One-Hundred Magic Words
35. Awesome
(Draco's feelings about Hermione.)

Draco felt down in the dumps as he sat at the desk in the empty classroom. He crumpled another piece of paper and tossed it into the trashcan with a frown on his face, mad that he couldn't focus on his home work. Instead he was focusing on something else. He placed quill to paper again, but homework did not come out.

Hermione Granger...

I can't focus on my homework again because my mind is filled with thoughts of her and I can't shake the fact I do think about her as much as I do. It is quite annoying, thinking about the fact she makes the best grades in class. It is honestly annoying and my father never lets me hear the end of it, how a Mudblood shouldn't be getting the best grades, how the top ten percent should be filled entirely with our kind. If that is true then why is she in that ranking? I think it is quite amazing that she has gotten as far as she has, as someone of her status and not being in Ravenclaw. I think it is awesome that she goes this way. She is in fact, the most awesome person I have ever, ever met. I'm scared I like her. And by that I mean the way mother and father like each other.

The boy paused, suddenly crumpling up the sheet of paper and tossing it into a bucket by the door. Taking a deep breath he looked down at the blank piece of paper. "Seriously... I can't think when she is on my mind. I really don't think she is that amazing, and yet despite the fact she isn't an amazing person she manages to do awesome things no matter what she does. I'd like to say she's cheating to get my father off my case, but she's really not and while he would go and accuse her of being a cheat to the teacher's faces without actual proof I can't cross that line. It feels bad enough calling her Mudblood just to please father.

Letting out a sigh he stood up and walked over to the window and looked out. He didn't see another person enter the room, nor did said person see him. There was the sound of a moving trash can and the boy turned with wide eyes to see Hermione Granger standing there looking into the trash can. "Granger!"

"Ah... well, that explains why the trash can in an empty class room still has trash in it. It really isn't an empty classroom. I beg my pardon."

"Yes... well, you can very well not look at the contents of that trashcan and just leave."

"I wasn't planning on staying."

"Good."

"But you just managed to insult me, thinking that I would go digging though the contents of a trashcan. That means that what ever little bit you threw away, well... one of these happens to mention something important, something that I think you don't want me to hear."

"Don't you dare!"

Hermione though pushed out the first paper and read the work. "Draco..."

"It's not what you think."

"That you're struggling with a particular subject matter and that you don't want me to know."

"Ah... yes. The homework assignment..." Draco looked away. "If I was it is none of your business."

"But I could help. I mean..." The girl paused. "Well, I'd be willing to help if you didn't treat me the way you do all the time. To be honest actually tutoring someone with their school work would be a nice change from having people demand that you do their school work for them. Yes... that would be a nice change indeed."

"I said that this is none of your business. I can handle the assignment on my own."

"Really, because..." Hermione opened up the other piece of paper, stopping short. She didn't speak at all, thus allowing Draco to speak.

"Contrary to what you may think, the world doesn't revolve around you Granger. You're... you're really just a pain."

"You're the pain Draco." Hermione crumpled up the paper she had just read. "You're the one whose listening to your father about this whole Pureblood crap and honestly believing that it's ones blood status that determines what your skill level will be."

"Where did that come from? It isn't as if I wanted you to know I needed help, and I'm not suddenly admitting it because I'm trying to hide something else. I mean..." Draco stopped short, his face suddenly paling. "You... you read that... didn't you?"

"Yes."

Draco turned to look at the window and out at the color hued sky. "I don't get why you're so amazing, so awesome Granger."

"That's an insult."

"You're saying that because you read what I wrote and you really do think that being told that it's amazing that you succeed despite being a..." Draco stopped short at the word he was going to use, then choose another. "... Muggleborn... is an insult."

"Because it is. There is no difference between you or I."

Draco spun around, his face twisting up in anger. "You may have been raised that way Granger, but I was not. In my world..." He paused, looking away. "In my world... father says..."

"Do you know how stupid it is to believe what your father says?"

"And exactly how am I to know different, when he's brought me up to believe what he says. There has been nothing that has ever challenged what he has said. Not until I met you. There are plenty of examples of how he is right... and he loves talking about those students. But you... he hates talking about you. Your name comes up and he..." Draco stopped short. He looked at the ground. "Look. Granger, this really doesn't have anything to do with you. This is between me and my father and the prejudices he has and that he has taught me."

"Doesn't involve me? I'm one of the people he is prejudiced against, one of the people he's taught you to be prejudiced against."

Draco stopped short. "No. You're the one person he's not able to teach me to be prejudiced against. He goes on and on about how you shouldn't be able to do the things you do, and he tries to get me to agree with him. It's almost as if he's looking for me to say you're cheating, or the teachers are favoring you. Well... I think I did say that once, but I didn't say it with any kind of resolve."

"Then the reason your father hates talking to me is because for some reason I've made you question everything he stands for and believes in."

"Yeah right. How can he possibly know that I..." Draco stopped, realizing that he had poured out his words onto the piece of paper and he let out a sigh.

"How should I know. I honestly never got to see the real you before now, but then I don't live with you either. My interaction is slim to none." Hermione walked over and plucked a kiss on his cheek. "This is hoping that you will in fact over come your father's influence." And then she disapeared.