So this story is set in their sixth year, and Voldemort was defeated in their fifth year pretty early. Draco is friends with them.

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or Draco Malfoy (but I wish I owned him!).

Hermione Granger woke up at seven in the morning every day. It was a set routine and she would never change it as long as she would live. The early hour was used to shower and get dressed for school, and she always had just enough time to finish her homework and look outside to soak in the nature for a few minutes before her dormitory was bustling with rushing girls who slept in too late and would miss breakfast if they didn't hurry.

Draco Malfoy also woke up at seven in the morning. But it was not to get ready for school. Well, he did shower and get dressed in his school uniform, but he liked to sneak outside and sit on the bench facing the Gryffindor Tower. And he always arrived just in time to see Hermione opening the window and lean out the window, her brown and bushy hair blowing in the breeze as she stared off into the distance. He knew that Harry, being one of his good friends, wouldn't mind his little crush on the brainy Gryffindor Princess, but he kept it quiet nonetheless.

She liked her view, and he liked his. But it would always be a secret the both of them kept, even from each other.

Hermione walked down the steps to the common room to see all of the girls in her sixth year and above crowded around the notices board. She then spotted Harry and Ron and made her way over to them.

"What's going on?" Hermione asked them, and Ron shrugged. She looked at Harry, and he rolled his eyes.

"There's going to be a Masquerade Ball for sixth and seventh years on Halloween." Harry said. "Apparently it's a tradition, and you're supposed to dress up, but also wear a mask." Hermione immediately perked up at that.

You see, ever since Hermione was a little girl, she'd always wanted to be Christine from 'The Phantom of the Opera' for Halloween. But, she knew she would have to wait to find the perfect Phantom to her Christine.

"Are you two going?" Hermione leaned in close to them, and Harry nodded.

"I asked Ginny when we found out earlier, and she said yes!" He said, clearly very excited, and Hermione squealed.

"What are you two going as?" Hermione asked, and Harry shrugged.

"We haven't exactly figured that part out yet..." He said, feeling nervous all of a sudden, and Hermione giggled.

"Go as Rose and Jack from 'Titanic'!" Hermione said, and Harry grinned.

"Now I'm glad I've shown her that movie!" Harry said, and Hermione laughed.

"Well, I'm going to go down to the Great Hall for some breakfast before class so I don't die of starvation in our double Potions lesson today." Hermione bid Ron and Harry goodbye, and she made her way out of the common room.

Draco did his morning routine again, and then went back down to the dungeons to grab his things before breakfast in the Great Hall.

"Draco!" As he walked down the stairs from his dorms, Pansy's shrill voice carried over to his ears, and he groaned inwardly.

"Have you heard the news?" Blaise asked, running behind her friend, and Draco's facial expression turned to confusion.

"What news?" Draco asked, and Blaise and Pansy giggled. Inside, Draco was trying hard not to kill them for their stupid giggling.

"There's going to be a Masquerade Ball on Halloween." Blaise said, her voice quivering with excitement, and Pansy's face lit up.

"I already know what Greg and I are going as!" Pansy said. "Draco, who are you going to ask to the ball?" Draco glared at her, but she didn't seem to notice (or care).

"I'm not going." Draco said, and both Blaise and Pansy gasped.

"But, Draco, it won't be any fun if you don't show up!" Blaise complained, and Draco smirked.

"You'll be alright, I just know it." Draco said, and with that, he headed off to breakfast.

Hermione sat at the long Gryffindor table in the Great Hall and devoured her blueberry muffin before standing up and heading off to the Potions classroom in the dungeons. Not looking where she was going, she ran right into someone, and they both fell onto the ground.

"Oh my goodness, I'm so sorry." Hermione said, rushing to pick up her books (and hide her blush) when her hand brushed against the other person's as they were both reaching for a book, and she looked into silvery gray eyes.

"It's alright, I wasn't paying any attention either." The voice belonging to the beautiful and mysterious eyes said, and Hermione nodded as if she were in a trance.

"I should just - let me just, oh, um, goodbye." Hermione said, flustered by the boy in front of her, and she hurriedly picked up her books and ran to the Potions classroom.

Left behind on the ground in the middle of the hallway, Draco stood up and calmly collected his books before ascending the stairs to the Great Hall, and that was when he saw an old, worn journal in his stack of books. Finding an empty, abandoned classroom, Draco set the pile of books onto the old teacher's desk and picked up the journal. He opened it to the cover page and in neat cursive it said, 'Property of Hermione Granger'.

Draco panicked. This must be like her diary or something! I can't read this! But curiosity won against the knowledge part of his brain, and he opened the book to a random page.

