Chapter 17; Hermione

By now she was used to waking up wrapped around her greatest source of warmth; Draco. She loathed to admit it but she couldn't blame him for something that she choose to do, subconsciously or not. Turning her head slightly she pressed her cold nose into the firm chest she rested on, trying to ignore what the knowledge of his body did to her. She smiled when he jerked slightly at the touch, tensing when he pressed a kiss on the top of her head.

Over the last couple of days she had let him have that much. It had started as her way of apologizing for what she had said to him Tuesday in the Great Hall. Now it was Thursday and the time for waiting was coming to an end. For the most part Hermione had been able to ignore his questioning looks, but after her meeting with Blaise today she knew that she could avoid it no longer. The tug on her hair made her look up questioningly.

"You didn't pull away when you woke up. Why?" To someone else the demanding tone in Draco's voice would have brought anger out. A couple of days ago that would have applied to her.

"I don't want to get up yet, is that a problem?" The small smile on his lips made her want to punch him, they were at an impasse for the time being but she had a feeling that soon the timid peace between them would snap. "I've also decided that we should complete the bond tonight. Tomorrow is Friday and I have first and second years; if there is any lingering pain they won't notice it the way that my older students would."

Draco narrowed his eyes at her upturned face, "If you are so worried about it why don't we wait until Friday? Then you will have all weekend to 'recuperate'."

"We can't wait until Friday, it has to be tonight."

"Why?"

Hermione blushed ducking her head and searching for the best way to phrase her answer. "Because if we wait until Friday it will be too late, I- my" she paused and bit her lip, "mother nature already has plans for me starting tomorrow."

She knew the exact second when her meaning sunk in because Draco's normally pale face turned a similar pink to her own. "Why did you wait so long? What if it comes early, you know that we are on a deadline?"

"We wouldn't be on a bloody deadline if you hadn't lied to me, now would we? You ruined what tonight could have been the moment you filed those papers. You will never know if I would have chosen you for sure. I will never know if I would have really wanted this. What do we tell the children? 'Well mommy and daddy can't really tell you if we loved each other when you were conceived but we love you with all our hearts, precious. Daddy doesn't mind that he never got to pick his bride and Mommy is okay that he forced her to mate with him."

"Shut up Hermione! You don't think that I know I made a bloody fucking mess of things? I will wonder if you would have chosen me for the rest of my life. I will wonder what I would have done if you had married that wanker Ron after the war ended. Would have I torn you two apart or would I have let you have your happily ever after and simply died?" Draco pushed Hermione off of him and got out of bed, his eyes darker and movements wild. "And you will never tell our children something like that, if I ever catch you saying things like that to them I will make it so that you never see them again- mate or not.

You have fought me every step of the way on this but do not ever say that I don't love you. I think I have loved you since we were in school; there were times where I would have done anything to protect you. I had to act like I hated you because of who my parents are and because of who your friends were." Draco licked his lips, staring at Hermione's shocked face.

She wasn't sure what to think and he seemed to be waiting for her to say something. The words wouldn't come though; just when she moved to stand up he was in front of her. One of his hands was buried in her messy hair the other wrapped around her waist like the strongest, thickest rope. Unsure of what he was doing her silent question was answered when he pushed his lips against her own.

In less than a second she forgot what she was so upset about; her job, her meeting with Blaise, the bonding later that night. All that mattered was the sweet taste of Draco on her lips. With a ferocity that she could not match he had found a way into her mouth and it was all that she could do to hang onto him for dear life. Sucking and nipping on her bottom lip he drew her tongue into his own mouth so that she could taste him. The flavor of sharp mint danced over her taste buds and she was lost as he, nibbling on his lips in return and seeming to have found a fire of her own.

Just when she thought she was going to burst he pulled away breathing heavily and tugging her more fully into his arms so that he might hold her with her legs wrapped around his hips. The damp tingle between her legs and the foreign hardness pressing against her stomach told her all she needed to know about how close they had been to falling back into bed.

"We were made for each other, don't ever doubt it." Pressing one last kiss against her forehead he sat her down and swatted her bum, "Now go off and take a bath before I change my mind."

Still slightly dazed Hermione stumbled into the bathroom shutting the door behind her and wondering what she was going to do if he changed his mind and came back for her.

