“Sneaking around school grounds. I am surprised at you, Draco,” Snape snapped, his black eyes moving quickly around the grounds to ensure they were quite alone.

Though Hermione had tried to move, Draco kept his grip firmly on her waist. She knew this, in and of itself, was a declaration of his feelings for her. He wouldn’t pretend or hide now that they had been caught.

“Severus…” Draco said slowly, appealing to his godfather.

“Draco,” Snape cut across him. “You may go to your dormitory. I’d like a word with Miss Granger… alone. ”

The way Snape’s eyes flashed in the darkness gave no room for argument. Draco gave Hermione a small squeeze before extricating himself from their embrace.

“I love you,” he whispered as he moved around her and made his way towards the dungeons so quickly, she didn’t have a chance to respond.

Without him, Hermione began to tremble – from the cold and fear of now being alone with her least favorite professor.

“Come girl, there’s no need for such theatrics,” Snape admonished, gesturing to her imperiously to follow.

Silently, they made their way down to Snape’s office. Questions continued to circle Hermione’s mind: was Snape upset over her and Draco? Did he already know? Would he take house points for finding them in the grounds? Would she be outed to the rest of the school? Surely not. Snape was Draco’s godfather – Lucius’ best friend. But she couldn’t deny her misgivings about the sallow man gliding soundlessly in front of her.

Eventually, Snape stopped in front of the door of his office, robes swirling in that same bat-like manner as he held the door open for her. His office, as always, was dark and dank with a considerable draft. It surprised her when a gentle warmth tickled over the exposed skin of her arms and face.

“Thank you, sir,” she said meekly for Snape’s warming charm.

He didn’t reply, merely leaned ominously against his desk while she took the seat he offered her, his eyes never leaving the bracelet sparkling on her wrist. She thought, perhaps, she saw a hint of something around the corners of his eyes that looked a bit like pain.

“You need to be careful, Miss Granger,” Snape said after a tense silence.

Her mouth audibly popped open.

“Professor?”

Snape swept a hand through his greasy hair before crossing his arms in front of his chest.

“I daresay, I was surprised to hear at the beginning of term that Draco was beginning a courtship with none other than the know-it-all Hermione Granger,” Snape said. Though the words were harsh, there was none of his typical malice behind them. “You both have done an excellent job of hiding this fact from the school at large.”

Hermione couldn’t help but blink at him in surprise. It was the first time he’d ever said anything even close to complimentary.

“Tonight’s dance during the ball included. Had I not known Draco so well, I would have assumed you both detested each other still,” Snape continued. “Though Mr. Krum did look suspiciously worse for wear when I saw him leaving the Great Hall a few hours ago. Draco’s handiwork, I assume.”

Hermione nodded before clearing her throat.

“He… um… Krum called me a mudblood.”

Snape’s face appeared to flare with anger before his face took on a stony, mask-like appearance.

“I see,” he said slowly, his black eyes flickering again to her silver bracelet. “And you understand, I assume, the implications of wearing a piece of jewelry such as the one you have around your wrist?”

Hermione looked down at the bracelet in question, remembering the warm and joyful sensation of it first being clasped around her. The words Draco had spoken – will you have me? Will you accept me?

“I do, sir,” she answered in her best impersonation of confidence.

The corner of Snape’s mouth twitched at the look on her face before settling once again into a contemplative mask. She could see – however – the same strange tension around his eyes.

“But Miss Granger… I must ask – do you understand the cost?”

Her brows pulled together.

“The cost, sir?”

Snape sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose in what she thought might have been exasperation if it wasn’t for the expression on his face. The pain she saw around the corners of his eyes had bled to the set of his mouth.

“The Dark Lord will return, girl.”

Hermione stilled at these words. After what happened during the World Cup and Harry’s ominous dreams, she couldn’t say she was truly surprised, but dread still pooled in the corners of her chest at his words.

“When he returns, Lucius – and I for that matter – must resume our places at his side.” Hermione still said nothing, which she could tell surprised her potions professor greatly, so he continued. “What do you think will happen to Draco when his father once again becomes a follower of the Dark Lord?”

The sticky dread clawed its way up her throat, as if choking her. Tears welled in the corners of her eyes as she thought of the implications.

