Disclaimer: Once upon a time, I was the owner of Harry Potter and everything in his world. Then I woke up and returned to reality, where JKR owns all.
A/N: This was written for the 1st Annual Halloween Competition over on the HPFC, with the pairing that I lurve, the prompt brains, and a costume which is too tasty to spill already. ;) It shall be a short one, just a twoshot. Expect the next portion tomorrow.
Note: the time frame for this book is shortly after when Ron and Lav-Lav hooked up, which is why Hermione's angry with him.
On a side note, I love Halloween!
"Ohhhhhh," Ron groaned, leaning backwards in his seat as he held his stomach. "That was so good, but I think I ate too much."
"You think?" Harry teased, even he rubbed his own protesting middle. "Though it was worth it."
"I don't understand how feeling so miserable can be rewarding," Hermione huffed, having restrained herself from indulging in all the delicious dishes provided during the Halloween Feast. Unlike the boy sitting next to her (and the red-headed one sitting next to him), she didn't enjoy stuffing herself to the point of misery.
Plus, she was still a tad upset with Ron.
Not that he noticed, the thick git.
"It's not misery," Harry objected lightly. "We got to taste all of that delicious food…"
"Yes, well, I still have my doubts as to whether you actually do taste the food you shove down your throats," Hermione remarked sarcastically.
"Mhmm, I sure do, and it was bloody fabulous," Ron declared.
"Somehow I doubt you'll be saying that in a couple of hours when we're patrolling," Hermione commented darkly as she took a sip of Pumpkin Juice, missing the way Ron's eyes widened with fear before collapsing into disappointment. He swore loudly.
"Ronald Weasley!" Hermione scolded sternly. "There are first years around!"
"I completely forgot about patrol tonight," the ginger-haired boy admitted sheepishly.
"I figured as much," his prefect partner mumbled with a sad sort of sigh. As furious as she was with the boy, sometimes she really just wished he would realize why she was upset.
"But Hermione…" Ron whined pathetically.
"You still have to do it, Ron! It's your duty as a prefect," Hermione insisted, glaring at him with a hardened gaze, perhaps too hardened to just portray the vitality of performing prefect duties.
"Can't you just skip it for one night?" Harry suggested, hoping against all odds that his responsible friend would go along with the idea. He didn't think it would be best for either of his friends or their friendship with each other for the two of them to be roaming the halls alone tonight.
"Of course not!" she responded, as expected. When Harry shrugged his shoulders at Ron, the other boy simply frowned and wrinkled his nose. He knew his friend had tried, but there was no going against the rules with Hermione Granger. Except during those very rare occasions where she broke major rules along with them, but they seemed to be saved for special occasions. On a day to day basis, Hermione the bookworm played strictly by the letter of the law.
"Especially on Halloween!" she continued, breaking into a rant. "Do you know how many students will be out creating mischief tonight? Or having parties? Or pulling pranks? I don't know whether it's a good thing or a bad thing that those brothers of yours won't be here. Someone might try to do something nasty just to pay homage or somethi—"
"Yes, yes, we get it," Ron interjected with a wave of his hand and roll of his eyes. "Halloween night means horrible kids that will burn down the school if you're not there to stop them."
"It's not funny, Ronald," Hermione retorted through gritted teeth. Swiftly, she stood up. "You know, go back to the Common Room. I'll find someone else to patrol with."
With that, she stomped away, ignoring Harry's singular call of her name.
Good riddance to Ronald Weasley.
"Who needs him anyway?" Hermione murmured to herself as she twisted through the hallways to the nearest girl's bathroom. "Certainly not me. Let Lavender have him. I most definitely do not care! Not even one little bit!"
Didn't she sound convincing?
Reaching the bathroom, Hermione shoved open the door and retreated inside, resting her hands on the sink as she forced herself to breathe deeply. She could do this. She could, she could. She wasn't lying to herself, no, she wasn't.
"Great," she muttered to the reflection looking back on her, to the girl who looked so tired and ready to fall into bed and sleep away her life. "Now I have to find someone to patrol with me."
Straightening her back, squaring her shoulders, Hermione turned on the faucet and nodded at that weary girl. Already, she looked more confident. Dipping her hand in the cold water, she washed the area beneath her eyes to force herself to wake up. After drying her face and hand with one of the enchanted towels that remained forever dry, she strolled from the bathroom determined to do what she must.
