Chapter 28


No amount of mental shields, no rationalization had prepared Severus Snape for this day. Granger was pregnant with the Dark Lord's brood. Twins. He had personally taught her the charm to use after that first encounter, trying to avoid this with her. But it seemed he was already too late, because at the moment he taught her she was already with child.

He had denied it for months now, his attraction to Granger, and he'd succeeded. He'd told himself she was a student, he her mentor. He had kept it professional and had provided her with the comfort she needed in the face of her affections for his Master. He had dismissed his affections for the natural caring that came from pity to anyone who'd been through her ordeal.

But now, knowing what had befallen her, he was angry. Angry that she'd been defiled by one of his masters, angry that those children existed, and angry … angry that they couldn't be his. He'd wanted her to get rid of them so he could one day pursue her, when the Dark Lord was vanquished and he was free to do as he wanted. Yet with the swell of her stomach, she would become more and more the Dark Lord's and less and less his own. Not that she was his at all.

But worse, she would be swelling with the Dark Lord's children well after he was meant to kill the Headmaster. Her trust in him would be compromised, and she would be alone with her children. Maybe Draco would be allowed near her, but most likely she would be completely reliant on the Dark Lord during her most vulnerable time.

With that horrible image of Hermione, heavily pregnant and alone with his master, he found himself in the Headmaster's office.

"We need to move up our timeframe," Snape urged the Headmaster. "You said it yourself, the Dark Lord is once again mortal. This entire war could be done by first month of Summer, if not earlier."

Severus had come to the Headmaster to – as far as Miss Granger was concerned – inform him that Nagini would be guarding her. What he truly wanted from him was a confirmation that he would not be forced to abandon Miss Granger by killing the Headmaster. Dumbledore, however, was being a stubborn man.

"We cannot risk everything simply because of Miss Granger's unfortunate circumstances," the Headmaster informed him sadly. "We do not have the numbers."

"We do," Severus assured him. "More accurately, we will on the day. We need to mount a defensive at the Ministry; only then can we be sure to have the aurors come to our side, and most of the Ministry at that. I will convince the Dark Lord not to wait for the offensive."

"Tom will never change his plans solely at your directive," Dumbledore said pointedly.

"If we were to fake your death," Severus asserted carefully, "then, perhaps, we could finish this within a couple of days. He would believe I was leading his forces in a Blitzkrieg; first Hogwarts, then the Ministry before anyone can prepare."

"You are forgetting your Vow, my boy," Dumbledore asserted. "In the end, you or Draco must kill me if you are to live. And should I fight Tom after the fact, and lose, you would have failed. I fear that, if we fake my death, you with be signing the certificate on your own."

Severus stiffened at the reminder, but kept his face impassive. "Then so be it."

Dumbledore now looked at him closely, scrutinizing his features. "This, coming from the man who told me not two months ago that I asked too much of him? That he was at his breaking point?"

He remained silent under Dumbledore's inquisitorial gaze, only giving him a stiff nod to show his comprehension. There was nothing he could say that would change what he had expressed not long ago.

"Severus," Dumbledore said gently, "don't think I am oblivious to what's going on within my own walls. As of now, you've kept your regard for Miss Granger within the bounds of propriety. However, should you be-"

"I am not involved with Miss Granger," he denied quickly and mercilessly, suddenly very self-conscious. "I care for her well-being, nothing more."

Dumbledore's eyes were sad. "And yet you're willing to die for her?"

"As I would make a vow for Draco, I would break that vow for Hermione," her first name slid from his tongue effortlessly. "She is … dear to me, Headmaster, and I will not deny that we have become close. However I will not involve myself with a student."

At his declaration, a knock came at the Headmaster's door. When it opened, a gaunt-looking Draco Malfoy stepped into the room.

"Ah, Draco, my boy!" Dumbledore greeted. "What can I do for you today?"

"I've changed my mind," he said confidently, only the slight slump of his shoulders giving his reticence away to Severus' eyes. "I'll do it. I'll accept the Dark Lord's offer."

