Draco got down on one knee. Alyssa stopped breathing; her eyes bulged out of her skull; she no longer felt exhausted. Going with the day's events, this was certainly not expected. Going to Azkaban; seeing her father; wedding proposal? If it was a wedding a proposal… was it? Keep breathing. Keep breathing. Alyssa's jaw dropped as her heartbeat sped up to a dull hum in her chest.
"W-what are you doing?" She asked in a voice that was very much not her own.
He let out a nervous laugh, and Alyssa tried to see the humor of the situation. She was about to have a heart attack, for God's sake. She eyed Draco; he looked so cute and innocent and beautiful, dressed in jeans and a button up shirt with rolled up sleeves… and if he wasn't proposing, he would be very dead. He pulled his right hand from behind his back – enclosed in it was a small, black velvet box – while taking her left hand with his free one.
"Alyssa," He said; she gasped and her right hand flew to her mouth. He smiled at her posture but continued anyway, rubbing her knuckles with his thumb. "You know as well as I do..." He paused looking for the right words, "My heart doesn't belong to me, anymore. It belongs to you; it always has. And if you wanted it, I'd wish for nothing in exchange. Nothing but your love, your heart… I promise to love you for the rest of my days and beyond that. I will love you forever; every day of forever." He stopped to raise his eyes, and silver met violet. The corners of his mouth uplifted into a smile and he said, "Will you marry me?"
He flipped open the box. Sitting nicely in the black box was a silver band, with three radiant-cut diamonds. On each side were smaller, round diamonds that seemed to sparkle at whatever angle it was held at. He took it out of the box and placed it on her left ring finger, where it fit perfectly. Alyssa gasped again as her eyes moved from the diamond ring on her finger to Draco's eyes, where he waited patiently for her response.
Her lips rose into a smile as her eyes brimmed with tears. "Yes," She said, "Yes, yes – oh my God, yes!" Her breathing had started up again and she was now panting uncontrollably. The brightest, most beautiful smile she had ever seen graced Draco's face and he was standing in an instant, crushing her bones in a tight hug. She raised her left hand and looked over his shoulder at the ring that now sat on her finger in absolute awe. Alyssa never felt better; she would be with Draco forever. She would always belong to him. She smiled and pulled away slightly to look into his eyes.
"I love you." She said happily; although that alone couldn't sum up what she was feeling at all. She repeated those three words over and over before finally claiming his lips. Their lips moved passionately, wanting to remember every second of this moment, only breaking apart when Harry shouted upstairs.
"There better be no shagging up there!"
Alyssa pulled away laughing and Draco rested his forehead on hers, breathing heavily. "I forgot you had to get past Harry." Alyssa said.
"Had to ask for permission," he added. He smiled lightly and ran his hand down the side of her face to rest on her neck. He kissed her forehead and sighed.
"Oh, Draco…" She murmured. She hoisted herself back onto the bed so she could be eye level with him and he snuggled in between her legs. "When did you think about this? We hadn't even talked about it! I had no idea!" She laughed happily and smacked a hand to her forehead.
Draco chuckled softly and pulled her hand away from her face. "I've had the ring, actually." He admitted, "Since the day we all went out to eat after the wedding. After you fainted I had the feeling you might still want to be with me."
Alyssa's jaw dropped, "Might?" She shouted, "Draco, how is that even a question? I told you when I left that we would be together. I'll always love you," She said, repeating the words she had told him three years ago. "Always. And I wouldn't be happy – in this life or the next – if you weren't by my side." She smiled at him and ran her hands up and down his sides, feeling the new weight on her left hand that would never leave.
"I love you." Draco told her. He ran his hands through her soft hair and kissed her again. He leaned forward until her back pressed against the mattress and he ran his hands over her thighs until she had her legs wrapped around his waist. Alyssa was barely breathing, and her heart was pounding in her chest. She gasped loudly when his hands gripped hard onto her hips, and in the battle of biting lips, their tongues met. A low grunt erupted from Draco's chest and he let out a deep lungful of air. He pushed up her shirt and his hands roamed over her ribcage, when Alyssa was suddenly pulled back to earth. They were in Harry's house, when Harry just yelled upstairs at them to make sure they weren't doing any 'shagging'. She would have to push him away before she really lost it and wouldn't turn back.
"Draco," she muttered against his lips. "Wait – stop." He groaned and pulled away so that there was only an inch or two between their faces. "We're in Harry's house – not here."
He rolled his eyes but nodded anyway. "Right; do you want to leave?" He then asked.
