I mounted my broom and flew off to relieve some stress. Being followed, no, more like haunted, by the two idiots Crabbe and Goyle can get extremely annoying. I'm surprised that I haven't cursed them yet; it's just so infuriating when you are the only intelligent person in a simple group of three. I wonder how I even got caught up with them.

Finally letting my thoughts cease, I just cleared my head and only concentrated on the wind whipping through my hair and the exhilarated feeling of just flying. Then I looked down and saw the Whomping Willow thrashing wildly at something.

I flew a little closer, but still kept a safe distance, to get a better look at what was stirring the enchanted tree. Then I widened my eyes at which it was, Hermione Granger. I saw her dodging the deadly vines and barely escaping the whipping branches. It looked like she was exercising with a tree.

I watched Granger jump, duck, and twist away from the branches, with her hair in a ponytail thrashing wildly. Then I hopped off my broom and joined her, just as another way to relieve stress. I too was jumping and dodging the tree, and it was fun, every time that I fooled the tree, I felt the need to do it more.

Then I heard a scream, looking back momentarily, I saw that Granger had been hit by the tree and was now holding on to one of the vines. But unfortunately, I felt something hit my torso and was flying in the air. This was nothing like flying, the infuriating tree was thrashing us back and forth, up and down, and sometimes just tried to shake us off of its branches.

I looked over and saw Granger staring incredulously at me, I heard her try and scream something at me.

"Hop on my branch!" She yelled. As I waited patiently for the right moment, she was right over me and grabbed the front of my shirt. Then I was yanked away and was now trying to climb onto Hermione's branch.

Then she screamed something new, but not at me, but at the tree with her wand drawn, "Petrificus Totalis!" Then we stopped moving. At the sudden movement, I was jerked and was able to look at the ground. The genius up there had frozen us at the top of the tree.

"Do you know how we are supposed to get down here?" She asked. That was when I remembered I had my broom leaned up against a nearby tree.

I sat up, as did her, and got my wand out of my robes. As I called my broom, Granger was asking questions, "What are you doing here?"

"I was flying, saw you, and thought it was another way to relieve some stress from the 'Dumb Duo'. You?" I answered simply, and then questioned why she was here.

"Same thing as you, I too have a Dumb Duo who are completely incompetent and have to have me aid them and every sentence that they write, it so infuriating!" I stared at her incredulously as I heard the familiar sound of hate, but it wasn't at me, but at her two idiotic friends.

As I climbed on my broom, I saw her look at it uneasily. "What? Ever been flying before?" I asked, looking at the way she looked at my broom.

"Yes, but I am deathly afraid of heights, I can't even go on the Ferris Wheel at home." She stated. I stared at her quizzically at to what a Ferris Wheel was, I reminded myself to ask her later.

I saw here staring at my broom like it was going to kill her at any moment, so I held out my hand. "Here, take my hand and I'll make sure you don't fall." I assured her. I had no idea why I was doing this, maybe because this is the first conversation I've had without using just five letter words.

She looked at my hand and took it. Her hand felt very warm in my palm, I could feel her blood pulse in her wrist, and it was going extremely fast, I figured it was just because of the dangerous work-out we just had.

I let her take the spot on my broom in front of me, she was holding onto my hand as if it was her last thread of life, to put it in short, it hurt. Ignoring the pain, I led her hand to the staff of the broom and let her hold on while I crouched over her to reach my spot on the broom.

My arm were encasing her so she wouldn't fall off, but by the way she was holding onto the broom so tight it was turning her knuckles white, she wouldn't fall off. So I flew off.

I heard her scream and laughed, when I laughed, I felt her freeze from underneath me and her screaming come to an abrupt end. Then I felt a sharp jab in my stomach from the elbow of Hermione. Wait, Hermione?

Did I just say her name in my thoughts? Her first name, not the last? Huh, it's getting easier to hang around her; I absolutely have to get a grip.

But to get back to her from her elbowing me in the ribs, I flew straight up and dived into a death spiral to the ground. At the last second, I immediately was parallel to the ground about six feet high.

I couldn't hear her scream on the way down because of the wind in my ears, so I listened carefully for the scream of her almost hitting the ground. But instead, I heard her laughter. Then I felt her crouch closer to the broom and take control, and then we were going as fast as my broom could go. Thankfully, her hair was in a ponytail and wasn't all up in my face. I leaned my body up closer to hers to be more aerodynamic and be able to go faster. I listened to her laughter as she dodged several trees and flew over the head of a defenseless student, out of the corner of my eye, I saw that she put one of her feet down and kicked the top of their head.

I hadn't thought of that one. I took control of the broom and landed down on the ground in a grove of the Forbidden Forest. I was a little edgy about being in this dangerous forest, but Hermione was the complete picture of comfort as she sat up and got off the broom after me.

