For the first time, the pounding of the heart drowns out all sound.
Only the gleam of those eyes, only his warm hands,
The persistent smell of the storm and the warmth of his body.
Only him. Only you. Isn't that what you wanted?
The young man kicked the stone wall with force.
One, two, three.
"Shit! It's locked!"
"Malfoy," Hermione began timidly, watching from the sidelines, "don't you think it's your leg that's more likely to break than a thousand-year-old wall?"
The blonde-haired young man turned around irritably at her words:
"Instead of being sarcastic, you should have thought of something sensible."
He pointed his wand again at the main entrance to Hogwarts.
"Malfoy, you've tried that three times already. What makes you think the fourth will work?"
"Patience and hard work will get you there. You know the old saying?"
"I know. Surprised that you too," the guy whispered something irritated. His mood, spoiled by her stupid request to tell about the life of the Slytherins, was spoiled by the completely closed door of Hogwarts.
"Granger, I dare to remind you that visiting the Dark Lord is not my friend bending over. So you better turn on your brains and think about why the door is closed."
"Because the holidays will only end tomorrow. Plus it's two in the morning. Were you expecting to be greeted by the entire teaching staff?" the girl sarcastically raised an eyebrow.
She was also worried and did not know what to do. But she could not refrain from malice. It's just that this guy, slowly boiling and irritatingly kicking the heavy oak doors, was so alive and real.
"So! This seems to be the only way out."
With that, Malfoy picked up his broom from the ground and quickly jumped on it. Hermione watched silently.
"Well?"
"Well what?"
"Are you staying here or are you trying to enter the castle with me?"
The girl, wrying a displeased face, approached Malfoy and, without waiting for the outstretched hand (there was nothing to sarcastically), took the boy's shoulders and sat down behind. Malfoy kicked off the ground with his feet, and they soared into the sky.
"Malfoy, what are we doing?" without opening her eyes, the girl ventured to clarify the plans.
"We are looking for an open window. You are looking from the first to the fifth. I am all that is higher."
"Malfoy, I'm afraid of heights. I can't look down."
"Oh Merlin! So that I ever get to do something serious with the girl! I look at the lower floors, you are the upper ones."
Hermione swallowed the hurt in silence. You are the one to blame. She knew that she was not capable of long-term feats. To be honest, Malfoy should just be given a medal given their particular relationship. The girl sighed and began to peer into the dark windows of the castle. What if they can't get inside? How do I know they are here?
"Malfoy," the girl suddenly dawned, "let's send Dumbledore an owl!"
"Come on," the Slytherin responded briskly in a suspiciously cheerful voice. "What pocket do you have an owl in?"
"I don't have an owl, I have a cat, and he's at home," Hermione muttered, realizing her stupidity.
"Well, don't be upset," Malfoy said with feigned sympathy. "Your idea was just great. Well, think, a little problem: we want to send Dumbledore an owl to let us into the castle, but to send an owl, you first need to get to the owl, which is located in the aforementioned castle, and in addition ..."
"Malfoy, don't be silly!"
"Well, then spare me from listening to your grandiose plans!"
"Have you ever wondered why everyone hates you?" the girl asked irritably.
"I assure you, Granger, not everyone. Those I need are crazy about me."
"But this is all insincere. You just get the sympathy of some, while others ..."
"Why insincere? It's just that I have nothing to do with the majority. And the select few sympathize with me very sincerely. Ask them yourself if you don't believe me."
Hermione was not going to ask, because she already knew that half of the girls in the school were crazy about him. Especially those who are fortunate enough to share evenings and nights with him. And yet…
"Malfoy, you can't be indifferent to those around you, can you?"
"Why can't they?"
"Because this is not right."
"Why?" repeated the youth. They have already flown half of the castle around, and so far nothing. Empty faceless windows.
"It's just ... you live with people, it's wrong."
"Oh, Granger, I always thought you were smart," Malfoy struck her.
