A/N: Yes, I'm bad for not finishing my Snape/Hermione What Price Victory. You can beat me later. Promise. ;)

This story begins in the late Spring of 6th year. Draco has been working on the vanishing cabinet, and trying to whack Dumbledore. Up until this point, the story will be cannon. From here, it's going to be a wild ride. Everyone always thought Hermione was the brightest witch of her age. I say she needs to prove it. Ever since Harry came off the train ranting about Draco Malfoy breaking his nose, Hermione has slowly been putting the puzzle pieces together. Let's see what she came up with, shall we? First stop: Dumbledore's office.

Happy Birthday to me. :)

-Elvee

Snatch

Chapter One

"Genius is initiative on fire."

- Holbrook Jackson

Sixth year prefect Hermione Granger stood facing a gargoyle statue in a dimly lit hallway of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The stone corridor was damp and chilly for a March evening and she was wearing a school jumper for warmth over her uniform in addition to her work robes. She checked the folded piece of parchment in her hands for the third time. On it, in Professor McGonogall's precise handwriting was written: Fizzing Whizbees 8PM. Checking her watch and finding it five minutes before the hour, she took a deep breath and straightened her shoulders.

Fingering the heart shaped locket around her neck, she took another steadying breath and patted down her hair. She'd been working toward this meeting with Professor Dumbledore since the beginning of the year. It was time to demonstrate what being the brightest witch of her age really meant.

Softly, she gave the password and the five foot gargoyle obligingly jumped out of the way, revealing a magically turning circular staircase. Her foot scuffed at some stray grit on the bottom stair, and it echoed loudly as the staircase carried her upward. Approaching the door at the top of the stairs she could hear muffled voices. She frowned. She'd been sure to ask Professor McGonagall for a private appointment. Hesitating for only a moment, she stepped off the corckscrewing stairs to the small landing and knocked crisply.

The voices were suddenly hushed, and a muffled "Come in," answered her knock. She turned the knob and stepped inside the posh office of the Headmaster of Hogwarts. Seated behind an immense mahogany desk sat a merry old wizard sporting half moon glasses perched on the end of a long and slightly crooked nose. He smiled warmly and motioned to a squashy armchair situated in front of his desk, "Good evening, Miss Granger. Please. Have a seat."

Hermione hesitated in the door frame, biting her lower lip. In for a knut, in for a galleon, she thought before addressing the Headmaster, "Excuse me, sir." Without pause she cast a hominum revelio charm. A glowing red outline surrounded Albus Dumbledore, just as the charm was supposed to. To her surprise, it also outlined a form in a darkened corner across the room. She pursed her lips, then quickly cast a finite incantatum at the lurking figure.

The menacing form of Professor Snape, Potions Master and known Death Eater melted into existence. She would have known that shoulder length greasy hair, hooked nose and pallid complexion anywhere. He sneered at her. Hermione frowned and darted her eyes to meet the twinkling blue ones of the Headmaster. "I specifically asked for a private meeting, Professor." She didn't move out of the doorway.

"Indeed, you did. However, if this meeting is about Order business, I'd much prefer Professor Snape listen in. It would save a good deal of time and much less will be lost in the retelling." He waved his wand and a tea tray appeared on his desk. "Tea?"

Hermione stiffened and her eyes darted back to the Potions Master, "May I speak freely, sir?"

Dumbledore was busily pouring three cups of tea with his wand. "Of course, but only if you sit and have tea." He motioned to the second armchair, "You, too, Severus. Sit. We're all friends here."

Hermione perched on the very end of the squashy armchair and hesitantly accepted a cup of tea, "Sir, I asked for a private audience with you because the information I have gathered for the Order is, well... sensitive."

Dumbledore took a lemon cookie from the tray and munched thoughtfully, "Nothing to worry about there, Miss Granger. As you are well aware, Professor Snape works for the Order. Anything you can say to me, you can say to him."

