Chapter 1. In the beginning
I DO NOT OWN THE RIGHTS TO HARRY POTTER
Hermione enters the great hall. It's been decorated for the Yule Ball. Snow looks to be falling from the enchanted ceiling and gleams bright white. The room is now dimly lit and empty. Only a single soft light shines at the edge of the room. Hermione squints and tries to focus on someone moving towards her. Her heart thuds rapidly in her chest. The figure continues to come closer. Her hand slowly rises to her mouth, as he finally comes into focus. She gasps and runs towards him. He catches her in his arms and holds her close.
"Draco." She cries. Tears start to fall down her face, but he pulls her back and wipes them away.
"Don't cry." He tells her in a whisper.
"I thought I'd lost you." She shutters and he kisses her.
"I'm here." He tells her.
"Where is here?" She asks him, looking around.
"Don't you remember our first dance?" He asked her, feigning astonishment. Hermione smiled and the music began to play around them. A soft harp, piano and guitar.
"At the Yule Ball." He took her hand and twirled her around and then held her close as they swayed to the slow music.
"Do you remember why we danced?" He asked her and she nodded. "I wanted you to end the night on a happy note." He said and she nodded. "I wanted you to be able to look back on it and only remember the great memories." He said and an eerie feeling filled her now.
"Draco." She tried to stop dancing, but he twirled her around and swayed with her again.
"It's always been you, Hermione. I've always loved you." He said to her. "Always." He said and she held onto him tightly.
"Draco." She whispered again and pulled away, this time he let her. He bent down towards her face, and placed both hands on either side of her face. His lips found hers and kissed her softly. She closed her eyes engulfed in the kiss and held him tightly, feeling lost. "I love you." She said.
Hermione had thought she was being tortured when Professor Flitwick had shown up to his classroom after supper, flanked by Draco Malfoy. She contemplated stepping away all together, but she had already agreed to help the Professor to prepare magical enchantments for the triwizard tournament visitors. In their first week together, Draco was horrible to her. She assumed because he had tried to attack Harry and Professor Moody, had stopped him by turning him into a ferret. She tried her best to ignore him. Here was another late night, in the charms classroom. There was something different tonight though. She kept on guard in case this week would be like the last. Hermione and Draco sat quietly charming the twilight bobbles and storing them in their boxes. Hermione tried her best to concentrate, but she could feel Draco watching her.
"What?" She said after a few minutes more. Draco looks at her intently, specifically at the spells she's doing while reading a book as well.
"How is it that you know so much? You're a Mud-" Draco cut himself off. "You're muggle born, but since our first year, you've known every answer." He asked. There was no animosity in his voice now, just curiosity. "Is it because you want to prove you belong here?" He asked aggressively. .
"I know I belong here. I have known it since I received my acceptance letter. Hogwarts is the greatest school for witchcraft and wizardry. I study and work hard, because I appreciate the worth of my education. It's not about Status for me." She said to him coldly.
"You think I'm here to prove my status?" Malfoy laughed and she scowled at him. "I'm a part of one of the few pureblood families left in the wizarding world. They know who we are." He spat.
"You are not here to prove your status, but you bring it up every chance you get. You care about the wrong things. Who cares about Blood status? What difference does it make?" She spat back.
"What difference does it make?" He asked incredulously.
"Yes, what difference. Take us for example. Of everyone in our year, you and I were asked to complete this task, because of our talent for Charms. You are a pureblood, I am muggle born and yet I can do all that you can." She says. "It does not matter where you come from, it matters what you do with the gifts we were given." She explains. Malfoy struggled for words.
"You know nothing." He finally says clearly annoyed by something she said.. "I care plenty and about important things." He said bitterly and she shakes her head. Of all the things he could have taken offense to.
"Really, like what?" Hermione smiles and he answers agitated.
