YES I HAVE RETURNED.
Well, if you don't want to read this part, then please feel free to skip ahead, I have a longer chapter than usual as an apology (although it is poorly edited as it's quite late where I am and I miss stuff :D) so please enjoy.
For those who might want an explanation for why I disappeared;
I am pathetic. No really. I have a thing where I just need constant validation of my own work, even if I think it's good.
And so the fact that this story got very few reviews to begin with honestly just put me off for a while.
But then I realised when I got an email about a new reviewer, and re-read the entire thing;
It doesn't matter if this gets next to no reviews.
It doesn't matter if it never gets a load of attention.
What matters is that I read this and realised how much I love it and how much I loved writing it, so I'll be damned if I let my silly low self-esteem get in the way of that!
Also, the fact that even a few people care enough to drop just one review really shows a lot, so I figure whether I'm writing for one, or one thousand (jokes, that will never happen) what matters is that someone wants to read it, and so I'll keep writing :)
Anyway, gushy bit over (that was weird) I really hope you enjoy this chapter and still remember the story, feel free to drop a comment/correction/idea, but most of all I hope you can forgive me for my sudden hiatus!
Disclaimer: Nope, not JK Rowling lolz
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Ten
Hermione's alarm went off at seven o clock sharp, just as she'd planned the night before.
Although she'd never been much of a morning person, she also wasn't one to skip breakfast or (heaven forbid) be late for class, so Hermione had always been able to fall into a steady early morning routine pretty easily.
Tracey, apparently, was a completely different kettle of fish.
"Come on, it's already seven, you have an hour to get showered, dressed and eat breakfast." Hermione chided, throwing her damp towel in the other girls direction as she pulled on her uniform.
Tracey's only reply was to groan once again and almost fall out of bed.
Hermione sighed and straightened her shirt and new green tie, realising that her efforts were fruitless, she had a feeling that Tracey wouldn't be moved until the warning bell rang five minutes before classes started.
"I'm going down to the great hall." Hermione informed her dully, not expecting a response. Instead she got a pillow to the head and a mumbled instruction to shut up.
She exited their dormitory with a short laugh, and then her expression immediately soured when she saw the reception waiting for her.
She folded her arms and glared at him, waiting for an explanation.
"Look, don't go assuming this is how I wanted to be spending my morning either." Draco snapped, standing up straight and gesturing awkwardly for her to go ahead of him, Hermione didn't move.
"Why were you waiting at my door, Malfoy?" She asked tightly, and he groaned and rubbed his temples.
"Of course, you haven't heard anything. Well, you should probably know that after Pansy's incident on Saturday night, there are several rumours circling that you, well, that you hexed her."
Hermione's jaw dropped as Draco tried to hide a slight smirk.
"Of course Blaise, Theo, Tracey and I know the truth, but most of our house were already waiting for an excuse to try and kill you."
Hermione tried her best to cover up her surprise, she didn't want to give him the luxury of seeing her upset.
"That still hasn't explained why you're here." She snapped, and he raised an eyebrow but replied all the same.
"Blaise has basically ordered round the clock supervision of you. He seems to think someone will try and curse you in the corridor." Draco shrugged. "I think that's ridiculous, and even if it was so, what's the harm in letting you get hit by a few mildly life threatening hexes?"
She scowled in response and his smirk widened.
"Witty, really Malfoy just so witty." She spat before pushing past him and opening the door to the common room. "But you can just inform Blaise that though the gesture certainly is… touching," She blushed slightly at the thought of his concern for her. "I certainly don't require babysitting, in fact,"
At that moment, a large fifth year forced the door open and pushed past Hermione, glaring down at her as he passed.
"Watch it mudblood, you've hurt one of ours, I can't wait to see your dirty blood spilt on the floor" He spat, before marching into a dormitory several doors down.
Draco rolled his eyes at Hermione's scandalised expression, and once again gestured for her to go ahead of them.
"I suppose a bodyguard wouldn't do any harm." She muttered begrudgingly, ignoring his smarmy grin as she strode past him, head held high.
She would not let him enjoy this.
X X X
"Ah, Hermione, how was breakfast? Sorry I couldn't escort you myself, I was visiting Pansy." Blaise asked apologetically as he greeted her upon entering the classroom.
Hermione scowled, he probably knew just how much Malfoy had annoyed her that particular morning.
He'd not only insisted on walking her down to the Great Hall, but had then proceeded to site beside her for the entirety of breakfast making nasty comments about the state of her hair.
