Forget Me Not (Draco/Hermione)

Chapter Fifteen- Christmas and New Year

Two Weeks Later

On Christmas morning, Hermione was woken up by a furry tail to the face. Groaning, she rolled over, swatting Marlowe away, and would have slept longer had the baby not started fidgeting against her bladder. Slowly climbing out of bed, she tip-toed out onto the landing and dodged into the bathroom, locking the door firmly behind her. Even though she had been living in Malfoy’s house for over a fortnight now, the… proximity still made her incredibly uncomfortable.

As she perched on the toilet, her mind drowsily recalled her dreams from the night before. They had been an odd bunch but yet they were really vivid. In one, she, Daphne and Ginny had been at a Muggle nightclub and she had ended up helping Ginny home after her failed attempt at half a bottle of tequila. In another, well… She blushed at the thought of it. She had dreamt of her and Malfoy; of them doing something quite unrepeatable…

‘Hey, how long are you going to be in there?’ Malfoy called through the door. He hammered on it a few times. ‘I’m desperate!’

‘Coming.’ With a sigh, Hermione unlocked the door and was almost knocked aside in his rush to get in.

‘Breakfast is ready-‘ She managed to catch that as she quickly darted out and shut the door behind her. The proximity was not just making her feel uncomfortable; it was beginning to drive her mad.

Downstairs, she found two plates of bacon and eggs laid out on the table. Two pairs of beady feline eyes were already fixated onto them. Picking up a handful of bacon, Hermione discretely dropped it onto the floor where it was immediately set upon by the two ravenous cats.

‘You know you really need your protein.’ She rolled her eyes as she heard Malfoy walk up behind her. This was becoming a routine lecture.

‘I would if the baby would let me keep anything down.’ She sat down and began to poke at the eggs. ‘Going somewhere nice?’ she asked, looking up and suddenly noticing just what Malfoy was wearing. He had replaced his usual t-shirt and jeans combo with a shirt, a black tie and a black jacket. His blonde hair, normally quite unkempt when he wasn’t at work, had been gelled down and if she was not mistaken, she could smell cologne.

‘Lunch at the Greengrass’s… but I’ll drop you off at the Weasleys’s first.’ He added quickly, a sheepish look crossing his features. He immediately turned his attention to the front page of yesterday’s Prophet. Hermione continued to poke at her eggs.

‘It’s fine. I can get a taxi myself-‘

‘I insist.’ He looked up momentarily from the headline. He frowned as he watched her pick at the eggs. ‘Are you going to eat that or play with it?’ Hermione took a reluctant mouthful.

‘Mmm… nice,’ she mumbled, only half-lying. They did actually taste surprisingly good. Taking another bite, she reached for her coffee but found something else in her mug. ‘What’s this?’ She stared down at the thick orange-brown liquid in horror.

‘Ginger juice. I made you some this morning. It should help with the morning sickness. Adele- I mean, Mrs Greengrass recommended it. Better than all that caffeine’

Hermione took a hesitant sip before crying out. It was so horrifically spicy, it brought tears to her eyes. ‘How… how much ginger did you put into this?’ she gasped, rushing to the sink and sticking her mouth under the tap.

‘A couple plants…’ Malfoy watched her anxiously. ‘Did it work?’

‘Well, I don’t feel so queasy anymore, I guess’ she eventually said as she sat back down. Malfoy had pushed the Prophet aside and was now watching her nervously. ‘Thank you.’ She added, before taking a deep breath. ‘Erm- before we go, I forgot to tell you something. I might have… got you a present.’