The first week of school passed rather quickly, plenty of work to take up the time. Hermione didn't feel overwhelmed with her work, though she could clearly see her friends struggling. Whenever she studied, they studied too, and she helped them a lot. Hermione loved her friends, but she was becoming exhausted doing her own work and also being a full time tutor. On Wednesday of the second week, she didn't go back to the common room after classes. She needed somewhere quiet and empty to study, but she knew that the library was the first place Ron and Harry would look for her. Hermione didn't really mind helping Harry, he didn't need nearly as much. Ronald, however, was a lost cause.
Suddenly, an idea occurred to Hermione. She could go and see if the room of requirement was still in tact, skeptical that it could've survived last years fire. It was worth trying though, right? Anything for private study time. The young witch headed to the corridor and passed the wall three times, repeatedly thinking 'I need somewhere to study.' And the door appeared. Hermione grinned, pleased with herself. She wasn't even sure she would tell her friends of the rooms existence. She looked both ways down the hall, and once she was sure nobody was around, shuffled inside quickly. The room was warm and cozy, including a soft looking couch, a couple arm chairs and an inviting fire. Hermione sighed happily and took in the room, nearly dropping her books as she spotted a blonde headed boy reading near the fireplace. Draco glanced up from his book, looking just as surprised to see her.
"Sorry. I didn't realize the room was occupied." Hermione said, grimacing and turning on her heel to walk away. "Wait." Draco said, standing up and sitting his book on the table nearest him. Hermione stopped walking and turned around, "What? Why? So you can curse me while there's nobody around to save me? No thank you." she spat, turning back around. Draco hesitated and a look of hurt crossed his face, disappearing before the girl could notice. "No, I just.. You don't have to leave. I can." He said, moving to gather his things and heading out the door before Hermione could stop him. Hmph, a moment where Draco Malfoy showed the slightest glimpse of decency. Why had he offered to leave? Why hadn't he jinxed her, or at the least, called her an insulting name? She shrugged and sat down on the couch, sitting her bag on the table. Draco had forgotten his book. She curiously picked it up, scanning the cover. It didn't say anything, so she flipped to a random page. This book looked handwritten. Hermione came to a realization and closed the journal quickly. How daft could Draco be? Leaving his diary lying for anyone to read. She sat it back on the table and pulled out her own books, set on distracting herself from the temptation of indulging in Dracos personal thoughts. 'I should probably take it with me and return it.' Hermione thought when she was readying herself to leave.
"Where has Hermione been all day? I haven't seen her. I need her to look over my Transfiguration homework." Ron told Harry, annoyance clear in his voice. Harry just shrugged. "I don't know. She doesn't have an obligation to be here, you know." Harry said. Ron rolled his eyes and didn't respond. Just then, Hermione entered the common room, her books in her bag and Dracos journal in her hand. "Hey." Harry said, smiling warmly. "Hey." Hermione said back, thrilled that he wasn't asking questions. "Where were you? I needed your help!" Ron exclaimed, staring at Hermione, "And what's that book you've got?" he asked. She shrugged, "Oh, just something I grabbed from the library." She lied, shoving it in her bag. She knew that if she told the boys what it was, they would never let it go until they read it. Though she wasn't too fond of Draco, he was still human and had a right to privacy. "Right. Okay." Ron said, but he didn't ask about his homework, sensing Hermiones attitude in the air. "I'm going to put my things away and I'll meet you in the Great Hall for dinner, alright?" She told them, heading upstairs to her dormitory. She sat upon her bed and pulled out the journal, sitting it in her lap. Hermione stared at it. Finally unable to contain her curiosity, she flipped it open to the latest entry. Probably what Draco was writing when she interrupted him.
"I feel terribly alone." Draco had written, Hermione noted his neat handwriting. "I don't have any friends anymore. Not after I turned on them during the war. Nobody ever wants to look me in the eye, or come too close to me. Can't say I blame them, I wouldn't go near myself if I were them. I have nobody to confide in. I'm going to spend the rest of my life like this, and I deserve it. I just wish they understood how much I regret it. I want to repent, I want everyone to know that I wasn't a willing participant. Wouldn't they have done it too, if their families lives had been at stake?" Hermione frowned as she read the page, baffled that Draco Malfoy had feelings under his mask of brutality. She continued reading, "I've noticed her staring at me a lot since schools been back, and I wonder why. Am I that much of an atrocity? I already know that everyone hates me. I don't need to be reminded -" and that was where the paragraph ended. This must've been when Hermione entered the room of requirement. So a girl has been staring at Draco, who could it be? She wracked her brain, attempting to think of who could possibly want to stare at him.
Hermione tucked the journal under her arm and walked to the Great Hall, searching for Draco at the Slytherin table. It didn't take long to find him, and she approached slowly, unsure of how he would react. "You left this behind today." She said, laying the journal in front of him. He snatched it and hid it in his lap, looking embarrassed. "I assume you read it, did you?" Draco asked. Hermione couldn't tell what he was thinking or feeling, so she just shook her head. "I only opened it and glanced at a page. I stopped when I realized what it was." She answered, and walked away. She felt dreadfully guilty about invading his privacy like that, and then proceeding to lie to his face about it. Hermione joined Harry and Ron, and they gave her inquisitive looks as she fixed herself a plate. "Why were you talking to Malfoy?" Ron asked. She kept her facial expression composed, knowing she would have to lie yet again, and hating it. "He dropped a book in the library earlier. Had his name in it, so I just thought I'd give it back. Why do you care so much?" Hermione snapped, and regretted it immediately as she saw Ronald's offended look. "Oh, Ron, I'm sorry. I'm just tired." she told him, frowning. He nodded his head and patted her shoulder, "Don't worry about it, Mione." He told her. She ate quietly and pondered the contents of Malfoys journal, desperate about knowing who 'she' was. Hermione excused herself and went to her bed, frustrated that she cared so bloody much about that stupid journal. Why did she care so much? It didn't matter who the girl was. Or, did it?