Rating: R
Disclaimer: Nothing's mine!
A/N: Oh my god, this is long. Sorry. And who thinks that the guy who
sings "Take On Me" can sing disturbingly high? Okay, now that you're
thinking I'm a complete eighties music dork, please read the chapter so
I'll shut up.
~
The next day dawned stormy and dark. Hermione woke up from her position propped against a wall of the North Tower.
"Owwww." She said, stretching her back out. The night came back to her while she pulled her arms above her head.
Hermione still had the weird encounter with Pansy fresh in her mind. She glanced down at the list in her lap and blushed upon re-reading the last addition.
Had what she'd written just been one of those spur-of-the-moment thoughts? Was Draco worth her time and energy? Was she tired of asking herself this question over and over again?
Yes. But it certainly held more intrigue than say. thinking about Ron.
~
"So I hear you slept with Parvati." Hermione said as she sat down across from Malfoy that night.
"Yeah, and?"
"Nothing." Hermione said, suddenly realizing there was no plausible reason why she should care. She was still wondering if Draco really wanted to get inside her mind, but those were musings better left for later.
"She's pretty fucking awesome, you know. Maybe you should've taken lessons from her."
"Right, that would've been a good idea. Five minutes and the whole school would know about it. Including Ron." Hermione winced.
"Yeah, I must agree. That chick's got a pretty big mouth."
"Well, I guess you would know, wouldn't you?" said Hermione.
Draco smirked. "I guess I would." He stopped as if a sudden thought had entered his brain.
"Hey, did you ever want to learn that?" he asked.
"Learn what?" she asked.
"You know, oral pleasure?"
Hermione blushed just the tiniest bit. "I don't know. Do you think it's something I should be able to do?"
"Probably. It's universally liked by every guy on the planet, and can always be used as a sort of backup plan."
Hermione tucked her hair behind her ears. "Okay. I guess. I mean, I don't really know how I'm going to learn something like that without actually, um, I mean, uh, without a real."
"Penis?"
"That's the word." Hermione laughed nervously.
"I think I can figure out a way to help you." Draco reached underneath the table and fumbled around for a moment.
"We can use my wand." He said. "Its just the right size and shape, I think."
"Your wand?" Hermione said a bit squeakily, closing her eyes. "Right, sure." She heard the sound of rustling fabric.
"Here." Draco said. She opened her eyes slowly to see him holding out his wand.
The thin, wooden one used for casting spells, of course.
"Your wand, great, perfect." She said, embarrassed.
"Why, what were you thinking of?" he asked.
"Nothinginparticular." She said, snatching the wand from his hand. "Yep, just what I had in mind. This is just perfect. So, what do I do?"
(A/N: Okay, that was dumb, I know. But I felt like doing it.)
"Okay, first. A few ground rules for you, Miss Granger. Firstly, just know that anywhere you touch is going to feel good for this particular activity."
"Great. Got it."
"Okay, now some, etiquette, shall we say? The polite way to give oral sex is this, you have to be gentle but still. urgent, I suppose is the right word. Be sure you cover your teeth with your lips. Remember that teeth hurt like a bitch. Also, it takes some spit. Chew gum before or something, but your spit's just like lubricant. Sex of any kind always feels better with lubricant."
"Uh.okay."
"And. what else? Um, be sure you take advantage of all your assets. Use all parts, if you get what I'm saying, for maximum pleasure. Don't be afraid to use your hands. You may, in some situations, need them for balance of some sort, but it can really feel good to get them in on the action."
"And. what kind of, well, motion am I supposed to use?" Hermione asked.
"Well, honestly, up and down is really all you can do. Once you get really skilled, you can try going up with your mouth and down with your tongue at the same time."
"Isn't that physically impossible?" she asked.
"Not if you're a mystery girl in the locker room after Quidditch practice." Draco said, shaking a head filled with fond memories.
Hermione rolled her eyes.
"Okay, forget that one. Um. what else is important? Oh, remember that if you've been concentrating on one area, starting in on another one will feel better than if you'd just been working everywhere, you get what I'm saying? When one place is ignored for awhile, it's a stronger sensation when it gets some attention."
"I get it." Hermione nodded.
"You wanna practice on my wand?" Draco asked.
"I don't think that's necessary." She said.
"Your loss." He stuck it back in his pocket.
"Um, what am I supposed to do with, you know, well, what do I do after he's."
