Fascinated

Falling

Hermione woke to a gentle knocking on the door to her room. “Coming,” she called groggily as she threw off the covers and stepped down onto the cold floor. She took her robe from the foot stool and wrapped it around herself and walked swiftly to the door. She opened it to see Lucius standing there regal as ever. “Lucius? To what do I owe the pleasure, so early in the morning?” She asked with a small, sleepy smile.

“I wish to show you the one room in my home I know you will love,” he said as he smiled and glanced down at her attire, “Once you are dressed, of course.”

Hermione blushed deeply remembering she was still in her night clothes. “Right, I’ll only be a moment,” Hermione said softly.

Lucius grinned as he bowed and stepped back into the corridor to allow her to shut her door.

Hermione rushed to her wardrobe and wished she had something nicer than the ugly black dresses that were in there to wear, and hanging front and center was a floor length, dark blue, sleeveless dress with a low cut front and a flowing skirt. There were even a pair of heels to match. She smiled at his thoughtfulness. Her smile never faded as she got dressed and did her hair with the brush and potions that were also provided by Lucius. How he got them into her room without her waking was a mystery, especially since the house-elves did not enter her room.

When she felt she was ready, she stepped out into the corridor where she found a patiently waiting Lucius who beamed at her when he laid eyes on her. “You look magnificent. I knew that dress would look perfect on you.”

Hermione blushed. “Thank you, Lucius. The dress is amazing. When did you place it in my room?” she marveled with appreciation. The bond hummed with happiness, and she smiled brighter knowing that Lucius wasn’t completely occluding his feelings from her.

Lucius held his arm out for her to take, “I placed them there early this morning while you slept. You sleep very deeply, is that normal for you?”

She linked her arm gently with his and let him lead her in whatever direction he wished. “I don’t normally sleep deeply. I’m too on edge, but I must have felt safe last night for you to place the items in my room.” She thought about the goodnight kiss they had shared after he had led her to her room.

A few minutes of walking and marveling at the parts of the manor she’d yet to see, they came to a large chestnut door, with an ornate carving of a moving dragon on it. Hermione stepped closer to the door and gazed at it in wonder when the door opened and revealed an even more beautiful sight. Her jaw dropped as she stepped through the door and into a three story library with shelves lining almost every wall. There was a fireplace on the far wall with two dark, leather wingback chairs on a plush rug in front of it. If she didn’t know better, the library from Beauty and the Beast could have been modeled after this room. It was perfection.

“This is amazing, Lucius!” she exclaimed, her eyes full of excitement. “May I?” she asked. She wanted nothing more than to investigate each shelf and know every tome in them.

“Of course. I have some work to do today, so you may spend as much time here as you wish. Maybe begin some of the research on soul bonds or spend time reading for pleasure,” he explained as he moved closer to her. The word pleasure made her shiver with desire. “And later, I have a surprise for you.” 

She smiled at him as he stepped even closer to her, his hand resting on her cheek. “Go, enjoy, I’ll join you later,” he spoke softly as he leaned in and kissed her softly on the lips. Her breath hitched in her throat. 

As he pulled away from the kiss, he lingered a moment. She noticed his eyes had darkened just a bit, showing his growing lust, before he slowly turned and walked away, leaving her standing in the middle of the enormous library wanting him more than ever. She shook herself from her thoughts and began looking through the books on the shelves.