Hermione's Evening

CHAPTER 02

They went from the warm pub out into the cold pavement. "Well - " Hermione began. "It was nice, seeing you -"

"No, Hermione, not that," Draco interrupted. "I'm not saying good-bye to you as if we were polite strangers."

"What, then? Hello?" she retorted.

"No, more like, let's go somewhere else and talk for a bit more."

"Malfoy, give me one good reason why I should go anywhere with you."

"Because, Granger, we've got things to clear up and I've got things to say."

"Why can't you say them right here, out on the pavement?"

"Because, dammit, it's cold, I'm freezing, and so are you."

She sighed, defeated. "Oh, all right. Where, then?"

"Let's go to my hotel. Come on, I'll drive." He put his hand under her elbow as they started to walk away from the Leaky Cauldron.

"You drive, Malfoy?" She asked incredulously.

"Well, sure, why not? When you own a cattle station out in the Outback, you need utes to manage the cattle. Somehow broomsticks just don't do with all the Muggle cattle station hands about."

"What's a 'ute?'" Suddenly realisation dawned on her. "Hold on...you...you own a...cattle station? You, Malfoy?"

"Yes, I do," he said impatiently. "It was the quickest way I could build up my stash after leaving England. My father's estate was still tied up, and I needed to make a living. So I hired on as a ringer. Oh, and an 'ute' is a lorry, used for utility work on a station."

She could only gape at him. This was so, so unexpected. Malfoy, a cattle ringer?

He was still talking. "And then when I got my money from my father's estate, the part that wasn't tied up in maintaining Malfoy Manor, I used it to buy out the owner of the cattle station. He hadn't any family, you see, and so there was no one to take it on after he died. So I bought him out, giving him a nice swag to retire on."

"And, you made money on er, beef?"

"Oh yes, I did. Beef is very good. The price of Aussie beef has gone up on the world market and so my profits have been more than adequate. Especially since the Japanese are our biggest beef importers." They had reached his car, a late-model low-lying sports car Hermione didn't recognise. He dug out his remote key ring and unlocked the door by pressing a tiny button. Then he froze.

"Bugger it."

"What?" she asked.

"Hold on. Something's wrong."

Then she sensed it, her Auror training belatedly kicking in as the prickling started in the back of her neck. She reached inside the sleeve of her Muggle leather jacket for her wand. But Malfoy stayed her hand by placing his hand on her arm.

"No." he hissed.

"Why not?" she hissed back.

"Too many of them."

She looked away from his eyes and saw them. It was a gang of at least six very big menacing figures, all in black Muggle clothing and all looking very dangerous. Uh oh....

Draco looked at the one who seemed to be the leader in the eye. "What do you want, mate?"

"Yer money... and th' girl."

"Well..." Draco drawled. "If it's money you're wanting, that you can have. But the Sheila. Well, that's a different story."

"'Old on, Aussie. We ain't givin' yer a choice."

"You aren't? Well, then I'm not giving you one, either, mate."

"Wot?"

Draco stared intently into the man's eyes. "You understand me..."

The man's eyes started to fade. In fact, as Hermione glanced at the other men, they all looked, well, not quite there. "Draco..."

"Shhh..."

"Draco, what in hell are you doing?"

"Shhh, Granger. Not now!"

She shut up. Apparently it was not a good time to question him on his magical methods.

Draco continued to stare at the ringleader, muttering something she couldn't understand under his breath. It sounded like an incantation, but nothing like she had ever heard before. The six hulking shapes slowly turned and skulked off into the cold darkness of the night.

He relaxed with a huge sigh. She did the same.

"All right, what was that, Malfoy? Something your father taught you in the Dark Arts?"

She wasn't sure in the dim light, but she could've sworn his face took on a ruddier hue.

"No, Granger."

"Tell me."

"All right but get in the car first. I'm freezing after that." It was true, he was shivering, she could tell. They clambered into the car, and sat, waiting for the engine to warm up and the heat to kick in, which it did, very shortly. He then drove off towards Central London, having not said a word.

"Well?" She was impatient.

"God, Granger, don't you let up?"

"No, and I won't, until you tell me what that was, Malfoy."

"Well...er...I told you I started out as a ringer, right?"

"As incredible as it seems, yes, you did."

"Well one day I was wandering about out in the Outback on my broom, exploring the place. I had my kit with me and so was cooking some grub in a can next to a billabong - don't ask, Granger - I fell asleep. I woke up to find some strange men about my campsite. They were Aborigines. Naturally, I was scared at first -

When did Malfoy start admitting he was scared?