It's good that I held on tightly - it didn't take long to fall off the broomstick. Perhaps this is a new way to get rid of her. And he continued:
"You speak like a teacher who does not know your subject well," you give out "truths" invented by someone, without even bothering to think why I should care about strangers and unfamiliar people. I am not Potter, not the hero of the entire wizarding world. I don't need universal adoration.
"Harry doesn't need that either."
"Yes? Where did he get then this complex" let everyone save! Let me be loved even more! "?"
"Harry is loved anyway."
"Come on, Granger! It's just fashionable to love him. And you yourself know what he thinks, what he fears, besides the well-known Dark Lord, what does he want from life? Huh?"
"I know, I guess ..." Hermione said uncertainly.
"You see. You rushed after him into the scorching heat simply because he is a symbol, a star, without him the whole struggle will lose its meaning. He is such a passing banner. But in fact, you do not know anything about him."
"Not true! Harry is not a rolling banner. For me, no."
"Well, intimate details don't interest me," Malfoy said quickly.
"And I'm not going to initiate you into them. You yourself look like a bad teacher, you do not understand what you are talking about at all, and you do not know anything about Harry!"
"Are you sure?" Malfoy held out lazily. "It will surprise you how much I know about Potter."
"Why do you need it?" Hermione waited tensely for an answer, staring at the light-colored crown of his head.
"Hey Granger! Minus ten points to Gryffindor," in Snape's best tradition, Malfoy suddenly barked, making Hermione jump up and grab his waist harder.
"I don't understand ..." the girl muttered.
"Which of us was in charge of the upper floors? You cannot be entrusted with anything. "
With these words, he sharply pointed the broom skyward, and then Hermione saw an open window at the very top of the huge tower.
"What is this window?" Hermione tried not to look down and hold on as tight as possible. Malfoy turned out to be the same racer.
"As far as I can tell, Trelawney's office."
They flew to the open sash, and Malfoy, stopping the broomstick, began to carefully peer into the window.
"So, you won't be able to fly inside."
"Why?"
"Look for yourself," Malfoy leaned slightly to the left, giving Hermione a glimpse into the room.
He was right. Not the whole window was open, but only one sash about fifty centimeters wide. The second was tightly covered. Apparently, it was not without a spell. And opposite the open part of the window was a huge dressing table, so it seemed that it was problematic to fly into the room on a broomstick.
"Malfoy," Hermione called, "can we try?"
"Nah," the guy shook his head vigorously. "It won't work. The angle is too small to turn. We won't fit in. We'll have to climb inside."
Hermione swallowed nervously, and Malfoy approached the window and began to study it carefully. Finally he spoke.
"I'll go first. Can you hang for five seconds alone and not accidentally fly away?"
Hermione shook her head nervously. Malfoy, without turning around, felt her answer and sighed heavily. Then he whispered something to the Gryffindor nerds. Hermione didn't hear and, on reflection, decided it was for the best. For some reason, it was persistently thought that he hardly said something flattering.
"Okay," Malfoy finally muttered and began to move carefully to the windowsill.
Hermione watched in horror as he put first one foot, then the other on the sloping ledge. His left hand was still firmly holding the broom, preventing it from moving.
"So, look. You keep the broom straight and not deviate anywhere. I'm here and, if anything, I will help."
With these words, he let go of his hand and, without taking his eyes off the girl, by touch tried to open the sash wider.
Naturally, as soon as he let go of his hand, the broom immediately began to tremble and vibrate. Probably magic brooms also feel when they are afraid. Suddenly, Hermione was sharply pulled to the side, and she, unable to hold the shaft, began to slide off the broom. Malfoy, seeing that the broom was jerking away from the window, tried to hold it, while one of his legs from a sharp movement slipped off the cornice. He began to fall, but luckily his flight path crossed the path of the broomstick. Malfoy swore and hung with both hands on the broomstick like an athlete on a horizontal bar. All these jerking of the broom from side to side made Hermione finally release the shaft from her hands and rush towards the probably inhospitable ground.
The girl closed her eyes and ... felt a sharp jerk. Some unknown force grabbed her arm just above the elbow and squeezed her like a vice. Upon closer inspection, the above unknown power turned out to be Draco Malfoy, who now held them both in balance, clinging to the shaft of a raging broom with only one right hand.
