A/N: Sorry this took so long! I don't know if I said it in the last chapter but I started my new semester at college so things are really crazy and my classes are very demanding and I've also been sick with a cold for a week which led to a week of dehydration and trying to gain back my energy. Anyway, here's chapter 11, it's mostly a filler as I just needed to get through some more things before bigger plot details. I hope you guys enjoy and review! I love reading them!
Disclaimer: All of JKR's work, only the plot is mine!
Chapter 11
Everything happened so fast that nobody knew what to do. The Healer stood there, mouth agape, his wand in his hand. Ginny and Hermione were trying to hold Harry back from fighting and joining the boys, and Madam Pomfrey stood almost exactly like the Healer. Professor Snape was the only person who seemed to be calm about the situation arising before their eyes. He was not surprised when Draco had slipped and called Hermione Granger, "princess". He was bound to slip up at some point, but what he hadn't counted on was the two dunderheads she had brought with her: Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley.
'Could this day get any worse?' He thought to himself. The boys continued to scuffle, fists flying everywhere until finally, Snape reached over to his bedside table, picked up his wand, and sent both boys flying in different directions of the room. Everyone stood there stunned for a few more moments until all eyes fell onto him.
"Yes, I'm still here." He replied to them. "Now, if you don't mind, I'd like to get this over and done with so that I can continue resting."
"Yes, straight away sir!" The Healer said. "Um, children, if you wouldn't mind waiting out in the hallway while I assess Mr. Snape and Miss Granger."
Hermione looked quickly at Ginny and then back at the Healer. "I'm sorry sir, but if it's okay, would you mind if my friend stays? For support?" She asked quietly.
'Oh, certainly, of course. And I assume Mr. Malfoy is here for you, Severus?" He said, turning to the other man.
"Indeed he is." He drawled. Draco got up from where he was on the floor, and walked over to stand beside Snape, glaring at the other two boys in the room.
"What about us, 'Mione?" Ron asked, his face still almost as red as his hair.
"I'll meet you two when I'm done." She said quietly, not looking at them.
"But, 'Mione-" Ron started.
"She said she'll meet with you later!" Ginny said, turning to her brother. "I'm sorry, Harry but that means you as well." She said sweetly, giving her boyfriend a quick peck on the cheek. He smiled sweetly at her and gave Hermione a small smile, then grabbed Ron by the arm and dragged him out of the Hospital Wing with him. As soon as the doors closed behind them, Hermione let out a breath that she hadn't known she'd been holding. Ginny rubbed soothing circles into her back, calming her.
"Are you alright Miss Granger?" Madam Pomfrey asked.
"Yes, I'm fine. Just still a bit shocked by what happened. I thought maybe after this war things would've changed."
"They will dear, in due time." She said, pulling up some chairs for Hermione, Ginny, and Draco to sit in.
Since the moment he had entered the Hospital Wing he was seething. How dare she invite those two idiots with her! The little Weasley girl he didn't mind, sure he never got along with her and they've done their fair share of bickering, but she hadn't seemed to mind him being there at all. Potter and Weasley on the other hand were a totally different story and he hadn't been expecting them at all. He cursed himself for slipping up and calling her "princess", which was the name he liked to call her when he was thinking about her, but he just couldn't stop himself.
"Now," the Healer started. This procedure will not take very long but I need absolute silence in order to concentrate. First we will need to remove any bandages so I can clearly inspect the wounds and from there I will proceed. You first, Mr. Snape." He looked over at Severus and both he and Madam Pomfrey helped him undo the dressings that had been applied. Hermione had to look away as the punctures were too horrifying to her. To think that such a vicious creature could've done this and she had survived…she was happy Neville had killed that beast. As she turned away she caught Draco's eye, and there was no mistaking it this time. He was staring straight at her. Why wasn't he looking at his godfather, making sure that he was ok? Hermione couldn't help but feel that maybe a small part of him was there for her as well. She turned back to where the Healer was, shoving all thoughts of Draco to the back of her mind. She watched him for several more minutes as he waved him wand over the wounds, sealing them with complicated spells before redressing them with fresh gauze. "Now for you, Miss Granger." He said moving to her.
