A jet of red light flashed out of the tip of Hermione's wand as she took cover behind the crumbling brick facade. Her heart remained steady despite the stream of curses that darted in their direction, surrounding them from nearly all sides. She channeled all her energy into focusing on their mission, temporarily exposing herself, just long enough to aim and fire another curse. She had barely returned to her position of safety when a glimmer of green light collided with the wall, further damaging the structure.
It was supposed to be a simple task. After their insider had tipped them off that a former Death Eater was hiding in the cellar of Dystyl Phaelanges on Knockturn Alley, she and Harry had spent all afternoon organizing a plan of attack - infiltrate the building and strike at night once the store was closed. All that had quickly turned sour when one Death Eater turned out to be six, and now they were left dueling with the long since defeated enemy, struggling to retreat back to the exit which was now blocked by three burly wizards.
Harry was crouched down across the room from her, shielding himself behind a toppled display case, providing not nearly enough protection. A spell whizzed past him and crashed into the wall behind him, causing the entire building to rattle. The suspended skeletons of auguries overhead flapped their wings in the aftermath of the impact. Another spell soon followed, squarely hitting Harry's feeble fortress. The glass casing shattered.
"Harry!" Hermione cried. They needed to get out of there fast, but their options were near nonexistent. In their examination of the blueprints of the building, she had only found one set of stairs out of the cellar, but with so many witches and wizards in their path, it was hardly a viable escape route. At the time, she had thought this would be an advantage, ensuring that their fugitive wouldn't be able to avoid their advances. But she hadn't accounted on the store being protected with an Anti-Disapparition jinx.
Hermione peaked out from beyond her shelter and noticed the Death Eaters closing in on them. Their time was running out, and they needed to make a plan soon or they'd meet a similar fate as the deceased creatures in the shop. "Harry!" she shouted again, louder so he could hear her over the blasts. His head turned in her direction, keeping a tight grip around the base of his wand. Hermione motioned for him to run towards her. At least if they were together, they could possibly think of something.
Spells flew past Harry as he scurried across the length of the basement, hurling his own disarming charm at the caster. The witch's wand jolted out of her hands and landed at Harry's feet. He scrambled to catch it while maintaining his speed towards Hermione and joined her behind the walled corner.
"That was a close one," he said through choppy breaths.
"It's not over yet," she reminded him, casting another attack at their assailants. "We can't Apparate out. They put a spell up."
"Great," Harry bemoaned.
There had to be a solution; they just needed more time to think. Hermione examined their surroundings. There were more display cases, but those had already proven to be unreliable. Their contents, however, could come in handy.
She racked her brain and tried to recall the charm. "Ossa Locomotor," she performed, and the skeletons came back to life, serving as temporary fighters while she tried to concoct a more long term plan. She clamped her eyes closed, focusing on her new task, while Harry mobilized the fallen bricks and directed them at the Death Eaters.
Just as it seemed as if they were merely prolonging the inevitable, Hermione jumped at a hushed whisper coming from somewhere behind her. Her head snapped towards the noise and discovered that a nearby portrait had swung slightly ajar off the wall.
"Hermione?" the voice from behind it called, and her heart leapt at the familiar sound of it.
"Draco?" she whispered back. The portrait opened a crack farther and exposed a glimpse of white blonde hair illuminated by the candle grasped in his hand. "How did you -"
"No time for that now. We gotta get out of here."
That was all Hermione needed to hear. She grabbed Harry's shoulder who released one more spell before she dragged him away from the corner. He scrunched his eyebrows in confusion, but once he looked past her and caught sight of Draco, he followed her through the painting and into the tunnel hidden behind it.
The moment they were safely out of the room, Draco pulled the breach closed. He grabbed his wand and muttered, "Colloportus," securing the opening shut. He tucked his wand away and transferred the candle back into his dominant hand. "Hurry. That seal might not hold long."
The flicker of light faded into the distance as Draco traveled deeper down the tunnel and around a bend. In the darkness, Hermione could barely see Harry's outline follow him, and she soon did the same.
Their footsteps echoed off the stoned walls as they headed deeper into its abyss. She had no idea where he was leading them, but she knew that wherever the path led was better than where it originated. Every few steps, Hermione looked over her shoulder to check if anyone had broken through Draco's spell, but the Death Eaters must have either not found the secret entrance or were smart enough to stay in hiding and not pursue them. Whichever the reason, they seemed to be safe.
