Hi lovelies! Glad you guys liked the plot twist! I know some of you are bummed this fic won't be longer, but I had it pretty cleanly planned out and I didn't want to pad it with anything extra. I promise to write more stories for you after this one. There will still be a lot going on in the next few chapters, so hopefully you won't be bored.

FULL DISCLOSURE: I'm still writing the chapter after this one. I haven't even started the one after that. Still, I made a commitment to do daily posting, so I will do my very best not to fall behind. If I didn't work full time, this would be a whole lot easier! GAH! NO SLEEP FOR ME.

Thank you for your continued kick-ass reviews! I love seeing all the old and new names popping up. Enjoy the chapter! xoxo


The silence was deafening.

Narcissa face transformed, a genuine smile breaking through as she turned her palms towards the ceiling in a placating gesture. "You figured it out. I knew you would."

"Did you really?"

"Of course. You are my son, after all."

"It took me longer than I would have liked," Draco admitted. "I didn't believe my own conclusions at first."

"Naturally," she said. "Miss Granger was very worried about how you would take it. She said she didn't know if you were ready."

Draco grimaced. "She wasn't entirely wrong. I haven't exactly been very consistent with her."

"I think you'll find she's quite patient."

Draco rubbed the heels of his palms against his eyes until he saw stars. This was going to be a long, strange conversation. "It's going to take me a while to get used to you talking about her so casually, mother."

"Why don't you sit down, then," said Narcissa, gesturing to the twin wingback chair across from her own. "We have much to discuss. Would you like some tea?"

"Firewhiskey would be more fitting, if you don't mind."

She shrugged and made her way to the liquor cabinet and unstoppered the crystal decanter, pouring him a generous glass.

"Thank you," he said, accepting the drink and taking a sip that burned him all the way down. After a brief pause, he took another. He was going to need fortitude to have this discussion. His own mother had been lying to him for months now... All those conversations they had were complete inventions. That said, he'd been just as dishonest, vacillating endlessly about his loyalty. There was no reason for her to think she could let him in on the plan.

Still. What a secret she had been keeping.

"Now," she said, clasping her hands and taking her seat. "Tell me what you know."

"I know that you somehow learned that father didn't die at the Battle of Fronders. I suspect that's what started this whole thing off."

"Correct," she said. "And I almost didn't find out at all. I overheard the portraits gossiping about it, actually. They clammed up as soon as I started to question them, but as there's very little you can do to properly torture a portrait, I asked the House Elves to do some research into our house guest."

"They spied on the Dark Lord for you? That's risky."

"I am the mistress of this house," she said. "They answer to me above anyone else."

Draco nodded. That made sense, of course. House Elves weren't simply loyal, they were bound to their masters for life, Dark Lord or not. "And what did they learn?"

"They overheard a conversation between the Dark Lord and Bella," she said, suddenly looking very worn down. "There had been an argument. The Dark Lord was furious with Lucius for questioning his methods. Lucius felt the War had dragged on too long - he felt they could do more to change the tide, to emerge victorious. The Dark Lord lost patience. Lucius didn't survive." She looked up, eyes swimming. "Bella knew. She's the one who told me he was killed by the Order. She modified people's memories so they would back up her story. I was beside myself with grief - I should have questioned it further, but it all seemed so logical."

"Aunt Bella did that?" said Draco, chest aching as he thought of his father in his final moments, murdered by the person who was supposed to be leading them to victory, betrayed by his own sister-in-law. "I can't believe... Mother, she's family. Why would she cover it up?"

"Power," Narcissa said, simply. "Power I intend to take away."

"Is that why you sought out Hermione?"

"Indeed. It was difficult to get her to meet with me - she's a very cautious young woman. She doesn't trust very easily."

Draco swallowed another wave of guilt for constantly losing his composure around Hermione. No wonder she didn't tell him everything immediately. He behaved like a bloody wildfire.

