Thanks for the many reviews. Their weren't as much as I hoped for, but I suppose you guys did your thing. So here's Chapter 11. Oh, and I have to tell you something important. The next few chapters won't be arriving this quick anymore. I still haven't completed Chapter 12 so you have to be patient. That said, please,

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HERMIONE'S POV :

I arrived back into Life with Harry by my side. He was well enough to walk now, so we walked together, hand in hand. His smile fluttered my heart and I couldn't help but smile back at him. Malfoy stood behind us. His grey eyes narrowed as he continued to glare at Harry.

"Hermione," said Harry, his hand squeezing mine gently. "Do you know how good it is to be with you? I've wanted to hold your hand like this for ages. If it wasn't for my bruise, I'd take you on a romantic dinner tonight."

I smiled, giving a peck on Harry's lips. "It seems wonderful, Harry," I said. I was very happy at the moment, but the bruise on Harry's chest still bothered me. "Harry, you should really get that chest of yours fixed," I told him seriously. "You should go to the Hospital Wing, Harry – and don't give me that look! I'm serious here!" I stomped a foot on the ground to get Harry's attention and pouted.

Harry chuckled, his green eyes twinkling joyfully. "God, 'Mione," he said, giving my hand another gentle squeeze. "It's wonderful having you back! You're still the same old Hermione I grew to love."

"No she isn't!" interrupted Malfoy with a sharp glare. His silver-blonde hair fell to his eyes, giving him a look of pure evil and malice.

"Pardon?" said Harry, mock-politely. His own eyes were as sharp as daggers. "I don't remember letting you join in this conversation. Do you, 'Mione?"

My eyes narrowed sharply at Malfoy. "No," I snapped simply.

Malfoy stared at me with puppy dog eyes. I could hear him plead and apologize through my mind. "Hermione, please..." his voice said, echoing through my mind, mixing into my blood with love and passion. But I don't want his love and passion. I want Harry's. "Potter doesn't love you... I do. Damn it, Hermione! Can't you just listen to me?"

"No!" I said out loud, taking both Harry and Malfoy by surprise. "You can't just say that without care! You hardly even KNOW me! Harry has known me since I first came to Hogwarts and has treated me like a friend ever since. Unlike you, Malfoy!"

Malfoy stared at me. The look on his face made my heart shatter into a million pieces... It felt as though I had done a terrible sin... that I should be punished in the fiery depths of Hell. But I stubbornly refused to let go of Harry for some guy I've only gotten to know for a few days.

"Look, Malfoy," I said sternly, crossing my arms against my chest. "For once in your life, can you just have a heart? I love Harry, and now that I know that he loves me, my life finally feels fulfilled. If you didn't realize, I've been living in gothic Hell for the past few months. I haven't smiled for an eternity and I slit myself millions of times. It's hard enough that I feel like killing myself... I had nobody to share it with... Until now, I have Harry... and my life is finally complete."

I felt Malfoy's heart fall and I knew all that came from my mouth before were lies. My life didn't feel complete. I still had a large hole in my heart that needed filling, and for some odd reason, it felt whole whenever I was with Malfoy. But still, I refuse to turn from Harry into the arms of some other man. Harry is the one I love! He has to be the one I love! He's supposed to be the guy I love! But... why don't I love him?

"Come on, Harry. Lets go," I whispered, embracing Harry's hand with my own and dragging him out of the room – away from Malfoy. As I passed him, I could hear a single word, trailing into an echo through my mind. The word was, "I love you..."

The next morning, I hopped out of bed with a smile on my face and a twinkle in my eyes. I've never felt so happy and refreshed in ages. Just last night I had dreamed of having a moonlight walk with Harry around the lake in Hogwarts, and I felt life swell up inside my chest. A crazy inferno got to me as I thought of Harry. My head felt light and my knees weak as I slowly slid into dream land. A gentle melody wove itself through my mind, giving my feet life and the power of dance. I strode around my room happily, grinning like an idiot as I walked towards my closet.

"This feels like a nice day to dress up," I said aloud to myself as I stripped the pyjamas off my body. In my singlet and undergarments, I pulled a mini-skirt out of the highest drawer. The skirt was baby-blue with shining golden stars around it, nothing a girl like myself would wear. But hey, I was in a good mood, so I put the skirt on my bed anyways. After deciding to match my skirt together with a baby-pink blouse and cotton sweater, I hopped into the bathroom, took a shower, and walked back out to put on my clothes. Once comfortable with my un-Hermione like clothes, I walked out of the room to catch up with Harry.

