~*~Four~*~

She was trying to listen to Slughorn, honestly, but Hermione couldn't seem to go ten seconds without feeling the near irresistible urge to look at Draco Malfoy. It had been ten days since the night on the astronomy tower and it hadn't gotten any easier. Her body was now hypersensitive to his every move. She knew the minute he entered a room and the minute he left. She could feel if his eyes rested on her, if only for the briefest of seconds. In short, Hermione was going crazy.

She'd spent all last night doing every inch of parchment due for the next week and half of class just to avoid trying to sleep. Falling asleep consisted of an assault of memories of him, everything from the wrath in his eyes as he stalked away to the hitch of his breath as she moaned against him. If she somehow managed to get past all of that and actually surrender to slumber, her dreams were filled with him. She would wake up to the taste of him in her mouth and scent of mahogany strangling her senses. She'd thought about trying dreamless sleep more and more, but still held out hope that she'd simply get over him. With each passing day, her hope faded a bit more, but maybe, just maybe she could finally put Draco Malfoy behind her.

If only Hermione didn't have to see him, or feel the weight of his eyes brush past her. If only Slughorn hadn't decided today was the best day to strike up new friendships and cross the barriers between houses. She supposed she was lucky not to be with Crabbe or Goyle, but why couldn't it have been Blaise Zabini? He was nice enough. Or at least he hadn't shoved his tongue down her throat and then told her to go die within the last two weeks.

And now that she was paired with Malfoy, the urge to stare at him was nearly impossible to resist. Somehow she'd managed to get all the ingredients down, but she'd written step three twice. Biting her lip forcefully she stared back up at the board. Sleeping Draught, final color dark purple. Ingredients to collect: lavender, valarian leaf, and flobberworm mucus, all to be added to the starter potion they'd brewed themselves the previous lesson.

Hermione considered the chances of being able to swipe some of the potion at the end of class. Malfoy would bloody well notice, but she wasn't sure she gave a damn about that anymore. He'd already tied her into a thousand knots, what was one more?

He cleared his throat from where he sat beside her, but she refused to acknowledge the gesture. She scribbled down the last of the steps before finally angling toward him. She was careful not to meet his gaze, instead staring at a point slightly beyond his right ear.

"I'll crush the valerian and the lavender if you'll get the right amount of flobberworm mucus." She was proud her voice didn't crack or waver.

"I think I'll leave you with the dirtier task, Mudblood. You get the mucus, I'll do the valarian and lavender." His tone was even, but she felt the sting of his words nonetheless. She swallowed, fighting the urge to rail against him.

"Fine," she replied in a clipped tone. Whatever made it easier for her to increase the distance between them. Even now, with him treating her as horribly as ever, she could hardly stop herself from reaching out and running her fingers across his smooth cheek and burying them in his angelic hair. Her chair clanged as she shot to her feet to gather the mucus. The stuff was vile and maybe it would help clear her head.

Measuring out the mucus in short order, she glanced back at their station. Malfoy was staring directly at her, his silver eyes prying into her soul. Hermione's steps faltered and she bounced off a desk before resuming her gait. His full lips twitched in silent amusement, causing a rush of undesired heat. She resolutely refocused on the point above his ear.

He'd make quick work of the lavender and valerian, so she looked over her directions again. Malfoy leaned over her shoulder, his breath ghosting deliciously across her neck. She fought to remain unaffected as his finger snaked around to hover over her list.

"You wrote step three twice and forgot steps seven and eight entirely." He didn't sound critical or cold, rather as if he were commenting on the weather.

"And you wrote any of them down?"

He snorted, "Hardly, but I was expecting more from you."

Frowning, she rewrote the steps on a fresh piece of parchment. "I'm tired."

Suddenly he was too close, despite the fact that he hadn't moved at all. She could feel his laugh against her neck. "Griffindor's golden girl is human after all."

She flung herself away from him, heedless of the scraping of her chair and the puzzled looks of her classmates. She tried to paste a neutral expression on her face, but across the room Harry was now eyeing her with definite worry. Hermione shook her head at him. This was one time where Harry would only make it worse.

"Let's just get this done." Her voice held more conviction that she felt, but Malfoy retreated back to his side of the potions bench, amusement still tugging at his lips.

"If you insist," he allowed, turning his attention to her list. "Wouldn't want your insecurities to get in the way of our grade."

"Like you give a damn about your grades this year," she shot back before she could think better of it. His head snapped up to stare back at her, his eyes filling with emotion for a second before ice stole around their edges.

His mouth twisted into his signature smirk. "So nice to know you care, Mudblood."

"I don't," she insisted. And really, she shouldn't, but ever since their first encounter in the library she'd been unable to stop watching him. In the past month she'd seen him turn in maybe two assignments. There was no way his marks were going to be as good as hers this year.

He shrugged carelessly. "Whatever you need to tell yourself to go to sleep at night."

Hermione wondered if he'd noticed the bags beneath her eyes or her bloodshot eyes. She'd tried a few charms to cover up the signs of her restless nights, but anyone with a keen eye could likely see right through them. Then again, he didn't seem to give a bloody shit about her, so why would he bother to look?

Her frustration simmered beneath the surface. Who was he to send her entire world off axis and somehow remain unscathed himself? She could barely share the same air with him, but he seemed perfectly unaffected. It wasn't fair, if she was going to go crazy, he damn well better be going down with her.

