The days flew by leading up to the field day, which only served to make Hermione more stressed. In addition, her classes were really piling on the work. Nothing she couldn't handle, though. She was determined to push through and still come out on top.
Draco seemed to have lost the desire to compete with her in class. Now that he knew he wasn't really getting to her, he had turned to straight up ignoring her. Not only that, but he was neglecting his duties as Head Boy. The truth was, he wasn't totally sure who he was anymore. He couldn't do much more than irritate Hermione and there was no chance of surpassing her in class. His friends became more distant as he visited the Slytherin common room less and less, making him feel more alone than he had ever felt. He still spoke to Blaise at meal times, but there seemed to be less and less to talk about. What had happened to him? It seemed as if the Slytherin prince had lost his title, had lost what had once mattered most to him.
To top it all off, it looked like no one was going to ask to be partners with him for the stupid field day. It was less than a week away now, and his only option on the table was Granger. He would never approach her and tell her that he had reconsidered, however. There was only so low he was able to sink.
"So what do you guys think we should award as prizes?" Hermione polled her friends over lunch one day.
"Galleons," said Ron without hesitation.
"Where exactly would we get the funding for that?" asked Ginny, who was seated beside Harry. It looked as if their hands were entwined under the table. Of course, Ron knew about the relationship and was fine with it, but Hermione thought it was cute how they were shy about public displays of affection.
"I'll fund it," Harry offered, shrugging.
"Absolutely not," Hermione replied immediately, making Ron's hopeful expression disappear. "We need a prize that isn't money."
"Ok, how about the winners get to punch Malfoy in the mouth?" Ron suggested, reaching for Hermione's left hand under the table. She took it, but was repulsed to find it clammy and sweaty. She held back a wince.
"Fine by me," Harry agreed nonchalantly. "By the way, how's it been going with him, Hermione?"
Hermione rolled her eyes. "At least he's decided to no longer speak to me. I much prefer that than him trying to get me kicked out of the Head Girl position…"
Ron nearly choked on his lamb chop. "'E did wha?" His mouth was so full that it was hard for anyone to understand him. The shock on his face, however, made it evident.
Hermione mentally slapped herself. She hadn't been intending to tell them that. Across the table, Harry's expression grew dark and serious. "Hermione, if he's threatening you-"
"He's not," she assured him. "I took care of it. Put him in his place."
"I can't believe you didn't tell us!" Ron's mouth was clear now. He squeezed her hand, which wasn't exactly pleasant, though she appreciated the concern.
"I didn't want you to react like this! I can handle myself."
Ron leaned in closer to her so he could speak softly to just her. "'Mione, we're together now. We need to be open with what we're facing," he said.
Hermione bit her lip and turned her face to her boyfriend. He was right, she hadn't exactly been completely there in the relationship. If she was going to make it work, she needed to stop keeping things to herself. Ron's expression was filled with soft concern. Hermione suddenly became nervous that he might kiss her at the table in front of everyone.
"How about a trip to Hogsmeade after classes?" Harry suggested, breaking the bubble around Hermione and Ron.
"Wonderful idea," Hermione agreed, turning back to face him.
Across the room, Draco was watching with vague interest. He noticed the expression on the Weasel's face, how he probably would have kissed her- and how obviously the Mudblood didn't want to. As predicted, they wouldn't be lasting much longer. That was not a true relationship.
~LATER, AT HOGSMEADE~
"I'm telling you, it tasted like hair!"
The whole group was laughing again, since Ron wouldn't stop arguing the fact that his Every Flavor Bean had tasted like, well, hair. "How is that even possible?" Harry shot back with a laugh.
"How is a deodorant one possible?" Ron argued.
The group continued to joke about the beans that they had had on their way to the Three Broomsticks to grab some Butterbeer. "Grossest one I ever had was a curdled milk. That stuff shouldn't even be legal," Ginny added with a slight shiver at the thought. Hermione watched as Harry squeezed her hand with affection. Ginny met his eyes and smiled before blushing and continuing on their way. That, she thought, was a relationship meant to last.
The four entered the Three Broomsticks and quickly found an empty table towards the back of the room. "I'll go and get drinks," Ron offered before pecking Hermione on the cheek and heading off. Blushing profusely, she sat down with the other two, who had begun to discuss the Quidditch match that was coming up at the beginning of October. Though not really participating, Hermione listened in with feigned interest on the conversation. Usually, Quidditch was something she found exciting and interesting to watch. Today however, her mind was otherwise occupied. It was filled with thoughts of not only her growing workload but also a relationship she wasn't sure was going to last much longer.
Ron approached the bar to grab drinks when he spotted none other than Draco Malfoy, sitting alone at a two person table by the window with a Butterbeer. He was distracted, gazing out the window with an almost blank expression. Making a split second decision, Ron veered off course and approached the boy's table. He then cleared his throat, looming above the Slytherin boy. Draco didn't even look up.
