Sorting Priorities (a Romione/Dramione Fic)

Chapter 12 • Tut Tut, Harry

Hermione sat in Professor McGonagall's study, waiting for Draco to show up. She was over the whole Mudblood incident, but she was still a little angry that Draco would throw their friendship away in a bout of misjudged anger. They were back to square one. No more romantic excursions during their tasks.

Draco finally walked into the room, five minutes late, and sat down in the chair beside Hermione. His eyes had a pink rim.

McGonagall eyed him beadily, then began. "Today, you will patrol the sixth-floor corridors. Mr. Filch will give you any further instructions, as always." Hermione was tiring of hearing the same old monologue each time. "You are to report back to him at ten." She dismissed them and went back to her grading.

Hermione walked out of the room before Draco, ignoring his searching look, and strode briskly down the corridor. She turned the corners with such crisp strides that Draco was left scurrying in her wake. Several times he attempted to strike up a conversation, but Hermione silenced him with a withering glare she had perfected hours beforehand for just those situations. They walked onto the sixth-floor landing and saw Mrs. Norris whisk off, Filch appearing moments later.

He wheezed, staring at them for a minute in a distrustful manner. "I don't want any funny buisness going on," he rasped. "Get the job done. No running. Watch out for any students out of bed. Nasty rule-breakers, if only Dumbledore would let me use the thumbscrews, flay their backs, wouldn't bring a single dungbomb past Hogsmeade if that were the case...yes...teach them to follow some rules for once..." He went off on a tangent, muttering to himself, and gave them a final glare before shuffling off in his tattered slippers.

"Gone a bit mad," Draco said in a conversational tone, only to be silenced once more by Hermione.

"No funny buisness, Draco," she said in an almost singsong tone, then walked to the end of the corridor. "I'll do the three closest to here, including this one, and you can do the other four...let's see, and then we can switch off sides, patrol, and then do the last wing together."

"Wow," Draco said. "You really have this down." Hermione glared again.

"Just get the work done. I don't want anthing going on between us anymore. I thought we could still be friends, but apparently not. I don't blame you for what you said, but I thought you may at least have the maturity to respect my decision to stop seeing you." She glared at him and then walked away down the corridor, slowly pacing down the dark hallway, looking for anyone lurking in the shadows. Hermione still wanted to be on friendly terms with Draco, but if he wanted to make anything other than a romace next to impossible, she wasn't sure that was a viable option. She wanted to move forward and leave what happened in the past behind them, but she wasn't sure Draco could forgive himself. And if he wouldn't let her be around him without kissing him...She let out a sigh. Their options wound around a neverending circle, always coming back to the same points.

As she continued along the corridor, passing a window, the moonlight filtered through, the watery glow of the full moon lighting up a circle on the dusty ground. The full moon brought back memories of their third year. What would Lupin have said to her? She knew he woudn't judge her too harshly for her feelings; what advice would he have had to offer? Would he have said to walk the path her heart was drawing her along, or her conscience? Her mind, or her desires?

She clenched her fist around her wand in frustration, causing sparks to fly out and scorch the carpet. Why was she even thinking about this still? She was about to turn down the next corricor when she heard a muffled whisper from behind a tapestry.

How could she have been so absentmined as to not check behind the tapestries? She knew better than anyone that the best places to hide were the hanings; was Malfoy that big of an issue in her life now that she couldn't even competently perform everyday tasks?

She pulled aside the hanging, scowling at the two fourth years pressed into the alcove, a flushed tangle of limbs steadily growing redder as they realized they had been caught.

"Out," Hermione commanded, pointing at the ground. "I'm going to have to give you a detention for two nights next week for staying out after curfew, and one extra night because you were with a boy," she said, adressing the girl, "and you because you were with a girl. Now, what houses are you from?" She glared down at the couple, waiting for an answer.

"I-I'm from Ravenclaw," said the boy, gulping.

"I'm a Hufflepuff," the girl said, more loudly than her boyfriend, as if challenging Hermione to make fun of her for her house.

"Right," Hermione said. "That's ten points off from each of you. Names?"

"Avery Mindstrew and Henry Hallensworth," the Hufflepuff girl said, gesturing to herself and then her friend. "And can't you cut off the extra day?" She asked boldly. "You don't even know what we were doing in there."

"Actually," Hermione said testily, "I do. I know that look. It's been on my face and my friends'. Now go before I take off another point." She glared at their retreating backs, whispers floating down the corridor to her ears, too faint to make out.

Hermione turned down the next corridor without finding anyone, then the last, waiting for Draco to turn back up. When he finally did, she called out to him.

"Did you find anybody?" She asked, walking over.

Draco shuffled his feet, looking down as she approached him. Did she intimidate him? "Just one second year trying to get through a locked door. Rather ungracefully, too, heard him from a mile away. I gave him a week's worth of detentions, of course."

"Draco!" Hermione intoned, gripping his arm angrily. "You don't give a week of detention for something like this! You give the usual two nights and then decide if any more is needed based on the severity of the infraction. Something like that only needs two nights." She let go of his arm, looking at him in disapproval. "What was his name and house? I'll send a notice to his head of house that he only needs to go twice." She glared at him. "And how many points did you dock?"

Draco rolled his eyes. "Relax, I only took off twenty points," he said, handing over the report.

"Twenty points?!" Hermione squawked, grabbing the paper. She quickly scanned the report, then pulled out her own quill and crossed out the incorrect pieces of information. She shook her head, marveling at his pretentious attitude. "How you thought a whole week was appropriate..." she said, handing the paper back. She started turning away, but Draco's fingers still hovered over her hand.

Was he still trying to get her to like him? She froze, still facing away from him, as pins raced up her arm from where his fingers lingered on her skin. She felt his hand close around hers, and gently pull her around to face him. Her expression was set in stone as he looked into her eyes.

"You can't tell me you still don't feel anything for me," he said softly, looking deep into her eyes. He stretched out his other hand and felt her new hair, then trailed his fingers down her cheek. She stared silently at him for a moment longer, then burst out in frustration.

"What more do you want from me?!" she stormed at him, wrenching her hand out of his grip. "I've told you, no funny buisiness, no more of this silly love triangle, and for the last time, Draco, I don't want you anymore." She turned around, marching stiffly down the corridor. As she whisked around the corner, Draco following, she heard a soft flick and felt a flutter of fabric across her ankle. She pushed her jaw out, hissing into the shadows, "I hope you're happy, Harry, because if it takes you spying on me to realize there's nothing going on, I don't know why I even bother trying with you," She finished with a snarl, then continued on her way, startling a couple of Ravenclaw sixth years out of their shadowy alcove where they were working on hexing a vase to stick to anyone who passed by. Hermione gave them a week's detention and took of twenty points.