Of Revelations, Theories and Unexpected Consequences [PG-13] for pencil_gal
This story was generously written by a Pinch Hitter in a much shortened writing time. Their name will be revealed when we post our final Master List.
Title: Of Revelations, Theories and Unexpected Consequences
Author: in_my_blood
Rating: PG-13
Recipient: pencil_gal
Disclaimer: Nope, not mine. Nothing but the plot and occasional (just barely there if you look really closely) humour. I make no profit from this.
Warning(s): Some mature themes.
Word Count: 5,290 words approximately.
Author/Artist Note(s): Post-Hogwarts, a little but not really epilogue compliant (I kinda took what I wanted and left the rest). Thank you so much to my beta, bunney, who helped me short notice. You caught some mistakes I wouldn’t have noticed if I’d gone over it 10 more times than I already had! And then I went and re-wrote some stuff and asked you to go over it again, which you very graciously did. :P Thank you as well for giving me someone to talk to about this. Also, thank you to the mods, not just for this exchange, but for all of them. Seriously, some of my favourite fics have been resultant of a dmhgficexchange. The effort & time you guys give up for this is astounding. I’m going to miss them. And lastly, pencil_gal, I’m really very sorry I couldn’t work the alcohol into there. Especially considering your prompt wasn’t really very demanding at all. I tried, I really did, but they honestly resisted. Apparently, they wanted to get together without the excuse of liquor...
Summary: Draco was always trying to find a way to Just. Make. Her. Stop. But what happens when he succeeds?
~ * ~ * ~
Of Revelations, Theories and Unexpected Consequences
Draco was always trying to find a way to Just. Make. Her. Stop. It wasn’t that he really minded her talking. After all, she said intelligent things while speaking, unlike some people he knew.
It was just that she made her point and then she would keep going. Like right now.
Yeah, he got it, more funds for an additional Teacher/Counsellor at Durmstrang. And he would do something about it, too. He thought it was just as important as she seemed to think it was. But really, did it require this much drilling? Just because she had to say things three or four times at school in order for those half-wits she called friends to hear it once, didn’t mean everyone deserved the same treatment.
Besides, it was so annoying when she kept going on and on and Draco, ever the opportunist, would find himself taking the opportunity to point out just how nice she looked in that pencil skirt and heels.
In order to show its support for the winning side and in an attempt to downplay its contribution to the war, things at the Ministry had changed. For instance, one could wear Muggle office clothes or wizarding robes to work. Whichever one preferred. There were now intercoms and telephones in every office as a secondary means of communication, as well as computers.
And then there was the program. New Thinking was certainly one of the biggest changes in the wizarding world since the war, its purpose and intent to educate the next generation whilst in their most developmental phase.
A simple title, really, but then Hermione Granger had never believed in judging a book by its cover.
Played out at Hogwarts originally and now, three years later, all of the wizarding schools around the world, New Thinking was dreamt up by one Hermione Granger and funded by Draco Malfoy.
Based on Granger’s belief that the root problem with the War had been ignorance, the program sought to educate the children in an unusual way.
A whole new class was developed to this end. Students underwent different activities, such as the analysis of blood samples from their fellow students, using what the Muggles called a ‘microscope’. They were to compare samples from Purebloods, Halfbloods, and Muggleborns, to see that there was no difference.
The later years were to take on case studies of some of the more horrific murders (within reason, of course) that occurred during the war. They were to analyse the reasons behind the attacks. They looked at the families and the children that were killed. They faced the cold, stark truth of the murders.
New Thinking aimed to show the students how and why Voldemort’s thinking was twisted and wrong, not just tell them.
It was also an attempt to bring about an alternate way of thinking in students whose parents were still inclined towards Voldemort’s way of thinking and to give them an alternative; to stop, even just for a second, and allow them to think for themselves.
Something, to be entirely honest, Draco wished he had received.
All of the Teachers were Cousellors as well so that they were well equipped to help the students that needed it through the more emotional and psychological aspects of the transition. After all, for some, it was an entire turn about in their thinking and the way they saw the world. Something that big was liable to cause some existential crises.
But, of course, the parents' permission was required. That had been their biggest challenge in the beginning.
“So, I’m sure you can see the necessity for an additional Counsellor at Durmstrang and in the long run, I truly think that it would be more beneficial than detrimental.”
“As I've tried to say numerous times, Granger, I agree with you. No wonder you always look so tired. You run yourself into the ground with all these long-winded, one-sided discussions. Constantly repeating yourself. I mean really, was it entirely necessary? I was ready to say yes from the moment the first sentence -“
“I beg your pardon? Tired? Well, maybe it’s because you constantly leave me to do-“
He tuned out again. Really, he couldn’t help but take occasional digs. It was too much like a bad habit, really. Like smoking, or drinking. He would go a time without insulting her at all and he’d feel this overwhelming itch to just...well, insult her. It’s not that she looked even remotely tired. She looked fantastic. But it had been one whole week and a half, after all, since his last little dig at her and she had just dragged him through her whole damn tirade. He felt he was justified to a little revenge.
Besides, there was just something about seeing her all riled up…
But now she was ranting. Worse than lecturing.
To this day, he doesn’t know what made him do it. He hadn’t even really thought about saying anything, but there he was, opening his mouth and words were pouring out.
“Astoria and I are getting divorced, you know.”
Abrupt silence.
“Been heading our way for a while now. But, I guess that’s what happens when you don’t properly think things through.” He looked up to find a silent Hermione Granger staring at him, mouth agape.
Shocked that she was not only silent, but had been for the past minute, when before that she had been deep in rant mode, he thought he’d make the best of the situation.
“But I entirely agree with you. Durmstrang does need another Counsellor. I’ll get on it as soon as I’ve finished with this report.” He tapped the closed manila folder on the desk in front of him. “Now, was that everything, or was there another issue we needed to work our way through?”
“Ah, no. No, I believe that’s everything.” She collected her things almost slowly, as though she was confused or in a bit of a daze, frowning the whole time.
But collect her things and soon depart, she did.
Draco couldn’t believe it. Had he truly found the way to silence the Hermione Granger? Or was it just a fluke?
Well, now there was a theory he’d just have to test.
~ * ~ * ~
“Malfoy! I thought you said you’d get that extra Counsellor for Durmstrang! I thought you said you understood what I was saying and the importance of the proposition!” She’d stormed into his office, throwing open his door, face red with anger (or exertion from the trip to his office, he wasn’t quite sure) and was waving a sheaf of paper at him like a rapier.
He smiled to himself, very widely. Perfect....
