Basketcase

Basketcase

'...Pulling myself up by a rope I better my view

The only thing in sight is what I must do
As I turned I could see myself falling
Which in return gave me strength for the climb....'

--No Doubt, The Climb.

Chapter Six: An Assisted Visit From the Sandman

Hermione worked furiously that night, only taking that sleeping draught two hours before it was time to rise for another busy day at Hogwarts.

She sat at her desk, thinking and racking her brain with a determination that surpassed anything else she had done before. She made notes, her quill scratching against the parchment furiously and hastily, and then looking over it and sighing loudly. She thought of the design, the plans and the different sections that would beckon and welcome every person from every house and every year to come and read it. She grabbed an old issue of the Daily Prophet from her waste can, as she read over it and observed every little detail. She took down the different sections, to entertainment to business and world events to mate searches. When she had thought she had done enough and covered everything that she could do, she looked over her five scrolls of parchment of notes and made even more corrections. After she had made sure that everything was correct and precise, and she was satisfied, she folded it up neatly and placed it on her desk, before she capped her inkbottle and set! her quill on its stand.

She took the directed dose of the draught, as she swallowed down, trying not to gag as the bile and sour liquid filled her mouth and slid down her parched throat. The effects immediately took place, as she felt a warm and soothing sensation wave through her, as she slid underneath her heavy covers and snuggled against her pillow. In mere minutes, she was free from the anxieties of her stressful planning and her other plans for the next day, and the days after.

oooooo

Hermione woke up to the sound of her alarm singing to her, as it rattled and shook on her dresser noisily. She reached over groggily, as she hit the button and accidentally sent it over, hearing the crash as it fell and broke instantly.

"Ooh, that'll need fixing," she mumbled to herself drowsily, as she slowly pushed off her covers in zombie-like movements, her eyelids still half-shut. She untangled her legs from her sheets blindly, as she yawned and stretched, raising her arms heavenwards. She rubbed her eyes, as she heard a loud tapping. She looked over blearily to the direction where the noise was coming from, and found a tan owl with random flint feathers scattered in its fluff, outside her window. She squinted, as she didn't recognize the owl, before she got up and walked over to the window. She unlatched the window and let the owl in, as the owl pecked her irritably, as Hermione growled at him in annoyance, due to her grumpy mood.

"What is it, you bloody owl?" she croaked, as the owl snapped at her finger with its beak, as she tried to untie the letter from its leg. "Hold still!" she commanded, as she finally got the letter before the owl could peck at her again.

Her eyes read over the short letter quickly, as it held only simple instructions from Madam Pomfrey. Apparently, the sleeping potion wouldn't wear off until she drank another potion. Hermione quickly folded it as she reached forward to the bitter owl, noticing the red bottle hanging on its other leg. It snapped at her again, as Hermione yelped and scolded at it before successfully untying the bottle.

Hermione glowered at the owl as it hooted back at her disdainfully. She read over the instructions on the bottle, which was titled 'Awakening and Energy Renewing Potion For the Exhausted.' After Hermione read the simple orders, she looked back at the owl, which was watching her. It hooted at her, as Hermione scowled.

"Shoo, you bloody owl," Hermione said, trying to push it back out the window. "I've got nothing for you here. Besides, its almost breakfast back at the owlery." The owl flapped its wings; still trying to peck at Hermione, but quickly went on its way at Hermione's words about breakfast.

Hermione closed the window and turned the lock, before drawing the curtains closed hurriedly. She went and drank one quick gulp after she uncapped the red bottle, and she twisted her face from the tart and unpleasant taste as it burned in her throat. She shivered, as she felt frosty tingles creep up her spine and crackle through her fingers. She shook her head and shrugged her shoulders, trying to dismiss the quivers from the tonic. She smiled widely at the result, as she soon felt the shivers fade.

"Wicked," she whispered to herself, amazed. Her body felt absolutely energized and hyped up, and she felt as if she could run a hundred mile marathon. She sighed to herself, thrilled of this new sensation and energy that she hadn't had in ages. She walked to her closet to grab a fresh set of clothes, smiling and humming to herself cheerily. This was the best she'd felt in months.

oooooooo

She walked to the Great Hall with an extra bounce in her step, smiling widely at everyone she passed. She had taken extra time in the care of her outer appearance, as she had tamed her hair into shining waves, applied perfume and touches of make-up.

