((Again, props to my awesome beta, LynZann! Enjoy everyone and please review!!))

Chapter 5::
Just Because

Draco watched her the next day. From the moment she walked into the Great Hall with her idiotic friends, he watched. He couldn't help it. There was something about her that would drag his eyes in her direction. Was it her smile? The way her words sounded throughout his head all night the night before? He wasn't sure. All he knew was that he needed to see her; to examine her as she moved or spoke. This was not an attraction, he was sure. It was merely a fascination. Hermione Granger had just fascinated him with her words.

In all the years he had known her, he had never heard her speak like she had the night before. Maybe she spoke like that all of the time with her friends and he hadn't known it. Or perhaps that's who she truly was, yet hid it from the world. Either way, it had caught his attention in a web. A web that, he found, he couldn't break out of. Even during classes, when he should have been paying attention to what the professor was saying, he would find himself fixated on her expressions; the way her lips would pout if she got confused, or when she would bite her lip to hide the smile that proved she knew the answer. Every single one fascinated him.

Something very odd was happening to Draco Malfoy. He hated Hermione Granger. Everyone knew it and no one doubted it. So, why was he thinking so hard on what she had said to him about that damn leaf? Why was it that every time he saw her, instead of wanting to curse her, he just wanted to nod at her as she passed by? And, for the love of Merlin, why did he still have that bloody rose in his robes?

Hermione knew he was watching her. She could feel his gaze on her back at breakfast and sense his eyes during classes. The hair on the back of her neck would rise every time he passed her in the hallway. Her cheeks would burn with each smirk he sent at her during lessons. Even during lunch, when she, Ginny, Harry, and Ron sat on the grounds she could smell him. That deep aroma she breathed in the night before seemed to shadow her at every turn. Everywhere she went she was aware of him.

How did she feel about that?

It began as admiration. She admired that her words were on his mind; the words that were meant to keep him thinking. There was no doubt that he would understand some day down the road. For now, it would just confuse him and keep him thinking. However, as the day went on the admiration turned to confusion. Most people would grow tired of looking at the same person every minute of the day. But, not Draco Malfoy; no, he seemed perfectly happy looking at her with every second that passed. Why? She knew he wasn't attracted to her. That was just impossible to even consider. Perhaps, he was just fascinated.

Yes, that was it. He was fascinated with the way she spoke. In all the years they had known each other, all he had heard from her mouth were insults and spells thrown his way. For her to speak wisdom about nature and the beauty of things to him—especially in the middle of the night—was just too different for him to comprehend. He was, after all, Draco Malfoy. He knew all, saw all, and bought all. Anything that didn't fit into his perfect little world just wouldn't make any sense to him.

Well, Hermione Granger definitely shook that world up a bit.

As the first day of classes came to a close and dinner dwindled by, Hermione wondered if Draco would be exhausted enough to leave the Great Hall before she did. If he was truly fascinated with her, he would stick around until she left. If not, he would leave. Trying her best to avoid the Slytherin table, she stood with the rest of her housemates to retire to the common room. In doing so, she turned her body fully towards the Slytherin table, where she saw Draco Malfoy still staring at her. It would seem that he was fascinated with her. Her eyes caught his in a battle of wits. For a while she expected his face to fall to the usual sneer. As time slowly passed, that didn't happen. Instead, something else entirely filled his eyes. It wasn't until Harry tapped her shoulder to tell her to hurry that she finally looked away.

"Come on, Hermione." Harry said, puzzled by her bewildered expression.

Nodding, she followed him out of the Great Hall without a look back. She didn't even have to look to know he was watching her. She could feel him just fine without her eyes. It took the doors closing behind her for the hair to finally settle at the back of her neck. As she followed the boys back to the common room, she tried to decipher the look she had seen in Draco's glimmering eyes a second before she had looked away. If she had to put a word on it, she would think it was confusion. However, that didn't even seem to fit. It was deeper than that. To be honest, it was almost as if she had disturbed him in some way.

Hermione wasn't sure how she felt about that.

