Altered for the Altar

This time when I wake, it’s not because of a nightmare. I can hear the howling wind outside and as I roll over onto my back and peer up at the ceiling, I listen to it as it beats at the sides of the cottage and threatens to tear off the roof. It’s loud and makes me shiver, but my brain is still too muddled to make me feel fear.

I try to fix the top of my pajamas and just realize that I am not in my bedroom. Instead of resting in a bed, I’m lying on the sofa with two blankets snugly tucked around my frame and a plush pillow comforting my head. Blinking the sleep away from my eyes, I gaze around, frowning a little when I spot Draco curled up on the floor.

I try to remember what happened last night and only come up with an ending that was me curling back up against Draco, holding his hand while he whispered that it was okay for me to go to sleep. I don’t remember trying to fall asleep, but he had been so warm and my nightmare had been in the recesses of my mind, far away from the forefront.

Now, as I stretch and try to untangle myself, I feel better. My eyes aren’t heavy and my body doesn’t ache. I’d slept soundly last night.

“You shouldn’t have slept on the floor,” I murmur, my voice thick and muddled.

Draco’s head snaps up and he looks at me, a smile splaying across his lips. I end up grinning a little as well because he seems so bright, despite the dark circles under his eyes and how tired he appears.

“I’m alright,” he shrugs. He pushes himself to an upright position, then begins to trace his gaze all over my face. Self-consciously, I run a hand down the skin of my cheeks and try to comb through my hair. Draco chuckles. “Did you sleep okay?”

I smile into my palm and peek at him through one squinted eye. “Yes,” I mumble.

He chuckles some more at that while my cheeks roast in a blush.

I feel bashful and quite shy, especially given that I’m almost naked in my sleepwear. Of all the days I’d spent at Malfoy Manor, I’d never woken with Draco. He’d always found me after, when I was fully dressed and feeling presentable enough for the dark world I now lived in. Having him so close and being so open is new and a little scary. I don’t quite know what to do or how to act, but, as usual, Draco takes the helm and steers us into a path that has me relaxing back into the sofa.

“You want some tea?” he asks.

He doesn’t look me over as if I’m a piece of raw meat, but I do notice the way his steel eyes flicker over my form and how his tongue slips out to dampen his lips. I swallow hard and try to remember what tea is.

Clearing my throat, I nod. “Yes, tea sounds good.”

He gives me a sleepy smile that pulls his mouth up prettily and then turns on his heel to head into a part of the cottage I hadn’t spotted till now. It appears to be a little kitchen tucked into a corner. It’s not very big, with only a small stove, a few cabinets, a sink, and a slim margin of counter space, but it fits the little chalet nicely. Surprisingly, Draco seems to know his way around the cooking nook, as it takes him minutes to get two steaming cups of tea sloshing back and forth in some tea cups.

When he turns to begin his trek to where I’m at, his eyes skim up just briefly and he grins once more.

“Don’t look so surprised,” he chuckles. “My mum likes tea.”

I just smile and nod my head a few times, reaching out to take the cup he offers me. He sits down beside me and nestles underneath my folded knees, so they rest on his thigh. His hand gently waits there as he uses the other to bring his tea to his lips.

“You seem close to your mother,” I hum.

He’s quiet for a moment after he swallows his gulp, his eyes peering down at the golden liquid while his fingertips lightly tap on my kneecaps. I don’t push him; I just raise the brim of my teacup to my mouth and sip leisurely at the warm liquid.

“She means a lot to me,” he finally admits.

No more is said on the matter. I don’t know if he’s protecting her or if his relationship with his parents is something he’s not ready to share with me; either way, I feel bad for bringing her up. I can see in his expression how worried is his and can practically feel the impatient of having to wait for news from her. I try to remember how hysterical I’d felt just a day ago when my own parents lives had been threatened. The thought makes me nudge over to him and slip my arm through his.

I smile at him. “I’m sure they’re fine. Give it a few days.”

A steady breath is drew in through his nose and then exhaled as a slow smile spreads over his pink lips. He leans down to quickly peck my lips.

“I’m sure she is. I just worry.”

“I know. I can see it on your face.”

This makes him stare at me quizzically and I almost laugh. My cheeks heat up under his wondering gaze, though, and I fumble a little bit. I don’t want to admit to how much I watch him, but seem to have dug myself into a hole.

“I…” Floundering a bit, I clear my throat and scoot back a little. “You worry about a lot of things. I can see it in your shoulders and the way you smile. You don’t want people to know, though.”

“You can tell all that?” he asks softly.

My skin is on fire and I’m dying to be let alone in silence, but Draco is staring at me so wonderingly that I can’t help myself. My mouth moves on its own and words tumble out before my brains processes what I’m saying.

“I can tell a lot about you,” I murmur.

Again, that slow, easy smile spreads across his lips and almost reaches his eyes, but they’re half lidded as they switch their focus to my mouth. I part my lips and lean into him more because the fire on my face has started in the pit of my stomach, too.

“I didn’t know you paid so much attention,” is what he says before gently lowering his mouth down to mine.

The kiss isn’t like the one last night. That one was hurried and driven by emotion. The one Draco is giving me now is being guided by a slow need that I realize has built up after days and days of being in each other’s company. All the time we’d spent trying to become friends has been harnessed into something that I don’t want to put a label on because it’s too frightening. The words haven’t been said, but I can feel them in the way Draco cups the side of my face and nips at my bottom lip. I wonder if he can hear what I want to say in how I grip his thigh and push myself even closer.

Seconds later and he’s pulling away, but pressing his forehead against mine as his hand remains formed around one side of my face. I don’t open my eyes as I draw in as much air a possible; instead, I let out a euphoric hum that I can’t help. Draco chortles lowly at that before leaning down to snag my lips again. He’s quick this time and pulls away after a few seconds.

For a while, we don’t say anything. I’m still gripping my teacup and it’s only when I almost tip it over on my lap do I realize this. Draco smiles at me when I flick my gaze up to him, leans down to capture my lips once more, and then moves away, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear as he goes.

“I better go change,” I murmur, looking down to my nightdress.

“Dress warm,” Draco says. When I glance back up at him, he’s grinning devilishly. “We’re going on a picnic.”

“But it’s raining.”

He shrugs before heading back into the tiny kitchen. “I still have a date to take you on, remember?”