"So you love me then?"

Ch4

AN/ Welcome back my lovelies, and welcome to newcomers. I thought we were done before, and maybe i'll consider forging forward with this if the reception is good enough. Forgive my prolonged absence, i have a few other works going on right now. This piece helped get me out of some writers block. I do hope you enjoy!


This was going to go over quite poorly. Draco was certain of that. His plan was bad, but he was fresh out of any good ones.

He sat across from Ron Weasley and Harry Potter at their shabby little table. They were inside the expanded tent, still in the forest of Dean and still very much on the run. The tension had ebbed only somewhat between them in the passed weeks. But not by much.

Draco now was at least afforded a small measure of their trust. He was asked to take a turn on watch duty at night, and even to guard the necklace. Potter spoke to him now, although not much. Though he was still given a side eye every now and then, just as Potter said 'time' was needed to ease the animosity between the lot of them. Time however was not exactly in their favor. They were running out of time.

Draco had waited for this opportunity purposely. Hermione was on watch tonight, and the boys all found themselves restless. It was Draco with Harry on occasion. More often Draco and Ron who couldn't sleep though. They all had their own penchants of how they dealt with being in the middle of this war. Some nights they would wander around the tent, reading, reciting spells, chatting idly, but tonight was one in which all three of them found themselves entirely ravenous.

Draco had taken the liberty of preparing equal servings of ramen noodles, and chocolate pudding for the 3 of them. Ramen because it was Harry's favorite. Pudding for Ron, he was as partial to it as anything else. All Draco ever saw him do was eat.

Draco against all hope, prayed that this small act of service might in some way overwhelm the first instincts they may have. Draco had news for them. News Hermione had forbid him from sharing.

Potter's reaction Draco was dreading more. He knew first hand Potter's first instincts tended to be punch first and ask questions later.

Best just to rip it off, like a band aid Draco decided

"Weather's been nice." Then Draco chickened out entirely when he saw Potter adjust in his seat, the tip of his wand poking out of his pocket threateningly.

"Perfect for quidditch." Ron hummed happily and slopped more pudding into his bowl.

"Hm." Was all he got from Potter.

Allright quidditch. Surely Draco could do small talk on quidditch. And segway it into the actual topic he needed to discuss with them.

"Do you miss it?" Draco looked between the men. They weren't children after all. The three of them towered above Hermione's small frame even before puberty, but now it was comical how much smaller she was. "Quidditch i mean."

"Everyday." Potter responded taking in a mouthful of noodles. His shoulders seemed to relax to a small degree. He gave a look that almost seemed happy, and these days that was rare to see on his face. Draco made note next time he saw Ginny Weasley to impress upon her the importance of the sport in Potter's eyes. She could do with that information what she wanted.

"Oh yeah. When this is all over, i swear i'm buying season tickets for the Chuddley cannons even if i have to work at the twins joke shop for the rest of my life."

Ron had given him another perfect segway. The future.

"Yeah. I think we all have alot we have planned after the war is over. Hermione mentioned she wanted to finish her last year at school. Ron's looking into a career as his brother's stooge-"

"Hey!" Pudding dribbled out of the red heads mouth, his face indignant.

"How about you boy who lived? What comes after the dark lord's demise?"

Draco met his blazing green eyes. An unspoken rule had arisen in the camp while they had been together. War talk, as in the killing of death eaters and Voldemort was not spoken of. It was taboo. Potter dropped his spoon like he's been burned, it clattered against the table noisily.

Ron wiped his mouth with the sleeve of his shirt, and attempted to put a calming hand on Potter's shoulder but he's slung off.

Draco has unfortunately soured his mood, prematurely but it doesn't matter, he's resolved to have this conversation one way or the other. And he's so close to steering the talk exactly where he wants it to go.

"You want to know what dreams i have for the future, for after i become a murderer?" Potter accosted Draco his voice deceptively calm. Draco's known him long enough, to know that Potter can go from 0 to 100 in an instant. His tone of voice meant next to nothing.

"Yes."

Potter leaned forward, glaring at Draco. He breathed out heavily in a single go, and went very still. His eyes snapped shut, like he was in pain.