Dumbledore leaned forward eagerly in his seat. "I'm pleased to hear that, my boy. And how did you come to this decision?"

Draco was trained to lie from birth, so Severus could see his training coming in. He didn't avert his eyes from the Headmaster, he stiffened his shoulders, and used his hand when speaking. "I want to protect my family. If I go back, I can keep an eye on them and give me support."

Severus glared at him. "Draco, while Miss Granger's condition is sympathetic, she cannot be the basis for this decision."

"As she was not the basis for your own, Severus?" Dumbledore said simply from his desk, eyes twinkling.

Draco looked shocked. "Really?"

Severus glared at them both. "This is irrelevant. Miss Granger's predicament is a tool we should use to our advantage! The Dark Lord wants the children she's intent on bearing, and we can use his investment to lure him out!"

Severus saw the look Draco gave to both him and the Headmaster, but for once he didn't care what his godson perceived of his words. He neede Albus to agree to move up the timeline of the war.

"I agree that Miss Granger's pregnancy presents unforseen problems as well as opportunities, Severus," Dumbledore said. "However, until we can remove the bloodstone collar that keeps returning her to his side, there is nothing we can do,"

Severus owed Draco his life for the next words the blonde boy spoke. "That's it?"

"You know how to remove it?" Severus demanded.

Draco nodded, now faltering under the intense gaze of his godfather. "I-it's the Malfoy family collar. My mother gave it to his before he tossed me in the dungeons."

Dumbledore was now onboard. With the knowledge that her collar could be removed, plans started to fall into place. The Dark Lord would not live to see the birth of his children.


Hermione had a hard time sleeping that night. Her magic kept waking her, throbbing and humming. She blamed the pregnancy. Without thinking, she leaned across the bed and grabbed at Voldemort. When he stirred, immediately she began to panic.

"Something tha matta'?" Voldemort murmured, turning to her. His blue eyes found her panicked face and were suddenly wide open. "Are you alright?"

Hermione shook her head. "But ... you're not upset, that I woke you?"

Voldemort suddenly saw what the problem was. She still believed, even with the time he'd spent with her, that he would one day become the pale monster that haunted her dreams.

"Oh, my witch," he whispered, drawing his hand up her legs, earning a shiver in trailed it higher, higher, earning a gasp as he moved passed her core and took to stroking her pregnant stomach. "Do you not know how precious you are to me? I would never harm you, a most assuredly not while you carry my heirs."

"I'm sorry," Hermione whispered.

He only nodded at that, dipping his hand under the elastic of her pajama pant and playing with the hairs there. He heard he take a quick breath, and he continued. "Now, what's wrong?"

"My magic, I-I couldn't sleep," she looked down, ashamed. "Sorry, that's such a poor reason. You can go back to sleep."

Only Voldmeort would understand how that could be. As much of a blessing as their magic was, it made it a sentient being with a will of its own. If it wanted to wake you, it would. So, instead of questioning further, he reached out and pulled the young witch into his arms.

"Little witch, you are giving me the greatest gift I could imagine," he murmured, pressing a kiss to her forehead. "Children, born of magic and binding, and heirs to my house. I believe that entitles you to my attention in the night, don't you?"

He watched her blush brilliantly at his double entendre and grinned. His little witch.

"I-I suppose," she stuttered out, still blushing. "But it's not like you can fix it."

He leaned down and captured those ill-prepared lips in his, reveling in the pure bliss the act brought. This little witch was more precious to him than all his death eaters for that sole reason. No matter the circumstance, he always wanted her. She could make the dull meetings interesting, the painfully lonely nights warm and full of her, her comfort and the bliss her body could bring. Already he was hardening because of the many nights he'd spent inside of her supple sheath.

"Perhaps, if I can't stop your magic from misbehaving," he breathed, "I can take your mind off of it?"

He heard her breath catch and knew she wanted him too. Capturing her lips again, this time more forcefully and passionately, the way that would bring her to gasp and respond for more, he tilted her until she was against the mattress with him pressed firmly into her.

