YOU GET ME
A/N: Hey! I know, I know… sorry it took so long to get this out… I have no idea which order to do the songs in… I don't even know when Goodbye to You fits in! It should be coming up soon, anyway since there's only… six chapters left I think… five after this…
Well, anyway, I suppose you all just wanna read this so I'll leave little messages at the end!
Disclaimer: Characters belong to J.K. Rowling (please hurry up with the fifth book!) and the song belongs to Michelle Branch. The lovely, wonderful and talented Michelle Branch.
~*~
Hermione and Draco parted ways that night, but it didn't mean they stopped thinking about each other. Hermione never thought she could think about anyone this way, much less Draco Malfoy. If anyone found out, they would've died of shock.
Then a thought entered her mind. Someone did know.
Lucius Malfoy.
That name brought both an angry glint to her eyes and sent a shiver down her spine. That man seemed to epitomise evil to her. Not even You-Know-Who did. Lucius was far more subtle, he definitely had the Ministry fooled.
He was the person that stood between her and Draco's relationship. Along with Harry, Ron and maybe Pansy Parkinson but he would be the only one to do anything about it.
How very right she was.
~*~
Narcissa Malfoy was still cowering in the corner. Ever since Lucius arrived home from Hogwarts to speak to Draco, he had been in a towering rage, flinging things across the room, throwing papers into the fireplace, even throwing things at her.
Not that she wasn't used to it, she supposed.
But he was in a far worse mood than she had ever seen him in.
Lucius then stormed into the room and Narcissa quickly got up. But he didn't even glance at her. He pulled out a book from the bookshelf and flipped through it. She watched on curiously. He seemed to know what he was looking for. Suddenly, he looked up.
"Narcissa!" he boomed and she jumped in shock. "Go get me some wine, you fool!"
She hurried out of the room and he slammed the door after she had left. He stood in front of the fireplace, staring at the flames. To a casual onlooker, he seemed to just be doing that but to someone who knew Lucius, he was waiting.
Soon enough, a face appeared in the fire.
"Hello Lucius." Voldemort hissed.
"My Lord." he whispered and bowed. "I need some advice, perhaps some assistance."
"Speak." Voldemort urged.
"My son, Draco, has fallen for a Mudblood witch who seems to have him under her spell." Lucius explained and he could see Voldemort's eyes close in thought. "I tried to notify him on our recent plans on how to destroy Harry Potter but the witch came and took Draco away. I think she knows."
With that last comment, Voldemort's eyes opened sharply but he smiled.
"Then we must do something then." He said simply and Lucius nodded in agreement.
"Yes, I agree… but what?"
Voldemort smile turned into a malicious grin.
"Leave that to me." And he was gone.
~*~
Voldemort's patience was wearing thin. he had to find that dratted book. The sooner he found it, the sooner Harry Potter would be in his hands.
Wormtail entered quietly and knocked. "My Lord?"
"Go away! I'm busy!" he roared and Wormtail recoiled back into the shadows, closing the door behind him with a snap.
Voldemort lifted random sheets of paper and there it was. That stupid bloody book.
He picked it up and flipped to the page he wanted.
'The perfect spell.' He thought. 'Nice and subtle. That Mudblood won't know what hit her.'
So I'm a little left of centre
I'm a little out of tune
Some say I'm paranormal
So I just bend their spoon
~*~
"I am so sick of studying!" Hermione proclaimed loudly. Harry and Ron stared at her in disbelief. "What?" she asked.
Harry shook his head and pretended to clean his ears. "I'm sorry, did I just hear Hermione Granger say she was sick of studying?" he pretended to faint in shock and ended up with a book hitting his stomach. He moaned, winded.
"Ha ha." Hermione laughed sarcastically.
"You have to admit though, Herm," Ron continued Harry's train of thought, "that it's a very weird thing to hear coming out of your mouth."
"Oh, yeah?" her eyes glinted. "How about I only got 3/10 for my Transfiguration essay?" Harry and Ron clutched their hearts and collapsed onto each other. "I'm serious." They sat back up and stared at her until she collapsed into fits of laughter.
"What's so funny?" Ron asked.
"You… guys… are so… GULLIBLE!" she managed to choke out. Ron stood up angrily and stomped to the dorm stairs.
