Classes seemed to go by very slowly for Hermione, as she waited for the day to end, for Dumbledore's arranged meeting to take place, and whatever plans the man might have. quite ironic she thought to herself, that classes couldn't be over soon enough for one Hermione Granger when classes were usually her favorite part of the day. Today though to her, classes paled in comparison to what she most likely will be learning some several hours later in Dumbledore's office.
She tried to pay as much rapt attention to Professor Flitwick as she could during her charms period, but not only was the subject matter quite boring (it was all about learning to do previously easy spells like Lumos, Wingardium Leviosa, and Accio silently.) her mind was running rampant with images and idea's of what might happen later on.
She rightly assumed that both Harry and Ron had gotten very similar letters, and that even Draco might have gotten himself a letter as well. She now realized that she hadn't even so much as checked over at his table to see. Some job I am as a guard, not even checking to see if my person received any mail. Hermione started to tap her quill on her desk as the hours drug on by.
Lunch eventually came to Hermione, who found her nerves had started to escalate as half her day was already finished. She wasn't hungry, so after grabbing the slightest few bits of food she gave a quick excuse to Harry and Ron, before making her way out of the great hall, quickly catching Draco's eyes before leaving. Hermione walked just a few corridors down from the great hall, her shoes making sharp loud tapping sounds on the hard floor, Hermione barely noticed her own impatience, as she silently counted the number and rhythm to her steps. Stopping at an intersection she sat up against the wall and waited, knowing that it shouldn't take long. Even that boy shouldn't be able to miss the look I gave him.
Not even a minute later Hermione heard someone else coming up the hallway, ducking around the corner Hermione waiting for the person to pass before she so much as moved. As she suspected Draco was the one to come around, his black robes swishing around him as he walked, looking even to Hermione like he knew exactly what he was doing and where he was going. How exactly does he manage to look to sure of himself, when he obviously has no idea what's going on? I'll have to ask him that sometime…
"Draco." Such a simple word, but the suddenness of it echoed through the halls, almost making Hermione herself jump in fright. Draco though only stopped, and smoothly turned around, his robes flowing back behind him, in an oddly elegant fashion that Hermione was sure one had to practice to achieve.
" What exactly do you want Granger? I was trying to enjoy my lunch, the sandwiches were particularly good today." Hermione tried not to noticed how she had started to find his little drawl somewhat amusing.
"I needed to talk to you, there are a few questions I have."
"Well then spit it out, what is it you want?" Hermione crossed her arms over her chest, apparently he wasn't in a very helpful mood today.
"Did you receive a letter this morning?"
"What does it matter if I did?"
"You mean besides the fact that I'm your guard until further notice? Nothing really, maybe I'm just interested." Hermione raised an eyebrow at the boy, trying not to crack a smile at him as she did. What are you doing Hermione, this is a bit much for just casual conversation…no matter what the book said…
"Alright Granger, so maybe I did receive a letter today, is your curiosity satisfied?"
"Was it a normal letter from someone you know? Or a rolled scroll bound in purple string?"
"Both?" Draco shrugged.
"I actually happened to know the person who sent the bound scroll in purple string, seeing how its our headmaster and all."
"So you did receive a note to meet tonight from the Order."
"Yes."
Hermione flung her arms down to her sides, her nearly amused smile turned quickly into a frown.
"Then why didn't you just say you received a letter from the Order!"
"Why didn't you just ask if I received a letter from the Order?"
"Because I assumed you would of elaborated on what type of letter you received when I asked you!"
"Well that just proves that you shouldn't assume anything with me Granger, you act like you know me much more than you actually do."
Hermione actually felt like her jaw was going to fall in disbelief.
"Why do you have to make things so difficult Malfoy?!"
"Oh so its back to Malfoy now is it? I thought we were on better terms then that?"
"Answer the question!"
"No."
This time Hermione's jaw actually did drop in frustration, his simple quiet answer nearly stopped the words in her mouth from sheer disbelief. Hermione walked up to him and poked him in the chest with one finger, her eyes narrowed as her voice lowered to a near whisper.
"What do you mean "No" ?"
Hermione noticed a gleam in Draco's eyes as he actually broke out in a smirk.
"Well Granger, I believe No is a answer commonly given, when one wants to answer in the negative. Would you like me to use it in a sentence? Like No Granger, I will not answer that question? Or how about No Granger you don't know me that well, or wait there's this No Granger I don't think you look good in that dress."
"Will you shut up already, and stop being such a pest? Why do you enjoy being such an arse anyways?"
Draco lowered his head down to hers and slowly whispered into her ear, Hermione tried not to react to the shivers that went down her back at the feeling of his warm breath on her neck.
"Because it is always fun to see you upset."
