Chapter Two

The next morning Hermione is feeling refreshed and ready for a new day. As she steps onto level 4 of the ministry though, she starts to get that unsettled feeling in her stomach again. "Hm, I must have forgotten to do something" she quietly mutters to herself. For the past 3 years Hermione has been in the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, specifically, in the Being Division. Her main focus at the moment being Werewolf support services. And she really felt that this is where she needs to be, so she will not feel bad one bit for choosing her career over socializing! Her mind quickly goes back to the conversation she had with Ginny the night before about not going out enough. She just loves the feeling of accomplishment in a hard day's work and definitely feels she is making a difference, but she has noticed she keeps putting other important aspects of her life on the back burner more frequently lately..

She has reached her office by this point and sees a paper airplane memo buzzing in the air by her chair. Wondering who it could be from, a dozen different names pop into her head, she grabs it and starts to read,

It's been ages,

have time to catch up with an old friend over lunch?

Harry

Oh Harry. She feels bad for how good of a friend he has been lately, and she knows that after all her revelations this morning that she will make time for her friend today. She quickly grabs a spare bit of parchment and writes out a quick reply and sends it to the Auror Division on level 2.

The next thing Hermione knows, it's already time for her to meet Harry at his office for lunch.

"Yikes, I really need to get my head out of these papers and breathe more often, I also should stop talking to myself so much." She garbles out while standing up out of her chair for the first time in hours.

"Knock, Knock" Hermione sings as she raps her knuckles against the hard wood of Harry Potter's office door.

"Hermione! It has been too long, I barely recognize you.." Harry jokingly says, as he gets up and gives his long time friend a hug. "I was getting very close to just barging into your office and proclaiming I had a run in with a werewolf to finally get your attention." He then continues to give her his famous wide grin, which always brings back nostalgic memories.

"Oh stop being dramatic Harry, it hasn't been that long! Now let's get going, I'm so hungry I could eat a Hippogriff!" Hermione responds jokingly, which of course elicits a chuckle from Harry, just as she hoped.

As Hermione takes another sip of her tea, she tries to come up with a genuine response to Harry's question.

"Yes, I had heard that he broke up with Susan Bones, and honestly are we surprised? I mean she was a Hufflepuff...Ron needs someone with, you know, a little more grit to keep him in line." Harry seems appeased by the response but of course doesn't end his questioning there.

"I know I've asked before but, you're really sure the two of you won't give it another go?"

Hermione inwardly groans, thoroughly certain that Ron has set him up to this. So Hermione decides to indulge him, "No Harry, I think that it would be best to leave the past in the past, don't you? Speaking of the past, how are things with you and Ginny?" She feels a slight triumph when she sees Harry visibly swallow.

"Oh come off it, you know how we are, I know she was with you just last night." He sighs, "we're just going through a rough patch at the moment, with her not playing for the Harpies anymore...she's just taking some time to figure out what she wants." Another sigh, "I just want her to be happy, but I would be lying if I said I didn't hope it's me she decides is what makes her happy." He looks like a sad little puppy and that little bout of triumph Hermione felt minutes before has quickly evaporated.

"Oh Harry, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have brought it up. But I will say, I don't think you'll need to worry much longer." Relief is clearly evident on his face at her words and for the second time that day, he breaks out into that grin that always has a way of creating one of her own.

"Let's head back shall we?" Harry says as he eats one final chip from his plate "and don't even think about waiting this long again to accept my invitation to lunch, or else next time I actually will seek out a werewolf." Hermione belts out a laugh, not for the first time that day, and is seriously questioning why she hasn't agreed to lunch earlier.

Hermione always loves the time she has catching up with Harry, he is still one of her best friends, and she definitely still values his opinion on things. She has a little pep in her step as she walks down the hallway to her office, but out of the corner of her eye she sees a flash of pale blonde, and instantly snaps her head in that direction.

The one and only Draco Malfoy is here, right outside her office. His blonde hair is just as bright as she remembers, but he is styling it different these days...still styled to the side but it has a much more relaxed look to it. He also has a smirk firmly planted on his lips and there seems to be a glint in his eyes, which isn't wholly unusual. Her eyes lower down to his hands, and her vision starts to get fuzzy. He is holding an off white envelope with his name written on the outside in what is clearly her distinctive cursive.

Malfoy hasn't seen her yet, so she has a few quick seconds to collect herself and possibly turn around and escape before he can even...but at that moment Malfoy's eyes make contact with hers and she knows it's hopeless.

"Malfoy" Hermione squeaks out. So much for being calm and collected, she thinks. She quickly lets out a cough to clear her throat in hopes of keeping her cool. "What brings you to the Department of Magical Creatures today?"

"Really Granger? You think I bleach my hair? It'll be hard but I'll try and not let the fact that you don't like the color of my hair get to me" He tells her with a slight chuckle to his voice.

