Chapter 14

Someone was slapping her face lightly. Hermione realised she was huddled against a cold stone wall, feeling sick and dizzy.

"No!" she whispered, trying to pull away from the insistent hand.

"Hermione Granger, pull yourself together!" Ginny snapped and shook her.

"You're going to kill him."

"No, I'm not! I want to make a cut in his perineum. The baby's head is sitting right there ready, he just needs a bit of help. Now, have you got anything I can use?"

"I've got a key." Hermione fumbled in the pockets of her robe. "We might be able to sharpen it against a stone."

She never expected to be so grateful that her parents insisted she had a spare key to their front door. She tried rubbing it against the flat stones of the wall, but Ron prised it from her fingers and reached up to sharpen it on the rim of the stone windowsill. He was the only one tall enough to reach.

Severus whimpered faintly as she returned to his side and took his cold, limp hand in her own. He mouthed something and she leaned in closer.

"Kill me."

"Not yet, love." She stroked the damp hair from his face. "Ginny has an idea. She's going to make a cut in your perineum; we think that'll let Hugo be born."

He was too exhausted to reply. Eventually Ron came to them, shaking his aching arms at his sides, and handed over the little Yale key to his sister. She knelt down next to Severus.

"Hermione, will you hold Hugo back for a moment? Put your fingers here against his head and I'll cut the skin as soon as there's a bit of give in it. Then you'll need to push for all you're worth, Professor. Harry, get ready."

They clustered around the slumped form of the exhausted Severus. Hermione saw Ginny's hand make a quick movement, and Severus tried to jerk away and gave a sharp cry. Something warm and wet slipped onto Hermione's fingers, and she smelled the faint, metallic tang of fresh blood.

"Push, damn it!" Ginny exclaimed. "Ron, lift him up and hold him around the chest so he's kneeling. Now push down, Snape, give it everything you've got!"

His teeth bared and eyes screwed tightly shut, Severus clung to Hermione. Dark spots of blood dripped onto the cloak between his knees.

"He's coming!" Ginny cried exultantly. "Another one or two and his head'll be out. Harry, get ready!"

Severus gave a convulsive heave and something round and dark appeared between his pale thighs.

"Wands!" Harry snapped and Hermione hurriedly pulled out her wand. As Ron drew his wand, Severus slipped down from his grasp onto the floor. Harry knelt over him and then Severus' hand came up to clamp onto Harry's fingers where they curled around his wand, and Harry pointed the wand up into the corner of the ceiling and exclaimed "Now! Praesidium Erigo!"

Three voices chanted, "Expecto Patronum!"

There was a deep, long, creaking sound, as if the Earth itself was being rent apart.

Hermione had rarely felt less able to think the happy thoughts required to cast a Patronus; however, like the Aurors, Unspeakables underwent training to channel their thoughts and energies under pressure. She concentrated fiercely on her son, who was even now slipping out of Severus' body onto the floor, and told herself they would all survive.

Glowing, silvery shapes emerged from three wands and went flying upwards, imbued with their creators' urgency. She saw Ginny's silver horse kick up its heels, Ron's terrier scampering at its side, and something long and sinuous rippled in their wake that did not quite resemble her otter. All three vanished; there was a tinkling, crashing sound as if a thousand bottles smashed all around them, and Harry toppled onto Severus' supine body without a sound, his wand flying from his hand.

Both Ron and Ginny scrambled to lift him as Ron slid a hand inside Harry's robe over his heart.

"He's alive, thank Merlin," Ron said fervently. "Snape?"

Severus, too, appeared to be unconscious. Hermione fumbled, shaking, to feel his pulse. It was thin and fast, but his heart still beat. A small, high wailing noise made her look to where Ginny was holding the baby, the umbilical cord still attached.

"Is he all right?"

"Seems to be a fine little lad, fingers and toes and everything all present and correct."

Hermione knew she ought to be overjoyed, but all she could feel was bone-deep exhaustion and anxiety. Ginny used the corner of her own blouse to wipe Hugo's face and placed him on the cloaks, then used the sharpened key to cut the umbilical cord.

"Come on Snape, you need to expel the afterbirth." Ginny began massaging his belly hard enough to make Hermione object, but although he didn't wake, the contractions must have been completely involuntary. A dark mass pushed out of him and Ginny sat back on her heels.

"Well, let's hope we don't have to wait long for help to arrive."

