As the War continued on, the Order got more desperate for a win. Kingsley sent Hermione out to battles more often and ignored when someone complained about her display of violence and use of dark magic. He never defended her, but he always steered the conversation away from her during meetings and Hermione was beginning to think that Kingsley thought that was the same thing.

Eventually, Harry and Ron stopped talking to her. It had started off slowly, but their conversation ceased immediately after one skirmish where Hermione had used the killing curse three times on a pack of werewolves that weren't being deterred.

"You have a way out of this mess," Hermione reminded Kingsley after a particularly rough meeting. "Draco and I were partnered to help win the War, not just kill uselessly. Give us more meaningful missions."

"I'm the one in charge, not you, Miss Granger," Kingsley snapped. Hermione frowned at him but Kingsley didn't look apologetic. "You and Mr. Malfoy will operate only as I see fit and based on what Severus reports, understood?"

Hermione nodded and the instant she was dismissed, she apparated to the safe house. Draco was already waiting for her as they'd established regular dueling practices when it became clear Kingsley wasn't going to assign them missions as often. The practices kept them on their toes and even though they both regularly fought during battles and skirmishes, it was better to practice on each other. Against Draco, Hermione could practice fighting with her non-dominant hand. With Hermione, Draco could work on new attack patterns that didn't make him predictable. Afterwards, Draco would share updates from Voldemort's forces and Hermione would suggest simply beheading the wizard to end it all.

Tonight, however, as Hermione apparated into the safe house, she could tell something was wrong. Draco was fidgeting and even though the movement was minuscule, Hermione noticed it immediately.

"What's wrong?" she asked. His wand was up before he looked up, but Hermione easily deflected the attack.

"Snape is under review," Draco told her. Hermione frowned and Draco nodded. "Someone noticed a trend in Dolohov's research and the speed at which the Order is able to protect against new spells and curses. Considering Snape played for Dumbledore earlier, he was the first suspect."

"What's that mean for you?" Hermione asked.

He was fine for now, he assured her. Most of the younger Death Eaters disappeared in the evenings to peruse foreign clubs and either get drunk, high, or have an excessive amount of sex.

"The Dark Lord has no reason to be suspicious of me," he said. Hermione nodded and sat on the sofa across from him. When she threw her legs onto his lap, he didn't push her away. "What does Kingsley think of everything? He's going to send us out more, right? I told him of half a dozen meet ups and we haven't been told anything."

Hermione scowled at the reminder of Kingsley, but was distracted a second later when Draco's hand found her ankle. She stared at it, but didn't comment on the motion.

"Kingsley will only take Snape's word," Hermione told him. Draco frowned and Hermione nodded. "He won't tell me why and gets snippy when I press."

"He probably still thinks I'll turn in fake advice to get you caught," Draco muttered, staring down at where her legs crossed his. "Snape is going to get caught eventually if he reports to Kingsley as often as he usually does. I'm the one who hears of meetings or battle plans soonest."

Hermione hummed before tearing her gaze away from his hand on her ankle. She looked up at his face and a few seconds later, he looked up as well.

"We don't need Kingsley's permission," she told him. Draco looked hesitant but she continued. "We handle missions quietly; there's no need for Kingsley to get involved. Draco," she pulled her legs off his lap and tucked them under her so she could lean closer to him. "If you have ideas, we should just go for it."

Draco stared at her for a long minute, but Hermione didn't take it back. If Kingsley wasn't going to do anything, then she sure as hell would. Of course, she needed Draco to agree, but she wasn't too worried that would be a problem. Especially when he finally sighed and muttered an agreement. Hermione wasn't really thinking when she threw her arms around his neck happily, but she was too relieved to entirely care.

* * * * *

As the weeks passed and Hermione and Draco found themselves out almost every night, Hermione stayed with the Order less and less. She sometimes spent nights at the safe house just to avoid the inevitable questions she would receive if she returned late. Draco refused to stay at first, but after his first major injury during one of their attacks, he stayed as well.

They only ever ran attacks on meetings that all Death Eaters were aware of. Maybe the newest recruits weren't informed, but enough of the Death Eaters were that it wouldn't be obvious Draco was leaking the information. The hits weren't hard enough to make a huge impact in Voldemort's ranks, but as fewer and fewer Death Eaters were recruited, it did start to effect things.

If Kingsley knew what they were doing, he said nothing. He'd eye Hermione sometimes at the end of meetings as if he was about to ask her to stay, but Hermione always left to help in the hospital ward before he ever could.

When Draco announced a private gala was being thrown in honor of Yaxley's most recent promotion, Hermione spent less time in the hospital ward and more time experimenting with magical bombs. They had until the end of the week to come up with a plan of attack.

Draco stayed away that week, but Hermione was too busy to take notice. The night the gala was being held, Hermione packed several volatile bombs into a small bag and slipped it over her shoulder.