Sheer panic runs through Hermione's bones.

"I really have no idea what you're talking about Malfoy." Deny deny deny, Hermione tells herself over and over again in her mind.

Malfoy then raises his arm and dangles the envelope in front of her face, so that there is no miscommunication on what he is talking about.

"Ah this here doesn't look familiar to you? It's signed by you and I almost thought it was a prank at first but this is definitely your handwriting, I'd recognize it anywhere."

A small butterfly erupts deep in her stomach because he said he remembered her handwriting...but she quickly ignores it, this is what he does, he didn't mean it in a sappy way, he only said it because he has the need to be right all the time. Before she can respond he's talking again - "it came by owl this morning, and I only just got away from my meetings to seek you out."

"It came by owl!? To you!?" Hermione's voice isn't getting any less squeaky, no matter how hard she tries.

"Yeah.."

"Look I wrote that a long time ago, years ago. I don't even remember what I said." Up close your face wasn't so much handsome as beautiful. "Honestly, that letter is from our last year at Hogwarts. I don't even know who would have sent it. Can I see it?" She tries reaching for the letter, trying to stay calm, and not sound desperate.

He hesitates and then smirks his perfect Malfoy smirk. "No, I think I'd very much like to keep it. I've never gotten a letter like this before."

In the next moment Hermione harnesses all of the quick reflexes of a professional quidditch player, and snatches it out of his hands.

He laughs, but not in a patronizing way. "Alright, alright, you can have it, no need to get all heated over it!"

Another uncomfortable cough emits from her mouth as she replies with a quick "thanks" and starts to turn towards her office door, pleading with Merlin this conversation is over.

"One more thing, about that kiss…"

No. NO. This is not happening. "Oh so sorry Malfoy, I am actually running late for a meeting, and I uh…ought to be going…" Hermione exclaims and dashes into her office, locking her door a split second later with her wand and sliding down to the floor.

"This is a nightmare." She whispers herself.

She quickly pulls the parchment out of the envelope and starts to read, and almost immediately starts groaning in humiliation.

Dear Malfoy,

First of all, I refuse to call you Draco. You will forever and always be Malfoy to me.

Did you know that when you kissed me, I would come to love you?

Sometimes I think yes.

You know why? Because you want everyone to love you, Malfoy.

That's what I hate about you. Because I did, but not anymore.

Here are your worst qualities:

You think you're always right. And when you realize you're wrong? You never admit it.

You just lean on your looks and charm, and you just assume everyone else will find it endearing.

And if they don't, who cares, right?

Wrong. You do care. You care a lot about what people think of you.

You always have to have the last word. Even if what you say is unnecessary.

That's rude.

You're smart. Too smart.

The kind of smart where you know exactly what you're doing and how you're manipulating someone.

You kissed me for no reason.

Even though I knew you were in some weird on again/off again relationship with Astoria.

But you still did it. Just because you could.

I really want to know: why would you do that to me?

And to just walk away like nothing even happened?

The worst part of it is, that stupid kiss is what made me love you.

Maybe that's why you kissed me. To do mind control on me, to make me see you that way.

It worked. Your little trick worked.

From then on, I couldn't get you out of my head.

Up close, your face wasn't as pointy and sharp as I used to see it as, you were, dare I say, beautiful.

How many beautiful guys have you seen? For me it was just one: You.

I think it was your soft hair. You have really soft hair. Unfairly soft.

Even though you don't deserve it, I'll go into all the things I like about you:

The war changed you.

It changed everyone, but you definitely came back a new person, a better person.

You had actual feelings this time and seemed, dare I say it, genuine.

In class if someone needed help with something you were always the first to volunteer, you NEVER use to do that.

You continued to take, Care of Magical Creatures, even though you were one of the only Slytherins there.

You even seemed to care about the creatures, spending some of your free periods going down and seeing them.

Yes, I noticed. Because I noticed everything.

You are really good at quidditch.

I think it frustrated you that Harry didn't come back to Hogwarts this year so you could finally try and best him.

It was almost too easy for you to win Slytherin the Quidditch cup.

After you kissed me, I liked you for the rest of the year.

It wasn't easy watching you with Astoria, holding hands and snogging in the corridors.

You probably make her feel special. Because that's your talent, right?

You're good at making people feel special.

Do you know what it's like to like someone so much you can't stand it and know that they'll never feel the same way?

Probably not.

You're a pure-blood, you live in a manor and have endless amounts of galleons.

And now that the year is almost over, I know for sure that I am also over you.

I'm immune to you now, Malfoy.

I'm really proud to say that I'm the only girl at Hogwarts who has been immunized to the charms of Draco Malfoy.

All because I see you for who you really are, a manipulating, bleach haired git.

Hermione Jean Granger