Hermione began to panic quietly. How strong is his strength? They cannot go down. You can't steer a broomstick in this position. Having reached the extreme stage of despair, Hermione heard a strained voice:
"It's okay. Nobody falls!" I wonder if he believes himself?
But somehow this strained voice brought her back to reality and, oddly enough, calmed her down. The girl asked:
"Tell me, what should I do? I don't understand anything about brooms."
"If you can get your wand, cast a levitation spell on the broomstick and try pointing it towards the window."
It took a matter of seconds to get the wand out. Hermione was in a great hurry. Although Malfoy was silent, she felt that it was getting more and more difficult for him by the minute to hold on to the slippery tree. The girl whispered a spell and jerked her broom too hard against the window. Malfoy abruptly pulled her close to him and she, realizing what was required of her, wrapped her hand with a wand around his waist in order to somehow lighten her weight.
Finally the broomstick touched the ill-fated cornice with a thud, and the girl lifted it a little higher. Malfoy felt the same support with his feet and, not letting go of Hermione, threw the broom into the room. Something shattered with a clang. Probably one of the divination professor's crystal balls.
Malfoy swore and deftly climbed onto the windowsill, looked around the room and pulled Hermione with him. Only after making sure that she was firmly on her feet, he easily jumped to the floor of the office.
Hermione jumped down and looked around. It turns out that the broomstick hit a tea set on a low table. However, no one came out to the sound, the room still seemed dead and deserted. The girl turned her gaze to the Slytherin and was amazed - after all, Malfoy was also human. It was somehow forgotten at times. But now Hermione watched with dismay as the effects of stress were making themselves felt. Making sure that everything is calm in the room, the guy leaned his back against the wall next to the window and, closing his eyes, silently slid down and froze. Hermione approached cautiously and tried to make out his face in the darkness. Fortunately, moonlight was pouring from the window, making the young man sitting at her feet look like a silver angel, only very tired. His eyelids were tightly closed and beads of sweat beaded on his forehead. It was only then that Hermione noticed that he was automatically rubbing his left shoulder.
"Malfoy," the girl whispered softly.
He immediately opened his eyes and removed his hand from his shoulder. The close look silenced Hermione.
"Granger, learn to fly on a broomstick, eh. Nothing complicated!
"Sorry," the girl muttered and added, "what's wrong with your shoulder?
Malfoy immediately kicked off the wall and straightened up with a loose spring:
- Everything is fine with me. Where did you get it?
- You were holding your shoulder. I saw.
- You should look less and do more, - the guy muttered. - My shoulder, I want and hold on!
- Yes, I do not pretend to be your shoulder! Just let me give you first aid. This is for sure a stretch, if not a tear, so it should not be left. I can give first aid.
`` Granger, let's get Potter out and brag about your skill to him, but leave me alone!
With that, he lifted the broom from the floor and headed for the door.
The girl followed him angrily. Why do you need to be such a stubborn donkey! After all, it makes it worse for itself. She doesn't feel sorry for him at all. But watching him carefully descend the rope ladder leading out of the office, Hermione admitted to herself that she was cunning. She was, of course, sorry. Moreover, he was injured because of her.
"We really need to learn to fly," the girl promised herself, and immediately grinned. After erasing the memory, she is unlikely to remember about it.
Malfoy waited downstairs and Hermione began to descend. She had almost reached the floor when the overhead hatch slammed shut, causing the girl to jump up and down the stairs in surprise. It was not high, and, of course, she would have landed calmly on her feet, if those very legs had not been entangled in the cursed rope. Malfoy grabbed her close to the floor, not letting her fall. Feeling support under her feet, Hermione raised her head to him, expecting an angry tirade: after all, he must be in pain. But instead, she met the eyes in which the devils were dancing. It seems the guy was having a hard time restraining his laughter.
"What?" the girl asked indignantly.
Maybe she should have kept quiet, but she hated to be laughed at.
