After enjoying a perfect night with Draco, returning to the farm was going to be brutal on all fronts. He'd held me in his arms all night and answered each of my questions with trust and fervor. A highly unusual responsiveness came easily from him for once.
In my drunken state I'd pushed him to tell me where the prisoner camps were in Denmark without clarifying why. He shockingly hadn't prodded me to explain myself, simply told me of the abandoned military island with a rotting base, dotted by decrepit and time worn buildings.
Inside they were using the cells from a previous, forgotten war era. Each one was magically bound by independent wards, to play host to a variety of Order prisoners - including teachers and adults - that were supposed to have been eliminated instead of captured. He disclosed that he was getting help guarding it from the other Slytherin boys by bribing them with copious sums of money for their time and effort to retain the captives.
In the morning, I had reluctantly opened my eyes to him staring down at me, shirtless, watching me sleeping. He was clicking at the watch and flitting his cerulean eyes between the glass interface and me, clearly waiting for me to come to consciousness.
He let me wake slowly and curl up tightly against him for some time while he sorted files on the technology before him. Laying my head on his chest and being held in his arms could easily have been described as intoxicating. I laid there listening to the digital chirps of him working on it right in front of me. I never wanted to leave him again, I could've slept in that bed against his warmth for the end of time.
At the base of The Lanesborough in the early afternoon we finally parted ways on the bustling streetscape of London. The sun shone atypically hot and direct for that region of the world and the time of year.
It was extremely hard for either of us to let go. Something about that moment felt like it would be the last day with such peace and calm. As I walked away from him I kept glancing back with sad eyes, only to meet with his as well. Then I rounded a corner, found an alley that was out of sight, and disapparated to the farm before I would lose my resolve and chase after him.
The cottage sat in the golden rays of the sun, lazy, lopsided and quiet. The Order members would be regrouping and reorganizing for another grueling week ahead. I made sure to reappear directly in Hermione's old bedroom, where the blockade at the doorway was luckily still in place. They were likely giving me a lot of space due to recent events, perhaps assuming I was still physically recovering. Harry and Ron probably didn't want to see me at all regardless of what I might be doing hiding in my bedroom past noon.
I changed out of the clothing that was soiled from partying all night with Draco in London and into a fresh pink dress. I took leaps down the stairs, pushing off of the banister hyperactively and straight into George Weasley who looked quite displeased at having his tea knocked clean out of his hands in the ensuing collision. The metal cup rolled down the stairs towards the main level with a horrible clanking, splattering liquid against the treads and walls. We both watched it until it reached the kitchen area, rolling out of view.
He turned to look at me with bewildered amusement where I was standing with my hands over my mouth, "What's put so much pep in your step love?"
"I am so sorry," I apologized, "Do you know where 'arry is?"
He shrugged, "Saw him heading out to check on your harvest a little while back." His blue eyes transfixed on me and I felt horribly awkward as I shimmied by him in the thin stairwell, pausing to wave my wand at the base to clean up the mess.
Out in the fields I had to squint in the blinding sunlight. Harry was indeed pacing between the crops, assessing their excellent progress as though he had any idea what he was looking at. His green eyes lifted to my form as I approached nervously.
"Madeleine." He spoke my name in a clipped tone and I winced.
"'arry, I..." My voice faltered at his tense expression. He was arguably glaring at me. When I didn't continue speaking he shook his hands out as if to ask what? All I wanted to do was help, and gain his trust for both Draco and myself. I found my strength, "I can tell you de name of de island in Denmark, where de prison camp is."
It took him a moment to process, "Wait, actually?" His eyebrows softened and raised then. I'd written it down in the notebook Hermione had left behind in her trunk. I passed him the crumpled piece of paper and he blinked at the spelling. "Hesselø? That's the name?"
I nodded, "You can scout et, but please don' make a move yet." I bit my lip awkwardly and he narrowed his eyes suspiciously.
"You haven't told Draco that you're telling me, is that it?" The disdain in his voice made my heart pause for a second sadly. It would be an incredibly intricate process to get them on the same side and working together. It would take time, and careful, miniature moves forward.