“Why yes, Granger, I did. But then I reconsidered. I don’t believe we have sufficient funds…”
She had frozen, eyes wide, staring with shock before it began, albeit slowly at first.
“Suf...suffi...SUFFICIENT FUNDS? You have got to be kidding me! You just spent God knows how much on that stupid trip, but we don’t have enough for something legitimate, something which will be of benefit to so many others? To so many children?” She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, and when she opened them again, there was such blatant disgust on her face that Draco almost visibly flinched. Her voice fell to a deadly quiet whisper.
“You know, you almost had me fooled. Almost. I was starting to think that you had changed. Had really, truly changed. That New Thinking meant something to you. But obviously, I was wrong. You’re still the same selfish, pig-headed, arrogant, soul-less arse you always have been.
“What? All this, the funding, the politeness, just so you could clear your name in the public’s eye? You know, I don’t know why I’m surprised.” She stopped abruptly and looked down.
“I don’t even know what I was thinking…” she muttered to herself as she picked up her papers and made to leave his office.
He couldn’t let that happen. He had only intended to get her ranting again in order to test his theory.
“You can’t just leave, Granger,” he said calmly, more calmly than he felt if he was to be honest with himself.
She whirled around, eyes flashing. “And why is that, Malfoy? Hmmm? For that matter, why are you even here? Why did you fund the program? I’ve always wanted to ask.”
Was he really going to do this? Was he really going to tell her the true reason for his involvement in, and advocation of, the program? He hadn’t told anyone else - let them think what they will - but Granger...Granger mattered, for some reason. He wanted her to know that he really was serious about this. That he truly cared. And he wanted to let her know why.
“Having a child changes you. Changes the way you see the world, changes the way you want the world to be. I’m sure you’ve experienced the same with your two."
“Having Scorpius, it...it made me realise a few things. And it gave me a different perspective on others. The love you have for a child, for your child...” He took a breath, attempting to reorder his thoughts.
“You want to do things for them. You want them to be happy, to feel loved, to be safe. And there is no possible way he would have been safe in the world I was reluctantly helping to build. Not with that crazed man telling him what to do.”
“But at the time, there was only me. Well, and my parents, which is what was being used against me. But other than them, there was just me. I had no overwhelming urge to protect anything. I had no one to make a safer and brighter world for."
He paused before sighing heavily. “What I’m trying to say, albeit none too elegantly, is that I am sorry. I am truly sorry for every part I played in the war. For the insults of a child who thought he knew best, but really, knew nothing. For my ignorance.
“I’ve never had the balls to do this, though I’ve wanted to for a while. But for some reason, with the divorce and everything...” He trailed off, contemplative, before looking back at her again.
“I know now what you were fighting so hard for. I didn’t then, but I do now. And I just wish I had realised earlier than I did.
“That’s why I’m here. That’s why I funded New Thinking. Because I believe in it. I believe ignorance was one of the biggest issues of the war, one of the reasons Voldemort gained so many followers. I truly do.”
She stood there, eyes wide, watching him. But Draco knew her well enough now, had worked with her for long enough, to realise that her mind was far away, and whirling fast.
It was on the verge of making him uncomfortable when all of a sudden her eyes sharpened.
“That...is not what I expected. Thank you for telling me. I know it was a rather personal bit of information...I’m ah...” She paused, frowning, and then continued. “I’m going to go...I have this...”
Sensing her discomfort, he waved her away. Personally, he was surprised she had said as much as she had, given the bombshell he’d just dropped on her.
“I’ll get right on that extra Counsellor for Durmstrang.”
After she had left with a nod, Draco lent back in his chair, arms behind his head.
Huh. How about that? It did work.
~ * ~ * ~
That was rude. She really shouldn’t have left so abruptly after he had opened up and been so honest with her. But she couldn’t help it. She had known Draco Malfoy for most of her life. Though she was beginning to think his beliefs truly had changed, she had never expected an apology. It wasn’t in his character to do such a thing, to admit defeat or wrongness in any way. At least not without a very vicious battle.
So when an apology is exactly what she got, without asking for or expecting it, it threw her for a loop. This hadn’t been some flippant or even resentful apology, this had been genuine. She had seen it, but more importantly, she had felt it.
Not only that, but what he had actually said gave her pause. It was insightful and honest and far more mature than she had ever believed possible for him.
Not much else could have had such a drastic effect on Hermione Granger - nothing really had since Ron had come to her with divorce papers in hand.
She stopped dead in the corridor on the way to her office.
Actually, it had happened recently. Twice, to be exact, and all within the past week. All induced by little personal nuggets of information Malfoy had kindly bestowed upon her in the most abrupt of manners...
Nothing had really seemed out of the ordinary, but now Hermione began to connect the dots. Every time that he had dropped one of these little revelations on her, she had been mad at him.
And, just possibly, yelling a little, she admitted with a wince.
She couldn’t help it. Despite the fact that she may have been developing a little…affection for the man didn’t mean he wasn’t beyond infuriating at times.
But this? This was not just infuriating, it was insulting on so very many levels. She was quickly escalating from disbelief to anger. He was playing with her!
Yes, she could just see it now. Malfoy leaning back in his desk chair, legs crossed and resting leisurely on his desk, his hands interlaced behind his head, a smug, self-satisfied smile on his face. She knew just the one, too. He had thrown it at her like a weapon too many times to count when they were in school.
So, he sought to silence her, did he? Well then.
Silence he would get.
~ * ~ * ~
“Granger?” Silence.
“Granger? Granger!” Still nothing.
Draco stood in the door of her office, completely perplexed as to why she wasn’t talking to him. She hadn’t spoken to him for the past day and a half and he couldn’t figure out why.
She could clearly hear him, knew he was there, even acknowledged him, but refused to converse with him.
He knew he was being immature, but he couldn’t help it. He hated being ignored.
“Granger, Granger, Granger, Granger, Granger, Granger, Granger, Granger, Gra-“
Perhaps he should take the death stare as a hint and leave....
But she still hadn’t said a word.
He saw it as a challenge. As far as Draco was concerned, she had thrown down the gauntlet at his feet, and by God, he’d not only pick it up, he’d win.
~ * ~ * ~
It had been hard. It had been very hard, but she had ignored Malfoy and he had finally gone away.
Perhaps what she was doing wasn’t very professional, but then again, neither had what he’d done. Given time to think it over, she had come to the conclusion that yes, he had been using his revelations in order to...well, shut her up, she supposed. But really, was it necessary? If he would simply imply or, Merlin forbid, state outright that he understood what she was saying, that he agreed, perhaps she needn’t feel as though she had to go over everything twice!
