Author's Note: Hey! I just had to post something, and found this just sitting in My Documents... I know it cuts off short, but I promise to finish it sometime. Hey, it might even become the sequel to Caught Up in Time, you never know....*giggles* R/R! Thanx!



The fierce summer storm had passed just a mere hour before sunrise. Anyone who had been smart enough to place a sleeping charm on themselves were the only ones who got a decent night's rest. As for those who didn't, the common rooms had been crowded with them the entire night. But now it was the day, and a muggy one at that.

The students were just beginning to break off into their first classes of the day, which promised to be long and wearisome. And, unfortuneately, Hermione had Charms with the Slytherins. It was ultimately her least favorite class of the day; the only person she knew in it was Draco Malfoy. The rest of the students were those who hadn't passed the year before, leaving Hermione and Draco the two youngest in the class.

As usual, Hermione took her spot in the front of the classroom, Draco sitting directly behind her. Sighing, she sunk down into the uncomfortably cold and moist seat. She allowed herself to fall down in the chair till her face was hidden behind her pile of books. The bell sounded throughout the halls, and she heard Draco sit hastily in his own seat.

The professor stood up to greet the class, and beckoned with his misted eyes for Hermione to sit properly. "I know how you all are suffering from the severe loss of sleep which the storm brought. And so that wretched storm shall bring you your first assignment of the week." A groan emitted itself from every chest in the room, and Hermione sighed, setting her chin on her clenched fist. "We are taking a trip this day, into Hogsmeade. I've arranged this with the rest of your professors, so you will not take any written work from them today." At this, a cheer rose from the twenty-four students. Once quieted, the professor continued. "Unfortuneatly, the storm has left the train de-railed, and the track covered in such rubbish. So, I've set up the smaller of the horseless carriages. Two students are able to fit comfortably in each one. We will ride to Hogsmeade, which will be about a three hour travel. Once there, you and your carriage partner will use your own knowledge of charms to help set things right, which the storm has destroyed. Listen for your partners as I call them."

Hermione tighted in her seat, not allowing her ears to hear what she knew the professor would say. Her partner, as usual in this class, was to be Draco. It was inevitable. They were the two youngest, and so they would be put together against each one's will. She groaned as she thought of the three hours she would have to endure with only him. Gropping her hair with her tense fingers, she heard it,"Hermione Granger and Draco Malfoy." Behind her, she vaguely heard a snigger from Draco. Perfect.

"Line up! With- with your partners." Pursing her lips and clamping her jaw shut, she took her place beside Draco in line. He looked her over with gray eyes, and grinned maliciously. The line began to move, and as they did so, Hermione shot an angry look over to her own partner.

"Why so angry, Granger?" Draco whispered, crossing his muscular arms across his chest. His grin grew, drawing Hermione's attention to his face. He had grown to be so irresistably attractive that she found her breath catch. How could someone so horrible become so handsome?

Shaking her head away from him to break her almost hungry gaze, she shrugged. "Why do you think, Malfoy?" It was tradition, it seemed, to call enemies by thier last names. "I'd think you'd know that I absolutely hate you. Am I correct?"

He looked taken aback, and his smug grin fell a little. "Sure." they walked in silence for a few minutes, descending a series of stone stairways. The group soon found themselves swimming in a dense lake of fog, just barely making out the ones which proceeded before them. And in a matter of minutes, Hermione found herself stepping into one of the bleak and old carriages, with Draco following closly behind.

As the door shut, and the amount of light decreased greatly, Hermione pushed aside the heavy woolen curtain which covered the window. Light streaked in through the fog, and she glanced up at Draco. He looked solemn, as usual, and almost as if he was to fall asleep right there on her shoulder. He returned her gaze lazily, and turned to set his muscular arm on the door. As he set his firm chin on his clenched fist and began to stare out of the tiny window in the door, Hermione noticed a tattoo on his left bicep. "I've never seen that tattoo before. Is it new?"

Draco shook his head, "I've had it since the middle of fourth year. Kinda' cool, huh?"

Nodding, she muttered, "A snake is perfect for you."

