A/N: Okay so this is mainly a story where I got to vent my prom frustrations. Both regarding the actual event and the movie. I don't like how the grunge guy ends up with the popular girl; it's too cliche (this is about the movie, btw). Hermione is a little OOC I suppose because she probably wouldn't get angry at Victor after the second task. I hope you enjoy the story!

Her Own Words

Hermione finally understood where the deaths from the Triwizard Tournament had come from, not from the tournament itself but from humiliation surrounding getting a partner for the Yule Ball. Her fairly sensible fellow Gryffindor girls had turned into a sea of giggling, shallow schoolgirls. They analyzed boys, dancing styles, and dress robes all day and Hermione's brain was about to burst from the sheer insipid nature of their words. Yes, she did think of balls, clothes, and boys but not every second of every day. All around her guys and girls were pairing up in preparation for the Yule Ball. Even Harry and Ron were frantically looking for dates, seemingly forgetting that their oldest friend was an eligible single girl. At least She didn't have an off-center nose; well, she didn't think it was off-center anyway. Needless to say, all this madness about the ball boded ill for Hermione, who thought she would most likely spend the night re-reading Hogwarts: A History. And Harry and Ron wondered why she knew it by heart.

The library had become her only refuge, safe from talk of the dance. Fourth years, after all, had a fair amount of homework which kept her blissfully busy. Best of all when she wasn't doing work there was no one to disturb her. Harry and Ron never did homework when they could help it, and even they knew better than to disturb Hermione when she was with her books. The books themselves had no opinion, neither about the dance or Hermione's status as singularly single, which is probably why Hermione liked them so much. Lately, however, someone had been disturbing her hideaway. A certain someone who slouched and trailed a band of frothing fangirls. Why couldn't Victor Krum have done homework on his ship? She was all for international magical relations, but those fangirls were just too much.

Hermione looked heavenward as another giggle broke into her potions homework. The essay was due in a week and she had nearly another roll of parchment to go, not counting the fact that Snape was particularly vicious when grading her work. Huffing she looked up and spotted Victor Krum staring at her from a table across the room. She sent him a particularly venomous glare, wishing Madame Pince would kick his silly admirers out. The glare did nothing to uproot him, and he was still staring at her with those unnervingly dark eyes of his. She didn't have to take this. Rising from her seat, she huffed again and rolled her eyes at Krum's entourage on her way out. She knew he was a famous seeker and all, and he was fairly handsome when one got past the scowl and his silence. However, all this attention was just idiotic. No seeker was worth hiding out in libraries for a chance at an autograph, especially when they didn't even maintain any pretense of reading.

"Hey!" she turned at the shout. Oh good lord. Not the those girls again. One of the braver ones stepped forward from the pack. "Do you have a quill I could borrow? There's Victor Krum in there, you know, and I'm dying for his autograph."
"There's also books in there," Hermione said stretching a fake smile, an acerbic bite to her seemingly sweet tone. "Some of us planned on reading them in peace and quiet."

"But Victor Krum is in there!"

" I'm sorry, I don't have a quill that I can spare. Unlike some people I have homework to do." Okay so that was a little mean. However, Hermione's temper was stretched thin. Harry and Ron had been requiring more and longer essays for her to copy and she still was trying to run SPEW. Never mind that the chances of SPEW taking off were about as likely as her getting a date to the Yule Ball. She had those house elves to think about. Now, however, the more pressing need was finding a location to study. The common room was out what with Harry and Ron holding court and being a huge distraction. It was still December, which meant that it was freezing on the grounds. She decided on the Astronomy tower. No one went there much so it would be free from students, if still a little drafty. Huffing she started climbing up the stairs to the tower. She was about to collapse in a pile of books and frayed nerves, when she realized the tower was already er—ocuppied. Roger Davies and Fleur Delacour were said occupants and from the looks of it, he was trying to eat her face. Quickly, Hermione exited the space as quietly as she could, grimacing in disgust. Wasn't there a better place that they could do that?

She collapsed halfway down the tower steps, exhausted from lugging her books all the way to the top of the tower. Sighing, she gathered the tattered edges of her temper around her. This was just a bad day, she thought to herself. Bad days happen. Tommorow has to be better than this, right? At that moment Victor Krum appeared, climbing up the stairs, too. Of course. Something like this would have to happen; the big, sulky Quidditch seeker would just have to become her shadow, trailing fangirls like slug slime in his wake. That was just great. Krum's frown was different she noticed; it was fraught with concern rather than disdain.

"What do you want?" Hermione asked. Krum looked like he was about to answer but Hermione continued. "Whatever it is, it better be good. Honestly, you and your band of fan girls drove me out of the library. I only have so many places to study, you know."

"I-" Krum began. One corner of his mouth tugged up in an almost smile. Hermione was struck by how much better he looked when he wasn't scowling. Somehow this made her even more angry. He probably thinks that every girl he meets will just fall head over heels for him because of his looks and his dumb accent.

"Oh yes, I'm sure you're very sorry because apparently in Bulgaria or wherever you're from they don't have insane girls who need libraries. Well here in England we do and honestly I just wanted a break."

"Hogvarts gives a lot of schoovork?" he asked.

"Well, I suppose. Normally I can handle it, but with the preperations for the Yule Ball and everything…" here she waved one of her hands to signify the mess she was in and trailed off. Why was she telling him this?

"You do not like the ball?" he asked looking confused. And cute Hermione thought, but quickly pushed it out of her mind.

"Oh, no, I do. Everyone's just getting so crazy about it and I well…I need to study," she said with a shaky smile. No need to unearth that whole partner business. Besides, it was likely he figured it out on his own anyway. He must be sort of smart, she supposed, after all he did spend a lot of time in the library.

"No von has asked you for, a date?" Hermione pinked.

"Er…well no, but I can figure something out," she said nervously, lying through her teeth, while picking up her books to leave. She wasn't about to rehash this mess. That was the last thing in the world she needed to be reminded of.

"Vould you like to go vith me?" he said amicably. Hermione thought that this expression, the vulnerable, hopeful one that made him look like an ordinary boy—one who had trouble finding dates or talking to girls. He was no longer Victor Krum, Seeker for the Bulgarian Qudditch team; he was just himself. She liked this side of him better.

"If you're just asking me," she said tucking a flyaway strand of hair behind her ear. "because you feel sorry for me than I'd rather not. I can get a date on my own." Never mind that her "date" was probably going to be a book; he didn't know that.

"I don't doubt that," he said earnestly looking at her with confusion over his features. "That's vhy I asked you."

"Thank you," she said shakily. "Of course…of course I'll go with you." The unreal nature of his invite suddenly made Hermione feel like she was living in a dream world, where anybody could be asked to balls or parties, even bushy-haired, used to be buck-toothed girls who were more into books than boys.

"It vill be fun, no?" he said. Now he was smiling, really and truly smiling. He definitely looked better without the scowl. His dark, heavy features were now lightened with real and true joy. An answering grin broke across Hermione's whole face. This was going to have to be the best night of her life.

"Yes," she said. "I think it will." They walked down the tower together; he offered to study with her on his ship. And there they were—one boy, one girl now the envy of the entire school. They didn't notice this. A dizzying relief had settled over Hermione, a calm that she had not felt before now. Clearly the Yule Ball was not going to be a problem for her anymore.