By this time, Professor Snape had seated himself rather stiffly in the armchair next to hers. His cup of tea was resting untouched on his knee. The sneer was gone, but his eyes were far too piercing for comfort.

Hermione sighed before reaching in her robes and extracting a pair of mirrored sunglasses. She put them on, adjusting the neck strap as tight as it would go. She tapped her wand to the temple of the glasses, casting a non-verbal anti-summoning jinx.

Dumbledore and Snape exchanged a look.

"I'm afraid Professor Snape's position in the Order isn't what's in question. It's a matter of where his loyalties lie." Hermione's voice shook from nerves. Students didn't dare insult teachers, let alone prefects, but she had no choice. Her information was right, and it all pointed to a very dire set of circumstances.

"And the sunglasses?" Professor Snape drawled.

Hermione stiffened while sipping her tea. The cup rattled slightly in the saucer when she put it down. "I am only here to discuss information that is mine to give. I am aware I am sitting in a room with two of the best Legilimens in Britain. I have read about it, of course, but I am no where near ready to defend myself from either of you."

Snape sneered, but Professor Dumbledore only chuckled, "Too right you are Miss Granger. Too right. As to the matter of Professor Snape's loyalty, I tire of telling you the same thing I tell Mister Potter. Professor Snape's loyalty is above reproach."

Hermione gave the Potions Master a measured look from behind her sunglasses before turning back to the Headmaster, "Then you trust him completely?"

Dumbledore become solemn for the first time since she'd entered the office. "I trust Severus with my life."

Snape shifted in his seat.

Hermione gave herself a few minutes to think. He was the one last year that summoned the Order to the Ministry of Magic to rescue the handful of students that had been pinned down by Death Eaters. She'd been mortally wounded, and might not be sitting in this office this evening without his intervention. In a roundabout way, she owed him her life. She stood and offered her hand to the surly Professor, "Please accept my apologies, sir. I understand you have a difficult part to play in this war, and it speaks very highly of you how thoroughly you convinced me." Hesitantly he took her hand and they shook, she finished in a much smaller voice, "I wish I could have known you in other circumstances."

The Potions Master pinned her with a long look. Hermione thought he might be trying to feel out the truth of those words. He could believe her or not, she was sincere. She sank back in her chair.

Dumbledore laughed, "Wonderful! Now that we all understand one another, what is it you came to see me about?"

Hermione slid her empty tea cup back on the tray, hesitating again. It was difficult having a sharp mind in such a young body. A startling connection had just occurred to her, and it might well be seen as impertinent for her to say something. She quickly listed the pros and cons in her head before she spoke again, "Professor, if Professor Snape is as dedicated and trustworthy as you say, you have done him a great disservice. You are far more manipulative than I have given you credit for."

Snape choked on a mouthful of tea.

Hermione pushed on in their stunned silence, "You have successfully allowed Professor Snape to be alienated by the rest of the Order. Aside from you and myself, no one will trust him. If something should happen to you, we will lose a very valuable source of insider information." She turned to Professor Snape, "That is, if I have pieced the facts together properly and you are a spy in the Death Eater inner circle."

Neither man confirmed it, but they didn't deny it, either.

The seventeen year old girl squared her shoulders to her Headmaster and pressed on, "Professor Dumbledore, your life is in danger. Draco Malfoy is trying to kill you."

"Indeed?" The twinkle was back in the old wizard's eyes. He knew this already.

"And tell me, how do you know this?" Professor Snape pinned her with a hard stare.

"It's all very logical, sir. I know that he was given a task from Vol-" At Snape's hissed intake of breath, she stuttered, "He Who Must Not Be Named. He cornered Harry on the train when we first got here and gave him a bloody nose. Harry is an unlikely target, given the Prophecy says He Who Must Not Be Named must kill him. If he wanted myself or Ron, it would have been easy for him to do it anytime this year. He could have simply gathered his goons and attacked us while we were alone. Then we look at what has been done: the poisoned mead that was meant for Professor Dumbledore, and the necklace that was to be brought to him. It all points to the Headmaster."

