Chapter 10

The days dragged on in a similar fashion as the day before, and Hermione was getting more and more despondent. This couldn't be her life, stuck in this large house with no one to talk to, and nothing to look forwards to other than the occasional visit to the Burrow. She felt like she was going stir crazy. She swung wildly from being extremely angry at Lucius to feeling sorry for him. He was after all stuck in the same situation, except his was permanent. She would win her court case and she would be rid of him, he could potter around in this awful house all on his own.

She started finding him in Oscar's room more often in the morning, watching him sleep. It annoyed her, she felt like he was intruding on her child and family life. She wasn't quite ready to recognise that he had a place in Oscar's life or that he occasionally had a place in her thoughts. She always thought he'd deserved the treatment he was getting by the wizard world, but Molly had informed her that his life had been pretty miserable before. Maybe not a term he would use, but from her perspective, there was nothing remotely fun about his life. She was damned if she was going to let him push that on Oscar.

She had to sort this court case. She informed him shortly after ten in the morning that she was heading to the Ministry that day and that she needed some time alone with Percy. He would just have to wait outside.

When they were ready to go, she handed Oscar to Lucius and floo'd ahead of them. They'd decided to use the floo at the Leaky Cauldron as she wanted to drop off a book she had borrowed from George on the way. She didn't have money to buy books anymore and had to content herself with borrowing books. The Malfoy library was spectacular, but she refused to use it on principle.

Hermione arrived in the bustling alley and waited for Lucius to arrive after her with Oscar. Again she wondered at the extent of his skills. His magical abilities were often noted, but no one knew how good he was. He tended to keep that to himself, possibly a good strategy when you are constantly under attack. It served you that your enemy didn't know your skills or the extent of them. That uncertainty probably kept him safe now because there were more than a few people who wanted him dead. She might not be on the very top of that list, but near it, if it wasn't for the reason that she now needed him.

"Hermione, it's so good to see you. How have you been? I haven't seen you for ages," Parvati said and proceeded to hug her. "Is this your boy, he's getting so big." She stroked his blond hair and snuck a quick uncomfortable look the tall black clad man standing next to her. Parvati smiled uncomfortably. Hermione realised that the girl she'd known so well at school wondered if it was his child. Like she would sleep with Lucius Malfoy, Hermione wanted to scream.

She hadn't actually acknowledged to anyone who'd child Oscar was, but the hair narrowed down the possibilities quite dramatically.

Parvati shifted uncomfortably. "You should come around for tea some time."

"That sounds nice, maybe later when things aren't so … complicated." Hermione knew Parvati would lose it if she came to tea with her protector who incidentally was potentially the least liked person in the world. "You could always come around to Malfoy Manor some time." There would actually be little chance that Lucius would be anywhere around in such a situation, but the look on Parvati's face indicated that she thought it was an horrific idea.

"Sure," Parvati said in the same way that an idea is 'interesting'. "I have to run, I'm meeting my sister." Parvati snuck another quick look at the stoic man to her side and gave a tight smile before rushing off.

Hermione felt her insides shrink. She was a complete social reject, lugging the awful wizard around everywhere she went.

"God, I hate you," she said. He didn't respond, he didn't do anything, just waited for her to move ahead. "Have you ever thought about not being so completely awful?

"I can't control what other people think and I don't pander to some illogical sensibilities."

"Illogical sensibilities?" she challenged. "You're completely detested by everyone."

"Oscar doesn't detest me," Lucius finally said. It was something she'd expected him to say. Of course Oscar didn't hate him; he thought every person in existence was endlessly fascinating as a typical three year old did.

"He will grow to. Doesn't everyone?" It was a cruel thing to say, but she was angry. She started walking more briskly, she wanted no more funny looks from people who wondered at the relationship between her and Lucius, and the curious shade of her son's hair.

When she got to Percy's office, she reiterated to Lucius that he would have to wait outside. There were a few desks of secretaries, and Hermione was sure the women would love to keep him company. Well, he was their problem for a few minutes anyway.

She closed the door behind her and sat down in a chair in front of Percy's desk. Percy started talking about approach tactics. Hermione listened along, Percy really didn't want much input from her, he just talked on and on. Oscar was getting a bit squirmy and had set his eyes on a snow globe on Percy's desk, and Hermione had to struggle to keep it out of his hands.

She then heard the unmistakable sound of a hex hitting something. Percy obvious didn't, he just kept talking. Hermione turned around, but there was nothing else. She wondered if she'd imagined it. Maybe having Lucius around all the time made her paranoid. Then there was another sound, closer this time and a scream. Percy noticed too and stopped his relentless speech. He stood up and walked toward the door, swinging to open forcefully.

Hermione grabbed Oscar close and he noticed the change in tension. Hexes were flying outside Percy's office, and they were going in both direction. Percy ran back into his office and pushed a button one the far side of the desk.

"We are being attacked," he said. "Stay here."

