Hermione slept in late on Boxing Day. She woke to a sunlit dormitory, Parvati and Lavender just beginning to stir as well. It took her a moment to remember everything that happened the night before — dulled by sleep and a new day, the fresh wave of sorrow that washed over her was only an echo of the raw emotions from last night.
She was of course still disappointed with how the night ended, but things didn't seem quite as hopeless anymore. She was certain she'd seen regret on Malfoy's face, if just for an instant. It didn't make what he had said to her any better, and she was still furious with him, but perhaps, with time, he could still be led to see reason. For now, though, Hermione decided her best bet was to put him out of her mind. She wanted to enjoy the rest of the memories from the Yule Ball, and the rest of her holiday break.
Hermione yawned widely and stretched, feeling Crookshanks curled up by her feet. Crookshanks, always observant, noticed her movements and stretched lazily before coming up to put his squashy yellow face in hers. When she managed to tumble out of bed, she wasn't surprised to find her hair in its original, bushy state. Hermione paused to feed a purring Crookshanks, then gathered up a fresh jumper and jeans and started for the lavatory. After a luxuriously hot shower, she scrubbed her teeth clean and spent an unfortunate amount of time yanking a brush through her damp curls.
When she met up with Harry and Ron later, Hermione was pleased to see that they were finally starting to take the homework they'd all been assigned over break seriously. She had already completed most of her own, which gave her plenty of time to read ahead. Plenty of time to think, as well.
Harry had shown her the socks that Dobby knitted for him for Christmas, and it seemed a lovely idea — maybe she would learn to knit. She could make socks, or even hats, for Dobby and Winky. It seemed doubtful that the other house elves would want anything resembling clothes, but she could always offer.
Hermione was glad not to run into Malfoy at all that day. It seemed most other students were feeling rather glum now that Christmas and the Yule Ball were both over, and electing to stay inside their common rooms when they could. Hermione took the opportunity to return Viktor's coat to him, only to run into Karkaroff halfway across the lawn and have him snatch it up, saying that he wouldn't want her to catch a cold and he would give her regards to Viktor.
That night, Harry left the common room shortly before curfew with the Marauder's Map and the egg, and the invisibility cloak wadded up under his jacket. Hermione and Ron settled to play a game of Wizard's Chess while they waited for him to return. Hermione thought she had been improving, but Ron still managed to put her in checkmate within a mere seventeen moves. Her pieces were unwilling to play a rematch, so she pulled out her Ancient Runes textbook while Ron went back to making up horrible predictions for Divination.
Harry returned several hours later looking frantic, with a book under his arm, of all things. Throwing the book and the egg down in a chair, Harry launched into an explanation of the song inside the egg while pacing in front of the fireplace. From what Harry could deduce (and Hermione agreed), Harry would have to spend up to an hour deep in the Black Lake to recover something valuable. Something probably being guarded by the colony of Merpeople who had sung the song for the clue. The most pressing problem was to surmise a way for Harry to breathe underwater long enough to recover it.
Finally, Hermione had to ask. "What's with the book, Harry?"
Harry stopped and looked at it as if just remembering.
"Oh, that," he said absently. "Just something Moody made me bring back to give to Neville. Some Herbology-related thing. I guess Moody promised ages ago to let him borrow it. Did you know his eye could see through invisibility cloaks?"
Hermione gaped at him. "Um... no, I didn't."
"That's bloody terrifying," Ron said helpfully.
"Yeah, well Moody saw me coming back from the Prefect's Bathroom and made me follow him to his office for it," Harry said. "Thankfully he didn't seem to care much about me being out after curfew, just asked loads of questions about how I was getting on…"
"He offered to help you again?" Hermione asked curiously.
"No… I mean, not exactly," Harry said. "He just gave me some general advice, warnings to stay vigilant, that sort of thing. Then he went off on some rant about kids dropping Stink Pellets everywhere so that he would have to charm a bubble around his head just to get a breath of fresh air. I never smelled anything, though. Surprised he can smell anything missing half his nose, honestly…"
"Yeah, he's crackers, alright," Ron said. "Least he didn't take points off for you being out of bed."
"Honestly, House points. Harry's lucky he didn't get detention," Hermione said severely. "Didn't you have the Map, Harry?"
"I did, but I figured I wouldn't need it on the way back with the Cloak and everyone else in their common rooms," Harry explained. "Guess I'll have to be more careful next time."
Deciding to tackle the small problem of breathing underwater after a good night's rest, Hermione, Ron, and Harry retired to their dormitories.
