AN: This is a one shot inspired by the song Lips of an Angel, by Hinder. This is my first song fic, so hopefully it turned out okay. It's nothing much, just an idea I got one night while listening to the song. Review and let me know what you think.
Disclaimer: Harry Potter characters belong to J.K.Rowling, not me. I also do not own the song, most unfortunately.
Lips of an Angel
Draco Malfoy sank into the chair near the fireplace with a glass of firewhiskey. The twenty five year old leaned back wearily, watching the flames dance around in the fireplace. He was in one of the many flats he owned, the current one being in France.
To say he was surprised to suddenly see a head appear in the flames would have been a major understatement. That surprise, however, was nothing compared to how he felt when he realized who the head belonged too.
"Granger?" He gasped out, nearly dropping his glass. It had been three years since he had last seen her, and even that had been just a fleeting glance. He had been about to leave Diagon Alley when he spotted her leaving Flourish and Blotts. He had been debating on approaching her until he saw Weasley walk up to her, putting his arm around her and guiding her down the road.
"Hey," she said softly. Draco put his glass on the small table next to the chair and got up to lean in front of the hearth. "Are you busy right now? I didn't want to intrude or anything. I can go-I shouldn't have-"
"You still ramble when you're nervous then?" Draco asked, smiling slightly. Draco couldn't know for sure, but he thought her cheeks reddened slightly. Then again, her head was a ball of flames.
Seeing her again, Draco felt all the emotions he had worked so hard the past four years to forget, rush back. Even through a fireplace, she looked just as beautiful as before.
"Sorry, this probably wasn't the best idea. It's just, Harry's on a mission in Ireland and Blaise is visiting family in Italy… I should go. I'm sorry."
"Wait!" Draco then cursed and glanced at the door behind him before lowering his voice. "No, you don't have to go."
Honey why are you calling me so late
It's kinda hard to talk right now
Honey why are you crying is everything okay
I gotta whisper cause I can't be too loud
Hermione gave a sad smile. "Pansy asleep?"
Draco grimaced but nodded.
"Oh."
There was an uncomfortable silence, so Draco cleared his throat. "How's Weasley? You still with him?" He asked, doing his best to keep his tone even. He couldn't deny the jealousy and hate he felt towards the youngest Weasley man. He had never been particularly fond of him before, but now he had the one thing Draco wanted most in the world.
Draco was surprised and a bit concerned to see the strong look of pain cross her face briefly before she did her best to conceal it. "Hermione?" He asked, concerned.
"He's fine and yeah, I…I'm still with him." She was avoiding his eyes and staring at an invisible spot on the floor near him.
"Is everything all right?" He was feeling the once very familiar urge to take her into his arms and protect her from whatever could be bothering her or hurting her.
Well, my girls in the next room
Sometimes I wish she was you
I guess we never really moved on
"Draco, I…oh, I don't know what to do or think anymore." She muttered, and he could tell by her voice she was fighting back tears.
"Has Weasley done anything to you?" He growled. He had heard from Blaise that it seemed the Weasel took for granted having Hermione. Blaise, who was a good friend to both Draco and Hermione, had confided with Draco that he more than once wanted nothing more than to hex Ron Weasley into oblivion. He was constantly ordering Hermione around, possessive, and sometimes even harsh to her with words. According to Blaise, Hermione had become more withdrawn and almost jumpy.
"No! I mean, no, he's-he, well he's out right now."
"Hermione, if he's done anything to you…"
"There's nothing you can do, Draco." Hermione said. She shook her head at herself. "I shouldn't have come to you. I just needed someone to talk to and everyone else was gone. I don't want to get you in trouble."
Draco felt his heart clench painfully. There had been a short time when he would have been the first she would turn too. She had always been able to rely on him as he would do anything to help her. That was before they were forced apart by war.
"Don't worry about that. You know I…I haven't stopped-I'd still do anything for you, Mione." He said quietly but firmly.
Hermione bit her lip and nodded.
It's really good to hear your voice saying my name
It sounds so sweet
Coming from the lips of an angel
Hearing those words it makes me weak
Draco longed to reach out and bring her through the fireplace and into his arms. With each passing moment, it was getting even harder. Hermione Granger had been the only one to ever break through his barriers. It had been a slow process, starting in their seventh year.
They had been forced to work together as Head students which, after a few months, finally resulted into a truce of sorts that kept them from hexing each other. After another few months, that had evolved into an almost friendship, where they still exchanged insults, but mostly for entertainment and for fun. By the end of the year, they considered themselves friends who, in the seclusion and comfort of their common room, would talk freely about anything and grew comfortable with one another.