"Hey, 'Mione!" greeted Harry once I had finally arrived next to him. He linked arms with me and grinned. "You look simply stunning, Miss Granger!" he said in a raspy, more mature kind of voice. I giggled and kissed him on gently on the lips. "You don't look bad yourself, Potter!" I replied, smiling affectionately at him.

"Shall we leave now, madam?" asked Harry, trying to do a french accent. It didn't sound so well because of his thick English accent... Malfoy would sound a lot better. I tried shoving that thought out of my head and said, "Of course, kind sir. Let us be off!" It was a Saturday and Harry had promised to share a romantic day at Hogsmead with me.

We arrived out of the Hogwart's gate after sending our permission slips to Filch. Students that walked by stared at Harry and I awkwardly and for once, I didn't mind the couples that passed by me. Harry looked smug when he passed by Cho Chang and her fifth boyfriend this year. I felt weird and out of place under their sneers. Minutes after that incident, Harry and I were piling up into the Horseless Carriage, on our way to Hogsmead. But we soon found out that we were not alone in the carriage.

"Malfoy!" cried Harry, enraged. "What the heck are you doing here?!" He wrapped an arm around my waist pretectively and hugged me closer to him, all the while glaring at Malfoy.

Malfoy sneered at Harry, but payed no attention to me. "Why can't I be here, Potter? Its public property, is it not? I am entitled to use this carriage as much as you are, even though you are the Boy-Who-Lived," he said. Then he looked at me and added with gentle eyes and a soothing voice, "You look gorgeous, Hermione."

I almost blushed, but I decided to hide the weakness I felt around him instead. I was out on a date with Harry, for God's sake! How is it that I can only think about another guy??

Minutes dragged by – something awfully unusual on a Hogsmead weekend – and the three of us sat in a long stretch of uneasy silence. It was until Harry checked his watch that the barrier of unease was broken. "We're about to arrive in Hogsmead," announced Harry.

"Congratulations, Potter," sneered Malfoy. "You have just announced something completely obvious to the world! Amazing! Another excelent point for the Boy Wonder!" He said that sarcasticly with a fake amazed look on his face. I knew I should have been angry because of it, but for some reason I was forced to surpress a giggle.

Harry decided to ignore Malfoy and continue talking to me like he wasn't there. "You're going to love where I'm taking you today, Hermione! It's called Madame Puddifoots!" explained Harry, his voice rather excited. "It has the most awesome tea and they serve delicious biscuts! I've been meaning to show you this for ages!"

I could have melted at that very spot. Harry can be so sweet at times! This time, when Malfoy made a barfing noise across me, I gave him a hard look. One would be stupid if one were to anger me when I was this happy. "Harry, Madame Puddifoots sounds wonderful!" I said, staring at Harry with large, loving eyes. In truth, I didn't mind where we were going as long as it was romantic and I spent it with Harry. The sound of wheels wheezed to a bumpy stop. I bounced in my seat as the carriage hit a hole in the ground and landed on Malfoy's lap.

Malfoy blushed, but did not bother shoving me off of him. My neck heated and I could not help but fall to the urge that was forcing me to look into Malfoy's eyes. Time stopped momentarily. The only sound came from our mouths as Malfoy and I breathed oxygen. Our chests rose and fell harmoniously, a melody to my very soul. Malfoy's breath caught my skin, a hot, tempting feel of mint and liqorish. My lips itched to meet his in a passionate kiss...

'I can't...' I thought to myself, a voice that sounded sad and full of regret. A part of me really wanted to do it – to slip my tongue through Draco Malfoy's mouth and feel the wonderful tug of power at the edges of my fingertips and toes. 'Come on, Granger!' the dark side of my mind urged. 'You know as well as anyone does that Potter doesn't care for you! Draco does and you love him! That fool, Potter, can't even treat you well! Draco does a much better job in treating you well! And look at those eyes... they're practically begging for a kiss!'

