever captured. So why provide them with food, bath, bed and a good night sleep instead?

There were so many questions but Harry couldn't answer any of them, knowing next to nothing about Daphne, aside from the fact that she was beautiful and a Slytherin. She also had a younger sister, also in Slytherin, and her father, Lord Greengrass, died recently. As his eldest daughter, Daphne was now the head of her family. Harry was confused why her mother was still not in charge given Daphne's youth but written it off as a strange pureblood custom.

And that was it. He knew nothing else about the girl.

When they were brought in, she did call Hermione a mudblood, so at the very least, the part about her hating muggleborns was probably true. But did that make her a servant of Voldemort? Hermione thought so but Harry was not convinced. He always assumed all witches and wizards with opinions like that served Voldemort but now he was not so sure. Perhaps it was just a wishful thinking on his part and a foolish hope that they were not utterly screwed.

Hermione had a different theory. When he expressed his doubts to her last night his friend dismissed his claims. She has been doing nothing for the past month except criticizing every idea he had, from the Deathly Hallows to the location of horcruxes. So her thinking that he was wrong was nothing new to him. But this time, she chose a more original retort than 'You are wrong, Harry,' and instead claimed that he was 'letting her pretty face fool him'.

Harry was very annoyed by that suggestion. True, he did think Daphne was pretty but he did not believe it was affecting his thinking. True, if it was Malfoy in her place instead, he would be extremely suspicious, but that was because he knew that bastard from before. He almost retorted that Hermione was letting her jealousy cloud her judgment!

Yes, Harry would never call her out on it but as Hermione described Daphne to him, he could tell she felt jealous and self-conscious when it came to the eldest Greengrass girl.

And Harry could guess why.

Both girls were intelligent and hardworking, and were at the top of their class as a result. But Daphne had additional advantages that Hermione did not have and what was worse had no chance of obtaining no matter how hard she worked – Daphne was pureblood and attractive.

Harry assigned no value to blood status but he knew it bothered Hermione that so many people will always consider her an outcast in magical society just because of who her parents were. And as for attractiveness, it was not like he thought Hermione was ugly by any means! But as much as he loved his best friend, he could recognize that her beauty was not the kind that would make every boy stare at her as she walked inside a room. Not like Daphne who seemed to have all the attributes that most men considered ideals of female beauty. Harry figured Hermione could see it too and that's why she reacted so harshly when Ron called Daphne hot last night.

So for now, Harry tried to keep an open mind about Daphne Greengrass and hoped for the best…

He was just about to get out of bed and go to the bathroom when the door to their room opened and three guards marched in. Harry tensed when he saw they had wands ready. The guards searched the room with their eyes and took note of all three prisoners.

"You're already awake, good," one of them said when he saw Harry sitting in the bed. "Lady Greengrass will see you in ten minutes… alone" he stressed when Harry looked at his friends. The guard threw fresh pile of clothing onto Harry's bed. "Be ready."

Hermione and Ron were woken up by the guard's voices and were just getting out of the beds when group walked out, leaving them alone once again for the moment.

"Harry? What's going on mate?" Ron asked as he rubbed the sleep out of his eyes.

Harry signed with trepidation as he stood up to get ready. "Just as we thought… she wants to see me in ten minutes."

"Remember what we discussed, Harry… you must not tell her anything," Hermione stressed in commanding voice, repeating the words for what felt like a hundredth time since yesterday. "Don't worry. I am not a fool, Hermione," he snapped at her as he went to the bathroom. He loved his best friend dearly, but she could be really trying sometimes.

"I am sorry… just be careful, please," she apologized, realizing she pushed him too far this time. She and Harry looked at each other and he nodded solemnly before going to get changed and refreshed.

They did not have much time to discuss anything else before the guards arrived to take Harry away. At that moment, all three friends were thinking whether they were ever going to see each other again.

With Harry gone, Hermione and Ron took turns in the bathroom and changed into the robes they received yesterday. All that time, Ron kept bombarding her with question like "What do you think she wants with him?" and "What happens now?"

Finally, Hermione snapped and told him that she didn't know and added that he was the one who took Divination in school so why doesn't he tell her? That finally shut him up, letting Hermione think about their situation and how to get out of it. Unfortunately, all she could think about were the potentially horrible things that Daphne Greengrass could be doing to her friend at that very moment…

She was almost grateful when Ron spoke next and distracted her from her thoughts. "I guess they didn't bother with breakfast today…" he said. Hermione saw him standing next to the table which, unlike yesterday, was now devoid of any food or drinks except a single pitcher of water and three glasses.

"I am sure they will give us something later," Hermione replied, rolling her eyes at Ron's traditional preoccupation with his stomach but there was also smile on her face. Ron always managed to lift her spirits, even when she didn't want him to. It was his blessing and a curse. Her reverie about her friend was interrupted when all of a sudden the doors came open and a number of guards barged in.

Instead of breakfast food, they had their wands ready in hands. And unlike before, they were not alone. "All clear," one of them stated when they took note of their positions. Upon his confirmation, a girl slightly younger than Hermione walked inside in their wake.

"Astoria?" Hermione recognized her immediately.

"Yes… me. You are as brainy as ever, Granger," Astoria Greengrass acknowledged her mockingly before adding. "Well aren't you two just happy to see me?" she asked and looked between the two prisoners for a moment like she was expecting an answer. Then she commanded her guards. "Stun them!"

The red light of the stunner was the last thing Hermione saw as everything turned dark.