You didn't know that Harry Potter, the boy who lived is mine?
I thought that you knew better than that! I've had him all the time!
What? You call me a liar and thief! J.K. Rowling's on the phone?
You're right of course, for he's not mine, and I better send him home!
Author's Note: Greetings friends! I just wanted to tell you guys to keep your eyes open for anything that you might notice about the story. Little details that might be interesting. Don't put them in your reviews though. Write them down on a piece of paper and keep them nearby if you want, but don't put them in your reviews. I'm going to have a trivia section after I'm finished the story with a list of facts and similarities, to see if you guys picked up on little things in the story. Kind of like when you find out "Behind the Scenes" stuff about your favorite movie. I'm gonna do that. Oh, and I'm sorry that this chapter isn't very long. It's one of those chapters that is slow moving to keep the piece making sense.Anway, enjoy, and don't forget to review!
Chapter Seven: Insomnia
Hermione sighed as she dropped her bag on the floor, and climbed onto her bed. It was already warm and felt comfortable. Hermione lay down, facing the ceiling, practically listening to the softness and comfort call her name, attempting to convince her that it was time to go to bed already. But she wasn't tired. Her mind was working overtime, and her body was awake as well. She sighed again, thinking about the train ride to Hogwarts. Interesting didn't even begin to describe it. She caught herself smiling as she pictured Draco and her in the hall of the car after each of their little "mishaps". She had thought that a change in looks might be interesting, allowing her to find out more than she was supposed to know.
She had been shocked when she had heard Draco's story, and had almost blown her cover when she tried to sympathize with him. She'd had no idea what he had gone through in his childhood, and now understood why his actions towards her, Harry, and Ron had always been so cold and unfeeling. Because that was the way he had been brought up.
Hermione had also been surprised at how he had almost if not succeeded, in praising the three of them. Hermione had been shocked at what he had thought of her. Oh, of course she knew that Ron and Harry would be nothing without her. But to hear her worst enemy praise her and express her own thoughts and feelings? That was just too Twilight Zone.
She laughed as the thought of the verbal sparring that had occurred between her and Draco with regards to their movies. She had been nothing less than shocked to find out that he enjoyed movies as much as, if not more, than her. She had been watching movies all her life, memorizing those lines that had become her personal favourites. But for Draco to know the same films? That was just too much.
Hermione sighed as her smile was replaced with a frown. She knew it had all been too good to be true. He had treated her just as he always had when she ran into him coming out of the bathroom. Oh, of course she knew that he was just covering up to save face, but the words still hurt, as though the moments before in the car hadn't happened. Then Hermione had to remind herself that the moments in the car hadn't happened. Because she wasn't "there". And as soon as Hermione had had the opportunity to snap back at Malfoy, she would. She was angry that she had learned so much truth and had to hide it all behind her lie. But it didn't matter. Everything that she had learned was as much a lie of his as the secret she was carrying inside of her. She thought back to earlier on, soon after dinner at Hogwarts.
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Hermione tried to answer all of Harry's and Ron's questions for her about the summer. No matter how hard she tried though, her mind was still on Draco, the train ride here, and the look he gave her after her Dirty Harry reference that almost blew her cover. She knew that he wasn't going to let that one sit. As far as she knew, he was smitten with Jim, and anything that he could think of that could in some way or another tie to her was going to be examined and double-checked. Hermione knew that she had learned things about Draco that she never would have if he knew it was her, but she still felt horrible, and a small part wished that she had never done it in the first place.
"Hermione!" a voice shot her out of her reverie. She turned to Harry who was about to attempt hauling his huge trunk up the stairway to the Gryffindor common room. She shrugged.
"What?"
"You okay?" Harry asked, looking slightly concerned. "You looked like you completely sold all of your real estate here and moved to Dreamland."
She laughed. "Well, that was a mouthful, wasn't it?"
Harry laughed and mocked her shrug. "Yeah, well, excuse me for trying to be a little more daring with my vocabulary."
She laughed again and motioned to his trunk. "Do you want some help with that?"
Harry smiled. "I wouldn't mind it."
