Repercussions

Last Hope
-*-


A bell sounded throughout the castle, signaling the start of afternoon classes. Draco’s stomach lurched and groaned in retaliation, but his pounding head overshadowed any feeble hunger pains. He was in the massive library, and had been since dawn. Why, he wasn’t exactly sure. The library was just the place to go when one had a problem that needed solving. The problem was, that Draco had so many problems, he didn’t know where to begin.

He had five books laid across a table in the far back corner. Why those particular books, he didn’t know. They were just the first that caught his eye. One was on fishing with flobberworms, but the cover was a soothing sea foam green. At this point it wasn’t like it mattered. He had accepted that he was screwed a long time ago. Now he was just trying to make the best of his shit situation.

He’d made two drastic decisions already that morning, in the form of two sparsely worded letters. Both were meant to be beneficial to Hermione, but he knew she would love him for one and hate him for the other. It had to be done though. He couldn’t forget he had a mission that he needed to simulate the illusion of complying with. Little did the Dark Lord know, it was his own heir he was protecting, not the next Salazar Slytherin. After that he hit a wall though, and was completely drained of ideas.

What he really needed was a plan, and a good start to that plan would be figuring out what he wanted. He knew that he didn’t want to be binded to Pansy, but at the same time he didn’t want her blabbing about what she saw to anyone. A good way to ensure she couldn’t do so was, unfortunately, the binding ceremony. Of course he could just obliviate her, which he was so longing to do. According to Pansy however, she already had a letter ready to send to his family and notes reminding her of the incident.

He had considered asking Goyle’s girlfriend to do some digging around the seventh year girl’s dorms, but he didn’t want to risk her finding out what it was about, and Millicent had a big mouth- Millicent had a big everything. He couldn’t take the chance of her gossiping. If his father ever got wind of him being anything more than sworn enemies with the Head Girl, well… he didn’t really want to think about it. He knew the three months he had spent locked up and at the man’s mercy would seem like summer camp compared to what he was capable of. He had seen girls being raped and murdered, too many to remember them all. Now it was only too easy to insert Hermione’s face into the images, and his own lifeless body discarded in the background.

He couldn’t let that happen. He desperately needed a plan. If Pansy was going to insist on the binding ceremony, then perhaps there was a way to tweak it in his favor, or fake the thing entirely. He tore his eyes away from his twiddling thumbs and headed to the shelves, for a book that might actually be of some use.

Twenty minutes later, he returned to his desk equipped with Marriage Rituals of the Seventeenth Century. It had taken him over six hours, but he finally felt like he was getting somewhere. Well, he was starting to get somewhere at least.

He scanned through the table of contents and his pulse soared- This book was exactly what he needed. His eyes frantically skimmed the first page, pausing on a few promising lines.

In February 1619, a new and highly detested law was passed, requiring unmarried wizards of pure blood over the age of fifteen, to marry into non-magical blood status: muggle, squib, half-blood or less... On the onset of the law, was a mad rush of the dignified pureblooded families to marry their daughters to respectable pureblooded partners. Such was the desire for a pureblood male, that even the seemingly unattractive and dimwitted bachelors were obtaining a bounty upwards of 10,000 galleons.

Draco smirked at this, picturing an auction style setting, in which women were bidding on men resembling Crabbe and Goyle. They may be his friends, but there was no denying their hopelessness in the looks department. After a moment he reminded himself that disturbing mental images of two Neanderthals, were not helping him. He shook his head, letting the visions subside, and returned his attentions to the page in front of him.

Magical beings unable to marry in time to avoid the law, participated in a traditional wedding arranged by the ministry. The Minister at the time, Frankford Fingleton, had high hopes for the couples, but was sadly disappointed by the substantial infidelity rate. In response, an amendment was instated in 1620, forcing the ministry-approved matches to include the Eternus Fidelis Binding Ceremony in addition to the traditional vows.

The Eternus Fidelis charm is extremely complex magic and can be interpreted and used in many different ways. Simply put, one aspect of a contract is magically adhered to, as long as a second part is knowingly followed. Most commonly, the witch and wizard promised to live together as a married couple and bear children, as long as they remained faithful to one another.

