Chapter 22 - A Warning and a Decision

The Dark Lord, his anger barely restrained as he circled his follower, probing his mind with legilimency, was an intimidating presence. Even the Malfoys, who stood at the outer edge of the gathered circle, felt apprehensive, though for once they weren't at fault for what had happened. The death eater on display for interrogation wasn't a close friend or even an acquaintance of theirs, but his fear was contagious and the whimpers that escaped his lips were easily heard; Draco couldn't help but feel sorry for him, even though pity was a weakness he knew he couldn't afford. Currently, the Dark Lord was pushing for details on this wizard's particular failure, namely: letting the Weasleys escape yet another near-capture.

Over two weeks had passed since Draco obtained the sheath and met with Hermione, and since then he had remained in Hogwarts as Severus had instructed. To communicate with Hermione, he sent out his patronus at the earliest opportunity he could the next day from within the Room of Requirement, informing her that the Dark Lord was expected back soon, so she and Potter had better be on guard. Hermione had replied saying that Harry was already well-aware of Voldemort's actions, but she thanked him for his warning just the same and furthermore asked how he was. Their back-and-forth messages since then had been brief, neither having much to report by way of progress—Draco could only point out so much with what he had uncovered about Hufflepuff's Cup via research, since he couldn't exactly set about finding the darn thing—but between the more serious bits of news, it was clear that each of them missed the other.

Er, assuming Draco hadn't misconstrued Hermione's last message that had ended their conversation, in which she said that she "hoped to see him soon". Draco knew that he missed her, if nothing else, though of course he hadn't said so or even hinted at it.

Hermione didn't need to be told these things, though. Much between them, Draco reflected, didn't need to be said, perhaps in part because both of them were still puzzling out just what those things were...

Anyway, that last message had taken place two days ago, after which the Dark Lord made his presence known at last—after a few nail-biting days of nervousness as to why he hadn't contacted any of them, despite being back in Britain for several days—and summoned all of the death eaters of his inner circle to Malfoy Manor. Then, he had probed Draco's mind as well as everyone else's, but thankfully his occlumency lessons with Severus had paid off and the Dark Lord found nothing suspicious in Draco's mind. Draco had even stood up under the Dark Lord's interrogation better than his father had, for all the good it did Lucius that he had nothing to hide. That particular session had ended in Lucius straining to remain on his feet, pale and sweating after what had been an unnecessarily harsh interrogation by the Dark Lord. Draco, forced to watch, thought that the Dark Lord enjoyed tormenting Lucius more than the others, and was only using his father's past failure as an excuse to do so; clearly, it was sickeningly entertaining for him to bring down a formerly-respected and powerful pureblood.

Now, this most recent interrogation was put on as a display to instill fear as well as obedience to the Dark Lord's will, but also served a third unintentional purpose in showcasing that the Dark Lord had not found what he was after from Grindelwald.

Draco concluded as much easily enough, as he noted that the Dark Lord's wand was still the same one that he had left with weeks earlier. Besides which, even without knowing the details regarding Grindelwald, the Dark Lord was clearly in bad spirits, meaning that things were not going the way he expected or wanted them to. It was good news for the Wizarding World and for Potter that this wasn't the case, though it didn't give them any more of an edge on him than before.

"Enough!" Voldemort snarled, drawing back from the wizard on the interrogation stand. "Leave us. We shall determine your punishment at a later time."

The wizard scrambled away quickly and pathetically enough, only to be hit with a stinging hex from Bellatrix, likely just for the fun of it. She cackled wickedly as the wizard slunk out of the room.

Voldemort turned to the rest of his followers, looking at each of them in turn. Of everyone, it was only Severus and Bellatrix who could look him in the eyes; Draco himself couldn't help averting his gaze.

"I can see that things...have gotten a bit lax in my absence," Voldemort mused, turning and then striding to his seat at the head of the room. The rest of the death eaters remained standing. "It is of no matter, however, so long as things are put back in order starting now."

