Stuck in Love

Summary: Draco spends some good quality time with Ginny, while the boys spend some bad quality time with Crabbe and Goyle.

Disclaimer: These characters I do not own. These characters I do not own. These characters I do not own. These characters I do not own. These characters I do not own.

Chapter Seventeen:

Draco watched poor, blind, future-Neville sleep in the rocking chair across the room. Poor guy wore himself out, trying to take care of little Hermione. His eyes fell on the little crib in the middle of the room. That poor baby didn't know that the person she was named after is gone. She didn't know that her daddy is blind, or that her mommy is the only living member of her family. She is completely innocent. For now.

"I thought I heard Neville talking to someone." A feminine voice said from the doorway. "I just assumed he was talking to the baby." Ginny walked slowly toward the crib.

Draco was by her side before she could blink. "You shouldn't be walking around."

"I've been in bed for the past 3 months. I'm sick of it."

"3 months?"

"Doctor put me on bed rest. Can you imagine being in a bed for 3 months and only getting up to use the bathroom and take a shower? It's horrible." Ginny shuddered slightly and reached into the crib to pick up her daughter. "It was worth it though." She whispered softly, kissing little Hermione's forehead gently.

"She's beautiful. Like I was telling Neville before, he's going to have one hell of a time beating the boys off of her."

Ginny giggled and shook her head, casting a gaze toward her sleeping husband. "And he will too. Every last one of them." She replied quietly, smiling at Draco. "Thanks for helping him out."

"Least I can do. I'd rather be here than back at Malfoy Manor." Draco went on to explain his situation to Ginny; from getting the potion to waking up next to Pansy to looking for Harry and Ron and then to finally finding her and Neville.

"It's been crazy." He finished, looking at the baby Ginny was still holding.

"I can imagine." Ginny was silent for a moment. "She really, truly loved you. I could see it in her eyes."

Draco snapped his attention to Ginny. "What?"

"Hermione. She loved you."

Draco nodded slowly. "I have to get back to her."

"And how do you plan on doing that? Your father took her somewhere and now no one can find her. She's probably dead."

Draco shook his head. "She's not dead. Father would want an audience for that. Everyone was too busy with the fight against Voldemort."

"So, you think she's alive?" Ginny questioned, shooting him a weird look.

"I know she is. I can feel it."

Ginny put little Hermione back into her crib and walked over to Neville, kissing him on the forehead. "Come on then." She said to Draco, leaving the room.

Draco frowned a bit before following the red head. "Where are we going?"

Ginny started to head back upstairs. "I've got an idea."

0000

Back in the present, Harry, Ron and Neville walked into the Great Hall, their eyes heading straight for the Slytherin table.

"All right. You two wait in the hallway. I'll be out with Larry and Curly over there."

"Their names are Crabbe and Goyle, Harry." Neville replied, shooting a confused look toward Ron.

Harry rolled his eyes. "Never mind. Just go." He muttered before walking toward the table. He kept a hand on his wand as he glared at Crabbe and Goyle.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't Harry Potter." Pansy said, smirking a bit.

"I'm glad you aren't blind, Pansy." He pointed at Draco's ex-goons. "You two, hallway. Now."

Without hesitation, Crabbe and Goyle stood up and walked toward Harry. The Boy Who Lived didn't even flinch when Goyle shoved him.

"Who are you to tell me what to do?" He sneered, cracking his knuckles.

Harry sighed. He didn't want to get violent but...He grabbed Goyle by the collar and slammed him up against the nearest wall. A task he found rather difficult, but since it caught Goyle off guard it was much easier than if he expected it to be.

"Look, I need to see Draco, right now. So if you don't take me to him, I'm going to turn you into an amazing bouncing ferret." He bashed Goyle's thick head against the wall. "Do we understand each other?"

Through the corner of his eye, Harry could see Crabbe make a quick movement. He whipped out his wand, cried out, "Petrificus Totalus!" and all the while keeping his forearm against Goyle's throat.

Goyle's eyes widened a bit and he nodded. "I understand." He muttered.

"Good." Harry let go of his throat and pointed his wand at the gorilla-looking boy. "Let's go then."

Ron and Neville were standing outside of the Great Hall.

"What if they killed Harry?" Neville asked.

"If Voldemort couldn't kill Harry, what makes you think Crabbe and Goyle can?" Ron responded, rolling his eyes at Neville's stupidity.

"Oh. Right."

Goyle walked out of the Great Hall with Harry and his wand right behind him.

"Okay guys, let's go." Harry said, peeking his head around Goyle's large body.

"How did you...No wait, I don't want to know." Ron said, shaking his head and walking toward the Slytherin house.

0000

"So you're going to cast a locator spell? Can you do that?" Draco asked Ginny, raising an eyebrow and watching the Weasley as she pulled out a map and her wand.

"I'm going to try. I wanted to, after the war. But I was afraid that if I used magic, that someone would find me and..." Ginny's eyes met with Draco's and he was pained to see the fear in them.

"No one's going to hurt you Ginny. I'll make sure of that." He reassured, putting a hand on her shoulder.

Ginny nodded. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." Draco looked down at the map. "Are you sure that this will work? Father was careful to keep his prisons hidden."

"Since your father is dead, I figured the spells should have worn out by now." Ginny took a deep breath and held her wand over the map. "Ready?"

Draco nodded. "Sure you don't want me to do this?"

"My idea. My wand. My map. My doing." Ginny took another deep breath and touched her wand to the map. "Reperio Locus Hermione!"

Nothing happened immediately. Ginny just kept staring at the map, praying that something would pop up. Just when she was about to give up, a small and very faint dot appeared to pulsate.

"Oh my god...it worked..."

"Why is it...pulsating?"

Ginny looked up at Draco. "Means she's alive."

Draco looked closer at the map. "Ginny...I know where she is."

Ginny looked back down at the map. "I don't recognize the place."

"It's Malfoy Manor..."

I don't expect you guys to answer the questions that I might ask at the end of the chapters. They are for my amusement.