Marry, or Die!

by smashing sugar

‘You are all I never wanted,’ she thought. ‘The feeling’s mutual,’ he thought. “And now I pronounce you man and wife! You may kiss the bride!” ‘Noooo!’’ they thought. RATING CHANGED!

10. Surprising Discoveries

Rating: R from now on!

A/N: Hello lovely fanfic-crazed entities! I'm back! Whee! And its only been two weeks over a month! Not bad, considering last time it took me TWO months! No rotten fruits for me this time, right? *flying orange hits head* Okay, maybe not. See, I was busy with summer school (it paid off because I ended getting all A's on my summer courses, raising my GPA to a 3.62, whee! For you brains out there I know it doesn't sound like much, but at least I'm making first honors in economics which I happen to loathe!) And then I got busy with writing on fictionpress *looks guiltily about*. But anyway, I will lament on how ARDUOUS it was to write this friggin chap, you have NO idea. It's the longest so far and took me weeks and I still can't say I'm overly proud of it, but at least I'm happy with it (unlike a week ago when I wanted to tear it apart and cry). Anywho, I've gotten tremendous reviews since last time, and I'm glad that you guys out there are writing longer and more helpful reviews. So, without further ado, let me thank you:

October-Potter-Snape: No, I'm afraid those are his forefathers' names, not murder suspects…though that would be interesting, won't it? And thanks for reviewing at the end, better late than never! *winks*

Kiya Mikayla Kideackiy: Thank you, I know this isn't soon, but here you go!

Hermione182: Thanks, I was really nervous about the Order scene because I thought it was too lame! I'm glad you liked it though, and I agree, how could JK?! Poor Sirius!

Sila-chan: Thank you for putting this on your favorites! *beams* And for reviewing twice! You're right, it would've been better if I had Draco calm down first but oh well! Best to be spontaneous, no? Oh and I took your advice (some other ppl suggested this as well) so read on to find out what it was!

couch-potato01: err…the blank stare…um…were you shocked or were you horribly appalled? :P

arbitrary: you're completely right, updating soon is definitely wishful thinking when it comes to me! I agree with not wanting to be too graphic and despite my raise in rating I plan to keep to that as much as possible…speaking of which, you didn't sign in so I was wondering if you are the same arbitrary who is the author of Temporary Insanity?

ANGiE: thank you, I'm happy you enjoyed this!

halosangel: *grins and beams* thank you! I'm glad you like my writing!

The Otaku of Superness: You reviewed! Whee! And then you stopped reviewing at the 3rd chap!! Boo!

Lena: THANKS so much, I'm really happy that you don't find Draco and Hermione OOC (even though I still do haha) and I hope you'll still think so after this chapter! *nervous gulps*

Linwe Amandil: Thank you, keep reading!

tom4eva: Yay, you loved my "love" scene! :D Thanks a lot, though I didn't quite understand it when you said "pls make them stop and continue" (because my brain stops working sometimes)…do you mean to continue with the lurving?

Sailor Moon Rose: Yup, long chappies and this one even longer, though I didn't take two months so at least I lived up to that! And about her pregnancy…well…read on, girl! :D

BeanANGIEperson: definitely, here you go!

Madame Plot Bunnie: *blushes* me, the queen? *more blushes* but thank you! Yes, I'm back and I did run off for a teensy bit, but not as long as last time, thank goodness. Anywho, YES, I plan to repost The Preposterous Wager (and like all plans of mine they tend to "gang aft agley") eventually. The reason I haven't yet is because I want to revamp the whole thing so it could be OotP-revised since it takes place in their 6th year and all and I still have to finish the latest chap for that. So I'm thinking it'll be reposted after I'm done with this fic, which, I'm afraid, will take awhile :( And you've started a bet-thing too? I don't remember seeing it, have you posted it up yet?

Tangerine Fizz: THANK YOU SO MUCH! Wow, I assure you, I'm no genius, just a loony D/Hr fanatic who happens to be English literate and owns a readily accessible laptop! But thanks again, your review made me smile really big! :D

Cute-Kitty: I hope this gets you laughing too :P

Jessica: Of course I don't want you to go insane! So to save your sanity, here's another chap!

Kangarooster: Thanks muchly, I hope I can continue the trend of getting better and better like you pointed out *fidgets nervously* Anyway, I'm curious…are you the same Kangarooster on fictionalley who writes Anmarie Island?

Quietus Mal Foi: Hehehe you loved those lines? Hahaha, you must thank Voldie and Ginny then! Yup, I hurried my best, hope you like this!

Cara: Thank you, I'm glad you think this is one of the best! :D:D I'm sorry I kept you waiting long last time and a bit long this time as well, but I hope at least the long length will satisfy you!

Lucy A.: No problem 'bout the mix up, I think I've sorted you guys out :) It's great that you don't mind D and Hr being OOC at times because they just have to be in some situations, you know? And yes, definitely, Draco's arrogance played a big part in it! And as for the startling revelation…good point you brought up…why don't you see if I took you up on it? Read on! :D

twirlerchick: THANK YOU! Your praises made me smile :D And I'm happy you think the love scene fits.

dan fan: thanks, you've reviewed twice, did you! well, this is as ASAP as I can make it! I'll try to go faster next time (I *always* say that and look at me) Hope you read this!

wildchartermage: whop dee doo, look what I did with the rating!

RaistlinofMetallica: Your comment about your reattachable ass had me cracking up bad! Tee hee! I'm glad you've reviewed again, keep reviewing!

Pampers: sequel?!?! Ok I noticed your agony but you meant the next chap right, because I haven't finished the story yet so there can't be a sequel! :P

Cece: I would never hate you! You've always been a loyal reviewer, how could I? And what you wrote was not a flame at all, it's pure constructive criticism and believe me, I really appreciate that! :D Now to address your points: 1) Yes, I did mean to say muck blood because while it is weird and makes no sense, I was sick of the word Mudblood; 2) I understand perfectly how the "charged" made it look rushed, and I did want to get the scene over and done with, but that wasn't why I chose the word…you see, I wanted to demonstrate a sort of animalistic, wild hunger that Draco was feeling…so I used "charged" because I thought it would associate more with animals 'charging' here and there. But you know what? I think your writing skills are fine because I LOVED your sentence…it is descriptive enough but not too much and captures close to the same essence of what I was trying to do (perhaps more humanly as well). And yes, I do start off with the 'morning after' scene, so go check that out :D Again, before I leave off, I'm sorry I didn't make the part better but I'm really thankful for your criticism, really, I need more of those, and I'm happy you liked the chap despite my little flaw. I look forward to more of your reviews (as always!) :D

lizzie/LizzieMalfoy1: I'm glad you reviewed those many times considering you only review at the end! Thanks for putting on your faves girl, I'm really flattered, and don't forget to review this chap too! :D

Bookworm111, Autumn Malfoy, Oo.DrAcOzAnJel.oO, RodacChic, GirlEnigma, Jessica-Black5, Jesse S, Noodles2: Thanks, I try to get it in as soon as I can, so here you go!

Emmies: Thanks, I'm happy you find the chap balanced and as for more passionate moments well…all I have to say is…read on!

dracoJAE: thank you! you don't update the site anymore? You should because it's really cute! And you should get writing on your WIP! Or you'll end up like me, the world's biggest procrastinator!

a: I think your review was supposed to go to another story's, oh well, blame ff.net!

Rosaline: And a humble reader you are! I appreciate everyone telling me to update soon, but I also really appreciate how you tell me to take my time as long as the chappie's good! *smiles broadly* thank you. I'm also glad you liked the sex scene, though I'd like to see yours some time ;) And phooey on AIM for not working!

Kerbi: Yes, our friend Dray gets jealous quite a bitty! And I wouldn't mind mating with him either…I'd jump in the sack in a second! *scolds myself for naughty thoughts with Draco* Genie in a Bottle, eh? I never thought of that, but it does make sense a bit…hehehe…:P

Lyzzane: Hey, I wouldn't mind giving you the LJ code, but thing is, because I'm not a paid member I can only generate one unless I do some service for LJ which I haven't. So, I only had one to begin with and I gave it already to someone else, so I'm really sorry about that. If I do come up with another one, and you still need one by then, I'll let you know :)

Romantic Fool: Glad you finally got around to reading my ficcy, hope you can finish it someday (when duty doesn't call) :P And keep updating your fics, I love them!

fairlady: I'll tell you now that I'm a sucker for happy endings so that should give you a bit of a clue on how this story will end *winks* And yes, too bad for the curse, though I'm the only one in fandom I think who's come up with it (it's just my belief that Malfoys are insane enough to do something like that) and for the love of your sanity, I have continued! Hooray!

Babu4490: Thankie, I try my best not to make things too rated R and give readers just enough to let their imaginations go nuts. I hope you find this chapter worth the wait as well, keep reading and reviewing! :D

ashlee: Yay you finally reviewed! You must continue to do so, no excuses! I don't mind smut and you have a point, considering everything that's happened smut is no biggie, but I didn't intend this to be smutty when I first started out so yeah…but I think I'm being influenced though, because thanks to the d/hr group now I've been reading tons and tons of smutty fics (and I think the influence shows in this chap, actually…well not really, but sort of). Hope you like this!

isidore131: Wowness? THANKS! I'm happy you loved my story and I saw you have me on your fave authors list so THANKS A TON for that too *jumps up and down*

Annie Rini Romanov: I admit it, Voldie is quite OOC…I intended him not really to be human, but to be like those humorous comic-book/cartoon villains who are bad in a funny, nutty way so that explains the light and fluffiness of his character here…as for the character side of things, I tend to get carried away and forget to do that sometimes, but thanks for the suggestion and I try to do that whenever I can :D

KitSa Reviews: Yay you liked Spike's cameo! Hehehe I might just have Harry be Dudley again, I get laughing when I imagine that too. Thanks for your review, keep coming back to read and review, k?

midnight solitaire: You used to be midnight dream, right? Anyway, yes I got your e-mail and I appreciate the trouble you took to give me the review :) I kinda forgot it was Hermione's first time when I wrote that scene up, and I would want Hermione's first time to be unforgettable as well, but I'm going to save that for later when things between Draco and Hermione change…if you know what I mean…but anyhow, thanks for suggesting that to me! :D

kit21: honestly, I try my best to keep the characters as it is in canon as much as I can. I know what you mean when you say you want to read the story like it is…I prefer fanfics that keep characters and events realistic canon-wise as well. You made very good points in your review, including the fact that Hermione would completely rebel, and I thought about doing that but I didn't want the story to drag on and it wasn't like she intended on having sex that very night…she initially wanted to rebel, but it just happened, you know…and thanks for reminding me about her employing her sneaky methods with Draco…I try to atone for my lack of that in this new chapter, but I also wanted to point out that Draco is a bit different from her other masters in that he is her husband even if they dislike each other and she's beginning to feel something for him, so she doesn't want him hurt real bad or anything. As for the point that "there is no way in hell Malfoy and Hermione would ever get together", I'm sure that's likely to be the case in the books as JKR writes it, but here in my fanfic (and many other D/Hr fics) there is always a way ;) Anywho, I really appreciated your constructive criticism…it really got me improving this next chapter, though I don't know how you'd like it, and I'm glad you enjoy my plot twists, so I hope you keep reading it, even if the D/Hr parts disappoint you! :D

dopey: thanks for prematurely congratulating me! But where is your review for chappie 8?! Please review, me wanna know what you thinkie!

joshua: thank you, keep on reading!

