Okay, finally another chapter! It took a while, so please make it worth my while and review! I do love them so!
Thanks as well everyone for their reviews on chapter two, especially vagrantben who is quickly becoming my favourite reviewer (thank you!) Unless of course you want to try beat them to it (hint hint!).
Don't own anything but my sanity.
A rather bizarre sort of atmosphere had descended upon the Gryffindor tower that night as those named as the golden trio sat in front of the fire. Hermione was pretending, though not very productively, to be engrossed in her latest read as Ron struggled to concentrate on his Potions essay as he lounged in front of the roaring fire, who's flames danced relentlessly around the dim common room, doing nothing to lift the strange atmosphere that surrounded them.
Harry had given up on even pretending to engage himself in a productive means of activity as he stared into the flames, his green eyes bright with an emotion neither of his friends could place. After the strange incident that had took place that very afternoon, Hermione was sure Harry was in for a barrage of questions from a certain brash red head who seemed, at that moment in time, to have forgot it ever happened. She herself was rather unsure what to say, and despite her mind reeling on account of that very incident, it seemed more engaged with the stares she kept receiving from a certain blue eyed Slytherin. She was never sure quite what was behind those stares, and to be honest, she found it rather disconcerting. She normally found it so very easy to read people. I mean of course, it was not all that difficult to read Ron, and Harry's thoughts and feelings were normally evident after some of her famous psycho-analysis. Merlin, even Malfoy, bearer of the face of great big stoney-ness, was easy enough to read the majority of the time. But the blue eyed Slytherin, who had caused her nerve to be strained rather beyond its comfort level all year, was quite the mystery. She had no idea of his intentions toward her, be it evil or good. And for that matter, whether he even had any at all!
"That's it, I've had it, some one needs to tell me what the bloody hell is going on this place before I explode like a bloody Fizzing bloody whizbee, got it?"
Hermione looked up from the book she had been pretending to read at the red head who was bouncing up and down on the balls of his feet looking between the both of them like a psychotic ape wearing a carrot coloured toupee. She stole a glance toward Harry, who like her, had been startled out of his reverie and was now was looking toward Ron as though he was some sort of creature from the deepest depths of outer space. Neither of them spoke, possibly, Hermione thought, for fear of Ron actually exploding as promised.
"Well?" he demanded, eyes nearly popping out of his freckled face. "Are you two just going to sit there with all your top secret information and crazy ununderstandable knowledgy stuff and not tell me?" he ranted, turning to Harry.
"You shook Malfoy's hand Harry, shook his hand! The same slimy ferret that gave us hell for the last six years! Draco Malfoy Harry. Draco evil sneaky soon to be deatheater, bleacher of hair and wearer of incessant green and black Malfoy!"
"I think Harry is quite aware of who Malfoy is Ron…"
"Oh no no no! Miss I know stuff and don't tell Ron person! Don't side with him. We're the trio remember, tree-o! Ron needs to know the scoop too you know!"
"Ron, when did you start referring to yourself in third person?"
"And no trying to throw me off the subject with a clever little change of topic Mr I like to shake my arch enemy's hand!"
"Ron, breathe, nice and slow!"
"Don't tell me to breathe woman!"
"Harry…" Hermione started with a pleading look in the boys' direction.
"I know I know" he said pushing a hand back through his messy wreck of hair. "I need to explain…"
"Finally!" Ron said sitting down on a chintzy armchair by the fire, clasping his hands together, and setting his eyes on Harry as though he was about to be told the meaning of life.
"I shook hands with Malfoy, because, well, because I…"
"Spit it out man!"
"Because I think it's about time we tried our hands at a little bit of inter house relations…" he stated rather meekly.
"Interhouse relations? And the first person you choose to make friendly with is Malfoy…"
"Well…" Harry looked pleadingly at Hermione, who was clearly going to have to rectify the situation for the helpless boy.
"Harry thought that maybe trying to resolve things with Malfoy would set a good example to the rest of the school, what with their feud being so famous and all."
