a/n: I won't waste your time with excuses, I'll just give you the good news! There's only an epilogue left after this! So enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter!

Chapter 10:
Answers

Draco had been pacing back and forth for almost an hour. He had been wracking his brain, trying to figure how to keep Hermione. She didn't deserve to be sent back to Hell. And she didn't belong in Heaven, not yet, at least. She'd proven her worth as far as he was concerned. She would do the wizarding world more good than bad by being in it.

And he didn't want to think about what her loss would do to him. He'd grown so attached to her over the few, short months that she'd spent "topside" as she liked to call it. She was a part of him. And he wasn't willing to let her go, not without a fight.

It took him a long time to think of something that could work. He had worked his brain in circles. But the answer was so obvious, so simple, he was surprised it had taken him so long to figure it out.

That was the only solution that Draco could think of at this point. And unfortunately that solution was something that he'd failed at once before. But he was hoping that he had learned from his mistakes. He would do better this time. There was much more on the line this time. This time, he had to succeed. For Hermione.

So he set about doing it right. He brought all the books he had on the subject, his wand, his chalk, and a pensieve to the table. He was going to delve into his memories and figure out what went wrong and fix it.

It was time to talk to the devil himself.


Hermione wasn't sure what she was expecting when she went to find Draco, but this was not it.

"What the actual fuck?!"

Draco nearly jumped out of his skin, turning to find her looking at him with an incredulous look. She blinked and managed to pick her mouth up off the floor before she tried speaking again.

"What are you doing?!"

"I-"

"Oh my God. Please tell me that is not what I think it is!"

It was her worst nightmare. He was trying to send her back. He had a summoning circle reversed on the floor; the prime positioning for banishing a demon. The chalk was still in the middle of the circle and he was holding his wand in his dominant hand while the other held onto the summoning transcript. For beginners. The only thing missing was the incantation. She assumed she had arrived before he'd gotten to that part.

"Hermione! I'm just trying-"

"Trying to what? Return me?" she whispered and, to her horror, her eyes started to fill with water.

"NO. Absolutely not. Listen to me, Hermione, that is the last thing I want. Right now, I'm trying to bargain for your life."

That was just as bad. Maybe worse. "Are you fucking nuts?!" She didn't even know where to start. Summoning the devil was a bad idea if you wanted to be polite about it. While she was sure that Draco had good intentions, it still didn't excuse the fact that he could be so... stupid about the whole thing. He couldn't even manage to summon an underling and now he thought he could summon the ruler of the underworld himself? And then successfully bargain for her life? She would have laughed if she wasn't so worried.

"Draco. Back away from the circle. Drop your wand. Drop the transcript. You haven't said anything yet, have you?"

He shook his head, a look of distress on his face. "Hermione, I know it looks bad, but I couldn't see another way. I'm not letting him take you back. You don't belong there. You... You belong with me."

And there were the words she had been longing to hear. She licked her lips. There were so many things she wanted to say. So many things she wanted to do. But with him standing in the middle of a summoning circle, she could do none of them. She bit back a sob of joy and settled for a simple spell.

"Accio Draco's wand," she murmured. That was the most dangerous object in his possession. Without it, he would be unable to finish the summoning.

She swallowed thickly before looking back at him. "Draco, this is not the way to solve my mess. We will come up with something, but please, please, back out of that circle." She just hoped she wasn't too late. Hoped he hadn't put to much of himself into it already.

She watched as he slowly moved out of the circle and dropped the transcript on the floor. His face looked torn and it wrenched at her heart. She knew that he had had good intentions when he had come up with his plan. He just had so little experience in this world. He didn't know any better. Although, she thought with a mental eye roll, most people have enough common sense to avoid trying to summon Lucifer himself.

"Hermione..." he started.

She shook her head. "I know. You don't have to say anything, Draco. I understand." She took a step towards him and he closed the distance, pulling her into his arms.

"I'm sorry. I just... I will find a way to save you," he swore.

A slow clapping behind them startled both of them.

"Very touching!"

Her heart dropped into her stomach. She knew that voice. It would seem that the fact that Draco hadn't finished the summoning didn't matter. If the intent was strong enough, the ceremony was just a formality. She'd been so hopeful when nothing had happened after a few mintues, though.

She could tell from Draco's face that he was confused. He hadn't quite put the pieces together yet. In his defense, he had never met Lucifer before and probably hadn't been told that intent was more important than the actual summoning ceremony.

"I have to say, I'm impressed with all you've accomplished, my dear Hermione."

