Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.
When Hermione arrived back in the Common Room, bags of clothing shrunk and hidden in her satchel, Ron, Ginny and Harry were waiting for her on one of the couches. She flopped down next to them, feet aching.
"Hermione, we need to talk to you." Harry said with his serious voice.
Hermione smiled, happy to be back with her friends. She had immensely enjoyed her day with Daphne, but she was rather exhausted and she needed a little time with her friends. "Shoot, Harry. What's up?"
"Ginny and I saw you today. In Hogsmeade. With Daphne Greengrass." Harry told her plainly, not asking any questions.
"What? Were you spying on me?" Hermione asked completely offended. The blush on Harry's face rather confirmed her suspicions.
"Hermione! Greengrass?" Ron asked, taking notice of her for the first time in a week. Hermione briefly wondered where Lavender had wandered off to. "Why are you hanging out with that…that…Slytherin!"
Hermione was extremely annoyed. This was the first time in days that any of her friends had taken any notice of her goings on. Usually she was just reliable Hermione Granger, always there for homework help and saving their arses from Devil's Snare, basilisks, werewolves, or Umbridge. She couldn't believe that they'd actually spied on her. "Daphne is my friend. I didn't know it was a crime to spend the day with someone other than you lot."
"Hermione, it's not like that, we just noticed that you've been acting a little different lately, and we wanted to make sure that everything is okay." Ginny said, trying to smooth over the situation.
"Well, I like spending time with Daphne. She doesn't treat me as if I'm only an encyclopedia." Hermione said, accusatory, crossing her arms over her chest.
"You can't hang out with her, Hermione." Ron whined. "She's the enemy – you know how the Slytherins are…all blood purity."
"Actually, Daphne doesn't care about blood status. She stood up to Tracey Davis for me today. And what do you expect me to do? Sit around at wait for you to stop snogging Lavender long enough to spend time with me?"
"Is that what this is about?" Ron asked, his chest puffing out in unveiled pride. "Are you jealous of Lavender?"
"What?" Hermione asked, truly annoyed with her friend. She couldn't believe that she'd ever even thought about dating Ronald. As if she'd ever be jealous of Lavender! "If that's what you really think, I don't even want to finish this conversation." Hermione stood and left the Common Room, walking up to her dorm.
She busied herself by hanging up her new clothing in the closet. She knew that her friends meant well, but she was annoyed by how often they took her for granted. She was her own woman and she was going to hang out with whomever she saw fit. It wasn't up to discussion. Sighing, she laid down on her bed when she was finished and shut the curtains, not really up to talking to Lavender or Parvati that evening.
Still, she couldn't help the gleeful smile from spreading on her face when she heard Lavender's jealous gasp at the new, fashionable clothing that hung in her closet.
Monday came much quicker than she expected and Hermione steeled herself for what was to come. She dressed in a new uniform, which had arrived Sunday evening. As Daphne promised, the changes were not that drastic – her skirt was shorter, but definitely not the shortest in her class, and the shirt was fitted, dipping in to show off her slim waist.
Underneath, she wore a new bra and new knickers, which, Hermione had to begrudgingly admit, did make her feel sexier and more confident. No one would know that she had them on, but she knew and it caused a change in her whole attitude.
Staring at her reflection in the mirror, she hoped no one would think of her as too vain. With her new hair, clothes and the barest touch of makeup, she was really happy with the face that stared back at her. This was the Hermione Granger that she wanted to present to the world. No one had noticed her little changes last week, so she hoped when put all together, no one would make fun of her for trying.
Steeling herself, she walked down to breakfast, where she sat with Ginny, Harry, Ron and Neville. Neville commented that she looked happy, but that was the only comment on her appearance. Harry and Ron's eyes barely seemed to glance at her. So she went on with her day.
The only slightly unusual thing that happened was when Seamus, who almost seemed himself surprised to be talking to her, asked her to help him with his Charms in the library after dinner. She thought it was a bit odd that he asked her, as Seamus was quite good at Charms and he'd done well with his OWL. But, she pondered, maybe the NEWT levels spells were more difficult for him to master.
