Chapter 6
POV Draco
He stared at his glass of fire whiskey as he lounged on a leather chair, his arm propped up on the arm. Blaise was sprawled out on the matching couch swirling his wand with one hand and Theo sitting on a footstool, staring intensely at the game of wizards chess in front of him on the coffee table. Behind him Pansy was loading a vinyl onto the record player, her other hand holding a glass of wine.
Draco secretly loved their weekly hangouts in his loft. Even after his mother renovated the manor he knew he had to get his own place without the tainted reminders of bad decisions. It was a studio, with a large bookshelf separating the bedroom area. On the bookshelf was his elaborate vinyl collection. He had been forbidden by the Ministry of Magic to use his wand for a year, outside of his school, after his stint in Azkaban. Boredom was his initial excuse for visiting Muggle records shops but his addiction to the raw, edgy talent of these non-magical artists kept him coming back. His collection was now overflowing the shelves but his friends seemed to relish fighting over the next selection.
Blaise glanced over at him and asked “Why the distant face, Drake?”
When Draco didn’t respond Theo piped up. “Oh I'm sure he is just reimagining his little throw in the hay with Granger.” Theo’s eyes narrowed and he wiggled his eyebrows, making a mocking kissing face before brandishing a mischievous smile. Draco heard a sharp gasp behind him before Pansy grabbed his shoulder and wrenched it to the side.
“What?! Why is this the first I’m hearing of this?” she demanded. “And from Theo, no less.” She pouted at Draco before throwing a glare at Theo.
“Oh you know Pans, a gentleman never kisses and tells.” Draco replied smugly. He was instantly reminded of a similar comment to Granger that had resulted in a rather painful slap. He swore he could still smell her scent on his face. Pansy rolled her eyes as she crossed the room, sitting in the chair opposite of him. “Oh please, no one has ever called you a gentleman” she said, shooting daggers at him.
Theo looked up from his game, and grinned. “That’s not true! I definitely remember his mother calling him one before second year” he replied.
Draco deeply rolled his eyes. “For your information, I was thinking about our new potion that is about to debut. This one seems to take away the anxiety from a hangover” he added, winking at Theo.
But of course he was thinking about Granger. He couldn’t get her out of his head. Her smell. The curve of her hips as she bent over the table. Her honey brown eyes. This had to be an omega thing, putting alphas into an almost hypnotic trance that didn’t end. Right? That definitely explained it and nothing else. He rubbed the back of his head in frustration, as if that would help him forget.
He didn’t understand why he couldn’t get Granger out of his head. No other Omega had caused him to repetitively imagine her hands trailing up and down his arms. Or the way her hair had fallen down around her face and surrounded him with that intoxicating scent.
Without warning, Draco was smacked in the face with an oversized pillow. He looked up and saw all three snakes smirking at him. He quickly rolled his eyes and sunk back into his chair, avoiding their curious stares. He closed his eyes, listening to the angry ballands of his favorite band.
What's the worst that I can say?
Things are better if I stay
So long and goodnight
So long and goodnight
Came a time
When every star fall
Brought you to tears again
We are the very hurt you sold
And what's the worst you take
From every heart you break?
And like a blade you'll stain
Well, I've been holding on tonight
“Yes!” shouted Theo suddenly, beaming, slightly startling both him and Blaise. He had won another game of chess against the board. His post-win gloat was the reason no one in the group was willing to play. Draco closed his eyes again trying to ignore him, humming to the music.
By the end of the night they had gone through half a bottle of fire whiskey and a whole bottle of wine. Blaise and Draco got into a heated debate about Quidditch that meandered on for over an hour.
“Well this has been swell but I have to get going” Pansy said as she stood up and strolled over to the fireplace. “Have to get back to Longbottom so soon?” teased Blaise. She shot him a look of anger that quickly softened, clearly thinking about Neville back home. “Hey! I’d rather go home to him than you losers any day” she retorted. It still surprised Draco that she was attached to that plant head. She walked into the fireplace, yelling “later”, before throwing the floo powder, and in a green flash she was gone.
Draco watched as the powder settled back into the fireplace and the green spots faded from his vision. Sometimes he wondered if anything would have happened between him and Pansy, had she not presented as an alpha. He always came to the same conclusion: she was one of his best mates and he was content, happy even, with the state of things between them.
