Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. J. K. Rowling does.
Warning: I do believe my story might end up being a wee bit dark
A/N: I'm back! Sorry for taking so long to update I was experiencing a bit of writer's block. I hope you like this chapter, for some reason it took me forever to finish writing it! Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter. Thank you to everyone who has been reading my story. Your reviews really do motivate me. All of you are so great!
Chapter Nineteen
Visibly paling, Luna gripped the book in her hands tightly enough to turn her knuckles white as she she mentally debated on what to do. She knew she was staring, but she couldn't force herself to look away. It was almost as if everything in her shop had faded away, leaving only Theo's approaching figure in focus.
He looked tired, the lines of exhaustion clearly stamped on his well-defined features. The small, taunting smile adorning his fatigued face only intensified the wicked gleam in his eyes.
As they fully settled on her shocked blue eyes, they narrowed ever so slightly in recognition, and immediately darkened as they slid lower. Luna wasn't dressed provocatively, however the pastel pink dress she was wearing did do a fantastic job at outlining her figure, particularly her full breasts.
Her previously pale cheeks reddened as she took notice of his unabashed scrutiny. Strategically placing the heavy book she had in her hands in front of her body, she cursed herself for her fashionable, yet narcissistic sense of style.
All of her employees were allowed to wear anything they wanted as long as they followed her dress code, yet she never followed her own dress code. She always thought her flexibility in her clothing choice was simply a perk of owning her own store, but in this very moment she really wished she had followed the dress code at least this once.
It wasn't like she was dressed for seduction, but the form-fitting dress she was currently wearing was supposed to be for Edric, unfortunately he had cancelled their date for today.
Even when he halted his purposeful steps to take a call, she still found herself transfixed. The last time she had seen him in the casino resort she had been too flustered to notice how different he looked now.
Taking advantage of his distraction, she took the opportunity to look him over. She couldn't help but notice how out of place he seemed in her small shop. The almost bohemian look of her store clashed with the sophisticated wizard. Outwardly he looked perfect, as if he were personification of male beauty, power and elegance, but she knew better.
Glancing over at his sculpted arms and broad shoulders, she almost found it hysterical that she had ever compared him to a girl. There was nothing soft nor feminine about him. Everything about him was sharp and dangerous, much too dangerous, especially to her. There was once a time when his quick wit and then boyish looks appealed to her, in fact, she found him intriguing and enjoyed their constant verbal sparring, but now he simply terrified her.
Whenever she thought of him, only one memory surfaced to her mind. A memory that she wanted to desperately bury.
Feeling dread building up inside her once she noticed he had finished talking on the phone and had resumed walking towards her, she entertained the idea of asking him to leave, but that meant risking the possibility of engaging him. Instead, she decided that she would pretend as if she didn't know him.
Yes, that's what she would do. She would ask one of her remaining two employees to tend to him, while she substituted for them in tallying up the sales for today. Finally looking away from him, she decided to refocus her attention back to the task at hand with renewed vigor to at least make it look as if she were too busy to assist him in whatever it was he was looking for.
Luna was about to offhandedly notify him that someone would be with him shortly, when a sound caught her attention, turning towards the sound she saw in dismay as her employees were leaving through the "employees only" back door. They waved at her and said their farewells. Luna merely gave the duo a nod of acknowledgement, too panic-stricken to say anything.
She tried forcing herself to take deep breaths to calm her nerves, but being alone with him felt much worse than she remembered.
He was now close enough that she could smell his cologne intermingled with his masculine scent. She felt light-headed, his presence made her heart beat painfully against her ribcage. Although they hadn't spoken a word to each other, the tension in the air was tangible.
Attempting to regain some of her composure, she was about to turn around to face him when his low voice emerged from behind her, effectively ending the silence between them.
"Breathe."
Luna's already unsteady legs threatened to give out under her, the simple word made a chill go down her spine. That voice belonged to the wizard who haunted her dreams and ruined every potentially intimate moment between her and Edric. Even though the presumed level of his proximity made her uneasy, she finally spun around,her breath catching in her throat as she saw just how close he truly was to her.
"I-I am," she stammered.
