So here's chapter 2… It's longer than chapter 1 was, yaaay! Chapter 3 will be up soon as well…

Also, since I forgot to mention in my first chapter, I definitely don't own Harry Potter.

And thanks everyone for all the reviews!! I read them all and appreciate every one of them!! Thanks so much! Hope y'all enjoy it.

Chapter 2- The Plan

"What?" Draco exclaimed angrily, not even trying to hide his rage.

Snape replied, "You heard me, Draco. You must make Granger believe that you are in love with her, as despicable as the thought may be."

Draco ran his hands through his bright yellow hair, flinging little drops of water everywhere. He had been asked to do ridiculous things for the sake of Voldemort, but this one had to be the most unexpected of all.

Draco calmed down as rational arguments began to enter his mind. He would present his case logically to Snape, and he would see that the idea was completely ridiculous in all aspects. He just had to approach this in a reasonable fashion, and surely Snape would see things his way. He could never love her, he was more assured of that than anything else.

"What makes you think she will love me back?" Draco asked, pointing out the obvious flaw in the plan.

Snape smirked again, and another chill ran down Draco's back. "Oh, Draco, she will fall for you. I know because I have watched her. In all the years that I have taught you and her together, I have seen the way you two interact. I have seen how she looks at you, when she thinks that no one else sees."

"Yeah, she looks at me with hatred." Draco snorted.

Snape bit his remark back. An expression of thoughtfulness came into his face, a rare occurrence for the potions master. "No, not quite. When she looks at you, she looks at you admiringly, as if she wishes she could talk to you but doesn't know how to begin a conversation. Believe me, Draco, all it's going to take for her to fall in love with you is a little effort from your part. And if that fails, well, I'm sure I can concoct a potion that will convince her of your worth as a prospect."

Draco's mouth hung open in disbelief. Snape was actually going to make him go through with this ridiculous idea. Up until that point, he had fostered the belief that Snape was just playing one of his practical jokes again, although practical jokes weren't a favorite of the professor. Now he knew, however, that this was serious. This was something that had to be done in order to expedite the Dark Lord's return. However, he wasn't going to give in to this plan without bringing up all of his doubts.

"I don't know the first thing about girls. How am I supposed to make one fall in love with me?" Draco pointed out.

Snape sighed. "Granger is hardly your average girl, Draco. She won't fall for the things that make other boys attractive. You will have to get creative with this assignment."

Draco turned away from his lifelong friend, facing a fireplace that burned with a fire that was a suspicious shade of green. He remembered thinking that it was strange, but all the other thoughts in his mind forced it out.

"Severus. Isn't there any other way?" Draco asked desperately, still not facing him.

Snape recoiled in surprise. Never had he heard a tone filled with so much emotion from Draco. This was not an easy assignment for him, he realized. As much as he would like to tell the boy that it was all a joke, there would be no need to love Granger, he knew that he could not. Draco had to prevail in this mission, for the sake of all of them. For the sake of both good and evil, Draco and Hermione had to fall in love.

"No, there is no other way. We need her intellect, and her undeniable connection to Potter. If she is ours, he will come as well. Having her on our side will prove to be more valuable than any other member. You have to understand this." Snape said, hoping to convince the boy of the importance of his mission.

Draco sighed. "I will do it, if only for my father and for Voldemort."

Snape smiled, or as much as Snape ever smiled. "Good. Now go get yourself warmer, you won't be any good to us dead."

Draco nodded, and then left the smoky potions classroom.

Snape waited until he was sure that Draco was gone, and then he went over to the mysterious fireplace. In a low voice he whispered, "We got him. And also, more or less, we've got her."

"Perfect." An eerily familiar voice answered from the fire. "Don't mess this up, Snape."

"Never. Never again, master." He answered, and the fire returned to its normal brilliant red color, the color of blood.

Snape smiled to himself. That color would be covering a lot in the next few weeks.

