Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.

A/N: Here is my new story. It's a Rabastan/Hermione marriage law situation. It will be a little bit drama filled, I think, and I hope that you like it! I think it will be about 16 chapters, but I have only written the first three chapters so far. I will be updating Wednesdays. This was inspired by the song Be Together by Major Lazer. You should definitely check it out.

Please let me know what you think of chapter one, and be on the lookout for chapter two next week!

Hermione sometimes wondered if it would have been better not to be a witch. What her life would have been like if she'd never gotten that fateful visit from Professor McGonagall all those years ago, she would never know for certain. But she definitely knew that she wouldn't be on the run, public enemy number three to the wizarding world, with her two best friends Harry and Ron.

It was an eventuality that she'd been preparing for longer than she cared to admit. After they were attacked by Death Eaters in the Department of Mysteries, the urgency of their mission seemed to become unbearable. She couldn't believe that grown men and women would dare to try to kill children, especially over a prophesy, but then, she supposed that was what Death Eaters do.

During her sixth year, she began making quiet arrangements for her parents safety. She'd spoken to Professor McGonagall about their protection, but the older witch assured her that the Death Eaters wouldn't be able to find them. Still, she wasn't satisfied, and she started teaching herself memory charms. She'd been heartbroken when she actually had to use the obliviate earlier that year, but she took comfort knowing that Wendall and Monica Wilkins were safe in Australia. Maybe, someday when this all blew over, she could go to Australia and get them back.

That is, if this ever blew over.

She never expected to be attacked at a wedding either. She'd hoped that Bill and Fleur's wedding would be peaceful, one last vestige of the happy world she knew before Voldemort. She'd hoped to spend the night dancing, enjoying cake and champagne. Instead, Death Eaters had killed the Minister of Magic, and attacked the Burrow.

The steps that followed had happened so fast that Hermione still wasn't entirely sure she understood everything that was going on. Harry and Ron were so lucky that they had her. Neither one had thought to pack any kind of things in case they had to leave in a hurry.

Now they were holed up in Grimmauld Place, just the three of them, with Kreacher. Their plans seemed so hopeless now, being that they had a fake horcrux, with no idea where the real one was or any idea of who R.A.B. could possibly be. Instead, they spent the days lounging about, talking about what they should do next, but never actually having any action.

Even though she missed Headmaster Dumbledore, she was sometimes upset for leaving them like this. He'd barely told Harry anything that they were supposed to do, or how they should achieve it. All he'd given them was a snitch, a deluminator, and a book. How those were supposed to help them, Hermione couldn't understand, no matter how hard she thought on it.

No, Hermione thought, she wouldn't have to deal with any of this if she'd just been a simple muggle. She probably would be getting ready to attend University that fall. She'd probably have graduated top of her class, with no friends.

She certainly wouldn't be dealing with the annoyance of reading about the Muggleborn Registration Commission. It was so asinine, Hermione thought, every time they could get their hands on a Daily Prophet, and read something else that Madame Umbridge was trying to push through to further restrict muggleborns. Hermione knew she was in a uniquely precarious situation being that she was basically Queen Mudblood to the Ministry of Magic, being Harry Potter's best friend. She also knew that her extremely high magical test scores hadn't gone unnoticed either.

So, then, she really shouldn't have been surprised when a Ministry owl dropped off a brightly purple colored letter addressed to her. Taking it, Ron stared at her over his breakfast. "How did it find you, Mione? Shouldn't we be untraceable her at Grimmauld Place?"

Hermione frowned. She tended to agree with Ron, but she had no idea how the owls found the witch or wizard a letter that it was addressed to. "I don't know, Ronald." She looked down and notice that her hands were shaking.

"Well, come on then, Hermione. Open it." Harry urged her. For whatever reason he had a bad feeling about it.

Hermione cleared her throat as she opened the envelope. "Dear Miss Granger,

Congratulations you have been selected to participate in Act 927.861 as a known muggle-born witch. Participation in this act will ensure that you are properly accounted for by a wizard of acceptable magical birth.

Act 927.861 stipulates that all muggle-born witches become bonded in matrimony to a wizard of the Ministry of Magic's choosing. Your betrothed has been selected for you and we are excited to announce that you have been paired with Mr. Rabastan Lestrange.

To facilitate successful completion of your participation, this letter is also a portkey-"

Hermione felt dread pool in her stomach and tried to drop the letter, but it felt like her fingers were stuck to the paper. A sticking charm? She tried to shake it off, but was unable.

"Hermione?" Harry asked, panicked, seeing the fear in her eyes.

Before she could tell them that she couldn't get rid of the letter, she felt the portkey begin to activate and then she was spinning, spinning away from Grimmauld Place. With a thud, she landed on her arse on a very nice persian rug.

Before she could even reach for her wand or stand up, a deep male voice was calling out, "Expelliarmus." She felt her wand fly to him. Helplessly, she looked up and saw that she was surrounded by the worst kind of people. Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy were standing there. Lucius looked gaunt and not the usual coiffed man she was expecting. Narcissa Malfoy looked happy and excited, and like there was nothing wrong with kidnapping a young woman.