Madam Pomfrey shuffled over as she began to help Hermione undo the bandage that was wound tightly around her arm. She suddenly felt that sense that someone was watching her. As she looked up, she noticed that everyone, including Professor Snape, was watching her intently. She felt a bit self-conscious but held her ground. She felt Ginny at her side; give her hand a reassuring squeeze. She looked over and gave her a small smile, letting her know that she was fine. She listened to the Healer's low mumbling of the complicated spells he had used on Snape that he was now doing to her arm. She felt a warm breeze cover her arm as he withdrew his wand. Suddenly a flash of white burning heat coursed through her cuts and she looked down alarmed and gave a little squeak of pain.
"Is everything ok?" Ginny asked.
"It hurts…" Hermione said uncertainly. "It's like a burning heat coursing through my arm!" She looked to the Healer to see if he was alarmed at her statement but he seemed utterly unperplexed.
"It's normal." He stately flatly. "It's the sense of your magic combining with the spells to insure that the wounds close properly. A lot of your magic is needed to help with the healing process which I why…" he trailed off, reaching into his bag, "I am going to give you each blood replenishing potions, pepper-up potions, and some salve to help with any scarring. Now, the Hospital needs me back to deal with some more patients. I shall be back in one week's time to check up on how you are both doing, until that time…" He said, striding out of the office. Hermione watched him leave before looking back to her arm. She noticed that it did look significantly better. Madam Pomfrey was off to her side, behind the white curtain of the bed she was sitting next to, trying to help Snape redress his wound but he was very fussy.
"Merlin's beard, Poppy! I'm a grown man, I can do this myself." She heard him say.
"A grown man who is wounded. Now, you will sit still while I redress your wound. If you keep moving, you could stall the healing. You wouldn't want that now do you?" She heard her stern voice chide him. She didn't hear anything else and chuckled at the look that was probably on his face right now, apparently her chuckle wasn't as quiet as she thought as a moment later she heard,
"Quiet, Granger, or as soon as the new year starts Gryffindor will be missing 20 house points." That immediately shut her up as her eyes widened in shock. Ginny grinned next to her, knowing how Hermione felt about the house points. She heard Draco snigger and looked over to see him cover his smile with his hand. At that point, Madam Pomfrey walked over to her with fresh dressings and a tube of salve for her arm and began redressing it.
"What's so funny, Malfoy?" Ginny asked.
"Oh, nothing." Draco said smirking.
"Really? Because it seemed like you were having a good chuckle."
"Please guys," Hermione said softly. "Don't fight."
"You okay, 'Mione? You don't look so good." Ginny said, concerned.
"I…" Hermione started.
"She's just weak, dear. It's taking a lot of her magic to help heal her. As soon as I'm done here you can escort her back to the common room and have her lie down. Make sure she takes her potions and eats something at dinner time." Madam Pomfrey said, finishing up.
"Of course." Ginny said, smiling at the old woman. She gently helped Hermione up and slung one her arms around her shoulders, carrying most of her weight, as she slowly helped her out of the Hospital Wing.
Draco couldn't help but watch as the Healer fixed up the wounds on both his godfather and Hermione. He was always fascinated by medical work and knew that someday, this is what he wanted to spend the rest of his life doing. When the healer had left, Draco watched as Granger and the Weaslette talked to Madam Pomfrey.
"You know, you're becoming very obvious." Snape said to the side of him.
"About what?" Draco asked, clearly confused by what the man had said.
"About the girl." Snape said, casually.
"What girl?"
"Granger. It's pretty obvious with the staring, the glazed over eyes, not listening to what I was saying before…" He drawled off.
"Okay, okay. I get it." Draco huffed.
"So tell me. What drew you to her?" Snape asked, clearly interested after seeing the boy taunting her their entire time at Hogwarts.
