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.

Chapter Thirty - Three -

Freshly showered, dressed and a cup of tea racing through her system, possibly two, she stood before the Floo. Her mindless gaze resting on the ash resting at the base of the fireplace as she fiddled with the edge of her sleeves. Thoughts riddled their way through her head - every worst case scenario quickly took over any hopeful scenario, because nothing seemed to be going right for her in a long, long time. Flickers of repressed memories dashed across the back of her thoughts - a dagger engraving a word across her forearm, hands roughly grabbing at her wrists despite her desperate pleas to let go, and isolation she placed upon herself for many weeks at one point in time. Her fingers twitched as these flickered through, but her Gryffindor lioness came racing up her spine, a loud roar chasing off these personal demons. Also, reminding her that she was a lion of her own - she had survived it all, and here a man, a wizard - her mate - was offering pieces of his soul. He had been right, he had changed and she knew that with every moment spent with him. Every conversation that had been shared between them over each passing moment, and yet she'd been the one to throw his past into his face so cruelly.

Guilt clawed behind her eyes remembering the look of anguish and defeat in his eyes with her thoughtless comment. 'Harry's right - I have to fix it. I have to do this,' she reminded herself. Pulling a hand full of Floo powder, she stood straighter and walked into the opening. With determination in her gaze, she shouted her destination and disappeared into a green flame.

Once inside Malfoy Manor, she didn't wait to be greeted by some house elf, she didn't go searching for Mrs. Malfoy to express her feelings or thank her for her hospitality, she instead made her way down a familiar corridor until she came upon her destination. Staring at the door, she undid a handful of spells keeping her, or anyone else she supposed, from entering. Her brow furrowed as she managed to unlock the last one, a grumble on her lips for his eagerness to be left alone. His self-inflicted loneliness, his own jail, had her fuming, but she quickly pushed open the door to deal with the man, and the creature, herself.

With a push to open the door and her wand fisted in her hand, she found him turning toward her with a dark expression in his eyes. The two stared at one another for several heart beats and she watched his mask slide over his face, hiding from her which only made her heart tug fitfully in her chest. His pain was evident behind his attempt to hide it from her. Without a thought, she cast a silencing spell on him before she lost her nerve. When he moved toward her, anger flickering in his eyes, she sent a body binding spell to stop him in his tracks which only filled his anger even more.

"I - I came here to talk to you, but I can't have you interrupting me. I need to say my peace." She shut the doors behind her, leaning back against them, her hands still holding to the doorknobs behind her back as she looked across the room at him. The sun was fading quickly, casting a warm glow across his skin and the room itself. Normally, at least the few times she'd made her way in here, he had the curtains drawn and the room cast in darkness. Her heart thudded against her ribcage as his gaze watched her every breath, dropping to her chest only to rise back up.

"I won't be able to get this out if you interrupt me. So, I need you to shut up and stay over there." One hand released the doorknob for her to drag a hand down her face. Through cracked lips, she inhaled once. Stretching her chest to allow as much air in as possible, she then began - the words tumbling out of her with no hesitation. "When you showed up at the shop - after it had been vandalized - to show support for me, to rescue me in a moment of anguish, disappointment I was awestruck. How could you, of all people, care for little ole me? A Mudblood?" She shook her head, seeing his eyes widen but unable to move. "I know you've changed your mind, I know that in my heart, but it's taking my mind time to play catch up. You've known about this bond a lot longer than me so I'm… struggling. Because, if I'm being honest, Malfoys' can have anyone - how can you want me of all people? Or is this the Veela bond talking for you? Is it swaying your feelings?" Her eyes glittered with unshed tears but she held them back to take a deep breath. When she glanced back at him, she saw his lips twitching, attempting to form the words she knew he desperately wished to release despite the body bind currently wrapping around him. "This is why I had to quiet you," she said with a half smile, a half done attempt to turn her side of the mouth upward.