The charm begins with a blood sacrifice of both parties, which is then mixed together and transfigured into the binding rings with the incantation ‘Eternus.’ The wizard then places the ring on their partner’s finger, and declares their promising vows. Generally, these were variations of the following:

‘With this ring, I thee promise to live out my life, in sickness and in health, with the one who shall wear its twin. We will be together in every aspect of the word, and the fruit of our loins will follow in our footsteps to repopulate the wizarding world. If ever do I find myself in the arms of another woman, let the ring on my finger be a permanent fixture, molded into my skin, and may I never find happiness in love or life as long as I shall live.’

Once the rings were in place, both parties would hold hands, and together state the incantation ‘Fidelis.’ The rings would glow red, and could not be removed until the promising vows were broken. The loyal partner would know, as their own ring would fall from their finger, never to fit again. The mutinous partner would forever have to wear the ring as a tattooed fixture, stuck in the contract for all eternity.

Even with the severity of the binding charm, the infidelity rate soared. So much, that in 1622, yet another amendment was instated. The new law allowed the partner who remained faithful to have their disloyal husband or wife beheaded. They would simply go to the courts with their bare hand, and their partner would be arrested and sentenced to death. At this point, the vows were altered to include the line ‘Till death do us part,’ as to make sure both parties were aware of the consequences to their actions.

In 1630, the Eternus Fidelis Binding Ceremony was outlawed. The marriage law, originally instated to repopulate the wizarding world, had failed miserably. The children born from the law were hardly enough to compensate for the numerous executions.

This was all well and good, but it only really proved that the Ministry of Magic had always been thick. The Fingleton character even made Fudge look like cunning intellectual.

Draco continued to flip through the pages, pausing every so often to take in a few passages. It wasn’t until near the end of the book, that he found an illustration that caught his eye. There was a man with his arms around two women. One was a stumpy old witch holding a child, and the other an exotic looking beauty. The man and the attractive woman both had superior grins on their faces, and there was a caption on the bottom of the page.

‘Actions speak louder than words, words speak louder than actions, or they can speak the same, depending on the words that you speak.‘

Well that made sense…. Not. He scanned the adjacent pages looking for some kind of explanation, but all he found was a list of the ways muggles incorporated wizard sayings into their society. Frustrated, he closed the book and slammed it down on the table.

He ran through the words again, picturing the page in his mind. What did it all mean? He wracked his tired brain for some kind of clue as to the significance of the statement.

‘Actions speak louder than words….’ The man in the illustration had a beastly wife and an attractive lover. Draco was about to have a pug-nosed fake girlfriend and a lover who he wasn’t allowed to have any kind of interaction with if he didn’t do some quick thinking. He knew the quote was the key to having the best of both worlds… it had to be. He bet Hermione could riddle it out. She wasn’t there though, and if she was they definitely wouldn’t be examining some old book… he would be thoroughly examining her lips… all of them. ‘Ugh not helping!’ he groaned, feeling the blood from his head rush to inflate his nether region. He just needed to focus, ‘Focus!’ and it would come to him.

‘…or they can speak the same, depending on the words that you speak.’ He had to tell people he was dating Pansy, but he didn’t have to actually date her. There would be no kissing, or touching, or carrying her bag involved in the matter- only words. Perhaps it would work the same in the other half of the spell. Instead of wording his ‘vows’ as ‘being horrible to Hermione,’ he could change them only include saying horrible things, or doing horrible things. He only needed one or the other to satisfy Pansy.

So what did he want with the woman he loved… words or actions?


***


“Where have you been all morning?” Harry asked as Hermione sat down across from him at the Gryffindor house table. She looked over at her friend’s concerned expression, and felt the guilt solidify in her stomach. Truth be told, her head had been so bogged down with visions of the previous night that she hadn’t been able to leave her bed, let alone go to class. The air around her when she had awoken had smelled of sweet expensive cologne, and she hesitated to even breathe heavily in its presence, not wanting it to dispel too soon. Draco had completely invaded her senses, and the area between her legs would never be the same. She had still been able to feel the heat and wetness residing there when she woke up, and just thinking about it was making her uncomfortably moist all over again. She wanted to bask in the glow as long as time would allow.

After she heard the first bell of the day, she had attempted to pry herself from her bed. That’s when she saw the note Draco left on her pillow. The note she tore her eyes from only minutes prior so she could head down to lunch. The words it held were now engraved in her mind, leaving a tingling warmth where previously had only been an empty void.

