Harry Potter and all of it's settings and characters belong to JK Rowling

Another strange dream assaulted me and this is where it lead. =) In my dream Draco had amnesia and was very adamantly trying to impress Hermione. This struck me as hilarious and so I decided to try it out. Hope you enjoy it!

XXX

As the three friends made their way to the hospital wing, one turned to the others.

"What do you suppose Dumbledore wants?" Ron asked his companions.

"I don't know." Hermione responded, "Harry, do you have an idea what this is about?" The boy who lived shook his head. "Well, then I guess we'll find out in a moment."

Hermione preceded the boys into the hospital wing and saw Malfoy in one of the beds talking to Dumbledore. He looked to be in mid-sentence when he turned and spotted them. She expected a sneer, or for him to turn away dismissively, so she was wholly unprepared for the way his silver gaze locked onto her with stunned appreciation.

What is he playing at? she thought suspiciously. He turned back to Dumbledore and seemed to be asking a question. Whatever the answer was it didn't seem to please him as a scowl clouded his features, morphing his face into a more recognizable version of itself. Another question. Another scowl. Dumbledore, however, seemed quite pleased by the conversation. Finally, they were close enough to be included in the discussion.

Malfoy's eyes met hers and the intensity of his gaze caused Hermione's breathing to become slightly erratic. What on earth is going on? Then he spoke and his words exponentially increased her respiratory problems.

"I do not yet have the pleasure of knowing your name, Angel," Malfoy said, "but I have to tell you that you are exquisite."

Harry's jaw dropped. Ron looked thoroughly confused. Hermione just froze.

His gaze dropped to her lips as if he were entranced and suddenly breathing was no longer an issue. It simply ceased altogether. Her heart stuttered for a moment and she felt a blush heat her face. From the shock, she thought wildly, Definitely a shock induced reaction.

A fluttering sensation in her stomach ensued as if to mock her thoughts.

"Yes, quite." Dumbledore said and it wasn't quite clear whether he was responding to their astonishment or Malfoy's statement. "We think he hit his head rather hard..." Ron tried to contain a snicker and Hermione regained her senses enough to glare at him.

"Not the you aren't!" Ron backtracked quickly, wide eyed, "It's just... It's Malfoy!" He gestured towards the boy on the hospital bed as if that was explanation enough.

Hermione rolled her eyes and used the interruption to try and tame the wild flutters. Ok, so maybe having Malfoy call you beautiful and look at you like he would love nothing more than to kiss you is affecting you a bit, she admitted to herself, but quit being ridiculous! He's delirious. Besides the fact that even if he were in full command of his senses he should most assuredly not cause you to flutter. He's an egomaniacal, possibly evil, most definitely arrogant, foul, loathsome git! She mentally squared her shoulders and willed the feeling away.

"As I was saying," Dumbledore went on, "We think he hit his head rather hard as he has no idea who he, or anyone else for that matter, is. He will have to stay in the hospital wing for a day or two and I want you three to visit him."

"What!?" Ron exploded, "Are you mad?"

Hermione, of course, knew exactly what Dumbledore was up to. She glanced at Harry and saw that he understood as well. It was a fierce argument between members of the Order as to whether Malfoy was truly his father's son or being forced to act as his father expected. Dumbledore was firmly on the side that he, if given a proper choice, would defect. Most of the other members staunchly rejected the idea of even making the offer as they thought he would simply turn around a betray them. It had been going on for months and finally there could be a definite answer. If Malfoy proved to have the same wretched personality and skewed stand on the issues when he had no memory, then Dumbledore would have to back down. But if not... Hermione really couldn't wrap her head around that thought so she pushed it away.

"We understand, Professor." she said and met his eyes.

"I knew you would." the headmaster smiled fondly at her and turned to leave.

"Wait just a minute!" sputtered Ron, "I don't understand at all!"

Dumbledore just waved his hand dismissively and continued towards the door. "Never fear, Mr. Weasley, Miss Granger will explain it to you. Good day to you all!"

XXX

Draco watched the old man leave and pondered the events of the past few moments. Dumbledore had been explaining to him how he'd fallen from his broomstick -I must have heard that part wrong, he'd thought- and suffered a concussion. "Madam Pomfrey will asses the damage and fix you right up. Please come to my office when you are released so I can give you all of the assignments you have missed today."

Draco was silent for a moment as he studied the man in front of him. "I'm going to assume Madam Pomfrey is the nurse," he said slowly as the realization that he had no memory of where or who he was settled in, "but I'm afraid it will be rather difficult to make my way to your office as I have no idea who you are."

Shock and something else... anticipation?... crossed Dumbledore's face but he recovered quickly. "Will you excuse me for just a moment?" he said and strode out into the hall. Draco remembered thinking he was an odd sort of man and the conversation that occurred when he returned did nothing to change that impression.

"Alright Draco, your name is Draco by the way," he began, "I am Albus Dumbledore and I'm the headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry-"

"Witchcraft and what now? Is this some sort of joke?" Draco interrupted angrily.

