"You're going to have to trust me."
Hermione snorted. "Right, trust you…okay."
"If you don't want my help then I'll just leave."
Hermione looked up from her book. "I assure you, you'll be missed."
"Stop being sarcastic and listen up." Malfoy was losing patience. "Come on in." he called into the common room.
"Wha?" Hermione looked up again, to see Pansy Parkinson walk into her bedroom, looking around and tsking away.
She shot up. "No, no, sorry, don't think so. Out."
"Shut up, Granger." Malfoy commanded. "And sit down."
Hermione's eyes were narrowed into such slits that she could hardly see. "This is my room! You can't tell me what to do! Get out."
"He said shut it." Pansy glared at her, then turned to Draco. "Might as well start with the room." She informed him, looking around in disgust.
"I'm not changing my room." She wasn't heard.
"Get some of this red out of here. And the gold, far to tawdry." Malfoy agreed.
He's one to talk about tawdryness...Hermione thought bitterly.
"These are my house colors! I'm not changing them!" Hermione looked around. There was nothing wrong with her room! "Better than your green and silver, anyways." She filled her words with as much malice as she could muster.
Again, unnoticed. "There's a Hogsmeade visit next weekend, we could work on the wardrobe then." Parkinson was still there.
Why was Parkinson still there?
"No, better go with the hair first. May take weeks to tame it." He glanced at Hermione and she looked back indignantly.
"My hair is just fi—"
"Obviously it isn't, Granger, if you had to call in professionals." Malfoy interrupted.
Okay, enough. "One, you two are hardly professionals, and two, I didn't call anyone. I'm perfectly content with my life."
"Look in the mirror and say that." He waved her off.
Grr…
"Maybe just a darker red."
"No, no that won't do. The red has to go." Malfoy glanced around again.
I can't believe it; I have two Slytherins standing before me arguing about my room like they're some kind of interior decorators from Hell! Hermione sighed, dropping back down to her bed. She was never going to get them to leave.
"What about the secondary color?"
"The secondary color?" Draco questioned Pansy.
"Well the gold is out, so what's it going to be?"
Malfoy once more, looked around the room. "Black."Hermione stood again. "I'm not having black in my room."
"Shut up." The Slytherins chorused.
Oh yes, definitely from Hell…
"I don't like black."
"It's a classic color." Malfoy argued.
"Black is chic now, it's all the rage."
Hermione sat again, rubbing her temples. "What is it going to take to get you to leave me be?"
"Just go with it, Granger. We're not going to hurt you." Malfoy sighed.
Pansy stepped towards Hermione and kneeled in front of her, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Repeat after me: Change is good."
Hermione stared at her incredulously, remaining silent.
"Say it, Granger. The sooner you believe it the easier this will be."
"Change is good." Pansy repeated.
"Change is good…" Hermione muttered. "Change is good. Change—what the bloody hell am I saying?" she stood again.
"The truth." Pansy reassured her. "Now shut up and let me do my job. If you're this fussy about your room imagine how the clothes and hair will be."
Hermione gave another exasperated sigh, sinking down to her bed. "I don't want to change—I don't need to."
"That's the problem, Granger. You don't think you do, but you do." Malfoy started pacing around her room. "Let's see…I think green would look nice in here."
"No, no, NO! I don't think so; I'm not having some bloody Slytherin color in here!" Hermione stood again, walking over to Malfoy and repeatedly poking him in the chest while she talked. "If you like the color green, good for you, it's your house color. I HATE the color green, it makes me sick! My room is fine! I am FINE! So get out and leave me be!" she pushed Malfoy out the door and motioned for Pansy to follow him.
"We'll continue this tomorrow; we're not getting anywhere tonight." Malfoy concluded as Pansy followed him out.
"ARG, I DETEST YOU!" She yelled after them, slamming and locking her door. "The nerve!" she muttered to herself, falling back onto her bed and picking up her book. Green…ew.
"You need to be more cooperative if you expect us to help you, Granger."
Hermione slapped her forehead and groaned. I forgot the bathroom door…
"I don't expect your help. I don't even want it!" she shrieked. "I've about this much (she held a space between her thumb and pointer finger about a centimeter big)tolerance left for you, Malfoy, and it's running low quickly!"
"You say that now, but when we're done you'll be glad I helped you."
"I wouldn't call this helping." She muttered.
He sat next to her on her bed. Get off my bed…she thought.
"Get off my bed."
"Hear me out."
"WHY do you want this so bad, Malfoy?!? WHY on earth would you want to do this to me?"
"I'm not doing it to you. I'm doing it for you. And I told you. I'm bored."
Hermione dropped her head into her hands and shook it violently. "Why must you torment me so?" she whispered.
"I'm getting angry, Granger."
"I don't care, Malfoy. Get out." She looked up and locked gazes with him. His eyes were glinting with annoyance.
