A Dream Worth Keeping - Chapter 25
Sucking on his ear, Hermione smirked to herself as she heard him let out a moan deep from inside his gut. His fingers clenched at her waist, bunching up the fabric of her nightgown, pleasurably pinching her soft flesh. With her legs tangled in his, she lifted one bare leg across his calf and up his knee, making him growl into her neck.
"You're bloody ravenous tonight," she whispered, grinding her hips into his lap, feeling his hands roam over her bum.
Nuzzling her cheek, pressing kisses along her jaw, he replied, "Well, you're bloody gorgeous tonight. I can't help myself. Now, shut up and kiss me like a good little girl."
She giggled as he flipped them over, rolling on top of her, straddling her waist. Their lips crashed together in a series of frenzied kisses, tongues battling for dominance. His hands lifted up, fingers untwisting the loose bun atop her head, finding the concept very difficult.
"Damn it," he swore, actually bringing her head to rest upon his right shoulder so he could witness his fingers' clumsy movements. "Did you use a sticking charm on this thing?"
"Just pull the ribbon, Drake," she moaned, impatiently tugging at his clothes.
Just as she found the drawstring to this pajama bottoms and pulled it loose, he tugged the ribbon from the bow, her hair instantly falling down, waves upon waves of curls brushing across his arms. Nodding at his handiwork, making Hermione roll her eyes, he pulled her face back to his, kissing her deeply.
Her swollen breasts brushed against his bare chest, the silky fabric still separating them. Just as he attempted to liberate her flesh, to alleviate the problem, a loud wail stopped his movements.
"Argh," he grumbled, pressing his face in the juncture between her neck and shoulder, which was damp with heavy perspiration; "not fair. Can't she wait an hour? Or hell, wait bloody fifteen minutes?"
Kissing the tip of his nose, Hermione moved herself off him, smoothing the fabric back down. "She's just a baby, Draco, and she's hungry. Let me feed her quickly and then I'll come back and finish you off."
Giving him a coy wink, she wrapped a fluffy white robe around her body and walked to the door. Draco, still unbearably aroused, fell back on the pillows, reminding himself he had to share his wife.
Hermione quickly trotted to Roxy's nursery, opening the door to see her daughter crying in her bassinet. Cooing her baby girl, she lifted the child into her arms, carrying her to the rocking chair seated by the window. Situating herself, and the baby, into a comfortable position, she untied her robe and slipped her nightgown down, exposing her breast. Roxanne latched on and suckled greedily while Hermione ran her fingers through the baby's soft hair.
"Ignore your father," she told her; "you can cry all you want."
Meanwhile, Draco tied his pajama bottoms and followed his wife into the nursery, still prepared to shag her senseless. Upon entering his daughter's room, his eyes rested on the two most important people in his life: his wife and baby girl, happily content in the rocking chair.
"She's a hungry little thing," she noted absently, her words directed to Draco but her eyes still on her baby. "She must get her appetite from you."
"I don't doubt that," he murmured, brushing her head, selfishly eyeing his wife's currently busy breast.
Smirking, Hermione told him, "Be a good boy and you will get rewarded."
"I will be a very good boy, then," he replied, sitting himself on the small couch across from her, smiling thoughtfully.
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-- Ten minutes later --
All three of them were fast asleep.
0000000
-- One Hour Later --
Draco rubbed his bleary eyes, at a loss momentarily for where in the hell he was. Then he remembered - Roxanne's bedroom. Feeling a sleep-heavy weight on top of him, he lifted his eyes to find Hermione sprawled beside him, snoozing the night away. Sighing to himself, realizing instantly he wasn't getting any tonight, he carefully extricated himself from Hermione and walked cautiously to his daughter's crib.
"You little imp," he chided without any malice, "you tired your mother out. Are you punishing your dad for some reason? Can't you let me have one night with your mum?" He affectionately rubbed her soft cheek.
