Chapter 7
Stupid Ron, stupid closet, stupid lack of wand . . .
As anyone who walked by Hermione Granger could see (not that there was any, being nearly four in the morning), she was very distraught. Another nightmare had woke her up. But considering her last vivid one, it wasn't half bad. But that didn't mean it made her even more stressed than she already was.
She climbed the stone steps to the Astronomy Tower with ease and pushed the creaky door open, letting the cool breeze blow at her face. The coldness of late February had never bothered her in the past; it had always had a calming effect on her. This was no exception.
She made her way to the far corner of the tower and allowed herself to sit on the edge of it. She bent her head back and let the calmness of the silent tower overwhelm her as she closed her eyes. The moment was ruined, however, with the familiar sound of the tower door opening and shutting with an appropriate bang.
Oh god, she thought, I'm so busted.
She was about to make a move to run for it until she saw the shape of a familiar boy standing not even a yard away from her. "Hermione?" he asked her.
She felt herself tense . . . the person who was going to turn her in knew her. Just perfect, not only will I receive detention for just wanting to be relaxed, but I'll be embarrassed, too. Way to go, Granger.
"Y-yeah." She said, the slight breeze no longer making her calm. The figure walked a few more steps towards her and she felt herself relax. "Harry." She breathed in relief.
"Yeah." He said with a smile.
"What are you doing here?" she found herself asking.
"I could ask you the same question." He responded. Hermione felt herself blush and look down, averting his eyes. "Although . . ." -she looked back up- "If I know you as well as I think I do, I don't have too. Bad dream?"
"Yeah . . . how did you know?"
He smiled, "I'm pretty good at reading people."
She mirrored him, "Do you want a medal or something?"
She heard him chuckle and felt her mood lift considerably. Looks like she had to take a rain check on that detention. "Now don't go boosting my ego like that, things could get messy."
She snorted, "Messy? How so?"
"I might do some stuff without caring about the consequences." He responded. She could sense the seriousness of his voice, but he hid it well with his remaining smile. "Mind if I join you?"
"Not at all." She said, scooting over to make room for him. He jumped up onto the other side of the corner so that their legs were bumping. "So is that why you're up here? You couldn't sleep either?"
"Something like that."
She felt herself nodding, "A lot on your mind?"
He chuckled again, "Oh yeah."
"Anything you want to share?"
He looked over at her with an indescribable look on his face, as though contemplating whether or not to tell her something. "I don't want to dump anything on you . . ."
"Oh its fine, I found that I'm a pretty good listener throughout the years."
He smiled, "Alright then, but don't say I didn't warn you." She nodded; a motion for him to continue. "It's this damn feud." She felt something tug in her stomach. "It's just so . . . stupid, ya know? My best friend won't even talk, let alone look at me and I feel as if I have to prove something to everyone, just to stop them from judging me. This school needs to get new hobbies and stop ruining people's lives."
Hermione felt herself smiling at his words, "My opinion entirely."
"It's as though . . . life as we know it is ceasing to exist. Two houses feuding over something that has been resolved for years. I just wish I would have listened to Sorting Hat when it said I would have done well in Gryffindor . . . but no, I had to be stubborn and want to be placed with my friends."
Hermione was gaping at him, "You were going to be sorted into Gryffindor?"
He nodded, "Yep, and now I regret not following my instincts."
"Well there's no use regretting something that is in the past. There are a lot of things I wish I could do differently, but I know I can't change what has already been done."
"Very wise, Granger, I'm impressed."
She laughed, "They don't call me a know-it-all for nothing."
"True. But there is more to you then you let on." He said, his expression turning serious.
"No there's not." She said, shaking her head slightly.
"Yes there is." His tone made her look into his eyes and she found herself being drawn into his gaze. "There are more important things than books and cleverness, and you're smart enough to know that . . . but you're too scared to let anyone see that side of you because you don't want to get hurt."
"I-"
"There's no use denying it, `Mione." He said, leaning forward, "You don't like taking risks, fearing the consequences."
"I can take risks!" she exclaimed, making him smirk at her.
"I find that hard to believe."
"And why is that?"
"Because you're pushing me away."
And he was right, she wasn't letting him in. She was leaning away at his attempts to limit their proximity. She would show him who couldn't take risks! She began to lean forward slowly, seeing him doing the same.
"What are you doing?" he whispered.
"Proving a point."
They were barely an inch apart, she could feel his breath on her face, and his arms begin to move up her legs. Her eyes began too close and her breath hitch as she leaned the rest of the way into his embrace.
Their lips had barely touched when they both sprang apart at the sound of the door once again banging open. She felt herself grow hot as her gaze was drawn to the door where she could make out the figure of a thin man and what looked to be a small cat at his feet.
"Shit." She heard Harry mutter. "Quick, over there!"
