Hermione felt too tired and squishy to dance anymore, she sat with a glass of water by a large pumpkin. Malfoy had yet to emerge from the broom closet so Ginny sat with her, recounting the disbelief of the entire student body when the Head Boy and grabbed the Head Girl's arse with his head bowed close to her neck. Harry and Ron were on the other side of the hall, a strange look on both their faces.
"Do you want me to talk to them?" a soft voice said, and Hermione smiled as smiled as Daphne sat down on the other side of her.
"That's a good idea," Ginny said, "They like you, Daphne, Harry told me earlier." Hermione nodded.
"Maybe you could explain the best. Since you know both of us well. Thanks, Daph." Daphne smiled sweetly before standing up and gliding toward the boys. Daphne had become a close friend to her over the past month- she barely needed the tutoring anymore but insisted on continuing the lessons. She was much calmer than Ginny and easier to talk to on an academic level as she studied almost as much as Hermione. She also had a feeling the Slytherin girl was going to become a useful friend to have as her relationship with Malfoy progressed, now that everyone knew about it. She watched Daphne talk to the two boys, their faces staying relatively unreadable as it had been before. Ginny stood up, leaving to get a drink. She was quite drunk, teetering on her heels as she walked off.
"Granger," she heard and shivered as she felt Malfoy's lips touch her neck. She turned around, leaning into his embrace.
"You well and truly calmed down?" Hermione leaned back so her arse grazed his crotch and she smiled as she heard his breath catch.
"Give over you," he muttered, sliding a hand between them and pinching her backside. She swatted at his hand.
"Daphne is over with Harry and Ron trying to explain our," she paused, and Malfoy sighed.
"Yes, what is this we have Granger?"
"Enemies turned friends, turned..."
"Couple?" Malfoy said, and Hermione's heart fluttered. She turned to face him properly so she could look into his eyes.
"Are you serious?" she said, trying to stop a massive smile spreading across her face. Malfoy nodded, blushing slightly.
"You know by now my feelings are genuine Granger. And I'm 99% sure yours are as well."
"I keep forgetting we started this to prove something to each other. It's so stupid. I just want to be with you," she said helplessly, as Malfoy smiled, a wide real smile that made his eyes sparkle and Hermione's heart expand.
"So, Hermione Jean Granger," he took hold of both of her hands, "will you be my girlfriend?" It was the first time Hermione had seen Malfoy looking anything less than 100% sure with himself, his eyes held nervousness as well as happiness.
"Yes." Hermione kissed him on the cheek gently, "Course I do."
"You know you're my first girlfriend Granger," he murmured as he looked at her, a look of wonder in his silvery eyes.
"Probably the only first I am for you," she said, biting her lip.
"It won't make it any less special Hermione," he said earnestly, tilting her chin up so he could look at her. She nodded.
Malfoy felt like breaking into song as he swayed slowly on the dancefloor with Granger, relishing the feeling of her head on his shoulder, her hair tickling his neck. She was his girlfriend. His.
"All mine," he said softly, kissing her head.
"Don't get all soppy Malfoy," he heard her mutter, "I enjoy your sarcastic comments to hide your emotions more than you know." He sniffed.
"I'm going to get a complex about opening up now thanks to you."
"I'll pay for the therapy," she yawned into him. He poked her.
"You're tired," he stated.
"Yes, yes I am." He sniffed her accusingly. "And you've drunk a bit."
"Well, I was halfway drowning out my sorrows in the punch because I didn't think you were going to show up."
"If I pay for your rehab, we're even." Granger nodded. He looked around the Great Hall. It was about half eleven and most of the crowds had stopped gawking at the two of them and gotten on with their Halloween-y activities. He felt a tap at his shoulder and turned with a start to see Potter and Weasley standing behind Daphne.
"Hi," she smiled, "I've just been talking to the boys about you and Miss Granger and they would just like a word with just you." He felt Granger raise her head off his shoulder.
"Oh hi Daphne," she slipped out of his arms, and after noticing her two friends said, "I'll be in the dorms," before walking off with the blonde Slytherin.
Malfoy turned to the two Gryffindors. "How can I help you two?" he smiled charmingly.
"Daphne told us about your relationship with Hermione," Potter started, a hand reaching to his face to push his glasses up his nose, "And we wanted to say-"
"That if you ever hurt her, I don't care that your family has half the money in England, I'll bury you seven foot-"
"What Ron is trying to say," Potter cut in, one hand on his ginger friend's arm, "is that we expect you to treat Hermione exceptionally well. I'm sure you have all the same intentions if what Daphne has said is true." Malfoy nodded.
"Don't worry boys. Granger is going to be immensely satisfied in every area of our relationship," he smiled like a shark, his eyes flashing. Harry smiled stiffly, clearly uncomfortable.
