Title: The Missing Clue (4/6)

Author: granger2malfoy

Pairing: B/Hr

Rating: PG-13 ... does go to a stopping point where it becomes NC-17.

Disclaimer: I do not own characters, the concept of the game Clue, or the movie Clue.

Archive: Yes

A/N: This goes with the Masquerade Challenge on IATQO group. Yes, this is idea was conceived while playing the game Clue. Special thanks to the lovely and very talented Jade, who helped and betad this for me.

Summary: Dumbledore arranges the students sixth year and higher that stayed during the Christmas holidays to partake in a character masquerade party. At the party they will come in outfits appropriate with their character and will solve a mystery. Hermione finds more the missing clues.

Chapter Four

The room darkened and became full of sounds people acting surprised and some low whispers of spells she wasn't able to make out. There were a couple flashing of spells cast in different directions. After a several seconds, which seemed like longer, Professor Lupin spoke and the lights came back on to reveal everyone was a little shook up. Hermione, Ron, Blaise and Lupin were standing and they looked around the room. She gasped as she noticed Draco's body laid on the floor in front of the door. Blaise was the first one to the not moving Slytherin and he looked up to the professor as he announced, "He's just unconscious. But I am not able to say how or with what."

"Look there is a burn mark on the wall on the right side of the door where he was standing. It looked like someone was trying to hit a spell but missed. So, did someone else hit him or did something else happen?" Hermione asked as she sat on the edge of the couch's arm nearest to the door as the others gathered around.

Professor Lupin was last to reach the still body of Draco Malfoy. With his wand, he levitated the young man's body onto the couch where Harry and Hermione sat a minute ago. Hermione and Luna took a seat on the free couch and Ron transfigured a book from the bookcase behind him into a chair. The couch was enlarged from a charm by Harry and gestured for Millicent to sit, which she reluctantly accepted.

The female Slytherin refilled her drink with a flick of her wand and sipped it as Lupin leaned against the front of the desk. "Very good questions, Mrs. Maroon. Also, all of you might not have known that someone took my wand from me when the lights went out and the envelope of evidence is gone. I could summon my wand back but lets make it part of the mysteries. To make this fair though, I need everyone to hand over their wand."

After he collected the six student's wands, they were locked away, the old fashion way with a key, in a cabinet behind the couch where Draco laid still knocked out. Hermione nibbled on her lip as her thoughts went over several things. Well, Blaise figured out that Draco was the blackmailer. I wonder how he was so sure. Of course, that meant all of them had a motive to take Draco out for the rest of the game. But what did they do to him? Someone missed him, and it's possible someone else had better aim, or it could've been physical attack. There has to be some clues around here somewhere.

The evidence and the Professor's wand are gone. It obvious it is not on anyone's person because the girls are in dresses and the guys are in regular shirts. That's very doubtful that they are hidden under the stuff; unless the evidence was shrunk first, which is very possible. She looked over to the Head Boy, who was staring at Millicent whom sat next her. Blaise seemed to be watching her as if trying to figure out a puzzle about his housemate.

Then the line of his focused moved to her and his lips curved up in the corners as he nodded once politely at her. Hermione playfully stuck her tongue out at the raven hair Slytherin. He silently mouthed, "Later, my dear" and ran his tongue over his bottom lip very slowly.

The teasing made her blush as she moved her gaze off of him and then to Luna. She was looking particular tense. After two year of knowing the Ravenclaw, Hermione had learned that when ever she was nervous that her foot tapped constantly. Luna spoke up as she tried to stop her tapping, "Professor, is it possible that there is someone else in this part of the castle? He was standing by the door and if he was physically attacked, then the person could have done it unseen."

"It is possible, Miss Violet. I did not search the rooms before I got here and that would've been the only time they could've gotten in. Well, I suggest we should split up into teams and search all the rooms."

The students shifted uneasily in their seats or on their feet as he looked over each of them one at a time. He rose to from leaning against the desk as he stated, "Well as the headmaster would say, this is a perfect time for inter-house relations. Mr. Black and Miss Maroon, you will search the top of the tower and the Divination classroom. Trelawney is visiting her sister, so she is not inside Hogwarts, but her rooms are already locked and out of bounds."

"Mr. Green and Miss White, you two search this floor and all of the connecting rooms; while Mr. Navy and Miss Violet will follow the stair case downward to the level below. I will be floating between the floors checking on all of you. Just remember the headmaster will be here in approximately forty-five minutes wanting the answers to all mysteries," Professor Lupin stated as he walked over to the door and everyone followed in turn.

As Hermione reached the door, Blaise offered his arm and led her toward the stairs. Her stomach started to get butterflies as she they walked up the steps and the smile of his face was absolutely sensual. Once they reached the classroom, he said, "I suggest we start from the top and work our way down."

