A/N: I kept my promise :D

I told you, I'd update in a week, and here I am! :D I don't know about you, but I'm pretty proud of myself. Yep, I set my standards low...

Thank you for all of your amazing reviews! They were such a delight to read! :D And to any of you who gave me a suggestion or idea, thank you so much. :)

For this chapter, I'd like to thank 1RandomPenguin, whose suggestion I used, and my lovely friend Francesca, AKA books13 (check out her fics!), who I sort of forced into being my make-shift beta.

Now, for any of you who also had suggestions, and want more Draco/Cormac/Ron/Viktor or Lavender/Pansy/Hermione feuds, expect some in the next chapter! :D

On with the show!

Hermione POV

"What?" exclaimed Parvati Patil. She, her Ravenclaw twin sister Padma, Hannah Abbott the Hufflepuff, and Ginny were all staring at me in awe. We were sitting in the library, at one of the farther tables.

"Are you kidding me?" exclaimed Ginny.

"What?" I asked, my eyebrows furrowing. Soon, it looked like they had been combined into a unibrow.

"Don't just say 'what', Hermione! Four guys fought over you? And they were," started Padma.

"Viktor Krum, the quidditch legend," said Ginny.

"Cormac McLaggen, the Gryffindor heartthrob," said Parvati.

"Ronald Weasley, the Gryffindor Prince," said Hannah.

"And Draco Malfoy, the Slytherin Prince. Do you have any idea how that is?" asked Padma.

"Uhm, it's actually really annoying." I frowned.

"Hermione! They're, like, the four sexiest men in Hogwarts!" said Hannah.

"Well...the three of them, I suppose. Adding Harry and subtracting my brother." said Ginny, thoughtfully.

"I don't know, Ron's pretty sexy." said Hannah.

"Please. The day that Weasel is considered sexy is the day that McGonagall gives Slughorn a lap dance. In other words-never." scoffed a sarcastic voice behind me.

"Oh! Hello, Malfoy." said Padma, staring up at him.

"Can I help you?" I asked, as he took a strand of my hair and lightly bounced it in his hand.

"I just thought it might interest you to know," he said, continuing to bounce my hair up and down, "that since we're the heads, McGonagall is making us lead the dance for Hogwarts tonight."

"What?" I exclaimed, jerking my head around to look at him. "Your dancing skills suck as much as black holes, and mine aren't that good either!"

"Oh, so mine sucks that badly, and you're just 'not that good'." he said, rolling his eyes.

"Oh no, we're going to make complete fools of ourselves." I groaned.

"You have your dress?" asked Draco, looking at me, changing the subject completely.

"Yes, bu-"

"Then, let's go practice now." smiled Draco. He took my hand, and pulled me to my feet.

"3 hours before the dance? Really?" I exclaimed, as I was dragged out of the library.

"Have fun!" called Ginny, with a hint of amusement in her voice.

"Have her back by 6:30!" called Parvati.

"Can do." shouted Draco. And as I was pulled through the set of doors out of the library, I vaguely heard Hannah sigh, "Isn't she lucky. They are absolutely adorable. It's like...they're soulmates."

"Soulmates. Well, you could put it that way." mused Ginny.

He led me back to our room, and then smiled, bowing towards me, offering me his hand.

"This is stupid, Draco. You're going break my foot before the dance." I whined.

"Not very lady-like, are you?" asked Draco, softly, with a slight smile lighting up his face.

I rolled my eyes. "Alright, alright." I said. I took his hand, and he pulled me closer to him. There was a casual smirk on his face-a look of superiority.

"Shall we, Granger?" smirked Draco.

"Alright," I said, reluctantly, "but don't you dare break my foot."

"I would never, Hermione," he said, with a mock-hurt look on his face. "I'd never want to hurt my mate!"

I rolled my eyes, and putting my my right hand on his shoulder, and the other in his warm hand, we took a step.

"So far, so good." mumbled Draco, watching his feet.

"You suck at dancing. Look up at me." I told him, with an amused look on my face. Then, his stormy, captivating grey eyes met mine, and I felt a blush come to my cheeks. His perfect lips stretched up into a smile.

