AN: Alrighty kids, the quickest update in history MUAW!!! things are gonna heat up in this chapter. It's basically just a smutty bit with a little plot woven in. Hope you enjoy. Don't forget to leave me reviews, I love them! ONWARD!
Chapter Eight
Hermione woke just as the sun was fading into the colorful sky. She felt rejuvenated and calm, prepared for whatever the night may bring her. She rose slowly, stretching out the kinks of sleep, and yawned widely, her long teeth glistening in the precious darkness. She left the bed, gathered a towel and some clothing and took a long and relaxing shower.
As she let her thoughts run free under the hot water, her mind kept bringing her back to Harry. She had enjoyed seeing him and could not shake the kiss that they had shared from her mind. He hadn't changed much over the long years. Still handsome and he still held a power over her that she refused to admit was love. She could not love. At least that is what she told herself every time his face rushed across her mind. That part of her life was over. But still, she wanted to talk to him again. She simply wanted to be in his presence even though she had to admit that that particular desire was a weakness; she could not afford to be weak. But against her better judgment, she decided to visit Harry once more, if for nothing more than a friendly chat.
Hermione turned the water off, toweled off quickly and threw on a pair of black slacks and a white button down shirt. She strapped her faithful knife to the inside of her right calf and tied up her favorite knee high boots. Vampire or not, she still liked to look nice. She grabbed her cloak and fastened it around her neck. There were a few members of her coven sitting in the drawing room as she passed through the mansion, but they were engrossed in conversation and she left unnoticed.
The night air was cool but not uncomfortable and Hermione made her way down the twisting lane to the apparition point. With a pop, she envisioned Harry's building and reappeared there instantly. She had no idea what time it was, but she hoped that he was still awake as she knocked twice on his door.
It took a few moments but he finally answered the door. The expression on his face was priceless. He was obviously glad to see her but shocked at the same time. He opened the door wide for her to enter and stepped out of the way.
"Well, ten years of nothing and suddenly two visits in 48 hours? I must be a lucky guy."
His smile was genuine and it warmed Hermione's heart a little. She stepped into the flat and hung her cloak on the hook next to the door.
Harry closed the door behind her and motioned to the couch. Once they were both settled, Harry summoned two cups of tea and some lemon. He offered Hermione a cup and she couldn't help but smile. Realizing his error, Harry blushed slightly and set the extra cup on the coffee table.
"Sorry…I forgot."
Hermione laughed politely and patted his hand.
"It's ok. Tea just doesn't taste the same to me anymore. Shame really, I used to love it."
There was an uncomfortable silence and Harry couldn't help but look Hermione over properly. She was beautiful, to say the least. She looked exactly the same as the last time he saw her only it was like looking at her through a dark light. She radiated a power and sort of majesty that he had never felt before.
"Sorry to drop by like this but…I haven't been able to get you out of my head. And I wanted to talk."
Harry took a sip of tea and felt his heart jump a little.
"Sure, I was just reading the Prophet. What did you want to talk about?"
His heart skipped a few beats and he felt his hands getting sweaty. He really wasn't sure what she wanted to say, but whatever it was, he was ready to listen.
"I…I've done a lot of things Harry. I've become something that I hate and others fear and I feel like I have no sense of who I am. Am I Hermione or am I the Vampire Queen? Am I good or am I evil? It's all so complicated. But the one thing that I do know is that I have never been able to let go of you. I dream about you, and think about you. I should want to kill you, to hurt you, but I have the exact opposite feelings. I wish I had been stronger and that I had fought Taunis. Please believe me that I never wanted this. I am an abhorrence, a creature. I'm not even human any more."
Harry placed a hand on her knee and she twitched at his touch. She hadn't felt this human in years and it was Harry that kept her humanity alive.
"Hermione, I have suffered a great deal these last ten years knowing that you were out there somewhere but not being able to get to you. I told you the day that I married you that I would be yours come hell or high water, richer or poorer, sickness and health…till death do us part. Even though the last part has come in an odd circumstance, nothing has changed."
Hermione felt a trickle run from the corner of her eye down her face. She knew it was blood, because she could no longer cry real tears, but Harry wiped it away nonetheless.
