Secrets

by yourstruley

Hermione and Draco have been sneaking around, but in one day everything gets twisted and confusing. What of the day, week, year to follow? And what when someone new comes along and threatens to split them apart?

Hermione stared at the crimson fabric of her canopy. Everything around her was silent. She lay in her bed, waiting to hear the promising creak of the portrait hole swinging open. This was dangerous, she knew, suppose Harry or Ron or any other Gryffindor was sitting in the Common Room. They'd be in so much trouble, and she couldn't risk that, not as a prefect. But it was so exciting, and she loved it. However, her mind wandered to anything and everything that could go wrong. She let the horrible thoughts consume her. She was so caught up in them that she did not hear the portrait creak open or slam shut. In fact, she didn't even notice Draco's entrance until he had slid back the curtains surrounding her bed.

She startled and he silently laughed. She put on a mock frown and sat up. He slipped in between the sheets along side her. Propping himself up on one elbow, he gazed at her softly. She began to giggle, but was silenced as Draco placed his hand over her mouth. Her cheeks lifted and her eyes twinkled as she smiled. He slid his hand along her cheek until he reached her ear. Then he slid his long, white fingers into her hazel hair. She watched his steely gray eyes concentrating on what his hand was doing. She surrendered to his touch.

He firmly grabbed her head and brought it closer to his until their lips met. The kiss was gentle at first, and then it became harder, fiercer. Hermione closed her eyes and lost herself in it, letting Draco take control. His tongue moved across her lips, pressing for an entrance, a weak point. She opened her mouth a bit to permit it, and allowed him to explore her mouth, running her tongue along his in return. She opened her eyes to a slit to watch Draco. His eyes were fixed lovingly on her. She opened her eyes fully, and they locked gazes. Draco pulled back from the kiss, his tongue retreating.

He gave her a smirk before falling back into the pillow. Hermione eased herself down onto her side, resting so Draco's outstretched arm lay in the crook of her neck. He pulled her closer to him, and she placed her hand on his strong chest. He set his hand on hers and stroked it with his thumb. "Night, Mione," he whispered.

"Good night, Draco," she replied and closed her eyes, allowing sleep to take over.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Hermione woke to the sound of giggling. She lazily looked over at the spot where Draco had been. It was empty. She was not surprised. He had been sneaking up to Gryffindor Tower for almost two months now, and had always slipped back to the Dungeons before she or any of the other girls woke up. Each morning she woke a little disappointed, but not enough to ruin anything.

She pulled back the curtains of her bed to find Ginny Weasley's face trying to peek through. Hermione gave her a curious look. "What?"

"Well, uh, we wanted to know-" Ginny gave a small burst of laughter.

"Know what?"

"Not what, who," Ginny corrected, laughing. "We wanted to know if it was Harry or Ron that was in your bed last night…." The inquisition faded into a fit of giggles. The other two girls joining Ginny.

"Neither." Hermione said, grabbing her clothes. She hastened to explain for the giggling had suddenly ceased. "No one was in my bed last night." She stood and began to dress.

"But I heard movement-" one of the girls insisted.

"-And laughter," the other offered.

"So I had a funny dream." Hermione finished dressing and shrugged.

"About Harry or Ron?" The girls dissolved into giggles on the floor, clutching their sides.

Hermione rolled her eyes and bounded down the stairs to the Common Room and then down to the Great Hall.

She entered the Great Hall through the great oak doors. She nodded and smiled at Draco as she passed the Slytherin table. He nodded back but did not smile. She wondered if his friends knew.

Hermione spotted Harry and Ron sitting with Neville Longbottom and Seamus Finnegan near the middle of the Gryffindor table. She bounced up to them and plopped down between Harry and Seamus.

"Ello, Hermione," Ron said through a mouthful of pancake. Hermione shot him a look of disgust across the table. "What?" As he said it, some of the previously chewed breakfast spilled back onto his plate. "Ew"s were issued by anyone within ten feet of Ron.

"That's what," Hermione pointed at his plate, utterly grossed out. She heaped a few pancakes onto her plate. "Pass the syrup."

"Where were you?" Harry asked.

"Sleeping," Hermione stated quickly before shoving a forkful of pancakes into her mouth so she wouldn't have to answer any questions.

"Ginny asked us if we were in your bed last night. Why would she ask that?" Harry eyed her suspiciously. Ron looked up from his plate with another mouthful of pancake.

Hermione shrugged, "I'm not Ginny, ask her." She shoved another forkful in her mouth. She didn't want them to know about Draco, partly because they would disapprove and probably hate her, and partly because she thought it wasn't going to last long. It's just a fling, she always told herself.

"Aw, Malfoy 10 o' clock." Ron mumbled. Hermione and Harry spun around, and, sure enough, there was Draco Malfoy crossing the Great Hall towards them. Harry turned back around and studied his pancakes.

"Looks like you bit off more than you could chew, didn't you, Weasel?" Draco laughed with his friends. "Potter." He spat at Harry, feeling obligated to acknowledge his rival.

"What do you want, Malfoy?" Harry glared daggers at the Slytherin.

"Just came to say hi to you two losers and the mudblood here." He placed two hands on Hermione's shoulders and leaned in so their cheeks were touching. She felt her face flush. "Isn't that right, Granger?" Hermione refrained from speaking as Draco pulled back. Being called a mudblood didn't hurt as much anymore now that she knew it was pretense. "See you later." He snarled and walked away, laughing with his friends. She watched as they exited through the great oak doors.

"I have to go." Hermione said. She pushed her plate away and ignored her friends, who were pleading her to stay. She walked straight toward the oak doors and out. No sooner had she come through the doors that firm hands grabbed her shoulders to stop her. One hand released her, while the other moved to her wrist and then her hand. She allowed Draco's fingers to intertwine with hers as he led her to a dark nook by the staircase.

He threw her against the wall, and she pulled him with her. Their bodies clashed together, lips meeting lips and hands meeting hands. Their bodies smashed against each other, each trying to touch the other in any way possible.

When it was over, Hermione fell to the floor, exhausted. Draco sank beside her, breathing hard. They leaned into each other and sat there, staring into space. "Mione?" Draco finally gasped.

"What, Draco?" Hermione leaned into his chest breathing in the sweet scent of his robes.

"I love you." Hermione sat up straight, surprised by his confession. She stood abruptly and mumbled something about Potions and being late before taking off to Gryffindor Tower.

An Apology

Hermione stumbled through the portrait hole. She fell into a chair and stared at the fire. She lost herself in the flames. She took note of every color change, how the red melted to orange and yellow and back. She was so concentrated she didn't hear Harry. He stood behind her, gazing at the fire as well. Finally, he said, "Hey, you are alright?" She jumped despite his gentle tone. "Hey, hey." He walked around to the side of the chair and sat on the arm. He tried to calm her by placing his hand on her shoulder. She shifted her gaze to his face and saw it was filled with concern.

"I'm fine." She croaked.

"No, you're not." He leaned in to hug her, "Is it about the mudblood thing?"

"No." Hermione confessed, temporarily forgetting of her ruse. She looked up at Harry, startled. Quickly she grabbed her books and ran out the portrait hole again, on her way to Potions.

Luckily, Draco had not found it necessary to try for her attention during any of their classes together. She avoided eye contact and kept focused on her work. She sat closest to the Slytherins of the three friends, so that to talk with Ron or Harry she had to turn away from him. She congratulated herself on avoiding any awkward moments up to Transfiguration. However, as she left for lunch, the same strong hands pulled her away from everyone. They led her to a dark broom closet, where she ignited the tip of her wand to see. "What, Draco?" She asked, annoyed. They were standing very close together, his chest pressed against hers.

"I want to know what happened earlier." He demanded. He grabbed her chin to force her to look into his pleading eyes. "Please." The whisper surprised her.

"What?"

"I said 'please.'" Draco repeated. Hermione looked down again, uttering a small, "oh."

"I just, I, uh…" She continued to avoid looking at the boy and studied everything else in the small closet. "I, um, it….it caught me off guard. And I've always thought of this, us, as a…..uh….fling?" She tried to bring her hand to her mouth, but there was not enough room. "Sorry."

"Don't be. I am," He was the one avoiding eye contact now, "I rushed it. I'm sorry." A small laugh escaped from Hermione. "What?"

"Nothing," she giggled, "It's just, when I met you, I never would have thought that 1) I'd be sneaking around with you like this and 2) you'd be apologizing to me!"

"Well, we are and I am!" Draco laughed. They both stared at their feet awkwardly. "If you want, I'll take back what I said," he whispered softly.

Hermione glanced up, "Okay…"

"But, Hermione, I don't want this to just be a fling." Before she could answer, Draco closed the small gap between them and kissed her gently on the lips. Hermione allowed herself to enjoy it for a bit before pulling back.

"But, Draco…" She looked him in the eyes. "We can't, our friends…they hate each other. Not to mention you and Harry always look like you're going to kill each other…. and you always tease Ron…." She watched for a reaction.

"They don't have to know." Draco leaned in for another kiss.

Hermione pushed back as far as she could in the tight space, "Yes, they do," she protested as he dove for her neck. "They do if I'm going to stay sane!" she gasped. "Draco, stop, stop! How am I going to explain a mysterious hickey?" With that, he backed off, out of breath.

"Okay, okay. Lunch?" Hermione nodded to the idea. "Alright, one sec…" Draco opened the door a crack and stuck his head out. Hermione watched the muscles in his neck move as he scanned the hallway. "Clear, come on." He jumped out of the closet quickly and turned to help Hermione. It still amazed her how gentleman-like he was.

"Thanks," she said. They grabbed each others hand and ran to the Great Hall for lunch.

Just out side the great oak doors Draco dropped Hermione's hand, she did likewise. "See you tonight." Draco kissed her quick and slipped into the Great Hall.

Hermione gave herself a moment to catch her breath before pushing the doors open. She saw Harry and Ron sitting in the center of the Gryffindor table again. However, Neville and Seamus were not around this time. Ginny, instead, had taken the seat beside Harry. She was shooting him flirtatious glances as he spoke. He looked rather uncomfortable and avoided looking at the youngest Weasley. Fortunately, Ron was crammed tight on the other side of the table, so the only place to sit was on Harry and Ginny's side. Hermione approached them and cleared her throat. They trio looked up at her, and she asked Ginny, "Can I sit?"

Ginny glared up at her defiantly, but Harry moved over to allow a gap between him and the clingy 5th year. Hermione eased herself on to the bench and smiled around at everyone. As she reached for a slice of ham, Ron complained loudly, "Why can't he just leave us alone?"

Without looking, Hermione knew Draco had to be on his way over to their table once again. "Because I care about you, and want to make sure you chew your food 38 times!" Draco yelled from where he was. Half of the Slytherin table erupted into laughter. Draco came right up behind Hermione and wrapped his arms around her neck.

She was surprised by his affectionate gesture. He had done it in front of everyone, for all to see. "Get off her." Harry pushed Draco aside.

"Watch it, Potter," the Slytherin sneered. He resumed his position by Hermione. She blushed deeply as he brought his mouth to her ear, "Just tell them," he whispered and kissed her cheek quickly. He straightened, "Later, Potter, Weaselby." Draco laughed and walked back to his place among his snickering friends.

Hermione was blushing. "What was that?" Ron asked pointing toward Draco with his fork.

"Huh?" Hermione gazed around to see who was talking. She had been thinking about what Draco had said. Had he told his friends? Is that why he had the sudden change of heart? Had someone found out? Had he bragged about it before he had caught himself, like she had almost done many a time when it was new? She stared down at her plate pondering, half listening to Ron's questions.

He Knows

Hermione lay on her back with her hands folded on her stomach. She once again was staring at the canopy of her four-poster bed, waiting. She reflected on what had happened that day. Draco's confession, the broom closet apology and finally lunch. She played each scene over and over in her mind.

The sound of the dormitory door creaking open brought Hermione back to reality. She hadn't even heard the portrait hole open. She decided it must have been because she was deeply involved with her thoughts and dismissed it from her mind. She sat up to greet Draco when a hand began to pull the curtains apart.

The drapes were thrown apart, and the hand disappeared. Hermione stared at the open space, scared. She flicked her eyes from curtain to curtain, trying to discover what had pulled them apart. She was about to give up and pull them shut, when the air crinkled like fabric and Harry Potter appeared, dropping the invisibility cloak to the ground. "Harry? What are you doing here? How did you get up here?" Hermione thought of the stairs that turned to a slide when a boy stepped on them. She stood and pushed Harry out of the dorm and onto the landing. He placed one foot gently on the top step of the stairs and slid down gracefully.

"Same way Malfoy does." Harry said simply, a smug grin forming on his face. They stood in the center of the common room, facing each other.

"What?" Hermione froze. "What are you talking about? Malfoy's never been-"

"Save your breath, Mione. I know." Harry sat down on a couch and laughed at Hermione's confused expression. He explained, "I couldn't sleep one night, so I took out the Marauder's Map. I saw Draco sneaking up here from the Dungeons. I watched as he came into the Common Room and then climbed up to your dorm. He walked over to your bed and stayed there for several hours. I've been watching. He's been coming here for a little over a month, hasn't he?" Harry's arms were crossed over his chest, and he leaned forward in anticipation of an answer.

Hermione lowered her head in defeat. She knew the map never lied. Then, she snapped her head up to look Harry in the eyes with great intensity. "You can't tell anyone!"

Harry held up his hands. "Not a soul. Not even Ron."

Hermione smiled at this, "Thank you, Harry!" She threw her arms around his neck at the same moment the portrait hole swung open, and Draco stepped through.

He stared at Harry and Hermione, who had separated, for a second before asking, "What's going on here?"

"Draco," Hermione stepped toward him to explain, but he held up his hand.

"No, I want to hear it from Harry." Harry stood, a little surprised that Malfoy had just called him by his first name.

"I-I went to see Hermione because Ginny's been telling a few stories. I wanted to make sure she was alright. She brought me down here and told me." Harry took a shaky breath in, afraid of what Malfoy would do, "She was hugging me because-"

"-I was thanking him for understanding, and not telling anyone." Hermione finished, eyeing Harry and then the floor.

