Author's note :

Thanks for all the follows and reviews Special thanks to Binchenchen and Meldz who have been reading this story from pretty much the beginning.

Also, someone pointed out that it was a bit confusing as to why the last group would feed them information on the Lupici but then try and catch them. You'll understand a bit in the not this chapter but the next!

Happy reading Xx

Last chapter on Circa Mundi :

All too quickly, the kiss was over and Draco loosened his hold to set her back on the pavement.

"What … What was that for?" she asked, confusion thick in her voice.

"Come on, they should be gone by now," Draco said.

Chapter 9

Half an hour later, the pair managed to slid into another alley a few paces back from the street they had been on.

"This is mad, we won't find Jackson in this city!" Hermione mumbled to herself as she kicked a small rock on the pavement.

"We should focus on getting to safety. You still need that wrist to be tended to," Draco relied as he stepped closer to her. He slowly extended his hand and reached for her broken wrist, Hermione wincing as he grabbed it. Turning it over a few times, a finally muttered a few words and blue light glowed around her bruised skin.

"You can do wandless?" she asked with surprise clear in her voice.

He smirked back at her and let her wrist down.

"Why does that even surprise you, Granger? I clearly remember being only behind you in Hogwarts, surely you've been doing wandless also for years now, no?"

She looked at him for a while and then smiled. "That's for me to know, and you to find out."

"It's a charm I made up for the pain. Used it a lot back in the War. It should help you for a while until we find a hospital or something."

"Are you once again forgetting about Jackson?"

He shook his head and made to get back onto the street however they were both stopped short on their tracks as the soft white glow of a patronus made his way to them. Hermione recognized the falcon as Jackson's patronus and made to get closer to the hovering animal.

"I ran and made them follow a fake track. You should also be safe for now. Meet me in the small village 20 kilometres east of here and we'll make a plan."

Hermione nodded absentmindedly at the patronus and sighed.

"Granger, we should modify our appearances a bit, just to be sure they're not on our trail."

She looked back at the wizard that had helped her escape from a rather uncomfortable meeting with death only a few minutes earlier. He was also staring at her but with a rather complex expression gracing his features.

"What," she let out impatiently. He raised an eyebrow.

"I'm just wondering if you'd be prettier with blonde or black hair," he replied with a smirk.

She swatted his arm angrily and narrowed her eyes at her.

"I'm kidding! I like your hair better this way anyways."

Hermione suddenly tensed and Draco realized what he had just said out loud. "You … Like my hair …"

Draco's expression was back to stone cold and Hermione had a hard time reading anything from his eyes or face. Hermione tried to stifle her laughter but wasn't able to hold it in and burst out laughing.

"That's …(gasp) the funniest … (gasp) thing! Coming from the guy (gasp) … who used to call me a … (gasp) bucktooth mudblood!"

Draco looked on as if she'd gone crazy, not expecting her outburst in the least. He raised an eyebrow at her and waited for her laughter to subside. Moments later, she was still taking in large breaths but seemed to have regained control.

"Can we get to the charms now, Granger? Are you done mocking me?"

She snorted in a very un-ladylike fashion. "Mocking you? I'm sorry, it's just a bit ironic to hear you say that out loud, is all."

"Well laugh all you want but I suggest we get out of her and join Jackson as quick as possible."

"So eager to change subjects now, are we Malfoy?"

And then, the unthinkable happened.

Malfoy blushed.

It was the tiniest speck of red that appeared on his cheeks, but Hermione knew she'd hit a home run with her last comment.

He ignored her and fished to get his wand out of his pocket, turned around to face opposite her direction and started uttering some familiar words.

She laughed again but finally dropped the subject and got her own wand out.

Draco groaned to himself as his appearance changed. Shoulder length blonde hair now just grazed the tops of his ears and was dark brown, his nose appeared softer than the usual Malfoy sharp features and his eyes were now golden instead of their silvery steel blue. It was a spur of the moment thing. That, and the shameless flirting, he reassured himself, thinking back to his compliment on Hermione's hair.

