Thanks to Xana for being my Beta Reader!

Hermione watched the blonde haired boy walk over to his sink. She had washed her face plenty of times in the half circle basin that was attached directly to the wall, but she had never really paid attention to it in detail.

"I can't believe a word you say, can I, Malfoy? Is this what you think will keep me alive? The thought that you did not kill my boyfriend? I will never…" But her tears came back and her voice dropped. "I will never know the truth."

Draco moved his wand with the grace and elegance of a swan, muttering an incantation. The sink, which turned out to be a full circle, began to turn, as if it was a merry-go-round. It kept moving slowly until the part that had been used as a sink was deep into the wall and a new basin was now showing. This one with many runic symbols adorning it. Inside the basin, a silvery fluid with a few choice memory strands dancing within it.

"I have no more secrets from you, Granger…" Draco told her as he moved away from the basin. "You want the truth? Be my guest," he said, motioning to the basin.

She stood up from the floor of the bathtub and climbed out of it slowly. She was still wet from the aguamenticharm Draco had splashed on her. What did she care? She looked into the basin and then back to Draco. He nodded to her, while looking down.

She'd been in the room for months now… She'd never seen the sink turn. These must have been memories Draco removed from his own mind, to protect himself.

She touched the surface of the water and the memories began to swirl fast and out of control. She dropped onto a seat on the Hogwarts express. She was in a compartment with first years: Draco Malfoy, Theodore Nott, Gregory Goyle and Vincent Crabbe. Ernie McMillan and Hannah Abbott were also there.

"I know I am going to be sorted into Slytherin… my parents were Slytherins, you know…" Draco bragged.

The door barged open and in came Hermione… She was 11, and full of pride. "Have you seen a toad? A boy named Neville lost it."

"No-- now get out of here… this compartment is for purebloods only." Nott called after her. Hermione had not remembered that incident at all. But the 11 year old girl glared at the boy, turned on her heels and left to search more compartments.

Draco had been visibly bewitched by the little girl. He stood there staring at the empty space she had once occupied and sighed. Nott looked over at Draco. "Oi! Malfoy!" He said, disgusted, "You aren't crushing on the mudblood are you?"

"Of course not, Nott." He said, laying back pretending to sleep.

The images swirled and Hermione fell on the ground. The scenery was familiar; it was the bushes behind Hagrid's cabin. A younger Draco was stealing a glance at a couple of students that had started snogging behind the fenced garden… She used to snog with Ron there… Her face went pale as she realized, that was indeed her and Ron that Malfoy was staring at. Ron… there he was.

This particular snogging session had gone somewhat further that Hermione had really wanted it to. There was a fair amount of touching and kissing… licking… sucking… Hermione was letting Ron go further than he'd even gone.

Draco had his pants open, his hand stroking his enlarged member as he watched them… it wasn't long until he climaxed.

Hermione was furious, but yet, she understood his need to hide this particular memory.

"Ronald! Did you hear something?" the younger Hermione asked. Draco had moved, and a branch broke under his foot. The Malfoy heir stood still, waiting for the couple to ignore what they thought was probably an animal, and begin their snogging again. As they did, he inched away and made his way to the castle.

The images blurred again and then came back into focus. She was in a dark corner of the Hogs Head Inn. Draco was sitting at a table, his hood covering his luscious blonde locks, but there was no mistaking his eyes. He was sipping a firewhiskey as if he'd been drinking the stuff for years. He was just about to leave when, Harry Potter walked in the door.

The 17 year old boy walked over to the hooded figure. Malfoy didn't do a good job in hiding himself. "You'd better give me a reason to not alert the professors and the ministry of your presence, M-" But before he could finish, Draco had moved his wand and silenced the boy who lived…

"Shut up Potter, and let me speak. In a fortnight, Death Eaters will storm the castle. They've been changing their plans as to the date… so be prepared." Draco said in his usual snide voice.

Harry now seemed interested. He sat at the table with the Slytherin and said "How can I be certain this isn't a trap?"

"You can't…" Draco said matter-of-factly. "You will just have to trust me…" He said with a smirk.

"Trust D-" But the silencio charm was cast again… you would have thought Harry Potter would have foreseen that coming.

"Do not speak my name; I have risked a lot to come here." He hissed through his teeth, "I am not going to be caught because of your tongue!"

"Why did you risk being caught to come tell me this?" Harry said.

"I need your word you will not let anyone know of this." Draco said taking another sip of the firewhiskey.

"You have it." Harry said

"I mean it Potter!" Draco said, getting sterner as he addressed the fabled Chosen One.

"You have it, you prat-- now tell me!" Harry spat back.

"I want you and Weasel-bee to send your mudblood friend away. Get her out of danger." Draco said disgusted.