"Luckily for me, Miss Lovegood spoke the prophecy not long after, and Miss Granger finally agreed to meet. That's when I learned of her... Predicament."

"You mean Harry?"

"Indeed. The poor girl was so destroyed. She was losing hope rapidly. That's when we came up with our plan."

"And this is the part I'm still not completely clear on," said Draco, leaning in. "The plan appears to be for you to administer poison to the Dark Lord so he will be weak enough to die when the time comes. Mother, respectfully, I don't see how any poison will succeed, no matter how devious. The Horcruxes will keep the Dark Lord alive regardless of how weak he is."

"Ah, but this is where you underestimate your former schoolmate," she said, shaking her head. "She has taken on quite a challenge to get this far. Horrible, really, what she's had to do, but she insisted that she be the one to do it..."

"Did what? How horrible are we talking, mother?" Draco felt a deep sense of foreboding at her answer, remembering the books on Dark magic, the dangerous ingredients, the sweet-smelling red potion.

Narcissa twitched, looking uncomfortable. Draco was instantly suspicious of what she had done, what she had encouraged. His mother was brilliant, but she was also ruthless. She would not have let anything stand in between her and the success of this mission.

"Let's say, for example, that Miss Granger and her friends have destroyed all the Horcruxes save one."

"All save one? How... Nevermind, I suppose that shouldn't surprise me. She's an exceptional witch."

"Agreed."

"So if there's only one left, where is it hidden?"

Narcissa examined her hands and then looked up, meeting Draco's eyes.

"It was inside of Harry Potter."

Draco blinked at his mother, swirling the Firewhiskey around in his glass as he worked out what that meant.

"The Horcrux wouldn't have died with Harry, though," he said, slowly. "It doesn't die with something simple like the Killing Curse."

"Correct."

Draco cursed under his breath, his hand beginning to tremble. He knew what that meant. He finally understood.

"Please tell me I'm wrong."

"You haven't told me your theory."

Draco's hand shook harder, splashing his Firewhiskey over his wrist. He put down the glass and flexed his fingers, feeling slightly ill. The liquid dripped off his skin.

"Please tell me Hermione didn't have to... Didn't have to pull the Horcrux out of Harry's body. Please tell me that potion is not made of his blood."

"It was the only way," said Narcissa, quietly.

"Mother!" he yelled, standing up suddenly, livid with rage. "How could you make her do that?"

"I didn't make her do anything!" she protested. "Do you have any idea how stubborn she is? The body was kept in stasis; it was perfectly preserved. I presented her with options. She chose the plan most likely to succeed."

"Surely there was something else you could have suggested. He was her best friend. You knew she was headstrong... Did she have to do this all alone?"

"She insisted!"

"Fuck sakes, mother, it's destroying her!"

"War destroys us all."

"So what," he snarled. "She has to poison what's left of someone she loves while you get the glory? Is that it? She hands you the potion, you administer it, Avada Kedavra, and that's it? What's left of her when this is over?"

"How do you know there was much of her left when I found her? Lucius - " Narcissa broke off, visibly distraught. "Lucius killed the man she loved. Most of her friends are dead. This plan gave her hope."

"Sod the plan!" he roared. "How do you even know the potion is going to work?"

"Because it's been working already!" she seethed. "Why do you think I've been meeting with the Dark Lord every single day? Why do you think he's been in decline for the past six months? I haven't been sitting idle, Draco."

"Wait... What are you saying?"

"I'm saying," she snapped, standing up to her full height, "That we couldn't take the chance of using only a single dose. Every day the Dark Lord takes a glass of mead. Given that mead is distilled from honey, adding a sweet-smelling potion to each drink has gone more smoothly than I could have hoped. He has been slowly, unknowingly consuming the poisoned remains of the last Horcrux. I am nearly done my mission."

She took another step towards Draco, her face twisted by fury. "He killed Lucius. In return, I will finish him."

Draco stared, awestruck. "How many more doses does he need?"