After countless turns, Draco halted at what appeared to be a dead end, but she still withheld her questions. He paused and handed the candle to Hermione. For the first time in weeks, she was able to see his face. It could have been a trick her eyes played on her in the shadows, but he appeared to have aged significantly in that short period of time. His eyes were sunken and scratches of blonde fuzz outlined his jaw. She didn't have too much time to look before he turned away and retrieved his wand. Its tip met the stoned barrier, and he tapped the right most stone in the upper corner four times until the stones began to curl away, granting them entry into a different, but much smaller, cellar.
The room was barren, with nothing more than a cot, a table with some chairs, and a staircase that ended with a trapdoor that led to what she presumed must be the main level. Cracks lined the dingy grey walls as flakes of plaster floated down from the ceiling. The only sign of coziness was the singular photograph that laid set in a frame on the table, but she barely paid mind to it for the time being. Besides, she already knew the one picture he risked bringing with him everywhere.
Draco sealed the entry shut and before he even had a chance to put his wand back, Hermione flung her arms around him, surrounding herself in his embrace. It had been far too long without him. He immediately pulled her in closer, and she felt his strong hold keep her firmly in place. Her head fell onto his shoulder, and she closed her eyes as she let herself melt into him. She had no idea where he had been the past few weeks, but he had managed to maintain at least some of his welcoming scent. She soaked in what little bit of it remained on his dirty robes, not letting any piece of him go to waste.
There was a creaking noise behind her, but Hermione didn't bother to lift her head. Another creak came from what sounded like the back corner, prompting Hermione to believe that Harry was shifting his weight awkwardly on one of the steps. "I'll, uh, give you two a moment," he muttered, and she heard his footsteps proceed up the staircase to the establishment above.
For a handful of precious seconds, Hermione and Draco lingered in their hold, neither one wanting to be the first to let go. It still felt semi-surreal to have him back, but eventually her curiosities caught up to her, as did all of her worries from the last several weeks.
She pulled back from his hug and slammed his shoulder with the ball of her hand.
"Ow!" he instinctively cried.
"Where the hell have you been?" she snapped. "We hadn't heard from you for three weeks until we got your owl last night!"
"I was a bit preoccupied, you know!" he spat back.
"I am fully aware of that," she chided. "Although a quick note to let us know you were still alive would have been appreciated!"
Hermione folded her arms across her chest, but Draco cracked a smile at her latest criticism, making it rather difficult to remain mad at him, even if she had spent the past few days fearing the worst. She stared up at him and got sucked into his lingering pewter eyes, and her resolve softened.
He took his fingertips and brushed them along the edge of her jaw. "Fine. I should have owled," he conceded. "But I'm here now."
Her skin tingled as his fingernails traced the curvature of her cheek, dancing in patterns like two skaters gliding along the ice. His thumb grazed over her lip, urging her mouth to fall slightly agape, as he brought her in for the kiss. It was even better than she had remembered. Or more likely, she had been deprived of him for too long. As his lips pressed against hers, any previous concerns faded away, and all she cared about were the facts that he was safe, she was safe, and they were together at last.
The trapdoor reopen, and Harry coughed unnaturally loud to warn them of his return. Hermione reluctantly withdrew herself from the kiss but not from his touch. Harry would just have to deal with it. It wasn't as if he hadn't seen them like this before. He was also rather sympathetic about their situation. He sincerely understood the pain of being apart from the one you cared about for so long. His and Ginny's ability to have made it through that distance during the war gave her hope for her and Draco's future.
Draco took Hermione's hand into his and placed a gentle kiss along the ridges of her knuckles before leading her to the table. Harry reached the same spot and set down a tray with three complete suppers on it.
Hermione looked at the meals and retraced his path with her eyes. They must be under a restaurant of some sorts - one that wasn't too far from Knockturn Alley. "We're under the Leaky Cauldron, aren't we?" she concluded, turning to Draco for confirmation.
Draco nodded as they all took a seat at the table. "Potter mentioned it to me a couple months back as a potential hideout if I ever needed it." Harry hummed in agreement, much too preoccupied with his meal to utter much more of a response. "Apparently it was a secret Order location during the first war that they used to spy on Death Eaters activity in Knockturn Alley."
"Well that was fortunate." Hermione grabbed one of the entrees for herself. She hadn't noticed how hungry she had been, but now that the stress of the mission and the unexpected excitement of seeing Draco had started to fade, her stomach rumbled with need. She took a portion of the chicken and swallowed it down with a sip of water. "How long have you been here?"
"Just got here today," he said between bites. "Thought I better stay close just in case anything went wrong. And look at that, I was right."
