A/n Star: Hey all. So I normally write Glee fan fiction, but one of the writers of Puckleberry that I was reading had a Harry Potter story, and I fell in love with the character dynamic… So I decided that I wanted to write some as well.. I will get around to writing my Glee stuff again soon, but I'm going to write about another bad boy and good girl… So here's my first attempt at Draco/Hermione.
Disclaimer: I in no way own Harry Potter or the characters. That stroke of genius belongs completely to J.K. Rowling. Although I am madly in love with Draco's character in the books… He's hotter there. Lol.
Please Note: Draco never joins the Death Eaters, and Voldemort is just gone. Didn't really want to write about that. Sirius is still alive, and is a free man. Harry lives with him. Oh, and I am making it so Ginny skipped a year. Having Hermione as your best friend has to have some perks. This is major AU and to be honest, I am doing what I want with the characters. If you don't like it, don't read it. Thanks. And again, I OWN NOTHING!
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Another year, Draco mused as he finished packing his trunk an hour before he was to depart from Platform 9 ¾ for his school. Another year at Hogwarts, I can't wait.
"Draco," the cold drawl signified that Lucius Malfoy was walking towards his open door. "Are you set son? We need to be leaving now."
"Yes, Father," Draco swiftly replied, his eyes directed to the floor, the gold prefect badge glittering on his tight black shirt.
Grabbing his trunk, broom, and owl cage, Draco followed his father out of his room down the staircase and outside. Waiting in front of the Manor was a black stretch limo with dark tinted windows. This form of transportation was necessary for the 16 year old who had one year left until he would become of age.
Draco Malfoy, a Latin name meaning Dragon of Bad Faith, had bleached blonde hair that was currently slicked back to look like his father's in a well-kept manner (a look he was not entirely impressed with and would be changing as soon as he was away from the devil himself.) His height of 6'3" towered over most people, adding to the intimidation factor that his surname ensured. His years on the Quidditch Pitch strengthened his arms, his muscles defined whenever he moved. All this plus the washboard abs, the smooth timbre of his voice that always carried a seductive edge, and his arrogant mannerisms makes him the catch of the school.
After two long months, I am finally going home, the thought flashed through Draco's mind as he rested his head against the cool window, seeing the train station come slowly into view.
"Now Draco," his father started, realizing he only had a few moments left with his son. "You need to excel this year. I don't want you to be second in your year, losing again to that filthy Gryffindor Mudblood whore."
Draco cringed, hearing his father talking about the girl with such disdain. "I will try Father, but Her-Granger is rather intelligent and all she focuses on is her studies, Potter and Weasley's lives, and anything else the teachers ask her to do. "
"Those are excuses, Draco!" the devil bellowed. "I will not tolerate your insolence any longer. You are to do as I ask. If she needs some form of a distraction, then distract her. You can get any girl that you want, so charm the girl. Provide the distraction that she needs."
"Are you suggesting that I should date Granger in order to get a leg up in our marks?" he questioned incredulously.
"That," Lucius started in a low voice as the limo stopped next to the curb at King's Cross Station. "Is exactly what I am telling you. Have a good year, son." The dismissal making Draco hurry to leave the car, thinking about what his father was saying.
Grabbing his things, Draco felt a lightness in his heart that he hadn't known existed. I actually get to talk to Hermione the way I want to. No appearances, no threats, no walls. I can show her who I am. The friendly dragon inside; instead of the harsh fire-breathing Horntail moniker that she has known in the past.
Practically skipping with glee, Draco drug his luggage in between platforms 9 and 10, leaning casually against the barrier. Falling through the brick, the scarlet steam engine came into view. Schooling his features into a firm mask of indifference or possible disdain, Draco calmly boarded the train, quickly finding his compartment and settling in.
Draco turned to stare out the window, all the tension leaving his body at the prospect of being away from Lucius. I wonder how difficult it is going to be to prove to Hermione that I am not a complete bastard. The question ran through his mind, causing concern to flash through his eyes. "Bloody hell," he muttered audibly. "This is going to take a miracle."
"What's going to take a miracle Draco?" the question posed by the olive skinned, chin length black haired, devilish grey eyed, and muscled Italian that was his best friend, Blaise Zabini.
Draco jumped, turning to his best friend, realizing that the rest of his 'friends' were with him as well. The two muscled imbeciles, Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle, along with the pug-faced whore of a blonde that was Pansy Parkinson trailed behind, flashing him wondering gazes as well.
"Nothing guys. I'm fine. Just thinking out loud I guess." Draco shot Blaise a look, signifying that he would tell him later, to which he received a slight nod in response. "I gotta go to the prefects carriage, I will see you guys later."
Draco left the compartment, hoping that he would find Hermione alone in another compartment, giving him an opportunity to try and talk to her. Upon reaching an empty compartment he decided to sit there, knowing that his lie to the other Slytherins would be believed. He snagged a seat by the window, returning to his previous thoughts.
"So," the voice startled the young blonde yet again. "You ready to tell me what you were talking about before?"
Draco turned to find that Blaise had followed him, knowing that he needed to tell someone. "Lucius ordered me to date her," the emphasis on the word causing the light bulb to go on for Blaise.
"Seriously?" he asked incredulously. "That's awesome. After liking her for what, 3 years, you finally get to stop being an ass for her sake."
