~*~* WARNING: OotP Spoilers alert! From this point on, the story will be OotP-revised! ~*~*
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A/N: *ducks rotten tomatoes* *banana peel misses ear by a millimeter* I know. I know. It's been two months since my last update. You can now officially declare me a F R E A K! (but we all knew that, didn't we =P) I'm really sorry. It's just that I've been taking summer school and three weeks into it we had midterms and right after that I was diving into the canon world of Harry Potter. Which brings me to say that as a result of OotP, I've had to make some sirius alterations to my story…I know the pun is beyond lame, but really…I had intended on putting Sirius Black in this VERY chapter and he was going to have an influential part, but NOOOOOOOOOOO JKR's axed him! *sob* So I've made character changes so that my story will suit the post-OotP world (consequently, I'll have to make a couple of changes in my previous chapters where I mention Sirius's name…they would all have to be replaced with Lupin). That took some time to plan in my head. But most troubling of all were my feelings on D/Hr….no, I haven't stopped shipping them, it's just that my view on Draco and the Malfoy family has changed somewhat (especially on Narcissa, and Draco's relationship with his dad…the former which won't affect this story so much but the latter does so a bit)…and it seems as though the prospect of D/Hr in canon is really dim :( (BUT at least this fic is post-Hogwarts after all, even if it's likely to be AU post-Hogwarts!). However, though, some OotP events have become quite fortunate for this fic…especially the whole part dealing with the Seer and prophecy…I must say, it was very convenient for this story that JKR wrote what she did about Harry's prophecy…*hint*
Now for my routine messages to my darling reviewers:
Emmies: thanks for your praise, I'm glad you liked how I introduced Spike and Harry :D come back to read it more!
RaistlinofMetallica: no, I haven't seen the season finale yet! But I'm glad you find Spike adorable, because I think I made him quite OOC :D
malibu barbie: Yay! I'm glad you find the harry/Dudley thing unexpected because that was my aim :D oh and don't worry about the hobbit, it's just an extra detail, nothing to do with the story
Befuzzled: thanks and nope, it will NOT be a crossover…just that one little cameo from Spike and Dracula
tom4eva: no you're no retard, I think I got tons of people confused with the Severin thing as well and I'm sorry I got you confused! Also sorry that this took so long to update, but at least this chapter will have tons of much desired d/hr action!
DazzilinAngel555: by now you must really think that I had fallen off the face of the Earth. Which I sort of did…but anyway, I'm back and I'm happy you liked the last chap even if you didn't like the Spike part. I wrote it in because I promised a reviewer I would and if the setting wasn't Transylvania, I don't know where else I could've put him in.
The Sarcastic Morbid One: thanks for your applause! *beams* and nope, I still haven't seen the final episode yet…but I think I've heard what happens to poor Spikey
AmericanAngel: it's ok that you haven't seen BtVS because it won't affect the plot of the fic in any way…but I'm thrilled that you found it not confusing and liked my story anyway! :)
Rosaline: thank you and your sending quotes flatters me even more *uh oh, ego starts inflating* Yes, this chapter has R stuff as I mentioned and it's my first time ever writing stuff like that so hope you'll like it!
annabelle: well I'm glad you did get around to review my fic and even more excited that you enjoy my insanity :P erm…yeah, guess you'll have to bear with the harry + ron parts, but I assure you, the majority of the story will be d/hr focused so no worries!
Purple Spotted Hedwig: yes, what *might* it be rated on??? *smirks as well* well you'll have to see if D/Hr will end up still together in the end (hint: I'm a die-hard D/Hr fan) and you'll have to see how Harry and Ron will react to it!
underscore: thank you! Yes, other reviewers have burst out laughing in the presence of their folks reading my fic as well and I'm thinking one of these days I'll get bombarded by e-mails of worried parents who think I'm messing with their kids minds! Yikes! But really glad you like last chap, hope you like this one too :)
rid!, Lee-SenRu, lu:na, a reader, Aryante, Kiya Kideackiy, bessorla,: thanks, of course I will finish it and sorry for taking ages to update but it's finally here!
Madame Plot Bunnie: yes it's great to be back but of course I just disappeared again, didn't I? Hope this chap makes up for my vanishing act!
FreeZe Mint: wadee again! yes, last chap was long but this one is even longer! I tried reading this other D/Hr fic in Thai from the board but it took me ages! Will Yuka be translating anymore? Hope you review again na ka :D
lucy: I hope this chap will satisfy everyone's craving for more d/hr action :) yeah, the draco and spike discussing clothes was just there for comic relief purposes, really.
Kriss: thanks so much, your praises got me all smiling :D
Esperanza: and I didn't update soon at all! Naughty me!
horsegrl8311: thanks, and sorry for my confusing parts…I hope this chap is more clear (since I took even longer to finish it!)
'div: good job for spotting the clue! I'm going to be annoying and leave them all over the place and not reveal the real deal until the part it comes in :P and this chap is even longer, hope you'll enjoy it!
The Simon Cowell of Fanfiction.net: well, I really really hope I have a plot, being that I spend so much time weaving it around in my head all day :D (or I could just be weaving mess lol :P)
Leika Senara, chica100123, hermie4sev: thanks!
HarryPotterWanter: wow, you've got my story down so well! Congratulations! All your speculations are true and the reasons for why the characters behave as they do are accurate! And I mean it…literally EVERYTHING you mentioned is exactly what I planned for the fic! I really love insightful reviews like yours, maybe it means I'm doing a good job of writing :) Kudos to you!
Kassandra: hi! THANK YOU for loving this fic, reviews like yours make my day :D answering your questions: 1) Buffy hasn't appeared in former chapters and is unlikely to appear in any later chapters; 2) wait and see to find out if D and Hr will get together or not; 3) the Seer's identity will be revealed in due time. I know that doesn't really answer much, but bear with me, the answers will all come up sooner or later!
liar: Hey you! Thanks so much, yes, your review was very helpful. Suggestions and simple analyses are very useful but most reviewers don't give me that; I'm glad you did. You're right, I am trying not to get them to fall head over heels so fast because that would be far too unrealistic. And no, I didn't go very much in detail with what happened during the war (because it's not very relevant to the plot) but I did mention in the first chapter that Harry, Ron, and a few others got away and had formed a Rebel Alliance, but you should find out a bit more on that in this chapter as well. I'm sorry you didn't like the Severin/Severus thing but you'll see why I did that once you read this chap :) I know I didn't update very soon, but you haven't either! I mean…you've really disappeared, I keep checking to see if your fic is updated but it hasn't been! Where are you?
AoiiChan: hehe, as it turns out, I didn't do as I bad as I thought in some subjects but messed up big time in math…so I was right to be pessimistic! But luckily, I'm faring much better in summer school…and did I really make Spike adorable? Thanks for thinking so! Alas, Draco can't escape the clutches of OOC-ness, but right, he should change his ways although the world will end if he completely ceases his bas…er…ways lol :P:P
Secoya: THANK YOU! I appreciated your review very much; your reasoning for why I end up hating my own chaps was spot on, you're absolutely right. Your words of praise completely brightened me up and gave me much more confidence and when I was writing this chap, I kept your words in mind so I won't doubt it too much. I can only hope that I will live up to your views of this fic in future chapters and I thank you endlessly again for your comments. I absolutely loved your review and hope you continue giving me more! :D
dracoJAE: thanks! And guess what, I was surfing the net one day for D/Hr websites some time last week and I stumbled upon your site! It's the one with the diary entry or something like that on it…your fanfic site and gosh the layout is brilliant! I hope you update the site as well as your fic really soon!
Sailor Moon Rose: I've really got to solve my updating problem, seriously, two whole months! Hehe…well yes, Dracula is a complete pervert, but in any case…no whips please! The thought of Draco trying the whip is frightening…for the wrong reasons! *hint* *wink* :P:P:P
Cece: My wonderful reviewer, you're very welcome-Spike was just for you! :D I'm ecstatic that you liked how I portrayed him, I was getting paranoid thinking you would hate him and then my efforts would've been wasted…you're right about the blond brits…I could never ask for more…if I added Legolas though, I'm scared it might throw Hermione off of Draco for good and we definitely don't want that! :P It would be cool if Buffy came in, but the way my story looks it doesn't look very likely…unless it's at the very end of the story. I'll see what happens then. And yes, Voldie is going to do that…and I think it was YOU who first suggested the idea to me, wasn't it? Yes, I believe it was you in one of your earliest reviews and guess what Cece, I'm adopting your idea again-you will see it in this very chapter, all thanks to you :D
Frankie: yeah I know how crossovers can be a turn off sometimes, but Spike was just a cameo and I'm glad you thought I did it well anyway. Unfortunately Draco's still got the upper hand, so Hermione won't be setting him in his place anytime soon yet, but eventually of course she will :) And you want Hermione out of there? Well if she got out…what would happen to poor, ego-inflated Draco? *smirks*
ckrfan: hahahahahaha right, Draco is still a spoiled little five year old at heart :P To find out what they will do…read on, I say!
