Sorry sorry sorry it's so ridiculously late I know, i've had a dozen tests lately but uhh stuff happens soon so enjoy! Read and review!
Hermione returned from her room in the morning looking very put-out.
"I've run out."
Draco raised his eyebrows at her uninformative statement. "Of what?"
"My potion!" she said earnestly, waving a pink bottle at him.
"Is this the potion you get every morning..?"
"No, don't be stupid." she huffed, slumping on his bed while he did up the buttons on his shirt. "Well, yes, but it's not Polyjuice."
His lips twitched in bemusement. "Alright, what potion is this?"
"It's my birth control potion, and don't look at me like that."
He frowned. "You don't need that."
Her grumpy expression was lost as she gazed at him in confusion.
"It's something all the Malfoys have done, so we don't have to worry about... well, bastards. There's this thing we can do if we actually want to, you know, spawn some little Malfoys."
Hermione had the sudden urge to giggle. She held it, and instead asked, "We?"
He exhaled a small, amused puff. "I meant we: The Malfoys."
"Right. Well I guess that's good, I did worry when I didn't have it the first couple of times we... Anyway, hurry up, i'm hungry."
"I'm ready!" he said, then added as they exited the room, "Oh, Granger? You drink a lot of potion."
She smiled patronizingly. "You really have no idea what potions most women drink."
Draco and Hermione sat reading in the living room. She had lent him Pride And Prejudice, which he was reading with an open mind, though every once in a while his mind would drift and he would take interest observing her reading. He found it odd, seeing a girl like Astoria buried in a book.
He nudged her lightly with a woolly sock covered toe. "Do you want a drink?"
"Yeah, alright. Thanks." she smiled. It always surprised her that Malfoy was actually quite a gentleman.
He soon returned with two glasses of water and went back to his book.
"Hey-" Draco began suddenly.
Hermione yelped and choked on her water. Spluttering, she slammed her glass on the table and it smashed in her hand; shards of glass flew a metre away, and through her coughing, she could feel blood trickling over her palm and fingers.
"Are you okay Granger? Don't stand up, the glass." cautioned Draco.
Hermione blushed as she calmed down, shielding her hand behind her back.
"What's wrong? Did it cut you?"
She turned a deeper shade of pink and panic touched her eyes. "Yeah, don't worry. Sorry, tense moment in The Shining. Go back to your book."
He frowned and reached for her arm, but she only backed further away.
"Seriously, let me see?"
Hermione shook her head and pressed right up against the arm of the sofa. Draco kneeled up and moved toward her.
"Please, please, I can handle it! Malfoy! Get off me, I'M FINE!"
He stared at her in shocked confusion. "What's wrong with you? Granger, you're getting blood on the sofa, let –"
She whipped round in a frenzy, pointlessly waving her hands over the stain in panic and seeing, for the first time, the extent of the damage on her hand.
Her entire lower arm was drenched in blood. It dripped onto the green fabric to make a nasty brown colour, and she swayed under the weight of her alarm. Draco seized her and leant her back, taking a firm hold of her arm despite her weak protests. She felt her skin running dry and clean, and in under a minute the stinging was calmed and her vision returned.
Draco allowed her to lie still while the shock wore off, but eventually spoke. "I healed your arm. I'm not great with that spell so you'd have a scar, but then you're only going to reform in a few hours so I guess that's not a problem."
Hermione stared at him, making it unable to distinguish between her worry or genuine fright.
"Granger, what's wrong with you? You're not hurt bad, why were you so insistent on not letting me help you?"
She hesitated. Staring shamefully past his head, she explained, "I just- I didn't know how you'd react... You know, my blood. I don't want you to be reminded of why you hate me."
He blinked. Understanding only made him frown harder, and slowly he managed to string some words together. "I didn't even think of that. I- No. I mean, I guess I just don't think like that anymore. Granger, look at me! I don't think like that anymore!" A tear rolled down her cheek, and he pulled her into his chest. "I'm so, so sorry. I promise, i'm not the same person I used to be. I was ignorant and conceited, but I saw who I was and what i'd buried myself in with You-Know-Who, and I realised what an idiot I was to believe all those things. Granger, I swear i'm different. You believe me right? You do- right?"