Draco Malfoy sat at his usual table in the library and couldn't contain his sneer at the sight that he was seeing. Although he'd never admit it to anyone, he'd chosen this table specifically as it gave him a direct sightline to one Hermione Granger's usual table, so he could watch her secretly without her even knowing he was there. He'd picked it out in Second Year when his father had been so annoyed he'd been bested by a mudblood in all of his classes. Draco had decided that if he studied as much as the little swot did, he could outperform her. After all, she was just a mudblood.
It didn't work.
He never gave up the table, though, finding that he liked the solitude. He was actually, despite his posturing, a bit of an introvert and liked to spend time away from Crabbe and Goyle. Salazar knows they would never set foot inside a library. He often caught himself staring at her, pushing her bushy hair from her face, chewing on the end of her cheap quill, reading so expressively it was as if she were shouting her thoughts, and studying so much that she drifted to sleep. She was reliable and constant and…
Today, it was different. Somehow that twat Seamus Finnigan had weaseled his way into a seat at her table, and she was clearly showing him and discussing Charms with him. He stared at the way her tiny hand moved her wand in precise staccato movements. Avis, then.
Hadn't Finnigan mastered that in class last week? He looked at the Irishman's face – it had been cleaned recently, that boy was messier than a Weasley – and found it not concentrating on the movements of Granger's hand, but rather at her face.
Well, it appeared that someone in Gryffindor house had actually recognized that Granger was a woman. It amazed him that year after year Potter and Weasley seemed blind to the fact that their female best friend had gone through puberty, too. He'd noticed.
To be fair, he noticed when a lot of girls had come back from summer, beautiful and with new breasts hidden under their blouses.
He didn't know why it bothered him so much. What was so special about Granger? She was unremarkable, with a plain face and a body that must be hideous based on the way that she covered herself up like a nun. Didn't anyone tell her that you didn't have to follow every rule to a T?
There was something different about her today, but he couldn't place it. He looked down at his book and realized that he had been staring at Granger for an unreasonably long amount of time.
Hermione sat at the dinner table in the Great Hall across from Ron and Harry. It had been nice to talk to them again, normally, after Harry had begged forgiveness for overreacting about Daphne Greengrass. He told her he still didn't understand why she was hanging out with Greengrass, but he wouldn't worry.
Honestly, he was worried. The pair of them were so different. It was no secret that Greengrass was one of the best looking birds in their year, but she'd always seemed so shallow to Harry. She never showed up to classes on time, had multiple boyfriends, and dressed rather sexy. Hermione wasn't seeing any of that. Instead, she insisted that Daphne – yes, she only called her Daphne – was such a sweetheart and had been rather kind to Hermione. It did help a little bit when Hermione told him privately about how she'd helped Daphne out with Flint. It made Harry feel a little bit sorry for the girl, to have that troll pawing all over her.
He hadn't spent much time with Hermione, though, as she'd been helping Seamus study for their upcoming Charms exam at the end of the week. Harry thought it was a bit odd because Seamus was actually pretty good at Charms, but he didn't mention anything. Maybe he'd join them in the library to study.
Just then, his dorm mate showed up, tapping Hermione on her back. "Hi Hermione. Are you ready to head over to the library?" He asked. Seamus was acting quite odd, almost as if he was nervous.
Hermione smiled at him. "Perfect timing, Seamus! I just finished dinner." She stood and bent over to retrieve her book bag from under the bench. Were Harry's eyes deceiving him or was Seamus staring at Hermione's arse?
When Seamus saw Hermione struggle with her heavy book bag, he picked it up with ease. "Let me get that for you Hermione. I bet your shoulders could use a break." Now, Seamus was definitely blushing! Even Ron had noticed something odd about their housemate. Hermione just thanked him and the pair sauntered out of the Great Hall, quietly discussing the upcoming holidays.
Ginny slumped into the seat that Hermione had just vacated.
"Okay, why is Seamus acting so weird around Hermione?" Ron demanded.
"Oh, you're just noticing that now?" Harry asked. "Maybe we should ask him tonight."
"No need." Ginny said between bites of mashed potato. "Dean said that Seamus has it bad for Hermione." Harry was simultaneously upset about Ginny mentioning her boyfriend, and surprised at what she'd learned.
"Our Hermione?" Ron asked, shocked. "But she's just…Hermione?" He was quiet for a beat, his eyebrows knitting together. "Hey, you don't think she…slipped him a love potion do you? I mean, we just covered them in potions."