Jessica-Black: thanks, I don't know if I can put Spike back in it but I'll see…if an opportunity comes, I'll put him back in, k?
Oliver's gurl: I'm glad you loved the Starbucks part :D Yes, Draco is one clingy, possessive little hubby! And your guess on the Seer…well…your guess is as good as mine *winks*
LadyAkitsu(~Ami-chan): *returns bow* *beams at applause* thank you, thank you! It had to be Dudley because otherwise poor Duddykins won't be appearing in the fic at all, and what's a funny fic without Big D? *grins* This chap took me forever too and I hope you also think it will be worth the wait. Um…I don't read any Ranma ฝ fics (although I remember watching a couple episodes of that on TV when I was little) so sorry about that, but I'll try to find some time to check it out :D
Shanshine: I'm really, really, really, really, really sorry, I know I said I will be uploading The Preposterous Wager again soon but I haven't kept my word and that's completely wrong of me. However I am in the process of contemplating whether or not to change a few things so that it would match the events that transpired over OotP. I've actually got a writer's block for that fic right now and feel a bit down with it, but I will upload it again eventually. Please bear with me. Thank you though, for asking about it, it shows me that people still want to read it and stimulates me into taking more action.
couch-potato01: You were surprised? I thought I mentioned it somewhere that he was going to show up? Ok, maybe I didn't…in any case, glad you liked it!
rusty: thank you, and don't worry, no offences taken. I like to know when I go OOC with characters so I can improve next time.
bz: thanks so much and tell your best friend thank you from me as well :D I'm so happy you like my fic so much and honestly I never considered having such cameos/crossovers like Spike but one of my good reviewers asked for it so that was why I had him there. But it won't turn into a crossover story or anything like that, so all's good :D
ariel: thank you! Really glad you liked my haffy work! Yeah a lot has happened since the 5th season…a lot which I haven't watched yet! I'm not sure but I think I read somewhere Spike gets his soul back or something…not sure…anywho, you're having Spike in your fic as well? Which one? Is it D/Hr as well? If so, then me must read!
Kerbi: it's ok girl, I know exactly what you mean and forgive you wholeheartedly for not reviewing my last last chapter :P It happens to me too…there sitting, writing this wonderful review then BAM something happens and it's all gone and I'm too tired and pissed to rewrite everything. As for your comment on Dudley, we weren't completely certain that Hermione knows Dudley, but given that she would have been friends with Harry Potter for 8 years already in the fic I was sure sometime or another she would have seen Dudley's pic. But since OotP came out, we can be positive that Hermione at least knows what Dudley looks like, considering how in the last scene the whole Dursley family came to pick up Harry at Kings Cross and Hermione was still there, so she would've seen Duddykins then. Thanks for loving this!
girl_in_the_window: thank you, wow, a real harry potter book? That's the best compliment you could ever give to a fanwriter! THANK YOU! *beams and blushes* *ego is inflated once again* OOC-ness is my number one fear, so I try to steer the characters away from that, but I don't always succeed. Tell me when I don't, okie? Thanks!
Gnat: Oh I'm sorry your daughter got angry over Spike, I hope she doesn't hate my fic over it but I had to have him there because I promised a reviewer I would, but I don't think he's coming back. But I'm glad you thought it was great, nonetheless :D Thank you for saying I have a flair for writing humor, I'm really flattered. I'll try to write faster, hope both you and your daughter come back to review again!
Zyzychyn: thank you! I'm going to try to make that rivalry stay on as long as I can :)
midnight dream: hello, thanks so much for loving my story :D I'm sorry I've taken forever, but here it finally is! Next time I'll try not to leave 2 whole months in between updates.
PamperedPrincess: addictive?! That's a first! Thank you so much! :D:P
Hermione18: I'm glad you liked it, even with Spike…did you not like him before? Well doesn't matter, as long as you keep on liking my fic!
Kangarooster: thanks…it's good that you're guessing, then it's like a game to see if you're right or not :P I'm happy you like it and please, by all means, do come back for more!
callhergilraen: thank you, I'm so happy you enjoy my fic and my sense of humor :P oh, and there are no limits as to how many times you should come back to read this :P:P:P
Nina G: hmmph! So you've never reviewed my fic, eh? You should! Well, I counted your comments from the yahoogroup as a review, so I'm replying to that. I'm glad you really like my work and find it amusing, and you should review! And no, bad English is NOT an excuse (not to mention the fact that I think your English sounds quite perfect to me!) Do try to review next time!
Ashlee: thank you, really happy you liked this, although you should review as well! I'm responding to your yahoogroup comment here, but please, I beg you, do review my story on ff.net!
Carla Fox: ahh, you reviewed TWICE!! THANKS!!! I feel very honored and I'm thrilled that you like my fic…makes me feel better for so shamelessly advertising my fic on the yahoogroup like that! I hope the wedding scene was somewhat more or less what you were looking for and that you enjoyed it somewhat. I'll try to give you as much more as I can ;)
Ok…WHEW…that took me nearly 3 hours to write up all those messages above! If I forgot anyone, I apologize profusely. It's late and my eyes are getting blurry so I'm mistake-prone right now.
Rating: Yes, rating…hmm…ok, mostly everything is still pretty PG-13 if you ask me, BUT owing to the fact that I did get my other story deleted off ff.net due to rating misconceptions, I'll add here that some stuff in this chap may be viewed as R-rated material. This pertains to sexual implications and references and very minor graphics (towards the end of the chap, so if you feel uncomfortable with those things you can skip such parts). I haven't changed the overall rating of the story, but I'm warning you now…I honestly don't think its very R but if one were to imagine a couple of scenes graphically, then…erm…*cough*…you get the idea. But it's not very bad, I promise. However, if after you read this chapter and feel that I should have upgraded my rating to an R, then tell me so in your review.
**
To Sirius Black, the best godfather Harry Potter could have had…you will be sorely missed by Muggles worldwide. Rest in peace.
**
Chapter 8: Coition Blues
"Let go of me! You're hurting me!"
"Why, so you can run off to meddle with other men and ex-boyfriends? I don't think so! We're leaving and we're leaving NOW!"
Draco Malfoy was beyond pissed. Not only had he just caught his wife having coffee with some leather-clad slick-looking vampire, he had also ran into her ex-boyfriend. This will not do. Malfoy wives simply do not have other men. At the moment, he was dragging Hermione roughly by the arm through the quad in Central Square and cursing at anyone unfortunate enough to get in their way.
"Malfoy, really! There is no need-" began Hermione, still struggling to free herself out of her husband's grasp.
"You don't understand, do you? You just embarrassed me back there! Completely humiliated me and the name of Malfoy! Didn't my mother teach you anything? Malfoy women aren't supposed to be fraternizing with other men!" he screamed at her, attracting the attention of a few onlookers.
Hermione's mouth fell open in disbelief. "But I wasn't! Jesus, Malfoy, it's not like you even care, anyway! You hate me, you despise me, you insult me, yet you-you have the nerve to act like an over-jealous husband!"
"I am NOT jealous!" lied Draco, now very red in the face. "You just have to learn your place! But no matter, I'll tell Mother when we get back that her lessons have been wasted on you and that she needs to start all over again!"
And without another word, he yanked her away towards a line of coaches across the street from Central Square. They marched towards a fairly large carriage loaded with a pile of parcels at the very end of the line. As they neared it, Hermione realized that someone was also sitting inside the coach.
What the-
"Oh, by the way, I've bought Father a new slave," Malfoy announced to Hermione. "Before going off to find you, an owl dropped by with a letter from Father, informing me that Snape has been removed from our household and taken elsewhere. So now, Father is short of a personal slave," he explained as they reached the carriage.
Even though it was dark, Hermione could see that inside their carriage sat a man in his late twenties. Upon closer look, she noticed that his arms were bound to the side of the carriage.
He looks oddly familiar…
And then it hit her.
"STAN SHUNPIKE!" she gasped aloud, downright stunned.
"Yes, Ma'am, that would be me," Stan Shunpike acknowledged sadly with a nod.
"Speak only when you are spoken to, slave," admonished Draco harshly to Stan.
Hermione whipped around fiercely to face her husband.
"You bought the conductor of the Knight Bus to be your Father's SLAVE?!" she cried in a mixture of horror and disgust, hands on her hips.
