Hello my most faithful readers,

First, I wanted to thank everyone for understanding what I'm going through right now, and to apologize. (I feel like I always end up apologizing to you guys for being such a crappy updates.) Things have just been so messed up lately…it's been really hard to get my creative juices going. Hope you all can forgive me, again! Also in case you didn't read the last chapter, the big thing going on right now is that my parents are getting divorced and my grandfather passed away a few weeks ago, so I've been totally haywire…so please know this fic is not being abandoned it is still alive!

Second off, just in case anyone wasn't aware, I posted a MAJOR edit of the last chapter about four weeks ago. So if you haven't read it, I would recommend it or you're going to be totally lost when it comes to this chapter.

Finally, I wanted to thank everyone who reviewed. As usual, you guys make my day, and you all are the reason I keep trying to write even when I feel like nothing is going the way I want it to. Thank you all so much. It means the world to me to have such faithful readers!

Hot for Jerry Way: Thank you so much. That is a true compliment-hope this next chapter is to your liking.

Lilo: As one of my most faithful readers, your opinion means a lot but I just wanted you to know that Lucius has been behaving that way since the war ended- not because he's a baby but because he feels isolated from the rest of the wizarding world. Every time he goes out he's verbally attacked by a large majority of the population, who don't believe he should have escaped Azkaban. Also, he just didn't want to send her the owl first because he was wanted her to have time to cool off. As for Hermione, she feels bad because she did exactly what Lucius and his type did to her before the war: she judged him on pre-existing prejudices she had without actually taking the time to get to know him. Hopefully this explains it a little better for you

Smithback: Thank you

Lillyofthevalley: That means so much. I'm so glad you like my story that much. That is probably one of the best compliments I could possibly receive. Thank you! Hopefully you'll keep loving this story! Also I'll really try to post more frequently. I totally understand how it feels to be waiting for the next chapter of the story you are into at the moment.

Readergirl828: Hopefully this story lives up to your expectations. I really appreciate the review and I hope you review again.

AreYouSirius-questionmark: Thank you so much! I really appreciate both the review and the offer to Beta. You literally made my day with this review. I really hope you decide to review again.

I love you guys so much, and I really hope you all keep reading and reviewing (or just reading either one makes me the happiest girl out there).

Lucius sat in his plush leather chair, thumbing through his first edition copy of Hogwarts: A History, calming down due to the familiar smell of parchment and the musty odor that accompanied the older tomes in his library. Despite how relaxed he appeared on the outside, the appearance of an unconscious Hermione unsettled him more than he would care to admit. Though he was wishing the woman would wake up, so that he could request some answers from her, because she had left him with quite a few questions.

Just as the thought drifted into his head, he heard whimpering coming from the bed, so he closed the book and glanced at the small woman in his bed. It was quite clear to him that she was having a nightmare. The way her face kept scrunching up in agitation every few minutes and the restless movements she was making screamed distress.

He watched her, almost as if he was in a trance, unconsciously wringing his hands. With every passing minute she grew more and more anxious, her movements becoming more violent and her whimpering turning into quiet yelps. Finally when Hermione began to voice her distress in mumbled phrases and growing volume, he stood up, moving towards the bed.

"Ms. Granger, you need to wake up," He called, standing right besides the bed, looking down at the woman, who was swallowed up whole by the silk sheets covering his bed.

"Ms. Granger?" he asked, leaning closer to her, noting the sweat beginning to gather on her forehead, and the faint smell of fear rising from her.

"Please, please! I didn't take it, I swear!" the girl screamed. Her eyes were still closed tightly, though small droplets began to fall from the corners of her eyes, flowing down her cheeks and landing with soft "plashes" in her hair.

"Ms. Granger, please, you need to wake up," Lucius called again, much louder than he had before and he was starting to get worried. Cissa has always dealt with Draco's nightmares, so he had never actually seen someone else having one. This wasn't an experience he ever wished to repeat.

"STOP, please, please," the girl was begging, tears falling more frequently, and then she began to scream. Her body was shaking so hard, Lucius was convinced she was having a seizure.

Lucius lowered himself onto the bed and pulled Hermione into his arms. "Hermione, calm down—" He never got the chance to finish what he was saying because she began to struggle violently in his arms.

Her eyes were staring straight into his, but they were glazed over, the terror clear on her face. "Please. Please, don't. I'm sorry. Please just stop." She was crying so hard, Lucius almost couldn't understand her but he didn't let her go, only pulled her closer to him, rocking them back and forth.

