Disclaimer: obviously not mine. Why would it be on a fan fiction site?

Chapter four

Two weeks after returning to school, Hermione found herself being approached by Malfoy in the library.

"Are we going to start lessons?" she asked eagerly as he sat down opposite her and pulled a textbook towards him.

"Huh? Oh yeah, sure. Meet me in the charms classroom tonight at eight. I'll teach you to dance. Now… what's the main ingredient of a Love potion? I wouldn't usually ask except Snape wants that essay tomorrow."

"Cupid's dust" Hermione pointed to a spot in his book and he began scribbling notes in a little black notebook. "The more you put in, the stronger it becomes."

That night, at fifteen minutes to eight, Hermione excused herself from the Quidditch conversation the boys were having and set off at a leisurely pace towards the empty charms classroom.

Malfoy arrived five minutes later, twirling his wand between his fingers.

"Ready?" he asked, wasting no time in starting. He flicked his wand and some kind of heavenly music filled the air. He stepped towards her and bowed.

"It's polite to curtsy. Keep eye contact while your doing it." Hermione dipped her knees and almost fell over.

"Wow, you really are crap at this, aren't you?" he smirked, catching her by the wrist and placing her hand appropriately on his shoulder.

"Three steps back…now turn. I always thought it was odd that islanders send their daughters off into the muggle world. Right foot forward. I mean, they don't send their sons, do they?"

"Why not?" Hermione frowned slightly as she miss placed her foot again. Malfoy's skin was warm against hers and she was becoming easily distracted. It wasn't that she was attracted to the guy. It was merely the fact that he was male. This was how males were meant to act. She didn't get to see this kind of behaviour when hanging around Harry and Ron.

"Kings and Princes are born to grow up as leaders. The women are the ones who have to woo the commoners…RIGHT foot, Granger! Jeez, your worse at this than you are when your drunk!"

Every night for the next few weeks Hermione and Malfoy met in the charms classroom. As time wore on, Hermione got used to working with the blonde boy she had despised so much and they began to bond.

She soon found out that it was Malfoy's mother, not his father, who owned Denmark. Lucius was simply there though marriage purposes.

On the thirtieth of October Hermione was once again in the charms room with Malfoy.

"Shake those hips, Granger! Where's the sex appeal?"

"Oh shut up," she muttered, strutting down a row of desks. For the past few nights Malfoy had been teaching Hermione how to walk. This had been the most difficult part so far.

"Can you walk in heels?" he asked, watching with an amused expression from the teacher's desk.

"I doubt it." Hermione grumbled as she tripped over a desk.

"Oh come on, sweetheart! Smile! Princess' are nice, loving people."

"How are you so nice to all those rich snobs?" Hermione tripped again.

"I tolerate them by releasing anger on the idiots that go to this school. Mainly Potter and Weasley of course, but it keeps me satisfied." He watched Hermione for a few minutes longer in silence before declaring his intention to leave.

"I noticed Patil wears heels around school. Why don't you see if she'll give you some pointers?"

"Yeah, ok" Hermione picked up her bag and peered out the door to make sure the coast was clear. Neither she nor Draco had told anyone about their lessons. For some reason they preferred to keep it a secret.

Back in the Gryffindor girls' dormitories Hermione went straight up to Parvati and asked her to teach her how to walk in heels. Parvati accepted straight away and for the rest of the night they practiced. By morning Hermione had it mastered and she wondered why she didn't go to Parvati first.

Gryffindor had a double of potions first up on the morning of Halloween and Hermione tagged along behind Harry and Ron without a care in the world.

She seated herself between Parvati and Lavender and unpacked her belongings quietly.

"Today we are making love potions" Snape said, striding down the classroom and tapping the black board. A list of ingredients and instructions came up and the class hurriedly copied them down.

"Everyone finished? Now I'm going to put you into pairs of the opposite sex. Weasley and Bulstrode, Potter and Patil, Longbottom and Parkinson, Zabini and Brown, Malfoy and Granger…"

Hermione picked her things up and moved over to Malfoy's desk. Harry and Ron were giving her sympathetic looks from across the room and Lavender was giving her one of jealousy. It was a common fact that Lavender and Parvati liked Malfoy because of his good looks. Hermione smiled at the boys and shook her head as if to say; I'm fine. Don't worry about it.

Malfoy didn't notice. He was to busy throwing spit balls at Weasley.

"So Granger" he started when Snape finally told him to stop and took five points from Ron. "Have you learnt the heels?"

