Chapter 8: Goyle's Gaffe

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Hermione and Draco apparated in front of Goyle's building after lunch, another fancy building in an expensive part of London. They walked into the atrium where Goyle was waiting. Goyle looked calm as Hermione entered, but his expression changed as Draco walked in behind her.

"Good afternoon, Gregory," she said as they approached.

"How are you Goyle," Draco said, his tone a little cocky.

"F-fine," Goyle said, looking dumbstruck, "We can go upstairs."

"I thought you said there was a business center we could use in the atrium," Hermione said.

"Oh, oh yes that's fine. It's over this way," he turned nervously and started walking. Hermione gave Draco a confused look that he returned and they followed Goyle.

The business center was just a conference room with a big table and chairs, and the three of them sat at the end of it.

"Thanks for taking the time to talk with us today, Gregory," she addressed him, and he gave her a curt nod, glancing over at Draco, "We just wanted to talk to you because of your father's involvement in the Death Eater conspiracy going on right now."

Goyle nodded again, swallowing hard.

"Is there anything you're able to tell us about things your father may have said?" She asked.

"Why is Draco here?" he asked her, looking highly uncomfortable.

"Mr. Malfoy is helping with the investigation," she said simply.

"He doesn't work at the Ministry," Goyle said.

Draco was watching him curiously. He'd never known Goyle to fidget like he was and him and Goyle had never had issues before. However he also hadn't seen Goyle since the Battle of Hogwarts.

"Come off it, what's the big deal?" Draco asked.

"It's… it's just that my- my father told me if I ever saw you, I should refer to you as… as," he paused dramatically.

"As what?" Draco asked, getting annoyed.

"As 'Master.'" he said quietly, like he was trying to keep Hermione from hearing.

Draco looked angry, "Oh he told you that, did he?" he said loudly, standing up.

"Malfoy, please," Hermione tried to reason with him, "We need to get through this interview."

Draco sat down, hands in fists.

"I don't want to talk with him here," Goyle said.

"Why? Because you can't tell the lies your father wants you to with me here?" Draco said scathingly.

"Malfoy," Hermione looked at him sharply again before turning back to Goyle, "Gregory, if your father has threatened you in some way for meeting with me, you can be honest here. If you're not involved then we're on the same side trying to round up the people that want to incite terror again."

Goyle looked back and forth between the two, "Draco is on the other side," he gulped, "He's got you fooled."

Draco slammed his fist on the table, "He's LYING," he yelled.

"Malfoy, can you wait outside?" Hermione looked at him apologetically, "I just need to get through this interview."

Draco stood up furiously, "We were friends Goyle. We watched Crabbe die together for the Dark Lord, and here you are taking their side again. Lying for the Death Eaters. You'll end up in the same place as your father when this is all over." He ripped the door open and stalked out.

Hermione turned back to Goyle with a serious tone, "Why do you say Draco is one of them? Is it from your father, or are you involved?"

"My father," Goyle said, "Told me I should address Draco as Master if I ever saw him in person again. He said Draco would be the next Dark Lord and he had pledged himself as a loyal supporter to him."

"Did you ever see Draco with your father?"

"Not since the Battle of Hogwarts," Goyle said, "My father said the meetings now are held in a top secret location."

"Have you ever been to one?" Hermione asked.

"Of course not," he shook his head, looking at the ground.

Something felt very off here, "So likely only the new Death Eaters would know the secret locations. Very exclusive," she commented.

"It really is," he agreed, looking up at her, unable to hide the gleam in his eyes.

"It must be an intimate group of really powerful wizards. Did your father ever ask you to join?"

"Of course he did," Goyle said defensively.

"But you didn't think you could match up?"

"Of course I could," Goyle said.

"I mean, It would be really intimidating to be around that kind of power though, I can imagine. Better to stay away."

"It's not that intimidating at all," Goyle looked offended.

"I'm not saying you're not powerful enough," Hermione held a hand up, "It's just that that kind of power probably wouldn't be something you could handle anyway."

"I most certainly can handle it. I'm more powerful than half those wizards," he said definitively, "Before they all got arrested I was tested in a duel with Macnair and I passed." He was standing now, defending his honor.

Hermione set down her quill, "So you admit that you're a Death Eater?"

Goyle stammered, "I… I never said those words."

"What were you tested for with Macnair?" Her voice was casual now, she'd already gotten more out of him than she'd ever expected.

"For... just to see where I was at as a wizard."

"For what purpose?"

"To test my power."

"To do what?"

Goyle just stared at her stupidly.

"Where are the meetings held?"

"What meetings?" It was the dumbest thing he'd said so far.

"Look, Gregory," she folded her hands on the table, "You've already told me you're involved at this point."

"I have not," he said.

"You have," she smiled, "Tell me where the meetings are held and we'll see if we can work you a deal," it was an empty offer.

