Disclaimer: obviously not mine. Why would it be on a fan fiction site?

Chapter sixteen

Malfoy sat down beside her and waited for her to speak. He knew she was going to. He could sense it. Sure enough…

"Do you remember the last time we were near the ocean?" she asked in a dreamy voice. "I had just decided to get that abortion"

"It was also when I realised that I wanted to keep her"

Hermione looked around at him, eyes wide.

"You did? You knew all that time and you still made me go through hell?"

"I was trying to do the right thing"

Hermione sighed and rested her head on his shoulder.

"Well you made the right decision in the end, didn't you"

"Yes… do you ever regret having Shia?"

Hermione stayed quite for a moment, staring out at the hypnotic waves.

"No I don't. I get frustrated with her but I've never regretted having her"

"Do you regret me being the father?"

"Never" she answered instantly. "You've been there for me through the entire thing. I couldn't think of someone better to be her father"

Draco turned and kissed Hermione's temple.

"You ready to go home?" he asked and stood up. She nodded and let him pull her up.

They walked at a leisurely pace back to where they had left their shoes.

With one last sweet kiss with the oceanic scenery, they went home.

The palace was dark when they actually reached it and they wasted no time at all in creeping upstairs to Malfoy's bedroom.

He pushed her back against the bed and sent a trail of soft kisses down her neck and across her collarbone. Her lips parted in an unwilling moan as he began pulling her dress straps away from her shoulders.

Very suddenly, and quite unexpectedly, she froze and pushed Malfoy away.

"What? What's wrong?" he asked, sitting back and giving her space.

"Don't you remember what happened last time we…" she trailed off, blushing. Malfoy grinned and reached across her to a drawer in his bedside cabinet. He extracted a condom wrapped in a shiny green packet.

"Is that enough or do you need more?"

It was Hermione's turn to grin.

"I'm on the pill. I think it'll be enough" she pushed him down on the bed, straddled him and proceeded to rip off his clothes.

Hermione, dressed in nothing but her bra and knickers, cuddled up to Draco and sighed.

"That was nice," she whispered, tracing the contours of his chest.

"Only nice?" he asked, nipping her neck teasingly.

"Ok it was fabulous."

"That's more like it" Draco stretched his arms up then put them behind his head. He was wearing a pair of plain black silk boxers. They had both gotten dressed afterwards in case someone decided to come running in.

Shia's cries could suddenly be heard from the monitor beside Malfoy's bed. Hermione sat up and swung her legs over the side of the bed.

"Where are you going?" Draco asked, grabbing her arm and pulling her back.

"I have to get Shia"

"No you don't. Mum has her tonight."

Hermione paused and sure enough, about ten seconds later, she heard Narcissa's voice cooing Shia into silence over the monitor. Draco rolled over and turned the machine off before pulling Hermione back into the circle of his arms.

Warm and content, they drifted off to sleep.

Hermione woke sharply the next morning when the bedroom door crashed open and Narcissa came running in, her face white with terror.

"Draco, he's here, he's come!" she said. Draco sat up sharply, his face going as white as his mothers. "Draco, you have to get Shia out of here. I'll hold him off" Narcissa left as quickly as she had come and Draco rolled out of bed and pulled on his jeans from the night before.

"Who's coming?" Hermione asked, pulling on her Chanel dress.

"My father" he replied shortly. "C'mon" not bothering with a shirt, he grabbed Hermione's hand and together they ran down the hall to Hermione's room and the nursery.

"I thought he was in jail!" Hermione said frantically, grabbing a blanket and wrapping Shia in it.

"He must have broken out" Draco ran into Hermione's bedroom to collect and scatterings of toys and baby things. Charlie entered the room pulling Kellie with Anik and Bruce right behind. Hermione handed Shia to Charlie.

"Take her to the Weasley's" she ordered. Charlie hesitated.

"What about you?"

"I'll be fine! Please, just get Shia out of here" Charlie turned on the spot and apparated.

"Stay in here with Anik. I'll go talk to him. Hopefully he'll leave." Draco dropped the toys and things on the floor of the nursery then he and Bruce left, pulling the tapestry closed behind them.

"Where's Mark?" Hermione asked, pulling the tapestry back a little so she could see.

"He's with Harley and Narcissa"

"And why are you here?"

