By Potions class, Blaise had yet to learn that Draco Malfoy, sulking and moping, would actually have studied more for Potions class. In retrospect, though, he wasn't surprised. Hermione Granger spared some of her glares - that she normally focused on Malfoy, for Blaise - undoubtedly furious that she'd ... given up ... something, at least, for not much of anything in return.

Or maybe she just wanted to corner him and convince him to tell her why he couldn't tell her more.

Potter had his ears up and his eyes open, and he looked more interested in the personal byplays than with anything Potions related, for which Blaise couldn't blame him.

Who wanted to learn about unicorn hooves and cat whiskers when you could be seeing which Slytherin Hermione Granger was going to flay. Possibly verbally flay, possibly not.

As it was, Blaise was rather glad that Snape was just a door away - as if he did manage to draw Granger's ire, he at least wanted her to get punished.

At least Granger wasn't like the rest of the girls, who had instantly gone "dress crazy" if not "boy crazy."

Half the school seemed to want him to ask them out. Which would be fine, if they weren't falling over each other to do it.

Potions was practically the only peace he got these days, because even in Charms there were girls, and they would fight to be his partner, to be near him, to make eyes at him - and that last meant girls "stealthfully" elbowing each other.

It was stifling, was what it was.

Blaise pitied Malfoy, who had it twice as bad. Something about his "couldn't care less" ice persona. Blaise at least remembered you smiled at girls, no matter if you liked them or not. That was manners, something Malfoy couldn't have been bothered to actually practice (And oh, how Blaise had wanted to say something of the sort the last hundred times Malfoy complained about Ron Weasel).

[a/n: Okay, so Blaise got to vent. I had to force myself not to have Hermione spill the beans here. "I don't need a date, I'm going to be dancing with Malfoy." Cue Potter, Malfoy and Snape falling off their chairs. Sadly, Hermione's not much on "yanking people's chain for no reason", and she's got little reason to think that Malfoy actually would dance with her. (erm. that's not to say that odds are, if Malfoy wasn't in love with her, he wouldn't dance with her. He would, if only to insult her dancing ability, and burnish his own by contrast).

Reviews please!]