Dexter was fuming at the edge of the stairs, his face searing red. "I allow you two to leave the house and be alone for one day, and this is where I find you?!" He walked over to Izzy, grabbing her upper arm and pulling her off of Draco, sharply. "If you two thought things were bad before, just you wait!"

"Daddy, you're hurting me!" Isabella exclaimed, trying to pry her arm free. "We weren't doing anything. All we did was ride up the hills and came back here. I-We, just fell asleep-"

"I don't care!" Dexter yelled, letting go of Izzy's arm and walking over to Draco, pulling him up off the ground as well, but not letting him go.

"You two are never leaving my sight again! Never! I was trying to be nice for Christmas, but after this, you can forget it."

He gave Draco a shove towards the stairs, still holding on him. "And as for you, you're never leaving your room again!"

"Sir, please, we didn't do anything." Draco asked, wincing as Dexter continued to shove him, a tightening grip on his wrist.

Isabella went over to Draco, putting herself in front of his body, protecting him. "What is so wrong about us falling asleep after riding? We didn't do anything. Why are you being such a jerk?"

"I refuse to just stand there and watch you two sleep together like that." Dexter snapped through his teeth, pushing Izzy to the side as gently, yet forcefully, as he could and then continuing to shove Draco down the stairs and towards the bottom of the barn. "Sleeping together is just going to lead to other things."

"We were tired." She explained following them. "And in case you haven't noticed Dexter. We are married. If sleeping did lead to other things, it's not like it's a crime."

Draco groaned. "Izzy, please, stop talking." He mumbled under his breath as Dexter gave him another shove, turning back to Izzy.

"Don't!" Dexter pointed a finger as Izzy. "Don't even say that! If... if you get... pregnant by- by that!" He shook his head, walking back over to Draco and giving him another shove out of the barn and towards the house. "That-"

If only he knew...

"Say it. Malfoy. The name your daughter has now taken." Isabella was now at Draco's side, hoping to take some of the blunt of her father's wrath.

He threw Draco again, sending him to the ground with a thud, while Draco groaned upon arrival of the cobbled floors.

"Will you stop being so rude with him?! Whether you like it or not, he is your son-in-law now."

"No!" Dexter turned to look at Izzy, face laced with anger. He reached for Isabella with his other hand that wasn't already on Draco's upper arm, grabbing her and keeping them both of separate sides of him. "You are going back in your room, and if I have anything to do with it, which I do, you will never see your wife again."

He shifted his attention to his daughter, swifter than an ax to wood. "As for you, my foolish step daughter, you will never leave my sight other than sleeping and showering. Because whether you like it or not, I am your father. And you will respect me."

"I am tired of your constant control over me! Over everything! You call yourself my father and you're acting more like an arse! And I hate you! I hate you!" She screamed phasing into her wolf form and giving him a bite on the arm while breaking free. Running towards the back woods, she disappeared into the thick and dense forestry.

Dexter let out a cry as she bit onto him, but watched her run away without bothering to chase after her.

"She'll come back. She doesn't have any choice. Besides, I have you." Dexter snapped at Draco, tightening his grip on his arm and continuing to drag him towards the manor. "She'll always come back for you."

"You have the wrong idea of me. Of us." Draco said, continuing to allow Dexter to shove him, eyes on Izzy as he watched her disappear into the woods, the wind beginning to pick up.

"Be careful Izzy." Draco whispered to himself as he saw nothing but snow at the top of his eyelashes..


With her legs pounding at full speed, she crossed a long distance in a very short amount of time; even then she continued to run.

Frustrated and upset, the ebony wolf howled loudly, a pang of sadness ringing through its song. The barren trees, the only scenery around her to conceal her. After finding nothing but more trees and shrubs, Isabella continued to move quickly and stealthily, being careful to keep her tracks to a minimum.

The snow that continued to fall would keep her paw prints hidden. Temperature dropping and wind starting to pick up; a storm was coming.

