Disclaimer: Harry Potter is a creation based on my imagination. Not.
Title of Story: When Darkness Catches the Light
Summary: Can two sworn enemies ever find true love in each other? What happens when a seductive mission comes along to prod them in the right direction? Draco/Hermione
Rated: PG-13 for language, angst descriptions and some sexual connotations.
Chapter Three: Repartee
I've been driving for an hour
Just talking to the rain
You say I've been driving you crazy
And it's keeping you away
So just give me one good reason
Tell me why I should stay
'cause I don't wanna waste another moment
In saying things we never meant to say
--Breathe, Michelle Branch
Seamus and Dean were already changed in their robes and they were playing a game of exploding snap. Hermione noted a spot of soot on Dean's nose, which provoked an entertained smile from her.
"Hey Hermione!" Seamus grinned. "How you been doing eh?"
Hermione fixed her gaze on Seamus. His green eyes looked mildly sullen, but his overall appearance had still remained attractive. The freckles that used to be on his face had now disappeared. Hermione raised an eyebrow at this, but decided it was not polite to ask Seamus what had happened to them.
"Oh, nothing much, you know, just the usual," Hermione muttered blankly.
She didn't want to prolong the conversation, as she was already late to receive the debriefing of Headship duties for the year.
"Hmm, how interesting," Dean responded, his tone of voice good-naturedly sarcastic. "You look a bit worn out, Hermione... late nights at Ronnie's house eh?"
He sniggered. Hermione laughed nervously and Seamus eyed her in a seemingly brotherly manner.
"It's so great you guys are together," he said thoughtfully. "It sort of brings us all hope that, even if you constantly fight with a person, there's a chance you could still find a place for them in your heart."
"Seamus?!" Dean gaped at him in mock horror. "You haven't fallen for Pug-face Parkinson have you?"
Seamus grinned and shook his head. "She was a crap shagger, mate," he blurted out, and reddened as Hermione eyed him disgustedly. "Um... nah, but seriously, I'm happy for Ron, 'cause I mean, even I knew he liked Hermione deep down..."
Hermione's eyebrows were fused together in mild exasperation. They were acting as if she wasn't even there! And what the hell was Seamus hinting at, that a person could fall in love with their apparent enemies?
"Um sorry guys, but I really have to get going," Hermione said hastily, flashing a fake smile in their direction.
She moved to open the next compartment door.
"Ahh, welcome Head Girl," Dumbledore said proudly as Hermione stepped into the Head compartment.
"I'm so sorry I'm late, Prof-" Hermione stopped as she took the atmosphere in.
The room – yes, it seemed like a room – was magnificent. The ambience was undoubtedly majestic, aided by the fact that the walls were a royal purple colour.
Hmm, Hermione approved, the colour seems impartial enough.
The room had a deceptively high ceiling with a small, ornate chandelier hanging from it. The crystals were faceted so that they caught the sunlight effectively and reflected the light onto the walls. There were two elegant sofas in the compartment, and each sofa was neatly embossed with a 'H.B' or 'H.G'. The carpet – was it carpet? Hermione thought suspiciously – was soft and woollen to the touch and her senses immediately calmed from the radiating heat of the roaring fireplace.
"It's..." Hermione began, still astonished at the amazing sight before her. "It's..."
"Beautiful?" drawled a cold voice from behind her.
Hermione turned around, only to discover that she was face to face with Draco Malfoy. He was about three inches taller than her, and his eyebrows were raised musingly in her direction.
Even though Ron was much taller than him, Malfoy seemed to intimidate Hermione to a greater degree. She felt her face redden slightly as his deep silver eyes seemed to bore into her own mocha brown ones...
"Granger," he said evenly.
"Malfoy," Hermione returned curtly.
Hermione thought she had seen Malfoy's eyes widen slightly when she had gazed at him. But the moment he had drawled her name so coolly, she knew she had probably imagined it.
"Well, I do suppose you know why you're here," Dumbledore coughed somewhat deliberately.
He surveyed the two of them transiently, before continuing.
"I sent an owl to your home address, Miss Granger, informing you of your position. I requested you to reply with a letter stating your acceptance or indeed rejection-" he chuckled, "to your Headship, yet I never received a response."
His tone of voice was not reproving or even questioning. Dumbledore just sounded straightforward, but Hermione assumed he wanted her to explain herself to him.
She started to open her mouth, then halted.
Draco was there in the room, and simply put, she did not trust him. She couldn't tell Dumbledore in front of Malfoy that she had not obtained the Headship letter in the first place... or indeed, any of the letters that had been addressed to her over the holidays...
"I am sorry I forgot to reply, Professor," she muttered, not quite meeting Dumbledore's eye. "But let me assure you I would be delighted to accept the position of Head Girl."
Her voice was matter-of-fact and devoid of any happy emotion whatsoever. Dumbledore's eyebrows rose slightly, but he did not interrogate her further.
He crossed over to the small desk located in the far-right hand corner of the compartment.
Hermione eased slightly, and felt Draco walk forward until he was standing a few feet beside her.
She saw out of the corner of her eye that Draco was stiffly looking forward at the wall in front of him. His face seemed blank, as usual.
Hermione admired the way his hair was slicked back so neatly. There was not one stray hair that had escaped the slather of gel and it gave Malfoy a neat... perhaps an even detached look. His nose was sharp, probably a tad too sharp, but it fitted in with his overall look. But it was his eyes that had intrigued Hermione the most.
They seemed so deep, yet at the same time, so guarded. They had made Hermione feel self-conscious, nervous, wearied, awkward... yet at the same time, captivated.
She smiled slightly as Dumbledore came back from the desk, carrying a large scroll of parchment.
"There is not much to tell you, other than what was written in the letter-" he paused, eyeing Hermione intently once more, "but I shall inform you of the password that Malfoy has chosen for your shared common room."
"WHAT!" Hermione yelped. "Um sorry Professor... that is to say, what do you mean exactly by the phrase 'shared common room''?'"
Her skin had gone a few shades lighter. Sharing a room with Malfoy wasn't exactly akin to a pleasant picnic in the park, or...
"What Professor Dumbledore was referring to, Hermione," Draco said, pronouncing her name with evident signs of abhorrence, "was that, as the two Heads of the school, we will be sharing an exclusive common room. The password to the common room is: Veritaserum," Draco ended, a smirk spreading across his face.
Hermione discreetly rolled her eyes. Malfoy was acting like an insensitive jerk. Well, really, he was going back to his old ways.
Dumbledore glanced at his pocket watch and said, "I have some other business to attend to, so I shall... erm... leave you two to get acquainted."
He smiled genially and walked out of the compartment, leaving an open mouthed Hermione and smirking Draco behind him.
A/N: Hi hi everyone, I hope you're all doing well and I hope that you like the story so far! I guess not much really happened here between our Hermione and Draco (even thought he is still a chauvinistic jerk... gee I hope I spelt that right lol), but I assure you there will be lots of tension between them in the next chapter as they get acquainted, smirk, lol kidding! Um I have decided that from now on or more likely, from chapter six, I will also start including Draco's perspective because I think it will somehow make the story better (somehow... lol) So keep reading kids and thanks for the reviews! Oh and HighHeels24 the chapters will get much much longer, so don't worry :)