Author's Note: Oh gosh, I don't know if I've ever been more nervous to post a chapter. This one is rated R...yeah...rated R. Read, review, and enjoy? :is nervous: Thisismyfirstattemptatsmut,begentlebuttellmewhatyouthink. :whew:
Transformations
Like her usual Saturday, Hermione was up far before anyone should be awake. She stretched, showered, changed, and went downstairs to get some breakfast, which she took on the couch in front of the fire. She read as she ate, yet another classic Muggle book her parents had sent her called Paradise Lost by John Milton. After about an hour of reading the epic poem, she set down her book and laid her head against the soft couch pillows, allowing her eyes a much-needed rest. Almost drifting off into a nap, she was startled from her half-sleep by a hand falling gently on her shoulder. She let out a soft exclamation of surprise and opened her eyes to find Draco standing above her.
"I didn't hear you," she said obviously.
"I couldn't tell," he teased. Draco sat down next to her, throwing an arm carelessly around her shoulders and kissing the top of her head. "So, what are the plans for today?" he asked.
"Well, preparation for our N.E.W.T.s is one. I've made study schedules but have fallen so behind! After that, we should probably practice our Animagi transformations some more."
"I still can't believe no one's gotten it yet," he remarked.
"Me too," she replied, a distressed look entering into her eyes. "I thought we'd be the first people to achieve it. And of all the books I've read, I still don't know what we're missing."
Draco shrugged and snapped for a House Elf, who brought him breakfast with apt speed. "So, you've got almost the entire day planned. Anything else on the agenda?"
She hesitated for a moment, then said, "Well, yes. Later tonight, if I get everything finished, there's something important I want to tell you."
"Why wait?"
"Because it'll just be a distraction for the entire day. And we have too much to do to be distracted so early."
"You realize that by not telling me, I'll be distracted by thinking about what it could be, right?"
She narrowed her eyes at him. "Damned if I do, damned if I don't, then. Guess you'll just have to wait," she said with a shrug. She grabbed her bag, which was heavy with books, and started towards the portrait hole.
"Oh no you don't, Granger." The use of her last name startled her slightly, but she kept her face impassive as he spun her around. "I can tell this is something important. Spit it out." His grey eyes sparked; she could not help but feel a flutter of something in her heart, unsure if it was affection or fear.
"I'll tell you later," she reiterated, ignoring his annoyed expression. "Now, I'll be in the library until I finish, then we can practice." Pecking him quickly on the lips, she whisked out the portrait hole before he could even collect his thoughts.
Her time in the library passed quickly – too quickly for her liking. The eight hours she spent reviewing did not seem like enough to even begin to prepare her for the exams in a few months time. But also, she was beginning to have second thoughts about telling Draco about the Order's business. More often than she appreciated, her mind would wander from her books and she would mentally debate the subject, changing her mind several times, no doubt over-thinking the entire situation.
After a glance at the clock, Hermione decided it was about time for her to get going back to the dorms to practice Animagi transformations.
'That is, if Draco isn't in a funk…' She knew that she had left him in a bad state and had a feeling that he may have brooded over her abrupt goodbye and gotten angry. And anger was not what Hermione was looking for when practicing the particularly tricky bit of magic.
After a short chat with Godric and correctly answering his riddle ("What, when broken, is still correct twice a day?" "A clock."), Hermione stepped into the common room. She saw Draco lounging on the couch and she shuddered in delight. He was wearing loose-fitting sweatpants that looked amazing on him. It was very much unlike him to dress down, but he still looked every bit the prince when he did. He did not look up when she entered. Hermione rolled her eyes and dropped her bag near the stairs, addressing Draco as she did so.
"You ready?" she asked.
He merely grunted in reply and turned the page of his book which, she noted with annoyance, was not a school book.
Her face puckered slightly as she struggled to retain her composure; his bad mood was quickly souring her own. "Well, get up then so we can make a practice area."
Again, he grunted and did not move.
Hermione groaned in exasperation and stood before him, arms akimbo and her face set into a hard mould. "Oh get over it!" she exclaimed. "I said I'd tell you later tonight. I left so quickly because I didn't want an argument."