DorkyandProud: Yay, I'm glad I got you hooked! Yes, I know I'm very late, but at least the chappie is long, yeah? :)

Teegs, Draco Stalker: though I haven't a clue who Sean is, I enjoyed your dialogue-review muchly! Hehehehe I was laughing so hard! Way to go with Draco's dialogues, I could *so* imagine him saying all of that! And whoopee, we converted Frankie, did we? We deserve a pat on the back then! Thanks for your review, keep them coming!

Muffy: Yup, plot lines out to confuse and cause mayhem! I realize I can't help them being slightly OOC at all, but glad you don't seem to mind! Thanks!

Stardust: Tat!!!!!!!!! :D:D:D:D Me glad me got your reviewee! I'm so happy you like my work, even if you are a Harry/Hermione shipper…it means a lot to me :D We definitely must meet up soon, girl! Love you! *muah!*

Carla Fox: Hey girl! Finally you got to read my fic! I don't care how many times you review, the more the better! How did you like OotP? I'm still so happy you like my fic so much, I hope you'll continue to do so. Here's another chappie for ya! :D

FrankieBGoode: Woo hoo! I hear your friend Teegs and I have converted you! YAY! Another D/Hr convert is what we need! I'm thrilled that you're loving this fic and the pairing, makes me proud of what I've done! *sniffs with pride* Hope you'll like the next chap as well! Oh and you just turned 17, eh? Well I just turned 18, and I was reading NC-17 stuff before I did (bad me, bad me!), so yes, bump up your rating all you want duder!

mesmer: wow, I had no idea my story can be that unpredictable! But that's good, I'd love to keep readers like you hanging! So to find out…thy must read and review some more!

Pannygirl: Ah, the Sirius problem. Damn JKR for that! Argh. But ok, I think I mentioned it in last chap's beginning author's notes that in the previous chaps where I mentioned Sirius, I would have to replace those instances with Lupic. So in my fic, Sirius will be dead, true to OotP canon. However, I haven't been able to go back and change the names from Sirius to Lupin yet, but for readers who have gotten this far, just pretend I had meant Lupin all along, okies? So that's how I get away with the Sirius thing…hehe…

swimcutie: ok, I didn't take 2 months, just 1 and I hope you haven't started school already! Or if you did, I hope it doesn't stop you from coming to read this…does it? Hope not! Love to hear from you again!

HarryPotterWanter: Yup, they actually did! And yes they did it out of pure emotion not really logic so hehe. As for what Hermione thinks of Draco as a lover…I doubt she'll tell him too, considering she can be very reserved in such topics, and she might not tell us either…but we can guess, can't we? And Snape's the bad good guy so he'll tell the Order pretty much all he knows…or whatever he knows that the Order wants to know. So ok, I've answered your questions now go read! :D

Velvet X: I'm so happy you consider this one of the best DM/HG around and I'll keep Draco in character as long as I can. Glad you liked Voldie, and do review again when you're done reading!

Little House Girl: No, go ahead, laugh all you want, comedies are meant to get everyone laughing, your dogs included! Well I'm glad you still like my fic considering you seem to hate Malfoy (*sob*), but that's ok, as long as you like the overall fic! Um, you'll have to wait and see what I'm gonna do with Draco but I'll tell you, I, myself, am a sucker for happy endings…so…go guess what's gonna happen!

violentdelight: oooh I haven't seen the 6th Buffy season, what happens? Ahh, must see! Ok, the rating upgrade was really bothering me, but thanks for your comment, it's good to know ppl will read this anyway (I get paranoid over little stuff like that hehe). This chap should hold enough D/Hr to your liking…but then again, we can never get enough of them, can we?

KaterPotater: I'm your new fave author? Awww! *beams!* Cool then, you love David Bowie too, though I must admit shamefully that I'm rather just a new fan (I haven't seen Labyrinthe, but I've started getting obsessed over wanting to see it, so since then, I've been liking DB more until I decided I might as well worship him!). I guess you can start a club for David Bowie and HP if you have your own website. As for the Livejournal, I'd love to give you a code, but I can only generate one as I'm an unpaid member and I already gave that one away…so I'm really sorry about that, I'm sure you'll be able to find someone soon, with a code. If I can ever get hold of another one, I'll let you know ;)

super-sycoh: HAHAHAAH ok, I didn't mean to trick people, really, I just had to put the note up there! And as for the Narcissa/Stan stuff…er…you might want to read on…and perhaps take some Dreamless Sleep potion if you don't want nightmares…*hint* :P:P

Francinator: Yo, glad to see you're reviewing again! Thank you, and I don't want to rush them either (although I felt I did in chap 8 and maybe a bit in this chap, but I really can't help it due to the plot). Review some more!

MoMo8828: YAY!! As long as it doesn't stop you I'm happy! (how selfish of me!) So you're under-aged, huh? No worries, no overt R stuff, as I said :P

pInk pUnk rOckEr 12: Did you use to go by the pen name Malibu Barbie? Because that's the name I remember as a regular reviewer and that's the name you signed on in your e-mail…which I'm sure I replied but you never wrote back! :P I must say, though, that I'm touched that you checked every day for updates! I'm sorry to have kept you waiting so long, I know how frustrating it can be to check for a fic and find it still not updated! So I didn't take two months this time, just a month and a half, but that's an improvement, yes? I try to be as least graphical I can, even with the new rating, so I hope whatever I do will still be ok for you. I'm glad you're fine with the rating, I get really paranoid about that cuz I got my first fic banned because of a teeny weeny rating misconception (still pisses me off 'til this day). Unlike someone who's vacationing in France?! Wanna clue me in on that? Hmm… :P

liar: thank you tons for your review; you know, your reviews never cease to make me smile :D Now, this is gonna be long, since I got 2 reviews of yours to reply to. So here goes. First I want to address your earlier criticisms: 1) Good point about D/Hr being married and their supposed nightly activities…the thing is, Lucius and Narcissa probably won't care if they have sex or whatever, but they weren't expecting Hermione to bear their heir…you see, everyone figured that Voldemort only wanted a marriage so they all assumed they could get divorced later on and Draco can sprout an heir elsewhere still. I don't know if it makes much sense, but that truly was my reasoning when I was writing up the story. 2) Another good point. Here's my excuse. The scene with Harry in Vampiresburg was written before OotP so I had no idea about the Order and their constant protection of Harry. However, my reasoning at the time was that Harry was an adult now and expected to solve problems on his own…he couldn't really depend to have bodyguards all the time, now could he? So Dumbledore would send him out on little errands so he could practice being in disguise and making it through the day by himself…sort of like real-life tests, if you will. I see now that that is likely to be improbable, but let's just say they decided to do that for the sake of my story. Besides, Harry could always Apparate away now that he's an adult if trouble does come, and alert the Order. So that's how I'm going to get away with this. *grins sheepishly* 3) I guess I wasn't clear when I wrote this out, but Stan was in the carriage not because he was riding it, but because Draco bought him then deposited him in the carriage while he went off to fetch Hermione. So Stan was there simply waiting (and he did have his hands bounded) on a stationary carriage. 4) Yes, I believe you told me about Spike already, and I'm so glad you thought my little love scene was perfect…I was really nervous about that one! 5) Hehe the idea of artificial insemination made me laugh too…my own Muggle touch to the story…brings me back to my biology days *sigh*. Now for your latest review. I burst out laughing reading the beginning, thanks to your slight sarcasm. Yes, I do own a calendar but I'm always late when it comes to fanfic deadlines! You still read my LJ? Cool, you should leave comments sometime, then…I think you can do it if you sign on as Anonymous…but oh well, yes I was finished with the chap but it wasn't actually stored in my drawer, as you put it :P It was more like stuck on my hard drive, and I spent the last two weeks tweaking it and then tweaking it again after my beta sent it back. I suppose under-aged kids will read it anyway, but I honestly didn't want to change the rating because there are probably some that might not. But nevermind that. Anywho though, the last lines of your review were really encouraging :D I'm sorry to have caused you disappointment in updating only an author's note, but I hope this longass chap makes up for it. Continue on with your criticisms, I am sure this chapter is full of it, so I'll wait for those from you :P *hugs you back* Oh, and why aren't you updating your fic??

Now, I KNOW I missed out some of you, because there was this period of time when ff.net was going nutters and refused to post up and count several reviews, although they got sent to me through e-mail. However, I have no idea which e-mails they are now, so I can't respond to you, but do know that I appreciated them anyway, and if you can, please review again and tell me who you are that I've missed out. Merci beaucoup.

Also, last but not least, I must send a huge shout of thanks to Ra, my new beta, or more commonly known on ff.net as Varada, the author of the brilliant D/Hr fic Eight Nights of Awakening and wonderful one-shots My Immortal and What Good is a Heart (this one not on ff.net but you find it at Contra Veritas), for poring through my tedious chapter and checking it. If you guys haven't checked out ENoA yet, I suggest you do so right away because it is awesome and truly kicks ass! It's pretty dark, so it's a lot different from my fic, but great all the same!

Alright, so here's chapter 9 for you. I hope you guys will enjoy it and not be too disappointed with my performance *blushes nervously*. Have fun!

**

Chapter 9: Surprising Discoveries

The sound of birds chirping roused Hermione up from her sweet slumber. Lazily, her eyelids began to flutter open, welcoming the rays of morning light that were shining in through the oval windows of the Love Hut.

THE LOVE HUT!

Hermione's eyes immediately flew wide open and she bolted upright. Or rather, she attempted to bolt upright but got no farther than a slight lift off the bed when something restrained her back down.

What the hell?

That was when Hermione realized she hadn't been lying on the bed after all. She had been laying on…Draco Malfoy, the vision of a blond god who had been the one lying on the bed.

At this shocking insight, Hermione's cheeks began to flush and she felt a certain girlish shyness wash over her. Looking down at her body underneath the covers, she saw that Malfoy's arms were wrapped possessively around her naked waist and that their legs were intertwined with one another.

Needless to say, Hermione panicked.

She began to shift around, wanting to free herself from Draco's firm hold, but only succeeded in burying her head into the crook of her husband's neck. Breathing in his musky, manly scent sent unwanted shivers down her spine and memories of the previous night unwillingly flooded itself into her mind, causing her even more embarrassment and shame.

How could she, the sensible, logical, bright, prudish, headstrong witch that she was, have allowed the sniveling, vile, evil, abominable, and not to mention obstinately sexy Draco Malfoy to ravish her like that last night? When he advanced on her with that wild animalistic hunger for sex in his eyes, why didn't she push him away and defend herself? Sure, with the future Voldemort set for them, they would have had to do it some time or another, but they could have waited and done it in a more ceremonious fashion! Hell, she had let herself be ravaged by this beast!

