Reunited

Chapter 27

                Elizabeth was exhausted. But she couldn’t stop. It was nearly sun set and she now had to hurry faster. First, she had to get further down the dirt road she had found leading her up into the rocky hillside that she had to get over. It was more like a small mountain. She had found the small road that was more like a trail about four hours earlier and she could tell by the position of the sun that it was carrying her south. Second, she had to find a place to hide for the night from Black. That was going to be the hard part. Lucky for her she had found a small brook to fill her container with water and she’d eaten a biscuit on the walk but she and the baby were starving because every time she drank the water her stomach grumbled in protest.

                Not only was the sun setting, but it was getting colder as the night began to set in. Elizabeth began to look desperately for a place she might hide. Also, she needed some kind of strong smelling plant on her to help mask her scent. Luckily she found some wild onions growing on the side of the hillside so she began pulling them up, the smell nearly making her nauseous. But vampires were really good hunters, especially good at detecting human blood. She could only hope that this might work. She stuffed tons of the wild onions into her sack and now began hunting for a hiding place in the rocky hillside somewhere. Luck was on her side as she noticed a steep area near the road. There was a clearing up there and what looked to be a cave of sorts. So Elizabeth began the hard climb up. She almost stumbled back down a couple of times, but she grabbed the rocks coming out of the ground and held on tight, breaking fingernails in the process, but that didn’t matter. She could not be found out in the open because she knew Black would be searching for her.

                The cave was not much and not very deep, maybe about ten feet deep, but she would be hidden and out of the open. She settled down in the cave which was mostly rock but for a small area of hard ground. She pulled the wild onions out of her pack and spread them around her and even began rubbing the awful stuff on her skin, gagging a little. Then she took out a half a loaf of the bread and gobbled it down drinking deeply of the water she had. She was so tired, but she could not afford to go to sleep now. Maybe she could sleep closer to dawn if she survived this without being discovered by Black. She began rubbing her stomach gently, calming the baby who had been kicking furiously all day, as if the baby knew what was going on and was just as on edge as Elizabeth. She used her time to think of Draco and all they had been through and how much she loved him. ‘Please let him find me,’ she thought, tears gathering in her eyes. This was her only chance to escape unless he found her. “Please Lord, let my love come for me because I need him so,’ Elizabeth whispered her prayer to herself, hoping that Draco could feel it because she knew he had not given up on her. Their love for each other was once in a lifetime and it was deep, and Elizabeth knew that if she could not be with Draco or if something happened to him she could not go on living. ‘Please, Draco, please,’ she started sobbing then, the first time in a long time that she had let her feelings out and as she huddled beneath the blanket as the cool night air set in all she could do was hope Draco felt her love for him.

                Draco finally found the information he was looking for and now he was on his way by broomstick to northern Scotland and the castle that he thought he might find Malcolm Dunkirk and Elizabeth. It was a long way despite the speed of his Nimbus 6000 and he couldn’t get there fast enough. He had sent an owl to his father and Harry Potter as well to let them know what he’d discovered and where he was headed. If it was the right place he might need back up because he had never dueled or fought a vampire with magical abilities. He did not have long before it would be sun set and he’d been hoping that he found Elizabeth before darkness. He knew she was alive. He could feel it deep inside and if Black got to know the Elizabeth he knew then it would have been hard for him to kill her if he had any kind of heart in that undead body of his.

                 Draco made it to the castle which was very remote, the nearest village over 30 miles away. He got off his broom as he neared the ground and began looking around. It was over grown as if it were abandoned. He tried to go up to the door, but the protective spell around it shocked the hell out of him so he started walking around it, looking for a way in. that was when he came up on something that shocked him. There, hanging from the window of the highest tower was a handmade rope. His heart began to hammer faster. Was this the sign he was looking for? Then he noticed the holly bushes that were crushed as if someone had landed in them. Someone had tried or succeeded in escaping the castle. He looked up noticing the huge open window at the top of the tower. He quickly got on his broom. He didn’t have long as darkness was soon about to fall. He rose up on his broom and went up to the window and despite the possible spell that might be on the window he headed in and was surprised that there was none.

                Draco landed on the stone floor of the tower room and looked around. A huge bed and table with chairs was all that was in there, but then he noticed the wedding gown hanging on the closet door. He couldn’t stop the tears that ran down his face as he walked over and ran his hand down the lovely white satin gown. He had found where Elizabeth had been taken. He quickly got control over his emotions. He still had to find her because it was obvious she had escaped. His beautiful, lovely, smart girl had outsmarted her captor and was even now somewhere out there in the countryside trying to escape. Draco wasted no more time in the castle as he jumped on his broom and flew from the castle, trying to figure out in which direction she might have gown. He had to find her before that damn vampire awoke from his sleep and found her first.

