Adult-FanFiction.org : Harry Potter

Bound	By : goldhorse Category: Harry Potter > Het - Male/Female > Draco/Hermione Views: 126052 -:- Recommendations : 15 -:- Currently Reading : 31
Disclaimer: JK owns HP. Not me. I also don't own any quotes you might recognize. I make no money doing this, I just get the plot bunnies to quit interrupting my sleep.

Chapter List
- 33
- 34
- 35
Harry and Ginny tip toed into the hospital wing after dinner. They looked around, trying to see if anyone was in the wing that might overhear something they shouldn’t. There was no one else that they could tell. Alex’s otherworldly eyes stared back at them without blinking from the side of the bed. Melody and Harmony were still sound asleep, Melody on her stomach and Harmony on her side, apparently holding her sister’s hand. Draco was sprawled on his back in an elevated position. Hermione was curled into a ball at his side. Philippe was snoozing in a nearby chair.

“Not awake yet then?” Harry said softly as he came to a stop at the foot of the beds.

“Weasley’s rousing slowly,” Alex said quietly. “I suspect the girls will be up soon too. Philippe just crashed a few hours ago.”

“What about them?” Harry asked, jerking his head to the sleeping couple.

“The nerve potion finished working about ten minutes ago. I ran the diagnostics; they should be good. Now we just wait for the sleeping potion to wear off and see what we have to work with. Severus and Celeste should be on their way up now.”

“Professor Snape looked terrible this morning,” Ginny said softly.

“The guilt is eating him alive,” Alex said

“So he did do that to Melody,” Harry said grimly.

“He had no choice. We had one shot; it was a long one, and it worked. Unfortunately, it still doesn’t remove the horror he felt.”

“If it needed to be done, then why agonize over it?” Harry asked him.

“If the only way you could save Ginny’s life was to strip her naked, parade her around in front of a pack of animals, and then whip her so soundly that she needed a week to heal completely, would you do it?”

“Yes, if there was no other way,” Harry said hesitantly.

“And how would you feel afterwards?” Alex asked.

“Horrible,” Harry said miserably. “But he doesn’t love her like I do Ginny.”

“No,” Alex agreed. “But I can assure you he cares very deeply for her, enough that if Celeste and I weren’t in the picture, he would stay with her.”

“I don’t understand,” Harry said in despair.

“We don’t choose our soul mates Potter,” Alex said sympathetically. “They are a very close match but not close enough. However, the past still happened and they are quite fond of each other, even if it isn’t the soul deep bond that they have with us.”

“Isn’t that, well, doesn’t it make you jealous?” Harry asked.

“It did at first,” Alex conceded. “Then I realized that the heart has so much room for love that I didn’t need to be. I am first in her life, just as Celeste will become the most important person to Severus if he dares to let her inside his heart.”

“He let Melody in, didn’t he?” Harry asked in confusion.

“He did!” Alex laughed. “And it only took her eleven years to wiggle her way in there and another six to get him to admit it and Melody is quite good at wiggling in your heart without meaning to.”

“I’ll say,” Harry half-laughed when the thought about it. Melody had been harsh and sharp with him many times but he still managed to like her despite it all. She had a hard exterior but she was very kind and extremely loyal. Harry thought about another redhead who was just like her, brash and blunt and wonderful.

“Oh look, googly eyes,” Melody sighed as she maneuvered herself into a sitting position.

“You can see them?” Alex asked curiously.

“I can!” Melody said excitedly.

“Lumos!” Alex breathed hastily and lit up his wand. Her eyes were sparkling jade. “I think your sister might just have finished healing you.”

“Really?” Melody asked. “Are my eyes back?”

“Yes ma’am. They’re beautiful,” Alex said softly and kissed each one of her eyelids in turn.

“How touching,” Snape drawled as he swept in the door with Celeste in wolf form at his side. “Perhaps you should be more concerned with your surroundings than her eyelids.”

“I could smell you coming down the hall and you know it,” Alex groused. “Besides, look!” He held his wand up to Melody’s eyes.

Snape’s eyes widened. “They’re back.”

“They are!” Melody said excitedly. “Now will you quit treating me like a pariah?”

Snape scowled. “I am not.”

“Fine, like china then. See, I didn’t break!” She said exuberantly.

“Break?” Harmony moaned. “Who’s breaking?”

“Not me,” Melody said firmly.

“Good news,” Harmony mumbled.

“Really good news honey. I can see!” Melody squealed.

“Really?” Harmony asked, her eyes flying open as she sat straight up.

“Really!” Melody squealed. “Man it’s good to see again.”

“Who can see again?” Draco mumbled.

“I can sleepyhead!” Melody cackled.

Draco’s eyes popped open and he sat up, elated to find that he could. “That’s great,” he grunted and flexed his aching digits. The horrible prickling pain was gone and he was finally able to control his limbs although they were stiff. He breathed a sigh of relief and took a moment to look around. Philippe was still asleep. “He know yet?”

Harmony’s eyes widened comically and she viciously shook her head.

“When do you wish to share the good news?” Severus asked curiously.

Harmony’s eyes welled with tears. “I don’t know.”

“Shhh. It’ll be alright,” Melody said comfortingly. “You don’t have to do anything right now. It’s early and we’re all going to take care of you and when you feel comfortable, we’ll worry about that.”

“He’s gonna be pissed if I don’t say something,” she whimpered and buried her head in Melody’s shoulder.

“You want me to do it?” Melody chuckled. Harmony looked at her and nodded like a small child.

Melody laughed softly. “No problem sis. You’d do the same for me, right?” Harmony nodded and her eyes said it was heartfelt. “Right then, everyone awake?”

“I am now,” Hermione groaned and sat up. “I feel like I just got knocked off a broom.”

Draco chuckled and kissed her forehead. “Morning love, or should I say evening? What time is it anyway?”