Alyssa laughed, but yes, that was exactly what she had in mind. "Please?" He smirked at her and stood up to his full height. He looked expectantly at her and when she finally realized why she said, "Oh – sorry," with a blushing smile. She unhooked her legs from his waist and he helped her stand up. "Let's go."
It was a seriously foggy and quiet night outside. Perfect conditions, Alyssa found, to be able to meditate freely outside without drawing any sort of unwanted attention. Weird things could happen when she meditated. She sat on Harry's front porch in total concentration. Her legs were crossed Indian style. Her hands rested on her knees with her index fingers folded underneath her thumbs. Her breathing was even, and even though the humidity was awful, the silence and warm air was extremely relaxing, making this much easier.
Harry walked out to the front porch and sat on Alyssa's left side, getting a clear view of her shiny new rock. He smiled as he eyed it for the billionth time. They'd spent the entire day with everyone celebrating and breaking into hysterics about 'the news' of the engagement. Harry was still amused with Brad's reaction, which was nearly having a heart attack that after just getting married himself, his baby sister was now at that same step in her life. Harry smiled to himself and took a drink from his water
bottle. He subconsciously cleared his throat and ran a hand through his hair before looking up at the cloudy sky.
"You can talk to me, you know." Alyssa said suddenly, scaring the crap out of Harry. He jumped nearly a foot off the porch and dropped his water bottle in his lap. He eyed Alyssa wearily, not really sure if he should talk or not. Her breathing was heavier than normal and it seemed like her concentration shouldn't be broken.
"I'm listening." She murmured lightly. The corner of her mouth lifted a small amount into a smile.
He still watched her, seeing her eyelids flutter every few seconds. "I don't want to ruin your concentration."
It was a few seconds before she answered. "It's fine."
Harry sighed and he figured he did sort of want to talk to her anyway. That's why he had initially came outside; he didn't know she was busy meditating – something that she realized she'd have to start doing again if she wanted to be as strong as possible.
"So you really want to do this Demetri thing?" He asked eventually. After the information Alyssa's dad was able to provide, they decided to check it out and get more information from Demetri, much to the dismay of Brad.
"Yes… I want to do this Demetri thing." She answered slowly.
He nodded. "It could be dangerous… if something goes wrong. Demetri might not be as nice to you as you think."
She didn't reply and Harry thought she might've not been listening to her. But suddenly she took a deep intake of breath, and her fists clenched until her knuckles turned white. Harry wasn't sure what was happening, but the way she was reacting, he assumed that this was a normal thing for her. The lights that lit up the porch went out leaving them in darkness save for the dim light coming through the windows. Harry looked around, as if expecting it to start lightning or pouring outside, but the weather stayed the same. The floorboards of the porch felt as if they were shaking but he couldn't tell if it was from her or not. But she eventually let out a heavy breath, her fists unclenched, and her eyes opened.
"Sorry, I was listening. And I'm not exactly afraid of Demetri doing anything." She looked over at him and smiled slightly, shocking him with her now black eyes. From his surprised look she said, "Oh, is it the eyes? They do that sometimes when I meditate." She shrugged and closed her eyes again trying to make it less weird.
"No, it's fine. Just a big difference to get used to."
"It'll fade in a few seconds." She added. "But anyway, you have nothing to worry about with Demetri. He's actually really nice, Brad just doesn't like him 'cause he tried to change me and all."
"I think that's a good reason not to like someone." Harry suggested. Alyssa merely shrugged. She opened her eyes again and received a smile from Harry, showing that her eyes were back to normal.
"Is that what you wanted to talk about?" Alyssa asked curiously.
It was Harry's turn to shrug. "Yeah, I guess… and, well – I'm just really happy for you." She blinked at him and he jutted his head towards her left hand and she smiled brightly.
"Thanks. I'm really glad you feel that way. It means a lot to me." Alyssa said. He smiled but she touched her hand to his shoulder. "I mean it, Harry." She said honestly.
"Have you two thought of a date yet?" He asked.
Alyssa laughed and slapped a hand to her forehead, "I don't even know! The propose was such a surprise in itself… I mean – not to say this isn't what I want, or anything. He said he wanted to make it official before we started fighting again…" she frowned now, "Just in case anything happens. So we'll get married once this crap is over with."
Harry nodded, "I wouldn't worry. You'll be walking down the aisle soon enough."
She laughed again and smiled. "Thanks, Harry. But that's what we said last time, wasn't it? And things didn't go exactly as planned."
"You've got a point, there." Harry admitted. "But you two were always meant to be together; I don't think it's going to be any different this time."
