A/N: Whew. Finally finished this chapter. Thought I never would! Lol. I had to keep changing it, because I was so unhappy with it. But I think I'm okay with it now.. and where I took things. But we'll see, right? Lemme know whatcha guys think. I really hope you like it. You have no idea how many times this chapter was edited. Annnnyway, thank you guys so much for reviewing! This story now holds the record for the most reviews outta all my stories! xD Hehe. Thanks again! So, you know the drill. Read, enjoy, annnd review! :) :) Hope you like it.
xx-Mione-Fan-xx
All's Fair in Love and War
Chapter 34
It wasn't until after the Christmas feast that Hermione realized something terrible. She was walking to the common room with Harry, who had been released from the Hospital Wing, when it hit her. "Oh no!"
"What? What is it?" Harry asked, immediately looking around the hall for someone possibly attacking them. Hermione clapped her forehead, annoyed with her own stupidity and groaned.
"Malfoy has my wand!" She muttered in explanation before taking off for the dungeons. She vaguely heard Harry yell something after her, probably asking why the hell Malfoy would have her wand in the first place but she was too panicked to stop and answer him. Instead she called over her shoulder, "Tell you later, be back soon!"
She didn't remember until she'd already made it to the dungeons, that she had no clue where the Slytherin common room was, and that she probably should have made Harry come with her. Not only would he show her where it was, but then she wouldn't be alone with Malfoy. And she probably shouldn't be alone with the blonde Slytherin just then. Not after everything that had been happening lately.
She was relieved that it was Christmas break and so there weren't any mental Slytherins lurking around to attack her. She'd had enough of sneaky, ill tempered, mean Slytherins to last her a lifetime.
She stopped a short distance from Professor Snape's chamber and bit her lip. Harry had mentioned that the common room was hidden behind a regular wall, but where? She sighed in aggravation. There was no way she was leaving without her wand. She couldn't. She could need it at any given moment, and may not have time to go searching for Malfoy. Stupid prat. How dare he take her wand?!
She was about to give in and ask Professor Snape where the common room was, and face his terrible wrath and possibly detention when she saw her miracle pass through a wall.
"Sir Baron!" She cried in relief, as the Bloody Baron turned to glare at her. She held in a whimper, but stood bravely. He was a very terrifying ghost, covered in blood, but she knew he was the Slytherin ghost and therefore would know where the common room was. She'd never heard him speak, and knew he wasn't particularly nice to students but hoped he would do her a small favor. "Sir… please, I wonder if you could show me where the Slytherin common room is?"
The transparent ghost just continued to glare at her.
"Please, sir, it would mean a lot. I have to find Malfoy, Draco Malfoy, you see, he has my wand… and I kind of need it back," Hermione rambled nervously. This was one ghost who gave her the creeps. But she noticed that at the mention of Malfoy, the ghost had raised his eyebrows curiously. She took that as a good sign and continued. "I'm not trying to sneak into their common room or anything honest, I just need to – er, ask him to kindly give me my wand back."
The Bloody Baron didn't say anything but turned and floated away. She dropped her jaw in disbelief, and then huffed. He could have at least told her he didn't want to show her where it was. It was awfully rude of him to just walk away. Why would Dumbledore allow him to be a ghost here, when he was so ru-
The ghost turned and for a moment she panicked, thinking he had heard her thoughts or something, but he gave her a stern look and she gasped lightly. Oh! He wanted her to follow him! He was going to show her where it was! "Oh thank you so much sir!" She cried and he gave her a glare but continued to float down the hallway. She took a deep breath and hurried after him.
Draco grinned as he stretched out on the couch. The common room was completely empty, and Greengrass had been sent home when Potter and Granger went to Dumbledore and reported what had happened. So now Draco had the entire common room to himself, as no other Slytherins had stayed back. He found that strange. Normally a couple of unlucky first or second years who had no family would remain at the school. But he assumed they must have gone to a friend's home or something.
He twirled his wand casually, staring into the flickering flames of the fireplace. Usually, the fireplace would be nothing but ashes as it was rarely lit. The other Slytherins always put the fire out whenever a young and still naïve student decided to light it for warmth. They seemed to like the common room cold. But as Draco was alone, he decided he wanted to be warm and had lit the fire.
