"Master Yamamoto, it is good to see you." Hermione bowed before her former master. "You made good time."

"I could do no less, Mistress Granger." He returned her bow. "I will never ignore a request from you."

He watched as she blinked rapidly and took note of her obvious exhaustion. The urge to protect her rose to the fore, but he knew she wasn't meant for the protected world in which he lived. He cupped her shoulder and pushed some of his magic into her body.

"Thank you, Master." She gave him a watery smile. "This case, I have the files and a treatment plan. I can't stay. I need to go home."

"You need to say goodbye." Asa stared into her eyes. "The man you love did not choose to abandon you."

"He never really existed." Hermione looked away from him. "He was a magical byproduct of dangerous spellwork."

"He lived. Do not diminish what you shared. Do not let this contaminate your memories."

"Ambert isn't in that room." Hermione looked toward the door. "How can I say goodbye?"

"The man you love is in there somewhere, or he never would have existed." He watched his former pupil and waited for her to hear the truth in his words. "Come with me and say goodbye."

Hermione nodded and grabbed his hand. He felt the tremors running through her body as he guided her into the room with the comatose body of Lucius Malfoy. Her grief was like a storm surrounding them.

"Talk to him." Asa took a deep breath. "Talk to the man you knew."

"I'm sorry, Mr. Malfoy. I do not know if you will retain any memory of our time together, but I never meant you any harm." Hermione let his hand go and stepped closer to the patient's bed.

"Talk to your man." Asa covertly examined the bond between his patient and his former student. It was a vital and vibrant thing. He felt his own sorrow that his hands and magic would aid in ending it.

"I don't know what to say." Her shoulder shook as her tears fell unheeded. "I love you, Ambert. I wanted our life together. I fought it for so long, and I wish I never had. I feel like I wasted so much of our time together. I have to go. I'm going back to France. It won't be the same without you, but my family is there. I will miss you everyday."

Asa grabbed her as she started to crumple. He waited with her as she built herself back up. He knew she couldn't afford to be weak here in this inhospitable country. There were too many that would tear her down for it.

Harry stood off to the side of the table and watched as Ron ate his food with unusual gusto. He knew there were other aurors watching them, but the illusion of privacy was important. Grabbing a chair, he sat down and forced a smile.

"I hope it's good." Harry glanced toward the food. "I know they don't put much effort into the food they provided for the detention cells."

"It's good." Ron wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "I'm not forgiving you for dragging me in though."

"You were using magic against someone in our care." Harry looked down at the table. "It's against the rules."

"Lucius Malfoy walking free should be against the bloody rules." Ron shoved back from the table. "Bloody death eater."

"He didn't know he was Lucius Malfoy. You were torturing an innocent man for all intents and purposes." Harry examined his own hands. He didn't like thinking about what Hermione might see in him now. "You falsely reported your examinations. Why did you do it, Ron?"

"He's not innocent. He found another way to go free. He always manages to escape any real punishment." Ron slapped his sauce covered hand on the table. "The Malfoys always fly free. Where is the justice in that?"

"So, it had nothing to do with Hermione?" Harry looked up and met Ron's gaze.

"Hermione wouldn't let me hurt him. She'd probably argue for his bloody redemption." Ron shook his head. "She would have turned me in, and you know that!"

"I do." Harry nodded. "I had to bring her here because of this."

"She had no idea what I was doing." Ron leaned forward. "She barely tolerates me as is. Tell her I'm sorry for dragging her into this."

"She's not very happy with me right now." Harry sighed. "I didn't handle this very well."

"She always forgives us." Ron plucked a crisp from his plate and examined it. "Give her time."

"I don't think time can fix any of this." Harry stood up and left the room. Ignoring Ron's bellows, he headed for his office.

"I will be handling your family's negotiations with your Ministry, but my niece wanted you to have these right away." Martel slid a packet of documents across the table. "She did not want to leave this country without ensuring your continued welfare. She would not leave you without any help."

"These are brewing permissions." Draco Malfoy stared at the documents in his hands. "This will allow my company to continue brewing the Martel and Snape potions despite the ban."

"Your godfather was her older brother though he never used the Martel name. Our family can not abandon you. She was quite firm about it." The older wizard smiled at him. "You or your company may brew the potions listed in those papers. You will be the only source for them on these shores. It should give us a bit of an edge in the negotiations for your father's release."

"Why would she do this?" Draco looked to the man for answers. "This family has given her nothing but pain."

"I can not say. She is very hurt, but she is a healer. Perhaps, it is an instinct." Adrien Martel shrugged. "She is returning to France this evening. Your father's treatment should see him returned to you quite soon, perhaps it is better to let the gift thestral alone."

Lucius Malfoy glowed as the healers worked on his core. The reunion of his tangential core with his main core had been a success, the removal of the bindings on his power had been accomplished, but the heliotrope tattooed on his shoulder wouldn't even begin to fade.

"It was meant to be permanent." The healer looked at Narcissa steadily. "Master Yamamoto does not believe it can be removed without doing an enormous amount of damage to your husband. We are working in unknowns here. The spells that were used here were developed to help those with shared cores."

"To stop the pain and the fading." Narcissa waved her hand gently. "I've talked with Mr. Weasley. He offered to help us. Apparently, Mistress Granger asked this of him."

"The current thinking is that it would be best for him to awaken here. The Ministry is insisting that he is still their prisoner." The healer looked up at the blonde witch and chewed on her lower lip.

"I am aware of my husband's current status." Narcissa looked past the witch to her husband's glowing form. "We have three days."

Hermione stood in the empty room and dragged air into her lungs. She ignored the burning tears dripping from her face onto her robes. They'd taken everything. It was an empty space, but she didn't want to leave it. She didn't want to forget loving him. With the flick of her hand, wards rose around her as she collapsed onto the floor.