I Want You Back

By: babykelyse

Disclaimer: I own absolutely nothing, save for the plot and Tiliana. Credit goes to Blah-the-sixth for his character, Brian. No suing! :)

Twelve

Tiliana grinned brightly at Brian as she took a seat next to him and started filling her plate with the various dishes that had been set out for dinner.

"Well someone is certainly chipper today." Brian commented with a small smile of his own.

"Have I told you lately how wonderful you are?" Tiliana laughed, tucking in to her dinner.

"No, but you can start." Brian teased. "What's gotten into you today?"

"I took my Ancient Runes N.E.W.T today and everything you helped me with was on the exam. After I turned my test in, Professor Babbling even gave me a wink and said there was no doubt that I'd be receiving an 'O'!"

Brian grinned, basking in Tiliana's happiness. "I'm glad I could help."

"What's this I hear about an 'O' in Ancient Runes?" Blaise's smooth voice joined the table as he and Luna took their seats and began filling their own plates.

"Tiliana was just telling me about how well her test went today. What about you, Blaise? You two are in the same class, aren't you?"

"Yes, we are, and had I known Tiliana here was getting pointers from the master of Ancient Runes, I would have taken advantage of that. How very Slytherin of you, Tili." Blaise grinned at the dark haired girl, genuinely impressed.

"I do what I can, Blaise." Tiliana grinned. "Besides, if I shared my resources with everyone, how could I call myself a Slytherin?"

"So I've been reduced to a resource have I?" Brian said, a mock-pout on his face.

"Of course." Tiliana laughed, patting Brian lightly on the cheek. "Who just so happens to be very good at snogging." She added, her voice lowering to a husky purr.

"Why is it that everyone at this table has to talk about their private business in public?" Blaise complained loudly, glaring at the couple.

"Sorry, mate." Though Brian didn't sound in the least bit sorry.

"Leave them be, Blaise. If I'm not mistaken, Hermione was a witness to one of our own displays not too long ago." Luna's soft voice chimed in.

Brian and Tiliana watched in fascination as Blaise's tanned cheeks reddened in color. "That's different!" Blaise sputtered out, desperately trying to keep the heat out of his face.

"It is not, and you know it." Luna gently chided her boyfriend.

Blaise huffed indignantly, though he kept quiet.

"Tell me your secret, Luna." Tiliana said, amazed that the girl could quiet down Blaise Zabini of all wizards.

"Luna will do no such thing." Blaise interjected, sending a look towards Tiliana. "She and I have an understanding is all. There is no secret."

Brian laughed, knowing a lie when he heard one. "Keep telling yourself that, mate. But I do agree. I don't want my new girlfriend learning any secrets about us males just yet."

"We'll talk later, Luna. When we don't have these ogres surrounding us." Tiliana grinned at the blonde Ravenclaw before continuing to eat her dinner.

Brian and Blaise shared a look, but wisely opted to keep their mouths shut. The rest of dinner passed in a blur. Draco and Ginny made a brief appearance, telling them about the letter Draco's father had sent them and where they'd be tomorrow night. Blaise and Brian shared sympathetic looks with Draco. They knew how his father could be. Tiliana and Luna, however, saw the brighter side of things. The fact that Draco's father wanted to meet with them both, rather than forbidding Draco to see Ginny was clearly a good sign.

Draco and Ginny added their own input in, before they finally bid the group a good night, opting to return to Draco's room early in order for them to prepare for the meeting. Luna watched them walk away, a sad smile on her face.

"It's so sad they have to go through all of this, just to be together. Shouldn't the fact that they love one another be enough for their parents?"

"Slytherins are complex, love." Blaise explained. "Their families have been at war since before we were born, so it won't be easy for either of their families to accept the choice they've made. For as long as I could remember, Draco was brought up to loathe the Weasley family, though no one would ever tell him why."

"Perhaps a lover's quarrel that was never settled?" Tiliana suggested. "Those types of things do serve to break apart two families that were exceptionally close."

"That could be a main reason." Brian mused. "But if that's the case, I wonder who the spurned lovers could be? Perhaps Draco's father and Ginny's mother?"

"Well that'd be interesting." Blaise laughed. "It might go further back than that. The Weasley's were once a prominent name in the Wizarding society, before some sort of scandal happened and they lost all of their fortune."