Hermione was already gasping when he detached his lips from hers and moved them down her neck, suckling and bringing a warm coil of heat to her abdomen, reminding her of how aroused she could be by this man. His hips were securely against hers, an fact she was glad for as she ground into his budding erection with her wet core.

It escalated quickly. Voldemort wandlessly divestoed them both and their naked bodies revelled for a short while in just the feeling of skin on skin. Hermione was in love with the hard planes of his body, brushing up and down his taut stomach and right down to his pubes. Voldemort spent his attention on her breasts, enjoying their bouncing and taste in his mouth.

It wasn't long before the Dark Lord decided he need to have his witch, and right that second. Without a single word of warning he slid into the witch, loving her gasps of pleasure as he took her. His pace with slow, not wanting to jostle the children forming in her lovely center, but it was unforgiving. He went all the way in until his pelvis pressed into her hipbones and did that every time. It was common for him. He wanted nothing more than to live in the witch's tight sheath, and being fully ensconced in it was his idea of perfection.

"More, love, please," Hermione begged, grabbing his hips in return and pulling him in tighter, the angle subtly changing to match her pleasure. "Oh."

Love. The girl said love. The word seemed to pang in his chest, making the movements inside her mote pleasurable than they'd been before. He rode her until she came apart, clenching and trembling around him to prompt his own dive off the deep end. He said her name the whole while - not witch, not sweet - Hermione. It was the first time he'd used her name so intimately.

His witch was exhausted enough to sleep against his side, but he was now awake. His mind working furiously as he thought of the witch to his side. Hermione had called him love, and he had enjoyed it. He had reveled in it and let the word bring him pleasure. But more than that, he had wanted to say it back. Had he fallen for the witch? For all his railings against love, could he have unintentionally fallen for the girl?

The answer, the cursed answer came as he looked at her resting face on his chest. She looked so peaceful, so innocent. His heart warmed. No. He flinched at the thought. The Dark Lord does not fall in love.


After meeting with the Headmaster, both Slytherins met up in Professor Snape's office for a much needed drink. Draco was watching the dour Potions Master, wondering just what his feelings were for the Gryffindor.

"So…"

Snape shot him a glare. "If another person indicates I am enamored with a Gryffindor child, I will not be responsible for my actions."

Draco nodded, hiding his smirk in his glass. "Can't blame people for being curious, can you? I've never seen you so affectionate."

"Miss Granger is in a difficult position," Snape said slowly. "As I know the full extent of her torment, I'm in a unique position to provide comfort. Unlike you, Draco."

Draco stiffened. "Oh?"

"Do not play dumb," Snape admonished him. "Rarely have I seen one of my Slytherins willingly approach the Headmaster, and even then it was with deference and veiled scorn. You acted like a Gryffindor, charging in ready to demand action. And all for Miss Granger."

He should have known godfather would get jealous of his supposed interference, but Draco was not the kind to go for the curly haired Gryffindor. Still, that didn't mean he couldn't use the assumption to prove his godfather's interest in his friend.

"She is hard not to care for," Draco replied cautiously, feeling the terrain. "I, er, she promised that I'd be Uncle Draco to the kids."

Snape glared down at him, making Draco squirm. "Indeed? Not daddy?"

"With Granger?" Draco grinned. He had him. That glare was enough to show that Snape was angry at him for his closeness to the Gryffindor. "No offense to you, but she's not my type."

"Feelings like that can change," he warned him, almost hoping the boy would change his mind. If he had someone like Draco to bow out of the way for, he wouldn't need to be so close to her. "I once viewed her as almost an apprentice, someone under my care. Now we are friends."

"Only you wish you were more, don't you?" Draco smirked at him, making him feel unnerved by the boy's perceptive capabilities. "You like Granger."

"If there wasn't a Dark Lord and she were ten years older, perhaps," Snape grunted non-commitally, not letting himself feel the lecher he knew he was. "Try not to look so smug, Draco. I thought you were enamored with the girl."

"Not a chance, Uncle," Draco replied cheerfully. "She's a friend, but I don't think I could get past her hair. Though for you I think she works. Smart, a bit of a dark streak…"

"Too young for me," he pointed out sternly. "How do you think Miss Granger would react if she thought her Professor and friend regarded her amorously?"