Harry jumped to his feet and said "Don't call her tha- Wait… you want Hermione out of danger!" He couldn't believe his ears… did he actually say that?

"No sense in spilling her blood… mud blood…" Draco said looking at his now empty glass.

"No…" Harry said. He had started to understand. Draco liked Hermione… a lot… and he himself knew how hard it was to keep that a secret. Granted, he never pretended to hate Ginny… but he understood what the blonde haired boy was going through. That was probably why he was meanest to Ron… "I guess there isn't…"

Their faces began swirling together and she was finally in the corridor outside the Headmaster's office. She remembered this being where they had escaped Death Eaters, but remembered nothing past that.

She was in a corner and saw Draco crouching behind the armor of a knight, waiting… for what, she wasn't sure.

The door burst open. She, Harry, and Ron came running through the entryway from the moving staircase. Hermione remembered turning around and starting to lock the double doors and put up all sorts of wards on them.

"Stupefy Maxima!" The Slytherin cast and Hermione fell unconscious. Malfoy came out of his hiding place his wand drawn.

"I told you to send her to safety, you git!" Draco was furious! He'd risked his life to get her out of danger.

"You coward!" Ron said, charging the blonde boy, ready to send a spell flying.

"Expelliarmus!" Harry said pointing his wand to Ron. The wand jumped out of his hands. "Draco's on our side, mate!"

Ron could have killed Harry at that moment. "I could give a thestral's arse! He stunned my girlfriend, if I have to throw him down muggle style, I will!"

"Ron! Get a grip, mate! She'll be easier to bring to safety." Harry said.

"Fine," the ginger boy replied, "The Death Eaters brought down the wards, I'll apparate her out, and then I'll come back."

"You do that, Weasel-bee, and don't you come back until she's safe. Do you hear me, you blood traitor scum?" Draco growled.

Ronald looked at Harry with an inquisitive look that seemed to scream, 'Since when did he care about Hermione?'

At that moment a secret door behind a bookcase burst open. Theodore Nott and a dark haired girl with a glowing dark mark on her arm came bursting through the corridor. The couple did not see the others in the corridor as they were concealed by the moved bookcase.

Nott grabbed a handful of the dark hair flowing from the girl's head. He pulled her towards him and instead of screaming the girl laughed and kissed him viciously. She was biting his lower lip, and had a demonic look in her eyes. She pulled away from him, licking the little blood she had drawn from him by biting his lips… or tongue… Hermione was rather disgusted by it as she saw the scene unfold.

"Irina, you are my mate. I will follow you to the ends of Hades and back!" Nott screamed with an enthusiasm Hermione had never seen in the boy. The girl must have been Irina Karkaroff.

"As long as you continue pleasing the Dark Lord, you will have me. But don't forget, once he calls on me to bear him the Heir of Slytherin, I will go to his bed." She said with a sick smile on her face.

"I wouldn't have it any other way, my love, my dark beauty. I will be happy to take you back once you've done your life's work and you and I may consummate our love." Nott said as he pulled her by her waist and kissed her neck, biting down on her.

"Stupify Maxima!" The spell hit Nott in the back and as he fell to the ground, he let go of Irina.

Irina turned around and ducked the next spell that came from Harry. Irina was a master of non verbal spells. She walked towards Ronald, now wandless, who seemed to be petrified. The dark haired girl cast protego at every spell Harry and Draco sent towards her, as if she was swatting flies away.

She seemed calm, but there was vengeance in her eyes.

With a movement of her wand Ronald flew backward into the spear of a suit of armor, which ran through his stomach.

"Nooooo!" Harry screamed. "Ron!" The Chosen One ran to his friend trying to remove him from the spear, to no avail.

Hermione screamed! She, who had been watching from the corner, ran to Ron's aid, but she was not really there, this was a memory-- and not hers. She tried to caress her boyfriend's cheek… tried to help Harry, but all she could do was watch him die.

Irina was about to charge after him when Draco stepped in front of her.

"Take Nott's ring, Draco!"

"Stupify!"

"Protego!" She said out loud this time. "You think I killed my own father thanks to being lucky? I am fast and talented… and I have no heart!"

"Then what does Nott have?" He said to her.

"He has a promise, nothing more… love is an idiotic feeling. I thought you knew this. What with Parkinson and all…" She smiled a wicked smile. "Or is there someone else you love, Draco?" She seemed as though she was flirting, in a deviant sort of way.

Draco's eyes quickly glanced at Hermione.

"Her! A Mudblood? Over Me?" she said, annoyed.

"You? What are you talking about?" Draco said, truly miffed.

"You were supposed to have the ring! Nott told me it was a gift from your Aunt Bellatrix, after he pleased her in ways she'd not been pleased before! But your father should have given you that ring! You were supposed to be my mate, my promise." The girl seemed so angry with him.

