Disclaimer: I own nothing. Duhh.
The chapters are going to start getting a little racier. Definitely rated M. You have been warned..
Hermione tried to put the incident in Malfoy's room out of her mind. She no longer tried to get him to help with their duties. She refused to make eye contact anymore with him, an odd, unsetting feeling washed over her whenever they were in the same room. Draco, on the other hand, had been desperately trying to make eye contact with Hermione. He had been acting oddly since the night she woke him. No matter where they were, hallways or common room he would slow to nearly a stop just to try and get her to look at him as if some great mystery would be solved if she would just look at him.
The dream continued for Draco but picked up in frequency. It was nearly every night the faceless woman visited him. And every night he was woken by his screams. Hermione no longer went to his room to check on him.
Just as Hermione had begun to get used to Draco's odd behavior things took a turn for the worse.
The last Friday of October brought an unseasonably warm day to Hogwarts. Once classes had ended for the seventh years most were found wandering the grounds soaking up the sun before winter descended upon them. Hermione, Harry, and Ron were seated next to the lake talking about the coming weekend. Looking toward the forest Hermione noticed two people huddled just under the shade of the trees. She noticed the bright blond hair Draco Malfoy leaning against the trunk of a large pine. She quickly tried to avert her eyes before he caught her looking but it was too late, his eyes locked with hers.
She remembered those clichéd romance novels where the two main characters locked eyes and it felt as though the world stopped turning, their breath caught in their chest, and they just knew they were meant to be. This was nothing like that. Yes, it felt as if everything suddenly became very quiet like the birds stopped chirping and people stopped talking but no warmth spread in her chest, more like ice laced through her veins. Her stomach dropped and she instantly knew something was about to go very wrong.
Hermione remained on edge for the rest of the afternoon waiting for something out of the ordinary to happen. She made it though dinner and even managed to smile and chat through the gnawing sensation in her gut. Once through with their meals the trio made their way up the front staircase.
"Mione, why don't you come back to the common room? Harry and I were thinking of a game of chess and need a referee." Ron grinned down at her. She could never deny him when he was looking so adorable. It was pretty much common knowledge around the school that Hermione and Ron each had a thing for the other. And it was also known that both were chicken and would never make the first move.
"Just for a bit," Hermione goofily grinned back. "I need to work on my Advanced Ancient Runes essay. It's due in two weeks but I really need to get a head start on it."
"You know what Hermione? You're crazy," Harry teased. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder which gave Ron the opportunity to rest his hand on her opposite hip. The three made their way upstairs to the Gryffindor common room. Hermione quickly forgot about the bad feeling.