"If he wanted to reach out, he would have."

The words hit her like a blow. She reeled from the truth of it.

He could have found her, if he wanted.

He could have been here, to hold her when she woke up tangled in his sheets, screaming and crying from her nightmares.

"Hermione, dear—"

"I miss him," said Hermione, and then she was crying, her lungs seizing for air. "I want to know he's safe. And I want him to come home."

"I know, darling— "

"Do you think"—her voice shook as she tried to calm herself—"If I can get him acquitted, do you think he'll come home after?"

A soft hand found hers. Hermione watched it blur as she waited for Narcissa's answer, like dancing on a tightrope.

When she finally looked up, it was into warm blue eyes. "I think it depends. I think he has to believe there's something worth coming back for."

The space where her heart should have been beating dissolved to dust. A wet sound broke from her throat, and she wanted to ask Narcissa exactly what she had to do, but the sobs were coming too quickly, wracking her body.

Narcissa held her tightly until it ended. She stood, stooping to brush Hermione's cheeks with her knuckles and tuck her hair behind her ear. Then she quietly excused herself.

Hermione stared at the tablecloth as Narcissa's footsteps faded, wondering how she could possibly tell Draco he was the only thing she wanted anymore when he was so far out of reach.

~*~

She arrived at Parliament Hall on Monday morning in the same navy robes. Her heartbeat echoed in her ears, and she matched the rhythm with her footsteps on the cobblestones.

"Miss Granger! Over here!"

"Miss Granger, are you here to testify on behalf of Draco Malfoy?"

"Do you know where he is?"

She steeled her expression and pushed past them, ignoring the flashbulbs in her face.

The Swiss Prosecutors were gathered near security, and they fell silent when she neared. She ignored them, checking her wand and proceeding directly to the courtroom doors. The guards cleared her quickly, and she was led to her usual chair behind the Italian Prosecutors. Pierre smirked at her as she took her seat, twirling a quill between his fingertips.

The large chair for the Defendant was absent. Hermione breathed deep and focused on smoothing out the ripples of the lake inside her mind.

The press filed in. The Secretariat entered next. The court came to its feet for President Ogden. She sat again. The Judges swore their oaths. And Pierre stood up.

She drifted into her body to watch him step towards the judges.

"We're here today to try Draco Malfoy for his crimes," his smooth voice rang out. "His crimes against the United Kingdom, and greater Europe, and the international community. His crimes"—Pierre turned to the press seats—"against humanity itself."

Hermione counted to ten as she inhaled.

—"beyond reasonable doubt, murdered Swiss Minister Vogel and his secretary, and served as an accessory to the murder of thousands in Switzerland and France. In addition to his war crimes, Mr. Malfoy actively participated in sex trafficking and human slavery—"