AN: Your reviews are amazing! I love how much you guys have invested in this story already. Please stick with me and feel free to continue leaving me your comments and speculations.

Unfortunately, the HP universe is not mine, I'm just playing with the characters in my own re-imagining of what could have happened next...

Lost Souls of Nott Castle

Chapter 10 - Spark

Monday morning Hermione and Draco once again sat in Agent Kimmey's office. As soon as they walked in, her face fell and her shoulders slumped, giving them the distinct impression that she did not want to see them or deal with them. Never mind that it was her job to do so.

"Mr. Malfoy. Miss Granger. I trust no one has attacked the two of you in the last week?" Her voice was mocking. She didn't wait for a response before holding out her hand. "Your wand, Mr. Malfoy."

He handed it over to her, then sat down beside Hermione.

"No attacks this week, Agent Kimmey," Hermione confirmed sweetly, with an emphasis on 'this week'.

"As expected," she answered with a sigh. Then she performed her checks on his wand, nodded her head and handed it back to him. "Everything looks fine, Mr. Malfoy. I'll see you both next Monday."

"Thank you," he said politely as he retrieved his wand.

"Agent Kimmey, you may be aware, but our class was unable to take our NEWT exams on time. Instead, we will be taking them in six weeks." Hermione told the agent. "In the meantime, we will be studying, practicing and preparing for the exams. I trust that will be acceptable usage of charms, spells, etcetera?"

"Miss Granger, I hardly think there will be any dark magic on your NEWT's that Mr. Malfoy will need to practice between now and then." The woman sighed and sank further into her seat.

"We do have a test on Defense Against the Dark Arts, Agent Kimmey. As such, we will need to practice defensive spells."

The agent glared at her for a moment.

"Fine," she ground out through clenched teeth. "I will speak to my superiors and ask their advice on how to handle this. Please refrain from practicing defensive spells until our next meeting."

"Thank you, Agent Kimmey. Have a nice day." Hermione smiled brightly at her and left the office.

Draco walked beside her to the lifts.

"I don't think she likes you very much," he told her as the lift doors shut behind them.

"No, I don't believe she does." If anything, her smile widened as she shrugged her shoulder. "Not many people do."

"That's their loss, isn't it?" He appraised her out of the corner of his eye. His lip quirked up in a smirk when he noticed her cheeks tinged pink at the veiled compliment.

They had well over an hour before they needed to be in Diagon Alley, so they returned home to eat lunch before heading to the bookstore and the apothecary for their first day of work.

"Are you nervous?" She asked as they were eating.

"Not really," he told her. He was, though. Nervous that he would get there and Master Abbott would have changed his mind about hiring him. "Are you?"

"No. I can't imagine that working a register will be that complicated. I'll probably be bored to tears by the end of the day." She laughed, but she really was worried that it would be extremely boring. She liked to keep busy, otherwise her mind tended to wander.

They kept their respective worries to themselves, though, as they both set out on their first foray into the working world.

When Hermione arrived at the bookstore she met with Victoria, the store manager. She was a sharp woman with calculating eyes, dark red hair, and a permanent scowl on her face. She had hired her on a seasonal basis, only until Hogwarts started up in the Fall. The arrangement was perfect. She just needed some income until she had taken her NEWT's and could decide on a career path.

Victoria introduced her to Yvette. A friendly witch that was ten years her senior, Yvette was warm and inviting. She showed Hermione around and regaled her with stories of her three year old daughter as they worked their way through the stockroom.

She was tasked with counting inventory of textbooks needed at Hogwarts in the Fall. It was a tedious task, but it kept her busy for the entire time she was scheduled to be there. She barely had time to be bored at all.

When she arrived back at Nott Castle, she found Theo and Blaise in the library studying charms. She sat at the end of the table and listened to their discussion for a few minutes before joining in.

She found that they welcomed her tips, and even had some of their own to share. By the time Malfoy came in two hours later, she felt like she had mastered the concealment charm they had been working on. They each took turns concealing themselves and each other, then hiding around the room to see if the others could find them. It was, without a doubt, the most fun she had ever had while studying.

When it was her turn to conceal herself, she did. Instead of hiding, though, she stayed in her chair, hiding in plain sight. Theo, Blaise and Draco spread out across the library looking for her. They were looking for several minutes before she felt a shift in the air around her.

Invisible arms circled her shoulders. Her breath caught in her throat.

"Gotcha, Princess," Draco whispered in her ear. "Finite."