She walked in with bright eyes as she looked over towards the Gryffindor table, grinning as she spotted Ginny, waving her over. Hermione walked towards Ginny and sat down beside her, but as she looked over across of her, her mood slightly fell as she remembered. She looked over all the way at the other edge of the table, to see Ron and Harry sitting by Dean and Neville, talking and laughing. Hermione smiled only faintly, as she caught Harry's eye and he smiled at her, raising his hand only halfway to wave secretly to her. Hermione nodded, trying to smile wider but found she couldn't, before turning back to Ginny, who was sipping from her goblet.

"My brother's a git, I know," she suddenly said, as if reading Hermione's thoughts. Hermione sighed, not really wanting to talk about Ron, as she reached over for an orange as her healthy breakfast. "I told him that it wasn't right for him to keep Harry away from you, but he only insisted that it was Harry who was keeping himself away from you." Ginny shook her head, setting down her cup, "he's an impossible, brain dead wanker. You're better off without him."

Hermione peeled her orange, avoiding Ginny's eyes.

"After six and a half years with him, Ginny," she sighed, "I think I know that to be too true." Ginny snorted.

"Hermione, let's not forget he's my brother. And that we have to live together until he either moves out or I do." Hermione placed the pieces of orange peels on the other side of her plate, as she looked up at Ginny, looking slightly apologetic.

"Right. I almost forgot. Dreadfully sorry, Ginny." Ginny nodded, waving her hand to say to Hermione that it was fine. "Besides, let's not talk about him so early in the day, alright? He's going to ruin it all for me. The one day that I feel positively cheerful, and we start off the day with the conversation topic of your brother? I hope you don't mind, but talking about Malfoy is better." Hermione froze, realizing her words, as she stared at her half-peeled orange. She could feel Ginny's burning stare on her, as Hermione felt her face suddenly heat up far too quickly. "I mean," she continued, uneasily, "considering the current situations between your brother... and I."

Ginny only grinned at her friend, but didn't say a word about her comment.

"Yes, I've noticed that you're aglow this morning," Ginny complimented. Hermione smiled at her, as she finally finished off her orange and separated the pieces. "So, what happened? These past days, I hope you don't mind me saying, you've been... mean, cranky and absolutely wretched. It's those all-nighters, isn't it? I told you they're bad for your health." Hermione shook her head, before rolling her eyes.

"Ginny, I just had trouble sleeping, alright? I stopped studying and went to bed, but I could never fall asleep even if I tried."

"Uh huh. So you went to Madam Pomfrey for sleeping tonic?" Hermione nodded, before placing a slice of orange in her mouth.

"Exactly," she said.

"Well, you look fantastic," Ginny smiled. Hermione beamed at her, saying her thanks from her expression and twinkling eyes.

Ginny looked past the Gryffindor table and her gaze landed directly on a shining and pale head of blonde hair. Ginny grinned slyly, as she saw Draco's steady gaze directly where Ginny had hoped it to be. She leaned in close to Hermione's ear, who was placing another piece of orange in her mouth.

"And you know, I think Malfoy thinks so too. He's been staring at you." At this, Hermione's eyes bulged, and the next minute later, she was coughing as she accidentally swallowed the half-chewed piece, choking. Ginny patted her on the back, before Hermione got better and sent a glare her way. Ginny shrugged, still smiling secretly, noticing the pink tint on her cheeks that she knew was not from her choking.

"It's the truth," she said simply. "I thought you'd want to know."

Hermione swore under her breath, as she inhaled deeply, her heart racing. She reached for her goblet and took a long drink, refreshing and relieving her throat. But as she set down her cup, she couldn't help but look up, in the direction of the Slytherin table. Surely enough, she saw him there, and once he had noticed her looking up at him, he let the dominant smirk spread through his flawless features. Hermione frowned at him, ignoring the way her breath had ceased in her throat when her eyes had met his, before turning away.

She reached over for her cup once again, raising it to her lips and taking another long, long drink.

oooooooooooooooooo

Her classes went by in a breeze, as the lectures seemed more interesting and the ticks of the clock faster. She noticed as she walked in each of her class, that the table that held hers, Harry and Ron's seats were empty, as she looked towards the back and saw Ron and Harry sitting with Dean. She frowned, feeling her heart fall, before sitting down in her regular spot. She felt her annoyance for Ron grow even larger, as she glared at her book before her, rapidly flipping to the assigned page.

'Merlin I don't even know why - I can't possibly miss him, can I? I mean... all he does is fall asleep and doodle silly and poorly drawn pictures on his parchments instead of taking blasted notes, and copy his assignments from me. Don't tell me that I actually miss that lazy, good for nothing halfwit!' Hermione yelled in frustration mentally, before turning her gaze up to Professor Flitwick.

