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Just This Once and Never Again	By : emisloser Category: Harry Potter > Het - Male/Female > Draco/Hermione Views: 5270 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor any of the characters from the books or movies. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

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Hermione folded her sweater and packed it into trunk with a sigh. Once again the urge to crawl under her bed and refuse to come out crossed her mind, but she quickly pushed it away because she knew that she really had no choice in the matter.

Not if she wanted to one day become the Head of Muggle Relations.

This was an important career step for her, one that would surely guarantee her a spot in the Ministry. But the thought of spending even one day alone with Malfoy sent the most unpleasant chills up her back. The man was a bloody maniac! She doubted that she'd come back from this mission sane, if she even made it back at all.

The minister made sure to emphasize the danger of this mission. Apparently the wizard they were hunting stunned several guards in his quest to kidnap to the muggle girl, Sarah. They were not sure as to what he would do when they found him, but Hermione figured that it wouldn't be good. A person will do most anything to avoid capture, especially if he knew his fate lied in Azkaban.

Hermione glanced at her clock. In only five minutes she would have to leave and meet the others at the train station were they would once again be briefed on their mission and then sent on their way. Henry Copple, the Chief Auror, was in charge of planning their mission to Japan and then back again. It was his idea to put them undercover as muggles, a move that Gregory Fur would not see coming. He would of course be on the look out for any witches or wizards, so this gave them the upper hand in a sneak attack.

Hermione closed her trunk and pulled it off of the bed. After placing a levitation charm on it, she turned and left the bedroom.

Ron was sitting at his desk in the office and a few moments passed before he finally looked up at Hermione, who was waiting patiently in the doorway.

"You leaving now?" he asked.

"Yeah," she said, a frown on her face. "I wish that you could come with me."

"Then who would stay and look after Sam?" he smiled, pointing at the goldfish in the corner of the room. Hermione smiled and shook her head. Ron stood and made his way over to her and then took her in for a strong hug.

"You be careful out there," he whispered into her ear. "Though it's not like I doubt your ability to protect yourself, you're stronger than any witch I know." Hermione nodded her head into his shoulder and after one last squeeze, Ron released her and took a step back, a serious look on his face. "Let Malfoy know that if he lays one finger on you, I'll curse his dick until it's so small he'll need Mad Moody's eye to see it." Hermione snorted in laughter and nodded.

"I'll tell him," she said. Ron leaned forward and kissed her and then after one more smile, walked back to his desk.

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Draco was leaning against the kitchen counter with his arms crossed over his chest. His trunk was packed and was sitting on the ground next to him. He stood there unblinking, his eyes focused out the window at his driveway were a car would soon arrive to take him to the train station.

The idea of traveling amongst all of those muggles was unpleasant to say the least, but not even close to as unpleasant as the thought of traveling with Granger.

He would have never of guessed that it would come down to this, the only thing that stood between himself at his future. He knew that it would be almost effortless to find this wizard and to lock him up for good, but...still.

After a few moments of sulking and quiet thought, Draco decided that this whole ordeal couldn't be all bad. Besides the fact that this would mean his future as the Head of Magical Studies was foolproof, the thought of spending a few weeks on a sort of vacation was pleasant as well. Granger tagging along would be a minor inconvenience, one that he could possibly overlook so long as she stayed out of his way.

And not to mention the fact that he hadn't slept with a Japanese woman for over a year. An experience that he was very anxious to try again.

Perhaps this mission was a blessing after all...

The flash of headlights tore Draco from his thoughts as he looked up and saw that his ride had arrived. He flicked his wand at his trunk so that it lifted into the air and floated behind him, and then made his way out. A man in black was waiting to open the door for him, and Draco glanced over the car before ducking inside. After the door shut behind him, and the driver had finished packing his bag in the trunk, Draco frowned and crossed his leg.

Merlin he hated these muggle contraptions...

It took nearly an hour for them to reach the station. After the driver pulled Draco's baggage from the trunk and sat it on the curb beside him, Draco nodded his thanks and then headed toward the entrance. He found a trolly and packed his trunk on top, and he suddenly felt as if he were five years younger and on his way to Hogwarts. And he wasn't sure if he liked that feeling.

Looking around, he was pleased to see that his choice of wardrobe was correct. He had never before dressed in Muggle clothing, and he had sent his secretary out to buy him a few new outfits. He currently wore a nice fitting pair of slacks with a dark sweater and a white collar. He had hoped that the effect would help him to blend into the crowd, but from the looks that many women gave him as he passed by, he knew that it did quite the opposite.

It wasn't his fault that he looked dead sexy in whatever he wore.

