Lust, War, and... Love?

Chapter 8: Classes and Books

       The third-period Arithmancy was the only class almost devoid of Gryiffindors. Wonderwitch Granger took it, but no one else in Gryffindor had enough brains for the class. Half of the students in it were Ravenclaws, who were always brimming over with intellect. A couple of especially persistent and studious Hufflepuffs made it to the N.E.W.T. level too. But the rest were Slytherins - Theodore Nott, Blaise Zabini, Daphne Greengrass, and, of course, Draco Malfoy.

Draco stretched his legs under the desk and stared at Granger's bushy hair in the front row. Oblivious to Professor Vector's convoluted explanations of numerical relativity of time-space, he was undressing Granger in his mind and savouring the memories of their intimate encounter.

Merlin's pants, he'd got her laid. The unapproachable, uptight, icy-cold, ivory-tower Granger. Stole her right from under the noses of Potty and Weasel. The shag was so damned good. Her soft lips, her wonderfully responsive body, her lusty voice... The Druidic brew brought out her best and most seductive side. Definitely, Krum was no fool. What a vision she was at the Yule Ball... Believe it or not, she did his Charms homework without a squawk.

Too bad he couldn't boast his victory, but keeping the matter a secret was a dire necessity. Especially now that Crabbe and Goyle's fathers frequented the Malfoy Manor as the Dark Lord's emissaries. Draco's position was already complicated enough. Although his father, who always made him feel small in his presence, was locked up at Azkaban, his obsessively paranoid mum and maniacally fanatic Auntie Bella swooped down on Draco like two vultures on each and every occasion. Granger made a huge mistake of following Potter to the Department of Mysteries, which squarely landed her in Lord Voldemort's blacklist.

Pansy was still here. His cow of a fiancee, whose only merits were that she was perfectly pureblood and not too closely related to the Malfoys and the Blacks. What precisely did that engagement contract state about infidelity?

The bell rang and broke off the train of Draco's thoughts. He looked at Nott, who sat next to him. Theo was throwing curious glances at him and at Granger too. Did he already get a whiff of a red-hot love affair in the making?

Zabini sauntered to their desk. Daphne batted her eyelashes at him flirtatiously as she passed him on her way to the door.

"She sent everyone's head spinning with this wacky new hairdo of hers," remarked Blaise sarcastically. "Was it in the latest Witch Weekly? "

"Show me a girl who doesn't read that rubbish," Theo chuckled. "Seven fail-safe ways to enchant the wizard of your dreams! I bet you won't find a single girl in here who didn't try to practice it."

Blaise looked at Theo with disdain. "Did you ever see Granger reading it?"

"She probably hides it in her huge books, Blaise," was Theo's comeback.

"Granger knows better than that," Draco stepped in. "Bet she knows more about sex than anyone in our year, you both included. Isn't she a babe?"

"You mean she did it with Krum?" Blaise surveyed Granger who was talking to the teacher.

"Krum or no Krum," Draco shrugged. "Look at her more closely - you'd see she's no plain mouse."

Theo and Blaise stared at him curiously which amused Draco a good deal. Then the two smart alecks turned their heads in unison to appraise Granger, who was now busy stuffing her books in her bag.

"Pay attention to how she walks," whispered Draco in an expert tone. "Boobs, hips, sway, gait - she's got everything in place. She won't beg for your favors - she'll have you beg for hers!"

Blaise and Theo's eyes were now fixed upon the sexiest prefect in Hogwarts.

"You mean you got a chance to snog her?" Blaise was definitely intrigued. "How was it?"

"Snog?" Draco smirked. "She knows more than that. Snogging is for first-years. If you'd have known how -"

"Listen, Draco," Theo interrupted him. "How did you get past Potter and Weasley to date her?"

"First, Potty and Weasel can't tell a girl from an owl." Draco revelled in the boys' befuddlement. "Second, I don't have to move a single finger to date her. She knows the real thing when she sees it. Do you think Krum was stupid? He'd shagged quite a few before he met her. And I -"

Slap! Draco gripped his bright red left cheek. Slap! His right cheek turned crimson. A very furious Hermione Granger was now staring right into his eyes.

"You wretched git, stop talking trash!" she hissed. "Enough, I'm going to tell it -"

Draco opened and closed his mouth soundlessly, as Granger bolted to the door. Theo and Blaise were equally speechless. Before his fellow Slytherins returned to their senses, Draco grabbed his bag and darted into the corridor after her.

He caught Granger by her elbow exactly the second she was about to disappear in a girls' bathroom.

"Slapping has to stop, Granger!" he snarled into her face. "If you tell anyone, I -"

"Bragging has to stop too!" she cut him short.

"I didn't brag! I only complimented your looks!" He squeezed her elbow harder as she attempted to wrestle out of his grip.

"You, self-centered, pompous prat! You tell me to keep it secret and then you go boasting what a babe I am!" Tears appeared in her eyes. "I am not a babe, you understand!"

"What's so bad about being a sexy kitten, Granger?" he lowered his voice to a husky whisper.

Suddenly his limbs froze and he nearly toppled onto Hermione. The girl gripped him by his elbows to prevent him from smashing his nose on the stone wall.

"Harry - Harry! Ouch - Malfoy nearly fell on me!"

Draco turned his head. Sure enough, Potter was right behind him, his wand about to pierce his neck. The same moment he felt a jolt and was about to crash sideways to the floor if not for Granger digging her fingernails into his stiff upper arms.

"Get off her, Malfoy!" Potter's eyes were black with anger. "What do you want from her?"

"I'd be happy to if she lets me off!" Draco sneered. "Ouch! Granger, when was the last time you trimmed your nails?"

Potter grabbed Draco by his collar only to discover that Malfoy's hand was locked in a dead grip on Hermione's elbow.

"Harry, please remove your spell now!" demanded Hermione.

"What was it about?" Potter was not relenting yet.

"Oh, nonsense - still the same incident of his wandering the corridors at night last Saturday!"

"Potter, can you talk some sense into her? I fixed her Arithmancy homework, and what am I getting for it?" drawled Draco for the sheer pleasure of baffling Potty and ruffling Granger's feathers at the same time.

"MALFOY!" she shrieked and cast a spell on him. He tried to retort with a smart comeback, but all he could do was to open his mouth soundlessly. In less than a second Granger was free of his grip. Draco fell all the way to the floor. Potter attempted to ask Hermione something but ended up facing the closed bathroom door instead.

"Serves you right, Malfoy!" Potter stared at him. "What did you do to her homework?"

How pointless, Potty, since Granger muted me down and good. Speaks tons of your intellect. Anyway, I loved your moronic expression when she shut the door right in your face!

Potty eyed him like a complete idiot for a minute or so. Seeing that Granger wasn't coming out, and apparently regarding him, motionless and soundless, to be of little danger to her, Potter turned away from Draco and scurried down the corridor. Now Draco had to wait for a fellow Slytherin to pass by him and remove the hexes. A gaggle of third year Hufflepuff girls poured into the corridor from the stairs with an apparent intent to visit the toilet, but the sight of his form under the door stopped them dead in their tracks. They giggled and rushed past him to the stairs to the second floor.

Draco heard the door opening behind him. He turned his head and saw Granger in the gap. She squeezed past his body and waved her wand at him. The spells lifted, but before he had time to say anything she had scuttled off to the DADA classroom.

He scrambled to his feet and walked to the DADA class, determined to have a word with Granger immediately after the class, Potter or no Potter in the vicinity.