Clean

The Storm

Chapter 18: The Storm

She had been much more responsible about making an early escape than he had been; it was still quite dark when Draco became conscious of her fumbling around his room for her things.

"Fuck, Granger," he swore under his breath. It had been the second night in a row of dreamless sleep, a brief moment of peace amidst the chaos that always threatened to rain down on him unexpectedly, and he wasn't thrilled about the interruption.

"I know, I know, I'm sorry," she said, cringing. "I think I dropped something – "

He reached over and picked up his wand, flicking it over his shoulder to illuminate the room. "So rude," he muttered, curling up and pulling his blankets around him.

"Ah, found it!" she proclaimed, straightening. She gave him a knowing look. "It truly does not surprise me that you would be this unpleasant in the morning, you know."

He smirked at her. "I'd hardly call it morning," he corrected, eyeing the item she held in her clenched fist. "What is that?"

She opened her palm, revealing the small vial that Snape had handed her. "Our potion," she said. "It fell out of the pocket of my robe."

"You've just been carrying around a rare and valuable potion in your robe?"

"No," she said with frustration. "I took it out of my pocket, and then – I don't remember what I did next but I meant to put it away and got distracted – "

"You can just leave it here," he said, waving his hand at the variety of empty surfaces around his immaculate room. "Wherever."

She frowned. "I feel like I should hold onto it, for some reason," she remarked. "I'll just put it in my bag when I get back to my room."

"Learn to share, Granger," he said sleepily, yawning widely.

She laughed and came to perch beside him on the bed, slipping the potion back into her pocket. He curled around her contentedly, resting his forehead on her leg, and she ran her fingers lightly through his hair, massaging his scalp.

"It's odd, how normal this feels," she murmured. He nodded his agreement.

"Do you think there's a parallel universe out there somewhere," she began, her mind very far away, "Where we're just normal, and the people we love don't hate each other, and we can just go to the movies together?"

"Movies?" he asked, bewildered, his voice muffled into her lap.

She exhaled swiftly, a silent laugh. "Never mind," she said, shaking her head. She bent down to kiss his forehead, dodging his grip as he tried to pull her back.

"I have to go," she said, patting his hand. "You'll thank me."

"Mmphm."

"Right," she said cheerfully. "Good luck today," she added, her voice softening as her eyes lingered on his face.

He lifted his head quickly. "I'll see you tonight?"

The smile that flitted across her face was warm and reassuring. "Yes," she said, her hand on the doorknob. "I'll see you tonight."

She performed a quick spell to check for the presence of anyone on the other side of the door before ducking into the hall, gracing Draco with her bewitching smile as she turned and swept out of the room. Even without her presence he could still smell her on his pillow, and a few deep breaths allowed him some precious moments of relief before his mind turned uneasily to the events of the day.

He was almost grateful for the distraction she had provided, as it meant that the time he'd had to devote to mending the cabinet in the Room of Requirement was significantly reduced. He had reexamined Borgin's notes on the object and suspected he had stumbled across the solution – a minor adjustment to the incantation that would, theoretically, restore the use of the cabinets. Granger was the only reason that he had not yet confirmed its repair.