Taboo

Harry scrambled back to Gryffindor Tower, where Ron and Hermione were waiting for him.

"What--" began Hermione, as Harry pawed through his trunk.

"There's no time to explain," said Harry. "Dumbledore's found a Horcrux and he wants me to go with him." He tossed Ron a tiny bottle of gold liquid. "Felix Felicis. I want you to divide it between yourselves and Ginny." He paused for a second. "Tell her I love her."

"Harry, no," protested Hermione fearfully. "You take the potion. We don't need it."

"No, Hermione," he said, frustrated. "Malfoy's been planning something, and he's going to do it tonight while Dumbledore's gone. I want you to keep and eye on him and Snape. Get the people from the DA, as many as possible, to help you." He shoved the Marauder's Map into her trembling hands.

"Oh, Harry!" She threw her arms around him.

"I've got to go," he said, extracting himself from her embrace. "See you later, mate," he said to Ron, who nodded mutely. Then he exited through the portrait hole.

Hermione stood there, looking down at the Marauder's Map in her hands. "Do you think he'll be alright?" she asked worriedly.

"He's with Dumbledore," said Ron consolingly. "He'll be fine."

"Well, I don't see Draco on here," said Hermione, poring over the map. "Snape's in his office."

"I can't believe this," said Ron, holding the tiny bottle up to the light.

The grandfather clock behind them struck seven, its deep gong ringing ominously.

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Malfoy heard a clock strike seven from somewhere in the cavernous room. He was perched on a stack of books, Crabbe and Goyle waiting beside him. They had already been here for an hour, when Potter had interrupted. But no matter. Nothing could stop him now. Then he heard the cabinet rattling, and a man tumbled out.

"Bloody hell," he said, straightening up. "What a ride."

"You get used to it," said Malfoy, shrugging. "Where are the others?"

"They're coming."

And sure enough, within a few seconds, other Death Eaters began appearing.

"Some way to travel," grumbled a large, blond Death Eater.

"What is this place?" asked another, accidentally crushing a vase.

"It's a secret room," explained Malfoy. "Not a lot of people know about it." He looked around, counting heads. Once everyone was assembled, he stood up to speak. "As you know, I have been working on this plan for months. The headmaster has left he castle, and he has taken Potter with him." He waited for the cheering to subside. "We will infiltrate the school and attack his defenses," continued Malfoy. "The headmaster will return in Hogsmeade. I have instructed Madam Rosmerta to warn me when this happens. We will then fire the Dark Mark over the Astronomy Tower and lure them in."

"Brilliant," cackled one of the Death Eaters.

"And your task, Draco?"

"I will do it," he said fiercely.

"Very good." Some of the Death Eaters snickered.

"But I have one more thing to ask of you," said Malfoy, looking slightly sick. "No matter what the circumstances, do not harm Hermione Granger."

"What does she look like?"

"I've seen her before," volunteered a man in the back. "Bushy brown hair? About this tall?" He held up a hand to indicate height.

"Yes," said Malfoy. "You are to leave her alone. Understand?"

They nodded.

"If you dare to touch her," said Malfoy threateningly, "if anything happens to her, I will personally kill you." He looked around at all the masked faces. "Now go to your stations."

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Hermione and Ron had gathered a few members of the DA. Ginny had joined them. They vigilantly patrolled the corridors, but nothing was happening. Ron and Ginny stood guard in front of the Room of Requirement, waiting. Suddenly, they saw Malfoy emerge, holding aloft his Hand of Glory. Before they could react, he threw something into the air, and everything went pitch black. They could hear voices and footsteps going past, but they didn't cast any curses for fear of jinxing each other by mistake.

As the darkness cleared, they saw Tonks and Lupin approaching.

"Malfoy's gone past with the Death Eaters," said Ginny breathlessly.

"We're on it," said Tonks, nodding grimly. She dashed up the nearest staircase, Lupin on her heels.

"C'mon," said Ginny, motioning to Ron. "We have to find Hermione."

They sprinted to Snape's office. The door was wide open, and there was no one inside.

"We're too late," said Ginny in a hushed voice.

"Ron! Ginny!"

They turned and saw Luna and Hermione running towards them.

"I'm so sorry," said Hermione, wringing her hands. "Snape ran past us and said that Professor Flitwick needed help, so we went to his office. He was unconscious--oh! It's so obvious now! Snap must've Stunned him!"

"don't blame yourself," said Luna comfortingly.

"Our situation is just as bad," said Ginny. "Malfoy escaped." Hermione and Luna gasped.

"How?" asked Hermione, afraid to know the answer.

"Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder," said Ron bitterly. "It's from Fred and George's shop."

"Did you see which way they went?"

"Upstairs," answered Ginny. "I don't know where they were headed."

"Oi!" Neville and Ernie skidded to a stop before them.

"They've--just--gone up--the Astronomy Tower," panted Ernie.

"Let's go," said Ginny, gripping her wand tightly.

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"Did you cast it?" asked Malfoy.

"Yes, it's above the Tower." They heard yelling from below.

"Damn, that'll be Dumbeldore's lot. We have to stop them." They sprinted down the steps, wands out. "Reducto!" Malfoy pointed his wand at the marble staircase, which immediately crumbled, sending various people sprawling. "Do not come up here unless I order you to!" he shouted to the Death Eaters.

Without a backward glance, he climbed up to the very top of the Astronomy Tower. He burst through the door, just as Dumbledore got to his feet.

"Expelliarmus!" Dumbledore was bowled over by the force of the spell. He lay calmly on the ground.

"Good evening, Draco," he said pleasantly. "Are you alone?"

"Of course not," snapped Malfoy, trying to mask the nervousness in his voice. "There are Death Eaters in Hogwarts tonight."

"Oh?" said Dumbledore, raising his eyebrows and not looking concerned at all. "Is that so?"

"Yes, it is, you stupid old man. I let them in, right under your nose," said Malfoy proudly. "We used the pair of Vanishing Cabinets...I realized that they formed a passage..."

"Very clever," said Dumbledore, nodding with difficultly. "And I suppose the necklace and the mead..."

"Yeah," said Malfoy, looking a little embarrassed. "But they didn't work."

"No, they did not." They looked at each other for a moment. "Draco, you are not a killer," said Dumbledore softly.

Malfoy paled visibly. "I have to do it," he whispered fearfully.

"Or else he'll kill you?" Malfoy nodded mutely. "My life in exchange for yours. I see how it is." Dumbledore struggled to stand up against the wall, though he did not reach for his wand. Malfoy's hand shook as he raised his wand.

"I don't have a choice."

"You always have a choice," countered Dumbledore. "Lower your wand, Draco. Lower your wand and join the right side. We will hide you and your mother. Voldemort will never know that you are alive. I say this again: Draco, you are not a killer."

"I've made it this far," he said slowly. "Nobody expected me to..."

"The perfect disguise, Draco," said Dumbledore, slipping down the wall. "No one will expect you to survive this attempt. We will hide you, protect you."

He closed his eyes and thought of the incantation.

"Think of Miss Granger..."

No, he would not be tempted into feeling guilty. He must do this. The words formed on his lips. God forgive me...

He heard footsteps from behind him, and Severus Snape appeared in the doorway, his wand pointed directly at Dumbledore's heart.

"Stand aside, Draco, he said, roughly pushing Malfoy to the side.

"Severus..." pleaded Dumbledore. "Severus, please..."

Snape hesitated for a split second, an ugly look upon his face, and then brought his wand down. "Avada Kedavra!"

There was a flash of green light as Dumbledore's body was thrown into the air. It fell to the ground with a thump, his half moon spectacles cracking as they landed on the cobblestone.

Suddenly, Malfoy heard and enraged howl and turned to see Potter lunge at Snape.

"COWARD!" bellowed Harry, his voice filled with anguish.

"Draco, get out of here!" yelled Snape over his shoulder as he retreated down the broken steps. Potter pursued him, screaming profanities.

But Malfoy could not move. He stood there, petrified, staring unblinkingly at Dumbledore's lifeless body. It seemed inconceivable that Dumbledore could be dead, and yet here he was, finally defeated. But not by the person who was meant to do it, he thought bitterly. I was supposed to be the one. All of my efforts have been wasted.

He fell to his knees.

"Draco! Draco!"

He turned toward the voice and saw Hermione running towards him. She froze in her tracks when she saw the body beside him.

"Is that--is that...Dumbledore?" she said in a hushed tone. "You-you killed Dumbledore?"

"No!" said Malfoy. "No, it wasn't me!"

"You killed Dumbledore!" she screeched, backing away from him.

"No, Hermione, it wasn't me!" he protested, grabbing her arm. "It was Snape!"

"Murderer!" she shrieked, breaking his grip. She dashed back down the staircase, frenzied. "Stupefy!" A Death Eater was Stunned out of her way. Jets of light barely missed her, but she didn't care. She plowed her way through the battle scene, screaming incoherently and jinxing people out of the way. She suddenly found the doorway blocked by an enormous blond Death Eater.

"Stupefy!" she cried, but the spell merely bounced off his huge chest. "Stupefy!"

