Summer is Overrated
first 3 chapters by Mystical Spirits

Chapter 2:
The Aquarium

The next morning was clear and sunny, much warmer than it was the night before. It was a beautiful day, and Hermione was looking quite forward to it, even if it meant going to the aquarium with her best friend's archenemy. The trouble was, Hermione slept in, which was very unlikely for her. When she woke up and looked at her digital clock on her nightstand, she found that not only did she oversleep, but it was already past 10:00, the time she was to meet Malfoy.

She yelped and jumped out of bed. She knew it was way too late to take even the quickest shower, so she decided to just take one when she got home. She quickly tossed on a white spaghetti-strap tank top that slightly exposed her flat stomach, black sweatpants with white streaks on the sides, and white flip flops. She ran a brush through her tangled hair until it lay in soft curls once more and tied it up (she didn't want a repeat of her flying hair like yesterday) with a white ribbon.

She put on no makeup (why would she have the urge to look nice for Malfoy?), but she packed a small tube of lip gloss (and an extra hair ribbon) in her small white bag. She slung the bag over her head so it crossed over to the other side of her body, making it less possible for someone to steal it.

She wrapped Malfoy's borrowed jacket around her waist, the dark green color not even looking out of place with her black and white clothes. Slapping on scentless sunscreen, Hermione grabbed her red and gold bike and helmet (she brought along a lot of her sporting gear with her on the trip in case there was nothing to do) before running out the door with it. She fumbled with the keys a bit before finally locking it and shoving them in her pocket.

She jumped on her bike, helmet secured on her head, and rode off as fast as she could (which was pretty fast) to the nearby aquarium.

She saw Malfoy's bright hair from down the street, so she rode over quickly to him. She dodged a few people (there wasn't a biking lane) before skidding to a stop in front of him.

"Sorry I'm late," she apologized to a shocked-looking Malfoy. Of course, Hermione thought. Hermione Granger being late? And riding a bike as fast as possible through busy streets? Well, the streets weren't all that busy. It was an unplottable island, after all, although there were still enough people to make a population number on a sign. But Hermione knew that Malfoy was still surprised at seeing a bookworm like her into fun and action, let alone wearing clothes like these rather than the usual baggy shapeless blobs.

Malfoy spoke up, "Yeah, twenty minutes late."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Well, sorry! I woke up twenty minutes ago, so be proud of me."

Malfoy shrugged. "Whatever. Can we just go inside now?" Hermione noted that his voice was unlike the civil voice he used last night, but similar to the one he used during classes: dull, bored, and uncaring.

"Hold your horses, Ferret Face," Hermione teased, a hint of leftover malice in her voice (even after a truce, she couldn't have forgiven him for everything so quickly). "I still have to put my bike away, and, in case you didn't know, we have to show them our passes first."

"Fine," Malfoy rolled his eyes. "Wake me up when you're done."

Hermione slapped his arm. "I just lock it up in those bike stands, Malfoy," she said, pointing. "Don't you know what a bike is?"

"Of course I do," Malfoy protested. "I took Muggle Studies ("Shut up!" Hermione hissed, looking at passing Muggles). I just don't know those specifics. I'm not going to be riding a whatever-it-is very soon or anything."

"Whatever, Malfoy," Hermione rolled her bike to the stands, locking it up quickly so not to get yelled at by him for being so slow. She dug a hand in her casual-looking bag and snatched up two passes into the aquarium. One was for Harry, but he could still get in with it later.

Suddenly remembering something, she unwrapped Malfoy's jacket from her waist and tossed it at him. "Here, Ferret."

"Thanks," Malfoy murmured, looking down.

Hermione stared. A Malfoy thanking someone, let alone me? she thought, raising an eyebrow. But she said nothing of it, as they did have a sort of truce, and shook her head.

"Before we go in, I have a question," said Malfoy, not at all oblivious to Hermione's confusion. "First off, if this is such an unknown island, why is there an aquarium with exotic fish?"

