Chapter 9

It was late when Draco was summoned from his bedroom. The halls were quiet, save for the tapping of his shoes on the stone floor. He had been sequestered to his room for the past two days and he was surprised that there was still so little activity in the building.

His course stopped at the large set of oak doors leading to what had been his father's office.

"Is Master wanting a drink?" The elf who had walked with him questioned.

His gaze still glued to the entrance, he replied, "Are you suggesting that I might need one?"

The house elf smirked up at him, "Possibly."

How interesting was it that the elves in Malfoy Manor had picked up on some of his mannerisms.

Draco let out a heavy sigh. "Hopefully this won't be too long, Hinsky. But I will take a drink back in my room."

Hinsky nodded before quietly popping away.

Draco drew in another deep breath before pushing the doors open.

The room was lit by the smoldering fire in the large marble fireplace. The flames licked the walls making the scene more severe and forbidding than Draco was hoping.

There were three men seated on a sofa and armchair in front of the fire, silent but sharing inconclusive looks to one another. And behind his father's desk sat Lord Voldemort. All heads turned towards the door as Draco stepped over the threshold.

"Ah, Draco, welcome," the snake faced man hissed. "I'm so glad you are able to join us." As if Draco had come voluntarily to spend quality time with these dreadful men.

He crossed the room and settled on standing in front of the desk rather than join the other men by the fire.

"Yes, my Lord. I was merely reading." He bowed his head down when he came to a stop a few meters from the desk.

"Yes, education is very important," Voldemort nodded as if he truly believed it. "I have finally decided on how you can redeem your family name."

Draco's fists clenched when one of the men on the sofa chuckled quietly.

Two days ago, multiple Death Eaters, including his father, were sent to the Ministry to obtain something for the Dark Lord. They had set up a trap for Potter to lead them to the item in question, all fairly confident in their plan. The mission had failed miserably and many followers, including his father, were sent to Azkaban.

Lucious had been on thin ice with Voldemort before the incident and this mission had been given to him as a chance to bring him back to a better standing in the Dark Lord's eyes. When he had failed, Voldemort had had enough and was prepared to kill Draco and his mother for his father's actions. Draco begged and pleaded, taking multiple Crucios for hours before Voldemort had sent him to his rooms until he decided what to do.

That was two days ago and the fact that Voldemort hadn't blasted Draco the moment he walked through the door was a good sign in Draco's mind.

Draco nodded and waited for the Dark Lord to elaborate on his plans.

"I have a task for you for when you return to Hogwarts this year. To bring your family back onto our side, you will be required to kill Albus Dumbledore for me."

Draco's mouth filled with ash, choking him, forbidding him to reply.

The bastard at the desk had the gall to look pleased with himself. He had to know that this task would be impossible. Dumbledore was the most powerful wizard in the world and Draco, a mere 16 year old stood no chance against him. Draco knew that this was the last chance he would receive and if he were to refuse, Voldemort would kill him and his mother without a second thought. They were of no real use to him; he already had control of their house and Lucius was in prison. He had to figure out how to kill the old man to protect his mother who was forced into all of this unpleasantness.

Draco surprised himself by nodding as he somehow forced his vocal cords into submission, "Yes, my Lord. I will accomplish this task by the end of the year."

Voldemort looked surprised as he arched a thin eyebrow and leaned forward. "Yes, Draco, you will. Or you and your mother will cease to exist." A disturbing smile spread across his face as he leaned back in the chair. "It would do well if you were to complete this task before the end of the school year." He waved his hand as if shooing a fly, dismissing Draco.

Draco bowed his head one last time and walked slowly through the doorframe. When the door clicked shut behind him, he took off at a sprint toward the gardens.

He ran until there was a stitch in his side and he could no longer see the light from the house. He slowed down to a walk, holding his side and catching his breath. When his legs could carry him no more, he dropped to his knees and dug his nails into the dirt beneath him. He threw his head back and let out a petrified scream. He screamed until his voice was gone and he was dry heaving in the dirt.

