Chapter Text
The Moonlight Curse
Chapter 1
Draco knew everything would start the moment he turned eighteen, but that didn’t make it any easier.
It hurt. It fucking hurt, and he could do nothing to stop it. Every night his body changed under the moon's influence and it would keep happening until he found her.
That was the Malfoy curse. All his ancestors had suffered this fate and now it was his turn.
Draco sighed, looking up at the sky. The sun was setting behind the mountains and he only had a few minutes left.
The door to his room clicked closed as he left, walking through the long halls of the manor in silence. The portraits glanced at him as he passed through, pity in some of their faces.
His mother Narcissa looked up as he stepped into the foyer. She had been trying to cheer him up since his transformations started.
“Ah, Draco.” The woman stood up and approached him carefully as if he were a scared animal, taking his hands in hers. “Do you have everything ready?”
He stared down at her, his face impassive.
“Stop treating me like a child.”
Narcissa let out a long sigh.
“I know you hate it…”
“Mother,” he warned her in a harsh tone.
“But you’ll be okay,” she continued, squeezing his hands. “Trust me.”
Draco squared his jaw and swallowed the retort he had on the tip of his tongue.
He would never trust his family again. Not after what had happened during the war.
“My roommates will notice if I suddenly turn into a dragon in the middle of the night, Mother,” he drawled, following her to the main doors.
Narcissa opened them with a wave of her hand and the cool breeze of Wiltshire blew through his platinum hair. Draco closed his eyes, taking a deep breath.
“Your father used to go to the Forbidden Forest during his last year as a student,” she commented as he stepped outside, his gaze falling on the forest that surrounded Malfoy Manor. “You could ask him about it.”
Those trees had been his little haven for the last twelve weeks.
“I’ll send him a letter.” His voice sounded sincere, but he knew he would never do it. “I wish I didn’t have to go back. Nobody wants me there.”
Hogwarts was no longer a place where he felt cherished or wanted. Walking around its walls would remind him of all his mistakes, all the people he hurt.
“You still have your friends,” Narcissa murmured, her eyes following him as he descended the five steps to the ground. “You didn’t have a choice, Draco. No one should blame you for that.”
Draco looked back at his mother with a frown.
“It was your father’s mistake, and he’s paying for it,” she added softly.
He rolled his eyes and turned his back to her, squaring his shoulders. His body was already tingling.
“You may find her there.” Narcissa sighed, looking up at the pink and purple sky with pursed lips. “She has to be a witch, after all.”
Draco shook his head.
“I’ll be cursed for the rest of my life.”
“No, you won’t,” his mother replied, folding her arms. “Don’t fight it, Draco. This magic has been part of you since you were born.”
He scoffed, his lips curling into a sneer.
“Your father says it’s a gift, not a curse.”
“My father is insane,” Draco growled, his eyes widening as he heard his own words. “Sorry, Mother. I know you still love him,” he added in a lower voice, looking back at her.
She gave him a sad smile.
“Go.” She gestured to the forest, wiping away a tear that was falling down her cheek. “I’ll be around if you need me.”
“I won’t be able to call you.”
“There are other ways of communicating, dear,” Narcissa reminded him, blowing him a kiss before turning around. “Enjoy your last night here.”
Draco waited until the doors closed and clenched his fists, walking over to the edge of the forest as his rings glinted under the last ray of sunshine. He placed them, his necklace and his clothes at the foot of a tree and went deep into the trees, his nails growing longer and his skin turning darker with each step.
The moon was up in the sky when a dark beast flew through the clouds, its deep growl echoing around the grounds of the manor.
━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━
Hermione was on the window seat of her dorm, looking through the glass with a vacant expression.
It was the first day back at Hogwarts and she already felt alone.
Harry and Ron hadn’t come back. They both had accepted a position in the Auror office after the Battle of Hogwarts and were now in training.
And she was Head Girl, so she wouldn’t be sharing a room with Ginny as she had expected.
