PART THIRTY

Behind the Scars

Hermione straightened up and dusted her hands, standing naked in front of the fireplace. She watched as the fire crackled into life, having just thrown a few more logs into it that night. She flipped her hair behind her bare shoulders and quietly walked back to the couch, stopping to admire the view right in front of her.

Malfoy was lying sprawled on the couch, completely asleep and completely naked, with only the messy blankets covering his lower body. His untidy blond hair was all over his face in adorable un-orderliness, and his swollen lips were half-open and enticingly tempting Hermione to go and kiss them again, the way she'd been doing all night. She watched as his bare chest moved up and down in a steady rhythm, and her thoughts went back to the time outside in the Quidditch fields when that rhythm stopped for a while.

Horror gripped Hermione's heart again as she remembered how she'd almost lost him, and she shook her head to clear away the thought. What was important was that he was back here with her, terribly and heavily scarred but definitely alive and well.

Hermione smiled to herself and gingerly slid into the covers beside him on the couch, her back to him. She snuggled against him as there was only very few space on the couch for them both, but she liked having to squeeze in against his naked warmth.

Her return apparently woke Malfoy up, and he instinctively wrapped his arms around her waist from behind, kissing the back of her head lovingly. She smiled to herself again as Malfoy buried his face into her nape and drifted back to sleep, and she took her book on the floor and continued reading, knowing fully well that she still had one more exam left to take the next day.

Hermione stared intently at her book, but her eyes couldn't seem to focus on the words. Her mind somehow kept lingering onto something else…either that, or it was just because Malfoy's breath on the back of her neck was making her hot all over again.

One of her hands reached down and started to stroke Malfoy's arms around her waist gingerly. "Draco…?"

"Mmm…?" came Malfoy's muffled and extremely sleepy reply on her neck.

"I was wondering…" she began, "we've been talking to each other and spending time with one another recently…and we even had sex that night when you woke up in the hospital wing…and tonight, too…"

Malfoy didn't move an inch. "So…?" he said again into her skin.

"So," she continued. "You told me that you avoided me at any cost at the start of the new term and treated me like dirt because your father said he'd spare my life if you did just that. And now that we're back together…I was wondering why your father hasn't sent his spawns of death for me just yet."

Malfoy shifted in his position a bit, obviously forced to wake up, and Hermione felt all the blood rush to her face when she felt his tip come in slight contact with her butt. Malfoy sighed and said, "I'm not really sure why my father hasn't done any drastic actions yet, but you don't have to worry about anything, okay, love? I swear I'll keep an eye on you and protect you no matter what, so no harm's going to come within a hundred mile radius around you. I really should've just done this from the start…that way I wouldn't have hurt you in any way."

Hermione grinned at his incredible sweetness, and decided that she really didn't have anything to worry about, now that she's back into his loving arms again. She squeezed his hand on her stomach and went back to reading her book, finding it easier now to concentrate.

She was just about to turn to the next page when she felt Malfoy running soft kisses on her nape, and she whined in protest, "Draco…"

"Sorry," he murmured, tickling her with his breath, "but you woke me up, so deal with it."

Hermione giggled as he started kissing his way to her ear and nibbled her earlobe. "C'mon, Draco…I'm trying to study here."

Malfoy smiled and whispered, "Can I help it if I'm horny?"

His words sent a tingling sensation down her crotch, but she fought her inner desires and said, "Stop it…please? I'm having my last exam tomorrow, in case you haven't noticed, and I haven't—" She wasn't even able to finish her sentence because Malfoy's hands had traveled from her waist to her breasts, and she moaned as he molested her skillfully, causing her nipples to harden at his touch.

She dropped her book with a thud on the ground altogether when he pulled her even closer still towards him and she moaned, his arousal completely pressing against her ass cheeks.

"Draco…" she breathed weakly at her last attempts to stop him, no matter how much she knew she'd give in soon enough. "Please…you know how important exams are to m—oh god," she bit her lip when Malfoy shifted on top of her and started sucking at her round juiciness.

The two of them started to sweat—thanks to the fire Hermione had just revived a while ago—and her womanly juices started to wet the cloth of the couch they were on as Malfoy continued to suck. He left her sweaty breasts for a while and looked at her pleasured face, asking seductively, "Do you want me to have sex with you…?"

Hermione whimpered weakly, "No, not right n—yes…yes…oh Draco…"

Malfoy had inserted a finger into her already wet spot and was now rubbing her clit like there was no tomorrow. He grinned as he watched her expression—eyes closed in protest but mouth open in sheer pleasure. He decided he wanted to toy with her more.