"You don't know much anymore these days, do you?" retorted Draco, unfazed. "For your information, the Dark Lord has outlawed the operation of the Knight Bus ever since he came to rule and as usual, anyone who disobeys him becomes enslaved. I was rather fortunate to come upon Stan here at the Slave Market over on the other side of the quad, while you were having your little rendezvous with Spikey dearest."
Hermione gave him a withering look. "Oh stop it with that already. I simply cannot believe you. What were you thinking? Randomly purchasing people as though they are mere commodities! And a former Knight Bus conductor, at that! Have you no shame? No conscience? No morals? No respect left for the decency of-"
"Oh for crying out loud, just get in, already! I haven't got time to play twenty questions, least of all with you!" snapped Draco as he got in the carriage.
Hermione, however, stood fixated in her spot in front of the carriage door. She couldn't believe what her husband had done. She also couldn't believe how many people she had ran into in Transylvania. First a sexy lovesick vampire, then Harry, now Stan! And he was to be their slave! It was ludicrous! It was-
"Look, I'd love nothing more than to leave you behind but we all know the Dark Lord will have my head if I do, so get your arse inside this damn carriage so we can go back!" snarled Draco.
Having no choice, Hermione followed him in and sat opposite him, next to Stan. Turning towards the latter, she asked, "So, how did you end up here, Stan? You wouldn't remember me, would you? I'm Hermione Granger, I took a ride a few years back…with Harry Potter?"
Stan thought hard for a minute, then gave his new mistress a smile of recognition as the carriage took off and began making its way back towards Dracula's castle. "Right, right, I do remember you! It was the whole lot of you, wasn't it? Five years ago? You Hogwarts kids and a man and this peculiar old woman?"
Hermione smiled too, as she recalled that day she rode in the Knight Bus with Harry, Ron, Ginny, the Weasley twins, Professor Lupin, and Tonks.
"Yeah, that was us," she said reminiscently. "The good old days…oh, Stan, I'm so sorry this happened to you, if things were up to me, I'd never let you be bought as a slave like this."
"Harrumph! Ahem," came a sharp voice. Hermione knew that her husband was glaring at them but she ignored him anyway.
"So anyway, how did you end up here?" she continued, undeterred by Draco's attempt at an interruption.
"Well after that evil-er," paused Stan as he caught Draco's piercing eye, "er…the Dark Lord decided to sack the Bus, we began to protest, you know, and so they threw us in Azkaban for awhile, Ernie and me. And then some of the guards decided I'd make a good slave and sold me off to this Bulgarian Death Eater, Pieter Karkaroff or something."
At hearing that name, recognition clicked in Hermione's mind. "Pieter Karkaroff! That's Ivan Karkaroff's cousin! Right, I remember him, Viktor told me all about him during the War," Hermione recollected.
"Oh Viktor told you, did he? Another darling ex-boyfriend now, is he, that stupid prat of a Krum?" spat Draco contemptuously.
Again, Hermione ignored him (even more irritated now because he was starting to sound a lot like Ron) and continued looking at Stan. "So what happened next?"
"Well, turns out, the guy was somewhat of a gambler and lost a bet to this really hot-headed vampire Mafia boss. Ended up getting all the blood sucked out of him. Wasn't a pretty sight. After that, they didn't know what to do with me, so they sold me over to the slave merchant and before I knew it, here I was, right in the heart of Transylvania," explained Stan with a casual shrug.
"Oh, you poor thing!" commented Hermione, reaching out to pat Stan's arm.
"Yeah…speaking of which, how come you're not all chained up yourself? Weren't you one of the Boy Who Lived's best mates?" asked Stan, raising his brows.
"I…er…" began Hermione, unsure of how to explain herself.
"Mistress Malfoy here, as you will address her from now on, was ordered to forfeit her charming life as a Mudblood slave and marry me instead. Now, I think that's enough introductions and nostalgia for today," Draco intervened coldly.
"Really, Malfoy, I was just making small talk-" began Hermione but Draco immediately cut her off.
"There is no need for talk. I am sick of you and already I'm beginning to be sick of him," Draco said, gesturing towards Stan, who slumped further in his seat.
Hermione's eyes flashed. "If you're so sick of me, then you should-"
"FOR GOD'S SAKE WOMAN, SHUT UP!" roared Draco, incensed. Stan cowered back and pretended to look out the window.
"DON'T SHOUT AT ME!" Hermione yelled back furiously.
"I WILL DO AS I WISH! SILENCIO!" With a flick of his wand, which Hermione had failed to notice he was gripping, Draco Malfoy cast a Silencing Charm on his wife. He then pointed his wand at Stan. "And you too, for good measure. Silencio!"
Needless to say, the remainder of the ride was spent in tense silence. About ten minutes later, they finally reached the castle, where Stan was instantly whisked to the slave quarters for the night. It wasn't until they had returned to their guest chamber that Draco took the Silencing Charm off of Hermione.
"There. That should teach you a lesson. You should never forget that I'm the one with the wand around here," Malfoy reminded Hermione as they settled back into their room. "Two, in fact," he added with smirk.
Hermione didn't even bother to dignify that with a comment. Still smarting from having been put to muteness, she turned her back on him and stalked towards her trunk. Grabbing a towel and her nightgown, she huffily stomped her way to the bathroom and slammed the door shut without a word.
"Don't take too long, witch! We leave bright and early tomorrow and it's already half past the night! I want some sleep, you hear?" Draco called in after her.
Hermione remained in the bathroom for another three hours.
**
"RRRRRRRRON!!!!!!"
Harry Potter hollered loudly as he tumbled out of the fireplace. He had just Flooed back into the Order's current secret hideout, a small rundown shack on the outskirts of Vampiresburg.
"RRRRRRRONNN!!!" he roared again, causing the whole place to vibrate.
"For crying out loud, Harry, d'you want us to be found out or something?" came the disgruntled voice of Ron Weasley as his scarlet head popped up from the trap door in the floor of the shack.
"What's all the commotion?" came another voice-that of Ron's mother, Mrs. Weasley, who had just entered the sitting room from the kitchen.
"Yeah, what's all the racket, is Potter back?" inquired Mundungus Fletcher, who emerged partially clothed and steaming of pipe smoke from their makeshift lavatory just outside the shack.
"Good heavens, Mundungus, how many times must I tell you? Cover up all that hair! It is absolutely revolting!" scolded Mrs. Weasley in her high-pitched tone, turning her face away in disgust from Mundungus's curly and fly-infested forest of chest hair.
"Oh lay off and give me a break, Molly," he brushed away. "Chest hair is a wizard's finest asset, apart from you-know-what," he added with a wink.
"Chest hair?" Ron started, sounding doubtful. "I always thought it was the beard! Why else would Dumbledore-"
"Hello, can we carry on this pointless conversation later?" interrupted Harry desperately. "I've not NEWS!"
"Here, now, sit down first dear, you're all filthy! Oh and maybe you should change, your cousin's clothes really are thrice your size," offered Molly Weasley. By now, Harry was back in his own physique since the Polyjuice effect had died.
"NO! We haven't got time! It's about Hermione!"
"HERMIONE?!" exclaimed everyone in the room, along with eight or so more voices. The members of the Order of the Phoenix who were in charge of protecting and guarding Harry were rising up the steps from their underground meeting room through the same trap door that Ron had previously emerged from. Within seconds, everyone was there in the room with Harry- Mad-Eye Moody, Nymphadora Tonks, Arthur Weasley, Kingsley Shacklebolt, Neville Longbottom, Luna Lovegood, and the Weasley twins Fred and George.
"Yes, Hermione! She's alive!" Harry informed them excitedly.
"WHAT?! How-how do you know this?" cried Ron, who was practically shaking with amazement and clutching the back of a wooden chair tightly.
"I SAW HER!" Harry bellowed in reply, to the shock of everyone in the room.
"B-but what is she doing here? We all thought-I mean, no contact from her at all, all this time!" remarked Tonks the Metamorphmagus, who today was sporting bright blue hair down to her waist.
"You won't believe it!"
"What? Is she someone's slave? Oh no, has a vampire got her? Oh gods, please don't tell me…oh no!" moaned Ron pitifully. Mrs. Weasley rushed over and put her arm reassuringly around him.
"No, it's not that! She's not a slave, not anymore at least!"
"Well spit it out already, Harry mate, can't you see the suspense is killing our little brother here?" said Fred Weasley, who looked as though he was dying of suspense himself.
"Yeah Harry, tell us already!" echoed George.
Harry paused for a few laborious seconds before blurting out, "She's alive and well and MARRIED!!!"
"WHAT?!?!?!?!" cried everyone in the room. Every single jaw nearly hit the floor.
"All this time we thought she was dead and she's been MARRIED?" uttered Neville incredulously.
