November passed in a blur of classes, homework, late nights with Draco, girl talk with her roommates, and all the snuggles in the world from Sox.
December brought colder weather, but Hermione had never felt better. Her body was finally used to eating on a normal basis again. She was not getting sick as often after meals, thank goodness, and she was slowly starting to gain weight.
The second week of December she had gone to the hospital wing to refill her vitamin potion supply and Madam Pomfrey had checked her weight and vitamin levels. She was still about a stone less than she should be, but she was gaining at a nice, healthy rate.
With one week left in term, she was becoming increasingly nervous about spending part of the holiday at Malfoy Manor. She was pretty sure she could handle returning to the place of her torture. If I can return to the place I watched my friends die, I can return to the place I survived. It was the thought of spending that much time with Lucius Malfoy, especially after the letter he had sent Draco.
After tea with Narcissa they had exchanged a few owls and were slowly building a relationship. She really was a lot nicer than Hermione had expected. They found common ground discussing Ancient Runes, Charms, and their favorite subject: Draco.
"Draco, are you sure your mother is okay with with us bringing Sox to the Manor for all three weeks?"
They were currently cuddling in one of the window seats under a fluffy blanket, with said cat on their laps, watching the snow fall. Being wrapped in Draco's arms was her new favourite place to be.
"I'm sure. Besides, we'll be in my wing of the Manor for the most part and Sox likes to stay close to us."
"Mrow." They both looked down at once at Sox's purring.
"See Mi, Sox is agreeing with me."
"How many times do I have to tell you Draco? The cat is not talking to you."
"Hmmph."
Merlin I love this man. Cat! I love this cat! Not man, cat!
The first day of the holidays arrived and after finishing her morning routine, Hermione made her way into the common room and saw Draco sitting alone on the couch reading.
"Where is everyone else?"
"They've already left. It's half nine. I was going to come wake you if you didn't come out soon "
Glancing outside she noticed that it was indeed light already, "I can't believe I slept so late. End of term exams wore me out I guess."
"Come sit with me," he patted the seat next to him.
Sitting down, she snuggled closer as he wrapped his arm around her. He leaned down and kissed the top of her head. They'd been together three months, but every time he did this her heart melted.
"Ginny stopped by while you were sleeping, but she was eager to see Harry so she left."
"So," slipping a hand up his thigh "all of our roommates, and anyone else that might stop by, have left the castle?"
"Just what are you implying Miss Granger?"
"I'm not implying anything Mr. Malfoy. I'm suggesting we take advantage of the opportunity before us."
"Merlin, I love you witch."
There was a stunning silence except the crackling of the fire that now seemed louder than usual. Based on the terrified look on his face, he hadn't meant to say that out loud. But she couldn't just ignore it, it was out there now- she had to say something. But what do you say to something like that?
She had thought about it of course. How could you not think about it? She knew she loved her parents, but what she felt for Draco was nothing like that. She loved Harry and Ron, but her feelings for Draco were so different, so much more. The boys were her brothers, steady unmoving pillars, always there to support her through the storms of life. Draco was the comfy chair, soft blanket, warm fire, and good book you had with you to ride out the storm. This was something she had never experienced before, it was-
"I love you too."
"Really?"
Searching his eyes, she nodded, "Really."
He stood from the couch and picked her up. Kissing her fiercely he moved them to the rug in front of the fire. Setting her down, she thought he'd continue with the same urgency he'd kissed her with. Instead he paused and looked at her before gently kissing her.
Instead of the hurried shagging they normally engaged in, they took their time and made slow love in the glow of the fire. They didn't speak much, instead Hermione expressed her newly realized feelings for Draco in each squeeze of her pussy around his cock, each stroke of her hand in his hair, and with each gentle kiss they shared. Exhausted, they laid wrapped in each other's arms, Draco wandlessly summoned a blanket to cover them as the l he pulled her tighter against him.
"I'm going to miss you Mi."
"It's only for a three days Draco. You need to spend some time with your parents before I get there."
They had decided to spend the first few days apart, Draco at home and Hermione at Harry's, before she joined him at the Manor on the twenty second. She would stay until Christmas Eve before leaving to join the Weasley's. Draco would be coming over for a few days on Boxing Day before they returned to spend the rest of the holiday at the Manor.
