I don't know if anyone is still reading, but if you are, I hope you're enjoying it. This is the last chapter and an epilogue will post shortly. Thank you for reading, and if you would be so kind as to leave a review, I'd really appreciate it!

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Padma descended on Draco immediately, peppering Hermione with questions like what happened, has he taken anything, what have you already tried? They moved him off the ground and onto a gurney. Hermione's stomach turned at the expanse of red snow.

Hermione focused on Draco's pale lips as she answered, her voice having a far away quality even to her own ears. Padma opened his mouth, pouring potion after potion into it, waving her wand back and forth. Another Healer, maybe Padma's assistant, tried to dislodge Hermione's hold on Draco, but she refused to budge. She was numb to the cold, ignoring the buzzing in her brain and the deadness of her legs tucked underneath her.

Seconds felt like hours, but Draco's eyes fluttered open, unfocused at first. He didn't speak, but Padma looked satisfied. She hopped up off the ground, and her assistant unfolded the gurney's legs, making Hermione rise unsteadily with them.

"He's going to be just fine," Padma proclaimed as she checked his vital signs. "He was hit with a newer dark curse, probably why you didn't recognise it. A stronger Diffindo with a complicated counter-curse. Seen it a few too many times."

"Thank Merlin," Hermione sniffled. Someone threw a blanket over her and began charming her waterlogged clothes dry. She turned to thank them when a freezing hand clasped hers.

"Hey Granger."

Hermione couldn't hold back the torrent of tears as she looked at her husband.

His eyes widened, unfocused. "Am I the one hallucinating now?"

"No, no," she assured him. "Ron, Padma and the Aurors are here. It's a long story. I promise I'll tell you everything later."

Draco tried to sit up, but Padma gently forced him back down. "You're still healing, Mr. Malfoy."

"You saved my life," Draco croaked to Padma, colour flooding back into his face. "Thank you."

Padma smiled as she cast a few cleaning charms and repaired Draco's clothing. "I wouldn't have had a chance without that Felix Felicis you had on you."

"Her idea," he said, leaning into Hermione's touch as she gently brushed his hair out of his face.

Three Aurors passed them, each dragging a detainee.

The first was Gregory Goyle, ranting and raving about Lucius Malfoy, his connections, and the hundreds more Death Eaters still at large.

The second was unrecognisable as he stumbled blindly through the snow in singed Healer's robes, a charred hole where his face should have been. An Auror yanked the handcuffs to hurry Blaise Zabini along, wrenching an inhuman sound from the hole.

"Blaise," she whispered to Draco and Padma. Padma arched one flawless eyebrow. "Venomous Tantacula venom."

Third came Daphne Greengrass, with tear-stained cheeks and her head held high. Hermione would never be able to repay the woman for her actions today. She tried to get Daphne's attention but she seemed like she was somewhere else. Hermione resolved to petition for her release as soon as all this was over.

The three Aurors formed a circle with the prisoners in the middle of the road. Goyle finally spotted Hermione.

"This isn't over! I won't stop until we're reunited, Mistress! The plan, it'll still work—"

An Auror cast a silencing charm and Goyle continued to thrash against the restraints. The wild look in his eyes made Hermione shiver, and she had no doubt that Goyle would always be a true believer. He would bend the situation to fit inside whatever Lucius's framework demanded, though she still didn't know what exactly those plans entailed. Before she could consider it further, the Aurors and their prisoners Apparated away, leaving nothing but footprints in the snow.

Ron approached, his Head Auror badge glinting in the light and his mouth set in a grim line. "Malfoy. Glad to see you're alright. I'd like to get your statement after Padma's cleared you."

Draco looked up and weakly extended a hand. "Weasley. Never been so happy to see you. Thanks for bringing the calvary."

Ron, to his credit, barely hesitated before bending slightly to accept the handshake. "Just doing my job. I got your wife's Patronus and came straight away."

Draco glanced at Hermione. "He knows about us?"

"I'll save the lecture for Christmas dinner. Gin says you're getting one of Mum's famous jumpers and everything. Last I heard, it's going to be puce. Lovely colour, puce. Great for your complexion."

"Not very sporting of you, Weasley. I've suffered a great deal of blood loss, you know."

Ron grinned. "Never change, Malfoy."

Hermione squeezed Draco's hand before letting go, rounding the gurney, and wrapping her arms around Ron. "Thank you."

