Chapter 3:

Hermione arrived at Three Broomsticks with five minutes to spare. She was hoping she would be early so she'd have a minute to compose herself before seeing Draco but, as luck would have it, he was early too.

When he saw her, his jaw nearly dropped. She had picked a navy blue lace number with very thin straps to hold it up and just enough cleavage to make someone wonder. She briefly wondered if she should have worn something else but when Draco approached her and told her how beautiful she looked, she stopped second guessing herself.

Dinner was lovely, the conversation never lulled, and by the end of the night, Hermione knew she was in trouble by the way that her heart sped up every time he smiled at her; which was quite often. As they left the restaurant, he entwined his fingers with her and they walked through the village, talking about various topics ranging from their classes to muggle London to books. When they reached the castle gates, Draco turned to her and smiled.

"It's only nine-fifteen. Want a nightcap?"

She smiled and nodded and they walked to the castle hand in hand. Thankfully, they didn't spot any students while walking back to Draco's quarters making the walk more pleasant and allowing the conversation to continue uninterrupted. Once they arrived to his quarters, however, all conversation stopped and the idea of a nightcap was soon forgotten as Hermione pulled Draco in for a kiss, the second they stepped through the door. Draco had no complaints about this and before long, Hermione was pinned against the wall, her hands in his hair, while Draco held her tight.

Eventually, Hermione's dress slid to the floor and Draco's clothes were scattered amongst the room as they had been thrown as soon as they had come off of him. They barely made it to the bed before before becoming a tangled mess of limbs. They made passionate love to each other, making Draco grateful for the permanent silencing and automatic door locking charms he had placed on his quarters to ensure that he wouldn't be disturbed when he wanted to be alone or, in this case, with Hermione.

They called out each other's names in their climax then lay tangled together on Draco's bed, neither saying anything. Hermione ran a finger along Draco's stubble while he traced patterns onto her back and shared soft kisses. They were in the middle of a very good snogging session when Draco's alarm rang next to the bed.

Draco groaned and hit the alarm. "What time is it?" Hermione asked.

He glanced back at the clock. "Ten 'o clock; time for curfew."

She furrowed her brows. "You have an alarm for when curfew is?"

He nodded. "Sometimes I like to go for walks at night when the halls are clear except for the prefects. It's nice and quiet and allows time for me to think."

"About what?"

He shrugged. "Just stuff. My classes, my parents… you."

"Me?" She asked, lifting her head up with one hand. "What about me?"

"Mostly about how I would ask you out. I've been planning this for a while you see. It just went better than I had anticipated."

She laughed at that. "Well I'm glad I exceeded your expectations."

He brushed a curl behind her ear and smiled. "You always exceed my expectations, Hermione. And I wouldn't expect any less from you." He kissed her softly before speaking again. "Still want that nightcap?" He asked, sitting up and putting on a pair of sweatpants that were laying on a nearby chair.

Hermione nodded and grabbed Draco's button down that had managed to be thrown close to her side of the bed in their haste of undressing each other and put it on. She found her knickers and put them on as well before following Draco out into his small kitchen where he was pouring a bottle of Firewhiskey into two glasses. He smiled at her as she joined him and handed her a glass before holding his own out. "A toast: to the start of something new."

"Cheers," Hermione smiled before downing her glass.

He smirked and played with her curls, wrapping them around his fingers. Hermione chuckled and poured herself another glass of Firewhiskey before taking his hand and leading him back into the bedroom but not before he grabbed the whole bottle. They sat back down on the bed and drank and talked about everything and nothing.

"Are you doing anything next weekend?" Draco asked. Hermione shook her head. "Well, since it's a Hogsmeade weekend then, I was thinking while everyone was gone, you and I could go on a picnic."

"Oh, Draco, I'd love to but don't we have to supervise the kids that weekend?"

He shook his head. "I put both our names down on the calendar and told McGonagall we had other plans already."

"When did you do that?"

"Last week…"

Hermione laughed. "You were that sure I was going to say yes to going on a date with you?"

"I was that sure I could convince to come with me," he smirked. "If you hadn't said yes to tonight it would have made it a little harder but, fortunately, it didn't come to that."

Hermione rolled her eyes and smacked him on the arm. "Yeah, you definitely have the right job being head of Slytherin."

He laughed. "While that may be true, I don't think I've seen a braver head of Gryffindor. I mean, you're changing the school's Arithmancy curriculum right under the Board's noses and you don't seem to care one bit. If that doesn't scream brave, I don't know what is."

She sighed. "I suppose but now I'm wondering if I'm doing the right thing by changing it up."

"Of course you are! Pierce had the right idea: what is a Quidditch player going to do with the knowledge of knowing how to predict the future with numbers? Nothing. But what you taught them today will change the way people look at Quidditch knowing that by using strategy, they can better their chances of winning a match. In one lesson, you opened a new door for them. Imagine how they'll be at the end of the year!"

"But what if the Board of Governors finds out? How would they react to a method they've known for years is being changed with every lesson?"

"Not everyone is going to agree with your methods right away, Hermione. But they don't matter. What matters is what you choose to teach your students and if what you're teaching them better prepares them for the future, then screw the Board! At the end of the day, they're not the ones teaching a classroom full of students; you are."

She smiled. "I suppose you're right."

He smirked. "Of course I am!" She laughed at that and he took her hand in his. "Listen, if word about this does get to the Board, I'll talk to my father and try to get him to see that what you're doing is helping the students, not limiting them."

"You think he'll listen?"

He shrugged. "Who's to say. My father is a complicated man but does have the school's best interests at heart. Usually."

She chuckled and shook her head. "Well, even if the Board throws a fit, I'm not going back to the old ways. They're outdated and useless for someone not going into the field needed. They can make whatever threats they want, I won't back down."

"There's the Hermione I adore," Draco said, smiling. She blushed but didn't have time to respond as Draco's lips met hers again. They didn't do a whole lot of talking after that...


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