"I think I'll miss Sox while you're at the Manor more than I'll miss you." Giggling she kissed him before jumping up as he chased her to her room where they shared a shower.
The three days without Draco seemed to drag on. Normally she loved being at Grimmauld Place, but evidently Harry and Ginny had two months of shagging to catch up on and since Ron was working she was alone most of the time.
Draco would be coming to pick her up in a few hours via Floo so she didn't have to walk down their long driveway. Harry had finally unlocked their Floo after realizing it was easier to get to the Ministry in bad weather. The list of people that had been given the location of the house was still very small. Just the four of them, Draco, and Narcissa. Harry would have allowed Mr. and Mrs. Weasley but Ron was adamant that his mom not be allowed to drop in whenever she wanted. While he would love her to bring by meals, he knew she would stop by while he was entertaining women and that wouldn't do.
When Draco stepped through the library fireplace Hermione couldn't help the smile that split her face. She mad missed him a lot more than she thought she would.
Walking forward, he wrapped her in his arms and kissed her deeply. Hardly pulling back, she could still feel his lips against hers "I have missed you, Mi. Are you sure it was only three days?"
"I missed you too."
Kissing him one more time before reaching down to grab her bag, which he then took from her, "How is Sox? Did he miss me too?"
"I love that cat. He has been terrorizing my father the entire time. The first time I let him out of his carrier, he ran straight for him, scrambled up his leg, and started attacking his hair." Draco could hardly breathe from laughing so hard. "It is a good thing he is still wearing the magic suppressor bracelet because he was yelling every hex he knows at Sox."
"I wish I could have been there to see it. Please tell me you have a pensieve so I can watch it?"
Laughing he took her hand and led her to the Floo. "We'll have to go together the first time so I can take you through the wards. Are you ready?"
Instead of answering she handled him the Floo powder. Ready as I'll ever be.
Hermione and Draco stepped through the Floo into an explosion of noise and to see that the normally composed Lucius Malfoy was red in the face, hair disheveled.
"NARCISSA! I AM GOING TO KILL THAT SON OF A BITCH CAT!" Brandishing his walking stick at his wife, "It chewed on my walking stick. My walking stick! Are you listening to me?
Narcissa gave him a placating smile as she walked up behind him to fix his robes, "Calm down dear, I can fix it."
"That's not the point! The damn thing is a menace and as wild and unrefined as a Mudblood!"
It took every ounce of control Hermione had to keep a straight face at Lucius' temper tantrum and she heard Draco mutter 'Merlin" as they stepped out of the fireplace. The word 'Mudblood' had stopped offending her long ago, now it was just a word.
"Hello Father, Mother."
"MROW!" Sox came running into the room at the sound of Draco's voice. Leaning down she picked him up and felt him purring as she scratched his ears.
"Have you been being mean to Mr. Malfoy?" she whispered to her kitten. Sox stopped purring, looked at Lucius and hissed loudly.
"What is wrong with that thing? It is a terror." Lucius looked like he wanted to Avada her sweet kitten.
"Nothing is wrong with him, he is very well behaved." But they do say Kneazles are a great judge of character. Maybe there is something wrong with you, Mr. Malfoy? She heard Draco cover up his snort of laughter with a cough.
With a wave of her wand she repaired his walking stick. "There you go Mr. Malfoy, good as new."
She watched as Narcissa moved closer to him and lightly tapped his hand with a finger. Briefly closing his eyes as if to gather himself, he fixed his posture. "Ms. Granger... Welcome to our home..."
"Thank you Mr. Malfoy. Hello Narcissa, it is nice to see you again."
"Hello dear. We are looking forward to having you stay with us. Draco, why don't you show Hermione to her room?"
Walking up the Grand Staircase, they went to the left side of the landing and to head towards Draco's wing of the Manor. As they came closer to end of a long hallway, Hermione noticed they were walking past bedrooms that were devoid of personal items, she assumed they were guest bedrooms and she remembered what Narcissa had said downstairs about her having her own room. "Are we not sharing a room?"
