AN- Sorry its been so long. Its been a rough couple of weeks for me. I promise that I will try my hardest to finish this fanfic. This chapter has been really difficult to write as it is more or less a filler chapter, full of anxt and whatnot. I have a brief idea where the rest of this ff is going. Stay tuned. And apologies for the cringe factor. That just happens with these types of stories :-D
Hermione walked up the path that led to the front door of the cottage with nothing but her small beaded bag in her hands. She was starting her life from scratch.
As soon as Malfoy unlocked the front door with the enchantment he promised to teach her, they entered the cottage and Hermione went straight upstairs to have a shower.
"I'll get started on some kind of food then" Malfoy said as she trudged up the stairs.
Now that she was here, the events of the last three days were beginning to catch up with her. She undressed and stood under the warm running water, trying to let it wash away everything she was feeling. While she thought about what she had been through over the last 12 months, tears pricked at the corners of her eyes. The happiness and joy she felt over the defeat of Voldemort was beginning to be heavily outweighed by the grief and feelings of loss she felt when she thought of the ones who she'd never see again. Before she realised it, her tears had turned into heavy sobs and she was sitting on the floor of the shower, trying to get a hold of herself.
It was half an hour before she felt any desire to move. She had cried for everyone that had been lost, she had cried for her parents, for her pain, for her suffering, for Harry who was so brave he walked into the forest and stared death in the face. She cried for Ron and for the relationship that they never got a chance to explore. More than anything, she cried for the life that she now had to regain, the identity that she had to find. She had no idea who she was when she wasn't a Hogwarts student or part of the golden trio.
Standing up, she turned the shower off and reached for a towel. She slowly dried and dressed before heading downstairs to find Malfoy. She wanted to talk to him about whatever was or was not happening between them. She felt that perhaps he had come to his senses, decided that their kiss meant nothing and was happy to just be associated in this place until she sorts herself out.
She stood in the doorway of the kitchen and saw Malfoy at the stove with his back to her. She stood watching him for a while, apron on, recipe book open in front of him. There was a pot of some kind of liquid bubbling away on the stove. Whatever it was, it was smelling delicious so she stepped into the room and perched herself on a chair at the table.
"Feel better?" he asked, turning and flashing her a smile that she had rarely seen on his face.
"Much, thank you. That smells delicious" she said.
"Well, I can't guarantee it will taste good but I'm following this recipe like it's a potion" he said.
"Well, you were always quite good at potions, so hopefully it will be eatable" Hermione said, looking over his shoulder to get a glimpse of the pot. "So, what is it exactly?" she asked.
"Well, it is supposed to be some sort of vegetable stew, although I added some beef and a few other things, so I guess it's a casserole now" he said as he poured the two of them a glass of expensive looking mead.
"How do you even have all the things necessary to cook a meal like this?" Hermione asked, looking inside the fully stocked refrigerator.
"When I bought this place a few months ago, I told them I was going away for a while. The agent agreed to stock the kitchen and I put a charm on most of the food so it didn't go bad" he said.
"Money talks I suppose" she said.
"So does my uncanny charm" he said with that grin. Hermione was captivated for a moment before going back to her mead.
"So what now then? How do you intend on getting hold of your money? How are you going to get by" she asked.
"I have enough here to last me quite a while" he said.
"Have you thought about getting a job or something?" she asked.
"Granger, with the amount I have in the safe upstairs, I could never work, ever, in my entire life, and still have some leftover, as long as I'm savvy" he said.
She was throw by this. She knew his family was wealthy, however, she wasn't prepared to be told that he never had to work again.
"Wow, well, that is great" she said, awkwardly as she drained her glass of mead.
As Hermione set about setting the table and helped plate up, the conversation stalled. They each took their place at the table and Malfoy poured them both yet another glass of mead. Hermione could feel herself getting tipsy but quickly realised she needed the liquid courage to broach the subject that had been the elephant in the room all night.
The conversation centred around idle chit chat as they ate their meal together. Hermione felt herself getting more and more anxious as the conversation began to drift to what they anticipated the weather might be the following day.
"So if it's sunny we should take advantage of it then" he said.
"I think we need to talk about what happened during the battle" she said suddenly.
"You'll need to be more specific, Granger" he said.
"You know what I mean… the kiss" she said.
"Kisses… Plural" he said.
"Exactly!" she said.
"We kissed" he said coolly.
"So are we going to talk about it?" she asked, placing her spoon in her empty bowl.
Malfoy sipped on his glass and seemed to ponder this question for a moment, he eyed her carefully before putting down his glass, standing and walking around the table to where she sat. Hermione felt her face flush as she watched his meticulously perfect motions. She watched him slowly and purposefully walk around the table, flicking his wand at the wireless as he went. A slow song came on and Hermione felt herself cringe ever so slightly at the moment's awkwardness.
"Dance with me" he said, as he held his hand out to her.
"Here?" she asked.
"Why not?"