Bellatrix Lestrange and her husband was there. Bellatrix looked as insane as usual and was chuckling low in her throat, twirling her wand in her hand. "Well, if it isn't itty bitty mudblood Granger."

Antonin Dolohov was there as well, and Hermione thought, someone else called Rockwood. She was surrounded on all sides by Death Eaters. Hermione decided that she needed to harness the fear she was feeling in order to get through this alive.

She struggled to stand up, but she was still a bit sore from falling down on the ground. Before should could get up though, Bellatrix started laughing louder. "Crucio!" The white hot pain lasted only a minute, but it had her on the ground again, trying to contain the groan in her throat.

When the pain stopped, she opened her eyes and stared up at the ceiling. "Where am I?" She asked, trying to just focus on anything else than her impending death.

"Malfoy Manor." Narcissa said gently, looking at Hermione with something akin to kindness in her eyes.

"Why?" Hermione demanded.

"You insolent mudblood!" Bellatrix screamed again. "Crucio!"

This time Hermione couldn't stop the small whimper that came out of her throat. When it was over, she sat up, feeling her head swimming with pain. Her face was wet, and reaching up, she realized that it was her tears. "If you've brought me here to kill me, just get it over with."

"Oh, we don't want to kill you...yet." Bellatrix said with a smirk. "The Dark Lord has big plans for you."

"What makes you think I'd ever help him?" Hermione asked, rudely.

"Crucio!" Bellatrix cursed her a third time, and this time the force of it was so strong that she couldn't stop from crying out. The pain felt like it was going on and on.

"Enough, Bella!" The same deep voice said from outside the circle. This was the man that had her wand. "The Dark Lord promised me that she was smart. I'm already being forced to marry a mudblood, what good is she to me if she's completely lost her mind."

"Come on, Rab, you should let me have a little fun with her." Bellatrix let her fingers run up Rabastan's arm, not noticing his look of disgust. "It could be like the old days."

"No, The Dark Lord told me I got all final decisions when it comes to her. So leave it." He hissed, his voice so low that Hermione could barely hear it.

Bellatrix humphed, stopping the curse, and turning away from Hermione and the circle. Hermione took a moment to study this man who was supposedly Rabastan Lestrange. He was quite tall, especially from her vantage point on the floor. He had short, dark, auburn hair and light green eyes that raked over her body with something like disdain.

The only time she'd seen him before was presumably at the Department of Mysteries when these same Death Eaters were trying to kill her and her friends. The man that she saw today looked nothing like what she remembered. He'd been unshaven, with old patched clothing that was too big for his frame. He'd been so skinny, his skin stretched tight across bone. But now, he was still slender, just he seemed to have filled out a bit. He was certainly an imposing man.

To her surprise, he reached down and offered her a hand. Hermione refused to take it, and instead helped herself up. Rabastan frowned at her, but took his hand away from her. Seeing the defiance in her eyes, he turned away from the circle, leaving the room as well.

Finally, Lucius looked down at her disdainfully, his snake head cane held tightly in his hand. Clearly he didn't want her there anymore than she wanted to be there. "Narcissa, please escort our...esteemed guest to the room that she will be staying in."

Smiling down at her, Narcissa offered her an arm, so that they might walk elbow to elbow around Malfoy Manor. Hermione initially resisted, but Narcissa wasn't taking no for an answer, and soon her arm was held tightly in Narcissa's warm grasp. "Of course my darling. Shall I join you for lunch today?"

Lucius shook his head stiffly, effectively dismissing the two remaining women in the room. With a sigh that would have been undetectable if Hermione hadn't been arm and arm with Narcissa, Narcissa nodded, and walked Hermione from the room, keeping her close to her body.

They walked in silence for what felt like miles. Malfoy Manor was impressive as a museum of some kind, but she couldn't imagine actually living here. Everything was priceless and untouchable and cold stone. In a moment of compassion, she thought of a small Draco trying to grow up here, trying to stay out of mind and out of trouble. As it was, she thought she might be able to go undetected for weeks in this place.

When they finally arrived at the room that she would be staying in, Narcissa released Hermione, gently pushing her through the door to the bedroom. It was done up in gold and blue and white. The bed looked very inviting, and a cheerful fire gave it warmth, which was a nice update from the drafty hallways. "The bathroom is just through here." Narcissa remarked.

The bathroom was larger than the room she shared with Ginny at Grimmauld place, all gleaming white surfaces, a bright spot in an otherwise dreary house. It had an inviting looking tub with many taps, just like at the Prefect's bathroom in Hogwarts. It was rather nice, Hermione thought.

Whirling around to look at the blonde woman she asked, annoyed. "Why are you doing this?"

Frowning, Narcissa seemed confused. "What do you mean? Showing you hospitality?"

"Yes." Hermione bit out. That was the smallest of her questions, but she didn't want to push it with Narcissa either.

"Well, you are a guest in our home. It's only proper that you are well taken care of while you are here." Narcissa said, leading them back into the main bedroom.

