Thoughts rushed through Hermione's head. How could this be happening? Surely they had protected the timeturner against such simple things as being dropped, but perhaps the time travel messed up the spells. How was she going to get back?

Suddenly she was being lifted off the ground by a pair of strong hands, Lucius picking her up whilst sending scowls at the now quickly fleeing children. Ah, there was the Lucius she knew, the darker man he was going to become clearly inside him somewhere.

"What imbeciles, how vile." He sneered. "Are you alright Hermione?"

"I think so." She lied, dusting herself off, trying to frantically think about what she was going to do.

"Are you sure? It looked like you-"

Lucius stopped mid-sentence, his eyes catching the golden shards of the broken timeturner on the ground.

Panic set in quickly for Hermione. She knew he would realise what it was, he was smart, he wouldn't have to think twice about it. Hermione couldn't risk Lucius asking about the future, it was likely someone in his position would really want to know how things were going to turn out and she knew she shouldn't tell him.

Lucius calmly got out his wand and levitated the pieces off the ground, wrapping them in a black handkerchief and carefully handing them back to her without saying a word.

"Let's walk." He said, his voice empty, Hermione unable to sense what he was feeling.

She followed him cautiously, wondering where he was taking her, what he was thinking. His calm demeanour could suggest that he wasn't bothered about her timeturner use, perhaps he was familiar with it, or maybe he wanted to question her about it where there were less people around. Despite his amenability so far, this was Lucius Malfoy after all, and his motives were hard to guess.

They walked together side by side through Hogsmeade, Hermione's mind racing, her rational thought fighting with the part of her that wanted to panic.

She could get out of this if she wanted to, it would be all too easy to apparate away, but her curiosity as to how Lucius would react were pushing her to see this through.

They came to the edge of town, to a bench which overlooked the shrieking shack, the normally ominous place feeling strangely less so than usual, Hermione unsure if it was because she knew it was safe in her own time, or if Lucius' presence took away her fear.

"I figured as much." Said Lucius, finally breaking the silence as he elegantly took a seat on the bench.

Hermione hesitantly sat down next to him, careful to leave an inch between them on the small piece of wood.

"What do you mean?" She asked, curious as to what he was talking about.

"That you were too good to be true." He explained with a sigh, carrying on when Hermione's eyes looked into his, burning with curiosity.

"Today I was told that it had finally happened, that it was set, I will be marrying Narcissa Black and that's that, I'll lose everything if I don't. I will admit that she is a talented, intelligent and beautiful witch, but I barely know her, I wished that I had had the chance to find someone for myself…and then there you were. You see, I always knew I would be getting an arranged marriage, but part of me never quite believed it, that I'd get to choose who I loved. I don't know what it is Hermione but something about you drew me to you, and then we started talking and I couldn't help but think, if only I had the chance, the time, that maybe this could be what I didn't realise I wanted until it was something I could never have."

Hermione was stunned, unable to think of anything to say whilst her mind processed what Lucius had just said.

"Well I suppose it doesn't matter that I'm from the future anyway." Hermione explained with an edge of bitterness that she couldn't quite explain the presence of. "I'm a muggleborn so I'm sure you wouldn't have wanted to get to know me for too long anyway.

Lucius looked somewhat taken aback but did not protest her point, unable to deny the prejudices that were ingrained in him. He did not seem to act on them at this age, at least not with his treatment of her, but it was clear that he believed in a set way that things could and couldn't be.

"I suppose my father would have had a thing or two to say about it…"

"I'm sure he would have many things to say." Said Hermione, letting out a single exasperated laugh.

"So why is it you're in this time?" Lucius asked, swiftly moving away from the uncomfortable subject. "You must have some influence in order to have gained permission to use a timeturner." He guessed. "Unless of course you've managed to get a hold of a personal one."

Since using one so frequently in her third year Hermione sometimes forgot how rare and restricted timeturners were, wondering if McGonagall's decision to give her one had been entirely wise.

"I'm collecting pictures of some people who are very important to a good friend of mine, and fortunately for me the head of department owed me a big favour." She explained, not wanting to give away more than that. "There are very few timeturners around in my time that are privately owned."

"It is much the same now, but who knows what people have hidden away behind closed doors…I wouldn't be surprised if we had one hidden away at Malfoy Manor that's been forgotten about."

Hermione let out a small chuckle. "I suppose it must be pretty easy to lose things in a house that big."

"Yes it is, and not just possessions too…" Lucius said sombrely, quickly catching himself and moving on. "Have you been there?" He asked. "It sounds as if you're familiar with the place."

"Just once."

