Happy whatever holidays you are celebrating, folks! And thank you for your reviews.

On this episodes of excuses: uni is killing me, I was on holiday in Italy and seriously, I go home only to sleep. Right now, I am posting this from a small village in the Alps where my family is celebrating Christmas this year with some skiing.

Thanks a lot and much love to my betas Chocomieux, Nantai and Vicky.

If you want to give me an awesome present, leave a review! I love them so much! I hope you enjoy the chapter ;)

Hermione glared at her phone. "I'll text you" Malfoy had said, but hadn't send a single message for four days now, ignoring her in class as well.

She was fuming. It kept her on edge, making her restless and therefore unable toconcentrate properly, even though being able to concentrate again had been the whole point of the agreement. Damn Malfoy and damn her own feelings.

Hermione ran a hand through her hair and clicked on the chat. She needed some distraction and what harm could there be to look into the group again? She was neck deep already and learning from other, more experienced people could only help.

KittyCat123: Look, isn't he cute?
KittyCat123: picture send
Dante: we should set up a playdate for them. Felix is always happy to meet a new friend.
JustaWitch: Are you seriously making playdates for your cats?
KittyCat123: Why not?
JustaWitch: …
Pumpk1nP1e: don't you like cats, witch?
JustaWitch: I am allergic to them
Dante: Poor you! But you can still enjoy their cuteness in pictures!
Dante: picture send

Hermione stared at the chat. Cats? Did she even want to know how they became a topic? Because going by the pictures they sent, those people were talking about actual cats and not humans engaging in pet play.

She closed the app and threw her phone on the bed next to her, looking around in her room for things to do.

Despite the distractions, she had already finished her homework and studying schedule for the day and wasn't entirely sure how she wanted to spend her time. Sure, she could study more, but for what? Her reading for the semester was long done and she had finished the book about psychology she had been reading during the bus drive home. She owned several books she hadn't read yet but choosing one was a challenge she didn't feel like facing right now.

Her eyes fell on the mp3-player she had bought so she could listen to music at the gym, stirring her guilty conscience to life. She hadn't done any sports for ages. Maybe that's what she should do now! A quick run would do her some good and clear her head - or so she hoped.

Hermione changed quickly and grabbed her mp3-player, deciding to jog to a nearby park and back, aware that she wouldn't manage more than that.

Just as she thought, by the time she got back, she was sweating like a pig, her breath coming out in huffs. She really needed to do more for her stamina and general fitness. But then again, she said that on a regular basis but never pulled through as she simply lacked the time.

After a quick shower, Hermione let herself fall on her bed, feeling a lot better. She would check her messages, Ginny had promised her that she would text her how her football game went, and read something afterwards.

When Hermione unlocked her phone, Ginny's announcement that they had won and reached the top 5 in their category wasn't the only message waiting for her.

THEPrinceCharming: Today, 9pm, my place?

Hermione scowled at her screen. Just moments before, she had been annoyed that Malfoy hadn't contacted her yet, but now that he had, she felt like telling him to get lost. What was she? His personal whore?

At the same time, her brain reminded her that it had been her who had suggested this kind of casual relationship between them. Besides, enjoying and exploring her own sexuality didn't make her a whore - not that sexwork was inherently bad and- Hermione shook her head, trying to distract herself from her own thoughts as she chewed on her lip, thinking over her possibilities and trying to get over just how wrong her reaction had been.

She needed to concentrate on what she wanted right now. To determine that, she decided to do a checklist of things she would contemplate every time he made a booty call - because that was exactly what this was. Hermione took a notebook and a pencil from her desk and started writing down the questions she deemed crucial.

Do I have plans for the evening?

Considering how she had been at a loss of what she should do not too long ago, Hermione didn't even bother to make a note. It was self-explanatory.

2. Am I horny?

That was a harder question to answer. Kind of? Hermione wrote a maybe next to the question, hoping she wasn't blushing even though nobody was watching.

