AN: I know it has been a while since the last update, but I had to sort some things out. Sorry, guys. I went back to the last chapter and changed the second half; after reading your reviews I agreed that Hermione was too OOC when she just sat there and allowed herself to be insulted. I added about a page that changes the dynamics of her relationship with Bellatrix, so please take a look at that before continuing. Thanks. Lyrics are from Our Truth by Lacuna Coil.

-Ophelia

Clock is ticking while I'm killing time

Spinning all around

Nothing else that you can do

To turn it back

Wicked partnership in this crime

Ripping off the best

Condescending smile

Hermione felt almost dazed as she made her way to the Great Hall, her feet leading her automatically towards the warmth and promise of food and good company. The Gryffindor table was packed, but fell silent when she approached. Hermione's eyes drifted over the upturned faces, watching her intently with mixed pity and horror.

Her hands balled into fists. The news had clearly gotten out somehow, and when she sat down she was overwhelmed by a flood of half-hearted sentiments.

"This is unjust, Hermione. They can't do this!" But they did, and with very little opposition.

"I'm trying to get a petition to stop this law, Hermione, but… it passed before I could finish." There were only five signatures.

"All of my friends agree that this is wrong, Hermione." Oh, that's nice. Are your friends Ministry officials?

More and more people piled around the young witch, people whose faces she recognized and many that she didn't. Despite their words of comfort and sympathy, there was one message that rang out clearly on each one of their faces. Whatever they said to the contrary, they were just pleased that Hermione was the first victim and not them. It took only a few moments before she couldn't take any more. She stood to leave, but then saw Luna Lovegood struggling to make her way through the packed crowd. "Luna!" she called, reaching to the Ravenclaw. They have had their differences, but Luna was nothing if not honest and that was what Hermione needed most right now, not false sympathy.

She reached the table quickly, the crowd clearing for her as if worried that her strangeness would contaminate them. "Hello, Hermione," she said, sitting down and reaching for a goblet of pumpkin juice. The crowd quietly dispersed, one by one. Luna turned to look at the Gryffindor, smiling in that dreamy way of hers. "I heard about your wedding. Terrible, isn't it?"

Hermione opened her mouth to respond, but the blonde wasn't looking at her as she buttered a biscuit and continued. "Daddy has received a bunch of editorials about it, complaining about the Ministry's new regime. Don't you see what they really want to do here?" She looked back at her, her large eyes wide and eager with a new conspiracy theory. Hermione knew that look all too well, but was spared hearing her crazy new idea by a tap on her shoulder.

She turned, taken aback to see that it was Draco Malfoy who had gotten her attention, not Harry or Ron as she had guessed. "Malfoy?" He looked uncomfortable, but took a steadying breath, squaring his shoulders and raising his chin slightly.

"Gr- Hermione. I take it you've heard the news, I think we ought to at least try to be civil, don't you?" He raised a pale eyebrow on an otherwise expressionless face, a lifetime of practice helping him maintain his composure perfectly.

Hermione nodded, understanding how important this would be to him. Glancing around the hall, she could see the various Aurors watching him intently, preparing to strike should he attack. If the old rivals could keep their tempers under control, there would be no need for them to intervene, and no need for them to think even less of him. The performance of his life had begun; he had a lot of people to impress if he wanted to be accepted into society again. It all started with how he handled his surprise wedding.

"I agree, Draco. Why don't we go for a walk around the lake? I have a lot that I need to share with you." He nodded tersely, following as the witch rose and exited the hall. The unlikely pair walked in silence out the huge doors onto the grounds, where there was far less of a chance of being overheard. They soon reached the tree that, only a few days ago, Hermione had been lounging under with Harry and Ron. So much had changed so quickly. She swallowed hard and turned to face Draco again. After a long moment, he spoke.

"I heard about how you reacted to the new law, I did the same thing when I got the owl. I was at home and my parents saw it too. Mother was furious, but Father said that it would be much better than Azkaban, and that he at least was grateful that I would be safe and still had a chance at getting my life back together. He's right, of course, but it was very strange seeing him be the calm and rational one. That's always Mum." He scuffed the ground with his foot, avoiding catching her eye.

Hermione was unsure how to respond to that, wondering how her own parents would have reacted. She hoped that they would have been furious on her behalf as well, but as Muggles they would have even less influence than the Malfoys, little as that was. For a moment she half expected Draco to ask about her family in turn, but of course he did not. Perhaps it was better like that. Instead, he gave a shout of fury and threw a rock into the lake, where it landed with a satisfyingly loud splash.

