Chapter Text
6 Months Later
The white peaked mountains surrounding the base camp in Romania towered over them. While the highest peaks of the mountains remained in eternal winter, the depths of the valley had come into full summer. The forest was alive with the sounds of nature.
Draco wiped the back of his hand across a sweaty brow as he set the ax aside, feeling her nearing presence before she spoke.
“Who would have thought it possible for you to tan, Malfoy?” Hermione jested as she neared. “I would have assumed that pale skin so white like snow would reflect the sun's rays, or perhaps for your skin to burn to a crisp.”
“Very funny, Granger—“
He moved to turn towards her but the touch of her fingers to his bare shoulder blades gave him pause. Chopping wood to build their pile for winter had caused him to work up a sweat; and after so many weeks of helping clear and re-build the Dragon Sanctuary with Charlie, he had built up a solid base tan. No longer forced to live by moonlight and freed from his prison, Draco found he rather enjoyed the outdoors and the kiss of the sun rays.
“It suits you,” Hermione said quietly. She was silent for a moment and he finally turned to face her. “Being back here has done wonders for you, Draco.”
There was a sadness to her smile as she spoke the words.
And she was not wrong; Draco felt as if he were thriving here in Romania. It had become a home, a sanctuary, for him.
But he felt her words. He knew what she had meant.
Hermione had resumed her work at the Ministry, and while she had been able to work a few weeks here with him, eventually she had been called back to London. It had stretched their bond to the limit; while it had not felt severed like while he was in Azkaban, there was a strain on it. Like a rubber band pulled taunt with the growing pressure for it to retract. It had taken quite a bit of funding on his parents' part, but after weeks of experimentation and honing, they had created a two-way portkey, which acted much the same as the Floo network. It allowed for daily travel from the ministry to Romania. From only seeing each other over the weekend to Hermione coming every single night, it had eased the tension significantly.
It gave them a semblance of a normal relationship.
Well, as normal as could be expected of them.
Draco drew her close to him, his fingers sinking into her curls as their lips melded together in a simple yet passionate kiss. The familiar heat flared between them at their reunion, their souls humming in contented desire. They both knew they would always find their way back to each other. They were destined to be together. They were young and had decades ahead of them to build their relationship and explore their bond. And although their situation was hard on them, they knew it was temporary. Hermione was busy doing what she loved and moving up through the Ministry.
Who was Draco to tell her to stop following her dreams?
He knew that one day she would be something great. It was his job as her soulmate to encourage her growth and to be everything she could be, and more. Her exuberance filled him with a joy he had not felt since he was a child. And while Draco knew he could never be truly accepted back into their world, she offered that middle ground to him. He experienced their world through her eyes. Their bond gave him a new life and experience.
“I’ve missed you,” he said against her lips.
He felt those very lips curl into a bemused smirk. “I’ve been gone only a few hours, Draco.”
“Which feels like days, I’ll have you know,” he reminded her. It was one of the reasons he kept to the mind-numbing physical labor.
“Well, praise be that it is the weekend then, right?” Hermione whispered as she leaned into his chest, their lips playing against one another in a kiss.
“Mmm,” he agreed with a growing excitement at the thought. If it were truly Friday— which it most likely was (he tended to lose track of time)— it meant that Hermione was here to stay for the weekend.
Chopping wood could wait.
His arms wrapped around her waist as he hauled her tightly to his chest, a thrill of excitement shooting through him at the contact. Her heat sank into his body, the alluring subtle scent of her perfume teasing his nose. So unlike the smell of pine, but so natural. They stumbled their way to the small cabin Draco had for them, a simple single room structure. The fireplace crackled merrily, as if greeting them. His hands pulled at her robes, desperate to feel her bare skin beneath his hands, while hers fumbled with the belt of his trousers.
They fell into the narrow bed together, a tangle of arms and legs. Eager to be reunited. Each exhale from her lips felt like a breath for Draco as their lips resumed their almost desperate kissing, tasting one another with each sweep of their tongues. Her legs wrapped around his waist, guiding him and drawing him closer to her. When he sank into her, she was like a heated embrace. The breath rushed from his lungs as she wrapped around him, again reminding him that she was unlike anything he had ever imagined or experienced more. It was as if she were made for him. Their bodies fit together so perfectly, intimately, that they moved as one.
He felt magic coursing through him with each stroke, resonating deep within him like an ancient song. They rose towards their climax together, chasing after that impossible high until they reached it. It felt as if their souls melted together and they no longer were two individuals but one being, blinded by an immeasurable light that swallowed them whole.
