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Assistant: Title: Secrets of Malfoy Manor
        Author: Beforetherealbook Beforetherealbook 
        Chapter: 30/49 
        Summary: Lucius Malfoy has died, and Draco has inherited the Malfoy estate.  For the next six months it is under Ministry review.Draco Malfoy's problems now include: (i) a vast network of assets he cannot name, let alone manage properly; (ii) a one-night stand who won't go away; (iii) a different one-night stand he's wanted to find for years; and (iv) his mother's insistence that he start courting, preferably before Pansy Parkinson does.Meanwhile, Hermione heads out on a field assignment where she makes an unexpected friend.  Upon her return she’s given a new assignment from the Ministry that should be a curse-breaker's dream: find Lucius Malfoy's dark objects and decommission them.If only the Manor would be more cooperative. 
  **2024 Dramione Top Fics**Best Post-War Fics (Top 3)
        Contents: Chapter 30: Angel
    

    


      
        
          AN/TW: We start to explore some other kinks, including degradation and objectification with a discussion of limits as part of it.  If that's not for you, skip to the *** to read the sweet aftercare.The note at the end contains a spoiler for this chapter.
            
            (See the end of the chapter for  more notes.)
            
      
  

  
  
    
     
  Draco
She was here, and she was tied down.  Draco wondered why the f@ck he had waited so long to do this.  He had developed a strong preference for bondage at his club, after one of his matches ran her hands over his chest and found his  sectumsempra  scars.  Even blindfolded she had been able to tell something wasn’t quite right when she felt the ridges under her fingers, and Draco was afraid his anonymity would be blown.From that point forward he tied them down.  Always.  He could be in control that way.  He could touch them, but they couldn’t explore Draco’s body.  He could look, touch, taste, and f@ck, and there was nothing they could do about it unless they said their safe word.  Draco discovered he quite liked it that way.Seeing Hermione tied to his bed was sheer perfection, though he had to admit it was different from the other witches he had like this.  For one thing, she had never done this before, and she was already halfway to an @rg@sm based on all the lead up.  That was a bit new.  Even his most submissive partners usually took some teasing and foreplay.  Bondage was exciting, but being tied up was still just the first step.  They all knew that.  Based on Hermione’s expression, it looked like she was nearly ready to peak.For another thing, she wasn’t wearing a blindfold.  Draco had never been able to see his partner’s facial expressions before, not really.  That was different, and it was doing something to him.She watched him a bit nervously, though still with such longing, those luscious lips slightly parted, as he walked around the bed, studying her from every angle.  He would ease her fears eventually, but for the moment he thought she deserved to be a little nervous.  She had f@ck@d with his self-control so hard during that photoshoot, flirting with that photographer while he stroked the underwear in his pocket until he nearly wore a hole in it.  She had teased him, taunted him, and then he found her wet after what she had done to him.Draco loved it just as much as he hated it.  The photographer wanted her, Draco was sure of it, and he had been both insanely jealous and unbelievably turned on as he watched her pose for him, her eyes constantly drifting to Draco’s form while she did it.  She had been performing for Draco just as much as the photographer, and the end result was going to be a whole stack of photos of her popping her @rs@ and winking.  Draco couldn’t f@ck@ng wait to see them.Dinner had served to work Draco up even further, though this time he was sure Hermione was ignorant about why.  Draco was developing a sixth sense when it came to romantic and s@xual interest thrown Hermione’s way.  She wasn’t always aware of it herself, but Draco knew.  Always.As they entered the restaurant he instantly profiled three men and one woman who all watched Hermione with appreciation.  That dress Pansy had put her in had been f@ck@ng incredible, and Draco bought it from Pansy before Hermione even left the changing room, because the moment he saw her in it he knew she had to keep it.  He wanted to take her to dinner like that, showing the world how perfect she was while she was on Draco’s arm.  