Draco ignored this. 'Its damn annoying,' he said. 'especially since I was hoping she?d come back with me.'
'Where?'
'I?ve got to go talk to Harry.' He started to get to his feet. 'And I should do it as soon as possible.'
'But the Snake Lord — '
'What he doesn?t know, won?t hurt him.'
Fleur shook her head, looking at him. 'I do not understand it,' she said. 'Don?t you feel the pain?'
'I feel the pain of having a hangover, if thats what you mean.'
Fleur sat up straighter, her shoulder set, and reached down to pull up the sleeve of her nightgown, baring her arm. Draco briefly glimpsed the disfiguring scar of the Dark Mark burned into her creamy skin before she pulled the sleeve back down. 'That does not
'urt you?'
'It hurt me when he burned it into my arm. But it seems to have healed. I don?t like it. It doesn?t hurt, though.'
'Well, it should,' she said. 'I feel it twinge every time I speak his name. Were I to act against him, as you do, the pain would be blinding. I don?t understand how you do it.'
'Maybe its because you?re his Source.'
She shook her head. 'The Mark connects us to 'im, as the Dark Creatures he commands are connected to 'im by the Call. It makes no sense. With the enchantments you have on you, and the added bond of the Dark Mark, there should be no way on earth you should be able to resist. In any way. It makes no sense at all. It should be impossible. 'E knows that. I know that.'
'Could be the Will-Strengthening potion,' said Draco, a little absently — but he knew it wasn?t, he remembered the feeling of the potion draining away as he stood with Harry in front of the adamantine door, and then -
Fleur looked at him doubtfully. 'I don?t think you believe that.'
'It doesn?t matter what I believe,' he said quickly, grabbing up the Cloak where Ginny had left it at the foot of the bed. 'We don?t have time for a big ontological study of whats going on with me. I?ve got to get to Harry and the others.'
'Whats happing to — '
'No,' he said, sharply, and saw her flinch. 'You?ll forgive me,' he added, a little acidly, 'if I don?t tell you all my plans in detail quite yet. You?re not exactly back on my good side.'
He was at the door when Fleur spoke again.
'Be safe,' she said.
He looked back at her, nodded, and went out.
'Two hours,' said Ron.
It was the first thing he had said almost since they had realized Ginny was gone. He had come back to sit with Harry and Hermione at least; they sat in a line against the wall, Harry in the middle, with Hermione on one said and Ron on the other, all their shoulders touching. She could sense that Harry was happy to have Ron back with them, even if he was subdued and quiet. Harry was always a slightly different person when Ron was there, and certainly a happier one; Rons presence allowed him to make a certain kind of peace with the world around him that nothing else quite seemed to provide.
'She?ll be back,' said Harry, his chains rattling as he touched Rons shoulder. 'Look, its not your fault.'
'Of course it isn?t. Its Malfoys fault.'
'Thats the spirit,' said Harry, with a half-smile.
Ron just shook his head, leaning it back against the wall. As he did so, Hermione noticed something peculiar. She leaned forward, blinking, and then reached across Harry to touch Ron on the shoulder. He looked over at her, and she saw it again — there was a mark on the side of his temple, just above and to the side of his eyebrow, a faint, silvery mark just where Rowena had kissed him. It looked almost like the scar of a years-healed burn, only she knew that Ron hadn?t had such a mark that morning. 'Ron,' she said slowly. 'You don?t — you can ?t — sense anything about where she might be, can you?'
Ron looked at her as if she were barking mad. 'I can?t what?'
'Rowena said you were a Diviner,' said Hermione. 'I thought maybe you could divine something.'
'Well, I bloody can?t,' said Ron peevishly. 'I can?t just perform on demand. I can?t perform at all, as a matter of fact. Wait, that didn?t come out right.' He rubbed the back of his hand across his tired eyes. 'I just mean, I?ve never divined anything, I don?t really feature myself starting right now.'
Hermione sighed. 'Never mind.'
Ron perked up briefly. 'Unless I was divining some horrible torture for Malfoy. That I could do.'
'Oh, Ron.' Hermione let out an exasperated sigh. 'I for one wish he was here. He could explain whats going on.'
'Right, because he did such a good job of explaining when he was here earlier,' said Harry, although he said it without rancor.
'I wish he?d just bloody show up too,' said Ron, bitterly. 'So I could punch in his face.'
The black opening in the wall swung open, and Draco came in.
There was a short silence.
