Disclaimer in Chapter 1
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Chapter 8: Love's Labors....and Lost.
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"Accio wand! Accio Wand! ACCIO!" Hermione felt herself slipping and hurriedly tightened her hold on the limb of the tree in which she was TRAPPED.
This was ridiculous! She would just climb down. She had climbed up so she could certainly climb down right? Right. She steeled her nerves and moved to try to find a foot hold. The second she moved, the branch wiggled a bit and Hermione felt as though she was going to be ill.
"Hermione Granger, stop being such a child!" She muttered.
It didn't help, she was just as scared as ever she was, and she cursed herself for having climbed up in the first place. A stupid move on her part.
At the time it had seemed like the only course available. When she had come walking along the path and seen a piteously mewling Crookshanks up in the tree, she had simply acted on instinct. She had removed her heavy outer cloak and with it the wand that was in the pocket. She had then started climbing up the tree, to 'rescue' her cat. A cat, she realized, which didn't need the rescuing. This of course being something she had only figured out after he had nimbly crawled down, leaving her well and truly stuck.
There had, of course, been at least a dozen clever options that she could have employed to remove her familiar from the tree. Just why she had chosen to climb the blasted thing was something that couldn't be explained. In fact it showed a frightening lack of her usual thoughtful consideration of all aspects of a situation. What was happening to her? Hermione Granger didn't go around climbing trees willy nilly.
"Accio Wand! Accio Wand! Argh!" She tried that route again knowing full well that her wand would remain fifteen feet below her, tangled up in the pocket of her cloak. There were certain things a wizard was capable of doing without their wands. Levitating herself safely out of a tree was not one of them. It clearly would do no good to her present situation to mention that she could have kept both feet on the ground and used magic to retrieve Crookshanks. No it did no good at all, in fact it made Hermione even more angry at herself by thinking about it.
She felt stupid for going up the tree, but just as stupid for the irrational fear that held her captive. It seemed a uncomplicated thing to simply go back the way she had come up, she had told herself that numerous times over the last hour. She had counted to ten, called herself a baby, and bargained with deities, but irrational fears are not something with which you can negotiate. So here she sat, like a very annoyed bird with frizzy brown hair.
In a very little while the sun would be going down and the already chilly day would become even more so. If only she had kept on her cloak, if only she had her wand with her. If only she hadn't ever climbed the Damnable tree in the first place!
"Accio Wand! Accio..." Her voice had taken on a tone of desperation.
"Well, well, if it isn't Miss Granger." A sneering voice caused her to start and almost fall off her perch.
"What is it that you are doing Miss Granger? Field study perhaps." Professor Snape stood below her. After an initial look in his direction she quickly averted her eyes. It wasn't wise to look down.
"Ha, ha, very amusing Professor." She wasn't overly amused with his little pun, not amused at all actually. Thinking about it she was really more cold and irritated than anything.
"You do seem to find yourself in the most interesting situations, I take it you are unable to negotiate your way down?" Something like humor had started to creep into his voice.
No Hermione was NOT amused at all.
"So it would seem Professor. Would you be so good as to help me down?" She tightened her hold on the limb and ventured a look at Professor Snape.
"Well now, let me see. No...I don't think so. No. Indeed not." He looked up at her with a speculative gaze and just the startings of a sneer.
"No?" Her shocked tone didn't seem to change his expression at all.
"But, Professor, it will be dark soon, I have been here for over an hour already. What if no else comes?" She hoped she didn't sound as hysterical as she felt at the thought. It was one thing to be in a tree fifteen feet, at least, above ground in daylight where you can see where you are plummeting if you should fall, and another thing all together to be plummeting in the dark.
"Humph! You Miss Granger have caused me no end of trouble since your arrival. I think I like the idea of you being some place where you can cause the least amount of damage." And with those words he walked away, swirling robes and all.
Hermione was silent, what had he meant she had caused him problems? She hadn't spent over ten minutes with him the entire time of her stay. If he was talking about the pictures she had put in his dungeons, well she had apologized and explained it was to get Draco back. He couldn't hold that against her could he? No, there had to be more, but what?
With this new thought to occupy her mind, Hermione scarcely noticed the sun setting with much dramatic oranges and reds.