She turned her head to face him as the disillusionment charms faded away. She found herself looking deep into his eyes, which were only inches away. Involuntarily, her eyes flickered to his lips, then back to his eyes.

"Oye. Can we eat dinner now, or would you two rather find a room?" Blaise laughed and smacked Draco on the back as he walked past. This only pushed him even closer to her, leaving only centimeters between them.

"Dinner," he said as he straightened up and stepped away from her. "We should get dinner."

She bit her bottom lip and pushed her hair back behind her ears. That was twice now that she thought he might kiss her. This time, they hadn't been drinking. She had to wonder, if Theo and Blaise had not been there, would he have closed the distance between them?

By the time they sat down for dinner, they were all laughing and joking with each other. Hermione smiled to herself as she filled her plate, wondering at the twist of events that brought her to these people who seemed to accept her so easily for who she was, rather than who they wanted her to be.

After dinner, Hermione retired to bed, leaving the three Slytherins to themselves.

"So?" Blaise asked as soon as she was gone.

"So what?" Draco quickly retorted.

"So what is up with you and Granger?" Theo asked.

Draco sighed. Only then did he realize he was still looking out the door where she had disappeared moments before.

"Nothing," he said, shaking his head and turning his focus back to the only friends he had. "There is nothing going on."

Blaise raised his eyebrow.

"Mate, are you sure?"

Was he sure? He hadn't been able to resist putting his arms around her when he had the chance. And he could still smell the light strawberry scent of her hair. And the way she had looked at him...

He shook his head quickly to dispel those thoughts.

"I'm sure."

Theo and Blaise shared a look.

"You know it's okay, right? You're kind of perfect for each other." Theo told him with a shrug of his shoulder.

"Exactly. What's holding you back?" Blaise leaned forward in his chair.

"Are you serious?" He rolled his eyes at both of them. They were worse than teenage girls.

"Please tell me it isn't a blood thing." Theo said quietly.

Draco felt his own blood start to boil. His hand tightened into a fist. His eyes narrowed and he glared at Theo.

"No. It isn't a blood thing," he seethed. He hadn't cared about her lineage for ages.

"Then what? She's kind of hot in a sexy librarian way. She's smart. She's funny." Blaise listed off her finer points, like Draco didn't already know them or something. He knew. He had thought about little else over the last several days.

He also knew that it didn't matter. Their histories were too entwined and none of it was good.

"Do I really need to spell it put for you two? She is a bloody war hero. I am a bloody war criminal that could very well land her in Azkaban if I fuck up again. It would never work." He ran his fingers through his hair and rested his head in his hands

"Besides that," he continued. "She should be with someone like Potter. They make sense. We don't."

The words tasted like ash on his tongue. He didn't want Potter anywhere near her. The look on her face when she told him that he had asked her out flashed through his mind.

"Potter?" Theo laughed. "I don't know, mate. I've never seen her look at Potter the way she was looking at you today."

Secretly he hoped that she would never look at anyone else the way she was looking at him earlier. Despite knowing it would be doomed from the start, he ached to hold her again.

"Maybe someday," he finally admitted quietly. He was thinking in the future, when his probation was over and they didn't have that hanging between them. When he had atoned for his past transgressions against her. When he was sure he could be the man that she deserved.

"Best not wait too long," Blaise advised. "Someone else will make a move sooner or later. You can't expect her to wait for you to get your head out of your arse forever."

He sighed. He wouldn't wait forever, but a little while longer wouldn't hurt.

Hermione stood in the library searching for a particular book. Behind her, she sensed movement. She turned quickly to find Malfoy only meters from her.

He smirked. She laughed as her heart rate accelerated, first from adrenaline thinking there was someone behind her, then from something else as his eyes swept her from head to toe.

He didn't hesitate. He walked right up to her, took her face gently in both hands, and leaned down to kiss her.

His lips were soft but firm as they moved against hers. His hands slipped down her body, circled her waist and spread out across her back, pulling her closer.

She returned his kiss, sliding her hands over his chest and around his neck to pull him closer.

She moaned into his mouth.

Her eyes flew open. Darkness surrounded her. It took her a few moments and a few deep breaths to realize she was in bed and that kiss was nothing more than a dream.

She sat up in bed and ran her hands through her hair as she caught her breath. Her eyes darted to the stone wall that separated her rooms from his. She couldn't help but wonder how the rooms were laid out. Was his bedroom on the other side of that wall?

She groaned to herself. Merlin, she was in trouble. Liking Malfoy would only result in heartbreak.

