Chapter Fifteen: A King's Wrath
The beat of the war drums of the False King struck fear in the heart of the city. There were people swarming in the streets, eager to reach the safety of the castle, a whole sea of faces pushing, swelling, shouting and crying. The silver glint of the armor of the Slytherin knights stuck out in the crowd as they pushed their way in the opposite direction on their way to the city walls to face the enemy army.
Draco was getting ready himself, his squires dressing him in his finest tunic. "I want you in the castle keep," he said softly.
"You know I won't go," Hermione answered. She was on the balcony, looking at the panicked crowd below her.
"You will not serve Rowena dead, my love."
"Do you not have confidence in your army?" she asked him. He didn't reply. She looked down at the terrified people of the city. "They need me, Draco."
He grabbed her arm fiercely and Hermione knew that he would leave a terrible bruise. "You are a Queen of Slytherin," he hissed at her. "You do not mix among the common people." He looked down at Hermione, her soft skin, her curly hair, her soft fragrance filled his nostrils fueling his desire. Those wretched Gryffindor knights that had been watching over his wife had left with their king and she was here, unprotected.
"Draco," Hermione protested weakly, seeing the familiar look in his eyes.
"Leave us!" he said briskly to the servants in the room and he didn't bother waiting for them to leave before he shoved Hermione to the floor.
"Draco what are you doing?! Stop it!"
"Go ahead and struggle," he whispered fiercely in her ear as he pinned her arms to the floor. "You know that I like you that way."
And she did fight ferociously against him, the sound of fabric ripping terrified her. She belonged to Harry, she always did and she wouldn't let Draco take her. Tears welled in her eyes when her breasts were freed and were plundered brutally. She thrashed against him but it only further fueled his desire.
"Do you hear the drums, Hermione?" he whispered in her ear. "The call of war makes men's blood run hot."
He let go of one of her arms so he could undo his trousers and Hermione pushed at him, swatting at his head. He couldn't take her, he wouldn't take her. His hand struggled to part her legs for him as she continued to fight ferociously. Her free hand flailed above her head and hit something hard. She looked above her and saw that somehow, a heavy flagon had fallen to the floor. She reached for it, seizing it and swung at Draco.
He cried out in shock and pain when the flagon made contact with his head and he fell away from her. Hermione seized the moment and scrambled away from him. The top of her dress was ruined but she held the rags together to cover her as she ran out of the room.
There was a deafening crash outside of the castle and screams rose from the people. Hermione ran to a window in the castle and looked out to the city to see a heavy slab of stone that had demolished a building. Rowena let loose one of their trebuchets in answer.
The battle had begun.
"Milady! Milady, what do we do?" her servants asked when she reached her room.
"Come, we must move quickly! Find me another dress and then we leave!" she ordered.
Moments later, dressed in a dark blue velvet dress with silver embroidery at the scoop of the neck and sleeves, the women made their way to the castle doors where the common people fled to safety.
"Come!" she ordered a handful of knights and they followed her to the castle keep where a crowd had already formed at the doors.
"Milady!"
"Help us, milady!"
She turned to one of the knights, outside was another deafening crash. "Women and children in the keep. I need every available man armed and sent to the king to be placed in line. We need every available hand."
Draco watched as one of the turrets along the wall crumbled when a large slab hit it. The loud pounding against the city gates held his attentions. There was a dull ache above his eyebrow marking where his wife had attacked him and left him with his blooding running hot and spoiling for a fight.
"They will breach through here! Be at the ready!" he shouted to his men.
The city had the advantage of the main avenue that the gate opened up into. Any army invading would be forced into the narrow channel of the street where they could be picked off by the archers hiding above in the widows of the buildings that lined the street.
Harry watched from the hill across the valley, the sun had disappeared below the horizon, the fires from the battles below cast an eerie light to the valley. Draco had held onto Rowena for the day.
"Will they last through the night?" Neville asked quietly.
"Draco will hold the city," Harry replied. "They can't breach the gates."
"I fear for my cousin," Ron lamented.
"Hermione is safe," Harry assured.
~*~
BANG!
BANG!
BANG!
Then silence. Silence for the longest time that made Draco and the others uneasy. They had ceased their assault on the gate. The sky was turning grey with the impending dawn, the smell of smoke filled the air. Then he heard it. A sound that pierced the hearts of men and made them quake with fear. A roar. Then another. And then another.
"DRAGONS!!!!" the soldiers from the turret yelled.
A great shape flew above them dropping something large. The object landed in the city with an explosion of fire and stone as the men called out in death and surprise.
Inside the castle, Snape heard the roars of the beasts and made his way down to the cellars of the castle. He went to a secret door that he used to make his way in and out of the castle undetected. On the other side of it was Dolohov, General of the False King and fellow Death Eater.
"A little late aren't you?" Snape sneered.
