Whenever Draco inspected a rather intriguing fish, he couldn’t help chuckling to himself. Hermione, who had heard him laughing quietly, walked up behind him once and slightly tapped on his shoulder.
“Yeah, what?” Draco said, not tearing his gaze away from the Masked Butterflyfish which was frantically swimming from one side to the other.
“Why were you laughing?”
“Why do you want to know everything?”
“Curious.”
“None of your business.”
Getting thoroughly annoyed by his ‘get lost’ tone, Hermione scowled and snapped, “Fine! I didn’t really want to know anyway.” She turned around, furiously cursing him under her breath, when Draco’s hand shot forward and swiftly took hold of one of her wrists.
Draco leaned against the thick glass, his hand casually holding onto her wrist as she turned around to face him, an expression of pure irritation etched onto her features.
He sighed and pulled her forward so she was standing right in front of him. He restrained himself from laughing as he looked at her; she was looking at him angrily and he could tell that she was barely controlling herself from telling him off.
“You girls get irritated too easily,” Draco said calmly, inspecting his finger nails; ignoring her death glares.
“You have got to stop holding onto my wrist like that,” Hermione snapped, struggling to free herself from his grasp. But he was too strong for her; the more she struggled, the more he held on.
“And you have really got to stop being so stubborn,” Draco replied coolly, loosening his grip on her. Hermione quickly withdrew her hand and stuffed them into her pockets, just in case he decided to take hold of her again.
“I am not stubborn! You’re the one -”
“If you be quiet, I’ll tell you why I was laughing,” Draco cut across, his lips curling into a small smirk.
Hermione narrowed her eyes down at him and growled, “Do I look like I want to know now?”
Draco ignored her and looked at an Angelfish, tapping at the thick glass walls, trying to get its attention. “I’m laughing because it’s funny to look at these fishes.”
Hermione controlled herself from asking what was so funny. Instead, she made a you’re-such-a-retard-who-doesn’t-make-sense-at-all sort of face. Draco looked at her, saw her expression, and laughed.
“I mean, it’s funny to look at them compared to what I’ve seen already,” he explained.
Immediately forgetting their little row, Hermione frowned and nodded slowly. “So…you mean to say that it’s unbelievable that you’ve seen dragons and other dangerous animals but not simple creatures such as fishes?”
Draco was thoroughly surprised by how fast she had caught on. He sighed. Well it was Hermione Granger after all, he shouldn’t have expected less. “That’s right. Glad I didn’t have to say it twice,” Draco replied, hiding the fact that she had impressed him.
Hermione smiled, but it quickly turned into a scowl as she saw Jessie approach them. Hermione shook with rage. Unfortunately, she was stuck with her during this part of the tour; she and Draco had to go around with the whole gang. It would have been enjoyable if Jessie hadn’t been there, keeping an eye on the both of them. Luckily, Violet was there to keep Jessie under control.
The part that Hermione couldn’t believe was the fact that Jessie had the nerve to show her face in front of her after she had deliberately tried to provoke her. Jessie pretended as if nothing, infuriating Hermione even more.
“Uh-oh,” Hermione whispered to Draco, “Jessie alert.”
Draco smirked, making Hermione wrinkle her nose in disgust. Even though Draco hated Jessie, he still couldn’t get over the fact that she would go through any lengths to take him for herself.
“It’s amazing how I seem to attract girls,” Draco had boasted. Hermione had immediately told him to deflate his big fat head and had angrily stormed off. Why did guys have to be such egoistic jerks!?
“Wipe that ridiculous smirk off your face,” Hermione snapped, “she’ll take that as an invitation.”
“Alright, alright,” Draco replied wearily, “don’t get all uptight about it.”
Jessie cheerfully approached the both of them, ignoring Hermione’s tight-lipped expression. “You aren’t going to see anything if you stand here all day, you know,” she chirped, directing her words towards Draco. She completely ignored the fact that Hermione was right there, furiously trying to scare her off with her heated glares.
“We know,” Draco emphasised. He took Hermione’s hand in his and said coolly, “We’re coming.”
