Summary: After an incident at work, Draco is left in an awkward and inconvenient predicament just two months from his wedding day. Yikes.
...So...I had zero intention of actually indulging this little...idea. But it's not totally my fault! You see, I fell down a bit of a trope hole recently...and in that hole I discovered TeTe91's Catsitting, supernovanox's Collars and Candles, and RaymondShaw's Felix felis (or, 'Catty Business'). Following reading these wonderful fics, a chant started up in my brain. It went like this:
CATBOY DRACO.
CATBOY DRACO.
CATBOY DRACO.
And I tried, dear readers, I tried most valiantly to ignore the chant, BUT ALAS! I am weak. And I simply had to try out the trope for myself and see how it felt beneath my greedy little fingers. And what do you know, it was pretty fun. So enjoy, and definitely check out the other fics I mentioned if you want more kitty Draco after this. They're all available on Ao3.
Hermione Granger was having a shitty day.
As much as she loved her job in the Ministries' Archives, she most certainly did not love constantly being reminded of the general incompetence of her coworkers who couldn't seem to manage the simplest of tasks without help.
Seriously, everything was alphabetized, and yet they couldn't locate the record of all the Maplewood suppliers in England under 'M?'
If she had to lecture one more disrespectful chit about the purpose and importance of organization, she was going to blow a gasket.
The color-coded tabs were there for a reason, dammit!
Additionally, though Hermione was undoubtedly excited for her upcoming wedding, she really, really hated almost everything to do with planning for it. She loved Narcissa Malfoy, truly she did, but she didn't know nor care about the difference between rose champagne and geranium pink, and no, she also didn't give two shits about whether or not they matched the centerpieces. Hermione simply didn't see the point in fussing about every last gratuitous detail; she did that enough at her job to give her whole team a headache, and she certainly didn't need her special day being spoiled just because the buttercream on the cake was vanilla bean instead of amaretto.
All Hermione wanted was to meet her beloved fiancé at the end of the aisle and join together with him. Even if she had to do it barefoot in the middle of Diagon Alley on a rainy day, it would be worth it to finally start her forever with him.
Speaking of her fiancé…
"Draco?" Hermione called as she knocked on the door to his office. A harried goblin hunkered past her with a sneer, but she paid him no mind. She technically wasn't supposed to be in here – only goblins and licensed curse breakers were allowed in the back offices at Gringotts – but no one was going to attempt to tell Hermione Granger what she could and couldn't do.
When a few moments passed with no response from Draco, Hermione frowned and knocked again. She knew he was in there, she'd long memorized his ordinary workday schedule that he stuck to like clockwork, and he'd never not answered her before, particularly on their weekly date night. "Draco? If you don't answer me, I'm coming in, I don't care what it is you're working on. Our reservations are in one hour!"
A series of muffled crashes from behind the door kicked her into action.
"Draco! Are you alri – AUGH! What the-!?"
The moment she swung the door open, Hermione was nearly knocked backwards by the small form that barreled into her. She caught it purely on reflex, holding the small furry bundle to her chest as she looked down.
"Wha – what in the world!?"
Looking up at her with the most unpleasant expression she'd ever seen on an animal was a white cat with startlingly familiar silver eyes. Hermione's gaze darted rapidly to the dark urn toppled over on the desk, to the grey three-pieced suit not unlike the ones her fiancé often wore laying crumpled on the floor.
Slowly, Hermione's owlish stare roved back to the scowling feline in her arms.
"Oh, shite."
The next few hours were some of the worst Gringotts had ever seen.
The Golden Girl stormed through the bank, her hair crackling with angry magic, and the cat tucked protectively under her arm. Bystanders looked on with acute confusion at the odd sight, but were quick to scuttle away when Hermione turned her molten glare on them. She marched right into Head Curse Breaker Bennet's office, where she proceeded to unleash all her rage upon the unsuspecting man.
The following hour consisted of a one-sided shouting match against Bennet, who repeatedly tried to placate the irate war heroine.
"Miss Granger please, you must understand, there are always risks in this line of work-"
"Risks that you are responsible to help rectify!"
"And we will, but there are policies we must adhere to-"
"Sod your policies! My fiancé is a cat!"
Eventually, they managed to launch an investigation, which was quickly resolved upon discovering the urn left in his office which, to no one's surprise, had a rather unusual curse on it.
It took three curse breakers and two and a half painful hours just to identify and pick apart the damn curse before they were comfortable enough to attempt breaking it, making Hermione wonder what Draco had been thinking to tackle such an obviously dangerous object alone in his office. But given that he couldn't currently speak, she held her tongue to avoid agitating her fiancé any further.
Feline Draco observed his fellow curse breakers with obvious contempt, his tail swishing behind him with aggravation, a sight that Hermione tried very hard not to find amusing. Even as a cat, he still wore the infamous Malfoy sneer perfectly.
Hermione's fingers tapped longingly on the uncomfortable bench as she eyed Draco's soft-looking coat of snow white fur. She'd not had a cat since Crookshanks passed a few years ago, and she greatly missed having the comforting presence of a friendly feline around. Draco wasn't much of a pet person, though she had a sneaky little plan to slowly but surely wear him down into letting her get one. How ironic that he'd been turned into the very animal she'd been longing for.
Leisurely, Hermione stretched out her eager fingers towards her fiancé, knowing she may only have one chance.
Meanwhile, Draco was watching his coworkers fumble with the accursed urn, hating everything about this situation more and more with each passing second. He was furious, mainly with the old bat that had brought the sodding urn in who claimed it had nothing more than a stubborn confounding spell on it, but he was also furious with himself for making such a juvenile mistake in the first place.
