The Senior Project

Chapter 22

Lucius wheeled around, his wand pointed at Severus. “Touch my wife again, and you will find yourself on the receiving end of a very well trained wand.” The grey eyes glittered dangerously.

“Lucius. My old friend. Perhaps you forget why you are here. Unless.” The dark-haired wizard paused dramatically, his own wand still in the air. “You are here for reasons other than what you have stated.”

The blonde’s eyes narrowed. “Severus. As Hermione stated, I have quite a bit on the line. My wife. My child – children. My own life. You. You have nothing at risk. The Dark Lord suspects you of treason, but then, he suspects everyone of treason. And it’s not as if you have much to lose. Other than your life.” The blonde wizard smirked, fighting to hold in the words, ‘not that that’s worth much’. “But in our business, that’s an, ah, ‘occupational hazard’, I believe. We risk that everyday. You are not risking your family. You are not risking your heritage. I don’t think that it is my motivation that should be in question.”

“But it will be. Because,” Severus’ lips parted in a grimace that was attempting to disguise itself as a smile, “I do not have questionable associations with the Dark Lord.”

Lucius sneered viciously. “You don’t, eh? I think that since I am considered to be the Dark Lord’s right-hand man, I think I would be in an excellent position to say who does, and who does not have ‘questionable’ associations with Lord Voldemort.”

“And exactly why no one will take you seriously.” It was Severus’ turn to glare dangerously.

“Except that they will. I, unlike you, have information about the movements of the Dark Lord that would be useful to any opposition forces. You? You do not have access to this information. I think that I am in a position to bargain. On the other hand, you have nothing with which to bargain. When it comes to credibility, I don’t think I will have a problem.” Lucius smiled coolly. This was a chess match. Probably at least as important as the meeting with Dumbledore’s ‘Order’ would be. And a good warm-up.

Severus fought back angrily. How could Lucius glide in and charm the Headmaster? Even if he could convince Dumbledore – who was notoriously soft when it came to ‘reformers’ – Lucius would have a much harder time when it came to the Order. “You keep forgetting, however, that you have never given anyone opposing Lord Voldemort a reason to believe you. Perhaps I might remind you of a certain incident involving one of the Weasley clan?” The blonde paled slightly. “I believe that you will have a very hard time convincing Arthur and Molly. Of anything. And they are extremely influential. I don’t think you are going to make much headway.”

Lucius smirked. “And, of course, you won’t do anything to assist me.” It was as statement more than a question.

“You would have to show me that you are no longer loyal to the Dark Lord.”

Lucius looked directly at his long-time acquaintance. “And I would like you to show me that you are no longer loyal to the Dark Lord. But, of course, I don’t have that luxury. Although, neither do you.” Lucius smiled menacingly. “We are both in a bit of a quandary, you realize. We can’t trust one another, and yet we can’t move forward without trusting one another.” Severus’ jaw muscles clenched and unclenched but he didn’t respond otherwise. “Clearly, unless we can move past all of this – including Hermione – the Dark Lord will have won.” Lucius finally lowered his wand. “If I am wrong, at least give me the chance to save Hermione, Draco and my unborn child.” The blonde cocked his head. “Surely you can grant me that final pleasure?”

Severus lowered his wand uncomfortably. “I don’t think that I have the final decision, Lucius. Although if it were up to me, I would safely see you on a pyre, your wife and children in my arms.”

Lucius’ teeth glinted. “I thought as much.” He returned his wand to his sleeve. “Until this evening, my old friend.” The blonde left the classroom, one eye on Severus until the door was shut behind him. The meeting this evening was clearly the most important test, and he’d have to be prepared; this was not a group that was going to easily fall to his charms.

&&&&&

Hermione came to dinner early, her stomach tied in knots, but she couldn’t sit in her room any longer. When she returned to her room, she couldn’t concentrate on her homework at all. All she could do was sit on her bed and pet Crookshanks, imagining Lucius and Severus dueling. Dueling to the death, likely, with no one there to stop them. Should she have left them? Mercury’s wings! She shouldn’t have left them. She. Should Not. Have. Left. Them. Not that she could have stopped them if they were serious about hurting each other, but she really shouldn’t have left them. If they both didn’t show up to dinner, she didn’t know what she’d do. Gods. They’d better both show up. It was okay if they showed up with bumps and bruises. They just had to show up. Both of them.

