Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, it's world, or it's characters. All of those belong to the famous and amazing J.K. Rowling, and anyone she had sold the rights to. That does not include me. I do not make any profit from this fanfiction, and no copyright infringement is intended. I only own this spin-off of her world, nothing else that is recognizable as the world or characters of Harry Potter.
There she was where she always was. Her bushy, unmanageable hair was splayed over her narrow, feminine shoulders as she bent her head forward over a book. Her soft, pink lips moved soundlessly as she traced a line with her slim finger.
Blaise couldn't keep his eyes from her as she flipped the page, her own almond-shaped sorrel eyes moving across the words. The Gryffindor made notes in her fine, lilting script on a piece of parchment as she read, barely tearing her eyes from the book to write.
She didn't notice him watching her; she never did. But Blaise did all the same. Every day he watched Hermione Granger as she studied, or ate, or talked with her friends, The Chosen One and Weasel King.
His favorite time to watch her was like this, when she studied. Her lips parted slightly as she read, her eyes transfixed on the page before her. Then, when she was done, she would stand, moving through the aisles to replace her books with small, graceful steps.
Blaise watched her, his hand resting on an open textbook he hadn't read a page of. It was simple a pretense, a reason to be near her, to see her… Even if he couldn't touch her, he could still feel her presence. It was enough for now.
Suddenly, something changed. Something was different from the day-to-day routine that he had become so enamored with over time.
She looked at him. Her doe eyes were curious, and her lips quirked in a small, hesitant smile before she turned back to her book, a slight blush staining her cheeks.
Blaise couldn't keep a small smile from gracing his own lips. There was always room for change.