A/N: It's nearly 2 AM and I am finally, finally, posting the last chapter to the squeaky-clean, revised version of A Tale of Cinderella. I do hope that everyone enjoyed the remaking of this tale. PS; I'm sorry for the long wait since last chapter. I was just waiting for the right moment (unfortunately for me it came at midnight when I've got class in six hours and homework I have yet to start).


Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, and I am not taking credit for it. The plot is also base loosely on Warner Bro's A Cinderella Story.

Updated On: April 4, 2009

Thanks To... All of my faithful readers who've read the original version and have stuck it through until the end of this revision. Also to all reviewers - your feedback is what motivates me to continue a story

Chapter Ten (Decisions)

He wasn't trying to avoid her… not really. Sure, he had escaped the Transfiguration classroom a little quicker than usual, but it was not, not to avoid Granger. Was it?

He was confused. He didn't know what would happen. Sure, he could admit he liked her! But he couldn't yet admit to wanting her. Wanting could consist of being around her… in public. Around people who judge and have expectations of him. Maybe… if something were to happen they could keep it secret? No. She wasn't that type of girl, and he knew it.

And that's where the problem existed.

It was now the third day after break ended and still she hadn't been able to catch Malfoy. He was avoiding her like the plague. She promised herself that if she didn't talk to him by the end of the week she would simply stop trying. If he was going to avoid her, fine. The present would become a parting gift, not a sign of worth. Lately, she had been rethinking the purpose of his gift regardless. Why now, two months later, would he finally acknowledge her?

She was giving him too much credit. However much she wanted him to be the person she wrote to, he just couldn't seem to measure up to it in real life.

Her point was proven that night at dinner when she looked up from her food and at the Slytherin table. It seemed to happen in slow motion.

She was sure Malfoy had been sitting alone just minutes before (she was guilty of taking consistent glances up). However, now Samantha, a Slytherin student also in her year who wasn't nearly as terrible as Pansy or Cassandra, was sitting next to him on the bench. Very closely. She was smiling at him in a flirtatious way that Hermione wouldn't dream of attempting.

Not a big deal; stop being so clingy! He's not even your friend, let alone… something else! And look, it's all her not hi-

Then they were kissing! Right there. In the middle of the Great Hall! Hermione's jaw dropped.

"Oh my! Hermione…" Ginny was turned around, looking over at the Slytherin table, completely surprised. She must have seen Hermione's staring and expression. She whipped around and gave Hermione a sympathetic look.

With Ginny's outburst came Hermione snapping back into reality. She was smiling softly at Ginny, faking oblivion.

"What? No problem," she gave a very, very small laugh and turned to Ron on her left.

"No! Hermione, it is," Ginny said in an angry-Weasley-on-the-loose tone, making Harry and Ron stop their conversation and turn towards them.

"Look, it's no big deal. We haven't spoken in ages," Hermione said nonchalantly, giving a not-right-now kind of look, not wanting Harry and Ron to be clued in.

"That doesn't make it 'fine'." Ginny simply refused to stop talking.

"Who're you talking about?" Ron had the nerve to speak up.

"The bloody ferret, that's who!" Ginny said sourly.

"Ginny!" Hermione nearly shouted. Oh great…

"What'd he do-? Oh," Harry had taken a not-so-inconspicuous glance over and then looked at Hermione. He didn't know what to say… it was Malfoy! I'm so sorry Draco Malfoy is kissing some other girl two tables over. I really was rooting for you two. No way. Secretly, he was pleased by the public display… for Hermione's sake of course. He knew Malfoy would be nothing but trouble if (Merlin forbid!) they started something. Harry cringed; what a terrible thought.

"Oi! What's he doing it right there for?" Ron said bitterly.

"Look, I'm going to get to class, I don't want to be late!" Hermione said quickly while grabbing her bag and running out before anyone could protest.

"She's in my class…" Harry said offhandedly.

"Honestly! That damn boy needs to get his head straight! I feel like marching over there right now and giving him a piece of my mind!" Ginny crossed her arms over her chest in frustration.

"Yeah I'll join you and throw a punch for the hell of it," Ron added on with more enthusiasm at the idea than necessary.

"Honestly!" Ginny heaved a sigh, stood, and made for the exit. Of course, not without throwing an extra-long glare a Malfoy who didn't even seem to notice.

