Hey everyone! How's it going? As promised, here is the next chapter for this story. I won't keep you guys from it. I just want to thank you for the great feedback, and to those readers that also like my newest story, thanks. Read on!

Disclaimer: Don't own, please don't sue

………………………

Closer

………………………

'Tell him to take his fucking hands off of you!'

At that harsh command Hermione jerked away from Viktor at the same time that Ron shoved him off of her. "What the hell is the deal, Krum?" Ron spat angrily.

"Please don't start fighting!" Hermione said as she stood between them.

"I am sorry, but it has been too long since I last saw you," Viktor said as he looked Hermione over from head to toe.

Hermione blushed and looked away from him, seeking someone else. She gulped when she saw the thunderous look on Draco's face. Then her attention was moved back to the three guys surrounding her. Ron looked positively livid.

"Codswallop. It doesn't matter what you think, she's not yours to be kissing," Ron said, his face nearly matching his hair.

"Ron, please?" Hermione pleaded again. "Don't go on a jealous rampage. Harry, why don't you take Ron to get a drink and to cool off?" she asked with meaning.

"Oh," Harry said as he caught on. He nodded and pulled a reluctant and still angry Ron with him.

Hermione turned to look at Viktor and coughed uncomfortably. Those three years ago, they hadn't left each other on very good terms. Well, they had been civilized about it, but Hermione had not taken their break-up lightly.

It had all started as a petty way to get back at Ron for never making a move on her, and it had ended with her feeling something deep and new and close to…… No, she hadn't been in love with him, had she? Well, this wasn't the time or place to ponder over that.

Then something occurred to her. Something completely irrelevant. "You pronounced my name correctly."

"My English is better, no?" he asked with a warm smile. That smile that had once upon a time made her heart speed up.

He was so very handsome, but not the handsome that made her breathless. No, that spot belonged to Draco Malfoy……… who was at the present moment glaring at her. Great, just great. She turned to look at Viktor, and then at Draco.

"Hermione, I would like to speak to you about something important. I know that this is not the best place for it, but I will still be here tomorrow. Would you accompany me to Hogsmeade tomorrow morning?"

Hermione looked at him suspiciously, and had started nodding when her current boyfriend walked over to her and gave Viktor and unfriendly look. "Pardon me," he said with deceptive politeness. Only Hermione knew him enough to hear the underlying anger in his tone. "As head boy and girl, I must take Granger with me to the dance floor," he said smoothly.

Before either Hermione or Viktor could respond, he had whisked her away towards the dance floor. She looked up at him with wide eyes and didn't know exactly what to say. "Um…… Draco, I can explain," she said weakly.

"Explain what? Why he kissed you? Or maybe you'd care to explain why you didn't push him away the moment you saw him lean towards you?" the look in his eyes was near scary, even though the look on his face was pleasant as he wrapped his arms around her waist and stared directly into her eyes.

"I didn't push him away because I was shocked, okay? He was my first boyfriend, and I hadn't seen him in three years. Don't give me that look, you should know that I'm not lying," she said as her eyes narrowed dangerously. Then she sighed. "I'm sorry, okay?"

Draco looked at her coolly and let her go when the music stopped and they were instructed to get to their seats. "Please don't be mad at me!" she said as she walked after him and sat next to him.

"Oh, problems?" they heard a nasty little voice ask.

"Pans," Draco said with an exasperated sigh. The girl could be plain annoying and could appear at the worst times.

"Come now Draco, I don't suppose that you will deny me at least one dance after the feast, will you?" Pansy asked with a "sweet" smile.

Draco gave Hermione a brief thoughtful look and smirked, making her eyes narrow in suspicion. Then he turned back to Pansy. "I don't suppose I won't. Find me later; just leave me alone right now." And what Draco Malfoy commanded, all the other Slytherins obeyed.

Hermione pursed her lips in anger and twisted in her seat to look the other way in a huff. She remembered that as prefect, Ginny was sitting next to her, along with the other house's prefects. "Ginny, change seats with me," Hermione said. It wasn't a question.

The red-head gave her a weird look but didn't argue. They exchanged seats, and this put Hermione next to Blaise. He gave her what she could call a come hither look and she gave a small snort. Dumbledore snapped his fingers and food was produced in the center of the tables. Everyone ate and had a great time, but Hermione and Draco found that the food didn't satisfy them in the way they needed.

