Chapter 7

Un-Hermione

"Did I hear correctly? You've been taking orders from something someone wrote in a book?" The redhead who posed this question looked angry and distressed. They all knew immediately where her mind was.

"It's nothing," Harry reassured the youngest Weasley. "It's not like, you know, Riddle's diary. It's just an old textbook someone's scribbled on."

"But you're doing what it says?" Ginny asked, sharpness still in her tone.

Hermione suddenly felt anxious. She hadn't even considered the possibility something could be wrong with the book when she and Harry were using it in Potions. She hadn't felt any sort of dark energy coming from it. She hadn't felt any trace of magic on it, actually, but she knew she couldn't take any risks when it came to Harry. When they were younger they hadn't been able to sense a magical item in their presence, but now Hermione had a better idea of how to detect when magic was present. There were very subtle differences when magic as present, but if one paid close attention the differences were there. This book seemed perfectly normal, but one could never be too sure.

"Gin's got a point, Harry, it never hurts to be safe," she said calmly, but grabbed the book away from her friend. Harry let out an indignant cry, but she ignored him. "Specialis Revelio!"

Nothing happened and Hermione breathed a sigh of relief. The last thing they needed was another evil book in their midst.

"Finished?" Harry asked as he yanked the book back. "Honestly, 'Mione, you followed the directions too. I thought you'd be on my side."

"You did what?" Ginny asked gaping at the older witch in shock.

Hermione settled back against her seat. "I'm always on your side, Harry. I just needed to be sure that it was safe for you to use. You do have a habit of attracting trouble."

"Wait, I'm sorry, can we please get back to you following the directions?" Ginny huffed, miffed at being ignored.

"Yeah, 'Mione, why did you follow those notes? You normally follow directions without ever questioning anything." Ron asked curiously.

Hermione was about to respond when Harry chimed in. "Now that we're talking about it, it was very un-Hermione of you. You're smart enough to know not to follow advice from an unreliable source."

The brunette witch felt the anger flare up inside her. Partly because they wouldn't let her answer and partly because they were implying she had done something wrong. Clearly she hadn't, since she had managed to complete the potion with Harry.

"As Professor Snape pointed out earlier in class, I was able to recite the advantage of nonverbal spells almost exactly as it was written in our textbook. While I have a very good memory, intelligence isn't only about memorizing facts. It's about knowing how to apply what you've learned into all areas of your life and becoming more efficient in everything you do. If I can't do that, then I'm not nearly as intelligent as people like to think I am," she said in what seemed like an argumentative tone.

Her three companions exchanged distressed looks. They hadn't meant to upset their friend. Before any of them could say anything, Hermione continued.

"The step was to cut up a bean. The objective was to collect the juice after cutting it to put into the cauldron. Harry borrowed my knife and simply crushed the bean to squeeze the juice out. That reminded me of something my mother does with pomegranate seeds when she needs the juice to add to a popular drink she makes for my father. Had I seen my mother trying to extract the juice by cutting the seed like I had been attempting to do, I would have thought it ridiculous. Crushing the bean made sense to me, so I tried it. It worked, and I decided the previous owner might know a thing or two about the potion so I followed his other notes which weren't completely outrageous or anything of the sort. Sometimes it's good to take a risk. Sometimes it's good not to just rely on information I've previously obtained and act on a thought that is actually my own."

They were all quiet for a moment, uncomfortable with the situation. Though Hermione hadn't made any accusations, her friends knew that she felt insulted by their reactions.

"Well I'm glad you followed the book with me, Hermione. We earned fifty points for Gryffindor! Not to mention the five you earned in Defense Against the Dark Arts," Harry smiled at his friend, hoping she'd forgive him. She sent him one back.

"Oh, that's right!" Ginny exclaimed. "I'd heard Snape gave you points, but I hardly believed it. I meant to ask earlier, but it slipped my mind! You were the first to perform a nonverbal spell, was that right?"

Hermione nodded.

"That's amazing! I wonder what's gotten into Snape?"

Hermione shrugged, still unsure herself. "Maybe he wants to turn a over new leaf. Maybe because he's finally teaching the subject he's longed to teach, he's more willing to give out points."

Both Harry and Ron snorted at the thought that Snape would want to turn a new leaf or would be willing to give out points to anyone outside of Slytherin. Ginny simply returned a shrug and gave a thoughtful look.

"I don't know about that," Ginny said unsure. "The news that Snape gave you points is all over school. Everyone outside of Slytherin has been working hard to try to get on his good side, but so far no other points have been given to anyone. Slytherins included." Ginny then gave her friend a wicked smile. "Maybe Snape fancies you, 'Mione."

The possibility made the four burst into laughter. It was hard to imagine Snape fancying anything, save for maybe the Dark Arts as Harry pointed out earlier.

Still Hermione couldn't help but think back to the visit at the end of last term. Of course she didn't think that her professor fancied her, but she wondered if her words had affected him in any way. She let her professor know that she trusted him. Perhaps this was him showing that he could be trusted?