She ended up making her way towards the common room. She still had at least twenty-five minutes before classes started. Plus, she wasn't very keen on showing up to Snape's classroom nearly half an hour early. She had almost made it to the portrait before she heard Ginny calling her.

"Hey! I figured you'd come this way." Ginny jogged a few extra steps to fully catch up. "You know what, don't even bother with him. He hasn't even written to you, let alone spoken to you for months. Just forget him."

"I… don't know Ginny. I don't want to forget him. I don't like the idea of seeing one of my close friends, companions in his case I suppose, just walking out of my life. He's different."

"He's Draco Malfoy." Ginny said bluntly. Hermione didn't say anything. Ginny sighed and pulled her through the portrait hole silently. They took seats next to one another in front of the fire. Hermione stared into the embers.

"He got me something for Christmas, you know," Hermione said quietly, still staring at the fire.

"What?" Ginny said curiously, surprised.

"Yeah… it was thoughtful. I thought it represented something," she purposefully avoided telling her what it was. "No, it did mean something. Then he went and did that." Hermione slumped into the back of the couch.

"I don't know," Ginny said, perplexed. "That changes things a bit."

Once again Hermione was grateful for Ginny's respect for her space. Sure, she had her slip-ups (like at breakfast), but she hadn't pressed for details just now, which really did mean a lot to Hermione.

"I had better get going to Potions now. Snape will have my head if I'm late," Hermione said. Ginny stood next to her.

"I'll walk with you. At least to the Transfiguration corridor," Ginny offered with a smile.

The next day she decided that she's had enough. Enough internal confusion and lack of clarity – it was time to put an end to their back-and-forth relationship. She was completely fed up. Her chance to approach him finally came when she raced down the corridor to catch up with him after Arithmancy and he just hadn't been fast enough.

"You are unbelievable." Hermione stepped in front of him so he couldn't try to walk away again. He just looked at her, face empty.

"First you and I talk all summer break, not having any inclination as to who I was… we were friends. We really were, Malfoy, whether you want to admit it or not. After the ball you were literally pining for me! Why send all of the letters asking for forgiveness you didn't – and still don't – deserve? By my reaction didn't you assume there was a legitimate reason for me pushing you away? How could you be so thick?!" She was getting angry just thinking about it all. She shook her head at him in disappointment.

"Once you figured out who I was, thanks to Cassandra, I gave you a chance. I've been trying to give you a chance and you've just been teasing me; giving me gifts then pushing me away. You knew I was trying to speak to you all week… then you go and shove all my efforts back at me by showing your affections for another person in the center of the Great Hall, where you knew I would be." She finally looked away from him, no longer glaring at his unmoving form and his eyes that refused to meet hers.

He wasn't sure what to say. Part of him – a very small part – was screaming at him to speak up. Tell her, "I'm sorry! I'm confused! I can't deal with this alone; I don't know what to believe anymore – my upbringings or my own experiences. How can you expect me to just drop everything I've ever know for you?"

Unfortunately it was the last question that decided to come out of his mouth. And it didn't sound very graceful with the sneer he habitually used.

"How can you expect me to drop everything I've ever known for you?"

She just stared at him. She was so surprised that he had completely switched gears from the Draco she had gotten to know over summer that had sent her that book to the Malfoy she'd grown up with since First Year. It took her a long time to reply, because her eyes were locked in a cold, blank stare that Draco wished he could escape from.

"Why would you even bother?" she said sadly, feeling her eyes beginning to water. "You must have known how much that book meant to me. You do know." She looked at the ground, not allowing herself to be seen near-crying. Malfoy said nothing, at a loss for words; at a loss for his explanation.

"Now you don't even have the nerve to speak to me," she said with a sorry smile on her lips.

"I just… can't," he said helplessly, blank face cracking ever so slightly. For a second he looked torn and confused.

He wanted to tell her he liked her, but he couldn't. He wasn't taught how. He'd never done this before. He was Draco. A Malfoy. Someone who could hold in their emotions – not someone who could let them loose on command!

He watched her walk away.

The final quidditch match was approaching. Harry and Ron seemed to be practicing at least six days a week and the opposing Slytherins were training just as hard.

After spending another full day studying in the library while Harry and Ron practiced, Hermione made her way back up to the Gryffindor common room at nine o'clock before curfew. Not a minute after leaving she heard a familiar voice call from behind her. She stopped and waited for Ron and Harry to catch up to her, both looking extremely tried and extremely sweaty.

