A/N: Thank you all so much for your reviews, favorites and follows! A few of you have asked about my fancast for Rabastan and I have to be honest that I don't have anyone in particular in mind. I would love to hear who you see him as, though. You can follow me on tumblr (nauticalparamour) where I post sneak peeks, story updates and answer questions!
Please let me know what you thought of chapter three and be on the lookout for chapter four next week!
When she'd finally messaged Cormac the week after meeting him at the pub, he'd seemed offended that she hadn't called him sooner. Hermione got the impression that he was used to girls falling at his feet, but he'd kept his tone joking, so she was willing to overlook it. Maybe it was a good reminder to him that not all women were the same.
They made plans to go out to dinner the following Saturday. Ginny had been very supportive, even suggesting that she and Harry tag along as a sort of wingwoman/back up combination. After all, they didn't really know Cormac, so Ginny wanted to be able to keep a proper eye on him. And Harry always had an adorable way of talking Hermione up without realizing what he was doing.
Hermione had firmly declined, thinking that Ginny's interference to see her friend in a relationship would likely do more harm than good. She'd only agreed to go on a date with Cormac, not get married to him, and if Ginny had her way there would be wedding bells in Hermione's future.
She had conceded when Ginny asked to help pick out her outfit, knowing that Ginny did have a better eye for these sorts of things. The pair had spent a weeknight reviewing what Hermione had in her closet before deciding on a clingy dark grey dress and some ankle boots.
It was then that Ginny had finally caught sight of Hermione's new neighbor. Hermione had heard Ginny's scandalized gasp of delight and hurried to where her friend was standing in her kitchen. Peering out the window with her friend, Hermione saw Rabastan working on his bike, lifting his white t shirt to wipe his brow of the sweat, revealing a toned abdomen, with a sprinkling of dark colored hair around his belly button.
"Oh my god," Ginny had groaned, comically fanning herself. "I thought you said he was only a little bit cute. He is gorgeous."
"He's not that great," Hermione countered, her breath catching in her throat at the lie. Her eyes remained glued to this form, even when he lowered his shirt and crouched down by bike once again. "And, his attitude makes it all the worse."
"If you don't think he's smoking hot, then we need to get your eyes checked," Ginny said with a roll of her eyes.
"Well, don't let him hear you talking like that. He'll cut right to the point and ask you for a fuck," Hermione said with a blush on her cheeks.
Ginny turned to face her friend, a smirk on her lips already seeing Hermione's pink face. "Oh you little liar, Granger," Ginny teased. "You obviously like him a lot more than you let on. He's probably not even serious. You should take him up on his offer and I bet he'd be floundering," Ginny finished with her hands on her hips.
"I don't know about that. He seems pretty sure of himself," Hermione responded, thinking of how he hadn't given up on her yet. Her eyes darted traitorously towards the wilting wildflowers that were currently on the center of her kitchen table.
"Well, with a body like that, wouldn't you be?" Ginny asked, sounding a bit incredulous.
"Did you forget the part where I told you he was in jail? For ten years?" Hermione asked, narrowing her eyes at her friend. "Why are you trying to get me to date my convict neighbor when I have a date with the perfectly respectable, perfectly handsome, perfectly connected Cormac?" she asked, raising her eyebrows in question. Cormac really was perfect on paper - everything Ginny had been insisting that Hermione needed in her life.
Ginny sighed dramatically. "Okay, but do we even know what he was in jail for? I mean, what if it was something harmless like...I don't know, bank fraud?"
"One, bank fraud isn't harmless," Hermione said with a snort. "And two, does he really look like the kind of guy who would commit bank fraud? He wears leather jackets and has tattoos and all that," Hermione said, catching sight of him once more out of the window. She bit her lower lip, wondering just what he had done to get himself locked up for ten years.
"Fine, I'm not saying that you should date him, but...well, it's not as if things are set in stone with Cormac. I mean, if it doesn't go as planned, at least it's nice to know that you have alternatives," Ginny said with a shrug of her shoulders.
Hermione pursed her lips, looking at her redheaded friend. Sometimes, she really wondered about the girl. "Sure, I am going to see how things go with Cormac," Hermione said. But, she wouldn't commit to calling Rabastan an alternative, especially not one that she might explore things with. "Now, can we please talk about something other than Rabastan?"
Ginny smirked at her once again. "Sure, Granger. Should we go pick out your perfect date knickers?" she asked, before sprinting off in the direction of Hermione's bedroom.
Hermione giggled along, trying to stop her friend half-heartedly before she got to her underwear drawer. This was certainly not what she'd been expecting when she'd asked for help picking out her date outfit.
