To the tune of Get it Right Back by CLM (I think):
Harry Potter, and we know it's wrong
we're gonna give him right back to whom he does belong
Rowling's to, whom he belongs
we're gonna give him right back to whom he does belong
Author's Note: I apologize for this taking longer than I expected. I am no longer in Canada (where I live), because my family and I have come down to Florida to stay at my grandparent's condominium for the summer. I was going to write this chapter on my laptop (I got for university next year... joy) in the car (we drive down), but I forgot to bring the AC adaptor that will power my laptop using the lighter. I have around 22 minutes left of my laptop, and even I can't write a good chapter that fast.My mom is sending me down the part, so hopefully I'll be back to my laptop in no time. Anyway, enjoy this chapter. The next chapter is going to be completely film-oriented. Hope you like this. Sorry if it's not very long.
Chapter Twelve: True Confessions
Hermione smiled to a few remaining students as she left the Great Hall. She had been attending to her prefect duties more seriously the past couple of days, mostly due to the fact that Draco was unable to do his. She sighed as she tried to keep her eyes open. She started making her way to the Prefect's room, towards Draco. She frowned at the thought of him.
He had been acting strange lately, and Hermione just couldn't figure out why. Harry didn't say anything about their conversation, and Hermione doubted greatly that Harry would tell Ron something and not her. She shook her head. Draco had been silent when she had entered the room again with his food and her own. He had eaten in silence, as though seriously contemplating something. Hermione had tried several times to try and talk to him, but he became very monosyllabic and had answered her questions with as little effort as possible. Hermione, though she hated to admit it, was growing slightly concerned.
She reached the hallway and could see the painting to the prefect's room looming in front of her. She had only taken two steps when she had heard a voice call her.
"Miss Granger?"
Hermione turned around to see Dumbledore standing there, his purple robes down to the floor. He seemed in good spirits, and his eyes held that remarkable twinkle that never seemed to fade.
"Hello Headmaster," she greeted, (fighting off the temptation to simply call him "Dumbledore"), "what brings you down to the prefect's room?"
Dumbledore smiled. "Actuall, Miss Granger, I was hoping that I would be able to have a quick chat with you before you decided to retire for the night. It's regarding your prefect's duties."
Hermione paled for a moment. "Oh no. Is there something I forgot to do? I'll get right on it..."
Dumbledore smiled. "No, no no, dear child. Actually, this has something to do more with Mister Malfoy, I suppose."
Hermione tilted her head, curious. "What do you mean?"
Dumbledore continued to smile. "Madame Pomfrey has told me that since you've gone back to your prefect's duties almost full time, Mister Malfoy has not been progressing as well as we hoped. His spirits... they are not as lifted by now as we had hoped they'd be. Usually, one's attitude improves after such a terrible accident, however he seems to be getting worse as the days go by, not better."
Hermione nodded, understanding somewhat. "But, what can I do?"
Dumbledore peered over the top of his glasses, a smile on his face. "We feel that should Mister Malfoy have some company for teh next little while, his progress might improve. I have spoken to all of your teachers, and they agree that under the current circumstances, you are allowed to miss classes for two weeks until Mister Malfoy has stabilized a little more."
"But what about the prefect duties?"
Dumbledore let out a laugh. "My dear Miss Granger, you do not miss a detail do you? I have asked for one young man to come in and take care of the prefect's duties for a little while. Until Mister Malfoy is healed, you will, after your two weeks, be working with him on your duties. He will be here tomorrow, and I will introduce you then. However," he said, peering over his glasses, "I hope that you will keep the knowledge of someone coming to take Mister Malfoy's place as prefect just between us, even if it is temporary. I would not wish Mister Malfoy to feel that he is being replaced and is unable to carry out his duties."
Hermione nodded. "I understand."
Dumbledore nodded to her and went to turn away. He turned back for a moment. "Oh, Miss Granger? If you can think of anything that you might need that could possibly speed up his recovery, do not hesitate to ask."
Hermione paused for a minute in thought as she watched Dumbledore's back begin to get smaller. Suddenly, she had an idea.
"Dumbledore?" she said.