"Like my family." She nods. "My studies." She looks at him curiously. He continues. "I care about proving myself to my father. You have no idea the pressures that come from being an heir to a pureblood family." Hermione's face softens and she continues to charm her bobbles.
"You're right. I don't know you or what is expected of you." She said.
"No, you don't." He agreed, then he explained, venting. "I have to get an education and do exceedingly well, to prove that I am worthy. I have to go on and get a respectable career and find a person to marry to continue the pureblood line. I have to be worthy of the Malfoy name." He ends in a whisper. He looks regretful, as if he didn't mean to tell her so much. "Not that you will ever understand that." Hermione stops what she's doing and stares at him, but he does not meet her gaze.
"You shouldn't doubt your worth, Draco." She encouraged him. "By any means, You've done well so far. For Professor Flitwick to think so highly of your skill, you must be doing well. Your personality is another story." She teases and keeps working.
"Yes, well. What choice do I have?" She looks at him sadly, but then fumbles through her box. She remained quiet until finally he spoke just to end the silence. "What about you? How do you explain all this to your parents?" He asked trying to change the subject from himself.
"They are pretty easy. They just want me to be happy and try my best."
"Lucky you." He says sarcastically but Hermione ignores his tone.
"Yes, I'm very lucky. They're wonderful people." She said and they continued their work in silence. When their boxes were empty, he sat unmoving, Hermione packing up and cleaning.
"What is it that you care about?" He asked again to end the silence. She stared up at him, as they walked out into the corridor.
"Same as you, kind of." She said pensively. "I care for my family too, and my friends. I care about my studies. And finally I care about making a difference." She says and he stares at her, confusion dawning on his face. "See you later, Malfoy."
"Yes." He said focusing on the present. "Later, Granger."
Every time they spent time together for their project, Hermione felt guilty for not telling Ron and Harry that she had been assigned a partner as well. Ron and Harry thought she was in the library most nights, which she was, as SPEW did not organize itself. At the end of the week they returned after dinner to the charms classroom, where Professor Flitwick had left them another task. Hermione read through his instructions and tried to hand them to Draco. He waved them away.
"I trust you." He said and then his face whitened. "I trust you to not mess up what we're supposed to be doing." He corrected and she smirked.
"Alright." She tells him, handing him an orb. "Watch me." She said pointing her wand at the orb and reading the paper again. "Lumos conistco" Her wand tip lit and the light poured into the orb. He watched her excited. "Let go when it gets high enough. Leviosa Pendio" She called out and the Orb floated up into the ceiling and stayed there after her wand dropped to her side. Draco watched it. In the dimly lit classroom, it looked like a star.
"I wonder where they will end up." Draco muttered and she shrugged.
"I'm not sure." She said and he looked down and stared at her again.
"Had you done this spell before?" He asked her, but she shook her head. Feeling the need to show off, he tried to light another Orb, but the light would not stay inside the Orb. She walked over to him and held the orb for him while he tried again, the light poured in again and she smiled brightly. He lifted it easily and it sat beside the other they had done.
"This is going to take a while." She sighed. "I was hoping to get some reading done, while we worked. There are some potions that I wanted to review before the weekend." She said.
"Which potions?" He asked her.
"The Calming Draught." She says while he propels another orb to the ceiling. He nods knowingly. "The Shrinking solution." She says and he lights another orb as she holds it in place.
"I'm familiar." He told her. "If you'd like, we can take turns reading the book out loud." Hermione watched him, waiting for him to tell her the joke, she must have missed. He glared at her. "Or you can do it on your own." He snapped, having trouble with the lighting of the orb again. She flinched back and shook her head.
"No, that would be great. Thank you." She told him. Hermione held the next orb and read outloud the ingredients and steps for making the potion. She read the benefits and description of it. Continued to do the spells, while listening and adding in his own notes, which she had to admit were helpful. "How do you know all this?" She finally asked him, impressed.
"Professor Snape and my father are old friends. He's advised me since my arrival in the first year." He admitted and Hermione was shocked.
