In potions, she didn't bother telling her friends about the secret meetings she had set up with Draco. She knew instantly that they'd go berserk. She also didn't bother saying anything to Draco, because she knew he'd probably not want to be seen talking to her, and that was fine; it've been a long while trying to explain why Malfoy was casually chatting her up about Muggle Study meetings at midnight. As she added a pinch of wolfbane into her cauldron, Malfoy swept by and dropped something upon her desk. She looked around aghast, then placed the parchment under her desk before unfolding it to read:

Hermione-

I've never realized how extremely long your name is to write out. How'd you manage? Anyway, I was thinking about the thing tonight, at midnight. I was wondering if maybe it could be two hours each night, and for about. oh we'll say 3 months. How does that sound? Reply ASAP.

Draco

Hermione blinked in reply. The idea sounded all well, but the fact that he'd decided to bring it up now was just peculiar. So, she got out her quill, dipped it into her ink, and began writing underneath his note.

Draco-

Yes, my name is long, thanks for noticing. It's easier to write out "Mione", if you'd prefer. But OK, 2 hours a night for 3 months sounds just fine. What an odd time to bring up the matter though. Do you really have nothing better to do? Ha.

-Hermione

She folded up the note once more and made sure to conceal it in her hand firmly before crumpling up a piece of parchment and getting out of her seat. She looked around the room guiltily. If Ron knew what she was doing, he'd have gone nuts. "Fraternizing with the Enemy! Hermione, how could you!" Ron's voice shouted in her head. 'Ho hum, he's not the enemy Ron, he's really a nice chap once see him vulnerable.'

Hermione dropped her balled up parchment next to Draco's desk. "Whoops." She mumbled, setting the hand with the note upon his desk as she bent down to grab it. Draco was eyeballing her suspiciously, but when she had walked away, he realized what she had done. Quickly taking the parchment from his desk, he unfolded it and put it in his lap to read. His eyes scanned it three more times before he finally grabbed his quill and quickly jotted down a reply. Then, he folded the parchment back up and stood, looking over to Hermione quickly before making his way toward the front of the classroom. He casually dropped the note onto her desk, then approached Snape's desk.

She unfolded the letter quickly; knowing Snape wouldn't be paying any attention while talking to Draco:

-Mione

Nice, and easier to write. I'll just start calling you that too. Okay, so it's agreed, 2 hours a day, for 3 months. Good, then I'll see you tonight. And about having nothing better to do? This class is an easy "O" for me. Teachers pet. -Draco

She withheld a laugh. He really was funny once he wasn't being offensive. She shrugged her shoulders a little, then scrawled in big letters underneath his reply:

TONIGHT. Oh yeah, and you call ME a teachers pet..

He walked closer to the desks so he could grab her reply on his way out of the classroom. Once he passed her desk, he unfolded the parchment to read her response. Short and simple. He left the dungeon and let out a loud laugh. Finally he was communicating with her, and it wasn't in a stupid "I- hate-you-but-I-love-you" sort of way. He could've skipped down the corridor, having successfully lied his way out of Potions and passing notes with Hermione.

11:30. 'At 11:45', Hermione thought, 'I'll go for the meeting'. "Well... I'm getting no where with this essay." Harry announced after staring at his blank parchment for ten minutes. "Me neither, mate. Hermione?"

"Go ahead and look at mine."

They both gaped at each other, then Ron laughed. "Nice joke Hermione, so does that mean you're not going to help us?" She rolled her eyes, then grabbed her already finished Charms essay and passed it to Harry. "Just don't do it word for word, that'd be too obvious." She said seriously, then turned back to stare at the clock. They both sat with their jaws hanging. "Are you seriously letting us cheat?" Ron said incredulously. She turned to look at him and with a crooked smile replied, "Don't get used to it. I just have somewhere to be at midnight."

"Oho! Secret meetings at midnight? With who, I dare ask?" Harry announced triumphantly.

Hermione blushed. "No one, I'm just helping someone out a little, that's all."