"..And so I got out of there as soon as I could fly out. Must have looked rather funny to them." He chuckled at the memory. "But something drew me back there, and with the help of one of the native ringers at the cattle station, I learned their language. Did you know they've got one of the oldest cultures in the world? And Granger..."

"Yes?"

His voice lowered to a reverential pitch. "They've got some of the oldest and most powerful wandless magic in the world, even more powerful and elemental than the most powerful Dark Arts my father taught me. The thing is..."he paused. "The thing is, you can't use it for evil purposes. If you try, it'll rebound on you a hundred-fold."

"How do you know that? Did you try to use it that way?"

"God, no. I saw a wizard - one of my few Magical ringers - try to use it to kill someone, and it boomeranged on him. He was dead before he knew what hit him." Draco shuddered at the memory. "They believe that any magic you use must be for the good of nature, and to kill someone with magic goes against all the good of nature. So..."

"So any time someone tries to use Aboriginal magic for evil purposes gets back all the evil plus more?"

"Exactly. Nice to know you've still got it."

"Of course I do. Else, I'd be doing something else beside being an Auror."

He looked at her sharply. "Tell me the truth, Granger. How long have you been an Auror now?"

"Fifteen years. You know that. Malfoy. You joined the training with us right after Hogwarts."

"Yeah, I know. It really was a rhetorical question. Tell me something else now. Aren't you tired of it?"

"No, I'm not...!" He gave her a disbelieving look at her vehemence.

"Methinks thou does protest too much..."

She sighed. "Well, you know me so well, Malfoy. Yeah, I guess I am. But what else can I do? I'm a bit old to go back to university."

By this time they were at the front entrance at the hotel. Draco pulled the keys out of the ignition, saying, "We'll talk about that some more when we get upstairs, Granger." He got out of the car and handed the keys to the attendant, then walked over to the passenger side and pulled open the door before Hermione could untangle herself from the seat belt and do it herself. He smirked at her frustrated expression.

"Aw, come on, Granger. Let me be the male chauvinist pig for once, eh? At least my mum taught me good manners."

"Well, I'll grant you that, Malfoy," she smirked back at him. "Just for that, you can hold the door for me, too."

"For you, darling, anything." Was it her imagination, or was the smirk gone? No, there it was, back again. That serious expression must have been her imagination. Just pure imagination.

He grabbed her hand just before reaching the door, keeping his hold on it even as he stopped at the front desk to check for messages. She quietly tried to tug it loose, but he gripped it all the harder, refusing to let her go. When she stopped tugging away, his hold gentled again. And kept it, even as they walked into the lift and rode it all the way up to the penthouse suite. By the time they got off the lift, she was breathless.

They stopped at his door as he took out the key card and inserted it into the slot. She started to go in, but he stopped her with a gentle tug on her hand.

"Not just yet, Granger."

"Why not, Malfoy?" Her wide eyes were on him as he bent his head to her.

His lips were on her, and she suddenly felt alive for the first time in many years. His lips were warm and seeking, his tongue licking at her full bottom lip. As she opened her mouth just the tiniest bit, that warm tongue took advantage, slipping in and exploring the inside of her mouth. It felt good, no...better than good, it felt like she was home, warm and safe. Her arms crept up around his neck and she hung there, rendered senseless by the kiss.

When she broke apart, gasping for breath, she couldn't speak. Draco smiled down at her, not his smirk, but a real smile.

"Damn, Granger, I think I've found a way to shut you up."

"Oh God, I can't believe we just did that..."

Now he did smirk. "Want me to do it again, do you?"

She blushed, not a mean effort for a 30-something woman. "Now, Malfoy..." She noticed they were in his suite now; she didn't know how they got in without her noticing. She plopped ungracefully on the richly upholstered sofa. He sat down next to her, very close.

"Don't you think you could call me 'Draco?' I rather like the way it sounds when you say it."

She blushed again. "Only if you call me 'Hermione.' Although the way you say 'Granger' at times doesn't sound too bad, either." She got another thorough kiss for her pains.

He reluctantly pulled away from her. "Hermione, we need to talk..."

"Hmm..." she was finding hard to keep her hands off his body.

"Hermione..." he gulped. "Please. Hold on. I need to talk to you about something."

"Okay." She sighed. "If we must -"

"Yes, we must stop. Although, I wouldn't mind taking up where we leave off, later." He smiled roguishly.

She heaved a put-upon sigh; then sobered. "All right, Draco, I'm listening."

"Remember when I told you why I was back in England?"

