A/N: Another tricky chapter for me. I originally wrote a very long chapter that included a more detailed version of Malfoy's plan. As well as most of the discussions they had with him about it but I found it too long and I was afraid I'd bore you with too much details. However, the plan is perfectly cleared up in future chapter. So rest assured for I will not let this be a cliffhanger or a plot hole. :)

Draco never hated flying as much as did at that very moment. He had planned on flying them to safe distance from the Manor and then they would apparate, but that safe distance seemed too much for him. His arm was sore and more than once he almost lost control over the broomstick. Yet, what unsettled him the most was Hermione's frame pressed against his back. Was it even possible to be distracted by somebody's breathing?
He brought the broomstick to an abrupt halt, descending with great speed that only caused Hermione to lean closer...if such a thing was physically possible.

Hermione had to hold her breath to prevent the surprised gasp that almost escaped her mouth at their sudden landing. Malfoy was probably provoking her like he did last time, she won't let him do it. She looked back and the top of the Manor was still visible.

"I thought you said we'll fly until we can't see the Manor anymore, I can still see it." she said as she got off the broomstick.

"Change in plan, we'll apparate from here." he replied.

"But why?" Hermione looked at him in confusion.

"I can't fly any longer. Let's go." He replied briefly, grabbing her arm more forcefully than he had intended to.

She glared at him but didn't snatch her arm away. Then came the familiar feeling of being forced down a ridiculously tight rubber tube. They made their way to the house silently and as they entered it, Hermione started tapping her wand on the floor in what seemed like a pattern.

When they descended the stairs Molly Weasly was the only person in the living room. She was holding her wand in front of her protectively but then she lowered it at the sight of Hermione.

"You're back!" she smiled widely at Hermione as she gave her a brief but tight hug. Looking at the boy standing behind Hermione, she gave a little awkward smile.

"Sit down I'll make you some tea." she said as she headed to the kitchen. "Lupin, Arthur and Tonks are out. Fleur went to visit her parents yesterday and Bill's with her. Ginny and Harry are upstairs and Ron...well he said he needed some fresh air. He spends most of the time alone lately, I'm starting to worry for that boy." Molly stared down at the cups she was holding.

"I think he's just stressed by everything that's been happening. We all are." Hermione suggested sympathetically.

She glanced at Malfoy, he had taken off his coat and his injury was now visible through his white shirt. He sat there as still as a marble statue looking at her blankly and she found that she preferred glares, smirks and scowls to icy cold indifference.

Mrs. Weasly offered her a cup of tea which she gladly accepted.

"Oh dear! What happened to you?" Mr.s Weasly squealed looking genuinely worried at the wound she dimly saw through Malfoy's shirt.

"It's healing well." he assured her. She looked like she was going to ask more question about it but she decided against it. Instead, she excused herself saying she was going to let Harry know they were here.

"If you have to feel so antagonized by me then at least don't take it on other people. She was only showing concern!" Hermione muttered in a barely audible voice.

"Number one, it would take a lot more than you to antagonize me. Number two, I believe I was being very polite with her." Malfoy maintained his blank expression, his tone indifferent.

"If your definition of polite is cold and distant, that is!" Hermione scoffed.

"No no no_" Malfoy shook his head"_I am cold and distant with you. But brief and polite with her. Don't mix things, Granger." he corrected.

Before Hermione could reply, Harry and Ginny walked into the living room. After some casual greeting that didn't include Malfoy, Harry asked "So, how did everything go?"

"Well, the cup was indeed in the Lestrange Vault." Hermione replied hesitantly and before she could continue they heard some noise and Tonks was descending the stairs followed by Lupin, Mr. Weasly and Ron.

"Hermione! I didn't expect you to be back so soon." Tonks exclaimed.

"We were lucky." Hermione smiled at her.

"Great, do I take it that our theory was right?" Lupin asked her.

"Yes..but I think a change in plan is needed." Hermione answered.

They all looked at her in confusion, asking the same question silently.

"Well..it was very hard for me to listen to anything important, all the Death Eaters were always gathered in one room that I was never able to enter and when they were out it was hardly safe for me to walk around the house. I almost got caught by one of them." Hermione said. "But then, Malfoy decided to pull a little stunt. I think he'd better tell you about that himself." she looked pointedly at Malfoy who frowned at her for a moment before looking back at the people who were staring at him.

"As I've made it very clear more than once. I thought that plan of yours was going to fail miserably. It was very ridiculous to expect her to roam around the house eavesdropping when there was a Death Eater in every corner." He grimaced at the thought. "So I decided to...give her a push." he tried to choose his words carefully. Malfoy started to explain in full details how his meeting with Voldemort went and Hermione seemed to be the one with the most shocked expression among the listeners.

Harry was looking quizzically at Hermione and she knew the reason behind that look. He couldn't believe she actually told Malfoy about the cup and where it was.

There was a long pause where everybody seemed to be trying to understand what they had just heard. "Hermione, were you with him in that...meeting he's talking about? Did you hear what they've said." Harry was the first one to break the silence, he didn't trust Malfoy and he wasn't ashamed of letting everybody know that.

Hermione hesitated for a fleeting second before replying confidently"Of course I was! I was hiding in a..bathroom adjoined to the room they were in."

She exchanged a brief glance with Malfoy who struggled to keep his surprise hidden.

"Honestly, Malfoy. I'm not sure whether I should thank you or strangle you but I'm so tempted to do the latter." Harry frowned at Malfoy.

"I don't remember a time where I didn't feel like strangling you, Potter." Malfoy retorted calmly.

