CHAPTER 5
How Draco manged to score this assignment was a fluke. There is no way his arrogance and blackmail had carried him this far, right?
The senior Aurors weren't that stupid, were they?
He smirked at the thought.
Well, he'd managed it none the less and now here he stood in Apartment 9b t Hogwarts, adjusting his dining robe for his grand entrance at dinner.
On his arrival here, he'd manged to use the floo network which, through careful planning by the Auror office landed directly beside his front door.
The smell of old stone flooded his senses when he emerged from the green flames, slowly stripping away the ink and parchment that had lived there for so long.
It didn't take him too long to figure out that his room was only 3 doors down from Granger's. He hadn't fully scoped out who his other neighbours were yet, but that would soon be uncovered.
"What do you think?" Malfoy combed his right hand through his stark white hair as he drifted his eyes to the reflection of a small black cat sitting on his bed.
The well-groomed creature shot him a judgemental look and turned away from her owner. "Get over it." Draco spat, knowing that she was on protest over the move from a modern flat to a dusty old castle.
Malfoy stood for a few moments more, he was told in his induction meeting with a rather dull witch called Clare-something-or -other to wait for Professor Shaun Buckley to escort him to the great hall, he was certain that Buckley would bore his ear off about lesson plans and curriculum on the way down to dinner.
Naturally Draco would nod along politely but internally ignore every word that dribbled out during the conversation.
He was lucky enough that his teaching ability wasn't much of a requirement of this assignment. All the lesson plans had been drawn up for him by the office and all he had to do was read directly from a textbook and just make sure the kids didn't curse each other.
He smiled at a memory of the time his old - now estranged friends Blaise and Theo practiced duelling and accidently blew out the glass windows. His smile soon faded though, how long had it been since he saw them last? Not since the war.
Malfoy shook his head, a stand of hair falling across his brow. He wasn't here to think about the past, he was here to make his future.
A sharp knock interrupted his thoughts as Buckley called through the door introducing himself. Draco fixed his hair and grinned again, freshly focused on his task ahead.
"Are you ready Professor Malfoy?" Shaun called again.
Oh, I like the sound of that.He chuckled. "Now the real question is Buckley, are you?"
Hermione sat twirling a strand of hair around her index finger absentmindedly as everyone waited for Buckley to arrive.
The food wouldn't appear until the notices had been read out from the headmistress, and Hermione could swear she heard some stomachs rumble including her own at the delay or her colleague.
Light chatter from the students filled the great hall and just as Hermione was about to slip onto her own thoughts, the main door hinges creaked, and Buckley appeared.
Trust him to make an entrance.
"Never mind about the side door, right behind us." She muttered rolling her eyes.
"Finally." She heard McGonagall say before pushing her chair backwards and standing. She walked over towards the centre dais and waited patiently.
With her eyes on McGonagall, Hermione didn't notice the 6'4, blonde, broad man stalking behind him and when she did, she gasped.
Loudly.
Blood ran cold in her veins when she saw him - saw this man walking towards the head table.
A man she recognised but, at the same time did not.
"Is that?" Cormac asked, shifting in his seat next to Hermione.
Is it?
No, it can't be.
Suddenly it felt like no one else in the room existed, the hundreds of students had vanished, her colleagues. Gone.
Hermione's eyes narrowed in as her throat went dry.
There was no possible way that the sharp jawline that tensed under her gaze belonged to the scrawny 17-year-old boy she once knew.
Impossible.
It wasn't just his jaw she scrutinised; it was the way his shoes clicked heavily on the stone floor, the noise carrying the weight of the muscles he bared on each step. His open robes exposed a glimpse of the tailored black suit and matching open shirt which hinted at some black ink inscribed on his porcelain skin.
Hermione swallowed, hard.
He looked so…so…Formidable.
Of course he saw her. He tried not to be taken in by her presence but her loud gasp snapped his attention within moments, and when he locked his grey eyes to her honey ones - his jaw tensed.
Her wild chocolate curls were unmistakable and framed her faceperfectly.
No, not perfectly, normally.He scolded himself.
Malfoy was, annoyingly transfixed, especially when her brow furrowed with judgment and her full lips parted slightly.
Carelessly he didn't notice his increased speed and nearly walked into the back of Professor Buckley.
The near collision pulled his eyes from her and settled on McGonagall. She was of course aware of his presence. She offered him a polite smile and extended her hand for him to shake it.
He took it reluctantly, stepping up to the dais. The touch of her old, calloused hands made him squirm. He transferred this feeling into a strong grip and as he did, McGonagall leant forward and whispered close "Don't make me regret this Professor."
Malfoy flashed her a wide grin. "You won't."
The headmistress only responded by gesturing her head in the direction of two empty chairs, frustratingly on the opposite side to where Granger sat.
Buckley led him to their chairs and McGonagall cleared her throat.
"Good evening students, thank you for being patient whilst we wait for our new arrival." The words were laced with annoyance. "As some of you may be aware, Professor Buckley has been offered an exciting opportunity to teach in the United States. An opportunity we here at Hogwarts are proud to endorse and gives us enormous pride in being a part of his journey on to his next chapter. This, students, is a prime example of no matter at what stage of life you're at, you can still make life changing decisions. Paths don't necessarily lead to one destination." McGonagall said. Now would you all please be upstanding and raise a glass to our valued colleague and teacher and wish him well on his next endeavour."
As her words were announced, glasses filled with pumpkin juice appeared in front of her students. They all quietly took them in their hands and stood. The teachers at the head table followed the same pattern. Well, most of them anyway.
Whilst everyone stood, Hermione grabbed her drink and slid her chair back further, her head leaned backwards to the left to get a different view of the white-haired invader. The side view of his frame was just as intimidating as the front.
"Minnie!" Cormac snapped, shaking liquid from the sleeve of his robe. Hermione snapped her head back, realising that during her investigation, her cup had tipped slightly in her hand and poured her drink all over him.
"Sorry, sorry." She muttered embarrassed, pink flushing across her cheeks.
"Now with the departure of Professor Buckley comes the arrival of a new addition to the teaching staff. Professor Malfoy." The headmistress gestured toward him, and they all still stood. "Professor Malfoy will be replacing Professor Buckley for the rest of the term and will be shadowing Professor Buckley for the next few days to get to know you all."
McGonagall led in a round of applause while Malfoy bowed his head slightly in respect for the introduction. If he had to play nice to yield results, then he would.
Malfoy took this opportunity to lean forward slightly and glance towards his assignment. He smiled widely. She wasn't clapping, she was stood still focusing on a point in the distance.
He realised in that moment how much potential there was to have fun with this – her.
She was already showing her defiance towards him, and he couldn't be happier.