Hermione was so engrossed in her work that she did not notice the master of the manor enter the library. Quietly, without making himself known to the young woman, Lucius Malfoy walked over to the sofa and sank into the cushions. The strange silence of his guest since he had returned from his walk with Hermione made him restless, and so his feet almost automatically found their way to where his slave was. He had come to regret selling her body to another man. Back then - not so many weeks ago - Granger had been nothing more than a mudblood to him, high on the Dark Lord's list of enemies and a valuable catch accordingly. Sure, he liked young women and had indulged in some crude jokes with her, had explored her body - but he himself would never have thought of dragging her into his bed against her will. Now that he saw what Severus had done to her, he knew again why he hated violence against women. He wished it was in his power to heal this wound and show her how much fun sex could be. But even when she gave herself to him willingly, she was not able to enjoy it or let herself go.

He wasn't used to thinking that way about other people. Sure, in the past he had spent hours brooding over Narcissa, always looking for new ways to make her happy and give her a good life. But the madness that was so prevalent in the Black family had unfortunately also destroyed his beautiful wife as she grew older. The care he had given his son had long fallen on fertile ground and it had filled him with pride to see Draco emulating his role model. Since the incident at the Ministry, however, he seemed to have nothing but contempt for him - and so his life had been empty, lacking people he could care about in recent years. The fact that he had always prided himself on his reputation for being aloof and cold had done the rest to freeze his feelings.

And now he was sitting here in the library, looking at the slender back of the petite woman in front of him - and worried. He wanted to know what had happened that night, wanted to know why Severus took her for a walk, wanted to make sure he hadn't hurt her again. But he couldn't. He clearly understood the warning, realised that there was a real possibility that the Dark Lord could suspect him of blood treason. The proximity of his slave to Severus Snape also meant the possibility of him reading her mind and discovering the weak moments when he was too gentle with her.

It took Lucius a moment before he realised that Hermione turned to him and was looking him straight in the eye.

"Is there anything I can do for you, sir?"

The irony in her voice made him flinch, even more than the cold look in her eyes. They had barely exchanged a word since Severus Snape entered the manor - where did her sudden coldness come from?

"Watch your tone when you speak to me," he reprimanded her, but his words only seemed to add fuel to the fire.

"Forgive me, Your Highness, for this simple slave's tone of voice. Do you crave this filthy body or are you in the mood for even fresher meat?"

That was all Lucius needed to understand what was up. He could have guessed that Hermione would take his attempt at diversion with Ginevra Weasley the wrong way.

"If you're referring to your friend - I didn't do anything to her."

"Because you were interrupted!"

"I told you I prefer willing women," Lucius replied firmly, "and that still holds true. Maybe she would have let me, maybe not."

He could see her clench her fists in anger, but instead of replying, she simply turned around and went back to her work. Lucius groaned inwardly - he could try as hard as he wanted, his tender feelings for this woman would never be reciprocated. Every time he thought they took a step towards each other, something happened and it was two steps back.

Hermione froze as two fists suddenly rested on the table to her left and right and the distinct smell of her master washed over her. She knew she crossed a line with her verbal attack, but her disappointment at the man's actions was just too great. She actually thought he was more honourable.

She felt him bring his lips close to her ear and whisper, "I really didn't intend to do anything against her will. I can't explain to you why I ... tried. Not now."

Without warning, she was wrapped in his strong arms and pulled into a tight embrace. Her anger faded and gave way to a cold feeling of trepidation - she remembered only too well what had happened the last time she had been alone with Lucius Malfoy in this library. She blushed at the thought of what she had allowed to happen and suddenly wondered if he hadn't just been faking his weakness to get her where he wanted her. Before she could get to the bottom of the question, she felt his large hands pushing up her dress. Ignoring her resistance, Malfoy pulled it over her head, grabbed her bra and removed it too.

"Mr. Malfoy..." she whispered in horror. She didn't understand what was going on in this man's mind. Didn't he just emphasize that he wouldn't approach a woman without consent? Or did he think that because she had opened up last time she was here, she would do it again? She opened her mouth to protest, but he immediately placed a finger on her lips to silence her. Irritated, she noticed that he was only looking at her, but not touching her.

"He left you alone?"

She almost didn't hear his quiet question. "What?"

"Severus," came the reply, "he didn't touch you last night?"

"No!" Hermione groaned as she tried to cover her body with her arms. "If that's all you wanted to know, you could have just asked!"

"Sometimes you really do live up to your house," he replied with a smirk. "You roar like a lioness."

Unable to say anything in response to his quick change of mood, Hermione silently grabbed her things and got dressed again. Lucius Malfoy, meanwhile, surveyed her work.

"You've made quite a bit of progress, I'm surprised."