After all, reiteration wa-
An electrical crackle filled the air. “Granger? You there?”
She stared at the intercom on her desk, mouth slightly agape. He couldn’t really be...
“Fine, I get it, you’re not talking to me.”
He was! He was attempting to converse with her over the intercom! What did he think, it was cute?
“But you have to tell me why! If you don’t, how can I fix it?”
She supposed he was correct on that point.
“I mean really, what have I done anyway? Nothing as far as I can tell.”
Ok, now hang on just a...!
“I’ve been a good little Malfoy, floating your project. I’ve been civil, respectful, professiona-“
“Now, wait just a minute!! You have not been professional in the least, especially this last week!” She could have sworn she heard him smirking at her through the intercom.
“Ahh Granger, decided to grace me with the pleasure of your speech again, have you?”
“Only because you’re wrong, and I believe it deserves correcting, Malfoy.” If he wanted to be cool, calm and collected, so could she.
“So, pray tell, what exactly did I get wrong?”
“Well, I think we both know you haven’t exactly been professional or respectful lately.”
“What are you talking about? Just the other day, I opened a door for you, despite the fact that you didn’t even say good morning. Not a thank you after either, I believe. Which reminds me, why is it, exactly, that you are refusing to talk to me? This conversation notwithstanding, of course.”
“You can really sit there and say you have no idea?”
“Why yes, quite comfortably in fact.”
“Really? So you wouldn’t know anything about using personal...revelations, for lack of a better word, in order to shock me into silence?”
“Revelations? Silence? What exactly do you mean by revelations?”
“Do you deny it?”
“What, I’m before the Wizengamot now?”
“Do you deny it?!” She knew she said she’d stay calm, but by God this man was infuriating! Giving her the run around like that!
“No! God, no, I don’t deny it, ok? But I wasn’t doing it maliciously. It’s just, you talk so much, even after you’ve made your point, and here I stumble upon this way of making you stop. What was I supposed to do, wave goodbye to it as it passed me by? I think you forget, I’m still a Slytherin and a Malfoy at that. I may have changed, but the fundamentals remain the same.
“Besides, I don’t think you realise how much having the friends that you did at school affected you. They were so thick you constantly had to repeat yourself, and now you’re still doing the same, despite the fact some of us are intelligent enough to understand what you’re saying the first time!”
“Just about everything you said there is above and beyond insulting!”
“Not insulting, truthful. I should think you’d be grateful I have enough respect for you that I’m honest. But really, what did you expect anywa-“
”Grateful? I should be grateful you have respect for me? See, now that, right ther-“
“I mean really, can you blame me? Even as I try to explain my actions to you, something which you yourself demanded, you talk right over me. I’m not even sure you realise you’re doing it anymore.”
“-but to say one should be grateful to have your respect? That is the pinnacle of arrogance, that is - are you there?”
Silence.
“I can’t believe it! What, he just leaves the conversation when he starts to hear things he doesn’t like? That spineless, arrogant...” Lost for words, Hermione struggled for a moment, before slamming her fist onto her desk in triumph, “Ferret!”
“Hey now, Granger, I’m not so sure about that last one. It only happened once, and illegally, I might add. Not very nice or professional to bring up one’s most embarrassing moments like that.”
He leaned with casual grace against her doorframe, arms crossed, one leg bent behind the other. She hadn’t even heard him approach. It was moments like this, when he was thrown on her and she wasn’t expecting it or wasn’t prepared, that she realized with a start just how handsome he had become. She normally wasn’t an advocate for blonds, no matter the gender, but he carried it off well.
Tall, lightly muscled, just enough without going overboard, she thought to herself, and in that rare in-between of lithe and solid, he had plenty of nice things to look at. But for some reason, Hermione always found herself drawn to his eyes. His best feature, in her opinion. They were so expressive, when the rest of him wasn’t.
If he allowed them to be, that is. There were times - she remembered them well - when they could be just as cold, hard, and expressionless as the rest of him.
With a start, she realized he had allowed his eyes to be their full expressional self around her for quite some time now.
This moment was no exception. They almost danced with mirth, though at what, she had no idea. This situation was not at all funny!
“What are you doing here?”
“Why, I came to apologise, of course.” At this, his eyes became more solemn, more serious. “We all know apologies are more sincere in person. So, here goes.”
He pushed off the doorframe and closed the door, then took a seat in the chair opposite hers at her desk. She frowned at this, but made no comment.
He rested his forearms on his knees, hands clasped, as he looked down for a minute.
When he looked back up at her again, Hermione was thrown by the feeling in his eyes, the sincerity.
“It was insensitive and unprofessional, as you said. I gave no thought to either how it might look to others or how it might make you feel. I am truly sorry. It will never happen again.”
She knew he was being entirely honest and sincere with her. She could feel it. But she studied him for a moment longer.
“Well, it’s very hard to say ‘No, I don’t accept that apology’ and walk away, when it’s given like that, now isn’t it?” She eventually said.
He chuckled lightly to himself as he rose from the chair. He had begun to look a little panicked before she had finally spoken.
“True. Very true, Granger. So, all is forgiven?” He put his hand out, and waited for her to extend hers.
She waited a heartbeat, considering, and then also stood in order to proffer her own hand. “Yes. All is forgiven.” She smiled softly at him.
His hand was warm, but with an underlying strength as they shook, and Hermione found herself contemplating just what those hands would feel like touching other parts of her.
It was not until she snapped herself out of her thoughts that she realised that they were standing in her office, each leaning slightly over her desk, hands clasped together for what felt like far too long.
She looked up at him and felt a shock to realise that, unlike her, he was not looking at their hands, but at her. And his eyes were on fire. Something shot through her, and she felt the air around them start to change. She knew what was coming.
She tried to take her hand back, but he grasped it tighter, not enough to hurt, just enough to stop her from moving away. She looked back at their hands and realised that she was not uncomfortable in the least. Rather, she felt safe, warm and content, though excited too. Her need to withdraw her hand came solely from the feeling that boundaries were about to be overstepped. Boundaries which should be in place between two colleagues.
Looking back up at him again, she realised he had moved closer, leaning farther over her desk, drawing her closer to him. Her breath caught in her throat at the look in his eyes, the intent.
She opened her mouth to breathe out a word, a sentence, anything really to make this madness, this situation which was so foreign she didn't know quite how to handle it, just stop, so she could think for a second, but he beat her to it.