For the rest of the holiday break, they finished their homework and spent time researching. Harry insisted on going down to meals so that he could spend time with Cho, but Hermione wasn't keen on running into a particular Slytherin. She ate quickly and left before either Harry or Ron most days, with the excuse of stopping by the library to check out a few more books to peruse together back in the common room.
It wasn't completely an excuse; Hermione was certain that some sort of charm would enable Harry to do what he needed on the twenty-fourth of February, and if anywhere held the answer, it was the library. In truth, though, she wasn't ready to face Malfoy. Being able to look at the situation logically did not take away the sting of what he had hurled at her in anger. She worried most often about running into him while she raced through the library aisles pulling out books on advanced charms and transfiguration. Hermione was starting to miss the refuge of studying in the library itself, though. She wondered if Viktor ever looked for her there — the Durmstrang students hadn't been around much, either, and Karkaroff was probably keeping him focused on preparations for the second task.
During breakfast on the first day of the new term, Hermione began steeling herself to see Malfoy up close for the first time since the Yule Ball. She was confident he wouldn't approach her in Care of Magical Creatures after Herbology that morning, but she had Arithmancy in the afternoon. Speculate as she would, she couldn't determine the best course of action to take.
The first surprise came after trudging through a thick layer of snow to get to Care of Magical Creatures. Instead of Hagrid standing outside, a temporary teacher, Professor Grubbly-Plank, met them in front of Hagrid's cabin. Hermione wondered if Hagrid was sick. Standing on tiptoes to peek through the windows from afar, she found his curtains closed. Then from the corner of her eye, she saw a white-blonde head arriving in the middle of a pack of Slytherins.
Hermione hurried off behind Harry and Ron to follow Grubbly-Plank over to a paddock on the edge of the forest. Hermione lost her train of thought entirely when she saw the bright white unicorn tethered inside. She, Ron, and Harry resolved to pay Hagrid a visit later to make sure he was alright.
After lunch, Hermione walked slowly to her Arithmancy Class. She hadn't been sure what to say when she saw Malfoy again, but she decided it was probably best to say nothing, just return to how things were before. Feeling determined, Hermione strode confidently through the doorway — and lost her nerve.
Malfoy was sitting in his usual seat next to Nott, with the seat to his left, the one she now normally occupied, empty and beckoning. She couldn't do it. Malfoy had made it clear what he thought about her, and nothing would ever matter to him except her blood. Hermione would just have to find some other way to figure out what would eventually lead to the events on the Astronomy Tower.
She kept her eyes down and continued two rows past his to sit in the front of the room, next to two Ravenclaws, Terry Boot and Anthony Goldstein. Hermione was sure that Malfoy didn't look up as she left, either.
The visit to Hagrid's that evening did not prove informative. Bang as they would on his cabin door, he didn't answer. Unfortunately, a nasty surprise awaited when they returned to the Gryffindor common room; a newspaper clipping being shared around proved most informative. Rita Skeeter had somehow dug up evidence that Hagrid was a half-giant, as if anyone cared about that. Hermione was beginning to think that something should be done about Rita Skeeter. Maybe Dumbledore could step in. Ban her from school grounds at the least, if he hadn't already.
The next day, before the first Ancient Runes class of the new term, Hermione decided to try something new, if similar to her initial approach. She didn't necessarily have to get to know Malfoy himself. Slytherin House had a bad reputation in general, but that didn't mean every student sorted into Slytherin deserved it. She had a gut-feeling that this particular Slytherin didn't, at least.
When she sat next to Nott at the front of the room, he didn't look the least bit surprised.
Nott laughed softly, dark wavy hair falling into his eyes. "Knew you wouldn't give up."
On the other side of him, Zabini haughtily raised his eyebrows at her before turning back to talk to Daphne Greengrass, another fourth year Slytherin.
"Sorry?" Hermione said offhandedly, taking out her quill and inkwell.
"I… heard about what happened on Christmas." Hermione paused her preparations for class to look at him, and he continued. "After you gave up whatever scheme you had going in Arithmancy, I knew something was up. He'd been in a foul mood all holiday after that, too. Trust me, it wasn't easy to pry it out of Draco. I guess I have you to thank for Draco and I speaking more than two words outside of the classroom."
Hermione wasn't really sure what to make of that. "Well… anytime then, Nott," she said, shrugging.
"Theo." One corner of his mouth pulled up.
"Theo," she repeated, returning his half-smile. Then she gestured to herself. "Hermione."