"Now I've never heard that one before, Granger. Thanks for the compliment." He glanced down on his own arm at his tattoo. Two serpents wound themselves around a thin and long dagger. "It was my only Christmas present. I'd saved up for it for a year; I blew all that money on a lousy tattoo."

Shaking her head dispassionately, Hermione said off-handedly, "I think it's rather cool." She watched him shrug carelessly, and grinned, turning to watch the trees through the fog out of the window. "I do hope the fog lets up, don't you? I don't see how we could fix anything without being able to see it first."

"I'd have to agree, Granger. But at least we won't have to be cooped up in this old and dusty carriage for a while." He turned to glance at her; she was still watching out the window.

"Yea. But think, truly, another three hours going back to school. Thank the lord we don't have any work to do tonight."

Surprised at her, Draco said comically, "I always thought of you as the type that loves homework, because it simply keeps you busy."

Hermione turned to look back at him with a frown. "I'm not all that you think that I am, Malfoy. I only enjoy school because of all the adventures that Harry always seems to get into. Friends are the only reason I even bother to come."

He grunted. "Oh yea, you had to bring up Potter. I get rather tired of hearing about all that he does all the time. I've never had a thing for celebrities." Turning back to the window, he continued, "But I suppose that I can't blame you, Granger. You and Potter have always had a thing for each other, haven't you?"

She whipped her head around to stare at him with wide and angry eyes, her hair flipping around her back. "No. We've never had a 'thing'. Just because he's a good friend of mine, doesn't mean that he has to be more than that. I will probably never come to feel that way about Harry."

Draco turned to look back at her as she said this, and snarled. "Right. I'd think that he's already there. Next time you see him, actually try to notice the way he looks at you. It's always in the eyes, in case you hadn't figured that out yet."

Impatient, she sharply exhaled. "Harry does not like me more than a friend, Malfoy. And yes, of course I know that everything is in the eyes. But you, your eyes are always fiercely blank and angry. Do you know why that is so?" She knew that her voice was raising, and color was beginning to come into her cheeks.

He half- smiled to her, causing her to look him over with confusion and surprise.

"What? You didn't know I could smile, Granger?" He burrowed his brow, and ran his thin fingers through his silvery hair. "Well, this just in, it's possible. But don't count on it." He looked down on her fiercely, his eyes locking with hers.

Hermione grinned up at him, a little uneasy. "You guess correctly." Looking away, she continued, "Why don't you smile more often, then?"

"Why should I even bother? My reputation is set. Smiling is not me. I just don't often."

Grinning, Hermione inquired michieviously, "Then why did you just do so?"

Draco shrugged carelessly. "It was worth it."

"Really?" She looked at him with a confused and innocent expression. "Smiling is charming. And when you smile, it's very cute, Draco."

He grunted. "That's a first. Draco? My first name?"

"I guess there's a first for everything, huh?" She began. "If we're going to be stuck in here with each other for three hours, don't you think we should make it as easy on the other as possible?" She looked back up to him again. "And plus. A name is just a name. Draco or Malfoy, what does it matter?"

He looked at her sarcastically. "And you still hate me?"

Sighing, she turned in her seat so she could face him easier. "Possibly." Her eyes scanned his cold and almost comical expression. She sighed impatiently, "God, Draco. Must I?" She paused a moment, "Just because of the fact that all of my friends hate you does not mean that I, in turn, should." She tucked her hair behind her ear and flipped it over her shoulder. "Plus.... I think that there's more to you than all that bad boy attitude."

"Sorry to dissappoint you, Granger, but there isn't much else to know about me." He flicked his glance to just above her shoulder and out the window. He sighed lazily and shook his head; he could feel Hermione's eyes on him. He looked back at her amused, and returned her own piercing glance. His mouth was on the verge of smiling, eyes looking at her mischieviously.

She broke her glance and looked at the floor. "Don't look at me so."

"Why not?" Draco said, not breaking his aunry gaze.

"It-it makes me uncomfortable."

"Does it." He wasn't surprised."Well, then, I'm not up to spending the entire three hours staring out of the window. This is a lot more fun."

Hermione shook her head, looking back up at him. He still held that cute gaze on her. "Fun? Making me angry is fun?"

