Chapter 38: Curiosity

Hermione liked this cozy reading corner. Crookshanks would enjoy, it too, she thought with a soft smile. It quickly faded. Ollivander's awful trick replayed in her mind. Her fingers held the book tightly. She'd barely started trying to read because everything kept repeating in her mind's eye. Draco had understood Ollivander was looking for something- how had she missed that? It seemed more obvious once she attempted to pay attention for it. The bitter taste of the tea still lingered on her tongue. "Why would you do that?" she whispered to herself, book falling, forgotten into her lap.

Her heart hammered softly in her chest as she remembered how ashamed she felt at Mr. Ollivander's unexpected rudeness, her honest answer. She'd never said that aloud. And now she'd said it in front of him and Draco? Her face reddened again just thinking about it. Then, she saw Draco slam his hands on the table- his face and body snapped like a snake. He had looked ready to strike the old man. "How dare you make my witch cry!"

My witch. His witch. That answered a question for her- he had claimed her… and if she had to follow that train of thought, she had to admit she'd claimed him as well. But that hadn't been enough for the sly wandmaker. He'd pushed, even as Draco began to guide them from the room. "Mr. Malfoy, why is she your witch?" "Because I-" She closed her eyes, dropping the book to the floor with a soft clutter, putting both hands over her mouth, recalling the way his fingers had moved in her palm. He didn't- he couldn't- but he did! He could! She'd heard him, she'd felt the words as his lips moved in her hand. He'd whispered it, even though she'd tried to stop him. Love her.

Why was she so afraid to hear him say it? She desperately hadn't wanted that first time because of the truth telling potion- in front of Ollivander- forced out of him without any control. That felt… rude? Rushed? Too honest? For someone who she was starting to read for clues about truth or lies, such a bold truth had unsettled her. In her mind, she was convinced he wouldn't dare to be that straightforward right away! She knew it was true. She'd started to feel it, when his kisses became gentler, when he'd seemed to soften slightly towards her recently. There was no other explanation.

Hearing Draco speak those words meant she had to be honest with herself, and that frightened her. Bits of Ron's words still haunted her. I don't want to watch him make you fall for him, to use you, and then throw you aside like you mean nothing. Hermione truly didn't believe that Draco would do that, but there was a slight nagging fear. What if he thought she were being too easy, letting him touch her so intimately? What if he didn't want to be with a virgin? He obviously had more experience than she did. Would he think her less attractive, unintelligent about sex? What if she didn't know what she was doing, and he didn't want to teach her? What if he had been playing that game Ollivander played, laying out subtle hints, and she hadn't caught them? That was a painful thought. What if he changed his mind? What if he didn't really love her?

That one hurt the most. She had no reason to doubt him, only her own doubts swirling in her mind. I love him. Hermione's eyes shot open as the thought floated gently through her mind. The phoenix necklace at her chest gave a sudden pulse. She stood, heart in her throat. Could she say it? Could she tell him she'd heard him, and she felt the same way? She didn't know. But very suddenly, she didn't want to be alone in this nook without him. Hermione ran out of the library to the main hall, turning, trying to guess where his potion lab would be. He liked the sun for his lab, didn't he? About to run down a hall, she heard a horrible coughing fit. A door opened nearby and Draco stumbled out, the coughing louder and more terrible.

"Draco?!" Hermione rushed to him and caught him against her side. He leaned heavily on her for a moment. They stumbled together back towards the library. What had happened? He looked ready to fall asleep. "Come on, let's get you to bed." One glance at his clothes and the scent and his strange, heavy eyelids told her the source of this- he'd been messing with a sleeping draft. No! Had he been playing around with the Draught of Living Death again? But he'd promised! She was jumping to conclusions. There were a bunch of potions that used similar ingredients. The calming draft of his, a normal dreamless sleep- and he looked like he was in no condition to answer questions.

They were managing to make it through the tall shelves towards his bedroom door. Once they made it to his room, Draco pulled away from her, stumbling towards his bed. She froze as she watched him, stripping, completely oblivious that she was still there. He ripped off his shirt, throwing it aside, then tore off his pants and boxers down, stepping out of them unsteadily while stumbling to his bed. Hermione squealed embarrassedly, covering her face with both hands for a moment when she got a long look at his bare backside. She peeked between her fingers to see he had fallen face first into the mattress.

Calming her racing heart, she hurried to his clothes. Why had he done that? It was almost comical, if not for the coughing fit she'd heard. Hermione quickly picked up his shirt and gave it a rough shake. Powder floated up from the fabric. She inhaled it, then began to cough as well. Damn! Now she understood. It could've been crushed lavender or powdered asphodel petals, or a blend- it was the drowsiness ingredient, whatever it was, and more potent than normal. What had he been doing? His shirt slipped through her fingers as she coughed, stumbling back to the bed as well, falling. Did she make it to the bed? Her eyes closed. How had he managed to stay awake so long?

When her eyes fluttered open again, it was dark. She smiled at finally having slept in this large, comfortable bed, turning her head to the side to look at him. Draco was laying on his back now, at the other side of the large bed, out of reach. It looked like he might've been awake, she couldn't tell for sure. He sucked in a sharp breath, holding it, head pressing back against the pillow, exhaling slowly. She saw his arm moving. Eyes adjusted to the dark, she flushed darkly when she saw he was touching himself! Right there, next to her! "...Hermione," he moaned softly, she saw his hand moving faster.

"Y-yes?" she whispered hesitantly.

"Hermione?!" he yelped in shock. Draco nearly leapt out of his skin at her voice. He bolted straight up in bed. His hand shot up to grab a pillow and he covered his naked lap, hiding his erection. His eyes met hers, stunned, surprised, confused, embarrassed. "How… why… What are you doing here?!"