"I… I'd never been to one," he said.

She stared at him and he fidgeted again.

"I'd only been to one," he tried again.

"Where was it?"

"Malfoy Manor," Goyle said.

"Did you apparate to his house?" She asked.

"No of course not, there are too many wards around the gates for us all to get through easily. We just used the Floo network into Malfoy Manor," he said incredulously.

"Sounds like a real lack of security," Hermione commented, eyebrows raised.

"It's just a very exclusive Floo Network," he said, nodding his head.

"Well, thank you, Gregory," she said, "I'm sure you understand, but we'll be taking you in now."

"But we'll be talking about a deal, right?" He asked, "Because I told you about the meeting place?"

"Of course we'll talk about it," she said, "Please put your hands in front of you."

He did as he was told, looking disappointed with himself, and Hermione magically bound his hands together. They walked out into the atrium where Draco was sitting, seething in his chair.

"Malfoy, I'm going to take Gregory in and have him booked. I'll come by the Manor later tonight and we can chat."

Draco stood up, glaring at Goyle and then looking back at Hermione, "Fine," He walked out the door and disapparated. She sighed, walking Goyle out and disapparating with him to the Ministry entrance.

It didn't take long to get him booked in, so she went up to her office and dropped the files off in Mr. Northcott's office, who wasn't there at the moment.

She walked back to her office, leaving the door open and writing down some notes that she wanted to follow up on or look into. About an hour later she heard Alden's voice from across the office.

"GRANGER," he didn't sound happy, "Are you over there?"

"Yes," she called back.

"Get over here!" Is wasn't angry, but it was an annoyed voice.

She walked in cautiously.

"Close the door and sit," he stood up, hands on his hips and started pacing the room.

"Did I do something?" She asked, "Goyle admitted to being a Death Eater in so many words."

Alden stopped and looked at her, "You brought the MALFOY boy to an INVESTIGATION interview about MALFOY."

"I... I did, sir," she acknowledged, "But I think it proved fruitful."

"You didn't even run it BY me," he was very frustrated, "Now I've got Aurors asking me why a terror suspect is going along on investigations when he's the main suspect! Do you know how this looks, Granger, have I made myself clear?"

"Yes, sir," she said, her voice still confident, "I understand your frustration, but I continue to put my full belief in his innocence and I think his presence was an absolute asset to the arrest we just made. I wouldn't have done it any differently if I had to do it again."

Alden put his hands on the desk, "I know you're the lead on this case, Granger, I acknowledge the hard, good work you've done, but you have GOT to pull your personal feelings out of this case. You can NOT perform a thorough investigation if you are personally involved with the main suspect."

"We're not involved," she countered, "I believe him and I want to find the truth."

"Well you've got to do it without him being present for these interviews. It looks bad on our department. It's extremely unprofessional."

"I think it's just unorthodox," Hermione said, "I use my judgment to make decisions sometimes and inviting Malfoy along felt like the right thing, and it panned out."

Alden sighed heavily, "You're a difficult person to reprimand, Granger," he said.

"I'm not trying to be difficult, Mr. Northcott," she started.

"Alden, Granger. My name is Alden and you are my colleague," he finally sat down, looking defeated, "And you are not difficult, you are just difficult to reprimand because you constantly remind me that you do your job well."

She looked at him, confused.

"Your method did bring in another Death Eater and I do understand and appreciate the importance of that," he told her, "But you need to be careful of getting personally invested in Malfoy being innocent and making him feel included in this process. Other departments cannot see his involvement because it honestly looks suspicious. If you feel the need to keep him abreast of information that comes in, then by all means just do it quietly and away from the Ministry and away from our leads. You've gotten good information and you've brought in six Death Eaters off the street now. I'm not questioning you, I'm just telling you to do it smarter."

Hermione nodded, "Sorry… Alden," she said, "I didn't mean to make a statement bringing Malfoy with me, I just honestly thought it was the right move."

Alden rubbed his face, "I know, Granger. You're almost too intuitive for your own good. Sorry to get frustrated like that, but I need to be able to 100% back your decisions and I was completely caught off guard."

"I understand," she said, "I will talk to Malfoy tonight and tell him he's got to take the bench while we do our investigation, but I will be keeping him informed. While we're on the subject of interviews, however," she gave him a small smile, "I've got one with Lucius. He said he'd talk for the first time since the trials. We haven't set a date yet because he wants to mentally prepare, but he agreed we could talk by the end of the month."

Alden looked stunned, "Lucius Malfoy is going to talk to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement?"

"Yes, sir."

Alden continued to stare, wide-eyed, "This is why you make it difficult to reprimand you," he reiterated, "Take a rubber duckie with you and record the conversation and then let's set up a meeting the day after that interview and go over everything that's discussed."

"I'll put it on your calendar," she said.

Alden sighed, "Dismissed, Granger, get out of here for the night."