Ron and Draco exchanged a look. Ron had become somewhat of a buffer between Potter, and Draco. Neither of them are sure what to make of Potter in that moment. He's the least emotional of any of them.

"I want- Draco and Ron both jumped slightly when Potter spoke again, his voice was thick and sounded like it's been dragged over rocks. "a family."

Yes. There it was. What Draco had been hoping for. It wasn't hard to guess that the most famous orphan who ever lived might dream of having a family of his own some day. Draco felt a twinge of guilt for having exploited this for his own ends.

"A family. I think that's a very admirable desire Potter." Potter gave a half shrug. Draco gulped, and took one last bite of his food savoring it. These noodles might be the last solid thing Draco would eat that day. "I have a similar dream myself. I want a family all my own."

"Most people do." Potter tells him all emotion suddenly devoid in him once more. Potter has developed a skill of masking his emotions, and it makes it harder to read him. Harder to know when to tread lightly. Potter's only hit him the once, but Draco has a sinking suspicion that tally is about to rise by 1 more.

"On that note. Look i know i've brought it up before, but I'm bringing it up again. Hermione shouldn't be in this. She shouldn't have any part in the war like this. We should send her to a safe house, the sooner the better."

"You know we can't."

"Hermione's to important. She's invaluable here Draco. None of us would still be breathing if it weren't for her." Ron was quick to defend the asset that Hermione was to the order of the phoenix.

"I'm not saying leave her out of everything. Just the physical aspect of this. From the safety of one of the safe houses Hermione could still be an asset she could assist with potions or research, healing, whatever. There could come a time when she has to kill people soon. People we grew up with. You want her to live with that?"

Ron had stopped eating. The conversation had stilled his appetite.

"We'll all have blood on our hands after this is over." Potter was quick to remind them the greatest task of all has been left to him. Voldemort's death. Draco is perturbed to find appealing to Harry Potter's moral code isn't as effective as it once was.

"Mcgongall already told you at the last order meeting. We can't just make exceptions because we care about someone. There would be no one left to carry on the fight by that logic. We all have to pull our weight and bear our own burdens in the war."

It hadn't been Draco's finest moment begging at the head of Gryffindor house's skirts to spirit Hermione off somewhere far away from all of this. Things had changed. Circumstances were different now than they had been, then. But there was a specific reason Draco was going to Ron and Potter on this particular matter. He needed their help.

"Well thanks for the food i guess-" Potter rose suddenly to leave.

"Wait!" Draco grabbed his arm.

Potter shirked away from his touch, but continued to stand.

"Look. It's like Ron said. It doesn't matter how you feel about someone. It's great you think of Hermione like your family, really great for the both of you, but we need her. I need her to end this war, she's smart. Smarter than any of us. I'm sorry but i can't risk not having her accessible because of your feelings for her, Malfoy. Hermione could make or break this war."

"This war might be what breaks her." Draco set his face in that way his father always did in the face of confrontation. Imperious. "I can't allow that."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Ron asked.

"Potter. You just told me your greatest desire was to someday have a family of your own when this is all over, right?"

"Right." Potter is as confused as Ron if the look on his face is any indication.

"I know you don't care about blood ending up on her hands, but could you take the chance of a family away from her? Could you look Hermione in the eye after that?"

Potter's nostrils flared, and his eyes blazed once again with fury. That's all Draco needed to see to know Potter is now entirely on the same page as him.

"No. Tell me you aren't that thick. There are spells to prevent that." His voice was deadly serious.

"What's going on what do you mean take away her chance of a family?" Poor Ron Weasley, for growing up a pureblood he had ample time to study and should be leagues ahead of his peers in the intelligence department, but he's not.

Draco had to spell it out for him.

"I got Hermione pregnant."

Draco tensed, and closed his eyes. Waiting for the blow from Potter to come. When it doesn't he cautiously opened his eyes again. Potter was fuming. Steam was practically coming out of his ears, but he seemed in complete control of himself.

"Hermione is-" Ron's voice was so quiet, and small, and so shocked.

