THIRTEEN
Saturday, 14 November 2020
On Thursday, as Hermione approached Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom, she longed for the days where she was afraid to go inside after she'd kissed Professor Riddle the night before. She had been fine until the moment she rounded the corner, but the moment she had, realization of what they'd done in his office made her stop walking as though she'd collided with a wall. Harry smacked right into the back of her, nearly sending them both to the floor. But after assuring him that she was fine, she sent him on ahead, saying she needed a minute to search for something in her bag.
It was Draco that had found her out in the hall a full minute before the bell rang through the castle, marking them tardy.
"Since when do you forget anything, Granger?" he teased, a smirk on his face.
In lieu of a reply, she simply scowled and continued rummaging through her bag for nothing. Her problem was the opposite of forgetting. She remembered all too well the last time she had seen Professor Riddle. Her thighs pressed together where she knelt on the stone as she begged her body to calm down.
"Come on, Granger, you're gonna be late. We wouldn't want Professor Riddle getting upset at you."
Hermione's gaze snapped up to his which only deepened her scowl as she shook her head and forced herself to her feet. With her shoulders high, she marched into the classroom, trying her best to ignore the snicker coming from Draco as he followed her.
She tried her hardest not to become flustered, but it was hard to be around Riddle and not be allowed to feel for him the way she wanted. She hated being forced to keep her eye contact with him to a minimum. That every time he came near her, she felt the need to tense, wondering if someone would notice if he lingered a second too long.
Yet, the only person who seemed to act as though he was in on their secret- even though he was most definitely not- was Draco.
All day Thursday, whenever he was around, Hermione would catch him staring at her. Almost as though she were the final piece of a puzzle he needed to solve. She went out of her way to avoid him, but found it wasn't as easy to do this year. Not when he had seemingly infiltrated her group of friends and the fact that they shared a private dorm.
But nothing was compared to the way he looked at her when she pulled herself out of a daydream while at the Three Broomsticks that weekend.
Just like the previous trip to Hogsmeade, Hermione had hoped her friends would let her be. It would have been much easier to move about the castle and "accidentally" run into a certain staff member with a majority of the school out and about. But, as she knew they would, they came for her. This time Harry hadn't even bothered to go in first. He simply sent Ginny in to do his dirty work for him.
As luck would have it, Riddle was already in the Three Broomsticks when she and her friends entered the pub. He was with McGonagall, Sprout, Flitwick, and a few others. He did a double take at the sight of her and smiled behind the rim of his mug as he tipped his head towards her in greeting. She returned his smile as she looked down at the floor, hoping by the time she looked up her cheeks wouldn't be as red as they felt. But when she sat down, she made sure to take the seat that allowed her the best view of the only thing worth looking at inside the pub.
From the time they sat down to the moment someone knocked into her, pulling her from inappropriate thoughts, Hermione realized she hadn't heard a single word that any of her friends had said. And when she glanced around the table, shifting awkwardly in her seat, she paused at the sight of Draco watching her with a lifted brow. As he turned to follow where her gaze had been, she dropped her gaze to her Butterbeer and tried to engage in the conversation around her.
She knew when Draco had turned his eyes back upon her; she could feel them boring a hole into her side, but she refused to acknowledge him. Even if she had to suffer through yet another fight about Quidditch, it was worth not accidentally giving something away.
A notion that escaped her the moment she saw Riddle stand. Her attention shifted to him immediately, watching as he bid his coworkers farewell for the moment and proceeded to take his leave of the pub. Hermione had to force herself to remain seated instead of leaping to her feet and running after him. Instead, she told herself to finish her drink with steady sips before she could get up.
By the time she did, no one even spared her a glance. When she mentioned she was going to the Book Nook, the only one that did more than wave her off was Draco. But she was too thrilled by the prospect of getting even a few moments alone with Riddle that she didn't even care to look behind her and see if Draco had gotten up to follow her.
And the closer she got the Book Nook, the less she cared if he did.
As Hermione pulled open the door, the old fashioned bell chiming overhead, she took a deep breath to calm her nerves. She wasn't exactly sure if this was where Riddle had gone, but it was where her instincts had led her. Slowly, she began to weave her way through the stacks, taking note of how many other patrons were shopping as well as who they were. To her relief, there were only a handful of people. None of which seemed to be students or faculty.
