Please note - all mistakes are my own. I do not currently have a Beta/Alpha to help me correct my horrible grammar.

I do not own the characters created by JK Rowling, nor do I make any profit from this fanfiction.

This is all just fun for me.

First, I want to apologize for the delay in posting. I missed last week and I have NO good excuse.
Second, this chapter is going to FRUSTRATE you. But I needed this scene to get out of my system.
Third, this is - as usual - unbeta'd and I'm okay with this.

Chapter Twenty-Seven -

Hermione stripped from her jacket as they walked through the open door. Draco took it from her fingertips, careful to avoid touching her directly, before turning and hanging both their wet jackets up. She could hear him following not far behind her as she made her way toward the kitchen. In that moment, Hermione could feel the silence around them - heavy, daunting like a dark cloud that lingered after a heavy storm. The air around them was thick with so many words that had passed between them not an hour earlier.

Hermione felt the emotions of the day still lingering underneath the surface, coiling around her spine as if it were waiting to strike at a moment's notice. With cold fingers, she swiftly went to work in the kitchen. Idle hands were made for idle minds, her mother used to tell her so she could do something instead of listening to the quiet. Crookshanks had yet to appear, so Hermione knew the tension was palpable in the air around them.

With deft hands, she pulled out the frying pan and all the essential ingredients she would need for her meal. While she moved she could feel his eyes lingering on her, but she kept her stare ahead as she was unready to deal with him. For now, she needed to quiet her thoughts and to do that she had to concentrate.

So with quick hands she went about preparing the meal. Slicing cheese and buttering bread, she thought only of the process before her instead of the next day or what had happened earlier. With precise movements, she let the pan sizzle against the bread. Taking the teapot from the back of the stove, she brought it around to the sink to fill. As the water ran, she let her mind drift into a thoughtless peace.

"Granger, I think it's full." She jolted from her thoughts and quickly turned the water off as it ran over the top of the pot. Tilting it slightly, she let some of it drain before placing the top of it back on. Once placed on the stove, she turned its heater on and went back to the sandwiches. As she flipped them she saw the dark chard side and instant hot tears bubbled onto the rim of her eye lid. Frustration and anger, pain and confusion escaped the carefully placed damn she had holding everything, crashing into her.

Arms pulled her back into a steady chest as she let loose the hot tears. Her hands rose up to hide her face as she sobbed. The air fighting to escape her chest as the emotions welled up in her throat. She felt Draco's arms shift her slightly so she could face him, but she just burrowed her face into his chest so he'd not be able to see her. His hands rose across her back rubbing soft circles as he held her. He didn't say anything, but the comfort he offered was more than she could ever have imagined.

Draco felt each wave rolling inside him and with every sucked in breath he could feel his heart tug just a bit more. Anger welled up inside him at whoever had created such damage to her store, but also for forcing his own feelings on her when she obviously already had things to deal with. Regret washed through him again, a cold icy storm running over him, but he didn't let go of the distraught witch in his arms. He would take this moment to hold tight, even just for this single moment, and cherish the feelings of her within them for the rest of his days, however short they may be.

His head dipped down just slightly taking in the scent that was so uniquely Hermione Granger and smiled softly at memories filtered through his anger and his regret. Books strewn out all around her on a back corner table in the library at Hogwarts, a quill stuck behind her ear as she tried to narrow down a passage from one of the overtly large tomes laid out before her. Her eyes narrowing in on someone, probably Potter or Weasley, over the table in the Great Hall for something foolish, he was sure. Her pink cheeks at the Quidditch games as she cheered Gryffindor on while wearing a thick jacket that seemed to puff out.

He knew it then that the Veela in him wasn't forcing his feelings. Not when the Veela just awoke earlier in the year. He was dormant, he wouldn't have been able to recall all these memories that were racing across his mind. His younger self would be horrified to learn that while he thought it was jealousy, hatred fueling the attention he gave this witch in his arms, it had been true attraction all along.

Just as he was about to dive deeper into his thoughts, he felt her pull away. Her eyes were rimmed red as she used the edge of her hands to draw away the remaining tears. A few shaky breaths escaped her as she stepped back.

"I'm so sorry - I'm a mess and full of messy thoughts," she murmured on a soft hiccup. Her eyes narrowed in on his chest and she reached out, but didn't touch, as she said, "I didn't mean to get your shirt wet."

Glancing down, he took in the slight wet stain in the center of his chest and tilted his head before his eyes flickered back up to her. "I didn't even notice." She gave him a half smile, but it didn't quite spark in her gaze. He watched her turn around and knew that was his sign to back away but the Veela inside him whimpered at the lack of contact. Frowning to himself, he stepped back and went to his original space at the counter.

"I'm sorry, I burnt part of the toast." He watched her load a grilled cheese onto his plate and slide it toward him. "I can make you a new one if you prefer it without the burnt side." Her voice was low, quiet, broken and Draco fought against dragging her closer to him. The need to fix whatever was wrong was dragging the Veela into a state. It raged at him, slowly clawing at being released to the point Draco felt a headache forming in the back of his skull. Shaking the creature off, he reached for the sandwich and took a bite.

In the silence, he ate half of the sandwich. Out of the corner of his eye he continued watching her finish making the tea. When she came to sit beside him with her tea in hand, he pushed the plate back toward her. She glanced at it then back up. When she made a move to take the plate and get up, he shook his head and placed his hand on the side of her chair locking her in.

"Eat."

