"Not so rough next time, okay?" Hermione asked softly scooting to the edge of Draco's bed to fasten the buttons of her shirt. She could feel the fresh bruises on her hips and felt a dull ache between her legs. He'd been so rough with her she thought he was trying to tear her into two. She wanted to say something before but every time she was about to she lost her nerve. Sex with Draco wasn't like playfully bantering back and forth with him. He left no room for playfulness, he barely even spoke.
Even her first time with him he behaved like an animal, she eventually enjoyed it but still. She couldn't help but think how most girl's boyfriends would have been soothing and gentle, and then she reminded herself that she was with a average boy she was with Draco.
"Did you not enjoy yourself?" Draco asked sarcastically arching an eyebrow at his girlfriend. He was sprawled leisurely across the bed shirtless with the thin sheets draped around the lower half of her body. "Because all I could hear were moans of enjoyment thank you ".
He wasn't very nice, that much was true.
Hermione stood sliding her skirt up her hips ignoring the slight sting. "You're a pig", she retorted rolling her eyes and shrugged her jumper on. She was on her way outside the door when Draco caught her wrist and brought her back to him.
He wasn't joking anymore.
"I'm sorry".
"Aren't you always?" she sighed rolling her eyes and made to move again but he pulled her sideways toward him.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Draco teased trailing kisses against he neck and collarbone.
"I have to go, i'm sure Goyle is tired of waiting in the common room", Hermione spoke with an agitated edge to her voice.
"Who cares about Goyle, I told him to make himself scarce tonight. Clearly he understood", Draco mumbled against her neck as he moved his lips against her pulse.
"I have to go, I guess you'll have the room to yourself tonight", Hermione remarked untangling herself from her boyfriend smoothing down her wild hair.
"Must you be so bloody dreadful all the time? " Draco asked rolling his eyes to the top of his head and dropping his elbows down so he was lying flat on his back.
"Only when i'm with you Malfoy", she called over her shoulder before disappearing into the darkness. She was used used to sneaking outside the Slytherin boy's corridor she didn't even have to use her wand to cast a lighting spell to find her way back the room. If she was being honest with herself Hermione wished she hadn't came over. Sometimes Malfoy could be a down right git, and she hated him half the time. But the other half she was obsessed with him, the way he'd flick his hair out of his eyes right before he was mad, the way he walked, talked, and occasionally laughed all drove her mad.
"I'm a mess", she whispered softly to herself shaking out her distressed jungle of hair in the darkness. Hermione was so distracted on her stroll back to her room she barely even noticed herself bump into someone.
She gasped taking a step back before the figure said a quick 'Lumos' lighting the tip of their wand. When the glow revealed Professor McGonagall terse looking face.
"Professor", Hermione spoke breathlessly. " You scared me"
Apparently the old matron was doing her daily rounds around the castle to make sure all was well.
McGonagall maintain her calm exterior. " I'm sorry for giving you a fright, but as you very well know you should be in bed during these hours", she spoke suspiciously eyeing the brunette. " What are you doing up?"
Hermione licked her bottom lip nervously trying to think of something to save face. After all, she was a well respected student with high remarks. How could she possibly explain that she'd snuck out in the middle of the night to shag her slimy git of a boyfriend.
"I...uh couldn't get a decent rest and decided to wander the building, please don't punish my house for my careless mistake", Hermione pleaded worriedly running a nervous hand through her hair. She had to stop risking her academic decency for Draco. It was a school night, and against the rules she wished she had just stayed put in her bed like she originally planned.
McGonagall watched the girl with wise eyes, she'd been at Hogwarts's long enough to know Hermione was lying the moment she opened her mouth. If her wild bushy hair and wrinkled clothes weren't a clear giveaway her eyes told it all. She was a little girl mentally lost. Every since her first year McGonagall had kept an eye out for the witch whom she was certain was going to be a Gryffindor. And was impressed with the girl for the most part, and thought she made good decisions except in her dating life.
"Very well, off to bed", She dismissed the young witch with a flick of a wrist.
Hermione's shoulders slumped in relaxation. " Thank you Professor", she spoke before turning away.
"And Miss Granger".
Hermione turned expectantly.
"You're a bright young woman and have a mind of your own, just because someone beckons you does not mean you have to come".