"I don't know." He answered, his shoulders slumping in defeat. "There was just something different about her…from the first day I saw her. When I found out that she was a Mud- a muggleborn, it only made things more complicated. Father had taught me that they were wrong and lower than the lowest, but Grandpa Ax had told me other thing. I didn't know who to believe at the time but I just couldn't deny my feelings."
"Then why belittle her constantly?"
"I guess I just did it thinking that if maybe I did it enough times, she would eventually hate me and never want to see or speak to me again and I would eventually get over her, but none of that worked. It's like she became immune to the word. Of course I had to keep up appearances. I couldn't just very well walk up to her and start being friendly. I was working for the Dark Lord and I couldn't have other Slytherins in the school associated with Death Eaters reporting back to him saying that I was getting cozy with a muggleborn, especially since it was Hermione."
"Oh, it's Hermione now?" Snape said, grinning.
"Oh, shut up." Draco huffed, turning away. "I don't even know why I'm telling you all this.
"I'm only joking Draco. You're not the only one who has fallen into the charms of a muggleborn."
"Yeah okay. But I bet I'm the only Slytherin."
"Or are you?" He asked slyly. Draco's head snapped back around so fast, you could literally hear his neck snap.
"No!" Draco said in shock. "You're joking!"
"Most certainly, not joking. There was once a beautiful muggleborn I fell for back in my school days."
"And what happened?"
"Well, I eventually did something unforgiveable, and she fell for my enemy, got married, and had an insufferable child with him. I pined after her for years but there's nothing I can do now." He said sadly.
"Surely you can seek her out, can't you?"
"Perhaps in another dimension when my time comes."
"What are you talking about?"
"She died, Draco, many years ago. She was the only woman I ever loved and I lost her."
"Who was she?" Draco asked curiously.
"Lily Evans…later Lily Potter." Snape said, looking at his godson to see his reaction, and it was almost priceless. His eyes bugged out of his head and his mouth opened in shock as he sucked in a gasp.
"You were in love with, with…with Potter's mother?!" He asked. Snape tried to cover his laugh with his hand but it didn't work. "Don't laugh at me! How? Why?"
"The question you should ask is 'why not?'" He said. "She was very beautiful, smart, kind, everything I could've wanted in a girl. When I was very young I watched her at the playground with her sister and even from then I could already tell that she was a very bright witch. Her sister, on the other hand, had some very nasty words to call her and didn't like me at all, By the time came for us to join Hogwarts, she was, or course, sorted into Gryffindor, and I into Slytherin. We still met up occasionally to talk and work on homework but all it took was one day for that all to be ruined."
"What happened?" Draco asked. He felt bad for his godfather. He was a kind man, and just hearing that he lost the only woman he ever loved was heartbreaking, even if it was Potter's mother.
"It was after our O.W.L. exams when I went outside to do some reading, and there were Potter, Black, Lupin, and Pettigrew, up to their usual mischief. Of course when they saw me they wanted to torment me. Lily stood up for me and tried to stop them and it was that next moment that ruined our friendship for good. I called her that one unforgiveable word that you have called Hermione Granger all of these years, and it broke what I had grown with her. After realizing what I had done, I tried everything I could to apologize and get her to forgive me, I even went as far as to sit outside of Gryffindor tower all night and day, hoping to see her leave, but nothing worked. I later began working for the Dark Lord and after hearing a prophecy concerning him and his downfall, I immediately went to tell him what I heard…another mistake I deeply regret. The child '…born as the seventh month dies, born to those who have thrice defied him'… It could have been one of two and he chose the one that I loved so dearly. I asked if he could spare her, but of course things didn't work out that way."
"One of two? What do you mean one of two? Does Potter have a sibling? One who isn't magical?"
"No, no. There were two couples that were expecting at the end of July, both of who have defeated and survived that Dark Lord three times. One couple were the Potters, and the other were the Longbottoms." Snape couldn't help but sympathize for Draco at that moment. His mouth was open in shock once again at hearing all of this. There was so much that he didn't know and he couldn't help but wonder if maybe if he told Draco this story of his past sooner, maybe he would've chosen a different side to fight on, or had become a spy like him.
