DISCLAIMER: I own nothing!
A/N at end.
We Belong Together
Chapter 2 – Accidents will happen
Hermione was sitting in a large cushy arm chair, the crackling fire casting a warm orange glow on the girl. A sudden rainstorm battered the windows and complete darkness had set in. She had been like this, quietly reading her muggle fiction for quite some hours now, settling in just after getting back to the common room from dinner. It had been quiet noisy before, but that serene peace that she loved at dawn and set in, and she was quite alone, most of her fellow Gryffindor's favoring their warm beds in this stormy weather. Hermione couldn't blame them, but she was quite comfortable as she was. After a few more moments of reading she put the book down, realizing that she had in fact, been re-reading the same paragraph over and over for the past 20mins. She couldn't help it, her mind was just somewhere else. Or was it, someone else? The scene from Herbology replayed in her mind, like a broken record. Malfoy hurling a handful of soil, Malfoy calling her a mudblood, Malfoy's smug look. Over and over they ran. And then suddenly there were those eyes, those stormy blue eyes, the ones from breakfast that belonged to the tall Italian boy.
She, for the life of her, just couldn't really remember seeing him. Well, wait, wasn't he the one hat sat four rows back from her in Arithmacy? And now that she really thought about it, she was pretty sure he sat directly across from her in Charms. Actually, thinking back she remembered seeing him in all her classes, so why hadn't she really noticed him until this morning, at breakfast? Oh how she just wanted to shrug it off, forget about it, and how hard she tried. But those eyes were almost haunting, to the point where she gave up the book as a lost cause, and left the warmth of the common room for her slightly draughty room where Lavender was sitting on Paravati's bed, brushing out the girls long black hair, whispering about this boy and that. Hermione didn't really care; she simply got ready for bed and climbing under the covers.
"… and that Blaise Zabini isn't he just divine. Merlin I hope I end up having to work with him in this Herbology assignment. Though I wouldn't mind Draco Malfoy either" sighed a love struck Lavender, and then she and Paravati fell over themselves giggling like silly schoolgirls over their silly schoolgirl crushes. Hermione just rolled her eyes and drew the hanging's trying to block out the ridiculous girls who continued on about this Blaise Zabini like he was a god, whoever he was.
-----
"… and then he dropped the quaffle and then he ran straight into their own seeker, who had seen the snitch, while he tried the retrieve the quaffle. Lost the game. Total uproar" Ron was telling Harry, swinging around his fork and knife wildly, with his quidditch retelling, when Hermione approached them at the Gryffindor table for lunch. She smiled at the two when they looked up, and filled her bowl with the warm stew sitting in front of her.
"You look well Hermione" said Harry with a grin "I'm glad you're not letting what that git did yesterday get to you" he said, punching her lightly on the arm. Her façade dropped momentarily, but she fixed it back up with a flashing smile.
"Ahh, how could I let anything the amazing bouncing ferret says get to me?" she said with a laugh. It wasn't the truth, but she wasn't going to let the boys know that. She was so cheery that day because she'd had a great night's sleep and her favorite classes that morning, and despite the Slytherins, and Malfoy the prat, she was wholly looking forward to Herbology that afternoon, for Professor Sprout had promised they'd be using a portkey so she could better explain to them their assignment. in fact she was so excited, she practically skipped down to class, when the bell rung, signaling the end of lunch and the start of their last class.
"Come onnn" she called out to the boys, spinning round and round, and beckoning for them she skipped backwards, as the boys laughed at her. She was still laughing when she skipped right into someone, knocking both herself and the other person to the floor, gracelessly. Her heart stopped out of fear, when she saw who it was. She held her breath, waiting for it, waiting for the 'stupid mudblood' comment. But it didn't come. The tall dark haired boy merely picked himself up off the floor and stalked off, not giving Hermione a second look. She dared not breathe until she could no longer see his retreating form. It was then that she let out a huge breath, as she was picked up off the ground by two strong pairs of arms, set steady on her feet and brushed off.
