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Beyond the Veil -- COMPLETE	By : LaBibliographe Category: Harry Potter > Het - Male/Female > Lucius/Hermione Views: 65215 -:- Recommendations : 5 -:- Currently Reading : 2
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor any of the characters from the books or movies. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 46
- 47
- 48
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Updated 10-25-08

I am so very appreciative of all your comments, and I especially bow to my faithful reviewers who provide feedback more regularly. You've all made this reading journey so wonderful for me.
Let's get to some answers, then the next chapter -

Voracious Reader - Agamemnon and Clytemnestra were names Lucius was merely teasing Hermione with � he doesn�t have any intention of actually using them. This chapter answers some of your other questions.

Jesse Was it the baby you weren�t expecting? Confused.

Mia - Ah, Mia � Lucius was merely yanking Hermione�s chain with those names. He wasn�t serious. Not that he wouldn�t be quite capable of giving his children strange names. If you lock me in a basement, I�ll come gladly if Lucius is there. (Hmm, pun not intended, but funny.)

WhiteWitch � The way the Veil rewards people with those overwhelming, erotic sensations, no wonder it hasn�t been ground up for time-turners. Ooh, thank you for the compliment on how you liked this chapter. I appreciate that.

Heidi191976 � Thank you and I�m pleased you approve of the baby addition.

sisterae � Lucius had perhaps an inappropriate impulse to twist Hermione�s tail with those baby names. He didn�t mean it. OH! Wow! Just saw you�ve posted a new Lucius and Hermione story. And just look at all the descriptors. I�ll see you over at your new story, too. Yay!

Snapes_Goddess � I�ve always seen Lucius as interested in having more children. I don�t know why�

blue artemis � Oh my, I think Agamemnon goes beautifully with blue artemis. Rather lyrical, LOL. Congrats on your upcoming happy bundle. Your first? I'm at the other end of the spectrum. My one and only, a son, just moved out to spread his wings in his own life. I'm sad and proud at the same time.

tambrathegreat � The names were Lucius� joke. I hope the Veil didn�t have anything to do with the baby. My goodness, it would be soooo ugly with a granite head LOL. Unfortunately, guilt and Lucius are as compatible as oil and water. After three hours of sex, I do hope Lucius� tackle is still in working order. I suppose you could volunteer for a trial run� I don�t think ANYONE�S husband is any Lucius Malfoy � except Emma Isaacs�, I guess.

sweettiff_14 � Lime! I wanted him to smell special, yet masculine. I like limes. Yup, this last chapter got out a bushel�s worth of sappy, sweetness.

ruck_fules84 � I kinda like the old Greek names, too. But my last name is already long, so I couldn�t indulge with my family and live to tell the tale after my son grew up and discovered what I�d done, heh, heh.

FlowersBecomeScreens � Aha!! Genius minds using the same names for a joke. It just seemed so right and funny. I�m not at all sure Lucius will ever turn over all his new leaves, but that�s what makes him interesting to me. And apparently to Hermione, too. So how did the fangirl squeal work out?

slytherin-princess � Ah, I�m glad you liked the Greek joke names. Maaaaaybe there is a lemon left to savor. [Wink]

Rini - Maybe the Veil is perverted for rewarding Hermione and Lucius with wall-to-wall sex, but it has to sit there millennium after millennium. It may be bored� Lucius was merely funning with the Greek names, but you certainly can explain to him about the shortened version of Clytemnestra. I don�t think he�s thought of that.

Utopia Hmmm, if the Veil is female, that might explain why Hermione gets more sympathy � except Lucius was rather rude at the beginning. Three hours of sex, doesn�t necessarily mean it was all tab A in slot B. Lucius is nothing if not inventive. Caveman Lucius. I can see him with a bit of leopard skin. If the wikipedia is correct, Clytemnestra was WORSE than an STD.

jw � What a lovely compliment that you like the Veil. The time travel is very confusing. We�ll see what happens.

