Don't have much to say so, thank you for the support as always. Now without further ado, on with the story!
Flashbacks
Changing My Life
Chapter 25: What's Left?
The fireplace in the room of requirement turned green, drawing Neville and Hermione attention. They exchanged a look before rushing over to it. In the flames was the outline of Amelia Bones head.
"Neville, Hermione, has he left yet?" Amelia questioned as soon as she saw it was only them in the room.
"What'd you mean 'left yet'" Neville asked.
"Okay, so neither of you know. A little while ago, Harry was here in the ministry looking through Robards office for a file." She told them.
"What was he looking for?" Hermione inquired.
"Draco Malfoy's file." She answered. Neville and Hermione looked to the other, both thinking the same thing, 'Why?'
"What for?" Neville voiced.
"I told Harry some information I acquired and Harry will go through hell for the truth. It's something he would take any risk for. He's going after Draco because he needs him." She answered.
"Why would Harry need Draco's help?" Hermione asked, avoiding the question Amelia knew they both wanted to ask.
"I don't know. I can think of a few reasons but as for what Harry's thinking, I don't know. Though I don't think he's instrumental to Harry's plan." She told them her thoughts.
"Then why would he need him?" Neville asked curious.
"Harry's clever, he knows how to play people. He also knows how to make people want to help him. He wouldn't do something like this without a contingency. That's what I think he's using Draco for, a backup plan." Amelia told them.
"Someone to take the fall?" Neville asked while Hermione remained silent.
"I don't think so, more like someone that can be of use if things go bad. I can't know for sure since I don't know what he's planning."
"You want one of us to help him." Hermione realized.
"Someone has to be there to save his arse." Amelia remarked while looking directly at Hermione. Neville saw where she was looking and turned to Hermione.
"Go. It's your place." Neville told her firmly. She hesitated before nodding and leaving the room, leaving Neville there in front of the fire with Amelia.
After Hermione left, Amelia looked to Neville, "You know what he's willing to do anything for don't you?" She suggested. He turned his head back to face the fireplace and he looked at her. He didn't even need to answer with words. "How?" She wondered. He turned away again to look back at the door that Hermione had walked out of.
"Because I would do the same thing." He answered quietly staring at the door from his crouching position in front of the fire.
It was the day after they had started planning and Harry was out, leaving Draco and Hermione alone in the manor. It was in the morning and Hermione was in the kitchen making breakfast.
"Granger." Draco greeted when he walked into the kitchen at nine. He was dressed in dark grey joggers and a slim forest green t-shirt. Sitting at the island, he watched what she was doing.
"Malfoy." She greeted in kind, even though they both knew he technically wasn't one anymore.
"What're you making?" He asked curiously. She turned from the stove and looked at him.
"Why?" She asked ruder than she intended.
"I'm curious." He told her.
"Didn't you know curiosity killed the cat." She mocked.
"Guess it's a good thing I'm not a cat." He remarked.
"What is your problem Malfoy?!" She snapped. His eyebrows shot up.
"I have a lot of problems Granger. You want me to list them, we'll be here all night." He answered serious.
"Oh yeah, you have a lot of problems! I'm sure." She said practically dripping sarcasm. "If you have so many problems, why are you here?"
"Look Granger, I'm here because it's my best shot. Not because I like you or Potter or because I want to help. I'm here for me. You think Potter wants to help me? No he doesn't, he just knows the price of help from someone that's not willing to give it. And I know the price of being disowned. I've been paying it and I'd rather not pay for it with my life. That's why I'm here Granger." He stood and made his way out of the kitchen, but right before he pushed open the swinging door he turned. "Oh and Granger... your foods burning." He told her with a small grin before leaving the kitchen.
At his words, Hermione whipped around and turned off the stove before groaning. "Damn." She muttered.
"What's wrong?" Harry asked as he came in to the kitchen from the opposite side that Malfoy left it.
"Burned my pancakes." She told him before turning around to face him.
He saw her look and asked. "What?"
"Why Malfoy? Of all people, why him?" She asked, not understanding.
Sighing, Harry looked away before looking back at her and answering, "Because, the easiest way to get help is to go to somebody that needs your help just as much as you need theirs. And he needed it more than anybody else I know of." He informed.
"She was right." Hermione muttered under her breathe.
"Who was right?" Harry questioned, having caught what she said.
"Doesn't matter." She assured him. He looked at her quizzically for a few seconds before letting the matter drop.
"Met me in the study in an hour?" He asked, she nodded in response. He left the kitchen, leaving Hermione there standing in from of the off stove with her burnt pancakes on the counter.
Going back over to the fridge she got what she needed, before beginning to make a new batter for pancakes.
Almost exactly an hour later, Hermione entered the study to see Harry bent over the research table.
"Hey." Hermione greeted. "So I've been curious about something, your alliances with the Greengrasses and the Davis's, are they still all good after everything?" She asked as she approached him. He had been leaning on his elbows writing, pushing up he moved so he was leaning on the table with his hands before turning his head to face Hermione.
"They understand, um our relationships have no impact on our alliances." He answered.
"Really?" She asked skeptically, coming up beside him on his left.
"Alright, maybe a little impact." He replied making a little bit gesture with his left hand before looking back to the table.
Chuckling, she looked at what he was doing, "You know, you're going through a lot of effort for this." She said nonchalantly.
"I've been going through a lot of effort for a lot of things." He reminded her.
"Maybe but this the first time you've really crossed the line. I mean we basically live in a morally grey area now but still." Hermione told him. He looked at her incredulously.
