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Hermione walked through the corridors of Hogwarts, her arms laden with her course books. Seventh year was the year of the ASPICS, and students were drowning in homework and revision.
The young girl sped up as she saw the portrait of the fat lady looming before her. She gave the password (nemesis) and entered the common room. Ron and Harry were sitting in front of the fireplace, both bent over Professor Snape's potion homework. Hermione sat down in a vacant chair and sighed happily when her arms were finally free of her textbooks.
Harry straightened up and said:
- The Slytherins invite us to meet them in the Room on Demand tomorrow evening at 9pm.
Hermione frowned. Since the beginning of the year, relations between the Gryffindors and the Slytherins had improved considerably. They didn't lash out at each other in the corridors, they didn't feel the urgent need to draw their wands when they crossed paths, and they even managed to hold discussions without going for each other's throats.
Hermione had met Blaise Zabini and found his presence almost sympathetic. Even so, the reds and greens remained great enemies, who sometimes couldn't change, as in the case of Draco Malfoy. When he'd returned to Hogwarts, freed of all charges thanks to Harry's support, he'd become less arrogant, less proud, less pretentious. He no longer strutted the halls as he once had, and girls no longer fought to be by his side.
However, the history between Hermione and Draco had prevented any rapprochement, however slight. They managed to exchange words from time to time when paired up by Professor Snape or Professor Lupin; but the exchanges were too polite and cold to be natural.
Hermione was therefore surprised to see that the Slytherins had invited them to a little party, rendezvous or whatever it might be. Besides, the young girl didn't particularly want to go.
- I think I'll pass, thank you," she said more curtly than she would have liked as a result of fatigue.
- You don't have a choice," replied Harry, scribbling a sentence on his homework, they specify that if one of us doesn't come, they'll come and get us here themselves.
Hermione sighed, even if the Slytherins didn't know the password to the common room, they were clever and treacherous enough to find another solution.
- Who else is invited?
- Ginny," answered Ron, "Neville, Seamus, Dean, and some students from other houses, Luna too, I think.
She nodded, if her friends were there, then it was possible she'd have a not too shabby evening.
The next day, after dinner and going back upstairs to put their things down, the Gryffindor seventh-years waited in front of the Barnabas the Fool tapestry in the seventh-floor corridor. Luna arrived shortly after them, skipping and humming.
Suddenly, a door appeared on the blank wall and opened on Pansy, who beckoned them in. The room, on request, was decorated with the emblems of the four houses (although there were no Hufflepuffs), and a fire burned softly in the fireplace, casting shadows on the stone walls and warming the atmosphere. The room was filled with sofas, pouffes and pleds covered with the Hogwarts coat of arms. On the left-hand wall, a huge bookcase was spread out, filled with hundreds of books of varying degrees of rarity and recentness. Hermione approached it and brushed the old bindings with her fingertips, a gentle smile on her lips, her eyes filled with stars.
- If we told you to come, Granger, it's not so you can read for three hours," said a voice behind her.
Draco was leaning casually against the wall, his blond hair falling over his forehead, the first three buttons of his shirt unbuttoned, revealing his muscular chest. His tie and cape lay on the back of a chair. Hermione glowered at him before turning to the others who were beginning to sit comfortably. She discarded her cloak, placing it on top of Malfoy's, then went to sit on a sofa to Ginny's left.
When everyone was settled, a silence fell between the young adults.
- Well, yeah, then," began Blaise, breaking the silence, "we thought," Malfoy glared at him, "I thought, it might be nice for us to have an evening together.
He paused for a moment, then continued:
- It would be a good way to keep the year going, and we could get to know each other behind the walls of our houses.
- What do you propose?" asked Seamus.
- Truth or dare.
An uproar erupted when he stated his idea, with everyone voicing their personal opinions on the game.
- WAIT!" he shouted over the noise.
He waited for silence, then explained:
- We're not going to do a normal truth or dare like when we were kids," he said, pulling out bottles of Butterbeer, glasses and a flask from behind the footstool he was sitting on, "each truth will be spoken under the effect of the veritaserum, and if anyone refuses an action they'll be pledged by the truth.