“About 8:30,” Snape said, checking his pocket watch.

“Well then,” Melody said, stretching and getting up. “Let’s wake daddy shall we?” She walked around the bed and sat beside him on another bed. “He hasn’t been sleeping very well.”

“He worries about you,” Harmony said, closing her eyes. “All of you. He’s so used to seeing Celeste every day that he feels kind of lost without her.”

“I didn’t know,” Celeste said softly as she transformed back.

Harmony smiled. “He didn’t want you to know because he knew that you’d feel guilty and he wants you happy. He figured that the bat plays a large part in that so he’s dealing with it.”

Everyone giggled except Severus, who scowled darkly. “Moving on,” Melody chuckled. “Wake up Dr. Phil!” She said loudly in his ear.

Philippe started awake. “Don’t call me that!”

“Morning!” Melody said brightly.

“S’not morning,” he grumbled and rubbed his eyes.

“So? I’ve got tons of shit to do and you are one of them,” she said, hoping he’d catch her faux pas.

“I think you have me confused with my sister,” he groaned and stretched.

She cackled. “I’ve already done her. It’s your turn.” Celeste flushed bright red.

“Pass.” He smirked and looked over at his wife. “Hello sweetie.”

“Hi,” Harmony said softly, her voice only wavering slightly.

He quirked an eyebrow. “Something on your mind?”

“Not her mind,” Melody mumbled and hid a smirk behind her hand. Everyone else had to turn their faces to hide theirs as well.

“Alright, I apparently missed the clue bus,” Philippe said, his eyes narrowing as he looked around. “Someone care to give me a lift?”

Melody looked around a moment and then waved her arm, placing a privacy charm around the wing. “It isn’t that something is on her so much as in her.”

“What are you on about?” Philippe said in confusion. “Are you high on pain potions again?”

“No,” Melody spat. “I haven’t done that in a long time and yet you insist on bringing it up when I want to have fun.”

“Sorry.” His face fell. “Force of habit.”

“Break it or I’ll break you,” Melody said vehemently.

“Noted,” Philippe said nervously as he looked directly at her for the first time. “Your eyes! Can you see?”

“Yes I can. And the first observation for my eyes is that you are an ass.”

“Look, I’m sorry alright? I just, I worry about you. Hell, I wouldn’t blame you in this circumstance. How is your back?”

“I honestly don’t know. It doesn’t hurt as bad anyway but now you’ve put me off my topic and I’m going to have to pull a u-turn mid conversation.”

“Ok, have it your way,” Philippe chuckled. “Merlin knows you always do. So, what is in Harmony’s mind?”

“It’s not exactly her mind.” Melody cracked a smile.

“What?”

“Philippe, do you trust me?”

“Only as far as I can throw you.”

“That’s actually a good distance.” Melody conceded.

“Touché. Why do I need to trust you this time?”

“Because I want to show you something but I want you to see it through my eyes,” Melody said timidly. “With my vision.”

“Is that possible?” His eyes widened in surprise.

“It is!” She said excitedly. “I’ve tried it with Sev before. It’s going to give us both a mild headache but I really think it’s worth it. Please?”

“I, well okay,” Philippe stammered. “I really have always wanted to see how you see.”

Melody gave him a gentle smile. “Most do.” Her face fell. “Just, well, don’t tell anyone else exactly what you see. It’s a bit…um…startling. If it becomes overwhelming, just say the word and I’ll stop.”

“Overwhelming? I don’t understand.”

Severus cleared his throat and walked over. “Imagine knowing everything about a person in one glance, their feelings, their history, their allegiances, any traces of magic, absolutely everything.” He sat down. “It can be downright frightening and some things will surprise you.”

“You did this and you are fine, well relatively speaking,” Philippe said wryly.

“Philippe,” Melody said softly. “Did you ever wonder why Severus switched sides so abruptly?”

“Um, well I sort of figured it was because, you know.” He shot a nervous glance at Harry.

“That was the reason I decided to stay,” Severus said softly. “But not the reason I decided to switch.”

“I don’t understand,” Philippe said with a furrowed brow.

“Remember, Severus performed the switch so I could live,” Melody continued. “It took the ability to use our magic away, yes?” Philippe nodded. “Well, it didn’t take my ability to lend my gift. I discovered it one day when he absolutely infuriated me. I lent it to him for an entire day. I almost went insane and so did he. He saw the Dark Lord for what he truly was.”

“It took everything I had not to bolt,” Severus said softly. His eyes were unfocused, his thoughts a million miles away reliving that day. “I know why Melody’s immediate reaction to him and his horcruxes is to vomit. He is so purely evil, it triggers a gut reaction. I saw that everything he said was a lie. That was the day I begged him for...to have mercy. He granted me my wish but I knew then that I wouldn’t get it in the end. I ran that night to Albus. I saw his disgust at what I had become but I also saw that he was honest.”

Melody sprang off the bed and grabbed him in a bear hug, sparing him the embarrassment of having Potter see tears in his eyes. “Gods I’m so sorry Sev. I don’t know how many times I’m going to have to apologize for that.”

Severus regained his composure and pushed her away far enough to look into her eyes. “Never be sorry for that. You saved me.” He gave her a gentle kiss on the forehead and shooed her over to Philippe. “Just remember, some things can’t be unseen,” he said softly before walking back across the room and leaning up against the wall, his indifferent demeanor back.

“Okay, that makes me nervous,” Philippe said as he swallowed hard.

Melody patted his shoulder. “I don’t think anything will shock you terribly. I mean, what I want you to see will but everything else should be relatively non-surprising. Just don’t tell anyone what you see. If you wish, we can discuss it later. Do you still want to do this?”

Philippe’s mouth opened and closed a few times while he debated internally. His eyes narrowed, his jaw set, and he firmly nodded his head. “Let’s do this.”

