She caught herself a few times looking at him just to look. She'd swallow and turn away as soon as she realized what she was doing.

What was the matter with her? Staring at Draco Malfoy! Absurd.

But he was so good with Lizzie and Finn…she never would have guessed that he'd know how to talk with kids. And not just talk, but entertain them. They both seemed to love him.

And he was…well. Many things to her now, if she was being honest. He was one of her best friends. Her companion and confidant. He was her…

Her partner. They had become a team. And that meant something to her.

"Dinner's ready!" she called. They would be leaving the next day for the ferry…the Gilliard's would meet the kids in Belfast.

And they'd finally got them to tell them that the Death Eaters had taken their parents, not killed them.

Walter and Annie Kelpis had been local alchemists…and she wondered what Voldemort could want with a couple of alchemists.

The three came in and sat at the table. Draco passed around the chicken. "So, you'll be going to the farm tomorrow," he began. "And Hermione and I will check in on you both next weekend…ok?"

Lizzie nodded. She had taken some convincing by Hermione that the Gilliard's were safe.

Finn, however, was sad. "Can't you come with us?"

Hermione sat and dished out some salad. "It'll just be the ferry ride. And we're packing you snacks," she smiled. Besides, she needed to talk about their next move…she had an idea, and she wasn't sure that Draco would like it.

For it was pure happenstance that they found Lizzie and Finn. They couldn't risk that again. They needed to be more prepared.

They finished up and the kids went back out to the lake. "Come back in soon! You'll both need a wash," she called. Hermione waved her wand and set the dishes cleaning.

"You know, I'll miss them," he said.

"I will, too," she sighed, sitting back down. "I wanted to talk with you."

He looked at her, and sat back. His eyebrows went up. "You need a formal invitation, Granger?" he smiled. "I mean, it's not like we've been living together for weeks now."

She chuckled. "Well, I'm just not sure how you're going to take this."

He sighed and rested his elbows on the table. "I already don't like it."

"So…here's the thing. We were pretty lucky finding Finn and Lizzie."

He nodded. "I think I see what's coming."

"Ok, well…we have no idea when our luck will change. So, we need to know what plans the Death Eaters have."

"Uh huh," he furrowed his brow. "You want to get your hands on some plans."

"Well, yes."

"And you want me to go to the Manor and take whatever I can find."

She shrugged. "Have you got a better idea?"

"How the hell am I supposed to do that, hm?"

"Weelll…I can go inside. Disguised. And you can, you know. Direct me somehow."

"No."

"Don't you think…"

"No I don't think. This is a terrible idea."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "We can't just rely on the Prophet. We need to have some ideas…some leads…"

He shook his head. "This is just…it's so risky."

"Well, why don't you try to come up with something else?"

Draco looked at her. "Snape."

"Excuse me?"

"You're talking to McGonagall…maybe I could talk to Snape."

"But he'd tell V where you are!"

"Mm…not necessarily. He'd offered his assistance before. Maybe I can blackmail him or something."

"You want to blackmail Snape," she rolled her eyes. "Draco, that's almost as bad as my idea."

He threw his hands up in the air. "I dunno! But I'm not going back to the Manor, and neither are you," he stood and waved his wand, putting things away.

She watched him work. "You know…there's bound to be Death Eater activity at Hogwarts now that Dumbledore is gone. Maybe we can go back and take a look. After term ends."

He shrugged and sat back down. "Maybe."

She smiled and put her chin in her palm. "But we'd need to get on top of something before that. There's still a month left."

He didn't answer.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

"Nothing. Just thinking about tomorrow."

Hermione nodded. "Yeah. I'll miss them."

…and something banged against the window. She got up and opened it. "Oh no," she whined. "Someone sent us an owl…I hope it wasn't spotted," she took the parchment and gave the owl a sickle. "Oh…"

"What is it?"

"It's…an invitation. For me."

"To what?" Draco stood.

"To Harry's birthday and Bill and Fleur's wedding the next day," she looked up at him.

"When is that?"

She read. "July 31st and August 1st. So, about two months away now."

He nodded. "Well, you'll need to decline."

"Why would I do that?"

"Because you're on the run," he said with a lilt to his voice, as though it was obvious.

"Well, there'll just be the Order there."

"I don't give a shite about your bloody Order! If they found out who you're with…"

"How would that happen?" she crossed her arms.

He stared at her. "Really."

Her mouth set. "What are you saying, Draco? I can't keep a secret? Because I have done for months and months."

"You're an honorable Gryffindor who will blab the second someone asks you a pointed question," he rolled his eyes at her.

"I'm your friend. You need to learn how to trust people…especially me, Draco Malfoy. If you haven't noticed, I'm the only one here."

"Of course I've effing noticed! What do you take me for?! I'm not a moron, Hermione…I'm a lot of things, mind. But stupid isn't one of them," he sat back down, thinking of Finn and Lizzie outside. Hermione was talking about something that was two months away. Loads of things could happen in two months' time.

"Look," and she sat next to him. "I don't want to argue…"

"You started…"

"Shut up, will you? I'd rather we kept things cordial until we see the Kelpis's on the ferry. We can discuss this further then, all right?"

