"So, let me get this straight..."
Draco smiled as she gathered her thoughts together from the other side of his kitchen table. They had decided that it would probably be best if they didn't go out to eat lunch in the public due to what they had told Ron, and since Hermione didn't have anything yet to cook a decent lunch, Draco offered for them to eat at his place.
"The only reason you hated Harry in school was because he snubbed your handshake first year?" She asked, raising an eyebrow.
"It wasn't just the handshake," Draco explained. "It was the idea behind the handshake. He and I being allies. My father pushed me towards it because he wanted Harry on our side. And I actually did want to be friends with him. I met him in Diagon Alley before we even got on the train."
"Really?" Hermione asked in surprise.
Draco nodded. "Of course, I didn't know who he was. I just knew he was going to Hogwarts since he was getting fitted for robes. It was in Madam Malkin's."
"That's pretty funny, actually," Hermione said with a smile.
"I suppose," Draco said, returning the smile. "But yeah; my father wasn't happy that I didn't become friends with Harry."
"I'm surprised he didn't push you to keep trying," She said.
"I somewhat am too, but once the Malfoy name is snubbed, that person is no longer seen as worth it in my father's eyes," Draco shrugged.
They were silent for a few moments while they both took bites of their food. Hermione noticed that Draco was eating nearly double the amount that she was, but she chalked it up to the werewolf side of him. Most of her clients saw an increase in appetite, but everyone was different in the amount of increase.
She looked around at the kitchen then and said, "I'm honestly shocked that it's not dark and dreary in here."
He laughed at that. "You're thinking of my parents' manor. I was tired of living in a dark house so I made sure that there were plenty of windows to let the sunlight in."
"I noticed that you did that with my houses too," She said.
"I figured you wouldn't object to it," He smiled.
"Of course not," She smiled in return. "Though I am probably going to get it fitted with electricity soon. I'm not really a fan of gas lamps and candles; they just aren't practical."
He gave her a confused look. "What is that?"
"It's what muggles use to power their homes," Hermione explained. "We've been using it for years."
"You'll have to show me once you get it done," He said. "I'm rather interested in that."
"Really?" She asked, surprised. "You're interested in muggle things?"
"I have changed, you know," He laughed.
"I know, but I didn't think you had changed that much!" She retorted with a grin.
He shrugged. "It's a work in progress."
"That's good though, you should always be a work in progress."
"What do you mean?"
She finished chewing her bite of food and explained, "You should always find ways to better yourself as a person. If you don't think you need to change, then you aren't growing and you're just going to be stuck in your mindset or skillset."
He thought that over for a few moments before saying, "That's really smart. Did you come up with that?"
She laughed at that. "I'm flattered, but no."
"That's a shame, you could market that," He said, nodding towards her.
"Lots of people already are," She shrugged. "But frankly, I'm more interested in helping those with larger problems."
"Always the noble Gryffindor," He teased.
She grinned and shook her head. "That part won't ever change about me."
"Good, because that's one of the things I like about you."
Her face grew hot as he smirked and grabbed her empty plate, taking that along with his over to the sink and gesturing towards the kitchen door. "Want a tour?"
"Um, sure!"
She stood up and followed him out of the kitchen as he slowly led her down the hallway. He was naming off rooms as they passed by, but she noticed that there was one door in particular that he didn't say anything about, and she paused at it.
It looked much more heavily armored than the other doors around it, and curiosity got the best of her as she asked, "What about this one?"
He turned around and looked at the door silently before sighing. "That's...where I go when I transform."
"Oh." She laid a hand on the door and looked it up and down before looking at him. "You know this doesn't scare me, right?"
"I know," He said. "But I doubt you would find it that interesting, honestly."
"I still want to take a look, if you don't mind." She looked up at him questioningly, noticing his mouth twitch as he held back a smile.
"You are interested in the weirdest things, Granger," He said then as he pulled his wand out to open the door.
She laughed. "It's not weird!"
"It is a little bit!" He pointed his wand at the lock and heard a click, watching as she pushed the door open. "There are stairs by the way."
"I see that," She said as she pulled out her own wand and illuminated the dark staircase. "Nothing's going to jump out at me, is it?"
"Nah, the only monster in here is me."
She couldn't help but notice the bit of sadness that laced the humor in his voice as he said this, but she didn't say anything as they both descended the stairs in silence. This area had a much different feel than the rest of his manor, a much more solemn air to it. She stepped off the stairs and looked around, trying to adjust her eyes to the darkness around her.
A sudden glow behind her made her jump and she whirled around, relaxing then when she saw Draco lighting a few gas lamps along the wall.
"Sorry, didn't mean to scare you," He said sheepishly when he saw her reaction.
"It's alright," She said, waving him off while trying to slow her racing heartbeat.
She looked around and saw that half of the room was caged off and the gate was open to the other side of the room. She looked back at him and then made her way towards the gate slowly. He didn't try to stop her, instead only following her in quietly with his hands in his pockets.
A large pile of brightly colored objects in the corner caught her eye and upon further inspection, she laughed at them. "Are those...dog toys?!"
She looked back to see Draco scowling at the pile. "Blaise thinks it's funny to gift me with them every birthday and Christmas. And practically any other holiday too."
"That is pretty funny." She went over and picked up one of the larger toys and noticed there were teeth marks on them. "What's even funnier is that it seems you've actually used them!"
He looked away, his jaw clenching. "That's not the point."
She shook her head and set the toy down, laughing to herself. "You're not the only one, Draco. Many of my other clients use dog toys as well; they find it works better to distract them."
