Disclaimer: I figure that everybody's figured out by now that J.K. Rowling owns it all. If ya haven't--then I worry about you.

A/N: This is a long chapter, so stick with me! ^_^ Also, I'm updating pretty much daily right now, but I'm going to start back to school in a couple of days, so I'm not sure how often I'll update once school starts again. *is sad* But I will make the effort to update fairly often, so never fear! *trumpets toot*

Hermione woke with a start when her alarm shrieked at her to wake up. She groped blindly for it, and when it wasn't in her easy reach like it usually was, she started to mutter dire threats under her breath. She cracked her eyes open, and saw that daylight was streaming in the windows. She frowned, surprised. Why was it daylight already? Usually it was still dark outside when she woke up. All at once, the events of the past two days flooded back to her, and she sat straight up in her bed, eyes wide.

She looked down at her watch and saw that she had plenty of time to get to Potions. Bless Ginny, she thought in relief. The girl was a miracle worker. Hermione glanced around the room and located the alarm clock and slapped off the alarm. This is getting to be too much of a habit, she thought sourly. Sleeping at all hours, forgetting homework. . .what was next? Just as the thought formed, she blinked it away. Merlin, she thought wearily, I don't even want to think about what could be next.

She rose and washed her face, then pulled her wild hair into a long braid down her back. She didn't see the fragility in her face, or the paleness of her cheeks, but she definitely knew that she wasn't looking her best. But then, why do I care? she asked herself sternly. I'm not trying to impress anyone, especially not today. Involuntarily, her mind flew to Draco, and she nearly groaned aloud when she realized that she would be having Potions with him in just a few minutes. But then, Ron and Harry would be there, she comforted herself. That would lessen the sting of having to be in the same room as Draco.

She gathered up all her books and made her way down to Potions and sat in her seat. Draco was already there. When she walked into class, his eyes flicked up to hers and held for a moment. Her breath strangled in her throat as she stared at him with wide doe eyes. Finally he looked away and laughed at something Blaise had said. Feeling off balance, Hermione sat in her seat and looked down at the table top. Absently, her hand went to her head and massaged one of her temples. She could feel a headache brewing already, and she hadn't even been in class for more than a minute.

Moments later, Ron and Harry plopped down beside her, concern on their faces. "Hey, Mione. You weren't in last class. Are you okay?" Ron asked anxiously, his sharp blue gaze taking in the paleness of Hermione's cheeks and the vestiges of emotional upheaval in her eyes.

Hermione smiled at Ron, feeling some of her burdens lighten on her shoulders. She reached across Harry and squeezed Ron's hand briefly. "I'm fine, Ron. I just wasn't feeling very well."

"Is it--is it. . .that time?" Ron stumbled over his question, his cheeks burning just as red as his hair.

Hermione blinked rapidly. "I beg your pardon?" Her voice was icily stiff, making it perfectly clear that she was not going to touch on that subject.

Still furiously embarrassed that he had even asked, Ron waved it away hastily as Snape entered the room. "Get out your homework, class," he said in his oily voice.

Hermione breathed a sigh of relief when she realized that she had already done Snape's homework head of time. She always made sure that she finished his early because she never wanted to be caught without her homework in his class. The small hairs on the nape of her neck rose with the feeling that she was being watched. She bit her lip slightly and then shifted her eyes swiftly towards Draco. He wasn't looking at her, but Blaise Zabini was. She shivered, immediately moving her eyes away from him. Blaise gave her the creeps, and having him stare at her with that single-minded intensity didn't help matters. Why were all the Slytherins suddenly taking an interest in her? Hermione wondered acidly. She could understand Draco--they had had that. . .thing the night before. But why Blaise?

Then a thought struck her, and her hands trembled once. But it wasn't with weakness, or hurt. It was with white-hot rage. Had Malfoy told Blaise what had happened the night before? Were they laughing at her? Why, the tattling bastard, Hermione thought furiously. She'd show him not to laugh at her! She ground her teeth together and handed Snape her homework without even looking at him.

