August 6th

Another morning arrived. Unable to keep her eyes closed for another moment, Hermione knew she should just get out of bed. Antonin was fast asleep next to her, and she was afraid that she would wake him up if she moved around too much. He had been so tired. Everything about the fall of the Dark Lord was draining his energy. She noticed it before they had to flee, but it had only gotten worse since they started living in Augustus' house. Would there ever be a reprieve for them? She worried that they were just delaying the inevitable.

Since overhearing her son's conversation with their host the day before, she had been unable to think about anything else. How cruel was fate that the very thing she believed would've allowed her to fall in love with her husband was denied her? Though she knew she wasn't accomplishing anything by dwelling on it, she couldn't seem to stop herself. How much pain and heartache could've been avoided with the simple change in the man who sat outside her cupboard?

Knowing that she would never get anywhere productive in her line of thinking and not wishing to disturb Antonin when he had too little sleep, she slowly got out of bed. Wrapping her pajama-clad body in a dressing gown, she tiptoed out of their room. The rest of the house was silent. It was too early for anyone to be awake. Taking care not to wake anyone else up, she headed straight for the kitchen door. Though it would be chilly outside so early in the morning regardless of the time of year, she needed some fresh air.

She was only halfway out the door when she realized her plan to have a few minutes alone wasn't meant to be. Seated in one of the chairs they sat in months earlier to stare out at the ocean over a glass of fire whiskey was the master of the house. Never one for rising early, Hermione never expected that Augustus would be out there. Their eyes met in the early morning dimness. He was every bit as surprised to see her as she was him. Almost instantly he started to stand to his feet. Hermione pulled the door closed behind her and gestured with her free hand to stay seated.

"This is your home, Augie. If either of us should leave, it should be me."

The offer to go back inside might have been made, but she truly hoped that he wouldn't accept it. She didn't want to. A slight breeze coming off the water was pleasant. Already she could feel some of the tension she carried perpetually in her shoulders begin to lessen. Yes, a future next to the ocean sounded like Heaven to her.

"You don't have to go, Hermione."

Everything in his voice told her that he was being completely sincere. Settling down in the chair next to his, she stared out at the vast ocean. Neither of them interrupted the predawn silence. It felt nice to just be there quietly sitting next to the other. She could almost imagine that no time had passed since the years they were together before her marriage. While it was a difficult, growing time for her back then, she could think back on it fondly as a simpler time. None of her problems seemed quite so vast and insurmountable as they did in the present.

Out of the corner of her eye she examined the man she had been in love with for more than half her life. It was different than it used to be, but she could still feel the remnants of the emotion that caused more headaches throughout history than any other. Vengeance had nothing on the power of love. There was a time when she would've been willing to run away with him forever. Would've walked away from the Dark Lord even. How strange the changes that time could bring. Knowing what she knew, recognizing for perhaps the first time in the past twenty years that she cared for Augustus initially out of nothing but sheer desperation marred the sweetness of those old memories and feelings. Or maybe it was simply the added benefit of growing older and being able to see clearly.

"It was very kind of you to offer your home, Augie. I'm not sure I've had the chance yet to thank you properly for that."

He tried to wave off her gratitude. The reason why she hadn't had a chance to thank him was because of the simple fact that he'd been avoiding her. Unless there was already a small group congregated inside a room she was in, he would refuse to go in. She'd witnessed it firsthand when she was alone in the kitchen a few days earlier. One step inside of the room and he turned back around. Not until both Alain and Oliver were in there making their own lunches did he return. She tried not to make a big deal out of it. Their current situation wasn't easy for anyone.

"There's no need to thank me."

"But you've put yourself in danger. That's not a small thing. If any of our enemies discovered you were harboring us, they wouldn't be kind to you."

"I only did it for you."

His statement was spoken so softly the crashing waves nearby could've easily drowned it out if she hadn't been paying close attention. When he admitted the truth, he turned away from her, staring back out at the vastness of the ocean.

"You're in danger. I thought that I could protect you if I took you with me out of the country, but clearly that wasn't an option."

"Augie…"

"I'm not mad about that anymore, Hermione. I swear it."

Except he was. She knew him well enough to see the simmering of his disappointment and fury just below the surface. Even though it had never been her intention to hurt him, she had. She'd rejected his offer, rejected him to return to the husband she claimed that she didn't love and the one she feared. Only someone with the patience of a saint wouldn't be upset with her and Augustus was no saint. Deciding it was best that she not call any attention to the lie, she pressed forward. There was something that had been bothering her for awhile.