Draco couldn't stop his eyes from watching her during dinner that night. It had been a full two hours since he last saw her and he had to be sure he hadn't missed anything. No, she looked exactly like she had before. Nothing was different. Her hair was still in a ponytail, her robes still perfect. So, why did he feel that troubling sensation deep in his stomach? It felt as though something about Hermione Granger was wrong, unnatural. He knew it was nothing evil. Draco Malfoy had lived beside evil for years. No, it was something else.

Barely touching his plate, he saw Hermione stand with her friends. As she lifted herself off of the bench she began facing his way. Her body turned, her eyes landing on his and he still didn't look away. Seconds ticked by as they stared into each other's eyes. Draco was trying to dig into those brown doors; trying to figure out what made them look so sad all day today and the day before. She could smile and laugh all she wanted, but he knew. He knew something wasn't right.

He found himself wanting to curse when Harry Potter pulled away her attention. Smiling and nodding at what he said, she walked away without a second glance. Even as he watched her walk out the door, she didn't look back at him. Draco could tell she knew he was staring at her. Hell, she probably was annoyed at him for doing so. If asked why, he would just say the truth. He could see there was something off about her. Simple as that.

Well, ok, maybe only half of the truth.

Hermione was sitting with her friends by the fireplace when it happened. She could feel as her skin turned hot and sweat poured down her back. When the first wave of nausea hit, she was prepared.

Having spent the last year with random symptoms coming and going, Hermione could tell right away that something was going to happen. It was in times like these—when her body rejected what she ate—that a nervous, jumpy feeling would echo through her body. She quickly excused herself from her friends, claiming to be tired. Trying as normally as she could, she headed up the girls' dorm staircase. It wasn't until she made it halfway up that she started running. Luckily, most of the girls' were downstairs doing homework or out on the grounds. That left Hermione with free roam of the bathroom.

Slamming the door shut and locking it behind her, Hermione grabbed her hair and got sick in the toilet. The sound itself made her gag further, making it hard to stop. When her body had nothing left to expel, she sat back on the floor as she flushed the toilet. The cold tile felt good against her back as she leaned into the wall. Hermione knew it would only take a few seconds for her to feel good as new. Until then, she would just sit there and rest her now tired body. She had pushed it running up those stairs to get here. She should've known to take it slow. Though, how easy is it to take it slow when one has the dire need to get sick?

Just like every time before now, Hermione felt perfectly fine a few moments later. Even her skin went back to its normal temperature. With a small, humorless laugh, she walked to the sink to brush the vile taste from her mouth. It was a good thing she had placed her toothbrush in the bathroom before dinner. She didn't think she would have the strength to make it to her trunk and back if she didn't.

As she brushed her teeth, she couldn't help but look at herself in the mirror. Her skin was a tad bit paler then it was before, but that would change while she slept. The only thing that worsened was the color beneath her eyes. It was a deeper purple now, a little more noticeable. Nothing that a tad bit of concealer couldn't help of course. If it got any darker she would use a concealment charm. Until then, muggle makeup would be good enough. Bending toward the sink to rinse out her mouth, she got a look at her eyes in the mirror. Even to her they looked different. The color was the same, but they didn't hold the life they used to. The spark was gone, leaving dull and dark orbs.

Needing to get away from the mirror, Hermione cleaned her toothbrush before placing it with the rest of her bathroom accessories. She might be one of the few who still used muggle hygiene products, but she wouldn't stop using them now. Satisfied that no one would know about her little incident, Hermione pulled on her pajamas and hopped into bed. As she watched the moon dance with the stars, she thought about her parents. She missed them terribly, but knew she couldn't go home yet. Her purpose here, whatever it was, just didn't feel like it was done yet.

Exhaustion began circling her muscles, making her fall asleep within minutes.

Draco lay in bed that night, listening to his housemates' snores. It was a little after three in the morning and he was wide awake. Having gone straight to bed after dinner, he awoke around two after only six hours of sleep. While this was nothing new, it was still disconcerting. To sleep through the night would be a wonderful thing. Upon awaking, Draco tried everything to fall back asleep. When nothing worked, he settled for staring at the ceiling.