"You know," said Malfoy in a strange voice, "I begin to sympathize with Potter and the Weasleys sincerely. How did they manage to live to the age of seventeen, spending so much time with you? That, it turns out, is why Potter does not get out of the infirmary. And these stories about saving the World are already then come up with? "
Hermione opened her mouth - to express to this insolent person what she thinks. But she said nothing. What could she say? That when she went out with Harry and Ron, she always knew that friends were nearby, that they would help, support, but you don't know what to expect from him? To be honest, she was never so nervous around all the guys she knew put together. It's all his fault that she's so awkward today. Well, do not admit it to him! Hermione closed her mouth and took a step towards the flight of stairs. Snorting and grunting was distinctly heard from behind.
"Malfoy," Hermione snapped and turned around.
He walked behind, trying to make a serious face, which obviously did not work well. The girl looked into his face and burst out laughing. A minute later they were laughing like crazy, it is not clear what. Probably, it was due to nervous tension. After laughing, Hermione suddenly said:
"Look, why did Trelawney have a window open? She never airs the classroom."
"I don't know," Malfoy said cheerfully, leveling with her and walking silently up the stone steps of the tower, "maybe she airs it once a year before September 1st. Or maybe her habits have changed."
"If you changed, would you notice?"
"To the wrong address. I gave up divination at the end of my third year."
"Seriously?" asked Hermione.
"Oh well. I'm tired of wasting time listening to all sorts of nonsense."
"By the way," said Hermione, "in theory, Trelawney should have known that we would break into her office and take appropriate action."
"So she accepted - she opened the window."
Both chuckled again.
So far, everything went calmly and without excesses. Until the moment they entered one of the corridors. Mrs. Norris emerged from the opening door at the opposite end of the corridor, and shuffling footsteps announced that she was not alone.
Still not realizing what she was doing, Hermione grabbed Malfoy by the sleeve and immediately felt that his arm twisted, and he also squeezed her sweater around the elbow. Hermione was still looking around frantically for cover, and the Slytherin had already jerked her to the side and dragged her into the niche behind the armor. It was dark in the corridor, and only torches were burning here and there. Fortunately, this very niche was plunged into twilight.
Hermione listened to the pounding heart in her ears and looked at the young man standing opposite. He was very close, and they were still clutching each other's sleeves. The girl with a strange sinking heart looked at his face. She would never have dared to do this if she had not seen that he was now completely oblivious to her. He pressed his head against the wall and looked attentively towards the corridor, turning his head to the left. At the same time, Hermione saw his stubborn chin and tightly compressed lips. The girl suddenly wondered what it would be like to kiss Draco Malfoy, and immediately she was frightened of her strange desires. All sorts of nonsense crawl! To distract herself somehow, she turned her head to the right and looked into the dark corridor. I can not see anything. The girl glanced over the companion and found that a magic wand had come from somewhere in his left hand, and he squeezed it tightly, preparing to use it if necessary. The hand trembled slightly. It seemed to be painful to strain her.
Filch shuffled beside him and immediately disappeared. After waiting a few more seconds, Malfoy lowered his wand and unhooked from Hermione's sleeve.
"Let's go to?" he whispered, still peering into the twilight of the corridor.
Instead of answering, Hermione suddenly burst out laughing.
"What?" the guy looked at her in bewilderment.
"Malfoy, why were we hiding?" barely holding back her laughter, the girl whispered. "We need to get to Dumbledore as quickly as possible, and we haven't done anything wrong."
Hermione could barely stay on her feet and couldn't stop giggling. Not realizing what she was doing, she buried herself in the boy's shoulder and felt that he was shaking soundlessly with laughter. Calming a little, Malfoy whispered back:
"I guess it's all a matter of habit. Seeing Filch, I always feel guilty."
"Me too," Hermione replied quietly, and the smile faded from her face as she noticed the distance between them, or rather its complete absence.
The girl was thrown into a fever. She felt his heartbeat close by, the smell of his eau de toilette, which made her head spin. This was the first time that had happened to her. Hermione raised her head hesitantly and met his eyes. Now there was neither the usual mockery nor anger in them, just something ...
