I know, I know. I'm a horrible person. I had to write another chapter before I updated. I think I get my real computer back soon, which means we get rid of the laptop. I'm not sure if it's a good or bad thing yet. But it does mean I might be able to talk to people on my s/n more often. That would make me happy. Ok, I'm going to shut up and type the chapter. Enjoy!
Chapter12
Harmony
Draco's POV
I spent the night pacing. When the sun came up, I showered and headed down to the Great Hall, carrying my bag. I enchanted a mug of coffee to be bottomless and carried it to the library. I had a charms essay to complete. When I got there, I headed for a small table in the corner. Sitting down, I pulled my essay and a small jar out of my bag and downed half of it. It had gotten to the point I needed a quarter-cup of wakefulness potion to make it through the day. Three drops was the recommended portion. Damn my father. Damn him to hell. I took out a quill and mechanically finished my essay, not really paying attention to what I wrote, but filling the parchment. The bell rang for class and I pushed my books into my bag. I could tell it was going to be a long day.
*~*~*
Hermione's POV
I woke up the next morning five minutes before class started. Mumbling curses at everything, I dressed and grabbed my bag. My ankle was throbbing in time to my head. Cursing because I didn't have time for coffee, I glanced at my schedule and cursed louder. Double potions with the Slytherins. I had two minutes to get to the dungeons. I ran down the stairs as fast as I could, cursing and praying I would make it on time. I stepped in the door just as the bell sounded, and as luck would have it, the only empty seat in the entire room was next to Malfoy. I cursed some more and sat down just as Snape barged into the room.
"I'm assigning a new project. Your partner is the person you are closest to in class rank. You will be brewing any potion from this book." He dropped a large book on his desk and levitated a copy of it to each table with a flick of his wand. "I will be deciding if you are capable of brewing the potion. Because we will only be meeting a few times before the project is due, Dumbledore has given permission for you to brew it in your common rooms. Now open the books and choose your potion." He glared at the class. He directed a few students to new seats. "Mister Malfoy, as my top student, your only option is Ms. Granger. I trust this won't be a problem?"
"No, sir. I think I'll be able to keep the Mud-Muggle born from blowing up unlike certain Gryffindors." Neville cowered and the class laughed.
"Alright. I'm also assigning you two the final potion in the book. It will take the longest. Don't mess it up, you will be testing it." He whirled around and started yelling at other students. I groaned and opened the book.
"Damn you, Snape." I muttered it under my breath. We were to brew the Leintas Potion, otherwise known as the Mind-Reading potion. We would be able to hear each other's thoughts until given the antidote.
"Oh, Mister Malfoy and Ms Granger, you also need to brew the antidote for you potion. We don't want any mishaps." Malfoy nodded. I pulled parchment and paper from my bag and started writing out the ingredients for the potion. Malfoy took my list and went to gather a few items from the cupboard. I read through the directions slowly twice, then started stewing gillyweed. What that was for, I would probably never know, but I didn't want any problems. Malfoy started on the antidote. Neither of us had spoken to the other. We worked well together, even without speaking. At least, until almost the end of class.
*~*~*
Draco's POV
Granger was sitting next to me, silent. She had cursed Snape a few times, but I ignored it. I didn't have anything to say, and I was half-worried that if I spoke to her, I wouldn't be able to control my tongue. It was about ten minutes before the end of class when I needed an ingredient on the far side of her. She was stirring the gillyweed, stopping occasionally to rub her ankle or make a note.
"Could I have-" the words stopped in my throat when she turned to look at me. Her hair was in a messy bun, but a few pieces had escaped, framing her face. One was in her eye, and I fought the urge to brush it aside. Our eyes met for a second, then she looked away and wordlessly handed me the jar I needed. I muttered a quiet 'thank you' and went back to the antidote. Personal problems were best to be discussed later. When the bell rang eight minutes later, I was the first out the door. My next class was charms, followed by lunch, then Arithmancy. At least I wouldn't see Granger until then.
*~*~*
Hermione's POV
Malfoy ran out of class, so I went a bit slower. Harry and Ron were waiting by the door.
"Aww, Mione. Too bad you have to work with the ferret." Harry spoke first.
"Yeah, the slimy Slytherin git." Ron grimaced. "Hey! Maybe you should mess up the potion and ruin his grade!"
"Ron, first it would mess up my grade, and we have to test our potions."
"Oh." The redhead next to me fell silent. We walked down the hall towards McGonagall's room. My head and ankle were throbbing in time again. Harry looked at me closely for a second.
"Mione? Are you alright?"
