Driven

Acknowledgment: Ellen.

Hermione was surprised by the sight before her. Harry's head was settled neatly near Ron's waist, fast asleep.

"We have to be quiet," she whispered to Draco, motioning her head toward the sleeping Harry.

Draco merely snorted in reply as he went before Ron, his wand shaking in his quivering hand as he pointed at Ron's chest.

"Wait!" Hermione hissed, coming closer to him. "Are you sure...?"

He didn't reply. Instead, he flawlessly waved the wand gracefully, and said in a clear and strong voice, "Oblivito Incantatem!"

Ron's face twitched, but his eyes remained closed.

"What'd you do that for?" Hermione exclaimed, poking Draco in the back.

He looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "Memory charm. He won't remember it was me..."

"But...what if..."

"Relax, Obliviate is the strongest memory charm. Oblivito Incantatem is just to make him forget what happened before he was attacked."

"Alright, then," murmured Hermione, obviously upset that she was not the one having all the information.

"Ready?" he asked her, his wand pointing to Ron's chest once more.

Hermione was about to stammer back a response when somebody already beat her to it.

"Ready for what?" said a cold voice.

They both turned their heads, and saw that Harry was fully awake now, his wand pointed directly at them.

***

"Harry!" Hermione breathed, her arms folding protectively against her chest.

"What the hell is Malfoy doing here?" Harry added as an afterthought, motioning his head toward him. This was when Hermione realized that they were both without the shield of invisibility, as she had foolishly told Malfoy to carry it himself.

"Quiet, Potter," Malfoy snapped. "I am trying to help Weasley."

"Get away from him, Hermione!" Harry yelled in a warning tone.

"No, Harry, you don't understand!"

"He's got you under some kind of spell, hasn't he?" he barked. Hermione furiously began shaking her head, and tugged at Harry's robes.

"Let's go outside, please, Harry...Malfoy, just do the spell, will you? And hurry."

She struggled to get Harry outside of the hospital wing, looking around anxiously before speaking. "Harry, Draco's the only one that knows how to do the spell."

"But..." Harry protested.

"Please, just leave it be. This is our only chance. Ron will be recovered before the time the medic-wizards come through. Please. Trust me." Her eyes prompted him to do so. His mind rushed with flashbacks, a particular one about a certain bushy-haired witch who was scolding Ron about how to do a levitating spell correctly, and then him using it afterwards as a way to knock out a rather gigantic troll.

"Alright. But if wakes, you better tell me what the hell is going on here."

A small smile spread out on her face. He unintentionally pushed several ringlets of her brown hair out of her eyes, and left his hand lingering on her cheek.

"Harry..." Hermione whispered, her eyes glowing frantically. "Don't..."

He paused, but after a second, he leaned over, brushing his lips against hers. It was as if she had been missing a limb from her body for several years; the yearning burned inside of her as his gentle tenderness moved across her mouth, growing harder by the minute. This was nothing like kissing Malfoy. Malfoy had made her dizzy, weak, and feel faint. Harry was making her feel adequate, and she had no idea which was better, Malfoy making her collapse against him, or Harry's lips moving against hers, his hands gently prodding on her waist, his soft lips pressing further into hers. His tongue dipped into her inviting passageway as she let out a small moan, pulling out of his grasp, her hands on his hands, throwing them off.

"Why'd you do that?" she snapped.

He bit his lip. "I..."

"Am I interrupting something here?" a voice said from the open door. It was Malfoy, his face filled with a scowl, his eyes flashing menacingly at him.

"How's Ron?" Hermione and Harry both said quickly at the same time, pulling away from each other, avoiding each other's hopeful gazes.

"He's awake. He didn't see me, because I hid myself with the cloak, at first, but after he woke up, he turned the other way, so you can go see him now," Malfoy informed.

Harry grinned joyfully, pushing Malfoy out of the way and stepping into the hospital wing, which left Malfoy in the hallway with Hermione, in a very awkward and quiet situation.

"Thanks," she croaked. "But don't expect me to thank you if you do this ever again."

He smirked at her. "I won't...expect you to do so, anyways."

"Malfoy..." she said warningly.

"Oh, forget it, Granger, it was just a joke anyways."

"It's not a joke when death is involved," she spat through grinded teeth.

"He wouldn't die."

"Whatever...this is over, you've gotten what you wanted. I hope you never bother us again." With that, she stepped on her heel, and sped toward the hospital wing, but Malfoy grabbed her arm painfully around the wrist.

"What?" Hermione caught her breath in her throat as she saw the observant look hovering over his pale face.

"Can I ..."

"Can you what?" she whispered, breathless at his touch.

"For the last time?" he finished. She didn't query him; she knew exactly what he meant, but she was rather reluctant as he drew forward. She stepped back a few steps, into the back of the door in the hospital wing. His lips finally went over his, and she felt the dizziness arrive once more. All thoughts went out of her mind. This time, he was not gentle. He kissed her with a fury she had never known before. Her senses were broken. Her knees buckled underneath her, and she grabbed hold of the front of his robes from falling. He caught her around the waist, his lips now pondering the skin of her earlobes, going down to her neck, his fingers parting the buttons of her robes, sliding his hand upwards and down of her blouse and her skirt.

"Hermione? Ron wants to see you," a voice called, but she paid no attention.

She was pressed against the door, as he glided against Hermione. He managed to rip away a few of the securities around her blouse before the door opened behind her, and with a squeal, she was thrown backward, Malfoy on top of her, Harry and Ron peering at them with raised eyebrows from above, their mouths parting into gapes.

***

Hmmm...how ironic *smirks*. Cliffy. I own Oblivito Incantatem. I think. Never saw it in the HP books, so I'll claim it.

Review. More reviews, faster the chapters.

Love,

-S.A. Court