Author's Note: This chapter is much longer!

If you're enjoying this story I have started a new one called 'Seduction' which features a different character with Draco. Depending on how you feel about reading stories with different characters at the same time you could read it now, or maybe just leave it until I finish posting this one! I just wanted to let you all know it's there though :)

Chapter 21: Bravery

It was late evening and Draco flopped down on the couch in their rooms and dropped his head into his hands. He had only just arrived back at Hogwarts, a day late, and then only after a very anxious few days in which he thought he might not be coming back at all. Those few days since Potter had burst into his life again in a very unexpected way had been awful. Draco really didn't want to think about them right now.

In fact, he didn't know what he wanted to think about now. Unwillingly his thoughts seemed to be drifting back to his mother's behaviour last night. She had come into his room again after the house was in darkness and everyone else was in bed. There had been a few moments where she had simply sat next to his bed silently with Draco watching her in confusion wondering why she had come. Then, just as he had been about to speak he had realised she was crying.

"I'm sorry, Draco. I'm tired. So tired," she had wept, and then she had flung her arms around his neck, hugging him a way she had not done since he was very small. The Malfoy's did not show physical affection.

Draco had been frozen in shock, unable to do anything other than pat her rather awkwardly on the shoulder and wait for her to let go.

"I'm so sorry for all this Draco. I never meant for this to happen. I never wanted this for you. I should have tried harder. I shouldn't have been so blind." Alarmed at her babbling, not least because he thought someone would hear them, Draco had attempted to shush her. Her words had disturbed him more than he cared to admit to himself at the time but luckily she had suddenly seemed to remember herself for she had pulled herself together.

"Why do you think I married your father, Draco?"

Her voice had come suddenly after another minute of silence and Draco had blinked at her stupidly, until he'd realised from her now upright bearing and penetrating gaze that she was seriously expecting an answer.

"Well, it was a good match, wasn't it? You're both pure-bloods," he had tried, which had led to his hand being seized in a vice like grip.

"No, Draco. We married because we loved each other. I'm not saying blood had nothing to do with it, but ultimately we loved each other. I would not have married him otherwise." Her eyes had been almost frantic then as she had sought to meet his, but Draco was stiff with shock, and could only swallow hard and try to collect his shattered thoughts. He had known of course that his parents had a certain level of affection for each other, but he hadn't really thought about it before, except as a passing thing. His father had certainly not shown a great deal of it towards his mother, though occasionally she had been more open. As far as he was concerned they had got married because they were both pure-blooded and that had been important. He had always assumed they got on simply because they had shared the same views and had the same ideals and ultimately respected one another. Certainly the notion of his father being romantic enough to marry for love had never occurred to him.

"What are you talking about mother?" he had snapped, mostly out of confusion. He had attempted to pull his hand away then as well but his mother had only gripped harder.

"Marry for love, Draco. Promise me."

"Mother you're talking nonsense." He had seen the hurt in his mother's eyes at that comment, which had come out almost without thought. He had added, "You make it sound as if you're never going to see me again," rather hastily to try and soften his words, which had ultimately been about that anyway. Unfortunately the only effect had been more tears from his mother, which had frightened him more than he could admit even now. Had things really got that bad?

Yes.

But he hadn't wanted to think about that then anymore than he did now, so he'd said, "Why are you suddenly telling me this now mother?"

"Because it's important, Draco. I forgot it was important, but it is."

"What if I decide I'm in love with someone who's muggle born?" he'd asked flippantly, and then he had flinched, because why hadn't he said mudblood? Since when was that a word he avoided using? His mother's lips had set into a firm line, and he'd thought she'd noticed, but in the end more tears had leaked from her eyes and she'd hung her head.

"So be it."

Draco's world had fallen apart.

He had, very quietly, told her he had no intention of marrying anyone right now, much less marrying anyone who was muggle born. She had stared at him hard and said that she knew that, but that it was hardly the point, just before she had left.