"Harry, it's like I lead two lives. On the outside I am ruthless and horrible when I have to be but inside, inside I still feel that trace of what love is, what it was to me. You keep that alive in me. You keep that little part of human nature vibrant within me. I…I have to kill Harry. I have to take the lives of innocent people and it rips my heart out every time. And then there's the blood lust. I can control it but I am desperately scared of the Blood Moon. I know that I will be beyond myself when it comes and I am afraid of what I will do. I don't want to kill Remus, I really don't, but he will not rest until he kills me. He's right in being afraid of me, I'm afraid of myself.
When I lose control, it's horrible. I become a monster with not a shred of humanity in me. And I am scared that it will consume me and drive out what little of me remains. I have to fight, because if I don't then I will die. And I have to be strong and lead my coven because if I don't then they will turn against me. I must be ruthless and fearless and animalistic. So how can you still love me?"
"Like this."
He captured her lips with his gently, taking in the way that she tasted. It was definitely different than what he remembered but it was still her. He slid his tongue along her bottom lip and after a moment of hesitation, she finally permitted him entrance. He caressed the sides of her face delicately as they shared a long kiss and Hermione knew that even though it was wrong, it was a right. She needed him, she always had, and now she remembered why.
He brought to her a sense of calm and security, which she had never been able to find anywhere else. He loved her, and she felt it in every small kiss that he planted along her jaw and neck. The fact that her skin was cold didn't seem to bother him as he caressed her neck and back.
She moved to rest on his lap and deepened the kiss. Without breaking apart, Hermione unbuttoned her shirt and Harry pushed it away, running his hands up and down her arms. The stopped to breathe and Hermione lifted Harry's shirt above his head and tossed it across the room. They sat silently staring at one another. Hermione was sure that her eyes had changed because she could see them reflected in the deep green of Harry's. He looked at her with an expression of awe and wonder; like he'd never seen anything so beautiful in his life.
Breaking their gaze, Hermione lifted herself onto her feet and untied her boots then removed her slacks to join their shirts across the room. She stood in nothing more than her underwear and her sheathed knife, and even that left her body. Harry sat mesmerized by the sight of her pale body. She took a step forward and caught his gaze.
"If you don't want me, if you've changed your mind, then now is the time to tell me." She hung her head, almost in shame but Harry had moved in front of her and held her chin in his hand.
"I will never change my mind. It doesn't matter what you are or what you do. You've always been mine and you always will be."
Hermione opened her mouth to reply that it did matter, but she didn't get the chance. Harry claimed her lips once more and pushed all reason out of her mind. She jumped and wrapped her legs effortlessly around him and put her arms securely around his neck as he carried her to his bedroom.
He kicked the door open with one foot and laid her gently on the bed, his body completely covering hers. With a wave of his hand Harry banished the rest of their clothing from their bodies. Hermione thought briefly that she hadn't had sex in a while so perhaps she had forgotten what to do, but it was quickly washed from her mind as Harry slipped gently into her.
Hermione let out a guttural moan and arched herself into Harry. He was holding her underneath her shoulders and in that position she found that she could change the angle at any time. Harry began to move his hips and she met him with every slow thrust. He felt like heaven inside her and she kissed him harder.
The pace began to quicken but remained calm as Hermione rocked her body against Harry's. She couldn't tell where she ended and he began and it was the best feeling in the world. She forgot about the things she'd done and would have to do and thought only of Harry, filling her, protecting her.
Hermione rolled Harry over so that he was on his back and assumed the position on top of him. She wanted to see his face, his eyes as they made love. She rocked gently to and fro and their eyes never broke contact. She laid one hand on his chest and he took the other in his own and she leaned down to be closer to him. Her lips brushed his gently and the feel of his warm skin under hers was almost more than she could take.
Feeling that tell tale tingle building at the base of her stomach, Hermione picked up the pace once more and Harry met her with every stroke. He gritted his teeth and she knew that he was about to reach his peak and he tried to move away but she planted all of her weight down on top of him.
"No…no…don't pull out." She whispered roughly.
Harry gave a quick nod and closed his eyes as his orgasm swept over him. Hermione threw her head back and groaned loudly as her walls clenched and she felt warmth spreading down and around her. She collapsed forward and kissed Harry gently and he caught her in his arms and turned them to their sides. He held her as they both basked in the afterglow, neither saying a word.
They would stay in each others' arms for now, and deal with the consequences later.
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