“You know, I really should have thought of this earlier.” His voice was low, almost a whisper.
“Wh-what?” She was momentarily confused, before all became clear with his next comment and ensuing action.
“The perfect way to silence the Hermione Granger.” He leaned forward and touched his lips lightly to hers.
The kiss was soft at first, tentative, and her eyelids slid closed at the contact. Little sparks felt like they were shooting from her lips and pleasant shock waves traveled up and down her chest.
She heard his sharp intake of breath, as though surprised she was allowing him this liberty, and then as the kiss grew more intense he pulled her around the desk, so it no longer stood between them. Suddenly, nothing stood between them, not even air.
Hermione suddenly found herself no longer dazed, as though her mind had blundered its way through the situation and come up with an appropriate reaction. Her body felt as though it was on fire at every point that she was in contact with him. She began to kiss him back vigorously.
Apparently, her mind’s response to the situation was to quite happily reciprocate.
She grew more adventurous, and it felt like a dam had broken. She deftly slipped her tongue between his lips and he groaned, suddenly pushing her backward until her back hit the wall behind her.
He pulled back slightly. His forehead rested lightly against hers while his eyes stared intently into her own. His hands rested on her hips and his fingers traced patterns.
“Are you sure about this, Granger?”
He lightly bit her bottom lip.
Trying to catch her breath, she contemplated for a moment.
“I don’t think I’ve ever been so sure about anything concerning you.” He grinned down at her before leaning in to kiss her again, deeper than before.
His hands slid up and down her sides. On the way up, he brushed the underside of her breasts with his thumbs. She gasped and he took that as permission to go further.
Breaking the kiss, he circled her nipples slowly with his thumbs and leaned forward to kiss her neck, guided to her most sensitive spot by her moans.
“Your place or mine?” He breathed the words into her neck, and it took her a moment to reply.
“Yours.” Her breaths were sharp.
He smirked, before taking his wand out and Disapparating them away.
~ * ~ * ~
They lay in bed, the sheet twisted around their legs and their waists, Hermione with her head and hand resting on his chest, Draco with his arm wrapped almost possessively around her waist.
His room was decorated in green, trimmed in silver and black. Very Slytherin colours, she knew, but for some reason, she didn't think that was why.
Besides, she wasn't sure other colours would really suit him quite the same way.
Suddenly, she was curious about something else.
“Why did you and Greengrass get a divorce?”
Many would have been taken aback by the sudden question, when silence had so warmly encased them only moments ago. But Malfoy took it all in stride, hardly appearing bothered in the least.
Ron had hated it when she had burst out with random thoughts and questions like that.
He took a moment to answer, as though contemplating his response.
“We weren’t really what you’d call...compatible. We just realized it too late. Our parents had chosen us for each other, so when the war ended and we were left adrift, unsure what was what and who was who, we clung to the only thing that seemed safe and vaguely normal, not even giving it a second thought. And it didn’t work.”
Ahhh. Hermione herself had thought along similar lines many a time about herself and Ron. After the war, they had just tried to pick things back up from where they had left them. Needless to say, it hadn’t worked out in the end. They hadn’t even considered the possibility that they were different people than what they had been before the war.
“Then who are you compatible with?” Hermione asked without thinking, realising too late that such a question, given their most recent activities, might be a little awkward.
But before she could take the question back, he answered.
“You, Granger. I’m compatible with you.”
And just like all of his other little revelations, Hermione was entirely and utterly shocked into silence.
But her recovery time was shortening.
“But what about all the insults? What about our constant bickering and arguing, especially of late?” Her tone was incredulous as she raised herself onto her elbow to look down at him.
“Why, Granger, have you never heard of foreplay?”
She couldn’t help herself. She laughed.
“Yes. Well…” She paused for a moment, contemplative.
She soon continued. “Even given that, we barely know each other, well, the current versions of ourselves at least.” She said all this very fast, as though nervous.
“I think we just got to know each other very well.” He grinned lasciviously up at her.
She looked down at him, smiling softly, but her mind whirled.
“That won’t stop us from making snap judgments about each other based on our passed opinions of one another. If we’re taking this seriously and want to actually try, we should make an attempt….” She stopped, her eyes a little wild, as if something had just occurred to her.
“Unless…unless you…don’t want to make this anymore serious than it already is…?” She sounded a little worried and Draco couldn’t help but wait a moment before responding. She looked adorable when she frowned.
“Perhaps you’re right. The fact that you don’t know that I would never do something like this without the intent of making it into something more serious just goes to show that we only really know the school era versions of each other. So, what do you suggest?” He tucked a curl behind her ear as he spoke.
She smiled brightly down at him and for a moment, he was worried for life and limb.
“A date. Or rather, a series of dates. A courtship, if you will. And in order to remain true to the concept, and guarantee that this-“ She waved between the two of them, “doesn’t become all that we are, I propose no more sex until a sufficient number of dates have been undertaken.”
He lay there, staring up at her, mouth agape.
“Why? Why woul-“
“I thought I had just explained why!”
“That wasn’t what I was going to ask, Granger. Let a man finish. Why…” He paused and Hermione looked down at him impatiently, clearly indicated a closed mouth and motioned for him to continue.
“Would you do that to me??” He finished and then promptly pouted.
Hermione looked down at him, aghast.
“Well, I thought I had just explained my reasoni-“
“You can’t take away my newest favourite pastime, not just like that! I agree to your terms. I think you’re right. But not without some…” He dragged out the word and Hermione saw a familiar light enter his eyes, the light she often saw when he negotiated at work.
“Compensation.”
She smiled slyly down at him.
“Whatever did you have in mind?”
He moved so fast, all she saw was a blur of the room as he grabbed her around the waist and flipped them over so that he now hovered above her.
An uncharacteristic giggle left her mouth.
He held himself propped up on his elbows and stroked a few stray curls away from her face. He eyes were serious, and oh so deliciously intense.
She wasn’t giggling anymore.
“I request one last opportunity to make you perfectly and clearly aware of the way I feel.”
Her breathe caught and a heartbeat of time past, before she grabbed his face and pulled him in for a deep kiss.
After all, who could say no to a request like that?
fin
Original Prompt: Would you prefer an art or fic gift? Fic
Preferred rating: Any
Describe what you'd like in as few words/keywords as possible: Preferably something post-Hogwarts. Can be either epilogue compliant or not, your choice. Hermione and Draco as co-workers (in any form), with alcohol thrown in somewhere.