His body collapsed with exhaustion and everything went black as his head hit the ground.

Draco jolted awake when he felt cold fingers graze the back of his neck. He leapt from his chair, causing it to fall backwards and hit the floor.

His chest heaved as delirious eyes darted around the room taking in his surroundings. Noticing his mother laying in a hospital bed with a calm loving look on her face, his breathing slowed.

Draco took a deep breath and rubbed his hands down his face. "Sorry, Mother," he mumbled into his palms.

"I should be the one apologizing, darling. I didn't mean to startle you."

He finally looked up and saw the look of concern in her eyes.

He sighed again before he made his way back across the room to the chair he had vacated a moment ago.

"It's fine," he said as he placed the chair upright again, taking a seat. "I just haven't been sleeping too well I guess."

"I thought you might have been having a nightmare. You were very jittery and mumbling a lot. Would you like to talk about it?"

"No I would not," he spoke through gritted teeth. Her eyes flashed quickly at his tone so he flashed her a small smile. "How are you feeling?"

The stiffness in her eyes softened and she let out a soft chuckle under her breath and placed her hand over his. "I am doing quite alright, just like I told you last night when you arrived. I'm fine."

"Mother," he groaned, "you were missing for hours and you hit your head. You aren't fine. I wish you would just let me help you."

"Draco, you should be in school, not worrying about your mother like she's some elderly witch who can't take care of herself."

At this Draco lifted a brow.

"You know what I mean. I have Andromeda and Healer Thomas. It's their job to worry about me, not yours."

"You are my mother, of course I worry about you," he grumbled out.

"I know you do, darling," she replied pushing his hair back from his forehead. "But I don't want it to consume your life and prevent you from living it. You need to stop rushing to see me whenever something happens. I will be fine. Trust me."

"Fine," he finally breathed out. "But I expect to hear from you more often. I only hear from Andromeda and it's when something has happened. Please just write regularly." He emphasized this by squeezing her hand.

"Of course, darling. Now would you like to play a game?"

Draco smirked as he replied, "Only if you're prepared to lose."

Narcissa gave him smirk of her own. "Bring it."

….

Hermione could no longer concentrate on the book she had been reading. She had read the same sentence about fifteen times by now. Her mind was too clouded with thoughts of Malfoy and the state of his mother. He had left yesterday evening and had not returned to the castle yet. He hadn't even written with news and Hermione was starting to worry. Classes were starting back up again tomorrow and even with the good grades he was receiving, Malfoy could not afford to keep missing classes like he was.

Hermione closed the book she had no attention span to read and packed her bag. Maybe a walk around the castle would help clear her anxious mind. She crossed the empty library and headed down the equally as empty hall.

It was late in the evening, but being Head Girl and an eighth year came with some special privileges, like being able to stay up later than the other students.

She could only hear the murmur of low voices and the clicking of her shoes as she made her way past the Transfiguration classroom. Her mind was just starting to clear when a pair of hands reached out from behind a tapestry and pulled her behind it.

"Let go of me!" She started to flail her arms and kick her feet in every direction.

"Ouch—Granger, relax it's me—fuck," whispered her captor as she made contact with his shin.

"Malfoy?" She whispered back.

"Yes dammit. You do remember you are a witch right? You can protect yourself with a wan-"

The advice was cut off as she collided her body against his and threw her arms around his neck.

"Oh I'm so glad nothing has happened to you!"

"Of course nothing happened to me, I was at St. Mungo's this whole time. They just released my mother an hour ago," he grunted out, grabbing her waist to steady themselves from falling as she pushed herself further into him.

Well I'm just glad you're back," she leaned back and without even a slight warning from her brain, pressed her lips to his quickly.

Hermione pulled away just as quick, shocked and embarrassed at what she just did— she had been so pleased to see him that her emotions just took over. She hadn't even realized how much she really did miss him or worry about him until she was staring at him in the flesh.