"Helping someone out. Yup, I see it now. Well Hermione, have fun being helpful then, and thanks for the essay." Ron said sarcastically. She grinned and looked back to the clock, which now read 11:40. 'Screw it, I'll go now.' "Don't wait up for me, I'm not going to be back until about two this morning..." she told them as she gathered up her book bag. They nodded in unison, both staring at the page of parchment they were looking over. She nodded once more, looked around the common room, then finally headed out.

Draco was sitting in the Slytherin common room, staring at the clock while Crabbe and Goyle played a game of chess. '11:40' he thought. 'I'll leave in five minutes.' Crabbe groaned in remorse for his bishop, which was being dragged off the board by a knight. "Stupid oaf, why'd you take that one?" he grumbled.

"Because it was there. Now move."

Draco rolled his eyes. 'Screw it, I'll go now.' "Go to bed soon, I won't be around for a couple hours." Crabbe and Goyle looked over at Draco with stupid looks written across their faces. "Where are you going?" Goyle asked as he watched Crabbe's rook move towards a pawn. "No where, just going to meet someone for a couple hours. Won't be back till around two-ish." He said in a tone that implied something completely different than studying. Crabbe and Goyle nodded and laughed quietly. "Parkinson again? Figures, knew she was a dirty little slut." Crabbe replied, sniggering and shaking his head. Draco furrowed his eyebrows. "Why would I meet Parkinson somewhere other than here? Damn Crabbe, I knew you were stupid but really..." he replied in a supercilious tone. He pulled on his school robe and looked back at them. "Don't wait up." He said, then headed out of the common room.

When Draco arrived at the Room of Requirement, Hermione was no where to be seen. "All right, where are you?" he muttered under his breath, looking around nervously. Just then Hermione popped her head out the door. "You can come in you know." She said quietly. He jumped and whirled around to look at her, then sighed with relief as he made his way in. "Scare the hell out of me like that."

"I'm not frightening, you're just jumpy. Sit there." She replied, pointing to a table in the middle of the room. There were shelves with books, and diagrams of muggle contraptions and examples of things. Draco cleared his throat as he sat down in the seat, and a book, parchment, and quill appeared in front of him. She sat down opposite of Draco and smiled. "Welcome to your first Muggle Studying tutor. Open that book to page nineteen." She said, nodding toward the book entitled "Muggles: Ways to live without Magic."

Draco flipped open the book to page nineteen and sighed. There was a diagram of a lightswitch on the page, with text that was about a miniscule big. "You see, Muggles obviously can't use magic... so they've invented a whole lot of things that Wizards would find incredible, if they knew the actual workings behind them. Take the lightswitch for example." Hermione set a faceplate onto the table. "Like this, it looks boring, and trust me... It really is. But once you look behind the plate-" She lifted the plate upward, revealing tons of dangling wires, which were sending sparks when they touched. "All this is what helps make Electricity, without which Muggles would probably never survive."

"So what's electricity?"

"Electricity is everything. It produces lights, and easy cook meals, and loads of other things. It actually comes from 'electrons', which is in an atom and creates a sort of charge... which makes electricity."

"Oh."

"It's a little difficult to understand. I'd show you but... there's no way I could get anything electrical into Hogwarts."

"Why not?"

"Because Hogwarts has enchantments that make anything electric or Muggle used go berserk."

"You know, Mione, you look ravishing in this light."

Hermione blinked. "Ah... well, thank you Draco... Err... Right, so anyway, turn to the next page and-"

"What would you say if I told you I'd like nothing more than to kiss you right now?" He interrupted. She looked around and laughed nervously. "Oh, I don't know, are you going to be hypothetical with me?" she replied, taking the book that was in front of him and flipping through the pages. "Possibly. What would you say?" Draco pressed on, now leaning forward on the table. She stopped flipping pages to look at him, then moved the book and leaned forward onto the table also. "I don't know, I'd have to be in the situation."

"I'd like nothing more than to kiss you right now."

"Then do it."

Before Hermione could say or think otherwise, Draco had leaned across the table and pressed his lips on hers.