He returned the hug, lifting her off her feet. Surrounded by Ron's familiar cinnamon scent, Hermione's heart rate finally drifted back to baseline. Everyone was safe. Everything was going to be okay.

Padma's assistant, a diminutive woman wearing hexagonal spectacles, plodded over and let them know the field tent was set up. Ron led the way while Padma wheeled Draco in and propped him up, then examined Hermione. She ran her thumb over Hermione's Dark Mark. "I'm betting there's quite a story behind this."

Hermione quickly explained the basics — the book, the ritual, Goyle's obsession with the resurgence of the Marks.

"I plan to destroy the book. I don't think the answer to its reversal is inside."

"See that you do. I've never succeeded in removing a Dark Mark, but the less dark magic you use, the more it will fade away."

She decided not to mention the summoning. "I haven't brewed anything dark, much less cast any dark spells, in almost two weeks now, but the only reason I stopped is because Blaise took over my parents' care. And Merlin knows what he's done to them."

"It'll take much more than a two-week holiday, Hermione. You've got years of built up dark magic," Padma looked at her with pity in her deep brown eyes. "Take it one day at a time. And although I imagine the last thing you want in your home is another Healer, if you're up for it, I'll come by and help you get things sorted for your parents. I know an excellent facility in Dublin."

"Thank you," Hermione flung her arms around Padma's neck. The Healer took it well, patting Hermione's back twice before withdrawing and straightening her robes.

After healing Hermione's minor cuts and administering salve for the after-effects of the Cruciatus, and monitoring Draco as he took cautious steps, Padma gave both Draco and Hermione a stern lecture about rest and fluids before exiting the tent. Aurors still filtered in and out, speaking with Ron in hushed tones.

When everyone had settled into pop-up chairs with blankets and hot cocoa, Ron cleared his throat. "We've missed you, Hermione. Hasn't been the same since you've been gone. Probably would've figured out Zabini's game a lot sooner if we'd still had you at the Ministry. Adrian Pucey found some accounting irregularities, mainly unpaid land taxes, and traced them back to several notable Pureblood families."

Draco's eyes lit in recognition. "Yes, he showed them to our solicitor, Theo Nott. He's got some information regarding Griselda Marchbanks. Theo planned to look into it further, as it may invalidate some of the recent judgements against many of his clients."

"She's still on the Wizengamot? She's over a hundred years old! That must be the woman he was with at the ball last night." Hermione wondered to herself how many patients Blaise had taken on over the years, and how many were still alive. Despite the warming charms, she shivered. "Blaise manipulated his patients and their families with a blend of tea he gave them. It made them more suggestible, their minds more malleable. They signed over their land, money, anything valuable, to Griselda and other patients who were high-ranking in the Ministry. Nothing in his name to arouse suspicion."

Ron scratched out notes on a sheet of official-looking parchment. "Do you still have the tea?"

"I do, back at the flat. I'd been drinking it myself, but instead of dampening my magic, it gave me hallucinations. My magic resisted, likely because of the dark magic I'd been using on my parents. I think it recognised the sedative and bypassed it. I suppose my efforts to save them, however unorthodox, may have saved all our lives."

Draco's face twisted with emotion as he reached for her hand. "What's the endgame? He couldn't possibly live in all those homes, or spend all that money."

"I don't think it's about the endgame for him," Hermione murmured. "It's about power."

Ron nodded. "You'd have made a fine Auror. As far as we can tell, as soon as he's drained his patients' vaults and they've ceased being useful to him, they conveniently die. No one bats an eye because they were in hospice, and the patients' eventual death is the natural conclusion."

"You may not find much evidence. Blaise has an eidetic memory, so he rarely kept notes. And his patients, well, he…" Hermione swallowed the taste of sick. "He ate them."

"Bloody hell."

"Sweet Salazar," Draco said, leaning over his chair and gagging.

"He planned to do the same to my parents, I think, and keep me alive to infiltrate the Ministry. But the tea didn't work, and he had to recalculate his next steps."

"And even if the tea had eventually worked, you made a career in the Ministry impossible when you and Malfoy came out strongly against Podmore and his goons in The Quibbler. "

"He said it didn't matter, even though he did wonder whether or not he should kill me instead. But when I touched my Dark Mark—"

Ron nearly fell out of his seat. "What?"

"—to summon Draco he made up his mind to keep me alive."