But only now in the way he was looking at her in equal shock did she realize her mistake— how dare she initiate something between the two of them. Malfoy had only agreed to a fake relationship, nothing more. Sure, they had somewhat discussed their mutual… attraction for each other, but that's all it was. It was foolish of her to get so caught up in the falsity of their relationship and begin to —Merlin help her— miss him. The way his eyes were now roving quickly around the room was evidence enough that he was looking for a way to escape from the display of affection she had thrust upon him.

"I am— I am so sorry, Malfoy. I don't what came over me," she mumbled, shifting slightly on her feet.

Malfoy looked at a loss for words, staring down at her, his face in open bewilderment. His mouth opened and closed a few times before he snapped it shut and just blinked back at her. Moving his head to glance around the room again, he cleared his throat and shuffled his feet. His gaze slowly returned to hers, his eyes starting to darken very quickly, shifting from a molten silver to an inky charcoal. His now darkened eyes flickered down to her lips causing an unknown shiver to move down her body, causing her lips to part subconsciously. Grey eyes moved leisurely up her face, taking in every detail before settling back on her own eyes.

Malfoy took a step forward, causing her to suck in a shaky breath. He wrapped his hand around the back of her neck and pulled her face to his. He paused for a moment, giving either one of them time to second guess their actions. Hot breath tickled her lips, causing any lapse in judgement to vacate from her mind. Throwing caution to the wind for the both of them, he moved the last inch of space and pressed their lips together. His lips moved expertly against hers, his tongue already pressing against her lips begging for access.

He pushed closer to her, nudging her until her back was pressed against the wall. Hermione's mouth opened in surprise at the contact of the cold stone, his tongue taking full advantage of her gasp, quickly wrapping around hers as his fingers danced through her hair.

The wall was cold and firm against her back, but she paid it no mind; if it wasn't the blond currently searching her body with his hands, she couldn't care less. Albus Dumbledore could come back from the dead and announce his resurrection by parading through the corridor on the back of a centaur and she wouldn't even notice. As her brain tried to cut in and tell her stop— it was too much, too much feeling, too much satisfaction, too much bliss—, she tuned it out. She had cared far too long about what everyone expected from her and what she should or shouldn't be doing. Malfoy could be plotting her murder right now for all she cared, just as long as he kept touching her like this, she'd let him Avada her whenever he pleased.

She reached up and wove her fingers through his silky hair and Malfoy grunted when she pulled softly at his hair. Unwilling to stop the feeling of absolute pleasure of being the one to make him respond as such, she smirked against his lips.

He grabbed her left leg at the knee and lifted it around his waist. She leaned her head back and moaned when he thrust his hips against hers, his excitement pressing against her. Malfoy pulled his lips from hers and she tilted her head forward to see where he planned on going, only to see him begin to place small trailing kisses down her neck. Satisfied that he wasn't going anywhere, she leaned her head back again against the cool stone, moaning softly in pleasure.

He slid his left hand down to her bare leg and slowly drew his hand up, his fingers dancing on her skin as he went. She shivered when he started drawing circles on her inner thigh. He moved his mouth quickly back to hers and drew her tongue into his mouth without preamble.

Hermione should feel self-conscious or embarrassed with her reactions to his touch, but feeling how turned on he was with her, she could not control her body. She had led Malfoy into a frantic, handsy state. Her!

When his fingers touched the outside lace of her knickers, she threw her head back again, groaning while Malfoy turned his head into the crook of her neck. His hands paused briefly as he caught his breath, the warm air from his lungs tickling her neck. Hermione drew in a few deep breaths of her own, trying to control her breathing. All he had done was snogged her some and touched the outside of her panties, but she was already putty in his hands.

"Fuck, Granger. I thought you would have practical knickers, but lace?" He breathed into her neck.

The relief that he hadn't wanted to stop flooded through Hermione and she grabbed his face in response, pressing her lips back to his.

