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Chapter Twelve

My Lips to Your Ears

"It's been nine days, Ginny," Hermione said, choking back a sob.

Draco was standing right outside the doorway, listening to the women talk. He had been looking for Harry or Neville but had stopped upon hearing Hermione. He felt slightly guilty for eaves-dropping (a remnant of his 'good' days at the Order, he supposed but did not feel bad enough to stop.

"You can't give up hope, Hermione." Ginny's voice was soft with sympathy and concern. "We'll find her."

"When and how?" Hermione cried. "I can't sleep for fear of having more nightmares. I can't eat because I feel guilty that Abby is out there, maybe starving to death. I can hardly function anymore because I have no idea how she is fairing and that makes me feel even worse, because, if I could pull myself together, I might be able to give more help in finding my daughter. I want my daughter back, safe and alive."

Hermione ended with a mournful sob. From his position, Draco could just see the two women. Hermione's face was slightly turned away, and Ginny's back was to him. Ginny reached over and took Hermione's hand, insisting, "We'll get her back, safe and alive. Not a single one of us - not me, not Harry, not Neville, not even Draco - is going to give up until we have Abby back."

"All of you have been so good to me," Hermione said, wiping the tears running down her cheeks with the back of her hand. I know it hasn't been easy on you or anyone else, being away from your families to help me. I'll be in your debt forever."

Ginny scoffed at the idea, "You will not. You would do the same for any of us if we were suffering, so you don't owe us a thing."

Hermione sighed, and said shakily, "I had never believed it possible to love someone so deeply. I never thought I would be able to love Abby as I have come to love her - she has become my world. Sometimes that's a bit scary, but I wouldn't change it for anything."

Ginny nodded, saying, "I feel the same about my children. Do you think you will ever tell -"

Hermione shook her head, cutting Ginny, "I don't know the answer, Ginny, and I don't want to discuss it, please."

"Alright," Ginny agreed. "We will find Abby, and she will be safe, healthy and bursting to tell everyone about the adventure she had."

Hermione laughed unsteadily and said, "Yes, that definitely sounds like Abby. She used to say that everyday was a new day filled with possibilities and adventures." Her smile faded. "She's so bright, smarter than I ever was. I don't want to lose her."

Draco had the sudden urge to go into the room and wrap his arms around Hermione. He wanted to offer her comfort and hope - anything to make her pain go away. He contained the instinct, however, and stayed where he was.

"It's odd," Hermione was saying.

"What is?"

"All I keep thinking about is how I was one of the brightest students of my year…" Hermione said, "…and yet, for all my smarts I'm unable to do anything to get Abby back."

"You can't keep thinking like that, Hermione," Ginny said quietly. "Somehow, with all of our brain power combined, we will find a way - you just have to keep thinking positively."

"I do," Hermione admitted. "I'm staying positive, which is something I didn't think was going to be easy, but it actually is. It's easy because my gut, my heart, and my soul tell me that Abby is alive. I may not know who has her, or where she is, but I do know she's alive."

Draco spotted Neville and, not wanting to get caught, he quickly stepped away from the door. Walking toward where he had seen Neville, Draco thought about the conversation he had just heard. There was something Ginny had said that kept returning to his thoughts. She had asked Hermione, if she was ever going to tell… What was Ginny referring to? More to the point, who was she referring to?

Draco thought back to the day he had asked Hermione if Abby was his daughter. He realized suddenly that Hermione had never actually denied that he was the father. In fact, he remembered her words exactly, "Abby is my daughter, she was never yours."

Draco had a nasty feeling in the pit of his stomach as he and Neville set to work on a new Locating spell they had decided to try. Abby was his daughter - he just had to get Hermione to admit it. But first, he had to find Abby.

Draco discovered Harry in the kitchen, bending over a very large flat-looking cauldron. Draco cleared his throat to gain the Harry's attention. Harry did not bother to look up but just said, "Come here and look at this."

Draco went over and looked into the bowl. Inside was something that looked like water, but what made Draco's breath hitch in his chest was what he could see in the smooth surface. It was like looking into a magical picture: it moved, but there was no sound. Abby was there, sitting on some sort of cot, eating from a small bowl. There was not much else to see, but Draco could tell that she was inside a small room.

"Where is she?"

"I'm not sure," Harry explained, sighing slightly. "I can see Abby, but I can't seem to get a location."

From the kitchen entrance, Hermione breathed, "You can see her?" She came running over to stand beside Draco and looked into the bowl. "Oh my God."

Harry said, "She appears to be unharmed, so I consider that a bonus for getting this spell to work."

"She's alive," Hermione whispered, so softly Draco almost did not hear her.

"She is," he agreed. He turned to look at Harry over Hermione's head, "How is this working? Normally, this sort of spell would need a location to see."

Suddenly Hermione spun around and glared at Harry, "Is this a Dark Arts spell?"

Draco, knowing that the Spying Spell was a form of the Dark Arts, ignored Hermione and repeated, "How did you get this to work?"