“Alright.” Melody rubbed her hands together. She twirled her finger and Philippe’s chair flipped around to face a very pale Harmony. “Now, I want you to look straight ahead at your lovely wife and relax your thoughts. Let your eyes go unfocused for a moment.”

Philippe settled himself in his chair and nodded that he was ready. “Now what?”

“Now, you’re going to feel a push. That’s me. Don’t push against it.” She placed her hand on his temple. “Close your eyes when you feel the push and open them when I tell you to.”

A few moments later, Philippe flinched and then closed his eyes. Melody looked warily at everyone in the room, as if making sure that nothing was afoot before she finally nodded to herself. Her eyes closed and a tear slipped from them. When they reopened, the pupils were gone. Only a sea of jade remained.

“Open your eyes Philippe.” Her hand fell away when she heard his gasp. Alex caught her just before she fell in the floor.

“OH!” Philippe squeaked. “Oh Merlin! Oh!”

Melody chuckled tiredly. “It’s quite something isn’t it?”

“It is!” Philippe breathed. “It’s like looking at a muggle light bright.” He cocked his head. “Draco and Hermione are, wow they are bright.” Everyone giggled and he turned to his right. He screamed and fell out of the chair.

Melody hit the floor and immediately grabbed him in a bear hug. “Shhh. I know it’s a shock. This is what I was afraid of but if you think on it for a moment, you already knew it. Take a few deep breaths and center yourself, alright?”

Philippe nodded and shakily rose from the floor after Melody released him. Making sure he sat in the chair firmly, he looked back over toward everyone. That time, he merely flinched and then nodded. “I see now. Celeste, you’re beautiful…a perfect match.”

Melody grinned. “See, I told you. No one ever believes me! Now, I know everyone else is going to look beautiful, but I want you to turn your head back to Harmony and see if you can see what’s in her.”

Philippe shrugged and then turned back around to view his wife. He gasped in surprise. “Oh my. Baby, you are, you are the most stunning thing I’ve ever seen.” He breathed and then his head cocked. “She has three colors. No one else has three colors. They have two.”

Melody grinned widely. “That’s what I wanted you to see. Your wife’s normal color is white that has a tint of indigo in it left over from her days as a phenom.”

“Well I see that but there are two more colors, pink and teal,” Philippe said in confusion.

“Yes, I was quite amused myself.”

“You mean that…” Harmony drew back in horror.

“Calm down. It’s not as extreme. It’ll be fine,” Melody reassured her.

“What is it?” Philippe asked.

Melody smiled and placed a hand on his shoulder. “Philippe, look up by her head, just to the right. Tell me what you see.”

“Well, it’s like, um, a deck of cards or something just outside the halo of her aura. The first one has a picture of your parents. I remember their faces from an old photo you two showed me once. The second one is a picture of me.” He smiled. “Then there is another one, it’s… oh it’s a set of twin girls.”

“Very good. Those are yours,” Melody whispered in his ear. “Those colors are theirs.”

“No!” Philippe said in shock. “It can’t be.”

“But it is,” Melody said softly. “Congratulations daddy.” A lone tear leaked down her face as she watched his features morph into pure wonder and joy. “Now, I know they’re beautiful, but I need my sight back. Close your eyes and relax.”

She repeated the same process as earlier except she flinched when his eyes shut. When she opened them again, her pupils were back to normal and she collapsed again. Alex caught her and set her on the bed.

“I’m a daddy,” Philippe said softly as he opened his eyes back up. “I’m a daddy!” He said a bit louder. “Oh baby,” he cried and scooped Harmony up in his arms, twirling her around and laughing. “We need to figure out how far along you are,” he said suddenly and put her down.

“No need,” Melody laughed. “That party did the trick. They’re only about a day old.”

“But they look so strong,” Philippe said bewilderedly.

“Yes they do. They will be very powerful little girls,” Melody said softly, a hitch in her voice. “Of course, they’ll have our gifts but they’ll also have magic. They’ll be phenoms, opposites but not in the extreme like me now or even Sev and Celeste. They’ll be more like Harry and Ginny, able to control it easily.”

“Oh thank Merlin,” Harmony breathed and fell back onto the bed. “I was so worried.”

“Why didn’t you say anything you ditz?” Melody chided. “Anyway, this opens up an entirely new set of problems.”

“What could possibly be worse than the situation we’re in now?” Harry spoke up for the first time.

“The Dark Lord could find out,” Melody said ominously.

Harry’s eyes narrowed. “He won’t.”

Melody smiled. “Glad you’re on board Harry but in order to take Moldy Shorts down, we need that memory from Slughorn.”

“I’m trying!” Harry said desperately and then flushed when eight pairs of eyes looked at him incredulously. “Ok, I’m going to try harder now.”

“Good,” Melody said proudly. “Now, in the meantime, we’ve got to start training you.”

“I thought that’s what we had been doing for the last few months.” Harry frowned.

“Yes, we’ve been working on controlling your power separately and you’re just now starting to get it. We’re going to have to start working on it every day so you can nail it wandlessly like Ginny has. Then we start working on it together because that is where your strength lies.”

“When do we start?” Harry asked, his tone serious.

“Monday,” Melody said definitively. “For tonight, I think we should come up with a strategy.”

“For?” Draco drawled, shifting to get out of bed and bringing Hermione with him.

“Getting that memory from Slughorn and saving as many lives as possible,” Melody breathed.

Draco and Hermione excused themselves to the loo and came back quickly. Once they’d settled, Melody started to open her mouth to speak.

“Someone say strategy?” Ron called as he strolled out from behind the curtain.

“Why yes, yes we did,” Melody said with a smirk. “Good of you to join us Weasley. Any suggestions?”