"Where did you learn to fly like that Hermione, you could become a Seeker. Also why did you hit that kid on the head back there?" I asked. Soon she stopped laughing out of the joy and was looking at me with a smile.

"Well, first let's get somewhere to sit." She said, then pulled out her wand and brought up two couches with a small coffee table in the middle. Then she conjured two water bottles for us to drink on the table. That was when I noticed I was extremely thirsty, so I hastily walked over to the couches, sat down, and down my water bottle until it was almost empty.

I heard Hermione laugh at me as I set into a reclining position on a couch. "The answer to you first question is that I have watched a lot of Quidditch games and had studied a few techniques, and thank you for your complement." She answered as she took a drink of water and sat on the couch with her back against the arm and her feet crossed and on the cushions.

"Your welcome. But what about your sudden hatred towards random students?" I asked, still perplexed. She then laughed again.

"Well, it was no random student. It was actually Ron walking around the grounds looking for me; it really annoys me that he is so desperately in love with me to have to know where I am. Even though he has no chance of getting into even a muggle College, he wants to know of my whereabouts at every moment when he can't see me." I listened to her little rant attentively and found it very interesting that Ron liked Hermione and was extremely stupid.

Then she continued, "Like today when I needed to go relieve some stress, he asked me where I was going. Of course I wouldn't tell him where I was going, so I told him I was going to meet one of my friends in the courtyard and we'd have a girl's night out. But that wasn't good enough for him; he had to know if I was meeting a boy, if I was dating someone, was I getting married, if I'm pregnant..."

Then I abruptly sat up, interrupting her from answering my question, "Why would he want to know that?" I asked incredulously, but I now felt a little jealously towards the weird red head, and anger.

"Well, as you know, Ron is desperately in love with me, but he doesn't have the courage to ask me out. Sure, he can ask out Fleur, just not me. But he still has this possessive behavior when I leave. "She said as I watched her rant. I was very interested in this; she has more dirt on people in the school than I knew.

Then another question popped in my head, "What exactly is a Ferris Wheel?" I asked. That earned me a look from Hermione.

"Other that the fact that it was completely random, it's just a big mechanical wheel that has little benches on the edges that carry people. You can get extremely high on those things, and it was terrifying, until I rode a broom with you." She paused, like she was thinking of something. She took a drink and continued, "I feel very safe when I'm near you now, and it was extremely fun flying with you, you helped my overcome my fear of heights. Maybe I'll try out for the Gryffindor Quidditch team."

"You better not, for sure you could beat us, and that's saying something. You really have a talent for flying Hermione." When I said her name, it just flowed off my tongue like it was nothing. It felt so natural; I never thought that I would ever be calling Hermione by her first name until this day.

"Why are you being so nice to me all of a sudden, you're usually trying to terrorize everyone in the school with those two friends of yours?" She asked me.

But I honestly didn't know why I was being so nice, but it felt right. "I honestly don't know Hermione, but somehow, I think that it really doesn't matter, it feels right being here with you." I answered honestly.

I felt no urge to lie to her anymore; in fact, I felt no urge to hate her either. Now I felt like she could be my safe haven when I need someone to talk to, without using small words.

~~::~~
Hermione's Point of View

Suddenly I heard a rustle in the woods and looked at Draco, "We have to leave, something is coming." I stated, and then he stood up and grabbed his broom.

I hopped on before him and he climbed on behind me and then we took off. I felt him press his warm body against mine and I heard my heart rate go up. IT was such a strange feeling, it was like how I felt with Viktor Krum, except more genuine and stronger. I let him control the broom as we were racing into the courtyard and into the Quidditch field where he dismounted in the Slytherin's large broom cupboard.

"Well… see you later." Draco said before he turned around. But I grabbed his hand and he turned around. He looked me in the eye and I saw the softness in his sharp eyes.

"If you ever need to relieve some stress, send and owl and we'll meet at the Willow, but don't forget to bring your broom." I said, and then I kissed him on his smooth cheek.

Then, I walked out of the cupboard with Draco still frozen in his position. My lips were tingling; I can remember how his skin felt against them. Smooth and icy from the fast flying we were doing.

"Hermione!" I heard my name being called from the mouth of Ron.

My good mood was now dampened and I somehow felt a little angry towards Ron. "'Mione! You would never believe what just happened. Some rotten fellow was flying over me, and then kicked me on the head! I'd bet you my wand that it was Malfoy." He said. But I just smiled my all-knowing smile.

"What're you smiling about?" He asked. I just smiled wider and started to walk, the picture of his head and my foot going over in my head multiple times. I looked back and saw Draco coming out of the cupboard, and he had a hand on his slightly red cheek.