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Chapter 3 – Waiting – (as observed by DracoMalfoy)

WHY WAS SHE HERE? That was the first thought that went through my mind when I walked into the outer office of the boss of Muggle Affairs. Hermione Granger was sitting on a sofa, with her nose in a book, apparently waiting to see the boss, too. I looked over at Mindy, the boss' secretary, and gave her my best smile…and yes, she smiled back.

"Is he busy?" I asked.

"In a meeting," she replied. "And then he has a meeting with Hermione, but he might be able to work you in after that, Mr. Malfoy."

"Damn straight he will," I said with a flash of another smile to Mindy. Then I winked at her. I also turned my head in time to see Granger rolling her eyes. I glared at her. "Why are you here, Granger? Did you do something you ought not, and now you're about to get a dressing down?"

"You would assume that's the only reason someone is seeing the boss, since that's usually the only reason you're here, Malfoy," she said flatly.

"For your information I have something important to discuss with him," I snarled.

She smiled sweetly and said, "Are you volunteering to be transferred to the Icelandic office?"

"No, ice princess. That's more up your alley." I leaned on Mindy's desk and said, "Listen, love, do you think I might be squeezed in before the old battle ax over there?"

I felt Granger's book hit the back of my head. Thank goodness it was a paperback. I rubbed my head and turned to glare at her. She laughed, stood up, picked up her book and sat back down. She said, "I'm as shocked as you are, Malfoy. I didn't think I would hit you in a hundred years. I thought it would sail right by your head. Of course, it's such a large target; I was bound to hit it."

"Ha! And another ha!" I said, with a slightly exaggerated air. I turned back to Mindy and gave her my best smile. White, straight teeth, full lips, the works. I'll get to see the boss before Granger! That would teach her to hit me with things.

Mindy said, "You'll just have to wait, Mr. Malfoy. Sorry."

I heard Granger snort. She was such an uncouth, but uppity prig sometimes. Like I said before: A PARADOX! "Fine!" I snapped.

Granger continued to read her book. There were two chairs in the outer office, and one sofa. I could have sat in one of the two chairs, or beside her on the couch. Just to irk her I sat on the sofa. I plopped myself right down next to her, with as much drama and flare as I could. I spread my legs out in front of me, placed one arm behind her shoulders on the back of the cushions, the other arm over my eyes and I said, "Fine, if I have to wait, I'll wait."

Hermione glanced at me sideways and snarled, "There are two empty chairs, Malfoy."

"Perhaps you would like to move your bum over to one of them," I sneered. She made a sort of 'tsk' sound with her tongue and teeth. The sort of disapproving sound that a teacher makes with a student who is misbehaving, or a mother makes to a toddler when they pick their nose or draws on the wall, or dirties their nappies. I'll teach her to 'tsk' at me.

I moved so that my feet were now resting comfortably on her lap and my head was up against the armrest of the sofa. I was lying on my back, arms behind my head, and I said, "Wake me up when it's my turn to see the old coot."

"He's only four years older than you," Granger replied. Then she picked up my feet, as I knew she would, and turned my entire body so that my feet were back on the floor. Then she 'tsked' again.

"Why are you making that weird noise?" I asked. "You sound as if someone is letting all of your air out of your body."

I leaned closer to her and tried to read over her shoulder. She closed her book and asked, "Do you mind?"

"Do I mind that you're a know-it-all pain in the arse that's sitting here, taking up my breathing space, yes actually, I think I do mind," I retorted.

"Malfoy, will you ever grow up?" she asked. "Don't you ever get tired of hating me so much? Isn't it getting old?"

"The only thing getting old is you," I snapped. I knew that was a feeble comeback, but it was the best I could come up with, because she looked slightly hurt. Also, because she said that I hated her, and I didn't, but hell, I couldn't hardly give a snappy comeback that had the phrase, 'I don't hate you anymore' in the sentence. Finally, I said, "Do you know what you need, Granger?"

"Oh my goodness," she said with another sigh, "Here he goes again. Why do you always think you're qualified to tell me what I need? It seems to me that you don't even know what you need, Malfoy."