Hermione gave him a harsh side eye. "That's not exactly something to celebrate," she commented sharply. "Harry and I nearly got killed back there!"
"Yeah, what was with that?" Harry spoke up. "You said there was only going to be one Death Eater."
Draco picked up a napkin and dabbed the corners of his mouth. "That's what I had been told," he replied. "But clearly my source was wrong."
"Or they're lying to you," Hermione warned.
Draco shook his head, dismissing her remark. "I highly doubt that. Even after we caught Rosier last month, they all seemed clueless as to how you knew where he'd be. Besides, I've known Iywer since I was a boy. I firmly believe that he thought he was telling me the truth."
Hermione sighed. Of course he didn't think he was in any danger. Every opportunity she did get to see him, he assured her that he was being careful. And in his defense, he was being careful. They all were. But even long droughts without seeing each other and only meeting in secret hideouts could still prove fallible. Eventually someone would be able to trace the caught Death Eaters to his actions.
But they had had this conversation countless times before. He knew how much she feared for him, but she also knew that it was his way of trying to do whatever he could to pay his debt in the aftermath of the war. It was the one debt that all his galleons would never be able to pay. So he insisted, and she didn't fight him on it. Well, didn't fight him too much on it.
"Well, regardless of the reason," Harry continued the conversation, "there were still six Death Eaters in there tonight that slipped out of our grasp."
"We didn't have a chance," Hermione reasoned with him, sensing his frustration. "Two, even three, we could have handled on our own, but we simply weren't prepared."
Harry groaned. "We should have brought more Aurors with us." He shook his head back and forth. "This is the last time we're going in without at least four wizards. We can't risk anything like that happening again. Next time, we probably wouldn't be as lucky." He dug into his pocket and retrieved a blackthorn wand. He toyed with it for a moment before extending it out towards Draco. "I managed to snag this from one of the Death Eaters. You recognize it?"
The supple wand bent easily under his force as he tried to identify it. He brought it closer to his eyes and then handed it back to Harry. "I believe it's Verna Travers'. She wasn't a Death Eater, but you captured her husband a couple months back, so she's probably seeking revenge."
Draco paused as the disappointment sunk it. It certainly wasn't good news that more witches and wizards were opting to side with the Death Eaters, even after their defeat several years ago.
"I'll have to pay Travers a visit in Azkaban, then," Harry resolved. "Although I doubt he'll be very cooperative."
"They have a house outside of Norwich. I'll stop by tomorrow and see if that leads us anywhere," Draco added.
Under the table, Draco stretched his hand and found Hermione's. She looked up at him and he gave her a half smile. They both understood what it meant. As expected, this wouldn't be a long visit. She brought her chair closer to his and balanced her head on his shoulder. It wasn't fair. They had already sacrificed so much of their childhood fighting a war. At what point could they enjoy their adulthoods without always being the ones to chase after evil?
Harry picked up his empty plate and pushed in his chair. "If that's settled, I'm gonna head upstairs. I already spoke with Tom and got a room for the night. You're welcome to join if you want, Hermione, but -"
"I'm gonna stay here."
Harry nodded, surely having anticipated her answer. "I figured as much. But we gotta get back to the office first thing tomorrow morning and file the report." With that, he proceeded up the stairs and disappeared through the trapdoor, leaving Draco and Hermione alone at last.
She kept her head rested on his shoulder, not wanting to pull away just yet. His arm settled around her waist, pulling her in even closer. If only they could stay down there. Not too long. Just a few days. Was that too much to ask? But instead, after so many weeks apart, they would only have a few hours until he disappeared again and she wouldn't see him for who knows how long this time around.
"What are you thinking?" he asked, balancing his head on top of hers.
She closed her eyes as she assembled her thoughts. "Do you really need to leave tomorrow? Can't you just wait an extra day or two? Surely whatever's in Travers' place can wait."
Draco sighed. He twisted his body, forcing her head off his shoulder so she had to face him. In his eyes, she saw the same disappointment that flooded through her. "You know that isn't an option," he reasoned. "If we have any chance of catching them, we have to work quickly before we lose their track again."
"I know," she surrendered, but it didn't make it any easier. Merlin knew she was being selfish, but she hated that he was gone so often and for such extended periods of time. Could someone really blame her for wanting to have the man she loved around for even a day?
She released a heavy sigh and returned her head to his shoulder, but Draco promptly pushed her off him for a second time. "You're doing it again," he said, traces of resentment lingering in his tone. Hermione faced him, her eyebrows coming together in confusion, but Draco merely shook his head. "Every time before I leave, you get all melancholy and spoil whatever time we do have."