"Yes! But that's not all! It gets worse!" Harry continued.
"What, what, WHAT?" demanded Ron, whose color had now drained completely from his face at hearing that his girlfriend was now married to someone else.
"She's married to…brace yourselves…MALFOY! DRACO MALFOY!"
"WHAT??!?!?!?!?!?!?!!?" came another thunder of stunned gasps from everyone in the room.
Thump! went Mrs. Weasley's body as she hit the floor in a dead faint. Ron looked like he was about to collapse unconscious himself.
"B-but how could this be? Hermione would never-!" Mr. Weasley asserted eyes wide.
"I'm not sure; I couldn't get much out of her. But from what I could deduce, she was forced to or something. Like she was a slave before and then for some reason or another, Voldemort forced her to marry Malfoy!" Harry hurriedly explained.
"But that makes no bloody sense! It's rubbish, I tell you! Voldemort would never marry off one of his most prized and loyal Death Eaters to a Muggle-born, you mark my words!" pointed out Mad-Eye, whose magical eye was spinning viciously around in its socket.
"That's what I don't understand as well! Hermione didn't have time to explain…I ran into her at Starbucks in Central Square…she was there with Malfoy and this blond vampire…they were having a brawl of some sort and afterwards Malfoy just dragged her away!" Harry recounted.
"He didn't-he didn't recognize you, did he, that Malfoy? I mean, he doesn't know who Dudley Dursley is, does he, Harry?" Arthur Weasley asked warily.
"No, no, Hermione covered it all up. She-she told him I was her ex-boyfriend from Beauxbatons. He hasn't got a clue, that I'm sure," Harry reassured him.
"Not if Hermione Granger has turned traitor on us!" grumbled Mad-Eye darkly.
"No! She hasn't, I know it! I know the story seems dodgy, but Hermione would never betray us. And besides, she was pleading for my help. She mouthed it to me and it was all in her eyes! Whatever predicament she's in, it's against her will, I know it."
"But that still doesn't explain why Voldemort would want someone like her married to Draco Malfoy. I mean, Draco's got to be one of the Dark Lord's most loyal servants, next to Lucius Malfoy himself. The pieces just don't…fit," commented Kingsley Shacklebolt, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.
"True…but Voldemort would never do anything without a reason, as maniacal as he is. There's got to be a reason why…I mean, of all the witches, he chose Harry Potter's best friend…there must be a reason," Tonks added, looking thoughtful herself.
"Well, whatever it is, we won't know just standing and gaping around here, would we?" spoke up Mundungus Fletcher, rabidly scratching his chest.
"Mundungus is right. We won't figure anything out by just speculating in a rundown shack. Personally, I think there's more to Hermione's marriage than just being Draco Malfoy's wife. Voldemort obviously must want her for something-something big. I bet supernatural forces are involved here," suggested Luna, who until then had been silent the whole time.
George gave her an irritated look. "You always think something supernatural is involved."
"True, but what else can explain such a situation? Unless Voldemort's gone mad…but we already knew that," Luna replied.
"Luna has a point. There's something more at play here and I've got a gut feeling this is going to turn out to be a lot bigger than we think. I reckon we oughta lay low and keep snooping around before we do anything drastic," Tonks said.
"No, we haven't got time! We need to make a rescue plan for Hermione at once!" Harry argued determinedly.
"A rescue plan?!" exclaimed everyone once again in unison.
"Yes, while Hermione's still here! Our chances are much slimmer if she goes back to Malfoy Manor, which is where I assume she'll be most of the time," Harry reasoned.
"No, Potter, we can't do anything now…we're in hiding, remember?" reminded Mad-Eye.
"It doesn't matter, we can disguise ourselves! Look, this is our chance, we have to-"
"I'm afraid Mad-Eye's right, Harry. Dumbledore gave us strict orders to do absolutely nothing but hide and keep our eyes and ears open," Mr. Weasley spoke.
"Yes but he doesn't know about Hermione, does he? Look, we've sat around and spied around and done absolutely nothing for months! What kind of Rebel Alliance are we, if we won't even rescue one of our own when she's within our grasp?" Harry shot back severely.
"It's still the Malfoys we're dealing with, Harry. Listen, I know my aunt and her family. There is no way Narcissa or her husband would ever let their son marry a Muggle-born unless it was a life or death matter, trust me. Something foul is up and it'll be too dangerous for us to get involved with it right now. Remember that we are all on Voldemort's hit list. Look, let's just wait until Remus returns. If all succeeds, then maybe he'll be able to come back with our answers," Tonks reasoned.
"Yeah, Potter, she's right. Let Remus come. And if he's got who he's supposed to get with him, then we might be able to know enough to hatch this rescue plan. But until then we gotta wait, " growled Mad-Eye.
"Right. Nothing more we can do at the moment, it seems. Er…I think I should wake Mum up now," George said before bending down towards his mother who was sprawled on the floor and saying, "Ennervate!"
Harry, however, wasn't satisfied with just waiting. What if Hermione's the one waiting for them to come and save her and they don't? What if Malfoy's done something horrible to her by now? What if she's gotten away and is trying to look for them? Troubled by his thoughts, he glanced over at Ron, who was now sitting hunched-back on the wooden chair with a strange, blank expression on his face.
Slowly, Harry approached him. "Ron? Ron, are you okay?"
Ron remained silent, staring dazedly at the floor.
"Ron, it's alright, Remus will come back soon, and after we know more, we can save her then," Harry consoled, wanting very much to comfort his best friend. Over on the other side of the room, Luna shot him a look of sympathy and worry.
Sighing, Harry put his arm around Ron. "It's okay, mate, we'll save her."
This time, Ron looked up and Harry could see pain etched on all corners of his face.
"Tell me this is one big joke, Harry, please. Because it can't be…she'd never…not to me…" Ron mumbled painfully.
"I'm sorry Ron, really I am, but at least we know she's alive," Harry tried.
"But she's married, Harry. To him," Ron managed to whisper.
"Well it wasn't a willing act on her part Ron, I'm sure of that. Don't worry. It'll be okay," comforted Harry.
"Yeah, Ron, cheer up. We'll figure things out soon and then we'll get her back and thwart Voldemort's plans for good," Tonks said brightly hoping to lighten the mood and giving Ron a sympathetic pat on the back, before walking away and ramming head-first into a cupboard.
**
"Ahh, here we are, laboratory sweet laboratory. Isn't it lovely, Severus?"
Severus Snape groaned and swore under his breath. He couldn't believe he was about to be a lab rat for his illegitimate half-brother! Presently, they had just Apparated into Severin Snape's experimental potions laboratory and nobody looked more eager about this than Severin himself.
"Now- oh look at the time. My hour's almost up! Why don't we have a quick test, shall we?" Severin suggested a little all too hastily.
"Your hour? What-" but before Snape could finish his sentence, Severin had already disappeared into an adjoining room to fetch certain potions. Shaking his head, Snape looked around at the dark dungeon laboratory that belonged to his half-brother. Although all of the equipment, cauldrons, and potion ingredients looked in place, he couldn't help but feel that something was amiss.
Would this be where I meet my untimely end? Alone, greasy-haired, and possibly naked (if my ever-loathed twit of a brother has kinky taste)?
"Ah, here we are!" came Severin's voice as he re-entered the lab clutching a thick book with Severin's Moste Potente Potions engraved in gold on the cover.
"Let's see…" Severin continued talking to himself. "Where is it, where is-ah! Here. What a genius!" With that, he proceeded towards a shelf of ready-made potions and picked up a flask labeled Epilepsia Paroxyserum.
Snape watched with a sinking stomach as Severin happily grasped the potion flask and marched back towards him.
Gulp.
"Here we are, Sevvie brother dearest, the time has come for you to be a guinea pig! Now, open up and swallow this nicely, or else I'll be forced to use the Cruciatus on you," Severin threatened with glee.
Snape stared cautiously at the flask of purple liquid before him. "I've never heard of a potion called Epilepsia Paroxyserum. For all I know, it could be poison," he told his brother.
Severin looked thoughtful. "Hmm…true. For all you know, it could be. But for all I know, it doesn't matter. You're going to drink this. And the reason why you've never heard of it is because it is my very own exclusive concoction, brewed as a special treat for the Dark Lord himself," he replied, undeterred. "Now, be a good rat and drink up."
When Snape still refused to budge, Severin became more impatient.
"Look, I haven't got all day, alright? Drink up! Or would you rather I force it down your pitiful throat?"
Swallowing down both his saliva and his fears, Snape hesitantly reached for the flask of Epilepsia Paroxyserum.
"What will-what will happen to me once I drink this?" Snape asked with dread.
"Well, we'll find out won't we? That's what lab rats are for, aren't they?" replied Severin.
