Chapter Three
Emma turned around instantly. Lee was glancing at curiously at Draco, who was standing behind her. She shrugged at the offer to dance.
"Lee, do you mind?" she asked. He shook his head, so she grinned at Draco. They started dancing and she noticed that most of the Slytherins were glaring at Draco.
"I'm going to be killed tonight," he muttered, glancing at Crabbe and Goyle, who were glaring at him with loathing. Emma glanced back at them, then laughed.
"Are you afraid of those big goons? Come on, you know you just have to know a few good curses," she said. She looked around and her gaze landed on Ron and Hermione, who were laughing together. Hermione noticed Emma was glancing at her, and waved. Emma nodded, pulling away from Draco.
"I'll see you later. Dance is over, and I want to talk with a few of my friends. Night, Draco," Emma said, walking off. Lee quickly caught up with her, as she approached Hermione and Ron. Hermione was still grinning at something that Ron had said, then looked at Emma.
"Dancing with Malfoy, Em?" she asked, with a smirk. Emma rolled her eyes.
"I couldn't turn him down, now could I? He's nice to me again, and well . . . I don't know," Emma said. Hermione grinned at her, then looked at Ron.
"He refuses to dance. Do you realize how boring it is to just sit here?" Hermione asked. Emma shrugged, sitting down.
"Are you okay, Emma?" Ron asked, looking at her.
"Well, I maybe should have stayed in the infirmary. I'm kinda dizzy, and really just don't feel that great. But, I'm fine," Emma said, nodding.
"No you aren't. Look, you're pale and shaky," Lee said, frowning. "You should definitely go back to the common room." Emma shook her head.
"I'll be fine. I wanted to come to the dance, I'm not about to miss half of it. Besides, I would be bored out of my mind up there with no one!" she complained. Lee looked at her.
"Look, I'll go with you, okay? Sorry, Ron, and I'll see you later," Hermione said. Ron nodded.
"I'm staying here . . . That's okay, right Em?" Lee asked. Emma nodded, grinning slightly at him. Hermione stood up, Emma stood also. They walked slowly back to the Gryffindor common room. Hermione made her go change into her pajamas. Emma did so, but made Hermione also. They went to sit in the common room and played wizard chess.
"Why don't you ever play when Ron asks you?" Emma asked, studying the board carefully before moving a pawn.
"Because I am horrible at Chess," Hermione replied, moving a pawn also. "Harry and Ron love teasing me for months after I lose. And, it does tend to get old." Emma grinned.
"Well, Harry can't really brag about his excellent Quidditch skills, can he?" she asked. Hermione shook her head, jumping at the sound of the portrait hole opening.
"Hermione? Emma?" Ginny asked, crawling in. Harry and Ron were with her. They sat around Emma and Hermione and started watching the chess game.
"Em, you okay?" Harry asked. Emma nodded yes, moving her bishop thoughtfully.
"Checkmate," she said, grinning at Hermione. Hermione sighed, putting the chessboard up. Emma grinned, hoping no one would tease Hermione.
"So, I saw you dancing with Malfoy," Harry said, looking over at Emma. Hermione giggled slightly, before running up to the girls' dormitory.
"Yeah. Hermione! Get my DADA stuff, while you're up there!" Emma yelled. Hermione yelled that she would, while Harry continued staring at Emma.
"What is with you and Malfoy? You don't like him . . . do you?" he asked. Ginny gave an exasperated sigh, glaring at him.
"What does it really matter, Harry? If she does, it's her business!" she exploded angrily. Emma tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
"Ginny's right you know. It's not your business, it's mine. But, I don't really like Malfoy. It's just that he isn't quite as bad as we all thought. He's quite nice to me," Emma said. Harry rolled his eyes.
"You aren't exactly the type of girl his father would approve of, you know. You're a Muggle-born. Malfoy cannot like you," Harry said. Emma sighed loudly.
"You don't get it, do you Harry? I don't care. I don't really care if he likes me or not. I think he's nice, sometimes. If he decides to be a total jerk, I'll beat him," Emma said. She grinned as Hermione dropped her DADA stuff on the couch, and she began an essay about evil dwarfs.
"Evil dwarfs—how interesting. They are usually only two feet tall. A wonderful start, huh?" Emma asked. Ron snorted.
"Farther than me," he muttered, before the portrait hole opened again and Fred, George, Alicia, Katie, and Lee crashed through the door.
"Snape's gonna be livid," Alicia said, giggling. Emma glanced at them in confusion, while Ginny started grinning.
"What did you do?" she asked, leaning forward.
"Nothing . . . Just a simple hair-dying charm that won't wear off until Christmas and possibly a . .. well. . ." George said.
