Chapter 22

After successfully avoiding Malfoy for about a week, Hermione knew she couldn't do it for much longer. She needed to talk to him about what had transpired between the two of them, and the kiss that they had shared. She needed to ask him about what had happened, and to find out what it meant for them and the 'friendship' they had.

She could only run the scenarios in her head so many so many times before she got tired of speculating and needed to know exactly how he felt about it.

And more specifically, why he had kissed her. It had been something that had been eating away at her for quite some time. Why had he done what he had done? Why had he suddenly decided to kiss her, out of the blue?

But more importantly, she missed him. She missed meeting up for their study sessions and arguing with him on different topics. She missed his point of view, and having someone who wouldn't just blindly accept what she said, but had their own opinions on the matter. She didn't want to hide anymore; she wanted to face him.

So after Potions, she waited until the coast was clear and no one else was in the hall but him. She moved swiftly, and if he was surprised when she grabbed him by the hand and dragged him into a classroom, his face didn't show it. She quickly silenced the room before turning to face him for the first time since the incident.

"I thought you were still avoiding me," Malfoy said in a passive voice as he gave her a pointed look.

"Do you still hate me?" she blurted out, sounding unsure of herself.

"Hate you?" he asked in confusion at her question, "Why?"

"For being a mudblood, Harry Potter's friend, a Gryffindor," she shrugged, "For all the reasons we didn't get along for in the past. What are we, Malfoy? Are we friends now? Or do you still hate me? Are you using me to get to Harry?"

"Is that what you think?" he asked her quietly, "That I am secretly using you as a pawn to bring down Potter? That I'm the big bad Death Eater, whose job is to seduce the brains behind the Dark Lord's number one enemy? That I'm trying to distract you when he needs you most? Is that what you think of me, Granger?"

She shook her head, "No," she said softly, "I don't believe that you would do that."

"Then why suggest it?" he asked her carefully.

"Because we never really discussed the change," she said softly, "You went from ignoring me, to studying with me, to well-" she let her voice trail off. "Do you still think of me as a mudblood, Draco?"

He shook his head, before moving closer to her, placing a hand on hers. "I haven't thought of you as that word in quite some time," he told her softly.

"How long?" she whispered.

"Since I saw Him torture muggle and muggleborns over the summer," he said looking down, "Since I saw their blood all over the floors of my childhood home and realized their blood was the exact same colour as mine. That there were no differences between the two of us. Since you came along, and challenged everything my father had ever taught me, that you were kind, cultured, intelligent, and everything I was taught that purebloods ought to be. Since I realized that at the end of the day, we're all the same, and that blood status doesn't mean a thing. I haven't thought of you as that for a long time, Granger."

Her resolve broke then, as it seemed the only things that were holding her back before was her own fears. She stepped closer, leaning in as she tiptoed up and pressed her lips against his gently, threading her hands though his hair.

He looked shocked at the action, but wrapped his arms around her waist and drew her in tightly as his lips moved against hers. He groaned slightly and she felt her heart race as she melted into him, unable to describe how she was feeling, other than euphoria.

He broke away a few seconds later, looking down, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have done that," he said, taking a step backwards.

"Why?" she whispered, feeling embarrassment seep through her.

"I won't play you for a fool, Granger. We both know that you are aware of the fact that something else is going on for me this year. That I have something else that has been weighing on my chest. And because of that, it is hardly fair for me to get involved with you. Not now, not with this going on. You deserve better."

"What if I don't care?" she demanded, "What if I don't care about whatever else is going on with you, and that I just want to be with you? Do you think that I didn't try to fight this, Malfoy? It's hardly practical for the two of us to get involved with each other. But I'm still here aren't I? Isn't it a risk that we take? To try and pretend that we have some semblance of normality even with everything that is going on outside the walls of the castle? Do we not deserve the chance to put ourselves first for once?"

"Bloody Gryffindor," he muttered under his breath.

"You're the Slytherin," she shot back, "Aren't you supposed to be selfish about what you want and not nobly be trying to put others first?"

He snapped just then, and he stepped forward, cupping her face and pulling her back into a kiss, before pulling away.

"You're right," he said softly, "I am selfish. The self-preserving part of me wants to run away because this is dangerous, and the noble part of me wants to walk away because you deserve better. But I am selfish, and I wanted to kiss you for years now. I'm not walking away, Granger."

She grinned, before wrapping her arms around him and pulling his face closer to hers.

"Good," she murmured before kissing him tenderly. "Because you're mine now, Malfoy."