He swiveled back around to look at the other men in the room, happy to have time alone with just the three of them. He loved Pansy, but there were just some things he didn’t want to share with her. Theo had picked up the conversation about Quidditch with Blaise where Draco had left off, teasing him about his favorite team more than having a proper chat. Blaise was mid rant about the superior strategy of his team, face flushed in annoyance and voice rising, when Draco interrupted.
“So,” he started, his voice quiet and hesitant.
Theo and Blaise turned suddenly, looking shocked, worried and inquisitive all at once. It wasn’t like Draco to be so timid. He usually commanded attention, whether he intended to or not.
“What’s up, Drake?” Blaise asked carefully.
“You’ve both been with omegas, right?” Draco inquired.
Theo scoffed and sat back, looking like a proper diva with his cheeky smile while he held his hand up, admiring his nails. “I’ve been with everyone from here to Timbuktu, boys. But as I’m a beta, I don’t think the expert opinion you’re looking for. All that hokey pheromone shit doesn’t affect me much.” He shrugged and continued on. “Ol’ Zabini here might have more insight.”
Blaise kept his face guarded as he spoke. “Course I’ve been with omegas, but so have you Drake, so what’s this all about?”
Draco kept his head down, looking at his hands in his lap. “Well, I hooked up with an omega recently and since then, I’ve just felt… off? I’m not exactly sure how to describe the feeling.”
He peeked to see Blaise quietly listening, waiting for him to continue. Theo was already distracting himself with a record cover. He no doubt caught on that Draco was talking about Granger.
“Usually after a shag, it’s ‘out of sight, out of mind,’ but this time it’s like she hexed me and it’s all I can do to not think about her every other day. She must have used some dark magic to switch our glands, so the only thing I smell is that damned cinnamon candy apple. Merlin, what’s wrong with me?” Draco huffed and slumped back into the chair, covering his eyes with his hands.
“Godrick, Drake, how long has this been going on?” Blaise prodded. “I mean, the last lass you shagged was Granger, but…” His voice trailed off. Draco glanced at Blaise through his fingers and watched as his eyes went wide with understanding. “Granger?” he shouted, “the Golden Girl is an omega?” He sputtered a few senseless words and then his jaw went slack in shock.
Theo decided to rejoin the conversation then. “Careful, Blaise, you’ll turn into a plimpy, looking like that.”
Blaise’s jaw snapped shut and he shot a look at Theo. He flicked his wand toward the curly headed prat and chanted a spell under his breath. Theo yelped as spark shocked his arse, causing him to jump off the couch. The two began chasing each other around the room like school kids, weaving and jumping over furniture.
Draco hunched over and groaned, burying his head in his hands. Bollocks, he thought, what are mates for?
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Draco leaned against the outside of his shop, twirling his wand in one hand. He woke up with an owl tapping obnoxiously at his window from Granger, asking, or rather demanding, he meet her that afternoon. He was leaving a gleeful Theo to watch the shop. Glancing to the right, Draco saw Granger strolling down the cobblestone street. She was wearing a black pencil skirt with a white blouse under a set of robin egg blue robes. The wind slightly pushed her hair back, creating a mane behind her. “Lioness indeed” he mumbled under his breath. For a moment, he thought he heard his heart beating in his ears. He noticed she was wearing a necklace, the letter H hanging from a string of pearls. With a sigh Draco pushed himself off the wall and slowly trudged toward her. “Granger” he greeted her in a monotone voice. “Good afternoon Malfoy” she replied in a chipper voice and a broad smile. He felt his heart quicken, no doubt from the infuriatingly animated way she greeted him and nothing more.
“What do you need from me, Granger?” he demanded.
“Well first I need to clear up some things, make sure I can trust you” she said. She reached out her right hand. He looked at her open hand and then at her face with a confused expression that asked ‘what?’. Her smile broke just barely, and Hermione furrowed her brow and shoved her hand even closer. Rolling his eyes and sighing, he muttered “fine” while reaching for her forearm. He might have accidentally on purpose grazed her glands. He felt her shiver but a second later he was pulled away from Diagon Alley. Suddenly he was again in the small windowless room.
“Please sit” she said briskly, conjuring up a tea set and scones with clotted cream and jam. He gave her a weary eye and sharply scooted back one of the chairs, taking a seat.
She shifted in the chair across from him, clearly somewhat uncomfortable. “Granger… What is this? I thought you needed my help. Am I here for a tea party?” he asked sarcastically.
