A/N: Another bit of a shorty! And I'm terribly sorry! I had given you all high hopes for a while there, coming out with chapters like they were going out of style and then leaving you to wait, oh so long! I have been trying really hard to get this chapter out... Sadly my mind has been on the end of this story. I can't stop thinking about when I can write the final chapter, not because I want the story to end, but because I really want to write what I have planned for it! And sometime I will get to adding a 4th chapter to 'Stay'... But it might be a while. THANK YOU ALL, for your reviews. Rereading them is what has pushed my to get this out and while it may have a few errors and might seem a little rushed, I'm okay with it. On with the story and I hope you enjoy.

Chapter 23

April 7th, 1997

Weeks had gone by and nothing. Not a thing happened. Nothing exciting anyway. No more letters arrived, and no attacks pursued. Hogwarts had been Death Eater free besides the fair few Slytherin students Draco was aware of who were too stupid to know that the power they were promised was nothing but a rouse to get them to join. The Dark Lord was very manipulative that way, Draco had to admit. While he despised everything Voldemort stood for, he couldn't say that Voldemort wasn't a powerful wizard, he was, but for all the wrong reasons.

He had earned his power through fear.

And while fear was a powerful influence, it didn't promise loyalty. Great, now he was sounding like a goddamn Hufflepuff. Just what I fucking need...

He looked up when Blaise nudged him in the side. Pansy and Hermione were walking towards the table, Pansy chatting animatedly away about some book she started reading, while Hermione was silent. Yeah, nothing life threatening had happened, but Hermione had more or less gone back to the hermit she had been at the beginning of last summer.

When she took her seat beside him, he wrapped one arm about her shoulders, pressing his lips to her temple gently. But she pushed him away with a smile that was probably supposed to be an apology, but there wasn't any effort on her part and was quite pointless. He had tried everything to get her to smile, really smile. And he practically had to force her to eat, he all but picked up the fork and hand-fed her himself.

No, he stared at her and pushed her plate closer, giving her a frown until she conceded and finally picked up her spoon and took little bites of her porridge. When they were alone, he tried telling her the stress wasn't good for the baby, and that not eating wasn't good for Ellery either. But it only ended in an argument.

At one point he had even gone to Dumbledore. Asking the older man if there was anyway that they could get Hermione out of the school. Sure, he didn't fancy seeing Greyback (if the werewolf did tag along) but his main focus was Hermione. The thought of Dolohov coming for her was becoming a life threatening situation for both her and the baby.

Dumbledore was no help, and Draco made sure to get all his points across. Dolohov was after Hermione. No doubt Greyback wouldn't mind getting his claws back on him and then... Well, Bellatrix Lestrange would probably 'love' to see Theo again. The thought of his friends and his girlfriend in danger made the know already in his stomach grow. He didn't like it. But of course, Dumbledore gave him a good reason as to why they couldn't move them anywhere.

Hogwarts was one of the safest places, and even while there was a tear in it's protection, it would remain the safest place to be. Because, quite frankly, what if the school was being watched? People couldn't apparate in or out of the Hogwarts, so they would have to leave the grounds, leave the protection of the school. What if they were caught before they could ever make it to the apparition point? There were too many 'what ifs', too many dangers.

So Draco was left to watch his girlfriend fall back into the pitiable person she was before the start of term. She had worked so hard to get over things, but now touching was once again a taboo. She nearly started hyperventilating every time someone other than Draco touched her. And even Draco couldn't touch her for long. Kissing on the mouth was a huge no-no. Hugging only lasted for ten seconds before she would ease out of his arms and slink back. And now she flinched every time he tried to hold her hand. The one thing he could always count on, from the beginning of their bizarre relationship.

But he was patient... Merlin, was he patient. He didn't want to spook her. He didn't want to unintentionally harm her, so he took it all in stride. Every time she cringed, every time she pulled away... He bucked up and bared it all. Held his head high as if nothing was wrong and kept up his cool facade in front of his fellow students.

But he was suffering deep down.

"What's wrong with, Hermione?" Draco very nearly cursed the Boy-Who-Lived, when he was pulled into a broom cupboard. But then Potter didn't have his wand out, so he slowly put his away.