He looked at his comrades to analyze their reaction and continued:
- A few rules though; in the interests of propriety and respect, actions between two people don't go beyond two people in a room, and no intimate questions for truths. How about trying to question a member of another house?
Everyone nodded and took a glass, filling it with Butterbeer.
Hermione was a little apprehensive about the questions. She had a tendency not to open up to others, and having to do so without any control over what she might say put her off.
- Very well, I'll start," said Blaise when everyone had been served, "Harry action or truth?
- Truth, and he took a sip of Veritaserum Butterbeer.
- Which BUSE did you get in potion?
- E
Many were surprised.
- Pansy, truth or dare?
- Action.
- Walk around the room singing the Gryffindor version of Weasley is our King.
The young girl complied, making the wrong choice of words several times.
The game went on for another twenty minutes. Ron had to confess who he'd been crushing on the longest (Hermione, the girl choked), Theodore Nott (a Slytherin pupil) asked Luna to catch a hookah from the guy hanging over the fireplace (the girl brought back a dragonfly crossed with a slightly bluish butterfly and everyone had to admit that Luna might not be completely mad). Draco was ordered to continue the evening shirtless on Ginny's orders, under the gaze of a Ron apparently jealous of the Slytherin's physique and Hermione's red cheeks when she met the blond's steely gaze. Harry had to spend 4 min 30 on an old Brossedur upside down. And Dean had to kiss Pansy, the latter struck down by Seamus' glare.
- Hermione action or truth?" asked Blaise.
The young girl thought for a moment: she had already taken action (sending a Patronus messenger to Peeves to tell him to go and ransack Snape's office).
- Truth be told, the girl took a sip of her drink.
- Who do you find most attractive in the room?
- Malfoy," Hermione replied immediately, regretting having chosen Truth.
Her cheeks flushed, she didn't dare look at the Slytherin carelessly seated in an armchair, who had his gaze riveted on her. Around her, Harry, Ron, Seamus, Dean, Neville, Pansy and Theodore stared at her with wide eyes. Ginny gave Blaise a discreet wink, and Luna's eyes were riveted to the ceiling in the hope of catching a glimpse of a (nobody had remembered the creature's name).
Ginny saved her from an awkward silence by exclaiming:
- Theo, truth or dare?
The game continued with laughter and shouts. The challenges became more and more twisted (having to shout "my father is a rainbow-farting strangulot-licorn with sequins" in the corridor when Rusard was making his rounds) and the questions more far-fetched than the others.
- Draco, truth or dare?" asked Ginny.
- Truth.
Ginny shrugged it off and Blaise proposed instead:
- Kiss Granger!
Hermione immediately froze, looking at Malfoy to see his reaction. The young man shrugged, stood up and walked towards the Gryffindor. She kept her head erect, looking straight ahead, trying to ignore the handsome Slytherin approaching on her left.
Draco stopped and, seeing that she didn't turn, took her chin and turned it gently towards him. Hermione's almond-shaped eyes met the Slytherin's steely gaze. He leaned over the armrest and placed his lips gently against hers, triggering a butterfly to take flight in her stomach.
Hermione closed her eyes and found herself enjoying the kiss. The Slytherin was much softer than she'd imagined and she began to think that this kiss was 100 times more pleasant than the one she'd exchanged with Ron in the Chamber of Secrets.
Malfoy finally broke off contact after several seconds, and moved away to return to his seat before saying:
- Luna, truth or dare?
He completely ignored Ron's furiously jealous look, Harry and Pansy's bemused one and Hermione's lost one. And nobody noticed the second wink exchanged between Blaise and Ginny.
Ten minutes later, the party came to an end. They all left quickly for their dormitories. Hermione, however, stayed a little longer to look at the books on the bookcase. The young girl didn't notice the presence of another wizard behind her, too absorbed in contemplating an original edition of Les Misérables.