It had been infuriating.
Blaise raised an eyebrow.
"I can tell from your expression that Draco was an excellent chaperone?" He grinned, and she narrowed her eyes.
"Why do I have a feeling you're doing this deliberately Blaise Zabini?" she asked accusingly, and he rolled his eyes before patting the seat beside him.
"Come now Hermione," He sighed, and she looked at him inquisitively, wondering if he was going to continue making his point after he stopped mid-sentence.
Instead, he turned to her, winked and said;
"Oh, that was it, I just wanted you to come." He said, and the emphasis he put on the last syllable was not lost at all on the former Gryffindor.
Hermione began forming a witty retort in her mind, before she realised that that actually didn't sound like too bad an idea.
She hadn't been able to stop thinking about their kiss the previous day, it had brought back several well-cherished memories from their 6th year.
So instead of slapping him on the arm and storming off, she merely tossed her hair back and smirked.
"Doesn't sound like a bad idea Zabini, only if you can keep up?" She winked, before sliding out of the seat and moving onto a vacant desk a few steps away.
Blaise merely stared after her in shock.
"You can't just, and then walk away!" Blaise spluttered, and Hermione felt herself blush. She'd never been much of a flirtatious person before, even when she and Blaise were dating, but she had to admit she loved the look on his face.
Maybe going a little Slytherin wasn't such a bad idea.
X X X
"And then in the dream, she was like, naked but still wearing Snape's robes. What do you think that means?!"
Draco winced at the mental image and glared at Nott.
"I don't know, and I sure as hell don't want to find out." He snapped, before looking up and down the corridor once more and sighing. "Where's Blaise? We always meet before dinner." He scowled as Theo shrugged, probably still contemplating his disgusting dream.
"Turns out, the Hippogriff had barely touched him!" A familiar voice crowed out across the courtyard, and was accompanied by the sound of two people laughing.
"I knew it, I bloody knew it!"
Draco's eyes narrowed at the sight of Blaise and Granger strolling happily through the courtyard together, practically holding hands.
"And what would you two happen to be laughing so much about?" He asked coolly, glaring at his best friend who simply rolled his eyes and nudged Hermione.
"Nothing much, just a friend of mine who claimed to have been torn to death by a Hippogriff." He winked at Draco as Hermione giggled, but the other Slytherin certainly wasn't laughing.
"Great. So if you and Granger are done laughing at my expense, we can just go on to dinner." He muttered, and Blaise shot Hermione a furtive look that wasn't missed by Malfoy.
"Well actually, I believe we have other plans?" He asked, a hint of flirtatious silk slipping into his tone as Hermione smirked at him.
"Some unfinished business?" She asked in a husky tone, and Draco almost gagged when Blaise grinned like Christmas had come early.
"Yes, we were interrupted I believe?" He shot Nott a dark look, before nodding to Hermione for them to leave and leading the way, practically with a skip in his step.
"That was weird." Theo mused for a moment, before clicking his fingers in realisation. "I bet they're fucking."
Draco groaned. He suddenly didn't feel like eating.
"No shit Theo, no shit."
X X X
Hermione moaned as Blaise slammed her up against a tree, kissing her roughly as her legs slid up to wind themselves around his waist.
"You know," Hermione said in between kisses when Blaise went to trail his lips down her throat. "I honestly never thought I'd be the kind of girl to get shagged up against a tree. Funny how things change isn't it?" She pondered, as Blaise removed his lips from her collarbone and looked up at her.
"Hermione."
"Yes?"
"Shut up."
She happily obliged, and instead turned her focus onto getting his zipper down.
Once she finally managed to get into the right position, it wasn't all as passionate and romantic as she'd imagined.
She gasped when he gasped, and they came together, before falling down in a sweaty heap on the floor.
That was when she began to laugh.
"Well," Blaise said, a little breathless. "That's never a good sign."
Hermione giggled and began to button up her shirt.
"No, the sex was good, let's be honest it always is," Blaise grinned and she almost rolled her eyes, "I just thought it would be all, romantic and spectacular to do it in the forbidden forest."
"But really it was just a little more awkward and uncomfortable?" Blaise finished for her, and she laughed once again.
"I think next time we should just stick to a bed?" She suggested, and he smiled slightly before brushing a strand of hair back from her eyes.
"So there's a next time?"
Hermione blushed, embarrassed that she'd been so presumptuous.