"Okay." Her head shot up to look at Draco. She was surprised at how understanding he was being. The last two months had been filled with these surprises, and she liked them. A grin spread across her face now, and she ran to Draco. She wrapped her arms around his neck and brought her lips to his. They fell into a passionate kiss that caused Harry to feel awkward. Unlike the night before, Hermione was the first to prod lips with the tip of her tongue for entrance. Draco allowed her, but fought back with his own. It ended with Hermione pulling away as Draco sucked at her bottom lip. She pushed him away and glanced at Harry. He was standing a distance away and fidgeted rather uncomfortably, he gaze shifting from one object to another and avoiding the other students. Hermione apologized to him, and he quickly retreated to his dorm.

"He didn't know?" Draco asked softly in her ear.

"No," Hermione answered, staring after Harry, "None of my friends do."

"Well, all of mine do." Hermione turned back to him.

"Then let's go to the Dungeons tonight." Draco nodded in agreement. Placing his arm around her shoulders, he turned her around, and they walked out through the portrait hole. "Wait," Hermione said just as the heavy portrait slammed shut. She turned back around and whispered the password to the fat lady, who looked very disgruntled at being awoken every night for two months.

"Where are you going this late a t night?" The woman inquired, eyeing Draco suspiciously. Hermione only repeated the password dully until she swung open.

Racing up the stair to her room, Hermione tiptoed to her bed and grabbed Harry's discarded invisibility cloak. She hurried back through the portrait hole. "Okay," she gasped at Draco.

"Where are you going?" The Fat Lady continued to call after them as they raced down the hallway.

"Here," Hermione threw the cloak over Draco as they neared the stairs.

"What is this?" He looked at it with his face scrunched up in the way a six-year-old does when confused.

"An invisibility cloak, Ssh." She silenced him as footsteps became audible. "Against the wall, and quiet your breathing!" She warned him and covered his mouth with her hand. He kept his eyes lovingly on her as she craned her neck to see who the footsteps belonged to. Moments later, a very distressed-looking Professor McGonagle strode by, heading for the head master's office. Hermione watched her curiously. Draco, however, had continued making his way to the Dungeons. She did not have time to wonder about the professor if she wanted to stay covered. She linked arms with Draco to keep even. "So, all of your friends know…about us?" Hermione asked as he led her to the entrance of the Slytherin Common Room.

"Yeah," Draco reassured her, "Well, all except Pansy." He pulled her forward.

"What?" was all Hermione could say before she was dragged into the Slytherin Common Room, a room she had thought forbidden, off limits for six years.

Blaise

Hermione took a sharp breath in as Draco led her through the dungeon door. She opened her eyes, not realizing she had shut them tight. She cast her gaze around the room. The walls, as well as the floors, were all a beautiful dark stone. Near the center of the large common room was a group of sofas and armchairs. They were black or dark green, she could not tell. Each seated a couple of Slytherins who looked up at the door and glared at her.

Draco started forward, and the thought of being left alone with several Slytherins who hated her made Hermione reach out and grab his arm. He spun around and gave her a curious look. She looked at the others quickly. He glanced at them as well and tried to make the connection. He gave a quick nod as it clicked and grabbed her hand, intertwining the fingers. "Come on," He pulled her close to him and moved his arm from alongside hers to around her shoulders.

Draco led her to the boys' dormitory and reached out to push the door open. It swung open before he could touch it, his friend, Blaise, stood there, looking rather surprised. Hermione knew Blaise, everyone did. He was "Draco Malfoy's quiet emo friend" who always looked depressed, even when he was smiling. She stepped behind Draco a little, afraid of Blaise's reaction. "Oh, hey" was all that escaped the boy's lips. Hermione gave him an all over look. He had shed his robes and was wearing muggle clothes. The tight band t shirt he wore contrasted well with the black cargo pants. Hermione had hardly ever seen Blaise without the robes that made him seem like a floating head, and when she had, he was wearing skinny drainpipe pants. She did not usually like it when guys wore drainpipes, but Blaise pulled off the look. His face was thin, his black hair falling over his eyes in a side sweep fashion. His eyes, Hermione loved his eyes. They were a beautiful hazel and always outlined with black eyeliner. He had a muggle guitar slung behind his back, the black and blue strap stretching across his flat chest. "I was just gonna go look for you." Blaise mumbled to Draco.

"With your guitar?" Draco inquired, indicating the instrument with his hand.

Blaise blushed a little and stole a quick glance at Hermione, "Well, I couldn't leave it here. They would do something to it." He nodded towards a group of boys in the corner, in the center of which sat Theodore Nott. Hermione scrunched her face up in disgust; the kid was worse than Draco had ever been.

Draco nodded understandingly, "Well turn around. I'm in the mood for some music, how 'bout you?" He pushed Blaise's shoulder to spin the boy around. Blaise obeyed and walked back into the dormitory. Draco and Hermione followed him in and sat on Draco's bed, across from Blaise.

The musician swung his guitar back around in front of him as he sat. He stared off for a bit while he thought of a song to play. He looked down at the guitar and struck the first note. As he continued on with the intro, Hermione sat up straight. She knew that song; it was "Ghost of You" by the muggle band My Chemical Romance. Without thinking, she blurted out, "Ghost of You." Blaise stopped playing and looked up sharply.

"What?" Draco asked.

Hermione looked up at him and then to Blaise and back to Draco. "By My Chemical Romance." She turned back to Blaise, who was simply staring at her, surprised.

"Huh?" Draco was still lost.

"They're a muggle band. From the United States." Hermione explained, not taking her bright eyes from Blaise's hazel ones. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Draco's head turning from her to Blaise. He was obviously confused. "Keep going," she encouraged Blaise. The boy looked back down at his guitar and positioned his fingers.

"Wait," Draco held up a hand, and Blaise's head up again, surprised. Hermione was beginning to wonder if he was just always surprised when someone interrupted him. "I want to know more." Draco's face had confusion plastered all over it.

Hermione sighed in frustration. Now she just wanted to listen to Blaise play guitar and sing. She flicked her head to her boyfriend. "My Chemical Romance. They are an emo/punk band from the States. 'Ghost of You' is a song from their second album." As she said this, Hermione kept stealing glances at Blaise. He was staring at her and seemed awed by her knowledge of his favorite music.

"How do you know that?" Draco's face was scrunched up into the cute confused-six-year-old look.

Hermione stared at him for a bit before answering. "It's one of my favorite songs from one of my favorite bands….I love punk rock," she said matter-of-factly. Draco still looked confused. "Never mind," she shook her head and kissed his cheek, "Just sit there and look pretty." She giggled before turning back to Blaise, "Go again."

He stared at her with wide eyes for a second before turning his face down to his guitar. He replayed the intro and opened his mouth to sing. "I nev-"

"I never said I'd lie and wait forever…." Hermione began. Blaise looked up startled, and she gave him an encouraging nod. He started to sing again, and they went on together, Draco sitting beside them, listening and nodding along. "If I died, we'd be together. I can't always just forget her but she could try-y-y-y-y-y-y!" The duet caught one another's eye and each smiled sincerely, enjoying the fact that they could make this wonderful music together. "At the end of the world or the last thing I see you are never coming home, never coming home. Could I? Should I? And all the things that you never ever told me, and all the smiles that are ever ever, ever…" Hermione prepared to keep going but Blaise had stopped playing the guitar and was silent. He was staring at her in a completely different way. It both frightened and intrigued her. She flashed a smile and turned away from him to Draco, who was looking content.

"Cool," he sat up straight and yawned. "I'm tired…." He stood and stripped off his robes so that he stood there in just his green boxers that were covered with pictures of dice that showed "7" in various combinations. Hermione ran her eyes up and down his masculine figure. He did not have the perfectly chiseled abs like some guys did, but there were visible ridges. His chest was wide and strong and opened into arms that were not so muscular they were lumpy, but had enough muscle to show off. He was not the tannest of people by any sort, but his color suited him. He turned to Hermione and smiled, "I'm done. Your turn."

She looked around surprised. "I-I-uh-I didn't bring any PJs…" she stuttered. She glanced over at Blaise, who was slipping out of his tight shirt. He did not have such an athletic body as Draco's, but he was by no means disgusting. Hermione tried to keep herself from thinking it, but she did find Blaise rather hot. He had a strong, flat chest and obviously ate more than people thought he did, for you could not count his ribs, as was rumor. His abs were not as chiseled as Draco's and could hardly be seen, but his stomach was flat. He had a little more color than Draco, but not much. Hermione caught herself staring at him, and quickly turned back to her boyfriend who was now climbing into bed. "PJs?"

He stopped making himself comfy and looked up. "Oh, right." Pushing the covers back, he climbed back out of the bed and padded over to the trunk at the foot of the bed. He dug through the contents and pulled out a long maroon t shirt. It had the word "HARVARD" written across the chest. Hermione took it and gave him a puzzling look. "It's an American university," he shrugged. She smiled shyly, and he turned away so she could change. Hermione slowly slipped out of her robes and into the soft t shirt. It hung to just above her knees and showed her bare tan legs. She had cast a spell to make her look tanner. The cloudy, rainy England weather left her pale as paper. She slipped into bed beside Draco and listened to his soft breathing as he fell into the clutches of sleep.

Across the room, she could make out the silhouette of a silent boy sitting cross-legged on his bed, quietly strumming his guitar. Hermione smiled as she picked up the tune of another American muggle band's song, "Grand Theft Autumn" by Fall Out Boy. She gently whispered the words, "Where is your boy tonight? I hope he is a gentleman…." She smiled as he joined in with her, singing softly rather than whispering. His voice was beautiful and she wished she could stay there forever and not worry about the next day. "You need him, I could be him. I could be an accident, but I'm still trying. That's more than I could say for him."

More Blaise and Then Some Pansy

Hermione blinked her eyes open to the sound of someone opening their trunk with a squeak. She lifted her head slightly and gazed down the length of the bed. Beyond hers and Draco's feet, the slender figure of Blaise Zabini slipping off his guitar strap and gently lowering the instrument into his trunk. She watched as he conjured a plain white bed sheet and spread it over the guitar. He gazed at it fondly, and it was obvious that the guitar was one of his most treasured possessions.

"Hey." Although Hermione spoke softly, the boy still jumped out of his skin at the sound.

He spun around to face her and relaxed, "Oh, hey." He turned back to seal his trunk shut with a charm, and then returned to sit on his bed.

"You're kind of jumpy." Hermione stated, propping herself up on her elbows. She cocked her head to the side in curiosity. He was staring at her intently.

Blaise caught himself and shook his head. "Thought you might be Theodore or someone…" He trailed off and cast his eyes away. Suddenly, so suddenly she thought he might snap his neck, his head shot up. "Not that you sound like a guy. I just- it- uh…"

Hermione giggled quietly, "I'm gonna go to the Common Room." She pushed the sheets back and wriggled out of Draco's arms. Using a new charm she had taught herself, she changed her clothes from the Harvard shirt to muggle jeans, a small baby tee and a tight soft pink hoodie. She spun in a circle and looked to Blaise. "What do you think? Good enough for Hogsmeade?"

He was staring at her in awe, "How'd you do that?" He spoke a little too loud, and several boys, including Draco, stirred briefly in their sleep. He blushed slightly and looked at the floor.

Hermione giggled, "It's a charm a learned over the summer. I could teach you, if you'd like?" He smiled at the idea. She made her way around Draco's bed and headed for the door.

"Wait." Blaise reached out a hand. "I'll, uh, I'll come…..with you." She turned to look at him, a small smile on her face. He slid around his bed to stand next to her, head lowered and hands behind his back. "I mean, there might be some others out there. I don't…I don't want you getting hurt….or something." He finally looked up, and their eyes met.

Hermione smiled at the boy. It was clear he was only in Slytherin because he was pureblood and did not fit in with any other house. He was not courageous enough for Gryffindor, cunning enough for Ravenclaw or social enough for Hufflepuff. She remembered the Sorting Hat taking quite a while on him, maybe longer than it took on Harry. "Okay," she whispered and led the way out the door.

Just outside the dormitory, Blaise stopped. "Hold on, I'll get my guitar."

"But you just spent all that time and effort putting it away."

Blaise shrugged and disappeared through the door again. Hermione sat and leaned against the wall, listening to Crabbe's awful snoring. It was several minutes before Blaise returned, the guitar strap with its blue flame pattern stretched across his torso. She gave him a quick smile and stood. Allowing him to lead her to the Common Room, Hermione kept back several paces. She looked him up and down. He was wearing another tight black band shirt that listed tour dates on the back, but had ditched the cargo pants for a pair of slim faded jeans. His guitar ran down his back at an angle, and when they passed a window the sunlight reflected off the chrome area and blinded her. His black hair fell in a bed head style halfway down his ears. She watched it as he turned his head back to make sure she was still behind him.

They reached the small cluster of couches, and Blaise sat down on the end of one. Hermione plopped down next to him. She tucked her knees into her chest and looked at him expectantly. He tore his gaze from her and turned his face to the instrument that now rested on his knee. He plucked out the intro to another Fall Out Boy song. Looking up at Hermione, he began to sing and she joined in. "Are we growing up, or just going down? It's just a matter of time until we're all found out. Take your tears, put 'em on ice, cuz I swear I'd burn the city down to show you the light." They kept eye contact and Hermione was aware of something in Blaise's eye. A shine, sort of. But she could not tell what it was. She studied them for the remainder of the song, but he looked away after striking the final chord.

She opened her mouth to talk, but just then, Pansy Parkinson appeared. "Oooohh, love fest of the freaks! Looks like you found someone who actually appreciates that awful muggle stuff Blaise. She's a mudblood, you know, she oughta like it." A pained expression swept across Blaise's face, and Hermione glared at the Slytherin girl. She was so cruel! Pansy plunked down in a nearby armchair. She feigned an innocent look, "Oh, did I interrupt? I mean, I would never dream of interrupting a little love music session!" She erupted into laughter. Hermione shot daggers at the girl and looked to Blaise. He was staring off at the point where the wall met the floor. Did he always go through this? She turned back to Pansy. She was sitting with her legs crossed in their pink fleece pajama pants. A tight pink spaghetti strap shirt barely covered her bosom, and Hermione was afraid she might fall out. The girl continued to laugh, and had it not been for Draco's sudden entrance, Hermione may have jumped on her.

"What the hell are you doing?" Draco appeared looking annoyed.