"One. Tonight. And now that you know, there is no reason to wait on the rest of the plan. You will join me, and we will give him the death he deserves."

"Tonight? Are you serious?" His head was spinning. This couldn't be happening.

"Why do you think I ordered the battle in Balnsmore? I knew you would figure it out after you left to find Miss Granger. It seemed like the best option - we can't afford to have any interruptions."

"Jesus mother," Draco breathed. "You are terrifying."

"Flattery," she sniffed, appearing to calm down. "All that matters now is finishing the job. Given that the prophecy doesn't state which one of us must cast the final curse - "

"Of course I'll come," Draco said, cutting her off. "Merlin, after what you and Hermione have accomplished... Of course. I want to do my part."

"It could be extremely dangerous. He's still the Dark Lord, and he will be frantic once he realizes what we've done."

"Don't care," he said, shaking his head. "I owe it to father. And to you. And to Hermione, if she ever consents to see me again."

"Why wouldn't she?" asked Narcissa, furrowing her brow.

"Because she has no reason to seek my company after this is finished," he said, shrugging, trying to appear unbothered. "I'm not exactly a prize for someone like her, mother. My one actual skill was killing soldiers of the Light, but you can imagine that won't give us much to talk about."

A look of clarity crept across Narcissa's face.

"You've taken a liking to her."

Draco decided not to answer, draining the remains of his Firewhiskey and looking out the window. "When are we doing this?"

"In half an hour," she said, graciously letting the matter drop, but not without a look of extreme interest. "Can you meet me back here at that time?"

"Of course."


Draco sat on his bed, feeling completely numb. After everything he had learned, he could still scarcely believe it was really happening.

His mother leading a double life.

Hermione Granger performing heart-wrenching Dark magic to win the War.

The impending demise of the Dark Lord.

Hearing about what Hermione had endured for the sake of the mission flooded him with emotions. Sympathy, of course, although it hardly seemed to be a strong enough word for what he felt. Grief was perhaps more fitting. To think of how Hermione used to be during her early years at Hogwarts - back when she still had her two best friends, before the Dark Lord's return - was extremely distressing. Her innocence and her youth had been stolen from her. Now there was the mission to focus on, and really, that might be all she had. If he was being honest, Draco had a sneaking suspicion that Hermione wasn't thinking very far beyond the end of the War in terms of her own life. She simply didn't expect to last that long.

She wasn't alone, either. Draco wasn't stupid - knew he might not survive this mission. This could be it. It panicked him less now that he knew the whole story. Both Hermione and his mother had taken huge risks to get to this point. Putting his life on the line seemed like the least he could do, even though, now more than ever, he wanted to be there once the smoke cleared. Just to see what it was like.

It would be infinitely better if Hermione was by his side.

He shuddered, the chill in his room creeping into his bones. The window was open, and just as he wondered if he should pull it shut, Draco saw a sparrow on the ledge.

Something fluttered in his chest. He didn't expect her to come back. Perhaps things weren't hopeless after all.

"How long have you been sitting there, Granger?"

The bird hopped a sightly closer, tilting its head.

"It's okay. I figured it out. I'm not completely thick."

After a pause, the sparrow hopped fully inside, flapped its wings and transformed into a very disheveled-looking Hermione Granger. She stumbled a bit, and then righted herself, straightening her jumper. Draco shook his head and stood up, still amazed at how much he had missed. The clues were there, but he just didn't piece them together. Of course she had been the sparrow who had flitted about his favourite Tube station. It would have been a perfect way to keep an eye on him, not to mention being able to move around London unnoticed. Genius, really.

Draco eyed her, surprised at how quickly his heart rate sped up at the mere sight of her rumpled frame. There appeared to be someone else's blood splattered across her jeans. Her hair was a disaster.

She looked fucking lovely.

"Hello," she said, looking around his bedroom awkwardly. "I don't usually let you see me, you know."

