Enemy Tendencies

A/N: Extra special thank you to my beta CharmedForce. Without her, this story would not be fit for public consumption. :)

Chapter Three: Enemy Tendencies

Draco sat on the edge of his bed, leaning back on his elbows, watching the girl kneeling before him, kissing and nipping at his bare chest. She moved lower and lower, licking, biting, teasing his senses.

He just stared at her – scowling.

"Take off your shirt."

She complied immediately, never stopping her ministrations.

Closing his eyes, he reached out to latch onto a silk covered breast. "Yesss."

The bed dipped as she made her way upward once again, hovering over him, licking, nipping, suckling his flesh.

If this were the woman he had firmly pictured in his mind, he would be running his hands all over her body instead of only cupping her breast. If this were the woman he wanted in his bed, he would be claiming her mouth, her neck, her body, while he gloried in her building desire.

If this were the woman he craved, he would not have been so pissed when she shattered his fantasy by speaking.

"Mmm, Draco. Do you want me to suck you?" It was only a whisper, almost purred into his ear.

It might as well have been a scream.

Pansy.

Fuck!

He didn't want her here.

He'd refused to touch her hair because it was smooth and short and nothing like – well, he didn't want to think about that. His hands weren't roaming over her body because her slender frame and subtle curves were nothing like the more voluptuous form he was picturing in his mind's eye. He wouldn't kiss her because her too familiar taste would tell his brain that this was Pansy Parkinson, and not...

He just needed to keep his eyes closed. Needed to concentrate. Needed to find release and be done with these absurd thoughts.

She playfully whispered again. "Draco, tell me what you want."

He wanted her to shut the hell up!

Why had he even bothered with Pansy – again? He'd been brushing her off for weeks, trying to end things once and for all. Still, how was he to begrudge himself such a willing partner? Even Perfect Potter would have a hard time turning away a girl who so often came to his rooms, naked and wanting, asking nothing more than to give pleasure and receive it in return.

Yet he didn't want her. And in the long run, she was asking for so much more.

He let out a deep sigh and fell flat against the bed, throwing an arm up over his eyes.

"Enough! We're done."

"It doesn't feel like we're done," she teased, running a hand over the firmness still concealed under his trousers.

He lifted his arm slightly to give her a disgusted sneer. "Well, I'd get the same effect if I rutted against this duvet, wouldn't I?"

"You're a bastard!" she screeched, jerking away from the bed. "Maybe I'll just go find someone else to take care of my needs!"

"You go do that, Pansy." His tone held no hint of concern.

The slamming door signaled her departure.

Fuck!

Well, at least he was alone.

Warding the door to his private room, and mentally thanking Snape for that one favor, he headed to the shower to find his release alone.

~&~&~

It was almost noon when Hermione awoke in the empty dormitory, an incessant knocking pulling her abruptly from her slumber. She grabbed the terry cloth robe that her mother had sent to her and headed toward the door.

"You okay, Hermione?" a muffled voice called through the thick wood.

Opening the door revealed Ginny, Harry, and Ron standing there looking rather worried. The boys were sporting their brooms over their shoulders, leaving Hermione a little miffed at the idea that she had been awakened just to go down to the pitch and watch them fly.

"Err, yeah?" she asked when her friends just stared at her.

"Are you sick? You've been sleeping for a long time." Harry said.

"No... I haven't," she replied with a yawn.

Her anger ebbed a little when she realized how worried they all looked.

"Come in."

Ron and Harry both blushed.

"There's no one else in here," Hermione said, a little exasperated.

They all took seats on the abandoned beds as Ron asked, "So, what's going on with you?"

"Well, the shortened version is that I had to spend another night on Greyback watch."

"What!"

"Calm down, Ron. Let her tell us what happened." Ginny rolled her eyes at her brother. "I think we might need the long version, Hermione."

"Well, I went to the library like I told you, Harry." Hermione nodded her head towards her friend. "But I must have been more tired than I thought because I fell asleep while I was doing my Ancient Runes homework."

"That wouldn't be hard to do," Ron interjected.

Hermione huffed. "So, anyway, it was late, and on my way back to the common room, I ran into Professor Snape."

At the mentioned of their Potions professor, Harry and Ron exchanged glares.

"He rambled something about beasts and bards–I don't know, and then said that since I seemed to have so much Gryffindor bravery, I could spend the next two nights watching the grounds with Draco."

"Two nights!" Harry and Ron both shouted at once.

"Draco?" Ginny questioned, eyeing her friend quizzically.

Hermione ignored the look – and the implied question. "It's only two nights."

"It's two nights of sitting with Malfoy," Harry said, disgusted.

"It wasn't that bad actually," Hermione confessed.

Ron and Harry exchanged incredulous looks while Ginny continued to look at her in a way that was making her very uncomfortable.

"So, do you think Snape really believes Greyback is in the forest?" Hermione queried, more to guide the conversation away from Malfoy than anything else.