“Well,” Ron said as he timidly pulled up a chair to sit at the end of her bed. “Buttering old Slughorn up didn’t work, did it?”

“Failed miserably,” Harry said sadly. “He shut down the second I said the word horcruxes and he’s been avoiding me ever since. It was sheer luck that he agreed to make you the antidote to that love potion.”

“Luck!” Ron said excitedly. “Harry, all we need is luck!”

“That’s a given,” Draco sniffed and Hermione dropped an annoyed elbow into his ribs. “Hey woman, those are still tender.” She ducked her head in shame. Draco smirked and kissed her ear, making her giggle.

Ron looked away for a moment before he regained control again and merely sneered. “I’m not talking about the kind of luck that is circumstance.”

“Liquid luck,” Harry breathed.

“Exactly,” Ron said happily. “Drink a bit of that and maybe you’ll get lucky.”

“That’s brilliant!” Hermione exclaimed causing Ron to blush and look away. Her face fell until Draco draped a comforting arm around her. He knew that this was hard for her and he was truly trying to play nice.

“It is. Well done Weasley,” Melody said thoughtfully. “Might I suggest trying it right now? The sooner we get that information, the sooner we can start looking.”

“Looking for what?” Ron said in confusion.

“Horcruxes,” Harry said.

“You found out what they are?” Ron asked wide eyed.

“Oh yes,” Melody said softly. “You were out for that part. Horcruxes are bits of a soul that have been placed in an object, usually inanimate. However, in this case, Moldy Shorts has placed one in his snake.”

“We’ll have to get her last,” Draco said, his mind whirling a million miles a minute. “I can take her out easily enough but he’ll know something is up if she disappears before Potter is ready to face him.”

“Indeed,” Snape drawled. “If he were to get wind that we’ve already destroyed more than one of his precious life savers, he would strike early before we were fully prepared.”

“More than one?” Ron asked.

“You Know Who has several of them,” Hermione said, fighting to keep the waver out of her voice. “His diary was one. Dumbledore found another one in Gaunt’s ring and destroyed it. We found a third one Thursday in Ravenclaw’s lost diadem and Draco destroyed it. Then there is Nagini. Dumbledore is looking for what he thinks is another one.”

“I think Hufflepuff’s cup might be another,” Harry said, going over a memory that Dumbledore had shown him. “He was really determined to get that one.”

“Six,” Melody said disgustedly with a pointed look to Severus that clearly said she was lying. Everyone knew that she meant seven. “And we don’t know if that’s all of them. Potter, care to try now?”

“Hold on, back up a bit,” Ron said in frustration. “Malfoy destroyed a horcrux?”

“Yes. Keep up Weasley,” Draco snorted.

“How do you destroy them?” Ron asked, ignoring Malfoy’s tone.

“Basilisk venom, the Sword of Gryffindor, and fiendfyre,” Melody answered. “They each have their drawbacks. None of us exactly carry around a Basilisk fang in our back pocket. The Sword of Gryffindor can only be used by a true Gryffindor. Fiendfyre is very dangerous and can only be used by highly skilled wizards. Losing control means death not only to the caster but the people in the vicinity too.”

“So how did Malfoy destroy it then?”

Melody sighed sadly. “Weasley, he’s strong enough to control fiendfyre.”

“Yea right,” Ron snorted and then stopped when he noticed everyone glaring at him. “What? You’re having me on. There is no way Malfoy can control something like that.”

“Yes there is Ron,” Harry said, shocking everyone. His eyes were filled with a strange light as he remembered the display he and Hermione put on when they’d healed Melody’s eyes.

“Well if he can, we can,” Ron huffed.

“No, we can’t,” Harry said softly.

“Mmm. I don’t know Potter. It could take a few years but you might could,” Melody said, biting her lip. “You’re just not there yet.”

“If Harry can, I can,” Ron puffed up.

“I doubt it,” Melody said sharply. “You’re too reactive. It takes huge amounts of both power and concentration and you don’t have them, especially concentration. Hell, you can’t even make your doll dance.”

“That’s bloody hard!” Ron yelled.

“And yet Hermione, Harry and Draco have managed it and you haven’t,” Melody cut across him. “If you want to get to that level, you’re going to have to buckle down. Hermione can’t carry you this time.”

“What?” Ron spluttered.

“Oh honestly,” Melody snorted. “I can tell copying when I see it. You have a brain Weasley; you’re just too damned lazy to use it. Instead, you use hers or worse, Lavender’s. You can’t do that with concentration. No one can concentrate for you.”

Ron turned ten different shades of red before spluttering. “I can do just fine on my own!”

“Which is why your grades have been steadily declining?” Melody drawled. “Look Weasley, you might not like hard work but it’s the only way you’re going to get to where you need to be. Book reading and report writing are boring. I get it, but they are also necessary. You need to learn theory before you can effectively practice. Then of course, practice makes perfect. Practice is the fun part but you can’t walk before you learn to stand.”

“So why didn’t Hermione destroy it then,” Ron groused, deciding to give up the previous fight.

“I can’t cast fiendfire,” Hermione whispered. “I can’t cast any dark magic.”

“You could,” Draco said. “Look! Expecto Patronum!” He cried as he whipped his wand in the air. A beautiful silver fox came drifting out of his wand.

“You did it!” Hermione laughed and clapped. Then she cast her own little otter. They watched in glee as the two patronuses flew through the air and played with each other.

“Big whoop. I could do that last year,” Ron sneered.

“Yes but until just now, Draco couldn’t,” Melody said. “Which means that Hermione might be able to cast fiendfire but it would still be very risky. I don’t recommend it.”

The fox patronus disappeared when Draco frowned. “I didn’t say I wanted her to cast it, only that she could.”

“Why not Malfoy. Don’t think she’s good enough?” Ron scoffed.

