Thank you so much for all the reviews! I know you have questions about the future of main characters, but understand that if I told you now, you wouldn't be surprised And yes, Abraxas is a very interesting persona and definitely deserves some more chapters Oh, and yes, Hermi definitely does miss her husband Draco, but more about that in this chapter ;)

Menteur: Chapter 9: Being Granger a.k.a The Unexpected Date Part 2

October 7, 1943

They swam for at least twenty minutes before they reached the point where the mellow sandy bed of the shallows rapidly declined in a form of underwater cliff consisting of massive rock formations and occasional dirt plateau. Hermione turned to the astonished wizard next to her and the look on his face nearly made her burst with laughter; his clear blue eyes were widened into a size of small saucers and pale lips slightly parted into a shape of an almost perfect 'O'. The childish admiration was obvious. All his normally sharp aristocratic features seemed softer, almost like Draco's…

There was a reason why she agreed to go with him today. She needed information - plain and simple- and if Tom sent Abraxas to lure some out of her, she could at least in return lure some out of him. Two can play this game, after all. The underwater search for the lake monster, on the other hand, was a more spontaneous idea. There was something she needed to do to gain Malfoy's trust, and why not an introduction of a harmless vegetarian giant living on the bottom of the lake, right? (What could go wrong?)

Hermione shook off the uncomfortable feeling, that maybe it wasn't the only reason why she took Abraxas on this trip, and lightly tapped on his shoulder to catch his attention. Then she pointed to a large crater far below, where she knew the squid lived back in her time. The young wizard nodded and followed her closer to the dark opening. To assure she will be able to lure the giant out of its cavern home, Hermione collected hands full of Elodia weed growing on the edge of the cliffs, which was known to be one of the many plants the squid enjoyed, and swam right above the fissure. Bit by bit she opened her arms, letting all the weed slowly sink into the darkness, where it disappeared out of their sights.

Based on his puzzled smirk and teasingly raised eyebrows, Hermione was sure Abraxas just lost even the last bit of his faith in her sanity, if he ever had any to begin with, but she decided that her actions were not worth explaining and simply grinned back at him while making a just-wait gesture. And really, it didn't take more than couple minutes before a huge crimson tentacle-arm emerged from the darkness beneath them. It was at least sixty feet long and sturdier than the oldest of the trees in the Forbidden Forest, slowly almost leisurely, making its way upwards in a hope for more delicious greens and weeds. Hermione smiled as the squid's arm missed her by an arm-length (heh), and signaled Abraxas, who was still lingering in a safe distance, to come closer. The wide-eyed wizard woke up from his self-induced trance and hastily swam towards Hermione's extended, awaiting arm. Their fingers intertwined as they watched the massive tentacle retreat back into the lair, where the rest of its body was still hidden. Obviously, the squid did not find the weeds Hermione provided alluring enough to actually leave the comfort of its home. But the experience of seeing such a beautiful creature was priceless none the less.

Hermione's eyes wondered over to the Malfoy next to her. The piercing blue eyes shined with amazement and pale lips were curved into a wide toothy grin. It was so long since she saw that smile. The picture of Draco flashed through her mind. The youngest Malfoy rarely let himself relax enough for real smile to grace his face, yet the careless grin, he put on every time a new plan sparked up his mind, was permanently burned deep into Hermione's memory. The same grin Abraxas wore right now…So beautiful! She frowned at the undesirable feelings; she should not feel anything for the young man next to her- he was not Draco! He was Abraxas Malfoy, Riddle's right hand, and worst of all, Draco's grandfather. Yet she couldn't tear her gaze away from the flushed lips; they were so close. She could just close her eyes and…

(flashback)

Hermione felt a familiar soothing feeling of something soft brushing against her lips and cheeks, yet she didn't dare to open her eyes to check for its cause, because if she even peeked through her eyelashes, the dream of last night might vanish into nothing more than a distant memory. So she just smiled into the kiss and let the feeling take over.

"Morning" a smooth, husky voice whispered so close to her ear, she could feel the hot breath of its owner making the hair on the back of her neck stand in excitement. Still thinking it's only a dream, instead of answering the young witch leaned further into the soft touches, not bothering with any sort of response.

But the other voice was persistent: "Slept well I hope, Mrs. Malfoy?"

Only after that was she finally brave enough to move her eyelids, allowing one of her amber orbs to be welcomed by a set of pale blue ones, while the other stayed buried in an old fleece blanked, which currently served as a temporary pillow underneath her messy head.

"Better than ever, Mr. Malfoy." She answered truthfully, avoiding his gaze in embarrassment.

She could feel her face getting progressively hotter in a memory of last night's events, which made her husband chuckle lightly as he moved to nibble on her exposed collarbone, while she raised her left hand to inspect the ostentatious wedding band on her ring finger.