And sure enough, four separate people had watched Draco with jealousy as he escorted Hermione through the restaurant and then sat so close to her he could see down her dress.It was a power trip being the man with his arm around Hermione Granger’s waist.  She belonged to him, only him, and the rest of the world could watch but couldn’t have her.His reward for being hers, for winning at least some of her affections, for watching strangers l@st after his witch, was spread out right before him.  Her body like this was all for him, and he would never  ever  allow anybody else to do this to her. “Do you know my family motto?” he asked as he moved around her slowly, eyes taking in every single bit of her.“Sanctimonia Vincent Semper,” she whispered.“Ten points for Gryffindor,” he said.To his amusement she flushed a bit and her center started to glisten.  Her praise kink was truly astonishing.  “Do you know what it means?” he added.She just shook her head, and he looked at her in some surprise.  He assumed his little swot would be curious enough to look it up, but as he studied her face he suddenly knew why she hadn’t.“You assumed it had to do with blood, didn’t you?”She just nodded slowly.Draco paused as he considered this.  “I’ll admit that some of my ancestors have interpreted it that way, but there’s actually no reference to blood.  It means ‘purity will alway conquer.’”She gave him a skeptical look, and he grinned a bit.  “I know.  Father interpreted it to mean blood of course, but I don't.”“Really?” she asked in confusion.  “What’s pure then?”“You,” he said simply.“I’m not,” she objected.“Oh princess, you are so much purer than me.  Pure heart, pure mind…”He ran a finger over her and then let it drift between her legs, which made her jerk just a little.  “And a very pure c@nt.”She inhaled.  “I’m not though.  We’ve had s@x.”“You think I care about chastity?  If I did I wouldn’t be doing this with you.  No, I care that you are mine.  That all this is mine.  That your t@ts are mine and your c@nt is mine and every @rg@sm you have is mine.  I can’t even imagine another wizard f@ck@ng you anymore because it’s never happened.  It’s always been me.  My mouth, my c@ck, my seed.  That’s what makes you pure.  And like I said, you are  far  purer than me.  You uphold the family motto perfectly, sweetheart.”Her eyes were huge, and she was breathing in shallow pants.“And tonight,” he added, “I’m getting something else from you, and it’s also going to be mine.  I’ve wanted to tie you down for ages.  I can do whatever the f@ck I want with you like this, did you know that?”She nodded slowly, her eyes riveted on his face.  “Once I start I’m not stopping until you say your safe word or you become incoherent, whichever comes first.  Do you understand me?”“Yes…” she breathed.“Yes what?”“Yes sir.”Draco shuddered a little.  “Good girl.”He walked a bit closer to her and started the slow tease he was sure she expected at this point, feather light touches ghosting over her skin, between her br@@sts and then around them, over her abdomen and down her sides.  She was already straining at her bindings, hips starting to adjust of their own accord, her eyes dark and glittering as that slow flush started to creep all the way down her body.He lowered himself to the bed as he continued to touch her and leaned forward and popped her right thumb into his mouth as he sucked.She moaned a little, and he released it before sucking on the next finger and then the next.  He took his time with each one before trailing a kiss down her arm all the way to the swell of her breast.Then he stood and backed away for a moment as he undressed himself.  He stripped down, fully naked, and her eyes widened a bit to see his c@ck released.  He had never been so erect in his life.He kicked his clothes away and walked to the other side of the bed and lowered himself to suck on the fingers of her left hand.  But this time when he was done he kissed up her mudblood scar, tongue tracing the letters carefully.To his surprise she spoke.  “Do you ever call me a mudblood in your head?” she asked softly.He glanced at her sharply and considered what he should say.  “When I’m awake, no.  I do dream about it sometimes when I remember the war,” he confessed.To his surprise, she blushed.  “Oh, alright.”“Why?”She tried to shrug but couldn’t through her bindings.  “I don’t know.  I just… you call me Granger when you’re really into it.  I’ve wondered if you wanted to call me a mudblood too.”Draco was a little uncertain now.  “I don’t like that word.”“Oh OK,” she said quickly, and then she blushed.
   Fascinating. 