Optional Song, Poem, or Quote (title/original creator): N/A
Dealbreakers (absolute no-no's): Non-con
ferretbush_post is the account the mods use to post the gifts. It has not created any of the gifts..
Title: Of Revelations, Theories and Unexpected Consequences
Author: in_my_blood
Rating: PG-13
Recipient: pencil_gal
Disclaimer: Nope, not mine. Nothing but the plot and occasional (just barely there if you look really closely) humour. I make no profit from this.
Warning(s): Some mature themes.
Word Count: 5,290 words approximately.
Author/Artist Note(s): Post-Hogwarts, a little but not really epilogue compliant (I kinda took what I wanted and left the rest). Thank you so much to my beta, bunney, who helped me short notice. You caught some mistakes I wouldn’t have noticed if I’d gone over it 10 more times than I already had! And then I went and re-wrote some stuff and asked you to go over it again, which you very graciously did. :P Thank you as well for giving me someone to talk to about this. Also, thank you to the mods, not just for this exchange, but for all of them. Seriously, some of my favourite fics have been resultant of a dmhgficexchange. The effort & time you guys give up for this is astounding. I’m going to miss them. And lastly, pencil_gal, I’m really very sorry I couldn’t work the alcohol into there. Especially considering your prompt wasn’t really very demanding at all. I tried, I really did, but they honestly resisted. Apparently, they wanted to get together without the excuse of liquor...
Summary: Draco was always trying to find a way to Just. Make. Her. Stop. But what happens when he succeeds?
~ * ~ * ~
Of Revelations, Theories and Unexpected Consequences
Draco was always trying to find a way to Just. Make. Her. Stop. It wasn’t that he really minded her talking. After all, she said intelligent things while speaking, unlike some people he knew.
It was just that she made her point and then she would keep going. Like right now.
Yeah, he got it, more funds for an additional Teacher/Counsellor at Durmstrang. And he would do something about it, too. He thought it was just as important as she seemed to think it was. But really, did it require this much drilling? Just because she had to say things three or four times at school in order for those half-wits she called friends to hear it once, didn’t mean everyone deserved the same treatment.
Besides, it was so annoying when she kept going on and on and Draco, ever the opportunist, would find himself taking the opportunity to point out just how nice she looked in that pencil skirt and heels.
In order to show its support for the winning side and in an attempt to downplay its contribution to the war, things at the Ministry had changed. For instance, one could wear Muggle office clothes or wizarding robes to work. Whichever one preferred. There were now intercoms and telephones in every office as a secondary means of communication, as well as computers.
And then there was the program. New Thinking was certainly one of the biggest changes in the wizarding world since the war, its purpose and intent to educate the next generation whilst in their most developmental phase.
A simple title, really, but then Hermione Granger had never believed in judging a book by its cover.
Played out at Hogwarts originally and now, three years later, all of the wizarding schools around the world, New Thinking was dreamt up by one Hermione Granger and funded by Draco Malfoy.
Based on Granger’s belief that the root problem with the War had been ignorance, the program sought to educate the children in an unusual way.
A whole new class was developed to this end. Students underwent different activities, such as the analysis of blood samples from their fellow students, using what the Muggles called a ‘microscope’. They were to compare samples from Purebloods, Halfbloods, and Muggleborns, to see that there was no difference.
The later years were to take on case studies of some of the more horrific murders (within reason, of course) that occurred during the war. They were to analyse the reasons behind the attacks. They looked at the families and the children that were killed. They faced the cold, stark truth of the murders.
New Thinking aimed to show the students how and why Voldemort’s thinking was twisted and wrong, not just tell them.
It was also an attempt to bring about an alternate way of thinking in students whose parents were still inclined towards Voldemort’s way of thinking and to give them an alternative; to stop, even just for a second, and allow them to think for themselves.
Something, to be entirely honest, Draco wished he had received.
All of the Teachers were Cousellors as well so that they were well equipped to help the students that needed it through the more emotional and psychological aspects of the transition. After all, for some, it was an entire turn about in their thinking and the way they saw the world. Something that big was liable to cause some existential crises.
But, of course, the parents' permission was required. That had been their biggest challenge in the beginning.
“So, I’m sure you can see the necessity for an additional Counsellor at Durmstrang and in the long run, I truly think that it would be more beneficial than detrimental.”
“As I've tried to say numerous times, Granger, I agree with you. No wonder you always look so tired. You run yourself into the ground with all these long-winded, one-sided discussions. Constantly repeating yourself. I mean really, was it entirely necessary? I was ready to say yes from the moment the first sentence -“
“I beg your pardon? Tired? Well, maybe it’s because you constantly leave me to do-“
He tuned out again. Really, he couldn’t help but take occasional digs. It was too much like a bad habit, really. Like smoking, or drinking. He would go a time without insulting her at all and he’d feel this overwhelming itch to just...well, insult her. It’s not that she looked even remotely tired. She looked fantastic. But it had been one whole week and a half, after all, since his last little dig at her and she had just dragged him through her whole damn tirade. He felt he was justified to a little revenge.
Besides, there was just something about seeing her all riled up…
But now she was ranting. Worse than lecturing.
To this day, he doesn’t know what made him do it. He hadn’t even really thought about saying anything, but there he was, opening his mouth and words were pouring out.
“Astoria and I are getting divorced, you know.”
Abrupt silence.
“Been heading our way for a while now. But, I guess that’s what happens when you don’t properly think things through.” He looked up to find a silent Hermione Granger staring at him, mouth agape.
Shocked that she was not only silent, but had been for the past minute, when before that she had been deep in rant mode, he thought he’d make the best of the situation.
“But I entirely agree with you. Durmstrang does need another Counsellor. I’ll get on it as soon as I’ve finished with this report.” He tapped the closed manila folder on the desk in front of him. “Now, was that everything, or was there another issue we needed to work our way through?”
“Ah, no. No, I believe that’s everything.” She collected her things almost slowly, as though she was confused or in a bit of a daze, frowning the whole time.
But collect her things and soon depart, she did.
Draco couldn’t believe it. Had he truly found the way to silence the Hermione Granger? Or was it just a fluke?
Well, now there was a theory he’d just have to test.
~ * ~ * ~
“Malfoy! I thought you said you’d get that extra Counsellor for Durmstrang! I thought you said you understood what I was saying and the importance of the proposition!” She’d stormed into his office, throwing open his door, face red with anger (or exertion from the trip to his office, he wasn’t quite sure) and was waving a sheaf of paper at him like a rapier.
He smiled to himself, very widely. Perfect....