"You think so?" Alyssa asked; Harry nodded and she had to admit she felt a little relaxed. It probably wouldn't last, though. In unison, and without having to say anything, Alyssa and Harry both stood up ready to go back inside. They looked at each other before chuckling quietly and walked inside through the front door. Harry had finally agreed to let everyone over – in the purpose of celebration, of course – so the house was packed. Most people were in the kitchen chatting loudly over multiple glasses of wine, but there seemed to be some serious chatter going on in the living room. Draco, Ron, Hermione and Brad all seemed to be going over the plans for when they would go find Demetri, which would be that following weekend.
She went into the kitchen, not wanting to interrupt, and grabbed a plate to have another serving of pasta they had all been devouring for dinner. She was soon accompanied by Draco and she couldn't help but ask, "What were you guys talking about?"
"We're trying to figure out the best way of getting to Italy without drawing too much attention." Draco explained, "We'd like to keep a low profile."
"Well," Alyssa said, she used her hands to warm up the food and walked around the table to get a fork. "We're going in the opposite direction from the Death Eaters, so hopefully we'll avoid them completely." Draco nodded in agreement and looked up from her as Ginny came over.
"Alyssa, what the hell is this I'm hearing about Vampires?" She demanded; and at the use of the V-word, several heads turned over to look and see what was going on.
"You didn't tell her?" Draco asked, clearly surprised.
"What do you mean, I didn't tell her? I assumed Harry was gonna tell her," Alyssa snapped. "Harry! Why didn't you tell her?" She looked at Harry who was sitting across the room and he shrugged. His mouth opened and closed without a reply.
"Didn't tell me what?" Ginny demanded still. She sat on the other side of the table and waited impatiently for an answer.
Draco shook his head disapprovingly, "I can't believe you didn't tell her." He said sarcastically, now amused.
Alyssa ignored Draco and squinted her eyes at Ginny, "Could you at least keep your voice down? Not everyone needs to know about it." Ginny crossed her arms over her chest and waited for her to continue. "All right… we needed some information about these Death Eaters, so we're gonna talk to an old family friend of mine, Demetri, a Vampire, to get it." She explained in one breath.
"Oh," Ginny said calmly. "That's not as bad as I was expecting."
"Why were you expecting anything?" Alyssa asked. Ginny shrugged, and looked over her shoulders realizing she had gotten the attention from everyone in the house, including Alyssa's friends from Romania who had no idea about Demetri either.
Alyssa sighed; she was tired of having to explain things multiple times over. "Sorry I didn't tell you guys, but as he said," she explained pointing to Draco, "We want to keep this as quiet as possible."
"So that's why you're meditating." Alex said. "I knew something was up; you haven't done that in ages." She felt the slight glare coming from Brad and chose to ignore it.
"Yes, that's why."
"I don't think it's a fantastic idea to be running around Vampires, Alyssa." Trish said.
Suddenly a burst of excited laughter escaped from Brad, "Thank you!" He shouted. He rolled his eyes and shook his head, with a ridiculous looking smile on his face.
Alyssa scoffed and glared at him, "Everything will be fine, we've got it all figured out. "She looked hopefully at Harry and he bowed his head confidently, much to her relief. "Really, there's nothing to worry about."
"Right, nothing to worry about," Brad started rambling, "Just a bloodthirsty Vampire. Oh, right! Who already has tried to kill you!"
"Change me." Alyssa corrected.
Ron finally stepped in, "Would the both of you stuff it? We've had this conversation at least six times already, we get the point." He snapped. The room went silent but it seemed as if Alyssa's friends were having their own quiet conversation. They were exchanging looks between themselves and Alyssa, and slowly each of them nodded mutely.
"We want to help." Dan said.
"No way," Alyssa said, immediately disagreeing. "I'm not getting any of you in this… and would you please stop having these silent confrontations? It irks me out."
Alex rolled his eyes, "We want you in this as much as you want us in this. It doesn't matter. We want to help, and you'll never be sorry to have extra help on your hands." At this, Harry seemed to perk up a bit. He restrained himself from agreeing aloud. Alyssa sighed, frustrated. This was why she didn't want to tell them; because then they'd want in on the action, and she could not risk letting them do that. She would never forgive herself if something happened to any of them. She ran a hand over her face and closed her eyes.
"Please," She pleaded, "I can't let you throw yourselves into this for no reason. If anything at all were to happen to you I don't know what -"
"We're all adults here, Alyssa. You don't have to let us do anything; we're not exactly asking for permission." Alex said with a smirk on his face. Alyssa glared at him. She sighed again and sat down at the counter next to Ginny.