"Stop picking on my girlfriend, you slimy git," he said with a low growl.
Draco's expression didn't change much as he made eye contact with the boy standing above him. What appeared was a look of disinterest mixed with disgust. "Who are you to threaten me, Weasel? I'll do what I want," he replied with scorn.
"If you want to keep your face intact I suggest you leave her alone," Ron threatened, fists clenching.
Draco laughed, but inside it felt hollow. "It's cute how you're standing up for the bitch. Even though she's going to end your relationship as soon as she works up the nerve."
Next thing he knew, Draco was flying off the chair onto the floor, a red headed blur atop him. He was receiving multiple punches to the face, so he reached up and attempted to pull the boy off of him. They were only down for a few seconds before Weasley was being pulled off of him and he was being pulled up to his feet. There was now a circle of people standing around, their eyes wide with shock. Included in the circle were Granger and none other than Prince Potter.
Yanking himself away from those who were trying to help him to his feet, he brushed past Ron and broke through the circle, heading straight outside. He had had enough experience with the Gryffindors to last a lifetime.
~LATER, THE HEAD COMMON ROOM~
Taking a deep breath, Hermione knocked on Draco's door. She knew she was going to regret trying to have a conversation with the boy, but the fact of the matter was that Ron had attacked him needlessly. He had been leaving her alone for weeks and then Ron decided to start something new. If she wasn't sinking to his level, she needed to rise above.
The door opened after a moment, a serious- faced boy appearing in the doorway. "What do you want, Granger? Come to start a fight as well? Want me to apologize for provoking your boyfriend?" Something behind his hatred filled eyes seemed missing. It took away from his cutting words.
"Actually," she replied, taking a deep breath. "I wanted to apologize."
With a snort, he shut the door in her face. She continued talking anyways, knowing he could still hear her. "Ron was out of line. He wouldn't have attacked you if I hadn't said anything about our conflict before. I'm sorry."
She stood there for a minute, expecting the door to reopen. She stood there for about five minutes before he actually did. "Is this some sort of act to get me to be partners with you? Because I already told you, Granger, I would rather be partners with a rat."
Hermione was slightly surprised. Not what she had been going for, but alright. "Just be my partner already. Merlin knows everyone else is taken," she argued, pursuing his train of thought.
They stood there for a long few minutes, staring each other down.
A million voices in Draco's head told him to shut the door in her face again. A million more told him to call her a name and cuss her out. One tiny one in the back of his mind told him to just accept it.
As he fought with his voices, he stared into her face. As he looked over it's every feature, he realized that he wasn't actually repulsed by it like he always thought he had been. Her eyes were soft and kind, though stubborn. Her nose was perfectly proportionate to the rest of her face, and her lips looked soft and smooth. She had a thin sprinkling of freckles across her nose, something that Draco had once thought of as a blemish. Now, he thought they might actually look… nice.
Frowning, Draco tore his attention away from her face. She was trying to mess with his head in a way he couldn't figure out. Almost every bit of him was pushing to reject her, to ignore her, to send her away.
But as the imprint of her face bounded around his head, the little voice who had told him to accept her grew just strong enough. His eyes met her face again, and something pulsed through his heart. He had no idea what it was, but he knew that he needed to get away. "Fine," he muttered before closing the door in her face again.
Hermione stood there, dumbfounded. Had he actually just agreed to be partners with her?
~THE NEXT MORNING~
Draco woke with his head on straight for the first time in weeks. He had lost his touch and now he was resigning himself to partnerships with Granger. It wasn't happening anymore. He was going to find himself a new partner and leave Granger behind in his dust. He was getting back in the game.
He marched straight down to breakfast, finding Blaise immediately. "I need your help."
Blaise looked up at him, surprised. Then he quickly smiled. "There he is, thought we'd lost ya."
Draco sat down beside his friend. "I've been in a slump. But I need you to help me get a partner for this stupid field day before Granger forces me to be hers."
The other boy's eyes opened wide with shock. "Oh man. Normally it'd be no problem, but we're really crunched for time. How desperate are we talking? First year partner desperate?"
Draco scowled. "Try not to stoop that low."
Blaise nodded, deep in thought. "I'll report back at the end of the day."
"Thanks."
At the Gryffindors table, Hermione seemed to be in some sort of trance. Draco Malfoy had actually agreed to be her partner. And she had actually asked him. And to be honest, she wasn't that repulsed by these thoughts. What was wrong with her?
What was wrong with him?
Something had definitely changed. Not only was he more secluded, but seemed to no longer be calling her a Mudblood- at least, not to her face.