She was actually glad when her classes had finally ended that day, for that meant not having to see Ron's bloody face until tomorrow, and she thought that she could live with that for the time being.

Hermione walked down the empty corridors, after her trip to the Library to do some research and to avoid the swarming traffic that often went on in the halls after their classes. She had spent a blissful and calming hour and a half amongst the stacks and shelves of books, and she felt happy. She had finished both of her assignments that had been assigned to them today, and she was utterly satisfied with herself. She walked down the halls in a peaceful state of mind, hearing her heels click on the shiny and smooth floors of Hogwarts. The flames inside the torches wavered and danced, sending shadows to quickly dash and scurry across the dim walls. She walked up the flights of stairs, earning a surprisingly large amount of compliments from the Portraits, unlike her other days before. She thanked them with a smile, before finally entering the Head's corridor and then reaching her room. She spoke her password as the door opened, and she went in.

Hermione knew that a nice and soothing bath would help her for the rest of the night, so she smiled to herself and undressed, before slipping into her pajamas. She grabbed her towel, toothbrush and a clean pair of undergarments before she headed out of her room.

But as she crossed the Common Room to get to the bathroom, she noticed Draco lying on the couch, a book in his hands. She smiled widely, as she looked at him.

'Well, he doesn't look so evil when he's reading like that,' her mind said to her. 'At least he reads willfully. That's so hard to find nowadays, you know. He really is quite a catch.' Hermione ignored the comment, but knew she agreed with it because she hadn't met a single boy in Hogwarts who enjoyed reading and didn't just do it because he was obligated to.

"Hey Malfoy," she said cheerfully, before reaching the bathroom door and stepping inside. She didn't look back a she closed and locked the door promptly behind her.

Draco stared at the door, wondering where that had suddenly come from.

Hermione hummed to herself as she slipped off her pajamas, after choosing her choice of bubbles and fragrance for today. She sighed languidly as she closed her eyes, leaning back and shifting her legs as the scent of fragrant flowers and rain filled her senses. She felt her mind slowly tune out, grateful for the calm after another tiring day of classes and studying. But as she opened her eyes, she reached for her washcloth and scrubbed herself, knowing that just lying in a bath full of pleasant and heavenly smelling bubbles wouldn't necessarily make her clean.

After draining the water and leftover bubbles, she toweled herself dry, shaking out her hair. She dressed into her pajamas, as she reached into a small cabinet on the sidewall, taking out her brush. She looked at her reflection, which stared back at her as she combed her wet hair. She combed out her tangles and picked off the strands that had fallen out, before she returned it to the cabinet.

She walked out, still humming to herself cheerfully, not noticing that Draco had changed his direction and was now facing her, still lying on the couch. He observed her quietly, having put his book down as soon as he had heard the lock click. Draco's eyes had somehow lowered as he had been watching her, and suddenly became entranced at her long and slender, creamy legs as she walked towards her room. As Hermione entered her room and neatly shut the door, Draco was left speechless. After he had recovered from his momentary shock, he sat up and stared with a furrowed brow at her door, wondering of how he hadn't seen or noticed that before.

Hermione was still humming a happy tune to herself as she closed the door behind her, before heading to her closet to put her things away. But as she walked to her desk to straighten her parchments and quills out, her eyes widened as she saw her notes for Dumbledore's plans. Her eyes darted to the door, flashes of Draco in the Common Room scurrying in her mind, before she bolted out of her room as quickly as she could.

She halted right in front of Draco's couch, her heart racing.

"Malfoy!" she exclaimed, and Draco slowly put his book down, looking at her with a blank expression on his face.

"Yes, what is it? Finally look in the mirror? Oh, dreadfully sorry, Mudblood, but I'm afraid any spells for your appearance are only temporary. You'll have to wait until you're of age until you can get anything permanently fixed." Hermione gaped at him, before closing her mouth and folding her arms across her chest, glowering.

"Malfoy, I've got no time for your bloody insults," she huffed. Draco watched her, as she walked towards him and snatched his book from his hands. "And guess what? Neither do you." Draco glared at her.

"Just what do you think you're doing?" he snapped at her. "Granger, give me back my book!"

"No!" she said to him, clutching the book tightly behind her, as he sat up to face her.

"And why the bloody not?" he asked irritably.