I felt...content. Carefree. Open, here in his arms. Who knew? Draco Malfoy was a good guy.

He spun me, and back into his arms, where a grin lit up his face. "I'm not that bad, am I?"

"You're getting better. But I'd expect a PUREBLOOD to be born being able to dance well?"

"Don't stereotype, darling." he chuckled.

We danced for what seemed like minutes, but really, an hour had passed.

"I'm tired." he stated, yawning.

"I thought you were charging? You were around me for so long." I asked.

"But dancing used up all of the energy." he whined. "I'm going to take a nap. I'll meet you there at 8?" he asked.

"Alright." I said, looking at the clock. I had to meet the girls in 10 minutes.

"Have fun with that girly dress-up that you girls have to do." he said, stretching his arms. Then, he faced me, and lightly kissed me.

My mind was surprised. It told me to pull away, to step back.

My heart told me the opposite. It liked it. My heart liked the taste of him. It liked his warm hands holding mine.

In the end, he was the one to pull away. He shot me a smile, and then walked into his bedroom, shutting the door behind him.

I shook my head, smiling wryly. That Draco...

"Thanks for joining us, Hermione." smiled Hannah, as she opened the door to let me into the Room of Requirement. It seemed silly to use the Come-and-Go room for something as simple as a dressing room, but where else were three Gryffindors, a Ravenclaw, and a Hufflepuff going to get together for an hour and a half to get ready for the ball?

"Oh no, what happened with Draco?" asked Ginny, winking. "You look much too happy."

"Did someone have a snog session?" asked Parvati, with a teasing smile. She meant it sarcastically, but I couldn't do anything but blush.

"Merlin's beard, you did?" exclaimed Padma. "How was it? Is Malfoy a good kisser?"

"You girls..." I said, shaking my head. "But yes. He is."

"Awww! You two are too cute." laughed Hannah.

"He's definitely...good company." I smiled, my hands still warm from holding his.

"In that case, we've got to make him speechless tonight. Come on, Hermione. You first."

They sat me down in the chair in front of a mirror, and dressed me up.

An hour and a half later, I was looking at myself in the mirror.

My hair, which had taken nearly half an hour to do, had been tamed, and was put into light waves that fell lightly around my face. They had been debating whether or not to put it in some sort of bun, but they had finally decided to just leave it down.

My dress, which had taken a while to pick, was a bubblegum pink. It was was a spaghetti-strapped high-low hemlined dress, meaning the front of it stopped at my knees, but in the back, it fell to my ankles, in a sort of elegant ovular fashion. The middle had an elegant rhinestone design.

Ginny had also decided, against my will, that I should wear a pair of light pink heels. I groaned. "I'm not great at dancing, this is just going to make it worse."

"Suck it up." she replied, clipping a necklace around her neck. Her lacy black dress was very classy.

Hannah's yellow dress gave her a sort of carefree look. The twins had both settled with a sort of dress that looked much like the ones they had worn at the Yule Ball, but it had a more mature feel to it.

"We. Are. Dazzling." said Hannah, spinning.

"Come on!" said Ginny, putting her hand on her hip. She smiled. "Our dates await."

Normal POV

Draco Malfoy was not a patient person. He had never been. But he was even more so now, as he stood with his arms crossed at the bottom of the stairs in the Great Hall, glancing up every single time he detected movement, in hopes of looking into Hermione's bright brown eyes.

Instead, he was still waiting, tapping his foot impatiently.

Then, a flash of lace caught his eyes. A big grin lit his face, just in time for him to look up and see... Ginny Weasley. And she had noticed his look.

"Happy to see me, Malfoy? I hate to disappoint you, but unfortunately, I already have a date." she smirked.

He scowled. "Seen Hermione?"

She smiled, and then jerked her head in the direction of the stairs. He turned his head, and then every muscle in his body froze.

She was stunning. Her silky brown hair falling lightly over her shoulders...her elegant, but slightly unconfident step down the stairs, but the best of all, her smiling face staring at him as she walked closer.

"Draco." she said, smiling at him.