Draco quickly moved away before turning around and walking in the opposite direction, leaving Hermione there feeling like he had hit her with a dose of Petrificus Totalus.
"Draco Malfoy you are unbelievable!" Hermione hadn't even noticed she had shouted, her mouth just saying the first thing that came to mind. But even so, it still had her desired effect of stopping Draco in his tracks. Hermione amused or not, was not about to let the snaky little git away with the last word.
"Well see there Granger, that's what I meant, you do not know me, as well as you think you do." Draco then started to slowly turn around again.
"Is that a fact? I think I know more then most."
Draco stopped.
"Oh? And what exactly do you think you know about me Granger?"
"Well, how about your birthday?"
Draco turned to look at her, now his face was the one that showed something akin to disbelief.
"What are you babbling about Granger? Why would you know my birthday?"
"June 5th, 1980. Found out when I had to heal your arse from the cruciatus, one of the spells I cast on you to check your vitals told me exactly how old you were."
Draco blinked.
"So you know my birthday, I hardly think that means-"
"I also know you have quite the striking tattoo on your chest, that you have little to no body hair on your chest or arms, and that you happen to enjoy wearing silk boxers. Usually black, but I'm guessing green is a favorite of yours as well."
Hermione now felt a smirk of her own come on, when she realized she had struck the boy speechless.
" Of course you know nearly the same information about my own tattoo, but lets not forget that I know you are not nearly as horrible or jaded as you make yourself out to be, that you do in fact have a heart, and that you are no evil. No matter what Harry or Ron think about you."
Draco's mouth bobbed open for a moment, before he closed it. Now Hermione couldn't even lie to herself how fun it felt to make the prince of Slytherin speechless. Oh this is way too much fun…I wonder…
Walking up to him, Hermione thought that a taste of his own medicine would be more then quality payback for his lack of ability to be nice all the time. Moving up towards him Hermione rose up on her feet to whisper directly into his ear.
"I also know that you dream about me at night Draco, that you wake up sweaty and hot from dreaming about doing the most wicked things to my body, that you sometimes wake up with my name on your lips, and that no matter what you may say to yourself, you've never had a dream nearly as good as me."
Hermione quickly turned around and slowly walked away, a shrill giggle was all but bursting out of her, but she knew to win this round she couldn't show any sign of how much fun it had been. If there was one thing she learned from him, it was that control one more battles then one would think.
Hermione though didn't get far before she felt him catch up to her, turning around she was quickly surprised to find herself all but thrown up against the nearest wall, pinned between hard stone and Draco Malfoy. His arms were on her waist, strong but not bruising, just keeping her in place. His face though was right over hers so close his nose touched hers every so often.
Hermione now felt a different kind of speechless coming on, this one from the knowledge that she was very much in unknown territory, she didn't even know exactly what direction she wanted to take this. Luckily for her Draco spoke first.
"Would you like to repeat that Granger?"
Hermione bit down on her lip to stop herself from smiling, but his warm breath right on her face, smelling like some mix of mint and chocolate made her mind go blank for some reason.
"Uh which part exactly? The one about your tattoo? Or how about the part where you did wicked things to my bo-" Hermione's sentence was broken when Draco suddenly leaned down and kissed her on the lips. Hermione felt numb from the legs down, but her lips felt like electricity. Grabbing on to his robes for support Hermione pressed back against him with her own mouth, wanting to feel more of whatever it was that she was feeling.
Oh my god, I didn't even think something like this would happen…well ok not really, maybe I was a bit heavy on the flirting with the eye brows and the whole whispering in his ear but, Oh! Is his hand rubbing circles into my waist? I- oh wow…ok that's… now its under my shirt and touching the skin of my sides I….
Hermione mind was running faster then she could even keep up, taking her hands off Draco's robes she moved them slowly up his chest to his hair, where against whatever judgment she had left, proceeded to bury them down to his scalp.
Their kissing went on for another few seconds before Draco broke it, sensing that whatever had just happened was about to pass Hermione braced herself for the awkwardness that would occur. Instead though Draco then proceeded to kiss her jaw line, then her cheek, before moving on to her earlobe and with the slightest nibble that sent a noticeable shiver down Hermione's body, he then proceeded to move down to her neck and continue his work from there.
Hermione never had a chance to speak. Which made her very happy.
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The sixth year Gryffindor's and Hufflepuff's advanced Transfiguration classroom was always one of quiet lecture, and concentrated practice. Being the first class directly after lunch, Minerva McGonagall was confident that with their stomachs full, the students wanting to move on to NEWT level Transfiguration were responsible and mature enough to work diligently without her having to directly enforce the proper level of classroom respect.
That was until the door quietly slipped open a half hour into class, interrupting Professor McGonagall's lecture on the difficulty of Animagus transformation. As quietly as she could with the entire class watching her every move, and her favorite professor looking on with the most surprised look she had ever received, Hermione moved through the room to find her obviously empty seat right in the front row, in between Harry and Ron.