Scary Bear Hair � Thanks Scary. Happy dance is always coveted. The Veil does seem to have a wicked ability to incite lust. I�m not sure lust would have altered Voldemort�s trajectory. (Oh pooh, another pun not intended. Kinda vulgar, too.) Hermione comes late to the love party, but she makes up for lost time with her declaration.

angelprince � Yes, the story is winding down. Maybe I could sell shag tickets to the Veil. I�ll look into it. Now I have a totally inappropriate visual of Lucius on the chamber pot studying a baby names book. Ewwww. Thanks, AP.

sheherazade � Oooh, delicious, you saw the problem hidden in the gazebo. (Actually that came to me later, so in a way you saw it before I did. Great work!) I love a book called �These Old Shades� by Georgette Heyer where the heroine calls the hero �Monseigneur� and I�ve always swooned over that name..

Mrs_Helene_Snape � As you know any and all reviews are welcome, whenever they arrive. I hate when my internet connection wobbles. I�m afraid that Lucius was indeed thinking from the wrong end in the gazebo, but I suppose he landed in clover � as usual. The rest of your questions may find some answers in this next chapter.

Muffy � I see you are happy that the couple�s lives are settling and twining together � finally. I think they both let go of their insecurities to cling to each other instead. A pretty good trade.

DragonFyre �I am happy you like the idea of a new addition to the Malfoy dynasty, but I can�t exactly answer your questions yet. Perhaps this next chapter will fill in some holes. Your teacup poodle must be adorable!

doodle � Interesting baby names. I already used Orion in another story. Your question should be answered in this next chapter.

pittwitch � Wow, PW, that was a great vid. I had to fire up the brain to keep up with all the convoluted familial relationships, but it turned out, he WAS his own grandpa. That was hilarious. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gkiOm-vmpcY

Damiana � I don�t mind constructive criticism because so often a writer is blind to the details that might strike someone else as needing a polish. I blush to admit I probably could have written another 30 chapters of this, with more investigation of the times and surroundings and all the twists of more characters and ancestors of the modern ones in the HP books. But the story arc felt complete enough to end it, plus I was already starting to write the next story, which was seducing me away from this one. Some of those plot bunnies have big teeth. So, are you saying I should let the chapters unfurl even if they wind up being in the 50�s? I do know that if I see someone else�s chapter count over 30, I think twice about starting it, because I need time to write. Those who are purely readers don�t have the same time constraints, I guess.
Snerk! Yes, it was Lucius and he went �all the way� LOL. I suppose if I were cataloging a man and had to start at the feet, I might stall around the middle � for a looong time. And frankly, if you stepped forward asking Lucius for a spanking, you needn�t have any excuse.

Citten � You want to know what comes next and you think it won�t be easy. Now have I ever made any of my stories purely sweetness and light? Uh, well, okay, they aren�t Grand Guignol, but there is usually a bump or two in the road to happiness.

Clare1984 � Apparentlly the Veil has spent enough time in Lucius� mind that it knows exactly what to give him for a reward. I imagine the Veil left it to Lucius to provide Hermione�s reward, which he did in grand style. Husband and wife have it all now, true love and a baby on the way�or do they? So � is your tricky Lucius speaking to you now? How is your story coming along? If you have LiveJournal you can leave me messages there, too.

And now...

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Chapter Forty-Seven

Pining

The two Malfoys stayed in for the next few days and rediscovered the depths of their marriage now knowing they each loved and were loved. Life in the Pureblood society lane resumed for the Malfoys and they went about their responsibilities, enjoyed various entertainments and spent hours speculating about their unborn child, sharing their individual hopes and dreams for this new baby, sometimes laughing, sometimes fighting over what they wanted for their child. But slowly, inexorably, Lucius began to lose his energy, his drive, his normal zest for life.