"No joke my boy," Dumbledore responded and promptly transfigured the bed next to him into a rather large bowl of candies. "Would you like one?" he asked casually and popped one in his mouth, "The green ones are a little strange, I've never been able to get those quite right, but the rest are quite tasty."

Draco struggled to hide his surprise and maintain a calm outward appearance. Silently, he began to take stock of his thoughts since he woke. Strange incantations and odd sounding words had been flitting about in his head and they hadn't made sense... until now. If he decided to believe what the old man was telling him then those would be spells. Well, he thought, no better way to test this insane theory than to try one. He chose one at random, only slightly concerned with what it might do, raised his hand... and stopped.

He stared at his hand for a moment.

"Missing something?" Dumbledore asked with a small knowing smile.

"Yes," Draco said, starting to think maybe the old man wasn't entirely crazy, "I feel like I should be holding something... a wand? Do I have a wand?"

"Indeed you do my boy." Dumbledore replied and pulled one out from the bedside table, "Here you are. Now you can go ahead and test your theory that I am a crazy old fool." He winked and handed the wand over. "But if you would, please tell me which spell you chose to test so I can decide if it will be appropriate to perform in our current location. Madam Pomfrey would not appreciate a hippopotamus galavanting around her hospital wing and I know Professor Flitwick is rather fond of that charm."

Draco looked at his wand a little apprehensively. Hippopotamus?

"I was going to say 'Lumos'. Does that do anything... inappropriate?"

"No, I think that will be perfect. Just hold up your wand and say it with feeling."

Draco looked at his wand again. Here goes nothing. "Lumos!"

A bright glow began to emanate from the tip and Draco looked from it to the smiling headmaster.

"To make it stop you say-"

"Nox!" The light vanished and Draco smiled. "Well I guess you aren't a crazy old fool."

Dumbledore erupted in laughter. "Not entirely, my boy," he said between chuckles, "Not entirely."

He then went on to explain to Draco about Hogwarts. The houses, the classes, the professors. Draco discovered he had an adequate mind as he quickly absorbed all the information Dumbledore bestowed upon him and tucked it away for future use. Information was essential for plotting. The thought made him pause. Plotting?... Yes... The thought began to form more solidly, I plot! He got a strong impression that he was rather good at plotting and usually managed to maneuver any situation to his advantage without anyone even knowing he had interfered. I bet that makes me-

"Am I a Slytherin?"

"Very good!" Dumbledore exclaimed, "You are indeed a Slytherin. Not only that but you are Head Boy which makes you top Slytherin, second only to Professor Snape."

The idea of being best settled very nicely with him and he gathered that he usually strived to be the best at everything. He started to ask what being Head Boy entailed when she walked in.

The question died half way through and he could do nothing but stare at the magnificent creature walking towards him. She had long softly curling brown hair that he wanted to run his hands through and even from a distance he could tell her eyes were a decadent shade of chocolate. He had a strong urge to see those eyes glaze over with desire. For him.

Mine. The strength of that thought startled him. Is she mine? For some reason he didn't think so and he wanted to know why. So he could rectify the situation.

"Who is that?" he asked, hoping to get the nature of their relationship established before she made her way over. Dumbledore redirected his attention to the doorway and his eyes sparkled merrily when he spied the object of Draco's adoration. "That would be Miss Granger." he said and Draco would swear he sounded almost smug.

"Is she here for me?" Please let her be here for me.

"Yes, but not in the way you are thinking." Dumbledore replied with a smile. Draco was about to press him for more details but stopped when he finally noticed the two boys walking on either side of her. The one on her right had messy black hair and glasses. The one on her left had bright red hair and seemed a little too tall for his level of coordination. A horrible notion crept into his mind and a surge of jealousy shot through him at the thought that the angel might belong to one of them.

"Is she with them?" he asked and Dumbledore seemed to catch his hidden question.

"Yes, but not in the way you are thinking." That maddening smile had Draco scowling.

"You are beginning to annoy me old man." The smile deepened.

"Yes, I know!" Any reply Draco might have made was halted by the fact that the enchantress had finally arrived at his bedside. He decided a direct approach was called for in this situation.

"I do not yet have the pleasure of knowing your name, Angel," he said, "but I have to tell you that you are exquisite."

Draco took heart at the blush that crept over her features but the others' reactions left much to be desired. The one with the glasses looked like he was trying to swallow a fish and the red head looked rather perplexed. What is the matter with those two? He spared them only a moment of thought before returning to the lovely blushing face of his angel. His gaze dropped to her lips and he had an overwhelming urge to pull her closer and discover what she tasted like.

"Yes, quite." He heard the headmaster say. At least the old man has some sense. "We think he hit his head rather hard-"

Ginger snickered and Draco decided he didn't particularly like the boy. The girl glared at him and he clumsily tried to salvage the situation. "Not the you aren't!" the boy said "It's just... It's Malfoy!" He gestured towards Draco as if that was some sort of explanation. What is a Malfoy? Draco wondered, And why would being one have anything to do with being able to recognize the stunning beauty of the girl in front of me? Obviously, the red head makes no sense. I'll have to make a note of that.