‘Whatever happens, I love you.’

It was such a simple statement, but completely overpowering. She didn’t even care that he had left her in the night. He loved her and she loved him, and that was all that mattered. She couldn’t wait for classes to end, so she could show him once again, what kind of affect he had on her. The thought made her have to squeeze her thighs together, to stem the small jolts of pleasure pulsing in her aching sex.

“Hermione?”

“Wha- Yes?”

“Where were you all morning? It’s not like you to skip class,” Harry continued his inquiry.

“Oh yeah…” she nervously stammered a response. She caught Ginny staring at her out of the corner of her eye, and struggled to form an excuse. “I wasn’t feeling well and I slept in.”

Ginny was openly gawking at her now, and Hermione ducked her head down to her plate in defense. She knew her face must be projecting a look of sheer bliss, which was not something one would associate with ‘not feeling well.’ She couldn’t help it though, she was in love. If only her friends were more accepting of their mortal enemy, she wouldn’t have to lie to them.

“It’s no big deal, you didn’t miss much. I can show you my notes later if you want,” Ron said, completely throwing Hermione off guard.

“Oh… Thanks Ron,” she smiled at him.

“Look ‘Mione, I know I’ve been a jerk, it’s just that-“

“It doesn’t matter,” she quickly cut him off. “I’ve known you for over six years, I’m used to it by now.” She saw him blush a little at her words, like the old Ron would do. She missed him more than she realized. “So are we still friends then?” she asked.

“Of course we are! You’d think that after six years you would know that I’ll always be there for you,” he spoke in earnest. The sincere response and her raging hormones left Hermione feeling completely overwhelmed. She burst out in happy tears and flung her arms around Ron’s freckled neck, sobbing uncontrollably into his tatty school robes.
He patted her back with slight awkwardness, receiving a few odd looks from their fellow diners.

“Shh… err… there, there.”

“Oh I’m sorry,” she said, pulling away with puffy red eyes and glistening cheeks. “I’m a right mess lately, aren’t I?”

A flurry of ‘No’s’ and ‘Of course not’s’ in forced serious tones came at her from her two male counterparts, but Ginny remained silent, her expression unreadable. Then her long red hair was brushing Harry’s shoulder as she bent to give him a light peck on the cheek, and she left the Hall without a backwards glance. Harry and Ron didn’t seem to notice anything out of the ordinary, and were on to talking about plans for winter break, which Hermione was shocked to hear was only a little over month away.

Of course, she was supposed to remain at school to fulfill her duties as Head Girl, along with the head boy. They would have the entirety of the castle at their fingertips, what with most of the student body away with their families…

And that was all it took for the tingling sensation to return full force, coating her knickers with a liquid reminder of who and what had been inside of her… and how big and incredible and just absolutely amazing it had been. Her arrogant Slytherin prat- the perfect gentleman. It was so surreal. He seemed to know her body so well, just how to touch her, and kiss her, and drown her in every inch of his creamy white skin.

‘Ugh, I’ve got it so bad.’

“Hermione, are you ok?” Harry asked, breaking her out of the daydream.

‘I’m pregnant, I don’t know who the father is or even if there is a father, and I’m in love with the son of a convicted Death Eater. My life should be showcased on a crappy daytime talk show.’

“I’m fine,” she shrugged. Surprisingly, she found that it wasn’t a lie. She really did feel fine, good even. Ron was acting normal around her again, she could easily have imagined Ginny’s cold demeanor, and Draco loved her.

He loved her.

She felt light as air, with a newfound understanding of girls like Lavender Brown and their infatuation with the opposite sex. Of course, she could sooner picture herself having Trelawny for tea, than calling Draco Malfoy by some cutesy pet name, but there were other ways to show him how she felt. More physical means by which to express their love. And like clockwork, the down under waterworks were back, making her squirm in her seat, feeling uncomfortably hot all over.

‘I’ve got it SO bad.’

Her pregnancy and her pile of secrets would have to remain in the dark a little longer. She needed one more night of mindless, heavenly oblivion, before she faced her predicament. Her world would come crashing down in a matter of seconds the instant her pregnancy was out in the open, and she was in no hurry to confront it. One more night couldn’t hurt… right?