When the feast was over, the tables cleared and the dance resumed, and to Hermione's chagrin and delight at the same time, Viktor came over to ask her for a dance. Hermione gave Draco an evil smirk and then took Krum's hand before walking with him towards the dance floor. Draco nearly snarled to himself. Granger was playing a dangerous game with him.

He did the only thing he could think of. He went to find Pansy.

………………

"You did not answer my question about Hogsmeade tomorrow. I just would like to take a walk with you. That is all," Viktor murmured as he held her gently in his arms and they moved to the slow beat of the muggle songs that were being played.

"Okay. I think I'm going to have a long night with the ball. It is responsibility of Malfoy and me. So how about we meet at one in the afternoon tomorrow?" she asked. That way I can explain to you that I have found someone new, she thought. Even though that someone was mad at her right now.

"That is more than fine with me. I will meet you at the Three Broomsticks." He smiled happily when she nodded once. Hermione sighed and settled into his once familiar arms, but wasn't very comfortable. Draco's arms were the only ones that could maker feel warm and safe.

Her eyes narrowed dangerously. Those arms were currently wrapped around the little pug-faced whore. Stupid Pansy. Stupid Malfoy. Draco's eyes met hers and she made a childish face before turning her body and putting Viktor up so that he blocked Malfoy from her.

"You look beautiful this night," he said again. Hermione blushed and looked away from his eyes. "How have you been?"

"Doing quite good. I'm just happy that the war is over and that everything is back to normal. How have you been? What do you do now?"

"I'm still on the Bulgaria Quidditch team," he said with grin. And they had a long conversation of what had gone on in the three years that they hadn't seen each other. And unknowingly, they danced half the night together.

"Excuse me, but don't you think that there are other people that would like to dance with Hermione?" The pair nearly jumped when they were interrupted by a very peeved looking Ron Weasley.

"Ronald," Hermione started in a soft tone. "If you wanted me to dance with you then you should have just asked," she said in irritation, letting go of Viktor and turning to her best friend. "Would you mind terribly if I left you alone for a while?" she asked Viktor.

"Not at all, I understand completely," Viktor said as he took her hand and pressed a kiss to it. Then he walked away with a smile on his face, missing two pairs of eyes that were glaring in his direction. One pair belonged to one Ron Weasley, and the other to Draco Malfoy.

But Hermione did see and she was getting sick and tired about it. Ron placed his hands on her waist and they moved around on the dance floor. She smiled at him and relaxed a bit. They danced about tree songs together until she felt a wave of anger laced with annoyance run through her and she knew it was coming from Malfoy. Somehow, during the night, her shielding had been terrible and she was picking up everything that he was feeling.

She watched as he walked towards her and Ron with graceful movements as he walked. He looked like a black panther, stalking out his prey. And she was his prey. He stopped in their path and waited for Wesley to look at him.

"May I cut in?" Draco asked smoothly, eyes narrowed slightly.

"Sorry Malfoy, I don't want to dance with you," Ron said sarcastically.

"You know that I don't swing that way, and even if I did, I wouldn't swing your way. I want to dance with Granger," Malfoy said in that commanding tone of his.

"Ron, give me a few minutes to dance with him, I promise that I'll dance with you again," she said with a reassuring smile.

'Not if I have something so say about it,' Draco whispered into her mind. She shot him a dirty look as she let go of Ron and turned to her significant other. Ron glared at Malfoy once before walking away and back towards his date.

"I don't appreciate you talking down to my friends," Hermione snapped as they once again joined on the dance floor.

"Not this again," he said with a groan of annoyance. "Come on! I've had to stand the whole night and watch you dance with one ex-boyfriend and then the other," he growled close to her ear, not wanting anyone to hear what he was saying to her. "I think I am entitled to get some of mine back."

Hermione laughed softly and made Malfoy scowl slightly. "Okay, I'm sorry. But I'm just not used to turning down my best friends. And seeing Viktor here was a big shock too. I may not see him for another three years so I wanted to speak to him today," she murmured as she ran her fingers over his sharp chin.

Then she grinned as she listened to the song playing through the hall. "I like this song," she murmured as she stared into those glinting gray eyes. "Listen to the words."

