Chapter Two

Hermione woke early the next morning and she headed straight to the owlery to send off the letter to the book shops owner. She watched the brown school owl fly off in the distance and she felt her growing happiness. This was such a great idea. She had been so lost in her own thoughts that she hadn't heard anyone else enter the owlery. In fact she didn't even realize anything until someone cleared their voice rather loudly very near her ear. She jumped up backwards and nearly toppled out the open window she had been leaning on, but a strong arm reached out and pulled her to the ground. She looked up into Draco Malfoy's serious face.

"You should be more careful." he said and Hermione felt the happy bubble deflating.

"Well you shouldn't sneak up on people" she told him and he raised his brow in amusement.

"I didn't mean to frighten you, I didn't even realize you were in here until I sent my owl off." he said. Hermione who had been expecting some sort of insult was at a loss as to what to say.

"Umm" she managed rather inarticulately and his mouth raised in the corner in a half smirk.

"So I just wanted to say…" he sighed deeply his face suddenly serious again and Hermione felt a sense of unease he wasn't acting like himself. "I want to say that your vacation idea was a good one… even though we will be traveling like muggle's… it still will be fun and a great learning experience" he said and Hermione felt her jaw drop as she became speechless. She had no idea what to say she had never heard anything but insults from him and now he was complimenting her?

"I also hope that, considering our past together, we might be able to get along" he said and it was such a painful expression that nearly had Hermione laughing when he said the last part. Hermione actually smiled and when he looked up at her he smiled a small smile too before he turned on his heel and disappeared down the stairs. Hermione turned back to the window.

"What just happened?" she asked out loud a smile on her face.

Dinner passed fairly quickly and Hermione again arrived first to the Transfiguration class. She only waited a couple of minutes before the two Slytherin girls arrived.

"Hermione guess what?!" Lelin said excitedly

"What?" Hermione said with a smile.

"We've started an order form for the Glamour books!" she said Hermione looked at her confused.

"What Glamour Books?" Hermione asked.

"The one's we are making silly. Me and Lelin were in the library jotting down spells when a fifth year saw what we were doing and asked. We told her we would be making a book with all the spells and potions used in all beauty scenarios and her and her friend signed up for a copy and they tried giving us the money but we said we would collect tomorrow. Lelin has been bombarded by girls all day getting their names down for a book and in some cases two!" Lisa said excitedly and Lelin produced a long roll of parchment covered with names and beside each name a number of how many copies each girl wanted. There was maybe thirty names on the list already.

"Goodness this is awesome! I can't believe we are having such success with this!" Hermione said taking the list and looking at the names. Most were Slytherin but there was plenty of other house names too.

"I figure by tomorrow night we will have every female in this castle on that list" Lelin said confidently. They were soon joined by the other girls who were just as excited about this as Hermione who was beaming. She was so happy in fact that she just couldn't ruin the fun by denying Lelin.

"Hermione I was wondering. My cousin from Australia gave me this neat spell that is supposed to tame your hair kind of. Well I tried it on my gram and it made her wispy hair really silky and smooth but I want to make sure it works you know for young girls to. Do you think I can try it on you?" She asked and Hermione swallowed uncertainly.

"I don't know" she said biting her lip.

"Oh come on Hermione it'll be great." Padama said and Hermione nodded uncertainly, wondering how many things could go wrong with a beauty spell. She wondered vaguely if people would find it amusing or sad if she died from beauty spells gone wrong. She felt a wand tip on her head suddenly and then it was like someone dropped warm egg yolks in her hair. She heard a few gasps and her eyes snapped open wondering what had gone wrong but everyone was smiling.

"Wow Hermione I didn't realize you had curly hair" Lisa said. Lelin conjured a mirror and handed it to Hermione who was shaking slightly as she took it.

"It looks great Hermione" Lelin said and Hermione took the mirror and stared at her reflection. She bit her lip as she stared at the girl who stared back. She had never seen her hair look so beautiful. Her long once bushy brown hair was thick with curling tendrils in a dark shiny brown. She touched the end of one and it felt like silk. Hermione smiled a radiant smile that lit the room and warmed the girls around her.

"Thank you" Hermione said suddenly feeling a bit shy as she looked at Lelin who's grin widened.

"Well we needed a guinea pig." she said with a smirk and Hermione rolled her eyes. For the remainder of the meeting she couldn't stop touching her hair and at the end she added her own name to the list of the Glamour Books. As they left the classroom Lelin handed Hermione a scrap of paper and said quietly.

"The spell washes out when you shower. So just in case you would like to do it again tomorrow…" she said before leaving the class with Lisa. Hermione smiled thinking that she was going to do this again tomorrow perhaps it was about time she took a little more care of her appearance.

At breakfast Hermione felt eyes on her constantly. Her hair was wonderful and it really made her look all the better. Her day had begun great what with all the compliments and invitations on dates that she had been receiving, well it was only one but hey its one more than she usually had. She thought that life couldn't get any better until she received a letter half way through breakfast. She didn't recognize the writing so she opened it cautiously then a grin broke over her face.

"Who's it from Hermione?" Pavarti asked trying to read over her shoulder.

"Its from the owner of the book shop she wants to have tea with us after classes!" Hermione said excitedly as she reread the letter.