October 15, 1990

Dear Diary,

I went out with my parents to the nearby town and got my Halloween costume to join the others for our hunt for candy. When we were at the store, I saw the most beautiful white dress, and you wouldn't believe what the costume was! It was a Christine costume from 'The Phantom of the Opera'! I tried to convince my parents, but mum told me that in order to be Christine for Halloween, I needed to find the perfect Phantom to my Christine. But, how will I do that? I'm only ten years old! Oh well, I still have loads of time.

Love, Hermione

Draco widened his eyes as he looked at the entry, but hearing the footsteps in the corridor, he decided to look more at the journal later and get to Potions class before Snape started to think something suspicious.

Hermione grabbed her Potions textbook and turned to the correct page before getting to work, when she noticed something wrong. Quickly, she checked through all of her books and assorted notes again, but she was stumped and upset.

Her diary was gone.

Draco went back to his room after dinner and set his books down on his desk. Spotting the journal, he hesitated.

Come on, Draco. You've already read one entry. What's a few more?

Draco decided to pick up the journal and he sat on the bed, flipping to another random page.

October 31, 1992

Dear Diary,

Draco said something mean to Harry and Ron again. I keep noticing how he doesn't insult me, and when he does, it's not as strong as the insults on Harry and Ron.

But anyway, today was Halloween again, and I heard from Fred and George that there's a Masquerade Ball for the sixth and seventh years. I wish I could go. I'd love to go as Christine, but I still haven't found my Phantom. One day, I will find him. And then everything will be perfect.

Love, Hermione

Draco noticed how in both entries he had read, she had talked about being Christine for Halloween, but had never gotten the chance since she didn't have her Phantom yet. Just as he was about to flip to another diary entry, Greg entered the dorm.

"Draco, is everything alright?" Greg asked concerningly, and Draco looked at him, and then glared.

"Of course I'm fine!" Draco snapped. "I'm going to be, get out." And Draco hid the journal under his pillow as Greg wouldn't see it so nobody would find it that night.

Hermione was freaking out by the time that she got back to her dorm after dinner. Setting the books down gently on her beside table and getting into her pajamas, she sat down on her bed and put her face in her hands. Someone could have read it and found out that she liked him. And that wouldn't be good for her just yet.

A knock sounded on the door, and Hermione let them in with a wave of her wand. Ginny entered the room and sat down on the bed next to Hermione.

"What's wrong, 'Mione?" Ginny asked, and Hermione sighed.

"I lost my diary, and someone might have taken it." She said, and Ginny sighed.

"That's never good." She simply said, and Hermione nodded.

"It had my costume idea for the Masquerade Ball, the partner, and my crush, all in the very last entry!" Hermione said, almost sobbing, and Ginny placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Hermione. You know what you have to do." Ginny said, and Hermione looked up, sniffing.

"What?" She asked, and Ginny grinned widely.

"We have to get your costume ready." Ginny said, and she stood Hermione up. "The ball is in three days, and you don't even know what you're going to be!" Just then Hermione had the best idea.

"I'm going to be Christine." She said, and Ginny smirked. She'll definitely find her Phantom this way.

Draco woke up at six in the morning this time so he could read more of Hermione's journal (her personal, private journal). He knew that it was a really bad idea, but he really wanted to see what she had written. A small piece of him was hoping that she had written about him, but he knew it was highly unlikely, her being friends with Harry Potter and Ron Weasley. Opening the page to a random spot once again, he began to read in the light of the rising sun.

April 13, 1994

Dear Diary,

I punched Draco in the nose today. It felt good. But the strangest thing happened. As he looked at me before running away, I could see something... Different, in his eyes. I don't quite know what it was, but all I knew was that it wasn't the original hate he saves for us. It was, dare I say, love. And when I pulled back from my punch, my hand tingled for hours. I thought that it was just the fact that it hurt, but that night I dreamed about him kissing my hand, and then giving me a blood red rose with a black ribbon on it. Why was he the Phantom? More questions to ponder...

Love, Hermione

Draco was stunned. He had remembered that day as clear as glass, and he was not only shocked that he had let love show in his eyes, but also shocked at the fact that Hermione had dreamed about him. And he was also happy that she had written good things about him in her personal, private journal.

And then he remembered that the Masquerade Ball was in two day's time, and he had said he wasn't going to go. But now, he wasn't so sure.

And then, in a sudden burst of inspiration, he knew exactly what to do.

Ginny was ecstatic to hear that the day before the ball was a Hogsmeade day, and everybody was excused from class to go get their costumes. So naturally, she had to drag Hermione from her studying to go with her and get the costume she had been dreaming about her entire life.

"Ginny, I can't go to Hogsmeade! I have to finish writing an essay for Ancient Runes!" Hermione tried to protest, but Ginny wouldn't hear it.

