News From Draco
Chapter Four
Meeting in the great hall

A/N: To Holly:
Sorry I came off as such a bitch but how would *you* like to spend your time writing a story then come on to check your reviews and see something stating that your story is horrible? I'm sure you wouldn't like that very much.
To whoever it was that said I something about blackmailing my readers into reviewing:
I like getting reviews. Most people do. But if I didn't request a specific amount of reviews, I probably wouldn't have any. I like to know what people think of my story so I know if I should continue or not.
Anyway on with the chapter!
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It was Saturday morning. Faint light was filtering in through the window and shining in Hermione's face. She stirred a bit then, sat up, rubbing her eyes. She glanced at the clock witch now read 6:55 and quickly threw her blankets off of herself. She was late waking up. Despite the fact it was Saturday she still wanted to get up early to do a bit of studying.
"Let's see, charms, transfiguration, defense against the dark arts, Herbology. Oh I've got so much I need to get done." She mumbled quietly trying not to wake Ginny. Parvati and Lavender were off somewhere else. Hermione, quite frankly, couldn't care less about where they were. Ginny wasn't even supposed to be here under normal circumstances but she had been caught sneaking around school so many times Professor McGonagall had decided it was time to move her to a dorm with "more responsible students." Yet, Hermione was the only girl in the dorm with any sense and to think of Parvati and Lavender as responsible was like telling someone Snape was the nicest teacher in school - a complete lie.
Hermione looked over and saw Ginny not even close to waking up. 'Honestly how long does one person need to sleep?'
She slipped her feet into her fuzzy purple slippers and pulled her purple robe on. Then she headed for the shower.
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After she had finished showering and getting dressed, she headed down to the great hall. She didn't really expect to see anyone there - that was how she liked it these days. Though occasionally there would be two or three other people in the room reading thick textbooks. Hermione liked those sort of people. They never interrupted her while studying also, if they were her friends they didn't tell her she studied too much.
At this moment, she was carrying a rather thick copy of 'Advanced Charms'. She had read it several times before in the past but she figured it couldn't hurt to refresh her memory.
Now it came as quite a shock to see she wasn't the only one in the great hall this morning. Of course, the shock wasn't that she wasn't the only person in here. The shock was who the other person was and what they were doing. She almost fainted when she saw it was Draco Malfoy reading - actually reading - a rather large textbook. His brows were furrowed in concentration as he read.
Hermione coughed rather loudly to get his attention without actually saying his name.
As he heard her cough he look up.
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'Great now she's seen me with a book. She'll get the wrong idea and think I am actually studying. Well technically, I am but not for anything that has to do with this school.'
He looked at her quizzically and raised a brow as if silently asking her what she was gawking at.
"Do you want something?" He drawled.
Hermione shook her head and tried to find her voice. It didn't help that he was the best-looking boy in the whole damn school. She frantically tried to find something to say without coming off as rude. He had actually been somewhat nice to her the night before and she didn't want that to change. "What are you reading?" 'Oh yes, lovely thing to say Hermione. Now he'll think you're even more obsessed with books.'
Draco's gray eyes flicked down to the book in his hands. 'Quick make up a title, Draco! She can't know what you're reading unless you want to be expelled or worse!' He was of course reading something about the dark arts. It was a book his father had sent him. If his father had known he was reading it so he could defeat Voldemort one day then he wouldn't have received the book at all and would probably been killed. "Just a," he paused 'What subject does she hate again? Oh yeah!' "Just a divination textbook." He smirked slightly. He remembered the day the rumor of Hermione quitting divination started.
Hermione made a face. "Divination? You actually take that class?" That was what she said when she was really wondering why it had taken him so long to respond. 'Possibly he is plotting something or perhaps he just...' She trailed off in her thoughts. She had no idea what other reason there could be.
Draco nodded. "Yes I find that class very easy to sleep through. I just tell what's-her-name that I make my best predictions while sleeping."
'Seems like everyone does that.' Hermione thought bitterly. Although she despised that class she still didn't think it was right to sleep in class.
"She's not too fond of my homework though. My predictions aren't all about me dying. Though maybe I'll start doing that since she likes that sort of stuff." Draco continued.
