When he reached her lips, she slipped off the chair and into his arms, winding her fingers in his hair. He pulled her into his lap and wrapped himself around her, kissing her softly. Her lips tried to follow him when he broke away.

Holding her close to him, Draco looked into her eyes and said, "How do we kill him?"

Chapter End Notes

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Chapter 33

Chapter Notes

Thanks for your patience with the delay. Keep an eye on the ending A/N of this chapter for up-to-date information on the next posting date. Posting this chapter late affects the next one unfortunately, so we'll make some decisions soon about when Chapter 34 will post.

Thank you to my Cat and my Duck.

See the end of the chapter for more notes

"Basilisk venom, Fiendfyre, the Sword of Gryffindor." Draco pushed off his father's desk and crossed the room, staring at the opposite wall. "You're sure there's nothing else that can destroy a Horcrux?"

Hermione's fingers slid from her lips. "As far as we know, yes. The book your father confiscated only listed Fiendfyre and basilisk venom. The Sword is a special case."

"But it's missing."

"Yes. Since last May." She chewed the inside of her cheek.

Draco nodded, and she watched his ribs expand. "Fiendfyre is the riskiest option. If the fire isn't contained, the mountain could collapse."

"That's fair."

Draco turned around. "So our best option is to find a rare snake that can apparently kill us on sight."

Hermione lifted a brow. "Actually, we only need to get to the basilisk skeleton in the Great Hall. Its fangs still contain the venom even after—"

"They're gone."

The air left her lungs. He sighed, running a hand down his face. "When the Dark Lord first brought the skeleton into the Great Hall, he removed and destroyed the basilisk's fangs. Rabastan saw him do it. I heard him mention it to my aunt."

A prickling coldness ran down her spine. "Alright. Well, that's not an option, then." She collapsed back into Lucius's leather chair and rubbed her temples, trying to think. "A fang might have survived the fire last year. But I highly doubt it."

Draco's footsteps shuffled closer. "Sorry?"

"It's just…" She dropped her hands and looked up at him. "Ron and I had several fangs, but we lost them all to the Fiendfyre."

"In the Room of Hidden Things? With Crabbe?"

"Yes. He unwittingly helped us kill a Horcrux in that room, actually."

Draco's brow furrowed. "Which one? The ring?"

"No, Ravenclaw's diadem." She leaned forward and tapped a finger against the desk. "Dumbledore destroyed the ring with the Sword of Gryffindor in sixth year." Another finger. "The diary was Harry with a basilisk fang. Ron killed the locket with the sword, and I destroyed the cup—"