Someone was screaming.

It sounded like a woman.

Hermione's eyes flew open but she couldn't tell where she was. All she could see was Ron's empty face, surrounded by a flash of bright green light -

"It's okay, Hermione. You're safe."

Everything was quiet again and she sunk away, back into blissful darkness.

…

It was those damn screams that kept waking her up. Someone had to help whoever was crying out -

"Hermione?"

She had no idea who was calling her name, but it didn't matter, there was someone that needed help, a woman that Ron was probably hurting -

"Ssh. You're safe here, you're with me. You're safe."

It took a while for the coming black to take her, but when it did, Hermione went without a fight.

…

"Ron…"

"No, Hermione."

"Ron…"

Hermione's eyes shot open and she sat up so fast that she saw stars.

"Ron!"

"Hermione, no!"

Strong but gentle arms wrapped around Hermione and pulled her back until she was resting against someone's chest. The screams cotninued and Hermione fought for a moment, trying to get away to help the woman that was in obvious distress.

Soon, the smell of pine and parchment hit her nose and she stopped struggling against her restraints when she recognized it, going limp and trying to catch her breath while her mind whirled around for answers.

The screaming stopped and it took Hermione even longer to realize that it had been coming from her own mouth.

After Hermione had completely calmed, the man turned her around to look at her. His silver eyes swept over her, checking for any physical injury or distress. Hermione slowly looked up into the face of Draco Malfoy. Tears began to cascade down her cheeks and sobs wracked her body. Draco pulled Hermione against his chest and stroked her hair, planting kisses on the top of her head and murmuring words of comfort to her.

"Is it okay if I pick you up?" Draco asked softly after a few moments.

Hermione looked up into Draco's face, her eyes hungrily searching it for any sign of reproach or disgust but finding nothing there except compassion and careful adoration. She nodded slowly and he scooped her up, walking her back over to his bed and sitting down on it, pulling her onto his lap and holding her close to his chest. She rested her cheek against him and closed her eyes, listening to the steady thrum of his heartbeat.

"Hermione…" Draco's voice trailed off. She pulled away and looked up at him once more.

"You saved me," Hermione whispered. Draco nodded, his lips pressed together in a thin line. She continued: "You murdered Ron."

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Because he was never going to stop. Your safety was in jeopardy and I'm not willing to risk your well-being just to keep an asshole like him alive."

"Draco…" Hermione couldn't help but notice that the silver in his eyes turned molten when she said his name. Her heart skipped a beat and she went on, saying, "It wasn't your choice to make. How are we going to explain this to the Ministry? To Harry? To Ginny?"

"You need your rest," Draco said. He turned so he could lay Hermione on the bed before standing up and tucking her in underneath the covers. "You've been through a terrible ordeal and are still in shock. We can discuss this when you're feeling stronger."

"I'm feeling plenty strong right now," Hermione lied. Even her voice sounded feeble and she silently cursed herself for being so weak. "Time hasn't stopped just because of – what Ron did."

"I'll make you some soup," Draco said, clearly ignoring Hermione's sad attempts to convince him she was back to her usual self. "You should eat and then take a nap before dinner."

And he swept from the room, reminding Hermione vaguely of Severus Snape. She smiled to herself, imagining Draco striding around the halls of the Manor with a long cloak like Snape's that whipped around the corners as he went. She sunk back into the pillows behind her as her mind wandered back to the events of late: although quite a bit of it was fuzzy, the parts she wanted to remember least were crystal clear and always waiting to jump out at her and drag her back into despair.

It was then that she remembered what had happened right before Ron's hands wrapped around her throat -

He'd said she was pregnant.

Immediately, Hermione broke out in a cold sweat and her hands flew to her stomach. Of course there was nothing there to feel, but now that she thought about it, something inside her did seem different. Surely Ron was wrong… wasn't he? He had never been proficient with medical spells, so it was quite reasonable to think that it was either cast or being read incorrectly. Hermione shook her head. There was no way she could be pregnant. She'd been careful to continue taking her contraceptive potions and had been performing her own diagnostic spells every so often to check up on her health and make sure she hadn't conceived.

