"Malfoy! Draco Malfoy!"

Hermione's voice rang loudly through the large receiving room of Malfoy's flat. She almost stumbled as she exited his floo, eager to reach him. She heard no response but was undeterred. She walked quickly, but cautiously, through the room into the hall and headed to the open set of French doors to her right. She kept speaking as she rounded the corner. "Draco! I figured it out! Your mother- "

The words died on her lips as she entered the room, faced with Narcissa Malfoy in the flesh. The elegant woman had loss some of her exterior hardness since the war, and her shoulders rounded in a more relaxed way than Hermione could ever remember, but she was still every inch the pureblooded lady. Her son stood next to her chair with is back to her, and Hermione could more easily read his body language. She realized she must have interrupted an argument; Draco's body was held tight, and his arms hung by his side as if he had just finished gesticulating wildly. Hermione tightened her grip on the Time Turner in her hand and opened her mouth to speak an apology but was stopped by the calm voice of Mrs. Malfoy. "Good morning, Miss Granger."

"Good morning," Hermione found herself automatically replying. She chanced taking her eyes off the woman to look at Draco. He still looked upset but had regained some of his composure. He offered her a small incline of his head and raised a hand to indicate a seat in a chair across from his mother. He sunk onto the end of the couch, wiped a hand across his face and turned toward his mother. Hermione returned her eyes to Mrs. Malfoy.

"I see that you received the Time Turner," she gestured to Hermione's closed fist and Draco's unchecked gasped briefly filled the air. "I am sure that you many questions. I am afraid, however, that not all of the answers are mine to give. Where would you like to begin?"

Over the course of the morning, Hermione learned that Narcissa had acquired the Time Turner from the belongings of a Ministry official that had been tortured and killed in the early fall following Dumbledore's death. She had paused here to address Draco, apologizing for not having it during his sixth year to help aid him in his task with the vanishing cabinet. Draco could only summon a snort and poisonous glare for his mother. Hermione almost laughed at his rather childish behavior but found the entire context of humor in this conversation to be inappropriate, so she simply continued to listen to Mrs. Malfoy's story.

Narcissa had kept the Time Turner on her person for the duration of the war. She never knew when the opportunity to use it would present itself as she was rarely left alone, and being versed in the rules for time travel, she knew she couldn't use it to change the outcome of any large events lest she change the future in unpredictable ways. Hermione was surprised by the woman's amount of restraint. "When did you finally use it?"

"When everything was done, and we had been tasked with identifying the Death Eater losses." Narcissa's carefully crafted face slipped a little at the memory. Hermione could understand; they may have stood on opposite sides, but the collection of dark wizards and witches had been acquaintances or friends of the Malfoys. It must have been exceedingly uncomfortable and difficult to see so many of them lifeless. Narcissa inhaled and continued her story, Hermione rapt with attention. "I had been separated from Draco and Lucius, the Auror was distracted, so I saw that as my opportunity. I slipped into an alcove off the Great Hall and turned. I found myself presented with the moment yourself, Mr. Weasley, and Mr. Potter left the castle to head to the grounds. I disillusioned myself and followed you."

Hermione knew the moment that she spoke of. She looked at Draco, he was trying to put the pieces together. "We were on our way to the Shrieking Shack. It was where we knew Voldemort and Nagini were. It was where we watched him kill Snape."

Narcissa nodded at her. "I saw it all happen. I cast a stasis on him after your attempts were unsuccessful. After you left, I set about stabilizing him and securing a location for him until a time I could attend to him again."

"Why did you do it?" Hermione finally asked the question she had been patiently waiting an opportunity to ask.

"I didn't know what our fate was to be at the hands of the Ministry when we left the castle. I needed to secure every possible way to ensure that the Malfoy family would stay out of Azkaban."

"But you knew of Snape's true allegiance after the battle, so you ended up seeking him out." Hermione felt the pieces click. Narcissa nodded. "Why have you kept him hidden all this time if he could have helped you?"

"When Potter spoke for us at the trial, I knew we would not need him." Hermione bristled at the cold way Narcissa spoke of Snape. It made him sound less like a person and more like a chess piece. But she realized that for someone like Narcissa, a woman that survived both wars undamaged on the losing side, that was how she viewed people: pieces to sacrifice to save the king and queen.

"Mother, where is he?" Draco had finally spoken.

"I am unable to tell you that." Narcissa answered. "In the time since I moved Severus from the Shrieking Shack, certain…precautions have been taken to ensure his safety. Now, the same measures are enforced at his behest to keep his privacy."

Hermione knew she spoke of the Fidelius Charm. Narcissa was not the Secret Keeper, she could not tell Draco if she had wanted to. "How does Andromeda fit into this? I was under the impression that the two of you had…grown apart."

Narcissa almost smiled, but it appeared more as a thin-lipped grimace. "My sister and I have been repairing our relationship for some time. I visit with her once a month."

Hermione turned to face Draco. He locked eyes with her, and a twinge of color appeared at his cheeks. He gave a flash of a smile when Hermione spoke. "You were right Malfoy; our lies do not become us anymore. And now I understand who you were protecting with yours."

"It wasn't my place to speak of my mother's family relations. But I didn't lie to you about my involvement with Andromeda. And I certainly didn't know about any of this. I would have told you last night. It wasn't until mother showed up here this morning, asking about you that I began to put the pieces together. It was then that you came through the floo." Draco was looking back and forth between Hermione and Narcissa. Hermione smiled at him, she trusted him and knew that he hadn't lied the night before.

"Have I answered all of your questions, Miss Granger?" Narcissa asked.

"Almost." Hermione steeled herself. "Why has he stayed hidden?"

Narcissa rose from her chair. She crossed the room to the exit. "I think you will have to ask him that yourself."


A/N: Please leave comments. Send messages. Favorite. Follow. Etc. I love all of it. -Archer