"Hermione, it's okay. No one's going to hurt you," he reassured, holding her firmly in his arms as she continued to struggle.

How long they sat like that, with him whispering into her ears, he would never know for sure, but eventually she stopped fighting and relaxed into his arms. She never stopped crying, but he was just grateful that she'd finally stopped struggling.

Lucius rubbed her back gently, her sobs were beginning to turn into sniffles, but she didn't attempt to escape his grasp. So he held her, letting her slowly regain her composure, until even her sniffles had dissolved into the occasional hiccup.

"I'm sorry about that," Hermione said tentatively between hiccups, pulling back until Lucius let her go. "I-I-I just…" She trailed off, glancing at the wall behind Lucius.

"Ms. Granger—"

"Please, call me Hermione; I think it's appropriate after all this."

Lucius hesitated for a moment, searching her face for any hint of sign of reluctance, "Ms-Hermione, you have nothing to apologize for. Everyone is plagued by the war, and no matter how strong a person is, they can't escape it," he replied, scooting back a little to allow her more space to breathe.

"Still, this wasn't exactly how I planned for this whole thing to go," Hermione mumbled, unsure of how to proceed. This had changed things between them somehow, and it was making her uncomfortable,. "Though I suppose no one really plans for things like this to happen." A small blush began to spread across her cheeks, despite this Hermione held his eye firmly, trying to gauge his response.

"I don't imagine they do." He paused. "How did you imagine this evening would go, Ms-Hermione?"

"Well, for one, I wouldn't have fainted." Hermione paused, running her hands along the soft silky sheets. "I was coming to apologize, as I imagine you've gathered from my presence."

"After the coffee shop, I can't imagine you coming over for a cup of tea," he muttered under his breath, before he regained himself, "Yes, well, I couldn't imagine that this was a social call," he drawled back, gesturing for her to continue.

"So, well, I suppose that I imagined I would apologize for my behavior at the coffee shop. I'm absolutely appalled with the way I behaved, and I hope we can move past that?" Hermione sighed. She opened her mouth to continue but she found herself unable to formulate the proper words. Instead she sat there for a few seconds, mouth agape, until she regained her ability to speak proper English, "A-a-and well, I thought we might start over again-maybe, we might, possibly have a real conversation instead of tip-toeing around all of this."

"I think that can be arranged, Hermione, but first, would you like to share what your nightmare was about?" Lucius asked, trying to keep his voice level. He already had some idea, but he wanted to confirm his suspicions. If it was what he thought it was, then it would appear that his sister-in-law did the girl more harm than they had believed.

Hermione stiffened, her gaze now resting firmly on the beautiful forest green and gold comforter she was laying under.

"Ms. Granger, don't push yourself," Lucius said carefully, pushing a stray curl away from her face, "I understand why you might be hesitant to speak to someone, especially me, about it."

"It's not that. Even if I was, seeing as within the next few months we will be wed, I would hope we would be able to open up to each other. It's just- I've never told anyone about the nightmares, and I hate that you found out this way," Hermione replied, her eyes still glued to the comforter. Her voice came out so small that it was almost a whisper.

Lucius leaned in, "Hermione, look at me," he replied, his fingers coming up under her chin, and gently pushing up until she looked him in the eyes. "It is like I said before. I would be in no place to judge you. We all have our burdens to bear from the war."

Hermione nodded, trying to ignore how warm his fingers were against her skin, and the smell of parchment and fine cologne that tickled her nose. "Thank you." She paused for a second to gather herself. "I was dreaming about the night in your drawing room with Bellatrix…she was torturing me again, but this time it was indescribable. Every spell she cast felt as if it was powered by a hate so powerful, it literally burned me, and there was nothing I could do. The more I begged, the worse she became. I felt so helpless…" She trailed off, her eyes flickering down once more, unable to maintain eye contact.

"I wish I could say I was surprised, but my former sister-in-law seems to have that effect on people," he replied. "I'm not sure what I can do," He stood up, his fingers brushing the cover of his discarded book, "but I imagine you don't wish to dwell on this topic. Why don't we take this conversation into the study? It would be far more comfortable I assure you. We can discuss the details of our coming nuptials if you'd like," Lucius offered, though it came out more like a question. He was surprised by how gentle he was being. If she had been Cissa, he would never have behaved like this, but for some reason the Granger girl was bringing out his tender side.

"Thank you. I would like that," Hermione replied, relieved to have the topic pushed under the rug for the moment. She was perfectly content to ignore everything that was being bottled up inside of her, for as long as possible, but it would come up again. She was sure of it. Lucius didn't seem like the type to forget about something this distressing, even though he was offering her a temporary "get out of jail free" card.

