Fast Times at Hogwarts High

CHAPTER TWO

The next morning classes started and Draco made his way to potions class. He was used to seeing Snape around the cauldrons, not this pathetic excuse for a professor. Draco tried his best to not doze off at the first lecture of the year but he couldn't help it. He hadn't been getting much sleep lately. A part of him didn't want to. His dreams were worse than being awake.

He'd almost nodded off when a familiar voice made him perk up. Hermione was the first to answer the question that Slughorn had asked. Typical. He watched her go on and on about each potion presented to them. He always found it fascinating that she knew so much. Although he made snarky comments about it in the past, he was impressed with her knowledge. This time he didn't say a word. He felt he had outgrown his childish ways. Besides, he had more important things to deal with than shoot down a girl who had done nothing to him. Despite being a mudblood that is.

She finished up her speech and after over informing the class, she took a step back. The other girls gawked over the love potion she had just explained. Draco paid no mind to them. He caught himself staring at the Hermione. She looked lovely today. Maybe his brain was trying to distract him from reality but he couldn't help but stare. She'd grown a lot since last year and she was starting to look like a woman. His mind wandered as he thought about what she might look like under her robes but he quickly shook that thought as her eyes met his gaze. He shifted his attention back to the potions.

After class, Draco felt confused. He had never thought about her like that before. At least not in that way. She was always portrayed as a side character to him. Just another one of Potter's posse. He blamed it on his lusty teenage hormones and convinced himself that he thought about every attractive girl that way. That wasn't true, he never let those thoughts take over him unless it was necessary.

He thought back to last year and his countless nights fooling around with Pansy. It had only briefly crossed his mind though, he couldn't remember the last time they had even touched. She had become more of a sidekick to him now. Not anyone he would picture himself with. She was attractive, yes, but didn't make an impact on him outside of the bedroom.

                                                                                             ***

Hermione went on with her day like any other. Although, she wondered why Draco had been staring at her in potions. She also wondered why he didn't take a jab at her intelligence, which was so predictable by now.

She walked down the hallways reading a book she had just gotten from the library. She walked as she read. She knew her way around the castle like the back of her hand and always knew exactly where she was going. She started towards the Gryffindor common rooms when she was suddenly knocked to the ground by another student. She blamed herself for not taking her nose out of her book and looking up for a second while she turned the corner.

When she looked up she recognized the student as Malfoy. He didn't bother to help her up. She immediately turned the blame on him. He did look rather distracted anyway.

"I think you owe me an apology?" She said gathering herself and brushing the dirt off her robes.

"Sorry Granger, didn't see you there." He replied in a rather stuck-up tone. "Maybe next time pay attention to where you're going and you won't end up on your ass."

He quickly made a getaway before he could make the situation any more awkward. What are the odds he would run into her after what he had thought about her earlier? He'd almost forgotten his sins until that moment. When he felt his body forced on hers knocking her down, it all came back to him. He tried to make the thoughts disgust him as he walked to his corridor. He thought if he never saw her again he would be perfectly fine. He brushed his intrusive thoughts aside like dust under the rug and got ready for yet another sleepless night.