Hermione, recognizing the loss of Draco's warm body, woke with a groggy start, yawning widely.
"Drake?"
"I'm right here. I'm just checking on Roxanne," he told her quietly, smiling down at his daughter. He didn't understand how, but he fell more and more in love with his girl each day. Roxanne was just perfect - his perfect creation. He found his redemption in his wife, but received completeness with his daughter.
Standing up, she walked to the crib, leaning into his back and wrapping her arms around his toned waist.
"I fell asleep," she said unnecessarily.
"So I noticed," he teased, brushing his little girl's cheek. "It's okay, I did too. Why didn't you wake me up once you put her down?"
"I meant to. I was planning on it, but then I sat next to you and you felt so comfy..."
Chuckling, he whispered, "Come on, let's let her sleep. You and I are going to bed."
Facing her, he gave her a small, nearly defeated smile, brushing her cheek in the same manner he had his daughter. Before she could say anything, he lifted her into his arms and carried her into their room, using wandless magic to shut Roxanne's door.
"Drake, I'm awake," she said drowsily. "We can still...ya'know..."
Smiling at her sleep-slurred words, he replied, "We can ya'know another night. I'll hold you to a make-up shag. Actually, I think I may just shag you in the morning."
Placing her into the bed gingerly, covering her body with the heavy comforter, he brushed back some of his wife's hair.
"I'll shag...ya...righ'now..."
Drifting completely off, turned on her side and snuggling into the pillow, Draco shook his head, walking around to his side of the bed. Getting under the duvet himself, he turned out the light and pulled her pliant body into his, kissing her on the forehead warmly before drifting off to join her and their baby girl.
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-- The following morning --
Draco finally got his shag...
0000000
Waking up with a start, Hermione found her head throbbing and her body shivering from the cold. Small pebbles were clinging to her chilly skin, a mixture of goosebumps and dirt marring her body. Coughing weakly, Hermione scanned the room to find the dungeon still just as dark and grimy as it had been when she'd woken earlier.
Merlin, were the children in a similar place?
She shuddered to think.
Realizing she had quite a bit of time on her hands, she took it to think about her family and life with Draco. He really was an amazing man clearly in love with his wife.
"He's wonderful," she breathed, her eyes filling up with angry tears, "so very wonderful and I can't even remember being his wife. I can feel it. I know I can."
Truth of the matter, she could definitely feel it. In the last several days she could feel bizarre thoughts regarding Draco - thoughts she did not quite understand. Wherever the thoughts were coming from, she couldn't say, but they certainly caused some duress for her.
She loved Draco.
She loved him with her whole heart, the kids, too, and now she found herself away from the family she promised to love and honor and take care of and AGH! All right, the true root of her confusion arose from feeling she both didn't know Draco and feeling she knew him better than her own soul. As a practical person, Hermione didn't understand the duel beliefs existing at once. Nothing, in her opinion, made sense.
Hermione liked when things made sense.
Hearing the noise of a thick door opening, she jerked her head up, her dark eyes falling on the same Umbridge she saw earlier. Somehow, seeing the woman made her feel a little bit better.
It was not just a dream.
Everything occurring was real.
At least that seemed practical in some sense.
"Good evening, Missus Malfoy, how are you feeling?" she asked in her high pitched, nasally voice. "Would you care for anything to make you comfortable? Some water? Perhaps some fruit?"
"As Snow White as that sounds, I'd rather see my children," she said calmly, though her voice held the resignation of someone who didn't expect to get what she wanted. Good thing, too, for Umbridge had no intention of allowing such a thing.
"Snow White?"
"It's a muggle children's story, but I'm sure you don't care. You're not the typical muggle supporter, I s'pose."
Giving her an unkind smile, Umbridge continued, "I came in here to discuss a few things with you. You know, you really could have avoided all of this. Well, maybe not for yourself, but for those children and your husband."
"Meaning?"