"Oh, Drakie! You missed the jam session!" Pansy ran to him and threw her arms around his neck.

"Get off me!" He shot a look at Hermione and shoved Pansy away. She looked stunned and confused, but soon covered it with a smile.

"Oh, Drakiepoo. You don't mean that. Why are you up so early?" The girl slowly crept up beside him again and clutched his arm.

"Your fricken hyena laugh!" The boy pushed her away once more and went to sit with Hermione, who was trying to hold down a laugh. "Hey," he said softly to her, leaning down to kiss her. She watched Blaise as he did this and saw he was staring at the floor.

When Draco pulled back, she reached for Blaise's arm. At the slightest touch, the boy jumped. "Hey, want to go to breakfast?" She looked from Blaise to Draco and back. They both nodded, Draco adding a small "sure" and grabbing her hand. They interlocked fingers and stood to leave. As they walked toward the door, Hermione took pleasure in the speechless and shocked look on Pansy Parkinson's face.

Brawl at Breakfast

As soon as the door closed behind them, Hermione collapsed into a fit of giggles. Draco stared at her for a second before also beginning to laugh. He sank against the wall beside her. Blaise stood awkwardly nearby. Draco tried motion to him to sit down, but he was laughing too hard. This made the smaller boy laugh a little and it grew into hearty laughing like his friends'. He slid down the wall until he also sat on the floor.

Hermione straightened after a while, taking a deep breath, and joining the boys on the wall. They sat in silence for a moment, and then she said, "Did you see the look on her face when you kissed me!" She hit Draco's arm lightly and erupted into a new fit of laughter. This time, she leaned and fell into Blaise, who stiffened at the contact and looked to Draco.

The blonde boy grabbed Hermione's shoulders and pulled her off his friend. He helped her stand and held her to him as she quieted down. She pushed into his dark blue muggle sweatshirt. It smelt of his Tag cologne. He was also wearing a pair of dark baggy muggle jeans. She looked down at his feet, which sported black shoes she had heard muggles call "skater shoes." They were wide, with the laces tied under the tongue and a white "a" on the side for the brand name "Adio." She smiled up at him, and he responded with, "I'm hungry."

Giving a small giggle, Hermione replied, "Me too." They looked to Blaise who was standing and awkwardly shifting his weight from foot to foot. "Come on," she laughed and grabbed his arm. "Let's go to the Great Hall!" Draco led them through the maze of hallways and up a great flight of stairs until they stood in the Entrance Hall.

"I'll, uh, meet you in there." Blaise spit out and disappeared.

Hermione turned her face up to Draco. "You first." He nodded and walked across the large foyer to the Great Hall. She slowly ambled after him. As she prepared herself for her friends and went over the story she was to tell if any questions came up, Blaise appeared from nowhere. She was beginning to wonder whether he had prematurely learned to Apparate silently.

She jumped when he placed a hand on her shoulder and whispered, "Hey."

"Oh, Jesus!" Hermione spun around to face him. She relaxed a little when she saw the familiar face, but she still felt rather skittish. She stared at Blaise with wide eyes. The boy looked just as terrified as she. His guitar was still slung across his back at an angle.

The misplaced Slytherin gave a small smile to himself. "I'm not Jesus," he simply stated.

"Oh, no. I didn't mean- It's just that, you see, you sca-" Hermione stopped herself. The last thing she had expected from the quiet boy was a joke. "Oh," She let out a small giggle and added, "Good one." Staring awkwardly at her feet, she shifted her weight. An awkward silence hung heavily in the air.

Blaise broke it by reaching out to touch her arm lightly, "Hey, um, I-" She looked up, and he swallowed his words. "I think we should go in." He stepped around her before she could react and held the door for her to enter the Great Hall.

She thanked him and slid through the doorway. The boy gently closed the slab of oak behind them. As he started for the Slytherin table, Hermione spun on her heel to face him, "Wait!" He looked at her in confusion, and she added, "Um, you can eat with me, if you want. Just so you don't have to deal with Nott or anyone." She added quickly, seeing his beautiful hazel eyes widen at the suggestion.

He shook his head of black hair, "Nah, I've got Draco over there. I'll be fine, but thanks anyway." With that, he turned and headed for the farthest table, the blue and chrome guitar slightly swaying with his stride. She watched him go before turning and skipping to the Gryffindor table where Ron and Harry sat. She smiled to herself. Blaise was becoming more open and friendly with her. She wanted to become close friends with him; she felt he needed that.

"Since when are you friendly with the freak Blaise Zabini?" Ron's annoying voice interrupted her thoughts as she sat. Hermione shot a glare at him. "What?"

"He's not a freak! Don't you dare call him that!" She jabbed her fork at the redhead, her brown eyes not throwing daggers but chucking Samurai stars.

"Well, look at him!" Ron indicted Blaise with his hand and grimaced as Harry elbowed him in the ribs. "I mean, he's wearing fricken makeup!"

"Eyeliner!"

"He's always carrying that dumb muggle guitar around!"

"Shut up!"

"And - ow - Harry stop doing that! And he wears those tight pants-"

"Shut up!"

"And he always looks like he wants to kill himself."

"SHUT UP!" Hermione screamed at the top of her lungs.

"Great, now he's coming over here." Ron looked accusingly across the table, but she was turned around to see Blaise quickly maneuvering around table sand students. Ron was pulling the hood of his green muggle sweatshirt up to cover his face. "Pretend I'm not here."

"Gladly," Hermione replied curtly. Blaise was soon beside her, and she looked up into his smiling eyes. "Hi."

"Hey, um, wanna, uh, come eat…..with us?" He kept glancing nervously at Ron, but nodded towards the Slytherin table. "Draco will be there of course." Hermione looked to the table and saw Draco watching them hopefully.

She looked to Harry who shrugged. She then threw daggers at Ron, and replied, "Sure." Blaise's smile revealed that he was happy, and she stood to climb back over the bench. Smiling at Ron's confused face. Without thinking, she slipped her hand into the Slytherin's. He gripped it firmly with his cold slender fingers. However, when she glanced up at him, he was staring straight ahead with a blank expression, hiding any feeling. She looked ahead to the Slytherin table and saw Draco's pallid face etched with a frown of confusion. Instantly, she dropped Blaise's hand. He quickly looked at her but did not protest, dropping his hand to his side slowly. Silently, they seated themselves beside Draco, Hermione between the two boys.

"Hey, babe." Draco slipped his fingers between hers under the table. He leaned in, but she ducked forward so that he kissed air. There were snorts from Crabbe and Goyle, and even Blaise let out a small laugh. Draco silenced them all with a glare before sitting up straight and releasing Hermione's hand to eat.

The isolated Gryffindor watched across the Great Hall. Ron was watching them with great interested. As soon as he looked away, she pretended to drop her napkin and bent to pick it up. As she did so, she pulled Draco down with her, causing the boy to choke on the egg he had been trying to swallow. He gave her a shocked and angry look when they were kneeling underneath the table. "What the hell?"

"My friends don't know!" She was staring at him with wide, accusing eyes. "Ron, especially, will really, well, freak out! And I'm really not ready for that. Please just do this for me, please." Hermione fell back into her butt, against someone's legs. By the faded jeans and the way the boy jumped, she knew it was Blaise.

Draco lowered his eyes to the floor and bit his lip. "Sorry, I forgot."

She moved towards him, and he looked up to see her inches from his face. "It's okay, just be careful." She closed the space between them and pressed her lips to his. A small moan escaped him, and when she pulled away he moved closer and continued the kiss. Hermione felt herself pressed up against Blaise's legs again. The boy did not jump, but he did tense a little before relaxing. As Draco intensified the kiss, she felt around for something to grab. Her hand found Blaise's ankle, and she gripped it tightly as Draco's tongue pressed its way into her mouth. He then pulled away, sucking at her bottom lip. He smirked a little before moving in to kiss her neck. She let out a small gasp, and he moved lower. Hermione knew she had to stop him now, or he wouldn't. "Draco. Draco, stop, Draco. Draco!" The boy pulled away and sat up straight. They bother bit their lips and sat in silence. Hermione finally said, "Well, shall we?" She indicated their two vacant bench seats. Draco nodded silently.

However, as they moved to pull themselves up, a pair of legs appeared in the space. "Where the hell did they go?" a voice demanded. The couple froze.

No one spoke, and so Draco pounded a fist into Crabbe's meaty leg. The thug cried out in pain and must have called everyone's attention. Blaise stuttered to justify the outburst, and his leg began to shake as a nervous tick, causing his guitar to also tremble. The instrument jerked as the student who had caused the outburst shoved the player.

"Tell me where they fucking are, you little emo freak! Where the hell did that little ferret take the bitch? What are they doing?" Blaise jerked as the student grabbed a handful of his shirt. "Tell me, or I'll end your life! Oh, wait, I don't want to do you any favors!" Blaise was thrust forward, and his leg stopped shaking. Hermione reached out to touch it, but he jerked it away.

Another voice was heard saying such things as, "Chill out!" "Leave the kid alone!" or "Get away from him!" The attacker was dragged backwards, yelling obscenities at Blaise, and was gone.

Draco and Hermione climbed out from under the table. Blaise was quietly staring off to the side, at the floor. Hermione touched his arm lightly, but he turned away, "Blaise," She placed a hand on his shoulder and turned him around. Tears streaked his cheeks, and his eyeliner was running. She was at a loss for words and felt it was better to just comfort him. She pulled him close and wrapped her arms around his neck. He turned his face into the crook of her neck and held his arms around her waist. There was not a sound, other than the annoying crunching of Crabbe and Goyle chewing their bacon.

Suddenly, there was an outburst, and the attacker was back. "Oh, Hermione! There you are, you fucking bitch!" The student paused and stopped to look at the pair. "What, emo kid can't handle this on his own? Or is it 'on her own?' I don't remember when boys started wearing makeup! Tell me, what's a good color on me? Look at me, freak!" The student started towards them against the kids that stood in the way.

Hermione's temper had started high from the thing with Ron earlier, but it had been rising and was now at an all time high. She released Blaise and pulled out her wand. Without turning around, she pointed it behind her. She watched Blaise, her eyes telling him that this was for him.

From the reaction, she knew she had her aim. The cruel student started, "You wouldn't da-"

"Tremembulous!" A beam of green light shot out of the young witch's wand. The student was cut short as he flew several feet in the air and landed thirty feet away. Hermione had been staring at Blaise the whole time, watching his eyes widen as she completed the task, but now she looked back over her shoulder to see Ron Weasley laying on the floor, unconscious and twitching uncontrollably. She bit her lower lip and hurried out of the Great Hall as the crowd grew, pulling Blaise by the hand behind her and Draco trailing after.

Here We Go Again

Back at the Slytherin Common Room, the trio found it empty. Draco and Hermione plopped down on one of the dark sofas. Blaise, however, went straight to the boys' dormitory without saying a word. Hermione looked after him with a sympathetic look. She turned to Draco, placing a hand on his knee, "I'm gonna go talk to him."

He looked at her, "But I'm his best friend. Shouldn't I be the one to talk to him?"

Hermione gave him a pleading look, "I think the kind of comforting he needs right now is a kind you can't give him." Seeing the surprised expression on his face, she added, "Motherly comfort…"

He nodded slightly, "Want me to watch the door?"

She muttered, "Yeah," and trailed after Blaise. When she reached the door, she knocked softly and eased it open. Blaise was sitting on his bed, quietly strumming his guitar. He had not said a word since breakfast, but rather avoided looking at anyone, keeping his face turned away. She crept forward gently. "Blaise…"

The boy turned to face her. His cheeks were smudged with the black of his eyeliner. Hermione crossed slowly and sat beside him. He looked at her through sad eyes, and she could not resist reaching out and touching his face. The mess of eyeliner came off on her hand, as he turned his face into her palm. She rubbed the rest of the makeup off with her fingers and gave him a weak smile. He stared into her eyes and began to pluck out a song on the guitar that still sat on his lap.

Hermione listened closely, she knew the song. It was "Wake Me Up When September Ends" by an American muggle band called Green Day. She joined Blaise in singing the lyrics, "Summer has come and passed. The innocent can never last. Wake me up when September ends." They sat facing other, using music as healer. Blaise seemed to be feeling better, and it made Hermione smiled.

Suddenly the boy stopped playing. She missed it and continued with the lyrics, "Like my father's come to pass-"

She noticed he had ceased his playing and looked up to meet his eyes. The hazel irises shone with the same something as before, but she still could not put a finger on what it was. In one quick movement, Blaise had slipped the guitar strap over his head and rested the instrument against the next bed. Hermione watched as he did it and gave him a curious look when he straightened again.

He was staring directly into her eyes, his gaze soft. She stared back into his beautiful hazel ones. Slowly, he began to move closer. He whispered, "Hermione." She raised her eyebrows. It was the first time she had heard him say anything close to her name. She had no time to react. Soon, his lips were upon hers, and she closed her eyes to enjoy the kiss. She allowed herself to surrender as Blaise intensified it. She retaliated by forcing her tongue into his mouth and running it along his teeth and tongue.

Now she knew what it was in Blaise's eyes. It was lust. It was longing. It was him wanting something he couldn't have.

When she returned from her thoughts, Hermione found herself on her back. Blaise was on top of her, gently kissing her neck. She let out a small moan of pleasure, and he laughed.

He sat up and stripped off his tight shirt, so that she obeyed the urged to reach out and stroke his abs. Her hoodie had already been removed, somehow, but she still wore the baby tee. Slowly and gently, she lifted the t shirt over her head. Blaise gazed at her hungrily. It only made her laugh. She reached down and unbuttoned her jeans. She wriggled out of them, letting the zipper unzip as she pushed them past her hips.

He followed suit and removed his jeans as well. He flung them carelessly away and moved in to kiss her again. She slipped her panties down her legs. Keeping his lips connected with hers, he fumbled around to slip out of his boxer shorts. She wrapped her arms around him and dug her fingers into his back. He positioned one hand next to her to steady himself and ran the other along the side of her body. He placed it on the other side of her and slid his body between her legs. "Hermione," he moaned against her mouth.

"Blaise…" Another moan escaped her, followed by a short gasp as she felt him move inside her. An explosion of ecstasy erupted through her, and she let out a small peal of laughter.

