A Lot Like Love

The wind blew the leaves into piles in the courtyard. It was mid-November and was getting cold - shuffling towards the castle, Draco Malfoy pulled his long black cloak closer around him. Just one glance at his face was enough tell you he was angry, and he cursed under his breath as he made his way through the corridors toward the Slytherin common room. Once inside, he took off his cloak, laying it over a chair, and searched the room for Pansy. He saw her, sitting in a corner, curled up in an uncomfortable armchair. He walked over to her.

"Pansy!"

"Wha-what?" Pansy looked around the room, confused, before she noticed Draco standing before her. Before she could start cooing at him, he went off on a rampage.

"What are you doing here? You told me to meet you down by that half-breed's hut!"

"I'm sooo sooorry, Draaaco. I fell asleep," she whined.

"You know what?" Draco began pacing up and down in front of her. "I can't do this anymore Pansy! You treat me like crap, not to mention you're annoying as hell!"

"What are you saying, Draco?" Pansy had dropped the loving tone and was looking at him strangely.

"I'm saying that I'm - I'm breaking up with you. We're not getting married," he told her firmly.

"You can't be serious!" She stood up with her hands on her hips, furious.

"I am serious."

"But you can't do that! You can't break up with me!"

"I just did."

Pansy was ready to slap him, but he moved before she had a chance. He walked calmly away, feeling as though a burden had been lifted off his shoulders - only to be replaced by another. What would his father say?

He'll probably make me marry her, he thought, walking through the winding corridors of the dungeons. I'm just being rebellious, he'll say. But what if I'm not just being rebellious? I really don't like Pansy. Her voice could make anyone turn to drink!

He was so preoccupied with his thoughts, that he ran slap bang into someone carrying an armful of books.

"Sorry," he said, picking up some of the books. He looked to see who he had bumped into and saw that it was Hermione Granger. He handed her the books.

"Thanks," she mumbled, turning to leave.

"You want to hear something funny?" Draco called. What on Earth has got into me, he thought to himself.

This surprised Hermione; he could tell. She turned to face him, holding her books to her chest. "What could be funny enough to make you actually want to talk to me?"

"I just broke up with my girlfriend."

"Pansy Parkinson?"

"Yeah. That's the one."

"Why?"

"Because she's who I'm supposed to be with."

She looked confused. "Then why did you break up with her?" Oh my gosh, she thought. Why am I talking to Malfoy like a he's a regular person?

"She's annoying and takes me for granted. And I'm sick of doing everything my father tells me to."

"Oh," she said simply. She turned to leave but he continued talking.

"What about you?" he asked.

"What about me?"

"Are you dating anyone? Weasley, perhaps?"

She blushed. She actually blushed. "No. I'm not dating anyone."

"What do you think of me?"

She stared at him, unsure of what to say. "What do you mean?"

"Would you go out with me?"

Did I get slipped a potion? I just hinted that I was interested in dating Granger!

"Come again?" They both knew that she had heard correctly, but it was such an unexpected turn for the conversation to have taken, she had to make sure.

Oh well, might as well follow through. Father's going to kill me!

"Would you go with me to Hogsmeade this weekend?"

Hermione opened her mouth to give a sharp refusal, but thought again. Well, Ron is trying to make me jealous with all this stuff with Lavender. Nothing would annoy him more than if I started seeing Malfoy. "Sure," she replied instead.

"You're serious." Draco couldn't believe it. She had said sure. Was he hearing things?

"Yes. And you're the one you asked me," Hermione said matter-of-factly.

"Okay."

"That's it?"

"What else do you want me to say?"

She tapped her foot impatiently on the stone floor. "Where are we going to meet?"

"Oh," he said, running a hand through his hair. "How about in the courtyard - near the fountain?"

"Okay. I'll see you tomorrow then." She turned on her heel and headed towards the Gryffindor common room.

Draco walked back his room slowly, going over that odd conversation over and over again in his head. When he reached his room, a letter was sitting on the desk. He opened it. It was from his father. It said that Pansy had told him about the break up and informed Draco that he was to get back together with Pansy or the consequences would be dire. Draco ignored the letter and fell asleep on his bed, still wearing his robes.

The next morning, both Draco and Hermione got up early and made their way down to the Great Hall with their separate groups of friends; the students couldn't leave for Hogsmeade until eleven, so there was time for a leisurely breakfast.