The resonation of their climaxes continued for some time, holding them together as they reveled in it. Each time they came together in such a way, the bond between them only became stronger. Each climax brought them closer and fortified their growing love.
When they finally relaxed into one another on the bed, Draco closed his eyes and relished the feel of Hermione tucked into his side. How her frame curled into him. Her hair, wild from their passion, tickled his nose in the most irritatingly endearing way. His hand idly caressed along the curve of her spine, feeling each bump. He spent much of their time lying together memorizing her this way.
When they would rouse from their stupor, they would talk. Small, little things that meant nothing to most but were important to them. Draco, especially, found he rather enjoyed her retelling of events at the Ministry—who she had to deal with and what little office gossip she had to offer him. A part of him wished to say he missed that world, but that would be a lie.
Draco enjoyed his newfound life in Romania.
So different and yet so familiar.
A home.
Charlie had taken him under his wing without hesitation. Draco’s first hand and personal knowledge of dragons helped the program progress in leap and bounds. Their time here helped discover incredible things about dragons, which could also be implemented and applied elsewhere in the magical world.
And while at one point, Draco had not liked Charlie or any of the Weasleys for that matter, he had found a new friendship in the wizard. One that extended past any prior jealousy. And perhaps it was because of what Draco had been that Charlie had such a keen interest in him, but Draco had to admit that he rather found it flattering, for the lack of a better word. His curse had been broken, but no longer did it feel like it had been a burden.
His curse had been a gift.
In the end, it was because of it that he had been able to find his soulmate and find the companionship he sought after. A purpose in life.
Forgiveness.
~*~
Epilogue
10 years later
The winds of the mountains howled around them, the branches and leaves rustling. Hermione sat atop an outcropping of rocks that overlooked the ravine below. From here, she had a vantage point. Below and around her, a brilliant white dragon circled. Following close behind was a juvenile dragon; one that had once found sanctuary with Charlie and Draco, fleeing from the Horntail many moons ago. The young creature had rejoiced when they had come to Romania and began building a sanctuary and rehabilitation center. A pest, almost. Silly creature had insisted on loitering about, sleeping like a cat might in the worst possible locations.
And now it soared the skies once more with Draco.
After a decade, his sentencing of magic restriction had come to an end. While he had grown accustomed to not having it, he realized there had been one thing he did miss.
Flying.
Something he had experienced so infrequently yet he had haunted his dreams.
And so Hermione had helped him to focus on his magic. To center it on becoming what he once was.
A dragon.
It had taken months to harness the ability to transform and although it took a heavy toll on him, Draco did it on occasion. Usually when the moon was full and the magic in the mountains at its height, he turned.
“That little one is going to beat him in a race any day now,” Charlie pointed out as they watched the two banking hard, narrowly avoiding one another with the skill of any master quidditch player.
“Draco adores the younglings, don’t let his grumpy exterior fool you,” Hermione said fondly. Her hand caressed her stomach in idle thought as she watched them.
The motion did not go unnoticed by Charlie, who had leaned over to place his hand on her rounded belly. “Any day now?”
Hermione nodded her head as she felt a kick in response. “Yep. We are hoping this week, which is why I wanted to encourage Draco to get up here and stretch out his wings before we head back to London.”
“You know, I did say we could expand the cabin and you could give birth here.” Charlie pointed out.
She chuckled. “Charlie. You are too kind but you are not a midwife.”
He rolled his eyes as he leaned back on his elbows. “Draco said it was a grand idea.”
“Draco also is not a midwife and I feel like the both of you would faint mid-contraction,” she pointed out. She placed a hand on Charlie’s shoulder and pushed herself to her feet. She was tired from the long day and was looking forward to a warm bath and bed. “I hope you’ll come to London to visit us?”
Charlie smiled up at her, his hand briefly squeezing hers. “I wouldn’t miss the opportunity to see if you give birth to wee human or if it’ll be a dragon.”
“Oh, hush.” Hermione turned and waved a hand above her head to gather Draco’s attention. Even from a distance, he noticed her and changed his flight. He landed on the bare rocks beside them, his claws digging into the stone to balance himself as he folded his wings. Silver eyes examined her closely, as if reading her. He lowered his head, nose touching her belly gently.
“Let’s go home,” Hermione told him softly, stroking a hand along his muzzle. He exhaled in acknowledgement and lowered his body to the ground. With Charlie’s help, she clambered onto his back and gripped the spines there tightly.
Draco shook his horned head at Charlie as they parted, his wings spreading wide as he carried them effortlessly over the canopy of a sleepy forest, two soulmates joined together with a hopefully future spread out before them.