"Why don't you ask her," Draco sneered. Hermione seemed to be getting along good with boy wonder, however, Draco would never forgive Potter for what he and Weasley did to his girl.

"And talking with her is so easy, now," Harry shot back. "I just want to know what's wrong..." his tone took on a softer approach now. "Ever since she got that letter she's been depressed."

Draco's eyebrows nearly disappeared in his hairline. Potter saw, so that meant the whole school saw. "If Dumbledore and the Order haven't filled you in, I'm not going to tell. It's not my place anyway, Potter."

"The Order? You know about the Order?"

Draco closed his eyes, teeth gritting together to hard you could practically hear it. He took a a deep breath through his nose. "Yes, I do," he finally said. "Now, I can't tell you wants wrong with Hermione. If you really want to know, ask her." He said and left the broom cupboard, slamming the door behind him.

/-/-/-/

April 15th, 1997

Hermione knew she was worrying her friends, even as they all went about as if nothing had changed. She could see the hurt in Draco's eyes every time she pushed him away, every time she flinched at his innocent touches. It was hard, so hard... She wanted him to wrap her in his arms and keep her safe.

But even thinking about allowing anyone to touch brought memories of that night. That night she was trying so hard to forget, and nearly had for a moment there.

She hated Antonin Dolohov. She wanted him dead. Gone. Wiped off the earth, like the scum he was. But beforehand he deserved pain. Lots of it.

While she feared the day when he would come to the school, and she knew he would come. She awaited it, thrived for it, because that day she was going to kill him. She had made the choice, and it wasn't a hard one. It had been simple and easy. And it scared her, that she could think of taking a life without feeling guilty. Without feeling one single ounce of remorse. Then again, this was the man who broke her, and then laughed in her face. This was the man who shredded her innocence and chuckled while doing so. No, she wouldn't feel guilty, and remorse be damned. He deserved every bit of the hell she would put him through.

She looked across from her where Pansy was sitting, watching as the black haired girl pushed the food around her plate with a look of revulsion. Blaise beside her inquiring what was wrong. Hermione's eyes slowly widened, but she didn't say anything when Pansy met her gaze and looked alarmed. She slowly smiled at her friend instead of saying anything at all, reassuring her she wouldn't utter a word. And at the same time shocking her friends at the pleasantry she hadn't shown in weeks.

/-/-/-/

Hermione had her Potions text in her hands as she walked down the corridor, while she had been dismissed from classes once she hit her third trimester, Hermione still did the homework. With the book practically resting on her belly while she flipped through it idly, she rounded a corner only to stop suddenly. Was that someone retching? She took a couple steps closer only to see a dark haired witch bent over and heaving.

"Pansy?" she asked and wobbled over to her friend. While she hadn't been exactly conversational lately, she couldn't hide her worry. She placed a hand on the girls back, dropping her book to the ground as she gathered Pansy's hair with the other. "Oh, Pansy..."

She saw the tears streaming down the black haired girls face and only when it seemed that the worst was over did she step back to give her some room.

Pansy wiped her mouth with the back of her sleeve and sniffled. "I didn't mean for it to happen, Hermione," she said through a sob and Hermione stepped forward to wrap the other girl in her arms, letting her cry on her shoulder.

"It's okay," she said, running her fingers through Pansy's hair, soothingly. "It's all right. Sometimes you can't help these things. I'm here for you, everyone else will be too, I'm sure of it."

Bit it didn't seem to ebb the other witch's worries, as Pansy only continued to cry.

/-/-/-/

April 17th, 1997

Hermione sat in Defense Against the Dark Arts, listening to Snape's lecture on the aftereffects of the Cruciatus Curse. At the beginning of class she had searched out for Neville and found his coloring to be almost as pale as Snape's and Draco's. But as the minutes ticked by, she noticed that he grew more serious, not allowing the subject to scare him. And she felt proud of him and knew his parents would be too. The boy had truly grown and was going to be a fine man, and hopefully someday he'd make an honest woman out of Luna, if he was to continue watering her fern.

Before she could reprimand herself though, she caught Pansy's look from across the room and she smiled at the other girl. Pansy was in complete denial. She couldn't accept her condition and in so had completely ignored Hermione that past couple days.

Hermione didn't blame her.