"That ring was given down to the male heir of your family line… do you know you are a descendant of the first dark lord? Even before Salazar Slytherin. And your stupid uncle gave it away!" She began pulling her hair out; the girl was Mad! "I was supposed to bear the Dark Lord's Heir… it's in the prophecy! Now take the ring; you were the one who stunned him. Take the ring. It's yours to claim!"

"No! I don't want you, Irina! And you are not making sense!" Malfoy screamed.

"The seer said I was going to kill my father and bear a son to the boy wearing the ring. My child would be the next Dark Lord and ancestor to the first Dark Lord. You are ruining it! And for what!" she said looking at Hermione on the floor. Her wand rose. "Crucio!"

The spell hit the unconscious Hermione and her body began to writhe and jolt.

"CRUCIO!" Draco said aiming at Irina, but the deviant girl had a sick taste for pain and she kept on torturing the unconscious body. Finally, Draco could not bear to see Hermione's body mistreated and not being able to stop it. "Avada Kedavra!"

Irina's head spun towards Draco, in utter shock that he would utter those words… the killing curse, for the girl laying unconscious on the corridor floor. But her eyes went blank and she fell. Lifeless.

"Draco!" Ron coughed.

The blond boy turned around and approached the dying Gryffindor.

"Harry, it's alright… stop crying…" Ron tried to mutter. "You need to go. The dark lord's after you…" Ron tried to breathe through the pain. "Go!"

"But Hermione…" Harry contested.

"She'll be safer with Malfoy… with you, she'll just be followed." Ron said and held onto the spear. "Go now, I hate looking like skewered meat in front of friends. Go… I love you mate…"

"I love you, too…" Harry said in tears and he disapparated.

Hermione was crying her eyes out. So this was what had happened?

But then he turned to Draco. "Look… you are a right git, but I need you to promise me that…" Ron coughed again, "That… you will take care of my girl… ok?"

Draco nodded. "I will die for her."

"I can tell…" Ron said trying not to laugh. "First born Malfoy…. you call him or her Ron… Ronald or Ronalda…"

Draco chuckled, "In your dreams, Weasley."

Ron chuckled, followed by "Ow Ow Ow…"

"Don't talk… and do not fear; I will protect her with my life." Draco told him.

"Tha… Tha…. Thank y-" But Ron died before he could finish.

Draco closed the boy's eyes. He went to Irina and took her wand. He transfigured it to look like his own ornate wand, then he took his and transfigured his own to look like Ronald Weasley's plainer one. He then took Ron's and turned it to look like Irina's and broke it in half laying it by her side.

He sat on the floor by Irina and touched his Dark Mark.

"Bombarda!" The door blew open and as it did, Death Eaters came from the stairway.

"Draco!" His mother yelled running to him. "Are you hurt? Child, speak to me!"

"I'm fine mother… I killed Ronald Weasley."

"You… You did?" A voice came from the back… it was Goyle's.

"Yes, you idiot, I did." Malfoy said annoyed.

"I don't believe it." Pansy, who was behind Goyle, said defiantly. "Check his wand!"

"Little Miss Parkinson seems to think you betrayed us, that they knew of our attack," Lucius said to his son taking the ornate wand from his hand. "Let's see. Prior Incantato!"

The ghost of the spell that shot toward Ron shoving him onto the spear appeared.

Hermione couldn't bear seeing it again, and covered her face.

"Looks like your son's earned a place at my right hand," Hissed the high pitch voice of Lord Voldemort. "Good work, boy… You've delivered the young mudblood and killed Potter's best pal… he'll be easily caught now."

Draco feigned a pleased smile.

"But what happened to Karkaroff?" The Dark Lord asked.

"Weasley killed her. I'm laying claim to his wand as a spare for me… If the Dark Lord is alright with that." Draco turned to his father. "Would you like to test this one as well?"

Lucius glared at his son's impudence. But the Dark Lord laughed. "You son did not appreciate being called a traitor I see… He will go far. Lay your claim to anything you wish, it is yours."

"I want her!" He said pointing at the unconscious Hermione.

"No, I've claimed her." Zabini's voice said.

"Crucio!" Draco used full force Blaise was crying from the pain begging him for mercy.

Voldemort looked at Draco and said "Stop Draco… I need young Blaise."

Draco stopped obediently.

Voldemort circled the stunned Hermione. "What do you wish to do with the mudblood, Draco…"

"I want to show her what it means to go against the Dark Lord! And once I tire of playing with my new toy, I will dispose of her." There was anger in the boy's voice.

"Very well, Draco-- a gift from me." Voldermort said.

The fluid in the basin spun around, and she found herself falling backward. Draco caught her as she fainted in his arms.