A/N: Sorry it took so long to update. I have been grounded from the
computer and the library at school has been closed, so I haven't been able
to type. I would also like to thank a couple people, so please read the
following.
Reviewers:
pirate-elfgal: Thank you so much for reading my story and always reviewing on it. It makes me happy to see that people who have been reading since the beginning like the direction this story is going in.
deviled angel: I'm glad you think it's interesting. If you want to see interesting, keep reading this story.
victoria lee: Please keep reading!
ghypscee: I didn't really think about the events coinciding, but you just gave me a great idea on what to do in a future chappie! Thanks!
Alejandrathegoodsoul: I'm sorry that Harry is mean, but you'll know why I had to do it as the story progresses.
bella: I have no problem with your long review. Actually, I love them! They are really encouraging for me. I do need Harry to be mean to Hermione in my story for it to work out, but I promise, all will reveal itself in due time. Please keep reading!
OrangeJelloIsYummy: Finally! I'm not the only one who thinks Tom Felton is hot!!!! I love Tom Felton!!!! Thank you!!! I'll try to keep my chapters on the longer side, and you'll see soon why Harry is being so mean to Hermione.
lucy: I'm glad you like my story. Please keep reading!
CozzaGirl16: You'll see soon who it is. Keep reading, I think it will be unexpected.
Applescm: well, you'll have to keep reading to see who the secret admirer is.
Reviews: You know the drill...
Disclaimer: I own none of Rowling's characters, well, except maybe Malfoy...
Chapter Nine
Hermione excitedly went through the day. She couldn't believe her secret admirer asked her to the Masquerade. All she could think about was what she was going to wear. After all her lessons were over, she ran to the Gryffindor Common Room to see when the next Hogsmeade weekend was, followed by Ginny. Hermione had told Ginny in about the letter, and Ginny giggled when she heard the part about Neville being Hermione's bodyguard.
"I can't wait to go to Hogsmeade, Hermione. We have to find you the perfect dress to wear."
"You two aren't going anywhere alone." Neville overheard them speaking about the Hogsmeade trip.
"And why do you say that?" Hermione stared at him, waiting for a response.
"Well, with Harry loose, you two could get hurt. Who would be there to defend you?"
"Neville, if you haven't forgotten, Hermione and I were in the D.A. two years ago. I think we can take care of ourselves." Ginny was trying to stifle a giggle.
"I said you aren't going alone. I'll... I'll fight you..." Neville's voice was shaky.
"Neville, I hardly think you could take on two girls unaided. Well, it seems like we won't get to go anywhere alone. I guess you'll just have to come along with us." The two girls walked off. Ginny was going to escort Hermione back to her room so they could talk, and Neville hung his head.
"What have I gotten myself into now? Me and my big mouth... Now I am going to have to watch them dress up all day... How boring..." Neville headed for his dormitory and went to bed.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ "Hermione, we're going to have so much fun having you try on dresses. I bet I could even try convincing Neville to ask me to the Masquerade." The girls sat on Hermione's bed, talking about the letters from Hermione's secret admirer.
"Ginny, I really should be roaming the halls. You should come. I'll say you were being accompanied to your room from detention. Besides, we wouldn't want to disappoint Neville." Hermione gave Ginny puppy dog eyes that she couldn't resist.
"Fine, I'll go. I hate it when you do that." The girls left the common room and chatted the whole time Hermione was supposed to be looking for trouble. Little did Hermione know, she would be receiving a surprise when she returned to her room.
~*~*~*~*~*~
Flopping down onto her bed, Hermione let out a long sigh, and then a yelp. She sat up and found a single red rose on her bed. A note attached to it said:
The Masquerade starts at seven that night. Meet me at 6:30 at the
library stairs. I will be there, waiting for you.
Hermione smiled to herself. She put the rose in a vase with water, and within an hour, she fell asleep, happy thoughts in her mind.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The week flied by fast, and before anyone knew it, it was Saturday. Noise could be heard throughout the halls, and groups of students above third year made their way down the path to Hogsmeade. Neville was standing between Ginny and Hermione, cringing at the thought of spending all day with two girls who were going to try on clothes all day.
Hermione had really been enjoying herself lately. She barely noticed Harry's foul moods anymore. All she could think about lately was her secret admirer. She and Ginny kept on guessing who it might be, and some names made Hermione cringe.
