A/N: Here we GO! Oh My God! Next week is the last week of this story and then it's complete. AH! I love you all, seriously. I love Aurora, probably because she's a combination of 3 of my favorite four-year-old kids of all time and I feel like I get to keep a piece of them forever at this time in their lives because of this story.

Now, as promised, Mama Bear Hermione…

Chapter 28, Back to Paris

Draco and Hermione popped into existence after using an unauthorized portkey that Hermione had created, landing them inside Draco's Paris penthouse. The sitting room was quiet, as no house elves were currently working since this hadn't been a pre-planned trip.

"I'm going to send my Patronus to the French DMLE, I've already reported the possible entrance to the black-market here, but they never followed up with me on if they investigated it or not. That would have all gone straight to Hestia or Harry, so I wouldn't even know if they'll be able to follow us in or not." Hermione said as she summoned her silver otter and gave it a quick message to take to the tip line that she'd sent her original intel to.

"Do you know how to get where we're going?" Draco asked as Hermione pulled out her flask with the rest of Polyjuice Potion that Narcissa had gifted them.

"Yes, when we were shopping, I'd spotted it, remember. I assumed what it was because it was so similar, but that tosser just confirmed. Best to get going, before it gets much later. I'm not sure how long it'll take anyone to show up here and frankly, I'm going to have to ask forgiveness for that portkey I made and for the both of us crossing international boarders without permission."

"Well, I'm sure if we pay off the right people all will be forgiven. Shall we?" Draco said holding out his arm so that he could escort Hermione to Boulevard Haussmann. After each taking a hearty swig from their flasks, and transforming back into Draco's cousins, he Apparated them to the nearest Apparition point to the Apothecary that sat in front of the alley were the Runes were.

While there were a few quick looks as they passed, no one actually approached the duo. It was clear the brother and sister they were impersonating were well known, though it seemed that the Rosier family had a similar reputation in France that the Black and Malfoy names carried in England.

It wasn't long before they were standing before the alley, where Draco and Hermione surveyed their surroundings to make sure that no was observing them. There was one older woman who had stopped to watch them, but a quick glare from Draco sent her scurrying away from them in fear. Aside from that, there were a few people passing them in the street, but not wanting to give them a second look.

Hermione turned her attention to the Runes that she couldn't see very well while Draco kept a lookout. Closing her eyes to concentrate on the magic flowing through the wall, Hermione began trying the same pattern that were used in the London entrance. When nothing happened Hermione huffed and reached into her beaded handbag pulling out a book of Runes and started flipping through it desperately looking for anything that might tell her how to get through the blasted wall.

Hermione huffed in frustration and ended up tapping the book with her wand, where the pages flipped to a page that included a small edit to the Runes that she had been trying and she was quick to draw it into the brick with her wand. A white light shined from the brick, and Hermione grabbed Draco's hand and dragged him through with her where they were dumped into a crowded narrow street that was full of vendors and different shops that looked very similar to Knockturn Alley.

"Fuck, I don't even know where to start looking here." Hermione whispered into Draco's ear as they began walking forward. "There's nothing that just screams 'we're selling stolen children'. What would that even look like." Hermione began to feel frantic looking around trying to spot any clue that could possibly point her in the right direction.

"Someone has to know something, but how long do we even have to start questioning everyone on this damn street." Hermione hissed as her temper began to rise and she stalked off towards the nearest shop to walk in and start demanding answers.

"Hemione, wait." Draco said grabbing her arm and pulling her back from the door that she'd been reaching towards. "You can't go in there, that shop's entranced is cursed to not let muggle-borns enter. You can't just march around here demanding answers, we have to be strategic about how we go about finding Aurora or we aren't going to find her."

"Are you fucking kidding me, Draco. We don't have time to come up with some strategy. They could sell her off and then we'll never find her again, I don't give a damn if that fucking doorway curses me or not, I'm going to start asking questions and you can either join me or you can wait here. The choice is yours, but I'm not going to fail her again." Hermione said again pulling away from Draco and stalking towards a vender that looked be selling pickled Romain Longhorn horns (highly illegal, as that particular dragon is endangered).

"Damnit, Hermione. Listen to me for just a second. I have an idea, remember how my mother talked about a Veela mate being able to sense where their Veela are." Draco said pulling Hermione to the side of the street and casting a wandless and non-verbal Muffliato Charm around them.

Nodding her head in encouragement, Hermione wasn't exactly sure where Draco was going with this. Aurora was too young to have identified her mate, much less actually make a connection with them so that they could help point them in the right direction to where she was.

"Well, she said that she can use her magic to feel a pull towards us, so why couldn't we possibly reverse that pull and find her that way?" Draco concluded, making Hermione pause for a moment.

"Well, we can give it a shot, but if it takes too long, I'm going to start blast apart this street until I find her." Hermione conceded to Draco. "I think you might have a better shot with it though, because you also carry the Veela gene and it's reason to believe that you would be the one to most likely have that connection to her." Hermione concluded, reaching into her bag searching for a book on Veela that Healer Ella had given her to look over during their visit with her.