How could she be so weak, so impetuous? Hello, she indirectly killed a man, castrated another, and disfigured the face of a witch! Why couldn't she do something just as horrid to Draco sodding Malfoy?

Mentally kicking herself, Hermione attempted to wriggle her way out further when Draco began to mutter something in his sleep.

"Mmmm."

This was a first. Ever since they were married, Hermione couldn't recall a time when Draco had talked in his sleep before. Hermione strained her ears to listen. If he was going to whisper Death Eater secrets in his sleep now, then she'd make sure she heard every word.

"Mmmm," went Draco again, his lips now twitching into a small, dreamy smile. "Yeah, baby…"

Yeah baby? Huh?

"Mmm hmm, slap me again, you," Draco mumbled most contently, eyes remaining closed. Mind still in an altered state of consciousness, he began affectionately stroking Hermione's bare arms and purred.

What in hell? Is he out of his mind?

Hermione decided that whatever he was dreaming about wouldn't be worth hearing anymore and lifted her head up a bit so that she could whisper in his ear.

"Malfoy," she said softly, hoping to wake him up.

Unfortunately, she only managed to broaden his smile. Annoyed, Hermione leaned in closer so that her breath now tickled his earlobe.

"Malfoy," she said a bit louder and sharper this time.

Draco stirred a bit, but still did not wake up. Losing patience, she was about shake him when he spoke up again.

"Mmmm yes, a feisty one, aren't you, my little Mudblood…mmm…brrr…"

Hermione froze and instantly blanched.

Mudblood? He couldn't be talking about her, could he?

"MALFOY!" she yelled right in his right ear, not wanting to hear anymore of his twisted fantasies.

This worked and Draco shot straight up in bed, knocking his wife sideways ("Oof!") in the process.

"Huh? What? Who? I didn't do it, it wasn't me!" he cried pathetically before coming to his senses.

"Calm down, Malfoy, it's just me," Hermione told him, finally glad to be released from his grasp.

Draco turned to his right, where the source of her voice was. He looked at her disheveled state sprawled across her back and blinked.

"You're naked," he stated bluntly, staring at her - or rather, at her uncovered breast - with a dazed look in his eyes.

"Yes and so are you," she pointed out, equally blunt, but making an effort to cover more of herself under the blanket.

Draco shed a quick glance down his own body and wondered for awhile how it was that he got into this predicament. Slowly, last night's events began to replay itself in his head. Remembering, he looked back up at his wife and smirked.

"I guess we…did it, yes?" he asked, already knowing the answer.

Hermione merely nodded before propping herself up and hugging her knees to her chest. Her vagina was feeling a bit sore and she was certain she must have bled quite a bit last night, but she ignored all of that. For now, all that mattered to her was the fact that she had slept with and lost her virginity to her worst enemy…and the prospect that it may all lead to pregnancy.

Hermione silently reprimanded herself. Stupid, stupid, stupid me. I'll have to get Voldemort back for this. And maybe Draco too, it's his seed anyway. Oh they'll all pay one day…

Draco silently praised himself. Incredible, incredible, incredible me. Who knew Hermione had it in her? The mind-boggling Mudblood. Maybe I should thank Voldemort for this. My deepest, darkest desire has been unleashed…

The couple sat in tense, pensive silence on their four-poster for several minutes before Draco finally broke it.

"I was good, wasn't I?"

Subsequently, the pillow Hermione had been leaning on found its way to his head.

"Ow!"

"Seriously, Malfoy, is that all you can think about at this moment?"

"Let's see…me naked, you naked, same bed…yep, I would say that oughta be the first topic for breakfast," he haughtily told her, not too pleased with being hit with a pillow.

Hermione sighed. "I can't believe we did it, Malfoy. And for what? So that we can get pregnant and give Voldemort a baby play-toy?"

"No. So that you can get pregnant and give the Dark Lord a baby play-toy."

"THIS ISN'T FUNNY, DRACO!" shouted Hermione, very much pissed off. He was completely missing the point!

"I wasn't trying to be funny, Hermione! I really can't get pregnant!" insisted Draco.

Hermione, however, looked at him in awe. "You called me Hermione."

"And you called me Draco. Did we make couple of the year yet?" he replied with sarcasm.

Hermione chose to ignore his comment. "Look, haven't you wondered at all why Voldemort wants a child from us? Going through all that trouble to get us to wed, then giving us the honeymoon, and now this hut. It must be something big, whatever it is, and I don't like the fact that a child of mine is going to be a part of it."

"You talk as if you are already pregnant."

"I might be," Hermione said sadly.

"Well of course you may be. I'm very potent and no doubt my seedlings are swimming gallantly inside of you as we speak," he arrogantly drawled with an even bigger smirk.

"You are impossible, Draco Malfoy! I give up trying to have a serious conversation with you!" Hermione cried in exasperation.

"That's because you're trying to have one the morning right after we had sex! Do you really expect a wizard of my hormonal caliber to think straight then?" he retorted.

"Argh!"

But Draco couldn't deny that Hermione did have a point. Why did Voldemort want the new Malfoy heir to be a half-blood? What could have made the Lord crave such a baby so much he'd go through the trouble of becoming resident matchmaker?

That was when something clicked in his head.

"Hey, do you think this has anything to do with a prophecy?" he asked his wife, who was still sulking on the other side of the bed.

"Prophecy? What prophecy?"

"Remember yesterday? I distinctly recall hearing Vold-er-the Dark Lord mention something about us not being the only possible couple. That according to some prophecy or something like that, it could have been another couple," Draco tried to recollect.

Hermione turned to him thoughtfully. "Now that you've mentioned it, yes, I do remember the bastard saying something along those lines. What could this mean?"

"I don't know, but I'm going to find out. Once we get out of this crap hole, that is."

Hermione looked around their hut. "It is kind of nice," she said before she could stop herself.

"This is nothing. The room we're going to share at the Manor is just as big and lavishly furnished. But anyway, the point is we won't get out and find any answers until you're with child. So hurry up," Draco informed her matter-of-factly before stretching his arms out to yawn.

"Excuse me? This isn't a one-person effort, you know! It goes both ways! And besides, how can you be so calm and nonchalant about it? We're bringing another life into this world! A real life! A real part of you! It's a big thing! And I don't want to be pregnant, especially not for Voldemort!"

"Don't you think I know that already? I know I'm bringing a life, I know I'm bringing an heir, and I don't want to be a father now either, least of all if the mother is you, but what choice have we got? Didn't we strain our brains so bad thinking of another possibility last night that we threw away all our good senses and opted for a wild shag?"

"Yes, but still! I'm only nineteen, I can't be having kids!" moaned Hermione.

"Well we're in the same boat, then!" declared Draco. "See here, witch, the longer it takes you to get pregnant, the longer we'll have to stay cooped up in this sex house. Despite our intimate act last night, I'd like to remind you that we go berserk whenever we are in each other's presence for too long. Simply put, if you don't get pregnant and we don't get out soon, we'll both end up with cabin fever in a matter of days."

"But-"

"Look, moping about this is pointless. He wants a child, we give him one. Then the deal's done, you're off being free, and I'm off ruling a whole continent of wizards," reasoned Draco, wanting badly to end the discussion.

"What about the child?"

"For Merlin's sake, Hermione, can't we take things one step at a time? Can we just get pregnant, and get out of here first? We can deal with the other things later, it'll be months before they come."

Draco expected another tongue-lash from Hermione, but was surprised to find an amused expression on her face instead.

"What?" he asked her.

"'We'? I thought you said you couldn't get pregnant," she told him cheekily.

Draco rolled his eyes. "Whatever."

Not wanting to hear her gloat about his misuse of pronouns, he decided it was time to shower and dress up for the day. Jumping off of the bed, an appalled look crossed his face when he was met with the mess on the floor before his eyes. Their previous day's clothes -some being ripped and torn, mind you - were draping carelessly all over the place. Shaking his head half in disbelief, he was about to tell Hermione to tidy up the place when she spoke first.

"How long do you think it takes for the door to know whether or not I'm pregnant?" Hermione asked her husband. She was still on the bed, and from her position, had a crystal clear view of Draco's physique in all its naked glory. She couldn't help but notice his fine specimen of a body and allowed her eyes to roam freely over his smooth features.

Yum.

Wait…yum?! No, no, that's not what I was thinking, I was thinking 'um'. Yeah, that's it.

"I don't know. Why don't you give it a try? Just go over there and see if it opens," Draco suggested, breaking Hermione's train of thought.

His suggestion sounded reasonable enough to Hermione, who immediately got up. Wizards sure have their store of wacky pregnancy tests.

"Turn away, I'm naked," she ordered Draco, who did just the exact opposite.

"And why wouldn't I want to see that? You look beautiful nude," the words slipped out of his mouth before he could stop them.

"What did you say?" Hermione goggled at him, completely baffled. Did he just tell her she was beautiful?

"Er…I…er…I meant…I meant that I've seen everything already so you're just foolishly wasting your breath by telling me to look away," Draco denied, averting his eyes.

The strange butterflies that had flown around in Hermione's tummy upon hearing Draco's compliment faltered and died. Why was she upset that Draco didn't want to praise her so openly? Did she really care what he thought of her?

Nah. It's just the afterglow jitters. Yes, that's what it is. Why would you care? He deflowered you- you want him dead, remember.

"Look just go to the loo and wash up already, will you?" she muttered at him instead, pulling the blanket completely off the bed so as to wrap herself in it.

Draco sighed. So much for the hot and steamy Hermione Malfoy of last night. He wondered if he should remind her of her throaty screams last night, just to tick her off.

Nah.

There'd be plenty of time for that. Besides, if she was indeed pregnant, he didn't exactly intend on discontinuing his -er- nightly marital activities with Hermione just yet. Last night had blown him away and he didn't want any of his stupid remarks to get in the way of a possible reoccurrence. Hey, in the end, a husband's gotta do what a husband's gotta do.

So without another word, Draco sauntered into the adjoining bathroom and shut the door behind him. Stepping into the bath, he had just begun to turn the tap on the water when he heard Hermione's unmistakable bloodcurdling scream.

**

"You cannot go in. The Lord is asleep."

"I am the Lord's right-hand man. I will see him when I wish."

"No." Peter Pettigrew was adamant. He wasn't going to let this power-abusing hothead of a Malfoy land him in trouble with Voldemort this time. "The Lord has given strict orders to me to fend off all visitors. He is in dire need of his beauty sleep."

Lucius Malfoy scoffed. "And so am I. But yet here I am, early in the morning, which means that I have important matters to discuss with him."

"I cannot let you go in Lucius." Although Pettigrew was a head shorter than Lucius, he held his head defiantly high and attempted to hold his ground, despite the fact that his legs were beginning to wobble.

"You fool of a rat!" hissed Lucius, glowering. "Step aside or I will curse you into oblivion!"