"Hermione, you have to tell me who he is the minute you find out. I can't stand not knowing who it is!!!! How can you stand so much suspense?" All that came out in one breath quite quickly, and Ginny was struggling to breathe after that sentence.
"Well, I just try not to let it get to me, that's all. I also try to think of good looking males when I imagine him, whoever it is."
The girls giggled and chatted the rest of the way, until they stood outside the door to the costume shop. Inside were Halloween costumes against one wall, and the rest of the store was dedicated to fancy masquerade dresses and male costumes. There were dresses of every color, some with lace, others embroidered with beads, and some made of pure silk. The two girls stared in amazement, and immediately began looking at the variety of dresses. After grabbing a couple dozen, the girls headed to the dressing rooms.
"Neville, sit down in that chair right there. You will tell us what dresses you like and which ones you don't like. Don't criticize too much, either. Just say something nice and you won't get hurt." Ginny looked serious, and Neville's face grew scared. Ginny laughed. "God, Neville, lighten up. Don't take everything seriously." She sat down next to him to wait for Hermione to come out.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"I'll never find one," Hermione sighed, getting frustrated. Hermione tried several dresses on . She had one dress left to try, and she hoped it would work.
She must have saved the best for last, because both Neville's and Ginny's jaws dropped.
"Is it that bad?" she asked. She didn't like to admit to herself that this was the perfect dress. It was floor-length, midnight blue and silver in color, and gracefully flowed down her slender body. The top of the dress was corset-style done in bead work, which just made it sparkle even more, molding perfectly against her skin, and bellowing out into a full skirt Along the bottom hem of the top material, which was midnight blue, there were silver, delicately embroidered flowers, looping so they all came together all the way around the bottom. This too had much beadwork done to it. A slit showed the inside material, which was a plain, shimmery silver.
"You are getting it." Ginny and Neville said at the same time. They all laughed. Hermione waited to pay for her dress until Ginny found one. They grabbed shoes to match their dresses, and then they rushed back. There was a meeting about decorations later that night, and they had to get back in time for lunch.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
A/N: Well, you finally have the ninth chapter. Hope you like it. I stayed up to ten o'clock typing it. Please review, and feel free to share your ideas.
~Elven at Heart
Reviewers:
pirate-elfgal: Thank you so much for reading my story and always reviewing on it. It makes me happy to see that people who have been reading since the beginning like the direction this story is going in.
deviled angel: I'm glad you think it's interesting. If you want to see interesting, keep reading this story.
victoria lee: Please keep reading!
ghypscee: I didn't really think about the events coinciding, but you just gave me a great idea on what to do in a future chappie! Thanks!
Alejandrathegoodsoul: I'm sorry that Harry is mean, but you'll know why I had to do it as the story progresses.
bella: I have no problem with your long review. Actually, I love them! They are really encouraging for me. I do need Harry to be mean to Hermione in my story for it to work out, but I promise, all will reveal itself in due time. Please keep reading!
OrangeJelloIsYummy: Finally! I'm not the only one who thinks Tom Felton is hot!!!! I love Tom Felton!!!! Thank you!!! I'll try to keep my chapters on the longer side, and you'll see soon why Harry is being so mean to Hermione.
lucy: I'm glad you like my story. Please keep reading!
CozzaGirl16: You'll see soon who it is. Keep reading, I think it will be unexpected.
Applescm: well, you'll have to keep reading to see who the secret admirer is.
Reviews: You know the drill...
Disclaimer: I own none of Rowling's characters, well, except maybe Malfoy...
Chapter Nine
Hermione excitedly went through the day. She couldn't believe her secret admirer asked her to the Masquerade. All she could think about was what she was going to wear. After all her lessons were over, she ran to the Gryffindor Common Room to see when the next Hogsmeade weekend was, followed by Ginny. Hermione had told Ginny in about the letter, and Ginny giggled when she heard the part about Neville being Hermione's bodyguard.
"I can't wait to go to Hogsmeade, Hermione. We have to find you the perfect dress to wear."
"You two aren't going anywhere alone." Neville overheard them speaking about the Hogsmeade trip.
"And why do you say that?" Hermione stared at him, waiting for a response.
"Well, with Harry loose, you two could get hurt. Who would be there to defend you?"