"As I was saying," Dumbledore continued, "We think he hit his head rather hard as he has no idea who he, or anyone else for that matter, is. He will have to stay in the hospital wing for a day or two and I want you three to visit him."

"What!?" Red exploded, "Are you mad?"

Draco didn't have time to be offended as he caught the look that passed between his angel and the boy with the glasses.

"We understand Professor." she said and exchanged another look, this time with the headmaster.

Odd that, Draco thought trying to figure out how visiting him in the hospital was something that needed to be understood.

"I knew you would." Dumbledore smiled and turned to leave.

"Wait just a minute!" sputtered Freckles, "I don't understand at all!"

The headmaster just waved his hand dismissively and continued towards the door. "Never fear, Mr. Weasley, Miss Granger will explain it to you. Good day to you all!" And then he was gone.

After elbowing the red head and whispering, "Shut up, Ron!" when he made as if to protest again, the girl turned to him and smiled hesitantly.

"I'm Hermione. Hermione Granger." Hermione...Hermione... He tried to remember saying her name to see if he could get a feeling on how they normally interacted and came up completely blank. Either he didn't normally interact with her, which seemed highly unlikely given his attraction to her, or his memory was really just too far gone at the moment. "This is Ron Weasley," she gestured first toward the red head, "and Harry Potter." The boy with the glasses.

Draco had a sudden flash of memory at that name. Someone very powerful... and very evil wanted this boy dead. He was filled with the instinct to prevent that at all costs, even to the extent of giving his own life. He could hear a woman... his mother... telling him that if Harry Potter failed, their world would be plunged into eternal terror and death. Harry Potter was important somehow and the reason almost emerged in his mind before it slipped away. It was a bit unsettling to realize that you were willing to die for someone you didn't even know. He pushed the thoughts away for future study and turned his attention back to Hermione.

"Did Dumbledore tell you who you are?" she asked.

"Yes. Well... sort of. I know my name is Draco but he didn't tell me my last name. I know that I am a Slytherin and Head Boy but other than that I am completely at a loss."

"It's Malfoy." she replied, "You're Draco Malfoy."

Ahh he thought, so that's what the Weasley boy was referring to. Apparently there's something about my family that causes him to believe I should be cursed with bad eyesight. He made a note to look into that later.

"Are we friends?" He directed the question to Hermione and adjusted his tone just slightly to give the impression he was asking about more than friendship. That charming blush appeared again but she shook her head.

"No," she said in a slightly breathy tone and then made a point of steadying herself, "I suppose we could have been, if circumstances were different." Harry Potter nudged her with his elbow and she started. "I mean... because of the... house rivalries and all. We're Gryffindors." She motioned to herself and her companions.

He breathed a mental sigh of relief. If that was all that was standing between them he could surely overcome something so trifling. "Let me assure you that in your case," he took her hand, "I feel absolutely no rivalry." He looked into her eyes as he brought her hand to his lips. Weasley snickered again but any annoyance he might have felt was swept away by Hermione's sharp intake of breath and the awareness that momentarily flashed in her eyes.

XXX

Hermione was breathless for the second time that day and it was disturbing for more than one reason. The first being that she could not think of a single time in her life that she had been afflicted with this particular feeling, and the second being that it was Malfoy who was making her feel it. Even logically knowing it was wrong didn't diminish it. She stood mesmerized by all the different shades of grey swirling in his intensely beautiful eyes. How could I not have noticed that before?

"Umm... Hermione?" Harry's voice broke the spell and she quickly pulled her hand from Malfoy's grasp. It seemed she was doomed to wear a perpetual blush for the near future.

"Right, well, I'm glad that we can be... friends." She managed to speak with only a slight tremor to betray her inner turmoil, "We should be going if we are going to make it to class on time. We'll be back before dinner tonight." She turned to leave hastily and was stopped by his words.

"Have a pleasant day, Hermione." The sound of her name coming from his lips in that sinfully seductive tone almost unraveled her. She held her composure only because she could see Ron preparing to explode from the pressure of trying to keep quiet as she'd asked and she knew they had to get out of there.

"Have a pleasant day, M-" she barely caught herself in time, "Draco."

XXX

Draco watched her walk away and thought his head injury might be the best thing that had ever happened to him.

XXX

"What in the name of Merlin's beard is going on?!" Ron exclaimed when they made it out of the hospital wing. Harry decided to answer as Hermione didn't even seem to be listening.

"Malfoy's lost his memory, Ron."

"Yes I gathered that, but why does Dumbledore want us to visit him and why is he eyeing Hermione as if she were his favorite treat?" That woke Hermione up.

"Don't you see?" she said, "If Malfoy has no memory we can finally get a definite answer to the question of who he truly is. If he's innately evil he won't act any differently than he normally does. If not... we'll see." She deliberately avoided his second question.

"Dumbledore wants us to figure out if he can be turned to our side." Ron said, finally understanding the magnitude of the opportunity.

"Yes, and it's going to take some planning to make this work," she replied, "We need to talk to Dumbledore before we go to class. Under the circumstances, I'm sure he'll give us a note."