AN: This is a War Drabble Series, taken from my tumblr to be published on here and AO3. It's a Voldemort wins war AU.

Shout out toGryff in the Game for helping me come up with an appropriate title for the Drabble Collection.

Saturday

March 6, 2004

A pair of well-worn leather boots splashed through the newly formed puddles along the cobblestone street, running from the sounds of snapping teeth and guttural growls.

If there was anything Hermione Granger hated more than Death Eaters, it was their dogs. They had absolutely no use for them other than to torment people.

She cursed as she tripped over an uneven section of stone, twisting her ankle. She ignored the pain as she continued on, running as fast as her body allowed her. She couldn't get caught now. Not like this. She had people to protect. She wouldn't be hunted down in the street by a sodding Rottweiler. She saw an opening in an alley and took it, climbing up onto a dumpster and jumping over the wooden fence separating the two sides of it.

The dog stopped at the fence and barked angrily as she ran further away from it.

And she didn't stop running. Not until she saw the dirty brick and mortar townhouse where they'd been staying the last four months. She took a note of her surroundings and made sure there was no one following her before she sprinted to the backside of the building.

Hermione threw open the rickety door and slammed it shut behind her, leaning heavily against it as she caught her breath and tried to still her racing heart. That was close.

Too close.

"Are you alright?" Harry asked, walking into the kitchen and staring at her in alarm.

"Yes, yes." She groaned. "I'm fine. Sorry. One of those blasted dogs caught my scent. But don't worry. I lost it." She assured him as she limped slightly out of the kitchen and into the foyer.

"Let me fix that." He said, following after her. "I'll be right back."

She complied and sat down in a chair, taking off her boot and sock. The ankle was swelling and throbbed painfully. She was was rather grateful when Harry returned and wrapped it for her. When he was done he gave her an odd look and she furrowed her brow. "What?"

"Nothing. I just...I sent you out two days ago and you come back with a sprained ankle and probably an array of bruises. I was concerned."

"Well, you shouldn't have been. I got what was sent out for." She told him, pulling the package out of her coat pocket and handing it to him.

He opened it and nodded. "Thank you. I know it was a difficult task, but we needed the medicine."

"You don't have to explain your decisions to me, Harry. I know just as much as you do. I was the only one that could do it."

"But, Hermione, you can't keep doing this." Harry sighed, taking his glasses into his hands and cleaning them with his shirt. "I know you want to be involved every step of the way, and Merlin knows I need you and we need the help, but at this rate, you're going to burn out. When that happens what will you do? You can't keep running on pure adrenaline."

"I'm. Fine." She bit out, crossing her arms and leveling him with a glare. How dare he. She knew what she was doing.

He just shook his head, knowing how stubborn she was. "Alright. Maybe you are fine. Maybe you can keep going on mission after mission, but they're catching on. They're getting better at spotting us." He said. "And the bloody dogs? They're using them more often now. You got lucky today. What if you aren't so lucky next time? What would have happened if you'd had Rhea with you?"

"Oh, don't start with the what if's, Harry. Rhea was fine. She was safe with Ginny. I would never bring her with me on a mission."

"And the market? Do you bring her with you when you go there?"

She felt the atmosphere in the room shift and it made her pause. "I do, but...why is that relevant?"

"Lavender's younger sister Daisy was snatched this morning while they were getting provisions. And she's not the only one. There's been a few members or associates of The Resistance taken in the last week. All of them were just doing mundane things. No missions, no drawing attention. I'm worried about the kids and what they'd do if we didn't come back. Or what we'd do if they were taken."

"And what do you suggest we do? We've tried sneaking them out once, and that attempt went as horribly as I had imagined it to go. So how do you suppose we get James and Rhea out of here?"

He looked pointedly at her. "Rhea's father."

She clenched her jaw and stamped down the rising anxiety in her chest. "You know why I can't do that."

"Hermione, you may not have a choice. If he can get Rhea out-"

"I won't abandon her!"

"I'm not suggesting you abandon her. I'm suggesting you find a way to get her the hell out of London, or at the very least safe."

"Oh, yes. Because being surrounded by Death Eaters would be really safe, Harry." She mocked, throwing her hands in the air.

"I'm not particularly fond of that aspect of it either, but it's a chance. What other options are there?"

She chewed on the inside of her cheek. "I'll find one."

He sighed in defeat. "Well, just think about it. Please. You know I would never suggest it if I thought it wouldn't work. It may be the only way to get the kids out of this mess we've created." And with that, he turned from her and headed upstairs.

She stood there, alone in the foyer, for a while until she felt a tug on her hand.

"What's wrong, Mummy?" A tiny voice squeaked. "Are you ok?"

She forced a smiled and bent down to the little girls level, pulling her into a hug. "Everything is fine, darling. Mummy is just figuring things out."

"Grown up things?" She asked, looking up at her mother cautiously, her blue eyes shining in the lamp light.