Harry nodded excitably in agreement, glad to have found a way out of telling Ron he was lusting after the blonde Slytherin.
"But Malfoy's a death eater Harry!"
"Actually Ron, I don't think he is" said a hesitant voice from the stairwell leading to the boys dormitories.
"Neville, what the bloody hell are you talking about?"
"Yeah Neville…" said a shocked Harry as he turned round eagerly. Hermione had a feeling that Harry was simply about to agree and back down to Ron, unable to find any evidence that would suggest Malfoy was otherwise.
Neville wandered hesitantly over to the trio, and sat himself down on a chair beside Hermione.
"Well, you see, I heard Gran talking to one of her friends before we came back after summer, and she mentioned something about Malfoy always being a Malfoy."
Hermione grimaced inwardly at the use of the saying she had just appeased herself with only a day before.
"Yeah exactly!" said a triumphant Ron.
"No, no that's not what I'm trying to tell you. You see at dinner that night I asked Gran what she meant, and she explained to me that Malfoy and a couple of his cronies had gone to Dumbledore for help, saying they wanted to switch sides in the War, and that Dumbledore had agreed to help them."
"What?" cried an infuriated Ron as Harry and Hermione sat there shocked in contemplative silence. "And he believed him? What's he playing at? He's probably just spying for his dad."
"Ron, Professor Dumbledore will have his reasons for trusting him, even if he has not shared them with you!" admonished Hermione, though she was having serious doubts herself. These doubts must have been evident on her face, as Ron continued with his Tirade.
"Could you believe him though? I mean what has he ever done to show he is anything other than a bigoted little death eater who worships the ground his dad walks on…."
"Actually Ron, that's apparently why he switched." Said Neville, though he shrunk back a little as Ron's furious gaze reverted to him. "Looks like his Dad wasn't so fond of him after all after he found out he was Gay…"
"Gay, Malfoy's Gay?"
"Yeah" muttered Harry, "found out a couple of days ago…"
"What? I mean, for Merlin's sake, I know the boy is obsessed with his hair, and has an annoyingly good dress sense but…oh god he's gay!"
"I'm glad you finally jumped the thought train Ronald" stated Hermione.
"I can't believe it" Harry said, obviously still shocked, "are you sure Nev?"
"Well I don't have it written down and signed but that's what Gran says anyway, though I think she doesn't quite want to believe it."
There was a stunned and contemplative silence, before Ron broke in, allowing himself a small grin.
"Crikey mate, who would have guessed it? Maybe you and Ferret can get it together now….." Ron joked with a little chuckle.
He didn't catch the look that passed between his two best friends.
Unfortunately Neville did.
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If, only a year ago, someone had suggested that, he, Blaise Antonio Dominic Zabini, would be lying on a couch with Draco Malfoy snuggled, yes ladies and gentlemen 'snuggled' was the only word for it, into his chest he would have laughed out loud and prescribed a long course of therapy. Yet here they were.
Theo was sat on his bed smirking at the blonde boy who was cuddling his best mate and staring obliviously at the hand that had recently been shook by one Hero of the Wizarding World.
"I take it, Drake, that that hand will never again see the hygienic instrument of choice that we so fondly call soap." Theo stated lazily.
Draco looked up from his musings, shocked to find actual people in his actual room. Never mind lying underneath him.
"I don't know what you're talking about Nott, and I think you'll find that people such as myself do not use such common bathing products" he sniffed, avoiding the question.
"Yes Drake, we know that your 'apple and cinnamon scented skin smoothing bathing cream for girls who want to feel smooth as silk' should never be thought of as soap" Blaise said with a not so secret eye roll in Theo's general direction.
"It's not for girls Zabini, just because I want to feel good, doesn't mean I'm some sort of giggling girlie…girl."
"No, it means you're a trumped up, all glittering, all sparkling poof" Theo added, right before Malfoy jumped up and threw one of his highly expensive duck down pillows at him.
"Pillow fights Draco? Are you trying to dispel my comments or encourage them…?"
Blaise ended up holding his stomach as he rolled round on the bed in a fit of giggles.
