The Secrets Women Keep

Voldemort sat on his lavish silver throne, waiting for his two most trusted servants to respond to his summons. Beating Harry Potter had been easy compared to taking over the wizarding world. After killing Harry Potter he still had to go after the rest of the Golden Trio, and set up order in his new regime.

Small groups that had escaped capture still attacked his Deatheaters in a foolish attempt to stop him. Moreover after ruling for a year he noticed that his population was diminishing and not all of it was due to casualties of war. People were not reproducing, worse they were not reproducing enough witches and wizards, with the fairer sex being more difficult to reproduce. Pureblooded witches that were able to become pregnant often had miscarriages, gave birth to still borns or squibs, and some witches even died with their offspring during childbirth.

Voldemort had Severus develop a test with some enslaved muggle scientists to develop a test that would determine early in life if the new offspring was magical and how powerful they would become.

Being King was not easy, especially when one decided to follow a Spartan technique to ruling. Weed out the weak, and produce strong followers that would help rule over the lower classes of beings. Bellatrix and himself had only one child together, after her husband Rodolphus was ambushed and killed by two muggles, the man was an idiot really. He had decided to take Bellatrix as his mistress, and married her once she had become pregnant. He had a wizarding paternity test done early, no one even a devoted witch like Bellatrix was going to pull the wool over his eyes.

He could not be prouder of his son, Camus was only 3 and quite smart. He was being taught French and Italian by his wife. Life for him could not be better, and now he found some semblance of normal happiness, and stability with his wife.

Which was one of the reasons he had decided to call this meeting.

A knock alerted him to the presence of his two advisors, no one was allowed to apparate directly into his study, excluding his wife.

“Enter” he said in his high voice.

“My Lord” said both men.

“Severus and Draco, we have some business to discuss” He motioned to the two chairs in front of him.

“As both of you are aware, our population is having some problems bringing witches and wizards into the world, and we are also having problems protecting muggleborn witches who have been proven fertile from kidnapping among our own Deatheaters.”

Both Draco and Severus nodded.

“Both of you have suggested that we should legalize these unions and invoke ancient magic to protect our witches, and I think we will have no choice but to do so.”

“While protecting our witches will help us protect our future offspring, I fail to see how it will help us bring birth rates up” stated Draco.

“That is where you and I come in, aside from working with the muggle scientists to determine magical capacity we are also trying to come up with potions and drugs to increase birth rate in our witches. Muggles have been facing problems like these in their populations, their life range is considerably shorter than ours and people are spending their most fertile time frame going after their education.”

Draco nodded, he had been helping Severus over the past few years on a number of projects, but after receiving permission to impregnate Hermione he had taken a short vacation.

“Allright, we still have other business to discuss, the Werewolves want more wooded land in which to hunt for game, since they are now forbidden from eating muggles, other than prisoners, or deserters, and we need to go over our relationships with our enslaved muggles and just how far we are going to control their lives.”

The meeting went on……..


“Darling, please don’t cry you will wake your brothers and God knows when all of you are awake the house shakes” Ginny told her youngest son, Bill, names after her now dead brother.

“Give him to me, and go check on the twins, it is too quiet up there for my liking, they probably woke up and are causing trouble. Last time when they got into their father’s potions stores and he grounded them for a week.” Molly told Ginny

After Ron had turned them in, he was killed instantly. Voldemort had allowed his new wife to kill him swiftly. Molly and Ginny were spared because they were the only pureblooded women who could bear children. Ginny had been awarded to Severus, while Molly was given to one of the older, childless Deatheater’s. She was only married to him 3 months, and became a widow shortly after, she was highly coveted for her legendary number of children and was sought quite fiercely.

She now lived with Ginny and her grandchildren at Snape Manor. While their life was not horrendous because they had each other, their life before the war ended seemed like a long forgotten dream. Now there were constantly under watch and wards. House elves patrolled the large house and they showed a united front in front of the children. No sense in them being psychologically damaged, because of the fallout of the war enough people had suffered already.

Upstairs Ginny looked at her sleeping children, they reminded her so much of Fred and George, they were mischevious and inquisitive, but they had their father’s features. Dark hair and pale skin, who knew how Severus had beaten the Weasley genes, but he had been successful. Her youngest John had dark red hair, and some freckles, he favored her more. While she missed Harry and her life before the war, Severus had proven to be an understanding husband, and a devoted father, after being with him for so long she could not hold her heart forever, and felt a certain fondness for him. Besides this was her life now.


Back at Malfoy Manor Draco was having dinner with Hermione and Abraxas. Actually he was trying to help Hermione feed Abraxas some pureed carrots, but most of it was ending up in down his bid than in his mouth.

“Da!” Abraxas laughed as he tried to pick up the spoon and ended up sending some pureed carrot on the floor.

“Oh” exclaimed Hermione, laughing a little at her son’s antics. Draco loved seeing her smile. It helped him pretend that she was his by choice and that she loved him. He loved seeing her doing anything really. He loved staring at her, especially her lips, they were pink and soft much life…

“I see that you are teaching my son, how to feed himself.” Lucius stood at the door to the dining room. He looked impeccable as usual. “I remember when we tried teaching Draco, we eventually just let the house elves teach him. Pureed food does stain clothing.”