Draco narrowed his eyes.  “Do you  want  me to call you that?”“I…” she was crimson and swallowed hard.  “I don’t know.  Probably not.  It’s just when we’re like this, you’re so confident, so powerful, and…”“You want me to degrade you?”“I don’t know.  Maybe?  I just…”She trailed off, and Draco c@cked his head to study her.  She looked desperate, needy, confused.  As Draco considered where this conversation was going, he suddenly knew he had found another line.“I won’t be calling you that word, regardless of how you feel about it.”“Oh?” she asked.He raised an eyebrow.  “The last time I said it was the night Dumbledore died.  That word died with him as far as I’m concerned, and it’s taken years for me to reconcile all of my feelings about it.  It’s a hard limit for me.”“I thought you only had one hard limit?”He shrugged and watched her carefully as he walked around the other side of the bed.  “The last time we talked about limits, that was true.  I have never thought about this before, but now that I am it’s another hard limit.  I told you we would be discovering new things together, didn’t I?  It’s not just things we  will do, but also things we won’t do.  I won’t do this.”Hermione nodded, but she had a curious look on her face.“What is it, sweetheart?”“Just surprised,” she said softly.  “I’m not sure what I was expecting, but I thought if I raised it you would try it… even if you were a bit uncomfortable with it.”He lifted one eyebrow.  “If you want me to call you other things when I have you like this, I’m game to experiment – but I will not use that word.  I can’t think of any other names I would refuse to call you at the moment, but we might discover some.  You shouldn’t be surprised, though.  I told you I don’t feel bad about telling you no if I discover a hard limit.”Her eyes were shining now.  “That’s rather comforting, actually.”“Oh?”“Yes, it means I can do the same thing.”“You can always tell me no.  I mean it.”“And you don’t judge me for asking or…?”He shook his head.  “Of course not.  You weren’t raised hearing it around the dinner table like I was.  You weren’t indoctrinated with it like I was.  You didn’t weaponize it like I did.  It’s probably different for you than it is for me.  There’s nothing wrong with being curious about something I’m not into.  I’m just not going to participate if it’s a hard line for me.”She gave him a shy smile and nodded a little.“Good,” he said.  “Now then… back to degradation….”He placed his hand on her neck and ran it down her body, making sure she understood that he wasn’t backing away from exploring this with her – he just wasn’t going to do it in  that  way.“You seem curious about it, but you’re not sure if you’ll like it.  I think I know why.”“Why?” she asked, her eyes huge and luminous as she stared at him.“For one thing, you have a praise kink, which is the opposite of degradation.  Whenever I tell you how perfect your sweet c@nt looks, you wet it for me.”Draco glanced down and saw her glistening practically on command.  He smirked.  “Precisely like that.”Her breathing was getting shallow, and he used one finger to trace patterns on her body, teasing her lightly while they had this fascinating conversation.“For another thing, there’s the question of  what  I would call you?”“What do you mean?” she asked in a breathy voice.“Just that the usual suspects don’t really fit, do they?  Should I call you my little sl@t?  Or my filthy wh@r@?  We’ve already established that you’re pure for me.  And you like being pure for me, don’t you sweetheart?  You like that all of this is mine, and it’s never been anybody else’s?”Draco gripped one of her br@@sts hard, and Hermione arched a little, as she closed her eyes and nodded.“I’m not sure if degradation is really what you’re after then.  Calling you a sl@t or a wh@r@ would be inaccurate, and I know how much you value precision of language.”“I do,” she groaned.“In that case, it might not be degradation that turns you on, but objectification.”Her eyes opened slowly to look at him, “What does that mean?”“You’re asking me what that means when you’re bound to my bed?  Under my control?  Waiting so patiently to be my little f@ck toy?”He watched her carefully as he said this, and her pupils blew and mouth dropped.  Draco licked his lips and exhaled.“Alright, maybe you do like a  touch  of degradation too.”She was practically panting now, and Draco moved his hand to place one finger inside of her and hold it still.  She was wriggling her hips, trying to get friction, but he refused to give it to her.“Every time I have you like this I think about your innocence, you know.”“What?” she sounded dazed, confused, and she was still trying to get pressure from his finger, but he just held it place.“Mmmm.  You once asked me if you were a minor deity or royalty, and I told you that you were better than both.  That’s still true.  But when I have you like this you remind me of an angel: light, beautiful, up on a pedestal somewhere that I’m not supposed to touch.”“Objectification…” she breathed, and her eyes closed.“Precisely.  You’re the object of my desires, the object of my pleasure.  You’re the angel who fell from heaven into my bed.  That’s why it didn’t fit the last time I used it.  I wasn’t f@ck@ng you yet.  You hadn’t given yourself over to me yet.  I was still worshiping you from afar, but I hadn’t clipped your wings to bring you under my control.”“Draco…” she groaned.“You know I’m right.  You’re not a sl@t or a wh@r@.  You’re an angel.  You were so innocent until I took it from you.  And every time I have you like this I take it from you again and again.  You love it, don’t you?  You love knowing that I pulled you off of your pedestal, debased you with my darkness, and now you’re just a thing for me to play with?”“Yes,” she breathed, as her eyes fluttered closed.Draco leaned in closer and licked the shell of her ear.  “Alright then angel,” he whispered, and he withdrew his finger.  She whimpered at the loss of contact, meager though it was.Draco could hardly wait now.“How hard do you want me to f@ck you tonight?” he asked quietly, as he leaned forward to lick down her neck and toward her clavicle.“So hard,” she groaned.“How many times do you want to come?”“Three,” she said eagerly.“Then we’ll make it four.”She gasped as he reached her br@@sts, and now he pulled her nipple into his mouth.  She arched and protested because she couldn’t move like she wanted to.“Draco…” she groaned.  “I need to touch you, I need…” He glanced up, and her hands were clasping and unclasping involuntarily, and Draco gave a wicked chuckle.“No.  You’re touching nothing, angel.  I’m the only one who can touch you.”He looked up to see her face, and she looked unbearably turned on as she wriggled her hips in protest.  He kissed down her stomach until he reached her center, and he gave her one light lick that made her jerk.“Draco!  Please!”“Please what?”“Please sir, I need…”“What  I need is to taste this tight little c@nt of yours,” he said softly.  “It tastes amazing, did you know that?  Your c@nt is f@ck@ng delicious, and I love to play with it.”He knew he was saying filthy things to her, praising her while degrading and objectifying her at the same time.  It was working though, she was practically dripping for him.  He gave her a few more licks to lap it up, and she was starting to shake.“No other witch gets wet like this, Granger,” he said roughly.  “I’ve had so many of them, and they were never like this for me.  None of them were as dirty as you, as sweet as you.”She rewarded him with yet more, and Draco started to eat her out in earnest.  He loved doing this to her because she tasted amazing, but it never quite got her there.  She always needed internal penetration to really come, but oral s@x sent her to the very edge.  He loved every moment of it, burying his face into her, knowing that it didn’t matter how long he did it because she would never come until he shoved his fingers or his c@ck or a vibrator inside of her.  Staying on the outside of her like this was one, exceptionally long tease for her while he got to thoroughly enjoy himself.He could do this all f@ck@ng night.  She was pleading with him, begging him to take pity on her, and finally he decided he would give her what she wanted.  Because what  he  wanted were multiple @rg@sms from her, preferably back to back, as fast as possible so she completely lost herself.He didn’t warn her, he didn’t go slow, he just quickly moved up and shoved his c@ck inside of her as he started to pump.She gave a strangled cry, and her eyes flew open, and not even a moment later she broke, all the teasing from the oral attention he had given her a moment ago pulling her over the edge.“Oh  God,” she said.“Your God is not here,” he said, snapping his hips into her.  “I’ve told you before Granger, you don’t talk to God, you talk to me.”“So intense,” she gasped, as her second @rg@sm rolled right into her first, and Draco’s eyes sharpened as they roved over her.  It  was  intense like this.  He knew her @rg@sms would be harder, stronger when she was bound.  That was her reward for turning the power and control over to him.  But she had never done this before, and she could easily lose herself and forget her safe word.  It had only taken two rounds, and she was already hovering near that special place Draco wanted to send her tonight.  Draco would get her there soon, but he gave her the briefest pause while he moved up to kiss her.  She was shaking, twitching, rolling her hips into him for more, but he made her wait a few seconds.  He wanted her to fly there at just the right time.While he kissed her he reached over and opened the drawer to his nightstand and grasped blindly for one of her vibrators.  Green or purple, it didn’t matter.  It wasn’t going inside of her tonight, he was going to use it for something else instead.Draco had spent a considerable amount of time playing with the wards around his room to figure out how to do this.  Normally muggle electronics wouldn’t work in the Manor because there was too much residual magic.  He eventually figured out how to drop them in his room on command.  He created a small bubble of non-magic so they could work inside of it.  He got the idea from Hermione.  She once told him she had done the same thing for her muggle lab at the Ministry.He pulled out the green one, focused on creating his bubble in the wards, and then turned it on.  The buzz made her eyes fly open to stare at it in amazement.“Did you ever get extra dirty and use both at once?” he asked.She just shook her head, eyes wide, and he gave her a slow smirk.“Then allow me to demonstrate, angel.”He sat up and started to move his hips again and then pressed the vibrator onto her cl@t while he did it.  Her eyes rolled back as she moaned and started to shake again.“Draco  I’m gonna…  I’m… oh  f@ck…” Once again that small profanity made something in Draco’s brain snap, and he suddenly stopped holding back.  He moved harder, faster, the vibrator helping him along as he intentionally overstimulated her, and then he felt the familiar clench and flutter around his cock as she moaned loudly and let herself go.“F@ck@ng  come,” he groaned.  “Be a good girl for me and give me another.  Nobody does this like you Granger,  f@ck…” She was twitching involuntarily, and Draco knew she was nearly done.  But he had promised her four, and f@ck it all but he was going to give it to her.  Once again, he didn’t stop, and he pushed her nearer to that final one without giving her any respite.“NOW!"  he demanded, and then he felt another one wash over her, and the sound she made was something between a moan and a mewl.  Draco finally allowed her to pull him over too, and he spent herself into her, filling her completely.