"What are your orders, my lord?" Bellatrix purred, as always the first to speak and showcasing her eagerness.

Voldemort folded his hands, looking deep in thought. "There is no news of Harry Potter?" he prompted.

Draco kept his expression neutral on the outside, though on the inside he cursed the fates that of course Potter and Hermione would be among the Dark Lord's first concerns.

"No, my lord," replied a death eater—one of the lead snatchers. "Ever since their escape from the Ministry in September, no one's seen them."

Voldemort frowned. Evidently, he did not like this bit of news. "Wormtail?" he drawled lazily.

Peter Pettigrew stepped up, fidgeting nervously. "T-there are no reports from any of the families we've interrogated, my lord. If P-Potter has sought shelter with any of his friends, then we've yet to hear of it."

"I have no doubt that your methods are lacking, Wormtail, but I expected better than nothing, even from you."

"A-a-a-a-apologies, m-m-my lord," Wormtail said, practically quivering.

Voldemort waved a hand, dismissing him. "Well, it seems Potter has had a stroke of good luck—one that will soon end. Knowing his mind as I do, though, I believe I know where he will be headed next."

"W-where, my lord?" Lucius breathed at last, when it was clear that the Dark Lord was waiting for someone to ask that very question—so that his ego could be satisfied by displaying his genius, of course.

"Why, Godric's Hollow, of course," Voldemort said, showing traces of a smile—snake-like and eerily disturbing, like the rest of him. "What better way to celebrate the upcoming holidays than to visit Mummy and Daddy's graves?"

Draco tensed, paying attention to this bit of detail. Hermione hadn't mentioned whether she and Potter had discussed this or not—but then, why should she tell him even if they had?—but if the Dark Lord was planning something, then...

"My lord, I would like to go and apprehend Potter and his friends—that Weasley brat and that mudblood," Bellatrix said, stepping up as the first volunteer as always. She looked particularly eager, no doubt prompted by her own hatred of Harry and Hermione in particular—his mad aunt couldn't stand muggleborns, having the shame of her own sister's marriage to a muggle and therefore having a half-blood niece that she wouldn't acknowledge. Narcissa wasn't quite as hard on Andromeda, though she couldn't understand her decision either, but at least she wasn't eager to kill her own kin. For Bellatrix, seeking blood was a sport though, and torture a fun game; she wouldn't go easy on her captives unless it was ordered of her, and perhaps not even then.

"Much as I approve your ambition, Bellatrix, I'm afraid that this is too important an opportunity to waste by sending any of you there," Voldemort mused. "Potter would see it coming, for all that he's lacking any proper defenses at the moment." His eyes went around the room again, keenly observant. "If he and his friends were able to evade you all and more besides at the ministry, what makes you think you'll be able to capture him now?" He sighed. "I'm afraid I have no choice. Nagini..."

As usual when he called his pet snake, no one was able to tell just where she was coming from. Considering how large she was, she was extremely stealthy, sure to never be far from Voldemort, and yet always catching his followers off-guard. More than a few of them were wary of her, and some outright afraid. Draco himself stayed near his family, the three of them putting on a prideful act of indifference, when in truth they never forgot for a moment what the snake was capable of, or how intelligent she was. There was something about her that was even more deadly than the venom she carried, something radiating purely dark magic.

The other death eaters stood by and watched silently as Voldemort communed with his precious snake, speaking entirely in Parseltongue. Only Draco understood what was being said, as he taken to wearing his translation ring at all times, and, needless to say, he did not like what he heard.

By the end of the meeting, he had concluded one thing however: he had to convince Hermione and Potter at all costs not to go to Godric's Hollow.

As far as the decision of going to the hollow for Christmas had progressed between Harry and Hermione though, they only started to consider it. Harry insisted that it was a possible place for them to find a Horcrux, which had more of an impact on Hermione than his first try at convincing her that he wanted to go in order to see his parents' graves and his birthplace. For, after the first time that Harry had brought it up, Hermione had given the matter some thought and determined that it might not be the wisest course of action to go there.

