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How To Train Your Auror	By : Alcoholic_Rootbeer Category: Harry Potter > Het - Male/Female > Draco/Hermione Views: 7512 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, and I will not make a profit from this story.

Chapter List
- 29
- 30
- 31
All the writers keep writing what they write
Somewhere another pretty vein just dies
I've got the scars from tomorrow and I wish you could see
That you're the antidote to everything except for me, me
A constellation of tears on your lashes
Burn everything you love, then burn the ashes
In the end everything collides
My childhood spat back out the monster that you see
My songs know what you did in the dark
So light 'em up, up, up
Light 'em up, up, up
Light 'em up, up, up
I'm on fire
"My Songs Know What You Did In The Dark" by Fall Out Boy
Grass formed at their feet, illuminating like translucent lights beneath them and lighting a path that only manifested under the presence of their shoes. Beyond them was infinite darkness, and behind them the small elevator box sat, ready for departure. Hermione felt Draco's grip in her hand tighten, and he leaned close to whisper in her ear, "You know what I could use right about now?"
"Some Felix Felicis?" Piped up Dean.
Draco snarled under his breath. "Dean, if you want our friendship to blossom, do yourself a favor and quit being such a cock block?" He halted at once, and everyone else followed suit.
"Must you?" Harry rolled his eyes.
"This could be my last moment with her - so yeah, Potter. I must." His silver eyes danced with amusement, hiding the prominent fear surely set in his bones as he leaned down and gently ran his lips across hers. Hermione half-expected to feel the exponential pain that had gone with Diggle's spell, but she then remembered she had asked the Gray Magic a way to break his hold on her. Draco, sensing no discomfort from her, set his lips delicately to hers. Hermione smiled into the kiss, freely accepting it. Dean gave a tiny cough and Harry made a sound that sounded like gagging, but they both ignored their friends and held their lips just a moment longer. When Draco pulled away, there was a new sort of purpose written across his pointed features, and he genuinely smiled. "Right. On we go."
Their feet carried them across the glowing grass surrounded by pitch darkness for what seemed to be miles. Hermione had warned them not to release each other until they could get a bearing for their surroundings. Time seemed endless in this place. She was just about to say something about it when the something brightened inside of the vast emptiness, and a flickering scene before them screamed out through the darkness.
They stood in the grand decadence of the Great Hall of Hogwarts. The time was Christmas, and the Hall was decked out to the nines in decorative ice crystals, Christmas trees, and tables set with white tablecloths that glimmered with a silver sheen. Students were dressed in dress robes and dresses, attempting to sway formally around the dance floor.
"Wow," said Dean.
"Is this…?" asked Draco.
"The Yule Ball," Hermione said quietly.
Harry nudged her in the shoulder. "Mione, look."
All four sets of eyes pried up to the staircase as a beautiful girl in a periwinkle blue dress robes accompanied by Viktor Krum descended to the dance floor. Her hair was slick and pulled back in a beautiful bun atop her head, and she glistened with innocence and glamor.
"I didn't even recognize you when I saw you that night," said Harry. "Why are we seeing this, I wonder?"
Hermione made a bold move and released both men's hands, stepping away from the trio. Someone backed up into her, walking right through her. Hermione gasped, glancing back. It was Ron in his hideous dress robes, gaping with his mouth open as the younger version of herself stepped into the crowd with Krum.
"Ron…" she whispered, but he didn't hear her. He was too entranced by the beautiful girl who paid him no attention. No, she remembered. She had purposely tried to avoid him that evening at the beginning.
Harry's eyes followed hers and he smiled a sad smile. "Those robes were so hideous."
Hermione had a theory for all of this, but she wouldn't be sure until she took a look around. "Come on boys. Follow me."
She weaved her way through the crowd, occasionally sifting through the mob like the ghosts that they were. She paused momentarily when a bit of white-blonde hair caught her eye. Draco nearly ran smack dab into her and put an arm on her shoulder. "Do I always sneer like that?"
Younger Draco was leaning against the punch bowl table with his arms crossed as Crabbe tossed in a few alcoholic draughts from some vials in his pockets. His eyes were distant as his date, Pansy Parkinson, was rambling on about how long it had taken her to find the particular set of heels she had been wearing for the occasion. Why his eyes weren't on the pretty girl in her silver and green dress was beyond Hermione, until… she followed his gaze, which happened to be… oh, but that was silly, wasn't it? Surely he wouldn't have been gawking at her all those years ago? Perhaps he was mocking her in his head. Yes, that had to have been it.
The real Draco put his lips to her ear and said, "Even then, Granger. I just didn't know it yet."
A warm haze spread over her, and she whispered back, "That's flattering."
"Blimey, my robes were awful too," Dean Thomas said, motioning to his table a few feet away. His younger self and Seamus Finnegan were playing with a deck of cards.
"Focus, boys," she told them. "I have a feeling we'll be seeing a certain someone very soon."