The time I was captured and tortured by your soon to be sister in law…

"I see." He said, not questioning her on it further, perhaps sensing that he shouldn't. He must know something unusual had occurred for her to have been into the manor though, it was not often a muggleborn would have reason to go to the Malfoy Estate, let alone be invited inside.

They fell quiet after that for a while, Hermione's thoughts swapping between trying to work out how she was going to get back and for some reason, if she really wanted to go just yet anyway.

"Let me help heal your wounds." Said Lucius, breaking the silence they had shared as they both looked out at the beautiful and nostalgic scenery. "Looks like the grazes on your legs are still bleeding from your fall earlier"

"So they are." Said Hermione sounding a little subdued, having not even registered the pain in her legs until Lucius brought her back to reality. She couldn't stop thinking about what he had said, wondering what her life would have been like had she gone to Hogwarts in this time. "It's alright though, I can fix them up no problem."

With a quick wave of her wand the blood disappeared and the wounds closed up neatly, not a trace that they were there.

"That's some impressive work." Commented Lucius, now looking closely at her legs. "No sign of the cuts at all."

"Regrettably I've become far too well acquainted with healing spells." She admitted.

He looked concerned but didn't question her on it, despite appearing as though he was very curious as to what the answer was. Perhaps he wondered if what was brewing with Voldemort would turn into something far more sinister than everyone thought it would, maybe seeing the signs already of how it might all turn out.

"I think I might be able to help you get back." Said Lucius. "It's a long shot but I reckon I can make it work."

"Really?" Hermione asked excitedly, taking Lucius' hand in both of her own and squeezing it tightly.

"Yes." He said with a bright smile.

"Now, the plan is…."

After a quick owl to Slughorn explaining that Lucius had urgent business with his father and would be going to the Ministry for the rest of the day, not forgetting to mention that his time at Hogwarts was almost over so arguing with him would be pointless, Hermione and Lucius found themselves in the Ministry atrium.

Unlike Hogwarts, the Ministry was quite different in this time than the one Hermione was used to, suspecting that it had had a bit of a necessary re-decoration after the first wizarding war.

Hermione followed closely next to Lucius as they walked through the Ministry, trying not to draw any attention to herself.

That, however, seemed to be nearly impossible thanks to Lucius. Even at this age everyone seemed to know who he was, and not just because his long platinum hair made him unmistakable. No one approached them though, it was as if they already seemed to know to keep their distance from the Malfoy heir, out of fear or respect Hermione couldn't be sure.

Soon they started down some corridors which were all too familiar to Hermione, having walked down them this morning, in the future that is.

Lucius' plan was to use his influence to persuade them to let Hermione use another timeturner from the Department of Mysteries. It was possible they might refuse, she had already broken one of the incredibly rare devices so far after all, but they were betting on the fact that the department wouldn't want someone from so far in the future around in their own time for too long. She would be far too much of a liability.

Once they arrived they were directed towards a middle-age man who looked slightly agitated as he searched through the mess of papers on his desk.

They walked over and stood in front of the man expectantly, not wanting to interrupt him. He looked ever so slightly familiar, Hermione not quite being able to place him.

After what clearly felt like the longest ten seconds ever for Lucius, he abruptly cleared his throat, the man looking up from the papers sprawled in front of him and practically jumped backwards at seeing who stood in front of him.

"S-sorry." The man stuttered, clearly somewhat terrified by Lucius. "Th-this is my first day on the job, j-just transferred departments, names Arneth Walton."

"Don't worry." Hermione said gently before Lucius could interrupt with what would no doubt be a snide remark about efficiency or why he could see why his old department had let him go.

"No no, I should be more organised." He said, levitating all of the papers into a relatively neat pile. "How can I help you?"

Hermione took a deep breath and started to explain, leaving out any details about the future that she probably shouldn't be sharing.

"And so, I was wondering if it would be possible for me to use one of the timeturners? Which, in my time, I will very literally return immediately, it won't even leave the vault." Hermione pleaded, Lucius rolling his eyes at her side at her complete lack of tactic.

The man seemed flustered, his eyes darting between Hermione and her best attempt at puppy dog eyes and Lucius who wore a scowl that looked as though it could scare away dementors.

"Um, well, I really shouldn't…" He stalled. "Could I take a look at the broken one please?"

Hermione readily handed the pieces to him, Lucius on the other hand started tapping his foot impatiently, clearly used to getting his way in a far timelier fashion than this.

The Man inspected the timeturner, looking at each piece individually. "Strange…" He said, seeming a bit more relaxed with something other than Lucius to focus on. "Looks like this one didn't have the correct protective spells put on it, I really hope that had nothing to do with my future self…but it does look like it can be fixed, although it will take some time."