"We put a potion that causes boils in his goblet of pumpkin juice while he was dancing with Professor Sprout," Fred interrupted.
"Did you get pictures of him dancing with Sprout?" Emma immediately asked. Lee shook his head no, and Emma muttered a curse under her breath.
"That would have been awesome," Harry said. Fred nodded, sitting by Emma, Alicia plopping down on the other side of him.
"So, we need to talk about Quidditch, we're just missing a few of the reserves now," George said, looking at Emma. "Do you think that you're up for playing in the game Saturday?" he asked.
"I don't know. I'll definitely have to update you. I thought I was okay earlier today, but I'm not. I'm still really shaken," she said. Fred nodded, then glanced over at Ron.
"You'll replace her in the next matches if she can't play, okay Ron? That's about all . . . Em, are you having fun writing about evil dwarfs?" Fred asked.
"It's terribly fun. I can't wait to find out everything I can about it," Emma said sarcastically, before reaching for a new piece of parchment.
"Hey, Hermione, Gin, Harry, Ron, remember when I asked you about coming to my house during Christmas break?" she asked. They all nodded. "Well, if you want to, I can write Mom."
"That'll be great, Em. Harry, don't you think that you'd better talk to Dumbledore first, though?" Hermione asked.
"Probably. But, shouldn't Em get permission from her parents first?" Harry returned. Emma grabbed her purple ink, and dipped her quill into it..
Dear Mom and Dad,
It's Emma (obviously). How has your year been so far? Not that bad here. I haven't written yet because it wears the poor owls out to write you from this far away.
Anyway, why I'm writing. I made some friends this year (Hermione Granger, Ron and Ginny Weasley, and Harry Potter). I was wondering if it is possible for them to spend Christmas break at our house? Hermione, Ron, Ginny, and Harry always stay at school, they probably will be able to stay with us.
Just wondering. I'll hear from you soon!
Love Always,
Emma
She then started again on her DADA essay, and was soon finished with it. Fred, George, and Lee then started making jokes. They were all laughing when the rest of the Gryffindors came in from the ball.
"Emma, are you okay! I was ever so worried when you left!" Tiana said, walking towards her. Emma nodded, appraising the short blond.
"I'm fine, Tiana. How was the ball? Did you enjoy it?" she asked.
"Yes. It was wonderful. All of the Ravenclaws simply loved me," she said, fluffing her hair. Emma smiled tiredly as she looked over to see Parvati and Lavender kissing Dean and Seamus goodnight.
"Hermione, we should go. I think Lavender and Parvati will bust if they don't have someone they at least think is listening to them. Night, guys," Emma said, walking up to her dormitory, Hermione following her.
She grinned at the girls when she arrived at the room, and jumped onto her bed. Hermione flopped onto her bed, glancing at their two roommates, wondering when they were going to start dishing about their wonderful night.
"Dean is such a doll! He dances so wonderfully!" Lavender squealed. Parvati grinned, leaning against her. "He is such a good kisser!"
"I know what you mean! I was getting the vibes of how happy you were! And, did you see me and Seamus? I love him, and he is such a good kisser!" Parvati grinned, dropping into a fake dead faint on her bed.
"So, what's with you and Malfoy, Emma? I saw you dancing with him," Parvati asked, sitting up abruptly.
"Nothing. Why does everyone think that there is something between us. We're not even friends."
"It's a Romeo and Juliet thing," Lavender said knowingly, nodding.
"WHAT?" Emma asked, shooting up off her bed. "Wait, Romeo and Juliet? Have you even read the play? First, I would have to be in love with Malfoy, and second, I'd have to be considering suicide if something happened to him. I could see myself considering to throw a party, but suicide? I do not like him," Emma said.
"Maybe you do, you're protesting a lot," Hermione said slyly, but stopped as Emma's pillow came flying at her. Hermione threw it back quickly, and then started laughing.
"So, Hermione, we need to talk . . . about something we can't talk about around Ron, Harry, Fred, George, or Ginny," Emma said. Hermione nodded, smiling at her.
"So . . . Harry and Ginny?" Hermione asked.
"Why can't you talk about them in front of all of those people?" Lavender asked.
"Well, Ron, Fred, and George are her brothers—very overprotective brothers. They'd freak. Not around Gin, because it must be a surprise, and not around Harry, because he would die," Emma quickly explained.
"Yeah. Well, Ginny obviously still likes Harry. She had worked on her reactions, and doesn't blush around him all the time," Hermione said.
"Well, Harry likes Gin. He just doesn't know it yet. Well, he does, but not really. He doesn't really get that he likes her the way he likes her," Emma said. "But, how can we get them together? Maybe you could distract Ron?" she asked, drawing distract out.