"Meaning that if you hadn't married your husband and produced those disgusting roes of yours, I wouldn't have to do all of this. I could have just killed you and your family would have remained safe."
"Under your suggestion, my children never would have existed. I wouldn't give them up for anything," said Hermione firmly. Oh, and how she knew she, herself, meant it.
"Even to save them from a painful death?" countered Umbridge, quirking her head to the side.
Hermione didn't reply.
"Your silence is enough of an answer," hissed the short woman. "Anyway, since you did decide to ruin my life, I decided to ruin the entire Malfoy dynasty. I want to destroy you, your husband, your daughter, and your charming little boy. He has been talking up a storm since his arrival here. Crying a lot too. The other brat has not only been whining, but kicking the shins of many of my...employees. You really should have disciplined her better. Weren't you paying attention to anything I did when I ran Hogwarts?"
Beaming with pride, Hermione retorted, "I've never been more proud of my daughter than I am right now. It clearly tells me that she is an excellent judge of character, precisely why she acted unsavory toward your...employees." Shooting the woman a nasty smile, she finished, "and as for your actions as the temporary headmistress of Hogwarts, I am dutifully attempting to repress those lovely memories."
"Shame," said the stout witch, turning her back on Hermione. After pacing for a few seconds, sending glances to the hooded figures by the door, apparently her 'employees' waiting for her, "I think you had real potential back when you were physically at the age you mentally are now."
"Whatever. Look, I'd rather stay here and sleep so unless you have anything important to tell me, I think you can be on your way. My husband should be here shortly."
"I'm counting on it. I bet your husband will be here very soon and I have people out looking for him in the hopes of getting him here even sooner. Now, let me finish. You see, I had to put an end to you. I knew Hermione Granger, war hero and the only member left of the Golden Trio, would hinder any plan of mine. You were, and still are, holding me back. Once you're gone, nobody will dare try to stop me. I can get back into the good graces of the Ministry and once again work my way to the top."
"That could never happen. The idiots of the Ministry may be stupid, but they're not brain dead. They'll be able to see through your lies. And why in the hell would they hire some bitch who escaped—"
"They didn't see through my lies during my appeal, now did they?"
At this, Hermione couldn't answer. Appeal? What appeal was that? When was that? Didn't she...escape...No. No she didn't. She got an appeal. She appealed to the Ministry and gave them bullshit while Parkinson and Nott testified. Hermione didn't know how she knew this, but it suddenly just came to her.
She knew.
"I always intended on ending you, but didn't know how exactly. I changed my plans of staging Draco's death to lure you in until you presented yourself as such an easy target. Really, inviting a glamoured death eater into your home? How you're such a trusting person. Everyone has a weakness, and that is most definitely yours."
Glancing up, Hermione could see the moonlight coming through the small window.
Night officially had fallen.
She needed to reach her kids.
Soon.
"Your memory loss was truly an opportunity and I capitalized off it."
Chuckling to herself, Hermione replied, much to Umbridge's shock, "I already knew everything you just told me."
And it wasn't a lie.
Hermione didn't just know it, she felt it.
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-- Two Hours Earlier --
"Damn it!" roared Draco in complete frustration. "First my kids and now she is Merlin knows where, probably trying to figuring this all out on her own. She shouldn't be alone right now!"
"Perhaps if you hadn't yelled at her and said asinine things—"
"Ginny, not right now," interrupted Blaise, his words addressed to her but his eyes on his best mate. His wife turned her stare on him making him continue, "He doesn't need this. Let's try to be positive."
Snorting, Draco asked, "And how can we positive? Ginny's right, I fucked up."
"Hermione shouldn't have run off," argued Bill, his fingers twitching in his lap.
The Weasley Family had been woken up in the middle of the night by the youngest, Ginny, the girl requesting their immediate presence at her home. At the words 'family emergency' none of them hesitated, instead quickly dressing and racing over there. Hermione explained the situation, including all about her memory loss, before informing them about the present situation. Considering Hermione was practically another daughter and sister, every Weasley agreed to do everything to find her and those precious children.
