"Okay, so Voldemort has a daughter," Hermione stated as we all stood around in Hermione's office. "And now she wants to fulfill this prophecy that brings him back."

"Merlin, we don't need that again," Ron muttered.

"Now she has Albus, Scorpius, and the Time-Turner," I added. "They could be anywhere right now."

"That's what worries all of us the most," Harry said. "Especially me." He stood up from his seat and left the room. Concerned, I followed him out and placed my hand on his shoulder. "I should've been a better father to him. I pushed him away because he pushed me away. Now he's missing and for all we know he..." He stopped, turning around to face me, fighting back tears.

"No, he's not dead, Harry," I assured him. "Albus and Scorpius are still out there. They're smart boys."

He nodded his head. "You're right."

"And you're not the only one who feels guilty," I said. "I wasn't there for Scorpius, either. I was too focused on trying to be a good wife to Draco that I wasn't being a good mother to Scorpius."

Harry huffed a sigh. "Well, it sounds like you failed at both of those roles."

I chuckled a little. "Yeah, really. Come on, let's get back in there."

And so we went back inside the office together, going back to where we were standing at. He went to stand beside Ginny and I stood beside Draco once more.

"Are you okay?" he whispered.

I nodded my head. "Yeah, I'm fine."

Hermione exhaled loudly and announced, "I think we should have another meeting."

"Like, a big meeting?" I asked.

She nodded her head. "Yes. We can't save the Wizarding world on our own."

"We did it once!" I pointed out. "I don't know about you, but I think we did a pretty good job the first time."

"Max, we had help," Harry said. "And we'll need help again this time. I think it's a good idea to have a meeting."

I rolled my eyes. "Okay, fine, let's have one tomorrow, then."

"Perfect," Ginny said. "Then we'll figure something out during the meeting."

We all bid each other goodnight and left Hermione's office. I walked slowly down the hall, trying to process everything that happened today. I was exhausted by all of it and I knew that I wasn't the only one.

"Max!" Draco called out, making me turn around. "Are you really okay?"

"What?"

"I want you to honestly tell me that you're okay."

"Draco, I'm fine, really."

He raised his eyebrows at me. "No, you're not."

I sighed in defeat, throwing my arms in the air. "Okay, no, I'm not. I'm feeling the same way I did when I was looking for Horcruxes." I let out a nervous laugh. "I'm feeling everything."

He gave me a sympathetic look, a look I had hardly seen from him lately. "You can always come back home, you know."

"Are you implying that you want me to come home with you right now?"

"Maybe." He paused, taking a deep breath. "I'll admit, with everything that's going on, I really don't want to be alone tonight. I know that we're not on good terms at the moment and we have a lot to talk about--"

"Okay," I cut him off. "I'll stay with you."

"Really?" He was surprised by this.

"Yeah. I mean, I don't want to be alone, either, and this could be good for us. You know, taking baby steps and all."

"Right," he said, nodding his head in agreement. "I guess we should get going, then."

"Okay."

So the two of us left the Ministry of Magic and headed back to our home. The trip there was silent and it almost felt long.

When we got home, I felt bad for almost forgetting what the house looked like. I almost didn't get that warm feeling when I entered the house. The memories of my family came back to me, a time where we were happy for once.

"Do you miss it here?" he questioned, closing the door behind him.

"Of course I do," I replied.

"It hasn't been the same with you gone."

I looked down at the floor. "Nothing's the same with us. We've changed. Everything is different now."

"We're getting older," he added.

"Yeah, but not wiser."

He laughed, genuinely laughed. "I think we will at one point."

I scoffed. "I doubt that, but okay." I let out a small smile his way.

"Do you want a drink?" he questioned, heading for the kitchen.

I shook my head. "No, I'm good, thanks."

He nodded his head and sat down at the kitchen table. "You're allowed to sit down, you know."

I reluctantly sat down across from him, huffing a sigh. I watched as he fidgeted with his fingers, almost as if he was nervous to be around me. "Are you okay?" I asked, raising my eyebrows.

"Yeah, why?" he replied.

"I don't know. You just seem more nervous than usual. Is it me?"

"No, of course not," he assured me. "It just feels like it's been so long since we've actually sat down and had a civilized conversation. It's kind of weird, isn't it?"

