"If you want to get out of here, now is the time. Come on Potter. For once trust me." His voice was commanding, authoritative.
"Go, both of you, I'll be right behind you." She said urgently. She knew that she was a liability, her injuries were too severe and Harry needed to go on. Voldemort was coming any minute and they weren't ready to face him just yet.
"Bull crap! We're not leaving without you 'Mione." The redhead nearly picked her up, but slipped on a pool of her blood instead.
"I've got her Weasley. Just go. We both will meet you just inside the gates. You'll need me to get your sorry butts out." The blonde easily lifted her up in his arms, looking down at her like a child. Unlike the other two men of the group, he wasn't starved for days and had all his strength. Neither of the two knew he also was running on pure adrenaline. He had to make sure the witch was safe too.
The foursome fled the dark, dank dungeons and made their way upstairs to the ground level. "Draco…" she said softly.
"No 'Mione. Don't worry. I have you."
"They'll kill you." Her eyes pleading. He had to though. He had to get her away. She was a very close #2 on the Death Eaters hit list, only behind her bespeckled companion Harry Potter.
"No they won't. I'll be fine. I'm more concerned about you." The tone in his voice was comforting to the young witch. She was fading and he needed to keep her calm but get her out. She couldn't be worrying about him in this moment.
They burst through the doors into the early morning's first light. There was a layer of fog covering the frost tipped grass. He held the witch closer to his body to keep her warm, regretting not bringing a blanket for her. But he was able to get the necessities: their wands and her beaded bag. He knew her, and just by that knowledge, he knew that bag held more than anyone was saying.
"Take my hands. It's the only way through the gates. Only family can come in and out this freely." The two others grabbed a hand, looking at the girl in his arms with dire concern. Once they crossed the threshold, the momentous metallic entrance to his home, they both disapperated. "Come on. Are you strong enough?" She nodded. "You need to get out of here. Go far away. Somewhere he won't find you. You're a Muggle, become one again. Please. I can't see you get hurt." His steely grey eyes showed the pain that had wretched through his body while she was the one being tortured.
"Why are you doing this?" Her eyes fading quickly.
"You deserve it. You're better than this. Please go. I can't"
"You are right Draco," another voice slithered through the fog. "You can't, but I most certainly can." The evil hissing that was emitted woke both him and the witch and somehow they both found new strength. "Avada"
He jumped between the snake-like wizard and the petite witch. He didn't need to go on. She did. Potter did. He was just a side player. She apparated, not knowing that she had taken him with her.
They opened their eyes, finding themselves in a different part of the country - in a city scene. A row of houses stood before him, a park before her.
"Shit! You can't be here," she mumbled to herself taking in her surroundings. "Do you trust me?" She asked her partner as she held out her hand.
"Yes," he said with a self assuredness that spoke volumes to them both.
The two disappeared from the street, no one the wiser that they were there. Except for the redheaded man that was watching from the third floor window who saw it all.
They reappeared in an empty, dust covered living room. He had never seen a home like this. Twin pale blue striped slipcovered couches flanked each side of the fireplace with white a display coffee table in between. The witch was running between the rooms, apparently knowing what she was doing and where she was going.
"Go upstairs. The last door. See if there are any clothes that fit you. Pick out a warm jacket and boots too." Her voice had gained some strength to it. She felt better, she was relaxed and comfortable, yet he knew not to disobey her commands.
He didn't have a chance to look around, but he noticed many pictures lining the walls and even more books strewn about. Books on everything from poetry to history, fiction and the classics. He made fast work on finding the clothes she requested, and she had done the same in a room down the hallway. She also returned with two large jars, one decorated in the shape of a dog seated in front of bowl of what looked like treats, the other was a pink elephant with its trunk raised upwards and a shirt that says 'Cookies are meant for days ending in Y'. She grabbed his clothes and her own, shoving them into her bag; then sealed both jars and shoved them in also.
"You should change too. This might be difficult for you."
"Where are we?" His eyes still sweeping and taking every odd thing in.
"Nowhere. Somewhere. No place we'll ever be again." She replied painfully. He couldn't tell if it was from her injuries or if there was something deeper that was torturing her poor fragile soul.