He placed the broken timeturner gently on the desk and pulled out a large folder from under it, flipping through the pages until he found the correct date.

"Right, I think in these exceptional circumstances I can grant you usage of one without an appointment but I must make a report of it for the records, name please."

"Oh thank Merlin." Hermione said with a sigh of relief. "And it's Hermione Granger."

"Alright, perfect." He thanked her, making an entry on the page. "I'll just go ahead and start unlocking the vault, it seems to take forever...just follow when you've said your goodbyes, I'm assuming you know the way."

As the man starting walking away from them at a surprisingly quick pace, Hermione slowly turned to Lucius not sure what to say, awkwardly fiddling with a loose strand of her hair.

"Oh yes." She suddenly remembered, reaching up and untying Lucius' green ribbon from her hair, the wild curls falling into a mess down her back. "Here's your ribbon back, thank you so much for lending it to me."

Lucius reached out and closed her palm, wrapping his hands softly around her own. "I'd like for you to keep it, to remember me."

Hermione's heart fluttered in her chest, the warmth of Lucius hand against her own and the look in his grey eyes making her feel so happy yet inexplicably hurt at the same time.

She couldn't help but break into a sad smile.

"Thank you Lucius, this means a lot to me."

That was when she had an idea, reaching into her bag and pulling out the black ribbon she had bought earlier. Fortunately, she had bought a little more than she needed so neatly cut the ribbon in half with her wand.

"Here." She said, offering one of the halves to Lucius. "For you to remember me."

Lucius gently took the ribbon from her, the brush of his skin against her own sending shivers through her, and tied his hair back with it, looking content as he did, the smallest and most beautiful smile in the corner of his lips.

Suddenly a thought hit Hermione that made her chest tight and her breath catch.

The ribbon Lucius in her own time had lost, the one Hermione thought meant something to him, the one she was determined to get back to him, was the one she had given him herself in this time. All those years and he still had it, he had always remembered her, and for some reason it made her want to cry.

"Are you okay Hermione?" Lucius asked, lightly cupping her face in his hands.

She nodded weakly and thoroughly unconvincingly.

"Miss Granger!" Came a call from down the corridor. 'I'm ready when you are!"

"Oh…I suppose I shoul-"

Hermione was cut off when Lucius lips were suddenly softly against her own, her arms wrapping themselves around him and pulling him close seemingly of their own accord.

A few seconds passed and he slowly pulled back. "Sorry." He apologised. "I shouldn't have done that, it was very rude of me and I-"

It was Hermione who was doing the cutting off this time, kissing him back as he had kissed her.

"It's okay Lucius." She smiled, pulling him tightly into a hug. "This way I'll never forget you."

"Nor I you."

They held each other for only a few seconds but to Hermione it felt like hours, yet still not long enough.

"You should go now." He said softly, his hands slipping from her body and returning to his sides.

"I know..."

Hermione felt strangely lost and sad. This was the last time she would see this version of Lucius, but she'd get the chance to see him again in her own time so soon, Lucius would probably forget her face before he saw her again. She shouldn't feel sorry for a man she knew would do so much wrong in his life but she couldn't help it, the man in front of her now was not the monster she knew.

"Goodbye Lucius." She said, managing to put on a brave smile. "I hope everything works out for you and Narcissa, and thank you for all your help, it was a real pleasure to meet you."

"Thank you, for showing me what it might have been like were I to have a choice, I doubt I would have ever stopped wondering had you not."

A choice. That almost pushed Hermione over the edge. Of all the people who had little choice in their life Lucius was high on the list. Once you said yes to Voldemort all your choices were taken away, you said yes or you would die saying no.

"Goodbye Hermione, I hope I shall see you again one day."

All Hermione could do was smile, sure she would start to cry were she to try to speak.

It took a lot of strength to turn away from him and walk down that corridor. She couldn't look back, sure it would break her heart just a little bit if she did.

As she walked towards the vault, back to her own time, a new determination set in, a curiosity she couldn't quell.

When she got there the man handed her a timeturner numbered 72, strangely enough the year they were in, Hermione unsure if it was a coincidence or not.

"I'll leave you to it then." He said as he made his way towards the door.

"Thank you for his." Said Hermione, managing to push a smile through her sombre mood.

"You're welcome." He said as he closed the door. "I suppose I'll see you in 30 years or so!"

Hermione had one thing on her mind and she was determined to get there as fast as she could.

She quickly flicked through the pages of the date book to find the time she was looking for, tearing several as she did.

She spun the rings of the timeturner as fast as she dared, hoping she'd end up around the time of day she was aiming for.