“Oh I know she’s good,” Draco said with a mischievous smirk that caused her to blush horribly. “I just don’t want to risk her getting hurt.”

“Sure,” Ron mumbled.

“Look Weasley,” Melody snapped, tired of the tense situation. “Draco is in this for the long haul. Get used to it. He’s with Hermione. Get used to it. He can do things you can’t. Get used to it. You can do some things easier than he can so you can put your dick away and we can get down to business. Now Harry, I believe it’s time you got lucky.”

Draco started snickering at her choice of words. Both Hermione and Ginny blushed furiously and he swore he even saw a bit of pink tinge to Potter’s cheeks. “Yea Potter, go get lucky,” he guffawed. Hermione turned to bury her head in his chest, her cheeks flaming.

“Ha ha Malfoy,” Harry huffed. “Alight, I’ll go now.”

“Good, off with you then,” Melody said softly. “Come back here when you get it. I’ll still be here.”

“Where will everyone else be?” Ron asked.

“Well,” Snape drawled, relishing the startled look on Weasley’s face. “I believe those two have plenty of things to discuss at home.” He nodded his head towards Philippe and Harmony. “Alex I believe is staying here but he might go hunting in a bit.” He grinned nastily when Ron paled.

“Don’t worry Weasley,” Alex chuckled. “I’m house trained.” Ron nodded nervously. Snape raised an eyebrow at that. “Well, I only bite when asked then.” Snape kept his same expression. “Oh it was wanted and you know it.”

Snape snorted at that and plugged on, ignoring the implications. “Miss Weasley needs to return to her dormitory because it is close to curfew and I have rounds in a few minutes.” He looked down at Celeste, who was sitting at his feet in wolf form. She’d transformed as soon as she heard Weasley’s footsteps. “Coming?” The wolf nodded sharply and got up to leave.

“Well, go on then,” Alex said to Draco and Hermione as Snape turned to leave. “I’ve already checked you out, mostly healed, just a bit sore.”

“Where are they going?” Ron asked incredulously.

“To bed,” Draco said as he leered at Hermione, heat clearly in his eyes.

“What?” Ron shrieked.

“Oh cut it out Weasley. They’re going to their rooms to get some rest. Why wouldn’t they?” Melody chided.

Ron gaped a few minutes and then clamped his mouth shut. “Whatever,” he mumbled and went back to his cot.

“Sleep tight,” Melody said with a wicked smirk as the couple walked out of the hospital wing, casting a wandless disillusionment spell as they left.

‘Was that entirely necessary?’ Hermione thought perturbed.

‘No but I’m not sorry I did it. I’m sick of him consuming your thoughts.’

Hermione almost stumbled at his venom. She didn’t project or say anything until they’d entered their room. She went to say something but found that she couldn’t. Had Ron consumed her thoughts so entirely that Draco was feeling slighted?

Draco stripped down the second the door closed and headed to the shower. He was dying to get the feeling of absolute filth off of him. He felt horrible about so many things and seeing Weasley practically fall all over himself when his wife smiled at him had made him want to vomit. He just wanted to wash it all away. He locked the door and made sure to cut off all of his thoughts from his wife. It was a strange feeling, not being linked to her but he needed some time to sort everything out.

He stared at himself in the mirror for quite some time, trying to see the person he’d suddenly become. His reflection started to complement him and he immediately cursed it silent. He didn’t want to hear how handsome he was. He was a monster and there wasn’t anything that could change that. He turned away in disgust and ripped his collar off his neck. It landed on the sink as he waved his hand to lock and ward the door.

Turning the water as hot as he could stand it, he stepped into the shower and hissed. He removed all the sticking charms and watched as the makeup that had covered his most treasured secret ran down his body in rivulets and circled the drain. He only wished that his feelings of worthlessness would do the same. The bitter taste of weakness choked him. Flashes of brutally whipping Melody flooded his mind and he fell to his knees in despair. He’d promised himself that he’d never hurt a woman and he’d broken that.

What else did he have left? He’d projected his hatred of his wife to his Lord. It had taken everything in him not to vomit at that thought. How could he have held so much hatred for such a beautiful creature? Hermione was perfect and he was…a monster, a cowardly monster. He could have crushed that scaly bastard with a twitch of his finger but he held back because of her and he honestly didn’t think he regretted that.

He’d damn near killed her best friend though. Thoughts of Ron Weasley flittered through her mind at least a hundred times a day since they’d been bonded in mind. He’d learned to ignore them and eventually accept them for what they were, her mourning the loss of what could have been. Still, seeing her face when he’d accused her of being a traitor, he thought he’d rather die than see that again. Finally, the tears fell and he succumbed.

Hermione beat on the door for the hundredth time in ten minutes. Those were the longest ten minutes of her life, longer than even the fight at the Ministry of Magic. Draco hadn’t said a word to her since they’d entered the Room of Requirement. He’d merely stripped down and marched to the bathroom. His wand was still sticking out of his robe pocket. Snape had taken his Death Eater robes and masks for cleaning and repairs. For that, she was thankful.

What was he doing in there? Was he truly that angry with her? How bad had she been? She slid down the door in frustration. She admitted she thought about Ron way more than she needed to. Ron’s flush when she’d complimented her told her all she needed to know. He wanted her as more than a friend and that thought stung but not as much as the thought that she’d upset Draco. No one realized that he was so sensitive, being the master of the aloof mask but it was quite easy to hurt his feelings.

She had to get in there but he’d locked and warded the door. Why would he do that? Even at his absolute angriest, he’d never physically locked her out. A thought occurred to her then. He hadn’t really been able to deal with his trip to the Dark Lord yet. Was he dealing with it alone? She started panicking and let off a burst of magic that splintered the wards on the door. She threw it open and ran inside to find her husband curled up in a ball in the bottom of the bathtub, sobbing quietly.