She stood up, "Thanks, Mr. Northcott."

O-o-o-o-o-o-o

Hermione apparated outside Malfoy Manor that evening at the predetermined time of 7PM. Draco was standing just inside the gates and lifted the wards for her to enter. She looked at the manor with resolve, taking a deep breath and then looked back at Draco, stepping through the gates.

"Evening," she said uncertainly, unsure of what his mood would be.

"I've calmed down," he told her, "Sorry I kind of blew up at Goyle."

"Well he kind of called you master," Hermione said with a small laugh, "Talk about selling you out."

Draco shook his head with a groan, "I can't believe how much they're selling this story. It's almost impressive."

"Look, Malfoy, there's one thing I do need to confirm with you," she told him and he looked over at her as they walked up the path to the house, "Goyle said they met at the Manor once and that they entered your house through the Floo Network. Can you prove that the Floo Network into the Manor is closed?"

Draco grinned, "He's an idiot. That used to be how the Death Eaters would get into the Manor. After the war we had them all sealed by a Floosmith. I can get you his name. He sealed every fireplace in the house and we had him document it for our sanity. The only one he left open was the partial Floo stop that you've used to stick your head in. No one can get farther than that."

"Good to hear," she said, "It was going to be a real issue if you did still have a Floo Network open."

"Well that is one good piece of news," he said as they walked inside and made their way to the sitting room.

Hermione settled herself into one of the reading chairs, knowing Malfoy wasn't going to love the conversation they were about to have.

"So you arrested Goyle," Draco said, "How did you get him to confess?"

"Oh he practically did it himself," she told him, "The answers he was giving me felt rehearsed so I turned the narrative and started talking about how the Death Eaters were probably really powerful and exclusive so of course he wasn't involved."

Draco laughed, "Oh I bet he couldn't stand that. He knows everyone thinks he's pretty dumb —because he is— so that's probably his nightmare for people to think he's not included because he's not smart enough."

"Yes, it was honestly quite quick after that."

"So did he give you anything else that was helpful?"

Hermione sighed, "No, just tried throwing your name in again. I think he thought if he was going down, he had to at least bring you with him."

Draco sat back, "You know, we were friends. He's not the smartest of the bunch, but we were friends for 15 years," he shook his head, "And he just sold me out to my face."

"I'm sorry, Malfoy, it must be hard to see your friends change like that."

"It's just sad to see him siding with the Death Eaters. I'm not surprised. But it was hard to see how deep he's in."

"Well I've got some other news," Hermione looked at him warily, "Goyle was not quiet about you attending the interview. He ranted to the entire Auror department about it, in fact. So my boss had some words with me and he doesn't think you can be there anymore. BUT he said he has no problem with me keeping you informed on the case and discussing interviews with you afterwards."

Draco looked a mix between angry and tired, "Well it worked, didn't it," he said, "Goyle was caught off guard and confessed."

"I know," she gave him a look, "Obviously I think it was the right call having you along, but we can't play it like that in the future if I'm going to keep this case… and my job."

Draco sighed heavily, "Fine," he said, not wanting to be annoyed any more today.

"So you're okay staying behind?" She asked, expecting much more of a fight.

"Of course I'm not bloody okay with it," he bit, "But he's the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and I'm the main suspect in your case. Safe to say I don't have a choice so what's the point in arguing."

"That was pretty much how I saw it too," Hermione said, "Don't think I didn't stand up for you though, I told him your help has been invaluable."

"But he wants you to keep an open mind, I'm sure, in case I am guilty in the end."

"Which you're not," she narrowed her eyes, "We're on the same side here."

"I know," Draco huffed, "I'm still not used to it."

She almost laughed, "Well here I am, sitting in Malfoy Manor having a chat in your reading chairs so I would say you should get used to it. Times are changing."

"You're annoying sometimes, Granger."

"You're grumpy sometimes, Malfoy."

They sat looking at each other challengingly before Draco groaned, "Fine, I'll try to be more pleasant."

"Wonderful," she smiled again, "So have you talked to your father about a potential interview date?"

"He's still coming around to the idea," Draco said, "He'll do it, he's just not ready to pick a date yet."

Hermione nodded, "No need to push him, but I'm sure whatever he can tell us will be helpful."

"Can you tell me the Goyle story? I'd really love to hear how you caught him in his own ego."

Hermione grinned, "It was one of my best I think." She went on to tell him the story of how Goyle couldn't accept not being included in such an exclusive group and how she talked him into circles until he had nowhere to go.

Draco truly seemed in a good mood after her story. He was smiling broadly, "You're as smart as people give you credit for, aren't you?"

"I don't usually go around telling people how smart I am, that's more of a Slytherin quality," she winked at him.

He rolled his eyes, "We're a proud bunch, Granger."

Hermione didn't stay much longer that night, she still had some work to get done at home and took her leave on good terms.

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