Adult-FanFiction.org : Harry Potter

Closer	By : katatonic Category: Harry Potter > Het - Male/Female > Draco/Hermione Views: 10356 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or the characters you've grown to know and love. I make no money/profit from writing.

Chapter List
- 12
- 13
- 14
Hermione and Harry were enjoying a leisurely breakfast when the owl post arrived. A handsome tawny eagle dropped a letter onto Hermione’s head and it fell down onto the table.
“Bollocks,” she muttered when she looked at the seal: a deep green M surrounded by delicate, silver vines. She slid her finger under the flap of the envelope and unfolded the parchment tucked inside. She read it aloud to Harry, who was watching her curiously.
Dear Miss Granger,
I would like to cordially invite you for high tea at the Malfoy Manor on this Saturday at three in the afternoon. Please respond at your earliest convenience.
Narcissa Malfoy
“High tea?” she echoed and scrunched up her nose. “What on earth does one wear to high tea?”
Harry chuckled and tossed a piece of toast at her.
“I don’t know, but you better eat. If you’re going to battle with Mrs. Malfoy, you’ll need all the strength you can get.”
Ginny has just sat down at the table and raised her eyebrows at Hermione.
“You’re going to battle?” she asked. Hermione groaned and dropped her head on the table. Ginny reached over the table to read the letter. Her eyes flew over the word at an impressive speed.
“You’ve officially been summoned, my darling,” Ginny told her friend in a posh accent and took a large bite of muffin.
“What do I wear?” Hermione cried again, her voice muffled by the table.
“Something pastel?” Ginny offered and shrugged. “Pearls, I assume? Perhaps a nice, floppy hat?”
With a dramatic bang of her head against the table, Hermione cursed Draco Malfoy.
“What’s wrong with her?” Draco asked as he sat down next to Hermione.
“Your mother,” she muffled.
Draco looked at Ginny with a raised eyebrow and she handed him the parchment.
“Oh,” he said and refolded it carefully. “I was wondering how long this was going to take.”
Hermione picked up her head and glared at him. Draco shrugged.
“It’s normal in certain circles. It just means my mother wants to meet you formally.”
“But she has met me! I distinctly remember her crazy sister torturing me in her drawing room!”
Draco winced but continued.
“She wants to meet you as my girlfriend. I promise her intentions are pure,” Draco reassured Hermione with a soft pat on the back.
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Hermione pulled at her dress as she stood before the large, black doors. With a quick adjustment of the pearls around her neck and the errant curl by her ear, she knocked on the door three times. The door swung open and on the other side of the threshold stood Narcissa Malfoy. Her long blonde hair was braided neatly and she was wearing a beautifully tailored wool dress in deep emerald.
“Miss Granger, I presume?” she asked and held the door open for Hermione.
“Yes, it’s lovely to see you, Mrs. Malfoy,” Hermione responded, willing the slight pitch in her voice to go away.
“Hermione!” another voice called from behind Narcissa. Hermione stepped inside and saw Pansy smiling brightly. “Your dress is beautiful!”
Hermione ran her hands over the purple fabric nervously and thanked Pansy. The women walked into the front room and sat around an ornate table.
“So Miss Granger,” Narcissa began. “How long have you been seeing my son?”
Hermione paled slightly and mentally shook away the butterflies that had taken up residence in her gut.
“Nearly two months. And please, call me Hermione.”
Narcissa nodded as a house-elf appeared to serve the tea. They drank their tea in silence and Hermione wished she was anywhere but Malfoy Manor.
“Well, this is awkward,” Pansy commented. “Let’s cut to the chase, shall we? Hermione is a Muggle-born Gryffindor dating a Malfoy. True, this type of match is practically unheard of, but aren’t we mature enough to move past that? I’m sure there are plenty of things we all have in common. Narcissa, are you aware of the work Hermione is doing for my sister?”
After a brief, but glowing report from Pansy, the atmosphere in the room seemed lighter. The witches discussed the upcoming holiday season, the new fall collection from Gladrags, and finally, Hermione’s work as a professor.
“I must say, Hermione, it seems like your intelligence knows no bounds,” Narcissa commented after Hermione detailed her own personal research in ancient transfiguration spells. “Not many women find time for a fulfilling professional career and a love life.”
“It’s easy with Draco,” Hermione remarked with a faint blush. “We both work diligently, so there’s no competition for each other’s time. My work will always be important to me and Draco understands because he feels the same way.”
“And what about children, my dear?” Narcissa probed.
“Excuse me?” Hermione choked on her tea.
“When you have children, will you continue to work?”
Pansy snickered beneath her croissant and Hermione shot her a quick glare.
“Yes, I think so,” she answered.
“But children are quite a demand, Hermione. Surely you know that. And you certainly cannot expect the man to put his career on hold; that’s the woman’s duty.”
