Chapter 9
Disclaimer: JK Rowling owns Harry Potter, I don't.
AN: Have I told you guys how amazing you are? Well you are! Seriously, I am blown away with all of the feedback I've gotten with this story and cannot thank you enough! There've been times I seriously questioned where I was going with Wanna Bet and if it was even worth continuing, but your reviews keep me going. Your ideas are wonderful and have greatly helped with the plotline. You're all awesome!
The Slytherins all stood behind Draco, pregame jitters racking through their bodies as they waited to go onto the field. They could hear their house cheering them on and Hufflepuff's cheers for their own team. This was the second quidditch game of the season, but the first for Slytherin. It was also the first time they were going to truly play fairly and not cheat in any way. They'd been training hard and set up a game strategy, hoping their hard work would pay off. They desperately wanted and needed this win.
They also knew that if they lost, they'd have to face their captain's wrath. When they'd met up in the changing rooms after breakfast, Draco had come in with a fierce scowl on his features and a horrible mood about him. His look alone kept his teammates from speaking to him and his pep talk was basically, "Win or else."
His team thought he had probably not gotten enough rest, or got into a fight beforehand, but only Blaise and Theo knew the true reason behind his foul mood. He'd gotten another letter from Lucius. He didn't incinerate it this time, and simply left it on the table, which Blaise and Theo immediately scooped up, read, and threw away. It simply asked how he was doing, told that he was making progress in getting the family business back, wished him luck for today, and said he would like to hear from him. They wondered why the older Malfoy was suddenly sending these pleasant letters to his son, when in years past he'd always berated him for losing his games to Potter, or being second academically to 'that filthy mudblood', but it wasn't their business and they shrugged it off. They couldn't focus on Draco's family problems now when they had a game to win.
They finally began moving towards the center of the field, all the while the crowds cheering and booing for the two teams. Most of both Hufflepuff and Slytherin were here, but looking around there were also a few Ravenclaws and Gryffindors. This didn't come as much of a surprise. The other houses, especially those on the quidditch teams, liked to attend other games to see how the others played and what to watch out for in their future games. The Slytherins did it too and just last week had observed the game between Ravenclaw and Gryffindor.
"I want a clean game-from everyone" Madame Hooch said, directing her stare towards the Slytherins. They nodded in response and she continued, "Captains, shake hands." Draco gripped the hand of the Hufflepuff a little too hard, then immediately dropped it as though he'd been burned. The Hufflepuff shot a glare in his direction and Draco gave a sneer in return. It was enough to make the boy gulp and drop eye contact. Fucking Huff-n-Puffs.
They mounted their brooms and when Madame Hooch blew the whistle, the kicked off in the air. Draco immediately rose high above the crowds and his own teammates so that he had a perfect view of everything going on below him and an advantage on spotting the snitch.
"And Nott takes the quaffle, zooming down the pitch" Seamus Finnegan's voice announced throughout the quidditch pitch. He was the announcer that took over after Lee Jordan, but his Irish accent sometimes made it hard to understand him.
"He dodges left… dodges right… is intercepted by Smith, and wait- he psyched out and passed it to Zabini! Zabini ducks…swerves down…and…SCORES! Ten points to Slytherin!"
The Slytherins cheered loudly as the scoreboard showed their points, and even a few of the Hufflepuffs clapped, realizing how good a move the chasers had pulled. Draco clapped, pleased that his teammates were executing the plans they'd been practicing so effectively. The psych-out move was tricky and had to be done just right, but Blaise and Theo had done it perfectly.
The game continued in the Slytherins favor for the next forty five minutes, with Hufflepuff only managing to score once. In that time, Draco had only managed to see the snitch once and darted after it, but a wayward bludger knocked him off course, causing him to lose sight of it and send a menacing glare towards Goyle and Bulstrode. So help him Merlin if Hufflepuff's incompetent seeker caught the snitch because those two buffoons didn't do their jobs, he'd run the fat right off of them.
"MacMillan has the quaffle and zooms down centerfield…dodges Pucey…flies over Zabini…throws the quaffle-OH! But is blocked by Montague! His teammates don't look too happy…swirlie in the locker room for you MacMillan!"
"Mr. Finnegan!" McGonagall called sternly from her seat. "Focus on the game and refrain from the unnecessary comments!"
