Shut Me Up.

Disclaimer: Don't own; don't sue.

Henrietta – fuck it – Hermione stays silent and stares around her. It doesn’t take long for her and Ron to whip out their wands, however.

“We’re not going down without a fight,” she says, pointing it at Draco Malfoy.

A taller man with short, black hair sighs and pulls out a wand as well.

“This was bound to be a disaster,” he says with a long, deep drawl that sends shivers up Hermione’s spine.

“Snape?” Ron says, switching his aim to the man.

Yet another man, who was staring at the ceiling, brings out his wand but aims it at no one in particular. Hermione slowly recognizes him as Neville Longbottom – his tanned skin and muscled arms throwing her off – and edges toward Ron.

“What did you do to Neville?” she screeches.

“Would you all please remain calm?” Draco says, brandishing his own wand. “It will only take a few moments–”

The man Ron identified as Snape laughs. Another voice joins him, and Hermione trains her wand at its source.

When she sees the room’s final occupant, her wand slips out of her fingers and clatters to the floor.

“Harry? Is that you?”

~*~

It must be hard for Hermione, Harry thought, to take in the sight of a short, overweight ice-cream shop worker with several piercings and too much eyeliner and identify it as her short, underfed, and bespectacled friend from childhood.

He shrugs and says, “Pretty much, yeah.”

He’s surprised when Ron crosses the room and envelops him into a big hug.

Hermione doesn’t take too long to join him, but Harry can feel hesitance in her arms.

“For the love of Merlin, can we finally start the meeting now?”

Hermione steps away from Harry and turns to Malfoy. “You orchestrated all this?”

“Yes, now quiet!” He points his wand to the door, and Harry hears it lock.

“But… why?” Hermione asks.

“Let me get to that!”

Snape puts a hand on Malfoy’s shoulder. “I believe that Mr. Malfoy has brought us all here to bring down the regime we escaped from.”

Ron stares in disbelief. “You’re joking, right?”

“I made your wife come here believing you were having an affair for a joke?” Malfoy shakes his head, then smiles. His teeth are impossibly white and straight, Harry thinks. “Actually, that is rather funny.”

“We’re not married,” Ron says.

That wasn’t the first thing Harry thought he would say, and Hermione looks like she feels the same way.

“Excuse me, Ronald?”

“What? I’m telling the truth.”

“That self-centered ass insults our relationship, and the first thing you say is that we aren’t married?”

“Roland and Henrietta are, but not us! When are you going to understand that?”

“What a charming lover’s spat,” Malfoy says.

“Shut up!” Ron and Hermione shout in unison.

Harry tugs on his lip ring before he speaks. “Even if you did want to bring… him down, why enlist our help?”

“Do you need to ask?”

“Do you need to answer a question with another question?”

“Enough! Both of you. I’m never going to leave if you two keep this up.” Snape slides his wand up his sleeve. “What are your plans, Malfoy?”

“Finish the job.”

“You want us to kill him? He must be mad,” Hermione said, her normal skin color returning to her cheeks.

“How else can we defeat him? He’ll keep coming back any way he can,” Ron objects.

“Simple. We’ll make sure we get the job right this time,” Draco says. “Look, I’ve gotten most of him gone. Harry just needs to deal the killing blow. Again.”

“If I didn’t get it right the first time, what makes you think this will work?”

“He’s weaker than ever – most of the true Death Eaters have been killed or defected. Only a handful of the old guard are still left.”

“What about your parents?”

Neville, looking like he hadn’t spent the better part of an hour in a trance, steps over to Malfoy and waits for his answer.

“Father’s in hiding. Mother’s… not well.” Malfoy shakes his head. “Will you do it?”

Harry shoves his hands into his pockets. Ron and Hermione look at each other apprehensively. Neville rubs his nose.

And Snape coughs. Loudly.

“Ah, yes. I am offering a stipend of five thousand Galleons to those involved. Each.”

Harry joins the chorus of “yes” that follows.

“Wands in, then.”

As Harry puts his out with the others, he notices Hermione walking to where she dropped it, smiling in surprise when it floats into her outstretched palm, and exchanging a look with Snape, his expression amused.

Hermione extends her wand arm into the circle, and Malfoy whispers a few Latin words. Six bands of blue light shoot out of the wands and form a single burst of white. It blinds Harry for a moment, and when he can see again, the light is gone.

“What the hell was that?” Ron says.

“Magical contract,” Malfoy says. He pulls some small parchments out of his robes and passes them to everyone. Harry catches his breath when Malfoy hands him one.

“Your new headquarters are at these coordinates. There will be a meeting tomorrow night there, at eight o’clock. Don’t be late.”

Ron examines the parchment. “This must be wrong. It has to be.”

“I assure you that my plans are flawless.”

“But… this place… it’s my–”

“See you tomorrow, Weasley.” Malfoy raises his wand and Disapparates.

“What is it, Ron?” Harry asks.

Ron crumples the parchment in his fist. “It’s the Burrow.”

Author's Note: Southern_Witch_69 beta'd this. Thanks so much for keeping those commas in line.

Lyrics to "Shut Me Up" can be found here:

http://www.mindless-self-indulgence.com/lyrics_shutmeup/