Chapter 24-Deliverance

Draco could barely breathe. He dare not look at Hermione until they were safely in his room. Voldemort had miscalculated he assumed that he insulted Draco and his Father by demanding he demean himself with Hermione, 'soil' his loins with a mud-blood. Instead Voldemort had been Hermione's deliverance. Now they needed to get her out of here.

Draco pushed Hermione forcefully before him doing his best to play his role without seriously hurting his witch. Draco Knew that if he was too soft Bellatrix might interfere.

"Move mud-blood,"

Hermione looked at him with defiance, smart girl, he thought. He realised she knew she must play her part too.

"Make me Malfoy," she said turning to spit at him.

Draco moved towards her with menace, I love you, he reminded her again silently before throwing her to the floor. Hermione stood up again staggering, blood dripping from her mouth where she must have bitten her lip.

Before she had chance to make more trouble he grabbed her by the hair forcefully pulling her out of the room. Hermione struggled and howled until Draco bond her in a body bind.

"Quite the little hell cat," Bellatrix laughed.

Draco scoffed, "I'll tie her to the bed post if I must."

Bellatrix looked at him gleefully, for a horrible moment he thought his aunt might ask to watch. Merlin only knew what privations she got unto in the privacy of her own bed chamber.

"No," he told her emphatically before she could ask, "we're family."

"Pity," Bellatrix crowed, "you are such a pretty boy Draco."

Draco looked at his aunt genuinely horrified.

"Alright, alright, besides your mother would never forgive me. Just remember what the Dark Lord has said." She reminded him.

"Oh, don't worry aunt I fully intend to use her well, this stuck up mud-blood has it coming to her."

Finally reaching the door to his suite he levitated the still figure of Hermione to his bed. Much to his chagrin his aunt followed him into his room. Draco rounded on her;

"You can't seriously expect me to perform while you watch."

"No Draco I just thought I would give you a little hand getting started." She waved her wand and Draco heard the sound of ripping cloth behind him. He could only imagine what she had done.

"Get out aunt Bella," he insisted shouldering his aunt out the room, "I can manage on my own."

Hermione was seething. She knew that Draco had to play a part and she was happy to play hers too but Bellatrix was beyond depraved. As she had entered Draco's room she had sliced the front of Hermione's clothes open leaving her spread bare across Draco's bed. She thought of what might have befallen her if Voldemort had chosen another man for this 'task'. How could Bellatrix assist in that? One thing Hermione knew for sure she would end the unhinged hag even if it cost her her eternal soul.

Quickly sealing and silencing the room as soon as his aunt was through the door, Draco ran towards his wife. Pulling her clothes together he pulled her towards him cradling her in his arms. He was lost for words, he would never have believed he would have cause to thank Voldemort, but the madman had at least allowed him this some small measure of time alone with his wife and , come what may, he would relish that time.

Holding her tight and rocking her gently as if soothing a child Draco kissed his witch tenderly on the forehead. He was aware she was sobbing, tears were soaking through the thin fabric of his shirt.

"I thought I was going to lose you," he whispered to her, " thought I was going to witness that deranged bitch kill you. I couldn't have allowed that Hermione, even if I had to die in an effort to save you."

Hermione was very quiet for a long time.

"I won't let you die for me," she told him in all sincerity, "I am nothing, and you have a role to play and must play it for the great good."

"Fuck the greater good," he told her vehemently, "I won't live without you, I have no role to play unless you are at my side. Don't ever say you are nothing, you are my bedrock, without you to ground me it all falls apart Hermione. You are not some meaningless, disposable cannon folder. You are mine and I will keep you safe no matter the cost."

Hermione could not hold back the tears as he told her this. She looked at him with awe disbelieving of how much he must truly love her. Her only answer was to lean forward to place a small kiss on the trip of his nose, then his cheeks, then his jaw and finally a lingering kiss upon his beautiful lips.

"I love you so much," she murmured breathlessly, "if the worst should happen I will wait for you beyond the veil."

Draco couldn't speak; he swallowed the large lump that had formed in his throat knowing that her worst case scenario was a real possibility.

"I won't do it," he suddenly blurted out; "if he orders me to kill you I won't do it."

"Then we will both die needlessly," She told him bravely.

"I would rather die, I would never be able to live with myself."

"Enough of this," another voice suddenly intruded on their tender moment.

"How the fuck…" Draco began as his father emerged from the shadows of the room.

"Being the head of this family and master of this manor has some advantageous," he told his gapping son, "now stop mooning about we need to make plans to get at least one of you out of here, together like this you are each other's weakness."

"What did you have in mind Father?" Draco demanded sarcastically, "our options are limited."

"That doesn't mean we have none, " Lucius told his son," but first we must ensure that Hermione can defeat Bellatrix," Lucius began.

"Hermione is a powerful witch father but Bellatrix…"

"Can be defeated if your wife does not handicap herself with social niceties," Lucius interrupted.

"What do you mean?" Hermione asked the elder Malfoy warily.

"I mean my dear that you can defeat her if you are prepared to meet her on her own terms."

"You mean use the unforgivable?" Hermione deduced beginning to shake her head, "then I am not better…"

"Than dead already," he finished for her.

Hermione turned a glared at her Father-in-law.

"I wouldn't, not even to save my own life," she told him stubbornly.

"But what about to save Draco's life?" Lucius demanded.

Author's note

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