Circling high above the game, Draco was proud of how well his team was doing. They had this game in the bag, of that he had no doubt. Hell, even the Hufflepuffs knew that and a few of the team members had all but given up. Now if he could only do his part and find that bloody snitch…
As soon as he thought about it, he caught a flash of a small gold shimmer. Following with his eyes, he saw the snitch hovering a few yards below him and to his right. He immediately turned his broom down and began chasing it. The Hufflepuff seeker caught on to what he was doing and flew in Draco's direction, but he was all the way on the other side of the field and there was no way he'd get over there in time.
The snitch wove through the air in an intricate design, but Draco never took his eyes off of it. Up, down, curving, and whatever else the tiny gold ball tried to do, Draco was always right behind it. He zoomed past his housemates, who were wildly cheering him on, and past the teacher's pitch as everyone seemed to be on the edge of their seats. The snitch wound around the Hufflepuff stands, and began rising higher and higher in the air. Draco sped after it to the point where he was almost right on top of it and reached out as far as he could. His fingertips hovered over it and he was so close…
Finally, his hand closed around it and he felt the tiny sphere in the palm of his hand. He flew back towards the field where Finnegan was just announcing his victory and the Slytherins were roaring loudly with their win. He flew down to the ground, where his team had already gathered and were cheering like no other. He received multiple claps on the back, and joined in with his team on celebrating their victory. Their first win of the season was under their belt, but it was also one of the few games they'd won without foul play of any sort. They'd worked hard to earn this victory, and no one could accuse them of cheating.
XOXOXOXOXO
"They obviously cheated! There's no way the Slytherins played fair! It's just not in their nature" Ron grumbled loudly from his seat at the Gryffindor table. He was so loud that a few people from other tables heard him, including some Slytherins. They shot him nasty looks, and he merely scowled in return.
Harry shook his head. "They didn't cheat mate. Trust me, I was there. I saw the whole thing. They played fairly and even had some really good moves."
Ron continued as though Harry hadn't spoken. "They cheat every year! It's how they manage to get to the finals at all, because let's face it-they're not any good. Not a one of 'em has any real talent."
Hermione rolled her eyes at Ron's biased behavior, but beside her Ginny was slowly starting to turn red with anger. "I was there as well Ron" she told him annoyed. "Not once did they break any of the rules. They played hard and earned their win. And yes, for your information, their team does have real talent! They're actually very good this year."
Ron stared at his sister in annoyance. "How can you say that Gin? This is Slytherin we're talking about! Name one of them that actually has any skill."
'Malfoy' Hermione immediately thought then was shocked how quickly and easily that thought entered her head. But there was no denying it…he was an excellent quidditch player and could go on to one of the International quidditch teams if he so desired.
"Easy" Ginny replied, flipping her long red locks behind her back. "Blaise Zabini."
"Zabini?" Ron asked incredulously. "What in the world makes you think that tosser has any talent?"
"Well I watched him all during the game yesterday-"
"What the bloody hell are you doing watching that snake?!" Ron said, voice starting to rise.
Ginny shot him a glare similar to that of their mother's. "Because Ronald" she growled. "We play the same positions and I was watching him to see his moves and techniques and what to watch out for during our own game against them in a few weeks. Besides, I have the right to watch whomever I want and Blaise happens to be very rewarding to look at-"
"Ginny!" Ron cried out loudly, a horrified look on his face.
"And" Ginny continued as though he hadn't interrupted, "I was with the rest of my Gryffindor teammates, sizing up our competition so that we'll be ready for both Hufflepuff and Slytherin when we go against them. Something you should have been doing too, but you were too busy sucking face with Lav-Lav" she finished with a grimace.
Ron had the decency to look a bit ashamed at his sister's words. Not of his girlfriend, but of the fact he hadn't been there with the rest of his team. Watching other games wasn't mandatory of the other houses, but the Gryffindors liked to do it anyway. It showed their dedication to the sport. Harry wasn't angry with his best mate, but the same couldn't be said for the other teammates.
"Well" Ron said, avoiding eye contact with his sister. "I still don't believe they played an entire game without cheating at least once. They had to have! And even if by some crazy chance they didn't, I know they'll cheat next game. Hell, everybody knows it including McGonagall! If the old woman had any sense left whatsoever, she would just go ahead and disqualify-"
"Oh for Heaven's sake Ronald, will you just stop it?!" Hermione all but shouted, finally getting fed up with his negativity. Ron stared at her with his mouth open, and even Harry and Ginny looked up at her in surprise. Usually anytime they talked about quidditch, Hermione tuned them out or ignored the conversation altogether.
