"So," Hermione entwined her fingers with Draco's and stepped back from his embrace. "You spoke with Professor Dumbledore then."
"Yeah, I guess you could say I had my first official meeting with him." Moving toward the settee, they settled in the middle of it, curling around each other.
"That's always an experience. Did he offer you a sherbet lemon?" She was grinning at him, setting him at ease.
"Does he always do that? More than anything, I took one out of politeness. It didn't feel right to say, 'no' when it was the first time I had said more than four words to the man."
"It's sort of one of his things. Even when you're there for a particularly heinous meeting, he always tries to break the tension by offering everyone a piece of candy. I think it's a small gesture that reminds us that even in the darkest of times, we can allow ourselves small pleasures." The grin on her face receded and turned wry. "Look out for the licorice snaps though. They bite." With a short laugh, he hugged her closer, enjoying her warmth and the quiet of her room. Hermione broke the silence a minute later with a careful question. "So what was it you were speaking about with Professor Dumbledore?"
This was new territory for them, and she could see he was debating whether or not to tell her. Keeping her voice soft and reassuring, she said, "hey it's ok. If you think that telling me will put me or you in a dangerous spot, then I understand if you don't want to tell me. There will be a lot of times when we'll both be on a need to know basis." She took a cleansing breath. It was still so strange looking at him and hearing her voice tell him things that just days ago she would've revealed only under veritas serum. Still, she had made the leap and there was no going back. "But, I want you to remember that I'm always here to listen and help if I can. Your circle of allies will be pretty small for a while, and we all need people we can confide in."
Instead of answering her, Draco pulled her closer, if that was possible, and kissed her. Few people had ever spoken such genuine words to him. And to think, his ignorance and unfounded hatred almost prevented him from being with her. Pulling back from the kiss, he looked into her eyes, trying to convey beyond the impending words just what he felt. "Hermione, you don't know what that means to me. Outside of Severus and my grandmother, I've never had a lot of people I could confide in. Hearing you say that, and knowing that you mean it with no pretense or agenda, is incredible to me. Thank you."
"Anytime." She smiled warmly, but it was interrupted by a long, wide yawn. Before she could close her mouth, he followed suit; his mouth gaping open as the air rushed past his vocal chords. "I don't know about you, but I'm all in. Would you mind if we just went to bed?"
"Not at all. I was wondering how long I would be able to keep myself awake now that I'm sure everything's ok."
"Brilliant," and she disentangled herself from his arms and rose from the couch, walking straight for the bedroom. Draco remained rooted to his seat, suddenly confused as to what to do. She hadn't explicitly invited him to stay the night. Should he return to the floo and stay in his own bed? Should he check… "Are you coming, or what?" Hermione shouted from somewhere inside the bedroom. Heaving a soft sigh of relief, he scrambled from the sofa and went to join her.
When he entered the room, she was viciously beating a pillow. She caught sight of him, and he raised a questioning eyebrow. "I like to plump the pillows without magic. They never turn out right when I use a spell or charm." The pillow found its place at the head of the bed, and she turned to walk toward the bathroom. "I think I have an extra toothbrush in the cupboard." This time he followed her without questioning the protocol for the situation. He found her just reaching into her small potions cabinet and retrieving a strange looking object. Some kind of stick with, was that hair, stuck in it. "Here you go." She smiled as she proffered the brightly colored thing.
"What is it?" Her face went from happy to confused to understanding in less than a second.
"I'm sorry. I didn't think. You probably use a cleansing charm on your teeth; is that right?" He nodded, still ogling the thing in her hand. "This is a toothbrush. Since muggles don't have cleansing charms, they must manually clean their teeth. This simple device, essentially a stick with bristles at one end, is used for the task. Watch." Hermione walked over to her sink and accioed something from the potions cabinet, which flew into her hand. She squeezed the clearly muggle-made tube and a bluegreen unguent oozed from the tip onto the bristles. "This is toothpaste. Think of it as a kind of medicine that helps get the grime off of teeth and protects them from disease." She proceeded to put the toothbrush into her mouth and slowly manipulated it around her teeth. Occasionally, she spat into the basin to clear the foam that frothed from her lips. A few minutes later, she rinsed the brush, cupped a handful of water into her mouth, and swished it back and forth between her cheeks. The last mouthful went down the drain and she turned to Draco with a huge smile. "Nice and clean!" She stalked toward him, quickly pulling him close to her body. "And minty." Her lips were on his in a fraction of a second, and he could taste peppermint.
As her tongue probed past his lips, he could feel the flavor seep into the crevices of his mouth. Carefully, he closed his mouth around hers and sucked her tongue, spreading the mintiness even further. She giggled and pulled away, their lips separating with a pop from the suction. "Wanna give it a try?" Without hesitation, Draco responded, "yes," and automatically followed her to the bathroom. She had already retrieved a second brush and extended it to him. Now he hesitated.
Sensing his discomfort, she held her posture but smiled brightly. "Hey, it's okay if you're not up for it. I just thought you might like to try it for the novelty."
