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Shadows Of The Past	By : soldiersgirl0709 Category: Harry Potter > Het - Male/Female > Lucius/Hermione Views: 64110 -:- Recommendations : 4 -:- Currently Reading : 4
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Chapter List
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Chapter Twenty-Four: Storm Clouds Gather

Where the happiness they have found is threatened.

Lucius Malfoy opened his eyes just as the bedroom door creaked open in the early morning hours. It was early even by Elias�s young body clock. As the little boy shuffled towards the bed Lucius realized why Hermione insisted that they redress after they made love, knocking wasn�t in the child�s vocabulary.

�What�s the matter, Son?� Lucius said softly so as not to wake the witch sprawled beside him.

�I don�t feel good.� Elias said, his little voice sounding a little weak and so very sad. Lucius wasn�t sure what to do when Elias pulled back the blankets and crawled into bed beside him so he just scooted in closer to the center of the bed and watched as his son settled in. He could feel the incredible amount of heat being generated by the little body beside him and reached out to lay his hand against his forehead. He was burning up, his skin on fire despite the fact that he shivered to the point that Lucius thought it must be painful.

�Elias, how long have you been feeling poorly?� Lucius asked as he sat up in the center of the bed and reached behind him to shake Hermione awake.

�What�s going on?� She asked sleepily, lifting her head. Lucius snapped his fingers and barked out a sharp �Lumos�, causing the lamps at her bedside to flare to life.

�Elias is ill.� He reached out for their son and pulled him into his lap.

�Sorry, Mummy, I throwed up in my bed.� He said, barely able to hold his head up or his eyes open. Hermione was instantly awake and reaching out to feel his forehead as well.

�It�s alright, Baby, Mummy will clean it up later�you are burning up!� She said worriedly as she kicked her legs free of the blankets and hopped out of the bed. She disappeared into the hall and was back a few seconds later carrying a strange looking white device with buttons on it.

�What is that?� Lucius asked, still holding Elias draped over his lap.

�It�s a muggle thermometer; it takes a temperature reading from his ear.� She pressed the narrow end into his ear and pressed a button, pulling it back when it beeped and staring at the reading with wide eyes. �We need to get him into a cool bath and try to lower his temperature, its way to high.�

Lucius slid to the edge of the bed and carried Elias across the hall to the bathroom where Hermione was already running water in the tub. They didn�t waste time trying to get him out of his pajamas, Hermione used her wand to undress him instead. Lucius eased the little boy into the water, kneeling at the tub-side when Elias clutched at his arm.

�The water�s cold, Daddy!� He began to cry and Lucius felt his chest tightening as he stared at his son in the harsh fluorescent lights of the bathroom. He was so pale and his blue eyes were filled with tears as he held on to Lucius�s arm and shivered.

�It feels colder than it is because you have a fever, Elias. Just be a brave boy for me and sit still, alright?� Lucius eased away from him but held on to his little hand as Hermione slid in beside him with a washcloth to sponge him down.

�Lucius�.look at this!� Hermione gasped as she leaned aside so Lucius could see his son�s back. Small pink blisters marred his smooth skin. Hermione told Elias to lean back and they could see that the blisters were on his stomach and chest as well. �It looks like�chicken pox or�measles�

�No�it�s not a muggle illness.� Lucius shoved quickly to his feet and jerked a large towel from the rack. �Get him out of the tub, Hermione, and wrap him in this. I�m calling my personal healer and telling him to meet us right away at the manor.� He shoved the towel at Hermione and stormed from the room quickly.

Confused, she wrapped Elias in the towel and lifted him into her arms. She made it to the lounge just in time to hear Lucius barking a summons into her fireplace as he shoved his wand back into his cane. He turned to her and quickly pulled Elias into his arms.

�Lucius, what�s happening, what�s wrong with Elias?� She asked worriedly. Lucius was acting strangely and the wild look in his eyes told her that maybe it wasn�t a typical childhood illness that afflicted their son.