"In case you have forgotten" she said, fixing the red-head with a stern look, "McGonagall made it very clear that she would not tolerate cheating of any sort this year. She was there at the game too. One slip up from them, and she would have disqualified them without a second thought."
"But, she may not have-" Ron squeaked, only to be silenced by Hermione's growing ire.
"Just because she's older, doesn't mean she's inept Ronald!" Hermione cried. "She knows what to look for, and if she saw foul play, she would have called it. And if for some reason she did miss them trying to cheat, one of the other professors or spectators would have caught it and informed her. But they didn't! Even our own housemates didn't see anything suspicious and they were actually at the game! So quit slandering them just because you can't get over your silly house prejudices!"
The four were quiet after her outburst, as they continued to eat their dinner. Ron was silently sulking, but Harry and Ginny couldn't agree more with what Hermione had said. They'd tried to tell him, but he just wouldn't listen. Years of dislike for the Slytherins had clouded any judgements he made towards them, and he just couldn't accept that they weren't so bad.
Their silence was interrupted when Lavender came bouncing over to them and put her hands over Ron's eyes. "Guess who?" she sing-songed in that annoying nasally voice of hers. Ron grinned and pulled her down for an over the top kiss. Harry, Hermione, and Ginny looked down at their food, each making a different face.
When the two finally separated, Lavender gave a general nod in the direction of the others, then seated herself next to Ron. Noticing how they were all being rather quiet Lavender asked, "So, what were you guys talking about?"
"Just the game between Slytherin and Hufflepuff this morning" Ron mumbled.
Lavender nodded. "It didn't really shock me that Slytherin won. Hufflepuff's team is absolutely horrible this year" she said, for once the others agreeing with her. "But don't worry, Slytherin won't be any competition for Gryffindor. None of them will be able to get past my Won-Won!"
Ron's chest puffed out with pride while Ginny and Hermione rolled their eyes. Did they honestly not know how ridiculous they sounded? The two started kissing and caressing again and were attracting attention from a few others at their table. It wasn't until they started baby talking each other that Harry finally said, "Merlin will you two get a room?" Ron blushed crimson and Lavender scowled, but they finally stopped.
Hermione looked up to see the time, and decided to head to the library for some last minute studying before her patrol started that night. "I'm off to study for the Charms test Monday, then I have to patrol. Don't wait up" she told her friends as she stood and headed out of the Great Hall.
XOXOXOXOXO
"You haven't seen me" Draco said hurriedly as he ran into the common room and into a corner before casting a disillusionment charm over himself. Daphne, Blaise, and Theo gave each other confused looks, not understanding their friend's odd behavior until they saw Pansy enter the common room a few seconds later.
"Drakie? I know you're in here somewhere" she called in an irritated tone. The three friends smirked at each other, finding the blonde's stalker situation quite humorous. You'd think the girl would've given up by now, but she actually thought she still had a chance at being the future Mrs. Malfoy.
"Where is Draco at?" Pansy asked coming over to glare at the three on the sofa.
Theo gave a shrug. "Beats me, I haven't seen him."
Pansy folded her arms and began tapping her foot. "Don't play games with me, I know he came this way. Quit stalling and just tell me!"
Daphne rolled her eyes. "Salazar Pansy, what part of leave him alone do you not get? He doesn't like you! I don't know how to say it any plainer, and heaven knows he's tried to spell it out for you multiple times."
"Mine and Draco's relationship doesn't concern you Daphne, so stay out of it" Pansy growled. Turning to face the boys she said, "Tell him that I need to talk to him and it's very important. Think you two idiots can handle that?"
Blaise shrugged. "I don't know, I have a terrible memory. No promises."
Pansy let out an angry shriek and pointed her finger at him. "Just make sure he gets the message, or else!" With that she stomped off towards the girl's dormitories.
Blaise rubbed his ears with a grimace on his face. "I swear that girl is part banshee. The octaves she can hit astound me." Theo and Daphne nodded.
"Coast's clear" Daphne called and a moment later Draco came over, fully visible, and plopped down in his favorite arm chair.
"Merlin's rod, that has to be the daftest bint I've ever met!" Theo exclaimed. "Of all the girls in the castle, why'd you have to shag that one?"
Draco groaned. "Trust me, it's a mistake I regret everyday" he replied. "And all the others get that it's a onetime thing. Pansy's clearly barmy in the head."
"Speaking of shagging, how is softening up Granger coming along?" Blaise questioned.