"That's kind of a mouthful, yeah? Granger," Theo said, still smiling.
She snorted once before turning forward as Professor Babbling began the lesson. When the bell rang, Theo kept pace with her as they exited into the corridor, heading to dinner in the Great Hall.
"He's sorry, you know," Theo began. "For what he said."
"He's got a funny way of showing it," Hermione retorted.
"To be fair, Granger, he probably hasn't had much of a chance to apologise. Term's only just begun, and I haven't seen you around the library recently. Bit unusual, if you ask me."
Hermione scrunched up her face at him. "Would he actually apologise to me if he did have the chance?" she asked sceptically.
Theo sighed. "That, I don't know."
They walked in silence for a beat before Hermione spoke up. "So… you and Malfoy used to be close?"
"We did," he confirmed. "Practically grew up together. Our dads were old friends and all that, and neither of us had any siblings. We… had a bit of a falling out after we started here at Hogwarts. Call it a difference of opinion. We—" He broke off as they rounded the corner to the Entrance Hall, and Malfoy himself was coming up out of the dungeons opposite them. He stopped short and the sight of them together, looking alarmed.
"Well, got to run," Theo said, giving her a significant look. "Nice chatting with you, Granger."
"Theo," Hermione replied, nodding once. Theo jogged over to Malfoy and they immediately started talking in low voices. Whatever they were saying, Theo was gesticulating quite a lot. Hermione turned for the Great Hall to join Harry and Ron already seated at the Gryffindor table.
Hermione continued to sit next to Theo during Ancient Runes classes, but she didn't reclaim her seat next to Malfoy in Arithmancy. Malfoy kept his eyes trained down at his desk as she entered and left, scowling when she gave a little wave to Theo on her way to the front row of seats.
"Don't the other Slytherins find it odd that you're talking with me?" she asked Theo one afternoon as they left Ancient Runes. Hermione felt like she was starting to get a crick in her neck; all of these boys were growing like weeds, and Theo was no exception, tall and lanky as he already was.
"Not really. They kind of expect me to do my own thing. Anyway, they probably think I'm deciding how best to sabotage you so I can claim top marks in the class," he teased. "I'm second, you know."
Hermione snorted softly. "Right," she said.
"Not that I could. I can't even begin to figure out how you managed to fit in all those electives last year," Theo mused.
Hermione hurriedly changed the subject.
Theo turned out to be as easy going as Harry and Ron. Laid back, but still with a proper respect for his studies even so. She thought if there weren't ridiculous prejudices already ingrained between the Gryffindors and Slytherins, they would all get on quite well.
Hermione learned small things about him here and there. He was a Pureblood, but didn't seem to find that very relevant, and lived with his father on their estate. It appeared that his father was older and mildly reclusive, but Theo refused to say much more on the subject. He enjoyed flying, but wasn't interested in playing Quidditch. He didn't have many close friends, but sometimes spent time with Zabini outside of class. He enjoyed creating things, or improving on things already created.
In return, she told him small things about herself. Theo was interested to hear about her experience growing up in the Muggle world. He had had nearly zero exposure to Muggles or anything to do with them. The subject of Malfoy hadn't come up again since the first day.
In Mid-January, there was another Hogsmeade visit scheduled, and Harry and Ron convinced her to go. Even if they hadn't nailed down the perfect spell for Harry to use, Hermione agreed that they deserved a break. She was confident they were close to finding something after ruling out several entire books worth of spells. Though she added a few spells they'd come across to the separate list she kept for training sessions.
Just out of the castle on their way to the village, Hermione, Harry, and Ron spotted Viktor on the deck of his ship, dressed in swimming trunks and preparing to dive into the lake.
"I'll bet he's practising for the second task. Acclimating to the water temperature, maybe, or testing out a spell," Hermione said knowledgeably.
"Yeah, or he's a few sandwiches short of a picnic," Ron said. "Honestly, swimming in January."
Viktor spotted them and waved, before turning to dive head first into the icy water. Hermione returned his wave and smiled brightly.
"I dunno," Harry said, waving back a little too late. "Hearing Krum describe Durmstrang, sounds like this might be nothing compared to winters there. Wherever it is."
They spent the morning replenishing a few school supplies and filling their pockets with sweets from Honeydukes. Ron insisted on going to Zonko's again to see if they had any new stock since the last time. He grumbled about the prices, though, and ended up only buying a few Stink Pellets to lob at unsuspecting first years. Hermione frowned at him, thinking that she had just been reminded of something, but she couldn't put a finger on what.