His thoughts travelled to the events of the day. He had gotten presents sent in from home, but none of them were very appealing to him. They were just stuff he'd needed, or didn't even want but his parents felt he'd like it or something. Merlin knows. His mother probably bought it all, and she was utterly insane sometimes.
He had just begun to think about Granger and their moment in the kitchen when a loud banging sounded on the door to the common room. He frowned. Who the hell could that be? It was obviously for him, since he was the only one here. But the only person who would visit him would be Snape, and Snape knew the password.
The pounding got louder and he sighed, swinging his feet off of the couch and standing up. He yawned as he took his time walking to the door, wanting to piss off whomever it was interrupting his peaceful thinking.
He never would have expected it to be her however. As soon as he opened the door, he was tackled. "Bloody hell, Granger! When I told you to think of me, I didn't mean come and attack me in my common room! Couldn't you have waited till tomorrow to ambush me?" He joked and then smirked at their position. She had jumped at him with such force – not to mention he hadn't been expecting it- that he ended up tumbling backwards and landing on his back. She, of course, came with him, so that she was now sprawled on top of him.
Calmly, he wrapped his arms around her waist, even as she hit his chest. "Give me back my wand, you prat! Do you know how completely helpless I am without it? I'm nothing without it! Give it back!"
Oh shit, that was right! He had her wand. He'd forgotten about that. "Calm down, Granger. How'd you find the common room, anyway?"
"Give it back," She huffed, sitting up slightly to glare down at him. He winced as she moved against him and held in a groan of painful pleasure. She remained on top of him, obviously thinking she had him trapped. He could easily flip her over if he wanted to, but he rather liked their position.
"Why? Then you'll get off of me." He said with a smirk. Her eyes widened as she glanced at their position. Her cheeks reddened but she didn't move.
"Hand over the wand, Malfoy." She said firmly.
"No," He said slowly, drawing the word out. She narrowed her eyes at him, smacking his chest hard. Her slap didn't daunt him and he trailed his hand up her arm. She moved to get away from his touch and this time he couldn't hold the groan back. He heard her sharp intake of breath when she realized why he was groaning, and she immediately tried to jump off of him. He grabbed her shoulders and pulled her down to his lips instead.
His attention completely focused on her soft lips on his, he let out a loud grunt when something smashed painfully into his pride and glory. She pulled away, smirking triumphantly as he rolled onto his side moaning in agony. "Granger, you- you ruddy wench!" He managed to gasp out.
"Where's my wand?" She asked now standing over him and completely unconcerned to the fact that he was dying.
"I'll never tell you after what you just did," He said dramatically, squeezing his eyes shut in pain.
"Well you deserved it. Now tell me where the wand is or you'll get a lot worse than that. I'll make it so that you never have children, Malfoy." She hissed fiercely.
"Merlin, you're terrible," He said weakly. "It's in my pocket," He added with a sigh.
"Well give it here then," She said haughtily. He winced.
"Because of you, I can't bloody move. So you're going to have to get it yourself," He said in annoyance. She huffed and bent down beside him again, shoving her hand into his trousers pocket. Her hand closed around her slender wand and she pulled it out, sighing in relief.
"Have a nice night, Malfoy," She said, now cheerful, as she turned around to leave.
"Y-you can't just leave me here! This is your doing!" He yelled hoarsely. She turned around and stared at him, with absolutely no sympathy in her eyes.
"My doing? You were the one who stole my wand and then kissed me. I didn't want you to kiss me. I only wanted my wand back. You deserved everything I gave you and more." She said harshly.
"Granger…" He said, aware that he was whining. She sighed in frustration and walked back over to him. He heard her complaining under her breath, as she bent down and grabbed both his arms. He groaned when she pulled him to his feet. She led him over to the sofa and he fell back gratefully, sinking into the soft cushions.
He opened his eyes and was slightly surprised – but pleased – to see she was still standing over him. She was chewing on her lip as she glanced around at his common room.
"What is it? Expecting it to be a lot more gloomy? Something a vampire would live in perhaps? Maybe with coffins?" He asked mockingly. She flushed as her eyes swung back to his. He knew he was right.
"It's a bit warmer and cozier than I thought it'd be. I didn't think there was a fireplace down here at all. It's nice," She murmured thoughtfully.