She tried to hang back waiting in the wings, watching people filter into the Great Hall before approaching the Head Table. It was only when she saw Draco did she actually move into the hall itself. “Hey, uh, Draco.”

The young blonde turned to her, a look of surprise on his face. “Hermione! Merlin’s b-beard! We’ve got to talk. You know everything, right?” Hermione nodded, grateful for his welcoming smile; it was ironic that Draco would turn out to be the friendliest face that she saw. “Yeah. Me too.” Draco moved in a little closer, putting his arm around her shoulder. “I, uh, talked with my father today. I’ve got to hand it to you; he’s not the same guy he was 6 months ago.” Hermione smiled nervously. “It’s all you, Herm. He’s totally different. I told Dumbledore the same thing. I think you’ve turned my father around like no one else ever could.” The young wizard looked directly at her; “You’ve done something to him. And I’m envious as hell. But I’m so glad that you’ve got through to him.”

“I’m so sorry.” Draco shook his head, but the Head Girl plunged on. “No. Really. I took advantage of your good nature. I’m glad that it hasn’t blown up in our faces- well at least it hasn’t yet - but I’m so sorry. I really didn’t mean for all of this…” She smiled ruefully. “Charon’s coins be damned. I really didn’t mean for any of this.” Sighing, she continued. “Who would have thought that this would have happened? I mean, beginning of the year, you were harassing me about not loosening up enough. Even the girls in Gryffindor were giving me a hard time. And here we are, months later, and Voldemort is demanding our presence, because of our betrothal – which is all because of your father.”

The Head Boy smiled knowingly. “You didn’t take advantage of anything. Remember, I’m a Malfoy. I don’t get taken advantage of. I do offer help, though, and I got myself into this willingly. Besides, it’s all been well worth it to see the ‘Pride of Hogwarts’ bring my father to his knees.” Draco grinned wickedly, and Hermione blushed. “However you did it,” he continued to smile, the innuendo not lost on the Head Girl.

“Would you stop it?!?” Exasperated, she sighed while Draco giggled.

“Seriously. Whatever you did to my father, I’m impressed.” Despite the leer, his tone was serious underneath.

“Thanks. But I’m more worried about whether Lucius and Severus made it out of the dungeons, or if they are still hexing each other in the Potions classroom.” At Draco’s quizzical look, she explained her conversation with the two men.

“Naw. I think it’s okay. I saw Severus storming through the Slytherin common room right before dinner, a murderous look on his face. Which is usually how he looks right after losing a duel – verbally, that is,” he added quickly, seeing Hermione’s stricken face, “to my father. I’m sure it’s fine. Besides, I don’t see my father rising to Severus’ provocations – I think he’s got bigger things on his mind,” the young wizard looked meaningfully at the dark-haired witch.

“Yeah. I’m sure you’re right. Thanks.” Together they walked up to the Head Table. They were still a little early, so they talked about their classes and the eventuality of the NEWTs, Hermione trying to bury the notion that they might not even be around for the holidays.

The Headmaster approached them, smiling, his voice lowered. “Good evening. I have called a meeting of the Order this evening. Lucius has asked to meet with the Order alone, before you join us. Perhaps if you are in the library, I can send a message to you.”

“Of course, Professor.” They answered almost in unison, and the young witch giggled, although it was as much a result of nerves as it was anything. Looking up, she saw Lucius enter the Great Hall.

He was striding purposefully, so obviously he was feeling rejuvenated from his nap, and Severus had not been able to able to land any hexes. Not that she thought he’d be able to, she told herself, loyally. The sight of his hair loose over his black flowing cloak made her heart skip a beat. He had definitely pulled out the stops for the meeting with the Order, and he looked absolutely breath-taking. Thinking ahead to later this evening, she decided that it was definitely a good thing that as Head Girl she could go anywhere on school ground without being questioned.

Lucius came up to her, a smile in his eyes. His gloved hand reached for hers, and brought her knuckles to his mouth. “My dear Hermione,” he whispered before raising his voice. “A please to see you again.”

