a/n: all sorts of changes to the timeline for sure, poka. Some wish fulfillment for me a bit. And some tough choices lay ahead! Thanks for the thoughtful reviews.

Prompt: Forbidden Romance

Chapter 24: Forbidden

The sun hit Draco's face. He rolled over on his side to avoid it. He hated the mornings. They were a reminder that another day had come and gone and his situation hadn't changed. His family was nothing more than servants to Voldemort. Doormats. His father was too defeated to stand up for himself, let alone defend his wife and only child. For a time Draco thought Lucius was a shell of the man he knew growing up. He now understood he was finally seeing the man for who he was. A coward who relied on his name to dictate his position. The name Malfoy meant nothing now. And that's what Lucius was. Nothing. It would be better if he had died.

The thought brought feelings of sympathy for his mother. She still loved the man. How was a mystery. Narcissa was useful to the dark lord in the way a house elf was useful. That was the greatest offense. Draco hated Voldemort for the state his mother was in. Living in constant fear and submission. It was Draco's personal goal to find a way to kill the dark wizard once and for all. Snape told him the end of Voldemort depended on Potter. Draco didn't pretend to understand what that meant. He just knew he couldn't attempt to take Voldemort out until Potter did his job. Which might be never. Merlin knew Potter was too unstable to trust to complete the task.

Draco draped his arm around his companion and pulled her closer to him. He had one thing that mattered to him. One thing that made waking up in the morning worth it.

Ginny pulled his arm tighter around her as she pushed back into him. "It's too early," she said, entwining her fingers in his.

He smiled as he buried his face in her hair. "Late enough that we should worry someone might see you leave my flat." He felt her eyes roll at his worry.

"It's been four years. I think we can agree I'm pretty good at sneaking out of your flat," she countered, and rolled over to look at him. Kissing his lips softly, Ginny traced the scar on his chest. The injuries he sustained in the explosion the night he rescued Hermione made for a convincing story when he had to answer for the events of the night.

"There is such a thing as too much confidence, Weasley. You can never be sure when the Dark Lord is going to grow suspicious of someone and have them followed. I'm not immune to his irrational fears."

"You're right. I guess I can't walk down the street this morning shouting about how good you are in bed."

"As much as I appreciate the assessment, I have a portkey for you today. No walking or disillusionment charms needed."

"A portkey? Those are rare these days. How'd you get one?" Ginny asked.

"I needed to make one for the dark lord and was granted an exception to the portus ban."

"How did that work?"

He understood her question was more than simple curiosity. She was looking for a way around the alert charm that brought ministry officials to the spot where the charm was cast. Controlling travel had been the highest priority for the ministry. Early on they tried tracing the activation of the charm when the portkey was used. That proved too difficult. Instead, the ministry took a page out of the snatcher's book and simply made the charm taboo. "There's a room in the ministry. Normally there's a ton of paperwork and security needed to use it."

"Unless you're there on behalf of You-Know-Who," Ginny finished.

"No one would even look at me. I could have made a hundred portkeys for all they cared," he said, still hating the close association he was forced to flaunt in public. If the war ever ended, his best bet for freedom was to run. No one would really believe he used his name and position to help the Order. He didn't even think an endorsement from Potter would spare him charges of treason.

"Why didn't you make one for your mum? Send her away," Ginny asked, knowing how worried he was for his mother.

He grimaced. That would be an easy solution to his problem. "If I thought I could get away with it, I would. Believe me, I've even considered tricking her into picking one up. She'd come back. She'd always come back as long as my father is alive."

Ginny clicked her tongue. "It's not him that keeps her here and you know it. She'd never abandon you to face the consequences."

He rolled over onto his back. The truth of her words were a double edged sword. He was lucky to have someone love him so much as his mother did and yet that love brought him some of the greatest pain. It was his fault his mother wouldn't save herself. It was also a truth that made him question his current relationship with Ginny Weasley. Ever since he turned informant to the Order, she was his handler. He smirked at the term. He enjoyed calling her that. Part of her took some joy when he did too despite her protests. He kissed the palm of her hand and sat up, swinging his legs over the opposite side of the bed. He loved the red haired witch and that scared him.

"Where's the dark lord going?" Ginny asked, switching rolls from caring girlfriend to Order member.

Throwing a shirt on, he tried not to let it bother him that he was at times a source of intelligence for her and not simply a forbidden romance. "To the north. Some islands."

"Where," she asked more urgently. Draco turned around at the tone. She was standing, suddenly very commanding despite her nakedness.

Draco swallowed the lewd comment he wanted to make at her state, understanding there could be something important in his knowledge. "Orkney. I'm not sure why he doesn't just apparate there. I think he wants to have the option of a perpetual portkey that could take him there. Like a back up for some reason."

"How often would it take him there if he used it?" she asked, pulling her own clothes on.

"It's on demand. But I can tell you the exact spot it would take him to," he answered, feeling himself get excited at her reaction. "What's so important about some muggle islands?"

"The cup. Harry thinks he moved the cup there. Come on, we'll take the portkey together and you'll show Harry and Ron on a map."

Draco wasn't sure about her plan. Mostly he hated dealing with her brother and ex-boyfriend. Draco wasn't sure if either knew about the relationship he and Ginny shared or if they just carried residual hate for him. Either way, they tolerated him and that was it. It went both ways. His partnership with Ron and Harry was out of convenience and that was it. Once the truth came out about Hermione Granger, Draco thought he'd be lucky to simply be thrown into Azkaban. He couldn't even be sure how his girlfriend would react. Plenty of times over the years he had very nearly told her. He told himself he didn't tell her to protect her. It was really to keep him from losing her. Setting his problems for tomorrow aside, Draco picked up the pen that would take them both to a spot just outside Hogsmeade.

Ginny's wand was out and she cast a disillusionment charm on both of them. She knew they merely had to both be touching the pen, still she took his free hand in hers and squeezed it tight before they disappeared.