"I…" she began. "I actually can't think of a reason not to" she said honestly.
She placed her hand in his, allowing him to pull her to her feet. The effects of the mead made her slightly wobbly, but she hid it well. She placed her arms around him and when he had put his hands on her waist, they moved slowly in time to the music.
The space was small, but they didn't need much. Hermione allowed her mind to wander while they swayed in time to the music, allowing herself to consider how right this felt. All the fighting she had done with herself over the idea of Malfoy being someone she could see herself falling for was now pointless. She was well and truly in too deep.
As the music slowed, Hermione felt Malfoy come to a slow also. He placed his hands either side of her face and held her only inches from his own as he looked into her eyes. She could feel her heart beating frantically in her chest, betraying her usually calm façade.
"Oh gosh" she whispered, completely enthralled by him. "You're good at this" she said, feeling completely overcome.
"I told you that I didn't regret that kiss, Granger" he said softly.
"But…?" she asked, sensing he was holding something back.
"But nothing" he whispered, tucking a stray lock of hair behind her ear.
She felt her heart speed up as the intensity of the moment built. As he leant closer to her face she closed her eyes, anticipating his lips on hers. She had almost forgotten what it felt like to kiss him, given all that had happened since their last embrace.
His lips, soft and warm, gently brushed her own as one hand travelled down to her waist, pulling her closer. She leant into him, allowing him to take the lead. The kiss was not urgent like their last one in the chamber of secrets, nor was it tentative like their first. It was slow at first but built into something more, the longer they remained in each other's embrace. For Hermione, it felt like an eternity. An eternity of bliss. She was completely captivated. All her worries were non-existent, the grief and sadness at the losses she had experienced were gone, replaced by this moment. All too soon, however, the moment came to an end and Hermione was brought back to reality.
"Merlin…" she said quietly.
"Like I said, I enjoyed kissing you, Granger" he said, stepping away and taking their empty bowls to the kitchen.
Hermione stood there stunned for a moment before helping tidy up in the kitchen.
"Here, you cooked, I'll take care of this" she said, waving her wand over the dishes as they loaded themselves into the sink.
The pair moves around each other in the kitchen as though it were a practiced routine. Malfoy placed the left overs into the refrigerator, while Hermione charmed the plates to put themselves away.
"Where did you learn to do that?" he asked.
"Mrs Weasley is a brilliant housewife. I've spent so much time there over the last few years, I picked up a thing or two" she said, the effects of both the mead and the kissing wearing off.
The pair continued their evening as though nothing had happened. Hermione taught Malfoy how to use the TV and they both chose a movie to watch from the collection in the cabinet. The normalcy of the evening frustrated Hermione immensely. Why couldn't he just talk about what happened? Hermione barely paid attention to the movie that was playing as she was so caught up in thinking and over thinking what was going on between the two of them.
Just months ago they were mortal enemies, hatred running deep between them. He had said and done so many horrible things to her in the time that she has known him, but now he was someone different. He was sweet, kind, generous and he enjoyed kissing her. So why was it so difficult to determine exactly what was going on between them? They've enjoyed a few snogs, but what else? Was it more? Was there more to it? Did they have feelings for one another that were more than just lust? Of course she was attracted to him, physically. She had always known he was attractive, but was there more to it? Could she love him? Could he love her?
Hermione glanced over to him sitting on the other end of the lounge and watched as his face was alive with interest. He hadn't ever watched a TV before and it was thrilling seeing him experience this for the first time.
She stood and walked to the cupboard, retrieving a blanket before returning to the lounge. She sat beside him, placing the blanket over both of them. As if by instinct, Malfoy reached around her, pulling her closer to his body, never taking his eyes off the TV. Together they sat, watching the TV, so incredibly close together. If she struggled before, she now could not concentrate on anything apart from the way Malfoy's hand felt around her body. The way his fingers felt as they traced little circles on the flesh that was exposed at her waist. Shivers ran through her body that had nothing to do with the cold. She could tell he knew what he was doing to her, but he didn't allude to it.
The movie continued, as did Hermione's frustrations. Before long, the movie had finished and Hermione had no idea what had happened at the end of it.
"Well, I best be heading up to bed" she said, removing herself from his grip and stretching her arms and legs.
"That's a good idea, it's getting late" he said, laying the blanket over the back of the lounge. As he stretched, his jumper lifted, revealing his lower belly. Hermione was almost caught staring but quickly turned and switched off the TV before heading to the stairs. When she reached the top, Malfoy stood waiting for her.
"Good night Granger" he said.
"Night" she said back, hesitating, wondering if he was going to say anything else. They stood in an awkward moments silence before she turned and headed into her room. Climbing under the covers of the enormous bed, she thought about what had happened that day. Just that morning she had woken at Hogwarts where she had thought she would be spending quite a bit of time. Now she had to come up with some ideas for what she may do with her life next. Her only hesitation was, would she have to figure it out alone, or would Malfoy be somehow involved in her future?