Hugo wailed, waving tiny fists in the air.

"You're dead right, kid," Ron told him. He pulled off his robes and used his t-shirt to wrap the baby, gazing down at him for a moment before handing him to Hermione. "There you go, Mum. Don't let him get cold."

She wondered when Ron had grown up, and if this new version might make some lucky witch a great husband.

"We shouldn't let them get cold either," Ginny said, nodding towards Harry and Severus.

"Yeah, a major magical drain could make them go into shock." Ron pulled on his robes again and began wrapping cloaks around Harry's unconscious body.

"We need to bring the afterbirth," Ginny muttered.

"Yeuch! Why? Oh, don't tell me Snape wants to use it for potions? That's gross!"

"More like we want to prevent anyone else from using it, Ron," Hermione said. "It could give someone with ill intentions a lot of power over Hugo."

Ginny used the most badly soiled cloak to wrap the placenta and then began rearranging Severus' robes and covering him with the remaining cloaks.

"He's still bleeding quite badly but there isn't anything we can do except hope."

They got into a huddle again, with the two unconscious wizards and the baby in the middle. Hugo made tiny, unhappy noises and nuzzled blindly at Hermione as she rocked him.

Ginny said, "I've weaned Albus, unfortunately, so I haven't any milk. It's possible to induce lactation, Hermione, if you've considered feeding him yourself."

"Too much information, sis."

"I thought you wanted kids, Ron?"

"He needs to marry a witch who'll look after all that for him," Hermione said. "More of a home body than I am."

Ron snorted but didn't argue.

"Merlin, how does anyone survive this place for more than a few days?" he muttered, pulling his robes tightly around his neck. "I'm starving, freezing and I feel filthy."

"That's because we haven't eaten and we don't have straw and blankets," Ginny said reasonably. "Prisoners do at least get fed."

Hermione could feel Hugo's tiny, warm body against her chest inside her robes. He felt incredibly fragile; too young to even lift his own head. She wondered if he would be as hard to kill as his father.

oooOOOooo

She jerked out of a stupor and sat up, waking Hugo and making him whimper. Ginny gave a sleepy, interrogative sound.

"I thought I heard something."

Hermione felt dizzy with hunger and her feet were so cold that she could no longer feel them, even inside her sensible leather boots. She must be delirious; surely she could not have heard someone singing in Azkaban?

"A little bit o' what yer fancy does yer good," chanted a gruff male voice, and she distinctly heard a door creak open. "A little bit o' what yer fancy does yer good," and the scrape and rattle of a key in a lock. "A little bit o' what yer fancy, so I shagged me Auntie Nancy, a little bit of what I fancied did me good."

"Ron!" Hermione jabbed him with her elbow. "Ron, wake up!"

"Wha'?"

"A little bit of what yer fancy might be nice," the owner of the tuneless voice was nearer now, opening another door.

"Oh my God, someone's looking for us!" Ginny exclaimed and gave Harry a little shake. He didn't move. Hermione fumbled to hold Hugo with one arm and feel Severus' face with her free hand. He was still warm, still breathing softly.

"A little bit of what yer fancy might be nice ..."

A key twisted in the lock and the door swung open, revealing a dark figure holding a lantern in one hand. The light was dazzling after so long in the dim cell, and Hermione blinked and looked away.

"Well, lookee here! Oy, Sid! Get 'ere and see wot I've found!"

The figure placed the lamp on the floor and rubbed his hands. Hermione saw that he wore a grey uniform, heavy boots and had a baton stuck through his belt. He was a very large, powerfully built man with massive shoulders; he seemed to fill the doorway.

"Fuck me," said a smaller, slighter man, edging his way into the cell. "This is all right, innit?"

"Who are you?" Ron asked, getting warily to his feet so that he stood over Harry's supine form.

"Don't fink you're in a position to ask the questions, sonny," Sid told him. He was leering at Ginny. "Toss yer fer the red-head, Mick?" He grinned at Ron, exposing rotting teeth. "Don't fink that'll do you any good in 'ere, yer great streak of piss."

Ron had drawn his wand. Ginny grasped his arm and leaned to whisper something, and then she faced the two men with her head high.

"Don't you know who you were supposed to be looking for?" she asked, her tone carefully polite. Mick cleared his throat and spat to one side.

