Two Opposites Attract

Chapter 4

First Day

The train pulled up to the all too familiar school known as Hogwarts. A very tall Hagrid was calling the first year students over to him while the rest of the students went to the carriages. Draco and Hermione woke with a start, as there was a nock on the compartment door. The both saw Professor McGonagall standing there with a smile on her face and then she walked away. They didn't say anything to each other as they both made their way out of the compartment to the exit.

Hermione instantly went to Harry, Ron, and Ginny as she and Draco got off the train. She didn't look back at Draco as she entered the carriage with her friends. Draco entered a carriage and was followed by Blaise Zabini. They sat down opposite of each other and Blaise had a stupid grin on his face.

"So." Blaise started. "Who are the targets this year?" He started rambling girls names off.

"Whoever you want." Draco sighed looking out the window.

"What do you mean? We have a reputation to uphold. Everyone knows that we always have a list of girls to get to know." He raised his eyebrows and slapped Draco on the knee. "Come on. You seriously haven't been thinking about this? It's all I've been thinking about all summer. You are really off your game." He looked disappointedly out the other window.

They rode in silence for a minute before Blaise chimed in again.

"You're seeing someone aren't you, you dirty dog?"

"What? No I'm not."

"Yes you are. You're usually dieing to give me the list of girls and now you don't even care about the list because you're already going out with someone."

"I am not."

"Well then you at least have a pretty big crush on someone. Tell me."

"There isn't anyone and if there was, I wouldn't be telling you?"

"Since when? We've told each other about every little detail about the girls we've hooked up with since we've started doing the list so we know if someone is really worth the screw or not. This is really serious. You have to tell me who it is."

"Shut up Zabini!" Draco snapped.

And with that, Zabini didn't say another word the rest of the ride to the castle. Once the carriage stopped Blaise jumped out and ran up the stairs into the castle. Draco walked into the castle by himself, which is unusual for him, and went into the great hall and sat down away from his fellow Slytherin's. He sat there with his elbow on the table and his head in his hand while he waited for the ceremony to begin.

Professor McGonagall came out with the sorting hat, a stool, and a piece of parchment that Draco knew held the names of all the new first years. Once the first years where placed in the houses, Dumbledore went to the podium and raised his hands to silence the students. Once the hall fell quiet, he smiled and started his speech. It was the same speech as all of the previous years except for one part.

"And now I would like to introduce you to the new Head Boy and Girl and I ask for them to stand when I call their names please. Draco Malfoy and Hermione Granger." He stood up and looked across the table to the Gryffindor table and saw Hermione stand as well. The whole school erupted into applause as Hermione took one quick look at Draco then looked around at the rest of the students. The both sat down and Dumbledore continued his speech. "In these dark time that are upon us I ask one thing from you all. Please come together as one so we can defeat this horrible evil that has lingered around for far too long. I believe that if we can unite as one, then there is a good chance of defeating He Who Must Not Be Named. And with that, let the feast begin!" And a beautiful spread of dishes appeared and everyone started eating like it was their last meal. All during the meal Draco kept looking up at Hermione but she would never look back at him. It hurt him a little because it didn't make sense. Back on the train she was practically crying over him not to be taken by the Death Eaters and once the train stopped, she's had nothing to do with him. He was going to get to the bottom this tonight.

Once everyone was done, the Prefects took everyone up to the dormitories except for Draco and Hermione. They both went to the portrait of Hogwarts and waited out front of it.

"So, what's the password going to be?" Hermione asked him.

"Whatever you want it to be." He responded.

She thought for a minute and then said, "Butterfingers."

"Butterfingers?"

"It was the first thing that came to my mind. And if someone hears us say it then they may think we just said it because we dropped something."

"I guess that works." He said and the portrait opened and they both walked in.

They walked down a long corridor then it opened into a common room with a fire burning on the right wall. There was a table on the left wall where the corridor entered the room with four chairs around it, a coffee table sat in-between the fire and a three person dark green couch, and a single door in the middle of the wall across from the corridor.

"I wonder why there's only one door?" She asked.

"Maybe it goes to the bathroom then there will be two doors, one that goes to your room and one that goes to mine."

"Lets hope." She said and went and plopped down on the far side of the couch.

He went and sat on the other end of the couch. She looked very tired. Must not have gotten a lot of sleep on the train. She just stared into the fire as Draco looked at her. He wasn't really sure how to ask her about the whole thing on the train. Finally he decided on one.

"Hermione, I have a question." He started.

She looked over at him with heavy eyes, but didn't take her head off the back of the couch. He looked down at the cushion in-between them still having trouble coming up with the right words.

"Why did you ignore me today after we got off the train?" Damn it, that's not what I wanted to ask.

"Because you're Malfoy." She said simply.

"What's that suppose to mean?" He said irritably and looked up into her tired eyes.