***


“Draco?”

“Go away,” he growled sleepily, drifting off without a second thought to the screechy voice that was disturbing his slumber.

“I brought you a sandwich. I haven’t seen you at meals all day.”

He made an unintelligible sound that wasn’t even meant to be comprehensible, more like a warning grunt in an attempt to regain peace. Instead of the coveted resounding silence though, he received a rough poke to the side. Fate didn’t want him to sleep, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t put up one hell of a fight.

“I know you’re awake. You can stop pretending so we can get on with the arrangement.”

If the promise of food couldn’t lure him from his forged state of unconsciousness, then the alleged ‘arrangement’ didn’t stand a chance. The grey backs of his eyelids were all he wanted to see. He didn’t want to know where he was, or how he had gotten there, or whose finger was incessantly prodding him. Ignorance was bliss. Nothing could make him move, not even the painful quirk in his neck from the odd angle he was lying in.

The book he was using as a pillow was roughly yanked out from underneath him, and it took a lot of flailing arms to prevent his face from smacking against the table. And so he was up. There was a sudden flood of thought and he groaned, his arms fell out from underneath him and his cheek met with wood. He ignored the sting.

‘Words or actions…’ It all came back to him in a torrent of hopeless feelings.

He hadn’t found a way out of the binding, instead his weak body and mind had shut down and let sleep overtake him. So he had found a way to make the spell slightly less severe, but what did it matter? Hermione would hate him, if she didn’t already, and if she did she would just hate him more.

What was done was done though. He had tried to do the right thing for her, and it left him feeling miserable and empty. Maybe he deserved it. He was born the son of a Death Eater, a pureblooded, sadistic, racist, arrogant follower of a sick and twisted cult, and maybe he was destined to be just that. Perhaps no matter how hard he tried to thwart Voldemort’s plans and follow the small thread of ‘good’ he had in him, his past would catch up and lead him on a predetermined path.

He wanted it to all be over. He was sick of thinking, and feeling, and loving, it only led to disappointment, and possibly his own horrific death. He used to find enjoyment in bringing others down, especially muggleborns, blood traitors and anyone that even raised an eyebrow in his direction, but he had changed. He was putting someone else’s wellbeing above his own for the first time, and in return he was getting Pansy Parkinson.

Fate was a bitch.

“There,” Pansy said, slapping her hand down on the table, her shrill voice making his hair stand on end. “Two identical rings. Let’s get this over with, I already told Mil that you came to your senses and want me back.”

“You don’t know what you’re doing Pansy. You could probably get a real boyfriend if you tried, one you didn’t need to blackmail,” he said softly, his tone cold but dejected. He took out some of his anger by sending a nonverbal vanishing spell at the rings. Pansy didn’t seem to notice.

“But it wouldn’t be you. Since our first year it’s always been me and you. It’s meant to be. I was hoping that after a little while of being with me you’d see that and I’d get my old Draco back. Your father told me I’d be welcomed into the family, unlike some dirty mudblood, we actually can be together. You’re the one that doesn’t know what they’re doing!” she shrieked. She really did have a horrible voice, but did she have a point?

“Don’t talk about my father.’

“Fine, then don’t fight me. Let’s just do this now, or I shall use my free time to spread the word of the Malfoy and the mudblood.”

He hated her so much, but he didn’t want to fight anymore. He was done, defeated… scared? Scared of the repercussions of what he had done. He had slept with Hermione Granger, and subsequently fallen in love with her- a love doomed to fail. She wasn’t supposed to be anything but his ticket to freedom and a uterus for the heir of Lord Voldemort, but she was so much more. He didn’t deserve her…


***

It was past midnight by the time Draco returned to his room, a black and silver entwined ring on his pale finger. He felt defeated, dead inside, like an empty shell with no soul or purpose in life. He imagined that his was how one would feel after a Dementor’s kiss.

Through the portrait entrance the first thing he saw was a full head of brown curls, quickly shuffling her slipper clad feet in his direction. He didn’t expect her to be awake. He hoped she wouldn’t have been awake.

Her face was flushed, and she was positively glowing. A huge grin split her features and her eyes lit up when she got close enough to encircle him with her arms. He cringed.