"Usually the fire isn't going. The other Slytherins always put it out. But as they're not here…" Draco shrugged. "I reckon it's not as nice as the Gryffindor common room though," He said matter-of-factly. She nodded absently.
"You're right. This is missing the… friendly, welcoming warmth that you can always find in our common room. This feels… kind of creepy, and lonesome." She said, shivering a bit.
"Well, it is lonesome right now," He said with a small chuckle. "I'm the only Slytherin still at school."
"That's right… I'd forgotten." She muttered and shocked him immensely by moving his feet and sitting at the end of the sofa. He huffed indignantly and put his feet back up, resting them in her lap instead. She glanced down at them and then rolled her eyes.
"So, how was your Christmas?" She asked, turning to look at him. He frowned.
"Why are you still here?" He shot back in return. She smiled slightly.
"Well, now that I got my wand back I may as well stay. Since there's no other Slytherins here… and you and I have been getting along lately. Besides, you're alone here… and it's Christmas." She added lamely. He groaned, frustrated again.
"Granger, will you get it through your thick skull? I don't like Christmas. Being alone, on Christmas, doesn't bother me." He said firmly, rolling his eyes. She shrugged.
"Doesn't change anything," She said stubbornly. Her hands came down to land on his legs seemingly without her notice. He smirked but didn't comment on it.
"Whatever," He muttered. It wasn't like he cared. He liked having the company from her anyway. Besides it was one more step in his mission, he thought wryly. "Won't Potter be wondering where you are?"
"Not yet; give it a few more hours and then he'll probably come storming down here to find me." She murmured with an exasperated sigh. He raised his eyebrows.
"How would he know where the common room is? How did you find it anyway?" He asked, now frowning. She smirked.
"D'you have some sort of relationship with the Bloody Baron or something? Because I gather he likes you. He actually showed me where the common room was," she said thoughtfully. He chuckled.
"Well, I am the only Slytherin he's ever spoken to. Dunno why; I didn't really do anything. Just told him who I was. I expect he recognizes my last name or some rubbish like that," Draco said shrugging.
"Oh," she said softly and looked away from him and into the fire.
They sat in a somewhat awkward silence for a moment and Draco took the time to stare at her. He was surprisingly mesmerized by the way the fire flickered in her light brown eyes. He studied her flawless face and remembered how soft it had felt under his hand. His eyes stopped on her lips, unable to believe how nice it was kissing her. He'd wondered for a while how it would feel to kiss her, and now that he knew, it hardly seemed real. Just thinking about it made him want to kiss her again.
He realized he needed to reveal something of himself to her. He didn't want to, but in order to move forward in his mission and where the two of them were going, he needed to tell her something of himself to get her to trust him more. So with a deep breath, he thought of what to tell her.
"I am afraid, you know," he said quietly, looking away from her as soon as she turned her gaze back to him.
"Afraid of what?" She murmured curiously, seeming surprised. He didn't answer for a moment, steeling himself for what he was about to admit, as he stared into the orange and yellow flames of the fire.
"The war," He finally said, shifting uncomfortably. "You asked me a while ago if I was afraid, and I lied. I am afraid. Not only of dying but of losing people I care about. Of losing my mother and father. I couldn't bear…" He couldn't bear to lose them. He swallowed hard.
He chanced at look at her, and she was gazing at him sadly – not pitying, just sympathetically and understandingly. He sighed quietly and continued. "I'm afraid of what's to come, too. If he wins," his voice dropped to a whisper, "and what will happen. Hell, I'm afraid of him,"
Hermione gasped inaudibly, unable to believe he was telling her this. She knew this was certainly something he hadn't told many people, and she vaguely wondered why the heck he was telling her it.
Finding she was incapable of stopping her somewhat annoying nurturing side of herself, she lifted his legs off of her lap and gently pushed him into a sitting position. He shot a look at her as she moved to sit next to him but he didn't protest when she took his hand in hers. "It's all right to be afraid," she murmured softly. "Everyone's afraid of Vo- him. Even Harry,"
Malfoy finally met her eyes, and she was again surprised by the sorrowful emotion in his stormy eyes. "You don't get it Granger. I'm not saying that I don't want him to win. I do. I don't care about the muggles who will die. I don't care about how ruined their world will be."