Harry felt his cheeks heat in annoyance, but Ginny beat him to the punch. "Don't even think about repeating that again, brother. I can't believe that you'd think Hermione would do something like that. In any case, why would she?"
"I don't know. Maybe she got lonely. It's not as if anyone would want to date her when she's so focused on her studies. She doesn't put any effort into being a girl."
Ginny sniffed. "I wouldn't be so sure. Haven't you noticed that her appearance has changed recently? Seamus told Dean that it was as if his eyes had been suddenly opened and he noticed how pretty she was. Not all boys see intelligence in a woman as a negative, Ronald." Ginny rolled her eyes at her brother.
Harry decided he wouldn't go to the library after all.
Draco was running a bit late to his potions class in the dungeons. It was always rather hard to get from Transfiguration to Potions, but he usually made it. He always made an effort to get there on time because he could tell Slughorn didn't care for him, despite being top three in the class. He knew it was because his father was in Azkaban.
Gradually, the number of students thinned out telling him that passing time was coming to a close. Turning a corner towards the stairs into the dungeons, he came across an empty hallway, save one lone straggler.
There was a girl on her hands and knees picking up books and parchments that had seemed to have fallen from her ripped bag. What Draco noticed though, was the barest hint of firm arse cheek underneath her school skirt. Merlin, her arse was perfect. Biting his lower lip, Draco bent his head a bit to get a better look.
Sweet Salazar! He had caught a glimpse of dark green lace.
Who was this nymph? He would remember seeing an arse like that before. Maybe she was a fifth year Hufflepuff? She certainly wasn't a Ravenclaw or Slytherin, and he wouldn't entertain the idea that it might be a Gryffindor. She had long brown hair that cascaded silky smooth around her face in waves and curls. Deciding that getting to know who ever this was was worth the detention or lost house points, he silently dropped to his knees, and started collecting textbooks. "Need a hand?" He asked, suavely.
Draco was not prepared for Hermione Granger's brown eyes to stare back at him with pure shock. "Err—Malfoy?" She was genuinely surprised.
He wanted to throw the books down on the ground, but his mother taught him better than that and so he just shoved the books into her hands. Hermione took them gratefully, shoving them into her book bag after casting a Reparo charm.
It was strange. This was the nicest Granger had ever been to him. Usually she was shrieking at him like a shrew or spouting off facts about pureblood prejudice in that vicious way of hers. The way that made him feel like dirt. Draco stood up and didn't want to be seen walking into potions class with her, so he turned heel and started walking away as quickly as he could without running. When he entered into the classroom, he was pleased to see that his usual table was open.
When Granger arrived less than a minute later, Slughorn had already started going through the instructions for the day's potion. Draco watched as Granger looked desperately around the room for a place to sit. When her brown eyes settled on his face, they came to the simultaneous conclusion that the empty seat next to him was the only seat left. Granger had a pinched look on her face when she sat down and she immediately inched further and further away from him until he was sure that only one cheek of her marvelous arse was actually on the chair.
"Because today's potion requires quite expensive ingredients, you will be working with your seatmate today." Slughorn said, drifting in front of himself and Granger. "I must say, I am excited that you have decided to paired up today, being that you're such good students. Hopefully you work well together." Draco wanted to punch the man's big red nose for suggesting that he could ever get along with Granger. Still, he would try, if only for his own grade.
Meanwhile in the back of the room, Theodore Nott was sitting with Daphne Greengrass, smirking at his best friend. He knew a lot about Draco's mannerisms and he knew that something was going on between him and Granger, something out of the ordinary.
You would have to be blind to not notice the changes that Hermione Granger had made in the past weeks. Well, maybe it was only Slytherins who appreciated the subtlety of those changes…she'd certainly had a Slytherin hand in her transformation. Theo knew exactly who'd done it to – none other than the love of his young teenage life, Daphne Greengrass. "What are you playing at with Granger?"
Daphne looked at him with feigned ignorance, but when Theo only raised his eyebrows in counter, Daphne smirked at him. "Been gossiping with Tracey again Theo?"
"No, just wondering if you were trying to kill Draco." Theo said, off-hand. He hadn't been talking to Tracey, although he'd heard her confused discussion with Daphne about the Gryffindor. No, he'd seen them leaving the Room of Requirement two weeks ago.