"Well it seems like you were trying to help but I think you just made it worse. Breaking into the Lestrange Vault was hard, but breaking into the Malfoy Manor and coming out alive is just impossible." Harry explained.

"But we don't have to break into the Manor in the first place." Ron finally spoke.

"What do you mean?" Harry asked

"I mean, Malfoy said he and Bellatrix will take the cup from Gringotts and to the Manor. Maybe we could just attack them and take the cup after they leave Gringotts, right before they apparate." Ron suggested enthusiastically.

"What! You are going to kill him!" Hermione shrieked pointing at Malfoy's direction.

"We won't kill him, Hermione." Ron replied impatiently, adding something inaudible under his breath. "We'll just, umm..fake a battle. I hope we get to kill Bellatrix, though." he grimaced.

"I wasn't talking about you. I was talking about, you-know-who. He Said he would kill him if something happened to the cup. Plus, don't you think it would be very suspicious if the cup gets stolen on the very same day they go to retrieve it? Nobody is supposed to know about that mission except two people. You-know-who will definitely suspect Draco and eventually kill him!" Hermione explained, almost frantically.

Who? Harry thought. "Draco?" Ron repeated incredulously.

"Hermione is right." Mr. Weasly said. "It is very dangerous and you must know that you-know-who is said to have a very suspicious nature, he would probably kill the boy even out of sheer doubt."

Draco grimaced at being called a boy. "I can confirm the suspicious nature part and would like to add that it's actually a paranoid nature, to be more specific." Draco confirmed. "But I have an idea, a much better one." He added confidently.

"I'm sure we're all thrilled to hear that brilliant idea of yours." Ron spat.

"It goes as follows. My aunt and I will bring back the cup to the Manor. It will remain there for a while, and you'll prepare for a battle. A furious one if I might say. During which we'll stage my mother's death and I'll guide you to where the cup is hidden. So it's a win-win situation." Draco explained.

"You engineered this from the start!" Harry announced "You alarmed him about the cup on purpose because you knew he'd resort to the Manor as a hiding place for it. You did all this to secure your part of the deal, stage your mothers death and to hell with everybody who could die in the process!" Harry was furious, fuming at Malfoy.

"Although, I'd really like to take credit for such a brilliant plan, I can't. The dark Lord could be very unpredictable and I was indeed surprised when he decided to move the cup to the Manor. I don't know what it stands for but obviously it's important to him as it is to you. I'll also have you know that I'm helping you, expecting my mother's safety in return." Malfoy reminded

"And I can't stage a convincing death for her anywhere but during a battle, where death is expected but hardly ever noticed. I'm not trying to trap you because if I wanted to, you'd all be dead by now. You want that cup and I'll help you get it which will not be an easy task, but in return I want to guarantee my mother's safety because I don't know if such a chance will ever come again. Don't blame me for trying to think of plan that doesn't include me getting killed!" he tried to reason with Harry

"A fight outside Gringotts won't be any easier, Harry. This time, Bellatrix won't care about catching you or even fighting us. She has direct orders of guarding the cup with her life so she will probably apparate as soon as she could." Hermione interfered.

Long hours had passed while everybody discussed Malfoy's plan and other possible one. After endless questions and particularly suspicious ones on Harry's side, they all seemed to reach an agreement finally. It was getting late and Malfoy kept checking the clock, wanting to go back to the Manor before anybody noticed his absence. His gaze lingered on Hermione for a while, he wanted to talk to her but not when everybody was staring at him like he just grew a second head. Eventually, he picked up his broomstick and announced that he was leaving.

Hermione watched Malfoy intently while he animatedly discussed his plan with a rather suspicious Lupin. He seemed to have it all covered and she knew she was going to have a long night trying to put all of everybody's doubts to rest. He was actually trying to help them and she wasn't going to let any more voices in her head tell her otherwise. He looked at her for too long before leaving, as if he wanted to say something. She wanted to ask him what was wrong but that would catch everybody's attention since they were all looking at him pointedly.

Oh let them notice! It's not like I'm doing anything wrong, Hermione decided finally as he closed the door behind him. She moved to the stairs trying to attract as little attention as possible and failed. As she heard Ron call her name, she pretended not to hear him and climbed the stairs quickly before closing the door.

"Malfoy wait." she called after him. He turned around almost instantly and walked back to her.

"Yes?" he asked.

"What's wrong?" she asked back. "I'm sorry?" his raised an eyebrow at her.

"You looked like you wanted to say something in there, so what is it?" Hermione cleared her question up.

"Why did you lie to them about being with me when I was talking to..him?" he looked at her intently.

"Because they weren't going to believe you otherwise."

"And you want them to?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Because I do. I told you this before but you wouldn't listen. I trust you." Hermione repeated her words in frustration.

"It sounds more believable than the last time you said it." he nodded slightly.

"It's true now and it was true then, I don't care whether or not you believe it." she lifted her chin up defiantly.

He raised his hand, tracing her jawline with his fingers and then moving down to the hollow of her throat. He bowed his head down, bringing his lips closer to her ear.

"I particularly like it when you do that." he whispered into her ear.

A shiver ran through Hermione's body as Malfoy's words slid through her ear. She was too aware of him, his lips brushing against her ears, his hand resting at the base of her throat. He raised his head to look at her and this time it was Hermione who clutched the lapel of his coat and pulled him closer. Desperate to experiment with the physical chemistry that kept nudging at the pit of her stomach every time she was close to Malfoy. Just one try to see how it would feel. But then she heard the door open and he pulled back abruptly. Tonks hovered at the door awkwardly.