A/N
Dear wonderful and devoted fans, I need help. Please help me decide what to do next. My life is so full of crap right now I cannot do much. I am so sorry for not posting sooner, but I have NO FREAKING TIME!
Gosh. I hate myself for making everyone wait so long. This is killing me and I've gone through a creative slump. Everything has stopped and I'm afraid that I've lost my edge. So sorry devoted fans. I pray that you will find it in your heart to forgive me and stay with me.
READ AND REVIEW if you please, I'm rotten for not keeping this up like I should be.
Disclaimer: JK's, not mine.
In a land of far away dreams, there was one princess. She was not truly a princess, she was merely a poor peasant girl—though she wished to be royalty with all the depths of her heart.
This lowly farmer's daughter lived on a hill looking out on the kingdom—and most importantly—the castle. Each morning, as the sun rose, she would sit and watch the lights hit the extravagant building. She would dream that one day she would walk through the chapel doors as the sun shone through the stain glass windows that decorated the walls and she would be dressed in the most ostentatious white gown that could be made.
But she knew her dreams could never become a reality, for she was only a peasant, a poor farmer's daughter with no money to her name and rags for clothes. Her prince was to never even know her name, much less ask for her hand. She pondered this and wept silently.
What a world her heart longed for! And what a world she could never receive.
Hermione woke with a start and rubbed her eyes. Her dreams of seeming harmlessness haunted like nightmares. Before she knew she was a witch, she dreamed of being a princess—one like Cinderella or Snow White—though now she realized how silly and stereotypical her childhood dreams were.
Back aching, she pulled herself from Draco's arms, careful not to wake him and braided her hair into a plait down her back. She swiped at the tiny beads of sweat that gathered on her forehead.
She took a moment to glance at herself in the mirror and saw her cheeks were flushed and blotchy and there was an imprint of Draco's ring on her left cheek from sleeping with his hand pressed to her face. Sighing at all these things, she left the horrifying sight and sat down at Draco's desk and studied the covers of all the books they had checked out a few days previous.
"Ancient Spells and Charms", "Hexes Through the Middle Ages", "Rarities in Magic", "Rare Fantastics", and the last one which Hermione was sure could never be it: "Ancient Bonds from a Past Life".
Since she had no idea where to start from, she figured she'd start with the basics, and so she read. Her eyes scanned every page so as not to miss a single detail that could possibly give a clue to what was going on with the blisters.
Her mind worked restlessly as if this were some big puzzle that she needed to piece together quickly. She would have even liked to finish before the sun came up.
Anxious, she tap, tap, tapped her fingers on the desk, feeling the slightest bit of stress seep over her. Tapping was a nervous habit, and she rarely ever noticed she did it, for it was so involuntary.
Draco stirred behind her and she turned to see him flip to his back, and the shirt he had been wearing was terribly wrinkled.
Hermione stifled a giggle for she knew that the old Hogwart's-student-Draco would not have allowed his attire to be so unorderly, but now that he had changed, he did not care so much anymore.
A simple smile graced her pink face as she returned to her studies.
Every single page she flipped through had nothing, nothing, nothing to do with their blisters.
Tap, tap, tap. Tap, tap, tap. Her fingers drummed tirelessly on the cedar wood desk.
Hours passed and each book she tried held no answer for her. As she turned the last page of "Rare Fantastics", she glared at the last book and finally flipped it open. Hermione groggily read the first page when she felt something gentle touch her head.
She did not turn, but instead closed her eyes as the things she now knew to be hands worked their way down to the band that held her braid together and slowly slid it off.
The hands worked at undoing the braid link by link from underneath. When they were finished, their fingers ran through her hair, creating a pleasurable tingle on her neck.
Hermione tilted her head back slightly and took a deep breath before reaching both arms up and taking Draco's face in her hands. She pulled his mouth down to hers and savored in the delight of his taste and sighed, satisfied.
When they finally pulled apart, both halves were gasping for sweet breath and Hermione forced herself to focus back on the sure-to-be-bogus book.
"I can't figure it out Draco. None of the other books we got said anything familiar to this situation. And I'm sure this one probably won't either!" she exclaimed, hugging the arms that were draped around her shoulders and neck.
He pressed his lips upon the top of her head and kissed her soft brunette locks, then rested his chin where he had kissed. Draco could not help but smirk at her determination (which was only another thing to add to the list of things he loved about the woman sitting in front of him).
"Don't you dare laugh at this situation I'm in Malfoy. This is serious business!" she tried to sound dignified, but her tone betrayed her profusely.
"Okay, okay!" Draco said, putting his hands up in mock surrender. "You can get back to your research and I'll try to stay out of your way."
Hermione nodded her head in a way of prevailous gratitude and continued reading.
All the while Draco played with her hair and sent tingles from her neck down her spine, making it excruciatingly hard for her to focus. And though this was the case, she did not complain. On the contrary, she silently begged for more. His touch was always a shockwave of pleasure that she could not ignore.
Seconds turned into minutes and minutes turned into hours of studying the great book she had in front of her.
Draco fell back asleep on the floor around her chair and she rolled her eyes
All could have been abandoned by Hermione, and it nearly all was.
But suddenly, she jumped.
"Oh!" she gasped, her breath catching in her throat, turning her wide eyes to Draco.
She shook him awake.
"Draco. Draco look at this. Hurry! Wake up!" there was an urgency in her voice that Draco simply could not ignore. He sat up, wiping the sleep from his eyes, and he stared at the book page, still not seeing anything for he had not completely woken up yet.
"A Bond Between Souls by Athenea Blackwood. It's one of the articles in this book." Hermione's breathing caught in her chest once more as she read the next sentence…
"'It was once rumoured that there was an ancient bond between two souls that connected them so strongly that blemishes would occur. Any pain—emotional or physical—either of the two halves endured would show up on the others skin.
"This bond was rumoured to be first seen 140 BC between Memoria Garingre and Laqueus Mulfanae. It's second sighting was 1040 years later between Hermatia Graquedona and Drachtuss Malfinae. This extraordinary affair has yet to be seen again, but trained wizards are still searching for a true reason behind this.
"Some believe that the bond follows the reincarnates of the two couples and that this bond links their souls as one, causing each to feel what the other feels and vice versa. If one was to die, then the other would simply be unable to bear it and join their other in blissful death. Some like to argue and say that Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet was based after this ancient form of magic, others believe it is nothing more than talk. This topic is still argued today between witches and wizards, though most of the population know nothing of this charm…or would we call it a curse?'"
Draco—now completely awake—turned his head to face Hermione and she did the same. Both stared wide eyed at the other in shock and pure wonderment at this new marvel they faced in front of them.
A bond? Are we the reincarnates? Hermione wondered, astounded by the newly found information.
"How…?" Draco's words hung in his mouth as he returned his eyes to page 823, a number he seemed to vaguely remember from somewhere.
Eight-hundred-and-twenty-three…
*Preview of Next Chapter*
He had dreamed of that number several times, trying to understand why it haunted him.
Eight-hundred-and-twenty-three. Eight-hundred-and-twenty-three. Eight-hundred-and-twenty-three!
None of the cards matched, none of the pieces fit! The blisters simply did not make sense!
AGH! Finally done with this chappie! :D I'm so happy! I hope it didn't suck like it probably did… *facepalm*
Please forgive me for being so late. I hate that I was. And please oh please review. I would be forever grateful. Reviews help me keep going and I am going through a major slump at the moment, so your reviews would be very kind to me. Thanks bunches!
I hope you are satisfied with what they have found out…this ones going to be interesting! CLIFF HANGERS!
Happy writings
Caroline