Serpent On Fire | DRACO x OC | HERMIONE x OC

Perfume

It was never easy to judge the time of day from the Slytherin common room. The only light that peered through the large windows was refracted and distorted by the murkiness of the Black Lake. Even so, waking up naturally to the warmth of sunshine was nothing compared to waking up next to Draco.

Io awoke to the sound of students opening and closing their doors. Her neck was sore, and she couldn't tell if first period had started already. Groggy and disoriented, she nuzzled her nose into what she thought was her pillow. Instead of the familiar cushion, her face was immediately met with bare skin. Two of the buttons on Draco's night shirt had come undone, his pale skin now exposed. His arm was draped around her, one of his fingers slipping snuggly just below the waistband of her jeans. When he began to stir from the sudden disturbance on his chest, she sat up straight, immediately trying to work out the knot at the base of her head. Draco's eyes opened slowly.

"Well, this wasn't what I expected to see before breakfast." Theo stood in front of them with a large grin. "Good to see you're all healed, Draco."

"Theo..." Io groaned.

"Shut up, Nott." Draco sat up, rubbing his eyes until they were red.

"What? No 'good morning, Theo,' 'it's good to see you, Theo, how are you,' 'do you have any rubbers, Theo'?"

Draco ignored him, blinking until things no longer looked cloudy. "I'll see you in the Great Hall." He leaned over and kissed the top of Io's head before walking away without another word.

Io blushed furiously, scurrying off before Theo could say anything else. She wasn't quick enough, hearing an overexaggerated gasp from their friend.

Muttering curses under her breath, she threw the room's door open, and landed face first into her bed.

Aster had just woken up and was taking out her braids. She stretched, eyes cracking open one at a time. "Where the hell have you been? Did you even sleep?"

Against the sheets, Io nodded. She instinctively reached for the spot on her head where Draco kissed her, and the burn in her face intensified. When she told him they were wasting time, she didn't think he'd be so willing to do something like that in front of their friends. It was almost hilarious. The expressions on his face were the same, the signature scowl, the furrowed eyebrows, except now he was clearly okay letting everyone know about them in some not-so-subtle ways.

Aster poked Io's back. "Look at you. Still in your clothes from last night."

Io held up a single fist, slowly raising her middle finger. "Fuck. Off."

"Did I miss something?" Aster laughed. "Y'know what. Nevermind. Get up, go shower, and we'll go get breakfast. You haven't seen actual sunlight in days, and before you know it, you'll be matching Draco - dark circles, eye bags, and all."

Io cringed, gradually bringing her legs up to her chest. "Aster..." She whined.

Aster stopped brushing her hair after noticing the change in her sister's voice. "What? Oh, my God, what happened?"

Still face down, Io made a motion with her hand. She pointed at her temple, aggressively tapping at it repetitively.

"Oh, okay," Aster grabbed her wand, and aimed it at the same spot. Within seconds, she dropped her wand to the floor, and started gasping in between small shrieks. She jumped on Io's bed, pushing her until she had no choice but to get up. "Oh, my God! Oh, my God, OH!"

Io just kept groaning, covering her face with her hands. "I didn't mean to -"

"- yeah, right, you didn't mean to fall asleep in Draco Malfoy's arms!" Aster couldn't stop smiling. "I can't wait to tell Blaise about this..."