Theo could clearly see the fear lingering it in her luminous eyes and trembling figure. She seemed so fragile to him then, which was odd to him because he always thought of her as being tough.
The unfamiliar feelings of discontent and shame currently occupying his chest made him feel so lost. When he first saw Luna at the casino resort lust had surged through him, but now seeing how afraid he made her, made him feel awful.
Frowning, he moved his hand to capture the lone tear escaping her eye, but she hastily backed away from his touch.
"Don't," warned the distressed witch. She held up both of her hands out in front of her to keep him at bay.
"Luna, look, I…"
Theo was at a loss for words, he wanted to apologize and tell her that he hated frightening her, but he simply couldn't will the words out of his mouth. He looked away and ran a hand through his light brown hair, and let out a frustrated sigh. He couldn't bear the sight of her fear.
Luna knew that telltale sign of agitation. She slowly began backing away as if distancing herself from a wild animal, until her feet hit the stepping stool which had tripped her earlier. She closed her eyes shut and reached out blindly, hoping to be able to hold onto something to keep her from falling. Ironically, the thing she managed to latch onto was Theo's dress shirt.
A surprised gasp was Theo's only warning as he felt himself being taken down by an unseen force.
. . .
Draco Malfoy welcomed the hot water cascading down his lean body. It took some of the tension of away from his stiff joints. The blond wizard wasn't looking forward to the his interview later in the evening. All he really wanted to do was track down the woman that appeared to have some knowledge about his parents' murderers.
He would usually take a long shower and indulge himself, but knowing that Hermione was suffering while he was physically away from her made him rush. He scoffed.
Where the hell did that thought come from?
The emotions that the mudblood provoked in him put him on edge, he didn't have time for these sort of things. He learned long ago that emotions led to weakness, and he certainly wasn't weak. He couldn't afford to be weak and vulnerable. Strength and power, now that was something he yearned for.
Looking down at the elf's blood swirling down the drain made his mind conjure up unpleasant images from his childhood. All that blood and those dead, mutilated bodies. Two of them being his parents.
He bunched his hands into fists, intentionally digging his blunt nails into his palms for being so fucking weak. Long ago he swore that he would take merciless revenge on all those involved, even if it cost him his own life and he intended to carry out that promise. All of them deserved to die excruciating deaths, every last fucking one them would die by his hand.
Releasing a tremulous sigh, he closed his eyes shut, hoping in vain that it would help stop the vivid images. His memories quickly became so dark and turbulent that his usually calm features twisted in fury.
He slumped to the floor as he recalled the grisly details of his mother's final moments. Draco covered his ears with his hands as if that would somehow block the terrified screams and sounds of death, but they only increased in volume. A ragged sound of anguish tore from his throat as he relived the horror of that day.
. . .
Hermione was readjusting herself in the large bed, she really wanted to take a shower. The sheets were now clean and the elf's dead body had been disposed of. She felt dirty, the blood that still remained on her thighs had begun to dry.
As she attempted to sit up in bed, Edric came to her side and assisted her by placing a pillow behind her. She gave him a murmur of thanks and leaned back into the pillow, forcing her body to relax.
It was useless, she couldn't relax knowing that Malfoy could severely punish her at any moment if she "annoyed" him like the elf had.
The pain coursing through her body had lessened, but it still made her uncomfortable. She really wished Malfoy would hurry up. As much as she hated it, she couldn't deny that his touch soothed her. Placing her small hands on her abdomen, she frowned as she thought about the cruel wizard.
Did she really want that monster as the father of her child? In the back of her mind she knew he wouldn't acknowledge her baby as his own, and quite frankly the more time she spent in his presence the less compelled she felt to argue against the accusations of her baby not being his.
The only thing that kept her from lying to him about the paternity of her child was fear. She released a small of groan of distress. Her contradicting thoughts were starting to give her a headache.
Edric rose from the chair he was currently sitting and was quickly by her side. "Is the pain getting worse?" he questioned.
"No, it's still tolerable, I just need to take a shower," answered Hermione.
"If it gets any worse, don't hesitate to tell me, alright? You don't have to feel embarrassed," explained Edric, concerned that she would keep things to herself out of embarrassment.
Hermione nodded, thankful for Edric's presence.