To his defence, the witch had grown out to fuller curves and a more womanly body. Her once bushy hair was now tamer and gracefully fell down her back in long golden locks. Golden locks? Really Draco, what is getting into you?

Finally, he shrugged off the light vest he had been wearing and waved his wand around his knees so that his trousers would shorten to the length of khakis. He turned around to face Hermione was met with quite the sight.

Her hair was a strawberry blonde color with a bit of highlights on the ends and just brushed at her shoulders in wavy strands. Bright blue eyes were staring back at him, surrounded with a touch of makeup that made her already long lashes stand out. She had also changed her outfit, now dressed head to toe in black, the tightest pants he had ever seen on her were making her curves even more present and a bit of cleavage peaked out from her slim sporty tank top.

"Incognito enough for you?" she asked with a dazzling smile.

His breathed had been knocked out of him as he looked her up and down and simply nodded.

"Good, now let's get to finding Jackson," she replied as she stepped back onto the street.

Turning around and following her through the streets, Draco wished he had been the one to lead as he currently had a very fine view of her behind. He groaned and made to catch up to her quick strides before a bump in his pants was sure to make himself known if he kept on staring at her the way he had been.

An hour later, they finally stood on the outskirts of the city they had been in. Hermione used her wand to cast a disillusion spell and them and another to use her wand as a compass.

"This road seems to be leading east anyways so let's just stay on it until my wand says otherwise."

Draco agreed and they set out to walk in a comfortable silence. If his calculations were right and they kept their quick pace, they should be in the town Jackson spoke about in around three hours.

They walked in the semblance of desert most of the time. The small road they were on barely seemed to get any passing cars as the one they had last seen was half an hour ago. Draco was about to give into his ego as he felt his thirst deep in his throat but Hermione beat him to it.

"I'm parched!" she let out dramatically as she stopped and sat down on the side of the road.

The wizard nodded numbly and sat beside her. Both stayed sitting for a little while before Draco got back up and started digging in the sand.

"Malfoy, now is not the time to build a sandcastle," Hermione berated him.

He looked back at her and smirked, and went back to his task of digging around. After a few minutes, he took his wand out and muttered a few words, pointing at the fresh new hole in the ground. Hermione gasped at the sudden sight of water filling up the tiny basin.

"Why didn't I think of that," she muttered as she kneeled close to the small pit. Both of them cupped each of their hands together and lapped at the water for some time.

After quenching their thirst, Hermione thanked him and they got back on the road.

"We should make haste. The sun will set soon and I don't know for you, but I'm not keen on discovering what creeps this desert at night," Draco said while they walked briskly into the desert still.

"Yeah, that and my wrist is killing me."

He slowed down and waited for her to catch up, shaking his head at her.

"Why didn't you tell me it started hurting again? I'll just charm it another time."

"I don't need you to take care of me Malfoy," she replied angrily.

Picking up the pace, she stormed ahead of him, making him resume his earlier task of staring at the view of her tight pants she offered.

"Damn witch … Stubborn as hell …" he muttered to himself a few paces back.

The silence between them resumed and they kept on this way for another hour. Finally, they were able to distinguish a few lights in the distance. Jackson had been right, it seemed it was a really small village they were headed for. As they crept closer to the outline of the village, they were able to make out a few houses here and there, some children running around in the setting sun, women taking down the clothing they had hung during the day.

Before they went any further, Hermione stopped them both and set to send out her own patronus to Jackson. She told her otter to send message for him to meet them at the south of the village in a few minutes time.

"After seeing so many of those, I still can't help but be amazed at it," Draco let out beside her.

"Quite the magic indeed. To be able to muster all ones happiness into the smallest of forms," Hermione said back, obviously not noticing the tone her voice had taken.

"Are you insinuating I can't form a patronus, Granger? That I'm not a happy enough person for the task?"

Hermione quickly shook her head and raised a hand towards him. "I … Malfoy, that's not what I meant!"

"It's ok, guess we can't all be as golden as you Gryffindors are, can't we?"

"I'm sorry Malfoy, I just … I'm tired and my wrist hurts as hell. I didn't mean for that to come out as it did."

