Midnight Seductress

Midnight Seductress

It was late. The sun had long disappeared over the horizon and the moon was only a small silver sliver of light. The stars seemed to have decided to take the night off, for not one could be seen. And seventeen year old girl was sitting beside a tree next to the lake.

It was wrong what she did and she knew it. She thought about her life absently as she skipped stones across the water. Each one created a ripple, disturbing the quiet peace of what was around it. The dim moonlight reflected off the rings, creating larger and larger cocentric circles of light.

She checked her watch. Five minutes to midnight. She rose quietly, tossing one last pebble across the lake, watching it until it sank beneath the surface. Not wanting to be late, she strode off quickly back to the castle. She tiptoed around the corridors, knowing the consequences would be severe if she were ever caught.

Reaching the dank dungeons, she whispered a password and slipped into a room she had familiarized herself with. But she wasn’t here for the scenery and she crept up the stairs that led to his dormitory, remembering to skip the step that screamed. She opened the door slowly, smiling slightly as she realized he had left it unlocked for her.

Walking over to his four-post bed, she drew the dark green velvet curtains aside and made sure her robe covered her face. She reached out to touch his face and he stirred out of his half sleep.

“Back so soon?” She only smiled wistfully to herself and placed a silencing charm on his bed.

“Indeed. We have a lot to talk about…” she trailed off. Every time she visited, she gave him the chance to ask her who she was. He never did.

“Don’t speak, love.” He pressed a finger to her lips and pulled her down to lie next to him. He brushed her hair back, not daring to remove the veil hiding her face. He loved the way it felt under his fingers, soft and smooth.

“As you wish,” she sighed, giving in to the temptation that drew her ever closer to his face, brushing his lips with hers.

“Shy tonight?” he asked her softly.

“Not shy, no. Sad,” she said absently, twining her fingers in his hair. “You don’t know me, but you will and I fear you won’t forgive me for what I’ve done.”

“Then hush. Let’s just enjoy ourselves.” He wasn’t one for pleasantries, but something about his midnight seductress made him yearn for love. Some part of him craved to be loved unconditionally. Yes, some part of him ached to be loved, but the greater part of him was afraid.

He rolled on top of her, kissing her deeply. His hands ran down her sides, making her shudder in anticipation. She moaned slightly as he worked his way under her robes, but it was only the beginning. Soon, she was again grateful she knew such a strong silencing spell as over and over their hips met, meshing in the heat of desire.

They fell asleep, his arms wrapped around her possessively, her head nestled next to his chest. But when he woke, she was gone. In her place was an envelope, a necklace resting peacefully on top of it.

He shivered and pulled his blankets over him, missing her warmth beside him. He fingered the pendant in his hands, noticing the brilliant gold of it. A lion.

He opened the envelope gingerly and let the letter slide out. He didn’t recognize the writing, but then, he hadn’t expected to. Unfolding the paper warily, he was unsure if he wanted to find out the identity of his lover. He had ideas, but nothing prepared him for what he read.

Dear Draco,

Time and time again, I offered you the chance to uncover my identity. Time and time again, you refused, choosing to live in secrecy. Though it pains me to do this, I can’t let this go on any longer.

I won’t live a lie, a fantasy, thinking that you care about me. You’ve let me into your bed, but I need more than that. It’s time that this charade of mine comes to a halt.

If you asked me last year if I thought I would ever fall in love with Draco Malfoy, the resident bad boy of Hogwarts, I would have laughed at you and followed it up with an insult or two. But here I am, falling more and more in love with you every time I come to visit you. So you see, it’s living the lie that has kept the fire alive in me. I don’t expect the fire to stay lit much longer when you know who I am.

When I first came to you, it was out of lust. Yes, even I am capable of lust. I wanted you so desperately and derived a plan even a Slytherin like you could appreciate. There are devious sides to me, though not many people are aware of it. What I hadn’t expected was to fall in love with you.

Let me explain. When we’re lying together, I feel closer to you than I’ve ever felt to anyone before. I can feel your pain, your anguish, your loss when your heart beats against mine. Perhaps it wasn’t love at first, but sympathy that kept me coming back. I could feel your need for love and I knew I could give it to you, if only for a short while. I couldn’t tell you the exact moment that this sympathy of mine changed its course and headed towards love, but trust me, it did.