So much for not saying anything about the summoning.

"And Goyle?"

"He helped him find patients. And Draco, I…. I'm so sorry, Goyle killed your mother and Astoria." She had to tell him about Astoria and Narcissa's help. But it seemed too delicate a subject to broach in front of an audience.

Draco was motionless for a moment before he took a sip of cocoa and spoke. "I figured it out, actually. This morning I went to Greengrass Manor to confront him, but thought better of it and came back to the flat." He turned to her with regret and pain in his eyes. "I'm so sorry I left; especially after everything we did last night. I only wanted to keep you safe."

"I know. And I'm sorry I summoned you. I was scared, and I didn't remember…"

"No, please don't apologise. I always want to be the one you turn to when you're in trouble. I'm only sorry I didn't take the bastards down with you," he said, stroking the back of her hand. "At least you ended up with my wand."

"It was a better substitute than I thought, but if I'd had my wand, I'd have sent a Patronus to Ron from the start. Turns out there's a reason I needed him and Harry when we saved the world."

The corner of Ron's mouth lifted in a smile. "Never work alone, I always say."

"Yes, well, I daresay we've finally learned our lesson there. If I'd known the threat Blaise posed, I'd have involved you lot before he set foot in our home. I can't believe he's been caring for Hermione's parents this whole time. He's always been aloof, but I never expected he'd be a cold-blooded killer," Draco said with a shiver. "It must have been him stalking us outside the pub that night. Probably trying to see if his tea worked."

"He'll never be able to hurt anyone again," Ron said, bringing one of his legs up into his lap. "I'd know the effects of Venomous Tentacula venom anywhere. Illegal to grow, harvest or possess. I can't believe he survived it. It's a fate worse than death."

Hermione closed her eyes and held her wrists out to Ron. After a beat, when nothing happened, she opened them again. "Aren't you going to arrest me?"

Ron chuckled, his expression one of incredulousness. "Arrest you? First off, you're one of my best friends, and arrests are the Head Auror's decision. Secondly, it seems to me like it's just recompense. He used his charisma and quicksilver tongue to con vulnerable witches and wizards out of their money and into an early grave. You've made sure that he'll never be able to do it again."

"I think he was dosing Daphne with the tea, too. She gave me Draco's wand and saved my life. You didn't need to arrest her." Hermione tucked the aforementioned wand into her husband's holster and patted his chest. She sagged in her chair, mourning the loss of her own wand, broken and buried somewhere in the snowdrifts.

"We've got our eye on her for a few other crimes. I doubt Daphne Greengrass's hands are clean."

"But she was under Goyle's influence!"

"Hermione, we don't know that for sure. She's a Death Eater," he said, finality in his tone. "We'll need proof. Now, Malfoy, are you ready to give your statement?"

Hermione's heart broke all over again as Draco recounted how he suffered at the hands of Goyle. Ron seemed moved by Draco's insistence that Daphne didn't know her sister's killer was her husband-to-be until a few hours ago. It comforted Hermione to think that the immense risk Daphne took in getting the phial of liquid luck over to Draco would surely play well at her trial.

Ron rose and shook his head. "This is something else. I haven't been Head Auror long, and I hope to hold the office for a while yet, but I'm beginning to suspect this will go down as my most interesting case."

He muttered something about paperwork and crossed the tent to huddle with a few members of the team. The tent flap opened as another Auror entered, and Hermione caught a glimpse of the low-hanging moon.

Her next words came out nervous and shaky. "Draco, I have to tell you something that I didn't tell Ron."

"I knew you were holding something back," he said conspiratorially. "What is it?"

"While I was trying to help Daphne… When I thought you were gone," she choked up, and Draco set his cocoa down, gesturing for her to sit in his lap. She climbed on and burrowed into his embrace. "I saw them. Your mother and Astoria."

His grip on her tightened. "I'm so sorry you had to see that. Gods, how awful."

"Yes," she said. "But there's more. She and Astoria… They're ghosts. They spoke to me, they told me you were still alive. And I think, if you're up for it, you should go and see them."

He understood her intentions instantly. "Closure."

"Closure," she echoed. "I think they've both been waiting for you."

"We'd have to end our Vow." Draco dragged his hand down her back, resting it at the base of her spine.

Hermione tilted her head back and met his gaze. "I don't think we need it anymore, do you?"

He drew her face to his and kissed her tenderly. "No. Let's leave it in the past."

