Chapter Five:

Hermione hated herself for the predicament she had ended up in later that day. Almost all dilemmas Hermione found herself in were usually out of her control, or at the fault of another person. But this embarrassing situation was her own fault entirely.

There she stood, staring blankly at the large painting which also served as the entrance to the Head Boy and Head Girl dormitories. To her dormitory. She had strutted back to the Gryffindor common room and dorms after her day of classes to abruptly realise that what Professor McGonagall said, had been truth. Hermione's belongings were gone, and the bed that was once hers was stripped of its red and gold colours and now lay lifeless and flat with nothing but the thin mattress sitting on the metal of the bunk bed. Hermione should have known better than to think McGonagall was bluffing. She should have known better than to assume her belongings would still be exactly where she left them. But it was with an open mouth, that she had quickly concluded that she was wrong. Clearly whilst in class, just as she was told, the elves had moved all her things.

The last thing she wanted after some of her favourite classes this week was to ruin her day by having to go to a common room that she shared with a Slytherin. She imagined having to live with Draco Malfoy would be worse than being forced to live in the snake pit... at least in the Slytherin dorms she could fade into the background and hopefully be ignored in the crowded dungeons. But in a dormitory of just two, that felt unlikely.

It was with those thoughts that she had shuffled her way to the library in favour of pushing her nose deep into a textbook, quill in hand. She had studied well past the libraries closing hours. Irma Pince, the librarian was described by most as a thin, irritable women who looked like an underfed vulture, but as Hermione spent most of her free time in the corner table of the library, the two had become well acquainted over the years. It was because of this alone, that Pince had allowed the girl to stay tucked away in the corner for those extra hours after closing. But naturally, she couldn't stay there forever. As Pince stood up to leave for the night, she had given Hermione a nudge, suggesting it was now her time to scurry along. With a look at the time, even Hermione was surprised at the hour; 11.30pm... well past curfew. She silently cussed as she moved with vigour in an attempt to not be caught out of bed.

That's how she found herself in her predicament. She knew exactly where her new dormitory was. However, turning down Malfoy's offer for a tour now seemed barmy of her. Just because she knew where the dormitory was, didn't mean she knew the password to enter. She had no idea what she should do. She didn't want to risk walking back to the Gryffindor common rooms, knowing just how long of a walk that was, she thought for certain she would be caught. But what was her other option? Sit outside and wallow in self-pity? She assumed that nobody would see her, tucked away in the corner of the castle completely alone.

Malfoy was most likely inside, perhaps even asleep at this hour, Merlin... she normally would be. It was with an almost whisper that she flicked her wand whispering an almost silent spell towards the door.

"Homenum revelio," there was nothing. The dorm was empty.

She sighed, pushing her back against the cold bricks of the castle wall. She sat down as she pulled out her book once again, finding comfort in the smell of old parchment and words worth a thousand pictures. She had barely skimmed three pages before she heard footsteps begin to creep up on her.

Her heart fluttered; she was caught - caught out of bed at an ungodly hour after curfew. What a great way to start her position as Head Girl. But as those footsteps finally became louder, a figure made its way into her view. She wasn't caught.

It was Theodore Knott. Just as equally out of bed after curfew as she was.

"Oh... lookey who's here Draco," he smirked down at her, letting his foot tap her folded legs as he laughed softly.

It was then that the blonde haired Slytherin finally came into view. He looked tired. Hermione didn't think she had ever seen Malfoy look so tired. His apparent exhaustion didn't stop his smart mouth talking.

"Oh indeed. Golden girl's out of bed after curfew? I am surprised. Oh wait? No, I'm not since you are the one who turned down my kind offer of a tour. Where I would have provided you the password you are surely yearning for." Hermione wanted to scowl she wanted to hate every word which came from his mouth. But he was right.

She sighed in frustration, stuffing her book back into her satchel. Her eyes met the green of Knott's before they moved to his extended arm. Why was Theodore Knott offering her a hand to stand up? She ignored the offer, choosing instead to push her body weight off the ground herself. She watched as both Slytherins rolled their eyes and Theodore's hand retracted back to his pocket.

"Just give me the password Malfoy. I would like to sleep," Hermione tutted.

"And why should I let you in?" He leant against the wall, acting as if he had all the time in the world. Theodore laughed next to him, he was smiling as he copied his blonde counterparts' actions, leaning against the wall, almost smugly.

But even Hermione could see through whatever this Slytherin act was. Malfoy looked exhausted.

"Malfoy. We may not like each other, but even I can see you are tired. Let me in... please," Hermione stuffed her hands into her pocket. It was getting cold.

She expected a fight. But she didn't get anything in response.

Malfoy turned to the painting, "green apples."

The door opened. Green apples? That was the password? Hermione pondered it for a second, watching as both Theodore and Malfoy slipped inside the room.

"Well, are you coming inside or are you going to stay out there the rest of the night Granger? Personally, I would be much happier if you did," Malfoy pestered.

With a blush to her cheek, she was stepping in and following the two of them.

"Coming Theo?" Draco asked stalking away, and Hermione couldn't help but wonder what Theodore Knott was even doing here at this hour. With that, she watched as they trailed into Draco Malfoy's separated room in the dormitory, it was only then that she noticed the book sticking out of the blonde's satchel.

Stickered to the spine was the unmistakeable bright yellow dot; restricted. What was Draco Malfoy doing with a book from the restricted session? She had never escaped, to what she assumed was now her room, faster.

Sleep didn't come easy that night.

---

"Merlin 'Mione, you can't!" Hermione rest her head against Ron's shoulder. There she sat next to him in the Gryffindor common room after classes the following day. Harry and Ginny took comfort on the couch in front of the two.

Ron, Harry and Ginny had quizzed her immediately noticing their friend hadn't returned the night prior and in addition, all her belongings were now missing. She explained everything.

"I mean of course we're proud of you 'Mione, you deserve Head Girl more than anybody. But it's not worth it having to live with ferret face." Ginny mumbled her last words heatedly.

A curl fell across her face as she sighed loudly throwing her head back, "I don't want to talk about it please – what's done is done... Please just tell me somebody has something to do or something to talk about that's not Malfoy to take my mind off my sealed fate," Hermione grumbled. She watched as Ginny and Harry's eyes met, the two of them jumping to their feet. Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"We'll leave you two alone then?" winked Harry, but his statement was questioning. Hermione understood its underlying meaning immediately.

"No"

"Yes"

Her eyes locked with Ron's as different responses to the same question burst from their mouths. Harry and Ginny smiled, cheekily running off together and out the common room doors, leaving Ron and Hermione alone together on the bean bag.

"Ron..." Hermione drawled out his name, watching as the Ginger haired boy let his thumb run along the bottom of her lip before dipping down and stealing a longing kiss.

"Ron..." She tried again, but his intentions were clear.

She didn't know if that's what she wanted. But, sneaking off into further solitary in Ron's bunk the two found themselves alone.

Even if she wasn't sure she wanted it. That's what she did. Ron and Hermione shared their first time together snuggled under the sheets of Ron's dirty bunk. Hermione wanted to cast a Scourgify cleaning spell almost immediately.

Ten minutes is all it had been between when Harry and Ginny left, and Ron and Hermione' deed was, well... now complete. Nothing about it felt special to her.

What she hated most however was that Malfoy was completely right yet again.

Ron didn't get her off.