"Well, he must think something's out there or he wouldn't have people keeping watch, right?" Ron questioned.

Ginny thought on it for a second. "I don't know. It would be just like Snape to say there's a werewolf in the forest and threaten those detentions to keep the students in line." Ginny was very perceptive to the internal thoughts of others – a little too much so at times, Hermione thought.

"Well, if he is in the forest, only having a couple students keeping watch isn't going to keep Greyback away from the school," Harry reasoned.

"Oh, Harry," Hermione sighed as she rolled her eyes. "I think we've all done enough to warrant some time off from saving the school."

She felt irritable at her body's nagging for sleep, and she had only brought it up to get off the Malfoy subject anyway. She already didn't like where this conversation was heading either.

Harry, Ron and Ginny all looked around at each other and then back at Hermione, apparently surprised by this out of character tone she had taken on.

"I'm sorry. I'm just still a little tired," she said apologetically. "I'll get dressed and get something to eat, and then I'll feel better."

"By the way, why are you two carrying your brooms?" She looked from Harry to Ron.

"We couldn't get up the bloody staircase!" Ron snapped.

They all laughed, leaving the dormitory to let Hermione get dressed.

She met them at the bottom of the stairs a few minutes later, and they headed to the Great Hall for lunch.

~&~&~

At the Gryffindor table they met up with Neville Longbottom and made plans to head to the Quidditch pitch after lunch.

Neville, who had come back to finish the partial school year he'd missed because of the war, was enjoying only having a half schedule of classes. This allowed him time to pursue his passion of plants more thoroughly.

"...haven't seen them around here for at least seventy years," Neville was saying about some new weed that had sprung up by the pitch. "I'd like to see if Professor Sprout will let me replant some in the greenhouses so I can study the magical properties more thoroughly."

Hermione decided to tag along to enjoy what was probably one of the few remaining nice days before the chill of winter began creeping in.

~~~

The weather outside was glorious. Sunny with a slight breeze and bright blue skies as far as the eye could see. It seemed the entire castle had taken to the grounds to enjoy it.

"Finnigan," Ron bellowed, seeing the fellow Gryffindor talking animatedly to a couple of girls by the lake.

Seamus looked over at the group to see Ron holding out his broom in silent question. He nodded to the redhead and then sprinted back toward the castle, presumably to grab his broom.

Ron glanced at the retreating figure of Seamus, then back towards the girls, catching one's eye and giving her a flirtatious wink. "Oof!" And ran straight into Harry, who had stopped abruptly in front of him. "What the bloody..."

Harry was standing stone still, staring malevolently across the grounds.

The group shifted their attention toward the direction Harry was staring to see Draco Malfoy leering over a second-year Hufflepuff. Nobody noticed Hermione begin to fidget.

Luna Lovegood, who had joined them at the Entrance Hall, spoke first. "That's awfully nice of him to befriend the younger students," she said dreamily. "When I was new to Hogwarts, the seventh years somewhat intimidated me."

"I doubt he's asking the kid for a game of Exploding Snap, Luna," said Harry, still sneering at his nemesis. He made to stomp off toward Draco when Hermione grabbed his arm.

"Harry, just let it go," she pleaded.

"No way, Hermione, he's up to no good."

As per usual, Harry considered it his personal quest to battle the Slytherin at every turn. All of his friends, at some point or another, had told him to let it go, but to Harry, that bastard of a Death–Eater–gone–free deserved any hardships he could bestow upon him.

Ron, being the ever-supportive best mate, chimed in. "Yeah, what's wrong with you, Hermione? You know Malfoy's always badgering first and second years. You're acting as mental as–well, you're acting like you don't know what a complete git he is!"

Hermione rolled her eyes, feigning nonchalance. "We don't even know what's going on, and I'd rather enjoy the day than spend it arguing with Malfoy." Somewhere in the vaguest recesses of her mind, she knew that the last thing she wanted to do with this boy was argue.

Ginny gave her another curious look – damn the insightful witch!

"Don't know what's going on?" Harry stated incredulously. "Look at him!"

It was obvious to all that Draco was barking at the kid. He certainly wasn't helping Hermione's case.

She gave up her efforts and fell in step when the rest of the group began following Harry towards the scene. This was not going to turn out well.

"Oi!" Harry yelled, getting the Slytherin's attention.

Hermione shuddered imperceptibly when Draco turned and caught her eye. She began to feel trapped.

"What are you doing now, Malfoy?" Ron called as soon as they got within earshot of the blond. "Picking on someone twice as small as you to make you feel twice as big as you really are?"

"If I wanted to do that, Weasel, I'd just start a row with you, wouldn't I?" Draco scowled. "Why don't you mind your own business?"

"Leave the kid alone, Malfoy!" Harry yelled back.

"Or what, Potter?" Draco's voice was filled with disdain.

"You're not with all your little Death Eater cronies, Malfoy," Harry said threateningly – Hermione flushed and looked to the ground – "and we all know your lot can't fight without being surrounded by your minions, all hiding their faces like the cowards you are!"

There was silence and Hermione looked up to see Draco looking unsettled, his knuckles white against the shaft of his wand. Strangely, the words Death Eater seemed to completely break his stride of retorts.

Apparently having nothing more to say to the Boy Who Lived, Draco grabbed something from the hand of the second year still standing beside him and pushed the kid to the ground before he turned to stomp away.

As he departed, he met Hermione's eyes one more time and gave her a vicious sneer before leaving them all behind. She felt ashamed.

"Well, that was pleasant," Ginny said to her friends as she helped the small Hufflepuff to his feet.

"It's typical Malfoy though, right?" Ron replied.

But the truth was, it wasn't typical these days, and Hermione knew it. She hadn't seen Malfoy bullying first and second years all term, and she couldn't help but wonder if there was something more to it than what they had seen.

All of her friends would certainly assume the worst of him, and even she felt a pang of betrayal for the part of her that was giving him the benefit of the doubt, but something inside her was telling her that he had changed from that arrogant boy he used to be.

Hadn't she seen the other side of him just last night? He had protected her, albeit against a thestral foal, while planning to put his own life in danger. He was even kind of charming when he wanted to be.

She could have let cooler heads prevail and actually asked him what was going on instead of letting her friends berate him, but she didn't. And there was that twinge of shame again.

~&~&~

The Gryffindors came back through the portrait hole late that evening: Ron, Harry, and Ginny carrying their brooms over their shoulders and Neville with smudges on his face and robes from digging in the dirt all afternoon.

They all took seats around the fire while Ginny grabbed butterbeers for them, and they settled in to enjoy the Saturday night party that was already beginning in the common room.

Hermione definitely wasn't feeling festive, so she decided to go get some books from the library to idle the time away during her last night watch – something she was now dreading. She went up to her dormitory, grabbed her bag, and then left her friends behind as she slipped back out the portrait hole.