At first Hermione thought he was just coming down with some mild illness and would be his old effervescent self in no time. But soon she started to really worry that something major was wrong with him. Her appetite fled right along with his and her fear escalated with each passing day that he slowed down and retreated from his busy life.

The plans for the academy were complete and well under way. Lucius wasn�t needed much for the details. His unplotting of his properties had been completed. He had turned over the day-to-day operation of his bordello to two of the women, who were doing a fine job. He was also one by one divesting himself of many of his financial responsibilities, putting more decision-making into the competent hands of the grumbling Gringotts goblins. His wealth grew, but he wasn�t at the helm.

When she queried him about his health, he rejected the idea he was sick. And he didn�t appear to be physically ill that she could see. It was his mental state that seemed to be deteriorating, but Hermione couldn�t get him to tell her what was wrong. It was only when he saw she was toying with her food and fretting and she wouldn�t take his word that he was healthy, scaring him that she might make herself ill that he finally voiced his concerns.

�I need to talk to the Veil,� he said one morning, surprising Hermione so much her mouth dropped open.

�You want to go talk to the Veil? But�but why?�

~~~~

�Oh, my Gods, Lucius, the Veil wants us to go back through it again.� The two Malfoys had gone that very morning to the Ministry and straight down to the Veil, merely waving at Miss Thornhill in passing.

The crooning sound emanating from the stone arch was working on both of them like the Sirens luring sailors to their doom. Lucius knew he had tripped the sentient rock�s behavior with his unvoiced longings. He made a quick decision against the Veil�s invitation, picked up Hermione and ran from the large, gloomy room, only setting his wife down when the seductive sound had faded. He knew the Veil could reach them anywhere, but the distance was a silent answer to the Veil that they weren�t ready. The crooning, now only in their heads, stopped suddenly as the two Malfoys sat dispiritedly in the Atrium of the Ministry watching the wizarding world pass by.

�I don�t know if the Veil is going to try to attract us again,� Lucius said, �but we need to decide if we want to chance where it wants to take us. I think we�ve solved the problem of the Master�s history so the future won�t be a death knell for the magic world.� He sat, his hands dispiritedly raking his face, his elbows on his knees. �But that answers my question. The Veil is willing to take us�somewhere.�

Hermione cuddled up to her husband and whispered, �You want to go, don�t you. Is this why you�ve been so morose lately? You�ve been divorcing yourself from this whole time period � I see the pattern now. You�re unhappy here.�

�We�ve accomplished what we were meant to do. I can�t help wondering if the Veil would take us home now? It�s been bothering me quite a lot lately. I�ve never stopped worrying about Draco and his family, but until we had accomplished our mission here, I felt there was no way to return. Now there might be and the Veil has indicated it can take us � somewhere. I�m willing to bet it can take us home to our century and our previous lives. But it has to be your decision, too. I won�t leave without you.�

�What would happen to us if we went through the Veil again?� she asked. �Would it take us somewhere else to solve another problem or would it return us to our own time? If we�ve actually changed history, our own time should be back to the way it was before the Master destroyed it. That interfering old arch doesn�t appear to want to change more than it has to, but I guess the Master had to be dealt with.�

�Let�s go back to our comfortable library,� Lucius raised Hermione from the bench and walked her over to one of the floos, striding with her into the green flames and stepping out into their own library. He sat down on the gray velvet sofa and spread out his legs, undoing the buttons on his waistcoat as he relaxed. The neckcloth came off next and he opened his shirt at the throat and down over his chest. �Well, one neckcloth or another, I�ll still have to wear one no matter where we wind up.� He rested his head on the back of the sofa and closed his eyes wearily.

�There are two other problems,� Hermione sat down beside Lucius and slipped her small hand into his larger one and felt him gently squeeze it.