The boy pulled back and looked at her in surprise. "You okay?" She laughed and pulled him closer. He stuck his head next to hers and turned to kiss her neck. He rolled to the side and nearly fell off the bed, catching himself quickly on the bedpost. He pushed his body closer to Hermione, and she shifted over some to accommodate him.

The pair lay, silent and exposed, thinking of what had just happened. Now that it was over, Hermione's mind clicked to life again. A million things flicked through her mind, and it ended with an image of Draco sitting innocently in the Common Room. She mumped up and rushed around to find her discarded clothes. Blaise watched her with wide eyes. He sat up straight and slid into his boxers.

Hermione was scrambling around the room searching for her clothes and repeating, "Oh man! Oh man! Oh shit! Oh man!"

"Mione!" Blaise stretched out a hand to stop her.

She pulled away as if he had burned her, eyes wide with fright. "Don't, Blaise, just don't. I've only really met you yesterday…" She trailed off as she bent over to pick up the white baby tee and pull it over her head.

"But, Hermione, I-"

"No, Blaise, I- I'm sorry, but I really just don't want to do that to Draco. I can't do that to-"

Blaise swooped in and pressed his face to hers. She stiffened but did not push him away. After a minute, he pulled back and held her at arm's length. "Please, we can hide it! Just like you and Draco do! Please, Hermione! You're the only one here that gets my music! That gets me! You're the one person that I can…depend on to- to be true! Please! I need this!" His hazel eyes searched her face quickly and fixed on her brown orbs.

She bit her lip, on the verge of tears. He did need this. With everyone around making fun and jabbing at him all the time, he needed to feel wanted. And she knew she wanted him, too. She also knew her feelings wouldn't go away, no matter how many times she told herself it was wrong. She slowly nodded, "Okay." A lone tear slid down her face, a result of earlier.

"Okay?" He raised his eyebrows and ducked to look into her eyes. She looked up at him and smiled. "Okay. Alright." He pulled her to him, and she pushed her face to his bare chest.- She turned her face up to his, her chin resting on his sternum.

He leaned forward to kiss her, but a knock on the door interrupt his intention. Draco Malfoy's voice traveled through the wood, "Hey, Mione? Blaise? Snape says we're leaving for Hogsmeade in a few minutes."

Blaise and Hermione shot looks of emergency at each other. Blaise pulled away from her and scooped up his abandoned muggle jeans. Hermione kissed his cheek quickly and slipped out to explain to Draco. "Hey."

"Hey." The blonde leaned down and kissed her softly.

A pang of guilt stabbed at her heart, but she brushed it aside. "Um, he's just fixing his eyeliner, then he'll be out," she said and leaned against the wall, pressing her face against it. The cold stone felt good against her flushed face.

It was moments before Blaise appeared, fully dressed, with new eyeliner and his guitar stretched down his back again. "Okay, Hogsmeade?" Hermione laughed, and they started away.

Draco grabbed her hand and slipped his fingers between hers. She felt the same guilty feeling jab at her and looked to Blaise. The guitarist was biting his lip and glaring at the interlocked fingers.

Departure

Hermione cast a worried look around the Entrance Hall. Students were grouped into clumps and talking amongst themselves. Occasionally, a few heads would turn in her direction and the group would whisper a couple comments to each other. She did not know whether they were talking about her attacking Ron or her and Draco, but she still did not want to risk outing their relationship. So, she had dropped Draco's hand before they had reached the stairs that ascended to Entrance Hall.

She turned to face Blaise, who stood silently beside her. The boy had been watching her, and when he caught her gaze, he smiled. It was an awkward smile, a forced smile, not an "I'm-actually-enjoying-myself" smile. He didn't want to be there, around people. She gave him a weak smile back and grabbed his hand, squeezing it. Across the hall, she saw Draco tense. She gave him a false reassuring look and hoped it didn't look too fake.

A commotion arose from the bottom of the large staircase. The crowd split apart, and Harry Potter appeared, running towards her. She searched him with her eyes for some sign of why he was here. To her dismay, his face was contorted into an angry scowl. He skidded to a halt in front of Hermione and Blaise. "How could you do that to him?" he snarled in her face. She looked at the floor. The image of Ron lying helpless and twitching was constantly running through her mind. "Madam Pomfrey has no idea what's wrong with him!" Harry continued. "What the hell did you do to him? What did you do to Ron?" He was jerking his long finger down the hall towards the Hospital Wing.

Hermione followed his point with her eyes. Tears welled under her lids as if she could see Ron through the wall. She bit her lip and tried to hold them in, but to no prevail. They created a steady cascade down her cheeks as she blubbered, "It…was…just- just- just the…" Sobs consumed her, and she crumpled to the floor.

Blaise moved amazingly fast and caught her. He eased her lower and held her to him. She turned her face into is chest and sobbed into his shirt. He snapped up to glare at Harry, "What the hell, mate?" Harry was watching Hermione with a somewhat surprised, yet not sympathetic look.

The girl was still bawling, "It was just…He was being so cruel- and mean! I only…wanted…to…help…Blaise! He…needed….it!"

Draco Malfoy stood across the room, watching his girlfriend cry her eyes out. Not only was he unable to console her, but he had to endure the sight of her finding comfort in another guy's arms. He itched to stride over to her and wrap her in his own arms, protecting her from all harm. He wanted to jump Potter and make sure he never came near her again. He paced, occasionally looking up to see Hermione secure in Blaise Zabini's hold. He would pause, bite his lip in jealousy and continue pacing.

Harry knelt slowly by the couple that now held each other. He reached out to touch Hermione's arm, but Blaise shoved him away with such force that it sent him sprawling. Students scrambled to get out of the way. The boy looked up to see Blaise glaring at him. "Don't touch her. She did nothing wrong," he said through clenched teeth.

A murmur swept through the crowd as Harry stood himself upright, fuming. He lunged at Blaise, yelling, "She attacked Ron, one of her best friends, to defend some kid she hardly knows! That is wrong!"

Hermione screamed as she looked up and saw her friend diving for Blaise. She let out a cry of pain when Harry's knee collided with her shoulder, and he pushed her away. There was a clang as a foot kicked the guitar and sent it spinning across the floor into her leg. She opened her moth to yell, but a pair of hands wrapped around her and started to pull her away from the brawl. She strained against the grip and stretched out a hand for the instrument. Her fingers brushed the strap, and she grabbed it. Then, two more sets of hands, with fat sausage-like fingers, gripped her arms. She tried to fight back, but six hands proved too much, and she eventually gave up. The hands pulled her back out of the crowd of students that gathered around Harry and Blaise, who were still fumbling on the floor.

When she was clear of the people, she looked up into silver-grey eyes filled with concern. "Are you okay?"

She stared at Draco silently for a second before looking around, "Where are the teachers?" It surprised her how hoarse her voice was from crying.

"What?" he yelled. The students had started a chant of "Fight! Fight! Fight!" Hermione looked over to see the two boys still going at each other.

"Never mind!" she turned and elbowed her way through the crowd. "Stop it! Stop it! Stop!" She tried to pull Harry and Blaise apart. She first pulled at Harry's arm, but pushed her away. She moved to Blaise. He was more cooperative than his opponent and tried to separate from Harry. Although Blaise had stopped fighting back, Harry continued to attack him. Finally, Draco stepped in and grabbed the kid's shoulders. He was panting hard and glaring at the other boy.

Hermione helped Blaise stand. The boy wiped his bleeding lip on the back of his hand. She touched his stomach lightly, and he placed his arm around her shoulders, not taking his eyes from the anger-filled ones of Harry. Hermione winced in pain as Blaise's arm rested on her injured shoulder. It was a relief when Crabbe emerged from the crowd with Blaise's guitar and he removed his arm from around her to grab the instrument. He looked from the guitar to Hermione and smiled weakly. She did not return the gesture, but turned him to lead him away.

Harry ripped from Draco's grasp. "Don't walk away from me, whore!"

Hermione stopped in her tracks. Emotional pain stabbed at her stomach. How could Harry say that? There was no reason for it. She was not one to be sleeping around. She had done nothing to him, and there was reason for attacking Ron. She bit her lip, but did not turn. She stood still, dumbfounded by Harry's words.

"Mr. Potter!" The shrill voice of Professor McGonagall rang through the crowd. "Mr. Malfoy!" she screeched again as the sickening sound of bone cracking from a great force was heard.

Hermione hoped with all she had to hope for that Draco had not done something stupid. She cautiously looked over her shoulder, wincing when she saw Harry on the ground clutching his nose. Draco was glowering over him and shaking out his hand from the punch. "Shut your fucking mouth!"

Another "Mr. Malfoy!" scolding was issued from McGonagall as she finally entered the clearing. Her usual severe bun was frazzled, and she looked to have gotten little sleep. She looked from Harry to Draco to Hermione and Blaise and then scanned the circle. "What's going on here? Who started this?"

All hands pointed to Harry, who was still holding his bloody nose. "Wha…"

"Mr. Potter, Mr. Malfoy, please follow me. I'm sorry, but you will not be joining the rest of the students on today's planned trip." She started away to her office, and the two rivals followed.

Snape pushed to the front of the crowd and held up his hands. "Silence! Quiet everyone!" The student body went instantly silent. "Now, we apologize for being late, it was obviously a great mistake, but there were other matters to tend to. Please move out to the lawn, and we will be on our way to Hogsmeade."

Checking over her shoulder, Hermione watched Draco and Harry follow McGonagall with their heads bowed. Blaise placed a hand on her shoulder, and she winced. He quickly pulled it back, not wanting to cause her pain. She turned and grabbed it, lacing the fingers. They submerged themselves into the flow of students and let it carry them out the door to Hogsmeade.

Hogsmeade

Hermione Granger strolled through Hogsmeade, swinging Blaise's hand in hers. The boy's guitar clicked against his studded belt as he walked. They past Honeyduke's which was overflowing with Hogwarts students desperate for sweets. Hermione pressed tight against Blaise as they wove their way through the crowd. He placed a protective arm around her and guided her through. When they finally broke free, Hermione fell into him laughing, her hand grazing his stomach. His chest started to shake as he began to laugh as well. She looked up into his smiling hazel eyes. They shone with love, and she was sure hers reciprocated it. Without having to hide from Draco, she was sure this was the happiest she would ever feel.

They shuffled through the leaves that scattered the road, until they stood outside the Hog's Head pub. Hermione looked to Blaise, "Want to get a butterbeer or something?"

He looked down at her and laughed, "Well, I don't know about you, but I don't think they're going to have anything that we can drink other than butterbeer."

She giggled and pushed the door open, "Let's see." He held the door open as she stepped under his arm and into the pub.

He had not made it more than three steps before Hermione turned around, "Let's go to that tea place instead."

He squinted at her in confusion, "What? Why? No, I really want a butterbeer now…"

The girl grimaced, "But Blaise…"

"Come on, let's go." He turned her back around and pushed her into the pub. Grabbing her hand again, Blaise brought her to the bar and ordered two bottles of butterbeer. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Hermione constantly checking over her shoulder. When he had placed the order, he turned and leaned one arm on the counter. "Okay, what's got you jumpy?" The bartender returned with two bottles, and he reached into his pocket and pulled out four galleons. He placed the coins on the counter and turned to see what had Hermione so spooked.

His heart instantly sunk. In the center of the pub was Theodore Nott with his group of Slytherins surrounding him. The large boy looked up and saw Blaise watching him. Blaise grabbed Hermione's hand in one and the butterbeers in the other. He started for the door, but Theodore moved quickly and was soon standing between them and the exit. Blaise sighed and looked away from the cruel face of the Slytherin.

"Haven't you heard Blaisie-boy? The mudblood is Drakie's." Hermione's grip on Blaise's hand tightened, and her other hand curled into a fist. He glanced down at her, wishing he could face his fear of Nott. He wished he could just make the boy move and be on his way. But the only way to make Theodore Nott move was to fight him, and he was much bigger than Blaise. All he could do was give her hand a reassuring squeeze. "Did you hear me? Mudblood is Malfoy's. Is it that hard to comprehend, freak?" Blaise looked at the floor. "Yeah, and we wouldn't want this kind of thing to slip up, now would we?" Blaise jerked his head up to glare at Nott. "Ooh, did I do something to anger the emo freak? You're not going to cut me to death are you? I know you've had a lot of practice!" Nott's friends were in hysterics. Subconsciously, Blaise touched his wrist. He had never taken a blade to himself intentionally, and it was visible. He was wearing a short sleeve shirt. Nott could clearly see there were no scars or scabs. Still, the boy was making slitting actions on his arms, guffawing with his friends.

"Just move," Blaise sighed.

Theodore stopped and looked at him, "What?"

"Move, please." Blaise found the courage to look him in the eye.

The boy stepped toward. "I think I'll move when I feel like moving," he growled.

Hermione's hand flew to her pocket, and her wand was pointed at Nott's face in seconds. "No, you'll move when I feel like you should move."

Nott's eyes shifted from Blaise to the witch. "Two can play that game, mudblood." He reached to his pocket as well. However, panic flooded his face as he felt around for his wand, and the realization hit him that it was still on the table.

"Move," Hermione hissed. The boy obeyed, and Hermione and Blaise were able to finally scramble out the door.

They stumbled into the street. Hermione straightened herself and grabbed Blaise's arm. He allowed her to stick her fingers between his, but he avoided making eye contact. He was ashamed of not standing up to Theodore. Ashamed he was not able to stand up and protect her. He just stared at the ground, watching the leaves scatter in the brisk autumn breeze.

Hermione watched him. She knew he was embarrassed. Gently, she reached out and touched his arm. He turned even farther away. "Blaise, I-"

"You've got to be kidding me!" Ginny Weasley laughed. She had been in the pub, sitting in a far corner with her friends, and had seen the whole thing. "You're with Malfoy? Is that why Ronald freaked out?"

Hermione glared at the redhead. "Go away, Ginny." She looked at Blaise and tugged his hand to lead him away.

"Wait, no, Mione!" Ginny grabbed her arm. Hermione spun around and glared daggers at the fifth year. Ginny cast her eyes to the ground. "I wanted to apologize for my brother earlier. He was a real jerk." She turned her eyes up to see the other girl staring at her blankly. She shifted her gaze to the boy that stood silent beside her. "And you too…Blaise, right?" The boy nodded quietly. "I know he was a jackass. It rather surprised me. And I'm glad you did what you did, Hermione. Whatever it was," she laughed briefly. "He deserved it." She looked up to Hermione and smiled.

