57. . .
58. . .
59. . .
12:14!
Over the past hour, Hermione discovered a very important lesson: watching the clock made time go unbearably slow. Earlier in the evening, she'd attempted to do something constructive. She'd picked up her favorite book, ("Hogwarts, A History") yet even that failed to hold her attention for very long. Around eleven, she'd given up on doing anything and yielded to her desire to watch the clock.
Twisting a piece of brown hair around her finger nervously, she chewed her lip in anticipation. She'd had trouble concentrating on anything but Draco since their "discussion" that evening. With a sigh, her eyes shifted over to the clock, which now read 12:15. Throwing the covers off the bed, she pulled back to curtains quietly and slipped on her shoes. She'd gotten in to bed fully dressed to save herself time, but now she wished she hadn't. It would have given her something to do other than stare at the clock as each minute slowly crept past.
Figuring that being a tad early was never a bad thing, she snuck out of bed and into the Slytherin Common room. Eagerly, she walked out of the dormitories and into the hall. The Astronomy Tower was up quite a few flights of steps, and she was silently thankful that she had left earlier than she had planned. She took a few cautious steps forward as she reached the bottom of the main staircase when she bumped into someone. Or something. Quite frankly, she wasn't sure, since she couldn't see it.
Backing down a bit, she spoke nervously. "Who. . .Who's there?"
There was a rather defeated sigh as she saw a swish of cloth in the air. Hermione blinked once; had that cloak been there a moment ago, before her gaze traveled over to the boy in front of her.
Rolling her eyes, she gave a small smile. "Harry Potter, I should have known." Her tone was slightly teasing. As much as Draco despised the boy in front of her, she'd never found the guts to hate him. He just generally seemed too. . .nice. He had been a bit more quiet and introverted since their return from fifth year, giving him a thoughtful type persona. And as much as she had tried to detest him, for Draco's sake, she couldn't help it. It was hard not to like Harry Potter.
He gave a small shrug, followed by a playful grin. "Invisibility cloak. Very useful for making you invisible, not so much for avoiding running into girls in the middle of the night."
A small laugh escaped her lips as she shifted her weight. She really should have been going, but felt the urge to talk to Harry. It wasn't often they got to chat, since he and Draco weren't exactly on friendly terms. "I haven't talked to you in ages. I suppose I've been a bit. . .preoccupied," she paused, then covered lamely, "with school and all."
Harry shook his head disbelievingly, "Yes, school and Draco Malfoy."
Trying not to look disturbed, Hermione feigned ignorance. "What does this have to do with Draco?"
His fingers played with the silky material of his invisibility cloak as he avoided her gaze. "Well, nothing, except the fact that you're in love with him."
Her eyes widened, and she found herself stuttering. "N-no. . .well, maybe. . .I guess. . .er. . .what I mean to say is. . ."
Putting a finger to his lips, Harry shushed her. "It's okay, Hermione. I'm the only one who's noticed."
Breathing a sigh of relief, her gaze fell to the floor. "Thank you, Harry."
She felt a hand brush her shoulder, but when she looked, there was nothing there. The only thing that betrayed his presence were the light tip toe footsteps as he walked away, and a whispered sentence.
"I'll never understand why they put you in Slytherin."
--
She pondered Harry's statement at great length as she finished the walk to the Astronomy Tower. She was relieved when she found that she was alone. Quietly, she traveled over to the window and looked outside. The grounds were beautiful, highlighted by a pale moon. The word flittered across her mind. Pale. Pale like Draco.
Time began to lengthen again, and she found herself longing for the watch that she'd accidentally left down in the dormitories. Her eyelids were beginning to droop, and her head falling against the cool glass of the window pane when there was suddenly a cool hand on her shoulder. Her sleepy gaze shifted. It was pale. Her voice sounded awkward in the silent room. "Draco?"
"Yes?"
Under his palm, her shoulder stiffened. She hadn't expected him to answer. Usually if she spoke his name he remained silent until she thought of something to talk about. It was when he replied that she worried. "What's wrong?"
He slipped stealthily into the soft light of the beams that were cast through the window, facing her. His overall demeanor was different from usual; he seemed unhappy. While Draco had never been the cheeriest fellow she'd been acquainted with, he had never been classified as "sad". He was more indifferent than anything; sadness was a weakness, so he simply chose not to feel it.
Taking a breath, Hermione tried to drink in as much oxygen as possible. She felt as if she were choking from a lack of communication. She opened her mouth to speak before he interrupted. "Did you know that my father once tried to kill you?"
Blinking in confusion, she shook her head slightly. "N-no. I don't exactly recall that."
