Chapter Two

No More Losing this War

"I'm always looking, and I'm always asking questions."

-Anne Rice

Hermione paced around her office for what felt like hours but in reality, it hadn't been that long at all. She was going to talk to him today; she had decided just this morning when she exited the lift. But how? How was she going to go to Draco Malfoy and ask such a personal question? She wasn't sure if he still hated her; even if he didn't, how could she ask such a question? She was Hermione Granger: the one who spouted off facts, questions, and answers, he was Draco Malfoy: the person who had teased her to no end and had witnessed one of the worst days of her life.

A shudder went down her spine as the images involuntarily replayed before her eyes. Hermione walked over to her desk and placed both hands down on it, spreading her fingers over the glossy cherry wood. She shut her eyes and tried to calm her breathing and racing thoughts, a technique her therapist had taught her. She couldn't lose control, not today.

A knock sounded at the door. Hermione took one last deep breath before turning around and opening the door. Harry stood there with a smile on his face.

"Good morning, Harry," Hermione said with a lot more enthusiasm than she felt at the moment.

"Morning. You're here early," he said as he moved into the office and shut the door behind him.

Hermione walked over to her desk and sat behind it as Harry took a seat on her couch. "I'm usually in quite early, Harry, but since I couldn't sleep, I thought I might as well come in and get a handle on the things I have to do today. You're here early as well. Is there something going on?" Concern laced her voice.

Harry let out a sigh and the smile slowly slid from his face as he looked at her solemnly. "Mione."

She knew that tone and it never bode well.

His green eyes bore into her brown ones. "You know what Kingsley said: if you're not doing so well you don't have to come in."

Hermione put down the paper she had been looking over and ran a hand over her face. "Honestly, Harry, you know I can't do that. I have just as much to do as you, and you don't take a break. We're the same in that aspect. We don't take breaks; if we aren't doing anything, we feel useless. Also, you never answered my question."

"You're right, Hermione. I just worry about you, you know? I worry about Ron, too, but it seems with him helping George out, it's helping the both of them. They have each other whereas..." Harry trailed off.

"I don't have anyone. I get it. My parents are still in Australia and I want to get them back, but at the same time, they might be happier there. Who am I to disturb that?"

"I don't mean that you're alone. You are not alone. You have me, Ron, Gin, and the Weasleys," he explained quickly.

"I know I do, Harry, and I'm extremely grateful, but you're right. I don't have that connection with anyone else like you do with Ginny. Ron and I... it's been hard. After we kissed during the battle, it seemed that it was going somewhere, but I realized later that it was just the heat of the moment," she told him dismissively. "So, what is happening today that you're here so early, hmm?" she asked, changing the subject.

Harry gave her a pitying look; she quickly averted her eyes so that she didn't wouldn't have to see it. "Well, there's a raid today. Someone found the whereabouts of a few Death Eaters."

Hermione's head snapped up then.

"No, not Bellatrix. Just a few small-time Death Eaters."

Harry knew that Hermione wanted Bellatrix caught just as badly as he did, but what he didn't know was that she wanted Bellatrix dead.

Hermione nodded and went back to her paper. "Be careful," she told him.

"You know I will. I always am." He gave her a smile and started to stand up.

Hermione's eyes scanned over the paper before an idea hit her. Harry had to know something about Draco. She looked up as Harry opened the door.

"Harry, wait!"

He turned around and looked at her expectantly. She motioned for him to shut the door; he complied. Hermione hopped up from her desk and walked towards him.

"I have a question. I'm not sure if you can answer it, but I have to at least try," she told him quickly. He gave her a look to continue.

"All right, this may seem weird, but my curiosity has gotten the better of me and since I ran into him this morning, it just had me thinking about it."

Harry put his hands on Hermione's shoulders."Calm down. Just ask me."

"Sorry," she said, sheepishly. "Why did Draco Malfoy become an Auror?" she asked him seriously.

Harry lifted both eyebrows until they disappeared under his wild fringe. "Well, whatever you were going to ask, I wasn't expecting that at all," he said with an uneasy laugh.

"I know that everyone has to tell their head of the department why they want to join, but I didn't know if it was something secret, or if you could share."

"It is very personal and I don't know if I should tell you. Why do you want to know?"

"I ran into him in the lift this morning and I was just wondering. For someone like him to become an Auror, it's just shocking. I know it's been a year and all, but it's still strange."

Harry looked at her for a minute and she hoped that the curiosity excuse would work. Harry often knew when she was lying. She had never been a great liar, and she often wore her feelings plainly on her face. He finally nodded, removing his hands from her shoulders.

"Okay, but you can't tell anyone! I mean it, Hermione," he said sternly.

"I promise."