"Tempermental creatures," Dolohov replied and made his way into the castle with at least a hundred soldiers behind him.
"Where is she?" Dolohov asked.
"She is most likely in the keep. But there are soldiers everywhere," Snape warned.
Harry raced out of his tent at the sound of the first roar. Neville and Ron quickly joined him on the hill.
"Dragons," Harry breathed as he watched the assault on the city. It was the sign he had been waiting for, Rowena's last breath, the death rattle. "Ready the men," he ordered, "we take the dragons first."
The explosion made the whole keep shake and tremble and the women cried out in fear as the babes whimpered.
"What was that, Milady?" a woman asked frightened.
"I'm not sure," Hermione held the woman's hand.
There was a commotion outside of the doors of the keep. The sounds of shouts and the clanging of steel against steel before the door burst open and the women screamed.
"The castle is breeched!" someone screamed as a handful of soldiers poured in wearing the emblem of the false king, the skull with a serpent coming from its mouth.
The women scrambled with their children to the back of the keep as the Slytherin soldiers that were keeping guard were quickly slaughtered. A tall soldier of the False King's stepped forward.
"The Queen."
The women huddled closer together as the small group approached with the swords drawn. Hermione's heart pounded in her chest and a woman held on to her arm.
"The Queen," he repeated. Hermione made a move to step forward but another arm held her back.
"S-she isn't here," a woman bravely spoke up.
The soldier stepped forward and put his sword point to the woman's throat as they gasped.
"I won't ask for her again," the soldier said briskly.
Hermione knelt down, picked up a stone and hurled it at a soldier. It made its mark and the man cried out as the cut poured blood down his face. The tall soldier stepped back but still held out his sword.
"Who did that?" he demanded.
Hermione stepped forward against the wishes of her ladies. "I did," she boldly stated.
"Take her," he ordered the other soldiers but Hermione held up a hand.
"I am not going anywhere. You are greatly outnumbered in this room."
The tall one scoffed. "By women and children."
Hermione smirked. "By mothers defending their children and I believe you have stepped in the wrong room today."
A shower of stones followed her words, pelting the soldiers, temporarily blinding them as the women trampled over them in their haste to leave the keep. They spilled back into the castle.
"Go!" she urged the women. "Seek safety elsewhere!"
"Milady! Where are you going?"
Hermione didn't answer, she ran on. There was one more person she needed to get to that was trapped in this castle.
"Jason," she whispered.
~*~
The city gates turned bright orange as the dragons breathed fire on them. Another bang and the gates shuddered violently. The archers stood at the ready from the buildings, soldiers waited at the end of the street, shields up and spears out. Draco stood behind them all with his men. The trebuchets creaked and groaned and the never ending whiz of arrows flying from both sides of the wall were punctuated with the cries of men when they made their marks. There was a low rumble coming from somewhere and the sound of an unfamiliar warhorn.
The men broke rank and ran for cover as another dragon soared above them, dropping another explosion of stone and fire. It suddenly jerked and screamed as the air seemed to be filled with arrows.
"It's going down!!" someone yelled and the men ran for cover yet again, running out of the way as the beast came tumbling down from the air with a violent thud, crashing into a building and crushing the men inside.
"What is this?" Draco asked bewildered at the broken dragon, covered in arrows.
"Your Majesty! Your Majesty!" a Slytherin knight ran up to him. "It is breeched! The castle is overrun!!"
Draco looked back at the castle and saw some of the False King's men within, women and children were running for cover.
"The keep," Draco breathed.
BAM!!
The city gates burst open and the False King's army spilled into the city. The rumble became louder.
"HOLD THE LINE!!" Draco bellowed. "You all," he pointed with his sword to a large group of soldiers. "We make haste for the castle. Find the Queen!"
The loud pounding of the horse's hooves drowned out the war horn that was sounded and the whoosh of arrows that flew overhead taking down the second dragon. It had let go of the iron cauldron it was holding and it fell on the edge of Gryffindor army taking out a handful of riders.
The last dragon was under assault at the city gates. It was unfurling its wings, desperate to take flight but the arrows had ripped through the webbing. The dragon, angry and helpless, let out a roar of fire, setting aflame the brigade of the False King's men nearby it.
The riders pounded into the melee with their King at the head in a clash of swords. Taking advantage of the Slytherin army's confusion, the Gryffindor archers picked off the men keeping watch along the city walls. The False King's army was divided into two, some going into the city and some who fought desperately against the invading Gryffindors.
The enemy poured into the city and were channeled into the streets as planned. The Slytherins let loose their arrows on them, dwindling their numbers. The False King's army were met with more Slytherin soldiers at the end of the streets. The men swarmed into the buildings, taking out some of the archers and setting fire to the other buildings.
"What in the world?" A Slytherin soldier on the wall asked as another horn was sounded.