The other girl flashed a smile back. "Really? Oh, well, thanks, Ginny."

"But I don't think Harry was wrong," she jumped back in. "I mean, you attacked his best friend."

Hermione frowned, "and your brother, but you're not jumping Blaise!" she gripped the boy's hand tighter. So tight that he winced in pain. She dropped it as if he had scalded her, and whispered, "Sorry."

"But I think Ron was wrong!" Ginny protested. "Harry doesn't!"

"Why not? If Ron was wrong, why can't Harry be! If Ron was wrong and Harry thinks he's right, then why isn't Harry wrong!"

Ginny stuttered to explain her reasoning, "Well, I- uh- wha…"

"Rethink it, Ginny." Hermione turned on her heel and walked off. Blaise furrowed his brow and followed her. He hurried to catch up with her but she was walking with great strides. He looked up ahead and saw, much to his dismay, that she was headed for the Shrieking Shack.

The Shrieking Shack

Hermione stormed down the path. Blaise was running to keep up. She reached the tattered rope that outlined the safety zone for the Shrieking Shack. Without slowing, she ducked under the twain and half slid down the hill on the other side.

Blaise ran into the barrier and stopped, trying to catch his breath. He watched her trudge across the expansion of brown, overgrown grass. "Hermione!" She looked over her shoulder but continued walking. He looked up at the creaking house, and a shiver ran down his spine. Hermione was still walking towards it and was almost to the front walk. Blaise looked around and was suddenly afraid of being alone. He jumped over the rope and nearly fell down the hill, the guitar skidding on the ground. He stood and brushed himself off. "Hold up!" he yelled after Hermione, but she had already disappeared through the door.

He paused briefly, swallowing hard. The Shrieking Shack terrified him. He was about to just sit down and wait for her, when he heard loud laughter coming from down the pathway. He took off towards the creepy structure. He would rather face whatever made the shrieking shack shriek than be shrieking himself when Nott found him alone.

When he reached the gray and decrepit door, he looked back to see Theodore and his friends just coming up to the rope. He pulled the door with a loud creak and slipped inside, hoping the noise had not drawn attention. He gently closed the door behind him and turned to look around. He stood in a small foyer. A torn and scratched staircase led upstairs. The banister was hanging dangerously, the support poles shredded. HE scanned around and notice just about every inch of floor, wall and furniture was scratched or shredded. Fear gripped him as he imagined what kind of creature could do such destruction. It must have claws and teeth, and be very big or very angry. He swallowed and tried to focus finding Hermione.

Suddenly, a scream erupted from up the stairs. Blaise jumped and backed up into the wall. The frustrated screams continued for what seemed like an hour, but was surely only a minute. They ceased, and Blaise could hear his heart pounding fiercely in the silence.

He finally found his voice. "Her- Her- Hermione?"

There was shuffling overhead, and then, "Blaise?" He relaxed a great deal. "Blaise, come up here."

He looked at the stairs, judging their stability. He concluded that they should hold him because they held whatever the shrieking thing was and Hermione. He hurried up them and found himself in a hallway. There were several open doorways. He peered into them and found beds, armchairs and other pieces of furniture in shambles. He hurried from room to room, trying to find Hermione and hoping he would not come across the shrieking beast first.

He finally found the girl sitting on a demolished bed. The canopy was torn and hanging. The bed itself was missing a leg and slanted down to the right. She sat against the headboard with her knees hugged to her chest. Blaise rushed over to her. "Are you okay? I heard a scream."

She looked up at him. "No, oh my god! She's so dumb! So frustrating! So.." She let out a frustrated scream.

"Um, okay, uh, can we leave now before we get caught?" He tried to calm her down and grabbed her hand to pull her to the door.

She pulled it away. "No, no one will come here. They're all afraid of it," she laughed.

Blaise stared at her, dumbfounded by her willingness to stay. "Yeah, well maybe we should leave before what they're afraid of knows we're here." He tugged on her hand again.

He had expected that to get her moving, and possibly running, to the door, but she burst into laughter. "Oh my god! You're on of them! You actually believe there's a monster here! Well, unless Lupin came back without me knowing, there isn't anyone or thing here besides us."

Blaise gave her a confused look. "What are you talking about?" Checking over his shoulder quickly, he moved closer to her.

Hermione continued to laugh. He gave her a minute to calm down before pressing for more information. She took a deep breath in. "Okay, okay. Well, do you remember Professor Lupin from our third year?" Blaise nodded. How could he forget the crazy teacher that made them face a bogart? Blaise's had turned into Theodore Nott, and Draco had had to punch the thing in the face when it started to mock him. No one had let him forget it, but luckily Theodore was not I that class. He flipped his guitar around to in front of him to brush it off, as Hermione continued. "He was kind of, uh, a werewolf." She watched for his reaction, but his facial expression did not change. He was still waiting for more. She stood and walked out the bedroom door. She led him down the hallway again. They passed a bathroom that had obviously not been used in years. The toilet and sink were brown from rust and god knows what. Blaise swallowed to keep from throwing up. Hermione marched past the rows of bedrooms until she stood at the top of the destroyed stairs.

She started to descend them and he started to follow her. However, when he stepped on the first stair, there was a loud creak that preceded a sickening crack and splintering sound. He jumped back and thought it best to wait for her to get off the flight of stairs. After his feet were safely on the floor, she continued to lead him to the basement. These stairs were not so torn apart, but Blaise was not so sure he trusted them either. Hermione walked down slowly and disappeared. He hurried down the stairs and stopped to look for her.

A loud scraping noise came from the right, and Blaise jumped and spun around. "Lumos!" He held his ignited wand tip toward the noise. The light bounced off the stone walls and lit up a bent over Hermione.

She looked up at him. He could see a hole in the wall behind her and a metal grate leaning against the side. "Come on," she whispered and disappeared into the hole.

"Wait! Hermione!" Blaise rushed to the hole. He peered in and saw the tip of her ignited wand bobbing as she walked. He straightened again. "Okay," he said to himself. "Dark scary tunnel that made hold anything with Hermione or creepy, creaky house alone?" The house gave a loud creak in response to his thinking. He jumped and dove into the hole. Holding his wand out in front of him, he followed the fading light of Hermione's. "Mione!" Her wand steadied, and he hurried to catch up. "Where are we?" he asked when they stood together.

Her sly smile looked eerie in the faint wand light. "You'll see." She turned and continued on. Blaise hurried after her and grabbed her hand. She smiled at him again. "What? Scared?"

He looked down at her indignantly. "No." Dropping her hand, he took satisfaction in the surprised look that covered her face. She reached down and seized his hand again. HE smiled at her, but she did not see.

They continued down the tunnel in silence, the only sound being the resonating click of Blaise's guitar against his belt. The path twisted and turned so many times that he was sure he was lost. The tunnel went on forever, and he was doubtful of there being an end. He opened his mouth to ask Hermione if they could just sit and rest a bit, but she said, "Almost there."

The ground started to slope up, and he complained, "Aw, now it's uphill?" He was watching his feet as they walked, tired of the monotonous darkness of the tunnel ahead. She shushed him, and he looked up. Ahead of them was a square of light. Blaise quickened his pace until he was running towards the exit.

Hermione tried to grab him. "No! Wait! Blaise!"

He burst into the blinding sunlight. He fell to his knees and took in a deep breath. He turned to see if Hermione had made it out of the tunnel yet, but he was sent sprawling when something struck the ground next to him. He landed on his stomach and twisted his left wrist. He looked back at the hole and saw Hermione just coming out of the tunnel. He tried to yell out to her, but he was cut off by something else smacking the earth next to his head. He rolled out of the way onto his back, the guitar pressing into his skin. "Holy shit!"

"Blaise!" Hermione was running towards him.

"No! Hermione! Something keeps-"

"It's okay. I stopped it." She knelt beside him and helped him sit up.

"What?" He looked up to see the club-like branches of the Whomping Willow immobilized against the gray autumn sky. "How- How'd you do that?"

"Are you okay?" she asked, checking for injuries.

"Yeah, yeah. How'd you freeze the Whomping Willow? Was it the Immobulous charm?" A blade of grass froze stiff near the tip of Blaise's wand. He had not noticed pulling it out.

She smiled. "That's what I wanted to show you, but you took off so fast I couldn't tell you. Come on, we don't have much time." She helped him stand and pulled him to the base of the tree. "That." She pointed at the bark.

Blaise squinted at it. "What?" Hermione drew her finger in a small circle, and he saw a circular knot that stuck out from the tree like a button.

"It immobilizes the tree, so Lupin and his 3 animagous friends could slip in without getting clobbered. One was a rat, and he slipped through the branches and hit it. Then, the rest would help Lupin to the Shack so he could transform in the full moon without hurting anyone." She looked at him to make sure he understood.

"So, Lupin's the shrieking thing?"

She nodded. "Now, let's head back to Hogsmeade." They slipped into the tunnel.

Hermione started away, but Blaise grabbed her arm. "Hey." He pressed her back against the wall and kissed her. It was a simple kiss, but it left her speechless. "Just so you know," Blaise said, holding her close, "I'm afraid of the dark." She looked up at him and smiled. Without saying a word, she conjured and lantern and lit it with her wand. He seized her hand, and they continued down the tunnel, back to the Shrieking Shack.

A New Pet

Blaise shoved Hermione into the wall playfully. She giggled and pushed him back. He checked her into the side of the tunnel again. She moved to hit him, but he dodged it and sprinted for the dim light of the Shrieking Shack's basement. He ran, laughing, until he was just at the end of the tunnel. He skidded to a stop and looked back to see the lantern bobbing and swaying as Hermione ran after him.

He ducked out of the tunnel quickly, chuckling to himself. However, the smile was wiped off his face, when he bumped headfirst into something. Something furry. He looked up into bright yellow eyes. He back up into the tunnel, tripped over an uneven spot on the ground and fell on his backside. He scrambled backwards to get away, but the huge, black dog stalked after him. It barked, and Blaise jumped, causing his hand to slip so that he fell. The scruffy dog jumped him and snarled. He stared into the yellow eyes and screamed, "Her- Hermione! Help! Hermione!" As he screamed, the dog sat up straight on his chest and cocked its head to the right.

It looked up at Hermione as she came bounding down the tunnel. "Blaise? Oh my god, Blaise! I didn't think-" She halted and looked at the dog perched on the boy's chest. "Oh! Sir-" She glanced down at Blaise. "Snuffles!"

The dog barked happily and jumped off Blaise's torso. It pranced giddily over to Hermione and danced around her feet. She knelt to scratch it behind its ears.

Blaise winced as he tried to sit up. With much effort and pain, he finally stood up and leaned against the dirt wall. The guitar had jabbed him in the back, and he was sure it looked like crap. He wanted to swing it around to survey the damage, but the dog was constantly watching him. It turned and growled at the boy.

Hermione placed a hand on its head. "Ssh, it's okay." She walked over to Blaise. "Are you alright?" She touched his arm lightly. He nodded slowly, but kept a wary eye on the dog. She looked at the animal. "It's okay, we're alone." The dog gave her a doubtful tilt of its head. "I'm positive. I mean, it's the Shrieking Shack."

The dog seemed to nod in acknowledgement of the fact. In one quick movement, the animal changed. It re-molded itself into the form of a man. Blaise gaped at him with his mouth open. He knew of animagi, but they still always surprised him. There, before him, stood Sirius Black, the fugitive from Azkaban who had been missing for years. The brown hair on his head was wild and greasy. It blended into his scraggly beard that was tinged with gray. His eyes flicked from Hermione to Blaise. "Who's this?" His voice was deep and hoarse.

Hermione pressed closer to the Slytherin punk. "He's, uh-" She looked up at Blaise. "My, uh…friend?" He furrowed his brow. "Boy….friend?" The boy gave her a skeptical look. He wasn't her boyfriend in the definition of the word, but they were definitely more than just friends. She turned back to Sirius. "It's complicated. This is Blaise." The man gave him a curious look before extending his hand. "Blaise, this is Harry's godfather, Si-"

"Sirius Black." Blaise finished, shaking Sirius' hand and watching the eyes that had changed from yellow to brown. They filled with suspicion as he spoke.

Hermione laughed, "Yeah, how'd you know?"

Blaise started to speak, but Sirius stepped forward. "You look rather familiar. What's your last name?"

"Zabini," the young witch beside him blurted out.

Sirius dropped his hand and shrugged, turning to Hermione. "So, why's it so complicated?"

The girl blushed and looked at her feet. "It's, uh….it's nothing. Never mind." She shook her head to dismiss it.

Sirius shrugged. "Okay." He stretched out a scratched and scarred arm, indicating the end of the tunnel. "Shall we?" Hermione nodded and ducked into the eerie basement.

Sirius looked to Blaise, who offered, "After you." The man shrugged once again and stepped through the hole. He led the two students up the stairs to a living room that held several armchairs and an old sofa. There was not a cushion that did not have multiple claw marks tearing the fabric. Sirius positioned himself in a chair, while Hermione plopped down on the sofa. Blaise eyed the other chair. It was completely shredded, and the stuffing lay on the floor around it. The couch was in better condition, so he sat himself next to Hermione. He swung the guitar around to check it. The bottom was scratched and dirty as hell. He grimaced and started to brush it off. Hermione gave him a sympathetic look and pulled out her wand. Resting it on the damaged guitar, she muttered a charm. A silver wisp spread across the instrument, and the scratches in the metal disappeared.

Blaise stared at it for a moment in amazement. The girl laughed at his impressed facial expression. They looked up into each other's eyes and smiled.

The chair squeaked in complaint at being used as Sirius leaned forward. "What is that?"

Hermione tore her gaze from Blaise's enchanting hazel eyes to look at the animagous. "It's a muggle guitar. Listen." She turned back to Blaise. "Play a My Chemical Romance song." Blaise looked up at Sirius, who had screwed his face up at the name of the band. He gazed back down at the guitar and played the opening notes to "You Know What They Do to Guys like Us in Prison." Hermione jumped in with the lyrics, "In the middle of a gunfight. In the center of a restaurant. They say, come with your arms raised high."

