Flowers That are Looked At

Something was dripping somewhere. It was a quiet dripping, but it was loud enough to wake Hermione from her deep sleep. She vaguely heard Lizzie trying to exclaim a reversal spell, but before it could take affect, what seemed like an ocean wave crashed over Hermione and her bed. For a brief moment, she couldn't breathe; then someone grabbed her arms and pulled her head above the quickly receding water. Blinking water from her eyelashes, Hermione fought back a scream and calmly asked the nearest person, "What just happened?"

Draco, who was standing right next to her, holding a dripping sheet of parchment, looked annoyed. "That's what I'm wondering." They both looked at Lizzie, who was standing in the doorway, looking very cornered.

"It was only supposed to be a small oceanic spell!" she protested. "But I'm not very good at controlling the size of my spells, and...well...it got a little out of control."

Though everything was drying rapidly and moving back to where it had been before the wave crashed through, Hermione could see the amount of damage the wave had done. Much of the furniture in her and Lizzie's room had been violently thrown to one side and was dripping wet. Hermione was mildly grateful that her two weeks worth of homework assignments had been put away before the tidal wave. She tried to control her temper and simply shook her head in disbelief. Draco, on the other hand, glared at Lizzie. "You do realize, Nalani, that you could've killed all of us, don't you?" he sneered. Lizzie looked for a moment like she was going to back down, but suddenly, her dark eyes flashed.

"Look, Malfoy," she began, her voice searing, "I screwed up. I didn't mean to hurt anyone. And I'm sorry. No permanent damage is done...everything is back to where it was. Now, if there's anything wrong with the fact that I'm not perfect like you, why don't you just go look in the mirror and curse yourself!"

A week before, Hermione would have been surprised by this confrontation, but things had been tense since classes started. Draco's Healer studies gave him a more exorbitant amount of homework than he'd ever dealt with in his life. Hermione often saw him sitting in the living room, poring over books until one or two o'clock in the morning. That Monday morning past, she'd found him resting his head on a Potions book, having fallen asleep in the midst of his homework. Hermione didn't bother to mention that she'd finished the same homework two days before.

Lizzie, Hermione found out the day after registration, was studying Charms. She wasn't very good at the charms yet, however, so her practice runs kept flooding the flat or lighting random things on fire. Hermione had learned to stay out when Lizzie was trying to study, but she couldn't help getting caught in the crossfire every once in a while, like that afternoon.

Angelos was never in the flat. Hermione got the impression that, despite everything he said against divination, Angelos should have gone to the UDD. Most of the time he spent in the flat was either time spent sleeping or time spent owling his fiancée. I'll bet he transfers to UDD before the end of the semester, she'd often mused to herself. Because he spent so little time in the flat, no one really knew Angelos, and no one seemed to care to.

In the present moment, Lizzie and Draco were involved in a full-fledged shouting match to which Hermione was paying little attention. Only when Draco reached for his wand did she step in. "That's enough," she stated quietly, stepping between them. "Lizzie, can't you practice your charms anywhere else? And Malfoy, I'm sure she didn't mean to make such a mess."

Her roommates glared at each other, not answering, and finally, Lizzie brushed past Hermione and Draco and out of the flat. All of the furniture had moved back to its proper place and everything was completely dry. Hermione and Draco stared at each other for a moment, and Hermione started giggling. "All I wanted to do was take a nap!" she laughed, looking around. "There's never a dull moment here, is there?"

Draco was giving her an odd look. "Just as long as you aren't drowned in the process, Granger. I'd hate to have to explain the mysterious death of my Muggle-born roommate to the Ministry of Magic...it has Azkaban written all over it."

Hermione was about to reply, when there was a knock at the door of the flat. Before either she or Draco could move, Padma was in the room, practically giddy with excitement. She completely ignored Draco and grabbed Hermione by the arms. "Hermione! Oh my gosh, it's so exciting!" she exclaimed. Hermione was confused. Padma had shown in the past two weeks that she was generally a quiet and reserved person. Granted, she and Hermione had their moments when they couldn't stop laughing over a transfiguration that turned out completely wrong or something one of their professors had said, but for the most part, Padma was quiet.

"What is it, Padma?" she asked, trying to calm her friend.

Padma was grinning and breathless. "I was just walking over to the library to finish that report we have due on vampires, not really paying attention to anything, when all of a sudden, I bumped into someone!" She stopped there, trying to catch her breath. Hermione wasn't impressed.

"That's it? You bumped into someone?" she asked. Padma held up her hand while she caught her breath, then started talking again.

"It wasn't just any someone, Hermione...it was Harry! Harry Potter!" she cried. Hermione's eyes widened.

"Harry? He's here?" she exclaimed, and Padma nodded. Hermione grabbed the girl by the arm and practically dragged her out of the flat.

"But don't you want to hear the whole story?" Padma asked as they hurried down the hall.

"Yes, you can tell me on the way. What's Harry doing on campus?" Hermione demanded, bursting through the door that led to the stairwell. Padma followed as closely as she could.

"Well, I asked him that. He said that he and Ron had leave from the Elite Corps this weekend and wanted to spend some time with you. Hermione!" Padma cried as Hermione stopped short on the stairs.

