A/N: I hope they don't seem out of character or anything… but if they do its probably b/c they're like, 17 now and are going to be different then they were at 15 (like Hermione being more confident.)
Chapter 3- The Unexpected
Hermione was lying on her bed, trying to get some homework done. It had been three days since she had given Draco the Veritaserum, and although she had made a point to be nice to Draco, she could tell he wasn't ready to extend the same courtesy to her. In fact, he had been acting more complacent than ever. Annoyed that she couldn't get any of her homework done when her mind drifted to Malfoy she pulled his book out of her draw. She had found it extremely interesting to read since it was a book of muggle short stories that changed every time you opened the book and at the end, the theme became obvious to whatever was going on in your life at the moment. "No wonder Draco was pissed when I took it," she thought, as she concentrated hard on his face and opened the book to the first story.
The story was "Soldier's Home" by Ernest Hemingway, and although it seemed irrelevant to Draco, Hermione considered maybe the father-son relationship in the story is similar to Draco's with Lucius. If Lucius were a dictator Hermione could see why Draco would become a spy. Malfoy's don't like taking crap from other people. "Where the Hell did he get this book?" she wondered aloud.
"None of your business, Granger." Draco said as he entered her room, his eyes flashing. A blush rose to Hermione's cheeks but she quickly controlled herself. Draco noticed how cute she looked when she was flustered.
"Try to remember it this time, ok?" Hermione said, standing up and offering the book to Draco, who smiled sweetly. Hermione rolled her eyes and turning too quickly, consequently tripping over Crookshanks.
With seeker-like quickness, Draco caught her in his arms before she hit the floor. She didn't move, noticing how strong his arms were, and how muscular his stomach was. Suddenly realizing what she was thinking Hermione jerked out of his arms, the flash of surprise in Draco's eyes was quickly covered with his trademark sneer.
"Watch where your going, Mudblood." He said, and stalked out of the room with the book in hand.
~
Hermione was pacing her room. "Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god!" she thought frantically. "What is wrong with me? Why the hell am I thinking of Draco that way? Sure he's not a death eater, but he's still an arrogant asshole! What is wrong with me?"
Draco could hear Hermione's pacing and smirked. He however was filled with anxiety of his own. "Why did I catch her?" he thought. "And why didn't I want to let go? It's not like I'm falling for the Mudblood… right? What is wrong with me?!"
That night Hermione wandered down to the common room that linked the Slytherin dorm to the Gryffindor's. Draco was sitting by the fire, reading, so Hermione sat down at the table and pulled her work towards her. She started her transfiguration essay first, since it was due next week. After a couple of minutes though, her eyes slid involuntarily towards the spot where Draco was sitting. As she glanced, his eyes moved up to meet hers, and they stared at each other. All of a sudden there was a knock on the door, and professor McGonagall quickly stepped into the room.
"Hello Miss Granger, Mr. Malfoy." She said briskly.
"Hello Professor McGonagall." They replied in unison.
"First of all, Mr. Malfoy, you are not allowed to take house points off of Gryffindors just because you don't like them. If this continues, you will be suspended from your Head Boy duties and privileges, understand?" Hermione couldn't suppress a grin as she watched Draco nod his head. "Secondly," she continued, "there is a winter ball coming up in December. You will both plan this and will have to open it together. Sorry Ms. Granger." She added she added after a moment of reflection. "The next Hogsmede trip is tomorrow, so I suggest you start shopping for the ball. Miss Granger, the headmaster would like to see you in his office first thing tomorrow too. I believe that is all. Have a good evening." She then turned, and left the common room.
Hermione turned to Draco. "You took off house points because you didn't like the person?" she said in wonder. "Then again, you did when you acted as Umbridge's lap dog, so I guess I can see why that would make you feel special."
Draco laughed. "It was only your precious pot-head and weasel," he said.
Hermione suddenly laughed too. "You know," she said, "your not as tough as you think you are."
Draco looked at her sharply. "What did you ask me when you gave me the Veritaserum?"
Hermione stopped laughing but there was still sparkle in her eyes. "If I tell you," she said, "you have to tell me what you asked." With a smirk firmly planted on his face, he agreed.
After Hermione told him what she had asked him and what he answered, Malfoy looked at her thoughtfully. "I know you would not tell anyone." He said, and that was it. After a few awkward moments pause, Hermione made him tell her what he had asked her. After he explained Hermione burst out laughing.
"Why on earth would you care what was going on between me and Ron?" noticing that by this point he was no longer sitting by the fire, but on the couch right next to her.
"Because I care." He said mockingly, but with a note of panic in his voice. Suddenly he leaned forward and gently pressed his lips against her.
Hermione was caught completely by surprise by the kiss, but instead of moving away, she moved in closer. "What am I doing?" she screamed in her head, as she felt his tongue enter her mouth as he deepened the kiss. But all of a sudden she didn't care. All she cared about were his lips on hers, and his strong arms circling her back, drawing her closer to him…
~
Draco didn't know why he did it. One moment he was talking to her about being a spy for Dumbledore, and the next he, a Malfoy, couldn't control his sudden strong feelings for the girl next to him. She just looked so beautiful sitting there, with her golden brown hair pulled back into a loose bun, her almond-shaped eyes so deep and caring, the way her body shook as she laughed. He had never been overcome with caring emotions so intensely before and just did what felt right at the moment, even if it meant going against all the generations of Malfoy's had believed in. Then again… he thought, its not like this will be the first time I disgrace the name.
~
After a few minutes they broke apart, each eyeing the other warily. Finally Hermione spoke.
"What was that for?" she said, slightly accusingly and confused. It was her voice that had grounded Draco. He couldn't ever let this get out. The whole plan with Dumbledore would be ruined if someone like Pansy wrote to his father commenting on his new feelings to the mudblood, and all would be ruined.
Draco smirked and turned away before she could catch any emotion on his face. Getting up, he composed himself and turned, his face blank of all emotion besides amusement. "If I had imagined it would have taken only one kiss to steal the Mudblood from The-Boy-Who-Wouldn't-Die, I wouldn't have even bothered."
Turning to his dormitory, Draco left Hermione in the common room, he body shaking with fury. Suddenly feeling a sudden surge of pain in his head not even comparative to his worst headaches he staggered, and clutching his head, turned to look at the girl's stony face, dislike etched into every line of it. Then as if suddenly coming out of a trance, he watched her eyes widened and she turned briskly and entered her dormitory, without a backward glance.
A/N: ok I still have like 5 more chapters written out just not typed out so if you wanna know what happens your going to have to motivate me to type them up by clicking the little "review" button. Thanks!