AN: THANKS TO ALL OF MY REGULAR REVIEWERS AS WELL AS EVERYONE ESLE WHO TOOK THE TIME TO REVIEW!!! if youve ever written something you know how happy you can get when you have some new reviews waiting for you in yer mailbox!! sorry for the very very long chapter wait.... ive been a bit lazy.... and ive had a bit of a writers block... and im not qutie sure that its cured.... s0 y0u tell me!!(( but i will try and get better though!!))

Diclaimer: all characters belong to jk....

A Most Unexpected Love

Chapter 10: Afraid

Last Chapter....

Now he could hear the sounds of the trees crackin and she darted through them. She may have been faster, but his strides were longer. He was getting nearer. He called out. "Do you even know where you are Hermione?"

A loud piercing sqeal came in responce.

'Oh shit. '

"Hermione!!!"

Hermione's POV

Hermione's full sprint came to an abrupt stop. She couldn't belive her eyes. There was no way that she was actually seeing what she was seeing. There before her, stood a beautiful pasture full the largest selection of horses that Hermione had ever seen! She stood there in aw, unaware of the distress she had caused Draco.

"Are you touched in the head??" panted Draco. "What in bloody hell did you scream about?!"

"Draco..." now her voice was almost in a whisper. "Horses.. You didn't tell me you had horses..." Then Hermione started to realize what she had just said. "Thats right," her voice rising. "You didn't tell me you had horses Draco!"

Draco didn't see what she was getting so worked up about. "...So?"

"So? Draco I asked you if there was anything interesting to do here! And what did you say? Oh no Hermione," she continued in a mocking voice. "There's nothing even remotely interesting to do here."

Draco stared at her and blinked. "There isnt."

"So your telling me that you don't call havaing a pasture full of horses interesting? I can't- Oh whatever Draco. I'm not in the mood to argue right now." And with that she turned her back to him and her attention to the horses.

Draco's POV

Draco contemplated what to do. Should he leave her there with her horses? He took a few stps in the oppisite direction, but then decided against it. After all, she may have gotten her self here, but she sure wouldn't know how to get back. So he decided to stay.

Deciding to make his self more comfortable, he took a seat on the ground beneath a near by tree. Not nearly as comfortable as he was with Hermione underneath the willow, but it would do.

'Woah,' Draco thought. 'Did i just say I was comfortable with Hermione? Those are two words which definatley should not be in the same sentence.' Draco crocked his head slightly to the side. Well, he had to admit it... it was nice talking to her. Draco could see why Pothead and the Weasel liked to hand around her so much. She was an... interesting person when she wasnt in one of her moodswings.

Speaking of that...What was that all about? 'Oh well.. I'll never understand girls. Well..execpt Pansy that is.. all she wants from me are my sickles and snogging.' Draco laughed at his clever words. 'But Hermione's different. She's... complex. One minute shes talking to you like everything's fine, and the next minute shes jumped down your throat about something or another.'

Draco shifted his position so he could see her better. She was leaning against the fence, seemingly almost entranced by the horses. Ever so often she would let out a longing sigh.

Draco really didnt see what was so interesting about horses. Ever since thrid year when he had gotten attacked by that... monster that seemed to be also known as a Hippogriff, Draco wasn't to fond of large beasts that stood on four legs. But even he had to admit, Horses were rather mild. They didn't bother you as long as you dont bother them. Which was something he couldn't say about Hippogriffs.

Infact, when he was younger, he actually enjoyed them. He and his mother would come out to the stables early in the morning and ride them, so by the time his father would start to wonder where he and his mother disappeared to, they would already be on thier way back. Yes... his father disapproved of riding the horses. Actually, he disapproved of anything if it didn't have anything to do with the Dark Lord. Which was probably part of the reason why he enjoyed it so much. It was like his and his mother's little secret. When he thought about, his father hadn't wanted the horses on his property in the first place. But his mother had insisted, and back in the early years, his father had been less of an egotistical control-freak and more of a...Draco wouldnt quite go as far as to say father... but he was more of ...human. Yes...that was it. His father actually did used to exibit human like qualities. Draco actually had faint memories of he and his father laughing when he was little....really little. And it wasn't of the same insane maniac sort his father used to do most recently either. It was real...and full of genuine happiness... but then of course with the rise of Voldemort came the rise of his new father.

Draco shuddered. He didn't like to remember the past. There was no use in dwelling on the past when there was nothing you could do to change it. Instead, he turned his attention back to Hermione. She was much better to think about than the past. He got up and walked stood near she was leaning.

Hermione was perfectly still as the wind toyed with he stray stands of hair. Again, she let out a sigh. She seemed to be throuroghly deep in thought about something, but what?

As if on cue. Hermione turned to him. "I really wish i could you know."

"You wish you could do what?"

She bit her lip and turned back towards the horses. Hermione was silent again. She seemed to be contemplating something again. What was wrong wit her? After a few moments more, she turned towards him.

"I wish I could ride the horses."

Was that what she had been thinking about this whole time? Surely, there had to be something more...

Draco smiled at her. "We can you know. I know how."

"No," she said suddenly. A fearful glint came across her eyes. "No, I can't."

Draco gave her a skeptical look. "Uhh... may I ask why not?"

"Because Draco." she turned back towards the horses.

Draco was not convinced. "Because what?" He was trying to remain patient, seeing as Hermione was obviously trying to tell him something important. But by nature, Draco was not a patient person.

She ran her he fingers through her hair. When she spoke, it was barely above a whisper. "I'm a afraid."

She became silent again. Draco turned and looked at her. Hermione? Afraid? He found it hard to believe. Yet she was so...still. She possed this sort of beauty that he had not noticed before. But that was a lie. Truthfully, he had noticed before, that was part of the reason he was always so horrible to her. He couldn't be attracted to her... he wouldnt. And her being what she is...what she was didnt make it any easier. But now... it was getting harder and harder to deny it.

"Hermione." He had meant it to come out louder than it had, but instead, it was barely more than a whisper.

She turned her face to his. She was so beautiful and he was no longer afraid. He slowly wiped the tear away that was falling down her cheek. Draco looked in to her eyes and slowly brought his face to hers.