#darkharrypotter

Kate nodded and pushed her worries from her mind. It would all turn out all right.

They mingled for over an hour, making connections, smiling and nodding and being the ideal royal couple. Once they’d finished talking with someone from the Auror office, Kate leaned up and whispered into Harrison’s ear that she’d be right back.

She stepped away and slipped down the hall. When she stepped out of the bathroom, it was into a broad chest.

Her eyes widened, an apology on her lips before he wrapped his arms around her and Disapparated before she could even scream.

They arrived in a bedroom. Kate immediately looked for a window, like they’d trained her to do. Mountains. Tall, snow-capped mountains. Somewhere in the Alps, probably.

She turned and glared at her attacker, pulling free. “Where are we? You are committing treason, are you aware of this? I am a ward of the crown, engaged to a prince!”

“Do you think I care? The queen has not held up her end of the contract. Now shut up and be a good girl, or I’ll let Reginald have his way with you. He often talks about how pretty you’ve grown.”

Kate looked up at the man who had kidnapped her. He was big and burly, heavily muscled, with a lecherous look in his eyes.

“Of course, Mother,” she said softly after a moment. “But know this: Harrison will find me, and when they discover what you have done, you will pay with your life.”

Tammy snorted and beckoned to the man. They left the room, locking the door with magic behind them. Kate began to pace.

“Of course, and her majesty I’m sure would–”

Harrison cut off as he suddenly felt as if something was wrong. Kate…he had a strong urge to get to Kate. He turned around, his eyes scanning the hall and then the door she had gone through.

“Excuse me,” he said, his voice cold.

He stepped away from them and walked the way Kate had gone. If she was hurt or something…it would be war. He didn’t give a rats ass about the magical world if they hurt her.

“Highness!” Narcissa said, hurrying over to Harrison as he stepped into the hall. “She’s been taken. I followed her to the bathroom to make sure she was safe, and I failed. Yaxley grabbed her right in front of me.”

Harrison’s eyes flashed in anger. “Know this Lady Malfoy. If she is not found and returned to me safely…I’ll destroy all of you.”

“Is…is that a threat?!” Minister Fudge gasped in shock and anger.

Harrison stared at him, his eyes cold. “No. It’s a promise.”

With that he turned, storming to the floo. He would alert the queen and then the royal forces. He wouldn’t leave Kate to suffer.

Servants practically dove out of the way as Harrison came down the hall. They could feel his rage coming, and they knew that when he was angry, it was best to either fix the problem or get out of his way. It’s why they tried to keep the princess happy, too. When she was upset, he got angry.

The queen looked up as he entered her study, frowning.

“Harrison? What’s wrong? Did something happen at the party? Where’s Valeria?”

Kate was staring out the window at the mountains. She knew Tammy wasn’t stupid enough to have taken her to France. No doubt they were in Switzerland. Now all she needed to do was keep in her mother’s good graces so that Reginald wouldn’t touch her. She knew Harrison would find her. All she had to do was wait.

“She has been taken,” Harrison hissed in anger.  A lightbulb behind him shattered with a quiet pop.  “By a man named Yaxley, who no doubt is associated with her mother.  I want her found unharmed, Grandmother.”

“As do I,” the queen said.  “I will alert our forces.  Does anyone know where they might have taken her?”

“No.  But I will find her.  And if she is hurt, not even God can help them.”

There was an urgent knock on the door.  “Majesty,” said Frances, bowing deeply.  “The Malfoys have informed me that Yaxley owns a chalet in the Swiss Alps.  They are unsure of the exactly location, but are offering their full cooperation.  They have no wish to be at odds with the crown.”

“Get in contact with the Swiss embassy.  I want her found as soon as possible.”

“At once, Majesty.” Frances nodded and backed from the room before hurrying down the hall.

----

It took four days for the royal forces to find the chalet.  Kate had been on her best behaviour to make sure her mother and her pet didn’t touch her.  On the third day, she could have almost sworn that she had heard Lucius Malfoy arguing with her mother, but it might have been a hallucination due to hunger. They’d given her just two hunks of bread over her time there and she’d only had water from the faucet.  There was no shower in her room, and so she felt dirty and disgusting.  She was sure the robes she was wearing would be destroyed.  Really she just wanted a damned bath.

On the fourth day, the front door burst open, hit wizards immediately incarcerating both Tammy and Reginald.  Harrison stepped into the house and went straight for Tammy.