Knowing that there was no way out, Snape did the only thing he knew he could. With a deep breath, he brought the flask to his mouth and allowed as much of the purple liquid as possible to enter.
"Brilliant, good pet! Now let's see what-"
SPLASH! Snape spat out all the potion he held in his mouth right into Severin's face as the other wizard leaned his head in.
Disoriented, startled, and temporarily blinded by the mixture of Epilepsia Paroxyserum and Snape's saliva, Severin lost his footing and fell onto a table of glass vials and broken cauldrons. Even though his feet were still bounded together by a jinx, Snape seized this opportunity to topple himself over Severin and kick him repeatedly in the groin by thrusting his knees.
"Nobody messes with me, not even family!" Snape glowered madly, as his knees continued punching into Severin's manhood, preventing Severin from reaching for his wand.
"Stop! St-AHHHHHHHH!!" screamed Severin in pain to no avail.
"Serves you right, you foul bastard!" howled Snape, his hands now wrung about Severin's neck, attempting to suffocate the fallen man.
With his air supply blocked and his fertility attacked, it seemed as though Severin Snape was nearing his end. However, at that moment, a series of unforgettable metamorphoses took place. First, Severin's body began heating up and his eyes grew wide. Then, patches of the man's flesh began bubbling up all over his skin, causing Snape to jump off in alarm. As he watched panting, his half-brother's body began curling up and writhing miserably on the stone floor. To his horror, he saw Severin's hair-which until then had been characteristically greasy and black- shorten up and change into a rather soft brown hue. Then, in front of his very eyes, Severin's body transformed completely into the build of another man, who now lay face down and gasping wildly on the floor.
"Wh-wh-what's this? Who-who're you?" Snape managed to speak in a shaky voice.
Slowly, the fallen figure hoisted himself up on his elbows and turned around to face the former Hogwarts Potions Master.
"It's me, you dolt!" the other man rasped, evidently still in pain.
Severus Snape stared at the person before him. If he thought the recent events leading to this moment were peculiar, it was no match to what he was thinking now. For presently, glaring at him and staggering was the body and face of…
"Lupin, you impotent fool of a werewolf! How dare you!"
**
The flying carriage ride home for Draco, Hermione, and Stan was for the most part, quite uneventful. The three of them spent the entire time napping, or at least pretending to. It was, after all, a much more productive alternative than bickering all the way home. As the carriage began its descent towards the grounds of Malfoy Manor in the late Monday evening, something quaint caught Draco's eye as he peered lazily out the window.
"Where'd that come from?" he pondered aloud as he gazed at the grounds below. In the space where the family greenhouse used to be, a circular single-story stone house of some sort now stood.
Curious as always, Hermione too looked out the window and was just as confused as Draco was. Why on Earth would the Malfoys need a small house when they had an enormous manor all to themselves?
Surely not to house-gulp-more slaves?
With a soft thud, the carriage landed and its occupants eagerly boarded out.
"Shunpike, you carry our luggage inside the Manor, the house-elves and Finnigan should take care of it from there," ordered Draco to Stan, who obeyed without protest.
"Come on, I'm curious to know what that's all about," he said to Hermione, and the three of them made their way to the front door of the Manor.
Before they could even reach the door though, it flung open and Seamus Finnigan swiftly ran out to greet them.
"You better hurry; the Lord has been awaiting your arrival inside!" Seamus informed them. When Draco remained still and instead gave him a hard look, Seamus added a tight "Sir."
Satisfied, Draco grabbed Hermione's arm and dragged her into the Manor, with Stan trailing close behind. Quietly, they entered the parlor, where they found Voldemort sitting in his usual velvet high chair. Narcissa and Lucius Malfoy were both seated nervously on the sofa.
"Ah, Mr. and Mrs. Draco Malfoy, welcome back! How was your honeymoon?" Voldemort inquired of them cheerily.
"Erm…it was fine my Lord, thank you," Draco answered, bowing low.
Hermione, however, remained rooted in her spot and adamantly refused to bow.
"I see your wife is still quite obstinate. This will not do. Bow, I say," Voldemort commanded Hermione.
"Just do it, get it over with," Draco hissed at his wife.
Muttering impressive obscenities under her breath, Hermione allowed herself for once to do what she was told by Voldemort, just so that the moment would pass.
"Wonderful, I see we are learning our places around here. Good, good. Now, I suppose-as has been the custom around here for awhile now- you are all wondering why I'm here?"
Everyone in the room nodded, including Seamus and Ginny who were, as usual, eavesdropping unseen just outside the door. That was, of course, when Voldemort took note of Stan's presence.
"And who are you?" he demanded.
"Oh, right, my Lord, when I heard that Father had gotten rid of Snape I thought I might as well buy him another slave," Draco stepped forward to explain. "This is Stan Shunpike, the former conductor of the Knight Bus, newest addition to the Malfoy Slave family."
"I see," spoke Lucius, getting up to survey Stan. "Yes, he'll do, but not as my slave. It is rather a redundant position I reserve only to torture certain individuals for my twisted pleasure, such as in the case of our dear friend Severus Snape. But for you, I have a more significant duty. How does being in charge of the Malfoy stables sound to you?"
For a second, Stan was speechless, apparently baffled at his newfound fortune. "Y-you want me to be a stable boy, sir?"
"Yes, yes, that's right. I've got a few horses and Thestrals down in the stables and coincidentally the wizard who had been in charge of them has decided to elope and run away with the milkmaid. Well, what do you say? Are you up to the job?"
'I-er…certainly, sir!" affirmed Stan, who thought being anything was better than being a slave.
"Hold on there, since the horses and Thestrals are all mine, I should be the one to see whether or not he is qualified for the position," piped up Narcissa, who was looking at Stan with obvious intrigue. Slowly, she lifted herself off the sofa and strolled gracefully towards the young wizard, eyeing him up and down.
"So, Stan Shunpike…can you ride?" she asked him suggestively with a small alluring smile. For a woman in her mid-forties, Narcissa was still beautiful and her feminine charms did not waver.
Speechless once again but for a different reason, Stan could only nod.
"Wonderful. He'll do, Lucius," she confirmed, turning towards her husband.
"Magnificent. Now that we've all decided Stan dearest can be the stable boy, may I continue with the reason as to why I am here?" Voldemort voiced rather impatiently.
"Oh! Forgive me, my Lord, yes, do continue Sire," Lucius quickly stated.
"Thank you. Now, I know all of us here are still wondering why it is that I must have my faithful Death Eater marry such filth as Harry Potter's Mudblood."
"Excuse me, I beg your pardon-" Hermione started indignantly, before a stony look from her husband silenced her.
"Right. Anyway, I am pleased to tell you that the answer is drawing near. We will discuss that topic again when the time comes. For now, though, I have come to the realization that a mere marriage may not be enough. In fact, it isn't and I see now that I need more from the two of you," Voldemort said to Draco and Hermione.
"I'm sorry, my Lord, but I don't understand. What more can we possibly give you?" inquired Draco, puzzled.
Voldemort smiled his most wicked smile. "What else? A physical symbol of your most advantageous union."
When his audience still gave him perplexed looks, Voldemort rolled his evil snake-eyes. "In other words, a child."
"A WHAT?!" cried Draco, Hermione, Lucius, and Narcissa all in unison.
"A child," Voldemort calmly repeated.
Hermione couldn't take this anymore. "Oh please, that is so lame! It's THE most expected thing to do, I've read about it in almost every love/hate-forced-together-couple story there is! Please, this is getting quite old, I've heard of this before! You want our child to be your heir, don't you? That's it, isn't it? How completely unoriginal!" she declared vehemently.
Voldemort responded to her outburst with a short laugh.
"Not quite, Mistress Malfoy. I do not wish for an heir. And why would I? I plan to be immortal-I will need no heir," Voldemort replied smoothly.
"Then? What is the child for, then?"
"That is a matter that is not of your concern at the moment, Mrs. Malfoy. You will find out all in due time. But for now, all that you need to know is nothing, and all that you need to do is procreate."
"Easy for you to say! You don't have to mate with him!" Hermione spat out, pointing at Draco.
"But, my Lord, you cannot possibly be serious. I mean, I am sure you must be aware of the Malfoy First-born Curse?" Lucius spoke up.
"Yes, I am. The curse that your ancestors willingly inflicted on all Malfoy descendants in order to prevent sibling disputes concerning inheritance. And your point is?"
"Well, my Lord, then you must understand that my son and his wife cannot…breed. Any child of theirs would be a half-blood and therefore unfit to bear the name Malfoy. Yet, because of the Curse, it must always be that a Malfoy's first-born child would be a boy and the only boy born to that Malfoy. Because of this, my son's first-born will be a son and thus, the only heir to the Malfoy name. Yet he will be half-blooded and theoretically unable to carry on the name of Malfoy," explained Lucius.
