Hermione grumbled as she made her way to the dungeon's. It was her night to do rounds with Neville. Things around the castle had been getting a little out of hand, all of the students were excited about the upcoming Masque. Hermione couldn't blame them, they were getting to visit Hogsmeade tomorrow just so that everyone could go shopping. The way McGonagall had explained it was, 'I won't have my school looking tacky!'. Hermione had laughed it off but the fact remained, the girl had yet to go buy herself a dress. Ginny had been furious when Hermione told her. Insisted that they go to Hogsmeade tomorrow, pick out an adequate dress and mask, then make the head girl into the most beautiful thing anyone had ever so.
Just for the Holiday, and the party, lately McGonagall had enjoyed a good party. She had cancelled classes on the Friday before. Because she had done that though, the students had an entire day to roam about the castle, get themselves into all kinds of trouble. Trouble that Hermione, eventually, had to take care of. That was her job, that had always been her job. Cleaning up the mess that others got her into. Hermione held no ill will toward her friend, but damn Harry could get himself into sticky situations.
"Neville, can we make these rounds as short as possible. I've been up since six this morning trying to stop Ginny from pulling all my hair out. She insists for it to look beautiful I'll need all the help I can get, days before the party." Hermione stopped dead in her tracks at the smirking man before her. His blonde hair almost luminescent in the darkness.
"I'm sure the little Weasley is correct. You will need all the help you can get with that do." Hermione narrowed her eyes at him. Though a small part of her fluttered, kicking her in the chest and sending her stomach into a triad of somersaults.
"What are you doing here Malfoy? It's not your night to do rounds. Your scheduled to do them tomorrow night with Harry." Hermione hated the way her voice came out. Whiny being the appropriate word. She had made sure to put Draco with Harry for the remainder of the month. The two had formed a friendship of sorts. A friendship that Hermione still didn't understand, after all Harry had almost killed him once.
"Yes, I'm well aware that I'm slated to do my rounds tomorrow with Potter. Apparently though, it was Neville's turn to do his animagus training. As I was the first one he found on his way out to the grounds, he asked me to fill in." Malfoy pushed himself off the way, looming beside her. "Trust me, I tried my hardest to find someone else. Potter has Quidditch practice in the morning though."
"How do you know he has practice in the morning?" Hermione had already been to the starting games, Gryffindor was in the lead for the cup. Malfoy hadn't signed up for Quidditch this year. He scoffed looking at her.
"What the bloody hell do you think Potter and I talk about when we're walking down the halls together? How to knit tea cozy's. He and I only have two things in common." The look that pulled on Malfoy's face was dark, it sent chills down Hermione's spine.
"Ah. I can see why you'd talk about Quidditch." Hermione blanched at the thought. They really only did have two things in common. Both of them suffered in agonizing pain before Voldemort, though in different ways.
The two stood in silence for a moment, neither looking at the other. Truth was, Hermione didn't know what to say.
"Come on Granger, let's just get these rounds over with, then you can be away from me." Malfoy muttered turning his wand raised. Parts of the dungeons got dark.
"I'm sorry." Hermione's words caught them both off guard, Malfoy turned slowly.
"It's not your fault that Neville had his animagus training today." Malfoy knew that wasn't what Hermione had been talking about. Hermione didn't miss him calling Neville by his first name for the second time either.
"That's not what I'm sorry for. I'm sorry that things got the way they did for you. No one should have had to suffer through that. No one." Hermione almost broke, flashes of Bellatrix, holding the dagger so close to her, pressing the blade into her skin. Hermione flinched visibly. Malfoy stared at her for a long moment. He never forgot what had happened to the girl. Hell he still had nightmares about it, nightmares of her screaming.
"Come on Granger. Let's not dwell in the past." He turned again, though waited for her to join him. "Nothing good ever comes from dwelling in the past." For once, Hermione agreed, silently, but none the less agreed.
Hermione wasn't sure how long they walked in silence. They were still in the dungeons, after all Filch had taken to patrolling the upper corridor's himself. He didn't trust them to get the job taken care of plain and simple. Students were still managing to stick things to his precious walls, the portraits found his blubbering amusing and refused to admit who the culprit was. Which only threw Filch into a rage, a rage Peeves watched gladly every day, a big smile on his face.
