Draco POV
"I'll see you after practice," I said, placing a quick kiss on Theo's lips outside of the orchestra room. There were a few whispers still, but I tried my best to ignore them. If Theo was happy, I could give a fuck less what the children had to say about it.
"Do you think Draco has given him a dark mark yet?" Theo winced. Okay, so that irritated me.
There were no professors around so I glared at the group of 5th year boys that laughed. They dispersed quickly, rushing down the hall. At least that still worked.
"Draco," Theo admonished me. "Probation."
As if the Wizengamot was going to arrest me for scaring some kids. I felt bad for worrying him though.
I lingered in the hallway for a moment, until he disappeared out of sight, then I headed for the Quidditch pitch. I had my own after school practice to attend and I needed to hurry. I was going to be late after walking with Theo to the orchestra room. My mind wandered as I walked quickly down the path to the pitch. My thoughts so rarely went quiet, especially when I was alone. Thankfully, I found myself distracted by the good memories instead of the bad. Granger had looked at me in Potions today and I'd seen tiny sparks of red on her skin. If Theo's theory was accurate, that meant good things for me- more touches, more moans, more deals.
A crack of thunder pulled my eyes up to the sky. Thick, dark, clouds were rolling towards me. It wasn't quite cold enough for it to snow again, but rain seemed likely. Hopefully, it would hold out until after practice.
"Bloody hell, Malfoy! Slow down!"
I came to an immediate stop at the sound of her voice. I honestly thought I imagined it yet when I turned, there she was, running down the path not far behind me.
"Granger?"
She came to a stop, breathing heavily. There were sparks of gold on her skin, just around the edges of her body. She was angry, or maybe simply irritated.
"How can you walk so damn fast?" She asked, touching her chest until her breaths started to slow.
"Long legs, I suppose." She rolled her eyes at my reply. "Is something wrong? Are you looking for Theo? He's in the orchestra room. I can send him to your room when I see him after practice."
A flush came over her face, beet red. Oh…oh, I hadn't meant it like that, but I took some pleasure in the way she looked at the suggestion. Red magic joined the party and my skin heated. She wasn't completely against the idea. The flush on her cheeks softened, replaced by determination. It reminded me of the old Granger, the one who would have called me a selfish, arrogant, git. There was something so attractive about her confidence.
"That won't be necessary," she said adamantly. "I just wanted to talk to you."
The words didn't make sense, not in context with the person speaking them. Another crack of thunder was followed by the sound of a whistle. I could almost make out Astoria's shouting voice in the distance. Shite.
"I'm already late. Can we walk and talk?" I asked, immediately backpedaling when I saw a look of regret come over her. "Or I can skip Quidditch?"
I'd much rather talk to Granger. Practice happened every day. Granger running up to me to talk was a damn miracle. She was speaking so firmly too, and clear. I could admit that I felt proud of the fact that she could talk to me and Theo in a way that she couldn't talk to others. It was selfish of me, but I couldn't help my feelings.
"No, we can walk."
The sparks around her crackled when we walked. I shortened my long strides so that she could keep pace beside me and to extend our time. The pitch was only five minutes away. I wished it was farther, I wished we had kilometers to my destination.
"I asked to be reassigned to partner with Theo for the veritaserum assignment." I responded only with a nod, despite the flipping in my stomach at the thought of her spending more time with Theo and by extension, me. There was no way she had come all the way out here just to tell me that though. There was something she needed to say, and I doubted it had to do with some group project. "Romilda Vane can't be trusted. She slipped Harry a love potion once."
Huh. I never would have pegged that girl to have the guts to do something like that. Granger's fist in her face made even more sense now. I'd heard the rumors about what had been said at the Gryffindor table, the lies that I was distributing love potions for followers. That particular rumor had bothered Theo as much as me. I'd had to give him the same reminder he'd given me earlier.
"But I'm not here to talk about Theo."
"Are you sure about that? You seem protective. I'm sure he'll be flattered to hear that punch was for him," I said, unable to hold back the remark. I liked that she was protective and I liked teasing her for it.
"It wasn't…ugh!" I smirked at her irritation. It felt normal, nice.
More gold led to quick words and a shocking change in the conversation.
"I want you to show me your memories of that night," she said. I stopped walking, cold rushed through me. My skin felt prickly and painful. It was a combination of anxiety and fear. I placed a hand over my chest, against my brand, to ground myself. We both knew exactly what night she was talking about and having Granger see that? Fuck…I barely had the strength to relive it myself. "I know that it's asking a lot, but I am tired of being confused. I think if I had a better understanding of your thoughts and feelings it would help me make sense of my own. I'm not asking to see everything else. Just that night."
A strong breeze blew her wild curls. Deep brown eyes bore into mine and a bolt of lightning shot across the sky behind her, followed by another crack of thunder. Rain wasn't just immanent, it was inevitable.