Hermione grabbed her wand tightly in her hand. She could hear hexes flying but couldn't see anything. Then someone leaped into the room, throwing hexes at Percy who was doing his best to deflect them. Hermione shot a hex at the man and took him by surprise, but another man had joined him in Percy's office and they were battling two intruders. Very skilled intruders.

"Lucius!" she screamed, but no one else came through the door. There was still frantic activity out there as well. Percy was doing his best throwing hexes, trying to take cover behind a chair. Hermione had retreated to a corner behind Percy's desk. She had Oscar behind her, trying to contain him in the small space of the corner while she tried desperately tried to fend off these men.

She got a brief look at Lucius through the door; he was fighting more than one person by the look of it. He was hit by a hex and flew back in the air; she could see the impact on him hitting the wall on the other side. He would be injured if not dead. Percy also took a hit and dropped to the floor with a moan. Hermione was left on her own now with a Death Eater advancing, who was joined by three more slinking through the door like serpents.

She didn't know where to keep her wand trained. If she focused in on one, the other two would have access to her, but she had no choice, she started throwing hexes at the figures in front of her, but they were too skilled. They deflected her hexes too easily. These people were trained my Voldemort to fight, she just couldn't compete.

She tried apparating, but the dampening field around the Ministry made it ineffective. She was running out of time, and she had nothing. She crouched down and turned to protect Oscar. This was it, she was toast.

An opposing hex flew and it drew a barrage of attacks from the men who were advancing on her. She opened her eyes and saw Lucius taking them on. He dispatched one of them and fought the remaining two.

If Hermione hadn't been scared out of her brains, she would have appreciated more how fluid his fighting was. He outmanoeuvred the two remaining men, sending one flying through the wall leaving a great big hole. The last man tried to deflect Lucius' advance and turned his attention back to Hermione. She saw it is his eyes, the acceptance that he was not going to make it, but he could take her with him.

Hermione cast up a shield just in time to deflect the sizzling hex. Lucius got him in the side and he dropped completely unconscious to the floor. Hermione's ears were ringing with the silence. Lucius stepped towards her and held his arm out to her. She grabbed Oscar around the waist and stepped into the protection of Lucius' arms, feeling his cloak wrap around her in the process.

She felt safe. From being sure her death was imminent, she felt safe. She clung to the solidness of his form, unable to even contemplate stepping away. Lucius held his wand out waiting to see if anyone else came into the room. It was deathly quiet for a few moments. Hermione could hear nothing but her heart pumping blood through her ears. She looked up at the complete look of intense focus on Lucius' face as he waited for someone to come through the door. She should be helping but her wand was around Lucius' back as she used their bodies to protect Oscar.

Lucius tensed further if that was possible as they heard running footsteps. The first Auror leaped into the room, wand at the ready. She felt Lucius relax slightly at the sight of the man. Several more followed, training their wands on the unconscious intruders.

"Percy," Hermione called.

"Not now," Lucius said and tightened his arm around her. Lucius started walking out the door and she couldn't do anything.

"We have to help him," Hermione pleaded.

"There are people here much more capable," he said and almost carried her into an elevator. It zipped them away to the lobby. Lucius brought his wand in flush to his cloak, but he didn't put it away. They walked briskly to the floo.

Oscar started crying the second they got home. Hermione took him upstairs and tried to comfort him. After a few minutes, he calmed down, helped along by an elf bringing a bowl of ice cream. Once he was fine, then Hermione retreated to the bathroom where she quietly sobbed so he wouldn't notice.

She stayed in there for twenty minutes while she composed herself, and until she remembered Percy. His unconscious form invaded her mind bringing back the tension that she'd just tried to relieve. She stepped out of the bathroom and walked to the fireplace in the next room, where she reached the Burrow.

The Burrow kitchen was empty, she kept calling until Ron came into view.

"Is Percy alright?" she asked.

"He's coming around," Ron said. "A bit groggy, but hard to tell on account of him being a git and all." If Ron was joking about it, it couldn't be that bad.

"I feel so awful, he was defending me and Oscar."

"And did a pretty bang up job from what I hear."

"He did pretty good. He was fighting several of them at once."

"I'm never going to hear the end of it now, how fantastic he was in a duel with several Death Eater."

"Well, he deserves a bit of bragging for this one."

"Is Oscar ok?"

"He's a bit shook up, but he's ok. Nothing ice-cream can't sooth, apparently."

"I generally feel the same way. What about the Mr. Grumpy? I heard he took some really bad ones. Quite a fighter I hear. You wouldn't think it being all ponsy, but he's definitely someone to contend with a wand. Bit of an old battle axe, ay. Didn't think he had it in him."

"I haven't seen him since we got back," she said. She hadn't thought about Lucius at all. She hadn't realised he'd been injured. "I have to go."

"Alright," Ron said. "Take care. We'll find these people, Mione, and we'll stop them for good."

Hermione nodded then smiled as much as her tiredness would let her. She ended the connection and sat back. Lucius had saved her life, there was not ifs, buts or maybes about it. She would be dead right now if it wasn't for him, probably Oscar too.

She knew she needed to go check on him, she just didn't know what to say.