"Well, obviously that didn't work, now did it?" Draco drawled from his spot on the couch. He hardly glanced up at her.
"Obviously not," she admitted bitterly. "Come on." She grabbed the book from him and closed it loudly, setting it on the far table.
He looked up at her now, eyebrows raised in surprise. "Feisty today, are we?"
"Just when I have work to do," she replied tartly. "Now stand up before I magic that couch out from under you."
He finally complied, and not a moment too soon. The black leather couch swiftly moved a few feet backwards. Draco, who was still in the process of standing up, regarded her with a challenging look. "Calm down, Hermione," he said slowly and condescendingly, further exciting her anger.
'He wants to see me upset,' she thought. Her cheeks flushed and her fists balled at her sides. 'And he just may get what he wants.'
"Let's just practice, okay?" With the touch of her wand against her head and the silent spell cast, Hermione half-transformed, per usual. Several more tries – several more half-transformations. With a lazy flick of his wand, Draco righted her. He leaned against the couch wearing a bored expression, even going so far as to yawn. Hermione knew he was not the least bit tired.
His apathy was infuriating. "Draco!" she shouted, "If you don't get into this, I'm going to turn into a fox and bite your bloody ankles!" With that threat hanging over his head and the very detailed mental image of her in fox-form nipping at his feet, she cast the spell.
Instead of the usual odd sensation of a half-human, half-animal being, her entire body kept to one form – the form of a red fox, with an especially bushy tail. Her senses sharpened keenly. She could smell every odor in the room – the grainy remnants of food, the sharp tang of cleaning supplies, the lingering clean smell of Draco's soap. Her ears could hear his sharp intake of breath as if it was a shout. Her sight was sharper too. Colors stood out brilliantly: the red on the walls was even more vibrant and the black couch seemed to glow paradoxically.
So excited was she that she bounded towards Draco, springing higher than she thought possible and nearly landing on him. He backed away quickly to avoid her falling form, which landed upright ground with perfect balance. With a mischievous look in her deep fox-brown eyes, she advanced on Draco, playfully snapping at his ankles, just as she promised.
XOX
Draco was still in shock that Hermione had transformed so quickly. He backed away from her sharp, biting teeth, looking like he was dancing a sort of complex jig. A confused look was on his face all the while. How was she able to transform so quickly after just beginning? What had set her off?
She kept harassing his feet and it was getting to the point where he wanted nothing more than to kick her away like an annoying cat. She yapped at him and kept advancing.
"Stop it, Hermione," he said, walking away from her swiftly. Whether or not she understood was irrelevant because she did not listen. Hermione jumped at his back, pushing her cold nose into his neck. He swatted at her and said with more force, "Stop!"
She did and looked up at him with amused brown eyes, as if to say, "Yeah right." With her fox grin firmly in place, she persisted.
With a frustrated and angry growl, he pointed his wand at his head and attempted the spell. In one, fluid movement, Draco became a magnificent gray wolf with shining silver eyes.
Surprised into stillness, Draco simply stood as Hermione bounded around, under, and over him. She jumped up at his face, licking and nipping, taunting him further.
Well, Draco was not about to take this abuse lying down. As soon as he got hold of his senses, he lunged after Hermione's spry form, chasing her around the common room. Where he had size, she had speed. He was barely able to get a paw at her when she dodged out of his way, sometimes jumping onto his back to escape him. Finally, she stopped running and grabbed his ear playfully in her mouth. He flopped down onto the floor and they rolled around, playing together like two pups, effectively destroying their Common Room. Tables overturned and lamps clattered to the floor, miraculously staying intact. Neither noticed, though, too wrapped up in each other to care.
Both panting heavily, they collapsed on the ground, Draco pinning down Hermione's petite fox form. She transformed, trading her bushy tail for bushy hair. Draco followed suit, his sleek wolf body changing back into his human one.
