"Yes." Her forehead dropped to his shoulder, inhaling his scent. "What was it looking for?"

"It's another test for Malfoy blood. I've seen one before, but this one was different. He must have done something to it."

Draco's hand reached for hers, and his wand cut a thin slice in her palm before she could flinch. Another slice to his left wrist, and he flicked his wand to direct his blood to flow into her.

Hermione looked up at him to tell him that it hadn't been an hour, that there was no need — but his pinched expression told her to keep quiet.

"I want to be sure it lasts."

Her skin felt warm again, and she squeezed his thigh to make him stop. This time, Hermione stood first, helping him to his feet and plucking up her wand to close their cuts. She nodded at him once before turning back to the sitting room, bracing herself for what came next.

There was an archway in the stone that seemed to lead to a dining room, and two closed doors to the left that could possibly lead to bedrooms. She moved towards the dining area, her wand extended as she peeked around the corner. There was nothing but a small pantry. Draco moved behind her, and they stepped over the threshold.

Hermione's fingers brushed the wooden dining chair closest to her. They came away covered in dust. "You said your grandfather last came in 1940?"

"Mid-September, to be exact."

Frowning, Hermione's eyes swiveled to look at the ceiling, studying the smooth rock of the mountain above. "And once two hundred years ago as well?" An ancient memory swirled up, and then it hit her. "Draco, this could be a bunker."

"A what?"

She spun to face him. "Your grandfather came here just after London was first attacked by the Germans. I think they used this hideaway in preparation for Muggle wars."

"Doubtful." He shrugged tightly. "I'm aware of the airstrikes. The Manor's wards could have easily deflected them—"

"No magic can stop an atomic bomb. They tried in Japan."

Draco scratched his jaw. "Fascinating as this is, is this really the moment for a history lesson?" he said drily.

She shook her head, swallowing her curiosity. "You're right, sorry. But it is helpful to know that the Malfoys most likely warded this place against cave-ins. The mountain won't come tumbling down around us if they prepared it for nuclear fallout. There might be other fortifications—"

"I will give you every Malfoy journal in existence to review if we ever get back to the Manor, Granger." He placed his hand on one of the closed doors and said, "Shall we?"

She followed him through the doorway and into another drawing room, a bit smaller than the first. There was a corridor to the left, and Hermione wondered just how large the residence was as they threw the doors open, finding four separate bedrooms.

Draco stared through the open door he was facing, then back at her in the corridor.