Hermione looked at Draco with surprise. The moment she felt his warm hand gently take hold of hers, she thought her stomach would burst with butterflies. She didn’t understand why his simple gestures affected her so much.
Jessie’s eyes bulged like a mad bull as she saw Draco take hold of Hermione’s hand, but she didn’t dare show her bitterness. She gave him a strained smile and walked off, fuming with rage. She would have to resort to using Amorodor once again. She hadn’t expected to use it more than three times but separating those two lovebirds was not as easy as she thought it would be. If Draco fell in love with her again, she was sure that Hermione would give him up. No girl in their right mind would continue dating a boy who kept going after another girl.
Draco silently squeezed Hermione’s hand as Jessie stalked off. Even though she didn’t show it, Draco was sure that Jessie’s ignorance and snotty attitude hurt her. By holding her hand, he was quietly telling her not get upset, to let go of her anger.
Hermione felt heat rise into her cheeks as she felt Draco’s grip on her increase. His silent comfort greatly calmed her temper, but it also made her heart flutter wildly. What was wrong with her?
Draco leisurely let go of her hand, feeling her smooth skin slip from his grasp. Hermione didn’t ask why he had suddenly decided to console her and Draco decided against asking whether she was over her anger. They both understood each other at that point; no words were needed to convey their feelings and there was no need to ask questions. Their wordless conversation said it all.
Turtles, sharks, jellyfish, sea anemones… “ Draco and Hermione saw them all. The colourful world of sea creatures fascinated them and they took the opportunity to take as many pictures as they could.
“What’s the point of this stupid creature living at all?” Draco said, wearily eyeing a black sea cucumber. “All these scavengers do is feed off debris,” he muttered, watching the small creature crawl inch by inch.
Hermione was about tell him its other purposes in life when they heard a girl screech so loudly, that it made the hair on the back of their necks rise up.
“It’s gone!” they heard Jessie shriek as she furiously rummaged around in her bag. “Oh, it’s gone,” she practically sobbed. “I’ve been pick-pocketed!”
“What’s gone!?” Alex asked worriedly, wondering what on earth could have been so important as to make her screech like a banshee.
“My perfume,” she cried, “my most favourite perfume in the whole world!” She desperately thrust her hand into her bag once again, hoping that she hadn’t looked properly.
Roger, who had been standing right beside Alex, stared at Jessie, absolutely dumbfounded. “Women…” he muttered unbelievingly, “going nuts over a perfume “ typical.”
Hermione and Malfoy were trying their best not to burst out laughing. Draco’s cheeks had puffed up like a blowfish and Hermione had to bite on her upper lip to stop her laughter from escaping.
“It’s just a perfume, Jessie,” Violet said incredulously. “You can buy another one just like it!”
Draco slowly reached into his pocket, making sure the love perfume was still there. He felt the cool surface of the crystal bottle and smiled, satisfied.
“You don’t understand!” Jessie said helplessly. “It’s very important to me!”
“I’m sure we’ll survive with your bad odour for the next couple of hours, Jess,” Jake said jokingly. “It can’t be that bad.”
Jessie glared at him, immediately shutting him up. She looked at each of them, her eyes clearly telling them not to mess with her. As her gaze landed on Draco, she sighed bitterly and looked away. What was she to do now? How was she supposed to get him to like her? Knowing she had created a scene and didn’t know how to get out of it, she did the first thing that came to mind; she angrily stormed off.
By the time they left UnderWater World it was 5:30. The trip to the Night Safari was a one and a half hour drive, so everyone excitedly talked about what water creature they liked best and what they expected to see in the Night Safari.
“I give you a suggestion,” Puvan said, listening into their animated discussion about the Night Safari. “Watch the tribal performance, it is a whole different experience,” he said, in his thick Singaporean accent.
“Oh, I’ve heard about that,” Roger said enthusiastically. “It’s supposed to be really good.”
“I just want to see the Bushbabies,” Violet squealed in delight. “They’re supposed to be the size of kittens with big conspicuous eyes! How adorable!”