"Draco?" Hermione figured she might as well try to get a straight answer out of his when he seemed to be in a decent mood and when Harry and Ron weren't there.
"Yes?"
"What is it you-know-who wants me for?"
A smile-smirk thing played at the corners of his lips. "Say his name. There is no reason not to." He said quietly.
"Ok... Why does Vol-Voldemort want me?"
Draco paused for a moment and stared into her eyes. His cold gray orbs looked serious and grim. "He wants you for his bride." Draco said cruelly.
Hermione looked utterly horrified. "No!" She exclaimed, her blue eyes wide with fright and repulsion.
"Don't worry. He won't live long enough to get you."
She looked at him. "What do you mean?"
"I mean when the arse-fucker tries to get me to join him on my seventeenth birthday I'll know so much dark magic I'll be able to kill him."
"Draco? Why do you keep referring to him as an arse um... fucker?"
"Because I'm not calling him master or anything decent so why not just call him an arse-fucker? Seems pretty logical if you ask me."
"If you say so."
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Ginny stood at the entrance to the great hall. She couldn't decide whether to be completely horrified or to see it as a good thing. She had just gotten up because Hermione had slammed the door loudly as she had left causing Ginny to wake up.
Ginny saw Hermione take a seat next to Draco and Draco not even attempt to object. Ginny could tell something weird was going on. She wondered if she should interrupt. After all Ron would *not* be pleased to find out his best friend/almost girlfriend was now carrying on a friendly conversation with his worst enemy. Plus it just wasn't right.
"Hermione?" Ginny called as she entered the room.
Both Draco and Hermione's heads snapped up and looked in her direction. They had both been looking at something in Hermione's book.
"G-Ginny I thought you were asleep." Hermione said. She sounded a bit worried like perhaps she thought Harry and Ron were right behind Ginny.
"You woke me up when you slammed the door."
"I'm sorry."
"Let's get to the point, Weasley, why are you here?" Draco cut in. "And what are your demands now that you've seen us together?"
Ginny and Hermione's brows went up in surprise.
"Demands?" Ginny asked.
Draco sighed in exasperation. "Yes demands. Am I the only one with a working brain around here? What do you want so you won't tell anyone you saw us not ready to kill each other?"
"I er... don't really want anything..." Ginny lied. She did want something. A few somethings actually. Harry would be a good start but no one could give her him. Money - that was a thing Draco could give but she sure as hell wasn't asking him for money.
"Come on there has to be something."
New robes, new books, new life, new boyfriend. Wait that last one. That he *could* give. "Well... I-I" God this was hard. "I could use a new..."
He was thinking perhaps a new wand or owl but he never expected what she'd say. "Spit it out, Weasley. We don't have all day now."
"Icoulduseanewboyfriend." She said really fast. She repeated it slower when she saw the confused look on his face. "I could use a new boyfriend."
The look on his face was priceless. It was a mix between intrigue and horror. Sure she had gotten prettier but she was still a Weasley.
"So what do you say?" She tried to stifle a laugh. For once, he was now the one looking like a fool around someone of the opposite sex instead of her.
Then Ginny's eyes shifted to Hermione's face. She noticed Hermione was glaring at her. It was a good thing looks couldn't kill otherwise Ginny would be six feet under by this time.
"I... er..." Draco was trying to find a way out of this. He didn't want her running off telling all her little friends or his reputation would be ruined. He could hear it now.
"Draco Malfoy seen with a mudblood!"
"Oh my god! You think it's true?"
That would be his so-called "friends." His enemies would act different of course by changing the story a bit making it seem like he had lured Hermione into the great hall alone with him so he could do perverted things to her.
"Well...?" Ginny was looking very impatient now.
'Better think of something quick, Draco.' He thought.
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A/N: I wonder what Draco will say... This time I want um... I dunno 65 reviews. I'll probably have that many by tomorrow though so I might as well just get started on the next chapter though I don't know if I'll have it done on time. Oh by the way I want everyone to tell me in their review what they want Draco to tell Ginny. Also, if he does say yes to Ginny don't worry about the D/H plot. It won't change.