"Don't you see, Harry, he'd expect it!" she'd told him the first afternoon they brought it to discussion. "We know he's back in Britain now and that he hasn't found what he wants from Grindelwald, so he'll turn his attention towards going after you now. We've got to be more careful!" It didn't need to be said that they only had two wands between them now and that they were both working hard to fill in the gap that Ron had left. Not to mention that in the horcrux hunt they had more or less no further avenues to explore and were running out of options for what to do next. The locket was a constant nuisance, as were the feelings of helplessness that needed no encouragement from dark magic in either of their minds. Apart from Hermione's feeble hope that Draco had made some headway on checking for Hufflepuff's Cup (if indeed it was in Bellatrix's possession), they had nothing to go on.

"There might be a horcrux there," Harry had said, for once turning the tables a bit even on Hermione's determined reasoning. "I've given it a lot of thought and it all makes sense. Godric's Hollow is remote enough, and it's also a place that holds some importance for him. He almost died there sixteen years ago, Hermione—what is more of a likely place where you would expect to find one?"

Admittedly, the prospect of possibly finding a horcrux there was tempting enough, especially as they had no better ideas to work with at the moment, but Hermione was still unsure whether she wanted to risk it. It was likely, she had to concur, but...

"Harry...that sounds like all the more reason why he'd have the area watched," she began, but Harry was ready for this argument.

"Didn't we already go over how he doesn't trust any of his followers? Why would he post them so near a horcrux, in that case?"

"He could send out someone close to him, like Snape or Bellatrix," Hermione suggested.

Harry curled his lips in purse hatred. "Let him send either. I'd welcome the opportunity."

The locket around his neck hummed lightly as if in approval. Although he had only worn it for maybe three hours at most that day, Hermione carefully took it off him and slid it around her own neck. Now that Voldemort was back in Britain, it had grown stronger, enhanced by his presence.

"Harry, we need to think this over..."

"Fine. Take what time you need, but for Christmas Eve at least, I will be there, Hermione." He paused. "With or without you." And with that, for the first time since they'd started their mission, it was Harry who gruffly stood up and left outside for guard duty, clearly unhappy at how the conversation between him and Hermione had gone.

Hermione was also briefly upset, especially when considering that ordinarily it was Ron who had stormed out like that and left bad feelings between them. It was...unlike Harry, but she also couldn't blame him. She knew that, as usual, she was being the reasonable one who saw things from an objective point of view, but it hurt nevertheless to think of how detached she was from what was, after all, a natural desire of Harry's. He wanted to visit his birthplace and see his parents' graves for the first time, give them the proper respect they deserved. During his childhood, he hadn't even known the truth about his parents and the Dursleys wouldn't have let him visit James and Lily's graves anyway; and in his years at Hogwarts, he had been confined to the castle grounds during the holidays, unable even during the summer to apparate to Godric's Hollow because the trace had been on him. Now, free of the trace and for the first time able to see what was his birthright, it was no wonder that he considered it unfair of Hermione to try and stop him, regardless of her reasons.

It put her in a ruddy position, but there was still a week left before Christmas Eve, so maybe until then Harry would be able to think things over as well and see things in a new light.

Hopefully.

When the first patronus came from Draco—the first one in almost three days, which was a fairly long lapse considering how frequently they both felt the need to talk—it was nighttime and Hermione was just setting up outside for her turn at guard duty. The peacock came strutting towards her, giving Hermione the message just as she was sitting down on a rock, wearing a thick coat and with a warming charm already in place around her so that she could withstand the cold December night.

"Can you talk?"

Smiling, Hermione summoned her otter and sent Draco a brief reply specifying that she could, and that she was...erm...happy to hear from him again. It was more of an admission than she would usually give, but she found that she did miss hearing his voice, more than she thought she would have previously. The last time they had met in person was at the lakehouse after his dive in the Black Lake, and since then...more and more Hermione was beginning to feel the loss of his presence. It was a new feeling, and perhaps partly born out of her dependency on Draco to supply her with news of the Wizarding World that she and Harry would otherwise lack, but...right now, even if he didn't have anything of importance to say, Hermione still wanted to listen and talk to him.

