"..and he's disappeared off again!" Harry roared in the common room. Hermione rolled her eyes. Why could the boy do nothing better but stalk Malfoy? "Where does he go off to?"
"Who CARES, Harry? Honestly!"
"Oh! There he is! On the 7th floor. Hermione! go get him!"
"What!? Why me?"
"Lie and say you're on prefect duty, of course."
"Dont be ridiculous"
"Hermione, please!" She looked at him long and hard.
"IF I do, will you shut up about it?"
"Deal."
10 Minutes later she was off in the corridor, with the map, trying to locate a boy who was prone to 'disappearing' Draco walked quietly through the corridors, trying not to attract attention. Several times he thought he heard someone behind him, but on turning round, saw nothing. Finally, sensing a fleeting shadow out of the corner of his eye, he was determined to catch whoever his stalker was, he didn't realize in following his stalker that he had almost come in a full circle. Turning a corner, he slipped behind a column, and waited for whoever was following him to come into view. Hermione turned the corner, and walked right into the boy she was supposed to find. Both of them exclaimed in pain at the same time, Draco even fell down.
Draco quickly tried to recover from his surprise, smoothing out his facial expression. "..Granger!" he said. Rubbing her forehead and coming back into sense she pulled her wand out.
"Where have you been?"
"I hardly think that's a concern of yours," he replied with a smirk. "I'm more curious to find out why /you/ were stalking /me/."
"As if. I'm on prefect duty, Malfoy." He rolled his eyes. "Why are you sitting in front of the r-Why are you sitting there?" she tried again
He thought for a moment, but didn't let it show "Crabbe and Goyle refuse to climb to the 7th floor and I needed to get away from them
"Why?" she asked again, she was unsure if she should sit next to him
"If you're around that amount of stupidity, you'd know you need to get away from them" She nodded, and decided to go for it. She sat down next to him. He winced inside, he had to get into the room and complete the task "So what are you actually doing?"
"Erm...actually, I just needed some time to think." she blushed. she couldn't think of a better lie. She knew the prefect duty was no longer valid now that she was sitting next to him.
"And you thought sitting next to your enemy was going to help?" he rolled his eyes, still trying to get her away without being suspicious
"If you're around that amount of obsession, you'd know you need to get away." she said
He looked at her confused "obsession of what?"
"Believe me, you don't want to know." she shook her head
"Oh yes I do" he said. She was aware she had his full attention.
She shook her head again. "What were you just up to?" she didn't want to be here for any longer than she was required to be.
"I told you - I was just thinking" he shrugged
"I don't believe you."
"And why not?" he asked exasperated
"You're up to no good..."
"and why may I ask do you have such a low opinion of me?"
She looked at him blankly. "It's you."
"So?" he asked being oblivious
"So you're always up to something.."
"You're absolutely right, I was waiting for a virgin to come around the corner so I could sacrifice her up to my God on the astronomy tower" he said rolled his eyes at her
She looked at him seriously. "Draco.."
"Even if I was up to something, which I'm not, shocker I know!... Why would I tell you?"
"You know I'd find out eventually"
"Well not today...wait, just before, did you call me Draco?" She blushed. She had done it to try to win his trust. "Well Granger? Or should I start calling you by your first name?" he snorted
This was embarrassing. "Forget it."
He nodded satisfied, yet somehow not "So I heard about the Lavender and Ron fiasco" he told her
"Oh...yeah. That's something else I was trying to escape from..." Why else was she telling him this?
"Weasley's an idiot" he breathed. She smiled, but she didn't wish to continue the discussion further, especially with Malfoy. She tried to redirect the conversation so she could get what she needed and leave.
"Hey Dr-Malfoy, do you realize where we are?"
"A corridor?" he guessed hoping to keep the room out of it
"You don't...know what else is here?"
"The secret passage down the way?" he suggested...he knew what was coming
"That's it?" she wanted to make sure
"What do you know - Hermione?" Making sure to use her first name
"Nothing." She said quickly
"You want to know my secrets, but you won't tell me yours?"