"You are going to that Masquerade Ball tomorrow as the perfect Christine, and you are not going to protest whatsoever!" Ginny snapped, and Hermione became silent.

"Fine." Hermione relented, and Ginny squealed.

"Let's go!" Ginny pulled her into the fancy dress robes store, and she immediately found the perfect dress for herself as Rose from 'Titanic'. It was a long dress that covered her ankles and was yellow with beaded ruffles on the skirt. She had also found some long white gloves to go with it.

Meanwhile, Hermione kept searching through the racks in search of the perfect dress for her costume. Ginny had already paid the shopkeeper for hers, and she had already gotten the shoes and other accessories for her costume already. And then Hermione found the perfect dress. Sweeping it off of the rack, and hurried to the nearest empty dressing room and tried it on. Hermione gasped. It was absolutely perfect. She slipped it off and paid, and, already having shoes to go with it, hurried to catch the last carriage to Hogwarts

Draco made it into Hogsmeade quickly and looked down at the list of items for his costume that he needed. Black pants and a black undershirt that was long sleeved, that he already had. The black dress shoes, he also had that as well. But the few things he needed was black gloves, a black cape with red on the other side, a black ribbon, and a blood red rose.

The black gloves he got with ease at the accessory store, same with the cape. The ribbon and the rose, however, was harder to acquire. At least, Draco thought so.

Entering the small flower shop, Draco immediately went to the shopkeeper for assistance.

"Hello, I need a dark red rose and a black ribbon, please." He said politely, and the shopkeeper rung it up as he smiled knowingly.

"It's for a girl, no?" The man asked, and Draco nodded.

"Also for a costume." He said, and the shopkeeper almost froze, but quickly composed himself.

"You are going to the Masquerade Ball?" He asked. "At Hogwarts?" Draco nodded, and fiddled with his fingers.

"But nobody knows that I'm going to it." He said quickly. "So, if anybody asks, please don't tell them I'm going." The shopkeeper smiled again, but nodded.

"Of course, Mr. Malfoy." The Italian man said, bring him the blood red rose and the black ribbon separately.

"This is perfect, thank you." Draco said, and he made onto the first carriage back to Hogwarts.

Hermione woke up at seven in the morning the day of Halloween happy. She went through her routine and looked out the window, but this time, she spotted Draco sitting on the bench, looking straight at her. Embarrassed (but not enough to show it), she quickly averted her eyes back to the Forbidden Forest, in all its morning glory.

Draco didn't see this, but he still looked up at her. Finally, she closed the door, and he took the note out of his pocket. Quickly folding it into a bird, he charmed it to fly straight to her plate at breakfast.

"Hermione!" Lavender was the first person to notice the bird. "I think it's for you!" Hermione looked up to see the paper bird flying onto her stack of books, and she unfolded it to reveal nice handwriting.

"What does it say?" Harry asked, and Ron nodded.

"Yeah, 'Mione, what's it say?" Ron said, and him being Ron, had his mouth full of his breakfast the entire time. Hermione felt bad because he didn't have a date yet.

"I don't know, let me read it!" Hermione said, and she looked back down to the note.

"My dearest Christine, the ball is tonight, and I am happy to say that I will be there. Come to the rose garden tonight, and I will meet you there at eight o'clock. I cannot wait to see such a beauty as you there.

"Love, your Phantom."

Hermione looked up in surprise as Lavender snatched the note out of her hands and read it out loud, but she couldn't care less. Someone knew she was going to be Christine tonight at the ball, but what surprised her even more was the fact that this mysterious suitor of hers was going to be her Phantom.

And as she looked up to see those silver gray eyes of that mysterious person she had run into, she couldn't help but hope that he would be her Phantom for tonight.

Draco was sitting at lunch when he felt the sudden urge to read another entry from Hermione's journal, but he protested against his own mind. It wasn't a good thing to be reading his friend's diary, especially if they were your object of lust, desire, and love. But, after a moment's thought, he picked it up and started to read it again.

October 24, 1995

We beat Voldemort today. I was so excited that I hugged Draco. I mean sure, we've become good friends in the past year with the Triwizard Tournament, but it was just weird for me. However, as soon as he came back to his senses and hugged me back, I could feel my heart fluttering like a butterfly drunk on butterbeer. It was a bit strange.

I wish I was old enough to go to the Masquerade Ball this year, but it's just another year's wait for me. I think that if I could go, I'd definitely go as Christine. But the question from last year haunts me still. Is he destined to become my Phantom? I wonder...

Love, Hermione.