"Uh...same here, but, unfortunately, what I have to say isn't good news. "Is Potter around? He should hear this too."

Hermione was surprised and a bit disappointed, not having expected that at all, but of course she would take Draco's words seriously and fetch Harry for a few minutes. A small part of her felt foolish at how she had been half-hoping for their conversation to be a bit more personal this time, but the situation at hand was obviously a priority.

"Why would we want to talk to me?" Harry asked, once Hermione had let him know of Draco's request. For all that he had accepted that Draco was now an ally of theirs, Hermione understood how Harry had perhaps an instinctual impulse to disassociate from Draco rather than welcome him with open arms—after all, hadn't she been the same way herself? Regardless though, Hermione had grown to know Draco much better than Harry, and she was convinced that he wouldn't want to speak to Harry either unless it was for something truly important.

She summoned up her otter to send back to Draco. "We're listening."

What came next visibly shocked them both.

"The Dark Lord knows that you want to go to Godric's Hollow for Christmas, Potter. He's planning a trap for you there on Christmas Eve. And it's no joke—he's sending Nagini to apprehend you. I guess you know the stakes better than I do, so you'll take me at my word when I tell you not to go to Grodric's Hollow. Right now, the Dark Lord doesn't know where you are, and it wouldn't do for you to give him that chance and put yourselves in danger like that. There will be no mercy, Potter—trust me on that."

Harry didn't like what he was hearing—the expression on his face said as much. Hermione knew her friend well enough to recognize his stubbornness when it reared itself, so she knew that, despite this warning, Harry was trying in some way to work around it. He was taking it seriously, of course, but neither he (nor she, for that matter) could ignore the possibility of a horcrux being hidden in Godric's Hollow. It was the best lead they had come up with ever since Hermione had spoken to Draco about horcruxes, and thus it wasn't an easy thing to give up on just because it might be a trap. And if Voldemort was sending his prized serpent of all creatures to go there...

The two friends exchanged a look. There just had to be a hidden meaning in this.

Before Hermione had a chance to, Harry summoned up his own patronus, a brilliant stag. "Hermione told you about horcruxes, Malfoy," he began. "We're thinking that we can find one in Godric's Hollow and that's why we have to go. What do you think about the likelihood of that?"

Hermione blinked in surprise as Harry sent his stag off. To confide in Draco about their plans was something that she would have done anyway, but for Harry to do it really said a lot. Perhaps she had been underestimating how much her friend could willingly accept about the new situation with Draco. And as for even going so far as to ask for his opinion, well that was just going above and beyond.

Draco's peacock only came back a few minutes later, making it clear that he'd given Harry's words and reasoning a lot of thought. "It does seem likely, Potter, I won't deny that. But it still doesn't change the fact that the Dark Lord will be expecting you there on Christmas Eve. Are you really willing to risk your safety and Hermione's safety just for a chance at finding a horcrux? Never mind that you don't know what horcrux will be hidden there!"

Hermione felt a small flutter in her stomach as Draco's worry for them—for her—came through loud and clear in his message. Harry also looked surprised, but had a ready answer for those concerns.

"We have to go at some point, Malfoy, and I'd say the sooner the better before he suspects what we're up to and then decides to remove the horcrux even if it is there. So..." Harry sighed. "Even if he's expecting us, we still have to go. I agree that putting ourselves in direct risk by walking right into a trap isn't worth it though, so how about that instead of going on Christmas Eve, when he'll be expecting us, we'll go earlier than that, say...on the twenty-first?"

It was a concession to Harry's own personal reasons for going to the hollow, but nevertheless, given the circumstances, it was one he could make in order to put his personal feelings aside. And besides which, it might work. Everyone knew that Voldemort was never parted from Nagini unless he had to be, and it was doubtful that he'd send her to Godric's Hollow to lie in wait several days without results. Since he expected Harry and Hermione on Christmas Eve, that was the one time they wouldn't go.

