Draco walked to the Great Hall for breakfast with a smile on his face. He plopped down between Goyle and Blaise and began piling food on his plate.
"Little peckish?" Blaise asked watching him.
"God, this food is great," Malfoy took a big bite of pancakes. "Hey!" he said through the food. "How'd it go with you and uh, the bird?"
"You don't need to use code, Malfoy," Blaise looked down.
"She blew him off," Crabbe said, smiling.
"Hey! There is no need for that," Blaise laughed sadly. "I just don't know what to do."
"Well, from experience, I'd say you have to go get her," Malfoy said.
An unwelcome figure approached the table.
"Hi, Draco," said Pansy, leaning over him to kiss him on the cheek.
"Uh, Pansy." He tried to pry her off. "I'm trying to eat."
She giggled girlishly and played with her long black hair, her elbow knocked into Draco's plate, but she caught. Draco took another bite of pancakes.
"Well, I'll see you later, Draco." She stalked off.
"Honestly," said Draco, not phased by Pansy's departure. "You just have to go talk to her. Tell her how you feel. You know," a gleam went through his silver eyes. "I'm gonna go tell her how I feel!"
"Hermione knows how you feel, Draco," said Blaise.
"Hermi-, what? The mudblood? What would I want her for?" Blaise saw the darkness in Draco's pale orbs.
"What's gotten into you, man?" He reached for his friends shoulder.
"Back off, Zabini! I'm gonna get her."
Hermione walked over to the Slytherin table, smiling cheerfully.
"Hey, Draco." She said.
"Mudblood," he stood up and pushed past her. "God, I love her so much. I've been so blind."
"Who, Draco?" Blaise asked, concerned.
"Pansy of course! I have to tell her I'm sorry, I've been such a prat."
Hermione paled. Crabbe and Goyle gave equal looks of shock. Blaise looked down at the plate of unfinished pancakes.
"Hermione," Blaise started but she'd already ran off. "Oh, balls."
Hermione ran to the only place she knew she would be alone. She prodded a knot at the base of the Whomping Willow and clamored into the secret tunnel. Running as fast as she could, she exploded into the Shrieking Shack. Immediately collapsing onto the bed in a fit of sobs.
"Hey, Potter?" Blaise approached Harry carefully in double Potions.
Harry's eyes narrowed at the turn of events.
"I need some help, see. It's about Hermione."
"Do you know where she is?" Ron interrupted.
"No, I don't know. She ran off after Malfoy took off after her." He threw a disgusted look in the corner where Malfoy and Pansy were tangled around each other.
"If that was all just a game to Malfoy, I swear I'll…" Harry stood up facing Blaise.
"Sit down, Potter!" Snape yelled from the front of the classroom.
Both Blaise and Harry sat quickly.
"It wasn't. He really cares about her."
"Funny way of showing it," Ron snapped.
"That's just it. I'm not sure, but I think Pansy slipped him a potion, Love Potion actually." Blaise gave Ron a hard look. "Maybe a Weasley product."
Harry opened his potions book to a chapter on Love Potions. Snape, interested in their hushed whispering, stalked towards the boys. He snatched the book from Harry.
"Now, now, Potter." He sneered. "This is a bit desperate, even for you."
Malfoy laughed loudly, coming up for air just in time to hear Snapemock Harry.
"Ten points from Gryffindor," Snape said smoothly.
Blaise and Harry had made a deal to meet out on the grounds at their next break to discuss the predicament. Harry came armed with Ginny and Ron, just in case. He wasn't surprised to see Crabbe and Goyle with the Slytherin.
"They're here to help, Potter. I know how ridiculous this sounds, but we were really happy for Draco and Hermione, see? She made him happy, and with a life like Malfoy's got, happy is something he should get."
"How am I supposed to believe that you'd be happy that Draco found someone," Harry asked defensivly.
"Trust him, Harry," Ginny said, holding his hand. "Blaise is in the same boat right now."
