A/N: To all who have read this, please do not hate me. I haven't updated in forever because I've been working on my other fic, 'Hermione's Wounds' which has about 12 chapters! Please, read that one while waiting for more on this to come. Well, first things first, time to thank my reviewers.

Emma Lillianne Granger

Bitter Rose Mary

wHiTe eLaNoR

NY GE Pyromaniac

Morgan (my best friend, Hope!)

ILoveKp (a loyal reader of Hermione's Wounds also)

George (ahem. Flames are welcome, but only ones that are constructive. You just saying my story is lame is not constructive, if you are looking for a better written story, then please check out Hermione's Wounds, my other fic, if that is not good enough for you, then at least tell me what makes my stories so, lame.)

Living Dead Girls (I realize I am thanking you for the chapter that you reviewed, but I made a blunder last night when I didn't puit in the actual names...and I'd LOVE to read yours!)

Kate-Felton (sorry, but Tom is MINE! laughs evilly)

Courtney (er...what does bumps mean exactly?)

Thanks for reading! Enjoy!

Chapter Three

Hermione joined the throng of Gryffindors as the school made their way back to the castle. She joined in the singing and cheering as the Quidditch team led the way to the Gryffindor Tower. Obviously, a party was at hand. She smiled as she, Ron, and Harry veered off from the rest of the group to steal into the kitchens. She smiled at them and gave each of them a hug. "You two did terrific! See, I told you that you had nothing to worry about!" She tickled the pear as she said this and the house-elves immediately rushed forward. They had finally forgiven Hermione because she was such a frequent visitor and no longer bothered them about S.P.E.W.

After about 15 minutes of being carted the best foods in the kitchens, the three made their way back to the Gryffindor Tower, entering to many cheers and tankards of butterbeer. They set the food down on the table and joined in the merriment. Even Hermione let it pass that no one was working on his or her homework, for a new record had been set. She jovially dances around with a little third year as the two new troublemakers, Bill and Tom made a horrible jiggish sort of tune with their wands waving madly in the air.

The whole of Gryffindor Tower partied into the night until finally, all the food was gone and the jugs of butterbeer were emptied. Harry, Ron, and Hermione were the last to leave the common room just as Peeves flew in. Peeves was still angry with Hermione for ignoring him earlier, so he quickly swiped her wand from her pocket and dangled it above her in the air.

She looked to the door of the boys' dormitories just as it shut and then back to Peeves, who was nagging her in his singsong voice, "Who's in charge now? Certainly not Miss Head Hurl!" He then mimicked a retching motion before flying through the back of the Fat Lady's portrait.

Hermione quickly followed him down flights of stairs and through hidden passageways until he finally dropped her wand and flew off leaving the echo of his cackling laughter behind in the dark dungeon corridor in which she found herself.

The laughter sounded oddly familiar as she made her way back the way she had come, only to find a trick wall in the place of the previous stairs. "Oh, now what?" She cried until she heard the soft taps of footsteps and a swishing cloak somewhere on the other side of the wall. It was the distinguished sound of Snape so she bolted in the other direction, eyes wide with fright.

She couldn't be caught wandering the corridors this late at night, no, she was Head Girl, she was supposed to set and example for all at Hogwarts. She held her wand tightly in her hand and ran blindly through the dark, her feet pounding against the stone floor, just as her heart pounded in her ears.

She continued running with her head down and eyes closed until, suddenly, she ran into something, no, someone. Immediately the taunts stopped when that someone's hands rested themselves along the curves of her waist to stop her falling backwards from the collision. She slowly lifted her head to look at the one whom was holding her. As her eyes reached the mysterious person's face, she let out a startled gasp.

The hands holding her were none other than Draco Malfoy's. "Get away from me, you ferret!" She cried out, trying to wrench herself away from him, but he was too strong. 'Damnit,'she thought in frustration, until she realized this is exactly what had happened in her dream.

"Right, that's it. This is just another dream, like the one I had last night." She breathed a sigh of relief and let out a small chuckle. After which, Draco's voice followed.

"My, my, Hermione. Dreaming about me, are we? Now, we can't have that, can we? No, how about reality. Yes, that's much better." He said this in a cool, soft voice, most unlike his usual cold drawl. He smiled, that's right, smiled as he looked down at the gorgeous girl in his hands.

A horrified look of shock crossed her face before her expression turned to confusion. Draco could almost see her brain ticking with thought. She looked up at him and spoke calmly, "Malfoy, please, let me go. I have to get out of here, and I'd rather not be covered in your filth whenever I get back to my dormitory." She said this, although she had a hidden meaning within it. She was actually pleading with him to let her go before she fainted, for she was getting a bit of a tingling sensation that was spreading through her body at his touch.

Draco frowned at this and replied, "Now, is that any way to treat the one person who knows the way out of here, and stopped you from falling on your backside? Your rather sexy backside, if I might add." He smirked at this last comment as her eyes widened. He rubbed her side by moving his thumb across the fabric of her shirt. Holding her just felt so right, he didn't want to let her go.

'Did he just call my backside, sexy?' Hermione gulped and dared to look up at Draco, she immediately got lost in his cool, grey eyes. Her knees buckled slightly as his grip tightened on her waist. She didn't mean the words that followed this floating sensation, but she said it anyway, "Yours is too." She then realized her mistake as Draco's smirk grew wider and she shook her head violently. "I mean...I mean..." She had lost; she gave up the fight and let herself relax in defeat. She found Draco Malfoy attractive, and there was nothing she could do about it. Now he was going to make her life miserable, but little did she know, he felt the same for her.