Essence of Hermione

Chapter 4: The Broom Shed

The next day, the only time Hermione saw Draco was in class, and he gave no sign that he had noticed her. She found herself thinking that maybe yesterday was just a fluke. The day went by, with nothing odd or unusual happening. Last period ended and everyone piled out of the dungeons, anxious to get as far away as possible from Snape now that Christmas Holidays were officially started. Hermione, Ron and Harry were just rounding a corner, the two boys talking loudly about Quidditch, when they bumped into the person Hermione was least expecting to see.

"Watch it, Potter," snarled Malfoy, and Harry's eyes narrowed.

"I believe it was you who bumped into me," he replied coldly.

Malfoy glared and seemed on the verge of saying something, but turned from them quickly, brushing past Hermione and knocking her books to the floor.

"You'll get yours, Potter," Hermione thought she heard him mutter as he sped past, but it happened so fast that she wasn't quite sure.

Glaring hatefully at Malfoy's retreating figure, she bent down to retrieve her books and noticed a piece of parchment that hadn't been there before. Picking it up carefully she stared at what was written there.

Quidditch pitch. Tonight at seven. Be there.

There was no doubt at all about who had written the note, but after that scene, how could he still want to... She shook her head. He was far too complicating.

"Need some help?" Ron asked her, breaking off his tirade of insults at Malfoy and seeming to notice her on the floor for the first time.

She looked up sharply and stuffed the parchment into the front of her robes.

"No, I've got it," she said, grabbing the rest of her books and jumping up quickly.

"Well, that ruined my day," complained Ron. "Filthy, ferret faced bastard-"

"Ron!"

"What?" he asked sharply, but then withered under the look Hermione gave him. "Well, he is," he said meekly.

"Well that's no reason to use that language, now is it? If your mother heard you..." Hermione said prissily, turning much too quickly to see Ron roll his eyes at Harry.

She headed back to the common room, her mind whizzing around the note and not bothering to check if her friends were still with her.

"Hey, 'Mione! Hermione! Wait up!" Ron called from behind her, but she was too distracted to hear him.

Ron turned to Harry looking mildly disturbed.

"You don't suppose she's ignoring me for that, do you?"

Harry just shrugged and Ron sighed, pulling a face.

"She's mad, you know. Barking."

Up in her dormitory, Hermione took out Draco's note, smoothing it carefully before placing it on her bed and pulling her curtains shut. She sighed at her patheticness. Christmas holidays were officially started and she could technically be doing anything she wanted with her free time. Instead she was here, alone, puzzling over Draco Malfoy. Not that there was much to puzzle over. He wanted her to meet him at the field tonight, at seven.

"Obviously," she said to herself, and rolled her eyes.

He probably just wanted to snog her senseless and then laugh at her stupidness.

"Well that is not going to happen," she growled under her breath, and then collapsed onto her pillow.

And just what are you going to do about it? her own voice demanded.

Hermione sighed. The truth was she didn't know how she was going to stop Malfoy from doing whatever it was he did with all his other whores. The only option she could think of was to not go at all, and that caused a wave of desire to wash over her.

"Oh, for heavens sake!" she exclaimed, just as a head of red hair poked into her curtains.

"Talking to yourself, Hermione? That can't be good," Ginny said smiling. "What's up?"

Hermione groaned and showed her the note, explaining whom it was from.

"Well, isn't that what you wanted? Isn't that what I spent like, all of yesterday convincing you was ok?"

"Yes... and no. I don't want him to think that he's controlling me like he does everything else."

"So don't let him."

"Oh, like it's that easy."

"But you're different from all his other girls. You have a brain, where as they have only blonde hair and big boobs. I think he knows that he can't just have you then drop you, or if he thinks he can then he's going to get a rude awakening. And seriously, you're only in it for the snog anyways, so who cares if you never speak to him again?"

Hermione looked at her quizzically.

"When did you get so wise?"

Ginny laughed.

"Far too many romance novels."

That night at seven Hermione headed out to the pitch. She shivered. It was cold out and she hadn't thought to bring her scarf or mittens. Malfoy was nowhere to be seen.

"I bet he just got me out here to see how much of a fool I was."

She walked over and sat on the stands, rubbing her arms to keep warm. She chanced a glance at the sky and saw something streaking between the Quidditch posts. Hermione watched in fascination, sure that it was Draco, though she couldn't tell him from his broom, they were one liquid movement. He really was an amazing flier. After a while he floated down to her. She gasped. He had his shirt unbuttoned even though it was quite chilly out, revealing his very nice chest, and beads of sweat were forming all over his body. His hair fell just so in his eyes, and he blew at it.

"You came," he commented.

She nodded, suddenly feeling very warm despite the chilly air.

He looked at her intently for a minute.

"Why?"

"Because you asked me too...?"

"No, why are you doing this Granger? Not that I'm complaining... I'm just curious."

"I'm not doing anything. You asked to meet you here so I did. Now, what was it you wanted?" she asked in a falsely innocent voice. She knew exactly what he wanted but she'd be damned before she voiced it.

He rolled his eyes.

"Drop the act. Everyone thinks your so bloody innocent," he laughed. "But somehow you find yourself outside, alone, at night with none other then Draco Malfoy. Tsk tsk, Granger, if only they knew."

She glared at him violently.

"They're not going to find out. No one is going to find out."

It was his turn to look at her innocently.

