AN: This story is going to be a bit longer than originally projected (sorry for anyone panicking; I just re-read the first chapter and realized I hadn't updated the original 24 chapter estimate when I went off-script part-way through). We definitely have another 5-6 chapters to go! No fear.

It was as if they'd been transported back to Hogwarts. Potter was bleeding, shouting profanities at Draco; Hermione was yelling at Draco; and Draco, well, he found himself torn between extreme horror at what he'd just done and amusement at Saint Potter's theatrics. Really, just like old times.

"What was that for?" an irate Potter shouted. His words were lisped around the blood pouring from his nose.

Draco was fairly confident the only reason he wasn't being hexed (aside from the strongest Shield charm he'd cast immediately after the gravity of what he'd done had sunken into his poor, confused brain) was that Hermione was standing in front of Potter, casting spells to verify that his nose was indeed broken and then fixing it with an Episkey. A literal human shield. Draco thought the satisfying crunch Potty's nose made as it snapped back into place almost made up for the fact that Hermione was fussing over Potter.

"Okay, but seriously. What the hell? You risk your life and Hermione's to change sides and then the first thing you do is punch me?"

Draco wondered if Hermione had healed the blood vessels in his eyes too or if the Boy Wonder would soon have eye sockets that matched his hair. He mentally shook the part of his brain that insisted on thinking these unproductive, juvenile thoughts. It was probably the same part of his brain that thought punching Potter was a good idea. The fight suddenly drained out of him as quickly as the impulse to punch the man had come. They had a madman to defeat, staggering odds against their achievement, and all he could focus on was petty squabbles?

He looked at Potter, who looked wary and ready to fight, and Hermione, who looked aggrieved and kept glancing between the two of them as if they'd spill secrets as easily as her beloved books. He felt as if his mouth was filled with cotton. Oh, that dark, terrible, traitorous part of his brain had a pretty good idea why he'd punched Potter and that same traitorous part of his brain would be surgically excised before he said anything out loud. On the other hand, if he screwed this up and they lost the bloody war against the Dark Lord because of this… he screwed up his courage and danced as close to the truth as he felt was reasonable. Given Potter's protective streak, admitting he was romantically jealous of Hermione might actually make things worse.

"I don't even know what came over me. Defending her in the Manor and during our attack on Hogsmeade… it's been all I've thought about. She's been posing as my fiancee, so my gut reaction seeing someone so close was just defend." He hated that a whine had crept into his voice. He directed his plaint at Potter, not even meeting Hermione's eyes; she was surely furious he was talking about her as if she weren't there. Potter looked both surprised and a little revolted; lovely, he had managed to read Draco's subtext there. Although he wasn't sure if the revulsion was because Draco saw him as a romantic threat or because of the thought of Hermione and Draco romantically involved.

Draco imagined the voice in his head thinking these awful, untrue thoughts being crushed under one of his mother's stiletto heels. It even made a satisfying little scream as it struggled beneath the black spike.

Hermione shot a murderous look at Draco and an apologetic one at Harry.

"I'll call off the attack on Hogsmeade," she offered in a long-suffering voice.

She closed her eyes briefly, Imperiusing the key participants she had pre-selected for this very purpose; they would tell the rest of the group to re-group at Malfoy Manor. Their "leader" would then deliver a message from Hermione (that she had planted earlier and triggered with the Protean charm which message to display) to Lucius that they had successfully infiltrated the Order and would report back later that night.

"We need to loop Ron in and plan our next steps. For obvious reasons, I think going to the Order HQ is a bad idea. Ideas?"

Hermione grinned, "I know just the place!"

*** TR ** TR ** TR ***

Fifteen minutes later, they were installed in a Muggle pub that they had warded and Muffliato-ed. Ron had tested Draco's resolve even more than Potter, picking Hermione up and spinning her around, practically yelling "you're alive! you're alive!" and whooping after his friend had confirmed it was definitely Hermione this time. Draco feigned a shutter, remembering when the Weasel had hugged him; it helped him ignore his clenched fists that hung at his sides.

Potter and Weasley insisted on an overview of what had happened. Draco thought he could actually feel the minutes slipping away from the end of his life. For people who had allegedly saved the day so many times, they were awfully interested in whether Draco had kissed Hermione or made her uncomfortable; like those were the priorities when they had a Dark Lord to topple.

Hermione was, evidently, of the same mind and quickly turned everyone towards the topic of Horcruxes, Time Turners, and her color-coded plans. She also had a number of questions she needed answered-Who is Tom Riddle? How many Horcruxes have been destroyed? The list (literally) went on (for three sheets of parchment).

They confirmed that three of the Horcruxes-the diary, locket, and Gaunt ring-were destroyed. Draco and Hermione informed them of their information about the cup in Aunt Bella's possession; they had done a bit more scouting and listening before the raid (and, well, a bit more Imperiusing but Draco didn't want to highlight that skill of Hermione's more than was necessary; Potter hadn't asked about her facility with it after they'd revealed she'd used it on him and neither of them had volunteered.) and confirmed it was in the Lestrange Castle. Potter and co. had had the students at Hogwarts interrogate the ghosts for information on the diadem and Luna Lovegood had convinced the Gray Lady to divulge the information she had on its location-in the Room of Hidden Things. ("It's another story in and of itself, honestly," Ron had gushed.) Hermione explained their theory about Nagini's being a Horcux, and that Charlie was being held captive (they assumed) to care for the snake.