"Don' matter. If yer in Azkaban, yer done summat to deserve it. Get yer kit off, girlie."

"This is Harry Potter," Ginny said in a tightly controlled voice, "and I'm his wife."

"An' I'm Albus Dumbledore," sniggered Sid.

"For Merlin's sake," Ron exclaimed, "this is Ginny Potter, I'm her brother, Ron Weasley, this is Hermione Granger and that's..."

"Fucking hell," breathed Mick, "That's Severus sodding Snape!"

"Now do you believe us?" Ginny demanded angrily. Mick stared down at Severus with narrowed eyes.

"That bastard took points off me for fucking breathing!"

"Which house were you in?" Hermione asked; anything to distract him from what she feared he was about to do.

"Gryffindor, o' course," he muttered. "Never fort I'd get Snape where I wanted 'im, on the floor in front of my fucking boot!"

He drew back his foot and Hermione cried, "No!" Despite the fact that she was still holding Hugo, she stepped between Mick and Severus' body. "Ginny, take the baby. Look, Mick, you can have me, just don't hurt Snape, for God's sake!"

"I can 'ave you after, anyways, missy..."

There was a loud crack and Mick swayed, his eyes glazed, and he stumbled to his knees. Behind him, Hermione saw Ginny wielding a baton like a beater's bat in both hands, and Sid, disarmed, bent almost double with his arm pulled up behind his back by Ron.

"Still make a good team, don't we, little sister?" Ron said, his teeth bared as he jerked Sid's hand even higher.

"Do you think I ought to hit him again?" Ginny asked, gazing speculatively at Mick, who was shaking his head and getting slowly to his feet.

"What's going on down there? Ramsbottom, Tarpit, what are you two – oh!" Another uniformed guard, this one looking rather more dapper, came to a sudden halt in the corridor outside. He stared from Ginny to Ron, then to Hermione. "What on Earth is going on in here?"

"You tell me," Ginny snarled, glaring at Mick. "These goons wanted to rape me and my friend and beat up an unconscious man. If this is the calibre of guards in Azkaban nowadays, I need to have words with my contacts in the press."

"I'm sure they were only having a bit of a laugh ..." his voice trailed off as Ginny took a threatening step towards him and Ron yanked Sid's arm up so that he squeaked. "Yes, well, I assume you're Mrs Potter and Mr Weasley, are you? And Miss Granger?"

"Yes, we are. Are you going to get us out of here?"

"Do let go of Ramsbottom before you break him, Mr Weasley. I'm sorry you felt it necessary to use violence..."

"Would you like us to testify under Veritaserum, or let you view our memories?" Ginny enquired sweetly. Hugo began to cry and the man's eyebrows climbed almost to his hair.

"Great Merlin! Let's get you up to the governor, shall we? Tarpit, pull yourself together and take that fellow..."

"No way!" Ron released the unfortunate Ramsbottom and leaned down to pick Harry up in his arms. He was almost staggering with exhaustion, but Hermione knew exactly how he felt. She lifted Hugo out of her robes and held him out.

"I'm assuming you won't hurt a newborn baby," she said frostily. "Ginny and I will bring Snape."

"Now that isn't necessary, not necessary at all, my dear girl..."

"Don't you 'my dear girl' me! Do you really expect us to trust anyone after what's happened to us? What's your name, anyway?"

"I'm Senior Warden Reece. Ramsbottom, fetch two stretchers. Tarpit, tell the governor that we have found the Potters and their friends, and then report to first aid and have your head seen to."

Ron lowered Harry to the floor and sat down beside him with obvious relief. The two warders went out, Tarpit rubbing the back of his skull and muttering under his breath. Ramsbottom returned carrying the stretchers.

Ron and Ginny lifted Harry onto one while Reece and Ramsbottom loaded Severus onto the other, and they set off along narrow stone corridors, Hermione cuddling the grizzling Hugo and not taking her eyes off the two warders who carried Severus.

They were met by the governor himself, flanked by four more warders. When they tried to take Harry's stretcher, Ginny refused to let go.

"My dear Mrs Potter, I understand you're distressed..."

"I am not distressed," Ginny said in a deadly quiet voice, "I am fucking beside myself with rage. Do not lay a finger on my husband!"

"She is quite beside herself," Reece whispered to the governor. "Must be the shock ..."

"Can I suggest we get out of here and get medical attention as soon as possible?" Hermione snapped. "We have a newborn baby and two very sick men here!"