"Maybe every Slytherin's gone mental," Ron suggested. "First Snape then Malfoy."

"Malfoy? What's he got to do with anything?" Ginny questioned.

"After we were dismissed from Potions, Malfoy and his friends were in a hurry and he shoved Hermione. And he, er… well, he apologized," Harry explained.

Ginny's face had the same look of bewilderment that had been on Malfoy's, Harry's, and Ron's faces when the incident happened.

"Malfoy did what?" Ginny was obviously having a difficult time processing this information.

"Oh calm down, Gin. I'm sure he didn't mean to say it. It was probably just a slip of his tongue. Judging by his expression, it took a moment for him to even realize what he'd done."

"Still!" Ginny shouted. "That is… that is… mad! Malfoy has never apologized to anyone for anything!" She shook her head disbelievingly. "Maybe Ron is actually right for once. Maybe all the Slytherins got exposed to a bad potion or something…"

Hermione huffed in annoyance, "Can we please stop talking about this?" Her friends laughed at her annoyance but agreed.

For the remainder of the week, Harry continued to use the book which belonged to a "Half-Blood Prince". Hermione decided to keep using her own textbook since she no longer hit any snags like she had with the Draught of Living Death. She managed to successfully brew every potion, but Harry always finished before she. She began to worry that he was becoming too dependent on the textbook. It would be one thing if it was helping him learn these helpful potions, but she wasn't sure if he was retaining much. Merlin knew he hadn't retained much of what Snape had taught them over the prior five years. He couldn't always have the book with him.

Later she realized her worries were completely unfounded. While she and Ron were working on their essays Saturday night, Harry was completely enthralled by the old beat up textbook. She was sure he had to be learning something. He had become very protective of the book and that worried Hermione tremendously.

"Harry, you should really put that thing down and start working on your homework."

"In a minute, Hermione," he promised.

"You said that half an hour ago. Now you only have ten minutes before you have to go meet Dumbledore."

Harry's head shot up and he swore as he rushed up to his dorm to get ready. He arrived back in the common room a short while later. He muttered his goodbyes and rushed through the portrait hole.

Hermione heaved a sigh and started to collect her things. "Come on, Ron. Remember, we have to head to a brief prefects' meeting then we're on patrol tonight."

Ron groaned as he gathered his half-completed essay. "Remind me why I wanted to be a prefect again."

"Because it's as Weasley as being in Gryffindor. The twins were the exception to that."

Ron muttered as "right" as they parted ways to their respective rooms. They would meet outside of the portrait to go to the meeting together.

After the meeting, Hermione and Ron set about patrolling the castle with the two Hufflepuff prefects.

It was about half past nine when Hermione found herself on the seventh floor of the castle. The Head Boy and Head Girl had noticed that the first years had an exceptional sense of adventure this year, so they requested the prefects do a full castle sweep. Curfew wasn't for another half an hour, but the prefects were still to look out for anyone out of bed and give them proper warning about the time. Hermione smiled to herself as she thought about how often she and her two best friends had broken curfew. Harry's Invisibility Cloak was probably her favorite magical item next to her wand.

She rounded a corner when she collided into something. She stumbled back but retained her balance. After straightening herself, she looked up to see just what she hit. "Malfoy?"

The blonde Slytherin had also been knocked backwards by their collision and looked a bit confounded. After a moment he regained his composure and put on a blank face.

"Granger," he stated simply.

They stood there for several moments. Hermione wasn't quite sure what to make of the situation. She hadn't had much interaction with the blonde boy since he apologized after shoving past her. She had convinced herself it wasn't a big deal — he still hated her, she was sure — but she couldn't explain the feeling she was experiencing. She felt unsettled and unsure. About what, she wasn't quite certain. He was just Malfoy. An accidental apology meant nothing.

Finally, she said something. "You weren't at the prefect meeting." She was surprised at her tone. It wasn't scolding like she had expected it to be. Not that she meant to scold him; it was just what typically happened with her. Instead she sounded… curious?

After a moment of silently deliberation, the blonde decided to answer her. "I wasn't."

They grew silent again. Hermione grew even more unsure. This was very un-Hermione of her, to use the term Harry had used earlier that week.

She noticed he had been coming from where one could get a good view of the quad. She found herself wondering if that had been what he had been doing. It was dark and it had a nice view of the stars. Somehow it was hard to imagine Malfoy stargazing.

"Curfew is soon, Malfoy. You're not scheduled to patrol, so you're free to head back to your room."

He simply nodded.

She was about to say something else when another voice made her jump.

"Mister Malfoy, hello." Severus greeted as his approached his two students. "Miss Granger."

"Hello, Professor Snape," the young witch greeted.

The blonde Slytherin simply looked away from the black-clad man.

