Disclaimer: Characters are all JKR's
A/N - this is a one-shot. Not my favorite story, but I had the Jehovah's Witness of plot bunnies. Beyond persistent!
It was September 1998, and the war had been over for four months. Hermione Granger had just arrived at the 9 3/4 platform. She was glad to be returning to Hogwarts after all that she had endured whilst assisting Harry. Perhaps she could finally have a peaceful school year.
In an effort to distance herself from the past, Hermione made a choice common amongst women: she cut her hair short. It had been quite an adjustment at first, but now she loved the feel of the air on the back of her neck, and it saved her so much time in the mornings. It was a pixie cut with wispy bangs; a gamine look that suited her well. Her mother even compared the petite, delicate witch to Audrey Hepburn.
She grinned as she noticed that the station was full to bursting with witches and wizards, including a healthy crop of 11 year-old neophytes embarking on their first trip to Hogwarts. Unfortunately, it wasn't long before people realized who the pretty girl with the short 'do was. The paparazzi were in attendance, waiting to pounce on any members of the Golden Trio.
"Miss Granger! Miss Granger - over here! Is it true that your relationship with Mr. Weasley has ended?"
"Hermione! What are your plans following this school year?"
"Miss Granger! What's happened to your hair?"
"Miss Granger! Is it true you were caught snogging Rubeus Hagrid's half-brother, Grawp?"
OK, so she might have made that last one up. But the questions were growing progressively more inane.
She smiled as politely as possible, offering nothing more than a terse "No comment." Thankfully the reporters' attention was diverted as Harry Potter arrived with Ronald Weasley. Hermione sighed in relief, located an empty bench, and sat down to wait for the train.
Harry gave her a tiny wave as he did his best to answer or fend off questions, depending on the content. The brunette looked supremely uncomfortable, in stark contrast to Ron. The youngest Weasley son was soaking up the attention, clearly reveling in his newfound sense of self-importance. Hermione shook her head slightly as she watched this. Their so-called relationship had lasted a matter of weeks, and changing her appearance had been the final straw. Ron's reaction swung between fury and disgust. He told her she looked like a bloke, and that he'd rather have someone who not only looked like a girl, but would let him lead in the relationship. The witch found that she was rather glad he reacted as badly as he did. It allowed her to get over him very quickly.
Now if he could only get over himself. Smirking, she dug in her bag for a book to pass the time. When she sensed someone near her, she looked up and was startled by a pair of cool, grey eyes.
Oh, wonderful. Draco Malfoy. Could this day get any better?
The Slytherin said nothing as he continued to observe her, finally taking a seat at the other end of the bench.
"Malfoy."
She received a neutral "Granger," in return.
Hermione felt compelled to say more, but what would be acceptable? 'How was your summer?' was a loaded question. She frowned at the book in her hands, thinking.
"So...how was your summer?" Huh. He went there.
"It was, um, fine. Quiet, which was nice." She snuck a look at him. Same platinum hair. He looked a little leaner, which took him from svelte to skinny. There were circles under his eyes, and faint lines of fatigue around his mouth. A close examination of him was enough to engender concern.
"How are you, Malfoy?" She asked this softly, hoping he wouldn't startle or become angry. He'd always been volatile.
"Honestly, Granger? I don't know. It depends on the day." He surveyed the platform. "I'm not expecting this to be an especially good one." Draco glanced at the muggleborn and saw sympathy in her large, dark eyes. Just as he was about to say more, a hand clamped lightly onto his shoulder, and he turned to look up at Harry Potter.
The Wizarding World had been shocked when Potter spoke in defense of Draco Malfoy at his trial. The Saviour had requested several private conversations with the young Death Eater before he decided to help him. Whatever had been said was powerful: Potter had been quite vehement in requesting another chance for his former enemy, as long as the blond showed he was making an effort.
"Malfoy. You came back."
"As did you."
"You playing this year?" Potter looked at him with just the hint of a smile.
"Why would he be? Who the hell wants a Death Eater on their team?"
Ah, yes. Potter's pet weasel. Draco counted to 10 and ignored the moron, focusing solely on Harry.
"Not sure. We'll have to see if they don't have a Seeker already. If they need me, I'll play. Why, you miss me, Potter?" He smirked at his old rival, but the expression was playful instead of malicious.
"Not really, but it's always nice to have a challenge. Hufflepuff's Seeker is hopeless."
The Slytherin concurred.