***Her breathing was shallow, her eyes were closed, and her cheeks were very flushed as she just laid there.Draco wondered if he had done it, if he had pushed her into subspace.  F@ck he hoped so.He lightly touched one nipple, and she jerked and quivered, and Draco just smiled to himself.  He had done it.   She  had done it.  His perfect little submissive was truly out of her own head like this.  She had trusted him.  She had let him lead her to this place.  She had even asked him to objectify her a little bit when he was exerting power over her.  And this was her reward, some hazy twilight place that other partners had described for him where she could just  be, for however long she wanted to stay there.Draco was thrilled for her.  She deserved to discover what that was like.As for Draco, he felt high, almost giddy as he thought about Hermione Granger and the enormous effort it took to get her to this place.  She was so thoroughly entrenched in her own head most of the time that Draco hadn’t been sure if he would really be able to do it.  But he had.  He had studied her, learned her, trained her, and now here she was, f@ck@ng floating for him.  Her breathing was still shallow, her eyes were closed, and Draco was sure that if he performed legilimency on her right now he would find that remarkable brain of hers completely still.Making sure not to disturb her, Draco pulled his wand from the nightstand and vanished the mess and her bindings.  She didn’t move.He crawled up to her and started to massage her wrists and arms, bringing her circulation back to her extremities.  She just gave a contented sigh and turned toward him a little.  She could visit that place for as long as she wanted, he certainly didn’t mind.  But he also knew he had to stay here with her until she returned to him.  The drops afterwards could be intense, and he suspected that hers would be bigger than others he had experienced since she didn’t get to this place easily like some subs did.  That was fine though, the trust she had given him tonight made him nearly breathless and gave him so much hope it filled him to the very brim.  He would take care of her.  Truly, he loved this part more than the actual s@x.Finally, slowly, she started to stir a bit, and Draco watched as her hazel eyes opened, blinking a little as she looked at him.“Draco?” she said in a small voice.“Welcome back sweetheart.”He stroked her face a little, and she looked a bit confused but also very content.“That’s never happened before.”He hummed a little.  “Did you like it?”“Yes… it was very dreamy.”“Good.  Do you need anything?  Water?  A potion?”She furrowed her brow as she thought about this with a very serious look on her face.  It  was  a very serious question, but her expression was also f@ck@ng adorable.  As usual, she appeared innocent, just like the angel moniker he had given her tonight.“Maybe water.”“Coming right up.”He conjured a glass for her and filled it with water and helped her sit up to drink a little.  When she was done, she nestled back down, and he pulled her close to him.“How are you feeling?” he asked cautiously.  He had to admit he was curious, even a bit nervous, about the kind of drop Hermione might experience.  He was expecting tears at any moment.  Instead she said, “I’m OK.  But I think I want to talk.”Draco raised his eyebrows, but then he thought about it and realized he shouldn’t have been surprised by this.  She  did  like to talk after s@x.  She rarely talked about the scene, but having s@x with him seemed to open her up emotionally.  She filled that void that was left when she came down from her time with Draco with questions, answers, words.  Draco quickly thought back and realized that many of their most important conversations had happened just like this, after they had been intimate, and he was giving her aftercare.He certainly wasn’t going to say no to  that.“Sure, I’d love to talk to you.”  She nodded and bit her lip a little.  “Alright,” she finally said.  “I’ve been thinking about the courtship thing and have some questions…”Draco’s heart started to pound.  F@ck, if tying her up would get her to ask questions about this, he would do it every single day.“Of course.  I’ll answer them if I can.”“Well some of the books talked about this, and Pansy also told me that for families like yours there are settlements and engagement break up fees and —”“No,” said Draco shortly.  She closed her mouth and gave him an odd look.Draco chewed on his lip to think about the best way to tell her this.  “Look, if we courted publicly and someday got engaged, there will be no settlements coming from you to me, and there will be no breakup fees for you.  If anybody is settling anything, we will do it in reverse, and I’ll be giving assets to you.”She blinked at this.  “Because I’m muggleborn?”“No, sweetheart, because I’m a Malfoy.  The rules are different for us.”She opened her mouth and then shut it again.  Finally she said, “Why?”He shrugged.  “I told you we don’t need settlements or breakup fees from the witch’s family.  They wouldn’t add much to the overall fortune.  And because we don’t demand them, it’s always given us…  flexibility  to be more selective in a partner.  We can look for things other than money or property when pursuing a witch, and historically it’s drawn interest from a wider pool.  That’s a major reason why Ella and some of the others are throwing themselves at me.  Their families don’t have the assets for large settlements or stiff breakup fees, but they know they don’t need them if they can attract me.”She furrowed her brow.  “But Draco, there’s nothing I can offer you either, not really, I —”He placed a finger on her lips, and she quieted.  “First of all, that’s not true.  