Teehee, thank you to all who reviewed! And, yes, I knew it was unbearably
predictable, but I was very much trying to come up with an idea about
Harry/Draco that hasn't been done before. BTW, much credit goes to my
sister, Nanaki, who helped me come up with this.
The next morning found Hermione wondering how to go about getting Harry and Draco together without making it painfully obvious. She had already looked through no less that five physcology books which assured her that when two people are in love, they tend to fight a lot.
So the feelings were there, Hermione decided, it was getting them to come up that needed to be worked on. Unfortunately, out of the ten books she skimmed through, none of them had info on how to hook up your best friend and his worst enemy.
"What in the world could you be studying already, Hermione??" came Harry's incredulous voice.
"Oh, just some light reading," replied Hermione, though she jumped a little, and shut the book quickly. "Come on, though, let's go get something to eat; I'm starving."
"Ummm, ok," replied Harry. "Shouldn't we wait for Ron? He'll be down in a minute."
"Yes, yes," said Hermione, hoping Harry didn't notice how flustered she was. You would be flustered too, if you were talking to the friend whom you were trying to set up.
"So what classes do we have today?" said Harry, partially to himself, partially to Hermione, as he dug around in his bag for his schedule. "Ah, transfiguration, and then herbology this morning, potions - great - this afternoon." Harry rolled his eyes.
"Well, the transfiguration will be fun. Plus, it'll be different to have all sorts of people together, especially from different years! Just think, Harry, we'll get to broaden our horizons and think of things in ways we never would have before." Hermione tried to drop a hint without sounding too obvious.
"Ah, I suppose. I guess with all sorts of people representing their houses, we'll get a view on everything from a Ravenclaw point of view, a Hufflepuff point of view. . . yeah, it could be pretty interesting."
"Exactly Harry," replied Hermione, scowling nonetheless, as Harry didn't get the hint. 'This will be so much easier if I can tell whether Harry likes guys or not!'
Ron chose this moment to come downstairs. "Hey," he said, "Let's go eat breakfast; I'm starving."
Harry nodded, and the three of them made their way to the hall. Hermione noticed that already, the students were sitting in groups different than their houses and their years. 'That's good. If the students are mingling, it'll be easier to talk to Malfoy . . . but how in the world can I get him to go out with Harry . . . '
Hermione thought, and thought, and thought.
"Hey! Hermione! Breakfast is over!" Harry waved his hand in front of her face, and she jumped a little.
"Yeah, we're going to be late for Transfiguration!" Ron added, grinning, since he knew exactly why Hermione was so deep in thought.
"oh, right!" Hermione said, jumping up and grabbing her bag, "Come on, I don't want to be late!" She tore off, practically running out the hall.
"She's right," Harry said, "Best not to be late on the first day." And he and Ron tore down the hall after her.
~~~
'Hmmmm, I wonder if anyone will organize a game of truth or dare sometime, maybe tonight,' thought Hermione, 'I wonder how many times people will do that.'
Hermione watched Harry and Draco closely (Having arrived late, they no pick of the seats, and Harry had to sit next to Draco). They would keep snipping at each other, but now that Hermione had thought about it, they sort of did look at each other . . . in that way.
'If only they knew!'
"Hermione?"
Hermione jumped a little again, and looked at Professor Mcgonagall, blushing a little. "Sorry, professor, could you repeat the question?" She looked rather embarrassed for not have been paying attention.
"I asked if you could show us the Swapping Spell that I showed you last year," said Professor Mcgonagall.
"Certainly, sorry," Hermione said, walking to the front and apologizing for not paying attention.
"No problem," muttered Mcgonagall, quietly. It was the first and only time Hermione had ever NOT paid attention. "Go ahead," She added louder. "And please explain how the Swapping Spell is different from a Switching Spell."
Hermione nodded. "Ok," she began, "You all know how a Switching Spell can switch simple things such as . . ." She went into a detailed explanation, ending up by swapping Harry's desk and Professor Mcgonagall's desks and then swapping them back.
Everyone, including a slightly disgruntled Draco (Well, he hated not being first!) and a happy Harry (the desk came with the comfy chair), applauded her.
Hermione smiled and sat down.
"That was bloody brilliant!" Ron said excitedly. Transfiguration was defiantly one of his favorite subjects, even if he wasn't the best at it.
"Thanks," grinned Hermione. 'Now, where was I with Harry and Draco?'
~~~
It was, perhaps, a very good thing that Hermione's extra classes were only on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, as she did not pay very much attention in her other classes at all. Luckily, they had only History of Magic and Charms, and mostly it was just a curriculum outline type of day.
At dinner, Hermione drifted off into her thoughts again, but only for a few minutes before Harry said, "Hey Hermione, what's with you today? You've been distant all day. You ok?"