"This doesn't make you mad, obviously. Otherwise, you'd slap me in the face, like you've done before."

"Do you want your face smacked, Malfoy?"

He laughed heartily. "That's funny. And no, I'd rather not have a red welt on my cheek this day."

She grinned helplessly, and crossed her arms as she leaned back on the side of the carriage; the door was closest to Draco. This wasn't so bad.

Just to make conversation, Hermione asked, "So. What do you do on your free time? Besides taunt every other soul on this planet?"

"Not much, I suppose. That's all I do at school- wizard's chess isn't that bad." He sniggered. "In the summer I don't have a choice. Father is always planning what I do, which is a relief. But this summer will be different. He's taking a trip to Africa for the summer, he's gotten a job offer. I'm staying home." He sighed."I swordfight and ride bareback, horses, that is. Yea, this summer will be free for me. You'll probably see me all the time in Diagon Alley, or in the Leaky Cauldron." He looked over at her. "And you?"

She shrugged carelessly and locked her eyes on his. "School is school. The usual. I get involved in all the trouble Harry seems to attract. But in summer, aside from the family vacation, I just do whatever my heart desires."

"Which is?"

"Sometimes I read. The muggle computer is entertaining, too. And I ride horses, like you. I've never actually tried swordfighting, that would be something new. I just do what ever is open to me."

Draco smiled at her, his eyes gray and attentive. "Ever tried sky diving?" She shook her head. "It's awesome. You've got to try it sometime."

Nodding, Hermione unfolded her arms and began to work at the clasp of her navy blue cloak, which she had slipped on to keep warm; it had been cold, but now the fog was loosening it's firm grip on the earth, and was allowing the sun to shine clearly in through the window. Her fingers fumbling at the base of her neck to undo the pin, she sighed impatiently.

Draco smiled, amused, and slid closer to her. He took her hands in his and moved them away from the clasp. Hermione looked down on him as he swiftly undid the clasp and pressed it firmly into the palm of her hand. "Thanks." Hermione whispered as she slipped the cloak off her shoulders, folded it up, and placed it behind her in the seat. He shrugged, and looked into her eyes. "A snake? A Gryffindor wearing a snake. I guess there really is a first for everything."

"I think they're fascinating." She said, eyes unable to tear from Draco's.

"Do you? And I was beginning to think that I was the only one." He grinned quickly, his silvery hair falling into his eyes.

Hermione smiled, "I'm not that girly, truly."

He snorted. "I'd beg to differ." Then he paused and grinned maliciously at her, remembering that he still hadn't moved back into his old position. "But you are different. Different from the rest of them." At her concerned look he shook his head. "That's a good thing, Hermione." He watched her grin grow to a warm smile.

"Are you saying that you don't find me as annoying as all the rest of the girls?" She giggled, her eyes still searching his.

"Well, I wouldn't say that." He grinned again at her, "But, which ever way you'd prefer to put it." Draco cocked his head, and looked at her sideways.

"How should I put it, Draco?"

Smiling, he began. "You're more entertaining than the rest. You're more you around me. You're more fun than the rest...what ever you wanna say." He shrugged, looking away from her.

"And what else am I, since you seem to know so much of me?" Hermione whispered, grinning at him.

Draco lifted his head and raised his eyebrows. "Right. You're fun and amusing. You're nice when you have to be, but I know better. There is more to you than I thought." He considered this for a bit, and grinned to himself. "You've got an aunry side, I know it."

"Do I?" Hermione said, looking at him with an amused expression.

"Yes. You just don't know it yet. And, you've changed from last year, that's for sure." He said, smiling mischieviously.

"That's a good thing, right? I've changed for the better?"

"Yea." Draco said, sighing. "Look at yourself in the mirror sometime. You're hotter than Parvati Patil, who, in my opinion, still looks like a little girl. And you're..."

"Being flirted with by Draco Malfoy, in a very odd and romantic way?"

"Yea. That sounds about right."

"Well, then, I suppose I'm also liked by him as more than a friend, no matter what he may say? And I guess that I'm..."