Finding the chapter on Veela and family connections, Hermione quickly skimmed the information, not seeing anything that specifically spoke on a magical connection. Draco had a book that had come from the Malfoy library that he was reading through looking for the information on magical connections that Narcissa had talked about with them during their lunch with her.

Changing gears, Hermione flipped to the information about Veela and their mates. This was a bit vaguer, since the bond between a Veela and their mate tended to be very private. Meaning, only information about the connection between a Veela and their mate would be kept verbally between the pair or written in journals that were charmed so only they could read the information, and keep prying eyes at bay.

Hermione was ready to throw the book she was reading into the bin when Draco made a sound, pulling her from her thoughts. Looking up at him, Hermione watched as Draco sat on the ground and closed his eyes. Without wanting to interrupt his concentration, Hermione stood still as possible watching as Draco quietly hummed to himself.

Without a word, he stood up from the ground and began running down the street, grabbing her hand and pulling her along behind him. Hermione didn't ask any questions, just put all her trust in Draco that he wouldn't lead her the wrong way or distract her from where they needed to going.

She knew that Draco cared for Aurora. She knew that everything they were going through, they were going through together. Letting go of control and allowing Draco to lead the way, Hermione followed him around each twist and turn that they came to, occasionally even running straight through a building and coming out a different entrance or passing through a gate. It was an obscure path, that without Draco, Hermione would have never been able to find on her own.

Finally, they stopped in front of a rundown and decrepit building that was boarded up and looked as if it hadn't been touched by human hands or used in years. The rotting wood on the roof had the shingles falling to the ground, and the smell was so bad that Hermione had to cast a Bubble-Head Charm on herself and Draco to keep from throwing up on the ground.

"She's in the basement." Draco said raising his wand and stepping forward, taking care to make sure that he didn't fall through the walk way.

Not waiting even another moment, Hermione pushed past Draco and cast a Bombarda on the door, with a blast so large that it blew off not only the door, but also the top half of the building.

"GRANGER, STOP!" Draco called, but Hermione ignored him as she stepped forwards and jumped through the hole in the floor that she'd created. Casting a quick Cushioning Charm to catch her fall. Hermione was on her feet and moving forward at a run without waiting on Draco. Her baby was here, and there wasn't anything that was going to slow her down.

"AURORA!" Hermione yelled out when she heard a sound coming from her left. Hermione held her wand up and stormed forward. A metal door appeared in front of her shimmering with the wards that were meant to keep her out.

With precision and ease, Hermione began dismantling the wards. Whoever was behind there clearly didn't realize that after her time on the run with Harry and Ron during the war, she'd become proficient with not only setting wards, but also ripping them apart. Draco easily caught up to her during her delay and began assisting her without a word as she continued her assault.

Longer than she would have wanted, but eventually a blast of air pushed her back as the wards fell. Jumping to her feet, Hermione stormed into the room and there in the center of the room was an unconscious and dirty Aurora curled up on filthy scraps of fabric.

Rushing forward without looking around for anyone else, Hermione dropped to her knees and dragged her daughter into her arms. Her long hair smelled so awful that it penetrated the charm around her head, and was also in knots, but she was breathing and she was alive. Casting a quick diagnostic over the small girl, Hermione was able to conclude that physically Aurora was in almost perfect health, just a bit dehydrated and in desperate need of something to eat.

"Tiberius?" Hermione heard Draco say as she jumped to her feet holding her wand outright and clutching Aurora's small body to her chest

"Who are the two of you?" The older man asked stepping forwards waving his wand between the two adults "and how did you find me? Are you the buyers?" Hermione could hear Draco's growl deep in his throat as she scowled at the man.

Hermione turned her body so that she was shielding Aurora with her own, but still attempted to step forward to engage the wizard in front of her, only to be stopped by Draco holding his hand out.

"Yes, we're curious why the child is in such a filthy condition, and why she's non-responsive." Draco said the lie smoothly, trying to engage Tiberius in a conversation.

"Her hypnotic ability is a lot stronger than I had first anticipated. The wizard who caught her was convinced to release her when I walked in and found him untying her. I've had to keep her stunned since to ensure that she didn't get away. Now about the price for the girl, 750 million Galleons, as we discussed." He said nervously looking around.

"If you don't mind me asking, that's a hefty price, and you have a prominent position with the British Ministry. Why risk any of that for kidnapping the kid?" Draco asked, digging for more information, "how do we even know for sure that she is who you claim she is." He said, finishing his questioning.

