Hermione sank into her seat at dinner. She didn't really have too much of an appetite for food but people would worry if they didn't see her at meals. The aches had subsided enough so she wasn't as tense as she had been, but they were still there. If they continued, she would have to take Dumbledore up on his offer to supply a represent potion. Maybe she should contact the medi-witch she'd seen when all of this had started. She might know what to do for the aches.
"Geeze, Hermione, you look rough."
Hermione plastered on a smile for Ginny. "Malfoy's been a pain in my backside for the past few weeks."
"Want me to sort him out?"
Hermione laughed at her friend. "No, it's ok. I just have to get used to him."
"I thought you two had an arrangement going," Harry said.
"We did, but it didn't work out."
"Was he being a git or something?" Ron looked over at the Slytherin table, glaring at the blond boy.
Hermione followed his gaze and watched as Draco waved his hand as he told Pansy something. Blaise was leaning on his hand, watching the two.
"He said he felt the deal was one sided. He said he couldn't trust me."
"What?" Ron turned around to stare at her. "Malfoy can't trust you? Did he forget who was on which side during the war? You shouldn't trust him."
"Well," Ginny said, interjecting, "from Draco's view point, he doesn't really have a reason to trust us. I mean, yeah, we've always been on bad terms with him so it's hard for any trust to happen, but you also have to remember that trust is hard for him, too. You and he are sharing a space where he should be able to relax and feel safe in. He needs to be able to trust you as much as you need to trust him."
Ron's mouth dropped open. "You're siding with that-"
"I'm just trying to play devil's advocate. Hermione has to live with this guy for the rest of the school year. If the two of them can agree on some kind of deal to get through it, another point of view would be good for her to figure this out."
As her friends continued to bicker, Hermione thought over what Ginny said. Draco had said he tried to be open with his relationships. It had been weird for her to think about Draco being a caring person after the trouble he'd caused with the Golden Trio and others, but both of them had changed a lot since their kid years. Ginny was right; they were going to be sharing the same area for the rest of the year. It would go a lot better for the both of them if they worked out something out.
Hermione stood and made her way to the Slytherin table. She was aware of the stares following her and steeled herself as she stopped next to Draco. He turned away from Pansy and his smile faded slightly when he saw her. "Granger."
"Can we talk?" His eyes narrowed in suspicion. "Officially. As Head Boy and Girl." She hoped he understood what she was trying really say.
Draco nodded after a silent moment. "Ok." He stood and grabbed his bag, sliding it onto his shoulder. The two turned and left the hall. They were silent until they reached their dorm and Hermione only broke the silence when the door had closed.
"I'm sorry."
"…Excuse me?"
"I'm sorry. For how I treated our agreement, how I treated you, and how I've been acting."
Draco stared, crossing his arms. "What's the catch?"
Hermione resisted the urge to wring her fingers. "I want the agreement back. But this time," she added quickly as Draco started to turn away, "I want for us to trust one another."
"A bit hard to do when I had to learn about your abilities through a library book instead of you."
"I know and I'm sorry. I really am." Hermione sighed. She was going to have to open up to him. "I…I don't know how to do this, Draco. Like you said, I've brought nothing to this deal that really benefits you. I was looking for an easy meal and you were thinking with your dick. I know it'll take time…but do you think we could try the deal again? With a bit more trust?"
She waited as Draco stared at her. Maybe he was looking for some sort of sincerity or maybe he was trying to make her squirm, but Hermione wasn't enjoying the silence.
"You'll listen to the ground rules and abide by them?" She nodded. "You treat me as a partner in this and not as a meal?"
Hermione bit her lip and nodded. "It might be tough at times, though," she said. Draco raised an eyebrow. "I'm just trying to be honest. There will be moments where I'm going to think of you as a meal. But I'll try to let you know when that happens."
He nodded before returning to his thoughts. Silence fell for a while longer before he spoke up. "I'm going to have to give this some thought, Granger." Hermione slowly nodded and watched him leave the common area.