“Why yes, Granger, I did. But then I reconsidered. I don’t believe we have sufficient funds…”
She had frozen, eyes wide, staring with shock before it began, albeit slowly at first.
“Suf...suffi...SUFFICIENT FUNDS? You have got to be kidding me! You just spent God knows how much on that stupid trip, but we don’t have enough for something legitimate, something which will be of benefit to so many others? To so many children?” She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, and when she opened them again, there was such blatant disgust on her face that Draco almost visibly flinched. Her voice fell to a deadly quiet whisper.
“You know, you almost had me fooled. Almost. I was starting to think that you had changed. Had really, truly changed. That New Thinking meant something to you. But obviously, I was wrong. You’re still the same selfish, pig-headed, arrogant, soul-less arse you always have been.
“What? All this, the funding, the politeness, just so you could clear your name in the public’s eye? You know, I don’t know why I’m surprised.” She stopped abruptly and looked down.
“I don’t even know what I was thinking…” she muttered to herself as she picked up her papers and made to leave his office.
He couldn’t let that happen. He had only intended to get her ranting again in order to test his theory.
“You can’t just leave, Granger,” he said calmly, more calmly than he felt if he was to be honest with himself.
She whirled around, eyes flashing. “And why is that, Malfoy? Hmmm? For that matter, why are you even here? Why did you fund the program? I’ve always wanted to ask.”
Was he really going to do this? Was he really going to tell her the true reason for his involvement in, and advocation of, the program? He hadn’t told anyone else - let them think what they will - but Granger...Granger mattered, for some reason. He wanted her to know that he really was serious about this. That he truly cared. And he wanted to let her know why.
“Having a child changes you. Changes the way you see the world, changes the way you want the world to be. I’m sure you’ve experienced the same with your two."
“Having Scorpius, it...it made me realise a few things. And it gave me a different perspective on others. The love you have for a child, for your child...” He took a breath, attempting to reorder his thoughts.
“You want to do things for them. You want them to be happy, to feel loved, to be safe. And there is no possible way he would have been safe in the world I was reluctantly helping to build. Not with that crazed man telling him what to do.”
“But at the time, there was only me. Well, and my parents, which is what was being used against me. But other than them, there was just me. I had no overwhelming urge to protect anything. I had no one to make a safer and brighter world for."
He paused before sighing heavily. “What I’m trying to say, albeit none too elegantly, is that I am sorry. I am truly sorry for every part I played in the war. For the insults of a child who thought he knew best, but really, knew nothing. For my ignorance.
“I’ve never had the balls to do this, though I’ve wanted to for a while. But for some reason, with the divorce and everything...” He trailed off, contemplative, before looking back at her again.
“I know now what you were fighting so hard for. I didn’t then, but I do now. And I just wish I had realised earlier than I did.
“That’s why I’m here. That’s why I funded New Thinking. Because I believe in it. I believe ignorance was one of the biggest issues of the war, one of the reasons Voldemort gained so many followers. I truly do.”
She stood there, eyes wide, watching him. But Draco knew her well enough now, had worked with her for long enough, to realise that her mind was far away, and whirling fast.
It was on the verge of making him uncomfortable when all of a sudden her eyes sharpened.
“That...is not what I expected. Thank you for telling me. I know it was a rather personal bit of information...I’m ah...” She paused, frowning, and then continued. “I’m going to go...I have this...”
Sensing her discomfort, he waved her away. Personally, he was surprised she had said as much as she had, given the bombshell he’d just dropped on her.
“I’ll get right on that extra Counsellor for Durmstrang.”
After she had left with a nod, Draco lent back in his chair, arms behind his head.
Huh. How about that? It did work.
~ * ~ * ~
That was rude. She really shouldn’t have left so abruptly after he had opened up and been so honest with her. But she couldn’t help it. She had known Draco Malfoy for most of her life. Though she was beginning to think his beliefs truly had changed, she had never expected an apology. It wasn’t in his character to do such a thing, to admit defeat or wrongness in any way. At least not without a very vicious battle.
So when an apology is exactly what she got, without asking for or expecting it, it threw her for a loop. This hadn’t been some flippant or even resentful apology, this had been genuine. She had seen it, but more importantly, she had felt it.
Not only that, but what he had actually said gave her pause. It was insightful and honest and far more mature than she had ever believed possible for him.
Not much else could have had such a drastic effect on Hermione Granger - nothing really had since Ron had come to her with divorce papers in hand.
She stopped dead in the corridor on the way to her office.
Actually, it had happened recently. Twice, to be exact, and all within the past week. All induced by little personal nuggets of information Malfoy had kindly bestowed upon her in the most abrupt of manners...
Nothing had really seemed out of the ordinary, but now Hermione began to connect the dots. Every time that he had dropped one of these little revelations on her, she had been mad at him.
And, just possibly, yelling a little, she admitted with a wince.
She couldn’t help it. Despite the fact that she may have been developing a little…affection for the man didn’t mean he wasn’t beyond infuriating at times.
But this? This was not just infuriating, it was insulting on so very many levels. She was quickly escalating from disbelief to anger. He was playing with her!
Yes, she could just see it now. Malfoy leaning back in his desk chair, legs crossed and resting leisurely on his desk, his hands interlaced behind his head, a smug, self-satisfied smile on his face. She knew just the one, too. He had thrown it at her like a weapon too many times to count when they were in school.
So, he sought to silence her, did he? Well then.
Silence he would get.
~ * ~ * ~
“Granger?” Silence.
“Granger? Granger!” Still nothing.
Draco stood in the door of her office, completely perplexed as to why she wasn’t talking to him. She hadn’t spoken to him for the past day and a half and he couldn’t figure out why.
She could clearly hear him, knew he was there, even acknowledged him, but refused to converse with him.
He knew he was being immature, but he couldn’t help it. He hated being ignored.
“Granger, Granger, Granger, Granger, Granger, Granger, Granger, Granger, Gra-“
Perhaps he should take the death stare as a hint and leave....
But she still hadn’t said a word.
He saw it as a challenge. As far as Draco was concerned, she had thrown down the gauntlet at his feet, and by God, he’d not only pick it up, he’d win.
~ * ~ * ~
It had been hard. It had been very hard, but she had ignored Malfoy and he had finally gone away.
Perhaps what she was doing wasn’t very professional, but then again, neither had what he’d done. Given time to think it over, she had come to the conclusion that yes, he had been using his revelations in order to...well, shut her up, she supposed. But really, was it necessary? If he would simply imply or, Merlin forbid, state outright that he understood what she was saying, that he agreed, perhaps she needn’t feel as though she had to go over everything twice!