He smiled mischievously. "If you say so." He removed his finger and positioned himself above her. At this, Hermione opened her eyes at him. "No, I wasn't saying—" She groaned out his name the moment he entered her, and all thoughts of disapproval flew out her brain faster than anyone could say, "Examination."

She wrapped both her legs around him as they both reached their climax, and when it was all over, Malfoy bent down and kissed both her nipples before burying his face between her breasts, both of them panting and sweating heavily.

"You are so anti-exams," Hermione said, hugging his head closer to her bosom.

Malfoy chuckled and stroked her legs, which were still draped around his waist, considering he was still inside her. "Damn, I would've freaked if I wasn't the first one you'd ever had sex with. You have no idea how glad I am that none of your bloody admirers have ever tried to sleep with you."

"Hah," Hermione snorted jokingly at the thought. "As if Ron would've had the guts."

She expected Malfoy to laugh or to start his Weasley-bashing again, but the reaction she elicited from him was totally not what she had in mind. Malfoy lifted himself up from her chest and stared at her with an expression that almost looked like he was back to the old Malfoy again from their previous Hogwarts years, and Hermione was almost ashamed to be lying naked under him. He raised his eyebrow. "What?"

Hermione swallowed. "Er…"

"Weasley likes you? Until now? How the hell did you know?"

"H-Harry," Hermione stammered. "Harry told me one night and—" she stopped when she saw the irritation flicker in his eyes and she said, "I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner, but Harry told me Ron's feelings were pretty obvious so I thought that maybe you'd already know about it—"

"Of course I knew about it; everyone can see right through that weasel!" Malfoy snapped in an annoyed way. "I always thought it was just some stupid crush, but if he still likes you up until now, especially now that it's almost been seven years and especially now that you have a boyfriend, then this whole bloody thing isn't just some crush that bloke's got on you!" He straightened up and angrily started to remove her legs from around him.

"But Draco, he's not going to—" She groaned as Malfoy pulled himself from within her, much to her dislike, and sat up on the couch. "—come barging into our relationship to steal me away from you! He now knows that we've been together practically since the beginning of the school year and Ron's not the type who—"

"One quick question, Hermione," Malfoy held up a finger and cut her off as she sat up and tried to snuggle against him again. "How did you react to his obviously long-kept true feelings for you? If you're so sure that Weasley's not the type who'd come snatching away what doesn't belong to him, and that you yourself don't want that to happen, then you would turn him down, wouldn't you?"

Hermione paused for a while as his words sunk in, and she struggled hopelessly for a good explanation, because she knew her answer wouldn't be what he was looking for. "Well, I…er…didn't actually turn him down…"

"You didn't???" Hermione winced as Malfoy's tone rose higher. "Then what did you do, then??? Have him strip off your clothes and pound you hard???"

Hermione blinked back her tears as his sarcastic words and the way he was almost shouting at her stung her like hell. It was the first time he sincerely got mad at her all this time they were together, and she didn't realize how awful it would feel. But then again, she knew she couldn't blame him for reacting this way; it truly was her fault. "I…thanked him…and then I…I…" she trailed off. "I kissed him on the cheek."

She expected him to start yelling at her now, but instead he just rolled his eyes in pure resentment at her, which hurt even more. "Great, just great; now my girlfriend's best friend who's seriously in love with her just got the perfect 'egging on' that he's been waiting for all his life: a 'thank you' and a kiss. Now he's got no reason whatsoever to even think twice about swooping in and stealing her away from me. Perfect."

Hermione tried to pretend that his comment didn't hurt her, but as she watched him search the pile of clothing on the floor for his robes, she found that she couldn't hold it in. "Why are you being such an ass about this?" she said through tears in her eyes. "You're the one that I love, have you forgotten that? You're the one that I slept with! You're the one who's made my life so much better! So why are you being such a jealous brat??? I've told you that Ron's not like that! He'd never take me away from you! He'd never make a move on me! He knows it would be wrong because I love you; he wouldn't want to ruin my relationship with you because he's my best friend, for goodness' sake! But I can't just turn him down so hard the way you want me to!"

"Yeah, you can't; so you had to give him a kiss, now, hadn't you? Oh, yes; that's loads better," he replied sarcastically, grabbing her robes by mistake and handing it over to her.

She snatched her robes from his hands angrily. "Fine!!! Be that way!!! If you want to let something as stupid as this start a fight between us, then so be it!!! I should've known you'd overreact to—"

"Nickel Knacks."