Draco's returning patronus also confirmed this. "Not a bad thought, Potter, but I'd still be careful. If anything changes about his plans as they stand now, I'll be sure to let you know."

"Thanks, I appreciate it, Malfoy." And Hermione had to applaud how the strain of saying that didn't reflect at all in Harry's voice or his manner.

After that, since there was nothing else to be said, Harry went back back inside the tent, nodding to Hermione to signal her that they would discuss more of this in the coming days and make preparations. Hermione was still nervous about going to the hollow in general, but at least now that they had Draco's word that he would inform them about any upcoming changes to Voldemort's plans, they could be better prepared for what they might face. If they were lucky, then they'd avoid any confrontations whatsoever.

And if they could work miracles, maybe they'd even walk out of there with a horcrux in hand.

Please, Merlin, let something for once go our way in this, Hermione thought. She didn't really believe in wishes or prayers or the like, but for once she still felt compelled to say something along those lines, to boost up her own hopes and morale if nothing else.

Just as she was preparing to go to resume guard duty though, surprisingly another one of Draco's messages came, this time spoken in a whisper. "Hermione? Are you still with Potter?"

It would have been a bit awkward and questionable if Harry had still been with her, as this was clearly indicative of a more personal conversation about to unfold, but thankfully he wasn't. Excited despite herself, Hermione smiled and easily summoned her patronus. "No, he's inside while I'm on guard duty now. Was there something else you wanted to say, Draco?" About Godric's Hollow or otherwise?

"I just...wanted to know that you were doing alright. Apart from things getting harder now than before, I know it can't be easy for you being out in the woods in this kind of weather and all. I thought I'd take the opportunity to offer you and Potter the lakehouse, even if it's only for a few days. I've been back to check several times and no one's even been near the property since we...since we last left it."

The memory brought on a lot of feelings for Hermione as well, but none that she hadn't shyly smiled over already in her private time. As such, she was comfortable in thinking back to that time and only felt disappointed that nothing like that had happened since. She...would like very much so to see Draco and ask how he was doing as well—and see him face-to-face so he couldn't downplay it or even try lying about it just to spare her the worry—but since it was not to be, she'd indulge his curiosity via patronus only.

"We're as comfortable as can be expected, but I do appreciate the offer of the lakehouse. Maybe once we return from Godric's Hollow, we can go there for Christmas instead. And if you can get away, perhaps it'd be a good idea for you to meet Harry in person, just so that you can clear the air between you. Er...I mean, there's still a lot that Harry could know, since I've already mentioned what little I did tell him, but it would help if it came from you, I think. Harry's been very accepting so far and I appreciate that, but there are things that need to be said directly and not through a mediator. I'd leave you to it, but only as far as you're comfortable.

"And...also...I would like very much to see you as well, Draco. I imagine that it's hard to feel that it's a Happy Christmas at Hogwarts now, or perhaps in the world in general, but..." She stopped, suddenly shy despite herself. "Well...if you wouldn't mind stopping by, then at least you and, er, Harry and I wouldn't be alone." It felt odd to be inviting him to spend Christmas at his own house, but, on the other hand, it was as much an admission of how much she wanted to see him as anything else; Hermione only hoped that Draco wasn't put off by it.

To her surprise though, the first thing she heard from Draco in his response was a snort. "I'm not made of glass, Hermione, nor am I a dunce. I get what you mean and fine, I'll humor you and speak to Potter myself. If he's going to put any trust in me on this, I suppose I should give him more of a reason than just warning him of a threat to his life, right?"

Hermione gasped. No, that wasn't what she meant—!

"And, since you put it so awkwardly—which is very unlike you, by the way—then yes, I'll come over and spend Christmas with you. You're right that there's nothing to do at Hogwarts at the moment anyway. Tell me, should I bring you a present?"