“How adorable!” Alex said sarcastically in a high-pitched girly voice. He waved his hand in the air, dismissing the idea completely. “Who in the world wants to see those!?”
“Yeah,” Draco drawled, “I’d rather see the Sloth Bear!”
“Yeah!” cheered all the boys, making Hermione and Violet laugh.
“Well, I want to see that too, you know,” Violet said coyly. “It’s just that I’ve heard so much about the Bushbabies. Did you know that they’re capable of leaping as high as six feet vertically and up to twelve feet horizontally in a split second?”
“Now, that’s worth seeing,” Jake said, nodding his head in approval.
Jessie ignored their discussion; she chose to stare out the window, her eyebrows furrowed as if in deep thought. Hermione wondered what she was thinking about. She just hoped that Jessie wasn’t thinking about ways to recapture Draco’s attention.
“Excited?” Draco asked, once everyone had gone back to looking outside their window.
“Absolutely thrilled,” Hermione said happily. “It’s going be one brilliant experience.”
Violet and Roger immediately went and bought the entrance tickets for everyone the minute they got off the mini-bus. Once everybody was officially inside the campus, they all stared at their surroundings in awe.
Trees ominously loomed over their heads, the rays of the setting sun splashing the leaves with amber light. All sorts of animal cries echoed throughout the place, effectively making everyone restless “ they all wanted to begin their final tour.
“I think our guide is here,” Hermione said as she saw a man, in a safari uniform, walking towards them. He was clad in green; his shirt was green, his pants were green, even his shoes were green. The reason for this was probably to reflect the tropical surroundings. The only part of his uniform that wasn’t green was his name, which was inscribed onto a small, silver metal plate that stuck to his breast pocket.
“Hello, my name is Andi,” he said, pointing at his breast pocket, “and I’m going to be your tour guide for tonight.” He smiled at all seven of them, his friendly appearance instantly making them all feel comfortable.
“Brilliant!” Alex said enthusiastically. “Let’s get started.”
The place was full of people! Many of them were already being led by their guides, eagerly following and asking questions about what animals they were going to encounter. Hermione had obviously started bombarding Andi with questions the minute she got the chance. “What animals are we going to see? Are most of them dangerous? And how’s the tribal performance? Is it really worth watching?” Her questions seemed to never end, and it came to a point where Draco had to actually cover her mouth with his hand, telling her to ‘shut the hell up.’
Andi showed them to their Limo Buggy, a black and white striped buggy that was big enough to fit all of them. He sat in the driver’s seat, gesturing for the others to take their places. Everyone had to sit in pairs because it was a two-seater vehicle. Hermione was eager to sit next to Violet for a change, but Violet had plunked herself right next to Jessie.
“Violet, come on,” Hermione pleaded, “let me sit with you.”
“I’d love to, you know that!” Violet sighed. “But I know Jessie’s emotions are out of control at the moment. She’s angry about you and Draco, she’s upset about her perfume…It’s better if I keep an eye on her.” Gloomily, Hermione went and sat next to Draco. She honestly didn’t mind sitting next to him anymore, but she felt like he had had enough of her.
“Sick of sitting next to me?” Draco asked with a smirk on his face. He looked ahead as he said this, his gaze not meeting Hermione’s.
“No,” Hermione said slowly, “I thought you were bored of sitting next to me -”
“- which isn’t true,” Draco interrupted. “If I was, you wouldn’t see me sitting next to an empty seat,” he said calmly, still not looking at her.
Hermione frowned. “You were waiting for me to sit next to you?”
He turned and looked at her, his steely gaze sending shivers through her body. He didn’t say anything for a few seconds, making Hermione gulp nervously.
“No,” he said finally. He looked away, his eyes fixed on the back of Roger’s head.
Hermione looked at him curiously. “But then why -”
“Everyone good?” Andi’s voice boomed through the microphone, breaking off Hermione’s sentence. “Good. Now the rules are simple,” Andi stated. “Cameras are strictly prohibited; the flashlight will only agitate the animals. You should not, at any time, get off the buggy, and make sure that your entire body is well inside the vehicle.”
