( /pouts/ I'm angry.
And about Harry - I don't like him period, so if I make him act a little OOC (ie angry, bullying, stupid (although I personally believe that's rather IC), etc.), well... nyeh. I can't help it.)
-/-
"What?"
"I didn't stutter. Do I honestly have to repeat myself?"
Harry stood, rooted to the spot, staring at Draco stupidly. Whatever he had been expecting, it wasn't this. It took a moment to fully register what his enemy had said.
"Don't call her that!" he snapped. Across the room Draco smirked ironically, making Harry, who didn't know that hours earlier his rival had uttered the same thing, furious. Still he stood, though, resisting the urge to lunge at the other boy.
"Would you rather I called her something else then? Hmm, let's think, what would work," he said sarcastically, tapping his chin in mock concentration. "I know, how about M-"
"Just- don't call her anything!" Harry yelled, blood rushing to his face. "Why are you talking about her anyway? What's she got to do with this?"
Draco slid off his perch and walked languidly towards Harry, the smile still on his lips but not quite reaching his eyes, which stared at him gravelly from under pale lashes.
"Oh, but she has everything to do with this," he said quietly. Harry unconsciously lowered his wand. He was now eyeing the Slytherin with suspicion.
"What do you mean?"
"I think you know what I mean," The boys were now just a few feet apart, Draco looking at Harry with mixed defiance and contempt. He felt a twinge of triumph watching Harry squirm. Whatever his feelings were towards Hermione, his hatred for her two friends had never wavered. Harry just looked back, confused. Draco rolled his eyes.
"Honestly, Potter, do I have to spell it out for you? Merlin, you're slower than I thought," In the voice he usually used to explain things to Crabbe and Goyle (which wasn't often, as there wasn't much of a point), Draco began laying things out for Harry.
"Think... that rumour? Potions class? Any... out of the ordinary behaviour?" he said slowly, savoring the look of dawning realization and horror on his rival's face. He hadn't really intended to say all this, but it was far too late now. Besides, he would have found out sooner or later. Better to get some laughs from it. Harry looked at him, disgusted.
"You..." he couldn't seem to find the words to complete the thought. Draco kept his mouth shut, wanting to hear what Harry had to say. Also, he didn't want to be caught off-guard if Harry did decide to hex him. He was known to have quite a temper, that Boy-Who-Lived. Just now, though, his wand hung useless at his side.
"That's not... she wouldn't... you can't..." he spluttered, trying to think of something to say. It was just a trick, to unnerve him. Draco was looking at him impatiently.
"Really, I'm disappointed. They all say you're so clever..." he sighed. "Wouldn't they know.... You can't even keep track of what your own friends are doing. Couldn't figure it out when it was right under your nose," he taunted. Harry glared at him, head clear again.
"That's ridiculous, you can't-" But Draco cut him off.
"Can't I?" he asked simply. Harry looked at him for a minute.
"But she wouldn't-" he started again.
"What would you know about what she would and wouldn't do?" Draco snapped, suddenly angry. "You think she shares everything with you? Obviously she hasn't now, has she?" he spat nastily. Without waiting for Harry to reply he plowed on.
"For your information she's capable of making her own decisions, without consulting you first. Her brain isn't only for helping you and the Weasle pass your exams. She can do whatever she wants, including but not limited to having a boyfriend, without having to run it by you first." he had more to say, but shocked himself into silence by using the word 'boyfriend'. It had sort of just slipped - did he consider himself her boyfriend? Did she? Harry took his silence as the opportunity to speak.
"And I suppose that's you?" he asked, voice dripping with disdain, knowing it was a ridiculous question, but silently praying the other boy would laugh and sneer at him like he had before.
"So what if it is?" Draco snapped without thinking. Harry's insides turned to ice.
'Oh well,' the Slytherin told himself. 'Too late now,' His lip curled.
"And what are you going to do about it, Potty?" he said icily, in more composed tones. "You can't tell anyone - do you really want people to think of dear Hermione that way, consorting with a Slytherin? A Malfoy?" He realized he was right by the look on Harry's face.
"You won't tell Hermione, though, either, will you?" he continued, sneering. "Wouldn't want her to know you've been sneaking around behind her back, would you? Besides, if she hasn't told you before now, do you think she'd listen if you did something as thick as, oh, say, forbidding her to see me?" Harry just glared, fists clenched. Draco smirked.
"Right. You should be thankful, you know," he paused halfway out the door. "That you should find out at all. I doubt you would have gotten it on your own,"
And then he was gone, leaving Harry to stare blankly at the emptiness of the doorway.