"Well what can we do?" asked Mr. Weasley, his leg bouncing restlessly. "I can go to the Ministry and we can begin a search. Have every official—"
"No," said Draco firmly; "no way in hell. I don't trust the Ministry, not with my life and certainly not with the life of my family."
"Then we're out of options. If you don't want the Ministry's help, how can we go about this? Nearly everyone we know has some connection with the Ministry, and the ones that don't, won't bother helping us in fear of their own safety," reasoned George, shaking his head in frustration.
Sighing, Blaise reasoned, "We're not out of options. Look, we can do this on our own. Now, Draco and I received letters long ago threatening us of something like this happening. We had people try to break down the door the day Hermione and Draco got married. Surely the same people that did that are doing this."
"And who are those people?" asked Fred tersely.
"Well, I can still hear Parkinson's ugly voice grinding in my head so I'm sure she is somehow involved. I recognized Nott and that stupid nephew of Avery's. What's his name?"
"Henry," replied Ginny absentmindedly, biting her nails as she thought about her friend and the children.
"Yeah, that bloke. There, that's three to start with. Let's try going through them first."
"And what exactly do you plan on saying Blaise?" questioned Bill, his voice taking on a sarcastic tone; "hi, I'm searching for the Malfoy children. Can I check your basement? Not bloody likely."
"No, but with more aggressive tactics. Draco and I weren't known for having the er...nicest of upbringing. We'll go all Slytherin on them."
"Do you even know where they live? Hell, you're going to go all Slytherin on Slytherins! They have been doing dark magic since you lot left school. What makes you think you two will be able to handle them?"
"Cause with the way I'm feeling, I'm capable of hurting them," answered Blaise truthfully. "I'll do anything to get those brats back. You with me, Draco?"
For a moment, the blond man said nothing, instead rubbing the back of his neck while he spent the moment pondering. After a few seconds of gnashing his own teeth and coming up with a proper solution, Draco replied, in a deadly calm voice, "Yeah, but we're going to do things a little differently. Blaise is right. I need to venture into my roots, so we're going to go deep into it. I'm gong to head into Knockturn."
"No! You cannot possibly be serious!" objected Mrs. Weasley, her glassy eyes blinking rapidly. "Draco, that place will eat you alive. You're a traitor there."
"It's better than waiting. It's better than finding out my kids have been murdered or something happened to my wife. I'm going to Knockturn whether any of you agree with me."
"I'm coming with you," Blaise told him at once.
Gripping his arm, Ginny whispered, "I don't like you there."
Peering down at her, he muttered, "I know, but I have to go. You know he'd do it for our kids. I have to do it for theirs. I love Roxanne and Bailey."
"I know. Autumn and I will be waiting for you."
"We're all going," said Fred, clasping George's shoulder, "Aren't we?"
Shaking his head, Blaise answered, "No, Weasleys won't be welcomed there. Besides, it'll be too obvious. Draco and I might be able to get away with it. The Malfoy and Zabini names may be hated, but people will still listen to whatever we have to say."
"I guess that makes sense," noted Bill, rubbing his bearded chin.
Shuffling on his feet, rubbing his wife's tense shoulder, Blaise finally asked, "You ready to do this, mate?"
Sighing heavily, Draco growled, "I was born ready."
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-- One Hour Later --
Draco Malfoy hated Knockturn Alley.
In his youth, he used to think the place made him seem older and cool even, hanging around the shady areas under the protection of his powerful father. Nobody dared mess with him in the presence of Lucius Malfoy. One would end up dead if anyone messed with Draco under Lucius' watch. The safety of his father made him feel superior, important, and incredibly dangerous.
At twelve, hanging around Knockturn became somewhat of a favorite pastime. Well, as long as he stayed under the safety cloak of his father.
Now Draco hated the place, for various reasons; of reminding him of his terrible childhood; his father's distasteful preparatory; and the dubious people in association with the place.