Everybody nodded slowly, anxiously making sure that not a toe was outside the Limo Buggy. Hermione curiously looked at Draco once again, but his head was turned the other way. She bit her lower lip as she pondered over what he had said. She didn’t bother to ask her question again. She had a strong feeling that he was keeping something from her, but why?
“The first trail is called the Fishing Cat Trail,” Andi said. “It’s called the ‘Fishing Cat Trail’ because you can catch the cats in action as they eye their prey in the water and lunge forward in attack. It’s a sight you’ll all remember forever.”
He was right, it was a sight that they wouldn’t be able to forget. They saw small but ferocious leopard cats, the playful and noisy small-clawed otters, a pair of Indian Gharials and the largest bat in the world - the Malayan flying fox.
Hermione and Draco were entranced by the beauty of the animals. Draco’s earlier behaviour had vanished, and so they both enjoyed the sight before them. Hermione got so excited whenever she spotted an animal that she kept tugging at Draco’s arm, telling him to look at the animal she had spotted. Whenever she did this, Draco felt a jolt in his stomach. He hated himself for it; he did his best to ignore this weird “ and yet overwhelming “ sensation.
The next trail was called the Leopard Trail. “Sounds pretty interesting,” Draco whispered to Hermione. She smiled and nodded her head in agreement.
The buggy slowed down, coming to a complete halt. The trees stood eerily on either side of them, their thick trunks and leafy branches hiding the animals’ habitat.
“Why are we coming to a stop?” Roger asked Andi.
“Shhh,” he replied in a quiet tone, “you’ll see why.”
Everyone peered into the trees, waiting for some kind of animal to spring out. They unconsciously held their breath and tried to make the least possible sounds.
Hermione could hear a faint rustle among the trees. After a while, the noise became somewhat louder. Her heart pounded in anticipation of what she was going to see. What could it be? Without thinking, she laid a hand on Draco’s arm. He looked at her, but found her gazing into the trees. He glanced down to where she was holding on to him and reluctantly smiled.
“Oh my goodness,” Hermione whispered in awe. Her slight statement made everybody, including Jessie, look at where Hermione was staring. They all gasped in wonder as they saw the scene before them.
A leopard had emerged from the shadowy forest, tearing apart a carcass which was draped lifelessly on a branch of a tree. It stared at them with its yellow eyes, its teeth still gnawing at the dead animal.
The buggy started to move once again, and they had to strain their necks in order to take a last glimpse of the mesmerising animal.
“That was -” Roger breathed.
“- bloody brilliant,” Draco finished for him. More than disgusting, Draco had found the sight entrancing. It seemed that everybody felt the same way because they all sat quietly, mouths hanging open in amazement.
“I love Singapore,” Hermione said somewhat breathlessly. She couldn’t believe what she had just seen. It had been like a scene from a wildlife documentary.
“Me too,” Draco muttered, “me too.”
They looked a rhinoceros in the eye, heard the howls of a pack of striped hyenas, and even watched the giraffes glide serenely across the plain in the still of the night. They were now headed towards the final part of their tour: the tribal performance.
They all got off the Limo buggy, Andi leading the way towards their final destination. “The tribal performance is by the Thumbuakar Tribe, from the rainforests of Borneo,” he explained as they approached a huge bonfire. There were many other tourists already seated around the bonfire. They had created a great, big circle.
“I hope you enjoy yourselves,” said Andi. “After their performance, dinner will be served. Then you may return to your bus. I’ll hopefully see you all next time.” Andi bid them all farewell and left them to take their seats.
Violet, Jessie and the guys went to find places to sit; the circle’s gaps were scattered so some of them had to split up. Luckily, Draco and Hermione had found a spot which would fit two people. They sat down, greeted the people sitting beside them and waited for the show to start.
Lights all around them dimmed, the Thumbuakar people stepped into the circle. Drums and flutes echoed through the night. The people in the circle started their dance.
The tribal dance, blowpipe demonstrations and fire eating displays completed their night at Night Safari. Draco and Hermione sat completely enthralled by their fluid movements. They enjoyed every second of it, and were a little disappointed when it finally came to an end.