"Head out of the gutter, Emma," Hermione snapped. "I do not believe in distracting anyone in the way you are talking about," she said. Emma bit her lip on a sigh.
"Well, we'll think about it. I'm tired, however. Goodnight all," she said, before drawing the curtains to a close around her bed and quickly falling asleep.
Monday morning, Emma and Hermione were the first Gryffindors up. They quickly showered, put on their robes, and went down to the Great Hall with the things they needed for their first class.
They sat at the Gryffindor table, glancing at one another, casually chewing breakfast.
"So, how are we getting this Ginny-Harry thing to work?" Hermione asked. Emma bit her lip, spreading her hands out on the table.
"Well, you could ask Ron if you guys can sneak out to Hogsmeade—I know you know some secret ways. Tell him that you want to go alone, kind of a date. Flirt with him. I know you can make it work. Now, I'll tell you soon when. Then, I'll talk to Alicia and Katie. They'll do something with the twins. I'll get them all out of the way, and then, I'll set up this nice romantic dinner for Harry and Ginny."
"Are you sure? And, are you absolutely positive that you can get Alicia and Katie to do this?" Hermione asked, delicately crossing her legs and leaning forward.
"That's not a problem. I can talk to them. They said they'd be there if I ever needed anything," Emma said. Hermione grinned, as two girls joined the group.
"Alicia! Katie! Just who I needed to see!" Emma said, before explaining her plan. Katie's face broke into a large grin as the plan unfolded.
"I love it! And, you know that we can get Fred and George to do things for us," Alicia said. Emma nodded, before pushing her hair away. The twins came down, with Harry, Ron, and Ginny.
"Morning all!" Harry said in an overly happy voice. Hermione and Emma shared a quick glance, then they looked back at Harry. Emma leaned over and touched his head.
"Are you okay, Harry? You do realize that we are about to go to Potions, and all of the Slytherins," Emma said. "Hmm, no fever."
"Shut up, Emma. I just got a very interesting letter," he said. Emma and Hermione glanced at each other quickly, then back at Harry.
"Really. Well, I say . . . we definitely need to talk," Emma said as the owl post flew through the Great Hall. Emma had sent her letter late Saturday night, so she wasn't expecting a response until around Thanksgiving in the States. But, to her surprise, a black bird dropped a letter off to her, and flew quickly off.
"Probably Malfoy. Who else do you know that has a black owl?" Ron asked, grinning slightly. Emma frowned at him, before carefully opening the letter.
Emma,
Meet me tonight, in the library. After Quidditch practice (I know the Gryffindors booked the field tonight). Come alone (No Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, any of your other friends)! I'm eagerly counting down the hours.
--D.
Emma grinned, shoving the note to the bottom of her book bag. Ginny raised an eyebrow at that.
"Well, Em, who wrote it? Was it the infamous Draco Malfoy?" she asked, before taking a bite of scrambled eggs. Emma shrugged her shoulders, before taking a drink of pumpkin juice.
"Oh, come on, Em, let us see it," Katie said in a sweet voice. Emma shook her head, grinning at them all. However, George actually remembered something from his fourth year, and did the Summoning Charm.
"Emma," he started in an over-dramatized voice, "Meet me tonight in the library! After Quidditch practice, I know the Gryffindors booked the field tonight. Come alone, no Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, any of your other friends! I'm eagerly counting down the hours. D," George finished.
"That's cute, George. Now give it back," Emma said. Fred grabbed it from George and refused to put it back into Emma's hand. Instead, he stuffed it down his robes.
"Come and get it, if you dare," he said, flashing a large grin. Emma grinned back, and slipped under the table. She crawled over to Fred's feet and pulled his robes out. She ran her hand up his legs.
"Fred, I'm planning on getting that note back," she said, running her hands over his legs. She the stuck her wand up and said the Summoning Charm. She caught the note in her hand, and slipped backwards and up into her seat, clutching her note.
"Thank you ever so much," she said, smiling sweetly at Fred. He looked shocked.
"But, your hands. They never went above my knees," he stuttered.
"Summoning Charm. Fred, you really need to wax," she said dryly. The table burst into giggles as Emma stuffed the note back into her bag, and then took a drink of pumpkin juice.
"Come on, Hermione. Ron, Harry, Lavender, Parvati, Seamus, Dean, Neville! All fifth year Gryffindors! We are going to Potions!" Emma exclaimed.
"You're only happy because of Malfoy," Lavender teased.
"Lavender Brown! I don't like him, so get your mind outta the gutter," Emma snapped. Hermione leaned closer to her.