She slowly turned around to face him. She'd always been surprised by how handsome he was. But then again, he could change his form at will to fit his purposes. And he was quite vain. So he most often wore the most appealing form he had at his disposal. She met his eyes and refused to back down.

"Nothing to say?" He shrugged at found himself a seat. "That's okay. I can do all the talking."

"I'm not done taking my revenge," she finally uttered. She was fairly sure he was there to bring her back. She wasn't ready to go. Finding Lucius and making him pay seemed like a good excuse to make him let her stay.

"Oh, I think you'll find you are. You Malfoy men are very... Hmm, how should I put his? Stupid. Within two hours I find myself being summoned by both of you!" He laughed and the sound grated on her ears. She refused to answer, though. She knew he would get to the point eventually. And he didn't take well to prodding.

Draco wasn't as understanding. "What do you mean?" he demanded. "My father summoned you?"

"Ding, ding, ding! Give the young Malfoy a prize." He grinned at Hermione. "I thought he was smarter than his father. Maybe not." She sighed and rolled her eyes ever so slightly, only causing Lucifer's grin to widen. "I didn't realize how much I would miss your attitude. You're the only one brave enough to give it to me, you know?"

Again, she didn't answer. She let him ramble.

"Anyway, yes, Lucius did summon me. He truly is stupid. From the moment I answered his call he was ordering me about. Can you believe that? Me! The Prince of Darkness and he thought he could make demands of me. Ridiculous." He shook his head, but there was still a smile playing on his lips. "So I handled that mess for you. I don't like insubordination. And he'll find that out in due time." He checked the watch that was on his wrist. "Fairly soon, I'd say."

Finally, Hermione broke her silence. "What do you mean? Did you just... kill him?" Such dirty work was usually beneath him, as he'd told her repeatedly when she asked him about letting Voldemort run amok topside.

"Brightest witch of her age, indeed." He nodded. "I sure did. He's been a thorn in my side for far longer than Voldemort. I rather wished you would have disposed of him first, but alas, I guess I can't complain." Another delicate shrug of his shoulders. "But I do have some good news for you."

She cocked a brow at him. Good news? From the lips of the Devil? She didn't believe him. And he could tell, prompting him to laugh once more.

"Man, I am going to miss you. You were such a perfect addition to my ranks. So feisty!" He sighed and leaned forward in his seat. "I've just come from a meeting with the Big Guy." He lifted his eyes towards the ceiling.

"Really," she breathed, the sarcasm leaking through. Again, she found this hard to believe. He made a habit of telling everyone that God had a way of absolutely interfering with his plans. And intentions. And havoc. And everything in general.

"Yes, really, Miss Priss." He sniffed at her. "Really, you think you'd be more appreciative! I went to bat on your behalf, after all." He paused, letting her digest his words before continuing. "I promised you your revenge. I didn't think I'd lose to you to the mortal realm, but... Even I have a heart. And a moral compass. Granted, it does tend to point south more than north. But that's beside the point. Hermione. The powers of Heaven and Hell are in agreement for the first time in... oh, probably more than a century." He paused again and she barely contained the frustrated noise that was threatening to break through.

"Are you going to get to the point in this century?" Draco asked, growing just as frustrated as Hermion with the whole situation.

He tutted. "Such insolence and impatience. I only hope she can teach you some manners in the future. Yes. I am getting to the point. We're going to give you a second chance at life. You've done both of us a service by ridding the world of Voldemort. Revenge aside, we both believe that you deserve something for your efforts."

"I..." Her voice cracked so she tried again. "I get to stay?"

"Yes."

A sob ripped its way free from her throat. Draco made a similar noise and pulled her into his body, grasping her tightly. She buried her face in his neck and laughed as she returned his embrace. She didn't have to say good-bye. Words of thanks burned her throat, but she knew better than to thank Lucifer. She didn't want to owe him anything. He would always come to collect.

Lucifer cleared his throat. "Right. Well. As sweet as this is, I think I'm going to take my leave. I think you'll find when you do die, it will be of natural causes many, many years from now. And that your paperwork will be all sorted when you arrive where you're supposed to go."

She turned around and looked at him once more.

"I understand," she whispered. "I appreciate this," she settled on. Not an outright "thank you," but an acknowledgement at least.

"Oh, I know. Enjoy your second chance at life. And don't worry about Voldemort or Lucius. I'll be keeping them very, very busy." A wicked smile spread across his handsome face as he stood up from his chair.

A burst of flames in the corner startled both Draco and Hermione. "I must be on my way. Hell calls!" And with that, he melted into the flames and disappeared out of the house completely.