~~~

"Could you tell me where I can find Magical Symbols: A History of the Written Word?" she asked Madam Pince.

"Row 27, in the back, by the corner," the librarian instructed, eyeing Hermione suspiciously. She didn't trust any student with her precious books.

Hermione put her bag and other books down on a table and headed toward the back rows where the more ancient books resided.

Row twenty-four, twenty-five, twenty-six; she rounded the corner to aisle twenty-seven and froze.

There, sitting on a chair facing her direction, was Draco Malfoy. Pansy Parkinson faced opposite, straddling his lap. He was slouching lazily in the chair with his hands resting lightly on her hips. His eyes were closed, and his head was lolling lightly to the side, while Pansy pulled at his collar, kissing and licking at his neck.

From Hermione's perspective, Malfoy looked quite bored with the whole matter, but was still letting Pansy kiss him while he rolled his head around complacently to give her easier access to her target.

For a second, Hermione felt rooted to the spot, unable to move for fear of being noticed. But then, without turning around, so as not to cause even the sound of a breeze, she took one step backward to begin her retreat.

Draco opened his eyes.

When he saw Hermione, he gave a quick start. Pansy, feeling his grip tighten on her hips as he jerked, just thought he was caught up in the moment and continued, even more eagerly, on her quest.

Draco just stared at Hermione, keeping his original, non-committed posture, while letting Pansy continue uninterrupted. It was as if he was trying to decide on the best course of action to take against the girl standing in front of him.

It only took a minute for him to form his plan as his eyes narrowed on the Gryffindor, and he gave her an evil grin.

Pulling his body up to meet Pansy's, he began kissing her neck ferociously, his gaze still firmly locked on Hermione.

He wrapped a hand around Pansy's waist and let the other slide up her back into her hair where he clutched her locks and pulled her head to the side, kissing and sucking, pulling soft skin into his mouth as he went. His eyes never left the stunned Gryffindor.

He wanted to make her feel ashamed and humiliated like her friends and that stupid second year had made him feel earlier. He had a talent for making others feel bad, and he was going to use all of that talent now.

He grabbed Pansy's hips and jerked her body more tightly against his, grinding into her as she moved. His smile grew even more vicious at Hermione's shocked expression.

Going in for the kill, at least by his perception, he tugged down Pansy's collar and made an over exaggerated motion of running his tongue thickly from her collarbone up to her ear, taking her lobe into his mouth and pulling it lightly with his teeth.

Hermione felt locked to the spot, staring into Draco's eyes, but as she heard Pansy whimper (a rather fake whimper in Hermione's opinion), she snapped out of it. The shock drained from her face and was replaced instantly by disgust.

Draco knew she was about to bolt and gave Pansy one last wide mouthed, sloppy kiss on the lips – just for good measure – as Hermione fled the aisle.