They ran home and waited. And feared.

Narcissa wasn't sure about what she feared the most. The Dark Lord winning? The Dark Lord losing? Bella dying? Bella rising with her Master? No longer theirs. No matter what, no longer their Master. They were beyond mercy and the Dark Lord had none to start with. No longer their Master.

And then there was the child sleeping upstairs.

Lucius had wanted to send her away with Rodolphus. Lestrange had stayed behind with the child and ran for Hogwarts the moment he laid eyes on them. He ran for battle not out of loyalty but out of love. He didn't think victory, nor defeat, nor danger, nor madness. He thought Bella and ran. Lucius thought Fool and let him go. His brother-in-law was a thirsty man running for a mirage, a beautiful hallucination but no less a fatal one. He wasn't running for their Master. Not my Master from now on. No matter what, rising or falling, I am no longer his.

But still the child slept upstairs.

Draco had stopped his father. He cared for the sleeping infant on the bed. He retrieved his cousin from his father's arms and took the baby to his rooms. Now he sat at the foot of his bed and stared at the soft pearly bundle atop his deep blue covers. Had he made a huge mistake in not letting go? Was his Master right about the weakness in love? No longer our Master, no matter what. He will either die today or come to kill us. Not our Master anymore.

And so the child sleeps.

Disclaimer: I do not own the HP universe or its characters, I am not J.K. Rowling and I write for my own purposes, which are not monetary. If you recognize it, it's not mine. There, done. Set the copyright hounds loose on someone else.