"I say swallow." Draco said. "It's honestly kind of insulting, to me anyway, when girls don't. But you might not want to, or you might just get it in your mouth and be so disgusted that you can't stand to have it in your stomach. At any rate, I'm sure Ron wouldn't have a big problem with it either way."
"If I don't want to, you know. swallow it? Where do I um, what am I supposed to do with it?"
"I honestly don't know. Whatever girls do with it is some secret I have yet to find out. But, on another note, I have heard of charms you can do to make it taste like a certain way, like chocolate or something."
"I guess I'll have to look into that." She said. "Anyway, moving on. How am I supposed to bring up the subject of, you know, going down on him? Will he tell me what he wants? Am I just supposed to know that it's the right thing to do?"
"Well, since I somewhat know the personality of the subject in question, he doesn't seem like the type of guy who'd be comfortable asking you for that. So I guess on a night when you're feeling specifically bold, lean over and whisper something suggestive into his ear. He'll always be into it, no matter what time, place, day of the week. Whatever. And after you get good at it, it's something you can do if you guys have just gotten to the making out stage and he's already gotten his equipment ready, you get what I'm saying? It would actually be a courtesy for you to help him out there. It's kind of uncomfortable for guys to just be ready and waiting. I mean, pants aren't really designed to be hard-on accessible, you know?"
"Not really." She said. It was only a small lie, really.
"Well, believe you me, it is. Why don't you come over here?" he asked.
"Okay." She moved to sit across from him.
"Pretend that tonight you want to practice what you're just learned. What are you going to do?"
She contemplated for a minute.
"First, I'm going to kiss you." She leaned into him and touched his lips.
"Then, after awhile, I'd whisper something sexy and suggestive."
"Like?" he asked.
"Maybe." she leaned into his ear. "Tonight I want to make you feel more amazing than you ever have before."
"That's good, very good." He replied. He leaned closer to instinctively kiss her neck, and she whispered into his hair.
"Then I'd start to take off your pants." She reached her hands down and began to undo his belt.
"Then I'd unzip them." she reached for the zipper and pulled it down. "And th-"
She paused as she felt Draco's hands brushing the inside of her thighs. When had they gotten there?
"What are you doing?" she whispered.
"What are you doing?" he whispered back.
"I-I'm just."
"Taking off my pants."
"Yeah, that's it."
"Okay."
"Well, what are you doing?"
"I'm just." he stopped talking and started slowly lifting up her skirt. Hermione looked at his eyes, but didn't try to stop what was happening.
Wait, what was happening? Was this part of the lesson? Was she supposed to learn something from this? Something besides how. soft his hands were?
Her skirt was pretty far up on her thighs, and she could only look at him, reflexively opening her legs just a bit as she leaned back in her chair. This was. indescribable. Not because it was so amazing, but because Hermione couldn't even begin to pinpoint how she was reacting.
"I'm just trying to see what color underwear you have on." He mumbled, smirking up at her again. "Pink is good, very good."
Her heart dropped just the tiniest bit.
But Hermione leaned up and began kissing him anyway, feeling his hands where right where they had been before. She felt one of Draco's fingertips slide just the tiniest bit underneath the lace trimming of her panties.
Hermione closed her eyes. Whatever was happening, she wanted it. She wanted it so badly. It was probably another one of Draco's twisted lessons, but for right now, nothing had ever felt better. He had said he just wanted to see her panties, but he'd seen them already. No one could want to look at her underwear for this long. She could feel heat beginning to burn inside of her, and Draco's skin felt warmer to her mouth.
She felt his breath tingling her neck as his lips returned. Hermione parted her legs just a tiny bit more and tilted her head up, letting a small 'mmm' escape her as Draco's thumb continued its journey.
"Hermione?"
Oh, god.
Hermione's head snapped to the left to stare at the person standing in the doorway.
"No way. This is a mirage. Not real. Not real. NOT real. This cannot be happening."
"Chuck?"
"Hey babe, what's up?"
She could only stare at him as she tumbled backwards off of Draco's lap.
"Well, obviously you have no more unresolved feelings for me." He said, noticing Draco's unzipped pants.
"Oh, um." Hermione was utterly, completely, and totally speechless.
"Chuck, this." she didn't know how to finish the sentence. It was all too unbelievably cliché and shocking all at once.
"This isn't what it looks like, Draco was just." Just what? Why did she feel the need to explain herself to him?
"Feeling you up? And down?"
Suddenly Hermione felt a wave of anger. No, he had no right to be here. Why was he even here? She deserved an explanation. More than an explanation, really. She stood up and smoothed down her skirt.
