Song for the Chapter: The Way I Feel ~ Keane

Draco's POV

Update: Probably going crazy. The last thought that crossed my mind? Wow, Hermione actually looks...pretty hot. Seriously, what the hell is wrong with me? Hermione is not hot. I mean, yeah, with her hair in a braid and wearing that black dress she looked good, but she is not hot.

I kept looking up at her as we ate, mostly in silence. I'd charmed the plates so that whatever we wanted appeared on them, and I didn't know why. To be honest, I didn't know why I was even here, and I didn't know why Hermione had even agreed to be here. Everything had been weird lately.

"You're thinking what I'm thinking," Hermione said, a small smirk crossing her face as she ate.

I snorted. "What's that?" I asked curiously, leaning back on my chair and resting my hands behind my head. The candles flickered dully behind her, and I noticed how her eyes changed colour in the light. I'd noticed that before.

"That everything's...been really weird recently," she shrugged. I felt a smile spread across my face, and, after a moment, I nodded. "Which is true. It's just...weird. You know? Last year, if somebody had told me I'd be eating dinner with Draco Malfoy, I would have died."

A laugh escaped my lips. I hadn't meant it to, but it just - happened. "I know the feeling," I agreed, raising my eyebrows. My gaze dropped to her empty plate of food. "Did you enjoy it?" I asked quietly.

"What?" Hermione asked absent-mindedly.

"The food," I repeated. "Did you enjoy it?"

"Oh, yes," sighed Hermione enthusiastically. "It was delicious."

"I guess you were hungry after all," I murmured. Hermione stared at me, a mixture of fear and irritation on her face. Eventually it seemed to pass, and a small smile played on her lips. Wow, I thought. Was she wearing lipstick? Okay, weird. Not like I noticed she was wearing any, or anything.

"I guess I was." Hermione blinked, then sighed. "It's great here," she remarked, gesturing to the flickering candles and sofas cluttered around against the walls. "So cosy, and warm. And...the candles. They look..." her eyes rested on mine, and I watched the candlelight dance in her eyes again. It was literally hypnotising. "...Nice."

I cleared my throat and stood up so quickly I almost knocked the table over against Hermione. "I'll clear up the plates," I said, stacking them on top of one another and heading to the small silver sink, frothing with soap, that had apparently just appeared in the corner of the room.

"I've been meaning to ask," said Hermione, approaching tentatively behind me and leaning against the wall beside the sink as I scrubbed the plates, not daring to meet her eyes. "Why did you ask me to have dinner with you?"

I looked up. She was smiling. That was...that was good. I hesitated for a moment, then assumed a smirk on my face and replied, "Because I had nothing better to do, Granger." Hermione chewed her lip, a smile playing on her lips again, like laughing was against the law or something.

"Well, we both know that's not true," she muttered, returning to her seat. She looked deep in thought. That was not good, I thought nervously. I tried to play it off, leaving the plates to drain on the side and returning to the little, but she knew something was wrong, and so did I.

↟↟↟

As she was about to leave, I reminded her of her robes, and, like the absolute gentleman I am, put it gently around her shoulders. For a moment - like, less than a few seconds, I guess - we were so close, I could smell the gentle bursts of perfume she'd put on, a flowery scent that it took a moment for me to shake off.

Then the moment passed, and she left without a word - just the knowledge that I'd lied to her.

Author's Note: Hi! I can't believe the amount of support this book is getting already, we haven't even reached part 10 yet! Vote and comment as always, leave song suggestions in the comments, I always need new ones :)