I heard Mindy laugh. I looked over at her. She went straight back to work. See if I waste any more of my best smiles on that bint. I said, "Fine, tell me what I need, Granger, and then I'll tell you what you need."

"All you need is to grow up, and stop hating people for no apparent reason," she said softly. "I don't hate you."

"Well, that's totally beside the point," I said with a frown. I studied my fingernails for a moment and then said, "Besides, I don't hate you, Granger my girl. Haven't for a long time."

"You still act horrible toward me," she remarked, opening her book. "Listen, that's fine, never mind. We don't have to have this conversation. I really would rather relax and read my book before my meeting with the boss, okay?" She began to read again. I watched her from the corner of my eye.

Her hair fell in front, covering some of her face. She looked like she was silently contemplating something important, instead of only reading. If only she gave me a modicum of that much attention, I would be a happier man for it, I'm sure. "What are you reading so intently, anyway, Granger?" I stole her book from her, looked at the front cover, laughed, and then held it up to Mindy. "Look, love. Granger's reading poetry. La, de, da, Granger. Aren't you Miss Literary Highbrow?" I threw her book back at her.

"Excuse me for wanting a bit of culture and refinement in my life," she scolded. "You could obviously use a bit of refinement yourself."

I took her book from her hand again. I heard her sigh. I flipped through the pages. "Who is this chap? I've never heard of EE Cummings. Couldn't the bloke afford to use capital letters when he wrote?" I was goading her. Of course I had heard of EE Cummings. To anger her more I said, "I bet it's a bunch of crap."

She sighed again, took the book right from my hands, opened it to a marked page, and read aloud, "I carry your heart with me, I carry it in my heart. I am never without it, anywhere I go, my dear, and whatever is done by only me is your doing, my darling, I fear, no fate, for you are my fate my sweet. I want the world, for beautiful you are my world, my true, and it's you whatever a moon has always meant, and whatever a sun will always sing is you."

She stopped reading and looked at me. "Is that crap, Malfoy?"

"Finish it," I said, staring right in her eyes. I could feel Mindy staring at us. I knew our bastard of a boss had opened our door and was watching us as well.

She stood up and said, "What's the point, Malfoy? You'll only call it crap and make fun of me again."

I stood up quickly, right before her, and finished the poem from memory. "Here is the deepest secret nobody knows, here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud and the sky of the sky of a tree called life; which grows higher than soul can hope or mind can hide. And this is the wonder that is keeping the stars apart. I carry your heart, I carry it in my heart." I might have missed a few words, or mess it up slightly, but I felt I gave it my all, and frankly, I meant every single word I had just said.

She stared at me, dumbfounded, mouth slightly opened. I wanted to kiss her so badly that all breath left my body. I didn't care that we had an audience. To me, it was only her and me. She said softly, "You know EE Cummings?"

"Well not personally. He's been dead for almost fifty years, Granger," I said with a smirk.

She tried not to smile. Our boss, the sodding bastard, cleared his throat and said, "Hermione, I can see you now. Malfoy, I'll see you afterwards." She nodded toward the man, started into the other room, but then turned back to face me.

She handed me the book. "Keep it until I come back out, won't you? Fold the pages of your favourites. I'd like to read them."

I gave her a curt nod. I sat down and watched her hips sway as she walked into the boss' office. Instead of marking the pages of my favourite Edward Estlin Cummings poems, I asked Mindy for a pen. She handed me one. I wrote a little poem of my own on the inside cover of Granger's book. More of a limerick than a poem. It started with…"There once was a girl from Nantucket…"

I laughed as I wrote it. I could just hear her now as she read it… 'tsk, tsk, tsk!' I folded the cover back on the book and threw it on the couch. I said, "Make sure Granger gets her book back, won't you, Mindy?"

"Aren't you going to stay and talk to Mr. Flint?" she asked.

"Mr. Flint can stick a broomstick up his arse," I said with a laugh. She laughed, too. "No, I got what I came for, love." I walked out of the room, but I was in my own little world the entire way back to my office. All I could do was imagine Granger reciting that poem to me. I imagined the words were meant FOR me, and were said TO me.

Merlin's balls, I had it bad. I had it bad for Granger. Somebody please kill me now.