Chapter 48 – The day of Christmas Evening 3

Hours later, Draco found his son in his room with a very muggle book in his lap, as if to spit at his grandfather, should he see him. Draco tried to keep his face straight but he couldn't help smirking when Scorpius wiggled his eyebrows and held the book up.

His father had just talked his ears off about Scorpius' awful behaviour and he felt emotionally drained. To share a small joke with his son, after he had been shut out by him the last year, felt refreshing.

"How did your date go Dad?"

Scorpius inquired when Draco sat down on the bed next to him. "I like her Dad, you don't need to worry." He added when Draco didn't answer right away, and let his father know exactly why Lucius said Scorpius wasn't fit to be a Malfoy. He was neither as sneaky, nor as discreet, as Lucius wanted the boy to be. For Draco it was refreshing to talk to his son. He always knew how Scorpius felt, even if it was sometimes hard to deal with the openness. Feelings weren't something he was used to reciprocate.

His answer was cagey and made Scorpius roll his eyes.

"It's for Mrs. Weasley to decide if we meet again Scorpius."

"Dad! Never call her Mrs. Weasley, she hates that. Went back to Miss Granger since she stays at school. How are you supposed to snack a woman of you can't even remember to call her by the right name? "

Draco's eyebrow rose into his hair.

"Snack a woman?" He was sure he knew what his son was implying, but he was taken off-guard that his own son wanted to pair him of with Granger.

"Yeh, we could have spent Christmas with her. Maybe at the Potters?"

Scorpius face fell and he looked out the window. "I'm sure that would have been fun. You could have argued with Albus' Dad, like you always do, about silly stuff." Scorpius voice drifted off and Draco wanted to hug his son. For a moment he remembered his own thoughts of rather spending time with Potter, than his own father, and it hurt to have his son say it out loud.

"Who knows, maybe next year." Draco whispered, without believing it himself, but he wanted to make Scorpius feel better.

"Good Night"

With a kiss on his son's hair Draco went to leave the room.

"Dad, promise me to meet her again should she ask. I really do like her. She always talks to me like an adult and takes me seriously." Scorpius called after him.

At the door Draco turned around and watched his son set the book aside to lay down. It was the first time in a long while his son had asked him for something, and he knew he would push the strange feelings the last encounter with Granger left to the side, to make Scorpius happy.

XxX

It was Christmas night and Hermione felt lonely. Since she had left the Potters she hadn't met up with anyone else. Headmistress McGonagall invited her to join them for the Christmas feast but she had politely declined, not feeling up for the company.

Her thoughts revolved mostly around the memories she had unleashed, both by telling Harry and by dreaming of them. Not many things had happened right after Ron's death, and she had spent most of her time with Scorpius, joined by either Severus or Draco.

All the others had been busy with their undercover investigations all around Great Britain and never visited as much.

Draco wanted to spend as much time as possible with his son, so she saw him the most.

Scorpius was asleep, Hermione had just checked on him, when Draco stepped closer to her in the Common Room. He leaned in and their eyes met just seconds before he pressed his mouth on hers.

Their teeth clashed, but he wrapped his hand in her hair to keep her from getting away. His kiss got softer, but it was still heated. They had argued before she had left the room to look after Scorpius and to cool down. She wanted to help, but he had ordered her to stay put and watch over his son. Hermione had never liked to be ordered around, especially if someone infantilised her like Draco had tried mere minutes before. Now their anger towards each other clashed in this kiss.

Draco hadn't closed his eyes and watched her reaction, when she had slipped her tongue out to grace his lips.

A soft growl escaped his throat and he pressed his body against hers, now sure she wanted it too. They had never spoken about it, just danced around each other for months now. She had bit her lips when his burning eyes met hers. Until seconds ago, she had been sure that it had all just been in her head.

"This is wrong Granger. We need to stop." He growled against her mouth but carried on, ignoring his own advice.

Her hands gathered the fabric of his robe, pushing it aside to loosen up some of the buttons of his oxford beneath. Today he hadn't worn a tie and made it easy for her hands to slip beneath his clothes.

She was met with a mix of rough and soft skin, hinting at all the scars she couldn't see yet.

"Is this..."

Draco never let her finish her question. He yanked her away from him and shook his head, as if to clear it.

"My father just continues Potter's work."

He turned around and walked away from her, putting more than just emotional distance between them.

"I'll leave Scorpius in your care." Nodding at her, he vanished into the small space where the entrance had been years ago, before the corridor collapsed. The only spot you could use to Apparate.

Leaving behind a seething Hermione, because he had won the argument about her staying back, by never letting her finish it.

It had been their first kiss, and only later Draco had told her that his father had denied him potions to heal his wounds. When she had touched him, the torture his father had put him through had reverberated. It took years for him to be fine with her touching him without flinching at the first contact.