While Draco certainly wasn't the only curse breaker that occasionally cut corners and didn't follow some of the more gratuitous procedure steps, he still should have known better than to take the damn thing to his office. The urn had been sitting in their "in progress" section for weeks, constantly pushed aside in favor of more pressing projects. After receiving one too many extensive complaints from the crabby woman, Draco became fed up and decided to get the bloody thing out of the way as quickly as possible just so he wouldn't have to hear the old biddy's screeching voice ever again.
Alas, his aggravation made him careless, and the moment he attempted to cast a basic breaker spell on the urn, he suddenly found himself looking up at his much higher desk from a very unhuman body.
Being a cat felt anything but natural. His eyesight was somehow sharper and duller at the same time, he could smell things he wished he couldn't identify, and maneuvering took far longer to get a hang of than he cared to admit. The humiliation of being discovered and rescued by his fiancée was acute.
…Although, he had to admit, watching her shout at his normally immovable boss on his behalf was pretty hot.
Draco felt his tail flick in frustration when one of the trainees nearly dropped the urn mid-levitation. Multiple times, he opened his mouth to scold his completely incompetent coworkers, only to remember that he couldn't currently speak. A deep rumble that sounded disturbingly like a growl rose in Draco's chest in response to his growing fury. Just as he was seriously contemplating prowling his way over to claw off his infuriating coworker's faces, the most wonderful sensation stole all his attention.
Nails and fingertips scratching, rubbing, scraping all the right places.
It felt better than any massage he'd ever received, like all his problems and worries were being swept away by these talented fingers. His unfamiliar feline instincts swallowed his human brain for the briefest of moments, causing him to melt into the touch. Draco's whole body buzzed with contentment as he leaned into the large hand.
Fuuuuck it felt amazing!
What had he been so bothered about before? He suddenly couldn't remember. All he could focus on was the blessed fingers caressing his ears, his chin, his back…
He knew this hand, this delightful hand that was so intent on pleasing him. He'd held and kissed it many times, and now it smelled just like him, just as it should-
Draco jerked, his senses returning with the force of a freight train. He sprung upright, his infernal tail shooting up indignantly. He glared venomously at Hermione, furious that she dared to do something as humiliating as stroke him like a common house pet right in front of his coworkers.
Not that they were paying them any attention, but still! It was the principle of it! And to top it all off, the infuriating bint was laughing at him!
Hermione was trying valiantly to contain her amusement, but only mildly succeeding. And Draco glaring at her as though she'd deeply betrayed him didn't help whatsoever.
"I-I'm sorry, love," she snickered, voice warbling with barely suppressed laughter. "I didn't know you'd get so…into it."
If possible, her fiancé's scowl deepened, an expression that looked terribly funny on his feline face. Thankfully, one of the curse breakers came over before Draco could scratch his intended's eyes out.
It took yet another hour and half to lift the curse, an endeavor that was not made easier by Draco hissing and swiping at anyone that got too close to him. Hermione tried her best to subdue him while watching the breakers peel the curse away layer by layer, flashes of blue, green, and red illuminating the room.
At last, with a whoosh of air and a strange 'pop,' a very human, very naked Draco Malfoy stood in place of the glowering cat, just as he'd always looked – aside from the fluffy white tail brushing his calves and fuzzy ears sticking out of his head.
Hermione sighed in despair as her fiancé swore violently. It was going to be a long night.
"What the fuck do you mean there's nothing you can do!? You're supposed to be bloody professionals, so act like it!" Draco's irate shout shook the walls of the hospital, making several in the vicinity cringe. Hermione stood in the corner of the examination room rubbing her temples.
When the curse breakers had been unable to make Draco's feline ears and tail vanish, they took off to St. Mungo's on Bennet's recommendation in hopes of finding answers. The results were not as they anticipated.
"Mr. Malfoy," the healer replied evenly, "you must understand. Your case is not as simple as applying a basic counter curse. The curse you are under is a very complicated, very old transformation curse that has imbedded itself quite deeply within your magical core. These excess body parts are not just decorative, they are functional parts of you for the time being. If we were to attempt to forcefully remove them, it could potentially handicap you." Draco growled deep in his chest, causing the healer to arch a pointed brow. "The fact that you're currently growling at me only proves my point. Though the curse over you was mostly broken, a part of it still lingers, and it's what's causing these animal-like tendencies."
Scowling, Draco's tail flicked erratically. Hermione doubted he was even aware that he was doing it, cementing the healer's point even more.
"However, we do have some good news, "the healer continued, "we've run some tests with the help of your fellow curse breakers, and it seems the counter spells that were cast on you are still working, albeit extremely slowly. So, we think that with a bit of time, the curse will lift completely."
Draco's ears swiveled at the news. Hermione pointedly focused on the healer's words and not on how terribly cute she found that.
"How long will that take?" Draco demanded. "At this point, we have no way of knowing for certain. The curse cast on you consists of many layers, so it could take a while for the counter spells to penetrate each one. It mostly depends on the strength of your magic. Right now, the curse and the counters are at war within you, both attempting to take over your body. It's similar to the way muggle antibiotics fight off a virus. An illness doesn't disappear within a day of treatment, but rather steadily improves over time. It seems this curse is operating in the same manner."
Draco pinched the bridge of his nose, barely listening as the healer rattled off facts that, as a curse breaker, he basically already knew. Truthfully, he'd suspected an outcome like this since he turned back, but he'd hoped beyond measure that the healers of St. Mungo's would be able to see an angle he hadn't.
"Is there anything we can do to speed up the process?"
The healer frowned lightly. "Nothing that would be advisable, no. So many counter spells have already been placed on you, if we were attempt any more, we'd risk overtaxing your magical core. For now, we think it's best that we allow the curse to finish running its course. It's the safest option we have."