"It's not anything to do with the Dark Arts," Harry assured Hermione before looking back at Draco. "Believe it or not, I got this out of a Muggle magic book - titled - White Magic for the Practicing Witch. The spell is, I guess, supposed to allow you to communicate with another person who has a similar bowl or looking glass. The spell in the book also called for a known location, but I tweaked it a bit, and here are the results!"

"Amazing," Hermione murmured, unable to stop herself from being intrigued.

"To tell the truth," Harry continued, "I didn't think it was going to work, but after so many failures I thought it was worth a shot and, well, you see that I got a hit."

Thinking aloud, Draco said, "I wonder if we could possibly play a little bit more with the spell and get a location?"

"That's what I was originally hoping for," Harry admitted, "but I tried that for over three hours and got nothing. It was only after I tweaked the spell to just see Abby that I got anything at all."

"Even so," Draco muttered, "it's good work. At the very least, now we can rest assured that Abby hasn't been physically harmed."

"Harry," Hermione said quietly, "let me see the book you got the spell from."

Harry picked up the book from the counter and started to pass it to Hermione. Draco reached over and grabbed it first. He quickly flipped through it before handing it over to Hermione.

"Thank you," she snapped.

Draco only smiled thinly at her as he returned his attention to Harry. "I think we can try 'tweaking' a few of the other spells in that book. Maybe one of them will work."

"Playing around with magic can be dangerous," Hermione said, her head still bent over the book.

"Possibly, it is," Draco agreed coldly, "but, unless you have a better idea, this is all we have to work with."

"I wasn't saying you shouldn't give it a try," Hermione said, annoyed. "I was only -"

"Pointing out the obvious," Draco finished dryly. "Something else you are good at, I might add."

"I was only cautioning you and Harry to be careful," Hermione said firmly. "Especially Harry, since I wouldn't want to see him hurt."

"Oh," Draco drawled, "so, it's okay if I get hurt?"

"I…I…." - Hermione stammered, before stiffening her shoulders and saying, "I don't want to see anyone hurt."

"Then you admit that you don't want me to get hurt, either?" Draco asked, trying to back her into a corner.

"Yes…no…maybe?," Hermione said, flustered. She swallowed hard, looked away and then back again and said, "I would prefer that you don't get yourself injured while residing under my roof."

"Does that mean that it's alright if I injure myself outside your house, or would you prefer that I do so off your property entirely?" Draco asked, still pushing.

"That's not what I'm saying at all," Hermione snapped angrily.

"Sure the hell sounds like it to me," Draco needled.

"Then I suggest you get your hearing checked," Hermione yelled, losing control. "Or better yet, let me knock some sense into you so that you can hear straight."

"Threatening me with violence now?" Draco sneered. "I don't suggest you try, since I am positive I will win any fight you insist on starting."

"I don't need to get physical to knock your head about," Hermione shouted. "All I need is my wand and a really strong hitting spell."

"I can match you in that skill, too," Draco retorted.

"You're impossible," Hermione cried out, tossing her hands about in the air. "You twist everything I say around to suit what you want to believe, and then you have the nerve to act as though you're superior. Here's an idea, why don't you just stay away from me and I'll stay away from you?"

"That sounds like a splendid idea," Draco shouted back, "but here's the flaw, this house isn't big enough for the both of us, and before you suggest I leave, let me assure you that I have no intention of leaving until Abigail is back here safely."

"Great," Hermione bit sarcastically, "Then let's just agree to stay out of each other's way."

"Fine."

"Good," Hermione snapped as she stormed out of the room. "Then it's settled."

"Nothing's settled, you little twit," Draco called after her, "but I'll take what I can get for now."

Draco heard soft chuckling from behind him, and turned in time to see Harry wipe the grin off his face. Draco demanded, "What is so damned amusing?"

Harry shrugged and casually asked, "So, how long have you been in love with Hermione?"

"I'm not," Draco denied quickly.

"Oh, okay, whatever you say," Harry replied, but the silly grin was back on his face.

Draco gave up and stomped from the room in very much the same fashion as Hermione. I Am I that easy to read/I He wondered, Or is Harry just more astute then I've ever given him credit for? His plans were not going as he had hoped. Hermione was not cooperating, and his mood was growing more and more annoyed by the minute.

Draco slammed the door behind him as he entered the room he was currently using, and started pacing in circles. He needed to calm down and stop letting little things get to him. Of course, he did not actually believe that he could calm down, at least not until they had Abby back.

First Abby, then Hermione.

All the patient waiting, the vigilant watching, and the compulsive planning was going to pay off, and Abby knew it. However, it was the waiting that was trying her already raw nerves. She was losing patience, but she could not afford to toss it away now. She was hanging onto it with a bare thread, for she knew that for all her watching, waiting and planning, she had gained only a small advantage.

Soon, though, she would put her plan into action. Even the thought of doing something was making her feel jumpy. She wanted to bolt at every little noise she heard, but, through sheer determination, she kept herself still and silent, waiting for the kidnapper's return. Soon, she would be free, and then her only worry would be finding her way home.

At least, that was her hope.