"Antonin told me that you were the one who told him that I was here."

His sigh proved that he was regretting his decision to stay outside. Eventually they were going to have to have this conversation. They both knew it. Living under the same roof, it was only a matter of time before it happened. Best that they just got it over with. Augustus seemed to understand the logic in that thought as well.

"Yes, I did. I lied to you when you asked me because I didn't want you to suspect he and I were working together."

"I see."

"And if we're being entirely honest, I also spread a false rumor that Fenrir Greyback was the one who told Antonin you were hiding in my home for the same reason."

At least she finally understood why Draco told her what he did. He'd been so convinced that Fenrir was the one who betrayed her location to her husband and she couldn't understand what he would have to gain by lying. Fenrir wouldn't betray her. Not for anything. The werewolf had proven his loyalty. Though it didn't make her feel any less suspicious of Draco knowing that he wasn't deliberately lying to her about who betrayed her location, it was somewhat comforting to know she wasn't completely wrong.

"Well, no harm done. Antonin didn't catch me that day or any other."

"I still don't understand why you willingly went back to him. There's something you're not telling me."

"There's likely a lot of somethings I'm not telling you, Augie. Doesn't mean I'm going to start now."

The corner of his mouth curled into a grin. He turned his gaze away from the ocean to look her in the eyes again. She was glad that she hadn't insulted him with her remark. Sometimes the wizard could be terribly touchy.

"No, I learned a long time ago that there was a lot going on in that brain of yours that I would never be made a party to."

"I'm sorry that your home has been overrun with my family."

"I'm not. You're still alive. That is why Antonin and I made the decision to make this a safe place for your family to hide if it was necessary."

An uncomfortable silence crept back up between them. Hermione wasn't sure how to respond, what she should say next. Didn't he deserve some explanation for her bizarre behavior? Even if she wasn't quite ready to be honest about what Rodolphus put her through, she wanted him to know something. At least enough to know that she didn't run away because she didn't have feelings for him. She did, even if they weren't quite as strong as they once were.

"There was a mess I made I had to go back to Hogsmeade to clean up. I couldn't do it without going back to Antonin."

"A mess? Would it include a certain Resistance leader recently reported as 'deceased' in the Daily Prophet?"

She felt her stomach lurch at his question. Why would he bring up Aberforth if he didn't know something already? It wasn't just an innocent guess. She wanted to know everything that he did, but feared he would keep his own secrets. The man hadn't been an Unspeakable because he was terrible at keeping his mouth shut.

"What do you know, Augie?"

"Quite a bit actually. I know that Mr. Dumbledore is not dead. He's very much alive and living in one of the dreadful outposts the Resistance has. Somewhere near Liverpool, I believe. His presence at their main village was deemed something of a security risk so he was moved. He's recovering from his ordeal at the Ministry quite well, but he is an old man. Wasn't easy for him."

"How do you know all of this?"

His connection with the Resistance had always been something of a shadowy secret. She knew that he had enough influence to request a favor in keeping her out of their line of fire as much as possible. Draco had been mixed up in that too. But she also suspected that Draco was mixed up with his uncle's plans. Why else would Rodolphus show up at her home stating he heard that she wanted to speak to him? Draco must've told. Everyone, it seemed, had their secret alliances and devious plans. Augustus was no different.

"You're not the only one with friends in powerful positions, Hermione. Or who had something to lose if it was discovered Dumbledore wasn't where he was supposed to be."

"What are you saying exactly, Augie?"

She had her suspicions what he was getting at, but wanted him to tell her flat out. Based entirely on his grin, he appeared as if he wanted to tell her something he'd been holding on to for awhile. If it was what she hoped…

"A contact of mine inside the Ministry, the Department of Magical Law Enforcement to be exact, owed me a rather large favor. It was thanks to him that no one discovered your part in switching your prisoner out with Dolores Umbridge."

Once again in just a few short days she felt her jaw drop open in shock. Augustus was the one behind ensuring Umbridge's dead body wasn't discovered down in Level Eleven? If she had a million years to guess, she didn't think she would ever get near his name as a potential suspect. What other secrets was he keeping from her? Was there something he wanted in exchange?

"How did you know?"

"I pay attention. I slip galleons into the right hands. I play the game."

He was being evasive. Likely, she would never get any further information about his part in the coverup of her mistake, but that didn't matter. Not really. He'd protected her and that was what was important.

"Some day you'll have to explain to me how that wretched bitch got mixed up in all of your plans. I imagine it is a tale worth hearing."