Artificial Love (Dramione)

Chapter 7 - The Question

The unmistakable view of a bushy brown hair was immediately recognizable as Draco first stepped foot in the library. Pince was glaring at him for bringing in his broomstick. It wasn't against the rules to have one with him though, so she could do nothing to stop him.

Draco made his way over to where Granger sat surrounded by a mountain of books, none of which she was reading. Instead, her head lay on her bag, and she breathed in and out methodically.

The girl was asleep. How had she even fallen asleep so easily after nearly dying only a few hours earlier? Draco shook his head, amazed at how brave she was. Not that he would ever admit it out loud, but Gryffindors had that bravery trait that he idolized but lacked. In fact, if he hadn't been pure Slytherin, he may even have been sorted into Gryffindor first year just because of his treasuring of the trait. But circumstances didn't match up, and so the pup had become a wolf.

The books shaded Granger from the view of everyone else; almost as if they were a protective barrier from the rest of the world. Draco crossed the barrier and unceremoniously shoved her shoulder to wake her up.

"What-? Where-?" The disoriented Granger yawned and rubbed her eyes before noticing Draco standing beside her. "What are you doing here? You said you didn't want me to mention the-"

Draco cut in, holding himself back from shoving a hand over her mouth to stop her from saying too much, "I don't want you to mention it. It didn't happen, okay? But I need that chocolate back."

"Why?" Granger seemed almost taken aback. Shouldn't she have already expected this kind of behavior from a Slytherin though? Draco was used to that cold shoulder, especially from Gryffindors like Granger.

"I don't need to answer anything you ask me, mudblood," Draco said casually. His hands were in his pockets, concealing the building amount of sweat accumulating on his palms. At least now that he was here, she wouldn't eat it. But if she had eaten it before he arrived... he couldn't even think of what he would do then.

Granger's face had begun to turn a deep red color, and Draco could almost imagine steam coming from her ears at this point at how angry she seemed. "What, was it meant for someone else? Doesn't matter now. I've already eaten all the candy I've had in my bag. That includes the chocolate."

Draco suddenly felt as if he were suffocating; as if his tie had been pulled in to choke him. He adjusted and loosened the tie that was already loose around his neck before murmuring almost inaudibly, "Shit."

"You didn't- You didn't poison that chocolate, did you?" Granger asked, her blustering red face transferring to a ghastly chalk white at the mere thought.

"Of course not. If that were the case, I would let you be poisoned. I've saved your life enough for the day, thank you very much". That would make this whole situation so much easier- the chocolate being poison instead. But no, Blaise just had to brew his way into love and pull Draco unwittingly alongside.

"Well, then what was it?" A little color had returned o her face, although she looked still paler than usual.

"It was a chocolate, Granger. What else could it be?"

"That one didn't taste like chocolate. It tasted like magic!"

"What does magic even taste like, genius?" He couldn't help but add on, muttering to himself, "Honestly, of course a mudblood would say something tastes like magic, how imbecilic."

"Well since you've been around magic your entire life, you would be partial to it. I swear, Malfoy, if you drugged me I'll have you expelled!" Granger had begun to gather her things, and her posture suggested that she was about to make a run for it.

I can't do anything more for her now, anyway. It's a lost cause if she's already eaten the chocolate. I'll just have to wait and see if it works. Draco turned on his heel, his broom slung over his shoulder.

Granger didn't call after him. Good. Maybe that was a sign that the chocolate had been a dud. Blaise had never been all that great with following directions. Sometimes that led to barely functional potions. Draco could only hope that Blaise's flaw had finally done some good.

It was almost time for dinner. Draco would have to drop his broom back at the common room. As he walked, he planned out exactly what choice words he would be saying to Blaise during dinner for giving him that chocolate in the first place.

Hermione didn't feel at all like eating, but she picked herself up and gathered her things and went on her way. She didn't even stop when she passed by Gryffindor tower, bringing her bag along with her to the hall.

Harry and Ron were already sitting at their usual seats, and Hermione joined them quietly.

"I'm sorry for earlier," she whispered into her pumpkin juice, barely even taking a sip before setting it back down. As she looked around at the tables full of food, she thought of how she had gotten sick earlier. Despite her stomach being empty, she pushed away her scarcely filled plate.

Ron had heard her and gave her a side hug as he munched on his sandwich. "Are you ready to talk to us yet?"

"Something must have happened," said Harry. He placed his own half-eaten sandwich back on his plate so that he could direct all his attention to Hermione.

"Well, I was planning on doing some homework up in the Gryffindor stand on the Quidditch pitch. It was so lovely out that it seemed a waste to hole myself up in the library when I could just as easily do my work outside."

"Yeah, you should have joined us at the lake. The giant squid didn't even end up showing. The water felt great," Ron piped in as Hermione paused.

"I wish I had," Hermione gulped, "I fell from the stands as I was trying to catch a breeze." At this, Ron dropped his sandwich, and he and Harry automatically started looking her up and down.

"Are you alright? You must have used magic to stop the fall, or at least to slow it down, right? Those stands are nearly fifty feet tall, you couldn't have survived without magic!" Ron exclaimed.

Feeling shaken at remembering it, Hermione rushed her way through her explanation. "My wand was up in the stands, in my bag. I thought I was a goner, but before I know it, there's a boy on a broom and he's lifting me back up to Gryffindor tower, and I'm shaken but alive and... Well, that troll in first year definitely frightened me, but this was worse by a tenfold!"

"Do you know who the boy is? What house was he from?"

Hermione paused. Should she tell them that it had been Malfoy? What good would that do anyone, after all? It would probably just invalidate the rescue, and Harry and Ron would just write it off as an accident by the Slytherin boy. Hermione didn't want to listen to them complain about Draco Malfoy right now. Especially not after he had saved her, albeit with regret.

"I didn't catch a glimpse," Hermione heard herself say, "I was too busy vomiting."

"Bloody hell, Hermione, we're going to have to keep a closer eye on you from now on."