Oh man…

Oh man…..I was just looking at my stories list and I really need to update all of my stories…..most of them I haven't updated for a year! So I better get started….I don't know how often they will come…they may be far and few in between…but don't worry…I have every intention to finish them all!

Chapter Two

Over the next few weeks, things seemed to have blown over regarding Hermione's relationship with Ron. The two of them had been getting along, and Ron seemed to be able to control his urges. Hermione was glad that he had gotten over the fact that she wasn't ready for a sexual relationship with him. Since all the talk of sex had disappeared, she felt as though the time she spent with him was more enjoyable without all of the pressure.

"No, Ron. You have to write your own essay!" Hermione stated firmly. "You're never going to learn if I keep writing them for you." Ron pouted.

"Please, Hermione?" He begged, pitifully. "I promised Harry that we would go to Hogsmeade and look at-," Hermione dropped her quill and glared at him incredulously.

"Ronald Weasley! Do you honestly believe that I am going to sit in this library writing, not one, but TWO essays, while you and Harry go off gallivanting? You must be crazy!"

Hermione's face was almost as red as Ron's hair. She was livid. "I am your girlfriend! Not some essay machine on legs!"

"Very sexy legs I might add," Ron cut in coyly.

"Nice try Ron, but I'm still not doing it." He could hear the finality in her voice as she continued her essay on the uses of a bezoar. Ron sighed as he dropped into the chair next to hers to begin his essay. The couple worked in silence for a good twenty minutes until a bag dropped into the seat next to Hermione. She looked up and smiled.

"Hey Harry." He nodded at her and directed his attention to Ron.

"Ready?" Ron began to close up his belongings and shove them into the worn out bag that he had inherited from Percy.

"Ron you didn't finish your-"

"I know, I'll get to it later. I promise." And with a swift kiss on the mouth, the two boys were gone. Hermione rolled her eyes and went back to work on her foot long essay that she had almost completed. About two minutes later, she felt that she wasn't alone. She figured it was Harry or Ron coming back for something so she didn't look up.

"What did you forg-," She began, but she cut herself off with a gasp. Instead of meeting the warm brown eyes of her boyfriend or the familiar green ones of her best friend, she found herself staring into the cold grey eyes of Draco Malfoy.

"Hello, Mudblood." Hermione struggled to hide her nervousness.

"Malfoy," She responded curtly. He was so close that she could feel his breath on her cheek and it made her uncomfortable.

"I hope you didn't forget that little promise I made you." Hermione's face went pale despite her efforts to stay calm. What was he going to do to her? "Don't worry, Muddy. This is your warning. Next time I won't be so nice."

Malfoy's warning kept Hermione on her toes for the next few weeks, but after about two weeks, she saw no signs of immediate danger so she began to forget about his threats.

"Ron?" Hermione knocked on the door and pushed it open revealing the boys dormitory and her boyfriend still in bed. "Ron, are you alright?" Ron opened his eyes and looked across the room at his girlfriend.

"I'm actually not feeling so well," He muttered. "I think I'm going to have to pass on the Hogsmeade trip today." Hermione unsuccessfully tried to hide her disappointment. She had planned a nice lunch for them at a quaint little cafe in the village.

"Okay, Ron. I'll bring something back for you." She blew a kiss across the room to him and headed down to the main entrance to meet up with Harry and Ginny. Maybe there would be some room for her in their party.

That afternoon, Hermione ran up the stairs to the boy's dorm, her hands and pockets full of candy and sweets from Honeydukes that Ron had missed out on. She hoped that it would make him feel a little bit better. She knocked softly on the door, just in case he was asleep. She listened for a response but all she could hear was a strange groaning sound coming from inside the room.

"Ron, are you alright?" Hermione pushed open the door and peeked inside. What she saw made her stomach drop. On Ron's bed in a tangle of sheets and naked limbs was Ron on top of an orgasming Lavender Brown.

"Ron, how could you?" she whispered, heartbroken. Ron looked up at the sound of her voice.

"Hermione!" Ron got off of Lavender as fast as he could and grabbed a pair of pants. Hermione threw the candy at him as hard as she could and spun on her heels and ran down the stairs and through the common room. Ron followed suit. By the time he caught up with her, she was halfway to the Heads dorm. Ron grabbed her arm and she spun to face him.

"Don't even try to tell me that it wasn't what it looked like!" She screamed. "Was she a cure for your illness, Ron?" Hermione jerked her arm away and snarled, "You make me sick!" Ron watched, bewildered as she stormed off.

Hermione spent the rest of the weekend holed up in her dormitory, thinking about what she had done wrong. It was obvious that Ron didn't love her enough to wait until she was ready.

Hermione lay in her bed on Monday morning, unwilling to get up and face Ron, who was in most of her classes. Eventually she managed to drag herself out of bed and into the shower. Surprisingly there was no sign of Malfoy, and for that she was grateful.

Once she was dressed, she looked at the time. It was 8:10, still early. Hermione decided to skip breakfast and avoid the Great Hall all together. With forty minutes to spare before she had to head to class, she decided to take an early morning walk around the grounds. She opened the front entrance doors and headed out into the crisp November air. Hermione inhaled deeply and smiled. She had always loved fall, the scent of falling leaves had always appealed to her for some reason. She skipped down the front steps of the castle and trudged through the piles of dry leaves and headed down toward the lake. She took a seat on a boulder underneath a large evergreen tree. After about ten minutes of sitting, Hermione realized that it wasn't really a good idea for her to come out there. The alone time was making her think about things that she didn't want to remember. It was her goal to push everything that concerned her relationship with Ronald out of her mind. Thinking about him still hurt her. It was as though she had a permanent thorn in her heart. Against her will the tears filled her eyes and threatened to spill over. Why me? Why did he have to affect my life so much? I should have known that a relationship with me wouldn't work. Why did I even bother? It was just a recipe for pain. Maybe Ron was right to choose someone else…..I wasn't satisfying his needs. Maybe things with Ron would have been different if he knew…NO…I can't tell anyone. People wouldn't understand. Things are bad enough now. I guess I'm just doomed to be alone forever.

Suddenly Hermione heard an anguished cry come from the other side of the tree, breaking her train of thought. She had been quiet up until now, so anyone on the other side of the tree would not be aware of her presence. Curious, Hermione stood up and crept to the other side of the tree and to her absolute surprise, Draco Malfoy sat under the tree with his knees drawn up to his chest and his head buried in his arms. In his tightly fisted hand he clutched a piece of crumpled parchment. It was within a momentary lapse of judgment that she decided to speak to him.

"Malfoy? Are you alright?" His head jerked up to look at her. His normally cold, grey eyes were blood shot and it was obvious that he had been crying.

"What do you want, Mudblood," He snarled, Hermione thought that she could detect some extra venom in his remark.

"Were you crying?" She couldn't hide the incredulity in her voice. Malfoy's scowl deepened and he whipped out his wand and pointed it in her face.

"What's it to you?" He hissed. Hermione instinctively took a step backward and raised her hands in surrender.

"I'm not trying to insult you, Malfoy. I'm genuinely concerned, as bizarre as that sounds."

"Really?" He asked with a glimmer of hope in his eyes. Hermione nodded, just as surprised as he was. For a moment, Malfoy looked as though he was going to accept her offer of sympathy, but just as quickly as it appeared it was gone and the scowl was back. "I don't need your pity, Granger." He growled as he stood up and stormed back up to the castle. However, Hermione smiled, because although it was only for a moment, she caught a glimpse of the real Draco Malfoy.