Like Someone in Love

It wasn't a dream, Hermione thought, seeing the dress hanging on the coat rack. She admired it in the morning light when her stomach rumbled. She laughed aloud and laughed more, realizing she was alone and free to laugh all she wanted. It was nine in the morning. Breakfast ended at ten. Yawning, she stretched and moved out of the bed, careful to let her feet into her slippers first and not on the ice cold stone floor.

Half an hour later, she made her way to the Great Hall. It was empty except for a pile of food on one long table. She sat down, wrapped her thick sweater around her tighter and began to drink a tall glass of freshly squeezed orange juice. She heard footsteps behind her. She didn't look. The person sat across her.

He took a glass and filled it with orange juice. Then he cleared his throat. Hermione ignored him. Theodore Nott smirked at her. She ignored him again.

"Good morning, Head Girl. "

She nodded and continued eating an oversized waffle and put some honey on it.

"Did your tongue freeze at the roof of your mouth? " he asked her.

"Excuse me? "

"I greeted you a good morning, if you recall."

"Good morning, " she said quickly, not looking at him, feeling uncomfortable at the sudden attention he was giving her.

"See, it was as easy as that- "

Someone cleared his throat. Both Nott and Hermione looked up. It was Draco, standing with an almost frosty glare. He was wearing a black turtleneck and black slacks. He looked at Nott derisively, motioning for him to step away from her.

"What did I do wrong? " Nott asked with a malicious grin.

"Don't spoil your morning talking to someone from another house, " he said not looking at Hermione. He had hoped she would be quick to realize that it was just a ruse. He didn't like the way Nott was looking at her at all.

Hermione caught it immediately; Draco didn't like the way Nott was talking to her. It was an act, she knew it, but she could not help but feel a little dejected by Draco. Was he jealous?

Overprotective of her now? Did Nott somehow know-? She took a deep breath as she heard the two Slytherin males walk away from her and to another long table.

"What gives, Draco? " Nott drawled in a low voice, but still loud enough for Hermione to hear. "It's not like she was Pansy or anything- "

"I'd rather you shag Pansy than her. Merlin knows what diseases she has…" he hissed back, his voice too low for her to hear this time. He hoped she wouldn't hear any of what he had said.

Hermione continued to eat her waffles, but this time she didn't feel so hungry anymore. She mustered some willpower to finish what was left of her food and stood up to get out of the table when Professor McGonagall came in for a quick breakfast.

"Good morning, Miss Granger, " she greeted in a stern yet motherly tone. "Merry Christmas. "

She said her 'good mornings' and left. How McGonagall managed to be severe yet kind at the same time marveled Hermione always. She looked once more at Draco's direction. He was ignoring her completely. Like she was a house elf, or worse, like a speck of dust.

With just the three of them inside the Great Hall, Hermione felt a growing discomfort for every second that passed by. She walked outside of the hall, careful not to make noise.

Theodore Nott stared at her retreating figure. "You know, for someone from Gryffindor- that walking piece of brain doesn't look half bad. "

"By half bad, you mean comparable to an ogre?" Draco retorted, not daring to look at Hermione's back. He busied himself pouring some orange juice at some precise imaginary line on his glass.

"Say, comparable to that Hufflepuff from Third Year? The blonde one with the huge rack- the one Blaise almost- "

"She looked like a harlot, " Draco snapped, regretting he had.

"What gives? It's just a description. A comparison in accordance with what I see- "

"Perhaps you should get your eyes checked. I don't know what it is about those ladies from the other houses that you guys are so crazy f- "

"There is such a lack of good looking Slytherins, if you didn't notice. One of the few good looking ones though, is ready to strip in the middle of winter for you. "

Draco rolled his eyes, eating a waffle with blueberries on it. It was true, Draco thought. Pansy was willing to do anything for him. It annoyed him, yet he pitied her at the same time. Perhaps, it was instilled to deeply in Pansy that she should be at her best for him, some mantra played on by years of infatuation, pressed on further by her parents and by his mother.

"Strip during winter and not freeze to death. It could be something to look forward to, " Draco said languidly.

Nott laughed. "I just imagined that. "

"You know you didn't have to, " Draco closed his eyes, hating that he had begun to imagine it as well. But he had a different approach in his head. Pansy had frozen out completely, encased in an icy tomb. He tried not to laugh. He took a deep breath instead.

"Really, Nott. You surprise me. One day you're such a ladies' man, the next day you talk like a maniac- "

Nott gave a feign look of hurt. "Oh, the pain, Draco! Why do you subject me with such harsh words- you truly are from Slytherin. "

He laughed afterwards.

He found her an hour later in the Quidditch Pitch. She was standing atop the Gryffindor bleachers which were across Slytherins' bleachers. He stared at her for a little while, careful not to startle her. Her hair was whipping against her face in discord with the wind. She had her eyes closed while holding on to the wooden rails.

He cleared his throat and her eyes snapped open, looking to his direction.

"Damn it, I thought you were in the library. I searched every nook and cranny- well except for the Red and Gold quarters of the Gryffindor wing- "

"Took you long enough, " she grinned.

"Why are you here? In this place that's barren of books? And- " he stopped.

"And it's a place where I watched my cheater of an ex? Where I cheered on him for- years? " she continued for him.

"I was going to say something harsher, but those words will suffice. "

She smiled and sighed. "I'm just- I don't need to read books all day to distract myself, do I? Nor do I need to stay in places that people are so used to me being there. "

"And that would be the library? "

"Don't I have any other place?"

