Title: She Shivered and Blushed
Prompt: 064 - Fall
Word Count: 226
Rating: G
"I'm really pleased with SPEW's turnout so far," Hermione said as she walked briskly beside Harry and Ron. The latter disguised his sigh by coughing violently into his hand, and Harry remained silent; it wouldn't be fair to discourage her, even if the subject had become the least favorite amongst the residents of Gryffindor Tower.
"I've only just convinced—oh!"
Harry looked over in alarm as Hermione's speech was abruptly cut short. In surprise, he watched as she fell forward, too quickly for him to respond.
Hermione shrieked, bringing her hands up to cushion her fall.
A fall that never came.
Harry felt Ron bristling, his hand diving into the depths of his robes for his wand. "Let her go, Malfoy," he growled, edging forward carefully. Malfoy stared at the pair coldly, and then glanced at Hermione, whom he had caught a hair's breadth above the stone floor of the dungeons. She was looking at him oddly, as though a thought was just occurring to her. The look made Harry uneasy.
"I could have let her fall," Malfoy told them plainly. "Next time, she won't be so lucky. She'll crack her pretty skull. But if you insist…" The boy released her, and as he did so, his fingers brushed against Hermione's wrist. Harry felt himself hoping that Ron wouldn't notice the way Hermione shivered and blushed.
