Chapter Twenty-Four

The Mistake


"I miss him, Luna."

Her friend nodded, flipping her long blonde braid over her right shoulder.

"I know," she sighed, fixing her big blue eyes on the crystal chandelier hanging from the ceiling. "Draco is so funny. I miss his sarcasm too."

Theo sat down next to her, offering her a glass of wine.

"Why do you two have such long faces?"

Hermione grimaced and finished what was left in hers in one gulp.

The ballroom at Zabini Manor was gigantic. It was in the west wing and its three windows overlooked the garden, where there was a small vineyard with grapes brought expressly from Italy.

Mrs. Zabini had brought everything she could from her country when she moved to England, including the elves. And the food served at the manor looked as if it had been made in the best restaurant in Rome.

Hermione had complained at first but stopped when Blaise assured her that all the elves were free and had a salary. He, Draco, and Theo freed all of them after the Battle of Hogwarts.

The three of them had been slaves to a madman or had to go into hiding to escape him, and they didn't want any creature to feel that way because of them.

Hermione had also discovered that Theo was practically living with Blaise. He was too lonely at Nott Manor and only went there to be alone with Luna or when they had a pool party.

But, since Goyle had died, the celebrations had stopped.

Thanks to Blaise's idea they had started getting together every Friday at his manor, and being with all of them made her feel a little better. Draco's friends were just as worried as she was and they also wanted to know what was going on.

But no one had any answers. Even his parents didn't know where he was, and the Ministry couldn't find him.

Draco had simply disappeared. He had vanished into thin air without a trace and no one could find him.

Hermione held back a sob as she thought of the letter she had received the day before, addressed to Draco.

After more than two weeks without a sign of life, the Department of Mysteries had decided to terminate his contract.

Draco was fired, and that would destroy him when he returned to England.

If he returned at all.

Hermione still feared that the Liberators had him locked up or something worse. But Blaise always insisted that Draco was safe and not to worry about him, so much so that she was beginning to suspect he knew where he was. After all, they were both Unspeakables and could share all their secrets.

But, if she asked him directly, Blaise always replied that he just knew what she knew.

Arthur had asked her several times if she wanted his disappearance to be made public so that he could organise a search party, but Hermione had refused.

Draco had left voluntarily as he explained in the letter he left. And it was probably because he didn't want anyone to know what he was doing.

Would he end up in trouble when he got back to the country?

Hermione bit her thumbnail nervously until Luna stopped her.

"He'll be back soon, Hermione," she murmured, patting her hand gently.

She let out a long sigh and glanced sideways at her friend.

"I'm worried about him."

"We all are," Luna replied, nodding sadly.

Theo looked between the two of them without saying anything. He seemed to be sad, too.

Goyle's death was still so recent, and Draco had only added to the pain his friends were feeling by disappearing like that.

He had left just when they needed him the most. And she wanted him by her side too.

The Ministry was getting closer to catching the Liberators every day, and they knew it. The attacks had increased and most Ministry workers wouldn't go out on the streets without an escort.

Even walking down Diagon Alley had become impossible. Establishments run by purebloods usually had an Auror at the door who controlled access and checked the wands of all who wanted to enter.

But despite all these security measures, Hermione didn't feel safe.

Not as long as he wasn't with her.

Her face hardened.

"I'm going to kill him when he shows up."

Theo's laughter echoed through the large room. Pansy, who was sitting on Blaise's lap, turned and stared at them with a raised eyebrow.

"Really? You are worried but you want to kill him as well?" Theo asked in amusement, refilling her glass.

Hermione twisted her lips after taking a sip.

"Yes. Both."

Theo chuckled, shaking his head.

"I wouldn't want to be Draco when I see you again," he commented, wrapping his arm around Luna's shoulders.

Her friend nodded with sparkling eyes.

Hermione felt a painful pang when she realised that she was the only one who didn't have her partner by her side. It was the same every time she was with them or with Harry and Ron, but they were all trying hard not to make her feel lonely.

Ginny even visited her every few nights and stayed over at her house to keep her company. And Harry had already asked her three times to move in with them at Grimmauld Place until Draco returned.

But Hermione didn't want to move. She still missed him terribly and knew that her house would be the first place he would visit if he returned.

Every few days she tried to send him a letter. Dark always returned within the hour with the unopened parchment, as if she couldn't find her owner to deliver it.

Where the hell had Draco gone?

She pictured him appearing in the living room with his typical grin and all the worry disappeared.

All she could feel now was rage. For abandoning her. For not trusting her enough.