"Yes, yes, come up to my office, just up another two flights. I have a Floo connection."

"That accounts for the weakness in your wards," Ron said breathlessly.

"Indeed, Mr Weasley, one has to compromise. My office has an exit through the anti-magic wards. This way, please."

Despite their exhaustion, Ginny and Ron carefully lifted Harry up the stairs. Hermione followed, her feet like lead, Hugo a wriggling weight in her arms.

As they reached the top of what felt like a flight of a hundred stairs, someone came out of an open doorway in a billow of robes and swirl of long blond hair. Hermione gave a little gasp. Lucius paused for a moment, staring down at Severus' almost translucently pale face, and then he leaned down and swept him up into his arms. He looked around and when he saw Hermione, something warmed in his grey eyes.

"Follow me," he said and strode back into the room from which he'd emerged. As Hermione reached the doorway, she saw him free one hand from the bundle of cloaks wrapped around Severus, drop a handful of Floo powder into the fireplace and step into the green flames, declaring "Malfoy Manor!" as he vanished.

"If he thinks we're going to take Harry to Malfoy Manor, he's got another thing coming!" Ron exclaimed.

"It's that or St Mungo's, Ron," Hermione said.

Ginny met Hermione's gaze and shrugged.

"Come on. Once we're there, we can Apparate out again if we need to."

Ron heaved Harry up over his shoulder, groped for the pot of Floo powder beside the fireplace, grimaced, said "Malfoy Manor!" and disappeared.

Hermione held Hugo close and followed him into the flames.

oooOOOooo

Hermione stepped out into the wide entrance hall where Ron was holding Harry as if he feared that his friend was about to be snatched away at any moment. Ginny spun into being in the hearth and stepped out warily. Lucius lowered Severus to the floor, stood upright and clapped his hands once.

"House-elves!"

With a series of pops, the household elves appeared in a cluster, staring wide-eyed at the bedraggled guests. Lucius pointed.

"Prossy, take Professor Snape to the master bedroom and bring Healer Strood to him at once." Prossy immediately levitated Severus and hurried off up the stairs, the unconscious wizard bobbing along before him. "Uppity, there is a new baby to be bathed, fed and generally attended to..." He was interrupted by a high-pitched squeal.

"Oh, Master is too good to Uppity! Uppity is such a lucky elf..."

"Yes, yes, don't get too excited; he's only visiting."

Hermione slowly lowered Hugo so that the little elf could reach him. Rather to her surprise, Uppity immediately lifted the baby into her thin little arms as if he weighed no more than thistledown and scuttled away, cooing gently to him.

"Hessy, take Mr and Mrs Potter to the blue suite. Barrowly, fetch Healer Ransome to attend to Mr Potter. Hobbins, install Mr Weasley in an adjoining room, and the rest of you, provide hot baths, clean clothing and a light meal for our guests."

Hessy levitated Harry up the grand staircase, and Ginny and Ron hurried after him. The other elves Apparated away and Hermione let out a great sigh. She felt as if all her emotions escaped along with her breath, all the anxiety and fear and tension of the last days rushing out of her body, leaving her feeling empty and numb.

"My dear girl," Lucius said quietly and he held out his arms. Hermione took a step towards him. She didn't recall crossing the rest of the space between them; one moment they were five yards apart, and the next, she was surrounded by the heavy silk of his robes, his muscular arms, the fresh citrus fragrance of his cologne, and she was sobbing helplessly against his shoulder.

She had always despised women who fell apart as soon as a man was there to take over. She would never, ever have intentionally shown weakness in front of Lucius Malfoy.

"I thought I'd lost you," he whispered over and over. "Dear Merlin, I thought I'd lost both of you. I thought I'd lost you."

Hermione snuffled and wiped the back of her hand across her eyes. Lucius had his face hidden in her hair, breathing unsteadily, and suddenly she no longer cared that he'd seen her burst into tears.

"Impure-blood Miss is not to enter library," squeaked an elf, and Hermione looked around to see Crundy glaring at her. "Miss is a dirty witch!"

Hermione looked down at herself, at her fingernails still caked with Severus' blood, her ruined robe and stained blouse, and a slightly hysterical bubble of laughter welled up in her chest.

"You're right, Crundy. I'm filthy."