"Besides," Jamie started, "You're the last one who should be going off risking your life. I'm pretty sure Draco wants a living Bride walking down the aisle."
Alyssa's jaw dropped, "OI!" Draco shouted from across the room. Everyone looked at him, shocked, because he had been silent for the entirety of the discussion. "Bloody hell; let's not talk about the death of her, if you don't mind. She's more capable of fighting whatever's out there than anyone else in this sodding room." Alyssa looked over at him – glowing brightly on the inside – to see that he was seriously pissed. "I don't know if you've seen what she's capable of, but she's the last person here to worry about any sort of mishap."
She looked back at Jamie who had her head down and remained silent. "Can't you just understand why I don't want you guys involved?" Alyssa asked them.
"Alyssa does have a point." Brad finally said.
"Easy for you to say," Alex argued, "You've got a permanent position in this."
Alex seemed quite pleased with himself and crossed his arms over his broad chest, but Brad shook his head. "No. I don't." He said.
Alyssa's head whipped to his side of the room, "W-what?" she asked weakly. She had always pictured them being side by side, and she observed his face, looking for some sign that he wasn't saying what she thought he was saying.
"I don't have a permanent position in this." Brad said again. He seemed to be very determined to avoid looking her in the eye. "You're not the only one worried about someone getting hurt… Seeing Demetri is as far as I go."
Her heart thudded in her chest. She was confused and angry. How could he leave her side? How could he expect her to do this without him? "Why?"
"I'm having a kid, Alyssa. If something were to happen to me… I want him to have a father." He finally lifted his head and their eyes met. Alyssa couldn't believe it; she tried not to show off how abandoned she suddenly felt and looked away. She let her eyes wander over the pattern of the counter she was leaning on and sighed heavily. What progress they had made during that discussion; her brother wouldn't be with her, and she had six more people to look after.
"So, is that settled then?" Alex asked.
Alyssa glared at him for what felt like the hundredth time that evening. She silently excused herself from the table she was sitting at with Ginny and walked out of the room saying, "Do whatever the hell you want." She walked upstairs and into her room where she shut the door behind her. Perhaps she was overreacting, but she felt like everyone was being just a tad bit ridiculous. No one just threw themselves into a battle, especially when you've never done anything like that before. They'd never had to fight for their lives before – or even fought in general. They didn't realize the foolish decision they were making by deciding to involve themselves in the situation.
There was a knock on the door and Alyssa groaned loudly in protest. "Just let me in." Harry said from the other side. She banged her head twice against the wooden door before finally opening it. Harry stood with an annoyed look on his face, waiting for her to invite him in. She didn't do so, and instead walked over to her bed to lie down. "I know that didn't exactly go the way you wanted it to."
Alyssa closed her eyes and pressed a hand to her forehead. "Really?"
He could tell the obvious sarcasm in her voice and got onto the bed as well to sit next to her. "Really," He confirmed. "This isn't the worst thing that could happen. Maybe they'll change their mind once we reach Demetri."
"I doubt it." Alyssa mumbled.
Harry smirked a bit, "Yeah, me too." He leaned back until his back was touching the mattress, and wrapped an arm around Alyssa's shoulders. "C'mon, cheer up." He said, "This is supposed to be a day of celebration."
"Ugh," Alyssa replied. "I feel utterly stupid."
"That's all right," Harry rationalized, "I'm sure Malfoy's used to that by now." Alyssa laughed and dropped her hand to her side. She rested her head on his shoulder, now much calmer than she had been before. It was very relaxing to lie like this, she thought. "You just need to relax, Alyssa." Harry murmured.
"You're probably right."
"I'm always right." He stated. "Maybe you can come to the gym tomorrow and watch us beat the crap out of each other."
At this, Alyssa perked up a bit, "Is that really what you men do in your spare time?"
Harry contemplated for a moment, "Pretty much."
"Hm, that doesn't sound too bad."
"Well, I must say, I am very, very, very glad you invited me for this." Jamie commented. She dipped her hand into her bag of chips and pulled one out, bringing it to her lips and munching happily. "This is my idea of entertainment."
Alyssa rolled her eyes and sighed, "Yes, I know. It's exactly why I brought you." They were currently sitting on the floor of the gym, propped up against its wall of mirrors, watching Harry and Ron do exactly what Harry said they'd do – beat the crap out of each other. Alyssa figured that since they were best friends, they'd go slightly easy on each other, not wanting either of them to get hurt. Apparently, she was wrong. Each spell cast, each punch thrown, each tackle was all done as if this were a proper duel.