“Where is she?” he snarled.

She laughed.  “My, you’ve grown handsome, haven’t you?  It’s too bad.  You can't possibly want her now.  She’s ruined, no longer pure.  No-one will want--”  She was cut off as Harrison hexed her.

Then he turned and went for the stairs.  “Kate? KATE!”

Kate jumped to her feet.  She’d heard the commotion downstairs but had assumed Tammy and her pet were fighting again.

“HARRISON!” she yelled, beating on the door.  “I’M IN HERE!”

“Step back!”

She gasped and quickly moved away from the door, which was blasted open, and then he stepped into the room.  She practically flew into his arms, inhaling his scent as tears filled her eyes.  He was here.

“Are you all right?” he asked, wrapping his arms around her.  “You mother said…”

“They didn’t touch me.  I’m fine.  Just hungry… and tired...and I want a bath.  I’m sure I smell something awful.” She buried her face in his chest.  “I want to go home.”

“Of course,” he murmured, turning to look at Frances, who nodded.  In an instant, they were back at the palace, in the sitting room.  Kate clung to him as he moved over to a couch, pulling her close.

“Are you hurt, Valeria?” the queen asked.

Kate shook her head, and Harrison spoke up.  “She’s exhausted.  Hungry.  I doubt her mother fed her at all--”

“Two hunks of bread, and water,” Kate interjected in a mumble.

“--And she wants a bath,” Harrison finished.

She nodded, moving to press a button on a side table.  “Send Martha upstairs to prepare a bath for Valeria, and have the kitchens prepare soup and tea for her.  Bring it to her suite.”  Satisfied that her orders would be carried out, the queen turned to Kate and smiled gently.  “I am glad you are safe, my dear.”

Kate nodded.  She was glad she was safe, too.

“Go on upstairs.  The soup will be waiting for you when you’ve finished your bath.”

“I’ll take you,” Kate said, rising from her place next to Will.

She deposited Kate into the waiting arms of Martha after hugging her tightly.  Martha wasted no time in stripping the dirty robes off Kate and bundling her into a dressing gown despite the heat, then sitting her down and pulling the pins from her hair so that she could brush it out.

Martha had been Kate’s maid since she’d arrived at the palace.  She was one of the few people who had ever seen the scars on Kate’s back, the others being Harrison’s maid and two seamstresses, as well as one of the queen’s hit wizards, who had crafted a glamour to hide them when Kate wanted to wear certain clothes.  Kate knew that others knew about the scars, because palace gossip was unavoidable, and from the way some of the other maids treated her… To be frank, she was coddled, mothered, and given almost anything she wanted.

This behaviour by the palace staff could of course also be attributed to Harrison’s temper, which became very short when Kate was upset.  The staff often scrambled to find something that would appease his overprotective nature, which is why they kept a stock of Kate’s favourite foods and teas on hand at all times.

“The prince was positively livid when he realized you were gone,” Martha was saying as she worked through a tangle. “He gave the staff quite a fright, storming around the palace.  I heard he swore to get you back, even if it meant going to war with your world.”

Kate turned to look at her.  “That’s a little extreme, don’t you think?”

Martha chuckled, her hands working swiftly to braid Kate’s hair.  “Not if you’re in love.”

Kate swiveled so fast that it tugged painfully on her scalp.  “What?”

“Hold still, Highness, if you please.”

“What do you mean, ‘if you’re love’?” She could feel her stomach beginning to do somersaults, her blood beginning to thud in her ears.

The braid finished, Martha began wrapping it around Kate’s head.  “I mean his Highness is in love with you. As you are with him.  We staff see more than you think we do.” She pinned the braid up. “Now, into the bath with you.”

Kate nodded, standing, then smiled as she stepped into the bathroom and inhaled.  “Lavender?”

“I thought it might ease your nerves.  Now, I’ll let you relax and soak for a few minutes before I come in to wash your hair.”  She set a flannel and bar of soap on the side of the tub and waited until Kate was safely in the water before leaving, closing the door behind her.

It wasn’t ten minutes later that there was a commotion in the other room.  Kate had nearly dozed off when she heard Martha’s squeak of, “Highness!  You can’t go in there!  The princess is in the bath!”

“So?”

“She’s naked, sir!  It’s highly improper!”