"We are. Father would not approve so Mother and I decided it is better to let him think you are staying in a guest room to keep the peace."
"He wouldn't approve because it isn't 'proper' or because I'm Muggle-born?"
"With him, it is both. But what I do in my wing is my business, it would be different if I was still living in their wing. Over here, I am the master of my domain."
"Well lead on, Master."
"I like the sound of that Granger. Maybe we can do a little BDSM later?"
"Only if I am the one holding the paddle, Malfoy. I seem to remember you liked it when I hit you."
"I did not like it. You broke my nose."
They came to a pair of double doors at the end of the hallway, that were a beautiful eggshell color. She noticed the Draco constellation was inlaid with diamonds into each handle. He opened both doors and stepped aside as if to present the room to her.
The room opened up to a sitting area to the left with a dark brown leather couch and two matching oversized armchairs. They were facing a wall that cut three quarters of the way into the middle of the room with a fireplace in the middle and built in, floor to ceiling bookshelves on either side. The walls were a darker beige color that was a nice contrast with the white ceiling and built-ins, as well as the light beige bricks around the fireplace.
To the right on the other side of the partial wall was a large bed, the head and footboards made from the same leather as the sofa, with the fluffiest bedding she had ever seen. It looked like a cream colored cloud. Both rooms had the same plush light tan carpet, just a few shades darker than the fireplace, and she immediately wished she was barefoot. The fireplace, which she thought only faced the sitting area opened on either side. Instead of windows both rooms had french doors covered in a sheer white curtains that opened to a large balcony.
It was a perfect balance of masculine and feminine. All the brown tones made it feel very warm and inviting and the thought of staying in the room, in that bed especially, all day sounded heavenly. Sox, who had jumped out of her arms as soon as the doors opened was already curled up at the end of the bed.
"I hope you like it."
"Draco, it's gorgeous. I was expecting a really over the top room, gold plated ceilings, four post bed large enough for six, things like that."
"We can owl a few friends if you want to try to fix extra people in the bed. I am sure Luna would go for it."
"You are a horrible person, Draco." She couldn't help but chuckle though. Luna was free spirited and of all her friends, Hermione imagined Luna would be the first to try a three (or more) some.
Draco loved having Hermione at his home. They didn't make it a habit to sleep in the same bed at Hogwarts because his witch had a bad habit of studying in bed, and he liked to 'shag and sleep' as she called it, so waking up with her in his arms each morning was something he cherished. She fitted perfectly in his arms, her bum snug against his hips.
Keeping his eyes closed as he awoke on Christmas Eve, he could tell it was later in the morning than they normally slept due to the brightness behind his eyelids. He felt her start to stir and wriggled her arse back into his morning erection. How he was able to get it up after the all night shag fest they had, he didn't know. I am Draco, God of sex. Kneel before me! Good thing she isn't a Legilimens, she would hex me if she heard me say 'kneel before me.'
"Good morning Dra-a-A-co."
"That was quite the yawn, love. Did you not get enough sleep last night?"
"I kept having these strange dreams actually. They were the most erotic sex dreams I've ever had, they seemed so real."
"Give me the details. Was the sex good?"
"It was amazing. I had no idea Harry could shag like th-"
"HARRY?!" He knew his voice cracked like a prepubescent boy, but he was past caring. He was so jealous he couldn't look at her and closed his eyes. "You were having SEX DREAMS about SCARHEAD?! IN MY BED?!" His voice had reached octaves too high for even bats to hear.
Did she just gasp? Why is she gasping? Did I make her cry? Serves her right!
Taking a deep breath to calm down he turned to look at her. Her face was red and it didn't look like she was breathing. Getting concerned, he noticed her shoulders were shaking and she had tears running down her face. Oh fuck! "Mi, honey. Calm down, love. You need to breathe."
The blast of laughter that left her lungs was so loud, Sox hissed and jumped off the bed. What in the hell? "Oh" gasp "My" gasp snort gasp "GODS!" He wouldn't do anything but stare at her as she was gasping for breath. "I can't believe you fell for that. I can't wait to tell Theo!"
