A/N- Kinda im-por-tantay! I may keep updating this fic, but just in case I stop at any time, I don't want you guys to feel like 'wtf, what happens next?'. So, I'll try and make every chapter seem like it could be 'the end' if it had to be- even if I end up posting a few days (or weeks) later.

Disclaimer- HP mine nada.

Summary- Third part. In Potions class, Hermione tries to focus.


Jackknifed


Hermione sat in relative silence. Well, tried to sit in relative silence.

"We didn't see you at lunch, Hermione."

"We're you ditching? That's not like you."

"Come on, Hermione, what's up?"

"Did you have a-a a girl thingy?"

Hermione's shoulders tensed. What were they playing at? Why wouldn't they just shut up and take notes?

"Hermione?"

"Ugh, what?!" Hermione's hand slipped on her quill, a blot of ink spreading in a disturbingly wide stain across the parchment. As she turned her head around to look at Harry and Ron, the door to the classroom banged open.

Everyone swiveled around in their seats, craning their necks. Malfoy strutted in through the doorway, heading right for his seat across from hunched trio.

He glanced up at Snape, who had momentarily stopped teaching at this interruption, his eyebrow arched. Snape said nothing and continued on with his lesson.

As Malfoy slumped into his chair, Ron leaned in to Hermione, who, at the moment, was focusing very hard on her notes.

"Stupid ferret thinks he can just waltz in here."

Hermione didn't respond. She just kept staring at the parchment. Ron glared at Malfoy for a few seconds before turning back to his work.

Hermione stole a glance out of the corner of her eye at the blonde stretched out in his chair. Malfoy didn't even have anything out to take notes with; he just lounged casually. Arrogant. Hermione thought bitterly. Yet, he looked so innocent when he slept. Did he know that?

Malfoy straitened up a bit and tilted his head down, looking over at Hermione with a vacant expression of boredom. Hermione stiffened and started scribbling furiously on her paper. She could nearly hear a smirk rise to Malfoy's lips.

What's wrong with you? Hermione thought. You're acting like some flitty little first year, just give him a glare and he'll sod off.

Hermione narrowed her eyes and fixed a nasty gaze upon the boy across the row from her. Her sinister demeanor disappeared as she caught Malfoy looking at her. Her quill stopped moving for a moment, the ink blurring the word 'newt'. Malfoy's gaze moved over to her hand, to the little knotted bandage around her finger. Humorous self contempt seemed to swim behind his eyes.

"Oiy, ferret." Ron whispered from somewhere over Hermione's left shoulder. "Why don't you-

"Stop it, Ron." Hermione said, somewhat lamely. Ron just stared at her, going back to his work. Hermione looked down over her soiled parchment. Flicking her wand, all the nasty little mistakes on her paper disappeared.

She heard a small scratching noise and peered around. Malfoy had taken out his pocketknife and had started gouging little tic marks into his desk.

"We will take the remainder of class today for you all to begin your analysis essay on the potion we preformed yesterday. Three and a half feet." Snape smiled maliciously as everyone groaned and dipped their quills into their ink. Only Malfoy still sat, doing nothing.

"Hermione?" Harry asked absently a few minutes into the silence.

"Hmm?" Hermione was scribbling furiously on her paper, eager to get her home work finished.

"What happened to your finger?"

Hermione paused for a moment. "I just cut it, on accident." She raised her hand and moved it flippantly in the air before resuming her essay. Harry smiled good-naturedly and flicked his wand towards her, the little cut mending itself and the ribbon falling to the desk, untied.

"Ah." Hermione muttered.

"First ditching class, then walking about with a little paper cut un-mended, seriously Hermione." Ron held back a laugh and Hermione forced a small smile. His words troubled her a bit. Why had she left the bandage on?

"Was it bleeding at all?" Ron picked up the blue cloth an turned it over, noting the dot of amber red. It made Hermione nauseous, watching him touch Malfoy's blood, but she stayed silent, just shrugging her shoulders. She wanted to rip it out of his hands. "Well, no need for this anymore."

Hermione yanked the cloth out of his fingers. The two boys just blinked at her. "I- uh, it's just, I'll toss it." Hermione bent down to put it into her bag but, after a tense moment within herself, she tied the ribbon onto her bag's shoulder strap in a little bow.

She sat up quickly, her face flushed. Doing so, she caught Malfoy looking at her again with that same unreadable expression.

The rest of class went on without another word from either Ron or Harry, and Hermione had finished her essay a good ten minutes before class was out, so she relaxed a little. Tapping her finger on the desk, she stared blankly into space.

She was still tired, the little nap had created nothing more then a slight pause from her busy life and a burning ache to throw herself into bed and lay there for days on end.

But, as Hermione daydreamed, she felt the memory of the previous dream slowly piece itself together within her mind. She remembered how she had screamed so at Malfoy. How strange was it, now, to see him a few feet next to her as he had been a few inches from her in her imagination?

The clock above Professor Snape's desk chimed and the class stirred.

"Remember." Snape drawled. "Three and a half feet. Class dismissed."

Everyone stood, rounding towards the door.

Hermione followed Ron and Harry, who,were deeply immersed in a conversation over Quidditch, down the long row of desks and out into the hallway.

As the trio started down the corridor, Hermione stopped, feeling a tug on her shoulder. Turing round, she noticed Malfoy behind her, hand outstretched and grasping the tiny blue ribbon on her book bag, twiddling it around his fingers.

Hermione tensed, her eyes going slightly wide.

"Granger?" He noted softly, a hint of bemusement in his voice. Hermione opened her mouth, ready to explain.

Explain why she asked such an idiotic question to him before. Explain why she had walked in on him sleeping. Explain that, no matter how docile he had looked, he was still a prat.

"Oiy, ferret, leggo." Ron swatted Malfoy's hand away and grasped Hermione's shoulders, pulling her around.

Malfoy's smile dropped and he glared at Ron with loathing, but said nothing.

"He didn't do anything." Hermione whispered in a small voice. Ron looked at her.

"Good. Otherwise I would have hexed him."

Hermione watched Malfoy turn and shove his hands into his pockets, walking off down the corridor.


I know it was kinda short, but, it was another idea I had. Myabe this story will actually go some where, I hope so. I enjoy writing it!

Wow, I have alot of hits for this story! Thanks for reading guys! Maybe you could review? Pwitty plwease wif cherrys on top?