Offering a small, listless shrug, he continued. "I don't suspect you would. We were just out of second year, and he was still boiling over the fact that we had become friends in the first place. You were talking to Potter," he spat the name, grimacing slightly, "about what courses he was planning on taking next year, when he drew his wand and said, 'How wonderful. . .two birds with one stone'."
He ignored her wide-eyed expression and continued, "Anyway, I overheard this and at the last moment hit his arm so that it pointed toward the ground. I was punished for it, of course, but it had been worth it."
"You saved my life." She whispered, "Thank you. . ."
Leaning back against the wall, then sliding to a sitting position, his gaze shifted to the stone floor. "Of course I did. You were my friend."
Furrowing her brow she scooted into a position sitting next to him. "I still am your friend." Her pause was deafening, "Did you mean what you said in the common room?"
His voice was so soft she could barely hear him. "Yes."
She nodded slightly, chewing her lip and attempting to think of something to say in her present awkward situation. Turning to face him, she confessed, "Draco, I-"
Gently, he put his finger to her lips to shush her, before saying the one sentence she didn't want to hear.
"Don't, Hermione. Don't."
--
The next morning, Hermione Granger woke up early despite the lack of sleep. She dressed quickly, gathered her books, then went to her head of house, Professor Snape. Her explanation of her visit was short and precise, and Snape quickly directed her to the Headmaster.
Upon entering Dumbledore's office, she sat in the chair across from his desk. The kindly looking old man with intelligently blue eyes gave her an appraising look. "Yes, Miss Granger?"
Taking a deep breath and closing her eyes, Hermione tried to mask the pain she was being caused. "Professor, I would like to be re-sorted."
Disclaimer: Okay, I admit it. Every single word in this chapter are from the Dictionary. You caught me. Haha, get serious, people. I don't own HP, and I never will. A/N: *ducks the flying vegetables* This chapter took longer than I thought it would. I meant it to be out last week, but I had a terrible time deciding how I wanted the tower scene to go. Then when I figured that out the scene with Harry seemed all wrong. Gaah, this story doesn't want to work with me. ;;;
I'm not an author who gives out long lists of thank yous, just because they take forever and I'm a lazy person, but I really REALLY appreciate all of the warm feedback I've received! A big THANK YOU goes out to each and every one of you.
There should only be a few more chapters to this story. I'd say about two or three. Short, yes, but I'm too lazy to make it long. ^^
Thanks to Aria (Penname is "Elluxion", check out her EXCELLENT stories!) for beta-ing. And please r&r!
58. . .
59. . .
12:14!
Over the past hour, Hermione discovered a very important lesson: watching the clock made time go unbearably slow. Earlier in the evening, she'd attempted to do something constructive. She'd picked up her favorite book, ("Hogwarts, A History") yet even that failed to hold her attention for very long. Around eleven, she'd given up on doing anything and yielded to her desire to watch the clock.
Twisting a piece of brown hair around her finger nervously, she chewed her lip in anticipation. She'd had trouble concentrating on anything but Draco since their "discussion" that evening. With a sigh, her eyes shifted over to the clock, which now read 12:15. Throwing the covers off the bed, she pulled back to curtains quietly and slipped on her shoes. She'd gotten in to bed fully dressed to save herself time, but now she wished she hadn't. It would have given her something to do other than stare at the clock as each minute slowly crept past.
Figuring that being a tad early was never a bad thing, she snuck out of bed and into the Slytherin Common room. Eagerly, she walked out of the dormitories and into the hall. The Astronomy Tower was up quite a few flights of steps, and she was silently thankful that she had left earlier than she had planned. She took a few cautious steps forward as she reached the bottom of the main staircase when she bumped into someone. Or something. Quite frankly, she wasn't sure, since she couldn't see it.
Backing down a bit, she spoke nervously. "Who. . .Who's there?"
There was a rather defeated sigh as she saw a swish of cloth in the air. Hermione blinked once; had that cloak been there a moment ago, before her gaze traveled over to the boy in front of her.
Rolling her eyes, she gave a small smile. "Harry Potter, I should have known." Her tone was slightly teasing. As much as Draco despised the boy in front of her, she'd never found the guts to hate him. He just generally seemed too. . .nice. He had been a bit more quiet and introverted since their return from fifth year, giving him a thoughtful type persona. And as much as she had tried to detest him, for Draco's sake, she couldn't help it. It was hard not to like Harry Potter.
He gave a small shrug, followed by a playful grin. "Invisibility cloak. Very useful for making you invisible, not so much for avoiding running into girls in the middle of the night."
A small laugh escaped her lips as she shifted her weight. She really should have been going, but felt the urge to talk to Harry. It wasn't often they got to chat, since he and Draco weren't exactly on friendly terms. "I haven't talked to you in ages. I suppose I've been a bit. . .preoccupied," she paused, then covered lamely, "with school and all."