"He won't like it either," she said in a hard voice, clenching her fists.

Theo's smile faded as he saw her expression and Hermione watched him swallow nervously. Luna smiled as if she had mentioned the Nargles and stood up, extending a hand to her.

"Come on, Hermione. Cheer up and have a little dance with me."

Hermione furrowed her brow. There was music playing, true, but there were only five people there. No one was dancing and no one was planning to.

"Luna..."

She blinked.

"Why not?"

She sighed as she saw her friend's big smile and stood up, taking her hand. Luna led her to the centre of the room and released her, spinning on her axis as she moved her hands around her body.

It reminded her of Bill and Fleur's wedding when she saw her dancing with her father.

Hermione smiled and mimicked her, and Theo soon joined in. Three songs later the three of them were laughing out loud as they moved to the music, and even Pansy couldn't help but smile as she watched them.

Hermione sat down next to her to rest, smiling when she patted her knee.

She was indeed very lucky to be able to consider all of them her friends.


Draco-Blaise emerged through a cloud of green flames in the fireplace at Grimmauld Place. He shook out his jumper as he stepped out and looked at himself in the mirror by the entrance, using his wand to brush his best friend's small curls back.

He was beginning to understand why it took Hermione so long to fix her hair.

It wasn't long before he heard footsteps on the stairs and saw a familiar face.

"Potter."

After grabbing a jacket, Potter moved to his side and lifted his chin.

"Zabini."

Draco-Blaise nodded in greeting, clenching his fists behind his back. He was nervous and had barely slept, but that was something Potter didn't need to know.

Facing the Liberators again brought back memories of when they attacked Hermione, and the thought of that only made him tenser.

As if he could guess his thoughts, Hermione's best friend turned to face him and frowned at his expression.

"Ready?"

Draco-Blaise chewed on his lower lip and averted his gaze to the fireplace.

"I suppose so."

"You told me you're good at fighting."

"And that's true, Potter. But we don't know how many of them we will have to face."

"There'll be Aurors in the vicinity who'll attack a few minutes after we've gone in. We need to try and isolate one of the Liberators and trap him for interrogation."

"I'd rather catch them all," Draco-Blaise growled through his teeth.

"That would be the best option. If any of them escape they'll give us away, and we won't be able to infiltrate again."

They'd been to three meetings already, and so far no one suspected them. They were just two Muggleborns out for revenge, like everyone else.

The week before Diane had announced that they were going to meet one of the leaders. He would be attending the meeting that evening, and it was the perfect moment to ambush them.

It was going to be a very risky manoeuvre, though, and there was a lot that could go wrong.

Draco-Blaise clenched his jaw and pulled a small vial from his pocket, taking a swig of his potion.

As disgusting as ever.

"Got it."

Potter arched an eyebrow but didn't ask any questions about it. He drank the entire contents of one glass and set it down on a table, grimacing.

A minute later he was back to being the same Muggle he had named after his cousin.

"Wait for my signal before starting the fight."

The two of them walked through the flames together and appeared at the same pub in North Wales. Diane was waiting for them in the town square.

"Ready to meet one of the leaders of our movement?"

"We're looking forward to it," Harry replied with a twisted smile.

Draco-Blaise nodded in her direction and she turned and walked down the street in silence.

Arriving at the abandoned house, Diane opened the door and they both followed her, though Potter first averted his gaze to the small forest a few yards away.

"Reinforcements will be here in two minutes. Remember they can't see you, Zabini."

Draco-Blaise reached into his pocket at Potter's whisper, clutching his wand tightly.

He was going to need it that day.


Diane's eyes widened when the stun spell hit her in the back and Draco-Blaise wrinkled his nose as she fell at his feet.

He hadn't expected a girl like that to be so good at duelling. Even the leader hadn't managed to fight back as much as she had.

She reminded him a little of Hermione.

He took a step back and shot a hateful glare at the only person left standing.

"Fucking hell, Potter. You nearly stunned me."

"I was trying to protect you!" he protested, dropping the broken table to the side.

"And someone like you is an Auror?" Draco-Blaise folded his arms and snorted. "You're a public danger."

"I'm getting tired of your whining. You remind me too much of Malfoy."

Draco-Blaise narrowed his eyes and bit his tongue to keep from answering.

Of course, bloody Potter wouldn't leave him alone even when he was under the effects of the polyjuice potion.

Potter watched him for a few seconds with suspicious eyes and finally shrugged, lifting the locking spell that the Liberators placed on the door before every meeting.