Draco was shoved back into his room, Dexter slamming the door after him. Now locked in with a spell, Draco stared at the door, he heard Dexter speaking to his wife. "Katerina, watch the door. I need to go find Isabella."

"Dexter, love, is this really necessary?" Draco heard her ask back.

"Of course it is. There's a blizzard on the way. It's going to get bad out there. I need to find her. As for Malfoy, I'll deal with him when I get back."

Draco sighed, walking over to the window and staring out of it. "Oh, Izzy, please come back."


A sudden gust of wind was beating hard against her face. Isabella shifted her head to the side, moving against the heavy shards of ice.

I can't go back now. I can't.

Her pads slowly started to sink more and more into the falling snow. Reaching the edge of the mountain, she started to climb it. Going up the trail, and using her paws to get more traction; slowly but surely, her escape from home was succeeding. The black in her fur speckled with snow, becoming wet as it made contact with her warm body.

Dexter grabbed his coat before heading out into the storm, reaching the edge of the woods and finding small lumps in the snow from where he was sure she had to have passed through, possibly tripped into the wet ice. He let out a sigh before starting to follow them. She might have thought she was being smart running away from him, but she was just going to end up getting lost and injured.

She yelped, and winced, feeling at the warm, wet sensation of liquid seeping from her foot and into the snow. They were already numb at this point, so the pain wasn't horrible. As she was climbing, one of the pads of her foot lost traction and caught itself on a jagged rock. She put one foot in front of the other; A sudden wave of energy came over her, and Isabella bolted, hoping to reach somewhere away from the fury her father obviously had for her.

Dexter continued to follow her paw prints, happy to have spent years among the company of aurors and have the experience in tracking. His heart skipped a beat when he saw droplets of blood splattered in the snow, which had lessened for a moment in that particular spot.

"Merlin." He breathed. He quickened his pace, continuing to follow her paw prints. "Izzy!" He yelled into the snow and wind. "Isabella!"

Isabella's ears perked up at the sound of her name being called and she panicked.

"I did not run away, so you could keep me locked up." The wolf turned her head and saw no one, but knew her father wouldn't stop until he had her in his hold once more. She couldn't, no. She had to escape him. It was the only way for her to be free. Dexter wouldn't harm Draco if he thought she would come back for him.

As long as she stayed missing, Dexter would be preoccupied and Draco would be out of harm's way. She ran as hard as she could push herself, the pressure in her lungs worsening as the higher she got and the oxygen was denser. The beating of her heart thumping madly against her chest. The snow cutting into her face, stinging her eyes and face. All exterior limbs freezing.

Dexter let out a groan, continuing to climb the mountain. His daughter was injured, and it was all his fault. He had chased her away. He had to find her, and soon.

"Isabella, please!" He yelled into the air one more time. "Let's talk about this! I'm not angry with you!" Okay, it wasn't the whole truth, but he had to get her back somehow.

"Nice try." She groaned. "I'm not falling for any of your trickery. While you're acting like a dick against the man I want to spend the rest of my life with, you can forget about calling a truce old man."

Dexter broke out into a sprint, following her track with a deep desperation now. "Isabella!" He yelled again. "You can continue to be mad at me but being upset isn't going to keep you warm in this blizzard! You're injured and you will die out here!"

His speech didn't faze her in the slightest. "I'll die free then!"

Dexter came to a clearing in the trees, and that was when he spotted her, continuing to sprint away from him. "Isabella!" He yelled, pulling his wand out of his pocket and shooting a spell at her. Ropes flew out of the tip of his wand, hitting Izzy right on and wrapping themselves around her, throwing her to the ground.

She yelped again as her body hit the snow with a thud and struggled for a few moments more, every movement futile.

What hope did she have against his magic, really?

Finally she just laid there, closing her eyes and sighing in defeat.

Dexter walked over to her, kneeling down next to her and pulling the ropes off of her. "I need you to transform back. And don't act like I don't know the spell to change you back. I'm asking you nicely here."

