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Precious Mudblood	By : magentasouth Category: Harry Potter > Het - Male/Female > Hermione/Voldemort Views: 79302 -:- Recommendations : 3 -:- Currently Reading : 6
Disclaimer: I neither own nor profit from any part of the Harry Potter universe

Chapter List
- 1-Precious Mudblood
- 2-Ch 2
- 3-Ch 3
- 4-Ch 4
- 5-Ch 5
- 6-Ch 6
- 7-Ch 7
- 8-ch 8
- 9-Ch 9
- 10-Ch 10
- 11-Ch 11
- 12-Ch 12
- 13-Ch 13
- 14-Ch 14
- 15-Ch 15
- 16-Ch 16
- 17-Ch 17
- 18-Ch 18
- 19-Ch 19
- 20-Ch 20
- 21-Ch 21
- 22-Ch 22
- 23-Ch 23
- 24-Ch 24
- 25-Ch 25
- 26-Ch 26
- 27-Ch 27
- 28-Ch 28
- 29-Ch 29
- 30-Ch 30
- 31-Ch 31
- 32-Ch 32
- 33-Ch 33
- 34-Ch 34
- 35-Ch 35
- 36-Ch 36
- 37-Ch 37
- 38-Ch 38
- 39-Ch 39
- 40-Ch 40
- 41-Ch 41
- 42-Ch 42 (edited. longer)
- 43-Ch 43
- 44-Ch 44
- 45-Ch 45
- 46-Ch 46
- 47-Ch 47
- 48-Ch 48
- 49-Ch 49
- 50-Ch 50
- 51-Ch 51
- 52-Ch 52
- 53-Ch 53
- 54-Ch 54
- 55-Ch 55
- 56-Ch 56
- 57-Ch 57
- 58-Ch 58
- 59-Ch 59
- 60-Ch 60
- 61-Ch 61
- 62-Ch 62
- 63-Ch 63
- 64-Ch 64
- 65-Ch 65
- 66-Ch 67
- 67-Ch 67
- 68-Ch 68
- 69-Ch 69
- 70-Ch 70
- 71-Ch 71
- 72-Ch 72
- 73-Ch 73
- 74-Ch 74
- 75-Ch 75
- 76-Chapter 76
- 77-Ch 77
- 78-Ch 78
- 79-Ch 79
- 80-Ch 80
- 69
- 70
- 71
�Get
up.� Now.�

Hermione
growled under her breath and turned over, putting the pillow over her
head.� It felt like she had only been
sleeping for a few minutes.

�What time is it� she griped into the mattress.

�Five
fifteen.� Start moving.� I do not want to have to tell you again.� Move now
or forgo a shower!��

She
whined in frustration. �This is your
fault for keeping me up half the night.�
If you keep waking me up like this every morning I�m going to start
sleeping in my room.�

A
stinging hex propelled her up with a yelp.�
She glared in the general direction of the bathroom door.� There was the sound of the shower being
turned on.

�If you
hurry, you may shower with me..� he called, an audible
smirk in his voice.

She
grumbled under her breath as she dragged herself to a sitting position and
swung her legs over the side of the bed.�
�Bloody stupid morning person.. hex me because you insist on stupid, stupid, morning exercise before
breakfast.� What do I care if you want to risk random parrot attacks and run for no good reason, not to mention waste water by having two morning
showers.. git.. why do I even have to know
about this.. can�t you just go and then come back and wake me up after you shower.. this is just
ridiculous.. I don�t know why-�

�I take
it you are not coming?!� the voice called tauntingly

She stood
and stomped toward the bathroom, eyes narrowed in full strop.�

Irritatingly, as so often, - when she had entered the room and was actually
face to face with the breathtaking creature turning and glistening under the
water, her foul mood just dissipated like snow in the sun.� It was annoying how wretchedly easily he
reduced her to drooling.�

It didn�t matter how often she got to see him.. how many times he took her.. Seeing him like that with the
droplets pearling off his black hair.. the streams running down his pale body... god.. it was like pavlovs bloody
dog.� In about half a second she was in
the shower and pressing him up against the wall, kissing him.� Calling it a kiss was a misnomer � she was
devouring him ravenously.� He smirked
against her lips through the consuming kiss and allowed the minor violent
attack upon his person.� That was
relatively rare.� Usually when she leapt
on him and tried to exert any form of dominance, he would gently.. or sometimes not so gently.. take control once again and reverse their positions.�

It should
be ministry controlled, the way he used his tongue! As always, he effortlessly
sucked and nipped her into a mindless hungry thing, desperate to climb him like
a tree. She ran her hands over his deliciously corrugated abdomen.� There was this place..
right here.. on his side.. above his pelvic bones.. just ..there.. For some completely anomalous reason � it was her favourite place
to touch on his entire body.� It was so..velvety soft.. and concave.. and it felt somehow so good to grip there.� And when she licked
and sucked it he sometimes made pleasant gasp sounds and bucked..

His lips released her and mouthed her jaw, trailing to her neck and nibbling at
her earlobe teasingly.� She felt his arms
around her shift and the one on her upper back moved to press on her shoulder.. urge her downward

Apparently she was not to have a climax this morning.�

She
sighed inwardly even as she slid down the slippery warm body to her knees.��

It explained why he had allowed her to push him up against the wall like that,
she thought cynically.� And she didn�t mind this.. it was somehow satisfying in a different way to the
satisfaction he gave her when he penetrated her.� It was somehow.. more emotionally
satisfying when he wanted her mouth.� It
felt sometimes as if he lost himself more.. let go more completely.. when she
was bobbing at his groin, swallowing him for all she was worth.�

Most times he would hold her head and guide her gently ...she had learned with
experience that it was unrelated to how well she performed - he simply enjoyed control.� The way he watched her with a dark, hungry gaze as she sucked him was
painfully exciting and when he got close to his climax he�d almost always close
his eyes, lips parted and panting softly, tense focus in every line of his face..he usually let his head fall back against the wall as he
thrust against her, his hand dragging her up and down more roughly..

Whenever he wanted her mouth, she�d spend the whole bloody morning run
frustrated and horny.�

And he knew.�

And she was almost certain that he was much brighter and more �chipper� on
those dratted days.�

Like today.�

He tasted
of clean water..fresh.. warm..
but as she slowly teased and licked the hard shaft
before her, she was able to coax a slightly bitter and salty tear from the head
of his cock.� She sprang upon it, licking
it up thirstily.� She loved the taste of that tiny initial
offering.� It was probably irrational but
whenever she persuaded his cock to weep before she began to suck it, she felt
as if it were somehow a physical demonstration of his need.. of his desire for her.� She had come to appreciate the taste that,
objectively seen, was not particularly pleasant.� It was among her favourite flavours now.

�Hermione..� he murmured softly.. it was a
gentle hint to her to stop teasing him and begin.� She knew it was not through frustration at
this point, merely that he liked to be outside by quarter to six and felt that
she was unnecessarily wasting time.� He
used her name more and more now in private.�
She had worried about that at first.. he wasn�t supposed to know, surely.� Everything he�d said in her time had not
suggested that he had known her before. �

He was a brilliant actor though.. He really could sell
freezers to Eskimos.� It was irritating
at times.�� Like this whole �morning run�
business.