Against her will, a proud smile crept onto Hermione's face. "I've always organised my own literature in a similar way, but without magic. If you know what you have to do, it's easy to assign books to the right categories and find keywords."

She was about to sit down at the table again and continue working, but her master obviously had other things on his mind. With his arms crossed, he leaned against the edge of the table and looked down at her.

"How are you coping with Severus being here?"

Taken by surprise, Hermione slumped down in her chair. The question hit her just as unexpectedly as the conversation with Snape that morning. Had the two men secretly agreed to keep throwing her off balance today?"

"I's fine," she finally said in a low voice, her eyes to the ground, "the side he showed during our… experience together - that's what he calls it - he hides it well. At the moment, he's only showing himself as I knew him before ... like the arrogant, cold teacher he always was at Hogwarts."

"So, you're not uncomfortable spending time alone with him?"

"Of course I am!" Hermione hissed. "But it could be a lot worse."

Silence spread as she felt the blond man's scrutinising gaze on her, but she refused to look up and into his eyes.

"Don't you understand?" she whispered at last, "I'm happy not to be reminded. I want to forget. And if Snape doesn't do anything to remind me, then I'll be glad for it. The only way for me to deal with the past is to forget. I don't want to look back forever. I refuse to give up on my future and lose all hope. But I can't hope if I let Snape or anyone else tie me down and only look to the past. I'm just tired of feeling sorry for myself and despairing."

With the last words, she lifted her head to finally look Malfoy straight in the eye. She was surprised to see how much warmth there was in the gaze that met hers. Shuddering, she lowered her head again.

"I was right," Lucius Malfoy murmured more to himself than to her, "you really are the only person in my house that I can trust unconditionally. I always know where I stand with you."

"You shouldn't trust me with Voldemort's latest plans," Hermione replied with a grin, "because I would use that against your master. But yes, otherwise you can be sure that I won't betray you. How could I, we both know which side I'm on."

"Amazing that you can joke about something like that."

"Like I said," Hermione explained, "I'm tired of despair. I want to think positively and believe that me and my friends can have a bright future. The best way to not fear an overpowering opponent is to laugh at them."

Lucius Malfoy broke out of his rigid pose, grabbed one of Hermione's hands lying on the table and leaned down towards her. "Where did this sudden strength come from? Where has my fragile, frightened slave gone?"

Hermione's thoughts briefly wandered to Draco, but she immediately pushed him aside and put up barriers in her mind - she couldn't risk Malfoy or anyone else getting into her head in a careless moment and discovering the conversation between her and Draco there. Thus, she just smiled softly as she looked her master firmly in the eye and replied vaguely, "I've had a lot of time to think."

Unexpectedly, Lucius Malfoy placed the fingers of his free hand under her chin to bring her face closer to his. "I like that," he breathed softly into her ear, then bridged the final distance and pulled her into a long, tender kiss.

More out of surprise than genuine reluctance, Hermione broke away from the kiss, but before the man in front of her had a chance to protest, she rose and brought their lips together again. She longed for physical contact and security, this man could and would give her that - she didn't see why she should refuse it or feel guilty if she accepted. She blocked out her surroundings in order to give herself completely to the feeling of his soft lips and the strong arms that gripped her tightly. And as Lucius Malfoy always did during his intimate moments with her, Hermione momentarily forgot reality and the terror that waited beyond the arms of this strong man.

oOoOoOo

When Hermione returned to the kitchen in the evening, Ginny had disappeared. Alone, surrounded only by house elves, she helped with the preparations for dinner, trying not to worry about her friend. Lucius Malfoy spent the whole afternoon in the library watching her work, so he couldn't be the reason for her disappearance.

Like during lunch, the three men's dinner passed in silence. Ginny still hadn't reappeared, so Hermione was beginning to worry. She took advantage of a moment when she was pouring wine for her master to ask, inaudibly to the others, "Where's Ginny?"

Lucius, only now realising that a slave was missing, turned to his guest. "Where did you leave the young Weasley?"

"I sent her to my apartment," Snape replied impassively. Without another word of explanation, he continued his meal.

Hermione looked questioningly at Draco, but he could only shrug his shoulders and shake his head. Perhaps Snape decided not to let Ginny fall into the clutches of Lucius Malfoy again, she mused. She regretted not talking to her again during lunch. She had the feeling that she had wasted a valuable opportunity and suddenly felt very lonely. The warmth she felt in her master's arms didn't last any longer than the hug itself.

Annoyed, Hermione silently scolded herself. She used such proud, brave words when talking to Malfoy and now here she was, weak and sad and dejected once more. Grimly, she straightened up. She could make plans without Ginny. She just needed more information - and who, if not Severus Snape, could provide it? She had to find a way to use the rest of the time he would still be in the Malfoy Manor to sound him out.