Chapter 6

She decided to return to the room she had been staying in. It was a small library actually, and so it was somewhat funny that Draco had decided to put her there. She decided to bide her time looking through the books, waiting for Draco to fall asleep so she could tour her…well, prison…in peace.

She perused the books on the shelves, and was surprised to find they were not entirely dark in nature. Some textbooks, different from those their class had used at Hogwarts, were on the shelves, and Hermione selected one of those. Her magic purse, filled with all her favorite and most useful books, was sadly back in camp. But for now she would make due with these. Perhaps there would be something useful in a dark wizard's home pertaining to horcrux's?

After several hours in front of the magically continuously roaring fireplace Hermione began to feel hungry again. She looked up to find, to her surprise, that it was already dark outside. She had read the whole day away, but of course that was nothing new to Hermione Granger.

She plopped the last book on the pile in disgust; it had been a particularly nasty one about dark curses, and it was not something to read while eating. She stood up and stretched her cramped body, and proceeded to head towards the kitchen.

She tip toed as she passed the closed door to what she knew was Draco's room. After what happened-whatever the hell that was- she didn't want to run into him. How was she going to avoid him until…until the war ended? Until he let her go? Until she found the horcrux and escaped? She had no idea.

She was just happy the door was closed. She flashed back to when she had seen him sleeping earlier. He had seemed almost…cute. She shook her head. That was not a word to describe Draco Malfoy. She didn't want to see him sleeping again, didn't want to fall into a false sense of security about him. He was not one of the good guys. Maybe he wasn't exactly one of the bad guys, either, but he was not a good guy.

The kitchen was all dark, and she reached for the switch. Yes, switch. Electricity via magic. A really useful idea for witches who lost their wands.

The bright light filled the room, and Hermione walked over to the refrigerator. It was big, and expensive looking, but defiantly very, very old. Old-fashioned, like most wizard things, yet running on electricity. Digging through the shelves, Hermione sighed and chose an apple. There wasn't much left. Draco should really multiply his food stocks, or they were not going to make it much longer on what was left. If only she had a wand…by herself, she couldn't make any kind of meal out of what was left.

She took a big bite out of the apple, and turned with the intention of checking the cupboards. That's when she saw him.

He was leaning very nonchalantly against the doorframe, relaxed as if he didn't have a care in the world. His arms were crossed, and he was looking right at her.

Hermione swallowed the apple piece, and licked the juice from her lips. Determined to seem just as nonchalant, Hermione advised "You know, you really should do a simple food multiplier geminio spell sometime soon…"

"I know. But I only had one apple left." Draco said, stalking into the room closer to her.

"I, look, there wasn't anything to eat, and I don't have a wand, or I would have made extra…sorry…" Hermione said, her sentence drifting off as Draco walked forward towards her. She felt her back hit the edge of the counter. She couldn't go any further.

Draco kept striding forward, slowly, until he was almost pressed up against her.

Hermione couldn't stop her heart from pounding. What was wrong with her? This guy didn't care about her! If he was hitting on her at all, it was only because she was the only one around! And this was Draco Malfoy, after all! He was supposed to repulse her! By his own admission, she repulsed him!

Then why didn't she stop him when he placed both hands on the counter on either side of her, trapping her in place? His hands brushed her sides slightly, and her heart sped up. This was not how this should go down. She should be struggling to get away from him! What did he think he was doing, anyways? Did he think…since she was his prisoner…that he'd be free too…? No way!

She placed both hands on his chest, still gripping the apple. Her face was red, and she managed to sputter "St..stop."

His face was inches from hers, and it was all she could do not to close the gap and brush her lips against his light pink one's. She couldn't stop staring at his lips, but as he spoke she managed to look up into his eyes.

"Stop what, Granger?" he whispered. His eye's met hers, and she almost gave up. Almost.

She mentally reproached herself. 'Draco Malfoy!' she thought. 'He's just using you! Why the hell would you be turned on by him!?'

She pushed harder on his chest, urging him away from her. She had higher standards than this! I mean, she wasn't about to let him use her like this! Even if she wanted to use him, too…No! Stop that! She shut her eyes, continuing to push back on his chest, her head lowered so she wouldn't be in kissing range.

He surprised her by backing up a step. She opened her eyes and looked up at him. Her hands were now just lightly resting on his chest, one hand gripping the bitten apple, the other his white crisp shirt.

