Quick little one-shot. Does not take HBP into account.

The Lottery

"Are you sure about this?" Harry asked for the umpteenth time.

Hermione simply shrugged him off as she twisted her hair into a fashionable little knot at the back of her head. Her make-up, done by Ginny earlier that evening, was light and accented her features perfectly; not too gaudy or too showy. She wore a humble blush pink dress with no sleeves and inched over her knees. Around its middle, just under her chest, was sewn an elegant black ribbon, tied in a small bow at the back. To match she borrowed Lavender's black Mary Jane's, wearing what Ginny called "naughty white knee-highs" with them.

"It's a charity event, Harry," she finally said, turning to face him. "Dumbledore organized it. What could go wrong?"

"I just don't want you to regret it," he said, defeated. What he meant by that, and would never say to her face, was that he didn't want to see her get humiliated. The Slytherins were, as always, liable to rip her apart. What he didn't realize, however, was that Hermione was fully prepared for that. Ron had even offered to be her back-up incase things got out of hand.

"You don't have to play dad, Harry. I'm eighteen. I can handle myself."

With that said, she smoothed down her dress, appearing much like an innocent young woman, though her full chest told a very different story, and walked past her best friend to leave the dormitory. It was nearly seven, and she was expected in the Great Hall.

All the professors were there when she arrived, along with her Gryffindor counterpart, Seamus Finnigan. The other house "couples", though that's hardly what they were, had already arrived as well. It seemed they'd all been waiting on Hermione. She apologized with a bow, and sidled up along side Seamus.

"This is going to be interesting," Seamus whispered, his gorgeous Irish accent still sending shivering threw her after all these years. Not that she was particularly attracted to him, at least not in that way, but all girls love accents.

"You're telling me," she whispered back, successfully keeping attention off of them as Dumbledore went over the rules again. "Harry still doesn't want me to do it."

"Tell him to bugger off," he laughed. "You look great, by the way." Though what he was really thinking was how much he wanted to see what was under her would be innocent little dress. Like Hermione, he was not attracted to her like that, but he had eyes, and she looked phenomenal. After seeing her, Harry should have realized he had nothing to worry about.

"Thanks," she managed to reply through a heavy blush. "You too."

Twenty minutes later the rest of the students began to file in. Years five through seven were allowed to attend, and it seemed that the entirety off all those years decided to come. Hermione suppressed a hard gulp and held her head high.

"Hermione!"

She turned her head gracefully to the side from her seat on the stage next to Seamus. Ron was waving at her and giving her a thumbs up as he found his seat with Harry, Ginny, Neville and the other Gryffindors. She nodded her head to him, keeping her "beauty pageant" smile on at all times. Not only did the winners raise money for a good cause (St. Mungo's), but the top boy and girl from each house won their houses points towards the cup. She had to be professional, had to win.

Once everyone was filed in, Dumbledore gave a flick of his wand, shutting the doors to the Great Hall with a rattling thud. He then grabbed everyone's undivided attention when he began to speak, explaining the rules to everyone else, who only had a vague idea of what was involved today, February 14th.

"The ground rules are as followed," the Headmaster said sternly, but affectionately, to those in the Great Hall. "No inappropriate behavior will be tolerated. Being the ages you are, I assume you understand what this encompasses and I don't foresee a problem. As you all can see, there are eight students before you, one male and one female from each house. This does not mean you must necessarily remain with those in your own house; feel free to take part in inter-house unity. In fact, that is one of the aims of this event." He scanned the students before him, looking for objections. There were none, and so he continued. "This is, first and foremost, a charity fundraising, and so bidding will start at a minimum."

Across the hall Hermione saw Ron turn green.

"That minimum has been decided at 2 Galleons."

Hermione's stomach dropped through the bottom of her seat. Now what was she going to do?

"Now," Dumbledore said with a wide grin, "let's begin. Ravenclaw won the toss, therefore they go first."

Gryffindor was last, and so Hermione would have to endure through the entire even with her heart racing 1,000 km per hour. Beside her Seamus appeared content, his eyes scanning the crowd of their pupils as they jumped and threw their arms in the air to place the next highest bid. When the bidding came to Slytherin, the candidates being Pansy Parkinson and Blaise Zabini, Seamus gave Hermione a small nudge in the side.

"Yeah?"

She hadn't really been paying attention. Not to anything other than her raging insides. What had she been thinking, entering herself in such a thing?

"Malfoy didn't bid on Pansy."

Hermione shrugged. What did she care? She had more important things to worry about. But then she turned her head towards the sea of students and her eyes caught the boy in question right away. And he was staring right back at her. She wanted to look away, to pretend she'd just been surveying the crowd, but their eyes locked like jagged puzzle pieces. Only when he cast his gaze elsewhere, carelessly, did she find the strength to look back at her shoes. She feared her face matched her dress.

After nearly an hour, the three other houses were finished and it was now time for Hermione and Seamus. As the others before them had done, Hermione and Seamus stood at the center of the stage, turned once, then she went to Professor McGonagall, while he went to the Headmaster. Once they were in their respective places, the bidding began.

Hermione was nearly startled to the ground when the crowd of boys, from all four houses, started ravenously vying for her. The same was true for Seamus with the girls. The Great Hall was once again in a uproar of shouting and shoving. And all for something as silly as a date.

The cacophony was growing to be almost too much, when a single voice rang out over all the boys with a bid no normal wizard could match.

"40 Galleons!"

Hermione's heart stopped twice. Once for the amount. And again for the bidder.

The room was silent. Even the girls had stopped to see what was going on. Then McGonagall, after recovering from her initial shock, declared Hermione's bidder the winner.

No one dared stop him as he made his way towards the stage to claim his prize and deposit the money. Into McGonagall's hands he dropped a heavy sack of coins, assuring her all forty Galleons were inside. And then he reached for Hermione's hand.

She didn't accept.

"What's wrong?" he asked with a smirk.

She frowned. "Why are you doing this?"

He shrugged. "It's for a good cause."

"Horse shit."

"Miss Granger!" McGonagall exclaimed. "Behave yourself."

"Give me a real answer or I don't leave this stage."

Slowly he leaned in, his hand hovering dangerously close to her waist, his lips nearly touching her ear. "Because I know how innocent and perfect you wanted to appear in your cute little dress. I also know what a load of dragon dung that is."

Hermione gasped, restraining herself from slapping him across the face.

"You want Slytherins to look at you differently?"

"What do you mean?"

"You want them to see beyond a mudblood or a Gryffindor, correct?"

She nodded, still hesitant.

"Then start with me."

"But Mal—"

"On our date," he said, taking her hand, "call me Draco."

I just wrote this off the top of my head. I don't know why. I'll probably to a Part 2, but not for a little while, not until I see what people think.

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