"Where d'you think you're going?" cackled the Death Eater, merrily dodging her spells. His face sagged as he was unexpectedly disarmed. "Why you little--" Turning purple with rage, he reached for her neck before she had time to scream.

She felt the pressure on her windpipe, her vision going blurry. Then, surprisingly, the Death Eater let go as a jinx hit him full in the face.

"I told you to keep your hands off her, you bastard!" yelled Malfoy, as the Death Eater frantically rubbed at his eyes. He turned to Hermione who was massaging her throat and gulping air. "Are you alright?" She glared at him and darted through the doorway.

Malfoy turned back to examine the fight. His Death Eaters were paired up pretty evenly; he couldn't really tell who was winning at the moment. He ducked out of the room and abandoned the battle to find Hermione. As he ran blindly through the corridors, he realized that he had no idea which direction she had gone.

"You there," he said to the portrait of Sir Cadogan and his fat gray pony, "did you see a girl run past here?"

"Why, yes, I have, good sir," answered Cadogan jovially.

"Brown hair? Pretty upset?" He winced as he said the last part. This was all his fault.

"Aye, sir," replied Cadogan.

"Which way did she go?" The knight unsheathed his sword and pointed to the staircase leading down to the Great hall. Malfoy hurried down the stair, tripping on his robes. He arrived in the Great Hall, but it was empty. A gust of wind blew in, and he saw that the main entrance was ajar. Without hesitating, he ran outside into the darkness.

It had begun to rain and the ground was soggy. Malfoy sloshed through the mud, calling her name hoarsely. "Hermione! Hermione!" A flash of lightning lit up the surface of the lake, and he saw the dark outline of the tree they had once picnicked by. Discarding his sodden robes, he pounded through the icy rain.

"Hermione!" he panted, arriving at the tree. He could barely see her, huddled beneath the thick trunk. "You have to get out of here! There's lightning!"

She looked up at him, her face smeared with mud and tears. "Leave me alone." The rain had subsided a little, but it was still difficult to hear what she was saying. He inched closer. "Leave me alone!"

He sat down beside her. The ground beneath the tree was relatively dry, as the branches and leaves had shielded it from the downpour.

"Hermione, it wasn't me," he said. "It was Snape. Snape killed Dumbledore."

"You lied to me," she said coldly, the hatred and disgust apparent in her features as she spoke. "I should've listened to Harry and Ron. You never loved me. You only said that so you could use me."

"I haven't used you for anything, Hermione. And I do love you. Okay, so I've lied to you" he admitted. "I told you it wasn't me that planned the cursed necklace or the poisoned mead. It was."

"I can't believe I never saw you for what you really are--a slimy, greedy, scheming bastard." She spat the words at him.

His face crumpled. "Please, Hermione, you have to understand. It was the only way."

"I don't believe it." She glared at him. "Why me, Draco? Did you pick me because you thought it would be funny to mess with my mind? Were you just bored?"

"No! That's not how it is!"

"Well, I'm not your toy, Draco. I don't want to play your games anymore." She stood up and leaned against the tree.

"Please, you've got to believe me," he begged, standing up to face her.

"Why should I?" she said contemptuously. "When has that ever done me any good?"

"Believe me. I love you," he said desperately, sinking down onto one knee. "I swear to you that I love you. Marry me, Hermione. When all this is over, marry me."

She stared at him, a shocked expression on her face.

"Why would I ever want to marry you?" she said, regaining her composure. "Do you think I'm insane?"

"I love you," he said, getting back on his feet. "I've never lied to you about that."

She snorted derisively. "Well, you can kill me now, or whatever it was you followed me out here for," she said. He gaped at her. "Go on, do it."

"I'm not going to kill you," he said, appalled that she would even suggest that.

"Then what do you want from me, Draco? What do you want?" she demanded, her voice rising in volume.

"I want you to love me. I can't live without you."

"That's too bad," she sneered, "because you're going to have to learn to live without me." She made a move to leave, and he grabbed her shoulder as she passed.

"Then kill me," he said, as she glowered at him. "Kill me. If I can't be with you, then I don't want to live at all." He bowed his white-blond head and waited. He heard the rustling of her robes and shut his eyes.

"I'm not going to kill you." He looked up and saw that she was holding something in her hand. She turned on her heel and walked away, dropping it onto the ground. "Goodbye, Draco." And then she was gone.

He looked down and saw silver glinting on the ground. He gently plucked the necklace out of the mud and tucked it into his pocket. Listlessly, he trudged back to the castle, feeling more defeated than ever.

There was nothing left for him now. Nothing.