In the Heart of the Storm
Chapter Nine: Clear Skies
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
"Is everyone alright?" Hermione whispered after the roaring of the tornado had faded away, and the house had stopped shaking. She turned to look at the children. Their eyes were wide like deer caught in headlights, but they all nodded—Lily sniffed.
Harry stood up and helped Ginny, who was holding Jean, to her feet. "You all stay here; Ron, Draco, and I will go up and assess the damage." Draco pried Hermione's hand from his and followed the other two up the stairs.
Hermione looked down at her fingers. She hadn't even known she had a death grip on him. How embarrassing. She closed her eyes for a second. Well, not too embarrassing; she was pretty sure the whole house had heard their escapades earlier.
She met Luna's eyes and Luna gave her a dreamy smile. Okay, so Luna knew, but that's alright considering her and Ron were up to the same exact activities. She turned her attention to Ginny. Ginny was trying to get Jean comfortable in her arms, but she glanced up long enough to shake her head at Hermione with a smirk that could rival Draco's on her lips.
Great. She was never going to live this one down. She stood and stretched, looking at the steps. She hoped that the house didn't have any damage. Ginny's three children were gathering around her now, and Gabriel had wandered over to Luna. She sighed and sat on the bottom step. She really wished she had children soon. Maybe, if things worked out with Draco…
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Upstairs, Harry, Ron, and Draco were combing through the house. So far, the only damage was a busted window in the kitchen and random knick knacks that had fallen from shelves. Draco picked a lamp off the floor and straightened the shade before placing it back on the coffee table. He turned to say something to Harry, but Harry cut him off.
"So, Draco… We all um, heard you and Hermione together earlier. Does this mean you're dating?" He looked uncomfortable talking about his best friend's love life. "Did you two work everything out?"
Draco had the decency to look a bit sheepish. "Well, we tried to talk, but it just didn't go in that direction… She got upset, and it was raining…"
Ron snorted. "So you two haven't exactly decided to be a real couple then? She's never going to go for that no-commitment thing. That's why I had to end it with her. I wasn't ready to settle down with her. I felt we were too close as friends, but not close enough as lovers. She didn't take it that way though, especially when I got with Luna." Ron was shutting cabinet doors.
Harry nodded in agreement. "Look, Draco, we get that you like her, and that you want to be with her, but we also know your history with the female population. You better make things right with her or you know we'll have her back and not yours."
Draco took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "I understand. I'm in no way going to play Hermione. We've grown really close and she even said that she might be in love with me. To be honest, I think I feel the same way. We just want to be alone to have our discussion." He looked at the other's faces. "Honestly, we just thought it would be better to talk after we left here, than with everyone in our business. No offense, of course."
Harry laughed, "Relax, Draco. We're just having some fun. Of course we understand that you two need to be alone."
"Yeah, when you two leave later, make sure you tell her exactly what you want… Otherwise, she'll be mad beyond belief. I know from example."
"Got it."
Then the three of them finished clearing up the debris.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
A few hours later, the entire household was standing on top of the hill in the backyard watching the sun go down. The sunset was beautifully calm considering how extreme the storm had been the past two days. Who would have thought that the little magic storm that was predicted would have blown up into such an event? The radio had announced it was safe for magical travel and the use of magic a little over an hour ago, but no one seemed in the mood to leave just yet.
Luna and Ron were cuddled on a rock with Gabriel asleep on their laps. They were talking quietly and Luna kept pointing out the hiding places of those magic creatures she liked to study. Harry had brought a chair out for Ginny to sit upon while holding Jean, and a blanket for his three other children to sit. He was currently standing next to Ginny with his hand on her shoulder.
Draco and Hermione were settled under the tree. Draco had his hand on her leg and Hermione had her head on his shoulder. Hermione sighed happily as the sun dipped below the horizon. It was always so refreshing after a storm. She and Draco would return home shortly, and then they would have to decide what exactly they would do with their relationship.