Ron started to interrupt again, and Malfoy noted that Potter also ignored him, moving over to the far side of the bench to greet Granger.
"Mione. Am I glad to see you!" Granger gave the Boy Who Did Whatever He Wanted a tight hug, carefully avoiding looking at Weasley. Interesting. Potter grinned at her, ruffling her hair a bit. "It's going to take me a while to get used to your new look."
"Well, Harry, at least you're willing to give it a chance." Ron harrumphed in the background at this, and got a nasty idea. He looked at Malfoy. "What do you think of Hermione's hair, Ferret? It's awful, right?"
Draco's eyes flicked over Hermione again before he turned back to face Weasel. "She removed that abomination. I'd say it's an improvement. She looks French. Very chic."
Weasley looked at him incredulously. "An improvement? She looks like a bloody man!" The look turned sly, "unless you're into that kind of thing. I always wondered about you."
One blond brow arched in response. "I can assure you, Weasley, I'm about as gay as your family is rich. Ask pretty much any decent-looking girl in our year, including Brown." Ron flushed but said nothing, so Draco continued. "If you look at Granger, and you can't tell her from a man, you're an even bigger cretin than I thought. Try noticing her other...assets, and I think you'll find there's no question." The Hogwarts Express' whistle sounded, and he rose and nodded to Granger and Potter. "See you at school."
Harry did his best to hold in his laughter at Ron's face as they boarded the train. Hermione trailed behind them, still thinking about the Pureblood's words. 'Other assets?' She shook her head, and followed Harry into a compartment.
Ron complained about Malfoy for a few minutes before he decided that there was somewhere else he needed to be, and he took his leave abruptly. Harry and Hermione relaxed as soon as the redhead was out of their compartment.
"Where do you think he's going, Harry?" His faults aside, Ron had been her friend for years, and Hermione was curious.
Harry thought about it and replied, "My bet? He's gone to find Lavender to ask her about Malfoy."
Hermione snickered at this. "I suppose I shouldn't laugh, it isn't very nice." The two eyed each other briefly before breaking into simultaneous giggling fits. Soon enough she calmed and remarked, "I never thought I would hear Draco Malfoy say anything nice about me."
"Yeah, it was odd. But I can assure you that Malfoy isn't the same git he was before. Don't get me wrong, he's still arrogant and selfish with an overinflated opinion of himself, but I think the war bled the hate out of him. And besides, Ron almost exploded when it seemed Malfoy came to your rescue. I suspect he'd have said something positive for that reason alone."
"I suppose you're right. Still, that was something I never thought I'd see."
Eventually the train arrived (as trains are wont to do), and Hermione was eagerly awaiting the carriage ride to school. As she stepped off the Express, she felt an odd sensation on her head, and reached up with an inquisitive hand.
Her hair was growing back at a ridiculous pace. When it finally reached its length from the previous year, it stopped. Hermione spun wildly, attempting to discern the cause of her sudden transformation. Harry and Ginny were nearby, mouths agape. Ron happened to walk past with Lavender in tow. When he spotted his ex-girlfriend, he simply nodded. "That's more like it."
"Ronald Bilius Weasley! What gives you the right to change anything about me?"
"Mione, I didn't do it. But I won't lie and say I'm not glad it happened. What's so wrong with looking like a girl?" Lavender simpered in agreement, the ribbon-wearing twit.
"According to some, I look feminine regardless of my hairstyle!"
Ron snorted dismissively. "You're listening to Malfoy now? What the hell does he know?"
"What the hell do I know?" Draco strode forward until he was nose to nose with the Weasel. "Whatever I know, it's allowed me to bag almost every decent looking bird from our group...hello, Brown." He winked at Lavender, and quickly boarded a carriage. Then he looked back at Hermione. "Granger, how did that dead animal make it back onto your head? You were looking almost passable earlier." Hermione shrugged, and waved her wand at her hair. It returned to the pixie cut.
Her wild curls reappeared in the Great Hall.
And Potions.
And again in Defense Against the Dark Arts; when she was outside by the Black Lake; at Hagrid's...
One morning, a school owl dropped off a blank card. The moment she touched it - three guesses what happened. By this point, Hermione Granger was ready to tear her hair out. Literally. She had begun to assess the situation in hopes of finding the culprit. It was frustrating, as no one had been there every time her curls returned. She even started a list:
1. Clever
2. Hogwarts student (first incident was before a professor was around, and why would they do that, anyway?)
3. Doesn't like my short hair
4. Needn't be present for the charm (curse?) to work. This is sneaky. Slytherin?
5. Likely not a Gryffindor, as it hasn't happened in the Tower. That lets Ron out. Wait, see number one. He was already disqualified.
