Brand New Feeling.
Chapter Four.
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.
"You must be the new stable hand," Draco heard a voice say behind him while he was emptying a wheelbarrow filled with dirty straw the following morning. He turned his head to see a tall dark haired man standing behind him with his hands stuffed into his pockets.
"Draco Malfoy," he said with a nod of his head. He dropped the wheelbarrow and wiped his hands against his jeans before extending a hand towards the man. "I'm Andromeda's nephew."
"Theo Nott," said Theo, taking his hand and shaking it firmly.
"Nice to meet you," Draco replied, his eyes quickly giving Theo the once-over. He looked to be around Draco's age with a similar build, although his skin was much more tanned and the slightest bit of dark stubble coated his face. Draco had no trouble recognizing him from the day he arrived. He was the lad who had taken the horse from Hermione before she had stomped over to scream at him.
"That was quite the stunt you pulled with the motorbike the other day. I haven't seen Hermione that riled up in-" he paused and glanced down at the ground, a grin working it's way onto his face. "Actually, I've never seen Hermione that riled up."
"She got her own back in the end," grumbled Draco, his face forming into a frown as he thought back to the hours of mucking out he had been made to endure yesterday while Hermione stood by and smirked at him. His usually soft hands had become sore and blistered thanks to the hard labour and constant use of that bloody pitchfork. He internally groaned to himself, knowing that no amount of moisturizer would fix them, not for the next three months anyway. Theo began to laugh loudly and reached over to pat him on the back.
"She's good at that, our Hermione."
Draco snorted before picking up the wheelbarrow. That was an understatement.
The days passed by quickly and before he knew it, Draco had officially been living in Cheshire for a whole week. He hated shoveling horse shit but he was finally starting to feel like he was getting the hang of this stupid job. Hermione was now happy enough that he could do his job alone so she had stopped bossing him around, enabling her to get on with her own day. She had given him basic information about horses and how they were classified. He now knew that there were two different names for female horses and three different names for males. The bushy-haired swot had filled his head with all sorts of horse information over the last few days, so much in fact that he thought his brain might explode. Why would he ever need to know the difference between a filly, a young female or a colt, a young male or knowing that a gelding was a castrated male, as opposed to a stallion who still had his bollocks.. honestly. She was a never ending source of knowledge and she just loved to flaunt just how bloody clever she was.
Draco had been spending some time with Andromeda over the past few days too. She would make him dinner and talk about his mother and her daughter, Nymphadora. She had told him that his older cousin had been whisked away on a birthday trip by her long-time boyfriend, Remus. The pair had been gone for coming up to two weeks and they were not expected back for another few days. Draco knew that his aunt was lonely, rattling around in that huge house completely alone until Nymphadora returned. As much as he had spent time with her , that certainly didn't mean he enjoyed being here.
He had fed the horses their breakfasts before turning them all out in their paddocks. It was taking him some time, but he was slowly beginning to recognise each horse to their name. He was making his way down the line of stables, mucking them out and placing down fresh straw. He was up to stable number five when he heard hoof-beats in the barn aisle, the metal shoes on all four feet chiming against the concrete. He stepped backwards towards the stable door, leaning into the aisle to see Hermione walking towards him with a black and silver riding hat in one hand and Freya in the other.
"I'm going for a ride in the arena. Try not to do anything stupid while I'm gone," she told him as she slipped the riding hat on her head, clicking the plastic buckle under her chin closed.. Freya was all tacked up in a very expensive looking black saddle and bridle, standing perfectly still while Hermione pulled the stirrups down the leathers.
"Yes boss," Draco grumbled with a roll of his grey eyes, watching her walk out of the barn with her horse. He huffed, dropping the pitch fork into the metal barrow with a loud clang. His curiosity getting the better of him, he followed her out of the barn door and walked over to the large outdoor riding arena that was filled with a sandy base and surrounded by a waist height wooden fence. He leant his arms on top of the fence and watched as she slipped her foot into the left stirrup. She bounced on her right foot three times before swinging herself gracefully into the saddle.
