Author's Note: People seemed to enjoy last chapter for some reason. Interesting… A lot of you are convinced that she will run away in the night! Let's see shall we. As always, JKR wants us to follow the spiders.

...

When Draco felt his eyelashes flutter as his mind slowly shuttered back into awareness, his first impressions were of heat. His body felt incredibly warm. The covers were tugged up high around his shoulders, and his body was curled up with the heavy quilt rough against his naked skin. His lip twitched a little bit as he felt the tiredness in his limbs. He felt wonderful. Images from the previous night flashed beneath his eyelids like fireworks, all scattered together in one chaotic memory of pleasure. He reached one hand out to the side, but the further away he stretched out from his own body the cooler the sheets became. They weren't cold, but it soon became obvious that there was no body there next to his. Draco's eyes shot open. He peered to the side and felt his heart skip when he saw that the space next to him was empty. Leaning up on one elbow, he blearily looked around the room. Pieces of Hermione's clothing were still scattered around; her t-shirt was by the door and her bra was draped over the edge of a nob on the dresser. When he looked more closely next to him he could see that the pillow next to his was still slightly indented from where her head had been. A few errant strands of curly brown hair were even wrapped around the pillowcase.

Draco frowned. Despite all this evidence, she was herself nowhere to be seen. His heart started to thump a bit faster as his mind spun with about a hundred possibilities, all more worrying than the last. Maybe she had grabbed a fresh set of clothes and ran. Even though she had eventually reacted positively to his declaration of love, there had been no mistaking the look of terror in her eyes when she had first been confronted by his words. He could not see her wand anywhere, or her bag. It was possible that she had been too freaked out by it all and left to re-join her friends. Perhaps last night had just been a pity shag before she abandoned him.

With a slight wave of panic starting to set in, Draco moved to raise himself higher and push the covers off. Just as he did, the sound of a creaking door came from his left, and the bathroom doorway was opened to reveal Hermione standing there with a slightly sheepish, adorably self-conscious smile on her red lips. She leaned against the doorway a bit as she was faced with his intent, questioning gaze. But his initial concern was erased when his eyes lowered to take in her appearance. She was wearing his shirt from last night, a long-sleeve grey woollen piece that fit her very loosely. The hem dropped down to her thighs, revealing her smooth, curvy legs, and the sleeves hung too low over the tips of her fingers. He felt the clenching of a possessive desire in his gut as his eyes raked back up her body. She had her arms crossed and was looking at him with a wry smile as he finally started breathing again, not realising he had stopped in his panic.

"Thought I'd left?" she asked softly, and Draco let out another sigh of relief at the amused, knowing look in her eyes.

"Yes," he admitted with a sheepish grimace of his own.

Hermione shook her head with a chuckle and pushed herself off the doorway. She crept over to the bed, slipping under the covers next to him. Draco shuffled backwards to give her room, and they lay on their sides facing each other. He could tell from the very faint blue light that it was not quite dawn yet, but still those early hours just before the sun fully started to rise, when the frost settled in across the fields. Hermione's feet were icy cold as they entered the sheets, and Draco wiggled his closer to try and warm hers up.

There was a bit of an awkward silence for a while as they stared somewhat sleepily at each other, before Draco finally worked up the courage to speak.

"Are you…in any pain?" Hermione's brow furrowed a bit in confusion. He let out a heavy breath of air and answered her unasked question, "I was terrified of hurting you last night."

"Oh," she exclaimed quietly, "Well you don't have to worry. There was a tiny bit of pain at first but it really wasn't too bad."

Draco sighed a bit in relief and smiled at her.

"Good."

A light blush settled on her cheeks, and Draco raised one eyebrow curiously. She took a couple of quick breaths before she voiced what was on her mind.

"I didn't realise that it could feel like that."

Draco blinked at her in surprise.

"Like what?"

Her blush reddened and spread from her cheeks down her neck and towards her chest, which was covered by the quilt.

"I've heard other girls say that they don't…that it's not pleasurable for them their first time."

"And you…?" he prompted with a very light smirk of his lips.

