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Lessons and Obsessions	By : LennaNightrunner Category: Harry Potter > Het - Male/Female > Draco/Hermione Views: 85098 -:- Recommendations : 2 -:- Currently Reading : 2
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.

Chapter List
- 7
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CHAPTER EIGHT: EVALUATION

Hermione barely made it back to Gryffindor Tower without
being caught. She�d have to speak to Malfoy about
making sure that they were done before curfew in the future. As if he�d listen.

As Hermione changed into her pajamas and crawled beneath the
blankets, images of the evening danced to the forefront of her mind. Not just
memories of everything they had done, but also of their conversation. Hermione
remembered the Dark Mark etched into Malfoy�s skin.
His honesty had been� sobering. Refreshing, even. He�d
admitted to following Voldemort, to being a Death
Eater, to hating blood-traitors and muggle-borns.

Yet, he had fled Voldemort. Not
out of fear: he would have been honored above all others for helping bring
about the death of Dumbledore. No, it had been out of disgust at the way Voldemort had treated his family.

Hermione had mixed feelings about this change in Malfoy. It was wonderful that a Death Eater raised in a
pureblood household could leave Voldemort�s service
and try to start his life anew. However, that did not necessarily make Malfoy a good person. He was still an arrogant git at the best of times. He was not kind or even
indifferent to those he was once openly antagonistic towards, despite the fact
that they were all on the same side now. By all accounts, not much had changed
in his manner or attitude.

Still, something was different. There was a sort of dangerous
attractiveness about him now. Hermione had felt drawn to him from the moment
that he had cornered her in the hallway and said that she �belonged to him.� Surely
she had never looked at him except with loathing before that moment. Sometimes Malfoy seemed almost affectionate in his possessiveness of
her when he was appraising her appearance or performance in their �lessons.� He
still occasionally called her �mudblood�
and said all sorts of cruel things, but the venom behind the words seemed to have
been diminished. Yet she was wary. He was like some sort of jungle cat that had
been raised by humans: beautiful, regal, even playful and affectionate at times,
but liable to unleash the beast within without warning.

And then there was that sort of sadness that had surfaced
tonight. Perhaps it was regret for the things he had done and the situation his
family was now in. Or maybe she was reading too much into everything like she
always did. It was just so hard to be with him like that and have no real idea who he was.

He was� more real
to her now. More human. That would have been wonderful
if circumstances were different. The more Hermione understood Malfoy, the easier it was to get closer to him. She was
already too close as it was. She hadn�t counted on him becoming someone she
could feel sorry for� someone she might even be able to like.

But she still needed to see him. Being with him felt too good. She felt more relaxed now than she had in a long time.
She knew that if she had any chance of feeling that way again, she would seek
it. Even if that meant putting her head in the tiger�s mouth.

*****

Draco�s sleep came easily that night for the first time in
weeks, and he awoke early on Friday morning. He lay in bed for a few minutes reliving
the details of the previous night. He had gotten Hermione Granger, the Head
Girl, to give him head, to be naked before him, to let him stroke her clit her
until she came. Things could not have gone better, except for the first part of
the evening.

He needed to be careful about letting her get too close. He
certainly didn�t want her to feel sorry for him, and he didn�t need her feelings
mucking everything up. Why couldn�t a witch just go on hating a bloke after he
seduced her? There really was no justice in this world! He�d just have to tone
his brooding down a bit when she was around.

But it would not be easy this morning. As he sat up his left
arm grazed the curtains surrounding his bed and he winced. It hurt. He glanced down through the
semidarkness and examined his Dark Mark. The red had deepened overnight. The
design was clearer. The Dark Lord was feeling particularly powerful or vengeful
today. Most of the time, as in the previous evening, the Mark was nothing more
than a faded scar, and caused him no pain. But on certain days it became more
pronounced and began to burn. Draco could usually ignore it, but he always bore
a lingering fear that it might turn black again, and that he would be compelled
to return to the Dark Lord and to his own doom.

He swallowed and shook himself. He needed to put this out of
his mind. Thankful for the long-sleeved shirt and robes of his school uniform,
Draco pulled the curtains back and began to get dressed. As he gathered his
school things and left the Slytherin Common Room, he attempted
to cheer himself with the thought that his first class was N.E.W.T.-level
Potions with his favorite Gryffindor.

*****

This was the worst Potions lesson Hermione could remember. Blaise Zabini was absent, so Malfoy did not have a partner, and Professor Slughorn jovially suggested that he should join her and
Ron�s group. As they began their project�the potion for dreamless sleep that
Harry had been given after Cedric�s death�it became clear to Hermione that Malfoy was no longer content with toying with her in
private.