"Now, now, Lucius, such violence will only be tolerated outside, not inside the chamber areas," came a chilly voice.

Both men turned to see Voldemort, who was supposedly asleep in his room, standing right behind them.

"MY LORD!" the two men exclaimed, before bowing.

"I-I thought you were sleeping, sire, I only meant to keep visitors from you, like you ordered," Pettigrew began hurriedly.

"Yes, but that was before I heard you two having a little spat out here. Naturally, your booming voices awoke me most untimely and so I decided to Apparate out and see what in bloody hell is going on," Voldemort calmly explained.

At this, Lucius Malfoy stepped forward. "My Lord, my most sincere apologies. But I really need to discuss with you the matter of my son and his wife."

Voldemort sighed. "Lucius, we've been over this."

"Yes, but you see, Master, I need to know what plans you have in store for their child. So I can…plan out the future of the Malfoy line more accurately."

"You need not worry yourself, Lucius. I do not care much for the baby's life. Now don't tell Draco and his wife this, but in fact, it is very likely that by the time I'm through with it, it might very well be dead."

"DEAD?" cried both Lucius and Pettigrew. Lucius sent the plumper man a death glare, and Pettigrew resolutely shrank back and feigned interest in his holed shoes.

"Yes, Lucius. Let's put it this way. If your son and the Mudblood were to fall in love, then I would need no spawn of theirs in the first place. But because that is an impossible feat, only the blood of their child may contain both their bloods and a common love."

Lucius stared at his master, evidently perplexed. "My Lord, I don't understand. You spoke with too many repetitions, Sire."

"You are not meant to, Lucius. Just leave this to me. In any case, according to your family curse, I believe that if the first son dies before its seventh day of life, its father may procreate once more and still produce a boy?"

"That is what is writ, I believe."

"Then you have nothing to worry about Lucius. Draco may still produce a brilliant Pureblood heir with the Parkinson witch just yet."

**

"Wake up, Mr. Snivels, the land of the vampires awaits us!"

Severus Snape stirred and groggily woke up. He was still in his bat form, and at present, Remus Lupin was shaking his cage in order to rouse him up from the long nap he took to kill time aboard the flying carriage ride to Transylvania.

"That's it, much better. We can Apparate to the place with the others once we get off this carriage," Lupin happily told him.

Snape snarled and bared his razor-sharp fangs at Remus.

"Aww, how endearing," sneered Lupin, before shoving the cage aside to assemble their luggage.

A few minutes later, the two foes-turned-reluctant-colleagues stepped out of their vehicle with their light luggage and with a quick crack, Remus Apparated the both of them to the shack where Harry Potter and the members of the Order guarding him were stationed.

It wasn't until they had successfully entered the sitting room of the shack that Lupin transfigured Snape back into his greasy human form.

"There, Severus, I'm sure we can-" started Remus but was unable to finish due to the pair of hands Snape had just wrapped around his neck.

"Now you pay!" growled Snape furiously.

The two struggled pointlessly for a couple of heated moments before Mrs. Weasley burst into the sitting room with a broomstick and pointedly smacked the two quarrelers on their heads.

"OW!" they both cried, letting go of each other to rub their heads.

"That serves you right! Bickering like 5-year olds, how pathetic of you! And what took you so long, anyway? We've been here at our edges while the only thing you sorry fools can do is fight!" Molly Weasley ranted.

Both Remus and Snape opened their mouths to respond, but were cut off by the sound of the others approaching.

"Remus!" cried Harry Potter excitedly upon seeing his father's only surviving best mate. "You're back!"

"Yes, Harry, and look who I brought," Remus said as he stepped forward to embrace his pseudo-nephew and gestured towards the sour-faced Snape standing beside him.

"Professor Snape!" hollered all the former Hogwarts students in the room. On the far side, Neville Longbottom cowered back fearfully at the sight of his former Potions Master and began slightly trembling. Luna Lovegood, who was standing beside him, shot him a look of pity before resuming her earlier task of staring off into space.

"Yes, so it seems I've arrived at the Weasley-run zoo," Snape jeered.

Before anyone could say anything else, Ron Weasley immediately approached his former Potions Master and asked him rather roughly, "Where is Hermione?"

"Now, now, Ron, be patient. Let our traveling friends sit and get settled first," Mrs. Weasley suggested, clearing up some space on the ragged and torn couch in the room for Remus and Snape.

Ron, however, ignored her and repeated his question to Snape.

"I haven't seen her since she left for her honeymoon with her husband," Snape informed the young redhead with narrowed eyes, purposely rubbing it in his freckled face. Even now after everything, he found that his animosity for Potter and his gang of Gryffindor losers did not waver.

"But you must have some idea of her whereabouts!" pressed Ron further.

"I suppose they should be back at the Manor by now. They were due to return yesterday, if I'm not mistaken," Snape allowed himself to answer.

"And what of her marriage?" Harry piped in. "I know she is married to Malfoy because I ran into her while she was here in Vampiresburg."

"Oh did you, Potter? Well all I can say is that the marriage was forced. From what I could gather, Voldemort has been in consultation with a Seer and together, they are devising some plan for absolute rule of the wizarding world- as usual. Apparently, a union between Draco and Miss Granger was a vital part of that plan," Snape explained to his audience tiredly.

"A Seer! I never thought Voldemort would stoop so low! I should've known!" grumbled Mad-Eye Moody, as his mad-eye glared dangerously at Snape.

"Wait, we were talking about Hermione here. Is she safe, though? Did they hurt her?" Ron inquired again.

"No, Voldemort wants her as healthy and far from harm as possible. Though I must say that is a hard task to accomplish, what with her and the young Malfoy always at each other's throats," Snape mused. "Though their wedding kiss was ever so lovely, and if I didn't know better I'd never guess the two weren't in love," Snape added, grinning in pleasure at the blaze of anger that erupted in Ron's eyes.

"Well, now that we know this, we can safely say that Voldemort is up to something big. If we must stop him, the time is now," spoke up Tonks, who was standing by herself in the corner with curly green hair.

"But what of Dumbledore? We can't very well jump into things without his permission or knowledge, at least," reasoned Mr. Weasley.

"Then we must inform him at once!" urged Harry. "Dumbledore will agree with us, I know he will. This is the perfect opportunity. We can go in and rescue Hermione from Malfoy Manor and take down the Malfoys with us in the process!"

"The elimination of the Malfoys will not cripple the Dark Lord in anyway, Harry," Kingsley Shacklebolt said. "He is much too powerful now."

"Yes, but remember that for some reason, Draco and Hermione are a part of this. If we could get to them first, then we stand a bloody good chance of thwarting Voldemort's plan for good," Harry persuaded. "We all know that's what I do best," Harry added as an afterthought.

"Oh, perhaps you'd all like to know that it'll be more than just Hermione Granger you'll be saving when you invade the Manor," Snape interjected.

"What do you mean?" Harry asked him.

"Well, believe it or not, there are two other residents of the Manor that would love to be rescued. Mr. Finnigan and Miss Weasley, to be exact."

"SEAMUS AND GINNY!" roared everyone in the shack.

"Oh dear heavens! My baby girl! Is she alright? She's alive! Thank heavens, oh the stars have been so fortunate upon us, Arthur!" exclaimed Mrs. Weasley, immediately fanning herself with her hands and looking about to faint with tears of happiness glistening in her eyes.

"My Ginny! Severus, what has become of her? We all thought she was - I mean we had no hope that she would-" Mr. Weasley tried to speak but broke off, his face too full of emotion.

"She is faring well, Arthur, though I regret to say that she is working for the Malfoys as Lady Narcissa's personal slave. It was Lucius's way of spiting you, I'm afraid," Snape replied. "Mr. Finnigan is there as their butler. Both are treated fairly well, much better than I was during my stay."

"Thank god," breathed Harry, who was overcome with emotion himself at the thought of Ginny, who he harbored strong feelings for.

"Well now we have more reason to invade the Manor! It's more than just one rebel we'll be saving! We've got my sister and my good friend there as well!" Ron asserted.

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves here," intervened Mr. Weasley, sounding worried. "We can't just return to England and barge into Malfoy Manor. Think of all the spells, curses, hexes, and jinxes they've got around the place. We are fugitives, remember that."

"I can use my guise as Severin Snape, so I'm not to worry. Perhaps the rest of you can filter in through the sewers and such," recommended Remus.

"Well if we're going to go back, the rest of us are going to need disguises," said Fred Weasley with a sly grin.

"And this, I believe, is where we come in," added his twin brother George.

"Right then. The time for action has come," began Mad-Eye Moody. Promptly, he turned to the Weasley twins. "You two lads set about devising us all the nifty kits and tricks you've got up your sleeves, and make sure they're ready by the end of this week," Mad-Eye told them dutifully. "Molly," he continued, "I think it's time you start packing up all of our necessary belongings and stocks of food. Mundungus, go into town and see if you can overhear anything from any smugglers on the best unknown routes into Britain. Arthur, I reckon its best for you to inform Dumbledore at once that we're about to make a move. Tell him…er…what is it we're supposed to tell him again? That Muggle lingo?"

"Luke Skywalker is leaving the building," Harry responded monotonously.

"Right. That. Anyway, the rest of you remain with me here, we've got days of arduous rescue planning to strategize," Mad-Eye finished.

"Hold up. This all sounds great, but don't you think we're being a bit too hasty, Mad-Eye? Whatever happened to your 'constant vigilance' regime? We've got to be very careful, we can't be rash, or we're doomed and all hope for the Light will be lost," Kingsley warned.

"Shacklebolt, you as well as everyone else here knows I'm the most paranoid git around these parts. But I smell an opportunity when it comes and if anything, this is it," Moody defended.

"Right then, let's all get to our duties," ascertained Harry quickly, who wanted more than anything to get back into action and rescue his friends. "We've got friends and family to save, not to mention some Malfoy arses to kick."

**

Draco Malfoy hastily wrapped a towel around his waist and bolted from the bathroom as fast as he could.

"Hermione what-" he started worriedly as he barged out of the bathroom, but froze as he took a look at his wife.

Hermione was standing completely nude in front of the vanity mirror with a look of utter horror plastered on her face. The blanket that she had so obstinately wrapped herself under just moments ago was discarded and lay forgotten by her feet.

Draco silently cursed Hermione as his member began to throb again. How the Mudblood could do this to him every time was beyond his Pureblood comprehension.

"LOOK AT ME!" Hermione howled madly, shifting her gaze from the mirror to Draco then back to the mirror again, unaware of the throbbing in Draco's private.

Draco stood a bit confused but definitely excited by the view before him. "Hermione, I don't see what's wrong, what-"

"WHAT'S WRONG? WHAT'S WRONG? Everything's wrong! Can't you see? LOOK AT ME! Look what you've done to me! This is all your bloody fault!" she raged, on the verge of tears.

Draco walked closer to Hermione to get a better look at what was wrong, but Hermione held up her hand to stop him.