When he came back, attired in a blue and green plaid long sleeve flannel shirt, a white undershirt, dark jeans and laced up boots, she looked him over once then twice, unsure how she felt about this look on him. He looked comfortable and he maintained his self assured stature. But it wasn't him. At least not the him she was accustomed to.
"Take my hand." She said. He was never one to be apprehensive, not with this witch. He trusted her fully. He knew, after today, that they would be there for each other. He just didn't know how.
In doing so, they left the middle class row home to find themselves in a whole new world.
XOXO
Months pass quietly. The two had found a small hostel for the first few weeks, before settling in jobs and a small studio flat. They didn't need much, just a place to cook food, sleep, and sit and chat at the end of a long day.
She had got a job at a mail order company. She quickly was promoted to floor manager. The youngest person to have the position, and instead of her coworkers being jealous, they all celebrated her quick promotion.
He became accustomed to their life. He would regularly do the shopping down at the Pike Place Market, a large market that offered everything from oriental chakis to flying fish. They would have picnics on the waterfront, go to grunge concerts in dive bars, and even once he got her into the Space Needle but that had taken some work. He was the most popular barista in the little local coffee house, knowing most orders by face and offering new suggestions for those more adventurous. He would see a customer walk in, nod, and start their order. Locals loved him and his outrageous personality, walking in they would always call out "Drake" to the barista that made each one feel special. Some commented on his 'awesome ink' that adorned his left arm that seemed to change or move but that was ridiculous. The tattoo was something he wasn't particularly proud of but wouldn't go into detail with anyone about it.
This morning was nothing special. He was working, and working the customers - filling the tip jar for the 3rd time in his short shift already, one lady even slipped him a $20 just because he flashed one of his million dollar smiles at her and gave her an extra shot of cinnamon on top of her cappuccino.
She had gone in early for a meeting about the holiday season that was approaching and she was influential in hiring an additional 30 or so temporary employees to fill the additional need.
No one saw what was coming. No one could have suspected it would hit here, in Seattle Washington.
He heard the blast, and the news was quick to cover it. There was an explosion on the floor of her work. Dropping everything, he rushed over there, grateful that today he decided to bring along his wand.
He pushed through the press, the onlookers, hell even the first responders. He was there on the floor he knew well, her floor, seeing the chaos and destruction everywhere. He slid in the shadows looking for his witch. He had to make sure she was safe.
He heard a voice call out "Dracoooooooo". A name he hadn't used for months. It wasn't him anymore. He was Drake Miles, the muggle barista. She was Minnie; giving up the name and persona of Hermione Jean Granger when they both landed in the States. No one knew who they really were and they were glad for the animonity. But someone knew, someone whose voice sent chills down his spine, even though he was related to her. He saw the frazzled hair and the manic eyes. "How is my precious nephew? You don't look the same. You look… muggle." She said that as if it were a curse word.
"Auntie Bella, how good it is to see you too. And actually I am enjoying the muggle life." He looked behind her to a mass of boxes and shelving units that were unnaturally bent when he saw her carmel eyes looking back at him.
He motioned for her to get his wand as she mouthed 'I love you.'
He smiled, mouthing 'I know.' He felt his wand fly out of his pant leg where he had stored it unseen by the evil one in front of him. His blood turned to ice when he heard a growl behind him, turning he saw Greyback in full werewolf form coming from the aisles behind him and jumping on the conveyor belt at least 3 meters away in one giant, graceful leap.
"Let them go. They haven't done anything. They know nothing of us, of you." He pleaded for the lives of the first responders and the employees that 'Minnie' cherished as her friends. His eyes darted at the full scene before him, there was blood of many surrounding him, some bodies he recognized, some were unrecognizable, and some he just didn't know. He did recognize one of his regulars, a fire department team that would come in every few days. One of the members had just had a baby and come back from what they called 'paternity leave.' His heart sank.
"Draco… he wants you back. He wants the girl… I am just disgusted at how muggle you are. Not even carrying your wand." His aunt circled him, like a predator sizing up her prey. "I have been told to bring you home." She snarled the last word. "Your mother misses you." A shiver went down his back at the mention of his mother, the woman he left behind.