"Draco?" Daphne asked, her nose scrunched up in confusion. It showed off the tiniest kiss of freckles on her cheeks. He knew that she hated them, but he thought they were adorable. "Why would helping Hermione kill Draco?"
"You call her Hermione?" Theo asked, truly surprised. Daphne just nodded back. It seemed that Daphne actually was friends with the Gryffindor girl. That was one of the reasons he loved Daphne. She refused to be cowed by other people's perceptions or thoughts on how you should do something. It was something that he wished he could do as well. "Well, it's killing Draco because it's obvious that he's attracted to her. He has a special table in the library where he can stare at her, unnoticed."
"Really?" Daphne was shocked. "Well, I can't decide if I find that more romantic or creepy." Daphne put the next ingredient in their bubbling cauldron. "But, I thought that he hated her guts more than anything."
"I didn't say he's realized it yet." Theo countered, stirring his potion. "He's definitely wanked to her before."
Daphne made a face. "Ugh, I didn't need to know that Theo!" She was silent for a moment, before the meaning dawned on her. "Wait, how do you know that?"
"Our rooms share a wall. He'd forgotten a silencing charm, I'd imagine." Theo responded calmly. They worked in silence for a few minutes while Theo watched Daphne's face. She had the most perfect lips that she'd painted a peach color today. He wished he could spend all day kissing her. And her eyes were the color of dark chocolate, which was an unusual pairing with her fair blonde hair. "Say, Daph, when are you going to let me take you on a date?"
"Theo, you know the answer to that question." She snapped back at him almost immediately.
"My father-"
"Yes, I know Theo. But it's pointless right now. I need someone who will be able to take care of me, support me." Daphne frowned, trying to steel herself. She could do without love, if it meant sparing herself hardship. She knew that it seemed cold to some, but it was right for her. No matter how Theo Nott's light green eyes made her heart beat faster, she couldn't be with him. "Don't ask me again."
A/N: So here is chapter three! Kind of a lot of things happened in this chapter, but I hope you don't think it's moving too fast. Plus we get a little insight on Draco's feelings.
Huge thank you to those of you who favorite and followed after last chapter. And big thank you to those of you who reviewed - I can't even believe the response. Over 20 reviews! I was over the moon. Laumirot, Cowboy'sMontana (Glad you like her characterization - she's fun to write!), hgregg480, Pwrmom2 (The sacred 28 is just a list of purebloods in directory. You can read more about it on the Harry Potter wikia :) Harry is a really great friend, looking out for his friends), DevilToBeLoved, Ammie, ScobyDoo, everlastingtrueromance, Xasmin, Kittyinaz, pianomouse (Haha, I think there is real proof that Harry is clueless, especially when it comes to girls), Guest (I don't really have any plans for Harry to end up with anyone in this story, but I agree that it's weird that Ginny looks so much like Lily. It always bothered me. Glad you are enjoying the story!), Otaku (haha, I wish I had enough time to write to post everyday, but unfortunately I don't. October is a big month for me though, with Back to the Future updates on Tuesday Thursday and this on Wednesdays, and I have also been doing a Harry Potter version of Frankenstein, updated on Fridays), Guest, DelusionalDoll (Glad you are enjoying this. I love writing Daphne! I hope this chapter fulfilled all your wishes!), Oynx Obsidian, HarryPGinnyW4eva (Haha, me too! There is something very satisfying aobut it), Sapphire water goddess (oh wow! Thank you!), SereniteRose (Glad you are enjoying it! I think all of us have little things we are self conscious about and of course Hermione isn't immune. Glad that Daphne is able to help her gain some confidence though), Beautiful-Liar13 (Oh, Ginny will deffo be a bit jealous), iffa (thanks - that's exactly what I was going for. I am not a fan of fics where Hermione becomes completely unrecognizable), BloooEyes, and SweetTrufflepuff. Seriously, you guys are awesome!
Now, I asked this in Back to the Future too, but my author's notes are getting a little out of control long...would you like me to post reviewer responses in my author page? Or perhaps you would prefer a PM response? Let me know what you'd like.
Please let me know what you thought of chapter three and be on the lookout for chapter four next week!
