Draco had had a really suckish day. Not only was he still not succeeding to fix the Vanishing Cabinet, Slughorn had also failed him on his latest essay and bloody Potter was bloody everywhere. So yeah, he felt like he had the right to say he'd had a very suckish day.
He'd had a lot of suckish days and lately, more often than not, he was really glad when he could just crawl in his bed and forget about his worries. He always wished he'd just fall asleep and never wake up again. He didn't want to die – oh no! – he just wanted to be asleep for a very long time. For as long as the war was going on. Or for as long as the Dark Lord was alive or something.
But now, it was the end of the day and in an hour or so, he would be able to go to bed and forget about another day he'd lived through. First, he would have a nice long hot bath in the Prefect's Bathroom. There was nothing like bathing there. He sighed blissfully at the thought of all the nice smells and the hot water on his aching muscles. Preferably, there would play some soft music. Apart from the music, the only sound he would hear, would be soft splashes when he moved. Oh, how he was longing for a bath like that.
Pansy was being a real pain in the ass lately. He'd always thought of her as his friend, but lately, he couldn't stand her anymore. Where the change had happened exactly, he had no idea, but he had the feeling it had something to do with the suspicion that she was in love with him. He had no need for her to be in love with him whatsoever. She wasn't pretty and she wasn't really nice either. And she was fairly annoying when she got in her possessive mode. As if he was some toy or something. As if he was hers.
He wasn't, of course. He was no one's. Or maybe that was a lie. He kind of was the Dark Lord's now. The other Slytherin's found it so cool that he was a Death Eater. They really envied him, but of course, they didn't understand a thing of it. He would give up everything in the world not to be one anymore. At first, he'd loved it, but now… Really, he'd give up everything. But he had no choice, so all he could do was suck it up and go on with the mission the Dark Lord had assigned him with.
Draco sighed and pressed his fingers against his temples. He wanted to hit something – or someone – but he repressed the urge and just walked on. He shivered once, and wrapped his arms over his torso to keep himself warm. Maybe he was getting ill. He did feel kind of ill. All this Death Eater stuff sure wasn't healthy. But it was not like you could go to the Dark Lord and say 'hey, I'd like to have some vacation, couldn't you send me to the Caribbean or something?' . No, that would probably just give you a one-way ticket to the Green Light. And they all knew that the Green Light wasn't something good.
He smiled as he saw the entrance to the Prefect's Bathroom. When he entered, he was met by hot steam embracing him lovingly, as if he was a lost son that finally came home. An amazing flowery smell curled up his nose and settled itself in his brain, purring like a kitten. It made him feel lightheaded and left him slightly dizzy. The scent smelled so familiar, yet foreign. Like a neighbor you used to play with as a kid, and then meet again as an adolescent.
He made his way through the fuzzy curtains of steam and undressed, leaving his clothing in a locker. He noticed someone had forgotten his shoes. It made him slightly grin. Probably Weasley. That kid was stupid enough to forget his own head somewhere.
He grabbed a towel and wrapped it around his skinny waist. He'd lost a lot of weight this year. Most of his muscles were gone and he often felt very weak, as if he hadn't eaten in weeks instead of skipped one or two meals. He didn't want to skip them, but fixing the Vanishing Cabinet took so much of his time. He knew Pansy was worried about him, and to be honest, he was worried as well. Especially after he all but fainted during his quidditch practice a few weeks back. He was glad it hadn't spread through the school that he'd collapsed on the quidditch pitch.
He remembered making fun of Potter when he'd fainted on the Hogwarts Express in their third year, after those Dementors had entered the school. He felt kind of stupid now, because he'd done so. He didn't feel sorry for the idiot, but he felt like he understood him better now. A little bit. A very teensy weensy little bit. Well, he wouldn't make fun of him anymore if he collapsed again. He wouldn't help him, but he wouldn't make fun of him either. That was a good start, wasn't it?
