Petrichor | ?

- Hermione -

"Granger. Now come here to me," Malfoy's desperate voice sounded from the bed behind me.

"I really didn't know you were so good at school," I marveled. I was standing in front of the shelf of his mock-up room, browsing through his school records.

"By Merlin, you're fantastic at wizardry," I exclaimed as I flipped through a few of his exam results. He was actually doing pretty amazingly in the other subjects, too.

I heard the boy snort behind me. "Are you serious?"

"Wow. You've got what it takes to be top of the class. I wonder why you're not?" I said, acting in a nasty and amused voice.

Then I heard Malfoy get up, come over to me, pick me up and put me over his shoulder without further ado. "That's because there's this conceited know-it-all in my year."

I laughed and slapped him half-heartedly on the back. "Put me down, Malfoy."

"Gladly."

I felt myself briefly in free air and then landing on the bed. Draco lay down next to me, pulled me close and held me tightly in his arms.

"What are you doing?" I asked, amused, when I realized that I couldn't move a bit in his embrace.

"Slowly smother my prey in agony," he whispered with what he thought was a fearsome voice.

"Gotcha," I had to laugh.

"I'm just kidding. Your hair smells good." And that was supposed to be the explanation for why he couldn't let go of me?

My eyes fell on his left arm, which was lying on his stomach. The dark mark on his forearm looked even worse than when Yaxley had revealed it in the barn. I sensed Draco following my gaze, but he said nothing. "Does it still hurt?" I ventured to ask after a short time.

"No," he replied curtly, while I felt his body tense. We were silent for a short while, while I gently ran my fingers over his upper body.

"What about you? Did you lift the Obliviate curse from your parents?" Yes, I had. I had restored their memories after the war was over. However, they still suffered from the aftereffects today. Very rarely, they even seemed as if they had still forgotten me.

"Yes," I replied just as curtly as he had earlier. I knew that we both had a past that we had to deal with first. But I realized that we might even do each other good in the process. To get rid of our prejudices. To look behind the facades. To give new chances. And to a certain extent, maybe even to forgive.

Draco looked at me and I had the feeling that he was proud of me, like so many others had been. But like me, he had only tried to protect his family. Just in a different way than I had done it.

"They would probably love to meet you," I grinned at him.

"Phew, Granger," he said. "I'm not very good with Muggles. You know that."

"Why? I'm descended from them. You get along well with me, too."

"Do I?" he asked, grinning, and leaned over me. 'Oh yes,' he said, as if something had just occurred to him. 'I forgot. After all, you're madly in love with me,' he enthused, overdramatically, and sighed complacently.

"You're a complete idiot," I commented, offended.

He raised an eyebrow and grinned at me. 'Of course."

I grinned back until something suddenly occurred to me. 'Oh Merlin, what time is it?" I exclaimed, shocked, while I pushed him away from me. "I don't know," Malfoy answered helpfully.

"I have to go," I explained to him hectically. 'Ginny is probably wondering where I am.' I jumped into my trousers and hurriedly put on my shoes. Did I forget my jacket? Damn, I really had to hurry and come up with a good excuse.

"Granger. Do you really want to go out there wearing my shirt?" Malfoy smirked before I could turn around.

"Oh." I took off his shirt and threw it to him, while he threw me my sweater, into which I quickly slipped. Hesitantly, I looked at the Slytherin and wondered how I should say goodbye.

"See you tomorrow, Malfoy," I said, feeling very nervous and rushed. Malfoy raised an eyebrow, but then smiled. "See you tomorrow, Granger."

I took a few steps towards the wooden door, but then hurried back. Malfoy didn't look surprised at all.

"Good night, Draco," I smiled, after I had pressed a long kiss on his lips.

"Good night, Hermione."

*

- Draco -

After Granger had gone, I dressed again and went to the window. I opened it and stood in the cold night air until I started to freeze. The sky was so clear that I could see some of the constellations we had learned in astronomy class.

I had a really queasy feeling in my stomach that I couldn't really explain to myself. I feared that I really, really liked her. And that even though I had really fought it.

It was a feeling that I just couldn't control. And normally I was always in control. This loss of control didn't feel good.

My breath left wads of smoke in the cool air. I tried to imagine my father's face if he knew that I had feelings for a mudblood, but somehow I didn't know exactly how he would react. Inside, he might reject me as a Malfoy. Or even worse—as his son.

But that wasn't even the worst of it. Sighing, I looked at the bed where we had been lying just a moment ago. As soon as I let someone get close to me, as soon as I trusted someone, I gave them the opportunity to break me. I felt that these feelings made me weak and defenseless.

But at the same time, they were also something that felt good. Like security. Like warmth. The way Granger looked at me made me feel like I was somehow more. Good.

What I had done could never be undone. But maybe with her I would find a way to come to terms with it all.

I remembered the conversation with Hagrid about our magical nature. I had told him that Petrichor made me, at least to some extent, a better person. But that wasn't really true. Hermione did that.