"Don't you dare come any closer you-you-you lustful ANIMAL! I'm going to have your HEAD for this, you mark my words!" she screamed at him, shaking.

And that's when he realized what it was that was bothering Hermione so much. Sweeping another glance at Hermione, he knew for sure now what the problem was.

Hermione's body was covered in lovebites.

Hickeys of various shapes and sizes adorned Hermione's chest, stomach, back, and legs.

Mmm. Yum.

"You indecent, testosterone-driven jerk!" Hermione continued, glaring at him with disgust. "And look at this, I've even got one on my TOE!"

Draco was torn. He didn't know whether to burst out laughing at her silly outrage or choke her for scaring and worrying him to death by her initial scream of terror.

After a silent moment, Draco chose the former, and dissolved into a fit of chortles.

"This isn't funny, Draco Malfoy! You're going to pay sorely for this! If I ever get hold of a wand, I'm going to rip your body to shreds, starting with your troublesome shaft!" Hermione screeched with a stamp of her foot.

"Look here, woman," he began, trying to compose himself. "You had no qualms about me doing anything to you last night. In fact, I distinctly remember you screaming for more of this and more of that. And you definitely weren't drunk, so don't pretend you don't remember any of it."

"I don't!" insisted Hermione. "I might not have been drunk with alcohol, but I was positively drunk with hormones! Otherwise, I'd kill you before I'd let you even touch me like this!"

Draco sighed, exasperated. "Hermione, you are really trying my patience with you. You scream like you've just seen the Grim and damn well gave me a heart attack for a bunch of well-deserved lovebites. It is obvious that you are overreacting."

"I am not! Any woman in her right mind would feel compromised and intruded with all of these hideous marks on her!" protested Hermione. "Well-deserved, indeed!"

" 'Hideous marks'?" cried Draco, offended. How dare she call his mouth's gifts to her hideous!

"Yes!"

"Those are my markings on you, witch, so you be careful of what you say! There is nothing wrong with a woman having sodding lovebites from her husband! It only goes to show that you belong to me and I'll make sure to give you some more next time!"

"NO! You can't do that! This is different! You know I'm only your wife for reproductive purposes! I shouldn't have to have these at all! Now everyone will see them and think I'm some-some sex-crazed whore! And there definitely will NOT be a next time!"

"Yes, but-" Draco halted as a thought occurred to him. Something was amiss. If the Dark Lord just wanted a child from them, there was no point in going through all that trouble to get him and Hermione married. Voldemort wouldn't have had to have any wedding or any honeymoon for them at all. A simple order to fornicate would have done the trick.

So why the marriage?

Perhaps it's not really the child he wants…but it doesn't make any bloody sense…

"Draco?"

Hermione's slightly-concerned voice roused him from his thoughts.

"Yes?"

"You were saying something?"

"Oh yes…erm…er…nevermind. Look, it's pointless to fuss about the bites. They'll be gone in a couple of days, and no one would see them when you're fully clothed in robes," Draco replied. Though in all honesty, he really didn't want them to be gone. His chauvinistic side rather enjoyed seeing those dark-reddish blotches courtesy of his mouth all over her. If only Potty and Weasel could see what he did to their dear Hermione now…ha…

"Right, in these you mean?" Hermione then flung open the wardrobe door behind her to reveal it packed with a dazzling assortment of skimpy thongs and lacy lingerie.

Draco's jaw fell open.

"And you're not off the hook, either." Hermione then proceeded to open the wardrobe that contained Draco's clothing to show its contents, which turned out to be black and skin-fitting leather robes and briefs.

"Leather knickers?!" cried Draco in disbelief. "I'm not wearing those! What about our regular clothes?"

"The house-elves didn't seem to bring them last night. But what does it matter, I thought tight leather was your dirty secret?" Hermione goaded.

No, you in tight leather are my dirty secret. Slurp.

The thought made Draco unconsciously lick his lips. "Yeah, well they're not," he chose to answer instead.

"Oh, whatever. But anyway, now you see why I am highly vexed! Voldemort's planned everything so carefully, even our attire!"

"I wonder who helped him pick out the nifty ones," Draco thought aloud. He prayed it wasn't his mother.

"Oh who cares. This is so awful," lamented Hermione.

Draco looked around the room. "Well, we could just wear our old robes from yesterday."

"Yes, because they're all dirty from a day of traveling and not to mention ripped from our…er…activity last night," Hermione pointed out grumpily.

"I could fix the rips with a swish and flick."

"Yes but…oh god, you're right. I guess I was just-just overreacting a bit. I forgot you have a wand," Hermione finally decided with downcast eyes, hugging her bare shoulders.

"Yes, you forget that so often, even after last night," Draco said, smirking again.

"Don't even get started on that."

The two stood in an awkward silence for awhile.

"Have you checked yet whether or not you're pregnant?" asked Draco finally, after some minutes.

"No, I suppose I'll do that now." Completely forgetting the fact that she was naked, Hermione strolled determinedly towards the door of the hut and stood before it. With some trepidation, she reached out and turned the knob.

Nothing happened.

She waited.

Her heart began to race with anticipation.

Please, please, please open up. I need to get out. Wait, no, no, I'm not ready to be pregnant yet, don't open. No, I don't want to have sex with Malfoy again either, please open again. On the other hand, I still don't want to be a mother…

For what seemed like an eternity (actual time: five minutes), the door still didn't budge.

Hermione decided now she might as well get pregnant and get it over with. She'd hide her child from Voldemort later, when the time came. For now, she just wanted to get out and get away from Draco, and possibly begin plotting his demise.

But the door remained stubbornly fixed in her face.

Closed.

Shut in.

She wasn't pregnant after all.

No!

Now tears were really threatening to form in Hermione's eyes.

All of that madness last night for nothing!

"Draco…" Hermione mumbled, disheartened. Sensing her troubles but not really wanting to deal with another bout of her emotions, he cautiously approached her with the blanket she had previously wrapped herself with and carefully draped it around her back, hoping it would offer her some comfort.

However, at the same time, Hermione's stance shifted backwards, and she found herself enveloped in Draco's arms. All of a sudden, a certain warmth washed over her, and despite her sadness and frustration, she found it soothing to be held by him. For the moment, at least.

It took Draco a moment longer to take in the fact that he was holding Hermione and that neither of them had a problem with it. Not knowing why, he tightened his hold on her, and drew her closer to him almost possessively.

Damn, this feels good, thought Draco, as Hermione unconsciously buried her head into his chest.

Who would've known that just seconds ago, this quiet, beautiful being in his arms had had a complete cow and was hell-bent on ripping his shaft to shreds for giving her hickeys?

Draco sighed contently. Slowly, he lowered his face so that his chin landed on top of her head and found himself breathing in the scent of her hair. Despite it being unwashed for the day, he thought it smelled lovely, lingering of damp sweat from the toils of the night before.

"Hermione…" Draco whispered into her tangled brown mane, a smile tugging at his lips when he heard her seemingly sigh in response.

Once again, all coherent thought started to desert him and his mind became blank of logic and full of desire. However, the impulse to brutally ravish her like the previous night was gone, replaced instead with a simple yearning to fuse their bodies together tenderly.

What's happening to me? What is she doing - correction, what has she done to me? I've never ever felt like this before. I can't be losing my mad sex drive now, can I? Oh no…dear god no…

"Hermione," Draco repeated, his voice now husky and a bit more urgent.

Hermione stayed motionless in his hold and said nothing. But because he was holding her so close, he could feel her breathing intensify and her heart pounding more rapidly. He knew for certain then that the same thought was crossing their minds.

By now, everything about Hermione being an unworthy Mudblood and enemy to his side vanished. At this moment, she was his wife and lover and that was all that mattered.

"Hermione…I want you."

Hermione again did nothing to show that she had heard his bold confession at all.

"I promise not to give too many marks this time, Hermione," Draco cooed sweetly.

It worked. Draco felt a hand yank at his waist, and the towel around his abdomen promptly fell to the floor.

**

"He has to what?!"

"Now, now, pumpkin, there was nothing he could do-"

"I don't believe it! I am to be the next Lady Malfoy and the mother of Draco's heir! Not her!"

"I know Pansy dear, but-"

"Okay, I could stand the marriage farce. Hell, I could even stand the honeymoon gibberish. But not this! How could the Lord make him fornicate with filth like that? Just for a child! It's ridiculous!"

"Now, Pansy you would be careful of what you say. You don't want the Lord to hear that, do you?"

"I don't care! Draco was and always will be mine, the Lord should know that! ARGH!"

Lucius Malfoy watched with a half bemused expression as Pansy Parkinson paced angrily back and forth in her parlor. Currently, Lucius was paying the Parkinsons a visit at their family estate on the outskirts of Nottinghamshire. After having informed the Parkinson family of Draco's situation, it was all Pansy's parents could do to calm her down.

"Pansy, I wouldn't be here today if all hope is lost, you know," Lucius spoke up, halting Pansy in her steps.

"I've still got hope?" she asked, almost unbelievably.

"Yes. If the child the Mudblood bears dies within the first seven days, Draco may still produce a viable heir with another woman. It is the family Curse's contingency plan, you see," explained Lucius.

Pansy's face lit up immediately. "Really? Good heavens! But what of the Mudblood then?"

"She will no longer be of our concern. The Lord will free her, of course, but we would be rid of her at least."

"That's brilliant! But…to imagine that I can get Draco only after she contaminates him. ARGH! I loathe even the thought of touching anything she's slimed up all over!" agonized Pansy.

"So I suppose you would pass up the title of being my son's future bride, then?" Lucius asked with a raised eyebrow.

Pansy blinked at him. "Well of course not! I'll have Draco no matter what the cost. Lucius, you know I love him!"

Yes, unfortunately, thought Lucius, but he knew better than to say so. Pansy wasn't exactly the best catch for his son physically (It's just the nose, Lucius always reminded himself), but she was a Slytherin and a Parkinson and no one could argue with such a lethal combination.

"I'm glad then. It seems our agreement can still continue, Lucius?" inquired Pansy's father.

"Certainly. But I best be off now, I did promise Narcissa I'd come home early today," Lucius said, and the Parkinsons went to send him off at the door.

"Oh, but can I come visit?" Pansy asked Lucius in a high, whiny tone. "I really miss Draco and I want to see him!"

"You want to see him now?"

Pansy batted her eyelashes sweetly and nodded.

"I don't think so, my dear."

Pansy pouted, and Lucius took note that her pug-like nose stuck out further when she did this. He tried in vain to shove the image out of his mind.

"Pretty please? He misses me too, I know it, and you can't disappoint him after all he's been through!"

Lucius gave the young woman a weak smile. "I'm afraid he's stuck inside the Love Hut, as I told you."

"Yes, but I can still see through the windows or something, can't I? Oh please, Lucius, I have to see him, I haven't seen him in weeks! Please?" she begged incessantly.

Lucius sighed. "Oh alright. I suppose it would do Draco some good to finally look at a decent witch for once."

"Ahhhh!" squealed Pansy victoriously and she eagerly sent a house-elf to fetch her cloak.