Hermione took a deep breath and counted to ten before responding.
“I believe that whoever I end up with will understand and appreciate my love for my work. Ideally, my husband would be my partner in all things- including raising children.”
“And you think Draco is that partner?” Narcissa asked, not-too-innocently.
“We haven’t really discussed it, to be quite honest, Mrs. Malfoy,” Hermione replied, trying to conceal the anxiety in her voice.
“Hmm,” Narcissa hummed and cleared away the tea tray with a snap of her fingers.
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Draco was lounging on the couch with a book when a disheveled Hermione burst through his door.
“If we have kids, will you expect me to stay at home?” she demanded as her hair flew in every which way. She paced in front of him, occasionally muttering under her breath.
“Whoa,” he said and held up his hands in surrender. “What happened?”
“Your mother happened!” Hermione yelled and kicked her pumps off her feet.
“Was she rude?” Draco asked, thoroughly confused.
“No! She was perfectly polite!”
“I’m sorry, Hermione, but you’ve lost me.”
“I want a life partner, Draco. I don’t want someone who will have ridiculous, old-fashioned notions of ‘a woman’s duty’ and I certainly don’t want my husband to run away to the office all day leaving me with a handful of babies to raise!”
Draco stood up and held Hermione’s arms gently.
“I hear you,” he said. “I don’t want that either. If I wanted that kind of wife, I would’ve been married eight years ago.”
She dropped her head against his chest and gave a little sniffle.
“Your mother is terrifying,” she said into his shirt.
“This is the woman who lived with the Dark Lord invading her home for over a year and then lied to his face about Potter. She is absolutely terrifying,” Draco snorted. “But she loves me, and once she sees that you’re important to me, she’ll be fine with everything.”
“I’m important to you?” she asked, unable to move her head from the spot on his chest. Draco gave a little sigh.
“I guess. When you were lying there in the infirmary, all I could do was think about how dull life would be without you,” he commented and forced her to meet his eyes. Her deep brown eyes were glassy with unshed tears and a pretty pink flush warmed her cheeks.
“I guess you’re important to me too,” she said with a small smile.
Draco pulled her close for a hug. He kissed the top of her curly head and enjoyed the warmth that spread through his heart.
A quick knock at the door pulled them from their embrace and Draco moved to answer it. Outside the door stood Neville with a case of butterbeer and a sheepish smile.
“Hey Neville,” Hermione greeted and he took a seat on the chair. Draco flopped back onto the couch and Hermione moved to the kitchen to open three butterbeers. When she returned, Neville was picking nervously at nonexistent lint and Draco was watching keenly with an amused smile.
“I’mgoingtoaskLunatomarryme,” he blurted out and his face stained red. Draco looked at Hermione who shrugged.
“Again, Neville? With spaces?”
“I’m going to ask Luna to marry me.”
Draco blanched.
“Haven’t you only been dating for a few months?”
“Five, actually,” Neville corrected. “But we’ve been friends since fifth year.”
Hermione beamed at him.
“That sounds wonderful, Neville. I’m so happy for you!” She stood to give Neville a hug and kiss on the cheek.
“So why are you here, Longbottom?” Draco asked with a slight tilt of his head.
“I actually came for Hermione,” he said and pulled a small velvet box from his jacket pocket. “I want your approval on the ring. I don’t know much about jewelry and you’re the only one I trust not to tell her.”
He flipped upon the top and nestled in white satin was the most oddly spectacular ring Hermione had ever seen. The band was deep gold that appeared to shimmer with bronze sparkles. There were three small stones across the top; the largest, middle one was an oval amethyst and the two smaller, tear-shaped gems were pale pink. Hermione covered her mouth with her hand and gasped quietly.
“Neville, it’s perfect. It’s absolutely perfect!”
“No diamonds?” Draco asked.
“Luna isn’t exactly traditional, Draco,” Hermione chided gently. With a nod and a shrug, Draco gave his approval.
“So when are you going to do it, mate?”
“This weekend. I’m going to take her up to the Astronomy Tower during the new moon. The new moon signifies a time for beginnings, and I think Luna will really like that,” Neville explained with a small puff of his chest.
“You’re right, Neville. I’m so happy for you,” Hermione murmured and cleared the proud tears that threatened to fall from her eyes.
The three friends drank their butterbeer in ease, with the boys only occasionally teasing of Hermione for being so emotional.
“I’m just so proud!” she defended. “I never would have expected this from little first-year Neville!”
“What about you, Hermione?” Neville teased. “Happily dating your arch nemesis? Happily dating anyone, really. Had you gone on a single date after Ron?”
Draco perked up. He and Hermione hadn’t talked about their past love lives at all, and he was suddenly very curious to learn more.