Hermione's lips curled into a frown. "I don't do that."
Draco raised an eyebrow. "Yes, yes you do. You're pouting and complaining about how it's not enough time instead of appreciating that at least we have something."
Hermione looked down at her lap. Okay, so she wasn't exactly in the best of moods, but she was finding it hard to hide her frustration. "I just miss you," she said resignedly. "This feels like such a tease, when tomorrow -"
He cut her off with a gentle kiss. Damn him for knowing how to get her to shut up! He pressed his hands against her cheeks and kept her there until he pulled himself away.
He faced the table and picked up the framed photo, tracing a finger across its glass as a smile crept along the edges of his lips. "You remember taking this?" he asked, turning the frame towards her. Inside the golden metal was a picture of them seated at a linen covered table with wine glasses perched in their hands. Their images took sips from the glasses and then turned to kiss each other. The couple was smiling and laughing, without a care in the world. It was probably the only time they had risked being so open in public.
Hermione smiled at the memory. "Of course I remember. It was last summer. At Harry and Ginny's wedding."
Draco snorted a short laugh as he set the frame down. "You were positively furious at me when I showed up. Said I was endangering everything, even if our friends were the only ones left by the time I got there."
"In my defense, you were being reckless that night."
"And in my defense, I really wanted to see you."
He stood up and extended his hand. Hermione placed her hand in his and let him guide her out of her seat. "When I danced with you that night, that was the moment I became certain that I was in love with you," he explained, resting his free hand on the small of her back. "From that day forward, I knew I would fight a hundred Death Eaters if it meant even one minute with you."
He took a step in her direction and Hermione followed his lead, taking a similar step back to match his movement. He repeated the motion with his other foot and she did the same once more, slowly feeling herself start to loosen up. She looked down at their shoes as they fell into a rhythm, careful not to ruin it by stepping on his toes. He released his grip around her waist and she spun around, a huge smile gracing her features as she twirled under his touch. He brought his hand back to her waist and she rested her head along his peck. It didn't matter that no music was playing. She would dance with him anywhere at anytime.
He took both of her hands into his and led her away from the table to the beaten down cot. It barely looked like it was strong enough to withhold the weight of one person, let alone two fully-grown adults, but that didn't stop them.
Draco laid down first and he pushed himself all the way to the edge so that there would be space for Hermione to lay beside him, but she had a better idea. She perched herself on top of him, planting her knees firmly on either side of him. He shifted his body so that he was lying flat on the cot, staring up at her. She leaned down and left a playful kiss along his lips.
"There's the Hermione I know and love," he beamed up at her.
"So what do we do now?" she said, biting down on her bottom lip.
Draco looked up at her with a suggestive smile. "Well, I suppose we could talk about what we've been up to the past few weeks, but I have something else in mind." Before Hermione could fully register what he was doing, he had her flipped over so now she was the one pinned down on the bed with Draco the one looming over. The grin on Draco's face increased and he closed in on Hermione, pressing his weight down onto the cot, when suddenly the legs of the cot gave out and they toppled onto the cold pavement below.
Hermione let out a cry as Draco landed on top of her, but both of them soon broke into laughter, their series of crackles echoing throughout the small chamber. "I knew I should have used a reinforcing spell!" Hermione said through burst of continued laughs.
Draco shook his head back and forth, a similar smile permanently stuck on his face. He crawled off from on top of her. "Get up. I have an idea."
Hermione removed herself from the thin mattress, and Draco pointed his wand at the cot. The bed instantly expanded, growing three times the size. The rickety metal legs transformed into elegant wooden ones and a headboard sprouted from the top. Within seconds, the old cot had turned into a proper queen-sized bed. Draco tucked his wand away and turned to Hermione expectantly. "Now, where were we?"
His lips instantly met hers, sending shivers down her spine, her whole body trembling. His kisses started off gentle, but quickly grew more urgent. She grabbed hold of his robes and pulled him hard against her. He released a low groan and his arms encircled her, bringing her down with him as they fell against the bed.
They kissed once, twice, so many times that Hermione lost count. But regardless of how often their lips connected, it wasn't enough. Her fingers gripped his hair, refusing him any possibility of slipping away. The blood rushed through her body, her heart beating so fast, it felt like it might explode. She had had him so many times before, but her need for him never vanished.
Hermione emitted a soft mewl as he broke the kiss and met her eyes. Draco grazed one of her curls and tucked it behind her ear, leaving a lingering kiss on its outer shell.
