It was more than a little unbelievable that she would be sitting in a dark corner with the single most vile creature she had ever encountered. It was even more unbelievable that she had caught herself smiling on more than one occasion. It had taken them some time to get to this level of compatibility, Malfoy with his legs propped against the wall, hands tucked behind his head. Hermione wondered briefly it was possible to swagger while sitting down, as that was all his stance implied.

"The correct answer is providing assistance; it is even the obvious answer." His grey eyes turned on her, and made her stomach do the small flip she had come to hate. The loathing reflected their matched her own.

"I know what the obvious answer is; I know what you want to hear. The reason we are here Mud…Granger is because I need to know how to want it." He kicked off the wall and grabbed the book from her hands. It was a text she had from her muggle life, it reminded her of home, and that not all things were about magic. Of course she had found in her studies that author had been very gifted wizard and only half of it was fallacy. But the sentiment remained the same. She had hoped it would trigger something in her counterpart, a sense of humanity. He was growing restless, and a restless Malfoy was dangerous. It threatened their entire arrangement.

"Why would I want to read some filthy old muggle book?"

"That book happens to be a classic in the muggle world it revolutionized an entire genre. It taught people…" he was staring at her in that piercing way, which felt like quicksilver. "You know what, never mind I'm late for Divination."

"You hate that old bat."

"I dislike the class, Malfoy and as you can see by our current predicament I often get stuck doing things I dislike."

"You haven't turned yet, you can't be late." She glared at him, because she knew he was right. He made a face remarkably similar to his mother and continued "I don't want to be here anymore than you. What I want is to be on the winning side when He who must not be named comes back. Snape is in there with him he knows so much, if I can just win his trust I can use that knowledge to bring you know who down. I can't do that if I am tempted by any of the things they offer. I must want to accept it, but be able to resist. You have to make me a better person. "

"That seems awfully honorable Malfoy and considerably unexpected if I do say so. "

"and then it won't be about the bloody boy lived anymore it will be about the man who stopped him." He puffed his chest out then like painted peacock and Hermione resisted the urge to slap him. Over the past few weeks she had hoped something had changed. When he caught her with the time turner, when he watched and waited and put the pieces together she thought for sure that he would be dreadful about it. Then he approached her one afternoon in Hogsmede. With that bloody swagger, and told her quite matter of fact that she was going to help him with a special project or he was going ruin her. What choice did she have, she listened and accepted his proposal. She could respect him a little more, she realized. When it turned out he was just as wretched in private as he was in public. Some small favor, for if it turned out he had been gentlemanly at all she may have been forced to like him.

His progress in what Hermione preferred to think of as particular enhancement was slow at best, but eventually he went for answers and actions; decisions that didn't immediately improve his standing. It was all completely private of course, he needed the stuff you couldn't find in books, and she needed a friend that was a clever as she was. Her few friends in Ravenclaw, seemed to dislike her being in Gryffindor. Her friends in Gryffindor didn't understand her pure love of learning. Draco Malfoy was perceptive, and really truly cunning. It was most disquieting to discover that in a battle of wits they were nearly neck in neck. She had books and learning, but Malfoy had sheer and unadulterated scheming. It was terrifying. She smiled again as he tucked the book into his robe. Stranger in a Strange land, Heinlein was a guilty pleasure of her muggle life. This particular book addressed issues she suspected he might not like, but she felt would only help. To be quite honest she felt a little bewildered it had taken her this long to think of it. He was moving she realized in a sort of weird way, like he wanted to be confident.

He leaned over lingering a second as he passed her hair. "my little mudblood" he whispered, and it didn't make her want to hide, when he whispered in that slippery way. Soft and caressing, it was really the worst sort of nickname and she wished it bothered her. Then he kissed her the Pureblood and the no blood, the time that wasn't.

"Malfoy, we are not doing this, and not because I'm in Gryffindor. Not because I am best friends with your worst enemy…" he pushed his mouth to hers again, and she reasonably respectfully pushed him off "Malfoy, stop."

"you don't trust me." He had the nerve for just a moment to look offended then tucked it away. She realized it was the only time she had seen him caught off guard he hadn't anticipated her asking him to stop. Ewwwww. "I thought we had something granger"

"I'm not an idiot Malfoy I don't think for one instant, that the one person who has tried to offend me and my friends over and over, suddenly takes an interest in me, when after all he is blackmailing me."

"I was born to hate you, raised to want to cause you pain, and I am here every bloody time. Doesn't that count for something? I don't have a time turner I am here with you and only you. Not doing anything else at this point."

"I think your forgetting who is here by choice." She grabbed her satchel and straightened her jumper. "You always have an agenda Malfoy, you can consider this arrangement terminated." He grabbed her by the arm, hard and pulled her close she could feel the point of his chin nestled in the crown of her hair.

"you were my agenda, happy Granger?"

"Don't…" he stopped her with a kiss, a full on proper kiss. She felt her lips part and the warmth of his tongue as it swept hers. Her toes tingled, and she was pretty sure her hair stepped up a frizz level. She wanted to feel the sizzle down her spine again. Something she had ever only read about. Then he stepped away and there was an empty cold space next to her. When she opened her eyes he had stepped back, a cold calculating grin spread across his face.

"I always heard Mudbloods were easy." Then he was gone.

She was more than grateful that they had a no contact rule in the corridors, speaking only indirectly so that it didn't appear they had anything to hide. After all she couldn't avoid him forever. She knew he had tried to tell someone the story of what had happened because a giant read blotch appeared on the left side of his face. The entire word had not spread so he had noted her warning on their first meeting. That was a useful spell she decided. She couldn't help on occasion wondering aloud what Malfoy was up too. Slowly her hurt and anger boiled over into civilized conversation. Hagrid would listen as she'd rant (namelessly) while they prepared for the trial. Then her world shifted and her secret suffering remained her secret. Harry and Ron needed her full attention.