"If I go," he negotiated, "you'll call off your mutt?"
"If you come home," she drew out the last word, "he'll be joining us shortly. After he finds the mudblood."
He snickered, knowing full well that his witch was long gone.
Once his wand reached her hands she apparated to their flat, removing most trace of the two of them and grabbing her wand and beaded bag before going back. Back to England. Back to the war.
She thought long and hard, wondering where Harry and Ron could be. She needed their help. She needed their help to rescue him, like he rescued them months ago.
It took a few times before she saw the tell-tale sign that they were close. She felt the barrier knowing the spell well since she taught it to the men. "HARRY! RON! Help! It's me, Hermione!"
Harry Potter stepped through the barrier, "How did you find us? How do I know it is really you?"
"I found you because I taught you these spells. I have been trying different places we discussed to set up camp. Ask me anything, I know you Harry Potter."
"What was in your hand second year when you were petrified?"
"Two things: in my one hand was a mirror, that I used so that I wouldn't look the basilisk in the eye; in my other hand was a ripped page explaining what was in the Chamber of Secrets and how the basilisk was getting around the school, which by the way was the pipes."
"I never asked where you got the paper from."
The strange question at this time, one that she never really considered how she stumbled upon the paper. "I found it. Tucked in a book for something entirely different. But when I read it, everything made sense." She looked at him confused as to why, now, he would bring that up.
Halfway through the thought, Harry hugged her. "'Mione, where have you been? We've been so worried about you."
"Seattle Washington. I had a price on my head. He tried to kill me. Dra - Malfoy stepped in. He saved me."
"He saved you twice that day. Where is Malfoy? All the Death Eaters think we have him or he's hiding with us. But he's"
"We both were in Seattle. I was hiding him. We were..." She looked down at her hands, her eyes filled with worry.
"Don't worry 'Mione, we'll get him. Do you know where they were taking him?" the redheaded member came into view.
"The Manor. Bellatrix" she sighed. "Bellatrix took him. Greyback," she looked like she was going to be ill, "he was there too. He killed most of my staff." She was choking back tears as she fiddled her hands to keep them from shaking.
"How are we going to be able to get in? Only Malfoys"
She shook her head, not looking at either man before her, instead focusing on the ground and her hands. "I know a way. Draco told me." She lied.
"Okay, 'Mione, you sound like you have a plan. Let's get going."
The three arrived at the Manor. "Harry I'll bring you in. Ron, stay behind and keep an eye out. Harry, get Draco's broom. Fly him out."
"What about you? How are you getting out."
"I'm not really getting in. At least I hope I won't need to."
Harry nodded. Ron looked at her confused. There was something she wasn't saying and he knew it. He just couldn't put his finger on it.
She took Harry's hand and slid in at the side of the Manor's gate. She looked upstairs trying to remember the little details that Draco had told her about the Manor over the past few months. "His room is on the third floor." She pointed up, "That should be his window, the one with the green curtains." Harry nodded and headed in that direction, grateful that the window was open.
She waited until he was out of sight, before proceeding inside herself. She was going to face the evil witch that destroyed her work and killed her friends.
Inside Draco stood in the family's parlor, overlooking the tapestry that was the family tree.
"Explain yourself Draco. What is this leaf?"
He put on a noncommittal look, shrugging his shoulders.
"Draco," a maternal voice called to him from behind. It was the only voice he cared to hear in this blasted building that is his home. "Are you involved with someone? Because a leaf means"
"He's involved with the mudblood Cissy." Her sister's voice screeched like nails on a chalkboard. "He got the mudblood pregnant." Her face contorted into a snarl.
He looked upon the leaf skeptically. She would have told him. Unless she didn't know. Could she have not known? No, she wasn't. She was too smart. There was a war going on and they both were wanted. She wouldn't let herself. She was a lot of things, careless wasn't one of them.
He feared what would happen to her, if she was pregnant with his child. He walked closer to the tapestry, he needed to touch the leaf, he needed to know it really was there just under his name. It isn't like they weren't intimate over the months they were in hiding; they actually enjoyed all aspects of each other's company. He kept looking at the tapestry, it didn't say her name, thank Merlin. It just had the smallest speck of green that look to be unfolding. Silently he smiled inside.