"Neville Longbottom could've been the chosen one?! Impossible. I couldn't see that blibbering idiot standing up to him."
"Neville Longbottom is a brave man. This year, he proved why he was placed in Gryffindor. But after I found out what the Dark Lord had planned, I fled to Dumbledore and told him what would happen. I needed him to help me protect her. Of course her choice in secret keeper of her whereabouts was none other than Peter Pettigrew and he gave all of it away. In the end, when I found that she was no longer living, I pleaded with Dumbledore to help me become a spy. It was then that I joined the Order of the Phoenix, a secret organization that helped in taking down the Dark Lord. I also promised to myself and to Albus that I would look after Lily's son, for her. To make sure that he was safe and didn't put himself in the Dark Lord's path. Or course, when I first saw his man of unruly black hair, I knew he was going to be just like his father and that it would be hard and excruciating to keep him in line, but when he turned around and I saw his eyes, the same green eyes that his mother had, I knew that I might be able to get through it. Of course, no matter what I did, he still managed to get in harms way, but he eventually succeeded and here we are now." He finished. Draco was quiet for a few more minutes and sat there thinking about everything he had just heard.
It was shocking but also explained his situation. He also loved from afar and the girl he loved was muggleborn. They were more than what most purebloods thought they were. They were beautiful, intelligent, kind creatures and Draco was in love with one. He could only hope that he could try to become nicer and maybe one day Granger would forgive him for all of the nasty words he had once called her, but he knew that it was a long shot. He would just have to go for it and see where it got him.
"Thank you." Draco said quietly.
"For what?" Snape asked.
"For letting me know that there still might be a chance to love. The best I can do is try," he said with a smile, "for the both of us." At this, Snape smiled and his eyes brimmed with unshed tears. Draco was trying to become a better person and was also going to stop at nothing to get the girl that he wanted. Better yet, he was doing it for the fact that Snape had lost his own love many years again, and for that He was thankful. Draco had seen the light and realized that there was more to life than just fame and money. He could only hope that everything worked out for him, and if he had to later on, he would need to push Granger to him and hope for the best. Draco walked out of the Hospital Wing feeling like a better man. He knew that there was more to his godfather and he finally learned what he had been harboring for years. He was a man with a heart and had experienced true heartache in his life; it was why he had such a cold heart in front of others. He decided that he would find Luna and tell her that his plan needed to be set into action after the funerals. He needed Granger on his side and hoped that she would also be on his side for the trials. He walked quickly through the castle and out the entrance doors, down to the lake. He saw long blonde hair and bright blue eyes staring up into a tree at nothing. He smiled to himself and shook his head. That girl was crazy but she was also very smart. She looked at him as he approached her and smiled.
"Hey, Luna." He said. "I think it's time we started what we talked about." He smiled brightly at her.
"I was wondering when you were going to ask." She smiled and turned back to her tree. He couldn't help the wide grin that spread across his face and raced back into the castle to find Blaise. Things were finally beginning to look good for him.
Ginny helped Hermione up to Gryffindor Tower and helped her gingerly enter the common room. The boys were sitting in a corner of the room, playing a game of wizard's chess, but when the saw Ginny walk in with her arm around Hermione they jumped up to help. Ron took over from there and helped Hermione onto the couch while Harry asked the question that was front and foremost on both of their minds.
"What happened?" He asked.
"Nothing. She's just weak. The spells the Healer used to close the wound will take a lot of her magic to help heal her but she just needs to take blood replenishing and pepper-up potions to help with it all. Madam Pomfrey says that she should sleep for a little while before dinner so that she'll be awake enough to eat." She finished.
"But she'll be okay right? She'll be better?" Ron asked. Ginny stopped mid-step as she made her way over to where Ron was sitting, next to Hermione on the couch. She was literally surprised to see that Ron cared that much about Hermione. She never thought she would see the day when Ron loved something so much, other than food.
"Of course, Ron. She'll be fine. Now, I think I'll take her up to bed so she can rest." Ginny said, heaving Hermione back off of the couch and bringing her up to the girl's dorm to her bed. She laid her down softly then closed the door and headed back down to the common room with the boys.
