Disclaimer: Harry Potter, I own not. All I own is the plot.
Pandora- Lol, I don't think that Professor McGonagall trusts any of the students when it comes to stuff like that. Thanks for reviewing!
Cpaw87- Thanks!
Johanna- Thanks!
DazedPanda- Well, you kind of have to understand his situation, but he probably should have won for Hermione. But, I have my reasons for pairing him up with Cho. Thanks for reviewing!
Andufeniel- Thanks, and yea they are going to put each other through a lot of things.
DRGirl59- One of your favorite? God, I didn't know that it was that good! Thanks!
Eliza- Are they going to kiss? You'll just have to wait and see! Thanks for reviewing!
Illuminate- Thanks!
Purplebunnie- Well as I said to someone, I have my reasons for putting Harry with Cho. Thanks for reviewing!
DazzilinAngel555- Thanks!
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Well, guys I am trying to do my best to make this as long as I can. And do whip out your cameras and take a few pictures of the fluff, because the drama is going to be coming in the next few chapters. Till next time!
Previously on Sphinx:
Hermione rolled over and began to fall asleep. Just as she was about to fall into dreaming, Draco tapped her on the shoulder.
"What?" she mumbled.
"Go get me some water."
Hermione grumbled, but got herself out of bed. This is going to be a long month.
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"I feel I must interject here, you're getting carried away. Feeling sorry for yourself with these revisions and gaps in history. So let me help you remember. I've made charts and graphs that should finally make it clear. Prepared a lecture."- The Postal Service, "Nothing Better"
- - - - - -
"Hermione?"
Hermione mumbled a little bit and pulled the green covers closer to her. Draco looked at her and sighed exasperatingly.
"Hermione?" he said a little louder
"HERMIONE!"
Hermione sat up straight in bed and began to look around. Then she noticed Draco looking at her with a perplexed face.
"Why were you shouting?" she asked.
"You wouldn't wake up," he said matter-a-factly. She looked over at the clock, which showed it to be 8:30 AM.
"But it's Friday! Classes start late on Friday."
"So?"
"So, ever heard of sleeping in?"
"Nope."
"God, you get weirder and weirder every day." Hermione rubbed the sleep out of her eyes and walked off to the bathroom with her school robes. After throwing them on, she brushed her teeth, and threw her hair into a low ponytail.
"Ready for breakfast?" asked Draco when she walked out of the bathroom.
"Sure, I'd kill for a cup of coffee after that wake up."
As soon as they walked out from behind the framed map that hid Draco's room from view, Draco kept his distance from Hermione. Upon entering the Great Hall, he motioned to her to sit by him at the Slytherin table. She quickly grabbed a cup of coffee from the Gryffindor table and went to join him.
"Oh, look, if it isn't the Mudblood," said Pansy Parkinson. "Why is she sitting over here, Draco?"
"I won the bet."
"Oh well that could be expected. Cho is so much prettier than her," she said motioning to Hermione.
Draco gave a crisp nod and began to dig into his breakfast. He offered some to Hermione but she refused it.
"All I need is cup of coffee for breakfast," she said, trying to manage a smile.
"Suit yourself," he replied.
"Oh, Draco," Pansy said to him. "Do you mind if I borrow Hermy for a minute. I want to talk to her real quick."
"Sure," he said. "Potions class is first today, Granger. Once you're done with Pansy, meet me in there."
Hermione nodded and followed Pansy away from the Slytherin table. She knew that whatever the caramel haired girl had to say would not be good.
"So, Granger," said Pansy, dragging out each word as though it were made of molasses. "How are things going with you and Draco?"
"Um, okay, I guess."
"He hasn't tried anything, has he?"
"No, and why would he?"
Pansy waved the question away with a flick of her hand.
"I don't know if anything is going on with you and Draco, but just keep one thing in mind. Draco Thomas Malfoy is mine. It isn't open season on him till I say so. So, as the girls from Hamburger Go-Go Land would say, back off, bitch."
And with a quick turn up the stairs, Pansy left. Grumbling about hypocrites, Hermione shifted her books to her other hip and made her way down to the dungeons. Upon arriving there, she plopped down next to Draco and faced the front of the room. Pansy turned around in her seat and front of her and whispered, "Remember what I said, Mudblood."
