For a long time, they both stood there, his wand pointed at her face, her wand stowed away in her pocket. She would give me a chance. She would give him a choice. And then she would leave. She would fight her way out if she had to, no matter her feelings. Because Harry was back at her flat, waiting for her. Because what they had to do was more important than what she felt for the man debating with himself on whether he should kill her or not.
"How?" he asked, his voice low, his face revealing nothing. His eyes were roaming over her face, her body, her very soul, trying to take it in, trying to understand.
"I stole that face," she told him. "The day of the battle, when Harry died, I stole that face and left. And I hid, for a year. I stayed hidden with that face."
"And why reveal yourself now?" he spat. "Why reveal yourself to me? Especially when you know I'd kill you."
"Because I wanted you to know," she said quietly. "Because the lie became too much, and I needed you to know. And because - things are about to happen. I cannot hide anymore. And before it happens, I needed to tell you the truth."
"What's going to happen?" he demanded, ever the soldier.
"Things," she said vaguely.
"If you want to live, Granger," he said her name with contempt, "you should start talking about those things, and fast."
"I cannot tell you," she sighed.
"And you thought what? That you'd tell me and you'd walk out of here and do whatever it is you're planning?" he snapped at her. "You must have lost your mind this past year if you think that I'd allow that, Granger."
"I don't know if you'll allow it," she said simply. "But you should know, I have every intention of walking out here alive."
"You think you can beat me?" he laughed coldly. "You don't know the things I've done, Granger."
"I know perfectly well, Malfoy," she snapped at him. "You saved me. You comforted me when I killed a man. You cared for me. You broke up with Astoria for me."
He pressed the wand to her throat, anger growing on his face. "For Jean, not you."
"We're one and the same," she said sadly as the realization came over her. She had thought of herself as two different people, Hermione Granger and Jean Wyler. But they were both her, she realized now. They were both equally a part of her. Jean was every part of her that she couldn't afford to be as Hermione. She was quiet and afraid, timid and conserved. She was everything Hermione couldn't be as Harry's best friend. But it was still her. "You said you cared for me, as Jean. But I am Jean."
He jabbed his wand against her throat. "You think you're quite clever, don't you, Granger?"
"And I know everything you've done," she continued as if he hadn't spoken. "I know exactly what you're capable of. I've seen the cruelty. I've seen the choices you've made. But I love you anyway."
"Shut up," he snapped.
"I love you," she stepped closer to him, the wand still pressed against her. She knew he could finish her now. But something told her he wouldn't. "I came to tell you the truth because I love you. What started as a means to survival turned into this, Draco. It turned into love."
"Don't call me that," he said through gritted teeth.
"And somehow, we ended up here," she said, taking another step towards him. "Somehow, against all odds, here we are. The lion who fell in love with the snake. I know you cared for Jean. But I think you care for me too. I think you cared for her because she reminded you of me. And I don't think you're going to kill me now, Draco. Because I love you, and even with what I'm telling you now, even with the truth spread out in front of us, I think maybe you love me too."
He stared at her for a long time. She waited quietly, counting the breaths until he moved. It was exactly 342 breaths later that he grabbed her by the arms, his wand falling between them, and pulled her to him, his lips claiming hers.
It was not a gentle kiss. It was all lips and tongue and teeth. It was frustration and anger. It was denial and acceptance. It was a boy who had grown up on hatred, and a man who had accepted his fate. It was a girl who thought she knew everything and a woman who knew there was so much she did not. It was desperation.
He turned her around in his arms, her back pressed against him. His hands were gripping her waist, bruising and angry. His lips were on her neck, biting and rough. She gasped as his tongue tasted her skin, putting her head back on his shoulder, tilting it to give him more access. One hand gripped her tighter while the other moved over her body, squeezing her breasts, feeling her over her clothes.
His breath was hard against her skin. "This isn't love."
"Okay." She reached behind her and ran her hand over his hardening length.
He growled against her skin, his hands gripping her tighter for a moment. His roaming hand was paying adamant attention to her breasts, squeezing and kneading through her clothes. His other hand moved to her core, running his fingers over her. She gasped when she felt him. He took the hem of her dress and pulled it up slowly, his tongue doing marvelous things to her neck. It was amazing, this fire he was starting in her. Her core was aching for friction, for him, for what only he could give.