Hermione couldn't contain the snort at Narcissa's words. "Guest? More like I've been taken prisoner. You kidnapped me from my home, where I was perfectly happy to remain."

Narcissa frowned again, her patience obviously beginning to wane with Hermione's attitude. "We are just following the letter of the law." Narcissa let her eyes sweep up and down Hermione's body, clearly not pleased with what she saw. "Now, lunch will be served shortly. Moffet, will be by to bring it to you. Dinner will be brought to you at half past seven. If you require anything at all, it's only a house elf call away."

Hermione thought about the older woman's words. She wouldn't dream of asking the house elf to bring her anything. "Fine."

"Now, is there anything that you require before I take my leave?" Narcissa asked, one excessively groomed, light brown eyebrow raised.

"Could I have my wand back?" Hermione asked, her chin jutted out in defiance.

Narcissa tsked quietly. "Now, Miss Granger, that is a question to ask your betrothed. Perhaps if you behave, he will give it back to you. Enjoy your day. I will be by tomorrow to prepare you for the ceremony." Narcissa left the room, closing the door behind her.

Hermione looked around the room, barely containing a scream of frustration. She didn't want them to know how they were getting to her. Still it didn't stop her from overturning a small table on her way to the bed. When she reached the white comforter, she threw herself face first in amongst the pillows, tears coming to her eyes. Even worse, she detested that this was the softest bed she'd ever been on.

Crying to herself bitter tears at having got into the mess somehow, she felt herself slowly drift to sleep.

Sometime later, she was awoken by a tiny house elf. "Moffet is sorry to be waking Miss, but Miss already be missing lunch and Moffet think Miss ought not to miss dinner as well."

"Thank you." Hermione said simply, her face feeling hot and tight from her long dried tears.

Moffet took her hand, leading her over to a set of table and chairs by the window. She was greeted by a half roasted chicken, mashed potatoes and brussel sprouts, her favorite meal at Hogwarts. How had they known?

Sighing, and knowing that not being at her full strength wouldn't help her at all, Hermione tucked into the warm dinner, hating to admit that the flavor was delicious. It had been weeks since she, Harry and Ron had had a proper meal, instead scrounging around the cupboards of Grimmauld Place for food that was still good to eat, and occasionally sending out Kreacher to find something for them.

Hermione felt fear and despair settle into her stomach with each bite of food. Oh Harry and Ron, they must be worried with her snatched before their very eyes. She hoped that they didn't do anything reckless or stupid, but she knew that she was the one that typically held them back from acting rashly.

With her dinner finished, and her belly full, Hermione decided that it wouldn't be the worst thing in the world to take a bath. Hesitantly, she made her way to the gorgeous bathroom that she'd seen earlier. Stripping out of her clothes, she got the bath an acceptable temperature and chose a relaxing scented bubble bath before stepping into the scalding water.

Drawing her knees to her chest, Hermione felt tears prickle in the back of her eyes. Why were they doing this to her? What purpose could her marrying Rabastan Lestrange possibly serve Voldemort? Clearly Rabastan was less than happy with being forced to marry a mudblood. Those had been the words that he used, hadn't he?

She remembered him saying that she was meant to be smart, but then, what use was smarts to a Death Eater? She didn't really know much about Rabastan at all, but perhaps he just wanted a companion that he could talk with. He had saved her from the Cruciatus curse, something that Hermione had been grateful for. But, by the same token, he'd won her wand from her and hadn't given it back.

It was probably for the best, thought, as Hermione was sure to fight her way out of here if she did have her wand on hand.

Soon, she began to think of Narcissa's words...the ceremony was to be held tomorrow. God, she couldn't imagine being married to a Death Eater tomorrow. Her body shuddered in revulsion. By this time tomorrow she'd likely be raped. She felt silly all of a sudden, saving her virginity for a man that she loved. Now, it was going to be taken from her if she wanted it or not.

When she had sat in the bath long enough to be significantly pruny, Hermione finally stood up and dried herself with one of the excessively fluffy towels that was hanging on the warming rack. Damn the Malfoys and their elegance! She promised herself that she wouldn't fall for these little, hollow, empty comforts.

Then she remembered that all she had were the clothes on her back. Picking up her underwear from the floor, she frowned. It felt dirty to put them back on, especially without a scourgify, but she didn't have her wand, and she'd never mastered wandless magic. Still, she wouldn't let the Death Eaters find her naked and warm for the taking in the other room. She slipped the simple cotton knickers back up her legs.

Then she picked up her pink jumper and put that on as well, before walking into the other room. She carefully folded her jeans and placed them on the nightstand next to her bed with a sigh, before climbing in. She knew she wouldn't be able to get any sleep with jeans on.

Despite sleeping most of the day away, she felt incredibly tired. Probably the stress of everything that she had been through that day. Still, she let her eyes drift shut, arms wrapped around a big down pillow. She wanted to be as well rested as possible for tomorrow. Hermione Granger wasn't going to go down without a fight.