She cleared her throat, and quickly stammered “No, of course not. Before I can work with you I…I need you to take a dose of veritaserum.” Looking down at the cup of tea, Draco was stunned. He hadn’t taken the potion since his trial, and didn’t have fond memories of his truths being ripped from his throat.
He tilted his head to the side, thinking, pushing his chair back, balancing it on the back legs. She looked nervous now, chewing her lip. This sight brought him back to Hogwarts when he would occasionally glance over at her in class, chewing on the end of her quill. “Fine, I'll drink it” he huffed. She sighed a breath of relief. “ But only if… you take some too” he challenged her, raising his eyebrow.
She let out a sharp breath, looked at him with determined eyes and said “Deal”. Draco couldn’t help but let out a devilish smile. He couldn’t believe the “Golden Girl” was going to take a potion that would make her so defenseless. She must be desperate for him… For his help, he corrected, when he felt heat burning his cheeks.
She quickly pulled a vial out of her pocket and mixed it into the two tea cups in front of her. She handed one to Draco and raised the cup as if to say ‘cheers’ before swallowing the entire drink in one gulp.
He couldn’t help but be impressed by her tenacity. What else could she swallow, he wondered. He quickly shook his head, erasing the thought, picked up his own cup and drained it.
No sooner did he finish did Granger come at him with the question “Are you trying to convert innocent children into Werewolves? With your pills?”
Draco was dumbfounded. This is why she wanted his help? “What? No! How could you even think that?” he yelled.
Granger immediately stood up, bracing her hands on the table and replied “Why shouldn’t I believe you’d do something like this?”
“Um, maybe because I have been taking my own pills for months! Ha, so much for being the brightest witch of our age” he responded in anger, standing up to match her. “And like I told you, I’m providing a service to the public” he added smugly.
She glared at him, and responded with a scoff. “Are you making any drugs, pills, potions that could endanger the general public - Magic OR Muggle?!”
“Define ‘endanger?’” he asked. He couldn’t help but rile her up.
She scrunched up her mouth and narrowed her eyes at him. “This is serious, Malfoy. I need to know if you should be a potential suspect or not.”
He glanced up at her and quickly shook his head, grimacing “I might be a former Death Eater, but I am not trying to fuck up my life more than I have already.” She looked at him with those large eyes and slowly nodded her head.
She turned, walking away.
“However, turnabout is fair play, Granger”.
She stopped in her tracks and whipped her head back towards him. Her eyes widened immediately. “What could you possibly want to know, Malfoy?” she demanded.
“Well for starters, what did you think of the other night?” He pressed.
She looked like she was struggling to keep the words down “It was unexpected and exciting” she quickly spat, covering her mouth with her hands.
“Oh really, Granger?”
“Sod off, prat”
“How much better was it than you and the Weasel?” Draco asked with a big smile.
Granger twisted her head around, as if to keep something back. She then looked at him straight in the eye and uttered “Ron was never that good”.
Draco couldn’t help his curiosity. “How have you been hiding it all these years?” He pressed.
“I haven’t! I had no idea that this was happening. I am an omega, not a fucking beta! I mean… Fuck!” She pressed her face into her hands while taking deep breaths.
He was surprised by her complete denial. “Come on. There is no way you didn’t know this” he whispered.
“I’ve done extensive research on Alpha and Omegas. There is no way I could have hidden this, Malfoy. I would have never chosen this life for myself, Malfoy. And why would I ever choose to present to you over anybody else, Malfoy?” Her face twisted in complete disgust.
Each time she said his name, the emphasis on Malfoy became more pronounced until it felt like a curse.
Her eyes pierced into his with absolute anguish right before she apparated away, leaving the scones behind, untouched.
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POV Hermione
Hermione was still fuming as she marched to the front door of the Burrow. She took a deep breath to clear her head before walking it. No sooner did she enter the living room she was engulfed in a hug by a beaming Molly Weasley.
“Oh, dear, it's wonderful to see you, how have you been?” Molly asked, still hugging Hermione. Before she got a chance to respond Molly was pushing her toward the dinner table, where most of the Weasleys were gathered.
Ginny grabbed her hand and pulled her down to the seat next to her. She rolled her eyes as her mother continued to blabber to Hermione regarding the updates of the social lives of her large brood. Across from Hermione sat Fred, who gave her a smile and a wink. He was sitting beside George who had his arm behind Angelina, softly rubbing her back. Next to Ginny sat Harry, who was in a hushed conversation with Lupin. Molly was rushing around the table, making sure everyone had enough food, while Arthur leaned over to Hermione. “Now tell me” he inquired, “do Muggles really have machines IN their sinks?” She couldn’t hide her smile when she realized he was interested in learning about garbage disposals.
