She grabbed the front of his shirt, pulled him toward her, and kissed him hard on the mouth. She broke the kiss and backed away from him. Looking embarrassed at what she had done, she said, "I'm sorry, Malfoy. I've no clue what came over me. I'm so angry that I'm not thinking straight."

"Well, Granger," Draco smirked, "if that's how you act when you're angry, then you can get angry at me anytime." His gaze traveled up and down her body. He admired how her light blue evening gown accentuated her curves. After completing his mental scan, he looked into her eyes, noticed their troubled expression.

"Is everything all right, Granger?" he asked with an uncharacteristic note of concern in his voice.

"I just snogged you," Hermione said bitterly. "I think that'd be proof enough that something's wrong."

"Does this have anything to do with the Weasel?"

"It has everything to do with him!" she spat. "I caught him proposing to Pansy Parkinson. I thought he was going to ask me to marry him tonight."

"Things aren't always what they seem, Granger. Maybe, he was rehearsing how he wanted things to go with you, with Pansy," he suggested.

"No, what I saw was no rehearsal. It was the real deal. He got down on one knee and asked her to marry him," Hermione said. She began to pace back and forth; she was becoming increasingly agitated.

"What did Pansy do?"

"She said, 'yes,' they hugged, then they left the restaurant together. His arm was around her waist, and she was smiling up at him like they were the only two people in the world."

"And you came to me because..." Draco prompted.

She turned to face him and said, "I came to you because I want revenge. I want Ron to have a taste of his own medicine."

"And you thought that I'd be able to help you carry out your revenge," Draco concluded.

"Yes," Hermione replied simply.

"Well," he said with a smirk,"if I help you get your revenge on Weasel, what's in it for me?"

"Anything you want," Hermione said desperately.

"Anything?" He quirked an eyebrow at her. She saw a gleam of something that she couldn't quite describe in his eye.

"Anything within reason," she hastened to add.

"Of course," Draco said. "In return for your revenge, you can pretend to be my girlfriend at my parents Valentine's Day ball. My father has been pressuring me to settle down and get married. Under the circumstances, I think you'll do quite nicely. You'll have to act like you're in love with me. Maybe, even kiss me again. Will that that be a problem, Granger?"

Normally, Hermione would've balked at such a preposterous scheme, but desperate times called for desperate measures.

"No, that won't be a problem at all, Malfoy," Hermione said with a smile.

"Great. Why don't you come back to the manor tomorrow, and we can get started on planning your revenge."

"Thank you, Mal - er Draco," Hermione said. And before Draco could reply, she apparated out of the room, leaving him to stare at the space where she'd just stood.

That witch has no idea of what she's just got herself into, he thought to himself. But then neither have I. With that final thought, Draco walked upstairs to his bedroom, climbed into bed, and went to sleep with dreams of a certain witch dancing across his consciousness.