"Ron is here?" Hermione whispered. "Both of them?"

Padma was nodding. "Yes. They're waiting for you outside of the Hall of Formalities."

Hermione didn't move. A group of people heading up the stairs gave her an odd look as they passed, but she didn't respond. "Ron's here?" she finally repeated.

"That's what I said," Padma answered, looking concerned. "Are you okay with that? I mean...it's got to be awkward, now that you two are broken up."

"I'll say," Hermione admitted. She sighed and looked at Padma.

"Yes, you should still go see him," Padma answered the unspoken question. "I'll come with you, if you want."

"Yes," Hermione answered. Padma grinned congenially as they made their way down to the Hall of Formalities.

***

Sure enough, there were Harry and Ron sitting on the front steps, dressed casually and laughing like the old school friends they were. Harry was wearing blue jeans and a long-sleeved green t-shirt. During their seventh year, he'd had a special charm performed so that he no longer needed glasses for his green eyes to discern more than vague shapes and colors. His black hair was still as charmingly messy as ever, and he was laughing as he faced Ron. Ron, whose fiery red hair was cut short, was dressed in a deep blue sweater and khaki pants. For a brief moment, Hermione had a flashback to when they'd first met and he'd had a smudge of dirt beside his nose. Before she could think about it anymore, however, Harry had spotted her and was up and running.

"We were wondering when you'd decide to show up!" he laughed, hugging her tightly. "It's great to see you, Hermione."

"You too, Harry," she whispered. "Thank you for the flowers during move-in. They were just what the room needed." She didn't bother to tell him that her room was now filled with Lizzie's Hawaiian flowers.

"You gave her flowers?" Ron asked, approaching them. Harry nodded casually.

"They were a good-bye present, to help make her room look more homey. Kind of like the peacock quills your mother sent us the first week of training," Harry answered, stepping back a pace. Now, Hermione was facing Ron, and it suddenly seemed that she hadn't had anything to eat in several days. She stared at him, trying to maintain her composure, and finally, Ron opened his arms for an embrace.

"How about a hug for a soldier returned?" he asked, and Hermione complied, nearly overwhelmed with emotion. When he finally released her, she managed a weak smile at him.

"You look good, Ron," she told him, quietly, and he smiled back at her.

"So do you. And so do you, Padma!" He turned to look at Padma, who was suddenly blushing furiously and seemed uncomfortable when Ron enveloped her in a bear hug.

"Uh...thanks..." she answered, shooting Hermione a strange look. "Let's go out to eat. There's a great pub off in the direction of your hotel, Harry and Ron."

"Oh, trying to get rid of us, are you?" Ron asked loudly and began walking with Padma at his side. Hermione was feeling worse by the second and found herself jumping nervously when Harry put a hand on her shoulder.

"You alright, Hermione?" he asked quietly. She pressed her lips together firmly and shook her head. Harry gave her a gentle smile and hugged her shoulders.

"You'll be alright. Don't worry, Hermione; you'll be alright."

***

"Thanks for walking me back," Hermione told Harry, giving him a hug from the side. "Especially since Ron was too drunk to walk."

"He's usually not like that," Harry admitted apologetically as Hermione opened the door to her flat. "I think he was just nervous about seeing you again."

Hermione shrugged. The lock was being difficult. "He sure seemed comfortable with Padma." She tried to hide her jealousy.

"That's because he was drunk," Harry stated flatly, and seemed about to say more when the door swung open and he saw Draco sitting at the kitchen table. At that moment, Hermione realized that in all of her nervousness about seeing Ron again, she'd forgotten to mention her roommate. "What's he doing here?" Harry said to Hermione as Draco stood to greet them.

"I forgot to tell you...he's one of my roommates," Hermione whispered back, trying to remain pleasant. "Hullo, Malfoy."

Draco nodded at her. "Granger." He looked over at Harry. "I figured it was only a matter of time before you came to visit, Potter," he stated, extending a hand. Harry stared at Draco's hand like it was covered in acid.

"I wasn't expecting to see you here, Malfoy. I thought for sure you'd be in prison by now," Harry answered conversationally, folding his arms across his chest. Draco followed suit.

"And I expected you to be a cross-dressing prostitute, but apparently our expectations were too lofty for each other," Draco replied, congenially. Hermione sighed.

"Well, Harry, now you've seen my roommate and now I'm going to..." Hermione began, starting to push Harry out the door, when Lizzie walked into the kitchen, looking tired. She blinked at Draco, yawned at Hermione, but her eyes opened wide when she saw Harry. She swore loudly.

"You're Harry Potter!" she exclaimed, apparently rooted to the spot.

"Um...yes, I am," Harry answered. He'd always been uncomfortable with the attention he got from people, so when Lizzie bounded over to shake his hand, he went stiff as a board. Hermione groaned inwardly. This was not a good day at all.

"I'm sorry," Lizzie was saying, sounding truly apologetic. "I know you probably don't enjoy being fawned over like this, but you have to understand that...it's like meeting someone like Steven Tyler, only on a different level."

