Hello. This is in response to TWO challenges *feels proud*

's Hogwarts Express challenge and Slytherin Head's inspired by a title challenge. So naturally, I combined the two, since I'm really busy these days. :P

Disclaimer: The title belongs to the band Counting Crows (yep you guessed-I had to be inspired be it), and I do not own Draco, Hermoine, or the Hogwarts Express. Or anyone else in this story either, so DON'T SUE ME.

Glad we cleared that up. ENJOY! (Review? *begs*)

Hermione followed Ron out of the prefect's compartment. She really wanted to join Harry and Ginny, and felt guilty because the meeting wasn't supposed to have taken so long. But as a prefect, she had to make sacrifices.

"That was so boring, Mione."

She sighed, smiling.

"You're a prefect, Ron. You have to learn to be responsible," she said matter-of-factly, but stopped in midstep as she heard her archenemy call her name.

"Blimey- what does he want?"

"You go on. It's probably another question about prefecting," Hermoine replied, and went back to the compartment where she had come from.

Draco Malfoy was standing in the middle of the compartment. His platinium hair was all over his face, in a way Hermione had to admit Pansy Parkinson (and probably the rest of the female students), would find extremely attractive.

"You forgot your book, Granger," he explained, gesturing at the old copy of Hogwarts, A History that was sitting on one of the seats.

Hermione frowned.

"That's odd. I thought I packed it in my trunk," she pondered, picking it up.

"Well, I don't know anyone else who actually has a copy of that book, or anyone that actually reads on a train, so it must be yours," he defended, grabbing his bag from the floor.

Suddenly, there was a flash of lightning and the electricity went off.

"Erm- right, this is weird."

"Lumos," muttered Hermione, and instantly the two could see around their compartment again.

The girl suddenly realized the events of the train in their third year, and she went pale.

"What's wrong, Granger?"

"You don't think... it's the-the dementors again... do you?"

She looks so scared, thought Malfoy. Like a mouse, when a cat is about to pounce on it. So fragile, so sweet, so cute... WAIT! Did I really say she was cute? She's a mudblood. She's filth. She's... Granger.

"I highly doubt it. I haven't heard of any breakouts from Azkaban," he said, turning around to avoid looking at her (cute?) face.

This wasn't normal. No way was this normal this was truly out of the ordinary. He was thinking that his archenemy was even the teensiest bit of attractive. Hell, she was out of the question. Not because he wasn't good enough for her- hell, no. But because she was a mere mudblood. Draco Malfoy was the Slytherin Sex God. No one was good enough for him.

Hermione realized this sudden change in his attitude, although she couldn't exactly identify what it was... guilt? Pity? Confusion?

"Malfoy- Draco- are you all right?"

He jumped as he heard her say his name, and turned around to face her. His bloody first name! No one could call him that.

"Er- yes. Listen, maybe we should just, er, join our friends in their compartments."

The girl could feel his eyes pounding into hers. Those beautiful grey eyes of his, so deep, so full of soul. Stop thinking about him as if he was- as if he was...

Ron?

Not Ron, just an attractive guy. He's Malfoy!

"Of course," she said, and opened the compartment door.

Or, at least, tried to get it open. It wouldn't budge.

"Perfect," Malfoy- Draco- said sarcastically, "now I'm stuck inside a compartment in the Hogwarts Express with the one person I truly hate. How could this get any worse?"

The train stopped.

"Really smart, Malfoy, tempt fate, will you?" she snapped back.

So they were back to last names now, were they?

"I thought you dumped Divination in third year?" he asked, smirking.

"It's not funny. We're stuck on the train. Together. Why do I get the feeling that I will not get back to Hogwarts in one piece?"

Draco sighed. Their hate was back... but there was no denying that there had been something. But exactly what- a break from hate? That was all... there wasn't anything more... he couldn't be starting to feel something for Granger. That was the most ridiculous thing he'd ever thought.

"Stop pissing me off, will you?"

"Look who's talking!"

Hermione sat down in the seat in front of him.

"Why are you sitting down?"

She looked up at him, wondering what on earth was wrong with him. Hadn't they just hatefully ended a conversation- no- an argument?

"Well it looks as though we're going to be bloody stuck here, doesn't it?"

She glared at him. But not hatefully, thought Malfoy, definenately not hateefully, she's what, mocking me? Trying to provoke me? Why do girls have to be so annoyingly complicated?

"Since when do you swear?"

Hermione got up from her seat, her furious eyes staring right into Malfoy's astounded ones.

"LOOK HERE, MALFOY! JUST BECAUSE I GET GOOD MARKS AND READ A LOT DOESN'T MEAN THAT I DON'T GET MAD. IF YOU THINK SO, THEN YOU'D BETTER JUST APPARATE YOURSELF INTO ANOTHER COMPARTMENT AND BE DONE WITH IT. AND SINCE YOU CAN'T YOU MIGHT AS WELL SPLINCH YOURSELF ALONG THE WAY!"

And Malfoy did most unlikely thing ever.

He kissed her. Furiously, violently, passionately. He kissed her as if she was the last particle of oxygen left in the world, his one need to survive. And she kissed back.

I knew it wasn't hate.