But now that she thought about it, she hadn't been brewing any potions for herself while she'd been staying at Malfoy Manor. She had been planning to do so at Hogwarts, where the ingredients were easy to obtain and the Potions classroom always open to her, but had been so sidetracked with everything else going on and spending all her spare time with Draco…

So maybe it was possible.

"Is you feeling all right, Miss?"

Hermione snapped back to the current moment and searched for the voice. A small house elf stood in the doorway, her hands clasped together and a worried expression on her face.

"Yes, I'm fine." Hermione paused. "Who are you? I didn't think Draco had any house elves anymore."

"My name is Topsy. My family is always serving the Malfoy family. Master Malfoy is just having me do housekeeping things since the house is so big."

"It's lovely to meet you, Topsy. Is Draco still coming?"

"Yes, miss," the elf said, perking up at the mention of her master. "He is wanting to know if you like homemade chicken noodle soup?"

Hermione smiled. "Yes, I love it."

The house elf turned to leave when Hermione had another thought.

"Wait, Topsy?"

"Yes, miss?"

"Do you know if Draco found my wand?"

The elf shook her head. "I is not knowing, miss. I will ask master for you."

"Thanks."

And Hermione was left alone with her thoughts once more.

When Draco finally appeared, tray of steaming soup and a tall glass of water in hand, Hermione sat up enough so he could place the lap tray over her legs and sit at her feet.

"You look like you have questions," he observed. "You may ask me one question per bite of food."

Hermione snorted and rolled her eyes, but a smile crept onto her face as she picked up the spoon and scooped some soup onto it. She blew on it gently before she slurped it up obediently. Once finished, she made a show of facing Draco and preparing to ask her question. He almost looked worried, she noticed.

"Do you have my wand?"

Draco smiled. "Yes."

Hermione frowned. "I would like it back."

"You didn't take a bite."

"That wasn't a question, and I am eating." She scooped up more soup and swallowed it. "See, there. Eating."

A sudden wave of nausea hit Hermione and she swallowed the bile rising in her throat, determined not to vomit in front of Draco. She took deep breaths, trying to will the feeling away. She did still have questions and this was too perfect a moment to get her answers. She would deal with the nausea – and the possible cause of it – later, when she was able to be alone.

"Are you okay?" Draco asked. He moved closer to Hermione; she held her finger up and waved it at him, telling him nonverbally that she needed a moment. Once she conquered the feeling, she swallowed another mouthful of soup and turned her face back up to meet his.

"It's my turn to ask questions," she said. Draco didn't look as if his concern had been assuaged, but also didn't press further. Instead, he held his own hands up as if to officially offer Hermione the metaphorical floor.

"How did you find Ron and I?"

Draco took a deep breath, looking pained again as he began to speak.

"When you weren't at Hogwarts for me to collect, I knew something was wrong," he said. His voice was even and controlled, but his eyes held a fire that made Hermione's heart beat hard in her chest. Guilt stabbed at her, but she pushed it away. It was another thing she would deal with later, alone. "I immediately checked with a few of my contacts with the Ministry and when they reported that Ron had been AWOL for a few weeks, I knew he had done something. After that… a quick tracing spell brought me to the general area and revealing spells broke through his pitiful protective enchantments easily." Draco's mouth twisted like he had just eaten a lemon. "He's still the same idiot he was in school. Never taking the proper precautions. I'm surprised he didn't get you captured much earlier when you went on your little camping trip before the Battle of Hogwarts."

Hermione frowned. She couldn't help it. A strange sense of needing to protect Ron's memory ate at her, though she chewed on her lip instead of speaking.

"A tracing spell?" Hermione asked, soup forgotten. Draco looked at the bowl and she hurriedly took another bite. "What were you tracing?"

"You," Draco admitted. A faint pink appeared on his cheeks. "I'm sorry for not telling you beforehand. You've been leaving hair all over the Manor, so occasionally, I'll use one to check up on you and make sure you're safe."

Hermione frowned. Part of her wasn't sure if she liked that, though she couldn't argue that Draco hadn't saved her life. It wasn't like he was bleeding her out for her DNA, after all; it was just a bit of hair… she shook her head. There were more pressing things at hand.