Hermione nodded understandingly, as did Harry, but Draco seemed lost. Lizzie didn't seem to notice and just shook Harry's hand again before grabbing some pineapple from the refrigerator and returning to her room. Draco breathed a sigh of relief and sat back down at the kitchen table, flipping through a book. Harry looked at Draco, shrugged, and turned to smile at Hermione.

"Are you going to be okay?" he asked quietly.

"I'll be fine," Hermione assured him. "Go get some sleep; we'll go to the park tomorrow or something. Have a picnic. Whatever. But I'll be fine."

"Okay," Harry answered, sounding unsure. "I'll be at the B and B if you need me."

"I know." Hermione hugged him tightly and closed the door behind him as he left. Paying little attention to Draco, as had become the norm, she walked to the refrigerator and poured herself a glass of milk. It wasn't until a tear dripped off the end of her nose and into the glass that she realized she was crying. She tried to be discreet, but she'd never been good at crying discreetly. I must be terribly loud, she thought as she choked down an enormous sob. As if in response, Draco looked up.

"You little liar," he said quietly. "You're not fine at all."

Hermione put her glass down on the table and wept openly, covering her face with her hands. Draco watched her for a moment, but then did something unexpected. He put a hand on her shoulder, gently and comfortingly. Hermione, still crying, looked at him.

"He probably misses you, too," Draco told her. "He'd be a damned fool if he didn't." Then, as if realizing he'd said too much, Draco stepped back and patted Hermione's shoulder awkwardly. "You'll find someone better."

"There isn't anyone better," Hermione stated in a choked voice.

"Sure there is." Draco took Hermione by the shoulders and turned her so that she faced him. "I don't know why you and Weasley broke up, but I do know that if it was his decision, he was a greater git than I thought for making it."

Hermione managed a reasonable smile. "That's so comforting, Malfoy," she giggled, and he smiled, too.

"Don't you worry about it." With that, Draco released her and went back to his homework. Hermione mused at how odd the encounter was and yet how much better she felt. Brushing at a stray tear, she walked back to her room to sleep and prepare for whatever the next day would bring.

***

"You hate me, don't you?" Padma's voice asked.

Hermione opened one sleepy eye to see Padma sitting on her desk chair. Across the room, Lizzie was still snoring loudly. "What time is it?" Hermione muttered.

"Half nine," Padma answered. "I know that you like to get up earlier than you should, and Harry owled me this morning, saying that we should all meet for lunch. Looks like he owled you too."

Hermione looked in the direction of Padma's hand and saw a familiar snowy owl perched quietly on the desk. She sat up and gestured for Hedwig to come and sit on her bed, which the owl did, hooting softly. "Harry asked you not to wake me, didn't he?" Hermione asked, and Hedwig hooted again. Hermione took the note from Hedwig, read it, and turned back to Padma.

"Of course I don't hate you," she answered finally. "I'm annoyed as hell with Ron, but I don't hate you. You didn't do anything."

Padma smiled gratefully. "Oh good...you're a much better person than so many I know." Hermione gave her a strange look. "At Hogwarts, I spent all of my time with Parvati, Lavender and Mary-Ann Cole; if anything like this had happened with any of them, I would have been shunned for a week."

"Well, I'm not like that." Hermione petted Hedwig again, gratefully, and then stood. "What should I wear today?"

"Jeans. Jeans and a red jumper. But not something too revealing. You don't want to look desperate," Padma answered with a laugh.

Fifteen minutes later, Hermione was dressed and looking reasonably good when she left her bedroom. Padma was sitting quietly on the sofa, watching something in the kitchen when Hermione came out. She nodded toward the kitchen.

"I didn't see him before, but it looks like Malfoy's decided to take a nap on his books," Padma whispered as Hermione came around the corner. She smiled at Draco's sleeping form, almost fondly.

"He always does that. He's working so hard...I can relate," she whispered back and Padma nodded.

"For some reason, I'm just not as driven now."

"Me neither."

They left the flat and started walking to the park where they were to meet Ron and Harry for lunch.

***

"So why did you and Ron break up, anyway?"

It was the Tuesday after Harry and Ron had come to visit. The rest of the weekend had passed by without incident or much conversation between Ron and Hermione at all. It had been awkward to say the very least, but at least there had been no open hostility. Now, Hermione and Padma were studying for a Potions test together and Padma, having tired of advanced Potions, had chosen that moment to press the unpressed issue.

"Hermione?"

Hermione looked at Padma and smiled weakly. "I still ask myself the same thing," she answered, quietly, turning a page of notes on Veritaserum. "I think it was a mutual decision. Or at least that's the impression we both left with."

"What happened?" Padma asked again, putting her quill down and leaning closer to Hermione.

"I'm not entirely sure," Hermione admitted. "One moment, we were kissing and everything was normal. The next, we both were saying that we didn't want to leave tied to each other still and it would be best just to break it off. I can't really remember the details of the conversation beyond that."

"Wow." Padma looked very interested in the entire story. "I don't know. There's not much more to say to that, is there?"

"No, there isn't." Hermione sighed and put her own quill down. For a moment, she thought of other things she could tell Padma, but soon thereafter, she picked up her quill again. The conversation was over.