Lemon Ahoy.
Draco left for his meeting with the Minister and Hermione felt like she was losing her mind with worry. This meeting would decide if Greg Mullen was indeed her parents killer, whether Draco was still employed as an Auror, whether he would be taken to trial for breaking several laws in his quest for this man, and whether or not Hermione could tell him what she so desperately wanted to. She was practically burning a trail into the carpet with how quickly she paced from the door to the window. She was wringing her hands to keep from ripping clumps of hair out of her scalp, and she kept looking around anxiously as though somewhere in the room lied all the answers to her questions.
Harry told her he would send his Patronus if anything happened, and she knew he wouldn't forget, but all this waiting was driving her up the walls. Huffing to herself, she decided she was being ridiculous, so she went to the bathroom for a shower.
She let the little room steam up around her as she stood staring at herself naked in the mirror. She could see herself filling out a bit more, thanks to her (now regular) eating habits. She still couldn't stomach a whole lot just yet, but she was proud of herself for not skipping meal times anymore, even if it meant she could only manage some buttered toast and tea on some days. The color was returning to her skin, and her hair was no longer damaged as it had been. Harry had kindly brought over a house elf in his charge that was also an exceptional hairdresser, and she did wonders on Hermione's mop of a head. Now, she was sporting a medium length layered cut that made her curls spring back to life.
She got herself in the shower and just stood there for ages, letting the hot water prickle all over her skin. She raised her face to the steady stream, and the heated calm of the water made the tension lift out of her. Finally, she managed to relax, so she set her focus on washing and grooming. After several minutes, she shut the water off and gently towel drying her body and hair, she stepped out into the cool room to find some clothes.
She stopped short at the sight of Draco opening the door and entering the room. He caught sight of her and she saw his skin turn a light shade of rose. He shut the door and walked over to her. She felt her heart slamming in her chest again, and gripped tightly to the towel. He stopped an arms reach before her and again looked her up and down briefly before settling on her eyes.
"What did they say?" she asked nervously. It couldn't be horrible news, as he was here and not being hauled off to Azkaban or some other place for evaluation.
"I did not get fired..." He said slowly. He was fidgeting, and it was very unlike him. She felt like her gut was twisting in disappointment.
"Was he.. Is he not..." She couldn't bring herself to finish the sentence. Draco was silent for a moment longer. She felt tears prick the corners of her eyes.
"He killed himself before they could get a confession out of him. Attacked a guard, snatched his wand and used the killing curse on himself."
Hermione blew out a long, shakey breath. She could see the anguish and disappointment on his face. He'd given up so much of his time to this only to have that moment of justice ripped away. She knew he was convinced this was a failure that meant he could never bring her closure, and never move forward with their relationship, as it were, the way he wanted. He was crushing himself under the weight of his own sadness and disappointment, and she could feel it. Her magic felt heavy with the realization; His soul was aching.
"Do you believe it was him. Are you convinced?" she asked gently. He looked intently into her eyes.
"Without a doubt, it was him, Hermione. I know it was. I had him right there... almost had it all... I'm so sorry." He said, sounding absolutely defeated. He dropped his head down, avoiding her eyes in shame. She let slip a small smile, and tenderly lifted his eyes back up to hers.
"Thank you... That's good enough for me, Draco. You've done more than enough. Let this mission of yours go now."
"But I didn't-"
"I love you."
He froze, mouth dropping open in shock at her quiet admission.
"What?" he asked in disbelief.
She closed the distance between them, rising on her tip toes and planted a chaste kiss to his lips. She relished in the warmth of him. His lips were soft, and sweet and perfectly molded to hers. She pulled back to look him in the eyes.
"I love you." Her lips brushed against his, and she kissed him lightly again with a small chuckle. "You came out of nowhere, like a phantom of the night or something." He raised a brow at her and smirked at the comparison. She laughed again before continuing. "You were patient with me. You kept me rooted. You proved to me that I wasn't as alone as I convinced myself to be. Somehow, you came in and stole my heart by just being here for me, and being this completely raw and honest version of yourself that I'd never seen before. You've done enough, Draco. Now I just want you to stay with me, where ever that is. Here, or out there, it doesn't matter, as long as we are together. I've gotten quite attached to you, you know?"
He smiled and wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her close to him. She felt slightly embarrassed she was only in a towel, but the look in his eyes quickly dispelled that. He kissed her forehead, her cheek, the corner of her lips, down her jaw and her collar bone. She sighed into him and focused on the feel of his lips kissing their way back up the other side. She lifted her arms to wrap around his neck, which subsequently led to the towel falling away from her body between them. She felt Draco become still, and he pulled away slightly to look into her eyes.