"Well, then, follow me, please," Lucius drawled, offering a hand to Hermione, which she took, allowing him to pull her up from the bed.

"Thank you."

Lucius didn't reply. He simply nodded his acknowledgement and turned to lead her out of the bedroom, across the desolate hall and into his study. He took a deep breath when they walked in, taking in the faint smell of fire whiskey, parchment, fresh ink, and the lemon oil Inkie used to clean the floors. By far his study was his favorite room in the entire manor, aside from his bedroom.

Hermione had walked behind him, scrambling to keep up with his long strides. Her height was the bane of her existence. It rarely ever did anything but trouble her. After they had crossed into the office, she watched silently as Lucius seemed to completely transform in front of her eyes into a much more relaxed version of himself.

"Shall we?" he asked, interrupting her train of thought, and gesturing for her to sit in the chair in front of his desk, while he sat down in the chair behind it.

"No better time than the present," she replied, attempting to squash her anxiety.

"Well, is there anything in particular you wish to discuss first?"

Hermione maneuvered herself into her chair, letting out a small sigh as her weary body rested against the welcoming chair. "Well, I think we need to discuss the matter of living arrangements as soon as possible, considering we won't have much time between now and our wedding to figure out all the problems that come with living together."

Lucius nodded. "That sounds reasonable, I wish I could say that I wished for us to live here in the Manor," He barely contained his smirk when he noticed Hermione's discomfort at the mention of living in the Manor, "Allow me to explain before you decide anything Ms. Granger. As I was saying, if I was being honest with myself, this place…is no longer what it once was. I have no desire to raise any children here."

Hermione stared openly, relief clear in her eyes. "I wish I could say that I wasn't relieved, but I bear no good will to this place. I, myself, wouldn't want to raise our children here. It just seems so…" She paused, trying to come up with the right word.

"Cold?" Lucius asked, effectively finishing her sentence for her.

"Precisely. Thank you," Hermione replied, startled by his not-unwelcomed intrusion. "I would volunteer my flat-" she had become rather attached to it since the war, "but I already know that it's much too small for the two of us, let alone any children."

"If you'd like, I could arrange for a friend of mine to take us around to view available properties."

"That would be lovely." Hermione couldn't even hide the surprise in her voice. She had never imagined that Lucius might actually be considerate under all the hate he had held previously. It was a little unnerving, how considerate he had been being recently, as well as now. Admittedly, it was going to take her a long time to trust the man sitting in front of her, but for the first time since she'd heard the news, she felt hope blossoming in her heart. Hope that they might actually have a chance at a happily ever after, and that she might not have to spend the rest of her life miserable.

"I'll owl him as soon as you leave, but I do need to know is there anything in particular you'd be interested in looking at?" he asked, his stormy grey eyes ensnaring her in their depths. "As for me, I was hoping for a place with large grounds, that still has neighbors within shouting distance." He had always hated how isolated the Manor was.

"That sounds reasonable. I would hope for some place with a big master suite, and plenty of rooms that we could decorate. I wouldn't want anything with more than four floors-but no less than two and I don't really have any preferences in regards to the neighborhood being purely wizards or Muggle. Though, I would prefer to have at least one Muggle town or village somewhere nearby. I want my children to be exposed to everything I experienced when I grew up."

"I believe I could work with that." Maybe if he'd been exposed to Muggles without the taint of his parents' prejudice, he might have turned out differently, and in turn he might have raised Draco the right way. "I think we should try for a neighborhood situation within walking distance of a Muggle town or residences."

Hermione smiled at him, though she noticed the hint of hesitation in his eyes. "Are you sure? We don't have to be quite so close if it makes you uncomfortable."

Lucius stared down at his desk, summoning a small tumbler and some firewhiskey. "Would you care for a glass?" he asked. He let out a sigh when she refused."Hermione, I need you to understand that my hesitation comes not from any lingering ill-will to Muggles or Muggleborns but from the fact that I've never even been to the Muggle world except for raids made during my time as a Death Eater. This is new to me, and I'm not sure how to handle something I've never experienced before."

He poured himself a half glass of Firewhiskey then returned his attention to her. "I'm trying my best, but change has never been something that has come easily to me. Please believe that I am trying, but there will be times when I am less than understanding."

Hermione just nodded, unsure how she should respond to him, her former enemy, giving her a serious glimpse of who he truly was. "Thank you for telling me. I will do my best to be understanding of your situation, because I know what it's like to be thrust into a world totally different from the one you know. If you'd like, I would gladly take you out to Muggle London sometime to give you a taste of everything."