He didn't like thinking of his children being somewhere in there. Merlin, he hoped they were in better sights than the pubs he kept passing.
The beggars and other homeless witches and wizards approached the cloaked men, hissing for them to spare a galleon or a sickle. Ignoring them, they went passed the various shops, eyes searching for any sign of someone who could help them.
At least, so Blaise thought.
"Why aren't we talking to anyone? Should we be asking about them?" whispered Blaise, starting to grow weary of the place, thanking Merlin his family was at home; safe.
Shrugging indifferently, "I think I'll wait for them to come to me."
"They might snag you then," reasoned Blaise.
"I know."
Yes, Draco hated this place.
Yet, in a way Knockturn brought him good thoughts about Hermione.
If only cause it reminded him of how she managed to change him from a miserable bastard into a good man...
"Do you think Roxy will like having a brother or a sister?" she asked thoughtfully, rubbing her hands through her daughter's hair. Sitting between Draco's legs, leaning against his chest, him pressed against their favorite tree, Roxanne nestled in her lap, the whole family enjoyed some serenity in each others' company.
Pressing a gentle kiss to her temple, rubbing the side of her protruding belly in soft, comforting circles, Draco replied, "I think so. Why? Don't you?"
Shrugging, she answered quietly, "I don't know. I mean, you and I don't know what it's like to grow up with a sibling. I mean, I know the good with being an only child. You get all the attention."
"You never have to share," he supplied.
"Every holiday becomes about you."
"You always get to do everything first."
"You always get to lick the spoon when helping mum bake cookies."
"You never get hand-me-downs."
"You're mum's favorite."
"You're dad's favorite."
Snuggling up to him, pulling a sleeping Roxy even closer to her bosom, she nodded in agreement to their thoughts.
"Did you like being an only child?" she asked, closing her eyes.
After a few moments of contemplation, he said, "I did at the time. I loved being the center of attention and never having to share with anyone. Marriage sure was a shock for me when I finally did have to share everything. I didn't know that when I married you that you'd move in with me."
Chuckling, she teased back, "Yeah. I know the feeling. I didn't know that by marrying you I'd only get to sleep with you from now on."
"Clearly I'm doing all right. We've got a second one on the way," he noted smugly.
"Oh yes, you did all the work. You do realize that it's me who has to push the kid out. Blimey, I'm an idiot for doing this again."
Draco caught the hint of apprehension and fear in her voice, not to mention the slight tremble from her body. He knew, of course, she didn't think she could do it again. Her first time with labor had been hell, hours upon hours of painful pushing. The final result was a beautiful one, but still - it caused her such pain.
Sighing, he gave her a slight squeeze. "If I could do it for you, I would. You know that."
"So says a man," she mumbled, rubbing Roxanne's tiny foot. "Men say they're willing to take the pain on, but you're all so full of it. If any of you knew how much it smarts, you wouldn't even want to touch another woman again if it meant having to endure another bout of pain."
"You let me touch you again," he challenged lightly. "Admit it. I'm just that good in bed."
"I don't want to inflate your ego further. It's already too big and we can barely fit in the bed as it is. You, me, and this big belly of mine."
Laughing into her neck, he pressed a few kisses up to her jaw, running his hands over her healthy bulge. While Hermione was enjoying her pregnancy fine enough, she hated how she began to show so much earlier with the second tyke. The healers assured it was normal and even Molly Weasley told her time and time again to expect this sort of thing when expanding the family, but it didn't make Hermione feel any better. She'd been feeling especially big the last few days, making Draco's life a little more stressful.
"I, for one, don't mind sharing the bed...with the kid, at least."
He felt her shake with light laughter, making him grin wider. Anything that brought on a smile certainly was a good thing.
"Anyway, let's get back to the topic at hand. Do you think Roxy will like having another little sibling?"