As she walked Freya around the arena, encouraging her to walk with a gentle squeeze of her heels, Draco couldn't take his eyes off of her. The pair wandered around the bottom half of the arena and the brunette held her reins at the end buckle to allow Freya to freely walk during their warm-up, the mare's ears pricked forwards, swiveling around slightly whenever Hermione whispered words of encouragement to her animal.
Draco wasn't sure how long he had been watching her and she clearly hadn't noticed, completely focused on her riding as she was now cantering Freya around the arena.
"She's good, isn't she," Draco jumped and span around to see Theo staring at him, the corner of his lip lifted into a smirk.
"She's okay-" he shrugged, yet he didn't believe the words that left his mouth. She was a stuck up little know-it-all but she actually looked great on that horse, even he could admit that.
"It's clear you don't have a clue what you're talking about," he heard a female voice say and his eyes drifted to a petite woman who had appeared beside Theo. She couldn't be more than five foot three with pin-straight dark brown hair, almost black in fact with unblemished pale skin. A large pair of sunglasses were settled on her face, hiding her eyes and her hands were on her hips. "She is the best rider on this whole yard,"
"And you are?"
"I should be asking you that question," she said, pulling the sunglasses off her face revealing her bright green eyes. "Who are you and why are you practically insulting my best friend?"
"Down Pans," laughed Theo, placing his hands on her shoulders and pulling her gently back towards him. "Draco, this is my girlfriend, Pansy."
"Pleasure," drawled Draco, not looking entirely amused looking at this pint sized girl who was sassing him.
"I'm sure," said Pansy, looking him up and down with a sour look.
"Pans, this is Draco, Andromeda's nephew. He's the new stable hand."
"Just because he's related to Andromeda doesn't mean that he can get away with slagging off my girl," Pansy pouted until Theo spun her around and kissed her deeply. She giggled as he dipped her backwards, his lips never leaving hers.
Draco rolled his eyes and cleared his throat but the pair did not separate.
"Would you two knock it off. I'm trying to concentrate here,"
Draco looked across to the arena to see Hermione had pulled Freya to a stop beside the fence line. Theo and Pansy pulled apart with a shared laugh.
"Sorry Hermione," Theo called over to her, his arms wrapped around Pansy's waist and his chin resting on her shoulder.
"Pans, are you in here next with Flame?" asked Hermione and the petite brunette nodded her head. Draco recognised the name of the horse, not entirely unsurprised that he belonged to someone like Pansy. Flame was probably the biggest horse at Primrose Hill and he looked to be one of the most expensive. He was a bright chestnut colour, his hair almost red and a thick white blaze down on the front of his face. He knew his worth and as Draco had figured out over the past couple of days, he could be quite feisty.
"Yes," Pansy replied, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear. "Do you fancy giving me some showjumping tips? I'm going to try Flame over some jumps again and I know you're probably missing Tonk's training sessions."
Hermione laughed. "How did you know?"
"You love to boss people around," said Pansy, a teasing tone to her words. "It makes sense you would miss those sessions."
"Shut up," giggled Hermione, running her hand along Freya's neck in a soothing manner. "She'll be back in a few days so things can go back to normal."
"It sure will and until then, I'll graciously let you boss me around like the good friend that I am,"
Hermione rolled her eyes but she couldn't hide the smile on her face. "Go and get Flame ready,"
Pansy turned in Theo's arms and pecked him quickly on the lips. "I'll be back soon."
Draco and Theo watched as she wandered off towards the stables before turning back to glance at Hermione. He watched as Hermione's eyes moved to him, as if realising for the first time that he was standing there.
"What are you doing out here? Don't you have stables to muck out?" she asked him with a raised eyebrow.
The blond let out a sigh, feeling a headache coming on. She just couldn't let up, especially not when it came to him. "Excuse me for taking a break, slave driver."
Draco didn't give her a chance to respond. He simply turned on his heel and headed back to the barn, a scowl set on his face as he did. He didn't turn around, not even once, but if he had, he would have saw Hermione's eyes follow him, a guilty expression on her face.
Draco, in an anger fuelled state had blitzed his way through the final five stables, faster than even he expected. He was just tying up the final hay-net when Theo appeared in front of him.