Hermione stopped short in mid-sentence as a voice from outside the study said the password. Hermione and Malfoy's eyes widened and they looked at each other in horror, their argument flying out of their heads. Who could possibly want to enter their secret study at this late hour? And to think they were both naked on the couch together, their clothes strewn all over the carpet…

Hermione immediately started putting on her robes, which were too thin so that despite having put them on, her bare skin could still be slightly seen underneath the black cloth. She didn't bother to look for her underwear, knowing they—just like most of her underwear—were probably already torn by Malfoy anyway. Malfoy fumbled desperately for his clothes on the floor, but thanks to Hermione's expertise in ripping his clothes off, he couldn't find them anywhere. Instead, he just wrapped the blankets around his waist just in time when the entrance to the study opened.

They both looked up to see, in horror, that their headmaster was standing right there, looking at them.

Hermione flushed like hell as Dumbledore's eyes widened at the sight before him, and suddenly the tension in the room was too thick for words. Luckily, Malfoy had mustered enough guts to say, "Er…good evening, Professor Dumbledore…"

Dumbledore stared at the two of them, and Hermione noticed that Malfoy wasn't blushing a bit, despite his half-naked glory. He did, however, run his hand through his disheveled hair in attempts to make himself at least a tad bit presentable.

Finally, after sixty of the longest seconds Hermione had ever experienced, Dumbledore smiled amusedly at them both, and replied, "Good evening."

Hermione swallowed heavily as she watched Dumbledore walk towards them and take a seat on one of the chairs in front of them. This was it. They were in big trouble…something so big that she'd have to be expelled and—

Her thoughts were interrupted when she felt Malfoy take her hand beside her and squeeze it, as if to assure her that everything would be alright, and that if it wouldn't be, he'd be there right beside her all the way. Hermione squeezed back, realizing that their argument a while back had been really silly and when it came right down to it, Malfoy still loved her anyway.

Finally gaining a little bit more air of confidence now, she said, "Is…there something wrong, Headmaster…?"

"Well," Dumbledore began, seeming to ignore the fact that Hermione and Malfoy were there in the study, way after hours, having extremely prohibited sex. "I had been searching the whole of the castle for the both of you for a while tonight…never thought I'd find you here but decided to give it a try, and thankfully, here you both are."

Hermione bit her lip. Dumbledore didn't seem too abhorred by all this…perhaps he'd expected it…? So why was he looking for them, then?

"So, I suppose you two are wondering why I've been searching for you." Dumbledore cleared his throat. "I'm afraid there is something you should unfortunately know." He looked at Malfoy in the eye.

"Oh, er…" Hermione shifted in her position. "Maybe I ought to give you two some time…"

Dumbledore looked at her and smiled. "No, my dear, stay. Both of you need to hear everything I'm about to say."

"What is it, Professor?" asked Malfoy, who now seemed mesmerized by the tidings Dumbledore was there to bring.

"Mr. Malfoy…" Dumbledore said grimly, "I'm afraid your father…has passed away."

Hermione's eyes widened. Did she just hear him right? Lucius Malfoy? Dead? No wonder harm hadn't come Hermione's way when she and Malfoy started having contact again…but how could Lucius' death be possible? Could it be that…?

Malfoy's grip on Hermione's hand tightened, and she turned to look at his expression. He was staring at Dumbledore as if he hadn't said anything weird, nothing quite incredible, nothing tragic at all. After a few seconds, he shook his head. "N-No…it can't be…" He grinned, and then he chuckled. "You've got to be kidding. My dad's not dead."

Hermione's heart wrenched itself as she saw Malfoy laugh in denial, obviously thinking that it was all some sick joke. But from the way Dumbledore had said it, Hermione knew from the bottom of her heart that it was anything but a trick. Oh, Draco…

"I gravely wish I were kidding, my dear boy…" Dumbledore said softly. "I'm sorry, Draco."

As Malfoy's laughter slowly ebbed away and trailed off, Hermione found it to be the loneliest sound she'd ever heard in her life. Tears welled up in her eyes as she saw Malfoy glance at his now unwounded right hand and grit his teeth, apparently trying hard to let it all sink in without breaking down. She knew Lucius had never been particularly good to him, but to hear Lucius die was still obviously painful for him.

"I don't…I don't get it…" Malfoy said, his voice trembling. "How…?"

"I came here tonight to explain to you what I hope will be enough for now, for it is all I know and all I have found out," Dumbledore said. "I came here tonight to explain what happened to you during the Quidditch Final."

Hermione's eyes flicked towards Dumbledore, as he began to speak, "I know about the Dark Mark on your arm, Draco; Poppy and Minerva showed it to me when it burnt black that night, but I told them not to tell anyone else about it."

"It…burnt black?" Hermione asked, knowing fully well what that phenomenon meant.