"Because, Malfoy, we've got some planning to do and I stayed up all night yesterday evening to set everything up. All I need to do is discuss it with the Head Boy and the Prefects to get everything really started, and since you're the Head Boy, unfortunately, I've got to discuss it with you. So can we just agree on something to make this faster and easier so we can each get to bed at a reasonable hour?" Draco was staring up at Hermione, who now had her hands on her hips, with a bothered look on his face. But as she was standing right in front of him, his gaze traveled down and he was now observing her body, leaving very little for him to imagine from her small tank and tiny shorts as her pajamas. Draco cocked his head to the side, trying to decide on the verdict.

Draco rather liked what was standing before him. She had smooth and soft looking creamy skin, and he was surprised to see that she had curves that he never imagined she could ever have, what with that dreadful robe she always hid behind. She had reasonable sized breasts, not too big and not too small. But what he liked most about her, what he was in awe of that he had never seen other girls have it as good as she did, was her legs. She had long, slender and smooth legs, and Draco knew that all his years here, he had never seen any like hers before. They were perfect.

"You know, Granger, rise that skirt a few inches, shorten those knee-highs and dart out those legs every now and then, the male population here at Hogwarts would be trailing after you," he said, an eyebrow raised, still looking at her legs.

Hermione felt blood rush to her face, as she suddenly felt as if her face was on fire. She narrowed her eyes at him, resisting the urge to hit him with his book, and was not doing so well. She felt her grip tighten as she clenched her fists, her anger and impatience colliding.

"Malfoy," she said through gritted teeth, "I have no time for this. You're Head Boy and I'm Head Girl, and we must get this done, understand? Though you are a cocky, cruel, rude, disgusting and vicious little snake, I am willing to cooperate if you are." Draco's expression was impassive, clear that he was unaffected by her words, his eyes still glued to her legs.

Hermione, fed up and very irritated and bothered, smacked him across the face with his book. Draco shouted in surprise and protest that soon turned into an irritation that rivaled hers. He glared up at her, his dim, overcast eyes glimmering.

"Bloody hell, Granger!" he shouted at her, still swearing under his breath. "That is my bloody property, and you can't just go around hitting me with it just because I can't stand to listen to another one of your dull lectures! Give me my damn book! Give it to me!" Draco's hand darted out as he tried to grab it back, but Hermione held it behind her back.

"Malfoy, can't you just act civil for one blasted night so we can get this done?" she snapped.

"And civil is hitting me with my bloody book? You're not as clever as you think," he hissed. "Now give me my damn book!"

"No!" she said, frustrated. "I won't give it back until you agree to cooperate with me! That means no derogatory, boorish, insulting or offensive remarks." Draco reached for his book, almost lunging right at her, as she stepped back.

"Granger," he growled.

"Malfoy, we have to get this done tonight," she said, almost pleadingly. "Dumbledore's expecting it to be up and running soon.... We can't risk looking like complete, lazy idiots when he asks about it!" Draco sighed sharply, his eyes burning through her like white-hot acid. Hermione tried to put a compromising look on her face. "Malfoy, we're Heads," she said quietly. "It's a privilege, remember?" Draco glowered at her, his eyes narrowing into slits.

"Fine. I'll keep my Mudblood jokes to a minimum and you keep your boring, ridiculous morals and lectures to yourself. And no talking about Weasel or Potter. If you do so," Draco folded his arms and leaned back, looking up at her seriously, with a hint of distaste. "Agreement is broken and all your pitiful hard work is wrecked." Hermione winced as she heard his words echo in her mind. Hermione nodded, relieved that he had agreed to cooperate -- or at least act bearable.

"Thank you," she sighed. "Finally we can get this done." Draco sneered at her, an annoyed and hateful look on his pale, pointed face.

"Well? Are we going to get this done tonight or what?" Hermione glared at him, before turning to leave.

"Wait! Just where the hell do you think you're going?" he barked at her. Hermione halted, her annoyance for him rising extremely high on her scale. She turned around, facing him with a scowl. He was looking at her expectedly - the Malfoy way, with impatience evident and his displeasure etched across his face - as he held out his hand. "My book, Granger," he said sharply. "If you're going to steal, steal from Potter. He can't find any more friends, so he can't possibly risk getting angry with you and therefore driving you away. Well?" Hermione, clenching her fists and feeling her anger bubbling, raised his book and threw it at him, hitting him squarely on the shoulder, as she swore at herself for missing. She stormed back to her room to get her notes, as she heard him call out to her in a haughty and angry tone.

"You missed, Granger!"