Ok.. Lucius might have said
that she needed to work on her fitness.. and.. alright.. perhaps
Severus had said something about it too at some point but Tom had actually
tricked her into suggesting it herself and then had held her to it as a matter
of principle.� If she refused now she was
conceding that she lacked all discipline and expected others to protect her.. to carry her.

And that grated against her.

She had been the one protecting him from Grindelwald,
for Merlin�s sake.�

So .. she had to do it.� Morning runs on the freezing cold dark quidditch
pitch.�

He loved it.� She was sure he viewed it as some kind of
cross discipline sport � like the skiers in the winter Olympics who then pull
out a rifle and shoot after trekking across frozen slopes.�� Mencius had appeared on two separate occasions,
trying to reach her as she jogged slowly around the grassy circle and he,
running at a much faster pace and frequently lapping her, had managed to hex the
poor thing again both times, once from the other
side of the pitch!�

She couldn�t even really complain about it because - what did she want?!� Should he have allowed the parrot to possibly
latch onto her and drag her back to goldilocks?!� ��

Bloody Goldilocks.. she
thought distractedly, as she worked his length deeper, feeling her throat
stretching around him.. that almost choking feeling of having Tom buried to the root in
her.� She was so glad he�d gotten rid of
the wretched blonde curls.� Dumbledore
certainly wasn�t bothered enough by it to justify reminding her of that bloody German every time she
looked at him.� That had been what
persuaded him, too!� Tom was not easily
coerced to do something he had not independently decided to do � but she
promised him that if he didn�t get rid of the hairdo, she�d scream �Gellert� next time she came.�� He�d threatened her and warned her not to
dare, �so she�d
done it the very next time he took her to bed.. �

He�d cursed her soundly and then he�d
changed his hair back.�

It had been worth the pain, she felt.

�Touch
yourself�

Her mind
derailed slightly from its absent meandering line of thought.� What?!�

She looked up at him, frowning slightly as she suckled on the head of his cock.

�Do you
need an instruction manual?.. take
your hand.. place it between your legs and bring yourself
off!�� His head lazed back against the
white stone wall.� His eyes were half
lidded and examined her with amusement. ��They sharpened slightly when she moved to
release his cock to respond.

�I do not wish to hear debate or protest.�
Do as you are told.� I would like
to watch you come as you taste me..�

Hesitantly
she obeyed.� He�d never asked for this
before.. He�d never..asked
her to masturbate in front of him at all.�
The only one who had demanded that
was Lucius.�
Now the thought of it was associated with shame and even a little
fear.� The �toy� the Malfoy patriarch had
made her use had frightened her.. and
it had hurt.�

Tom�s
hand slid into her wet hair and twined itself into a loose grip.� �Yes.. exactly like that.. � he purred as
she started to spread the juices that had started to drip while she�d been
kissing him, sliding her fingers through her folds tentatively.� His hand pulled her closer again, reminding
her of what she was on her knees for.�

She tried to divide her attention to please him.� It was a bit more demanding.� Eventually she managed to synchronize her
fingers with the speed at which he dragged her up and down his cock.� It was better that way.� It felt as if the two things were connected.. as if in some way he was the one stroking her in tingling
little circles.

�Beautiful...�
he murmured, slipping the fingers of his other hand into her hair too and
thrusting into her mouth just a little deeper.. moving a shade more roughly.�
She was so distracted with her own sensations that she actually gagged.� He groaned low at her struggles and redoubled
the force of his motion.�

�When she felt her own climax approaching he
hissed with difficulty �No.. not
yet.... You..will....wait...��

She
whined around the cock in her throat and brought her
other hand to his balls, stroking them lightly in impatience.� Her mazed mind
understood the arithmetic.� She couldn�t
come until he came. �He needed to come now.�

Her efforts bore fruit.. �He let slip what sounded like an expletive in
parseltongue and shook, his head dropping forward as his eyes clenched. �She felt his muscles tighten a moment before he spasmed and spilt his hot bitter seed on the back of her
throat, groaning loudly and tossing his head back against the wall with a soft
knock sound.�

Released from his command, she rode her fingers into her own pleasure eagerly,
moaning joyfully while she sucked as if his milky release held the elixir of
life itself.�

She felt
his hand stroking her head weakly.

�I will never let you go..�� he whispered,
leaning back against the stone, with eyes that were lazy and soft in the
aftermath of euphoria.�

She loved him best when he looked this way.�
Soft...� tousled... pleased with
her.

It never lasted long enough.

Indeed
only a minute or two later, he peeled her off the thigh that she had wrapped
her arms around and leaned her face against like a child.

�Don�t take too long.� I wish to be
downstairs in ten minutes� he instructed her lightly, stepping around her and
leaving her on the floor of the shower on her knees, as he summoned a towel and
strolled out of the bathroom to dress for his morning exercise.

�Git� she growled inwardly, climbing to her feet.

A few
minutes later he marched back in and turned the water off, stalking out again
without bothering to say a word.� She
knew that the shower wouldn�t work now if she tried to turn it back on.� She�d been down this road before.� True.. she had finished
washing and had only been turning around in circles and enjoying the warm
relaxing spray � and perhaps a small part of her purpose in remaining in the
shower was because he�d told her not to take too long, while the other part was
because she really hated the morning run.

She got out and wrapped herself in a towel.�

Apparently he was more impatient than usual.�
He dragged the towel off her, dried her magically and flicked his wand,
tossing her exercise clothes in her face.

�Hurry
up.� Must you perform so, every single day?!�
I had hoped you might appreciate my generosity this morning and not force me to herd you around like a
first year..�

Indignant,
she pulled on the track pants she used each morning. They had been transfigured
from one of the winter sweaters in her Hogwarts-orphan provided trunk.� �Well if you really don�t want to put up with
me then I�ll gladly stay in bed on Monday morning when you go.�� I don�t even see why we-�

�Hermione!� he snapped.� She looked at him quickly.� Ok.. he looked a bit more irritated than usual.� She decided she should probably stop now
before he ended up cursing her.

�fine.� Sorry.� Almost ready.�� She offered a tense smile, trying to
communicate that everything was fine.� We
were all quite happy.� No arguments
here.� It was always nicer to get to breakfast
without being cursed.� She could heal the
effects but it usually still hurt like a bastard while he held it on her.

And that was another thing!.. whether
he was doing something differently.. or whether she just hadn�t been using raw
magic as much as she used to... but it was harder to heal herself than it had
been only a couple of weeks ago.�

But then it couldn�t be that she was using it less. �If anything, despite
her best intentions not to do so, she was using it more now than she had been.�

Perhaps that was it?� Perhaps it ..ran out.. or..

That made no sense though.