Draco's voice cracked and Hermione nodded into his jumper, quiet, strangled noises of reassurance escaped her throat. That was all either of them needed, and they stayed huddled on the sofa for an hour in silence.
"Did you hear that?"
Draco and Hermione were sat up in bed, reading their separate books with a fire burning.
"Yes." Hermione answered, staring nervously at the door.
It happened again, followed by Lucius' magically magnified voice.
"Draco. A word with you and Astoria, in the drawing room. There's someone here who I think we ought to talk about."
Malfoy looked alarmed and thrusted his book away without caring to keep the page. "Get your wand and the ring. If you have any Polyjuice left, you better bring that too."
The pair scrambled hurriedly out of bed without another word, and when appropriately dressed with everything they needed, they began to walk briskly down the corridor.
When they reached the drawing room, a horror unlike their current fears awaited. Bellatrix Lestrange stood with Mr and Mrs Malfoy, a few metres away from a terrified looking Astoria, held standing by invisible ropes and hovering an inch off the floor.
The young couples' jaws dropped, and Hermione was suddenly tucked behind Draco, his hand tight on her arm.
"What is this?" he asked, genuinely wanting an explanation, though he had his suspicions.
"We could ask you the same question." Lucius said coldly.
Bellatrix took a step towards them with an accusatory glare towards Hermione. "I was running an errand near the Leaky Cauldron, when I saw this one," she nodded towards Astoria, "looking quite distressed. I of course addressed her, but she gave me no answers as to who she was or what she was doing, after I uncovered that it was not the young Miss Greengrass I thought. Unless you two can give me a suitable explanation, I think the Cruciatus Curse will get her to talk."
She waited expectantly as Hermione blinked in a frozen state.
Draco shook his head slowly.
His aunt advanced on Astoria, wand suddenly in hand.
Her scream was ear splitting but short, as Bellatrix's wand flew from her hand and into Hermione's.
"How dare you?" the wand-less woman screeched.
Hermione seemed to choke on her tongue, unable to splutter out the words she wanted to. Draco nudged her back, though he said nothing in defence of either character.
"Cissy, attack her!"
Draco's protective stance became more pronounced, but his mother made no threatening movement. As Lucius raised his arm, she simply placed a light hand on his to stop him, not making eye contact with anyone.
"Draco, she is not who you think! Stop being foolish and return me my wand!" she desperately screamed like a child having a tantrum.
"I will not help you hurt them."
She spat poison and turned towards the silent parents. Lucius looked confused but composed; the power his wife held over him was infinite.
Bellatrix snapped. She leapt on the helpless double and pulled out a huge blade, managing to leave a trail of blood before she was hit by two simultaneous stunning spells and collapsed on the floor.
"WHAT IN THE NAME OF MERLIN ARE YOU DOING!" Lucius howled, Narcissa let out a pitiful yelp and let go of his arms to clasp her mouth.
"Father-" Draco pleaded as Hermione ran over to Astoria.
"WHO IS SHE, DRACO?"
Hermione interrupted from her twin's side. "Sir, please hear us out because your wife wants to protect us. I'm Hermione Granger, i'm here working under-cover for the Order of the Phoenix to bring down you-know-who, authorised by Draco in return for yours and his own protection if we succeed. I'm so sorry to intrude on your life, I know I am very much unwanted, but your wife and son believe that this is a good thing or they would never have helped me. Please, please let us help each other."
He looked uncertainly at Draco, who nodded confirmation, then to his wife who did the same. He then pursed his lips and bowed his head slightly, signalling his cooperation.
"Draco, we need to go, we need Kingsley!" she said, removing her cloak and rapping it around the anaemic Astoria.
He bent to her level and started hectically discussing their options. Eventually, he looked up and said, "Mother, we can pretend this didn't happen. Put a memory charm on Bellatrix so she forgets seeing Astoria, and when she wakes, tell her she fell and needs to rest. We'll take Astoria to safety and figure out what to do next. Can you do that?"
Both parents nodded.
He lifted Astoria's finger to join his and Hermione's on the ring, and they disappeared with a single command of "Go!"