A/N: *cowers* There is no excuse for abandoning you guys for this long—so I won't even try. Y'all know how school and responsibility can just attack you so I won't waste time on it. Instead, know that I will continue updating with some attempt at regularity (gasp) since classes are done for the summer! Yay! *throws confetti* And if any of you guys are still interested in this story…bless you. Bless your lovely hearts, and know that I will finish it! Hopefully well.

Disclaimer:

Draco: I thought I was free…so close, but so far…

Rosy: Nope! I'm back, baby! And that means you are, too!

Draco: *cries*

Rosy: Aw, it's not that bad…

Draco: Someone...anyone…save me.

Rosy: I don't own anything except Nalani! Actually I'm not sure if I own her if it's in the context of fanfiction…Oh and I pulled a couple of ideas from the Artemis Fowl series by Eoin Colfer and The Divide trilogy by Elizabeth Kay. All else belongs to the lovely J. K. Rowling except for my manipulation of her poor characters.

Draco: I think this is the only real disclaimer you've done.

Rosy: Shut it.

Chapter 10

It was a freezing Tuesday two months later and Nalani was walking to Potions with her hands tucked underneath her cape in a futile effort to retain some feeling in her fingers. Turning a corner, she glanced out the window and couldn't help smiling at the snow. Living in California she hadn't even seen snow, not until she'd visited some family in Minnesota. Even then it'd only been a pile of slush that wasn't any good for snowmen or anything. Of course, that hadn't stopped her and her brother from flinging piles of it at each other. The weather made for a nice change, even if it was cold.

She walked into the dungeons, grateful for once to be surrounded by steaming cauldrons. She dropped her bag at her desk. Tedious the class may be, but it did at least provide the advantage of automatic heating. Malfoy gave her the odd, uncomfortable nod that had become their customary greeting in between practice sessions, or whatever they were. Certainly not friends but not quite enemies, they were in the uneasy no-man's-land somewhere in between. Nalani started pulling ingredients out of her potion kit, reflecting that hating people was much simpler.

XXX

Later that afternoon, she was crossing the frosted lawns to the greenhouses (and thinking wistfully of the blazing fire in the common room) when she nearly crashed into a group of Slytherins, just returning form their own Herbology lesson. Malfoy—of course—was among them. Thankfully it was too cold to waste much time trading insults, but just as she was pushing past him and his group of tagalongs she saw him stop.

"No, I think I forgot something. Go in without me." An unusual command from their ringleader, but the icy temperatures meant the others weren't exactly dying to argue. Nalani kept walking, hearing mumbled assent and trudging footsteps from the others as she kicked her way through the mounds of snow in the opposite direction. She stopped only when she felt someone's hand on her shoulder.

When Malfoy spoke, his voice was so quiet she had to struggle to hear him over the conversation of the other students. Briefly, she wondered what on earth could be important enough to ditch his entourage for. Stopping their lessons, maybe? Warning her to keep away from him in public? Jinxing her?

"Are you going into Hogsmeade tomorrow?"

Her surprise must have been obvious, because he quickly added, "Don't get your hopes up, Mudbl—Muggle-born. I'm not asking you out. I need a favor."

She crossed her arms. The almost-epithet hadn't escaped her notice. "Then ask it," she snapped.

The boy scowled. "Not here!" He glanced at the chattering clusters of students walking past. "I just—it's better if we're not in Hogwarts."

Nalani rolled her eyes. "I'm not going to an unfamiliar place with a boy I barely know. Okay?"

Malfoy sighed. "If I wanted to hex you, don't you think it'd be easier not to warn you about it?"

"Hexing isn't the only thing I'm worried about," she said pointedly.

"We'll meet outside the Three Broomsticks, then. You can bring as many friends as you want if it makes you feel better; I just need to ask you something."

She contemplated her options. A busy place seemed safe enough, and she was getting curious…

"Okay," she sighed finally. "Tomorrow at 3."

He didn't thank her, just nodded and turned on his heel, walking back towards the castle. Nalani watched him for a moment. I really hope I don't regret this.

XXX

"This is exciting!" Parvati whispered as they slowly made their way into the village. "I feel like we're undercover or something. What exactly did he say to you again?"