For once, Draco had a peaceful breakfast. Pansy was sulking on the other side of the table, still rather angry with him.

"Did you send a letter to my father last night?" he asked her.

"Yes, I did," she answered stiffly.

"Why?"

"Because," she said shortly.

"You know what? I don't care," he said. She was just getting on his nerves.

Over at the Gryffindor table, Hermione kept glancing across at the Slytherins and Ron was starting to notice.

"Got a secret boyfriend over there, Hermione?" he asked her across the table.

"What?" He had caught her off guard. "Are you crazy?"

"I don't know about crazy," Ron said, taking a drink of pumpkin juice. "But you sure are looking over at the Slytherins a lot this morning."

"No, I'm not," she protested.

"Yes, you are," he shot back.

"Just stop it, Ron!"

"God. I'm glad I'm not going to Hogsmeade today."

"You're not?" Oh no! The only reason she had said yes to going to Hogsmeade with Malfoy was to make Ron angry.

"Yes, he is," Lavender said, coming over to sit down next to her boyfriend. "He's taking me."

Yes! She smiled sweetly at her. "That's great."

As all the students filed out of the Great Hall, Pansy boasted that she was going to Hogsmeade alone to buy presents for her parents. Draco honestly had no idea why she thought anyone cared if she was going alone or not. The only thing he cared about was that she was going to be there to see him with Hermione, so that he could make her jealous. After all, he told himself, that was the only reason I invited her in the first place. He had already started feeling smug and tried to imagine, over and over again in his head, what Pansy's face would look like when he took Hermione to Hogsmeade. This was going to be a good day.

Later on, Hermione was sat on a big armchair in the common room, reading a book - she was so absorbed in what she was reading, she almost didn't hear eleven o'clock chime. Lavender came over with Ron.

"Who are you going with, Hermione?" she asked.

"Oh, no one special," Hermione answered, closing her book. She quickly went up the stairs to the girls' dormitories to make sure she looked presentable. She put on some shoes and pulled on a sweater. Her legs were shaking as she left through the portrait hole. Once she got to the courtyard, she walked over to the fountain in the middle. She had started getting second thoughts when she saw him. He came in with a group of Slytherins and Hermione couldn't help but stare. He looked different in 'normal' clothes. But a good different, she thought. He's kind of nice to look at. She didn't have any more time to think, as he walked over to her.

"I didn't think you'd actually come," he said.

"Well, neither did I," she said. Standing this close to him, she noticed that he was about as tall as Ron and not at all as scrawny as he had been in their first year. Speaking of whom, she thought, noticing Lavender and Ron making their way up to Professor McGonagall to get checked in. As Lavender looked her way, Hermione interlocked arms with Draco and gave Ron's girlfriend a big smile. Lavender gave Hermione a wide-eyed look but didn't tell Ron - she just walked down the stone steps with her nose in the air.

Draco knew exactly why Hermione had grabbed his arm like that, but he couldn't help but like the feel of her body so close. Now it was his turn. Pansy was slowly walking up to McGonagall with a little blonde girl.

"Come on," he said to Hermione, starting to walk through the crowds of people. Hermione let go of his arm and he put his arm across her shoulders, something he knew Pansy would kill him for. He was only supposed to do that to her. Hermione, of course, played along with him. They reached McGonagall at exactly the same time as Pansy.

"Go ahead, Pansy," Draco said, watching Pansy's face. Her mouth opened and closed but no words came out. She quickly handed McGonagall her paper and stomped away.

"Good morning, Mr Malfoy, Miss Granger," McGonagall said, looking at the odd couple in front of her. "All right, go ahead."

As the two walked down the path, Hermione couldn't help but enjoy Draco's arm around her. It was cold, and his body heat was keeping her warm. She smiled but looked at the ground, hoping he wouldn't see her face.

Draco glanced over at her when she looked down. He couldn't help but notice that she was a perfect height for him, the top of her head just coming up to his shoulder. They continued in silence for a while, until Hermione turned to him.

"So, what now?" she asked him.

"What do you mean?" Draco looked over at her. The cool air had made her cheeks rosy and he smiled to himself. She's cute. In a frizzy sort of way, he added, looking at her hair.

"Well, Pansy saw us together and Lavender saw us together. I just need Ron to see us together and..." She trailed off.

"Okay," he said, looking forwards.

Hermione, on the other hand, was still facing him. "Are we going to go the whole day without saying each others' names?"

