Saturday 25th December.
22:03
It wasn't until the fourth year at Hogwarts that Hermione felt something other than hate for Draco.
The Yule Ball was swiftly coming to an end and Hermione was sat on the steps of the castle. Light harmonies from the band ricocheted off the joyous couples still dancing sweetly to the tune. But she was softly crying, both furious and heartbroken at Ron's spiteful words towards her and Krum. His jealousy, his obvious jealousy that he was too stubborn to admit.
Ron and Harry had both gone to their dorms as the ball wasn't at all they thought it would be. Hermione then sensibly wiped away the last tear and rushed upstairs, avoiding eye contact from any loitering gaggles of girls that could be whispering about her.
She made her way towards the Gryffindor common room feeling both exhausted and madly confused. Her mind reeled. Was he even jealous? And if not, why would he have got so angry?
All her thoughts were interrupted by a loud, clear cough.
She snapped her head up to find Draco leaning his arm against a pillar on the wall, smirking. She was not in the mood to quarrel with Malfoy and so rolled her eyes and quickly moved past him.
"Potter and Weaselbee giving you a hard time?" he sneered.
She shook her head, not letting his comments get to her. She continued to walk up the stairs while he shifted himself to face her. Draco watched her sulk miserably up the stairs. He almost pitied her and was a little taken aback when she did not reply. She usually was very short-tempered and had something clever to say. But for the first time, she didn't have the energy. He wondered what had happened and almost felt like asking. He felt the urge to say something, and then noticed her stunning, blue dress and pretty hair from behind as she moped away from him.
"You look beautiful-" he blurted out to her, almost regretting it the moment he said it.
She slowed in pace, puzzled at his kind words. She kept moving up the stairs for a moment but then paused and turned to see his face. She stood in disbelief, looking down at Malfoy. She didn't know what to say. As well as this, she didn't know if he was being sincere. She felt unsure and tried to work out from his expression if he was being true or sarcastic. He looked back at her with a small smile. He wasn't sure how she would take it and felt quite vulnerable to an annoyed reply as she stared in bewilderment.
"Are you alright, Granger?" he asked, bluntly also a little confused himself. Her dark eyes lightened and her eyebrows raised. She was pleasantly surprised at this completely new Malfoy she was meeting.
"I- I am alright." she murmured, folding her arms and nodding her head gently. She didn't know where to look and shot her gaze anywhere other than his face. He nodded back and slid his hands into his pockets, turning to leave.
He felt oddly unconfident and defenceless talking to her.
He began walking away awkwardly, feeling her eyes on the back of his head. She still stood, perplexed by his newly discovered kindness. She took one last look at Draco and then slowly turned away. He slid away into the shadows, searching for any good reason why he felt pity for Hermione. The more he thought about his peculiar acts of affection, the more he loathed himself for it. He had a reputation to uphold, he couldn't be caught giving compliments to Granger.
"What was I thinking? Now she thinks you care about her. I don't care about her, not one bit. What has come over me? That filthy little-"
Mudblood came to mind but before he spoke he felt more pity filling his cold heart and he hated it. He stormed off to the dungeons, mumbling away to himself, unaware of the odd glances that came his way.
00:25
Hermione spent the night replaying each moment of her eventful evening. The dancing with Victor, the fight with Ron and the electricity with Draco.
She couldn't sleep.
She felt that she had to figure it all out. She could normally find solutions for problems immediately, but this time was much tougher than usual. That being it wasn't any like a potion she had to brew, these were real people. She had to figure out why she suddenly felt more connected with Malfoy than with Krum.
Just from that one moment.
That one silly, insignificant, magic moment.
She groaned and pulled her pillow on top of her face, to shield herself from any more contact with confusing beings. She had enough social interaction for one night.
Sunday 26th December.
06:42
The next morning, Hermione wakes extra early even though she got little sleep.
She goes out to get some air and think. Some students are already up and softly chattering in the early morning breeze. Hermione ambles out into the courtyard, taking in the ice cold air. She wishes Ron would come to his senses about how he feels towards her as well as still be uncertain of how she feels towards him. She enjoys Victor's company and would like to see more of him as he seems to be the least complicated, easy option.
But her mind was still fixated on Malfoy.
His words, his smile.
He had no real reason or obligation to tell her she was beautiful and ask if she was okay. He's a vile boy who was cruel to her whenever he had the chance. She thought back to the times he had looked into her soul and cursed her. Naming her a mudblood and grimacing at her intolerable intelligence. She felt the anger rise up in her once again, remembering all the times he had hurt her. And to think, she had forgotten it all after he called her beautiful.