                Elizabeth was shaking from the cold. She should have been smarter and brought another blanket or two. And she was constantly pinching herself to try and stay awake. Darkness had come and every little noise made her jump. Then she would start dozing off to sleep, only to jerk awake quickly. She didn’t know how late it was, but it seemed like forever.

                Elizabeth was about to doze off again when she heard her name. Was she going crazy? Then she heard it again lightly. It sounded just like Draco. Elizabeth couldn’t stop the tears as she believed her mind was playing tricks on her, it was cruel. ‘Oh, Draco,’ she sighed to herself, wishing she weren’t losing her mind. Then it was louder, coming from right outside of the cave. Elizabeth knew she shouldn’t leave her place in the cave, but if she was losing her mind she didn’t care. She slowly made her way on stiff legs towards the entrance to the cave. The moonlight was shining through and guided her way around the rocks and boulders. “Draco,” she called out desperately as she went out looking around.

                Suddenly, someone was in front of her and Elizabeth jumped back in terror and was trying to run back into the cave, when they grabbed her arm, pulling her toward them, “It’s me, sweetheart,” Draco said roughly, pulling Elizabeth into his arms.

                Elizabeth could feel his warm body and his heart thundering against her as he held her tightly, she could feel his body crying and Elizabeth slowly looked up, afraid it was all a dream, “It’s really you,” she said softly, her voice cracking. And she took his face in her hands, tears running down both their faces. Her hands slowly went up into his silky platinum hair and she looked into his tear filled silver-blue eyes. Elizabeth pulled his face close to her own and softly kissed his full, warm lips and then Draco kissed her back deeply, his kiss deepening as Elizabeth tasted him and all his loveliness. As he broke the kiss Elizabeth started sobbing and her knees started to collapse, but Draco picked her up in his arms and she threw her arms around his neck holding tightly, never wanting to let him go. It had been 4 long months since they were together and the baby was due within a month. 

                Draco sat down with Elizabeth in his lap, and held her tight. He could not believe he had her back. He needed to let her calm down before they tried to make the trip back to London. Elizabeth finally quite sobbing but now she had the hiccups. “I’m sorry,” she said roughly.

                “Don’t be, your hiccups are beautiful,” Draco kissed her forehead. His hand traveled down her chest to her small yet very rounded belly, “I see our baby is growing and doing fine,” he smiled at her, his hand gently massaging her stomach. Suddenly the baby ran one of its limbs across his hand and kicked lightly. Elizabeth had to work hard at controlling her tears as she saw then look of amazement on Draco’s face and his own eyes get watery, “I am so sorry I missed all this, and please forgive me for letting this happen to you.” Draco was getting upset again.

                “Don’t you dare,” Elizabeth grabbed his face gently in her hands, “You are the one who tried to tell me not to take any chances so it is my fault that this happened.”

                “But I couldn’t even rescue you. You had to escape on your own,” Draco said sadly.

                “Draco Malfoy,” Elizabeth said sternly, “you will not blame yourself for this, do you understand. If anyone is to blame it is Astoria. She is the one behind it all. And besides, you did come to rescue me, you are here aren’t you,” Elizabeth kissed his lips softly.

                “I love you, Elizabeth Thorne,” Draco kissed her face with soft feather light kisses; “you are so good for me, with you I feel like I can do anything. And you are so beautiful and smart. What did I do to deserve you? You have gone through so much since we have been together that I cannot help feeling I am to blame.”

                “Draco, I love you to. And I have never felt so much love as I have with you. You are my world and the only family I have. Life is filled with ups and downs, but I wouldn’t trade anything I have been through no matter how bad because it brought me to you and without it there would be no us,” Elizabeth kissed him deeply, her hands running along his neck and down his chest, “Oh how I have missed you.”

                “We need to get you back to London before that vampire comes looking for you,” Draco stood up pulling her up with him, still holding her in his arms, “on the flight home you can tell me how my smart, future with managed to escape that tower. It really makes me feel sick thinking of you climbing down from that castle.”

                “I was terrified. But I knew it was the only way to escape him. I had to save my baby and myself. But I will tell you more about it later and you can tell me how Scorpius is doing and how you found me. I miss him.”

                “And he misses you terribly. He cries nearly every night he is with me. He thinks of you as his mother, more so than Astoria,” Draco said getting the broom ready.

                “I can’t wait to see him,” Elizabeth smiled, about to get up on the broom in front of Draco.

                “How touching,” a thick Scottish voice sneered, “but Elizabeth is not going anywhere,” and suddenly something hit Draco, knocking him and Elizabeth to the ground. Black had found them.

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