They took an early lunch in the Three Broomsticks, Harry lamenting that Cho wouldn't be able to join them. Her O.W.L.s were fast approaching and she had a mountain of homework to complete. They hoped Hagrid might be in the pub today, too, but it looked like he was still staying out of the public eye.
Ludo Bagman came over wanting yet another private word with Harry, so Hermione and Ron took off for the bar to order their food and butterbeers. Ron made her do all the talking. For whatever reason, he could barely form a coherent sentence in front of Madam Rosmerta. Hermione rolled her eyes and placed the order.
Back at the table, Harry divulged that Bagman wanted to know how he was getting on with the tournament, and even offered to help. Apparently Bagman had offered once before this, if a little more circumspectly. Hermione chewed her lip nervously. If a tournament judge offering to help a contestant didn't constitute cheating, she didn't know what did. But it still didn't make sense why Bagman would have any interest in Harry. As an afterthought, Harry added that Bagman told him Mr. Crouch had stopped coming in to work, and Percy would probably be filling in as a judge.
"He'll be impossible to live with, now," Ron muttered.
Hermione finished her butterbeer and stood to go pay her food tab at the bar. She wove through the crowded pub, bumping into other patrons when she couldn't help it. These tables were entirely too close together — wizarding establishments didn't seem to know about maximum capacities.
She finally edged in between a tiny bald wizard and someone looking suspiciously like a hag to exchange silver with one of Rosmerta's barmen. She was turning away from the bar when Malfoy appeared at her elbow.
"Granger," he murmured out of the side of his mouth, keeping his eyes forward as they pushed back through the crowd sifting towards the bar. "Come back to the library this evening, will you?"
She hesitated, shaking her head. "I don't know."
It was the next word out of his mouth that decided her.
"Please," he forced out curtly, practically a growl. He was looking at her now.
Hermione bit her lip and met his gaze for a moment. "Okay."
He breathed a tiny sigh of relief just as Hermione ran straight into a blonde woman wearing bright yellow robes, who had been looking over her shoulder to talk to the man with a camera behind her.
"Oh, excuse me, I… you," Hermione finished heavily, suddenly filled with anger. Rita Skeeter looked Hermione over from behind jewelled spectacles. Malfoy had stopped, too, looking unsure about what he should do.
"Sorry? Do I know you, young lady?" Rita said, raising a thickly-coloured eyebrow.
"You foul woman. What right did you have to publish all those horribly misleading things about Hagrid? Do you even care what you've done to him?" Hermione spat.
She was seething. Malfoy's eyes widened slightly in recognition. He had surely seen Rita's articles in the Prophet. People around continued to jostle them to get through the pub, barely even glancing in their direction.
"Ah, I see," Rita said coldly. "The readers have a right to the truth, my dear, whether we like it or not."
"The truth, is that Hagrid isn't dangerous, you horrible, jumped-up—"
"No?" Rita cut in, eyes glinting malevolently. Her head swivelled towards Malfoy and her expression was suddenly business-like.
"Mister Malfoy! A pleasure," she extended her hand, and when Malfoy didn't take it, smoothly moved up to adjust her glasses. "I would recognize Lucius's and Narcissa's son anywhere. The hearing minutes available in public record indicate your direct involvement with one of the many dangerous incidents surrounding Hagrid, namely one Buckbeak the hippogriff. Surely you care to weigh in?"
Malfoy took a step back, suddenly looking eager to be anywhere but where he currently occupied. "I don't think I—"
"Disgusting!" Hermione jumped in fiercely. "Haven't you already done enough? You should be ashamed to—"
"Ah, Harry!" Rita cut her off again, suddenly beaming over Hermione's shoulder.
Harry and Ron came up to stand on Hermione's other side, the other pub patrons now grumbling about moving around so many people stopped in the aisle.
Harry went rigid.
"I have nothing more to say to you," he said, glaring at Rita, who now had a Quick-Quotes Quill in her hand and was digging out a scrap of parchment. "As if the lies about me weren't bad enough, you had to go trying to ruin Hagrid's life, too."
"Come now, Harry, we've got the facts out there, but let's hear your take on things. Who is the Hagrid you know? How did the Boy Who Lived begin such an unlikely friendship, and for what purpose? Would you say that Hagrid filled a giant-sized hole in your life as a father-figure?" Rita said this all very quickly, her acid green quill already zooming across the parchment.
Harry stared at her silently for a moment, his mouth tight with anger, then shook his head. "C'mon Hermione. We've just paid our tab. Let's go."