She wriggled a bit closer to him.

"I wasn't expecting to feel that kind of intensity. It completely overwhelmed me," Draco's smile widened into a smug grin, and Hermione snorted and gave him a little shove, "Alright, don't let it get to your head."

"Too late," he chuckled, drawing her close and placing a couple of soft kisses on her cheeks and nose. He felt his heart swell with joy. This was so much more than he had expected last night. He had been thrilled when she had asked him to kiss her, when she had welcomed his touch. But he had never been able to picture with such clarity the kind of passion she would respond to him with. She had truly blown all his fantasies out of the water. And now here she was the next morning, still here with him, treating him with that teasing, affectionate behaviour that he craved. That made him feel wanted and cared for. He knew that there was a time stamp on it, but he was going to treasure every moment he had. When he felt the heat in her cheeks against him, he leaned back and watched in amusement as Hermione squirmed and looked a bit embarrassed about something.

"What is it?" he asked quietly.

"Um…well…it's just… I didn't really know what I was doing last night. You'll have to be patient with me and help me get better at it."

Draco felt a deep laugh well up inside him, but he just managed to stop it, knowing she would find it offensive. And it also made him incredibly sad. This was what happened when a strong, fiercely intelligent young woman was constantly put down by her peers and friends. She was always made to feel like she wasn't good enough, that her logic was not welcome, that she was easily exchanged for something better.

"Hermione, you have no idea how ridiculous I find that statement. How can you possibly get better at something when you're already perfect? Last night was beyond anything I have ever experienced before."

She peered up at him through a fringe of riotous curls, were brown eyes wide and hopeful.

"Really? I wasn't sure…"

"It doesn't matter how much experience you've had," he said in a low, throaty voice, remembering just how amazing she had been, "It was you. And I've wanted you for so long."

He felt himself get a bit carried away with the flickers of memories of feeling her wrapped around him, and he let his fingertips begin a gentle trail up her hip and over her ribs. He felt her shiver in response.

"Did you ever consider saying anything to me while we were at school?" Hermione murmured, arching her back a little as his hand ran up higher to the swell on the underside of her breast. Draco smiled softly at her as he slid closer under the covers. He reached his hand behind her to the small of her back and dragged her towards him until their bodies were touching; his naked and hers covered only in his thin woollen shirt. He leaned forward to nuzzle against her ear.

"Once or twice," he admitted in a husky whisper, "particularly on those late nights in the library."

He knew that she would figure out what he was referring to. There had been plenty of times in their sixth year when they had been the last ones left when everyone else had scurried back to their common rooms. Sometimes Draco had been completely immersed in his study of vanishing charms, trying to fix that damn cabinet. And other times he had hung around purely because she was there. With all the other shit going on that year, all the stress placed on him from outside the school, sometimes it was soothing to just sit near her when she was quietly studying or reading, and watch her. And he had indeed considered approaching her on several of those occasions.

"What stopped you?"

He placed a few kisses down her neck, smiling against her skin.

"You mean apart from the obvious?"

"Mmhmm…" she hummed distractedly.

"Well…for starters I was worried that you would think I was just trying to seduce you for my own nefarious reasons."

"And are you?" she asked with a throaty gasp as he nibbled on her collarbone.

"Absolutely."

He managed to capture her lips then, and their conversation came to an abrupt end. He let his hands slip down a little lower, brushing the hem of the shirt up her thighs so that he could cup her ass and pull her closer against his now pulsing groin.

Hermione released a strangled moan and arched further into him. She twined her fingers through his hair and pulled his head closer, but he used the angle to attack her neck and jaw, trailing kisses and licks down to her collarbone again. Even after a sticky night and morning, she still tasted amazing. He wanted to taste more of her. He leaned back and gave her a cheeky, devilish smile, pulling her with him until she was sprawled on top of him, and then encouraging her to sit up. He followed her up until they were both sitting upright on the bed, Hermione straddling him with her soft thighs.