Draco smiled to himself as he reached the end of the entry. He remembered how they had beaten Voldemort by doing the killing curse on him from all four sides - Harry, Ron, Hermione, and himself. It wasn't just the Golden Trio anymore, but the Magical Four. They were all close, but it wasn't like Draco had asked for that. Still, the Harry and Ron bashing had ended by the time Voldemort was dead and gone for absolute good.

"Oi, Malfoy, you listening?" Draco looked up to see Harry in front of him. "Are you going to the Masquerade Ball today or not?" Draco cleared his throat and looked back at him.

"No, there's no way I'm going to the ball tonight." Draco said, putting the book down and hiding it under his History of Magic textbook. "I'm too swamped with homework from my advanced classes." Harry sighed and sat down on the bench across from him.

"Come on, man." Harry said. "Hermione's going and she's got the same amount of homework as you do! Gods, why do you two get your homework done eight weeks early?" Draco laughed and looked down, his hair falling over his eyes.

"That's just how we do things." Draco said, and Harry rolled his eyes, laughing all the same.

"You two are perfect for each other, then." He said, clearly joking, but Draco had had that same idea in his head for quite some time (not like Harry knew). Harry stood up and headed off to class. Draco then decided that he should get to Advanced Transfiguration before McGonagall took away some Slytherin house points.

Hermione sat on the bench of the rose garden at precisely eight o'clock all dressed up in her costume, but had yet to put on the mask her mysterious suitor had sent to her during lunch. Apparently he also knew what mask would match with her dress, because it looked just like her dress - white and covered with beautiful clear beads.

"Well, then. I see that you actually showed up." A voice came from above, and she looked up to see a figure dressed all in black with a black cape jumping down from an unknown platform. He was wearing a black mask, and his hands were covered in black gloves.

"Who are you?" Hermione asked, standing up and brushing off her white, beaded skirt. "Please, can I please know who you are?" The masked figure in front of her just shook his head.

"It's a secret." He said, and Hermione's face fell. "But don't worry, it will be a wonderful night for you." Hermione immediately smiled again, and the Phantom held out his hand.

"May we go to the ball now?" He asked, and Hermione nodded.

"Let's go!" She exclaimed, and they walked into the Great Hall. All eyes turned towards them, and Hermione was glad that she put her mask on with a sticking charm, because she would be extremely embarrassed otherwise.

Ginny was dancing with Harry when she spotted Hermione walking into the Great Hall with her mysterious suitor on her arm. They looked absolutely perfect together.

"I wonder who that boy is that Hermione's dancing with right now." Ginny said, pointing to Hermione subtly, and Harry looked over at them as he turned her around a half-turn.

"Who knows?" Harry retorted, smiling down at Ginny innocently when she smacked him lightly in the chest.

"Maybe it's Draco Malfoy." She whispered, and Harry snorted.

"Draco isn't here, Ginny. He said he wasn't coming." Harry replied, but he started thinking. What if Draco had decided to come in disguise?

Hermione smiled at her Phantom as he led her through the rose gardens, finally stopping at a bench where they both sat down.

"I had an amazing time tonight." Hermione said, looking deep into his silvery-gray eyes, and he smiled, leaning closer.

"So did I." He replied, and he caressed her face with his long gloved fingers.

"I love you." Hermione blurted out, then realized she was right all along. She was in love with this masked man in front of her. Without thinking again, she closed the distance and pressed her lips lightly to his.

Her Phantom kissed her with much experience, but not once did he tease her or deepen the kiss. He kept it short and sweet, but filled with passion nonetheless. As he pulled away, she felt him press something into her hands.

"And I you." He said, and with a whoosh of his cape, he was gone.

Hermione looked down to see a blood red rose in her hands tied with a black ribbon. And above the ribbon, was a silver ring with a black diamond encrusted in the middle. slowly taking off the ribbon, she placed the ring onto her right ring finger, and she looked back up to where he was sitting just moments before. And then a sudden wave of realization fled over her.

She knew those eyes.

Hermione woke up at seven in the morning to find that her diary was on her bedside table. She immediately reach over to write another entry in her diary when a slip of paper fell out and she got up out of bed to retrieve it. Picking it up, she saw it only held a few words.

I am the Dragon, and you are my Rose.

Hermione tried to figure out what he had meant by that, but she quickly got dressed when she realized what time it was.

When Hermione sat down in the Great Hall for breakfast, all of the girls flocked around her to see the ring.

"Who gave it to you?"

"It's such a beautiful ring!"

"You are such a lucky girl, Hermione!"

All of them were complementing her on the ring, and asking questions about it, but she just looked up to see those silvery-gray eyes looking back at her from the Slytherin table, and she smiled at him, giving a little wave.

He was the dragon, and she would forever be his rose.

Hoped you liked it! And please review, because this is my first Harry Potter fanfic whatsoever!

;) ~*N.L*~