Draco shrugged. "Probably flattered. You know how girls like the dark, brooding older man thing. It's the challenge."

"Jealous, boy?" Snape smirked. "Your father never could get some girls to fall over him. They preferred the anti-hero look to the pretty boy."

"Some girls," Draco huffed. "But you're avoiding the question, godfather, and that tells me everything I need to know. You like Granger. You want her."

Snape didn't deign to reply.

"And she's pregnant."

He narrowed his eyes at the Malfoy heir, his previous anger being rekindled. "Tread carefully."

There was a lull in conversation for a moment, sips of whiskey being the only sound. Draco thought better of poking Snape for a reaction, which soothed his temper marginally, but the question he didn't ask hung in the air. He had, when he'd loved Lily, thought he would care for Potter as his own if she came to him. When she died, he would have raised the boy if Dumbledore hadn't insisted on him going to his Aunts and Uncles. Could he, when this was over and the Dark Lord died, help her raise his Master's children? Would he still want her when she had them attached to her?

The thought of Hermione breastfeeding a dark-haired boy snapped him from his reverie. He wouldn't think of it. He wouldn't let his thoughts get that far.

"I needn't tell you that if there is any chance you will reveal my regard for Miss Granger to the Dark Lord, I would obliviate you without a moment's hesitation," Snape stated calmly, which he knew would unnerve the boy even more. "He must not know."

"Why would he care?" Draco asked.

Snape took a sip of the whiskey. "He is taken with her. I believe if anyone were to encroach on her they would find themselves dead without a moment to pray. Moreso now that she carries his child."

"He likes Granger?" Malfoy's eyes were bugging out of his head. "Are you serious?"

"Undoubtedly," he sighed. "Miss Granger has become quite the obsession of his from what I gather, both from her mind and from him. He is pleased with the idea of her bearing his children."

"I don't understand it," Draco grimaced. "The idea of the Dark Lord … liking her … touching her … him being the father … the idea of him having that much power over Granger …"

"The indestructible Hermione Granger," Snape nodded, understanding. "She is often put on a pedestal, both by her peers and her professors as an unassailable representation of good behaviour, but the truth is she is that it is a façade. She is human, Draco, as much as you. She has her own fears and vulnerabilities, and the Dark Lord is well aware of this and has used it to exploit her."

"How did it happen?" Draco asked him, now intent on getting an answer. Snape stiffened in his gaze, and he knew the Potions Master was going to avoid answering. "Don't lie to me, Uncle."

"I never lie."

Draco sneered. "No, but you tell half-truths better than anyone I know. Tell me the truth."

"Some of it is not mine to tell," Severus said slowly, seemingly contemplating his glass of whiskey. "What have you been told so far?"

Draco narrowed his gaze at his pseudo-father-figure, intent on understanding every gesture of the composed man. The way he was being observed over the roman nose was unnerving, like his godfather expected some declaration of love for Granger. Draco knew better, and it wasn't him who cared for Granger. He knew his godfather would care for Granger no matter what happened in the war, to the point where he was convinced that with some time together they'd fall for one another. So he spoke slowly, hoping to draw out his godfather's most minute reactions to confirm it.

"Granger was, somehow, captured," Draco started. "She was, somehow, bound to him in some kind of ritual. She somehow has all this power and can apparate through the school wards. And the Dark Lord is, somehow, the father of her children."

Snape smirked at his petulant repetition. "Yes, those are the bare details. I'm to presume you want details beyond that, then?"

"Yes."

Snape sighed and reached for the liquor. "Should Miss Granger grow angry at my indiscretion, I will present her with the excuse that I was inebriated beyond reason. Another?"

Thank you for all the lovely reviews! I got someone on my other fic telling me to update this one, so here it is! Severus, Draco, and Dumbledore getting together a new plan for the end of Voldemort. Voldemort beginning to realize the depths of his feelings for the witch he bound to him, and Hermione, pregnant and now the deciding factor in a war being fought early just for her.

Review review review!