Disclaimer: Does anyone on this site own Harry Potter? No.

Last Chapter: Hermione wakes up next to Draco. Ron confronts Draco. Draco kills Blaise. Lucius delivers a note from Voldemort to his son.

This Chapter: We find out the bare minimum of what we need to know for the last chapter, which is next chapter. Hermione leaves a note for Harry to find. Draco gets ready to meet Hermione. Hermione reflects on the recent events in a two different ways. First she reflects on what physically happens, then at the very end emotionally.

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Hermione paced the 7th year girl's dorm. She bit her nails, she twisted her hair around her fingers, and she rearranged her school trunk at least 10 times. Parvati and Lavender watched her from Parvati's bed. The nervous habits weren't normal traits of Hermione's, even when a big test was coming up. Frankly, the whole situation was disturbing them.

"Hermione, what is going on with you?" Lavender sighed.

"Yeah this is a whole new thing for you." Parvati answered.

Hermione didn't answer at first. She paused in her pacing and gave them a panic stricken look.

"I'm…supposed to be meeting someone tonight."

Parvati and Lavender's faces broke out into sly grins.

"Is it Ron?"

Hermione looked shocked.

"N-no!" she stuttered.

Parvati stood up and crossed the room. She put her hands on Hermione's shoulders.

"You don't have to be secretive about it. Come on tell us!" she whispered to Hermione.

Lavender stood up as well and stood behind Hermione.

She whispered, "At least let us fix you up a little! You want to look your best, right?"

Hermione shook herself lose from the two girls. She took a few steps back and stared at them.

"I don't really think…" she began to explain.

"Oh but it does matter!" exclaimed Parvati.

Lavender had already moved to her trunk. She pulled out a black bag. Inside was makeup in all shades of every color imaginable. Parvati followed by going into Hermione's trunk in order to go through her clothing. Hermione was in total shock.

"This isn't that type of meeting!"

Hermione stomped her foot. But by then it was too late, Parvati had picked out a beautiful black dress. It was strapless and quite long, just barely sweeping the floor. She put it up against Hermione and smiled.

"Perfect."

Hermione pushed it away.

"No! You don't understand! This isn't necessary!"

Lavender stood up straight and turned to Hermione.

"Hermione, presentation always matters. You don't want to show up looking like…well…"
Lavender's eyes washed over Hermione. She then turned to Parvati. Parvati nodded.

Lavender sighed and finished her sentence, "…like a nerd. You want to look like a woman."

Both Lavender and Parvati straightened up at this, sticking their chests out. They then began giggling.

Lavender sighed, "Seamus pretended he wasn't interested at first. Now look at us."

She held up her left hand. On her ring finger was a silver ring with a tiny diamond on it. Lavender grinned.

"All I did was change my presentation."

Yeah, Hermione thought, and sleep with him a few times.

Parvati shrugged.

"I haven't had any luck. I wouldn't mind if Harry gave me a ring though."
She raised her left hand to eye level and wiggled her fingers. Lavender and Parvati giggled insanely.

Hermione had had too much. These girls just wanted to get married! Hermione simply wanted to survive the night. Who knew what would be in store for her.

But Lavender and Parvati had her cornered. They forced the dress upon frame and the makeup upon her face. Hermione struggled against them, but they held fast. They did her hair, putting it up in an elegant bun. Hermione pulled on one of her plain robes to cover herself.

When they were finished Hermione fled to the bathroom and washed her face free from the makeup. Even the lightest layer made her feel like a slut.

While wiping her face dry, she noticed that Lavender, who had been applying the makeup, had tried to cover up the cut on her neck. It hadn't healed yet. Blood was seeping through the thin layer of skin-toned makeup. Hermione clasp her hand to her neck and whimpered. She couldn't remember. Had Draco done this to her or had she done it to herself? She looked around the bathroom, suddenly unable to remember very much of what had happened. Draco…he had done something to her…but she couldn't remember exactly what. Had he raped her? No…she had complied. Tears began to stream down her face. Parvati opened the door to the bathroom.

"Are you almost ready…oh Hermione don't cry!"
Parvati ran to her side. She gave Hermione a big hug.

"Hermione," she spoke soothingly. "Its just a meeting. Its not life or death. If you agreed to see him, how bad could he be?"

Hermione was wondering that herself. Why didn't she just go to Dumbledore? Why hadn't she told Harry and Ron? Because everything was her fault. Questions floated through her mind as she left the girl's dorms.

Harry and Ron were play chess in the common room. Hermione snuck up the boys' dorms and into the 7th year dorm. She opened Harry's trunk and pulled out a silvery cloak. Pulling it over herself, she sat down and waited. Harry and Ron came in, said goodnight to each other and went to sleep. Somewhere a clock struck 11 o'clock.

Draco was pacing his room. He was not nervous as much as he was anxious. His brow furrowed in frustration. So what if Lord Voldemort couldn't finish the job himself? Did that make it his job? He rolled his shoulder back, popping his spine in a few places. He would finish the little mudblood as well tonight. There was only one way to finish this whole thing. One way in which no one would be suspicious.

As it turned out, playing games with Hermione's mind had worked in his advantage. His idiot father couldn't have recognized that. Hermione was the key to Harry.

He opened his trunk and pulled out his wand and his invisibility cloak. He pulled the cloak around himself and shook his head. Something about this was wrong, but he couldn't place a finger on what. He could only hope Hermione was doing what he had told her to do.

Hermione left a note next to Harry's bed. She cast a glance at Ron and then back at Harry. Her nose was stuffing up and she sniffled. She raised her wand and pointed it at Harry.

"Wacianhora." She muttered under her breath. A tiny blue cloud emitted from her wand and surrounded Harry's head.
She then whispered, "2 hours."

The cloud turned purple then a light red. As Harry breathed, he breathed in the cloud. But he slept on peacefully. Hermione left her wand on his nightstand with the note. He would find both when he awoke in two hours.

Down the stairs she went and through Hogwarts. Filch and Mrs. Norris were about, but they did not see her. She remained in the shadows even with the invisibility cloak on.
Outside she could see her breath. Frost had settled on the ground and crunched under her feet. She was glad she had worn her school robe on top of the dress Parvati had stuck her in.

When she reached the edge of the Forbidden Forest, she sat on a stump and pulled the invisibility cloak off of herself. She glanced around. Hagrid's hut was a bit off. The Whomping Willow sat idly not far off. Crickets were sounding their nightly chorus. Her eyes closed and she took in what she could, the cold on her skin, the music of the crickets, the thoughts that tainted her mind. It was there she waited for Draco.

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Possibly the shortest chapter out of this fiction. This is the calm before the storm. The last of the rising action. This is it! Next chapter is the end! I'm sorry it took so long to write this, but I have school to worry about, plus my bigger fiction, "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix". I was going to put this one on the back burner, but what would be the point? So the next chapter will (hopefully!!!!!!!) be written and posted by Wednesday. Ee! One more chapter! I'm so excited. Can you wait that long?