3. Do I feel like seeing Malfoy?

That was a solid no. If she was only talking about seeing him. But doing other things to and with him… Hermione groaned and smacked the notebook on the desk with more force than necessary. She was going, even though she didn't like it one bit. He was such an arsehole. But she had enjoyed the sex last time quite a bit. And she really wanted to find out how she would feel this time.

"Screw it," she muttered while typing her hasty reply.

Persephone: 9:30. I'll be there.

Hermione pressed the bell at exactly 9:32, having checked the time about a hundred times to make sure that she wasn't early and making an impression that she was overeager. She had decided to try and act relaxed and self assured, a total opposite to what she was truly feeling. She was even more anxious than the first time they had sex and that had to mean something. Wasn't the second time supposed to be easier? It usually had been for her! But this was not an ordinary situation.

Malfoy opened the door, the sleeves of his black shirt rolled up casually, the top two buttons open, and Hermione gritted her teeth, hating just how attractive he was. And he knew it, making it even worse.

He moved to let her pass and soon, Hermione was standing in the living room, clutching her jacket awkwardly, not knowing what to do next. She wasn't used to coming to other people's houses just for sex - especially not sober and when she hated them and therefore had no idea how to act. Should she sit down and would they chat? Was she to go straight to his room and strip? What was he expecting?

"Do you want something to drink?" Malfoy asked from behind Hermione, his voice weirdly strained. Was it nervousness or something else?

"No, thank you," Hermione replied. "So, how should we proceed?" she asked, feeling more and more like a fool the longer she just stood there.

"Well, we could either talk about what we are going to do today or I can surprise you - respecting the boundaries you have set up the last time. Your call."

"We should talk." Hermione was surprised by herself, but thinking about last time and what they had agreed on, it had been pretty vanilla. She didn't want vanilla - she could get it everywhere else. It was time to get more into it, even though she risked feeling bad the next morning. But at least it would be worth it. That's what she hoped at least.

Malfoy didn't reply and sat down on the couch, looking at her expectantly.

Hermione took a deep breath, shifting under his gaze uncomfortably. "Last time we agreed that it was kind of a test run. I think we should take the next step and leave vanilla behind us. I want to experience more bdsm."

"If you are sure, fine," he rubbed his eyes, "I'll send you one of the lists we talked about at the beginning to fill out and fill out one myself so we both have an overview of the others preferences and limits."

Hermione nodded, chewing on her lip again. It was a sensible suggestion. It would make it easy. "I want you to surprise me with what we are going to do, not walk me through beforehand. Would that work?"

Malfoy rose an eyebrow. "With safe-words and boundaries it should work. But you'll have to tell me if something changes or if you want to try something specific in the nearby future."

"Of course. But how about today?"

"You are quite impatient," Malfoy leaned back, a grin spreading on his face. "I think we should talk about something completely different first. A part of giving up control and subjecting to dominance is following my every order and taking certain positions I order you to do. This can be done verbally or in the form of hand signals. That way, you can't misunderstand and have no way to argue. Do you feel up to learning them? Do you want to get trained?" His eyes were glinting and the feral grin on his face made Hermione gulp. But at the same time, she felt her arousal grow with every word. There was something quite enticing about the prospect to do exactly as she was told.

"Of course there are other ways to help you get into the right mindset, like getting spanked before every session to remind you of your place and all that. Of course we don't have to do it, but can if you think it will benefit you."

"I think that's not necessary for now," Hermione said, shifting in her seat, "but I think I am up for training. It sounds," she hesitated, not knowing how to put it, "good."

"Apart from that we can do blindfolds and bondage today? Choking and some spanking, or is that too much for one day?" Malfoy watched her carefully, all serious again. It was obvious from his expression that this was no joke to him. He needed to know what he could do without hurting her.

"It's okay," Hermione said.

Malfoy sighed. "There is one more issue we need to discuss. How do you want me to address you during play? Have you thought about that?"

Hermione wasn't very surprised he was asking her that. In all her reading, she had quickly learned that most people used some kind of role specific names - they had used them themselves when she had addressed him as Sir.

"I am not comfortable with anything like slave," she said carefully. "With our history it wouldn't bode well. But other than that, I don't think I have a problem with crude language or petnames."

