Halloween Ball

The dungeons had been transformed into a dark maze of terror, students weaved in and out of the narrow passageways, in search of an exit. Screams and laughter could be heard over the small rock band that was performing in the far right hand corner, and the rich smell of pumpkin spice hung in the air.

Hermione made her way over to the bar area, taking in the extravagant decorations. Hogwarts had really outdone itself as usual. Bats flew past overhead and carved pumpkins floated in mid-air. The ceiling had also been bewitched, similar to the one in the Great Hall, and a full moon hung amongst the constellation of stars. She spotted Harry and Ron and made her way over to them, pulling down her costume that was riding far too high up her thighs. She cursed herself for not wearing tights that would have saved at least a shred of her modesty and was grateful that the dungeons were so dimly lit.

"Padma's gone to get us all drinks and by the way you look amazing!" Harry commented, taking in her costume.

"Oh thanks Harry, you and Ron look great too."

This was partly true, Harry had done an amazing job on his vampire costume; his face was pale, blood was dripping from his lips and a cloak completed his costume. He had also managed to slick back his hair and grow temporary fangs, which was very impressive. Ron on the other hand was downright creepy.

Hermione had to bite down on her lip to stop herself from screaming when he turned round to face her. His face was a painted mask accompanied by a red nose and although his appearance should have been comedic, it was traumatising. She couldn't shake the feeling that his grin was mocking her, and so she looked away focusing her eyes on the pair of twins heading in their direction, several drinks in their hands. She greeted them politely and complimented their amazing costume.

Parvati had explained how the spell to conjoin them had been fairly easy and was certain to last for several hours. Ron groaned at this, as her statement confirmed that he wouldn't be getting any alone time with Padma. Hermione chuckled at his disappointed expression and took a sip from the beverage she had been handed. Warmth flooded through her as the spiced butter beer travelled down her throat and she let out a contented sigh, before engaging in the current conversation.

"The maze looks like fun," Padma said, glancing over at the walls of towering hedges.

"Yes, maybe we should have a competition," Ron suggested. "The first person to find the exit gets the others to do their homework for a month!"

Hermione groaned at the suggestion, whilst everyone else nodded. Homework didn't bother her and was actually entertaining, unlike the maze. Dumbledore had announced that it would be filled with horrors and puzzles which, whilst intriguing her, also made her feel uneasy. She reluctantly followed the others to the entrance, gripping her wand tightly in her hand.

"What if we get lost?" She asked.

"I think that's the point." Ron laughed.

Harry noticed her reluctance and reassured her, "if you can't find the way out then just send red sparks into the air, like last year during the tournament. I'll come and find you."

She nodded slowly before adding, "Hang on this is unfair. The twins have an advantage because they are together and Harry was in the tournament last year!"

Ron smirked, "scared of losing?"

Her Gryffindor pride overpowered her uneasiness and a determined expression crossed her features.

"Of course not."

"Right then let's get on with this," Ron began, "On your marks…Get set…Go!"

Draco POV

Although a warming spell had been cast on the dungeons, an eerie atmosphere still lingered, causing a shiver to vibrate through his body. He pulled his arm out of Pansy's painful grip and wandered over to the spot where a mesmerising figure had just disappeared.

Students stared at his face as he passed, as it now represented a skull. The spell had taken an hour to perfect but the outcome was definitely worth it. Where his eye should have been, there were now two empty sockets, his cheekbones were hollow and the definition of his jaw was emphasised, as the spell created an impression of raw bone.

He arrived at the entrance to a maze where the figure with slender legs and loose mahogany curls had just been. He huffed in exasperation as he found that she was nowhere in sight. The only plausible explanation was that she had entered the maze and so he drew his wand and followed, determined to find the unfamiliar girl. He was certain that he had never seen her before at Hogwarts and had no idea why he was so determined to find her.

He muttered lumos and his surroundings flickered into view. Hedges loomed over him on either side and ahead of him were two turnings. His gut instinct told him to go left and so he followed the narrow path and came to a dead end. He groaned and went to turn back but a voice caught his attention.

Riddle me this:

If you have me, you want to share me.

But if you share me, you no longer have me.

What am I?

These words had appeared in gold on the hedge in front of him as the voice disappeared. He stared at them in confusion and rolled his eyes.

"I'm not in Ravenclaw for a reason." He mumbled.

He thought in concentrated silence for several moments before a solution came to him.

"A secret." He spoke aloud.

The hedge parted, revealing another path and he smirked proudly before carrying on. He had solved several more riddles and even stupefied a blast-ended skrewt when a bloodcurdling scream tore through him like a shard of glass and stopped him in his tracks.

Instinctively, he ran towards the feminine sound and came face to face with a boggart. The shapeshifter noticed his presence and immediately changed to his father impending down on him, cane in hand.

"Riddikulus!" He cried and his father was suddenly wearing a clown costume, similar to the one he had seen Weasley wearing earlier. He forced a laugh and the boggart exploded. He let out a shaky breath and kneeled down next to the girl with mahogany curls, who was clutching her knees to her chest. He brushed back her hair and doubled back as he recognised her face. Granger?

She looked up at him and flinched, backing away. He stared puzzled at her fear before realising he still had his mask on that hid his real features. He muttered the counter spell and watched as her shoulders relaxed at the sight of his normal face. He was somehow comforted by the fact that she felt safe around him and he shrugged off his jacket, crouching down to drape it around her. She looked up at him curiously, before bowing down her head to stubbornly hide her face that was glistening with tears.

"And here I thought Gryffindor's were supposed to be brave." He joked softly.

He saw another tear run down her cheek and he gently tilted her chin towards him so she could see that he wasn't mocking her. He wiped it away with his thumb and she smiled softly at him. He returned it and instantly became aware of how close they were, but he didn't back away. He stared at her for several moments, wondering why he had never noticed how beautiful she was before.

Even now with her tear streaked face she was stunning. Her loose curls were framed around her face and her eyes were a shade of light brown, almost haze,l and they were staring intently up at him. He broke the gaze and stood back checking her over with his eyes, in search of any injury. He found nothing fatal, and purposely averted his gaze from a tear in her costume above her calf. She looked down and blushed, pulling his jacket more tightly around her.

"No serious injuries but I'm taking you to see Madam Pomfrey just in case."

She nodded and attempted to lift herself to her feet. She winced and he caught her as she began to fall. She grasped his arm tightly and he was surprised at how warm she felt next to him.

"Can you walk?" He asked.

She attempted another step forward but was unsuccessful. She looked up at him with a frown and shook her head. He gestured for her to wrap her arm around his neck and he carefully place his hands underneath her knees before hoisting her into his arms.

He was surprised at how light she was and immediately expected her to flinch at the sudden contact, but instead she draped her other arm around him and nestled her face into his neck. Her breath tickled his throat and sent pleasant shivers down his back as he began walking in the direction of what appeared to be the exit.

She mumbled something that sounded oddly like, "Thank you Draco," and a small smile tugged at his lips as he realised she had used his first name.

A/N: Thank you guys for reviewing and following my story! I hope you liked this chapter because I really enjoyed writing it and we finally get to see a different side to Draco. Hopefully my next chapter will be up on Sunday!

AnimeFan1980 - Thanks for your review! And I also agree with you that Draco does seem the type to be a vampire with his pale features. However, I hope you liked my idea of a skull as I thought it would be really cool for his character. Tell me what you think...