She couldn't help her sharp intake of breath at his cold words, but he ignored her and continued, still staring into her eyes.
"What I'm afraid of is… serving a man who will kill me without a second's thought if I fail him." He paused thoughtfully, frowning slightly, "And, I will admit, I am a bit worried as to what will happen to the wizarding world if he does win. He's really very powerful, but I don't reckon he's going to make a good ruler."
Hermione shook her head slowly. She didn't know what to say. His admission of not caring if the muggles and their world were destroyed shocked her, and hurt her. That was her other world. Her parents, her family, some of her friends, her background and heritage. His words reminded her of the true purpose of the war, and his side in it.
"I…I don't understand how you can be so heartless about that. About what Voldemort's – sorry," She whispered when he flinched visibly, "what he's going to do to the world. To the innocent muggles who don't even know what's going on. He'll attack them and they won't even see it coming. They can't even defend themselves. We – I can't let that happen. That's why I don't want him to win. But you, you just care about if he kills you? How can you be so selfish?"
"I'm a Slytherin, Granger, and don't you ever forget it. The muggles mean nothing to me." He said harshly and she dropped his hand, looking away from him. She heard him curse softly. "You're being…"
"What? What am I being? A Gryffindor? A muggleborn? Maybe you've forgotten, in your somewhat mental interest in me, but my parents are muggle." She looked back at him with a glare.
He didn't say anything to that, but his jaw hardened. She ignored it, and continued. "I grew up in a muggle home, surrounded by muggles until I was eleven. They've done nothing wrong! They don't deserve to be…slaughtered by him!" She took a deep breath, fighting back tears. He always managed to get to her, even when he wasn't trying!
Okay, Draco thought to himself, maybe this wasn't exactly a good conversation to have when he was trying to get her to trust him. "Listen, I don't mean… that is, oh hell Granger I'm a bastard all right? You've always known that so why are you getting so upset over this?" He ran a hand through his hair in frustration.
"That's where you and I differ. I didn't grow up around muggles. I don't even know any muggles. I've always been told they're filthy, unworthy creatures that don't deserve to even grace my thoughts. The same is with muggleborns." He said, wanting to make himself stop talking, stop admitting so much to the girl who was supposed to be his worse enemy, but he needed to make things better.
He didn't want her to think he was a right jerk, even though he was, but he didn't want her to think he was this nice bloke who cared about everyone either. That would just be a lie, and even if it did benefit his mission, he couldn't bring himself to do it.
Both of them were silent for a moment, as they ran over each others words and thought of what to say next.
Hermione had looked away from him again and stared thoughtfully into the fire. She didn't understand why it upset her so much that he didn't care what happened to muggles. She didn't know why it hurt her to think that he didn't care if she died either. It was true, she knew. He wouldn't care. He 'wanted' her sure, but that didn't mean he loved her or any rubbish like that. And she'd always known he didn't care at all what happened to her. So why did it hurt so much now?
Because you care what happens to him, the voice said softly, accusingly in her mind, answering her question. She almost gasped as she realized it was true. She'd always cared what happened to Malfoy. If he got hurt, she felt sorry for him. If she saw him get hurt, she wanted to help him. If he was upset, she wanted to help him through it. She had hated him, or at the very least disliked him, but still - she cared. She'd always shoved the thoughts away, thinking it was just her normal 'nurturing' side of herself.
So now it hurt that even though she would probably be upset if he died in the war, she knew he wouldn't give her two thoughts in the event of her own death. Was that strange? That all these years she had thought she hated him; she actually cared what happened to him? What did it mean?
"What are you thinking?" He asked softly, interrupting her thoughts and making her jump slightly. She blinked to clear her head and turned to meet his eyes.
"About why I'm so upset that you're a heartless, cruel jerk," She said, without any bitterness, just a matter-of-fact tone of voice.
"And? Why are you so upset?" He asked and she saw the weariness in his eyes as he anticipated her answer. She laughed softly at herself, deciding not to tell him her recent revelation.
"Because I don't want to believe it," She whispered. "I want to believe that you're… this good person who just puts the act up that you're a heartless Slytherin to keep others away. But, now I'm forced to admit that it isn't true. That you really are cold, and you don't have the capacity to care for anyone but yourself or those who are close to you."
