Not Giving Up: Chapter 25

Disclaimer: I own nothing!

Draco POV

After classes were finished I came back to the common room. I was talking to Blaise when I spotted Theo. He was watching with angry eyes. I raised a single eyebrow as if daring him to start something.

He sneered at me, and then waked across the room to whisper into Astoria's ear. She was a pretty girl with long blonde hair and pale green eyes. My parents were going to have me engaged to her before they found out she was a major slut. Malfoy's only marry virgins, and Astoria was far from a virgin. She's made her through almost all the guys in Slytherin from fourth year on up. She was smart for girl a year younger then me, but she was completely daft when it came to how guys should treat girls. It was rumored that she was one of the many fuck buddies of Theo.

What ever he said to her made her blush. He walked up the stairs, and after a few minutes she quickly fallowed him up.

I rolled my eyes, that's just pathetic. A couple years ago teachers handed out packets of information on HIV's and STDs, I didn't look at it very carefully, but I got the just of it. It made you kind of wonder what people like that are carrying around with them.

"What did you do to Theo after I left?" I asked Blaise cutting him off midsentence.

He cleared his throat and them quietly said, "At first he was furious, you know after the pain subsided," he rolled his eyes at that. "But then he was going on and on about how much trouble you're going to get in when he tells the Headmaster."

I was about to say something when he cut me off, "I quickly told him that if he told anyone that he would get in trouble for rape. That shut him up obviously. He then demanded I leave when he realized I wasn't going to give him any pity."

Then In a dangerously low tone he said "I also told him that you would kick his ass if you so much as touch that girl again, and if I was him I wouldn't come near you for weeks."

In times like these you know who your real friends are, when they don't give out any of your secrets but still scare the shit out of your enemies. I have a newly fined respect for the guy.

I didn't know what to say to the guy but, "Thank you."

He only gave me a nod of the head, but I knew he understood what I was trying to say to him.

I went tot the library wanting to talk to Hermione again, but after entering she wasn't in immediate sight.

I love the smell of the books, they smelt of dust and this musty sent hung in the air. I looked at the bindings of all the books. I liked the Varity of it all the bindings were different colors and sizes. Some books were torn and falling out of there bindings. While others were brand new.

The library had many windows; the light hit the books perfectly so that if a book that hasn't been opened in a while you could see the smallest of dust particles. Some of the windows were stained glassed, some of them even moved. My favorite widow was one in the back; it was a picture of a girl sitting on a rock by the water reading to book. She had brown hair. It was a plain, simple window it didn't move, the colors weren't very bright. There was nothing very interesting about it, but for some reason it reminded me of Hermione.

Hermione was far from plain, but just the innocence of it all. Hermione was the type of girl to read by a sea. To be completely consumed by the book; giving it all her love, and attention.

I walked to the back of the library to see the window. I walked through the shelves, only to be stopped short.

There was Hermione, sitting at my favorite spot. She was sitting under my favorite window, reading a book, just like the girl in the window. It was probably the most insignificant thing in the whole world, but to me it was the biggest. With more inspection I saw a little girl sitting with her.

"Her stepmother didn't like her one little bit. All her kind thoughts and loving touches were for her own daughters. Nothing was too good for them - dresses, shoes, delicious food, soft beds, and every home comfort."

I didn't know this story; silently I sat on the ground and listened, hidden from sight.

"But, for the poor unhappy girl, there was nothing at all. No dresses, only her stepsisters' hand-me-downs. No lovely dishes, nothing but scraps. No rest and no comfort. She had to work hard all day. Every one called her Cinderella," she continued.

"Cinderella used to spend long hours all alone talking to the cat. The cat said, Meow, which really meant, Cheer up! You have something neither of your stepsisters has and that is beauty.. It was quite true. Cinderella, even dressed in old rags, was a lovely girl. While her stepsisters, no matter how splendid and elegant their clothes, were still clumsy, lumpy and ugly and always would be."

I smiled when I heard her meow like a cat.

The story continued on like that she told the story of the poor girl, and how a magic fairy came to her to help her go to the ball. How she meets her prince charming, but before they could kiss she had to go home, but left a shoe behind. How he search threw the whole kingdom looking for the girl. When he finally found her they got married.

"And lived happily ever after," she said closing the book.

Before they could notice I was there I left. I walked back to my dorm, thinking is she looking for that kind of prince?

I didn't have to wait long to see her again. I was in my room asleep, when a distressed house elf was shaking me awake.

"Mr. Malfoy… MR. MALFOY!" the little creature squealed in my ear.

"What, what!" I said slightly grumpy.

"Sorry sir, but Miss Hermione is standing out side the common room door. She is needing the password." The creature cried.

Apparently I didn't see the urgency soon enough because she then said "She is crying sir!"

I ripped back the arm blankets, and all but ran for the door.

Thankfully no one was in the common room, because I ran through that place like a man on fire. I quickly threw open the door to find a distressed Hermione. There were tears running down her face, and she had her arms wrapped around her body, she was sitting on the floor. Her body pulled close to her.

My heart broke at the sight. I bent down, and when she saw me she wrapped her arms around my neck.

"Its okay, you're safe, I'm here," I said to her softly.

I wrapped my arms around her body holding her tight to me, I slowly lifted her up. She wrapped her legs around my waist. So it was like I piggy back from the front. I held her tight while she cried into my shoulder. I moved back to my room, with little effort.

I sat on my bed, while she sat on my lap.

"Hermione what's wrong?" I asked softly.

Between sobs and hiccups she said "He's made his way into my dreams! I'm so scared."

"I'm here your safe," I cooed.

I just let her cry; she had to get it all out. My shirt was getting damper and damper with every minute, but it didn't matter because I needed to be here for her. Slowly her tears stopped falling.

She sniffled and wiped her nose on her PJ's.

"I'm sorry, I was over reacting," she said.

"Hermione, you can come to me for anything no questioned asked," I told her

She nodded her head, and with the silence she must have realized she was on my lap. She blushed, and moved on to the bed.

I took a look at the clock and realized it was late, she must have to because she said "Can I stay the night, I don't want to be alone."

She asked me with out looking at me, and then I caught her eye and said "yes."

We crawled into the bed, and she soon fell asleep. I watched her for a little bit my heart beating fast, and with out thinking it through. I moved closer to her, and wrapped me arm around her pulling her close. She sighed moved closer to me.

"Hermione, I think I'm in love with you."

A/N So sorry for the late update my computor crashed, and I had to go to my dads house to update! So sorry! I hope you liked it, its slightly longer please Review!

Love,

Sarah