"Now that it's been suggested, I'm curious to find out what caused this big rift between Draco and Ginny's families." Tiliana said, a gleam in her eye.

"Well, one thing's for certain," Brian answered. "We'll definitely know by the end of the weekend. I have a feeling a lot of old history will be aired out."

--

Hermione watched with an amused, yet disgusted expression as Ron shoveled an impossible horde of food in his mouth. How he stayed so slender was a mystery to her.

"You know the food isn't going to run away, Ron. You don't have to shovel it all in at once."

"I'gm humpgry." Ron spoke through several forkfuls and Hermione had to fight not to gag.

"'Mione, you know it's best not to talk to him while he's eating." Harry laughed.

"I do know that, but I jus wish he'd learn better eating etiquette is all." Hermione huffed, but looked at her boyfriend fondly. "I don't know how Mrs. Weasley can stand watching him eat like that."

"Years of practice." Ron finally spoke up, washing down his meal with a healthy dose of pumpkin juice. "I just can't seem to break of the habit, 'Mione. When you grow up with six other siblings you have to learn to eat fast or get it taken away from you."

"I guess I can understand that." Hermione reasoned. "So, how did your N.E.W.T.'s go? You've been secretive about them all day."

"Actually, I think you'll be very proud of me." Ron grinned. "I'm not exactly sure, but I think I managed to get an 'O' in Transfiguration, Charms, History of Magic, and Muggle Studies, and an 'E' in Herbology and Defense Against the Dark Arts, and an 'A' in Potions, though how I managed that is beyond me"

"Ron, I'm so proud of you! You'll well on your way to becoming a great Auror."

"I hope so. How about you, Harry? How do you think your N.E.W.T.'s went?"

"I think about the same as yours actually. Pans helped me out with a lot of my studying."

"And other things." Pansy piped up, a devilish grin on her face. Hermione and Ron laughed at the tell-tale blush on Harry's cheeks.

"Don't worry about it, Harry. Ron got the same treatment." Hermione winked, and this time Pansy and Harry laughed at the massive blush on Ron's face.

"Hermione!"

Hermione simply laughed at her boyfriend, spooning up a bit of mashed potato. The four students continued eating in silence with only the occasional comment between bites. The entire Great Hall quieted when Professor Dumbledore stood up, signaling that he wanted to speak.

"I first want to congratulate our graduating Seventh Years on a job well done this school year, as well as our Fifth Years who took their O.W.L.'s this week." Dumbledore smiled at each of the House tables. "Your work has paid off, and I am pleased to announce that both Hermione Granger and Draco Malfoy were our top scorers in their N.E.W.T. exams this year."

Applause broke out from each of the House tables, and Hermione beamed, happy that her hard work had been recognized. She looked around, searching for Malfoy's undoubtedly smug face, but frowned when she didn't find it.

"Where's Malfoy and Ginny?" Hermione whispered to Ron.

"They left out earlier." Ron whispered back. "She told me earlier that she's going to meet Malfoy's parents tomorrow."

"And you're okay with that?" Hermione asked, perplexed.

"Of course I'm not." Ron huffed. "But she's my sister and I love her. If that evil git is what makes her happy, then I have no choice but to be happy for her. We did have words about her going to Malfoy Manor though."

"I'm surprised you're taking this so easily, Ron." Harry interjected. "A few months ago you didn't even want to acknowledge that Gin was dating Malfoy."

"And I still don't." Ron said. "But it's better to stay on Gin's good side."

Hermione and Harry laughed before turning back to Professor Dumbledore's speech.

"Because of your hard work, I have decided to reward all Seventh Years with an End of the Year Ball!"

Several excited whispers broke out amongst the students, dying down only when Dumbledore loudly cleared his throat.

"I'm sure that you're all excited, however this dance is only for Fifth Year students and above." A disappointed groan resounded before Dumbledore spoke again. "I will, however, permit the younger students to attend only if they have been invited by an older student. The ball will commence next Friday evening, starting at 7 p.m. sharp, and will end at 1 a.m. We will have a special Hogsmeade outing for the older students to purchase dress robes and dresses tomorrow. Please be at the Great Hall entrance at 11 a.m."

With that, Dumbledore waved his hands, and students began talking filing out and talking amongst themselves as silverware and leftover food disappeared from the tables.

