AN: I am so super busy right now trying to get ready for a big car show in two weeks. But, I didn't want you all to have to wait much longer for this one. You're welcome. LOL.
Big thanks to Bex, and to all of you that are reading and reviewing. This is one you've been waiting for. Let me know your thoughts!
Lost Souls of Nott Castle
Chapter 11 - First Date
Over the next few days, they fell into an easy routine. All four of them would eat breakfast together in the morning. Draco and Hermione would go to their respective jobs. Afterwards, they would all meet in the library to study until dinner.
Despite his reasoning that he needed to wait to make a move on Hermione until after his probation was over, Draco found himself touching her whenever possible. His hand on the small of her back as they walked together through Diagon Alley. His shoulder against hers as they leaned over the table to study in the library. His hand had even brushed hers twice when they 'accidentally' reached for the same book.
He relished the way her eyes would sparkle or her cheeks would flush. Then he would question the sad, almost haunted look that would pass through her eyes when she thought he wasn't looking.
Theo and Blaise had both noticed as well. After she went to bed in the evenings, their conversations often turned to her. She was still a mystery to all of them, and they were trying to figure her out. They had noticed she was relaxing bit by bit, though. By the end of the week she seemed comfortable around each of them.
Outside of the castle, Draco was enjoying his job. He found it gave him purpose. He was getting along well with Master Abbott, and he picked up on the requirements for the job very easily. By the end of the week he was anticipating what the potions master would need for him to do next.
Friday afternoon, Master Abbott called him into his small office when he was finished setting out the next batch of ingredients.
"Sir?" He asked, concerned that he may have done something wrong, or that the older man had finally come to his senses about hiring him.
"Mr. Malfoy. Please, sit." He opened a folder on his desk and pulled out a piece of parchment. "Tell me, how do you like the job here?"
"Oh. It's good. I feel like I'm learning a lot, sir."
"Good, good." He smiled widely. "You have taken very well to it, I think. As we discussed, this week was a trial run, so to speak. The job is yours if you'd like it. And once you pass your potions NEWT, I would like to get you started on brewing potions as well. Have you ever considered becoming a potions Master yourself?"
Draco was stunned, but very pleased.
"Thank you for this opportunity, Master Abbott. I hadn't thought about becoming a Potions Master, but I won't rule it out."
He handed the paper to Draco. It was an offer of employment. Draco read through it and smiled as he signed the paper and handed it back.
"I can't tell you how much it means to me that you are giving me this chance."
The older man appraised him for a long moment before making a copy of the offer for Draco to keep and putting the original in the file.
"I like making my own opinions about people," he finally said. "You can tell a lot about a person by their work ethic. You have been here early every day. You stayed late without complaint when it was needed. You take direction, but you also take initiative. You are not your past, Mr. Malfoy. And you have your whole future ahead of you."
Draco didn't know what to say.
"Thank you, sir." He held his hand out and the other man shook it vigorously.
"Now, enough of all that. Go home. Have a nice weekend. Take your girlfriend out for a nice dinner. I'll see you Monday afternoon." He handed Draco a small pouch with his pay for the week in it.
Draco's mouth opened and closed a few times.
"Oh, I don't have a girlfriend, sir." He told him as his cheeks flushed with color.
The older man had a twinkle in his eye that reminded Draco of Dumbledore.
"I just assumed...the brunette that works across the street?"
"Oh, no. She's not." He sighed deeply.
"Well, maybe you should take her out to dinner anyway?" He grinned. "Have a nice weekend, Mr. Malfoy."
"Thank you, sir." He let himself smirk at the older man's innuendo.
Despite his objections, the first thought in his mind really had been to tell Hermione about the offer. When he left the apothecary, he crossed the street to the bookstore. He found her stocking shelves, but she wasn't alone.
Potter was there.
"Mione. I told you, you can come stay with me. You don't need to do this."
He sounded exasperated and Draco couldn't help but wonder how long he had already been there.
She sighed and moved a little bit further away from him.
"Harry, I told you. I'm good where I am. And I want to work."
He ran his hand through his hair in frustration and leaned against the bookshelf.
"Fine. At least tell me you'll go out with me tonight? We can go anywhere you want."
Her head dropped and she sighed again.
"I still don't think that would be a good idea," she said quietly.
"Mione, please." He stepped closer to her and she stepped back.
Draco had to fight the sudden urge that he had to hex his childhood rival. How dare he encroach on Hermione's personal space like that? The only thing that stopped him was the risk of being sent to Azkaban. As much as he wanted to grab Potter by the neck and push him as far away from the brunette witch as he possibly could, he kept his wand in his pocket lest he be tempted to use it and his hands crossed over his chest.
"I can't." She wrapped her arms tightly around herself. "I'm sorry, but the answer is no."