She slipped on a pair of slippers and wandered downstairs to the kitchen. She started a kettle for tea and cut a small piece of chocolate cake.

Shuffling footsteps behind her alerted her to the fact that she wasn't alone. She turned in time to see Theo stop in the doorway.

"Granger. You know we have elves that will do that for you." Theo mumbled as he stumbled into the kitchen.

"Theo. Did I wake you?" She asked, ignoring his comment about elves.

"No. You didn't." He cut a piece of cake for himself as well. "I don't sleep well at night."

She saw the dark circles under his eyes. She wanted to ask, but bit her tongue. If he wanted to talk about it, he certainly could. She wasn't going to pry, though.

"What are you doing up?" He asked.

"Weird dreams," she said with a small laugh.

"Bad dreams?" He asked.

"No," she sighed. "Not bad. Not this time, anyway."

The tea kettle started to whistle.

"Would you like a cup?" She asked, but she didn't wait for an answer before pouring two cups and carrying them to the small table in the corner.

"Sure," he finally answered with a small laugh. "You know you don't have to wait on me, right?"

"It's just a habit. I feel like I've been taking care of Harry and Ron for years." She shrugged her shoulders.

"Someone needs to take care of you for a change." His blue eyes seemed to pierce through her in that moment.

"Generally speaking, I can take care of myself." She told him, avoiding his gaze.

"You don't have to pay me back, you know. It's my pleasure to have you here." He picked at the cake on his plate and a small smile lit his face. "You're kind of refreshing, you know?"

She laughed and she could feel her cheeks burning.

"Stop it. No I'm not," she rolled her eyes, but the smile remained on her lips.

"You are," he affirmed. "I'm not the only one that thinks so."

She paused with her fork midway to her mouth. Her eyes flicked up to meet his. He was watching her with a knowing glint in his eye.

"Yes, well," she cleared her throat. "I actually find you all refreshing. On the surface, it would seem that I would never fit in here. In reality, I have never felt more welcomed. It sounds stupid, but I feel like I belong here."

Her face was still burning and she avoided his gaze for fear of him mocking her. She was surprised when, instead of laughter he reached over and covered her hand with his.

"You do, Hermione." He assured her. "Can I ask you a question?"

"I guess." She pulled her hand away and took a drink of her tea, holding the cup with both hands.

"What is going on with you and Draco?" He asked.

Her eyes widened and her mouth dropped open in surprise. She had not expected him to ask that.

"Nothing," she told him. "There is nothing going on with me and Malfoy."

Although the dream she had earlier would certainly indicate that she wanted there to be.

He seemed to take her answer at face value as they both sat in silence eating their cake. After a few moments, he spoke again.

"It just seemed like maybe there was something, earlier, in the library." He kept his eyes on his plate, even when she froze momentarily.

When she didn't respond, his eyes made their way slowly to hers.

"No," she choked out finally. "Nothing."

She lowered her fork and pushed her plate away. Her heart was beating so loud she could hear it. Surely he could, too.

"That's kind of a shame," he finally responded as he turned back to the remnants of his dessert. "The two of you would be perfect together."

She released a nervous laugh as the tension in her body drained.

"We are just learning to be friends. That's all." She took in a shaky breath and smiled in what she hoped was a convincing way. "Besides, I'm the girl next door, not the bombshell."

His eyebrow furrowed.

"What are you talking about?"

She gave him a small smile and shook her head.

"I hate to be the one to tell you this, but the thing is, men, in general, do not want to date me." She shrugged her shoulders as though it was a fact that she had come to terms with long ago. "It's not a big deal."

Theo just stared at her. His eyes blinked a few times. He ran his hand through his hair.

"You have no idea how captivating you are, do you?" He asked after a long moment.

"Captivating? Me? No, I don't think so." She laughed at him as she stood from the table, collected their dirty dishes and moved them to the sink.

"Who has been feeding you that rubbish?" He asked, absolutely dumbstruck. "Seriously, were we even in the same library this afternoon? The sparks flying between the two of you could have burned the whole damn place to the ground!"

That gave her pause. Theo had seen it. He had recognized it for what it was. That moment had not been a figment of her imagination after all. She swallowed thickly.

"I'm sure you were mistaken," she told him, although she really hoped she was wrong. "Good night, Theo."

She left him in the kitchen and returned to her room.

Theo watched her go. He wasn't sure whether he should be shocked or amused by her oblivious denial.

AN: For the first time I am using the app on my phone to post, so hopefully it won't mess up the formatting too bad. if it does, I am sorry!