The same one he had used with Hermione that first time at Hogwarts.

Draco-Blaise exhaled slowly, letting all the tension out of his body. He needed to be more careful or Potter would soon recognise him.

"It looks like the Aurors have already neutralised the watchers," Potter commented as he peered up the staircase. He stepped back inside and jerked his chin in his direction. "Hide."

Draco-Blaise nodded and tapped his head with his wand, feeling cold threads run down his body until they covered him completely.

Potter nodded as he saw that the disillusioning charm had taken effect and he disappeared at full speed with his wand still in his hand.

With a sigh, Draco-Blaise followed him.


"Good work, Harry."

"Thank you, sir," Potter muttered, scratching the back of his neck. "I want to handle the interrogations myself."

The Auror ran a hand through his beard, mulling the idea over.

"That's fine with me," he agreed, turning to address the rest of the Aurors. "Let's go back to the Ministry."

Between the three men and the three women, they grabbed the eight prisoners floating dazedly beside them and disappeared with a crack, apparating a second later inside the village pub.

One by one, they went through the fireplace until only Potter, who was carrying Diane, remained.

"Are you still following me?" he asked in a whisper, looking back.

Draco-Blaise tapped him on the shoulder, making him jump.

"Yes, Potter. Shut up and walk."


He followed them through the Ministry until they reached the lifts. Draco-Blaise waited for everyone to leave and got into the first one that came up empty, undoing the disillusioning spell.

Three more wizards got in, and the lift stopped again on the third floor. Draco-Blaise held his breath as he saw who was entering.

"Ah. Hello, Blaise."

"Granger."

He hadn't seen her since the day he and Potter first infiltrated the Liberators. Hermione wore a high ponytail and some of her curls fell messily to either side of her face.

Draco-Blaise took a small step towards her, inhaling very slowly.

Tropical fruits.

'Fuck. I miss her.'

"How are you?"

Hermione shrugged with a blank stare.

"Cheer up," Draco-Blaise said, nudging her gently with his shoulder. "I'm sure Draco will be back soon."

She looked up, her brow furrowing.

"You know something you're not telling me."

'She's too clever. Better not to deny it.'

Draco-Blaise pursed his lips, taking a better grip on the rope hanging from the ceiling and averting his gaze. Hermione snorted as she saw him ignore her and turned her face away again.

The two of them stepped out into the Atrium and Draco-Blaise's stomach cringed as he saw that her eyes were too bright.

He let out a long sigh and wrapped his arms around her, pressing her to his chest and burying his nose in her curls.

"Just a little longer, Granger," he whispered, closing his eyes and letting her fruity scent wash over him for a few seconds.

He couldn't wait to kiss her again.

Pulling away, Hermione gave him a small smile.

"You've never been this affectionate with me before, Blaise."

Draco-Blaise's blood froze when he realised that Hermione wasn't the only one who had noticed the difference.

Pansy was standing by one of the fireplaces in the Atrium. He could tell that she had just come out, but she was pinned to the floor at the sight of them.

She swept her gaze between the two of them and disappeared back into the flames before Draco-Blaise could move.


Blaise was quick to enter the room after he heard the roar of the flames.

"How did it go?"

"Eight prisoners," Draco commented, now back to his old self. "Potter will interrogate them tomorrow."

He cleaned his clothes with a wave of his wand and looked up. Blaise's eyebrows were raised.

"That's good news, isn't it?"

"Yes."

"And why are you so serious?"

Draco bit the inside of his cheek, fixing his gaze on the flames.

"Pansy saw me with Hermione."

The silence that followed his words was stony.

"I think she got a little jealous," he added quietly.

"Bloody hell, Draco!" Blaise hissed, shaking his head angrily. "You know I've had a hard time getting her to give me a chance!"

He was right. He'd been at it for weeks until he'd gotten Pansy to come to terms with her feelings and agree to date him.

His friend was very insecure, and the slightest suspicion that Blaise wasn't sincere could send everything to hell. And he didn't deserve it after everything he was doing to help him.

Draco sighed, moving towards Blaise and patting his back.

His friend's expression had darkened. He took a step back, pulling away and avoiding his gaze.

"If she's really angry... You can tell her the truth."

Blaise looked him in the eye at his words, very surprised.

"Are you sure?"

"Pansy knows how to keep a secret," Draco said, shrugging one of his shoulders and pulling the coin out of his pocket. "See you soon."

He saw out of the corner of his eye that Blaise was smiling again as he twirled it in his hand.

"Take care of yourself."

"You too," Draco replied before disappearing.