After all, reiteration wa-
An electrical crackle filled the air. “Granger? You there?”
She stared at the intercom on her desk, mouth slightly agape. He couldn’t really be...
“Fine, I get it, you’re not talking to me.”
He was! He was attempting to converse with her over the intercom! What did he think, it was cute?
“But you have to tell me why! If you don’t, how can I fix it?”
She supposed he was correct on that point.
“I mean really, what have I done anyway? Nothing as far as I can tell.”
Ok, now hang on just a...!
“I’ve been a good little Malfoy, floating your project. I’ve been civil, respectful, professiona-“
“Now, wait just a minute!! You have not been professional in the least, especially this last week!” She could have sworn she heard him smirking at her through the intercom.
“Ahh Granger, decided to grace me with the pleasure of your speech again, have you?”
“Only because you’re wrong, and I believe it deserves correcting, Malfoy.” If he wanted to be cool, calm and collected, so could she.
“So, pray tell, what exactly did I get wrong?”
“Well, I think we both know you haven’t exactly been professional or respectful lately.”
“What are you talking about? Just the other day, I opened a door for you, despite the fact that you didn’t even say good morning. Not a thank you after either, I believe. Which reminds me, why is it, exactly, that you are refusing to talk to me? This conversation notwithstanding, of course.”
“You can really sit there and say you have no idea?”
“Why yes, quite comfortably in fact.”
“Really? So you wouldn’t know anything about using personal...revelations, for lack of a better word, in order to shock me into silence?”
“Revelations? Silence? What exactly do you mean by revelations?”
“Do you deny it?”
“What, I’m before the Wizengamot now?”
“Do you deny it?!” She knew she said she’d stay calm, but by God this man was infuriating! Giving her the run around like that!
“No! God, no, I don’t deny it, ok? But I wasn’t doing it maliciously. It’s just, you talk so much, even after you’ve made your point, and here I stumble upon this way of making you stop. What was I supposed to do, wave goodbye to it as it passed me by? I think you forget, I’m still a Slytherin and a Malfoy at that. I may have changed, but the fundamentals remain the same.
“Besides, I don’t think you realise how much having the friends that you did at school affected you. They were so thick you constantly had to repeat yourself, and now you’re still doing the same, despite the fact some of us are intelligent enough to understand what you’re saying the first time!”
“Just about everything you said there is above and beyond insulting!”
“Not insulting, truthful. I should think you’d be grateful I have enough respect for you that I’m honest. But really, what did you expect anywa-“
”Grateful? I should be grateful you have respect for me? See, now that, right ther-“
“I mean really, can you blame me? Even as I try to explain my actions to you, something which you yourself demanded, you talk right over me. I’m not even sure you realise you’re doing it anymore.”
“-but to say one should be grateful to have your respect? That is the pinnacle of arrogance, that is - are you there?”
Silence.
“I can’t believe it! What, he just leaves the conversation when he starts to hear things he doesn’t like? That spineless, arrogant...” Lost for words, Hermione struggled for a moment, before slamming her fist onto her desk in triumph, “Ferret!”
“Hey now, Granger, I’m not so sure about that last one. It only happened once, and illegally, I might add. Not very nice or professional to bring up one’s most embarrassing moments like that.”
He leaned with casual grace against her doorframe, arms crossed, one leg bent behind the other. She hadn’t even heard him approach. It was moments like this, when he was thrown on her and she wasn’t expecting it or wasn’t prepared, that she realized with a start just how handsome he had become. She normally wasn’t an advocate for blonds, no matter the gender, but he carried it off well.
Tall, lightly muscled, just enough without going overboard, she thought to herself, and in that rare in-between of lithe and solid, he had plenty of nice things to look at. But for some reason, Hermione always found herself drawn to his eyes. His best feature, in her opinion. They were so expressive, when the rest of him wasn’t.
If he allowed them to be, that is. There were times - she remembered them well - when they could be just as cold, hard, and expressionless as the rest of him.
With a start, she realized he had allowed his eyes to be their full expressional self around her for quite some time now.
This moment was no exception. They almost danced with mirth, though at what, she had no idea. This situation was not at all funny!
“What are you doing here?”
“Why, I came to apologise, of course.” At this, his eyes became more solemn, more serious. “We all know apologies are more sincere in person. So, here goes.”
He pushed off the doorframe and closed the door, then took a seat in the chair opposite hers at her desk. She frowned at this, but made no comment.
He rested his forearms on his knees, hands clasped, as he looked down for a minute.
When he looked back up at her again, Hermione was thrown by the feeling in his eyes, the sincerity.
“It was insensitive and unprofessional, as you said. I gave no thought to either how it might look to others or how it might make you feel. I am truly sorry. It will never happen again.”
She knew he was being entirely honest and sincere with her. She could feel it. But she studied him for a moment longer.
“Well, it’s very hard to say ‘No, I don’t accept that apology’ and walk away, when it’s given like that, now isn’t it?” She eventually said.
He chuckled lightly to himself as he rose from the chair. He had begun to look a little panicked before she had finally spoken.
“True. Very true, Granger. So, all is forgiven?” He put his hand out, and waited for her to extend hers.
She waited a heartbeat, considering, and then also stood in order to proffer her own hand. “Yes. All is forgiven.” She smiled softly at him.
His hand was warm, but with an underlying strength as they shook, and Hermione found herself contemplating just what those hands would feel like touching other parts of her.
It was not until she snapped herself out of her thoughts that she realised that they were standing in her office, each leaning slightly over her desk, hands clasped together for what felt like far too long.
She looked up at him and felt a shock to realise that, unlike her, he was not looking at their hands, but at her. And his eyes were on fire. Something shot through her, and she felt the air around them start to change. She knew what was coming.
She tried to take her hand back, but he grasped it tighter, not enough to hurt, just enough to stop her from moving away. She looked back at their hands and realised that she was not uncomfortable in the least. Rather, she felt safe, warm and content, though excited too. Her need to withdraw her hand came solely from the feeling that boundaries were about to be overstepped. Boundaries which should be in place between two colleagues.
Looking back up at him again, she realised he had moved closer, leaning farther over her desk, drawing her closer to him. Her breath caught in her throat at the look in his eyes, the intent.
She opened her mouth to breathe out a word, a sentence, anything really to make this madness, this situation which was so foreign she didn't know quite how to handle it, just stop, so she could think for a second, but he beat her to it.
“You know, I really should have thought of this earlier.” His voice was low, almost a whisper.
