The Objects of Desire

On to Stirling

Hermione stood with her heart in her mouth as they entered the old dorm house at The University of Sterling. This morning was make or break; it was the experiment to discover if all Cruciatus Curses were the same. If the experiment went to plan then they would eventually be able to produce a potion that would counter the curse. If not she had just wasted the time of some of the most important people in the Wizarding world, and embarrassed the headmaster to top it all off.

She listened intently taking notes as Professor McAlister the potions master for the university ran through this mornings experiment. The subjects would cast the curse at a net antenna, the electromagnetic waves created would then be read on a computer screen in two ways, by wavelength and frequency. They would compare the results from each curse. If the results fell within half of one percent then they would have a winner.

She looked around the small group nervously, Minister Bones stood with Kingsley Shacklebolt who had replaced her as Head of Dept of Law Enforcement. The four people who were going to cast the curse stood on the stage, The Head Master, Professor Snape, Professor Lupin, and Alistair Moody.

The headmaster went first casting the curse dead in the centre of the net everybody’s heads turned to the large interactive white board on the far wall. The crowd released an audible breath around the room as a wave shot across the screen followed by the frequency written underneath 1235MHz, the spell was measurable. The curve had disappeared, replaced by a group of dots that had faint circles around them denoting the half a percent of error allowed.

Second up was Professor Snape again the room was deadly quiet as they waited with baited breath for his curse. Hermione smiled as Draco’s hand found hers and gave it a reassuring squeeze. She looked directly at the net as a ray of green light left his wand and collided with the net. She quickly turned to look at the screen as the curve shot across the screen. As it went, the dots turned green and a bell dinged indicating that the curve was in fact falling into the degree of error allowed. Tears started rolling down her face and a broad smile filled her mouth as the frequency read 1234MHz percentage error 0.08. She watched the rest of the test with a confident smile on her face, for the first two curses to be so close there was now way the others would fall outside the margin of error.

***

He walked up and down outside her bedroom door as he thought to himself. He was royally fucked, the Muggle since thingy had apparently worked. He was now officially a traitor. He was participating in a muggle experiment that would disable the dark lord’s advantages. Today The Cruciatus Curse tomorrow The Killing Curse, they both worked by overpowering the nervous system, if this science worked for one it would surely work for the other.

“Sod it,” he said as he approached the door. He needed to forget what he had done if only for a short time. Hermione would make him forget, all his worries his problems and the entire world in fact just disappeared when she smiled at him, he needed that tonight.

“It’s open,” she called form inside.

“It’s open,” he said as he walked through the door, “What’s the matter Granger afraid of vampires.”

“You can never be too careful,” she chirped as she wrote in her book.

He moved to the chair across the room from her and sat looking directly at her a bright smirk filling his face.

“What?” she asked fiddling with her hair nervously.

He didn’t answer his smirk just grew bigger.

“What?” she repeated.

Now he started to chuckle.

“Malfoy what’s wrong,” she asked standing up and looking at herself in the mirror.

Do you realise how beautiful you look when you are concerned.

She looked at him with eyes full of mirth and a scowl on her lips. She walked over and lent with a hand wresting on each arm of his chair, as her face was mere millimetres away from his.

“I don’t have time for you petty vindictive games now,” she said trying to look serious but she couldn’t keep the smirk of her lips. “If you don’t have anything better to do, then leave me to write up the days events in peace.”

Draco closed his eyes as a shudder ran down his spine. Her closeness was turning him on. The feel of her warm breath was sending goose bumps across his skin and the smell of her scent was filling his stomach with an unfamiliar warm glow.

He reached up tentatively brushing the side of her face with his hand. He smiled as her eyes closed and she lent into his touch. He wrapped his other arm behind her back and gently coaxed her onto his lap. The hand on her face gently moving around to cradle the back of her head pulling her into a chased kiss.

Draco’s mind went blank he was no longer thinking about avenging his father or winning the bet with Harry or the fact that the girl had got one over him by forcing him into this project. No, the only thing that was on his mind was the touch of Hermione’s body as it pressed against his and how right it felt like they were made to go together.

His pulse was racing ten to the dozen as he lost himself in how right it felt for his lips to be kissing hers for his hands to be moving over her body.

“STOP!” she cried in his ear, “DRACO NO!”

Draco froze in the moment as he finally came to his senses he looked at the situation in front of him and realised that his left hand was on Hermione’s right breast and his left hand was rising up her thigh towards her panties.

He pulled his hands back from the woman sitting on his lap burying his head deep in them, “Hermione I’m so sorry,” he whispered his voice full of regret and panic, “I, I lost control and didn’t know what I was doing.”

He tried to rise from the chair but she didn’t budge from his lap, “its ok,” she said her face flushed and her lips full.

“No it’s not,” he said chastising himself, “you gave me your trust and I took advantage of it, like you were some common whore.”