Just as she'd hoped, as she turned down the last stack at the back of the shop, Riddle was there, browsing the shelves without a care in the world. Without a word, she went to his side and lifted her hand to let her finger trace the spine of whatever book she reached first.
"I'm surprised you have time to read anything new with your course load, Miss Granger," he said after a moment, his voice a low rumble that sent a shiver down her spine.
"There's always time to read, Professor," she whispered back, a smirk curving her lips as his hand ghosted over the books as it wandered towards hers.
He hummed and Hermione's thighs clenched. "Ever the determined one," he murmured.
She said nothing as she let her hand drift his way, but just as the tip of her pinky brushed his, he pulled away, taking the book he had been touching along with him. She swallowed hard and held her breath, squashing her disappointment of his withdrawal.
"Perhaps we should incorporate book discussions in with your tutoring sessions. Expanding one's mind is never a bad thing."
"Maybe we could even arrange a separate meeting outside of our sessions just for this?"
He wet his lips, but deflated her hope with a simple shake of his head. "I'll have to see what my schedule permits."
She nodded and watched him return the book to the shelf before pulling another down. When he turned to hand it to her, she glanced up at him, hoping to catch his gaze. His eyes were dark with lust and his skin was warm as her fingers brushed over it to take the book.
"For now, our tutoring sessions on Wednesday's will have to suffice," he said.
Hermione tried not to let her disappointment show as she realized what he was saying. That nothing was going to happen here like it had the last time. She understood why, but the desire to have his hands on her again was almost too great to ignore. With a tight swallow, she gave a small nod. "Okay."
"I had planned to sit and read a bit before heading back to the castle," he said, pulling another book from the shelf. "Care to join me?"
She didn't hesitate to nod, her fingers dancing across the hard exterior of the book in her hands. She would take any excuse to be around him. It might not be what she wanted from him, but for now, it would have to do.
Despite not having nearly enough time with Riddle at Hogsmeade, Hermione was glad she'd gotten a moment with him at all. She hoped that their next trip to Hogsmeade would afford them more time together, but it seemed their only real alone time would be Wednesday nights. Granted, she had known that was all they'd get, but knowing and actually abiding by it were two separate things. She hoped that he would reconsider the addition of their book discussions to give them an extra day. Until then, she would have to get on by reminding herself that this wasn't forever. It was just until she graduated.
Not in the mood to stay in her dorm, Hermione grabbed her bag and went to the library to get some of her homework done. She even skipped dinner and surprised herself by not being hungry in the slightest when it became time for her to go. She had pretty much finished her assignments and was looking forward to a quick shower before turning in for the night.
It seemed, however, that Draco had other plans.
The moment she crossed the threshold into their dorm, the good mood she'd been in vanished. All it took was one look from him to know that whatever conversation or fight they were about to have wasn't going to be a good one.
"I wasn't aware that Professor Riddle gave out extra credit for his class," he said, leaning against the arm of the couch he'd been pacing in front of.
Hermione took her time in removing her bag and setting it on the floor; her face pinched as she shook her head. "He doesn't."
"Really?" he said, his head tipping to the side. "The two of you looked real cozy over whatever you were discussing at the Book Nook."
Her eyes went wide and she swallowed hard. "It wasn't-"
"Then again, he's been giving you special treatment for a few years now."
"Malfoy-"
"Tell me, Granger," he started, pushing himself away from the couch. "Did you really think I wouldn't notice you'd started shagging our professor?"
Hermione's throat went dry as she stared at him. Her entire body went numb and tears pricked at her vision, but she refused to cry.
"What do you want?" she asked, knowing it was useless to try and deny it. If it had been anyone else, she would have said what she could to get them to drop it. But Draco was smarter than that. He had always been able to not only see through her bullshit, but call her on it too.
He smirked, but for the first time that she could remember, the humor didn't reach his eyes. "Relax," he said after a moment, spreading his hands in surrender. "I'm not going to blackmail you."
Relief flooded through her, but Hermione still remained guarded. "You're not?" she asked, her voice quiet as she tried to figure out what he would say next.
"Not exactly," he replied, earning a scowl from her. His smirk widened as he took a step forward, his eyes softening. "I'll keep your secret, Granger. I swear to Merlin that I'll never hold it over your head, but I need a favor of equal value from you in return."
