In Love and War

IMPORTANT: This chapter is very violent in my opinion and may be difficult for some of you to read. Please don't hate me for this chapter. I really wanted to portray the image I had in my head correctly. Thanks and I hope it doesn't disturb you too much.

Disclaimer: I own nothing of Harry Potter and make no profit from this story. All belongs to JKR.

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Chapter 3

Lucius knelt in front of the Dark Lord. The proud man looked like a beggar. His normally exquisite robes were singed by curse marks, his hair was sweaty and clung to his face. Yet even prostrating before his lord, he still managed to hold himself aloof and retain that haughty look in his eye. He was a Malfoy, and Malfoy's showed no fear, showed no weakness.

“You dare to defy me Lucius?” The dark lord hissed in his ear. “You have failed me repeatedly. Your actions at every turn cause me to believe that you are not as loyal as you proclaim to be.

He saw the dark lord's body tense as he raised his arms above his head ready to cast another curse in his direction. Knowing he was about to meet his death, he fixed his trademark sneer on his lips and looked into the red, slit-like eyes of Lord Voldemort. He didn't regret his actions, he knew that Severus Snape would see to the welfare of his family. He would keep them safe.

The half blood lowered his wand and turned away from his servant, a malicious smile curled on his face. Lucius could almost hear the cogs working in the maniacs mind and felt a lump forming in his throat. He was not going to die, someone else was going to pay for his disloyalty.

“Ah, Lucius. I had almost forgotten. We have guests.” The Dark Lord whispered quietly, yet everyone in the room was able to hear.

Two masked death eaters held their wands pointed at the ceiling above him. He looked up for the first time and saw his wife and son gagged and pleading as their bodies were unceremoniously dropped in front of him. Their bodies made sickening sounds as they made impact with the stone floor. Narcissa's screams reverberated off the walls causing his chest to tighten painfully.

He looked to his son first. Draco's face was peppered with purple and green bruises, his arm was bent at an unnatural angle and his trademark blond hair way smeared with blood. The black robes Draco was wearing were shredded. Even at this distance, Lucius could see where the dark mark had once graced Draco's left forearm. The dark mark had been flayed off the teenagers arm, leaving a dark bleeding wound that had been untreated. He cringed, thinking of the infection and damage that was being caused to his son's body as he watched.

Lucius was afraid to see his wife. He knew what happened to the families of those who disobeyed the Dark Lord and Narcissa, even with her beauty would not be exempt. His eyes tortured him as they fell upon his wife. His strong willed, graceful pure blood wife was barely conscious.

Her robes were torn, baring her battered and abused body to his eyes. Her bare breast was exposed to him. Her creamy skin was damaged and covered by long scratches and bite marks. His worst fear was realized when his gave traveled down the length of her body. A bright red smear weighed down the fabric of her dress around her hips. She had been raped, brutally and repeatedly. Dried tear tracks stained her cheeks and her entrancing gray eyes were swollen and blackened.

Voldemort swung his arm in a wide arc and laughed. “This is what has become of the great Malfoy family.” He didn't even bat an eye as he cast the torture curse on all three of the blond bodies.

Lucius ground his teeth to stop himself from crying out in pain. He wouldn't give that satisfaction to anyone. The Dark lord turned to the tall man once more, his face calm, as if they were talking of nothing more than the weather.

“Pick,” he said, twitching his wand between Lucius's wife and son. “Choose which one will die tonight for your disloyalty, for your betrayal.”

He lifted his head and cast the his lord a look of loathing. “My disloyalty? I have never strayed from the path you have set before us. In my saving the mudblood I have cleared the way for you to annihilate the Order of the Phoenix. They will all be gathered at Hogwarts to protect their precious Potter. You will win.”

Voldemort dismissed him as if he were a fly on his shoe and pointed Lucius' own wand at his son.

Lucius watched the jet of green light fly out of the wand and make it's way soundlessly to the middle of Draco's chest. His son made one strangled cry and his eyes filled with the green light before they closed.

Images of Draco's young life flashed before him in slow motion as his son's life was taken from him. His heart felt like it was bursting within his chest. He saw his son sleeping in the nursery after he had first been born, the first steps he took in the Manor, Draco playing in his first quidditch match. Above all this he saw the truth. He had failed his son. He had loved him in his own way, but had never taken the necessary steps to see him through to adulthood.

He hung his head for the first time in his life. He was sure that if he gave Voldemort such vital information his family would be spared, his own life meant nothing, but if he could have saved Draco and Narcissa he would have. Out of the corner of his eye, Lucius could see Narcissa sobbing and struggling against her bonds to get to her only son. He had prayed that she wouldn't wake up, that the sweetness of unconscious would save her from this anguish, but she had seen it all.

Voldemort laughed at the pale haired womans pain. He stepped closer to her and brought his foot harshly to her stomach, causing the bright red liquid to pour forth from her mouth. Her screams just caused his face to light up in joy.

“Don't touch her!” Lucius screamed, his voice was rough with grief.

“Now, now Lucius. I did you a favor. Your son was a disgrace to the Malfoy name. He could never accomplish anything. He was useless and unworthy of my cause.” The Dark lord bent down to Narcissa and pointed his wand at her face while glaring at Lucius through his red eyes. “Your wife is barren. You will be the last Malfoy, the end of your line. My loyal death eaters saw to that when they raped her repeatedly. It's a shame you weren't there Lucius. She screamed her pleasure to the heavens. It was a joyous occasion. For all of us.”