“I’ve been worried about you! You weren’t in classes or at dinner and I couldn’t get away from Harry and Ron for the life of me. Where have you been?”

“I-“

“Oh it doesn’t matter,” she interrupted him. She was now playfully running her fingers across his chest, looking up at him with her deep chocolate eyes.

‘Oh no, oh no, oh no, oh no….’

“I’ve been thinking about last night all day you know… I fell asleep when we were just getting started…”

He gulped as she stood tiptoed to place a soft kiss on his lips. She had a coy glint in her eyes, and a half smirk on her rose colored lips… the lips that would be the death of him. He closed his eyes, trying to fight the urge to ravage her right then and there. He knew that it was selfish to continue this. He would only hurt her more, as he wasn’t allowed to send even one nice comment her way. He had chosen actions over words. He had six years of practice saying horribly insulting and degrading things to her, but he knew he could never physically hurt her. He had thought he had made the right decision.

She kissed him again, and he felt his resolve quickly fading away. His body was responding to her luscious lips. His hands sought out the gentle curve of her ass, pulling her into him whilst his tongue deepened their kiss.

It was selfish, and wrong, and felt way too good to stop.

“My room?” she asked, breaking away but breathing rather heavily. He only nodded, wordlessly following her up the spiral stairs. In her room she giggled softly at her own forwardness, fanning her face as she leaned against the bed, straddling him against her. He was already hard for her… it didn’t take much.

‘She’s going to hate you…’

It was selfish, but he couldn’t hold back, especially when he felt her hips grind against his hard length. His hands snaked their way into her trademark bushy hair, tilting her head to meet him in a bruising kiss. His tongue plunged into her hot mouth, twirling and teasing her until he felt her shudder and moan. It was the point of no return, and as he fell over her onto the silky duvet cover, trailing soft kisses down to the nape of her neck, he knew there was no going back.

So he kissed her, and devoured her, silently expressing what she meant to him. Slowly peeling off the layers of clothing that separated him from his prize, until she was left with only her lacey knickers, and his erection was threatening to tear through his own. His hands went to the buttons on his shirt, and hers to his pants. Through her frantic movements to disrobe him, she still managed to be careful around his throbbing member, only lightly brushing it with her hand here and there. It was driving him crazy with need, and the devilish smirk on her swollen lips told him that she was doing it on purpose.

Only when he was completely undressed did he finally get a chance to really look at her, taking in every inch of beautiful radiant form.

“God you’re ugly…” he said in a low husky voice, dripping with pure molten lust.

“What?!” she shrieked back, with a tone bordering on confusion and amusement. “What has gotten into you?”

“Nothing that getting into you can’t fix…” he growled. He chanced a quick look at his hand. The ring was still a ring. He had definitely made the right decision. She seemed to melt at his words, and he was tempted to test the limits of the binding spell.

“I’m going to ram you so deep… and hard…over, and over, and over again…” he said sensually, slipping his hand underneath the band of her knickers to run a finger along her slick folds. She was so wet for him that he easily slipped into her hot sheath, making her cry out. He continued to tease her, coating her with her own juices until he felt her muscles start to tense around him. He used his free hand to tear away her panties, and planted his mouth directly on her throbbing clit.

“Draco… you don’t have to… Oh no… Oh Merlin…” she moaned.

He lovingly caressed her nub with his tongue, all the while driving his fingers rapidly in and out of her. Her hands fisted the sheets and her toes curled in a futile attempt to withhold her orgasm. She was slightly self-conscious of his position in her most private area, but the pressure he was creating was too much. Every flick of his tongue threatened to send her over the edge. Forgetting her inhibitions, she loudly cried out her release, feeling the spasms wrack her entire body. Her hips bucked and her muscles clenched around his fingers, soaking him with her juices. He held out until the very end, raising himself only when he felt her legs slacken, falling open against the sheets.

“Wow….” Was all she could manage through her heavy pants. He only smirked, nipping and sucking his way back to her flushed face. With one hand he spread her legs wider and positioned himself at her entrance. She nodded up at him. If she was afraid this time, she wasn’t showing it. He caught her lips with his, distracting her with a kiss, just like he had during their real first time. His tongue slowly snuck out to gain entry into her waiting mouth, mimicking the actions of his rock hard member between her legs. She didn’t cry out in pain this time, only moaned in sheer bliss.