"It doesn't have exotic fish," Hermione explained, "and just because this island isn't that popular doesn't mean people don't come here. And this is just a miniature sized aquarium, not as big as the ones they have by bays and stuff."

"Alright…" Malfoy said, "…but why buy passes if you don't exactly come here often?"

"Who says I don't come here often?" asked Hermione. "And I actually bought these passes because it lets you come in the aquarium three times. I was planning on going with some friends and once with Harry, but I'm spending a third of these passes taking you here, so don't complain."

"Uh huh…" Malfoy replied. He didn't seem to really care, but at least she proved she could answer pretty much everything. "Now can we go in?"

"Be patient, Malfoy, we're going!"

The duo flashed their passes and got them marked off (to show that they'd used their passes once) before walking through two large glass doors.

As soon as they walked in, Hermione looked at Malfoy's face. He didn't seem all that excited yet, but that was mainly because there was a huge staircase blocking their view from any fish so far.

The two walked past the right side of the stairs, and as soon as the fish came into view, Hermione noticed the change of expression shown on her companion's face: he didn't quite look surprised, but definitelynot excited (what was she thinking, a Malfoy being excited?).

"C'mon, Malfoy." Hermione groaned, dragging him to the first section: Sea Otters.

There was a huge glass tank that contained five sea otters, plants from the ocean (for a natural habitat), and small fish (ones that the otters wouldn't eat). There were stairs leading up to above the water level so viewers could watch them when they were floating on their backs or lying in the sun. There was a small, empty, plastic pool with colorful shapes decorating it (Muggles would use them for small children) on the dry area, an otter with a white streak on its belly sniffing it interestingly.

Hermione loved the otters; they were her favorite. A huge smile was plastered on her face as she grabbed Malfoy's arm and ran up the stairs.

When she was up there, she watched two otters playing (was it playing?) together. An otter with white specks on its nose was trying to float on its back, but the all-black one was pushing him, trying to make him turn over.

Hermione giggled softly, earning a glance from Malfoy. She rolled her eyes and pointed for him to look at what she was.

"Otters trying to kill each other," said Malfoy sarcastically, but finally with relaxed emotion this time. "This is exciting!"

"Shut up, Malfoy," Hermione smiled, shoving him gently. "They're so cute!" she sighed, talking to herself more than Malfoy.

"Yeah," he replied sarcastically, "they're adorable."

Hermione stuck her tongue out at him. "Shut up!" She looked at the plaque she was leaning on and read it to herself:

"HOW DO OTTERS SPEND THE DAY? Our sea otters spend most of their time grooming, eating, and sleeping. You might also see them diving to explore the exhibit to find food tucked into rocks."

Hermione chuckled. Malfoy stared at her.

"What?"

Hermione pointed as her accomplice leaned over to read it. "It kind of sounds like you!" She kept laughing as he scanned his eyes over the words.

"Excuse me? That does not sound like me!"

Hermione chortled, "Yeah right! Grooming and being lazy the rest of the time? Of course it sounds like you!"

Malfoy made a face. "Yeah, and who got here late today?"

"Shut up! Besides, the last sentence reminds me of Ron."

Malfoy looked at her. "Weasley?"

"Yeah, I mean, he's always looking for food."

This made Malfoy smirk. Hermione slapped his arm when she heard him mutter, "Pig."

"That's mean, Malfoy! That's his owl." Hermione muttered the last part of her statement sarcastically, hinting that he was outside of an inside joke. Like she expected, stares of confusion came from Malfoy. "After all," she continued, "at least he's not a relative of an otter!"

Malfoy paused. "What?"

"Yeah, he's no ferret like some people."

He mocked confusion. "Ferrets are relatives to sea otters?"

Hermione shrugged. "I don't know, but you sure look like one!"

Malfoy smirked. "Hey, didn't you say that the otters looked 'so cute' a while ago?"

"I meant those sea otters, not ferret faces."

Malfoy smirked conceitedly. "Aww…c'mon, Granger. Don't deny it. I know you can't resist the 'Malfoy Charm.'"

Hermione stared and raised an eyebrow, faking disbelief. "The what?"