Nalani sighed. She was rapidly getting tired of repeating the conversation. "He wants to ask me a favor—that's all."

"Hmmm," she answered, brown eyes thoughtful. "If this were any other boy we were talking about, I'd almost think—"

"Shut up," Nalani advised.

"Sorry."

The two girls peered ahead, looking for a tall boy with pale blonde hair. "That's him," Nalani said finally. "I'm okay from here, Parvati."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. Go have fun."

The other girl looked at her. "I'll be shopping just down the street if you need me."

She smiled. "Thanks." With that, they separated, Parvati to browse for new robes and Nalani to meet up with her—friend? enemy? acquaintance? What exactly was he, anyway?

"Hi," she said uncertainly.

He nodded, tugging her slightly to the left and out of the busy thoroughfare.

"Hey—!"

He ignored her until he was satisfied with their location.

She glared at him for a moment, but her interest soon got the better of her. "So, about this favor…?" she asked, unable to keep a note of curiosity out of her voice.

He looked almost uncomfortable. "It's not really a favor. That is, it's not really any different from what we've been doing…I mean the lessons…I'm not sure how to explain it!" he said, impatiently.

Nalani stared. "Well, try, because you're not doing a very good job." Unbeknownst to both of them, the crowd had slowly started drifting away as people sought refuge from the intermittent snowfalls.

"I need your help with something. It's for my parents—"

She held up her hand. "Shh!" she hissed. "Did you hear that?"

"N—" This time she actually covered his mouth, ignoring his irritated protests. The noise she'd noticed sounded like footsteps, but where—?

She turned quickly on the spot, but it was too late to do anything. She heard a curse she didn't recognize, then silence.

XXX

When she woke up, she had trouble at first remembering what had happened. She had been meeting Malfoy, then something about a curse? She heard someone groan next to her. Apparently whoever it was had gotten the Slytherin boy, too.

The room was small and dark, like a basement of some kind. For a minute she was afraid it was the Shrieking Shack, but a second look reassured her. Just boxes and cobwebs, no ghosts or musty old furniture like all the stories said.

Malfoy sat up. It was just light enough to make out his face. Nalani noted irrelevantly that this was probably the messiest his sleek blonde hair had ever looked.

"What happened?"

She sighed. "If I knew, I'd be doing something about it." Suddenly, a horrible thought occurred to her. "This wasn't you, Malfoy, was it? Setting a meeting and getting some of your fan club to kidnap us and scare the crap out of me?"

"No, it wasn't," he snapped. When he saw her less-than-convinced expression, he elaborated: "It wouldn't make much sense to get you and not Potter, would it?"

"I guess not. Sorry," she muttered. She stood up and started walking around the room, running her fingers over the wall and occasionally tapping on bricks with her fingers or wand. There seemed to be only one door, and it was quite obviously sealed.

"What are you doing?" he said irritably.

"Looking for a way out. And if you're not going to help—"

"Because I'm sure they left an open door for us," he sneered.

Nalani looked at him. "What's the matter?"

Malfoy looked incredulous. "Are you stupid? You realize what has happened…no one knows where we are, we have no way out, and we don't even know who our kidnappers are!"

"That's not what I meant."

He glared at her.

"I have a younger brother," she informed him. "I can do staring contests all day."

After a few more seconds he gave up. "Not that it's any of your business, but I'm also not overly fond of small spaces."

"Oh," she said, in a slightly different voice. "I'm sorry."

He shrugged irritably. "Knowing it doesn't help anyone."

Hesitantly, she sat down, careful to leave at least a foot of space between them. "Well, I couldn't hear anyone upstairs just now, and there aren't any openings besides that locked door, so it might be best just to wait until someone comes to us. That way we might know who we're dealing with."

Even in the gloomy half-light, she saw him roll his eyes. "In case you've forgotten, we're wizards."

"Fine, be my guest. Try to sparkle your way out of this cellar," she challenged.

Malfoy gave her a dirty look, but he stood up, pulling his wand out of his pocket as he did so. "Clearly they're not very good at this," he commented smugly. "They've left us our wands." He strode over to the opposite wall and starting muttering incantations while Nalani waited patiently. This went on for several minutes until he finally sat down again.

"Well?" she asked him.

He glared at her. "They appear to have used a spell to lock us in," he admitted.