The world started to swirl and distort around her and in a blink she was back in, hopefully, her own time. It was hard to tell since the room looked exactly the same.

Hermione knocked on the door three times and waited what felt like forever when in reality less than a minute had passed. The door creaked open and there stood the old man who had let her in and that's when it struck her, she had recognised the man in the past because it had been a younger Arneth, feeling so foolish to have not worked it out sooner. In her defence, he had not aged particularly well, but had seemed to have retained his swift walking pace after all this time. It made her feel a little bad for thinking he had only been congenial with her before because of who she was, it must have been because he had been expecting her for quite some time.

"Ah, back at last are you." Greeted Arneth with an amused smile, not talking to Hermione but the timeturner. "I've been waiting for you for a very long time."

"Sorry." Apologised Hermione sincerely. "I hope you didn't get in any trouble for letting me take it?"

"No I didn't, Lucius Malfoy took care of that for me, believe it or not."

Previously Hermione probably wouldn't have, but now she didn't question it.

"Sorry to be rude but I've got somewhere I really need to be." She said looking at her watch. Three o'clock, just what she'd been hoping for. With any luck he would still be in his office.

"No problem Miss Granger." He said taking the timeturner carefully from her with a knowing smile. "Off you go."

Hermione hurried off down the corridor with determination in each stride, calling back "Thank you Arneth!" as she went.

"Good Luck!" He called back, perhaps having a hunch about where she was off to in such a hurry.

Hermione's legs seemed to have overridden her mind as she marched through the Ministry, finally coming to a sharp halt right outside the office of none other than Lucius Malfoy, her breaths rapid and face surely red.

She knocked brusquely on the door, opening it as soon as she heard the slightly irritable 'enter' called from inside.

Hermione walked in, closing the door behind her, her heart racing in her chest.

Lucius looked surprised to see her as he lifted his eyes from the neatly organised parchment on his desk, a small familiar smile appearing in the corner of his lips.

"What's so amusing?" Hermione asked, seeing the ever so slightly smug look on his face.

"Nothing at all I assure you." He drawled as he stood from his desk. Lucius had looked beautiful as his 18-year-old self, Hermione had thought it the best she'd ever seen him, but something had changed. Now she looked at him and could not imagine a more perfect man. The pain, the regret, the horrors he had seen were all etched into his being and seeing him as he was now having met his younger self made her physically hurt. All of her hatred for him seemed to have dissipated, an undeniable want left it its place.

"I was just intrigued by your current outfit." He explained as he walked slowly towards her. "I don't recall you wearing it when we encountered each other earlier."

"My outfit? Wha-" She stopped abruptly when she realised what she was wearing. The Ravenclaw uniform, she had completely forgotten to change out of it. "Yes, well, never mind what I'm wearing. I came here to return something to you."

Lucius raised a finely sculpted eyebrow in curiosity. "Oh you have, have you? Now isn't this interesting."

Hermione wasn't sure what game Lucius was playing here but part of her couldn't help but wonder, hope even, that he knew where she'd just come from.

"Yes." She said, trying to sound confident.

Hermione reached into her bag and pulled out the remaining half of the black ribbon and held it out to him. "You lost it earlier."

The smug expression fell from Lucius' face as he reached out and took the ribbon, the brush of his skin against her own sending shivers through her just as it had less than an hour ago for her, yet so long ago for him.

"The other half…" He whispered, not seeming to realise he was speaking aloud, running the soft ribbon through his fingers.

"And I believe this is yours too…" She said, tentatively holding out the other ribbon. This one was a dark green and had some letters embroidered at either end in silver thread, an 'L' at one, an 'M' at the other.

His eyes widened, a look on his face Hermione had never seen on anyone before, he looked devastated yet overjoyed at the same time, and he slowly closed the gap between them.

Lucius reached out and closed her palm, wrapping his hands softly around her own. "I'd like for you to keep it." He said barely audibly as he looked up into her eyes.

"To remember me."

Hermione could have nodded weakly and left, tears no doubt ready to fall at any moment, but something pushed her to stay.

Lucius had the chance to choose now, he was free, and though it was very unlikely that he would choose her after all that the two of them had been through, she couldn't help but try.

She leant up slowly, placing a soft kiss on his parted lips without a second thought. It was brief and gentle but there were so many words behind it that she hoped he would understand.

Lucius stood stunned in disbelief, Hermione able to feel the rapid beating of his heart against her own chest.

"I've waited so long to see you again." He breathed. "This you. The one who met the man I'd left behind, the part of myself that had all but faded away."

"I'm here now." She smiled, revelling in the strong grip she could now feel around her waist. "And I'm not going anywhere."

"We've got all the time in the world."