Draco began to pepper little kisses back down her neck and chest towards her breasts. He grabbed the hem of the shirt and pulled it over her head quickly, throwing it away. Then he returned to the task at hand. He kissed his way to the peak of one breast, drawing it into his mouth before doing the same on the other side. Hermione began to writhe on top of him at the sensations, and Draco felt all his cravings localise south in a painful ache as she unknowingly gyrated on top of him. He grabbed onto her hips to try and still her movements, but she just tilted her head downwards and kissed him hard.

"I'm ready, please-" she moaned when they parted for air. Draco hardened even more if that were possible at the sound of her breathy voice, and he couldn't have denied her or slowed down even if he'd tried. The memory of being inside her the previous night was grappling with the heat in his groin now, and all he wanted was to feel that ecstasy again, it was like a drug.

"Are you sure?" he croaked, lifting her hips and holding her body over him, her thighs trembling beside his hips with her own desire to sink onto him. He could feel how wet she was against him, and he had to grit his teeth to wait for her answer.

"Yes, please, Draco."

He couldn't believe how quickly things could escalate between them. All he felt was a wild, uninhibited physical urge for her both last night and this morning that he couldn't fight. Dimly he was aware that he wasn't doing a very good job of showing her what foreplay was, but it seemed the two of them were simply too desperate to wait for that kind of thing. Maybe if they'd had more time…

All rational thought, actually all thought at all, flew from his head as she slowly took him inside her. She was so wet and hot wrapped around him, and her head was thrown back in pleasure, curls dropping down to drag along the sheets behind her. Every sensation in his body became concentrated in that one area, and he had to dig his fingers into her hips to still her movement. If she started to bob up and down on him now he wouldn't last.

Draco pressed his forehead into her sternum, panting for breath.

"Please, stop…just stop there. I need a moment," he whined into her skin, and he felt her body shake slightly as she chuckled.

"Okay," she gasped a bit, and he felt her muscles twitch and clench around him. He groaned.

"Fuck, you're killing me, Granger."

Draco didn't feel at all capable of lasting long enough to bring her the pleasure she deserved. He finally loosened his grip on her waist and reached round clumsily between them with one hand. At the same time he encouraged her to start moving. She was a bit awkward at first, and it took a bit of shuffling and bumping before she really got into the idea of building a rhythm. But it didn't matter. She could have been doing anything, or not even moving at all, and he would've felt blinded by the pleasure of feeling her and the urge to possess her.

With his other hand he gently touched her nub and moved in slow circles. He stifled her gasp of surprise with his lips as he kissed her hard. She met his kiss with frenzy, keeping up the rhythm as their open mouths clashed. Draco's thoughts were spinning in circles, just praying that he could last long enough to get her there. He actually groaned out a breathy thank you when he felt her start to tighten around him. She broke their kiss and threw her head back with a long moan of his name, and Draco finally let go. His hands grabbed onto her hips and held her in a vice as he grunted against her throat, whispering her name hoarsely as his body was consumed by a great sense of lethargy.

They both collapsed backwards diagonally across the bed, panting. Draco heard giggling next to him, and he turned his head to the side to see Hermione lying on her stomach with her head lying next to his, facing him. Her curls were truly wild now, and she had a big grin on her face as she laughed.

"Wow," she gasped between breaths, and Draco felt himself smirk back in response.

"You were amazing," he murmured, reaching over and brushing a few of her curls off her sweaty forehead so that he could look into her eyes.

"You weren't so bad yourself."

They both chuckled a bit more, before Hermione flopped down with a sigh. Draco grabbed the sheet and pulled it up to cover them both.

"I'm going to have to thank Blaise for this."

Hermione laughed and moved her head to rest on his chest.

"Can I meet him this time?"

Draco raised an eyebrow down at her.

"You already know him."

"Not really. I never spoke to him at school. But he's your friend, so I'd like to get to know him."

Draco grimaced.

"Does this mean I have to talk to your friends?"

Hermione hummed a bit in contemplation, before her eyebrows drew together in a frown.

"Well…maybe not too much at first. We'll have to tackle that one day at a time."

Draco snorted.

"Blaise is going to give me shit about that."

Hermione chuckled and placed a gentle kiss on his chest.