"I didn't know Professor Snape was capable." She said and Draco shrugged.
"My father was a prefect when Snape first started Hogwarts, he sort of mentored him. I figure he owes him something." He suggested and Hermione stared at him. "Would you like to switch?" She nodded. Draco read while Hermione continued the task.
"I am very impressed with you two." Professor Flitwick said to them as he stopped into the classroom, gazing up at the sky and their intent to study. "I am fairly impressed by your cooperation. It gives me hope." He smiles. "Ten points to both Gryffindor and Slytherin." He leaves them again a small smile playing on his lips.
"What do you think he meant by that?" Draco looked over at Hermione nervously.
"I assume he means our getting along." She tells him.
"We are not getting along. We've been given an assignment, what does he expect me to do, throw curses at you all night." He spits. Hermione gets more Orbs and keeps working, waiting for Draco to continue reading. "We aren't friends, Granger."
"That is perfectly clear." She tells him. "Will you be reading or shall I put the book away?" She snaps at him and he rolls his eyes and keeps reading aloud. They barely spoke about anything other than potions, the rest of the night. When they were finished, Hermione extinguished the lights around them and watched in amazement as the Orbs looked like a starry night above them. "Beautiful." She whispered.
"Yes." She hears Draco mutter, but he looks away quickly and strides out the door, holding it for her. When she grabs her things and heads out the door, he strides away without a word.
"Good Night." She turns away quickly heading for the common room. He stops when he is out of sight, sighing. During breakfast the next day, her mind is preoccupied as Ron and Harry join her. She pulls out a book and pretends to read. She's felt strange all night. She looks over at the Gryffindor table and Malfoy is staring at her too. She turns away.
"What is he looking at?" Ron glares at Malfoy while he witnesses the encounter between him and Hermione. "Prat." He mutters and returns to eating his breakfast. Hermione looks up again, but Draco is looking up at the ceiling now. Hermione writes a letter to her parents and heads to the Owlery to send it. As she crosses the bridge, she passes Pansy Parkinson and her gaggle of horrible Slytherin followers.
"Goodness, look at her hair. Filthy, that girl is." She said loudly enough that Hermione could hear her. She walked quickly across the path and up the stairs to the owlery. She found a school bird, petted it and tied the letter to his leg, watching him go free. Suddenly she wasn't alone, Malfoy was climbing in through one of the windows while Hermione looked at him confused. His face looked surprised to see her. She turned away and headed for the stairs. He took after her quickly but said nothing when he reached her. Hermione remained at the base of the owlery, waiting for him to leave. She didn't want to pass by Pansy again, while Draco was within close proximity, but he didn't leave.
"Do you need something?" She asked him. She waited, but his hands were in his robes and he stared at his feet.
"I wanted to explain something." He finally said, but it became a whisper when he saw other students approaching. He pulled her towards some trees where they could not be seen.
"What are you doing?" She could hear the other students passing now, making their way up to the owlery. "What do you want to explain?" She asked him confused.
"I just want you to understand why we can't be friends." He said and she was taken back. "It's just not done. People like us don't end up friends. No one would like it." He said.
"It's alright Draco, I don't need you to explain that to me. I understand, it's just an assignment." She reassured him.
"If it could be different-" He started. "Nevermind." He said and walked away leaving her there alone. She stood there for a few minutes confused. He looked as conflicted as she felt. Draco Malfoy and Hermione Granger could not be friends. He was a Slytherin and she was a Gryffindor. It didn't matter that they had things in common. He was horrible to her and her friends. He went out of his way to hurt them. Harry and Ron would never accept it, Not to mention his Slytherin Friends. But he had thought it important enough to think he owed her an explanation as to why they couldn't be friends. She walked out and onto the bridge once again. Pansy was so distracted by Draco joining her there, that she did not notice when Hermione walked past. She did however notice when Draco's eyes watched Hermione as she walked past them.