McGonagall had taken her to the south tower after the feast, and she had to hide her surprise when the headmistress told her that she would be sharing a common room with the Head Boy.
She had instantly recognised the person waiting for them at the foot of the tower. Blaise Zabini, former Chaser of the Slytherin quidditch team.
He had barely talked to her once the Headmistress left them in their new common room, giving her a curt nod before climbing the stairs to his bedroom.
Hermione sighed, tracing runes on the glass as she watched the sunset.
The Black Lake looked beautiful from up there, the water reflecting the orange from the sky. As the sun sank into the horizon, she felt a strange sting in her chest.
Hermione gasped, her body freezing at the unexpected jolt of pain.
What had that been?
Her magic was humming in her veins, pulsing and making her skin crawl. The sensation suddenly stopped and she let out a shaky breath.
What did that mean?
A warm and tingly feeling spread across her upper body when her gaze fell on the Forbidden Forest.
She could feel a pull towards that place. Something was calling her from there.
Hermione panicked for a moment. What the hell was happening to her?
She took a deep breath, her eyes scanning the edge of the forest again and again. There was nothing there, and she could see the lights on in Hagrid’s hut.
Hermione thought about her options for a moment. She could ignore the feeling and go to bed, but… would she be able to sleep?
No.
She needed to know what was going on.
Nodding to herself, she stood up and picked up her wand and her Gryffindor robes, casting a warming charm on her clothes.
After making sure that Zabini was nowhere to be found, she tiptoed across the head’s common room and went outside. Casting a disillusionment charm on herself and a silencing one on her shoes, Hermione ignored the pounding of her heart and walked down the corridor, descending the stairs to the ground floor of the castle.
She stared at the troll tapestry as she passed by. That was the spot where she had seen Malfoy that morning after eating lunch at the Great Hall.
He was taller than the last time she had seen him, right after the battle, and his platinum blond hair was a bit longer.
Malfoy had glanced at her with an impassive expression and nodded his head in greeting, resuming his talk with his Slytherin friends.
Hermione had blushed furiously, averting her gaze to the floor as she walked away.
Why hadn’t she noticed how handsome he was before?
Right. Because he had been sneering at her since the day they met.
It looked like he was done with their confrontations and fights. And she was, too.
Hermione had his apology letter stored in her trunk. She hadn’t replied, hoping to talk to him about it in person.
And she would. Once she knew what was hiding in the forest.
A lazy smile curled her lips.
It was the first day back and she was already breaking the rules. Harry and Ron would be proud of her.
Hermione left the castle behind her, her feet following the path to Hagrid’s hut.
The moon was shining brightly in the middle of the sky, the dark waters of the lake reflecting its light. And the pull was getting stronger with every step she took.
She paused once she was in front of the trees and tightened the grip on her wand.
She had been in there many times before. She shouldn’t be scared, but her pulse was racing.
Hermione pressed a hand to her chest, focusing on the strange feeling.
It was warm and comforting. It couldn’t be something bad.
Making up her mind, she stepped into the forest and walked without looking back.
Hermione whispered lumos and held her wand in front of her, her eyes looking everywhere as she kept walking.
The forest was unusually quiet.
She didn’t hear or see a single creature as she walked through the woods, though she could feel that she was getting closer and closer to the thing that was calling out to her, pulling at her soul.
Her steps faltered, her blood running cold when she noticed something big and scaly hidden under a huge elm tree.
Hermione held her breath, her eyes widening in surprise and shock once she recognised it.
What was a dragon doing in the middle of the Forbidden Forest?
She had read Hogwarts: A History more times than she wanted to admit, and it said that no wild dragons had lived on the grounds since the school was founded. All of them had been relocated to sanctuaries or protected areas where no Muggle or wizard could step in.
But her eyes were not deceiving her. It was a dragon, its scales a deep dark green like the leaves of a tree. She could see smoke coming through its nostrils every time it breathed.
And it was sound asleep.