In retrospect, Hermione should have known that Cormac was too good to be true.
Yes, he was good on paper, but only that - paper. In person, he left much to be desired.
Hermione had agreed to meet him out at a wine bar first, declining his invitation to pick her up at her flat. Although she was sure he was just trying to be chivalrous, she'd really only talked to him a handful of times and she didn't fancy him figuring out where she lived. And, partly, Hermione didn't really want Rabastan seeing him coming to pick her up for a date.
Cormac had seemed...irritated by her insistence, but eventually agreed nonetheless.
When he finally showed up at Bottle & Glass - ten minutes late, mind you - he had swept in, pulling Hermione in for a peck on each cheek, making her cringe a bit. He'd ordered one of the most expensive bottles of wine on the list, before boasting about his father sending him to Italy to work on his family's business the last summer, and how he'd learned everything that there was to know about the particular type of grape.
Hermione was often accused of being a know-it-all, but even she couldn't compete with Cormac's level of arrogance. What made it even worse was how utterly wrong he was about the topic.
She'd politely sipped at her glass of wine, not wanting to drink too much before dinner, only to have Cormac constantly topping up her glass. While she appreciated politeness, she did not appreciate having everything done for her. It wasn't as if she was an invalid who couldn't pour for herself, and if he'd just asked she would have told him she was fine with what she had left.
All the while, he blathered on about what great work he was doing. Hermione had initially been interested in Cormac because he was studying law, something that she hoped to one day do as well, once she finished with her history degree. However, it was quickly becoming clear that Cormac really thought that he was much better than everyone else in his program and wasn't too keen on collaborating.
He'd ordered a second bottle of wine, while he bragged about his father's law firm and how he was certain to make partner there in several years time. He did not laugh when Hermione quipped that he had to graduate first.
Really, she should have listened to her instincts and just left him then, but somehow, she talked herself into still going to dinner with him. They had missed their eight o'clock reservations by then, but Cormac promised that they would still get a table once he told them who he was. He seemed well on his way to getting drunk, but Hermione convinced herself to give him the benefit of the doubt.
It was their first date. He was probably just nervous.
By the time they got to the restaurant, Cormac had (embarrassingly) talked his way into getting a table. Hermione had wanted to completely shrink behind the taller man, hoping that no one associated her with him. He'd quickly ordered them another bottle of wine and they'd put in their orders. Hermione was beginning to wonder if he was trying to get her drunk, and decided to leave her glass untouched in favor of some ice water.
Cormac had finally run out of steam talking about himself and he finally started asking her questions about herself. "So, tell me, what is it that you are studying, again?" he asked, giving her a winning grin.
Hermione felt sure that her jaw was open at the question. She couldn't believe that he didn't remember that she wanted to study law, same as him, when it had been a huge feature of their conversation when she'd met him at the bar. She probably never would have continued talking with him after he'd approached her had they not bonded over it. Now, she was wondering just what connection she'd ever felt with him.
"I am finishing up a history degree, and then it is my intention to study law," Hermione answered, giving him a tight smile and a hard stare, wondering if it would tip something off for him. She wondered if he could sense her anger.
Instead, he made a noise of concern. "Ooh, Hermione, I don't know if that would be right for you," he said, reaching across the table to pat her patronizingly on the hand.
Hermione jut her chin forward in annoyance. "And, why exactly do you feel that way?" she asked sharply, truly curious to hear what kind of hairbrained reasoning Cormac was about to come up with.
"Well, you see, you need to have excellent interpersonal skills to be a lawyer, Hermione, and I'm just not sure that you're...suited to that," Cormac said with another smile, clearly unaware that he was driving the final nail in the coffin for their date. "You're so quiet. I've barely gotten a handful of sentences out of you all night."
She ripped her hand away from his mitts, throwing her napkin on the table. "Maybe that's because you wouldn't shut up your big gob long enough for me to get a word in edgewise, you prick!" she snarled, before standing up. As far as she was concerned, the date was over. "You certainly think you are pretty great when in reality, you are a pathetically average person."
Cormac looked scandalized at the scene she was making, and called her name after her retreating form. Hermione was not about to stick around long enough for him to try to explain himself. He was left trying to settle up the bill while she stormed right out of the restaurant and into the nippy evening air.
She stomped down the pavement, feeling her body lighten with each step that put more distance between herself and Cormac. The crisp air helped cool her flushed face. Her head was fuzzy from too much wine and she was dreadfully hungry, having not gotten even a measly piece of bread out of her terrible date. She wanted food and she was glad to know that she was not far from her favorite chip shop. She'd swing by, grab herself dinner, and return home, never to speak of Cormac again.