Arriving back at the Great Hall, one peek revealed – to her relief – that Harry and Ron had left sometime during her absence. Another glance found her target: Hannah Abbot. Although she and Hannah didn't talk very often, Hermione was rather fond of the Hufflepuff girl. She was gentle and kind to most everyone, but not annoyingly so. The two of them had partnered for patrols multiple times in the past when one or both of their male counterparts somehow couldn't make it. Despite the fact that prefects typically patrolled in pairs of boys and girls, Hermione and Hannah both felt safe with each other, even when their schedules took them to the darker and more dangerous parts of the castle.
"Hannah," Hermione greeted with a pleasantly genuine smile.
"Hermione!" the blonde girl responded with her usual grin. "Happy Halloween! Did you enjoy the Feast?"
"Yes, of course," the Gryffindor replied politely, marveling at the way the Hufflepuffs were still celebrating.
"Sure you ate enough?" the other girl teased. She laughed, forcing Hermione to laugh as well to avoid the dreaded awkwardness.
"Hey, Hannah, are you doing anything tonight?" Hermione questioned, anxious to get to the point.
"Heard about the party, did you?" Hannah responded with a mischievous twinkle in her eyes.
"Oh, no," Hermione answered, feeling the sinking sensation of disappointment settling within her already. "Are you having a party?"
"Only the Annual Hufflepuff Halloween Celebration!" the grinning girl exclaimed, leaning a bit closer as if sharing a secret. "It's supposed to be even better than last year's this year!"
"You don't say," the bushy-haired girl commented politely, even as her brain searched for a new target.
"Mhmm," Hannah asserted. "I would invite you… but it's exclusively for Hufflepuffs."
"That's all right, Hannah," Hermione assured her. "Though, hey, do you know if Ernie is going to the party tonight?"
"Yes, of course he is," Hannah answered. "Why?"
"Oh, nothing really. I'm just trying to find someone to patrol with me tonight," Hermione remarked, forcing herself to speak normally.
"Ah," Hannah murmured, her eyes softening in pity. "Sorry, Hermione."
"No, no, it's quite all right," the Gryffindor replied with a small smile. "I'll just go ask Padma. Have fun at your party tonight."
"Thanks, we will! And don't worry, it stays in the Common Room," Hannah confided with a wink before returning to her Housemates.
Lifting a hand to her forehead, Hermione rubbed her skin a few times as she let out a quiet sigh. Trying her hardest to ignore the fact that she had never even known that the Hufflepuffs held a grand celebration every Halloween in their Common Room and all the following thoughts that accompanied that interesting tidbit of information, Hermione scanned the Ravenclaw table earnestly.
"Where are you…?" Hermione whispered under her breath. Then, after running her gaze across the lines of those seated for the third time, she noticed a pair of students walking towards the entry way. Instantly, she recognized the girl's hair as that of one of the Patil twins.
Quickening her steps, Hermione reached the pair just outside the doors.
"Hey!" she called, not wanting to call either twin the wrong name. When the two students turned around to see who was talking, she was relieved to see Padma's face.
"Padma!" she greeted. Then Hermione took a double take as she noticed the boy standing next to her. "Anthony."
"Good evening," he greeted cordially.
"Hello, Hermione," Padma replied with a respectful smile. Then Hermione took another double take when she saw that the two Ravenclaw prefects were holding hands.
"Oh! Am I interrupting something?" the Gryffindor asked, suddenly feeling stupid and invasive.
"No," Padma replied kindly just as Anthony said, "Yes, kind of." The two turned to look at each other, holding a conversation between their glances.
"It's okay," Padma assured Hermione as she turned to her again, ignoring the slight downturn of her apparent boyfriend's lips. "Did you want something?"
"Well, actually," Hermione began, feeling a bit embarrassed. She shuffled her feet and linked her fingers nervously. "I had been wondering if either of you could patrol with me tonight, but I can see you're… busy."
"Oh. Yes," Padma answered softly. For an elongated moment, the three sixth years stood in a bubble of awkward silence.
"Sorry…" Padma started to say.
