This time, they aren't paired together by their professor...

Chapter 5

Of course Malfoy never said anything about teaching me how to skip a rock. Why would he? He had that precious reputation to uphold. But wasn't he the least bit proud that he taught one of the best students in his class how to skip a rock? And was successful at teaching it?

Time passed—about two weeks—and I could never get over four skips. I taught Ron and Harry how to do it, and both of them got five and six at their highest. What was I doing wrong? Not the right rock? Bad posture?

Like a lot of things that bugged me since I wasn't sure of them, this bugged me. And I didn't want to go ask Malfoy again. I never did catch him again at that spot by the lake... he probably changed it. And... why did that bug me, too? Have I gone mad?

I spotted him as Harry, Ron and I walked down the corridor with other students going to class. Malfoy and his posse passed us, and my heart skipped. I needed to know what I was doing wrong.

In our next class, Transfiguration, Professor McGonagall let us choose our partners. Harry and Ron were naturally together, and I looked over and saw that Crabbe and Goyle paired themselves together. Here was my chance. Before Lavender Brown could approach me and ask to be my partner, I stood up and went and sat next to Malfoy. My fellow Gryffindors' jaws dropped, as well as a lot of the Slytherins'. Malfoy stared at me like I grew two heads.

"What the heck do you think you're doing, Granger?"

"I'm going to be your partner. What does it look like?"

I heard whispers from both sides of the classroom, from all houses. I knew what people were whispering about, but I paid them no heed.

"I have a hidden motive," I told Malfoy as I opened my thick Transfiguration textbook to our assignment. "And that's not getting a failing grade, so you better work with me on this assignment."

"Then go be partners with someone else," he quipped. "Plus, it was your fault the last time. You started it all."

I refused to let that bad grade, and the argument with an insult to my wonderful parents, get to me. "That's all in the past. Now..."

We started the assignment, and Malfoy just sat there, arms crossed. I sighed and opened his book for him, rather hard, and the noise of the front of the book hitting the table startled him. He eyed me.

"Help me with this, will you? For goodness sakes."

To my surprise, and to the surprise of others around, Malfoy began writing the small report to the assignment as I had my wand out, transfiguring a mouse in a cage into a pocket watch. We had to transform five mice, and write on why some didn't transform, and with the ones who did, what made that successful. Then we had to transform them all back into mice and write about that as well.

"What do you want, Granger?" Draco asked, writing, and not looking at me.

"I... wanted to ask you about the rock skipping."

He stopped writing and looked at me, his blue eyes wide. He looked around frantically. He whispered, "Granger, are you mental? Don't say that out loud!"

I continued waving my wand and turned the second mouse into a pocket watch. "What? No one's listening. So, I can't seem to get more than four skips. I taught Ron and Harry, and they're almost as good as you. I just don't know what I'm doing wrong."

Malfoy smirked. "Was that a complement, Granger?"

I blinked. "I suppose it was. Now, what do I do?"

"Don't know."

I stared at him incredulously. "You don't know? But how...?"

"I mean I don't know because you're not skipping a rock at the moment," he snapped. "And you call yourself a brilliant witch."

My heart pricked. "Well... then meet me at that same shore after classes and tell me what I'm doing wrong. I really want to get this right."

And I was desperate, if I was asking for Draco Malfoy's help.

"Then you'll have to deal with it," he said, writing, and I transformed the third mouse to a pocket watch. "Because I'm never going down there again. Not when a mudblood infested it."

My jaw clenched until my teeth hurt, and my eyes stung. There was no stopping him using that foul name, and not stopping the hurt that came after it.

"Please?" I said, which startled both me and him. He looked over at me, his quill down.

"What?"

"I said please. But nevermind. You're not one to be nice, or do anything for anyone. It was vastly out of your character to help me out in the first time."

He turned to face me, and gave me a sneering look. "You're right, it was. After today, you better not talk to me again..." His voice lowered to a growl. "You filthy little mudblood."

Those same tears burned my eyes and I turned away from him. I sucked in a breath and finished transforming the mice, and went on to do the reverse. I snatched the parchment from Malfoy and wrote out the rest of the report.

Malfoy was right. I was mental. Mental for actually thinking that he would help me a second time. I was wrong.

I threw rocks into the lake this time. I didn't even bother trying to skip them. The ka-thunk of each of them seemed to calm me to some degree.

Harry and Ron stared at me as I angrily threw the rocks in, one after the other. I heard Ron mutter something about that rat Malfoy, which angered me more. I threw a rather large rock in, which splashed me, but I didn't care, even though it was cool outside, and overcast.

"Okay, Hermione, enough," Harry said.

"Yeah, c'mon, Hermione, let's go get some dinner," Ron said. "I'm starving."

"Then you both go!" I shouted, and both leaned back a bit, startled. "I'm sorry, I'm just..."

"Fuming angry?" Harry finished for me. "You're going to have to get used to Malfoy calling you that name."

"Yeah, and you put it upon yourself, you know, shocking everyone, including McGonagall, when you sat by Malfoy in Transfiguaration class today," Ron said. "You were asking for it."

They were not helping. But they were right. "I know, I know, alright? I just... I just wanted to learn something."

"Learning things is like a hobby of yours, Hermione," Ron said. "And now, it's turned into a disease. C'mon, learn rock skipping from someone else," he pleaded. "Anyone but Malfoy." He paused and took a step to me, his brow twisted. "Wait a minute... you're not only mad because he called you that name and he refused to teach you... are you?"

My heart pounded inside of me, and I threw another rock into the lake, making a large splash. Ron stared at me with a shocked expression on his face. My cheeks heated up.

"Hermione..." he began in an unbelieving tone, "you don't... you don't fancy Malfoy, do you?"

Harry's eyes widened at that, and mine stayed focused on the lake. I sucked in a breath, my heart threatening to hammer out of my chest, and my cheeks feeling hotter. I glared at Ron.

"Ron, are you mad? Me? Fancy Malfoy? You must be insane!"

"Then why are you so bloomin' angry?!"

"Because I want to learn something and he's too proud and horrible to be seen with a mudblood!"

"Then learn how to bloody skip a rock from someone else, like we've been tellin' you over and over!"

"But I...!"

I couldn't finish. Ron and I stared at each other, him waiting for me to finish. Harry stood there behind Ron, waiting as well.

"I knew it," Ron said in finalization. "I can't believe you, Hermione." He began to walk away.

"Ron, I don't fancy Malfoy! He just grates on my nerves more than anyone! Golly! Who would fancy him, anyway? He's an arrogant, proud, horribly human being. I take it as an insult that you think I would fancy him."

I stalked away from him and Harry and cantered up the path to the school. I heard Harry mutter something to Ron, but I didn't dare hear what it was.

No. Ron was insane. How could I...? Malfoy? That was disgusting! All I wanted was for him to teach me, and I was mad because he refused since he doesn't want to be seen with and associate with mudblood.

Yes. That was definitely it.