“Which part of the tour did you like best,” Hermione asked Draco as they sat near the roaring bonfire, eating their dinner. The both of them were sitting alone. The others didn’t want to sit next to the flames, so they retreated into the big tents that were set up everywhere.
“Definitely this,” he replied. “The Muggle world isn’t that bad after all.”
She smiled. “I’m glad you feel that way.” Her eyes scanned her surroundings when she suddenly spotted Jessie…with someone else. She was fervently flirting with some guy who just stupidly stared at her as if he couldn’t believe his good luck. Hermione noticed that she kept looking over at her and Draco.
Hermione sighed as she realised what Jessie was up to. By flirting with another guy, she was hoping to catch Draco’s attention. She was trying to make him feel jealous!
“Just look at what she’s doing now,” Hermione said in revulsion.
Draco looked and saw Jessie cozying up to some random guy. She looked over at him, smirked, and focused her attention back to the boy in front of her.
“She’s trying to make you jealous,” Hermione said unbelievingly. “She’s impossible.”
“The guy seems pretty happy,” Draco chuckled.
“But why should he be?! He doesn’t even know her!” she exclaimed. “It’s just because of what she’s wearing and…and…and her big chest!” Hermione said. “That’s all guys go for. Just looks.” Draco laughed out loud as she said this.
“I don’t find anything funny,” Hermione said defiantly, her cheeks flushing. She felt embarrassed when he laughed at her that way. She felt as if she were growing smaller and smaller when it happened.
He sighed and shook his head. He placed his plate on the ground and turned his body around so that he was facing her. “Come here,” he said, gesturing her to come forward.
“What do you mean ‘come here’!?” Hermione said, a hint of nervousness in her voice.
“Oh for Merlin’s sake…” He took Hermione by the shoulders as a small squeak escaped her lips, and pulled her forward. He trailed his fingers from her cheeks to her hair. He could feel her blush and couldn’t help but smirk. He gathered up her unruly hair in a ponytail, held it with one hand and faced her. Hermione didn’t want to look at him. She didn’t know what to say! And anyway, if she looked up, her face would be much too close to his. Her heart started to beat wildly at this thought.
Draco saw her eyes dart back and forth across the ground “ she was nervous and embarrassed. “There,” he said coolly, pulling her face back so that the distance between them increased, still holding onto her ponytail with one hand.
Hermione looked at him, feeling more comfortable that his face wasn’t as close anymore. She searched his eyes for some explanation of what he was doing. She had been so surprised by his sudden actions that she couldn’t voice out her words.
“There’s nothing wrong in impressing a guy,” Draco explained, looking deeply into her eyes. “Sure, what’s inside counts, but guys also enjoy looking at “ let’s say - pretty girls.” Hermione snorted.
“Look,” he said, holding onto her ponytail, “you could look a lot prettier “ not that you’re ugly or anything,” he added quickly as he saw her mouth open in indignation, “if you did up your hair like this, or dressed up once in a while.”
“What are you trying to say?” Hermione said in confusion.
“I’m trying to tell you that there’s nothing wrong in dressing up “ like Jessie. There’s nothing wrong in showing that you’re a woman.” Draco let go of her brown curls and leaned back, watching her face as a flow of emotions ran across her features.
Draco’s words hit her like a blow to the head. She knew that he was in a way right about her: she was shy to blossom, to show off that she was a woman. It was humiliating that Draco was the one to tell her all this. She turned to stare into the crackling flames, feeling uncomfortable to meet Draco’s gaze after what he had said.
Draco smirked, feeling immensely proud that he had been the one to tell her all of this. Draco knew by now, how shy she was about herself. He knew how gorgeous she could be if she wanted to…if only she could break out from her cocoon.
The tour had finally ended, everyone had finished their dinner and was heading towards the exit.
“Let’s stop by the souvenir shop,” Violet said, dragging Hermione along with her. “I’ve got to buy something that’ll remind me about this place.”
“Yeah,” Draco agreed. “Let’s.”