After gaining some clarity, she decides to forget Malfoy, ignore Ronald and talk more with Victor.
06:58
She marches off with her head held high to the library. She sits, re-reading a few books that she thoroughly enjoyed about charms and the exciting experiences the authors had.
She was getting deep in the literature when her thoughts are once again interrupted by that same loud cough.
She stared down at the book, frozen. Unable to take it any longer, Hermione slightly glimpses up to see Malfoy standing at the other side of the table, with his hands in his pockets. He breathed heavily like he had just run twenty laps of the Quidditch pitch. There is a pause where neither know really why they are in each other's presence, a moment where they both itch to evaporate and avoid the obvious tension.
"Well, this is unexpected," Hermione exclaims, trying to ease the awkwardness, "What's Draco Malfoy doing in the library?"
He looks about, almost unsure about why he is there himself, jittering away.
"I just figured I'd find you here."
There was a slight pause. Both of their hearts were beating fast, both confused of how they were feeling and why.
"Did you need something?" Hermione asks, pretending that she can't recall their last encounter.
"No. Well- I don't know what I need exactly." Draco mumbled harshly, looking around, annoyed at his own emotions. Hermione watched him fidget nervously. What had she done to him? Why was he acting so different?
"Since our encounter last night, I couldn't stop thinking about you, Granger." he blatantly admitted, laying his hands on the table, leaning forward as if he couldn't hold it in anymore. She was in total shock. She didn't know what to do or what he was really saying. Should she tell him that she was the same. He looked at her, desperate to figure her out, studying her face. It was like Malfoy could no longer function. He was all jittery and awkward. He is usually so confident and boastful. It was like something had snapped inside.
"Damn you, Granger. What have you done to me? One moment, I didn't care if anything happened to you. I felt hate towards you and your ignorant, ridiculous excuse for a bunch of friends. But now, it's like I am seeing you in a completely different light. It's like someone new," he explained quite loudly, experiencing many overwhelming emotions all at once, "did you put a charm on me? Did you?"
Hermione jumped up out of her seat and shut the book. A few students were gazing over at them, interested in the heated debate from Malfoy.
"Draco- are you insane?" she whispered, wide eyed.
"Why would I ever charm you? Are you really suggesting I'd sneak you some sort of potion?"
"Well, Granger, if you're so smart, then explain this: why yesterday did I loathe you as a good-for-nothing mudblood but now I feel inexcusably attracted to you?"
There was an uneasy pause between them as Hermione swallowed her fear, looking him in the eye.
She leaned in, over the table and worried, she whispered, "You don't think I'm wondering the exact same thing?"
Peering over at the gawking students, she mumbled, "Just follow me, Malfoy." She grabbed her bag and signalling him to the exit, marched out the library with Draco closely behind. She turned the corner and walked further and further down the corridor while Draco tried to keep up. She then snapped round and stood looking up at him. He stopped and looked at her utterly confused face. He sighed and looked to the ground.
"What is happening?" Hermione exclaimed, closely clinging to her belongings.
"That's what I came to find out, Granger." he grumbled, agitated.
"Well- for starters, you could tell me why you called me beautiful-" Hermione said earnestly, holding her bag strap tightly. Draco scoffed and started to softly pace around the hallway.
"I guess I took pity on you. I gave you a compliment to make you feel better."
"Since when does Draco Malfoy give compliments?" Hermione questioned in a concerned, high-pitched voice.
"Oh, give me a break, goldilocks-" he scowled, still pacing about like a moron. He thought like mentioning how obvious her beauty was and so it meant nothing by him pointing it out.. but he soon figured that sounded more pathetic than the whole situation put together. She narrowed her eyes at him while readjusting her arms, wrapping them around the large book she had been reading previously.
"Just forget I said anything, I'm being pathetic." he grimaced, and began to stride away, further down the corridor.
"Draco- what are you doing?" Hermione called out, gesturing to him and the empty corridor, clueless as to why he was acting so strange. He kept walking and fury built up in Hermione. Was he playing some weird game? Was he putting on an act just to mess with her? Why else would he be acting so strange? He's just trying to confuse her for a laugh.
She strode up behind him and pulled his arm, toughly turning him to her.
"No. We are going to talk about this because I am feeling just as lost in all this. It just so happens that I couldn't sleep last night due to our encounter either." she tells him, firmly with her famous sassy attitude.
When she had finished providing her argument, she realized how they were now in very close proximity of one another.
