"I understand your feelings towards him, Miss Granger, but there is nothing I can do to make this situation any better. We need you and him to work together this year and set a standard for the rest of Hogwarts to follow." Minerva McGonagall was appointed this impossible task of explaining to the new Head Boy and Girl that they needed to not only work together, but also share quarters for the next year. Needless to say, none of the three were very happy about the situation.
Minerva had decided to explain their situation to each of them separately. Hermione Granger, though rather miffed, was taking the news well. "Professor, how does having Draco Malfoy and I share a common room set an example for the rest of Hogwarts? What if I would like to have my friends to my room, or if I would like some quiet time to study?"
"Miss Granger, I promise you will have the chance to do whatever you please. You and Mr. Malfoy just need to compromise. Working together, and showing the school that you can spend time in each other's company will encourage others to have inter-house relationships. We are hoping that this will push students to ignore the customary divisions between houses and will make the upcoming war a little more bearable." Minerva pinched the bridge of her nose gently, hoping to relieve a little of the stress she had acquired.
Hermione noticed this and sighed. This past summer had been rough on them all. She'd have to deal with Malfoy. She'd have to try and cope. She'd worked too hard to get this far and she wasn't about to give up her Head status because of the measly ferret. "Thank you for your patience, Professor. I promise to keep my emotions in check and to attempt a…civil relationship with Malfoy. May I go to the feast now?"
"Yes, Miss Granger. Thank you for your cooperation."
Draco Malfoy starred at his potatoes with sneer of distaste. There was little he hated more than the Welcoming Feast. Fortunately, this was his last year at Hogwarts. Fortunately, this was his last year of the numb-brained chatter and excessively dull classes. Only one thing could make his final year even worse: Hermione Granger. Little did he know when he boarded the train earlier this afternoon that in a mere few hours he'd be moving into quarters with none other than Hermione Know-it-all Granger.
Draco scoffed, pushing the potatoes off his plate with his fork. Granger, of all people! He glared up at Dumbledore, sitting between his own head of house and that Gryffindor McGonagall. Of course this was Dumbledore's idea. Dumbledore always got his way. He got to hire the werewolf again as the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. He got to instate the new rules stating that anyone who instigates a fight with another student could receive punishment as high as expulsion. He got to be the good guy. He got to do as he pleased. But here Draco was with all this bullshit he couldn't control. And now, on top of it all, Dumbledore was making him share a room with Granger? Fuck Him. Fuck it all.
Draco stood up from the table, motioning for Crabbe and Goyle to sit back down. He was going to his rooms to try and stay as far away from Granger as he could.
Hermione was perfectly content eating little at the feast so she could have even more time to spend unloading her possessions into her new rooms. So what if she had to share the adjoining common room with Draco Malfoy, this place was beautiful! High ceilings, beautiful dark woods, sapphire wallpaper and chocolate brown bed hangings, there was nothing bad about that. She smiled to herself as she started to unload her books on to the beautiful mahogany shelves. Harry and Ron's reactions to her sharing a room with Draco Malfoy were hilarious.
"You have to share a room with the Amazing Bouncing Ferret?" Ron practically spit out his biscuits and gravy, which for him would be an amazing feat considering how he eats.
"Not a room, Ron, just the common room. I'm sure it'll be okay. We are, after all, both mature adults."
"Well, we know you are, Hermione, but Malfoy? I doubt it. That boy is undeniably the biggest prat in the universe. I doubt he'll be able to act maturely at all." Hermione beamed at Harry.
"I know, you guys, but we can try, right? What if he's not as bad as we think he is?" Hermione and Harry burst into laughter as Ron spat his pumpkin juice all over Neville in indignation.
Hermione loved her friends. They made her so happy. She just hoped they'd all make it through the coming war. Harry was getting more and more secluded as the weeks went on. After each attack this summer he became more determined to stop Voldemort. He started practicing all sorts of offensive spells about halfway through the summer, working with Snape a Remus to insure his safety in all sorts of situations. They all began to work on new spells and hand to hand combat in the last month. Ron had begun to study all sorts of dark creatures to prepare for Voldemort's newly amassed army. He was helping the others prepare for whatever was to come. Hermione started learning how to make essential healing potions with Snape so she'd be able to take over for him if something happened. Snape himself was walking a fine line, a number of times he had to think quickly to keep himself from suspicion. He'd also been working with the Slytherins to try and keep them from becoming Death Eaters, stealthily, of course. She had no idea if he'd succeeded, but she did know he spent a lot of time at Malfoy Manor with Draco Malfoy this summer. She didn't know exactly what to make of that.
She'd often wondered if Draco really believed what his father was telling him. Since his father's capture after their fifth year, Draco seemed to be a little less cocky and a lot more moody. Snape had worked hard to try and become Draco's new role model. He'd often confided in Hermione that Draco was working hard to try and gain some sort of independence in the world. Draco mother had left his father the moment he was captured and Hermione knew that Draco was trying to live with it. She had lost her parents the summer between fifth and sixth year and Snape was the first person to try and bring her out of the shell she'd tried to create around herself following their deaths. Snape, of all people, had helped her by giving her something to do rather than just giving her his sympathy. She suspected that by telling her about Draco, he was trying to get her to do that for Draco.
She and Snape had a sort of understanding. Not a friendship, per se, but an understanding of each other. He and she admired each other's brilliance and together they'd developed a number of potions for the Order. They had become each other's confidants partially because they knew the other would never tell a living soul and partially because they spent so much time working together. Hermione never thought she'd be a friend to Snape, but she was. Maybe she could do the same with Draco.
Unloading the last of her books onto the shelves, she sighed and lay back on her bed. Who knew what the upcoming year would bring.