"How do you know about that?" Blaise asked seriously.
"You have to show her how you feel." Ginny smiled.
"We're not talking about you and Luna right now…" Goyle said.
Both Ron and Harry coughed loudly.
"Draco's seriously in trouble. Those Love Potions are nasty pieces of work. If she keeps giving it to him, not only will he lose Hermione, he could lose himself." Goyle finished.
"How do we stop it?" Ron asked.
"Get to the library and find out everything you can. Ron, find out what exactly Pansy bought from your brothers. If we know what we're dealing with, we'll know how to stop it."
"And what are you going to do?" Ginny asked Blaise.
"We'll find Hermione."
Hermione wiped her eyes and sat up from the couch. Her clothes were filthy with dust but she didn't care. Draco was in love with Pansy. After everything she'd gone through and put up with for him, he'd turned around and done the one thing she feared. She began walking back toward the entrance of the tunnel. There were muffled voices above her.
"You're sure this is where she went, Luna?"
"You asked, I told you. She won't be very happy you interrupted her though, not happy at all."
"We're trying to help out," Hermione recognized Blaise's voice.
"More worried about Hermione, huh? Shocking."
"I want to worry about us."
"There is no us. You're too proud for there to be an us."
"I just have a lot of stuff to worry about right now!"
"If Draco and Hermione get all this figured out, and you ditch me…" Luna said threateningly.
"I'll make it up to you, I promise."
The tree froze and Blaise tumbled to Hermione's feet.
"Why don't you look happy to see me?"
"So, they gave her a really strong Love Potion. Best money could buy actually. Won't wear off until she wants it to, and by the look of them," Ron threw a look at the two in the library. "That won't be any time soon."
"Is there an antidote?" Ginny asked, leafing through books.
"They wouldn't tell me. They said they keep everything confidential."
Ginny stood up, and stormed off.
"We'll see about that."
"She's right scary when she's mad." Ron said, watching his retreating sister.
"She'll get the mickey out of them." Harry said, approvingly.
"He's taken a Love Potion," Blaised yelled out quickly as Hermione raised her wand.
"What?"
"Pansy gave him a Love Potion! She bought it from the Weasley's! He didn't know. He was going to find you when she slimed up and 'spilled' his pancakes!" Blaise spoke quickly, knowing he was running out of time.
"He likes pancakes?"
"Don't hex- what? Yeah, he likes pancakes."
Hermione broke into tears again.
"I love pancakes," she allowed Blaise to put his arm around her and help her out of the tunnel.
Girls are so weird, he thought.
Ten minutes later, Ginny reappeared in the library. Although Fred and George were a good two heads taller than her, she pulled them in by their ears.
"I swear if you become any more like mother…" George started.
"Let go, let go, let go!" Fred yelled.
"Tell us everything about the Love Potion you gave Parkinson." Ron said.
"Confidental information, little brother." Ginny twisted Fred's ear.
"Love Potion number 15! Won't wear off until she wants it to! You can stop it without her consent if you get him to swallow unicorn hair!" he screamed.
She let go.
"Thanks," Ginny took off towards the grounds.
After sneaking to Hagrid's cabin and retrieving a strand of hair she reappeared at the library table. Apparently, Harry had filled them in on the Draco/Hermione front because they were wearing identical looks of shock.
"So, all we need to do is find Hermione."
"Got her," said Blaise from the entrance of the library. "She was in the Shrieking Shack. She's all game though."
A hand came crashing down on Blaise's shoulder and threw him into a chair.
"What are you playing at?" Malfoy yelled at him.
"What's the matter with you, mate?"
"You're ruining everything. Pansy and I have a chance, Zabini! Leave it alone! I'm happy with her!" The dark cloud had taken over his silver eyes. "I'm warning you, get your nose out of it or you'll be sorry!" He raised his wand.
"I'm really sorry about this, Malfoy," Hermione said.
"Don't you talk to me, you filthy little mudblood!"
"Stupify!"
