Hey.
I finished this chapter some time ago, but decided to postpone posting for a moment due to Ukraine situation. I live in Poland and it was a hard couple of days that impacted me directly.
But now I feel I can share the awaited new chapter with you and if you would like to pass feedback and comment, I would appreciate it.
Beta: Ann, love you!
Let's not forget about everyone who lost their life. #freeUkraine
XV
The night was blurry, the events of the night were hazy, but Hermione didn't care at all. She stubbornly ignored the lightning in Lucius' eyes, coaxing Nicolas all the time. At one point during the evening, she felt Nico's hand on her thigh, which would have ended the meeting very quickly under normal circumstances. But now, all she wanted to do was to spite Lucius.
They had another ten traumatic months ahead of them and she had had enough. Her already tense life depended on his whims too often. If she was supposed to pretend, then at least, she wanted to get something out of it. For herself.
Only today, this one and only evening, forget everything and be carefree and have fun.
And she almost did it, almost… But Lucius interrupted the entire double date around midnight.
He practically led her out of the restaurant, leaving Blake speechless and Nicolas suspicious, staring at their backs as they left. Hermione fought him, she tried, but he was adamant, his steel hand holding her arm tightly.
"I hate you," Hermione hissed hastily as they staggered around the street so they could Apparate safely. "I hate you, Malfoy." She repeated, and he sighed in response.
"You are very melodramatic today." She raised an eyebrow, and he added, "You've had too much, Hermione."
Meaning you are drunk as hell. She snorted in response, though he was right. He was fucking right. She wasn't holding back, and the alcohol was bubbling through her veins, perhaps the hardest since she could remember. She was wasted.
Everything was blurry around him - street lights, neon lights, and Lucius Malfoy's face.
"We were supposed to pretend, so I p-r-e-t-e-n-d-e-d." She groaned and emphasised the last word sarcastically, followed by almost closing eyes. Lucius suddenly stopped and a sharp light from behind his head hit her in the face.
"It had nothing to do with pretending, Hermione." His impatient voice was different than usual. "I sincerely hope my business will not be affected by your behaviour tonight."
Hermione raised an eyebrow again and from her lips slipped, "I don't give a fuck."
Her honest answer upset Malfoy for a moment, then he laughed softly and shrugged a second later.
Hermione wished she were sober - for the first time in her presence, Lucius shed his armour and mask with such ease. But he probably only did it because they were in the centre of Muggle London, and she smelled like a good, albeit slightly digested, drink, and there was a good chance she wouldn't remember anything.
"I'm not getting into what you don't care about - or fuck - , but could you please bring us back to Malfoy Manor?" His remark brought her to reality for a moment, and Hermione nodded. She gave him her wand and he took care of them.
When they landed, Lucius left her and walked noiselessly to his wing. Hermione felt that tomorrow she would regret her carelessness.
Hermione regretted the moment she opened her eyes in the morning. Her world spun and she felt sand in her mouth. Her head was throbbing like a unhealthy heartbeat, so all she could do was stutter quietly,
"Lissy."
She treated her hangover for the first two hours with water only and painkillers, but her stomach craved for food. So she gathered herself up and headed for the dining room, which was empty. No wonder considering it was almost noon.
She asked the elves for broth and forced a whole bowl into herself. After eating, she went to the library and found a book that she decided to read. She sat down in the chair and started it, but a slight buzzing in her head disturbed her in this activity. Finally she fell asleep and a grunt woke her up.
She opened her eyes and saw piercing grey eyes above her, and a smirk beneath them. He was clearly pleased to see her in this compromising position. Or maybe not, she wasn't sure.
"A letter has come for you." He said smoothly, but she heard his voice tremble. "From the Ministry."
She instantly sobered up and sat up with her feet touching the floor. With a trembling hand, she took the letter from him and bit her lip. Lucius stepped back and leaned against the edge of his desk, never taking his eyes off it. He grew serious, because he was well aware of what the letter meant. For her, for him.
Hermione swallowed loudly and tore the envelope to open. Her slender fingers stretched out the parchment, and Lucius could see she turned pale.
"Did you face the music?" His soft question and a sigh made her involuntarily nod in reply.
"Kingsley is calling me on Monday." She clarified and crushed the letter into a paper ball. "Damn the man."
She choked out the exclamation with a lump in her throat, feeling all the bravado draining from her. She had played with fire, knowing full well what consequences to expect.
There was a silence between them, all they could hear was the ticking of the clock. Hermione, clearly resigned, buried her face in her hands.
Bloody helplessness , a condition she knew perfectly well. She wondered if she was going to have a seizure, but recently she felt she had it under control. The seizures had quieted down and weren't bothering her that often. She slept well at night and was calmer thanks to the potion; on bright days it was easier. But winter was approaching inexorably, and that meant—
Deterioration.
Unknown, or maybe very familiar, fear gripped her body and Hermione began to regulate her breathing as panic was beginning to emerge.
Inhale .
Exhale.
"Should I go out?" Lucius's short question made her look up. She shook her head, as she didn't want to be alone now. And although Malfoy was far from being the perfect companion, he was there. He was physically there with her. Whether voluntarily or not, that was the least important question, at least today.
He nodded and sat down behind the desk, but Hermione could see he was watching her.
She felt as if something in their relationship had changed since yesterday, but she couldn't tell what. It was very fleeting, almost impossible to capture.
She bit her lip and felt a metallic taste in her mouth. She ran her tongue over her teeth and swallowed. She looked at Lucius - their eyes met and she remembered that picture in the newspaper, taken before he landed in Azkaban.
After she put him there.
Hermione tightened her hand on the backrest, as she was suddenly flooded with a wave of strange feelings that she was trying to control.
There was too much tension within her that had no outlet.