She�d thought about the problem before.�
She�d started to notice it last week on Thursday.� It had been that night, after classes when
they�d retired to his room.� She�d
started to try to persuade Tom again to at least consider changing his mind about stopping her from seeing Abraxas, Septimus or Sorrenson.�

Abraxas in particular seemed to be in a bad way.� Getting worse.� He had a slightly crazed look in his eyes all
the time now and he stared at her as
if he was starving and she was chocolate cake under glass.�

Tom had gotten quite angry.� She�d,
stupidly, gone on about it then,
instead of reading his body language and leaving the topic alone as she had
every other time.� It had ended with him cursing
her until he made her scream and beg and then storming out and leaving her on
the floor in his room.

He hadn�t used the Cruciatus.� He only used
that in the Knight�s room and the Room of Requirement, but he had a very broad
knowledge of dark curses and the range of, pummelling, pressure, twisting and
lesser known pain curses he�d used was not only as horrible as the level of
pain Lucius gave her but also entirely free of
residual marks or evidence

She
should have just been able to concentrate and throw off the painful bruising,
cramps and aching.� It didn�t work out
that way.�

By the
time Tom got back she had healed herself enough to limp to the bed, but she was
still sore as he pulled her into the position he wanted and fucked her without
mercy.� She was quite certain that his
intent in doing so had been to further punish her for daring to continue to
question his supreme edict.�

It wasn�t so much the sex.. she
liked it when he was hard and rough too - she�d come in the end.� But she�d been much sorer when she�d tried to
sleep afterward and it taken her a long time to drop off.�

The whole
getting up-and-dressed thing the next morning had been awful too.� Moving hurt.�

She�d had no opportunity to sneak off by herself again to try to heal herself
either since on Fridays they had Dada and Transfiguration together and then
were both free for the rest of the day.�

He�d been
satisfied, watching her difficulty walking, sitting and standing.� He made a point of partnering with her in
DADA and forcing her to strain to dodge his curses.

She�d found it a lot harder to duel him than it had been only a week before. ��

Her three.. no four most avid fans had also been
quite attentive to her struggles unfortunately and this had culminated in yet
another attempt by Alex Potter to �rescue� her from the Slytherin�s who were
obviously blackmailing and abusing her. �

Said Slytherins then had a fight after class that had
nearly turned into an all out three on one duel (well..
three on two.� If they�d raised their
wand against Tom, she�d have stood with him.)

In
transfiguration, Dumbledore had looked at her with a very troubled, sorrowful
expression and had, before she left, reminded her that his door was always
open.

Which was a blatant lie, obviously � his door was perpetually closed and warded
tighter than Gringotts.� But she understood the implication.

And then
when she�d finally had some time to heal herself when Tom went out to do his
late patrol, she�d found it quite hard to summon enough magic to heal
herself.� It had taken a while.

She was beginning to wonder whether there was something wrong with her.� She couldn�t think of anything she�d done
that could justify becoming magically weaker. ��And really... it wasn�t as if she could go to
the infirmary and say � Hi.. I�m a conduit.. I�ve noticed my ability to threaten the natural world has
dropped off a bit � do you known whether there are any illnesses or problems
specific to my ..er.. condition?!�

Tom had been quite clear.� Every single instance of a conduit being
detected by the wizarding world had ended in said witch or wizard being killed �for
the greater good�.�

And there
was a supreme proponent of the greater good right in her face here all the
time!� At the moment he was just making
annoying little double sided comments implying she should do the right thing
but if he knew she was potentially all-powerful � even if she technically wasn�t right now somehow � he�d stop
trying to persuade her to go to Grindelwald and start
thinking of her as the primary threat and Grindelwald
the secondary.�

He�d called her back into his office and asked once or twice whether she�d
heard any more from Grindelwald.� She�d answered honestly that she hadn�t and
hoped he�d found something else to spend his time on.�

She was sure Dumbledore probably knew she spent her nights with Tom.. He�d probably even watched them on the quidditch pitch running.�
But he hadn�t said anything since about the wisdom (or lack thereof) in �dating�
Tom, so she tried her best to put him out of her mind.� That was the last thing she wanted - the spectre of Dumbledore leaning over her
shoulder when she was in bed with Tom.

�Pick
your feet up� he panted smugly as he ran past her puffing, struggling form.�� She scowled after the gorgeous utter bastard
as he receded into the distance in the dim morning light.� She wasn�t made for running like this.�
She was more designed for sitting in a room with a lot of books and...

Well..� ok... admittedly she was still one of the best students but
she wasn�t really particularly enthused about sitting for hours on end reading
anymore either.�

So..
what was she really made for now then?�

The realisation wasn�t particularly good for her self-image that the thing she
seemed to feel most enthusiastic about doing these days was leaping upon Tom
whenever she could.�

Really.� She�d
been insatiable this week.� It was
getting ridiculous.�

And it seemed like he was only too willing to match her appetite.� She wondered if she wasn�t influencing him to
do so subconsciously.

When Lucius had said a long time ago that she�d changed and was
now better suited for working in his
department than Severus� � she had been insulted and had disagreed
fundamentally. But now.. She was beginning to worry
about herself.� It seemed like she was
walking around in heat all the time.

Worse..� She�d thought that
really � the only one she wanted was Tom.. �When she�d been with Abraxas, Septimus and Sorrenson she truly
had only wished she could be alone with Tom more.. But
now.. when she was alone
with him.. she found herself thinking about them quite often..�

She�d
caught herself daydreaming about Abraxas in languages.� He sat on the other side of the room now �
Tom had insisted that none of the three were to sit any closer than two seats
apart � but he looked over at her all the time.�
If Tom wasn�t there at the door
after class to collect her and take her to potions, then Abraxas would
immediately appear beside her and start trying to persuade her to run away with
him and ditch potions.� She always
refused.� He knew he couldn�t touch her.�

Literally.�

He couldn�t touch her.�

One of the first things Tom had done in the wake of his midnight realisation
that he had no intention of sharing her was to cast a nasty little fidelity
spell on her.� Anyone who touched her
with amorous intent got a painful sting and it got worse the longer they kept
hold of her.� He�d placed it before he�d
even informed Abraxas that he was no longer courting her.

Abraxas
had been the first of the three to work it out as he�d been the first to try to
drag her into an alcove for a secret kiss.�
He was also the most persistent.�

Septimus had stopped trying when he�d been stung on the
finger for touching her hand in class.. Sorrenson had required four stings to give up on trying to
touch her.. 26 stings and counting and Abraxas would still touch her if she gave him half a
chance.� �

It had been almost three weeks and he really wasn�t doing so good.�

Well.. none of them were,
really.�

Septimus was quite withdrawn.� Amalthea looked
exhausted and no longer glowing with joy, so Hermione presumed he�d been trying
to slake his desire by shagging her
to death.�

Sorry
didn�t have an Amalthea
and it seemed that neither Septimus nor Abraxas were
currently entertaining his advances..