"I'm not hung-"

"Granger, eat." His eyes bore into hers and he knew she saw something inside of them, because she reached forward and took a bite. But just as she was about to set it back down, he heard his own growl but held still as he watched her eat the sandwich. "All of it." She scowled at him, but did as he demanded. The Veela murmured in the back of his mind. Its happiness filled the space in his chest at the thought of being helpful to their mate.

Merlin, mate. Was this acceptance?

Hermione polished off the last bite of sandwich all while scowling out of the corner of her eye at the man beside her. He wasn't watching her now, lost in his own thoughts, that she was tempted to flick some of her tea at him but thought better of it. Dragging herself off the stool, she pulled herself into her living room and fell into the sofa. With a quick grab of her remote, she turned on a movie just as Draco came slinking his way toward her. He sat beside her. Just as she was about to pull her legs away from him, he grabbed her feet between his overly warm hands and placed them in his lap.

He left his hands draped causally over the tops of her feet as his stare remained steadfast on the moving image before them. While his attention was diverted, she took a moment to appreciate his profile. The dark circles were no longer visible and he definitely wasn't as gaunt as he used to be. He was still pale, likely always would be, but there was a little more color to his appearance now. His shoulders had filled out more, the muscles clearly defined under his shirts.

"I can feel you staring, you know," he remarked in between the quiet. She jolted slightly, a nervous smile pulling at her features. She murmured a quick apology under her breath. He titled his head toward her. His eyes were storm gray, clear of the silver metal from earlier. "Ask it, Granger."

She shivered at the low timber of his voice. She dropped her head down, her fingers resting against her stomach as she worked the words around in her mind. Her fingers flicked against one another as she felt her nervous energy building with each quiet minute passing. When her eyes traveled up, she found him facing her completely now with a frown tugging on his lips. She reached forward, using his arm to pull herself up into a sitting position, and face him straight on. With dwindling courage, her hands still on his forearm, she apologized.

"I'm sorry for my sharp words." He opened his mouth but she quickly threw a hand over his mouth. Her skin tingled as his breath ghosted across the surface, but she kept going before her nerves got away with her. "I know you do not think of me that way any longer. I lost my head. There were so many people watching, I was overwhelmed and my emotions were getting the best of me and I took it out on you. That's not fair to you. So I'm apologizing for my harsh words and I hope you can forgive me because I truly am sorry."

She waited with baited breath as he continued to stare at her. No muscle ticked as the moments passed between them that she wished she was well practiced in Legilimency to be able to read his thoughts. Her breath caught for a split moment when she noticed a shift in his eyes, but it was gone just as quickly as it had risen. She shifted slightly under his gaze. "I should also apologize for- well, I know I haven't been taking the time to work more on researching the bond. On how to break it -" She was cut off when she felt him shift under her feet. His hands gently shoved them off his legs letting them fall to the floor before him. Shifting slightly in his spot, he moved to face her. His expression stoic as he tilted his head slightly to the side as he looked at her, studying her. It took all her self control not to shift under his gaze. He leaned forward slightly, his hand pulling her closer so she could be face to face him.

"I need you to listen to me without interrupting." She nodded swiftly, caught off guard by the seriousness in his tone. Worry lurked in the back of her mind at the words he was mulling over. His eyes roamed all over her face, taking her in as if it may be the last time and she felt a tightening in her gut as she waited for the inevitable. "I met another Veela -" She gasped and went to ask a question but his stern stare stopped her midbreath. "She's confident that no magic, spell, or potion would be able to break this Veela Mate bond." He sucked in a breath, letting his eyes drop to the floor before them. He took his hand away from her and turned away from her. "I think… we need to stop this fruitless search. I don't want you wasting your free time only to come up empty handed and angry you were unable to end my death."

One million thoughts exploded in her mind and she felt her nerves trembling throughout her body, but she moved forward to sit beside him on the edge of the couch. Her fingers shifted under her legs to keep from reaching out, and she knew her voice would tremble, but she said anyway. "Draco - I don't want you to die! We can't just give up! There's always hope! I'll do whatever I can. There has to be something, somewhere that you don't have to die! We can't - I won't let that happen, even if that means you hate me for the rest of your life. I'd rather bond then -" Tears formed in her eyes as she realized the fate that lay before them. He had resigned himself to his life ending on his next birthday.

"NO!" He stood, a whirl of force that caused Hermione to jump back at the anger in his voice. His footsteps echoed loudly as he took long strides away from her. His hands rose in front of him, shaking. He whirled around to stare at her. The storm clouds were front and center as he stared her down. Rage flickered in his gaze as he shouted at her. "You are not going to sacrifice your life because of me. I am a DEATH EATER. I deserve this fate. I watched you get TORTURED on my floor and did nothing for you. I watched others die because I could do nothing. You cannot bind yourself to me - you deserve so much more than this colorless life I live." His head hung then. "I can't trap you in a loveless life." He spun around then, and with two wide strides, disappeared through the Floo.

Hermione felt her heart grumble as she heard his words echo in her mind. "I can't trap you in a loveless life." He could never love her. He could never love her when all his life he had been bred to want the best of the best. Even if his mind had changed on blood status, it didn't mean that their pasts could be erased or that he could ever love her. Tears trickled down her face as she stared at the Floo.

Resignation trickled into her heart as she realized their fates that intertwined would either die with him at his next birthday, or that she'd end up forcing him to be with her - loveless and unhappy. Could she love someone who didn't love her back?

A/N: PLEASE HOLD ON. Next Chapter will be 1000000% worth it 3