"All right." Harry walked back to the couch and mussed the back of his hair a little before he began to speak again. "Malfoy said he wanted to join because he knew from the night that he pointed his wand at Dumbledore that he wasn't like them , the Dark, and he wanted to change. He wanted to redeem himself. He wanted to help round up those who had wronged him , and countless others; he wanted to put the Death Eaters where they belonged. As you know, I was at his hearing after the war. I vouched for him because from watching him up on that tower, I knew he wasn't a killer. Even when we were in his drawing room, I could see that he just wanted it all to end, like we did. He may have tried to threaten us in the Room of Requirement, but he didn't want to do it."

Hermione was quiet for awhile. She was stunned! Draco Malfoy wanted to round up those who wronged him and others, like her. He wanted to redeem himself. It was definitely something she never thought she would hear.

"Wow," she finally said.

"I know. He was just caught up in something he couldn't get away from and I could sympathize with that. I had the responsibility of needing to defeat Voldemort looming over my head ever since I was born and I couldn't get out of that, not until I defeated him. Malfoy couldn't get out of his duty to his family until he changed the way he thought; that was what he did." Harry stood again. "Does that help satisfy your curiosity?"

"Yes, thank you, Harry."

"No problem." He walked over and hugged her. "I shouldn't be gone long. So, do me a favor and go check on Gin after work. I know how she is whenever I leave."

"I will. And be careful."

He released her and gave her a smile. "I will." With that, he left her office.

Hermione walked back to her chair and sat down. She swiveled it around until she was facing the fake windows that let in light to her office. She had so much to process about Draco Malfoy. It seemed that he really wasn't the same person she knew in school. So much had changed in such a small amount of time. What a difference a year made indeed.

Thinking about what Harry had told her confirmed what she'd assumed. He was after the same thing she was and maybe, just maybe, she could convince him to go along with her. Hermione turned her chair back around and started working on the things on her desk. She had a bit of time to think of a proper plan to present to Malfoy when he got back from his mission. It felt good to have something to focus all of her energy on again.

After work, Hermione did as Harry asked her: she Floo-ed to Harry and Ginny's house. They had married quickly after the war ended. They both didn't want to spend anymore useless time apart. It was something to celebrate after all of the horrible things the Weasleys had gone through during the war.

As she walked through Grimmauld Place, Hermione stuck her head into many of the rooms downstairs, but there was no sign of the redhead. Hermione placed her hands on her hips in contemplation. She made her way up another flight of stairs before calling out for Ginny. She didn't want to wake up Mrs. Black.

The redhead poked her head over the railing from the floor above. "I'm up here!"

Hermione made her way up another flight of stairs before she walked into the bedroom that Harry and Ginny had claimed as theirs. Ginny was sitting on the floor going through a few things. Hermione sat down on a chair that wasn't covered in clothing and papers.

"Hullo!" Ginny called over her shoulder.

"Hello! What are you doing?" Hermione asked, looking around at the clutter.

"Cleaning out Harry's and my school trunks. I promised myself I would do it months ago, but I suppose now is as good a time as any." She turned her brown eyes on Hermione and gave a smile.

"Trying to keep yourself busy so you don't have to think about Harry being gone?" Hermione guessed.

"You're too smart for your own good, honestly," Ginny teased, throwing something into a pile.

"No, not at all. It's just that you're organizing and cleaning now, when you didn't want to months ago; I just put two and two together."

Ginny sighed. "I suppose I was quite obvious. Now, what brings you here? Wait," she paused, holding up a hand, "don't tell me. My husband sent you here to play babysitter." She raised a red eyebrow at her. /br

"Maybe you're just too smart for your own good," Hermione said, throwing Ginny's words back at her.

"Nah, I just know my husband. He thinks I'm going to lose my mind whilst he's away. As you can see, I keep myself quite busy." She gestured to the cluttered mess all over the room. "Plus, with Quidditch practice going on, I am knackered. He underestimates me."

Hermione couldn't help but giggle. "I believe he does underestimate you, or he's just as worried about you as you are about him. I find it endearing"

Ginny shook her head slowly, a smile making its way to her lips. "What am I going to do with him?"

"Love him."

"That's all I can do, honestly."

The two girls lapsed into silence for a moment. "Do you need any help?" Hermione asked.

Ginny snorted. "That would be wonderful; if you don't mind helping."

Hermione let out a short laugh. "Ginny, you're underestimating me."

Hermione took off her shoes and sat on the floor beside Ginny and started working alongside her.

Two hours later, the mess was contained and organized. Hermione stretched and cracked a few bones. There was nothing like organizing things to really put everything into perspective. Ginny stretched beside her.

"Thanks for helping me, Hermione. I would have been stuck here doing this all night, even if I used magic."

Hermione waved a dismissive hand at Ginny. "It was nothing. It was fun."

"Fun?"

"Well, yes. I got to spend time with you and we did something productive. Fun."

Ginny laughed. "Sometimes, I will never understand how your brain works."

Both women stood up . "Are you hungry?" Ginny asked.

"Famished."

"Good! Mum cooked and brought some things over last night. I worry about her sometimes. She doesn't have all of us at home anymore and I think she really hates the fact that she doesn't have all of us to cook for."

"Probably. She's had a full house for so long that now that everyone's gone, it's hard to adjust."