Draco nodded and move slowly with her.

There's times when I want something more

Someone more like me

There's times when this dress rehearsal

Seems incomplete

Draco leaned his head down against her cheek and closed his eyes, pressing her tightly to the length of his body. There was something about this girl in his arms that made him feel so… so unlike himself. He had never met someone quite like her, and now that he looked back on how he had treated her, he cringed to himself and knew that there were no words to apologize for all the grief she had been put through because of him.

But, you see the colors in me like no one else

And behind your dark glasses you're...

You're somethin' else

Hermione smiled and laid her head against his chest. She listened to the steady beat of his heart and marveled at how things had changed. Draco had been a little bastard to her since day one, but now he was her boyfriend.

"I want to be more than just your boyfriend," he murmured, his lips grazing her cheek.

His thoughts were swirling around her head and Hermione blushed at what she heard echoing through his mind. "I'm not sure."

So many moons that we have seen

Stumbling back next to me

I've seen right through and underneath

And you make me better

Draco grinned as he heard the lyrics. "I want to be with you. I need you," he whispered.

Cuz underneath it all,

You are my real Prince Charmin'

Like the heat from the fire

You were always burning

Hermione kept quiet for a long while, listening to the lyrics and wondering how much they reminded her of Draco. Was he her prince charming? Maybe. Was he like fire always burning? Certainly. No matter what they fought about he was always there.

And even if she tried to deny it, her skin was craving his. She knew that it was still the bond that was fairly new, but she wanted to touch him more intimately. She didn't know if she was making the right choice. But she had made one.

And each time you're around

My body keeps calling

For your touch

Your kisses and your sweet romancing

There's an underside to you

That so many adore

Hermione had been zoning out so deeply that she never saw his face moving towards hers. She had missed the mischievous twinkle in his eyes before he had bent his head and pressed his lips to hers.

When he did that, she was so caught up in his taste and in the thoughts running through his head and into hers, that she didn't have enough mind to stop him. Her arms wrapped around his neck and her fingers ran through the baby fine silk of his hair.

Aside from your temper

Everything else secure

You're good for me, baby

Of that, I'm sure

Cuz over and over again

I want more

Then everything clicked and Hermione remembered where they were and exactly who was kissing her. She pushed away from him and flashed him a dark glare. "You sneaky son of a bit—"

"Now now love, remember that we are in public," he smirked as he looked around.

Hermione's eyes grew incredibly wide when she noticed that they were in the center of the dance floor and a large group of students were surrounding them. "Oh my God. Did Harry and Ron see this?" she asked.

"No," Draco said with that same smirk on his face. "But everyone else did, and by the end of the ball, everyone else will know."

"Oh you bloody wanker!" she hissed as she pushed away from him and moved to leave. The crowd parted as she passed by, murmuring and giggling. Some girls were glaring at her, and others shooting her dirty looks. Hermione scowled and brushed them off as she made her way to the girls lavatory, never noticing two figures that had moved to follow her.

Once inside the lavatory, she washed her face with cold water. Stupid Malfoy! she screeched in her head. God, Harry and Ron were going to kill her. If not today, then tomorrow or when she next saw them.

She let out a small scream when she noticed herself in the mirror. She had completely forgotten that she had been wearing make-up and it had run off horribly. She didn't normally wear make-up. She took out her wand from the pocket of her expensive robe and said a quick spell to fix her make-up right back. She sighed and turned to leave; she couldn't stay in the restroom for the rest of the night.

Bloody Malfoy was right. The kiss he had given her would run through the students like gun powder, and then the rumor of one simple kiss would turn into one such as they were shagging in the broom closet last week, I saw them! Which was absolutely absurd because she hadn't allowed Malfoy to touch her that way yet.

She was a Gryffindor for crying out loud! She wasn't a coward or a slimy little Slytherin who skulked around in the shadows afraid of what the school might be saying about her. But your boyfriend is a Slytherin, and he's turning out to be better than the rest, her mind whispered.

Her mind's ranting came to a complete halt when she saw who was standing just inside the door. Pansy Parkinson was there, arms crossed and foot tapping. She looked angry enough to kill and if looks could kill, Hermione would've been dead ten times over.

"May I help you with something, Pans?" Hermione asked coolly.