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Proffesor Snape felt like a school boy. This was like a dream come true. Hermione there all ripe for the saving, and Draco could just go and pluck her.
Ha, ha! His step quickened, and he headed for the great hall. Surely she would be missed at mealtime and when she was he would 'let it slip' that he had seen her in the gardens. Ahh, yes this was good, very good indeed!
He sighed with anticipation, free at last, the busy body children would finally know who was the mate and who wasn't. His reputation was as good as saved.
The foolish girl had brought this upon herself. After all "Rescue Hermione From Danger" hadn't even been on his list!
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Where was Hermione? Ginny couldn't seem to get a forkful of food successfully to her mouth, for all her door watching.
She had stopped by the library to accompany her friend to dinner and found the restricted section empty. That in and of itself hadn't generated any fear, nor had the fact that there was no answer at Hermione's door. Missing meals however was not acceptable.
Ginny looked down the table to Draco, he hadn't taken his eyes off the door. It was bad enough when Hermione was there, he didn't eat enough as it was. Now this. Ginny's medical training came to the fore. Draco and Hermione had to get together. This was very taxing on Draco, on everyone really.
No matter what Remus said, if she didn't interfere no one else would, and then they might never get together. It was all up to her. She sighed and smiled at her husband who was looking at her with one eyebrow raised.
Although, maybe it would be better to lie low for a day or two.
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Draco could feel the tension tighten his shoulders. Where was his mate? Where was Hermione? With all the things that had happened the last little while he didn't want her out of his sight. He had lost track of her late in the afternoon and assumed that she was heading toward her room to change before the evening meal, yet she wasn't here.
He looked around the table, no one else seemed to even notice she was gone. Not that he wanted people to be watching his mate, but shouldn't they at least be concerned?
He started shoveling food into his mouth, the sooner this meal ended the better.
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It was all Professor Snape could do not to laugh. (And that was saying something.) Draco seemed a bit frantic.
He could put Draco out of his misery, but there was just one question...How long should he wait?
In a very unconcerned fashion he savored the last few bites of trifle on his plate, then very deliberately caught the eye of the worried Veela.
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Hadn't Hermione read somewhere that when you stopped shaking from the cold that hypothermia was setting in? When the body stopped trying to warm itself my shivering wasn't it nearing the end? She couldn't remember every having been this cold before. She couldn't even curl in on herself to get warm, clinging, as she was, to the tree. Her fingers were numb, her toes were numb, her nose was starting to run. All in all it hadn't been the best afternoon.
Damned cat! Damned tree! Damned Snape! Damned stupid wand! Damn Draco! Why shouldn't he be involved in the damning? He was, after all, the reason she was in a tree and not in some hotel room snugly in bed after another successful book signing.
An owl hooted and she peered into the dark. She had never realized before how much she relied on magic and her skills as a wizard to make herself feel safe. She couldn't ever remember feeling scared of the dark before, after all she had dozens of hexes and spells at her disposal. Not that she was exactly scared now, a bit nervous perhaps. Not scared, certainly not! A wizard who had lived through the great war and been instrumental in bringing down the Dark Lord, scared? Never!
The owl hooted again and Hermione let out a small squeak of surprise. Ok perhaps scared of the dark, and of heights, and to be honest she didn't really care for Mt. Trolls, and of course swimming in the ocean wasn't ever a good idea, but not scared of anything of much consequence other than those.
For a moment Hermione thought her she was nearing the end, a bright sphere of light appeared and seemed to be coming closer. She waited for scenes of her life to flash before here eyes, but she was getting nothing. The circle of light seemed to have a faintly green glow and was bouncing a bit as it came nearer.
"Pretty." Was her vague thought and she hadn't realized that she had spoken out loud until a voice called out her name.
"Hermione?"
Never had she been so happy to hear her name being called out, even if it was by one of the people on her previous list of damned individuals. Draco Malfoy's voice was the most welcome thing she had ever heard.
"Dra..." She coughed to clear her throat and tried again. "Draco! I am over here" The bouncing light came closer and closer. Soon she could see Draco standing under her tree with the end of his wand glowing like a little pale green sun.
"Hermione?" He was looking around.
"Up here."
Draco raised his face and wand. At seeing her wrapped around a branch, both his eyebrows rose.