"Urrrgghhhh idiots." Draco muttered at his hysterical friends, picking up a towel and some expensive looking shampoo and conditioner. "I'm going to take a bath."
"Going to contemplate your little handshake with Potter while in more private surroundings" Theo suggested wiggling his eyebrows.
"I…do….NOT…fancy...Harry…sodding…Potter, got it?"
"Oh yeah we get it Draco" Blaise mirrored Theo's eye brow wiggle, before they collapsed in a renewed fit of giggles.
Draco turned to storm into the bathroom, but Blaise quickly jumped up between him and the door.
"Look sorry mate, were only playing, you know. I guess we just don't get why you shook hands with your self professed worst enemy."
"Yeah Drake, seriously, I would kind of like to know myself." Theo added from the bed, apparently recovered from his giggling fit.
"I…I don't know, ok? We were just there, and we were all against Pansy and he held out his hand and I just…I just…" Draco groaned and collapsed beside Theo.
A slightly more serious look passed between the two friends.
"Look it doesn't matter, I guess it's not so bad that you and Potter are going to be friends…"Blaise started.
"Friends?" asked Draco scandalised, "who said anything about friends? I was simply being the higher minded civil being that I am!"
"What's the point in having a truce if we can't…" started Blaise.
"We can't what? Seduce certain bushy haired Gryffindor's?" Theo interrupted, leaving Draco sniggering.
'Oh yeah', thought Blaise, 'way to turn it back on yourself Zabini.'
"Yeah Zabini just cause you want to get jiggy with Granger"
"Get Jiggy? Jiggy? Malfoy, you sound like my father trying to be 'hip'."
"Don't even try to turn this around Zabini, I want to know your POA."
"My POA?"
"Yeah POA, plan of action."
"Okay Drake, not all of us look at seduction with such military precision, and besides when did you even begin to condone this…thingy…I mean none thingy…I mean its not…anyth….urgh, I give up!" Blaise tried to get out, losing all his usual eloquence.
"Your all mopey and broody, even more so than usual, and its boring me" Draco sniffed, "And well, how do you expect to get anywhere Zabini if you're all mouth and no trousers?"
"I don't expect to get anywhere that's the point."
"Why not B, your smart, loaded and you look good. Though not as smart, loaded and good looking as myself I admit. But it's not like I'm trying to get into Granger's knickers so you have no real competition…" he said with a slightly disgusted look on his face.
Though Blaise prickled on the inside at the thought of anyone trying to get into her knickers, so to speak, but him, 'ahhh protective already' he thought, he tried to explain his point to Draco.
"Granger has morals though Draco, I would prefer to get to know her you know, before jumping into her bed. It wouldn't matter if I was the most good looking, loaded and smart person in the world, Granger probably wouldn't give me the time of day. I'm a Slytherin, the person who has made her life a living hell for the past 5 years is one of my only mates and I'm not some crazy die for the cause Gryffindor like Potter or Weasley" Blaise finished looking decidedly sorry for himself, and running his hands through his dark curls in frustration.
Theo jumped up off his bed and started unbuttoning his shirt.
"And I don't think a strip tease is going to change anything Theo…" Blaise said with a half smile.
"Hey! Let the boy finish" Draco mock leered at Theo's skinny frame.
It was returned with a glare from Theo, which just as quickly fell off his face as he turned back to Blaise, now throwing a Chudley Cannons T shirt over his head.
"You know last time I checked B, Potter was Gay and Granger preferred to scream bloody murder and Weasley as oppose to go all damsel in distress about his err….Heroics" Theo defined his last word with exaggerated quotation fingers.
"Granger wouldn't go for Potter anyway…" Draco added, though he seemed to be trying to convince himself rather than Blaise. The two boys shared another glance at the blonde's antics.
"Yeah well there are plenty other Gryffindor's…" Blaise muttered pulling the knot loose on his tie and throwing it over his bed post.
"That's not what I'm trying to say, I meant that Granger's just too smart to go crazy over the prince on the white horse type you know what I mean?"