"We'll chat later then, Harry. Ta!" Rita said, smile still plastered in place, before snapping her crocodile-skin handbag back together and motioning the photographer to follow as she moved around Hermione, shooting her one last icy look.
"What are you doing here, Malfoy?" Ron said suddenly, and Hermione gave a start, having forgotten her surroundings in her anger. Malfoy had been watching Rita leave, but he pulled a sneer in place quick as thought.
"I believe I am free to go where I please without your approval, Weasley," Malfoy said hotly. Harry was watching Malfoy with narrowed eyes.
Hermione jumped in before things could escalate. "I had to ask him something for an Arithmancy project. But we're leaving. Now. I can't stand to be in the same place as that Skeeter woman any longer and we need to go see Hagrid."
She grabbed Harry and Ron each by an arm and steered them towards the exit. Looking back over her shoulder once, Malfoy nodded briefly before disappearing into the crowd.
Breathing heavily through her nostrils, Hermione steered Harry and Ron halfway out of the village before calming down enough to let go. That Skeeter woman was infuriating. Hermione was impressed by how calmly Harry had been able to handle her.
They crossed the countryside quickly, bashing Rita Skeeter all the way, and soon entered the grounds to the school. The winged boars on either side of the gate had a heavy dusting of snow on their backs. Passing by the lake, it looked like Viktor was out in the water again. Or still.
Ron noticed, too. "Hermione, don't you think you could, you know… ask him what he's going to do?" Ron asked. He spread his hands out meekly at the severe look she levelled in his direction.
"No, I won't," Hermione said flatly.
Hermione, Ron, and Harry ran up to Hagrid's cabin door, pounding against the wooden frame and demanding to be let in. If Hagrid had been trying to pretend he wasn't home, Fang's barking gave him away.
To their surprise, it was Dumbledore who answered the door and let them in. Dumbledore served tea and cakes while they pleaded with Hagrid to come back. Hermione was most satisfied to hear that Dumbledore had revoked Rita Skeeter's access to the grounds already, too.
They sat consoling Hagrid long after Dumbledore left, having missed his company, and Hagrid told stories about his family. By the time they left, Hagrid looked considerably more cheerful and was planning to be back to teaching his classes Monday morning.
Hermione ate dinner slowly, then told the boys that she was going to spend some time in the library, wrapping up homework and researching more potential spells for Harry. They offered half-heartedly to come and help her, but she insisted she would have better luck if she had time to focus.
As she left, she heard Harry and Ron making plans to take a spin on Harry's Firebolt. She shuddered at the thought of flying around in the dark, cold twilight.
Hermione entered the library, looking around discreetly as she moved down the main aisle. Being a Saturday night, it was relatively empty except for a few glum-looking fifth and seventh years. She had almost reached the tall stained-glass windows at the end of the aisle before her eye caught a golden glint nearby in a pale stream of moonlight.
Malfoy sat at a small table in the corner, obscured partway in shadow. She studied him for a moment. His reading lamp was tamped low to offer just enough light to view the thin book held open in front of his face with one hand. He appeared engrossed in whatever he was reading, leaning back slightly in his chair with a foot propped up on the wall. His other hand was idly toying with a quill on the table. He looked up at her approach and rose out of his chair, keeping his place in the book with a finger between the pages.
Hermione stopped across the table, and Malfoy watched her calmly.
"Well?" she finally asked.
"Well what, Granger?" He reached to pull out the chair next to his. "Are you going to have a seat or will we stand here all night?"
Hermione stared hard at him, taken aback. What was he up to? She looked around once to make sure none of Malfoy's "friends" were lying in wait for some misguided joke, before sighing and sitting in the chair he offered. She remained silent, waiting for Malfoy to give her some idea of why she was here.
He sat once she did, fiddling with his book, and finally sticking the quill into the pages in place of his finger. She squinted at the spine, trying to make out the title, but it was too dark. He tapped his fingers on the cover a few times before looking up. He considered her for a moment, then slid the book over in front of her.
Hermione looked down at the title, now clearly visible.
Cheering Charms and Other Party Tricks: Kretin's Guide for Being More of a Score and Less of a Snore
She blanched. "Malfoy, if this is your idea of a joke, I'm not interested. I can't believe I came here for this." She started to rise.
"No, no, wait a second," Malfoy said hurriedly. "Just open it."
"Why?" she asked suspiciously, pausing halfway out of her seat.
"You'll see," he promised with a hint of a smile on his lips.