"Hermione..." he began, but she kissed him, silencing any questions or doubts.
"I've waited long enough. I've denied myself long enough," she whispered, lips grazing lightly over his own. "Make love to me, Draco."
His breath caught in his throat, and he felt heat rush through his entire body at her request. Gently sliding his hands over her arms, to her bare back, he pulled her flush against him. She watched him through half lidded eyes, his complexion becoming that beautiful rosey pink again, and he kissed her deeply. He tightened his grip around her waist, lifting her up and she easily wrapped her legs around him. They never broke the kiss as he walked them to the bed and gently fell onto it.
Hermione, being the impatient witch she was, wordlessly vanished Draco's clothing much to his amusement. He smiled against her mouth, and moved his attentions to her neck. With every kiss, suckle, and lick, Hermione offered Draco the most delicious whimpers and moans he'd ever heard. She shook and caressed every bit of him she could reach, and the feel of her warm breath on his skin sent shivers throughout his body.
There was a pulsing between them, both their magics desperately seeking one another out, entangling within their shared proximity. The feel of it was intensely satisfying, and they could feel their bodies burning with the heat of their passionate embrace. Draco positioned himself above her, capturing her mouth in another flaming kiss before they needed to break away for air.
"Draco, please. I can't wait for you any longer, please..." Hermione was panting, whispering to him in the sexiest voice, he couldn't believe this was the same dispassionate woman from not so long ago. A fire had reignited in her, and she didn't care that it was consuming everything inside her. All She cared about was this moment between her and Draco.
He groaned into her neck, and reached his hand down, pausing to rest on her lower abdomen and cast a silent contraception spell, before finally moving to his throbbing erection.He rubbed the head firmly against her slit and over her pulsing clit. She moaned and gripped tightly to his shoulders as he raised himself up a bit. He was watching her beneath him, as beautiful as ever, her skin glistened lightly with sweat and her eyes were dark and deep with desire and lust. He never broke eye contact with her as he readied himself and slid his shaft slowly into her welcoming heat. They both moaned in pleasure and he could feel her clamp down on his cock. It was the most incredible feeling, and he lost himself in it.
Bringing his hips back, he slowly began to move within her, relishing in every whisper, every praise that left her kiss swollen lips. The sweet sound of his name falling from her in waves as they both felt the rising pressure of a release they were chasing begin to intensify.
"Oh, Draco, yes, please keep going. So good, it feels so good."
Her words latched onto him and he felt his thrusts become more erratic. He was gripping onto her waist, leaning forward to catch her lips again. Their lips brushed against one another's, their breath mixing in heated gasps and grunts. Draco snapped his hips forward, hard, several more times and he could feel her tremble around his shaft and she arched into him when her climax broke over her like glass over concrete. He quickly followed, face buried in her neck, groaning when he finally spilled all he had into her, twitching and panting while they both came down from the high of the moment.
He looked down at her with severance, and took in every ounce of her beauty.
"Its bizarre, the way this came about... but I'm glad it did. I love you, Hermione and I look forward to starting life over with you."
She smiled tiredly and ran her fingers through his silky hair.
"How about we start by looking for a place to live. I'm bored of my room here and yours is no better." She replied, still slightly breathless, and he grinned the biggest she'd ever seen as he moved to lie beside her.
"Anything for you, Hermione."
He kissed her deeply again, and she felt that unrelenting knot in her chest loosen and fall away from her. It was replaced by the tender caress of his magic, cradling her heart, keeping it safe.
Everyone called her the brightest witch of her age, but she was happy to admit that Draco taught her so much during their stay at the Leaky Cauldron. Whatever the pain was, or the fear or sorrow, nothing ever lingered. Those moments of despair could feel crippling, but they didn't have a strong enough grip to retain a hold on her spirit for long. The panic, the doubt, the hurt, all of it. He taught her it will pass, and make way for happiness, acceptance, and love. They found a way to heal together, and she was content again, finally.
End Chapter 10
That's it everyone! I really hope you enjoyed this story as much as I enjoyed writing it. I am open to doing a sequal if enough people request it. On another note, If like to mention I have chapter 1 of my next story UPLOADED NOW so I hope you read it, too. It's called Take A Chance and is a requested Ginny/Luna fic. Well, thank you all again, and have a wonderful holiday!