Draco's nostrils flared. "So I'm stuck like this!?"
The healer sighed. "For the time being, it would seem you are. You should really consider yourself lucky it was just a transformation curse and not something more sinister."
"Lucky? Lucky!?" the Slytherin sputtered, "look at me! I have fucking cat ears on my head! And I'm getting married in less than two months!" Hermione placed a calming hand on Draco's arm, only to flinch when he harshly shrugged her off.
The Gryffindor blinked, trying not to feel too stung by the rejection.
The healer's blank expression didn't budge. "I am truly sorry Mr. Malfoy, but there is nothing more we can do for the time being. I recommend you disillusion the ears and tail when you go out if it bothers you that much. Also, we'd like to see you back here for regular progress evaluations at least once per week until the curse lifts to ensure nothing else goes awry."
They left the hospital in low spirits, and Hermione had a feeling her shitty day had just turned into a shitty week. Unfortunately, she was right.
Throughout the next week and a half, Draco remained in a foul mood, no matter what she did to try and cheer him up.
His tail constantly swished back and forth with agitation, he'd notice and try to physically hold the damn thing still with his hand, only for the lack of movement to eventually aggravate him even further. Every comment she'd make about it not looking that bad was met with a poisonous glare. He'd sneer deeply every time he caught of glance of himself in the mirror, and hated any and all reminders of his current predicament.
Truthfully, Hermione thought he was overreacting. Yes, the situation was far from ideal, but it could have been a lot worse. She refrained from voicing these thoughts, knowing it would only incite his anger, and she was already doing that enough without even trying.
Draco snapped at her over every little thing, leading to more pointless, childish arguments than they'd had since their Hogwarts days. Hermione knew, somewhere in her subconscious, that she should do better at keeping a cool head instead of lashing back at him, but she was stressed and exhausted. Her work was long and frustrating as ever, and she'd had to put off wedding preparations for the time being, which did not go over well with Narcissa when she told her.
To make matters worse, Draco insisted that nobody else know of his condition and forbid her from telling anyone, which made it that much harder to flounder for excuses when telling their friends and family why he couldn't join them for their regular get togethers.
The weekly hospital visits were a nightmare, usually ending with Hermione apologizing profusely to the poor healers Draco shouted at and insulted just for doing their jobs.
Before she knew it, their normally cozy home had turned frosty and tense. Hermione hadn't felt the need to tiptoe around someone so much since Pansy's first pregnancy had turned her into a chaotic mess of rage and hormones.
Their evenings of casual dinners and cuddling on the couch watching programs or reading books disappeared. In fact, whenever Hermione came home from work, Draco would tense before retreating to whatever room she wasn't in. When she tried to ask him what was wrong, he always responded with a grumbled, "Nothing."
While their nights used to conclude with them tumbling into bed together to make a mess of the sheets, they'd barely managed a few cheek kisses since his transformation. The only time Draco initiated intimacy with her was in his sleep, ironically enough. Hermione hadn't the foggiest clue why, but a Draco with cat tendencies was thrice as snuggly as Draco without them. Though he fell asleep before her with his back turned every night the past week, Hermione always woke up with him clinging to her like a koala, purring deep in his chest.
Draco was, in every intent and purpose, acting like a feral cat she'd picked up off the street and brought home. She had no idea what it was about the curse that was making him behave like this, but what she did know was that she was beyond done with it.
Though she'd tried her damnedest to remain calm and supportive, Hermione's sympathy and patience had all but run dry. She was sick of his appalling attitude, and hurt and angry at his treatment of her. She'd decided to not push it until after the curse finally broke, but her resolve shattered violently at the beginning of the second week.
It was Sunday, and Hermione had escaped to the Burrow for the afternoon, desperate to get away from her fiancé for a few hours. While she was there, Ron noticed her barely hidden distress, having matured quite a bit in the years since the war. Hermione had not divulged the source of her torment, but her old friend kindly sat with her outside, rubbing soothing circles into her back while she laid her head on his shoulder, offering whatever reassurance he could. His gentle actions made Hermione realize how lonely she'd been since her fiancé's ailment, and allowed herself a moment to just sit and be comforted.
She returned home feeling a bit better, finally feeling some warmth seep back into her bones after spending time with her surrogate family. She found Draco sat in the living room reading a book. His ears swiveled towards her when she walked in, but he didn't look up to greet her.
"Hello love," Hermione sighed as she removed her jacket. "Have a good afternoon then, did you?" Draco replied somewhat sardonically. "As a matter of fact I did, thank you for asking," she muttered, unable to keep bitterness from seeping into her tone.
Padding over to the sofa, she plopped down next to him, intending to try and really talk to him instead of just exchanging passive aggressive comments. However, the moment she sat down, Draco's nostrils flared and he whipped his gaze towards her. His ears flattened against his head as something resembling a hiss tore from his throat. "Why the fuck do you smell like Weasley!?" he growled.
Hermione reeled back in astonishment, eyes narrowing. "Gee, I don't know Draco, maybe it's because I just came from visiting their house!"
Draco bared his teeth as he stood up. "Don't play ignorant with me! I can smell Weaselbee on you! What the hell were you doing with him, Hermione!?"
Hermione slowly stood up, expression darkening. "Just what exactly are you implying, Draco Malfoy?"
He scowled down at her, silver eyes flashing. "What's there to imply? His disgusting scent is all over you! What else am I supposed to fucking think!?" Hermione's mouth dropped open, stomach coiling in on itself. "Didn't want to be seen with your freak of a fiancé, did you? Went running back to your ex because you couldn't handle the thought of being married to a fucking-"
SMACK
Draco's head snapped to the side.