Hermione looked down and felt her cheeks heat up, she was glad they were blanketed in darkness because she sure her cheeks bright red with embarrassment.
"Yes Professor", Hermione managed to utter keeping her eyes focused on the ground beneath her.
"Are you sure you're alright?"
"Yes Professor".
"Well off to bed", McGonagall insisted. Hermione wasted not time in making a quick B-line sprint and straight to her bedroom. She felt utterly despicable. One thing was for sure, she wouldn't be visiting Draco at night time anytime soon.
...
Draco threw his head back laughing during breakfast in the Great Hall causing a few Ravenclaw heads to turn in curiosity.
"Its not funny", Hermione sucked in her teeth after telling him her humilitating story of getting semi-caught by the prudish professor.
"Oh, but it is", Blaise remarked with a smirk.
Hermione snapped her head to the side and narrowed her eyes into slits. The sneaky Slytherin looked so engulfed into her parchment his owl had dropped off she just assumed he wasn't paying attention.
"This is a private conversation Zabini, you may not be familiar with manners but you could at least pretend", She hissed pushing her plate away. Blaise and Draco were practically joined at the hip, and half their time spent together was with Blaise. It was bloody annoying was what it was.
"Easy Granger I haven't even had my pumpkin juice yet", Blaise remarked with a casual smirk bringing the glass goblet to his lips to take small, condescending sips.
"You know-".
"Enough", Draco spoke looking at the two , he did not feel like listening to her going back and forth with Zabini. Between the two he didn't think either would stop once started.
"Don't cut me off like that, I hate when you do that", Hermione spoke slipping her small hand from under Draco's protective one.
"You hate a lot of things I do, and yet here we are", He spoke dismissively shifting his gaze to The Daily Prophet and placing his hands over her again stroking her knuckles.
The argument would be pointless, so she decided to stop while she was ahead and reward him with stony glares and the silent treatment. Hermione looked out the corner of her eye feeling a jealous Slytherin toss an all to obvious glare of envy that she covered up with a smile as fake as her personality.
Hermione rolled her eyes and scanned the room with her eyes and accidentally made eye contact with Harry. She tried to quickly look away but he had already spotted her and waved, she acknowledge him with a small barely noticeable smile before she looked away.
Harry sat at the table with his friends a bit confused with Hermione's smile. Yesterday she'd seem so happy to see him, it almost felt like old times.
"Ron".
"Yeah?" Ron asked with his mouth full of toast sputtering crumbs.
"Do you think Hermione's acting strange?" Now that he thought about it he'd seen her outside her class and was about to make a move to speak to her but she quickly turned in the opposite direction before he could speak.
"How should I know? I mean she is a Slytherin after all. You can't exactly trust there kind, and then you know she happens to be a girl and that lot of them are bloody confusing anyway", Ron shrugged.
"Don't forget about practice today, I really want to show up Malfoy. The stupid prat had the nerve to actually think I...".
Harry nodded half-listening, and kept a close eye on Hermione. His gaze shifted to Draco across the room who was watching him at the same time with a sneer on his face. He pulled Hermione closer underneath his arm and kissed her forehead while maintaining eye contact with Harry and smirked.
Inwardly, Harry felt his blood boil. There was something extremely wrong in this world and he couldn't wait to get back to his own. Hermione was his and Ron's best-friend, Ron's crush, Harry's confidant, not Draco's girlfriend.
It simply made no sense.
"Why aren't you eating?" Ginny asked from across the table flicking her red hair out of her face.
"I seemed to have lost my appetite".
He tried to think of possible solutions as to what was going on. Was he in a cursed alternate universe? Was this charmed to make him feel like he was loosing his mind? Were his friends all playing a cruel joke on him after his nasty bump?
"Do you guys feel different?" Harry asked observing Ginny, Ron, and Neville.
"Not at all", Ron shrugged taking huge gulps from his glass and wiping his mouth with the sleeve of his robe.
Ginny lifted her eyebrow in disgust at her brother. " No, this is as normal as it gets".
"Are you feeling well Harry? I didn't want to say anything but you've been acting strange since that bludger took you out that day", Neville spoke concernedly.
"Yes i'm well", Harry insisted. " I just feel different. Don't you guys feel like someones missing?" He asked trying to hopefully jog their memories of their fellow Gryffindor and friend Hermione.