He found every excuse he could to touch her without being
noticed. When Ron looked away, Malfoy would step
close to Hermione and place a hand on her thigh, but when Ron looked back he
was ordering Hermione around and making snide remarks as usual. Hermione was
mortified that someone would notice what he was doing, especially Ron. Luckily,
Ron was even more imperceptive than usual because he was bitter about having to
work with Malfoy. He was also frustrated about the
fact that he didn�t understand the potion directions and Hermione was too
distracted to be very helpful.

When Ron went to the store cupboards to get some supplies
for their potion, Hermione turned to Malfoy and
hissed as quietly as she could, �What are you playing at?! Someone will see!�

�See what?� Draco whispered as he snaked his hand down
Granger�s side. He smirked when she shivered involuntarily.

�We have a contract, remember?� Hermione warned as she
fought her body�s reactions to his touch.

�Granger,� Draco rolled his eyes and let his hand graze her
ass stealthily. �Even if someone saw, they wouldn�t believe it.�

Hermione gave Malfoy a look of
deepest loathing and pulled away from him, staring at her potions book
determinedly and taking some of the ingredients Ron handed her. She did not do so much as look at Malfoy for the
rest of the lesson.

Unwilling to admit he�d done anything wrong, Draco decided
that he was perfectly content to let Granger and Weasley
finish the potion, and spent the rest of the period doodling lewd pictures in
the corners of his textbook. When the lesson was finally over, Slughorn and the rest of the class filed out and headed for
the Great Hall where lunch was waiting. Draco hung back while Granger packed up
her things.

�Go on without me,� Hermione said to Ron, sensing that he
was eager to get to lunch. She faked a smile when he hesitated. �I�ll catch you
up after I�ve put everything away.�

Ron looked at Malfoy, then back at
Hermione, but simply nodded and left the room.

�I see that Weasley�s as useless
as ever,� commented Draco casually as he packed up his textbook.

�I don�t want to speak with you,� said Hermione, putting a
stopper back in a vial of powdered unicorn horn a little more forcefully than
was necessary.

�It was a joke,� said Draco, comprehending the reason for
her anger, but trying to appear unfazed. �Don�t muggles
know about humor?�

Hermione�s face flushed in anger and disbelief. Her eyes
locked on his, iced with cold fury. �I am painfully
aware that I�m not good enough for you, Malfoy.
You�ve reminded me of that fact almost daily for over six years now.�

Draco began to protest, but she kept talking, her voice
growing louder as she spoke.

�Yet you can�t seem to keep your hands off me! So what
exactly are we doing?� She had finished packing up and was now leaning against
the high table, glaring at him. �Am I good enough, or am I not? Do you want me,
or is all of this your idea of a joke? Am I a dirty mudblood
who isn�t fit to be touched by you? It certainly didn�t seem that way last
night!�

She laughed bitterly, almost hysterical by this point. Draco
was dumbstruck, but forced himself to recover.

�Don�t be stupid,� he said with a forced smirk. �You know I
wasn�t being serious.�

�How do I know that? How do I know if anything you say is
true?� Her voice was like ice.

Her words stung more than Draco cared to admit, and his face
hardened. �I never asked you to trust me.�

�No,� Hermione replied, her face a mask, �I suppose you
didn�t.�

She had known all along what the terms of their arrangement
were. Yet the more she felt the truth of his attraction towards her in his
touch, the more she despised his biting remarks about her heritage and
inferiority. The lie of it. If any part of him ever
told the truth, it was his body. Hers couldn�t lie, either. But that didn�t
mean that he could do whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted. If he refused to
understand that, she would end all of this herself.

Draco wanted to get her into a better mood, but he didn�t
know how to do that without touching her. There probably wasn�t much chance of
that now. Still, it was worth a try� �Any chance of you
skiving off lessons to come to the Room of Requirement with me?�

Hermione considered him for a moment, then
smirked. �Not even if you begged me.�

With that, she picked up her things and left the room before
Malfoy could respond.

*****

�Wha� took so long?� asked Ron
through a mouthful of potatoes as Hermione sat down at the Gryffindor table for
lunch.

�There were a lot of things to clean up and Malfoy didn�t help,� Hermione rolled her eyes and tucked
into a plate of rosemary potatoes, parsnips, and sausages voraciously.

�Why did he stay then?� asked Ginny, her interest piqued.

�Dunno.� Hermione shrugged and
stabbed the nearest piece of potato with her fork, imagining it was Malfoy�s hand, or better yet, his�

�He didn�t give you a bad time, did he, �Mione?�
Ron glared in the direction of the Slytherin table,
which Malfoy had joined a few minutes previously.