Without speaking, she slowly undid the clasp of her robes, discarding the heavy fabric on the side of the bed. Her teeth grazed her bottom lip as she watched Draco do the same, exposing his raw skin underneath. There were wounds that hadn't been there before, remnants of stories she had not yet heard. She knew she'd hear them all in time. Just now not.
Draco's hands moved over her bare flesh and traveled behind to unclasp her bra. The fabric slackened and she slipped it off of her body. He leaned in closer, leaving a trail of kisses along her neck and his hand drifted to her breasts. Hermione let out a gasp as his fingers found her nipples, which pebbled under his touch.
It may have been weeks since they had seen each other, but it had been so much longer since they'd had the chance to be intimate. Yet, despite the time, he hadn't forgotten her sensitive spots. She closed her eyes and withheld a moan when he brushed his thumb over her breast's firm peak. She wanted to let it out, let him hear just how much he was pleasing her, but she had to remain mindful of the customers upstairs. It would be horribly awkward if this was how they blew his cover.
Draco leaned his back against the headboard and Hermione straddled herself on top of him. Her fingers fluttered up the inside of his thigh and she wrapped her grip around his cock, starting to stroke him slowly. Draco hissed at the sensation and Hermione smiled to herself in achievement. It appeared as if she hadn't forgotten his preferences either.
His caresses moved down the plane of her stomach and settled in the region between her thighs. He stuck two fingers out and traced them over her knickers, her whole body radiating warmth at even the suggestion. "Draco, please," she begged, and he immediately complied. He pushed the fabric aside and his fingers dived between her folds, her back arching at the impact. His fingers curled inside of her and she could feel her slickness surrounding him. He slowly withdrew himself, only to slam right back into her, repeating the process until she was pleading for more. His fingers were satisfying, but it still was not enough.
"Draco," she mewled, quivering from his strokes. "Don't make me wait any longer."
He removed himself and promptly threw her back onto the bed. He stared at her with a flicker of impure intentions as he moved down her body and tugged her knickers down her legs. When he returned on top of her, she took his length back into her grasp, rubbing her thumb across the tip. She gave him a firm nod and guided him inside of her, both of them gasping as he breached her entrance.
He slid into her easily, and her walls clenched around him. "Fucking hell," he cried, pausing as he reached full capacity. "I don't remember you being this tight." He leaned down and gave her a kiss, before he moved out of her at an agonizingly slow pace. Hermione's mouth fell open, releasing soft whimpers as he pushed himself back inside. She clawed at his skin, sure to leave crescent indentations on his back, and pulled him in closer as they fell into a steady rhythm.
He maintained a firm arm planted beside her as the other hand dipped below. He easily found the spot that was yearning for his touch and began to encircle the sensitive nub. Her body started to tense and shiver, her mouth falling open at the sensation, but nothing besides desperate pants came out. His advances continued and Hermione became undone, her body pulsing around his length and the flood of electricity trickling throughout her body.
Draco leaned in for a single kiss before his movements returned, now focused on his own release. He pinned Hermione's hands above her head and drove into her, each time, filling her completely. His pace quickened until he met his own bliss, emptying himself inside of her. She felt his cock throb within her as the rest of his body grew still. He collapsed on top of her and laid there, both of them too spent to move.
Slowly, he regained enough strength and kissed Hermione before removing himself. He laid back onto the bed and she curled herself around his sweaty body.
"I don't want you to leave," was all she could muster.
"I don't want to leave either."
Her eyes fluttered shut, too exhausted to stay awake much longer, but she forced herself to memorize as much of him as she could. The way his body seemed to perfectly mold to hers, the low hums of approval whenever she pulled herself closer, the pure serenity of knowing that he was in her arms. She wished she could stay up all night, not wasting a single moment on slumber until he left, but it was no use. Within minutes, they were both asleep.
...
When she awoke, the space beside her was already cold and the framed photo had disappeared. In its place was a small package. Hermione fought through her disappointment, having foolishly hoped he'd still be there when the sun returned, and picked up the card that laid beside the present.
Potter thought these might come in handy. Don't tell him I actually agreed. Forever yours, D
She unwrapped the gift and recognized it at once. She whispered his name, and in the mirrored reflection, she caught sight of his blonde hair and familiar smile. She grazed her fingers along the surface and his visage did the same. They might not physically be together, but it was better than nothing.
She tucked the two-way mirror into her pocket and headed upstairs. She wasn't sure what the weeks and months ahead would hold, but she had already started counting the days until they were united.