--
As he walked back to the Slytherin Common Room, Draco wondered briefly if that was a good idea. He shrugged it off. Doesn't matter if it was or wasn't - what was done was done. What will be, will be.
--
Back in the Gryffindor Common Room, Harry was greeted with the sight of Ron and Hermione dozing in armchairs before the fire. He watched Hermione sleep for a while, thinking of all the things he'd just learned. She stirred in her sleep and opened her eyes groggily.
"Huh? Harry, is that... I must have fallen asleep... I was reading...." she trailed off, looking at Harry, perplexed at the expression he wore. "Harry? What's wrong?"
Seeing her face, the same as it had always been, sitting in familiar surroundings, he couldn't bring himself to be angry with her. In fact, he was starting to doubt what Malfoy had said was true anyway. It was ridiculous. He didn't know how he could have even thought it was true. Although... Malfoy did have a point, as much as he hated to admit it. Hermione had been acting... odd, to say the least. And she had defended him... called him Draco... the rumour... All apart it would seem ridiculous, but if you looked at everything together, it was just too much. Realizing he was staring, Harry shook his head.
"Nah, just... thinking about... homework," he lied. Hermione, though, far from nodding a sleepy acceptance, looked at him sharply.
"Speaking of homework," she began, but Ron had woken up.
"Harry!" he said, surprised. "You're back!"
"It looks that way," Harry replied, grinning.
"What took you so long?" the redhead asked, rubbing his eyes.
Harry shrugged casually. "You know, Potions," he made a face, and Ron snickered. Hermione, though, was still looking at him carefully.
"Well, we should all get to bed, now, eh? It's been en eventful day," he added, ushering them out of their chairs. Hermione opened her mouth as if to speak, but Harry pretended he didn't see and hurried up to his dorm.
Lying in bed he didn't know what he was worried she was going to say, that she knew he'd met Malfoy? Impossible. He rolled over and closed him eyes. He'd worry about that tomorrow. Tonight, sleep.
--
Hermione stared at the ceiling for a good while, thinking. It certainly had been an eventful day. It wouldn't be one she'd forget in a hurry, although that seemed like a pretty enticing offer. Sighing she rolled on her side, and shivered - her bed was cold. She felt a sudden longing that a certain blonde-haired Slytherin were with her to warm it up. The thought came out of nowhere, and she blushed furiously, horrified at herself. As much as she might fancy him (Which was only just a little, she thought stubbornly), she shouldn't be imagining him into her bed! Although, as much as the thought ashamed her, once she had thought it she had trouble getting it out of her head.
In her mind, she could see him, lying next to her. She could practically feel the heat rolling off his body. She could see his pale hair falling softly over his face, eyes closed, lips slightly parted. It looked so real, she had the wild idea that if she just reached out, she could feel his smooth skin, as she had the night prior. Had it really been only 24 hours since that night? It seemed ages away.
Still dreaming, Hermione fell into a warm slumber.
--
Hermione woke up feeling well rested, but not in her bed. Not in her dorm, even - in fact, she wasn't in Hogwarts at all. She sat up to look around, and heard something rustle. Looking down, she realized she was wearing... a dress. A silver dress. She blinked in surprise, and stood up to get a better look.
The material was soft, but tight, molding to her body like it was a second skin. It was sleeveless, with a large, loose neck, rather like that of a turtleneck sweater. It went down to past her ankles, but had a slit in the side up to her thigh. She raised an eyebrow at that, thinking she would never wear anything like this. She twirled and smiled as the fabric twirled pleasantly around her legs.
She heard a noise and looked up, suddenly self-conscious. A little ways away Draco was sitting cross-legged on what appeared to be a large boulder, looking uncomfortable. The noise had been him clearing his throat, and now he was looking down, as though embarrassed. Hermione looked at him for a second before bursting out with laughter.
"Oh... Merlin... you... look... ridiculous!" she managed to gasp between laughs. He glared at her, sliding off the rock and walking over. She looked up at him and the laughter started again. He was wearing a tux, complete with a silver bow tie, though he had untied it and was hanging loosely around his neck. She had to admit, though, it was tailored to him perfectly. He didn't look quite as ridiculous as it had first seemed, now that he was closer. She had stopped laughing, finding it was hard to fill her lungs properly. Shaking her head to clear it, she took a step back and purposely avoided looking at him, instead turning around to survey the landscape.
"Where are we?" she asked, truly curious. They were standing on some hill, with boulder like the one she'd found Draco sitting on scattered around. A fog had settled surrounding the hill, so she could only see, faintly, a large body of water to her right and what seemed to be mountains to her left. It seemed familiar in some way... In her peripheral vision she saw Draco shrug, looking around himself.
