Chapter One

Arrival and Encounter

The train ride seemed far too long for Hermione. She was desperately trying not to tell her friends about her encounter with Draco Malfoy. Although, they knew something was off with her.

"Hermione..?" Harry started timidly as he lightly touched her shoulder. "Hermione, are you all right?"

Hermione jumped slightly at the contact and his soft voice. "Huh, what, yeah, I'm fine." She waved her hand distractedly. "Just excited about this new school year, is all. Who wouldn't be?" She smiled brightly and Harry gave her a small smile in return.

Once they arrived at the school, Hermione literally skipped off the train just to avoid another confrontation from Draco. That's the last thing she needed when she was at one of her most favorite places in the world.

As soon as she got on a carriage, she felt another intense feeling of someone looking at her. She turned swiftly around to see him pretty much strutting to where her carriage was.

Please don't let him sit with us. Oh Merlin, please, she silently begged in her mind. Of course, she wouldn't have such luck. Draco sat across from Hermione, Ron, and Harry.

"What're you doing here, Malfoy?" Ron spat, annoyed that his friends and himself had to be in the presence of someone who was highly unwelcomed. "Shouldn't you be off snuggling against Parkinson?"

Draco smirked and replied calmly: "I'll have you know that Pansy and I are just friends. I'm here because, well, I haven't gotten a chance to annoy you and Potter yet. The Mudblood's already taken care of."

Harry and Ron quickly withdrew their wands and aimed them at Draco's chest. "Call her a Mudblood one more fucking time," Ron threatened.

Hermione got up and stood in front of Draco. "Guys, I really don't care what he calls me anymore. You don't need to hex him or something more dangerous because of it. I can stand up for myself."

Her friends looked at her dumbfounded and Draco took that opportunity to leave. Who knew that Granger, of all people, can actually stand up for him? He refused to believe that he was grateful. He can stand up for himself, not some bookworm.

Draco got in the carriage with Blaise, Pansy, Crabbe, and Goyle and impatiently tapped his foot. He was somewhat nervous about this school year. He didn't know exactly why, he just was.

^-^-^-^

Once Hermione, Ron, and Harry were all settled into the Great Hall and digging in the feast, Ron took that as his chance to talk to Hermione about what happened earlier in the carriages.

"Say, 'Mione, why'd you stand up for Malfoy after he called you you-know-what?" Ron mumbled through a mouthful of food.

Hermione looked at him with a slight disgusted look. She doesn't like when he talks with his mouth full. "I wasn't. I didn't want to begin the school year with someone already in the Hospital Wing because of something you and Harry did," she stated matter-of-factly. "Besides, I really couldn't care less about what Malfoy calls me." She added as an afterthought.

"Hermione's right, Ron," Harry cut in. "We wouldn't want to already be in trouble on the night when we first get back to school."

Ron murmured something incoherent under his breath and started wolfing down every last bit of food on his plate.

"Well," Hermione started after a moment, "I'm off to the Library for some studying. I'll see you two in the Common Room, I suppose, yeah?"

"All right, 'Mione," Harry gave her a wave and a small smile which she returned.

Ron tried to smile through his food-covered mouth, but had a hard time. Instead, he gave her a small wave. She giggled and waved back.

With that, she walked out of the Great Hall and up to the third floor to the Library. She quite loved the Library. Surrounded by mountains of books, someone like herself could get lost in there for days.

She found a small, secluded area in the back that overlooked the Black Lake. She sighed contently and opened her book Hogwarts: A History, which she never had time to read on the train, and started to lose herself within its pages.

Almost an hour later, Madam Pince said that it was almost curfew. Hermione thanked her for her warning and started to pack her book back in her bag. As soon as she got up, her path was blocked by none other than the boy who she already had 2 encounters with earlier that day; 2 more than she would have liked.

She looked up into the silver eyes of Draco Malfoy and he looked into hers. Before Hermione could even realize what had happened, he cleared his throat and looked away, slightly flushed. She, however, was blushing furiously and looked at her feet.

"What is it now, Malfoy?" She asked, still dazed by their more… intimate moment that had never happened before. She looked up to meet his eyes once again.

He looked at her again with his usual smirk; no trace of what just occurred had fazed him at all. "I don't want a thing from you right now, Granger."

"Then why are you here? This is the third time today. Why are you suddenly so interested to talk to me?" She demanded to know.

He moved slightly closer to her; she didn't notice one bit—she was too busy getting lost in his gaze. "Let's just say… I've always been interested in talking to you."

She finally noticed how close he was to her when he said that. While he was saying that, he moved significantly closer to her, only inches from where she was standing. She backed quickly away, mumbled an "I don't know what you're talking about," reverted her eyes to the ground, and walked swiftly out of the Library, blushing a more vibrant red than earlier.

When she reached the portrait of the Fat Lady, she hissed "Polyjuice Potion," and quickly went inside the portrait hole.

As she got into the Common Room, she felt at home and safe. It was pretty much deserted except for Ron, Harry, and a few new first years. She went over to the table where her friends sat and tried her best to keep up with the conversation they were talking about, which of course, was Quiddich. She tuned them out. She never liked flying or Quiddich, but ever since Harry made the team, she wanted to be interested in it for him.

It wasn't until Ron waved a hand in front of her face that she realized she had been thinking about what Draco had been saying.

"'Mione, are you okay?" Ron asked, concerned. "You look awfully red right now."

"I'm fine," she lied. "Just a bit tired, I suppose. I'll be going to bed now. We've had a long day and we'll have an even longer one tomorrow."

"Right," Ron agreed and he grinned. "Sleep well, Hermione."

"Thanks, Ronald. You do the same; and you too, Harry," she smiled softly and stifled a yawn.

"Thank you," Harry smiled. "Goodnight."

Hermione nodded and went up into the girl's dorms. She needed to think about what Draco and said to her in the Library…

^-^-^-^

Draco slammed his fist into the bathroom wall. How could he be so stupid as to say something like that to Granger? It was true. She did become more interesting to him. Dare he say that he might actually fancy her. He knew it wasn't impossible, but it seemed more likely than it being possible. He needs to be more careful about what he says around her from now on. He certainly doesn't want to scare her away.

He slipped on his pajamas and climbed into bed. He pulled the curtains around him and he drifted off into a very fitful sleep.H