Hermione grabbed one end. "Good, then I didn't sell all of my real estate for nothing!"
The two made it up the stairs and into the Common Room to find Ron sitting on a red velvet couch, waiting. When the two of them entered, he jumped up.
"Hey, there you two are! I've been waitin' forever!" he said, taking Hermione's end of Harry's trunk and helping him with it, the two of them placing it next to the Boy's dormitory stairway.
"I can't believe you're not going to be staying with us this year," said Ron. "I mean, it's our last year, 'mione!"
Hermione smiled at him. "I know, but I'm the head girl, and I have to set a good example. I mean, what would the students say if I was sleeping in the dormitory every night with two boys?"
"They'd call her lucky!" said Ron to Harry, not even trying to lower his voice from Hermione. She let out a sarcastic groan and gave each of them a hug.
"I'll see you guys later. I have to get to Dumblefore's office to receive instructions," she said, heading for the door.
The two of them waved. "Have fun! See you tomorrow, okay?"
Hermione nodded. "Usual table for breakfast?"
The two smiled. "Count on it," Harry said.
Hermione left the Common Room, heading towards Dumbledore's office. She had just reached the door and was about to go in when she heard a voice behind her.
"Well, well Granger. Fancy seeing you here."
Hermione sighed and turned around. "Unlike the experience you just stated, it isn't fancy to see you, Malfoy."
Draco snickered. "For you anyway."
"Well, yes for me. And any other living and breathing creature on the planet who will come in contact with you during the course of your life."
Draco opened his arms, as though to embrace her. "Now now Granger, what could you possibly know about my life?"
Hermionie bit her tongue, forcing the most obvious comeback back into her brain to come out with another one. "About your life? All I know is that it should be nice and long, about the distance that you and I should have between each other if we're going to be Head Boy and Girl this year."
For a moment Draco looked stunned, his brain appearing to try and find a response. Hermione turned back to the door when she heard his voice again.
"How did you know about Dirty Harry?"
Hermione's heart stopped. For an instant, she wanted to tell him everything, but even she knew that it wouldn't be a smart idea. She turned to him.
"As you are constantly reminding me, Malfoy, I am a mudblood. Movies and film happen to be my domain and hobby. The question is, how do you know what Dirty Harry is?" Hermione spat out, her anger being fueled by the heart that was hurting. She knew that he wasn't going to let it go. He was a Malfoy; they didn't let anything go. The pain of her torment from him calling her a "mudblood" resurfaced.
Once again, Malfoy was stunned. Hermione didn't wait for a reply. She spun around and knocked on the door three times. Professor McGonagall answered, and Hermione entered, Draco following silently behind.
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Dumbledore had instructed them to go to their dormitory and get unpacked. He would give them complete details the next morning. Hermione had listened to every word, forgetting Draco was even in the room. Her encounter with him had made one thing quite clear. Jim had done nothing to change him. He hadn't meant anything of what he had said. Life would go back to the way it had been for the past seven years; the way it had always been. Hermione would pretend that she hadn't learned a single thing about the life of Draco Malfoy, and he would go back to his life... whatever that was...
Hermione put her hands under her head and stared up at the ceiling. "Fasten your seatbelts, it's going to be a bumpy night."
*********
Draco couldn't sleep.
He lay there awake, trying to listen to the silence that currently inhabited his room, enveloped in the darkness that had welcomed itself into the castle. He still couldn't relax. And he knew why. His life had been turned upside down today, and he didn't even know where to start thinking. So many events to sort through, so many thoughts. He decided to start at the most recent one.
Hermione Granger.
He smiled to himself as he remembered running into her in the hall outside of Dumbledore's office. He thought that this was his chance to try and redeem himself, try to mend what six years had damaged. The insulting, the taunting... he was ready to put it all behind him. But when Granger had started really heaping the insults, he couldn't help himself. How do you break the habits that six years of anger and seventeen years of hate have enforced in you. He had decided to stop.
But then something triggered a memory of Jim in him. He remembered when Jim had been upset at him for shooting his mouth off at Potter. She'd had this certain look in her eyes, like she was upset, but clearly battling with sadness at the same time. Battling with something... Granger had looked the same way that Jim had looked. Then Draco had remembered Hermione's comment about Dirty Harry. He knew that it was impossible, but he had needed to know. He had needed answers.
