The Deal
It was on the very first day of school that Hermione Granger's life crumbled into countless pieces. She was this year's Head Girl, and for this reason was she ecstatic to begin her last school year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. All the joy ebbed away, though, when she had found out that to accompany her was the most horridly disagreeable person on the planet – none other than Draco Malfoy, the living entity of Slytherin-ness and dastardly menace.
She would have tolerated him being Head Boy and all, but when she had learned that Heads as a century-old tradition shared a Common Room with each other, she drew the line.
"I will positively not share a Common Room with HIM, professor!" Hermione shrieked, standing up so quickly from her seat that it almost toppled over. Her chest rose constantly, her breathing getting ragged and heavy with anger.
"This is absolutely preposterous, Professor!" Draco Malfoy stood up as well. "Wait until this gets to –"
"Your father, Mister Malfoy," Professor McGonagall spoke calmly, taking off her spectacles and wiping the lenses carefully, "knows of this arrangement already. There is absolutely nothing he can do; as you know, this has been carried out for years."
Hermione opened her mouth to speak, but no sound other than a helpless squeal came out. This could not be happening; existing within the same walls of Hogwarts with the little git was enough to drive her and her other friends crazy, but to actually live with him? For a whole year?
She looked heavenwards and cursed the mighty gods of the wizarding world. They might have just struck her dead with a lightning bolt. That would have been much more comforting than having to be with the ferret all year round.
To think that the first person she'd have to see every morning would be Malfoy. The thought gave her a shudder.
"Think of it as… good publicity," the Transfiguration teacher said lightly, "You'll be sure to promote House unity in school."
Good publicity? Draco thought in repulsion. He had actually once respected this teacher before, but that certain respect had faded away the moment she announced the arrangement of the living quarters.
He sat back down in defeat, bringing a hand to his face and scowling. He looked sideways at the Gryffindor beside him and gritted his teeth in contempt. A bloody Gryffindor, Know-it-All, Mudblood and Potter-follower all rolled into one girl.
"Of all the bloody people…" he muttered angrily, afterwards sighing in resignation.
The subject of his anger cast him a glare.
"Merlin, I can't believe I'm going to get stuck with you all year round…" he snapped. With an afterthought he added, "Mudblood."
Her eyes bulged out in fury and she replied with an equal amount of dislike, "I'm the unlucky one – I'm going to have to live with – with a sneaky, despicable, evil, malicious Slytherin! And of all the people in your lot, it had to be you."
"Why you little – "
"What are you going to do, ferret? Bounce?"
"Wench."
"Prat!"
"You little witch –"
"Why thank you for noticing – "
"That is ENOUGH from the two of you." McGonagall mediated between the two adolescents who were now egging towards each other in verbal battle. She sighed exhaustedly, and cleared her throat. "You will share your living quarters as planned, you will learn to tolerate if not befriend each other, and you will give a shining example to all of Hogwarts' students. Am I understood?"
"But do you see how we cannot at all be at peace when we're in the same room, professor?"
"Miss Granger –"
"Professor, just imagine what tragedy could happen to me when –"
"For once I agree with the Mudblood – "
"Stop it –"
"Professor – "
"Professor –"
"No buts from either of you. Any more complaints and I will be forced to take off points from Gryffindor and Slytherin. After the Welcoming dinner, proceed to your quarters at the west wing of the fifth floor. There will be a portrait of an old man there so be sure to give your password to him. Understood?"
Both nodded mutely, albeit still glaring at each other. Completely satisfied that nothing serious would occur any longer, McGonagall smiled primly and coughed. "Good. See you at dinner." And she stood up and left, her scarlet robes swishing behind her.
No sooner had Professor McGonagall gone from her office did Draco and Hermione begin to bicker once again.
"You'd better not make my life a living hell, Malfoy," Hermione snarled, "I intend to make my last year memorable."
He smirked in reply. "Why, Granger, I live for the sole purpose to do just that – to torment you and Potter and Weasley."
Hermione rolled her eyes. "Oh, what a glorious life you must have, Malfoy," she noted sarcastically. She stood up to go. "Since I'll be seeing you too much this year to last me an entire lifetime, I'll be off to spend my remaining time free of you."
And with that, she left him dumbfounded, and if it were possible, so much angrier than he already was. He gripped on the ledges of his chair, filled with frustration for the little witch.
Good gods, he thought angrily, this year would definitely be torture.
The minute she told the boys the news, Ron choked on the food in his mouth. "WHAT?" he bellowed, obviously enraged. Some of the bits flew out of his mouth that Harry and Hermione drew disgusted looks at their red-haired best friend.
"Honestly, Ronald, have you no manners at all?" she said, handing him a tissue.
He grabbed it, wiped around his mouth, and resumed to yelling in shock. "What if that evil bloke kills you in the middle of the night? What if he attacks you? Oh, think of all the possibilities – "
Harry shook his head. "Let me guess," he said, turning to Hermione, "You can't do anything to escape from this. I can't do anything to get you out of this." He paused, looked over at the Slytherin table and nodded his head to the blonde boy sitting with his back to them. "And I'm pretty sure he can't do anything to get himself out of this either."
"Exactly." Hermione sighed in resignation. "It's an age old tradition that no one simply can't break."