Dumbledore turned. "Yes, Miss Granger?"
Hermione smiled. "I know just the thing."
Dumbledore smiled as Hermione told him her idea. He nodded.
"I will have it sent here as soon as possible." He began to walk away, as did Hermione.
"Oh, and Miss Granger?"
Hermione turned.
Dumbledore smiled. "Thank you for not calling me Headmaster. It makes me feel old," he said laughing.
Hermione nodded as Dumbledore turned and walked away.
************
Draco froze as he heard Hermione's voice in the hallway. She sounded as though she was humming to herself. Draco fought the pain and pulled himself upward, sitting up in bed and leaning his back against the headboard. He heard Hermione's footsteps head to her room across the hall and her door close. She had been doing this for the past three days. He would have about three minutes until she would come in smiling yet concerned, and he would have to pretend as though he was deaf.
He knew he had to tell her, and he knew that it would have to be today. He had put it off long enough. Harry had heard Draco's whole story about the train ride (except the part about his father and the argument. The last thing he wanted was Potter feeling sorry for him) and had advised Draco to make sure Hermione knew as well. After all, she was the closest thing he had to a friend, and Draco didn't want to deceive her in any way possible. After all, if they were just friends, why would she care?
"Then why is it so hard for you to tell her?," he thought to himself, "Do you like her? Are you afraid that she likes you? Are you hoping that she likes you?"
Draco shook his head as he heard Hermione's door open. Draco took a deep breath and prepared for what he had to do. He was afraid at how she would react. The last thing in the world he wanted to do was hurt the person he had become the closest to.
The door opened and Hermione came in, grinning. Draco's heartstrings tightened. He hated to be the one to wipe that smile off of her face.
"Malfoy! You're sitting up! Are you feeling better?"
Draco couldn't help but smirk. "Fan- bloody- tastic, Granger."
Hermione smiled. "That's good. Listen..."
"I have something to tell you," they sais simultaneously.
Draco was surprised and Hermione was shocked. Justas Draco had feared, the smile on Hermione's face disappeared, now replaced with a look of concern. Draco cursed silently.
"You go first, Granger," he said.
Hermione shook her head, the concerned look still remaining. "No, no. It's not important. You go ahead," she said.
Draco fidgeted slightly and shifted over so that Hermione could sit on the edge of the bed facing him.
"Okay, Granger. I've been trying to get this right in my head for three damn days, and I finally figured that I might as well say it... the problem is that I'm not to sure how."
Hermione's heart sank, and she began to have a bad feeling in the pit of her stomach. "What is it?"
Draco sighed and rang his fingers through his hair. "Okay Granger, it's just that... I like someone... I like someone a lot."
Hermione looked at him. "Okay..."
Draco swallowed. "I just wanted to be straight with you... so that you know that I like someone... because I didn't know whether or not... you know..."
Hermione appeared puzzled. "No, I don't know."
Draco sighed. "I didn't know whether or not you had feelings for me so I wanted to you know that there is someone else I like," he said, saying the words faster than he had originally intended.
Hermione stopped for a minute, trying to process the information. "Wait, wait... you thought I had feelings for you? No offense, but how hard did you hit your head, Malfoy?"
For an instant, Malfoy could have sworn that he felt... disappointed. "No, no Granger. I just wanted to make sure that you know."
Hermione nodded, but was still slightly hesitant. "But... why, Malfoy?"
Draco seemed surprised. "Why what?"
"Why did you need to tell me that. We're just friends, right?"
Again that slight feeling of disappointment shot across Draco's chest, but he ignored it and smiled. "Right Granger. And this is the kind of thing that friends tell each other, right?"
Hermione smiled and shrugged. "I guess so."
Draco grinned. "Good," he said. He sighed. "Wow, I'm glad I got that over with."
Hermione laughed and stood up, ignoring the feelings of both relief and loss welling up inside her.
"Granger?"
"Yeah, Malfoy?"
"What were you going to say?"
Hermione grinned. "That I've asked to have a television and VCR brought into your room so that you can watch a few movies while you're recovering."
Hermione smiled at the waves of emotions that spread over Draco's face. First disbelief, then happiness, and then excitement.