"This is so exciting!" Pansy smiled, grabbing Harry's hand. He shot Ron and Hermione an amused look as he allowed his girlfriend to drag him off.

"I take it we'll be going to Hogsmeade tomorrow then?" Harry teased.

"Of course! Nothing I have fits me anymore since…you know." Pansy glanced meaningfully at her barely visible bump. "Plus, it'll be nice to get out of the castle."

Harry nodded his agreement, already envisioning ogling the latest Quidditch gear and magazines.

"Harry James Potter," Pansy began sternly. "I already know what you're thinking, and we will not spend the entire Hogsmeade trip inside some Quidditch store!"

Harry grinned guiltily at Pansy, instantly rearranging any plans he thought he'd have for tomorrow.

--

Draco groaned as he cast the Tempus spell once again. He knew he should have insisted he and Ginny visit Honeydukes and the Apothecary before stopping at Madame Malkin's. He huffed out another breath as he looked towards where Ginny had disappeared to earlier. He was just about to walk back to where the dressing rooms were located when Ginny finally appeared, looking pleased with herself.

"Took you long enough," Draco grumbled.

"I know you insist on spoiling me with nice things, Draco, but I absolutely refuse to let you spend over 200 galleons on a dress!"

"Most witches wouldn't mind that." Draco said, trying to sneak a peak at the package in Ginny's hand.

"Aren't you lucky that I'm not most witches then?" Ginny quipped, shrinking the bag and stuffing it in her pocket. "Besides, it's not like I'm going to use this dress any other time, so why spend so much money on it?"

"You never know, Gin. Whatever dress you picked out could come in very handy in the future. What did you pick out anyway?"

"You'll see the night of the dance." Ginny teased, grabbing Draco's hand. "I even found something to wear to your parent's tonight."

"Gin, I've told you thousands of times that you aren't expected to dress up for dinner at my parent's."

"I'd rather not show up looking shabby, Draco. They don't have that great an opinion of me, so I don't want to ruin any chance I have to get into their good graces."

"I love you. That's the only thing they need to worry about when it comes to their 'good graces' as you say. I just don't want you to be uncomfortable."

Ginny beamed at Draco, her heart filling at his concern for her. "As long as you're there, I won't have to worry about that, will I?"

--

"You'll look absolutely stunning in whatever you choose, love." Blaise watched as Luna picked through several items in Twilfitt and Tatting's, a very posh wizarding clothing shop.

"Perhaps," Luna said airily. She picked out a teal dress, examined it, before putting it back with a frown. "I don't understand why we had to shop here, Blaise. I would have been perfectly happy at Madam Malkin's."

"That's where everybody plans on getting their dress robes, Luna. I want to look different."

Luna laughed lightly at the slight whining in Blaise's voice as she picked out another dress.

"What's so wrong with looking the same as everyone else?" She teased, nearly gagging at the price on one of the dresses.

"When we walk into the ball, I want everyone's eyes to be on us for a change. Every ball I've attended at Hogwarts centered on Potter or Draco, and this time it'll be centered on us. I want to show you off, love."

"Don't you think you do that enough?" Luna questioned, thinking of all the times when Blaise and she would walk down the halls.

"I can never show you off enough." Blaise said, fitting himself behind Luna. "Don't think I don't know what goes on when you're not with me. Your Housemates look down their noses at you, simply because you're different, and it takes all of Merlin's willpower in me not to hex them all to Hades."

"I don't care what my Housemates think of me." Luna smiled, turning in Blaise's arms. "Yours and my friend's opinions are all that matter to me."

"I understand that, love, but every eye will be on you when we enter the ball. Think of how jealous all your Housemates will be when they see you in something from this very shop. They'll be positively green with envy."

"And being on the arm of a scary, but beautiful Slytherin sneering at them might help things along as well, right?" Luna smiled up at Blaise.

"You know me too well, love."

--

Harry grinned widely as he watched Pansy purchased nearly every sugar quill, jelly slug, coconut ice, and toffee she could get her hand on. The look of orgasmic glee on her face nearly had him losing it then and there, but he wisely put on a blank look as she approached him.

"You can never have enough sweets." Pansy said, almost defensively.

