Adult-FanFiction.org : Harry Potter

Until Again	By : RynStar15 Category: Harry Potter > Het - Male/Female > Draco/Hermione Views: 15446 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 3
Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to Harry Potter and do not make any money by using the world of J. K Rowling here.

Chapter List
- 6
- 7
- 8
Hermione gasped and choked on the food in her mouth and her fork clattered to the table at the sharp burn which sang from her pocket. Ignoring her parent’s concerned questions she tore from the room, heart hammering, upsetting her chair in her haste. Digging the coin from her pocket as she pounded up the stairs she stumbled several times, not seeming to be able to control her own body anymore. She slammed into her room, the door banging behind her and fell to the floor as her trembling hands brought the still warm coin up to read:
Safe. Worried. Feather. Midnight.
The words were bunched around the edge, crammed together in Draco’s hurried handwriting. A harsh sob escaped her lips and she clenched the coin tight in her fist and fell forward, relief washing over her.
He was safe. She’d waited over a month in fear as the coin had stayed silent, cold, taunting. A month of long, lonely nights with images of torture and cold grey eyes clawing at her sanity.
When feeling returned to her limbs she clumsily yanked her wand from the sheath on her side where she kept it in fear of sudden attack and wrote back:
Safe. Anxious. Until then.
Slumping against the side of her bed she allowed herself to close her eyes and for the first time in so long, her tense shoulders sagged and she breathed.
Since the morning after Dumbledore’s death she’d been working tirelessly, packing, preparing, researching. She’d read every book about Horcruxes that she’d summoned from the former headmaster’s office a half dozen times, attempting to memorize any little bit of knowledge that might help. She taught herself every protection spell, every healing spell she came across. She’d done the incredibly advanced charms on her pretty beaded bag her mother had bought her from a tourist shop in France her after she’d pleaded enough to drive the woman mad. She did small workouts in her room trying to hone her body, to ready her gangly self for battle. Everything was ready at a moment’s notice in case Mad-Eye needed to move up her departure date. Even all of her parent’s forged documents for their new life were tucked away in a secret compartment in her desk…
And every single moment she’d worried about Draco, wondering where he was, if he was alive, why he hadn’t gotten a hold of her by now.
The day couldn’t go by fast enough.
***
Minutes to midnight had her sitting at the edge of the bed, legs bouncing nervously, an eagle feather that had been dropped onto her bed by an unfamiliar owl hours earlier clenched in her trembling hands.
She smiled, stroking the soft feather, remembering fondly all of the feathers he’d sent her last summer that she’d ignored, angry and betrayed. If she’d only known then what the next year would have in store for her…
She jumped up when the feather glowed blue, her stomach in knots as she felt the familiar tug around her waist and the sensation of spinning rapidly through a tube had her slamming her eyes shut. She landed hard and stumbled, but hands grabbed her before she could hit the ground and pulled her against a hard body that was shaking even worse than hers. She squirmed in his arms, turning just enough to see his face, just for a moment, just to convince herself that it was really, truly him, before throwing her arms around his neck on a heart wrenching sob.
He was talking, but she couldn’t hear the words as his voice broke with emotion and she cried unabashedly into his neck. Hands clung, touched, reassuring each other that they were there, they were whole.
He pulled her face back with quaking hands, her hair plastered to her wet cheeks, and stared at her for an infinite moment, relief washing over his emaciated features. He looked sickly, worse than she’d seen, and she started to ask but the words flew out of her head when he crashed his lips against hers, devouring. She sensed his desperation and met it with her own as they plundered lips and breathed life back into each other. Hermione’s knees buckled but he was there, his strong arms holding her against him, every inch touching.
“I thought you were dead,” she croaked against his lips and his grip tightened.
“I’m sorry,” he breathed, angling her head to take the kiss deeper.
“I was so scared.”
“So was I.”
His fingers dug into the soft skin of her neck as his mouth quickly decimated her. It wasn’t enough. She needed more, needed all of him. Their hands trembled and tore at clothing frantically, ripping, pulling. They barely managed to get her pants off, dangling from her left tennis shoe, and his around his ankles, before he turned and slammed her into the wall, impaling her onto himself, both of the gasping at the sudden contact.