“Oliver Wood for a few months,” Hermione supplied with a small shrug and Draco’s lip curled slightly. “And I went on a few dates with Dean.”
“Dean Thomas?” Draco asked, trying to keep his composure. “Am I the first non-Gryffindor you’ve dated?”
After thinking for a moment, Hermione nodded.
“I like Gryffindors. We value the same things: bravery, nobility, chivalry.”
Draco grunted in response and vowed to be a little braver in his day-to-day life- but just a little.
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As the new moon approached, the Aurors were scrambling around the castle making sure they had all their bases covered for their trap for Fera. John, the Ravenclaw, was a nervous wreck and had gone in to quit on Harry several times that week. Each time, he left Harry’s makeshift office after a little pep talk, ready to take on the world. By the time night fell, he was shaking slightly and Hermione was whispering comforting words in his ear, occasionally shooting glares in Harry’s direction.
Padma had traced protection runes around his torso and wand arm. She gave Hermione back the hairpin when they met out near the Black Lake to watch over John from afar. He set off to wander along the edge of the forest, never once looking back at them. Hermione was quite proud of his courage, for Ravenclaws were not considered the bravest students at Hogwarts. She and Padma waited patiently, sparing glances to the Aurors’ many hiding places. Harry did well; Hermione could barely make out their dark cloaks in the night.
Soon enough, Fera emerged from the woods and made her way over to John. She spoke with him for a few moments, and he shook his head and turned to walk away. When his back was turned, Fera transformed into her wolf form and Hermione went on alert. The large black wolf stalked John as he meandered through the trees, heading deeper into the forest.
“I can’t see him,” Hermione breathed to Padma, who shook her head in response. “Where are the Aurors? Why aren’t they following him?”
Her panic rose from deep within her chest and she spotted Draco walking casually by Hagrid’s hut. His hands were tucked into his pockets and he seemed to be moving aimlessly. Once he caught Hermione’s eye, she saw the manic look in his face and breathed a sigh of relief. Draco was going after John.
He was gone for several minutes before Hermione felt a twinge of fear grab her heart. Draco’s anxiety flowed through her and she searched the tree line intently. With no sign of him, she moved forward to get a closer look. Padma called after her, but Hermione was consumed by Draco’s emotions and her own worry. She was within feet of the dark forest when Fera stepped forward. Hermione heard Harry swear loudly when they saw her: Fera had a hand grasped firmly around Draco’s throat, with his wand in her other hand.
“When will he learn?” she called out to Hermione, who started to run at Draco.
“No!” he and Harry both screamed out, but she didn’t listen. Fera’s hand tightened on Draco’s windpipe and Hermione immediately stopped running. Fear, anxiety and pain gripped at her heart and she wanted to cry out from the exhaustion of it all. Cold sweat gathered at her brow and her skin felt clammy. Hermione wiped away the bead of sweat that dripped down her cheek and gripped her wand fiercely, ready for battle.
“Oh Hermione,” Fera grieved. “Who will you choose?”
Confused, Hermione looked behind Fera and saw John, bloody and bruised, in a sickening sprawl on the ground. Her breath caught in her throat and she looked wildly from Draco to John. Hermione felt Draco’s urging to save John ram into her mind, but she couldn’t move. She was frozen in panic, her stomach churning and long, wet tears trailing down her cheeks. Hermione breathed in, then out and let the moment of utter terror pass.
With a speed that was honed from the battlefields of her youth, Hermione whipped her wand in an intricate pattern. Fera immediately dropped her hand from Draco’s throat and he fell forward onto his knees. Her hand was turning to stone, unable to grip or flex. The stone spread up her arm, but instead of fear or defeat, her eyes glowed with laughter.
“Wrong choice,” Fera taunted.
A grey blur in the wind darted from behind the trees and pushed Hermione down to the ground. Two large paws were pressed against her shoulders and fierce blue eyes stared into her own. The wolf snapped at Hermione, teeth bared and sharp in her face. She faintly heard Draco call for the Aurors, but the only thing she could focus on were the drops of saliva that dripped down onto her from the wolf’s large teeth. With a quick movement of the wrist from Fera, the wolf clamped down on Hermione’s throat. It wasn’t biting down, but its teeth were poking sharply into the tender skin of her neck.
Everyone froze in shock.
“You didn’t think I had another plan?” Fera’s voice rang out throughout the ranks of Aurors and professors waiting to rescue Hermione. “Now the choice is yours, Mr. Potter. In thirty seconds, Rebecca will rip Hermione’s throat out. If you choose to immobilize her, Hermione will be saved. However, if you choose to save young, sweet John, Hermione will die. Choose wisely.”
With a swish of her tunic, Fera spun with the wind until a black wolf stood before them momentarily, before going to clamp down on John’s exposed throat.
- 12
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- 14
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