Hermione settled on one of the plush, red couches of the Gryffindor common room, pleasantly full of warm food and tea, but no less wary of the two Death Eaters sitting across from her.

Unsurprisingly, Rabastan was the more talkative of the two and managed to keep the trio occupied with small talk as Hermione had ate. Now, however, he was quiet seemingly waiting for Rodolphus to begin explanations.

Silently, Rodolphus pulled a small bottle of what Hermione guess to be Veritaserum from his pocket. He unscrewed the bottle and dipped his finger in it before dabbing it on his tongue. Rabastan did the same.

"So you know what we're telling you is the truth." He said, his eyes meeting Hermione's.

"Let me see." She said, reaching for the bottle. At this point, it was hard not to believe they were working on her side but she had to be sure.

Rodolphus handed the bottle to her, his warm fingers brushing against her hand in the process. Hermione pretended not to be affected.

Fingering the green glass of the bottle she tapped her wand against it, muttering a verification spell. Satisfied she handed it back.

"Alright, go ahead." She said.

Rodolphus cleared his throat, "Well, as you now know we're working on your side with Snape."

From his side of the sofa, Rabastan snorted at his brother's inelegant start to the conversation.

Glaring at him, Rodolphus continued, "Our job, is to deliver you to Snape and get you and any other trapped students out of the castle. Then, we'll go back and continue infiltrating Voldemort's ranks."

"Then why did you, er, do what you did in the Chamber of Secrets?" she asked, blushing slightly, "Or anything afterward?"

At this, Rabastan raised an eyebrow waiting expectantly for his brother's response.

"Because I want you." Rodolphus stated.

Hermione's eyebrows rose in shock at his blunt statement. Rodolphus, for his part, began to regret taking the Veritaserum.

Rabastan rose from his seat, "Well, I'll just pretend that I have something very urgent to do on the other side of the room while you two talk."

Neither Hermione or Rodolphus acknowledged him as he walked away.

"But what does that mean?" Hermione whispered, her confused gaze resting on Rodolphus' contrite face, "I mean, first you are crude with me, then you're pressing yourself against me every chance you get and you're still calling me 'Mudblood' I might add!"

"I don't know" Rodolphus stated simply. And he didn't. It was as if some deep part of himself called to her. It was the same kind of tug in his stomach that he experienced when he did magic

Hermione sighed, both in confusion and exhaustion, "Well, we should move on from all of this. We'll both do our jobs and remain allies, I suppose."

Rodolphus nodded his head in agreement, though internally he felt the sting of her rejection.

"Indeed." He said, "That's probably for the best. For the record, I apologize for the discomfort I may have caused you."

"May have?"

"Did." He admitted, "Did cause you."

Hermione cleared her throat and straightened her posture. She felt a wave of relief and satisfaction. It was nice to finally clarify the parameters of their relationship and alleviate worries about this troublesome Death Eater. But, for some reason a little niggling voice in the back of her head reminded her of the feel of his warm hands and the rough stubble of his chin as it had pressed against hers in their bruising kiss.

She shook her head to relieve herself of these thoughts. Back to business.

"What happened during the battle?" she asked. From the time she woke up alone in the Chamber she had dreaded to learn what had happened to her friends. Going into survival mode after her encounter with Lestrange, she had pushed aside these thoughts, but now found herself tense with worry as the thoughts reoccurred to her.

Lestrange stared into Hermione's worried eyes then explained, "As you know, we lost the Battle and Hogwarts with it. But, the majority of our side managed to escape, including Potter."

At the mention of Harry's name Hermione felt her shoulders collapse with relief, and she relaxed back onto the couch. If Harry was safe, then not all was lost. She wanted to ask who else had got out, and who didn't. She wanted to ask where they were hiding, what their next plan was, what she could do. But, it seemed the events of the past few days were finally catching up with her, and exhaustion gripped her.

"I think I should-"

"Sleep, yes." Rodolphus whispered.

She glanced up at his face and was surprised to see that glint of concern she had only glimpsed earlier. But as quickly as it came, it was gone again.

"I think I'll stay here." She muttered, laying on her side. Within moments she was deeply asleep.

Rodolphus groaned and cursed under his breath, cradling his head in his hands.

Rabastan walked over his mouth stuffed with biscuit, "You are done for, mate."

As much as he hated to admit it, Rodolphus knew his brother was right. He was indeed done for, thanks to Hermione Granger.

A/N: I have to apologize for the long wait. I put aside writing for the longest time because life got in the way, but I'm finding myself excited to get back into this story. I have some new ideas and inspiration for it. Thank you to all who have read and reviewed this story so far.