He�d gotten into fights with other students several times.� He spent a lot of time in detention now.�

Abraxas
didn�t shag and he didn�t fight.� He just
mooned around looking miserable and
staring at her.�

She kept thinking about Lucius.� ..and to a lesser
extent about Draco.�

Lucius hadn�t been content with the possibility of
seeing her when he was allowed by Tom.. he�d been irrational.. unreasonable..
he�d needed to possess
her.. Malfoys always get what they want and so on.�

Draco had been cleverer about it but he too had consistently chosen whatever
path would allow him to be around her for the maximum length of time.�

Abraxas
would not just..cope with this and find another
outlet.�

She was
certain that while he was staring and pining unhappily, that sharp little mind
was searching for a way to get what he wanted.�

The real danger was that... as with his descendents � when he decided upon his
plan and chose to act, it was likely that no
one would even see it coming.�

She
almost tripped over Mencius.

With a
little jump that left her stumbling she managed to avoid stepping on the dark
red and blue shadow huddled on the grass.�
How had Tom missed it?!� Had the
little bird only appeared after he�d run past?�

She scuffed to a halt and turned back.�

Mencius
walked forward gingerly, clinking very faintly.�
It seemed to be limping.� This
explained itself when it released whatever it was holding in one claw and hopped
back. �

A red flash of light spooked him suddenly, narrowly missing him and he beat its
wings fluttering clumsily into the air to vanish in a flash of white
light.�

She
looked down to the ground immediately.�
She could hear fast beating across the grass.� Tom was obviously running over.�

Crouching down she could make out that the object was an ornate blue bottle
which looked very familiar.� Did the man
have a collection of them for sending pensieve
memories or something?�

She
reached out to grab it and caught a stinging hex on the back of her hand.

�Stupid �� the rest of
his statement was a hiss.� She was glad
she couldn�t tell what he�d called her. �Are you mad?!� Have you lost the sense you were born with?!�� He cast a faintly yellow spell on it and the
object glowed red.� Tom growled in
righteous anger. �Exactly.. �It�s a damn portkey!� Don�t
touch things that strange birds bring you Maia.�
Must I watch you every second?!�

She stood
up feeling stupid.� She really should
have thought of that. �Tom levitated the
bottle cautiously and she didn�t need to be a mind reader to know that the run
for this morning was over.�

He
generously allowed her to accompany him to the room of requirement, although it
was clear that it was against his better judgement and that he had been
considering refusing.�

She tried to keep quiet and not direct his attention toward herself too much.�

They had
to wait a while for the two students they ran into in the otherwise empty
corridors to reach the end and turn down toward the stairs before they
themselves could pace and open the room of requirement.�

Within,
Tom�s viewing room awaited.� The comfortable
and laid back room in deep blue and black tones evoked an appreciative glint in
Tom�s eye ��

�I will watch first and you will wait.� I
may or may not allow you to watch afterward� he informed her.� She protested at once.

�No WAY!� Don�t be so
..so..�

�Cautious?� he enquired with a hard set to his lips. ��Protective?�
Considerate?�
I do not need to allow you to see it at all.� You will
sit down and you will not disturb me while I determine whether it is safe for you to sample this memory.� Do you understand?!�

�mean was the word I was looking for.� She muttered
sulkily.� �I want to watch it with
you.� You�ll watch it and then you�ll
make up something about how it�s too dangerous for me to view it.� I want to watch it now.� It is to me after
all.� It is MY message.�

�It wasn�t
labelled� he said shortly. �and you have already
proven your irresponsibility once this morning.�
You could be chained to the wizard�s bedpost by now if it were not for
me.�

...Yet again.�

�That�s your
fault TOO� she snapped back, trying not to whine and knowing she was failing. �I
don�t want to go for a morning run.� I hate
mornings and I hate running.� The two are
worse when you combine them.� You want to go for a morning run and I
think you only want me to go in the
hopes that Mencius will turn up and you can try to kill him.�

�You know
that it bothers me that you refer to Grindelwald�s
buzzard by name. Do you do it intentionally to provoke me, I wonder..� �He narrowed his
eyes at her speculatively.

�I forbid you to have affection for
that creature!� When you realised it was
there, you stood and stared at
it.� You did not so much as draw your
wand.��

Have you any idea how much you
infuriate me?!�

Tom ran a hand through his hair in a way that should have conveyed exasperation
but instead only made her lick her lips in sudden incongruently flaring want.

He sighed expansively� �I
have no time for that either unfortunately.
I want to watch this memory now, quickly, so that we can return to my room and
ready ourselves for breakfast and classes.��

..Do stop being a pest now, Hermione.��
He turned on a weary entreating half smile.

�I want
to watch it with you� she insisted in her calmest voice.�

�We�ll both watch it and then we�ll go and shower and get ready.� I promise
I�ll be really quick in the shower and getting dressed if you let me watch it.�

She tried her best entreating half
smile.��

He snorted
softly in resignation. �You really are irritating, you know.� Sometimes I ask myself why I tolerate this
much inconvenience for you�

At that
she smiled and moved close, wrapping her arms around him.

�It�s because I love you and you like it� she told him matter of factly.� �And also because the sex is really very good.�

He sighed
and pinched the bridge of his nose

�Perhaps.�

He
unscrewed the tiny bottle magically and levitated it over the viewing pan,
tipping the silvery snot onto the mother of pearl surface that seemed somehow
far deeper than the few inches the outside of the pan displayed.

Frowning mildly he took her hand in his own and placed them into the
liquid.�

Hermione felt the disorientating tumbling feeling catch her and pull her down
into a world that was populating itself around her in smoky lines and wavy
dreamlike contours.

When it
cleared they were in a somewhat oppressive sitting room.� �The
tall windows in the background were covered by thick black curtains that fell
in shadowy folds and billows.�

A large fire crackled in the grate to their left. They stood on a plush
oriental rug in deep purples, burgundies and blacks.�

�Before them, Grindelwald
lounged in an overstuffed armchair. The rest of the suite of furniture was
unoccupied. �It was black.. some kind of velour she
thought.� It had a blood red pattern on
it in the shape of complex interweaving circles.� They wavered slightly when the eye landed on
them in a manner that had to be magically enhanced.� It was a very disorientating feeling, much
like being intoxicated. ��

Grindelwald himself was wearing a dark purple set of
robes that faded into black, the cloak he had draped
across his shoulders was black with a dark violent red lining.

His shining blond curls seemed to almost glow in the firelight, cascading down
to his shoulders in perfectly coiffed disarray.�

He
matched his environment and he, along with everything here, felt dark and
reminiscent of blood and curses and threat. �

He appeared
to be staring right at them and his pale blue ice-chip eyes were hard.

�I have
waited long enough, Maia..� he said in a low thickly accented
growl.�

�It seems you are not so persuasive.� I
have heard nothing from your
Master.� A rude, arrogant little boy...

She felt Tom bristle at her side and his hand holding hers tightened painfully.

�Yes.. I hear he
thinks himself a Lord...� A little dirty blooded thing without family.. without a name.� Pitiful
whelp.�� I even know the name he
likes to hear others call him...� �

I know many names - I know the names.. the families of each of his little schoolfriends
and where they may be found, though I doubt one such as he would have much care
for the pain of others.

You though..
You do not like to see others suffer.��
The wizard gave a wan smile.�

At her side Tom looked ready to kill.