"Aren't you going to make introductions?" he asked.
"Chuck, this is Draco. A friend. And Draco, this is Chuck. Someone I used to know." She said icily.
"Hey." Draco refastened his pants as best he could and shook Chuck's outstretched hand.
"Chuck, what the hell are you doing here?" Hermione asked.
"Well, I heard that Anna told you we were dating, and I felt bad about the whole thing, so I though I'd come by and see you."
"At my school? At eleven at night?"
"Yeah, time change. Kinda forgot. I do live in the United States, you know."
"Oh, I know." She said sarcastically.
"Yeah, well. I just figured I'd tell myself to apparate to wherever you were."
"You can't apparate inside the school grounds." she mumbled upon reflex.
"You know me, Mione. Have I ever been afraid to break the rules?"
"Wait, I didn't know you were a wizard." She said.
"I didn't know you were a witch. So we're even."
"What if I had been in my bed? Or in the shower? Or in class? What if I had been anywhere public and you just showed up?"
"Well, you weren't. And as for the shower thing, I don't think you have to be shy about that after last summer." Hermione looked back at Draco.
"I think I'll just go." Draco said.
"No, you don't have to go." She said to Draco. "I think, no I know Chuck needs to leave."
"I just got here." He said.
"I don't think we have any business ever talking again." She said, hoping her curt tone would get him to leave. "After last summer I don't ever want to talk to you again. Please just go. Please."
"No, I need to talk, okay?"
"We have nothing to talk about anymore." She said.
"Come on." He reached for her arm. "We always used to have so much to talk about."
"Well, those days ended. You made sure those days ended."
"Please, Mione? I'm trying to do the right thing here."
"It's a bit late for that."
"It's never too late to turn around."
"Look, I don't want to argue with you, I don't want to blame you, I don't want to confront you. I just want you to leave, okay?"
"I'm really going to go now." Draco said.
"No, Chuck's leaving. He really is." Hermione said firmly.
"I'm not." Chuck said. "Can we go talk?"
Hermine turned to Draco. "Can you wait here for just a minute?"
"Fine." He sat down.
"Thanks." She led Chuck into the hallway.
"What do you want?"
"I want to talk about Anna."
"What about her? Planning to pull the same scam? She wrote me and told me how you said you were a virgin."
"I never said that."
"She wouldn't lie, Chuck."
"Look, I think she interpreted what I said to mean that I had never had sex before. But I told her that I wasn't a virgin just a few days ago. It was after she sent you the letter, and she's still fine with it."
"That's a bunch of crap, Chuck."
"It's true. Mione, I love Anna."
"You loved me."
He winced a bit. "This is for real. I mean, not that with you wasn't real, I mean, I know it wasn't real, but."
"But what?"
"Look. I'm sorry I did what I did to you. I was young and immature and stupid and I know you can never forgive me. But I love Anna more than anything in the world and I can't let her go. I know we need to tell her what we did and face the consequences, and I know that won't be easy. But I have to do whatever it takes to keep her, starting with making amends with you and getting your help."
"I'd love to believe you, Chuck."
"Please, please help me out here. I love her, honestly with all my heart. I've changed into someone so much better than the person I used to be."
Hermione looked at him.
"School gets out in a month and a half. I'm coming down to visit Anna soon after that. You promise me that you don't tell her one lie about how you feel for her, and most importantly that you won't sleep with her or do anything she's not ready for until then. When I come down I'm telling her everything from my own unbiased point of view. Don't tell her anything until then. If she forgives both you and I, especially you, then you can keep seeing her. Okay? And if I come to the conclusion that you honestly love her after all this, then you can go ahead and do whatever you two are ready for."
Chuck nodded. "I can accept that. Thanks for agreeing to help."
"I'm doing this for Anna. Not you." Chuck looked defeated.
"Mione, I just hope that you still believe that you can always change you opinion of somebody, no matter what."
"You honestly remember me saying that?" she asked.
"Yeah, I do. You know, we did have a lot of good times together. And you did change what you thought of me, remember?"
"Yeah. I remember."
"That whole time we were together, the only lie I told you was. well, you know. I loved being with you. Just sitting and talking with you made me feel great. And when you would smile."
"So what went so horribly wrong?" she asked stoically.
"I was afraid. I'd never been in love with someone, and I figured that before I got myself into something too big to handle, I'd just get something I wanted and be done with it. I thought doing what I did would make me feel powerful, and make my friends appreciate me. I hadn't slept with as many girls as them, and I needed something to prove that I was just as enticing. He paused. "I was wrong, though."
