A Dangerous Criminal

It was Draco Malfoy staring down at her. Panic rose in her and she instantly began to try releasing herself. This only made him grip her wrists tighter, pulling her close to him.

"Quit it!" he hissed.

"Let me go!" she screamed. "No! Let - me - GO!"

"I can't! Knock it off!" His grip didn't loosen.

"You murdered your parents and that poor girls mother and father!" she screamed at him, tears threatening to fall from her eyes. "I know you did it! You killed them and then you ran - like a coward! You - sick - bastard!"

"I'm not going to let go!" He was struggling to keep hold of her. Eventually, he had to slap her.

She sank to her knees with the force and gazed upward to him shocked. She blinked slowly. This wasn't a dream or a nightmare. He was really standing there. He was holding her wrists so tight, she was starting to lose feeling in them. Slowly, she stood.

"You will come inside and not speak another word," he said sternly. "You will do whatever I tell you to. Come," he demanded.

She refused again and he tightened his hold on her wrists again. She let out a gasp of pain, feeling herself become light headed. If he gripped any harder, she felt her wrists would snap. She gave up.

She no longer protested and followed him inside the mansion eerily before them. Oddly, it looked like his own. But they were not in London anymore, she knew.

Draco tossed her in a corner of the living room where she began to sob. She didn't know if she would come out of this alive or not. Her head ached from all the stress she'd had before, and atop of everything else... There was this. She was kidnapped and had almost no way out of it.

She'd had nightmares of this when she was little, but she never thought it could happen to her. She'd seen it in movies but never imagined it could really happen to her.

She wondered how long it would be before someone realized she was missing. Harry and Ron would be gone for a week in the Quidditch tournament, her parents were in Germany on vacation, and none of the Weasleys were in her part of town. And none of them had mastered using the telephone (or fellytone, as Mr. Weasley called it). Especially not Ginny even if she knew how.

Great, she thought miserably to herself, this couldn't have come at better timing.

But wait! Surely Johnathan would know she was missing! And in her back pocket - if she quietly reached for it - was her mobile. She could quickly call for help. But where?

"C-could I g-go use the bathr-r-room, please?" she said, still crying.

He rolled his eyes and pulled her up off the floor. His iron grip on her upper arm pinched her skin. "I'm giving you forty-five seconds," he said, ushering her unwillingly upstairs and down the hall. He kicked the bathroom door open and shoved her inside. He slammed the door shut.

Hermione's insides churned. She felt physically sick with worry.

She pulled out her mobile and began to type in a message with the number pad. Hurriedly pushing buttons, she didn't worry about misspellings for once in her life. She had forty-five seconds. She pressed send just as the door flew open, emitting a scream from her. It was Draco and he looked absolutely furious.

He shoved her against the wall with his own body pinning her there, snatching her wrist and taking the cell phone from her hand. "Did you honestly think I was THAT STUPID to leave you in her for ten seconds by yourself?" he said, his voice echoing in the room, his face inches from hers. She was frozen with fear. "DID YOU?"

She shook her head fervently, scared for her life.

"Maybe I am for even thinking you had to go at all!" He looked down at her phone. "What is this crap?"

Hermione couldn't speak at first, but in his rage he shook her violently and she blurted out what it was.

He smirked evilly. "I've heard of those. It lets you communicate with other people, doesn't it? Who did you call?" His voice was of feigned interest. It frightened her how he didn't seem worried at all.

Surely, she wasn't going to tell him she'd hopefully contacted Johnathan. So, she lied. "I-I-I didn't!" she stuttered. "Y-you came in b-before I could."

She thought maybe he wouldn't be fooled again but to her relief (for the moment) he placed the mobile in his pocket and let her some room to breathe.

He dragged her downstairs and put her in a chair, commanding she sit. She did. He took the chair and newspaper across from her and sat down. He looked a little flustered, but much more calm than she. Hermione was tense and afraid, and he took in every bit of it. He smiled again and disappeared behind the Daily Prophet.

---

It was several hours - or it felt like it - before he stopped thumbing through the paper and placed it on the coffee table beside him. It was completely dark except for the crackling fire behind him. Hermione had calmed down some but watched him intently, almost as if she considered running at any moment. She knew she wouldn't get far. She'd seen him in school. Even if he wasn't as good as Harry was, she knew how fast he was, and he was probably just as fast on foot.

She noted him watching her, gazing almost longingly at her. "Are you hungry?" he said in a hoarse voice. It almost wasn't a question.

"No," she said in a voice that was practically unheard. She forced a weak smile. "I ate before you, er, kidnapped me."

"Good than," he said quickly.

He stood up tiredly and bravely she backed away from him when he approached her. "I'll do what you ask as long as you don't hurt me anymore."

"I won't make any promise I can't keep," he said darkly. "If you want I bath, I'm following you upstairs. I'm waiting outside your door until you finish. I have your wand and your... Muggle phone. Don't try anything funny."

Hermione nodded quickly, her neck muscles soar from sitting up for so long. All she felt like was a hot bath no matter how late into the morning it was. She looked at her watch. It ticked in the silence, showing the large and small hand on the twelve. It was only midnight.

Clearly he had seen that small gesture. "What is that? Give it to me."

"It tells you what time it is." She pulled it off and put it in his awaiting palm. And in it went to his pocket.

"How stupid. That's what sundials are for," he muttered arogantly. "Let's go."

Hermione turned without another word and went upstairs again. She stopped however on the last step. "Which way is it?" she asked him aloud.

"Right."

"Right?" She turned that way down the opposite hall.

"Yes, right." Pause. Step... Step... Step... She could hear his footsteps. "Stop. It's right here," he said shortly. "On the left."

She opened the door.

"Nothing funny," he repeated.

"I won't," she said. "Swear. Just don't open the door while I'm-"

"In your dreams," he murmured. "Go."

Hermione shut the door. She gasped. This bathroom was much larger than the one before. It had higher ceilings with a chandelier and platinum sinks. There was a large, two-headed shower with chrystal clear walls. She definitely wouldn't be taking a shower any time soon. Instead, she turned to the large round tub. It surprised her to see it already filled. At least, she could look forward to that.

She hesitated, looking back at the door, before pulling off her clothes and sinking into the hot tub of refreshing water.

---

Doo, do, doo, do, doo, do!

Doo, do, do, do, doo, do, do, doo, do, doo!

Johnathan woke to the sounds of his cell phone ringing. He wondered who it could possibly be this late of an hour. He was lying in bed asleep. How rude!

He picked it up and flipped it open. It said one message missed. He pressed a button and it showed him that missed message. His eyes bulged and he jumped out of bed.

He had to contact Harry.