Disclaimer: well now, I own more or less nothing really. *sniff* poor little deprived me.

On the way to Arithmancy

"He actually blushed?" laughed Harry. Hermione couldn't help but laugh herself. It was pretty weird. Why had Draco blushed and been really, well, nice (for want of a better word)? She looked across at Ron. Well, where he had been seconds before; now he was rolling on the floor. Harry and Hermione stood up and looked at him.

"I'm sorry!" he gasped. "But it's funny!" Ron caught a few of the curious glances from other students and quickly jumped up and dusted his robes off. "Ok maybe it wasn't that funny." He started to chuckle again but quickly regained composure before it got any worse.

"Well I have Arithmancy next so I'm going to go look over my notes." Hermione stated happily as she slung her bag over her shoulder. "What are you two going to do in your free class?"

Harry and Ron both gave her the have-you-gone-mad look as they picked up their brooms.

"Of course, Quidditch." She said as she slapped her forehead. "God forbid you should study or anything…"

"Honestly Herm," Ron muttered in passing. "You should know by now. Call yourself our friend!"

Hermione laughed casually and walked out of the Great Hall towards the staircase.

~*~*~*~ *

Draco watched Hermione leave the Great Hall. She started heading upstairs. Draco decided to follow her. "Since when are you her stalker Malfoy?" the little inner voice spoke up. Recently Draco had been having a lot of conversations with himself. How sad was that? Whatever, he didn't have time to asses his sadness levels on the Richter scale.  Right now he was just going to watch Hermione Granger. He didn't know what he was going to say or even if he was going to say anything.  He just had to follow her. He didn't know why but saw no point in questioning his gut instinct. Hell, he was talking to his inner childhood voices enough already without talking to organs and their little voices too.

Just then he realized that Hermione had stopped walking and was looking at him. He quickly looked up.

"Draco are you following me?" she asked him bluntly.

"No." he said a little too quickly. "Yes." He said, quieter this time.

"Ok…why?"

"I was just wondering if you, if we, um…."

'Ask her!' the inner voice yelled at him.  "Shut the hell up damn inner voice!"

"Excuse me?" Hermione said incredulously. "Did you just tell me to shut up? And what did you call me?"

Damn I said that out loud. What the hell is wrong with me?

"No, no, no! I was talking to my…never mind. Um yeah, I was wondering if we could possibly, um, you know…"

"No I don't know. Look Draco I have places to be so could you spit it out?" she asked. "You we're wondering if we…"

"If we," he said. Big moment coming up. "If we had any Potions homework?"

What was that Malfoy? "Do we have any potions homework?" Be still my beating heart, romance or what? Oh God now she's looking at you funny.

"Em I think so. Why don't you ask Snape?" she said, still giving him a weird look.

"Ok thanks, I'll do that. Thanks. Yeah thanks."

'Gee Malfoy, I guess your thankful then' Mocked his inner voice.

"Ok." Hermione said before she turned around and started walking again. She had only got a few paces when she stopped again. She turned on her heel.

"I notice you're still behind me." She stated. Draco looked at her, then at the ground then up again. Ah. She had a point. He was barely 15 centimetres away from her. That was close. Close enough to…a-hem, yes. Was this some magnetic force thing? Maybe he should just ask her.

"Hermione," Draco said, with more force than he knew he had in him, especially in the jelly form he usually turned into when he saw her. "Would you go out with me?"

*~*~*~*~*

Hermione looked at Draco. Had she heard right? Had he just said what she thought he'd said? It was then she noticed that the corridor was empty, they were standing fairly close and both of them were breathing quite heavily.

"Um, wha…" she started. Draco's eyes suddenly widened and he jumped back, looking around him precariously.

"Um… gotcha!" he said quickly, then ran off.

Hermione stood in a daze for a few moments. What exactly had just happened? Gotcha? What the …?

She went up to the Gryffindor common room and sat in a chair, curling her legs under her and rubbing her temples. What had just happened? That wasn't your average Malfoy practical joke. Maybe she should ask Ron or Harry. She thought back to lunchtime when she had told them about her morning encounter with Draco. No. they probably wouldn't understand. Could it be possible Draco had been serious? The only way to find out would be to ask him. Unless…

Hermione looked around the room. Everybody else was either at class or enjoying their free period elsewhere. It wouldn't matter that much if she missed Arithmancy – she was way ahead of everyone in the class, and anyway, she might not get this chance again.

She darted up the staircase to her dorm. When she got there, she looked around once more to make sure Lavender or any of the other girls in her year weren't there. Nope, completely empty. She lay down on the floor beside her bed and slid her hand under. A few minutes and several Bertie Bott's Beans later, her hand felt a wooden box. She smiled and pulled it out quickly.

Opening the box, she pulled out the photos and little knick knacks she'd kept in there since first year. Soon she found what she was looking for. She held up the tiny bottle to the sunlight, smiling.

This little bottle would answer all her questions.

Little note from me:  And that ladies and gentlemen, is chapter 3. Like it? Hate it? Well whatever, but please tell me!! Thank you to all my reviewers – my faithful ones and new! And Amy, here is the little mention you asked for. Everyone say "Hi Amy!!!" Anyway, once again thank you to all you reviewers, please keep it up! It makes me all happy when I get out of the longest Chemistry lesson ever and find a brand new review waiting!! Hope you enjoy this one and, as if you didn't know by now, please review!!