“I’ll be seeing her naked in my bed soon enough.  Move, Martha.”

Kate could hear the annoyance in his voice and rolled her eyes, grabbing a towel and draping it across her front.  Then she pulled the curtain around most of the bath.

“Let him in, Martha.  If you don’t he’s likely to blast the door down.  You may stay and chaperone.”

The door opened, admitting Harrison and a harried-looking Martha.  The former knelt next to her, kissing her forehead, while the latter hovered by the door.

Kate smiled, leaning over the side of the tub and taking his hand.  “Did you need something?  You normally don’t interrupt my bath.”

“I spoke with Grandmother.  We’ve agreed that you’re not safe while you’re still my betrothed, and so we will perform the marriage ritual tomorrow night.  I wanted to do it this evening, but they need time to prepare.  We’ll have a public ceremony next summer.  Is this okay with you?”

She reached up and brushed hair from his eyes.  “It’s more than okay.  I told you I was ready to marry you last month.”

He cupped her face in his hands.  “Turn around, Martha.”

The maid looked at him in confusion.  “Highness?”

“I’m going to kiss my fiancée.  I’d like a moment of privacy, please.”

He waited until Martha had turned her back (and stuck her fingers in her ears), then leaned forward and kissed Kate.  She pressed herself against the side of the tub, her hands tangling in his hair as she tried to get closer.  He dragged his teeth across her lower lip, and her lips fell open with a soft gasp while he cupped the back of her head, his fingers threading themselves into her hair.  Their tongues met and danced around each other, and his other hand found its way to the bare skin of her back.  She let out a low moan, rising slightly to press herself against him, not caring that he was getting soaked.  He didn’t seem to mind either, pulling her flush against his body.  She could feel heat pooling in her belly.  Merlin, did she want him.

At last--too soon, really--he broke away, and she let out a tiny sigh of disappointment, sinking back into the tub.

“You should fix your towel,” he murmured, giving her an appreciative look.  “Not that I mind a little preview, but the temptation to touch you gets worse the more skin I see.”

She flushed, pulling the towel back over her exposed breasts.  “I wouldn’t mind,” she whispered.  “I like it when you touch me.”

He closed his eyes and swallowed.  “Don’t tempt me, love.  I know Martha would mind… and I would like to save some things for the wedding night.”

She pouted, and he leaned forward, catching her lower lip between his before resting his forehead against hers.  “Only twenty-four hours, my Kate.  Then you’re all mine,” he murmured, then kissed her cheek and stood, adjusting his trousers.  Kate let out a tiny giggle.  “I’ll be waiting for you.”

Nodding, she watched him tap Martha on the shoulder as he slipped out the door.

Martha turned and smiled at Kate.  “I’m glad you two are finally tying the knot, though I wonder how you’ll fare once you’re back at school.  You can hardly keep your hands off each other as it is.”

Kate’s cheeks went pink and the older woman chuckled, pulling a stool up to the side of the tub.  “Let’s get you clean.”

Fifteen minutes later, Kate walked into her sitting room, wearing leggings and a large tee… one of Harrison’s.  He smirked at her as she came and sat next to him, pulling her legs beneath her.  He handed her the bowl of soup in its coozy, then poured her a cup of tea.  She inhaled, smiling as the scent of the tea that always calmed her hit her nose.  It was a chai blended with rooibos, spicy yet sweet.

“You look good in my clothes,” he purred, wrapping an arm around her.  She giggled softly, then took a sip of the soup before sighing and setting the bowl down.

“Harrison… there’s something I need to tell you.”

“You should eat first, love.”

She shook her head.  “I have to say this first.  I…” She bit her lip, then turned and looked at him.  “Harrison… I love you.”

He looked at her in silence for long enough that Kate began to wonder if Martha had been wrong, and then he leaned forward and kissed her hard on the mouth, hungrily, pulling her against his body.  She kissed him back with equal fervor, and soon she was on top of him on the sofa, their legs intertwined, his hands beneath her shirt.

He pulled back and gazed at her seriously.  “I love you too, Kate.  So much.  If they had hurt you…”

“They didn’t.  I’m safe.  I just want you to hold me now.”

“Of course.  You should eat, too.”

She nodded and leaned forward to get the soup, nestling herself in his lap as she ate, one of his arms wrapped around her waist and the other reaching up to run fingers through her hair.  Letting out a sigh of contentment, she smiled.