They walked in silence for a long while, until Hermione couldn't stand it anymore.
"Say something!" The girl burst out to which Malfoy's only reply was laughter. "Why the hell are you laughing are you laughing at me?" Hermione couldn't help the smile that spread on her pink lips, his laughter was infectious. Hermione couldn't remember a time when Malfoy laughed and she didn't look at him in disgust or worry that he was laughing at a cruel joke he had just played.
"I knew that if I waited long enough you would eventually go crazy. Despite being surrounded by all those books, having silent reading time, you can't stand the quiet! The page turning, that's the noise that you get isn't it?" Malfoy asked holding on his sides as he laughed. Hermione pouted as he laughed at her.
"I can't stand the quiet." Hermione couldn't help the overflow of emotion that hit her. "The quiet, it was always the scariest. I didn't know what was happening," The tears spilled over Hermione's eyes despite how rigorously she attempted to wipe them away. Immediately Malfoy's laughter stopped He hated seeing women cry, Hermione was no different. Not knowing what else to do, Malfoy wrapped his arms around the girl.
"The silence get's to me too. You never know what's going to happen when thing's get quiet." Malfoy murmured in her ear. Hermione nestled into his arms, her sobs wracking her body. Malfoy rubbed her small back, he didn't know how long they stood like that, but when Hermione stopped crying, Malfoy eased her out of his arms. Cupping her face in his hand, Malfoy wipd away the remained tear from her face.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to cry on you like that." Hermione's hands were wrapped around Malfoy like a vice, she'd been griping him so tightly that it hurt when she let go. "I'm sorry, I got you all wet." Hermione rubbed at the tears on his chest, though Malfoy held her chin, forcing her to look up at him.
"Never apologize for crying Hermione. What happened to you. No one should have ever gone through that, especially not someone like you." Hermione felt the tingles running under her skin where Malfoy was touching her. Hermione shivered, though not because she was cold.
"What do you mean? Someone like me? What kind of person am I?" Hermione asked, her voice unbelievably soft as she stared into Malfoy's silver eyes. So bright, vivid, they burned like liquid mercury. Her own big brown eyes had the young man captivated, as he noticed the cold and green flecks in their depths.
"Someone so soft." Hermione's lips parted as Malfoy's head ducked, inching closer to her. Hermione expected the kiss he placed on her lips to be soft, though she gasped when he passionately pressed his lips to hers. His tongue wasting no time in tasting her lips, delving deep within her open mouth. Hermione's knees felt week and she wrapped her arms around his neck, Hermione barely noticed when Malfoy pushed her up against a wall with a good amount of force, lifting her knees up around his waist.
Hermione's eyes cosed and a breathy moan escaped her, Malfoy was waisting no time, moving his lips down her throat, nipping, sucking, licking. Hermione had never been kissed or touched in such a way, so carnally. She loved it. The girl mewled when Malfoy pressed a hand tentatively to the outside of her breast, kneading it with his long fingers.
"What the bloody hell are you two doing?" Malfoy tore his lips away from Hermione's throat, though he didn't move away from her. The look on his face was dark, clouded, dangerous. If Hermione hadn't known better she would have guessed he wanted to growl at Blaise.
"Nothing, we were just finishing our rounds." Hermione pushed against Malfoy, he looked down at her, sending flames to her toes. Such desire he held in his eyes. "Right Draco?" Hermione asked innocently.
"Right." The man didn't sound happy about it but he let Hermione down from the wall, stepping away from the girl who's cheeks were as red as her knickers.
"Goodnight Malfoy, Blaise." Hermione nodded at Blaise walking past him as quickly as she could toward the Gryffindor Common room. Blaise's eyes followed her for a long moment before he turned back to his best friend.
"Do you want to explain why the hell you were snogging Granger?!" Blaise asked trying his best to keep his temper in check. Malfoy on the other hand, didn't care to control his anger. He was tired of his friends hypocritical bullshit.
"Because I wanted to. Probably the same reason that you go off with that Patil twin and snog the bloody hell out of her. Oh yeah, yeah I know about that Blaise." Draco pushed past his best friend. "Don't be thick mate. The war is over. We're free to be with who we like."
"Yeah, yeah we are. Who says she wants to be with you though mate?" Blaise called after his friend angrily.