Draco rubbed his face with one hand. "It's still a work in progress" he answered after a minute. "It's definitely gonna take some time, but I'm most definitely on the right track." Had he been looking at his friends, he would have noticed them sharing exasperated glances between each other and rolling their eyes. Why was he still in denial?
"Hey lover boy, isn't it your night to patrol with her?" Daphne suddenly asked.
"Oh shit, you're right!" Draco said jumping up. "Fuck, she's gonna be pissed!"
His friends laughed as he took off towards the portrait hole. "Guess we know who wears the pants in your relationship" Blaise called after him and if he wasn't in such a hurry, he would have sneered or at least flipped him the bird.
Draco hurried down the halls and came upon the place he and Granger usually met fairly quickly. Despite his hurry to get there, he stopped and took a minute to compose himself before coming up behind her. "I have arrived" he announced loudly and arrogantly as though he were a celebrity.
Hermione, who'd been lost in thought, spun around and fixed him with a stern look before putting her hands on her hips. "And twelve minutes late Malfoy! Our patrols start at a designated time for a reason. Where in the bloody hell have you been?"
"Ooh, such naughty words from the little bookworm" Draco taunted. He couldn't help it, she just looked so-dare he say it- adorable when she was angry. Her skin flushed a dark red and her little button nose scrunched up. It was almost comical really.
Hermione seethed at him. He was the only person she knew that could remain in a joking manner when she was mad. Though it infuriated her in the moment, it also made her look back on the situation later and find it…humorous? If it had been Harry or Ron, it most definitely would have added to her anger, but this was Draco Malfoy and he was very different from her friends, though she could pinpoint a few similarities as well.
"I'm serious Malfoy, being a prefect is a privilege! We set the example for the other students, and it's important that we-"
"Granger, it was one time!" Draco said, throwing his hands up. "I've been on time every other patrol, and I didn't make this much fuss when you were late for our first patrol did I?"
Hermione closed her mouth, not being able to argue that with him. But for heaven's sake, she'd only been late five minutes, not twelve! Still, late was late rather by a minute or an hour, so she really had no room to talk.
"If you must know" Draco said, turning around and beginning patrol, "I was trying to get away from Pansy. The crazy cow has been trying to corner me since we brought those healing potions to Madame Pomfrey."
Hermione let a small giggle escape her lips. She could just imagine the lengths the dark haired girl was going to to try and get Malfoy alone. Hermione had to hand it to her, the girl was persistent, even though everyone could see how much the blonde couldn't stand her. "I've never seen someone so oblivious before" she commented. "Doesn't she know how to take a hint?"
"I know" Draco agreed. "I didn't think it was possible, but believe it or not there is someone stupider than Weaslebee." He expected a verbal lashing for his jab against her friend, but to his utmost surprise, she actually laughed. Like, full on laughed. Well wasn't this a shocker.
"They definitely have their oblivious nature in common" she said after she'd calmed down.
Draco looked down on her with an amused expression. If he had to guess, he'd say Ginger boy said something dumb or that upset her earlier. Otherwise, he had no doubt Granger would be launching into yet another lecture about his rude comments.
"So what did he do?" Draco asked, letting his curiosity get the best of him.
It probably should have creeped her out that Malfoy automatically knew she and Ron had had a disagreement, but he'd been predicting her quite well so far this year, that she almost didn't notice anymore. "He just can't seem to get over his dislike for any and every thing Slytherin related."
Of course, he should have guessed. "What did he say about us this time?" Draco asked, remembering how his friends had told him Weasley didn't want to accept them when they'd started going to the Order. Stupid, fucking, freckle-faced tosser.
"He kept accusing your team of cheating earlier today" she said, shaking her head at her friend's stubbornness. "He even went as far as to say Slytherin should be disqualified because 'they'll probably cheat eventually.' He wasn't even there today! It was just a biased judgment made because of the animosity he feels towards all of you. Why can't he just put it behind him like the rest of us?" It felt good ranting about Ron's behavior to Malfoy, even if she'd regret it later.
On the outside he remained calm, but on the inside he was furious. He'd been born hating the Weasley's, but damn if this didn't justify it! The nerve of that bastard accusing them of cheating! It had been made quite clear that even the suspicion of foul play on their part would result in immediate disqualification, and he'd been working his sexy bum off to ensure that not only were they playing fairly, but they'd come up with a killer game strategy and executed it flawlessly.