He looked back at her and she pleaded him with wide eyes.

"Can you … Can you make one? A Patronus, I mean?" she asked shyly.

He turned back and made to start walking again. She berated herself mentally for offending him when he had been nothing but courteous since the beginning of their trip. Maybe he had changed. She was beginning to see another side of the once-ever-so-arrogant Draco Malfoy, and she didn't know if she was liking it or not.

It was playing tricks on her.

Resigning herself to follow him in silence, for she was certain he wouldn't grace her with a response, she followed him quickly but was surprised when he spoke again.

"That's for me to know and you to find out," he told her while keeping his head directed towards their destination.

She smiled.

She recognized her earlier words and chuckled mentally at the thought of him using them against her.

Maybe he wasn't so bad after all. He was definitely proving to have a sense of humor at the very least.

Upon arriving at the southernmost point of the village, the duo decided to rest once more and sat down on large rocks that had been set out around the road that led out towards another part of the desert. Lifting their disillusion spell, Hermione stood to stretch her limbs and walked in circles around the stones. Draco mostly kept his head down but kept his gaze on her from the corner of his eyes.

Was she stretching like that on purpose?

Maybe the heat was getting to him, forcing certain thoughts about Granger on him.

Still, he had to admit, she had an amazing body. And she was a very good kisser at that.

"Jackson! I thought we'd lost you!" Hermione suddenly yelled out towards the village. She met her partner in a few long strides and threw her arms around him.

"I'm ok Hermione, don't worry about me," he whispered in her neck. The two stood that way for a few seconds before stepping out of their embrace.

Still sitting on his rock, Draco was struck with the oddest feeling in the pit of his stomach. Although Jackson had been nothing but nice and kind since their initial meeting at the hotel, he couldn't help but feel a sudden surge of anger directed at the wizard. Draco finally stood and approached the couple.

Jackson nodded towards him and extended his hand for a firm handshake that Draco accepted. "Thanks for taking care of her," Jackson told him.

"She's very stubborn," Draco replied.

Jackson chuckled and acquiesced. "Damn right she is. She never even lets me close to any of her injuries. Always insists she can heal herself or that she can look out for herself."

Draco turned to face the witch and raised an eyebrow in her direction. It was her turn to blush as she looked down at the sand.

"Speaking of, she had a broken wrist. We need to get her to a hospital or a medi-witch," Draco resumed.

The other wizard nodded and felt around in the pockets of his trousers. He seemed to be searching for a while and it dawned on Draco that he must've been using an undetectable bottomless charm. Finally, Jackson pulled out a small vial that only held a few drops of a dark pink liquid.

"It should start re-growing your bones but you should go to St-Mungo's as soon as you get back to England," he said as he passed the vial along to Hermione. She looked at him in confusion.

"What do you mean, when I get back to England? Where are you going? Weren't we following the Lupici to Ethiopia?"

Jackson laughed and clapped a hand on Hermione's shoulder. She looked at him disbelievingly and waited for his answer. All too suddenly, he took on a grave expression and looked back at Draco.

"I trust you will keep on taking care of her?"

Draco looked him in the eye and tipped his head ever so slightly. He couldn't pinpoint when exactly he had begun to act so protective towards Hermione and this wizard, but a bond had formed since their first meeting at the hotel and he now brought it upon himself to safely bring the witch back to their country.

"Koskela … Where. Are. You. Going." Hermione said angrily.

Jackson winced at her tone and looked back at her. "I had an idea while I flew here."

"You flew here? As on a broomstick?" the witch exclaimed.

"I might've stolen a broom and magicked it but that's beside the point. Hermione, you two need to get back to England and warn Hagpipe of the latest development in our research. I'll fly down to Ethiopia and lay low for a bit, waiting for some information here and there. Then, we can meet back and we'll take our project back and arrange for the Lupici to get out of our way once and for all."

Hermione stared at him as if he'd grew a third eye.

"He has a point Granger," Draco remarked from her right.

The way Jackson had spoken reminded Hermione a lot of Harry. His quick-wit and self-assurance was enough to make anyone follow him and yet, Hermione couldn't help but to question if this was their best course of action.