The bright splash of color in her eyes met his briefly as she looked at him. She huffed and laid her head back down again, looking away.

"Isabella, please." He said softy, now taking a look at her leg which was tore at the front pads. "You're injured, and it's freezing out here. Let me help you."

She didn't say a word, but pulled her leg away.

"Fine. Be stubborn." He pulled his wand out and pointed it at her, transforming her back into her human self. "You can hate me all you want. I'm just trying to protect you." He pointed his wand at her injured foot, healing it as best he could with magic, putting his hand on her skin and feeling how cold she actually was.

"Come on, sweetheart, stand up. I'll give you my coat."

"No thank you." She replied, "Just leave me out here. It's not like you care anyways. If I freeze, that leaves you with one less worry in your life."

"Your mother wouldn't speak to me if I just left you out here. Besides, would you really want to put Malfoy through that?" He stood up, grabbing her around her hips and pulling her onto her feet, then grabbing her bridal style and carrying her down the mountain.

"Draco knows who I am-More than I can say for you." Isabella mumbled. "Put me down. I don't want your help. I'll walk down on my own."

"I already gave you that option, and you didn't take it." Dexter said, stubbornly, continuing to walk down the mountain, not putting her down. "And go ahead and bite me again. See what happens. You expect me to trust you, but all you do is attack me. I gave you a chance, allowing you to spend the day along with Malfoy, and you repay me by sleeping with him and biting me."

"We slept together. As in the action where you close your eyes and rest. What makes you think we did anything else. Our clothes were on and you had to wake us up. Doesn't that make it seem obvious that we didn't do anything?" Of course she was lying about the whole thing but discussing her sex life with her father was something she was not willing to do.

"You know, Isabella, I would believe you right now if you hadn't already admitted to sleeping with him, as in having sex with him." They had reached the bottom of the mountain, and were now only a few minutes from the manor. "I just want to make sure you don't ruin the rest of your life. And if you must be with Malfoy, then fine, but I will never give you my permission."

Did he really just say what she thought he said?

"I don't need, nor was I asking for permission to be with Draco." The manor was now a small speck at the end of the property. She looked down at her fingers and saw that they were still numb. She couldn't feel them at all. Hell, she didn't even feel Dexter's arms around her body. It felt more like she was floating on air, than human touch.

"Then I guess we'll never agree on anything from here on out then." They had reached the house, and Dexter kicked the door open, immediately heading for the stairs and carrying Izzy towards her room. He pushed her door open with a push of his hip and placed her down on the bed. "You need to get warm. Go get a hot shower and then put a bunch of layers on, and get under the covers." Dexter walked over to the fireplace, bursting the flames as it lit up the room and licked at the bricks and wood, turning the temperature in her room up.

She did the exact opposite and just sat on the bed, laying down over the covers and giving him her back. The only warmth she wanted at that moment was Draco's arms.


Katerina held her hands close to her chest, fiddling with her fingers and pacing back and forth in the halls. When she heard the sound of Dexter's voice echoing in the manor; she ran with haste looking for him.

"Did you find her?" She asked, running over to him.

He shut the door to Izzy's bedroom, giving his wife a small, forced smile.

"Yes. She's fine. She injured herself running away from me and she might be a bit hypothermic." He let out a sigh. "She won't listen to me. You should probably go in there and try to talk some sense into her."

"And you think she'll listen to me?" Katerina sighed looking over to the door. "She's head strung like her father. The only one who seems to get any sense into her is, well-Malfoy. I know you won't like the idea but if you want to get through to her; He would be the only one to do so."

"No." Dexter said, shaking his head. "You may be right, but after that display she just put on, she's not speaking with him. Give it your best shot. If she doesn't listen to you, Dom should be able to talk some sense into her." He glanced down the hallway towards Draco's room. "I'm going to go have a little chat with Malfoy."