�No,� she smirked, remembering their conversation. �He was
just his usual, charming self.�

Ginny thought the sarcasm dripping from Hermione�s words
could have eaten a hole through the table. Malfoy
must have said something really foul. At least Hermione could laugh it off a
bit. It was nice to see her friend reacting with irritation rather than hurt
for a change.

�Well,� Ron swallowed a tremendous mouthful of sausage and
washed it down with some pumpkin juice, �if he gives you trouble again, Hermione, let me know and I�ll hex his nose off for you.�

Hermione rolled her eyes again and wiped her mouth with her
napkin politely. �As chivalrous as that offer is, Ron, I�m of age now and I think I can take care of myself, thanks.�

Good Lord. Malfoy�s arrogance was
preferable to Ron�s misplaced nobility any day. Hermione glared at her plate of
sausages and continued to eat in silence.

�Since when have you been able to hex anyone�s nose off,
Ron?� Ginny asked most unhelpfully. Hermione had to hide her smile behind her
napkin.

�Shut it, Gin,� Ron said, now quite as grumpy as Hermione.

As soon as Hermione�s plate was clean, she stood up and
pulled her bookbag over her shoulder. �I�m going to
the library before Arithmancy. See you two at
dinner?�

�Quidditch,� Ron and Ginny said
simultaneously. Ginny�s was slightly more apologetic than Ron�s.

�Right. See you later, then.�
Hermione smiled half-heartedly and walked out of the hall.

�Honestly, I can�t say anything right around her lately,�
Ron grumbled. �What in the name of Merlin�s pants am I doing wrong?�

�Ron, you really are thicker than week-old treacle,� Ginny
said with a sigh.

*****

Despite Hermione�s irritation with Malfoy,
she knew a bit of yelling would not dissuade him. She had refused to skive off
to be with him to (hopefully) teach him the lesson that he couldn�t have her
whenever he wanted to. But she knew whatever he learned from that would not
keep him away for long. She also knew she would not be able to resist him the
next time he asked her to meet with him.

And that next time had been that very evening, though
Hermione had not expected it would be so soon. Maybe Malfoy
was trying to make a point, or maybe he was just trying to take advantage of
the Gryffindor Quidditch practice schedule. Whatever
the reason, she had met him in the Room of Requirement and they had both acted
as if they had never argued. He was perhaps a bit less selfish, encouraging her
to become more involved, but perhaps that was the way he had wanted the lessons
to progress all along. They did not do much they hadn�t done before. Even he
must have known it was too soon.

When they were done, they went their separate ways, and
everything was the same as always. And that was how they moved through the rest
of September and October. Every few days there was an owl at breakfast,
or a note slipped in one of her textbooks when she wasn�t looking, or an
agreement about when and where they would meet next. Usually they went to the
Room of Requirement, but sometimes he managed to steal her away for a few
unplanned moments in the corner of an empty classroom, a dark corridor, or even
out on the grounds.

Fall at Hogwarts for Hermione was unnaturally normal
considering the War, Harry being gone, and her illicit interludes with Malfoy. She still managed to get all of her assignments
completed on time and was doing very well on her N.E.W.T. work. She could only
assume that Malfoy was doing just as well.

He certainly hadn�t shirked his Quidditch
duties, because Slytherin flattened Gryffindor in
their first match against each other a week before Halloween. Harry would have
been mortified if he had seen it. Hermione tried to gloss over the match when
she wrote to him. Letters from Harry were few and far between, and she didn�t
want the next one she received to be full of slurs about the Slytherins. Especially not now that she was secretly seeing
their captain. Harry had more important things to worry about anyway.� Ginny
took the loss hardest of all because she was playing seeker this year. All of
them knew, but couldn�t bring themselves to say it: Ginny was a good seeker,
but she wasn�t Harry.

Malfoy was insufferably full of
himself for a full two weeks after Slytherin won the
match. He had caught the snitch after practically knocking Ginny off her broom, and it was a week after the match before Hermione
would acknowledge his presence. But he won her back on Halloween by pulling her
into a broom cupboard after the feast. He always found a way to make her come
round again.

*****

As November began, Draco decided that he had waited long
enough. He had given her enough time. They had argued more than once, and she
had kept coming back. He had taught her everything he could think of up to this
point, and had made her practice relentlessly. He had rewarded her when she had
done well. She had no reason to complain. She had to be ready by now.

*****

One rainy Thursday afternoon in November of no particular
significance, Hermione was on her way to the library to get a bit of studying
in before dinner. Just as she reached the door to the library, however, a hand
grabbed her arm from behind and pulled her back against a hard chest. She
gasped in surprise, but as she inhaled, she calmed herself down and sighed in
exasperation. She had memorized his smell long ago.