�What are those?� Lucius didn�t open his eyes. His mental fatigue was more than ever apparent to his wife and a frisson of fear shot through her. He was more important to her than anything in any time period.

�If by some miracle we are returned to our time and the Master hasn�t obliterated the magic folk, will we still be a couple? Or will history be so changed that we won�t be together?�

Lucius opened his icy grays and contemplated the petite woman at his side. �Which would you prefer?�

Hermione sucked in a shocked breath, �How can you ask? Do you not want me if our world is righted?�

�Hermione, I would want you if we actually did wind up running from the dinosaurs. And at least there I wouldn�t have to wear a tie.�

�Truly? You would want me if we could go back?� she couldn�t help asking.

�Hermione,� Lucius warned, �Do I need to spank you? Are you implying I am lying again about wanting you?�

She sidled closer and shook her head vigorously, holding tightly onto his arm so he couldn�t lift her over his lap, �No, Lucius. It�s just reflex. Disregard my self-esteem issues. I�m working on them.� She saw his eyes narrow at her stranglehold on his arm, his sardonic lip-quirking telling her that holding him that way wouldn�t help her at all if he decided she needed a spanking. �I am!� She decided to change the subject before she was upended over her mate�s knee. �It sounds as though you�ve spent some time thinking about us taking our chances with the Veil.�

�I have. Do you want to stay in this time period? Forgive me for thinking that you haven�t been precisely thrilled with the position of women in the 1800�s.� Lucius cocked his head at his wife, a hint of smile lifting one side of his mobile mouth.

�The wizarding community of this time is much better than among the Muggles where I�m little better than property. But it�s not very pleasant for me here in the magic world, either. It is rather hard to be so limited after the normal freedoms I enjoyed in my own time. You�ve solved the problem of my horrid pantalettes, but no other women can see them. It becomes one of our secrets to keep.� Her eyes narrowed in turn, �And what will happen to your happy harlot house, hmm?�

�That is easy enough to fix,� Lucius said. �I�m leaving the brothel as a business jointly owned by all the women who work there, even shares all round.� He added, �I gave the woman who did the embroidery a choice of a stake in the brothel or a business establishment she could own outright. She took the store. I set it all up with the Gringott�s goblins to make sure the women aren�t cheated. The goblins are watching over the brothel and the embroidery store, too. This time period isn�t very favorable for women in business.�

�Understatement,� mumbled Hermione, annoyed anew at the restrictions women were subjected to in this era.

Lucius knew his wife felt the limitations hemming her in and it was another reason he wanted to try to escape back to their own time if their world was now set to rights. �The goblins will guard the women�s interests faithfully if sourly, but that always happens with them. They have numerous Muggle employees stretching into the Muggle financial world to take care of these types of affairs. I also,� he slid a sideways gaze at his wife, �um, found Nesbitt�s money stash in the Muggle bank where he put it.�

�And?� Hermione sighed, knowing she was going to hear a bit of his shiny, new leaf being ripped off the stem.

Lucius tried a hopeful smile, �I merely imperiused the bank manager to give me the funds, then obliviated him. That was all I did. The money has been transferred into the account for the women�s bordello. You want them to live good lives, don�t you?�

His wife�s eyes slitted in disapproval of his attempt to misdirect the point. It would be easier to ask a polar bear to live in Fiji than to get Lucius to change his basic nature. She forbore to say anything else, knowing her words would only make him defensive and accomplish nothing.

When Lucius understood he wasn�t going to be upbraided for his use of magic on a Muggle, his smile expanded. �Otherwise,� he said, �perhaps you haven�t thought through the fact that the minute we go through the Veil we will cease to exist in this world. We know a Malfoy ancestor kept the line intact in some manner up until I inherited in our century. I�ve always wondered what happened to the true Malfoy heir of this time. He�s probably quietly existing somewhere waiting to be found if we leave. Remember the Veil can step into any time parameter it wishes. If we decide to stay, the Malfoy line has a genuine, genetically true heir in me. Win-win.