"Ooh!" Jamie exclaimed, "Nice right hook!"
"This is so absurd," Ginny droned on the other side of Alyssa. "What is the point of training like this, if they'll be too beaten up to actually do anything physical?"
"Eh," Alyssa said with a shrug, "They'll be fine. Their bodies are used to this. Plus that's the great thing about magic – healing." She winced as Ron hit Harry in the stomach. Harry recovered quickly and lunged forward, tackling him to the ground with a loud thud. But Ron quickly and easily brought his legs up and kicked Harry off of him, sending him flying onto his back. Harry pulled his wand out of the waistband of his pants and wordlessly cast a spell at Ron. He was hit just as he stood in right position, and went spinning through the air until he landed hard on his stomach.
The three girls all howled loudly and Harry jumped up with a wolfish grin on his face. Ron huffed angrily and pulled out his wand firing back a curse as well. Harry blocked the first one but Ron sent the second so fast, he hardly had time to block it and landed on his back.
"This is so intense," Jamie said, trying to control her laughter. She grabbed another chip and popped it into her mouth.
"Give me some of those," Ginny muttered. She reached her arm over Alyssa and snagged the bag before grabbing a handful of chips and passing it back over. Alyssa rolled her eyes. She looked up as the door to their right opened, and Draco poked his head in.
"What the hell is going on? We can hear everything from outside." He said as he stepped in and shut the door behind him. He was in a t-shirt, baggy sweatpants and sneakers, looking ready to work himself.
Ginny shrugged at Alyssa's side. "Must not have put up the silence charms. You want in on this?" She asked with a smirk. The three girls looked up at Draco who was already immersed in the fight. He stood leaning tall against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest; it was hard to tell if he was ignoring the question or simply couldn't hear her.
They looked back at the fighting pair to see that they were close together now. Their wands were nowhere to be seen and were throwing punches at each other, yet each of them were blocking perfectly. Harry finally spun around and squatted down in the same movement; he kicked out a leg and took out Ron's legs from underneath him, sending him to the floor on his back.
"All right, all right. I'm done." Ron snapped. He panted heavily on the floor, not moving from his position. Harry threw up his fist triumphantly and began walking away until Ron grabbed his ankle and pulled. He practically landed flat on his face.
"That was cheap." Harry mumbled into the floor.
The three girls burst into applause and laughter, cheering both of them on. "Good job boys!" Jamie shouted enthusiastically. While they cheered loudly they didn't notice Draco throw his water bottle to the floor, or hear him say 'My turn'. They didn't realize he had even walked onto the mats until Harry got into a defensive position with his wand at the ready.
Alyssa stopped laughing and Ginny and Jamie soon followed suit. Ron sat next to Ginny, now looking excited as he drank from his water bottle.
"Is it normal that I'm a bit nervous about this one?" Alyssa asked Ginny.
"Let's just hope they stick to the wands." She replied. Alyssa rolled her eyes and Jamie laughed, and without warning, Harry and Draco were at it. It was hard to keep up because neither of them were shouting any sort of curses or charms; they were both silent as they moved speedily to dodge their opponent while throwing something back. Alyssa didn't even blink, afraid that if she had she would miss the whole thing. The sound was being blocked out by Jamie's loud munching in her ear, until a loud gong sounded and rang through the whole room. Alyssa, Ginny, Jamie and Ron all covered their ears and watched in awe as Draco held his hands raised, a ball of something neon green forming in between his hands. It got bigger and bigger until he aimed with his wand at Harry. With a quick flick of Harry's wand, a dark blue light shot out and met the ray of green with a loud bang.
"Bloody hell!" Ginny shouted. Her jaw was hanging opened.
"This is fantastic!" Ron hooted excitedly. His eyes never left the dueling pair as they started up fighting again, shooting curses back and forth. As everyone watched they'd let out the 'Oh!' and 'Ah!' and winced loudly if it looked like something hurt.
It didn't look too dangerous until Draco lost his wand. Draco aimed a curse at Harry only to have him doge it. Harry ducked and when he stood up he sprinted forward a few steps until he had both of Draco's wrists in his hand. Alyssa's jaw dropped and the rest of them were silent. His entire upper body flexed as Harry twisted him around and kicked him forward, taking Draco's wand away in the same movement. He did not seem discouraged though.
Harry threw Draco's wand to the floor and took two steps forward. A jet of silver light shot out of the tip of his wand; Draco lunged to the left, and again to the right before he reached Harry. He grabbed Harry's forearm, and twisted his entire arm around until he was backwards and Harry grunted in protest.