"I'm not sure."
"Why are you limping?"
"I twisted my ankle again yesterday. The stuff Pomfrey gave me didn't work."
"Do you want to go back to the infirmary? I'll help you get up there."
"Thanks, Harry, but no. I'll be alright." We stepped into McGonagall's room and sat down. The class ran smoothly, except for when Neville transfigured his bird into a tree that took up the entire room, instead of a block of wood. The bell rang for lunch and I sent Harry and Ron down to lunch and headed for the infirmary.
"Madame Pomfrey?" I stepped in the door.
"Yes, Ms Granger? What do you need?"
"The potion you gave me didn't work. My ankle still hurts. Do you have anything else?"
"Yes, dear. Have a seat and I'll get you something." She bustled off and I gimped over to the nearest empty bed and sat down. Rubbing my ankle carefully, I was surprised to see how swollen it was. Worse than I had ever seen it. Maybe traipsing around the school and founds last night hadn't been a very good idea. Pomfrey came back with another potion.
"Here, dear. You may leave at the end of lunch. Would you like anything?"
"No, I think I'll be alright, unless you have massive amounts of coffee."
"Actually, I just brewed a pot. How would you like it?"
"Black as midnight."
"Certainly." She levitated a cup over and I sipped at it. I downed the potion shot-style. Nasty stuff. Sipping at my coffee I watched her walk around and visit with her charges. I didn't even bother trying to make sense of the night before. I knew that we had almost done something I wasn't sure I would completely regret. The potion was making me sleepy, even with the coffee I was drinking. Expresso would be nice. I put a warming spell on the cup and set it on the table next to me and closed my eyes. A short nap would be nice. I drifted off.
*~*~*
Draco's POV
I headed to lunch giddy. We had been practicing an advanced cheering charm. In the back of my mind, I knew that if I saw Granger I wouldn't be able to control myself. Oh well, people would write it off as an after-effect of the charm. During lunch, the Slytherin table was much louder than normal. All the sixth years, including myself, were laughing at everything. The seventh years ignored us, but the younger students were terrified. Blaise Zambini (a girl here) had just finished telling a really funny joke that she had to explain to Crabbe and Goyle three times before they understood when I felt the charm start to wear off. I stopped laughing. Five minutes later, we had all sobered up and our table was back to normal. The bell rang and we all stood and headed for our various classes. In Arithmancy, I sat at an empty desk but didn't see Her-Granger anywhere. Thinking about it, I hadn't seen her in lunch either. Class started and I took careful notes. Professor Vector was wrapping up the lesson when Granger hobbled in.
"Sorry, Professor. I was in the infirmary."
"It's alright, Ms. Granger. Have a seat." She nodded and slipped into the empty spot next to me. Vector continued talking.
"Now, I'm assigning a new project. You will work with the person sitting next to you. It also ties in with the assignment Professor Snape gave you. You will be researching and writing a four-foot essay on one of the father's of Arithmancy and how you can use their theory to brew your potion and describe its effects. Mister Malfoy and Ms Granger, you two are partners in potions, correct?" I nodded. "Alright. You will be researching Pythagoras." She kept talking, but I tuned her out. Two project with Granger, along with the Polyjuice potion. My new home would be the library. My reputation would go downhill. "Alright, everyone. Get to work, you have ten minutes to start." Vector started walking around the room and Granger put her head down on the desk and started mumbling.
"Pardon me, Granger, but I can't understand you when you mumble. Would you mind speaking up?" she sat up and glared at me. I swear, if looks could kill, I'd be cremated.
"I said I hate the world and everyone in it. At least, that's the nice way of putting it."
"Oh."
"Don't start with me, Malfoy. I'm not in the mood for your shit right now. And if I don't get a cup of coffee soon, I will have to resort to desperate measures." She looked miserable so I reached into my bag and pulled out a caramel colored quill and handed it to her. "What's this?"
"It's like a sugar quill, except it has massive amounts of caffeine in it and tastes like a caramel expresso."
"And-"
"Yes, you can have it." Her eyes lit up and she gave me a huge smile.
"Thanks, Malfoy. I owe you one."
"No, you don't. Now we're even, and I'd like to keep it that way." She nodded, then gave me a little smirk.
"I never really saw you as the caramel expresso kind of guy. I figured you to be a black coffee, or black with a dash of cream."
"People aren't always what they seem." I was being sly, but I wanted to know something. "What kind of coffee are you, Granger?" she gave me a wry smile.
"Wouldn't you like to know."
"Well, yeah, that's why I asked. Tell me."