The whispers in the room were like a hive of bees. Every student, even the most diligent and hard working had stopped taking notes to stare at McGonagall's favorite student who actually came in extremely late to class, history seemed to be in the making.
Hermione chose to ignore the stares and whispers, instead taking out her rolls of parchment, quills, ink bottles, and her very used copy of sixth year advanced Transfiguration. Harry and Ron seemed to be just as shocked if not more by the sight of Hermione being late to her favorite class, which seeing how it was after lunch, was almost impossible to have a good excuse to be so much as a minute late too. Luckily Hermione had taught them well, and they chose to hound her with all their questions after class. Where they would have the time.
"Miss Granger? I- well I am quiet surprised, I don't think you've ever been late to my class in all your years of being my student…I- Well I assume you have an excellent excuse not to mention a note signed by a professor?"
Hermione just shook her head silently.
"I'm sorry Miss Granger, what was that?" McGonagall still had a look of stunned disbelief on her face.
"I'm sorry Professor, but I don't have a signed note with me."
The whispers became noticeably louder,
"Quiet down class, now then Miss Granger, I'm just so surprised, but what were you doing that made you so late?" Everyone could tell that the Professor wasn't used to having to be disapproving with Hermione, and didn't know how to proceed.
"Nothing important Professor." Hermione wished she could just die right now, not only was she late to class thanks to Malfoy, and whatever it was that had just happened, but she was late to McGonagall's class, her favorite class, and the one that would be the most impossible to get away with without giving something of an excuse. But what the hell am I gona say? Sorry professor, but my afternoon snog with Malfoy ran a little overtime, won't happen again I promise.
"Nothing important? But you were late- I…well never mind, lets return to class shall we?" McGonagall took a moment to steady herself as the whispers died down around the room. Hermione couldn't believe that she had gotten away with it without so much as having to explain about where she had been. Hermione couldn't believe her luck, in the one time she was late she got off completely free. And with class still an hour and a half left, she had time to formulate some type of idea of what she was going to tell Harry and Ron.
"Now class lets continue where we left off…" McGonagall paused once more, her eyes lingering once more on Hermione, and the multiple stares directed her way.
"Oh and miss Granger, five points will be taken from Gryffindor for being late to me class…now where was I?"
Hermione sighed before quickly took out a quill and dipped it into her ink. Five points is better than explaining where I've been at least.. Just as she was about to begin her notes, she heard Harry yawn beside her, his arm stretching into her vision. When it retracted, she noticed that there was the smallest piece of torn parchment on top of her desk, on it was a small scratch of a note.
"Nice love bite on your neck."
Hermione merely smiled to herself, her cheeks turning a lightest color of pink as she calmly brushed the note off her desk before beginning her own notes finally. Damn you Draco…
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The day eventually came around to 5 o'clock pm, classes were finally over, and dinner was about to begin, and the meeting with Dumbledore was just a few more hours away. Hermione sat at her usual spot mid way down the Gryffindor table, with Ron and Harry sitting next to one another across from her. Barely tasting the meal in front of her Hermione quickly glanced up at the head table to notice that the Headmaster was still eating his meal, conversing with either Professors McGonagall or Snape.
Hermione sighed, noticeably enough that both Harry and Ron glanced up from their own meals. Harry with a look of curiosity on his face as he held a fork full of food halfway to his mouth, and Ron with his mouth stuffed full of food as always.
"Smurffen grong mironon?"
Hermione blinked a few times before she looked at him, actually trying to tell if what Ron said could be described as language.
"I-um what?"
Harry laughed briefly before taking up the job as translator.
"I think he meant to say "Is something wrong Hermione?"" Ron nodded enthusiastically as he struggled to swallow the large amount of food in his mouth.
Hermione shook her head, then paused before nodding.
"Well ok, I wasn't going to say anything, because neither of you too mentioned it. But I'm really curious what the letter was about."
Harry and Ron both glanced around the table before leaning towards her, voices low.
"Actually we've been wondering the same thing." Harry whispered. "We think it has to be something important, something that wasn't posted in the Prophet. Why else would he call all three of us to his office so suddenly?"
"Do you think someone's died? Or that headquarters has been compromised or something?" Ron asked, a curious and fearful look on his face. "Or maybe Snape's found something out from you know who? Something big maybe?"
Hermione glanced away from the two of them, her eye sight glazing over towards the Slytherin table before coming back to the two of them.
"Maybe, I guess we don't know until we get there." she said. Harry and Ron nodded, while Harry opened his mouth once again. Suddenly another head came into their little over the table huddle, Seamus bursting through with a large grin on his face. His voice much to loud for the distance he was from them.