Katerina gave Dexter a light kiss and nodded her head. "Izzy." She knocked upon the door. "Izzy dear. Can I come in?"

No one answered and Katerina knocked again. "Izzy. I just want to talk to you. I'm not here to punish or scorn you."

With another quiet answer, Katerina sighed and opened the door. "Sweetheart?"

Isabella was fast asleep on her bed, still laying on top of the comforter, curled up into a ball.

"Honey. I wish you could understand what Dexter and I are doing. We only want to keep you safe. This isn't a punishment."

She leaned over, sitting beside her daughter and placed her hand on Isabella's back, her warm and slender fingers tingling as cold swept over their tender skin.

"Izzy, you're freezing!" Katerina exclaimed going over to her closet and grabbing a few blankets to throw over her. "What exactly did you hope to accomplish by going out in that storm? Kill us with worry?!" She began rubbing her back; an attempt in regaining warmth back to Isabella's body. The sting of Izzy's icy back transferring to her own fingers.


Draco had heard Dexter return, and since then, had been staring at the door, waiting for someone to come and give him what he hoped would have been good news, or any news for that matter.

He could feel his heart racing against his chest, and stood up from the bed instantly when he heard the lock click. Dexter pushed the door open, and Draco immediately bombed him with questions.

"Where's Izzy? Is she okay? Did you find her? Is she safe?"

"That's not your concern." Dexter closed the door and locked it without hesitation. "But if you must know-Katerina's taking care of her now." He brought his fingers to his temple and sighed, going over and glaring at Draco with cold eyes.

"You and I need to have a talk." It wasn't a suggestion, but an order.

Draco's panic stricken face suddenly turned to that of a confused, yet exhausted person, not physically but mentally drained. He was tired of having to fight this man for his affection and permission to be with his daughter.

"What now? Are you going to blame her running away on me, now?" He snapped. He was done trying to be nice. "Her leaving was all your fault. You're suffocating her."

"Don't use that tone with me you ungrateful snake! And everything is your fault! Frankly, it's driving me up a bloody wall. Why can't you just go and find yourself another stupid girl who swoons over you?! Isn't that what you're known for?" He took a few steps forward. "My daughter isn't another one of your playthings Malfoy. Which is why I've come to a decision."

Draco's face fell. His idea of what Draco thought of Izzy was completely false. Izzy was so much more to him than just a fuck toy. She was the love of his life. But the news that Dexter had come to a decision sent chills down Draco's spine and caused his heart to beat against his chest.

"W-What decision? What are you talking about?"

"I'm giving you two options Malfoy." Dexter began to pace about the room with a heaviness in his steps, looking down at the wooden floors and then back at Draco. "One: I can send you to Azkaban for your tattoo." He pointed to Draco's left arm.

"You know that isn't my fault! Are you seriously going to blame that whole thing-"

"Or. You can divorce my daughter and leave her life forever. Let's face it. You can't provide a stable environment for her. And I am sure as hell not going to have you continuing to be in my house any longer."

Draco stared at Dexter as if he had grown horns and a tail.

"No." He shook his head. "No to both of those options. One, my dark mark isn't a symbol of me being a Death Eater. It's a symbol of me saving your daughter from being murdered by Death Eaters. And two, Isabella is the love of my life. She's everything to me. Not some... plaything." He glared at Dexter. "I will never divorce Isabella. We'll leave, go back to where we were hiding in the first place. But I'm not leaving her."

"Listen boy. This is not debatable. Choose an option. You've ruined her life already. You can fix things if you leave her." Dexter crossed his arms and furrowed his brow. "Tell me. Just how many times since she's been around you has she been close to death?"

Draco opened his mouth to argue, but it fell shut right away. "I-..." His mind went to the times she had in danger or how many times she had been captured, attacked, and almost murdered. But he was always there to make things better.

"I... I've always saved her."

"And school? What about that? Tell me, how did your NEWTS or OWLs go? What marks did she receive?"

