Author's Note:  Yeah, Yeah.  I know, I know.  Another short chapter, and it's not my best work.  Go on, yell at me.  Complain.  Do whatever it is that you need to.  Just don't hate me.  More thanks go to Sylvan Tears, midnight solitaire, blackxrose, and babmidnight.  Oh and I've been noticing that my chapters sometimes don't show up on the drop down menu.  Sometimes FF.N drives me nuts!  So for further notice you might want to go to the web address bar and type "&chapter=" after the story ID address and then the next chapter number to check if it's not showing up.  Hopefully that wasn't too confusing.  Get it?  Got it. Good. 

Disclaimer: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.                                                                                                                                                                        

Chapter Four: Owling the Enemy

Hermione sat, curled up in a nest of pillows, on the window seat in her flat.  She stared at the busy street below, then looked at the parchment settled on her lap, trying to concentrate. 

Without a doubt, this was the hardest thing she had ever done in her life.  How could she owl her former mortal enemy and ask him to spend the holidays with her family as her boyfriend?  She wasn't even sure if it were humanly possible at all!  She took a deep breath, telling herself she had to start.

She had been putting it off all day.  She was going to write it at work in the morning, but told herself she had to get finished before her break.  She was going to write it on her lunch hour, but decided to go out with Elle for a bite to eat instead.  She was going to write it when she got back to the office after lunch, but she convinced herself that she would have enough time to do it at home.

And now she was at home.  She couldn't put it off any longer.  She had already changed into jeans and a sweater.  She watched the muggle news.  Hell, she even offered to walk her neighbor's dog. 

So, quill ready and poised in her hand, she touched the tip to the paper.  But how to begin?  She mentally scolded herself.  She was a journalist for the Daily Prophet, for goodness sake!  This should be easy for her, simple, definitely not as complicated as she was making it out to be.  Procrastination would get her nowhere, she told herself.  But the question still nagged her.  How to start?

Draco?  No, too informal.  Malfoy?  No, too… Hogwarts.  This caused her parchment to be blank for fifteen more minutes.  She realized that she had to send it soon.  And finally she decided on…

D. Malfoy,

            Could you please meet me again at The Blue Note tomorrow at 6 o'clock?  I have something to ask you.  Please send owl with reply ASAP.  

                        -H. Granger

It wasn't too awful, but she had to send it now.  And it wasn't too personal either.  In fact, had the kiss not happened, it could have passed as her asking for another meeting to continue the discussion on the article.  She gave it one more read through then attached it to the owl she borrowed from Elle. 

And as she watched the owl fly out of her open window she knew there was no turning back now.