Chapter 9: Chance Meeting

"What are the chances of seeing you here?" Draco asked casually as he took a seat directly in front of Blair at the table where she had her books laid out to study.

He had actually been hoping she would be at the library and had used the excuse of finding a book on magical repair to come and see if she was. He had found her in one of the empty tables all the way in the back of the library where fewer students tended to go.

"What do you want, Malfoy?" she asked him without looking up from the parchment before her.

Draco looked at her in annoyance. If he was taking time out of his busy life to talk to her then she should at least have the decency to listen.

"I was just looking for a book when I saw you and decided to say hello to my tutor." Draco told her as he picked up one of the books she had on the table.

A book on merpeople politics? What the hell?

Draco thought in confusion as he flipped through the book, only understanding a quarter of what was being said.

"What book were you looking for?" Blair asked him, still writing.

Draco ground his teeth, "What are you writing?"

Blair mumbled something Draco couldn't hear.

"What?" he asked, leaning in to hear her better.

Blair mumbled something again.

Draco shrugged and leaned in closer, trying to read what she was writing. Curious to know what was more important than listening to the Draco Malfoy.

Why is her writing so damn small?

he thought as he leaned forward more, squinting slightly in order to try and better see.

"Malfoy?" Blair asked as she looked up from her parchment and was met with Draco, only a few inches from her.

He stared into her startled eyes in surprise.

Wow.

he thought to himself. Beautiful. Sky blue surrounded the outer edge of her eyes while pale green encircled the pupils, both colors mixing together yet being apart. They were intoxicating eyes.

Why have I never noticed them before?

Draco thought as his hand subconsciously rose to push back a dark lock of her hair that was infuriatingly obscuring his scrutiny of her eyes.

He heard her gasp and saw her eyes widen when his fingers lightly moved her hair behind her ear so it would stay there.

"Malfoy?" she asked him again, softly. Her voice sounded confused but her unwavering eyes darkened slightly.

Malfoy?

Draco frowned. He didn't want her to call him Malfoy. Why?

He pulled his hand back quickly when he noticed he had let his hand linger on her skin and sat back in his chair.

Blair seemed startled by the sudden distance, blinking her eyes rapidly as she touched where Draco's hand had been.

She looked at him questionably. Now he had her attention.

Draco smirked, acting as if that had been planned. His unsteady heart and dry mouth told a different story, though.

He cleared his throat and motioned to her parchment. "What are you writing?"

"Oh," Blair said, quickly letting her wavy hair fall in front of her and hiding her slightly from him. "Its just some research on the different politics of different races."

Malfoy rose an eyebrow at the bizarre subject, ignoring the urge to push her hair away so he could see her. "For Binns?" Most likely extra credit.

She shook her head, her hair moving away from her face and showing her adorable blush. Annoying! Her annoying blush, He corrected his thoughts.

"Its actually just something I'm interested in," she mumbled and bit her lip self-consciously.

Don't look at her lips!

Draco warned himself as he studied her in surprise.

"What type of girl is interested in politics?" For once truly asking because he was curious and not just to annoy or offend her.

Blair shrugged and brushed her hair back as she looked at her paper, "My kind."

Draco narrowed his eyes at her. Granger is a bookworm. She's friends with Granger. Bookworms must stick together then. He decided to himself.

He studied Blair. But I've seen her struggle in Potions. He thought to himself. He'd seen Granger a bit unsure sometimes, especially recently, but she eventually understood. Blair, on the other hand, sometimes looked so completely lost that she would ask Potter for help. Asking Potter for anything surely signifies desperation. And bookworms would rather look it up themselves then ask.

So, perhaps she wasn't a bookworm.

"Do you like all subjects?" he asked her, still trying to figure out what type of girl liked politics. Maybe she likes everything? It would explain her choice in friends.

Blair looked up at him and snorted. "Of course not. Why?"

Draco shrugged, "Just curious. Which one's don't you like?"

Blair rolled her bright eyes, "Potions and Herbology to start with. The only reason I even passed the O.W.L.s was because of Assi's help."

"Ah," Draco said, nodding his head as he figured it our. "So Little Blair is the genius." Blair is probably jealous and that is why she's trying to find something she'll beat her sister at.