"We have to go," said Malfoy sharply and unhooked Hermione, who, it turns out, had time to put her hands on his shoulders. Hermione stared in horror at her palms, quickly clenching her fists and putting her hands out of harm's way. What a day this is today!
Malfoy, meanwhile, quickly slid along the wall, not looking at the girl and trying not to touch her. Hermione followed silently. Did he feel something too? Otherwise, after all, he would have said some nasty thing and, in general, would not have shied away from her so much, and this maddening hoarseness would not have appeared in his voice yet. Hermione stared at the back of the young man walking in front of her. Will she ever understand him? Malfoy stopped suddenly.
"Didn't you hear anything?" The guy asked without turning around.
His voice was offensively calm and even, while Hermione herself still could not stop her desperately beating heart.
"No," she grunted, when suddenly ...
"Miss Granger?"
The girl turned sharply and bumped nose to nose with the Potions teacher.
Malfoy had already managed to hide around the bend and for some reason was in no hurry to emerge from there, leaving Hermione to get out on her own. She stared at Snape. Despite the deep night, he was dressed in a work robe and, as always, was not happy with life. It is clear that her appearance could not improve the mood of the most unloved teacher, but hope always dies last.
"Let me ask you, what are you doing here at this time? Did you miss your lessons?" yes, if the hope for a warm welcome was still flickering in the depths of the soul, then the "gentle" tone of this sweet person somehow supplanted it.
"Good evening," said the polite Hermione and mentally promised to beat Malfoy for the fact that he did not deign to announce his presence. "We are dealing with ..."
"You?" Snape's voice was eerily malicious. "And what is this business?"
"This is about Harry," Hermione began, but she was interrupted by the unctuous voice of the Dean of Slytherin.
"Ah, that's it! This year, Mr. Potter decided to announce his arrival at the school in advance and sent the head of Gryffindor with this honorable duty. And what kind of meeting to organize a world celebrity, eh?"
Hermione stared at the speaker with hatred. Not. He won't listen. Now it will exhaust all the nerves and send it to hell, but at this time ...
"Good night, professor," came a calm voice from behind her.
"Mr. Malfoy?" Snape's eyebrows went up. "What are you doing here at such an hour and in such an environment?" an expressive glance towards Hermione.
"I'll explain on the way. We need Professor Dumbledore," Malfoy spoke in a confident and calm tone. Hermione was involuntarily jealous. She herself in front of Snape could never connect two words, if it was not about the answer in the lesson.
"Come on," Snape responded immediately.
Something in the eyes of the best student made him not doubt for a moment.
Snape and Malfoy walked shoulder to shoulder down the hallway, while Hermione, angry at the whole world, followed.
"Well, Malfoy, you still dance with me!" The girl could not contain her resentment. Why is this damn Snape here? It was so good without him. The assistant has found out! She stubbornly refused to admit that this was one of the best scenarios for the development of events. After all, neither she nor Malfoy knew the password to the headmaster's office. Do not sit in front of the Gargoyle until morning. Although ... Recently, such an option would suit Hermione very much. She did not want to lose that fragile and incomprehensible phenomenon, to which she could not yet give either a name or a characteristic. It's just that Malfoy was ... She didn't know what to think yet. Only with resentment she realized that she did not have enough time to understand something important.
How was she to know that Malfoy at that moment thanked Merlin for Snape's appearance. Because he could not be with her now. Everything was too unexpected and wrong, out of place and at the wrong time. He needed to understand himself. Too many questions. And the young man did not like questions without answers. And it is even better not to understand anything, but rather to end this mess and erase her memory. For her there will be nothing: neither his room, nor this incomprehensible flight on a broomstick, nor this niche in the half-dark corridor of Hogwarts. And he himself will not think about it. He can. In what, in what, and in perseverance you will not deny him. Yes! So it will be necessary to do so. Make her forget with spells. And make yourself forget. It will be easy. In any case, he really hoped for it. "
After the decision was made, it became calm. And fate played a cruel joke.