Draco stood in the wooded hillside as he hid from view, with his partner a few metres from him. The Aurors surrounded the area where they had planted the rumours that the Valkyrie resided, hoping to lure whoever had taken Hermione to the area.

He knew they were running out of time; it had already been a few days since she had been taken, and as an Auror he knew the statistics better than anyone about how long a kidnapped victim survived for.

But he knew he couldn't think emotionally if he wanted to stand any chance at saving her. He needed to believe that she was still alive, and that he could save her. He couldn't afford to get distracted with the what-could-be-happening scenarios that would race through his mind whenever he allowed himself a moment of rest. He needed to stay strong, for her.

The team had put back in full force an investigation into all former Death Eaters, even the ones who had been deemed innocent, to see if any had any possible motive or means of capturing Hermione. If any of them were involved, the team wanted to know about it. They had already cleared Draco, as he himself insisted that they follow the protocol specifically and not exclude him just because he worked with the Aurors. Blaise and Theo had been cleared instantly as well as a few other lesser Death Eaters who had been coerced into taking the mark. They were still missing a handful of Death Eaters who had managed to evade capture over the years, increasing the tensions on the team. If they hadn't been caught yet, what was to say they would get caught now?

He knew his own mother was worried for him, knowing how much he cared about Hermione. It had shocked him to know that she had been aware of his feelings, considering how much she pushed him into dating other women, but he supposed it had been because of the fact that Hermione had been married and she wanted Draco to be happy.

They had laid out the plan carefully, ensuring no innocent bystanders would approach the area. They had cast a muggle repellant charm, as well as secured the towns nearby. There was a chance that they would not recognize the perpetrator, and they could not risk any innocent people happening about the crime scene, or even worse, getting caught in the cross fire. There was no real Valkyrie of course, at least not in the area. But it didn't matter. A powerful illusion charm would get the person responsible for the kidnappings close enough, and then the team would strike and capture them rapidly.

He sighed to himself as he surveyed his surroundings, looking to see if there had been any movement. They would trigger a silent ward which would cause the linked charm they each possessed to heat up. The last thing any of them wanted was to notify the perpetrator that this was a trap and scare them off just as quickly as they came.

They had to go through the German Ministry of Magic to get approval for the operation, as it was on German soil. Their Ministry was none too pleased at the actions, given the fact that it meant that if any innocents were caught up in the crossfire, the press would have a field day. Especially given that it was the English Ministry who laid the trap on German soil as opposed to their own.

It had taken Kingsley making several promises to better the English-German relationships across the ICW to finally get them to agree, much to Draco's relief. He would be lying if he didn't admit that he was worried enough to think that for a second the German Ministry would disagree to their plans and put them right back to square one. And they couldn't have that now, not when Hermione was still missing and they had no other way of getting her back.

He swore that he would make sure justice was served to whoever it was that hurt her, especially given everything that she had gone through. She didn't deserve this, not after everything she had gone through.

He loved her more than anything, and he would be damned if he lost her after everything they had gone through. He would be damned if he lost her now, or ever again.

He held his wand tighter, and he looked over to see Harry standing hidden behind a tree, looking equally as edgy. He knew the man blamed himself just as much as Draco blamed himself. After all, if it were not for them, she wouldn't be as big of a target. Even given the fact that there was nothing stopping Hermione once she got started. If it weren't for his former Death Eater status, or Harry's status as the Chosen One, would she have been as big of a target? It was hardly as if her kidnapping was the result of a random sequence of events, it must have been planned out, and would have been planned out because of who she was to the Wizarding World; a hero.

He closed his momentarily, as he looked around, for any sign of moment. It had been the better part of a couple hours since the plan was officially laid out and the information leaked. It could be any moment until someone showed up, or it could be hours more, and Draco really had no way of knowing. All he knew is that they needed to be alert for when they finally did show up.

He could see the darkness beginning to settle down around them, and Draco cast a spell to allow him to see better in the dark. The last thing he needed was any sort of hindrance. The outline of the full moon began to brighten the forest around them, leaving an eerily silence.

He stood there for a while longer, unsure of just how much time had passed in between, when he felt the charm around his neck begin to warm up. He looked over to where Harry was standing, and the man nodded at him as an indication that his had as well.

They were here, whoever it was that had Hermione was here.

He had to calm the part of him that wanted to rush forward and grab the person, before hexing them senseless until they told him where Hermione was being kept. But he couldn't afford to do that, he needed to be rational. He needed to think like an Auror, not a hurt boyfriend. He needed to be careful, or he risked endangering Hermione even more.