There were a million things he wanted to say, most of them related to insulting Weasley and his thick headedness, but the words that ended up coming out of his mouth were, "What do you think?"
Hermione didn't hesitate at all. "Of course I don't believe you cheated! I may not have been there, but I know you've been practicing hard to prepare and you wouldn't do anything to jeopardize your chances of winning the cup this year. I mean, you traded patrol partners so that it wouldn't interfere with your quidditch schedule-"
'Not the only reason' he thought to himself.
"…and Harry and Ginny watched the whole game, along with McGonagall and the other professors, and not one of them saw any cheating! You earned that win and Ron had no right to accuse you of anything. I mean it's just like you said, we fought a bloody war over all this animosity and prejudice goes both ways. It's sad that some people refuse to get past it and try to mend all the damage that has accumulated over the centuries. Everyone deserves a second chance, because we all make mistakes, and if Ron can't get over his petty dislikes, then he's no better than all the death eaters sitting in Azkaban!" she finished her rant. She didn't know how she went from talking about the game earlier to the general issue with hatred among the wizarding community, but once she got started, she couldn't seem to stop.
Draco stared down at her in amazement. At some point during her speech, they'd stopped walking and were now facing each other. He didn't know why her opinion on the issue mattered to him so much, but he wanted the assurance that she knew how hard he'd worked for their victory and didn't believe the worst of him like many others, including her friends.
He continued staring down at her completely speechless. Her amber eyes were alive with passion, skin once again flushed in that deep red color, and unruly curls even more wild as they seemed to cackle with energy. By Salazar, she really was beautiful. She had natural beauty, not the artificial kind most girls had by caking their faces in makeup, but when she got passionate about something, she was such a sight to behold. He noticed one of her curls had fallen in her face and without a second thought, he took it between his fingers and pushed it back in place. Had her hair always been that soft?
She looked into his molten eyes with such an innocent and pure emotion that he found himself taking a step closer so that he was now in her personal space and she started breathing a little more harshly. He was unaware that his own breathing matched hers as her gaze darted from his eyes down to his lips. Her tongue peaked out to lick her lips, and he watched the action fascinated as he was reminded of the time in potions class when he thought about what it would be like to take the pink flesh between his own lips. Perhaps now he would get that chance. Without fully registering what he was doing, he began to lower his head towards hers, rapidly closing the space between them. She didn't step back or move in any way, seemingly unsure of what was happening either, but welcoming it all the same.
A loud crash from behind them caused them to jump apart and whip around, wands raised. One of the suits of armor had fallen to the floor and Peeves floated down the corridor, cackling madly. Draco cursed the poltergeist under his breath while Hermione put her hand to her chest trying to calm her racing heart.
After a few seconds of harsh panting, Hermione straightened up and flicked her wand at the armor, up righting it once more. Looking at a clock on one of the walls, she realized that it was getting late and she should probably head back so her friends wouldn't worry, though she'd told them not to wait up.
"I…I should probably go" she said uncertainly, not quite able to look at him. Had he really been about to kiss her? No, surely not. But then, what had he been doing? Merlin, she was so confused. She'd begun having strange feelings around him ever since they'd called their truce and now these feelings seemed to have intensified.
"Right" Draco said awkwardly after clearing his throat. She looked like she was going to say something further, but thought better of it and hurried off down the corridor without a backwards glance. He stood in his spot for a few minutes, watching her retreating figure until she was completely out of his sight. His thoughts were such a jumbled mess. He was actually going to kiss her, there was no way to deny it. He was going to kiss the girl that he'd despised since first year. Yet he didn't despise her anymore. Far from it actually.
At some point he finally turned on his heel and headed towards the dungeons. He still couldn't organize his thoughts because everything in his brain seemed fuzzy. Plus he was experiencing some very strange emotions the more he thought about his patrol tonight. Instead of the relief that he should have felt at the almost kiss, he felt…disappointment. He was disappointed? How could that be? He was supposed to simply be softening her up so that he could win this stupid bet. But just as soon as that thought crossed his mind, another one accompanied it. The whole time during their patrol, especially right up to the moment he was leaning down to claim her lips, he hadn't thought of the bet at all.
AN: So you guys probably hate me now! Honestly, I hadn't even thought of putting that almost kiss in this chapter, but as I started writing, it just came out this way. I reedited this chapter like three times, but overall I'm fairly happy with the way it turned out. The quidditch game was the hardest part for me to write about, but I think it was fairly decent. Please review, your thoughts mean so much to me!