He was quick to find the muggle cafe were he had agreed to meet with Copple and Granger. Copple was already there waiting for him, dressed in brown shorts and a hawaiian tea shirt. On his head he wore a black bowler hat. As soon as Draco reached the table where he sat, Copple stood and shook his hand in greeting.

"Mr. Malfoy, welcome! We're just waiting on Miss. Granger now," he said, sitting back down in his seat. Draco sat across from him and then turned his head to see Granger walking toward them, pushing her trolly as fast as she could go.

She was wearing a tight fitting pair of jeans and a white tea shirt with a V neck. Her hair was pulled back into a high pony tail, and around her waste was tied a sweater. Draco could not help but admit that the entire outfit suited her. He would have never of guessed that she had a body under her robes.

"I'm sorry I'm late," she breathed out, and Copple stood to greet her.

"No worries," he smiled. "Please, take a seat!"

Hermione glanced toward Draco. "Hello Malfoy," she said. Draco nodded in greeting, but chose to say nothing.

"Here are your train tickets and passports" Copple said, handing them both a small packet of papers. "You are to take the 10:30 train to Heathrow Airport. There, a man named Glensworth will be waiting for you. From there you will travel to Nagoya, Japan. A woman named Ari will meet you there and then take you to your lodgings were you will start your mission."

Hermione's hands were twisting in her lap as a ball of nerves turned in her stomach. Once Copple had finished telling them what little they knew about the man they were hunting, he shook both of their hands and left. Hermione and Draco were quiet for a few moments before Hermione stood and grabbed hold of her trolly.

"Ready to go?" she asked Draco. He stood and after brushing his hands over his pant legs, followed her out of the cafe.

Hermione was quick to find the train, and they both left their trunks with the bag checker before stepping inside and finding an empty compartment. Hermione was surprised when Draco followed her inside, she had figured that he'd want to find a compartment of his own. But he took a seat across from her and quickly bought a newspaper from the trolly before flicking it open and blocking his face from view.

Only ten minutes later the train took off from the station. For nearly a half an hour Hermione stared out of the window into the darkness, the only noise being made was the train rolling along the tracks and the occasional flip of the page of Draco's newspaper.

"So, Malfoy," Hermione tried. "Do you expect it will be very difficult to find this guy? I mean, the only clue that we're going on is that we know he used the Foo network to travel into Osaka. He could be anywhere by now...Japan is a pretty big place." A corner of Draco's paper dropped down, allowing one uninterested eye to glare back at her before flicking the paper in the upright position once more.

Hermione growled. "Look here, Malfoy. It's not like I chose to do this with you, but the least that we can do is forget our differences just for this mission so that we can get it done and over with. You're going to have to talk to me at some point." The only response Hermione got was Draco uncrossing one leg and crossing the other. She threw her hands up in defeat. "Fine! Don't talk to me!" she said.

Hermione grabbed her sweater from the seat next to her and bunched it up into a ball, giving it a few extra punches for good measure and muttering under her breath. She shifted over a few spots before shoving her sweater down on the seat. She then lied down and closed her eyes, hoping more than anything that when she woke up, this entire thing would be done and over with.

An hour passed until Draco finally dropped his paper onto his lap and rubbed his hands over his tired eyes. When he opened them once more his vision instantly focused on Hermione, who was sleeping on the seat across from him.

Her face was relaxed and a few strands of hair fell over her forehead. Her mouth was slightly parted as small puffs of air escaped her lips. One arm was draped up over her head and the other was wrapped around her stomach. Never before had he seen a woman look so comfortable while she slept, though never had he met a woman who would simply sprawl out on a train bench for a nap. She would almost be pretty if it weren't for the fact that he loathed her.

Though even he could admit that as the years passed by, the reason for his hatred of her became less and less clear. It could have been due to the fact that she was best friend to his childhood nemesis, or the fact that she was the only student at Hogwarts that could keep up with his grades, but he was sure that most of it came from the fact she was muggle born.

Through his entire childhood he was taught that muggle borns were the scum of the wizarding world, worse than squibs according to his father. But after the defeat of Voldemort and the imprisonment of his parents, Draco found that for the first time in his life, he was able to make his own decisions and carry his own thoughts on the world.

Draco was a practical man. He knew that a world with out muggle borns would one day mean a world without wizards. Muggle borns were becoming a large percentage of their population. Why hate the inevitable?

He'd even screwed a few muggle borns in his time. There was no deciphering them from full-blooded witches.