Hermione curled her stinging hand by her hip, entire body shaking with the torrent of negative emotions storming through it.
"How dare you!" she snarled. "How dare you for even one fucking moment accuse me of something like that! I've been nothing but loyal to you! I've lied for you, stressed myself to insanity over you, lived for you these past weeks! You, you – you have no right!"
Though she was several centimeters shorter than him, Draco visibly cowed in the face of her anger.
Hermione was steaming like an enraged bull, fingers twitching erratically at her sides. "If you must know, Ron was comforting me because he saw how bloody upset I was over you! He hugged me and let me rest on his shoulder because I was so fucking exhausted from dealing with you! You have been so awful to me! You get angry over every little thing, act like my mere presence disgusts you, and you barely even touch me! I've been trying so hard to help you, but all you do is brush me off and get annoyed with me! And every time I try to talk to you, you ignore me, or say it's nothing!"
Draco's already fair skin had been drained of the little color it had, leaving him as white as a sheet. "H-Hermione-"
"No! Shut up! I'm not done!" she shouted.
He visibly flinched, tail wrapping around one of his legs.
Hermione buried her hands in her hair, pulling at her curls as the inside of her skull ached. "You just – you're like a completely different person, and I don't know why or what to do about it! I've been so worried about you, wondering if the curse is somehow affecting you in a way we didn't know about, but the healers say everything is progressing as it should! And – and now-"
Unable to hold it back any longer, Hermione burst into frustrated tears.
Draco withered, ears and tail dropping listlessly.
"And now you've gone and accused me of cheating on you! I-I just – I thought you trusted me! I'm supposed to be your wife in a couple months, and all you've done is treat me like an inconvenience! Are you even interested in marrying me anymore!?" she sobbed, hardly making out her fiancé's horrified expression through her blurry vision.
Draco drew in a sharp breath. "N-No, I – it's not like that, I didn't mean-"
Hermione held up a hand to stop him. "No, don't. Not – not now. I can't hear this right now. Just-" She paused, drawing in a shaky breath. "I…I'm going to go."
His ears sprang up in alarm. "No! No, no, Hermione, please don't leave, let me-"
"Not forever, you moron, just for a few hours. I…I can't be here right now. I don't want to say something I'll regret," Hermione explained, wiping her eyes.
Draco's sharper incisors were buried in his lip, a bead of blood forming in the wound. "W-Where will you go?"
Hermione shrugged, crossing her arms over her chest. "I don't know. Maybe to Harry's. Or I might wander around Diagon Alley for a while. I just need to get away. I can't be around you right now."
Draco lowered his gaze as she snatched up her jacket. Before leaving the room, Hermione briefly turned back around. "When I get back, I want to talk. Really talk, Draco. Because I will not sit back be treated this way anymore. I'm your fiancée, and I deserve better than that."
With that, Hermione spun on her heel and marched out of the house, leaving her despondent fiancé standing alone in their living room.
The sun had long set by the time the Gryffindor trudged her way home. Her entire body, mind, and soul felt empty and wrought with exhaustion. Her anger had all fizzled out, and now she just felt numb.
Hermione stood at the front door to her and Draco's home, not knowing what to expect on the other side. It was hard to believe just a week and a half ago they'd been blissfully happy and eagerly anticipating their upcoming nuptials.
Sighing wearily, Hermione unlocked the door with a wave of her wand and stepped inside. The first thing she noticed was the heady, mouthwatering scent in the air. Her stomach immediately voiced its approval, reminding her that it was well past supper time.
Approaching the kitchen, she found Draco sitting at their little breakfast table, which was laden with two servings of caprese salad and chicken carbonara under a stasis spell. Her favorites.
Draco briefly looked up when she entered, only to purse his lips and drop his gaze a moment later, ears laying meekly against his head. "I, um…I wasn't sure if you'd eaten already."
Hermione silently stood in the threshold of the kitchen for a long moment. "No, I haven't," was her soft reply. Without meeting his gaze, she joined him at the table, recognizing the peace offering and electing to accept. It didn't really solve anything, but it was a step in the right direction.
They ate in a silence that wasn't quite comfortable, but also not as strained as it had been for the past week and a half. Draco kept his eyes down and picked at his food. He'd not had much of an appetite since the incident…discounting the night they had salmon, but she'd wisely not pointed that out.
Hermione wished she could tell what he was thinking. Thankfully, he didn't have his Occlumency shields up – he didn't use them around her much anymore, but if he was feeling vulnerable, sometimes he'd reach for them instinctively – but even without them, his face was mostly blank.
He felt bad, she could tell that much; his ears drooped with guilt and his tail kept tightening and relaxing around the chair leg as though he was nervous. Hermione had noticed that Draco seemed far less in control of these non-human parts he'd acquired, ironically making him easier to read than normal.
Regardless, guilt wasn't enough to rectify the situation.
"I'm still upset, you know," Hermione said quietly as she cut her pasta.
Her fiancé was far from adept at discussing feelings – more bullshit that had been shoved down his throat growing up by his father – so she was used to making the first move when they had to have these conversations.
Draco swallowed. "I know." His voice was barely above a whisper.
She nodded in reply, returning to her meal. His response was as expected; a short acknowledgment, implying that he heard her and intended to talk, but not just yet. Hermione knew from experience that pushing Draco to talk before he was ready was a surefire way to get him to close himself off, so she would be patient.
Her Draco was a man of his word.
After supper, they washed the dishes side by side, still not exchanging a word. Then, Hermione went to take her evening shower, wanting to give him all the time he needed to prepare himself for their inevitable conversation. When she returned to their bedroom, she found Draco sat Indian style on his side of the bed, tail curled anxiously around his leg. Hermione dressed in silence and pretended she couldn't feel his gaze on her.