"Well, not that I expect anything, I just thought, well,"
Blaise grinned and placed a finger up to her lips, before saying in an incredibly serious tone that quickly had her laughing again.
"Hermione Granger, it would be my honour to fuck you in a bed in the foreseeable future."
They were still laughing when they made their way back to the castle.
X X X
"You've got to be kidding me, right? Against a tree?!" Pansy snorted, quickly taking a sip from the bottle of Firewhiskey Tracey had managed to slip past Madam Pomfrey.
Pansy had assured both of her roommates that she was completely fine, and only being kept in bed for the day as a precaution. She could resume therapy whilst staying in their dormitory.
It was only after that that Hermione had even considered letting Tracey bring the alcohol, and even so she still felt a little nervous about breaking so many rules in one week, it felt like fifth year with the Order all over again.
Hermione blushed once she turned her attention back to the conversation and realised both girls were looking at her expectantly.
"What?" She asked meekly as Pansy rolled her eyes and passed the bottle back over to Tracey.
"Hermione you can't tell us you shagged Blaise Zabini up against a tree just over five hours ago and not give any details. We want to know everything, blow by blow."
Tracey sniggered at the phrase, and Hermione really hoped it was because she was a little tipsy, although she wouldn't put it past Tracey to be so immature.
The brunette stuttered a little and blushed an even deeper shade of red as Pansy raised an eyebrow expectantly.
"Well, um, it was good and I got bark in my hair?"
Pansy fell back against her pillow with a sigh of despair.
"Oh Hermione you are utterly useless, what an anti-climax."
Tracey giggled slightly behind her hand before responding to her friend's comment.
"I bet that wasn't what Blaise said afterwards."
Even though the joke made very little sense, Hermione found herself laughing along with the two near hysterical Slytherins.
I must be drunker than I thought.
She pondered absent-mindedly, and then realised that "drunker" probably wasn't a word, and simply laughed even harder.
X X X
"Pleeeeeeeease Blaise, just tell me already." Theo Nott whined in an incredibly irritating and high pitched voice as he kicked his bed post moodily.
Blaise rolled his eyes and tried to ignore his insufferable roommate as he scribbled down the last of his potions essay.
Ever since he and Hermione had returned from a very long walk, both giggling with rumpled clothes and twigs in their hair, Nott had been begging for juicy details.
And five hours was a long time to have to deal with a moody Theo Nott.
"Theodore Nott, I am this close to hexing your balls off." Blaise hissed as the other boy once again began his high pitched whiny pleading that seemed to echo endlessly in their dorm room.
"But Blaise this is the perfect time! Draco's not here and that Thomas boy is probably off shagging the Weasley girl, no one else would know!" Nott insisted, and at this Blaise laughed sharply.
"So you're telling me that if I tell you, Theo Nott, Hogwarts most profound gossip, what went on with myself and Hermione earlier today it wouldn't be halfway round the school by morning?"
Nott blinked and furrowed his brow for a second before slowly replying;
"I don't know how much of that was sarcasm, and how much was a genuine question, but I do know that I won't tell anyone, not a soul! I won't even tell Malfoy!"
At that moment, due to his renowned excellent timing, Draco Malfoy entered their dormitory with a suspicious sneer on his face.
"Won't tell me what exactly?" He asked coldly and Blaise groaned before falling back no his bed in exasperation.
"I swear, it never ends with you two." He muttered, and without even opening his eyes shot up a hand and loudly interrupted Nott who had been about to spill. "And for Godric's sake don't say anything Nott! And you wonder why people don't tell you secrets."
Draco narrowed his eyes but didn't press the matter further, he was exhausted and couldn't be bothered to deal with the constant natter of his two roommates.
Nott leant against the wall and chewed an apple he'd had stashed under his bed before thinking out loud.
"It's been barely a week, and already we have Gryffindors sitting at the Slytherin table, someone's had a mental break down and Blaise is tonguing a hottie from the golden trio.
How the fuck will we survive an entire year?!"
At this, both his roommates chuckled. It was a rare but valuable occasion when Nott had something insightful to say.
"I don't know Theo, I really don't." Draco said with a sigh as he pulled the drapes around his bed and settled in for an early night.
X X X
Despite Theo's ominous predictions of major trauma, the first few weeks of term passed without much incident.
Hermione still wasn't talking to Ron or Ginny (a fact that certainly wasn't lost on the other students, and their withering relationships was often the talk of the school), but despite a setback in her friendships was still enjoying every minute of her last year.