He waited and waited for sleep to come, but it never did. So, to give himself something to do, he got out of bed and walked to his trunk. After saying the necessary spells needed to unlock the latch, he made sure to not wake anyone as he started to quietly dig around. When his hand hit the little box he had hidden beneath his broom kit, he pulled it out slowly and re-latched the trunk. The floor was cold beneath his feet as he carried the box to his bed; closing the green curtains around him as he did so. This was his secret and he didn't want anyone else to know about it.

With his wand lit, he opened the box; revealing the rose inside. Surprised, he lifted it off the soft velvet. He had thought it would wither and die through the day, what with it having no sunlight or water. It hadn't, though. It was still sitting there as if it had opened its bud moments ago. Tentatively, Draco touched the petals, feeling the smooth texture against his skin. He lifted and moved the petals, making sure they didn't rip. The deeper he saw, the blacker the color was. They were truly the most beautiful flower he had ever seen. But, that didn't explain why Hermione's words had bothered him so much.

Letting out the breath he had been holding, he closed the box and slid it back in his trunk. He needed to get out of the dungeons.

Hermione walked the grounds, watching the moon sink lower and lower towards the horizon. It was five thirty in the morning and she had been walking around for an hour. The frustration and anger she had felt upon coming out here was almost fully gone as she looked across the Black Lake at the sky. Her night sweats had woke her up again. After finally settling into an undisturbed sleep for the first time in months, she couldn't stop the anger she had felt from being pulled from that wonderful abyss.

Standing still, she could feel the morning dew cling to the bottoms of her jeans as the light wind whipped around her loose hair. She closed her eyes to enjoy the feeling. It was always the most peaceful right before sunrise. Most people just sleep the morning away. Granted, if she could, she would. However, she never really regretted being awake before sunrise. There was nothing compared to feeling the first warmth of the day.

"I should've known you'd be out here."

Hermione didn't need to open her eyes to know who it was. She had felt his gaze the moment he was nearby. "Of course. Why would I want to miss a beautiful sunrise?"

Her calm voice warmed Draco slightly. He had been wandering for the last hour, wondering if she was out here as well. It was true that when he spotted her by the lake he wasn't surprised. "How long have you been out here?"

Opening her eyes, she crossed her arms over her chest and smiled slightly, "I lost track."

He chuckled. "Of course you did."

Turning her body in a complete 180, she stared at the direction of the rising sun, the oranges, pinks, and reds just peeping over the horizon. "If you have such a problem with me being out here, why are you out here yourself?"

"Couldn't sleep." He looked in the direction she was.

"It would seem you're not the only one." Her voice was light, full of warmth.

The two shared a comfortable silence as the sun rose higher, finally settling its light over the horizon. Switching his eyes to rest on her face, he watched as her eyes filled with joy and comfort. It seemed that even the sunrise could make Hermione Granger happy. "Can I ask you a question, Granger?"

Surprised, she glanced at him before returning her eyes to the sunrise, "Sure, Malfoy."

"Why do you like this stuff so much?" He asked, honestly curious and confused.

Raising an eyebrow, she turned to him again, "This stuff? What stuff?"

"You know," he motioned towards the sunrise and the tree beside the lake she sat at the night before, "this."

"I see." She uncrossed her arms and tied her hair on top of her head.

"So?"

She lifted a finger, trying to think of the simplest way to say this. He really did like asking the really hard questions.

Draco tapped his thumb against his hand as he slid his hands in his pockets impatiently. He wasn't used to patience. It unnerved him.

"It's like I said last night, Malfoy," she crossed her arms again. "Some things that other people mock, others worship."

"So, you worship this?"

She smiled again, her eyes dancing with sad humor, "No, Malfoy. But, I can see it for what it's meant to be."

He smiled with her—just because—for the first time. "And what is that, Granger?"

"Life."