“And you, Lucius. I take it all is well?” Her eyes asked the question that she could not safely voice: did you reach an understanding with Severus?

“As well as can be expected.” Hermione nodded; at least it sounded like maybe Severus walked away unscathed.

The blonde wizard pulled out her chair for her and seated her, before seating himself. He gave her thigh a quick squeeze under the table before nodding to the Headmaster. Moments later, Severus stalked into the Great Hall, his eyes fixed on the Head Table, a malicious smirk on his lips. Draco caught Hermione’s eye, and gave a quick nod, followed by a hint of a smile.

Severus took his seat, and then alternated his time between talking to Draco in hushed tones, and glaring at Lucius. Noticing the dark-haired wizard’s attention, Lucius reached for Hermione’s hand, and then raised his glass to Severus, a self-satisfied smile on his face.

Hermione found herself with no appetite; she was certainly hungry, but nerves turned the food to sawdust in her mouth, and she found herself choking down only a few bites before she went back to pumpkin juice. In passing she reflected on the irony of the fact that that actual pregnancy hadn’t given her too many problems, but that the men in her life were wreaking utter havoc with her digestive system. Lucius kept squeezing her hand reassuringly, obviously no longer concerned with the opinions of the members of the Head Table. The young witch was so preoccupied her own thoughts that she completely missed her Head of House’s quiet smile, as well as Madame Pomfrey’s nod of approval to the Headmaster.

Despite her lack of appetite, dinner ended quickly, and the Headmaster’s request to wait in the library with Draco came much sooner than she had expected. Standing up from the table, Lucius reached for her arm. “Don’t worry. Everything will be fine. We will find our way through this. All of this. I promise.”

Needing to hear his words of assurance, Hermione nodded, and then gave the father of her child a quick hug, ignoring what anyone who saw it might say.

&&&&&&

“We are gathered here to discuss a matter of some urgency.” The headmaster paused, his eyes meeting each member of the Order of the Phoenix in turn. They were seated in one of the many conference rooms that honeycombed the bowels of the school. The large oval table was about two-thirds full, with the witches and wizards clustered around the trays of food and drink that were spread across the table. “As some of you may be aware, Voldemort has become increasingly active. With varying degrees of success, I might add.” There was an uncomfortable tittering among the assembled group; the tension in the room was palpable. For the Order to have been called to an urgent meeting at Hogwarts itself was extremely unusual.

“The last assembly of Lord Voldemort’s Death Eaters, however, resulted in a ‘request’ that we must address. He has demanded that Hermione Granger and Draco Malfoy be brought to him, in slightly more than 48 hours.”

This statement brought forth mutters from all across the room before Arthur Weasley spoke out. “Well, he can’t have them. Certainly not Hermione, at least.” The other members of the Order quickly followed up with vigorous nods of agreement. The headmaster glanced briefly at his Potions master, who was wearing a look of smug satisfaction.

“I agree with you, Arthur. But the situation is slightly more, ah, complicated that that. Lucius Malfoy,” again the muttering started with the mention of the blonde wizard’s name, “has been accused of treason by Voldemort. Draco is being used as a test of his commitment to Voldemort. And Lucius has decided that he does not want his son to be handed over to Voldemort.”

The grumbling turned to open scoffing. “Lucius Malfoy? Change of heart? He doesn’t have a heart to change,” Dedalus Diggle stated frankly.

“Next you’re going to be telling us that the goblins have decided to start making charitable contributions to St. Mungo’s!” Kingsley Shacklebolt declared. The laughter and retorts were getting louder, but abruptly stopped when Albus shook his head.

“Lucius Malfoy came to me directly, and has offered his assistance to us in defeating Lord Voldemort. I believe that he has very personal reasons for wishing to see Voldemort defeated.” Tonks snorted, her hair flaming red. The headmaster continued. “Instead of questioning me about his sincerity, I think it would be best for you to speak with him directly.

If the group had been unsettled before, this statement drove them into a frenzy. “Lucius? Here? You can’t mean to bring him here – we’ll all be compromised. All the work we’ve done. All the sacrifices we’ve made. You can’t let him see us all here.” Molly Weasley’s voice cut through the din with a mixture of outrage and frustration.