"I do. Even with all the perks of being an only child, I think having other siblings will outweigh them," he replied thoughtfully. "For starters, you always have someone to play with."
"Or fight with, at the very least."
"That, too. Er, the older sibling still gets to do everything first while the baby gets to be the baby."
"Yes, and the baby supposedly gets away with murder. Knowing you, I'm sure that will happen. You already coddle Roxanne too much."
"Missus Malfoy, you've been known to coddle her yourself," he remarked with a hint of mischief.
Shrugging, she shot back tartly, "I'm just being a supportive mother."
"Right, love."
"Moving on. Um, where were we?"
Once again, Hermione seemed to forget even the simplest things. Draco found it utterly endearing. "Good points of having a sibling."
"Oh yeah. Well, the older sibling gets to act as a role model whereas the baby gets to have someone to look up to and learn from."
"You get to have a special bond nobody can understand save each other."
"You always have someone to owl."
"You always have a place to stay."
"You always have someone to borrow a broom from."
"You always have someone to have your back."
"You always have someone. Period."
Staring down at their sleeping baby, their newest one nestled safely in Hermione's tummy, Hermione and Draco felt content with their family. Of course Roxanne was a little handful, and quite the terror at times (just ask her uncle Blaise!), but the good things outweighed the bad all the way.
"Harry and I were always jealous of Ron growing up. I mean, he had all those siblings and we didn't have any. He wouldn't admit it to us, or even to himself, but we both knew he loved having all his brothers and his sister."
"Why do you think it bothered him so much though? Why wouldn't he admit it?" asked Draco inquisitively.
"I think it frustrated him that he always had someone in his way," she answered softly, closing her eyes as she thought about her departed friend, "that he had to live up to someone. You know, he wasn't the all Hogwarts boy like Bill or the quidditch star like Charlie. He wasn't as funny as Fred and George or as smart as Percy. And Ginny even had it over him by being the first female in generations. He never felt good enough, for anyone or anything."
Draco remained quiet, feeling the shame bubbling over him - he knew his teasing never helped Ron during his time growing up. Draco surely added to his self-consciousness and aggravation.
"He was wrong. Even if he wasn't the best quidditch player or the smartest...he was Ron. His brothers, sister, and parents loved him just as he was. Harry and I loved him just like that. I think - I was their sister. Harry and Ron were the closest things I had to siblings and you know what? I loved every second with them."
"Then we shouldn't be worrying, should we? Roxy and the new kid will love each other very much," he assured her, breathing in her pretty scent.
"I think you're right."
Draco didn't say it, but he had a feeling he was too...
"Draco, do you see that?"
Turning in the direction Blaise pointed, he saw two cloaked figures signaling them to approach.
"How you wanna do this?"
"Blaise, turn back," said Draco firmly, "I've got to do this."
"I'm not leaving you."
"This isn't the time to be a hero. You've got a daughter to think about."
"So do you. And last time I checked, I'd been named her Godfather and Godfather to little B. I'm in this with you."
Closing his eyes briefly, fighting for control over his mounting hysteria, knowing Blaise's refusal wouldn't abruptly end, he nodded as he started to walk toward the figures. Neither of the men liked their disguise, the cloaks blocking out any light from revealing not so much as a single piece of flesh to identify them.
No matter. They both knew the circle the two belonged to.
"Malfoy."
"Where are my kids?" he snarled, his throat oddly constricted.
"You want to see them?" the other one asked, alerting Draco and Blaise both cloaked figures were male.
Before Draco could erupt, Blaise yelled, "Don't fuck with us! Tell us where those kids are!"
"Calm yourself. You'll see them, but there are some constraints and conditions."
"And what are they this time? Money? What?" asked Draco impatiently.
Tilting his head to the right, the man answered, "You."
Ah, and there was the simplicity.
Just him - to get his family.
The answer hardly needed a reply.
"All right. Let's do it. Exchange me however you want, but I want my kids out of there now."