He didn’t let her adjust to the fullness of him, just took her, thrusting into her like a piston on, on, driving away her fear, pushing her towards that peak. Sounds tore from her throat as she clung, unable to do anything but as his hips whipped against hers, his fingers digging into her skin, pounding. His sweaty head fell to her shoulder and he panted, both of them close.
His name fell from her lips again and again as white heat washed over her, taking her under, taking her away. He groaned and sank into her even harder with sharp jolts as he joined her, barreling over the edge of sanity.
Gasping for breath he sank with her to the floor, using the wall for support for his weak legs. He lay back and brought her on top of him, still connected, saving her from the rough wooden floor. Slowly, their breathing regulated and soft caresses replaced their harried and desperate lovemaking. Hermione listened to the sound of his heart pounding beneath her ear, slowing as they calmed, her eyes closed in bliss. He stroked her hair from her face, his arms tight around her, his head thrown back in respite.
She turned her face up and kissed the underside of his chin, his jaw.
“I’ve been so worried,” she whispered and his hold tightened.
“I know. I’m sorry.”
“Why didn’t you contact me, even if we couldn’t meet, just to let me know you were safe?” she murmured, still slightly hurt by his inconsideration, recalling all the nights she’d laid awake in fear.
He stiffened beneath her, the reaction subtle but it did not escape her notice. “I contacted you the moment I could.”
She sat up slightly, her eyebrows drawn. She looked at his face, could see the pain and exhaustion in it, the dark purple half-moons under his eyes. And her heart dropped. “Draco, why haven’t you been able to contact me?”
He looked away from her, unable to meet her eyes.
“Draco, what happened?” she demanded, sitting up further and he slid out from underneath her, disconnecting them. She watched his haunted eyes and her heart was breaking.
“No,” she breathed, willing it not to be true. “No, Draco, they didn’t, they couldn’t…”
He sighed and finally looked at her. “Please don’t, I’m fine, it was nothing I didn’t deserve.”
“Don’t you say that!” she snapped, tears springing to her eyes. “Don’t you sit there and tell yourself that! You didn’t deserve any of this; none of this was your fault, Draco!”
“Dumbledore is dead because of me!” he thundered, eyes wide, lank hair falling over his eyes.
She shook her head, reaching her hand out to touch his face but he shied away. “Draco, look at me. Please.” He turned hearing the seriousness in her voice. “Draco, we know it wasn’t you who killed him. We know it was Snape.”
His eyes widened in almost fear and he paled. “How-?”
“Harry was there. Dumbledore had put him in a Full-Body Bind right before you came up. He was under the Invisibility Cloak I wore to see you in the hospital wing, that’s why you never saw him. But he saw you,” she said, watching the emotions play over his face as he realized what all of this meant. “None of us blame you, Draco. Not even Harry. We know about the necklace and the poison; we know you were just doing what you had to do. And we know you weren’t going to go through with it. And I’m so sorry, so sorry for what happened, what they made you do.”
His face fell when he saw her tears and he reached forward, wiping them away and dragging her into his lap. She held him, wishing she could draw away his pain. He was shaking again and she pulled back to peer into his face so she could see the truth.
“Are you alright?” she asked solemnly. “Did they hurt you?”
He tried to turn away again but she didn’t let him. “Draco, you need to be seen, let’s go to St. Mungo’s-”
He laughed sardonically. “I can’t go to St. Mungo’s, they’d murder me for even contemplating it. I’m fine. I’ll be fine,” he rephrased, seeing the disbelief on her face. She brushed back his oily hair and cupped his face.
“I’m so sorry,” she whispered, knowing her nightmares had been true. She’d been lying in a soft bed, warm, while he’d been tortured, beaten, starved. And for what? For not murdering?
“Shh,” he hushed her, kissing her softly. “I’m alright now. I’m here.”
“How? Why did they let you free?”
“Snape. He appealed for my mother and me. Told Him that he didn’t even give me a chance to kill Dumbledore, that he’d done it himself out of anger. He lied to save us.”
“Snape?” she said, incredulously.
He nodded. “He saved my life that night. My soul. He kept you safe, hexing Flitwick so you would stay where it was safe to help him. I begged him that night. Begged him to help you, to help me. I knew I couldn’t…” his voice trailed off as his voice broke with the memories. “He’s the one who sent you the feather tonight, created the portkey for me. He knows everything.”
