In the days that followed, arrangements had been made with the CIA and Sark to get in contact with Derevko about the Horizon. Julian was sure that Irina had no idea his loyalties had changed, and as such was confident he could get the information desired as to the whereabouts of Rambaldi's tomb.

As luck would have it, Sark had been right. Irina had contacted him and requested that the Horizon be brought to a specific set of coordinates within Mongolia, about 100 miles north of Khovd. Sark contacted Mia via the encrypted phone he had given her to let her know the date and time of the meeting. The CIA would be sending Sydney, Jack and Marcus Dixon to the site. Harry, Dean, Blaise and Draco were all tasked to coordinate with the Russian Ministry as well as Hit Wizards from the ICW. Portkeys had been issued to all magical personnel and all they were waiting on was confirmation of where Sark would be meeting Irina. Hermione had removed the Horizon from the DoM archive and placed it in a sealed magical pouch, which she had given to Draco. Theo had wanted to be included in the operation, but Kingsley had been adamant that no non-essential personnel were to be tasked for this mission. Which meant Hermione had to stay back in London, a fact she had been most displeased with...much to Draco's relief. The Minister had not been amused when Hermione had insisted she be allowed to go...Kingsley was concerned that due to Hermione's condition, and the fact that she had already been targeted by Rambaldi once, he couldn't guarantee her safety. Lucius had spoken with the Minister prior to his altercation with Hermione...making it very clear he wanted his future daughter-in-law as far away from the fray as possible. Thankfully, Kingsley agreed with the sentiment and the men found common ground in their desire to protect the irate, hormonal witch who was currently glaring at both men like she wanted to set them on fire!

"I appreciate you both wanting to protect me, and if I wasn't so shocked by the two of agreeing on this, I might be tempted to hex the both of you!" Hermione stated emphatically.

Kingsley smiled fondly at the little witch. "Hermione, we've discussed this before and I'm not inclined to change my position. There is no need for you to go to Mongolia. Theo is staying here in London as well, so there's really no reason for you to go. We have the best Aurors and Hit Wizards on this. Rambaldi won't escape, I promise you."

Hermione sighed in resignation. It would appear as if the fates and everyone she knew were conspiring against her...and it infuriated her to no end! She was pregnant, not an invalid for Godric's sake! Looking up at her future father-in-law, she could see the amusement clearly reflected in his grey eyes...so much like his son's.

"Fine! I will stay, but if something untoward happens all bets are off!" Hermione huffed and stormed out of the Minister's office, missing the knowing look the two men shared.

Kingsley shook his head as he sat down in his chair, offering Lucius a seat with a gesture...which the blonde wizard accepted gracefully. "She is a force to be reckoned with." Kingsley chuckled in amusement.

"She is." Lucius offered in agreement. "Hermione has always been a force of nature...Draco's shared stories with me of how she was in school. I had wondered at the time if he had harbored a crush on her...now that they are together, I must admit they are particularly well suited for each other."

Kingsley scoffed good-naturedly at the elder Malfoy. "Hermione was never complimentary of Draco, at least not that I've ever witnessed. But he does seem to be able to handle her stubbornness much better than Harry ever did."

"Mr. Potter was used to Hermione taking charge...planning and plotting. It is due to her cunning and cleverness that Mr. Potter was able to defeat the Dark Lord. She was often a topic of discussion during those dark days."

Kingsley's eyebrows raised in interest. "And what was the general consensus amongst the Death Eaters where Hermione was concerned?"

Lucius sighed regretfully. "Her heritage that was known at the time, made her a target as you well know. But many within the inner circle were initially skeptical of a muggle-born being the brains behind Potter's successes. It wasn't until the confrontation at Tottenham Court when she obliviated Dolohov and Rowle after besting them in a duel that interest in her was peaked. Dolohov was particularly obsessed, not only because she had survived his curse, but because she had bested him and obliviated him. He had made it known amongst the inner circle that if captured, she was to be his prize. You knew of Dolohov's proclivities Kingsley...I shudder to think what fate might have awaited Hermione if she hadn't been pregnant with the heir to my house."

Kingsley frowned deeply. "I, for one, am glad the man is dead. The Hermione of three years ago would've felt guilt at taking his life...the witch today however..." Kingsley tailed off, not needing to speak his conclusions.

Lucius nodded once and spoke firmly. "Indeed. While I'm admittedly not a fan of the Muggle world, Hermione's sojourn seems to have tempered her more altruistic tendencies."

"I noticed that as well." Kingsley agreed softly. "Hermione has always been one to take care of everyone else, often to her own detriment. Now, she seems less willing to make those concessions."

"My son is learning that fact the hard way." Lucius smirked knowingly.

Kingsley nodded thoughtfully. "I will be relieved when this Rambaldi mess is over. I'd imagine if Hermione had never met Julian Sark and unknowingly stumbled upon Rambaldi's box, we would still be wandering blindly in the dark."

"Will you be sending Potter's team out soon?"

"In the morning." Kingsley offered. "Are you still planning on accompanying the team?"

Lucius sighed, but nodded once. "It would only be prudent for me to do so. I am well versed in both Rowle's and Rookwood's machinations. I'd imagine there are other low level Death Eater sympathizers working with the two of them. I'd expect that Rambaldi has made contacts over these many years, so it would be prudent to bring as many able bodied fighters as possible."

Looking up at the ceiling in thought, Kingsley had wondered the same thing. "As of now we have about 10 Aurors from our ranks, 20 Hit Wizards from ICW and MACUSA has offered another 15 Aurors should we require it. The CIA is sending their small group as you know, and MI-6 has a strike team in place."

"Hopefully it will be enough." Lucius hoped for his son's sake and that of his future wife and son it would be.