Draco's eyebrows knitted together in confusion, but then he glanced up and saw him across the room in less than the time it took for her to slip her hand into his again. Diggle, or should she say a younger version of the bastard, stood against the wall next to a pretty witch with blonde hair and magenta colored dress robes. His hair was shorter, and his eyes were glistening a shimmering blue. Of course they would be. Damn prick could change his eyes when it suited him. Maybe his date liked the color. Either way, the orbs were focused on her younger self as she took to the dance floor with Krum.
"This must have been the first time he noticed you," Harry told her, coming to stand by their sides.
"That's concerning."
"Why would he bother showing us any of this?" Draco asked to the group.
"Why indeed…" Hermione gripped Draco's hand tighter and summoned up her courage to walk across the room to Greg's memory. She got up close, examining his strong jaw. He had less lines on his face, but other than that he was exactly the same as today. "Why would you show us this?" she asked him. "What does this prove?"
"Greg," Diggle's date said from his side, jabbing him lightly in the shoulder. "Did you hear a word I've said?"
"Hmm?" He turned his eyes away from memory Hermione and towards the pretty thing on his arm. "Hey, Wendy. Tell me something. Who is that with Krum?"
"You don't know?" Wendy rolled her eyes. "It's all over the papers, Greg. Honestly. That's Hermione Granger - Harry Potter's friend. She's a fourth year."
"Is she?" His eyes flickered back over to the girl who had peaked his interest. "She's pretty."
"Sure. If you think fourteen year olds are pretty." Wendy stuck out her tongue. "Don't be a creep, Greg."
"What? I can't compliment someone younger than me?"
"This is your last year here. Don't waste your time with girls when you can be with women." She gave him a wink and sipped on her cup of punch.
"Yeah… you're right." He pried his eyes away and laughed to his date. "But I suppose she'll be a woman one day."
Wendy socked him hard in the arm, making him wince. "You're lucky you're cute, Diggle. Or I might break it off with you right now."
"You do know I had five offers to go to this ball? And I chose you."
"Gee, don't I feel lucky." Wendy rolled her eyes once more and downed the rest of her drink. "I'd like some more punch. Think you could fetch it for me?"
"Anything for you, Wendy." He kissed her cheek and walked straight through Hermione to the punch bowl. The group followed him, watching intently. Younger Greg approached younger Draco with a smirk. "Oy, fourth year. Move it."
Younger Draco perched an eyebrow. "Do you know who I am?"
"Someone that's blocking the punch bowl, obviously."
Younger Draco sneered and sluffed off the table. "Whatever." He looked back at the spiked fruit punch and grinned. "You know what? You enjoy." And with that he sauntered off to find Pansy Parkinson once again.
"He's been a part of our lives from the beginning," Hermione observed as the scene dissolved like flickering snowflakes in the night air. The darkness returned, and they all grabbed at each other to keep from the possibility of being separated. The grass beneath their feet lit up once more, and they began to continue their path onwards.
Somewhere between steps, they were in a hospital wing of the ICU. On a whiteboard next to room number 203, 'Diggle, Douglas B.' was scribbled. Hermione's breath caught as she released her old on her friends once more and led them through the mirage door and into the room. Douglas Diggle's face was hardly recognizable from all of the purple bruising and swelling. He was hooked up to a breathing machine, IV's, and heart monitors. Beside him, clutching his father's hand, was Greg. Tears were streaming down his cheeks. "I promise you, father. I swear on everything good that I will find whoever did this to you." Hermione stepped a bit closer, a ping of sadness in her heart. As Greg leaned up to bat away some of his tears, she saw fresh cuts in his father's arm -one's that nearly matched her own. Except instead of the word 'MUDBLOOD', it was the word 'SQUIB'.
"Oh my God," she gasped and placed a hand to her mouth. "Who would do something so terrible?"
"My father," Draco said, stepping up to stand beside her. His face was a mixture of emotions, ranging from disgust to embarrassment. He inhaled deeply, paling. "During the War."
"S'no wonder he has it out for you," said Dean, stepping up next to Draco. "Hell, it looks almost exactly like Hermione's…" His words trailed off as Hermione reached down and clutched her scarred arm out of habit. She could hear her heart pounding in her ears, and she hadn't realized that she was crying until a tear dripped down onto her hand.
"It would explain why he has such a hatred for purebloods," Harry chimed in from the back. "It's a wonder Lucius Malfoy got off with a slap to the wrist." He approached his friends, arms crossed. He squeezed in between Draco and Dean and set a hand on Draco's shoulder. "But you can't blame yourself for your Father's mistakes. And neither can Diggle. Believe me… even my Dad had skeletons locked away in his closet."
"You understand it now, don't you Hermione? My plight?" A soft voice whispered in her head. She looked to the others to see if they could hear, but they stared forward, unaware.
The lights went out again, and the same green, glowing grass appeared.