"Oi! What are you three whispering about now?"
The three of them moved back to sit in their seats properly, all of them thinking about a proper excuse. It was Harry who recovered first, not even taking his eyes off the Seamus he quickly replied.
"We were just wondering what Hermione was doing that made her late to Transfiguration this morning!" Ron and Hermione both looked at Harry, Ron with a look of wonder, Hermione slightly nervous. Seamus looked over at Hermione and gave a low whistle.
"Know it all Granger was late to her favorite class? Wish I would have been there to see that…but Transfiguration never was my strong suit…" Seamus moved back to his usual seat next to Dean three seats down.
Hermione did her best to act like Seamus had never interrupted their conversation, and was just about to steer the conversation back to Voldemort, when Harry and Ron looked at her.
"What exactly were you doing that made you late Hermione?" Ron asked, his voice full of surprise.
Hermione was about to give her usual excuse of "I was in the library of course!" when Harry cut her off before she could even get a word out.
"And where exactly did you get that mark on your neck Hermione? Looks like a Hickey to me…"
Ron who had been in the middle of drinking some pumpkin juice, ended up spitting it all out of his mouth, across the table and right in the face of a third year Gryffindor girl.
Hermione grimaced to herself, hoping that dinner would end soon, and that the meeting with Dumbledore would come already.
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Draco tried his best to hide whatever nervousness he felt as he made his way to the Headmasters office. He had spent most of the day wondering what it was that the Headmaster might want to speak with him about. Knowing it must have something to do with the Order, Draco wondered if it was good or bad news. He also wondering if Hermione had been summoned as well, she hadn't said so exactly, but something about the way she seemed to know he had a letter made him think she might of gotten one as well.
Draco's mind returned to that scene just hours before where he was snogging Granger up against a wall for all she was worth. It must have been the hundredth time he had caught himself thinking about it, and he still wasn't entirely sure what to think about it…He could at least admit to himself that it was a nice experience. And that for all the animosity between the two of them, that Granger certainly was a good looking girl, not to mention unbelievably intelligent…Draco sneered at himself…No matter what he did he couldn't decide what the hell was going on with him. Granger had been his enemy for six years now, she was a muggleborn, best friend to the wonder boy, and a Gryffindor to boot! And here he was complimenting her, and snogging her as if he liked her or wanted some kind of relationship….
But the dreams….Draco couldn't deny that he did dream about her quite frequently, and most of them were far from innocent…and not even the kind of not so innocent his father would approve of. Not a single one was about him torturing her for information, or beating her in a Duel. Not a single one was about him handing her over to Voldemort, or putting her in her proper place in wizarding society. There wasn't even a single damn dream about him beating her at exams for Merlin's sake!
And because of this, because of the confusion that was griping him whenever he so much as thought of her. Draco chose to ignore it, he was already treading a fine line when it came to this war. A death eater who had been captured and was now playing as spy for the Dark Lord, who thought he was spying on the Order for him? He had joined Snape as a triple agent for Dumbledore…and he wasn't even entirely sure that he wanted the job. Nor was he entirely sure of Snape's devotion to Dumbledore…a gifted Occlumens, Snape could just as easily be fooling the Old man, as he was the Dark Lord.
It was with a heavy heart, full of doubt and uncertainty that Draco made the last few steps towards the Headmasters office, spoken the password to the Gargoyle, and climbed his way up the spiral staircase to the great door that was the entrance to his office.
Knocking on the door, Draco heard Dumbledore tell him to enter as clearly to him as if there wasn't a door in-between them at all. He slowly opened the door to the office and step inside. Within the Office he found the Headmaster behind the desk, his hands folded upon themselves and placed on his rather large desk. He thought he saw a rather large and beautiful looking red bird sitting on a perch besides it, but his eyes were quickly drawn to the other inhabitants of the room. Professor Snape was standing behind the Headmaster on his right side, and On his left were his Old Defense Against the Dark Arts teachers. Professors Moody and Lupin.
None of the adults seem the least bit surprised to see him there, but the last three occupants did. It was with a small shout of surprise from Weasley that Draco noticed Potter, the Weasel and Granger sitting across from Dumbledore and the Three Professors, turned in his direction a look of surprise on their faces.
Most of their faces…Granger just looks happy… Draco just scowled at them all, as he felt his insides disappear. He thought he had a good idea of what it was that was going to take place.
A/N: Ok so its been way too long since I've updated anything, and I just wanted to post a chapter, because as much as I should probably be writing my own original work that can actually be published and make me money...I still want to finish my fanfiction...too much thought and plot work has been put into it for me to just abandon it now. So here you go, please review with everything from happiness of my return, to anger about my long absence...to what you guys all think about HBP being postponed until next summer.
Thank you,
-Sises