XXXXXXXX

Hermione awoke a few hours later to a splitting headache. She opened her eyes, squinting against the unwelcome light, immediately recognizing that she was in the infirmary. She had been in this place many times before, it was so familiar to her now. The endless white beds, the imposing giant door on the right side of the room, light streaming in through the window, roses on her bedside table…

Hermione drew in a short breath. Roses, with a card too? She glanced around at the other bedside tables, and realized that hers was the only one that had a vase of roses. They were beautiful, the light caught them at just the right angle and illuminated the deep crimson of the petals. She quickly counted, there had to be at least a dozen.

Who would send her roses? While it wasn't unusual for either Harry or Ron to send her things when she was sick like this, she knew that they almost never sent her this much. They weren't the type to send her roses, either. No, the sender of this exotic gift was someone who was not one of her best friends.

Eager with anticipation, Hermione grabbed the small letter. The wax seal on the front was one that she didn't recognize, it was green with a snitch on the front. Not dwelling on the strange seal, she immediately tore into the contents, excited to know who was thinking about her. A piece of parchment fell into her lap, covered with elegant handwriting. The parchment emitted a fragrance of smoke. It smelled familiar, but she couldn't exactly place where it came from.

Hermione picked up the parchment and started reading.

Dearest Hermione,

I am very sorry about your accident. I do not know if you particularly like these atrocious rose type things, but many females seem fond of them. I thought perhaps they would make you feel better. If they do in fact fulfill their purpose and you get well, perhaps you would consider going with me to Hogsmeade next weekend. You are a brilliant girl, however stuck up you might be, and I would greatly enjoy getting to know you more. I do hope you agree. Also, you're welcome for that daring rescue I performed earlier. Although you failed to thank me properly, the things you said in your sleep are more than enough thanks for me.

-Draco

P.S.- you'll find your wand behind the roses. I took the liberty of retrieving that for you. Once again, no need to thank me.

Hermione's mouth dropped open in shock. What had she said in her sleep? Draco would send her roses? Why on earth would Draco send her roses? … And what had she said in her sleep?!?!

Her mouth shut abruptly as she realized a more important fact. She had just been asked out on her first date. She had fantasized about this moment for years, and yet the way in which it happened didn't quite measure up to her expectations. There wasn't enough affection in his note, she could tell that right away. But this was Draco Malfoy, and affection wasn't exactly his forte.

Quickly Hermione looked behind the roses, and, true to Draco's word, her wand was there. She picked it up and cast an anti-jinx spell on both the letter and the roses. This was Draco Malfoy, after all, one couldn't be too sure when dealing with him. After casting the spell, she was satisfied that Draco's intentions were good.

Well, as good as they could be.

Moments later, Dumbledore himself walked through the giant doors on her right. His footsteps echoed ominously in the empty infirmary, breaking Hermione's train of thought.

"Professor Dumbledore!" She exclaimed happily.

"Miss Granger! It is good to see that you are awake. I'm sure Madame Pomfrey will have you well again in no time." Dumbledore said, a warm smile on his face.

Hermione smiled. "Yes, I'm sure too. So what brings you here?"

Dumbledore glanced at the roses on Hermione's nightstand. An emotion that Hermione couldn't recognize entered his gaze.

Dumbledore said thoughtfully, "Right, the reason I am here. I just wanted to discuss the finer details of the plan…"

XXXXXXXX

The dining hall was silent. All of the chatter that was so animated seconds ago was gone. Not a sound could be heard, only Ron's violent coughing. He had trouble swallowing a roll after realizing what Draco was asking them.

"Wha?" Harry asked, his mouth full.

Draco rolled his eyes, obviously impatient. "I said, I want to sit with you. I'm allowed to sit with The Boy Who Lived and his heroic friends, right?"

Hermione looked at him, trying to examine him. What had happened to him? He used to be so rude to all of them. Now all of a sudden he was not only showing interest in her, but he was attempting to fit in with her friends as well. What had changed in him?

Had anything really changed at all?

Harry shrugged, bringing Hermione back to the matter at hand. "Sure, I guess." He said in a surprised tone. Draco took a seat next to Hermione, their shoulders brushing as he put his bag down. Hermione jumped at the sudden contact, but she became more relaxed as time went by. The dining hall resumed their previous activity, and witty conversation began to fill the enormous room once again.