"H-H-H." he sputtered. He was at a loss of words. If Hermione looked lovely before, she was stunning now.

"Yeah, I'm pretty. Get used to it-you'll only have it for the night." she huffed.

"You always look pretty, Hermione." he smiled, giving her a cocky grin. "Even in your pajamas."

She chuckled. "A charmer, you are. Now, are we going or what?" she asked.

He offered her his arm. She took it, and together, they made their way down to the floor.

Hermione POV

"Miss Granger! Mr. Malfoy! Hurry!" called Headmistress McGonagall. We were ushered to the middle of the floor. In the commotion, I saw Ron, Cormac, and Viktor's shock-filled faces, as I passed them. Then, I saw Draco's smirk of superiority.

Suddenly, the beautifully orchestrated music filled the room. Draco took my waist, and we fell into the familiar steps.

This time, Draco's eyes never left mine. His smiling face looked into mine, and I laughed.

Then, more and more people joined the dancefloor, and soon, everyone was dancing with their partners.

At one point in time, we had collided with Ron and Lavender. Ron had tried to cut in, but Draco was more than unwilling.

"Don't even try, weasel." he growled. He then turned towards Cormac and his partner, who had also come suspiciously close to us.

Other than that, the dance went well. Well, for the most part.

Towards the end of the dance, Draco suddenly stopped and pulled me aside. He looked at me.

"Hermione. I know, it's early, but I just wanted to say I am completely ready and willing to dedicate my entire life to you. So won't you please," he said, as he knelt to the ground, pulling out a box, "Marry me?"

I suddenly noticed that everything was silent. All eyes were on Draco and I.

"Wha...Oh come on, Draco Malfoy! Didn't I tell you before? I'm. Not. Ready." I hissed, and I stormed off towards the concession table.

Murmurs filled the hall.

"Oh my godric, he just proposed to her?"

"THAT MOTHERF-"

"I can't believe it! And what did she mean, 'tell you before'?"

"He's proposed before!"

"She's 17, isn't she?"

"It's rather early..."

"They're both of age..."

"Granger and Malfoy truly are adorable together."

The mutterings were endless. As I picked up a few pasties, Draco walked back up to me.

"Too early? Really? Come on, Hermione."

"Is that it?" I screeched. "You were only being nice to me to butter me up so I'd agree to your proposal?"

"Of course no-"

"You're sick. You're a sick little-"

"Hermione-"

"A foul, loathsome-"

"Her-"

"Evil little-"

"Hermione! I never tried to 'butter you up'! I did those things because I love you! Come on, I'm not that bad!" he said, clearly frustrated. "And if you aren't ready, then fine! I was just wondering beca-" he froze. "Never mind. But...take your time. You're the only thing that's important to me. As long as you're happy." he said, with a smile.

I sighed. What was he doing to me?

"Maybe you should head back up." he said, quietly. "The ball's over anyway. Should I bring you up?"

"That's alright." I told him, and I spun around, and hurried out of the Great Hall.

I was on my way up, when I heard familiar voices. I froze, and listened closely from behind a column.

"How dare you, propose to her?"

"My most sincere apologies. I didn't realize I needed your approvals, Gryffinwhores."

"You're such a prat! You don't even deserve to be near her!"

"I realize that. But I'm more deserving than you two are. Besides, why do you two even like her?"

There was silence.

"Well...she's smart...and pretty."

"She's been my best friend since our first year. She's always been special to me."

"But not special enough, apparently. You still go and cheat on her?"

More silence.

"Then why do you like her?"

"Me? You blithering idiots. Why do I like Hermione? She's smart, funny, sweet, independent, and strong. She has her weak moments, and she needs someone to be there for her. She, in other words, is perfect. And..." there was a smirking, superior tone in his voice as he finished his sentence.

"She's a great kisser."

I ran back up the stairs, back to our rooms, and fell into my bed, smiling widely.

Tonight had definitely been near to perfect.

A/N: What'd you think? :)

Cute? I hope so...

Anyway, review, review, review! Make me happy, and my updates are faster :) ahaha!

Either way, I'll try to update by next week! :D See you then!

Lots of luv,

Cherri