Draco turned his head and nudged Hermione to look. Ron, Luna, and Gabriel were just about to leave. The two of them got up from under the tree and walked over to say their goodbyes. Hermione reluctantly accepted a hug from Luna and then Ron. After, they had left Hermione walked over to say goodbye to Harry and Ginny.
"Hey, you two," she whispered so she wouldn't wake Jean or the other children. "We're going to head home now." Ginny leaned up and let Hermione peck her on the cheek. Hermione then turned and gave Harry a big hug. "We'll see you all soon, alright?"
"Yes, you two come back and visit again soon, or maybe we can all go out." Harry held Hermione at arm's length and gave her a smile. Hermione smiled back and he let her go. Draco shook Harry's hand and then they both apparated home.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
They landed outside of the flat building. It was full dark now and the streetlamp shown down on them. Draco turned and offered his hand to Hermione, "Your flat or mine?"
Hermione took a deep breath and closed her eyes for a minute. When she opened them she smiled, "Mine? I have wine and a fireplace."
"That sounds great to me."
They walked inside and up the stairs. Hermione glanced at the door of Draco's flat before they passed it. When they reached her door she hesitated, but Draco gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. She released the spells she had cast to protect her flat and pushed open the door. Stepping inside she was greeted by the familiar sight of her beloved flat. Even though it smelled of rain and stale magic, she was beyond grateful to be home.
"Why don't I make us some tea? You can put the duffles in my bedroom."
Draco nodded and carried their duffle bags through her bedroom door. Hermione went back toward the kitchen and set water to boil. After a minute, she smiled and prodded the kettle with her wand; after two days of no magic she relished the chance to magically boil the water. Draco joined her back in the kitchen, sitting down at her little table. Finishing the tea, she joined him.
They both sipped their tea quietly for a minute, but Hermione couldn't take the quiet any longer. She needed to talk. She needed them to make a plan. She had always been about plan making, and she wasn't sure it was the best thing to do when it came to relationships, but she knew that something needed to be done.
"Alright, Draco, I think we have some things to discuss."
He set his teacup down gently on the table and lifted his head to smile charmingly at her. His eyes were sparkling and his hair was sitting in just that way upon his forehead. He rubbed his now free hand over the stubble on his face. "Hermione," he began taking her hand in his. "We have always had our differences, our squabbles, our fights. I think, though, that it is time we try something new. We both know that we are sexually compatible." At this a blush crept upon her cheeks. "But I believe that we may be more than that; I believe we may be romantically compatible."
"I believe that too." Hermione smiled warmly and said, "After everything that I have been through with the war, Ron, work… I just want something stable in my life. I want someone who will be there for me, have fun with me, and make me feel sexy and beautiful at the same time. I know that Astoria really messed with you, but I need you to be there for me. I need to know that you won't get bored with me after a few weeks and move on to someone else. I absolutely cannot handle that happening to me again."
Draco swallowed hard and sat up a bit straighter. "Hermione, I'm completely ready to move on from the bachelor lifestyle I have been living. I've been looking for something that was right in front of me all this time. I want to give this a try. We might get six months from now and realize that we completely can't stand each other for one more minute, but I am willing to give it a try if you are. What do you think?"
Hermione sat back into her chair and pondered. Sure, they were great together now; they were friends, he finally got along with her friends, and not to mention the sex was great. But what if he was right? What if she hated him later on? She smiled- that was a risk she was willing to take. Anyway, who said love was easy? No one, that's who, and she knew for certain that in this moment she was either already in love with Draco, or just about there.
"Draco, I would be very happy to be your girlfriend. I want nothing more than to see where this crazy life leads us."
Draco came around the side of the table and knelt in front on her. He took her face in both of her hands, looked right into her eyes, and then kissed her deeply. She kissed him back passionately and found she was a bit breathless when he pulled back a few minutes later. Draco leaned back so he could look into her eyes again.
"Hermione, you have just made me the happiest wizard alive."
She gave him a peck on the lips. "Shall I get the wine?"
"Absolutely, and I'll light the fire."
And that was the beginning of their relationship. Hopefully it was clear skies ahead!