Crundy gave a short nod, as if approving of the admission, and added, "When Miss is clean, Crundy has collected references about teaching Wizarding culture to impure-of-blood children as Master ordered, all ready for Miss."

"Later, Crundy," Lucius said and the little elf popped away. "She is correct; you need a hot bath and something to eat."

"I need to know if Severus and Harry are going to be all right first."

Lucius nodded, took her arm and Apparated them both to the wide corridor that led to the master bedrooms. He tapped on a door, opened it and stuck his head in. "Mrs Potter?"

Ginny came to the door. Her eyes were reddened, and she looked as dishevelled and exhausted as Hermione felt, but she smiled blearily.

"He's going to be okay. His magical core's severely depleted, but he's had nutritive and magic-balancing potions and he's asleep. The elves have run me a bath, then I'm going to have some soup and a sandwich and – oh, Merlin." She closed her eyes and sighed. "I want to sleep for a week but I'll have to see Mum and Dad; they'll be worried sick."

"The Floo is open," Lucius told her, indicating the marble fireplace. "May I suggest you remain with your husband and send your brother to report to your family?"

"Leaving Harry Potter in your clutches, Malfoy?" Ron asked, coming to put a hand on Ginny's shoulder.

"Yes, Mr Weasley, I intend to sacrifice him at dawn."

Lucius and Ron stared at one another, and then Ron gave a tired little grin.

"Yeah, okay. I'd better go now before I fall asleep on my feet. What about the boys, Ginny? D'you want me to leave them with Mum or bring them here?"

"They won't let Harry sleep if they come here, and honestly, I'm too shattered to watch them properly. They'll be fine with Mum till tomorrow."

Ron looked at Hermione.

"Look after the greasy git, yeah? And I want to meet that little lad properly in a week or two."

"Thanks Ron. You were great." She reached to kiss his cheek. He nodded, as if this was only his due, and strode to the fireplace, reaching for the Floo powder and calling out, "The Burrow!"

"And thank you, Ginny, you were brilliant. Severus and Hugo would have died if it hadn't been for you."

Ginny blushed slightly but met Hermione's gaze with the bright fearlessness that had always been such a part of her. "Harry was right; Snape's a really brave man."

Hermione hugged her and then turned to Lucius, who already had his hand on the handle of the ornate white door at the end of the corridor.

Severus lay flat in the huge canopied bed, his chest rising almost imperceptibly as he breathed. Healer Strood was packing potion bottles into her bag; she looked up as she heard them come in.

"Well, hardly the outcome I had planned," she said crisply, snapping her bag shut and shrinking it to place it in her pocket. "However, thanks to someone's somewhat clumsy intervention, all ends well."

"Clumsy?" Hermione demanded, incensed. "What do you mean?"

"It appeared that someone hacked at his perineum with a saw!"

"We were transported by Portkey to Azkaban," Hermione said in a tight voice she barely recognised, "where we had no magic, nothing but the contents of our pockets, no food, no bedding, and the only thing we could use was a key, sharpened on the stone wall. He was exhausted and wasn't able to deliver the baby – we didn't have much choice!"

"No magic?" Strood shuddered. "He delivered without any charms?"

"None. We couldn't use any of them."

"I'd assumed that he used his own magic; he's almost stripped clean of it."

"He and Harry lifted the wards on Azkaban."

Lucius gave a little gasp and Strood's eyes widened.

"I see. No wonder he's so exhausted. Let him sleep for as long as he wants, and I'll call back tomorrow to check all is well. I've given him blood replenishing, healing and nutritive potions, and healed the tears internally and externally. He'll feel sore and uncomfortable for a few days. Now, where's the fruit of his exertion?"

Lucius clapped his hands and said, "Uppity," and the elf popped onto the rug beside the bed. "Bring young Master Hugo; the Healer needs to check him."

"Young master is beautifully clean," squeaked the elf. "Young master has drunk his milk and is sleeping." She snapped her fingers and an ornate cradle appeared beside her. Inside it, Hugo slept peacefully under a little blanket of fine wool, edged with lace and embroidered with the Malfoy coat of arms. He stirred slightly as Strood waved her wand over him, but didn't wake.

"He appears to be perfectly healthy," Strood said with satisfaction. "All I need to do now is check the placenta to ensure that everything was expelled."

Hermione pulled a face. "Oh, hell, I didn't remember to bring it; I'm sorry."