He grimaced at her words. She was right about it all, of course. But he couldn't seem to find his voice.
"I ought to go," she murmured softly. "I've been here long enough."
He reached out and grabbed her wrist as she stood up. "No, don't go. What're you not telling me?"
Her eyes widened, and she took a deep breath before saying stiffly, "Nothing; I told you everything."
"No, you didn't. I know you better than you think, Granger. And you're hiding something." Draco knew because of how abruptly she had decided to leave. Sure, she was upset, but this seemed more like she had had an epiphany of some sort. As if she suddenly realized something.
"You're more perceptive than I thought," Hermione whispered. His thumb stroked her inner wrist softly, comfortingly. She bit her lip. She didn't want to tell him. It was embarrassing, and he may take it as she fancied him or something. That wasn't it though.
Or he could use it against her, to get her to somehow date him or something. She mentally shook her head to rid herself of such thoughts. It wasn't fair to him. He'd opened up and told her more than she would have ever expected him to. It was only right that she admit something to him.
"Very well, but you can't laugh," She said reluctantly as she sat back down beside him, pulling her knees to her chest as she leaned against the sofa.
He frowned, shaking his head, and she cast her eyes to the ground.
"The reason it bothers me so much that you don't care what happens to muggles and muggleborns is that…" She sighed, closing her eyes, and shoving her hands into her hair. "I know that you don't care what happens to me either. I've always known that, but it's hurting more now. It's just that… I just care more now."
His frown deepened. Somehow, he had the feeling that wasn't what she'd planned to say. She thought he didn't care what happened to her? And she was upset by that? "Why would you be upset by that? You've always thought I hated you,"
She shook her head, and raised her eyes to meet his. "Don't you get it? If I were to die in the war, you wouldn't care at all. If I were to be captured by your side, you wouldn't care. But… if it were the other way around… if you were to die in the war, I would care. That's why I care so much that you don't care."
"This is confusing," He muttered, heaving a sigh as he leaned back to rest his arm on the armrest, resting his chin on his fist. He closed his eyes. This mission had just become a lot more complicated. He slowly ran over what he was about to say in his mind before finally voicing it. "Listen, Granger, you're wrong. I would care. You… you're different than other muggleborns. You know that already. I told you this in the Shrieking Shack. I've wanted you for years." He didn't know which was scarier – the words coming out of his mouth, or the fact that he meant every single one.
"Just because you want me," she blushed at the words, "doesn't mean you'd care if I died."
"Yes it does," He said quietly. She met his eyes finally. He wanted to scream. Why would she care if he died? Why was she being like this? She was still acting like she hated him. Well, sort of.
He knew that he would care if she died. He just knew. He'd care if any of them died. Potter, Weasley, Weaselette… he didn't like them, but he knew them and that meant something. He didn't want them to die. He sounded like a Gryffindor, but it was true. He wouldn't wish death upon people he knew. When it was someone he'd never met before, and didn't know at all, he couldn't care less. People die. It was a part of life. If they've never touched his life, then he didn't care about them.
Murdering them himself however… That thought made a lump appear in his throat. He didn't know if he'd be capable of killing anybody, whether or not he knew them.
But back to the matter at hand, "Granger, I would care if you died. I would care if a number of people died… even people I don't like. But I've known you for years and that puts a face to go with your name." He paused, gauging her expression. She was frowning, her eyebrows drawn in confusion. "If you died, I'd have memories of you. That's what makes all the difference. If anyone at this school died, I'd feel a bit sorry for them. Because I have memories of almost everyone here. I know them; I've talked to them before. I may not like them, but that makes no difference."
A thoughtful look took over her features, as she ran his words over in her mind. "But… how is that any different then watching a muggle be killed? You'd have that memory of them. Of their face right before they died."
"It's just different. I'm not a Gryffindor, Granger. I don't care about people I don't know. Maybe I'm inhumane but…" He shrugged. "That's just who I am, I suppose."
"I reckon you have a heart after all," She whispered, looking at the fire again which was slowly getting smaller. He couldn't help but agree slightly. If he could feel sorry for people dying, and know that he'd have trouble killing someone himself, especially if he knew the person, then that meant he must have a heart.
"Don't let it go to your head," He muttered. "I'm still a cold Slytherin and I still want the Dark Lord to win this war."
