Monday, June 14
A heat wave descended on southern England, blanketing the countryside in an oppressive heat that cooling charms barely seemed to touch. The Malfoys ditched outer robes, long sleeves, and for Astoria, longer dresses, in favor of cooler clothing. Hermione remained buttoned up and covered from neck to heel. Scotland was cold even in the summer, especially in the dungeons, and she didn't own much in the way of summer witch's robes. The family's potions lab was at least underground, making it a generally cooler room, but she was unable to use cooling charms to counteract the heat from her cauldrons, lest the charm interfere with the delicate experiments she had underway.
"Oh my! It's sweltering down here!"
Hermione startled and looked up to see Astoria in the doorway.
"I don't see how you're managing with this heat," Astoria said, crossing the room to look over Hermione's shoulder at the contents of the bubbling cauldron.
Hermione wiped the sweat from her brow, frowning at the realisation that her sleeve was already soaked from the repetitive motion.
"I don't own a lot of summer clothing," she mumbled in embarrassment.
"Well if you keep wearing that, you're liable to pass out from heat exhaustion. Let's find something else for you."
Hermione tried to protest, but Astoria practically dragged her from the dungeons as soon as she cast a stasis spell on her potion. They ended up in a wardrobe of absurd proportions that left Hermione gaping at the clothing the young Madam Malfoy owned.
"I have so many summer robes I never wear, and I insist that you borrow some, at least until this heat wave passes or I can drag you out of the house to go shopping. There's no reason for you to suffer like this," Astoria insisted, handing clothing to her. "We look to be about the same size, and anyway, summer robes are forgiving."
And so it was that Hermione came to dinner that night dressed in a sleeveless blue robe that bared far more of her figure, her cleavage, and her legs than she felt comfortable showing. When she entered the dining room, Draco stood from his chair and slowly looked her up and down. His perusal made her nervous, as did the arch of his brow when his eyes finally met hers.
"I'm impressed, Granger," he said in a low voice. "Had I known you looked like that under the bulky robes you normally wear, I would have asked you out in school."
She snorted indelicately, for the idea that Malfoy would have found her attractive enough to date was utterly absurd. Still, it was nice of him to say. It had been a long time since anyone had bothered to compliment her appearance. She tried not to think about how her body reacted to the look he'd given her.