"Of course not, Pans." Harry agreed, attempting to hide a smile. "I have a feeling that the babies won't like candy all too much when they get here though."

Pansy smacked him lightly on the arm, before breaking into a grin.

"Can you believe there are two lives inside of me?" Pansy said, reverently. "Madame Pomfrey said she would be able to tell me the sex of each, but I think I want it to be a surprise. That dream of yours could always be wrong."

"You're right." Harry said, hissing when Pansy smacked his hand away from her candy.

"If you wanted candy, you could have bought it yourself." She replied tartly, holding her bag of treats protectively.

Harry laughed again, holding his hands up in surrender. "Maybe we'll stop back here before the trip is over, and I'll stock up. But yeah, my dream could always be wrong about the babies. We could wind up having two girls, and I'd be outnumbered."

"That could be fun," Pansy murmured absently, chewing a piece of toffee. "Or it could be the other way around and I could be outnumbered. It's all up to chance, really."

"I wouldn't mind one of each though." Harry said thoughtfully. "A little girl who looks like you and a little boy that looks like me would be perfect."

"Any child of ours will be perfect." Pansy said wistfully. "I wonder what House they'll end up in. Well…if Hogwarts is still around that is."

Harry caught the slight edge in Pansy's last statement, and pulled her into a tight embrace, his hands running up and down her back lightly.

"There will be one, Pans. And nothing is going to happen to you, me, or any of our friends if I can help it. Once this bloody war is over, we can move into the next stage of our life together. I'm going to grow old with you."

Pansy shook her head as she smiled, already envisioning the life she would fight to keep with Harry. "So long as you're still as good-looking as you are now, I might keep you." She joked, blinking a few tears out of her eyes.

"I'm so glad you love me for my mind." Harry responded dryly, though he was grateful to Pansy for breaking the somber mood.

"I like that too." Pansy winked, pulling Harry away from the sweet shop. "Now how about we go and try on dress robes? We've only got a couple of hours left before we go back to Hogwarts, so we don't have anymore time to waste."

Harry groaned loudly as Pansy pulled him towards the dress shop. It was going to be a long day.

--

Brian looked amused as he watched his cousin drag Potter off to Madame Malkin's. Thank Merlin he'd already had a set of dress robes on hand, and Tiliana wasn't too fussy about picking out a dress. All in all, they'd spent about thirty minutes searching, at least Tiliana searched, while Brian amused himself with the proceedings of Hogsmeade.

"You shouldn't look so gleeful at other's unhappiness." Tiliana teased, following his gaze.

"He's not unhappy." Brian stated. "He's so besotted with my cousin, it's borderline pathetic."

"I think it's sweet," Tiliana argued. "You weren't around when they first started dating. It took them months to get it right, and even then they stayed cross with one another for the silliest of things."

"We won't go through that, will we?" Brian looked at his girlfriend, a ghost of a smile on his lips. "You'll just tell me if you get pissed at me, and I'll do my best to change that."

"It sounds good when you say it, but relationships are never easy. Harry and Pansy are walking examples of having to work hard at maintaining a stable relationship."

"I think I have a pretty good idea of that." Brian laughed. "After all, he did go insane when he saw Pansy hugging me. I don't think I've ever seen someone so keen on ripping my head off."

Tiliana laughed, remembering how amused and angry Pansy had been at the situation. "I don't think that feeling has changed between the two of you, has it?"

"Of course not. I'll always get under Potter's skin, simply because I tell him things he doesn't want to hear."

"You have an uncanny knack for doing that sort of thing."

"It's a gift, dear. I wouldn't be Brian Stratam if I didn't get under at least one person's skin. Besides, it's so fun and easy to rile Potter I just can't resist."

"You sound more like Draco than I'd like." Tiliana said, shaking her head. "I'll never understand why you guys can't just settle your differences and treat each other civilly. Look at your cousin and Hermione, for example. They're not exactly bosom buddies, but they manage to act civil around one another."

"Tili, Draco, Potter, and I will never be friends, and asking us to treat each other civilly is like asking us to saw off a hand. Potter and Draco were meant to be mortal enemies from the time they were born. I don't think they'd know how to act if they suddenly began acting friendly."

"Okay…I get that. But why do you have to be an enemy of Harry's as well?"

