Chapter 04:
Hermione woke up to the sensation of a ghosting kiss to her forehead, though when she finally rubbed the sleep off her eyes, she found no other occupant in the darkened bedroom. She cast a 'Lumos' to look around properly and found a neatly folded piece of paper on the pillow beside hers.
Suddenly a wayward thought cut through her haze. Was he sleeping beside me? her hand shot out to touch the mattress for a confirmation but the mattress remained cold beneath her searching fingers, soothing her panicked breathing.
She then pulled the note off to read it.
Hermione,
I had to leave for some urgent tribe business. Please stay and make yourself at home.
We'll talk once I'm back. Hopefully, I'll have some answers for you then.
Yours,
Paul
Hermione twisted her pout in thought, wondering if his words were chosen deliberately or not. Make yourself at home. Yours. Was he doing it all on purpose?
She moved her pillow and the duvet around a bit and settled comfortably with her back against the headboard and the duvet pulled till her chin. She leaned her head down on her knees and thought back to the day that had landed her there, like that, alone in a strange land on a stranger's bed. A stranger who is your soulmate, her conscience chastised.
Who would've thought that, she, Hermione Granger would find her soulmate in a magical being on a continent so far removed from hers, that too because she was on a dare!
She had had a day from hell itself, her only solace had been that it was Friday and that she could finish the remainder of her work at her own house, in peace, all through the weekend.
But nooo! Fates had other plans!
They had landed Ronald Bilius Weasley on her floo. Just like always, he had found the quickest way to get on her last frayed nerve, teasing her about living her life like the house-elves that she was trying to free, bound to ministry's terrible workings while he, that ass, enjoyed his time at the joke shop working with his brother in their own business.
Hermione exhaled a long sigh. Why had it ticked her off so much, she did know. But at that time, it had! And one thing had led to another and she had found herself pulling out a world map and asking that idiotic best friend of hers to select a place where she would spend her weekend. He had laughed and told her she wouldn't be able to stay away from her beloved work for the entire weekend and without even looking at the map he pointed at a random place.
That place, on zooming the magical map, she had found to be Las Vegas! She had laughed in his face and told him that she'd be out in an hour, port-keying to the city of sins and committing a few sins there herself! Ronald had continued laughing and then escorted her to the ministry for a private portkey and kissed her farewell, asking her to stay away and not be back until late night Sunday. That had been the dare!
When she had reached the magical side of Las Vegas, she had hightailed it out of there through the muggle entrance of the city and taxied it to the other side of the town where she would remain a nameless stranger.
Stepping into the crowded bar of the first hotel she had come across, her magic had tingled, urging her on, forward, towards the tall russet coloured man staring at her from the bar counter. Her thoughts had quit on her, returning with great difficulty, only after she found herself in his private space, almost between his parted thighs.
Her magic had gone berserk when he had touched her fleetingly on her arm, his brown eyes speaking much more than what he probably ever could, and for once Hermione had found it impossible to shirk her instincts, their consequences be damned!
How she had found her self naked beside his bed, she had no clue. But when he'd bent down and kissed her intimately, her magic had come alive. It had risen up in a ball all around them both, tugging and poking at him, trying to get him to respond.
Why? Was he not a muggle?
She had lost herself to that thought. She felt him impaling her, her body responded to his, yet her mind was occupied by other thoughts. Her magic had gone askew, asking him for something that he wanted to return, she knew, she could feel it somehow, but he did not know what to do. And for the first time, neither did she.
Then something in him had snapped.
His lust-filled brown eyes had commanded her own and with one look, one unspoken command, she had lost herself to him. She knew.
She probably could never explain it in words, but he had finally responded to her magic's tug and his answering growl and fired her passion and calmed her soul, all at once.
He had taken her like an animal and she had submitted to his feral needs, accepting it, accepting him. She had never been submissive about anything in her life, everyone who knew her would vouch for it. Yet, when he had snapped in his own frustration and responded to her magic's calls, she had been lost. Lost to the world. Lost to the act. Lost to him.
She was never a loud lay, yet she had howled her pleasure for all to hear and he had rejoiced in his achievements, as if he knew what a feat he had managed.
All had calmed in and around them as they tucked themselves in the other's arms.
She had been slick with sweat when she had woken up. Seeing him, her first thoughts were to wake him and make him live up to his promise of using up all his condoms on her. But then all her faculties had started working and she had realised that what had conspired between them was much more than a simple out of town strange. It was much more than a one night stand or even a weekend lay. It was so much beyond mere fucking or even the fabled love making.
When she had closed the door behind herself, the soft click echoing the finality to her actions, her magic had wept, mournfully pleading with her to turn back and go straight into the sleeping stranger's arms and stay there, for good this time.
That had pushed her forward.
It was unnatural, the way she had reacted to him.
It scared her.
Her fear made her leave.
But here she was now, in his house, on his bed.
Alone.
She did not like it one bit, though she didn't know which part she was objecting to… was it being on his bed, in his turf or was it being their all alone…