�Dragon Pox.� He said tightly before wrapping his arm around her and disapparating them to the foyer of Malfoy Manor.

�What? How? I thought that it had been wiped out in the early part of the twentieth century!� Her heart was racing and she became nauseated, her head spinning. Dragon Pox had killed thousands of witches and wizards in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. It had swept through England like the plague resisting healing spells and potions until the strain weakened and eventually died out.

�It died out, it wasn�t eradicated.� He said, taking the stairs two at a time as he raced towards Elias�s room. As they rounded the corner into the hall Draco stepped out of his room, his hair mussed and he was tying the sash of his robe around his waist.

�What�s going on?� He asked, his brow furrowed in concern when he saw Elias limp and wrapped in a towel in his father�s arms. �What happened?�

�Elias is ill�Lucius said it was Dragon Pox�Draco he�s really freaking me out.� Hermione said, her voice trembling as she watched Lucius lay Elias gently on the bed and pull the covers up around him.

�He�s terrified.� Draco said quietly, laying his hand on Hermione�s shoulder, fear beginning to seep into his gut and make him nauseous. �Granger�my grandfather died of Dragon Pox.�

~@~

Hermione stood helpless while the healer looked over her son once more. It had been four days and Elias was no better. He was still burning with fever, his little body wracked with tremors as he mumbled nonsense in his delirium. The little blisters were growing, spreading down his arms and legs and marring his sweet little face. Her heart was broken and her eyes and throat burned from the tears while her body ached in fear. She couldn�t help him. She could do nothing but sit and watch as the illness ravaged his tiny frame.

She was paralyzed with the fear of losing her son and she could see that the same fear held Lucius in his grasp. He hadn�t left Elias for more than a few moments at a time since he padded into her bedroom and woke them up. He was disheveled and his face rough with several days growth of beard. He wouldn�t eat and barely drank anything as he watched over their child.

�How is he?� Lucius asked the healer.

�I�m afraid he�s no better than yesterday. He�s no worse, but I expected the fever to have broken by this point. He can�t go on like this for long, he�s too young and too small to withstand the dehydration and damage the illness is doing to his young body.� The healer pushed his glasses up his nose and shook his head. �I am sorry, Mr. Malfoy. I wish I had better news for you.�

�Get out. Just get out.� Lucius croaked, the words barely making a sound as he closed his eyes. The healer understood and didn�t take offense, he just closed his bag and left the small family alone.

�I can�t stand this!� Draco said as he moved across the room with tears burning his eyes. He leaned against the wall and stared out the window as sleet pelted the glass. Hermione stood silently, tears rolling freely down her cheeks. She could say nothing as she sat on the edge of the mattress and stared at the little boy she loved more than herself. The child she struggled to bring into the world and lived every day of her life for. The child she may lose.

Lucius slid to his knees at the bed side, Elias�s tiny hand clutched in his as he lowered his head until it touched the blankets and hid his face. His shoulders shook and Hermione and Draco both knew that he wept.

�I�m not a religious man, I never have been so I don�t know how to do this�but if there is a god or gods�.please hear me.� He whispered, not caring that his family listened. �Save my son. I know that I am not deserving, I know that I have done nothing in my life to be worthy of the gifts I have been given but please�don�t take my son. If a life must be sacrificed then take mine, I give it freely because everyone knows I have squandered it. I will do anything, give anything to save him. Please.�

He was praying and the sound of it nearly destroyed her. Draco couldn�t take it and he left the room. Hermione reached across the bed and laid her hand on the back of his head, trying to comfort him.

�Lucius, you need to rest.� She said softly.

�No. This is my fault.� He said, lifting his head to reveal his red and swollen eyes. �This is punishment for my past. The sins of the father are visited upon the son. I was a horrible man, did horrible things and now my son is going to pay for them. I did this, I brought this on our family. He is ill because I am evil.�

�It�s not your fault, Lucius.� She sobbed. �He�s ill because�because he caught a germ�he picked something up or touched it or knowing Elias ate it and it made him sick. You aren�t evil, you love him, I know you do and so does he.�

�I do love him, I do. But maybe if I hadn�t come into his life��

�Don�t say that, Lucius. You have made him�and me�.so very happy. Never say that you wish you hadn�t found us.� She leaned over Elias and pressed a kiss to the top of his head, resting her cheek against his hair.