Blair laughed and shook her head. "Assi is a genius when it comes to Potions, Herbology, and more than a few Charms, but give her a telescope for Astronomy or ask her to predict anything with Arithmancy and she'll look at you as if your crazy. Basically, anything and nearly everything that doesn't have to do with healing, she could care less about and is practically useless at."

Draco frowned. "Then why in the name of Merlin do you like politics?" he asked in frustration.

Blair shrugged again, "I just do. I find it interesting and helpful."

Draco's frown deepened, "I don't understand you."

Blair gave him a sparkling smile, "Then stop trying."

He smirked at her. A smirk he was sure looked suspiciously like a smile, but was a smirk.

"So are the rumors true?" he asked her so he wouldn't begin to enjoy her smile.

She frowned. "What rumors?"

"About you and Little Blair being Dumby's daughters." he told her, leaning back to study her reaction.

Blair groaned and dropped her head to the desk. "Who told you?" he heard her muffled voice ask. "Slughorn's dinner wasn't even that long ago."

Draco snickered. "Blaise, and did you really expect it to be kept a secret?"

Damn, now he really should stay away from her. Not only was she the Trio's pet but she was also Dumbledore's kid. I may be heartless, but not even I'm that cruel.

Yet, he stayed exactly where he was.

"I was hoping it would at least take a few days!" Blair grumbled as she brought her head up and put her head in her hands with a depressed sigh.

"Maybe it will," Draco, for some moronic reason, tried to reassure her. "Blaise only told me because I was bored and asked how the Slug Club meeting went," he finished, his voice sounding bored as he picked up another one of her books. This one was about Hags in general. Disgusting creatures, Malfoy thought as he put the book down again.

He looked to see Blair looking at him while biting her lip, which he remembered not to look at.

"You're friends with Zabini, right?" she finally and suddenly asked.

Draco shrugged, not sure if he liked where this was going, "More like acquaintances."

He saw her nod. Then, looking around to make sure they wouldn't be overheard, leaned forward and asked, "Is he a good guy?"

Draco clenched his jaw tightly but nodded with a tight smirk. If any Slytherin qualified as a "good guy" it was Blaise.

Blair sighed in relief and Draco promised himself to have a little… chat with Blaise later.

"Wouldn't little Garris be annoyed to learn that your asking about another guy?" he sneered. He needed an outlet and he wouldn't see Blaise again until later. He wondered what she would think if she knew her little boyfriend had been so clumsy only because he had "helped" with a few tripping spells and enchanted quills. That had been his revenge for the Breakfast thing, which he was sure had been her.

She frowned in confusion, "Why would Jason care?"

Draco gave her a look which suggested she was stupid. Did she really not understand how men thought? "Maybe because any guy would care that his girl was showing interest in another guy." I sure as hell do. Would! I sure as hell would, he corrected himself.

Blair rolled her eyes. "That sentence is riddled with holes, Malfoy. First of all," She told him holding up a finger, "I am not Garris's girl. Second," she held another finger, "even if I was, there was no way I would be treated as his property. And third," she said holding up a third finger and giving him a look, "I was asking about Zabini because my sister has been showing more than a friendly interest in him and she doesn't have the best history with the opposite sex."

"Ah," Malfoy replied, unable to say more as he was overwhelmed with the feeling of having made a fool of himself and of being immensely relieved. Which made no sense at all. None. Unless… It was probably relief of no one else having heard him. Yeah. That was it. That made sense.

"Why do you care, anyway?" Blair asked, the annoyance had been replaced with confusion.

Draco looked at her in surprise. Now, that is an excellent question: Why do I care?

He shrugged, unsure of how to respond.

Blair studied him before deciding to let it go, for which Draco was grateful. "So why are you really here?" she asked him with a smirk. A very Slytherin smirk, Draco couldn't help but think.

"I would prefer to get an O in Transfiguration," he told her with a smirk of his own. Figuring that telling her the truth would make things go by quicker. He really needed to get away from her.

"You wouldn't happen to have your Transfiguration paper with you, would you?" she asked him with a humorous twist to her lips.

"As a matter of fact," Draco replied, pulling his rolled parchment from a pocket in his robe, "I do."

Blair looked at the rolled parchment and laughed as she shook her head and took it from him to begin reading.

Draco couldn't help the grin that rose to his lips at the laugh. Maybe he could have some fun without getting too close.