Lifting up a gloved finger, the man shook it mockingly, making Draco bite his tongue in annoyance. "What's the problem?" he managed to get out through clenched teeth.
"Our...employer, shall we say, wants us to bring you first. Then, if all goes well, we'll leave the children in a very crowded area where your friend here will surely find them. I'll assume that with the new baby, you're house is child ready. You're about to add two more kids to the brood."
"You son of a—"
"Let's do it," snapped Draco.
"Drake, you can't...you—"
"I can and I will. You know that I have to. When they're released, find them and take care of them. Find Hermione. Merlin..." he turned around, facing his best mate, walking forward, "tell her I love her. Take care of her."
"You're not dying," warned Blaise, his eyes dark.
Chuckling to himself - cackling even - Draco told him, "You know as well as I that this doesn't look good. Just, do what we promised each other a while back. I promised to take care of your family and you promised to take care of mine."
Blaise lifted his eyebrows.
"Blaise, please," Draco urged, "I just need you to do as we promised."
Nodding, Blaise gave in. Yes, he'd made that promise long ago, just as Draco had done for him. If ever in any dangerous situation, they promised this to each other.
Promise evoked and completed, Draco continued, "Please, take care of them. Take care of her."
"Take care of her?" questioned the man, interrupting the conversation between two sorrowful friends; "are you referring to Hermione?"
"You care, why?" hissed Draco, turning around, smoothing his shirt out.
"Well, cause he can hardly protect her, let alone take care of her, when she's already in our clutches."
"You have my wife," he spat. It wasn't a question.
"Yes, and she's been having quite the time with our boss. All you have to do is come along with us. I'm sure we'll be merciful and allow you two to die together."
The man grabbed Draco's shoulder and apparated them straight away, so quickly Blaise didn't even have a second to say goodbye or wish his friend some luck or anything.
Draco was gone.
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-- Present Time --
"Your memory loss was truly an opportunity and I capitalized off it."
Chuckling to herself, Hermione replied, much to Umbridge's shock, "I already knew everything you just told me."
And it wasn't a lie.
Hermione didn't just know it, she felt it.
Suddenly, the heavy door opened and Hermione saw Draco being thrown inside, landing ungracefully on his hands and knees.
"Draco!"
Getting to her feet, she rushed over to him, skidding to a halt on her own knees, wrapping her arms around his shoulders and chest, hugging him.
"Are you all right?" he asked her, panting, sounding like he'd just received a savage punch to the gut. Close - it was a few swift kicks.
Nodding wordlessly, she gave him a slight squeeze, pulling him back into a sitting position and leaning against a filthy wall. The death eaters, Umbridge included, were conversing on the other side, ignoring the couple, giving them a few moments of peace. Draco, sucking in a few deep breaths, regained his breathing level and turned his attention on her, running his hands through her hair and brushing some tears from her cheeks.
"I'm sorry," he whispered, "for everything I said. I love you. I don't care whose memory you have, you're mine. I'm never giving you up. I love you too much."
"I know. I know, Draco, and I'm sorry too. I shouldn't have run off. I'm such a bloody idiot for doing it, but at least we're together. We can get through anything together. Right?"
Smiling wanly, he agreed, "Yeah, we can. We always have."
Lifting her hand, she cupped his cheek, bringing his face down to brush her lips against his. When the kiss ended, she told him everything her heart had been telling her from the start.
"Draco, I love you. You're everything I want and more. You're kind, generous, loving, and the greatest father I think I've ever known. You're perfect."
"You're perfect," he breathed, pulling her closer to him.
"Draco, if I wake up tomorrow to find myself back in bed in my sixth year at Hogwarts - to find out all this has been one dream...then it's a dream worth keeping. It's a dream worth anything."
Grabbing her by the neck, he pulled her in for a searing kiss, his other arm wrapping around her waist. Merlin, if he could make love to her on the cold hard floor, with less at stake than their children's lives, he would have.
He loved Hermione.
Memory or no memory.