�I will..help.. you to find the grounds to
be more persuasive.. or more inventive.. with your little halfblood master.�

Tom tensed again and she could almost
taste his desperate desire to curse the man who was no more than a memory
before them.

Grindelwald snapped his fingers and the door that they had
not noticed in the wall beyond the fireplace opened.�

A tall
broad man dressed in sturdy brown battle robes strode in, leading behind him..children.� Pretty children,
actually.� Each one was
adorable.� The first, a
little girl with long straight blonde hair and enormous blue eyes.� The next a brunette with
lovely ribboned braids.� The third was a little boy with sandy blonde
hair and a cheeky face.�

Ten children were led into the room in a line.�
The oldest among them couldn�t have even been eight.�

A second brown robed man with a face like a pit bull followed them in and
closed the door quietly.

�I think
you already know what I am going to tell you, Maia.� You did not seem stupid when I met you.� Frightened perhaps..
overwhelmed.. but not
stupid.�

Whether these wonderful little children will live is in your hands.� Know that for each day you continue to try my patience there will be one less
sweet little child at my table.��

Hermione,
who had already realised what he was
going to do, was shaking.� She looked at
Tom desperately. �He can�t!� We.. can�t let him just..-�

�Shh.� He whispered. �This has already
happened.� You cannot change it.� I cannot save the child, as much as you might
wish me to.�

Grindelwald rose from his chair and walked around it to
stand looking at the long row of children thoughtfully.� After a while he pointed to a tiny little
girl with a pointed elflike face and wavy black hair.�

She was perhaps five and wore an adorable little marigold yellow satin dress,
like a little princess.� She was sucking
her thumb and looking overawed by everything around her.�

�That one.. I think.. will
do for today� he indicated to his men, waving them off again. �They took the other children back out of the
room, closing the door after them.�

After they had left, Grindelwald walked over to the
timid little girl slowly and gently picked her up, sitting her on his hip and
holding her with one arm as he carried her back to his chair.�

When he was seated with the little girl on his lap he sighed and took a long
look at her.�

�She is a
pretty little one, isn�t she?!�

It is a waste.. an unfortunate
waste that you are forcing me to these lengths, Maia.� No doubt she could have a wonderful life, if
not for you.� She would go to school.. grow up.. become
a beauty..all the boys would look and wink and one
would catch her eye..� She would court.. and marry and perhaps someday...�

�- but she will not.. Because you
refuse to come to me.�

Hermione
wanted to find reasons why this relation of cause and effect was wrong � but she
could find none.� If she had gone to Grindelwald last week.. or three weeks ago... or five.. then
this little girl would be somewhere else right now, probably already in bed
sleeping. ��

�Come to
me Maia and I will find ways to dispel
the mark he has placed upon you.� I have
already men working upon the problem. �

This
information seemed to upset Tom and he growled under his breath �If I think for
one minute that you are entertaining
the idea of actually going to him � I promise you Hermione, no matter what he
is threatening to do to that little girl � what I shall do
will be worse.� Do not test me!

She believed him.� She had no doubt that
he�d freely take a leaf from Grindelwald�s book and
start killing innocent people by the truckload just to force her hand.

Grindelwald pulled the little girls thumb from her mouth
and looked at her again sadly.

�Mach die augen zu, Kindlein� he murmured
softly.�

The little girl looked unsure of him but closed her big blue eyes.��

He had
his wand in his hand.� She hadn�t noticed
him draw it.� There was a green flash and
the little girl fell down lip on his lap limply.�

Hermione
felt her knees wobble. Her stomach revolved at the ease with which the man had
just murdered a child.�

She would have crumpled down to the rug had Tom not gripped her upper arm
tightly, holding her in place.

�This is why I did not wish to bring
you with me for the first viewing, Hermione.�
I strongly suspected he would attempt something along these lines...

..and yes.. I would have prevented you watching
this.� I am sure you would have slept
better at night.� But you always know
better, it seems.

She
looked at him with a trembling bottom lip.�
It was her fault this little
girl had just been killed and now Tom was angry with her again too.

Seeing
her face hovering close to bursting into tears he frowned and pulled her into
his arms. �She went more than willingly,
clinging to him and breathing in little gaspy suffocating bursts, trying to
control her emotions.� Tom hated it when
she cried.� �

�Es tut mir leid, mein Kind� Grindelwald said and
gathered the little girl up, cuddling her for a moment before rising and laying
her gently down upon the sofa.��

She looked like she was sleeping.�

Hermione, her head resting on tom�s shoulder, couldn�t take her eyes off her.� She was so sweet.� Her dress shimmered in the light from the
fire and her formerly worried little face was peaceful now.

�Do not
think that that was pleasant for me, Maia� Grindelwald
said quietly. �But there is nothing that I will not do to bring you to me. ...nothing!�

- You will see another innocent little child die for your foolish stubbornness
each day.� I will have Mencius bring you
the memories, to be certain that you can
watch what you are causing to happen. �I shall use a different curse each day that
you make me wait.� I warn you the next child
will not be as lucky as poor little Ameline.� I will not use the killing curse tomorrow
night..

The man
seemed to pause to allow this to sink in, his eyes narrowing on the space where
they happened to be standing.� ��

�If you
have not come to me when there are no more little children left.. I will march on Britain.�

I will start at Hogwarts but I will
not finish there.� Tens of thousands will suffer because of your weakness.�

You will be mine whether you wish it
or not, irrespective what the muggle tainted boy who would be a wizarding Lord
might do to try to prevent it.��

�My
battle forces are massing already, Maia � I have set them to prepare since for some reason I have the feeling your master will force you to be heartless
and ignore the children�s suffering.

But that is no matter.� I know of others
who are not as easily swayed to
ignore children�s screams.�� He smiled
cruelly and flicked a hand at them as if dismissing them.�

The
memory started to dissolve immediately and Hermione found herself standing,
slightly dizzily on the ground in the room of requirement.

She
looked up at Tom in horror.� �He�s going
to..kill.. children..� Ten of
them... He�s going to come here.� Tom we
have to stop this.. we have
to do something � he never came to Britain!�
It�s going to change history!� We
can�t let this happen!� And the
children!!� We have to..�

Tom looked white with fury, ...but she had the feeling
that they were upset about different things.

This was only confirmed when he raised the wand that was suddenly in his hand
to her head and muttered �obliviate.��

She only barely knocked it aside in time.�
The spell splashed harmlessly against the wall.�

He growled at her and moved to try again. ��

�NO!!Don�t!!Please!!�
she begged quickly, holding his wand arm. �I�m calm! I won�t tell! You don�t
need to.. I promise!�
Please!!�

Dark blue
eyes flickered angrily and he twisted his wrist to aim at her again.��

She pulled all her frayed focus together and tried to divert enough raw magic
to put up a shield to deflect the spell.�

She only barely managed it, and her shield was a wavering thing that crashed
down on the impact of the obliviate.�� There was definitely something wrong.

�Wandless
magic..� Tom said thoughtfully and, to her surprise,
moved to lower his wand, pointing it away.

�Have you used it before?� he asked, as if considering something that, at least
for the moment, constituted a stay of his hand.