They stood and clasped each other's forearms, and with a shimmer of magic, their Vow dissolved. She collapsed into him when it was done, setting her palms on his chest. He was warm and alive and Vow or no Vow, Hermione would never let him go.

Draco tucked a curl behind her ear, leaning in close. "I'll always keep our other vows."

He looked like he might say more, and her heart soared, but Ron returned and shattered the moment.

"Sorry to tell you this, but we couldn't find your wand, Hermione. Malfoy, we've got a few questions for you regarding some human remains we found in your dining room. Apparently the ghosts are being a bit difficult. Would you mind going with Auror Bones?"

Auror Bones waved meekly with her free arm, the other balancing myriad items including a massive clipboard. Aurors probably couldn't use illegal extension charms. Hermione patted her bag at her side, more grateful for it than ever.

"I've no problem answering those, and I think they'd probably like to have a word as well." Draco kissed Hermione again, and while she tried to keep it brief, it was nearly impossible to disengage when he kissed her so thoroughly. Auror Bones made a small sound behind them and they finally broke apart.

Ron, who'd taken a sudden interest in looking anywhere but at the loved-up Malfoys, spoke next. "If it's alright with you both, I'll take you home, Hermione. I don't know how long this'll take. You shouldn't Apparate alone after everything you've gone through here tonight. Plus, I should look over your place, make sure it's safe."

"Thank you," Draco said to Ron, shaking his hand once more.

Hermione followed Draco out of the tent and walked him through the gates with Auror Bones, just to be certain that the magic didn't reject him again. "Tell your mother and Astoria thank you for me."

"I will. Make sure your parents are alright and get something to eat, okay? I'll be back as soon as I can." He kissed her forehead, and she thought she heard Auror Bones groan.

"I love you."

"I love you, too."

He only looked back once, but even the driving snow couldn't obscure his expression. Draco's love for her was unmistakable.

Ron waited for her back at the tent. Hermione tucked her arm in his, and while the world spun around her, she finally felt like she could stop.

00000

Ron whistled and skimmed one hand over the kitchen worktop. "Nice digs."

Hermione set down her bag and took off her boots. The salve was beginning to wear off, and her feet ached horribly. She missed her wand terribly, but at least it could be replaced. "Do you mind waiting? Just for a minute."

"It's been years, Hermione. I think I can handle a minute," he said with his trademark crinkly smile. "I'll heat up some soup or something."

Hermione smiled back. Ron had always known his way around a kitchen, and she was starving. But for now she needed to see that her parents were okay.

She opened the door to find her parents sound asleep, and a bleary-eyed Mrs. Tannenbaum keeping vigil. Hermione thanked her with a firm hug, and assured her several times that Draco was fine and would be back later this evening. The housekeeper refused to leave without Hermione promising to explain everything later. She also suggested a nice hot shower.

After Mrs. Tannenbaum left, Hermione looked at herself in the bedroom mirror. Black tracks of mascara ran down her face, and parts of her hair were matted. She'd shivered and sweat and bled and cried. It had been the longest day of her life. A shower was definitely in order.

She pressed a kiss to her father's forehead, and then her mother's. Although neither opened their eyes, Hermione could swear that when she squeezed her mother's hand, she felt a squeeze back.

Blaise likely lied about the need to keep them on Dreamless Sleep, and without the tea, maybe the outlook would improve. With Padma's help, maybe they would have more Christmases together after all.

When she returned to the kitchen, Hermione found Ron ladling a hearty vegetable soup into a bowl.

"Just one?" She asked.

"There's enough left for Malfoy when he gets back."

"I meant for you," she said, sliding into a chair, but he shook his head no, his shaggy hair falling in his face. The first spoonful warmed her, and in less than two minutes she found herself tipping the remains of the bowl to her lips. Ron sat with her in a companionable silence so familiar it made her chest ache.

After a while, he rose, wringing his calloused hands. "I don't want to leave you, but I've got to go back and wrap things up at the crime scene. The sooner I'm finished there, the sooner I can get home to Nev and start the paperwork."

Hermione nodded, wiping her mouth. "Thank you, Ron. For everything."

"I'm never good in these sorts of situations. Never know what to say. But we missed you. It hasn't been the same since you've been gone. Like missing a tooth. You can still eat, but every time your tongue runs over the space, you remember what it's like to be whole."

Before she could remark on his poignant speech, he continued.