Sirius cut them short. "Oh, that's pretty cool." He sat back in the chair and placed his hands behind his head.

Hermione smiled and asked, "So, how have you been fairing?"

Sirius shrugged. "Eh, it's getting harder to live on the streets. When you look like me, not even kids come near you. I've grown accustom to being hungry, don't even notice it anymore, unless I eat." He touched his stomach.

"Oh," Hermione whispered and looked at the floor. The three of them sat in silence. Blaise looked up at Sirius. The man was staring into the empty fireplace. Hermione was watching him and appeared to be deep in thought. Suddenly, she exclaimed, "Wait!" The boys looked at her oddly. "What if you came to Hogwarts with us?"

"What?" Sirius looked at her as though she were crazy. "How would we do that?"

Hermione looked from him to Blaise and back. "We'll sneak you in as Snuffles and talk to Dumbledore. He knows and loves you. Then, you could be my dog that I have to watch while my parents are on vacation!" She sat back, proud of her plan.

Sirius nodded in understanding. "Okay, but how do we get me there?"

She shrugged as if it were obvious. "As my dog. We can go down to the Three Broomsticks and clean you up and use this." She conjured a leash and collar.

He winced. "Do I have to wear that thing?"

"If we want to make it believable." Sirius grimaced but morphed int his dog form anyway. Hermione looked at him for a second, her finger on her lip as she thought. She scanned the ceiling as if something up there would reminder her of what she wanted to say. "Actually, we don't have to go to the Three Broomsticks." Snuffles looked at her doubtfully. "Hang on, just stand there." She straightened the dog and stepped back, aiming her wand. "Groomius!"

Blaise watched in disbelief. The mats in the fur disappeared, and the bald patches filled with fur. The dog pulled its lips back from its teeth distastefully, and he saw they had been whitened. Starting from behind the ears, a ruffle spread across Snuffles' back and down his legs and tail. The greasy was gone, and the fur looked soft and clean. Then, it straightened towards the back and down the sides as it a brush had been run over it. The dog looked itself over and barked happily.

Hermione laughed, "Okay, come here." She held out the black and blue collar. It matched Blaise's guitar strap, and so did the leash. Snuffles shied away a little, but he trudged over to her eventually. She clipped it around his neck and attached the leash. "Alright." She looked up at Blaise.

He smiled. "Okay." They started for the front door, but Snuffles pulled the other way on the leash. He barked twice and continued pulling toward the basement. Blaise saw he wanted to take the tunnel. He caught Hermione's eye and saw she knew it too. He shrugged. "It is a little more secretive." She nodded back, and they all headed down to the basement of the Shrieking Shack.

Return to School

Hermione squinted into the bright sunlight. She gripped Snuffles' leash tightly in one hand and Blaise's palm in the other. She looked up at the clear blue sky, and then shifted her gaze to the magnificent castle of Hogwarts. "Come on." She pulled the other two forward across the lawn.

Several first years, who had chosen to stretch out by the lake rather than stay cooped up inside, jumped up and ran to them, asking to play with Snuffles. After some hesitation, the dog ran, leaping and barking with the kids.

Hermione sat with Blaise against a tree. He moved to place his hand on her knee, but she blocked it and checked over her shoulder quickly. "No, not here. Draco…" She trailed off and checked over her shoulder again. The boy looked at the ground, blushing. He turned away to watch Snuffles running after sticks the kids were throwing. "Blaise." She placed her hand on his arm lightly and forced him to look at her. "I like you. I really do. And this is okay, in Hogsmeade and out of school. But, god, Blaise, here…I just don't want Draco to find out like that…" She trailed off.

Blaise jerked his arm out her grip and turned away again. "Just tell him."

Hermione gaped at him in astonishment. Wasn't he the one, just this morning, to say they could hide it? She stared at him. "Blaise! Give me some time! It's only been- It hasn't even been one day!" She thought back to what had happened earlier. She couldn't believe that had only been this morning.

The boy dropped his head. He turned back to her with large apologetic eyes. "Sorry, I'm sorry. I get it. I'm sorry." He leaned in and they hugged. He was first to pull back, and he picked up the guitar he had set on the ground beside them. He watched her eyes as he strummed.

Hermione nodded along with the Panic! At The Disco song. "The IV and your hospital bed. This was no accident. It was a therapeutic chain of events." She continued singing and watched Snuffles jumping around after sticks. She suddenly felt a presence beside her and looked out of the corner of her eyes to see what it was. She startled when she saw a person, but relaxed mostly when she realized it was Draco.

"Hey." He grabbed her hand, weaving his fingers in, and leaned in to kiss her. However, just as she was preparing herself for the contact, he pulled back quickly. "Oh, sorry, forgot."

Hermione furrowed her brow and squinted at him in confusion. Then, it hit her, and she kissed him quickly. "It's okay. Everyone knows. You have Theodore Nott to thank for that-" She bit her lip, remembering why Nott had made the outburst. She lowered her yes quickly before moving them to meet his.

He was half-smiling. "Don't worry about it, Mione. He lies so much, no one believes him anymore." The boy shrugged it off and moved in to kiss her again. She tried to keep it modest, but he forced his tongue into her mouth and ran it along hers.

Hermione opened her eyes and found Draco had actually closed his. She reached behind her until she felt Blaise's hand and squeezed it. The boy started at the touch, obviously lost in thought while watching the dog and kids. He squeezed back and held it. She pulled away from Draco and flashed a smile. The blonde boy rested his back against the rough bark on the trunk of the tree and pulled Hermione with him so that she fell into his chest. They started to laugh, but a low growl interrupted it. They looked at Blaise, who was staring with wide eyes filled with fear at Snuffles who stood over his legs. His ears were flat against his head, and another low growl rumbled from his throat.

"Holy-" Draco scrambled to his feet. He fumbled and pulled out his wand, as the dog stepped forward and the growl erupted into a bark. Then, he was airborne.

Hermione reacted quicker than she thought she could. "No! Snuffles!" She dove forward and caught the animal in midair before it made contact with the boy. The two of the fell and tumbled as a heap. The dog stood immediately and shook himself out. Before Hermione could sit herself up, he had turned on Draco again. He snarled and lunged once more. However, Hermione was quick to snatch the leash the first years had fortunately left clipped on. He was snapped back from his charge when he reached the end of the leash. He looked at her, bewildered. "He's my boyfriend!" she screamed at the canine, so harshly that her voice cracked. The dog's eyes were crazy with confusion. He looked over his shoulder at Blaise, and then turned over the other to Draco and back to her. Then, he spun around and trotted up to Blaise and laid his head on the boy's legs. Snuffles barked at her again, making his point clear. Hermione looked at the grass beneath her feet that was turning yellow in the cold weather. "Yeah, I know." She climbed the small hill she had rolled to Draco, who still held out his wand. She touched his arm lightly and helped him lower it.

His steely gray eyes looked at her wildly. "What the hell is that?"

Hermione looked at him blankly and simply stated, "A Dog."

Blaise laughed, but one glare shot at him by Draco silenced him. "Where did it come from? Is it yours?" He spoke to Blaise, who still had the dog stretched across his legs. The boy had stiffened, and it was obvious he was uncomfortable.

"No." Hermione stepped in. "He's mine. My parents dropped him off in Hogsmeade. They're going on vacation for a while and Dumbledore said I could have him here." She rested her hand on his upper arm to try and calm him down.

He shot her a glance out of the corner of his eye. "What?"

Hermione only laughed. She wrapped her arms around his neck and stood on tiptoes to kiss him. She expected him to laugh as well, or at least kiss her back, but he just stood there with his face screwed up in his confused expression.

"I didn't know you had a dog…" Draco trailed off and looked at her. "Why's he so buddy-buddy with Blaise already?"

She laughed at the dog, who had sprawled out on its back in the sun. Blaise still looked rather uneasy with the animal stretched across him. She changed the subject quickly, not wanting to make their already huge lie bigger. "I don't tell you everything…" she answered slyly before adding, "Well, we better go see Dumbledore, before its too late." She clapped her hands twice. "Come on, Snuffles!" The dog jumped to his feet abruptly, causing Blaise to flinch greatly visibly. He trotted over to Hermione, and she bent to pick up the leash. Blaise slowly got to his feet and followed them into the castle, leaving a confused Draco all alone.

"'Snuffles?'"

Uncommon Meeting in the Common Room

Instead of heading straight for Dumbledore's office, Hermione decided to stop by the Gryffindor Common Room. She turned to Blaise and said, "It'll only take a second." Spinning to face the Fat Lady, she announced, "Gillyweed." The woman gave Blaise a wary look, and Hermione clasped his hand reassuringly. The patriot swung forward, an they stepped through.

Hermione was surprised to find she had been terribly wrong. The Common Room was jammed packed with people. She was sure all of Gryffindor House had squeezed into the small room. She scanned the mass of students for a friendly face. She saw Harry in the corner, but he still looked rather unpleasant. A confused-looking Ron was perched next to him. She pulled Blaise and Snuffles in the other direction, apologizing quickly as she shoved her way through the crowd.

A flame of red hair bobbed its way towards her, until Ginny stood in front of her. The look on her face gave the impression she had forgotten about earlier. "Oh, good, you made it! I was trying to find you! Who told you about it?"

"Ginny! What's going on?" she yelled over the noise.

"McGonagall called a meeting!" Lavender pushed forward. "Every house did!" She batted Her eyes flirtatiously at Blaise. "I'm sure they're all the same, so you can stay here!"

The boy shifted his weight uncomfortably. For fear of something happening to it, he had removed the guitar strap and Held the instrument in front of him. He shot a glance at Hermione, who gave a reassuringly look and squeezed his hand.

Parvati elbowed her way up to the group. However, just as she opened her mouth to speak, McGonagall's voice rang through the room. "Ladies and gentlemen, if I could have your attention, please!" The noise died out, and all eyes were directed to the professor. She still looked frazzled and in a hurry. "Now, the administration here has gotten word of some rather horrible events occurring outside these walls." This caused a murmur to sweep through the crowd of Gryffindors. "Please, ladies and gentlemen!" The woman Held her hands up for silence. "Until further notice, we have decided it best for the student body to spend the nights in the Great Hall." An excited whisper moved the students again. "So, if you would please go gather your things and retrieve your trunks. Bedding will be provided! Meet back here, and your prefects will lead you down!" The professor yelled over the commotion as everyone pushed away to the dormitories.

Hermione pushed tight against Blaise to get out of the way, and he wrapped a protective arm around her. They held fast to each other and stood against the rush of bodies. Snuffles was pressed firmly against their legs. When everyone had cleared and the chatter was muffled by closed doors, Hermione approached Professor McGonagall. "Professor?" The woman looked up at her. "I need to speak with Dumbledore. Would it be possible to do that before I get my belongings?"

McGonagall shifted her eyes to Snuffles. "Miss Granger, you are a prefect. You must lead the others. Besides, regrettably, Professor Dumbledore has left for the Ministry of Magic. He is not here. Perhaps I could be of assistance?" Her eyes moved to the canine again and then to Blaise.

Hermione shrugged, "No, it's not really that important…" She gripped the leash tighter and turned away. She started to walk toward the girls' dorm, taking McGonagall's silence as approval.

"Uh, Miss Granger," the professor called after her. Hermione winced but turned to face her Head of House. "Is there anything you wish to tell me?"

The girl bit her lip and felt Blaise shift his weight nervously beside her. "Um…" she stalled. McGonagall looked pointedly at Snuffles. "Oh! The dog? Er, he's mine. I have to watch him while my parents are on vacation. I just wanted to make sure Dumbledore knew he was here…" She avoided eye contact and held her breath in apprehension. When she finally glanced up, McGonagall had a small smile on her face.

"Oh, okay…" The teacher winked at her quickly before turning on her heel to walk out to exit the Common Room. Students began to trickle back into the area.

As the room started to fill up again, Hermione pulled Blaise and Snuffles against the current towards the girls' dormitory. The boy hurried past her to get out of the crowd. Laughing, she ran after him, half-dragging the dog behind her. She entered the dorm and found Blaise flopped across her bed.

Parvati and Lavender were in the corner chattering and occasionally shooting glances at the outstretched boy. Hermione looked at them, and a strange feeling knotted her stomach. She recognized it as jealousy and felt the blush creep up into her cheeks.

Blaise lifted his head to grin at her. She giggled and took note of the look of envy that crossed the other girls' faces. They slammed their trunks shut and levitated them out the door. Hermione watched them go and then turned her attention to Snuffles, who padded over to Parvati's bed casually and jumped up to doze. She laughed and sat on her bed next to Blaise.

He sat up and gazed at her softly. She sighed and looked back at him. He chuckled, "Want help with packing?"

She shrugged, "No, I think I can do it." She flicked her wand, and everything on her bedside table flew into the trunk to be neatly stacked. With another flick, her clothes folded and placed themselves neatly inside the trunk as well. She flicked it one last time, and several item from under her bed and a still photo from under her pillow squeezed in before the trunk shut and latched itself.

Blaise stared at the luggage. "Whoa." He didn't bother asking how she did it. It was obviously something she had taught herself. "Can you teach me that?" He looked at her expectantly.

She giggled, "Okay, later. Windgardium Leviosa." The trunk lifted off the ground, and she led it out the door.

Blaise's Secret

Hermione lay on her side, trying to sleep. Her eyes were closed, but she could hear Draco moving around and fumbling through his trunk. She looked to see him crouched over the luggage and swearing under his breath as he threw things aside. "Draco?" she inquired lazily.

He spun around in surprise and tried to give her a reassuring look, but it turned to be more frantic than anything. "Mione, go back to sleep. I just- I, uh…" He furrowed his brow and took the opportunity to return to his search. With a gasp of relief, he wrenched a small black draw bag from the mess.

"Draco, is that…is that floo powder?" He gave her a quick urgent glance and knelt beside her.

"Hermione, you can't tell anyone. I just have to leave for a bit. I promise I'm coming back. I just have to do this thing…" He trailed off as Snuffles sat up and cocked his head at the boy. Blaise shifted next to her, and Hermione turned to him. His eyes were shut, but she could tell he wasn't really asleep. She twisted back around to Draco and found his face inches from hers. "Please, Mione…" He kissed her passionately, running his tongue along hers. Pulling back, he whispered. "I love you…" He opened his eyes to meet hers, wide and honey colored. "Goodbye." He brushed her lips with his again fleetingly. He stood abruptly and snuck quickly across the sleeping bodies and out of the Great Hall.