Her heart broke in that instant. She stripped down and jumped in with him, realizing that the water had turned ice cold. She charmed it to a comfortable temperature and cradled his head on her chest. He was almost catatonic, not acknowledging her presence as tears cascaded down his face. She didn’t know how long she rocked him back and forth until he finally returned her embrace.

“Oh Draco, I’m so sorry.”

“Why?” His voice cracked.

“Draco, let me back in. Please?”

“No. You shouldn’t feel like this.”

“Draco, please.”

He sighed and reluctantly let his walls back down, hating the fact that he couldn’t deny her anything. Her breath was taken away when she saw and felt all of his self-loathing. He felt even more horrible when he felt her guilt at hurting him with Ron. He couldn’t put his feelings into words though.

“We don’t need words,” she said softly and leaned down to kiss him.

It took him a second to respond out of sheer shock. After all he’d done, how could she still touch him, let alone kiss him? He found he really didn’t care and kissed her back with as much passion as he could. Flickers of magic poured off of them as they fought for dominance in the kiss. Their tongues dueled for a few minutes before she surrendered to him. He shifted out of her lap and maneuvered himself to sit on his knees. She scrambled up into his lap and ground herself down on top of him.

His cock sprang to attention immediately, seeking out her blazing heat. He could feel her wetness and it wasn’t from the shower that was cascading down on them. The magical current grew between them and started sparking off their fingers as they quested over each other’s skin. They were both jittery and eager, not feeling this way since their very first time together.

“Gods Hermione, I’m sorry; I can’t wait. I need to be inside you,” he murmured as he kissed down her neck to her shoulder.

“Please!” She begged him.

Not one to ask twice, he lifted her up and impaled her on his hardened length. They both moaned from the sheer pleasure they felt being together again. The bright light of their combined magic was overwhelming and they had to close their eyes and just go off of feel. Moving nice and slow, they reaffirmed their love for each other.

Draco bent Hermione back so he could pay attention to her breasts. He ducked down and grabbed a dusky pink nipple, worrying it with his teeth and tongue. She moaned softly and grabbed his hair for purchase as she ground herself down on top of him again and again. He let out a groan as she swiveled her hips over him. He switched breasts and thrust up into her sharply, hitting the one spot he knew would make her cry out.

“Oh fuck!” She cried. He smirked. She hardly ever swore like that, only when she lost herself. He couldn’t deny that reducing her to a quivering mass stroked his ego. As silly as it was, he took pride in the fact that only he could see her lose control like that. Feeling the flutter of her walls, he lifted her up and slammed her back down over her repeatedly, determined to bring her to completion as many times as he could before he allowed himself release.

Hermione’s moans ran together, her thoughts falling out of her head like sand. The only thing she could focus on was Draco filling her repeatedly and the overwhelming pleasure building in her belly. Before she realized it, the bubble burst and she screamed with pleasure as her orgasm rocketed through her body. Draco refused to let up, pulling out and pushing her to the back of the tub.

“Hold on,” he commanded as he brought her hands to the lip of the tub. He yanked her legs back to support her weight and slammed back into her with enough force to cause her knees to slip. In one motion, he’d repositioned her legs, placed his arm around her waist, and thrust again, groaning at the sensations of her walls gripping him. “Merlin you’re so tight,” he growled and thrust into her as hard as he could.

Hermione screamed from the rough treatment and the subsequent pleasure she received from it. She felt his other arm slide up to pinch and pull her nipple, adding to the tightness in her core. She was overwhelmed. “It’s too much!”

“No. You can take it,” Draco growled into her ear and brought his hand down to play with her clit. He rubbed it for a while and then suddenly pinched it. That final stimulus threw her into another orgasm. Draco moaned at the feeling of her walls clamping down on his cock like a vice. He struggled to fuck her through her second orgasm. Not satisfied yet, he pulled out and stood up, picking her up to straddle him. He planted his hands on the wall with her legs over his arms and entered her again.

Her back arched and she wailed as he began a hard and fast pace. She couldn’t think, couldn’t breathe, all she could concentrate on was him. Magic started crackling through them both, a feeling of agitation settled in and Draco hit her harder, trying to chase it away. She started sobbing, overwhelmed with pleasure and begged him to continue.

His legs started cramping from his frenzied pace so he did the only thing he could think of; he bit her. Red hot pleasure burst in her veins and she screamed in bliss. Her walls clamped down so hard that he could scarcely move and yet it wasn’t enough. His teeth embedded in her neck, he growled with frustration. She felt darkness creeping in as she shifted enough to sink her teeth into his shoulder. He howled as he slammed into her one last time before he found his release. They slid to the bottom of the tub in a heap of tangled limbs. The only thing either had realized before they lost consciousness was that the water had stopped running.

-------

In the hospital wing:

A bright light flashed throughout the entire castle.

“What in the bloody hell was that?” Ron asked, rubbing his eyes in annoyance.

Melody and Alex started laughing. “Together again,” Melody started singing. “Gee it’s good to be together again.”

Alex chimed in with his honey smooth voice. “I just can’t imagine that you’ve ever been gone.”

They started singing together. “It’s not starting over, it’s just going on! Together again, now we’re here and there’s no need remember when. Cause no feeling feels like that feeling-”

“What are you two on about?” Ron growled.

“Nothing Weasley,” Melody snickered. “Don’t worry about it.”

“Easy for you to say,” Ron mumbled and then turned back over.

“Think they’ll remember they have training in the morning?” Alex asked his wife.

Melody shrugged. “You might check on them in the morning just in case.”

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Cold. Draco’s first thought was that he was freezing. Opening his eyes, he discovered two things. Number one, he and Hermione were still in the bathtub and number two, there was someone in the room with them. Startled into action, he threw a hand out to cast a stunner. It was easily blocked and he was bound in ropes a second later. He started struggling until he hear a deep voice chuckling.