"Fine then!" he shouted and walked up to his dorm. He came down five seconds later and waved to them. "Night Herm, Harry." And continued on his way.
"Yeah, I'm pretty beat, too." Harry said, yawning as if to accent his words. "Night Herm." And leaned in to give her a hug but she recoiled.
"Whoa! What are you doing there, buddy boy?" she pointed a finger accusingly.
Harry's eyes were wide as he said, "I was going to give you a hug but if you don't want one, that's fine. Night." He waved, picked up his and Ron's books and walked up to his dorm.
Hermione sat down on one of the plush couches, thinking. She had never refused a hug from anyone that she could remember. And out of the two of her friends, she definitely would've preferred a hug from Harry than Ron.
'I'm going insane.' she thought and picked up her books and headed to bed.
Who wants to be ordinary
In a crazy, mixed-up world
I don't care what they're sayin'
As long as I'm your girl
~*~
Hermione walked a little behind Harry and Ron, caught up in a conversation about Quidditch. She was glad to get to talk to Draco again but she put on an angry expression, just in case.
She walked into the cold Potions dungeon. Snape was already at the front and Draco was seated next to Pansy. He glared at Hermione but winked before she turned away, smiling.
Luckily, no one noticed this exchange.
"Miss Granger, please sit down quickly. Five points from Gryffindor." Snape said smoothly, turning back to the board. He didn't notice Hermione stalk up to him, a furious expression on her face, a formerly suppressed fire burning brightly in her eyes.
He also didn't have time to notice her fist before it slammed into his skull and he collapsed on the floor.
"Hermione!" Harry and Ron cried in unison, hurrying to the front of the room. Little whispers broke out around the small dungeon and Hermione just realised what she had done.
"Oh, my God…" she murmured under her breath, staring at the now unconscious Snape lying on the ground.
"You must have a really hard right." Seamus said lightly. Hermione sat down at the teacher's table, hand over her mouth. She was still mumbling 'oh, my God'.
Draco and some other Slytherins came up as well. Some were laughing but Draco simply stared at Hermione.
"What happened?" Ron asked.
"I just… snapped… I think…" she whispered. "I'm sorry, I have to go…" she ran out of the room.
What had happened? She wasn't the kind to attack a teacher, unless you count the time in the Shrieking Shack, which seemed to be necessary. But this… Snape had taken points from Gryffindor before. Why this time?
Hermione began to think of the punishments. Detention for a month. One hundred points from Gryffindor. Something along those lines.
Hermione began to cry, running blindly through the halls and crept into her little cranny.
She needed to talk to Draco.
Hey, you are on my side
And they, they just roll their eyes
~*~
"That Granger is absolutely insane!" Crabbe guffawed.
Ron and Harry couldn't even say something in her defense. What had Hermione done? Why did she do it? Nothing seemed to make sense.
"Can we leave?" Malfoy asked lazily, leaning against the door frame, bag slung on his shoulder.
"Well, we certainly won't be learning anything!" Dean commented.
"What do we do? Just leave him here?" came a voice from the back.
"Well, I'm not sticking around." Malfoy said and exited the room, several Slytherins following him.
Harry looked at the unconscious Potions Master.
"Great." He muttered sarcastically.
~*~
Draco rushed out onto the grounds of the school and to Hermione's little nook. Sure enough, she was there. Sobbing but still alive. He was glad she hadn't jumped into the lake.
"Hey." He whispered and crawled in next to her.
"Hey." She replied in a stuffed up voice.
He hugged her but couldn't resist asking, "What were you thinking?"
"I don't know!" she wailed. She sobbed, unrestrained, into his shoulder for a few minutes. "Draco, something's wrong."
He released her and stared into her eyes.
"What do you mean?" he asked seriously.
"I seem to be doing things I don't usually do… this is not something that is normal for me!"
"I know." He said simply and they lapsed into silence. He was busy thinking about any spells or incantations that might achieve this effect.
"What did everyone else think?" she whispered.
"Oh, that you were crazy… stuff like that." He shrugged and she looked up at him.
"Do you… think I'm going crazy?" she asked, afraid of the answer.
"I think you might if we don't find out what's wrong with you."
