April 11th

Laying naked with her legs tangled up in the sheets, Hermione felt a sinking in her gut. It was dark outside, the time must have been at least one in the morning. Augustus lay next to her, asleep and snoring without a care in the world. Their physical exertions the previous morning and then again that evening had been tiring for his body that was still recovering. She glanced over at the man to witness a contented smile still spread across his lips. From the moment they first came together on his couch in front of the fireplace, he had been like his old self again.

She envied him the ability to forget, even for just a moment, all that had happened in their lives since they had to break off their relationship at the orders of the Dark Lord. The way he acted and the way he spoke, one would think that they were at least thirteen years in the past again. Hermione couldn't ignore all that had happened to live in blissful ignorance for longer than a few moments at a time. Of course, it wasn't as if Augustus had to worry about being captured by his homicidal husband and dragged back home to face a lifetime of punishment for his attack. If it was discovered that he was hiding her in his home, the worst he could expect would be some painful curses from Antonin and perhaps a reprimand from the Dark Lord.

If she was caught, she had a great deal more to worry about. Antonin wasn't a forgiving man. She had witnessed firsthand how he dealt with those he deemed his enemies. It was brutal, cruel, and not at all how she wanted to experience the last few moments of her life. Despite what everyone else might have said about him, she didn't believe for a second that he was actually concerned about her wellbeing. She had humiliated him in front of his influential friends. That could not be borne. He might use the sympathy of others to aid him in his quest to recapture what he believed to be his, but she was not fooled.

It bothered her immensely that Antonin hadn't come back to Augustus' house since she arrived. Wouldn't he stop at nothing to ensure he found his hateful wife again? Pushing aside her worries that it didn't seem all that plausible that he could've come to the house three times without being seen, it wasn't like him to just give up. If his instincts were set on the fact that she would eventually show back up in Cornwall, he would soon come pounding on the front door. She wondered if the investigation into the explosion at The Leaky Cauldron was what kept him away. Only his Dark Lord's orders prevented her husband from behaving exactly as he pleased.

In the worst of her anxiety and addled mind, Hermione was embarrassed to admit that she wondered if Antonin didn't have the real Augustus hidden somewhere in the house where he could easily pluck his hair for more doses of polyjuice potion. Maybe her husband was pretending to be her lover all along. But, the illogical thought only served to make her snort and chuckle when she stopped to actually think about it. First of all, polyjuice potion was so illegal it was almost impossible to get. Even Antonin would struggle to acquire the massive vats required to pull off an elaborate subterfuge for so many days. He would have to swallow the potion twenty-four times in a single day to keep up the disguise. That was impossible. She'd seen him sleeping in the middle of the night. He wouldn't be so careless as to sleep in front of her if there was a chance the potion would wear off before he could take another dose.

Besides, there was absolutely no way that he would've been able to push his jealousies and hatred for Augustus aside long enough to play him so well. Also, their personal conversations over the course of the several days she'd been there could never have been possible if he was Antonin. There was so much the man she married couldn't possibly know about their relationship. Antonin might use polyjuice potion long enough to get close enough to catch her, but he wouldn't stay that way for days. It made absolutely no sense when she stopped to really think about it. Augie was Augie. There was no way anyone could pretend to be him so convincingly.

Allowing the line to be crossed with Augustus when he returned from his summons had been a terrible idea. Hermione's entire life seemed to be full of those. To give a person false hope about a future that could not be was cruel. Especially if she allowed herself to believe it too. No matter how many plans they made or promises they uttered, there wasn't a future with Augustus. At least not one that lasted long. An expiration date was always stamped onto their relationship. Just because they delayed it by over a decade didn't mean it wouldn't finally come calling.

In between fervent bouts of lovemaking that reminded her so much of the idealistic child she still was before she married, Augustus whispered promises of a fantastical nature. He suggested over and over again that they sneak out of the country together. For such an intelligent man, he seemed awfully content in remaining in ignorance about the lengths to which they would have to go to accomplish such a feat. Even if he was granted an international portkey to return to France in the next few days, it wasn't exactly as if she could use it with him. Laws were put in place to prevent anyone from using an authorized portkey outside of the Ministry of Magic. Either he would have to smuggle it out, which could result in a lengthy stay in Azkaban, or she would have to sneak into the Ministry with him. Though they could bribe whichever poor soul was in charge of the portkeys allowing British citizens to leave the country, the chance of her getting caught were too great.

Augustus had a number of dreams for how they would spend the rest of their life together. Not a single one of them made any practical sense. They were all pretty fantasies that sounded wonderful in the moment. None of them would work out in reality. His disillusionment with the Dark Lord and his regime wasn't exactly a secret. Many knew that he had some valid concerns about the future of their country. He might have balked and complained when first ordered to make his home in France as the regime's ambassador, but as time progressed, he found fewer and fewer reasons to leave his new home. How he managed to get himself tangled up in the affairs of the Resistance was still a secret he didn't seem in a hurry to explain. But, it was evident that he desired a rather drastic change.

It was tempting for Hermione to cling to his promises as fact. When he spoke of running from the Dark Lord's influence permanently, she could think of nothing else that she wanted more. After being alone for so long running, the idea of having someone there with her was appealing. She might have been willing to throw caution to the wind for no other reason than because she was tired of being alone. Having another person to lean on, bounce ideas off of, and share in the adventure or the danger might make the meaningless existence she'd been living for so long the slightest bit better. What was the Muggle saying? A problem shared is a problem halved. Running with Augustus filled her both with excitement and dread. It would never work.

"Love, why are you still awake?"

She had been so consumed by her ever-increasingly depressing thoughts that she didn't even notice her bed companion had woken up. Gently, Augustus wrapped his arm around her body to pull her against his chest. She didn't protest or push him away. Just feeling him next to her helped to calm her nerves. Taking a deep breath, she could feel her body relax.

"Just having a little trouble sleeping. Can't get my mind to shut itself off."

"I used to remember a very effective method to getting you to stop thinking."

His statement was laced with innuendo that made her laugh. With a gentle swat to his bare stomach, they both laughed. Part of what she had always been attracted to in the man was his ability to laugh and make those around him do the same. Before he was convicted of being a Death Eater years earlier when Igor Karkaroff was struggling to save his own sorry arse, he was a well-liked person within the Ministry. He had a number of friends and close colleagues that were shocked to learn about his activities with the Dark Lord. Some of the man he once was never left Azkaban, but he still gave off the impression that he hadn't a care in the world and everything was one big joke. Perhaps because that was so very different from her own personality, Hermione found it irresistible.

"We have to be careful with activity like that considering your age. You might break a hip. That could be quite an awkward explanation to the Healers."

Augustus snorted and kissed the top of her head. If he ever felt embarrassed by the large gap in their ages, he did what he could to hide it. The jokes that they both made concerning how old he was or how young she was were always made in good humor. Sometimes it helped to alleviate the inevitable discomfort that would come about when he remembered he was old enough to be her father and she thought it meant something awkward that she'd never really been attracted to men her own age. Perhaps there was more to the psychology of it all than she was comfortable exploring.

"You're usually right. If it wouldn't hurt my pride too much, I might even admit that the last day, while infinitely pleasurable, has left me a bit achier than I care to dwell on."

Hermione snorted. Through the benefit of their magical genetics, he was only just barely approaching middle age. Assuming he took care of himself and stayed out of risky situations that could get him blown up, he could conceivably live for several more decades.

"Try to get some sleep, love. Whatever's weighing on your mind will be there in the morning when you wake."

Unable to argue with his statement, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath.