Love's Horrid Fruit

Hermione

It was a rotten mistake going out at night. My excuse was that I was going about my rounds, but really I needed an escape from my dreams. After finally managing to wake from my tardy dream, I had one that was almost as bad. For the past few months, my dreams have been letting me know that something was missing from my life. There have been nightmares where everyone I cared for didn’t love me. Other dreams were of me and a boy that I could never see, but those dreams only left me wanting more of… who ever he was.

According to my old Divination books, my dreams were telling me that I need a romantic relationship. They also said that the boy in the dreams was someone I already knew.

Rubbish if you ask me. I knew walking out of that class was a good idea.

I’ve only ever had two relationships in my life. The first was with Bobby Clarke when we were seven. As you can imagine, that didn’t last long.

The other, was with Bulgarian Seeker, Victor Krum. However, I don’t quite think I would count that as romantic. Sure there was the occasional snogging in the library, hidden in the isles where we wouldn’t be bothered, but a long distance relationship is hard to keep.

Waking up, I looked around the dorm at all of my sleeping mates and realized that if I stayed in the room I wouldn’t be able to fall asleep. I threw on a pair of jeans and pulled on my robes and slipped out past the Fat Lady.

“What the – do you know what time it is?”

“I’m sorry,” I said to her as she swung back into place over the hole leading to the Gryffindor tower, “I’m just going to my rounds.”

She humphed and went back to sleep. Walking through the corridors of the seventh floor, I walked past windows that let in the moon light illuminating the way. Portraits slept in their frames, their head bent at awkward angles or resting against the edges.

Turning a corner, I walked past the tapestry of Barnabas and Barmy training trolls for the ballet, and another tapestry I had never seen before. I paused to look at the design, a prancing unicorn. Honestly, I didn’t get it. Most of the things in this school documented famous peoples and happenings, this didn’t. I moved closer and touched a fabric, feeling stone behind it.

I shrugged. A lot of things in this castle, however, don’t make sense. Turning, I head for stairs. I remembered the hours I spent marveling over the oddities in this castle. Like the locations of the class rooms, or the secret passage ways and times I’ve thumbed through Hogwarts: A History. After spending at least six years in this castle I was still deeply in awe of it.

Especially of Dumbledore.

How lucky are we to be watched over by one of the greatest wizards of all time?

I waited patiently for the stairs to move to the seventh floor landing. As I made my way down, I tried my best to be quiet. One must never wake a portrait.

Ever.

Unless you want to be nagged about how rude young wizards and witches are.

I made my way to the library, hoping that the doors would be open. Usually they were, but upon occasion I have been surprised by the locking spells placed on the doors. I hated not being allowed into the library….

Making it down to the third floor, I walked down the hall, past the lavatories, and through the large wooden doors. I entered a small room with shelves that would later be lined with returned books, walking straight ahead, to the even larger doors on the other wall. Reaching over, I grabbed the handle, and found the door locked.

Darn.

Turning back, I sighed and continued my way down the stairs to the main landing. If I was really going to keep an eye on students I might as well work my way back up to my floor. I stopped at the top of the marble stairs, not really wanting to go anywhere in the dungeons. As I crossed the marble stair case, I paused to look at the windows. The night sky sparkled outside and it was breath taking, the moon light casting a pale white in the room, glinting off of the hour glasses. My heart swelled with pride, remembering how Gryffindor has managed to win the house cup every year in a row. I honestly don’t see how this year would be any different. With a smile, I turned and walked around the second floor, checking for any student already breaking rules.

Finding the floor clear, I headed back to the stairs.

“Impedimenta!”

I couldn’t move. Foot steps walked to me and Draco Malfoy appeared.

“Malfoy,” I let my anger show in my voice, “What do you think you’re doing here?”

He shrugged, “Thought you were a student.”

“Let me go.”

“That’s no way to talk to the person who has you under a binding curse.”

“Let me go and you’ll see how much worse I can get.”

A smug smirk formed on his face, “Now with a threat like that, why would I want to let you go?” He bounced his eyebrows once, happy with his statement.

“Why Dumbledore thought making you a prefect was a good idea is beyond me.”

Getting into my face he replied, “Why the founders of this shit hole found it fit to have blood traitors and vermin like you walk freely through these halls was a good idea is beyond me as well.”

I glared at him, hating him, meaning to engage him in a glaring contest and win, but he looked away. Instead of looking me in the face, his eyes slowly moved down my body. My insides burned as he looked at me, a strange feeling of warmth and rage filled me, the warmth over powering the rage. When his eyes met mine, I struggled to look offended, which I kind of was.

What was wrong with me? Kind of offended? I should be incredibly offended. But that warmth inside me started to feel more like a want.

A smirk again graced his face, and I couldn’t help but notice how good looking he was. Ginny was spot on.

“Be thankful that look at you was the worst that I did, Granger.”

“Let me go, Draco.”

He reversed his curse and I slapped him, which quite frankly, is something he deserved. As soon as he recovered, he gripped my arms and pushed me against the wall. I gasped, not out of surprise or fear, but because my insides blazed with his touch. My stomach tightened almost painfully.

Looking into my eyes he said, “Don’t you ever hit me again.” His breath hit my face, his mouth close enough to kiss.

Kiss?

Come on, get it together Hermione. Now is not the time to go loony. This is Draco Malfoy for Merlin’s sake, not Victor Krum.

He let go of me and left before I could recover. I stayed against the stone wall, finding strength in its sturdiness. What was wrong with me? How could Malfoy affect me like this? I know I said I needed a love life, but I didn’t expect me to crush on someone like Malfoy.

Crush?

Crush.

I trusted that word. It implied that this was only temporary, that it would go away soon. That the only reason I would ever find myself believing that Malfoy was attractive was because of Ginny Weasley and her crass comment on how he looks.

Nodding I straightened myself out and walked back to the moving stair case, taking out my wand and muttering “Lumos.” The tip lit up, lighting the space in front of me. I cupped it a little in my hand, as I walked by the portraits, not wanting to wake them, especially when it was so late at night.

But apparently, that’s already happened.

“You there,” said a very disgruntled portrait, “I just wanted to thank you for being kind, and hiding your light.”

“Um… you’re welcome?”

“A boy before woke me up!”

“Oh pipe down, Bartholomew,” said a portrait above him, “So a prefect needed a light to walk down the stairs without killing himself and woke you up. Who cares? Are you going to tell everyone?”

Bartholomew grunted in response and I awkwardly bid them good night, not wanting the stairs to move before I reached my landing. Making it to the seventh floor, I walked down the corridors and turned, walking by the tapestry of Barnabas and Barmy with their trolls and turned another corner to the Fat Lady.

Waking up, she sighed, “Password?”

“Fenite Incantartum.” You had to be careful with this password to not say it with your wand out. Apparently a first year has already blown up a statue. Without the proper training, magic can be dangerous for a new student. My mind took a moment to go to Charms class first year when Seamus blew up a feather.

The portrait swung open and I crawled through.

The fire in the common room was now cold, the moon glowing through the window making everything a pale version of itself, including me. Sitting on the couch in front of the fireplace, I pointed my wand and said, “Incendio,” and a fire sprang to life in front of me.

I leaned back against the couch’s velvet back and closed my eyes. When I opened them again, Harry stood in front of me, “Hey, Hermione.”

“Hey, Harry.” I moved so he could sit next to me on the couch, “W-What are you doing up?”

“Was coming back from the boy’s lavatory, I noticed the light from the fire and came down to investigate. What are you doing up so late?”

I frowned and stared hard into the fire, “I… had a bad dream so I got up and meant to go to the library. Sometimes when I can’t sleep I go there and sit in a section that I like and listen to the sound of the books moving. But it was locked. I guess not many students need it on their first night here.”

Harry smiled but said, “Did you have a really bad one?”

I thought about telling him about the reoccurring dreams, but at the fear of sounding like I was begging him for a relationship, I said, “I was late to all of my classes.”

This made him laugh. He held his hand over his mouth suppressing the sound so not to wake anyone. When he managed to control himself, he said, “I mean… that sounds awful.”

I tried to hide my smile but failed. “It is silly isn’t it?”

He nodded, “A little, yeah.”

I smiled and turned back to the fire.

“There’s something more, isn’t there?” His voice was careful.

I blushed and nodded, “Yes.”

“But… you don’t want to say?”

“Not really…. I’m not entirely sure how I feel about it yet.”

Harry nodded, “I’m here if you need someone to… talk to.”

“Thank you.”

A moment of silence fell between us, then he sighed, “I’m going back to sleep.”

“Good night, Harry.”

“Good night, Hermione.”

He left back up the stairs turning to his left and going into the boy’s dormitories. I sat in front of my fire for a while longer then put out the fire and went up the same stairs, turning to my right and into the girl’s dorms, going to try and fall back asleep.