"Yeah, why not?" he asked.

"Well, first and foremost, this is still a date. Even if it is to make other people jealous. We have to say each others' names eventually," she told him.

"When that time comes, I will," he said.

"Okay." She looked forwards again, but continued to cast glances at him.

"You look different without your cloak," she said very quietly.

"What?" He thought he had heard her say something, but hadn't exactly heard what it was.

"Nothing," she muttered.

It didn't take much longer for them to reach Hogsmeade. The little town was bustling with people and new items. Hermione grabbed Draco's hand so that they wouldn't be split up as people pushed past them. Soon the crowds subsided and Draco's arm went around her shoulders again. She was grateful for the warmth.

"Where should we go?" he asked her.

"The Three Broomsticks," she replied, adding, "I'm freezing."

Trying not to be too obvious, he pulled her a little closer. Another little smile appeared on Hermione's face and this time she didn't hide it. She had a feeling Ron was going to be at The Three Broomsticks with Lavender and she hoped that she could show Ron her 'no one special' date. They reached the little pub and it wasn't as full as they expected. Hermione searched the room and found Ron and Lavender sitting together at a table, Ron's back to the door.

"Keep your arm on my shoulder," she instructed Draco.

"Okay," he said, walking beside her. She walked past Ron and Lavender's table and then looked over her shoulder at Ron's face. His jaw was practically on the table and he was turning red. She smiled at him as Draco ordered them two Butterbeers. They made their way to a table next to a wall, where they sat on opposite sides.

Hermione drummed her fingers on the table and then looked up at Draco, who was looking right back at her. "Talk to me," she told him, holding his gaze.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, usually on a date, you try to get to know each other."

He raised an eyebrow and took a drink.

"I know that the Malfoy I know would have never asked me out. Why'd you do it?"

He leaned forward. "You really want to know?" She nodded. "Honestly, I think you're cute. And I wanted to make Pansy jealous."

Hermione was shocked. He said I was cute! Her insides started jumping.

"Why'd you say yes?"

She thought for a minute. "Because I'm not seeing anyone and you asked me nicely. Oh, and because of Ron of course."

"I asked you nicely, huh?" She's cute, he thought. Innocent, but cute - not someone I would normally go out with.

She blushed. "Yeah."

"And that's why you said yes?" She nodded and he continued, "Well, I know this will piss my dad off - that's the other reason I asked you."

She nodded. "Oh. So you're just being rebellious?"

He shrugged. "Maybe."

She smiled at him. At least he's being honest with me. And maybe there's a hidden personality in there somewhere.

"Don't you hate Pansy's voice?" Draco said suddenly.

Hermione looked up at him and smiled, almost laughing. "Why would I hate her voice?"

"It's annoying, isn't it?"

"Honestly?"

"Honestly."

"Yes, it's very annoying. It's far too high pitched."

Then Draco did something he didn't do very often: he started laughing. This surprised Hermione, but she joined him. She liked the sound of his laugh. It was rich and it warmed her to the bone.

He gradually stopped and looked across the table at her. Her face was glowing and her eyes twinkled. She was truly beautiful.

"I never knew you could laugh," she told him, a small smile on her lips.

"Yeah, and you won't hear me do that too often," he said, taking a sip of Butterbeer.

"Why not?"

"Do you really need to ask that?"

She smiled. "Okay, yes. I can think of a few reasons."

"I thought you would be able to."

She sipped her Butterbeer. "I always thought that you might have a little sense of humour under there, and I can see a little bit of it peeking out."

"Is that so?"

She nodded. He really is nice to talk to. Unlike Ron, who never talks, or Harry, who always talks about depressing things.

"Well, my father doesn't like me to be funny," he told her. "And I think you can guess a few reasons why."

"Yeah. I can."

They were quiet for a few minutes. Hermione looked over at Ron's table and saw that they were getting up to leave. She looked at her watch. It was twelve-thirty. She told Draco and he finished his drink.

"What do you want to do now?" he asked her.

"How about we go to Honeydukes," she suggested, because she honestly couldn't think of anywhere else to go.

Surprisingly, Draco didn't object. He got up and followed Hermione out. They walked in silence and Draco noticed she was shivering. His arm went around her shoulders again and his hand rubbed her upper arm, trying to warm her up.