~@~

Lucius and Hermione slept lightly, curled together on a small sofa in the corner near Elias�s bed. It was late, the moon was high in the sky though its light was dimmed by the dark clouds, heavy with the first snow of winter moving in. Elias lay silently in his bed, his chest rising and falling slowly as he slept on. He hadn�t opened his eyes in two days and the family had begun to prepare themselves for the worst.

�Master�Mistress�� A small voice called hesitantly, hating to disturb the sleeping couple. Lucius opened his eyes slightly and stared at the servant standing beside them with his head bowed.

�What is it, Neil?� He asked in a groggy tone.

�There is a guest in the foyer, Sir. A friend of the Mistress.� He said. �She says it was important.�

�Send her up.� Lucius said, figuring it was probably Potter�s wife or Molly Weasley. He shook Hermione gently, smiling slightly when she protested and snuggled deeper into his chest. �Wake up, my Darling, we have company.� He said, sitting up and taking her with him.

�I�m so tired.� She said, yawning as she looked to the bed and watched to be certain that Elias�s chest still moved with life. �Who�s here?� She asked.

�I am.� Lucius and Hermione both gasped in shock when they saw Jessa strolling through the bedchamber door behind a house-elf that vanished almost immediately. �Surprised to see me?�

�Jessa! What�how�you�� Hermione stammered, her heart racing and her mind reeling as she struggled for an explanation.

�Don�t�it�s alright, Hermione.� Jessa said softly as she dropped her purse onto the floor.

�How did you know where to find me?� She asked.

�I received your message about Elias�s illness and your leave of absence. I rang your house but no one answered so I figured you must be here.� She said as she sat on the edge of Elias�s bed and stared at him. �It took me some time to find Ronald Weasley and get him to disapparate me here.� She turned back to smile at them. �I think it�s time I explain a few things to you.�

�You�.you�re a witch?� Hermione gasped.

�A squib actually�of sorts.� Jessa answered.

�Why didn�t you tell me?� Hermione asked.

�I don�t talk about it, for very good reasons. Hermione�what I am about to tell you�I hope you won�t hold it against me.� She said. �You see, my mother was a muggle and my father�well, he was a wizard, a pure-blood. They were lovers for a long time and to their surprise she became pregnant. She thought that he loved her, thought he would marry her but she was wrong. He laughed at her, told her he could never marry a muggle, wouldn�t even consider it, she wasn�t suitable. He told her she should get rid of the baby and when she refused he began to distance himself from her. When he realized I was a girl AND a squib�well, he disappeared all together. Mother and I did fine on our own and then, when I was about thirteen we realized that while I wasn�t able to use magic or wield a wand I was gifted. I could heal people, I can heal people. It was shortly after that discovery that the man I told you about came for us and hid us away.� She took a deep breath and steeled herself for the next part. �Hermione�Lucius�my father is Morfin Gaunt.�

�That�s why you look so familiar to me.� Lucius said quietly. �I met your father a few times�no offense, Jessa, but you were better off without him in your life.�

�I heard all about him when I got older. Mother said that he was rather handsome and charming when he was a young man but there was always a darkness, an ugliness inside him that seemed to be growing over time.� She said. �Hermione, do you know what that means?�

�The Gaunt�s were related to Tom Riddle.� She said, stunned by the confession.

�Lord Voldemort is�was�my cousin. That is why I kept my parentage a secret. I don�t want to be judged because I�m related to the man who nearly destroyed the wizarding world.�

�Well you are certainly the most attractive member of that gods forsaken family.� Draco said from the doorway. No one had heard him enter but he apparently had listened to the entire confession.

�Thanks�do you hate me, Hermione?� She asked, her voice small and for the first time since Hermione had known her she sounded unsure of herself.