Draco would have to follow in his father’s footsteps, there was no way around it.

Snape watched the play of emotion on her face and it was almost disconcerting to see the compassion he felt for the girl he had always hated. Hermione almost didn’t recognize the man who had spent the last three and a half years bullying her and her friends as he circled around his desk to take the seat opposite her – as if they were equals.

“So I ask you again, Miss Granger, do you understand the cost?”

The cost.

The cost of loving Draco, of accepting his courtship.

Hermione imagined what her life would be like without Draco and something akin to heartbreak blossomed through her soul, but it wasn’t just heartbreak. It was something worse, more earth shattering. She simply could not imagine it, could not imagine a world in which they didn’t belong together. It was more than some school crush, she realized in that moment, when she could feel her magic recoil from the thought as well.

So, what was the cost of being with Draco? Of being a part of the Malfoy family? Of throwing her lot in with the people who cared for her, protected her, and loved her? Lucius and Narcissa would throw their lot in with the Dark Lord – and at a certain point in the near future, Draco would have to as well. What did that mean for the muggleborn girl Draco was courting?

“Will he kill me, sir? So that Draco will be forced to marry a pureblood?”

Snape visibly tensed at these words – though he did not seem surprised that Hermione’s quick mind had gotten there so quickly.

“I do not know for sure – the Dark Lord has not yet returned and we will not know until he does. However, I believe if you do decide to continue this path, that he may find a use for you given your… proximity to certain individuals.” Harry’s name hung unspoken in the air. “The Dark Lord is not without intelligence or reason. If you give him a good enough one, he may spare you.”

Images skittered in front of Hermione’s mind of Draco with a faceless woman. Courting her. Marrying her. Holding a blonde-haired child in his arms. Pain ripped through her very being. She imagined being barred from the Malfoy estate, never seeing Narcissa or Lucius again, and she was sure that were she to lose her own parents, she would not feel the loss as keenly as this.

She didn’t even want to think of the loss of her other friends. Of Theo and Daphne and Pansy and Blaise. She couldn’t.

Therefore, Hermione knew that there was no choice to make – not really. Not when the opposite would cost her more than she was willing to lose. Better to be killed than lose those she loved most.

“So I ask you yet again,” Snape said, his voice dripping with seriousness. “Do you understand the cost?”

Finally, Hermione looked back at him, her face as resolute as her resolve.

“Yes, Professor, I do.”

Snape nodded once.

“Then I will do everything in my power to help you.” Snape stood from the chair opposite, stalking towards his office door.

“To help me how, professor?”

After he wrenched the door open, he turned back to her - his stony mask once again in place with no hint of the pain Hermione now knew lived inside of the man.

“To help give the Dark Lord a good enough reason.”

…

My dearest Hermione,

Lucius and I hope you will consider joining us with the boys during the Easter Holidays. We miss you terribly and Lucius said he would greatly appreciate your help with the Abraxans if you’d be willing.

Draco has told me all about the recent events surrounding the Yule Ball and I wanted to first and foremost extend my deepest concerns for your wellbeing. Please remember I am always an owl post away should you need me.

I always find in times of great stress and uncertainty that meditation helps me to organize my thoughts and control my fears. I would encourage you, my dear, to consider practicing what you learned this summer on a daily basis as it will only help you as you move towards the future.

Never forget, Hermione: the greatest weapon you may wield is the one inside your mind.

All my love,

Narcissa

To say the next few months were uneventful would be an understatement.

As advised by Narcissa, Hermione began the daily practice of meditation, finding the visualization of a neat library the best method to organize and calm her thoughts. She found that with regular practice she was able to control her sometimes unmanageable temper and the anxiety that always tended to eat at her.

The day following the ball, Harry and Ron both quietly apologized to Hermione. After her discussion with Snape, she had quite forgotten about their argument, but appreciated the gesture all the same. She had to continually remind herself that Harry and Ron did not have the same upbringing as Draco, Theo, and Blaise and she could not hold it against them that they tended to act… well… their age where the three Slytherin boys did not.