"Even though most of the people you just mentioned may quite possibly die or worse?" She murmured, meeting his eyes again. She folded her arms across her raised knees and rested her chin on them as she looked at him.
"Yes, even though," he replied firmly. "I don't want them to die, and I'll feel a bit sorry when/if they do, but it won't take me long to get over it." His last few words were cold and he saw her wince.
"Will you kill anybody?" She asked softly, not looking away from him now. He knew by her eyes that she was slightly afraid of the answer. He swallowed hard.
"I'll have to for my initiation," He replied, casting his eyes away from her.
"Will you be able to?" She pressed and he felt himself grow angry. He was Draco Malfoy, son of a Death Eater. Of course he'd be able to.
"Yes." He said sharply, looking back at her with a glare. She didn't back down.
"I don't believe that." She said, shaking her head. "And nothing you say or do will convince me otherwise,"
"Merlin, you're impossible," He muttered, rolling his eyes, only slightly irritated. He decided to change the subject. "So all along, you've actually cared about me?" He asked, somewhat mockingly.
She narrowed her eyes at him. "You said you weren't going to laugh,"
"I never said that at all," he smirked teasingly. "But I'm not laughing," He added. No, he was actually really surprised, and pleased by her admission. It brought him forward a great step in his mission, as complicated as things now seemed. Not to mention, it sent a strange tingle throughout him to know that she cared what happened to him, despite who he was. "But seriously, even when I was being dreadful to you, you still cared?"
She sighed. "I suppose so. You're acting like I fancy you or something. That's not it, Malfoy. I've just always cared what happened to you. If you got hurt, I wanted to be sure you were okay."
"That's because of who you are," Draco argued. "If the Dark Lord was hurt and hell, maybe crying, you'd want to help him."
She made a face at that. "So not true," She muttered.
"Sure Granger, if you say so." He said snickering slightly. She huffed and lifted her head from her knees, folding her arms across her chest. "You do too fancy me," He said, turning his body to face her.
"Do not," She replied haughtily.
"We're not doing this again, Granger," Draco almost growled. "I'm very experienced with girls, and I can tell when they're into me. And when I kiss you, you're definitely into me." He said triumphantly, giving her a smug smile. Her cheeks reddened.
"So maybe I'm attracted you a bit. But that's understandable. It doesn't mean I fancy you." She said, amazing him with how snobby she could sound. He chuckled.
"All right, I'll settle for attraction," He murmured as he leaned toward her. She immediately lowered her legs to the ground and turned to face him.
"Not now, Malfoy, please," She said, moving away from him. He pushed her onto the sofa gently, and hovered over her, raising an eyebrow curiously.
"Why not? You admitted you're attracted to me, not that I didn't already know that." He said, searching her face. "And we're alone," he added as an after-thought.
"You know why not. For God's sake, we just had a huge discussion about the war and all, and you just told me that you'd get over it if I died. I'm not going to let you-"
"I didn't mean you when I said that," Draco interrupted in exasperation. "Merlin Granger. Forget the war right now. I certainly do not want to think about it when I have you in my common room alone."
"I can't just 'forget it'," She said snidely. "Not after you admitted that you basically don't care if Voldemort destroys both the wizarding world and muggle world. Not after you just told me you think you could without a doubt kill someone, even if I don't believe you. Not after –"
"All right, I get the point." Draco said, rolling his eyes. "But I haven't done any of that yet. And to be honest, I'd like this year – my last year of freedom - to be a happy one. You can help me with that."
She shook her head, sighing. "As much as I'd like to," she said this sarcastically but she didn't fool him, "I really need to be getting back."
"For fucks sake, Granger, why won't you just admit it?" Draco exclaimed harshly, not moving to get off of her. Her eyes widened at his sudden anger.
"What are you talking about?" She exclaimed in surprise.
"You want me just as much as I want you." He said through gritted teeth, annoyed with her attempts to dodge him. He was tired of dancing in circles with this. He wasn't bloody stupid. "Don't deny it. You know it's bloody well true. The war doesn't matter, and neither does who we are. Who cares? Worry about it later. For now, just enjoy yourself!"
She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. "Fine, God only knows why, but yes I want you. But the war does matter for we're currently in the middle of it Malfoy! And you're going to be a murderer! I'm not going to look back on this knowing that I snogged the very man who could have killed all my friends, or family! I won't live with that for the rest of my life!"