"Uppity is doing the things for the new baby. Uppity has the afterbirth."

The elf clicked her fingers again, and a bundle of messy blankets appeared in the air. Hermione turned away as the Healer examined it. She felt nauseous with hunger and stress and fatigue.

"Hold on a minute! I forgot about it and left it in Azkaban. Uppity, did you fetch it?"

"Uppity was looking after Mistress Narcissa and baby Master Draco, Uppity knows what is needed when a baby comes. Uppity has a daughter of her own; we knows what is done."

"Can you get through the anti-magic wards?"

"Elf magic is different," the elf told her, as if it didn't matter.

"You could have got us out," Hermione groaned.

"Only if we'd known you were there," Lucius said soothingly, "and we didn't. Uppity, did you know where Master Severus and Miss Hermione were?"

The elf began tugging on her ears.

"Master and Miss was in the dead place, Uppity is a bad elf, Uppity didn't know Master and Miss didn't want to be there, Uppity must go and grate her nose in the cheese grater..."

"No!" Hermione cried, and Lucius waved a hand.

"No punishment is necessary; otherwise I shall never hear the end of it. Go and look after the baby."

Uppity and the cradle vanished again. Strood bade them goodbye and stepped into the Floo to return to her surgery.

Lucius blew out a long breath. He dragged his fingers back through what had been perfectly coiffed hair.

"I'm an idiot. Why didn't I send an elf to look for you?"

"Because you don't notice them. To you, they're part of the furniture, and you don't even view them as living beings, let alone realise that they can think for themselves." Hermione had not intended to speak so sharply. Lucius drew himself up, and his eyes flashed as grey as stones.

"This is the trouble with you Muggle-raised idealists; you think you can change a culture that has existed for a thousand years with just a wave of your wand. My elves are my business, Miss Granger, and I shall treat them as I think best!"

Perhaps she had subconsciously waited for this, for Lucius Malfoy to display his true colours. All she felt was a bone-deep exhaustion. She wanted to curl up somewhere safe and go to sleep and pretend that she still existed in that first, rosy-hued flush of love, in which her Slytherins were sweet-tempered and attentive. Right, and sparkly unicorns dance on the lawns of Malfoy Manor amid the rainbow-hued flowers.

"At least we Muggle-raised idealists don't expect anyone else to haul our arses out of the fire," she snapped. "In fact, we Muggle-raised idealists are the reason you still have a fucking Wizarding culture at all!"

He stared at her, and her hand tightened around the handle of her wand, and then Lucius snapped his fingers.

"Hessy!"

The elf appeared and bowed.

"Hessy is pleased to serve Master."

"Of course you are. Miss Granger is in dire need of a hot bath, a bowl of soup followed by something light and tasty, and a large glass of red wine. After that, my dear, you will sleep for twelve hours and then we shall debate the merits of my treatment of house-elves."

"Hessy has run a bath for Miss in the green bathroom," the elf squeaked and beckoned Hermione to follow.

The green bathroom was so called because it more resembled a greenhouse than a bathroom. A marble pool steamed gently amid great pots of orchids and lilies, beneath trellises covered with honeysuckle, jasmine and stephanotis. Tiny twittering birds flittered through the daylight streaming in through skylights in the roof. Hermione threw off her clothes and climbed down into the water. She submerged her head and groped for the shampoo on the shelf beside the pool, but found her hand gently seized and the bottle removed from it.

"Allow me?"

Lucius had slipped down into the pool beside her. He began lathering her hair, and she leaned against him and tried to prevent the warmth from lulling her to sleep.

"Didn't know this room existed."

"It was Narcissa's private bathroom."

"Hedonistic."

"Mm, she did enjoy her little luxuries. I find it a trifle cloying. I much prefer the clean, classical lines of my Roman plunge pool with just the odd potted fern. You must try it next time. Rinse, please."

She ducked her head under the water, and his strong fingers massaged her scalp. When she re-emerged, he gathered her hair and squeezed out some of the water before wrapping a towel around her head.

He helped her up out of the bath and Summoned a huge bath towel for each of them.

Hessy was waiting with a bowl of leek and potato soup, bread rolls hot from the oven, and a cheese omelette with steamed broccoli. Lucius sat with her and sipped at a glass of white wine as she ate. Then, barely able to keep her eyes open, she crawled into bed and allowed sleep to claim her.