"It's like we're in a video game," Dean said to the group. Hermione could hardly disagree. Onwards they trudged, the grass lighting their path forward. A few minutes later, it was like the lights in a room had been switched on, and they were standing in the Auror Training Room of the Ministry of Magic. The room was empty, sans Auror Diggle and a man Hermione didn't recognise. He was holding a thick envelope in front of Greg's face. "This was all I could gather, Greg. I'm sorry there's not more…"
"This is perfect." Diggle reached out and snatched the envelope, prying it open to the first page. "Thank you, Gawain. I really appreciate this."
"Of course…" Hermione whispered, though why she did was anyone's guess. It's not like they could be heard. "That's Gawain Robards! He was the Head of the Auror division until Harry took over."
"Just… don't get your hopes up, alright?" Gawain patted him on the shoulder. "There's a war going on, Greg. Your father was a hard loss for us all. But don't let it consume you, yes?"
"Yes." Greg nodded. "Of course."
"You've got such a promising career here. Wouldn't doubt if you took over my job someday." He smiled warmly at his ward and left the room. Greg smiled.
The room dissolved once more, and then they were standing in the Entrance Hall of the Ministry. A hopeful looking Harry Potter and Ron Weasley stood proudly near the floos, waiting on someone. With a whoosh of flames, Hermione Granger stepped through the floo nearby, adorned in black and white dress robes and a briefcase. "How do I look boys?"
"You look gorgeous, Mione." Ron leaned over and kissed her on the cheek. The real Hermione stood only feet away, apprehensive and saddened. She'd never feel him kiss her cheek again. The memory Ron continued. "Are you excited about your first day on the job?"
"Am I ever!" She held up her briefcase excitedly. "I've already created three proposals to new amendments in the laws preventing House Elves from the equal pay unions! Isn't it great?"
Memory Harry rubbed the back of his head, smiling. "Sure, Hermione. Just… I don't know. Take it easy on them the first day, alright?"
"What's that supposed to mean?" Hermione frowned.
"It means we're used to you going above and beyond," chided Ron, "But the rest of the world isn't. Maybe let them get to know you first so you don't come off as… pushy."
"Pushy?" She frowned.
"Did I say pushy? I meant overzealous. Zealous is a word, right?"
"Yes, Ronald. It's a word." She leaned up and kissed him on the lips. Someone approached Harry from the side - someone with brown, moppy hair and emerald eyes.
"Hello, Potter." Diggle smiled warmly, hands tucked behind his back. "The Minister wants a word with us regarding our trip to Spain last week."
Harry Potter blanched. "You didn't tell him I set those Thestrals free, did you? Look, my friend Luna would have never let me live it down if I hadn't-"
"Relax, Harry." Diggle rolled on the balls of his feet. "I think he means to congratulate us."
"Oh…" Harry sighed. "Good."
"Who's your friend?"
"Oh. Erm… Hermione, this is Greg Diggle." Harry motioned from his partner to his best friend. "Greg, this is Hermione Granger."
"Pleasure," Hermione curtsied.
"Charmed," Greg gave a small bow. "I've heard quite a bit about you, Miss Granger. Harry speaks very highly of you."
"She's my girlfriend," Ron said quietly, eyeing Diggle up. "So… yeah."
"Does he?" Hermione laughed, pushing Harry playfully in the shoulder. "Well, I'll have to stop saying such terrible things about him, won't I?" She hugged Ron tightly and kissed him once more. "I'm going to be late. Lunch, though?"
"Lunch." Ron nodded happily as she took off down the Hall to the check-in desk. "So nice to meet you!" She called to Diggle.
"Likewise, Miss Granger!" Diggle grinned.
The voice in her head spoke again. "I've always had a soft spot for you. Even if you didn't notice me."
"I had forgotten all about that…" Hermione said to the group. "We didn't speak anymore after… How could I not have remembered that?"
"Maybe little Diggle wasn't important enough to be stored away in your memories," Draco said, smirking.
"I have a theory," Hermione said after a time.
"You always do," Harry replied. "Go on."
"The Gray Magic amplifies the magic that's already inside of someone. But it can only amplify what we already know. So, for instance, if I didn't know how to create a certain spell, the Gray couldn't give me an amplified, tougher version. It would simply be confused. It must be why Diggle isn't able to recreate whatever Draco knows - because Diggle doesn't know it yet."
"What does that have to do with the memories?" asked Draco.
"Think of this like the second trial. It projected images into a scene and made you believe they were real. I think Greg is using the same principle, but he's projecting his memories onto the canvas instead."
"So… we're in Greg's memories?" offered Dean.
"Precisely."
"But why? Why show us any of it?"
"Not us. Me." Hermione swallowed down a bit of vomit at the thought. "He's trying to show me how he feels about me. He's trying to convince me to side with him."
"Well, he's daft if he really thinks you would side with him," Draco scoffed. "He must be getting pretty desperate. Perhaps he fears that your magic is stronger than his?"