"Will he support us?"

"Of course. I'd be more worried about your friends supporting us."

"Good point," she conceded with a frown.

Draco could tell she was thinking hard about her friends' reactions. He really didn't want to get into a conversation about Weasel and Potter now. As if the little elf had read his mind, Tilly popped into the room wearing a sparkly blue top, skirt and shoes. She took once glance at them, wrapped up together in a tangle of naked limbs covered only by a thin sheet, and her round eyes went even wider like two saucers. She gave a little gasp and spun around to face the opposite wall. Draco and Hermione met each other's eye and started to chuckle a bit, before she ducked her head against his shoulder and Draco leaned up on his elbows.

"Tilly is very sorry Master."

"It's alright Tilly," he said, "We should have warded the room. What did you need?"

He saw her scrunch her bony fingers up in the material of her skirt and hop from one foot to the other.

"Tilly just heard noises and wondered if Master and Miss would like breakfast."

"That would be lovely, Tilly. We'll be out soon."

"Does Master require anything else?"

"No thank you. Now be gone with you, and stop smiling like a lunatic"

Tilly spun around once more before she left, and Draco could see the beaming, toothy smile that he had guessed would be on her face. She jumped up and down once or twice before vanishing, leaving Draco to shake his head in bemusement.

"Well we have Tilly's support," he quipped, and Hermione raised her head from his shoulder to smile cheekily at him.

"At least now I know why she made all those Slytherin coloured clothes for me. And why you didn't stop her!"

Draco sniffed and sat up in bed.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he said with a touch of his old arrogance, and Hermione laughed and pushed him further away. He spun around once he was sitting on the edge of the bed and looked back at her. She was a vision. Her rich brown curls were spilling all over the pillows and mattress underneath her head, framing her face like a halo, and her lips were a little more red than usual from his kisses. He shivered.

"Come on," he said a bit huskily, "Let's go have a shower before breakfast is ready. My hair's all sweaty and unkempt."

Hermione giggle, sitting up. He stared at her, swallowing the lump in his throat as the sheet dropped down to her waist, exposing her breasts to his ravenous eyes.

"Has anyone ever told you that you're a spoiled brat?" she asked mischievously, gathering up the sheet and slipping off the other side of the bed to stroll around towards the bathroom. Draco smirked and rose to follow her, unashamed of his nakedness.

"Actually yes. Often."

"Ah, well you should pay more attention then."

He chuckled wryly.

"Well one of us has to be in control of their hair."

Hermione frowned at him, but he just wrapped one of her wild curls around his finger, biting into his bottom lip and giving her his most leery smile. Her lip twitched and she brushed past him with a huff into the bathroom.

Once they were ensconced in the small space, he reached around and turned the taps on, feeling his body respond to the thought of getting all soapy and wet in the shower with her. Even though she was still clenching the sheet close to her, he was already picturing her skin covered in suds and hundreds of droplets that he would meticulously lick from her skin like a man dying of thirst. Hermione raised one elegant brow at the covetous look he was giving her.

"Why do I get the feeling we're not going to get very clean in this shower?" she asked him with her hip cocked in a gesture of bossy questioning.

Draco smirked, reaching out to grab onto the edge of the sheet and pulling it from her body. She let it drop to the ground as the shower beat down with hot water now, and steam began to curl around their legs.

"I have no idea," he murmured in reply, "I fully intend to clean every inch of you."

Hermione's look turned a bit heated then as well as she stepped past him and under the spray. Draco followed her in with a grin, wondering vaguely if Tilly would be smart enough to cook the breakfast very, very slowly this morning.

….

A couple of days had passed before Draco was willing to accept that this had reached beyond the point of a honeymoon period, and was now turning into some kind of mindless physical obsession. He couldn't get enough of her. Every time they connected he learned something new about her, about her body and what she liked. He knew all about addiction, of course. His father had always had a habit of depending on alcohol, and his mother had taken so many calming and relaxation draughts that he could recognise the signs of withdrawal when she missed a dose. He wondered if his behaviour this week was similar to that kind of reliance. He knew that he craved her, that if he didn't touch or taste Hermione for too long that he would feel nervous, shaky and his mind would not focus on anything else. They had managed to stay in bed for most of the last two days, only getting up to eat or read, and even then they stayed very close. He kept himself sane by putting a hand on the small of her back, or stroking her hair, or just kissing her nape if she was turned away from him.