Hermione suddenly wished that she had brought a cloak but she had not figured on going out side. Her companion walked over to one of the table and removed the thick black covering. He draped the fabric over her shoulders with a knowing smirk. "Thank you, Bl- Mr. Black."

"Shall we?"

They climbed up the hidden staircase at the back of the storage room and wood creaked under their feet. Blaise went first and Hermione climbed right behind as she got a nice view of his firm arse. Thank, Merlin that he offered to go first. I didn't even think of the fact he could see straight up my dress. Okay, a point in favor of Blaise.

Once on top of the tower, Hermione noticed that it was hardly used but there were some spare telescopes with covered wooden crates along the edges. Blaise walked the perimeter as she went straight to the nearest box and thanked Merlin that is wasn't snowing today. Yes, it was cold but not snow and no wind.

The large crate held many papers that looked as if they were recently gone through. She started flipping through the papers to see if any of it was some clues. The Slytherin approached her and looked over her shoulders, "Find something?"

"I don't know. I can tell that someone has been in this recently but I don't know it has anything to do with the mysteries. It could be just a coincidence," Hermione answered as she examined a piece of parchment with some weird numbers.

"True," he admitted as he rubbed his hand softly over her shoulder. Hermione thought he said something else but decided she was mistaken and she felt it get a lot warmer over the black cloth. He leaned down and whispered into her ear, "Are you warm, Miss Maroon?"

Her eyelids flickered close she felt his warm breath on go from her ear down her neck. After clearing her throat, she finally found the voice to speak with only a little quiver. "Yes, thank you."

Blaise moved away from her and looked around as he said, "Well, since you are warm and looking through these crates, do you mind if I go down and check the classroom? Just so that we aren't wasting time and we could both find something."

"No, go ahead. I'll just looking through this crate and be down in a few minutes."

Blaise turned and pulled open the latch to the top of the staircase. Slowly he climbed down but he held her gaze with every step. Once he was gone from sight, Hermione let out a sigh of relief as she tried to calm down her breathing. She finished going through the first crate and decided to go ahead and work on the one near the telescope to the right.

The new box also contained pieces of paper but the small piece of parchment on top caught her attention. Hermione knelt down in front of the box and noticed it was written in dark-blue ink that looked familiar but she couldn't place it. There were three sentences written in Runes as she stood back up she tried to translate in her mind. But her arm hit the eyepiece of the telescope and she glanced down to the other end. It was weird but Hermione noticed that in that direction and if she were to lower the angle; she could clearly see the place she often sat by the lake from right here.

Hermione shook her head and focused on the possible clue in front of her. After several moments, she had translated the statements to read:

It is my lady. O, it is my love. O, that she knew she were.

She lowered the paper and thought about where she had read that line before. Of course, she had read so many books that it was not simply a process of elimination. The sudden touch of warmth to her neck made Hermione shiver with surprise and knew that it was Blaise that ha rejoined her. The hot air from his close lips to her neck almost caused her to moan with want and need. Blaise stated, "I just came up here to check on you. The lights were out for a couple minutes downstairs and I wanted to make sure you okay up here."

"The lights went out, when?"

"Just about tens minutes ago and as soon as they came back on, I came up to you," the Slytherin mentioned as he ran his hand through his curly, dark locks. He smiled and asked, "Did you find any clues up here?"

Hermione clutched the note she had just found and lied, "No, I am afraid not. I bet it is close to the time for the headmaster and we hardly have any clues at all."

As she opened the door and lowered herself first, Hermione tried to see if she had any idea at all about who knocked of Malfoy or stole the Professor's wand. Blaise made his way down once she had cleared the ladder and ended up toe-to-toe with her. Those soft pale-pink lips of his held her eyes as she unconsciously licked her own.

Suddenly, he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her body tight against his as he captured her lips with his. Their kiss contained heat, want, need, desire and passion all within the minute they stayed glue to each other. But his kiss seemed to blow away her other senses because she thought he almost smelled of flowers.

Hermione very slowly pulled away from his kiss that had been her very first and was glad that it had been with Blaise Zabini. She tucked a stray hair behind her ear as she backed away from his loosing grip and dropped the black fabric as she stated, "I think we need to get downstairs."

The quiet Slytherin stayed that way as he nodded and shoved his hands into his pockets. After a moment, he pulled out one hand as he said, "Lead the way, mi lady."

With a soft rose-colored blush on her cheekbones, Hermione moved through the classroom and down with stairs with the Head Boy right behind her. As she descended the steps, she tried to clear her mind for the moment of that kiss as she had a mystery to solve.