Let's see how the Mudblood fares under my wrath, Pansy thought, eyes glowing demonically.

**

Two hours later, Draco and Hermione lay curled up against one another right in front of the door. It was the afterglow (again), and despite being on the hard floor, they found themselves unexpectedly comfortable. Feeling cozy, the pair snuggled up against one another under Hermione's blanket.

Draco had to admit that the morning's turn of events was rather unanticipated and as much as he would love to say that things transpired awfully, the truth was that they didn't. He actually enjoyed having spontaneous sex with Hermione like that. When he pushed thoughts of her Muggle heritage aside, he found her to be sweet, beautiful, and even adorable when they engaged in their intimate act. Her sense of curiosity and thirst for knowledge marveled him just as they did back in their Hogwarts days, and her lingering innocence struck him as endearing. Her daring, wit, and malicious capabilities (he thought back to poor Blaise's severed member) awed him. Secretly, he was enthralled with her ability to be demure one minute and ever so vicious the next. Sure he hated her for all of that years ago, and was insanely jealous of her intelligence, but she was also always a challenge to him, and now he felt as though he had truly won. In addition, underneath those loose robes Hermione always donned lay one hell of a piece of ass. In any case, he was perfectly content to be lying there with her, and refused to toy around with the confused thoughts and feelings that were badgering him at the moment.

"That was…good," Draco spoke up after awhile. He snaked an arm underneath his wife and drew her body closer to his, while stroking her hair with his other hand.

Hermione didn't say anything, but hid her face shyly in Draco's shoulder.

Draco looked at her and chuckled. "You're cute when you do that, you know?"

Hermione was about to respond to his comment when - BAM! - the door to the hut unexpectedly flung open and a strong gush of wind breezed in.

Both Draco and Hermione gasped. Without further ado, they scrambled up and approached the door.

"Oh my god…" they said at the same time.

They paused for a few breathtaking moments, letting the bomb sink in.

Then…

"WE DID IT!! WE DID IT! WOO HOO! I'M POTENT! YOU'RE PREGNANT!" hollered Draco loudly, before picking Hermione up and twirling her around in his arms.

"WE'RE FREE! OUTTA HERE AT LAST! WHEE!" Draco continued chanting as he bathed in the happiness of having his term of house-arrest come to a speedy end.

Hermione too, was thrilled that she didn't have to sleep with the enemy anymore, and concentrated on this fact as opposed to the more serious one of motherhood (and how she would get her revenge).

The married couple continued their little freedom dance for a few instances longer before their need to escape from the Love Hut overwhelmed them.

"Come on, let's go!" pushed Draco, grabbing his towel and tying it around his waste loosely, before throwing Hermione the blanket. "Quickly, just put it on so we can go!"

Obviously Hermione couldn't wear the blanket, but she didn't have time to grab anything else as Draco pulled her arm excitedly and before she knew it, they were storming across the garden that was the distance between the hut and the Manor.

"Draco, please, slow down!" Hermione's plea fell on deaf ears. Draco was feeling far too exuberant right now to care whether or not they were appropriately dressed.

Hermione had no choice then but to hastily cover the blanket over her body as she and Draco barged through the Manor's front doors. Laughing like wild lovers, they crashed dumbly into the door and stumbled in, nearly toppling over one another.

Unfortunately, they were unaware that pressed up on the other side of the front doors were two individuals. As Hermione and Draco flung the door in from the outside, the two other figures were thrown roughly backwards.

Draco and Hermione's mirth died when they saw what happened.

"Mother?"

Narcissa Malfoy was sprawled flat on her back on the foyer floor, clad in skintight black leather attire, outlining her fabulous, middle-aged curves. Her usually prim and proper hair was mussed and dirty. An ominous-looking whip lay near her hand. To top that off, on top of her lay a shirtless Stan Shunpike.

"Mother!"

Narcissa smiled sheepishly at her son.

"Draco! Er…how do you do?"

Draco couldn't believe what he was witnessing.

"Shunpike, get off of my Mother this instant!"

Terrified, Stan was about to readily comply, when two cracking sounds were heard and Lucius Malfoy and Pansy Parkinson Apparated before them. They both gawked at the sight before them.

"Narcissa?" Lucius managed to utter in amazement.

"Lucius!"

"Mrs. Malfoy?"

"Pansy! Do call me Narcissa, how many times must I tell you!"

Lucius looked from his sexily-dressed fallen wife and the partially-clothed stable boy looming over her to his towel-clad son and blanket-covered daughter-in-law.

"You two got out of there already?" Lucius addressed his son, flabbergasted.

"Yes, we're pregnant," replied Draco, still dazedly gawping at his mother.

Pansy's eyes widened angrily at this news and she threw Hermione her dirtiest look.

"He means I'm pregnant," Hermione clarified coolly, glaring back at Pansy.

"I know what he means," Pansy replied, eyes shooting daggers at Hermione.

"Congratulations!" cheered Stan merrily from the floor, still on top of Narcissa.

Lucius's gaze shifted back to Stan. "Before I explode and slash your throat, could you kindly get off my wife?"

"Certainly," replied Stan who hoisted himself up at once. Both Pansy's and Hermione's eyes unconsciously swept up and down Stan's naked torso and the two nodded at Stan appreciatively.

Fuming at this display, Draco temperedly stepped in front of Hermione to shield her vision from Stan, before sending Stan a heated look himself.

Silence dawned on the foyer. Everyone was at a loss for-

CRACK!

"Ah, how are my favorite people doing?" came a new, yet most familiar voice. Amid the chaos, Voldemort had just Apparated in to join the party.

"My Lord!" acknowledged Lucius, Pansy, Draco, and Narcissa in unison.

Voldemort glanced around the place questioningly. "Did I interrupt something?" The Dark Lord cast another glimpse at everyone. "I didn't know you were throwing a costume party. Well, that's ten years off all of your lives for not inviting me."

"But we're not wearing costumes, sir," Pansy put in, gesturing towards herself and Lucius.

Voldemort looked at her heavily made-up face. "You could've fooled me. I believe you bear an uncanny resemblance to what the Japanese call a Geisha."

Pansy stood there puzzled at Voldemort's statement while behind Draco, Hermione tried (though not very hard) to stifle a snicker.

"Anyway, if there's no costuming going about, why is everyone gathered here looking so dumbstruck and strangely clothed?" Voldemort inquired.

"They're pregnant," Stan offered, pointing towards Draco and Hermione.

"Well of course they are. That's why I'm here. The spell I cast over the Love Hut was also set to notify me when they were," Voldemort told everyone.

"He means I'm pregnant," Hermione said again, feeling the unexplainable need to purposely rub it in Pansy's face.

"I know what he means," Pansy replied again, eyes narrowed into slits.

"Well then, now that the facts are straight, would someone like to help poor Narcissa up? I would ask her how she ended up on the floor, but frankly, I've lost interest," Voldemort stated.

Lucius bent over wordlessly and helped his wife to her feet.

"Right. Seems you all have some clearing up to do. I suppose I should come back and chat with Draco and Hermione later then," Voldemort concluded, before looking at Hermione. "Don't forget to tell the baby Grandaddy Voldie says hi!"

Hermione wanted to puke in disgust but returned Voldemort's gaze pointedly. "It's not a baby yet, it's just been conceived, so it is still a fertilized cell that is about to undergo its first stage of mitosis; therefore, it would be illogical for me to-"

Crack! Voldemort Disapparated out of there before Hermione could finish her sentence.

"Well then, I guess I better go up and change," began Narcissa, stepping backwards slowly towards the staircase for a getaway.

"Not so fast. Why were you and Shunpike on the floor?" interrogated Lucius.

"Oh Lucius, darling, we were merely out riding and I had just gotten so tired, I mean those Winged-Horses can get so feisty and well Stan here was just accompanying me back, you know to send me of - such a gentleman - oh Draco you made the right choice when you bought him! But anyway, we had just entered the door when it sprang open, thanks to our son and his wife here who burst in half naked," Narcissa recounted in one breath.

Lucius looked suspiciously at Narcissa before sending Draco and Hermione weary looks.

"I thought you were sick of riding. For years now, we've kept the Winged-Horses merely for show," he said to his wife.

Narcissa, however, looked at him unfazed. "Yes, but I've decided to rekindle my old hobby. Is that a crime in this household?"

Lucius refused to answer her, but instead glanced at everyone again. "Shameful, all of you," he spat out at his family, all of whom refused to meet his gaze.

"See, Father, Hermione and I were just excited that-"

Draco was cut off, however, by an interruption from Pansy.

"What is that?" she asked accusingly, pointing at a visible blemish on Hermione's left arm. Scrutinizing her appearance, everyone soon became aware of a few other such marks on her body where the blanket failed to conceal.

It was plain now what they were, and Hermione's embarrassed face proved it.

As a result, Pansy fumed even more, Narcissa let out a loud gasp of disbelief, Stan winked, and Lucius smirked at his son, nodding approvingly. Even with a Mudblood, at least Draco was living up to the family standards.

At seeing his father's reaction, Draco smirked back proudly in return, but wiped it off the instant he saw Hermione's dangerous scowl.

"Well then. I suppose you two better go upstairs and wash yourselves up. Pansy will be joining us for lunch," Lucius informed the newlyweds. They didn't argue, and swiftly glided accordingly towards the staircase.

"Shunpike, return to the stables. I do not wish to see your face again until next year," he proceeded to order Stan, who dashed out of there in no time.

"As for you my dearest wife, I would like a private talk with you in my Study now," Lucius commanded austerely with a glare at Stan.

Narcissa nodded briskly and followed Lucius to his Study obediently.

"Oh Draco, you must be tired, why don't you let me help you wash up and get dressed? Just like we used to do before," proposed Pansy after the elder Malfoys disappeared, right when Draco and Hermione were about to ascend the stairs.

Hermione, who stood directly behind Draco, whisked around to face Pansy, eyes flashing.

The nerve of that woman!

"That is a charming idea, but it would be more appropriate if I helped Draco clean up, don't you think, Draco honey? I mean, I am his rightful wife and about to be the mother of his only son," she enlightened Pansy through gritted teeth. She might not love Draco, but she wasn't going to see him scamper off with other women either. He was her husband, after all, and no matter the circumstances, he had to fulfill his role to some extent while their marriage lasted.

Draco raised his eyebrows with intrigue at her suggestion and use of affectionate terms, but remained quiet.

Pansy couldn't help but snicker.

Little does the bitch know…muahahahahaha…

"That's what you think, Mudblood. Keep on thinking that, wench," Pansy spat out derisively before pushing past Hermione and seizing Draco's arm.

"C'mon dear, I know how sick you must be of her. Let's not waste any time, shall we? I've missed you so much!" declared Pansy, before planting a juicy kiss right on Draco's unsuspecting lips.

"I-er-missed you too, Pansy," stammered Draco uneasily after breaking the sudden kiss. He wasn't sure why, but he didn't exactly want Hermione to see him smooching other women like this.