Draco glanced at his watch. It was midnight, which meant they still had an hour before they would arrive at Heathrow Airport. Draco grabbed a hair tie from his pocket and then tied his hair back before tilting his head against the seat and willing his eyes closed. He hated the fact that he felt so tired in front of Granger, and the last thing he wanted was for her to wake while he was still asleep, but exhaustion soon took over and Draco found that he welcomed it.

_________________________

A particularly rough jolt of the train tore Hermione from her sleep as she sat up and stretched out her back with a groan. She had to dub it to the train, it had to be the most uncomfortable place she had ever fallen asleep in her life.

As Hermione finally glanced toward Draco, she found that she actually had to hold back a gasp. He was sleeping! She had no idea that things as evil as he slept at all!

His hands were folded over his stomach and his ankles were crossed on the floor. His head was resting against the seat and Hermione found that she had never before seen his face look so relaxed. Gone were the smirk and the hatred in his eyes. For the first time in her life Hermione caught a glimpse of what it was all of the girls went crazy for. He was actually quite handsome...

His high cheek bones and aristocratic nose, combined with his full lips and soft eyes made him the dream man of most every hot blooded woman. She had never seen him with his hair pulled back, and she couldn't help but admit that the way that a few silvery strands fell around his face made him look charming. But it wasn't as if Hermione was going to join the female population and go drooling after him. His rotten personality took care of that. No, Hermione had more self respect than most women. She doubted that she would sleep with him even if he begged for it.

Which he would never do.

Hermione stretched her arms forward once more and wondered what time it was. She couldn't wait to get off of this train, even if it meant hopping onto an airplane for an excruciating amount of hours. Her eyes scanned over their compartment until it came to a sudden stop on Malfoy's wrist where she could see the slightest glimpse of his watch. She quickly glanced up at his face and saw that he was still asleep, before sliding off of the seat and scooting across the floor toward him on her knees.

She was kneeling on the right side of his stretched out legs as she turned her head from side to side in an effort to look up his sleeve and catch the time. But to no avail. If only his sleeve were a little higher...

Hermione bit her lip and reached forward. As carefully as she could she lifted the bottom of his sleeve with two fingers. She turned her head sideways and saw that the time was half passed one, and a triumphant smile broke out over her face as she released his sleeve and got ready to move back. But before she was able to make a move, the train gave another wild jolt, making her loose her balance and sending her forward onto Draco's lap.

Draco woke with a start and looked down to see Hermione on her knees with most of her upper body lying on his lap. She was looking up at him with the most horrified expression on her face.

"What in the bloody-"

"-Oh, shut up, I was just checking the time!" she yelled at him, quickly pushing herself up and once again taking her seat across from him. Her head was turned to look out the window and her cheeks were aflame.

"Just checking the time?" he asked, a smirk on his face. Hermione did not answer, but the frown on her face grew stronger as she sunk further down in her seat.

The rest of the train ride was spent in silence and was uneventful, much to the relief of both occupants. Hermione made it a point to stare out of the window for the next half an hour until they finally pulled up to the station.

It was 2 o'clock in the morning and Hermione was in a daze as she made her way off of the train. Her limbs felt heavy and her vision was foggy, but somehow she managed to follow the blond haired blob that was Malfoy to the baggage claim and find their luggage.

They found their trunks quickly, and Hermione sighed as she began to search about for a trolly until she was suddenly pulled awake by the site of Malfoy picking up her trunk with little to no effort, and placing it on his trolly on top of his trunk. Hermione turned to stare at him with wide eyes as he took a few steps forward. He turned his head to look at her.

"Are you coming?" he asked in a bored tone. Hermione said nothing, just nodded her head, the same wide eyed expression on her face.

Malfoy was doing her...a favor? It must have been due to sleep deprivation, Hermione decided. She quickly pushed it from her mind as she once again followed behind Draco toward the entrance of the airport.

Hermione was surprised to see that Malfoy seemed to know what he was doing in such a muggle environment. He seemed not at all interested in his surroundings, as if going to an airport was an every day occurrence for him. A homeless man sitting next to a pay phone had asked Draco for some spare change as they passed by. Draco said nothing, just continued to stare forward with disgust written all over his face. Hermione expected nothing less from him.

There were few people around at such a late hour, mostly just workers and cleaning ladies shuffling about. Once they made it to the check-in where they would be sent to their gate, they paused and searched for Glensworth, the man they were told would meet them there. They were quick to find him sitting at a table in front of a Mc'Donalds with a milkshake and french fries in front of him. They made their way over to were he sat as he stood to greet them.

"Greetings!" he said, quickly wiping his greasy hand over his pants and sticking it out for them to shake. Draco eyed his hand for a moment before taking it into his own. After Glensworth released it, Draco pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and rubbed it over his hands. Glensworth seemed not to notice as he motioned for them both to sit down.