�Only
when I�ve been in a panic� she lied. ��Please Tom.��
You don�t need to do it.� I�ll do
what you want.� You know I do what you
command me to do.� It�s part of the
binding in the mark.� I haven�t tried to
seek out any of the others, have I?!

This was
the wrong example to pick, obviously.�
The handsome face tightened and took on even crueller lines.

�And you shall not. �I thank you for
reminding me of your sworn duty to obey. �Do not try to evade the spell this time!� he
commanded blithely.

She grimaced, dismayed. �why?!� You don�t have
to..� Why, Tom?!�

The obliviate struck her half a second later.� He did not hesitate.� It had seemed he was merely thinking about
the question.�� Before her solid grasp on
the morning�s events wavered.. before
the room around them changed.. she heard him mutter �Because
it is the only mercy I can offer....I do not wish to see you in pain.� I ache each time I must punish you.�

She
blinked.� �

�I said �
do you not want to take a
shower?!� It is almost time for breakfast
and you have been wandering about in your sweaty clothes wasting time now for
at least ten minutes.�

You will make us late!�

She
turned to Tom.� He was already half
dressed, standing in front of the mirror buttoning his shirt.

A surreal sense of unreality swam over her for a second.

�Have
I?� Oh.�
I�m sorry..Yes.. I�ll
have a really quick shower.� she mumbled, turning away toward the bathroom.�

She had a nagging feeling in the back of her mind.� It was like.. the feeling when you were about to do something but forgot
what it was at the last minute.. Like walking into a room and suddenly not
being sure what you came in for.� Had she been doing something when she was �wandering about� as Tom
put it.

Oh but
the water was wonderful.� She laid the
question aside as she washed her hair, sighing happily.�

If she hadn�t been wasting time she could have showered with Tom again.� Which would have been slightly better.. but it was still lovely.�

Tom must
have been in a good mood while he was showering.� He�d changed the shampoo somehow.� It reminded her a lot of the intoxicating
herby one that Draco had used at the Manor way back..then.�

After Lucius.�

The scent had been so good she wanted to bite into him.�

She wondered how Tom had thought of it and whether he had done it for himself
or for her.� She hoped it was the latter.. but she�d never know.� If he had
and she asked then he�d only say he hadn�t anyway.

�Hurry,
Hermione..� Tom said quietly from the doorway.�� She nodded, rinsing the last of the suds
from her hair.

She didn�t
ever take long to actually dress. ��They were down the corridor and walking
through the tall doors of the Great Hall in minutes.

Most of
the school was seated.� They must have been running late this morning
she realised.� Tom usually preferred to
eat when the Hall wasn�t so full.�

He held her hand and walked them both down to the end of the Slytherin
table.�

A number of faces watched their progress like vultures, while for others, this event had become uninteresting through daily
repetition.�

As
always, Abraxas stood as they approached.�
He only sat after she had seated herself beside Tom for breakfast and
then he would invariably spend the entire span of breakfast staring at her..drinking her in with his eyes.� Tom ignored it and, although it bothered her
a little, she had learned to put it out of her mind too.

She pulled a slice of toast with melted butter and drizzled
some honey over it.�

�Tom..�

Septimus.� These days he no longer sat at her left
side.� That place was occupied by the
ever oblivious Clemens.�

Septimus sat next to Abraxas on the opposite side of
the table, Sorrenson was on his other side.� The latter
two didn�t spend all of breakfast
staring at her.� Tom had reprimanded Abraxas
many times for doing so, but it seemed to have little effect.� The blond simply could not help himself.

�I would speak with you after breakfast, if I might.� It is a matter of...some..importance.�

She
watched as Tom looked consideringly at the sable
haired aristocrat who was only marginally less polished these days.�

She had decided that it was something around his eyes.� A certain tightness.� He looked more like Professor Snape had
looked in his youth.� There was a certain..bitterness..and restraint which
had not been there before.

�Very
well, Septimus.�
I take it you wish to speak in the dungeons..�

The boy nodded seriously.

She
stretched and rolled her shoulders slightly, trying to wake up.� Her head still felt groggy.� Perhaps she had overdone it this morning
somehow.� Or she was getting a cold.��

Tom reached out absently and massaged her shoulder with one hand.�

She leaned into it, smiling.� He was so..skilled.. in everything imaginable.� She
wondered whether he had actually made the effort to learn the art of massage at
some point.� He unwound her knots with so
little effort.�

She half turned on the bench to allow him to reach the other side.� Which he did, quite automatically, using both
hands in a way that was sinfully relaxing.�

He released her and pushed her away lightly when she was on the verge of purring
her satisfaction out loud.

When she
turned back to the table, three pairs of eyes were watching with expressions of
pained need.�

But worse.. Behind them, scattered throughout the hall a number of
others were watching with similar avid, if marginally less tortured interest.

No massages at the table, she made the mental note to herself.

Tom
smirked at her.�

�I think perhaps it might be best if I did not leave you alone this morning to
speak with Septimus.�
You will accompany us, Maia.�� His
eyes softened slightly for a moment and he reached out to brush the backs of
his curled fingers down her cheek.� �Hurry
and finish your breakfast.� I do not wish
you to be hungry in class.�

�This is
becoming dangerous.�

Tom
looked back at the Prince heir with a disinterested, mildly irritated mien.

�It was always dangerous.� Is that all?�

�No, of
course it isn�t all. �Have you seen Abraxas?!� He is very
nearly deranged!� Sorrenson is
growing less stable also.� I...can not speak of myself..��

I have been testing them both.� Their
magical potency is increasing.�� And
while that should be wonderful news, after all what wizard does not wish to
become more powerful � They are using less of their magic � it is
accumulating.�

Moreover - they are both quite fixated upon her!� Abraxas will certainly act soon.� I cannot imagine that he will endure much
more.�

...And that is where we come to the next minor difficulty, my Lord.��

Septimus hesitated and wet his lips nervously.

�If ever you are tempted to doubt my loyalty, you need think only of this moment.�

You will never know how diabolically tempted
I have been not to reveal to you what
I have observed over the last seventeen days.�

Tom looked slightly perturbed now, his gaze sharpening upon Septimus.
��

�Your magical potency is decreasing, my Lord.�

Tom
snarled and his wand was already in his hand

�I have
been measuring it surreptitiously for... well.. almost from the beginning of our second year.� It was among my reasons for agreeing to join
you.. to...serve.. you.�

Septimus was pinned to the wall with a low thud that
knocked some of the wind out of him.

�You have
been...testing..
me.. for four years..Septimus?!�� As if I were some
kind of ..experiment?!�� Hermione worried for a moment that Tom was
really going to hurt him.

�Crucio!�

Of course he was really going to hurt
him, she reminded herself dully.� Tom was
not naturally disinclined to hold back on physically disciplining others for things
that displeased him.�

In this instance he held the curse on Septimus for
only ten seconds before switching to another curse that she didn�t
recognise.� Whatever it did, Septimus was screaming in panic almost immediately.

�Don�t
you even want to hear the rest of what he had to say� she asked quietly.