She licked her lips, still feeling the strange aftertaste, and Lucius was still staring at her. She couldn't read his eyes, but today there was no ice in them. He was still wary of her, but he was also more civil.
As if he saw a human being in her, not Miss Know-It-All, Muggle, or Potter's friend.
It could mean anything and nothing, and it was the most terrifying thought.
"Um," she began, feeling this was the only good opportunity to ask him about a book, "I'm looking for a certain book and I'm wondering ... if I might find it in your library." Her voice was uncertain, but she caught his attention as he raised an eyebrow.
"What is this book?" She blinked back because she hadn't expected him to want to help her.
"This is a rare and inaccessible title, Aftermath of the War Diaries . Author unknown ." She choked out and watched as Lucius's face tightened.
Fuck , she thought, and put her hand to her mouth. After a while, Lucius shook his head and emphatically denied knowing about it.
"I don't know this book and I certainly don't have it in the library." His voice indicated clearly he was lying.
Hermione was sure because he seemed very upset. She looked at him for a long moment and felt the blood start to bubble in her veins. She stood up from the excitement, feeling her heart was pounding as she walked over to the desk and leaned over Lucius.
I have to break the magic around the safe, the book has to be there, she thought vaguely.
Lucius was surprised by her move, like a rookie in a game of chess against a champion. Usually, he was a seasoned player, but today he was surrounded by a moment of weakness.
As if reading his mind, Hermione tilted her head and asked him unexpectedly, "Can you play chess?"
Her face was flushed pink, she was breathing faster, and her lips were remarkably red. She looked drugged, but he didn't know what caused that condition. After all, she hadn't been drinking alcohol, at least not in his presence.
"I can." Lucius replied and frowned, but Hermione ignored his tone and smiled.
She will find a way to break the spells around the safe.
Lucius clapped his hands and asked the house elves to fetch the board. Of course, Lucius Malfoy's chess pieces were an elaborate and very expensive version. The figurines were made of ivory, and the board itself was carved in stone. It was definitely the most exclusive chess Hermione had ever seen.
They sat and started the first game.
Hermione had some strategy in her head, but first she needed to figure out how strong Lucius was. He, as if aware of her movement, narrowed his eyes and said in a firm voice,
"I always win, Miss Granger."
She huffed and replied bluntly, "We'll see."
The game was very fierce, because Lucius turned out to be an excellent opponent. However, Hermione, after years at Hogwarts with Ron's love for chess, knew quite a lot about strategy. She couldn't predict his every move, but the blocking was going quite smoothly. Carried by emotions, both positive and negative, it flowed through the game causing the opponent's teeth to grind. Lucius was clearly amazed at her skill and didn't even mask his surprise.
Hermione knew perfectly well that chess required great strategic skills. She took advantage of it and made plans for progress.
Moments before the winning, Hermione couldn't help but smirk, and seeing the annoyance on Malfoy's face, she said with incredible pleasure,
"Check."
She saw that he pressed his lips together and surrendered the game. His eyes clearly said that he had not expected her to be this precocious , which she might take as a very peculiar compliment.
"Re-match?" It was a rhetorical question, and she nodded. She felt a little hungry, but she had no intention of admitting it or exposing herself to any tough remarks from his lips.
The next game was won by Lucius, who was an outstanding observer, because he figured out her favourite moves very quickly. Faster than she wanted. It was a tough pill and a lesson of humility, but she took it with pride.
"Check and checkmate." His voice was silky, streaked with undisguised satisfaction.
Hermione decided that they were equal opponents and knew that she had to prepare herself very well before she would challenge Malfoy in any way.
"Thank you for the game." Lucius got up when Hermione lost the match. "Good night, Miss Granger."
He left almost noiselessly, leaving her puzzled in the office. She had not expected such a sudden exit, but matches took much longer than she initially suspected.
She felt tired, so she decided to go to her chambers and eat something on the spot before drinking the potion. But before she left the office, she looked for a book on chess strategies in the library. She had to prepare a little so that this victory would not be her first and last.
She took a shower and lay down on the bed, wrapping herself in the warm blanket.
Think Like a Grandmaster by Alexander Kotov - halfway through the second chapter, Hermione felt herself falling asleep and a moment later drifted off.
A soft humming woke her and she felt warm and soft, almost boneless. It had been years since she had felt this restless ache, that slippery warmth between her thighs that pulsed to the beat of her clearly unstable pulse.
That's impossible, her breath hitched, her thoughts blurry, her body had not been demanding this for a long time ...
Hermione held her breath, pressing her thighs together, exhaling slowly, trying to calm down, but the tension continued, arising. Arousal that wouldn't go away.
She bit her lip to ignore all the feelings, this carnal need, but… she couldn't.
The last time anyone touched her there was years ago. She always considered herself a person who...
She groaned as a shudder shook her body like sharp sparks. She realised that this sweet-tiring excitement would not go away by itself.
Her palms were hot as her finger slipped between her thighs to discover that her femininity was slippery, hot and… burning. Her fingers slipped over her, chasing invisible sparks, extinguishing the flickering flame of need that burned between her hips.
Oh my god, her thoughts were vague, dim, her breathing was loud, rapid. Her body was sticky inside and outside, with heat, as her nimble fingers faded out the throbbing pain between her thighs faster and harder.
Check , a voice rang in her ears as her body arched, her fingers moving quick and hard, and she was right there, almost right there, where she desperately wanted to be.
Checkmate , she heard distinctly when a sweet sensation spilled over her body, as she took a breath as she felt wetness on her hands and that sweet-sticky, like syrup, smell.
Hermione wasn't as dead as she thought.
She shuddered as she licked her dry lips, trying to remember the dream that had brought her into this state. But all she saw were chess pieces sliding on the board noiselessly.