"I understand that, Lucius. But this is the way things must be. You'll have to make do with the theory."
"But, Lord, you cannot be serious! You cannot consciously let the future heir of the prestigious Pureblood Malfoy clan be a half-blood! Our whole bloodline is at stake!"
"Under the circumstances, Lucius, yes I can."
"But, my Lord, forgive me for saying this, Sire, oh Greatness, but ARE YOU INSANE?! That's preposterous!"
Voldemort's red eyes blazed. "Yes, Lucius, I am both serious and insane! But that is not the point here, is it?"
Helpless, Hermione chanced a furtive glance at Draco to see his jaw hanging wide open and him stiff with shock. Shifting her gaze to her father-in-law, she saw that his face was turning from a shade of angry beet scarlet to pale hopeless white.
"My mighty Lord, with all due respect sir-" he began again, only to be silenced once more by Voldemort who was looking far less than pleased.
"That is enough, Lucius! I will hear no more protests from you or anyone else. I have my reasons and you, being my loyal servants, must bear with them. I want a child from Draco and Potter's Mudblood and that is FINAL!"
Behind Hermione and Draco, Narcissa muttered an incoherent gasp before her eyes rolled up to the back of her head and she collapsed in a dead faint. Nobody made a move to catch her but Stan, who had been standing right beside her. He caught her most ceremoniously, and Hermione swore she saw from the corner of her eye Narcissa's eyelids fluttering open briefly and her lips moving to whisper devilishly "Ooh, such firm arms" before falling unconscious again.
"My Lord, if I may," Draco addressed at that moment, with all the calmness and self-control he could muster. "You must understand, sir, that my wife and I are in no position to…erm…fornicate. We despise each other much too deeply to allow ourselves to perform such an intimate act with one another. We may try, but I can assure you right now, it will be unsuccessful."
At his statement, Voldemort raised an amused eyebrow-or what was left of one. "Is that so? Well we are in luck then. For I have in my authority a most useful Seer who has very conveniently foreseen this unwilling attitude from you. Consequently, I've already made suitable arrangements that should accommodate you in your task to produce me a child."
"Arrangements, sir?"
"Yes, arrangements. You see, I have instructed your father to temporarily demolish Narcissa's greenhouse and build in its place a cozy one-bedroom housing unit specially suited to the likes of Draco and Hermione Malfoy. He, of course, has had no idea why I instructed him to do so until this minute," Voldemort explicated. "In fact, why don't we get this over with now? Everyone, follow me to the Love Hut-as I've fondly named it," Voldemort added with a cheeky grin to the horror-stricken faces of Lucius, Draco, and Hermione.
With a crack, both Voldemort and Lucius Malfoy Disapparated from the parlor to the Hut.
"I…er…suppose Lady Malfoy oughta rest up in bed, I reckon," came Stan's awkward voice. He was still holding the unconscious Narcissa Malfoy in his arms.
"Lie her down on the sofa. Red will tend to her," Draco instructed blandly, not really caring at all about his mother's condition at this point.
Hermione looked somberly at him. 'I-er-I don't have my wand, I'll have to walk, I can't…"
Without uttering so much as a word, Draco grumpily stalked towards Hermione and wrapped his arms around her, so that she was in his hold.
What is he doing?! Oh right…well this isn't so bad, I had no idea his embrace could be so…warm…
With another crack, Draco Apparated the both of them inside the Love Hut. Once inside, they found the Hut to be quite fashionably and expensively adorned. It was more or less like a studio apartment, really; the whole Hut consisted of only the bedroom and the bathroom, with a few velvet couches and chairs set along the side of the bedroom. Circular windows, a fireplace, and a small dining table rounded off the furniture and built-ins of the Hut. Hermione hated to admit this, but Voldemort was right-it was indeed a pretty cozy place and under different circumstances, she would've liked it a lot.
"Now," began Voldemort, once everyone was in place, "As you two newlyweds will notice, all of the windows have been charmed to remain closed and the glass to be unbreakable. The fireplace is not connected to the Floo Network. A special Anti-Disapparition Jinx has been cast to specifically prevent the Disapparition of anyone out of the Hut-you may Apparate in, but never Disapparate out. So the only other way to enter and exit this dainty establishment is through the door, which has also been charmed to remain shut-after Lucius and I exit it today, of course- until it is able to detect the conception of a child within young Mistress Malfoy's womb."
"WHAT?!?!?!?!?!?!" cried all three remaining voices in trauma.
"My Lord! You cannot expect me to keep my own son locked up here-" started Lucius, a mixture of anger, surprise, abhorrence, and incredulity apparent on his face.
"I very well can, Lucius. And the longer they try to disobey me, the longer they will remain here," Voldemort stated calmly.
"My Lord, I have been nothing but faithful and loyal to you all this time! I do not see how this merits in my house-arrest!" argued Draco, not yet so willing to back down.
"Young Draco, your past achievements have done you no wrong. But they do not measure to the importance of this task at hand. Accomplish this, and you will be rewarded beyond your wildest dreams," baited Voldemort.
Draco shut up then, and looked as though he was considering the situation gravely. "What…kind of rewards are we talking about, sire?"
Voldemort's lips twitched into an evil smirk. "Well, conditions are not negotiable, but I think we're looking at life-long and semi-absolute power for you, Draco, over wizarding Africa once I've conquered it and eternal freedom for you, Mistress Malfoy, after this charade is over."
Hermione scoffed at this, but Draco seemed to take a keen interest in the offer. "You mean Her-er-my wife and I may get divorced after this whole fiasco? And I would become powerful while she would be freed?"
"Yes."
"Hmm…" went Draco as he began to rub his chin and reconsider his options.
"No way, Malfoy, you can't seriously believe him!" Hermione burst out to her husband. "Look, Voldemort, this is ridiculous. I do not know what sick pleasure you get out of forcing us to-to-" she attempted to dispute, but again, her efforts were futile.
"It is of no use, I've already set my mind. So say hello to your new housing arrangements. Lucius and I will be taking leave of you now. The house-elves will bring in your clothes, personal trunks, and food for meals. Good day and happy conceiving!" Voldemort bid, before gliding towards the door with a helpless, sour-faced Lucius Malfoy strutting behind him.
"Voldemort, you're mad! This is going one step too far! You abominable pervert!" shrieked Hermione after them, still fervently wishing that it was all a horrible nightmare and that Voldemort would come to his mad senses and reconsider.
Abruptly, Voldemort whipped around, and this time there was only malice shining from the depths of his piercing eyes. "For the top witch at Hogwarts, you are awfully slow at grasping the concepts at hand, aren't you, Mrs. Malfoy?"
"The only concept I grasp is that you are wickedly sick and-"
"Tut tut, thank you for all the compliments, but really, I expected more from that brain of yours. You see, similar to the instance where I ordered you and young Master Malfoy to wed and to embark on your honeymoon, your options are as follows: do as I say, or meet a most gruesome, merciless doom."
Hermione, however, stood undisturbed by Voldemort's menace and held her head up defiantly. "You won't kill us. You need us for something and we all know that so save your death threats because they are pointless," she ascertained confidently with her chin in the air and arms folded.
Voldemort gave another one of his characteristic short, dry laughs. "Oh, I wouldn't be too sure of that if I were you. According to the prophecy, it could have been another pair…but let's hope it's you and Draco, for both of your sakes."
"But-"
"NO MORE BUTS!" yelled Voldemort very much exasperated. "Listen closely foolish Mudblood because this is the LAST time I will warn you. PROCREATE OR DIE!"
With that, the Dark Lord stormed out the door with his heavy cloak swooshing sinisterly behind him and a very distraught Lucius Malfoy looking as though he'd rather have tea with a Blast-Ended Skrewt following out miserably, shutting indefinitely the door to freedom behind them.
**
"You ignorant wanker, you prat of a wolf! How dare you trick me like this! I will not be played for a fool!"
Severus Snape had been ranting nonstop for the past fifteen minutes. He couldn't believe that the whole time he thought he was at the mercy of his illegitimate, evil half-brother, he was actually in the hands of one of his old school nemeses and fellow member of the Order of the Phoenix. The whole time he thought his life was in danger, it had all been a scam.
"Oh, for Merlin's beard, will you shut it already? I came to save your pitiful life, you should learn some gratitude! If it weren't for me, you'd still be chained up pathetically in the Malfoy dungeons, Snivellus!" Remus Lupin snapped back.
"No matter, there was absolutely no need for you to have led me on and hoodwink me into almost drinking a potentially dangerous potion! You dreadful pile of bat crap! You'll pay for this!" hollered Snape, still very much enraged at Lupin's deception.
