Defending the Dark (Dramione)

Chapter 13: I Wish

"Malfoy . . ." She sighed as if he were a naughty child.

"What? I didn't like what he was saying about you." He crossed his arms, then grimaced at the pain it caused him.

Hermione's haughty expression immediately softened, and she shook her head. "I never thought I'd see the day Draco Malfoy would be defending my honor . . . You're in bad shape. Let me take a look."

"I told you, I'm fine," he said, for some reason unable to pull his eyes away from hers and the hint of appreciation he saw there. Had he really been the cause of it?

"Don't be so stubborn." She sniffed contemptuously and stood up, pulling out her wand, then placed her opposite hand to his temple.

He gave a short laugh. "You're one to talk."

"Episkey," she murmured, holding her wand close to his swollen eyelid.

Draco felt a warm tingling sensation on his eyelid, causing the swelling and pain to lessen, allowing him to open his eye completely again.

"Thanks," Draco said, looking up at her, but she evidently wasn't done. She nodded briefly, then brought her free hand up to his chin, turning his head gently. She placed her thumb on his bottom lip to pull his lips apart as she whispered the incantation again.

At her soft touch, Draco felt a warmth spread through his chest that had nothing to do with the healing spell. With her gaze so focused on what she was doing, Draco found himself staring at her brown eyes. In them, he could see flecks of amber, but most strikingly, her kindness and concern.

His lip now healed, she moved her hand upward to brush away his fine hair, which hung low over his forehead, to reveal a deep bruised gash. At her action, Draco felt a strange sensation run down his spine. He wasn't entirely comfortable with how her touch was making him feel, but he also didn't want her to stop.

Before he could process his conflicting emotions any further, she retracted her hand and warned, "This one is going to hurt . . . Brackium Emendo."

Draco's nose made a loud cracking sound and he recoiled from the sudden pain, cursing loudly. "Merlin, Granger!" He brought his hand to his nose.

"Sorry." She grimaced. "They did such a bad job of healing it, I had to partially rebreak it to fix it. It looks normal now, though."

He scowled and rubbed his battered nose, which, admittedly, did feel just like he remembered.

"Let me take a look at your ribs." She gestured toward his chest.

He couldn't resist grinning cheekily at her as he removed his shirt. "Must be your lucky day, Granger."

"Oh, yes, you caught me. In fact, the only reason I became an Inquisitor was to get the chance to ogle you, Malfoy." She rolled her eyes. "It's clear the Death Eaters didn't break your ego when they broke your bones. Although, I can't imagine even a steamroller could do that."

"A what, now?"

"It's a Muggle construction vehi—" She drew in a sharp breath when she saw the state of his chest. "How many Death Eaters were there?"

Draco looked down and evaluated the blue, black, and yellow bruises that were littered across his torso, stretching to his back, with patches of broken skin mixed in. "Three."

She shook her head and muttered a spell, waving her wand across his chest. "There's no internal bleeding, so that's good, but you have several broken ribs. Sit back." She pushed his shoulder lightly against the chair.

Hermione furrowed her brow, working slowly and carefully as she healed his many injuries. After she healed his ribs, Draco was relieved that he was able to breathe properly again.