"What kind of coffee do you think I am?"
"I'll have to get back to you on that." She nodded and started writing with the quill, stopping often to suck on it, a blissful smile on her face.
"Where did you-?"
"Zonko's, back right corner between Drooble's Best Blowing Gum and the Exploding Snap cards."
"Thanks again." She gave me a smile and went back to whatever she had been doing. I pulled out my textbook and started on the homework until the bell sounded. Vector spoke up.
"I want an outline of your paper next class." Everyone groaned and trudged out. Granger was halfway down the hall when I caught up to her.
"Granger, what potion do you want to work on this evening?"
"I'm not sure. Stop into my room around eight." She turned and headed for the library. I wanted to follow her, but turned and walked outside instead. Some intense flying would clear my mind.
*~*~*
Hermione's POV
I was surprised. Malfoy was being nice to me and I couldn't understand why. I walked into the library and headed for my table in the back corner. Harry and Ron were the only other two people who knew it was back there. I glanced at my watch. I had an hour to kill before the Muggle Studies test. Harry and Ron were stuck in Divination today, so the table was empty. Glancing out the window, I saw a familiar black-robed figure with white-blond hair. Malfoy zoomed out onto the pitch, doing loops, rolls, and dives. He was a good flier, very in control. He wasn't a natural, like Harry, but he was good, as much as I hated to admit it. I started working on my Arithmancy homework, glancing at my watch and out the window often. Ten minutes before the exam was to start I packed up. Malfoy showed no signs of stopping. I left the library, heading for class. Should I tell Malfoy? How? Then it hit me. I ran for the owlery. I had five minutes. That left me seconds to send the owl. I scribbled on a scrap of parchment as I ran. Hedwig flew over to me when I dashed in.
"Hedwig, fly this to Malfoy. He's on the Quidditch pitch." The bird gave me a disapproving stare, but flew out the window. I turned and ran. Luckily, I stepped into class seconds before the bell and took the empty seat next to Ron. Malfoy wasn't there yet. I took out my quill and glanced up to see Malfoy climbing through a side window. The Professor gave him a dirty look, but no more. Technically, he had been to class on time. Malfoy walked calmly across the room and slid into the seat next to Blaise Zambini, directly across from me. A scrap of paper was clutched in his hand. The Professor handed out the exams and told us to start. I did with a small smile on my face.
*~*~*
Draco's POV
I was flying hard, working on skills I hadn't used for most of the summer. I was trying to fly Granger out of my head, but was failing miserably. I was about to go into a dive when something white caught my eye. I pulled up and was surprised when a snowy owl flew towards me. I held my arm out and it perched, glaring at me. I took the note it carried and glanced at it, then swore. The hastily scribbled message read 'Muggle studies exam, NOW!' I flew for the school, muttering a few spells to improve my smell. Pansy saw me at the window and let me in, then patted the seat next to her. I ignored her and took the seat next to Blaise, wondering who had sent me the note. When I got the test, I almost smiled. The questions were exactly what Granger had pounded into our heads the day before. After the bell rang, I left quickly, not wanting to get into trouble; I also wanted to avoid Pansy. Dumbledore had announced the ball that morning at breakfast. Halloween was two weeks away, and I knew Pansy would be pestering me until after the ball. I headed up to my room and tossed my robe on the floor and set my broomstick next to the window. A shower would be nice.
~*~*~*~*~*~
Yay!! I finally got it typed. The next chapter is written, and you should download Clay Aiken's 'This Is The Night' to prepare for it. *Hint* Here are my LONG over due Thanks:
Smudged (Thanks for the remedy. I'll have to try it) elvencherry07 (x3 and I think so), Valkyrie Nienna Helywanwe (a faithful reviewer!), befuzzled (every story needs some fluff), moween (x2 I'm feelin better, and I may hint at something, but I won't write it, no worries), Athena Knox (x2) Hatokirei (Yeah, that's the one. My friend Matt has one, it's absolutely gorgeous, like Draco, so it works=) Linwe Amandil (isn't that what your supposed to do when you play The Sims? Uhoh, better tell Kyle. Oh, and good idea. Please not the rubber chicken!) willow (thanks, Microsoft word is my best friend) anna, DracoMyLove (x2, thanks!) firequeen1414, Spikes-little-Dragon (thank you!) WriterGirl03 (x2 thanks!) Evie-DuGrey (YAY!), Saquoia, dracos gurl, and princess fantasy. If I forgot you, I'm sorry. I wrote a few others on a piece of paper and can't find it. Thank you all, you keep me going!
~K~