She looked at Harry and Ron as if she had no idea who they were, and then the trance broke, she grinned widely. "Guess I better watch where I'm going next time" she laughed, an uneasy kind of laugh when you've just escaped danger, totally unscathed. Ron and Harry said nothing, for they weren't quite sure what to say. So the three just continued to the green houses, silently, walking through the door last, following in their fellow Gryffindor's.
The class was fairly uneventful. Professor Sprout spent majority of the lesson explaining in detail the extend of the assignment. It wasn't until 10mins before class was due to end that she pulled out an old tire and told the class to gather around.
"Now don't get excited, we're not going anywhere exotic today I'm afraid, just down the road. Right then everyone ready? Good, 3, 2, 1."
With that, the class felt the familiar pull at the navel, the dizzy spinning journey and the hard land on solid, slightly damp ground. The class stood up, dusted themselves off, and glanced around, getting their bearings.
"We're just on the outskirts of Hogsmead" the professors voice rang out from the middle of the group. "There's no astonishing plants out here I'm afraid, but this is simply an example of how you will conduct this assignment. Now let's take it this plant here" she said, pointing to a simple tuff of weeds in the ground "is the plant we're after"…
She explained how they were to magically test it was, indeed the plant they were after, how to collect the sample needed, and any other information and after a few minutes she was calling the class back together around the tire and counting down from 3 again, before the were transported back to the greenhouse. It was all very rushed but they had gotten the general idea, and plus it was starting to rain quiet heavily and no one had really wanted to stand out in the pouring rain, "discovering" weeds.
"Now before you all leave" Professor Sprout called out over the noise of the class packing up "I will need you to come up to the front of the class and collect an envelope with your name on it. This will have the places you will be visiting, the spells you will need to know, the plants you need and some texts you're suggest to look into, for they will help you greatly with your final potions. Oh, and your partners name is in their also". At this, there was momentary silence, and then an outbreak of excited chatter as the class moved forward to collect their envelopes and excitedly tore them open to discover who they'd be working with. Hermione was last to collect hers, walking past disappointed Lavender and an equally disappointed Paravati. Obviously they hadn't been partnered with their 'divine Blaise Zabini'.
---
It was another stormy night. Unusually stormy mused Hermione as she sat by the fire once more, this time staring blankly out into the darkness. It was one of those nights when things felt, out of place. A sense of foreboding gripped Hermione and she shivered involuntarily as the sky lit up, by the lightening, which flashed an almost eerie purple. She shook her head, trying to clear it of such ridiculous thoughts. She did not like these strange feelings, and decided to go to bed rather than spend another moment in the completely empty common room. Making her way slowly up the stone stairs, she opened the door to the 6th years dorm as quietly as possibly, correct in guessing that her fellow Gryffindor's would all be asleep. She made her way silently to her bed at the far end of the room, guided only by the flashes of lightening. She lit a candle to aid her when she changed and picked up her coat that she had thrown across her bed early that day, after lessons. Something cream colored dropped onto the comforter, her name scrawled across it in neat, loopy writing, and Hermione picked it up carefully, before realizing it was her envelope from Herbology. She changed quickly, and climbed into bed, picking up the envelope once she was under the warm sheets. After a moments hesitation she slipped her nail under the opening and tore it open. First out was the list of spells, ones for testing the authenticity of the plants, one for revaccinating their portkey, ones for taking samples, ones for communication. Then was her own list of plants. A list of dates for classes, exams and the day the assignment would need to be handed in followed. After examining all these Hermione noticed the small slip of paper sitting under everything. A single name was all that was on it. Hermione let out a small gasp. This was only going to mean trouble.
She placed all the papers in a neat pile next to the candle which was extinguished shortly after, and pulled the blankets up to her chin, trying to sleep with the storm and everything running through her head. Another smash of thunder, and a huge crack of lightening illuminated the slip of paper on the top of the pile of papers.
Blaise Zabini.
------------------------------------
-----------------------------------
A/N: hey guys. Thanks for the couple of reviews! Keep them coming in though…!
A.James