The lights came up again, but this time, it was in the sparring room one week into training. Hermione watched herself as she disrobed in front of Draco. Quickly, she turned around to watch Diggle's expression - she hadn't noticed it that day because she was too busy trying to comfort Malfoy about his Mark. She watched as Diggle's eyes scanned down her arm to the scarred words and his lips tightened. To the untrained eye, it might look like he was simply watching - but Hermione knew Diggle's tells now. It had struck a thick chord in him watching her expose her Mudblood arm. And she knew why. Because it was so much like the one his father had been branded with.
"That's why you wanted to protect me," she said to the memory. "That's why you stowed me away today."
"Don't tell me you're buying what he's selling," Draco sneered.
"I… I just feel a bit sorry for him, is all." She turned her head to Draco and chewed on her lower lip in thought. It hadn't occurred to her that Greg Diggle might have been a victim of war, same as the rest. He might not have been in the thick of it, the way Harry or Draco or even herself had, but… he'd still been poisoned by it.
The scene gave way, leaving nothing but the darkness once again. Not too far off in the distance stood a turret made from black bricks and attached to a pretty little home between two Oak trees. But that tower… it hadn't been there the last time. "I… I know this place…" Hermione gasped. "It's the place Diggle took Astoria and I to…"
"He took you here?" Draco asked quietly.
"You know this place." Harry frowned, turning to the blonde.
Draco nodded. "This is where I'd meet with Cane. That tower, there. It's the one I burned down, eventually."
A dark tower. Hermione shivered. The Gray Magic had shown her this place for a brief moment. She wondered if she should tell the others, but someone apparated on the front doorstep of the house, and she fell silent to watch Draco Malfoy knock on the front door. It opened for him, and he turned to look over his shoulder before he stepped into the house and shut the door firmly behind him.
"Let's follow," she said, and they set off at a brisk pace up to the steps leading to the front door. The scenery around them shimmered again, and they were standing in Bastian Cane's study. Draco was busy rolling the Pandora Stone around in a chemical beaker as it drowned in clear liquid that frothed at the top. Bastian Cane entered through a thick wooden door and smiled to him.
"Draco," he said.
Draco raised his head and nodded curtly. "Cane."
"Already set to work, I see."
"Yeah." Draco pried his eyes away from the beaker long enough to notice the book in Cane's hands. "What's that? Doing some reading?"
"This? This is something I found in my Father's library the other day." Bastian Cane tossed the book on Draco's work bench, vibrating the equipment. The look Draco gave Cane could have burned a hole through his head if there were any magic behind it. "I think it will help us."
Draco raised an eyebrow and scoffed. "It looks like it's made from skin."
"It most likely is."
The blonde strolled over to the other side of his workbench and waved a hand over it. "What sort of magic is that?"
"From what I can decipher, it's Gray Magic."
"What?" He raised his eyebrow. "There's no such thing."
"That's what they said about Pandora's box, but you've seen proof of that yourself."
"Yeah, I've been meaning to ask you. Where did you get it?" Draco nudged over to the stone. "It must have cost a pretty penny."
"I've my resources. And money's no object."
"From this dinky place I'd never have guessed." Draco smirked. "You really should do something with the home, Cane. It's a mess."
"I leave it the way it is as a reminder."
"Reminder of what?"
"That I must never forget my roots if I'm to accomplish my future endeavors." Cane smirked.
Hermione looked around the room, realizing… "It was his father's home. That's why he never changed it."
"Why don't you give it a go, Malfoy?" Cane asked Draco, pushing the book closer.
Draco glanced up at Cane and back down to the book. With a heavy sigh, he pulled the book open and stared at the writing. "It's gibberish."
"The book requires a price for its services," Cane explained. He reached out and grabbed Draco's wrist, pulling it close to him.
"What are you-?" Draco started, but was cut off when Cane pulled out a small pocket knife from his pocket and slit his friend's palm. Draco hissed in pain as his blood spilled over the pages. But then his face grew bewildered. "I can read it."
"Yes." Cane nodded.
Another image from The Gray Magic. A knife.
"This is unbelievable…" Draco scanned his eyes over the pages, soaking in the runes. "This would prove so many theories… Cane, you have to show this to someone."
"I am. I'm sharing it with you."
"You know that's not what I meant."
Cane laughed. "You always did have a sense of humor. Why on Earth would I want to share these secrets with anyone? Imagine if this fell into the wrong hands. Imagine what Voldemort would have done with this kind of power? No. This magic should stay between those who would use it for the better."
Draco took his time reading the book, flipping through each page with scrutiny. "The more magic you consume, the greater the price. So what are you offering to the book?"
"Simple." Cane reached over the table and picked up the vial with the glowing blue stone. "I'm going to connect its magic to the Pandora Stone. Once I do that, I will have unlimited power."
"Because the stone absorbs magic. So you're feeding magic with magic?"
"Exactly."
"I have to give it to you, that's not half bad."