"Hey, I was merely having some fun! What else has a werewolf got for entertainment in these dark days?"
"ARGH! I will NEVER make Wolfsbane for you ever again!"
"Alright, alright, I wasn't just having fun. Your illegitimate half-brother Severin really did invent a whole array of potions which our spies have deemed useful for our Cause. Voldemort's been creating more and more and the Alliance feels it is best to cripple this advantage of the Dark Lord at once. For months, we've tried to capture Severin and the minute we did, we learned that you had been taken by Lucius Malfoy as a slave. So, it was decided that I would Polyjuice myself as Severin and see what I could do to get in touch with you and rescue you. Fortunately, the opportunity came up almost instantly and here I am, saving your godforsaken arse!" recounted Lupin.
"Fine, fine! Let's get out of here then, and I'll deal with you later. Take me to Dumbledore," Snape told Lupin, who shook his head almost instantly.
"That can't be done. We have no idea where Dumbledore is at the moment-he is the one who contacts us first and we haven't heard from him in almost two months. He is Harry's Secret-Keeper after all, and we can't have him caught by any chance. I am to bring you back to the Order's current secret hideout in Transylvania."
"Transylvania! The Order already in Europe! Is Potter and the others there?"
"Some of the others. The ones guarding Harry, mainly. The rest are scattered about, spying, snooping. But anyway, we'll save the questions and answers for later. Now, though, we must Floo to the Shrieking Shack in Hogsmeade, where I've made arrangements for a flying carriage to take us to Transylvania."
"And we are travelling just like this? We will get caught then!"
"Oh no, of course not. I'm not an idiot, Snape, I was once a Hogwarts Professor, in case you've forgotten. Anyway, we are going to travel incognito. I'll remain Severin Snape while you, my foul colleague, will be traveling as my charming pet, Mr. Snivels."
Then with a quick wave of Lupin's wand and a few muttered incantations, Snape found himself successfully transfigured into a scrawny black bat.
"You know, you don't look so bad from this angle," Lupin informed him jovially as he stuffed his former Hogwarts colleague into a cage and locked it. "Kind of cute, if I may be honest."
He then went off to collect some more potion samples and journals from Severin Snape's personal desks before their departure.
As he waited seething in his iron cage, Snape began devising multiple ways in which he would get revenge on Lupin once the whole ordeal was over. Looking at his new self though, Snape must admit it wasn't so bad.
After all, they were always saying he looked like a vampire.
**
Ginny Weasley sauntered down the stairs after having consoled a violently sobbing Narcissa Malfoy and then putting her to sleep in her bedchambers. After waking up from her dead faint, Narcissa had begun to weep and wail uncontrollably at the prospect that the Pureblood future of the Malfoys was to come to an unprecedented end.
"Because of the -sniff- Curse, we're the only Malfoys -hiccup- around and so it all rested with -sniff- Draco to preserve and continue the bloodline! -Sob- And since Bella and Rudolph don't have any children, I'm the last to carry on the –hiccup- blood of the Blacks as well! Two pure bloodlines gone for good! Ahhhhhhhhh -sob- -hiccup- -sniff-" Narcissa had lamented mournfully to Ginny who, though Pureblooded herself, couldn't really sympathize with the older witch.
Anyhow, Narcissa was perfectly asleep now, and Ginny was eager to talk to Hermione about Voldemort's latest visit. Before she reached the bottom of the stairs however, she saw Seamus scurrying in through the front doors.
"I've just come back from the Love Hut! Oh Ginny it's horrible…You-Know-Who is putting Malfoy and Hermione under house-arrest until they can conceive a wee babe!" Seamus announced breathlessly to her.
"WHAT?!" cried Ginny, aghast. "That's absurd! Malfoy and Hermione can't…oh god, this is horrible! We've got to do something!"
"We can't do anything now though, or else they'd know I've been spying in," Seamus pointed out as he saw the silhouettes of Voldemort and Lucius Malfoy approaching the Manor from the corner of his eye.
"Okay, here's what we do. After Voldemort leaves, we'll sneak around the Hut and see if there's anyway we can break in."
"Don't be stupid, Ginny! They've got spells on the place and we haven't got our wands, you know that! It's a complete love fortress down there!"
"Very well, then! We'll just go down there and see if we can somehow communicate with Hermione and fetch her whatever it is she might need…and keep a lookout to make sure Malfoy doesn't jinx her or harm her in any way or whatever," Ginny persisted.
"Right then. Fine. Quick, go do something, they're coming back…I'll meet you outside the Hut in ten minutes!" spoke Seamus hurriedly before the two dashed off a little too inconspicuously in opposite directions.
**
"Well? What do we do now?" Malfoy asked worriedly. He had been pacing around the room nonstop ever since Voldemort's departure, approximately ten minutes ago.
At the moment, Hermione was still in the process of recovering from the trauma of being locked for an indefinite period of time inside a supposed 'love hut' with Draco Malfoy. She couldn't believe this…her and Malfoy…a child?! It was nonsensical. The Dark Lord had to have lost his head.
"We're so doomed…even one as clever as yourself can't solve this…since there's no way I'm touching you…oh god, we're going to die…" moaned Malfoy, as he continued his pointless parading.
And that's when a light bulb flashed itself inside Hermione's head.
"You know, Malfoy, I think there's a way we can get out of this," Hermione spoke at length.
"Oh, really? And what's that?" he retorted skeptically.
"Well, you see, in the Muggle world, there's this scientific method of fertilization that does not involve intercourse at all. Absolutely no coital activity. Mind you, it's not perfect- the risks of failure aren't low, and it can be quite costly, but with all of your wealth, I doubt financial matters would concern us. Anyway, it's called artificial insemination and how it works is-"
"No way. No Muggle methods, absolutely not." A look of pure disgust and revulsion crossed Malfoy's pale face.
"But Malfoy-"
"NO! I am not going to get myself involved in an unnatural, psychotic-sounding- and not to mention, motionless- Muggle process of reproduction!" he declared with conviction.
"Look Malfoy, your sperm will still be required you know, so it isn't like you won't need to-"
"NO!" roared Draco again. "No, no, and no is the final word!"
The flashing light bulb in Hermione's head exploded into a thousand crumbling pieces.
"FINE!" Hermione yelled, blood boiling. He was being so childish and impossible!
"If that's how you want it, then we haven't any other choice but to actually consummate our marriage! Which means I'll have to endure the gross, stinking feel of your atrocious body sliming up all over me-"
"Excuse me?!" Malfoy was stunned. He, atrocious?! "I beg to differ! It is I who must endure your slimy body as it contaminates my fine, flawless skin! Your Mudblood filth meddling with my purity!"
"Oh what a pity, how sorry I feel for you!" bit Hermione sarcastically, very much insulted.
"You should be! Besides, you're the atrocious one! As shrewd as you are, I bet you haven't a clue how intercourse works!" Malfoy ranted.
At his accusation, Hermione went slightly pink. Well, it was true. She was a virgin and the farthest she had ever gone with Ron, her love, was snogging. However, she wasn't about to let Malfoy belittle her for it.
"Well, you're the one to talk! I can't imagine anyone who'd want to sleep with you except your ugly pug-nosed precious prejudiced girlfriend Pansy, which just shows how her standards obviously don't count!" Hermione raved with her chin raised.
"Sorry to burst your bubble, woman, but I'll have you know that no Malfoy man has ever gone into a marriage as a virgin, even if their wives are expected to be, my ex-fiancée Pansy included. I, of course, am no exception, and have done more than my fair share of exploration. I know for a fact that I happen to be a first-rated lover," Draco asserted quite pompously.
"Like I would believe that! The only way you'd ever get witches to sleep with a sniveling, arrogant, pale-faced worm like yourself was if your father paid them! Which I bet he did!" Hermione stated viciously, crossing her arms.
At her words, Draco's eyes bulged out of its sockets and his face and ears flushed crimson. In a rage, he stormed towards her, halting only a few inches from her face. "How dare you! Don't you talk to me like that! You have no idea! Witches everywhere find me irresistible!"
"Don't flaunt yourself, Malfoy, I can assure you, you're very resistible," Hermione shot back, standing her ground.
Draco narrowed his eyes maliciously at her. "If you heard me correctly, I said witches find me irresistible. Nowhere did I mention anything about the tastes of Muggles and Mudbloods."
Of course, as Hermione's hands wrenched itself onto his neck in the very next instant, he found himself regretting those words.
"Ack! I…can't…breathe…let…go!" he rasped, trying to pry Hermione's hands off.