Lucius smiled-actually smiled at her. "I think I would appreciate that." The Muggles wouldn't know who he was or what he'd done. He might actually get the chance to enjoy a day without judgment. "At least I'll have a knowledgeable tour guide."

"Well, they don't call me the brightest witch of her age for nothing," Hermione said with a small smile, though she sobered up quickly. "Now that we've at least agreed to search for a place to settle down in, I think we should talk about children and the financial aspect of our marriage."

"That sounds reasonable. Which would you like to discuss first?" he asked, taking a small sip of Firewhiskey.

"I think children might be the bigger issue at the moment. I know you already have an hair apparent, and I wouldn't want Draco to feel that my children are going to threaten his claim to the Malfoy legacy." She gazed at him, drinking in his calm appearance before she continued, "Though I must ask how you feel about children in general, because I-well, I want at least two, preferably a boy and a girl." Hermione finished with a small, awkward laugh, glad that she'd managed to stop herself from rambling.

Lucius stared at her for a few minutes, letting the silence stretch between them before he replied, "Yes, at the moment Draco is my heir apparent, but if we have any children, I don't want you to think that they will be cheated of any sort of inheritance-"

"Lucius don't think that's the reason I brought it up. I'm sure anything set aside after we marry will be plenty for my children. I don't want them to become trust fund babies," Hermione interrupted hastily. She was not going to let her future husband have the misconception that she expected him to take care of her or her children financially.

"Ms. Granger, believe it or not, I know enough about you to know that wealth is not something that concerns you. I merely brought it up because I want you to know that I take care of my own, and one of the ways I do that is by supporting them financially." In fact sometimes it's the only way I support them. He left that thought unsaid. "As for having children in general, I would like another chance at parenting, but I think having two children together is plenty. I wouldn't complain if we were to have more, but two is a safe number to me."

"Well, I'm glad we agree on that," Hermione replied, choosing not to reply to everything else he had said-not to slight him, but simply because she didn't know quite how to respond. Yes, she was grateful that he wasn't going to ignore her children, as she feared he might, but it was still uncomfortable for her to think of someone supporting her or her children in such a manner. She had been raised with parents who gave her money if she needed it, but she was always expected to work hard in school and to earn the money she was given outside of school.

"Now, you also mentioned finances. What, specifically, would you like to know?"

"The biggest thing would be that I intend to keep working after we marry-" Hermione paused, and for the third time that evening, she found herself searching for the words she needed."Because I don't want you to think I'm reliant on your money to support myself. Also, I love what I do, and I truly couldn't see myself being content as a stay-at-home anything."

"I wouldn't have expected anything less," Lucius drawled, that annoying trademark smirk of his smeared across his face.

Flustered, Hermione forced herself to ignore just how attractive she found that smirk. She brushed the stray curls away from her face, and brushed under her eyes to make sure she hadn't ruined her make-up earlier. When she realized what she was doing, she stopped, blushing a deep red, and took a breath before continuing where she'd left off. "Also, I wanted to talk about whether you wish to have a joint account, separate accounts or both a joint account and separate accounts for our income?"

"I have no objection to having a joint account, but regardless of what you decide, you will have unlimited access to the Malfoy vaults and everything in them. Just one of the perks of being a Malfoy," he finished, still smirking, though he had the decency to at least pretend he wasn't aware of how flustered she was becoming. Money had never really been a comfortable topic for her.

"I think a joint account would be best, but-" Hermione sighed, fixing him with her best 'I'm extremely confident' stare. All the while trying to smother the image of the things they could do in his private vaults out of her head. She continued after taking a second to compose herself, "How much money is tied to the Malfoy name exactly?" God, she hated asking about money, but it was something she needed to know if she was going to marry the man.

"Well, I believe it would be safe to say the Malfoy vaults are worth about five hundred million galleons in coins, various treasures such as jewels and heirlooms, along with other miscellaneous items. Then there are the various companies, food-chains and businesses we are invested in, which brings in a rather steady income that is placed into separate vaults. Though I'm not entirely sure how much is in those, but going by my last calculation, the net worth is around one billion galleons, give or take a few hundred thousand."

He paused, shooting her a glance. "Are we including property in this as well?" he asked, completely unaware of how weird it sounded to Hermione.

"Sure, why not?" Hermione replied, trying to keep the sarcastic bite from her tone, not that Lucius noticed anyway.