"No idea.... Although, as much to my knowledge, I'm still sleeping," he added casually. She turned to look at him, surprised.
"You mean... we're dreaming?" she asked tentatively. Draco shrugged again.
"That'd be the logical explanation, wouldn't it?" He looked at her sideways and gave a crooked grin. "What else would get you into a dress like that?"
Hermione blushed, but stuck her tongue out playfully. Draco laughed. She smiled. She hadn't realized how comfortable she was around him.
"Wait - I think I know where we are!" Hermione said with sudden realization. "I mean... it might not even be a real place... but I've been here before... that is, I've dreamt it before. But I don't see what that has to do with you being here, or us dressed like this," Draco made an odd noise.
"That... may be my fault," he said sheepishly. "I mean.... The dress." He stopped talking then, but he didn't have to continue. Hermione stared at him, amazed. She felt a swelling in her chest again. Draco had dreamt of her before, then? For some reason she felt embarrassed. They stood like that, in awkward silence, before Draco spoke up.
"But... neither of those... explain why we're bother here. Unless you're not here and I'm just dreaming," he muttered, more to himself than to Hermione. She laughed.
"No, I'm pretty sure I'm here. And I'm pretty sure you are, too.... This doesn't really feel like a dream, does it? It's more... real," Draco nodded, and their eyes met again. Hermione couldn't formulate words in her mind, but Draco was looking at her a little oddly. Not for the first time he seemed to be searching for the right words, but couldn't find them. She watched him curiously. He opened his mouth once or twice, but shut it soon after.
"Er... is there something you want to say?" she asked tentatively after a while. Draco looked at her, the odd expression still on his face. He seemed to have made up his mind, though.
"Do you fancy me?" he asked bluntly, catching her by surprise. She blinked, shocked. That had not been what she was expecting.
What a question.
-/-
(My Internet is being fxcked up at the moment, so chapter updates may come later than expected. My apologies, and thanks still if you review instead of just reading and waiting for an update silently. /glares daggers/ Honestly, how hard is it to type "Good story" or "Hate it" or whatever strikes your fancy? If you don't want people to know it's you, log out and review anon.!
But fine, leave me to wallow in the pit of despair with no light or words of encouragement to bring hope to my pitiful existence. )
And about Harry - I don't like him period, so if I make him act a little OOC (ie angry, bullying, stupid (although I personally believe that's rather IC), etc.), well... nyeh. I can't help it.)
-/-
"What?"
"I didn't stutter. Do I honestly have to repeat myself?"
Harry stood, rooted to the spot, staring at Draco stupidly. Whatever he had been expecting, it wasn't this. It took a moment to fully register what his enemy had said.
"Don't call her that!" he snapped. Across the room Draco smirked ironically, making Harry, who didn't know that hours earlier his rival had uttered the same thing, furious. Still he stood, though, resisting the urge to lunge at the other boy.
"Would you rather I called her something else then? Hmm, let's think, what would work," he said sarcastically, tapping his chin in mock concentration. "I know, how about M-"
"Just- don't call her anything!" Harry yelled, blood rushing to his face. "Why are you talking about her anyway? What's she got to do with this?"
Draco slid off his perch and walked languidly towards Harry, the smile still on his lips but not quite reaching his eyes, which stared at him gravelly from under pale lashes.
"Oh, but she has everything to do with this," he said quietly. Harry unconsciously lowered his wand. He was now eyeing the Slytherin with suspicion.
"What do you mean?"
"I think you know what I mean," The boys were now just a few feet apart, Draco looking at Harry with mixed defiance and contempt. He felt a twinge of triumph watching Harry squirm. Whatever his feelings were towards Hermione, his hatred for her two friends had never wavered. Harry just looked back, confused. Draco rolled his eyes.
"Honestly, Potter, do I have to spell it out for you? Merlin, you're slower than I thought," In the voice he usually used to explain things to Crabbe and Goyle (which wasn't often, as there wasn't much of a point), Draco began laying things out for Harry.
"Think... that rumour? Potions class? Any... out of the ordinary behaviour?" he said slowly, savoring the look of dawning realization and horror on his rival's face. He hadn't really intended to say all this, but it was far too late now. Besides, he would have found out sooner or later. Better to get some laughs from it. Harry looked at him, disgusted.
"You..." he couldn't seem to find the words to complete the thought. Draco kept his mouth shut, wanting to hear what Harry had to say. Also, he didn't want to be caught off-guard if Harry did decide to hex him. He was known to have quite a temper, that Boy-Who-Lived. Just now, though, his wand hung useless at his side.
