NINE

Wednesday, 14 October 2020

Hermione had spent the rest of Saturday in a daze. Her lips tingled with the ghost of Riddle's kiss and she often found herself staring off into space so that her mind could replay the incident on a loop. Sunday, she stayed in her room fretting about what might happen when they saw each other next. It was when Harry coaxed her down to the Great Hall for dinner that she made the decision not to worry. So far, they had found a way to act normally around one another. Surely they would continue to do so.

So she put her focus on her friends and her studies for the rest of the night and for the first half of the week. When she walked into his classroom on Tuesday, she did so with her head held high. She paid him enough attention for the lecture and then ignored him altogether when she paired off with Draco to practice the spell they'd just been taught.

Every so often she could feel the weight of Professor Riddle's gaze on her, but it was always when she couldn't see him. Other than that, he barely paid her any attention at all. The only time Hermione started to feel a bit of unease was Wednesday morning. She kept waiting for him to send some sort of note to her, giving one excuse or another as to why they couldn't meet that night. She even wondered if she shouldn't make something up and cancel on him first. But either way, nothing of the sort happened and when the time came, she found herself moving slower than normal.

Draco was in their shared common space when she emerged from her room with her bag slung over one shoulder. He had his feet propped up on the coffee table while leaning back on the couch. He was reading a thick tome in front of the fire. He looked up when he heard her door open and rolled his eyes.

"You've been at the top of our class since First Year, Granger. What in Merlin's name do you need tutoring for?" he asked, studying her face as she tried her best not to falter. "Aren't you doing something with creatures and beasts?"

"It's the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures," she corrected with a huff as she took a few steps away from her door. "And clearly you're not paying enough attention if you think that line of work doesn't often correlate with dark magic."

Draco snorted and turned his attention back to the page he'd been reading. "Whatever helps you sleep at night," he mumbled, making sure to be just loud enough for her to hear.

"I sleep just fine, thank you," she replied as she stalked across the room to take her leave. Once she was alone in the hall outside her dorm, she drew a deep breath and let it out with a huff before walking away.

She took her time in getting to Professor Riddle's office. When it was within her line of sight, she noticed the door was ajar. It eased a small portion of the tension in her spine. At least this way she didn't have the anxiety of standing outside the door after knocking only to hope that he would answer and let her in. This way, she could rap her knuckles against the thick wood and step inside once he acknowledged her arrival with a nod of his head.

"Good evening, Professor," she greeted, making sure her voice was far more cheery than she felt.

He smiled briefly at her as he watched her take her usual seat on the other side of the desk. "Evening, Miss Granger."

She wasted no time in setting her bag in the chair next to her and then going through it for the projects she would be asking for his input on. "I hope you don't mind, but the things I need help with aren't with your class."

"Not at all," he said, leaning forward over the desk to take a few pages of her notes so he could look over them. "Though I have to admit, even I succumbed to the slumber induced by Professor Binns' monotonous lectures."

The smile they shared as she looked up to meet his gaze was genuine. Even if it only lasted for an instance before they both looked away. "I admit to zoning out most days as well," she replied. "But I can't help but find the research fascinating. Haven't you ever noticed how much magical history overlaps with Muggle history?"

He looked down at her notes for a moment and then back up at her with a wistfulness in his eyes. "Now that you mention it…"

"How do you think it goes? Does the Muggle event influence the magical one or vice versa?"

That was how they spent her tutoring session that night. Debating a theoretical take on the events of history. The more they spoke, the more relieved Hermione felt. It was like old times where they would find themselves losing all sense of time due to their discussion. It was what had made her so drawn to him in the first place. Not even as a romantic interest, but just a friend; someone she admired and looked up to.

When they finally hit a lull in their conversation, Hermione's eyes drifted over to the clock on the wall. After seeing what time it was, she sighed and began to pack up her things. "If only time moved this fast when Professor Binns is giving a lecture," she mused.

She bit down on the inside of her cheek when the sound of his laugh made her flush. Up until that point, she had done a fairly good job of forgetting about their incident at Hogsmeade. But when she stood up, bag slung over her shoulder to leave, she did a double take at the flash of guilt in his gaze. Clearly he was remembering it too.

For a moment, she thought that when his lips parted to speak that he was going to say something about their last kiss. But disappointment rippled down her spine when instead he said, "You know I'm always up for a good debate. Should you need help on the assignments we didn't actually get to, you know where to find me."

