Hermione hated that her mother had signed her up for a beginners ballroom class. She didn't need it, she'd been dancing since she was little. Her mum said it would be a good way for her to meet new people with a similar interest and possibly make some friends, which Hermione thought was ridiculous. Like always, she would be the odd one. The girl who already knew everything and became the teacher's pet because of it.
But the dance floor was where she was confident, so walking into the ballroom on campus she held her head high. She slipped on her heels and did some short stretches as the rest of the class filed in. Some people watched her but she paid them no mind, continuing to loosen her muscles.
The instructor walked in and had them line up, girls to her right and boys to her left.
"Introduce yourself to your partner." She instructed. "Over the course of the class you'll end up dancing with everyone but this will be your partner for the end of term showcase that our class will participate in as part of your final grade."
Hermione stepped up to the man in front of her and held out her hand. "Hello, I'm Hermione."
He took the offered hand but instead of shaking it like she'd expected he turned it over and pressed a soft kiss to the back of it.
"Pleasure to meet you, Hermione. I'm Theo."
He smiled at her as a blush painted her cheeks.
"Hello, Theo." she said. Trying to get control of the exchange again, she asked, "Have you ever danced before?"
He snorted and nodded. "My mother decided that I needed to meet other people around my age that had 'similar interests' like dance."
Hermione burst out laughing at this. "No way! My mum told me the exact same thing!"
Theo grinned at her. "Well, at least I know we have a couple things in common then. Our mothers seem to think we're too isolated and we both love them enough to join a ballroom class that won't challenge either of our skill levels."
"Master the basics, master the skill." She quipped at him and he smirked, taking her hand and pulling her to him. He aligned their bodies perfectly as he placed her in a closed dance position that was far more appropriate for a Tango than the standard waltz they both knew the instructor would start the class on and her head reeled slightly.
"Mr. Nott, let's please not get ahead of ourselves." The instructor reprimanded, prompting him to immediately release Hermione and step back.
"Sorry ma'am." He said, but the look on his face showed zero remorse, instead his eyes danced with mischief. Hermione was torn between wanting to smack his smug face and wanting to be back in his arms because she had not been held with such confidence in a long while.
"Now, since you seem so eager, why don't you two demonstrate a proper closed hold for waltz."
Theo raised his hand and she stepped forward and accepted it, sliding their palms together as her left hand took its place on his upper arm, her head naturally canting to the left from years of training.
"Wonderful. Eventually you will all be able to assume this closed dance position with ease. But just as important as the hold of your arms are the steps you must make with your feet."
With that, the instructor began taking them through the basic box step. Hermione was immediately bored out of her skull but dutifully followed with the rest of the class. In her peripheral vision she saw Theo's look of boredom rivalling her own and snickered. At least she wouldn't be the only one half asleep and dying to be somewhere else.
The rest of their first class was filled with learning the direction of movement for the waltz known as line of dance, and the hold she and Theo had demonstrated. Once they were all released, she changed back into her trainers and headed out the door.
"Hermione! Hermione, wait!" She turned and saw Theo jogging to catch up to her. She stopped and waited for him, giving him a smile. Clearing his throat he asked, "Are you busy right now?"
"No, I don't have class for another hour."
"Wanna grab some lunch? We can commiserate about how terrible that class was and swap stories about the obnoxious competitions we had to endure as children."
She laughed at him, a couple stories already coming to mind.
"Let's do it. Where to?"
"There's a kebab shop a couple blocks away if you're game." He suggested and she grinned.
"Perfect, I love kebabs. Lead the way!"
He gave her a lopsided grin and offered her his arm, which she eyed for a minute before taking it slowly. They started walking together through campus and after a minute he said, "I know you were as bored as I was in there."
Hermione rolled her eyes. "Understatement of the century. I think I could have done that whole class blindfolded and half asleep."
His laugh rang out and the thought that flashed through her mind was of how handsome he looked. He caught her staring at him and flushed slightly at the attention. He cleared his throat, obviously flustered at the attention and she looked away.
"So how old were you when you started dancing?" She asked, resuming their conversation to try and move past the now awkward silence between them.
Theo harrumphed a little before answering. "My mother had me dancing the minute I started walking. She wanted me to compete professionally but I had no desire to. I didn't want to risk losing my love for it."
Hermione nodded at this, knowing the feeling he was describing.
"What about you? Any aspirations that involve shining your beauty on the world of dance, Miss Granger?" His grinned as she smacked his arm
"Oh you are such a charmer and most certainly a danger, Mr. Nott."
He shrugged good-naturedly at this and she giggled.
"To answer your question, my only professional goals when it comes to dance are owning my own studio. I've been dancing since I was five and have both loved and hated it at times, but I always knew I wanted to teach.
"My mum also wanted me to compete, but I felt the same as you. Constantly seeking title after title would have taken all the fun out of it."
"Exactly! My mother didn't understand the point of doing something just for the joy of doing it. She still doesn't. Everything has always been a form of competition to her."
They reached the shop and ordered their food before taking a small table near the front windows. Over lunch they swapped tales from past team events and competitions, favourite styles of dance and favourite dance overall. Then Theo brought up something new that Hermione had never heard of before.
"I saw a flyer for blues night downtown on Friday and wanted to try it. All the training I've had was totally formal but blues looks like a lot of fun."
"Blues?" She asked, intrigued by the idea of learning something completely new to add to her dance repertoire.
"Yeah, there's a group of American students teaching it. Please say you'll come with me. It'll actually let us learn something new and it's always better to go with someone you know."
"We literally just met each other an hour ago." Hermione pointed out, amused and ever more attracted to his easy confidence.
"So what? Technically we know that we've both been dancing since we were kids and that a beginners ballroom class is below our ability level. And we have mums who think we don't know enough people we call actual friends."
His mention of their mums made her shake her head with a wry grin.
"Alright, alright. What time does this blues night start?" She asked and he whooped with excitement.
"Yes! It starts at eight, but I can meet you on campus at half seven and we can go together." He hesitated for a second before adding, "Or we could meet even earlier and grab dinner, get to know each other a little better before we go dancing."
Tucking some hair behind her ear, Hermione looked at Theo's almost shy expression at the new offer of dinner and smiled softly.
"Dinner sounds lovely. Meet you on campus at five? Same place you stopped me earlier."
His boyish grin was back instantly and he looked excited that she'd agreed.
"It's a date then."
"It's a date." She agreed, biting her lower lip for a moment before taking another bite of her lunch. She glanced at her watch and swore.
"Shite, I'm going to be late. Thanks for lunch, I'm looking forward to tomorrow and I'm so sorry to have to dash out of here. Have a good rest of your day, Theo." She grabbed her bag and started to walk away from him before he called her back.
"Hey! At least give me your number so I can text you if I have another boring class." He held his cell out to her and she quickly typed her number in, adding a winky face and dancing emoji next to her name in the contact info.
Theo snagged her hand and pressed a kiss to it just like he had an hour ago. His blue eyes sparkled at her as he said, "See you later, Miss Granger." She blushed and turned away from him, exiting the shop and wondering just who he really was with his combination of high class manners and impish charm. Whoever he was, she knew that she enjoyed his company and could honestly say she was looking forward to Friday night and their date.