If you told her two years ago that one day she's going to leave her childhood romance, Ron, and marry Draco Malfoy, Hermione Granger would probably laugh at your face and, and for your own sake, recommend visiting St. Mungo's as soon as possible… but here she was, in arms of the most hated Slytherin and ex-Death Eater, and she felt content. After years of constant battle against the Dark Magic and Voldemort's minions, Draco has gradually become the spark of light in the world of darkness. He was the ideal prince in a shining armor, the perfect soldier and comrade to have on your side in a battle, smart and cunning, but also a soul-mate, who would hold her, on the nights she felt like giving up, until her tears ceased and she was able to sleep again. She would go to the end of the world if he'd only asked her to.

(end of the flashback)

Hermione's eyes fluttered open, focusing on the blond man in front of her. The slight puzzlement, probably caused by her temporary unresponsiveness, soon changed into a blunt smirk, as he swam pass, signaling her to follow. Their surroundings were getting darker every minute from the lack of direct sunlight, and it was time to head back to the shore before the groundskeeper closes the main gate for the night, locking them out.

Abraxas was the first one to reach the grassy bank not far from where they'd left their clothing, closely followed by the dark haired witch. The long swim to the depths of the large lake and back was physically surprisingly exhausting and Hermione was glad to finally drag her now-weary body out of the water, onto the solid ground. The crisp evening air had a particulary relaxing effect on their fatigued muscles, so they just lay there, on their backs, with arms and legs stretched out in attempt to calm the labored breathing, until Malfoy disturbed the peaceful silence surrounding them by rolling over to his side and laughing.

"Mmm?" the witch tried really hard to form a coherent question, but failed miserably. Everything seemed so peaceful; she just wanted to curl up into a small ball and stay like that for the rest of the time, right on the shore of the Dark Lake, far from Voldemort, far from her past, far from the reality.

Abraxas elegantly raised his eyebrow at the girl's antiques, but answered anyway: "I should probably use this as a means of exercise for my team."

Hermione giggled as an image of tens of female students pushing their way closer to the waterfront just so they can adore the naked bodies of Slytherin Quiddich team came to her mind. The 40s were pretty conservative compare to her times, especially so on the school grounds, so she could only assume how flushed faces would be and covered mouths of young girls as they watched their classmates swim and sweat in nothing more than speedos. More giggles escaped, as Hermione realized just how preposterous the thoughts were coming from somebody who was herself in nothing but underwear lying by the lake with an equally nude boy.

"I bet that would cause some commotion" she mused in her fake French accent, entertained.

Malfoy's smiled broadened.

"How did you know the squid is vegetarian?" he asked suddenly, and from his expression it was obvious he was genuinely interested in an answer.

"I read it…" It was only partially a lie. The ex-Gryffindor did read a book or two about the freshwater fauna of the Dark Lake, but it was years after she and Harry dived in and faced the supposed monster predator for the first time just to find out it has no interest in meat what so ever.

The blond nodded skeptically, but satisfied enough with her highly unspecific answer. Hermione smiled when she realized he won't push her for anything more specific even though he could and probably also wanted to. After all, she would be just as curious if somebody claimed to never been to England, yet had a very extended knowledge of region and its inhibitors' business. His ever-present leisure and undemanding approach made her somehow crave the Slytherin's company, even if it wasn't all honest and straight-forward friendship.

Hermione sighed as she tried really hard not to think how much he looks like Draco and how easy it would be to just let the little fact, that he is not the one she married, slip her mind, to simply close her eyes and pretend. She missed Draco more than ever. And Abraxas looked just like him… Hermione cursed her brain for not cooperating as it should and took a deep, dreadful breath.

Abraxas sensed the slight shift in her mood and rolled little closer, unaware how much worse he was making the situation for her.

"Maybe we should go back" he offered, rising to kneel next to Hermione, who was still lying motionlessly on the ground "It's getting late."

But before he had a chance to make the slightest movement, Hermione perked up into a similar position, and somewhat forcefully grabbed his wrist. Her eyes widened at her own rush action. Their close proximity felt so wrong, but she suddenly found herself unable to tear away from the familiar frosty pools of blue, which were bewilderedly staring back at her.

"Don't go" she whispered before taking the one half-step separating them and their lips met in a vicious fight for dominance. She could feel strong arms encompassing her slim frame, and the world around them, whether it was the sounds of splashing water or the lights inside of castle going off, started to fade until there was nothing else than him. Hermione's hands went to pull on the blond locks as she deepened the kiss, while her captor freely roamed her body anywhere he could reach. Hermione drew her breast as close to his chest as their awkward kneeling position allowed, never letting go of his lips until the need for air became unbearable. Her body trembled in anticipation as Malfoy's kisses slowly moved from her lips lower and lower down her exposed neck.

"I suggest we continue this somewhere else…" whispered Abraxas breathlessly into her ear.

And the young witch found herself nodding silently. There was no turning now.

XXXTO BE CONTINUEDXXX

Don't forget to leave a review, that is what makes me write faster…and hopefully better