They'd gone over a plan the night before. It would be suspicious if Draco didn't make an appearance, so he'd need to be at the gala. Hermione would arrive an hour into the event and he would meet her far from the house to take the bombs. Hermione had spent two hours explaining how to protect and activate all three bombs and where they needed to be placed. Once she was sure Draco had a solid understanding, she let him tell her the rest of his plan.

As it was, Draco's cover was soon to be blown. His father had noticed his strange absences and while Lucius hadn't reported it to anyone else, he'd been very clear when warning Draco of the consequences should he decide to play double agent. Taking out the gala was sure to confirm Lucius Malfoy's suspicions, so Hermione could only hope he wouldn't dare out Draco to Voldemort.

Waiting for Draco to meet her and take the bombs was difficult. She fidgeted and paced until he finally apparated behind her. Without a word, she passed the small bag to him and he nodded before disappearing again. It would be another hour before they would detonate the bombs, but she was still full of nervous energy. Draco would have just enough time to make a decent excuse and with a few others leaving around the same time, it wouldn't make him suspicious.

Hermione counted down the seconds. With exactly five minutes to spare, Draco apparated in front of her and she pulled him further into the shadows. They were well out of sight or detection seeing as they were on a hill above Yaxley's house, but they could never be too cautious.

"Who else left?" she whispered, wrapping her cloak tighter around her as a cold breeze blew by. Draco glanced at her.

"Enough," he replied, avoiding the question. Hermione didn't press and instead returned her attention to the house just in time to see the first bomb go off. A split second later, the other two followed and they both heard screaming as the house caved in on the remaining guests.

Hermione pulled her hood further down her face before apparating away. The blast was sure to leave some people alive and she didn't need to be there when Voldemort arrived as well as the Death Eaters that hadn't been at the party. Draco would return to his father's manor to await the call, but Hermione was off to the Order's safe house. The sooner they both evacuated the area, the better.

* * * * *

"Whoever it was, it gave us an advantage," Ron said. They were all assembled for a meeting following the news about Yaxley's party disaster. While the papers hadn't mentioned who had been killed and who had been injured, it was clear that it had been a huge blow to Voldemort as the Order had been able to infiltrate and take out several Death Eater hide outs the following night.

"Yes, I would like to find out who is responsible," Kingsley said.

The room fell silent. No one knew who was responsible for the attack at Yaxley's, not even the papers had a suspicion. However, the way Kingsley glanced at her and asked, "Who do you think might have information about this, Hermione?" definitely made her think he was suspicious of her.

"I'd ask Snape," she said, reminding him he was the only contact for both the Order and Voldemort.

Kingsley didn't look like he believed her, but Harry was already suggesting their next attack while Voldemort's forces were unsettled, so Hermione returned to twirling her wand nonchalantly.

* * * * *

Hermione arrived at the safe house a minute after Draco had used the charm to summon her. She'd been in the middle of eating a very late dinner when she'd had to make a hasty excuse and vanish. As she barreled through the front door of the safe house, she expected the worst. At the sight of Draco sitting calmly on the sofa, she stopped abruptly.

"You're not dying?" she asked, looking him over nonetheless. Draco gave her a small smirk and shook his head. "Has your cover been blown?"

"Only by my father," he told her. Hermione had figured as much would happen, but she was still worried. "He won't tell anyone. He feels like he has sufficiently dealt with the problem."

Hermione eyed him warily, waiting for him to tell her what he meant. When he said nothing, she asked what he had called her for.

"Oh, yes," he said. He stood up slowly, wincing enough Hermione noticed. She stepped forward but he waved her off. "The Dark Lord isn't happy about what happened at Yaxley's and blamed Snape for the attack. He'll be publicly executed in the morning, but the Dark Lord managed to get the location of the Order's safe houses in Cornwell and Suffolk. They're attacking in an hour."

"How do you know?" Hermione asked, watching Draco move carefully.

"I'm leading the attack on Suffolk," he answered. Hermione's eyes widened and he rushed forward, grimacing slightly as he did, to reassure her. "You can tell the Order and get the safe houses vacant in time, but I need to know where you'll take people from there so I can lead a search in the opposite direction."

"There's a portkey to a place in Cheshire we'll take them to," Hermione said. "I'll deactivate it once we're all out."

"Good." Draco nodded. "Now go. I'll use the charm to let you know when we're coming."

Despite wanting to ask about Draco's pain, Hermione nodded and apparated back to the Order's headquarters. If they really had less then an hour, they would have to move fast to get those safe houses cleared and empty.

* * * * *

With Draco and Hermione going on their own mission orders, Voldemort's forces were going down quickly. The weekly Order meetings felt more hopeful even as useless attack strategies were thrown out. Whatever the Order couldn't defeat, Hermione would take care of a few hours after the initial battle.

Kingsley stopped talking to Hermione the day Snape had been executed. The Order had mourned him and his service, but Hermione had been too busy destroying a bunker of Voldemort's potion makers to be bothered to attend.