"Yeah, it is," I said, nodding my head.

"We have a lot to talk about," he stated.

Before I knew it, I grabbed his hand and gripped it tightly, which shocked him. "Let's save the Wizarding world first, then we'll talk."

He sighed, nodding his head. "Sounds good."

*******

Like we discussed before, the first thing we did was set up a meeting the next day. I wished what we were doing was more discreet, but Hermione, as Minister for Magic, did not want to leave people out of the dark about what was going on. I could tell that everyone was just as frantic as we were. While people were entering the Grand Meeting Room, speaking in small whispers, Hermione came up to me and Harry, looking like she was about to pass out.

"What is it, Hermione?" Harry asked her.

"McGonagall just got here and told me some news," she replied. "It's not good at all. A student was found dead at Hogwarts."

"Dead?" I repeated, widening my eyes. "Delphini probably murdered him."

"If that's the case, then she's a lot more dangerous than we thought," Harry said.

Once everyone arrived, Hermione made the choice to go ahead and start the meeting. She straightened herself out and went to the front of the room, getting everyone's attention. "I'm so pleased that many of you were able to make my second Extraordinary General Meeting. I've got some things to say and I ask that we deal with questions...which there will be a lot of them...after I speak.

"As many of you know, a body has been found at Hogwarts. Craig Bowker Jr. was his name. He was a good boy. We have no firm information of who was responsible for the act, but yesterday we searched St. Oswald's. A room there revealed two things: A prophecy that promised the return of darkness and a proclamation that Voldemort had a child."

Everyone in the room began to whisper among themselves, the sound of worry and fear in their voices.

"And the panicking begins," I whispered in Harry's ear.

"Got that right," he whispered back.

Hermione waited for everyone to calm down before she continued. "We don't know the full details. We're only just investigating, questioning those with a Death Eater connection. As of now no record has been found either of the child or of the prophecy, but it does look like there's some truth to it. This child was kept hidden from the Wizarding world and now she's...well, now she's..."

"She? He had a daughter?" McGonagall asked, cutting Hermione off.

"Yes, a daughter," she replied.

"And is she now in custody?"

"Professor, she did ask for no questions until after she speaks," Harry retorted, not realizing how rude he was.

"It's fine, Harry," she assured him, then turning back to McGonagall. "No, she is not, Professor, and that's where this gets worse. I'm afraid we have no means of taking her into custody or stopping her from doing anything, because she's out of our reach."

McGonagall raised her eyebrows. "You mean, we can't look for her?"

Hermione paused for a moment, shaking her head. "No, we can't. We have good reason to believe she's hidden herself...in time."

McGonagall rolled her eyes and threw her hand up in the air, frustrated. "Of all the reckless and stupid things, you kept the Time-Turner for this long?"

"Professor, I assure you--"

"Shame on you, Hermione!"

Hermione flinched a little at the anger McGonagall was letting out towards her. I couldn't remember the last time I had seen McGonagall upset like that.

Then, with no warning, an irritated Harry shot up from his seat. "No, she doesn't deserve that. You have the right to be angry. You all do. But this is not all Hermione's fault. We don't know how the witch ended up with the Time-Turner, whether Albus or Scorpius gave it to her or it was stolen from one of them."

Ginny stood beside her husband. "He's right. Professor, you can't blame all of this on Hermione," Ginny told her.

I stood up as well, joining the others. "You can go ahead and continue to be angry at Hermione, but we're all to blame, too."

McGonagall let out a deep sigh, calming down a bit. "Your solidarity is admirable, but it doesn't make your negligence negligible."

Draco joined us, taking his position beside me. "Then it's a negligence that I, too, should face. These people right here..." he pointed at me, Harry, Ginny, and Hermione. "They have done nothing wrong but try and protect us all, like they have always done. If they're guilty, then I am, too."

Not only was Hermione moved by this, but I was, too. We had all been through so much shit all our lives, fighting our own battles during the Second Wizarding War, and now we were coming together as one to fight the same battle together, to save the Wizarding world from Voldemort's offspring. This was the last thing I had expected, especially at this age.