"I know - I know, you reassured me that this is YOU, but can you blame me for being a little skeptical? I'm trying to wrap this all around my little brain and unfortunately, that takes a little time. This is so new and strange and wonderful, but I can't help but feel like there is another shoe that's going to drop. Which honestly terrifies me because I've had feelings for you for a lot longer than I think you realize. As soon as you became a frequent patron of my store, discussing theories, histories - and bantering and arguing I realized that you are not only handsome, but you're witty and intelligent. And so long as I'm not at the end of that barbed tongue, I quite enjoy your company." The shock on his face is almost laughable, she admitted to herself but she couldn't stop. The words continued to tumble out as she paced before him. "I-I don't mean to hurt you when I say idiotic things. It's my defense mechanism coming out - I'm trying to work on it, okay? It's just something I developed…" The rest of her truth is left unsaid, Draco well aware of where this came from.

"What I'm trying to say is, I'm in this," she waved a hand in the space between her and Draco. "I just - need you to have a bit of patience with me because I'm nervous as hell. And, I know you mentioned the Beltane Festival, and while I want to enjoy it with you - I'm just not ready for -" She waves a hand in the air as if to conjure the word.. "-that. But I do want to see where things go, if you're still willing to deal with me - books, swottiness, and an orange fur ball." Her wand flicks out, releasing him from his silence and body binding. Her gaze remained steadfast on the floor as she waited for him to speak, yell - do something. When she counted to ten and the only sound was of silence, she lifted her head to see his gaze fixed steadily on her. But when she opened her mouth to comment, he shook his head once. His eyes were thunderous as he watched her. His hair tumbled before his furrowed brow as he watched her.

In a blink of her eyes, he stood before her, crowding her against the wall but not quite touching her. His eyes, dark and turbulent, but very much his own, gazed into hers. She watched his stare travel over the curves of her face, over the press of her lips, to only come back to her eyes and there was no question, no hesitation lingering beneath the surface.

"I'll take that as a yes?" He didn't answer her, instead his hands moved to hold her head, fingers gently placed against her jaw line, bracketing her against the door as he kissed her. His lips were tender as he pressed himself into her. She could feel the heat radiating from his body even as she tumbled into a sense of bliss from the kiss. Her breath passed through her lips in a whimper when she felt his fingers move and curl into her hair at the nape of her neck. Part of her was shocked that he'd managed to stay in control, especially at the emotional turmoil she'd seen swirling under the surface during her little ramble - that the Veela hadn't been able to take control. Especially since she was currently in a tornado of emotions that flickered left and right through her with each passing breath.

But here he was, gently kissing her, holding her tenderly as if she may slip through his fingers at any given moment if he moved too fast, held on too tightly. Her heart tumbled over itself at the very thought. Her gentle monster - no, that was too rough a word. Her gentle creature.

He pulled back, just barely. His eyes stared into hers, flicking back forth, as his lips barely brushed against her own when he spoke. "I'm all in, Granger. Veela or no Veela," he murmured but ending with a definite kiss. Her eyes fluttered shut as she felt the heat building within her. Draco Malfoy was going to be her downfall in the best way possible, she realized as she gave herself into the kiss. Her hands went round his shoulders to press him into her and urge the kiss on.

Many moments later, she felt him pull away from her though his fingers drifted down her sides to rest at her hips. Her eyes struggled to open as the euphoria clouded her mind. Her body didn't want to leave the warmth that had been building deep within her but when she felt the gentle touch of his fingertips brush against her chin, urging her to look at him she forced her eyes open. A soft smile tugged at the corner of his lips but she saw the seriousness lingering in his eyes.

Frowning slightly, she pulled herself up and righted her clothing which had his hands dropping from her person. It took another moment before she could meet his eyes again, but when she did she saw the worry now murking in their depths.

"I need you to know," he paused as he took a step back and shifted on the weight of his heels. "I need you to know I heard you," he started again. "And I don't want to worry about any time line." He put a hand up, stopping her. "We have time to get to know one another and I don't want you to stress, and I don't want us to rush. I'm willing to wait until you are ready."