"Sorry…" he whispered. Hermione found herself surprised once again. Draco Malfoy, apologizing to her? "I don't know what came over me. I won't hurt you." He soothed.

He thought he had scared her! And he was sorry about it! "I didn't mean…I won't do anything to you. Your safe here, ok?"

Hermione was dumbstruck, gaping up at him. She couldn't think of anything to say. 'No problem, I would actually like for you to take me right here, right now, in the kitchen?' What the hell was wrong with her! Ah! Bad Hermione!

No, she didn't want that, not with him. Or so said the logical part of her brain, the part that had pushed him away.

Draco reached up slowly, as if afraid he'd scare her away, and gripped the hand that was holding the apple. He looked deep into her eyes.

"Your getting apple all over my shirt, and it's not cheap." He whispered.

It was so out of place that she started laughing. She laughed in a way that was probably not all-together healthy sounding, and tears sprang to her eyes. She pulled her hands from his front and wrapped them around her stomach as she cracked up.

Looking a little worried, Draco asked "Er, what's so funny?"

"Just…" she gasped for air, "Your shirt!? Really? Now?"

He actually smiled in a way that wasn't vulgar or stuck-up. He looked nice with a genuine smile. "Well, not that you'd know anything about quality clothing, yourself." And he let out a little laugh. There was no real malice in his comment; it actually came across as rather…cute.

She smiled back at him. As their eyes met once again, his smile started to fade. He suddenly looked serious.

He grabbed the hand with the apple in it again, and slowly raised it.

Hermione felt her breath catch in her throat, and her own smile melted. He raised the apple slowly to his mouth, and took a bite next to hers. He let go of her hand, but she felt frozen in place, the apple still raised. She watched him slowly lick the juice from his lips, and wanted to do it for him…Bad! Bad Hermione!

"That was my last apple." He said simply, turned around, and walked out, leaving Hermione stunned.

***

Hermione sat back down on her couch in the library, picked up a book, and stared at the words without comprehending. She hadn't looked for more food. She had just walked back down the hall to her room, past the shut door of Draco's room.

God. Had that really just happened? It was all she could think about. She kept re-playing the scene over and over in her mind. Draco had worried that he had scared her! That meant he hadn't thought he could take advantage of her just because she was his prisoner, right? So…what was he doing? What was she doing? Did he…feel something for her? He had saved her life, after all. Of course, not wanting someone dead was a far cry from liking someone.

Hermione put the book down, defeated, and stretched out on the couch. She put the small throw pillow over her face and shut her eyes tight. Maybe she had a thing for bad boys? But she had always thought of Draco as a whiney bother, or at the very least a tragic case of bad family socialization, rather than a "bad boy."

How could she have been so…turned on by a guy that takes every opportunity to insult her? They hate each other, don't they? Isn't she just a disgusting "Mudblood" to him?

Or is insulting others just so ingrained into his nature that he can't help himself? She'd like to believe that, as it just made him seem pitiable rather than despisable, but for seven years he had tortured her and her friends. How can she ignore seven years, which have built up her better instincts about Draco, just because he kept trying to get close to her? Trying to kiss her…

She lowered the pillow and touched her lips. The only boy she had kissed was Victor Krumb, as embarrassing as that was for her to admit. So, she wasn't very experienced with these feelings…God, she was 17! She should have done more than just kissed! And just once before?

I guess when your busy trying to stop your friends from doing stupid life-threatening things, or helping them fight great evils, you don't have a lot of time for boys.

Except for Ron, that is. He's always there.

Ron.

Sigh.

She just felt awkward, enough to run into a snowstorm, when the subject of the two of them was breached. She had thought she liked him for the longest time, but what did she know? She was the one-time kiss virgin! Ah!

She covered her face with the pillow and let out an exasperated yell.

Then what in the hell was she doing with Draco? With a guy she didn't even like, let alone love!

She thought about his smile and laugh in the kitchen, and wondered about that. Maybe she didn't love him, but maybe she kinda liked him…she liked discovering that he had a good side, cute even!

There was a second blanket draped over the couch, and she pulled it over herself. Her green blanket/snake (uh, hallucinations! She was still so embarrassed!) was still on the floor in Draco's room, where she took it off to get dressed.

Dressed. She was still in Draco's oversized clothes. They had that same lilac soapy smell as him.

With that thought, she drifted off to sleep, dreaming once again of vague images of gray eyes and apples.