4) Hermione wandered towards their meeting place with a puzzled look on her face; for a solid four months they'd been lounging around on the tree, and that Saturday, not long after breakfast she had received an owl;
Tree. 9 pm.
Be prepared to stay the night.
- DM
Now it was just about curfew and no one was around, let alone perched on the branches. "Malfoy!" she whispered as loud as she dared.
"Up here," Draco responded, a grin wide across his face. She looked up to find Draco on the third or fourth level of branches, which were oddly thicker than the bottom ones. Hogwarts was a strange place. A soft light illuminated the area around him so that all was visible, and she wondered how that was possible when she couldn't see it from far away.
"Enjoying yourself?" she grinned as well; his mood today was contagious.
"Yes actually; care to join me m'lady?" he asked, acting very much the part of a gentleman. She started giggling at his mockery, and announced in a faux-timid fashion;
"Oh! But what heights!" she started fanning herself, pretending to be frightened. "I um... don't think I can climb up," she pointed out, looking down at her uniform skirt.
"Me thinks the lady doth protest too much, I offer nothing but a helping hand." He reached down for her hand. She took it, smirking teasingly, "the devil can cite scripture for his purpose".
Ignoring her remark, he continued pulling her up, "Wisely and slow; they stumble that run fast".
"Y'know, you look like the innocent flower, but are the serpent under't"
"I am a man more sinned against than sinning, and besides, you and I are past our dancing days."
"What's done is done."
"Exactly."
"Do you expect me to forget though?"
to this Draco responded laughingly, "Out damned spot, out, I say!"
"So, are we to continue talking in old speak and quoting Shakespeare?"
"I'm quite enjoying this to be honest."
"Mhmm," Hermione nodded, taking out some strawberries from her knapsack. She put one to her lips and gently bit, naturally pouting as she sucked the juices off.
Draco was mesmerized.
Of course she wasn't doing it on purpose, but her actions sent electricity through his body. He watched as a little juice flitted down the side of her mouth, she licked her lips and then caught the stray drops of juice onto her finger and sucked it off. Merlin, Draco might have fallen over that moment if not for her interrupting his thoughts.
"I didn't see you at dinner tonight. Would you like one Malfoy?"
"Tempt not a desperate man Granger" Malfoy said, talking about an entirely different thing as he crossed his legs and set his hands over his lap.
"Relax, I have tons. Here, have some."
"Can one desire too much of a good thing?" Draco murmured, looking her straight in the eye.
Laughing as she thought he meant their hangout spot, she smiled, "I like this place and willingly could waste my time in it."
Feeling too tempted for one conversation, he changed the subject. "Did I miss anything too delicious at dinner tonight?"
"No, just the normal banter between the tables. Goyle ricocheted a grape off Ronald's head, but Snape intervened before it could escalate. I did notice Nott giving me an odd look from across the hall though; it was a little unsettling to be honest."
"Was he glaring? Did you feel threatened?"
"No, he was talking to Greengrass but he had his eyes on me the whole time. Maybe he had just zoned out? Oh well, I'm not sure."
They sat in comfortable silence, watching the owls swooping around one another, almost as if playing a game, from high up on the tree.
"I've been thinking about the reactions of people if they'd see us together, "Hermione mused."It's a little depressing, these prejudices." This sparked an idea in Draco's mind.
"We could change that, y'know"
"I'm listening.."
Do you know Weaslette personally?"
"Yes, I know Ginny very well. Why?"
"Well, do you think she'd like Blaise's company?"
"Come to think of it, yes. But why would you be playing match-maker? What do you have to gain from it?"
"These words are razors to my wounded heart," he shot back, feigning pain and fainting. After earning himself a look that said, no-really,-I'm-waiting, he explained,
"On the pretense that we could be seen together in public, moral support for our friends, and getting people used to seeing us together" – which, I'm hoping to do a lot of– " After all, Blaise isn't like most Syltherins".
Which was true; he wasn't. He for one was never biased, and no one had ever heard a word from him about blood purity, despite his family being one of the highest ranking purebloods in the world. Come to think of it, Hermione had heard Ginny gush about how hot he was and they would look cute together.
"Sure, I'll ask Gin later on."
The way she was seated, her back leaning against the tree trunk, her legs curled up to the right of her, making her almost lean into him sent his mind into a dizzy craze. He could barely think straight or pay attention, when all he wanted to do was lean in and touch his lips with...
"Malfoy?"
Obviously, seeing someone look at you like candy wasn't the safest feeling.
"Sorry, just a little dizzy, this hunger is really gets to me," – technically, I'm not lying – he thought, redirecting his gaze towards the half moon.
After a few hours of chatter he got up, pulling her along. A few minutes of climbing and they were high enough that the air was noticeably colder and the loops for the Quaffles were one height with them.
"Men of few words are the best men I guess," she said, breaking the silence. He instructed her to get on a very high branch, which swayed in the wind.
"Malfoy I have terrible balance, I'll fall." He paused, steadied himself and offered his hand. When she climbed up a few steps ahead of him and stumbled, he quickly grabbed her hips. They both froze, and after a moment she smiled at him nervously. They turned towards the horizon, and his hands didn't move. She didn't mind. The sun was rising and the view was spectacular; the sight of the first rays of light breaking over the mountains pouring over Hogwarts was stunning.
Making sure not to press his entire body against her back, he rested his chin on her shoulder, and they watched as the grounds became lighter and lighter, the first shadows of the day finally appearing.
"Thank you," she breathed, unsure of what she was thankful for but happy to be with him.
"You're welcome,"
She leaned back into him, pulling his hands from her hips and wrapping them around her waist.