Hermione nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just been thinking about how this is going to work out." She paused, mentally scolding herself for almost giving away what she was thinkg about. "You know, this being so mixed and stuff. I'm afraid I'll get behind."
Ron decided to help her out some, "Oh, you don't need to worry, Hermione, I'm sure you'll be at the top of all of you classes, even if there are 5th years in some of our classes!"
"Yeah, I suppose you're right," sighed Hermione, and Ron had to hand it to her; she played the part perfectly. Harry would never suspect a thing!
"Would you believe!" Seamus' voice cut through the noise, and many people turned to look at him. "Dumbledore is actually encouraging us to stay up late and get to know each other."
'Now or never, Hermione,' she thought to herself, and spoke up, "I think that's a grand idea!" She paused, ready to gauge reactions. Would she ever suggest this had she not had to set up Harry and Draco? Huh, close to call. "We could, um, play truth or dare or something," she finished, lamely.
"Ah! The great Hermione didn't suggest a spell-a-thon! Truth or dare, I like that!" Seamus grinned.
"So, what do you all say?" chimed in Melissa, a 7th year with dark brown hair, "I like the idea!"
Hermione stopped for a minute, and looked down the table. There were at least forty students total. All of them playing at once would be, well, disastrous. Time for some more quick thinking.
"There's rather a lot of us," Hermione said, "I suggest we maybe play in three groups so that everyone can get a turn. And to mix people up, we can pull names out of a hat!"
"Brilliant!" said Ron, quick to agree with Hermione. The other Gryffindors quickly agreed, and soon the rest of the 4th years did, and pretty soon everyone was content with the idea.
'Of course,' thought Hermione, 'The pulling the names out of a hat will have to be slightly . . . fixed . . .'
She hummed happily to herself and ate her dinner, waiting excitedly for the night to come so that she could put plan a in motion.
Of course, the hard part was everything after that.
~~~
"Bloody homework! On the first day!" said Ron unhappily. Though many would have preferred to skip homework and go right to games, Hermione reminded them that Dumbledore wouldn't let them do this if they didn't get their homework down.
"Just think, though, tomorrow we have Divination, fun fun," sighed Harry.
"I don't get you two, why don't you just drop it and take Arithmacy like I'm going to next year?" Hermione said, shaking her head.
"Well, at least Divination is easy," replied Ron, recalling the Runes and symbols Hermione had shown him when she had found an Arithmacy book in the library.
"Ok, that's enough homework!" said Seamus loudly, closing his Transfiguration book, "Let's get divided into groups now!"
Hermione was one of the first to agree, much to Harry's (but not Ron's) surprise.
The next morning found Hermione wondering how to go about getting Harry and Draco together without making it painfully obvious. She had already looked through no less that five physcology books which assured her that when two people are in love, they tend to fight a lot.
So the feelings were there, Hermione decided, it was getting them to come up that needed to be worked on. Unfortunately, out of the ten books she skimmed through, none of them had info on how to hook up your best friend and his worst enemy.
"What in the world could you be studying already, Hermione??" came Harry's incredulous voice.
"Oh, just some light reading," replied Hermione, though she jumped a little, and shut the book quickly. "Come on, though, let's go get something to eat; I'm starving."
"Ummm, ok," replied Harry. "Shouldn't we wait for Ron? He'll be down in a minute."
"Yes, yes," said Hermione, hoping Harry didn't notice how flustered she was. You would be flustered too, if you were talking to the friend whom you were trying to set up.
"So what classes do we have today?" said Harry, partially to himself, partially to Hermione, as he dug around in his bag for his schedule. "Ah, transfiguration, and then herbology this morning, potions - great - this afternoon." Harry rolled his eyes.
"Well, the transfiguration will be fun. Plus, it'll be different to have all sorts of people together, especially from different years! Just think, Harry, we'll get to broaden our horizons and think of things in ways we never would have before." Hermione tried to drop a hint without sounding too obvious.
"Ah, I suppose. I guess with all sorts of people representing their houses, we'll get a view on everything from a Ravenclaw point of view, a Hufflepuff point of view. . . yeah, it could be pretty interesting."
"Exactly Harry," replied Hermione, scowling nonetheless, as Harry didn't get the hint. 'This will be so much easier if I can tell whether Harry likes guys or not!'
Ron chose this moment to come downstairs. "Hey," he said, "Let's go eat breakfast; I'm starving."
Harry nodded, and the three of them made their way to the hall. Hermione noticed that already, the students were sitting in groups different than their houses and their years. 'That's good. If the students are mingling, it'll be easier to talk to Malfoy . . . but how in the world can I get him to go out with Harry . . . '
Hermione thought, and thought, and thought.
"Hey! Hermione! Breakfast is over!" Harry waved his hand in front of her face, and she jumped a little.
"Yeah, we're going to be late for Transfiguration!" Ron added, grinning, since he knew exactly why Hermione was so deep in thought.