Dumbledore poured himself another cup of tea, "And how can you be so sure it is Mister Malfoy?"

"At first I wasn't, but I took some time to think about it. At the battle of the Ministry last year, Lucius Malfoy was giving the orders to the other Death Eaters. He was in charge. Obviously, he failed and the prophecy was broken." She turned to Professor Snape, "I can only imagine that the Death Eaters are like any other insurgent group, with a hierarchy of followers behind You Know Who. If Lucius failed in that mission, it is likely that he would lose status among the Death Eaters. But, I don't think You Know Who would have been satisfied with Lucius being kicked around by the others. The Prophecy was important. He'd want his pound of flesh."

She took a biscuit from the tray and munched thoughtfully, "So I asked myself what does Lucius Malfoy value above everything else? Then it came to me: his name, his family. I still wasn't sure, but with all the free time I had since the boys were practicing Quidditch, and having extra lessons with you, Professor, I took some time and did a bit of digging."

She reached into the neck of her robes and opened her locket, taking out a small stack of confetti-sized bits of parchment. She tapped them with her wand, whispering "Engorgio." The parchments grew into a stack of papers covered in her tidy script. She dug through them and handed one across the desk to Professor Dumbledore, continuing, "As you can see, all of the Malfoys for the last thirteen generations have died within six months of the death of their spouses. One or two may be a coincidence, but thirteen?"

She shuffled her papers and passed another to the Headmaster. He handed the first paper to Professor Snape before accepting the new document and looking it over.

"So I did some digging into bonding rituals, and it would seem that there are many different types, all of which constitute a magical contract. It's my theory that the Malfoys use a very old form of the bonding ritual that not only magically enforces fidelity, but also causes the death of the surviving spouse within six months. If my research is correct, it was first used in a marriage of alliance in 1607 to prevent the then Malfoy heir from marrying the daughter of a powerful family and killing her off to inherit her holdings."

Hermione rushed on, nearly breathless, "If the Malfoys still use this bonding ritual when they marry, that means Lucius Malfoy is unable to conceive another heir."

Dumbledore exchanged a look with Professor Snape, "You were at their wedding. Is this true? Do they use this old ritual?" He passed the paper to Snape detailing the spell to magically bond wizard and witch in matrimony.

Snape let his eyes drag over the bushy haired slip of a girl beside him before scanning the paper. "It is." He sat forward in his chair, and directed his question at the quivering prefect beside him, "But how can you possibly know that he cannot have another heir. Narcissa is still in her prime."

Hermione had the good graces to pinken in her cheeks, "That was a little more... difficult. I overheard Malfoy saying his mother had gone to France on a shopping trip. I sent an message to St. Mungo's pretending to be a French healer who needed a copy of her medical records to treat her. I sent it via prepaid return express owl, so the copy of the records came to me instead of going to a fictitious healer in France."

She dug out a few pages from her dwindling pile, handing them to Professor Snape this time. "As you can see, Narcissa Malfoy has had four miscarriages. She was declared infertile when Draco was ten."

Professor Dumbledore read the medical records Professor Snape placed on his desk and laughed, "Well reasoned, Miss Granger."

"How does this implicate Mr. Malfoy?" Snape said tightly.

Hermione smiled, logic was, well, logical, and it hadn't failed her yet. "Simple. You Know Who wanted to punish Lucius, so he gave a seemingly impossible task to the only person that he holds dear, knowing Draco would never complete it. It would give You Know Who the perfect reason to torture or even kill Draco Malfoy while Lucius could stand by and do nothing."

Her bushy head was going a mile a minute, and it led her to a very unsettling conclusion, "But you already knew about this, didn't you?"

"Of course," said Dumbledore, eyes twinkling again. "That is not to say it wasn't a brilliant piece of reasoning and research on your part."

The young prefect bit her lip before asking a question she thought she already had the answer to, "So what are we going to do about it?"

"Do?" asked Dumbledore, still twinkling. "We're not going to do anything."