She stiffened in fear, terrified that Snape might use the information against them, if he would turn now that he was no longer bound by the Unbreakable Vow. Draco sensed her fear.
“He’ll never tell a soul,” he swore. “He’s done everything to keep me safe. He knows what it would cost us. But with how heavily I’m being watched now I needed someone to help me. He’s covering for me now. I can’t stay long. But I had to see you, had to know. I needed to see for myself that you were safe, that they hadn’t touched you…”
She shook her head, still reeling with the new information. “No, by the time Snape left the grounds and his spell lifted and I was able to leave the dungeons the battle was all but over. You were gone and Dumbledore…” She swallowed back the painful image. “There was a funeral and they sent us home. I’ve been safe.”
He sighed in relief and hugged her tight. They sat in silence for a long while until he finally kissed her forehead and leaned his cheek against it wearily. “I have to go.”
“I know.”
They stood and dressed slowly, never straying from arm’s reach. They embraced once more and she finally looked around. She recognized the room as the same one he’d brought her to last summer, a sparsely furnished living room with wood walls and floors, moonlight streaming from a bay window and she saw tall trees beyond, a river rushing by silently in the distance.
“Draco, where are we?”
She saw him smile for the first time and although it was small and tired she drank in the sight, realizing how much younger it made him look.
“A summer home in the Forest of Dean my mother’s sister used to come to with her Muggle husband. When my mother learned about it she burned it down. I remembered it last year when I was trying to think of a safe place to bring you. No one would ever look here; it was in ruins when I first got arrived. But I fixed it up and I assure you that I have placed the heaviest enchantments possible on it. We are the only ones who can enter the grounds.”
Her heart skipped a beat and she looked up at him in awe. “You did all this? For us?” she breathed.
He wrapped her hands in his and kissed them gently, closing his eyes. “I knew the very first time I kissed you and felt you kiss me back what this would be. I knew how dangerous it was. But I didn’t care. I wanted a place we could call our own, that no one could touch. I know it’s not much, but it’s ours.”
Touched, her heart swelled and once again, tears threatened. She swallowed them back, smiling. “Draco…I don’t even know what to say. It’s perfect. Thank you.”
He shook his head. “It’s not enough compared to what you’ve given me.”
She leaned up and kissed him. They lingered as long as they dared but when she finally pulled back she cupped his face and looked into his eyes. “I love you, Draco.”
His eyes closed and he seemed to fall into himself as if the words were too much to bear. “Oh, Hermione. I spent every moment in that hell hole waiting to hear you say that.” Nuzzling her hand, he looked at her, his grey eyes calm, brimming with passion. “I love you. Be safe.”
And before she could stop him he turned on the spot and with a crack he aparated away. Hugging herself from the sudden chill of losing his body heat, she looked around herself, memorizing it, so that she could return safely. Sighing, filled with love and contentment, she aparated home and slept like the dead.
***
Locking the Weasley’s bathroom door behind her, Hermione leaned against it with a groan. This wedding was more trouble than it was worth, in her opinion. But she knew how important it was to everyone, that precious bit of normalcy, the reminder that even now, there was love. Jealousy burned within her, but she tampered it down. There was no time for that. She had work to do. Tomorrow night they would leave, when everyone was busy celebrating Fleur and Bill’s love, they would slip away and their hunt would begin. She knew what it would entail, knew how dangerous their mission was. Suicidal.
Heart heavy, she dug out the coin in her pocket, thumbing it lovingly. It depicted a regular galleon again, his last message having faded after she’d read it. They tried to keep in contact daily but it wasn’t always possible. The small reassurances were enough. Wherever he was, he was safe, he was alive. He was thinking about her, missing her as much as she missed him. It was enough.
She tapped the coin with her and etched out her message:
Safe. Midnight. Important. Love.
As always, she wished there was more room on the coin, but was content knowing he understood. An hour later she had to sneak away from polishing silver candlesticks (which she’d done yesterday) to hastily read his reply before Molly caught her slacking:
Safe. Until then. Love.
She sighed with relief that he was able to meet her, knowing it was incredibly dangerous for him to leave. But she had to see him. One last time.