Voldemort pulled his wand away from the pale skin of his wife and addressed his followers. “Prepare yourselves for battle. We leave now!”

Lucius watched as the death eaters around him silently apparated in a swirl of black robes and white masks.

The Dark lord was the last to vanish, he fixed Lucius with a final warning before disappearing in a wisp of smoke. “You and your wife will fight and if you please me I will consider allowing you to live.”

He disappeared silently and Lucius made his way to his wife's side. He pulled the wand that he had taken from the Granger girl out of a concealed pocket in his robes.

“Narcissa.” He called her name, commanding her to listen to him yet trying to keep his voice gentle. Her eyes, when she finally looked at him, were glazed over in hatred and pain.

“How could you? You betrayed me, our son. You killed him!” Narcissa cried hysterically as she pummeled her fist against his chest. She tore away from him and crawled her way over to her son, her screams alternating between Draco name and bastard.

He was at a loss of what to do. For a man so positive he was unsure of his actions, of his cause. As an act of mercy he trained his wand on his now crazed wife and whispered the two words that would end her suffering. He was left now with the silence of the manor and the bodies of the two people he cared most for in the world.

He cradled the lifeless shell of his son and held his cold body to his chest. For the first time in his life he felt the warm trail of tears burn down his cheek. He could care less if he lived or died. Everything that he had ever done had resulted in this, this crude ending.

In the midst of his silent grief he felt the small tattoo on his wrist that bound him to the Granger girl, burn. Taking one last look at the pale face of his only child he apparated from the room with a quiet pop. It was too late for him, but if he could save her, he would.

He didn't know who he struck down as he landed amongst the fighting. For the most part he sent stunning hexes or disarming spells at those not wearing the dark robes that he now loathed. He gave no quarter to the death eaters, his grief and rage driving him on, keeping him alert. He felt no remorse at their deaths by his hands. He had one goal, to find the woman-child that he had bound himself to. He would ensure that she survived.

He caught sight of her about an hour into the battle. He was sure that his lungs hadn't breathed in new air since leaving the manor. She was dueling with Bellatrix Lestrange in the middle of the great hall. He felt his binding mark burn as she took a curse and stumbled to the ground, her dark curls falling around her like a cloak. He recognized the girl fighting with her as a Weasley.

He pushed the girl into the arms of her mother who had witnessed the dueling begin. He wasn't even able to look the girl over before he heard Bellatrix's cackle that was supposed to resemble a laugh.

“Malfoy!” She screamed and raised her wand to deliver the final blow. He stepped in front of the girls unconscious body.

He felt a jolt of magic surge through his weakened body and without conscious thought threw the killing curse at the crazed woman in front of him. Her body fell to the ground with a loud thud. Her heavily lidded eyes remained open and her mouth twisted in her last moment of hatred.

He sank to his knees and felt a soft touch on his shoulder.

“Lucius.” The girls voice was barely a whisper as she said his name.

Just as soon as her hand had touched him it feel back to the floor. He felt his mark tear open as he watched her eyes close and her body completely slacken beside him. He pointed his wand at her to try and waken her. He knew that her injuries were above his level of healing. Terrified suddenly of losing her he cried out, hoping someone would hear him above the roar of flying curses and screams.

He watched as the Potter boy brought down the Dark Lord, but it didn't even phase him. He was oblivious to everything but the girl cradled in his arms. She had to survive. He couldn't explain why he felt the need to save her. Maybe it was because him saving her from death was the only good thing that he had done in his life. The revelation of his life finally hitting him. He had gone against everything he had ever known to save the only thing he hated.

He saw the school nurse and yelled to get her attention. The old woman looked at him in disgust, but her expression changed when she saw the person that he was holding tightly against his chest.

“Miss Granger,” the nurse snapped her fingers in front of the girls closed eyes.

“Enervate,” she cried, using her wand and hands to try and diagnose the girl.

“Madame, I have tried that she needs to be taken up to the hospital wing. She has injuries that have not been healed from torture and she was struck down by Bellatrix. You are wasting her time with your foolishness.” He spoke to the woman who finally seemed to remember his presence. If he had to, he would fix his wand on her and make her heal the girl he was holding securely to his chest.

“Aurors!” She screamed and tried to wrench the girl away from him. Suddenly realizing that she was a witch Madame Pomfrey trained her wand on him. “Stand away for the girl. Now!”

He didn't lose his grip on the girl he was clinging to as he raised his wand, preparing to defend himself. “I mean her no harm. I only want to see that her injuries are seen too, and you Madame are wasting time shrieking like a hen and not healing her.”

As he finished his sentence a group of red robed aurors surrounded them, with every wand fixed on his person.

“This is ridiculous! Help her!” He was growing angrier and more worried by the second. He couldn't be separated from her his mind and body screamed at them. Not now, not after he had lost everything.

“Put your wand down Malfoy! You are under arrest!” A portly auror yelled and stepped closer to him.

The last thing he saw as the fourth stunner hit him in the chest was the girl with long chocolate curls, the girl with no blood lines, the girl that he had sacrificed everything for, being taken away from him. After that, he saw nothing.