You get me
When nobody understands
You come and take the chance, baby
You get me
You look inside my wild mind
Never knowing what you'll find
And still you want me all the time
Yeah, you do
Yeah, you get me
~*~
Hermione didn't think she was ever as desperate as this. She had skipped all of her classes to find a spell that she didn't even know existed. She just followed Draco's lead. Unfortunately, he could spend the day with her. It would be too suspicious.
She searched until dinner time. Harry and Ron were probably wondering where she had gone. Maybe the headed for the Hospital Wing instead.
She almost let out a shriek when she felt someone grab her waist. But she relaxed when she figured out who it was.
"Hey." Draco whispered. "Found anything yet?"
"No." she replied, a hint of frustration in her voice. He let go of her and sat down at a nearby table.
"I was thinking… maybe it's a really dark spell." He suggested, picking up a random book and flipping through its pages.
"Why?" Hermione settled herself across from him.
"Well… I reckon it's someone who knows about us. Don't ask me why, I just have a hunch. There's only one person who knows." He stared at her pointedly.
"Lucius." She murmured.
"Precisely. I know my dad. He'd do anything."
"Does that mean that the spell is in the Restricted Section?" she asked, her heart dropping.
"Most likely."
"How we are we ever going to get it?" she moaned, her heart dropping.
"Easy." he smiled. Hermione raised her eyebrows. "I'll just tell my father that I want to cast the spell on Potter. He'll send the book."
Hermione began to smile.
~*~
So what if I see the sunshine
In the pouring rain
Some people think I'm crazy
But you say it's okay
Hermione had resorted to becoming anti-social, just in case she snapped again. Harry and Ron, she could tell, were becoming excessively worried and she wanted this to end immediately.
She was sitting by the fireplace one day when it was literally pouring outside. Thunder roared and lightning cut across the sky. She should've felt sorry for Harry and Ron who were practicing Quidditch in this weather but she loved rain. At least now she did.
She heaved herself off the couch and headed down towards the grounds, no cloak or anything to keep her warm.
She stepped down onto the muddy surface and stared fascinated for a while, soon diverting her attention to the Gryffindor Quidditch team.
She sat down right there, in the middle of the mud, and started to laugh to herself. They stopped practice to watch her. She really was a peculiar sight. Harry flew down to talk to her but she ran away from him.
"Hermione! What are you doing down here with no cloak?" he questioned her.
"It's a beautiful day, isn't it?" she ignored him and stared at the sky. "Sun is shining, birds are singing, bees are buzzing…"
"Hermione, get back inside before you catch a cold!" Harry ordered but his voice was barely audible over the loud crack of thunder.
"Don't tell me what to do!" she yelled and ran into the Forbidden Forest. Harry watched her run, his heart dropping.
"Hermione, what's wrong with you?"
You've seen my secret garden
Where all of my flowers grow
In my imagination
Anything goes
~*~
Hermione ran. She didn't know the Forbidden Forest very well since she'd only been there once but she headed towards the side near the lake. To her surprise, Draco was sitting there with an umbrella, his cloak wrapped tightly around him. He looked up when he heard her footsteps.
"Herm!" he shouted. "What are you doing out here without a cloak? Come here." She stared at him for a full ten seconds, Draco feeling more uneasy as the seconds ticked by. Finally, she sat down on the wet grass and shook her head obstinately.
"C'mon! I don't want you to catch pneumonia." Draco begged. He stood up and pulled his cloak off his shoulders and lay it down on hers gently.
"I'm so confused." She muttered. "Everything's topsy turvy to me and I can't help it." She pointed to the Forbidden Forest. "That's Eden to me and that," she pointed to the sky, "is beautiful weather."
She began to cry, tears pouring gently down her face. "I can't handle it anymore, Draco… I'm going insane, I can feel it…" she looked up at him. Sympathy was thick in his eyes. "What's wrong with me?"
"It's just a spell. I sent an owl to my father a week ago. The book should be coming any day now. Just hold on okay? Meanwhile, let's get you inside." He offered his hand, which she took gratefully and he led her inside the castle.
I, I am all you want
They, they just read me wrong
~*~
"Okay, if anyone asks, we're doing our Potions assignment." Hermione said.
"Right."