"I know there's more to this story, and you don't have to tell me everything that's happened while you were away. But I hope you and Malfoy will trust me to help you in your fight to change the Ministry. Most of the old guard is still in the Minister's pocket, but I'm not one of them."

"Harry said as much. But how are you managing it? You're Head Auror."

"It polled well," he said with a shrug. "I'm bloody good at the job, too, don't get me wrong. But he'd sack me if people didn't associate me with the victory over Voldemort. I don't approve of any of Podmore's special task forces, and he knows it. He's always trying to poach my people or get me to say something stupid or vile. He can interfere all he wants, but I'm wise to his game. I'll see this case through, and find out what exactly happened with the murders of Narcissa Malfoy and Astoria Greengrass."

"And after that?"

Ron cracked his knuckles before answering. "You've made it loads easier to identify Death Eaters, now that they're all Marked. I assume you have a plan? A lot's changed, but surely you're still three steps ahead of the rest of us."

"You're right, not everything's changed," she said with a small smile. "I have some ideas. But I think we'll all need to be in lockstep if any of them come to fruition."

His face relaxed. "Thank Merlin. Get some rest for now, but let's talk at Christmas."

After one final hug, Ron bid Hermione farewell. She waited a minute or two for Draco, but the urge to wash off the day became too great, and so she put the soup under a stasis charm and made for the bathroom.

00000

The hot water was exactly what she needed. Hermione tilted her head under the steady stream and let the evidence of the day swirl down the drain. She stood there, eyes closed and arms limp at her sides, exhaustion hitting her full force.

Lost in the rhythm of the water, she barely noticed the soft swing of the glass door until a blast of cool air had her eyes fluttering open. Draco tossed two towels over the edge of the glass and stepped into the steamy shower.

Without saying a word, he wrapped her in his strong arms. They stayed that way for a while, and the water beating down on them gradually shifted from hot to passably warm. Only then did Hermione reach for a washcloth.

Still silent, Draco let Hermione take care of him, and she lovingly washed his hair, then his body, taking care with his fresh scar. Then Draco massaged her aching limbs with vanilla-scented soap, and washed and conditioned her hair in turn.

There was nothing left to do, but both of them were hesitant to leave the water behind. Even as their fingers pruned, they clung to each other, never looking away.

"They're at peace now," Draco finally said. "I got closure."

"I'm glad," she told him, finding her voice.

"There's one other matter I don't have closure on, though."

Her heart picked up speed. "No?"

"No, and I can't wait another minute, or another decade. I wanted to do this somewhere else with a ring we picked out together; do it right this time. But I can't wait, because you never know when your luck's run out."

Draco held her face in his hands, stroking her cheeks as the water pelted them. "Hermione Jean Granger Malfoy. We both have a past. I was a little prejudiced shit, and you — well, you were perfect then and you're perfect now," He put a finger to her lips. "Don't argue with me, I'm proposing. We have regrets and baggage and I don't know where we're going to live or what we're going to do now. But every time I see your face, it feels like I'm looking at my future. I want everything with you. Forever."

"Draco," Hermione gasped, her eyes welling with tears.

"And so I want to ask you," he let go and started to go down on one knee, but Hermione went down on hers with him, unable to be parted from her husband. "Will you be my wife, in truth?"

"Yes," she cried, throwing her arms around his neck. "Yes."

He kissed her lips, her nose, her cheeks, and they rose together, uncaring that the water had run cold and they were unspeakably tired.

Hermione felt him harden against her leg, and she swatted his chest playfully. "Padma said we need rest!"

"Maybe we need this more," he grinned.

And she found herself powerless to persuade him otherwise.

Draco gripped the back of her hair and pulled slightly, tipping her face to his, devouring her with confident kisses that had her swooning. He massaged her shoulders before slipping one hand to her breasts and the other around her waist. She arched into his palm when he explored further south, panting as he prepared her with his fingers.

"Granger," he groaned as he finally entered her. " Granger. You're so wet. You love it when I call you that, don't you?"

"Yes, but…" she gasped, her back sliding up and down the slick shower tiles as he pumped into her. "It's Malfoy."

"Damn right it is. But you'll always be my Granger."

Hermione was many things. A dutiful daughter; a loyal friend; a valiant fighter. These things she'd known for most of her life. But as her husband made love to her, Hermione was never happier to learn what it meant to truly be a wife.