"No?" Potter practically growled at her. His hand curled into a fist at his side and his face turned red in anger or embarrassment. He took two quick steps towards her, causing her to take another step back.
"What do you mean, no?" He spoke in a harsh whisper.
Draco didn't know if she would be upset with him for intervening or not, but in that moment he didn't care. He could see how uncomfortable she was and he decided that it was time to step in. He cleared his throat as he stepped around the bookcase into clear view of the two of them. They both turned to see who was there. Hermione visibly relaxed when she saw him, while Potter only grew angrier.
"Malfoy. Why are you always around?" Potter growled.
"Potter. Pleasure, as always." He glared at the boy that had been his nemesis since they were eleven years old.
Potter looked back at Hermione, who had stepped further back away from him with her arms crossed over her chest.
"Please, Harry. Just go.
He stared at her for a long moment. His mouth opened and closed again as he debated whether or not he should keep trying despite knowing he had an audience. He seemed to decide against before he turned and walked away, but the look on his face was pure rage.
"You okay?" Draco asked once Potter was gone.
"Fine." She sighed and rolled her shoulders back. Then she returned her attention to the stack of books she had been arranging. "What are you doing here?"
"I have some good news." He moved closer, so he was right behind her. He wanted to talk low so no one could overhear him. This was news for her ears only. "Master Abbott offered me a full time position. He said after NEWT's he would even have me start brewing potions."
"Draco! That's great!" She stopped what she was doing and threw her arms around his neck in a hug. "Congratulations!"
He didn't even hesitate to put his arms around her and hold her close for a few brief moments, relishing in the feel of her against him.
Blaise' warning that he shouldn't wait forever ran through his mind. That, coupled with the encounter that had just transpired, had him holding her a little bit tighter than was strictly necessary.
Hermione felt like her heart was beating so loud that he had to have heard it. Hugging him had been an impulse, but now that he was holding her, she never wanted to move.
"Let's go celebrate." He said quickly. "Will you go out with me tonight?"
Her breath caught in her throat. She tilted her head back so she could look into his eyes. She was looking for anything that would say he was joking or that it was a platonic request. The intensity that she saw in his silver orbs convinced her that it was neither. She swallowed thickly.
She would be lying to herself if she said she didn't want to say yes. Over the previous weeks she had seen an entirely new side to him and she wanted to get to know him better.
"I would love to." Reluctantly, she stepped back away from him. "I have another hour of work."
"I'll meet you in the sitting room at seven?" He asked.
"Sounds great." Her whole face lit up with her smile.
He left a few minutes later and she returned to work. Luckily for her, stocking shelves did not require a lot of concentration because all she could think about was Draco and their upcoming date.
"Miss Granger," her boss, Victoria, stopped her before she left for the day. "Your pay for the week. I'll see you on Monday."
Hermione took the pouch, smiling to herself. For the first time in weeks, she had money in her pocket. She could buy a milkshake if she wanted one, or go with the other girls for lunch if she chose to. Then she remembered that she had a date in a just a couple of short hours, and she knew exactly what she was going to buy first.
She stopped at the clothing store on her way home and picked out the perfect dress. It was a simple black dress with a scooped neckline and a flowing skirt that ended just above her knees. There were silver accents that sparkled in the light around the neckline, the waist and the hem.
She paired it with her black boots that hugged her legs to just below her knees. Then she pulled her hair back on the sides and let it fall down her back in soft waves.
Light makeup and a simple silver chain that she found in Anna's jewelry box finished off her ensemble. She took a final look in the mirror, then headed downstairs to meet with Draco.
She found him already waiting in the sitting room. When she walked in, he turned towards her. His eyes took her in, sweeping over her from head to toe before returning to meet her gaze.
"You are breathtaking," he told her and watched as her cheeks tinged pink.
"Thank you." She smiled up at him.
"We should go," he told her, stepping closer and putting both of his hands on her waist. "Are you ready, Princess?"
She bit her lip and looked up at him through her eyelashes. Was she ready? Was she ready for her first date with Draco Malfoy? Was she ready to take the next step in their relationship? Was she ready for the drama that would ensue once word got around that they were together?
"Whenever you are," she told him with a smile.
He smirked down at her, then apperated them to the restaurant.
He took her to a small Italian place that was out of the way. It certainly wasn't an upscale place, but it was nice just the same. The waitress sat them at a table in the corner and lit two candles in the center of the table.
"This is beautiful," Hermione told him as she took in the ambiance of the room.
They ordered their food and sipped at their drinks.
"So, full time potions assistant, with a promotion after your NEWT's? That is great. Do you think that's what you want for your career?" She asked.
"It could be. Master Abbott even suggested that I go on to study potions and become a master potioneer. I really like that idea. I could be like my Godfather."