"What happened in your lab?" She sat up to her knees, glaring at him. There was no way she was answering any questions first!

"I dropped a vial for the dreamless sleep draft." he muttered, pushing his hair out of his face, frowning slightly. "I think there's a way to make it non-habit forming... I've developed a bit of a tolerance to it and I've been trying not to use it lately."

Oh thank goodness… The main concern was gone. That wasn't his lying tone or his lying face. Her eyes flickered to the pillow in his lap. His hand tightened against it self consciously. She scooched a little closer. He tensed and she paused. "...what were you doing?" she asked innocently.

"You haven't explained what you're doing here," he snapped, flushing red, grip tightening against the pillow in his hand. She hadn't seen him worked up like this before. "For that matter, why am I here? I should've dropped in the lab."

"I found you and brought you back to your room," she replied simply, "You… stripped… and fell in to bed. I shook your clothes to try to figure out what had happened- and it got me, too."

"Granger, that was reckless and stupid." He growled coldly, "If I'd been mucking about with worse ingredients-"

"Then you'd have been breaking a promise!" she snapped back. Draco's irritated face melted away. His shoulders relaxed slightly.

"I didn't mean…" he spoke softly this time, "Hermione… I just meant I don't want you to take a risk like that. Just use your wand to analyze it, next time, okay?"

"Next time?" she raised an eyebrow at him.

"Accidents happen," he shrugged, "I'm not proud enough to think I'm immune."

Hermione slid closer to him. He tensed, about to stand to get away from her. She gently put a hand in his arm and he froze, closing his eyes. He was trying to get that calm, collected face back. Not if she could help it. The playfulness that she felt surprised her. "...what were you doing?" she repeated, softer, enjoying the embarrassed look on his face.

"You know what I was doing." he hissed, eyes flashing at her. He tried to pull her hand off his arm. "Granger, get out. Give me five minutes and we can head back to the B-" the word died in his throat as she took the pillow in her other hand and gave it a playful tug. He wouldn't let it go. She saw him swallow hard, could nearly feel his heart racing from here. "...what are you doing?" he whispered.

Not answering, Hermione sat up on her knees, pressing her lips to kiss him and push him to his back. He still wouldn't let go of that pillow. She gave it another gentle tug but he resisted. Once she had him down, she pressed her palm against his tight fist gently, kneeling next to him. Her other hand pressed lightly to his arm. "...does this mean no?"

He looked at a loss for words. Hermione gave him a few moments to decide. She could see the flush in his neck and face- more than she had ever seen. He moved her hand to his stomach, and pulled the pillow away, letting it fall to the floor. "Just hands, Granger," his voice was rougher than she was used to hearing it. She nodded in agreement, tracing her nails along his stomach for a moment, examining his body. He closed his eyes as she did that. She liked what she saw.

And for the first time, she saw a hard, vertical erection between his legs. Hermione reached for it in her hand, taking it lightly, stroking her fingers up and down. Draco sucked in a breath and held it at her touch. He was already a little wet at the tip. She circled her thumb at the wetness, and he put one hands to his over his eyes for a moment, body giving a violent little spasm. Should she keep it light and soft? Was that one spot better than anywhere else?

"How do I… make you…" Hermione blushed, she wanted some help here, but she didn't want to ask too many questions.

He lowered his hand from his face, exhaling hard, "...you're doing fine. Just think of it like a broomstick handle. You're not going to-" Hermione tightened her grasp, full hand around him and began to slowly move up and down his shaft. "-oh fuck yes!"

Draco's head rocked back against the pillow behind him and he tensed tight as a bow string. He was panting. She kept at it, slow and steady. He shook slightly with every caress. One of his hands met hers and encouraged a faster pace. She obliged, and enjoyed the sensation of his hand sliding away from her, seeing him clench the bedding tightly in his fist, tossing his head to the side in pleasure.

Hermione leaned over him to kiss, lick and bite his neck the way he had done to her. He shuddered continuously as she continued, soft breathless curses occasionally escaping his lips. Was it her imagination, or was he growing harder in her hand?

A low moan escaped his mouth- "Oh… Hermione," she'd never heard her name spoken like that. He felt much harder in her palm. His eyes were begging her to kiss him. She obliged, and his back arched slightly as her tongue pressed against his. He was throbbing between her fingers, and there was something wet sliding along the back of her hand. She didn't stop until he took her wrist and suddenly rolled over her, pinning her to the bed and kissing her softly- body still shaking. He pressed his forehead against hers, then placed a kiss there before standing. Hermione rolled on her side to watch him. He rummaged in his pants and then flicked his wand. The wetness disappeared.

Draco lay back on the bed next to her, spooning her body and kissing the back of her head. They stayed that was for a long while, so long she thought he might've drifted off to sleep again. He shifted slightly, and sighed against her hair. "...can we just stay here tonight?" He asked quietly.

Hermione smiled and nodded. Draco stood and went to his dresser. He returned with a long, soft button down shirt and a pair of shorts. "You can summon your own clothes, if you want. I'll be right back." He disappeared to the bathroom.

Hermione took off everything except her underwear, and only put on the long shirt when she realized the shorts were his boxers. That made her flush slightly. Why didn't he have pajamas? She was just putting her clothes in a neat pile on the side table when Draco walked in, then stopped, staring at her from the doorway.

She hopped on the bed, snuggling under the light summer comforter. Draco chuckled and walked over to slide in beside her. They lay there on their sides for a few moments, she was smiling almost shyly. She didn't know what to name his expression. Draco reached out a hand to brush her hair as he leaned over to kiss her softly, "...goodnight."