The anger that had flooded through Hermione at being insulted yet again by her husband had let loose some much needed adrenaline and she wasn't going to let go of Draco's neck so easily, even if it meant cutting off his air supply for good.
"You've insulted me for the last time, Malfoy!" she threatened, as her grip around his neck tightened.
Surprised at her sudden strength, Draco had faltered at first, but not for long. In the end, he managed to muster enough might to push Hermione away. In one hard shove, he thrust his wife backwards, causing her to forcefully fall supinely onto their bed. Seeing her down on her back and momentarily at a disadvantage, he climbed onto the bed after her. Hovering over her body, he captured her wrists with his hands and pressed his thighs and knees roughly against hers so that she wouldn't be able to move her legs.
"Let go of me!" demanded Hermione as she struggled in vain to free herself from Draco.
"No! I've had it with you thinking you are the best around here! That you know everything! If it weren't for the Dark Lord and my family, you'd still be a slave! Therefore, you will learn your place in this household once and for all!" shouted Draco. Again, their faces were only inches apart and Draco couldn't help registering the tingly feeling that began to run all over his body. For some reason, he was finding it hard to remove his gaze from her flushed face.
"Damn this household! Let me go! You're hurting me!" By now, not only were Hermione's wrists and thighs in pain, but her adrenaline rush had also deserted her, resulting in her strength dwindling. Fruitlessly, she squirmed against her husband's hold.
It was then that Draco's heart skipped a beat and he felt an all-too familiar sensation taking place in his groin.
Oh no…the Mudblood is turning me on!
SHIT!
"I'll let you go if you take back all you've just said. You don't know me, you don't know what I'm capable of," he said to her in a voice that was a bit too husky to be safe.
"This is so silly! You insult me, offend me, and then expect me to praise you with being some sort of sex machine? In your dreams, Malfoy!"
Draco wasn't sure he knew what a machine was, but at her mentioning the word sex he felt his hard-on coming even stronger. With their bodies being so close, in any second, Hermione would feel it too. Suddenly, he felt his nerves shaking and knew desperately that he could no longer be in this position and stay sane. Grunting, he removed his hold on her and jumped off the bed, turning his back on Hermione so that she would have no chance of seeing the rising bulge in his pants.
Feeling triumphant, Hermione pushed herself up and stood. Her legs were still a bit unsteady from being pushed so hard, but she couldn't force out of her system the perverse, lingering excitement that had come over her from being held down like that by her husband. It was weird…she never expected in a million years that he would be able to make her feel like that.
"We still haven't solved our problem, Draco," Hermione spoke, wanting to get her confused emotions out of the way and revert back to their original topic of argument.
By now, Draco had calmed down somewhat, and thankfully, so had his manhood. Sighing, he nodded in agreement at Hermione's words. Deep down, he knew that they had no other way out.
"I don't know what else we can do. What the Dark Lord wants, he gets. Now, I am the last person in the world who would want to do this-and don't disagree with me, I'm sure a part of you must be all giddy at the thought of sleeping with such an esteemed Pureblood such as myself-but I share no such sentiments. Though, in any case, I don't suppose we could-"
"EXCUSE ME? Are you suggesting that I may be thrilled at the thought of having to…make babies with you?!" asked Hermione disbelievingly, temper rising once again. "Why you abominable narcissist!"
"Hey, is it a crime if I take after my mother? Look, all I'm saying is that it's worse for me than it is for you. Not only is the thought alone revolting to me, but also the act…how ghastly. You have the advantage of having me, the excellent lover that I am, to possibly give you pleasure in the process, but I can expect no such favor from you," Draco explained haughtily, turning around to face Hermione again.
"Why you insolent spawn of arrogance!" Hermione alleged, frustrated and slightly offended. "If we do pursue this…act…it won't be for pleasurable purposes at all! Quick and swift it would have to be, and I can care less whether you feel satisfied or not. And 'excellent lover' my arse!" Hermione added, hands on her hips.
The two newlyweds stared at each other for a torturous moment-but it was enough. Glaring into Draco's steel gray eyes, Hermione felt the whirlwind of anger and excitement roll into one, causing her heart to throb deliriously fast against her will and her prude logic to fly out the window.
"I am one," Draco insisted quietly but dangerously.
"Yeah? Then prove it, pond scum!" she dared him, gaze unflinching.
"I WILL, muck blood!" he returned with an almost desperate fervor.
And with that, Draco charged towards Hermione and literally jumped on top of her, toppling them both onto their new four-poster. Consumed by passionate rage, he tore off the front of Hermione's robes with his teeth and hands. He then started covering her soft, warm lips, face, neck, and exposed breasts with hard, sensuous kisses, before stripping off his own clothing. Through it all, Hermione's mind determinedly protested against this vulgar deed but her heart and body would hear none of it. Moaning half in pain and half in twisted pleasure, she fiercely helped him yank off his shirt and for the first time in her life, willingly embraced her husband's bare chest. Her fury and hate had intensified at his first touch, but now it too, had morphed into a reckless, burning passion, throwing every single part of her conscious self into a frenzy of exploding sensations.
No, this can't be…ahh…he can't be right…he's not good…no…this…is…not…Malfoy…no…I can't be with him…like this…nono…not Draco…oh god…ahh…no…god…nogodnogodnono…
**
Outside, Seamus Finnigan struggled for breath as he peered through the keyhole of the Love Hut's door. His jaw dropped open and hung wide. Engrossed in what he saw, he didn't even realize that his saliva was seeping out of his hanging mouth and dripping carelessly down the left side of his chin. Trying to shove sanity back into his mind, he willed himself to jump back into reality. Flushing the brightest shade of red, he finally steered his eyes away from the hole, wiped off his dripping saliva with the sleeve of his robe, and quickly got up.
"We're leaving NOW," he informed a worried Ginny with a shaky voice, grabbing her arm and leading her away in a huff. He and Ginny had been staking out beside the Love Hut ever since Voldemort left, looking for any openings through which they could help their trapped friend.
"What? No! Why? What happened? What did you see? Why have they stopped shouting? What's going on?" cried Ginny, refusing to move any further until she got answers.
Seamus whipped his head around to face her, seemingly embarrassed. "Er…we're not necessary…anymore…"
"Seamus, I'm not taking another step until you spill it out. We need to be here in case Malfoy hexes her!"
"No, we don't, because I can tell you now, he won't be hexing her anytime soon," Seamus assured uncomfortably.
"Stop this, Seamus! For god's sake, just tell me! What are they doing?"
"Fine! They're doing what Voldemort wanted them to! There, now are you happy? Can we go?" and without waiting to hear her response, he made his way back towards the Manor, face glowing with absolute embarrassment.
For a moment Ginny stood still, confounded. "Huh? But Voldemort wants them to…"
And then it hit her. Hard.
"HOLY BABY MERLIN!"
**
A/N: Um…er…I WAS SO SILLY! Ok, I said it would be an R rating but it sort of could still pass for PG-13, being that I am SO HORRIBLE at writing such scenes! I'm really bad I know…but hey, that was it, my first ever attempt at a not-too-graphic sex scene. My original build up was more fast-paced and funnier, but I realized it was too unrealistic. I'm not even sure how believable this is…I mean, I tried my best to approach this obstacle with as much faithfulness to D and Hr's canon personalities as possible and I think for them to consent to intercourse with one another would have to be something purely out of emotion and not exactly logic…so that's what I was trying to do. I was also trying to not breach the PG-13 rating while simultaneously satisfying those of you who want some stuff on the R side…I hope I haven't disappointed you too much…I still kind of need help with scenes such as these, so I welcome any constructive criticisms you may have on my (horrid) performance so far…I assure you, this chapter contains the most graphic sex there ever will be in this story (and hopefully it wasn't very graphic).
I'm also disappointed with my inability to keep D and Hr IC…no matter how hard I try, they always seem OOC to me! I mean, I think they bicker with each other far too much when in canon, they barely talk.
By the way, this is the last time I warn you guys of OotP spoilers…since the remainder of the story will be set upon the basis of the events that occurred in OotP, I can't very well warn of spoilers for every chapter…certain things will just get incorporated into my story (such as new characters and inferences to past events), although they won't be very big. For those of you who haven't read OotP yet, I'm sorry. You might want to put off reading my fic until you do (but do come back to read and review it after you're finished!).
Lastly, I've just recently got myself a Livejournal so from now on, I will post up any updating news on my fanfics on the LJ, so feel free to check it out periodically here. If any of you have your own LJ, feel free to add me if you want and I'll add you back :)
Routine teasers:
Hermione gets a startling revelation (guess what it is). Snape returns to the Order and stage 1 of their rescue plan takes place. Lucius Malfoy gets a startling revelation of his own. A chance meeting occurs in Diagon Alley.Luv,
~smashing sugar~