"Are you sure this is a good idea? What if you get hurt?" she whispered while stepping closer to him.

Once again, Draco grew annoyed on the sideline. He was starting to get sick at watching the two lovebirds and a small voice inside him couldn't help but be overjoyed at the fact that Jackson would be leaving him and Hermione to their own affairs for some time.

"I've seen worse Hermione, you and I both know that."

Her bottom lip quivered as she threw herself into his arms again, hugging him closely before he left for danger again.

"I have an idea," Draco suddenly stated. The two others turned their heads towards him while he fumbled around for his wand. He quickly summoned a form a paper from the closest house and set to write something on it before giving it to the other wizard.

"In any case of emergency, follow these instructions. Help will come to you as fast as possible," he added as he clapped his own hand on Jackson's shoulder. Draco was met with a questioning look but insisted the other man put the paper in his trousers.

"Alright. Thanks mate. Hermione, go back to England with Draco and take care of Hagpipe. We need to get our glyphs in Egypt back before we head-on corner the Lupici."

The witch slowly shook her head in accord. Jackson took her moment of silence as his cue to leave and raised his left hand from his body. The broom he had magicked to come to life whirred to action and came to his side. He lifted his leg and mounted the broom and looked back to Draco in silence. Something transpired between the two wizards in that moment; it was a mutual understanding that both would take care of Hermione, no matter what. Upon meeting their earlier friends, all three of them had understood they were in for more than they had thought this project to be.

"Take care, Koskela," Hermione trembled as she let out the words towards her friend and partner of years.

He smiled back at her. "I will kulta." And with that, he was off into the night, gracefully flying higher and higher up into the night sky.

Hermione stood in a daze, looking up at the sky towards the direction Jackson had just gone. She let out a loud sigh and turned around to face Draco. "Back to England I guess?" She asked him, already knowing the answer.

He slowly trudged his way to her, standing as close as ever. Once again, he took her small wrist into his hand and she let him, never looking away from his eyes. He stared right back at her while he uttered the simple words to his healing spell and then let down her wrist but didn't let go of it. "I'll take care of you, Hermione. We'll get you home."

She cocked her head to the side slowly, well aware that he was still holding onto her but finally not caring in the least at their close proximity. "You just said my name."

"I did."

The word had felt foreign on his tongue. He hadn't ever actually said her name out loud but he quite liked the sensation. His stomach churned as he saw her lips form into a small smile. He decided to change the subject before he started reciting poetry or conjured roses out of nowhere.

He really had to get out of the desert.

"I can apparate us to Turkey tonight. There, I know a couple that owes me a few favors. I'm pretty sure we can rest there for the night and start travelling in the morning. If all goes to plan, we should be back in England in five days or so," he stated in a firm tone. He noticed he was still holding onto her wrist and finally slipped his hand from her small form. He thought he heard the tiniest of whimpers coming from her at the loss of contact but resigned himself that he must've imagined it.

"International apparition… Are you sure… ?" she voiced her concern without any other words.

"You're the one with the broken wrist Granger, let me take care of this."

She raised an eyebrow at him and scrunched her face at him. "You called me Granger just now. What's it going to be?"

He chuckled and took hold of her hand once more. "Whatever suits my fancy, I guess. Old habits die hard."

She laughed along with him and made to take his other hand in her free one. International Apparition took a lot of energy, that she knew from her past escapades with Jackson and the rest of her partners, but she wanted to make this as easy as she could on Draco. He must be as tired as she was right now.

A second later, the two were whirling away through the night after a pop was heard in the now dark desert.

"But Malfoy, we just went past two hospitals! How more long do we have to go?" Hermione childishly moaned. They had been walking through the streets of Ankara, Turkey for the past half hour and Draco had yet to bring them to their destination.

"I'm pretty sure it's just a few more corners," he replied, his face scrunched in concentration. He was looking around at all the apartment buildings and couldn't help but feel dizzy after their apparition. Popping away some 2500 kilometres was a feat he had pulled off recently and he wouldn't admit it to Hermione, but he wasn't feeling as well as he had been earlier.