Finally, she joined him in their bed, lounging against her pile of pillows with ankles crossed, and hands folded atop her stomach. This time, she stayed quiet. If he really wanted to mend things, he had to be the one to initiate this time.
An unknown amount of time passed before Draco licked his lips and slowly opened his mouth. "I'm sorry."
Hermione nodded once. "Okay."
He drew in a shaky breath, ears twitching atop his head. "I'm sorry I hurt you. I'm sorry for the way I've acted. I'm sorry I made you cry. I'm sorry for taking my anger and frustrations out on you. And I'm sorry I accused you of something I know you didn't do."
Hermione listened to his voice break a little more with each apology and let out a long sigh when he finished. "Okay. Thank you for apologizing. May I ask some questions?"
Draco nodded timidly.
The Gryffindor licked her lips before speaking. "If you already knew I didn't cheat on you, why did you accuse me of doing it?" Draco flinched, tail thumping once on the bed. For once, he didn't look down to glare at it. "I…it's…hard to explain," he muttered.
"Try," Hermione urged.
He squirmed, reaching up to tug at an ear. She'd noticed him doing this several times since the incident, sometimes like he was trying to relieve tension, and other times like he was trying to pull the damn thing off.
"Since…this happened," Draco began, gesturing to himself, "it's been harder to – to control myself." Hermione arched a curious brow. "Control yourself how?" He started rubbing the pointed ear between his fingers, the other ear flicking erratically as if in protest. She could practically see the cogs turning in his brain as he attempted to collect his thoughts.
"Emotionally…mentally. It's like…everything I feel is amplified. And I just – stupid shit that normally wouldn't bother me suddenly seems like the worst thing in the world. And thoughts that I would usually be able to ignore just stick around and drive me fucking nuts."
Hermione softened at his genuinely distressed expression. His explanation was steadily beginning to make the pieces fall into place. "What kind of thoughts?" she asked gently. Draco huffed, scraping a hand through his hair. "Bad ones, mostly. Like how bloody furious I am with myself for being so stupid and getting myself cursed. Or how lonely it is here by myself all day when you leave for work. Or how I'm afraid that you'll-"
Draco slammed his mouth shut so hard that his teeth clacked. His pupils dilated and his eyes glazed over, letting her know that he'd just thrown up his Occlumency shields.
Hermione reached out and took his hand firmly in hers. "It's okay," she whispered, stroking his hand with her thumb. "You're safe. This is a safe place. You can come out. No one's going to hurt you."
Draco's chest heaved with trembling breaths.
After several minutes of quiet reassurances, he slowly relaxed. "What were you afraid I was going to do, Draco?" Hermione pressed gently. He gripped her hand silently, his tail reaching out to wrap tentatively around her ankle. She almost flinched in surprise at the feel of it. This was the first time he'd willingly touched her with it.
"I-I was afraid…th-that you…that you wouldn't…want me like this," Draco shakily admitted.
"Oh, Draco…" Hermione murmured sadly.
He clutched her hand harder and shook his head. "It was thoughts like that…that wouldn't leave me alone. Even though I knew, logically, that they weren't true, it's like I physically couldn't get rid of them."
Her heart ached at his words, hating the thought of him stuck in their house alone all day (he'd been given time off from work due to the incident) torturing himself with a cycle of self-destructive thoughts. No wonder he'd been in such a foul mood all the time.
"And you know, that's not even the worst of it," Draco continued with a bitter laugh. "What I really can't fucking stand is these infernal 'animal tendencies' the healer talked about. Merlin, they're just – they're so fucking awful, Hermione!" He suddenly shot off the bed and began to pace. "Do you know the other day, I heard a dog bark outside, and I jumped up on the table!? On all fours? God, I felt like an idiot! I can barely make myself eat because nothing tastes right, I can hardly shower because the water feels horrid on these damned ears, and I smell everything!"
He paused, panting as his tail swished wildly behind him. "That – that's been the hardest, I think. Being able to – to smell things. It does…unpleasant things to me."
Hermione's brows furrowed worriedly. "Like when you said I smelled like Ron?" Draco nodded miserably, slumping back down on the bed. "Every day when you came home from work, you smelled like other people. Sometimes other men. Just faintly, but still…I couldn't stand it. It made me want to-" he swallowed harshly, "-do things to you."
Hermione's chest fluttered. "Wha-what kind of things?" she couldn't help but ask.
The Slytherin slowly looked at her, eyes dark. "Bite you. Fuck you. Fill you and paint you with my cum until you were drenched with my scent."
Her breath hitched slightly, his low, domineering tone rolling through her. "O-Oh," she stammered, feeling her cheeks warm.
Draco's nostrils flared. "Fuck-" he choked, slapping a hand over his nose. "Salazar, Hermione, can you not? I'm trying to keep a level head here!"
At first she was confused by his reaction, but then realized with mounting embarrassment that he could probably smell her arousal.
"W-Well I can't exactly control it!" she squeaked, pressing her thighs together.
Draco moaned quietly. "J-Just…fuck, give me a minute…"
"Should I…leave for a moment?" Hermione inquired softly. He shook his head, tail once again wrapping around her leg in protest.
"Why, um…why didn't you? Do any of those things, I mean? I wouldn't have protested…" she asked hesitantly after he'd calmed.
Draco sighed, shaking his head. "Because I wanted to do them for completely selfish reasons. I wasn't interested in pleasuring you, I just wanted to mark you and remind you that you're…mine." He rubbed his face with both hands. "I felt like a disgusting bloody caveman, thinking like that. That's why I couldn't be around you for a while every time you came home. I was afraid I might hurt you…I didn't trust myself to stay in control."