"Because Lucius doesn't know about me. He doesn't know about this room, either. It's best to keep things like that a secret as long as possible"

Hermione nodded and peered out into her bedroom. She could see through her room and out into the hall. Draco and Bruce were standing either side of the door, waiting for Lucius to come.

"I don't know anything about a baby, Lucius. Would you please leave!" Narcissa appeared in the doorway, pleading with her enraged husband. Harley and Mark were nowhere to be seen.

"Shut up, you silly woman! I'm here for Draco and the child."

"There is no child!"

"I said shut up!" Lucius swung out at his wife. Draco sprang from behind the door and grabbed Lucius' arm before it could come down. Bruce stepped out and secretly pulled Narcissa away.

"What are you doing here?" Draco hissed at his father, fury etched in every line of his handsome face. Anik stepped up beside Hermione so he could see as well.

"I'm here for the child, Draco"

"What child?"

"Don't play stupid" Lucius sneered, pulling out his wand and pointing it at Draco. "I'm here for you child"

"I don't have a child, you brainless prick, now get out of my house."

Bruce pulled out his own wand and trained it on Lucius' chest.

"You heard him, Lucius. Get out and I wont kill you"

"I have a handful of death eaters at my command downstairs. I can summon them in the blink of an eye, are you really stupid enough to try it, Bruce?"

Back in the nursery Hermione drew her own wand.

"I reckon I can hit him from here…"

"Don't" Anik pushed her hand down. "Not until you have to"

Dumbledore suddenly appeared behind Lucius and Hermione almost screamed in surprise.

"Hello, Lucius, pleasure to see you again"

Lucius jumped and span around.

"D-Dumbledore, what are you doing here?"

"Oh, I just thought I'd drop in for a chat. You weren't in your jail cell so I could only presume you were here" Dumbledore said pleasantly. Lucius swung around to face his son.

"You called him here, didn't you? Your just as weak as the rest of them…" Lucius seemed quite oblivious to the shocked look on Draco's face.

"I know you have a child here somewhere, Draco. And I'm going to come back for it" Lucius gave his son a harsh shove before apparating on the spot. Dumbledore disappeared half a second later.

Draco stared at the spot for a moment before slumping back against the wall.

Hermione ran out into her room and grabbed her trunk.

"Kellie, pack Shia's things" she instructed, throwing her own clothes into her trunk.

"What happened?" Narcissa asked Draco, moving forward and putting her hand on his forehead.

"He was trying to use Occlumency."

Narcissa bit her lip and stepped away.

"He knocked Harley and Mark out from behind. I'll go and wake them"

"I'll come with you" Bruce said with a quick glance at Hermione before following Narcissa. Anik wasn't far behind them.

Draco turned and watched Hermione throwing schoolbooks into her bag before straightening up and blocking the doorway.

"Your coming back, aren't you?" he asked in what sounded like a scared voice.

"I don't know. I'm going to go and stay with the Weasley's for a while. I can't let something like this happen again. Shia is in danger here, Lucius could come back"

"He wont come back"

"He might"

"Please don't go"

Hermione closed her trunk and pulled it over to the door. Draco blocked her path, looking down at her with pleading eyes.

"I'm going for a few days. Just until I feel safe again." She kissed him, short and sweet before taking her trunk downstairs.

Kellie joined her a few minutes later with her own trunk and a small suitcase for Shia.

"How are you getting there?" Malfoy asked entering the room behind Kellie.

"We'll apparate," Hermione said defiantly, checking over her belongings to make sure she hadn't forgotten anything. "I know how to. I've done it before"

"I'll kill him, you know that? He can't do this to us then live."

Hermione straightened up, horrified at Draco's words.

"Dumbledore'll catch him and send him back to Azkaban."

"I'm still going to kill him. He's been giving me shit all my life and I'm sick of it!"

"Please" Hermione put her hand on his cheek and forced him to look at her. "Don't do anything to… Rational. Shia still needs her father and she can't have that if you're locked up in your fathers place"

"Fine" he said after a moment's silence. "But I'm going to triple the security of this place"

Hermione smiled and kissed him. "I'll see you later."

"Come back soon" he pleaded seconds before she apparated.

Oh chariot your golden waves
are walking down upon this face
Oh chariot I'm singing out loud
To guide me
Give me your…
Strength

Well I'm back… Sydney was great. The reviews were fab and now you get to do it again! Now I know Hermione might have gone through hell in that chappie but that's nothing compared to what's coming in the next few…

ENJOY!