WARNING: Minor lime. It's not that bad. Just a little bit of sexual acts. No intercourse written.

I suggest readingthe Authoress's Notes before reading the chapter...

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Brightness of a Beloved Eye
Interlude

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"I couldn't dream of being anywhere else."

Draco looked at her and suddenly enveloped her in a tight embrace. He sought her lips and, when he found them, sighed in pleasure. She opened to him immediately, wanting to taste him and imprint the memory into her mind.

Hermione broke from him grudgingly and led him to her bed.

"I didn't want to go into battle regretting that I didn't at least try to do this with you."

Draco confessed this to Hermione in a soft voice, afraid to break the comfortable silence they'd created.

Hermione smiled at him, but didn't say a word. Instead, she unbuckled his cloak and let it fall to the floor into an amorphous heap. She slowly began unbuttoning his shirt, pulling it out of his pants and throwing off somewhere to the floor. Draco lifted his hands to Hermione's own blouse, but she waved off his hands and forced them to hang still while she worked on his clothes. Or rather, worked off his clothes. She undid his belt and his pants buttons. Pulling his pants to the floor, she kneeled in front of him, eye-level with his black silken boxers. She placed the tiniest of kisses on his stomach.

Draco made a small noise; a noise of frustration and of anticipation. Draco wanted to run his hands all over her body until she cried out in pleasure. But she kept denying him the freedom to do whatever he wished.

Hermione stood up from her kneeling position and dropped her cloak to the floor. She pushed Draco to sit on her bed and made him watch her unbutton her blouse, refusing, still, to let him touch her. She unbuttoned her shirt almost torturously slow and unzipped her skirt the same way. When they finally fell to the ground, Draco thought he could die. She was amazing, beautiful, gorgeous. And yet, there were no sufficient words to describe her splendor. She wasn't overly curvy, but she wasn't flat as a board. She was, in Draco's mind, just right. Perfect.

Hermione saw Draco stare and couldn't help but feel a flush make its way up to her face. Hermione Granger was no virgin, she knew what she was doing. But those first attempts and clumsy hands of previous lovers left no imprint of ecstasy on her mind. And none of them certainly looked at her this way. Like she was precious, a jewel, all his to ravish.

Hermione let him come to her then. He reached out almost tentatively, as if afraid she would disappear if he touched her. Hermione wondered of him.

Could this be the same Draco Malfoy that I charmed? He seems so afraid of me.

She reached for him too and drew him to her. The instant there was contact, hormones flared and minds fuzzed from relief.

"Hermione… I.. need you, so much."

"I'm here for you, Draco. Always."

Their lips met in an unhurried sensual dance that mated and predicted of what was soon to come. Draco led Hermione unconsciously down to the bed and they joined in body, mind and soul.

At the height of ecstasy, Hermione cried out to Draco.

"I love you, Draco!"

Draco didn't respond, but he proceeded to love her again and again into the night and early morning.

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Authoress's Notes:
Well, just as the chapter title suggests, this is merely an interlude in the story. It's not crucial to the plot, although it helps, just a bit.

Finally some Draco/Hermione action, you're saying, right? Well, sorry folks, but this is pretty much as good as it gets. Although there is some more later, it IS a D/Hr, after all, but it's not as much as this.

Until next time, remember to REVIEW.

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Kristina Chang