"Do you know how to destroy them?" Draco's voice shook as he asked it. They'd clearly destroyed some before, but… if they couldn't destroy these, there was no point in getting excited over knowing where they were.

"Of course!" Ron scoffed. His usual bravado was tempered by the fact that he could barely take his eyes off Hermione.

"Or, rather, we know but don't currently have the tools," Harry amended. "But, happily that is also at Hogwarts. In the Chamber of Secrets, but at Hogwarts."

Hermione's eyes looked like they would pop out of her head, "That's real? No, nevermind, don't tell me! Tell me once this is over."

Harry smiled at her again, "You were the one who figured out it was a basilisk down there! I can't wait to tell you the whole story."

Draco bristled. Charming Potter with his stories of basilisks and how clever Hermione was. And it looked like she was falling right back into her easy rhythm with the two boys. Leaving him out in the cold, part of him whined.

"So how do we get into Hogwarts? It's not exactly the bastion of all things light these days," he drawled.

"Unfortunately, we can't get through Hogsmeade because of the wards and alert charms set there, which was our first choice, since Neville let us know about a secret passage through Dumbledore's brother's pub. We almost got into a really nasty situation with some Snatchers when we were testing the wards. We traced the Hogwarts grounds, but can't find another way in. We did, however, check out Borgin and Burke's under Polyjuice; it looks like the Vanishing Cabinet Malfoy used is still there. Can you still use it?" Potter addressed his last question to Draco, piercing him with his creepy green eyes.

"Can someone check if it's still in the Room of Hidden Things? It's useless if it's been moved," Draco mused.

Potter smirked at him, delighted to be a step ahead. "Already done! Neville says it's right where you left it, you know, right before a mass of Death Eaters used it to invade a school full of children. We just need to nip in there, get some basilisk venom from the Chamber, destroy the Diadem and nip back out!"

The unlikely quartet spent another several hours fleshing out and modifying Hermione's colored charts before crowding into the men's loo and looping the Time Turner's long gold chain over their necks. Draco reminded himself he was owed so much for being in such awful proximity to so many Gryffindors before the world blurred and faded back to four hours prior.

** TR *** TR *** TR **

Borgin and Burke's was quiet and looked a bit dingier than the last time Draco had seen it. Of course, who needed a seedy back-alley shop for Dark artifacts when the Dark Lord ensured they could be traded in the open? The new, posh antiquities shop, stocked with "treasures" from around the world, that had opened in Diagon Alley (rumor had it that the Dark Lord, and thus the Malfoys, helped finance its opening) may have also helped feed its decline. The news about Riddle's brief affiliation with shop connected a few dots for Draco about the madman's vehemence that it be bled dry and driven out of business.

"Don't touch anything," Draco hissed. "Especially you, Hermione." This earned him two green and blue-eyed glares and a cautious nod from the Muggle-born. At least one person understood him; he wanted no repeats of her engagement ring.

They slowly creeped towards the back, where the Vanishing Cabinet was stored. The greyish light in the shop felt ominous, oppressive. They had nearly reached it when the set of locks on the front door chattered as they clicked open. Hermione had grabbed Draco's arm when she heard it, then dropped it again just as quickly. He rather wished she'd grab it again.

"Hello, my lovelies." Mr. Borgin's oily voice called in a sing-song. "Time to rise and shine and see if we can't find you nice, expensive new homes." The quartet released a simultaneous, silent breath of relief; he hadn't been speaking to them! They backed towards the Cabinet and out of Mr. Borgin's potential path as quietly as possible, although his constant stream of mutterings covered any sounds they might have made.

Finally, Mr. Borgin retreated to a back room and the group shuffled towards the cabinet. Only six more paces. Five.

Unfortunately, Potter's leg brushed a vase, sending it teetering towards the floor. His quick reflexes stopped it from falling, but also pulled the cloak partially off the group and his foot fell with a noisy thump. A breath later, Mr. Borgin had re-entered the room, drawn by the sound of the near-brush with death his pottery had experienced.

Fortunately, Hermione's wand was faster than Borgin's. He was disarmed and frozen a moment later.

After a moment of shocked silence, Draco grouched, "what type of self-respecting Dark Wizard opens his shop at 10am?" Hermione giggled a little, while Potter shushed him.

"What are we going to do with him?" Ron muttered.

"I suppose we'll have to bring him with us," Hermione responded after a pause. "We should hurry in case anyone comes." She cast a Disillusionment charm on the frozen shopkeeper, while Draco went up the cabinet and checked it for jinxes and protections; the only ones he found were his own. He released the mouse Hermione had Accioed with a small moue of distaste into the cabinet and waited for Potter to confirm it had arrived unharmed (with a nifty Protean charm that Hermione had been gratified to learn she'd devised) before the quintet piled into the cabinet.