If I cared about finding a witch to grow the fortune I can think of a lot of ways you could do it without settlements.”She gave him a questioning look at this, and he rolled his eyes playfully.  “Let’s see, you could model products, endorse things, license your name and image and generate royalties that way.   You could make Pansy actually  pay  you in galleons and not just clothing.  Lots of other companies would pay you for it too.  You’re the darling of the wizarding world.”Hermione wrinkled her nose at this.  “I don’t mind doing it for Pansy, but that’s because she’s a friend.  I don’t think I want to see my face on the packaging for blemish cream or whatever.”He just chuckled at this and shrugged.  “Alright then, not that.  Let’s see… you could influence legislation in the Ministry of Magic that’s favorable to the Malfoy interests and our tax position.  Shacklebolt loves you so much you know he would introduce and support any legislation you wanted.”She raised an eyebrow.  “You want me to create tax loopholes for you?”He grinned.  “Interfering at the Ministry is a family tradition.”She rolled her eyes, but he saw she was starting to smile.  “I think not.  You can afford to pay your fair share.  Tell me what else then?”“You could get me into business with others in your extended circle.  Most of my business partners are other purebloods because Father and my grandfather cared about that sort of thing.  They’re the people I know.  But it doesn’t have to be that way.  You could be my entry into half-blood and muggleborn circles.”To Draco’s surprise, she didn’t immediately dismiss this, but narrowed her eyes as though thinking about it.  “What else?”“You could help expand our muggle holdings.”The look of surprise on her face made Draco laugh.“Muggle holdings?  I know you have my building and your office building, but there’s more?”“Mmmhmmm.  Are you prepared to be let in on a deep, dark Malfoy family secret?”She smiled a little and nodded.“Very well.  The Malfoys own quite a bit of muggle London.  It’s just real estate holdings that generate rents, but it’s lucrative.  And I’ve wondered if there are other ways to participate in muggle businesses, but I have no idea where to start.”The look on her face was priceless.  “Truly?”He shrugged.  “Truly.  It’s a byproduct of how old my family is.  We acquired most of it before the Statute of Secrecy went into place.  I have a muggle company that owns the properties and handles renovations and buildouts, and I also have a muggle property management company to handle the tenants for me.  But all of the passive income feeds directly into the Malfoy vaults at Gringotts, and that’s why Ben is so valuable to me.  I don’t invest in any muggle companies at all except for my own, but I have a  lot  of muggle real estate, and that’s something Ben is licensed to do.  I only learned about it when Father died.  He would rather the wizarding world think we maintain our fortune through illegal means than let it be known that most of it is legal, but a lot of it is muggle.”“Good lord,” she said in amazement.  Draco just grinned.  Then she looked thoughtful.  “There’s actually a lot that could be done with muggle business investments.  The muggles have come up with a lot of ways to invest easily, and muggles innovate much more quickly than wizards do."Draco inclined his head.  “I thought so.  But like I said, I don’t know much about it, nor would any other pureblood witch.  Even Blaise doesn’t know anything about muggle investments or finance.  You, though….”“So I’m valuable because of my connection to other muggleborns and half-bloods and because of my muggle knowledge, then?”He shook his head.  “No, that’s not why.  I’m just pointing out that if I cared to grow the Malfoy fortune, you could bring a lot more to the table than other witches would bring me in settlements or property.” She bit her lip and suddenly looked a little shy.  “Why  am  I valuable then?  If not for that reason?”Draco was feeling a bit nervous now.  They had never talked about this in detail, but he realized she needed to hear it.  She needed to feel like she was a worthy choice.  In the face of everything he had, she had to feel like she was giving him something back that other witches couldn’t.  He was getting the impression that she might actually help him grow the fortune, which would be an unexpected boon.  But he was being honest with her that this wasn’t the primary reason why he wanted her.“You’re valuable because you’re fiercely loyal.  Given who I am and the responsibilities I have, I need somebody whom I can trust implicitly.  I need to know they’re in my corner.  I need to be able to confide in them.  A lot of it is mundane – just business secrets and such – but you know as well as I do that I have things to hide that  aren’t  just related to the Malfoy fortune.”She gave him a knowing look at this, and he nodded.  “Yes, exactly,” he said.  “The Malfoys have always valued loyalty in their witch above all other qualities.  In fact, it was so important to my father that he ignored almost everything else when selecting my mother; though when he picked her, they both went too far with it.”“What do you mean?”Draco shrugged.  “My mother was raised to cleave to her husband’s house when she got married.  All the Black sisters were supposedly raised that way, but Andromeda was too independent and Bellatrix was too ambitious to really take those lessons to heart.  My mother though… well, let’s just say that her loyalty to my father went too far.  She didn’t try to stop him from joining the Death Eaters during the first war.  She didn’t question him when he brainwashed me with blood purity b@llsh@t, even though her own viewpoints were softer than his.  She didn’t even try to stop it when I was Marked because she knew it was what my father wanted for me eventually.  It’s only been since the end of the war that she’s really put her foot down about certain things.  