She ran a tight ship, and even though was rumoured to let it loose sometimes around several of the Slytherin girls and a bottle of firewhiskey, she certainly wasn't lax when it came to her duties as head.
There were other rumours constantly flying about her seemingly close friendship with both Blaise Zabini and Theo Nott, but they were always quickly quashed. It still astounded the Gryffindor girl how quickly Slytherins could disparage gossip if they wanted it gone.
But after oddly plain sailing for the first few weeks of the year, everything changed with the whimsical headmistress's announcement one dinner time.
Hermione threw her head back and laughed raucously as Nott tried desperately to shovel mashed potatoes into his mouth faster than Dean Thomas, who had also become a regular amongst their group.
Tracey looked on in mild amusement covered by disgust, whilst Blaise tried to hide his smirk behind one hand.
Draco, as usual, was sat to one side of the group, profusely ignoring each Gryffindor just as he had taken to doing.
Whereas to begin with, Blaise and Theo had sat with him and made light conversation across the table to the two girls, gradually the boys had gotten more and more irritated with Draco's behaviour and had migrated to sit opposite their two friends.
"And with an approximate three second head start it looks like it's Thomas in the lead," Blaise commented dryly, trying not to grin as he watched Hermione and Tracey pick a side and egg them on.
Their competition was interrupted by a magnified voice nervously coughing from the front of the hall.
The two boys froze as though caught in the act, both with potatoes and sausage leaking from their mouths which only caused the girls to laugh harder.
Blaise snickered along with them and Draco merely looked away in disgust.
"Ok, thank you…" Professor Johnson said nervously, trying to signal for quiet. "Thanks. So just a quick notice, can the eighth years please stay behind after dinner tonight? Thank you, you may continue eating." She finished and returned to her seat, leaving most of the hall to ponder what was going on.
"I can't think what that would be about." Tracey said thoughtfully, and Hermione shrugged.
"Didn't Professor Johnson say at the beginning of the year that the switch would have several tasks attached to it?" The brunette asked and a few of them nodded as though trying to remember.
"You're probably right Hermione, and by the way I think we need to go over those schedules for patrols again this evening, would you mind meeting in our office later?" Blaise added coolly, and by this time Hermione had trained herself not to blush when he arranged one of their 'meetings'.
Instead she merely nodded and took a sip from her pumpkin juice while Theo glanced between the pair of them suspiciously.
Luckily, before the small boy had a chance to voice his suspicions the hall began to empty, people normally left dinner in large groups and so the change was quick and disruptive, a fact Hermione was thankful for.
She really didn't want to go over her and Blaise's relationship with Tracey again, the subject was getting rather tired.
When the hall cleared after what felt like an age, the eighth years remained, all looking around the hall rather nervously for a clue about what they might actually be doing.
Eventually after a moment spent chatting with Professor Trelawney, the headmistress took to the podium and smiled down at the worried looking students.
"Ok, so I suppose it's about time I told you what you're doing here! As most of you have probably already figured out, I am here to reveal the first task of your inter-house relations experiment; The Great Switch."
There was a brief pause where the students broke out in a smattering of chatter until they were quickly silenced by Professor McGonagall.
But not before Theo managed to shoot Hermione a knowing look and murmur;
"If you like I can guard the door while you and Blaise shag in your office."
Hermione glared in response before turning back to the podium to listen to what the acting head was saying.
"Anyway as I was saying, this task involves everyone's favourite sport at the school, Quidditch!" She exclaimed, and all of the boys suddenly looked a lot more interested.
"Seeing as the eighth years wouldn't have been able to join in with the main school quidditch this year, we have organised a series of matches between the new mixed houses, and it will be the job of your newly elected Quidditch captains to put together a winning team consisting of at least three switched students."
At this commotion broke out once again, Hermione was slightly relieved as it seemed she wouldn't have to take part in this particular task, she could simply leave the quidditch up to three switched students in her new house that actually enjoyed the sport.
"And, just to ensure that everyone is included," Hermione tensed once more as Angelina continued. "Every single switched student will be expected to try out, and to up the ante a little, the three who do make the team will receive a fantastic prize!"
At this, the Gryffindor Princess groaned.
It looked like she would be playing quidditch after all.
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Ah, poor Hermione :')
Don't worry, there will actually be a lot more Dramione interaction over the next few chaps, for those who might feel it's getting a little stagnant.
There will also be updates on Pansy (Don't expect her to be all better & cured of her fear right away, obviously) & other mini plot points.
Thanks so much for reading, love you all x