"No, no, it's all right," Hermione insisted. "I'll just… I'll just find someone else."
"Are you sure?" the Ravenclaw copy of one of her Housemates asked, a bit of concern seeping through her tone.
"Yes," Hermione asserted, sounding a lot more confident than she felt. With both Hufflepuff and both Ravenclaw prefects busy, who would patrol with her? She couldn't simply not patrol, especially after explicitly telling the boys how wrong that would be just twenty minutes ago. But she certainly didn't want to patrol alone. Not that night. Call her silly for being superstitious, but that wouldn't change the fact that something about Halloween put her on edge.
Personally, she blamed a particularly scarring experience involving a certain troll.
"What's wrong with Weasley?" Anthony inquired curiously. Immediately, Padma elbowed him in the gut, sending him a piercing glare that he returned with a questioning, hurt expression.
"He's, er… he can't make it," Hermione mumbled, desperately struggling to cast out the mental image of what Ron most likely was doing… and who he was doing it with. She could feel herself flush deeply and prayed for the blood to leave her face and restore just a tiny bit of her dignity.
"Sorry," Padma repeated kindly, her eyes conveying how she meant for more than not being able to help her patrol.
"It'll be fine," Hermione whispered, hating that word: fine. Because that was what it would end up being, she was sure. Everything would be fine, and she would be miserable.
"Maybe Ernie can help you out," Anthony suggested as the two started to leave.
Except Ernie was already busy, wasn't he?
Sighing, Hermione turned around and went through a mental list. Were there any fifth year prefects she could ask? She wrinkled her nose at the very thought; she wasn't exactly fond of any of them. Unfortunately, that left the two sixth year prefects from the Slytherin House: Pansy Parkinson and Draco Malfoy.
Groaning at her misfortune, the stubbornly determined do-gooder spun on her heel to head back towards the Great Hall to look for the dreaded last resort candidates. Before she could even finishing turning around, however, the doors opened, almost slamming into her face. A shout of surprise escaped her mouth instinctively, catching the attention of the person who had just stalked through the doorway.
Draco Malfoy.
"Watch it, Granger," he growled before turning away to continue down the corridor. Evidently the blond freak was in a bad mood. Lucky her.
"Wait. Malfoy, wait!" Hermione called desperately. Fortunately, the boy stopped, lifting a hand to run through his hair.
"What do you want, Granger?" he asked drily. A heavy sort of weariness seemed to emanate from him, and she wondered what would bother him so much.
"Look, Malfoy… Draco," Hermione corrected, trying to appease him. Evidently she failed epically, because the boy in question wrinkled his nose. "I need someone to patrol with me tonight."
"What, Weasley too distracted shoving his tongue down Brown's throat?" he retorted nastily. "Upset you, has it?"
Instantly Hermione felt crippled, like he had send a sharp stab through her stomach. Fighting the instinct to bend over and cradle her uninjured abdomen, she spat, "You know what, Malfoy? Forget this; this was stupid. I'm going to bed."
"What happened to calling me Draco?" he replied in a mocking tone. "Have a difficult time forcing a smile?"
"Go to hell, Malfoy," she declared fervently, swiftly walking past him,
"Been there, done that. Believe me, it's not as fun as it sounds," the blond Slytherin remarked.
Something in the way he said those words froze Hermione where she stood. His voice, his tone… he meant something she couldn't possibly understand.
"Fine. I'll help you," he announced unexpectedly. Slowly, the Gryffindor rotated her head around to peer over her shoulder. There he was, leaning casually to one side, peering down at his nails, looking like the Draco Malfoy she knew. What was he up to?
"Fine. Thank you," she replied, unsure of what else to say.
"If," he emphasized, shooting his eyes towards hers to lock gazes. Mentally, she rolled her eyes, knowing that she should have expected his assistance to come with a price tag. "You help me find this book I've been looking for in the library."
"That's it?" Hermione questioned incredulously. "You want me to help you find a book?"
"Yes, Granger," Malfoy droned as if bored with the conversation. "I want you to help me find a book."
"Why don't you just ask Madam Pince?" she asked with narrowed eyes, getting a bit suspicious.
"She annoys me," he answered matter-of-factly.
"Oh. Well, all right then," Hermione agreed slowly.
