Relentless - A Dramione FanFic

A Few Chance Meetings

Draco stood and turned to face the landing where Hermione was emerging from her room, struggling to corral her bushy mane into a messy bun atop her head. An involuntary smile tugged at the corners of his mouth as he watched her twisting and pulling, both hands working together to secure the knot in place. Her arms dropped as she reached the top of the stairs and she surveyed the sitting room, her eyes landing on Draco. She paused when she noticed he was so close to Snape's portrait, and that both men were trying to appear nonchalant.

"Oh..." She said, looking between Draco and the frame to his right. "Am I interrupting something?"

"Not at all, Miss Granger." Snape answered coolly. "Draco and I were just finishing up. As a matter of fact, I am due at a meeting with the Headmistress right now." He nodded slightly before exiting the frame to his left.

Hermione made her way down the stairs, and joined Draco in the sitting room. She immediately began to question if leaving her room knowing Harry was in the shower was a good choice. One part of her craved alone time with her blonde roommate, but another didn't trust herself with him. Her anxiety only rose when he strode away from the mantle and met her in front of the couch. "DO NOT MAKE EYE CONTACT!" Pounded in her head, but it was a second too late. She'd already been snared by his silver pools. Her knees weakened, but she willed herself to stand firm, refusing to allow him to see the effect he was having on her.

"It was nice of you to let Harry shower first," She attempted small talk to break the tension. "But you'll probably regret it. He loses all concept of time when he's in there."

Draco grinned and nodded jovially, making her insides quivered. "It was a concession necessary to keep the peace with Potter." He ran a hand through his hair as he continued, "But I would be lying if I said I wasn't rethinking it about now."

The tousling revealed a stray twig above his right ear. Hermione instinctively reached for it, but froze halfway, realizing the move was borderline intimate. She didn't pull her hand back, but tried to explain, "I... There's... You have..." She could feel her face heating uncontrollably. "There's a twig stuck...." Her voice trailed off as she turned her head and found his intense stare no more than an inch from her. She imagined his lips pressed to hers and had to use every ounce of self control she possessed to keep herself from making that a reality. Instead, she returned her focus to the stick, removed it quickly, stepped back and held it up for him to see. "There, I got it."

"Thank you." His voice was husky and laced with desire. "Now I really feel the need for that shower." As soon as the words left his mouth, he realized he'd just implied he needed a shower to cool off from their close encounter, and he immediately tried to clarify. "I mean those pixies certainly got the best of me, and I'm..." His face burned, but he relaxed at the sight of Hermione smirking.

"I know what you meant." She tried to maintain a straight face, but his red cheeks and stammering were too much. "You're welcome to use my bathroom if you'd like. There's no telling when Harry will be done."

"I think I will do that. Thanks." Draco briefly glanced at her, but was still too mortified to maintain eye contact.

"Yeah, of course." She stepped aside as he walked passed. "Oh, Draco..."

He was halfway up the steps, but turned back to face her. "Yes?"

"If Harry asks, could you let him know I went to the owlery? I owe an owl a few treats." She smiled warmly.

"Sure, but only if you'll do something for me while you are there."

"Okay. What do you need?" Hermione asked curiously.

"Could you check for Aria? I usually stop there after Care of Magical Creatures, but obviously didn't get the chance today. She brings me daily updates on my mother. Not that there's every any change." He voice lowered so Hermione could barely make out the last part.