"Is it a little wrong that I'm a tad turned on right now?" Alyssa mumbled.
"I'm right there with you, mate." Jamie replied.
Draco gave his arm another twist before the wand fell loosely out of his hand. Harry grunted again before throwing his left arm backwards, and hit Draco in the jaw with his elbow. Draco let go of him and backed up a step; Harry spun around and threw a right hook, which Draco easily caught. As he held Harry's fist with his left hand, he punched him in the stomach and again in the cheek. The audience winced.
With his left hand, Harry grabbed Draco's throat and shoved him backwards. While Draco was off balance, he dove to the ground, grabbed his wand, and muttered a curse. Draco went flying, and didn't stop until his back hit the opposite wall and fell down to his feet. The glass cracked underneath his weight. Still, he stood to his full height, much to the surprise of everyone watching, including Harry. He took a step forward but Harry held up his hands.
"I think that's enough," He said slowly, now breathing heavily. "For me anyway. That last punch threw me off."
Draco chuckled and walked to the side of the room to grab his water bottle.
"That was wicked!" Jamie shouted and began clapping. Alyssa laughed and Ginny rolled her eyes, mentally thanking the lord no one got hurt. Jamie put down her chips and stood up, making her way over to the rack of swords. Alyssa followed suit to see what the curiosity was about. "Man, did you see that crap?" Jamie asked when Alyssa reached her.
Alyssa laughed and nodded. "Oh, yeah. I've never seen Draco do anything like that." They both grabbed a sword and swung it around, admiring the weapon.
"You've got one heck of a fiancé, Alyssa." Jamie commented with a smirk. Alyssa grinned. She gripped the sword in her hand; she had never really been taught how to use a sword. She could use a dagger, but a sword was entirely different. Brad had only showed her a few basics. She cursed loudly; the mere thought of Brad was suddenly making her angry.
"What is it?" Jamie asked. She put the sword back down, considering she'd barely ever held a sword in her life, let alone knew how to use it.
Alyssa shook her head, "It's just Brad. I'm still pissed he's not gonna be there with me… us." She corrected herself.
"At least it's for a good reason. I'd probably do the same thing if I was him."
"That's true." Alyssa nodded in agreement. She swirled the handle around in her fingers, making the sword spin, until she shot her arm out and to the left where she held it strong. A warm hand suddenly gripped her wrist and she took a sharp intake of breath.
"Watch out with that thing," Draco said from directly behind her. He dropped her wrist as she turned around and smiled lightly. "So, did you enjoy that little show?"
"Hell yeah." She said, she held their eye contact as she hung the sword back up. "In fact… I might have to require you do that little stunt very often. It was pretty damn sexy."
Draco's smile turned into a smirk, "Oh, really?"
"Really." She confirmed. She took a step closer to him and put her hands on his hips. His entire body was radiating with heat and she tried to remember that other people were still in the room. He turned her body and pressed her back against the wall. She suddenly felt so tiny against him after just watching him fight like that… and she loved it. He was so intimidating but she still wanted him so badly, at that very moment. She brought one hand up from his chest to grab his neck and pull his head down so she could finally kiss him. She pressed her lips hard to his and immediately opened her mouth against him. His chest rumbled against hers as he chuckled lowly and leaned forward, pressing his hips against hers. Much to her protest, she couldn't help but moan.
Draco pulled away slightly but trailed his lips down her jaw line and to her neck. "You're going to have to be quieter than that, love." He murmured against her skin.
One of his hands was flat against the wall above her shoulder, while the other found its way to her chest. He felt the outside of her bra against her shirt and squeezed gently, causing her to gasp and grip a handful of his hair. He smirked and silenced her with a kiss. Alyssa had completely forgotten what room they were in and that there were other people in it; she had completely lost control. Unintentionally, her free hand roamed to the front of his pants where she slowly felt his hardness through his sweatpants.
"Alyssa," he whispered; he bit onto her lip and took a step forward, causing her to have to tilt her head back until it hit the wall. He pulled away again and his breath brushed against her lips as he spoke, "That's not nice."
She smiled slightly and was suddenly brought back to earth as Jamie loudly said, "Are they always like this?"
Draco growled and stepped back from Alyssa, yet didn't turn around. They both looked him over to make sure he was presentable, and when they looked back up, Draco glared at her.
"Sorry," Alyssa said weakly, apologizing to both Draco and the others in the room. Draco rolled his eyes and stepped away from her again to turn around and ran his hand through his hair, composing himself. Ginny rolled her eyes as well, but Jamie had the thickest smirk on her face.