Earlier today she'd said goodbye to him before he'd apparated to Hogsmeade and acted as if the conversation had never happened, which is why he was sitting here on the sofa in this room with his head in a whirl and his life in a mess with his only rational thought being that he desperately wanted to see Isabelle.

He wasn't even sure that was rational.

Before he could reflect on that though the door opened and suddenly she was there. The girl he'd spent every minute of the holidays he possibly could thinking about, because thinking of her was better than thinking of anything else and so he'd let himself indulge in those thoughts, though he knew they were wrong. She was looking at him in shock, as if perhaps he was a ghost, and he realised he was no better, because he wanted to run to her, to pull her into his arms, to hold her tightly and never let her leave, but instead he was sitting there, just staring, with no idea what to say.

"Where the hell have you been?" It wasn't the greeting he might have imagined, or wanted, but she had spat the words with such venom that he felt that spark inside him re-ignite. Her eyes were burning into his as she strode across the room and flung herself onto the opposite end of the sofa, glaring at him darkly from under a scowl. He scowled back.

"Nice to see you too," he snapped, folding his arms across his chest, "Because I was having such a great time at home that I obviously deliberately stayed an extra day. It's totally my fault I'm here a day late."

"Shut up, Draco, you aren't the only one with problems." She was still scowling, but Draco had noted the way she had flinched at his words.

"Oh really?" he spat, his voice dripping with sarcasm because despite the flinch he was still annoyed, "Well when your problems are as big as mine I might actually have some sympathy." He sank lower into the seat and scowled more deeply.

"Fine. Let's hear it then." The words had not been said kindly or empathetically, but Draco felt his frown waver. He wanted in that moment nothing more than to pour out the whole story. To tell her about the prisoners in the cellar, Granger's torture, Potter's escape, his own torture, his family's imprisonment, everything. But he didn't have the words, and the reminder of the pain as the cruciatus curse had cut through him made him press his lips together and squeeze his eyes shut in an attempt to block out the memory.

He didn't want her to know that he was weak anymore than he wanted her to know about the shit that went on in his life. He snapped his eyes open and tried to smooth his features back into the cold, neutral expression he had learned from his father.

"No. Tell me what's happened to you," he said quickly, averting his eyes so he didn't have to see her reaction to his brief moment of weakness.

There was silence, silence that stretched on for a long minute, and which allowed Draco the time to compose himself. In that silence he was suddenly aware that Isabelle was crying. She was doing it quietly, with only the odd catch of her breath to give away the fact that she was doing it at all, but it was too much for Draco. He turned, saw the tears running down her cheeks and felt something within him snap.

Without thinking he reached out, gathered her into his arms and pulled her onto his lap. She didn't resist, just curled up as small as she could, pulling her knees to her chest and leaning against him as he wrapped his arms around her tightly, rocking her gently and making soothing noises completely on instinct.

It was one of those moments again. One where Isabelle seemed so fragile and so broken that it brought out every deep rooted protective instinct he had and made him want to lash out at a world that could do this to someone like her.

"I'm sorry," she said finally, wiping her eyes with one hand, "I shouldn't even be crying about this really. It could be so much worse."

"What's happened?" he asked quietly. His hand had automatically come up to stroke her hair, and whilst the gesture surprised even him he wasn't inclined to stop doing it.

"It's my sister."

Draco stiffened, his hand stilled, "Is she… dead?" he breathed, the words barely on the edge of hearing.

"Draco! I said it could be a lot worse, what would be worse than that?" And for once, Draco didn't mind that she was snapping at him again and he didn't snap back either because he was too relieved to care. There was the Isabelle he knew again. The one with the spark and the fire who didn't really care that he was Draco Malfoy because she was damn well going to give as good as she got and stupidity like that was just not acceptable.

"Well, what is it then?" he said evenly, though he knew a bit of annoyance had crept in, because he was still Draco Malfoy and no one treated him like he was stupid, not even her.