"Thank you, Draco." Cane smirked. "With the Gray Magic, I'll be able to advance our research tenfold. What will you offer it?"
Draco scowled. "I'm not going anywhere near that stuff."
"But the benefits-"
"The only benefit I need is here." Draco pointed to his forehead. "I'm not about to delve into something I don't understand. I'm already chin high in that as it is with this stone. No, you have at that stuff, Bastian. I'd rather not run the risk of trading something I can never get back."
"You turned down the Gray Magic," Hermione said to the real Draco, turning her head to him. He closed his eyes, remembering.
"I thought about it a million times. I thought about doing it just to see if it could remove the mark. And I did, once. I went to the book and opened it. I asked it what it would take to remove something like the Mark."
"What did it say?" asked Harry.
Draco's eyes pulled back open and he clenched his jaw. "It wanted a life. Freely given, the way mine had been to the Mark. Astoria had just become pregnant… It frightened me."
"And that's why you left?" Hermione asked.
"I could see what the Gray Magic was doing to Cane. Turning him bitter and heartless. He said it was all for the muggles, but I could see it was driving him mad." Draco swallowed hard. "That's why I'm so pissed at you for getting involved with it, Hermione. There's a reason our ancestors buried that kind of magic deep down so that we couldn't find it."
An infant. That's what the Gray had wanted for Draco's freedom.
"It wanted your son? As payment?" asked Dean.
The Gray Magic inside of her tugged roughly at her, as if it were trying to tell her something. She scolded it. She just couldn't believe something that lived inside of her could be capable of such a thing. She thought of the other images that the Gray book had given her. A dragon. Her eyes drew up Draco's face and she realized: the dragon the book referred to was Draco. It was in his name. But why would the Gray Magic show her all of this? What did it have to accomplish?
The scene dissolved once more, returning them to the black. This time, not even the grass appeared.
"I never went mad, Draco," Ssaid a voice from all around them. The four jumped in response, eyes searching every which way for Gregory Diggle. He appeared in front of them, sitting quietly in a large, red plush chair. One of his legs was drawn up next to him, his arms draped lazily over the armrests. "The Gray enlightened me. -You understand, don't you Hermione? You, out of everyone, understand the Gray's potential. How powerful it can be. How it can do just about anything you can will it to. I had to use it - and now you see why. With this power, I can protect people like you and me from ever having to have their hearts broken again." He rose from the chair, palms out. "What happened to you - those marks you received… they should have never happened. But it's because of people like him,." his eyes trailed over to Draco,. "tThat people like us suffer. You see now? Why I have to tear down the Ministry and its ridiculous rules? It protects those with magic, but seeks no justice for those without it. But with the Gray, you and I have the potential to mold the new world into a place that will protect them. Isn't that something you've always aspired for? For the little guys to have a voice? Isn't that what drove you for your work with the S.P.E.W.?"
His questions beat at her conscience with astonishing ferocity. She took a step forward, wand drawn. "You say you want to protect muggles from those who would do them harm. You make it sound so innocent, but… but you killed Ron!" Tears rolled down her cheeks suddenly. "How could you even stand there and pretend to care about me when you took away the one person whom I loved more than anything?"
Greg nodded slowly, processing her words. He sighed a dull, bored sigh and offered one hand out. "You want to know what happened to your husband? I can show you. You just need to come with me."
"She's not going bloody anywhere with you," Draco growled, stepping in front of Hermione like a shield. She smiled meekly; the cowardly lion had finally grown some courage after all.
"You'd deny her the answers she's craved for so long?" Diggle asked, quirking a superior eyebrow. Draco puffed out his chest a bit more, wand trained at his adversary.
"Anything you'd have to say to her, you can say to the rest of us."
"Yeah," Dean said, stepping up beside Draco. "What he said."
"Et tu, Dean?" Greg smirked.
"Malfoy's right." Harry also stepped forward, all three of them shielding Hermione. "You want her? You'll have to take the lot. That's just how this family works."
Through the cracks between shoulders, Hermione could see Greg's dissatisfied expression as he yawned. "Very well. No need to bring down the entire big brother's club on me." He snapped his fingers, and the scene lit up like Christmas. At the same time, Draco, Harry, and Dean disappeared from her line of vision and reappeared, each in his own corner of the room, leaving just Greg and Hermione in the center.
Draco was the first to move, but an invisible barrier smacked him in the face as he took a step forward, and he barreled back into the corner, perturbed. "Oy!"
"I said you could watch," Diggle smirked, glancing around to the men. "But I never said you could be a part of the fun." He winked to Draco. "Don't worry, Malfoy. You and I will have our turn yet." Hermione raised her hand to take down Diggle's barriers, but he flashed her a warning glare and shook his finger at her. "If I even think you're about to use your magic before we're done, I'll snap their necks. And I'll start with dear Harry first. Do I make myself clear, Hermione?"
She cast a glance to each of her friends, feeling the crippling defeat wash over her. She wasn't as trained as Diggle was with Gray Magic. If she even made one mistake or hesitated for a moment, she could get them all killed. She'd come up with something else, she told herself as she conceded and nodded to him. "Yes. You're clear as day." Her words were crisp. Diggle grinned and glanced around the room. "Recognizse where we are?"
Hermione spun around, taking in the scenery. It was a living room, quaint and sparse with a poorly stitched orange sofa and mismatched throw pillows and recliner as it's only furniture. The walls were a soft yellow - yes, she remembered picking out that yellow. Canary yellow, if she remembered correctly. This was their home; hers and Ron's. Ever since his death, she hadn't stepped back inside of it. The deed was still in her name, but it was gathering dust, much the way Diggle's house had been. "Why are we here?" Sshe squeaked out.
There was a whoosh from the fireplace that startled Hermione and she jumped back; two men stepped out of the floo. One of them had brown, moppy hair and the other wore his hair red. Ron stepped out first, hands in his pockets. His face was unreadable, but tense. Maybe as if he were trying to conceal his emotions. Greg stepped out next, brushing a bit of dirt from his robes.
"Auror Weasley, do you mind telling me what we're doing here?" asked Greg. "I promised Dean we'd go to lunch together."
"Oh? Am I cutting into your time?" Ron said, his back turned to Diggle. "So sorry. Should I have made an appointment?"
Diggle frowned. "I'm sensing some hostility in your voice."
"You're damn right you are." Ron spun on his heels, eyebrows furrowing. "I'm going to give you one chance, Diggle. One, because you're my mate's partner. If you weren't, I'd be going to the Minister himself right now."
"What's this all about?"
"I know." Ron jerked a piece of paper from his pockets and shoved it up at eye level for Diggle to see. "I know you've been pilfering money from the department. You're good, I'll give you that, but I've got the evidence and I'm going to go to the Minister unless you give me a damn good reason why I shouldn't."
Diggle crossed his arms and smirked. "Is that all this is about?" he chuckled. "Really, and here I thought I was being accused of something more pressing. -Yes. I took the money. But for good reason, Weasley, I assure you." He glanced around the room. "Is this your home? Adorable."
"Shut it with the small talk, Digs. You better start explaining. Now."
"Of course. Of course." Diggle uncrossed his arms and rested them gently at his sides. "I'm not doing anything nefarious with the money. I'm using it to research."
"Research?"
"Yes. On how better to protect the Muggle community. My colleague and I are developing some technology that I think will soon be beneficial to muggle born families, such as your wife's."
Ron's eyes narrowed as he soaked in Diggle's words. "Yeah? And what would you know about Hermione?"
"Harry talks quite fondly of her. I've heard many stories - about all of you."
"Hmph." Ron crossed his arms. "I'm not as thick as I seem, you know. I see the way you look at her."
"Pardon?"
"The way you look at my wife. When she comes in to run me lunch or stops by the office, you always stop what you're doing to watch her. If you think I don't see it, you're the daft one."
Diggle shrugged. "Whatever you think you're seeing, I assure you, you're quite wrong. I just admire her. That's it. She's a wondrous War hero. The only thing that keeps running through my mind when I'm looking at her is how she ended up with you."
Ron was fuming. "If you're trying to convince me not to go to the Minster, you're doing a bang up job." His sarcasm wasn't lost on Diggle.
"My apologies." Diggle threw his hands up. "I could show you, if you'd like. What we're doing. And if you're not convinced by the end of my demonstration, I assure you that I will gladly turn myself in. Does that seem fair, Auror Weasley?"
Ron's blue eyes glimmered as he debated with himself. After a few moments, he nodded. "One chance, Diggle. That's it. And if you try anything, this isn't the only copy that I have." He shoved the parchment in his pocket. "When?"
"Tomorrow? Lunch time? We could apparate if you'd like. I'm afraid the floo hasn't been set up in quite a few years."
"Sure it's not to make it untraceable to the Ministry?" Ron scoffed. "Fine. Send me the address."
"Very well." Diggle bowed politely. "Thank you for being… so understanding, Weasley. I really appreciate your discretion on this matter."
"I'm not doing it for you," Ron replied,. "I'm doing it for Harry. Remember that."
"Yes. Of course." Diggle stepped back to the fireplace and strummed his fingers along the mantle. "I think you'll find our research will light a fire in you." He smirked and stepped inside the floo. "Until tomorrow."
The scene dissolved away, and Hermione realizsed with a ping of fear that so had Harry, Draco, and Dean.
"I hope you don't mind if I don't show you the next bits?" Diggle said, smirking. "I did meet with your darling husband, as Bastian Cane. I showed him my research. I tried offering him a seat of power in it all. But then he drew his wand on me…" He shook his head, feigning sadness. "Needless to say, I had to put him out of his misery." Hermione's eyes darted around for any sign of her friends as she listened to him continue. He took a step closer to her.