"We'll all be back during holidays. She can come visit any of us any time she wants."

"It's still not the same."

"I know. We'll have to organize family dinners each week."

"That would probably be a great idea."

Ginny gave her a smile as they made their way to the kitchen. Ginny took out all of the food and placed it on the table. Hermione's stomach gave out a loud growl as she looked over the delicious food. Before they could dig in, the Floo activated and Ron stepped out.

"I swear, you must have a built-in alarm that tells you when people are about to eat," Ginny said to her brother.

He smiled at her. "I wish, but I do have great timing. Hi, 'Mione!"

"Hello, Ron."

Ginny grabbed another plate and some silverware for her brother. The three of them dug in after that.

Things between Ron and Hermione weren't awkward. They were still the best of friends. After they had shared that kiss during the war, it had seemed like the thing that had been missing between them for so long, but after the war had ended and they tried out a relationship, they found out they worked better as friends. There was no bad blood between the two of them after the break-up, but it had been a little awkward for awhile.

Everything was fine now and they were all enjoying each other's company. It felt like old times at the Gryffindor table or around the Weasleys' table during school holidays. It was definitely something Hermione had missed. She knew that her talk with Ginny about family meals was something that would work out.

After a fantastic meal and dessert, Hermione decided to head home. She had moved back to her childhood home. She often found herself going through family albums looking at her parents' faces. The pictures that used to contain her were still in there and seeing it often made her sad, but she loved them and wanted to feel connected to them somehow.

Harry and Ron had asked her months after the war if she was going to go to her parents and return their memories back. She didn't know then and she didn't know now. She knew that her parents would be angry with her once they knew what she had done to them. She had promised them that she would never use her magic against them but she had in the end, albeit for their own protection.

She found herself wondering if their life in Australia was something that made them happy. They didn't even know they had a daughter and she often wondered if they even wanted kids. So many what ifs came to mind whenever she looked through the photo album. She did want to at least see them and determine if they were doing all right. She would make her decision to return their memories then.

Which brought her back to her mission; finding out that Draco Malfoy wanted the same thing she did suggested that it was highly probable she could get him to agree with her and come along. She still didn't know how she would broach the subject without revealing that she knew why he wanted to become an Auror. Just like Harry said, it was a personal, private thing, and she didn't want to break the fragile-state of that secret.

Hermione sat there in the overstuffed arm chair with Crookshanks purring on her lap, thinking of a plan. Soon, it hit her like a ton of bricks. She almost upset poor Crookshanks as she stood up abruptly. The feline glowered at her before he stalked away to find another place to sleep.

She looked at the harried feline and gave him an 'I'm sorry' look before she thought about her plan. It was perfect! She would need to speak to the Minister tomorrow and wait until the Aurors came back so she could do this properly. Hermione headed to bed that night feeling better than she had in awhile; nightmares didn't plague her for once.

Harry and the other Aurors came back three days later. Hermione was so happy to see that he was unscathed that she hugged him when he came into her office.

"I'm knackered. I just came to tell you that I'm all right. I'm heading home to sleep for at least a day," Harry told her.

"Go right ahead. You deserve it. I'll see you soon."

He gave her a wave and headed home.

Hermione knew that Malfoy was back and that now was the time to speak to him. She had spoken to Kingsley the day after determining her plan. Kingsley had approved it readily. She thought it was almost too easy.

Now came the hard part: she had to actually ask Malfoy if he wanted to accompany her. Hermione made sure that her robes were smoothed down before she exited her office and headed towards the Auror Office .

She found Malfoy's office easily enough. She took a deep breath before she knocked. There wasn't a sound in the office as she pressed her ear to the door. Without warning, the door swung open, Hermione almost tumbling inside. She straightened just in time so that she wouldn't fall on top of Malfoy, but the look on his face was one of shock and curiosity.

"Oh, sorry," Hermione apologized quickly as heat made its way to her cheeks.

"It's all right," he said slowly. "Were you trying to listen through my door?" He raised a pale eyebrow, his grey eyes full of confusion and possibly amusement.

"Oh, no, I mean yes! I didn't know if you were here or not. Harry had gone home and I didn't know if you had as well." Hermione knew that she was rambling, but she couldn't seem to stop.

"Nope, I'm still here. May I help you with something?" he asked, leaning against his door frame.

"Yes, actually, I have an important favor to ask of you. Could we go inside and talk about this?" she asked him hopefully.

Draco gave her a strange look before he moved aside and gestured for her to come inenter. He followed her in and shut the door behind him. He placed a silencing charm on his office and sat in his chair. He placed his elbows on the desk and interlaced his hands, waiting for her to speak.

Sitting in front of him now, Hermione definitely felt nervous as his grey eyes seemed to be piercing through her very soul.

"So, what is it that you need to ask me?" he asked curiously.

He didn't sound impatient or even put out, so Hermione gathered all of her Gryffindor courage and wrapped it around her like a blanket before she opened her mouth and let the question fall from it.