"Thanks," she said quietly as they made their way through the small town. They reached Honeydukes and Hermione grabbed Draco's hand so that they wouldn't get separated. The little sweet shop was full of people but it was warm. She pulled him through the crowd and into the back room. No one was back there and it was quiet. Rows and rows of jars lined the many shelves.

Draco noticed that Hermione was still holding his hand and he kind of enjoyed how she treated him. Pansy had never actually talked to him, she just wanted to cuddle with him and smother him. Hermione treated him like a normal person and he could have sworn that she had been flirting with him earlier.

Hermione stopped walking and turned to face Draco. He was handsome and Hermione had enjoyed just talking to him in The Three Broomsticks. He actually listened to her and told the truth all the time. She liked people who spoke their minds; it showed that they had great character.

When she turned to him, Draco looked at her properly for the first time. Right now, she was just another girl; it didn't matter whether she had wizard or Muggle parents. She had what he'd call 'natural beauty'. He liked the fact that she didn't wear lots of makeup, like Pansy did. The cold air made her cheeks pink and her eyes shine.

He brought his hand up to her face and brushed aside a piece of hair that had fallen into her eyes. Looking down at her, something welled up inside of him. Something that he had never felt before. His hand cupped her cheek and he kissed her.

Oh my - Hermione thought. The feeling that kiss gave her was something she had never felt before in her life. It made her whole body warm and she could have sworn she saw fireworks.

After the kiss, they just stood, looking at each other. Draco didn't know what had come over him and he almost felt sorry that he had done it.

"I'm sorry if-" he started.

"Don't say anything," she said. She took hold of the hand that was still resting on her cheek and pulled him out into the main part of the shop. In the short time that they had been in the back room, the shop had cleared quite a bit. A lot of the students had started to walk back to the school; Hermione and Draco set off after them.

His arm took its place across her shoulders and Hermione closed her eyes, remembering that wonderful feeling and that wonderful first kiss! She smiled at the thought.

Draco wasn't sure what to think. He had actually felt something in that kiss. Something amazing and something he had never felt with any other girl he had kissed - although admittedly, that experience was limited to Pansy. It hadn't been a bad thing at all, and Draco wouldn't object to feeling it again.

They hadn't said a word since the kiss and Hermione decided to break the silence.

"I had a nice time," she said quietly.

He smiled and looked down at her. "I did too."

She thought for a moment then said, "Want to do it again sometime?"

"Do what?"

"Go out on dates."

He didn't even have to think about it. "Yes."

And that's what they did. They went out on dates through November. And for some reason, people didn't mind. Hermione was sure that Harry wasn't happy with the thought but he had Ginny to keep him company. Lavender and Ron stayed together and Pansy got a new boyfriend. The seventh year she selected was 'a year older, but still my type' in Pansy's own words.

Hermione and Draco had a special Christmas dinner together in the Room of Requirement. There were candles all around a little glass table, set for two. It was their most romantic date and it ended with a long kiss in front of the Fat Lady.

During the next few months, they went out together everywhere. They kissed a lot, a practice that Hermione was getting rather good at. She wouldn't say that she didn't enjoy it, but made sure it never went further than just kissing.

The weather was warming up and one morning Draco told Hermione to meet him at eight o'clock by the big tree next to the lake. Hermione was in suspense the whole day - it didn't help that they had no classes together all day. They had shared a quick kiss in the Great Hall, but Ginny had pulled her away. During dinner, Hermione was constantly looking over at Draco, sat at his table; and he was almost always looking back. Every time she looked at him, she got goose bumps and butterflies in her stomach.

At ten minutes to eight that night, Hermione made her way through the castle and outside. A gorgeous crescent moon hung over the lake, and she could see its huge reflection in the still water. She saw Draco standing by the tree, and walked over to give him a kiss.

"Why are we-" she started, but her eyes had traveled to the ground. A blanket was laid out beneath the tree and another was folded up beside it.

She looked at him strangely. "Are we going to sleep out here?"

He smiled. "Why not?"

She couldn't find an answer. He sat down with his back against the tree and she sat down in front of him, her back to his chest, whereupon he busied himself playing with her hair. She began to feel cold, so she pulled the other blanket over them both.

"The moon is so pretty, isn't it?" she asked him quietly.

"Yeah. It is."

They were quiet for a while and then Draco asked:

"Is this what love is?"

She turned her head to look at him. He looked serious, so she kissed him. "I don't know. But I think it's a lot like it."