Isolation (bexchan) • Chapter 5: Scent
Chapter 5: Scent
General Summary:
Hermione tries giving Draco the silent treatment as a means of combating his arguments with her and he throws a temper tantrum
In the middle of his hissy fit, she realizes that he hasn’t been eating anything because he doesn’t know how to cook without magic
She starts making food and leaving it out for him, and he starts reading her books, though he avoids her for the entire weekend
He starts listening to Hermione in the shower instead of trying to ignore her
He finds her allergy shots for her bee sting allergy in a drawer in the kitchen and learns about her allergy
Detailed Summary:
“Every day she came back to her dorm, and he was there. Ready to drill her brain with insults and complaints, and it was starting to suck the life out of her. She would finish her lessons and return to the Head Girl dorm to complete her homework, knowing the library would be too packed until about eight in the evening, and he was always there. Just waiting; his tongue damp and prepared to goad her into arguments that could last for minutes or hours, depending entirely on how stubborn they both were.”
They continue to argue and fight, but Hermione is able to fight back with hits just as strong as his
She remembers her mother’s advice to simply not react in the face of a bully, and decides to test the theory on Draco and just ignore him trying to get a rise out of her
Draco’s counting is at an obsessive level— he counts titles and cracks, as well as floorboards, and we learn that it’s now been eight days since his arrival at Hogwarts
He admits that his one activity for the day is waiting for Hermione to get back so that he can argue with her
“He left bed, changed, and went in search of something to do. To count. Just until Granger got back and they could have their usual battle of wits.”
He remarks that her scent is everywhere, but doesn’t think that it’s unpleasant, though he does think it’s making him go crazy a bit
When Hermione returns to the dorm, she doesn’t engage with him and he immediately gets frustrated and tries to get a reaction from her
“The silent treatment, a challenge. Okay, he could play with that. She would react eventually. She had to. He'd waited for the spark in her eyes and the sharp retorts for over an hour. He wanted them. Thrived on them, actually.”
She still refuses to engage but as she’s looking at him throwing a hissy fit, she realizes that he looks ill and weak and she has the thought that maybe he hasn’t been eating
She goes into the kitchen and realizes that he’s only been eating apples, milk, and cereal and understands after a moment that it’s because he doesn’t know how to cook without magic
She feels guilty over the fact that he hasn’t been eating but he gives her shit for it and storms away
In the safety of his room, Draco regards Hermione’s sympathy towards him as “a new low”, but a while later, after he hears her leave, he realizes that she made food
He eats everything that she made but afterwards realizes that he’s already counted everything in the dorm, so finally succumbs to reading one of her books
Hermione has a training session with McGonagall, and at the end of it, McGonagall questions her about Draco and how things are coming along
Hermione tells McGonagall about the fights but that she believes she can handle him
McGonagall reminds her about Draco being forced into his Death Eater role and Hermione wonders why Draco didn’t succeed in killing Dumbledore
“"Maybe the only important thing is that he didn't do it," McGonagall offered, her thick accent rich with a wisdom and age that Hermione always found enlightening. "And I would recommend that you focus on that for the rest of his stay."”
That night when she returns to the dorm, she is pleasantly surprised to find that Draco ate the food that she prepared
The weekend passes and Draco continues to have nightmares, eat Hermione’s meals, and read her books, though he avoids seeing her completely
On Monday morning, he can hear Hermione in the shower again, but instead of trying to go back to sleep and grow frustrated with her, he sits at the wall that separates his room from the bathroom and listens
He finally emerges from his room to find another meal left out for him, and as he’s going to grab a fork, he encounters medical supplies of hers
Hermione comes back while he’s still in the kitchen but he notices something different about her, but he can’t figure out what
They bicker, as usual, but she points out that she noticed that some of her books were missing and says that she doesn’t mind that he took them though she wishes he had asked for her permission first
She asks for his opinion on her cooking and he calls it “satisfactory” which makes her smile
He asks her about the medical supplies that he found in the kitchen and learns that they’re allergy shots for her allergy to bee stings
The next morning, Draco again listens to Hermione in the shower
Go to Chapter 6: Tiles