He didn't say anything to that, simply watching as her attention was caught by the marks on the walls. She paused at one of them before reaching up to trace her fingers along the large scratches that delve deep into the stone.
"Were there times when you didn't take the potion?" She asked quietly, turning to look at him.
He took a deep breath and sighed it out, looking past her to the wall. "When I first moved in here about four years ago, I went through somewhat of a rebellious stage. I was finally out from underneath my father's thumb, and I decided one night to not take my potions again."
Draco stopped talking for a moment, swallowing the lump in his throat and looking around. "It was before I had built this area. It was simply just an underground basement then. No cage to contain me. I thought it would be alright, and for the first few moon cycles it was."
He faltered again and Hermione had a feeling that she knew what had happened. "You got out, didn't you?"
"Yes. There's a village not that far from here, and I found it one night after breaking down the first door to the basement. Thankfully there was no one outside when I got to the village, but someone had heard me and they came outside. It was..." He paused, looking down at the floor as he leaned against the bars behind him. "It was a girl, had to be no older than ten. She walked out onto her porch and I saw her."
Hermione took a few steps towards him. "Did you...?"
"No, no," He answered quickly. "Thankfully, no. I did swipe at her though, and I caught her face. She fell back onto the porch and I thought I had killed her at first but then I saw her breath. It was just as the moon was starting to go down though so I had regained enough of my human sense to pull back and leave the area before I did anything else."
He looked up at her and said more quietly, "Ever since then, I've made sure to be diligent about taking the potions when necessary."
"Is that why you panicked so much when I was trying to find a new potion brewer?" She asked.
"Yes, I was worried that there would be a repeat incident." He then reached out and placed a hand on the bars. "While these should hold up, I always want to be sure. I also put charms on the door as an extra precaution."
She watched him quietly, trying to discern the emotions on his face. Guilt and worry were definitely the main ones, but there were other underlying emotions that she couldn't quite figure out. Her heart was hurting for him and everything that he had been through. Even though in the past he was an outright bully to her, she didn't believe he deserved any of this.
"You aren't a monster, Draco," She said finally, breaking the silence.
He looked up at her and quietly snorted. "I beg to differ."
"Why do you think you are a monster?" She asked, crossing her arms across her chest.
"You saw the marks." He gestured towards the wall behind her. "How could anything that isn't a monster make those?"
"Werewolves aren't the only creatures with claws," She reminded him.
"True but still."
"No, no buts." She took a few steps towards him and said, "You're not a monster. I know you may not be able to see that right now, but I hope over time I can help change that."
He stared down at her in shock and she simply smiled before nodding towards the stairs. "Come on, I'm sure you want to get out of here."
He followed her out of the area and up the stairs, unable to come up with anything to say until they reached the door. "How is it that you are so accepting of people like me? Why help us?"
She looked back at him and asked, "Do you remember Remus Lupin?"
"Of course," Draco said. "He was actually one of the best teachers I've ever had, and even though I didn't respect him much then I did enjoy his classes."
"Did you know he was also a werewolf?" She asked curiously.
"I actually completely forgot that," He admitted as he shut the door behind them and led her back into the living room. "I remember now though. Why him?"
"Because he nearly attacked Harry and I in third year."
Draco stopped and stared at her. "He did?"
She nodded and gave him a small smile. "It's a bit of a long story, really. But he had forgotten to take his Wolfsbane potion that night and while Harry and I were rescuing Sirius Black, Remus had transformed and later nearly attacked us in the Forbidden Forest. He was always hesitant around us afterwards, even when we were working together in the Order. I heard about the conditions he was living in too, and didn't think it was right. He was an amazing person who just happened to have lycanthropy, and he was greatly hated by society because of it. So many of you are in that same position, and I just want to change it in his honor because he deserved so much better, and so do the rest of you."
"That's wonderful, actually," Draco said quietly. Then he looked down at her curiously and asked, "What stopped him from attacking you that night?"
"Buckbeak actually saved us."
"Buckbeak?" His brow furrowed in confusion and then his eyes went wide. "Not that bloody hippogriff?!"
She laughed at that. "Yes, that one!"
"Father said he was supposed to be executed and then disappeared!" Draco said, bewildered. "What happened?"
"That's another long story, trust me. I unfortunately don't have time to tell you right now, especially since..." She checked her watch and groaned. "...since I should be getting back to the office right now."
Draco looked down at his own watch and his shoulders dropped. He definitely didn't want her to leave yet, but knew she had to. He followed her back into the kitchen and watched as she gathered her things together.
"When do you think you'll be able to tell me some of these 'long stories' that you have?" He asked with a grin.
"I'm not sure," She said, pulling her coat on and giving him a smile. "Hopefully soon though."
"What about tonight at dinner?"
She paused and stared up at him. "What?"
"If you'd like to, I'd love to take you to dinner tonight," He said more slowly, his nerves creeping up on him.
His heart fell slightly when she didn't say anything, but then it jumped into his throat when a large smile split her face. "Dinner sounds wonderful! I'd love to go!"
He returned the smile. "Great! I can pick you up around seven-ish?"
"Perfect!"
They smiled at each other for a few moments and he noticed her cheeks turning pink again as she looked down, tucking her hair behind her ear. She looked up then and asked, "Do you mind if I use your fireplace to floo back?"
"Not at all." He gestured towards the kitchen door and followed her out, walking her to the fireplace. "So...I'll see you tonight then?"
"Yes, you will." She smiled at him before stepping into the fireplace and turning around, giving him one last shy smile before flooing back to the Ministry.
A/N: Finally getting to the good stuff! :D I know you've all been waiting for some Dramione action and its about to kick off! Hope you all enjoy! <3