"One last thing, do you remember your safeword?"

What kind of question was that? Of course she did! "I have chosen yellow and red, yellow for slowing down and red for stopping."

Malfoy nodded and stood up, starting to walk towards his room. When he noticed that Hermione wasn't following, he looked over his shoulder, rising an eyebrow in question.

She let go of her coat immediately, leaving it on the couch and hurried after him. It seemed that the more nervous she was before they met up, the more excited she grew at the prospect of what exactly they were about to do.

Draco ran a hand through his hair. He certainly was no expert in training a sub, but if he wanted to dominate her properly and safely, it had to be done and he would be lying if he said that he wasn't going to enjoy it. Especially as his partner was the know-it-all Granger.

"You should address me as Sir or Master only during the play, just like last time. Only speak when I address you and answer all the questions I ask you. The session starts the moment we enter this room and the door closes behind us and ends when I tell you so or you use your safe-word. Is that fine with you?" he said without really looking at Granger, who was standing in the door-frame uncertainly. If she said yes, this would get real really fast.

"Yes, Sir," she said and stepped into the room, closing the door behind herself.

Draco turned around, a soft smile on his lips. "Good girl. Next rule: at the beginning of every session you strip immediately and kneel down next to the end of my bed, sit on your heels, back straight, legs together, hands behind your back and head high, but eyes down. Is that clear?"

"Yes, Sir," Granger said.

When she didn't move, he raised an eyebrow and she started undressing, her cheeks a bit flushed. Good.

She folded her clothes into a neat heap next to the door - a good call as far as he was concerned since he would have made her do it either way - and sat down at the spot he had indicated.

"Well done," he said, "Now look at me - this first basic position is the way you wait whenever I tell you to. This is the sign I will use for kneeling down." Draco was pointing his index and middle finger to the ground, the other fingers making a fist.

He spread the two fingers, making a victory sign pointing to the ground. "When I do this you spread your legs and put your hands behind your head, interlocking your fingers. The command is kneel spread. Do it now."

Granger followed his instructions and Draco had to bite the inside his cheek to stop himself from grinning. It was an incredible pleasure to assert his dominance, but who he was doing it with made it even better. He was already half-hard.

"Now stand up, legs spread, everything else remains. This is the inspect position. I am not giving this a hand sign because I only plan to use it on a few things. Next would be on hands and knees," he pointed with four fingers to the ground. "This is the sign. When I spread my fingers, I expect you to get your face down, arms to your head and arse in the air. Understood?"

"Yes, Sir," Granger replied, going on all fours first before she continued to move after a short nod from him. She was an avid learner in this setting too and he was anything but complaining. It was awesome.

"Kneel again," he said, "eyes up," and she did. "There are only two more commands I want to show you now. For one," he bend his index finger a bit, "bend down, where you bend down from a standing position. The other is suck it," he said, forming a circle between his index finger and thumb. "Do you understand?"

"Yes, Sir," Granger said and Draco nodded.

"Good girl." To test the commands immediately, he pointed his index and middle finger to the ground.

Granger looked at him in confusion, after all, she was already kneeling.

"Eyes to the ground," Draco said and she did as she was told. He wasn't stupid enough to try and punish her for not knowing it on the first day they tried. It would be not fair in any way and he had to think about this kind of thing when he knew where exactly the limits lie.

He stepped around Granger and opened a drawer, pulling out a cloth blindfold. He put it on, doing his best to bind it so it would stay in position. Cloth blindfolds weren't ideal but they looked better in his opinion.

"Is it okay this way? Do you see anything?" he asked.

"It is okay and I don't see anything, Sir."

Draco walked over to his laptop, turning on spotify, his favourite songs on random. That way Granger couldn't hear as easily what was going to happen next.

He stepped behind her again. "Stand up." She did and Draco used the handcuffs he retrieved from the drawer to bind her hands behind her back.

He put her hair to one side and kissed her neck, cupping Granger's breast with one hand while the other went to her mouth. He put a finger into her mouth and she started sucking on it.

