AN: The questions about the ending will be answered, don't worry. Enjoy!!

Disclaimer: I wish I owned Harry potter. Or draco malfoy. (sizzle)

Brief Recap: Blaise landed a passionate kiss on Hermione, then walked over to the group of boys, who were all seething at his behavior. Big mistake.

The instant Blaise stopped walking, he found himself on the floor, with fists and feet raining down on him. All 7 boys were outraged at his action, and were making him well aware of it. Hermione stood back, open-mouthed, stunned. After a full moment, she came to her senses.

"Immobulus!" she cried, brandishing her wand in their general direction. The effect was immediate: they froze, only their eyes moving. Oliver's fist was inches from Blaise's face; Malfoy was launched in the air, hovering over Cedric, who was busy concentrating on kicking Marcus Flint, who had fallen on the ground.

Hermione lowered her wand. "That's better. Blaise was just answering my question the best way he knew how. Now can we all be civil?" Waiting for a moment, she searched the eyes of each boy. Satisfied, she muttered the countercurse.

Instantly, there was a lot of shouting of expletives, as they all collapsed on top of one another. Slowly getting up, they brushed themselves up and gave each other distance, acting as if nothing had happened.

"As flattered as I am by your affections, it is completely unacceptable for you to have an all out brawl." She paused, making sure she had everyone's attention. Confirming that she did, Hermione continued. "That's why I've decided to have a tournament of sorts. There will be three categories. As all of you claim to be Quidditch prodigies, one task will be a display of ability on a broomstick. That will be the first one, and I'll inform you of the others as they come up. Any questions?"

"Yeah. When and where?" inquired Cedric.

"Let's see…. How about tomorrow at 6? On the Quidditch pitch? Does that meet everyone's schedules?"

There was a general agreement, then Roger Davies asked, "So what exactly will we be doing? I mean, are we playing a game against each other, one-on-one?"

"Yes, actually. One-on-one. I'll tell you the matchups tomorrow." Hermione started to walk out of the library, but turned and added, "and did I mention that the winner of this task goes on a date with me? Of their choosing?" She surveyed the looks of astonishment and glee on their faces, then continued to stroll out of the library.

Meanwhile….

"So? How did it go? Did the Polyjuice Potion work?" Ginny asked Harry and Ron breathlessly.

Ron simply scowled and stalked off to his dormitory.

"She knew it was us. I still have no idea how. She probably caught Ron calling her 'Mione. But regardless, we weren't able to get much information," Harry said with a sigh, then proceeded to tell Ginny everything they heard/observed in the library. She listened patiently, gasping when he told her about the Veritaserum.

"So did she actually use it?" Ginny asked, wide-eyed.

"Dunno. We left before Zabini said his piece, but he didn't seem to be under the influence of anything, stupid git. Actually, I don't think she used it at all. She said it was about trust, and I guess everyone passed, because we all drank the juice. She was just threatening it to see what would happen," Harry responded, thoughtful.

Ginny sighed. "That's a good sign. At least she's not completely deranged. She had her little evening disappearing act how many days ago? Two? And you're sure you have no idea what she was up to?"

Harry looked around nervously, avoiding meeting her gaze. "Well, not entirely…."

"YOU BLOODY GIT!! WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME THAT YOU KNEW SOMETHING!?" Ginny exploded.

Taking a step back, Harry turned red and mumbled something about keeping secrets for friends. Ginny visibly calmed.

"Harry," she said, with strained control over her temper. "I need you to tell me what you know. Hermione could be playing with something dangerous, and none of us want her to get hurt. And I want my clothes back. And Parvati's ready to slit Hermione's throat for using her makeup without permission (that's girl rule #2). Now tell me what you know."

"Well, she was using my dad's Invisibility Cloak, but when she gave it back to me, I could see what she was carrying." He paused, but when Ginny prompted him to continue, he did. "She was carrying a cauldron with some stuff…"

"Harry. I need you to tell me EXACTLY what you saw."

AN: review!!!