Behind the riders of Gryffindor came another army of men on foot carrying the crimson banner with the gold lion.
The riders broke through the False Kings army and breeched the city on the wake of the fleeing soldiers. The Slytherin army at the far end of the street was deep in battle but looked up in surprise at the King's army.
"Take them out! Take them out!" A group of archers cried out.
There was confusion and chaos. Take who out? Who were they fighting? Gryffindor took this advantage to engage in battle with the bewildered Slytherin army.
"FALL BACK! FALL BACK!" the False King's army called out to their kin.
Harry thrust his sword deep in the soldiers back, cutting off the cry and removed the sword in time to block another blow. Ron was at his side, fighting his way forward through the familiar narrow street. More Gryffindor soldiers poured into the city and pushed their way closer to the castle.
"Warn the king! Warn the king!" a Slytherin soldier cried out as a group of soldiers broke rank to flee to the castle.
"Ron!" Harry called out and Ron and Neville went after the men, striking them down before they continued on to the castle with Harry hot on their heels.
~*~
Hermione raced down the corridor toward the dungeons. She had to free Jason before the castle was completely taken, to give him a chance to ride to safety. She turned a corner and bumped into someone, hard.
"Well, well, well. What luck do we have today?"
Hermione cried out in fear and surprise at the stranger. He was tall and wore the False King's emblem. Two serpents held a black cloak and his face was masked by its hood and a mask of a human skull. He was accompanied by two other soldiers who also wore the emblem but were obviously of a lower rank. He grabbed her to him.
"Let me go," she demanded.
"I think not, little Queen. We have a long journey ahead of us."
Hermione struggled against him, biting, scratching and clawing. Dolohov cursed angrily at her and threw her against the wall.
"Perhaps we should make her go quietly," he said as he raised his hand to hit her.
But there was a cry of surprise by one of the soldiers as a sword suddenly jutted through him.
"Unhand the Queen," Jason demanded as he pulled the sword free.
"Does the young Knight want to play?" Dolohov asked as he tossed Hermione to the side.
"Jason," Hermione pleaded for him.
He glanced once at her before looking back again at the two men standing before him. Jason struck quick and hard, meeting the men's swords and parrying back. The soldier was inexperienced in battle and Jason was able to strike him down first. Hermione cried out as Dolohov swiped at him but Jason leaped out of the way in time. Dolohov swung again, again and again and each time Jason blocked him. On the final strike, Jason grabbed Dolohov's sword arm and pulled him toward him, butting heads with him. Dolohov dropped his sword and cried out in pain as he covered his nose, blood ran down and dripped from his chin. Blinded by the pain, Jason thrust his sword into his belly, putting an end to Hermione's would-be captor.
"Jason! Oh, Jason!" she threw herself in his arms. "I came back for you! I came to free you! How did you get out?"
Jason kissed the top of her head. "Hermione, we can't talk now. I have to get you out of here."
She looked up at him, "What?"
"Hermione, listen to me. Ha-AH!" Jason's cry cut off his sentence and they both looked down to see a sword in his side.
"I'm sorry. Did I interrupt something?"
Hermione gasped Draco's voice and moved away from Jason's embrace.
"Draco…listen to me. This isn't what it looks like," she said. His face was filled with rage.
"I knew it," he whispered angrily as he approached them. "I knew it all along."
"No, Draco," she moved Jason behind her. Jason removed his hand from his wound to find it covered in blood.
"I loved you! You were mine but you let him have you before I could!"
"No! Listen!"
"You were mine, Hermione!" He swung his sword out at her but it was blocked by Jason's sword.
"Let her be," he said.
"NO! STOP THIS!" Hermione cried out.
"Take the Queen to the tower," Draco said to the two knights who accompanied him. "I'll deal with her later."
"She's not going anywhere with you," Jason threatened as he raised his sword to the king and struck.
"No! Let me go!" She struggled against the two knights who dragged her away from the duel.
"Hermione!" Jason moved after her but Draco blocked his way.
"We finish this now Jason!" Draco bellowed.
"Let me go! Unhand me!" Hermione demanded as the two knights dragged her up the stairs.
"We don't obey the whore-Queen anymore!" one of the knights snarled.
"You betrayed the king!" the other chimed in and spat in her face.
"What are you doing? We are in the middle of a battle! Let me go at once!"
"The king said you are to be locked in the tower. Pray that the enemy gets to you first because I can guarantee that your death will be a slow one."
Ron heard his cousin's shouts. "That's Hermione," he said to Neville and they raced to the source of the sound. Up the stairs they went, through a maze of corridors and up again a countless number of steps. They turned a corner and found two Slytherin knights dragging Hermione along between them.
"RON!" she screamed out and the two Slytherins were quickly disposed of by the two men.
"Hermione! Hermione you're safe!" Ron held his cousin.