()()()()()

Her morning and afternoon classes had fallen into a simple routine after her students had gotten over the shock of the new teaching style. Well, for the most part; she still had to deal with the odd Slytherin who insisted that they were above mixing with those not of pure blood or some other inane claim and it took her only seconds to put them back in their place. For now she was working to put together an age appropriate segment on the war for each of her classes that would include the spells used on both sides and how many lives they had each respectively claimed. She hoped that it would help to destroy the lingering hatred and prejudices and make these students think twice about what a war would bring them.

Thankfully Draco had not showed up for lunch, she didn't think she could have handled it if he had after the events that morning and what they would be doing that evening. Halfway through lunch she did get an owl from him though;

Hermione,

I thought I would let you know a head of time that we will not be eating with my parents tonight, and that your meeting with Blaise will be held at his estate rather than the manor. Try to eat a little more; we wouldn't want you to lose what progress you have made. Don't frown at me, just do as you're told.

~Draco

Noticing that some ink had leaked through on the small piece of parchment Hermione flipped it over, surprised at what she found.

You've changed the way I see

Things are better than they seemed,

So there could never be

A love like you and me.

Folding up the bit of parchment she put in the pocket of her robes, her manner more flustered than before. She couldn't help but feel that Draco's words both this morning and in the small poem came a little early and wasn't sure of how to handle them. Rationally, she knew that with their history neither one of them should even want to be friends. If you factored in the fact that he was veela then she could logically explain infatuation, a want of friendship and his seemingly endless need to take care of her but love? No.

No, love was about more than genetics. It was more than a predetermined fate. It was more than fights. It was more than chemistry, though they certainly had enough of that. It was more than this.

Unable to take another sip of tea around the tightness of her throat Hermione looked at Blaise, "I guess you could say it was good." She hated the knowing look in his eyes and fiddled with the parchment in her hands some more.

"Do you mind me looking at the letter he sent you? You are awfully worked up for it to be just a letter."

Staring at the large brown skinned man she shook her head, mumbling something about it being personal.

"Okay, I can accept that. How about you tell me about your symptoms, start with your nightmares." When she would have hesitated Blaise gave her a look and the pair commenced in a short lived staring contest.

"Fine," she hissed. "They aren't always the same and I'll have you know that I haven't had a nightmare since I started teaching."

Blaise raised an eyebrow and wrote something down on a yellow legal pad that she had introduced him to months ago.

"Usually it's me and Bellatrix; sometimes at the manor, sometimes while we were in the woods. Sometimes I dream that everyone died and that it was my fault. I don't realize that they are only dreams until I wake up." Hermione licked her lips and looked down at her hands, "I almost cursed Harry once, he woke me up and I thought he was Voldemort. I wasn't even in my bed either. I was in the kitchen, there were pots and food all over the floor and I don't think there was a single cabinet I hadn't blown to smithereens; it was destroyed." Shaking her head ruefully she met his eyes, "Gin just said she had been meaning to remodel it anyway. That was when they were really bad and after that I started warding my rooms at night so I couldn't get out and hurt someone."

"Have you ever thought that maybe these dreams started going away because of Draco? He would build dreams for the two of you to share, maybe it kept them away?"

Hermione shrugged her shoulders before narrowing her eyes at him yet again. "I hope that you aren't trying to make excuses for what he did Blaise. He lied to me when he could have told me. He forced me when all he had to do was ask. I would curse him in a second if I thought I could get away with it. I can feel parts of the bond already taking root and sometimes I don't even want to argue with him over things that I ought to have just as much say as he does."

"I didn't mean it that way, just look at yourself though; you are gaining weight, and keeping it on, you can sleep through the night, you haven't cursed any of your students… You are getting better and I think we both know that he has something to do with that." Blaise stood up gracefully for such a large man and as he closed the few feet that had been between them Hermione let her head fall into her hands.

"I don't want to be dependent on him. Just by being around him I am changing. What is going to happen after we mate? I know that he isn't the same boy he was in school but he is still a selfish, demanding, spoiled prat."

"While I hope you aren't talking about me I think that it is safe to say that you are mate. Did she cooperate?"

Hermione flinched; she hadn't wanted Draco to hear her talking about him like that even if it were true. It was a low blow to talk about him like that to his best friend, especially when he was doing them both a favor. It seemed like he always brought out the worst in her and sometimes it felt like she was even behaving like him.

"It went very well but I think that you should also consider some couples counseling as well, the two of you have a lot of things to work out and-"

"No."