That creature was not as huge as the dragons from the Triwizard Tournament, so it was probably a young specimen.
The pull tugged at her again. Without thinking, Hermione took a step closer.
Everything seemed to stop as the dragon’s eyes opened, the muscles of its shoulders tensing when it felt her presence.
Hermione lifted the disillusionment spell and revealed herself, not wanting to scare it.
Her breath hitched and her body froze in fear when it looked at her. Those piercing silver eyes were staring into her soul as if that creature could read her mind.
Hermione could only watch as the dragon blinked, its nostrils flaring as it lifted its head to look down at her.
It didn’t seem interested in attacking her.
She swallowed hard, trying to remember what she had read about them. Running from them was not a good idea, and intelligent creatures like dragons could probably feel human’s fear.
What about talking to them?
“Hi.”
The green dragon snorted softly, cocking its head.
“Can you understand me?”
Hermione gasped when it nodded its head once, resting it on its front legs and closing its eyes.
“My name is Hermione,” she added in a low voice, her body instantly relaxing. “And yours?”
One of the dragon’s eyes blinked open and it looked at her, its expression almost bored.
“You’re a male.” Hermione smiled when he nodded again. “I’ll call you Silver. Do you like that name?”
A growl sounded deep in his chest and he closed his eye.
“You’re so calm.” She took another step and hesitated. “Can I get closer?”
His eyes fluttered open and he stared up at her.
“I may be losing my mind.” Hermione chewed on her lower lip, shaking her head. “But something tells me you won’t hurt me.”
The dragon didn’t move as she walked over to him. He was even more beautiful up close, his dark scales shining under the moonlight and his chest raising with every breath he took.
“Can I touch you?”
His gaze fell on her again and the dragon snorted, a puff of smoke coming from his nostrils.
He could have burned her alive if he wanted to, but he seemed to feel okay with a human standing that close to him.
“You’re so beautiful,” Hermione whispered as she brushed the scales of his neck with her fingertips. He was warmer than she thought he would be. “What are you doing here?”
Silver glanced at her and rolled his eyes. She had to hold back a laugh at that.
“I will help you find your way back home,” she murmured, tracing one of his black horns. “Or do you live here?”
He nodded his head.
“Oh.” Hermione paused and looked down at him. “Have you met Hagrid?”
The dragon stiffened and growled at her, baring his sharp teeth in warning. She took a step back and lifted her hands.
“Okay, okay.” She winced when her voice cracked. “I won’t tell him you’re here, I promise.”
Silver rested his head on his front legs again and huffed indignantly, his eyes never leaving hers.
“Such a strange dragon you are.” Hermione couldn’t help the urge to know more about him. “Why can I feel your presence?”
She needed to go to the library and read everything she could find about dragons bonding with humans.
“I have to go now but I’ll come back, okay?”
Silver growled softly and closed his stormy eyes again. Hermione smiled and patted his head one last time before turning and retracing her steps.
She felt the pull again as she walked away from the dragon. It was him.
A million questions swirled through her head while she climbed the hill to the main doors of Hogwarts.
What was a dragon doing there? Why didn’t anyone know?
Had he come in the summer when there was no one around? Or maybe during the Battle of Hogwarts?
What if a Death Eater brought the dragon to the castle? Or Voldemort?
It seemed insane but she couldn’t rule any idea out yet.
Should she send an owl to Charlie Weasley and tell him about it?
Her body tensed at that idea. No, that wouldn’t do.
Hermione climbed the stairs to the tower in silence, knowing that she wouldn’t be able to sleep until she could go to the library.
She was only sure of one thing: This was a secret she would keep to herself.
━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━
Draco rolled his shoulders as he walked up to the castle, the sun rising in the east.
He hadn't been able to sleep after Granger found him in the middle of the forest. It had shocked him to the core to see her standing there and watching him, though Draco felt even more surprised once he noticed that she was not scared of him.
She had felt his presence that night after he transformed and that could only mean one thing.
Hermione Granger was his witch.