"Oh that's wonderful!" Pavarti said then her face fell.

"Oh I can't go I have detention" she said with a pout.

"Can't go where?" Padama asked sitting beside her sister.

"To tea with the owner of the book shop" Pavarti said and Hermione rolled her eyes.

"She wants me to bring along two other girls so we can chat." Hermione said

"Oh can I go with you?" she asked and Hermione shrugged.

"Sure you can go." she said

"Go where" Lelin said this time.

"To tea with the owner of the bookshop." Padama said

"Sounds lovely. Well I started collecting the money Hermione most girls have turned it in but I'm still looking for a few." Lelin said pulling out a black leather bag.

"Great. You can collect the money. You'll be like the treasurer" Hermione said with a smile and Lelin beamed.

"Cool so can I come with you two or does the invitation not stretch that far" she asked.

"It does they want three girls so yeah the three of us. I'll just have to get permission from McGonagall to go into Hogsmeade. I'm sure she'll say yes" Hermione said as she picked up her bag and made to stand up. She had just seen McGonagall heading out of the Great Hall.

"Alright Hermione just tell us what time and we'll see you later" Lelin said as Hermione started to walk away with a wave over her shoulder.

She caught up with McGonagall half way up the marble staircase.

"Professor can I have a word?" Hermione asked and McGonagall turned around and smiled.

"Of course Miss Granger what can I do for you?" she said and the two women started walking up stairs to the Professor's office.

"Well we have started to do our fundraiser and our first idea was a book filled with beauty spells and potions. I have contacted the owner of Bazine Books in Hogsmeade asking if they are willing to make a donation to us and she has invited us down to the bookshop for tea to discuss it." Hermione said and McGonagall frowned.

"Miss Granger you were supposed to get all these idea's approved by the headmaster or myself before acting on them." she said and Hermione's face fell and tears filled her eyes, she had forgotten.

"I'm so sorry Professor! I guess in the excitement of things it slipped my mind" Hermione said as she stared at her shoes. The trip was ruined and it was all her fault.

"Well don't worry Hermione no harm done. It seems like a lovely idea and as long as you let me run through the spells and potions to make sure they are safe you can distribute them to the other girls. I will also give you a note to let you into Hogsmeade." She said with a small smile and Hermione beamed.

"Thank you so much Professor and I won't forget to run the ideas through you first again. I also invited along Padama and Lelin if that's okay they were invited too." Hermione said and McGonagall nodded before entering her office. Hermione left a few minutes later with a note clutched in her hand that gave them permission to visit Hogsmeade. She also sent a note to the owner of the book shop telling her they would be in at four thirty this evening then she went to her first class of the day, Potions.

Hermione who had made it to class just as the bell rang had no other seat alternative but next to Malfoy. She glanced around the room a second time and she jumped into her seat just as Snape flung the classroom door open. He glared around at them before striding to the front of the room. Hermione prayed that they would be doing individual potions or that Malfoy's new found decency would continue in public. As luck would have it they would be doing partners and it seemed that Malfoy was ignoring her. She bit her lip as she scribbled down some of the instructions from the board. After Snape was done lecturing, Hermione got up and headed with everyone else into the ingredients cupboard to get the required supplies.

Malfoy who had followed her in stood directly behind her so when she gathered as many ingredients as she could she promptly bumped right into him. She caught her balance just before she dropped everything and he just stood there watching her. Hermione bit her lip before speaking.

"We just need the um… bat legs and the asphodel I got everything else here" she said and walked promptly around him and out of the suddenly small cupboard. He was acting different and Hermione didn't like this new quiet Malfoy, she had no idea what was going through his head.

Once back at her desk she started organizing her ingredients and adjusting the fire to the correct temperature. She had just added the first ingredient when Malfoy returned with the last two. He didn't say anything and instead they worked in silence as they chopped and prepared the ingredients. Hermione had almost forgot who she was working with until he spoke.

"Your hair looks better like that and I'm sure its much less of a fire hazard now" he said and he pulled gently on a curling lock that laid against her arm. Hermione's jaw dropped and again she found herself speechless. He smirked and said.

"What? Haven't you ever got a compliment before Granger?"

"Yes I've been complimented before I've just never heard you compliment anyone other than yourself" Hermione said with a smirk of her own after she recovered from lack of speech.

"Nonsense I compliment my mother all the time on what a wonderful job she did bringing me into the world" he said with a smile an actual smile and Hermione laughed and she realized for the first time that he was actually handsome. She had always known he was good looking but it was always clouded over by his insults and sneers. She felt herself blushing before she turned back to the cauldron suddenly quiet again. She wasn't sure about this new civility with Malfoy. It was kind of scary.

After potions classes went by fairly quickly and Hermione managed to tell Lelin and Padama to meet her in the Great Hall at four ten so they could go down to Hogsmeade. They would be skipping the first part of dinner and would hopefully be back in time to at least eat something.

Hermione was last to arrive to her surprise and the three girls left the castle talking excitedly about what to expect. They weren't even stopped as the approached Bazine Books in the very heard of Hogsmeade.

"Here goes" Hermione said as she pulled open the door to the bright and dusty bookshop.

I hope you guys like this new story. Sorry if its a bit ooc. Enjoy and review!!!

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