"Ron, Harry! What are you two doing out so late?"

"Quidditch just ended."

"You've been practicing for four hours?" Hermione's outraged face turned to Harry who was captain. "As a prefect it is my duty to remind you that each of the members on your team has schoolwork that is more important than a pastime spent flying on brooms and doing tricks!" Harry rolled his eyes.

"You want us to beat Slytherin just as badly as everyone else does."

Her eyes narrowed at him. "That is beside the point. School is much more important, despite my support for our team's upcoming win," she said confidently, and Ron grinned. "Well, how did practice go?"

"It was alright. Katie got knocked off her broom by a Bludger early on, but mistakes happen." Hermione glared ahead of her. Stupid sport.

"So what do our odds against Slytherin look like for Sunday?"

"Those thick-skulled Slytherins haven't got a chance," Ron said surely.

"Way to be optimistic, Ron, but they've got a good team this year so you never know what might happen," Harry said seriously. "We should really start focusing on our offensive techniques. I think we've pretty much mastered Slytherin's style of playing, so we can still use that to our advantage and make plays against theirs." Hermione silently wondered why they couldn't be this focused on schoolwork.

It was Sunday. The big game was to start at noon and at breakfast there was a buzz of excitement from students of all of the houses. As usual, the Slytherins would be supporting themselves while the other two teams would be supporting Gryffindor. Was there any other reasonable way? Hermione suddenly felt enlightened on the ways of Slytherins, having dealt with one first-hand, and house rivalry never looked so sweet to her.

When breakfast ended she went to the library with Ginny, who wasn't playing quidditch this year since Harry was eligible to be on the team once again, and they spent a few hours working. Well, Hermione was working, Ginny was mainly whispering the entire time about quidditch and the pros and cons of each team.

When it was nearly midday, they packed up their things and headed down for the pitch. Ginny was still babbling about how exciting it all was and Hermione tried to match her enthusiasm, but her heart just wasn't in it. Books and reading, fine! Sports and flying, not-so-fine. Still, she did feel a bit better when they sat down next to Lavender and Parvati, because she knew that she knew more about the game than they did.

"Mount your brooms." Madam Hooch's voice echoed through the pitch. She threw the Quaffle into the air and the game begun.

"And the game starts off with a quick steal of the Quaffle by Katie Bell, and she's racing down the pitch. Not a Slytherin feet from- OUCH! A Bludger to the side. Pucey in control of the Quffle, Johnson at his tail. An incomplete pass to Flint; figures, those Slytherins don't know anything about teamwork." Lee Jordan never did know when to keep his mouth shut. Still, Hermione smirked.

After an hour of gameplay the score was 220-180, Slytherin. There had yet to be any sight of the Snitch, and the anticipation was on the rise.

When Draco suddenly dove there was an uproar on the Slytherin stands and Harry was on him with breakneck speed. Hermione was leaning over the stands, Ginny at her side. Go Harry, go, go, go!

Suddenly Draco stopped his chasing of the Snitch that Hermione hadn't been able to see and turned on Harry. Harry stopped, too. They were facing each other, and by the looks of it they were having an argument. What in the world…! Harry would never give up on the Snitch for something as unimportant as house rivalry.

Hermione felt her cheeks burn when she saw Harry's arm point up to the Gryffindor stands in his tirade. Draco looked over – straight at her.

Harry was yelling about her?! Oh Merlin, someone help her! Her attention when back to the stands when she hear booing and shouts from the Slytherin and Gryffindor stands, people yelling at the quarreling Seekers to get back into the game.

Two minutes later they were back into the air, both hovering on their respective sides of the pitch.

"What the hell did he do that for, Ginny!" Hermione said in frustration.

"Well it was obvious after the fact that Malfoy hadn't really seen the Snitch. Harry would never have stopped if he had. Then Harry said something, Malfoy stopped, and you saw the rest," Ginny explained.

"Why would Harry talk to Malfoy. About me? Although he's never said it out loud to me, I know how much he hates the fact that it was Malfoy who was… you know." Hermione sighed in discontent. She had seen the looks Harry gave her when he caught her eyes wandering. And he elbowed her more than a few times in classes to redirect her attention to other places.

"Hermione, you have to look at it in his perspective. You're his best friend… his sister and you're smitten over his enemy. He can put aside his differences in front of you, for you, but they're never going to go away. He's trying his best to control himself." Ginny tried to explain gently. Hermione turned her head back to the game, absorbing the information.