He propped himself up on one arm as he looked down at her, blond hair falling softly into his eyes. She smiled and lifted an arm to tuck the falling strands away, letting her fingers trail down his jaw line and along his chin as she did so. Eyes half-closed in contentment, he captured her lips in a soft kiss, relishing their closeness. To feel her heart race as he cupped her breast, to hear the soft whimpers and moans that unconsciously escaped her mouth as he kissed her…It was more than he could ever ask for. It was bliss.
After a while, the tempo of their necking changed. An element of need – of pure, primal, lust – worked its way into what was originally an innocent gesture. Draco devoured her mouth greedily, sucking and biting her at lower lip, capturing it between his teeth and growling in satisfaction as her hand worked its way up his shirt. He trailed kisses along the sensitive flesh of her neck as she explored the arena of his chest, trailing her nails along his nipples, down his abdominals, and towards his hips, tentatively seeking the button to his pants.
Draco felt a sudden jolt to his crotch as she cupped him through his trousers and he stopped momentarily, realizing the gravity of the situation. Their shirts had long since been discarded and their legs were intertwined, hips pressed together tightly, Hermione's insistent hand being the only separator between them – and a welcome one at that.
Hermione noticed his stillness and looked up at him questioningly. Draco couldn't help but smile at what he saw. Her face was flushed and her brown eyes were glazed with lust. She licked her perfectly pink, perfectly swollen lips, causing Draco to stiffen again.
"Hermione," he whispered huskily. "Hermione, what do you want?"
Though she did not speak, her eyes betrayed her intentions. 'I want you,' they glittered, 'I want all of you.' Mischievously quirked lips kissed him hungrily and that was all the answer Draco needed. Her tongue was a flame searing into his mouth and she moaned into him, grinding her hips against his.
"We should move this to somewhere more comfortable," Draco managed to croak. She nodded in agreement and both were up in a flash. They nearly ran up the stairs, unable to keep their hands off each other. Draco backed Hermione up against the door to his room and kissed her passionately as she fumbled for the knob. The door finally opened and they entered, Draco kicking it shut behind them.
Lips locked, he backed her into the bed. She fell onto it with a surprised squeal which turned into a moan as Draco's hands began to roam, tracing the contours of her body, from her full breasts to her firm butt, which he pulled closer against his groin. No inch of skin was left unexplored by his fingers or lips. He memorized her every detail: the smell of her neck and collarbone, the taste of the sensual area between her breasts, the feel of her stomach…It was all his.
She was his.
His nimble fingers worked at the button and zipper of her pants, which Hermione seemed more than happy to be rid of. Soaked silk panties were next, followed quickly by his pants and boxers. He sat back for a moment and admired what was laid in front of him, taking in the entire sight: chocolate brown curls spread on the pillow like a halo, eyes glazed, cheeks flushed, nipples at attention, chest heaving, fingers grabbing for him, her entire body starved for contact that could only be satisfied by his touch.
It was intoxicating. She was intoxicating. Draco captured her lips in a devouring kiss and pressed his length against her opening, breathing into her ear. He was about to ask if she was ready, but her moan cut him off. "Draco…"
He muttered something that she didn't quite hear. "What?"
"Contraceptive charm," he explained in a whisper. She made a small, "Ah," of understanding, which deepened and lengthened as he touched himself to her. That was all the permission he needed. With excruciating slowness, he eased into her, filling her completely. Almost simultaneously, they gasped – one in pleasure, the other in pain, but both with surprise.
One being now, they were all senses. Hermione's sweat mingled with his own, their pungent scent filling the air. Their bodies were wet with exertion and glowing, ethereal in the moonlight. His touch was everywhere and she heard every breath, every grunt, and every groan. Synchronized, they moved, as if they had been doing this dance their entire lives. Together, they came to climax, panting and shuddering and whispering each other's names like a prayer.
Draco pulled out and collapsed next to her, breathing heavily, blonde hair plastered to his forehead with sweat. Hermione, too, was breathing heavily, and her skin glistened. As brushed steel met melted chocolate, an unspoken pact was made: they would share a bed for the rest of the year and, circumstances willing, even longer. Draco reached over and pulled Hermione's body close to his, curling her into him possessively. She was his. He was hers. And that is how it would stay.