Rumors
"You nosey, inconsiderate, self-righteous prat!" Hermione Granger's voice ripped across the balmy castle grounds, tearing into everyone else's peaceful spring Saturday morning.
Dozens of interested students snapped their necks in the direction the yelling was coming from. Those who couldn't see her felt sorry for whoever was unfortunate enough to be on the receiving end of Hermione's famous temper. Those who could see, knew better.
"I'm self-righteous?" Draco Malfoy barked back. "That's rich coming from little Miss Perfect!"
"Just keep your pointy face out of my business, Malfoy!"
"Well if you didn't leave the damn thing out I wouldn't have seen it, would I!"
"That's not the point!" she cried, smacking him angrily in the chest with a thick leather-bound book. "You knew damn well it was mine! You read it out of spite!"
"Don't you dare raise your hand to me again, Granger," he snarled so only those within a few yards could hear—the rest could only bear witness to the murderous looks on the rival students' faces. Draco stepped forward, his index finger stuck in her face. "I know a great deal of people who would do well more than return the sentiment."
"Is that a threat?" she hissed, barring her teeth and swatting his offensive hand away as if it were an annoying fly.
"That's a guarantee," he countered roughly.
"I'm not afraid of you and your pack of Junior Death Eaters. I could take out half of you with one flick of my wand."
"Is that a challenge, mudblood?" His voice was growing steadily louder again.
"Definitely," she sneered, jabbing her wand into his gut. He tore it from her hand and chucked it across the lawn.
"Hermione don't!"
Harry Potter and Ron Weasley sprinted across the grounds—Ron picking up her wand as he went—wheezing for breath.
"He's not worth it," Ron sighed, taking her shoulders from behind and pressing her back to his chest. This seemed only to infuriate Draco even more. How dare they get in the way!
"Back off golden boys," Draco warned, brandishing his wand. "This is between me and the mudblood."
"Come on Hermione," Harry said, taking her wrist while Ron slipped her wand back in her hand.
"No." Her voice was not loud, but the force she put behind it made both her friends step back as if she'd scorched them. "He needs to learn he can't read other people's personal thoughts and get away with it."
The rest of the students who had been eavesdropping all seemed to sigh collectively. So that's what he'd done, read Hermione's diary. It made them wonder—just how had that crazy rumor started?
"Forget it," Draco scoffed, shoving past the trio. "You're not worth my time, Granger."
When he disappeared inside the castle Hermione burst with a string of hushed curses that nearly made her friends blush—she'd never said such things before in front of them, or at all for all they knew. Harry and Ron tried to calm her but she pushed them away in her anger and stomped through the same door Draco had gone through, presumably to the library to work off steam.
Once inside the castle, she made a beeline for the private study she'd been given as Head Girl. She quickly said the password, slipped through the door and immediately smiled. There was someone sitting with their back to her by the fireplace. Just the person she needed right now.
"How was it?" he asked as he stood and approached her. She instantly fell into his arms.
"Dreadful," she laughed.
He frowned into her hair.
"Really?"
"Yes. I hated it."
"Oh," he sighed, stroking her back in a warm, hypnotic way only he could. "It couldn't have been all bad."
She leaned back and caught his eyes. She had to restrain herself from kissing him; she always had to.
"Well…I did win."
His eyes widened in mock surprise.
"How do you figure?"
"Because," she laughed and then she did kiss him, "my opponent got soft in the end. Let me win."
His lips curled into a smirk.
"Well what did you expect? The girl always wins."
"That is true…Well, at least the rumors will be put to rest now."
"Who started that anyway?" he mused. "Hermione Granger and Draco Malfoy? Dating?"
"Yeah, those people are mental."
"Insane," he agreed.
"Yes, but I think I am too."
"Oh yeah?"
"Uh huh. About you." She knew it was cheesy, but sometimes she couldn't help herself. He had that effect on her.
He lifted her easily off the ground, crushing his lips to hers. She moaned dangerously into his mouth—he felt his hormones stir; she felt them too. It didn't take much for her to set him off and vice versa. They were too much for each other it was almost unhealthy.
"Potter and Weasley came to the rescue." It wasn't a question. She giggled to herself and kissed him on the cheek.
"Are you jealous? They only want to protect me."
"That's my job," he said fiercely. And a little proudly.
"Well," she said, smiling ear to ear—he was so damn cute—and then she kissed him again. She was so completely addicted to him; only death could separate them. Again she didn't care how corny or cliché that thought was. It was the truest thing she knew. "You've got yourself painted into quite the corner. How is it that you're supposed to protect me and insult me at the same time?"
He groaned. She was right—of course. But then that's what he loved about her.
"What now?" he asked. Hermione looked at the floor, knowing full-well what he meant—graduation was only weeks away.
"I go into Auror training as soon as I leave Hogwarts," she said. "And you…" Her voice trailed off. Not even he knew where he was going.
"Promise me something, Hermione." He lifted her head up with a finger under her chin.
"Anything." And that was the absolute truth.
"That we can make those rumors true after the war's over."
This time it was her lip that curled into a deviously, and seductive, smirk. He was seconds away from pouncing on her. Merlin, she was irresistible!
"You read my mind."
"Hermione?"
"Yes?"
"I…love you."
She smiled almost knowingly and pulled him to her.
"I love you too, Draco."
Just a little blurb.
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