"Great." Weasley just stood there, his eyes bugging intensely.
"May you excuse me?" Malfoy said, after what seemed like years of the two of them staring at him. Harry nodded curtly. Malfoy bowed slightly, then spun on his heel and stalked off. He had more respect for Potter after that encounter; the boy faced him well and said quite reasonable things. Weasley however, was a nutcase. "Potter's decent," he announced as he entered the dorm room. A tinkling laugh came from Granger's bathroom.
"Harry Potter, the chosen one, saviour of the wizarding world, has finally been proclaimed by Draco Malfoy as decent! I hope you told him that mind- he'll be chuffed." Malfoy stripped off his heavy armour so he was just in his shirt and boxers, stretching lazily.
"Doesn't everyone live in hope that one day I'll validate them?" he called back through. Granger re-emerged, her hair pulled back (smooth tonight, not curly) in a large t-shirt.
"I can't imagine why not," she said, smiling as she went into her bedroom. "My room or mine tonight Malfoy?" she called.
"Will you sleep the whole night tonight?" He inquired. She had refused to sleep in his room yet, even when she'd been at her most exhausted she'd either dragged herself up and collapsed on her bed thirty seconds later or poked him in the back incessantly until he got annoyed enough and moved.
"Since it's our first night as an official couple," she giggled as he waggled his eyebrows at her, "I will."
"Then you're in my room tonight Princess. You won't need the stars when you've got me to look at," he took hold of her hand and pulled her towards him before lifting her up, bridal style, and carrying her through to his room. She squealed as he bounced her off the bed, her pretty face smiling up at him as he kissed her lightly on the forehead. "Look at us," she whispered softly. She knew what she meant. Before he developed the innocent little crush on Granger, he couldn't stand the sight of her. Every time she would turn her little nose up at him, every time that hair of hers would blow in the wind behind her, every time she held up her hand in class and got more right answers than him, he wanted to bloody slap her silly. But then, something changed, and he went from wanting to slap her silly to wanting to snog her silly. He didn't even know what it was, but it made him ache inside that whenever she saw him, he knew all she was thinking was the same as what he used to think about her. It was over the summer when he'd had the idea for the pretend besottment charm, and when he saw him in the library he was so close to muttering the words when she cut her damned hand, and he'd stood so close to her, so close that the energy between them simply couldn't be one-sided. So he'd taken a gamble, a risk that would either end up with him the happiest he'd ever been, or him wanting to end his life in embarrassment. And now, in the space of two months, they were here. And Malfoy did look at them, he looked at the way she smiled at him and when sniped at him, when she'd lie in his arms after prodding her awake, slumped over her books. He looked at how sometimes he would go on and on and on about something when all he wanted was peace, how he couldn't get the itching feeling out of his head that there was someone else... he looked long and hard, Long enough to look into Hermione's eyes and say- "I want this."
"I want this." Hermione smiled, trying not to giggle at the solemness at which Malfoy uttered the words.
"Good," she hummed, before pulling his body close to hers and kissing him until she had to roll over to stop herself pulling down his pants there and then.
"Night," he muttered, one hand playing with her hair from across the bed. "Goodnight," she replied, before closing her eyes, her own personal stairs flitting behind her eyelids.
When she woke up, Malfoy was already out of bed, but only just. As she sat up, she saw him yawning by his desk, his boxers low on his waist as he read through a scroll of parchment.
"What's that?" she croaked, rubbing her eyes blearily as Malfoy turned around.
"Letter from my mother," he said, grinning at her mess of an appearance. "I can see why you didn't want me to see you like this Princess," he said, trying not to laugh. Hermione threw a pillow at him. "Ow!"
"Prick," she muttered, flopping back down on the bed.
"I was going to bring you through some toast but I don't think I will now," he said mightily, setting down his letter and going through to the kitchen.
"That's fine Malfoy because I can make my own bloody toast," she yelled, swinging her legs over and jumping out of bed. She found him bent over the kettle. She came up behind him and prodded his back, just as he turned around, sloshing boiling water onto her as the tea he was holding tipped up.
"Ow!" she shrieked as the water burned her.
"Take it off Granger," Malfoy pulled up at the hem, and Hermione peeled the t-shirt off quickly, her cheeks flaming in embarrassment. Malfoy grabbed his wand from the counter and waved it over her burning chest, and Hermione instantly felt a cooling sensation over the raw skin.
"What a way to wake me up," she uttered, scowling as she crossed her arms over the chest.
"You forget I have seen your tits before Princess," he said, leaning against the counter. She thwacked him with her wet t-shirt.
"God, you can be annoying," she snapped, storming back through to her room to get her dressing gown. "Don't tell Ron I scalded you," she heard him call through, "Or I'll be seven feet under my tea time!"
nice looooong chapter. thanks for the wait xxx