"It's okay, Chuck. Let's just forget it. Go back to Manhattan, and I'll see you in a few months. And don't forget the promise."
"I won't."
They went back into the classroom.
"Oh, Draco, thanks for waiting." Hermione said.
"Sure." He said noncommittally.
"Chuck is really leaving now."
"Yeah. Nice to meet you." Draco said.
"Same here. And be good to Mione, she's an awesome girl. And, if you ask me, pretty amazing in bed." With a wave and a pop, Chuck was gone.
Hermione froze.
"What was that he said?" Draco asked.
"Nothing?" Hermione said meekly, sitting down rigidly.
"You told me you were a virgin." He said, smiling. "You lie, Granger."
"Umm."
"Maybe I should go and tell Ron your dirty little secret."
"Like you really would." She said.
"Oh, believe me. I wouldn't hesitate. I doubt he'd ever want to talk to you after that."
"You know, I'm relieved. I thought for a minute there you were actually going to threaten me."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"It means that you don't scare me anymore. You may have your dark, marred little past in your back pocket, but I'll always have good friends and real ingenuity on my side."
"The same ingenuity that caused Ron to walk out on you right before you were about to 'prove your love' to each other in a perfect storybook fashion?" he asked.
"Yeah, it is." She said. "The same ingenuity that made me feel like I didn't deserve true love ever again after what happened with Chuck and I. The same ingenuity that made me feel like no man was ever going to love me after Ron."
"The same ingenuity that makes you a raging, freaked out bitch?" Draco asked.
"The same ingenuity that will one day give me an actual life while you're some pitiful straggler caught in an undertow of dark forces."
"You have no idea what my ingenuity is going to do for me someday." Draco said.
"Haven't you 'done enough' in this school?" she asked. "Haven't you destroyed enough already?"
He stood face to face with her.
"I haven't even gotten started."
"Just remember." She sneered. "The easiest way out is to swim parallel to the shore."
"Really? I never would have guessed."
"Well just remember it Malfoy, because I'm guessing you're going to need that information very, very soon."
"I'd rather die than take your advice." He said.
"You know?" Hermione said. "There are no words to describe what you are, Malfoy. You don't have one kind, empathetic fiber in your whole body. You couldn't sympathize with someone if your life depended on it. You can't listen or help or understand. You make yourself so close-minded that you don't even realize when you aren't paying attention. You can't love anyone so you just fuck them. God forbid you open up to anything and see that sometimes it's not what you want that's important, it's what you need."
He stood up and met her eyes. "Well, I wouldn't want to go against what God forbids."
"You know what the saddest part is?" she asked.
"Oh, do tell."
She looked him squarely in the eye. "You're never even going to know what you're missing." You'll never feel love because you can't recognize it anymore."
"Poor me." He said sarcastically.
Hermione shook her head. Whatever. This was pointless.
"Let's just forget this, then." She put some money down on the table. "It's my fault for breaking our little confrontation rule." She grabbed her bag and headed for the door, a tumult of emotions coursing through her body.
"You're really beautiful when you're angry." Draco said suddenly.
What?
"What?"
"When you're all passionate about something, and you can just see it in your eyes. It's beautiful. I can't explain it." He was looking at her suddenly.
"Thanks." She whispered.
"Sure." With a brush of his hand against her arm, he was gone down the hallway.
And to think, Hermione had thought she was confused thirty seconds ago.
~
Thanks to.
Natasha, potter-reader, D-chan, IvoryClover0, FoReVeR uNkNoWn, draco'sgurl, Ndfan4eva21, bri, zee, snuffles, D109, cloudgal, Anita Blake, Amber, Angle, Stacey, michee, evil child, Rebecca, Casey, Enchantress Potter, Ally, Linteloteiel the Elf Slut (luv the name, btw ^_~), Blackstar, Dasani Black, fAiTh N LiFe, Shayla, Lena, Rina, lolo, Sakura1287 (I'm so glad you stayed with me, it means a lot!), Herbie Werbie, jepa, MiaMaria, The Blind Assassin, hi, sweet, Kay, goldenstar555, AllyCat739, Willangel101, mimi, Goldenberry, Key, Coffee, Femme Fatale, MinMoot, person who left no name, Muffy, blackroseangel69, rosey, Alanna Roseguard, Glossy, Tinuviel Henneth, Hannah, and Princess Aurora. Oh, and of course myself. Just kidding.