Her biggest test of patience, however, came right before the second task of the tournament. Once Harry was able to decipher the screeching meaning of the egg and discovered he needed to hold his breath underwater for up to an hour in order to retrieve some prize, the three friends flew into action to find a solution for him. She had to admit it was not as stressful as last time, since Ron was also there to help (though she had to admit at certain points he tended to be more of a burden) and Theo was also a quiet support, providing her books and ideas during the Slytherin study sessions.

The night before the task it was a surprise that she and Ron were called to McGonagall’s office. It was an even bigger surprise to discover they would be put into a death-like sleep and sunk to the bottom of the black lake and… that she had been chosen as “the thing Viktor Krum would miss most”.

“But Professor!” Hermione had practically shrieked, causing the little Delacour girl to jump with fright. “That is ridiculous. I merely was Krum’s date for the ball, how does that constitute me as the thing he would miss most ?”

McGonagall had pursed her lips, displeasure flashing in her eyes that Hermione knew had more to do with the task than Hermione’s indignation. She’d pulled Hermione to the side to have a private conversation while the headmaster had gone over specifics with Ron, Cho, and the little Delacour girl.

“Miss Granger, please believe me when I say we tried to find an alternative.” McGonagall’s tone was much kinder than usual but still with the same crisp businesslike air. “However, Mr. Krum has no close personal friends. The only one he is remotely close to is Headmaster Karkaroff and of course he could not be used for this task as he is supposed to be a judge.”

Hermione couldn’t help but seethe at this.

“So instead you’re choosing a witch he took to a ball and hasn’t spoken to since? What if he decides not to save me after all?”

McGonagall had let out an exasperated sigh at this, but Hermione could also detect a bit of surprise in her favorite professor. She was usually much more reverential when she spoke to her teachers and members of authority.

“Come now, Miss Granger, of course he will save you. If not for your benefit than for the standings in the tournament. However, past an hour if you have not been retrieved, the merpeople will bring you to the surface and the enchantment will end. You are in no danger.”

“I suppose I cannot refuse?” Hermione had said in a quieter voice after a beat.

McGonagall almost looked pitying as she replied, “Unfortunately not.”

With a huff Hermione allowed herself to be guided back over to the headmaster, surprised to see the other three students already in an enchanted sleep and floating strangely a few feet from the ground.

“Are you ready, Miss Granger?” Dumbledore had asked with a twinkle in his eye that slightly dimmed as he caught sight of her bracelet.

For a long moment Dumbledore just stared at Hermione with a strange expression on his face. For some strange reason, her imagined library popped into focus in her mind's eye. Without understanding why, she saw a shelf shatter and fall – parchment and books flying everywhere.

“My apologies,” Dumbledore had said softly before tapping his wand rhythmically against her forehead to create the enchantment. Hermione never had an opportunity to question the headmaster after.

Thankfully Krum had saved her from the lake and, once she was safely to the stands and under the care of Madam Pomphrey, had made himself scarce. She’d been a bit shocked at his quick retreat until she looked over her shoulder to see a murderous Draco staring at his retreating back.

Though she had to endure teasing about being the thing Krum would miss most, she’d been pleased that the Slytherins seemed to be putting a stop to the majority of the bullying. It was really only the odd Ravenclaw or Lavender Brown who enjoyed teasing her as time went on.

Hermione had been looking forward to the Easter holiday, counting down the days until she was back in the manor. She kept up a regular correspondence with Narcissa, who she explained away as a pen friend when Ron had once asked who she got letters from so regularly when her parents did not often write, if ever. She also maintained her regular library meetings with her favorite Slytherins – her and Draco also finding time to sneak off together to be alone.

And though the year had started out stressful, she had to admit it was the happiest she had ever been. Harry and Ron seemed thoroughly chastened by what happened at the ball, seeing fit to include her much more often in discussions and outings. She hadn’t realized how much of an emotional toll it had taken to be at odds with one or both of them until it was gone.

When the Easter holiday finally rolled around, she told the boys she would be spending the time with her family. When she stepped off the platform of the Hogwarts Express in London, she was relieved not to have to hide from the Weasleys and was able to join the Malfoys and Theo unencumbered by a diversion.

They had greeted each other warmly and Hermione was surprised when even Lucius embraced her. The moment she stepped through the floo and into the manor, something settled inside of her chest – it was a calmness she hadn’t known she’d been missing. A feeling of truly belonging.

The peacefulness, however, was short lived.