Her loyalty enabled my father’s sh@tty decisions.”Hermione was listening with amazement, and he smiled a little.  “I want you to understand something, sweetheart.  I do need a witch who is loyal.  It’s very  very  important that she be willing to protect me, my children, my assets, and even my mother to some degree.  But I’ve also learned lessons from my parents’ marriage, and I think it’s just as important that her loyalty to me and the Malfoy name not be completely blind.  She needs to be willing to give me a good kick in the @rs@ if I’m starting to turn into my father or if I’m doing something to f@ck up my kids.  I’m an arrogant, stubborn b@st@rd.  That means she has to be even more stubborn than I am to pull me back on track if I’m starting to do something she doesn’t approve of.”“And you think I could fulfill that for you?” she whispered.  She was looking at him like she was having some sort of revelation, and Draco put his hand on her cheek as he nodded.“I know you could.  You already have.  Who else would point out that I’m effectively owning slaves by using house elves without pay?  Who else would reject financial help from me and tell me I royally f@ck@d up when I tried to do it behind your back?  Who else would manipulate the f@ck@ng Ministry of Magic to keep me out of Azkaban?  Only you.”“And you need that…” she said slowly.He nodded.  “Yes, I really need it.  I need both the loyalty and the kick in the @rs@ when I’m being an idiot.  Astoria might have given me loyalty, but she would never point out my flaws.  She was so ridiculously agreeable that she would have done what my mother did and allow me to turn into the worst version of myself.  Other than you, Pansy is the only one who calls me out for my b@llsh@t, but she’s loyal to herself first.  I don’t blame her for it, but she would never stick her neck out to protect me, not really.  You would.  You  have.” “And the others…”“The others don’t get it.  They think being a Malfoy wife is about parties and jewelry and clothing.  And yes there is a lot of that — I can give my wife almost any material thing she wants, and I’ll be happy to do it — but I need a lot from her in return.”“Loyalty, you mean.”“Yes, loyalty but also support.  The estate is big.  It’s a lot of stress, a lot of pressure.  It sends me to a dark place sometimes.  All of it is just a lot.   I’m  a lot.  I have to ask for some pretty big things from my partner, and the others don’t understand that part of it.  But you?  Sh@t, you support me before I ever ask for it.  You give me ideas like bringing my advisors in house to make it easier.  You tell me you’ll decommission my father’s dark objects after the amnesty window closes so I don’t have to be stressed about it.  You let me confess to f@ck@ng  murder  and don’t turn me in.  I would be crazy to look for any other witch when you’re right in front of me and can give me everything I need.” And let’s not forget that I’m completely in love with you.Her eyes softened.  “So that’s why you want to court me?”He nodded.  “Yes.  It’s the tradition in my family.  I know I could break tradition, but…” he hesitated.“But what?”He bit his lip.  “But it’s expected.  It’s how Malfoys have always done it, and everybody knows it.  Being your boyfriend might be enough to keep some wizards away from you, but it won’t really deter the ones who court.  The same goes for me – if I’m not courting, then my relationship is considered casual within the pureblood world, and I’m still fair game until I’m actually engaged.  I don’t necessarily agree with it, but that’s how it will be perceived.”She was nodding seriously.  “Yes that lines up with what I read about it…” she said slowly.  “And Pansy told me that a relationship outside of a courtship is practically meaningless.  I worried that…” she trailed off.“It’s not meaningless to me,” he said quickly.  “Not at all.  But to others in my circle of acquaintances?  She’s right.  There will be other Ella Vanity’s who want me, and as for  you…  ” his stomach twisted as he thought about it.  “Well like I said, you’re the darling of the wizarding world.  You’re going to be pursued,  hard, now that other blokes know you’re willing to entertain a relationship.  Your education and work has deterred it somewhat, but now that the papers are printing things about us they know you’re ready.  Our past baggage isn’t a secret, and they’ll think they can draw you away from me.  I’m certainly not the only wizard who would give up settlements to have you.”She gave him a skeptical look.  “I don’t think that’s true.”“I’m almost positive it is true.  Have you been asked out recently?”She opened her mouth to say no, but then paused.  She turned red and just nodded a little.  “This afternoon actually.”Draco felt a lurch of annoyance, but forced himself to hold it back.  Instead, he gave her a knowing look.  “See?”She sighed.  “Fine.  We’re both hot commodities then, until everybody accepts we’re together, and it’s serious.”He nodded firmly.  “Yes, exactly.”“What does a courtship involve then, other than what you’ve already done?”Draco’s heart leapt at this.  She was asking all of these questions because she was interested.  He was sure of it.“Not much would change from your perspective.  It would just be known that we were seriously thinking of a future together.  It would give me the excuse to shower you with attention in a more public way, though I’m already doing quite a bit of that.  Mother might throw a ball for you at some point to introduce you to our friends and acquaintances.  You could also move in with me.”She gaped at him, and he smiled at her.  “A ball?”Draco nodded.  “Yes, I’m sure you read that courtships are usually celebrated with a ball.  That’s still true.  Sometimes there are joint b@lls to celebrate multiple couples at once.  Ours would be just for us though.”