"She's had to go into hiding. My mum and step dad have taken her to Spain. She's not coming back. They'll be gone until this is over… whenever that might be." She made a vague gesture with her hand and Draco felt his throat constrict. "When you didn't come back, I thought you might be gone too. I was…" There was a hesitation and Draco filled in the blank.

"Worried?" When that got nothing but a look which suggested he was right he gave a humourless laugh and added, "You and me both sweetheart."

That earned him a different look, as if she didn't know whether he was joking or not and she rolled herself off his lap, though she remained close to him, with her body pressed up against his arm.

"What have you got to be worried about?"

Draco gaped at her, because did she really not know? He was about to snap back when he realised that how could she? There was no possible way for her to know what it was like to be in his shoes.

"You'd be surprised," was all he said in the end. She considered this for a moment and Draco nearly caved in again, nearly told her everything. But then her eyes hardened and he was glad he hadn't.

"My sister didn't ask to be driven from her home. Whatever you have to worry about you brought on yourself."

Draco blinked. Even he was wiling to concede that her sister didn't deserve to be driven away. Hell, he'd even quite liked the girl based on what little interaction they'd had, but Isabelle knew nothing about his life and the realities of it.

"My family brought it on me," he said bitterly after a pause.

"Do you ever take responsibility for your own actions?" she snapped, with a viciousness that surprised him.

Draco glowered. How dare she? He was so busy being angry that he didn't notice what she was doing until suddenly she had grabbed his left wrist, yanking his arm forwards and pulling up his sleeve in one quick movement so that the brand on his forearm was exposed.

"Are you going to tell me you weren't willing to have this?" she spat angrily, eyes flashing wildly as she stared at him.

"If I had been less willing it wouldn't have mattered," he snarled, wrenching his arm away and shaking his sleeve back down, fixing her with a glare that couldn't fail to let her know just how much he hated what she had done. Why had she suddenly acknowledged that it existed when they had both been ignoring it so well up until now?

"Would you do it again?" she asked abruptly, unperturbed by his look and fixing him with another fiery gaze, "If you hadn't already I mean. Would you do the same now or would you refuse?"

Draco pressed his lips together and refused to answer, because he knew, and she didn't, that refusal was not an option. But how could he say that to her? Even he knew 'I'd be killed if I refused' didn't hold much water with anyone. No one believed that shit. They always thought there was a way out, always pretended they'd rather have died than do the wrong thing. Draco had never believed that. It was stupid; stupid to think and even more stupid to do, though he was of the opinion that no one really did it anyway.

"What would you do to protect your sister? Or your parents?" he said suddenly, watching as Isabelle frowned, as if about to rebuke him for not answering the question. He pinned her with a hard, penetrating gaze and added, "Would you risk your life for them? Would you die if you knew it meant saving them? Would you be brave enough?"

Isabelle's face darkened, she seemed to take his words as a challenge, which was more or less what Draco had wanted. "I'd do whatever it takes," she spat, and Draco noticed that she wasn't sitting as close anymore. At some point she had moved her body away from his and was looking at him now with disgust.

"Good," he said fiercely, leaning towards her and taking hold of her shoulders with a grip that he knew must very nearly hurt, but which he also knew would hold her in place and make her listen. "Because I'm not brave. Bravery is stupid. Bravery gets you killed. But I will do whatever it takes to keep my mother alive, and my father too if I can. Things are the way they are. I can't change them."

He released her, subsiding back onto the couch and breathing hard. Next to him Isabelle sat frozen, staring straight ahead as if transfixed on the wall opposite, though the glazed look in her eyes suggested she was lost inside her head. Draco dropped his face back into his hands and waited for the explosion.

"I'm going to bed." That was not what he had been expecting. He flinched slightly at the coldness in her voice and remained motionless as she got up from the couch.

"Draco?" She had only gone a couple of paces and the tone of her voice, softer, yet insistent, made him raise his head cautiously and look at her. She still had that fierce look in her eyes, but it was tempered now by something else, something that Draco couldn't quite identify.

"I'm glad you're back," she said softly and walked away.