"Mine? What secrets do I have?"
"All kinds" he shrugged "like how you were in love with Weasley?" he suggested
She sighed. But if this was the way earn his trust, so be it. "I'm not in LOVE with Ron. Besides, there's no guarentee that you'll tell me your secrets, even if I tell you mine."
"Very true, but I thought it was very unfair of you to try and be so one sided" he told her shrugging against the cold wall
"Well, will you?"
"No guarantee" he told her lightly
"Forget it, then." she said starting to get up.
"Ok, ok!" he crumbled pulling her arm to get her to sit back down
"What are you up to? and don't give me trash about reading, I know you're up here for a reason!"
"Well of course I am, If I tell you, you'll tell me a secret, right?"
"All right" she agreed
"I was here for the room of requirement...now tell me the whole story of you and Ron and his girlfriend."
"Why did you want the Room?"
"You've got to answer my question first" he smirked
Hermione sighed. "She had been into him for weeks, so after we won the last Quidditch game she just...went for it. Not that it matters." She added quickly.
"I said whole story, as in what was with the birds"
"How did you hear about it?" she asked, surprised.
"I SAW it" he said biting his lip to hide the smile
"Well...that was it really, I set birds after him."
"Why?" he asked moving in a little
"That's two questions." she answered him. "Why did you need the room? What are you using as?"
"You see, I would...if it weren't for the fact your reporting straight to the Order"
She didn't know how he knew about the Order. "So you're doing something dark, then?"
"So you're spying then?" he shot back
"No, I'm asking a question. You said I could." she replied cooly
"Not if it leaves us" he explained in her tone
"It won't." she said gravely
"I don't believe you." he said, starting to stand. She held his hand, the same way he did to her. "I promise." She tried to make it sound as genuine as possible.
Draco's eyes narrowed a little as he tried to see if she was lying to him. Only he didn't seem to see anything alarming about her tone and gave in. "I'm not doing anything dark, not by really." he shrugs and looks at her again. "So you're over Weasely then?"
"Stop trying to change the subject," she growled. "And I don't believe you."
"I am not. It was my turn to ask the question." he answers with a small smile. "And, well then don't."
"I'm over him." she answered
"I don't believe you."
"Well, that makes two of us."
Draco smirked, that was witty of her, but it didn't change the fact that it was a lie. "So you did like him." Draco muses as he looks her over. "Why?"
"Why is it of any concern to you?" she asked, eyebrows raised. "Besides, it's my turn to ask."
"Because you're you and he's... Weasley." he shudders and shakes his head. "Well you can ask what you want, but you're not going to believe me. So what's the use?"
"Exactly, so we have nothing to do with you. And if not something dark, what is your sole intent for this room?"
"Doesn't make me less interested." he looks back at where the door was suppose to be and back at Hermione. "I believe that is none of your concern."
"Just as this this none of yours."
"Granger, you came to find me in the first place, I believe I have a right to know"
"I didn't come to find you...I was looking to escape Ron and Lavender." She thought revealing this 'secret' would help gain his trust. "So, I have just as much right to know as you do."
Draco looked up at Hermione and read her like the book he had long since forgotten about, "This is Potter's doing, isn't it."
She raised her eyebrows. "Excuse me?"
Draco paused before begining his deduction, "You rarely speak to me, and now suddenly you're on this particular corridor that you just happened to come across. I know for a fact Ron and Lavender rarely leave the common room so why you came all this way is beyond me; Unless of course you knew I was here. And Potter certainly would have been able to tell you. Yes, I know about the map, don't look so shocked."
"How do you know about the map?"
"Now that truly, is not your concern."
"Only it is."
Draco looked irritated, he didn't want Hermione to know the truth and quickly too the defensive. "Well, you never answered me, how come you're here?!"
"Look Malfoy" she said sharply, niceties aside. "You accuse me of spying, yet you're the one who knows about the map. What am I supposed to assume?"