She sat back down slowly, giving him a level look. If this turned out to be a joke, he would be sorry. She flipped the book open to where he had marked with his quill, and scanned down the page.
Babbling Beverage: Feeling shy in social settings? Can't think of anything to say? Concoct your very own babbling beverage using our new and improved recipe found on p. 193. Guaranteed* to loosen your tongue, and maybe your wits. *Results not guaranteed.
Banishing Charm: Don't let overindulgence get you down. Impress your friends with this quick mess remover. It's just like the vanishing charm, but with style. Incantation—
Hermione rolled her eyes and moved on.
Bubble-Head Charm: Don't show up to the party with obviously-just-got-off-a-broom hair. Use this charm to protect your luscious locks and let your hair down. Or simply start up a lively game of underwater polo, as this charm will keep the air flowing while you focus on the fun. Incantation as follows—
Hermione's eyes flew back to the last sentence and her breath caught. Underwater polo. A charm to give you oxygen while underwater. She gasped as the pieces flew together in her mind.
"That's it," Hermione whispered, hardly able to believe her eyes. She looked back up at Malfoy, who was now outright smirking.
"How did you know?" she said breathlessly, staring at him in wonder.
"It wasn't hard, really," he drawled, still smiling in satisfaction. "Potter was carrying around that ridiculous egg on Boxing Day, and since then, I've seen you running around here like mad checking out all sorts of books on advanced magic. Figures Potter had you doing all the work for him. Then Krum was asking all these questions about the Great Lake and spending loads of time actually swimming in that filth. Just putting two-and-two together, yeah?"
"Yeah…" she repeated, in somewhat of a daze. "But how…"
"Did I find the charm?" Malfoy suggested helpfully. Hermione nodded. "That wasn't hard, either, Just took a look at the last book Diggory checked out."
Hermione gave him an indignant look and opened her mouth.
"It wasn't this one," he forestalled her, placating her worries with a wave of his hand. "Some book on magical Mediterranean water plants. There's an herb called Gillyweed that will lend the user a temporary set of gills to breathe underwater, but it's really rare. Assume he must have found some, though, since he's stopped looking. But then I knew for sure what you needed, and was certain that a simple charm would do the trick. Just looked through the most elementary and unconventional books I could find. Et Voilà."
"Malfoy, this is… incredible. I don't know what to say."
"Well, it's extremely unfortunate that it has to help Potter, too, but I thought that if I…" His expression suddenly turned serious. "Granger, look. About what I said. I didn't really mean it. I don't think of you as a… like that, anymore. At least not really. It's hard to reconcile what I thought I knew with things over the past few months, yeah? And it's not exactly that I don't want to be friends, but if other people saw us—"
Hermione frowned. "That's hardly an apology, Malfoy—"
"No!" he cut back in. "I just mean—" He growled in frustration. "I'm not saying it right. Look, just think about it. How would Potter and Weasley react if they saw us having a normal conversation? There's a reason you've always waited 'til they're not around, right? It would make both our lives immeasurably more difficult, to say the least."
"I suppose you have a point," Hermione said slowly.
"I am sorry. For Pansy and the others, too," Malfoy said quietly, now studying the table.
"Thank you," Hermione said back, just as softly. "I can't believe you did all this."
Malfoy picked the quill back up from where she'd set it on the table and began twirling it absently in his fingers. "Yeah, well. Maybe now we can just… go back to how things were before? Especially since Potter and Weasley aren't part of the deal."
Hermione managed a laugh. "Yes, I'd like that." She watched the quill spin for a moment, before meeting his eyes. "And thank you. For finding the charm. You've saved us a lot of work, especially since I was looking in all the wrong places."
"I'm sure you would have found something eventually, Granger," Malfoy offered with a half-smirk.
"Lucky for me, I still get to take all the credit," Hermione teased, fingering the book in front of her.
Malfoy smiled genuinely now. She surprised herself by thinking he looked much more pleasant now that he was no longer jeering at her. When she pushed back her chair to leave, he stood up again with her. Like Harry, Ron, and Theo, Malfoy was also getting taller, remaining slender but still rather fit. The shorter hair style he'd cut for the Yule Ball suited him, and his eyes meeting her own were decidedly warmer now, too. Silver rather than steel. Hermione realised what she was doing and shut down that line of thinking before finding where it led.
"See you Monday, Granger?" Malfoy asked uncertainly, pale brows raised.
"If you insist, Malfoy," Hermione said slyly, throwing a smirk over her shoulder as she left for Gryffindor Tower.