Of Apples and Oranges

II: ix: Frazzled

Draco and Aurum left Professor Lupin's class one night in tears from laughing so hard.

"Sirius' face when you did that was amazing!" Aurum chuckled.

"It's not my fault it's so hard to pull off! So what if my head became a wolf's and nothing else? At least I did that much!" Draco howled with laughter, prompting Aurum's to grow much louder.

"I wish you could already do it so we could hang out." Aurum's mood suddenly became sour.

"I do too, but let me at least walk you down to Professor McGonagall." Draco put his arm around her.

He quickly removed it, however, when he along with Aurum spotted a girl with a mess of brown hair suddenly teleport in front of them. She whipped around to notice her company.

"What date and time is it? Have you been attacked by a hippogriff yet?" she asked. It was Hermione and she was holding a hourglass-like item.

"Yes. Wednesday, the fifth of November after curfew. Is that a time turner?" Draco asked, pointing at her small device.

"Yes, and I must be going now. I'm from third period of September thirtieth." Hermione muttered, tempering with her handheld device.

"What are you using it for?" Draco further questioned.

"I have so many classes that I have to use this to get to them all." Hermione answered.

"I would've signed up for a lot if I knew they would supply me this." Draco mumbled.

Aurum looked between the two with a knowing grin. She bounced happily before finally bursting out, "Tell her you love her!" she covered her mouth quickly, but smiled at Draco.

"What was that?" Hermione asked, wide-eyed.

"Nothing. It was just Aurum being Aurum." Draco laughed awkwardly. He elbowed Aurum in the stomach gently. Just enough to force her to nod.

They were silent for some time while Hermione was still fumbling with her hourglass.

Draco twiddled his thumbs as he watched her spin back the hourglass. He attempted to puff out his chest though nothing was really there to embolden him. "So do you like powerful wizards because I know an animagus—"

And with that, she was gone.

"Way to go, Romeo." Aurum snidely remarked.

"I told you, I am the Benvolio to her Juliet. No interest!" Draco affirmed.

"Well, the way she's acting, you're more like her Count Paris," Aurum said with a slight tone of worry. "You have to be smoother than this."

Draco sighed. "I know."

"In the meantime, let's go before I maul you." Aurum suggested.