"That my reasons for being under a dissalusionment charm in the Gryffindor common room are entirely my own" Draco realised his mistake. He had said far too much, but it was too late now.
Her eyes widened and she clasped her mouth. "But. no...he would have seen you on the map!"
"I suppose I've enough that I might as well explain: The marauders where not the only ones to have helped forge the map, my Father, you see, took an interest in what they were doing, but he became afraid they would use this map against him and his friends, particularly Snape. The map was stolen one night by my Father and tampered so that he could change at will his postion on the map. Now, being the poweful wizard he was, the spell seems to have extended to his direct family." Draco looked mortified at having betrayed this secret, but he knew he really had to explain.
Hermione was shocked. "But no...the maps been working! The room's untraceable if you want it to be, and you admitted to using it. We just assumed you were in the room. Not our common room!" She looked so betrayed.
Draco saw her sad eyes and hastened to try and make things okay "I mean, I was mostly in the room, I only made a few, necerssay vistits to the common room, and I stayed no longer than I had too
"But WHY? What are you plotting?"
Draco wished he had the nerve to tell her he'd only wanted to see her but was to shy to approach her normally. But he felt guilty for his trips to Gryffindor tower. "I just had to take back a few potion ingrediants I believe Seamus took by accident" it was a weak story, but it was the best he could come up with.
She shook her head. "Don't lie, I know it's somehow connected to whatever you're doing in the room of requirement"
"Well maybe if you told the truth about whether or not you still liked Ron I might be more open about this!"
She sighed. "You first."
"Promise you won't judge me on this, it was just once or twice okay?..I just, I barely get to see you and I can't bear it if you're not around, so I came to see you." He said it all very fast and then added "Please don't be mad" She didn't believe him, but she was flattered nonetheless.
"And the room?"
"Completely unrelated actually, Crabbe and Goyle are always with their girlfriends and I just need to get away sometimes."
She frowned. "You're really not plotting anything malicious?"
"I've changed Hermione, you've got to believe me, I changed for you."
"Changed for me" she repeated, venom in her voice. "As if."
He searched desperatley for a way to persaude her "When was the last time I've called anyone a mudblood? Mocked anyone for that matter?"
She thought about it. "Well...I suppose you have a point."
"I didn't even go home over christmas, and summer I stayed at Blaises, I'm not welcome with my family anymore. Without you I have nothing, can't you see?!" Tears rolled down his face, he hadn't said anything to anyone and now he'd begun to let it all out
"Cut it out." she told him sharply. "I dont believe you. Ron, Harry and I know you're up to something"
"Please..." he sobbed, the words barely audible
"Draco..."
"Okay, you're the only one I can trust. You have to understand I'll be killed if I don't do it; I'm building a vanishing cabinet, to let the death eaters in. Please, I have no choice, They'll kill me and god knows who else if I don't do this!"
She was shocked. "And you actually tried to convince me you were in love with me?" she spat. "Despicable." she reprimanded him, she tried to hide the pain in her voice.
"Hermione, I am, truly! I wush I could make all this go away and I wish I could be with you. But I can't get out of this mess and you'll pick Ron over me and everything's fallen to shit, please, you've got to believe me."
"All I believe is the vanishing cabinet bit." she said, bitterly. Draco did the last thing he could think of, before she could turn away, he put his mouth to hers in a tender kiss. They pulled apart. She slapped him with all the strength she could muster.
"What the HELL?"
"I'm sorry I'm so so sorry, I'm a fuck up, leave, go. it's better that way."
"Draco..." she said softly
"Leave." his voice was flat, his last thread of hope had gone. She swallowed thickly, nodded slowly, got up and walked away. She reached the common room fifteen minutes later, she took the long way back, so she'd have time to sort her thoughts out.
"Well?" Harry eagerly asked her. She shook her head.
"I couldn't get him to confess anything." she said grimly.
Harry frowned, but he sighed. "You tried your best, I suppose.."
She nodded and turned her face so he wouldn't see the tears.