"Why did you really kill him, Draco?" She finally asked, repeating her question from earlier. "We should have taken him to the Ministry and let them throw him in Azkaban."

Although Azkaban was no longer guarded by Dementors, it was still a formidable prison and very much in use by the Wizarding World. Many of the Death Eaters that survived the Battle of Hogwarts were housed there, under 24/7 lock and key with various Aurors taking shifts to guard them. It had become its own small part of the Ministry job listing, as Hermione had learned when Ron and Harry were going through their Auror trainings and looking at potential positions there.

"Hermione," Draco said. He moved the soup tray away from them and sat down next to her, putting his arm around her and pulling her close. "He was actively trying to kill you when I found you. It was a choice between each of your lives and I daresay I made the right decision."

"But it wasn't your decision to make," Hermione countered. Draco sighed heavily and Hermione could tell he had to work hard not to roll his eyes. "What are we going to tell everyone?"

"I've already spoken to the Ministry about the situation and briefed anyone that needed to know," Draco said. He made it sound so simple, like it was running an everyday errand. "As for his family… I'm allowing the Ministry to handle that."

Hermione was feeling nauseous again, but she fought through it. She had to contact Ginny.

"You're not going to do anything except finish your food and take a nap," Draco said as if he had read Hermione's thoughts. She opened her mouth to protest, but the expression on Draco's face welcomed no challenge so she settled in and began to eat the soup once more. It was beginning to trigger her nausea and was getting more difficult, so after a few minutes of struggle, she finally looked up at Draco with what she hoped were tired eyes.

"I think I would like that nap now," she said.

"Are you sure? You've barely eaten anything…"

"Yes," Hermione said, pushing the tray away. Her stomach twisted and another wave of nausea hit her. "On second thought, I'd like to keep the water close in case I get thirsty."

Draco nodded and handed her the glass before taking the tray in his hands and walking over to the door.

"I'll leave you be so you can get some rest," he said, still looking unconvinced of Hermione's performance. "Have Topsy summon me when you wake."

Hermione nodded.

"I love you, Draco," she said. "Thank you for saving my life."

"I love you, too, Hermione. Now, get some sleep."

It was well past dinnertime (Draco made a lemon-glazed chicken and rice for them and insisted on helping Hermione to the dining room when it was time to eat) when Hermione asked about her wand again.

"I'd like to have my wand back now, please," she said. She was sitting on Draco's lap in one of the large chairs that occupied the Manor library, and she was getting anxious to cast her own diagnostic spell and either confirm or rebuke what Ron had told her. Draco looked at her with an intensity that made her stomach flip and she swallowed hard. Sometimes she got the feeling that he could actually read her mind.

"Are you feeling stronger?"

"Yes."

"Hermione…" Draco trailed off for a moment. "What did Ron say to you out there? What did he do? I'm aware this will be difficult for you to talk about, but I can't help if I don't know…"

Hermione swallowed hard, squeezing her eyes shut and taking deep breaths to try and calm herself and quell the panic that rose inside her every time her mind wandered back to the night that Ron had kept her. It took her several tries before she was finally able to tell Draco what had happened – apart from Ron telling her she was pregnant. She wasn't ready to talk about that yet; not until after she had confirmed it herself.

When she finished her story, Draco pulled her in and held her close to himself. She could hear his steady heartbeat and moved her hand so it was splayed out on top of his chest, trying to match her racing tempo to his much calmer one. She took slow, even breaths and finally managed to settle into him, a small spark beginning to heat up in her lower belly. She brought her head up and rested her lips on his neck: he stiffened underneath her and she felt his heart accelerate at her touch.

"You still need to rest," Draco said. His voice was husky and Hermione smiled to herself. As much as she wanted him, she also wanted to know what was going on inside of her before engaging in any more… physical activity together. Having him stop her was the best thing he could have done in that moment – for both of them.

Hermione jumped slightly when Draco stood and began to carry her out of the library, down the maze of hallways, and into his room before he set her down on the bed. He leaned over and planted a kiss on her forehead.