Ten to midnight she crept from her bed, slipping on her tennis shoes silently, watching Ginny’s sleeping face. She lifted her nightgown over her head which had covered her capris and tank top and grabbed her jacket from its hiding place beneath her pillow. Clutching her wand she crept through the house, taking extra care on the old creaky stairs and listened breathlessly for any sign of movement. The house was packed to the brim with the Weasleys and the Delacours and she and Harry. She knew Tonks was outside somewhere keeping an eye on the perimeter so she kept to the shadows, hiding behind the chicken coop and darting across the lawn as the magenta hair woman strolled to the front of the house. When she felt she’d gone far enough to muffle the sound of apparition she turned on the spot, bringing to mind the small cottage Draco had fixed for them.
She landed, for the first time on her feet, and immediately saw him sitting in the window, staring out at the woods. He grinned as she approached and rose to greet her, kissing her long and hard.
“How are you?” she asked seriously. Some of his color had returned as had some of his weight, but the circles were as deep as ever beneath his eyes, showing his exhaustion.
“Better now.”
“Is He still torturing you?”
Draco smirked, but it held no mirth. “In his own way, but no. I am free to roam my house and join his lackeys once more.”
She ached to ask him, to beg him of any knowledge that might help them. But she knew she couldn’t. Their meeting was bad enough, but if Voldemort read his mind and saw he was leaking information he’d be dead. He’d put himself in enough danger for her.
“How are things?” he asked, worry etching a line between his brows. “You said it was important. Is everything alright?”
She breathed and nodded. “Yes, everything is fine. I just…” What could she say? How could she tell him that she was leaving with Ron and Harry and might never return? That their dangerous mission could keep them apart for months, years, forever? “Something has come up. I won’t be able to come see you anymore. Not for a while.”
His face fell before it grew hard. “What happened?”
“We just…there’s something we have to do…”
“‘We’? As in you and-”
“Draco, please, don’t,” she begged, knowing she couldn’t say anything more. She couldn’t reveal what they were doing, everything rested on them finding those Horcruxes and she couldn’t chance it, not for anything. Clenching his jaw, she knew what it took him but he finally nodded and drew her into his arms.
She felt the fear tremble through him and into her. She clung to him as if she could keep him there longer, keep him with her if she simply willed it.
“How long?” he finally grated out.
“I don’t know,” she answered solemnly. He sighed in defeat and clung to her tighter.
She gasped when he swung her up into his arms suddenly and smiled as he headed towards a hallway in the back she’d noticed but not taken the time to explore. He strode through the door at the end revealing a small room with a large bed, desk, and wardrobe. The bed was neatly made in white and when he lay her down she sighed at the deep mattress and luxurious duvet.
They made love for hours, barely speaking, drenching themselves with sensations that they knew they may not feel again. He seemed to realize the intensity of the situation and showed her the greatest care, treasuring her body, whispering soft words into her hair. They held each other when they were finally sated, though Hermione could have happily continued for the rest of her life. But she knew dawn would be quickly approaching and she needed her strength for the upcoming day.
They sat together in the middle of the bed, the blankets and sheets strewn haphazardly around them. She closed her eyes as they kissed, rejoicing in the feel of him, the smell, the taste.
“I love you,” he said yet again, having repeated it often throughout the night as if to make up for the lost chances to come. “I love you more than life itself.”
“I love you too,” she murmured softly. “I’m going to miss you so much.”
“I’ll be right here when you come back. Right here waiting. Come back to me.”
She nodded, knowing it was a promise she couldn’t make.
“Keep that coin on you at all times, promise me.”
“I promise.”
“If you ever need help, use it. I will come. I will come to you. Do you understand?” His voice was hard and she stared at him, moved. She knew the depth of his promise. If she called for him and he came, he would be turning his back for good.
“I understand.”
His breath shuddered from him and his eyes closed, his hands clenching hers, bringing them to his forehead where he rested on them for a moment. It struck her how worried he obviously was for her and she wanted to reassure him, but she didn’t know how.
“You need to rest,” he finally said, his voice rough. He kissed her fingers and pulled her in, kissing her one last time. “I love you. I always will. Be safe.”
“I love you, too. Take care, Draco. Remember I will always know the real you. They can’t take that away. Remember.”
He nodded and clenched her fingers tight. “Until we meet again.”
“Until then.”
***
A/N: Sorry so short, but the next chapters will be getting more intense and dark. Thank you so much for the wonderful reviews, I hope you are enjoying their secret tale.
XOXO
RynStar15
- 6
- 7
- 8
You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.
Report Story

Until Again