"I figured. It was the second thing I tried," she said matter-of-factly.

He swallowed, hard. "This cellar seems to be getting smaller."

He seemed genuinely upset. Any lingering suspicions she may have had regarding his involvement disappeared. Nalani hesitated, not exactly sure how to comfort him or even if he wanted her to. Maybe talking to distract him would help? She finally settled on generic optimism. "We'll be okay, Draco."

He looked up, momentarily diverted. "We're not friends, Montenegro. We're—"

She waited.

"—classmates," he finished lamely.

Nalani shrugged. "It has nothing to do with being friends. It feels weird calling you Malfoy. I don't know if it's a British thing, or a wizarding thing, or what, but I am not going to call everyone I'm not best friends with by their last name. I'm not a P.E. teacher, so take it or leave it," she said firmly.

He opened his mouth in protest.

"No one's going to hear us," she pointed out. "So it really doesn't matter."

"That's not the point—"

"And my name's Nalani, in case you need reminding."

He scowled again. "I remember! I choose not to use it."

The girl waited.

"'Nalani'," he snorted. "Bit of a stupid name, anyway."

She snickered. "And Draco isn't?"

"Mine is a family name and it means dragon or serpent in Latin," he said coolly.

"Well, mine is Hawaiian, and it means "the heavens" or "the calm of the skies," she retorted, still clearly enjoying herself.

"Montenegro," he began, but she shushed him again.

"I think they're back," she whispered, standing up and listening carefully to the voices above their heads.

Draco had the good sense to wait until she finished before continuing, but Nalani spoke first. She looked disappointed. "The only thing I got clearly was something called a Charm Key," she said glumly.

Her disinterested companion sat up. "A Charm Key?" he said sharply.

She looked surprised at his sudden attention. "Are you sure?" he asked her urgently.

"Yes, do you know what it is?"

"Unskilled wizards buy them as temporary basic spells. Intruder alerts, protective charms…"

"Or locks?"

"Exactly. They're simple to use or deactivate, but you need the right word."

She looked thoughtful. "Like a computer password?"

"A—what?"

"Nevermind. So we just need to guess the magic word?"

"It's not that simple," he said impatiently. "It could be almost anything." But Nalani wasn't listening.

"Have you seen these before?"

"I am quite capable of performing my own spells," he said coldly.

"No, but have you seen them in shops or classes or something?"

"Yes."

"So, what's the factory setting? The—the charm word that is already connected to the spell when you buy it," she explained carefully.

Finally, he understood. "You think they might not know how to work it," he said, "and they're too stupid to change the setting."

She grinned at him. "Well, if they didn't know to take our wands away…"

Momentarily, he looked impressed, but then he shook his head. "That still leaves us with a guessing game," he reminded her.

She shrugged. "So we guess. Think of nonsense words that everyone would know, the ones little wizarding kids pretend are really magic, like Muggle children with 'abracadabra' or something." She studied the room's only door. "We should start here, I think. That would be the logical place for a lock or barrier."

"This might not work," he told her, but he faced the door and started muttering strings of words under his breath.

Nalani paced to the other end of their prison and listened for signs that their captors were about to join them. Just talking so far, no footsteps. After ten tense minutes, she heard a noise of satisfaction and turned around.

"Got it," Draco smiled. She hurried over to him and gripped his wrist, listening.

"I think we're okay to go," she whispered, still hearing nothing from above, and they quietly pushed open the door, taking deep breaths of the freezing air. It was almost dusk outside.

"We must have been there for hours," she said, dismayed. "Wherever 'there' is."

They were still walking as quickly as they could without drawing attention. Draco studied the run-down buildings and dingy windows. "I think we're still in Hogsmeade," he said slowly. "The poorer area. When I find out who did this, my—parents, will hear of it," he finished awkwardly. He said it almost out of habit, only stumbling when he remembered that his father was still in Azkaban.

Nalani bit her lip. It must be hard to have a parent in prison. Lucius Malfoy didn't seem to be a terribly good father—or person, for that matter—but Draco clearly still cared about him. She wasn't sure if she considered this familial loyalty or a character flaw, not that it was her business.

"Do you have any ideas?" he asked in an attempt to change the subject.

