Secrets and Apologies

Chapter 1

The seventh year of Hogwarts was starting and the usual clicks gathered in their usual spots on platform 9 ¾ waiting for the train to arrive so they could find their usual seats in their usual compartments.

Draco leaned casually against a wall watching everyone as they arrived. Everything was the same but something was different. People had grown and girls were filling in. Boys were broadening out and getting taller. And he was head boy. Not a surprise, really. He had expected it. Everyone in Slytherin had voted for him and others had been either bribed or threatened into it.

Draco frowned as he fiddled with his badge trying to straiten it. His always-present insecurity was beginning to show this year. He knew he had become better looking over the summer, he could tell by the looks he was getting from the girls he had passed. But that didn't convince him. He needed to uphold his reputation, so he ceased fiddling. He watched as more people entered through the pillar and his eyes grew wide and his heart began to race as Hermione walked through.

"Man, has he changed." Thought Malfoy. His gaze flowed over her entire being as he took it all in. Her legs had become longer, her chest had filled out, her lips had become fuller, her eyes had obtained more star-like diamonds, and her hair was not longer a rat on the top of her head, but soft and luxurious as silk.

Hermione looked, feeling eyes on her and met Malfoy's gaze with an icy glare. Their eyes met and held even as people crossed the "eye's" path. She walked over to him, their gaze still held, and stopped right in from of him.

"Well mudblood, I knew you liked me but public affection? Really now." Malfoy said sarcastically, smirking.

Hermione was about to comment but her face became vacant. She just had realized how much Malfoy had changed. His hair lay scruffily and was somewhat blocking his crystal blue eyes. His shoulders had broadened and he had grown a few inches. Hermione's eyes flickered to his badge but she seemed not to have registered the fact that it was the head boy badge. They started to wander away from Malfoy until realization shown on her face and they flew back to the badge.

"No." She said, astonished

"Yup. The only bad thing is we have to share compartments, on our way there."

"What do you mean? I thought we just met there and then could separate!" Hermione's voice rose in confusion, drawing the attention of a few people standing near by.

Ron and Harry saw Hermione and Malfoy along the far wall and walked over.

"What is it with you? Can't you go bug someone else!?" Ron asked, "No, wait, don't answer that. Everyone knows you're just a big oaf that thinks he's better than everyone else."

"Excuse me, but first off, your precious "angel" came over to me, and second, I must have been really know for my oafness because I was voted head boy." Malfoy sneered.

Harry and Ron gasped. Grabbing the pin from Malfoy's shirt (which was loose because of all the fiddling with it) Ron studied it.

"Yup, 100 real." Ron mumbled to Harry. Hermione grabbed the pin out of Ron's hands and handed it back to Malfoy.

"Ron, he is head boy! He could write you up for just pulling his pin off."

Malfoy took the pin back carefully, and touched Hermione's hand in the process. Hermione jumped at the fact Malfoy had been so gentle in taking the pin back.

'No.' She thought, 'I'm just imagining it.'

Harry, who had been busy making sure Hedwig was locked up tight, gave Hermione a strange look when she jumped.

"Come on guys. Lets go find our compartment." He muttered.

"See you later, mudblood." Malfoy called after Hermione as the three turned their backs on him and walked away.

Later on the Train

Malfoy sat and waited in the head boy/head girl compartment. It was in the rules that they had to sit together. And he knew that this wasn't something she would give into so easily.

Hermione was just about to the head boy/head girl compartment. It was in the rules that they had to sit together. And she'd be damned if she let Malfoy get to her so easily.

Malfoy glanced up from his muggle book (I'm having him read in this story) as Hermione entered. His concentration was on the book so he didn't even notice as Hermione read the cover.

"From the Corner of His Eye." (GOOD BOOK!) By Dean Koontz." She read, "I didn't know you were smart enough to read." She smirked.

"Well excuse me for liking muggle novels." Malfoy said flatly, not glancing up from the book.

"Oh, muggle too. Since when did your father let you read muggle books?"

"He didn't." Malfoy said, putting the bookmark in and closing the book.

Hermione was taken aback. Since when did Malfoy not do everything he was told? She took the book out of Malfoy's hands studied the cover.

"Dean Koontz is a good author." She mumbled, handing it back to him. "This is a good book."

"You've read it?"

"Yeah, I like how he writes. It keeps you hooked."

"Same here I—," Malfoy cut himself off. Was he having a civilized conversation with a mudblood?"

Hermione looked at Malfoy. He was changing. She didn't exactly know hw, but she knew he was.

Malfoy put the book back in his bag and lied down. Looking over at Hermione, he realized he needed to get a grip. He was falling for a mudblood. His father would be ashamed. Malfoy closed his eyes and regained his tough composure.

Hermione noticed Malfoy looking at her and their eyes met and locked. Hard.

Malfoy didn't have to say anything; Hermione already knew what he was thinking.

"No." She said simply and turned her attention to the window.

Malfoy was in shock. "No" had never come out of a girls mouth before and been directed at him. For ANY reason. He sat up and used the seat (where Hermione was sitting) to rest his feet on, simultaneously bumping Hermione in the leg.

"Mudblood, move a little to the left you in the way." Malfoy closed his eyes.

Hermione glared at Malfoy and pushed his feet off the seat, and created a big thud.

"It would be in your best interest not to dot that again." Malfoy growled, placing his feet on the seat again.

"This isn't a foot rest." Hermione answered, pushing his feet off again. Instead of resting his feet on the seat, Malfoy put them on Hermione's lap.

"Excuse me!" She said, raising her voice, and becoming impatient.

"You're right, excuse you."

Malfoy's feet flew off as Hermione stood up.

"I don't appreciate being used as a foot stool!" Hermione yelled.

"Oh come on, Mud, all the girls do it." Malfoy grinned and winked.

"I'm not going to become a stupid trophy for you and your friends to joke about. You're a self-centered, high maintenance, spoiled prat! And I don't know why, in Heaven's name, any girl would ever waist one glance at you!"

By that time Malfoy had stood up and a fire was burning in his blue ice eyes.

"Take that back mudblood, or you'll regret the day you had ever been born!" The words passed through Malfoy's teeth, only audible if you listened hard. Hermione took a step closer so they were nose to nose.

"Never." She said, unable to hold her smirk in for having received such a response from Malfoy. At that very second the door opened and Ron and Harry walked in.

"What in God's name...?" Ron started, but was cut off as Crabbe and Goyle walked (or waddled) in.

Hermione and Malfoy were still nose-to-nose and hadn't looked away when either party had walked in.

"Malfoy? You needs us to do anything with these twos? Crabbe pointed at Harry and Ron.

Malfoy smirked and turned away from Hermione. A sign of unimportance on Hermione's part. Hermione, as fast and swift as she could, swung her leg and took Malfoy's legs right from under him, and punched him in the face.

Malfoy landed on the ground in a pathetic heap and a loud thud. He waited a few seconds than opened an eye, Ron and Harry were congratulating Hermione. Malfoy swung his left leg and brought Hermione onto the ground at his side. He signaled for Crabbe and Goyle to block off Harry and Ron, and sat on Hermione's stomach to keep her still.

"Purebloods will always be better than mudbloods. You just remember that." Malfoy hissed.

Hermione spat in his face.