- So you find me attractive, Granger?" asked a voice.
Hermione gasped and turned around sharply. Malfoy had put his shirt back on but hadn't fastened it, his green tie untied around his neck, he swung his cape over his shoulder.
- I didn't know I could make such an impression on a Gryffindor," he added, a smirk on his face.
Hermione felt her cheeks flush:
- Who says I'm attracted to you?
- You said so yourself," he moved gently towards her.
- Oh please, Malfoy," giggled the Gryffindor, trying to regain her composure. The others were Neville or Ron, and I consider Harry my brother.
Draco had now arrived at the girl's side. He was leaning against the shelf, towering over her. His charcoal pupils stared at her with an almost animal-like gleam.
Hermione felt her heart beat faster, harder. Her breathing became more jerky as she kept her eyes planted in those of the Slytherin. She had no idea what was happening to her; she felt as if she was no longer in control of her body.
The witch saw the Malfoy heir approaching her. She felt his breath against her skin as he whispered against her ear:
- If it makes you feel any better, I feel the same about you.
Hermione shivered and Draco stepped back, keeping a very short distance from the young woman. She wanted to reply with a scathing retort, but the words stuck in her throat. Her breathing became choppier as Malfoy's gaze became more eager than ever.
The red and gold stepped forward, her reason screaming at her to stay away, drop the book and run off Weasley-style, her body begging her to get even closer to the green and silver's face.
To hell with reason!
Draco broke the few millimeters separating them to place his lips against her enemy's. The girl wanted to pull back, but finally let go of the book to wrap her arms around the Slytherin's neck.
She felt a smile form on Draco's lips as he deepened the kiss. He dropped his cloak, which fell with a soft rustle at their feet, and placed his hands on Hermione's hips, pulling her closer to him, pressing her against his bare chest.
At that moment, nothing mattered, neither to him nor to her. All he could feel were the Gryffindor's hands playing with his hair, and her mouth moving against his.
They parted after several minutes, their lungs crying out for mercy, their breathing slightly labored. Hermione seemed to realize what she had just done. Her eyes widened as she looked at the young man in front of her.
- What did we just do?" she whispered on the verge of panic, "we shouldn't have... we should have... but what did I do?
Hermione turned without a glance at Draco. She tried to leave but a hand on her wrist held her back. Draco turned her towards him:
- Wait, Granger.
- It was a mistake, Malfoy," retorted the young girl, trying to keep her heart from breaking in front of him, "we should never have done it, you know that as well as I do. You're a Slytherin, I'm a Gryffindor, since the beginning nothing connects us, everything separates us, destiny...
- To hell with fate," Draco growled, looking her straight in the eye, "to hell with all the codes that scream at us never to get closer. Hermione, his breath caught as he spoke her name for the first time, it's you I want, not Pansy, not Astoria, not anyone, it's you. And don't tell me it's not mutual, because that kiss said just the opposite. The war's over Hermione and I want to make it up to you, I know I'll never be able to do that completely but I want to at least try to make it up to you.
- But what about the others...
- What do you care what other people think? If Potter and Weasley can't understand, who can? I'm not asking you to marry me, I'm asking you to give me a chance to prove to you that I'm not entirely a prejudiced, racist moron.
Hermione looked at him with tear-filled eyes.
- Please Hermione, one chance, please.
It sounded like a plea.
She didn't know how to react, her body was frozen, she wanted so much to let herself go against him.
As if reading her mind, he reached out and took her in his arms. For the first time in weeks, Hermione finally felt safe, in the Slytherin's muscular arms, her head resting against the chest of her lifelong enemy. She smiled against his skin and gently pulled away from him.
- Okay," she breathed.
The smile that lit up Draco's eyes was worth all the reproaches in the world. She kissed him for a moment and headed back to her dormitory.
The next morning, they entered the Great Hall holding hands as Ron and Pansy looked on in anger, Harry in astonishment, Ginny and Blaise in slyness, and the teachers in pride, seeing at last the long-awaited rapprochement between the two rival houses.