As if
shaken from a disturbing reverie, Tom�s wide eyes shifted to her.� They carried something of deep seated concern
within them.� She hoped that she was
reading them wrong.�

Septimus had apparently just placed Tom before the perceived
choice between magical strength and possessing her.�

He
dispelled the curse on the struggling, panicking boy and they waited for a
couple of minutes while Septimus� eyes gradually lost
the bright terror that had filled them.

�Continue!�
Tom demanded with a thumbscrew undertone.

�I�m.. that is.. � Septimus tried to scrape together the aplomb with
which he usually conversed and could not.

�You have always been powerful.�� Very Powerful.� My Lord.� When.. when She came.. you were much more
powerful.� Vastly so.� It was..frightening.�

And..� it seemed to increase.�
With time.�

...For the last ten days it has been decreasing.�� Your loss has been slower than the other�s
gain but your magical potency is
decreasing steadily.�

Tom looked at her accusingly.� She blanched.�
She hadn�t been doing anything!!

�There is
more.�

Septimus sounded grim.�
Tom swallowed and steeled himself.�
Whatever this �more� was, it was obviously worse than the bad news that
came before.

�Her magical reserves are decreasing much
faster than your own.� She was..�� He paused and
swallowed �She was, at the last measurement before all of..
this, almost
as powerful as yourself, my Lord.�

...Now she is barely half as potent.� She
is weaker than Clemens, my Lord.�

Tom�s jaw
dropped. ��He immediately cast a spell
upon himself and then upon her.� There
was no visible reaction that she could see but he apparently derived information
from his efforts even so.� He looked
horrified.

�That is... impossible. �WHY?!�
What has happened?!� Why is it
affecting us both in this manner?!..

if she were somehow..absorbing
my...� but..� Her
levels are..

Septimus � What are your thoughts on the cause of all of this?!� You have watched the changes.. what is at root?!�� Clearly.. it is something to do with her.� All of this began with her.�

Not
waiting for the answer he turned to her with eyes wavering between beseeching
and threatening.

�Maia � if there is something further that you have not been telling me � Now is the time!!�

She shook
her head.� She hadn�t omitted anything
other than the fact that she was a conduit.�
This was all news to her too.�

However.. it did add new information to
something that had been troubling her too.�

She had known that she was growing weaker..
but Tom too?!�
Why?!�� If the others were
becoming stronger.. � but then
Septimus had also said that they were not using their magic much.� Perhaps that could account for..at least some of
their increase.

But what about the rest?!� �Why were they getting stronger just from not
being.....with.........her...� Oh.

She could
feel the shape of the solution in her
mind.

Why were
conduits only capable of using their ability at the onset of sexual
maturity?!� Why did they draw others to
them like bees to a flower?!�

It wasn�t just an adaptation to
ensure that those around them were less likely to want to kill them.�

Obviously
it couldn�t be.�

If she
considered the amount of argument, violence and strife that her universally
attractive state had caused.. the
amount of danger it had brought her personally � it was a pretty lousy
adaptation, really.

So what
if that wasn�t the purpose of it..

What if she was somehow drawing others to her because in some way she needed them.�

She needed to go away and think about this.�

From the
look on Tom�s face, he was thinking the same thing.

�We�re
going to be late for DADA if we don�t get moving now� she mumbled, avoiding his
eyes.� He nodded, equally distracted.

�No.. wait!� My Lord.� I� - there�s more.. I wasn�t quite finished.�

Tom
looked almost queasy.

�Still more, Septimus?� What else could there possibly be?!�

The other
boy hesitated as if trying to find the right words.

�The others...
That is � other boys, not merely in
Gryffindor � all of the houses are affected..� They are becoming more dangerous.��

�Benjamin
heard several Ravenclaws speaking on the sixth floor
in an empty corridor.� He would have
turned the corner and disturbed them if he had not heard her name and
stopped.�

It seems that there are..a number � I do not know how many � of boys
who are..interested.. in
forcing an-� he swallowed. �an � encounter � with Maia.�

Some of them have apparently chosen to band together recently.� I imagine that this little alliance was
forged by Ravenclaws in some manner..or
perhaps Huffelpuffs.��

�I do not
know who is involved..� he said quickly, forestalling
Tom�s next question ��however Alex Potter
is evidently not a member of the
group.�

The Ravenclaws were discussing him..
and.. yourself.. as obstacles.�

It seems that Potter has been stabilising the other Gryffindors around him as
far as possible � warning them against attempting to move in on the girl he
likes.�

They
mentioned....��

...Well.. it seems that
possibly some of the Ravenclaws have been monitoring
your magical strength too.�

The
effect of this information on Tom�s demeanour was predictable. �He turned and stalked away, one hand sweeping
through his hair as was his habit in moments of exasperation.�

�I
considered whether they might be behind your ..weakening�

He flinched as Tom spun and glared

�I have entertained the thought that you might have somehow been poisoned.. Thus
far I have not found any evidence of it.�

No.� Hermione suspected also that this wasn�t
anything as simple as a potion or a spell.�
She was sure that Tom..and probably Septimus � even if he hadn�t said it outright yet � were thinking
the same thing.�

This was something to do with her and
the strange effect she was having on everyone.�

It had been more stable..if not necessarily �fine�.. when
she had been with Abraxas, Septimus and Sorry.� That much was obvious.�

All of this trouble had only started when Tom suddenly decided that he wasn�t
prepared to share any longer.

�You are
truly my most loyal Septimus..�
Tom said quietly, although there was something very slightly sardonic to his
words. She assumed she was missing the context to interpret what it was.

�I should...perhaps...not have cursed
you as harshly.�

He released the spell and Septimus dropped to his
feet on the stone, recovering his balance.

�Thank
you, my Lord� he said quietly, his eyes wary and fixed on Tom.

�Well..� We will have to
discuss this later� Tom stated, although it was more like a command, in as far
as she interpreted it.� There was zero possibility of this not being discussed later.

�I have no intention of losing points
in DADA for lateness.� Come now.�� He turned and marched immediately in the
direction of the wall that led to the corridor.�

She trailed after, feeling more than a little uneasy.

She could
feel Septimus
eyes on her constantly as they all walked up to the DADA classroom in silence,
and acknowledged to herself quietly, with only a small flicker of guilt, that she
hoped Tom would be reasonable enough about
this to allow her to be with the other boy again.

And Abraxas.�
Poor Abraxas too..� And Sorrenson.�

For all
she might have wished to only have
Tom; for all that she had been certain
that he was all she would ever want - and for all her blinding joy in being with him; her adoration of
him - �she
admitted inwardly that she really
hoped that things could go back to the way they were before the night that she
and Tom had dealt with Slughorn.

She couldn�t
help it.� She missed them.�

All of them.

If she
was going to be painfully honest �
she missed more than just Abraxas, Septimus and
Sorry.�

She missed Rodolphus... and Draco...�

And ok.. Severus � even if she most wanted to hex him
into a sobbing ball of mush.� She missed
him even so.�

even...

even Lucius.. �She had thought about him more than once or
twice over the last weeks.�

She..couldn�t quite manage to extend her wistful
longing to Harry.. although.. admittedly
� when she thought about the feeling she�d had when Tom had dissolved their
bond.. and the look on her former best friend�s face,
she did feel something - a sharp pain
of something unidentifiable.