"Meet me in the library, Emma," she said in her imitation of Draco's voice. Emma giggled, blushing.
"You sound nothing like him, you know, Hermione," Emma said. Hermione grinned, then walked over to Ron, and whispered something to him. He instantly turned red.
"What's up with those two?" Harry asked with a wide grin. Emma smiled at him in a knowing manner, but shrugged.
"Harry, darling, after five years living with chicks, you still can't figure that out?" Emma teased. He groaned, putting his arm around her shoulder casually.
"Are you meeting Malfoy tonight?" he asked conversationally.
"Malfoy?" Seamus turned around, practically shrieking. Emma glanced about nervously, as the reached the Potions room.
"Not necessarily Malfoy. And, do not bring it up during class. May I remind you that I know where you sleep and I am very skilled with knives," she hissed. Seamus flinched and Neville and Dean both groaned as they walked into the Potions classroom. Draco was staring at the door, but grinned when Emma walked in.
Harry was taking pride in teasing Emma about it. Emma rolled her eyes, and turned around, pinching him on the arm quite hard. She told him he should shut his face, then went back to the back table where she, Hermione, Ron, and Harry often sat. They all waited for Snape.
"Okay, choose your own partners and I want you to work on a Agony Potion. It will—as the title should suggest—make the person it is used on be in excruciating pain. Don't use it!" Snape snapped, as he warily sat down at his desk. "Oh, two to a group," he said loudly.
Emma glanced at Hermione, then Ron, then Harry. Hermione nodded at her, then stood up.
"Emma and I are in a group. See you two later," Hermione said, winking at Ron. Emma thought she was going to die of laughter as she saw the blush that flushed over his entire face. Hermione and Emma grabbed their things, and moved to another table.
"So, we have the Harry/Ginny thing planned, right?" Hermione hissed as they started it.
"You heard Katie and Alicia. They'll tell me tonight during Quidditch practice," Emma whispered back, before she started chopping up asphodel root.
"Miss Davis, what were you talking about that was so interesting?" Snape asked. Emma looked up, biting her lip.
"Well, sir, Hermione and I were just trying to decide who is cuter . . . You or Draco," Emma said softly, trying to look embarrassed. She saw the Gryffindor half of the room trying to stifle their laughter, while the Slytherin half was staring at her in shock.
"Okay, actually we were talking about this mysterious letter I got this morning," Emma said, letting her eyes slide over to Draco. She saw his face color slightly. Emma grinned.
"Sorry professor. Can I have detention? I haven't had detention, Harry and Ron and Fred and George say it's just wonderful. Oh, and can I set the date? They let me do that at my old school, you know," Emma rambled.
"Miss Davis! If you please, shut up!" Snape exploded, making Emma grin brightly. "No detention, just be quiet and work on your potion!" Emma nodded.
"Oh, professor, by saying that we weren't talking about you doesn't mean that you are very sexy," Emma said, winking at him, before turning back to the aphsodel root. Hermione leaned over, mixing several different types of herbs and water, telling her she was insane.
Luckily, Potions flew by that day (mainly because she was working with Hermione), and they went straight to lunch. She sat with Ginny, Katie, Alicia, Fred, George, Harry, and Ron. Hermione quickly told everyone about what happened.
"You called Snape sexy?" Katie groaned. "Oh, gross, Emma!" she said. Emma grinned broadly, wiggling her eyebrows.
"That greasy red and gold striped hair," Emma said. "Oh, how I love it!" Ginny threw a roll at her, but (as Emma was a Chaser) her hand leapt up and caught it. She grinned, taking a bite of the roll, before glancing at the Slytherins. Malfoy was talking to Crabbe and Goyle, so she turned back to the table.
"You should have seen the Slytherins. They were positively in shock," Emma said smugly. Katie and Alicia shared a look, then hid their faces.
"I cannot believe you asked for detention, Em," Ginny said, grinning. "I would have loved to have been there." Emma grinned yet again, before starting lunch.
"So, what's this afternoon?" she asked Harry and Ron. Harry groaned.
"My dear, you have the Grim!" he said. Emma rolled her eyes, thinking about how she would be learning how to light a candle and stare into its flame to get images of the upcoming happenings. Harry laughed, slowly putting his arm around Emma.
"What do you see in the future of you and Malfoy?" he asked, smirking. Emma hit him extremely hard, taking a drink of pumpkin juice.
"Well, looks like we're going to Divination," Emma said as lunch was dismissed and they started on the long journey to the North Tower.
A/N: I hope you like! Review, please?
Thanks to Lee Anne, Rinoa14, and Princess Luna for reviewing!