"So, what do we do now?" Harry asked her.
"I guess we wait for a while to wake her up for dinner." She answered, sitting on the couch next to him.
"So what happened?" Ron asked.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean what happened after we left?"
"Oh. Well, the Healer first did what he needed to with Snape and once he was done and Madam Pomfrey was bandaging him up, the Healer then worked on Hermione. I don't exactly know what spells he was saying, but it closed the wounds tightly and Hermione said that it felt like her arm was on fire. The Healer said that it meant that the healing was successful and that her magic was helping speed it up and then he left. Madam Pomfrey helped her redress the wound and then we left. It was all very quick."
"Oh…" was all Ron said.
"How do we know when she's completely healed?" Harry asked.
"Well, the Healer said that he would be back in a week to check on it but I suspect it should be healed by then. The magic is already helping clear everything up. The only thing is that she'll still have a scar. The only thing we can do for that is rub some salve on it once a week and hope that that scar reduces a bit and almost fades but it'll always be there." Ginny finished.
"Right…" was all Harry said. After a couple more awkward silent minutes, Ron stood.
"Can you believe that Malfoy had the nerve to show up?" He asked.
"Well he was there for Snape. He asked him to come." Ginny stated as if it was obvious.
"Of course he did, he probably wanted to talk about how they were going to create a new Dark Lord after he was all healed up!" Ron shouted.
"Oh, c'mon, Ron. They're on the good side. Snape was a part of the Order, working as a spy for Dumbledore. He wouldn't start a new war."
"Well Snape might not, but Malfoy would."
"He's just a kid, Ron!"
"It doesn't matter if he's just a kid! He could do whatever he wants! He's a Malfoy! If he asks for it, he gets it! If he wants to become the new Dark Lord, well he just might get that too. But the one thing he won't get away with is calling my girlfriend, 'princess'!" He yelled.
"Is that what all this is about?" She asked.
"It was probably a mistake, Ron." Harry said.
"A mistake?! Whose side are you on, Harry?"
"I'm on yours but you know how he always called her 'Gryffindor's Princess'? Maybe that's what he meant." He stated. "C'mon, Ron. You know what? Let's forget about that. The only thing that matters is that Hermione's healed and she'll be back to her old self soon. Let's go finish that game of chess we started, yeah?" He said distracting him. Ron stood there for a moment, thinking.
"Yeah," He finally said. "Yeah, let's do that." Both him and Ginny let out a breath they had been holding. He gave Ginny a quick kiss on the head before joining Ron in the corner by the chessboard.
Ginny sat there while the boys played chess, curling up on the couch and looking into the fire. She also couldn't help but wonder about what Ron said. Why had Draco called her princess? It was odd, especially for Malfoy. He had always called her a mudblood and was never nice to her. There were also the times Ginny had caught him at mealtimes, staring at Hermione as if she was the only person in the room. When had that started? He couldn't like her, that was ridiculous; but it also wasn't impossible. Maybe the war had changed how he felt about certain things. He certainly didn't feel the same about his father. Everyone heard what had happened when his father was taken away the other day. It would certainly be in the Daily Prophet soon, once the newest issue came out concerning the war. The only person who would actually know Draco's true feelings would be him and most likely his friends. She had never spoken to his friends but she knew of them, being that they were a year older than her and he was always seen with them when he wasn't with Crabbe or Goyle, or Pansy.
Blaise Zabini would probably be the easiest to talk to. He was the calmest of the three and was with Draco more than Theodore Nott. She needed to talk to him soon and she still had a couple more hours until she needed to wake Hermione up, and Ron and Harry had just started a new game of chess. She decided that she would try to find Blaise Zabini and talk to him about it now; the sooner the better. She gave the boys a quick goodbye and an excuse that she was going to go find some friends and hurried out of the portrait hall. Once outside she stopped. Where would he be? She didn't know anything about him. The only thing she did know was that he was calm, he was Draco's friend, and that he was a Slytherin. She began walking down the staircase and wandering the halls on different floors. She was walking along the second floor corridor when she bumped into something tall and solid.