"Find out what? I only asked you to meet me out here... maybe I wanted to look at the stars with you? No harm in that."

He smirked at the look she gave him.

"I ask you again, why are you doing this? And we both know what 'this' is."

She shrugged.

"I guess... I guess I just want some fun," she said quietly. "That's why you're doing this, isn't it?"

The look he gave her was a weird one, but finally he nodded.

"So let's have some fun," he said to her in his low, husky voice, grabbing her hand and pulling her onto his broom.

"What... on your broom?"

He laughed.

"No Granger. I just need to put this back in the shed. Hold on."

With that he zipped down from the stands, Hermione holding tightly to his narrow waist. She had never liked flying, but she had to admit, holding on to him like this was a plus. Hermione climbed off the broom once they reached the broom shed.

"I've never really flown before," she admitted, eyes cast down in slight embarrassment, once he had put his broom away and they were on their way out of the shed. He tilted her chin up towards him.

"I bet there's a lot of things you haven't done before that I could teach you," he said huskily, grinning at the blush that crept up her cheeks.

He leaned in slightly, his lips meeting hers. She reached her arms up around his neck tentatively, parting her lips slightly. That was all the encouragement he needed. He held back at first, exploring her mouth, tasting her, teaching her with little flicks of his tongue. Hermione was lost in a world of passion. Malfoy was smooth. All of his movements- his mouth, his tongue, his hands- were graceful, yet passionate. He was experienced she knew, and for a split second she found herself wondering how many other girls he had kissed in this exact spot. It was then, however, that he decided to give himself full reign over her mouth, and emotions, and all of her thoughts and rationalists were lost. He filled her with himself, and she moaned against his lips. She felt him rummaging in his pocket, and he picked her up, she wrapping one of her legs around him. He was still kissing her when he tapped three times on the wall in quick succession and stumbled through a doorway that had suddenly appeared. Hermione was vaguely aware that he had put her down on something soft. She pulled him closer to her and he moaned, kissing her furiously. He rolled her over so she was on top, and somewhere along the way her cloak came undone, landing on the floor. Draco began running his hands down her back and then under the back of her shirt. A little noise almost like a squeak emitted from her and she almost stopped him, but then decided against it. She felt him sigh against her lips and moan again, but then he broke off the kiss. Hermione looked at him in confusion, and by the look on his face he was exercising extreme self-control.

"We have to... stop," he gasped, giving her an extremely pained look as if that was the last thing in the world he wanted to do.

Hermione nodded and took the chance to look around her quickly. She was in a small room with a fireplace in one corner, a chair and a bed, which she was now lying on.

"Where are we?" she asked in wonder.

"The broom shed."

She raised an eyebrow at him.

"This is a secret room... been here as long as anyone can remember. Quite handy actually."

Hermione nodded and looked at Draco shyly.

"I never thought you would be the one to break off anything... sexual," she said, but secretly she was grateful. She didn't want to go to far with Malfoy on their first night.

He shook his head and said, half to himself, "neither did I."

She smiled a bit nervously.

"So... what now then? I'm assuming that you asked me out here to snog..."

"I'd really call it getting to know you better."

She arched an eyebrow.

"Oh, really. So what do you know about me now that you didn't earlier? That even Muggleborn's have lips and tongues and all the normal female parts, and that your hands don't fall off once you touch one?" she asked scathingly.

At that he laughed, really laughed, and it startled her.

"You're a hypocrite for one thing. Yelling at me one minute, snogging me the next."

"That's not a hypocrite, that's... well... I don't know what that is. Are we actually having a conversation?"

"I suppose one could call it that," he said slowly, then looked at her sharply. "We'd better get back, Potter and Weasely are probably looking for you." He rolled his eyes.

Hermione nodded and quickly got up. She looked at him strangely.

"Thank you," she said, blushing, before walking quickly past him and out the door.

She looked behind her at where she had just come from. There was no sign of the secret room. She found herself wondering if Harry and Ron knew about it, but quickly banished the thought. They would have told her... wouldn't they? She shook her head and walked quickly back to the castle, her heart singing, but feeling oddly empty. When she had been with Malfoy, he had filled a part of her that she had never knew needed filling. She knew she needed more, and it scared her. She shivered and refused to think about that. She focused on her more immediate problems, mainly that Malfoy was right; Harry and Ron probably were looking for her. Hopefully Ginny had given them a believable excuse. She smiled. Ginny would want to know everything that had happened. She'll just have to suffer until morning, thought Hermione grinning. The first thing she was doing when she got back to Gryffindor tower was finishing of some pre-Christmas homework, and then going to bed. She shook her head ruefully, whoever would have thought that Hermione Granger would blow off a date with books for one with a guy. Especially when that guy was Draco Malfoy. Still, she was incredibly glad she had. There was just one thing bothering her, why had Malfoy stopped? She would have thought that he would've went as far as he could with her... she shook her head. Once again he was far too confusing and she refused to think about it. Sighing heavily, she climbed the stairs to the castle, and disappeared inside.

Draco watched her go and sighed. It had almost killed him to break off that kiss, but it had to be done. He had to get Granger to trust him, and that was the only way he knew how. Oh well, he thought with a smirk. There'll be plenty of other chances to do what he wanted with her. For now he would have to be content with what he got. With his recent snogging session still replaying itself in his mind, he headed back to the castle.