"That's not... she wouldn't... you can't..." he spluttered, trying to think of something to say. It was just a trick, to unnerve him. Draco was looking at him impatiently.
"Really, I'm disappointed. They all say you're so clever..." he sighed. "Wouldn't they know.... You can't even keep track of what your own friends are doing. Couldn't figure it out when it was right under your nose," he taunted. Harry glared at him, head clear again.
"That's ridiculous, you can't-" But Draco cut him off.
"Can't I?" he asked simply. Harry looked at him for a minute.
"But she wouldn't-" he started again.
"What would you know about what she would and wouldn't do?" Draco snapped, suddenly angry. "You think she shares everything with you? Obviously she hasn't now, has she?" he spat nastily. Without waiting for Harry to reply he plowed on.
"For your information she's capable of making her own decisions, without consulting you first. Her brain isn't only for helping you and the Weasle pass your exams. She can do whatever she wants, including but not limited to having a boyfriend, without having to run it by you first." he had more to say, but shocked himself into silence by using the word 'boyfriend'. It had sort of just slipped - did he consider himself her boyfriend? Did she? Harry took his silence as the opportunity to speak.
"And I suppose that's you?" he asked, voice dripping with disdain, knowing it was a ridiculous question, but silently praying the other boy would laugh and sneer at him like he had before.
"So what if it is?" Draco snapped without thinking. Harry's insides turned to ice.
'Oh well,' the Slytherin told himself. 'Too late now,' His lip curled.
"And what are you going to do about it, Potty?" he said icily, in more composed tones. "You can't tell anyone - do you really want people to think of dear Hermione that way, consorting with a Slytherin? A Malfoy?" He realized he was right by the look on Harry's face.
"You won't tell Hermione, though, either, will you?" he continued, sneering. "Wouldn't want her to know you've been sneaking around behind her back, would you? Besides, if she hasn't told you before now, do you think she'd listen if you did something as thick as, oh, say, forbidding her to see me?" Harry just glared, fists clenched. Draco smirked.
"Right. You should be thankful, you know," he paused halfway out the door. "That you should find out at all. I doubt you would have gotten it on your own,"
And then he was gone, leaving Harry to stare blankly at the emptiness of the doorway.
--
As he walked back to the Slytherin Common Room, Draco wondered briefly if that was a good idea. He shrugged it off. Doesn't matter if it was or wasn't - what was done was done. What will be, will be.
--
Back in the Gryffindor Common Room, Harry was greeted with the sight of Ron and Hermione dozing in armchairs before the fire. He watched Hermione sleep for a while, thinking of all the things he'd just learned. She stirred in her sleep and opened her eyes groggily.
"Huh? Harry, is that... I must have fallen asleep... I was reading...." she trailed off, looking at Harry, perplexed at the expression he wore. "Harry? What's wrong?"
Seeing her face, the same as it had always been, sitting in familiar surroundings, he couldn't bring himself to be angry with her. In fact, he was starting to doubt what Malfoy had said was true anyway. It was ridiculous. He didn't know how he could have even thought it was true. Although... Malfoy did have a point, as much as he hated to admit it. Hermione had been acting... odd, to say the least. And she had defended him... called him Draco... the rumour... All apart it would seem ridiculous, but if you looked at everything together, it was just too much. Realizing he was staring, Harry shook his head.
"Nah, just... thinking about... homework," he lied. Hermione, though, far from nodding a sleepy acceptance, looked at him sharply.
"Speaking of homework," she began, but Ron had woken up.
"Harry!" he said, surprised. "You're back!"
"It looks that way," Harry replied, grinning.
"What took you so long?" the redhead asked, rubbing his eyes.
Harry shrugged casually. "You know, Potions," he made a face, and Ron snickered. Hermione, though, was still looking at him carefully.
"Well, we should all get to bed, now, eh? It's been en eventful day," he added, ushering them out of their chairs. Hermione opened her mouth as if to speak, but Harry pretended he didn't see and hurried up to his dorm.
Lying in bed he didn't know what he was worried she was going to say, that she knew he'd met Malfoy? Impossible. He rolled over and closed him eyes. He'd worry about that tomorrow. Tonight, sleep.
--
Hermione stared at the ceiling for a good while, thinking. It certainly had been an eventful day. It wouldn't be one she'd forget in a hurry, although that seemed like a pretty enticing offer. Sighing she rolled on her side, and shivered - her bed was cold. She felt a sudden longing that a certain blonde-haired Slytherin were with her to warm it up. The thought came out of nowhere, and she blushed furiously, horrified at herself. As much as she might fancy him (Which was only just a little, she thought stubbornly), she shouldn't be imagining him into her bed! Although, as much as the thought ashamed her, once she had thought it she had trouble getting it out of her head.
