Ron and Harry were already seated at the middle desk when Hermione and Draco stepped through the portal to their Potions classroom. It was a smaller room than the one they'd been in previously. It had just three desks down the center and no teacher's desk. Three walls were lined with labeled vials, the fourth held a chalkboard. There was a pile of cauldrons in one corner. The boys conversation ended as their attention turned to their newly arrived classmates. Professor Slughorn was no where to be seen. As Hermione and Draco took their seats, her at the front desk and him in the rear, scrawled words began to appear on the chalkboard. They read:

"Welcome to Potions, 8th Years. It has been worked out for me to teach you as well as the 5th Years during this same class period. I will be spending most of my time with them, as I trust you are more than capable of researching and completing all assignments independently. That's not to say solo, however. All assignments will be completed as a group. Today being the only exception as it will be a review and serve as a way for me to assess your individual talents. You are each to brew your favorite potion. Leave a vial on my desk when it is complete, then you are free to go."

Ron and Harry were visibly aggravated. Potions is a precise art. It requires patience and a steady hand. Neither qualities either of them possess. They both turned to Hermione with pleading looks. She shook her head... "No. You two will be doing your own work. My potion will require the full two hours to complete."

Draco had already retrieved a cauldron and was gathering ingredients. He walked nonchalantly around the room, examining the labels until he found all the necessary components for Felix Felicis. He'd never brewed the potion before, but he was intrigued by the opportunities it could provide. He knew it was a long shot, but he hoped Professor Slughorn would allow him to keep the vial after he'd made sure it was brewed correctly. And even if he wasn't allowed to keep the vial, at least he'd know whether or not he'd done it right in case he wanted to brew a batch in the future. He figured a little luck wouldn't hurt when it came time for him to tell Hermione the truth about who he really was.

Ron and Harry decided, if Hermione wasn't going to help them, it would be best for them to make the same potion. That way they could work together, each of them on their own, but doing the same steps. They settled on the Babbling Beverage potion. Fred and George had made it famous in their third year when they managed to slip a dose of it in Percy's morning pumpkin juice, causing him to recite the Weasley family tree every time someone spoke to him for an entire day. It was an easy potion which meant they'd be able to finish quickly and hopefully enjoy a bit of free time before Transfiguration.

Hermione chose to brew Amortentia. It was a potion she had mastered back in their sixth year, but Professor Slughorn hadn't asked them to brew their most advanced potion, he'd asked for their favorite. Hermione would never forget standing over the cauldron and realizing she was smelling Ron's hair. Thinking of it still gave her butterflies. She spread the ingredients on her desk, and did a mental checklist of the steps before beginning.

Harry and Ron finished their potions in just under an hour. They triple-checked Hermione would be alright alone with Malfoy, causing her to literally shove them out the door in annoyance. "For the THIRD time, I will be fine. I have my wand, and we are both busy completing our potions. Just go, already!" She slammed the door behind them, and proceeded directly back to her desk without a glance in Draco's direction.

Draco was impressed by her tenacity in forcing her two best friends to exit the classroom. His potion needed to stew for twenty minutes, but he wasn't sure Hermione would be up for making conversation after what had happened between them earlier. On the other hand, she did just kick her best friends out, leaving the two of them alone again. No. He chose to err on the side of caution, deciding instead to sketch in order to fill the time. Drawing was a hobby Draco had learned during his time as Blake. He'd never been able to do it while at Hogwarts, until now, because it isn't a skill pure blood wizards hold in high regard.

He pulled out his sketch pad and charcoal pencil, and scanned the room for something, anything that captured his attention. His gaze always returned to her. Her back was mostly to him, her hair extra frizzy from all the steam rising off her cauldron. He held the pad up with his left hand as his right pushed and pulled, scratched and shaded. He worked feverishly, stealing frequent glances at her, determined to capture her intense focus. She was slightly hunched over the desk, right hand steadily stirring as the left kept place in her notes. He was so engrossed in recreating her on paper that he almost didn't notice when she suddenly stood upright, rolling her shoulders. "Shit!" Draco cursed himself. "Her potion must be at a stewing point as well."

He was halfway through shoving his sketchpad back into his bag when she raised her hands over her head and stretched, letting out a small groan in the process. He stopped mid-stuff, and shamelessly stared at her. She brought her arms down to should height then clasped them behind her back and leaned forward. "Can this really be happening?" Draco asked himself, looking around as if he was expecting someone to jump out and curse him for watching her. He was able to get his sketchpad back in the bag just as she turned to face him.

"You haven't been making much noise back there." Hermione stated, but it felt more like an accusation.

