Predator & Prey

Chapter Two

Hermione sat at breakfast the next morning willing her face not to giveaway the fact that she had only slept two hours the night before.

The previous evening, once she heard Malfoy return to his room, her back had slid down the closed door of her bedroom leaving her in a not-so-graceful heap on the floor. The wheels in her brain were already spinning into the next phase of her plan, she forced herself up to finish as many tasks as possible before catching a bit of sleep.

Now that she had her ironclad evidence, she could do something. Her nerves tingled with the idea that she was finally moving into action.

Harry, Ron, and the rest of the world seemed to be quagmired by a never-ending pool of grief that made them less prone to action and more prone to emotional outbursts. Since Dumbledore's death what she thought would be a fire lit under the Order had only turned out to be the sparking and sputtering out of any real momentum. No one was quite sure, it seemed, what to do next. Security had been at the hilt all summer long, and there was no hope for the trio to work out a plan to seek and destroy the Horocruxes. In the absence of a plan, the grieving masses had continued onward trudging towards the same, old same old strategies and treating Harry, Ron, and Hermione like kids.

It was for these reasons that Hermione decided to keep her discovery and subsequent plan from Harry and Ron.

She'd taken the memory of what she had witnessed and secured it in a glass vial. Magically she created its copy and set into motion her "protection" methods against an Obliviate. This way, even if her memory was wiped, she had a way to refresh herself and use it for evidence as needed. It, also, assured that Malfoy wouldn't be able to kill her once she had tipped her hand.

One memory was secured for herself, and the other to be sent to the Headmistress in the event of her death. The next task she had on her late night agenda was to begin the draft of the magical contract she had been planning for in the event that her suspicions were confirmed. Hermione had a decent working knowledge of magical contracts thanks to plenty of research from the Dumbledore's Army days.

There was only one major flaw in her plan; she didn't actually think it would work.

oooo

The day had crawled by as she tried to hide her exhausted state and frazzled nature from her friends. Hermione left the dinner table announcing that she had to finish an essay. Despite her fatigue, she had more tasks to complete before she was ready for what would likely be a very interesting night. She crept into her room listening for Malofy to finally settle into his for the night. Once she heard the latch click closed, she completed her final chore.

She spell an alarm charm to sound whenever Malfoy left his room for his evening hunt, and she settled down on the sofa for some much needed sleep.

oooo

Hermione didn't even realize that she'd been asleep when the charm woke her up, and she grabbed her wand and shouted, "Lumos."

There in the darkness of their shared common room was Draco Malfoy stepping out of his bedroom door. The time had come. The hours of research and meticulous planning were all to be put to purpose now.

"Going out for a midnight snack?" she quipped.

"What's it to you?" he snapped.

"I could be my usual self and point that you are the Head Boy, but I won't." Even in the dark, she could feel his eyes rolling at her. "I have something more important to discuss with you."

"Now? Granger, it's three o'clock in the bloody morning. What in Merlin's name do you want to discuss?"

"I know what you are, Malfoy, and I know what kind of snack you're after."

With these words, his wand flew stirring up the fire in the fireplace to add light to the dim room. The lamps brightened, "What do you mean?" His brows were furrowed, but he did not give much away.

"And before you try to Obliviate me - you should know that I have set-up a plan for that, and we will just be having this conversation again tomorrow."

He walked towards her, "I don't know what you're on about Granger, but clearly, you need to go back to bed."

His proximity was meant as a threat, but she knew that, for now at least, she still had the upper hand. Hermione replied, "I know that you are a half vampire and that you've been stalking around the castle at night to bite innocent girls to get your blood fix. I know that it's a secret."

A growl snarled from his lips, "and just what is that makes you think such a thing?"

"I watched you last night, but that only served to confirm my suspicions."

He stopped to process and took a seat in the armchair across from the sofa that she had been sleeping on. The pause between them ebbed on become lengthy. Finally, he broke the quiet, "why are you telling me that you know? Why aren't Potty and Weaslebee here to gloat in my face?"

"I haven't told anyone else," she responded plainly.

There was another pause, but this one was more brief. "So, why tell me that you know?" he seemed puzzled, like his head couldn't process around what she was doing.

"Because I have an idea that would be beneficial for both of us, if you are willing to hear me out. And I hope that you will, despite, who we are," she gestured to the space between them, "because I can't with a clear conscious allow you to continue attacking innocent school children in the middle of the night. If you don't agree to my suggestion, I will likely have to turn you in."

He grimaced, "you're blackmailing me. Didn't think the great Gryffindor had that in her."

She smirked, "I hadn't really thought of it that way, but I guess I kind of am. Although, if you will keep an open mind and listen to me, I really do think you're getting the better end of this deal."

Malfoy seemed nonplussed. He twirled his hand in a dismissive, swirling motion and said, "well, get on with it, then. What is your brilliant idea?"

Hermione's hands fluttered together in a small clap before she could stop them, and she reached for the parchment laying on the table nearby.

"Okay, there's a bit to it. I've sorted out all the details in a magical contract for us, so that should you agree we can tackle it point by point." She paused, "Oh, I'm getting ahead of myself. I just didn't even think you'd talk to me - I figured I would be doing this a couple times after you'd erased my memory."

"The night is still young, Granger."

