"Hermione?"
The girl jumped, bumping her head on a hard surface. It was the window. Hermione's vision cleared, and she realized where she was again; still up in her tower. Had it all been a dream? Rain was pouring down outside, and her face was wet. She laughed at herself for a moment, before running downstairs to answer her mother's call.
Across the yard, Draco Malfoy was leaning out a window as well. He'd been watching the new girl sleep. What could she be dreaming of? She woke up suddenly, and he watched with pain as she smacked her head against the window. "Ow…" he murmured, imagining her pain. Smiling, he watched as she laughed in spite of her pain and disappeared from his view.
He waited a few more moments before returning to his desk. He checked his inbox, but found no mail from PattyCakeOtter. Sighing impatiently, he started to draft up a new mail message.
PCO—
Can't wait to meet you at Florean Fortescue's. I'm counting the days.
See you in two…
Draco
His mouse hovered over the send button for a moment as he read over what he'd written. "Shit!" he said, cursing himself loudly.
"Everything alright Draco?" called his aunt in a loopy sort of voice.
"Just fine!" he said none too kindly. He'd just noticed his fatal mistake. He had signed his real name. No harm done though, he hadn't sent it yet. He adjusted the end of the letter to say his screen name and sent it along. "So much quicker than owl post..." he muttered, chuckling.
The next morning, Hermione decided to check out the town. After a hearty breakfast of buttermilk pancakes and sausages, she set off with her laptop in a messenger bag along with the usual contents of her purse. She thought for a moment of catching a cab, but then decided to walk instead. It was, after all, a beautiful day. She smiled at the sky, a sparkling sapphire blue. The only thing she noticed were some troubling clouds behind her. They certainly looked like trouble. But then, she decided to pay them no mind. She would be home before the rain.
The town was very cute with sidewalk cafes and second hand book shops galore. One Hermione took a real liking to was called "Now and Again." She found herself whiling away in there for over two hours! By then, the rain had begun. She decided to stay in the store until it let up instead of trying to fight it all the way home. She found a large book on gardening and sat in a corner.
She thought, at one point, that she heard a familiar voice. But when she peered around the book shelves she only saw the shop owner talking to some customer out of her sight. She shrugged and went back to the chapter on Perennials.
Someone walked by, and Hermione looked up. She was a moment too late to see the person. When she crawled forward to look around the corner at them, however, the person was gone. She closed her book and tried to figure it out for a moment. She heard a ding, and her attention was drawn to the door. Hermione smiled. The Rain was over.
On her way home, Hermione grabbed an éclair at a little café and munched it on her way home. The day seemed to fly by after that.
The next morning, Hermione packed up her things and kissed her parents goodbye. She was excited beyond reason, and she had no idea why. Then she realized… when she went to Diagon Alley, she'd finally be meeting JaketheSnake! She had planned to leave in about ten minutes, so Hermione decided to check her email. A note from him. She read it quickly and sighed. She couldn't wait to see who he was!
She used the floo network and ended up at the Leaky cauldron. She had only just stepped out of the fireplace when she was pounced upon by two teenage boys.
"Harry! Ron!" she cried, laughing. In all the hullabaloo, they ended up on the floor sitting in soot. "Glad to see you too.
"How was your summer, Hermione?" asked Ron.
"Yeah. You didn't keep in touch much," added Harry.
"I was just… busy," answered Hermione. "-with the move and all." Her answer seemed to satisfy them, and they all set about putting away their things in rooms that they'd reserved. Hermione and Ginny were down the hall from Harry and the rest of the Weasleys.
Hermione wondered how she'd be able to slip away to meet Jake…