"oh, right!" Hermione said, jumping up and grabbing her bag, "Come on, I don't want to be late!" She tore off, practically running out the hall.
"She's right," Harry said, "Best not to be late on the first day." And he and Ron tore down the hall after her.
~~~
'Hmmmm, I wonder if anyone will organize a game of truth or dare sometime, maybe tonight,' thought Hermione, 'I wonder how many times people will do that.'
Hermione watched Harry and Draco closely (Having arrived late, they no pick of the seats, and Harry had to sit next to Draco). They would keep snipping at each other, but now that Hermione had thought about it, they sort of did look at each other . . . in that way.
'If only they knew!'
"Hermione?"
Hermione jumped a little again, and looked at Professor Mcgonagall, blushing a little. "Sorry, professor, could you repeat the question?" She looked rather embarrassed for not have been paying attention.
"I asked if you could show us the Swapping Spell that I showed you last year," said Professor Mcgonagall.
"Certainly, sorry," Hermione said, walking to the front and apologizing for not paying attention.
"No problem," muttered Mcgonagall, quietly. It was the first and only time Hermione had ever NOT paid attention. "Go ahead," She added louder. "And please explain how the Swapping Spell is different from a Switching Spell."
Hermione nodded. "Ok," she began, "You all know how a Switching Spell can switch simple things such as . . ." She went into a detailed explanation, ending up by swapping Harry's desk and Professor Mcgonagall's desks and then swapping them back.
Everyone, including a slightly disgruntled Draco (Well, he hated not being first!) and a happy Harry (the desk came with the comfy chair), applauded her.
Hermione smiled and sat down.
"That was bloody brilliant!" Ron said excitedly. Transfiguration was defiantly one of his favorite subjects, even if he wasn't the best at it.
"Thanks," grinned Hermione. 'Now, where was I with Harry and Draco?'
~~~
It was, perhaps, a very good thing that Hermione's extra classes were only on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, as she did not pay very much attention in her other classes at all. Luckily, they had only History of Magic and Charms, and mostly it was just a curriculum outline type of day.
At dinner, Hermione drifted off into her thoughts again, but only for a few minutes before Harry said, "Hey Hermione, what's with you today? You've been distant all day. You ok?"
Hermione nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just been thinking about how this is going to work out." She paused, mentally scolding herself for almost giving away what she was thinkg about. "You know, this being so mixed and stuff. I'm afraid I'll get behind."
Ron decided to help her out some, "Oh, you don't need to worry, Hermione, I'm sure you'll be at the top of all of you classes, even if there are 5th years in some of our classes!"
"Yeah, I suppose you're right," sighed Hermione, and Ron had to hand it to her; she played the part perfectly. Harry would never suspect a thing!
"Would you believe!" Seamus' voice cut through the noise, and many people turned to look at him. "Dumbledore is actually encouraging us to stay up late and get to know each other."
'Now or never, Hermione,' she thought to herself, and spoke up, "I think that's a grand idea!" She paused, ready to gauge reactions. Would she ever suggest this had she not had to set up Harry and Draco? Huh, close to call. "We could, um, play truth or dare or something," she finished, lamely.
"Ah! The great Hermione didn't suggest a spell-a-thon! Truth or dare, I like that!" Seamus grinned.
"So, what do you all say?" chimed in Melissa, a 7th year with dark brown hair, "I like the idea!"
Hermione stopped for a minute, and looked down the table. There were at least forty students total. All of them playing at once would be, well, disastrous. Time for some more quick thinking.
"There's rather a lot of us," Hermione said, "I suggest we maybe play in three groups so that everyone can get a turn. And to mix people up, we can pull names out of a hat!"
"Brilliant!" said Ron, quick to agree with Hermione. The other Gryffindors quickly agreed, and soon the rest of the 4th years did, and pretty soon everyone was content with the idea.
'Of course,' thought Hermione, 'The pulling the names out of a hat will have to be slightly . . . fixed . . .'
She hummed happily to herself and ate her dinner, waiting excitedly for the night to come so that she could put plan a in motion.
Of course, the hard part was everything after that.
~~~
"Bloody homework! On the first day!" said Ron unhappily. Though many would have preferred to skip homework and go right to games, Hermione reminded them that Dumbledore wouldn't let them do this if they didn't get their homework down.
"Just think, though, tomorrow we have Divination, fun fun," sighed Harry.
"I don't get you two, why don't you just drop it and take Arithmacy like I'm going to next year?" Hermione said, shaking her head.
"Well, at least Divination is easy," replied Ron, recalling the Runes and symbols Hermione had shown him when she had found an Arithmacy book in the library.
"Ok, that's enough homework!" said Seamus loudly, closing his Transfiguration book, "Let's get divided into groups now!"
Hermione was one of the first to agree, much to Harry's (but not Ron's) surprise.