"Brilliant," her new patrol partner for the night deadpanned. "Let's get this over with. Where are we headed?"
Remarkably, the Slytherin listened to her directions and then kept his insulting commentary to himself for the next twenty minutes as they walked towards the other side of the castle. Then, just when Hermione began to think that perhaps she would live through a night's patrol with Malfoy without ending up killed or a killer, he opened that mouth of his.
"Why couldn't you get one of the other prefects to fill Weasley's spot?" he inquired as they strolled down another dark corridor, relying on their lit wands to see.
"I asked both of the Ravenclaws and both of the Hufflepuffs; evidently the Hufflepuffs always have a huge Halloween Party in their Common Room after the feast, and Padma and Anthony were… had plans," Hermione answered truthfully, leaving out the fact that Padma and Anthony's plans were a date with each other.
"The Hufflepuffs have a Halloween Party?" Malfoy repeated incredulously. "Since when?"
"I don't know. Hannah said it was an annual thing. She made it sound like they always had one. Did you not know about this either?" Hermione questioned, eager to assure herself that she hadn't simply missed the memo.
"No. They must keep it a secret. Probably don't want the professors to find out," Malfoy responded thoughtfully. "Was the girl sloshed or something when she told you?"
"Malfoy!" Hermione scolded. "Hannah wouldn't show up drunk to the Halloween Feast!"
"Why? Because she's a Hufflepuff?" Malfoy retorted with an amused snort.
"What's that have to do with anything?" Hermione questioned, wrinkling her brow.
"You probably think that being a Hufflepuff means that she's all gentle, kind, and good, but for all you know she secretly cheats on her essays or shags every walking male or drinks obsessively," he said pointedly.
"How could you say such things? Do you think so lowly of all human beings?" Hermione questioned indignantly.
"Not everyone is as perfect as they portray themselves to be," Malfoy commented with a somewhat dark undertone. "Everyone has flaws, imperfections."
"Well, yes, of course they do," Hermione agreed, meaning to continue and argue that being imperfect didn't mean someone slept around or cheated or drank or did drugs or anything like that.
"And don't forget those skeletons in the closet," he added with a couple of nods to himself. Then he tilted his head as he looked towards her inquisitively. "I wonder what yours are?"
"Do you really want me digging into yours?" Hermione replied defensively, her eyes narrowing. Immediately, the Slytherin backed off.
Then, as the two rounded another corner, a muffled clang echoed through the air.
"Did you hear that?" Hermione asked, frozen in place.
"Yeah," Malfoy answered quietly, listening closely. "Which direction do you think it came from?"
"Over there." Hermione pointed her wand somewhere ahead of them and to the right.
"I thought so, too," Malfoy said. Quietly, they approached the door of the nearest classroom on the right-hand side of the corridor. Stretching out their hands, both of the prefects paused just within reach of the wood.
"You open it," Malfoy urged. "You're the Gryffindor."
"You're the man!" Hermione retorted.
Unable to fight against that one, Malfoy abruptly pushed, swinging the door wide open. When nothing came out, the two of them peered inside to find it completely empty. Meeting each other's gaze, they nodded, nonverbally agreeing to continue on to the next room.
Again, Malfoy pushed open the door.
The sound of Hermione's shriek bounced off the walls, echoed by the deeper exclamation of her Slytherin patrolling partner. Both of them flung backwards, fortunately landing on their hands to brace the fall. During that split second, they shot their heads to the left just in time to see a dark shadow shift around the corner.
"What the bloody hell was that?" Malfoy exclaimed loudly, the shine of fear visibly present in his eyes.
"I… have no idea," Hermione admitted, frightened by both the experience and that very fact that she had no inkling whatsoever what that creature thing was. Immediately, she scrambled for her wand. Once gripping it tightly in her hand once more, she stood up and started sprinting in the direction the shadow had moved.
"Where are you going?" Malfoy called after her.
"We need to stop it!" she declared, wishing her heart would stop pounding as loud as those noisy footsteps of hers as her shoes slapped against stone.
"Are you mad?" the Slytherin shouted. By the sound of another set of heavy footfalls, however, Hermione could tell that he was following her.
For some reason, that made her almost want to smile in satisfaction.