"But..." She was about to protest, but it would be all too easy for them to dismiss her before she presented her very logical, very well thought out plan. She could see them shifting in their chairs, readying themselves to push her out the door. It was going to take something drastic to keep them listening. She lowered her voice to a very serious tone, "With all due respect, sir, I don't think you've thought this all the way through. Malfoy may be spoiled, bigoted and rude, but he's also cunning, impatient and petulant. It's a bad combination. As small as the possibility might be that he could succeed, if he did, it would bring the Order to it's knees."

She had their attention now. She waited. Professor Snape didn't disappoint her. He said one word curtly, "Explain."

The swotty girl in her was happy to oblige, "Without Professor Dumbledore, the Order will be left scattered and leaderless. You might have been able to take the reins, Professor Snape, but as I said, Professor Dumbledore has made sure no one in the Order aside from himself – and now me- trusts you. Begging your pardon, sir." She aimed this last sentence at her Headmaster.

"Quite alright. Please continue, Miss Granger." Dumbledore wasn't smiling or twinkling anymore.

Hermione looked at her feet, talking slowly and deliberately. "Professor McGonagall is my head of house and I think she's a very capable witch, but she doesn't have the strong leadership qualities to hold the Order together for long. Who does that leave? Molly Weasley? She can't feed Vol- You Know Who to death. Arthur Weasley is under too much suspicion at the Ministry, as are Tonks and Kingsley. Anyone who might be able to hold the Order together is already under far too much suspicion to take on the mantle. Not to mention, how another leader will be received. I think, due to the Prophecy, if you die, the Order will look to Harry. And I think we all know he isn't ready to lead."

Hermione sighed, "I think, if you die Professor, it will be just a matter of time before the Order crumbles. We'd be in a race against time to take down You Know Who before it all fell apart."

Dumbledore waved his wand and the tea tray disappeared. "What do you suggest we do, Miss Granger?"

She sat up straight in her chair and announced, "I have to kidnap Draco Malfoy."

Their reaction wasn't what she had expected. There were no outbursts of disbelief. No one laughed. Professor Dumbledore merely steepled his fingers and tapped his them thoughtfully against his lips, thinking. The Potions Master turned spy recoiled slightly, but remained silent as he narrowed his eyes and stared into the distance.

After pausing for a full minute of silence, Hermione pushed on ahead, "Fully a third of the fighters the Order can count on are still living within these walls as students. We're not battle hardened veterans, we're school kids who practice dueling in the hopes of getting lucky. If the Order crumbles much more, we won't have a hope of defeating them, even if Harry can take down You Know Who. We need a way to weaken them from the inside. Using Professor Snape would endanger him and compromise our intelligence. We need leverage from someone none of the Death Eaters would ever suspect- one of their own."

Snape obviously thought he had her here, and he sneered, "And what makes you think Lucius Malfoy would cooperate even if we had his son?"

Hermione didn't miss a beat, "The Unbreakbale Vow you took with Narcissa Malfoy."

Snape clearly wanted to gasp, but settled for hissing, "How do you know about that?" Dumbledore's eyes were now more piercing than the Potions Master and his normally smiling mouth fell into a thin line.

She knew her mirrored sunglasses only showed him a tiny picture of himself instead of allowing him to burrow into her mind and find out the truth. She would never reveal Harry had been listening outside that classroom door on the night of Slughorn's party when Professor Snape revealed his vow to Draco Malfoy. "How I know isn't important, sir. What's important is that Narcissa Malfoy will do anything to keep her son safe. I think it would be a good bet that she would cajole or even bully Lucius into cooperating."

Dumbledore spoke for the first time in many minutes, "If we do kidnap Draco Malfoy, we can't kill him. The Vow Severus took would take his life if the young Mr. Malfoy were to die. Narcissa knows this." Dumbledore's furrowed brow suddenly brightened, "Of course, that would play into our hands as well. Narcissa would confide in you, Severus, and would expect you to do anything it took to keep her son alive. It would enable you to work openly with Lucius and Narcissa to bring down the inner circle and create chaos with Voldemort's allies."