I'm loving the feedback, without it I would have absolutely no motivation to write! =;
A few people had questions & requests and things of that sort, so if you want to talk about anything feel free to e-mail me at sugarbreed@yahoo.com. Also it'd be great if anyone who wants to be notified for an update could e-mail me there, too.
~
The next day dawned stormy and dark. Hermione woke up from her position propped against a wall of the North Tower.
"Owwww." She said, stretching her back out. The night came back to her while she pulled her arms above her head.
Hermione still had the weird encounter with Pansy fresh in her mind. She glanced down at the list in her lap and blushed upon re-reading the last addition.
Had what she'd written just been one of those spur-of-the-moment thoughts? Was Draco worth her time and energy? Was she tired of asking herself this question over and over again?
Yes. But it certainly held more intrigue than say. thinking about Ron.
~
"So I hear you slept with Parvati." Hermione said as she sat down across from Malfoy that night.
"Yeah, and?"
"Nothing." Hermione said, suddenly realizing there was no plausible reason why she should care. She was still wondering if Draco really wanted to get inside her mind, but those were musings better left for later.
"She's pretty fucking awesome, you know. Maybe you should've taken lessons from her."
"Right, that would've been a good idea. Five minutes and the whole school would know about it. Including Ron." Hermione winced.
"Yeah, I must agree. That chick's got a pretty big mouth."
"Well, I guess you would know, wouldn't you?" said Hermione.
Draco smirked. "I guess I would." He stopped as if a sudden thought had entered his brain.
"Hey, did you ever want to learn that?" he asked.
"Learn what?" she asked.
"You know, oral pleasure?"
Hermione blushed just the tiniest bit. "I don't know. Do you think it's something I should be able to do?"
"Probably. It's universally liked by every guy on the planet, and can always be used as a sort of backup plan."
Hermione tucked her hair behind her ears. "Okay. I guess. I mean, I don't really know how I'm going to learn something like that without actually, um, I mean, uh, without a real."
"Penis?"
"That's the word." Hermione laughed nervously.
"I think I can figure out a way to help you." Draco reached underneath the table and fumbled around for a moment.
"We can use my wand." He said. "Its just the right size and shape, I think."
"Your wand?" Hermione said a bit squeakily, closing her eyes. "Right, sure." She heard the sound of rustling fabric.
"Here." Draco said. She opened her eyes slowly to see him holding out his wand.
The thin, wooden one used for casting spells, of course.
"Your wand, great, perfect." She said, embarrassed.
"Why, what were you thinking of?" he asked.
"Nothinginparticular." She said, snatching the wand from his hand. "Yep, just what I had in mind. This is just perfect. So, what do I do?"
(A/N: Okay, that was dumb, I know. But I felt like doing it.)
"Okay, first. A few ground rules for you, Miss Granger. Firstly, just know that anywhere you touch is going to feel good for this particular activity."
"Great. Got it."
"Okay, now some, etiquette, shall we say? The polite way to give oral sex is this, you have to be gentle but still. urgent, I suppose is the right word. Be sure you cover your teeth with your lips. Remember that teeth hurt like a bitch. Also, it takes some spit. Chew gum before or something, but your spit's just like lubricant. Sex of any kind always feels better with lubricant."
"Uh.okay."
"And. what else? Um, be sure you take advantage of all your assets. Use all parts, if you get what I'm saying, for maximum pleasure. Don't be afraid to use your hands. You may, in some situations, need them for balance of some sort, but it can really feel good to get them in on the action."
"And. what kind of, well, motion am I supposed to use?" Hermione asked.
"Well, honestly, up and down is really all you can do. Once you get really skilled, you can try going up with your mouth and down with your tongue at the same time."
"Isn't that physically impossible?" she asked.
"Not if you're a mystery girl in the locker room after Quidditch practice." Draco said, shaking a head filled with fond memories.
Hermione rolled her eyes.
"Okay, forget that one. Um. what else is important? Oh, remember that if you've been concentrating on one area, starting in on another one will feel better than if you'd just been working everywhere, you get what I'm saying? When one place is ignored for awhile, it's a stronger sensation when it gets some attention."
"I get it." Hermione nodded.
"You wanna practice on my wand?" Draco asked.
"I don't think that's necessary." She said.
"Your loss." He stuck it back in his pocket.
"Um, what am I supposed to do with, you know, well, what do I do after he's."