Lucius had finally sent the book to Draco with his best wishes and a threat. He had even bookmarked it. He said it was Lord Voldemort's book so he must take due care of it.
That extra information scared Draco. If Lord Voldemort was involved…
But Hermione cut across his train of thought.
"I need a powerful witch or wizard to cast the anti-charm." She muttered. "I can't cast it on myself either." She looked at Draco. "Think your up to it?"
He stared at her. "I hate to say this but I think Potter's stronger than I am. Ask him. He'd gladly do it."
"How do I say I found the spell? Draco, you're the only one who knows…"
That warmed his heart considerably. "Ask him. Just say you figured it out with the sane part of your brain and you found the spell in the library. The normal section."
She nodded.
You get me
When nobody understands
You come and hold my hand, baby
You get me
You look inside my wild mind
Never knowing what you'll find
Still you want me all the time
Yeah, you do
'Cause you get me
~*~
"Harry?" she asked tentatively. He looked up.
"Herm?"
"Can you help me?" she asked nervously, wringing her hands.
"Sure." He replied smiling but she could tell he was holding back a little.
She shoved the spell in front of him.
"Say that incantation, pointing your wand at me." She said bluntly. Harry's eyes bulged.
"What'll it do?" he questioned hesitantly.
"You'll see." She said simply and sat on the couch. He shrugged and pulled out his wand from his pocket.
"Are you sure?" he asked and she nodded.
He cleared his throat.
'infectum reddere carmen, refe eius mens sana.' He spoke clearly. (A/N: Just in case you were wondering, my Latin really sucks.)
Hermione saw a flash of yellow light heading towards her and hit her chest. Instead of a normal spell which would have hit her much like a tonne of bricks, this spell sent a warm feeling through her body and she looked around the room as if seeing it for the first time.
"Hermione?" Harry's voice seemed far away but it soon became clearer. "Herm? Are you okay?"
"I'm fine, Harry!" she smiled and hugged him tightly. "Thank you."
"Phew!" He sighed. "You know, the last couple of weeks, me and Ron thought you were going crazy!"
She smiled.
Hey, you are on my side
They, they just roll their eyes
~*~
Hermione hugged Draco. "Thanks for the book. It saved my life. Literally."
"No problem." He smiled and kissed the top of her head.
"You know, maybe it was just because you knew what was happening to me, but you were the only person who didn't seem to skirt me in the corridors." Hermione mused.
"Really?" Draco asked. "Even all your Gryffindor friends?"
"Yeah, even Ron and Harry. I guess it was sort of my fault. I snapped at them the most!" she reminisced. She turned around and kissed Draco on the lips. "Thanks for standing by me."
"Hey, that's me! Lovable, dependable-"
"Obnoxious, conceited-" Hermione joined in.
"Hey!" Draco chided. "I stood up for you when you were insane and should've gone to St. Mungo's. The least you can do is give me some compliments!"
"What? Being obnoxious and conceited aren't good enough for Mr. Malfoy?" she giggled.
He caught the glint in her eyes and sighed. "Fine! I'll be a lovable, dependable, obnoxious and conceited-"
"Teddy bear!" Hermione cut in and Draco cuffed her on the back of her head.
"I'm glad you're normal again." He smiled. She nodded in agreement.
"And so say both of us!" she began to sing.
"I was just thinking," he interrupted, "that attacking you might've actually been a good idea." It was her turn to cuff him on the back of the head.
"Seriously, though," he continued, "not only would it have broken you and I up, which would've made my dad ecstatic but it would've hurt Potter as well."
"I guess." She sighed. "Don't worry, you'll always be my lovable, dependable-"
"Let's stop there!" he cut in and they spent the rest of the night together, basking in their own company.
'Cause you get me
When nobody understands
You come and take the chance, baby
You get me
When none of the pieces fit
You make sense of it
"I get the distinct feeling that this isn't the last we'll get from my father…" Draco said at the end of the night.
"Really? That desperate?"
"My father knows no end. He'll keep going until he gets what he wants." Draco explained.
He was a little scared actually, both for him and Hermione. It took him that long to realise but he had never felt this strongly about anyone in his entire life. He was never allowed to. His father made sure of that.