"It's not that I don't want to, it's just…" He couldn't make the words assemble properly. They would sound, well, mean. He huffed in frustration. Hermione put the toothbrush down on the lip of the sink and extended her hand to his. "Okay, this is going to sound awful, but it seems gross and unsanitary to stick something like that in my mouth." She couldn't help herself; a melodious laugh filled the air. He made to pull away from her, but she tightened her hold and placed her other hand on his chest.
"You're absolutely right. It is gross when I think about it. But, muggles had to learn alternative ways of doing things. Without cleaning our teeth, we become susceptible to gingivitis, plaque, tartar, halitosis, cavities, abscesses, and all kinds of other dental problems. Necessity is the mother of invention, and because muggles couldn't invent a cleansing charm, they invented toothbrushes and toothpaste."
"Do all muggles know so much about this?" Surprisingly, her face brightened.
"No, I'd imagine not. You see my mum and dad are dentists. They're muggle doctors who specialize in cleaning and fixing people's teeth. I learned a lot about basic dental hygiene very early in life."
"And it doesn't hurt?"
"Washing your teeth with a brush is nearly the same as washing your body with a flannel or sponge. If you scrub too hard it can hurt, but generally it's painless." He eyed the toothbrush suspiciously, but not wanting to look like a Hufflepuff, he talked himself into it.
"Walk me through it?" Draco asked as he squeezed her hand.
"Absolutely," and she led him to the basin, dropping his hand and picking up the toothbrush. "Hold it like this." His fist held the handle in a death grip. It wasn't made with wood and he had a hard time figuring out what it was. Turning the bright blue and white striped thing back and forth, he was puzzled.
"What's it made with? It's not lacquered wood is it?"
"No. It's actually a muggle made product called plastic. It's lighter and stronger than wood in most cases. A lot of stuff in the muggle world is made with plastic either completely or as a component. Look at the bristles." He did so, running his thumb across the top and side of the flexible rectangle. "Those are also made with plastic. It's just a different manufacturing process that creates the difference."
"Interesting. What's next?"
"Well, you can wet the bristles and then put some toothpaste on the brush part." Carefully, he held the tip of the toothbrush under the tap. Twisting the spigot with his left hand, water gushed into the basin, passing through and over the brush. He stopped the water and reached for the strange tube. The package was vibrantly colored with red, blue, and white lettering that declared "Cavity Protection!" and "Great Regular Flavor." "What does it mean, 'regular flavor'?"
"Some kind of minty flavor is usually considered regular. A few companies make flavors like cinnamon or orange, and those are pretty common, too. Kids normally aren't crazy about washing their teeth, so they make flavors like strawberry or watermelon for them. And, there are even some novelty toothpastes that taste like bacon or cupcake."
"Ew, why would you want to clean your mouth with bacon?" He couldn't help it; he reflexively stuck out his tongue and crinkled his nose.
"You wouldn't, but that's why it's a novelty. Haven't you ever tried something just to see what it was like? I mean, isn't that the point of every flavor beans? You never know what you'll pick up, and if it's something awful like dirt or earwax, you spit it out and try again."
"Makes sense I guess. I'm not sure I would be willing to try bacon flavor though."
"Neither would I, Love." He wondered if he had heard her properly. Cocking his head, he began to stare at Hermione's mouth. His brain rewound and played the words back several times. Her agreement wasn't what had him confused. It was her blatant term of endearment. While they had shared some relatively intense moments discussing this new development between them, the "L" word hadn't been brought up. Mentally, Draco scolded himself. It wasn't as though she had said the phrase; she had merely called him "Love." Love…
Hermione could feel her face growing hot as Draco stared at her. She mentally berated herself. "Stupid, stupid girl. You have got to watch your mouth!" She felt as though she had grown a second head under his scrutiny. Her mind raced frantically, trying to figure out how to smooth her slip over without being too obvious. Fortunately, an opportunity presented itself, and she went with it. "You're about to run toothpaste all over your trousers."
While Draco had been staring at her, his right arm had relaxed and the hand holding the toothbrush swayed dangerously close to his thigh. She noticed that it took a second for the words to register, but when they did, he jerked his hand back to its former position. "So, onward?" By then, he had recomposed himself.
"Now I just put it in my mouth and run the brush over my teeth."
"That's the general idea. Try not to swallow too much of the toothpaste or foam. Spit it into the sink instead. And just make sure you brush the front, back, and top of your teeth. Like this." And Hermione began to imitate the brushing procedure with an invisible toothbrush.
With a last trepidatious glance at the object in his hand, she watched as Draco Malfoy put a muggle toothbrush into his mouth. Simultaneously, she felt herself cheer for him and snicker. It was incredible that he would be willing to do something so muggle in front of her, let alone for the first time. It showed so much trust. But, she could also feel that niggling part of her that relished in the power she held over him. Angry with herself, she beat away the latter, and let herself fill with the joy of the moment. With a mouth full of foam, he questioned, "Mi-doin-fis-rhy?"