"I say swallow." Draco said. "It's honestly kind of insulting, to me anyway, when girls don't. But you might not want to, or you might just get it in your mouth and be so disgusted that you can't stand to have it in your stomach. At any rate, I'm sure Ron wouldn't have a big problem with it either way."
"If I don't want to, you know. swallow it? Where do I um, what am I supposed to do with it?"
"I honestly don't know. Whatever girls do with it is some secret I have yet to find out. But, on another note, I have heard of charms you can do to make it taste like a certain way, like chocolate or something."
"I guess I'll have to look into that." She said. "Anyway, moving on. How am I supposed to bring up the subject of, you know, going down on him? Will he tell me what he wants? Am I just supposed to know that it's the right thing to do?"
"Well, since I somewhat know the personality of the subject in question, he doesn't seem like the type of guy who'd be comfortable asking you for that. So I guess on a night when you're feeling specifically bold, lean over and whisper something suggestive into his ear. He'll always be into it, no matter what time, place, day of the week. Whatever. And after you get good at it, it's something you can do if you guys have just gotten to the making out stage and he's already gotten his equipment ready, you get what I'm saying? It would actually be a courtesy for you to help him out there. It's kind of uncomfortable for guys to just be ready and waiting. I mean, pants aren't really designed to be hard-on accessible, you know?"
"Not really." She said. It was only a small lie, really.
"Well, believe you me, it is. Why don't you come over here?" he asked.
"Okay." She moved to sit across from him.
"Pretend that tonight you want to practice what you're just learned. What are you going to do?"
She contemplated for a minute.
"First, I'm going to kiss you." She leaned into him and touched his lips.
"Then, after awhile, I'd whisper something sexy and suggestive."
"Like?" he asked.
"Maybe." she leaned into his ear. "Tonight I want to make you feel more amazing than you ever have before."
"That's good, very good." He replied. He leaned closer to instinctively kiss her neck, and she whispered into his hair.
"Then I'd start to take off your pants." She reached her hands down and began to undo his belt.
"Then I'd unzip them." she reached for the zipper and pulled it down. "And th-"
She paused as she felt Draco's hands brushing the inside of her thighs. When had they gotten there?
"What are you doing?" she whispered.
"What are you doing?" he whispered back.
"I-I'm just."
"Taking off my pants."
"Yeah, that's it."
"Okay."
"Well, what are you doing?"
"I'm just." he stopped talking and started slowly lifting up her skirt. Hermione looked at his eyes, but didn't try to stop what was happening.
Wait, what was happening? Was this part of the lesson? Was she supposed to learn something from this? Something besides how. soft his hands were?
Her skirt was pretty far up on her thighs, and she could only look at him, reflexively opening her legs just a bit as she leaned back in her chair. This was. indescribable. Not because it was so amazing, but because Hermione couldn't even begin to pinpoint how she was reacting.
"I'm just trying to see what color underwear you have on." He mumbled, smirking up at her again. "Pink is good, very good."
Her heart dropped just the tiniest bit.
But Hermione leaned up and began kissing him anyway, feeling his hands where right where they had been before. She felt one of Draco's fingertips slide just the tiniest bit underneath the lace trimming of her panties.
Hermione closed her eyes. Whatever was happening, she wanted it. She wanted it so badly. It was probably another one of Draco's twisted lessons, but for right now, nothing had ever felt better. He had said he just wanted to see her panties, but he'd seen them already. No one could want to look at her underwear for this long. She could feel heat beginning to burn inside of her, and Draco's skin felt warmer to her mouth.
She felt his breath tingling her neck as his lips returned. Hermione parted her legs just a tiny bit more and tilted her head up, letting a small 'mmm' escape her as Draco's thumb continued its journey.
"Hermione?"
Oh, god.
Hermione's head snapped to the left to stare at the person standing in the doorway.
"No way. This is a mirage. Not real. Not real. NOT real. This cannot be happening."
"Chuck?"
"Hey babe, what's up?"
She could only stare at him as she tumbled backwards off of Draco's lap.
"Well, obviously you have no more unresolved feelings for me." He said, noticing Draco's unzipped pants.
"Oh, um." Hermione was utterly, completely, and totally speechless.
"Chuck, this." she didn't know how to finish the sentence. It was all too unbelievably cliché and shocking all at once.
"This isn't what it looks like, Draco was just." Just what? Why did she feel the need to explain herself to him?
"Feeling you up? And down?"
Suddenly Hermione felt a wave of anger. No, he had no right to be here. Why was he even here? She deserved an explanation. More than an explanation, really. She stood up and smoothed down her skirt.