�In any case,� he continued, �I suspect what we have done here will now continue to be, or the entire enterprise would have been for nothing,� Lucius mused for a few seconds, then frowned. �I think I am most irritated by the idea that the real Malfoy heir will somehow be the one who moves into this timeline and becomes the savior of the Squibs. Our contribution will be transferred to his life. We just made it happen where it wouldn�t have, otherwise. Now the Veil can graft the real heir onto this timeline we�ve gone to so much trouble to create, rather like a botanical experiment where one branch replaces another.�

Hermione petted Lucius� arm in commiseration, but said nothing. They both knew if he chose to leave, he was the one, in essence, doing the transferring of his own volition. She smiled. He was still just irked that his academy hadn�t been named after him.

�However,� the blond wizard continued his train of thought, �neither of us has the vaguest idea what we�ve really done to the future, except probably negate the Master somehow. You have such faith in the Veil that it is benevolent. I hope you�re correct and that arch rewards us at least enough to keep us together, but we have to be prepared for the possibility that our memories will be erased. Truly,� he mused, �I don�t think that will happen, though. If for no other reason than us having created a child.�

Hermione shivered at the sheer numbers of unknown scenarios they could be stepping into, but Lucius was back to worrying about the one constant and overriding necessity for him. �Unless I stuff my pockets with gold or some other negotiable material, we will arrive wherever the Veil sends us penniless once again. I�m hoping, foolishly I know, that we will be returned to our own, repaired time as a reward for accomplishing our task and I won�t have to be poor again. I detested being poor even for our first few days here. I don�t know how anyone can bear it.�

�Lucius,� Hermione groaned, �that is the least of it. Being poor isn�t the problem -�

�For me, it is.�

�Well, it is a minor problem next to finding ourselves in another strange time period, or worse, dead.�

�Nonsense. If we die, we won�t care if we�re poor or not. Did you never have a class in Logic?�

Hermione bridled at her husband�s one-track fixation on money. �If we wind up burned as witches in medieval Europe or drawing pictographs on cave walls in our bearskins I�ll remind you about your logic. Sometimes your logic can be so infuriating.�

��Bare skins� doesn�t sound so bad to me,� Lucius grinned. He dodged a small fist aimed at his shoulder. �Oh, very well, I�ll behave. So then, what was the second problem?� Lucius asked ignoring her criticism of his impeccable reasoning.

�If I go back through the Veil, will I keep our baby? That worries me more than anything.�

Lucius thought for a moment. �We need to ask it, then. It can send us good emotions or sad ones and then we�d know.�

�Let�s try to ask it without going to the Ministry,� Hermione said. �We�ve had numerous insertions of knowledge wherever we were in this time period. It might be able to cast emotions over distance, too.�

�You try,� Lucius waved his hand negligently. �It likes you better.�

�Your feelings are hurt? You think it has favorites? Oh, Lucius, that�s so funny. Snubbed by a rock. Very well, I�ll try.� Hermione got up and stood in the middle of the room, closer to her library table.

�Hello, Veil,� she called, concentrating on the sentient being. She heard a muted snigger and gave Lucius a frosty, slit-eyed stare. �No wonder it likes me better,� she taunted and saw with pleasure her husband�s sudden frown. �Be quiet, Lucius.� She concentrated on the arch again in her mind, �Veil, we need to know if I will keep our baby if we go back through your arch. I guess we need to know if we can go home to our time, too.�

Instantly the crooning began in their minds again, making both Malfoys gasp at the strength of the connection even from their distant estate. �So we will be safe and we will keep the baby?� she said again. The crooning increased almost to the level of the day when they were overcome with a megadose of lust. Then it stopped.

Hermione turned to Lucius who was now wide-eyed with surprise. �I guess that�s our answer. You want to go home. I want to be with you wherever you are. So we�re going back through the Veil. When do you want to leave?�

~~~~

Two days later most of their plans had been completed. They were standing in their library looking over the few items they wanted to take.

�I guess if everything you�re used to in your time hasn�t been changed, then we needn�t take any of these furnishings or belongings with us. Except the red shoes. I want to take them.�

�As a reminder of how I mistreated you?� Lucius groused at his wife�s choice of souvenir.

�Lucius!� Hermione slammed her hands on her hips in a militant stance, �are you still carrying that guilt around? Do I have to use the riding crop on you again?�

�Later, definitely. But for now, I want to go back to my own time as soon as possible. I am weary of living in this slice of history with its straight-laced rules and tight pantaloons. I�m surprised you got pregnant the way I�ve been constricted.�

�Well, � the little witch replied with a sigh, �I for one will miss those tight-fitting trousers. It was actually very educational seeing all the male goods on display everywhere. I feel sorry for some of the men, but you certainly didn�t have anything to hide. And you usually didn�t. My husband, the exhibitionist.�

�You looked at the crotches of other men?� Lucius half frowned, not happy to know his wife had been perusing the groins of other wizards.

�And you, I suppose, never once ran those beautiful grays of yours over any other bosoms but mine?� Hermione gazed at Lucius with deep skepticism, daring him to lie.

Lucius eyed his mate speculatively, wondering if he could lie well enough to convince her he hadn�t checked out any other female bosoms on display. Deciding not to attempt it, he countered instead, �Female garments are designed to show off a woman�s breasts especially in the evening gowns. It�s a man�s duty to admire a beautifully gowned lady. I don�t think, however, women should be ogling men�s pantaloons,� he said virtuously.

�If you say so,� Hermione quirked her lips. �Although we both know you would decline into melancholy if you didn�t have a parade of feminine oglers sneaking peeks at the bulge of your crotch. It�s one of your favorite pastimes and don�t tell me it�s not. Not only a lecher, but a hypocrite to boot! Shame on you, Lucius,� she grinned.

Lucius hastily changed the subject. �We can�t take a lot and still hold onto each other. Most of what�s here will be here in the future. Malfoys don�t get rid of much as you can see from our vault. When can you be ready?�

�Will anyone here miss us?� Hermione was feeling a frisson of depression at missing the only friend she had really made in their adventure. �It�s strange, but I�ll miss Margaret. She was different in so many ways from me and she would never be able to pass any O.W.L.s, but she was kind and cheerful and we had lovely teas together.�

�Margaret�s life and the lives of all the women at the bordello will be good, I�m sure. What history we�ve changed will stay changed, including the new ownership of the brothel. I bet the Veil can�t change Muggle history or it would have been busy interfering in all those wars they start. So whatever we did among the Muggles will stay done. We will simply disappear from their lives.�

�And here, in the wizarding world?�

�It still annoys me but the real Malfoy heir and his wife will probably reap the accolades for the Cross-Cultural Academy. I suspect they will become us in the minds of the people we�ve interacted with. We usurped their places in history, but when we leave, the vacuum will be filled. I know that because of my own family history unless all that got changed, too. But I think you�re right that the Veil doesn�t want to change any more than it absolutely has to, to keep the wizarding world intact. The heir must have been found and he carried on the line. I�ll never be known for having done something good, only for being a Death Eater.�

�Well, you did choose -� Hermione began.

�Holy Hecate, can�t you ever get out a violin instead of a bludger? Just commiserate with me, maybe a sympathetic pat on my back if you can�t bring yourself to say anything nice.� Lucius turned to get a few Galleons for his pocket and his cane.