"Yes, you said you came back here on Quidditch business and to settle your mum's estate."

"Yes, well, those weren't the real reasons, Hermione."

"What then, Draco?"

"I came for you."

She wasn't sure she'd heard him right. "You what?"

"Came for you."

"Why?"

"Because we belong together," he said calmly. His grey eyes were serene.

"Malfoy, you can't be serious!"

"Oh, but I am, Hermione."

"But what makes you think I'd go with you?"

:"Because you love me and I love you."

"But, but..." she sputtered. "What makes you think I'd love you, of all people?"

"Why haven't you married yet, all these years, Granger?" he countered.

"Well, because I haven't found anyone yet that I'd want to marry, Malfoy."

"In ten years?"

"I'm picky! So sue me!"

"Er, you don't fancy women, do you?"

"No!"

"Didn't think so," he smirked.

"I've gone out with a few men, I just haven't found one I've liked very well."

"No, you just have been waiting for me, you just don't know it yet."

She was speechless. He had to be playing a trick on her. He seemed to read her mind all too easily.

"No, Hermoine." I'm not playing a trick on you. I'm no longer the boy who delighted in tormenting you in the halls of Hogwarts, haven't been for many years now. I've loved you as long as I can remember, I just couldn't do anything about it until now."

"But - you married Ginny!"

"But - " he mimicked her gently. "After you became engaged to Potter. I figured since you'd made your choice, I had better go on with my life. And so I made my choice to marry Ginny. And I did love her, after a fashion. She knew, of course, that I loved you, yet she still married me. I think we did it to console each other. She loved Potter and I loved you. Also, there was the matter of my father. If I'd followed my inclination and married you - had you chosen me - I'm sure Lucius would have tortured you as well as killed you. I honestly thought Ginny was safe from him, being a pureblooded witch."

"But - I'd no idea..."

"Of course not, Hermione. As I said, we'd all made our choices at the time. Although I'm sure if Harry and Ginny had lived, our lives would be very different now."

"But, why now? Why tell me this now?"

He looked at her calmly and resolutely. "Because I've got a chance at happiness and so do you, Hermione. I'm willing to risk rejection at a chance of having you in my life."

"Here or in Australia?"

"Oh in Australia. Although if you insist; we can have a home here in England, too. But Australia's where my home is, now. We could come back to see your family during Christmas holidays if you'd like."

"And what do you expect me to do there, out in the Outback?"

"Be my wife, of course, help me to run my businesses. And there's a whole world down there for you to study. The Aborigines' magic would be enough to keep your mind busy for the rest of your life. And you could study at the magical university by the wizarding wireless and get a degree in studying Magical Artifacts. You'd be a natural at it, with your Auror background. Or you could be an Auror out there in the Outback. They can always use more. Or..." he paused.

"Or...? You've obviously been thinking about this."

"Or you could be mother to our children, something Ginny wasn't able to live long enough to do."

With a pang, Hermione remembered that Ginny had been pregnant with Draco's child when she was killed by Lucius. Malfoy had lost more than a wife when Ginny died; he had also lost his child.

"Oh I don't know, Draco," she sighed. "I'm not sure I'm cut out to be a mother. I'm not very domestic, I'm afraid."

"Hermione," he put his arms around her and held her tightly. "You'd be a wonderful mother to our children. Between our brains and our looks, how can they turn out bad? Look at me."

"Draco..." she started to say."

"No Hermione, please don't give me a final answer right this minute. Listen: Go home and sleep on it, will you? My flight leaves from Heathrow tomorrow at 4:00 pm, which means I'll need to be at the front of the terminal by 2:00 pm to clear customs and security. If I don't see or hear from you by then, I'll know you'll have decided not to come with me."

"I know already what my answer will be - " she started, but stopped when he put a finger over her mouth to stem the flow of words.

"No, Granger, don't give me your answer right this minute." He leaned down and kissed her, a leisurely, mind-numbing kiss. "Now go home and think on it."

She got up off the sofa in a daze, collected her purse and jacket, and stumbled to the door Just as she reached for the door handle, his quiet voice said, "Remember, Granger, we get very few second chances in life."

She turned to look at him. "I understand, Malfoy. It's just that I need to go home and think; it's all a bit much to take in."

His gaze softened. "Yes, I expect it, given our history. So, how are you getting home?"

She was weary and it showed. "Get the doorman to call a minicab, I expect. "

"No, I won't let you do that. Those off-license cabs can be dangerous. Look, I'll take you home. No..." he overrode her protests. "No problem, especially as we'll Apparate to your place."