So. Harry was angry… no, not angry: frustrated, with her. She had expected it before, yes, but after everything he had been acting so normal. Was Ron feeling the same way? She looked up at him just as he caught an incoming throw to one of the goal posts. She wished they could have been more honest with her. Not that she wasn't grateful for their acceptance of everything smoothly, but honesty really would have helped.

She tried not to ponder on it any further. For now, they were all getting along and they had forgiven her. She had done worse than they had by not telling them about her family, so it was only fair that she overlook something if they could too.

Still, she would be on him like Colin Creevey with his camera until she found out exactly what the boys had been arguing about.

The score had escalated to 240-210, Slytherin, when she finally turned her attention back to the game. The scores were tight, and both teams knew it was up to the Seekers to win the game.

Harry dove, just feet away from the Snitch when he spotted it. Malfoy, who was across the pitch, had no chance of beating Harry to it. Of course, he tried regardless.

Harry was reaching out for the Snitch, and although Malfoy was gaining ground it wasn't possible to get there in time. Harry's hands closed over the small ball and there was an uproar from three of the four sections of stands. Hermione cheered along with them and returned Ginny's hug that was sprung on her.

They had won. Slytherin had lost.

For some reason it wasn't as gratifying as she had thought it would be.

She was walking back to the castle with quite a few students around her, chatting madly with their friends about the match. She had congratulated Harry and Ron who were still celebrating and had carried onto the locker room. Ginny had stayed behind to chat with her past-teammates and that left Hermione on her own until everyone returned to the common room for the usual festivities after winning games.

Half way to the castle Hermione felt a hand on her upper arm and was spun around. There stood Draco Malfoy, broom in one hand, still wearing his uniform. Although she hadn't before, she now saw the cloak she had purchased for him wrapped around his shoulders. When she realized she had been staring at it she looked up at his face.

"Can I say something?"

"Now you want to talk?" Hermione said incredulously. He gave her an 'I'm-trying-here' look. She sighed and nodded.

There was a long pause.

"Potter is really annoying, how do you put up with him?" Hermione raise her eyebrows.

"He's only bad to people who deserve it."

"Look, I'm trying!" Malfoy snapped in annoyance and dropped his hand from her arm.

"What is so hard about it, Malfoy? It's called kindness and honesty. Apparently two things you were raised without!" she yelled at him, finally saying some of the things she had been holding back for weeks.

"I'm sorry, alright? I am sorry I can't just march up to someone I haven't liked for the past six years and beg for forgiveness for things that I am not sure I'm sorry for saying and doing. I'm sorry I can't tell you that I like you. I'm sorry that I can't tell you how much I want you and how I can't have you.

"How can you expect me to simply tell you anything I am feeling when what it is goes against everything I've learned since I was born? It isn't as simple as wanting and getting. I'm going to have to fight for you if there is going to be an 'us.' You should have understood that."

Hermione didn't know what to say. He was just as confused as she was. He was more confused than she was, it seemed. Suddenly she felt very small and very naïve. How could she have expected him to drop everything for her? She knew his father and just about everyone in the Wizarding World knew about their social opinions. Although he had been in the wrong, she had been too.

"I didn't consider any of that," she said in a small voice. Malfoy seemed to calm down some when she said that. His chest was moving as he caught his breath from his outburst.

"Potter really is annoying, though." Malfoy finally spoke again. Hermione's eyes narrowed.

"What were you two arguing about anyways?"

"You," he said simply.

"Yes, yes, I know that much. What about me?" she said impatiently. He smirked at her.

"How much you were pining for me." Hermione's jaw dropped.

"Th-that is not true!" she declared with a blush. Draco let out a chuckle but said nothing. "It really isn't!"

"Right, Granger."

"Hermione," she corrected almost as soon as he said Granger. Draco looked at her as if he was debating something.

"Hermione," he said with a nod. Hermione smiled.

FIN

Final A/N: Once again, thank you for reading. All feedback is appreciated even at the end of a story. As usual, I'm always open for suggestions - fics I should read, fics I should write, or even fics I should fix up (only my own, of course). If you are looking for any Draco/Hermione suggestions - just ask me. I'm also open to any book recs, too!

Epilogue? Maybe. If I get around to it. If I suddenly have the desire to pick up where I left off - in which case I may end up writing a completely AU, original sequel to it. Anywhos, keep an eye out if you're super interested in it.