"There are some things I need to do for work," he said, stroking Hermione's cheek with a long, pale finger. "Will you be okay here by yourself for a bit, or do you want me to stay until you fall asleep?"

With a small smile, Hermione said, "I'll be fine. If I could have my wand first, though, I would appreciate that. And maybe a book to read."

"Topsy!" Draco said. The small creature appeared just a second later. "Please retrieve Hermione's wand and fetch her whichever books she would like." He turned back to Hermione. "I'm sorry to leave you. I'll go as quickly as I can. I love you."

"I love you, too."

A moment later, the house elf returned, Hermione's wand in hand. When she handed it over, a warmth spread from the wood to Hermione's fingertips and a small shower of sparks erupted from the tip.

"I missed you, too," she said. She had never been so happy for a reunion.

"Is there a particular book you is wanting, miss?" Topsy asked. Hermione smiled at the small elf.

"I might step into the bath for a bit, actually," she said. "No need for a book in that case."

The elf bowed and disappeared.

Hermione was finally alone.

It took a few minutes for Hermione to gather the courage to get out of the bed and make her way to the elegant bathroom attached to the room, being careful to lock the door behind her and start the bath running to keep up her ruse.

The bathroom grew warm from the steaming water before Hermione finally picked her wand back up from the counter. Her hands shook as she prepared to cast the diagnostic she usually performed. Although it wasn't a pregnancy-specific spell, it would indicate if there was indeed a baby growing inside of her. She could use the books in the Manor library to help her diagnose further and keep track of her health…

She shook her head. She couldn't allow herself to get carried away before she even knew whether it was true or not.

Taking a deep breath, Hermione pointed her wand at herself and said, "Egritudo valetudo."

A diagram materialized in front of her, glowing mostly healthy pink with a couple of black spots in her brain. She wasn't too concerned with that at the moment: she had just been through something extremely traumatic and there was sure to be damage left behind from it. Whether it truly, fully healed would be another story, but that was something familiar that she could monitor and keep an eye on. That was also something she felt comfortable sharing with Draco right away. Although his side of the war had been destruction rather than healing, he was proficient enough that Hermione figured he would have some suggestions on how to prevent the trauma from causing any more lasting damage. She decided to move on, checking over the rest of her upper body, all of which looked normal. The luck that she'd had in order to not sustain any serious physical injury from Ron's assault was not lost on her and she sent up a silent thanks to Merlin that everything appeared as healthy as usual. It took another moment and several deep breaths before Hermione was ready to move her eyes down to the lower region of her body's diagram.

Sure enough, there was a small orb right where her uterus was, glowing bright gold and flickering in the middle.

She was pregnant.

Hermione banished the diagram, her heart pounding so hard in her chest that it felt as if her whole body was moving with the force of it. The room swam in front of her and before she could stop it, the floor rushed up to meet her and her vision turned grey, then black.

"Hermione? Hermione!"

"Auuuuggghhh…"

"Oh, thank Merlin. Topsy!"

Hermione's eyes slowly opened and she winced as her head pounded when the light hit her retinas. She was lying on the bathroom floor, overheating with the steam from the still-filling bath.

"What… happened?" She asked. She realized she was in Draco's arms and he was barking orders to the tiny house elf he had summoned. "Draco?"

He looked back at her and smiled in relief. "You're okay, I'm going to get you in bed now."

"I'm naked."

Draco laughed. "It's nothing I haven't seen before, beautiful. It's more important to get you somewhere comfortable to lie down. I'm going to carry you to bed, okay?"

Hermione nodded and then she was up in the air, tucked against Draco's chest. She burrowed in, feeling safer and calmer immediately as she took in his fresh, clean scent. She wished she didn't have to tell him and possibly ruin this…

"Please stay," Hermione whimpered when Draco got to the bed and made to put her down. Tears leaked out of her eyes and dampened his shirt. "Please."

Draco managed to climb up onto the bed with Hermione still held fast in his arms.

"Of course I'll stay, love. I'm right here. I'll stay as long as you need."

And that was how they stayed, Draco holding Hermione as tightly as he could and soothing her until long after the sun dipped behind the horizon and both of them fell asleep, still clutching onto each other as if their lives depended on it.