Ron continued to look at Draco with unbridled horror. The chess board between Ron and Harry that he had been paying so much attention to suddenly seemed unimportant compared to Draco's presence. He instinctively reached for his wand, realizing that an enemy was close. Draco seemed like a coiled snake, ready to strike at any moment, taking advantage of their kindness. Ron ate with his left hand only, his right hand remaining firmly on his wand. He knew from experience that one could never be too careful, even when it seemed like another could be trusted. He would never make that mistake again.

Draco's gaze immediately fell on the chess board in between Ron and Harry. Ron was in a tight spot, Harry obviously had the upper hand in this game. Ron was too distracted to play at his best, Draco noticed that he was constantly watching him out of the corner of his eye instead of paying attention to the game. Draco chuckled to himself. His presence obviously had an uncomfortable effect on them.

Well, if he had to be on good terms with them, he was going to have to earn their trust. He took a deep breath, and plunged into the role of "Nice Draco." He hid another shudder at the thought, and then gazed once again at the chessboard.

"Don't think of it as him having you trapped, Ron," Draco began, reciting the same words his own father had used to teach him chess. "Just think of it as an almost sudden death. If either one of you moves, then the opponent can easily wipe the other out. Your pieces are so close that neither one of you has the freedom to move without sacrificing your men. You may feel outnumbered, but look at Harry's defense. His king is guarded only by a rook, something you can easily take down if you can get your queen past his offense. If you can do that before he takes down your king, then you will have won the game."

Ron stared at him in a mix of awe and anger. He was amazed that Malfoy knew how to get out of such a difficult chess situation such as this, but he was frustrated that Malfoy was going to take all the glory for himself if Ron were to win. However, he was grateful for his help. He could have gone about it in a less arrogant way, but Draco will be Draco. Some things would never change, he thought as his grip on his wand tightened just a little.

True to his word, Draco's strategy worked. Ron won the chess match, thanks to Draco's genius. Ron tried to hide his anger towards Draco, after all, he had only been trying to help.

"Wow, Draco, you really know a lot about chess." Harry said admiringly.

Draco shrugged. "It's kind of a tradition in our family." He saw a slight shadow enter their eyes at the mention of the Malfoy family, although they tried valiantly to hide it. He made a mental note to mention as little of his family as possible. If these people were going to accept him, he was going to have to make them feel comfortable.

"Yeah, he's great." Ron said, a hint of sarcasm drifting into his voice.

Harry eagerly said, "Hey, Draco, do you think you could take me on in a game of wizard's chess?" A spark came into his eye, the same one that came every time there was a Quidditch match. It was the spark of competition, the excitement of a new opponent.

Draco recognized his competitive nature immediately, and realized that this would be the easiest way for the two sworn mortal enemies to relate to each other. "If you think you can keep up." He said threateningly. He glanced over at Hermione, locking her huge brown eyes with his. Quickly he gave her a wink, and then turned his attention to his new game with Potter.

Hermione felt a deep blush go into her face. Never before had anyone winked at her like he did. His eyes were colder than the freezing water beneath the lake, but yet she could see affection in them. Affection for her, of all people. Flirting was such a foreign concept to her, she wasn't used to it at all. She suddenly felt the need to go someplace safe, far away from this unknown experience, where everything was familiar to her.

"Um, I'm going to the library to study now…" Hermione said, abruptly standing up and gathering her books. "I've got a potions paper, and I need to get started."

"Right, right, don't stay up too late." Harry sounded like a mother, except that his voice revealed that he was clearly not paying attention. He had become used to Hermione's rigorous study habits long ago, and didn't put much thought into them.

"Have fun studying." Ron said, also distracted. He also wasn't truly listening to her words, just absorbing them like he had for so many years before.

Neither of her best friends noticed the true reason for her hasty departure. Neither of them noticed the blush that was threatening to overtake her entire face.

But a certain Draco Malfoy did notice.

She was cute with a blush, he had to admit. He would check on her later, being the super considerate person that he now was. For now, there was a chess game to play.

"Well, Potter, shall we?"