Hermione smiled and nodded. "Exactly that, sir."

Dumbledore's face relaxed into a look of admiration, "Very good thinking, Miss Granger. This is an angle I hadn't thought of yet. Kidnapping Draco Malfoy would be a significant boon to the Order."

Even though Professor Dumbledore was beginning to see the merits of her idea, Hermione didn't like the way he was speaking, implying if the Order did implement her plan, they'd cut her out of it. She smiled anyway, it was time to tip her hand, "There are two reasons I should be the one to kidnap Draco Malfoy. I am the only Muggleborn witch in the Order that is unmarried and of age. I wouldn't threaten to kill him. I'd threaten to marry him."

Snape nearly choked and jumped to his feet, his cape swirling behind him as he paced, "What if Lucius doesn't agree, Miss Granger? What if you are forced to marry Mr. Malfoy? Do you have the intestinal fortitude to go through with it?"

Professor Dumbledore merely raised a bushy white eyebrow at her and waited.

Hermione shifted in her seat, this was the uncomfortable part of her plan. Marrying the bouncing ferret wasn't exactly her idea of happily ever after. Logic dictated any plan had risks. She had thought it through and had already made her decision, "I wouldn't be here if I wasn't willing to do whatever it takes to succeed. If they refuse, I am fully committed to marrying Draco Malfoy. If that winds up being the case, I would get the satisfaction of knowing the House of Malfoy could never again side with Pureblood supremacists. It's a calculated risk, but the odds are very much in our favor. Lucius will protect his heir and progeny."

Professor Snape ceased his pacing, again trying to look in her eyes, but resumed when he saw her sunglasses again. Minute after minute stretched out.

Dumbledore twirled his wand between his fingers, his eyes twinkling again at last. Finally he broke the silence, "You said there were two reasons, Miss Granger. What is the second?"

This was tougher. Admitting weakness was always difficult for her. "I haven't been tested."

Snape stopped mid-stride with his back to her. "Tested?"

She fidgeted with her papers, tapping them with her wand to shrink them and tuck them back inside her locket. "I think I know much more about the Order than anyone else outside this room. I know that Professor Lupin has been planted with the werewolves. I know that Hagrid was sent to the giants. I know that Professor Snape is a spy. I know that curse you're hiding on your hand Professor Dumbledore has the power to eventually kill you. More than that, I know how fragile the Order truly is. If I'm ever captured and tortured for information, I'm not sure how long I'll be able to hold out. I need to be taken off the board. I'm a weak link."

Professor Dumbledore offered her a lemon drop and a calm smile. "With a mind like yours, I doubt anyone would ever consider you to be a weak link, Miss Granger," he said kindly. "For now, it is late and I'm sure you'd like to retire. Let me think over what you've said, and I'll send for you in a few days."

Hermione nodded, popping the lemon drop in her mouth. "Yes, sir. Thank you for your time." As she stood to leave, she turned back to Professor Snape, "My apologies again, sir." At his nod, she left the room, closing the door behind her softly.

Severus slumped back into the chair, huffing in disbelief, "Brightest witch of our age, indeed! Merlin! I thought we'd been careful."

Dumbledore gave a wry smile, "We were careful, Severus. I warned you about underestimating her. She's truly remarkable."

Both of them sat with their thoughts for a long quiet minute. Dumbledore crossed to the huge window overlooking the dark grounds and spoke, "She's right about one thing: if she's ever captured..."

"I'll have to rescue her," Snape cut in, obviously put out that something else was being added to his already heaping plate of duties.

As Dumbledore stared out into the night, his next words made him sound old and worn out, "If you can't, you know what must be done." The gray haired wizard removed his glasses and polished them on his sleeve, refusing to meet the other man's eyes. Finally, he managed to choke a few words out of his tightening throat, "If it comes to that, Severus, make it painless."

A/N: Today is my birthday. Please review. :) Thank you!