A/N: So I actually had a whole chapter typed out and ready to post on Saturday but I got some really awesome feedback over the week and I realized that the chapter I wrote out was kind of crap and I needed to do a little bit better. Then I had a good majority of it worked out and then I started The Handmaid's Tale and I kind of got lost. Here it is though, and I hope it is good enough haha. Again, thank you to everyone who has read it and I hope you guys continue to enjoy it.
Notice: this is not a play by play of fourth year and I am going to change the way a lot of things worked out because I feel like putting Hermione and Draco together dramatically alters the timeline. Soon I am going to be including parts from the Triwizard tournament, so please excuse any alterations or mistakes make while writing it because it has been a while since I have read it.
Ron stared after Hermione as she ran up the stairs, his mouth slightly open like he wanted to call after her and a light pink tinge to his cheeks. He turned his eyes back to his food after a moment and tried to cover up his emotions. Harry watched his friend closely and knew there was a lot more wrong than what Ron was willing to tell him. Harry quickly sat down across from Ron and picked up a sweet from the plate of desserts. He began ripping it apart and eating it slowly as Ron began eating the dinner they had brought for him. He didn't inhale it the way he usually would but instead slowly picked at it, mostly just shuffling it from one side to the other. Harry decided it would be best to go slow since there was obviously something very heavy on his mind and it wasn't any use to try to get him upset about it again.
"So dinner with Malfoy wasn't all that bad" he mentioned, casting his friend a concerned look and watching for his reaction. Ron flinched but kept his mouth shut tight and his eyes on his plate. Harry waited, hoping that Ron would at least give him a little bit of a clue as to why he would be so upset about everything that was happening, but he merely continued to push his food around. "Malfoy seems like he might actually be a pretty okay person," Harry tried again, looking to get any kind of rise out of his friend. Ron merely shrugged and continued to pick at his food, it was almost as if he were pointedly not reacting to what Harry was saying about Draco. Was his anger not related to Malfoy's sudden appearance in their lives, or did it have to do with something else entirely Harry wondered.
"Hermione seems to be really happy with him" he mentioned, hoping that he would at least care about their friend's happiness if nothing else, but what Ron did shocked him.
"Well isn't that just peachy" he snapped dropping his fork and standing up from his chair. "That is just bloody great" he ground out, glaring down at Harry. His eyes were filled with hurt and he ground his teeth together. Harry stared at his friend with his mouth open. Everyone was used to Ron having outbursts, but this was like nothing he had seen before. It was almost as if Ron was holding back anguish and Harry could not figure out why. If Malfoy was being good to Hermione why should it matter much that they are together. Of course, he had acted like a prick in the past but wasn't Hermione a good enough reason to give anyone a chance, Harry thought to himself.
"Mate, are you okay?" Harry asked quickly furrowing his brows and looking at his friend with worry. Ron merely snorted and turned away, mumbling under his breath as he walked away and went up into the boy's tower. When Harry finally went to bed he found Ron had drawn all of the curtains around his bed and none of the other boys dared to so much as look over that way. Harry gave the other boys a small smile before crawling into his bed and staring up at the ceiling. He thought Ron was over reacting to the whole thing but there was no way in hell he thought he could tell him that. He knew there was nothing more to do but let Ron make up his own mind about things and get over it all on his own.
The next morning at the breakfast table it almost seemed like nothing had happened. Ron shoved his breakfast into his mouth with his usual amount of enthusiasm and other than the fact that he avoided conversation with Hermione, it was almost as if he had forgotten the entire thing. Hermione wasn't quite happy with the fact that he was still avoiding speaking to her, but at least he didn't seem like he was going to let it affect him the way he had the last few days. Harry made a point to shoot Hermione a kind smile every once in a while, and made an attempt to keep her in the conversation without giving Ron a reason to acknowledge that she was only sitting two seats down from him. The other Gryffindor's chose to keep their mouths shut after a pointed look from Harry.
It wasn't too bad sitting there and trying to pretend he wasn't ignoring her because Hermione's attentions for the most part were focused on the blonde boy sitting across the hall from her. Draco was mostly back to his usual antics, a fitted black dress shirt and a dark green tie. It fit together perfectly with his black dress pants and his polished leather shoes. Maybe his tie was a little looser than normal, but what really stood out was the way his hair hung delicately over his forehead and framed his face. Hermione had to smile because he almost looked like a young and happy teenager rather than the cold and calculated air he usually put off. It seemed as if Draco had softened considerably since being with Hermione, it even seemed as if his cheeks had some pink to them. After breakfast Hermione waited for Ron to leave the hall before rushing to Draco's side and placing a small kiss on his cheek.
"Well don't you look handsome today" she commented looking at him appreciatively. He blushed and shifted his gaze to the floor. He even let out a small nervous laugh that Hermione would have never guessed him capable of.
"Do you like the hair? I wasn't sure if it would look right with my outfit" he admitted softly, rubbing the back of his neck and bringing his soft grey eyes back to meet hers.
"I think you look amazing, its softer and you look almost friendly" she commented taking his hand in hers and grinning at him. This was not the same boy who had come to her in the library looking to mess with her. This was a side of him that she was interested in exploring.
"I am a friendly person," Draco defended himself, placing his hand on his chest and looking down at her, "the problem is that I just don't like people. I am perfectly capable of being a pleasant young man."
"Well since there is so little I know about you I was wondering if you would like to have lunch with me this afternoon, maybe in our usual place?" she offered, hoping to get some time alone with him where they could talk about things without the fear that other students were listening in on the conversation. Draco smiled.
"I like that idea, I will get the food and meet you there at noon?" he said, making a poor attempt of keeping the excitement out of his voice. He had been torn the last couple of weeks, wanting to be with her but not sure how to manage the social aspect of it, but it was always nice for the two of them to be able to spend a little bit of time together.
"I think that sounds great, if that is the case then I should get back and make an attempt at getting some homework done, I feel like I'm getting behind because of you" she giggled and then rubbed the back of her neck awkwardly. She wasn't behind in her homework, in fact she was still a little bit ahead of the other students, not that that made any difference to her.
"Bring it with you when we meet up and maybe we can do some of it together" he encouraged, not wanting her to fall behind just because she was seeing him. "I have to go but I will see you at noon" he kissed her on the forehead and left. Harry was waiting for her at the door and gave her a kind smile, she jogged over to meet him and they walked together as usual.