He was acting far less "awkward" about this than she was, but then again, maybe that was just his Slytherin nature in evidence. If Hermione had been in the Room of Requirement with Draco just then though, she would have see his first reaction at her invitation and how he'd literally stumbled back against one of the columns when he'd heard what she had to say. Then, she would have also seen him nervously run his hands through his hair as he tried to think up a proper response that would preserve his own pride without revealing too much of his own desperation to go, and would have recognized that he was not as cool and collected as he appeared.

"I don't think presents are necessary, since the use of the lakehouse will be all we could possibly need at the moment," she said. Then, with a sly smile of her own, "Were you hoping for a present in return?"

Draco's patronus came back quickly this time. "I thought we weren't doing deals or trade-offs anymore, Granger. Assuming I do remember to bring something—maybe a chocolate frog for you and a bertie bean for Potter that I'll make sure won't be the good kind—then I won't be expecting anything in return." A pause. "Unless, of course, you can think of something I'd like?"

That last sentence was baiting, but for what, Hermione didn't know. All she did realize was that it was making her blush furiously, cheeks pink because of nothing to do with the cold. Merlin, if she didn't know any better, then she'd almost assume that Draco Malfoy was...flirting with her. But, of course that was bonkers, he was just a friend, and right now they were both just lightly bantering like this because...

Well, because maybe they were both lonely and Christmastime did something to people, be it wizard or muggle. And besides which, she didn't mind at all the turn that this conversation had taken. Not that she was about to rise to Draco's baiting without dishing back some of her own, of course.

"I'm sure I'll think of something, Malfoy. I am known to be clever, after all."

"I'm hard to impress, you know."

Hermione smirked. "I look forward to the challenge, but a chocolate frog's not much incentive."

"Oh? I would've assumed any sweets would be welcome after months of provision packs. In that case, I'll have to think of something better."

"Something much better."

A chuckle sounded as Draco's patronus came back. "'I look forward to the challenge,'" he mimicked, making Hermione grin. Then, after a brief pause, "Now, much as I haven't got anything else to do at this hour of the night except for go to sleep, there are still patrols in the hallways at Hogwarts, so I'd better get going. Good night, Hermione."

"Good night." Hermione said this last part to herself, all the while wishing that so many things hadn't gotten in the way of this discussion with Draco—with any of her discussions with Draco. The more she talked to him, the shorter their time together seemed, and each time after Hermione was left feeling unsatisfied, like she had been stopped midway through the chapter of an interesting book. And Draco was by far the most interesting thing she'd encountered in her life recently, but...

No, it was more than that. Hermione had had plenty of time to think about it, and she was too clever to know that it was more than just interest.

As for what it was precisely, well...she would wait until the next time she saw Draco face-to-face to confirm whether or not her suspicions about this proved to be true.

A/N: To be perfectly honest here, I'm cheating. A lot. It's kind of like I want to have my cake and eat it too, y'know? Because, see, while I definitely want for Draco to be able to give Hermione and Harry some sort of warning about what's waiting for them at Godric's Hollow and thus prove himself a serious ally to them, I also LOVE the way things played out in the original books and wanted to keep that, so that involves getting Harry and Hermione there regardless of the danger. My solution/cheating method to this was to simply change the date in which they go there. Originally, it's supposed to be on Christmas Eve, but I changed it to December 21st instead as another easy-to-remember day. I hope no one minds this, but it's just one of those situations where we back ourselves into a corner, I guess.

Anyway, an important note on next chapter: It's basically going to be the first time-skip of the story that I'm not going to preclude or explain. The scene in Godric's Hollow is just so perfect as it already is, so pretty much I'm skipping past changing any of that, and instead will cut right to what happens after. I know that Dramione fans will be much more curious about the upcoming lakehouse chapter(s), so maybe it's a mercy that I'm skipping to that and won't be going over the whole Nagini-attack part, right? Hehehe. Anyway, expect a long chapter and a lot of interactions going on. Okay, that's it.

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