He pulled her off of the ledge and led her behind a thick pillar. His body was pressed up against hers as he struggled to make it no body parts were visible to Filtch's eyes. She struggled to even her breaths with the breeze to disguise them further, Harry catching on and following suit.
Their attempts were futile, it seemed, as they heard the pitter-patter of small paws come closer to their hiding place. The shadow of Mrs. Norris became smaller and smaller as she approached the pair. Her small figure and yellow eyes became visible as she meowed her master over to the pair of teenagers who looked flushed and out of breath . . . there was no doubt what he would think when he saw them.
Their suspicions were confirmed as they saw Filtch himself approach them and give them each a disgusted look. "Get up you!" he shouted at them. Harry shot Hermione an apologetic look as he untangled himself from her and led them both into the bath of moonlight. "Potter . . . fancy seeing you here again."
Hermione made a move to protest his allegation, but Harry grabbed her arm and slowly shook his head at her. He looked at Filtch threateningly, "No doubt at all. But what are you going to do about it?"
Filtch didn't look very disgruntled at his statement as Hermione did. Apparently this was the usual exchange between them or something close to it, for Harry didn't even flinch when he responded with one curt word, "Detention."
Hermione, however, tensed next to him at this statement. Looks like detention was back on after all. "Let's go, lovebirds. We have some forms to fill out."
Harry and Hermione (she, very reluctantly) followed him down the flights of stairs into his small, messy office. Hermione had never been in here before and she was thankful, for if she was a year or two younger she would have been frightened out of her wits end at the dark shackles hanging from the ceiling and threatening dark atmosphere.
Filtch rummaged around in his desk, making a sort of cluttering noise, until he pulled out two, crisp sheets of parchment and set them on his desk to fill them out, muttering to himself. "Inappropriate public display of affection . . . yes . . . out of bed after hours . . . Potter . . . Granger . . ."
He handed them each a copy of the parchment with his chicken-scratch writing spelling out all of their misdeeds. "Your heads of house's will hear of this and set the date of your detention location and time . . . if only I was still head of punishment giving . . . I'd have the both of you hanging from these here shackles." He finished his rambling with the jerk of his thumb upwards. "Now off to your dormitories, before I make it a week's worth of detentions!"
Hermione didn't feel up for a whole week's worth of scrubbing desks or whatever they made her do, so she set out for the exit at a speeded walk. She heard someone following her and turned around to find Harry looking at her with an incredulous expression. "Are you alright?"
She would have liked to say `No! You just gave me my first detention of a lifetime for doing something that we didn't even do! Of course I'm not bloody alright!' but instead settled for "Yeah, Harry . . . I'm fine." He was right, she didn't take risks.
Like you weren't about to kiss him-Not you again . . .-Yes, me, and we both know that you can take risks if you want them to happen-That's not true!-Oh yes it is, you don't want to yell at Harry . . . but you sure as hell wanted to kiss him-I was going to prove a point!-Right . . . whatever you say, Granger-Thank you!-You're not welcome!
"Are you sure?" His voice asked again. "You don't look very well."
"I'm just tired." She lied. After that nightmare she didn't really feel up for bed.
"Oh, alright. Do you want me to walk you to your dormitory?"
"No." she said firmly. She could see his face contort to one of disappointment and immediately felt guilty. "I mean . . . no thank you. I don't want to get you into more trouble then you're already in because of me."
"Hey, I came up to the tower all by myself ya know." He argued.
"I know, but I just want to be alone right now."
He nodded, "Alright, well . . . I'll see you on Monday, then."
"Right." She said quickly. She turned quickly towards her destination and began to set off at a fast stroll, watching as the first bit of sun peaked out from behind the Forbidden Forest.
When she reached her dormitory she found that it was already five-thirty and sighed. She might as well get ready and finish up her assignments for the weekend. So with that in mind she took her shower, groomed herself, and set back down to the common room to finish up her essay for Charms.
~*~
Monday came quicker then Hermione wanted it to.
After Transfiguration was finished, Professor McGonagall had called for her to stay behind after class. She more then had an inkling of what this was about. She walked up to her desk with a solemn look on her face and stood in front of her head of house.
"As you know very well, Mr. Filtch has informed me of your early morning activities this past Sunday." She began in a stern voice.
"Yes ma'am." Hermione replied.
"You also know that it is up to me to decide your punishment."
"Yes ma'am."
"Your detention will take place this Thursday evening in the dungeons with Professor Snape; you will be assisting him in cleaning his equipment."
"Yes ma'am."
"Very well . . . you may go." She motioned for her to leave with a simple wave of her bony hand. There was no statement about how disappointed she was with her, but Hermione could tell by the way her emotionless eyes bore into her. Her bag draped over her shoulder, she made her way to the common room to get her supplies for History of Magic.
She bumped into someone in her haste to get out of the room, however. She straightened herself and looked into the person's eyes that had been blocking the doorway. A familiar curtain of fiery red hair obstructed her face, but Hermione knew who it was immediately. "Ginny, I'm so sorry!"