Hermione stopped all too abruptly and pulled on the hand that was still linked with Malfoy's. They wanted to be sure they wouldn't lose each other in the streets of an unknown city, at least to her, and so they hadn't let go since apparating there.

Surely not because of the warmth and re-assurance he procures you, isn't it, a small voice inside her head said aloud. She rolled her eyes at her conscience and squeezed Malfoy's hand harder.

"Don't kill my hand, woman! And don't worry, I'm sure we've just about reached the right street …"

A bright light came on to the left of them and both were blinded by the sudden ray. They narrowed their eyes at the sudden display and tried to adjust their eyesight.

"Kim var? Sen kimsin?" a voice bellowed a few feet ahead of them.

Draco took a few steps forward, Hermione trailing behind as she kept a firm grasp on his hands.

"Efe?" he asked towards the light.

The outline of a very masculine figure stepped out from the light that had just been turned on. "Malfoy? What are you doing here, old dost?"

Draco let go of Hermione hand and quickly stepped towards the man. In a few strides, he had joined the other man and now stood in a manly embrace. The small witch looked at the scene in surprise, unknowingly raising her eyebrows at the display in front of her.

"Efe, orada ne yapiyorsun?" came another voice, this one feminine, from the doorway.

Both Draco and Hermione looked up at the sound of the new voice, the only difference was Draco stood smiling widely and Hermione scowled at the beauty that stood before her.

"Ayla!" Draco exclaimed as he made to get up the stairs and embrace the newcomer.

Hermione still stood on the street, not understanding in the least what was happening. She had grasped at the fact maybe this was the couple that owed Draco a favor, but really, did they all have to ignore her for the time being?

She coughed once. Twice.

Draco and Ayla were still engaged in deep conversation, having separated from their hug moments earlier.

The two people were absolutely, drop dead gorgeous, if Hermione was anywhere near concerned. Both had dark skin and dark hair but the woman's eyes were light and golden, as if tiny specks of lights came out from her irises whereas the man had next to black eyes. They also seemed very fit and strongly built, Ayla more feminine than her counterpart, but they wore garments than accentuated their own frames in an overly nice way.

Hermione looked down at herself after giving the newcomers a onceover and felt she didn't fit in. He black outfit was rugged from their earlier walk that day and sand was plastered all over her face. Even Draco, that seemed to radiate with happiness at being reunited with old friend, seemed at ease in their surroundings.

"Hermione?" Draco's voice shook her out of her daze.

"What?" she answered more forcefully than she meant.

He looked at her in confusion and finally shook his head, stepping down and reaching for her hand once more.

Why all touchy-touchy all of a sudden? She asked herself. What was the meaning of their partnership anymore?

Hermione dropped her own questions and let herself be dragged into the house by Draco, followed behind by Efe.

"I'd like you to meet some old friends, Efe and Ayla."

"Very nice to meet you," she answered in a robotic voice.

"Such a beautiful kari, Draco!" Ayla said as she ushered them into their home. As soon as the door closed, the light from the outside shut off and the four of them stood awkwardly in the entrance of the small house.

"Oh, she's not my kari, Ayla. She's my partner," Draco replied to the beautiful woman. Her husband chuckled beside her and stretched an arm over her shoulder.

Hermione still didn't fully understand what was transpiring between the three but she knew her wrist was still broken and hurting and her patience was starting to wear thin. She coughed loudly again, trying to get Draco's attention.

"Right, um," Draco started as he caught sight of Hermione's serious gaze. "Ayla, Efe, we need your help. Long story short, my partner's wrist is broken and we need a place to stay the night. Any change you could …?"

Efe clapped his hands together and slammed his hand on Draco's back. The latter coughed, having expected a lighter blow to his back. "Of course, Draco. Anything for you, dost!"

Hermione looked up to the ceiling, praying the higher deities to make her get through the night without fully understanding the foreign language.

Ayla moved towards her suddenly and grasped her by her unbroken wrist. "Come, my dear. We're going to nurse you right back to health." She said to Hermione in a melodic voice.