Hermione nodded as she brought her thumb up to brush against her probably redden lips. Uncertainty clouded her mind though as she looked up at him through her lashes. "Are you ready?"

Draco could only shrug, his eyes down casted. "Like you said - I've known about this link a lot longer and I've been processing while you've been… unaware. I think we both need time to get used to the thought, but I wouldn't be saying no either." Her worries must have been clear because he stepped forward again, his grasp on her bringing her a sense of warmth and safety despite the thoughts rumbling around in her head. "Granger," he murmured desperately. "We decided how our lives go - not this bond, deal?"

An easy feeling swept through her as she nodded, smiling up at him. "Who would have thought Draco Malfoy would be the voice of reason?"

His brow rose high above his darkened eyes and the smirk stretched over his lips. "Someone has to be since Hermione Granger is tumbling through her emotions currently," he snarked but she felt no malice in his words.

She felt his hand on her lower back as he walked her down the hall back toward the Floo. With a soft smile, she welcomed the heat that spread from his simple touch. She was finding it increasingly hard to resist the contact - his touch. Part of her assumed it was the bond, but half of her hoped it was just him in general. Pink touched her cheeks as she shook her silly notions away.

They stopped just before the Floo and turned to face one another. Both were hesitant with the other as they watched the other. Rolling her eyes, she stepped forward and placed a kiss against his cheek before stepping back.

"You are still welcome through my Floo anytime the Veela gets a little insistent," she offered in parting.

Draco nodded but didn't say anything. Hermione smiled gently and grabbed the powder, starting to feel Draco's need to find some alone time. She understood that some needed time to process things alone and if she were being entirely honest, she could feel a hot bath calling her name for that same reason.

"Have a goodnight, Draco," she murmured as she stepped up and into the Floo. She called out her residence as she watched the tug at his features giving him a look of contemplativeness. Smiling to herself as she was lost in the green flames, she felt a rightness settle in her soul.

Stepping from the Floo into her living room, she quickly cast a cleansing charm to clear the dust particles away. Crookshanks came peering out of her bedroom at the noise she must have caused. A look of unamusement was in his lingering gaze before he turned back around to disappear the slightly parted door. Hermione could only laugh as she made her way toward her bedroom as well. Inside, she shimmied out of her jeans and socks. The cold bare floor was cool to the touch making her more eager to run to the bathtub. Taking off her sweatshirt and leaving it in a heap on the floor, she walked into her bathroom and turned on the faucet. The steam rose from the gushing water as it filled her porcelain tub.

Pulling her hair into a messy bun atop her head, she walked back toward the bedroom only to pause as she saw a figure out of the corner of her eye. Turning slightly, her eyes flew open at the sight of Draco standing in her living room, staring at her. She watched as his eyes trailed down her body, lingering at the lace boy shorts curving over her hip down her long legs only to follow back up her body. When his eyes met hers, she saw the heat there.

"Um," she started but he shut his eyes and turned around.

"I came - I didn't like how I left things." His voice was deep, gravelly as he spoke. "I just didn't want you thinking that I don't want you - fuck," she heard as he stumbled against her coffee table. She watched him bend at the waist. "I really find you desirable, especially right now. So please, don't doubt that because I agree to take things slow that I don't feel-"

"I don't, Draco. I know," she assured him with a bit of a smile twisting her features at the sight of his discomfort. "I appreciate you being honest with me."

"Yes." He straightened but did not turn to face her. His back rimrod straight as he stood there. "Goodnight, Hermione," he turned his head slightly, his gaze drifting over his shoulder but not quite looking at her.

"Goodnight, Draco." She watched him disappear in a puff of flames before returning to her now filled bath. Stripping from the remaining clothes she wore, a blush across her cheeks, she climbed into the heated water and immersed herself. Her mind lingered on all that had happened and she found herself smiling.

Draco was hers.

A/N: