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Chapter 7 : I'll Play You For It

Back in the heads' common room...

The two heads of Hogwarts were sitting across from one another in front of the roaring fire, staring daggers at each other. No one had yet to break the silence and no one wanted to break it first.

"I'm not leaving." Hermione adamantly stated.

"I don't recall me asking you to fuck off, Granger. I think that giant know-it-all brain of yours is deteriorating." Draco said smugly. Hermione was pissed.

"Then I'll ask you...fuck off Malfoy!" She almost yelled, leaning forward. Technically that isn't a question Hermione, her grammatically correct subconscious informed her, she mentally huffed.

"I don't think I will. Didn't we have this conversation earlier Granger?" She gave him a puzzled look. "No one owns the corridor, so why would anyone own the COMMON room?! I thought you were smarter than that..." he chuckled.

Hermione's cheeks flared at the memories of the embarrassing situation she was in earlier. She twisted her body and swung her legs over the arm of the armchair she was sitting in, a little more forcefully than necessary. Calm down, don't let him get to you... She looked away from him and stared straight into the flames, hoping he wouldn't notice. He did.

Draco could clearly see her blush, even whilst she was caped in the orange glow of the fire. He didn't like admitting this to himself but it was quite flattering on her. He decided it brought out the flecks of gold in her eyes. Wait, what?! Draco Malfoy was having a very one sided internal battle. No I'm not! Err, yes you are! Slowly he was warming to the fact that Hermione Granger was in fact an attractive muggleborn and he couldn't help but notice the blush spread down her neck and into the 'v' of her school blouse. He also noticed she seemed to be more distressed again, Something's definitely different from last year. I wonder if she's ok? Wait again...what the fuck Drake?! You are a Malfoy, you do not care for others' wellbeing. Yeah well, look where being a Malfoy has got me so far... The internal battle went on...

Neither said anything for a while. They were simple sitting there, in what was slowly turning into a comfortable silence, which both of them decided at the same time, they did not need.

Far too personal. I can't get comfortable with him/her.

It's Malfoy. Eww!

It's Granger. Ugh!'

"Right...urrrmm." Hermione mumbled while Draco uncomfortably cleared his throat.

Hang on a second, Draco thought. Why am I uncomfortable? Not two hours ago was she the one who was starkers in front of me! Let's get back to business...

"I'm off to bed..." Huh, that's new. Why did I say that? I don't usually inform him of my sleeping habits. Hermione shot out of her chair, hoping to remove herself from the awkward situation.

"Hold up Granger!" Malfoy's back... Draco thought to himself. He held his arm out stopping her from walking past him.

Hermione cringed. "Damn it!" She let out a breath and looked directly at the young man sitting in the green and gold armchair next to her.

"Don't think I've forgotten. Don't for a second think that you've got away with this..." He looked her in the eyes, struggling to get the images of her naked body out of his head to make room for his current thoughts.

"What do you want Malfoy?" She was getting frustrated.

"What are you hiding Granger?" He would not back down.

She threw her head back and let out and exasperated laugh. "Hah! Really Malfoy? Still?"

He stood up directly in front of her. "Don't avoid the question Granger."

"I'm not!"

"Yes you are."

"No I'm not."

"Damn it! Stop straying me from the matter at hand! What the fuck was it that you didn't want me to see?"

"Nothing."

"Tell me!"

"NO!"

They were both breathing heavily, standing not too far away from each other. They didn't realise they had moved closer together in the midst of the yelling. By Salazar, Draco thought. She's gorgeous. Hermione was in much the same dilemma. Good Godric, have his eyes always looked like liquid mercury? Oh, sweet Merlin. Their breaths were calming down and Draco was the first to pull away...

"Okay Granger, how about this..." He had peaked her curiosity. "I'll play you for it."

"What?" Hermione sounded awfully like Ron, when he couldn't solve an arithmancy problem right at that very moment.

"Poker, Granger." Malfoy stated as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, as he strolled around the room.

"Poker?" Hermione asked in a dazed like state.

"Damn it Granger! Yes poker! Are you mentally deficient or something? Stop repeating everything I say."

Now she was mad. "I am not mentally deficient, ferret!"

Draco's eyes shot to hers furious. "At least when I got turned into a fluffy animal is wasn't of my own doing. Meow." He said mocking her, remembering the polyjuice accident in second year.

"Ugghhh! Fuck you!"

"Mmhmm. I bet you would..."

"Ewww Malfoy, don't be a pig."

...

The taunts eventually stopped and Draco was looking at her with curiosity. His eyes were challenging her. "So how about it Granger?" She crossed her arms in defiance. "We play. I win, and I get to know what it is the perfect Gryffindor princess has to hide." No response came. "I dare you..."

This caught her attention; she was a brave Gryffindor after all. She looked at him. "And if I win?"

He smirked. "I leave it up to you...what do you say?"

A Few Hours Later...

"Nice try Malfoy." Said Hermione as she started to collect the cards. She sat cross-legged in front of him, her shirt sleeves rolled up, tie loose, with the famous Malfoy smirk on her face.

Draco Malfoy could not believe what had just occurred. He and Hermione Granger, Hermione Granger, had just sat down to play a friendly (albeit with an ulterior motive) game of poker in front of the fire. Playful opponent banter had occurred but not one insult. What shocked him even more was that she had won! A girl, a muggleborn girl! What was going on with the world? I'm sure everything is upside down. Draco thought. He had four of a kind all lined up to go, aces as well, then she goes and lays down a straight flush! Just...what?! I can't comprehend it!

"You okay, Malfoy?" He hadn't said anything for a while.

"What just happened, Granger?" Still not believing his own eyes and ears.

"I beat you." She smirked and carried on packing everything back into Malfoy's poker set.

"How exactly? You're a girl! People hardly ever beat me and the girls in Slytherin can't even play poker to save their life!"

"Most of the world has moved on from gender discrimination, Malfoy." She huffed. "I beat you, plain and simple."

"That's not what I meant Granger, I have nothing against women, I happen to like them very much." He smiled. "What I meant was how on Earth did you learn to play poker so well?"

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you just gave me a compliment, Malfoy." She genuinely smiled.

"If I did, will you show me what you were hiding?" He asked audaciously.

"No, I won, but I will tell you that my grandfather taught me how to play. He was quite the good gambler before he died." She smiled. "This is a nice the poker set you have here by the way, very nice." He smiled back.

"My father bought it for me for my seventeenth birthday." He stared at her for a moment sitting in the firelight. She's not so bad, after all, I guess. Then again, I've never seen her like this. Not acting as if she's superior to me, or a bookworm, or one of Scarhead's best friends. Then again, I don't suppose we've ever stopped bickering long enough to have an actually conversation. Draco admitted to himself. "So Granger, I'm a man of my word, you won fair and square. Congratulations, by the way. What is it you're going to have me do?"

She grinned. "I haven't decided yet. I guess you'll just have to wait and see." She got up to retreat back to her room but Malfoy stopped her.

"Listen Granger, I'm going to do something completely out of character here." What could that possibly be? Hermione thought and she quirked a perfect eyebrow at him as she sat back down.

"Right."

"Don't think I'm concerned or anything merely curious. I would never do this sort of thing, you're not my friend, but I am head-boy and I think it's my duty to..."

"Malfoy, what is it?" She stopped him halfway through his mumblings.

"Are you okay?" He blurted out.

She just stared at him, not sure whether she'd heard him correctly. No, not really. No one, not even Harry or Ron have asked me that question this year, on the bigger scale anyway. Hence the reason I haven't told them about my parents.

"Umm, I don't underst..."

"You don't spend nearly as much time as you used to with Potter and Weaslebee and I know it's not the head duties that are keeping you from them that much, I have the same ones. It's not just the trouble twins that you are keeping from either, you've withdrawn from everyone." He started to wave his arms about slightly, gesturing to the two of them. "Heck I bet you spend more time with me than anyone else, not just because I'm head-boy but purely because we share a common room. The war changed us all Granger but I can't shake the feeling this is to do with something else entirely. You're different this year and I'm peeved as to how no one, other than me has noticed it." He said seriously.

Hermione was dumbfounded as to how observant he could really be.

"I think there's a lot you're not letting on." He said quietly.

"You sound concerned, Malfoy." She attempted to joke, trying to keep up a fake, tight smile on her face.

"The war hurt so many people whether they deserved it or not." He audible swallowed, his throat was dry. "I just think people have done enough suffering." Malfoy still spoke coldly even if his words had warmth behind them.

"But you think I'm a mudblood." A small barrier broke down inside of her.

"No, you are." He didn't say it harshly but still he saw the pain in her eyes and he saw her subconsciously reach for her forearm, where her scar was. He felt a twinge of guilt. He hadn't intended to hurt her. "You are a mudblood," He firmly took a hold of her upper arms. "I just have nothing against that...I swear." His hold tightened as he said these words for two reasons. One was to assure her he was telling the truth and the other was to give himself strength.

The reality of those words to him and to her were shocking. Draco had, changed his views long ago but he had never really admitted so out loud. Hermione's eyes were filled with unshed tears.

"Please, tell me what's wrong Granger?"

It wasn't often that Draco Malfoy said please.

And it wasn't often that Hermione Granger cried in front of Draco Malfoy.

AN/: ooooo, getting a little bit more heated now :) I changed my mind about writing the poker game, there might be another one but, this one just didn't need to be written... I'm aware that Draco's personality has changed a lot but tough! NEXT UP: Does Hermione tell him? :O :) REMEMBER TO HIT THAT REVIEW BUTTON! ;D