"Whoa, are you okay?" Someone asked, catching her before she fell.
"Yes, thank you." She said straightening out her clothes. "I guess I should watch where I'm-" she started. She looked up to find none other than the face of Blaise Zabini looking back at her.
"Where you're walking?" He finished for her with a grin.
"Yeah…" she said.
"Well, you best do that. It wouldn't do to keep bumping into people. Most wouldn't be so kind as to catch you before you fall." He said as he began to walk away.
"Hang on!" She called to him. "I actually wanted to talk to you.
"And what would a Weasley want to talk to me about?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.
"I'm not like my brothers." She said, crossing her arms.
"I didn't say you were."
"I wanted to talk to you about Draco Malfoy."
"So, why don't you talk to him?"
"Because I know he won't talk to me."
"Fair point." Blaise said. "What is it you wanted to ask me about?"
"Um," she started. "Do you think we can go somewhere more private?"
"Yeah, sure. Follow me." He said, walking away. She had no choice but to follow. "I was actually just heading to the library. I hope you don't mind."
"No, not at all."
"Great." He said, and they continued walking. They walked in silence all the way there until they were inside and seated comfortably at one of the studies desks in a semi-dark corner. Ginny took out her wand but before she could say anything Blaise stopped her.
"What do you think you're doing?" He asked, his eyes narrowing in her direction.
"I'm casting a silencing spell so nobody can hear us you idiot. If I wanted to hex you I would've done that several minutes ago when I first saw you." She grumbled, casting a quick "muffliato" around them. Once she felt the spell settle, she smiled to herself.
"So," Blaise started. "What is it you wish to know?"
"Does Malfoy like Hermione?" Ginny asked. This was certainly not what Blaise was expecting, but Ginny was one to get straight to the point. She didn't believe in beating around the bush when there was a situation that needed to be resolved. She took in the look of shock that was written clear across his face, but lucky for him, she thought that he was just shocked at the question. Little did she know, that she was right with her assumptions.
"Why would you ask such a stupid question like that?" He scoffed. "Draco would never go for someone like Granger. The war may have changed some people but not all of them." He said quickly.
"Well after what I've witnessed in the past couple of days, I think you're lying. It's pretty obvious that Malfoy likes Hermione." She said, crossing her arms.
"Well I don't know who's been spiking your pumpkin juice during breakfast hours but you're wrong. I know Draco better than he knows himself and I can tell you that he does not, under any circumstances, like Hermione Granger." He finished, getting up from his seat, indicating that he was done talking to her. He walked over to the nearest bookshelf, skimmed the books on the shelf quickly before finding the one he wanted, and left the library, also leaving and angry Ginny Weasley behind him.
She knew he was lying to her, that much was clear. If she wanted to find the truth she needed to do some snooping. First, she would need to be more observant of not only Draco, but of Blaise now too. He seemed to know more than he was letting on and she would also need to keep an eye on Hermione. She didn't know why she felt this way, but she felt as if Hermione wasn't telling her everything about some situations.
She walked back to the common room, forming a plan in her mind. She was going to figure this out, not matter what it took. She walked in to find the boys still playing chess. She looked at the clock at the wall and realized that they had a half hour to get down to dinner. It seemed like she had spent more time out than she thought. She walked briskly up the stairs to the girl's dormitory and quietly opened the door to the room that Hermione was sleeping in. She was surprised when she saw Hermione sitting up in bed, reading the book she had taken from the library the other day.
"Hermione, you're awake!" Ginny said. She took her eyes off the books long enough to acknowledge her friend's presence.
"I couldn't sleep that well. I took the pepper-up potion that the Healer prescribed and now I'm wide awake." She said.
"Well that's good because we have about 20 minutes to get down to dinner. Should we go?"