Once he was in to the hilt, he had to break away from the kiss to focus solely on not embarrassing himself. She was too tight to be allowed. Even with ‘sex god’ status, he didn’t stand a chance. Their hips rocked together, quickly finding a rhythm and increasing the pace to meet their needs. In and out he drove, removing his glistening cock until just the head remained, then plunging back into her, burying himself entirely. She met him thrust for thrust, and it didn’t take long for the gentle gasps and cries to be exchanged with rabid moans.

He couldn’t hold out, her tight hot sheath was taking him to another world. Her muscles spasmed around him and her nails dug roughly into his back, mixing blood with the sheen of sweat. With a few last frantic thrusts, their orgasms hit them simultaneously, and they collapsed, crying out each other’s names as torrents of pleasure wracked through their bodies.

Draco let the last tremors of his orgasm subside before he dared congratulate himself. He had done it, and she didn’t hate him. Maybe he could have his love and his sham relationship, maybe one never had to know about the other…

“I love you, Draco,” she whispered suddenly, looking straight into his silver-blue orbs.

‘Oh no…’ he thought. Saying he loved her would definitely set off the ring.

He closed his eyes, swooping down to catch her parted lips with his in a silent attempt to show her how much he loved her. She responded, and he relaxed, deepening their kiss. In a matter of moments he had reignited the passion and lust between them, and once again traced frantic bites along her collar, down to the valley of her bare chest. He could taste the salty sweat on her burning skin, and it only fueled him on further.

“Draco?” Her voice was soft from sheer exhaustion, and from the way his tongue swirled around the taut bud of her nipple. He ignored her, continuing to lick and suckle her soft skin until words would fail her, and she would forget what he knew she wanted to hear.

He was failing. Her hands were reaching for him, pulling him up so he would have to look at her.

“I- I said I love you.”

He tried to crane his neck down for the last kiss he so desperately needed, but her palms caught his chest, and she forced him to stay above her. He could see the lust turn to sadness in her eyes, which were already welling up with unshed tears.

“Didn’t you hear me? I said I love you, Draco… I- I thought you loved me…” her words were begging and pleading with him to say it. A verbal assurance that he shared her feelings, and that she wasn’t crazy. She needed to hear it aloud. She needed to prove to herself that it was real, and that the impossible had happened… That Draco Malfoy loved her…

“Don’t you-?” she choked out.

He only managed a strangled sort of squeak. A single tear escaped and slid down her temple, but when he reached out to brush it away, he was roughly pushed off of her.

“No!” she shouted, quickly losing her composure. “What is wrong with you!? What is wrong with me!? I should’ve known better… I’m so stupid I actually thought this was real!” She was now sobbing openly, and all he could do was watch.

“Hermione I-“ he started, but stopped before he went too far and triggered the spell. Instead he lightly brushed his fingers along her damp cheek, in an attempt to comfort her.

“Don’t you dare touch me! Don’t ever touch me! Just GET OUT!”

Again he tried to hold her, but it was only provoking her anger.

“Get. Out. NOW!” she yelled, pummeling his chest with her fists while he desperately clung to her. “OUT!”

Before he could react she had forcefully shoved him away from her, and fled towards the bathroom. He could hear the sounds of violent heaving replacing her anguished cries. He tried hard to block them out to prevent his own emotional and physical breakdown.

He didn’t know what to do, so he mechanically gathered his discarded clothing and proceeded towards the door. His head was devoid of all thought. He felt numb. He never knew numb could be so painful…

He paused with his hand on the knob, seeing the note he had left her lying on top of her school bag. He placed it back on her pillow, then hurried to leave before he could do anything else he would regret.


Because that's what people do
they leap, and hope to god they can fly
because otherwise you just drop like a rock
wondering the whole way down, why in the hell did I jump?
but here I am, falling
And the only one that makes me feel like I can fly...
is you.

~Hitch









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A/N's (Lots of them!)

I am SO sorry it takes me so long to update. RL is getting in the way in the form of midterms, and annoying roomies, and parents nagging me from the other side of the country lol.

I added chapter titles for my sanity, I know they are pretty pathetic, but it was driving me crazy to go through and search for a fact and having to look through like ten chapters to do so. Maybe I'll think of better ones someday, or if anyone has suggestions I am all ears!