And when they did have sex, which was so often that his body was starting to ache in places he didn't even know could hurt, he was incapable of clear thinking. Everything just sort of passed in a blur of sensation. Hermione had become more confident in her own skin, and had shown that Gryffindor courage more than once by initiating things between them. She was still very self-conscious at times, and she didn't like to flaunt her naked body, but she was becoming more comfortable with exploring him. Although people had mocked her often for being a "know-it-all" swot, she really did have a natural curiosity for becoming the best at things, and she was a quick study. Draco smirked as he watched her pace nervously across the living room. Who would have guessed that underneath the bookworm exterior that everyone took for granted there was such a fierce, passionate lover? And she had no idea how erotic she really was. Sometimes when she was thinking or reading a book and she bit down into that pouty bottom lip of hers he wanted to grab her and just carry her over his shoulder into the bedroom and take her.

His thoughts snapped back to the present as she huffed out a breath and cast a tempus charm. When she tutted in response, he realised that he had let his mind drift away, and he should probably be keeping his senses more alert for Blaise's arrival. Just like the other day he would feel when the wizard approached, and he'd be able to create a window for him to enter. Only this time Hermione wasn't in hiding, and he wasn't about to have any secrets revealed to her. This was it. Blaise had sent them notice that he would visit again today as promised, and they were going to face him together instead of covering up her presence. Draco had his wand ready just in case his old friend turned out to be a traitor.

"Settle down, Granger, you're making me nervous too," he drawled, reverting back to her last name to try and catch her attention and stop her fretting. She just clucked her tongue at him and kept pacing. He knew she was anxious about meeting one of his friends. He understood how difficult it must be for her. She was probably scared of being called a mudblood and treated like she had so frequently been by Slytherins when she was at school – especially him.

Draco let out a deep breath when he felt a magical presence approaching, and he turned to give her a nod of acknowledgement as he raised his wand and created the split in his wards. They waited in tense silence for another minute as the footsteps approached the house. This time Blaise just knocked twice and pushed the door open, his coat wrapped tightly around him from the cold outside as he shook off a couple of raindrops.

"Shit it's freezing out there, why did you have to go and buy a cottage out in the middle of sodding nowhere you wanker-" he started to rant as he entered the room and strode up to Draco. He held out his hand for a shake, but Draco didn't accept, instead looking pointedly over his shoulder at where Hermione was standing fretfully near the fireplace.

"What's with the bloody theatrics all of a su-" he turned around and saw Hermione standing there. His mouth dropped open in complete and total shock, his jaw lowered in such a comical way that he looked like a caricature. Of surprise Draco wished he'd had a camera in that moment, because his friend's expression was priceless, "Oh. Oh…fuck me…"

"As eloquent as always, Blaise," Draco sneered.

Blaise just spun around between the two of them for a few seconds, dumbstruck. He shook his head a couple of times, and finally managed to close his mouth with a slight popping sound. He ran his hands through his wavy hair, messing it up for probably the first time in his privileged, groomed life.

"This is a joke. You're pulling my leg. Has Tilly taken some polyjuice or something?"

Hermione couldn't help sighing and rolling her eyes.

"Polyjuice is not compatible with elf genetics, they're not susceptible to the boomslang skin like we are."

Blaise spun around to face Draco.

"Shit, it really is her. Either that or you got really good at charms all of a sudden."

Draco smiled softly and shook his head.

"Why don't you take a seat?"

Blaise nodded numbly and moved to perch himself on the edge of the couch. But almost as soon as he did, he shot back up again.

"Wait a minute, was she here the other day too?"

Draco hesitated, his eyes flicking to the curly haired witch and back to his friend.

"Yes."

Blaise pushed a hand through his perfectly coiffed hair again.