It wasn't until a month after they graduated from Hogwarts that they met up at the Ministry where they discovered they were to be working in the same department. One night, they went out to a wizarding club where one thing led to another, and they ended up sleeping together.
Draco asked her out that following morning and they had dated in secret for almost four years.
And I never wanna say goodbye
But girl you make it hard to be faithful
With the lips of an angel
"How are things with you and Pansy then?" Hermione asked, moving the subject away from Ron. Draco sighed and ran a hand through his hair.
"Same as ever." He muttered, leaning against the chair, still on the floor, so he was more relaxed and still facing her. "Hermione, you know I don't love her, right? I never have and never will. If I had my way…"
"I can't help but wonder how things would have turned out, had we made different decisions."
Draco didn't reply right away. There wasn't a day that went by where he didn't think that same thing. They had been forced to choose between duty or fleeing to be together. And while they had been very much in love, neither could flee from their responsibilities.
Draco had secretly joined the Order of the Phoenix, right after Hogwarts. He did so right before he was forced by his father to be initiated into the Death Eater ranks. For the remainder of the war, he worked along side Severus Snape as a spy, helping to bring down Voldemort in his own way.
There were very few people who ever knew of his double agent role and even fewer that knew how hard it was on him.
Hermione had been his anchor.
She was there for him after every Death Eater mission and meeting where he had been forced to torture and kill innocents to keep up his role. She had never blamed him and never asked him to talk about it, though he did sometimes. She would just bring him into her arms and feed him silent support that kept him going. Had it not been for her, Draco feared he never would have made it out of the war alive or sane.
But it eventually got to the point where both the Dark Lord and Lucius had demanded that Draco marry and produce an heir. And they wouldn't have just anybody for the younger Malfoy. It needed to be a wealthy pureblood whose family supported Voldemort.
It's funny that you're calling me tonight
And yes I've dreamt of you too
And does he know you're talking to me
Will it start a fight
No I don't think she has a clue
While marrying anybody but Hermione was the very last thing he wanted to do, disobeying Voldemort would have either cost him his life, his high rank in the Death Eaters where he was able to get more information, or his position as a spy.
Hermione, when told about it, had been hurt and upset but rational as always. He had wanted nothing more than to flee to another country with her or drop the spy act and fight Voldemort outright. Hermione had then pointed out that while it was his decision on the spy part, it would only make him an even bigger target no matter what he chose.
Fleeing the country was out of the option for her. Hermione, since joining the Order right out of Hogwarts as well, had quickly become one of their most valuable members. She researched and discovered lost spells and potions and discovered new ones, all that worked in their favor in the fight. With her intelligent mind, she was able to come up with quick plans that almost always were successful. Add to that, she was best friend to Harry Potter. She had to fight in the war. And she wanted to. She had no intention of leaving her loved ones behind to fight on their own.
Draco knew it killed her just as much as it had killed him on the inside. But in the end, they had chosen duty. Thinking back on it now, Draco still couldn't say if he regretted it or not. He would have given anything for Hermione, to have her to himself, but, like her, he had known his importance and once thinking logically, he knew he couldn't sentence the many others to death for one selfish decision. No matter how right it would have felt with her.
"I think about it everyday. But what's done is done. We made our choices." He said quietly and almost bitterly.
"And regret them, at least a little."
"Yeah, at least a little." He echoed, staring into her eyes.
Well my girls in the next room
Sometimes I wish she was you
I guess we never really moved on
He watched her glance behind her and realized she had been doing so periodically while they had been talking. "Why don't you leave him Hermione?"
Her voice was filled with pain when she answered. "I know what he does is wrong, but he does care for me. The war was hard on him and he's still suffering. I can't leave him to himself. I don't think he'd make it. He loves me, even if I don't return it in that way."
Ron had lost two of his older brothers in the war. Percy had been killed in an attack on the Ministry and Bill in one of the many battles. Draco, while never caring much for the Weasleys, knew they were very close to one another and they all suffered greatly. Ron had also been captured at one point as bait to lure Harry in. Luckily, the Order had been able to get him out within a few days. But even those few days had taken their tole on the Weasley. Draco suspected that he never fully recovered mentally from all the torture.
"Hermione, you can be there for him as a friend. You deserve so much better." She doesn't even deserve me, but at least I could treat her better, Draco thought bitterly. "Why didn't you go with Blaise to Italy? I'm sure he would have taken you. His family loves you."
"He offered and I wanted to, but Ron wouldn't have agreed. As it is, he still thinks there's something more between us. He gets jealous of the time I spend with Blaise."
