Hey guys! I'm so elated right now, mostly because of all the nice reviews! Well, that and in a few days I'm sixteen... question: is it normal not to have a party for your sweet sixteenth? I'm not a party girl... well, okay, enough of that.
Thanks to Crazy-Physco, Billie Joe's stalker, sweetandevil (awesome name, by the way!), dracos-girl-4evr and Queen of Serpents for reviewing! You've made my day.
Psychoticsmileyface: I'm so glad you like this plot! I'm happy to be original too, and I'm glad you're going to read the whole story! I hope you'll like it...
It was the day of the Halloween Dance, which she and Malfoy had planned down to the minute. At midnight, a showering of silver and gold confetti, along with the colors of each house, would fall down from the ceiling upon the heads of all the students. They'd decided that all years should be able to come to the dance, much to the delight of all the students below fourth year.
Hermione rolled out of bed and smiled at herself in the mirror. 'How is it I look this good even after I just wake up?' she thought to herself.
After getting up and dressing – in baggy sweats and a semi-tight t-shirt – she headed down to the Great Hall. She was stopped, however, half way there by Malfoy.
"Potter, I know that we don't need dates for the Halloween Dance, but I'd love it if you'd go with me. If you've already got a date, I understand." He looked nervous, which struck Hermione as strange. 'He's never nervous!' she thought.
"No, I don't have a date yet. I'd love to go with you." She smiled at him sweetly.
"Great. What's your costume?" He asked quietly.
"Oh, it's a secret, Malfoy. What's yours?" She replied flirtatiously.
"I'm going as a prince. You know, royal dress and all." He replied with a smug look.
"Good, you'll go great with mine. I'll meet you in the common room at the start of the dance." She smiled and began to walk away, but he grabbed her hand.
"The start of the dance? We'll be late." Malfoy asked with a confused expression upon his face.
"I want to make an impression." She smirked, as though she was planning something.
She came out of her room to see Malfoy standing there, waiting patiently. He turned to see her and gasped, but quickly regained his thoughts.
"You look beautiful, Po- Hermione. Do you mind if I call you that?" Malfoy extended her arm to her. He was wearing a sort of medieval green suit, with a large silver crown upon his head. 'He looks really dashing,' Hermione mused.
"Beautiful? No, I like being called that, Draco. You look very good, yourself, bud. It's a wonder you didn't already have a date, or three." Hermione smiled as he replied.
"I was waiting to ask you, though, so I wouldn't have accepted any other offers." He smiled before leading her out into the hallway, where there was no sound but the music of the Weird Sisters.
"You waited to ask me? But I thought you didn't like me!" She looked genuinely surprised at this new revelation.
"I don't know, I thought I hated you too. But then I saw you when you changed form and something just got stirred up inside me. I wrote my mother and she said to ask you out, because it may be love. She said I shouldn't take the chance of losing a love without even trying to have it." He looked at the ground for a bit, as though ashamed of what he'd just said.
"Don't be ashamed, Draco. I kind of felt the same thing. Strange, how we've fought for years, but we really like each other." She smiled as she met his gaze with her own.
"All those times we fought, I always loved seeing you angry." He smiled and they walked all the way to the ball chatting animatedly to each other.
Hermione and Draco stood at the entrance to the Hall, and soon everyone had turned their way. They stared as the couple walked in, fashionably late. Lavender came over and asked where she'd got her costume, and Hermione merely replied "I got it, and that's all that matters."
Hermione looked stunning that night. She had on a black dress with a black corset-type bodice, and green lace edged the top near her chest. Her long black hair was up in a mountain of curls, with some falling around her face. Draco had placed a crown, like his but smaller, upon her head. They looked truly spectacular, as though they'd picked their costumes together.
Draco lead her out onto the dance floor and began to slow dance with her, one hand on her lower back. After a few dances, Ron interrupted between songs.
"Malfoy, can I dance with her once?"
"Sure you can, Weasley. Hermione, I want to dance later, though." He gave her a quick wink before heading off to his own table.
"Why are you here with him? He's our enemy, and he has been for years."
"Ron, you wouldn't get it. Draco likes me, and I like him, so we are here together. I'm still friends with you, but I'm allowed to date whomever I want."
He thought a bit about continuing the argument but then thought better of it. "Then I suppose Harry and I will stand by you. Please don't do anything stupid, though, okay?" Ron twirled her one last time as the music faded.
"Of course. I have to dance with Draco now; I'll talk to you later."
She left and walked over to the Slytherin table where Draco was seated with Crabbe, Goyle and Pansy, who was trying to get Draco to dance with her.
"But Draco, I know you want to dance with me!" Pansy was trying to sound sexy, but really she sounded revolting.
"Pansy Parkinson, get your filthy hands off of Draco now." Hermione surprised herself with her protectiveness over Draco.
"And what are you going to do about it, you filthy mudblood?" Hermione's claws came out, so to speak.
"Parkinson, I am a halfblood, you baboon! Now get your pug faced hands of Draco or I'll curse you to oblivion!"
"I'm telling Snape! That's a threat!" She ran off, nearly in tears, to the teachers table where Snape was seated.
"Oh, god, she actually is going to tell on me! Oh whatever, like he can do much to me." She sat down beside Draco, who slipped his arm around her waist and pulled her closer to him.
"I like you when you're angry. It makes you much sexier." He kissed her cheek lightly as Snape approached with the now crying Pansy.
"Miss Potter, Miss Parkinson says you threatened to curse her into oblivion for trying to talk to Draco. Is that true?" He looked down his nose to her, as though in deep thought.
"Yes, but it wasn't for just talking to him. She was begging to dance with him." She stifled a few laughs before he answered.
"Mister Malfoy, is this true? Was she really begging?" Snape looked disgusted at the thought.
"That, and she called Hermione a mudblood, which she isn't." He looked Snape in the eye.
"Well, Miss Parkinson, ten points from Slytherin for behaving like a dog and five from Gryffindor for uttering a threat." He turned and left, heading back to the teacher's table.
Draco took Hermione out onto the dance floor once more, and they danced for hours on end. At midnight, a large grandfather clock chimed loudly; underneath the showering of silver and gold confetti, Hermione and Draco shared a perfect first kiss.