When Belle woke up, her mind still buzzed from her conversation with Hermione. As she dressed in Hermione's Hogwarts robes, she still couldn't shake the feeling of being an imposter. Shaking her head to clear it, she gathered her books and notes for the day's classes. Ginny and the other girls had already left the dormitory, so Belle hurried down to the Great Hall hoping she'd have time for breakfast.
As she turned a corner on her way down and rounded into a corridor, a familiar drawling voice called out, "Granger... or should I say, Belle?"
Belle tensed, turning to see Draco Malfoy leaning against a pillar, his pale grey eyes fixed on her. She glanced around, ensuring no one was within earshot. "What do you want, Draco?" she whispered.
He pushed off the pillar, closing the distance between them. "I've been thinking about your... situation. I want to help."
Belle's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "Help? Why would you want to help me?"
Draco's expression softened slightly. "Let's just say I have my reasons. Meet me in the library during lunch. I have some ideas about research we could do."
Before Belle could respond, students began filtering into the hallway. Draco gave her a significant look before melting into the crowd.
Confused and intrigued, Belle continued on her way to the Great Hall. As she sat down next to Ginny, her mind raced with possibilities. Could she trust Draco? What did he know that could help her?
Belle mechanically began to eat, not paying attention to what she put in her mouth as she contemplated Draco's offer. She didn't know much about him aside from the fact that everyone close to Hermione didn't trust him. Yet she felt a pull to Draco that she couldn't resist.
"Earth to Hermione," Ginny said, waving a hand in front of Belle's face. "You okay? You seem distracted." Belle suspected that Ginny refrained from saying more because of the other students sitting nearby.
Belle forced a smile. "Just thinking about Charms class," she lied, feeling a pang of guilt about deceiving Ginny. She wasn't sure why she didn't tell Ginny about Draco's offer to help. Perhaps because of the way she'd reacted last night. It was clear Ginny didn't trust Draco Malfoy.
After breakfast, Belle and Ginny headed to Professor Flitwick's classroom. As Belle took her seat, she couldn't help but feel a mix of excitement and nervousness. Despite the stress of her situation, the opportunity to learn real magic still thrilled her.
"Today, we will be practicing again the Ascension Charm," squeaked Professor Flitwick from atop his stack of books. "Don't forget to cushion yourself!"
Belle's heart raced with excitement. Charms was one of the classes proving to be natural to her. It was a fun class, full of practical magic rather than theoretical notetaking that went above Belle's head. As the class began practicing, students began to rocket into the air and then crash into their desks. Many shouts of pain echoed throughout the room.
"What did I say?" Professor Flitwick cried. "Remember the cushioning charm!"
Belle visualized herself shooting into the air and descending slowly to the ground. Again, it happened immediately. Exhilarated, she laughed.
"I love magic," she said under her breath.
"The cushioning charm looks a little different than a slow descent," Ginny whispered. "It's more like landing on a large fluffy pillow. Or cushion."
"Ah," said Belle. "Thanks for the tip."
Belle tried again, this time imagining herself rocketing into the air and then landing on a firm, invisible cushion. The impact was much harder than her original method, but still better than crashing into a desk like many other students were doing.
"Nice work," Ginny said from her position on the floor, rubbing her knees. "Hoping I'll manage that next time. It's hard to remember to cushion when you're thrown into the air and find yourself free falling to the floor."
"You've got this," Belle said, her elation unable to suppress her grin. "I believe in you."
After class ended, Belle and Ginny gathered their things and hurried from the classroom. As Belle with Ginny through the corridors, her thoughts returned to Draco's offer.
Maybe accepting his help wasn't such a bad idea after all. She could at least see what he had to say. The mystery of it intrigued her too much to not at least go investigate.
"I'm going to go to the library," Belle said. "I have some things I'd like to look into before class this afternoon."
"Okay," Ginny said. "Would you like company?"
"No," Belle said. "It's all right."
Belle still wasn't sure why she didn't want to tell Ginny about Draco and his offer to help. Perhaps because Belle knew Ginny didn't approve and wanted to get a sense of him for herself without Ginny influencing her even more.
"I'll see you later, then," Ginny said. "I'll head back to the Common Room for a bit."
Waving goodbye to Ginny, Belle headed towards the library. She had some time before lunch, but perhaps she could get a head start on whatever research Draco had in mind.
As she reached the library, Belle pushed open the heavy doors, her mind racing with thoughts of Draco's offer and the complexities of her situation. Belle walked around the library to see if Draco was there already. Not finding him, she browsed the stacks letting her feet carry her where they would.
Looking around, she noticed that she'd wandered into a section with a lot of books about Arithmancy. How perfect, she thought, recalling that this was the subject Hermione had used to craft the spell that switched them. She pulled out a few books and retreated to a quiet corner with her stack.
Draco arrived shortly after, his eyes darting around to ensure they were alone before sitting across from Belle.
"You're early," he said. He eyed the stack of Arithmancy texts. "I see you've started without me."
Belle nodded. "We're studying complex spell formulation and enhancement in Arithmancy. I discovered she used these theories from to create the spell that switched us."
Draco's eyebrows rose in surprise. "That's advanced magic. Leave it to Granger to dabble in experimental spellcraft."
"From what I understand," Belle continued, "It involves manipulating the numerical variables within a spell's formula to alter its effects. Hermione crafted a spell and it seems to have had her intended effect, but now she doesn't know how to reverse it."
"How do you know she doesn't know how to reverse it?" Draco asked, his eyes boring into hers.
"I see her in my dreams," Belle admitted. "She told me to be careful around you." Belle snapped her mouth shut. Why had she said that?
But instead of being angry, Draco laughed wryly. "She has every reason to say that," he said. "My track record…hasn't been the best."
"That's what she said," Belle murmured softly. "It makes me question what I'm doing here."
"I don't know why you came either," Draco said. "But I'm glad you did."
Draco pulled one of the books towards him, flipping through it with growing interest. "This approach could be the key. If we can understand how she crafted her spell, we might be able to reverse engineer it and find out how to reverse it."
They spent the next hour poring over Arithmancy theories, with Draco explaining the magical concepts to Belle as they went as if he were thinking aloud. Despite the complexity of the subject, Belle found herself fascinated, her quick mind grasping the overall concepts even if she didn't understand the details.
As they delved deeper into their research, Belle couldn't help but notice Draco's dedication to the task. "Why are you doing this, Draco?" she asked softly. "You barely know me, and I know you and Hermione weren't exactly friends."
Draco's face tightened, and he was quiet for a long moment. "People can change," he finally said, his voice low. "After everything that happened... I want to make things right. And getting Hermione back... it's important."
There was something in his tone that made Belle pause. She studied him carefully, noting the intensity in his eyes whenever Hermione's name was mentioned.
Before she could pursue that line of thought, the library clock chimed, signaling the approaching hour.
"Oh, I better see if I can grab a quick bite before class," Belle said. "I have Arithmancy, funnily enough. Maybe I'll pick up something there."
"Yes, pay careful attention," Draco said, gathering the books. "I think we made a good start. Let's meet again after dinner?"
Belle nodded, her mind whirling with new information and theories. "Thank you, Draco. For your help."
As they prepared to leave, Belle felt a mix of emotions - hope at their progress, gratitude for Draco's help, and a growing curiosity about the complex young man before her. But underlying it all was a nagging feeling that there was more to Draco's motivation than he was letting on — a mystery she was determined to unravel.