Dramione Oneshots And Fluffs

Unexpected Guests Chap. 3

The rest of the day proved entirely useless to Hermione. To her great horror she was unable to focus on any of her various subjects. Because of the fiasco at the department of mysteries last year, and the destruction of all the time turners, Hermione had to drop the extra subjects she had been trying to take throughout her third and fourth year. THe sudden emptiness of her schedule caused her to vow to focus wholly on the subjects that she had. However, alll day long her mind had been wandering away from the tasks at hand and back to her conversations with both Ginny and Draco. Especially, as the day progressed. was a class that Hermione awaited with both dread and excitement. The Gryffindors had with the Slytherins so Draco was certain to be there. class came right after one of her free periods and like always, she spent her free time in the library working on assignments. Harry had joined her but Ron had refused, his grudge staying strong, and sat opposite her at a table tucked away in the corner of the library's restricted section. Hermione's chair was up against a back wall and faced the many rows of book shelves. Hermione tapped her finger against the countertop, struggling to focus her thoughts on paper she was writing for one of her classes. Hermione bit her lip and stared absently over Harry's bent head at one of the book shelves. As she stared she noticed a lanky figure enter the library and turn into one of the dense racks. Hermione instantly recognized the mess of blond hair as it ducked in and out of the shelving and turned to all sides, scanning the room. Hermione straightened in her seat and felt a flush of warmth spread across her cheeks. She bent quickly over her parchment and tried to look busy. Harry noticed the sudden change in her behavior and stared at her with a confused look. Hermione shrugged and continued to look down. After a few minutes of staring at blank pages, trying to look busy she chanced a glance up at the book shelves. Draco was leaning up against the shelf nearest them, an open book in his hands. Hermione forgot all discretion and stared at him as he closed the book and returned it to it's place as if he could feel her eyes on him. As he pushed his sleeves up to his elbows and shook strands of hair from his eyes Hermione released a breath she hadn't realized she had been holding. Draco looked up suddenly, making direct eye contact with Hermione and smirked slightly, a smile that seemed to slide of his face and hang there. He then turned sharply and disappeared down one of the aisles. Hermione took in a sharp intake of breath and pushed back strands of hair that had fallen out of the messy bun precariously balanced on top of her head. Hermione stood up quickly, startling Harry, and mumbled a lame excuse about needing another book. As she hurried down one of the aisles she looked down each one looking for Draco while trying not to look eager. She was failing quite a bit at trying not to look desperate. Hermione stopped sharply and turned at one of the aisles when she saw a tall, pale figure sitting along one of the rows of books, a large volume open in his lap. As she approached him she became hesitant, suddenly second guessing her decision. She was strongly considering turning around going back to her table when Draco looked up at her and smiled. Hermione softened and cursed herself for being stupid as she stepped forward and sat next to the blond Slytherin boy.

"Afternoon." Draco said, shifting a little so that he was turned toward her a little more.

"Hello." Hermione answered, pulling a random book off the shelf behind her head and opening it so that she looked like she had a purpose to being there. Hermione bit her lip and glanced around, thinking how the situation must look if someone where to turn down their aisle and see them together.

"Don't worry about it." Draco said, as if he could read her mind. He pushed his hair out of his eyes and Hermione's breath faltered. Hermione hadn't really noticed how attractive Draco actually was but now it was hard to avoid. Hermione wanted to say something but she didn't know what or how. Luckily, Draco spoke before she could make the silence awkward. "Has Weasley come back around?" Hermione shook her head.

"No. He actually is further from 'coming around' than he has during any of our previous quarrels. He isn't talking to me or Harry for the time being." Hermione deflated a little and Draco felt the overwhelming need to comfort her. He cocked his head to the side and smiled at her.

"His loss." Hermione smiled and pushed a strand of hair behind her ear. Both Hermione and Draco were surprised by his behavior, it was very out of character for Draco to provide consolement for someone, much less a Gryffindor girl, but neither of them seemed to mind. Hermione grinned and rolled her eyes, remembering Ron's behavior the last time she saw him that morning.

"He was such a baby this morning in the common room. He threw a fit and then stomped off to a corner to mope." Draco laughed and made a strangely similar comparison to Ron and an infant. Hermione found it strange that Draco and Hermione seemed to be bonding at the expense of Ron. Hermione checked her watch and quickly stood up, upsetting her hair and causing frizzy strips to fall around her face. "We need to go. Class starts soon." Draco stood up and put his book back on a shelf above his head. Draco extended a hand out to Hermione. Hermione looked at it confused, her brow furrowed.

"Can I put back your book?" Draco asked clarifying his intentions.

"Oh, yes. Thank you." Hermione said, feeling blood rush to her cheeks. As Draco took the book from Hermione his fingertips brushed the skin of her outstretched hand and Hermione was once again surprised by the warmth of his skin. Hermione shivered slightly, feeling the dying sparks left behind by his slight touch. " Well. I'm assuming being seen with you and Potter would be a bad idea so I'll see you in class?" Draco tried unsuccessfully not to look too hopeful. Hermione nodded.

"See you there."

Hermione and Harry found Ron at the entrance to the stairwell down to the dungeons.

"Hi." Ron mumbled as he stared down at the ground and moved to Harry's side, opposite Hermione. The three of them clomped down the many stairs to the room. Hermione couldn't help scanning the room as she stepped through the doorway. She found him immediately, but the smile fell from her face as soon as she saw the pinch faced brunette with her arms around Draco's waist. Draco smiled at her but searched her face across the room and frowned as he followed her line of sight to Pansy Parkinson who was hanging from his middle. Draco quickly pushed Pansy off him but realized too late that Hermione had misunderstood. Hermione shuffled to her table with Ron and Harry, her eyes on her shoes. As the lesson began and the teacher gave them specific instructions of the potion they would be brewing, Hermione tried her hardest to look unaffected. Hermione argued with herself all class, she had no idea why she felt this way or why she should be affected by a pair that had nothing to do with her. As the period went on Draco made his potion absently, half his attention spent trying to catch the eye of the brunette across the room who was obviously on the verge of tears. Draco watched from across the room as Harry nudged Hermione with his elbow and gestured to his cauldron with a troubled look on his face. Hermione responded quickly and turned her attention back to the contents of her own cauldron. Harry then poked Ron in the ribs and nodded in Hermione's direction. Ron looked at Hermione and the scowl he had been wearing all class changed into a look of concern. The class went on, Neville received his normal dose of verbal abuse from Snape as he prowled the room, testing and insulting students. As Snape came to Hermione's potion Hermione pushed her chin to her chest as if she were trying to bury herself in her hair.

"What? No know it all comments today, Granger?" Snape mocked. Hermione shook her head, still searching the ground. "I have to say I like you better when you don't talk." The room rang with the Slytherin house's laughter, Pansy's signature shriek among of the loudest. Hermione looked up finally. Her eyes were full of tears and her cheeks were a flourescent red. She threw her bag over her shoulder and ran from the room, causing another uproar of Slytherin laughter. Draco lurched forward an inch, every muscle in his body yelling for him to follow her up the stairs to make her feel better. But there was a fraction of him that told him to stay because people would talk and he couldn't be seen with her. Pansy put a manicured hand to his chest and laid her other arm across his lower back, pulling him to her. Draco looked down at her with narrowed eyes. He pushed her away by her shoulders, careful not to jostle her small frame, and yanked his bag from the floor. He left the pack of Slytherins and began up the stairs after Hermione, not caring what the shocked group behind him, or the rest of the school for that matter, would think.