"Mister Malfoy, I thought I might find you here. I know you like to start your patrols at the top of the castle and work your way down. I apologize, but it seems I had the incorrect date when I told you it would be you and Miss Parkinson patrolling tonight. If you would follow me back to my office, I can give you a copy of the correct schedule before you head to bed. I also found that text you were looking for."

The young man refused to look at his professor. He had tensed and his fists were clenched.

Granger glanced between the two, no doubt noticing the change in Draco's demeanor.

After a moment, he let out a "yes, Professor" and began to walk toward the older man.

"Goodnight, Miss Granger."

Severus followed the blonde boy who had taken the lead. He didn't seem to be attempting to run away from him, so Severus let his mind wander to what he had just witnessed.

Draco had almost been caught by Miss Granger. However, she did not scold or reprimand him in any way. That was very… un-Granger of her. He knew she took her job as prefect very seriously.

Lily had been the same way when she was Head Girl…

He continued to watch their exchange. Though, there wasn't much to watch. They stood staring at each other for a long while and briefly exchanged words. He hadn't been sure what was happening exactly. They weren't fighting. Granger wasn't interrogating him. He didn't tell her to bugger off when she pointed out he hadn't been at the meeting.

Whatever had been happening, Severus knew it wasn't good.

Finally they made it to the safety of his office. The young man who rejected the professor's attentions all summer and for the past week took a seat across from his professor's desk. Severus stood behind his desk.

After a moment, the professor grew irritated. He had enough silence for the night just watching Draco and Miss Granger.

"You were almost caught, Mr. Malfoy."

Nothing.

Anger flared inside of Severus, and he slammed his hands down on his desk. "What would you have done, had I not come along? Have you even thought about the kind of lies you would have to spin, boy?"

The blonde didn't even flinch. "I would have said I thought it was my turn to patrol. I didn't go to the bloody prefect meeting so I would have that excuse. I knew Hufflepuff and Gryffindor were patrolling tonight, but I needed to start work on the cabinet."

Severus was aware of the boy's plan to sneak the Death Eaters into the castle. Of course, he hadn't heard the plan from said boy. The Dark Lord had informed him. The Dark Lord had fully expected the boy to struggle, so Severus was supposed to make sure that no matter what, the Death Eaters would be able to get into the school.

"If you were so ready to spin that lie, why were you simply standing in front of Granger like a mute? You can't take risks like that, Draco!"

Finally the boy turned to look at his professor. "Do not call me 'Draco'," he spat. "We are no longer on a first name basis. Not after what you did, Professor."

Briefly, he wondered if Draco would ever be able to forgive him for the Ministry. He doubted it.

"You needn't concern yourself about me. I have everything under control, and had you not come along, I would have taken care of Granger. She's a trusting Gryffindor and would have believed my lie."

"Yes, over the years you've given her no reason to suspect you'd lie to her," he hissed sarcastically. Severus didn't want to argue with the boy anymore. "Be more discreet next time, Mister Malfoy."

He reached in his desk and pulled out the patrol schedule he had, in fact, made up for the boy.

Taking the parchment, Draco stormed out of the room.

Severus collapsed in his chair.

He had heard about Draco's slipped apology. He knew the boy hadn't realized what he had done, but it attracted a lot of attention that the boy did not need.

And then tonight. What was he to make of tonight?

It was understandable that Mister Malfoy would be silent around Miss Granger. He was supposed to hate her. He was supposed to say hateful things to her. But Draco didn't want to hurt her. So if he wasn't willing to say what was expected, what else was there but silence?

But Miss Granger, she was very unlike herself. The only time he really saw her outside of class was during meals, but that was all he needed to see. He recalled the night they all arrived and she shot a dark look at her fellow Gryffindors when Potter arrived. He saw her arrive to breakfast the following morning without Potter or Weasley, and saw them have some kind of issue when the two boys did arrive. And he saw caught her staring at the Slytherin table.

At the end of last term she told him that she had to trust her intuition. He wondered if her intuition was warning her of the impending doom. Everyone felt it, he knew it, but maybe she was finally letting it affect her.

He knew what Mister Malfoy felt, but what did she? Was her behavior tonight due to her general change in attitude? Or was it something more? Was there something developing between his two students?

He hoped not.

Right?

Right.

He didn't want the boy to have his love rejected, but it was better to be rejected than to be in love and on opposite sides of the war.

What was he even worrying about? All that had happened was that they stared at each other for a few minutes. There was no indication that Miss Granger felt anything for Draco besides the contempt that she felt ever since they arrived at Hogwarts.

There was no way Hermione Granger would fall in love with Draco Malfoy. Not after everything.

Still part of Severus felt that no matter what type of change she was experiencing, her actions tonight were very unlike her.

A/N: So there you go! I meant to work on this a couple of days ago, but it's been a busy week. Plus I got swept up in Winx Club again. I had to rewatch it and I just started the second season.

Anyway, thanks for reading! Hopefully you enjoyed this chapter and their interaction. Even though it was brief. But that's the point for now lol!

I love you all!