An invisible force held me into staring at the gorgeous steel gray pool that were his eyes. At first I hesitated, trying to waddle out of the endless swirl of gray, but the longer I stayed, the more relaxed I became. I even willed myself into exploring deeper through Malfoy's eyes. I discovered secrets that were never revealed when I saw him; sadness, anger, loneliness and love were hammered deep in the forbidden corners of his mind. I searched even deeper, prying for answers, wandering for questions and answering a few for him. A dazzling white light sprung from the corners of my eyes and I could see an older vision of myself, kissing Draco lovingly. I suddenly felt happy – like I wanted that vision to come true. But then, Harry came, emerging from the dark shadows of Draco's mind. He had a hatefull, power-hungry look on his face. Harry snarled, shoving Draco out of the way and walking slowly to the older version of me. He grabbed me by the wrists and pulled me into a forced kiss, one so tough and painfull that my lips started to bleed. I winced and looked away from Malfoy's eyes, back into the world I belonged to.

"Hermione, you're bleeding!" Harry said, worry painted across his face. I cringed and grabbed nervously for the doorknob, trying to make for a dash as far away from Harry as possible. "I'm all right," I lied, wiping the blood from my lips once I found that the carriage door was securely locked on my side. "L-lets, er... Lets go, Harry."

Harry nodded, escorted me out of the Horseless Carriage, and walked me over to Madame Puddifoot's. I looked back at Draco, his eyes were full of sadness, one I could only measure with my own regret...

Madame Puddifoot's was a tiny tea shop jammed full of large, oval shaped tables and pink bows and streamers all over the place. On a sign was the words, 'Happy Valentines Day!'. I frowned, wondering why they still kept Valentine Day decorations on when it was already the month of October.

"This looks... nice..." I lied, conning a look of happiness on my face so not to dissapoint Harry. This place was not at all as I had immagined it... In my dream, Harry and I spent a romantic evening with each other in a fancy (and expensive) Itallian restaurant with marble tiles and silver platters. Here, the only thing costly was the chandelier – and the gold didn't even look very real. I could just immagine what Draco would look like if he saw this. If I were out on a date with him, it'd be first class dining all the way. "I can't wait to eat!" I said.

Harry grinned and walked me over to a table. "Harry?" I asked, when I saw the seat he had placed me in. "Can't we sit under the chandelier? That would be much more comfortable, I'm sure." The fact was, I didn't feel at peace with the glares Cho Chang was giving me, and Harry had chosen a seat right in front of her. Too much of a coincidence.

"May I take your orders, dears?" a squatty woman with a dirty pink apron asked. She passed us menus and grinned with false teeth. I forced an uneasy smile back at her, just to be polite, and looked at the menus. Nothing interested me except the marble cheesecake, and that was much to expensive for Harry. So I decided to order a cheap slice of pumpkin pie and hot Chinese tea instead. "I'll be right back, dears," said the waitress as she bobbled away, pushing passed oval shaped tables and a crowd of customers.

"So, Harry... How have you been these passed few months? I've really missed you," I said, placing a pink napkin over my lap and straightening the wrinkles.

When Harry didn't answer, I looked over at him and saw him staring at Cho Chang, who was looking as annoyingly pretty as ever. "Harry?" I repeated, narrowing my eyes at him for attention. He turned but did not seem to care when he said, "Yes, yes. I missed you too, Hermione."

That made me even angrier than before. How could Harry be so thoughtless?! We were supposed to be on a DATE. You don't look at other girls when you were on a date. That inconsiderate... ugh! "Harry!" I said, glaring at him and Cho Chang. They seemed to be flirting with each other through expressions and I knew that Harry was thinking something horrendous right about now. "Harry can we just move, please?!"

Harry sighed and made a face as he broke the contact with Cho Chang. The Asian girl glared at me and spun back to the dazed boy she was dating. "All right, bookworm, I'm coming!" said Harry lazily as we moved to a spot under the chandelier. I grinded my teeth together, highly offended, and stomped after him.

The next few hours went by terribly. Harry kept staring at Cho Chang and making dreamy, distant looks when they made eye contac. The only time Harry spoke to me was to fake a conversation when Cho Chang passed by. He gave her a smug look when he hugged me, as though showing me off to get her attention. After a few more agonizing minutes, I decided to end this date.

"Harry? I think I'd better go now," I said, dismissing myself without his permission. Harry wove a hand at me carelessly and continued to stare at Chang. When he finally realized the absence of my presence, he ran over to me, grabbed me by the arm and said, "Hermione, wait! Don't you want to visit the Quidditch shop with me? You can't run off that quickly during our date! I thought you loved me."