He nodded. He knew that he'd be losing this argument.

And Hermione was thinking that she needed to convince him to break into Malfoy Manor. Maybe they could combine her going to the Burrow and his trip to the Manor somehow…

They waved as the ferry set off. Hermione had given both of the children Polyjuice Potion, and did the standard hexes on her and Draco to disguise themselves. The Potion should last a good long while. At least a few hours…and then they had to take another swig. She gave them placards to hold up the Gilliard's name when the docked.

She was worried, but she truly believed that everything would be fine.

Draco seemed less convinced.

…and Hermione worried that he was wavering in his resolve. She supposed that this was difficult for him, something she hadn't thought about since they had left Hogwarts. She had just been so focused on what they were doing and what was next that she had largely ignored both of their emotional states.

Perhaps she'd make dinner and they could discuss things…or else just relax for a little.

They disapparated and went back to the lake house. Draco didn't say much. He went up to his room and she heard him shut the door.

She sighed, waved her wand, and started to make dinner.

He heard her downstairs, and felt a rush of anger. It was illogical, of course, to be angry. She hadn't done anything but be completely accommodating and nice.

And maybe that was the problem.

He was a Malfoy. A Slytherin, and he had been ignoring these facts for months. Yes, he had changed, but part of him was still that person.

He began to pace.

She was a Gryffindor. A Muggle-born. And there should be animosity between them, not a common purpose. Not friendship. Not…

He stopped. He shoved his hands in his pockets.

When Hermione had said that she was going to the Weasley's for a birthday party and a wedding, he had gotten upset. Why?

He believed it had been because he was completely at her mercy.

But now that he thought about it, it seemed like something more.

"Draco!"

He jumped, swallowing. "Be right there," he didn't yell back, he just said it, hoping she'd hear.

He went downstairs, wondering at his reaction…hoping that it wasn't anything more than what he had originally thought it was.

It smelled really lovely when he got into the kitchen, and he was reminded how hungry he was.

"Hi," she handed him a glass.

"What's this?"

"Meade," she replied. "I nicked it," she smiled.

"You did?"

"Yes. Have a seat, Draco," she went to the kitchen and spooned out dinner: roast and potatoes with root vegetables.

"What's going on?" he asked as she handed him a plate.

"We need to talk, and I thought this might be nice," she sat and sipped her mead.

He sighed. "What do you want to discuss?" he took a bite. Quite good.

"Now don't get bothered. Nothing new…but I really think we need to consider what we're doing here, and how we can be the most effective."

"You're talking about the Manor."

"Well, yes. Draco, if there are a set of plans, that's where they'd be, right?"

He shrugged. "I really don't know for sure."

"But it's a place to start."

"How do propose we do this? I can't bloody well march in and ask for plans."

"We can do Polyjuice Potion. Or a disillusionment charm…" she took a bite.

"Hermione. Look. I don't want to do this."

"Do you want what we're doing to be successful?"

He studied her a moment. "Yes."

"Then how do we do this?"

"I …" he stopped. "I'm confused. I'm feeling…bloody lost," he hung his head. He hated admitting that to her. "And I'm like a ghost, because no one but you knows where I am. Or if I am."

"It's difficult relying completely on another person," she downed her mead and summoned some more.

He looked at her. "Yeah. Especially someone who was your sworn enemy for years."

"More mead?" she poured more in his glass. "Come on. Let's get some air. Bring your glass," she stood and went outside, Draco following behind.

She sat on the front step looking out at the lake. The sun was low, and the sky was turning a peach color.

He sat next to her, his knees pulled up close. "It's odd, this. We are doing odd things."

"Everything these days is odd, Draco."

He nodded, drinking more. "I'll go."

"What?" she snapped her head toward him.

"I'll do it. No point in doing this half-assed, is there?"

"No…" she narrowed her eyes, then dropped them. "I'll make sure you're safe."

"I know it," he paused. "But you don't have to." He looked out into the lake. "You're definitely going to the Weasel barn, huh?"

She shook her head. "Yes. And don't call it that."

He chuckled. "What's life if you don't have some fun with it, Granger?"

"But not at the expense of others!" she exclaimed. "But…ya. Life needs to be fun…" she paused. "But lately…I dunno. I feel as though this time here…it's as though I'm living some sort of alternate time. A…not a stolen time. Something else…"

"A half life?" he offered.

"Yeah. Something like that."

Draco nodded. "I know exactly what you mean."

She smiled, and nudged a bit closer to him. "Who'd have thought?"

"Thought what?" he looked at her.

"We'd be here. Doing this."

"Not me. Not in a million effing years."

And her smile faded, and was replaced by something else. Something not quite there yet, but beating its wings along the periphery. "No. Nor I."

And they both looked at each other, then back at the lake.

The amaranthine sky was bleeding in on itself, becoming something else. Becoming twilight. And they knew, though neither knew how, that the resolve they had regarding those days in a couple of months would alter things somehow.

But they were here now, inexplicably they were here.

And that was all that mattered in that moment.