(A/N: Okay here is the next chapter. This is kinda short like the last one but give me time, I'm trying to work up to something here. Enjoy.)
It was exceedingly early when Hermione woke up, but that was nothing new and her roommates simply ignored the noise of her feet on the floor. Within a half hour she was dressed and ready for the day, excited to see Draco. She made her way down the winding stone stairs and slipped out of the common room. She was the only one awake this early, the only students besides her and Draco in the Great Hall were a small group of boys heading out to use the quidditch pitch before the house teams claimed the area. As the boys shuffled out it was only her and Draco. Without a second thought Hermione moved to the Slytherin table, sitting across from him.
"Malfoy." She whispered, barely containing her giddy smile, she was still very excited about how her friends reacted to her news.
"Granger." He replied in his trademark bored but still cocky tone of voice before taking a bite out of his heavily buttered slice of toast. The two shared a knowing glance, smiling as they filled their plates with eggs and ham and toast.
"So I take it your friends didn't murder you for breathing the same air as me?" He quirked an eyebrow before taking a sip of his coffee, she could smell the dark roast coffee grounds wafting up towards her, so much more potent than the gentle hints of her green tea. She shook her head, brunette curls bobbing back and forth. "That's a good thing." He informed her.
"How come?" She knew why she thought it was a good thing but was now curious as to why her friend's opinions mattered to him at all.
He leaned across the table, unconsciously she followed suit. His hand found hers, relaxing the tensed fist she was making in anticipation of his answer. When their faces nearly touched he took hold of her chin, gently, and spoke.
"Because," he whispered, his breath ghosting over her lips. She couldn't help it, her eyelids slipped shut as she let his voice wash over her. "I wasn't letting you go without a fight." He finished, kissing her roughly on the lips, demonstrating just how hard he would fight to keep her.
When they pulled away Hermione blushed, her delicate hand moving to cover her mouth and spreading blush. She glanced around, letting out a sigh of relief, when she got a questioning glance from across the table she explained.
"Just because my friends know and can keep a secret doesn't mean any other students or teacher can. What would happen if one of your friends had stumbled upon us? Or worse, Professor Snape?" she didn't wait for his answer, he still hadn't gotten used to her rhetorical questions. "I'll tell you what would happen, there'd be a letter sent to your father before we'd know it. I… I don't want you or your mother to get in trouble because we let our guard slip and someone caught us. It could very well be the end of you if Voldemort ever found out." She was barely whispering by the time she finished talking, her hands were clutching his across the dark wooden surface of the table.
She gave his hands as squeeze before pulling back and eating the rest of her breakfast. The two finished their breakfast in silence, a slightly uncomfortable one, but a much needed type of silence. Both reflected on what they'd each said and hadn't said. When they finished their plates vanished and they left the great hall, Hermione heading to the library and Draco back to his common room. The two were not people who acted on impulse and the fears that Hermione had shared required both of them to think long and hard, they would no doubt reach the same conclusion but for now they needed space and time to think clearly.
Neither one of them knew that Hermione's fear might soon come true. While they'd seen no students or teachers in the great hall before or after their kiss they hadn't noticed the tall dark haired figure that had barely entered the hall while they'd been otherwise occupied. The DADA professor had carried a suspicion for some time but this had solidified that suspicion.
This put him in a tricky situation. Even though Serverus Snape had taught Harry Potter to guard his thoughts, the older wizard had never been successful in doing so himself. His mind was permeable and if the Dark Lord ever caught wind of the young Malfoy's recent actions, Snape would on the same list as the Malfoys, their untimely demise would be inevitable if Lord Voldemort found out about this.
Snape would have to confront Draco Malfoy.
(A/N: Hope you liked it. Got some Hermione and Draco playful banter, I'd like to think that Draco would be just a bit possessive, as an only child he's not used to sharing. Gonna have some Snape in the next chapter because Draco&Hermione/Snape&Lilly parallels are something I'd like to explore. Please review and ps. I sort of have an idea where I'm going with this now so Yay.)