1SORANI172 - Glad you like the daughter thing! I wasn't too sure how well it would go over...lol.

DRACO AND HERMIONE-PERFECT FIT - I'm glad you like my story. Or, er, did before the baby thing. But, if you continued reading, you would see that there is no baby now. Hope that you kept on reading, and are now seeing what I'm saying to you! If that made any sense...:-D. If you want to email me, I can tell you how to put a story up step by step unless you have AIM. In that case, my screen name is SoSueMe9008.

DRACO+HERMIONE SIMPLY PERFECT - A brand is metal twisted into the shape of something. Like, a farmer has his own style of brand so he can brand his cows. You put the metal shape in a fire and when it's hot enough, you shove it onto someone's skin to put your mark on them, so to speak.

So, somewhat long-winded responses, I know. So, I'm going to try to write a longish chapter (for me!) to make up for it! But you know how bad I am at writing chapters longer than five pages...

:-D

I'm going to clarify something!

-x- Change of day/POV

+-+ Flashback scene

Chapter 14: Trust?

Hermione was reeling from her encounter with her old professor. Sure, she had trusted him at first. But she was just bursting with so many questions.

'How could they just leave me here, on my own? Why didn't they talk to me before? If they had talked to me before, would I still have my baby? And if I still had my baby...would I now have Draco?'

Then she remembered something that lupin had given her. She pulled a coin out of the pocket of her jeans. It was much like the coins she had given Harry for the D.A. She reminisced for a moment, remembering the time that Ron had disarmed her and was so proud. How she had reminded him that she had gotten him much more than he had gotten her. She remembered how he had pouted. A tear slid down her cheek. Oh, how she missed her friends!

She flashed back on a particular time in the Gryffindor common room.

+-+

"Hermione, will you give it a rest already? Let's just go outside, it's lovely out there."

"Harry," Hermione had reprimanded "This assignment is due tomorrow!"

"Oh, 'Mione, lighten up a little bit!"

"Ron, I can't lighten up! It's almost time for O.W.L.s!" Hermione had screeched.

Both of the boys just rolled their eyes and grinned at each other. When Hermione wasn't paying attention, they each grabbed one of her elbows and picked her up off the ground. Between them, they were far too strong for Hermione to fight.

"You guys!" She squealed, though she couldn't fight the smile forming on her face.

They both just looked up at her and smiled. They carried her out on the grounds, and were walking toward the lake somewhat suspiciously.

"Wait, what are you doing?" It was warm out. Once again, the boys grinned at each other, and then they grinned at her Hermione. "No! No, don-"

The rest of her sentence was drowned out as she was thrown into the water.

"It's freezing!" She yelled as soon as she came up. The giant squid flicked a tentacle at her lazily, as though acknowledging her presence.

Both boys doubled up and laughed.

"Oh, you think it's funny, do you?" She said, masking her smile in menace. Suddenly, she pulled her soaking wand out of her robes.

"Wingardium Leviosa!" She screamed, pointing her wand at Ron first.

"'Mione, put me down!"

"Do you really want me to put you down?" She said.

"Yes!"

"Ok, then, you said it." She moved him out over the lake. With a flick of her wand, he landed next to her. He came up gasping.

Before Harry could react, she had gotten him, too.

They splashed each other, and both of the boys dunked Hermione at least once. Each time she tried to pull them under with her.

Eventually, they got out of the water. By the time they were down romping in the water, it was dark outside.

"Oh, no! Our homework!" Hermione gasped.

"Relax, 'Mione." Harry and Ron said in unison.

"Relax this." She said, tackling Ron to the ground. She knew that he was the ticklish one. She automatically waged war, and Harry dove in after them.

They lay there in a heap, the three of them clinging to each other and laughing. That was when Hermione felt it.

It was raining.

They looked up at the sky, the three of them. The Boy Who Lived, the gangly Gryffindor Keeper, and one of Hogwarts prettiest girls. The Golden Trio. They held onto each other tighter, still gazing at the raindrops. The sight of water set them off laughing again.

+-+

'Gods, I miss them.' Thought Hermione, silent tears running down her cheek. Suddenly, she remembered what she was doing before.

She looked down at the coin. Could she trust Lupin? How did she know it was actually him?