They were moving before she knew it, and he pressed her against his desk. Barely moving away from her, he took her dress off, throwing it away from them. With his knee, he pushed her thighs apart and bent her over, his hands and lips still doing wondrous things to her. "Draco," she gasped when he ground his hips into her back.
He bit her shoulder roughly. "Shut up, Granger," he said through gritted teeth.
Placing a rough kiss on her back before continuing down. He growled at what he found between her thighs. His every touch was an inferno, and she was more than ready for him. Apparently, he did not think so. He swiped his tongue along her slit making her call out in ecstasy. She gripped the desk, trying not to fall over. His fingers were grabbing her arse, holding her open for him. She was sure she would have bruises later. But she didn't care. His tongue was amazing. He felt amazing.
She bit her lip when he pushed his tongue into her, licking her through. "Fuck," she moaned. Again and again he pushed his tongue into her, tasting her, licking her. He was by no means gentle. This was for him. But she loved it. She felt herself coming closer and closer to the edge. It was when he reached over and a well placed slap landed on her clit that she came into his mouth, crying out.
He didn't let her come down though. Before she knew it, he was back up against her, and his cock was aligned with her opening. With one hard thrust, he pushed himself all the way in. She cried out, arching her back. He felt so good inside of her. She could feel every inch of him. It was glorious.
"Malfoy," she moaned, knowing it was what he wanted to hear. He didn't want to hear his first name, not from her lips, not yet. And she was okay with that because now it was Draco and Hermione. Now it was her in the flesh. Now he was fucking her, not Jean Wyler.
He pulled out slowly once and thrust back in, letting her adjust to the size, to the position. And then he started. His thrusts were hard and sure, hitting that sweet spot inside of her each time. If the first thrust had been for her, these were all for him. Her hands clenched into fists as he pushed her head down against the table with no hand and gripped her hip with the other. Each thrust was harder, faster.
She was on fire. Every nerve in her body was ignited and each thrust licked the flames coursing through her. She was getting close again. He brought her closer and closer to ecstasy once more. Her clit brushed against the table with each thrust, only adding to the friction.
She came hard around him, trying to milk him. She cried out loudly, her orgasm stronger than before. But he was not done. He rode out that dark wave, refusing to follow her into ecstasy. Instead, he stilled within her, growling at the feeling of her constricting around him. When she came down from her high, he took her by the hair, pulled her up against him, and resumed his brutal thrusts.
"Hermione," he groaned into her ear before he took the skin below her ear into his mouth, sucking and biting. She moaned as she put her head back on his shoulder, letting him have his way with her. This was retribution, for her lies, for her deceit, for her true identity. This was her, and he was entitled to her any which way he wanted.
His thrusts began to grow sloppy, his breath grew more ragged. He was close, so close now. She reached up around his head, and pulled him to her lips. The kiss was just as brutal as his treatment of her battered pussy. He was claiming her. He was making her pay.
When he came, she swallowed his long groan. He thrust a few more times before he stilled, his lips still moving roughly against hers, his tongue tasting her. He let go of her hair and wrapped his arm around her waist as he pulled out of her, turning her over to face him.
They stood like that for a few moments before suddenly he tensed. He pulled away from her angrily, as if he had been slapped into his senses. "Leave," he said, pulling his trousers up.
"Draco," she stepped towards him.
He held his hand up. "Leave, Granger," he said. "Before I change my mind."
She stood there for a moment, just staring at him. She tried to read him, tried to gauge his emotions. But his face was suddenly blank again, his gaze distant. There would be nothing else said.
She just nodded and got her dress, putting it on quickly. She walked to the fireplace but stopped, looking back at him. He was still silent, staring at her as if he were looking at a ghost. "I know you don't believe me, but this was never about hurting you," she said quietly. "I love you, Draco."
With that, she stepped into the fireplace, leaving him. And all she could think about, as she went back to Harry, as she went farther away from him, was how he had said her name.
NEW UPDATE! I told you it was almost written :) it's a little short, I know, but I did that for a reason! You will see why in the next chapter :) so he finally knows and they were together as Draco and Hermione! It was a long time coming lol
What did you guys think? Let me know!