Anger is a funny thing, Hermione mused as she walked quickly down the corridor without any real purpose, the lights were dim due to the lack of evening light at the windows and the candles were shining in their holders on the walls, marking her way towards the entrance hall with blurred orange orbs.

After the anger has passed, you feel it was unnecessary and that next time, you would remember to keep your temper and let it wash over you. After the event, the problem seems insignificant.

At the time, however, nothing matters more than lashing out at the cause of that anger, Hermione especially felt she had such channelled tunnel vision in angers wake that all logic went out the window all together.

This isn't insignificant though, is it. No. It damn well is NOT. Nobody in their right mind could say this was insignificant.

She stormed out of the doors in the entrance hall and the frosty cold air of the December evening hit her, making her wrap her robes around her shoulders. The sky was pitch black, no stars twinkled to light her way and the moon was covered in a thick layer of cloud making the night instead of being bewitching and magical as it should be at Christmas, eerie and silent. She set out on the path towards the forest, intending on visiting Hagrid but stopped in her tracks.

Her head jerked over towards the quidditch pitch, someone was flying, she could hear it in the air the low whistling of a broom and collection of robes flapping in the air.

Harry?

She had hardly spoken to Harry for weeks, he was always accompanying Ron everywhere he went and she longed to talk to him alone, to make him see how unreasonable his best friend is. Krum was just a friend, sure he might be a little forward for her liking, but it didn't mean they were…you know.

She reached the wooden doors to the changing rooms and pushed open the creaking door, unlocked it swung to the side and she hesitated. Whoever had been flying had come down because she could here someone rooting around in the boys changing room, and a low heavy breath.

'Harry?' she called tentatively.

She received no answer in confirmation so she edged closer and called again.

'Who's there?' A voice replied. Was it Harry? It didn't sound like him, but maybe it was. Who else would fly at night?

She edged open the door, 'Are you decent?' she called.

Something murmured affirmative so she poked her head around the corner, her long curly hair flopping over her face and she had to blow it out of her face to see.

'Oh!' she cried covering her eyes quickly with her hand, 'Malfoy? What are you doing here?'

'Granger?' he snapped pulling a towel around himself self-consciously , 'What the hell?'

Hermione's hand shook slightly in front of her face and her cheeks went brick red, Draco Malfoy was standing half naked in front of her and she wasn't moving.

Why wasn't she moving?

Her legs seemed to be frozen in nervousness to their, if uncomfortable position half in-half out the door, she had meant to come and have a cosy chat with Harry and ended up within meters from the biggest crush of her teenage years, half naked.

So she was being repetitive, HALF NAKED. She could afford to think it over and over again, if it meant she didn't have to move.

'Granger?' He said with a smirk, 'Were you looking for someone or are you getting that little action with Weasel that you had to come and get an eye full?'

Hermione's ears and cheeks heated up with embarrassment, 'No!' she spluttered , 'N-no to the second one, Y-yes to the first one, I- Er' she stopped her self and took a breath, 'Is harry here?' she said finally.

'Who Potter?' He said turning back to the locker and slamming it shut, 'No.'

Hermione suddenly realised he hadn't called her a Mud blood once in the whole conversation. Something told her to make the most of it. Taking her hand away from her face and forced her self to look at his face and nowhere else.

Wow.

If she hadn't had a full blown crush all ready she definitely did now.

'Has he been here at all tonight?' She said putting her hair behind her ears. Maybe it would make her look prettier if she'd put some make up on. Was she even pretty? She wasn't totally repulsive since she'd had her teeth shrunk but not nearly as pretty as Pansy Parkinson. Nothing to interest Draco Malfoy.

'Why should I know?' He shrugged buttoning up a shirt over his chest and shaking his wet head of unruly white curls. He has naturally curly hair? She'd never have thought…

'I just thought Don't worry, I'll just -' she started to back out of the door until,

'Granger?'

'Yes?!' she said quickly putting her head back through the door so quickly she almost cricked her neck and winced in pain.

'Is Weasel bothering you?'

He said it so quickly she hardly even registered it, and she rose her eyebrows.

'You care?'

'No.' He snapped ,'I just heard you arguing the other day and- you know he is a total git. He was nasty to you. Trouble in paradise? Lovers tiff?'

Normally, she would have stormed off angrily for insulting Ron but at the moment, it was just what she needed.

'Ron and I are not lovers,' she snapped reddening, 'and we're not talking actually.'

'So?'

He sat on the bench and stretched out, putting his hands behind his head and leaning casually on the lockers behind. The shirt he had just pulled over his toned pale shoulders was white and floorless, and baggy black jeans hanging off his middle and patted the vacant place next to him.

She edged round the door and took a look around the boys changing room with a deep breath she sat down tentatively next to him.

'He thinks, or rather, He is sure that Victor and I are-'

'Krum?' He said sharply.

She nodded, 'Thinks that we're…you know. But we're not, but he thinks we are and he said some nasty stuff and- augh, I just can't stand it he ruins everything!'

Draco made a noise in his throat, 'And you're not? You know, with Krum?'

'No!' she cried, 'He just watches me study and took me to the ball 'cause I mentioned that I wasn't going with anybody.' She closed her eyes, 'Why am I even telling you this?'

'Because I asked' He said simply and for the first time she looked up at him.

He was watching her, forehead creased in thought and those silver eyes focused on her, without loathing for the first time ever.

'Y-You don't hate me?' She said quietly, surprising her self.

Draco leant back and looked at the wall opposite, it was off white with mud up the walls, Quidditch robes hung on it and she focused on a pair of Hufflepuff keepers gloves.

'No.' He said equally as quietly.

She didn't dare look around.

'But you call me Mud blood all the time' She said indignantly.

'I don't mean it' He countered, 'I don't really, But what else can I do? If I don't my friends will think I'm soft.' He said sharply, 'and on the whole I don't like muggle borns.'

Hermione cocked her head to one side confused, 'But you just said-'

'I said, on the whole'

Hermione's heart was throbbing in her chest, it seemed it was beating so forcefully it would jump right out of her throat and onto the dirty mud covered floor in front of her.

'You're different' He said finally.

'well on the whole I don't like Slytherins' She said softly.

Suddenly he clambered up, towering above her and gathered his quidditch things, running his hands frustrated through his shining hair and picking up his broom he made for the door.

'Bye, Granger,' He said hurriedly and he was gone.