Wait, what? She was kidding? What kind of sick person makes jokes like that? Standing up to go to the bathroom he looked at her, "I do not see what is so funny."
He closed the door and cast a silencing charm to cut off the sounds of her mirth.
Hermione was still giggling when she heard the bathroom door open. She took a deep breath to compose herself but couldn't hold in the amusement when she saw Draco's face. Trying to cover it up with a cough she ran into the bathroom and slammed the door. Draco would kill her, but she was going to give Harry that memory as a Christmas present.
After her shower she had finally rid herself the hilarious thought. Putting on her favorite lounge clothes, Draco's old Quidditch shirt and a pair of grey sleep shorts, she left the bathroom. She didn't see Draco in the bedroom but could see his legs through the fireplace. Looking around the wall she saw him sitting in the middle of the couch with a pout on his face.
"Aw Draco. I'm sorry. It was just supposed to be a joke."
"It wasn't funny."
"Not even a little bit funny?"
"No." She watched in amusement as he stuck out his lower lip in deep frown.
"Do I need to make it up to you?"
"Yes." He kept the frown on his face as he nodded, but she could see one side of his mouth twitching as he tried not to smile.
Walking towards him, she didn't stop until she had crawled on the couch and straddled his legs. Kissing his neck, "Is this better?"
"A little. Keep going."
She couldn't help the small snicker that escaped at his toddler-like behavior. He gave her a heatless glare until she started kissing him again. If anyone else acted like this, she would have been so annoyed, but Draco brought out such a playful side of her. He was able to challenge her intellectually, but also helped her see when she was going overboard on her studying. He helped her stay balanced and that allowed her to feel comfortable doing things she missed it on during the war. Like being a normal teenager.
Pressing her heat against his erection he had her shirt halfway off when his door slammed open. Gasping, but not moving off his lap she looked to her left.
"Good morning Lucius. Happy Christmas." She knew she should probably move, but she was getting a sick satisfaction out of watching the vein in his temple pulse as he tried to control his temper.
"Father. Can I help you?
"You can stop rutting on the couch like a couple of common Mudblood whores."
"Have a lot of experience with Muggle whores Mr. Malfoy?"
"Why you insolent little-"
"MROW" Sox did not take kindly to what Hermione could only imagine Lucius was about to say to her. Her fearless kitten streaked across the room, jumped onto his shoulder and bit his ear hard enough that it started bleeding. Hermione was off Draco in a flash and wandlessly accio'ed Sox to her. That may not have been the best idea as her was still biting on Lucius ear and took a big chunk of it off.
Hermione was not scared for herself, but she had to run to the other side of the wall so Lucius wouldn't see her guffawing at him. She placed a one-way silencing charm around herself so she could still hear him yelling obscenities at Draco. His language reminded her of a scene from the movie A Christmas Story that she would watch with her parents when the dad would cuss at the furnace. She was still holding Sox who was now happy as could be and purring in her arms.
"What is all this racket? I could hear you yelling across the Manor Lucius."
Narcissa entered the room and was looking from Lucius and Draco for an explanation as Hermione walked towards her.
"This racket is that demon cat. It bit my entire ear off. Now I am going to look like that ugly Weasley with only one ear. At least I am not poor or ginger."
Hermione glared at him, Pompous ass.
"Lucius dear, I am sure we can fix your ear, it wasn't cursed off. Draco, Hermione, we are having brunch in the breakfast room. Why don't you get dressed and meet us there in fifteen minutes?"
"Yes Mother."
Draco threw up a quick silencing charm as the door closed, sat on the couch, and put his head in his hands. Setting Sox down, Hermione sat next to him and placed a hand on his back.
"Merlin Hermione, I don't know whether to laugh or scream. Sox is the sweetest cat, but hates my father. I shouldn't, but I find it comical. And I have never seen anyone stand up to him the way you do. You, my love, are a lioness."
The tone of his voice worried her, something seemed off. "What else Draco?"
"I can't stand the way he talks to you."
"You let me worry about how he talks to me. Now as for Sox, he is just doing everything I want to do, but I am not allowed to."