“I understand your concerns. All of you. But I have spoken with Lucius, and I have every reason to believe that he is sincere in his desire to help us.”

“And if he’s not? If it’s all a trick?”

“It’s a risk. But, I think, a very small one. Lucius can do us no harm here, and our members have been known to the Dark forces for some time. I believe that if you hear him out, you may find his motivations, ah, compelling.” The headmaster responded directly to the matriarch of the Weasley clan, but was also gauging Severus’ reaction out of the corner of his eye. “I ask you to judge him by his statements and his actions now, and not on just his past actions.”

Albus Dumbledore went to the door while the members of the Order spoke among themselves. Everyone fell silent as Lucius entered the room. The blonde wizard was in his full dress robes, his boots polished to a sheen, his hair loose down his back. The only thing that marred the refined image was his heavy reliance upon his snake-tipped cane.

Lucius studied the faces in the room as he moved to an empty seat at the far end of the table. Most of the eyes that met his were guarded to the point of being hostile, although in Severus’ he saw a mocking glint. Severus. How interesting. Not that it was surprising – the Dark Lord had several spies inside Hogwarts. The only question was where Severus’ true loyalties were.

The blonde wizard settled heavily into his chair. This ‘Order of the Phoenix’ was really a motley crew – they might be a powerful group, but from the shabby robes of the Weasleys to the wild appearance of Alastor Moody, they certainly didn’t present themselves as a highly organized and disciplined group. Of course, he reminded himself, the Death Eaters certainly weren’t organized or disciplined, no matter how they looked.

Taking a final look around the table, Lucius started without preamble. “Last night the Dark Lord summoned his followers. In the course of the assembly, my loyalty was questioned. To prove my loyalty, I was commanded to produce my son to receive the Dark Mark, and to deliver Miss Granger, whom the Dark Lord believes to be betrothed to my son. I am to bring both of them to the Dark Lord in two days.” The wizard took a breath, allowing the group to discuss the implied announcement of Hermione’s betrothal to Draco. The shocked tones were not lost on him, and he allowed himself a half-smile; the tenor would likely be much less muted when the truth became known.

“I do not wish to do this. On either account. It was immediately clear to me that the only way to protect them both was for me to offer my services to Albus.”

“It’s a trap!” Tonks blurted out.

The headmaster interrupted gently. “I believe that Severus can confirm the demand.” The dark-haired wizard gave a curt nod, his eyes flicking toward Lucius only briefly.

“How can you possibly expect us to believe you?” The young witch’s hair flamed even brighter, shades of orange and pink highlighting the red. “Why would you not want to see your son take the Dark Mark?”

The senior Malfoy pressed his lips together before responding. “I know this seems difficult for you to believe, or even accept. But I do not believe the Dark Lord can succeed, and I do not want my son to follow my footsteps in a doomed venture. Certainly, I will not ever been able to fully clear my sullied name – assuming that I live to see the end of the Dark Lord, but I do not wish my son to suffer the same fate.”

“You can’t convince me that you’re not here to spy for Voldemort,” the tone was vicious, and from a small, bland wizard Lucius did not recognize. Severus gave a tight smile.

Lucius bit back a strong retort. Imbeciles! “I am not sure how to make this more clear,” he fought to keep his voice even, “My family is supremely more important than who rules the world. If my family is harmed, if my bloodlines are severed,” the blonde looked directly at the Potions master, his gaze piercing him, “I have failed. In this case, protecting my family means that I have to turn away from what I once valued and turn toward the opposition.”

“So,” the small wizard continued, “If Voldemort weren’t threatening your family, you wouldn’t be here.”

“Perhaps. But demanding my son and my-Hermione,” he caught himself quickly, “is not the only way in which my family is threatened by Lord Voldemort. And I mean to protect my family. That is why I am here. If you cannot understand that, or if you cannot trust my motives, then I am not sure how I can help you.”

“Your regard for your family seems to somewhat new, Mr. Malfoy. Draco has not exactly flourished under your hand,” Minvera McGonagall replied directly. “And what is your concern for Miss Granger.”

“Madam,” Lucius began, “Draco and I have been at odds for a number of years – as I am sure you are aware,” Severus nodded brusquely. “In the course of his education, he decided that his values were not the same as my own – no matter how much I tried to drill them into him,” his lips twisted into a wry smile.