"Oh? Do you visit my bedroom often?" he smirked.

She blushed crimson. "You know that's not what I meant."

"I know, I know," he sighed. "Don't get your knickers in a twist. You and my mother are too clever for your own good. You're the sparrow and she's the raven, yeah? Plotting world domination one feather at a time? I saw you both on the Tube platform that day."

"So you really do know," she said, looking surprised. "Did she tell you that part?"

He glared at her. "I figured it out, thanks very much. Took me a while, but it's not like it was the most obvious of puzzles. The last thing I ever expected was for you to be working together."

"Yes, well, that was the idea. Birds were logical... Easy to move around unseen, easy to meet up without causing suspicion."

"It worked. Fooled us all. Well done, you."

"You can give your mother the credit," said Hermione. "I wasn't terribly keen about any of it at first."

"Can't really blame you," he replied, smirking again. "She's a scary woman."

Hermione laughed, just as he was hoping. The tension eased slightly.

There was a natural pause in the conversation, and Draco rocked back on his heels, hyper-aware of all the things that were being left unsaid. He knew where he stood, as strange as it was, but he was properly confused about her feelings towards him.

It was that bloody touch. You can't touch someone that gently and despise them. It just wouldn't make sense... Would it?

At the same time, it wouldn't make sense for her to actually like him either. He'd spent the majority of their conversations being completely acerbic, Hogwarts years included. He had yet to do anything that was actually likeable.

Draco cursed himself, feeling unusually self-conscious. This was ridiculous. You'd think he'd never fancied someone before.

"You alright?" Hermione said, and Draco blinked at her, realizing he'd been silent for much too long.

"So what would I be?" he blurted out.

"Excuse me?"

"If I joined your little Audubon club. What sort of bird would I be?"

A cautious smile played on her lips. "You know who Audubon was?"

"He was a wizard," Draco scoffed. "Of course I know who he was."

Hermione was smiling widely now. "Would you believe I actually didn't know that?"

"Not sure if that's possible, Granger. Are you avoiding my question?"

"I'd never dream of it. What sort of bird would you like to be?"

"An eagle, naturally," he said. "Powerful, strong hunters - " He stopped, noting the strange look on Hermione's face. He realized quickly that she was trying not to laugh.

"An eagle?" she said, visibly biting the inside of her cheek to keep her expression in check.

"Problem?" he scowled. "What do you think I'd be then, if you're so clever?"

"You'd be a peacock, of course." She was grinning.

"I resent that," he sniffed. "Dreadful birds."

"Oh, they're not all bad," she said. "Lovely plumage, for one. Surprisingly brave. They were symbols of immortality in ancient Greece, and they're often depicted as being the guardians of royalty."

"Nice plumage? Why Granger, was that a compliment?" He had intended only to tease her, perhaps get her to blush again, but instead, she looked at him strait on, still with that little smile.

Holy fuck, Draco thought. It actually was a compliment.

He could not possibly leave that be.

"Don't they also have elaborate rituals for courtship?" he murmured.

The blush he had been waiting for began to crawl across her cheeks.

"Can't remember," she said, her voice squeaky.

Draco smiled at her. Oh, this was too good. He was about to leave on the most dangerous mission of his life, and Hermione Granger had feelings for him. It was a bloody miracle. He'd better do something useful before she changed her mind.

It was finally time for him to learn how to be brave.

"Seems unnecessary," he said.

"I'm sorry?"

"The elaborate courtship rituals," he said, rocking back on his heels again with a grin. "Seems unnecessary. All that posturing, all the showing off. You don't really need to do that when you've found the right match."

