It was Christmas time. White jackets of soft snow covered the grounds of Hogwarts. Christmas decorations were strewn all throughout the buildings: ribbons on the walls, bells on doors, and a giant Christmas tree right outside the Main Hall. There was that jolly feeling and sweet atmosphere, since the most exciting holiday of the year had finally come. The scent of cinnamon and nutmeg filled the air.
Students were getting ready to take their leave for the break, eager to get out of school and submerge themselves with food and presents at home. The students that were about to part were waiting in front of the tall main entrance, chattering away with each other in chipper spirits. Harry and Ron were among them.
"Come on, Hermione!" Ron insisted, "You should come with us, Mum would be pleased to see you over break." Harry and Ron were going to spend their Christmas at the Burrow, glad to escape anything that had to do with school and schoolwork. "Yeah Hermione," Harry added, "It wouldn't feel right without you."
Hermione was standing in front of her friends, arms crossed and smiling, "No, it's fine. I'll just stay here; I wouldn't want to impose on your mum, Ron. Aren't Charlie and Bill coming home? Oh, there wouldn't be any room." Unlike the rest of her peers, Hermione was one of the few who were going to remain at Hogwarts, since her parents were visiting her mother's sister. She wasn't very fond of her mean aunt anyway.
But secretly, she also had another reason to stay. After all the years of taking "Hermione, you can't fly a broom for your life!", "Herm, don't kid yourself, just stay inside and study, you might kill yourself riding a broom" and everything of that sort from Ron, she had had it. She was determined to prove to him, and everyone, that she was not just a bushy haired, know-it-all that can't fly. With everyone gone for the Christmas season, she figured that this was the perfect time to try and hone her very weak flying skills.
"Aw, alright 'Mione," Ron sighed, defeated. Even if she decided to go with them, it was too late; the time already came for the students to leave. "Well, I guess its good bye for now, until after the holidays of course," Harry smiled at Hermione, before giving her a tight hug. "Yeah," Ron gave her a hug next, "Take care of yourself, 'Mione, and don't get lonely." And they were gone.
Hermione sighed as the tall entrance doors closed. 'Hmmm…I wonder what I should do now…' she thought to herself. She didn't feel like going out into the quidditch pitch right at the moment, it was too soon she decided, so she decided to go to the library to get ahead in her Runes translations. She'd go out to the quidditch pitch in an hour or two.
Hermione went up to her empty dorm and gathered the necessary things that she needed. Before she left her dorm, her eyes caught sight of the quidditch handbook she had borrowed from Ginny. 'Hm,' she though, 'I guess I'd better take this.' And she headed down to the library.
The library was completely empty, even the libriarian was nowhere in sight. She went down the rows and tried to find a seat near the Runes section. Being near the books all about Runes would be easier than sitting somewhere else and having to walk all the way to the Runes section to get what she needed. When she came upon the right row, she stopped when she saw who was there, too.
"Why, hello there, Mudblood," Draco Malfoy smirked, "Didn't know you come to the library." Hermione rolled her eyes at his sarcasm. Draco was sitting at a desk up against the bookshelf. Books were scattered on the desk all open, a long piece of parchment sat on his right and a quill inside an ink container sat on his left.
"What are you doing here, Malfoy?" She asked, irritated. The very being of him just sitting there a few feet away disgusted her.
"What am I doing? What does it look like I'm doing?" he scoffed, turning his attention back to his paper, "And I thought you were the insufferable know-it-all." Hermione let out a big sigh. Should she choose somewhere else to sit? No, she really didn't feel like moving anywhere else. So she took the desk right across from Malfoy and sat down. She could just handle him just this once.
It was silent for a while as both of them worked. Only the sound of scratching quills could be heard. Hermione was concentrating and working hard on her translations, grabbing every book in her reach and flipping furiously through the pages.
"Hey Granger," a voice suddenly said behind her ear. She screamed and dropped the book that was in her hands. She whirled around to see Malfoy standing right behind her, holding a Runes textbook and looking at her like she had said something utterly ridiculous.
"Bloody hell, Granger," Draco said, "All I said was your name. No need to jump like that."
"Well, if you hadn't noticed," Hermione retorted, "I was concentrating on my homework, so if you'll excuse me, let me be so I can finish this up." Draco raised a sleek eyebrow.
"I was just going to ask you to help me," he said. Then he smirked, "Of course, why would I pass up the help of Miss I-Know-Everything?" She scowled at him, "What do you want?"
"Translate this for me, Mudblood," he said coolly, holding out the textbook opened to page 120, "It's got me stumped and I frankly don't want to spend another hour trying to decipher it." Hermione quickly translated out loud it for him, also noticing that this was the total basic form of Ancient Runes. But the supposedly genius pure-blood couldn't understand it?
After she translated the last line, she looked up at Draco with a disapproving look, "Are you daft? This is as basic as it gets and you're not intelligent enough to translate it?" Draco glared at her.
"Well, I'm sorry that I'm not as much of a Know-it-all as you, Mudblood," he spat. He paused. "I'm horrible at Runes," he muttered. Hermione rolled her eyes, "Yes, so I see. Now, if you haven't got anything else to bother me with, leave me alone." She turned her back to him without waiting for his response.
Draco stared at her back for a moment before saying, "Hey Granger." Hermione sighed, dropped her quill and turned her head, "What?"
"Want to be my tutor for Ancient Runes?" He didn't even know what he was saying. Of course, he needed help with his Runes but why is he asking the MUDBLOOD for help? Hermione stared at him with eyebrows raised. After she comprehended what he just said, her brows fell.
"No, go find someone else who cares," she said. She glanced at the clock. It had been two hours since she came to the library. Now it was time to go to the Quidditch Pitch. She quickly gathered her things and got up from her seat. She was about to walk out when Draco grabbed her arm and said, "Where do you think you're going?"
Hermione glared at him, "None of your business. Now let me go." "Not until you say yes to tutoring me in Runes," he said flatly.
"No, so let me go Malfoy before I punch you again."
Draco suddenly remembered the feeling of her fist colliding with his cheek back in 3rd year. No one had ever hit him before and let him tell you, it hurt. And he got hit by a girl. He did not want that happening again.
Then his grey eyes landed on a book that Hermione held in her arms. 'A Guide to Quidditch' it read. He didn't know why she even had the book identical to what he had. His eyes suddenly gleamed, realizing an opportunity even though he didn't entirely understand why she had the book in the first place. But there wasn't another reason why she would have it.
"Tell you what, Granger," He pulled her closer to him, "I'll help you out with quidditch if you agree to tutor me in Runes." Hermione stared at him dumbfounded, uncomfortable with the small distance between her and Malfoy, "Wh-what? I don't know what you're talking about. Quidditch?"
Draco scoffed and nodded at the book in her arms, "You think that I'm blind enough to not see that, eh Granger?" She bit her lip. Of all the people to find out about her secret beforehand, it just had to be Malfoy, the cursed ferret.
"So what do you say, Granger?" Draco smirked, "Is it a deal?" Oh how she hated that signature Draco Malfoy smirk. But she had to admit, it was attractive.
After a few seconds, and without even thinking, Hermione blurted out, "Fine." Draco then let go of her arm and sneered.
"Alright, then, Granger. Let's start business tomorrow."