She
missed them all.� They were somehow all hers and she couldn�t have them.�

It was ...confusing... how much that was beginning to bother her.

56 years and a handful of months in the future she was waking gently, in a
warm, dim, palacial bedchamber.

Something was brushing her lip.

She blinked a few times and managed to fixate on the object � which revealed itself to be a white rose.�
It was barely beginning to bloom, its petals still loosely furled.� It felt like cool velvet.

Draco lay
by her side in bed.� He was smiling and
withdrew the long stemmed rose, bringing it to his nose and inhaling with an
air of utter contentment..�

She quirked and smiled back.� �She
had to admit � she had been woken in more unpleasant circumstances before.�

It was...peaceful..and..comforting,
to wake next to Draco in bed.�

If someone had told her in school that being in bed with the Slytherin menace
could be calming.. � something
to be thankful for, she�d have laughed and asked them what potion they had
consumed.

�I have a
gift for you� Draco said softly.�

She
smiled uncertainly.� She had always been
a bit shy about receiving things from others, although she�d tried not to show
it.�

He seemed to understand and offered her the rose, clicking his fingers when she
took it.�

A little
house elf popped into the room at the side of the bed.� She could only see the tops of its ears.�

Draco sat up and turned toward it lithely.�

She found herself admiring the contours of his back and shoulders.�

He had slept beside her since she first woke, but had not moved to touch her,
more than to occasionally take her hand or brush a kiss to her cheek.�

She was
relieved.� Although in principle she
found him attractive.. she
really wasn�t that comfortable with..�

well..� with everything.� It all felt wrong and she wanted Tom and...

..it was just hard to deal with the idea that he was
gone.�� She wasn�t ready to deal with
it.�� And she wasn�t ready to
be...intimate.. with Draco
either.�

She wasn�t
saying that she wouldn�t be again.� Even
in her current state of emotional disarray, she wasn�t that unrealistic.� She just.. wasn�t ready right now.

And..perceptive, considerate and almost heartbreakingly
wonderful as he apparently was, Draco
seemed to understand that instinctively.�
He hadn�t even tried to persuade
her to more.�

He simply stayed with her.. talked
for hours and hours about the most
diverse and distracting things.. fed her delicacies
and showed her amazing places and objects.

He was..seemingly infinitely
patient with her little moods.

She barely started to feel overwhelmed and he had shown her to the library and
left her in peace.. or
brought her to a room with paints and easel and informed her that he needed to take
care of some other chores.

It was
getting a lot better.

He turned
around, something cradled carefully in front of him. She watched, fascinated.

The soft
mewl announced the little creature before she�d even seen it.

�I thought.. you might like a pet again..� he
said quietly as he gently placed the little kitten on the blankets on top of
her abdomen.�

It was a kneazle.� A full kneazle.� Tiny..but unrecognisably magical.

Its tawny spotted fur stuck out in all directions and its ears looked far too
big for its head.� A long tail with a
reckless puff on the end swished from side to side.�

It had enormous golden eyes and a little black nose. While she watched, it
cleaned said nose with a pink tongue and looked at her consideringly.

�Oh my God Draco!� Kneazles are protected!! You can�t keep them as pets �
it�s cruel!!�

Draco�s
face fell and he looked uncertain.

�I�m...sorry.� I thought..� You had a half kneazle at school... I thought..

I�ll take him away if you don�t like him.�
I�m sure I can find a..a...kneazle sanctuary or something..� I
just thought..� and there�s so much space here anyway.. I thought you�d be happy..�

Her heart
literally broke at how disappointed
he looked. �He moved to pick up the
little kitten.�

She was
about to stop him and tell him how much it meant to her that he�d cared enough
to realise that she might miss Crookshanks, �when the kitten, which obviously had other
plans than a life in a kneazle sanctuary, pre-empted her.� It hissed at his approaching hand and leapt
forward, making her flinch away in surprise as it landed on her shoulder and
immediately delved to burrow under the blankets at her side.

She had apparently been adopted.

She
sighed, trying to look long-suffering, but really she was dancing and holding
parades inside.� She had a pet.� A kneazle liked
her.�

They were notoriously picky creatures and could be extremely dangerous when
they didn�t like something, or, as was more often the case, someone.�

They made wonderful familiars when they did
choose a witch or wizard, and so, at one time, many affluent individuals had
purchased them and then ended up in some strife when their new �pet� that was
in most cases probably more intelligent than the witch or wizard in question,
put them firmly into St Mungo�s and headed for the
hills.� The ministry had made them a
protected species in the end rather than waste time and effort chasing down
rogue kneazles.

�Alright.� Maybe.. he can stay for a while and if
he seems unhappy then he can go to a sanctuary.. � she
allowed with her sternest expression.�

Draco fought his smirk and managed to give her a serious nod back. �Of course�
he agreed.

�And you�re going to register him!!�
she insisted.� Her mind was already
leaping ahead barely noting Draco�s eager nod and the soft devoted way he was looking
down at her now.

�What
shall we call him?!� she wondered slightly dreamily.

�He is an
intelligent being..� Draco offered.� �Perhaps he already calls himself something.� We can find a feline animagus
and have them ask, perhaps..�

It was at
that moment that she realised that she would stay with him.

Even if
everyone else was gone..

and she would
find a way to fix that eventually..she told herself

...Even if they were all gone.. Draco was here.�
It was in moments like this that she felt almost that he was the best of
them all.�

She believed that he loved her and she
knew..without
any doubt..that she could be happy here with him.� It would only take time.

And they seemed to have that..��

She
reached down under the covers and drew out her little velvety ball of fur.� The kneazle
tolerated it all with little mewls and adorable golden eyed blinks.� It curled around her hand
and knawed on a finger gently.

�Thank
you, Draco� she whispered, unable to drag her eyes away as the tiny little life
played.

The
blonde wizard smiled, leaning down and pressing a tender kiss to the corner of
her lips.

�It was my pleasure, Love� he said softly.�

�Now.. breakfast?� And perhaps kippers and milk for little
as-yet-nameless, here?�

She
smiled and shook her head.

�They eat Raia in their natural environment.� Perhaps he might like..beef
or lamb.. something of that sort.� With water..� He can�t eat on the bed.� I won�t assist him to develop bad habits. �

Draco
nodded tolerantly and snapped his fingers for the elf, granting all her wishes
yet again.

Author note.

Review replies can be found at http://www2.adult-fanfiction.org/forum/index.php/topic/18725-review-replies/

A/N � Thank you all for not
sending me death-letters after the last chapter.� I have to admit I enjoyed a maniacal mwahahahaha as I uploaded it.

Trust me.. there is far more
to everything than it seems.� Have faith,
dear readers.

Also.. sorry for not updating yesterday.� The real world pulled me away from the
computer for the entire day.
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Precious Mudblood