"See now I think that is ex-"

"I said no Blaise. Now, my mate and I need to leave we have plans." The smarmy look on Draco's face startled both Hermione and Blaise.

His attitude has taken an abrupt turn and she wasn't sure that she liked or what had brought it on.

"Come on, we need to leave Hermione." The glint in Draco's eyes eliminated whatever hesitation she might have felt and after calling a quick good bye and thanks she felt the familiar tug of apparition.

Hermione gasped when the swirling stopped and kneeled on the soft carpeted ground in front of her frantically trying to keep control of her stomach. For the most part she tried to ignore the man in front of her and the irritated snort that she could only imagine came from Lucius. The soft grunt that followed may have been from Narcissca's elbow but she wasn't certain.

"What's wrong?" The attentive words from the man who had just cowed her into submission made her snort and quickly regret as her stomach reared up again.

"I don't like apparating, and if you had waited all of two seconds I could have told you that before you whisked us off." The soothing hand on her back made her relax slightly, "You are giving me emotional whiplash."

"I wouldn't have done that if I had known, I'm sorry. We can just floo and fly from now on. I bet you would like the stars at this time of night."

"Draco, I don't like flying either; my feet are staying firmly on the ground."

Another snort from Lucius, "Some kind of witch she is."

Hermione sat up, glaring up at the pale blonde man from her spot on the floor, "Actually, I'm the brightest witch of my age and you should know better than to forget it. I never had a problem with apparating till the war was over… something about it makes me ill. Probably the fact that I could never be sure if someone was going to attack me when I landed or if they would follow me." Accepting Draco's help to stand Hermione looked at him with pleading eyes trying to show him that she just wanted to get away from his father.

"Lucius, I believe that our son has asked you to refrain from these sorts of comments entirely. Apologize."

"I am sorry Ms. Granger."

"Mean it or you can sleep by yourself tonight." Hermione smiled slightly; apparently she could learn something from Narcissca about how to handle the Malfoy men.

After Lucius's second apology the trek up to Draco's room had been relatively silent with her still holding onto his arm for added support when going up the stairs. Once in front of the door she let him cover her eyes and lead her into the room.

He had a few candles set up around the room emitting a soft scent that she couldn't quite name but reminded her of a garden. There were some petals on the floor but not the normal rose ones, these seemed to be from lilies and were white a stark difference from the emerald blankets covering the bed. She could faintly hear the tinkling of water coming from the bathroom and looked up at Draco questioningly.

"I talked to my father about what the bonding was like… he said that it tends to be very heated and animalistic the first few times. Mother suggested a warm bath to relax you and some herbs to help make it easier for a virgin, the mixture has been used by the Malfoy's since the middle ages." Licking his lips nervously he shooed her towards the bathroom but didn't follow.

Her internal debate lasted only a few seconds and Hermione grabbed his wrist, "I think that it will work better if you help me." Searching her face for any signs of hesitation Draco swept her up into his arms and carried her to the bathroom.

"I want to make this as gentle for you as possible; I want you to have something good to remember this night by."

Placing her on her feet Draco began to carefully undress her, staring at her petite frame and womanly curves. With a kiss on her forehead he deposited her into the large tub and began removing his own clothes. Unable to help herself she started to look away not sure she wanted to see all of him yet or at all. Not after what he had told her. Fingers at the base of her jaw turned her head to face him.

"It will be less scary if you look now, I'll make sure that you enjoy it Hermione. It's just not going to be what you want your first time to be." She thought that he was pleading her with his eyes to understand.

When he pulled his hand back she let herself really look at him for the first time. He was more than the Adonis that all the girls had called him in school; strong arms and a sculpted chest with the lightest smattering of hair that begged to be tugged. In the soft light of the room she could tell that while he was pale there was a golden tinge to it and that the hair on his head was a couple shades lighter. As her eyes slid lower Draco tugged his boxers lower revealing toned and sturdy legs with the same smattering of hair that was on his chest. Drawing upon her courage she looked at his manhood; already he was half erect, hinting just how large he was going to be when he was ready. Seeming to have decided that he was ready to get into the tub as well he scooted her forward and sat behind her in the water, his legs going around the outside of hers and one of his arms pulling her back to rest on his chest.

"Oh, I almost forgot. Here's a clip for your hair, the tips are already wet but this will keep the rest of it dry. Is it okay if I put it in for you?"

Nodding her assent he gathered her hair and twisted it so that it would rest on top of her head. It seemed that he had thought of everything at this point but it didn't stop her jerk of surprise when he started to rub her shoulders.