Draco had nothing to say to that. His face fell, his eyes hitting the carpet. He had pulled her away from school, yes she hadn't forced her to leave but she had left everything behind out of love for him. There was nothing he could say to that. "I promised her I would never leave her." Draco mumbled under his breath, not able to look up at Dexter.

"You're not leaving her. She's being set free. There's a difference." Dexter was now facing him. His face void of all emotion. "Choose. Azkaban or Divorce. Either you leave her and never return or I send you on a one way ticket to Azkaban. You can join your other friends. I'm sure they'd be happy to see you and I'll make it my top priority to ensure that you share a cell with your father."

Draco felt a tear ran down his cheek, though out of spite for Dexter, he pushed it away. He brought his hand up and quickly wiped it away, bringing his head up and staring at Dexter.

"Can I at least see her? Say goodbye?" Another tear ran down his cheek, but this time, didn't bother to wipe it away. "I'll leave. You'll never see me again."

He felt selfish, choosing to run from the woman he loved so he wouldn't have to face Azkaban. But when it really came down to it, he would never survive that place. It would kill him before his broken heart would.

"If you must." Dexter opened the door and gave a nod into the hallway. "Oh and another thing. This has to be your idea. You can't say that I put you up to this. If you do; I'll hunt you down and send you to Azkaban regardless; for treachery."

Draco glared at him, anger pulsing through him towards the man in front of me.

"Do you really hate me so much that you'd put your own daughter though all this?" He shook his head, starting to approach the doorway. "If she ever finds out, she'll hate you. She will never forgive you."

"I'll take my chances. Now go." He gave Draco a hard shove out of the door. That action was more than an answer for him.

Draco walked down the hallway towards Izzy's room, feeling like he was walking towards his own death sentence; the hallway seeming a lot longer than it usually was. She would hate him after this. There was no denying it. And he would be lonely for the rest of his life.

He paused when he reached her door, quickly wiping a tear from his eyes and inhaling a breath, trying to calm himself down. He pushed his hair from his face before knocking three times on the door and then pushing it open. "I-Izzy?"

Just like Katerina, when she tried to get a word out of Isabella, no one came to the door when called. Izzy was still lying on the bed, her room very hot, like a sauna and she as still as a still as a board.

Draco walked over to her, gently placing a hand on her shoulder. "Isabella?" He called again, sitting on the edge of the bed and just staring at her. He could feel tears coming to his eyes again, but quickly fought them away.

She muttered and shifted her body, slowly turning over. Isabella's eyes fluttered opened, and as her vision cleared; they widened.

"Draco!" She exclaimed wrapping her arms around him tightly.

Draco felt his heart pang and immediately pushed her away. "Izzy, look, we need to talk." He looked down at the floor, not able to look into her eyes. They would only reflect how brokenhearted he felt along with her.

"Are you angry with me?" Isabella asked, softening her gaze on him. "I'm sorry I ran off like that. I was just desperate and I didn't know what else to do. I'm sorry if you were cross with me because of it. I'm sorry."

She continued to hack at his heart with her apology and it was only making this a lot harder than it should.

"I-I can't do this anymore." He stood up from the bed, turning his back on her. He closed his eyes when he felt the tears coming to them, trying to force them back. "Ever since we started dating, you've done nothing but get hurt. It's all my fault. And I can't just stand here and continue to watch that happen when I can leave and let you be happy. You deserve to be happy. You deserve to be with someone who won't put you in any danger."

"What are you saying?" She laughed, "I am very happy with you. You might drive me crazy sometimes but I still love you. And for the record, we aren't dating. We're married Draco. You're kinda stuck with me."

"Not anymore." Draco mumbled, his back still to her. "I'm leaving Toretto. I'm sorry, but I can't do this anymore."

"Yeah, sure. Is this payback for me cheating earlier?" She smirked, "Nice try, but I'm not falling for it."