"It's simple. He's dating my cousin, who doesn't have an older brother to look out for her therefore I'm obligated to hate him until Pansy breaks it off. Unfortunately, there's no chance of that happening, so hating Potter will be on my agenda until we all die."

"That's extremely mature, Brian." Tiliana laughed. "You're really serious about that, aren't you?"

"Deathly." Brian answered, deadpan. "Besides, where else would I find my entertainment?"

"You're one of a kind, Brian. I think I like that."

"Yes…you should." Brian smiled.

--

Hermione put the finishing touches on Ron's tie before she turned him around to look in the mirror. She watched as Ron admired his form, brushing imaginary pieces of dirt off the black set of dress robes he'd finally decided on.

"I have to say these are a big step up from the dress robes you wore in Fourth Year," Hermione teased.

"That was a bloody dress, and I don't care if anyone says different. I can't believe mum did that to me!"

"They were dress robes!" Hermione laughed. "They were just a bit more formal than you needed."

Ron grumbled as he took a final look in the mirror before walking back into the dressing room.

"I don't see why you can see me in what I'll be wearing Friday, but I can't see you in your dress." He complained loudly from behind the curtains.

"Because I want you to be stunned, of course." Hermione answered, twirling her wand. "It seemed to work Fourth Year, after all."

"Then you had to ruin it with that stupid git, Viktor Krum." Ron grumbled.

"You could have just asked me, you know." Hermione reminded him.

"I did!"

"At the last minute! I was a last resort to you, and that really hurt my feelings."

No sound came from the dressing room as Ron contemplated Hermione's words. She was right. He had only come to her as a last resort, and it was something he'd kicked himself in the arse about for years.

"I…I'm really sorry about that, 'Mione. I just didn't think you liked me in that way, so I didn't want to risk being hurt."

Ron pushed aside the curtain, a regretful look on his face. Hermione shook her head at him, looking away.

"We never have talked about that night, have we?"

"I didn't think you'd want me to bring it up any more than I already do." Ron said sheepishly. Hermione laughed lightly at her boyfriend as she turned to face him.

"I was so busy trying to make you jealous, you know that?"

"What?" Ron asked, surprised. "I thought you were with who you wanted."

"You thought wrong." Hermione said softly. "I tried so hard to make it seem like I was having an amazing time. I guess it made me feel better to see that you were so miserable that night."

"I wish I could go back and do things differently." Ron said, walking over to Hermione. "We wasted so much time hiding how we felt about each other, when we could have been enjoying a great relationship."

"That's what we're doing now though." Hermione replied, reaching up to tangle her hands in the red hair she loved so much. "I think all that matters is that we finally got off our arses and admitted how we felt about one another."

"Hermione Jane Granger," Ron playfully admonished. "You cursed."

Hermione giggled, pulling Ron down for a light kiss. "I guess you're rubbing off on me, Ronald Bilius Weasley."

"I don't think that's too bad of a thing." Ron teased. "After all, if you're going to be a part of the family, you'll have to learn to talk like us."

Hermione glanced up at Ron, sharply, trying to determine whether or not he was teasing her with his last statement.

"A part…of your family?" She asked slowly, hope blossoming in her chest.

"Well…yeah." Ron answered sheepishly, rubbing his hair nervously. "I love you, 'Mione. And when we get through this bloody war, I plan on marrying you. If that's…okay with you?" Ron looked away, missing the smile blossoming on Hermione's face.

"It's more than okay, Ron." Hermione whispered, excitement running through her veins. "It's fantastic! I love you."

Ron grinned at the brown-haired girl before he pulled her into a mind-blowing kiss.

--

A/N: As promised, Chapter 12! I'm so proud of myself for actually sticking to my word for once. :) The next update (the much anticipated meeting of the parents!!) will tentatively be scheduled for some time Saturday afternoon/night, but if it's not up by then, it will most definitely be up Sunday. I finally have a vision of how I want things to proceed, so expect quicker updates. My muse has finally come back to me lol. So, I'll make this quick: Don't forget to vote on what you'd like to see me work on next, and don't forget about my little 'gift' of sorts: 100th reviewer gets a one-shot written especially for them with any pairing they'd like! Forgive any spelling/grammar mistakes. I'm not sure if I caught everything, but hopefully it's not too bad. So you know the drill: Read, review, and as always, enjoy! Ciao!