Hermione stared after him for awhile until she heard Blaise throw back his sleeping bag. "Where's he going?" he asked quietly.

She turned to the other boy and was surprised to see him in full muggle clothes. The slim jeans were a good look for him. He was also sporting a tight black t shirt with "Decaydance" written over a bat silhouette that had a heart carved out of the middle. She recognized it as a popular punk label. He had laid the eyeliner on thickly, and she liked it. "I don't know…" she mumbled. She looked him over again. "You have some weird pajamas," she commented. He laughed and silently got to his feet. He picked up a black muggle saddlebag that was rested against his trunk. He slung it across his back and then opened the trunk carefully to retrieve his guitar. Hermione watched him, as he did so. He seemed to forget she was awake, for he jumped a little he spun back around to find her staring at him. "Are you leaving me too? Where are you going?" she pressured.

"I, uh, well, um…" He looked around and finally returned his gaze to her. "You can come if you want…of course, you'll have to change…"

"What?"

"Come on, I can't be late!" he whined and grabbed her hand to pull her up. "Never mind, we'll get you something there." She allowed him to drag her across the Great Hall, still not sure of what was going on. He pulled her into the Entrance Hall and spun around suddenly. "Grab the guitar."

"What?"

"Grab the guitar! Right now!" She complied and gripped the neck of the instrument. There was a tug at her navel, and she suddenly felt as if she were flying, or falling. She closed her eyes as the portkey whisked them away. When her feet were planted firmly on ground, she opened them to see a dressing room with several other boys rushing around. She stood dumbly in the middle of the chaos.

A door opened and cheers and screams of "Witness! Witness!" filled the room. A boy in his twenties, with a sweeping black fringe and eyes darkly outlined with liner, slammed the door shut behind him. "The crowd's going nuts; we've got to start soon."

Blaise had disappeared, but now emerged from a side room. "Damn it, I hate rowdy crowds…" he grumbled. The others agreed with nods and grunts.

"Um, Blaise?" Hermione touched his arm lightly as he tried to adjust a wire.

He looked at her quickly before gasping "Oh" and turning to a stylist. "Uh, can we get her some clothes?"

Hermione blushed as everyone turned to look at her in her pajamas. There was a small pause before the stylist nodded and pulled her into another side room.

The woman slammed the door behind her and moved to ruffle through a clothes rack. The noise died away, and Hermione could hear the boys whispering. She heard things such as, "Who's the chick?" or "Hey, Blaise, you finally get a girlfriend?" followed closely by "Why didn't you tell us?"

Blaise cut them all off with an explanation. "Her name's Hermione. She's a friend from Hogwarts." Hermione gave a small gasp as he uttered the name, and the stylist shot a strange look at her over her shoulder. What was Blaise doing? They were muggles! She shook her head briefly, realizing how condescending her thoughts were.

The stylist gripped her arm tightly and jerked her over to the rack. "Okay, so here's what I'm thinking…" The woman held up a small, black short-sleeved hoodie that was speckled with white outlines of stars. "This over this." She held out a bright pink baby tee that simply said "PUNK ROCK." "And these." She added a pair of dark flare jeans.

"Um, okay…" The stylist shoved the clothes the clothes at her and walked briskly out of the room, her heels clicking loudly on the tile floor. Hermione walked to the closed door and quickly locked it, fearful the young men on the other side might. She glanced down at the clothing her hands and pulled her wand out of the hem of her pajama pants. Swishing it about her, she changed her outfit, just as she had that morning. She stood awkwardly in the small room and gazed around. The walls were undecorated, a plain beige color. The three full clothes racks were lined against the back wall, across from a simple vanity. It consisted of a boring counter set underneath a wide mirror that was lined with light bulbs. A single chair in the corner was the only furniture provided.

An eyeliner pencil lay carelessly out of place on the counter. Hermione studied herself in the mirror and decided the makeup would add to the punk look. She was just putting on some finishing touches to each eye when there was a soft knock on the door. "Come in?" she offered before remembering the door was locked and flicking her wand quickly to unlatch it.

Blaise poked his head in and looked her up and down. He pushed the door open the rest of the way and nodded his approval. "You look good." He leaned forward and kissed her cheek. He had added more eyeliner, and there was a small earpiece inserted into his ear that was attached to the wire he had been fumbling with earlier. "I especially love the eyeliner."

She forced out a small laugh but quickly turned her curious face toward him. "Blaise, what exactly is going on here?" Hermione indicated the doorway that led to the other room. They could hear the twanging of someone playing a guitar with no amp and the impatient tapping of drumsticks.

The boy responded with a laugh. "Oh, you still don't know where the hell you are, do you?" She gave him an incredulous look. He chuckled again. "It's a concert. My band's playing. We're on tour."

She raised her eyebrows and tried to keep the note of surprise in her voice minimal. "You're in a band?" He bit his lip and laughed again. It surprised her to see him so charismatic. Was Hogwarts just a show? She shook the thoughts from her mind and looked back at her curiously. "What are you guys called?"

"Silent Witness," he replied simply.

Her eyes widened, and her mouth dropped. "Oh my god! You're Blaise from Silent Witness? I thought it was all just a coincidence! Blaise!" She hit him playfully. "Why didn't you tell me!"

He blushed and looked at the floor, grazing his arm lightly with his fingers where she had touched him. "Didn't want the publicity. I knew you were into rock and punk rock, so I figured you had heard of us. I didn't want you to treat me different."

Hermione stared at him in disbelief. She had made the connection that her peer and the famous musician looked similar, but it never occurred to her they might be the same person. Her mind raced back to the large poster of Silent Witness that hung over her bed at home, and she fought back the blush. Biting her lip, she lowered her eyes. She couldn't lie and tell him she would have treated him the same.

He smirked. "See?"

She only had time to flash a sheepish smile before one of Blaise's band mates stepped in. Hermione recognized him as Pete, the bassist. Her face heated up as the blush crept into her cheeks, and she wished she could shed the habit of blushing when she saw a cute guy. Pete glanced at her and smile politely, then turned to the other boy. "Hey, Blaisey-boy, we've only got a few minutes." She found herself grinning at his hot American accent.

Blaise looked at her quickly and broke the awkward tension by introducing them. "Pete, this is Hermione. Hermione, Pete."

Pete offered his hand. "Or Petey." She clasped his warm hand and offered a "hello." He studied her briefly, and then returned his hazel eyes to hers. "You a witch?"

Her eyes widened in shock and stared back into his. They were darker than Blaise's, but she blinked any swooning away. "W-what?" She shot an urgent look at Blaise. He caught her gaze and nodded slowly, his eyes telling her the band knew of Hogwarts. She looked back at Pete. He was watching her expectantly. "Uh, yeah…" She bit her lip.

The boy smiled and dropped her fingers. "Cool." His hand flew to his pocket, and he fished around for his Sidekick cell phone. He glanced at it. "Oh, shit! Blaise, come on!" Pete started to pull Blaise away, but he turned back to Hermione. "See you after the show?"

She nodded dumbly and grinned. Blaise stepped back. "I'll be right there." Pete gave him an impatient look but walked out with is bass guitar. Blaise turned back to Hermione and pulled her into a hug, pressing his lips to hers.

When he pulled back, she smiled and squeaked, "Good luck."

He flashed a smile of appreciation and disappeared out the door. She watched him grab his guitar and followed him to the stage.

The rest of the band was gathered around the stage entrance, watching the screamy opening band. Hermione cast her gaze around the group. She recognized the backup guitarist Mikey and the drummer Ryan. Pete was with them, and they all turned around when Blaise and Hermione walked up. Blaise introduced everyone quickly, and then they were interrupted by the opening band running offstage.

The lead singer was off first. He barged through the feature band and into the bathroom. The rest of the band pressed through Silent Witness, who each gave all of them high fives. The band went to the bathroom door, and Pete joined them. The guitarist knocked softly on the door and called. "Brian! You okay?" There was no response, so the boy pushed the door open a little. Hermione had to cover her ears and turn into Blaise, as the sound of the singer throwing up spilled out of the room. The others grimaced.

"Brian?" Pete stepped into the bathroom, and Hermione caught a glimpse of Brian resting against the tiled wall and massaging his throat. "You good?"

The boy opened his mouth to speak, but the hoarse whisper was barely audible. Pete sighed and rolled his eyes. "Man, every night Brian. Maybe you guys should find a softer sound…" Brian gave him a dirty look.

Blaise came up and pulled Petey away. "Come on, man. We've got to set up." Hermione squinted in confusion. Blaise had an American accent here. That was strange. He saw the look on her face and bit his lip. Avoiding eye contact, he brushed past her to lead Pete to the stage. She watched them hook up their guitars and run a sound check. Blaise averted his gaze away from Hermione's, and it made her wonder. There was obviously more to Blaise Zabini than what anyone at Hogwarts saw.

The Truth

Hermione leaned against the proscenium and watched Blaise sing into the microphone. "The scent of formaldehyde floats through the hall, to remind me this is no hotel. The metal room closes in on me, and it gets so cold! So cold! So co-o-old!" The band struck and instrumental part, and her eyes were distracted by Petey jumping and spinning around. They all stopped and put their mouths to the mics to yell "Cold!" and struck the final chord. There was deafening applause and cheers form the audience, and Hermione clapped herself.

Pete glanced at her offstage. He then glimpsed quickly at Blaise, who was addressing the crowd. Petey looked back at Hermione and quickly approached her. He was breathing hard and sweating profusely. She offered him a towel, and he nodded his thanks and wiped his face, careful to avoid smudging the eyeliner. He dropped the towel on the ground and looked up at her. "Can you make Blaise fly?"

"What?"

"You're magic. Can you make Blaise fly?" He looked at her wildly.

"B-but I-I'm not allowed to do magic outside of school," she protested.

"Come on, just this once. Who's gonna know?"

"The Ministry of Magic," she pointed out.

"Come on, Hermione!" He shot a worried look over his shoulder and saw Blaise watching them impatiently. The boy turned back to entertain the rowdy fans, and Pete swung urgent eyes back to her.

"Ugh, fine! Now go!" She spun him around and pushed him back out onto the stage.

Pete nodded to Blaise, who turned to the audience and held his arms wide. "You mother fuckers tired yet?" Cries of "No!" made him laugh that low chuckle that made Hermione beam. "Well, neither are we!" This was answered by cheers and screams. "However, however," He held his hands high again, "this must end sometime, like all things. So we have one more song!" The fans complained, but Blaise ignored it and shouted, "To anyone who's ever had a secret they've been dying to tell!" More cheers erupted from the teens as the band played the intro. "There's one thing that sets us apart . . . from everyone else." There was short instrumental. "And no one else can know! Take a shot to the head, and as your lips grow cold, you have the strength to utter one last phrase, oh. Would you choose to reveal, us all to the Muggle world?" Hermione laughed, now she got it. When she had first listened to this song, she'd thought she had heard the word "muggle." She had pressed rewind over and over, not believing she had heard it, but she couldn't think of anything else it could be. Blaise glanced at her out of the corner of his eye before he hit the chorus.

She caught Pete nodding at her and whispered, "Wingardium Leviosa!" with a flick of her wand.

She watched as the boy gently lifted into the air. The surprised look on his face and the reaction from the fans made her giggle. Blaise only hesitated for a second before seeing her wand and continuing. "Girl,it's just too much. I can't take it! There's a gun to my head, and my finger's on the trigger! My choices are clear: end this secret life or tell ever-y-one and let you all suffer!" He shot her a look again, and she grinned back. He turned away, toward the audience. She shook her head and just listened to the rest of the song.

After the final chord, Pete and Blaise shouted "Goodnight!" into their mics and joined the rest of Silent Witness who were rushing past Hermione. She caught Blaise's hand, and he spun around to beam at her. "That was so cool! Oh my god, I've never loved being magic so much!" He pulled her into a hug, and she couldn't help smiling. He kissed her harshly before pulling her head to his chest again. She listened to his rapid heartbeat pounding against his ribcage. Pressing his lips to her ear, he said, "Mione, that was awesome! It really was."

Hermione was about to tell him it was Pete's idea, but his voice stopped her. She pulled back and furrowed her brow. "Blaise, you sound American," she laughed. His eyes widened quickly, and he turned away to his band mates. She seized his arm. "Blaise?"

He turned on his heel and looked at her desperately. "Not now, okay?" he pleaded, his voice unusually harsh. She gave a curt nod, and he leaned in to kiss her again.

When they had separated, Pete grabbed Blaise's shoulders and dragged him away. Hermione trailed after them.

The dressing room was filled with excited chatter. A stack of the newest issue of Kerrang! had been scattered on the small circular coffee table that stood in the middle of a ring of white sofas. Hermione picked up a copy and flopped down onto a sofa. Blaise sat down to her right and pulled her closer. Together, they looked over the cover of the magazine. It was a picture of Silent Witness, Blaise looking content and comfortable while the others appeared to be screaming and freaking out around him. Hermione giggled at the still photo and flipped to the page it indicated. There were more pictures of the band, obviously from the same photo shoot. She set her eyes on the article. It was basic, explaining how Blaise and Pete had started the band. It went on to describe the members. She skimmed down to the paragraph on Blaise.

"Nineteen-year-old Blaise is given credit for making the band the way it is. A late starter, Blaise still attends a boarding school. Amazingly, the boy still finds time to be a full frontman for the band. Kerrang! sat down with the New Jersey native to ask him a few questions about his personal life and thoughts.

Why do you only refer to yourself as 'Blaise,' why is your last name such a secret?

'I've never liked my last name, so I introduce myself as Blaise. Most people don't ask for more. And if they do, I avoid answering.' chuckles

So what is it?

laughs 'Well, that would ruin all the fun, wouldn't it?'

Okay, well, what do you think of England? You seem to be spending a lot of your time in the United Kingdom.

'I love it here, more than the US. Don't get me wrong, home is home. I just like it over here more. This is where I want to live after I get married, where I want my kids to grow up."