"I know," the Dragon replied softly. "I am so happy right now, but I can't let anyone else know that. Is it odd that I've liked her since she had the guts to stand up to me and hit me?"
"Just a bit mate. But then again, this is the Draco Malfoy," Blaise teased.
"Shut up Blaise. You know what I mean. She's the only one here that had the guts to actually stand up to me and ignore my name. Then at the Yule Ball in 4th year. Gods she was gorgeous," Draco's eyes glazed over in a dreamy expression as he remembered seeing her in the periwinkle dress with her soft looking curls pulled into an up-do.
"I remember mate," Blaise responded, shaking Draco from his memories. "You went on and on about how she looked for the rest for that term and all of 5th year. I get the point."
"Yeah well, she makes me want to be a better person. Less of the boy my father expects me to be, and more of the man I really am."
"When did you become a man Malfoy?" the soft female voice quipped, interrupting the boys' conversation.
"Ha Ha Granger," Draco drawled sarcastically. "You are so funny. Where are your boyfriends?"
"Boyfriends? Last I checked I was free to date who I wanted to," her reply caused Draco's heart to skip, and Blaise to smirk at him. "If you are inquiring to Ron and Harry's whereabouts, they are a couple compartments back with Ginny, Luna, and Neville."
"Wait, Ginny?" Blaise questioned, finally turning to face Hermione. "You mean the female Weasly. The Chaser? She's here already?"
Hermione was shocked that the normally stoic Italian was speaking, let alone talking to her about her best friend. "Um, yeah," she stuttered. "She's here. Would you like me to ask her if she would like to join us?"
Blaise and Draco shared a look, deciding silently that they needed to show both girls who they really were. "If you wouldn't mind," his smooth voice responded.
Hermione nodded, disappearing for a few moments, returning with a skinny red head that was the same height as her. Both girls walked into the compartment, sitting opposite of the two Slytherins who they had believed to be rivals until this point.
"Zabini, Malfoy," Ginny's cold greeting not shocking the boys at all.
"Ginerva," Blaise responded formally, as he stood and grabbed her hand, placing a kiss against the top before he returned to his seat next to a smirking Draco.
"Okay," Hermione said slowly, watching the scene with a shocked expression. "I'm confused. What's going on here. Who are you two, and what have you done with Malfoy and Zabini?"
"First of all," Draco said. "My name is Draco, and this is Blaise. Zabini and Malfoy are a pureblood family name, not the names of the two devilishly handsome men that are seated before you."
The girls' mouths dropped in shock at his response, facing Blaise as he began to speak. "Second of all, this is who we are. We are tired of this cat and mouse game and this whole faking for the sake of our parents. My mother has gone missing, giving me the freedom to finally be who I am instead of the robot that she had forced me to be."
"And my father gave me orders to do something I had been wanting to do for a few years," the blonde said softly, his gaze focused on the muggleborn girl in front of him. "So I finally get to be the man I am, instead of the boy who was programmed to act a certain way for the sake of a name."
Ginny was the first to recover. "Okay, so we fit into that how?" Hermione was nodding next to her, wondering the same thing, her chocolate eyes unable to drift from the steel-blue eyes that were locked on hers.
"You ladies," Blaise drawled in a comforting tone. "Fit into this in whatever way you choose. You are the people that we don't want to act around any longer, and you hold the only opinions that matter to us."
"What Blaise is saying," Draco interrupted. "Is that you are both the reason why we don't want to follow our parents' orders. We want to be the men in your life that actually matter, and that you can count on for anything."
The two young females were stunned. Several minutes passed in silence, the two Slytherins waiting patiently for the words to sink in.
"So what you are saying," Hermione started slowly, as if trying to find the correct words. "Is that you guys fancy us?" At their nods, she continued. "Who likes who exactly? You keep speaking in doubles and have not established which boy likes which girl."
Both boys smirked and said, "What's your preference. We know which girl we choose, but we would love to know your opinions and reasoning behind them."
The red head turned stunned to her brunette counterpart, silently asking her to confirm that this was really happening. At her nod, the girls returned their gazes to the two young men that had them acting like they were under the Confundous Charm.
"I don't understand," Ginny burst out suddenly. "You two hate us. We're Gryffindors. I am a 'blood traitor,' and Hermione is a muggleborn. Why would we tell you personal information that you would just use against us to mock or torture us with later?"
"Ginny," Draco's voice filled the compartment easily. "Have you not been listening? We don't hate you. We acted that way for the benefit of our parents, and so that we could protect you both from the wrath of said parents. You are not a 'blood traitor.' You are in fact an attractive red head with curves that drive the male population at school crazy."
"And Hermione," Blaise picked up. "Is a muggleborn that is absolutely gorgeous, and doesn't realize it. She is beautiful without trying and is intelligent to boot. If it wasn't for the fact that the male population is afraid to try and converse with her because they worry that she will see right through their lines, they would be all over her as well."
Silence once again filled the room as the girls were shocked into silence by the descriptions that came from the two men that had been the bane of their existences.
"Well," Hermione said after she recovered. "It seems that you have both unwittingly told us your preferences by explaining how you see us."
"Is that what we did?" Draco questioned.
"Or did we just state the obvious and mix it up for the sake of confusing you both?" Blaise asked playfully.