Look Behind My Eyes

It was impossible. It was forbidden. It was meant to be.

Chapter 1: We're on the Same Side

Hermione's Point of View

Disclaimer: All rights to characters and insignia belong to J.K. Rowling and Warner Bros

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Hermione excitedly hugged her parents good-bye before bounding onto the Hogwarts Express. Soon she would be home. She saw Harry, Ron, Ginny, and Neville had nabbed them a good compartment.

Hermione smiled and gave her redheaded friend a hug. "Ron! How've you been? You're so tall!" she rattled on, happy to see her best friend again.

"Whoa, easy Hermione," said Ron, grinning.

"Don't I get a hug too?" said Harry, faking a pout.

Hermione smiled. "'Course you do," she said, hugging her black-haired friend.

After Hermione had greeted all her other friends in a similarly enthusiastic manner, Ron and Hermione excused themselves to go attend to their Prefect duties. Well, Ron had prefect duties. Hermione had Head Girl duties. Yes, she had spent all of her six years at Hogwarts dreaming of this position, but now, in her seventh year, it didn't seem to matter so much. Of course there was lots more going on. Hermione shuddered involuntarily as she remembered the shocking events of the summer following her sixth year.

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Hermione and Ron entered the Prefects Compartment. The other prefects were already there. The Hufflepuff prefects, Hannah Abbot and Ernie McMillon were playing cards. The Ravenclaw prefects, 6th years Tony Markson and Christine Juliard, were throwing candy beans at each other. They stopped and looked guilty when the Head Girl entered. Pansy Parkinson sat sulking in the corner, too good to socialize with the other prefects. Everyone was there right on time. Everyone except a certain platinum blonde…

Hermione and Ron sat down. "It's great to see you all again," said Hermione flashing her perfect white smile. Everyone returned her smile besides Pansy, who offered a cold sneer. Hermione ignored this and continued. "Well your, um, Head Boy (She attempted to pronounce the words without scorn) seems to be late. All you really need to do is patrol the hallways every now and then, and check in with the teachers to make sure everything's okay. You can go sit with your friends, but check in with me or (she coughed) Draco every so often."

Everyone murmured "okay" and shuffled out… Just as the Head Boy shuffled in. "Well, 'shuffle' isn't exactly the right word for it. Saunter, maybe, or catwalk," Hermione thought to herself as she eyed him. He had grown taller over the summer. He was now a good 3, maybe 4 inches taller than her. And ever so easy on the eyes… Hermione mentally slapped herself. Where did that come from?

Malfoy threw Hermione a bored sideways glance as if he had much better things to do with his time than stand in her presence. "Granger," he sighed. "I know I'm attractive, but really, it's rude to stare."

Hermione blushed, but ignored the comment. She realized she had been staring. "Nice of you to show up," she said, rolling her eyes.

"I know," he said, not doing her the honor of eye contact. "I'm just a nice person."

Hermione felt an odd sensation. They were teasing each other, not meanly but like… Like friends. Hermione scoffed. As if that could ever happen. Although she decided she would lay off on the sarcastic remarks for a while. After all, the bravery he'd shown this summer deserved some accolade. He had been there, rallying alongside her and Harry and Ron and Lupin and even a couple other ex-Deatheaters as together they toppled the Dark Lord. Who could've foreseen that after Voldemort, the greatest of all dark lords, would fall, only to immediately give way to a new Dark Lord. Known as Lucius Malfoy.

Jerking Hermione out of her thoughts, Ron's voice cut the air, bristling with enmity. "Listen, Malfoy. Get out of here. You're disgusting. I don't even want to breathe same air as you. Go back to your little Deatheater friends"

"Ron!" reprimanded Hermione, turning to scold him so she didn't have to see if the always-indifferent expression on Malfoy's face would change in response to this harsh comment. "Stop that! He stood up for the greater good, even against his own father. Cut him a break."

Ron shot her a wounded look like she had betrayed him. "Fine," he said, hurt, as he stalked out of the compartment, sliding the door shut so hard it bounced halfway open again.

Hermione still didn't want to look at Malfoy, but she couldn't very well stare at his feet since they were the only two in the compartment. She risked a glance, and saw to her relief that he didn't appear to be teary or anything. He looked simply confused.

"Not a good way to start the year with your boyfriend," he commented, sounding disinterested.

"He's not my boyfriend," said Hermione automatically. She and Ron had always been best friends, wavering on the edge of something more. But they'd never pushed that edge.

Malfoy shrugged, leaning against the wall. "Whatever. But just so you know, I don't need any Muh- any goody-two shoes standing up for me."

There was an awkward moment that steamed with a dislike that had lasted 7 years, and was not to be overcome in one morning. They both knew he had almost said Mudblood.

Suddenly, Hermione was mad. "Fine. See if I try to help you again. And you can call me a Mudblood if you want. I could take it when I was 12, and I can take it now."

Cold steely-blue eyes bored into Hermione. "Granger. How do you unceasingly find ways to irritate me? You could not take being insulted when you were 12, and I doubt you can now. You'll probably run crying to the bathrooms like you always do. I would've thought you'd've learned a lesson. Isn't that how you almost got killed by a troll? Hiding in the bathrooms?"

Hermione was shocked, first that he would say mean things, when just earlier they had been getting along pretty well, and second How did he know the details of my little troll escapade?

Hermione didn't realize it, but she was shouting. "You're nothing but a pitiful little boy who can't decide what side he's on. That's all you've every been, and that's all you'll ever be!" Hermione was seriously pissed.

"Well all you'll ever be is a silly little girl who can't realize there's more to the world than books and memorizing spells! You're nothing but a colossally annoying pain."

"Children! What on earth is going on in here?" A woman appeared at the doorway they had negligently left open. She was tall, with dark hair and skin. She seemed friendly enough, but also carried an air of authority. "Why, I could hear you two shouting from the front of the train." She noticed the badges on both of their shirts. "And you, the Heads? I would've expected better behavior." She said. This reproach was enough to make Hermione look down guiltily, but Malfoy unflinchingly met the woman's gaze. "Well, I think you two will just have to learn to get along. I wish you two to spend the remainder of the trip in this compartment together."

Hermione moaned internally. Torture. Pure torture.

"By the way, I am Professor Arion Talon. I will be your Defense against the Dark Arts teacher this year. I look forward to seeing you both in my class." She was just turning to leave when she spun promptly back around, inhaling sharply. "Is that… Are you the young Malfoy? Draco?" she asked, seeming to notice Malfoy for the first time.

Malfoy stiffened defensively, and Hermione's heart ached for him. Poor thing. How much hate had he been forced to endure because of his father? "Yes," he said in a challenging way.

But Professor Talon simply said, "Oh yes, I thought I recognized you. I used to work at the Ministry with your father." She then left without another word.

Malfoy gave a big sigh and collapsed onto the seats on one side. "Terrific," he said to the ceiling. "I get to spend the trip with my favorite suck-up."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "This isn't exactly a treat for me either, Draco," she said, annoyed.

Malfoy sat up and stared at her. "When did you decide we were on first-name terms, Granger?" he asked, not meanly but certainly not very friendly.

Hermione blushed. "We're not. It was an accident."

"Good," said Malfoy harshly. "Just because we're on the same side now, doesn't mean we need to get all chummy."

The rest of the train ride continued in much the same way, their less than friendly conversations followed by awkward silences.

Author's Note: Well, there goes the first chapter. Review and let me know what you think.