"Crossed the line?! Nobody's died!" Harry defended. She had a small smile on her face.
"That's not the line I'm talking about and you know it."
"I'm doing what is necessary to get what I'm looking for." He told her.
"Why are you really using Malfoy? I don't get it, it's not li-." She was cut off.
"Because I know how it feels! To be hunted! Yeah he did some bad things and he deserved the punishment he got but not being disowned. I'm using him because he has crossed lines before. And he may not be able to cross the last one but I just need someone who isn't in public eye and can work in the shadows even better than we can." He snapped, being honest about it for once. He may not especially like Malfoy but he wouldn't put anyone into the fate he had. She nodded in acceptance and let it go.
"So whatcha got here?" She asked gesturing to a paper that was on the table with a list on it and checkmarks next to the items.
"The checks are for what I got already. I got most of the stuff we'll need this morning. Two jackhammers, a power drill, a chisel and two sledge hammers. I haven't exactly done this before so I wasn't positive on exactly what we'd need. I just went for things that seemed like would help." He admitted.
"A laser drill?" She looked at him skeptically.
"Seemed like it would be of use. It's better to be prepared wth stuff we won't need than not prepared without stuff we need. We don't know what will be there, we have to expect the worse." He defended.
"Alright so you got the break in part covered, how about how we're going to get down to the vaults in the first place?" She questioned.
"I was gonna leave that part of the plan up to you and Draco to figure out." He said honestly causing her to give him a 'your kidding, right?' look. She sighed when she realized he wasn't.
"Okay, well if we're going to plan this then Malfoy needs to be here too." She told him. Nodding, Harry called, "Jake!" Seconds later, the elf appeared.
"Can you tell Draco to come to the study?" Harry asked, Jake nodded before disappearing.
Minutes later, Draco entered the study in the same clothes as before. He strode in and over to the table before going to the opposite side that Hermione and Harry were on, so he facing them.
"You rang?" Draco's voice practically dropped sarcasm, as he leaned on the table.
"I got most of the equipment we'll needed." Harry informed him.
"Question, how do you plan to power the stuff?" Draco questioned.
"As I said before, the perfect break in is a balance of muggle and magical means." Harry responded cryptically.
"And how exactly are we supposed to get to the vaults in the first place?" Draco drawled.
"As I told Hermione earlier, you two have to figure that part out." At his words, Draco's head whipped to look at Hermione before looking back at Harry with the 'your kidding, right?' look. Harry shook his head in response.
"Well, if we expect to figure something out guess we should get to it." Hermione said however reluctant she was.
Hogwarts
Everyone was in the Great Hall for breakfast. Neville and Luna sitting together at the Gryffindor table when Professor McGonagall came over to them.
"Professor Dumbledore has requested your presence in his office after breakfast." She informed the duo when she approached before turning and returning back to the staff table.
The two looked at one another, they could both guess why he wanted to see them and what he wanted to talk about. They had already discussed it and the probability that he would question them. So when breakfast was over, they were prepared when they entered Dumbledore's office.
"Please have a seat." He promoted when they entered the office, before offering a lemon drop which both had declined.
"So I'm sure you both are aware of the reason I called you here." He began. The two looked at each other.
"I'm afraid not Professor." Neville disagreed at the same time that Luna said, "I believe so." Which only confused Dumbledore.
"Then as you know with Mister Potter missing, I am trying to fin-." He started.
"Harry's missing?!" Luna interrupted playing her part. Dumbledores eyebrows furrowed.
"Yes he is, that is why else would I have wished to speak to you urgently?" Dumbledore asked confused.
"The infestation of course!" Luna exclaimed as if it was obvious.
"I-infestation?!" Neville cried, his head whipping quickly back and forth from looking at Luna to Dumbledore.
"What infestation?" Dumbledore demanded.
"Hálfvitis's, of course!" Luna exclaimed. Neville's face adopted a panicked look, while Dumbledore looked clueless.
"What's that?!" Neville asked alarmed.
"It's a small creature that can infect the brain and make the easiest things to see and understand impossible!" Luna answered him.
"How do we protect ourselves?!" Neville asked panicked, eyes wide.
"Your safe unless you have a gene that you're born with, then they will go straight for you!" She stressed. "Professor, you have to do something!" She begged.
"Of course. I'll check right into it. You may return to your day." He assured her before dismissing them. The two stood and left the office.
After they made it a good portion down the corridor, they looked at the other and burst out laughing.
"Hálfvitis's! What does that even mean?" Neville questioning between laughs.
Chuckling, Luna answered, "It means idiot's in Icelandic." Which caused Neville to laugh again. Raising his hand to her for a high-five, she returned it.
"That is fantastic." Neville exclaimed as they continued walking down the hall while catching their breathe.
"Since Harry's gone, Dumbledores going to be asking us what we know." Neville told Luna as they sat in front of the room of requirement fire.
"We don't know much." She reminded him.
"In his opinion, it's still more than we should."
"So when he asks, what do we do?" She inquired.
"We act how we would've before everything. Since this started we've been different and he knows it. So let's make him think he's wrong."
"You mean mess with him?"
"That's exactly what I mean. With Harry gone, somebody has to keep him off track."
A/N: Hey everyone, so just want to say so that there is no confusion or doubt that this is not a slash story. There will be no slash and I don't write it. I have nothing against it, it's just not my thing. Anyway, as you can see in this chapter and the one before it, they had flashbacks in it. This will continue here and there. I only italics for location change and flashbacks. They are used to fill in some of the empty gaps in events. As always, hope you enjoyed and happy reading! -DS