"Granger, are you serious?"
Hermione rolled her eyes. "No Draco, I'm kidding. April fools."
Draco caught her wrist, causing her to look right at him.
"Thank you," he said, and Hermione could have sworn that he was truly being sincere.
Hermione shrugged. "No problem. It's no big deal."
Draco dropped his grasp on her wrist. "You have no idea how big a deal it is," he murmured to himself, loud enough so Hermione could hear.
She paused for a second, suddenly having an impulse to do something that she never would have done prior to this moment. She sat down and leaned forward, enveloping Draco into a hug. Draco was taken aback only for a moment before happily returning the hug. He felt a twinge of loss when Hermione let go and leaned back to face him. She shrugged.
"What are friends for?" she said, smiling. She stood up and made her way to the door. A thought crossed her mind, and she couldn't fight off the temptation. She didn't turn around.
"Well, I'm gonna get the tv so that you can return to your thoughts of... whatever her name is," she said carefully, walking to the door, her back to Draco.
"Jim," Draco said.
Hermione froze. Her heart constricted in her chest, and she suddenly found it difficult to breathe. She slowly turned to Draco.
"Wha.. what did you say?" she asked, trying to hide the shakiness in her voice.
Draco looked at her and smiled slightly. "Jim. Her name is Jim... it's an interesting story."
Hermione nodded and plastered on a faint smile. "I'll bet it is," she said, heading out the door to get the equipment. "I'll bet it is."
*********
Author's Note: Uh-oh! The truth has come out! What will Hermione do? Anyway, I'm always interested, not just in your comment, but what you think could happen next. Like I said, the whole next chapter is going to be based on one specificfilm, but I'm not going to tell you what one. You'll just have to come back and read some more! Mwha ha ha ha! (that was an evil laugh, 'kay?). Anyway, don't forget to review! You know I love it when you guys do!
Here's my new "review" song (I think you guys enjoy these more than actually reviewing, but I enjoy them too, so it's a win-win):
To the chorus of Unwell Matchbox 20:
I'll admit it, I like to read reviews
It's true, you know I want to
so write some words and maybe then I'll be
a little more happy
I'm not crazy, you know I like to read
It's true, comments from you please
And soon enough you'll all inspire me
to write some more chappies
(NOTE: If you have not heard this song, I recommend that you listen to it. It is now one of my favorites)
If You Liked this Fic, try...
- The Moment by Sabriel4
** Don't forget, if you want your fic added to this list, don't hesitate to e-mail me and ask, or tell me in your review! **
To My Reviewers:
BellethePhilosopher'sCookie:Okay, that is officially the longest review that you have ever posted for me, and I loved it! By the way, computers suck. That almost happened to the computer I have down here in Florida about 8 times, because it's a Windows 95 and it is loaded with SO many games from when I was in, like, grade 6! I know what you mean, trust me! Anyway, I'm sorry this took longer than expected, but the next chapter will be out in less than a week- I promise you. Thanks for the review!
AndinaodRivendell:Getting way good, you say? I hope this was a bit better than last chapter, and will tide you over until the really really awesome next chapter. I now have figured out the rest of the piece, and I don't mind saying that it's going to turn out better than I expected! Anyway, thanks for the review! Drop by again sometime!
DraconisGirl: Hee hee hee... I enjoy being hyper too. As you can see, I have written more, and I hope that you enjoy a little more than the last chapter. And then I hope you like the chapter after this even more... it's such a vicious cycle. Too many expectations. Anyway, thanks for the review!
leonsalanna: I still have to finish Order of the Phoenix (I just got it yesterday), so don't tell me what happens. I'm working on it slowly but surely. I'm glad the last chapter cheered you up... and don't worry. At first, Harry thought Malfoy was gay... you'll hear about it later. Anyway, thanks for the review!
dragon tamer: Well, now that we know how Draco let Hermione know about his feelings for Jim... oh, you have NO idea how badly I want to tell you the ending but I can't. I can only hope that you'll like it as much as I will. Thanks for the review! Hope you'll write me another one sometime!