“You stopped.”

“But I went too far I didn’t treat you with the respect you deserve,” he said obviously appalled with himself.

“You stopped,” she repeated caressing the side of his face trying to calm him down. “I said stop and you stopped. That is all that matters now. It means that I can trust you,” she reached down and kissed the side of his face. “That is the most important thing in our relationship, trust,” she reached over and kissed the other side of his face.
He swallowed deeply as he realised that this moment had moved their relationship on to another level. The first objective she had set him had been to earn her trust and this one moment of control had gained him that trust.

He smiled up at her broadly, “so what over stepped the mark the hand on your breast or the one up you skirt.”

She looked at him shock evident on her face as she squatted him around the head. Then she looked lost in thought, “I would have to say the one up my skirt,” she answered with a contrite face.

“So you didn’t mind the one on your’…”

She looked at him her face so full of confusion and passion that he felt a tightening deep in his stomach. He wanted her so much, but it hurt to see her going through so much inner turmoil.

Why? He thought to himself, she’s nothing more than a stinking Mud blood. My whole plan revolves around hurting her and her two annoying friends. Why should it bother me if she’s going through some inner turmoil? That’s good right.

“I think this has moved too fast too soon,” she responded biting her lip showing signs of the fight she was going through. “We kissed for the first time last night and now… It all just seems so rushed, can we take a step back and get to know each other properly before we jump head long into something we really haven’t thought through?”

“Merlin Hermione I’ve though of nothing else for the last three weeks. I, I thought you felt the same?” He said looking deep into her eyes letting her see his passion. “I thought about nothing but those beautiful brown eyes,” he reach down and kissed each of her eyes in turn. “Your sensuous lips,” his mouth found hers as they melted into each other. He smiled at how easily she had yielded her body to his control as her mouth opened and allowed him access to hers. His left hand played through her copious ringlets of hair, taken aback at how soft and gentle it felt to his touch as he caressed the nape of her neck. His right hand made its way down to the waistband of her skirt deftly caressing the small of her back through the thin cotton of her T-shirt.
He struggled against all his urges to stay in control, to fight the need to take her here and now as roughly as he could. Her body felt so good against his as he reached down encompassing the left cheek of her asre through her skirt. Merlin he was in heaven with his Aphrodite sitting on his lap.

He moved his mouth from her lips placing small butterfly kisses along her jaw as he headed for her left earlobe. He took a deep breath inhaling the scent of exotic fruits before drawing her lobe into his mouth. A guttural purr exploded from her lips as he expertly worked her earlobe nibbling sucking and licking the tender flesh moving the young witch nearer oblivion.

His hand moved back up to the small of her back before tentatively moving beneath the elasticised waistband of her skirt. His hand stopped dead in its tracks as she stiffened against his touch, but his mouth still worked on her ear his tongue circling her outer ear before delving into the inner reaches. She groaned deeply with pleasure as her body once again melted into his.

He fought mightily against his body’s wish to go further, knowing that it would cause her to bolt and undo all the trust he had built over the last hour.

Finally, they pulled apart looking deep into her eyes seeing his passion and lust reflected back at him. “Well that was…”

“Intense,” she finished.

He nodded trying to regain his composure, “we should finish the log,” he ventured lamely.

“Yeah,” she agreed, her breathing ragged. She rose from his lap and headed for the desk. “If I read my shorthand you could transcribe it into legible English.”

***

Harry looked at the parchment confusion evident on his face. He had gone through so much emotion over the past half an hour.

Last night he had been bitterly disappointed when Hermione had finally allowed Draco to kiss her properly full on with tongues and everything. He knew that she couldn’t keep him interested forever if she didn’t concede a little ground, but it still hurt.

Watching again to day as Draco once again started to kiss Hermione also stung considerably but then he had gone further placing his hands where Harry had only dreamed of touching Daphne. That had hurt a kiss was one thing but they were moving to far too fast. Was she falling for the slimy bastard? Was she finally losing her battle in controlling the relationship?

Then it happened the parchment went blank Draco would be forced to complete the forfeit and Hermione would have stormed off. He wouldn’t get near her for weeks if ever. He had been so proud of her but then…

Harry lifted the chair and slammed it into the nearest wall. How could she? She had came to her sense finally rejected him but once again the parchment had gone off the chart. How could she allow the grease ball to get anywhere near her? To allow him a kiss was one thing but his hands had been all over her.

He walked out of the dorm and headed straight for The Owlery.

***

Harry heard someone walk into the room, but he never moved from his perch sitting on the parapet looking out over the lake. Hedwig sitting on his lap as he absentmindedly stroked her plumage.

“You do realise the towers have been warded to prevent you from jumping?” she asked in her normal sarcastic way.

A noise left his throat half way between a laugh and a sob.

“Give me the letter,” she said sitting on the ledge next to him.