"Well, I think it's brilliant. You are great with potions anyway, so it's only natural for you to take that path." She smiled at him.
"What about you? How was your first week at the store?"
"It was alright. A little boring. Probably not my future career path, but it'll do for now."
They talked throughout the rest of the meal and long after. When they were finished eating and talking, he pulled a small pouch out of his pocket and paid for their meal. Then he placed his hand on the small of her back and guided her out of the restaurant. A few moments later they apperated back to Nott Castle.
"Come with me," he said as he took her by the hand and led her to the stairway. "There is something I want to show you."
She followed, curious as ever when he continued past the second floor to the third. Half of the third floor was the library, and the other half housed a potions lab.
He led her to the potions lab, then to the far back wall. There, hidden behind a bookcase, was a doorway. She gripped his hand a little tighter as he pushed the door open and stepped into the darkness beyond.
"Draco?" She asked.
"Trust me. You'll love this." He squeezed her hand a little tighter. A moment later he cast a lumos spell and illuminated a staircase that led up. At the top of the staircase was a doorway that they stepped through.
They were at the top of the castle. Off to one side was a fire pit with four chairs situated around it. Otherwise it was just flat stone with a waist high stone railing along the edge and a clear domed top that made the sky visible but kept the elements off of the occupants.
From there you could see for kilometers in any direction. And with the moon shining down on them, the silver in her dress sparkled.
"I had no idea this was here," she told him as she looked around in awe. She went to the railing and looked out over the lake. The view was breathtaking.
He followed her, but his eyes stayed glued to her rather than the view.
"Hermione." He cleared his throat.
"Draco." She turned to face him and smiled as her eyes met his.
"Our dinner tonight constitutes my first purchase using money that I earned myself," he told her with a proud smile. "Thank you for sharing it with me."
She smiled back at him. Her heart was hammering in her chest. She would probably never tell him how proud she was of him for making his own way in the world instead of relying on his vault of riches, but somehow she suspected that he knew anyway.
"Well, this dress is my first purchase using money that I earned myself." She stepped back a little and twirled around in a circle, a wide smile on her face.
"You bought that dress?" He asked, letting his eyes skim over it once again. It was beautiful and she looked absolutely radiant in it.
"Yes. I want to save what I earn to get my own place after NEWT's, but I wanted to wear something special tonight. Something that's mine. Do you like it?"
"It's perfect." He stepped in closer, put his hands on her waist. "You are beautiful, Hermione Granger."
For the first time in her life, she believed the compliment. She could tell by the look in his eye that he meant it. She looked up at him through her eyelashes and their eyes met.
She knew this was the moment. It was now or never.
Slowly, he leaned closer to her, giving her every opportunity to back away if she wanted to.
She didn't move away. She licked her lips and her eyes darted from his eyes to his mouth and back again, willing him to move faster.
Then he was kissing her, and she was kissing him. His lips were soft and strong as they moved against hers. Her hands circled his neck and pulled him in closer.
He pulled back just enough to catch her eye once more, then he kissed her again. And again. Each kiss a little surer. Each kiss a little more passionate. Each kiss probing a little deeper.
Until finally they pulled away from each other to catch their breath.
"Draco," she whispered into the night.
He was still holding her. He pulled her a little closer and kissed the top of her head.
"It looks like a storm is rolling in," he told her. Lightning was illuminating the horizon, and as they had been wrapped up in each other the stars had disappeared one by one.
"Should we call it a night?" She asked, hoping he would say no.
"We don't have to. This is actually the best place to watch a storm."
He took her by the hand and pulled her over to the fire pit. He started a fire and sat down in one of the lounge chairs. He pulled her down to sit on his lap and together they watched the storm as it rolled in and shared kisses until late into the night.
She settled back down next to him. Her head was on his chest, her arm around his waist, one leg splayed across his legs. His arms were around her waist and his head rested against the top of hers.
"You are so much different than I ever imagined you to be," he told her gently. "I'm sorry for every bad thing I ever said to you."
She squeezed his waist and lifted her head off his chest to kiss him one more time. Thunder rumbled overhead as they settled back against each other.
"I was going to wait, you know? Until my probation is over. You deserve so much better than me."
Her heart cracked a little at the forlorn tone of his voice.
"I'm really glad you didn't wait." She grinned to herself and closed her eyes as she lay against him.
An hour later that was how Theo and Blaise found them, wrapped around each other and sound asleep. They shared a knowing look between them, neither surprised to see the two being so intimate. With a shrug, they each settled into a chair and laid back, content to watch the storm.
AN: Posting through the app again. I must say I prefer using my laptop, but this is slightly more convenient.So what did you think? First Date, first kiss, live up to expectations?