He moved forward slowly, to where the illusion of the Valkyrie was set. The Aurors around them raised anti-apparation wards, as when the perpetrator realized that this was a trap, they would attempt to flee. They just had to get to them before that moment.

As he moved through the treeline, he could see the silhouette of the man running forward toward the trap, and Draco kept his pace steady. It would do no good to cast a curse from here, as he was out of range. He cast a silencing charm around himself to allow himself to move at slightly quicker pace without being heard as he moved closer to the man.

When he was barely twenty metres away he cast the disillusion charm around himself, knowing it would be harder to keep hidden. He ran now, and at ten metres, and he could tell the other Aurors had the man surrounded from all sides. They had him in their vicinity, now they just needed to trap him.

But it appeared that a footstep of an Auror who forgot to follow the protocol tipped them off as the loud crunching sound of branches filled the entire forest. The man looked up just then, at where the Auror was standing, and cast an Avada his way, as the Auror barely managed to jump out of the way. The man began running just then, and Draco picked up his pace to a run as well.

He could see a smoke symbol in the form of the Death Eater mark move through the air and vanish out of sight, and he couldn't help but wonder if it were some sort of message to others who were involved. Bloody hell, they were running out of time.

He could see the man in clear shooting distance, and Draco had to clear his mind to rid it of the harsher jinxes he was thinking off. Time was running down for Hermione, and it would do them no good if he were unable to answer any of their questions about just where Hermione was being held.

So he settled for a simple leg-locker curse, bringing the man tumbling down to the ground.

Draco ran forward, as he towered above the man and let out a shocked breath of air.

Rodolphus Lestrange; the man who had married his insane aunt who tortured Hermione in his own home. The man who was just as ruthless as she could be was using Hermione to try and bring back someone from the dead.

"Where is she?" he snarled as he pointed his wand at his uncle. "Where are you keeping her?"

The man only laughed at him, "You'll never find her, Draco. Just because you got me doesn't make this over. By time you find her, she'll be long dead."

Hermione could see Lucius Malfoy frown as he paced back and forth in the room. Rodolphus Lestrange had been gone for what felt like hours, and she could tell it was making the man antsy as he had no idea when his companion would return.

He stopped suddenly, as he turned to face her.

"It would appear that my compatriot is having some issues procuring the item we need," he said softly. "However this potion needs to be mixed when the moon is full in the sky in the peek of the night. Something which will occur shortly. And if he does not return before then, I will have no choice but to begin without him."

"Even without the heart?" she asked, wearily, unsure of what it meant for her. If he began to mix the potion, she knew it would mean her immediate death.

"We have enough ingredients without it which should ensure the potion brings her back," Lucius said firmly. He walked around the room, as he pointed a wand at her, releasing her from the chains that tied her to the ground, but keeping her bound. "Try anything, and it'll mean your death," he warned her, as he nudged her to stand up. She moved through the house, unsure of just where she was being held, as he led her to a room with the cauldron now set up in, with a bed beside it.

As she moved closer to the bed, she could see the decaying corpse of Bellatrix Lestrange beside them, as her skin had paled significantly in her death, as well as other forms of decay.

He forced her into the chair next to the cauldron as he began to stir the other ingredients which had been simmering for the last little while, only missing her blood which needed to be added when the moon was in its peek position.

"You don't need to do this," she said quickly, as he caused a magical link between her and the potion for the blood to drain out of. "Draco will never forgive you if you do this. You'll lose him forever."

"I won't," he said firmly, "I'm doing this for his own good. He can do better than you, deserves better than you. Using you as a sacrifice is just a perfect side effect."

He cast he spell and the blood began to drain out of her body and into the cauldron. She could feel herself growing weaker, as the signs of decay on Bellatrix's body began to fade, her skin healing and the colour returning, as she felt her eyes begin to droop at the loss of blood.

Lucius began chanting around the cauldron, "Accipe sacrificium amissa redire," and she struggled to keep herself awake. She couldn't lose now, not when she had so much left to live for. Not when her daughter needed her.

Just then, a smoke based dark death eater mark appeared in front of them, causing Lucius to stop chanting as Rodolphus' words filled the air.

"Trap. Caught by Aurors," The words echoed through the room, and Hermione felt a sliver of hope.

"Damn it all," Lucius growled. "Bloody idiot. If he talks, then we'll be caught before the ritual is over. We need to move, now!"

She felt her eyes close as Lucius began to pack up the things around them, knowing Harry and Draco were coming for her, before she was met with only darkness.