"Yeah, I don't blame you. I thought I loved you too. I'm glad to see I was wrong though!" I snapped, releasing my arm from Harry's grip. It took some wriggling and tugging to finally be free since his fists were clenched so tightly. "Sorry, Potter! But I think that these past few hours have been one of the worst in my life!"

I began to walk away, but Harry stopped me by saying, "Its Malfoy isn't it?" My feet immediately came to a halt, and I turned around slightly. No matter how much I tried to hide the blush, it showed. Harry glared and said, "I can't believe it! I brought you here on a date and you just brush me away because of some other guy! When someone cares for you, you can't just push them off, you know! I gave you my undivided attention and you ignored it! I even payed for the food, for God's sake and you hardly appreciate the warm gesture!"

"Warm gesture?" I scoffed. My own fists clenched as I poked a hand against Harry's chest in irritation. "You call staring at another girl and letting your date rot in the scorching sun a warm gesture? I say that's torture! I don't believe I ever wanted to be with you in the first place! The whole 'My world sucks' thing was a piece of crap! Unlike YOU Harry, I did love you. I would have done anything for you before this day! But you just proved that all men were jerks, d'you know that! If I ever date a man again, that'd be the day! From now on, it's me, myself and I alone! UGH!" I punched Harry's chest with all the force I could muster and stalked away, leaving a bewildered Harry behind.

DRACO'S POV:

I watched the scene between Hermione and Potter play out with a broad smile. The Acid Heart serum worked like a charm. I revealed Potter's true intentions without leaving any trails behind. In a matter of moments, Hermione Granger would be in my arms, cooning soft and loving words through my ears. I smiled as the thought of that hit me and strode my way over to the angry muggleborn witch.

"Hey, Hermione," I greeted, faking a 'I don't know what just happened' look. When she looked up at me with puffy red eyes, I faked a look of question and innocence. "What happened to you? Wheres your date?"

"He is back at Madame Puddifoots, confused," she replied sadly. I tried to hide the grin on my face as the thought 'It's working like a charm' came to me. "I think the Acid Heart serum you used on him is kind of wearing off. It wasn't as powerful as it should be, but it was effective nevertheless."

My bottom jaw practically fell to the ground in shock. H-how the heck d-d-did she... Damn! "You are the smartest witch in Hogwarts," I said, my voice falling to a dissapointed whisper. The thought of Hermione hating me and slapping my cheek was too strong to overcome. "I'm sorry," I muttered, collapsing on a bench next to Hermione.

"That's all right," Hermione replied, her voice surprisingly calm and natural. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and pecked me on the cheek. With a dazed look on my face, I asked, "What was that for...?"

A small smile tugged on the corners of Hermione's lips. She looked at me with beautiful brown doe eyes and said, "I thank you for what you have done, Draco. You see, I added a couple of drops of the Acid Heart serum after you had. I knew it was kind of fishy that Harry brought me to the same place he dated Cho Chang. That blasted fool merely used me to get to Chang."

"So you hate him now?" I asked, grinning nastily as an image of Hermion ripping Potter's head off flashed through my mind. Hermione smirked. "Not exactly – so don't get your hopes up," she said teasingly. "I just got over the crush I had on him, but that doesn't change the fact that Harry has been my friend for over six years. I'll talk with him and stuff, but I don't think I'll ever look at him as a best friend ever again. Harry's just a friend... Nothing more, probably less."

I sniggered and then asked a question I had been dying to ask ages ago. "Why do you always smirk like that?" Hermione's smirk widened in reply. "I thought you liked it when I smirked," she said, but instead of out loud, she said it telepathically. "I do," I replied, my own mind vibrating as I passed that message over to her. "Then does this mean you're still single?"

Hermione rolled her eyes, a smile appearing on her pretty face. "Yes," she said. "But that doesn't mean I'll come to you with open arms. You'll have to win my attention by yourself!"

"That I can do."

So how is it? I hope you like. Once again, I repeat when I say, the next few chapters are in the verge of being completed. Please give me 10 OR MORE reviews for this chapter, and I'll try harder to give you the upcoming chaps. Well, it's pass midnight now. Got to go. G'bye!

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