Malfoy grabbed her other leg, wrapped it around his waist and ground his hips even harder against hers. With his hand now free, he slid his hand between them and grasped her breast abruptly.

A wave of euphoria hit her, causing her to moan loudly into his mouth.

"You are so perfect," he moaned back to her. She whimpered in response, tilting her hips up slightly to meet his again, not even worrying about the embarrassment she was bound to feel later at such bold actions.

Malfoy suddenly halted their actions by clamping a hand over her mouth. Footsteps could be heard rushing toward them. Hermione stared into his dark eyes as they waited for the intruders to pass by. A giggle sounded down the corridor before a door slammed shut, leaving them in complete silence again.

They held each others gaze as they calmed their breathing. The moment of intense passion broken by students in their own moment of passion. It was the cold bucket of water they were both waiting for, calling to attention how silly the whole encounter was.

After a few moments of silence, Malfoy finally spoke first. "Sorry about that, I-"

Hermione cut him off quickly, "No it was my fault, I let my emotions get the best of me."

Malfoy's lip twitched in response. "Hermione Granger letting her feelings have domination over her mind, this must be a first."

Hermione smirked back at him. "Yes I would agree."

They watched each other for a few more silent moments, their bodies still pressed together, Hermione's legs still wrapped around his waist. She had a tough time making out the flash of emotions crossing his face— lingering lust, awkwardness, disorientation, and… resentment? Whether it was directed toward her or the students who unknowingly interrupted them, she wasn't sure. Did he regret his actions? He seemed unsure of what to do next, but not that he regretted their actions— he didn't immediately pull away from her when the spell was broken.

Surely all of this was an outlet from the built up sexual tension between the two of them, not that it could happen again— there was no way this would work out well for either of them. It was for the best that they hadn't gotten any further than they had. Hopefully this lack of thought on either of their parts would solve the lingering attraction and they could move on with their ruse of a relationship.

Hermione needed to distance herself from him as she was finding it difficult to think straight.

As if coming to the same thought at once, Hermione unwrapped her legs as Malfoy lowered her to the ground. Unsure on where to go from here, they stepped out from behind the tapestry and started walking.

"Would you like a walk back to your room?" Malfoy asked.

"Sure, that would be lovely," Hermione replied.

So strange how… familiar they were with each other a moment ago, and now were acting so distant and polite. Although they were behaving so peculiar now, Hermione cursed the students who had interrupted their rendezvous behind the tapestry. There went her lapse of judgement again. As long as she kept a decent amount of space between them, she wouldn't be tempted to jump back into his arms again. She sidestepped a step further from Malfoy and closer to the far wall.

Hermione cleared her throat and looked up at Malfoy. "I'm glad to hear your mother was released so early. I'm assuming that means she's doing well."

Malfoy sighed out a breath of uncertainness. "She seems to be. She only had one episode of false reality the entire time I was there. She use to not even know what was happening in the present. The healers all seemed pleased with her improvement and saw no reason to keep her any longer. She has her sister and a live in healer, so she should be fine."

"That's wonderful though, why do you sound so unsure?"

"It's been like this before. She would be lucid for a span of time, and then it was almost like her mind caught up with her and she'd slip back into it again because she couldn't cope. She went through a lot of shit in that house, more than me, so I'm sure staying there doesn't help."

Hermione reached out and touched his arm. "Oh I'm so sorry, I had no idea."

He looked down at her, his eyes glistening in the darkness. His mouth moved into a tight line as he replied, "How would you? I'm not one to share my personal life."

"Well I'm sure talking about it could help instead of keeping it all in," she supplied.

"Maybe," he said shrugging. "I'm just tired of reliving my demons and want to move on from all of this bullshit."

"I get it, Malfoy, but if you ever do want to talk about it, I'm here for you." As a friend. Of course as a friend.

They stopped walking when they reached the portrait.

"I know. Thanks, Granger. See you tomorrow." He turned on his heels quickly and started down the hall, to hide the obvious pain in his eyes.

