Chapter 6

"Thank you for helping me carry my books, Blaise," Hermione said as she opened the door to the Head Common Room.

"Don't mention it, Hermione, I was on my way here anyway," Blaise replied, following her into the room.

Draco looked up from the book he was reading to just in time to catch Granger smile at Zabini. What the hell...? Draco frowned, "What are you doing here, Zabini?"

"I came to ask you about the Advanced Transfiguration essay on the Effects of Apparition on the Wizarding Transportation Industry, Malfoy. Need some inside information from you. You know, the Malfoys were pioneers in that industry." Blaise replied.

"I see. And you decided to flirt with the Head Girl on your way here? You are a talented little multi-tasker, aren't you, Zabini," Draco replied sarcastically.

"And, you're a git and a half, Malfoy," Zabini drawled.

Hermione, who was arranging the books on the shelves, hid a smile and decided to make the most out of the situation. "Here, Blaise. You're more than welcome to borrow my book on the History of Wizarding Transportation. It might help." Hermione handed the dark-haired boy the book.

"Thanks, Hermione," Blaise smiled back at her. "This is great. I can't believe you have a copy of this."

"Oh, I read it over the summer break for a bit of light reading," she responded off-handedly. "I'm done with my essay on that, so take your time with the book and just return it whenever you're done."

Draco glared at the two of them, observing the casual way Granger and Zabini were conversing. How come she never talks to me that way? Or smile at me like that? Who does she think she is?

"What the hell is wrong with you, Malfoy?" Zabini asked bluntly, noticing the blond man glaring at them.

Hermione looked at him, hiding her smile. She wasn't all that comfortable using Zabini to get a rise out of Malfoy, after all, Zabini had always been one of the kinder Slytherins in her year. But the look on Malfoy's face when she entered the room with Zabini, not to mention his blunt question to Zabini, was too precious for her not to maximise. She realised a few days ago that she needed to be less subtle now. She had his attention. He was curious about her. Phase 1 of the Pet Project was in the bag. Now it was time to raise the stakes a bit. Besides, for all his intelligence, Malfoy was still just a boy and too much subtlety would be lost on him.

"Oh he's probably just contemplating which girl to bring to the next Hogsmeade weekend, Blaise," Hermione replied, walking back to the bookshelf to reach for the book she needed for her Advanced Charms homework. The book was in the topshelf, and she stood on her toes to reach for it.

"Let me help you, Her-- hey!" Blaise had started to walk towards her, intending to help the petite girl reach for the book, but Draco suddenly stood up and pushed Zabini out of his way and headed for Hermione.

"You got your book for your essay, Zabini. Run along now," he said as he placed his left hand on Hermione's shoulder to get her off her toes while he extended his right arm over her head to get to the book, trapping her between his body and the bookshelf.

Hermione gasped in surprise at Draco's proximity, hardly noticing Blaise leave the room, shaking his head in exasperation at his fellow Slytherin. The last time I was this close to Malfoy, I was slapping him.

"You know, Granger, it's not nice to flirt with your Housemate's boyfriend," he said in a low voice, not moving away from her, distractedly noticing that her hair smelled nice.

Hermione took a deep breath and mentally braced herself to raise the stakes, ignoring the butterflies in her stomach. She turned around so she was facing him without losing their proximity. She met his darkened grey eyes and said in a similar low voice, "Unlike you, Malfoy, I do not flirt with everybody."

He didn't respond, continuing to look at her. She unconsciously licked her lips, only realising what she was doing when his eyes shifted from hers to her mouth. Awareness coursed through her veins, making her skin tingle and her heart beat fast. Get a grip, and make your move, Hermione. She stood on her toes again to bring her mouth closer to his ear, "Malfoy, are you going to hand me that book or not?"

He stiffened when he finally comprehended her question then quickly handed her the book and walked out of the Common Room. Hermione stared at his retreating back, calming her nerves and her wildly beating heart. No turning back now, Hermione. Phase 2 has begun. Merlin, I hope I don't have a heart attack before this is over!

Draco leaned back against the door he had just slammed, taking deep breaths and lifting a shaky hand to brush his hair off his face. He should have expected this, he really should have. Eversince that duel at the DA session when he found himself flat on his back with Hermione pointing his own wand at him -- and seriously turned on, he had not been able to keep his eyes and thoughts away from her. He stifled the little Lucius in his head by telling himself that it was a normal for a teenage boy to react that way to an attractive girl. Yes, he had finally conceded that Krum, as duck-footed and oafish as he was, did not have bad taste in girls. Granger was not half-bad, just like Zabini said. But the more he studied her, the more he paid attention to little details about her, like the small mole near the left corner of her mouth, or the way she would bite her lower lip when she was concentrating on something, "not half bad" had evolved into something more. Something closer to "Merlin, she's hot!"

But that had not prepared him for the rush of lust that took over him while he had pinned Hermione against the bookshelf. When he impulsively stood up to overtake Zabini from helping her reach her book, the only thought in his head was to put Zabini in his place -- away from Granger. Then when he reached her, he decided to have a little fun and try intimidating her with his body -- to remind her that he was a foot taller and a great deal heavier than her. But when she turned to face him and looked him in the eye, his original intentions, the point of the whole act, fled his mind. And, Merlin! When she licked her lips... Draco had never been turned on that way in his young life.

Then she jolted him back to reality by asking for that book. Draco was aghast at the implications of that: Granger was in control and he had almost lost his. His male and Malfoy pride kicked back in, refusing to accept that Granger had caused him to lose control. Draco stepped away from the door and started pacing, reminding himself of the 101 reasons why he would never allow Granger to affect him that way again. She's a Mudblood, I'm as Pure Blood as it gets. She's short, I'm tall. I'm better looking as she is. I can have any girl in Hogwarts, Beauxbaton, Durmstrang and any other Wizarding school in the world. She's a--

Lilacs. Her hair smelled like lilacs.
Draco groaned at the unwelcome thought and the spurt of arousal that came with the memory of the way she smelled.

He quickly strode to his closet and took out his leather Quidditch robes. He needed to clear his mind and cool down his heated body. There was no better way to do that than to spend a few hours flying in his broom.

By the time Draco had spent two hours on his latest broom, The Wind Horse, the latest, most expensive broom available, he regained control of his mind and his body. He had also concluded that there was no point denying that, for some reason, he was seriously and physically attracted to the bookish Head Girl, and that instead of wasting his time questioning why and how that happened, he would be better off purging that attraction from himself. Denying the feeling, he concluded, would only make it worse. No, the solution was to have her and then discard her once he'd had his fill of her. He was confident that this unexplained attraction to Granger was temporary, and that once he had conquered her, it would fizzle out. He was just as confident that he would have her. She's no different from the other women I've had. A few choice words, a few gifts, a few moments of sweetness, and she would be begging me to have her.

With a satisfied smile, he placed his Wind Horse back in the broomshed off the Quidditch pitch. Draco Malfoy always got he wanted, and this time he wanted Hermione Granger.

Unbeknownst to Malfoy, Hermione was sitting on the window ledge in her room, stroking Crookshanks absent-mindedly with her foot, and sporting a similar smile as she wrote in her Pet Project notebook.