So Dramionie fans, I have updated again. Give me those nice and looong reviews that you know I love! Anyways, I hope you enjoy this next bit of story. For those of you who read bickering, let me know if you would like to read some more on that. I have an idea of extending it. Tell me what you think.
now here's more story. tell me what you think. love it? hate it? favorite part? let me know!
~FlamingRose
The whispers continued. About both of them. But she got the short end of the stick. The press was invited into Hogwarts. Supposedly so that they could do a cover on the school and it's history, but all they wanted was an inside look into Harry Potter's life and an all seeing expo of his friends. She wasn't going to put up with it. She would fight them if she had to. She just hoped she wouldn't have to.
He walked down the corridors to the room of requirement. He paced in front of it, concentrating on what he needed. He needed the cupboard, he needed the normal clutter, he needed a secret place, he needed….he needed…he needed Hermione. He just needed her to bicker with him, a small squabble as a sign everything was okay. Things seemed to be easier when she was around. He stopped his pacing. It wasn't going to help him. He slowly meandered along the corridors in no direction in particular. Maybe he would stumble across something worth while.
She walked into the great hall in search of her friends. They had to be here. But they weren't. barely anyone was there. And then she noticed why. The press, with their special quills, their cameras, everything. She backed up. The memories of September came flooding back. Only this time she didn't have Draco to help her. she didn't have a private car. One thing she did have though, was a large castle she knew inside and out. she backed up into the hallway. They followed like the predators they were, and she ran like lightening. She ran around the corner, thinking she lost them when she ran into a blockage in the hallway. Strong arms gripped her shoulders.
"Whoa! Running from something?" asked an amused voice. She would know that voice anywhere. She looked up at the blonde and right into his warm and friendly grey eyes.
"Draco!" she said as she threw her arms around him, ""you have no idea how glad I am to see you!"
"You're right," he said baffled, "I don't know how glad you are to see me. You just saw me in potions. What's up?"
"I'm not running from something, but someone. Actually try some ones." She heard footsteps coming.
"The press?" he asked as she tugged at his sleeve to duck behind the hump backed witch. She didn't answer.
"Hermione, why don't you tell me what's going on?"
"SHH!" she commanded him. He fell silent as the footsteps got closer.
"Where the bloody hell did she go?" said a witch with a frustrated sigh.
"Maybe she's hiding around here," said one. Hermione held her breath and clung to Draco's arm. They looked at each other. She was spooked, he could tell that much, but he was having a hard time concentrating on the situation at hand and not noticing their close proximity.
"I don't think so. I say we go this way," said another.
"No! She would have gotten farther than that, let's go straight." They all nodded in agreement and ran straight. Hermione let go of her breath and Draco felt it tickle his ear. She let go of his arm and immediately he felt the absence of her hand. And it freaked him out. What kind of feelings were these, and why was he feeling them for Hermione Granger?
"They're gone," he said, "now where are we going to go?"
"You don't want that explanation?" she asked.
"I already got it, and if they catch you around here they are going to ask you questions. And if they catch you with me? Oh ho ho! To put it simply if they catch you with me we are both screwed." He grabbed her hand and ran along the corridor looking for somewhere to hide. There was no doubt in his mind they were going to check classrooms, broom closets, every single tower in the vicinity, everywhere. He ran into the hallway and saw the group of press members grumbling at each other. he ducked back behind a column and waited for them to pass. He ran straight ahead. The room of requirement. He ran up a flight of stairs, up to the room. He knew Hermione knew it well. There wouldn't have to be any explanation. He needed somewhere to hide. He needed a place that was completely relaxing and comfortable for her. He needed somewhere that didn't remind them of their troubles. He needed a place where no one, absolutely no one would find them. He needed a door to get into such a place at this moment in time. hey look! A door! He ran for it and pushed it open glad to find a very comfortable secret room with almost every book ever written, a large window letting light into the room, and comfortable black leather couches set on an oriental rug. Yes, this would do nicely. He closed the door behind them and led Hermione into the room. He looked to her face for approval and guessed he had it. She was staring open mouthed and awed at the endless shelves of books.
