Aconite - Dramione/Blinny

Ch. 12

Draco looked up as Blaise entered his office again the next day, and he didn't fail to notice that Blaise looked as if he had a secret.

"I think you should go see Hermione today," Blaise said smugly before Draco could say anything.

Raising an eyebrow, Draco set his paperwork down and leaned forward on his desk. "And why is that, Blaise?"

Blaise simply shrugged. "I just think you should. You've been worried about her, after all. Maybe even ask her to lunch again."

"She's already made it clear that her husband will be uncomfortable about it," Draco said in a low voice.

"Yes, but I'm well a-were of that."

Pinching the bridge of his nose, Draco let out a long, deep sigh. "Blaise, it's too early for werewolf puns..."

"I disagree but anyways," Blaise grinned. "My point still stands."

"And why should I ask her to lunch when surely the answer is no?" Draco asked, putting his hands on his desk and folding them.

"Because I think you may find that her opinion and answer will have changed from before," Blaise answered smugly.

Draco raised an eyebrow again. "And I'm just supposed to believe you?"

"You're right," Blaise said, waving him off and turning around. "It's not like I'm dating her best friend or anything."

He left the office before anything else could be said, leaving behind a very confused Draco. The blond stared at the door for a few moments before looking back down at his papers. But as much as he tried to focus, he couldn't deny that he was very curious to see if Blaise was actually right.

After locking up all of his paperwork and checking his watch, he decided it was early enough that Hermione should still be at her desk. If she was actually going to eat that day, he thought to himself.

"I'm going out," He announced as he passed Blaise's office, completely ignoring the smirk that his partner gave him and apparating out of the office.

He hated using the visitor's entrance for the Ministry, but grimaced through it and was soon making his way through the main floor towards the lifts. His mind was swirling with thoughts of what could possibly happen; will she be happy to see him? Would Weasley be there? And why the hell was Blaise so insistent that something had changed?

His thoughts kept him distracted as the lift took him to the fourth level where Hermione's office was, and the first thing he noticed was that her assistant was not at her desk, again. This seemed to be normal though and he simply shrugged as he made his way to Hermione's office. Surprisingly, the door was already open.

"Good morning, Hermi-"

He froze and stared at her. She looked up as he entered and raised an eyebrow at him, a small smirk forming at the corners of her mouth.

"Do you like it?" She asked, running a hand through her now completely short hair. It was a short, choppy bob that stopped around her jawline, accentuating every angle of her face.

He gaped as the words struggled to come out of his mouth. He had never imagined her without her mess of curls, but the longer he looked at it, the more he preferred this look on her. It didn't cover her looks, only defining them more.

"It's...wow." He took a few steps closer and then noticed something else about her that was different. "Have you always had freckles?"

He saw a twinge of redness hit her cheeks as she answered, "Sort of; they came around more after I left Hogwarts. I just usually wear foundation and decided not to today."