Ron hesitated before standing up and including himself. "I would just like to say that I didn't know about much of all of this so I can't take responsibility. I'm also pretty sure that my kids had nothing to do with it..."

I rolled my eyes. Okay, Ron needed to get to the point if he had one...

"But if this lot are standing up here then so am I," he finished, standing tall.

He better not ditch us like last time, then.

"No one can know where they're at, whether they're together or apart. I trust that Albus and Scorpius will be doing all they can to stop this witch," Ginny spoke up.

"We haven't given up," Hermione added. "We've gone to the giants, the trolls, everyone we can find. The Aurors are out flying, searching, talking to those who know secrets, and following those who won't reveal secrets."

Harry took a deep breath and began to speak. "But there is one truth we can't escape: Somewhere in our past, a witch is trying to rewrite everything we ever knew. For now, all we can do is wait for the moment she either succeeds or fails."

"And if she succeeds?" McGonagall questioned, knowing the answer to that question.

"Then just like that, most of the people in this room will be gone. We'll no longer exist and Voldemort will rule again," Harry said.

The meeting only lasted for another five minutes. After that, it was only the six of us like it was yesterday. We were all trying to process what was going on. We had to be the heroes again. Damn, I was getting too old for this mess. Everyone was getting too old for this mess.

I huffed a sigh, heading for the door. "I'll be back." I left the room and walked down the hall and headed for my office, opening the door. I went to my desk and sat at my chair, leaning back. My office was the only place I could be alone for a few minutes, away from everyone else. I needed some time to myself, to worry about Scorpius without everyone there.

I missed him so much. I was wondering where him and Albus were at. I was hoping that he was okay and that he was being smart about his decisions. This was all too much for me. Only Harry, Ginny, and Draco understood my frustration at the moment.

Knock, knock, knock.

Feeling my eyes water up a bit, I quickly wiped them away. "Come in!" I shouted.

Draco slipped in and closed the door behind him. "Hey."

"Hi."

He walked towards my desk and pulled up a chair beside me, sitting down. "She won't win," he told me. "We won't let her."

"I know," I responded, looking at him. "Can you do me a favor?" He nodded his head. "Right now I want you to put aside your anger towards me and just be my loving husband. Let's just forget for a few minutes that we're separated and that we're angry at each other. Our son is missing and in danger. I can't be by myself for this."

He nodded his head again. "I can't, either." He moved his chair closer and wrapped both arms around me. He began to gently rub my back. "He'll be okay."

I leaned against him, sighing. "We can't lose him," I whispered.

"We won't," he whispered back, resting his head on top of mine. "I can't lose either of you."

I got out of his grasp and gave him a sad look. "What if we lose this battle?"

"We're not going to lose."

"But what if we do? I won't be here if she wins, you know." I felt a lump in my throat, trying to swallow it. "I mean, I've died before, but this time I won't be able to come back."

"Stop talking like that," Draco stated. "No one will die. We can win this fight, I know we can. I don't want to think about anyone dying, because if you die..." he paused, swallowing hard, a terrified look on his face. "If you die, then a part of me dies, too."

I felt my heart drop as I bit my lip. "Really?"

He nodded his head. "Yes, really, which is why I'd like to talk about this whole separation thing right now."

Before I could get the next word in, the door opened abruptly. "Oh, didn't know you were in here," Ron told Draco, then turned to me. "Hermione needs to talk to you."

I looked at Draco, giving him an apologetic look. "I'm sorry, but I have to go see what Hermione wants."

He nodded his head, obviously annoyed and disappointed. "Yeah, I understand."

We both got up from our seats and headed out of my office. Draco walked off near the elevators, while I followed Ron back to Hermione's office. In a way, I was glad that Ron interrupted our conversation, since I wasn't even ready to talk about our separation. Yet, at the same time, I wasn't glad that Ron interrupted our conversation.

What if that conversation with Draco would be my last one?

My motivation to win this battle grew stronger. I was going to help win this fight with Delphi, because I'd be damned if she tore my family apart.

~~~~~~~

A/N: Ahh so close to Draco and Max forgiving each other!

Anyway, the action is about to begin! So be prepared!

Song above is Walk Through the Fire by Zayde Wølf ft. Ruelle.

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-A