"Neville, if you haven't forgotten, Hermione and I were in the D.A. two years ago. I think we can take care of ourselves." Ginny was trying to stifle a giggle.
"I said you aren't going alone. I'll... I'll fight you..." Neville's voice was shaky.
"Neville, I hardly think you could take on two girls unaided. Well, it seems like we won't get to go anywhere alone. I guess you'll just have to come along with us." The two girls walked off. Ginny was going to escort Hermione back to her room so they could talk, and Neville hung his head.
"What have I gotten myself into now? Me and my big mouth... Now I am going to have to watch them dress up all day... How boring..." Neville headed for his dormitory and went to bed.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ "Hermione, we're going to have so much fun having you try on dresses. I bet I could even try convincing Neville to ask me to the Masquerade." The girls sat on Hermione's bed, talking about the letters from Hermione's secret admirer.
"Ginny, I really should be roaming the halls. You should come. I'll say you were being accompanied to your room from detention. Besides, we wouldn't want to disappoint Neville." Hermione gave Ginny puppy dog eyes that she couldn't resist.
"Fine, I'll go. I hate it when you do that." The girls left the common room and chatted the whole time Hermione was supposed to be looking for trouble. Little did Hermione know, she would be receiving a surprise when she returned to her room.
~*~*~*~*~*~
Flopping down onto her bed, Hermione let out a long sigh, and then a yelp. She sat up and found a single red rose on her bed. A note attached to it said:
The Masquerade starts at seven that night. Meet me at 6:30 at the
library stairs. I will be there, waiting for you.
Hermione smiled to herself. She put the rose in a vase with water, and within an hour, she fell asleep, happy thoughts in her mind.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The week flied by fast, and before anyone knew it, it was Saturday. Noise could be heard throughout the halls, and groups of students above third year made their way down the path to Hogsmeade. Neville was standing between Ginny and Hermione, cringing at the thought of spending all day with two girls who were going to try on clothes all day.
Hermione had really been enjoying herself lately. She barely noticed Harry's foul moods anymore. All she could think about lately was her secret admirer. She and Ginny kept on guessing who it might be, and some names made Hermione cringe.
"Hermione, you have to tell me who he is the minute you find out. I can't stand not knowing who it is!!!! How can you stand so much suspense?" All that came out in one breath quite quickly, and Ginny was struggling to breathe after that sentence.
"Well, I just try not to let it get to me, that's all. I also try to think of good looking males when I imagine him, whoever it is."
The girls giggled and chatted the rest of the way, until they stood outside the door to the costume shop. Inside were Halloween costumes against one wall, and the rest of the store was dedicated to fancy masquerade dresses and male costumes. There were dresses of every color, some with lace, others embroidered with beads, and some made of pure silk. The two girls stared in amazement, and immediately began looking at the variety of dresses. After grabbing a couple dozen, the girls headed to the dressing rooms.
"Neville, sit down in that chair right there. You will tell us what dresses you like and which ones you don't like. Don't criticize too much, either. Just say something nice and you won't get hurt." Ginny looked serious, and Neville's face grew scared. Ginny laughed. "God, Neville, lighten up. Don't take everything seriously." She sat down next to him to wait for Hermione to come out.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"I'll never find one," Hermione sighed, getting frustrated. Hermione tried several dresses on . She had one dress left to try, and she hoped it would work.
She must have saved the best for last, because both Neville's and Ginny's jaws dropped.
"Is it that bad?" she asked. She didn't like to admit to herself that this was the perfect dress. It was floor-length, midnight blue and silver in color, and gracefully flowed down her slender body. The top of the dress was corset-style done in bead work, which just made it sparkle even more, molding perfectly against her skin, and bellowing out into a full skirt Along the bottom hem of the top material, which was midnight blue, there were silver, delicately embroidered flowers, looping so they all came together all the way around the bottom. This too had much beadwork done to it. A slit showed the inside material, which was a plain, shimmery silver.
"You are getting it." Ginny and Neville said at the same time. They all laughed. Hermione waited to pay for her dress until Ginny found one. They grabbed shoes to match their dresses, and then they rushed back. There was a meeting about decorations later that night, and they had to get back in time for lunch.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
A/N: Well, you finally have the ninth chapter. Hope you like it. I stayed up to ten o'clock typing it. Please review, and feel free to share your ideas.
~Elven at Heart