Draco sat beside her and she smiled at him briefly at the beginning of the lesson. Then, in the middle of it and at a very crucial moment in Snape's lecture, she reached over and took Draco's hand into her own. Nearly sighing when she felt his cool fingers wrap around hers after a hesitant pause. She looked at him and it took all of her strength not to lean over and press her lips against his. She didn't know if it was hormones or her infinite desire to feel his soft lips against hers, but she wanted to snog the daylight out of him.

She knew she had been distant, and her sudden need to be held in his arms was a bit overwhelming and even a tad bit frightening. She was completely in tune to him for a second, feeling a jolt shoot up her spine when his thumb slowly caressed her palm and his perfectly manicured eyebrow raised in question.

Of course, the moment hadn't lasted.

A soft knock came from the door. Everyone was either looking at the door curiously or at Snape's glare. Hermione felt sorry for whoever was interrupting the class.

"Come in," Snape sneered, and they all watched as the door slowly opened and a scared second year Hufflepuff shuffled into the room. The poor thing was practically shaking. "Well?" Snape snarled. "What is your reason for disrupting my class?"

"L-Letter for Hermione G-Granger, s-s-sir," the Hufflepuff held out the tattered envelope, her hand shaking, nervously.

Hermione tensed when she saw the envelope and she felt Draco's hand squeeze her own lightly.

"Well give it to her, you imbecile," Snape said, but the sneer wasn't as fierce as before.

The Hufflepuff ambled over to Hermione, nearly tripping over her own feet as she handed the envelope to her and then ran out of the classroom as if hell hounds were on her heels.

Hermione looked at the envelope trembling in her grasp. The plane seal and the texture of the paper was enough to tell her who it was from. It had been weeks since she had received the first letter. And now, here was another...

Slowly, very slowly, Hermione left go of Draco's hand to pop open the seal. Once again she slid the piece of rough parchment out and stared down at the letters looking up at her.

'See you soon, lover.'

Hermione stared at the words, tears filling her eyes as she bit her lip. This time she looked at Draco, finding him bristling in his seat with anger as he stared at the short letter in her grasp. She looked up when a shadow fell over their desk and she saw Snape's face blanch when he read the note over her shoulder.

"Mr. Malfoy," he said, clearing his throat when it seemed to catch, uncharacteristically, for a moment there. "Would you please escort Miss Granger to her rooms?" he asked and gently took the parchment out of Hermione's hand. And this time, she let go of it willingly, letting him have it.

Draco stood and gathered both of their things, Hermione watching him while the rest of the class watched them expectantly, before he helped her out of her seat and led her out of the classroom.

In silence, they walked down the corridors and up stairs. Getting the occasional 'hello' from portraits as they passed by the ones who were rather jolly during the day, but neither Draco nor Hermione returned the greeting.

When they stepped into Hermione's rooms, Hermione immediately wrapped her arms around Draco's neck. She heard their book bags fall to the ground with a hard 'thud' before his arms wrapped around her waist, pulling her as close as her protruding stomach would allow. They stood that way for the longest time. Embracing before the portrait hole, deathly silent, and holding one another.

Hermione felt so stupid. All this time she had denied herself Draco's touch, his warmth, because she feared Dolohov. All this time she could have been in his safe embrace, but she was afraid that it would remind her of that night last summer. Being in his arms now, she only thought of how he had promised to care for her, look after her. Her and Ellery. He had made one of the most difficult and dangerous decision in his life, by saying the child in her belly was his... And she had more or less pushed him away the moment Dolohov etched himself back into her life.

Dolohov was trying to scare her. He thought she would cower and hide, and she had for a while there. But not anymore. He would not ruin her. He could not break her anymore then he already had. She had already made the decision to kill him, and now being surrounded by Draco's warmth, she was making the decision that Dolohov would no longer control her feelings.

They would be seeing each other soon and when that day came, he would be on the receiving end of her wand.

Pulling back from Draco she looked into those beautiful silver eyes of his, finding them to enthrall her like they had from the very beginning. Raising one of her hands she trace his bottom lip with her fingertip. "I don't want him to control my life any longer," she spoke quietly. "No more," she said defiantly, her gaze flicking between his eyes and his lips. "I need you to make me forget him, Draco. Please, make me for him."

TBC