He smiled at her, and retook his seat, calmly observing her from a short distance.
"Will I be able to shower soon?" she asked, her voice hopeful.
Edric frowned, a hint of apprehension glimmering in his violet eyes. "Yes, but you will need some help."
"What do you mean by that? she questioned. In the next instant, her eyes went wide and glassy.
Edric's answer faded away into the background as she experienced a strange, yet familiar fluttering in her mind.
She knew what was going to happen and she desperately wanted to block out the gruesome memories that were about to plague her mind. Somehow Malfoy was unintentionally sharing his memories and emotions with her again.
Hermione became overwhelmed as a wave of hate and grief crashed into her. The intensity of Malfoy's feelings was physically painful.
She gagged as she had a flashback of a woman's body, her milky white skin absolutely drenched in blood, her face was covered in bruises and gashes. The color of her long hair was unidentifiable as it was also covered and matted with blood. She was groaning in pain. Three men were looming over her quivering body and leering at her. Their trousers were undone and the woman's legs held evidence of rape. Two of them violently kicked her body, laughing while doing so. The third one was busy removing a heavy sword from a wall that held many medieval weapons. The sobbing woman screamed at someone to look away before the sword was brought down on her neck.
"Hermione! Listen to me. Tell me what's wrong. Does something hurt?" asked Edric, his voice full of anxiety. He only stopped gently shaking her when her eyes lost their hazy appearance.
"I need to see Malfoy," she replied, her voice full of conviction. She started to rise out of bed, despite Edric's sharp warnings.
On shaky legs she started to make her way to the bathroom door.
Edric finally conceded and offered her his arm to keep from stumbling, she took it with great gratitude and ignored the dizziness and fear she felt as she knocked on the bathroom door.
Hermione couldn't breathe as she felt Draco's rage reach a level so high that it was palpable. His need for violence and retribution was disorientating her, but she was determined to calm him down. The urge to soothe and comfort him was inexplicable, but extremely compelling. The memory of the woman she had seen had shaken her, she could only imagine how it had affected Malfoy.
She didn't know the identity of the woman and frankly she didn't care, but she knew that she meant a lot to Malfoy.
. . .
Draco was struggling to repress the emotions threatening to consume him. A knock on the door interrupted his grim thoughts. He very slowly turned his head toward the sound, an almost feral look on his face.
. . .
Edric was concerned. The blood bond between Draco and Hermione appeared to be unstable, yet extremely powerful. He would have to read up on these sort of blood bonds when he got home because he definitely needed answers. If he didn't know better, he'd say that they were starting to form a telepathic link, which was astounding considering how long they had been apart from each other.
He had nearly had a heart attack when Hermione appeared to have succumbed to a trance. Her open, glazed eyes had worried him, but he there was no mistaking the power that was in the air. He had felt it twice already in the last hour.
The pensive healer broke out of his thoughts as he noticed that his patient's breathing was ragged. Her extreme pallor had him concerned. She had let go of his arm, but her body kept trembling and swaying. It looked as if she was about to collapse any second now. Against his better judgement, he carefully put his arm around her to balance her.
Thankful for Edric's thoughtfulness, Hermione tried to knock again when the door flew open.
Her stomach did a funny flip as she saw Malfoy standing in front of her, dripping wet, with only a towel wrapped around his narrow hips. The first thing she noticed, aside from his sculpted body, was that his hip markings were glowing a faint red, the second thing she noticed was that his usually pale eyes were flickering from a reddish color to his natural grey. The third thing she noticed was how he momentarily stared at Edric's arm and lifted an eyebrow.
Edric shifted uncomfortably under Draco's piercing glare. He wanted to release her, but he stood his ground. If it weren't for his arm, he was sure the small witch would fall down. She was already leaning against him and putting a lot of her weight on him.
"What do you want, mudblood?" spat Draco, a scowl now present on his face.
Not knowing what to say, and daunted by his cruel words, Hermione racked her brain for an acceptable answer. A moment ago all she wanted to do was to comfort him, but now seeing how unaffected he appeared she just felt foolish.
Draco searched her eyes, they seemed haunted, and anxious.
"I wanted to see if you were okay," she finally said.