"You know, Granger," he replied. "The 'Malfoy Charm'! Everyone knows Malfoy's are irresistible!"

Hermione put her hand on her hip. "I'm sure."

She hated to admit it, but he was kind of right. She never even thought of having a thing for Malfoy, but Lavender, Parvati, and Ginny would always fantasize about him and say how "hot" they thought he was. It was all really sickening to Hermione, really. She would always stare at Ginny in shock when she would say Malfoy was a looker. She couldn't imagine her red-haired friend would even consider betraying Ron and Harry like that, so she kept her mouth shut about Malfoy when her male friends were around, not like she agreed with the girls or anything.

Hermione turned toward the otters again and admired them for a few minutes (with surprisingly no comments from Malfoy).

She named the otters silently in her head. The one with white specks on its nose was Ron (the specks were freckles in a way) and the all brown one was Ginny, who would always tease her brothers for being lazy. There were two brown otters that swam around together the whole time, one named Harry and the other, Hermione, for obvious reasons. And the last one, the one that just waddled its way into the pool being its lazy self, got a name too. Hermione inwardly rolled her eyes.

Malfoy.

After Granger had finally forced herself to move away from the otters, the two moved on to a particularly boring looking fish, in Draco's opinion. Nevertheless, he was dragged to this huge tank, and although there were other fish that were far more interesting to look at, Granger brought him to the side of the tank where the same boring types of fish swam around.This particular fish was called a Black Surfperch, for some reason, although it wasn't black at all, except for a few stripes here and there.

Draco turned to look at Granger, who was, at the moment, studying the fish like the bookworm she was, although he thought he saw a hint of boredom from her as well.

Turning back to the tank, he looked down to the plaque so he wouldn't have to look at the ugly fish:

"BLACK SURFPERCH: a jack of all trades, the Black Surfperch doesn't choose one lifestyle, but lives in many different environments, eating everything from worms to other fishes' parasites."

"Hey, Granger," Draco acknowledged the girl, bringing her out of her pointless fish-studying, "this thing's just like Weasley, isn't it?"

Granger first glared at him for stealing her idea of renaming fish as people they knew, but then she quickly read over the description, finding herself smiling at the end of it.

"If you mean that Ron eats a lot, I think that was explained in the otter section."

Draco smirked. "That, and how he 'doesn't choose one lifestyle'. First he lives in that lump of a home, then at the fancy castle--"

"Malfoy!" Granger glared disapprovingly. "He didn't exactly choose to be living the way he does--"

"Uggh, Granger, don't even start."

"Don't start what?" she glared again. "You're not one to make fun of my friends!"

Draco shook his head. "Now, now, poking fun at your 'friends' wasn't one of your conditions, so I think I can get away with it."

Granger opened her mouth to say something, but to Draco's delight, she had nothing to say. It was very amusing to him to see the bookworm speechless. Finally, she closed her mouth, aware that she was looking quite like the Black Surfperch itself with her mouth's movement, and she rolled her eyes.

"Whatever," she sighed. "This argument's not worth wasting time over."

Draco smirked. "That's more like it." He pointed to another plaque. "Besides, I think this fish is you."

"What?" Granger turned to read the description of the Sailfin Sculpin. "' Instead of attracting attention, the rippling fin blends in with the algae-covered rocks.' What's that supposed to mean?"

Draco chuckled. "Simple! That you keep to yourself and blend in at the library."

Granger sarcastically acted insulted and retaliated. "Excuse me, Mr. Malfoy, but I believe this one is you!"

"'To deceive prey, these fish put on a great act. They hang motionless above rocky reefs, ready to snap up fishes that venture too close.' Oh, yeah, Granger, that's me! The Canary Rockfish, eh? Attractive."

Granger grinned wider. "Hey, it's not my fault that you act all innocent and freak people out!"

Draco finally let out his first real smile. "Oh yeah, Granger?" he challenged. "Well, I'm sure there's loads more fish in this place that are like you than me!"

"You wanna bet?" Granger laughed. "Then this means war!"