She hated this. She hated how, in the current times, someone she used to be able to trust automatically became a suspect of treachery.

But just in case it was him, she put her wand tip to the coin and muttered an incantation. The coin glowed green.

She then hurried to the library. Once inside, she heard a loud pop.

"Missed me already?" A grinning Remus Lupin asked.

"I have some questions for you." Hermione said, motioning for him to sit. "How is it that you got past the Death Eaters so easily? How are you so unscathed? And no offense, sir, but what wizard in their right mind would want a werewolf as a slave? I mean, once a month, you become...er...uncontrollable."

"Yes, all very good questions. Well, as you can see, I am quite capable of apparating. I am so unscathed because of this skill, what a Death Eater can't catch, as Death Eater can't torture. And the wizard who wants me as a slave, well...let's just say he's skilled in Potions and can brew me quite the monthly antidote."

"Monthly antidote..." Hermione whispered. She then gasped with realization. "Professor Snape!"

"Correct, as always, Hermione." Lupin said calmly. "And I do hope you find that you can trust me."

"I can't really trust anyone anymore, Lupin." Hermione said coolly.

"Then perhaps you'll trust me if I give you this."

It was a picture. Of Harry, Ron and herself. They were standing in Diagon Alley, in front of Fortescue's ice cream shop. They had ice creamdripping down their hands, but they didn't care. They were beaming, waving. Occasionally they would hug each other.

It was clear that they had just been reunited after a summer apart. Harry had the skinny look he usually had after being with the Dursley's. Ron was browner than usual, with Scabbers on his left shoulder. Hermione had not yet bought Crookshanks, but it was still clear that it was third year, after Ron got back from Egypt.

She gasped and ran her fingers over the picture. Tearing up once again, she looked up at Lupin. He was measuring her reaction.

"You see? How could I have this if, in fact, I wasn't anyone but me? I was the one who asked you to stop and take this, if you'll remember. True, you didn't yet know me. But you all looked so happy. I couldn't help myself." Hermione leaped at Lupin, grabbing him into a huge hug.

"Lupin! It is you!" A shocked Lupin smiled and hugged her back.

"Of course, Hermione." He said warmly.

"So, what can I do to help out the new order?" Hermione asked, eager.

"Well, here's the general plan."

-x-

Hermione walked back to her bedroom, properly beaming for the first time in awhile. She heard a knock at her door.

"Hermione? I didn't see you after the whole daughter fiasco yesterday." Draco asked, walking in.

"Oh, I was just reading in the library." She thought up quickly. Well, it wasn't all a lie. She had been in the library, after all.

She was just reading an old friend's face instead of a book. But Draco didn't need to know that. At least, not yet.

"So you're okay, then?" He asked, somewhat tentatively.

"No need to tread around the subject, Draco. Yes, we did get into a fight yesterday, and no, we didn't end it by snogging like we usually do. But I'm not upset anymore. Are you?"

"A Malfoy is NEVER upset, Hermione." Draco said haughtily.

Hermione just snorted. "Right. Just like a Malfoy can never fall in love with a Mudblood."

Draco scooped her into his arms.

"But you're my mMudblood."

"That's sweet in an asshole kind of way." Hermione cooed, getting back at him for still calling her a Mudblood after all this time. "Just shut up, will you?" she joked.

"What if I don't feel like-" He was silenced by her kiss.

Hermione burned with the kind of fire that only a passion could bring. But suddenly, Lupin's words rang in her head.

'A new Order.'

'I have to tell him.'

"Tell me what, love?" Draco moaned, breaking away from the kiss, putting his forehead on hers.

"Nothing, Draco," she lied, looking deeply into his silver eyes. How could she lie to him? "At least, nothing yet."

"Whatever you say." He said, capturing her lips into another searing kiss. He started to put his hands up her shirt and for once, Hermione allowed them to wander.

Everywhere he touched seemed to burn and be chilled at the same time. She couldn't stand this much longer.

"Draco," She said, gasping for breath "We can't continue this. I won't be able to ...control ... my...self."

Draco frowned slightly, but then respected her wishes.

She smiled at him.

"Thank you, Draco." And then, Draco Malfoy did a truly unexpected thing.

He smiled back.

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So what did you think? Reviews please!