If she were honest with herself, Hermione could own that Pansy’s sudden appearance was a blessing. The room had been getting too hot to hold both her and Draco; although she had tried deliberately to change the topic, his stubborn, slightly cruel expression had warned her that he was unlikely to have tolerated it. So Pansy’s intervention had come as a godsend. True, there was a small part of Hermione which wished that the other girl had stayed away so she could have experienced Draco trying to change her mind (no doubt it would have involved plenty of kissing) but a much larger part of her was suitably happy for her friend.