Hermione nodded and kissed her little girl on the head before maneuvering her into the living room where James sat on the floor playing with an enchanted train and Ginny held a book in her hand. The woman regarded her silently, turning a page as Hermione sat down beside her on the couch. They didn't need to speak to know that Ginny had heard her and Harry's exchange.

Rhea said something to James and then climbed onto the couch, laying her head down in her mother's lap. She was always clingy after Hermione went on missions. Rhea was too young to know what it meant, there was only so much a four-year-old mind had the capacity to understand, but she knew it was something bad. Something bad had to be happening for her mum to be gone for two days.

Hermione blinked back tears as she thought about what the little girl must think. Even though it was all necessary, she did feel the guilt only a mother could have.

Minutes ticked by and soon soft snores filled the room. Rhea was fast asleep and James suddenly looked up from his toy and yawned, scrambling up off the floor in his toddler grace. Ginny rose and picked him up, holding him close to her chest. He whined for a moment but let his mother lull him into slumber in her arms.

Ginny turned and finally looked at Hermione, sitting down slowly, positioning herself so that she could see her and remain comfortable with the little boy in her lap. Hermione shifted slightly, knowing that the other witch wanted to talk. They'd been sitting in silence too long So something was bound to break.

Ginny looked from Rhea to James and Hermione could already tell from the way her mouth pulled to the side that she was about to say something Hermione didn't want to hear. "What?" She asked, irritation evident in her voice. Just because she had been waiting for this, didn't mean she liked it.

Ginny frowned but still answered, "I think Harry was right. Maybe you really should take her to her father."

Anger roared inside of her again. "I can't believe you would actually suggest that!" She hissed. Rhea was hers! Her responsibility. It was her job to protect her. No one could take her place in Rhea's life.

"I'm just trying to help." The redhead insisted. "It's getting worse with every passing day and I'm scared, Hermione. I'm always scared!" Her voice shook and when Hermione finally looked at her face she could see the shimmer of tears in her eyes. "I'm afraid that we're barely surviving and that tonight, or tomorrow, or next week they'll find us. I'm afraid every time one of us walks out that door that they won't come back. I'm afraid that they'll capture Harry and wipe out the resistance in one go. I'm afraid of what would happen if the Death Eaters got their hands on us. You know what they've been doing. You know it's only a matter of time before it all catches up with at least one of us, so don't act like everything is fine. I know you're scared too."

She looked at her daughter and felt a pang in her heart. "Of course I'm scared," she whispered, "I know entirely too much to ignore the probabilities and statistics, but I won't just leave her in his care. He doesn't even know she exists."

"That may be true, but look at the bigger picture. Things are only going to get worse for the children from here on out. Do you know how many times we've actually tried to smuggle James out of the country to Romania? Five. Five times it's failed. There's obviously no way out of this for us. But Rhea….there's hope for her. He may be her best shot at surviving this, and maybe us surviving this."

Hermione brushed her fingers through her daughter's hair as she slept in her lap, and thought about all the things Ginny and Harry had said. She had been a part of the attempted smuggling of the kids to Charlie but she hadn't known how many other times they'd attempted it. "I understand what you're saying, but I can't let her be raised in that house. I can't let her be raised to hate and despise."

"She has too much of her mother in her to hate anyone."

She felt an irrational need to scream. "What makes you think he'd even take her? What makes you think she'd be any safer with him?" There was a bitter edge to her voice but she didn't know who exactly it was directed at. "She's a halfblood."

"You really think he'd let anything happen to her?" her friend scoffed, "we have eyes. Even though we didn't approve, we could all see the way he looked at you. Do you really think he'd turn you away if you asked for his help? Do you really think he'd leave his daughter in danger?"

She closed her eyes, biting her lip as she thought back on their last encounter.

"If I could stop this war I would, but I can't. At least not yet." A soft low voice spoke close to her ear. "But I can get you out of London. Please, let me do this for you. Let me help you, Granger."

"You can't be serious. You know why I can't leave. I won't leave them. I won't leave Harry. He needs me."

The man sighed and shook his head, taking a step back. "Always the bleeding heart aren't you? I'm giving you a chance to escape, to get far away from all of this….horror, and you still refuse to leave his side. If you stay you'll only die for him." He tried to mask his anger but she could still hear it in his voice. "Please, I don't want to watch you die. Just... just let me help you."

"I'm sorry, Malfoy. I appreciate your offer but I just can't take it."

"You're the most stubborn witch I've ever met."

A tiny smirk cracked her still face "That's why you like me."

He smiled sadly and kissed her one last time before parting, calling to her before he disappeared into the night."One day I'll have the power to stop this war. But until then...don't get yourself killed."

"No," she finally admitted to Ginny. " He wouldn't let anything happen to her...even if she wasn't….even if she wasn't his, I think he would at least try to help "

The redhead held her gaze, her face as hard as stone. "Then don't be stupid, Hermione. Find Draco."