Her hand reached over and gently grabbed his arm. "Come on. Just sleep with me. You're just tired. After a nap you'll feel better."

"I'm not tired!" He yelled, ripping his arm from her grasps and turning around to face her, a couple of tears running down his face.

"I pulled you away from school, sent you on the run from your family, tried to kill you more than a few times, have had you almost murdered, hell, I wasn't even there when you had the miscarriage! I just... I can't do this to you anymore. I don't deserve you." He sighed, looking down at the ground again. "I'm leaving England."

"Draco. This isn't funny anymore. Please tell me what's wrong." He was scaring her. This didn't feel like one of their regular fights. Draco was cold and distant, it was seething through his teeth and radiating from his face.

Isabella placed her hand on his shoulder. "Can we talk about this?" She whispered. "I can talk to Dexter. Make him understand-"

"Dexter-!" He took a step back from Izzy, wanting to scream that this was all Dexter's fault that he was saying this. That none of this was true, that he didn't want to leave her. He wanted to exact opposite.

"Dexter has nothing to do with this. This is a decision I made on my own." Dexter's own words flew out of his mouth. "You should be with someone he'll like. Someone he can approve of you being with. Someone who can love you unconditionally without putting you in any danger. It's not me. I'm divorcing you, Izzy."

"I don't care about who he likes or doesn't like. I love you." Isabella felt her heart breaking and being ripped out of her chest. "For better or for worse, remember? Isn't that what we said in front of the judge? That you would be there for me regardless of what happened. And that I would do the same for you? Don't you love me anymore?"

Draco bit his lower lip, shaking his head slightly. "No. Promises...marriages, they're meant to be broken. We're young. I made a mistake." The words were harsh, and they hurt even him. But he couldn't think of any other way to get her to accept that this was over between the two of them.

"You promised you'd never leave me." Isabella's own eyes were filled with tears. One gently rolled off her cheek and splashed onto her pant leg.

"I'm not leaving you." His breath hitched in his throat. "I'm setting you free." He stared at her, watching her cry, and then he couldn't take it anymore, he turned his back on her and walked from the room, locking the door behind him from the outside and then sprinting away from her, ending up in the main foyer of the manor.

"Draco! Draco, wait!" Isabella banged on the door, begging to be let out. When no one came to her aid after multiple cries and plea's; She leaned against the wall, tears coming in full force, then came the denial, and finally sobbing uncontrollably as she fell to the floor, covering her face with her hands, shaking.

With tears rolling down his face, he walked over towards the nearest wall, his head falling against it. He allowed all the anger inside of him to build up and with that, his fist made contact with the wall. He let out a cry of pain before leaning against a wall, tears still running from him face.

Roxy heard Draco cry out and searched for him. When she found him crying; she whined and licked his face. Her attempt at consoling him as she leaned into his body, weaseling her way into his arms.

Draco wrapped his arms around their dog, holding her tightly as he cried. "I'm leaving, Roxy." Draco pulled away from his dog, kissing her on the top of her head, letting out a choking sob.

His Golden Retriever whined in confusion, tilting her head and nuzzling in the crook of his neck despite he moving away from her.

"I need you to stay here. I need you to take care of Isabella for me. Make sure she finds someone who loves her as much as I do now. Make sure she's always happy."

Roxy whimpered, walking towards him as he moved into the fireplace.

"No!"

She jumped back at his sudden anger, lowering her head in what he assumed to be sadness.

"Stay here." He said softly. "I have to go."

Roxy's sad eyes met his as she sat on the floor now watching Draco step into the floo.

"Take care of her Roxy. Love her when I couldn't offer her what she deserved."

He held the dusty substance in his hands, taking a deep breath as he looked over the manor for what would be his final time. "Good bye, Roxy." He whispered, flames devouring him instantly as the dust hit the floor; tearing him away from the one place he thought he would never abandon, Isabella's heart.


Sorry for the late Chapter update. We've been a bit busy lately. Hope this makes up for it. -L & B