Hermione's brows knit together as she tried to fathom what that could even mean. She was almost too afraid to ask, but knew she didn't have much of a choice. Instead, she chose to remain silent and wait for him to say what he had to say.
"I need you to go out with me."
Hermione's eyes widened as she stared at him, waiting for him to dissolve into laughter and make fun of her for thinking he meant it for even a second. But when he just stood there, a blank look on his face, it was her laugh that filled the room.
"How in Merlin's name did you come to the conclusion that those favors are anywhere near each other in value?"
"Because we both need cover stories," he said after a moment. His smirk returned as his words started to sink in and the humor of the situation began to dissipate.
"Cover stories?"
As he spoke, she saw the sadness darken his gaze for a moment. "The curse of falling for someone we can never be seen with."
Hermione's brows knit together as she tried to figure out what he was referring to. And when it clicked, it stole her breath for a second. "Harry," she breathed.
He swallowed hard as he studied her reaction and then gave a brief nod to confirm. "I know you've had your suspicions for awhile now, but yes. He and I made it official at the beginning of last year. But over the summer, I overheard my parents discussing potential marriage arrangements with another family from the Sacred Twenty-Eight. Since I haven't had an official girlfriend since Parkinson in Fifth Year, they think they have to help me."
Hermione snickered at the way he grimaced at the mention of Pansy. "How is me being your girlfriend going to help you and Harry? Last I checked, your family isn't a big fan of people like me."
"They don't have to like it, but you're at the top of our class. You could be the next Minister for Magic if you wanted and they know that. At the very least, you'll help me prove that I can choose my own suitable match when the time comes. It would be a huge step forward for Purebloods and their repulsive notion that they're better just because of their lineage."
Hermione couldn't help but smile and stand a little taller at that.
"It doesn't have to go beyond graduation. All I need to do is make sure they don't have marriage plans for me the second I get my N.E.W.T. scores back. And in the meantime, we could continue seeing who we want without everyone wondering who we're sneaking off to meet. We would take the heat off each other by being a cover for the other."
"Have you talked to Harry about this already?"
"It was his idea, actually. He wanted to bring it up to you himself at the start of the year, but I wasn't sure you'd go for it."
"Until you saw me with Riddle," she said with a sigh.
"Which, for a Gryffindor, I have to admit, your skills at sneaking around are most impressive."
She narrowed her eyes at him, not sure if she should accept that compliment or not. "I want to talk to Riddle about this before we make anything public knowledge."
"Of course."
She nodded for a second and then cringed. "I'm not going to have to kiss you, am I?"
He rolled his eyes and snorted. "If the occasion calls for it, I'll have you know I'll make it worth your while, but ideally, no. I assume we would need a little hand holding or small displays of affection to really sell our dating story, but we can figure that out as we go along."
Hermione nodded along as she thought about his offer. It would make it easier to see Riddle because when she was sneaking about, she would have a cover story as would Malfoy and Harry. It made sense to keep people's eyes on them and not the people they were trying to see under the radar. For years the majority of the student body had been whispering "will they, won't they" about them anyway. Perhaps if they finally did, everyone would lose interest altogether.
"Does Harry know about Riddle and I?"
"That unobservant fool? Absolutely not," he said with a smile. "But if Riddle's on board, he'll need to know."
Hermione smiled along with him and nodded. "Okay. I'll talk to Riddle as soon as I can. Probably Wednesday when we have our tutoring lesson."
Malfoy's grin made her scowl and her cheeks burn as he said, "Careful, that might ruin the mood of your lesson."
"On that note…" she said before starting to move to her room.
He stepped in front of her then, his smirk replaced with another look; one she'd never seen from him before. "Thank you, Granger."
She gave a small nod, but quirked her brow. "If we're dating now, shouldn't you call me Hermione?"
"Where's the fun in that?" he replied with a wink before stepping out of her way.
She laughed and shook her head as she made her way to her room. She thought over his offer as she got ready for bed when she laid down to sleep, she hoped Riddle would see it as a good thing too.
A/N: Hey guys! Long time, no post! Fanfic has just fallen by the wayside with everything else on my plate. But alas, here's another chapter.
For those of you interested in my published works, I'll be hosting my very first live stream sometime this month in my group: madrose_writing / so if you're interested in getting a sneak peek at my next book (a dark romantic thriller that screams Tomione) join now so you can be notified when it happens!
Okay, enough out of me! Love you guys!
Until next time...