   Unless you would let me go ahead and marry you… 
She gave him a wry look at this, and he just grinned.  “Alright…” she said slowly.  “And living with you?  I read about that of course, but would you want it?”He gave her a serious look.  “I want you to move into the Manor.  I’m sure that’s no secret.  But look sweetheart, there’s no rush, and you can live at your flat as long as you want.  I truly mean that.  I’ve always thought it was the perfect place for you, and now that our floos connect we can both sort of live in both places.  Besides, if you  do  officially move into the Manor before we’re married I’m supposed to give you an elf to protect your reputation.”“Absolutely not,” she said firmly.He just gave her a teasing look.  “Rosie’s already assigned to you.”  “She’s not bound to me though, and the books said the elf would have to be bound.”He inclined his head.  “That’s true.  I’m supposed to give you an elf that follows your orders and not mine.  But instead of an elf, I can give you your own place that’s appropriately warded.  Your flat, therefore, is an acceptable substitute.  It’s one of my properties, and you’re living there.  You didn’t even have to move.”She raised her eyebrows.  “I suppose that’s true…”She bit her lip as she thought some more.  “What about working?  Or other social expectations?  I mean, would your mother want me to become…”“Her?” he asked in amusement.  Hermione nodded.“Not at all,” he said.  “In fact, she wants the family to modernize.  She likes the fact that you have a career outside of the home.  I’m not saying she won’t try to force dance lessons down your throat or something –”She wrinkled her nose at that, and he just laughed, as he continued, “–but she won’t try to stop you from having a career, nor will I.”She nodded slowly and suddenly looked very nervous.  “Kids?” she asked hesitantly.Draco’s stomach turned over, but he forced his face to remain impassive.“There’s an entail on the estate.  I’m having Alyssa look at it, but unless she tells me she can break it I’ll have to have a male heir.  Otherwise the Manor and many of the other properties pass to Teddy Lupin when I die because he’s my closest male relative.  I can’t do anything about it.  I would also give him a fair amount of the gold to support the entailed properties because I think it’s sh@tty to pass a property as large as the Manor on without the gold to back it up.  It would bankrupt him.”She chewed her lip and nodded slowly.  “So one boy.  Any others?”His heart lurched a little.  “As many as you want.  Boys, girls, I don’t care.”She gave him a shy look.  “Maybe three?”Draco’s brain suddenly vanished and reappeared some place seven or eight years from now, and he could see it.  He could  really  see it.“I would love that,” he said instantly.  “Or more if you wanted.”She gave him a wry look.  “I’m not Molly Weasley.”“We can always cut ourselves off at six.”She gave him an exasperated look, but he didn’t care.  She was thinking about it.  She was entertaining it.  She was imagining it.  He leaned down and gave her a long kiss.When he pulled away, she looked at him shyly again.  “And would all this end at some point?  All this attention… the…  wooing?”He slowly shook his head no.  “I plan to woo you for as long as you’ll let me do it.  I’ll keep doing this for the rest of our lives if you’ll have me.”Her eyes widened, and she pulled him in for another deep kiss.  Then she released him and gave him one of the most intense, serious looks she had ever sent his way.“Draco, I still need to think about this a little more, but…”“But?” he prompted.“But I’m not saying no.”He smiled broadly and kissed her again, feeling lighter than he could ever remember.
   She wasn’t saying no. 

  
  

    
      
        
        
          AN: Quite a few popular fics are exploring using the word 'mudblood' during sex.  I want to be clear that I read those fics, and I enjoy those fics.  That being said, they are often written as Hermione asking Draco to do it, and he feels uncomfortable with it but does it anyway.  That bothers me, because doms should be able to say no in just the same way that subs can.  I also think that in a relationship like this, where one partner is very experienced compared to the other, it's important for the experienced partner to own their limits.  Draco discovered one during this chapter, and I don't think he should be apologetic about it.'
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