Draco couldn't fully blame Ron for the misconception. He had seen Blaise and Hermione together and while he knew both of them didn't harbor feelings for each other, he still got jealous occasionally.
Blaise and Hermione had become friends back in sixth year. They had been partnered up in more than one of their classes and they hit it off quite well. Blaise became as close to Hermione as Harry and Ron had been to her. They were more like siblings than anything. Blaise was extremely protective of her and had never bothered hiding his affection for the Gryffindor.
Draco only started to get jealous when Blaise was allowed to spend time with Hermione and see her whenever he wanted and he was stuck alone. Or with Pansy which was the same thing as alone. Sure he still had friends and worked, but he didn't have Hermione.
It's really good to hear your voice saying my name
It sounds so sweet
Coming from the lips of an angel
Hearing those words it makes me weak
"Who cares what he thinks? You need some time away from him."
Hermione didn't reply to that. Instead she changed the subject. "How is everything else going for you?"
Draco sighed but didn't press the matter anymore. Instead he went with it. "As well as can be expected, I suppose. My department's been rather slow as of late so I haven't worked much. What about you?"
"I'm still a healer at St. Mungo's. I'm a bit higher up and work a lot of overtime, but I enjoy it."
After only a year of working at the Ministry, Hermione left, feeling as though she wasn't doing enough, despite her constant work for the Order and the Ministry. So she became a healer to help those injured in the war. She was a damned good one and was quickly counted among their best. Draco never knew how she did it. She often worked two to three shifts at a time at the hospital and still found time to research spells and fight for the Order.
They fell into an uncomfortable silence, neither knowing what to say next. But Hermione, who had always been rather good when it came to making people relax with either conversation or just her presence, proved she still had it and eased them into a conversation and within minutes, Draco felt as if he had gone back in time.
He wasn't sure how long they sat there, talking freely about anything, but time seemed to fly and Draco didn't want it to end. It was just one of the many things he had missed. He could be completely at ease with Hermione. He never needed to put up a façade or watch what he said. And while it gave Draco a sense of relief that even now things could be so natural with her, it was short lived. When would he get another chance to do so again?
And Merlin did he want more. He wanted to hold her in his arms again, to feel her lips against his, to have her body curled up against his at night after making love to each other. He wanted to hold her hand while she dragged him into bookshops and he in return dragged her into Quiditch stores. He wanted to wake up every morning to her face and only her.
And I never want to say goodbye
But girl you make it hard to be faithful
With the lips of an angel
Being married to Pansy wasn't what Draco wanted. She wasn't as bad as she used to be and Draco had even considered her a friend. But he didn't love her. He loved Hermione. And he couldn't settle for anything less.
Pansy had always seemed to sense something. Draco had seen the disheartened looks she had when she thought he wasn't looking. He knew she loved him and he felt horrible that he could never give her all that she wanted. But it hadn't been his decision to get married in the first place.
It was in the early hours of morning that their short lived fantasy, where everything was normal and perfect, was disrupted. Draco watched as Hermione's eyes widened almost fearfully as she glanced behind her.
"Ron's back. I need to go." She hissed quietly. Draco felt his heart clench.
"I want to see you again Mione." He whispered almost painfully. He watched as Hermione's eyes filled with tears.
"I don't think we can Draco."
"Yes we can. I'm tired of this." He said firmly. "Meet with me tomorrow night?" He asked almost desperately.
It's really good to hear your voice saying my name
It sounds so sweet
Coming from the lips of an angel
Hearing those words it makes me weak
And I never want to say goodbye
Hermione hesitated and Draco knew she was considering it. She wanted to but would she accept? Finally she nodded.
"The Three Broomsticks. I'll rent a room so no one will see us." He told her and she nodded again and looked behind her again.
"I need to go. Thank you Draco."
And she was gone. Draco stayed kneeling there for minutes after, still staring at where he saw her head last.
"I still love you Hermione Granger," he whispered. He sat back against the chair again and glanced at his forgotten glass of firewhiskey absently.
Neither of them had ever noticed the pair of eyes, filled with pain and tears, watching them the entire time. And Draco was too submersed in his thoughts to hear the soft click of the bedroom door close.
He was eagerly anticipating the next night. He was tired of letting his life be run for him. He wasn't going to sit around and not fight for what he wanted. He was going to get the girl he loved back.
But girl you make it hard to be faithful
With the lips of an angel
(And I never want to say goodbye)
But girl you make it hard to be faithful
With the lips of an angel
Honey why are you calling me so late