"Yes. Pav is a way better teacher than you."

"To bad." Malfoy shrugged, watching as Hermione began slicing onion roots. "I always thought you fancied guys. But if it's Patil you want…"

"Just shut up and help, would you?"

It was a pleasant lesson. One of the more pleasant potion classes Hermione had been to in a while. Being partnered with Malfoy had its befits. For starters, Snape didn't seek trouble in Malfoy so he left the pair of them alone to harass other Gryffindors and the conversations between them were more intimate. Harry and Ron talked about Quidditch while Malfoy would talk about more mature, slightly bolder things that left Hermione tingling after she answered them.

"Everybody finished?" Snape swept around the class one last time before retiring to his desk. "Please put a spoonful of potion into a flask and bring it to my desk. When everyone has done that you will be able to test it."

Hermione gave Malfoy the honour of taking the flask up to the teacher's desk while she ladled two spoonfuls into two cups.

"Now everyone face your partner." Snape instructed when everyone was sitting down again. "Keep eye contact while you drink then count to five. The potion should take effect by then."

Hermione and Malfoy turned to face each other and Malfoy winked.

Hermione drank the hot pink potion down in two gulps and counted to five. She suddenly felt light headed and tingly. She looked at Malfoy. She wanted to touch him, hold him and kiss him. Instead she laughed.

He raised a hand and stroked her arm resting on the desk.

"That tickles!" she giggled feebly and he laughed loudly.

"This potion is fun," he whispered, leaning in close to her.

There was a loud crash behind them as Neville threw Pansy across the table and absorbed her in a passionate French kiss.

Everyone in the class laughed as Snape blasted them apart with his wand. The main effect of the potion began wearing off so by the end of the lesson Hermione only felt a little desire to be with Malfoy.

"I suggest you avoid each other for the rest of the day" Snape called as the class filed out. "The potions wont completely wear off until sometime early tomorrow morning."

Hermione didn't need to avoid Malfoy even if she wanted to. They had no classes together and the next time she saw him was at the feast that night.

She was sitting between Neville and Ron, picking lazily at her food when Malfoy caught her eye from across the room. He smirked and held up his knife and fork, indicating that she should use hers. She rolled her eyes and picked them up.

"What's going on between you and Malfoy, Hermione?" Ron quizzed latter on in the Gryffindor common room.

"What do you mean?" the party was just getting underway and someone had forced a bottle of firewhisky into her hand. She took a sip and felt her eyes go slightly cross-eyed as the hot substance burnt a hole in her stomach.

"Well you're never mean to him anymore. I see you sometimes looking at him from across the room and today you didn't object at all about being his partner and you were laughing together!"

"There's nothing going on, Ron" she drained the bottle and stood up, swaying slightly to get another.

"You can tell me, Herm, are you guys having sex?"

"What? No! Malfoy's changed, that's all… he's gotten more mature, which is more I can say for you!" she took a swig of her new drink and turned away. "Sex indeed!"

"I think you've had enough, Hermione" Harry strolled over and tried to pluck to bottle from her hand. "You've already had three…your smashed!"

"Oh piss off, Harry!" she said rather loudly, swinging away from him and towards the portrait hole. "Your not my bloody father!"

For a while Hermione simply wandered along the empty corridors, drinking her firewhisky and humming quietly. She soon found herself outside the charms classroom. She suddenly remembered that she was supposed to meet Malfoy but he wasn't there. He was swaggering along the corridor towards her, running into walls and knocking over statues.

"Am I late?" he asked when he finally reached her.

"Nah…I just got here, too"

"I don't wanna use the charms room tonight" Malfoy flung his arm across her shoulders and they both staggered sideways into the wall.

"Lets go to that empty room in the next corridor. It's bigger and there's only one desk."

"Ok"

They found the suggested classroom and went inside. Neither of them lit the candles. Neither of them remembered how. Malfoy cued the heavenly music but instead of waltzing, Hermione simply let herself fall against him in a swaying embrace.

"You know" Malfoy mused as they swayed back and forth to the music. "I've actually had a lot of fun this year." He let his hands slide slowly down her body so they came to a rest on her lower back.

"I have as well. Who knew you could actually be a decent guy?" she pulled her head from his chest and looked into the silver pools of mercury that were his eyes.

"Do think the potion is still working?" she whispered as he moved his face closer to hers.

"Who cares?"

He kissed her.

I've tried to go on like I never knew you
I'm awake but my world is half asleep
I pray for this heart to be unbroken
But without you all I'm going to be is incomplete

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