Tiberius reached into his cloak and threw a large stack of parchment on the ground towards Draco, motioning towards it with his head. "My reasons are mine and mine alone for what I'm to do with the money. For proof, here is a copy of a legal document that was obtained from the Malfoy's solicitor when the father was claiming her as his. There's a redacted part that we were able to confirm from a contact at St. Mungo's to obtain her medical records, those are also in that stack. She's a Veela, and a powerful one at that. Now, I'll take my money so our business can be completed and we can be on our way."

"We?" Hermione asked, speaking for the first time as she looked past Tiberius and saw two rather large wizards stepping out of the shadows to flank the elderly wizard. With their wands drawn and directed at Hermione and Draco, Hermione knew that the situation just became a lot more complex. Before he could speak again, however, Hermione felt her skin beginning to bubble and her appearance changing right before their eyes as the Polyjuice Potion's effects began to wear off.

Waving her hand, she conjured the carrier that she wore Aurora in and shifted her daughter to her back so that her body was totally blocking the child from the men in front of her. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Draco's lean form returning and his platinum hair returning from the black locks that they had been, signaling that his potion had worn off as well. At the sight of the two in front of him, Tiberius's eyes widened, finally recognizing just who he'd really been speaking to.

"STOP THEM!" The older man shouted as he backed away and started running down the hall. Before either Hermione or Draco could pursue him, hexes started flying from their two burly opponents.

Casting a quick Protego over Aurora, Hermione began to duel with the man on the far right, while Draco took on the other. Keeping her body between the man she was dueling and Aurora was no easy task, as she dipped and dived out of the way of each hex, jinx, and curse the man in front of her sent her way. Sweat was pooling at her brow as the exertion of magic that she was putting out, but Hermione knew she was going to have to end this sooner rather than later as the building around them began to quiver with each spell that was cast.

A slicing hex was sent and caught her thigh, causing Hermione to cry out in pain as she slightly buckled. Hermione jumped up and out of the way just as she sent a non-verbal Petrificus Totalus so powerful that it froze not just her opponent, but Draco's as well.

"We've got to move; this whole bloody building is about to come down!" Draco called out to Hermione as another shake rattle the ground and more debris fell from the ceiling onto where they were standing.

"I can't Apparate!" Hermione yelled at Draco as she tried to spin on the spot. "What about these two? We can't leave them, they'll be crushed."

"Bleeding heart, fucking Gryffindors!" Draco complained rubbing his hand over his face before looking up and casting a Shield Charm over the five of them as a large rotting joist fell from above them, almost crushing them all. "Make a fucking portkey! Now, Granger! I don't know how long I can hold this!" Draco yelled holding his wand upwards.

Hermione looked around and quickly snatched up a rusty bucket that had rolled over near her foot during her duel. Moving as quickly as she could, Hermione began waving her wand and yelling 'Portus' emanating a flash of blue light, making the bucket glow blue before changing back to it's rusting color.

"Draco, you have to crouch down to touch it!" Hermione yelled as concreate rained down on the shield that was starting to crack above them. When he didn't move, Hermione's heart began to race as she positioned both goons so their legs were touching the bucket, and she held her hand and Aurora's foot against the handle. As the bucket began to glow blue, a large wooden beam dropped on the shield again causing another fracture. "NOW, DRACO!" She hollered at the man.

Draco dropped to the ground and held his hand out just as the bucket shined a bright blue and the dome dropped just before the ceiling fell in on them.

A hook behind her navel and the group was pulled through time and space, dropping them in Hestia's office. Hermione fell to her knees panting and surveyed the room she'd just landed in. Hestia, Kingsley, and Harry were all sitting in chairs looking at the group with open mouths.

"Department Head, Minister, Head Auror Potter." Draco addressed each person between heavy breaths. "We've recovered our daughter, as you can see. These men were involved with Chief Warlock, Tiberius Ogden – McLaggen, in the plot to kidnap and sell my daughter for 750 Million Galleons. At some point he obtained these documents to prove that she is a Malfoy and a Veela. I can provide the memories for review later, but for now, if you'll excuse us, Hermione and I are going to Floo over to St. Mungo's to have Aurora looked over by Healer Ella."

Draco stood and held out his hand to Hermione, who happily accepted it. The still speechless trio looked at each other and then back at Hermione who only nodded her head at them. "I may have made a few, um, sort of illegal international portkeys. You might be hearing from the French Ministry about that and a collapsed building. So, sorry about that."

Without waiting for anyone to say anything else, Hermione and Draco stepped into the fireplace and were swept away in a flash of green, together as a once again, united family.

A/N: They got their baby back!

Next chapter is the last main chapter. We'll find out why Tiberius kidnapped Aurora, how she's doing after the entire affair of being kidnapped, and how everyone is adjusting and moving forward.

Epilogue has a few options and you know what, I'll take some input before I totally settle on what we're going with, how's that sound?

Option 1: Aurora's 5th birthday party

Option 2: Aurora going off to Hogwarts

Option 3: Birth of Aurora's sibling

Tell me what option you love the most, because I honestly can't decide. I love them all!

See you Tuesday with the last main chapter!