When they returned to the Manor, it was clear to everyone that there had been a shift in the relationship. Hermione wasn't sure what it was that tipped them off exactly, as they hadn't said anything to anyone, and she didn't think they acted too differently.
Perhaps it was the way that Rabastan went out of his way to touch her. Perhaps it was the extra affection that he bestowed on her during the rare times that they would eat with the other Death Eaters. Or maybe Rabastan had shared with Rodolphus what had occurred. The way her brother-in-law would grin at her always made her a bit uncomfortable, but at least he didn't mention babies as much anymore.
Still, Hermione had been enjoying the shift in their relationship for the week that they had been back, although returning to the Manor had brought them back to reality. She'd shared with him the note that she'd received from Millicent. Initially, Rabastan had been outraged that she would bring in Draco and Millie into their plot to destroy the horcruxes, but eventually he conceded that it had been her only option at the time.
He had been a bit dumbfounded, though, to hear her insist so vehemently that she was willing to die for her cause. As someone who had been in Azkaban for over a decade, he didn't share her willingness to die for the Order, though, if pressed, he probably would die for Hermione. She was now his responsibility.
They had discussed the other possibilities of horcruxes, as by Hermione's calculations, there should only be one left, if the boys had been able to destroy the locket. The other night, as they had been lying naked and sated in bed, they'd discussed what object it might be. Although they had not yet fully consummated their relationship, Rabastan wasn't shy about intimacy and seemed to really enjoy getting her off with his tongue, lips and fingers. And in turn, Hermione enjoyed learning new ways to make Rabastan lose control, as well.
"It has to be the snake," he whispered to her. "Nagini. The Dark Lord brings her everywhere with him."
Hermione shivered, and not from the cooling sweat on her skin. "Can you make a living horcrux?" she asked him, still unsure at the prospect.
"Ever since we dealt with the Cup, I've been able to sense the magic in Nagini. I don't know if a living horcrux has been attempted before, but he would definitely be the one to try it," Rabastan told her, pressing his lips against her temple.
"Then we won't be able to get rid of her until the end," She told him, resignation settling into her soul. She didn't know when the end would be, and she didn't particularly like thinking about it, as it brought all kinds of questions about her relationship with Rabastan into question.
It had been a week since they settled on the idea that Nagini was the last horcrux. The morning after that conversation, Rabastan had left and not returned. Hermione assumed he was on a mission for the Dark Lord, but as the days ticked by she worried that he might have been suspected by Voldemort. He'd never been gone this long before.
But, by the seventh day, she was ready to do something about it. She called for the House Elf, who seemed to be incredibly surprised that she was asking it for anything. "Please bring me to Rodolphus," Hermione told the Elf firmly. "Right now."
The Elf grabbed her hand and popped her into the office that Rodolphus was currently in. He'd been having a firewhiskey, although not particularly enjoying it. By his expression, he had not expected to be confronted by her. "Hermione?" he asked, his voice gruff as though he hadn't talked in hours.
"Where is Rabastan?" she asked, trying not to let her concern bleed into her voice. She wanted to seem reasonable and in control of her emotions. It would do her any good to seem panicked, as it might set off alarm bells.
"He was on a mission," Rodolphus said softly. "He was supposed to be back three days ago." It seemed that his brother being gone was just as concerning to Rodolphus as it was to Hermione, which, truly, was a bit touching. She knew how important family was to the Lestranges, but it was rare to see much emotion from the large man.
Still, Hermione was incredibly annoyed that she was only just hearing about this. "Were you ever going to tell me that my husband was missing?" She placed her hands on her hips in the way that always got Harry and Ron to admit exactly what they were up to.
Rodolphus winced. "Rabastan always comes back." He set his glass down on the table. "But, I'll admit, this is a long time, even for my brother. If he wasn't back this evening, I was going to go looking for him."
"Bring me with you then," Hermione insisted. She needed to make sure that Rabastan was okay, safe...and her arms once again.
He smiled at her, before shaking his head slightly. "Look, I am worried about him as well, but even I am not stupid enough to bring you with me. You'd bolt at the first chance."
Hermione felt guilty that the thought of fleeing hadn't crossed her mind once. Instead, her heart had been set on making sure that Rabastan would be okay. She should have been trying to get back to Harry and Ron to help them. Feeling defeated at Rodolphus's denial of her request, she felt her shoulders slump. "Well, you will let me know if—" Her quick inhalation at the prospect of what she was suggesting was audible. She swallowed back the awkward lump in her throat to continue speaking. "When you find him."
Rodolphus offered her a grim smile. "Of course. You will be the first person I tell," he promised.
Hermione was startled from deep sleep by someone opening the door. She peered through the darkness, able to make out the large figure of Rodolphus, helping someone walk into her room. She waved her hand, and all the candles in the room flared to life.