"But… but Harry said you were with him the day that Ron…" she said quickly, buying time. She reached out with the Gray magic to sense them, and honed in on one particular soul. The one that the Gray magic was most drawn to.
"Well, I had to give myself an alibi. When I sensed Weasley's disinterest in my endeavors, I knocked him out with my sleeping powder and locked him away with a Pandora Mine. Actually," he chuckled to himself,. "It was Draco's very first one. So in a way, I suppose you have him to thank for your husband's untimely demise. My, how it all comes full circle."
Hermione smiled sweetly up to him. "Indeed." She snapped her fingers. There was a sound like cracking glass, and behind Diggle's back the blackness burst apart and scattered. Draco Malfoy emerged from a sea of white, out of breath and sweaty, but smirking all the same. Diggle turned on his heels just as Draco waved his wand and shouted, "Confringo!"
The ground beneath Diggle's feet exploded, sending him flying backwards into the air to land hard on his back. Hermione gathered the magic around her and snapped her fingers twice. Two more cracks in the blackness burst apart, revealing Dean and Harry.
"Holy shite." Dean said, panting. "That was, by far, the freakiest experience of my life."
"Tell her about it later," Harry scolded him. "Focus!"
Hermione swiveled on her toes and turned to face Greg as he struggled to his feet. His hair was disheveled, and he looked to be in a fair amount of pain. Good. "I'm going to give you one chance, Greg, to do the right thing. Give us the Pandora Stone and disarm your boxes."
"You really think you're a match for me, Hermione?" Greg laughed. "I give the Gray unlimited power through that stone. What makes you think your offer is more powerful than mine?"
"Because." Hermione glanced over to Draco, breaking out into a warm smile. "I offered the Gray knowledge. And do you know what it found most inspiring? Love." She reached out and grabbed Draco's hand, weaving her fingers between his. Her eyes stayed locked in the silver flecks of his irises. "The Gray magic didn't want to take your baby, Draco. It wanted to experience it, through you. Because the one thing it craves more than anything is love." She turned her head towards Diggle. "And it's love that's going to defeat you, Greg. Because I'm surrounded by it. Through my friends. Through my memories of Ron. And through him." She pulled Draco's hand up with hers to eye level. "And that's one thing you'll never understand. Is that love can change you. It can turn a broken Death Eater into a caring Father. It can change someone's perceptions of the world and strip away prejudice. What you're doing isn't out of love. It's out of revenge."
She extended her free hand to him.
"Come on, Greg. I know you have it in you to turn this around. Please. If you care about me, you'll stop what you're doing." Her voice was soft and kind. "I know there's good in you, Greg. You've just got to believe in yourself again."
Greg Diggle faltered for a moment; his green eyes softened, and his hand crawled slowly into the air as if to reach out to her. But then his gaze turned to Draco, and his eyes faded into that murky black. "…You'd choose that worthless swine? The one that tortured you over and over again? The one whose family brought about so much destruction?"
"He is not his family." Hermione replied. "And neither are you. Is this what you think your Father would have wanted? Honestly?"
"My Father…" He closed his eyes. "My father isn't here to say what's right or wrong!" Fire burst from his skin, blazing around him and licking the air in a brilliant display. The flames did not burn his skin, but his clothes began to singe and melt from his body. "My father was taken from me! By his! I deserve my revenge!" The flames flickered into a blue haze. Diggle had lost all control - his body began to shift between the faces of Cane and himself as if he couldn't ascertain which to identify with. Hermione's Gray magic called out to her to warn her that he was out of control. She listened, backing up and creating a barrier between her group and Diggle. The Gray magic had predicted this too. A man with two faces. Death. Destruction. Fire.
"Greg!" She shouted to him. "Greg, you need to control yourself!"
"No, Hermione." His voice rang in two pitches, like the voice of Cane and Diggle all at once. "What I need is my revenge." He cast out his hand and a fireball the size of a Quaffle burst out of his palm, careening in Draco's direction. Hermione concentrated, moving her arms further apart to expand the barrier. The fire burst apart upon impact with her spell. Draco squeaked a gasp of surprise and then narrowed his eyes.
"That all you got, you sodding bell end!?"
"Draco!" Hermione scolded. "Don't antagonizse!"
"Malfoy, listen to her," said Harry.
Diggle smirked, waving his arms to create a massive hurricane of flames and wind that beat against Hermione's defenses. "I bet you think your love for your friends is powerful, but you know nothing of power." He pushed his hands out further, and her feet scraped backwards across the floor.
"I don't think my magic is going to hold!" Hermione shouted to them.
"Well then," Draco smirked, standing by her side and raising Diggle's wand. "Let's just help with that. Protego Maxima!" Blue light shot forth from his wand and wove between the Gray magic, firming it. Hermione sighed an anxious breath and nodded. Harry and Dean joined in, casting Protego Maximas of their own, until the shield was one solid, see through mass.
Diggle, realizing his plight, ran at the barrier and slammed his fist against it. The power that came behind it was frightening - like the strength of a giant. Hermione slowly lowered her arms, her barrier still intact. She looked to the men around her and smiled. "Hold the spell, boys."
"What?" Draco glared at her. "Where the Hell do you think you're—Hermione!"
She stepped through the barrier to the other side, face to face with Gregory Diggle. His chest was heaving up and down, and his eyes stared wondrously at her as she raised her hand and touched his cheek. The flames went out instantly. His face stopped shifting, and rested on his original face with soft green eyes and boyishly handsome looks. Quietly, Hermione placed her other hand on the other side of his face, and she leaned up, pulling his face down so that they were both nose to nose. "I forgive you, Greg," she said. "I forgive you." Tears were streaming down her cheeks. "For everything. For Ron. For the Ministry. All of it." She stroked his cheek, nodding. White light burst from both of their bodies, and Hermione could feel her Gray Magic reaching into his body. Love pulled at each stitch, unraveling his bond with the Gray. Love for Harry. For Dean. For Scorpius. For Astoria. For Ron. For Draco. Her heart was full of it, and in one brilliant sweep of her thumb across his cheek she destroyed his connection. Greg Diggle gasped, and his knees buckled. He fell to his knees before her, naked and vulnerable, his face still cradled delicately in her hands. "But I won't ever forget." She drew her knee back and then forwards, landing a cutting blow to his face. Diggle fell backwards as blood spilled from his nose.
Hermione smiled proudly at the disoriented Greg Diggle. "That one's for Ron. -He's all yours, boys." She snapped her fingers and the barrier crumbled into a pile of ash.
Diggle, finding is senses, struggled to sit up and cast his hand outward - nothing happened. Not a single thing.
Draco smirked, stepping up to the plate as he hovered above him. "Oh, did the big bad witch take away your favorite toy?" He reached down and yanked Diggle up to stand. "I'm going to enjoy this." He threw a nasty punch into Diggle's jaw, and Greg fell down to the floor again. "That one - well, that one's for me." He glanced down at Diggle's naked form. "Hermione." He smirked back at her. "Hermione, do you see how little it is?"
"Really, Malfoy?" Harry brandished his wand and from it burst magical-defusing cuffs that snapped quickly around Diggle's wrists.
Dean put his hands over his eyes and waved his wand, conjuring up a pair of trousers on Greg's legs. When he was sure that Diggle was clothed, he removed his hand and shook his head disappointedly. "We were karaoke buddies. And you broke that bond. I don't even know who you are." He reached down, pulled Diggle to his feet and pushed him forward with the tip of his wand. "So disappointed in you. You made a marvelous tenor."
"I have to say," Draco said, bringing Hermione out of her thoughts and back to reality. "You really surprised us all back there."
"Yeah?" She smiled.
"Oh yes. All that bit about love." He quirked an eyebrow, slipping a hand around her waist. "That was quite clever."
"Yes, well…" She blushed. "I suppose I am that."
"No." Harry put a hand between them and pushed his face into their personal space. "Not in front of me. Do you hear me? You two can at least wait until we're back in the Ministry. We have a lot more to sort out and… and I don't need to see you two… do… whatever this is." He wagged his hand between them.
Draco smirked and brought Hermione's hand up to his lips to kiss her knuckles. "It's called love, Potter."
"What?" Harry blanched, stepping back.
"What?" Hermione whispered, the blush crawling back up her face to stay there. Her mouth became very dry, and she forgot how to stand. Her knees buckled, and Draco grabbed at her, the hand around her waist cradling her into a perfect dip that brought their faces nose to nose. "W-What?" she said again.
"Oh, you're going to try to deny it now?" He quirked up that infamous eyebrow and brushed the tip of his nose against hers. "I told myself that the moment that this was all over, I was going to tell you how I felt. So…" He stumbled over his words quickly, "I-guess-what-I'm-trying-to-say-is-that-I'm-in-love-with-you." He paused momentarily, mustering up more courage. " I love you. So what are you going to do about it, Hermione?"
"You…" She reached up and brushed back a bit of his hair from his eyes. "You love me?"
"Did I stutter?"
"N-No…" She chewed on her bottom lip and averted her gaze for only a moment before reaching up and smothering him and a heated, passionate kiss that nearly toppled them both over. When his tongue met hers, she sighed, coming to the firm conclusion that she supposed it felt amazing to hear someone say those words to her again and mean them. And it felt even better as she realised that, beneath it all, she was in love with him too.
(attempts to start a slow clap with everyone in the audience) clap...clap...clap... Snape... Snape... Severus Snape! DUMBLEDORE!
Anyways, we have one more chapter left. One more to wrap it all up. I will be answering reviews, pointing out the Easter Eggs, and giving some various Author's Notes at the beginning and end of the next chapter. Are you ready? Only one more...
But fear not! Because... dum dum DUM! How To Train Your Auror 2. It's a thing. It's happening. XD
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Love, A.
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How To Train Your Auror