"Are you all finished?" he asked him, leaning against the stable doorway.
"For now," replied Draco, spinning the hay-net around once it was tied. "I have some time before I have to bring the horses inside, why?"
"Hermione wants us in the arena to help with the jump wings."
"Jumps?" asked Draco, looking confused.
"You really haven't spent much time around horses, have you?"
"It's that obvious?"
"It's incredibly obvious," said Theo with a smirk. "So, what's your story?"
"No story. My father thought it would be a nice change for the summer and I got roped in without much choice." That was technically the truth, he thought.
"Andromeda agreed to let you work here with no experience with horses?"
"Pretty much," said Draco with a shrug of a his shoulders. He stepped past Theo and wandered into the barn aisle. "So, what does Sergeant major want us to do?"
"She wants us to help set up the jump wings. They are the stands that hold up the poles for the horses to showjump over." Theo told him, motioning his head towards the door. "Pansy is in there warming up so come on,"
Pansy was trotting the large chestnut gelding around the arena when they arrived, rising up and down in the saddle to match the horse and his movements.
"About time you got here Theo!" Hermione called out. She was walking towards the centre of the arena, dragging a heavy looking wooden pole across the sand.
"Sorry Hermione," he shouted back as he hopped over the fence. "I brought an extra pair of hands-"
Draco furrowed his brow at Theo's words and leant his body against the wooden fence, glaring at his new 'friend'. "Wait, I thought you said that she-"
Theo turned his head to look back at him with a cocky smirk. "You didn't think I was going to carry those heavy wings alone did you?"
Draco snorted out a laugh before hopping up onto the fence himself, swinging his leg over until he was sitting on the top plank.
"Theo, quit annoying the help and just set up the jumps." Pansy said, her eyes on Theo as she circled Flame around once more.
The help? Who the hell did that prissy little snob think she was-
"Draco," his head snapped up at the sound of Hermione's voice to see her now attempting to lift a colourful yet large wooden object that was almost as big as her. He assumed that was a jumps wing. "Can you give me a hand with this please?"
"Aren't you going to ask me if I've finished mucking out?," said Draco, flashing her a sarcastic smile.
The brunette scoffed and rolled her big brown eyes, placing he the heavy objects down against the sand. "Are you going to help me or not?"
"Fine," grumbled Draco, hopping down off of the fence, his boots coughing up a small cloud of sand as he did. He jogged towards her before lifting the wooden object with both hands, carrying it to where she needed it.
"So, are you all finished for the day?" she taunted with a cheeky smirk when he placed the jumps wing down on the ground, beside the pole that she had previously dragged.
"Yes," said Draco with a sour nod, screwing his fists up tightly. He made an attempt to slow his breathing, trying to calm himself down so that he didn't say something he would regret tomorrow. Something that would no doubt add extra jobs to his daily work. If Hermione was pissed off, he could pretty much guarantee he would know about it. "I just need to bring the horses inside and feed them."
"I'll help once this lesson is done," Hermione told him and he watched as a small smile crept onto her face. He slowly raised an eyebrow but nodded in agreement nonetheless.
Once they had set up four of the jumps, Hermione had gone around and pulled the poles up the correct height. Draco couldn't help but think that they all looked bloody massive and there was no way he would be stupid enough to jump a 1200 pound over a obstacle that high. One of the jumps was made up with two poles in a large cross shape, which Hermione had explained to be Pansy's warm-up jump. The other four were wide and looked to be roughly one metre high. He couldn't help but think that Pansy was absolutely crazy to be doing this.
Hermione pushed both him and Theo from the arena then, so the two had ended up sitting side by side on the fence once more, eyes glued to the arena.
"Is he nice and warmed up?" Hermione called over to her friend, atop the large chestnut gelding.
"Yes but now he's fidgeting again," said Pansy, struggling to keep Flame under control as he danced around beneath her.
"Loosen your reins and take a breath," Hermione told her. "He can feel you're nervous,"
"I'm not nervous." Pansy stated and in return, Hermione raised an eyebrow and gave her a pointed look. A look that quite obviously said Don't give me that crap. You know I know how you feel.
