Against You

Author's Notes: Thanks for those who have read! Honestly, I'm a bit foggy on exactly what I want to do with their reality (post-war/no war AU/during war). It's already veered off track, perhaps from around Book 5, at least. I'll be straight with you guys: I'm more or less making this up as I go, lol. I've got this glimmer of an idea and decided to run with it. I hope you will like it, and I'm going to really push to make this story get somewhere and end (my biggest weakness as a writer). Thanks again for reading this! Apologies for short chapters, I think I have an aversion for writing long chapters...
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"D-Draco!"

Though her cry was muffled by her door, Hermione was struck by the sudden fear of being heard. He was still downstairs, after all, but wasn't that still too far considering that her room was located much higher than their common room? What were the properties of sound and how did it react to a magical environment? There wasn't a chance that it would (Merlin forbid) be amplified, was there?

Mind racing with information and body soaked in sweat, she decided to take the cowardly route (for all of her Gryffindor bravado seemed to abandon her) and hide in the comforts of the Head Girl's bathroom. While she sunk her still-trembling body into the luxuriant bath the suite offered, a rather perplexed snake lurked below...

Rapidly wearing a track into the plush cream carpet of the Heads' common room, the aforementioned blond paced back and forth, lost in his thoughts.

She couldn't have just yelled my name, Draco thought to himself.

It was just simply an impossibility. Even as he had kissed her (and wasn't that just a fantastic feat he had accomplished?), Draco never expected any sort of reaction from the great Hermione Granger. She was too pure, too innocent, too ridiculously critical of him to ever show any sort of interest. Well, yes, she did open her mouth and let his tongue in, and well, yes, she did rather prod his tongue with her's, but she pushed him away! She didn't accept his feelings anymore than he did (and Draco was barely only tolerating his infatuation, really) and it was so, so wrong for their entire universe.

He paused for a moment and focused back upon his memory; being a Slytherin, one couldn't survive very long without sharp eyes and keen ears. She pushed him away. Practically ran up the stairs and slammed the door. Where was he? Standing exactly where Granger had left him. Then, to the couch. After that, there was naught but his Draco's own thoughts and heartbeat. Time whittled away like that for awhile. Though the distance was rather great and the door rather thick, there was an unmistakable female exclamation, for sure, but was it his name?

For a moment, Draco nearly gagged. What if she was thinking of the Weasel? Oh, that little chit better not even think for a moment that the ginger boy could even hope to possibly match up to his prowess!

"Augh!" Draco groaned in frustration. It simply had to be him! Not just for what he had just unbelievably heard, but for everything else as well! He was just as intelligent as she was (maybe, if he worked for it) and the world knows that he had the snark to put Granger back into her place when she needed it!

This was a ridiculous situation to be caught in. Liking a girl he didn't want to like, but going for her anyway. Her merits were few and far between, if he spoke honestly. Frizzy hair, overbearing attitude and that swotty intellect! She hung off of Potter and Weasley like she had nowhere else to go, and Draco supposed that she really didn't. Though she was courteous and polite, her Know-It-All personality hadn't decreased in the years at Hogwarts. Just a few years ago, the mere notion of even considering Granger as part of the female species would have left him with stitches in his sides from laughing so hard. Now, he couldn't quite say.

She was frizzy and swotty, but always willing to help her fellow classmates. Though she had been so prejudiced against since day one of her induction into the Wizarding world, as Head Girl, Granger had tried to be nothing but fair and impartial.

"Even to Slytherin bastards like me," the Head Boy snorted to himself, settling himself into the couch.

Being the cool-headed, if not extremely sarcastic, Head Boy to her impassioned Head Girl day in and day out was bound to have some sort of affect on their relationship. In the morning, they often bumped into each other on the way to breakfast. During the day, they had many of the same classes. In the early evening, plans for evens, for prefects, tutoring other schoolmates...

Draco snorted a most un-gentlemanly snort once more. He was stuck in a fucking fish bowl with Hermione Jean Granger. What could the old man have expected of this arrangement? Maybe to finally off him like Potter wanted to? Merlin knows that Granger could kill him in his sleep if he really wanted to. Really, his options were to kill her first or fall in love with her. Of course, it had to be the latter, of course. That old man and his damned house unity spiel.

It felt like days since he had her in his arms, when in reality it had been little more than an hour. His thoughts did nothing but chase themselves in circles. The Head Boy conduct would be to back off, respect her wishes and hope that she finds some happiness in some other git lurking about Hogwarts. Draco's personal code dictated that he gave no quarter to his opponent and that he take what he rightfully deserve. Her response to the latter path would likely involve some sort of painful hexing and his resignation from the post of Head Boy. Damned if he went for her and damned if he didn't. What had ever happened to the simple days of their youth, where he would call her a Mudblood and she would punch him in the face?

Then again, life hadn't been that complicated. Draco followed his father, no hesitation, no reluctance, no thought. The Malfoys were better than everyone. Purebloods than Mudbloods. He wondered when it all began to get so confusing. When exactly did he decide that his own merits were enough for himself, even if not for the esteemed Lucius Malfoy? Enough for himself? Granger was certainly enough. More than enough. Snarky, stubborn, a bleeding heart. Everything he wasn't and somehow he'd grown to like that about her.

So yes, Draco Malfoy would actively go about courting Miss Hermione Granger of Golden Trio fame. He had an overwhelmingly bad feeling about this, but if her cry was an omen of things to come, then consequences be damned...