"You're tense; the point of this is to relax. I know that we are not getting along right now but I wish that you would let me do this for you. You know after our bonding we will have to have a ceremony…" When she didn't react but to sigh and lean into him as his hands relaxed her tight muscles, "Mother has already started some planning but I know that she would love to have your input in it and it is just as much about you as it is about me."

Hermione let her eyes close as she mulled over the veiled request, "I'm not very good at that stuff but I'll help, if only to ensure there is more than Slytherin green and silver in the color scheme." Draco smiled pressing a kiss onto the top of her hair and wrapping his arms around her small waist.

"I'm sure that you can come up with colors that are not house affiliated though I rather like how you look in green. It makes you look like a young hedge witch form the old days, one that was dedicated to serving the earth. You could be a reincarnation of Diana."

Before she could blush Hermione felt herself being tugged out of the warm bath water and being swept into Draco's arms. His eyes seemed a little darker and his face sharper but she wasn't sure if that was her imagination or his veela.

"It is time mate; before the night is over we will be bonded. You will be mine." His normally even tone seemed harsher and more aggressive to her ears.

As he carried her to his bed he tilted her face up to take possession of her lips, maneuvering her body in a way that she did not notice till he pulled back and she was laying on the bed caged by his body. Still gasping for breath she arched into him as his mouth drifted from her lips down the slender column of her neck, seeming to leave no part of it untouched. Threading her fingers into his hair she tensed slightly as he licked the juncture of her neck and shoulder then pinching it with his teeth before pulling back.

"That is where I will mark you; let all of them see that you are mine and that no other shall ever have you." Looking her in the eyes Draco seemed to be a man possessed and she felt a slight pang of fear of what was to come. She knew that he would mark her and he told her that it would be rough; only a woman not in her right mind would not be scared. "Don't tense mate, you will like it and someday you will mark me in return. I will take care of you tonight."

It seemed that he was not in the mood for words anymore as he crushed his firm lips into her plump ones; nipping and invading her lips. She was so involved in the kiss that she almost missed his hands grazing her sides, running up her stomach to cup her breasts in his large hands. Moving his mouth over one nipple he took it into his mouth sucking it and smirking as he drew low moans of pleasure from her. Still gasping she instinctively pushed up into Draco, one leg wraping around his hips.

She knew then that fully erect that he was large and would likely cause more than a twinge of discomfort but found that she wanted him none the less. Breathlessly she begged the man on top of her for more groaning when he nipped her in response and licking her nipple one last time before switching to her other side. When his other hand drifted down to the apex of her thighs she cursed, pushing her hips up to encourage his fingers as they teased her button of pleasure.

Pulling his head up to hers Hermione called to the gods as Draco pushed a finger into her tight entrance, "Almost ready for me mate, almost ready."

With slightly rough movements he stretched her for when he would take her, the slight pain seeming to feed her hunger for more. Once he had both of her legs around his hips he lined himself up and kissed her again to distract her from when he swiftly thrust into her breaking the last vestige of her girlhood. While he waited for the last of the pain to fade he tenderly kissed her lips.

"It will be rougher from here out mate but I promise that you will enjoy it." For the first time Hermione realized that she trusted Draco, there was a sincerity in his words that she could not doubt.

When she tentatively moved against him Draco lost his remaining control and began to thoroughly make her his, hardly noticing her own movements her hands began to run over his chest latching onto the back of his shoulders to anchor her more firmly to him. In a matter of seconds the pair began to move in tandem, touching and kissing as the world around the faded.

In a quick movement he twisted her so that she was on her hands and knees before him, never losing contact with her tight warmth. The new angle made it easier for him to pound into her and created more depth that they both appreciated. Hermione felt herself losing control and as she told him that she felt him move her hair out of his way so that he could latch onto the bit of flesh that he picked out earlier as the spot where he would mark her. Just as they both reached their peak Draco's teeth pierced her skin sending them both off into waves of pleasure.

As she clenched around her mate Hermione felt the world around her fade until there was nothing.

()()()()()

First off, this is the longest chapter I have written as I knew it would be. I hope that you have enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Things are still going to be rough for this pair and they have a long way to go. I know that a lot of you didn't want any poetry so I hope the four lines didn't bother you and you should expect that there will be more like that. Anyway, thank you for reading and reviewing and I hope the you have enjoyed this installment of I Will Have You.

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