I sighed, "I 'ave not told 'im. I know dat 'e will 'elp when de time comes, but if you free Order prisoners now 'e may be executed for treason if dey are spotted. Den you will not get into de castle, so please, wait." I put my hand delicately on his forearm and he looked down at my pleading face.
Harry rolled his eyes, "Right. Well until anything concrete comes straight from Malfoy himself, he can forget about any truce between us." He started marching back to the cottage and I followed at his side, clearly unwelcome for the walk but feeling stubborn and panicky at the chance I just taken.
"Promise me you will only scout et right now," I pleading, panting next to him in his rapid strides.
Harry pressed his lips into a line, thinking. Finally he turned his glasses towards me and a sharp glare from the sun reflected into my eyes, "I will honor your request, because of how much you have helped us. But be warned; we won't leave them there for long. And I can't speak for Malfoy - to me he hasn't changed at all."
With that I stopped and let him go on to disappear into the cottage. I went back to the crops and spent the afternoon hardly gardening because the plants truly had reached a point of being independent of maintenance. It took me an hour to lug buckets of water back and forth until every crop was soaked. Then I went to swim in the creek until I was shivering despite the sunshine, and took a long nap shortly afterwards.
I slept for hours given that the evening prior had been so messy and eventful. What was left of a hangover had thankfully drifted away by the time I woke up late at night, bleary eyed in my tilted bed to Pansy leaning over me.
"Ssshh," she whispered soothingly and I was immediately terrified, flipping myself off of the bed and back up against the window with my wand out.
She laughed derisively in the glow of the wand, "Antsy, are we?" She trailed her nails along the rusted metal railing at the base of the bed.
"What do you want?" I asked, preparing to climb over the bed if she kept circling towards me. She looked coy and sneaky, and after the threatening comments she had already made to me while being there I had absolutely zero interest in letting my guard down.
She stopped to kick at Hermione's trunk in bemusement, her bob shuddered at her shoulders, "Harry said we're celebrating tonight, on account of the prison being confirmed. They scouted it today, you know. I'm sure Malfoy will be very pleased with you for giving that bit away." Her dark eyes landed on me, prodding, sneering.
I swallowed, "You don' know what you are talking about." She knew exactly what she was talking about, but I couldn't give that away.
She shrugged apathetically in the darkness, and it was then that I noticed she had a stein in her hand where her arms were crossed, "Just thought you might want to join the fun downstairs."
I could tell she was up to something, but what exactly it was wasn't clear. I watched as she shot me a malafide grin in her tattered black dress and left.
When her footsteps disappeared I shoved my ear to the floor. There was indeed loud chattering and the sounds of glass clinking downstairs. I stood and brushed myself off, straightening out my hair and then I leapt down the creaky stairs. It would be a good opportunity to try and bond further.
At the bottom, when I rounded the wooden newel both Weasley twins hollered at me with their cups high in the air. Frothy, golden liquid dropped onto the floor near my toes and I found myself veering around their rowdy affection.
I beelined to a keg that was nearby and waited next to Seamus who was sloppily arguing with the lever that provided free flow to the beer. "It's like it's bloody cursed. Feking thing," he slurred his words with his head half turned in my direction. He groaned in annoyance as he kept spilling beer and only allowing it to flow unevenly from the tap.
I was about to take control of the tap out of sympathy for him, when I noticed that Pansy had once again magnetized herself to me. She stood very close to where I was holding a stein against the counters edge while watching Seamus. Her eyes brightened freakishly at me when I saw her there, "So you did decide to come."
I rolled my eyes and looked away from her, slapping Seamus' hand down from the keg, "You are doing dis all wrong." I poured his beer for him and he walked away with rosy cheeks and a silly grin, sipping the beer like a vacuum. I heard him mutter under his breath, "Eh, too bad it's not rum." At the speed that he was drinking the alcohol it was actually very fortunate that it was not rum.
I poured my own beer and had to literally shove Pansy aside, who seemed determined to glue herself to me. I went and sat at the fireplace hearth on the floor cross legged with the entire group, who seemed unusually gleeful and drunk.