“Easy kids. Just checking to make sure you’re alive,” Alex said softly.

Hermione, roused by the ropes binding her, awoke with a scream. Draco struggled a bit to wrap his arms around her.

“Stop Hermione!” Alex said in an authoritative voice.

She stopped screaming when she heard his voice. “What’s going on?” She asked, just a shade before hysterical.

Alex chuckled. “I’m assuming your coupling last night robbed you of your consciousness.” He threw them both robes and turned around so they could make themselves more presentable.

It was a very slow process to drag themselves out of the bathtub. Being in such a restricted and tangled position left them extremely stiff and cramped on top of being sore from their previous endeavors and Voldemort’s tortures.

Draco groaned as he straightened up and helped Hermione out of the tub. “What time is it?”

“You have about ten minutes to get to class,” Alex drawled as he turned back around.

“What!” They screeched and tumbled to the floor as they tried to run in the next room. Their legs were too weak to hold them. Alex patiently helped them up and let them lean on him to get to their bed and sit down.

“Why didn’t you wake us up sooner?” Draco growled and then grimaced as a sharp pain shot through his side. Hermione hissed in answer to it.

“I’ve been trying to wake you two up since six o’clock this morning,” Alex said, frowning. He drew his wand and ran a few tests. “You’re ribs haven’t healed. I was sure they would fuse back together by now but I’m afraid we’re going to have to do it manually.”

“That explains the pain,” Draco hissed and tried to get up to put his trousers on.

“Stop,” Alex commanded and put his arm on Draco’s shoulder to prove his point. “I’m serious Draco. Your ribs should have healed by now and certainly after that display last night.”

“Display?” Hermione whispered.

Alex smiled. “You two lit up the entire castle last night with your antics. What exactly happened?”

Hermione blushed horribly and ducked her head. Draco half laughed and shook his head. “It was, well, it was like we couldn’t get enough. We finally had to bite each other.”

“That explains it,” Alex said, his eyes revealing that he had an epiphany.

Draco frowned. “Explains what?”

“Why you aren’t healing like you should be,” Alex clarified. “Melody said your bond was stretched to the absolute limit and I saw it myself. Just a few seconds of lost contact and you experienced the ultimate pain. Last night, you reconnected but it wasn’t enough to repair it completely. That’s where your fangs are a blessing. If you didn’t have them, I fear we’d have to manually mix your blood to settle the bond.”

“I thought it was settled,” Hermione said softly.

“Melody says it’s the bond is like a muscle which is held together by connective tissues. When you tear those tissues, the muscle weakens and can tear. Of course the more you exercise the muscles, the stronger they get. Do too much, and you risk overextending and damaging them. Being separated, tortured, and then having to undergo such a drastic healing really weakened it. The bond is first above everything, even health, so last night you repaired it from pure instinct. What didn’t happen was his body healing physically.” Alex waved his wand and produced a model of Draco’s cracked ribs.

“Oh my!” Hermione exclaimed weakly when she saw the state of Draco’s ribs. “Can you repair them?”

“Easily but it’ll be painful,” Alex said with a grimace. “I’ll mend the biggest cracks which will allow you to attend classes today. Then I’m going to give you a small dose of skele-gro so they’ll finish mending on their own.”

“Won’t we miss Defense Against the Dark Arts?” Hermione asked. “How much time is left?”

Alex looked at his watch. “Three minutes.” He snapped his finger and immediately, Hermione was dressed. “I’ll take you now. I’m fast enough most won’t be able to detect me.”

“What about him?” Hermione said, her stomach hurting at the thought of being separated from him.

“I’ll fix him up and bring him a bit late with a doctor’s excuse,” Alex said reassuringly. “Melody’s already had Dobby get your bag. It’s in the room right now.”

“Harry!” She said, remembering that he was supposed to try to get Slughorn’s memory the night before.

“Was successful,” Alex said softly. “There are six objects and Harry. The cup Harry proposed, the snake, and whichever one Dumbledore is trying to find are the only ones left before him. We’ll discuss it during your detention tonight. I strongly caution you not to speak about it until then.”

Hermione nodded and leaned over to give Draco a lingering kiss goodbye. Draco smiled and kissed her again. “Your bird.”

“He’s right.” Alex said with a frown. He grabbed a pot from his pocket and in a lightning fast move, he placed her hair in an updo, covered the bird with makeup, and fastened her collar on her neck. “Being a vampire does have its perks I guess.” He chuckled at Hermione’s bewildered look.

Before she could respond, he had scooped her up and zoomed all the way to the hall before class. He sat her down gently and then took her robes out of his pocket, enlarging them for her. “Best hurry, one minute until class.” She bit her lip in worry. “He’ll be fine. I’ll give him a pain potion and he’ll be in class before you know it.”

She nodded and limped as fast as she could to class. She might be feeling Draco’s pain, but the stiffness and leg cramps were all her own. Sleeping in the bathtub would not be one of the highlights of her week. The clock chimed just as she made it to her chair. Everyone was staring at her and she started to panic. What was wrong?

Snape was as imposing as ever, sitting at his desk. He called Melody over and whispered in her ear. Melody nodded and strolled over to her desk and leaned down. Hermione couldn’t help but notice how slow and stiff she was. She had to be in pain still. Hermione was certain she’d heard Alex say it would take about a week for her to heal completely. A pang of guilt hit her and she had to hold back tears, realizing it was Draco’s guilt.

“Miss Granger,” Melody drawled and Hermione cringed, wondering what she’d missed. “Do you think it amusing to show up to class out of uniform?”

“What?” She asked weakly.

“I don’t believe that knee high leather go-go boots and a black mini skirt are part of the school uniform,” Melody said with a smirk.