"Well, we have beach-front properties in Italy, Spain, and Greece, as well as vacation homes in France, Germany, and Scotland; we also have two small properties in the Virgin Isles and Louisiana."

"Are you serious?" Hermione asked, staring at him, waiting for him to let her in on the joke, but by the way he was looking at her, he wasn't kidding. "That's absolutely ridiculous. What do you even do with all that stuff?"

"I'm not sure what you want me to say, Ms. Granger." He appeared to be deciding between his annoyingly attractive smirk, and a look of complete and utter amusement. "I don't really see how it's ridiculous."

"Please, its Hermione," she replied exasperatedly. "I'm sorry if I sound a little crazy, but that is a ridiculous amount of wealth. I mean, I'm very well off by Muggle standards, but that's just-wow."

"I understand Hermione, but you did ask, so I answered truthfully," he replied, taking another small sip of whiskey.

"I have to ask this. Do you really own beach from properties in Italy and Greece?" She asked, leaning forward in her chair, her eyes a light with anticipation.

"Yes." Lucius paused, discreetly giving her the once over, "Why, would you like to visit?"

"Actually, I would love to," Hermione replied with a nervous laugh. "I feel a little silly admitting this. My parents take me to different places around the world every summer. They've always promised to take me to see the ruins in Athens and Rome. Yet it just never happened. If you wouldn't mind, maybe we could go sometime." She hated how nervous she sounded. They were going to be married, for Merlin's sake. It wasn't unreasonable for her to ask such a thing.

"I think that could be arranged." He paused, contemplating something for a second. "Hermione, have you given any thought to our honeymoon?"

Hermione blinked up at him, blushing like a tomato. "No, I haven't given it any thought, but either of those countries would be lovely."

Lucius scrutinized her for a few moments. "Hermione, I need to know. Are you a virgin?"

Her furious blush and her refusal to meet his questioning gaze were answer enough for him. "There's nothing to be ashamed of, but I do need to know how far you've gone. It will help me to know how I should behave in such an event." Clearly this wasn't the most comfortable conversation for him, either, but he didn't have any qualms asking because they couldn't beat around the bush with this sort of thing.

"Well, in truth, not as far as most girls my age," she replied, blushing a shade darker. "Mainly snogging and the occasional bit of fooling around, but nothing outside of that, really."

Lucius nodded, reaching across the desk to take one of her hands. "Hermione, I know this isn't the most comfortable topic, but I want you to know that I will try my best to ensure that you enjoy yourself. No one should have an unpleasant or forced first time. Given our circumstances, I will try my hardest to make this into something pleasurable."

Hermione nodded, resisting the urge to question him about just how 'hard' he was going to try, instead choosing to let her hand nestle against his huge palms. "Thank you. I wouldn't ask anything more of you, and I, too, will try to ensure that you enjoy it as well."

Lucius gave her a small smile, taking her small hand more firmly into his, his skin like warm velvet against hers. "I'm sure it will work itself out in the end."

After that they continued talking until Hermione looked outside and noticed the sun reaching down to caress the horizon, the face of the sun a light with warmth. "Lucius, I hate to say this, but I think I best be going. I have work tomorrow morning, considering I've been here since breakfast, I missed my usual nap and I need to get some sleep."

"I understand. Being tired on the job is always undesirable," Lucius replied, standing up and offering to escort her to her home.

To her surprise she allowed him to do so. After navigating the maze they called the manor, Lucius led her outside, and she side-apparated with him to the door of her flat. "Well, this is it. Thank you for such a wonderful evening. Could we do this again? Hopefully this time without a repeat of this morning's fiasco. do this again?" She let the question hang between them, not making a move towards her door.

Lucius gave her that delectable smirk of his, taking her hand and raising it to his lips. He placed a gentle kiss on each of her palms. "Of course. I'll send you an owl. Though I intend to let Inkie know about your issue, so that she won't take you that route again."

"Don't punish her on account of me, she couldn't have known what might happen-" Hermione replied quickly. The feel of Lucius finger against her lips quieted the rest of her statement.

"Don't worry Hermione, I no longer treat my house elves in such a manner" He withdrew his finger, letting is slide across her lips. With that curst smirk of his he was gone, leaving a spell-struck Hermione Granger in his wake, a blush slowly spreading across her cheeks.

Alright kiddies,

That's all I've got for today, but I hope the length makes up for how long this update has taken. Please review. I always appreciate it and it just makes me love you guys ten times more than I already do!

If anyone has any comments or suggestions, I welcome private messages if you don't feel comfortable reviewing. Thank you

Love,

Fallen