Chapter 16 - Chew
"I've got a plan." Draco announced to Pansy, who was stretched out languidly on a chair in front of the Slytherin Common Room fire. She looked at him with some surprise, that quickly melted into a look of admiration.
"Really? That's great!" Her eyes scanned his face carefully. A slight expression of pain wracked her face for a breath of a second, but was quickly smoothed over. He could tell she was still worried about him, but more worried about what would happen if he failed than anything else.
"So tell me about it."
He opened his mouth to tell her, yet again, that it was private information. But for some reason his thoughts were pulled away to that Patronus lesson with Granger…
"No wonder your memories aren't all that happy."
"Don't feel sorry for me, Granger." He said shortly. "It's not like I miss it, or anything…"
"Because how can you miss something when you never had it in the first place?"
The little bitch. She probably felt sorry for him now. Sorry for poor little unloved Draco. How dare the mudblood act like she knew him so completely? She knew nothing. Nothing about who he really was. Nobody knew who he really was.
"Draco?"
He looked at Pansy, considering her. She wasn't too ugly. She wasn't exactly beautiful either, but pretty enough for what he was about to do.
He bent over and kissed her. She was a little surprised, but melted into him quickly, as Pansy did. Draco hardly noticed. He cared nothing for Pansy. This was simply a way of proving to himself that Hermione Granger was wrong. He was a million miles away from the kiss. He was thinking about Granger, know-it-all Granger, mudblood Granger, Granger that lived and loved.
Take that, Mudblood.
Hermione was reading a book on the Ministry of Magic. Unfortunately, it was (predictably) almost devoid of any information on the Department of Mysteries. All records regarding it were vague, filled with paragraphs such as the one she had before her eyes:
The Department of Mysteries, possibly the most mysterious part of the Ministry, is notorious for its highly confidential nature: it is unknown what is done in this Department, what is the role of the Head of Department, and what its employees do. When questioned, they all either remain stubbornly silent, or respond stonily that it is impossible to disclose the information required.
She slammed the book shut in exasperation. What a bunch of crap. The Department of Mysteries…mysterious? She never would have guessed.
Her eyes roamed around the Library, scanning it for something she might have missed. Nothing met her eye, except a redhead girl waving her hand wildly from a nearby table. Ginny. Hermione sighed before making her way over to the youngest Weasley.
"Hey Hermione!"
"Hey Ginny," Hermione said tiredly. She wanted to go back to her research.
"Sit."
Hermione sat.
"About you and Ron…"
"Ginny, I don't want to hear about it." She said automatically.
"I know." said Ginny sweetly. "But I'm telling you anyway."
Hermione rolled her eyes and put a listening face on resignedly.
"Hermione, he is really sorry. I'm not saying what he did was right…" she said hurriedly, seeing the indignant look on Hermione's face. "But he's a good guy. You know that. And her really does miss you terribly…"
Hermione remained expressionless, an empty plate. The food was not waiting to be served, but instead had already been eaten.
"He just isn't himself anymore. Yesterday he would barely talk to us…"
Hermione perked up slightly. He missed her? Did he want her back? Did- You're acting so pathetic. Said the little voice in her mind. It's over between you and Ron, and you know it.
Ginny continued, oblivious to the thoughts running through her Hermione's head. "…even Demelza could only get a few words out of him, and he usually tells her everything!"
Hermione's face turned once again stormy at Demelza's name, and Ginny looked at her sympathetically for a moment.
"Droobles?" she offered suddenly, holding out a stick of gum.
"What kind?" asked Hermione distractedly.
"Raspberry."
"No thanks. I'm allergic to anything raspberry."
Ginny shrugged and popped the gum into her mouth, chewing before blowing a giant raspberry-colored bubble that hovered over her head. Hermione looked down at the table, tracing the whorls in the wood with her fingertip.
"Hermione" said Ginny gently. "Maybe you and Ron just weren't meant for each other. Maybe it's time to let go…"
Her words hung in the air, opaque like the bubble. They drifted out of Hermione's view before she could pop them and hid among the bookshelves.
Neither Hermione nor Ginny said anything until Madame Pince swooped down like a bat, going into convulsive fits at the sight of Drooble's Best Blowing Gum exposed to her precious books, and threatening Ginny with detention. The librarian chose to ignore Hermione: she had developed, if not a love, a certain tolerance for the young witch ho so often had her nose stuck in a book.
As for Hermione herself, she barely noticed as Ginny threw her one last despairing glance before escaping Madame Pince's wrath. She was, once again, thinking, trying to unravel the knots of her life. But the threads only became more tangled, the knot only tightened. A raspberry bubble that popped in her hair, that resisted her attempts to remove it. Soon she would simply have to cut it out…
After Potions class had ended that day, Draco stayed behind.
Professor Snape hung over his grade book, examining potion samples before writing the grade with a short black quill. He did not look up. Draco knew he was waiting for him to make the first move.
"Professor Snape…" He began.
The potions master looked up. "Yes, Draco?"
"I need," Draco Malfoy said carefully. "to know how to make a potion."
Snape raised one black eyebrow. "And what is the nature of this potion, Mr. Malfoy?"
Draco remained silent for a moment. With Severus Snape it was always like a carefully-constructed dance: a single false move, and you would lose the thread of the music.
"A poison." He said bluntly.
Snape looked taken aback for a moment, the music skipped a beat. But his features quickly smoothed over, the music came back on track as if nothing had happened. Draco was still waltzing.
"I should inform you, Mr. Malfoy, that the use of poisons at this school is strictly...forbidden."
He was going to give him what he needed, Draco knew. This was only a game Snape played, twisting his words to give them safer meanings, hidden claws, fangs dripping with secret venoms. Draco simply had to play along, dance along...
"Of course, Professor." He said quickly. "It's merely for some research of mine. I wouldn't dream of actually using it."
"I am sure." Delicate, testing pause. "Well, you have been a remarkable student, Draco, and since you won't really use it..."
Snape paused again, black eyes boring into Draco steadily. Lie, Draco, lie...he knows what you want it for, but he wants a lie...All for the sake of the dance.
"Of course, sir." He said quickly.
"...then I suppose I could give you what you need." He suddenly seemed to stop waltzing and his voice lost the slightly hypnotic tone. "Come to my office tomorrow at six, and I'll see what I can do for you." His head bent once again over the grade book. Draco was dismissed.
He left the classroom quickly, elated. He had gotten through the first part alive.
A/N: I think the verbs I use in the chapter titles are becoming steadily more irrelevant :P...Sorry for the long wait for this chapter. I really hope the next one will be out faster, but I can't promise anything, with Christmas almost upon us and all...
The Raspberry Bubblegum is important. Very important.
I'm NOT going to tell you anything about Snape. I'm going to have fun with him.
Last chapter I got more reviews than for any chapter yet! Thanks to: neonnoodlesoup, womp lover (sorry for the boring-ness...and this chapter didn't really heat up, did it? my bad...), Maibie Josie, TwistedAsTheDickens, pinkicing101, Marrionette, Angelic-One, Ramses-Lives, bright-eyesxX, abbi, and Ellis King
Disclaimer: I own nothing but the partial plot.