"Night," she yelled at his back.

He raised a hand in response without turning back.

As she lay in bed that night, Hermione pushed all thoughts of their… encounter to the back of her mind for another time, but couldn't help reliving the pain she saw behind Malfoy's eyes when they spoke about his mother. It was obvious he cared for his mother and was in pain himself from watching her suffer. Hermione wanted to be there for him, but was unsure of her role in his life. Were they friends as he constantly questioned? They weren't a couple, that was for sure. How could she be there to support him when she was so unsure of what she was to him? Should she wait patiently for him to confide in her like she did with Harry or press for him to spill like she did with Ron? And how would he even react to her support, would he crumble in his confessions or lash out and punish her for her incessant prying?

She fell into a fitful sleep.

…..

Draco turned onto his side for the fifth time in the past hour. His mind was buzzing too much to allow him to sleep— not that he wanted to succumb to his memories again anyway.

After his first nightmare when he visited his mother, sleep became a stranger to him. He refused to allow that bastard's face to be seen again, even in his nightmares— he had lived in literal hell for too long and refused to continue being haunted by his memories.

He rolled over again, this time to grab his wristwatch to check the time. He had two more hours before he could head to the Great Hall for breakfast. Might as well work through his thoughts while he was up by running.

He had taken up running two years ago when he could no longer talk to his parents about his fears for their family. His father had been too far gone at that point to rationalize with, and his mother was too traumatized to speak with. He had also started running as a means of escaping his home, even if it was only for a few hours.

The Entrance Hall was empty when he walked up the stairs from the dungeons, no surprise there. At least he was up early enough that no one would bother him and his thoughts.

The sun had yet to rise and there was a heavy fog on the school grounds. Putting his faith in the security of the castle, Draco took off at a brisk pace toward the lake.

He had not been looking forward to the start of classes this morning, as Mondays were his most dull day of the week. Although eighth years were able to take a lot of elective classes, they still had to take a few of their core lessons, and all of his seemed to land on the same day.

He was also apprehensive about seeing Granger— he felt like their ruse of a relationship was becoming an entanglement of confused feelings. Sure he had come to care for her, how could he not after spending almost all of his free time with her, but had she felt the same way? Of course she could not. He was a former Death Eater— if the tattoo on his arm was not a constant reminder of the fact— and she was bloody Hermione Granger, savior of the world. In no rational world would she choose him as a companion.

She deserved to be with someone better suited for her life, possibly someone with a hero complex. Potter was unavailable, and her relationship with Weasley had failed miserably, but there must be someone out there that could give her a better life than Draco could give her. Half his money was gone, his father was in prison, his mother half insane, and he had his own personal demons that he had no wish to face.

No, Granger deserved someone who could give her 100% of themselves, and he was just unable to do so, too broken to do so.

He slowed his pace as he reached the lake. He turned around trying to decide where to head next as he caught his breath. After stretching a sore muscle in his leg, Draco started off again toward the Forbidden Forest.

Granger was destined for greater things in this world and he would do nothing but drag her down with him. His father's business had gone under, no one would hire a former Death Eater, and most of his money had been spent in Ministry fees to rebuild after the war. Granger had fought a terrible war and she deserved a life with no worry, which his life was full of.

He stopped as he reached the tree line. Here he is thinking of a future without Granger without even figuring out her feelings for him. She probably didn't even see a future with him outside of their fake relationship. She was probably hoping to just use him and then move on at the quickest possible moment. How could he blame her though? If he were in her shoes, he'd probably do the same thing to someone who demeaned him his whole life. He would only bring her down with him. He didn't deserve her and he never would.

He stretched his sore muscle again before heading back to the castle; breakfast would be starting soon.

…..

A freshly showered Draco made his way to the Slytherin table for breakfast when he noticed a head of short brown hair occupying his seat. It was only when he was beside the table did he realize who it was.

"What the hell are you doing here, Nott?" He asked after grabbing a plate and sitting down.