Love is a weakness, Lucius had said but as he stared down at Hermione, he didn't feel as though it was a weakness.
Not for a single second. He needed Hermione.
You get me
You look inside my wild mind
Never knowing what you'll find
And still I want you all the time
Yeah, I do
'Cause you get me
"Herm?" he said. She looked up at him and smiled. He took in a deep breath and let loose.
"I love you."
~*~
A/N: Okay, how was it? I hope it was okay… a chapter worth the wait. It's definitely the longest chapter so far. I actually rewrote the thing about three times (which, besides writer's block, is one of the reasons it took so long) but I wasn't happy with all of those so I changed it to this. I hope that was a little cliffie at the end, I actually like cliffies, make you think.
OMG! I was going to upload this but FF.N isn't working! It'll work by tomorrow though so I can upload it then but still! Just when I actually had it written out! *pouts*s
Anyway, just my thanks to everyone who reviewed:
Rupert rocks my socks: I totally agree! Exams suck and are evil! I did okay in most of them but I almost failed one. Shhhhhhh… Word annoys me, too. I never actually realised they were Christmas colours… isn't that interesting? Also, thank you for adding this to your favourites! I love it when people do that! =D
Melamin: OMG!!! Your name is Elvish! Does it mean 'love' or something? I don't know very much Elvish (just a couple of words) but I'm starting to get obsessed with LOTR *sigh*. Also, thanks to you for adding me and this to your favourites list! *mwah*!
Soledad: I'm glad I have you addicted to Michelle Branch! She is such a fantastic person, really talented. Thanks for adding me to your favourites!
deiah: Hey! Just remember to email me with the mistakes, yessido (I have no idea where that came from…)! I'm finally updating, hope that makes you happy! Thanks for adding me to your favourites, too!
Indoor Voice Please: I'm glad you feel so passionately about this fic! Thanks!
Sweetly Seductive: Yeah, the two weeks are long over *blushes* Sorry for keeping you all waiting! And yeah, my exams are over, too. *shudders* Don't remind me!
Inca Mummy Girl: I LOVE cherries and whipped cream!
Queen of Blahiness: Thank you for all those compliments! Love you!
Ketchup: You're right, I do love all the reviews, every single one!
DreAmz AnGeL: Yeah, Michelle Branch rocks!
Song*breeze: *sigh* Why am I called Knickers? We (my friends and I) were a bit high during lunch and we have a friend named Nicole who another friend decided that her new nickname was going to be Knickers. So we went around the room, trying to figure out how everyone's name related to the word Knickers. I don't think I'll go into mine but all of them were related by the same thing and I'll let you guess what that was. ;)
puella: Yeah, I do Latin, I suck at it though, but I do it. I suppose you could try to do a translation of that spell but I really don't think it's right. I couldn't figure out which declension it was in… *sigh*
Sabrina Weasley: This whole thing is just about a sequel… a sequel and a prequel, all tied into a nice little package! (Quote: Homer Simpson)
Flick: Her arm was never broken! A little bruised maybe but still! =P
1.4.3: Of course, a long review is better than no review! I actually prefer long reviews, provides more entertainment!
Also thanks to: Petruska DYIT, lil' dudette, yoghurt, Kittae, yoyo, clare (hey honey!), animegirl-mika, kathie, Juliet, Bloomsbury, Mish, Suki, Psychotic Gypsy, Funky Slayer, pfft, moby, C, Jujube, XD, madame maxime, Ellie, People Magnet, Ketchup, Two Worlds, Y2K, Wazzuuuuuuuup, Aprodite, Artshow, Bunnies rule 4eva, Beauiful Hunchback, CottonBall Princess, Cisco, Amazing Grace, Olive Oyl, Tooth and Nail, Brown-nose Susan, Rock, Scissors, Paper; Yvonne, kaloderma, Draco Lover… Upset!, Conchita, Claudia, Lee.
Thank you to everyone who reviewed and I hope you review again! I think I might actually know where this fic is going now so the next chapter might be up pretty quickly. If you want an email update, ask in a review or send an email to me and I'll add you to the list! By the way, can anyone tell me what canon and fanon are? I have absolutely no bloody idea but I see them everywhere! Thanks again to everyone who's reviewed!
Le gra go deo,
Cindy