Ok questions about the last chappie and about her vision of Voldemort. The idea is that D&H finally realize that they love each other, and love is supposed to be the most powerful magic soo it’s breaking through the memory charm. Corny, cheesy… I know I know. You can all take this opportunity to roll your eyes at me.

As for this chapter, it had to be done. I hope you don’t hate me for doing this to our lovely couple, but it is important for the plot that they don’t get too close and that Hermione remains in the dark about her baby’s daddy. I am going to try very hard to write more often, because I am really excited to get to the good stuff. I already have one of the later chapters written because I just couldn’t wait, although knowing me, it will probably change and I’ll decide I hate it by the time it comes to post it.

Prego Hermione- I’ve never been pregnant, and the only person I’ve known closely who has been pregnant is my cousin. She just said that she had a lot of mood swings, like if she was horny she was REALLY horny, or happy was overdone and made her cry and stuff. So that’s what I’m making Hermione like (trying to at least).

On to answer all my wonderful reviewers!

Sherrithewriter- I’m glad you like it so far! I’m sorry that Draco did not find a way out entirely. And no there isn’t going to be a magical DNA test (sorry!) just because, well, there just can’t be. Where Voldemort is will be revealed, but again, I can’t tell. SORRY!! As for Draco being her second first time, it’s not really important to the plot, I just didn’t want Hermione to be with anyone else. She was supposed to hook up with Ron.. it would have made things a lot easier, but I couldn’t do it, so yeah. Thanks so much for the review!! I did try to email you but i got a notice that said it failed. I just copied and pasted the address you left, do you have a dif one? Or maybe its yahoo mail not working very well, I haven't used it for long and I usually just use my school email so I don't know if it like won't let me email certain accounts or something.

Kayy Enn- I know I shouldn’t talk but I want an update from you!! Please?? Pretty please? Yes everything does blow up in Draco’s face. I am kind of basing him off an old noir film called Detour. The main character does some really stupid stuff then blames it away to fate. At this point Draco has just been through too much to be thinking clearly, he has WAY too much on his plate and his brain hurts lol. Since everything seems to be going wrong for him he is starting to lose hope and think that no matter what he does, he’s screwed. Anywhoo, please update, I need my Kayy fix!

Mhaj78- I’m glad you like the plot, I am curious to hear what you thought about the rest if you got through it. You can be honest, I won’t bite : )

Luvhp- Yes, Pansy should go to the bottom of the Black Lake and end up as giant squid poo. I sent her there, but she is such a whore she came back just to piss everyone off with her whoreyness. She will get what’s coming to her though, eventually.

Tori in Wonderland and Jan- Thank you!! I’m glad you like it!!

Paigeey07- Thanks for always reviewing, it’s oh so very nice of you and makes my day!

SoftObsidian- I’m glad you liked it. Yes I know, my summary is pretty bad, and sadly it’s the best I could come up with. I just don’t know how to explain this story, but I am always up for suggestions *Hint Hint* lol. As for the ending, I have it pretty much planned, but as you’ll learn I change my mind A LOT, so even I don’t know how it is going to end.

Angel- I’m sorry! I don’t want you to throw your computer! The binding is going to last a little while, but I’m going to try and hurry things along and start skipping forward in time more, because it’s no fun if they hate each other. Please bear with me. I love reading your reviews!

Ichi.ruki- I’m sorry, the baby’s father won’t be revealed until near the end, it’s kind of important for the big finale sequence thing soo… I’m sorry! More news about the baby is about to come, I hope it will make up for other things. I’m really loving your story btw, it is really heating up and coming together perfectly ** EVERYONE GO READ NOT SO! If you haven’t already done so, it’s AMAZING!**

Everyone else you knowww I love and appreciate everything you have to say. I could easily go on for pages and pages of answering reviews, but so I have something left to say next chappie, I have to cut it off here. A special THANK YOU to everyone who reviewed my other story, you guys made my otherwise shitty week! I seriously got a little teary eyed reading them lol.

**You know the drill, Please read and review (or rate)! And if you have some free time, I redid chapter one and am in the process of posting it, it was the only edited chapter I’m happy with so far.

<3you all!!
-Lizzy