"My potion needed to stew for twenty minutes. I used the time to do some reading." He replied defensively. "Its nearly time for the next ingredients."

"Oh." Her voice was less harsh, but no longer as friendly as it was this morning before their kiss. "I've come to a stewing point as well, but we left the cottage in such a hurry this morning that I forgot to grab my other textbooks. I think I will use this time to retrieve them." Her eyes met his just for a moment, and they reflected back what she was feeling...disappointment.

"Ok." He answered turning back to his own cauldron, forcing himself not to look at her as she walked passed him and out the door.

"Congratulations, Draco. You pushed things too fast too soon, and now she's back to treating you like something she stepped in at the dog park. Why did you have to kiss her? You've waited seven years, but you couldn't even wait a single day once you got back here? You're so stupid!" He wanted to throw all the ingredients on his desk across the floor. He wanted to scream at himself for losing control this morning in the kitchen. He wanted to take back what had happened, but then again, he didn't. It might be the only time he'd ever be able to kiss her, so he didn't regret it. He just wished he'd been smart enough to wait until she had the chance to know, really know, that he is not the person she thinks he is.

"Get it together, Hermione!" She admonished herself as soon as she exited the Potions classroom. Her hands were shaking and her knees felt as if they would give out at any moment. When she had forced Harry and Ron to leave, she allowed herself to be excited at the prospect of more time alone with Draco. She had been hoping he would initiate a conversation with her, and that she would get the chance to continue learning about the new man inhabiting Draco Malfoy's body. But her hopes were dashed when he sat silently, not acknowledging her in the least. The longer she worked on her potion, the more upset she became. Finally when it came time for her potion to stew, she was able to escape the room and let her emotions out.

She took her time going back to the cottage. The potion had to stew for thirty minutes, and once there, she could use the portal to get back, so she felt no need to rush. Plus, she did not particularly want to be alone with Draco with nothing to keep her busy. She also wanted to avoid Ron and Harry as they would surely try to interrogate her. She hadn't even considered they might be at the cottage, so when she walked through the portal and found them both lounging in the sitting room, she was visibly shaken.

"Hermione," Ron immediately came to her side. "Is everything ok? Malfoy didn't do something to you, did he?"

"Huh? What?..No. No." She choked out before gaining her bearings and continuing confidently. "Nothing like that. My potion is at a stewing point, and I forgot some books here this morning, so I'm using my waiting time to get them." She could have stopped there, but for some inexpiable reason, she felt the need to defend Draco, so she added, "Draco has actually been rather...well different, this year."

"What do you mean by different?" Ron asked skeptically.

Now, she'd done it. Just when all she wanted to do was forget the morning's interactions with their blonde roommate, she inadvertently drew Ron into a conversation about him. Great. Just great.

She slowly turned to face her boyfriend as she answered, "Well, he... I don't know how to explain it really. I've just noticed that he hasn't been rude or insulting. He isn't strutting around either. He's been quieter...sad almost."

"Don't tell me you're going soft on him, Hermione." Ron sounded desperate, teetering on the verge of angry. "This is Draco freaking Malfoy we are talking about. Its probably all an act! What we know for certain is that he is a Death Eater who sided with Voldemort during the battle. That's not something we can just forget because he hasn't been a complete prick...yet. And I stress the yet, because its going to happen. The Malfoy we've come to know over the last seven years didn't just up and vanish. He's in there, Hermione. You can't forget that for one second."

She was really not in the mood to argue with Ron at the moment. All she wanted to do was grab her books and get back to the Potions' classroom. Her Amortentia would be done stewing in less than ten minutes. "I know, Ron. Believe me I know. Do you really think I could simply forget everything he's done? Of course I can't. But the fact remains we are stuck sharing this cottage with him for the next nine months, so I am trying to make the best of it by not instigating any drama, okay?"

"Hermione is right, Ron." Harry interjected from the couch. "He hasn't done anything," Ron was about to cut over him, so Harry quickly added, "-YET- this year that we can hold against him. I agree with Hermione that we should do our best not to start anything. If he does, then we can finish it, but it will be a long year if we keep having the same argument every single day."

Hermione mouthed the words: THANK YOU to Harry. Ron was not happy to be outnumbered, but he eventually agreed to be on his best behavior for everyone's sake.

"I better get back." Hermione grabbed the three books she left on the counter, and walked through the portal.

Draco's heart jumped inside his chest when she re-appeared in the room. "Find what you needed?" He asked earnestly.

"Yep." Hermione replied curtly, placing the books on her desk and getting back to work without so much as a glance in his direction.

Well, I am officially back to square one. I just couldn't wait, and now I will have to work twice as hard to earn her trust. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. Just finish the potion and leave her in peace. And he did.