Were they the equivalent of Turkish Veelas? They seemed to have magical powers of their own, just commanding anyone with that sweet tone of theirs. Hermione was pretty sure she'd follow any of their orders right now, or was it because of her rough day?

As the other woman grabbed hold of her, Hermione turned around and looked at Draco for a confirmation that she wasn't headed to the Hells. He smiled that charming smile of his and Hermione's fears all but melted away.

She couldn't help but to wonder, since when did she trust Draco's judgment?

Maybe since he had saved her from a run-in with a deadly Arab group?

She shook her head and let Ayla lead her through her small home, up the stairs and to the second level of the house. They turned a corner and they came through a small room, a cot located in the middle of it.

"Lay down, please," Ayla urged her on.

Hermione did as she was told and made to lie down on the small bed. The tried to remain awake as much as possible as the mattress underneath her fell back with her weight, the soft material digging up under her back. Gods, I haven't felt this tired in years.

The other woman crept closer to her and Hermione was surprised when she whipped out a wand. She hadn't thought to ask Draco if this couple had been magical of not. Thinking back again, she wasn't surprised that they were wizards, as she reminded herself of Draco's past alliances.

Stop thinking of him in that way. Hasn't he proved himself to be changed enough already? Her conscience sounded deep in the back of her mind. Closing her eyes, she willed herself to forget all about today's events and concentrated on Ayla's soft ministrations to her wrist. She whispered a few words in her native tongue and Hermione felt herself being slowly lulled to sleep.

"Dost, you seem to have found yourself in grave trouble. Am I right?" Efe asked his old friend.

Draco sat in front of him at the small table in the kitchen. Glasses of whiskey had been filled and now stood between them on the table. The blond wizard drummed his fingers on the side of his glass, thinking to himself what would be the best way to explain the situation he was in.

"Far more than I previously thought, Efe," he replied.

His friend shook his head and downed his own glass, promptly refilling it as he set it back on the table. Draco raised his eyes and looked at him, all the while emptying his own whiskey. He pushed the glass towards Efe, silently asking for his own refill, which his friend gladly gave him.

"Your kari has been put to sleep, Draco. Her wrist has been mended and she will sleep through morning, until her body gains back enough energy," Ayla stated as she entered the kitchen. She made her way silently towards the cupboard, where she took her own glass out and waved for her husband to fill it.

"I told you, she is not my kari", Draco responded, his tone slightly raising.

Ayla only chuckled and smiled at him. "Dear friend, the way you look at her, it is as you are meant to be. You might not see it yet, but I do." She gracefully took a sip from her glass, tipped it towards the two men and left the room in haste.

Draco looked towards his other friend and silently dared him to agree with his wife.

"I am not taking sides in this battle," Efe replied with a laugh. "Maybe you should go to sleep to Draco. You look like hell."

"Oh, thanks," he answered, voice dripping with sarcasm.

True, he'd had a long day. But he wouldn't rest peacefully until he knew Hermione was fully back to health. He silently followed his friend towards their living room and thanked him when the couch was charmed into a small bed. It wasn't the luxury he was used to, but it would do for the night.

"Thank you Efe. You've helped me more than you could even know."

"I owed you Draco."

"No. You didn't owe me. You chose to help me."

Efe only smiled and finally left the room, leaving Draco to his peace and quiet. The wizard took off his clothes and settled into the small bed, waving around a few minutes under the covers before sleep took a hold of him.

Author's note : YAY! Another chapter done!

Rough translations :

Kari : Wife, girlfriend, love oned (Turkish)

Dost : Friend (Turkish)

Roughly, the sentences that Ayla and Efe had said when Draco and Hermione were on the threshold of their house what "Who are you? Who's out there?" and "Efe, what are you doing out there?"

Holy crap, I wrote this chapter in a few hours. I've to say, I don't know where the inspiration came from but what I DO know is that my shoulders are killing me and I'm going to sleep it off (as Hermione and Draco are doing) before writing another chapter!

Slow chapter but let me know where you think this is going in the reviews below!

Xx