He was short and balding and his eyes were small and watery. He was wearing a long brown coat with small holes which looked like something had chewed at it. With fat fingers, he grabbed a french fry and shoved it into his mouth.

"I wav dis muggaw food," he said with his mouth full. He quickly swallowed and lifted the fries toward them. "You want some?" Draco looked disgusted and Hermione knew he was about to say something rude, so she spoke first.

"No thank you," she said with a smile. Glensworth shrugged his shoulders and then placed the fries back over the table. He then swatted his hands together to get rid of the salt that coated his fingers and got down to business.

"You'll arrive in Nagoya around 7pm. I don't envy you two, it's going to be about a 15 hour flight." Hermione's shoulders slumped and her heart sank. "I don't understand why they don't have you travel by Foo?" he asked.

"We don't want to give off our wizarding status, so we are going to take this mission at a very muggle approach," Hermione explained, not really understanding why herself. She couldn't see why they couldn't just arrive in a secure location, somewhere where Gregory Fur wouldn't see them coming. But she knew better than to question the Ministry.

"I have a few things for you," Glensworth said as he pulled a black leather bag out from under the table. He set it in his lap and opened it. First he pulled out a small duffle bag and handed it to Draco. "This is all the money that you'll need for this trip. It'll cover everything from hotel to meals. You'll have more than enough to treat yourselves to the finest." Draco nodded his head in approval and Glensworth went on to pull out two small black beads. "Swallow these when you arrive in Nagoya. It'll help you to understand and speak the Japanese language."

"Why can't we just cast Languanas Spectra on ourselves?" Hermione asked, remembering a spell she learned from Hogwarts that caused the wearer to understand any language spoken to them.

"Because the Ministry wants you to use as little magic as possible. Not to mention that, that spell runs out after a few hours. But this," he said, placing the small black bead into Hermione's hand, "will hold it's power for up to two weeks." He then handed one to Draco who after inspecting it for a moment, tucked it away into his pocket.

"Who is this Ari woman we'll be meeting?" Draco asked. Glensworth blushed at hearing the name.

"Oh, she's the woman who'll be taking you to Nagoya Castle, the hotel that you'll be staying for the first night. She's the ministry's main contact in Nagoya. I'd fly 15 hours across the country for her any day. She's a vision to behold."

"Is she now?" asked Draco, who was pleased to hear that he could get to business sooner than expected. Glensworth said nothing, only nodded vigorously but stopped suddenly from the look that Hermione was giving the two men.

"Anyways..." she said, rolling her eyes. "When does our flight leave?" Glensworth pulled two tickets from his bag and handed it to them.

"In an hour. You'd better get going." With that he lifted his milkshake from the table and downed the cup before standing and taking both of their hands once more. "Good luck!" he said. He leaned closer to Draco so that Hermione could barely make out what he was saying. "Say hello to Ari for me," he whispered.

"I'll be sure to do that," Draco said with a lecherous grin on his face. Hermione shook her head and made her way to the main entrance.

It took nearly thirty minutes for them to check in their bags and find their gate. Hermione had been on several plane rides as a child, going to visit different family members throughout the country. But it was a new experience for Malfoy, and Hermione could see that he was not at all comfortable with the situation. For the first time since the war, Hermione could see him second guessing himself. He made no noise at all as they handed the woman their tickets and made their way through the tunnel into the plane. He seemed taken aback for a moment as he stepped inside and looked around. They found their seats quickly and sat down. Hermione was surprised to see that despite the late hour, the plane was almost full of passengers.

"You doing alright?" Hermione asked with a grin, noticing the light sweat that began to form around his forehead.

"Of course I'm doing alright," he snapped. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"I don't know. Maybe you're afraid of flying?"

Draco forced a laugh and glared at her. "Afraid, Granger? I'm not afraid of anything." Draco grabbed his seat belt and shuffled around for a bit. "Stupid...muggle...contraption," he growled under his breath. Hermione watched him try and fail to lock himself in for a few minutes before rolling her eyes and swatting his hands away.

"You do it this way," she said, reaching into his lap and grabbing hold of the two sides of the seat belt. She quickly snapped it into place and tightened it before sitting upright again and looking out the window.

"You just can't stay off of my lap, can you Granger?"

"Oh just shut up," she sighed, closing her eyes. 15 hours on a plane with Malfoy by her side. Nothing it seemed could be worse than what lay ahead.

_________________________________

A/N

Now THAT was a tough one. It might of been confusing for some, so let me know if you have any questions and I'll be sure to answer them in my next chapter!

Thanks for reading!

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Just This Once and Never Again