"Yes, that would be lovely." She said, placing her book down on her bedside table to keep the page she was on, put on her shoes, and walked down the stairs with Ginny. The boys seemed to once again be caught up in another heated debate about Quidditch teams. They told them that dinner would be served soon and they quickly jumped up, walking ahead of the girls, never breaking their conversation. The only thing they could do was roll their eyes at them.
"So how do you feel?" Ginny asked Hermione.
"I feel pretty well actually. It doesn't hurt as bad as it did although it is still pretty warm."
"Madam Pomfrey said that it would be like that for a little while. Your magic, combined with the magic of the spell needs some friction and heat to help close up the wounds."
"Right." Hermione said, gingerly running her fingers along the bandage on her other arm. The made it to the Great Hall and sat down at their usual table. Ginny made sure to sit down on the side that would insure she'd have a direct view to the three Slytherins on the other side of the room. As soon as her eyes landed on the dark Italian to Draco's right, his eyes snapped up and narrowed into slits at her and his lips curled into a scowl.
"What's wrong with you?" Draco asked, looking at the look of hate on his best mate's face.
"What?" Blaise asked, still looking at the youngest Weasley.
"I said, what's wrong with you? What's got your knickers in a twist?"
"Nothing." He said, looking back to his plates of food.
"What were you looking at?" Draco asked, looking in the direction Blaise had just been, looking his own eyes with Ginny's. He scowled back at her and she returned to looking at her food and talking with the trio. "What's her problem?"
"She just made some very nasty assumptions about us." Blaise said, seeing as Theo was still sitting with them.
"What did she say?" Theo asked.
"She said that we better watch our back this year. Just because we were let off from going to Azkaban doesn't mean we can't be punished."
"How dare she think she can treat us that way!" Theo yelled.
"Quiet down, will you." Blaise hushed him. I had a little talk with her and promised that if she wanted to make threats like that, I'd spend the rest of the summer and all of next year making her life a living hell.
"Good," Theo said. "Serves her right, the little bint."
"Theo!" Astoria called from down the table. "Can you come help me translate something?" She asked, showing him a book that was clearly written in Latin. All purebloods were taught had to read and write in Latin but some were more efficient in the language than others, mostly the boys.
"Sure thing!" He called back and moved down the table to sit next to her. Once he was out of earshot, Draco and Blaise sat there for a few minutes in silence, until Draco finally looked at him.
"That isn't what she said at all, was it?" He asked him. Blaise sighed. "What did she say then?"
"She wanted to know if you liked someone." Blaise said.
"Why? Was she checking to see if I as available? If she comes back tell her I'm taken. I'd never be seen canoodling with a freckled, red-haired, blood-traitor, Weasley like her." He smirked.
"But you'd be seen with a muggleborn like Granger?" Blaise asked slyly, raising and eyebrow. Draco stopped with his fork halfway to his mouth. He slowly placed it back down on his plate and turned to face Blaise.
"That's a different story." He stated calmly.
"Is it?" Blaise asked. Draco nodded. "Well then, you better do a better job of keeping it a little secret because her suspicions are extremely accurate." He finished, returning to his own food.
"What do you mean?" Draco paled.
"She's caught you staring more than once, and even Theo's asked me about it. You're lucky I cover your tracks so well and it's why you're only hearing about it now. If it weren't for me, Theo would be hounding you with questions right now. I've been telling him that you're just planning things to do to embarrass her next year."
"But I don't want to embarrass her." Draco said in a "duh" voice.
"But you still need to keep up appearances." Blaise said, before getting up to leave. "Oh and one more thing," he said turning back around and leaning close to Draco's ear, If I were you, I'd keep an eye out for any type of competition. Weasley's not the only one who plans on capturing Hermione's heart for himself." And with that he left, leaving Draco to wonder whom else could be after his witch. The next few weeks were about to get ugly, real fast.
A/N: Thanks for reading this guys! I hope you enjoyed it and don't forget to review! Love you all! If you guys have any ideas or some things you'd like to see in the upcoming chapters, don't be afraid to PM me or leave your ideas in a review. Thanks for the continued support and for continuing to stick with me!
~ToriLynn
Song for this chapter is: "Human" by Civil Twilight