Turning he saw something fly by. Who or what would be flying? The streak flew into the room and he reached up and grabbed the outstretched hand of a black haired, green eyed wizard. As they flew out of the building, a small witch snuck in.
Draco made sure that Harry was cleared of the barriers that protected the stately building, before questioning where his witch could be. He looked between the two wizards in front of him when they landed at where they left the redheaded one, "Where is she? Where's Hermione?"
"She said she wasn't going in, she was just going to get me in the barriers." Harry explained.
Draco's already pale face went even more ashen. He knew what that meant.
"Yeah Malfoy, how was she able to get in the barriers?"
"I told her some holes in the barriers." He lied to them. Only Malfoys can get in and out of the barrier.
Inside she snuck around looking for more information that can be used for the demise of the Dark Lord. And seek her revenge on the witch that had a specific blood lust for her.
"Get Draco, I don't care at what cost. I want him here NOW!" The crazy brunette bellowed.
The petite witch watched from the shadows as the other went storming out, followed by a legion of Death Eaters. Once the coast was cleared, Hermione slipped in, trying to see what was so important in that room. It must mean something to the possible demise of Lord Voldemort.
She was greeted by a tapestry that covered three of the four walls, recognizing the meaning behind it and some of the names on it.
"Is it true?" A kind, gentle voice asks from behind her.
"Is what true?" She felt safe with the voice, the one she recognized as Narcissa Malfoy - Draco's mother.
"Are you two… are you expecting?" The young witch swung around her wand in hand and pointed at the elder witch.
"Are we what?" She asked with fake bewilderment, but she was a good enough actress that she knew she pulled it off.
"You and Draco. I know how he feels for you," the young witch hides her hands, they were on the verge of giving her away. "Both you and my son have been missing for months, and the moment that Draco is found, you appear. Then there's this." She points to the green speck that is alongside Draco's picture. "This says that you two have been more than friends. So I am going to ask again, is it true?"
It can't be. It can't be here already. She just found out herself this morning, which is one of the reasons she rushed out of their flat so early. She wanted to get off work a little early to come up with a surprise for him. A smile creeps up on her face as she closes her eyes and nods once.
"Let's get you out of here then. There's no time to waste. He couldn't have, wouldn't have gone far without you," she understands why he always was so concerned for his mother's well being. She is one of those mums that just loves. She loves her son and would do anything to protect him. Now she is doing the same for the witch carrying her grandchild. Hermione knows, not just from the months of hearing Draco worry about her, but she feels that she can trust Narcissa Malfoy completely.
When the two witches leave by way of a hidden side door to the manor, her last words to were, "Go to him. Take care of him. Love him. Make him happy. That's all a mother wants for her child. You'll find that out soon enough."
She easily slides through all the barriers protecting the ancient house, not looking back.
The men were just where she left the redhead. All discussing, well barely 'discussing' the validity that she could get out of the Manor unharmed.
"I'm fine, if anyone is interested in asking me," she interrupts snarkily.
She feels Draco's arms wrap around her tightly. "How did you?"
"Your mother helped me out." Relief washed over him as he gripped her tighter.
"Since you two are as high on the hit list as Harry here," the redhead interrupted the couple's little intimate moment, "we had better get away from their lair."
"Grimmauld Place?" she suggests.
"Grimmauld Place," the other two chime in.
She takes Draco's hand. "Trust me?"
"Yes," he says without any hesitation as she hands him something he treasures, his wand.
The four disapparate to No. 12 Grimmauld Place, allowing the home to show itself for them before entering.
When they finally feel safe the couple turn to each other again.
"Don't ever do that again Malfoy," she proclaims. "I could have lost you."
"Really Malfoy? You're scolding me? You're the one that snuck into the Manor for some unknown reason. Don't ever do that to me again," he chides whispering the last word: "Malfoys," with a smile dancing on his lips.
"Malfoy? Why the bloody hell are you calling Hermione 'Malfoy'?" the hot headed redhead wizard spews.
Draco leans down to kiss Hermione, holding his left hand up to show a small silver band on his fourth finger.