White Lies // Drarry

Chapter 11: Third Floor Corridor

Before the war escalated, no one really knew where Pansy and Blaise's loyalties laid. Everyone knew that Draco Malfoy was a Death Eater though, and since Pansy and Blaise still hung out with him, they all assumed that they were rooting for the Dark Lord as well. Then Malfoy stopped going to school after a few months, and rumors spread that Draco Malfoy was actually a spy working for the Order and that Death Eaters were ordered to kill him on sight.

Pansy and Blaise had sat out the war, only having to fight when the war reached Hogwarts.

Against the Death Eaters.

The morning after Voldemort died, Draco – cradling his bloodied arm where the Dark Mark had been just a few hours ago – had looked at the remains of Hogwarts and asked his friends why they fought against the Dark Lord.

Blaise had answered in a weary but firm voice. "We believe in blood-purity, Draco. Not murder."

"He said they were called safety rooms," Draco said, recalling the conversation he and Harry had the other day. "The Patching Team's been installing them all over Hogwarts. Still on the trial stage though, so students have been falling through them," he continued, rolling his eyes. "Reckless."

"Potter often goes off on his own, doesn't he?" Pansy asked, raising an eyebrow. "Maybe he just went to the loo?"

Hermione shook her head. "No, we –"

"It's because of the map you were holding earlier, isn't it?" Blaise cut in, looking at Ron who simply shrugged.

The Marauders' Map was now safely tucked in Ron's pocket, after he had tapped it with his wand and whispered a 'mischief managed' when everyone else had turned to go back inside the infirmary.

"We already told you, it's not ours to tell."

"The main thing is," Hermione intercepted quickly. "Harry's not there. It's either he's not in Hogwarts – which is very unlikely – or he's in a part of Hogwarts that's not shown on the map."

"That's why Weasley was going on about the Chamber of Secrets earlier. It's not in the map, is it?" Draco said quietly, looking straight at Ron with a thoughtful expression. He was starting to realize the seriousness of the whole situation, and his heart was thumping against his ribcage way too loudly for his liking. Beside him, Pansy glanced at him surreptitiously as he continued talking. "And the third floor corridor."

Draco knew about the event during their first year, which students had secretly dubbed as the Golden Trio and the Third Floor Corridor, as did everyone else but just like everyone else, he had no idea about what had really transpired in there that had Weasley and Granger wounded and Potter unconscious in the Hospital Wing.

("Draco, you're not worried about Potter, are you?" 11-year-old Pansy Parkinson asked, eyes narrowed as 11-year-old Draco Malfoy immediately whipped around from his pacing to sneer at her.

"Of course not! Are you daft?"

Pansy sniffed, sulking because she had wanted to spend time with Draco tonight but not likethis,with the boy trying to kill himself by pacing all over the common room, ranting about Potter this and Potter that. Why did Potter have to go and hospitalize himself anyway? And tonight, of all nights!

"You've done nothing but talk about him ever since we came here!" Pansy knew she was whining, but she even made sure that that Greengrass girl wasn't going to disturb them tonight, too.

Draco turned red at that, and Pansy would have found it cute, had he not been glaring at her.)

Just then, the door opened suddenly with a loud bang and something slammed into Ron, knocking him to the floor. Draco almost whipped out his wand in shock, before he realized that the 'something' was actually a 'someone'.