SQ 006: Thanks for the review! Sorry if it's a bit long. A lot of people told me that it was too short, so I decided to lengthen it. Anyway, I'm glad you find it interesting. Oh, and I know what you mean about the scanning. I'll admit that I do it too, and you're right- it is a habit. Hope you enjoyed this chapter. Review again soon!
OneofaKind92:Hee hee... I am so excited about writing the rest of the story, mostly because I know what's going to happen and I want to tell you guys as fast as I can. Anyway, I hope you liked this chapter, andI hope you keep reviewing so that I'll write the rest of the story faster!
Kara Black/Mystical Ring: Thanks for the review! As you can see, now Hermione knows about Jim, but Draco doesn't know about Hermione! Ha ha! I always enjoy torturing the men more. It's always the men that suffer in my stories, not the women. Maybe it's because we're smarter... yeah, that might be it... but anyway, I'm glad you're enjoying it, and I apologize that it took so long to get this up. I promise that it won't happen again.
Rebeltawn: Hey! I now realize how soft Draco is now, but I swear it's from the bump on his head! Honest! (lol). Anyway, you suggested something in your review that I was actually considering doing, but I wasn't sure how. Then I watched one specific movie and a few of the scenes had lines that almost reflected the battles going on in this story, so later on... well, you'll see. When I write the next chapter, you'll know what the movie is anyway. I'm hoping to find a couple more movies that I can throw in. Let's just say, I think you'll be happy. Thanks for reviewing! I hope you'll do it again sometime!
*karly*: Thanks for the review! And for all your encourgement! (blushes) I'm not an amazing writer, I don't think, but I can at least get the words to fit somewhat properly with one another to form half-decent sentences. I'm glad that my story is so addicting too! This could be used in my plans for world domination... I mean in the rest of the story... yes... Anyway, thanks again for the review! Let me know if the story turns out as you hoped it would!
Kyrie TFR: Okay, when I was reading your review, you have no idea how much I thought you were going to rhyme. You said "love the story, love the style", and of course, since I have been using poetry to much for my review and disclaimer jingles, I thought you'd finish with something like "love it better than the River Nile" or something (lol). Okay, I knew I shouldn't have had coffee this morning... whew! Anyway, thanks so much for all of your praise. You have given me an interesting suggestion with your "Harry + jealousy" scenario that I believe I should look into. Intriguing... (strokes pretend beard)... I will take it into consideration. Anyway, thanks for the review! Let me know if you like the rest as it comes out! (P.S. What does the TFR stand for?)
Sabriel4: (laughs) I'm glad you liked the Proclaimers disclaimer. I was a little bad today with the Disclaimer and the Review jingle, so I'll probably bring the 500 Miles one back again. After all, I didn't change the Disclaimer in my first, what three chapters? I was originally going to leave it alone, but I didn't think that would be much fun. Oh! I just had an idea! The next chapter, I'll do one to a Frank Sinatra song! That would be so good! Anyway, I thank you for your encouragement about my writing. I'm always hesitant about whether or not I have too much description and not enough dialogue. Thanks for the review Sab! Y'all come back now!
total loser: I didn't realize the huge mistake I had made until you mentioned it. Draco, you're right, probably should be the Slytherin captain. I don't know what I was thinking. You've brought up a good point. Now I just have to figure out a way to fix it. I'll do it somehow. Oh, I have an idea. I know a way that I can fix it. It's all good now. Anyway, thanks for the review! I'm glad you enjoyed it!
Lily of the Shadow: Lol! Took you long to review? Look how long it took me to write the next chapter! Crazy I tell you. Absolutely crazy! Anyway, I've finally got it written so I guess that's all that really matters. Thanks so much for the review! I hope some of your questions were answered in this chapter. If not, my bad, let me know!
vegetarianxtc: Thanks for the review! You know, every time I go through the reviews, I go looking for names that are repeated that I recognize from past chapters. I must say that I was delighted to see that your name had returned. Anyway, I like this chapter a little more than the other one that I wrote before, but the next one (even though I haven't written it yet), I know I will like a TON more than this one! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Come back again sometime!
Slytherinangel922: I'm glad you liked the story! I hope you like this chapter just as much! Thanks for the review!