�Sorry,� Hermione mumbled and bent to pick up her red shoes. She shook her head, knowing she would never have any sympathy for his Death Eater past, but she could stay quiet. She could do that for him.

~~~~~~

An hour later, they were ready. Lucius and Hermione flooed to the Ministry and went through the gate where they were supposed to check their wands. They looked at each other in some dismay. While they were pondering how they could keep their wands when they weren�t coming back, the attendant�s eyes unfocused for a minute and he waved them through the gate.

�Do you think the Veil�?� Hermione asked.

�Obviously,� returned the blond wizard, now intent on getting to the Veil. �It kind of makes one feel like a virus, where anyone close to us that we interact with can be affected by that stonework. I wonder if that particular phenomenon will follow us all our lives? Ah well, I have no answer.�

As they got closer, the crooning sound increased, inviting them, beguiling them, welcoming them to come to it. This time they were ready and gladly succumbed to the lure of the giant arch.

The rumbling began as they entered the vast room and Lucius and Hermione ran down the stairs and up onto the dais. �I want to carry you through so we aren�t separated,� said Lucius, suiting actions to words as he hoisted Hermione onto his shoulder once more. �Do you have your wand tucked away? And your shoes?�

�I�m ready,� said Hermione. �I love you.�

�And I love you,� Lucius vowed and walked through the tatty curtain, feeling it swirling lovingly around them both before they again were sent floating off into the darkness and absolute silence, clinging to each other as they were gently wafted through space. Lights began flashing around them, vignettes of wizarding history blinked by, faster and faster, until the lights coalesced into one brilliant, shimmering stream of illumination surrounding them, engulfing them once more.

Suddenly the light ended, just as before.

~~~~~

Hermione gazed around the bedroom that was different, yet the same. She noticed the vulgar paintings no longer graced the walls and she wasn�t sure if she was sad or happy about that. The fire crackled away merrily in the grate, warming her and creating a soft glow of light in the otherwise dark room. She put down her red shoes and looked around the familiar, yet strange room.

�Lucius?� she whispered, �The Veil put us back into our bedroom. Convenient.� When she heard nothing, she spoke louder, �Lucius!� but there was no answer. Hermione suddenly felt chilled through, her heart clutching in her chest, �Lucius!� she cried. She grabbed her wand and intoned, �Lumos!� The room was empty except for her � and Lucius� cane, lying on the carpet near her feet. �Lucius!� she screamed and sank down onto the thick woolen pile. Where had he been sent if not with her? �Lucius,� she moaned and began to cry.

A few minutes later, there was a knock on the bedroom door and Hermione leaped up and ran to open it, �Lucius?� but it wasn�t her husband.

�The elves said you were screaming. What�s wrong, Hermione? Are you hurt?� asked Draco seeing the tear tracks on her cheeks.

~~~~~~

Lucius felt cold and the air was a bit damp. �Hermione?� He felt around in the dark where he�d landed, searching for his wife. After a few confused seconds, Lucius drew back his hands in horror. He knew this place. Oh Gods, he knew this place all too well.

He fumbled in the dark until he found the small stash of candles on the shallow ledge where he knew they were kept. His hands shaking with dread, he found a match and lit the candle � then almost dropped it as the full extent of his new place became unbearably plain. He was back in his cell in Azkaban. Everything else had vanished, including his wife.

The Veil had deposited him in his old cell and he was wearing his prison uniform. If he was back in prison, it meant he and she had been successful in averting the massacre of their world � there was now no threat great enough to release him from Azkaban, but it also meant that Voldemort had still happened and he had still been convicted after the final battle.

Lucius sat down numbly on his cot. He�d lost her. What had the Veil done with her? Did she even remember him? He remembered her. He remembered everything. It was small consolation to the devastated wizard who sank down, laying his head on his pillow, grief-stricken.

Why had he never once contemplated the possibility that he would wind up back in Azkaban if they were successful? A great shudder shook the wizard�s body as the reality of eight years more of prison and the loss of the wife he loved swept over him.

Lucius wept.

tbc...

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Just an announcement that this story has forty-nine chapters and an epilogue. You've just finished reading Chapter 47.

If you have a burning desire to know something of the modern day they've returned to for the epilogue, let me know. I don't promise, but suggestions will be carefully considered - unless I would have to write an entire other story to encompass your ideas.

Reviews and ratings happily accepted.

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Beyond the Veil -- COMPLETE