But she does look jealous, doesn't she? Good. Now she knows how I felt when I caught her sipping coffee with that good for nothing vampire bloke. Not that I was jealous in any way, of course, but it still was very undutiful of her.

Hermione didn't want to let Pansy win, but weariness of her surroundings took over, and she decided that she couldn't care less what the former couple wanted to do together. She was going to be a mother for god's sake. At nineteen. And Voldemort wanted her baby for some dark purpose. She had bigger problems to deal with than her unwanted husband's infidelity. And not that she cared anyway if he slept with ten thousand other hags or whores. Or Pansy. It's not like she and Draco cared for each other. Screw his husbandly duties. They were and always will be enemies. She was going to plot his downfall anyway.

So why was giving up this silly competition with Pansy bothering her so much? Why did she feel her heart sink slightly at hearing his words?

Most importantly, why were tears starting to accumulate in her eyes?

How ridiculous!

"Fine. You two go ahead then. Have a jolly reunion," Hermione wished Pansy and Draco coldly, before wading in between them and heading for her old room in the Manor, leaving Draco slightly confounded and agape.

Up in her room, Hermione slammed the door hard, before sliding down against it into a sorrowful heap on the floor. Alone, practically naked, and confused, the whirlwind of realities from losing her virginity to resisting Voldemort to being a mother sank in. This was worse than any nightmare she ever had.

Slowly, she buried her head in her hands and sobbed until her reservoir of tears dried up.

**

Weeks passed on, and Hermione had been giving Draco the cold shoulder ever since Pansy's visit. She barely talked to anyone except Seamus and Ginny, and whenever he did make an effort to address her, she only returned him icy, single-word replies. Draco chalked it up to Hermione coping with the nagging truth that she was pregnant as well as being a part of Voldemort's sordid scheme that had yet to fully unravel itself.

Months ago, Draco could've cared less. However, they had been married for nearly two months now with a child on the way, and Draco couldn't deny that he did have some feelings for his wife. No matter how trivial or fleeting they may be. And because of that, he didn't want her to stay mad at him forever.

Especially not if he wanted to – ahem - do the deed with her again.

In the end, Draco swallowed his pride and went to the only place he knew had answers to his marital problems.

His mother.

So one sunny Sunday morning, he approached his mother in their parlor and asked if there was anything he could do to get back on speaking terms with Hermione again. Normally Draco wouldn't have taken this course of action, being that his mother despised Mudbloods and wasn't particularly fond of Hermione, but Narcissa herself had been acting strangely ever since she found out she'd be having a grandson soon. For the past few weeks, she'd been showering Hermione with little presents and baby books. She'd also forbid Hermione to do anything strenuous and assigned Red to accompany her daughter-in-law whenever she left the Manor to the outside grounds. Of course, this pissed Hermione off a great deal, but Narcissa seemed blind to it. Either she was getting used to having a Mudblood for a daughter-in-law or she was too thrilled at the thought of being a grandmother in her forties she forgot about heritages.

Draco suspected the latter.

"Hmm, did you say something Draco dear?" Narcissa was curled up comfortably on a sofa with her head buried in a thick book. A rather odd thing for her to be doing, but Draco shrugged it off.

"Mother, I was wondering if you knew what I could do to…er…ease off this tension between Hermione and me. I mean, she's barricaded herself in the Library again this morning. She's been doing that every weekend just to avoid me," Draco explained.

"Mm hmm…" was Narcissa's response.

"Mother! I have a serious problem here! My wife isn't speaking to me!"

"That's right…oh, how would Achilles sound? Achilles Malfoy. A strong, masculine name, don't you think?"

"MOTHER!" Draco bellowed in pure irritation. She wasn't paying any attention to him at all! "I have a crisis here and all you can do is throw names at me!"

Narcissa's manner became stern as she looked up at her son. "Do not shout at me, Draco. I might've tolerated it when you were little but you are a married man now, and a father-to-be. I expect you to act like a mature wizard."

Draco clenched his teeth. His mother was making everything difficult. "I apologize, Mother."

"Good. And anyway, I'm not just throwing out names at you. I'm picking out names for your son. Haven't you seen? This is the latest edition of A Wizard's Namesake!" she informed him, lifting the heavy book in her hands to show him.

"Mother, the baby isn't due until eight or so months from now. There's plenty of time for this."

"Nonsense! We can never be too early. Hold on, did you say Hermione barricaded herself in the Library again? Is that even healthy? The poor dear should be out enjoying the fresh air! I certainly wasn't reading books while I was pregnant with you! Perhaps I should check on her," fretted Narcissa.

Poor dear?

"Mother, please can you help me out first? I'm desperate here!"

Narcissa sighed. "Very well. Perhaps you can do her a favor? I don't know…do something she likes? Breakfast in bed?"

"No, that won't do. She won't sleep in our new room and has forbidden me to enter hers. I could, of course, barge in if I really wanted to but I'm sick of quarreling with her over that."

Narcissa looked pensive. "Then what about a foot massage? Or better yet, a tongue massage?"

Draco shook his head. "I don't think she responds well to my romantic antics, kinky or otherwise. I tried to give her a simple kiss yesterday and she pounded me like I was a troll. And then she bit me." Draco stuck out his arm and rolled up his sleeve, revealing nasty teeth imprints.

Narcissa cringed. "Well then why don't you bring home a gift for her? Jewelry, velvet robes, hair care products, something like that. Women enjoy gifts, especially if they're trendy and expensive," advised the aristocratic witch.

"Not Hermione. She's modest and she'd rather have something mundane like books than jewelry…"

And then it hit him. Books!

Well, no shit!

"I've got it! Thank you Mother, you are brilliant!" After bending down to give his mother a quick peck on the cheek, Draco practically flew up the stairs to the family library.

"Hermione, open up!" commanded Draco once he reached the closed doors.

"I'm busy," came the curt reply.

"No you're not. Besides I have to talk to you. It's really important."

Draco grinned to himself when he heard her stomping footsteps near the door.

"What is it?" Hermione asked sharply after flinging open the door.

Draco kept his face casual and pretended as though whatever he was going to say was of the most tedious of things. "I've come to ask you which new books you'd like to read," he drawled.

Hermione stared. "I beg your pardon?"

Draco heaved a heavy, pretentious sigh. "Have you gone deaf? I said I wanted to know which new books you'd like to read. You know, ones that aren't in the Library yet. I'm going to Diagon Alley, you see, and Mother suggested I fetch you something. Not that you haven't got all you could possibly dream of right here already, you know, with my wealth and all, but I can never refuse Mother," he lied condescendingly.

However, if he was expecting her to merely give him a list of titles, boy was he sorely mistaken.

"No one can ever pick out my books for me. I'm very picky. Besides, I don't know which new books are out, other than A Wizard's Namesake," Hermione stated. At the moment, wheels were spinning in her head, and she mentally congratulated Draco for bringing about such a golden opportunity.

"The latest published works are advertised in the Daily Prophet," Draco pointed out.

"Oh well, not all of the books I like are advertised. Some are really obscure, but a good read nonetheless."

Draco was beginning to think getting her books was a bad idea. Jewelry would've been much easier.

"Well, trust my judgment, you won't be disappointed," he said.

Hermione faked a thoughtful look. "Hmm…nope. I trust my own judgment best. But since your Mother desperately wants to buy me books, I suppose I can't refuse her either. So take me with you and I'll pick out my own books at Flourish and Blotts."

"WHAT?!"

Hermione smiled sweetly. "You heard me, hubby dearest."

"Definitely not! You're not allowed to leave this place! There are wards all over the grounds to keep you in!"

Why is it that every plan he came up with concerning Hermione (and in the past, Potter and Weasley) always backfired like this?

"Well take them down, then. Look, Flourish and Blotts is only one stop, and I've missed the place terribly. We'd be back in two hours, max."

"But Father-"

"Oh, be a man, Draco! Who's my husband, you or him?"

Draco reeked with anger at her statement.

"Don't you ever speak to me like that again-"

"Look here, if we get back before Lucius does, you're home free and no one would ever know," Hermione interrupted him.

"But Mother-"

"Oh leave her to me. She's been getting quite fond of me lately, I'm sure I can convince her to let me go. Besides, she was the one who wanted me to have some new books, was she not?"

Draco's heart pulsed with rage. He couldn't back down on his own words now. Agreeing to her risky endeavor was the only option left for him to save face.

"Fine. Five minutes, front door. The carriage will be waiting. Any longer and I'll leave you," he gruffly told her.

"Brilliant. Let me get my cloak." Hermione practically danced her way to her room.

Ha! Men - nay, husbands were so easy to manipulate. Even Draco Malfoy.

**

Hermione found out a bit later that she wasn't entirely accurate.

Draco Malfoy wasn't that easy to manipulate after all.

The minute she entered the carriage, the conniving arsehole cast a temporary Binding Spell on her, that wouldn't allow her to be apart from him for more than three feet.

Bollocks.

Okay, so her escape plan went down the toilet, but at least she was leaving the Manor for once. Any change of scenery-Diagon Alley in particular- was welcome to her. Not to mention they'd really get to stop by Flourish and Blotts! Who knows what luck she could run into.

The magic carriage ride took a little over three minutes. It was more like Apparition, really, and less messy than Floo powder.

Hopping off and looking at her surroundings, Hermione noted somberly Diagon Alley had been very much altered since the last time she'd been there.

The gleaming sunlight that had enchanted the place and entranced her so as a child disappeared in about half of the whole place. Those unfortunate corners looked like extensions of Knockturn Alley. The streets there were dark, filthy, and just plain scary.

However, Draco led her to the other half which hadn't been contaminated so much by the wrath of the Dark Arts. Hermione assumed it was because the upper-class still liked places to be immaculate and classy. Luckily, shops like Flourish and Blotts and Madame Malkins were in these bright parts.

"There, we've arrived. Hurry up and take your pick, you're wasting my time," he rudely said to her.

"You know, you could be a little nicer to me," Hermione told him, unimpressed by his manner.

Draco's eyes bulged. Nicer? NICER?!

Hell, I'm doing all of this for you! And you're the one who's been giving me the silent treatment! Nicer my Pureblood arse!

"Demanding bitch," he muttered under his breath.

"What did you say?"

"Nothing, you're hearing things. Get a move on already, woman," Draco grumbled.

Hermione accordingly entered, letting his words slip by this time, with Draco following close behind. Again the familiar scent of books new and old refreshed her senses. The Malfoy Library, while comforting, still smelt too Malfoy for her taste. But this place…well, it made her feel closer to home.

Holding back nostalgic tears, she began to browse the cramped aisles, enthusiastically checking out the new publications, though frowning at the realization that many of them were Dark Arts-related. Nevertheless, Hermione was able to find quite a bit of reading she liked and began piling up her picks in her thin arms.

"Oh, give it here." The books in Hermione's arms were piled so high they reached her chin, and Draco didn't want to be publicly criticized for being an un-gentlemanlike husband.

Hermione gladly handed over her pile and began picking out more books. Soon, Draco was lugging around a tower of books and he was not pleased.

