The kiss was rough and forceful, dominating. It took her breath away, sending a cascade of fireworks sparking along her body. His lips, soft and demanding meet with her own as his tongue grazes softly against hers. She can feel one of his hands slipping under her thin pyjamas, exploring the contours of her skin leaving behind a burning and light tingles everywhere he touched. With his other hand he held her arms above her head, pinning her down.
A soft moan escapes him as Eleanor buries her fingers in his hair, pulling him closer to her savouring the warmth of his body pressed up against hers.
With a sigh Eleanor moans his name lightly, "Malfoy."
"Malfoy?" A voice from somewhere asks.
"Hmm?" Eleanor sighs, her bed suddenly feeling a lot emptier and colder, the blankets tangled up around her body which is covered in a fine layer of sweat.
"Did-did you just say Malfoy's name in your sleep?" The voice asks again.
Opening her eyes slowly and squinting against the light Eleanor finds herself facing Susan sitting on the bed opposite.
"N-no?" She says, the room swarming around her and her head still groggy and unfocused.
"I'm pretty sure you did, and you were moaning and- oh my god. Were you dreaming about Malfoy? Like, sexy dreaming?!" The pitch of her voice rises and Eleanor grimaces a little at the noise so soon after waking from a deep sleep.
"Of course not. It was, it wasn't anything I just-"
"You just dreamed about Malfoy."
"Shut up," Eleanor says, throwing the pillow from behind her at Susan's head.
"Are you coming to watch the game?" Cynthia asks, strolling into the room with a Gryffindor scarf wrapped around her neck.
"She is," Susan replies for Eleanor, pulling her from the bed.
Changing quickly Eleanor follows the others out to the stands, breakfast in hand, to watch the final game of the year, Gryffindor versus Ravenclaw.
"Do you think I should tell him?" Eleanor whispers to Susan when Cynthia wanders ahead.
"Who?"
"Reggie!"
"That you were dreaming about another guy? Probably not."
"But doesn't he deserve to know? I'd want to know."
"It's up to you, though, maybe don't tell him who it was about."
Filing up into the stands Eleanor is horrified to find herself seated directly behind Reggie who had been there waiting for her.
"Morning," he says, moving aside so that she can fit beside him, "I brought coffee."
He holds up a steaming thermos for her to see but despite how much she yearns for it she doesn't accept.
The game begins a few minutes later and Eleanor is glad of the distraction, letting herself become absorbed into the game to avoid talking to him, or looking at him, or thinking of him.
"Are you okay El?" She hears him ask when the game is finished, Eleanor still staring numbly out at the field as the players touch down to the ground.
"Hmm?"
"I asked if you're okay? You haven't said a word, and I'm not even sure if you know who won despite seeming to watch the whole game."
With a sigh she turns to face Reggie, most of the other students still in their stand out of earshot and making their way down.
"I'm sorry, I don't want to keep anything from you."
"Are you?"
"I. Last night, I had a dream, about a guy. Not you," She trails off unable to look at him as she confessed to him and waiting for him to yell or storm off.
But he didn't. Holding her chin lightly he tilts her face up to look at him and smiles instead.
"It's okay. We can't control what we dream about and we're young and still growing up. It doesn't mean you love me any less and it only makes me love you more for being open and telling me."
His response takes her aback, how was this happening? How was he just accepting this and being okay with it? At that moment though she doesn't quite care and instead she smiles and embraces Reggie, who in turn kisses her lightly, his lips just grazing against hers, before they turn and follow the rest of the students out of the stands.
"And he was fine with it? Just like that?" Susan asks later that day as they're curled up in the common room, Cynthia huddled over a table writing a letter to George informing him that despite the odds Gryffindor had managed to win the Quidditch Cup.
"Yeah, just like that he said that it doesn't mean I love him any less or anything."
"Love?"
"Yeah, he kinda said he loves me, sorta, I guess." Eleanor picks at a thread at the end of a blanket.
"Did you say it back?"
"No."
"But you like him right?"
"Yeah I just, I like him but I still hardly know him."
Suddenly Susan sits upright like she's just been shocked. "What if he was so fine with it because he does the same thing?"
"What, dream about Malfoy?"
"No," Susan rolls her eyes, "Just, dreams about other people, other girls in general. Maybe that's why he's okay that you did."
"Do you really think that could be it?"
"I don't know, but it would explain why he didn't mind. Does he know it was Malfoy though?"
"No, I decided he didn't need details. Studying with Malfoy can be hard enough I don't need Reggie deciding I can't go or something."
A few days later the examiners for the OWLs had arrived and Eleanor, Cynthia and Susan watched with trepidation as they were greeted by the teachers.
"They look strict," Cynthia whispers to the others.
Their first exam was charms, after breakfast the fifth and seventh years, Reggie waved happily to Eleanor as he passed, milled about in a small room off of the Great Hall before they were called back in and discovered that in place of the usual long house tables individual desks all facing the examiners were now in place.
After the charms practical had finished Eleanor left Cynthia and Susan to do their own studying and hurried up to the library where she and Malfoy spent the night studying for the transfiguration exam the next day.
It had been awkward at first, for Eleanor at least, Malfoy was still acting normally unaware of the conflicting emotions bubbling within Eleanor, but she kept finding herself blushing and remembering how soft his lips had felt against hers in her dream and wondering if they really felt like that.
"Can you please focus?" He hisses at her when she again loses herself in staring at his face. "I would really enjoy being able to do alchemy next year and I need top marks if I want that to happen."
"Yeah, sorry."
"I know I'm gorgeous but you need to pick your moment."
"Oh shut up Malfoy."
The transfiguration exam the next day went wonderfully in Eleanor's opinion, as they filed out of the Hall for lunch she looked around until she caught Malfoy's eye who nodded slightly in her direction, his usual smirk playing on his mouth.
"You know, as big of an ass as he can be. I can see why you dreamt about him, he is rather handsome," Susan says to Eleanor, catching her looking at Malfoy.
"What?" A voice says behind them.
Turning around Eleanor finds Reggie standing behind them, coming over to ask how she had done.
"He's the guy?!" Reggie asks, his face contorting with anger.
"I'm gonna go," Susan says, "Sorry." She whispers to Eleanor before walking away, glancing back to keep an eye on her friend from a distance.
"You said you were okay with that, it didn't change anything and that you understood."
"Yeah that was when it was just another guy and not that ass who you conveniently happen to spend a lot of time with."
"Excuse me? I don't actually like him and we only spend time together to study."
"I'm sure."
"You think I'd do that? You think I'd hook up with Malfoy behind your back? You have no trust in me." The last part isn't a question and, looking in his eyes Eleanor can see she is right.
"Can we just stop arguing for a minute," he says, glancing around at the students doing their best to ignore their hushed conversation.
"You're the one who got angry at me."
"What did you expect?"
"I didn't expect that it would matter who it was."
"Well it does. Look, can you just promise that you'll stop spending time together? The exam is done now you don't need him anymore."
"The Potions exam hasn't been yet so no, I can't promise that and even if I could maybe I wouldn't want to. I won't be told who I can and cannot spend my time with."
"So you want to spend time with a person as rude and arrogant as that?"
"You are sometimes. Rude and arrogant, do you remember how you were to George? I didn't ditch you did I?"
Something in his eyes becomes shuttered and withdrawn at the reference to George, and without another word he turns on his heel and storms away.
Upset at herself and at Reggie Eleanor decides to skip lunch and makes her way out of the Hall to pass time until the practical in the common room. In her hurry to escape she doesn't notice Malfoy who had watched their confrontation with avid attention.