"You conniving little hussy!" she screeched, nearly bursting Hermione's eardrums. "I knew that you and my Draco had something going on! But I just hope you know that he's just using you for your body," she said matter-of-factly.

Hermione smirked. Draco couldn't possibly be with her because of that. Their minds were too intertwined for her to not know. "If he is, then that's our business. You're just yesterday's news for him," she said with a careless shrug.

Pansy stood there fuming, and then the door creaked open and someone else stepped in. Hermione's eyes were greeted with a gruesome sight. Even clad in her "Rapunzel princess" get-up, Millicent Bulstrode was just grotesque.

"Milli has something to share with you," Pansy said evilly.

Hermione eyed the two girls suspiciously and began to slide her hand towards her wand. "If you do something to me, Dumbledore will expel you both."

"Not if you forget about it," Pansy said with meaning.

"Don't you dare come near me!" Hermione growled softly. She pulled out her wand, but it appeared that Pansy had been quicker.

"Expelliarmus!" Pansy yelled.

Hermione's eyes widened before the spell hit her. But the angle she was standing in was wrong and she fell back and slammed her head against the bathroom sink. One name raced through her head before anything went black. Draco!

……………………………

Draco smirked to himself and flashed the group of students a withering glare and they dispersed. He caught Dumbledore's eyes and saw them twinkling merrily. McGonagall looked wary, and next to her, Snape looked somewhat disgruntled and disgusted. The big oaf Hagrid was frowning, looking thoughtful, but Draco paid them no mind.

When something popped into his head that he wanted, he got it. It didn't matter that he had to play dirty to get it. Now the Weasel-king and the accented-moron would know that Hermione was his, and only his.

He walked towards Blaise, Crabbe, Goyle, and a few other Slytherins who were making cat calls at him. "So you bagged yourself a Gryffindor?" One guy asked.

Draco just chuckled. "How is she in the sack?" Zabini asked. He didn't know every single thing that was going on between him and Granger.

"A gentleman doesn't kiss and tell," he said smugly. Then he felt something warm and hot trickle down his face from the left side of his forehead. Draco! His name echoed through his head.

"Malfoy! You're bleeding from your forehead!" Crabbe yelled.

"What!" he asked as he brought two fingers to his face, he looked at his fingers and frowned in apprehension when he saw that they were covered in scarlet blood. Hermione! The thought raced through him and he looked around frantically. And that was when he felt a flash of her pain go through him and knew that she was passed out.

Something had happened to Hermione and he had no clue as to where she was. His blood ran cold at the thought of someone hurting her.

"Weasley!" he called.

Ginny stopped in her tracks and glared at Hermione's boyfriend. "What?" she asked flatly.

"Have you seen Granger?" he tried not to sound worried, but then Ginny noticed the blood on his forehead.

"Oh no. Did Ron or Harry hurt you?" she asked worriedly.

"No," Draco snapped. "Now have you seen Hermione or not?"

Ginny smiled slightly when her friend's name slipped from his lips. She nodded. "I saw her making her way towards the girls lavatory."

"Okay, thanks," he said before nearly running out of the great hall. When he was out of sight, he broke out into an all out run towards the nearest restroom. When he arrived, he knocked the door a few times, but no answer came.

He let out a slow breath and looked down the corridor both ways before pushing the door open and walking in. There was nothing out of the ordinary, and he was about to turn and walk out when he noticed something red standing out against the stark floor.

He walked deeper into the dark restroom and his heart dropped into his stomach when he saw that it was Hermione at the far end of the room, she was strewn on the floor with her head turned to the side. Little rampant thoughts were running through his head. The worst possible things that could've happened to her. And he vowed to kill the person who harmed her. Maybe he was overreacting, but the thought of losing her made him want to vomit and the feeling left him feeling cold.

As he took her in, he saw that there was a long trickle of blood that was trailing away from her too still form. He ran to her and fell to his knees, not knowing exactly what to do.

First off, he checked her pulse and found that it was there, still beating strong. Second he checked for anymore wounds. "Hermione, wake up," he said softly, turning her head and noticing the wound that was exactly where his was.

He didn't know the extent of her injury, so he picked her up gently in his arms and ran with her towards the infirmary, not caring if anyone saw him. Besides, almost everyone had seen the kiss he had planted on her on the dance floor.

He burst through the doors and startled Madam Pomfrey, who had retired right after the feast. "I found her in the lavatory, she has a head injury and I don't know how it happened," he said as he quickly placed her on a bed.

Madam Pomfrey gasped and ran over to Hermione. "Step back some. I am going to heal her wound and then check for any injuries," the nurse said. She did it quickly and slowly healed the wound completely.

Draco dabbed at his wound with cloth he had taken from the stack that Madam Pomfrey had used to clean Hermione's face. He would live through his wound, all he wanted to know was how Hermione was doing.

"It appears that she has a concussion. There was bruising around the cut, so that means that she hit something hard. You found her in the lavatory?" she asked. Draco nodded, wincing a bit as he began to feel the pain in his head now. He wondered why the pain had been delayed. "Maybe she slipped and hit her head somewhere?" she offered.

"Maybe. We'll find out when she wakes up. Will she be okay?" he asked.

"Yes. She will have a massive headache when she awakens, but hopefully there will be no more damage than that."

"How is Miss Granger doing?"

"Professor Dumbledore," Malfoy said in shock. "How did you know about Hermione?"

Dumbledore just smiled pleasantly. "I have my ways. How is she doing?"

As soon as he asked, Hermione stirred and groaned in pain. "Owww," she whined as she rubbed her head. All that was left of the injury was a crusted wound that looked days old, but the pain had remained as well as a bruise all around it. "What happened?" she asked as she sat up, with the help of Draco.

"We were hoping that you could share that with us, young lady," Madam Pomfrey said as she handed Hermione with a cup holding some sort of syrup to help with the headache.

Hermione looked up at Draco and her lips thinned into a straight line as she remembered what had happened. "I went to the lavatory to cool off a bit. I stayed for a moment and didn't notice that…… that Pansy Parkinson was there. She called me names and then Bulstrode walked in. I don't know what they planned to do to me."

"Did they physically harm you?" Draco growled darkly.

She shook her head once and winced. "No, but Pansy tried to disarm me with a spell, and the force of it knocked me into the sink. I bumped my head there and I woke up here."

"Miss Parkinson and Miss Bulstrode then. I think I will go and have a talk with them. Mr. Malfoy, take our dear Hermione to her room and make sure she is put to bed."

"But sir, what about the ball? We're in charge and I don't think I should be sleeping while—"

"Do you have to complain about everything? You just received a bloody concussion. You should be resting," Draco snapped, not caring for the flame of anger that sparked inside of her.

"Hey buddy, it's your fault I was in the lavatory when they caught me alone!" she stated tartly.

"Can we argue in private?" he said through grit-teeth.

"Children, please don't fight. Miss Granger, the prefects are perfectly capable of taking care of the ball. You need to relax and sleep off the pain. Don't worry about a thing. Mr. Malfoy?" Dumbledore asked as he motioned to Hermione.

"I'll take care of it," he said as he handed Hermione her boots and helped her put them on. She just glared at him and crossed her arms childishly. "Would you prefer if I carried you up to your room?"

Dumbledore smiled and walked out of the infirmary, and Madam Pomfrey walked off to leave them alone too.

Hermione looked at him and gave him an impish smile. "While my little blond dragon carry me to my room?" she asked in a baby voice.

Draco just gave her an annoyed look. "Did you bump your head harder than we thought? You want me to carry you? I thought you were in independent woman," he said slyly.

"Come on Draco, I hit my head, won't you carry me to my room?" Hermione asked with a pout. Draco let out a heavy sigh and picked her up, marveling at the fact that she was so light and she fit perfectly in his arms.

Hermione snuggled her face against his chest and wrapped her arms around his neck. He smelled so wonderfully masculine; she felt so safe. He walked with her in his arms the whole distance to their rooms, completely ignoring the few people that they passed.

He said the password to the portrait and walked Hermione in, straight to her room and onto her bed. "Thank you, Draco," she murmured as she sat there and began to remove the robe and her boots.

He nodded and walked over to the fireplace to get a fire started. Then he shut the curtains over her windows so that they wouldn't bother her, and consequently him, in the morning. Even if nothing happened between them, he would sleep here with her, just to feel her in his arms again.