�No�I don�t hate you, Jessa. You are not your family. Just because his blood runs in your veins it doesn�t mean you are the same.� She said. �I wish you�d have told me earlier, it would have made life a tad easier at work.�

Jessa threw her arms around Hermione and hugged her tight, kissing her cheek as she let the weight of the world lift from her shoulders. She drew back and took a deep breath, smiling through her tears at Hermione, Lucius and Draco.

�Alright�now that we have that out of the way�I�m here to heal your son.� She said softly.

�Jessa�Elias has contracted Dragon Pox�the healer has done all that he can�� Hermione trailed off as Jessa smiled and shook her head. She turned to Elias and drew the blankets down to his feet. She pushed the sleeves of her knit shirt up to her elbows and pressed one hand to his forehead and the other to his abdomen. She closed her eyes and breathed deeply. In through her nose and out of her mouth. The three of them watched as a miracle unfolded. The sores that marred his skin began to fade slowly and the trembling that had wracked his feverish form ceased. Color began to rise, turning his skin from a sickly pallor to a healthy pink.

And then the most incredible thing happened. Elias opened his eyes and stared at Jessa then turned his head to look at his family.

�I�m hungry.� He said hoarsely. The laughter coming from his family was punctuated with sobs as his parents launched themselves at the bed, hugging him and kissing his cheeks as he wriggled between them. �I can�t breathe!� Elias squealed, looking at them strangely when they pulled away, their eyes wet with tears. �Draco, they are not acting like Mummy and Daddy, they are acting weird...did they get some poltergeist potion?�

�Polyjuice potion, Elias, and no�they�re your real parents, they are just happy to see you feeling better.� Draco said smiling as he reached out to ruffle his brother�s hair. Relief was rushing through him on a surge of adrenaline that had him itching to fly. �As am I, Little Man.�

�I�m still hungry.� Elias grumbled, looking at the people gathered round him warily. Just then Nonie the house-elf popped into the room, a tray of food in her hands.

�Nonie is here Master Elias.� She said, elbowing her way to the bedside and conjuring a small table for the tray. �Nonie will gets the Master fed and bathed and Bob and Neil will clean the Master�s room so the family can visit.�

Lucius�s eyes widened at the boldness of his servant then he chuckled when he realized that the staff must be rejoicing in Elias�s recovery. He had heard it said that he was a better master because of Hermione and Elias. He knew that he was a better man.

�I think we have been dismissed.� Hermione said smiling as she and Lucius eased off of the bed and out of the way as Nonie fussed over Elias and spoon fed him a bowl of soup while he chattered away.

�Jessa�Ill never be able to thank you for this.� Hermione said through her tears as she looked at her friend.

�You don�t need to, Hermione. I adore Elias, it would break my heart to lose him too.� She stood and swayed, her knees buckling beneath her. Draco caught her just before she would have crumpled to the floor and lifted her into his arms, cradling her against his chest.

�If you wanted to be in my arms all you had to do was ask.� Draco smirked.

�Arrogant pup.� She muttered. �I need to rest, healing takes a lot out of me.�

�Draco, take her to the blue suite.� Lucius ordered. �She will stay here until she is fully restored.�

�Thank you, Lucius.� She said weakly.

�It�s the very least I can do. I owe you, Jessa. Anything I have it in my power to give is yours.� He said, leaning in and kissing her cheek softly.

�I just want to be a part of your family.� She said. �That is all I ever wanted, a family.�

�You are most certainly that.� Hermione squeezed her hand. And watched Draco carry her friend out of the room.

�She saved our baby, Lucius.� Hermione said, tears still rolling from her eyes.

�She�s a good woman. I wish I could reward her as she deserves. It�s a shame Severus is no longer with us, I think he�d adore her.� Lucius said smiling. Hermione felt her stomach clench and she began to wonder�.

AN A lot going on in this chapter�I know. So, this answers one question about Jessa�..

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Shadows Of The Past