He looks down, deep into her eyes, shocked that she's feeling the same. They stood quite close together and the tension became blatantly obvious. Hermione keeps her head held high but softly steps back, aware of the electricity between them. She goes to speak but slowly closes her mouth, watching him be so open and helpless with her. He was mesmerized by her face, his eyes gently moving around her features. She gulped, feeling intimidated by the tense pause and his unbreakable stare.
She then noticed, his hand moving forward slightly. Hermione glances at the hand and back to Draco. It was as if they were communicating through their eyes. He then slowly lifts his hand up and slowly strokes the palm of his hand along her cheek. His cold, gentle hand grazes along to her ear, running his finger along its edge. He steps in closer, still keeping his eyes locked with hers. Both their hearts raced as their bodies were almost touching. His fingers wrapped around a few strands of her wild hair, intertwining with them, swirling her locks around. He slid his other hand smoothly on to her waist, pulling her into him as a grin appeared along his face. She took a short inhale of breath, feeling completely lost and hopeless, drowning in his dark, mysterious eyes.
It was as if they were both in a trance, absolutely transfixed on one another. Draco then began to move his face towards hers-
Hermione then found her voice again, aware of his movement and began to repeatedly whisper 'no, no, no' with all the strength she could muster. She lay her hand on his chest, softly pushing him back while keeping her gaze on him.
What was happening to her? Draco Malfoy?
The smirk faded from his face and his usual solemn expression came back. He was still trying to figure her out, trying to understand why she had suddenly made him feel so crazy about her.
"I'm not doing this, I-" she exasperated looking to the ground, shyly, "I couldn't possibly do this-"
"Because you don't want to?" he questions calmly, "Or because you're afraid?"
"I'm not scared of you," she answered, steadfastly.
"Not of me, of what you are feeling for me," he tested. She pauses, looking into his eyes, knowing he already knows that's what she's scared of.
"Because up till now, you've been the biggest jerk. Ridiculing me, trying to hurt me any chance you got. Why should I forget that- let it all go after all you've done. Just cause you suddenly feel attracted to me and so start showing kindness, doesn't erase the past, Malfoy," she stammered.
"You can't erase the past, Granger. You're right about that. And I don't regret a single time I tried to hurt you. However, things were different then. I don't know what's changed but it was different..."
His words slowed as he examined Hermione's worried face.
"You're scared," he whispered. "What would people say, Granger? How could you be with someone like me? People thought you were smart but then you started to get close with that Slytherin boy. Ah, he led you astray, you've fallen for the enemy. Maybe he breaks your heart."
"Maybe she breaks yours."
"I'm sure she will."
He continues, "People would say you've changed. You think you know me, you think I'm good at heart but everyone else thinks very differently. Then you are lost, gambling your reputation for a dangerous guy like me. Sound about right? That's what you're afraid of, Granger." he declared with such power.
She stood in awe at his passionate words.
But he was wrong. She wasn't afraid.
She was absolutely terrified.
But the adrenaline rushed through her veins, filling her with an unknown excitement that she didn't want to lose. She didn't want to care what people said but also knew herself that Draco was a rude, arrogant ass. It would be in her better interest to keep away. Don't let him fool you, she thought.
"Dangerous, hm?" she smirked, holding her bag strap with both hands, "We'll just see about that."
Their privacy was then cut short by a bustle of excited first years. Draco rolled his eyes and gave a filthy look which made them quieten down anxiously when walking passed. Hermione crossed her arms and glared at Malfoy, feeling sympathy for the kids. He shrugged as if it was something he had no choice in doing. This just proved his rude, arrogant behavior was real and that he did it for the sake of doing it. He liked to have power. When they were out of earshot, Hermione patted herself down and ruffled her hair out.
"Well, I need to get to class now," she informed Draco, just as if nothing had just taken place between them. He chuckled to himself, taking a step back. Hermione admired his bright smile, it was rare to see him laugh. "What's so funny?" she asked, giggling at his laughter. He shook his head still smiling and stated,
"Classic Granger. You always follow the rules, don't you? We are opposites." She rolled her eyes and turned around to hide her smile. She then began walking to class, shaking her head at this crazy situation she was in.
"Hey, Hermione-" Draco called out. She spun around.
"What is it?" she asked, both curious and annoyed.
"Opposites attract," he declared mischievously. Hermione gave him an unimpressed look and shook her head at him. He gave her a wink and then started to walk backwards, so he could keep his eyes on her longer. She then turned and walked away with two wicked words 'opposites attract' ringing through her ears. Draco took one last look at her before he spun on his heel and strutted away.