She sighed dissatisfied, "Here's what I am proposing in the basic sense. I will be your blood source, and you will provide me with information for doing so." He started to interject, but she stopped him by continuing, "I will hold your secret and you will get me access to some magical texts that I cannot come by." He again started to speak, but she held her finger up in the air to stop him, "And at the end of this war, when Lord -"

He did interrupt this time in a his, "don't say his name!" His hand was covering his forearm.

She went on, "When He-who-must-not-be-named is finally dead for once and for all, I will stand for you, and I will tell our side that you have been sharing vital information with me. I will vouch for you."

"What if you don't win."

She smiled, "I guess it's really a no lose proposition for you, then, huh? Like I said, you're getting the better end of the deal."

He looked up and down across the room, "so, let me get this straight. You want me to share information with you and get you books? And in return, you'll keep my secret, let me drink your blood, and you'll vouch for me at the end of the war, should you win."

She nodded.

Malfoy went on, "What makes you think that I would want your blood? I have a whole castle to drink from."

"I already told you I can't allow that, and I know that you don't want to go asking just anyone to be your blood source. Half-vampires aren't always the most welcome type of wizards, especially in the circles that you run in." She twisted around a little more, "I know you can't have been finding someone out every night, and you're still so early on. Your vampire self needs a more consistent meal, or you will lose control."

She noticed a slight nod from him, but it seemed subconscious.

He blew out a breath of air deeply, "I don't know what information I could give you that wouldn't get me killed. I see that as the flaw in this whole plan."

Hermione thought for a moment. "We can work on that part if you are willing to even think about this, but there's one more thing. If we do this, I want your wizard's oath that you won't kill me or hurt me intentionally."

His eyes grew wide, but he didn't look away from her. Another stretch of silence lingered on.

Hermione was the one to put an end to this silent streak. "You'll need some time to think about it all; I realize that." She handed him a detailed magical contract that outlined what she had been explaining, but in much more specific detail, "review this, and we can talk again in a couple of days."

He took the parchment and started to stand.

"Oh and wait -" Hermione jumped up from her spot on the sofa. She tugged her messy hair back away to expose her neck. "I interrupted your midnight snack."

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The beast that lurked below the surface of Draco's mind had stayed mostly away during the conversation with Granger, but now, with her neck bared to him. The monster roared to life. The wizard-half of himself was a little surprised at the way the vampire was reacting, so far his experience with the bloodlust had always involved a fight and a hunter's mentality. But now, with a willing victim, there was something new - a sensation that he didn't quite recognize.

The wizard couldn't remain in control, even though, Draco desperately wanted to maintain control of his faculties. That trained piece of himself that yelled inside, "she'd a mudblood, mudblood, mudblood," the wizard trying to warn the vampire that this blood would be foul; it would be dirty.

Without much thought about his actions, Draco was now standing in Granger's personal space. His mouth was watering, and he allowed his fangs to protract. He could hear her gasp and her heart rate increase. No matter, how cooly and calmly she stood there, her biology gave her way. Fear has a certain smell if you know what to look for, and he did. He drew the moment out, soaking up the tedious intimidation that just his presence could create.

When he finally reached his hands to settle on her her shoulders, she jumped slightly. He slid a finger down her cheek and caressed her neck, paying special attention to the vein that stuck out slightly on the the side of that slender neck. The predator was fully in control, and he was relishing the moment as best he could. He brought his face down and licked the place where he would slide his fangs into her. Her whimper made his whole body flood with excitement, and he could hold back no longer.

His teeth bit down into her flesh, and he drank in her blood.

Perhaps, it was because the wizard half of himself was screaming about how awful her blood would taste, but the low expectations he had set for the taste diminished the instant the pulse filled his mouth. Her blood was anything but dirty. It was powerful and heated in a way that he hadn't tasted before. Not in some, cliche, she had the best blood ever, kind of way, but it was different. There was something about the way her blood charged his monster that the wizard couldn't explain.

He pulled his fangs from her neck and allowed them to retract away, but he still ran his tongue down the wound to catch the escaping drops before he muttered the healing spell directly into her skin. Realizing their proximity, he took a step backwards.

Granger immediately sat down on the couch and reached into her back. She pulled out a potion that he recognized by sight, Blood Replenishing Potion. She knocked it back down her throat.

oooo

After downing the potion, she sat a bit awkwardly on the sofa. In all her research, there had been no way to practically prepare for the experience of being bitten by a vampire, half or otherwise. It was different than the accounts she had read but similar, too. She knew that she would have to review those texts, now that she had something to compare it to.

Malfoy was looking at her a tad oddly, and she recognized that it wasn't a very normal situation for two enemies to be engaged in such secrets and pacts. Without meaning to, she yawned. Her body was signaling that the night needed to be over. She had spent so much time stressing about how this would go, and while nothing was set, it had gone over infinitely better than she had imagined. She didn't know what to do with that observation for now, and especially not now nearing four o'clock in the morning.

"Well, I suppose that's all for the evening," she said lamely.

"Right."

"Look over the contract. Make your suggestions, and we can discuss this again?" She looked at him and added, "I mean if you are open to it."

He picked the parchment back up off the floor where it had dropped from his hand when he'd bitten her. "I will review it and let you know. I cannot make you any guarantees that I will go through with this."

She nodded and began to walk to her room. "Good night, Malfoy." Just as she went to close the door she heard faintly….

"Good night, Granger."

AN: Well, there's where I am headed with this. What do you all think? Worthy of continuing? What kinds of suggestions do you think Malfoy is going to want to add to the contract? Leave me your thoughts in a review and follow to stay tuned for the next update. Thanks!