It makes it all the more surprising when he lunged across the the tiny kitchen table at Draco. The remains of pudding, and Ramen noodles flying everywhere.

"You slimy git-" A hand wrapped around Draco's throat minimizing his air flow. The chairs have all toppled over in various stages of disarray around them. Draco felt the prongs of a fork sticking into his back, the sting makes his eyes water. "You stinking son of a-" Ron had Draco pinned to the forest floor of their tent, straddling him with his arms pinned. He can't see Potter from behind Ron. "We needed her, and now you've gone and ruined her!" The first punch doesn't draw blood, but it knocked Draco's face into an angle where he could see Potter again.

Harry Potter made no move to stop Ron. He could if he wanted, Draco saw his wand still in his pocket. He's decided to let his best friend have a go, to let him bloody up Draco for the both of them.

The next punch did draw blood, and Draco's stomach rolled when he tastes the metallic twang of blood in his mouth. Draco didn't defend himself just as he hadn't that time with Potter in the library. In the very least Hermione can't blame Draco for the situation if he never actually hurt anyone.

"I need-" His voice is hardly discernible. Draco pried at the fingers still tight on his jugular, moving them just enough to speak clearer. "your help." Another punch.

"Fuck! That hurt you bastard!"

"It's supposed to, prick!"

Then they are pushing, and grappling against one another on the ground like animals.

"Ron, hold on." Ron's hand stopped midair before it makes contact with Draco's face once more. "Let him talk."

Ron still has him pinned, and moved his hand from his throat to pull the front of his shirt into his fist instead. Forcing Draco into place.

"Speak!"

"I need your help. Please."

"Screw you. I'm to going to help you."

"Hermione, i need your help with Hermione. She won't listen to me. She forbid me to tell the both of you. She didn't want this on your minds."

"Then why didn't you go to Mcgonagall with this? Why tell us?" Potter asked.

"I have a pretty good idea how Mcgongall would seek to rectify the situation. I'm not in favor of Hermione getting rid of my heir."

Potter winced slightly. The thought bothered him to.

"She trusts the 2 of you more than anyone, probably more than me. So i trust you. I trust that you'll help me do what's right. What's necessary to keep her out of danger. She can't dodge spells, and grow a child. She'll be a liability to all of us."

"Dammit. Dammit." Potter kicked one of the glass bowls on the ground and it shatters. "You absolute idiot. The wards at Malfoy manor. You might have just gotten your parents killed."

"I'll also need help breaking back into my home, to change the wards. As soon as possible."

"I'm not risking any of our lives for your parents, Malfoy." Ron scoffed.

"No, we have to Ron."

Ron looked momentarily betrayed until Potter elaborated.

"If the wrong person notices the wards have changed. That some unknown child has sprung up on the Malfoy family tree, it could give away the element of surprise Draco has. It's not just about his parents staying alive. If Voldemort finds out there's another heir how long do you think it'll take him to start digging more into Draco's past? He could find out about Hermione. He could deduce fairly easily that Draco is on our side now."

Ron let go of Draco, and shoved to stand. He walked toward Potter.

"Okay. Okay. Even if- and that's a big if, we manage to break into Malfoy manor, and mess with the wards or whatever who's to say Hermione's just going to be on board with stepping away from the war?"

No one answered him. Draco was busy collecting himself from the ground. His face was swollen, and it hurt his left eye when he blinked. Potter was picking lint off his shirt that doesn't exist. It made them all uneasy to be talking about these things behind Hermione's back. Essentially plotting against her.

Ron tried another tactic.

"Raise your wand if you think Hermione Jean Granger will leave us and head to a safe house willingly."

"With your help," Draco told Ron. "it doesn't matter if she goes willingly. So long as she goes."

Draco stood, straightening his shirt, and dusting his borrowed jeans of dirt.

"You'd send her away against her will, kicking and screaming?"

"I'll do what i must to ensure no harm comes to Hermione."

A flash of realization lights up Potter's face.

"You got her pregnant on purpose."

Draco doesn't bother to deny the accusation. They all know it's true.