"I don't have an angle, Granger. I want you, I…I care about you. Is that not enough?" She didn't move, didn't speak an answer to my question. She swallowed though, hard enough that I could see her throat move. She licked her lips, pursing them. I could hear her answer clearly even in that silence. It wasn't enough then. I couldn't fault her for that. I'd never given her a reason to trust me. She was giving me an opportunity to prove myself. I just didn't like the cost. "My thoughts were muddled then, I didn't feel as strongly as I do now. The memories aren't pretty."
A small shake of her head. She didn't care for my excuses.
"I know," she said. "Neither are mine."
The mask. I forced it into place, steeling myself.
"When?" I asked, hoping for time. I couldn't do it without preparation. The walls around those moments were so high in my mind, pulling them down now would only lead to catastrophe. I'd never make it to practice. I would probably crumble onto the ground and let myself drown in the rain. If I was honest, I wanted Theo to be there with me too.
"Friday night? Your room."
Another Friday of pain. I was really starting to despise Friday night. Saturday nights on the other hand…I remembered watching her eyes clench closed, the feel of her pulsing around my fingers, the taste of her on my skin as I licked the digits clean.
"Alright."
I nodded and she turned to go, wisps of gold and red behind her. I grabbed her wrist, not wanting her to leave. She took in a sharp breath at the contact, her magic sparked. I couldn't tell what color there was more of.
"I want something in return." Another bargain, another deal. She looked worried, but nodded. "Walk with me the rest of the way?"
A sigh of relief was my only answer. Red swirled where my skin touched the edges of her robes and a patch of skin was exposed. It wasn't just that I didn't want her to leave, I didn't want to let her go either and she wasn't pushing me away. I seized the opportunity and slid my hand off her wrist, trapping her fingers with mine. Without looking at her, I began to walk. We were so close to the pitch, I probably only had a couple more minutes.
"So tell me more about this love potion. What happened when Potter drank it?" I asked, pulling her attention away from our hands. If I ignored it, maybe she would too. She laughed, ever so slightly. Her hand was warm in mine. We didn't squeeze or grip each other. I was too afraid to ruin the moment, to scare her off.
"Oh, he didn't. She put it in chocolates. Ron ate them," she said, sounding nervous. I felt the first drops of rain and used my wand to shield us as they started to drop in succession- fast and hard.
"Of course he did." It was the nicest thing I could say about the matter.
"He's such an arse," she said. I laughed and I could hear the smile in her voice when she spoke again even if there was a burst of gold. "Who eats someone else's chocolates?"
Whatever Weasel had done, had earned him the loss of her protection. I wanted to know. I wanted to know everything about her. Not just her obsession with sugar quills, her thoughts on house elves, or the sounds she made when she came. I didn't want to know her as an outsider anymore. I wanted her secrets, her feelings. I wanted to read that damn book she was so obsessed with. Friday. Friday she would learn about the darkest moment in my life, but for now, we had a rainy walk, fresh air, and hint of contact for a few precious minutes. Maybe I had a chance at getting what I wanted.
"Will you let me borrow that book that Theo gave you? Or are you still walking around with it permanently attached to your hand?" I asked, wanting to push the conversation more, even if we were steps from the pitch. Quidditch seemed unimportant in comparison.
"Oh Merlin, no!" She shouted, sounding embarrassed. "It's some girlie romance book. I'm sure you would hate it."
"You'd be surprised at the things I like, Granger," I said, looking over at her. "I could very much enjoy some romance."
I wasn't sure which one of us let go first, it was more a simultaneous action as we stepped under the covered arch that led into the pitch. I lowered my wand, placing it back into my Quidditch robe. Astoria was running drills and she was livid.
"Where the fuck is Malfoy?" She screamed. I was going to be in for a rough practice.
"She sounds angry," Granger said, wincing as Astoria screamed again. I didn't give a fuck about Astoria, about the pain that I was going to be in after practice or the anger of my teammates. Granger was covered in red and my lips were inches from hers. It took every ounce of my control not to kiss her. I couldn't risk upsetting her, no matter how beautiful she looked with a slight pink in her cheeks from the cold. "You should get out there."
She was right and I was being stupid. Kisses were reserved for Theo. I couldn't stand if she pushed me off, if all that red switched to gold on contact. It wasn't worth the regret. If I ever kissed Granger, she would have to be the one to make the move. I wasn't sure that I could take the disappointment.
"Friday night then," I said and she took an immediate step back, lifting her wand to cast the same rain repelling charm I had just used.
"Friday night," she agreed.
I watched her walk away into the rain. The red and gold mixed, then faded the farther she walked. I almost considered chasing after her until I heard Astoria's voice from behind me.
"There you are! Get your arse out there, Malfoy!" She shouted from astride her broom, water dripped off her onto the dirt below. I didn't need to see her magic to know how angry she was.
"Oh, bug off. I'm coming," I said, calling my broom to my side.
Two hours later, I was drenched, muddy, and bruised. Astoria had sent four sets of bludgers loose on me. The beaters had missed a few. Still, every bit of pain and exhaustion I felt was a small trade off for that five minute walk in the rain. Granger was worth any storm I had to bear.