“Wh-what?” She was momentarily confused, before all became clear with his next comment and ensuing action.
“The perfect way to silence the Hermione Granger.” He leaned forward and touched his lips lightly to hers.
The kiss was soft at first, tentative, and her eyelids slid closed at the contact. Little sparks felt like they were shooting from her lips and pleasant shock waves traveled up and down her chest.
She heard his sharp intake of breath, as though surprised she was allowing him this liberty, and then as the kiss grew more intense he pulled her around the desk, so it no longer stood between them. Suddenly, nothing stood between them, not even air.
Hermione suddenly found herself no longer dazed, as though her mind had blundered its way through the situation and come up with an appropriate reaction. Her body felt as though it was on fire at every point that she was in contact with him. She began to kiss him back vigorously.
Apparently, her mind’s response to the situation was to quite happily reciprocate.
She grew more adventurous, and it felt like a dam had broken. She deftly slipped her tongue between his lips and he groaned, suddenly pushing her backward until her back hit the wall behind her.
He pulled back slightly. His forehead rested lightly against hers while his eyes stared intently into her own. His hands rested on her hips and his fingers traced patterns.
“Are you sure about this, Granger?”
He lightly bit her bottom lip.
Trying to catch her breath, she contemplated for a moment.
“I don’t think I’ve ever been so sure about anything concerning you.” He grinned down at her before leaning in to kiss her again, deeper than before.
His hands slid up and down her sides. On the way up, he brushed the underside of her breasts with his thumbs. She gasped and he took that as permission to go further.
Breaking the kiss, he circled her nipples slowly with his thumbs and leaned forward to kiss her neck, guided to her most sensitive spot by her moans.
“Your place or mine?” He breathed the words into her neck, and it took her a moment to reply.
“Yours.” Her breaths were sharp.
He smirked, before taking his wand out and Disapparating them away.
~ * ~ * ~
They lay in bed, the sheet twisted around their legs and their waists, Hermione with her head and hand resting on his chest, Draco with his arm wrapped almost possessively around her waist.
His room was decorated in green, trimmed in silver and black. Very Slytherin colours, she knew, but for some reason, she didn't think that was why.
Besides, she wasn't sure other colours would really suit him quite the same way.
Suddenly, she was curious about something else.
“Why did you and Greengrass get a divorce?”
Many would have been taken aback by the sudden question, when silence had so warmly encased them only moments ago. But Malfoy took it all in stride, hardly appearing bothered in the least.
Ron had hated it when she had burst out with random thoughts and questions like that.
He took a moment to answer, as though contemplating his response.
“We weren’t really what you’d call...compatible. We just realized it too late. Our parents had chosen us for each other, so when the war ended and we were left adrift, unsure what was what and who was who, we clung to the only thing that seemed safe and vaguely normal, not even giving it a second thought. And it didn’t work.”
Ahhh. Hermione herself had thought along similar lines many a time about herself and Ron. After the war, they had just tried to pick things back up from where they had left them. Needless to say, it hadn’t worked out in the end. They hadn’t even considered the possibility that they were different people than what they had been before the war.
“Then who are you compatible with?” Hermione asked without thinking, realising too late that such a question, given their most recent activities, might be a little awkward.
But before she could take the question back, he answered.
“You, Granger. I’m compatible with you.”
And just like all of his other little revelations, Hermione was entirely and utterly shocked into silence.
But her recovery time was shortening.
“But what about all the insults? What about our constant bickering and arguing, especially of late?” Her tone was incredulous as she raised herself onto her elbow to look down at him.
“Why, Granger, have you never heard of foreplay?”
She couldn’t help herself. She laughed.
“Yes. Well…” She paused for a moment, contemplative.
She soon continued. “Even given that, we barely know each other, well, the current versions of ourselves at least.” She said all this very fast, as though nervous.
“I think we just got to know each other very well.” He grinned lasciviously up at her.
She looked down at him, smiling softly, but her mind whirled.
“That won’t stop us from making snap judgments about each other based on our passed opinions of one another. If we’re taking this seriously and want to actually try, we should make an attempt….” She stopped, her eyes a little wild, as if something had just occurred to her.
“Unless…unless you…don’t want to make this anymore serious than it already is…?” She sounded a little worried and Draco couldn’t help but wait a moment before responding. She looked adorable when she frowned.
“Perhaps you’re right. The fact that you don’t know that I would never do something like this without the intent of making it into something more serious just goes to show that we only really know the school era versions of each other. So, what do you suggest?” He tucked a curl behind her ear as he spoke.
She smiled brightly down at him and for a moment, he was worried for life and limb.
“A date. Or rather, a series of dates. A courtship, if you will. And in order to remain true to the concept, and guarantee that this-“ She waved between the two of them, “doesn’t become all that we are, I propose no more sex until a sufficient number of dates have been undertaken.”
He lay there, staring up at her, mouth agape.
“Why? Why woul-“
“I thought I had just explained why!”
“That wasn’t what I was going to ask, Granger. Let a man finish. Why…” He paused and Hermione looked down at him impatiently, clearly indicated a closed mouth and motioned for him to continue.
“Would you do that to me??” He finished and then promptly pouted.
Hermione looked down at him, aghast.
“Well, I thought I had just explained my reasoni-“
“You can’t take away my newest favourite pastime, not just like that! I agree to your terms. I think you’re right. But not without some…” He dragged out the word and Hermione saw a familiar light enter his eyes, the light she often saw when he negotiated at work.
“Compensation.”
She smiled slyly down at him.
“Whatever did you have in mind?”
He moved so fast, all she saw was a blur of the room as he grabbed her around the waist and flipped them over so that he now hovered above her.
An uncharacteristic giggle left her mouth.
He held himself propped up on his elbows and stroked a few stray curls away from her face. He eyes were serious, and oh so deliciously intense.
She wasn’t giggling anymore.
“I request one last opportunity to make you perfectly and clearly aware of the way I feel.”
Her breathe caught and a heartbeat of time past, before she grabbed his face and pulled him in for a deep kiss.
After all, who could say no to a request like that?
fin
Original Prompt: Would you prefer an art or fic gift? Fic
Preferred rating: Any
Describe what you'd like in as few words/keywords as possible: Preferably something post-Hogwarts. Can be either epilogue compliant or not, your choice. Hermione and Draco as co-workers (in any form), with alcohol thrown in somewhere.
Optional Song, Poem, or Quote (title/original creator): N/A
Dealbreakers (absolute no-no's): Non-con
ferretbush_post is the account the mods use to post the gifts. It has not created any of the gifts..