That was all the data she had so far. After two weeks of the nonsense, the Head Girl was getting positively twitchy. She glared at everyone as though she was trying to read their thoughts, and had even docked House points from anyone she caught looking at her sideways. Unbeknownst to her, there was a pool going for when the Gryffindor Princess would lose the plot completely.
On the 15th day of the "Battle of the Bush," Hermione Granger finally snapped in the Great Hall during lunch. She climbed on top of Gryffindor's table, and began to rant. She threatened the life, the family and the descendants of the sadist who was currently putting her through Hell. It was a good thing she was too busy to look down, or she would have seen Seamus reluctantly giving Dean Thomas his winnings from the pool.
There were those who wondered why the professors were allowing Hermione's misbehavior. Had they been able to see behind the table, they would have witnessed Professor Sprout passing a handful of Galleons to a gleeful Professor Flitwick.
Midway through her tirade, Malfoy left the Slytherin table and carefully approached. He hadn't realized just how upset Granger was.
"And another thing-"
"Granger." He reached up and pulled lightly at her uniform.
"What, Malfoy? Can't you see I'm in the middle of something here?"
"Come down from the table."
"I have a point to make." She stomped her foot, inadvertently smashing Neville's Shepherd's Pie.
"Fine, but make it from the floor. This is unseemly. Have you forgotten you're in a skirt?"
She blushed, then took the hand he offered and stepped down.
"That's better. Now, your mystery stylist has done nothing more than re-grow your hair."
"That's not the point! It's being done without my permission, and it's rude, and patronizing, and-"
"And scary because you don't know who's doing it."
"Yes." She hated to admit this. It made her feel weak.
Malfoy took a deep breath, and tilted his head to the side. "Make it short again." She did, only to hear him murmur,"Revertetur Capillus." Her locks returned.
"You! What are you playing at, Malfoy? How do you think you have any right?" She paused and added in a hurt tone, "You said that day at the station that I even looked chic!"
"And so you did, Granger. But you didn't look like you. As unstable as our lives became over the years, there were always a few constants. I'm a narcissistic bastard, Potter blames himself for anything that happens, Weasley's a hot-tempered fool - oh sit down, you ginger idiot! And you were a bushy-haired know-it-all." He paused as if deciding whether or not to continue, and lightly placed his hands on her shoulders. "Then you changed, and that took away something I could count on. I didn't deal with it well. I thought if I returned your hair enough times, you would finally give up and leave it. Guess I forgot just who I was dealing with."
"So you're telling me my hair is some kind of psychological security blanket for you?"
He had the good grace to look sheepish.
"Erm, could've been worse."
"How so?" Her voice was glacial.
"The last security object I had was a teddy bear. Slept with it every night. At least-"
Three professors and the Head Girl halted Draco before he could finish that sentence.
"There is one more reason." Malfoy dropped his hands, looking unusually vulnerable.
Her curiosity was piqued. "Go on."
"I watched you during one of the battles. That unmanageable mane was waving everywhere like a banner while you were dueling Death Eaters. You had this fierce expression." He looked down, then into her eyes. "It was the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen."
For once the Head Girl was speechless.
"Anyway Granger, I'm sorry. I wasn't doing it to make you a nutter."
"Really?"
"Really. That was just a side benefit." He smirked at her gently as he tugged at a wayward curl.
She pulled her head back, and he let go as she Vanished the extra hair again. She found herself amused and touched at his woeful expression.
"Draco, I cut it off because I want to focus on the future, and move on from everything that happened before. I would think you of all people could get behind the idea of a fresh start."
He nodded. "Again, I apologize."
She squared her shoulders and looked up at him, adopting her most officious tone. "Two weeks' detention and 150 points from Slytherin."
"What?"
"And you'll have an Inter-house Unity duty in three weeks' time."
He was afraid to ask. "And that would be?"
She smiled. "Escorting the Head Girl around Hogsmeade."
A/N II - for those who feel Draco & Hermione are out of character: my thinking is the war's over, and Draco's had some time to pull his blond head out of his perfect tuchus, and admit his attraction to Hermione. As far as Hermione goes, if Draco was being nice, and had dropped the sneering, she had enough time to start finding him fit. He made a good impression on her at the train station, and Harry said he had changed. :)