"Oh!" Ginny snapped her fingers realization taking over her features. " I know exactly what you mean".
"You do?" Harry asked wide-eyed and grin spreading across his face. Finally, someone gets it.
"Seamus is in the infirmary with Scrofungulus, poor thing".
Harry nodded disappointed. " Yeah... that must be it".
...
Hermione huffed tirelessly out of her Divination class, it was something about that class that made her extremely uneasy. She of course was passing , but Professor Trelawney was quite mad and often insulted her intelligence.
As soon as she could she would drop the the class and take up something more reasonable like Arithmancy or Alchemy like Draco. She sighed distractedly adjusting the thickly bound book underneath her slender arm.
"There you are", Pansy greeted falling in step besides Hermione on her journey to her next class.
"Here I am", Hermione responded not making a point to hide her disinterest, and adjusted the strap of her bag higher on her shoulder.
"I wanted to talk to you about the Malfoy's ball next weekend, Daph and I were going to go visit my mother's dress maker over the weekend. Did Narcissa say there was a specific color scheme because I can not have my dress class with the color scheme. I mean it happened to Clara last season and she looked terrible, remember?" Pansy laughed.
"How can I forget, she slept with Malfoy that night also", Hermione remarked bitterly. The first party he'd taken her to as his girlfriend they had a huge fight, they broke up and the same night he ended up sleeping with some rail thin blonde he grew up with as a child.
"Yes well lets no dwell on the past love, so shall we expect you Saturday or should you go over it with Draco first?" Pansy teased half bitterly batting her long eyelashes. For her to be such a pretty girl, she sure was ugly.
"Draco's not my father, I have my own mind", Hermione retorted. " And my mind chooses not to join you goodbye...love", Hermione retorted sarcastically walking ahead of the witch to indicate the conversation was over.
She was halfway down the hall when she realized that she was literally walking toward Harry, the same person she'd been trying to avoid. He waved again noticing her and began walking closer to her.
"Kind of busy Potter", Hermione quickly lied. Her class didn't start for another 15 minutes, she had more than enough time for small talk. She looked over her shoulder, Draco was supposed to be meeting up with her soon.
"Is everything alright?"
"I'm fine Potter, Merlin why does everyone keep asking me that?" She asked furrowing furrowing her eyebrows.
"Well for starters you're calling me Potter again", Harry remarked matter of factly.
Hermione adjusted her thick book underneath her elbow. " Why do you keep speaking like that? As if we're friends or something. I shouldn't even be speaking to you. I don't even know you, your sworn enemies with my boyfriend why would you even be trying to befriend me? Did you think I was a complete sodding idiot? "
"I can't really explain, but I care about you".
"You what?" a snarky voice appeared behind him and the twosome turned to find Draco approaching with Crabbe and Goyle and either side of him. His clothes were perfectly pressed, and his hair was perfectly fringed making him look every bit of the Prince of Slytherin.
Harry ignored Malfoy and instead decided to focus on Hermione.
"I'm here whenever you want to listen".
Automatically Crabbe and Goyle took steps forward standing beside Harry.
"Potter this is sad even for you. Crooning after my girlfriend. Don't think I didn't see you drooling at her during breakfast. I'd hex you if I didn't have class next", Draco hissed grabbing Hermione's hand and pulling her.
"Try to talk to her again and i'll destroy you", Draco coldly snared in disgust meaning every single word. Every since he was a boy he had been terribly possessive over things that belonged to him.
Hermione rolled her eyes at her boyfriend's dramatics and placed her hand on her palm pushing him away.
"Let's go", she mumbled trying to distract him and deflect from the possible duel of the decade.
"Anything for you", Draco grabbed her by the chin and made a show of kissing her before throwing his arm over her shoulder and stalking off with his mindless cronies behind them.
Hermione allowed herself to be led away and chanced a glance back at Harry who was giving her a pitying look of disappointment as if he didn't recognize her.
She shrugged it off, he didn't know her. She wasn't some sugar plum sweet girl that could look beyond the obvious. She was a Slytherin, and he was a Gryffindor. Simple as that. She didn't need any more fake friends, at least Draco was honest. With Harry all she felt were secrets, and something deeper she couldn't put her finger on. She clung tighter to Draco with that thought.