“I don’t want to go!” Hermione said for the tenth time. “I don’t need a souvenir. I’ll always remember this place.”
“Come on, Granger,” Draco teased, “you’ll regret not buying one later.”
“No I won’t, Malfoy,” she smiled. “You guys go. I’ll be in the van.” Draco shrugged and followed Violet into the souvenir shop. He looked over his shoulder and saw her walk towards Puvan with the rest of the guys. Jessie, not wanting to be anywhere near Hermione, followed them from a distance.
By the time they left Night Safari, it was 10:15. Everyone was exhausted, so they didn’t talk much. They were staring out the window, looking into the black night, or sleeping. Puvan said that they would reach the ship by midnight, one hour before it left the port, so everyone made themselves comfortable for the two hour journey.
The faint light and the continuous humming of the mini-van’s engine made everybody feel drowsy. Soon, everyone, except Draco, had fallen asleep, completely worn out. Draco looked at the sleeping Hermione, an expression of discomfort etched onto her face. Her head was uncomfortably leaning back on the seat and she was unconsciously hugging herself for warmth.
Draco licked his dry lips as an idea crossed his mind. He shook his head to get rid of it, but as he looked at her, the urge to do it became stronger. He anxiously looked at the others, making sure that everyone had fallen asleep, and then hesitantly brought his arm around her head.
He paused, making sure that she hadn’t woken up.
Ever so slowly, he put an arm under her neck. Then, carefully, he pulled her closer to him so that her head now leaned against his chest. Draco froze as she sighed in her sleep. She adjusted her head comfortably against him, then sat still.
Draco sighed in relief and smiled down at the sleeping figure. Her expression had changed; a small smile rested on her lips. He could tell she was feeling comfortable against him. Draco restrained himself from laughing at this notion. Who would have thought Hermione Granger would find his chest comfy?
With his free hand, he tucked back a few curly strands behind her ear. He couldn’t believe what he was doing; he was acting as if he liked her. But for some reason, this didn’t bother him anymore.
Hermione stopped hugging herself, Draco’s warm body had done the trick. He smirked as her hands fell limply on her lap. He actually liked the fact that she was comfortably sleeping against his chest; it was an exhilarating feeling.
Deep, deep down, he knew he had started to have feelings for Hermione. But still, he couldn’t admit it to himself. He was afraid and excited about these new felt feelings. Was he really falling for her? Once again, Draco dismissed these thoughts. It was too complicated to understand them. He adjusted their position and closed his eyes, listening to her slight breathing.
Soon, he had fallen asleep and Hermione had woken up. When she realised her position, she involuntarily smiled. She didn’t dare move. Draco’s head was resting on top of hers, his arm carelessly draped over her while his free arm lay limply against his side. She closed her eyes and cuddled her head against his chest; ignoring the mad beating of her heart and the flutter in her stomach.
“I hope I see you all in Singapore again,” Puvan said, waving good-bye. “Have a safe trip.”
“Bye, Puvan!” they yelled back, as they headed towards the ship. “Thanks for everything!”
By the time everyone got on board and said bye to each other, Draco and Hermione were practically dead on their feet. They dragged themselves towards their rooms, too tired to speak.
“Oh, hold on,” Draco said, before going into his room.
Hermione looked at him with sleepy eyes as he took out a small, brown packet from his pocket. He tossed it to her and said, “It’s always better to keep something in order to remind you about this place.” He winked at her and went into his room before she could say anything.
Eagerly, she opened the brown envelope in which she found a small animal themed bracelet. Hermione’s heart soared. Draco must have bought it from the souvenir shop in Night Safari. She put it on her wrist and smiled.
“Thanks,” she muttered, staring at the pretty bracelet. She went inside her room, changed, and fell asleep on her bed, holding the arm with the bracelet against her chest.
A/N:
Hey you guys! Woah, it's really been a while since I last updated - I'm really sorry about that! I hope you enjoyed ths chapter! Since I took a long time to put this chapter up, I wrote a long one *smiles* Please leave a review on the way out...I'd love to know how this chapter was! Information was taken from www.nightsafari.com.sg