Hermione frowned thoughtfully. "Then why did you react so differently to smelling Ron on me?"
Draco was silent for a moment. "I think – god, this is going to sound terrible – I think because I knew you'd dated him in the past, my – my instincts saw him as a threat. And I'd already been fretting about you leaving me because of this, so when I smelled him on you, I just…lashed out."
Draco heaved another sigh, resting his head against the headboard. "I really am sorry for what I said, Hermione. I knew it wasn't true, even as I was saying it, I didn't really believe it. And I know it sounds like I'm trying to make excuses for myself, but I'm not, I promise. I'm just…I want to…"
"You want to help me understand your perspective and why you said what you did," Hermione fulfilled when he trailed off.
He nodded, eyes sliding shut tiredly. "It's like…I have this other personality inside me that takes over when I least expect it. And there's nothing I can do about it." His forehead wrinkled painfully, as though he was going to cry. "I hate it…I hate it so fucking much. Having no control, not knowing how much longer I'll be stuck like this…I feel so fucking helpless! Just like in fourth year when Moody turned me into a goddamn ferret and threw me against the walls, or the whole fucking time I was trapped in my own house with V-V-"
Hermione swiftly gathered him in her arms. This far into their relationship, she recognized a potential breakdown when she saw one.
Draco slumped against her, head dropping onto her shoulder as his shoulders began to shake. She stroked his back as he sobbed quietly, providing whatever small degree of comfort she could. Her entire being ached for him, hating that he was still tormented by the memories of his final years at school so many years later.
Draco's cries quieted shortly, but he didn't move away from her. Hermione kissed the top of his head. "I'm sorry I didn't realize how much you've been struggling, love."
He shook his head. "S'not your fault. I was being an arse."
"Still," she sighed, "I should have been more patient, but instead I let my anger get the best of me. Or maybe I should have asked you to talk to me a bit more…" Draco raised his head, placing a gentle kiss on his fiancée's cheek. "It doesn't matter now. Things happened, and now we can only work to move past them."
Hermione cupped his face, wiping away a few sticky tears. "You know I would never leave you over something like this, right? Cat ears or not, I still fully intend to marry you. You're not getting rid of me that easily!"
Draco's lips twitched into a small smile. "Even after how utterly pathetic I've been tonight?"
"You are not pathetic, Draco Malfoy. Seeking out help and telling someone when you're hurting isn't pathetic. It's healthy. If we're going to make this marriage last, we need to communicate and talk about it when we hurt each other," Hermione said firmly.
Draco's brow crinkled, and for a moment, she thought he may start crying again. Instead, he closed his eyes, drawing in a quivering breath. "Thank you, Hermione. You're right. I'm so sorry."
She pressed a tender kiss to his lips. "I forgive you." His ears twitched adorably at her words as he cast her a relieved smile. Unable to resist a moment longer, Hermione reached up and scratched behind one of his fluffy white ears.
Draco's expression melted in bliss as he pressed his head further into her touch. "Mmm…that's so nice, love…" he sighed.
Smiling, Hermione ran her fingers up and down each ear, loving the softness against her skin. She allowed him to direct her hand, paying close attention to the spots he seemed to like most. The bed squeaked as Draco sprang up on all fours so he could bury his face into her neck. She giggled as he nuzzled her throat, his fingers kneading the bare skin of her thighs. Then, a low rumble drew her attention, and she realized he was purring.
Hermione's wonder quickly turned into desire as Draco started lapping at her neck. She gave a soft moan, and he froze and drew away, pale skin flushed with mortification.
"S-Sorry. The…instincts took over for a moment there."
Hermione shook her head, trying to tug him back towards her. "I didn't mind. I-I actually kind of liked it…"
Draco looked at her incredulously. "Really?"
She bit her lip and nodded.
He fidgeted in her hold. "It's embarrassing…" he admitted quietly.
"I'm the only one here, love," Hermione whispered, "it's okay. You can let go. I…I want you to let go."
Something resembling a whimper tore from Draco's throat, and the next thing she knew, she was pinned beneath him. She sighed happily at the feeling of his hard, warm body pressing into her.
God, she'd missed this. Missed being under him, atop him, filled by him.
Draco was rubbing his head and face against her collarbone, pausing to nip and lick at her skin once and a while. Hermione raked her nails through his hair and continued to fondle his ears to her liking. He moaned gently at her touch, tail wrapping around one of her thighs as he pulled her legs wider apart and settled between them.
"Oh…" she keened when Draco started rutting against her, grinding his clothed arousal into her aching core. "Fuck," he choked. Hermione gasped when he met her gaze, pupils blown so wide that she could barely see his silver irises. "I-I don't want to hurt you," he panted, hips stuttering as though he wanted to stop, but couldn't.
"You won't," she assured, cupping his face. "You won't, Draco. Please…I want you so much."
She could practically see the strings of his restraint snap. With a groan, Draco shoved up the oversized shirt she had on, exposing her bare breasts to the air. Hermione sat up briefly so he could tug it off her, sighing when he attached his lips to her neck.
"Mm, yes…"
She bit her lip as his warm tongue caressed her skin, stroking from her jaw, to the hollow of her throat, then glided across her clavicle.
His tongue felt…a little different, somehow. Rougher, almost. She liked it.
Hermione's breath stuttered as he continued exploring her with his mouth, licking her with painful meticulousness. He trailed down the valley of her breasts, tongue flicking her sensitive nipple and blowing on it to make it harden. He kissed his way to her opposite breast and repeated the treatment, making his fiancée writhe beneath him.
Draco swirled his tongue around the hardened peak, groaning as the sweet scent of her arousal grew stronger. His cock twitched and pulsed, frantic to be buried inside her. But first, he wanted to finish drenching her in his scent.