He stood. He's leaving! YES!!!!
He walked to the door and sighed. "You know, it wouldn't hurt for you to show a little more appreciation."
He paused at the door and took out his wand. Hermione instantly reached for hers, lest he try to hex her. He didn't.
"Commuto viridor." He waved his wand and Hermione's room did something strange. It almost felt like it had been flipped inside out.
When she looked around she saw what his incantation had done. Her room was decorated in dark green, with a touch of black trimmings.
She looked to the door, ready to tell him off, but he had already gone.
Hermione was infuriated that she didn't know the counter spell. Even more than that, she was scared, for she found herself thinking a dangerous thought.
It doesn't look nearly as bad as it sounded…
---
Hermione woke up to someone shaking her. She moaned and rolled over. "Get out, Malfoy…"
"Malfoy?" Pansy Parkinson snorted. "Wake up, I have something for you."
Hermione sat up groggily. "What…?"
"It's a straightening shampoo, it'll control that mop of frizzles you call hair."
Hermione made a sound quite close to a growl as she looked at the clock. "5:30?!?"
"We'll need plenty of time to do your makeup. Hurry up and get in the shower." Pansy shoved the bottle into Hermione's hands and Hermione felt herself being yanked up and shoved into the bathroom.
"Wait—what makeup?" Hermione asked the door. "Arg…"
---
"Remind me why you're doing this again?" she asked as Pansy added eye shadow to what used to be Hermione Granger's face.
"Could you imagine Draco doing it?" she asked, pulling out some eyeliner. Black eyeliner.
"No black." Hermione pulled away.
"Calm down! It will just draw attention to your eyes."
Hermione sat still, not feeling like losing her left eye and thought on her last statement. The only thought scarier than Pansy Parkinson doing her hair and makeup was Draco Malfoy doing it.
"But why are you here?" she asked.
"Well, because. I love Draco, he's like a brother to me; I imagine that's how you feel about Weasley and Potter." Hermione nodded. "Don't move!" Pansy hissed.
"Sorry."
She continued. "And when Draco needs my help, even with stuff like this, I'm there for him. I imagine it's the same for you and the rest of your little Golden Trio, eh?"
"Yes." She answered, making sure she didn't move her head.
Hermione thought back on Pansy's answer. She never would have guessed that she loved Draco as a brother; she thought they were much closer than that.
"But I thought that you and Malfoy were—ouch!" Pain enveloped Hermione, and she cringed. There were only two things in the world at the moment.
Her face and Pansy's tweezers.
"Were what?" she questioned.
"Ow, somewhat of an, yipes! Item." She finished.
Pansy looked amused. "Not really…"
"But the Yule Ball…"
"Yes, Draco asked me to go, and I said yes. You know how picky he was about blood…" More tweezing.
OW OW OW OW OW!!!!
"Was?"
"Draco's not like that anymore."
"What are you talking about, Parkinson; he just called me a mudblood the other day."
Pansy laughed. "Oh he doesn't really mean anything by it; he just knows it irritates you, so he does it."
"Anything to make my life miserable…ouch."
"Amen to that. All done." Hermione sighed. "With the right, let's see the left side then."
---
Hermione walked into breakfast with very sore eyebrows. At least it's not red anymore…
She took a seat next to Ginny and the red head immediately turned to her. "What are you all gussied up for?" she asked.
"Nothing." She answered quickly.
Ginny gasped. "Hermione, your hair!"
"What about it?!?" Hermione grabbed at it wildly. That Parkinson I swear I'll kill her!
"It's straight! It's straight and smooth!" Ginny was touching her hair now. "What did you do to it?"
Hermione gave a nervous little laugh. "Shampoo. I tried a new shampoo."
"It looks amazing…"
"Heh thanks." Hermione loaded her plate with pancakes and sausage.
She took a few bites, listening to Ginny now complain about her own hair. "…I mean it's not bad, really but, it gets so frizzy!"
Hermione nodded, taking another bite of pancake. She glanced around and met Pansy's hopeful eyes. She nodded her thanks, turning back to the red head.
---
"Look at that, Pansy. It's already working." Draco Malfoy held his face, his elbows resting on the table, looking over at the Gryffindor table. "They've noticed her already."
"Just go slow with this, Draco. She doesn't trust us."
Malfoy smirked. "She will, don't worry about it. I just want to find out if it will work."
"It will." Pansy said confidently, taking a sip of juice.
"How are you so sure?" he questioned her.
"Because, Draco. She didn't change her room back."
Malfoy looked over again to the Gryffindor sitting across the hall, laughing with the red headed she-weasel. Yes, this will most definitely be fun.
---
In case you didn't notice, bold thoughts
Latin Translations
Commuto – To change
Viridor – To become green
Review please! Whatcha think?