He twisted her nipple with his finger, letting her squirm under his touch as he alternated the way he was playing with her breasts, pressing against her from behind to let her know just how much she was affecting him.

His left hand left her lips and he reached down, making a few circles around her clitoris before going further. He inserted one finger, finding her already wet for him and a second one followed soon after while his right hand curved around Granger's throat, choking her slightly and making her moan. It seemed she was really into it. Good to know.

He sped up, fucking her with his fingers. He felt her tighten around him, her whole body tensing in an indication that she was close and withdrew his fingers.

Granger groaned in frustration, but he pushed his fingers into her mouth again, making her lick up her own juices before she could protest verbally.

When she had licked him clean, he withdrew his hand and pushed her to her knees before stepping around her to stand in front of her. Draco freed his erection and Granger opened her mouth obediently as soon as the his head touched her lips, sucking at it gently before slowly taking more and more in. She moved to the front and back, Draco's hand in her hair guiding her and helping her keep balance, but refraining from pushing her too hard. He wasn't going to fuck her mouth - not today at least.

He wanted to fuck her after all, not come in her mouth. He would have enough chances to do that later on if everything went right.

He pulled out and used the hand in her hair to pull her up. "Good work," he whispered, giving her a peck on the lips before he turned Granger around. "You are a great plaything. Now bent down over the bed."

He guided Granger to lie down on her stomach with her upper body while her feet still touched the floor and put a condom on, cursing when it didn't go as fast as he wanted it to.

Draco positioned himself at her pussy, pushing in in an agonizingly slow speed. Granger moaned and he was grinning to himself again.

"You like this, don't you," he said, pulling out in an equally slow speed before spanking her suddenly, making her cry out.

He sped up immediately after that, slamming into her again and again, issuing a few spanks in between, his breath getting ragged. This felt too good. He had been torturing himself with how slow he had been going and how long he had waited and how he had let her undress and learn before he finally got some friction and it was amazing.

Knowing that he wouldn't last long, he reached down to rub Granger's clitoris, wanting to make her come before he did. He owed her that much - and what kind of man would he be if he didn't take care of his partners needs.

He did his best and going by Granger's moans she was enjoying it. "You can come," Draco said and soon after, Granger tensed again before crying out.

Draco smirked in satisfaction, kissing down her spine before resuming his fast pace, pounding into her mercilessly, throwing in a few spanks in between.

The orgasm took him by surprise and Draco almost toppled over, having to brace himself on one hand so he wouldn't crush Granger.

"You good?" he asked as soon as he caught his breath, pulling out.

"Yeah," Granger replied and moved to sit on the floor.

Draco pulled down the blindfold and uncuffed her hands, helping her onto the bed and pulled a blanket over her shoulders.

"How do you feel? Do you need anything? Something to drink? Food? Does anything hurt?"

"Water would be great, or if you have maybe tea," Granger said and Draco stood up again.

"Of course we do," he said and pulled on his pants again. "I'll fetch some and then we can watch a movie and cuddle or talk or whatever you feel like doing. Just tell me." He hesitated for a moment before kissing her hair and hurrying over into the kitchen.

When he returned with two steaming mugs, Granger had pulled on her underwear and built a pillowfort around herself. It was so cute it made him smile. It was not the satisfied smirk from before but a genuine smile.

He gave her a mug before climbing into the bed next to her, putting an arm around her. "Is there something I can do for you?" Draco asked. He felt like an idiot asking again and again but everyone needed something else and he had decided to pester Granger until she talked to him. "I don't care if you think it sounds stupid, it will be fine. You don't need to be embarrassed. I just want you to be comfortable and happy."

Granger remained silent for a long time, making him fear he had said something wrong, but then she spoke. "Would you read to me?" she looked at him with her huge eyes and his heart melted on the spot. How could she look so innocent and vulnerable when she was the hottest thing just moments before, sucking on his cock like a pro?

The demand was something he could have expected though and Draco agreed easily. That's how he found himself cuddling Hermione Granger, stroking her hair while he read Afterdark by Haruki Murakami to her and she basically purred in his arms.

No matter how surreal the situation, he liked it more than he should.