This thought led somewhere dangerous indeed. So far she'd been trying to avoid him, too preoccupied with escaping the pain and frustration in the aftermath of their night on the astronomy tower. She'd rolled over and bloody died, leaving him to revel in her distress.

Hermione eyed him as he mixed the lavender into the potion, stirring 27 times clockwise and then 33 counterclockwise. What if she flipped the script? What if he got a dose of his own medicine? It was absolutely insane, but desperate times called for desperate measures.

Against all her better judgment, she slipped her school sweater over her head, letting hang off the back of her chair. "Bloody hot in here isn't it?"

Malfoy glanced over at her, a frown stretching across his face. "If you say so."

Her hands loosened her tie before beginning their work on the buttons below. He'd stopped stirring the potion, his silver eyes darkening as they followed her motions. She fought back the grin that threatened to escape. So he wasn't as unaffected as he'd seemed. She crossed her legs, making sure her skirt travelled higher than necessary.

Hermione had absolutely no idea what she was doing, but she'd seen Lavender use each of the methods on Ron and those had seemed to work with great result. Malfoy was back to stirring the cauldron, but pale pink stained his angled features. "What the bloody hell are you playing at, Mudblood?"

She blinked innocently back at him. "What?"

"You bloody well know what," he snapped, adding the valerian with more force than necessary.

She slid her chair closer to him, leaning down to 'inspect' the potion. His eyes snapped to her chest for a moment before he stared resolutely back at the potion. Oh, this was fun. Why hadn't she ever considering do this before? The sane part of her mind told her it was because she wasn't a bimbo with the brainpower of a squid.

"Button your fucking shirt, Granger," he growled, the primal sound sending heat between her legs.

"But it's hot," she insisted, a smile tugging at her lips.

"It's bloody well not. It's barely even above freezing in this damn classroom," He hissed back.

Malfoy was right, of course. She could feel the goosebumps gathering on her arms and legs, but there was no way she was giving up now. "Well I'm hot."

His eyes snapped to meet her own, a shadow of the desire she remembered from the tower hovering behind his gaze. Good, she wanted him to yearn for her. She needed him to feel the pain of those nights of lost sleep piling up until there was barely consciousness during the day.

"Stop it, Mudblood." His words were full of venom, but his eyes seared into her.

"No," she murmured, her breath skating across his ear. She could hardly believe her boldness, but his reaction was well worth the risk. He tensed against the desk, staring back at her with hungry eyes.

"Ingredients closet," he muttered.

"Now?"
His breath hitched as he moved past her, his chest brushing against her back. "Yes, bloody now."
Hermione followed him, risking a glance at Harry and Ron. Ron was making faces as Blaise explained something on the parchment in front of them while Harry was stuck trying to guide Lavender through the correct stirring process. Neither looked up as she followed Malfoy across the room. Slughorn was too busy trying to save Neville and Crabbe from disaster to notice anything at all.

Malfoy was against her the moment the door to the closet clicked shut. His mouth was demanding as ever and she let herself melt into him. This was the drug she craved, just the feel of him pressing against her, his tongue writing dangerous stories across hers. His hands were everywhere, his chilled fingers leaving trails of fire as they probed beneath her shirt. It was all she could do to keep up with him, gasping for breath when his lips began to travel in a sinful path down her neck. He didn't stop when he reached her unbuttoned blouse, instead tearing at her shirt until the remaining buttons danced on the floor.

His mouth was hot on her chest, his tongue lapping at her skin. Hermione's legs were shaking and only her desperate grip on his shoulders kept her from collapsing. His hair was mussed from her hands, his mouth sinfully bruised. He paused a moment as his tongue circled her naval, his eyes promising her destruction.

"Please…" The word was barely as whisper as she clawed at his shoulders.

"Please what, Mudblood?"

Hermione was beyond caring about the insult. "Please don't stop."

His lips twisted into a wicked smirk. "What do you want, Mudblood?"

She shook her head. She had no idea what to ask for. Malfoy was the beginning and the end of her experience with this level of ecstasy. He trailed a hand up her leg, his fingers just barely caressing the inside of her thigh. They stopped mere millimeters from the apex of her thighs, causing her to tremble, her legs barely holding their ground.

"Do you want me to touch you, Mudblood?" His voice was deep, perilous and promising. She nodded fervently. "Tell me."

Her lips were raw as she forced the words out, "Please don't stop. Please… touch me."

He didn't disappoint. His fingers deftly maneuvered beneath the cotton, drawing a harsh moan as they swept over her. He shifted to give himself better access, never taking his hypnotizing gaze from her face. He worked his agile fingers in ways she'd never imagined until Hermione was shuddering against him, his silver eyes ushering her across the threshold of pleasure.

She clung to Malfoy, unsure of what to do. She'd never felt that before, never lost herself so completely to another. His wand waved and the wetness coating his hand disappeared. She grabbed what remained of her shirt from the floor beside them, transfiguring it back to its original state. His cheeks were flushed and his eyes held the answer to a thousand of her prayers. He stood silently beside her, not quite touching, not quite moving away.

They both jumped as the closet door flung open. Slughorn stared at them briefly before muttering under his breath as he moved away. She was sure their encounter was clear in their state of disarray, but it appeared Slughorn wasn't interested in acknowledging their trespass, a fact she was eternally grateful for.

Malfoy backed away, head shaking. "Stay the hell away from me, Mudblood."

Indignation shot through Hermione. "It takes two to tango, Malfoy."

His hands clawed through his hair. "Just bloody stay away."

She watched him retreat, her pulse finally beginning to slow.