Still not looking at me, he threw himself to the ground and began to talk again, faster and more forcefully than before. "This is complete rubbish, all of it. How stupid do they really think we are, that they can just force us together and expect their problems to melt away?" For a moment he sounded like the same whiny teenager he always had been, but then it passed and he seemed weighed down with all the troubles in the world. The Gryffindor knew that he suffered more than the rest most over the past couple of years and was curious to see what kind of man it made of him. "Father has always said that there were some crazy ideas flying around in the Ministry, but that they were inevitable and that nothing could come of them anyway. He said that there are always stupid ideas even from the best of people, but that the point of the government was to keep them from being taken too seriously. Things have changed a lot if they can actually support this plan. Surely there are powerful people who disagree with it?" He looked up at me, almost desperate.

Hermione sighed and sat down too, keeping a careful distance. "I have no idea. They've told me no more about this plan than you."

"I see." She watched as the young man's hand clenched into a fist, but he kept his voice remarkably calm. At long last, the insufferable Draco Malfoy has learned to restrain himself. "As much as I dislike it, I can understand why they would want to punish me, but why you? Did they say why they had chosen you for this, or even why they decided to attack Mud- ah, Muggle-borns in general? Hasn't the war targeted you enough?"

It was the same question that had been plaguing Hermione, and yet any time she spoke to an Order member who was in on the plan, they turned mysteriously deaf. "I don't know," she replied wearily, and Draco finally turned to face her, sympathetic. His change in demeanor was shocking, but comforting as well. If this is what Draco was like now then perhaps the witch should have agreed to marry him after all. Anyone was better than Bellatrix; it should have been obvious from the start. The decision to agree with her plan had been hasty and poorly considered, and now that Hermione was away from the confines of the hospital wing and from her menacing and piercing glare it was as clear as day. She groaned in frustration at her own crippling stupidity and Draco looked up in slight surprise.

"Are you, er, all right, er, Hermione?" He rubbed the back of his neck in discomfort, clearly struggling to be polite. She appreciated the effort, which had not been expected at all. It seemed that he would have to find out about the plan now, and the young woman squirmed in embarrassment at the thought before turning to gaze over the lake. The sun was setting over the still water, a colorful and peaceful image that soothed her frayed nerves. She took a deep breath before beginning to explain.

"Did you hear that your aunt is still here at the school?" Out of the corner of her eye she could see his face darken, his brow furrowing.

"I had heard that, yeah," he said rather gruffly. His voice was tinged with thinly veiled distain, and she was now rather apprehensive of telling him the plan. He was still a Death Eater, even if he never wanted to be, and she needed to keep that in mind. It had been far easier than it should have been to deal with Bellatrix while she was so grievously wounded, but if she and Hermione were to be married then she would have to deal with her at full strength for the rest of her life. The realization struck her suddenly, and she realized that this obvious outcome had never occurred to her at all. Once Bellatrix was fully recovered, Hermione's pity for her as a result of her injuries would vanish, as would any measure of safety. The rest of her life would be their encounter at Malfoy Manor, over and over again. The Death Eater had promised not to break any more laws, but she had never promised not to cause any more harm. Hermione shivered.

What have I done? How could I have agreed to this?

Draco interrupted her internal debate with a small cough, clearly made even more uncomfortable by the sudden silence. "Yeah, I heard that she was still here. The Ministry is cracking down on Death Eaters; most of them that are not in Azkaban yet are being held in the castle while they decide on their punishments. They were all given a last chance to talk to someone on the winning side, remember? Apparently Aunt Bella decided that her best chance was to talk to you. She, ah… She thinks you're a bit of a pushover. She was confident that she could manipulate you, or that she could overpower you and use you as a human shield." His hand was on the back of his neck again and he had the grace to flush a bit as he explained. "She assumed that you would be afraid of her… after… what, um, happened," he finished lamely.

"Well, she wasn't completely wrong," Hermione muttered quietly, then sighed. "Yeah, but she didn't count on being beaten up and restrained, did she? She never had a chance to do anything but talk, but once I got there she had nothing to say to me. Then… stuff happened, then she asked me to marry her instead of you and I agreed." The words poured from her before she could stop them, leaving Draco staring at her.

"She… you… what?" He looked at her in a kind of desperation, almost pleading for the witch to tell him that he had heard it completely wrong.

She continued staring over the surface of the lake, refusing to meet his eyes, which I could feel burning into me. "She somehow managed to convince me that it would be more helpful, to her and to you, if I married her instead of you. I agreed, and I'm not about to go back on a promise." I didn't add that the main turning point was avoiding having sex with him; that would probably be the only thing that could make this moment even more uncomfortable.

He stared at me, his eyes widening. "No, no, I don't think you understand the situation here. They're watching me and my family very carefully; this is my only chance to redeem myself. That was a very… selfish, to say the least, decision of hers." I noted the way he left me out of it, as if I was not a part of that decision at all myself. "This affects more than just you and me, Hermione. This affects my whole family, and I'm not letting you two throw a wrench on the works without talking with my parents." He stood up, brushing the dirt primly from his robes, and reached a hand expectantly towards me in preparation to Disapparate.