She blinked at him. "Well. It's evolutionary. In fact, I once read a book about - "

Draco cut her off by setting his lips against hers. He was thrilled to feel only a second of hesitation before she opened her lips and pulled him in closer, making the most delicious sound of surprise in the back of her throat. His hands tightened on her waist, and then moved up into her hair, and then smoothed themselves across her back as if they couldn't decide where they should land. He deepened the kiss, and she clutched at him in return. Running his tongue along her bottom lip, his knees nearly gave out when she answered back, flicking her tongue against his and sliding her fingers into his hair. The kiss became more heated, and when Hermione gave his hair a desperate tug Draco couldn't silence the moan in the back of his throat. He tightened his arms around her, crushing their bodies together, feeling absolutely electrified.

They pulled apart, panting. Draco felt his stomach drop when he realized her eyes were wet.

"Was that... Not what you wanted?"

"You're going tonight, aren't you," she said, her voice rising in pitch the way it did when she was anxious. "I just put it together. Now that you know, there's no reason to wait."

He nodded, desperately trying to think of a way to wipe the look of sheer panic from her face. "I'm meeting my mother downstairs in a moment."

"Fuck," she whispered. "Fuck, I shouldn't have... Look, could we just forget - "

"No! No Hermione, don't ask me to forget that."

"You must. You can't be distracted tonight. It was stupid of me - "

"Look, I'm the one who initiated it - "

"Yes, but I responded, and I shouldn't have... I shouldn't have even come here."

"Why not?" he said, grabbing her shoulders as she tried to back away. "Tell me that. For the first time since this war started, I feel like I actually have a reason to fight. Hermione, don't ask me to bury that."

"I'm asking!"

"Why?" he pleaded. "Tell me why."

"Because nobody ever comes back!" she yelled, pulling out of his grip. "Everybody dies. Everybody leaves. Don't ask me to care about you if I have to grieve you later tonight. I can't do it. I cannot physically go through that again."

Draco stared, momentarily speechless.

"I promise I'll come back to you," he said, pleading. Didn't she see? He had stumbled across something he never thought he'd have. There's no way he was going to die before seeing it through. Gods, he could actually be with her. She wanted him. Draco Malfoy, an absolute failure of a man, had somehow gained Hermione Granger's affections. How could he not come back to that?

"Don't make promises you can't keep." She was angry now, and he couldn't tell if she was more furious with herself or with him.

"I swear to you."

"Well then, off you go," she said, cold and closed off, gesturing to the door. "Don't make a liar out of yourself."

"Hermione, don't do this."

"Go." She tossed a vial of dark liquid at him, and he caught it mid-air.

Frowning, Draco opened his mouth to protest. He wasn't above begging. What he wanted was to kiss her for several hours until there wasn't a doubt left in her head, fuck the mission right to hell, but something made him stop.

The truth was, he couldn't blame her for protecting what was left of her battered heart. It was impossible to imagine going through what she had to still be standing in one piece.

Once this was all over, however, he planned to snog her until she forgot her own name.

"Alright, I'll go," he said, trying to project as much calm as he could. "If you stay in the Manor, don't leave this room. If anything bad happens, you get yourself out of here."

"Of course."

"I mean it, Granger. No heroics."

"Promise," she said, taking several deep breaths and then she attempted a smile. A rogue tear escaped down her cheek, and although she wiped it away hastily, Draco felt his heart creak under the weight of it all. He stepped out of the room and looked back at her hunched figure. She looked completely defeated.

"I'll see you soon," he reiterated, and then forced himself to shut the door, closing off the broken sight of her as she swayed where she stood.

He could have sworn he heard her muffled sobs all the way down the hall.

A growl made its way up his throat.

He would make it back. He would succeed. Fuck that parasite who had been living in his home for six years too long. After what the Dark Lord had done to his family, after what he had done to Hermione, Draco would make him grovel.

His spine straightened as he walked, his shoulders shifted back, his chin tilted up, and Draco could feel himself slowly transforming into the man he used to be.

This wasn't the Draco Malfoy who broke down from the strain of war. This was the Draco Malfoy who had an undisputed winning kill count, who was the heir to this manor, and who was the last in a proud line of Malfoy wizards.

Not even the Dark Lord would keep him from what he wanted.