"Hermione's alive, she's alive," Ron wept happy, drunken tears as he wrapped his arm around Luna who was sitting there with a straight spine and a gentle demeanor. His voice came out gargled from intoxication. She wasn't drinking at all, and just nodded with a faint smile at Ron who then proceeded to roll his head against hers, resting his long red hair on her shoulder. He smiled at the ceiling as though it were made out of chocolate.
I sipped on my beer and tried to keep my eyes low and respectful until one of them decided to interact with me. I had grown unfairly nervous around the group, unsure of who knew what or of how I was being judged. Yet, beyond most odds, I was still brave enough to keep showing up.
It was when I was about halfway through my beer I knew something was wrong. I pulled back to inspect the liquid inside with a sinking feeling in my stomach. It was as though I had just swallowed the coldest water on the planet. I blinked in confusion and put the beer down as an odd feeling began to blossom and my vision grew slightly blurry. I found myself drifting deeply with an overwhelming feeling of assurance and peace, accompanied by an undeniable and powerful sense of love for one person in particular.
"I don't know how to explain how I'm feeling right now, I just know we need to go for a walk. Just us." I looked up with my eyes swimming with unreal love for Harry who also had a sparkle in his gaze. I loved him so much, there was no one else in the world I could possibly love like I loved Harry Potter.
I reached up and let him take my hand and we walked rapidly out of the cottage, garnishing laughter and confused looks from the remaining inhabitants. He ran gently through the field and I followed alongside in delirious confusion, giggling as we smiled at each other with a shared feeling of elation. The air smelled like summer and the stars were bright ahead.
"Where are we going?" I asked in a sultry, drunken tone that couldn't have been possible after only a few sips of beer.
"I don't know," Harry responded brightly, "I just felt like running with you." He continued to tug me along and for a split second that felt like a camera flash, an instinct in my brain told me to stop moving away from the cottage. The flower stems had disappeared around our ankles and we were moving into the nearby woods. I looked back and forgot immediately as Harry yanked my hand again, drawing me deeper into the thin woods.
The sky was a bright blue and the moon was large, providing an excellent view of the underbrush and the tall, thin trees above. It was both eerie and magical.
Harry stopped running and panted, "Finally we're alone. I kind of feel crazy right now, I don't exactly know what's happening." He looked at me with wide eyes and I didn't even hesitate to step closer to him invitingly. He pulled my face up to his and I wrapped my arms around his neck, stepping back into a tree trunk while we kissed savagely.
His fingers were everywhere on my dress, squeezing me and sliding down my waist. I groped at his jeans greedily, fumbling with the zipper. He moaned against my lips as my hand slipped into his opened jeans over his hardening bulge.
A few minutes had only passed when I began to feel more clear minded. I could heard thunder growling nearby, mysteriously, as it had not been overcast in the slightest. Harry was still kissing my neck and I looked up at the branches above me, squinting at the sky searching for the noise with my head against the tree bark. "'arry, does something feel odd to you?"
"Only how long it took for this to happen," he whispered against my jaw and I felt his hand dragging up the inside of my dress. "I want you right now," he said, reaching my panties. I panicked. Something was definitely wrong, and whatever it was, I was rapidly sobering up and coming down from it. He never would've acted that way, and neither would I. I had... I had someone else...
"Wait, wait, something is wrong," I shot my hand to his over the fabric of my dress. My brain was starting to split into a terrible headache, and I felt lost to describe what had just happened between leaving my bedroom and being in the woods. He paused and stepped back, also beginning to blink in confusion.
"Wait. You're right. What are we-" A spell shot from the woods and Harry spun, landing on his back and choking in the leaves.
A Death Eater approached and gave me very little time to react. His fingers clamped down around my wrist and disapparated me in the most brutal way I had ever traveled. I fell face first into the cold, black stone tiling of the Malfoy Manor, knowing full well that I had been tossed by Draco the mere moment we'd landed. Black smoke enveloped a familiar front entrance as I struggled to gain control of my senses on the floor.
Draco, that was right. My husband. The Death Eater now pacing in the lobby before me with a lethal scowl on his face that could melt solid rock as I pushed up onto my hands and knees in shock. It all came flooding back to me as the poisonous, very specific, love potion faded away, consumed rapidly by my metabolism.
He'd gone from thunder to lightning real quick, and he was about to strike.