Hermione licked her lips as his head traveled lower, shivering when his teeth just barely brushed her skin. Yet, he refrained from biting her. Instead he continued to subject her to his torturous tongue, taking his sweet time in tasting every last inch of her. He slowly licked his way across her ribs and down her soft stomach, which was quivering with anticipation.
By the time he reached her thighs, Hermione was aching with need. Her legs trembled as he licked long stripes against her inner thighs, almost as though he were grooming her.
If she weren't so excruciatingly aroused, she may have found it funny.
"God, Draco! Please!" she finally whimpered when another long minute passed and he still hadn't touched her.
Draco paused, blinking up at her as if he was surprised. Then, a sinful smirk stretched across his lips. The submissiveness in her tone made him purr with delight.
Kissing her thigh teasingly, he hooked his thumbs into the waistband of her knickers and pulled them down. His knees nearly buckled as her scent washed over him.
"Fuck," he moaned. "God, darling…you smell…fuck, I can't even describe it!"
Draco eagerly ducked his head, mouth watering and cock throbbing. He pressed a kiss to her swollen clit, making her shudder. Then, his eager tongue darted out once more, giving her a slow, broad lick. They both moaned, her at the sensation, him at her taste. This was far from the first time he'd eaten her out, but she'd never tasted so exquisite before. Needing more, Draco pushed his tongue inside her as deep as he could while rubbing her clit with his thumb.
Hermione keened, arching into his mouth. "Draco, yes!"
Her lusty calls of his name made him purr louder, the vibrations against her soaked cunt sending her higher. Draco groaned as he tongue-fucked her needy hole. She was getting close, he could tell by her tensing thighs and erratic breaths.
An idea occurred to him then, one that made him snatch her by the hips and lift her up so the lower half of her body was completely off the bed. Hermione let out an adorable little, "eep!" when he did it, grasping at the sheets for purchase. Draco wound his arms around her waist to hold her up, her arse pressing into his chest.
"D-Draco, what are you – ohhh!" Hermione whined when he encapsulated her cunt with his mouth and began sucking her clit like it was a sugar quill.
Draco gave a pleased hummed. This angle gave him much better access to all her sensitive little spots that he knew so well, and took full advantage of as she fell over the edge with a raspy moan. He greedily licked up her release, wanting to claim every last drop for himself.
When she squirmed away, too sensitive for him to continue, he lowered her back down onto the bed.
Draco's tail curled happily as he tugged off his shirt. His scent was all over her now, just as it should be – but it wasn't enough.
Hermione watched, somewhat dazed as her fiancé vanished his sleep pants and underwear, leaving him bare before her hungry eyes. His cock was wonderfully swollen against his stomach, a bead of precum sliding down the shaft and dripping onto his balls. She wanted to sit up and lick it off, but Draco covered her body with his once again and kissed her feverishly.
Hermione wrapped her arms around his neck and hooked her legs over his hips, trying to coerce him to push into her. His cock slid against her wet folds, and they both sighed at the contact.
Draco broke the kiss suddenly, staring down at her heatedly. "Turn over," he growled.
Whimpering, she eagerly obeyed, flipping onto her stomach. He grabbed a pillow and tucked it under her belly to make her more comfortable, then settled between her thighs.
Hermione expected him to immediately shove himself inside her, so she giggled in mild surprise when he leaned down to nuzzle her neck first. Draco allowed his instincts to guide him as he rubbed his face against her head, pausing to swipe his tongue across her ear.
"M' gonna fuck you," he rasped.
"Yes, Draco," Hermione replied breathlessly.
"If I – get too rough, tell me, yeah?"
With how amazing she smelled, his instincts were screaming at him take her, fuck her, claim her, utterly ruin her for anyone but him. Though he could tell by her scent that she was more than ready for him, he didn't trust himself not to lose control and give her more than she was prepared to take.
Hermione smiled at him over her shoulder, making his tail flick happily. "I trust you, love. Make me yours again."
Her words pulled a satisfied growl from his chest. He didn't know how she knew just what to say when he was stuck in this form, but his witch was undeniably brilliant.
Draco wound his tail around her waist as he sunk into her, moaning breathlessly as her tight, warm walls hugged his cock.
"Yes," Hermione hissed, fisting the sheets as he started riding her. He gave a few shallow thrusts to gather his bearings, ears folding back with his efforts not to pound into her with abandon.
Her hips rut back against him desperately. "Draco, please…harder. I won't break," she begged.
Draco's rhythm stuttered, sharp incisors peeking out between his lips. "Careful what you wish for, love."
She whimpered when he slowly bottomed out inside her, his cock kissing her g-spot. "Please, please-" Hermione's pleads were cut off with a wail when he abruptly pulled out, and slammed back in.
"Yes, yes, yes-" Hermione cried out with pleasure.
"Fuck, darling!" Draco gasped.
He leaned down so his chest was flush against her back, not pausing his desperate thrusts. His pale hand fisted her chestnut curls, moving the hair aside so he could bite down on the supple curve of her neck. Hermione keened, tilting her head to give him better access. Draco nibbled her neck and shoulder, tongue darting out to taste her sweat-laden skin. His fingers dug into her hips as he fucked her in earnest, loving the heady scent of their joined bodies.
Their room was filled with the sounds of skin slapping skin, her breathy moans, and his low grunts. Hermione gasped, smiling drunkenly when he hit just the right spot. "Gods, Draco, you feel so good! I missed you so much!"
Draco's tail tightened around her. "M' sorry…m' sorry…" he moaned, lips pressed against her ear. She shook her head jerkily, reaching back to scratch his ears. His head dropped into her touch, his rumbling purrs vibrating wonderfully against her back.