"If you want any more then leave a list here. I'll have them delivered to the Manor. I can't very well carry around all of this back home," Draco readily told Hermione when the tower was starting to reach his chin.

"Aw, the shame," remarked Hermione sadly, five more books in her hands.

About twenty or so minutes later, Draco finally dragged Hermione out of the bookstore, carrying a heavy bundle of books. He was exhausted. He made a mental note never to go shopping with Hermione ever again.

But Hermione was far from finished.

"I want to take a look around. It's been so long, and I've really missed this place. Please, can't we stay a bit more? I just want to see all the old shops," Hermione pleaded with her husband. She even allowed herself to double-blink at him in the hope that he'd feel sorry for her.

Draco groaned and although he wanted direly to refuse her, he found that he couldn't.

"Oh alright. But half-an-hour is all I'm giving you."

Oh, the things I do for my wife…

Hermione smiled brightly at him, and Draco felt his heart skip a beat. If only she'd smile like that to him more…

The thought left him soon enough and he managed to magically shrink his load so that the bundle of books fit neatly inside the pockets of his cloak. Hermione then began promenading around, stopping at familiar shops and peering at newer ones. Everything was different now that Voldemort was in power, but at least life was going on.

Fifteen minutes later, Hermione found herself outside the Magical Menagerie, the pet store which housed magical creatures. Beautiful owls of white, brown, and gray hooted happily in their cages while young wizards and children pressed their faces against the window pane to giggle at the array of strange creatures in view. Hermione allowed her eyes to sweep through the window.

And then she saw him.

She'd know that mass of ginger fur anywhere.

"CROOKSHANKS!!!!" she shrieked, startling everyone in hearing distance.

Hermione dashed inside the shop, and because of the Binding Spell, Draco was yanked along with her.

"Slow down, woman, slow down!" he yelled, but to no avail. There was no stopping a determined Hermione.

Inside, the store clerk took note of Hermione's eagerness and stepped up to present her assistance.

"What may I do for you, Ma'am?"

Hermione frenetically pointed at the rusty cage on the far end which held her former cat.

"Him! Him! He's my cat! Crookshanks!"

"Alrighty," the clerk said and promptly went to fetch the cat.

Upon hearing his old mistress's cry, Crookshanks immediately looked up and purred excitedly at Hermione, who was now brimming with tears of joy. She had lost Crookshanks after being captured at the end of the war, and had assumed him either dead or off living somewhere by himself. She simply could not contain her happiness at this most fortunate accident.

Crookshanks was by far the closest thing she had to a family right now.

Unless of course you counted Draco, her prat of a husband. Well he wouldn't be for long, if she could help it.

The witch-clerk serenely dropped Crookshanks into Hermione's outstretched arms. Hermione cried out with glee before hugging Crookshanks tightly.

"I've missed you so much, my goody boy! Did you miss mummy? You did, didn't you, you gorgeous thing! Muah muah muah!" she fondly cuddled her pet before covering his messy head with fluffy kisses.

Draco rolled his eyes at her pathetic show of affection. "Just spiffy, now let's go."

"Sure thing. That'll be one-hundred galleons, Ma'am," the clerk notified the couple.

Hermione brushed it off. "Oh no, you don't understand. You see, he's my cat, I bought him from this shop myself back in my third year at Hogwarts and I lost him at the end of the war."

"Oh yes, I do understand, and it's all very touching. That'll still be a hundred galleons, please," the clerk replied, disinterestedly.

"WHAT? I'm not buying my own cat! He already belongs to me!"

"Not when you lost him, Ma'am. Hundred-galleons please, or the cat stays."

"No! I will not buy him twice! I shouldn't have to! This is wrong! I never gave him to you to sell, I merely lost him, but now I've found him so he is still technically mine!" Hermione insisted, glowering.

"Nice line of reasoning, but it doesn't work that way. He's been ours ever since the war, so you'll have to pay for him," the clerk countered impatiently.

"That is hogwash! I can prove my rightful ownership because the cat recognizes me. You know, I could accuse you of stealing him to sell! And besides, a hundred galleons is ludicrous. I bought him for no more than fifteen!"

"Post-war inflation, Ma'am. Now just one hundred galleons and old Crooky's yours."

"No!"

"Fine, then. The cat stays," and without warning the clerk snatched Crookshanks out of Hermione's arms.

Crookshanks did not like this and meowed venomously in the clerk's grasp, gnawing her arm ferociously, whereby the clerk pulled out her wand and Stunned him senseless.

"NOO!!! You can't cast spells on my cat like that!" screeched Hermione. With that, she charged at the clerk, intent on retrieving her cat.

"Get off and get out of my story you crazy woman!" the clerk screamed as Hermione grabbed a fistful of her graying hair.

Draco, who the whole time was busy observing a drunken owl burp and do a limbo dance, raised his head up as he felt the imaginary bind yank at him again. He whipped around just in time to see his wife attack the clerk.

"Stop! Hermione, stop!" he demanded, rushing over to pull Hermione off of the clerk.

"No! She's taken my cat!" protested Hermione vehemently, feet kicking the air as Draco hoisted her away.

"Calm down! You're embarrassing me! This is NOT how a Malfoy acts in public!" Draco hissed lowly so that only Hermione could hear, face burning with humiliation.

"Yeah, you take your insane wife away this instant or I'll make sure to sue you lot for tearing my head apart!" threatened the angry clerk, reclaiming the locks of hair that Hermione had managed to pluck out.

Unfortunately, that was the wrong thing to say to Draco Malfoy.

Incensed, Draco dropped Hermione at once and walked up to the witch addressing him so that their faces stood inches apart.

"You will not speak of my wife in such a way," he said quietly in a dangerous tone. "You will apologize to her and you will return her the cat."

"I will do no such thing."

Draco's eyes glistened with malice. "Do you know who I am?"

"What does it matter who you are?"

"I am Draco Malfoy."

At hearing that, the color drained from the clerk's face.

"M-M-Malfoy? As in Lucius Malfoy's son? The Dark Lord's right-hand-man-in-waiting?" she questioned shakily.

"The one and only."

Now the clerk's eyes darted around worriedly, sweat forming on her forehead. "Oh! Mr. Malfoy, my sincere apologies! I had no idea-"

"Save it! Another word from you and I'll have your corpse on my doorstep and your store Incendioed to ashes, you lowly hag!" thundered Draco.

The clerk nodded speedily before grabbing Crookshanks and returning him to Hermione.

"Now, apologize to Mistress Malfoy, my wife."

The clerk nodded again and stuttered a quick apology.

"Good. Let's go now, Hermione," Draco stated with a note of finality, and the couple exited the store with Crookshanks in tow.

Once outside, Hermione regarded Draco with shock and…was it admiration? No, no, the slimy Ferret had gotten away with it by using his family name. Then? Oh yes, appreciation, that was it.

"Draco…thank you," she managed to say softly, meeting his eyes.

"Just doing my job as a husband," he responded nonchalantly, though actually raking with joy at Hermione's sincere words of gratitude.

"Yes, well, god knows you don't really care for that job, so I'm thanking you anyway."

"Whatever." He wasn't about to let on to Hermione yet just exactly how much he was beginning to care about that job. "Look, it's getting late, let's go get something to eat and then head home."

After what he'd done for her, she couldn't disagree. "Sure."

The pair then started off for the Leaky Cauldron. A few minutes later, they arrived, but just as Hermione reached for the door, it burst open and a tall, ragged figure in a stinking hooded cloak hurried out, ramming right into her and knocking her and Crookshanks painfully to the ground.

"Hermione!" Draco cried fearfully. Was she hurt? He shuddered to think of that and in a flash was down beside her to help scoop her up, ignoring Crookshanks completely, who huffed in disapproval by Hermione's feet.

The ragged figure also tumbled down as a result of the collision, and was struggling to get up himself. The man seemed to find this task incredibly difficult. In the process, his hood fell off, revealing an aging wizard with long, dirtied gray hair and beard with traces of burnt red in them, in addition to numerous wrinkles, warts, and blotches of freckles.

"You stupid moron! Foolish old man! You knocked into my wife! Can't you see she's pregnant?" ranted Draco, temper boiling.

The haggard old man truthfully couldn't see that the witch he knocked down was pregnant because her stomach looked as flat as hell, but knew better than to say that.

"I-I'm sorry, Ma'am," he sputtered meekly.

"Oh, it's alright. It's only been a month, Draco, my stomach's not showing yet. The poor man couldn't have known," Hermione said sympathetically, dusting her robe as she stood.

However, the aging wizard's ear perked up immediately at hearing the name 'Draco' and froze.

It was plain now who he had just run into.

Hermione, being the compassionate citizen that she was, saw no need to terrify a poor old man and bent down to help him up, much to her husband's dismay.

"Here, mister, do take my hand," she offered.

The elder wizard graciously took it, and as their palms touched, a most familiar sense of warmth coursed through Hermione.

"Thank you," the man rasped, before giving Hermione's hand a distinct squeeze.

Surprised, Hermione looked into the man's face and their eyes inevitably locked.

Oh my god.

Hermione gasped softly, breath catching in her throat. If this wizard was haggard and gray, it definitely was a ruse and had to involve a massive consumption of Ageing Potion.

Because Hermione recognized his eyes at once. There was only one man in the world whose orbs had the blue hue that Hermione knew and loved so well.

For there, in that most awkward and unforeseen of moments, Hermione Granger Malfoy was gaping right into the unmistakable eyes of one Ronald Weasley.

**

A/N: Whew! Finally! Gosh, that was THE most difficult chapter to write, I swear! You have NO idea how many times I rewrote it and tweaked it! It's also the longest, as I mentioned before, but not my best, I'm afraid, due to the heavy OOC-ness (mainly on Draco's part…but he's starting to fall, so what did you expect?). I wanted to keep to the old light and comedic tone but I realized that what Hermione had to be going through was pretty angsty and so I'm sorry if this chap isn't as funny as you wanted it to be. Things will get crazier in future chapters. I'm also sorry if you guys found some parts to be too unrealistic or unbelievable-I tried really hard to make it perfect, but alas, I am only human, and there are tons of other fics out there with much more unrealistic events in them than this one.

I know how you guys must be sick of reading my longass author's notes all the time so I'm gonna keep this one brief and end off by saying that I will try to write and upload the next chap as soon as I can, but I won't give a deadline because we all know I have trouble meeting them :P Keep checking my Livejournal if you want news of updates or the progress of the next chap.

Oh, and of course, don't forget to review! They help me so much and make me so happy, so please, it takes so little of your time! (Plus you can tell me what plot holes you discover in this chap if you find any when you review as well.)

Teasers:

What in hell is Ron doing in Diagon Alley? We find out.

Hermione confronts Draco on his seeming change of character and he makes a startling confession. Also, they do some investigation, with near-disastrous consequences.

Lastly, Harry and Ron get involved in a scandalous deal with…oh, well you'll see.

Hugs and kisses to you all! *MUAH* ;)

~smashing sugar~