Shut Up!

Chapter one: Black velvet


It was a well known fact that Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger fancied each other. To many it was one of those fairy-tale type of romances .Best friends that had spent the last 6 years taunting each other .Of course for the rest of the school it was obvious that they should get together, and after the war it seemed inevitable. I t was actually a matter of much interest to many , and when they were seen exiting Harry and Draco’s compartment about ten minutes after the train left , made them speculate even more . It was upon that precise matter that Harry and Draco had debated. Draco was curious to see Ron fail at confessing his feelings for Hermione . It seemed so obvious to him that “the weasel” would never muster enough courage to kiss any girl that didn’t throw herself at him first , it seemed a matter of snog now, ask questions later. Hermione, on the other hand had always been very calculated and did not act on instinct very often. He had almost persuaded Harry to give him his cloak to spy on them , when they finally returned. And here they were, facing each other, their expressions hard to read.

“What’ve you two decided? “asked Harry anticipating Draco’s question .

Hermione started to open her mouth , when Ron cut her off , and said shortly

“We’re best friends , Harry , we’ve always been , and I wouldn’t trade that for anything.”

Hermione’s lower lip trembled almost imperceptible , and she nodded never moving her gaze from Ron’s face. Truth be told , she was not very happy to share a compartment with Malfoy . She usually shared her views on most problems , but she would not go into the details of Ron telling her that they best stay friends. The truth was that he had matured a lot during such a short period of time. That summer , they had fought alongside Harry , had witnessed deaths , and such things change a person . Well, Ron was changed , and he explained to her during their short conversation that he did not feel he could be her equal in some aspects. He would always be there for her , even if she wished to find another more intelligent guy , that could feed her mind as well as her body . It was quite odd hearing such words from the boy that was willing to jump on any girl that would snog him just months ago. She just smiled back at him , and both agreed that friendship as solid as theirs was not worth trading for teenage angst .

The rest of the train journey was a long series of taunts. Draco had not changed very much , he was still arrogant , and he still liked to remind people he was pure-blood. But with his father and mother killed he had had to learn to take care of himself. And he was doing a pretty good job. But old habits die hard , and it’s hard to be friends to people you despised for six years .It was true that he was riding the express to school with his ex-arch enemies , but it did not mean he was going to bury the axe of war. Metaphorically speaking , of course. He still envied Potter , still made fun of Weasley and still despised Granger , but the fact that they had had to work together brought out he best in him , and also made him see the best in them .

Hogwarts was close now , and they all looked out the window , with a look of happiness and sorrow :it would be their last year there….Truth be told, Draco couldn’t wait to get back to his Slytherin colleagues. All this Gryffindor chit-chat did not suit him.

“Well , dear old friends , forgive me , but I think I’ve heard enough about The Cannon’s worst season yet . I think I hear sanity calling me back home . See you in school “ and with that Draco exited their compartment . He did like Quidditch just as much as the next wizard , but enough was enough , especially if they were talking about some has-been team like the Chudley Cannon . The train stopped with a low screech. They had finally arrived .

*

“You have got to be kidding me “ said Hermione with a shocked tone .
“I’m sorry miss Granger ? “ said Professor McGonagall.
“I mean , professor, I didn’t think that Head Boy and Girl were supposed to share a common room . I always thought that they had different bedrooms that the rest of the students , but we have something similar to a small flat . “
“Well, Miss Granger , no Head of House has yet complained about the accommodations, and I am sure that after the tragedies of the war , sharing a room with Mr. Malfoy one hour every day while you have your Head meetings won’t hurt you. You are free to spend the rest of your time in Gryffindor’s common room . “
“But he still is Malfoy” she said under her breath , not meaning for anyone to hear her .
“Yes Granger , and although you are still muggle-born , I did not run to Professor Snape asking for house-elves to disinfect our quarters every time you leave ,although I must admit I was tempted .”
“That is enough Mr. Malfoy . Both of you are intelligent people , and should set an example. I’m sure both of you saw this coming. You knew you were the most intelligent in your year , and you should live up to that standard. Sharing the same lodgings is the price, if you want to call it that ,of your intelligence .”
“Yes, intelligence does have its price, but up until now it wasn’t worth more than a few connections at the Ministry for you Malfoy “ .It had just escaped her mouth before she could control it …but she wasn’t ashamed , she knew she was right . And even if deep down a part of her acknowledged Malfoy’s brains , she just didn’t want to admit it.
She had expected him to call her a filthy little moodblood ,or just plain hex her, but then again Professor McGonagall was still there .Even so , his response left her without any comments .
“I think we should continue this upstairs , darling” he said with the most evil grin she had ever seen .
“Both of you listen to me “ said Professor McGonagall “before things escalate , I you are aware that your position as Head Boy or Girl can be taken away from you , or you can quit , at any time. Keep that in mind any time you feel that your rivalry exceeds its limits. Goodnight to both of you”

