Chapter Seven: Rejection

Hermione was bothered. He was being far too nice. Something was up.

Ever since the day he had snapped at her after Charms, Malfoy hadn't made a single rude statement to her. He was still antagonistic as ever to Harry and Ron, but he hadn't spared her a single "Mudblood" or even a "know-it-all" in at least a couple of weeks. Usually this would not be strange, except for the frequency with which she saw him now. And that was another thing that was beginning to concern her. What was he doing in her library lately? She couldn't help but wonder if he was trying to pull a Krum…

She shuddered. And just now, he had brought her a book. It really was helpful, and part of her was thankful. The other half wanted to throw up. Why was Malfoy crushing on her?! She had never expressed the slightest interest in that Slytherin creep, even if he was attractive. Wait, attractive?! The unexpected confession disgusted her. But so what if she found Malfoy physically striking? There were more important things than looks, like brains and morals. Neither of which Malfoy possessed, clearly. Satisfied with her reasoning, she closed the matter. She did not have feelings for him.

His interest in her disturbed her. She had never done anything to encourage him, that was for sure. Unsettled, she realized she needed to talk with somebody about it, preferably a guy. She wanted to know how she could get him to stop liking her without being rude, and needed a male perspective. She thought briefly about consulting Harry, but quickly realized there was no chance – he'd flip. This was Malfoy she was talking about. Either he would mock her to death, as if it were her fault Malfoy liked her, or he would get defensive of her and go off and start a fight. No, Harry was not an option. He would try to help, but in the end would just make things worse. Her mind flitted to Ron, whom she immediately eliminated; she still wasn't talking to him, and doubted she ever would again. A little upset, she realized there really wasn't any other guy she was comfortable talking to about things like this…

And then she remembered her mystery man. Surely he would understand. Quickly opening the book, she pulled out the response she had written this morning and added more underneath it.

Oh, there's one other thing. There's this other guy in our year who's been acting strangely nice to me lately. I'm getting rather concerned…I think he likes me, but I don't feel the same way about him. I wanted to ask you for advice; since you're a guy, maybe you can give me some insight. How can I get him to understand that I don't fancy him, without hurting his feelings?

By the next day his reply had appeared, as usual:

I don't know. Figure something out; you're smart enough.

Hermione was shocked by the curt, offish answer. Usually her admirer had been eager to help her, friendly, and inviting. Now he was cold and uncooperative. He had not even bothered to address the first part of her note, in which she had asked his opinion on an intriguing aspect of the centaurs' astrology practices. She pondered for a moment. Why would he be so upset about her trying to reject another guy?

And then a thought struck her. Of course, he was jealous! He was her admirer after all; naturally he wouldn't want to hear about other guys chasing after her, even if she didn't like them back. He couldn't bear the idea of someone else having feelings for her. The thought made her glow inside; he wanted her all to himself. She sighed dreamily. He would make such a perfect lover!

Smiling to herself, she resolved not to mention the issue again. She would figure out the Malfoy problem on her own, somehow.

Fine, just another challenge. On another note, I was wondering- when will I get to meet you in person? I am growing rather desperate to know who you are. Oh, and you also ignored my centaur question, love.

She thought this message would be enough to suggest that she only had feelings for him. Hopefully he would understand the implication and not just take it at face value.

His next message seemed more like his old self, if still reserved:

You are presumptuous, Hermione, when you assume we shall meet in person at all. Are you jealous that I know your name while you don't know mine? The thought makes me smile; I know you hate being in the dark and that makes me love keeping this secret even more. How captivating it must be! Regardless, it will be a while yet before I am comfortable revealing my identity. Eventually, perhaps. Oh, and in response to your centaur question, I believe their planetary implications to be infinitely more accurate than our own Divination processes, if only out of sheer ambiguity…

She groaned inwardly at his enjoyment of keeping her clueless. However, while he had denied the certainty of their meeting, he had not refused the idea completely. Though impatient, she could wait. He was worth it, she was sure. Continuing reading the rest of his note, she laughed out loud, receiving glares from others in the library. His sardonic comments on Divination were so like the condescension she expressed for the load of codswallop. Grinning, she scribbled a reply.

Now that they were back on good terms, there was only one more concern she needed to address, and that was still how to reject Malfoy.

- There you are, chapter 7! Also, I forgot to mention - some of you have probably noticed anyway - but I've been swapping the perspective in each chapter from Hermione to Draco and vice versa. I think it works nicely. But it's not my opinion that matters - it's yours! Thoughts on this chapter? On the whole thing? Review! :) And either way, thanks for reading! ~Quill