Snape stopped in front of her, one slicked black eyebrow raising. "Miss Granger, is there something you'd like to share with the class?"

She looked up at him, startled that he had spoken to her. "No, Professor," she said coolly. "Nothing."

Snape looked viciously amused, and then he moved on. Harry leaned over to Hermione and said quickly, "What the hell's the matter with you, Hermione? I could hear you grinding your teeth all the way over here."

She looked at him, her eyes blazing with righteous fury. "I am going to kill Draco Malfoy," she said viciously.

Harry blinked, then scowled. "Dammit, Hermione, snap out of it. You're letting him get to you, and you're letting stuff slip. We heard about what happened in Divination."

Hermione blinked. "You heard?"

Ron nodded, looking solemn. "Yeah, we heard."

"Who told you?" Hermione asked slowly, feeling dread congeal in the pit of her stomach.

Ron sighed. "Everybody's heard by now, Hermione. It's the talk of the school."

Hermione felt bile rise in her throat. Not only did she have to be humiliated in front of Malfoy, but now the whole school knew! Focus, she told herself even as her hands knotted in her lap. Focus, Hermione. It's not that big of a deal. It's just one homework assignment. Homework. Not a life-threatening disease. It will be fine. Who cares what they think? But the fury in her eyes banked and was replaced by misery.

Sympathy darkened Harry's eyes and he squeezed her hands beneath the table as Snape began to talk. Hermione listened intently, trying to force everything else out of her mind but Potions. When he released class, she gathered up her books, feeling unbelievably weary. Not physically, but mentally. In a few short hours, her whole world had been turned upside down. For all her years at Hogwarts, she had been comfortable in the knowledge that she and Malfoy were enemies. That was a given and hadn't changed over the years. She still felt the anger burning, but that ice cold hate was melting very slowly. She looked at him in a different light, and she wasn't sure how to deal with the feelings that he had evoked in her. She knew that she couldn't talk to Harry or Ron about it--they'd go berserk. And she didn't want to talk to Ginny yet, because her feelings were still too new and nebulous to try to explain to her intuitive friend.

Aside from her Draco dilemma, she had marred her pristine academic record. She had always known that she was one of the most studious and smartest people at Hogwarts. But with one little slip-up, her confidence in herself had been shaken. All of her life, she had been judged by her intellectual ability, and now that she had slipped up, she wasn't sure how to judge herself anymore. Her mind flew back to the night before when she had been up against a tree with Malfoy pressed against her. He hadn't been thinking of her intellectual abilities right then. He had wanted her, she was sure of it. Wanted her in a way that had nothing to do with that he was a pureblood and she was Muggle-born, or that she was Harry Potter's friend, or that she was the smartest girl in school. He had wanted her, and it still curled her stomach in a little ribbon of pleasure to think of it.

No, she thought fiercely. He's Malfoy! He hates me, and I hate him. End of story. But the kernel of memory still remained lodged in her mind, something she couldn't banish as easily.

Abruptly she realized that Ron was waving his hands in front of her face. "Earth to Hermione," he said loudly. "Hermione, you in there?"

She blinked at him. "Why on earth are you waving your arms about like that, Ron? People will think you're having a seizure."

Ron rolled his eyes dramatically. "I was trying to get your attention. You've just been standing there and staring straight ahead."

"Sorry," she apologized. "I was just thinking."

Ron muttered something under his breath. "C'mon, girl. I think you need to eat something."

She hesitated. She didn't really have any appetite, but she didn't want to worry the boys more than they already were. She knew that they were worried about her behavior lately, and she figured if she nibbled some food then they would feel a little better and think that they had helped her some. So she let them lead her into the Great Hall. Once they were there, she sipped on her pumpkin juice as the boys dug into their food as if they hadn't eaten for days.

Finally Harry put down his fork and looked at her, determination in his eyes. She nearly winced. Uh oh. He was going to ask for answers, she thought miserably. And I can't tell him.

Sure enough, Harry said, "Hermione, I want to know what's wrong with you. You haven't been eating for the past two days, you're sleeping at odd hours, you're losing your temper, and you've forgotten your homework, something I thought I would never live to see. Tell us what's wrong."