"Aren't you going to make introductions?" he asked.
"Chuck, this is Draco. A friend. And Draco, this is Chuck. Someone I used to know." She said icily.
"Hey." Draco refastened his pants as best he could and shook Chuck's outstretched hand.
"Chuck, what the hell are you doing here?" Hermione asked.
"Well, I heard that Anna told you we were dating, and I felt bad about the whole thing, so I though I'd come by and see you."
"At my school? At eleven at night?"
"Yeah, time change. Kinda forgot. I do live in the United States, you know."
"Oh, I know." She said sarcastically.
"Yeah, well. I just figured I'd tell myself to apparate to wherever you were."
"You can't apparate inside the school grounds." she mumbled upon reflex.
"You know me, Mione. Have I ever been afraid to break the rules?"
"Wait, I didn't know you were a wizard." She said.
"I didn't know you were a witch. So we're even."
"What if I had been in my bed? Or in the shower? Or in class? What if I had been anywhere public and you just showed up?"
"Well, you weren't. And as for the shower thing, I don't think you have to be shy about that after last summer." Hermione looked back at Draco.
"I think I'll just go." Draco said.
"No, you don't have to go." She said to Draco. "I think, no I know Chuck needs to leave."
"I just got here." He said.
"I don't think we have any business ever talking again." She said, hoping her curt tone would get him to leave. "After last summer I don't ever want to talk to you again. Please just go. Please."
"No, I need to talk, okay?"
"We have nothing to talk about anymore." She said.
"Come on." He reached for her arm. "We always used to have so much to talk about."
"Well, those days ended. You made sure those days ended."
"Please, Mione? I'm trying to do the right thing here."
"It's a bit late for that."
"It's never too late to turn around."
"Look, I don't want to argue with you, I don't want to blame you, I don't want to confront you. I just want you to leave, okay?"
"I'm really going to go now." Draco said.
"No, Chuck's leaving. He really is." Hermione said firmly.
"I'm not." Chuck said. "Can we go talk?"
Hermine turned to Draco. "Can you wait here for just a minute?"
"Fine." He sat down.
"Thanks." She led Chuck into the hallway.
"What do you want?"
"I want to talk about Anna."
"What about her? Planning to pull the same scam? She wrote me and told me how you said you were a virgin."
"I never said that."
"She wouldn't lie, Chuck."
"Look, I think she interpreted what I said to mean that I had never had sex before. But I told her that I wasn't a virgin just a few days ago. It was after she sent you the letter, and she's still fine with it."
"That's a bunch of crap, Chuck."
"It's true. Mione, I love Anna."
"You loved me."
He winced a bit. "This is for real. I mean, not that with you wasn't real, I mean, I know it wasn't real, but."
"But what?"
"Look. I'm sorry I did what I did to you. I was young and immature and stupid and I know you can never forgive me. But I love Anna more than anything in the world and I can't let her go. I know we need to tell her what we did and face the consequences, and I know that won't be easy. But I have to do whatever it takes to keep her, starting with making amends with you and getting your help."
"I'd love to believe you, Chuck."
"Please, please help me out here. I love her, honestly with all my heart. I've changed into someone so much better than the person I used to be."
Hermione looked at him.
"School gets out in a month and a half. I'm coming down to visit Anna soon after that. You promise me that you don't tell her one lie about how you feel for her, and most importantly that you won't sleep with her or do anything she's not ready for until then. When I come down I'm telling her everything from my own unbiased point of view. Don't tell her anything until then. If she forgives both you and I, especially you, then you can keep seeing her. Okay? And if I come to the conclusion that you honestly love her after all this, then you can go ahead and do whatever you two are ready for."
Chuck nodded. "I can accept that. Thanks for agreeing to help."
"I'm doing this for Anna. Not you." Chuck looked defeated.
"Mione, I just hope that you still believe that you can always change you opinion of somebody, no matter what."
"You honestly remember me saying that?" she asked.
"Yeah, I do. You know, we did have a lot of good times together. And you did change what you thought of me, remember?"
"Yeah. I remember."
"That whole time we were together, the only lie I told you was. well, you know. I loved being with you. Just sitting and talking with you made me feel great. And when you would smile."
"So what went so horribly wrong?" she asked stoically.
"I was afraid. I'd never been in love with someone, and I figured that before I got myself into something too big to handle, I'd just get something I wanted and be done with it. I thought doing what I did would make me feel powerful, and make my friends appreciate me. I hadn't slept with as many girls as them, and I needed something to prove that I was just as enticing. He paused. "I was wrong, though."