Draco snorted, earning a glare from Blaise.
"You know she's smart, after all, you've been trying to beat her in everything all year and mostly all you've earned is a bad case of sleep deprivation."
"So what, I stop challenging her and try to be nice." Blaise said disbelievingly.
"Who said anything about stopping?" Theo said with a decidedly sneaky glint in his eye.
"What the hell are you on about Theo?" Draco said, obviously confused, though Blaise thought that maybe he was starting to see Theo's point.
"Maybe" said Theo, as he pulled back the covers and climbed into bed. "You should just be a little more obvious about it."
The two boys shared a knowing smirk as poor Draco simply looked between his dark haired friends like they had just grown extra heads.
"I don't get it!"
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It was around 6am when Hermione's alarm clock went off, but she found herself lying already awake in bed. This was not unusual. Hermione was definitely a morning person. 'The early bird catches the worm' her mother always used to say. Her body always woke her up around 10 minutes before her alarm went off. She was not annoyed by this, it gave her time to be fully alert when she dressed for school, looked over her timetable for the day ahead and checked over her homework from the night before. So, now fully alert, she jumped out of bed, and quietly collected her shower things. Lavender and Parvati, you see, were not morning people and she imagined that if she so much as breathed to loudly they were likely to fling a bottle of nail varnish at her head. They called it their beauty sleep. Merlin, she thought, leave it up to them to beautify even in their sleep.
Hermione went through her normal routine of a shower and a quick hair drying spell. The next three minutes were dedicated to the highly stressful task of getting a comb through her hair, which coincidently decided to look like a bird's nest this morning, making her resort to tying it in messy bun at the back of her head. Then came her only vice. An aunt had included it in the customary Christmas gift basket she had received every year since she was 10. It was a mocha coffee perfumed body lotion that she absolutely adored. Now, she could never stand the taste of coffee, but the smell had always been a favourite. It was her morning routine to cover herself with the stuff. It made her feel like she was, after all, a girl, even if no one else noticed. It wasn't a terribly noticeable smell when she put her clothes on, and no one had ever commented on it, but it was enough that she could smell it lingering around herself when she sat in class. After pulling on her uniform and robes she headed down to the common room where she expected Harry and Ron to turn up 10 minutes late, giving her extra time to check over her potions essay.
Breakfast had been its usual mostly silent meal. Her boys never quite could find it in themselves to so much as utter a coherent word before midday. Oh well they had two hours of charms to contend with, Hermione thought, satisfied that she was fully prepared for the lesson.
Unfortunately, and let it be said unusually, for her, she was oh so very wrong!
Hermione took her usual seat at the left of Harry in the middle of the classroom, Ron occupying his right. Nearly all the Gryffindor's were present, and she collected her homework and books, quills and parchment, from her bag and readied herself for the intellectual journey ahead. She was just in the middle of straightening her blank parchment when the last three Slytherin's sauntered in at the last possible minute as per usual. Malfoy was in the lead as usual, Nott taking his left, and finally Blaise 'bane of her existence' Zabini sitting right across the row from her on his right. This was not unusual, though it managed to infuriate her even more to have him so close. What was unusual; however, was the fleeting wink he had just sent her way before turning to convene with Malfoy. I mean granted, there had been the little staring contests during their last two encounters, but surely that was to be expected, it was Slytherin versus Gryffindor after all. Though never in any of their little competitions had he actually openly acknowledged she was actually there! In fact it now had her in quite a fluster. Has she imagined the wink? No she was fairly certain it had happened. She looked to Harry to see if he had seen, but he was lost in shooting half glances at Malfoy between indulging Ron in a sleepy grunt –like conversation about the Hufflepuff Chasers. She decided to try to forget the wink in order to concentrate on the lesson ahead, ignoring the shivers it had sent up her spine along the way.
"Okay class! Today we are going to be looking at the in's and out's of casting charms without any audible incantation. The how, and more importantly the why!" The tiny professor squeaked, standing on top of a chair in order to maintain eye contact with his class.
Hermione fidgeted in her chair, forgetting all about Zabini, this she could do!