"You're a natural! One more minute and you're all finished." She continued to watch as he worked the toothbrush in an exaggerated manner. It was cute, like watching a child just learning how to brush for themselves. Just as the observation floated through her mind, a glob of greenyblue foam fell from the brush and splodged his shirt. "Argggh!" He pulled the brush from his mouth and looked down helplessly.
"Happens to the best of us. I don't know how many mornings I've been nearly ready to head out the door, only to discover a toothpaste stain on my blouse or robes. The good news is a little scourgify will clear that right up. In the muggle world, you've got to give the shirt up for the wash and put something new on. It doesn't stain, but it's bugger hard to get out with just water." With a nod, he rinsed the toothbrush clean (as well as most of his right hand which had captured a good deal of foam, too) and proceeded to rinse his mouth in the same way she had.
He angled his body over the sink so he could get closer to the sink and examine his teeth in the mirror. "I don't know if they are cleaner, but they feel cleaner. Maybe it's the mint."
"I definitely think that helps. Um, I need the loo. Do you mind?"
"Not at all. I'll meet you in bed." And he turned and left the bathroom, closing the door completely behind him. As soon as she heard the lock click, she dashed for the toilette. While she weed with no problem, she discovered that she couldn't poo. She felt tense. Somehow knowing he was on the other side of the door was enough for her to not relax. In the girls's dormitory, it had never been a problem. They were all girls; they all had to poo at some point, and no one made a big deal concerning any unsavory sounds or smells that were resultant. She knew she was being silly, that he also pooed as a part of being a person. Waste excretion was basic physiology. Still, she worried what he would say if he caught a whiff of something smelly. Girls weren't supposed to make gross smells.
In the end, she couldn't go. Deciding that it would need to wait for privacy, she finished the rest of her night routine, cleansing her face and braiding her hair, before heading back to the bedroom. When she opened the door, she found Draco standing at the foot of the bed locked in a staring contest with her large, matted half-kneazle. "The damn thing won't let me onto the bed." While she understood Draco's hesitance to challenge Crookshanks's dominance over the bed, it was funny to think that a cat could prevent anyone from going to bed.
"Crooks! Naughty thing. Get off this bed right this instance!" The cat turned its squashed face toward Hermione in acknowledgment that he was being addressed. The thing about being half-kneazle was that Crooks was more intelligent than the average house cat. He could be spoken to, almost reasoned with, and Hermione did so now to gain the upper hand. "If you don't get off of that bed, I'll make sure I let the house elves know that you only receive kitty kibble from now on. No fish, no chicken, no meat. Period."
Crookshanks seemed to mull over Hermione's threat in his mind. And, after a minute or two, decided that his continued reign over the bed wasn't worth losing raw protein. He leisurely lifted his haunches and stretched, digging his claws into the duvet in protest. Returning his stare to Draco, he sniffed and circled showing his bottom for a moment before leaping off of the bed. "That's right!" she called. "And no attacking us in our sleep, otherwise you're in for it. I'm not above hexing you." The last was an empty threat, but sometimes she needed to pull out the big wand to get him to fall in line. "Problem solved."
The couple continued looking at the now empty bed. The last time the ended up there, they had started in passionate embraces and there wasn't time to be embarrassed or insecure. Now there seemed to be plenty of time. Once again, it seemed to come down to etiquette. What was the procedure? Taking control of the moment, she asked, "do you want the left or right side?"
Lifting his right arm so he could scratch the back of his head, he responded, "well, I don't know. I mean I've never really shared a bed with someone before." They looked at the bed a few seconds more. "I ended up over on the right side this morning, and I slept ok until your bloody cat attacked me. Guess that's as good a place as any to start."
"Perfectly logical. I love that." And she walked around to the foot of the bed. When she stood behind him, she wrapped her arms around his torso and laid her cheek against his back. Suddenly remembering the thick scars that lived there, she whispered to him. "I'm really proud of you for cleaning your teeth the muggle way tonight. Not that I'm anticipating or wanting you to quote unquote go muggle, but I know that was big step. I expect that there will be a lot of moments like that for both of us along the way. There will always be things you do magically that I do, erm, muggley because that's how we were brought up to do them. I look forward to learning those things with you." She hoped it didn't sound patronizing.
Twining his arms with hers, she felt him squeeze her elbows with his hands. "Me, too." And nothing more needed to be said. Draco released her and twisted in her arms, repositioned so that she was hugging him. Kissing her forehead first, he then relaxed his own against hers and stared into her eyes, which were from that perspective strangely close and bug-like on her face. "I don't know about you, but I feel like I could sleep for a hundred years."
"That sounds about right." Reluctant to let go of each other, eventually they separated and went to their respective bedsides. Draco pulled his wand from the pocket of his trousers, saying "knox" and the room fell into darkness. Both wordlessly stripped of their clothes and crawled under the duvet. Immediately they reached for each other. And while Hermione could feel the pleasant burning/tingling of his skin against hers, she was too tired to enact anything further. They settled together, spooning much like they had in the morning, enjoying the sensations of being close. The last thought that flitted through Hermione's mind was that she would never taste mint the same way ever again.