"None that I know of, " he laughed. "Unless you…secretly go to Hogsmeade or something. "

"Maybe I should change my lifestyle? To make it a part of exorcising my demons? "

"The only demon in your life is Weasley. He's no longer a part of your life by the way. "

"Right, I forgot you were pissing all over me to mark territory. "

"Change the P with a K, will you? " he snapped, hating that he sounded too much like a canine to her eyes. The joke sounded bitter now.

It took a moment for Hermione to get his joke and she laughed and leaned forward to pinch his nose playfully. Draco turned red and stepped back a bit.

"What the hell did you do that for?" he asked, not accustomed to candid displays of affection.

"Just being childish. "

"Father will kill me if I get to be one. " He raised his chin arrogantly, although he did not mean to look so.

"You were forced to grow up fast, " Hermione stated, not minding the look he sent out. She was actually learning to accept his little annoying looks.

"Coerced is a better word, " he replied. "You just have to…learn to adjust. If your parents are like mine…you have to learn how to act the way they want you to act. "

"By acting like a complete arse? " she laughed.

"Not funny, Hermione Granger- "

"I know how it feels, though, " she interrupted him. "How you should act like who you act, because it's how people see you. Stupid but it works for us. "

"You know, I've thought about it. Charades don't last forever. "

"Smartest thing you've said so far, " Hermione laughed again.

Draco smirked. "I'm touched. Bloody touched. Oh, Merry Christmas, by the way. "

"Your gift- " she began, her face reddening. "How did you-"

He grinned slyly. "So you loved it..."

Hermione reddened again. "I liked it a lot! "she said in futility, her facial hue belying her words. She looked at Draco's eyes, seemingly warmer now…

"Yes, I loved it! " she snapped, as if ashamed of the confession.

"I'm glad to hear that. If it makes you less conscious, I loved the pendant you gave me, " he winked, feeling his ears redden a bit.

She gave a laugh. "You don't have to be that nice, you know. "

"It's true. "

Somehow she felt that it was the truth. Draco said nothing more.

Draco took a deep breath. "You know, when I play Quidditch, I feel freer than I'll ever be. Probably what Potter feels as well- not that we think alike or anything, but you get the point. "

"What does Quidditch have to do with us?" Hermione said, without missing a beat.

"Wait, will you?" he snapped softly. "Quidditch is far from what I feel when we're together, " he breathed out.

"Freer? " she said, not looking at him.

He suddenly reached out, held her hand and squeezed it tight. Hermione's heart skipped a beat this time. This was true, wasn't it? If she believed in it, there was a chance it could be true. How she wanted to believe it. She believed it already. It had not felt this special, not with Ron. Not with anyone. She took a deep breath, all inside her head. Her hand slowly clutched Draco's. She was afraid to look at him. It felt like the point of no return now. It felt like he was making her belong to him, body and soul- even if he said nothing.

He was eyeing her closely, wondering how she would react. If she would take the bait, if she would fall the way he wanted her to…He felt her gentle fingers intertwine with his own hand. It was that delicate touch that made his heart pound even more, like a tidal wave crashing inside. This was the point of no return, he thought. If he thought he had fallen for her the night before, he was terribly wrong. The magnitude of it suddenly hurt his chest. He held her hand tighter, felt more warmth than he had ever felt in years.

"I- I hope this isn't wrong, " he murmured, not looking at her.

He heard an intake of breath.

"I don't know. Really..." her voice trailed off. She still did not let go of his hand. "If this is- it'll be the first time I'm wrong. "

They burst into laughter.

"About time! " Draco said, his cheeks still red. " I was waiting for you to break the ice. I couldn't stand the pressure. "

She smiled and took away her hand softly. "Me too. "

Draco gave a sigh. " I don't know what's going to happen, I can't predict what will…"

"Of course you can't. That's why it's aptly called the 'future'."

"I should have taken those classes seriously, except I quit. "

Draco laughed, remembering Hermione's abrupt leave and impatience with Divination. It had caused minor controversy within Hogwarts, with Hermione losing her cool over a subject she deemed fraudulent.

"I wonder how you'll look like wearing that..." Draco suddenly mused.

She smiled. "You might now sooner or later. There's a February ball scheduled. Not my idea of course- "

"I know it's not your idea. But whoever thought about it has just saved my fantasy, " he smiled.

"It's the prefects from Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw, " she said. "There was no formal ball this year, so they thought of a 'better' replacement for the next year, " she said, cringing a bit.

"Thank you, " Draco murmured jokingly to the skies.

Hermione pinched his arm. He pretended to be hurt and then grinned.

"But seriously, " he told her in all seriousness, "I'm holding my breath till that moment comes."

She gave a small smile, trying to suppress that giggly feeling growing inside her. "Really now, you'll be red in the face. A spotty Malfoy just won't do. "

He laughed and kissed her cheek all of a sudden. "All in a day's work to win you over. "

From a short distance, with narrowed eyes, a person smiled. It was a malicious, crooked grin reserved for people who were used to betraying others. The scene was rather interesting, all in all. Such breaking news this was to become….there would be headlines, the Gryffindor lass would be crucified by all mudblood haters, Draco would be whipped for coercing with someone not of the pureblood kind…the person nearly laughed at the thoughts growing every millisecond. The person blinked. Just a bit more time, then…and all would know.

a/n: i am so sorry for the tremendously long wait! here's a glass of wine hoping i continue more often! lol