Draco looked at his father as he walked next to Hermione and put his hand on her shoulders. She did not stiffened but looked up at Lucius as if waiting for an indication of what she should do.

He snapped his fingers and a house elf appeared. “Please give Abraxas a bath and tuck him in. Hermione and I will be busy tonight.”

Hermione was afraid of this, Draco had become so possessive as of late, that she was sure that Lucius continued advances were not going to be well received.

And she was right, Draco was looking murderous at the moment.

“Father, may I please talk to you in the study.”

“Of course son, Hermione please go wash up we will be done shortly.”

Hermione left to go up to her room, eager to get away from Lucius and Draco. She knew that this was not a good situation.

“You cannot be serious.” Lucius’ voice remained neutral, while he raised one elegant and sculpted eyebrow at his son. Draco had just demanded that Lucius step from his role as father of Abraxas and allow Draco to present him to society as his own. And while he did not see either Abraxas or Hermione as anything else than an extension of himself, he was not about to lose face, by going in public and having people think that he could no longer impregnate a witch. He was not going to deny that a wizard as powerful as Abraxas did not come directly from him either. Especially after gained the Dark Lord’s favor for leading the way for his new regime, by giving him new and powerful subject.

Draco stood in front of his father and Lucius was forced to admit two things, that his son was no longer someone who he could push around, and that he had underestimated his obsession with the mudblood.

“Hermione will become my wife, and I will not have this family turned into a circus by letting everyone know what a twisted family tree we have created.” He stated simply and coldly.

“I want my children to be happy and I want Hermione as my wife.”

“I am still the patriarch of this dying family, and I will not allow a son of mine to marry such filth, not as long as …..” Lucius words were cut off from his throat as Draco applied a powerful and wandless Crucio on his father. His screams filled the air as his muscles were pulled from his joints and his major joints set on fire by the curse. Lucius had been a high ranking death eater and was not submitted to such low punishment in the Dark Lord’s watch.

Lucius looked at his son in fear and it seemed that for the first time he saw him clearly. He decided to follow his Slytherin tactics and remain bloodied, injured, and silent on the floor, thankfull he had not soiled himself.

“Father, I do not need you to allow this marriage, the Dark Lord has been more than pleased with my work as of late. Apparently I am as gifted as Uncle Sev in potions and have your calculating mind for battle. He has named me his new advisor, didn’t you wonder why you haven’t been called in?.” He paused and looked as his finger nails as if bored with this topic.

“I mentioned to the Dark Lord that it would be good for our new subjects to see that by those who have been able to produce new heirs should solidify their relationships, so as to prevent the males from fighting over fertile females. Remember what happened to the owner of the Hufflepuff girl, he was killed because another death eater wanted to have his own brood, by marrying we would be allowed to legally claim the mother’s of our children, and place the fidelity and bonding spells on them, in short I will be marrying Hermione.”

The gasp behind him alerted him to the presence of Hermione, she was holding onto the wall, as if it was a life saver in the middle on an unforgiving ocean.

She noticed that he smiled as he looked at her, and although he had been gentler with her during the past month, seeing Lucius sprawled out on the floor and hearing him scream under the Cruciatus was a glaring reminder that Draco was not balanced, and could be very dangerous if crossed.

“Darling.” His sweet tone brought her back to the present. “Is there something wrong?”
Hermione glanced at Lucius form on the floor, he was a bloodied mess, and even thru everything she could not help herself, she felt sorry for him. That was all that Draco needed before all hell broke loose.

“Do you love him?!” He raged, as he grabbed her throat, using one hand to squeeze her slender neck, he came closer to her and the difference was appalling. He towered over her at 6’3, while she stood at 5’5. He forced her to look up at him, while her hands found his and desperately tried to free herself.

“How can you feel anything for him?! You are supposed to love me!” His hands tightened around her neck, and Hermione felt her world grow darker. His voice had risen to such a tone, that she could hear Abraxas crying.

Abraxas.

She could not leave him, would not leave this world knowing that her son would not be safe in this house. A shot of electricity rushed thru her and with it she performed wandless magic for the second time in her life. This time is was powerful enough to send Draco flying into the air over his father’s desk.

She started running to her son’s nursery, and reached for him, she picked him up and panic began to set in. Draco would come thru this door any minute, she could not leave the grounds, but had to do so to save the life of her child. Her need to get her son to safety was heightened when she heard Draco scream for her.

“HERMIONE!”

“WHERE ARE YOU”

Without thought, or determination Hermione felt the squeezing sensation of apparition come over here as she disapparated into the night. The last image in her head was the terrified face of Draco as she left.

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Hi guys, just thought I let you guys know that this is my first story and I would like some constructive criticism.

Also thanks to Gryffindorclutz for issuing this challenge and being my beta.

Cheers.
PersephoneBlck