"Right, well I'm going to hit the showers." Draco mumbled.
Alyssa's jaw dropped, "After this little stunt you decide to tell me that?" She shouted. He turned slightly before reaching the doors to send her a smirk and she huffed loudly before starting after him. Jamie had to hold her back.
Harry stuffed the paper with the directions into his pocket and sighed. This would hopefully be quicker than they intended. He crossed the room and pushed past Alyssa to grab his water bottle. She was sitting at the counter eating a donut, drinking coffee, and reading the paper looking for any spot of
trouble – whether it had to do with the Death Eaters or crappy weather. It was a little past five in the morning; they'd decided on leaving early so that they could get to Demetri by nightfall. Ron sat on the couch yawning and rubbing his eyes; and Hermione was with Alyssa drinking coffee as well. Draco, Ginny, Blaise and Brad were to arrive at any minute.
"So we all know where we're going?" Harry asked for the sixteenth time that morning.
Alyssa groaned and hit her head on the table, "Yes, Harry. We've all got it."
"I just don't want anyone getting lost." He put his water bottle in his backpack and zipped it up before tossing it in front of the door. "And remember: No apparating until we're all together and out of the country."
"Yes, sir." Ron said with a salute. Since their group alone was so big, they were splitting up. Harry, Ron and Hermione were together, Ginny was with Blaise, and Alyssa was with Draco and Brad. Demetri was in a small village in Zealand, Denmark. It wasn't too far away, but they didn't want to draw any attention whatsoever. Suddenly there was a knock on the door. Alyssa merely yawned, and considering Harry was the only one purely conscious, he shook his head impatiently and walked over to open it. The four people they had been waiting for had arrived. Ginny and Draco seemed to be the only two people who were wide awake; it wouldn't have been a surprise if Blaise was still actually asleep.
Alyssa plopped the last bit of her donut into her mouth and gulped down the rest of her coffee. She walked by Draco, greeting him with a kiss on the cheek, and grabbed her coat from the coat rack. As she put it on she turned to the group who seemed to come to life now that they had to leave.
"All right, everyone knows where they're going?" She asked. They all nodded silently. "Now, we'll be on the train so we'll be off contact, but in case there's an emergency, Harry has however many-"
"Eighty-three," He said.
Alyssa blinked. "Right, eighty-three Aurors on call in case anything goes wrong and we'll find out right away. We should all hit Denmark by two, which is meet up time, and by then it shouldn't be long until we get to Zealand." She stopped to glance at her watch; it was nearing six. "Let's go, then."
Everyone stood from their positions. Alyssa tossed Harry his bag and picked up her own, throwing it over her shoulder. As they all filed out of Harry's house they hugged each person they passed, as if worried about seeing each other again.
"Ron taught you how to use the tickets for the ferry, right?" Alyssa asked Ginny.
Ginny nodded, "I got it down, no worries. Just wait until we have to do this with Polyjuice." She said while rolling her eyes.
Alyssa grimaced, "Yeah, not really looking forward to it." They hugged each other tightly and Ginny and Blaise walked out through the front door. Alyssa, Draco and Brad were left. Harry suggested they take a map but the three of them were all positive they'd be fine. Alyssa hugged Harry before she left.
"Be safe." He murmured in her ear.
"I know," Alyssa replied, "Don't want to save me a third time, is that it?" She asked sarcastically. He grinned at her and nodded his head, and she, Draco and Brad walked out the door.
Three hours later, Brad, Draco and Alyssa were seated on an Amtrak train. Brad had fallen asleep completely once it started moving, but Alyssa and Draco were now wide awake. She had grabbed a new issue of the Muggle paper and was now reading over it, in case she missed anything important.
"So how do you know Demetri?" Draco eventually asked.
Alyssa rolled her eyes. Draco had barely ever mentioned Demetri after learning he was completely 'head over heels' for her. "He was my dad's friend." She answered, "We met a lot of people that way – like Lucius – through him, I mean. He was over a lot. When I first met him I thought he was the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen." She laughed remembering the way she admired him all those years ago.
"Oh, really?" Draco said, seeming interested. "Did you not want him to change you?"
"I was thirteen, Draco." Alyssa said. "I didn't know what I wanted, and anyway, how much of a relationship could we have when he looks twenty-seven? Besides… he was the most beautiful thing I'd seen." She held Draco's hand in hers and intertwined their fingers. I'm glad I decided to wait." She said, giving him a meaningful look. "But he was at our house all the time, as I said, and my entire family noticed the way he'd look at me. It was hard not to really, it was so… so – I don't even have a word to explain. You'd have some competition, though." She said teasingly.