Draco rolled over, cursing himself for even bringing it up. Granger had made a fool out of him. She had humiliated him, even if it was only in the presence of her. It made him bring out the worst in him. But most of all was what it made him want.
Draco slid under the covers and shut his eyes, ignoring the feeling he had gotten as he had watched Jim leave the train, and Hermione leave him behind as she entered Dumblefore's office.
It hadn't made him want Hermione. It hadn't made him want a secnd chance.
He wanted the one thing that he knew he would never find again. He knew it when she had stepped off the train.
Jim.
He wanted her back.
Draco sighed and placed his hands under his head, staring up at the ceiling. He chuckled sadly. "Fasten your seatbelts, it's going to be a bumpy night."
*****
Author's Note: Ah ha ha... okay, I know for a fact that this is not the best chapter that I have written so far, but it's one of those chapters where all of the action is mental. Anyway, don't forget to review please!!! PLEASE!!! Okay, enough begging for now. I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, even slightly... the next one will be better, I promise. I tend to rant when I have to write someone's thoughts, so please forgive me. But review anyway... and send me cookies. Yeah, I like cookies.
Roses are red
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I'll send you a boquet
If you would review!!!
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To My Reviewers:
Girl-named-Belle:
MysticalRing: Dance! You should dance! You are very smart! Woo-hoo for you! By the way, you can never be weird. No one can possibly be weirder than me. And you're welcome about me not keeping you waiting. I don't like to be kept waiting, and I expect that others are the same way. And I'm also glad that you will always like my story! But I still hope that you will always like it, because at times I know that I can't stand what I'm writing! Thanks so much for reviewing!
hermione: Woo-hoo! Favourites list! You know what comes after getting on the favourites list? Champagne... dinner without reservations... getting to go to Hollywood! Can you tell that I'm excited now? Thank you so much! I'm glad you like my poems. I'm trying to make each poem different, although in two of them I have the same Disclaimer poem. I just find it tedious after a while when you try to make the same Disclaimer funny every time. How many times can you admit that you don't own something? Anyway, thanks so much for your review!
PsYcHoJo: Ahhh, men pmsing... I should write a paper on that... Anyway, the reason that Draco didn't realize it was Hermione was because she looked like someone else. She drank a potion that would change her back to herself. And you're right, Draco and Harry usually wouldn't be civil to each other, but I figured since they're 17-18 years old, they might want to try some manners... plus you can tell their hearts sort of aren't in it on either side. Good questions though. Thanks for reviewing!
fReD AnD GEoRGe WeASleY Are gOdS: I'm glad you guys enjoyed it again. The stuff Hermione was drinking was to change her back to her good old-fashioned self. And you don't need to go to Blockbusters... you'll get enough lines in the future from here. Thanks again for reviewing!
Alexa Donaghy: Ah ha ha! Woo-hoo! You reviewed again! I promise that I will read some of your work. I will make time this week to do that, or at least this weekend. You have my word (which apparantly is worth a lot now on the black market from what I hear...). Anyway, thank you yet again for reviewing. It means the world to me!
julia (juliovicente88@yahoo.com): Nah. I didn't explain that really well I know, and I'm glad you brought it up. You know how there are those people who are slender in the stomach, but have big... rear ends and big busts? Then there are those who are slender but not as big in either place? That was what I was getting at. I hope that makes it a little clearer. If not let me know. Oh, and thank you so much for reviewing!
Columbine: Wow! Thank you soooo much! You have no idea how much that means to me! Especially since I made your day! I think you made my day too with that review! Thank you so much for reviewing, and I hope that you will review for me again soon!
Dreaming One: Thanks you! *bows* I'm glad that Draco and Harry seem as though they've grown up a bit, although boys can be boys, so don't think that they're going to get all chummy yet. I promise that I will try to update as often as I can. I know what it feels like to wait forever for an update, so I try not to do it to others. Thanks for reviewing, and I'm glad you enjoyed it.