"Do you know how much crap we would get if people knew about what happened on the train? Only a few people knew about me helping the people like you in the Order of the Phoenix headquarters."

"But you didn't help me there." He interrupted. "You freaked out, shoved me off the bed and made my wound open up, then you freaked out again when Harry walked in when you were cleaning my wound up and didn't talk to me the rest of the time there!"

"I didn't make your wound open up! You said that it just bled on its own! And the whole thing with Harry is complicated and none of your business!" She got up and went to the mystery door. Draco followed her; he wasn't done with this argument.

Draco followed her through the door that led to a bedroom. There was a queen size four poster bed that had a red quilt on top of it with a lion and a snake on it, and there where two dressers with Crookshanks sleeping on top of one of them. Another door stood to the right of the room. Hermione tried to open it but like the door on the train, it didn't open. The door that led to the common room swung shut on its own and Draco tried to open it but it didn't budge.

"What the hell is up with these door?" Hermione yelled.

"I don't know, maybe they have the same problem as you?"

"And what's that suppose to mean?" She looked back at him ready to kill.

"Oh, I don't know, maybe the fact that you don't want to admit the truth when it's staring you right in your face?" He yelled back at her.

"How does that pertain with the doors?"

"It doesn't, okay? It's just something on my mind! Now do you feel like answering because I have a feeling we're going to be here for a while?"

"No! I don't have to answer anything you ask me!" She marched over to the bed and sat down on it still glaring at Draco.

Draco put his hands on his hips, looked down, and closed his eyes taking deep breaths. This is like dealing with a five year old. Slowly he opened his eyes and walked to the bed. He stopped in front of her and held onto the post of the bed while his other hand still on his hip.

"Just tell me this and I'll leave you alone. Did you feel anything towards me either at Grimmuald Place or on the train?"

Her expression softened and she looked down at the floor. "What if I did?"

Draco just stood there shocked. He didn't think that she really did feel anything towards him.

"It's like I said. You're Malfoy, nothing can happen. I'd never do that to Harry."

"So are you two going out?" He asked a little hurt and looked out the window behind Hermione at the night sky.

She didn't answer. She just kept looking at the floor.

"I would really like to know if you two are going out so I can figure some stuff out Hermione."

"Like I said, it's complicated."

"It shouldn't be. It should be a simple yes or no. Unless you're coving for him because he's in some other relationship that he doesn't want people to know about."

She looked up at him shocked and said too quickly. "It's nothing like that."

That triggered his attention right away. "What's going on with you two?" He asked again.

"None of your business." She was getting mad again.

"Fine." And he walked away to the dresser that didn't have Crookshanks on it and opened the top drawer. Thankfully it was his clothes. He proceeded to pull out a pair of red silk boxers and went to the other side of the bed and started undressing.

"What do you think you're doing?" Hermione exclaimed.

"Getting ready for bed." He answered as he took off his shirt and started unzipping his pants. He sat at the end of the bed and took off his pants and socks then looked at Hermione. "Do you mind turning around so I can change my boxers?"

She blushed and walked over to her dresser with her back to Draco. He changed boxers and crawled under the silk red sheets and quilt. Hermione joined him after she had changed and the candles in the room went out on their own leaving the two in the dark.

Draco laid on his back and assumed from Hermione's soft breathing, she was on her side facing him. He laid there for a long time not being able to fall asleep. It was different for him to be in a bed with a girl and not be doing anything but sleeping.

"Draco?" He heard her say softly.

"Yeah." He whispered back.

"I was just wondering, how's you chest?"

"My chest?" He looked over at her in the dark.

"I mean your cut. Did it ever stop bleeding?"

"It did eventually."

"That's good." She said happily then yawned. "I have another question. You don't have to answer me if you don't want to. I've just been wondering ever since that day about your body."

"My body?" He smiled and asked confused.

"I don't mean your body, I mean all those cuts and bruises. How did you get them?"

His smiled faded. This is it. Do I tell her? "My dad." He paused waiting for a reaction.

"Are you serious?" She sat up on her arm looking down at me. "You have to tell someone about it."

"No. I can't."

"What do you mean you can't?"

"No one would believe me."

"How could they not believe you? You have the evidence all over your body."

"Even so, I don't want anyone to know."

"Well, do any of your friends know? Are any of them helping you?"

"No one knows but you." Even in the dark he could make out the puzzled look on her face.

"Why only me?"

"Because you're the only person who's ever cared." His voice broke a little fighting back tears. "Yeah, a few other people have seen them but don't give them a second look. You're the first person who has expressed any concern over them."

She sat up then pulled Draco up and hugged him. "I will always care." She said and they both lay back down and held each other. Ever so slowly, they both fell asleep.

A/N: Isn't that sweet? But what will things be like in the morning during their first day of classes? And on a serious note, abuse isn't cool and if it's happening to you, tell someone right away. Don't be like Draco and keep it bottled up inside, tell a friend or an adult, someone who can help.