"Oh stop being so bloody self-righteous. I haven't killed anyone yet, and you don't know where this war is going to take us." He said bitterly. She shook her head again, and pushed against his chest.
"Just let me go," She murmured. He raised his hand to brush it along her cheek, inwardly smiling at her sharp intake of breath. Dejectedly, he leaned down and brushed his lips over her forehead, before getting off of her and leaving the sofa completely. He turned his back to her, hearing her get up as well.
He had expected her to leave, so he was extremely surprised when she took his arm and forced him to turn around. He did so with a sigh, gazing down at her tiredly.
Hermione sighed, seeing the weary yet still frustrated look in his eyes. "What are you doing to me?" She whispered, frowning. "I'm supposed to hate you. You're supposed to hate me. So why are you making me feel like this?"
That brought a small smirk on his face as he murmured, "It must be my charming good looks. Witches can never resist me,"
She had no doubt about that – about the unable to resist part that is. Plus, he was a brilliant kisser. She shook her head. "I really do need to go. Otherwise, you'll find Harry banging on the door and accusing you of… kidnapping me and bringing me to Vol- You-Know-Who." She always forgot that Malfoy didn't like her to mention Voldemort's name. As ridiculous as it was, she complied with it to avoid his anger.
He nodded, exhaling deeply.
Hermione was mentally scolding herself. After everything they'd just talked about, everything she'd found out about him she still found herself wanting to kiss him! What the heck was wrong with her? How could she feel such a way for a… future Death Eater, Slytherin and her enemy not even a month ago?!
"Happy Christmas," She whispered, entranced by the way his piercing eyes held hers. She'd always thought the silver of his eyes made him cold, but now, as she stared into them she realized they held many different swirling emotions. Unable to stop herself, as much as her mind protested, she sighed and leaned up to place her lips on his.
To say Draco was surprised would have been an understatement. After all of her arguments with him not even five minutes ago, here she was initiating the kiss between them?! Had she gone temporarily mad or something?
But all thoughts were pushed from his mind except the feel of her lips on his and her arms around his neck as he finally kissed her back. Her hands entangled in his hair, fingers stroking the back of his neck. He wrapped his arms around her waist tightly, and pulled her to him with a moan deep in his throat.
Draco had kissed plenty of witches in his short lifetime, but none of them had affected him like Granger's kisses did. He was unable to think coherently, just from one kiss. It was strange. One would think he would be utterly disgusted to be kissing her, after all the years he had taunted her for being a muggleborn. But now he found himself rejoicing in his mission as it gave him an excuse to be with her, and hopefully to one day be able to kiss her whenever he wanted.
She didn't seem to notice when he had pushed her backwards and onto the sofa again, without even breaking the kiss. She let out a small whimper when he left her lips to move to her throat, placing small kisses along her collarbone.
"Malfoy… I really… have to go…" She managed to gasp out, as he gently nipped her throat.
"I know," He murmured between kisses, and moved back to her lips to give her another long kiss before he pulled away. "Till next time," he said with a smirk.
Her face was flushed, and her eyes dark but she pushed herself to her feet, adjusting her jumper self-consciously.
Hermione decided not to comment on his last statement. "Yes, well, see you around."
"Happy Christmas, Granger," He said with a nod, and leaned up to peck her lips. She blushed suddenly, surprised by his action.
"To you too," she murmured as she hurriedly left the common room before she could do something stupid – like kiss him again. God, she was such an idiot. How could she let herself do that?! Had she lost her mind?
She fixed her hair as she walked back to Gryffindor tower, hoping Harry wouldn't notice her flushed look, and tried to think of an excuse as to why she had been gone so long and why Malfoy had had her wand. She made it all the way to the common room without finding a single excuse.
Thankfully, the black haired boy was no where to be seen. So she headed to her dormitory and collapsed in her bed, trying unsuccessfully to shove the blonde haired Draco Malfoy out of her head.
Sooooo that was chapter 34. Tell me what you thought please! :) Next chapter will come...whenever I get it finished, of course. Next two weeks may be busy, so.. I apologize now if it takes a while. Who knows, though, right? I may find some time! Hopefully! Aha.