"Wow. That's heavy. I can't believe you didn't tell me!"

"Seriously, Blaise, sit down and we'll attempt to discuss it maturely."

His friend sank down onto the couch and stayed there this time. He was still gaping at Hermione like a fish, and couldn't seem to figure out what to say.

"Ok, so what the bloody hell is going on here, exactly?" he asked eventually. Draco's smile widened.

"Where do I start?"

Blaise shook his head in disbelief, his eyebrows raised up high on his forehead.

"I don't know, where does it start?"

Draco gestured towards Hermione, beckoning her to come and sit next to him. She did so with slightly shaky legs, sinking down and letting him grasp her hand in his. Blaise followed the action with wide eyes.

Draco took a deep breath and explained the story of how Hermione came to be at Malfoy manor. And how he had managed to rescue her and bring her back to the cottage. He was able to go into a bit more detail with Blaise than he had with Snape, because even his somewhat impulsive, rude friend was a more patient listener than Severus Snape. His friend listened attentively the whole time, stopping him only to make exclamations of surprise or disgust when it came to the behaviour of Lucius and Bellatrix. Draco paused when he got up to where they arrived back at the cottage, not really knowing how to phrase the next part.

"Hold on a minute," Blaise said with one hand raised and a look of total bewilderment on his face, "From what you're saying, that was months ago."

"Almost three months, yes."

Blaise shook his head.

"So you've just been living here together all this time?"

"Yes."

He leaned back on the couch as if he were exhausted.

"I can't believe this. So the other day when I was here, why did you spend so much energy playing the part of the Death Eater? You're obviously not if you've been shacked up with a muggleborn for three months."

Draco pursed his lips.

"I wasn't sure if you were genuine. You could have been under the imperius or spying on me. I was just playing it safe."

Blaise nodded in begrudging acceptance.

"Alright, fine. That's a smart move I suppose," he sighed and leant forwards, "So…what does all this mean? You obviously seem cosy together. Not that I'm surprised on your part. Are you a couple now? I honestly didn't think she'd give you the time of day!"

Draco felt his heart skip a bit. They hadn't really given themselves a label. He looked over at Hermione, but she was just smiling softly at him.

"Yes we are," she said with quiet confidence, making Draco smirk too.

"Really? With him?"

Draco glared at his friend.

"Thanks a lot, Blaise. You know, I'm quite a catch."

"Sure you are. Draco bloody Malfoy. Prince of the Slytherins, dating the Gryffindor Princess. You know, I saw a muggle play like that when I was in Florence."

"Romeo and Juliet," Hermione nodded with a cheerful little laugh, "I'm hoping we don't end up like them though."

"No, let's hope for the star-crossed part without the tragedy."

Draco didn't follow them at all. But they were both chuckling, so it must be a rather well-known muggle thing.

"So now you know that you were right," Draco said reluctantly, "And why I'm not coming back to Europe with you."

Blaise stared at him intently for a moment before he burst into laughter.

"You're going to be allies with Potter and Weasley now, aren't you?"

Draco scowled at his friend, and Hermione tutted in disgust.

"They're not that bad," she started to argue, but Blaise cut her off.

"Sorry, sweetheart, I am perfectly happy to accept that my friend is mad about you – you're quite smart and rather nice to look at. But I stand by my right to tease Draco about making nice with those two reckless morons."

"He has a point," Draco agreed, and Hermione frowned darkly at both of them.

"They're actually quite- ok, well maybe not Ron, but Harry is actually quite clever, you know…"

Blaise snorted and leaned forward further until he was perched on the edge of the couch.

"No way, this is the same person who just broke out of Gringotts on the back of a dragon for Merlin's sake."

Draco's eyes shot in surprise to Hermione just in time to see her face turn a pasty white as all the colour drained rapidly from her cheeks. She stared at Blaise in horror as she absorbed his words. Draco watched as she shot to her feet and open her mouth to speak in a croaky, terrified whisper.

"He did what?"

….

Thanks for reading! I'm getting into quite a bad habit of ending on cliff hangers. I just enjoy the suspense! Please review.