Hermione quickly got in line, trying to decide if she wanted haddock or pollock. It wasn't long after that she heard the door jingle again. "You can't just walk out like that on me!" Cormac's grating voice said, before his hand reached out to spin her around.
"Well, I just did," Hermione said smartly, shrugging out his arm. "In case you didn't figure it out yet, the date is over. Now kindly fuck off," she told him, only to turn back to her spot in line. Their little argument had caught the attention of the other patrons, and Hermione could feel her cheeks heat up in embarrassment.
"Do you even understand how embarrassing it was that you left me at the restaurant?" he said, not getting the hint that she didn't feel an ounce of guilt over leaving him behind.
"Do you even understand how embarrassing it was to listen to you brag about yourself for two hours?" Hermione questioned him, still not turning to face him. "You are a conceited jerk, and I would like it if you please left me alone." It was her turn in line, and she ignored Cormac's blustering while she ordered and paid for her fish.
Stepping aside, it was like Cormac wasn't hearing anything that she was saying. Well, if he was hearing it, he certainly wasn't listening. Instead of taking her advice, he continued to whine and complain to her and questioning if she knew who he was. Frankly, Hermione let his words drown out, her daze focused on the window, waiting for her order to be up. The sooner she got home the better.
Before long, the man behind the counter was handing her the styrofoam container that contained her dinner in a plastic bag and Hermione turned to leave, only to have her path blocked once more by Cormac. "Where the hell do you think you are going? You can't just walk away from me," he said, his face looking rather purple in the florescent lights of the chip shop. He kept stepping in her path to prevent her from leaving. "We aren't done talking."
"I'm not talking to you at all anymore," Hermione said firmly, starting to grow worried with how this was escalating. "Now, leave my alone you asshole."
To her dismay, Cormac was not letting up and Hermione's mind was trying to think of what she should do. Calling the police seemed a little bit dramatic, but Cormac was still in her way and no one else seemed to be willing to help her out.
"I think the lady asked you to leave her alone, jerk," a familiar voice came from behind Cormac.
Hermione didn't think she'd ever been so excited to see someone she knew, let alone Rabastan. His normally cocky grin had been replaced with a serious look, his light green eyes already sizing up Cormac. He looked very intimidating wearing a black leather jacket, his broad arms crossed over his chest. Her breath hitched thinking that he looked really quite sexy in the moment.
"Listen, pal, this doesn't concern you," Cormac sneered at the other man, before turning back to Hermione once more. "You are being ridiculous Hermione. Come on, let's just go back to my place and we can forget that this ever happened okay?" he crooned, probably thinking that he seemed like such a catch.
She did not get a chance to answer in the negative before Rabastan was tapping Cormac on the shoulder once again. He date turned his head, his mouth open to tell off the tattooed man once again, only to be caught across the jaw with a right hook that sent Cormac stumbling into a table, sending another patron's chips flying across the floor.
"Hey!" the man behind the counter called out. "I am going to call the police!" he shouted.
Hermione didn't think twice before grabbing Rabastan by the hand - the hand that had effectively silenced her annoying date - pulling him out of the shop. "Come on, let's go!" she said with a grin on her face, pulling him into a run.
The pair of them ran two blocks until they found themselves outside of the tube station and Hermione finally slowed down, doubling over with laughter. "Oh my god, did you see the look on his face when you punched him?" she asked between giggles. "I was fantasizing about doing that all night!"
"If that's what you fantasize about, you need more material," Rabastan said wryly. "Though, if it will get you to fantasize about me at all, I can't complain too much." Hermione snorted in amusement at the joke, thinking that she rather agreed. "Why did you bring me with you?" he asked, sounding genuinely surprised.
Hermione shrugged her shoulders, her fingers feeling the loss of his hand in hers suddenly. "I figured...you only just got out of jail. Didn't think you'd want to be arrested again," she finally answered. "And as a thank you for saving me, too, I suppose."
"Well, I am happy to be of service," he said with a little mock bow, before shoving his hands into his pockets, unsure of what to do now that they were alone.
Silence hung in the air between them. Hermione bit her lower lip, trying to decide what to do. She and Rabastan had left on such a bad note the other night, but she was beginning to think that she was maybe too harsh on him. After all, at least he respected her wishes, unlike Cormac had. Clearing her throat awkwardly, she looked up at him cautiously. "Come on, let's head home," she suggested, hoping that her voice didn't sound too eager.