"Okay, now first of all, why is soundless spell casting so important?"
Hermione straightened her back and raised her hand to the air, the answer already starting to form on her lips before she was interrupted by Professor Flitwick.
"Yes, Mr Zabini?"
Well, it was safe to say Hermione Granger was downright outraged, she had been beaten again. She looked to her left in furious indignation as he lazily began to answer.
"Besides being quicker and less tedious, when one is in a battle situation, an opponent will find it harder to distinguish which spell is being used against him and thus it will be almost impossible to block." He drawled, leaning back in his chair, his tousled dark curls falling into his eyes.
He looked completely unruffled as usual, but when Professor Flitwick finished awarding him house points and turned away, he turned his head and looked her straight in the eye, a satisfied smirk forming on his lips.
Hermione's look of indignation magnified as he just as quickly turned back to the front of the classroom, without loosing his smirk. Hermione narrowed her eyes and then turned to her parchment. She could feel Harry's gaze but didn't look up.
'Well' she thought 'at least he's not ignoring me anymore'
Though, that particular thought did nothing to calm her down.
"How dare he!" she muttered to herself, before hitting on a rather brilliant idea.
Before the Professor could move to ask another question, she again raised her hand in the air.
"Yes Miss Granger?"
"I think, sir, that Mr Zabini here may have exaggerated a little in his answer." She said before shooting a glance at Zabini, who she was pleased to see, had lost all his previous calm and was now looking at her in unrestrained surprise.
"Go on Miss Granger."
"Well, you see, he did not take into account wand motions sir! Take for example a levitation charm sir. It has incredibly distinctive wand movements and would be quite obvious to even your Wizard or Witch of average capabilities on a battlefield, therefore one must consider that while soundless spell may be useful, it's use in a battle situation must not be taken for granted." She said in her best know it all voice, giving the professor a sickly sweet smile which she then turned on Zabini.
"Well…er…yes, quite right Miss Granger, 10 points to Gryffindor!" said a rather stunned Professor Flitwick, though Hermione did not hear him.
When she had turned her triumphant smile on Zabini expecting a look of surprise or outrage, she had been shocked to find no such thing. Instead she had found Zabini smiling unrestrainedly right at her. Not a smirk, a real, genuine, smile. His eyes contained no anger, only amusement, and what looked disturbingly like outright wonder.
Her own triumphant smile quickly slid off her face, and for some strange reason she felt the heat rise in her cheeks. She turned back to the front of the classroom in a total fluster, though she was sure she could still feel his gaze on her back.
'Oh dear' she thought 'that wasn't how it was supposed to go'
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Blaise found himself still staring at the back of her head, a smile still playing on his lips even after Flitwick had begun a boring lecture about the history of casting without incantation. He could not believe it. Not only had she challenged him back, in what he thought was a completely fiery, sexy display of her intellect; she had blushed at his gaze.
Hermione Granger, ice queen of Hogwarts, had blushed. And he found it absolutely adorable. He could still see the tint of pink on the back of her neck, contrasting wonderfully with her golden curls that were shining at the very nape of it, having escaped from her bun.
'Well' he thought 'I'm definitely going to have to owe Theo one for this little idea.'
If anything it had made him all the more confident, so much more confident in fact, that when the bell rang to end the lesson, he found he was able to try and push his luck a little more.
Granger was just putting her immaculately written notes into her bag, obviously trying hard not to meet his gaze. He leaned down until his lips were nearly touching her ear, making her jump a little in her seat.
"Until next time, Cara." He whispered in his huskiest Italian tone, before straightening up and walking straight out the classroom, ignoring the stares he was receiving from both his friends and hers.
Today had been a good day for one Blaise Zabini. And to top it off, he could smell her lingering scent as he walked out the door.
Yes, Blaise Zabini loved the smell of coffee.
And even more than that, Blaise Zabini loved the taste of coffee.
And there was nothing he would rather taste more, than one Hermione Granger.
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Okay please, please, pretty please with bloody Blaise Zabini shaped cherry on top, review!