"We have to go back down! We have to get Jason!" she pleaded with them.
Harry walked into the castle, sword in hand disposing of those knights and soldiers that were left straggling. He heard shouts coming from the throne room and followed them.
"I should've known you would be the one to betray me," Draco snarled as he blocked Jason's blow. "You, the knight that all the maidens loved."
"You betrayed your people first!" Jason countered. "You betrayed Hermione!"
"HOW DARE YOU SPEAK HER NAME!" Draco roared and struck but Jason blocked him. "I LOVED HER!"
"You murdered her intended and forced her into marriage!" Jason shot back.
"She thought she had no other choice. I freed her from that miserable match!"
"You gave her no choice!!"
"She was mine!" Draco struck hard and Jason stumbled backward. "Mine! She was MINE! MINE!"
With each word Draco struck hard, mad with grief as Jason tried to fend him off but the final blow stung his hand and by reflex Jason dropped his sword. As the sound of the metal hitting the stone clanged through the room, Draco advanced on him and Jason stumbled in his backward step, losing his balance and falling into a chair behind him. The two men looked up and realized that Jason had fallen onto the King's chair, the throne itself. Draco scoffed lightly at this.
"The irony," he said softly before he plunged his sword into Jason's chest.
"NOO!" a voice cried out and Draco looked up in time to see the Rider tackle him to the ground.
The men hit the ground hard and Harry pummeled Draco in the stomach. Draco kicked Harry off of him and sprang to his feet. Harry charged at him with sword drawn and Draco had just enough time to grab Jason's sword from off the ground. He blocked Harry's hit but Harry kicked out at him and Draco stumbled backward. Harry advanced and struck again, it was blocked, he struck again, it was blocked. Draco dodged his next blow and struck at Harry but he turned just in time to move out of the way.
The doors of the throne room burst open as the two men continued their fight in the castle foyer. The battle outside had found its way in and separated the men. Harry fought of the False King's men to get at Draco, while Draco struck down a few Gryffindor soldiers that were in his way. He turned and ran up the stairs. Harry swore and shoved people out of his way in pursuit.
Hermione, Ron and Neville ran into the throne room and she let out a scream when she saw Jason.
"NOOOO! NO! NO! OH, NO!" she cried out as she ran to the throne.
"Hermione!" Ron reached her and tried to hold her back but she shrugged away from him and fell to her knees before Jason.
Neville stood and watched her. "Harry," he whispered. Harry would want to know about this and he turned and ran out of the room to find the King.
Hermione reached out and gently shook his head. "Jason!" she cried. "Jason, wake up! Jason, get up!" She grabbed the hilt of the sword and yanked but it didn't budge. She yanked again and again, tears of frustration fell down her face. Ron reached out and stilled her hand, moving it out of the way. He yanked on the sword, freeing it from the chair and Jason's chest. Jason's body fell forward into Hermione's waiting arms and she crumpled to the floor in tears, rocking Jason in her arms.
Neville ran up the stairs and found Harry and Draco in battle on the high ledge of the castle.
"Didn't think you still smarted over her rejection," Draco said as he wiped a trace of blood off of his lip.
"Was it true what Jason said?" Harry demanded.
"It's none of your business," Draco sneered. "She's my wife." Harry struck at him and Draco winced in pain as he blocked it.
"Because you forced her!" Harry shouted back.
Draco smirked. "She likes being forced," he grinned. "You should hear her cries when I fuck her."
Harry snarled and lashed out at him, striking Draco in his side. Draco cried out in shock and pain as he dropped his sword. Harry kicked it away from him.
"That was for Jason," Harry sneered and raised his sword.
"MERCY!" Draco cried out. "I yield."
"What was that?" Harry asked angrily.
Draco was breathing heavy and his shoulders drooped. Neville moved forward as Draco took off his cloak, the Slytherin emblem was embroidered on the green fabric. He tossed it to the ground before Harry's feet and fell to his knees.
"Slytherin yields to Gryffindor," Draco said in defeat. Harry raised his sword to strike.
"Harry," Neville called out to him and he looked up. "The Slytherin king yields. You know the laws of the land, we have to take him prisoner."
Harry licked his lips then sheathed his sword. Draco closed his eyes and exhaled in relief.
"Get up!" Harry kicked at him and he staggered to his feet.
Neville began to recite the oath that would hold Draco prisoner under Gryffindor. Harry watched him with disgust. The man who had forced Hermione into marriage, who forced her into his bed and separated him from his true love.
Against Neville's protests, Harry reached out and grabbed a fistful of Draco's clothes and dragged him to him.
"This is for Hermione," he said softly then grabbed his arm and ran with him to the ledge, hurling him off of it. Draco cried out as he fell and tumbled through the air.
Neville looked at Harry as he walked back toward him. "Harry," he said softly to him. "Harry, what did you do?"
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