A sudden thought struck her. How would Ron react to hearing that she was partnered with Draco? Would he start another fight? Eyeing him next to her, she heard the bell to go to class. Instead of separating, however, Ron followed after her and caught her hand. "Hermione? Are you alright?"
Hermione snapped out of her stupor. "Yes, of course. Just tired, you know."
Ron's worry didn't seem to subside. "It's just that… Malfoy said something…"
The girl stopped in her tracks, which surprised Ron. "What did he say?"
Gulping, Ron visible tensed. "I know I shouldn't take him seriously, but he said that you wanted to end our relationship… I know it's probably a load of bull, but I just wanted to make sure…"
Hermione was at a loss for words. Had Draco really said that to him?
"Hermione? You still want to be with me, right?"
Her heart rate increased. Ron was driving her into a corner that she didn't know how to get out of. "Well… I really like you, Ron…"
His face fell. "But not like that?" Hermione's mouth opened and she searched for words. She could tell him that nothing had changed, that she really did love him. But somehow, she felt like that wouldn't really be true.
"Ron, I-"
"Save it," he cut her off. "I get it. You don't want to be with me."
"No! I do," she said quickly, trying to keep tears from her eyes. Her mouth opened to say something else, then she shut it again.
"But what?" He accused, releasing her hand and taking a small step back. She struggled to figure out what to say. She wasn't good at relationships, she didn't know if he was what she wanted, whether or not she wanted to break up.
"I just think we're moving really fast, and I'm a little uneasy about it," she lied, hoping that would save her.
Ron looked appalled. "Too fast? Are you kidding me? We've known each other for 7 years now! It's not like I'm-" his voice dropped to a whisper. "Begging you for sex or anything, all we've done is kiss, Hermione!"
She bit her lip nervously and tears welled up in her eyes.
"Be honest with me, Hermione."
She took a deep, shuddering breath, about to let the truth come out. "I'm just not sure we're right for each other. Not in this way."
He took a few steps back from her, his face proving that she had just confirmed his worst suspicions. "If that's how you feel, then we're through, Hermione." With that, he turned and stalked off towards his first class.
Holding back tears, Hermione numbly walked to her own first lesson. She seated herself away from Harry and Ron in Potions, silently completing her work and doing everything possible not to think about what had just happened. She barely noticed the fact that Draco was once again vying for the teacher's attention with his potion making skills, didn't even notice that he was glancing over at her every so often, expecting a challenge. She kept her head (and hand) down for the rest of the day, simply doing as she was told and taking notes.
At diner, Draco noticed that Hermione didn't even show up. Blaise waved a hand in front of his friend's face.
"You in there, man?"
Draco snapped back to attention. "Of course."
"Well, I got some good news," Blaise began excitedly. "Wasn't easy, but I found a fourth year Ravenclaw who hasn't got a partner. Not a total muggle born, just half, which is a plus. Female, though. Best I can do."
Draco smirked at the details. "Good enough. You're the man," he told Blaise, elbowing him in a friendly way.
Blaise's eyes flickered with amusement. "Wish I could see the look on Granger's face when she finds out you have a partner."
"I'll let you know how it goes," Draco assured him, getting up from the table.
When he finally reached the common room, however, he was surprised that Hermione wasn't in it, studying or something. Must be in her room. He climbed the stairs that led up to the ledge and was just about to rap on her door when he heard a noise coming from her room.
Hermione Granger was crying. Crying a waterfall, by the sound of it.
Suddenly, the pride Draco had felt in being back on his game fell unexpectedly. He had noticed that she had been sort of out of it all day, but she was really distraught? Then he realized that Granger and the Weasel must've broken it off. Draco scowled at the thought. If she had broken up with that scum, why the hell was she upset about it? He would never understand females.
Draco raised his hand once more, this time to open her door. He had to tell her that he had found a new partner. This was his perfect opportunity. Crush her while she's weak. It was just the thing that he would have done any other year of his life.
But for some reason, he couldn't bring himself to open the door. He didn't possibly pity her- did he? No, of course not. He wasn't going to tell her because now he had a reason to be her partner. Now that she and the Weasel had broken up, being partners with her would get under his skin. Weasley wasn't strong willed like Granger- he would snap almost immediately. Draco grinned to himself. Yes, it wasn't pity- it was a new opportunity.
Leaving the spot in front of her door, he headed back to his own room. The feeling of getting back to his old ways was reassuring. He wasn't slipping away or losing his touch. As he lay back to fall asleep, he imagined the look on the Weasel's face as he competed alongside the girl he cared about. He didn't even think about the Ravenclaw, who he would be completely abandoning as far as partnerships go.
He ignored and pushed away the mere thought of pity for Hermione. Draco Malfoy didn't pity.
Figured that for once I'd take the time to do a long chapter- gosh I'm so excited to write about the field day, that's up next- so I hope you guys like! Thanks for the support! -E