After the most uncomfortable brunch Hermione had ever sat through, they moved into a smaller, more feminine room to exchange presents. Narcissa explained it was her Ladies room and they always held family Christmas in here and used the more formal rooms for when they had large parties for Christmas. Because Hermione was going to the Burrow tonight to spend Christmas with the Weasley's, her and the Malfoy's were exchanging gifts today.
Draco handed her a small, rectangular box. Opening it up, it had a beautiful diamond bracelet inside. He kissed her cheek and explained that it could be charmed to match any outfit she was wearing in case a couple of dozen diamonds was a little too much for jeans and a jumper. She loved it and told him so.
"Don't you think that is a little too nice for her Draco." Lucius was looking at the bracelet like it had personally offended him.
"Lucius, I know it isn't as nice as that suppression bracelet you have one, but I still like it." The urge to stick out her tongue at him was hard to overcome.
Narcissa and Lucius had given her a box full of beauty products. It included "A Modern Witches Guide to Hair and Fashion," the same book they had used to get ready for the dance, "Charms to Charm your Wizard," hair brushes, combs, clips, and more hair and body potions than she would know what to do with. She had started to feel offended that they thought she wasn't good enough as she was.
"Hermione dear, when I went to Hogwarts my first year, my mother sent me with a box just like this. I am not trying to say you need to change how you look, these just make it faster to get ready in the morning. The books also have great hairstyles and jewelry tips depending on what style you are wearing."
"Thank you Narcissa, Mr. Malfoy. This will come in handy." Having Narcissa explain the gift did make her feel better. She had been thinking it was only from Lucius and he was just being rude about her hair. Most people didn't like her hair, even Harry called it a bird's nest, but she loved her curls. Maybe there was something in there what would allow her to keep her curls and control her frizz.
Hermione handed Lucius and Narcissa their gift. She had decided on a combined gift because she hadn't wanted to get Lucius anything, convinced he would either not accept it or would just throw it away. Draco had assured her that his father was raised with certain values and even though a lot were twisted, they wouldn't allow him to throw her gift away. What do you get a man that hates you and had more money than anyone you know?
"You gave us Weasley products? I didn't realize you hated me that much Miss Granger."
"I don't hate you," I just think you're an arse. "That is something I made with George Weasley. It is a variation on their daydream charm."
"Mi, did you get my parents daydream porn? I don't think that is appropriate."
"I did not get them porn Draco. Don't be gross."
"What is it Hermione?" Narcissa was looking at the box filled with a few dozen potion bottles.
"Like the daydream charm that has you enter into a fantasy world, when you ingest the potion, it will allow you to mentally travel anywhere in the world you want. The biggest difference with the potion is that two people can take it and 'travel' together. I thought since Lucius is on house arrest and can't leave the Manor, this would be the best thing."
Clearing his throat "Thank you very much Miss Granger. That was a very thoughtful gift. I will use it often."
"I am glad you like it. Please let me know if you need more."
Draco had been very difficult to shop for. When she asked him what he wanted he said a 'you, naked on a broomstick.' She felt that might be a little impolite to give him in front of his mother, so she talked to Professor Flitwick, did a lot of research and finally came up with what she hoped was the perfect gift.
Opening the envelope she handed him, he looked at the paper inside, then looked at her. "I am not sure what this means Mi."
"It's a gift certificate to a Muggle tattoo parlor."
"No son of mine is going into a filth-"
"Hush Lucius, let Hermione finish." Narcissa laid a hand on her husband's leg before nodding at Hermione.
"As I was saying, it is for a Muggle tattoo parlor. Professor Flitwick and I did some research and while we can't magically remove your Dark Mark, it can be covered up with a Muggle tattoo."
"I can have it covered up?"
"Yes you can. They say it hurts, but-"
"I don't care if it hurts!" He started kissing everywhere on her face he could reach. "Thank you Hermione, I love you."
Narcissa was crying behind them and he gave Hermione the largest smile in the world as she mouthed 'thank you.'
Her eyes met Lucius' as he cleared his throat, "I still hate your damn cat."
A/N:
Sorry for the delay on this chapter. As you will see it is longer than my other chapters so it took longer to edit, but I think it was worth it.
Thank you for every review. XXX