"It's okay, Chuck. Let's just forget it. Go back to Manhattan, and I'll see you in a few months. And don't forget the promise."
"I won't."
They went back into the classroom.
"Oh, Draco, thanks for waiting." Hermione said.
"Sure." He said noncommittally.
"Chuck is really leaving now."
"Yeah. Nice to meet you." Draco said.
"Same here. And be good to Mione, she's an awesome girl. And, if you ask me, pretty amazing in bed." With a wave and a pop, Chuck was gone.
Hermione froze.
"What was that he said?" Draco asked.
"Nothing?" Hermione said meekly, sitting down rigidly.
"You told me you were a virgin." He said, smiling. "You lie, Granger."
"Umm."
"Maybe I should go and tell Ron your dirty little secret."
"Like you really would." She said.
"Oh, believe me. I wouldn't hesitate. I doubt he'd ever want to talk to you after that."
"You know, I'm relieved. I thought for a minute there you were actually going to threaten me."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"It means that you don't scare me anymore. You may have your dark, marred little past in your back pocket, but I'll always have good friends and real ingenuity on my side."
"The same ingenuity that caused Ron to walk out on you right before you were about to 'prove your love' to each other in a perfect storybook fashion?" he asked.
"Yeah, it is." She said. "The same ingenuity that made me feel like I didn't deserve true love ever again after what happened with Chuck and I. The same ingenuity that made me feel like no man was ever going to love me after Ron."
"The same ingenuity that makes you a raging, freaked out bitch?" Draco asked.
"The same ingenuity that will one day give me an actual life while you're some pitiful straggler caught in an undertow of dark forces."
"You have no idea what my ingenuity is going to do for me someday." Draco said.
"Haven't you 'done enough' in this school?" she asked. "Haven't you destroyed enough already?"
He stood face to face with her.
"I haven't even gotten started."
"Just remember." She sneered. "The easiest way out is to swim parallel to the shore."
"Really? I never would have guessed."
"Well just remember it Malfoy, because I'm guessing you're going to need that information very, very soon."
"I'd rather die than take your advice." He said.
"You know?" Hermione said. "There are no words to describe what you are, Malfoy. You don't have one kind, empathetic fiber in your whole body. You couldn't sympathize with someone if your life depended on it. You can't listen or help or understand. You make yourself so close-minded that you don't even realize when you aren't paying attention. You can't love anyone so you just fuck them. God forbid you open up to anything and see that sometimes it's not what you want that's important, it's what you need."
He stood up and met her eyes. "Well, I wouldn't want to go against what God forbids."
"You know what the saddest part is?" she asked.
"Oh, do tell."
She looked him squarely in the eye. "You're never even going to know what you're missing." You'll never feel love because you can't recognize it anymore."
"Poor me." He said sarcastically.
Hermione shook her head. Whatever. This was pointless.
"Let's just forget this, then." She put some money down on the table. "It's my fault for breaking our little confrontation rule." She grabbed her bag and headed for the door, a tumult of emotions coursing through her body.
"You're really beautiful when you're angry." Draco said suddenly.
What?
"What?"
"When you're all passionate about something, and you can just see it in your eyes. It's beautiful. I can't explain it." He was looking at her suddenly.
"Thanks." She whispered.
"Sure." With a brush of his hand against her arm, he was gone down the hallway.
And to think, Hermione had thought she was confused thirty seconds ago.
~
Thanks to.
Natasha, potter-reader, D-chan, IvoryClover0, FoReVeR uNkNoWn, draco'sgurl, Ndfan4eva21, bri, zee, snuffles, D109, cloudgal, Anita Blake, Amber, Angle, Stacey, michee, evil child, Rebecca, Casey, Enchantress Potter, Ally, Linteloteiel the Elf Slut (luv the name, btw ^_~), Blackstar, Dasani Black, fAiTh N LiFe, Shayla, Lena, Rina, lolo, Sakura1287 (I'm so glad you stayed with me, it means a lot!), Herbie Werbie, jepa, MiaMaria, The Blind Assassin, hi, sweet, Kay, goldenstar555, AllyCat739, Willangel101, mimi, Goldenberry, Key, Coffee, Femme Fatale, MinMoot, person who left no name, Muffy, blackroseangel69, rosey, Alanna Roseguard, Glossy, Tinuviel Henneth, Hannah, and Princess Aurora. Oh, and of course myself. Just kidding.
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