She pushed her thoughts aside and shrugged. "Maybe. I was thinking it could be related to the breakouts from Azkaban—not them, necessarily, but someone trying to show off for them. They saw two Hogwarts students by themselves and thought they could get some information on the school's defenses, or on Dumbledore. They obviously weren't professionals, but they could have been low-ranking followers looking for recognition."

"You really aren't stupid," he said, sounding slightly surprised.

She raised her eyebrows. "Yeah, thanks." Really, from Malfoy, this was almost a compliment. Parvati would almost call it flirting…then she remembered. "Oh, God. Parvati must be frantic," she said, starting to walk faster. They were in a part of Hogsmeade she recognized now, but if she wasn't back at school in time they would all catch it. She was seeing only a few passersby now, with only a handful of students—they must be some of the very last.

He kept up with her easily. "Not that I care, but why were you with her? Instead of Golden Boy Potter and the rest."

She hesitated. It really wasn't his business, but surely this civility was an improvement to be encouraged? Like a puppy, she thought vaguely, almost laughing. Rewarding him for good behavior. "We're friends," she said slowly, "and I get along with them fine, but…well, you know. They've known each other for ages, and I haven't…I don't know." She shrugged. "I'm closest to Parvati—maybe we bonded over the sibling thing," she said, smiling. She didn't look at Draco, not wanting to upset this tenuous overture at friendliness. If she had, she might have been surprised. He actually looked attentive, even interested.

Nalani glanced ahead. If by some miracle her friend was still waiting for her, they must be almost to the right street. She looked at Malfoy. "Listen, you don't have to walk the rest of the way with me. I can see the spot; I'll be fine."

He kept walking. "It isn't chivalry, it's common sense. And frankly, I don't have time for another kidnapping."

She rolled her eyes but kept walking. "Okay, well, thanks."

After another minute they stopped. Nalani squinted down the rapidly darkening street. "I think I see her." She turned to Draco. "So, umm…thanks again," she said uncomfortably. "I'll ask around, see if I can find out what the hell happened to us. I guess we're still on for our lessons?" she asked hesitantly.

He was deep in thought. "What? Oh—yes, I think so."

She started to go.

"Ah—Montenegro?" She stopped, waiting.

He took a deep breath. "For keeping calm back there, and figuring it out, and—yes, well, you understand. Thank you, Nalani. I suppose you're not as bad as Potter and the rest," he finished grudgingly.

She noticed the backhanded compliment, but smiled nonetheless. "You helped," she said, shrugging. "But no big deal. It's tradition now, right?" she laughed. Impressive that he'd finally used her first name.

His mouth twitched. "Yes."

"See you next week. You know, for the lesson."

"Right."

She hesitated, not sure how to end this rather odd conversation. "See you?" He nodded, and started walking back to school on the other side of the street.

Shaking her head, Nalani ran to the small figure waiting just outside the shops. Sure enough, it was Parvati.

"Where have you been?" she gasped. "You were gone hours! I would've gone for help but I wasn't sure who to trust, or if anyone was supposed to know where you two were, or—"

As best she could, Nalani explained the adventure of the afternoon.

"And you have no idea who did it?" Parvati said worriedly.

"No proof, at least," Nalani answered glumly as they approached the gates. It looked like they might just make it.

Eventually, Parvati changed the subject. "So what did Malfoy want, anyway?"

It was only then that Nalani realized she had no idea.

"I don't know—we didn't actually get around to it," she admitted.

A/N: Well, I won't dare hope that the chapter was worth the ridiculously long wait, but I at least hope it was good! And, not counting the disclaimers, it was eight glorious pages in Microsoft Word. Don't worry; the rest won't be this long—I just felt like I owed it to you guys! BTW, sorry for the stupid Charm Key word—couldn't think of what else to call it! The factory setting idea is the AF reference, and the "Abracadabra" thing is from The Divide trilogy.

Can we get three cheers for cliché kidnapping scenes? Haha. The beauties of fanfiction…

One more random note: I am TRYING, really trying, not to make Draco too OOC, but it's pretty difficult because that makes for very slow character development (go figure). I'm also still working on realistic-sounding dialogue for him, but I think I am slowly getting better.

Anyway, let me know what you think. And THANK YOU for all of you guys that are still reading this.

-Rosy-Fingered-Dawn