Rodolphus was too distracted by Rabastan's groaning form to notice her use of wandless magic. Unconcerned with her attire, Hermione kicked back the covers, and rushed over to help guide Rabastan to the bed, the cool air forcing her wide awake. "What happened?" she demanded.
"I found him in a Muggle hospital," Rodolphus cursed. "They found him unconscious, but the fools haven't been able to stop the bleeding because he was cursed."
Hermione helped settle Rabastan onto their bed. As soon as he hit the mattress, he drifted back into unconsciousness. It seemed that the trip from the hospital took away much of his energy. Hermione already felt tears in the back of her eyes at seeing him in this state. "Who did this to him?" she asked Rodolphus, desperate for answers.
"The Order, who else?" Rodolphus told her casually, as if he were used to it. Hermione initially thought that the Order wouldn't do something like this, before realizing how silly that thought was. Of course they would. He was just a Death Eater and they didn't know how much she lo-loved him. The thought rushed over her like a tidal wave, but luckily, Rodolphus was quick to distract her. "I can counter the curse, but I have never been good with healing spells. Can you help him?"
Hermione bit her lip, shaking away all of her emotions. She needed Rabastan alive in order to discuss her feelings, and if that meant healing him, she would do it. "Yes, I have read up on a lot of them." She barely blinked when Rodolphus handed her Rabastan's wand. Clearly, no one knew that she had been returned her own. Still, his wand just felt right in her hand.
Rodolphus quickly began countering the curse, and Hermione waited for the opportunity to help heal him. It was almost unbearable to watch the curse pulled from him, as he groaned and cried, even in his unconscious state. She wanted to take away all of the pain that he was feeling.
Finally, Rodolphus was finished, and Hermione began to run healing spells to stop his blood flow and repair internal wounds. It took a long while, but she was able to get the bleeding to stop, which was their primary concern. "Now we just need some blood replenishing potion and a bit of dittany. Can you get him some?" she asked Rodolphus as politely as possible.
"Dittany?" the larger man asked, wanting to make sure that his sister-in-law wasn't aiming to become a widow. He wasn't so good with potions ingredients.
She didn't even hesitate though, in telling him what it was for. "It's to help with the scarring. I will change the sheets while you are gone." Hermione felt as though all of her energy was drained, but she wasn't done helping Rabastan yet.
After Rodolphus left the room, she used his wand to magically change the sheets, as the ones that had been on the bed were now bright red with blood. After removing them, and settling Rabastan back in, she called for a House Elf, so that they might begin cleaning the sheets. She knew Narcissa would be very upset if they were ruined.
When Rodolphus returned, she administered the potion, using her fingers to massage his throat to ensure that it was all swallowed properly. Then, she lifted the sheets to apply the dittany to the scar on his abdomen. Rodolphus let out a sigh of relief when the wound began stitching itself together. "What now?" he asked her after she tucked him in.
"All we can do now is wait until he gets better," Hermione told him, trying to let him know that he had an ally in her where Rabastan was concerned. She wanted him better as much as his brother did, although she suspected for vastly different reasons.
Rodolphus nodded, knowing that his brother was in good hands. "I will leave you alone then. I will be back tomorrow to check on him, though," he warned.
Once Rodolphus had left her room a second time, Hermione finally allowed her body to sag. That had really taken a lot out of her, and all she wanted to do now was rest. She walked around to her side of the bed and climbed under the covers.
Shuffling over, she let her leg tangle with Rabastan's, upset with how cool his skin felt to the touch from the blood loss. Moving his arm, she wrapped it around her body, so that she might rest her arm and head on his chest, taking extra care not to disturb his new wound.
Once she was fully in his embrace, she felt the tears come to her eyes again. It didn't take long for her to be fully crying against him, so glad that she hadn't lost him. The thought of what would have happened to her in the viper's nest hadn't even crossed her mind yet, all that she could think about was not being together with Rabastan any longer. She'd only just found him and she wasn't ready to give him up.
Hermione was sitting in the little window seat, reading a book, when Rabastan began to stir. No sooner had she gotten to his side than Rodolphus entered the room. "He's just waking up," Hermione said quietly, trying to make the transition to consciousness as easy as possible.
"Dolph? Mione?" He said, blearly looking around the room in confusion as everything began to come into place. "What happened?"
"You were attacked," Rodolphus told him gently. "Some muggles found you and took you to one of their hospitals." He scowled, even though he knew that their primitive methods did help keep him alive for as long as he was. Still, Rodolphus shuddered at the idea of sewing someone shut. "Hermione and I took care of you though."
"My wand?" Rabastan said, as the flood of memories came back.
"Hermione has it," Rodolphus told his brother curtly, not worried about her using it against them. "Do you remember who it was that got you?"