Hermione sighed. This was not going to be a good month. Harry and Ron gave her a look ofsympathy when she glanced in their direction. After a few moments, Snape walked into the room. After a few points were taken away from Gryffindor, and a few added to Slytherin, Snape informed them that they were going to spend the next few weeks working on a Polyjuice Potion. "Good," thought Hermione. "Something that I have already done, and it is easy."
After Snape wrote the first steps of ingredients on the board, Hermione went to the back of the classroom to get her cauldron and the ingredients. Like she suspected, when she had returned, Draco had taken no notes and lying with his head on the desk. Hermione gave him a sharp tap on the shoulder.
"Hey! What was that for?" his head immediately came up.
"We have to make the potion and take notes."
"Wrong Granger, you get to make the potion and take the notes. It should be a snap since you have already done it."
Hermione was speechless. How did he know that she had made one before?
"Hermione, Ron and Harry both started changing back before my eyes. Crabbe does not have red tipped hair. And neither of them ever goes to the hospital wing. And Weasel and Potty don't know zits from zeroes. You are the only one who is brainy enough to make a fifth year potion in your second year."
Hermione sighed and turned her attention to potion. If he knew that, what else did he know about them?
By the end of the day when the two headed back to Malfoy's room, Hermione had just about had enough. He had put her through so much, including fanning him in front of the entire Slytherin Common Room. And it didn't help that Pansy kept on giving her these looks whenever she came near Draco. Once they were in the bedroom, Hermione went straight to the bathroom to change. After throwing on a sports bra and her pajama bottoms, she turned to leave the room.
"Are you sure you want to wear that, Miss Granger?" said the mirror. "Mr. Malfoy is a boy, after all."
"He wears his boxers to bed, and I don't care what he thinks."
"Hermione, I think it is time someone told you a few things. You see, when a man and..."
"SHUT UP!" she yelled and stormed out of the bathroom. She certainly didn't need the mirror talking to her about those things.
"Having problems with the mirror?" asked Draco.
"I suppose you want another story tonight, huh?" she said acidly.
"Sure," he said.
"Okay, let's tell the "Telltale Heart" by Edgar Allen Poe. Once upon a time there was this guy who stayed at another guy's house. The guy who owned the house had an evil eye that freaked the other guy out. So the other guy killed the guy with the evil eye. The police heard screaming and so they came to see what the commotion was. The guy, who had put the dead guy under the floorboard, said it was nothing. But then he heard a heart beat that kept on getting louder, and louder, and louder. It was torturing his mind!" And on "mind" she gave Draco a tap on the back of the head that made his entire platinum colored locks swim in front of his face. He caught her wrist before she could pull back.
"You messed up my hair."
"It is going to get messy when you go to sleep so why do you care?"
"You messed up my hair."
He dropped her wrist.
"Yes, I did, happy?"
"You messed up my hair. You are going to DIE!" And with these words he attempted to tackle her. To get out of his way, she rolled sideways- onto the floor.
"Oh you're not getting away that fast, you little vixen!"
With a small squeal, she rolled farther away, then jumped back onto the bed once Draco gotten off. He wrapped his arm around her stomach, then strattled her to stop her from getting away. Lucky for Hermione, she had taken a few self defense courses, and in a few seconds, she had Draco pinned. But, Draco was strong, and had it reversed again with him lying on top of her.
"Draco," she said
"What?"
"You're on top of me."
"So?"
"This is a very strategic position."
"Mmhmm."
Suddenly, Hermione had an idea for how to get him back for today that did not involve a wand and several complex hexes.
"Malfoy."
"Yea?"
"Truth or dare?"
"Dare," he smiled sensuously.
Hermione gave him the same smile back. "I dare you to dance in your nuddy pants on the balcony."
"You just want to see me bare."
"No, I just want to see if you will actually do it."
"Fine, but I'm puttinga blockeron your eyes."
"Okay."
After he muttered a quick spell, Draco tossed off his boxers. He exited the room to go on the balcony. After he almost just went on it, Hermione heard a voice.
"Malfoy! What do ya think yer doin'?"
"Uh, just getting some fresh air, Professor Hagrid," he stuttered back.
"I think you've had enough. When you do this again, put some pants on."
"Will do, sir."
Draco practically ran off of the balcony, on account that the windows of the Slytherin, Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, and Ravenclaw girl's dormitory, and Seamus's window (who had been recently discovered to be gay to the distress of much of the Hogwarts girl population) had banged open. He entered the room to Hermione who was almost doubled over in laughter.