�Malfoy, you might try just
calling my name next time you need my attention,� she turned around and found
herself facing his chest. She looked up.

�That wouldn�t be nearly as much fun,� he smirked, a hint of
playfulness in his eyes.

�What do you want? I�ve got homework to do.�

�Come to me straight after lessons tomorrow. I�ll get us
some food. I want to be sure we have enough time.� His face was utterly
unreadable, but he held her close to him as he whispered.

�Enough time for what?� Hermione was confused and irritated
with his games.

�Don�t be daft, Granger.� He gave her a significant look.

��Oh.� Hermione�s eyes widened.
Comprehension dawned. �Oh! �All right.�

�All right,� he echoed, and let her go. �Tomorrow,
then.�

�Tomorrow,� Hermione whispered. And he was gone.

*****

A/N: Thank you all for the amazing response I got on chapter
seven! I know this chapter (eight) wasn�t as full of deliciousness, but it was
necessary for the plot (I swear there�s one in here somewhere) and character
development and all of that stuff I like. I can�t tell you all how much the
amazing feedback I�m getting has motivated me and kept me interested in making
this fic as great as I possibly can. So thanks again
to everyone, and I�ll try to update again soon!

ilke�Aww,
thanks! Draco said he would teach her, so that�s what he�d better do! It�s all
in his best interests in the end. Thanks for all the love! I know chapter eight
is kind of interlude-like, but it must be done for the sake of the plot!

PotterEntourage�Yay! So glad you
liked the chapter! I know, Hermione�s so cute and innocent, but I think she
holds her own! As I said in ilke�s response, it only
benefits him to teach her in the end! I�m hoping to make Draco simultaneously
irresistibly hot but also big cocky bastard that everyone wants to slap in the
face all the time. I hope it�s going well so far, lol.

Wildcatcdc�You
wanted more, so here it is! I know chapter eight wasn�t steamy, but it needed
to be there. More smut is on its way! I�m sooo glad
you like how I write and my characterization. That really means a lot to me. So
thank you! I hope you continue to enjoy it as the story progresses.

hrmny4etrnty2�Hi wildflower! Hooray; you found me! I�m so
glad you like it so far! Especially my characterization: that�s something I
really put a lot of time and effort into. I like your emphasis on Hermione as a
�student.� You know she�ll always have to try to be the best! So glad you�re
reading now, and thank you so much for reviewing! I�ll try not to disappoint in
future ;-).

Breenieweenie�The
conflict and the drama is unfolding before our eyes! There is much more to
come, I assure you, because you�re right: it has to be there in a story like
this. Thanks for reading and hope you continue to enjoy it!

DracosSlave�Haha, thanks! I am
truly touched that you said I�m one of your favorite authors on AFF right now.
There�s some stuff competition! I am pretty sure that Draco will remain in
control for the smut scenes at least for a little while, at least until
Hermione gains more confidence. So you�ll probably get
your wish! I�m glad you liked chapter seven and I hope you enjoyed chapter
eight, even though it�s mostly plot and interlude type stuff. There is more
smut to come, I assure you! Thanks so much for reading and reviewing!

Snapes_Goddess�Glad
to have you as a reader! That�s a really good question about the Room of
Requirement, though. My theory is this: in the books, Harry can�t get into the
Room when Malfoy�s in it because he can�t think of
the right question to ask. I think it would be very unlikely that anyone else
could get into the Room while Draco and Hermione were in it unless they phrased
their question exactly as Malfoy did. Even if another
couple was there for the same purpose, they would not know how to phrase the
question the same way. I believe Draco�s request in chapter four of my fic was �I need a place to teach this girl how to fuck
where no one can interrupt on us,� so hopefully they are secure there. Thanks
for reading and reviewing!

Dreamweaver�Well, what else can I say besides thank you? :D

kazfeist�Lol,
glad you like the changes! I�m working on it. Dude, he totally Reparo�d the undies; he just
didn�t say the spell out loud! It�s implied, silly. Sorry if that wasn�t clear.
Glad you liked the chapter, and thanks for reading and reviewing as always!

scarletwitchextreme�Psh,
I�m totally happy to respond to long comments. I hope that after chapter eight
you�re convinced that Hermione is gaining confidence, although it�s an uphill
battle. Here is my update! I hope it pleases you, even though it�s lacking
smut. I have to have a plot somewhere in here! Next chapter will be smutty, I
promise, lol. Thanks for reading and reviewing!

Coipje�I�m glad you like it! I
hope you liked chapter eight and I�ll try to update more soon!
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Lessons and Obsessions