Draco stopped her lips with a swift and fierce kiss, bringing his arm around her slender waist and drawing her closer to him. They were so close that Hermione could not only feel his estatic heart beat, but hear it as well. As his kisses quickened with fierocity on her soft lips, Hermione moved her hands up along his broad shoulders and slipped his leather jacket down to the middle of his back, and locked her fingers behind his neck, and pulled him down onto the seat with a rough tug. Feeling the tough material of the carriage underneath her, she found her mind wandering, wondering what her friends would say if they found out, and she didn't care. Inside, she was laughing at herself; she had always known that there was a soft side to Draco, no matter what she told herself. Even though his extreme kisses were no where near to soft or even tender, but Hermione liked it. When Ron had been her boyfriend, he had never worked up the nerve to kiss her, and when he finally did, it was soft and inexperienced, not at all romantic. But Draco's excitement and eagerness let a new thrill escape into her spine.

Draco could feel the throb of Hermione's pulse under him, and, without a second of wondering, he knew that his own heart was beating just as rapidly. Quickly tossing his jacket onto the floor, he pressed his body onto hers, and smelled the sweet flowery scent of her hair. Kisses intensifying, he felt her fingers running up his spine, letting loose a fierce shiver scramble up his back like cold pins. She felt his own shiver run through her and pressed her hands flat on his back, bringing one hand to press on the back of his head, forcing more pressure into the intoxicating kiss.

Swiftly, Draco moved his lips across her temple and then down to her neck. He felt his lips cross her fluttering vein where the blood rushed faster and faster, in sync with her heartbeat. Twining her fingers in his silky silver hair, she placed her index finger under his strong chin and guided him back up to her lips.

Hermione felt as if her lips were going to bruise, Draco's kisses were so rapid and eager, she could barely keep up. She was content to just lay in his strong arms and let him continue to kiss her like this. She wondered if Ginny had ever been kissed like this from him; after all, she had been his girlfriend for about two years. Rumors had told of how they had gone back in time and had come across the Gryffindor mauraders, but Hermione had never believed it, and she never would.

His lips were on her neck again, dancing with ferociety across her skin. As he continued to cover her neck and collar bone with kisses, Draco rummaged his fingers through her soft brown locks of hair, and his mind, unlike Hermione's, was calm and cool, his only thought resting on the one he was kissing. Only today had he come across the thought of even liking her, of giving her a chance. But rather, it was like giving himself a chance; a chance to see that he wasn't all bad. He deserved to find that he actually had feelings for someone other than himself. Ginny had helped him see that there was more to him that what he thought; she knew him better than he knew himself.

Hermione cupped his head in both hands and kissed him for the first time, softly at first, but then more and more vigorously. Draco was almost surprised, it had always been him kissing her, and he was about to give up on her, that she would ever kiss him in return. Bringing both of his arms under her, he pulled her the few inches to his waiting lips and kissed her deeply, with so much fierceness, that even he was surprised how relaxed Hermione was; she was finally beginning to warm up to him, he thought, and inside he felt his stomach jump with excitement, which was odd, he thought; he hadn't felt this way since Ginny had made out with Sirius. But surely he couldn't be nervous, but nervous about what? That Hermione would do what Ginny did to him again? Remembering the pain that he, himself, had caused, he softened his kiss. He didn't want to mess up again. It wasn't worth the pain.

As Draco slowly softened his kisses to the point where it was too tender to bear, Hermione caught his hand. Their fingers interlaced as he kissed her with softness; so much emotion was forced into the tender kiss that she couldn't bear it. Locking her arm around his neck, she kissed him back fiercely. Hermione took hold of his white shirt and swiftly pulled him back down onto her with a quick outburst of energy.

Allowing her to kiss him fiercely, Draco traced his fingers through her hair and down her back. He took hold of her slim waist with a firm grip and raised her up, setting her down onto the seat. Breathless, Hermione let him push her up against the wall of the vintage looking carriage, and kiss her with so much force that she felt her shoulders tense with the effort.

Click! Without warning, the door opened with a creak. "What the hell are you two doing?" came the familiar voice from the door; obviously, they'd stopped traveling. Draco, not bothering to speak, swiftly pulled to door shut, giving Hermione a split second to glance at who stood outside. "Harry?"