"For Merlin's sake what are you doing up there?"
"I was rescuing Crookshanks" Came her chagrined response.
"Crooksh..." He moved his wand around better to focus the light on the rest of the tree obviously looking for her cat.
"Oh, I see. Well it seems that you did a fair enough job with the rescuing bit, except maybe...one minor detail?" A grin appeared on his features that warmed Hermione right up. Her blood started to boil, he was making fun of her. How dare he?
"Draco! I am not in the mood, I have been trapped in this tree for hours, I am cold and hungry and I can't feel my fingers anymore. If you are planning on just standing there like some court jester you can just go away and not come back again!" She wound down after her little speech and felt the better for it. If Draco did nothing else he made her forget her fear by needling her until anger replaced it.
"I am coming up. Just hold on." He placed the blunted end of his wand into the soil so that the tip shone upwards still lighting their general surroundings.
He wasn't planning on leaving his wand down there was he? Oh no that was where all the problems had started, just what they needed BOTH of them stuck in a tree with no wand and freezing to death. Yes that would make a romantic ending to this whole Veela relationship. One for the story books no doubt. Only one problem, Hermione didn't intend on being fodder for the tender hearted.
"Draco, don't leave your wand, how will we get down?" Her voice was a bit high-pitched and she cleared her throat again to bring it back to the normal register.
Draco had the audacity to laugh at her words.
"We will climb down." He swung himself up onto a low branch and started making his way upward to Hermione.
"Humph, that's what I thought." She muttered under her breath.
"What?"
"Nothing." Her voice sounded a bit defeated.
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Draco wasn't concerned, children climbed trees, and even though he was considered (in some circles at least) to be a snotty, high brow, muckity muck, he had still been a child. And as stated before, children climb trees. Granted it had been a while but one doesn't forget how to do something like that. To him it was fun. He was rescuing his damsel, not from sure death or anything, but at the very least frostbitten toes.
He climbed steadily higher, his body remembering how to reach and find toe holds, the bark of the tree abrading the skin on his hands somewhat. He would have a few blisters and scrapes to show for his bravery tomorrow, maybe Hermione would be properly thankful and rub salve into his wounded flesh. If he actually believed there was much real chance of something like that happening he would make sure he scraped more than the palms of his hands. He smiled in wicked delight at the thought and kept climbing.
The branches had thinned and he could feel them give under his weight, he wouldn't be able to climb all the way to Hermione or their combined mass could very well cause a branch to break. From the way she was clinging and cringing at every vibration of the tree he could only assume she was petrified.
How was he to coax her down to him? Maybe reasoning would work.
"Hermione, I can't come all the way up, but I can reach your feet and will guide them to the right places. Now slowly back up along the branch."
She didn't move or say anything.
"Hermione, did you hear me?"
"Yes I heard you, and I can't...won't move. Go down and get your wand and grow stairs or something." She sounded like a petulant child. Her tone almost made him laugh. She usually tried so hard to be so grown up and mature, even as a child when he had done horrible things to irritate her, she had still held that mantle of maturity tightly around herself. Clearly in this state, reasoning with her wouldn't work, and he was NOT going to go down and use his wand to grow stairs onto the bloody tree. She could forget that idea right enough.
He guessed he would have to irritate her then. That had always gotten a response.
"So let me get this straight then, a witch who was a great defender of the Light and fought in a the final battle is scared of climbing down a little tree? Hmm, interesting." He made his tone as dismissive as possible. Now to see how long it took her to process those words.
"What do you mean 'hmm, interesting,' Well?" She turned her head and tried to glare at him, but almost fell in the process.
He made sure to pause a moment as if in deep thought before answering her.
"Nothing. Nothing at all." He heaved a great (fake) sigh. "I suppose if you insist I can rouse Filch and Dumbledore and they can come help me fetch you down if you really are incapable of backing up less than five feet to get to me." He sighed again.
"Fine, I will back up the five bloody feet! But you better NOT let me fall!" Her voice was filled with the temper he was used to her displaying in his presence.
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"Hermione, I would never let you fall!" His words were so sincere that Hermione forgot herself for a moment and turned to look him in the eye. Not willing to comment upon what she found there she turned her attention to scooting backwards along the branch toward the trunk of the tree. She then placed her feet where Draco guided them, and finally lowered herself into his arms. A shiver moved over her at her relief, granted they weren't out of the tree yet but she felt safe again all the same.