"Where are we?" she asked dazed. He chuckled at her silliness.
"Room of Requirement, where else?"
"Oh, haha." She ran to the center of the room, and twirled about looking at every shelf with a huge smile on her face.
"There are so many! I don't know which one to read first!"
"Well we have a couple of hours, I'm sure you can pick out a book in that amount of time."
"But what about the others?"
"You can come back any time," he said, "remember. It's the room of requirement."
"What exactly did you tell the room you required?" she inquired suspiciously.
"oh just somewhere they can't find us, somewhere we can hide, somewhere that's completely comfortable for you, and somewhere you can just forget everything for maybe an hour or so." She looked at him for a second before running to him and jumping into his arms. It took him aback, but he was okay with it. after all, he had a couch to fall into. They tumbled into the comfortable leather laughing.
"thank you so much!" she said over and over again.
"you're welcome," he said to her once she stopped, his face in a permanent smile. She looked at him for a moment, their noses touching, before she gently pressed her lips to his. it was brief, and barely even a second, but it was enough to send fireworks exploding in his mind and left a tingling sensation lingering on his lips. He looked at her with dazed eyes as she smiled broadly at him. She hopped up in a bouncy and jovial manner to scan the titles of the books that lined the walls, and all he could do was sit there, dumbfounded and dazed, with the tingling of the brief meeting of their lips still present on his mouth.
…
He watched her from his place on the couch, hands folded in front of him, her on the rug in the middle of the floor reading a book intently from the pile next to her. every once in a while she would glance up in his direction and smile. He would smile back and then go back to her book while he continued watching her. he had been sitting here with his eyes on her for the last two hours and hadn't lost one ounce of interest in her. He was fascinated by her. every time he thought he knew every inch of her, another secret would appear to him from behind her mysterious fog.
Draco had been staring at her for the last two hours. She felt the heat go to her face, and took the chance to take a glance in his direction, always pensive, and looking right at her. she couldn't tell sometimes if he was looking at her or through her. He was different that was for sure, and he was nothing like she had ever thought him to be. Before, he was one person, but now it seemed that was just a layer, and now all of these layers were peeling back to expose yet another layer of Draco Malfoy. And as for the kiss. Yes. Where had that come from? Overwhelming joy, just pouring out? was that it? Whatever it was, she knew she couldn't deal with a relationship right now, and definitely not with him. She had to make it clear it didn't mean anything, even if it did.
'Hermione," he spoke out, "we have Astronomy in ten minutes. We had better go." She reluctantly closed the book she was reading and got up.
"Okay," she said, "let's go." She walked to the door and stopped abruptly, just before leaving. She had to tell him. I was now or never.
"Look, Draco, about that kiss…"
"yes?" he asked nonchalantly.
"It didn't mean anything, you know, past overwhelming gratefulness. You know what I mean?"
"yeah, perfectly." Sadly, he did. even more so, he couldn't stop the aching feeling from spreading through his chest.
"Really? Good! Because I guess I was just so thankful, you know? And just all of these rushing emotions and the adrenaline and just, it was an impulse. I'm sorry."
"yeah, I completely understand," he strained. He gave her a smile, just to make sure she didn't let on to the fact he was hurt.
"Okay," she said, feeling a little less than good, "so still friends?"
He smiled.
"I'm surprised you have to ask." She smiled and they walked out of the room their separate ways. He said it was okay. He never thought he could flat out lie to her like that, but he had, because if this aching in his chest intensifying so much it hurt to breathe was okay, he didn't really care for the feeling. He would rather feel miserable. Maybe it wasn't as bad.
She walked off in the direction of the astronomy tower, the way he didn't go. It was longer, but it would be worth it if that meant not being next to him. The fact was, now that she had told him it didn't mean anything, she felt this awful feeling creep inside her and settle somewhere between her chest and her stomach. She felt like she had just lied to him, but she couldn't have. The whole point was to clear her head of any consciousness of hurting him, lying to him, not letting that go on. It was to stop….what was the point again of telling him it meant nothing? She couldn't remember anymore.