Against The Odds

Chapter 4 - Old and new friends Pt. 1

The muffled sound of thunder stirred Hermione from her peaceful slumber on her couch. She blinked and looked around in confusion before shaking away her sleep and getting up to stretch. Looking at her watch, she saw that it was half past noon, so she still had the whole day to kill before dinner that evening with the staff. As she stretched, she spotted a dark figure swim past her window, but she couldn't make out what it was. That was a bit unsettling to her, she wasn't used to being below sea level and certainly not having a window into the great unknown. Although, she knew that the giant squid was a known and mermaids were a know, that didn't settle her much.

She shook her head and made herself a quick lunch along with a strong cup of coffee, before getting to work on organizing her room. As she worked, her mind kept drifting to a certain dark Professor. She couldn't deny that there was a certain handsomeness to his youth. However, he was still the same git that he had always been. Clearly death hadn't made that much of an impact on his outlook on life.

"Wonder if there's any happiness in that man's life," she mused to herself as she put some finishing touches on her room. Just as Severus had expected, her room definitely showed her Gryffindor pride, but it was only in subtle touches, so he would probably be thankful for that.

Once she was through unpacking and setting up, she wrote a quick letter to Harry and Ron.

Dear Harry and Ron,

    So you'll never believe it. I don't think I should write it out though in case my owl is intercepted. We'll talk soon.

    Hope you're both doing well.

       Love,

         Hermione

She got dressed in a thick sweater and some jeans, then headed to the owlry to send her letter off. Taking note that she still had two hours to kill, Hermione decided to head into Hogmead to look around. The rain fell heavily on her as she quickly walked to the town.

Rebuilding in the town had been quite beneficial. There were new shops and old ones were restored. She spotted a pet store and decided to head in. Crookshanks had not made it and she felt that she needed some companionship since she was alone in the dungeons. She spotted a kitten that looked like a tiny leopard and her heart melted, she just had to have it. "Is there anyway you can send my stuff straight to my room in Hogwarts," Hermione asked, not wanting to carry everything necessary for her new cat, up to the castle.

The girl behind the counter nodded and in an instant, the purchase had vanished. "It's there," the girl stated with a grin.

Hermione thanked her, then headed back out into the rain. She quickly ran to a nearby bookstore and hurried inside. To her dismay, in her rush, she failed to see the tall blonde figure and she slammed right into his back. The figure turned and Draco Malfoy was looking down on her as she sat on the floor. "Granger," he said with just a slight upturn of his lip.

To her shock, he held out his hand for her to take so he could help her up. "Uh thanks, Malfoy," she said as she took his offered hand and got up.

Draco shrugged and dropped his hand after she was erected. His eyes scanned around before looking back at her. "No Potter or Weasley," he asked with an arched brow.

Her brows furrowed, was he actually trying to have a civilized conversation with her? "They're actually working with the Ministry. I'm working for Hogwarts," she stated casually. "Are... are you working around here," she then asked, wondering what Malfoy would be doing in Hogsmead.

The blonde chuckled. "Me? Work? No Granger, I actually came here to get a book for my father. Can you believe they only have it at this shop," he asked as if this was a most terrible offense. Which, to Malfoy, it was. He ran a hand through is blonde hair. "So are you and Potter a thing now," he asked, catching her completely off guard.

She blinked then laughed. "Me and Harry, no. He's like a brother to me," she replied with a shake of her head.

Draco rose a brow at that. "Hmm. Is he seeing anyone," he then asked.

It was Hermione's turn to raise a brow. She wasn't sure why he was asking, but it certainly made her suspicious. "No, he's not dating anyone," she replied. "If you're going to hurt him-"

Draco held up his hand to cut her off. "Relax Granger, I've changed since the war," he drawled. "I actually," he sighed and looked at her. "I actually wanted to see if he'd want to have dinner with me."

"Dinner?"

The blonde stared at her like she had five heads. "A date," he stated flatly.

Hermione's cheeks grew rosy at that. "Oh... well, I'm not exactly sure of Harry's preference, but it doesn't hurt to ask," she stated, clearly flustered. "I thought you hated him though," she added.

"Love, hate. It's a fine line. I was trying to live in my father's shadow. After the war, I told him I'm my own person," he stated as he brushed some dust from his suit jacket.

That actually made Hermione smile. "Draco, I'm actually really proud of you," she stated in a non patronizing, friendly way.

"Thanks, Granger," he replied with a grin. "See you around," he said with a wave as he purchased the book and left.

Hermione waved back then looked around the store some. After buying a few books, she headed back to the castle. The storm was relentless and she was completely soaked from head to toe by the time she had reached the gates. "I do hope that you don't plan on going to dinner looking like a drowned rat," Severus stated as she got to her room.

She looked down at her watch and cursed before calling out the password and running inside. Her new cat watched her curiously as she rushed around to get ready for dinner, which was in five minutes. With record speed, she got dressed, made up and had her hair done with a minute to spare. As she exited her room, she spotted Severus, leaning against the wall looking quite annoyed. "You didn't have to wait for me," she blanched with a sigh.

"If I showed up without you, Minerva would never let me live it down," he replied with a sneer as they hurried towards The Great Hall.

Hey everyone,

Thank you for the votes and comments. Unfortunately Wattpad will not let me get to the comments to reply, but please know that I greatly appreciate them!