When he broke the kiss, he said, "Look, I'm going to get out us out of here. I've go—"
Two men grabbed Draco by his shirt, yanking him from her arms and throwing him harshly into the middle of the room.
"NO!"
Rising to her feet, she jumped on the back of one Gregory Goyle, hitting him incessantly in the back of the shoulders and head in her rage.
"Deal with the little wench!" screamed Daphne Greengrass, throwing her hood off.
Goyle, dizzy at Hermione's outburst and punches, used his weight in his favor by walking backwards and ramming Hermione straight into a wall. Her head impacted with a loud - thwack - before she slid to the ground, dazed and confused.
Clutching her head, Hermione felt a jolt rush through her.
"You see, not even the Malfoy family can defeat us. Once we rid you two and your spawn from Hell, we can begin reclaiming what was given to us at birth."
Sputtering, a few drops of blood falling down his chin, Draco muttered, "Birth rights mean nothing. You mean nothing! You hurt my wife and kidnapped my children; I'm going to make you pay!"
Still on the ground, Draco pulled Blaise's wand from his pocket. Did Draco forget to mention to those two hooded men that the promise between him and Blaise had to do with handing over their wands to each other if ever in need, no questions asked? Oops. Well, when they took Draco's wand from him upon their arrival in this dingy old place, Draco figured it prudent not to tell them he had an extra wand lingering in his trousers. Well, two extra wands, he thought with a smirk.
Pointing the wand at Umbridge's general direction, he started to cast a curse to render the whole lot of them immobile, but Pansy's foot caught him off guard. With a good kick, she sent Blaise's wand flying out of his hand.
"Ha! Even your ex-girlfriend seems to get the best of you," taunted Umbridge, her fat smile oozing with victory, making her look even more toad-like. Pansy walked in front of Draco, standing above him, smirking her pug face down to meet his eyes.
"Oh Draco, dear, you chose the wrong side when you picked Granger. Not only is the girl ugly, but she hardly seems to be worth a damn. I mean, the stupid chit is why you're here. You chose poorly."
"I chose wisely," he retorted defiantly, "and it's amazing you call her ugly considering she's the only beauty in this roo—"
CRACK!
Rolling on his side, clutching his ribs where she'd just kicked him, hard, Draco attempted to catch his breath.
"How dare you?!" bellowed Pansy furiously.
"No, how dare you?"
Turning on her heel, Pansy found herself nose to nose with Hermione, whose face looked enraged enough to spit nails.
"Nobody touches my husband, least of all some ghastly creature like you."
SMACK!
Hermione's fist connected with Pansy's jaw, knocking the girl flat to her bum, the sound echoing on all the walls. Draco looked from her face to her hand, spotting Blaise's wand in her tight fist. Lifting his gaze back up, their eyes connected in a timeless moment.
Hermione, his wife, was finally back.
Hermione's memory had returned.
A/N: Yay! Finally, we've got the Hermione we fell in love with back. I've been dying to write this chapter for so long! Most of the lines from this chapter were written on my computer, but I just had to wait until the right time. It was this one. Hope it's well-received.
I'm actually leaving for my spring break vaca in oh - four hours! - and I still need to finish packing and get some sleep. I stayed up uber late to finish this for you guys (stupid corrupted flash drive kept me from posting this weeks ago). I hope to return to find some happy thoughts :) Only two chapters left (possibly only one - but right now it's two) and again I'm finding myself growing melancholy - I LOVE this story. Hate to see it end - actually no, I'm excited for the ending. Like this chapter, I've been itching to write it!
Oh and um - who else is excited to know Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows movie is going to be two films!! Two separate films, that means (roughly) five/six hours total to tell the final tale! I'm freaking out personally and cannot wait to wear my Ravenclaw scarf I knitted myself to the last THREE movies!!
A Dream Worth Keeping is the work of fanfiction. The characters belong to J.K. Rowling, but the featured story is mine.