He did not attempt to reply.

“Give me the letter,” she repeated more forcefully.

Reluctantly he removed the parchment from Hedwig’s leg and handed it to the witch, who ripped it into small pieces.

“Do you realise how patronising you are being?” she asked with an air of annoyance to her voice.

“Excuse me?” he replied taken aback.

“Hermione’s in danger, Draco is only out to hurt her and to make you suffer. He must have tricked her with his lies and deceit. She sighed deeply, “I don’t know Hermione as well as you do, but she’s the brightest person I have ever had the pleasure of meeting.”

“But the bet…”

“Is how this all started out,” she interrupted, “are you and I still about the bet?”

“No.”

“No you saw something more.” She replied caressing his cheek, “Something you really wanted even needed.”

“But…”

“What’s to say Draco hasn’t had the same kind of epiphany about Hermione?” she asked looking deep into his eyes. “If Hermione has allowed Draco a few indulgencies then I would say he has probably earned them. She doesn’t strike me as the type to have the wool pulled over her eyes easily.”

“I know, I know,” said Harry, turning away from her to bury his head in his hands for a second. “And I know that if this is a sign that Hermione is making real headway with Draco that I should be happy…”

“But deep down in the Back of your head you are hoping that Hermione fails. That Draco cannot be saved.”

He laughed bitterly, “that’s some kind of twisted wish but I can’t help it.”

“For that to come true, Hermione would have to go through a load of pain,” she replied, “is that what you want?”

“Merlin no,” he said looking at her with shock on his face, “Hermione being hurt is the last thing I would want.”

“Then maybe it’s time you put the past behind you and started helping her reform Malfoy,” she sighed deeply, “because that’s the only way she is coming out of this unhurt.”

Harry’s shoulders slumped as the reality finally sunk in. he had already lost a part of his best friend and he would have to change his view of Malfoy if he wasn’t going to lose the rest.

***

Draco lay on his bed his head spinning the muggle machine had worked. He still wasn’t sure what it had done or how it had made finding a defence against the Cruciatus Curse imminent, but everybody in the room had been certain that it would now only be a matter of time before they produced the potion. He could hardly believe the irony of it all the pureblood supremacist dream of a world without mud-bloods halted by muggle technology.

He smiled as he pictured Hermione with tears of joy running down her face. A bitter laugh left his lips, Merlin when had that happened. He remembered the time when the sight of her face filled him with revulsion. She was the epitome of all that was currently wrong in The Wizarding World, she nothing but a mud-blood monkey, who thought that because she had the ability to mimic the actions of true wizards and witches, she was as good as they were.

For years, he had deluded himself that the reason he detested her so much was that she was a lowlife mud-blood who scored better than he did in all his classes. No the real reason he had detested looking at the girl was that she was the one thing in all the world he wanted and knew he couldn’t have.

That was the reason he had agreed to this insane bet so readily. he had once again deluded himself into believing that his attraction to the girl was only human nature, man wants what he can’t have. Once he had the roll in the hay out of the way, he could forget all about the filthy animal.

He laughed bitterly again, there was an old muggle saying he had heard somewhere, ‘there are none so blind as those who don’t want to see.’ He had definitely not wanted to see that his attraction to Hermione was more than just the allure of the unobtainable.

He closed his eyes tightly what was he going to do? He was falling for the enemy, the paragon of everything he had despised. He was beginning to fall in love with Hermione Granger, another smile filled his face, but this time it had none of the venom of the others.

Love was not an emotion that Draco had been introduced to as a child. Malfoy’s treat love with the same disdain as their master it was a weakness to be avoided at all cost. They were all so horribly wrong, love is strong, brave, and true. Love alone was the one emotion that overpowered the fear with which the dark lord ruled his subjects.

Draco sighed deeply, he was a traitor now twice over not only had he fallen for the enemy. He was plotting with her, making a potion that would end the dark lord’s advantage.

A broad smile filled his face he was an outcast he had crossed over to a brave new world, with all the bridges to his old life thoroughly burned. He was amazed that this fact didn’t fill him with fear and trepidation, on the contrary with Hermione as his guide he was looking forward to his new life.

She trusted him this was the first time in his life that he had truly known what it felt like to be trusted and the feeling totally overwhelmed him. He would hold on to her trust for dear life he would never do anything to loose it.

Merlin no, he thought as panic engulfed him, this soding bet. Once he stood up Monday night and completed his forfeit she would know, see that this had all been a bet. She would be broken, destroyed. All of the trust that had built between them would be shattered forever. His heart entered his mouth as he realised that he had found true love only to lose it on the same night.


Hey guys thanks for all the reviews you are truly awesome. Hope you like the chapter.

What will Draco do now that he has realised that he has blown his chances whit Hermione. How will Hermione react when she finds out? All will be revealed in the next chapter of OOD.