"Flame will be fine for you, Pans. You just need to take a slow and remember not to fight with him."
"I just wish he would be more like Solero-" Hermione often heard Pansy compare Flame to her other horse, Solero. He was a handsome sandy coloured Palamino Irish Sports Horse who Pansy had enjoyed many red ribbons and shiny golden trophies with. Her father had bought her Flame as a birthday present, knowing that if she was to compete properly, one lone horse simply couldn't cut it during the rigorous showing schedule. Flame had been bought for a very large sum of money, more than Hermione could justify that was for sure.
"Every horse is different," said Hermione as she leant forward to stroke a hand down Flame's handsome face. "You just have to take the bad with the good sometimes."
"Fine," grumbled Pansy, gathering up her reins slightly. "Let's go,"
"Perfect. Bring him around on the cross nice and steady, okay?"
Pansy nodded and gave the horse a small squeeze with her heels, asking him to walk, then trot. She sat deep in the saddle for a few strides before she gently asked for a canter. During the transition of speed, Flame immediately bucked, his back legs coming off the ground as he kicked out behind him.
"Flame!" cried Pansy, as she slowed him into a trot. "Hermione-"
"Stay with him!" Hermione shouted over to her, watching Flame's movements. His bright copper coat shone in the summer sun and he looked worth every penny that Pansy's father had paid for him. However, his good breeding and looks only got him so far with Pansy. He was her new showjumping prospect, yet she could hardly get him to behave long enough to complete a full course of jumps. "Push him on gently-"
"I don't want to ride him when he's like this!" she heard Pansy yell as Flame continued to bounce around beneath her. Hermione let out a sigh. This has become a regular occurrence with Pansy. Her friend had once been the most confident rider, happy to do anything on a horse if it meant glory and she would still, but only with Solero. Flame was another story entirely and after the last time where Pansy had taken a nose dive after Flame had tossed her off his back, she could see why her friend was worried. She watched as Pansy slowed Flame down to a stop, her chest rising and falling quickly.
"Pans, you have to master this with him," said Hermione softly, one hand reaching up to stroke against Flame's thick neck.
"Will you get on him for me?" Pansy asked her and immediately Hermione shook her head.
"This is not about me riding him, Pans. You need to learn how to control-" Hermione's eyes drifted to Pansy's as she was talking and immediately she regretted it. Her best friend was staring down at her with wide, pleading eyes. The curly haired brunette let out a groan, defiantly shaking her head. "Don't look at me like that-"
"Pleeeeease," begged Pansy, forcing Hermione to grit her teeth together and screw her eyes shut. Pansy had to hide a smirk, knowing that she would cave eventually.
With a huff, Hermione gave a nod. "Fine! I'll get on him but just for a minute!"
"Yay!" said Pansy and she immediately dismounted, unclipping her riding hat.
While he was still sitting on the fence, Draco turned to Theo confused. "What are they doing?"
"Pansy has been having a bit of trouble with her horse. She doesn't really like riding him when he acts up,"
"So she's passing him off to Hermione?"
Theo smirked slightly and nodded his head.
"Why?"
"Because Hermione isn't afraid of anything." said Theo.
Hermione landed softly on the very expensive leather saddle and ran a hand down Flame's neck, soothing him with whispered words. Pansy took a few steps back and watched as Hermione gathered up the reins in her hand. The stirrups had been lengthened for Hermione height, seeing as she was taller than Pansy, even if it wasn't by very much. With her heels down in the stirrups, she gave Flame a squeeze and asked him to walk on.
"How did I let you talk me into this?" said Hermione and Pansy simply laughed.
"Because you love me?"
With a click of her tongue and a small squeeze, she asked Flame to trot and the large gelding struck out in a beautiful pace.
"You're lucky I do," Hermione shouted back with a grin. "If I fall off and get hurt, Andromeda will kill me,"
"Two jumps and you can get off, I promise." Pansy told her which made Hermione roll her eyes. "I just want to see how well he'll go,"
"Fine but two jumps is all you get."
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