In her mind, she could see him, lying next to her. She could practically feel the heat rolling off his body. She could see his pale hair falling softly over his face, eyes closed, lips slightly parted. It looked so real, she had the wild idea that if she just reached out, she could feel his smooth skin, as she had the night prior. Had it really been only 24 hours since that night? It seemed ages away.
Still dreaming, Hermione fell into a warm slumber.
--
Hermione woke up feeling well rested, but not in her bed. Not in her dorm, even - in fact, she wasn't in Hogwarts at all. She sat up to look around, and heard something rustle. Looking down, she realized she was wearing... a dress. A silver dress. She blinked in surprise, and stood up to get a better look.
The material was soft, but tight, molding to her body like it was a second skin. It was sleeveless, with a large, loose neck, rather like that of a turtleneck sweater. It went down to past her ankles, but had a slit in the side up to her thigh. She raised an eyebrow at that, thinking she would never wear anything like this. She twirled and smiled as the fabric twirled pleasantly around her legs.
She heard a noise and looked up, suddenly self-conscious. A little ways away Draco was sitting cross-legged on what appeared to be a large boulder, looking uncomfortable. The noise had been him clearing his throat, and now he was looking down, as though embarrassed. Hermione looked at him for a second before bursting out with laughter.
"Oh... Merlin... you... look... ridiculous!" she managed to gasp between laughs. He glared at her, sliding off the rock and walking over. She looked up at him and the laughter started again. He was wearing a tux, complete with a silver bow tie, though he had untied it and was hanging loosely around his neck. She had to admit, though, it was tailored to him perfectly. He didn't look quite as ridiculous as it had first seemed, now that he was closer. She had stopped laughing, finding it was hard to fill her lungs properly. Shaking her head to clear it, she took a step back and purposely avoided looking at him, instead turning around to survey the landscape.
"Where are we?" she asked, truly curious. They were standing on some hill, with boulder like the one she'd found Draco sitting on scattered around. A fog had settled surrounding the hill, so she could only see, faintly, a large body of water to her right and what seemed to be mountains to her left. It seemed familiar in some way... In her peripheral vision she saw Draco shrug, looking around himself.
"No idea.... Although, as much to my knowledge, I'm still sleeping," he added casually. She turned to look at him, surprised.
"You mean... we're dreaming?" she asked tentatively. Draco shrugged again.
"That'd be the logical explanation, wouldn't it?" He looked at her sideways and gave a crooked grin. "What else would get you into a dress like that?"
Hermione blushed, but stuck her tongue out playfully. Draco laughed. She smiled. She hadn't realized how comfortable she was around him.
"Wait - I think I know where we are!" Hermione said with sudden realization. "I mean... it might not even be a real place... but I've been here before... that is, I've dreamt it before. But I don't see what that has to do with you being here, or us dressed like this," Draco made an odd noise.
"That... may be my fault," he said sheepishly. "I mean.... The dress." He stopped talking then, but he didn't have to continue. Hermione stared at him, amazed. She felt a swelling in her chest again. Draco had dreamt of her before, then? For some reason she felt embarrassed. They stood like that, in awkward silence, before Draco spoke up.
"But... neither of those... explain why we're bother here. Unless you're not here and I'm just dreaming," he muttered, more to himself than to Hermione. She laughed.
"No, I'm pretty sure I'm here. And I'm pretty sure you are, too.... This doesn't really feel like a dream, does it? It's more... real," Draco nodded, and their eyes met again. Hermione couldn't formulate words in her mind, but Draco was looking at her a little oddly. Not for the first time he seemed to be searching for the right words, but couldn't find them. She watched him curiously. He opened his mouth once or twice, but shut it soon after.
"Er... is there something you want to say?" she asked tentatively after a while. Draco looked at her, the odd expression still on his face. He seemed to have made up his mind, though.
"Do you fancy me?" he asked bluntly, catching her by surprise. She blinked, shocked. That had not been what she was expecting.
What a question.
-/-
(My Internet is being fxcked up at the moment, so chapter updates may come later than expected. My apologies, and thanks still if you review instead of just reading and waiting for an update silently. /glares daggers/ Honestly, how hard is it to type "Good story" or "Hate it" or whatever strikes your fancy? If you don't want people to know it's you, log out and review anon.!
But fine, leave me to wallow in the pit of despair with no light or words of encouragement to bring hope to my pitiful existence. )