Ron slammed his fist on the table. "Well then we'll break it this year, along with Malfoy's neck – "
"Ron, I do not intend to do that, as tempting as it may sound," Hermione replied sternly, "Besides, as Professor McGonagall said, a Slytherin and a Gryffindor working side by side together might possibly promote unity throughout the Houses. I suppose I can endure one whole year of Malfoy with that vision in mind."
She ate a spoonful of mashed potatoes and chewed slowly, her eyes gradually averting their gaze towards the Slytherin table. Fingering her Head Girl Badge absent-mindedly, she knew that she could work her way through the year, even if it meant having to live in close distance with Draco Malfoy. House unity, house unity, house unity, she repeated the words monotonously in her mind. All for house unity and the good relations of all magical folk in the world. Yes, I can live with that. I can…
And just when she was almost comfortable with the idea of sharing living quarters, Malfoy turned his head, glanced at her and sneered. As quickly as it had unbelievably come, all optimism in the idea ebbed away and was once again replaced with pure spite for him.
"What kind of password was 'prolifickus'?"
"Oh, shut up, Malfoy."
"It's not even a word – and to think everyone thought you were intelligent."
"Well, the sooner we decided on a password, the sooner I'd be in bed and at least eight hours free from your very essence, Malfoy."
They walked through the portrait hole, still bickering away as though they were continuing the earlier exchange of taunts in McGonagall's office. Draco walked behind her, studying her back as they continued to talk – or rather, squabble. Granger's hair was still as bushy as ever, despite the fact that it lost its broom-ish appearance and was replaced with springy curls. She grew tall, definitely, and there was something completely amiss in her look this year…
What was it? He couldn't actually tell. It was at the tip of his tongue, but he could not figure it out.
Draco watched as she glanced at him over her shoulder, wearing an annoyed look.
Then he got it.
She looked…
Nice?
He shuddered at this sudden thought and felt sickened that the little bushy-haired, bucktoothed girl he first met when he was eleven turned into this nice-looking adolescent in front of him.
No.
She was not at all nice-looking. In fact, she was far from that description!
"Ugh," he muttered, making a face in the darkness.
"What did you say?"
But before he could answer, they had reached the end of the little tunnel and had arrived at their destination.
Their common room.
It was a beautiful room, what with the cozy colors neither crimson nor green but instead a comfortable beige, and the plush sofas in the middle. Tan carpets lined the floor, and a fire was burning in the fireplace. There were two huge windows overlooking the snowcapped mountains in the distance and the walls were filled with portraits…
Portraits of the past Heads.
"Shall we set some house rules, Granger?" Draco flopped on one of the couches and stretched out his legs on the low table.
Hermione stared at him and narrowed her eyes in suspicion. "What did you have in mind?"
"Sit." He ordered her like he would a house elf and she glared at him, appalled at his annoyingly frustrating superiority complex. He was unbelievable, and she crossed her arms in irritation.
"I'd rather stand, thanks."
"Alright then, if you wish," he shrugged. He reached inside his robe pockets and fished out a folded piece of parchment. Glancing at her with his infamous smirk, he cleared his throat, unfolded the parchment and began to read.
"Number one, it is imperative that you and I mind each other's business."
"Fair enough."
"Unless of course it concerns either of us."
"Alright then."
"Two, you will not have access to my room and to my things."
"To each his own."
"But if and when it is necessary, I will have access to yours."
"WHAT?"
"If and when, that's what I said –"
"There is no if and when, Malfoy! Stick to your own room and if I see you in my room you will consider yourself murdered."
"Oh, alright then. Three, as you may have noticed, there is only one bathroom. I'd like for it to be gleaming clean when I use it. To maintain this state, I suggest you only use it in a limited number of occasions – "
"I do have my wand in my pocket, Malfoy, so you'd better make some reasonable house rules. Fifty percent of our quarters is mine, too."
"Fine then! We'll just have to settle that certain rule later. Moving on to number four, I'm a very organized person so the Common Room better not be in a mess. Don't leave your stuff about."
"Alright."
"And finally number five, Potty and Weasel shouldn't be lingering about in our Room. Don't you dare tell them that ugly password, Granger."
Hermione snorted. "And I take it your little friends won't be here too?"
"Naturally." Malfoy threw the parchment into the fire and lay back on the couch. "That's it then. If we abide by those rules, we might be able to coexist quietly the whole year."
Hermione took the armchair in front of him and crossed her legs. "I do have two rules I'd like to add to that list, Malfoy."
"What is it then?"
Hermione smirked. "You'd better not let your week-to-week girlfriends in here, prat," she said, "Or else I'll be forced to let Harry and Ron to come here in return."
Draco glared at her.
"You can do your snogging somewhere else," she cheerfully said, "But if I see you doing just that in our Room I will have to curse you to oblivion. Understood?"
"What's the other one then?"
She paused thoughtfully. "No attractions."
At this he almost fell on the floor. "As if that will ever happen!" He laughed excessively. "I mean I can accept you to like me, but to have me like you? That's rich!"
"I'm just thinking of the possibilities, Malfoy." She extended her hand out. "I'll abide by your rules except for two and three, and you shall abide by mine."
Silence lingered in the air, all except for the crackling of the fire. By this time, Draco's laughs were reduced to silent chuckles; he stared at her hand and Hermione watched as his face contorted into an unreadable expression.
Of course, the moment it finally settled on his usual smirk, he surprised her by shaking her hand with his.
"You've got yourself a deal, Granger."