"Yes, Hermione, it did," Dumbledore replied. "Death Eaters are given tasks to collect the ingredients needed for the Dark Mark, and one of the main components is the blood of a Muggle-born, from which Voldemort draws power and strength. He feeds on Muggle-borns' fear of him, and with the blood of Muggle-borns in every Dark Mark of every Death Eater, he grows stronger with each of his calls to his followers. That is why he's at his best with his faithful followers around him."

"What the hell does he have to do with my father?" Malfoy asked suddenly, and Hermione noticed that Malfoy's hatred for the Dark Lord was becoming more evident, now that they both knew the Dark Lord somehow had something to do with Lucius' death.

"Your father has long been tasked by Voldemort to raise you at your best, Draco. You were special, hence the Dark Mark on your right arm instead of your left. The Dark Lord saw great potential in you, a potential he wanted to use so much that when you became an official Death Eater, he couldn't wait to summon you and start doing his bidding…" Dumbledore trailed off, letting a hint hang in the air.

"Oh my god…" Hermione gasped softly, realization sinking in. "He must've wanted to summon you that night of the Quidditch Final…but your Dark Mark doesn't contain Muggle-born blood…it contains your blood—pure blood…" she squeezed his hand again. "So when he called for you, it must've backfired…and instead of being summoned to him, you were—"

"Scarred from head to toe," Malfoy finished angrily, glaring at the floor as if the Dark Lord's face were engraved on it. "But if the bloke failed to feed on Muggle-born fear that night because his summoning of me backfired, then why was I the one who got so bloody beaten up?"

"I am not too sure about why random cuts appeared all over you, for as far as I know, Voldemort's summoning has never backfired before. Perhaps this is truly the effect of it on the Death Eater being summoned, but this is not the only outcome," Dumbledore cleared his throat. "Voldemort, too, was injured…a reverse effect of the strength a summoning of a follower was supposed to bring."

Malfoy frowned. "Glad to hear he was weakened."

"Yes, but do you know how Voldemort summons a Death Eater, Draco?"

"He touches the Dark Mark of a Death Eater beside him so that everyone else will feel the burning of the Mark and Apparate right away to him," Malfoy answered impatiently. "But what's—"

"Did you know, Draco, that the Dark Mark Voldemort touched in order to summon you was your father's? They were in your house that night—your house elf, Misty, told me…and when instead of his special follower at his side in an instant, what Voldemort got was a weakened state…he became extremely furious…" Dumbledore paused again, watching Malfoy's face contort into an expression of pure fury as the conclusion of his father's death dawned on him. "Voldemort isn't one to show mercy, Draco…he gives no room for mistakes and does not believe in forgiveness and second chances…I truly am sorry, my boy…"

Hermione saw that it was getting harder and harder for Malfoy to hold in his anger at the Dark Lord, and he was trying his best to keep himself from shouting out loud how unfair and unjust everything was. "And…what about…mother…?"

Dumbledore kept silent for a while, and then he looked down on the floor sadly. "To Voldemort, the innocent mean nothing…"

And that was the last straw. Fear gripped Hermione when she finally saw Malfoy's angry tears trickle silently from his eyes. "He'll pay for this," he murmured, and Hermione's eyes widened when he started to get up and screamed hysterically, "HE'LL PAY FOR THIS!!!"

"Draco, please!!!" Hermione started sobbing now, as she held his shaking shoulders and held him back down on the couch. Malfoy slammed his fist onto the cushions as hard as he could. "Damn it!!! Damn that son of a bitch!!!"

Hermione wrapped his arms around him in a comforting embrace, crying for his sake. She couldn't believe that just because of Voldemort trying to summon him as a Death Eater—something he didn't even want to be—he almost died because of his wounds and his high fall, and both his parents had suffered a terrible fate…

And now, Malfoy was left, just like Harry, without a family anymore.

Hermione cried even more as she felt Malfoy weaken in her arms, and his trembling form told her how painful this was for him. She hugged him tighter as he grew more vulnerable by the minute, and she knew by his succumbing to her that he, too, was silently crying.

Now she knew why Dumbledore considered the scenario of Hermione and Malfoy half-naked the lesser of his concerns tonight.

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Sorry about the little delay!!! It was exam week and all…but to make up for it, here are two tasty chapters!!! Quite revealing, both physically and plot-wise!:D I can't tell you all how EXTREMELY grateful I am to you guys for giving me all the support in the world!!! I can never thank you guys enough. I never dreamed I'd get this much awesome feedback!!! I just really hope I don't disappoint all of you!!! I'm doing the very best that I can:D So how're you all doing? How were the new chapters? It's really all culminating now…I hope I can continue to entertain and satisfy you guys!!! Please keep R&R-ing!!! You are the BEST!!!!! THANKS SO MUCH!!!