A few hours later, Draco Malfoy and Hermione Granger exited the aquarium, laughing. If Harry had showed up at this time, he would've dropped down in a faint. After just two days in a row of seeing each other, two enemies were laughing together as if there was never a hate between them.

However, both knew that there was still a twinge of dislike for the other, but it was strange what a whole day could do to you, even when your only companion was one you barely liked.

Both teenagers thought it was a bit odd that they eventually got along that day, but they shrugged off the fact and, dare it be said, enjoyed each other's company as much as they could.

And at this particular moment, the two were having as much fun as two enemies could have after spending the day together.

"No, no, no," Hermione argued playfully, "the Grunt Sculpin is like you!"

Draco laughed along with her. "So I complain a lot, but I'm thinking it still sounds a lot like that She-Weasel of yours."

"Oh, c'mon, Malfoy! She does not hop up and down all the time!"

"No, but she is quite hyper, don't you agree?"

"At least she's not like the Blackeye Goby like Ron!" she laughed. "He gets quite possessive, doesn't he?"

"Yes, well, Potter tends to act like the Kelp Bass, always acting like a loner when he really is overly-popular." Draco rolled his eyes, which didn't go unnoticed by Hermione, who giggled at the true statement.

"You're so mean!" She walked over to her bike, still locked up in the bike racks. She unlocked it quickly and expertly, jamming her helmet on her head, just to have it taken off again. "Hey!"

Draco raised an eyebrow at the colors. "Red and gold, eh?" he tsked. "Not quite your color. I think you should go with silver and green next time."

"Oh, shut up!" she snatched the helmet from his hand and put it on her head, firmly buckling it so that it wouldn't be taken away again.

She was about to mount her bike, but Draco stopped her.

"Hey," he said, "are we going to do anything tomorrow?" He secretly hoped so. He was shocked to find himself having fun with the Gryffindor, and a Muggleborn (not Mudblood) at that.

Hermione sighed sarcastically. "Sure, why not?" She got up on her bike, leaving one foot on the ground to balance herself. "I was thinking that we could give some of my friends a visit tomorrow." She smiled at the uneasiness Draco showed. "Don't worry, you'll like them. They're…" she looked around carefully before whispering, "…Muggles, but they know what I am, so they should understand what we talk about. But still, you have to be careful what you say."

"Uggh," Draco moaned, "do we have to go?"

"Hey, you asked!" she shrugged. "Besides, if you like them well enough, you can hang out with them when Harry comes."

He frowned at the thought of being left alone because of his number one foe. "Whatever."

Hermione shook her head. "Don't worry, Malfoy, you'll have fun tomorrow. My friends' family owns an ice cream parlor on the boardwalk." He perked up at this, earning a chuckle from the Gryffindor. "Just meet me…well how about I just meet you at the Sunbeam Inn, since you don't really know where I'm staying anyways, alright?"

Draco shrugged. "Yeah, sure."

Hermione smiled. "Okay, then, I'll see you there at…noon? We can have lunch."

"Alright," Draco smiled, "but this time, don't be late!"

"Shut up!" she rolled her eyes. "Will you find your way back okay?"

"Of course!" He took a folded piece of paper out of his pocket. "I have a map, remember?"

"Oh, right," Hermione laughed. "So I'll see you?"

"Yeah," he grinned, something Hermione relished (she made a Slytherin grin!). "See you."

Hermione let go of the balance her foot held for her bike, and she rode off in the direction of her beach house.

Draco watched her leave, and when she was gone from view, he turned to head back to his destination. For the first time in a long while, he had ended the day on a more happy note. Who knew Hermione Granger would be the one making him feel this way?

As he took step after step walking to the inn, clutching his returned jacket in his hand, he realized that he experienced something he didn't even remember he could experience:

Fun.

Disclaimer:
Don't own HP or the plot -- first three chapters written by MysticalSpirits.

A/N:
This story is adopted from MysticalSpirits, but I'll be continuing it from now on, although she'll be putting in her ideas into this fic.