He didn't crack a smile, "I highly doubt that."
"So even though my dad had a fascination for all things Dark, he definitely didn't want his thirteen year-old girl to become a Vampire. I had no choice – even if I wanted to be one – because Demetri could make me do anything he wanted without much persuasion. So I was shipped away for a while, and it was taken care of. I don't really know the details – he'd be able to tell you more." She nodded her head towards Brad who was snoring lightly.
"Do you really think he won't try to do it again?" Draco asked. He gripped her hand and she thought he might had convinced himself that Demetri would try to change her; but she shook her head.
"No. He won't want that much trouble, especially since he'll be with his clan." She was more than positive he wouldn't try anything. Even more positive due to the fact that a certain Boy Who Lived would be present; it was downright unheard of to start with Harry these days, not since he'd defeated You-Know-Who. She looked over at Draco; his eyes were closed and his head was resting back on their seat. His hair was getting longer – his bangs reached the tips of his cheeks. "What are you thinking?" She asked. "You're not nervous or anything, are you?"
He opened his eyes which were a dark grey now. His head shook only a bit from side to side. "No… I was actually just thinking it's about time you move in with me."
Alyssa had to clench her jaw shut tightly so it wouldn't fall open. He just kept on coming out with this stuff. After she got over the shock, the corners of her mouth lifted into a bright grin. "Really?"
Draco nodded, "Really."
She glanced away still smiling and snuggled into him. He wrapped his arm around her waist and she rested her head on his shoulder, tucking her leg in between his. "That sounds awesome." She said enthusiastically. "I'm really gonna have to learn my way around then, aren't I?"
"It's not that hard once you get the hang of it." He replied. Alyssa rolled her eyes; that was a lot easier said than done.
By nightfall, the group was together again. No one had any problems during their trips, except for maybe a bit of fumbling with tickets and Muggle money. Alyssa looked at her watch, which had become her new routine. They were right on schedule. She looked around their unfamiliar settings; they were in a middle of a field which was surrounded by tall trees. They had apparated from Zealand to the coordinates her father had given her. She glanced at Harry, only slightly being able to see him through the darkness.
"Well?" He asked.
Alyssa shrugged looking at the group. "I don't know; we're at the right coordinates."
Ginny huffed and stomped her foot, "You don't think he gave you the wrong ones, do you?"
"I highly doubt that." She said, instantly shaking her head. She sighed again looking around; in between a section of tall trees was a small part that seemed to reveal the start of a trail. "Maybe we should go that way?" She asked. No one had any objections so they set out, crossing the field to reach the path.
It was mostly dirt with vines, tree roots, and branches everywhere. It was completely dark now so they pulled out their wands to light up the way. Alyssa held her palm out and an orb of white light surfaced; it bobbed above their heads as they walked. Alyssa and Harry were in the front of the group, Draco and Brad were in the back – wands at the ready. They walked for about twelve minutes before Harry tripped on a root and fell into open space. It was a meadow; a small clearing of moonlit grass with a small stream running down the middle.
"Where are we?" Ginny asked.
"I think we're here." Alyssa said warily.
"Look around," Brad called from the back. The others didn't know what he meant, but Alyssa searched the woods, squinting her eyes trying to focus better through the darkness. Even with the pitch blackness of the woods, Alyssa began to see pale faces looming through the trees. She turned around to face the group.
"It's all me from here; they don't know who you are so they won't trust you." She glanced at Harry who was beginning to worry, and then looked at Draco whose expression was void of any emotion. She sighed and turned back around. "If anything goes wrong, you'll know it."
"Be careful." Brad said sternly.
Alyssa nodded, and without looking back, crossed the meadow. She hopped over the small stream and walked five feet from the very edge of the woods. There was hissing in the air that cut through the dense silence. She waited and felt a chilly breeze pass over her.
"Is that really who I think it is?" A smooth, deep voice spoke. It was so quiet she wondered if anyone could hear it, but the hissing began again so she knew that it was the rest of Demetri's clan talking amongst themselves.
"Demetri?" Alyssa called, staring expectantly into the woods. She was startled as a lone figure walked silently out of the crowd of trees; she would never hear him – or anyone like him, for that matter – coming.
The voice breathed out in a low hiss, "Alyssa…"
A/N: Once again, i'll be away for the next week, so I got this one out quickly so you had something before I left. I hope you enjoy it! I'll get right back to it once i get back, and thanks for the awesome reviews!