When Hermione's fingers brushed a particularly good spot, Draco's mouth dropped, and out came a surprising, soft trill noise. It reminded her of the sound Crookshanks used to make when watching birds out the window, and if her fiancé wasn't currently fucking her brains out, she may have found it cute.
He whimpered incoherently between trills, his human and animal side struggling against one another to articulate what he wanted.
"-me," Hermione heard. "Please don't leave me…please don't leave me…"
The Gryffindor's heart squeezed painfully. "I'm here," she gasped out, "I'm right here."
Draco's body went taught above her, and with three jerky thrusts, he came with a howl. Hermione bit her lip as she felt his release flowing deep inside her.
The Slytherin's mouth hung open as he continued to come, longer than he ever had before. When the waves of pleasure finally calmed, he slumped against his fiancée, completely sated.
Hermione continued to stroke his ears as he caught his breath, making his softening cock twitch inside her.
After several long moments, when her pulsing walls were too much on his oversensitive prick, Draco carefully pulled out.
He frowned as his seed started spilling out of her, running down thighs and her cunt. He quickly caught the drips with two fingers, followed the trail back up to her pulsating hole, and shoved both his fingers and cum back inside her.
Hermione squealed, bucking back against his hand. "D-Draco – oh, Draco!"
Fuck, he couldn't get enough of the way she moaned his name. "That's it, love. Take it all inside your pretty cunt. You love my cum, don't you?" Draco growled, scissoring his fingers until he found the spongy bundle of nerves that always made her weak.
Hermione's eyes rolled back in her head, her pussy sensitive from his cock, but still clenching needily around his fingers. "Yes, yes!" she cried, arching her back as his long digits caressed her in places she could never reach on her own.
"Come on, sweetheart, come for me. I want you to come on my fingers," Draco rasped.
"Y-Yes please – I – oh, oh!" Hermione gasped as her orgasm took her in its clutches, riding her fiancé's fingers with abandon. He ran a soothing hand down her back and pumped his digits in and out of her until she was whimpering with sensitivity.
Pulling out, Draco licked his fingers clean, moaning at the taste of their combined juices.
Hermione panted into the sheets, muttering under her breath. He laid down next to her, running a comforting hand up and down her back. "Was I too rough?" he whispered, kissing the nape of her neck. Hermione languidly rolled towards her fiancé and pressed her lips to his. "Not at all. It was…mm, wonderful."
He smiled against her mouth, draping an arm across her waist. They kissed lazily for several quiet minutes, pausing when Hermione giggled. "Your tail is tickling me!"
While the comment would have made him frown several hours ago, Draco now smirked mischievously. "Oh?" he drawled, dragging his tail purposefully along the length of her spine. "Eep! Draco, stop!" she protested, squirming in his arms.
The next thing the Gryffindor knew, her sneaky Slytherin fiancé was poking and prodding her sensitive sides.
Hermione squealed with laughter, trying in vain to escape his touch. "AH! You traitor! You fiend! Stop it! Stop – AHAHA! – stop it at once! Y-You know I'm vulnerable after sex! HAHAHA! Release me, you slimy Slytherin!"
Draco ignored his fiancée's demands to cease. "It's no use! You Gryffindors are no match for my Slytherin cunning!" he declared.
Hermione howled with laughter, kicking and thrashing beneath him. It wasn't until she cried for mercy that he stopped his assault.
Her face scrunched up in adorable aggravation as she glared up at him. Draco grinned and kissed her nose.
"I hate you," she grumbled.
"You love me," he replied snidely.
Hermione's expression of irritation vanished, replaced by one of deep adoration. "I do, Draco. I really, really do."
His silver eyes softened and he bit his lip in an almost embarrassed manner. Then, in a rare moment of vulnerability, Draco snuggled as close to her as possible, nuzzling into her chest. "I know," he whispered, winding his tail around her leg.
Hermione smiled, scratching at his ears. His purr rumbled through her soothingly.
"You know, it may not be such a terrible thing if you stayed like this," she said jokingly.
Draco's gaze jerked up in horror. "Merlin, no! I am not living the rest of my life as some cat-human hybrid! No one would take me seriously! And imagine my portrait after I pass!" he proclaimed with a shudder.
"Aw, but you're so cute!" Hermione teased, playing with his ears.
"C-Cute!? Cute!? Malfoys are not cute!" he sputtered.
"You are, though! You're like my sexy little pet," she purred with a wink.
Draco cringed, slumping against her with a groan. "God Hermione, how is it we've been together for four years, and you're still bollocks at flirting? I would have thought I'd taught you something by now!"
She threw her head back and laughed. "Aw, don't be like that, love! I promise I'll take good care of you! I'll feed you, and pet you, and get you a nice collar with a cute little bell-"
Draco growled, pinning her wrists above her head. "That's it, woman! You're forbidden from talking for the rest of the night!"
Hermione arched an amused brow. "Oh really? And just how are you going to manage thaAAAT!? Ohhh, god…" Her cocky words dissolved into a helpless moan as he pushed into her for the second time that night.
Draco smirked sinfully above her. "You're not allowed to talk…but you may scream and beg as much as you like."
I actually meant for this to be more on the funny side when I started, but my sneaky little muse decided to play a prank and pour angst in the comedy shaker. I tried to stop once I realized what she'd done, but she then proceeded to shout, "NO. MORE." Then she grabbed my wrist and forcefully shook several teaspoons of angst in there. My muse is a bitch.
Also, I have gone back to school for the semester, so updates may not be as frequent for a bit, or the chapters may simply be shorter. Not sure at this point, as I don't actually plan most of these one shots in advance, I just kind of write whatever my annoying, pushy muse shoves at me.