His old friend turned toward him with a broad grin on his face. "I was getting pretty bored at that place by myself. Decided to see what you guys were up to."

Theo's father had been killed in the war, making Theo the head of his family estate. Draco knew the demands that were required of a pureblood patriarch having watched his father for years and taking over after his father had been imprisoned. Draco almost didn't return to Hogwarts this year because of the demand of his father's business, he had only come back after various arguments with his mother. She had wanted him to take one year away from the stress of his home life, essentially spending the rest of his teenage years being an actual teenager with teenager problems.

"I hear you've been pretty busy yourself, Draco," Theo said, wiggling his eyebrows.

"Fuck you, Nott," Draco responded filling his plate with eggs and bacon.

"Wouldn't that be considered cheating on your new girlfriend?"

Blaise snorted into his goblet of pumpkin juice causing the liquid to fly out his nose.

"Eloquent as always, Blaise," Theo commented as he tossed a napkin in Blaise's direction. "I start classes today and since there haven't been any major exams, I should be able to hop right in," he stated, continuing on as if he hadn't said anything crass.

Draco took a sip of his own pumpkin juice and eyed his friend over the goblet. "Since when do you care so much about school?" Draco asked after placing the cup back onto the table.

Blaise continued to cough and sputter on his juice while the other two continued to ignore him.

Theo chuckled, "You can't expect me to spend the rest of my life like my father did. If I couldn't find an evil overlord to take me out, I'd do it myself if I spent any longer in that business."

Theo, much like Draco, had been raised to take over their family's fortunes and businesses one day, so it was odd to hear Theo talk about other plans he had for his life. Draco had never considered doing anything other than what his father had prepared for him, but he could see where Theo was coming from— it sounded absolutely abhorrent running the family business.

"So what do you plan on doing instead?" Blaise managed to spit out before another coughing fit took over.

Theo looked thoughtful for a moment as he twirled his fork in the air. "Not sure yet. Maybe I'll start my own business. Maybe run a brothel for the rich and powerful and then use it as blackmail. Or maybe open an eatery. The possibilities are endless, my friends!"

Draco was glad that Theo was so optimistic about his future, but that was easy for him since he had not actually taken the Mark. Out of the three of them, Draco was the only one who had taken the Mark and he was sure he would not be able to have as such bright optimism as his friend. If he wanted to stay away from ridicule and embarrassment, he would have no choice but to take over his father's business. No one in their right mind would want to hire a former Death Eater, especially when he still had the proof of it on his forearm.

Theo nodded at Granger when he saw her enter the room and head towards the Gryffindor table. "Say, Draco, does Granger have any friends you could introduce me to? What about Red over there?" He pointed his fork at the Weaslette.

"Back off, Nott. I've been trying for months to get Weasley to dump Scarhead in favor of me," Blaise replied, smacking the fork from Theo's hand.

Theo guffawed loudly, throwing his head back. "You? Why would she leave him for you? He's bloody Potter. Golden boy extraordinaire. Besides, I've got something you lack."

"A brain?" Draco mumbled.

"I've got pizzazz," he stated while opening both hands and wiggling his fingers. "There's not a girl out there that can resist the Theodore Nott charm."

"Oh come off it, you wanker," Blaise retorted throwing a slice of toast in Theo's direction.

Draco droned out his friends as he glanced to the Gryffindor table. He saw Granger laughing freely with Weasley. It was nice to see her not getting bogged down constantly with the scars of war still present in her life. She glanced up the same time as him as the owls flew into the Great Hall to deliver the morning mail. A letter was dropped on her plate by an owl that didn't even bother to land. Upon opening the letter, Granger's face blanched. She ignored Weasley's words as she sputtered something and stumbled blindly out of the room bumping into people as she went, the letter clutched in her hand.

a/n: Ooo what could be in that letter?

Also, I am so sorry for such a long delay, I took a mental health break and a holiday break. I hope you all had wonderful holidays and I will post the next chapter very soon! xo