In The Dark (EDITING)

Twenty Six

"What the hell?" I mumbled, feeling cold water underneath me.

"Draco!"

I turned to see, just barely with my now blurry vision, that Hermione was farther out.

I got up and attempted to clear my eyes by rubbing them, not that it helped. Now I found myself in six feet deep, ice cold water.

"Here." I held out a hand which she struggled to grab, but still caught hold. I pulled her into me to feel her shivering. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah. Did you do that?"

"No. Merlin, where are we?" I questioned, attempting to look around.

"You can't see either?"

"Nope. Ginny!?"

"Over here! Follow my voice guys!"

I shrugged and did as she said. Hermione clung to one of my arms as she hadn't completely healed and I think her senses were worse than mine.

As we got closer to where Ginny was calling us my vision started to clear. By the time her warm hand grabbed mine it was almost normal.

"Where are we?"

"Don't know. You didn't apperate us, did you?"

"No. Neither of us."

No that I could see, I knew that the water ended up ahead, so I headed there, pulling the girls with me.

Warm, humid air stuck to my cold, wet skin and the hot winds blew my messy hair in directions that tugged at my head sharply.

They both groaned as they fell onto the sand ground. At first you would think this a beach, but I knew better.

The air was dark, and as I breathed in it felt like I'd never be happy again. I could feel my face darken and my skin burned. All of my scares felt fresh again and now the pain over my dark mark multiplied. It was so bad that it split the skin of my palm and let the cold, blackened blood drip onto the ground.

"Uh, Hermione. Please tell me we're not where I think we are."

She sat up and took my offered hand to get into standing. As she took it all in her face crumpled and she winced in pain. I looked down to see blood, similar to mine but darker, trickling off her fingertips.

She rolled up she sleeve to examine it and what I was disgusted me. Her skin was split from when she cut herself, but now the skin had peeled and was now almost black. The dark mark was curling in unusual directions as the blood ran over her arm.

She swallowed and cringed at the sight. I pulled out my wand and pressed a quick Episkey at her skin so that it healed partially. She smiled softly in thanks before looking up at the sight before us.

"Yes Draco. We are exactly where you think we are. Azkaban."

"What!?" Ginny shrieked.

"But how did we get here?" I asked, ignoring her comment.

"Draco?" a voice came. It was familiar and I've known it for a while, but where was it coming from? "Hermione?"

Now we were both looking around frantically as Ginny found her feet.

"Where are you?"

Suddenly, three cloaked figures appeared in front of us.

"Who the hell are you?" Hermione growled. She must have saw our questioning looks so she added, "These are the people that were following me."

Now we all glared at them and raised our wands.

"No need for that, mate."

I knew that voice. All to well.

"Blaise?"

They all lifted their hands and threw off their hoods.

I dropped my wand as my jaw hit the floor. A surprised noise escaped Ginny while Hermione just stared in shock.

"Did you miss us, Draco?" Pansy asked. Blaise and Theo cracked a smile and began to laugh.

"Come here, man," the Italian wizard said, reaching out a hand for an embrace. I took it, chuckling at myself for putting a wand on him. We pulled together and patted our backs. You know, the more manly version of hugs, but usually you'd let go by now.

Pansy and the girls were embracing too, while Theo just stood there smiling.

"Come on, mate," I said, taking his hand and giving him a hug too.

"How did you find us?" Ginny asked.

"We'd been following you since the Queens. Then we saw some Deatheater's coming after you once you'd escaped so we thought we give you a hand."

"Stalker," I laughed. "Man, I thought you guys were dead by now!"

"Oh come on! We can't die!" We were so caught up that we didn't realize what was coming at us. Well, luckily, Ginny did.

"Uh, guys. We have a visitor!"

We all turned to see the one thing we couldn't defend ourselves from.

A Dementor.

"Ginny! You can still cast a Patronus, right?"

"No!"

Hermione and I looked at each other. We didn't have any happy memories. But we had to try.

I held out a hand again and she took it. Then I picked up my wand and we both raised them to where it was approaching.

I closed my eyes and started to chant the words in my head. I kept my mind on the thought of our interlocked hands.

Ready?

One.

Two.

Three.

"Expecto Patronum!" we yelled together.

For a moment nothing happened, but then the bleeding skin on our arms started to heal. Then a blue wispy smoke came out of our wands, forming into a dragon. But then it seemed that something slithered around it. A snake.

The animals began to attack the Dementor as Hermione and I smiled and started to laugh at the irony. The two least happy people were able to conjure the most unique Patronus and take down a Dementor.

As it flew away the animals began to glow a gold color and float around is, ruffling our hair. Then they moved, not to our wands, but into our chests, right above our hearts and disappeared.

Now we lowered our hands to see everyone else staring at us as if we had grown a second head.

"How did you do that?" Ginny asked.

"I-I don't know," I answered, placing a hand over my heart.

"Sorry to break, whatever this is, up, but we need to leave here or more of them will come," Pansy pointed out.

We nodded and all joined hands, apperating somewhere else.

But the only thought on my mind was how we had just done.

Then I realized how happy Hermione made me. If any memory could help me conjure a Patronus, it would be one I shared with her.