He was almost at the bathtub when he realized the shoes hadn't been forgotten. A high pitched scream entered his ears and broke the relaxed bubble the steam had created. He heard water splashing as the girl tried to cover her breasts and he grabbed the towel around his waist tighter, making sure it wouldn't fall.
He stood there frozen though, and he some way or another, he couldn't take his eyes off her slightly pale yet freckled skin and perfect curves. He swallowed and shook his head. Perfect?
"Malfoy!" Hermione Granger screeched, "Turn around! Go away!"
But he couldn't. The only girl whose body he'd ever seen was Pansy's and Pansy's body was nothing like Granger's. Pansy was shorter and chubby. She had short legs and huge breasts, and however most boys were greatly attracted to his friend's breasts, she had nothing like the elegance Granger's body was radiating. If Pansy was a cat, then Granger was a swan.
Wow. Where did those thoughts come from?
Draco shook his head and turned away his head after all. He was slightly out of breath, even though he hadn't done any physical exercise. He closed his eyes and shook his head again, harder this time. This view would haunt him forever.
"What are you doing here?" Granger asked. Her voice was slightly less shrill, but still a bit panicked. Well, he guessed it didn't happen every day that someone walked into the bathroom while she was there, butt naked. Merlin's beard… she was naked.
"I… uh… I…" he stammered. Cool down, Malfoy, he told himself, don't get all worked up, "I was… about to take… a bath?" Oh boy, why must his voice shoot up at the end? What was he? Freaking thirteen?
Granger's laugh had a soft tinkle to it. Like bells. She shook her head, suddenly very amused. He was really making a fool out of himself, wasn't he?
"Relax," she grinned, "It's not like I will bite you… or jump you…"
He went beet red at her words, vividly imagining her jumping him. He scratched his throat, not wanting to think of that. He would have to obliviate himself later, because this memory was going to scar him forever. Well, it wouldn't probably scar him worse than being a Death Eater, but still. He would have to see this mudblood again tomorrow and the day after tomorrow and the following one and a half year. If this memory came up every time he saw her curls dance around her face, he would die of embarrassment.
"Malfoy, seriously," Granger's tone had lost that amused ring to it and was serious again, "You look as if you're about to pass out or something. I'm not that ugly, am I?"
"No…" he stammered, "No…"
She laughed again. What was bloody wrong with her? If it had been the other way around, he would have hexed her out of the bathroom. Actually… what was wrong with him? Why hadn't he left the bathroom yet? Why did he feel as if he was glued to the ground?
She rose from the bathtub and the room swirled around him. He grabbed the wall behind him and had to sit down as he watched water drip from her body. She walked to the towel stand and grabbed a big fluffy one, wrapping her hair in it. She didn't bother to cover her body anymore, and Draco saw dots dancing in front of his eyes. His breath came in short gasps.
"I guess I'll let you take your bath, then," she smiled.
She took her time to dry her body and her bare back mocked him. It shone in the soft light and looked as if God himself had touched it and created it to his image. If he'd ever said something was perfect before, it crumpled away in the beauty and elegance of Granger's back.
He didn't want to watch her while she got dressed, but he couldn't help it. She put on layer after layer of perfection and became a Greek Goddess in a Hogwarts' uniform. Draco blinked a few times rapidly and tried to clear his head. This wasn't right. This wasn't the way it was supposed to be.
She blew a kiss in his direction when she was finished getting dressed and his stomach made a triple summersault. He must have been blushing again as well, because she winked at him and had a conspiratorial grin on her face. She opened the door to leave the bathroom and turned back towards him to say one more thing.
"Don't worry Draco," she whispered, fairly amused, "What happens in the Prefect's Bathroom, stays in the Prefect's Bathroom."
The door closed with a bang and when she was gone, he finally realized where he'd smelled the familiar yet foreign flowery scent before.
He'd smelled it when standing next to Hermione in class.
Oh my God, new oneshot by me :D yay, I'm so excited ;) I think it came out pretty well ^^
Please review and tell me what you thought of it :)