Hermione knew a dismissal when she heard one.

She cleared her throat and gave a curt nod. "That I do," she said, taking her leave before she changed her mind on holding her tongue.

If he wanted to pretend it never happened… If he truly meant what he said about wanting to forget it had happened at all… Fine. It would hurt, but so long as they both stuck to their guns and never let it happen again, it would be okay.

She would be okay.

At least that was what she told herself as she hurried through the castle so that on the off chance that anyone was awake and roaming the halls, they wouldn't see her cry.

Monday, 19 October 2020

Hermione allowed herself to wallow for the little time that she was awake Wednesday night after returning to her dorm. However, the moment she opened her eyes on Thursday morning, she decided that was it. That she was going to go about her days as usual. And when it came to Riddle- Professor Riddle- the only interaction she was going to allow herself was the appropriate kind.

For all intents and purposes, the rest of her days went accordingly. When she saw Professor Riddle in class Thursday morning, it felt like it had up until she'd seen him on the train back at the start of this term. She was just a regular student. One that hadn't been flirting with the man at the head of the class. Hadn't felt his lips brush against hers, the heat of his hands gliding along her body, or the vaguely sweet taste of his kiss.

It was only natural that there would be something to come along and burst her bubble of make believe.

For Potions on Monday, Hermione had been partnered with none other than Draco. It wasn't uncommon as Snape regularly paired the two of them together, but neither had spoken to one another since Wednesday night before she left for her tutoring session. As soon as they had their instructions for the day, both set out to the potions closet to gather ingredients.

They weren't given the name of their potion; only the instructions. So they had to work together closely to ensure that it went off without a hitch. Without knowing exactly what it was they were making, the potential for a disastrous outcome was high. It wasn't a problem considering that they worked well together. Even when they weren't getting along outside of class, being the two that held the highest marks, neither needed much hand-holding. Especially when Draco showed a special interest in potion making.

"Any guesses?" Draco asked when they had all but one step left with their creation to go.

Hermione narrowed her eyes at the cauldron between them. "Not yet," she replied with a small sigh. "You?"

"I have a theory."

She rolled her eyes then. "Care to share?"

"When I know that I'm right," he said, a smirk on his lips as he completed the last step.

Hermione watched as the dark liquid within began to shimmer. Her brows furrowed as an inkling of information teased the front of her mind. She knew she'd read about a potion with this type of sheen before, but the answer was just out of reach. Plumes of smoke rose from the cauldron in little swirls that were mesmerizing to watch. It had Hermione leaning in and carefully inhaling, hoping the scent of whatever it was would job her mind for the answer.

"What do you smell?" Draco asked.

Hermione closed her eyes again and concentrated on the scents that invaded her nostrils. "Parchment and ink," she murmured, recognizing the scent of books. Almost as if she were in the middle of a library. But the scent profile shifted, giving her a whiff of something else. "There's also a bit of Spearmint and…" her voice trailed off as she inhaled a third time. "Evergreen?" she guessed. "Definitely something woodsy with a hint of spice."

She pulled herself back from the cauldron and did a double take at the sight of Draco's smirk.

"What?"

"Is that what Professor Riddle smells like?" he asked, his voice having dropped several octaves so that no one except Hermione could hear him.

Hermione felt her cheeks burn hot as the answer clicked into place. Amortentia. She stood there, trying to remember how to breathe as she scowled at Draco. "Let me guess," she nearly growled, keeping her voice equally low. "Yours smells like the Pitch, Bergamot, and Treacle Tart."

Watching the smirk be wiped from Draco's face in the time it took to blink was the most satisfying thing Hermione had ever experienced. They stood there, a silent battle of wills brewing between them as time continued to tick by. Finally, Draco was the one to concede by giving her a curt nod and leaning over the desk to jot down some notes.

"Touche," was the only word he said. Whether that was because Professor Snape had chosen that moment to see their progress or not, Hermione would never know.

They answered a few questions about their project before the contents of their cauldron vanished with a wave of Snape's wand. After they were each awarded ten house points, they were dismissed for the day. They cleaned up their station, leaving only a few minutes before class would have ended on its own. They stepped into the hall together. Once there, they gave each other a nod, silently agreeing to not bring up what was mentioned in class ever again before heading their separate ways.