The Great Hall was swarming with students making their way to their respective House Tables at lunch time.
Food appeared around them and people were tucking in to what the house elves had prepared that day. Everyone was too busy stuffing their faces to notice a pair of grey eyes that couldn't stop staring at a certain bushy haired girl a few tables over. Everyone except Theodore Nott. Sliding into Draco as he took a seat beside him, he muttered "Knock it off, mate." through gritted teeth.
"Knock what off?" Draco countered.
"You're doing it again and you're going to bloody be seen!"
Draco merely waved him off before Theo pressed "You're making my life difficult with all your drooling."
Hermione had come to the Great Hall straight from Arithmancy and had multiple sheets of parchment laid out on the table amongst plates and platters. She looked up every now and again because she felt eyes on her but couldn't quite place them. After finishing a particularly difficult essay question on her homework, she put her quill down so she could properly stretch. That's when she saw them. Two grey eyes attached to a head of silvery blond hair.
He quickly looked away and when he finally bucked up the courage to look again, she was gathering her things before checking her watch, and striding out of the Great Hall.
"Oi!" Theo smacked Draco's head. "See what you've done! Now I have to play damage control later...yet again." He rolled his eyes and groaned, his annoyance palpable. "Gods! Is subtlety not an art your governess taught you?"
Draco snapped out of his reverie. "Okay, okay! I'm sorry."
"You should be! Apparently the others must'a ran into her and said something strange because she's already highly suspicious. And you'll have to remember, she was suspicious of you even before. That's why you weren't to run into her on Saturday."
"The others ran into her?" He sputtered "What do you mean?"
Theo batted his lashes and put his hands to his chin "He actually talked to me like I was a human being" he mimicked in his best high-pitched and girlish voice.
"Oh" Draco said solemnly, eyes bulging "I'll keep my distance."
"Yeah. You better, because I don't want to have to go back in time yet again." Theo rolled his eyes.
"I'll be more careful. But put yourself in my position. This situation is confusing as all hell."
XXX
Hermione pushed Malfoy to the back of her mind and hurried her way down to Hagrid's hut on the edge of the school grounds. The tea waiting for her sounded amazing on this dreary day.
She finally reached the hut and rapped on the door three times. She heard a barely audible bark just inside as Fang got up to greet her when Hagrid opened the door. "Hullo, 'Ermione! 'Ow are yeh t'day?"
"Great, Hagrid! Hi, Harry! Ron."
"Care fer some tea?"
"Yes, thank you." Ah, warmth at last.
Hermione sipped on her tea in silence, while listening to the others talk. When Harry brought up his theory of Draco Malfoy being a Death Eater for what seemed like the millionth time, her thoughts shot back to him. He was definitely up to something, but she didn't think it was as dark as being a Death Eater. He was strange lately. Scared maybe, but not menacing. Maybe she'd hang back over Christmas and try to keep an eye on him. Her parents did send her a letter yesterday telling her of a gifted holiday to Majorca. They urged her to go to the Weasley's instead but she didn't exactly have to. She wouldn't be able to get much studying done there after all with everyone home for Christmas.
Speaking of Christmas... she was going to need to come up with a way to ditch Cormac before the Slug Club Christmas Party. Slughorn.
"Oh no!" She mumbled, jumping to her feet.
"What?" asked Ron gratingly.
"Slughorn! We're going to be late for Potions!" She released with a groan before staring down at Harry and Ron until they finally stood from their seats.
"Sorry, Hagrid! We'll be back later." said Harry as they exited through the front door.
"Agh, rain!" Moaned Hermione before shoving her copy of Advanced Potion-Making she had been carrying against her chest, into her cloak.
"D'you reckon we should just run for it?" Implored Ron.
Harry and Hermione nodded as the three broke into a sprint toward the castle. They rushed through the doors and headed for the dungeons. Hermione ran into the classroom followed closely by Harry and Ron.
The latter two had thought to cast drying charms once out of the rain but Hermione was too flustered about being late for class to think about that so she stood before her two dry friends, sopping wet and smelling strongly of the first rain they'd had in weeks.
"Gather round, gather round." Chanted the portly Professor Slughorn, motioning for the trio to join the circle of students gathered around a solitary cauldron in the center of the room.
"Young Mister Malfoy here was just telling us about Amortentia." He said, looking back to Draco as if prompting him to go on.
Theo stood behind him, arms crossed, chuckling quietly at his friend and his misfortune.
"Right... Well, Amortentia...it's the most powerful love potion in the world. Hector Dagworth-Granger once said, a highly skilled potion maker can cause powerful infatuation or obsession in the drinker but 'never yet has anyone managed to create the truly unbreakable, eternal, unconditional attachment that alone can be called Love.'"
Slughorn silently prompted him to continue.
He cleared his throat before continuing. "It has a mother-of pearl sheen, the smoke that billows from it has a characteristic spiral, and the scent varies depending on the person's preference."
"Good, good! Now, just for fun! What is it that the potion smells like to you, Draco? Professor Slughorn continued "I personally smell brandy, chocolate, and pineapple juice."
Draco's eyes bulged with surprise at the question "Well, er..." as he took a big whiff "I smell, uh...fresh rain. A-And p-parchment, and vanilla."
He looked to the ceiling so as to avoid eye contact with anyone else in class before slinking back to the circle of students.
"Nice one, mate! Couldn't lie could you?" Whispered Theo, mockingly.
He had to try especially hard to avoid Hermione's gaze. The witch looked curiously deep in thought.