*

They did not talk all the way up to their common room .Hermione walked slightly ahead of Draco , trying to guess how far behind her he was without turning to check. The truth was that she was a little scared to face him .After all , they did not in any way become friends after the war. He might have bee able to accept the fact that he was sharing one hour of his life with her daily, but she was sure he would take any chance she gave him to torment her . She reached a portrait of several old men gathered under a light pole on a dark and gloomy street. He caught up with her and waited for her to utter the password. She stood there for about half a minute , and she briskly turned to him.
“What’s the password Malfoy?”
“Excuse me ?”
“You heard me , Professor McGonagall didn’t tell me , so I’m guessing she must have told you “
“Well with that sort on intelligence it’s no wonder you’re Head Girl. Forget to ask her the password yourself ?”
“Listen Malfoy you heard her , you could loose your position as Head Boy if you push me too far “
“Can’t you see me shivering in my bots already ?”
“Just say the stupid password so we can get in ,Malfoy”

He stepped in front of her , and leaned close to a man with a particularly bushy moustache that was leaning against the light pole , and he whispered the password .The portrait flung open , and before she could get in , Malfoy made sure to close it in her nose. For the first five seconds she was stunned .He did not just close the portrait .He did not leave her outside. He could not have been so stupid. Hexes, jinxes , even curses were swarming in Hermione’s brain . For a second she forgot herself in her anger , and kicked the portrait , earning some very nasty comments from the men in it.

“Open this portrait Malfoy , or are you too afraid that I’ll curse you into oblivion if you do . You do know Professor McGonagall is going to have your head for this tomorrow. “ she heard nothing. She swore under her breath and punched the wall near the portrait. Trying to manage her anger , she said again

“Let me in Malfoy you bastard , or you’ll be spending seventh year with “numbskull” written all over your face in zits . “ No response.
“You bloody bastard , I’ll kill you with my own hands” she screamed at the portrait , and it finally flung open , a smirking Malfoy greeting her .
“No need to shout dear , you’ll wake up half the school, and it wouldn’t do any good to your perfect reputation . Incidentally I am very aware of the fact that my father and my mother conceived me while they were married, and still in love, and that is one thing I would not joke about while you’re around me .”
“You do that one more time ferret , and I’ll change my mind and hex your pants off in front of the entire school . “
“And why would you wait until then for what you can have now ?” he said with an evil grin .
Suddenly she felt her cheeks flush .She cursed herself….Why did she suddenly have this vivid picture of Mafloy in nothing more than boxers. The weird thing was that he didn’t look bad at all…”Don’t let him notice please” but it was obvious by the flash of realization that swept through Malfoy’s face that he had .
“Fancy me ,do you Granger ?” he said with a cruel little laugh. He moved closer to her , forcing her to back into the now closed portrait.
“Don’t flatter yourself Malfoy “ she said coldly. “You know far well I’d rather be a nun than lay one finger on you.”
“Well your wish’ll definitely come true if your mind’s set on the weasel.”
“What?” she suddenly said , her eyes darting questioningly up at his grey orbs .
“On the one hand , if you do get together with him , I bet the only private part of a girl he’s ever touched is his sister’s knickers in the laundry basket .On the other hand if you keep on dreaming about him the only finger that’ll touch you will be your own every night for the remainder of seventh year”
He had hit a soft spot…he knew it right away when her eyes fell. She still liked the weasel boy , and it hurt her that he only wanted her as a friend.
He took advantage of her moment of hesitation and leaned closer to her. She suddenly drew a deep breath , and she caught his musky scent .It had been a long time since she smelled a male body , since she felt a male body close to hers . She refused to give in to her weakness , but there was something about his figure towering over her .He placed one had on the wall behind her, close to her head , and lowered until he was level with her ear . She felt his breath on her neck ,and goosebumps ran down her spine. He whispered softly:
“Velours noir “
“What ?” she breathed taken by surprise.
“That’s the password “ he whispered back and blew a waft on hot air close to her ear. Involuntarily she shuddered.
And with that he swiftly turned and headed for his dormitory , leaving her dumbstruck .


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A/N Well here’s chapter one , as I promised . Hope you like it as it’s quite different from the prologue , at least that’s how I see it . Don’t worry , there’s plenty more where that came from . Oh , and I won’t be rushing this . Patience is a virtue I always say . Sorry about any mistakes but that’s the best Word spell-check and my very tired eyes can do . In case you were wondering “velours noir” means black velvet (or at least the online translator said so , but I’m sure you knew that) It just seemed cool that Draco would whisper words in French to Hermione from the first chapter :D Do you know the song by Alannah Myles ? Well , you’ll probably be hearing more of it until the end of this fic. Please review, it just makes me immensely happy to see that my fic stirred some reactions . ^_^