Hermione sighed deeply, the headache bouncing around gleefully in her brain. "I'm sorry I've been acting so odd, guys. I'm just--I don't know. I've been thinking a lot in the past two days."

"About what?" Ron asked through a mouthful of sweet potatoes.

She gave him a withering look, and he obediently swallowed. "About things that I took for granted," Hermione admitted. "I feel like everything's turned upside down. Nothing was the way that it was before."

Ron and Harry exchanged a glance at her cryptic statement. "I don't understand what you're talking about, Hermione," Harry said slowly. "What do you mean?"

She sighed. "Oh, Harry, I don't know. I'm just so confused." Her lip trembled unconsciously, and Harry looked panicked. Of all things, he couldn't stand female tears. He reached out and clutched her hand that was lying limply on the table top.

"There there," he said, glancing at Ron to help him out. Ron looked just as clueless as Harry did. "It will be ok, Hermione. Do you want me to see where Ginny is? Maybe I can find Ginny." He looked wildly around the Great Hall, wanting nothing more than to escape her tears.

Hermione glared at him and snatched her hand away. Tears sheened her eyes, making them look even larger than normal, but none fell. "No I don't want you to find Ginny, Harry," she said furiously. "I'm quite all right, thank you. If you'll excuse me."

Then she rose from the table and stomped out of the Great Hall. Moments later, she crashed into a tall form. She would have fallen back onto the hard floor, but strong hands caught her around her arms and held her steady. Startled, she looked up and found herself staring into Draco's gray eyes.

She gulped, her eyes caught by his. She couldn't bring herself to pull her eyes away. "What are you doing, Granger?" he asked her, but his voice didn't have the cutting edge that she was so used to.

A little floored by the almost polite tone he had used with her, she stammered, "I was--I was going to feed Crookshanks."

His mouth curled on one side. Fascinated, she watched the movement and felt her stomach quiver with a little tickle of pleasure. "That mangy cat you sent to my room?" he murmured.

She blinked up at him, realizing that she had been staring at his mouth. "Yes," she whispered. His eyes went hot, and with a jolt she realized that he had been staring at her mouth. He felt her tremble beneath his hands, and his eyes blazed. He leaned closer, but then they heard voices coming down the hall.

He cursed furiously and released her. She swayed for a moment once deprived of his support, then steadied herself. For the first time, she realized that he had moved them into a darkened corner, and that he was alone. She stared up at him, caught by the masculine beauty of his face. He glanced down the hallway and saw his crowd walking towards the Great Hall, and cursed beneath his breath again. "Dammit, Granger." He shot her another hot look. "This isn't over. Meet me at the willow again tonight."

She opened her mouth to tell him absolutely not, and instead heard herself say, "What time?"

"The same time," he snapped, annoyance still darkening his gray eyes to slate. Then he strode away to join his friends. When Hermione saw Pansy slide her hungry little hands over Draco's chest, she gritted her teeth and resisted the urge to yank out handfuls of Pansy's hair. Once the Slytherin group was gone, she emerged from the shadows. She stalked back to her rooms, muttering about damned Slytherins who thought they could have any woman they wanted.

Once she was gone, a lone figure stepped out of a hidden corner and smiled, amusement and satisfaction in his eyes.

Reviewers:

Auden~ I don't know why I have so few reviews! *is very sad* Maybe the summary sucks, so nobody wants to read it? *sighs* If anybody has any tips on getting reviewers, I'd much appreciate them! And thank you for saying that it's so good. *grins*

Lula~ I'm glad you liked the 4th chapter so much! I figured that it was pretty much just fluff, cause nothing much really happens in it. But I'm glad you liked it anyway! ^_^

Cassie32~ Thanks for reviewing! And you're a lucky, lucky gal. *winks* I think we all wish we had men like Draco. YUM. hehe.

Thank you all so much for reviewing! Keep doin' so, to let me know if the story falls into the pit of terrible fanfic. *laughs*