"There not so hard. Hmm?" He breathed into her ear, causing more shivers to tiptoe along her neck. Of course it was probably just the cold air.
"Lets get down from this tree now shall we?" He went down a branch and then held his hand up to her to assist. The tingle that she felt when touching that warm skin didn't fade away quickly, but caused a warmth to settle itself into her stomach. His eyes turned to hers quickly at the feeling between them. It was clear that this was some sort of Veela thing going on here, and she didn't want to know.
"Are we going to climb down or not?" She frowned at him, but he seemed frozen.
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Looking up at Hermione with her hand in his, that tingle of power between them caused a flush to cover his cheeks, and not from embarrassment, Malfoy's didn't get embarrassed. (except maybe when falling off his chair in a room full of students, but we won't mention that.)
He was so warm suddenly that the evening air had no affect on cooling his skin.
He needed to get Hermione down from the tree so that he could press her against himself and luxuriate in her scent. Wrap her around him, taste her, thread his fingers through her hair.
The Veela instincts were pushing hard against his mind, insisting that he complete the bond with his mate. Now!
He shook his head to clear his thoughts and took a couple of deep calming breaths, which would have been more calming if she hadn't been so close that he could close his eyes and taste her scent on his palate.
He gripped the tree with his free hand, forcing the bark to cut into him. Hoping the pain would help him gain some semblance of control. He hit the trunk with his fist and felt the skin on his knuckles break, the sudden sting made him hiss and the mad thoughts left his mind as quickly as they had come.
Hermione was looking at him with something akin to fear in her eyes. It seemed she knew how close he had come tonight to losing control. This is not how he wanted things to go with her.
"Well, are you planning on taking up residence here, or should we go down to ground level?" He forced an half grin onto his face.
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Despite being much closer to the ground, Hermione suddenly didn't feel a bit safe. The Veela parts of Draco were fighting hard within him and she could feel their pull towards her. Everything she read had indicated that the attractions would become stronger as the bond tightened. She didn't want the bond to tighten. She had to find a way to get around this. She couldn't work up any hatred for Draco like she used to be able to, but still and all she didn't WANT to be his mate.
She followed him silently down, at the very bottom branch he jumped down and held his arms up for her. She hesitated.
"Come on Hermione, you are cold and tired and hungry, remember?" He goaded.
"Come now, I won't let you fall, count of three...One...Ooomph!" Hermione hadn't waited until three, she hadn't really been paying much attention at all to what he had been saying past the goading bit. And there in lie the mistake. Everyone knew that a person jumped on three. He hadn't been ready to catch her, until three. No one jumped on one, no one except Hermione Granger.
They ended up on the ground with Hermione on top of Draco. All the air rushed out of him at impact and his eyes slid shut.
"Draco, oh Merlin! Are you ok?" Hermione hadn't ever felt more embarrassed, she had practically cut him down, like the scythe of the Grim Reaper himself.
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Draco hadn't been ready and so when she had come flying out of the tree towards him all he could do was try to cushion her fall with his body. He had done such a good job that all the air was forced out of him and he could see bright points of light behind his eyelids.
For a moment he thought he might lose consciousness. That feeling passed, and then the humor of the situation rushed forward. He had imagined her in his arms many times before, but certainly not like this.
The rather inelegant circumstances sparked his sense of humor. Yet another moment with her where things have been somewhat less than he had hoped.
His eyes blinked up into Hermione's and the look on her face started him laughing. Oh Merlin's beard did she look guilty.
She quickly removed herself from him, all elbows and knees in the wrong places which caused him to laugh all the harder. He could hear her marching off through the underbrush muttering under her breath and still he couldn't stop laughing long enough to follow.
It wasn't until many minutes later that he discovered that she had left her cloak and wand behind. He shrugged. Great, another 'foreordained' meeting, he couldn't wait.
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TBC
A/N Once again to my faithful reviewing crew, you all are the best. I enjoy your thoughts on the story, some of what might seem like random comments to you really strike a cord with me, in reference to writing this story. SO THANKS for both your insights and support. I am still having far too good a time writing this. :)
I will see you next time.