Hermione looked down and gasped. She hadn’t even realized that Alex had not dressed her in her uniform. She blushed deep scarlet because number one, she was out of uniform, number two, she was in a rather sexy ensemble that she wouldn’t dare wear in public, and number three, she couldn’t defend herself because it wouldn’t be prudent to announce to the class that she hadn’t dressed herself that morning.

“Change them immediately and it will only be a fifteen point loss for Gryffindor,” Melody said slowly as she turned around to walk back to Snape.

Hermione muttered to herself as she looked around for her wand. Where had she left it? Melody cleared her throat and nodded to the bag beside her desk. Sure enough, her wand was in the front pocket of her satchel. She drew it out and transfigured her boots into Mary Janes and her skirt into the standard plaid knee length skirt the uniform called for. Then she buttoned her robes and slouched down in her seat, trying to ignore the stares she was receiving.

“Today, we will be reviewing all the dark creatures you’ve learned so far, with special emphasis on the werewolf,” Melody drawled as she came to a stop and contemplated sitting on Snape’s desk.

A knock at the door stopped her speech. “Enter,” Snape drawled.

Alex came in with a very pale Draco walking stiffly behind him. “Sorry Professor,” Alex said cheekily. “If you will excuse Mr. Malfoy, he was just receiving some last minute body work before being released.”

Draco ignored the snickers as he trudged to his desk. He gave a furtive look to his wife as he sat down, noticing she looked just as bad as he did. Could this day get any worse?

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Oh yes it could. Draco kicked himself for the millionth time that day for tempting the fates. Everyone had pounced on him the second he walked out of DADA that morning. That little comment Alex made had caused them all to think he had something going with the vampire. He assured them he was just finishing his healing and thought he’d be smart about it.

Pansy didn’t buy it. Instead, she spread some truly vicious rumors about everything from him being gay to him turning his back on the Dark Lord so he could be the vampire’s concubine. He simply shrugged them off at first but when first years started snickering and calling him a ponce, he had to retaliate. It was dinner time in the great hall and he was feeling horrible. He hadn’t been able to steal a moment away with Hermione all day and it was starting to wear on him. Their bond was apparently still weak. Pansy had just sat down.

“Oh look, it’s the concubine,” She sneered.

Draco slammed his fork down on the table and stood up. “I’m sick of the ramblings of a desperate little twat who’s pouting because she didn’t get her way!” He shouted. “If you weren’t such an annoying self-centered little cunt, you might have been worthy enough to be mine. As it is, you aren’t worth the dirt on my boots! Enjoy life as a bottom feeder you status whore.” Her face went wide with shock as he got up to leave.

“You traitor!” She screamed and threw a slicing hex at him which he easily blocked. “How dare you turn your back on me!”

“Perhaps you should think about who you’re turning your back on and how they will take it,” Draco said, his voice holding a dark promise. He spun around and stormed out of the great hall.

‘Are you okay?’ Hermione asked him worriedly.

‘Yeah, I’m just tired of her shite. I’m sorry love.’ He hadn’t meant to worry her.

‘Don’t be sorry. I’ll meet you in the classroom in just a bit okay?’

‘See you soon,’ he said wistfully as he marched toward the DADA room.

“Everything okay?” Harry asked Hermione when the doors to the great hall slammed closed. She’d assured him that she’d been informed of his success but they hadn’t really talked all day.

“Yes,” Hermione said confidently after a few moments. “Parkinson just trampled on his last nerve.”

“I’ll say,” Ginny said with a low whistle. “Bint deserved it though. Did you hear the crap she’s been saying all day?”

“Unfortunately,” Hermione said wryly. “I’m going down early. I’ll see you two in a little while.”

“Hermione,” Harry said softly and stopped her with a hand on her arm. “Are you going to be okay? You look worse than you did this morning.”

Hermione smiled sadly. “I’ll be fine. It was just a bit too much and it’s taking a while to get back to normal.”

“If you’re sure?” Harry said worriedly.

“I promise.” She dropped a kiss on his temple. “See you in a bit.” She headed out of the hall and down to the DADA classroom. As soon as she closed the door, she was pounced on.

Draco practically slammed her into the wall with the force of his advancement. His lips brutally ravaged hers as he fought for control over his emotions. She melted into him, not caring about the rough stones digging into her back. It just felt so much better to be in his arms. She didn’t know how long they’d been kissing before a distinct clearing of a throat sounded out. They reluctantly separated to see a bemused Melody sit down gingerly on a chair near Snape’s desk.

“You two ready to work or should I leave and let you fuck it out until Harry and Ginny join us?”

Hermione went red as a beat and Draco rubbed his face in frustration. He growled. “I think we can make it.”

“Good. We aren’t going to do too much today. It’s more of a skull session. After what Harry discovered, we need to make plans to start looking.”

“Where would we start?” Hermione asked, her brow furrowed in thought.

“I figure we’d start with the memories Dumbledore showed Harry. Then we’ll go from there. By the way, there is another thing that you two might be interested in,” Melody said, biting on her fingernail in a nervous gesture.

“What’s that?” Draco said, finding a seat and plopping down, dragging Hermione into his lap. There was no way he was going to let her go if he didn’t have to.

“The niffler woke up,” she said with a slow smile.

AN: Hello again! This one took a while but hopefully I'm in my groove again. Thanks you all so much for your support. They buried my friend yesterday and I just hope that his wife and two small kids will perservere. Answering some questions... Melody is going to be like most strawberry blond/ red heads. She's pale with a smattering of freckles and I'm going to be nice and give her smooth skin. :D You might have seen my recent one shot. I did it just for fun but I loved it so I'm going to grant some of your wishes and write the foursome for you guys. It might take me a bit because I don't want to put this story down but I'll get it out as soon as possible. As always, thank you sooo much for your reviews. Keep them coming and let me know how I'm doing and if you find any errors. Until then... Love you guys!
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