"Thanks a lot, Hermione. Hagrid is down there muttering about the 'stinking Slytherin who was putting on a show for everyone.'"
This only make Hermione laugh harder.
"Fine, payback time. Truth or Dare?"
Hermione reduced her laughter to a giggle. "Um."
"You know what, you are picking dare and that is final."
"I don't know about that. It's my choice. Anyway, I don't trust you."
"I can't say I trust you either after that last stunt."
"Point taken."
"Good, you are going to sit in your underwear for the rest of the game."
"That isn't fair."
"After what you made me do, that is fair. Oh, and you are changing your top, sports bras don't count as underwear."
"Fine, fine," she grumbled and headed to the bathroom.
After a few short minutes and a few curt words with the mirror, she emerged. She saw Draco's eyes look her over.
"Stop that," she said.
"What?"
"Looking at me like that. It makes me feel uncomfortable." She sat down on the bed after grabbing a silk kimono from out of the wardrobe and draping it around herself.
"Sorry, I'll try not to."
"You at sixteen years old should be able to control yourself."
"I can't." With these two words he moved through the space that separated them and kissed her softly.
It was a sweet kiss, but this made Hermione mad. She at first warmed to it, but then realized who this was that she was kissing. She pushed him away and slapped him.
"What was that for?" he asked.
"Since when have I given you permission to kiss me? In case you haven't noticed, Malfoy, we aren't exactly friends."
"You let Harry and Ron kiss you?"
"Stop twisting my words. Malfoy, I also know you have a reputation. And a girlfriend."
"No I don't"
"Don't what?"
"Have a girlfriend."
"Pansy made it out like you two were dating."
"Ignore Pansy; she's been like that ever since I took her to the Yule Ball."
"Fine then, but I still knew that you have a reputation. I should have known better the minute you told me to go down to the bare necessities."
"Then why-"
"Why what?" she said acidly.
"Why did you kiss me back?"
Hermione, caught off guard, decided not to answer the question. She grabbed her kimono tie, tied it firmly around her waist, closing the robe, and stalked onto the wrought iron balcony. Placing two hands on the balcony, she listened to the wind move between the trees. Hermione tensed as Draco came onto the balcony and stood beside her.
"Hermione, you couldn't deny it back there. There is something. A spark."
"Which I will not addfuel to."
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw him turn his head forward, towards the lake.
"Draco," she began. "No matter whatyou may feel, it is impossible. I'm a Gryffindor. You're a Slytherin. It couldn't happen even if we hid it from the world. It would tear us up inside. Destroy us. You and I both would never be able to stand up to both of our Houses. I'm not even sure if the Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs would stand for it. The only one who wouldn't care is Dumbledore because he loves inter-House relationships. I would lose Harry and Ron. You would lose whomever you are friends with."
"Afraid of losing your old boyfriends?"
"Will you stop bringing them up? Harry was never my boyfriend, and I don't think ever will be. I don't want that to change either."
"And Weasley?"
"Ron and I dated during the summer. His mum was so excited. I think she may have already started picking out the china. His dad was excited because I was there to explain about Muggle things. But, even though Ron and I liked each other, there wasn't anything. The break-up was mutual. When I kissed him, there was no spark, no excitement. Maybe that is why I succumbed to your kiss. Maybe I did. . .feel something." Draco looked at her, and then began to speak.
"I had a girlfriend once. Her name was Xaverri., beautiful girl. She was the only person, before you, that I had ever felt something when I kissed her. We didn't go very far, which was a good thing. It turned out that she was one of my millions of cousins. Damn, I'm related to everyone.
"The day that I had to tell her of our relation, was the day she told me she loved me. Love is a foreign feeling to me. My father would choke out almost everything that I did that was loving, except for my kindness to my mother. To tell her, was one of the reasons I broke off a lot of my relations with women. I only brought Pansy to the Yule Ball so that I wouldn't give Potter something to laugh at me about. But with you, I feel like it is time to start over. Erase the old charts where I was cruel. You make me want to be a good person."
"Draco, we can't. I'm sorry," she said.
"I know." He lightly and quickly kissed her lips and went back inside, leaving Hermione to her thoughts, feeling angry and lost.
- - - - - -
Dragonfires