Draco went to bed not long after that, though he lay awake for longer than he cared to remember, playing the conversation over in his head. He had waited so long to see Isabelle and for a few brief minutes he had got to hold her again, but then they had argued, more ferociously than they ever had before and the bubble had burst. He didn't know whether she'd ever come back to him now. He didn't think he could stand that. The torture would almost be worse than that which he'd suffered at home.

His fears were forgotten in his sleep, but only properly soothed when Isabelle slipped into his bed the next morning, stroking his hair until he woke. He pulled her into his arms and kissed her before she could object, though it seemed she wasn't going to anyway, because she kissed back and then let him continue, exploring her body anew with caresses and kisses that made him forget all else in the world and lose himself back in their perfect little bubble.

Eventually he brought her to orgasm, savouring the look in her eyes right before she climaxed and then letting her return his attentions, which let him know that things truly were all right as she kissed every inch of skin she could reach. They joined their hips in the end, and rocked gently, their breath mingling as they held each other close, their lips right on the edge of touching, until the urgency of their need overtook them both and they kissed, increasing the speed of their movements until their world exploded into pleasure and Draco thought that nothing had ever felt this good.

"Wow," whispered Isabelle, still gasping for breath as he lowered himself onto the bed next to her. He hummed contentedly and pulled her into his arms, his rules about what was acceptable after sex long since forgotten. He kissed her lips gently, smoothing her hair back from her eyes before resting his forehead against hers and letting his eyelids drop closed.

"Did you mean it?" he murmured, not sure he whether he wanted to hear the answer.

"Mean what?" she asked, hooking her arms around his back and pulling herself closer.

"When you said you were glad I was back." He stiffened slightly, prepared for her answer to hurt.

"Of course I meant it, you idiot," she scoffed gently, the affection behind her tone and playful smirk gracing her features enough for him to let the idiot comment slide for now. Instead he simply nodded slightly and sighed contentedly, feeling her settle more comfortably against him as he relaxed.

"We should get up," Isabelle said after a while, startling him because he had been on the verge of sleep.

"Isabelle…" He let the whiny edge creep into his voice, drawing his arms tighter around her to try and prevent her leaving, "I don't want to. I'm tired."

"Brat!" she admonished, giggling and trying to wriggle out of his arms. She didn't really stand much chance, because Draco hooked onto her with his legs as well, and his superior strength meant he didn't even have to test his own limits to keep her there. He smirked at her when she started to grumble under her breath.

"It's comfortable and warm," he pointed out, "Don't tell me you'd rather get up than stay here with me?"

"Draco Malfoy," she said, sounding rather incredulous and also very much amused, "I'm pretty sure I remember you throwing some poor girl out into the corridor half naked because she refused to get out of your bed, and now you're telling me you want me to stay?"

Draco smirked, "See how privileged you are?" he drawled, "I could show you half a dozen girls who'd cast some serious hexes just to be in your place right now. Consider yourself lucky."

"Oh Merlin," she said, rolling her eyes, "You really are a brat."

"You already knew that sweetheart." He smirked, and placed a kiss on the top of her head, because actually she was settling back down against his chest, fitting her head into the crook of his shoulder and letting him nuzzle into her hair. "See," he added, unable to resist, "I always get my own way."

There was light slap on his chest. "Shut up Draco, I'm staying because I'm tired and it's a better offer than double Arithmancy."

"Oh well, I guess I should consider myself lucky that I'm more tempting than double Arithmancy," he drawled, grinning into her hair, "Good job it wasn't double Potions. I'd have had no chance."

Another slap.

"You really need to stop hitting me sweetheart, otherwise I might just change my mind and dump you in the corridor fully naked."

"You wouldn't dare." This time the words were accompanied by a flick of her fingers against his skin, "Now shut up because if I'm staying I want to sleep." She rearranged her legs and then gave a contented sigh, one that made Draco's heart flutter in his chest and hold her just a little bit closer. This time he didn't say anything; just let his eyes drift shut and eventually sleep overtook him.