Rabastan's eyebrows furrowed as he thought back. "Lupin and Shacklebolt," he revealed.
Hermione felt her breath leave her, but neither brother paid it any mind. She couldn't believe that Lupin and Kingsley would do that, but she supposed that they were fighting a war.
Rodolphus patted his brother on the shoulder. "I will leave you in Hermione's capable hands to rest. I will stop by tomorrow though, to see how you are feeling." With that, the older brother left the couple to their own devices.
"How are you feeling?" Hermione asked gently, looking at her prone husband, her heart swelling with gratitude that he was actually recovering. All night, she'd been plagued with dreams that she'd wake up with him dead in her arms.
"A bit sore, but mostly fine," Rabastan told her, his light green eyes wandering over her form. Clearly she had been under a lot of stress recently. "How long was I gone for?"
Hermione bit her lower lip. She didn't want to make him feel bad, but at the same time, she wanted him to know just how worried about him she'd been. "You'd been gone for a week before I went to talk to Rodolphus. He brought you back the day after." Unable to stop herself, she threw herself into his arms, sighing into his warm embrace. "Oh, I am so glad you are okay."
She rained kisses all over his face and seeing his gentle smile at the treatment, she placed a kiss against his lips. It didn't take long for their kiss to become quite passionate, as they usually did. Hermione moaned into his mouth, delighting at the feel of them being connected once again.
Before long, she wanted her body fully pressed against his, and found herself climbing atop him, pressing her chest against his, and her legs placed on either side of his waist. She could feel that he was already hard against her, and she wanted nothing more than to be with him fully.
But, Rabastan used his hands to gently push her shoulders backwards, breaking the kiss. Confused, but eager, Hermione sat up, perched on his lap, and removed the jumper she was wearing, before reaching behind her to unclasp her bra. When her breasts were revealed, she heard Rabastan hiss and his cock twitched in anticipation against her. "Stop, we don't have to do this," he said to her, no longer willing to look at her naked torso.
"What? Why not?" Hermione demanded, worried that he didn't want her anymore. Had being attacked by her friends made him realize that she wasn't worth it?
"I will not take advantage of your heightened emotions and consummate our bond. It's a big decision," he said, his eyes traitorously straying to her narrow waist. He wanted nothing more than to consummate their bond; it was actually all that he'd been able to think about since they'd spent Yule in Jersey.
Hermione laughed. "You aren't taking advantage of my emotions. I was worried about you, but the thought that you might not be around made me realize that I...I love you, Rabastan," she said with a smile on her face.
His eyes snapped to hers at that confession. He opened his mouth to speak, but Hermione just pressed her delicate fingertips to his lips. "Don't. I don't want you to say it back, unless you are sure of it." The serene smile on her face showed that she was completely comfortable with him. "But, what I do want...is to have sex with you." She rotated her hips against his. "Can we proceed?"
Rabastan looked up at his witch with utter amazement. How had he been lucky enough to get Hermione Granger? "Yes, but I am still a bit sore, so, go easy on me," he jested.
Hermione matched his smile and stood from the bed, unzipping her jeans and pushing them down her legs, taking her knickers with them. He would never get tired of seeing her this way. She was gorgeous. Hermione didn't waste any time though, and pulled the blanket down his body, so that his bare form was revealed to her.
Rabastan hissed at the sudden rush of cold air, but moaned when Hermione repositioned herself on top of him, her core settled intimately against him. Merlin, she was wetter than he could have imagined. When she leaned back down to kiss him, he finally let his hands cup her breasts, her nipples hard beneath his skilled fingers.
Once she'd been kissed into a tizzy, Rabastan felt Hermione lift herself slightly, before positioning his tip against her cleft. Then she slowly reseated herself, taking inch after inch of him, until he was fully inside of her. She was so tight and hot, he had to bite his lip to maintain his composure. Merlin, she felt like sin.
Hermione felt so full and complete, but after letting her body adjust was eager to move, lifting and lowering herself over him again and again. Her body was singing with the magic of their wedding bond, finally completed. The push and pull of him entering felt better than anything she'd imagined, and she quickly found herself moaning, a coil in her core tightening. Slowly she rocked her hips, finding an angle that had her toes curling, loving the feel of him inside of her.
Soon, Rabastan couldn't take her slow pace any longer. He gripped her hips tightly, knowing that he needed her closer, harder. Using his own hips, he was soon entering her faster and faster, moving closer to his own peak. It took only a few more strokes before Hermione was coming around him, her silky walls grasping at him, not wanting to let him go.
The feel of her rhythmically clenching around him and her keening cry of his name soon had him following her into ecstasy, his hips jerking as he emptied himself into her, groaning.
Hermione quickly collapsed against him, and Rabastan enjoyed the feeling of her pressed against him. He ran his fingers through her curly hair, the soft feel of her breathing lulling him to sleep.