Any perspective future bride?

blushes 'Well, actually, no. Not really. I mean, there is this girl...'

Oh? Who? Are the rumors true?

blushes more and laughs 'No, it's not Kelly Clarkson! No, just a girl from my boarding school. I don't think it will go anywhere...or even get started...She just started going out with one of my friends...' looks away

Does she have a name?

blushes further 'Uh...Hermione..."

Hermione stopped reading and looked at the boy. "Blaise?"

He looked at the floor, and a blush made his already pink face red. "Er…yeah…"

"Aw, Blaise!" She shifted to hug him. "Well, now you've got me!" she laughed.

He scowled and turned away. "Not really…"

She bit her lip and watched him carefully. They sat in silence for a while, and she looked over the article again. Something caught her eye, and she broke the awkward tension. "Blaise?" He twisted his head toward her in curiosity. "What does this mean 'New Jersey native?' That's in America, isn't it?"

He sighed and nodded solemnly. "Yeah…" He trailed off, seemingly fighting with himself over whether to explain or not. She reached out and touched his arm lightly. This seemed to give him the courage, and he turned back and grabbed her hands. "Mione, listen. I'm weird, okay? I always have been. I was born in New Jersey, in the United States. I still live there. But since I was little, strange things were happening around me all the time. And, sure, now we know why, but then it was crazy. My parents tried desperately to find out what was 'wrong,' and eventually we ended up in the Secretary of the State's office." Blaise locked eyes with Hermione and she stared back with real interest. "He told us we had to go to see the Prime Minister of England," he chuckled. "Well, my mom wasn't very happy with that, but we went any way. I had been kicked out of so many schools because of these weird things that happened only around me. I was fourteen then, should have been starting my fourth year at Hogwarts… So we went, and the Prime Minister suggested meeting with Dumbledore. He arranged it. When we met Dumbledore, he did a lot of 'tests' on me and stuff, like actually giving me a wand," Blaise snickered at some funny memory. "And he came to the conclusion that I was a wizard…" He watched for Hermione's reaction. She gave him none, only stared at him expectantly, waiting for him to continue. He laughed, "And so I started up at Hogwarts."

Pete walked over and sat down on the other side of Hermione, tossing Blaise a bottle of water. "I remember that. As soon as you got home, you ran over to my house and nearly screamed it at me," he chortled.

Hermione turned swiftly back to Blaise, meeting his gaze angrily. The boy only laughed, "Yeah, my bad. Dumbledore sure knocked some sense into me on that one…" He massaged his head as if remembering a physical blow. She gave him a quizzical look and gazed around the circle the band had formed. He added, "I got special permission to tell these guys. You can't hide much from your band mates…" She looked off to the side to think about everything he had just told her.

"Wait, Blaise, you're not a pureblood?" Hermione turned back to him and squinted.

"Nope," he answered matter-of-factly and took a swig of water.

"You're a muggleborn?"

"Uh huh."

"Like me…" She cast her eyes to the floor and was unaware she had said this out loud. Blaise wrapped his fingers around hers gently and brought her back to reality. She looked up at him sharply. "Does Draco know?"

His eyes grew small and severe suddenly. "No! Hermione! No one at Hogwarts can know about this! As far as anyone there is concerned, I'm a sixteen-year-old pureblood whose parents were killed when they rebelled against the Dark Lord." This time it was the band's turn to look lost. Blaise ignored them and burned holes into her with his bright hazel eyes. "Do you understand? No wizard or witch can know about this, except for you, me and Dumbledore."

Hermione gulped, "Yes."

"Thank you," he whispered and kissed her lightly.

Home

Hermione watched Blaise, who was bent over his guitar. She was sitting cross-legged on the couch, facing him. The instrument was balanced on his knee and wobbled precariously as he strung it with new strings. After securing the third string, the boy held it out at arm's length to study his work. She suppressed a giggle, when he realized he had laced the wrong string and swore under his breath. He ripped the string out and threw it on the ground, pulling out another box of "Elixir" strings.

"Blaise?" Hermione stared at the extra box quizzically. He looked up with raised eyebrows. She averted her gaze from his bright hazel eyes to the package of strings he was desperately trying to open. "Aren't those expensive?"

He shrugged and glanced at the wire string he had tossed to the floor. "Erm, I guess…Just like twenty bucks a box…" His shoulders raised again, and he pulled out another string to fix into the guitar. He looked back up at her through his eyelashes and laughed at her shocked face. "What?"

"That's a lot for guitar strings. Why don't you get a cheaper brand?"

The boy shrugged once more. "Eh, Pete's in charge of the equipment and stuff, not me…" His voice trailed off as he turned back to his task.

"Oh…" Hermione watched him string the guitar with easing, matching the strings correctly this time. She tapped her fingers in the silence and decided to break it. "So, how many guitars do you have?"

"Six," he replied casually without looking up.

"Really? Wow…" She shifted awkwardly and stared at the floor.

"There!" Blaise suddenly exclaimed and held the guitar out.

"Cool," Hermione said absentmindedly. The sounds of Blaise tuning his instrument floated over her shoulder, and she turned to watch. When the notes were perfect, he set I down, and a roadie appeared and whisked it away.

Blaise turned back to her and placed a hand on her knee. " Hey, wanna see 'em?" He looked very excited.

She furrowed her brow. "What?"

"My guitars! Want to go see them?" He was jumping up from the couch now and pulling her up as well.

"But, Blaise, how?"

"He grinned. "Hold on tight." She complied and wrapped her arms around his torso. There was a tug behind her navel, and again she felt herself fly briefly. She buried her face in Blaise's chest and didn't realize it was over until she felt his hands prying her arms apart. Looking up, Hermione laughed as he concentrated on not hurting her. She giggled and dropped her arms. "Okay, okay," Blaise whispered and brushed past her.

She spun around and gasped, partly at the room they were standing in and partly at how they had gotten there. She ignored the latter for the time being and cast her gaze around the room.

She was standing in a rather small kitchen with granite countertops and stainless steel appliances. The kitchen opened into a large living room. She gawked at it. Everything was white, the walls, the carpet. A set of white furniture, consisting of a couch, loveseat and armchair, was placed in a an arc around a glass coffee table, facing a grandiose flat screen TV. The room was lit by a bright overhead light that had a ceiling fan attached.

Hermione stepped lightly off the tiled floor of the kitchen and onto the fluffy white carpet. She walked around the room aimlessly, taking in the photos and artwork that decorated the walls. She nearly fell down the two steps that descended to the television area. When she had steadied herself, she sifted through the multiple magazines on the glass table. They were all popular music and celebrity magazines, such as Kerrang! and Rolling Stone. She scanned the covers quickly for an interesting topic. Finding none, she climbed the two steps that surrounded the TV area. She was drawn to the large glass window that took up the entirety of the opposite wall. Two French doors opened out onto a balcony. Hermione gazed out the window at the beautiful city before stepping out onto the stone balcony.

The view was breathtaking. The sun was setting, and it cast a golden glow over the ever moving city. It was rush hour, and the sounds of horns and road raged shouts disturbed the peace. However, the girl rested her elbows on the marble railing and breathed in the cool air. Suddenly, a pair of arms snaked around her waist, causing her to gasp. Blaise pressed his lips to her ear and whispered, "It's beautiful isn't it?"

"Yeah…" she sighed. Blaise planted soft kisses along her neck and made her giggle. She turned around to face him, leaning against the marble. He leaned forward and kissed her sweetly. Lifting her gaze to look into his eyes, she asked quietly, "Where are we?"

The boy chuckled. "LA. This is my penthouse…" He gestured with an arm to the apartment behind him. Turning back to Hermione, he laughed at her shocked face.

"B-but, Blaise, how did we get here? You had no portkey. The roadie took the guitar away…" She rummaged through her thoughts, trying to fit everything together.

Blaise chortled again and shook his head. "Apparition," he answered and slowly walked back inside.

Hermione stared after him, dumbfounded. She shook her head quickly and followed him in.

He led her through a door that interrupted the continuum of white.

"Blaise-" She stopped dead in her tracks and gave a small gasp at the bedroom she had just walked into. The biggest bed she had ever seen sat with its headboard against the right wall. It was covered with a beige comforter that covered beige sheets. On either side of the bed were mahogany half-dressers that matched the headboard. Across from the bed was another window that took up the entire wall. A single line of upward-facing fluorescent lights stretched the length of the room over the head of the bed. To her right, there was an open door. Hermione snuck forward and peered into the master bathroom.

The maroon tiling extended over a surface that was maybe half that of the bedroom. In the far right corner was a simple cream-colored toilet. On the wall, next to the door, was a long dark red counter, with three sinks, and a mirror that stretched the length of the counter. The floor was elevated in the far left corner, and a step closer revealed a large, cream Jacuzzi tub. Hermione crept towards it and peered in. The great basin seemed it could fit six people.

"Mione?" Blaise called from the doorway.

She spun around and blushed. "Blaise! Sorry, I-"

"No, no." The boy held his hands out defensively. "I was wondering if you'd like to see the guitars." This obviously excited him. "Or, I could show you the rest of the place." His voice made it clear that did not prefer to do the latter.

Hermione moved closer and smiled. "We can start with the guitars…and, then, go from there." She touched his stomach lightly, and he beamed at her suggestion, leaning in to kiss her. She giggled and allowed him to lead her back into the bedroom.

He pulled her around the bed to another door. Pushing it open, he tugged her inside and flicked a light switch. A series of lights lit up the walk-in closet. The closet was as big as the bathroom and lined with double racks of black t-shirts, dark jeans and numerous black sweatshirts. Occasionally, the black was interrupted by a color, usually dark blue or green, red or sometimes white. A single pair of black and white striped drainpipe pants stuck out from the jeans, and the absurdity of them brought a smile to her lips. Blaise followed her gaze and laughed. "My concert pants. Come on, they're back here…"

He led her through the closet and into a large, cavernous room. It was empty, save for a large platform that was a foot or so high and looked much like a short stage. On the platform sat six guitar stands, five of which held guitars. The first was a gorgeous dark acoustic. The second was an old, red electric guitar that appeared as old as Blaise. The next guitar was another electric, but this one was red and black with a signature scribbled across the red part. Hermione walked up and tried to make out the name. Blaise came up behind her and translated, "Mick Jagger." She nodded and moved on to the next guitar. This instrument had two necks, twelve strings. It was black and blue. She muttered, "Whoa," and looked to the last one. This one was plain white and, unlike the others, not a Fender but a Gibson Les Paul. Signatures decorated the body. Looking closer, Hermione could read the names of the band members from Silent Witness. Blaise wrapped an arm around her waist and kissed her head. "This was my guitar when the band first got started. We all signed it and swore we'd be famous one day."

She turned to him and kissed his lips gently. "You didn't break your promise." She kissed him again.

"Mm," he grunted in agreement and pressed his lips to hers harder. She allowed his tongue to enter her mouth and run the length of hers. "The bed…" he suggested against her mouth, backing towards the door and bringing her with him.

"Jacuzzi…"she moaned. He smiled and, keeping his lips connected with hers, swept her up bridal style. It surprised her how strong he was, but she did not let it affect her. She kept her lips twisted around his, as he carried her back into the bedroom. She was half expecting him to dump her on the bed and fall on top of her, but he took her suggestion and walked into the bathroom. He eased her down and started to remove his shirt, but she pulled back when her feet touched the floor. She placed a hand on his chest to stop him. "Let's do this right this time." He looked at her, puzzled. She pulled her wand out and swished it about her, once again changing her outfit. She now sported a white bikini, with rainbow polka dots, that showed off her perfect tan.

Blaise smiled wickedly. "Alright…" She giggled and waved her wand around him. His shirt disappeared, and he soon stood in a pair of white and blue Hawaiian print, knee-length swimming trunks. He looked down at himself. "Whoa."

Hermione laughed again and walked by him, grazing his arm with her fingertips. "Now, you just get into that Jacuzzi. I'll be right back…" Blaise flashed a smile and obeyed, crossing to the running bath as she slipped out the door.

Company

Hermione traced the contours of Blaise's chest with her finger. She watched as it rose and fell rapidly with his breathing. It shook as he giggled, when she ran her finger down to his stomach. She stopped at his bellybutton and tickled him. He laughed louder and grabbed her wrists to stop her. She screamed as he rolled on top of her. They both stared at each other, breathing quickly and chuckling. Blaise leaned down and kissed her before flipping off her. Hermione placed her hand back on his chest and snuggled up to him, so her head was rested on his shoulder. "Blaise?"

"Mm?" She felt him shift as he looked down at her.

She twisted her face towards him. "When are we suppose to be back at Hogwarts?"

He looked back into her eyes and groaned, " Aw, Mione, don't worry about that now…"

"Blaise, how are we going to get back?" The girl sat up abruptly, clutching the Egyptian cotton sheets to her naked form.

Blaise ran his hand along her back and soothed, "Hey, it's okay, we'll just Apparate…"

She whipped around. "You can't App-"

"We'll Apparate to outside the gates and run…" Hermione stared at him, amazed. He had obviously done this before. She flopped back onto the oversize pillows. Blaise sat up and inched closer. He leaned over and planted kisses along her collarbone and up her neck. "Calm down, we'll be fine."

She gave in and sighed, "What time is it?"

Blaise exhaled audibly but turned over to look at the clock. He stared off into space and appeared to be thinking. His eyes flicking back and forth as he imagined a math equation in front of him. "1:34, in England."

Hermione groaned, "We shou-" A knock at the door interrupted her. She stared at it for a moment and turned her surprised face to Blaise. He looked confused and was also watching the door.

"Blaise?" Pete called through the wood. Blaise tensed. "Blaise!" Three knocks sounded again. "Blaise! I've got your guitar!"

Blaise threw the covers off his body and jumped to his feet. He seized the swimming trunks that were creating an ever-growing puddle where they lay on the floor. He stepped into them hastily and nearly toppled over. "Get your bathing suit on and meet me in the Jacuzzi," he hissed at Hermione. She stared at him, wide-eyed, but complied, slipping on the small two-piece. She scurried into the bathroom with him on her heels. They climbed into the warm water, and Blaise switched on the jets. After they had situated themselves in the tub so that Hermione rested against Blaise with his arm rested around her shoulders, the boy called, "Pete? Pete! Jacuzzi!"