He walked over to the bed and grabbed Ferret before putting him outside in the common room. The cat could be a bloody pest when it wanted to. "Can I ask something of you?" she asked quietly.

Draco turned to look at her and nodded. "What is it?"

"Don't do anything to Pansy or that horrid Bulstrode?" she asked as she bit her lip.

His eyes went flat and devoid of any emotion. "I can't do that. They purposefully harmed you when they knew that you were with me now. Slytherins need to be kept in line, and I am the only one capable of doing that. I'm sorry love, but I won't promise that."

Hermione sighed heavily, but didn't argue. She knew that Draco could be as stubborn as she was when something got into their heads. She stood slowly and padded to her walk-in closet. There she removed her dress and placed it in a hanger before pulling on a red silk robe and walking back out.

She moved to her vanity to remove the pins in her hair, and that was when Draco moved to stand behind her. He helped her remove every one and then he ran his fingers through the surprisingly soft ringlets. He would've thought that they would be stiff from whatever concoction had been put into them, but it was the exact opposite.

Hermione just stood there relaxing by degrees as his long hands ran through her hair and tugged gently at her scalp. It felt so wonderful and nice. But what amplified the sensation was the feel of warm lips on her neck as he tilted her head to the side.

One hand left her hair and wandered to her flat stomach, pulling her closer to his chest, his entire front. She let out a breathy sigh and ran her hands over his arm. Then she turned around and kissed him, catching him off guard.

"Stay with me," she murmured against his lips.

Draco pulled back to regard her seriously. "Are you sure? You said that you needed time."

"Tonight made me realize that you mean a lot to me. Seeing Viktor only reinforced that for me. I realized that he and Ron had never meant as much as you do to me, in the boyfriend sense. I love Ron and Harry like brothers, but you…… there's something about you that makes me feel different."

"You know," he stated quietly, ruefully, "I think that it's the bond that is making us feel these things."

"It may be so, but we are still feeling them. I want to know as to what extent things can change between us," Hermione said as she kissed him again. "I'm sure. I'm ready." Draco groaned at her words and kissed her, his hands going to the knot around her waist, holding her robe closed. "Wait!" she whispered. "It's only fair that you take off your clothes first."

Draco chuckled and nodded, pulling off his robes and taking off his suit. In record time, he was down to green silk boxers. Hermione smiled as she let her eyes travel through his tall slim body leisurely. "Like what you see?"

Hermione nodded. "Very much. Lay down on the bed," she pointed.

"In Gryffindor sheets?" he asked with a light sniff. Hermione glared at him and he smirked as he did as she had asked him. "I don't mind if you're the Gryffindor," he stated.

"Draco?"

"Yes?"

"Just shut up. You look so much prettier with your mouth shut," she whispered as she crawled over him and straddled his waist. "Be gentle with me," she murmured before pressing her lips to his.

Draco nodded and sighed as he sunk his hand into her thick hair. He had never wanted anyone as much as he wanted Hermione. His skin was just itching to feel hers pressed against his again. One hand trailed down to push off the red silk from her body and she obliged, tossing the garments aside. She pressed herself to him and Draco found that she was wearing only her panties.

"I want you. I want you so much," he muttered as he flipped her onto her back and began to trail kisses down her neck, exploring her body the way he had wanted to do for a very long time.

He was gentle with her, and he took his time to get to know this body that would be his for the rest of his life. And even in her first experience, Hermione responded in kind and made him feel things that he had never felt with any female before.

And as their bodies connected in a deeper more meaningful way, their bond tightened and brought them even closer together; closer to the point that by the end of the night, they were sharing thoughts feelings, and senses with each other.

They were sharing one breath. One heart beat.

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Woohoo! Did you guys like it? I hope so. Because of the whole freakin' rating thing, I omitted the last scene from this chapter, but if you'd like to read one, I'll write an s-e-x scene for them. I post this fic up at another site where snuff and stuff can be posted and I can give you the site address you can go to if I decide to write the scene.

So things between Mione and Draco have gone deeper, but she still has a meeting with Viktor Krum. What will Draco do when he finds out? And what will Ron and Harry say about all that's happening? Those things will be included in the next chapter, and I hope that I can post it soon. Thanks for reading and have a great week!

Byebye

!Joey!