"Why?" questioned the perplexed wizard with surprise evident in his voice. It had taken great effort on his part to calm himself down. The fact that Edric was touching her threatened to break the precarious hold he had on his barely restrained fury.
"Because I saw her. The woman," Hermione answered truthfully. Hopefully he would understand what she meant by those cryptic words.
Draco's eyes narrowed substantially, he glanced from Hermione to Edric wondering how much they knew. Judging by Edric's furrowed brow, he didn't appear to know too much.
"What do you know"? Hermione heard Malfoy ask Edric, and frowned at how easily the blond wizard had disregarded her.
"I don't know what she's talking about," admitted the baffled healer.
There was a moment of silence and Edric simply said, "I didn't see a woman."
Draco knew when Edric lied, he was actually quite a terrible liar. At the moment the sincerity of his words convinced him that Edric was indeed oblivious. The mudblood, on the other hand, seemed to know something and that worried him.
Cold, grey eyes were again locked onto honey ones.
Still boring his gaze into her, he ordered his healer to go outside.
Hermione felt wariness creep into her bones once she finally understood what Draco wanted. He wanted to be alone with her. She mentally berated herself, a couple of minutes ago she had thought of Malfoy as being comparative to a wounded animal, but now that she physically saw him without being able to read his thoughts and emotions, he seemed like a predator.
The idea that someone as menacing as him would need someone to comfort him now seemed ludicrous to her.
"No, don't leave," protested Hermione, holding on to Edric.
Draco rose a contemptuous eyebrow at the scene displayed before him. Seeing her touch and being touched by another male was making him feel dangerously jealous. In the back of his mind he knew that it was Edric's job to heal her, but at the moment all he wanted was for the freckled healer to back away from his mudblood.
"Let go of her," said Draco to Edric.
Edric shook his head. "If I let her go, she'll lose her balance," he explained, readjusting his grip on Hermione. He knew it wasn't wise to resist Draco's request, yet he couldn't bring himself to leave the delicate witch in his employer's presence. Draco seemed oddly unsettled.
Hermione's mind was screaming at her to get away from Malfoy, but her body appeared to have an agenda of it's own as it sought to get closer to the wizard's inviting warmth. Her eyes slowly closed and she relaxed in Edric's arms as her mind clouded.
The two wizards began conversing, but she felt too tired and content to keep up with their conversation.
A few minutes later, she felt her body being shifted.
The fact that Malfoy was now the one holding her instead of Edric barely registered in her mind.
Dazedly she looked around as she now found herself in a lavish bathroom. Finally snapping back to reality, Hermione looked around wildly.
"Put me down!" she exclaimed, now fully lucid.
Taunting, male laughter was her only response.
"I said put me down!" she repeated.
"You'll have to let go of me," whispered Draco into her ear.
Hermione shivered, then she became aware of the fact that her arms were around his neck.
She abruptly released him and he gently lowered her.
As her feet touched the cold floor she noticed how opulent the bathroom was. She touched one of the decorative walls, admiring the intricate patterns of the marble.
"Where is Edric?" she questioned. Her gaze resettled on the arrogant wizard. He was casually leaning against a wall, a lazy smile spreading across his handsome face. Hermione thought he looked like a cat that had just caught a mouse.
"Not here," he replied dismissively.
"That's informative," muttered Hermione under hear breath, unable to keep from rolling her eyes.
"Did you say something?" he inquired, amused by her reaction.
Hermione glared at him, but not before she noticed that he was still only wearing a towel around his narrow hips.
She shook her head. Draco followed her gaze and smirked.
Heat rushed to her face and she quickly turned around, taking an extreme interest in the wall she had been admiring a few moments earlier. "W-what am I doing here?"
"Edric said you wanted to take a shower," said Draco from behind her.
Hermione turned around to look at him "I can take a shower by myself," she informed him. It was true she desperately wanted to take a shower, but she still didn't understand what he was doing in the bathroom.
"True, but you might fall down, so Edric insisted that someone should watch over you while you showered just in case anything happened," he drawled.
Realization finally dawned on her. Taking a controlling breath, she attempted to explain to him that his presence was not necessary but he was not budging.