Harry shook his head disbelievingly, "Yes, school and Draco Malfoy."
Trying not to look disturbed, Hermione feigned ignorance. "What does this have to do with Draco?"
His fingers played with the silky material of his invisibility cloak as he avoided her gaze. "Well, nothing, except the fact that you're in love with him."
Her eyes widened, and she found herself stuttering. "N-no. . .well, maybe. . .I guess. . .er. . .what I mean to say is. . ."
Putting a finger to his lips, Harry shushed her. "It's okay, Hermione. I'm the only one who's noticed."
Breathing a sigh of relief, her gaze fell to the floor. "Thank you, Harry."
She felt a hand brush her shoulder, but when she looked, there was nothing there. The only thing that betrayed his presence were the light tip toe footsteps as he walked away, and a whispered sentence.
"I'll never understand why they put you in Slytherin."
--
She pondered Harry's statement at great length as she finished the walk to the Astronomy Tower. She was relieved when she found that she was alone. Quietly, she traveled over to the window and looked outside. The grounds were beautiful, highlighted by a pale moon. The word flittered across her mind. Pale. Pale like Draco.
Time began to lengthen again, and she found herself longing for the watch that she'd accidentally left down in the dormitories. Her eyelids were beginning to droop, and her head falling against the cool glass of the window pane when there was suddenly a cool hand on her shoulder. Her sleepy gaze shifted. It was pale. Her voice sounded awkward in the silent room. "Draco?"
"Yes?"
Under his palm, her shoulder stiffened. She hadn't expected him to answer. Usually if she spoke his name he remained silent until she thought of something to talk about. It was when he replied that she worried. "What's wrong?"
He slipped stealthily into the soft light of the beams that were cast through the window, facing her. His overall demeanor was different from usual; he seemed unhappy. While Draco had never been the cheeriest fellow she'd been acquainted with, he had never been classified as "sad". He was more indifferent than anything; sadness was a weakness, so he simply chose not to feel it.
Taking a breath, Hermione tried to drink in as much oxygen as possible. She felt as if she were choking from a lack of communication. She opened her mouth to speak before he interrupted. "Did you know that my father once tried to kill you?"
Blinking in confusion, she shook her head slightly. "N-no. I don't exactly recall that."
Offering a small, listless shrug, he continued. "I don't suspect you would. We were just out of second year, and he was still boiling over the fact that we had become friends in the first place. You were talking to Potter," he spat the name, grimacing slightly, "about what courses he was planning on taking next year, when he drew his wand and said, 'How wonderful. . .two birds with one stone'."
He ignored her wide-eyed expression and continued, "Anyway, I overheard this and at the last moment hit his arm so that it pointed toward the ground. I was punished for it, of course, but it had been worth it."
"You saved my life." She whispered, "Thank you. . ."
Leaning back against the wall, then sliding to a sitting position, his gaze shifted to the stone floor. "Of course I did. You were my friend."
Furrowing her brow she scooted into a position sitting next to him. "I still am your friend." Her pause was deafening, "Did you mean what you said in the common room?"
His voice was so soft she could barely hear him. "Yes."
She nodded slightly, chewing her lip and attempting to think of something to say in her present awkward situation. Turning to face him, she confessed, "Draco, I-"
Gently, he put his finger to her lips to shush her, before saying the one sentence she didn't want to hear.
"Don't, Hermione. Don't."
--
The next morning, Hermione Granger woke up early despite the lack of sleep. She dressed quickly, gathered her books, then went to her head of house, Professor Snape. Her explanation of her visit was short and precise, and Snape quickly directed her to the Headmaster.
Upon entering Dumbledore's office, she sat in the chair across from his desk. The kindly looking old man with intelligently blue eyes gave her an appraising look. "Yes, Miss Granger?"
Taking a deep breath and closing her eyes, Hermione tried to mask the pain she was being caused. "Professor, I would like to be re-sorted."
Disclaimer: Okay, I admit it. Every single word in this chapter are from the Dictionary. You caught me. Haha, get serious, people. I don't own HP, and I never will. A/N: *ducks the flying vegetables* This chapter took longer than I thought it would. I meant it to be out last week, but I had a terrible time deciding how I wanted the tower scene to go. Then when I figured that out the scene with Harry seemed all wrong. Gaah, this story doesn't want to work with me. ;;;
I'm not an author who gives out long lists of thank yous, just because they take forever and I'm a lazy person, but I really REALLY appreciate all of the warm feedback I've received! A big THANK YOU goes out to each and every one of you.
There should only be a few more chapters to this story. I'd say about two or three. Short, yes, but I'm too lazy to make it long. ^^
Thanks to Aria (Penname is "Elluxion", check out her EXCELLENT stories!) for beta-ing. And please r&r!