Draco and Hermione would go days without contact as Draco struggled to maintain his cover and Hermione went on missions alone. With fewer injuries during battles, Hermione wasn't needed in the infirmary as much. She kept away from the Weasleys and Harry as they always seemed to fight, so going on missions alone was her solution. When it was reported that the vampires and werewolves had backed out of their alliance with Voldemort, Hermione knew they were close to the end of the War.

* * * * *

"It's risky," Draco told her, crouched behind a large boulder just outside one of Voldemort's biggest prison chambers.

"Do you have a better idea?" Hermione asked. Draco scowled at her but Hermione looked victorious. "We're doing mine."

"Fine," Draco growled, standing up alongside her. "But when things go to shit, we're leaving."

Hermione agreed and a few minutes later, Draco had her arms tied behind her back. They apparated in front of the prison and the Death Eaters standing guard jumped to attention. Draco strode forward calmly, keeping his hold on Hermione tight but not painful.

"Merlin's balls," one of the Death Eaters exclaimed, eyeing Hermione in surprise. "You caught Granger."

"How'd you manage that?" the second Death Eater asked.

Draco just pushed Hermione forward without a word. Keeping up with the role, Hermione struggled against his hold. Draco held her tighter and growled at her to stop fighting, but Hermione continued to struggle against him. Add more Death Eaters began to stare, Draco wished there was a way that he could subtly tell her to stop.

"Looks like she's still got spirit," Montague sneered. He fell into step beside Draco and Hermione seemed to get the hint and stopped struggling. Before they turned away, Montague reached out and squeezed Hermione's arse.

Hermione lashed out immediately and Draco wrapped his arms around her to restrain her quickly. She still got a solid hit on Montague and Draco couldn't stop the crucio the other Death Eater sent at her.

Crumpling to the ground, Hermione didn't make a sound. Draco stood over her until Montague lifted the curse a full minute later. He cursed her name and kicked her shoulder sharply before turning to leave. Draco pulled her to her feet as gently as he could and they continued down the prison hall at a slower pace.

"Don't quit," Hermione murmured when the coast was clear. Her fingers found Draco's as she said, "Just keep going."

* * * * *

Lord Voldemort was defeated on May 2, 1998.

Well, that's what Hermione liked to think. It took another month for Voldemort himself to be killed and his Death Eaters to be overtaken for the final time, but when the Dark Lord's largest prison collapsed in on itself, killing half of his army and injuring two thirds of the survivors, his forces were crippled beyond recovery.

When Draco brought the report of their success to the safe house, he was bruised and limping, but he didn't seem to be in pain when he told Hermione just how disastrous the accident had been to Voldemort's reign. She'd kissed him after that and it had been a long time later, after several rounds of love making on the safe house sofa, that he'd told her his cover had been blown officially.

"Kingsley will take you in," she had promised.

Two days later, the Order was officially welcoming Draco into their graces and Kingsley was no longer allowing Hermione to stay at headquarters. She didn't care.

When she watched from a hilltop as Harry killed Voldemort and the Order captured all remaining Death Eaters, she knew they were finally done. That was the last time she saw any of the original Order members until after the Death Eater trials and appointment of Kingsley as minister.

There was no mention of her or Draco in the papers when the war heroes were listed. Harry and Ron were named responsible for all the attacks that had helped changed the tide of the War and while Harry denied having any part of them, Ron accepted the praise gratefully. Hermione kept to the shadows with Draco and stayed far away from both boys. There was no good in telling them she'd been the one to kill over half of Voldemort's military throughout the last year of the War.

"Kingsley sent an owl," Draco announced, bringing a letter into the kitchen where Hermione was making coffee. "He's inviting us to a meal to honor the most notable Order members."

"I'm busy," Hermione replied, giving him a look. Draco nodded and pressed a kiss to her forehead.

"I'm afraid I am too," Draco lied just as easily. "I'm sure the dear Minister will be distressed we won't be attending."

Hermione rolled her eyes. Kingsley hadn't wanted anything to do with them since they'd started going on their own missions during the War. Over two years later, she didn't care anymore.

"Do you think MACUSA's offer is honest?" Hermione asked, glancing at the official mail they'd both received two days earlier. After reading through it thoroughly, they'd set it aside to think on.

Draco snorted into his cup of tea and lit Kingsley's letter on fire in one motion.

"As honest as a plea for contract assassins can be," he answered, reaching for his letter and skimming it. "I doubt that's what Kingsley meant to create when he put us together years ago."

"Oh, Merlin no," Hermione laughed.

The thought of Kingsley intentionally pairing them up so they would one day become contract killers for foreign embassies was laughable. The new British Minister despied what he'd created with them and had spent long hours making sure they didn't exist after they had accomplished what he'd needed them to.

"Should we go?" Draco asked.

Hermione looked at him for a moment, admiring the scar across his face that she'd once healed in a run down safe house. The thrill of going on missions coursed through her for a second and she found herself once more longing for such an adventure.

"What do we have to lose?" she replied, finishing her coffee before summoning the MACUSA invite and writing a letter of acceptance.

They left England two days later without a word and no one ever reported them missing.