After the dinner most of the group had gathered in the living room, while George and Ginny were playing a pick up game of Quidditch out on the lawn. Hermione took this chance to join Lupin on the couch. He was drinking a glass of butterbeer, looking tired but content with his arm draped over the back of Tonk’s shoulders.
“How is everything going at the Ministry?” he asked Hermione, watching her intently.
Hermione let out a small sigh and responded “Oh not too bad, though I couldn’t tell you if it wasn’t.” She thought for a second and asked him “So have you ever heard of anyone turning without a full moon? I was doing some reading last week and I came across a story of a werewolf with the ability to turn at choice” she lied. If anyone knew this answer, it would have to be Lupin.
Lupin furrowed his brow and answered “That would be impossible, Hermione.” She gave him a quick smile and said “Oh, of course. The book I read was pretty old, it must have been a tall tale or fable.”
She heard the front door creak open and Ron stumbled in. His button up shirt was wrinkled and undone at the top. His hair was disheveled. He looked around the room and said “Oi everyone, sorry I’m late.”
When his gaze reached Hermione, she felt her neck begin to tingle and she saw Ron’s pupil’s expand as her scent reached him. He made a beeline for her as she quickly got up and walked down the hall, away from the rest of the Weasley family. He cornered her and said “What is this Mione?”
She gave him a blank stare and asked him in a harsh whisper, “What do you mean, Ronald? I’m not doing anything.” She looked around, trying to find a way out.
“Don’t lie to me Hermione, I can smell it on you. You’re an Omega” he hissed his eyes wild.
Hermione lifted her head, and finally admitted “Okay, yes, I am. It just happened. Why would you care? You left me, remember, Ronald?” She was shooting daggers at him, annoyed that he was about to make another scene.
Ron let out a long sigh. “Listen Hermione, you don’t know what it’s like. I care about you so much, you know what we have been through together. I hate how everything went down when I presented, but Serena and I haven’t been involved for over a year.”
“You don’t think I know what it’s like?” she said , raising her voice. Behind Ron she could see Fred looking over, slightly concerned.
“Okay okay, I'm sorry.” Ron begged. “But this has to be fate. We can finally be together” He looked down at her with his big blue eyes.
Hermione blinked away the tears forming in her eyes. “Ron, please stop this. We had our chance. But you choose someone else. It’s too late”.
Ron’s pupils changed suddenly. “Listen closely, we belong together. Come home with me” he growled at her. A shiver ran down Hermione’s spine as his breath hit her glands on her neck. At the same time he grabbed her forearm, lightly running his hands up and down her wrist. Suddenly her head was filled with fog. She should just go with him and hear what he has to say. She and Ron had so much history, gone through so much. Maybe they did belong together.
But in the back of her head, a voice said stop.
Hermione shook her head, trying to clear the fog. “NO Ronald, I don’t want you” She wrenched herself from his grip and stomped into the living room. The rest of the Weasley family glanced between them, obviously unsure if this was going to result in another hexing match.
Ron quickly followed her, demanding again “Hermione, stop being so difficult” lowering his voice to a gruff.
Hermione felt her head becoming foggy again when Fred stepped up to Ron, putting his hands up to his chest, stopping him from following her.
“Mate, what are you doing?” Fred demanded, baring his teeth. Ron clenched his hands, pushing him aside. “Get away from her,” Ron demanded. He made to grab for Hermione’s arm but she wrenched it away.
Fred pushed Ron back. “Leave her alone, you’ve done enough,” he furiously murmured.
Ron twisted his face in frustration, yelling “But she is an omega, I’m meant to protect her!” desperation in his eyes.
“I don’t need your protection, I’ve done pretty well on my own. In fact, I’ve had to protect you for years” she spat in Ron’s face.
Arthur jumped up from his chair in the living room and gently pushed Ron down into the oversized sofa. “Ronald, please try to calm down. Take a deep breath and think about what you are saying”.
Hermione suddenly sensed eyes around the room on her, and she shifted nervously, discomfort radiating from her glands. Ginny narrowed her eyes at Ron while instantaneously grabbing Hermione’s hand and marching her towards the Floo. She snatched a handful of dark powder and yelled out Hermione’s address. The scene at the Burrow whirled in her vision briefly before she saw the comforting view of her living room come into focus.