Ginny looked up and smiled at her. "It's no problem, but I think you should walk with me to the common room, I'm feeling a bit dizzy now. What exactly do you have in that bag of yours?"
Hermione chuckled at her humorous tone and replied, "Sure, I was on my way there anyways."
The pair of them began to walk the distance to the portrait hole in silence. It was short-lived, for Ginny had spoken up with a very smug expression on her face, "So you got detention, huh?"
"You were eavesdropping?!"
"It's what I do." She said with a dismissive wave. "Anyways, what was it for?"
"'Inappropriate display of affection and being out of bed after hours.'" She said, quoting Filtch's mumblings.
Ginny looked affronted, "Scandalous, Miss Granger. Who with?"
"Flobberworm." Hermione spoke.
Ginny looked at Hermione with a cocked eyebrow, "What, is that your pet name him?"
Hermione just smiled as she pulled open the portrait the rest of the way to allow herself and Ginny to step through. "Nope. The password, genius."
Ginny snorted and followed Hermione into the common room. Hermione had made a habit of setting the supplies for her next class in a hidden cupboard ever since first year, so all she had to do was open up the door to the cupboard and jam the contents into her bag. Ginny waited for Hermione to resurface before leading her to the couch and repeating her question in a hushed tone so as not to be overheard.
Hermione leaned in towards her and spoke simply, "Harry."
"WHAT?!" Ginny yelled, earning the attention of the few occupants of Gryffindor tower.
"Shh!" Hermione scorned, "We didn't do anything . . . Filtch just thinks we did."
Ginny looked at her with wide eyes. "Are you crazy? If you two were caught by anybody else . . ."
"We'd be as good as dead, I know." Hermione finished. "But we weren't, so it's alright."
"No, Herms, it's not." Ginny said, "You're treading on dangerous territory here. Even if you didn't do anything, that wouldn't stop people from assuming the worst and making your life a living hell."
Hermione sighed, "I'm well aware of the consequences, Gin."
"Then why are you still doing this? Why aren't you protesting your inconvenient partnership with Potter, the Slytherin Prince?"
"Because this whole feud is ridiculous and I generally like him. Slytherin or not, he's my friend."
"This is heavy, Herms . . . but if you're willing to risk it . . ."
"I'm not risking anything!" Hermione whispered reverently, "It's just the right thing to do. Any normal person would."
Ginny shook her head, "No, they wouldn't. A normal person wouldn't risk it. This feud isn't going to end anytime soon. Hell, the school is still in an uproar over this assignment."
Hermione let out a breath, "You're wrong."
Ginny cocked a brow, "Am I?"
Hermione got up and out of her seat haughtily and threw her bag over her shoulder. "Yes, you are." Hermione then stormed out of the common room and made her way to History of Magic.
She wasn't a risk-taker. Anyone with a right mind wouldn't let a dumb feud come between her and her perfect grade point average. And Harry, her mind added. Yes, and Harry. She was so caught up in her thoughts that she didn't have time to fight back when she felt a pair of hands pull her into an empty broom closet.
A hand was over her mouth, preventing her from screaming for help. She couldn't see who her captor was until they lit the space with their wand. Platinum hair . . . grey eyes . . . smug expression. Draco Malfoy. She struggled against his firm grip of her, he had pressed her into a wall and was looking rather determined about something.
"Look here, Granger, we both know what you're doing is wrong so I'm going to make this little confrontation quick and simple. Stay away from Harry. Ever since this dumb assignment he's been becoming less and less frequent around us and more around you. So stop filling his brain with your polluted thoughts and just get lost. He doesn't even like you; he's just sticking by you for the sake of the assignment. A smart idea, though . . . He's going out with Cho Chang and has no time for mudbloods like you."
The tears in Hermione's eyes were beginning to pour out and he wrenched his hand from its place on her mouth. "You'll be sorry if you cross my word, Granger. Mark my words."
He left just like that, leaving Hermione a pile on the floor, wracked with sobs and feeling as though all hope was lost now. He didn't want her around . . . Cho Chang . . . Ginny was right . . .
He was just using her for a good grade. He didn't care. Cho Chang, Cho Chang, Cho Chang! Fine. If he only wanted her for a grade, then that was all she was going to be to him. A partner. Not a friend . . . not something more . . .
She made her way out of the closet slowly as the bell began to ring, signifying the start of class. Hermione walked numbly the rest of the way to the classroom, her feet dragging behind her. She opened the door to the classroom and made her way to her seat beside Harry, not looking him in the eyes. Professor Binns had yet to enter the classroom, so she had no reason to be worried about another detention. Harry must have been aware of her shaken state, because he nudged her gently in her side and spoke to her gently, "Are you alright, `Mione?"
She was about to burst out and tell him everything, but she felt eyes on her and turned to see Malfoy mouthing to her `Or else.' She faked a smile and responded numbly "I'm fine.".
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