“Draco never had any desire to join me with the Dark Lord. And yes, it was a source of great irritation to me. Until recently, when it became apparent that the Dark Lord did not have enough confidence in his own followers to successfully lead anything, especially a revolution. Look at the number of failed Death Eater raids as of late.” There was a faintly positive murmur.

“The Dark Lord is going to fail. I do not want my son to be a part of that failure. My mistakes should not be brought down on him. My sole motive is to protect the Malfoy line. I cannot do that if the Dark Lord were to gain power.” The members of the Order were paying closer attention, although their collective skepticism was still apparent.

“And what about Miss Granger. What is your interest her?” The Head of Gryffindor’s lips were pinched.

A flurry of emotions crossed the blonde’s face. Damn it. They didn’t think he was sincere about Draco. How in Hades were they going to be receptive to his concern for Hermione, as Draco’s intended wife? And he didn’t want to reveal his true feelings for Hermione without discussing it with her first – the repercussions for her could be disastrous.

“Perhaps,” the headmaster interrupted smoothly, “we might want to bring in Hermione and Draco at this junction.

The headmaster stepped out of the room, and then returned moments later. “Miss Granger and you Mr. Malfoy will be down here presently.”

“So tell me, Lucius,” Arthur drawled, “Is this your real reason for being here tonight?”

Lucius glowered at the red-haired man. How dare this short, poor, little excuse for a wizard treat him as if he had the upper hand? Because, of course, he did. He needed the help of the Weasleys and the rest of the Order. They needed his help, too, but they didn’t realize it yet. Severus’ smirk was equally irritating. The only way to convince them was to remain calm; hexing these people would only be momentarily satisfying – it wouldn’t solve the larger problem.

“I am here because I do not want to see my son become a Death Eater, and I do not want to see Hermione Granger raped and then slaughtered before my eyes. I am here because I want to bring about the demise of the Dark Lord. I am here because I want my family to live. In peace. I was under the impression that you wanted the same.” The grey eyes flashed challengingly.

Arthur was saved from any further response with the opening of the door. Hermione and Draco entered the room, giving each other a nervous smile before turning to the headmaster. “Hermione. Draco. Thank you for joining us. Please, take a seat.”

Hermione smiled, and then walked to the far end of the room, taking the seat next to Lucius. She smiled at the blonde wizard as she sat down, and then rested her hands on the table.

Lucius’ breath caught. Hermione was wearing his signet ring on her index finger. She couldn’t have made her declaration more clear if she had announced her pregnancy to the room, although, he realized suddenly, it was unlikely that any of the other occupants of the room could identify the ring from where they were sitting.

Draco sat down on the other side of Hermione, and nodded to his professors at the table.

“Welcome. This meeting concerns both of you, and so I thought it would be wise for you to join us. The Order is not fully convinced of Lucius’ motives.” The headmaster smiled faintly, and Hermione’s heart raced. Obviously they had not been told of her involvement with Lucius.

“And frankly, we’re a little concerned about this ‘betrothal’ of yours to Draco, Hermione,” Molly Weasley interjected.

Hermione took a deep breath. It was now or never. She clasped Lucius’ hand and smiled sweetly, “Then you can relax, Mrs. Weasley. It’s Lucius’ child that I am carrying, and Lucius who I intend to marry.”

&&&&&

A/N: Sorry for the delay in updating. My laptop completely cacked on me, and I had to recreate this chapter from scratch. I am still in the process of getting a new laptop, and am currently forced to share computers with my husband, so I’m not getting to write as much as I would like. Anyway, I won’t leave this cliffie hanging here forever. I promise!

Also, thanks to all the kinds notes/comments. Forgive me any minor inconsistencies – I am not having my long-suffering beta read this, as I can only really update/make changes from the office (really, wrestling the computer away from my husband is ill-advised – he’s working on a ski racing book, and well, he doesn’t like sharing his toys! (Eh, that’s not true - I just feel guilty about borrowing his computer when he’s obviously itching to write!) As always, positive feedback/constructive criticism is welcome. The Muses love to have their egos stroked!

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