But I cannot love without being loved in return. I needed the comfort, the physical affection that you so graciously offered. I took it without thinking of the consequences. It was a deadly mistake of mine. Ha, whoever would have thought that I would make a mistake? Certainly not you, though I’m sure you wished I would.

You think you don’t deserve love, but you’ve proved to me that you do. Perhaps you even believe you’re not capable of loving someone, or of receiving love. Take my word for it, you are. Even if you don’t want to admit it, somewhere there is a place that can’t be filled by anything else and it is waiting very patiently. You deserve love more than anyone I’ve ever met. That isn’t meant to sound reminiscent of pity, for it’s not. If you haven’t found love, that is your own doing. I am offering you my love. It is your choice whether you take it or not.

Always yours,
Hermione Granger

**********

Hermione had a feeling she had made another fatal mistake when she left that morning, before the sun had risen and spread its light across his sharp features. She could feel her heart breaking, already anticipating his response. A part of her, though, refused to give up hope. Everything she had written was true and she knew that he did crave to be loved. And she could love him. Oh yes, she could love him.

She walked slowly down out of the shower, letting her long hair sweep down her body. Drying quickly, she let her school robe engulf her. Taking a deep breath, she inhaled the scent of him still lingering on the black fabric. Spicy, with the slightest hint of sweet. Fitting for him, really.

She reached to her neck for her pendant, then remembered she had left that there as well, hoping that even if Draco rejected her, he would keep the lion as a reminder of her. It was amazing what the little things could do for her heart.

***********

Draco was sitting on his bed, still nude under the covers. He was more than a little nervous, almost afraid. Holding the lion gently, the chain flowed easily through his fingers.

So his midnight seductress was none other than Hermione Granger. He mulled this over silently, his heart and mind taking two entirely different approaches.

He wanted to try, he wanted to so badly. He knew what he had to do.

***********

Hermione sat at breakfast, pushing the food around on her plate, too uneasy to eat anything. Draco had walked in, his usual saunter a little more cocky and Hermione’s stomach flipped. The pattering of wings beat steadily against the walls of her abdomen and she couldn’t bring herself to look at him.

He didn’t look at her either.

Hermione sighed and knew Harry was too caught up with Ginny to notice a difference in her behavior, but she suspected Ron had detected her broken-down state and just didn’t know how to broach the subject. Hermione finally took a bite of her breakfast, chewing slowly and forcing it down her throat, which was painfully constricted.

She was just getting up to leave as the mail arrived. To her surprise, a school owl sought her out and dropped a letter in her hands. There was nothing written on the front, just a plain envelope. The same one she had used that morning.

She bid Ron a quick goodbye and walked back to her room as quickly as she could without looking suspicious.

Opening the envelope, something small and silver fell out. Hermione went to inspect it closer and saw that it was a pendant. A dragon.

Small and silver, Hermione could just make out the inscription on the back of the minute dragon. Draco, it said in the center. You’ll always have my love was written in a circle around it.

Her hands were shaking as she opened the envelope.

Dear Hermione,

So, you are my midnight seductress. I should have guessed, the way you felt under my hands, the soft and biting tone of your voice.

When I discovered who you were, I grew afraid. Afraid because I don’t know if I’m capable of love, any type of it. Even more afraid because of who you are and even more so when I understood that what I felt towards you was nothing other than love.

Hermione’s heart soared when she read this, the day seemed brighter and the weight on her shoulders seemed lighter. She hadn’t expected this. She read on.

Yes, I, Draco Malfoy, have learned to love. You showed me how.

I held a debate within myself when I woke this morning. A debate between my mind and my heart. My mind told me to stay away from you and my heart told me to sweep you up in my arms and kiss away all the fears I’m sure you’re having.

And so I ask you, with everything I have, to not visit me again. Keep the pendant as a reminder that, despite my request, I do love you.

Hermione, you taught me to love, but you will never be able to free me from what I am. A Malfoy.

Malfoys never listen to their heart.

Always yours,
Draco Malfoy