Disclaimer: Do I look like J.K. Rowling to you?
Lazy: Uhh… I'm gonna take that as a compliment.
Natty123: I dunno, you guys just seem disappointed in some things or you want something to happen, that it's hard to stay on track.
Jadecowan: I know your upset about the breakup, but it was necessary to add drama and effect to the story.
Samantha Cameron: Yeah, every story needs a good breakup!
Unknown: Thanks.
Sexyslytherin2: I know! I reread my chapter, and I was just like , "Aww, that was so sweet!" I surprise myself sometimes!
JiminiCricket: Your eyes hurt, huh? Lol. Well, keep reading!
Anonymous: Whoa, a new boyfriend already? Lol. Cool. They hurt Nate? For dating a girl younger that him? Physically hurting him? Or just teasing? Ouch.
Orlilover16: I think I have an idea for the pracuer thing. You don't really have to try to come up with an idea. I think I know what I'm going to do.
Strawberrylemonade520: Yeah, that was exactly what I was thinking. And they should definitely get back together.
Mz122: Lol, thanks. A true work of art? I doubt it, but thanks anyway.
Cassandra: Thanks. I thought it was pretty cool too.
Everlastingme: Yeah, Malfoy is emotional, but I like him that way. It proves how much Hermione really changed him.
Hkhoney01: I stopped writing song lyrics. Besides, if the chapter is long enough, who cares if there is a song? If people don't want to read them, they can skip it! I just like being able to relate my chapters to a song, especially a good one.
Dracosgirl2515: Thank you. I'll try to update quickly.
Manny-cassie-santos: Well, it added drama and effect to the story. Besides, their relationship can't be perfect.
A/N: The teams might get confusing, so I listed it here. I know that there was major changes in the fifth book, but pretend that never happened. I know some characters don't seem like the Quidditch type, but work with me here!
EVERYBODY, I KNOW THIS IS RANDOM, BUT I AM ABSOLUTELY OBSESSED WITH THE SONG "NUMB/ENCORE" BY JAY-Z VRS. LINKIN PARK!
Gryffindor Quidditch Team:
Captain/Seeker:
Harry Potter
Chasers:
Ginny Weasley
Cliff Irkles
Deman Flurksitz
Beaters:
Dean Thomas
Seamus Finnigan
Keeper:
Ron Weasley
Slytherin Quidditch Team:
Captain/Seeker:
Draco Malfoy
Chasers:
Jerry Catafro
Jake Sweitzer
Prestode Fikrig
Beaters:
Vincent Crabbe
Gregory Goyle
Keeper:
Blaise Zabini
Chapter 20…
Draco dashed out of the common room and raced down the corridors. Today's the day. The big Quidditch game. Slytherin vrs. Gryffindor. Me vrs. Hermione.
At the thought of Hermione, he felt tears sting his eyes. Brushing them away, he tried to focus. Concentrate, Malfoy. Concentrate on the game.
"Hey, Captain! Where you been? We've all been waiting for that pep talk," Blaise, the keeper, greeted him good-naturally, grinning. Draco forced a smile. He then realized that they were all looking at him expectantly.
"You gonna give the talk, or what?" one chaser, Jake Sweitzer, demanded. Draco blinked. Where the hell is this kid from? I don't remember him… Oh yeah. He's muggle-born too.
"Umm… Well, try your hardest, guys. Strategize, work together, and try to remember what I told you in practice," Draco mumbled. Everyone stared at him in disbelief.
"That's it? No lectures, threats, nothing this time?" another chaser, Jerry Catafro, asked skeptically. Draco shrugged.
"Uhh… Well… Zabini, watch the left post. I told you about that in practice, 'member? The Gryffindors know that the left post is your weakness, so they tend to aim for that one… Crabbe, Goyle, aim your bludgers at Potter most of the time to try to get him off my tail. I'll be free to catch the Snitch, then… Jerry, unless your trying to score, when somebody else is, stay on the right side. That's where Weasley, if he manages a save, usually sends it. Go for the rebound…" Draco's voice trailed off.
"That's your big pep talk? A few pointers?" Prestode Fikrig inquired. His nickname was Fig Newton, after his last name.
"Shut up, Newton," Draco snapped.
"Touch-y, are we?" Jake muttered.
"Get on the field!" Draco ordered. The troop slowly headed out. Blaise winked at Draco as he passed.
"That's more like it, captain," he kidded. Draco rolled his eyes. Once outside, he looked up at the Gryffindor section in the stands.
Hermione was staring at the Gryffindor team intently, a deliberate snub. Draco swallowed sadly. He quickly crawled onto his broom, a Nimbus 2002 (the newest version!) and waited.
The whistle pierced the air. Draco kicked off the ground and flew upward, feeling the air rush past him. Sighing contently, he circled the stadium, one eye on the game and another searching for the snitch.
But he couldn't focus. And the whole team relied on him. All the strategies revolved around him. When he fell apart, they fell apart.
And he was certainly falling apart now.
I miss Hermione. I want her, I want to touch her skin, I want to feel her silky hair, I need her. God, Hermione, why did we have to break up?My stupid-ass father.
"HEY! MALFOY! LOOKING FOR SOMETHING?" a voice called out, snapping Draco out of his daze. He glanced up to see Harry, floating on his Firebolt, hooting.
Draco looked up towards the sky and saw the snitch floating around above his head. "Oh." The snitch began to zip around wildly, Harry darting after it.
Quickly, Draco urged his broom forward. But when the Nimbus 2002 realized that it had a bad rider, it was slow and sluggish. Draco put no energy forth into catching it.
Harry easily caught up with the snitch. Glancing back at Draco, he reached out and… it was on the edge of his fingertips! He could grasp it! And…
Harry violently jerked his broom away, leaving the snitch. A gasp could be heard from the crowd. Draco stared at him, confused.
"Take it, Malfoy. Before you lose it," Harry yelled. Draco blinked, puzzled. Surely there has to be a different reason why he's doing this. A trick. Something! But one look at Harry's determined face told him that he was wrong.
Dean Thomas flew by, chasing after a bludger. "Stop being a gentleman, Harry! Grab the snitch or we'll lose! They're playing really well today!" he called out as he passed.
"I don't want the snitch. I play fair, Potter. Grab it yourself," Draco snarled back. Harry raised his eyebrows and floated around lightly. The snitch, meanwhile, still bobbed up and down in that same spot.
"Malfoy, just take it! I know you want it! Take it! I don't care!" Harry insisted. Draco glared at him.
Cliff Irkles zoomed past them. "Captain! Grab that Snitch or we'll lose! We're already losing for 60 points!" he cried.
"I don't need your pity, Potter. Grab the Snitch, fair and square. I'd rather have the joy of knowing I won because I tried and I worked hard, rather than knowing that I only won because somebody gave it to me," Draco retorted.
"You know what? Why don't we both go for it? Okay? On the count of three. One… two… THREE!" Harry hollered. Draco reluctantly dove for the golden sphere, which hurried away.
Harry and Draco were neck to neck once more, but they were going at a pitiful speed. "Damn it! Just go, Potter! Obviously you can move faster than this! We agreed to a deal, right?" Draco cried, trying to urge his broom forward with no luck.
Harry sighed, took one last look at Draco, and burst forward, catching the Snitch easily. Draco halted his broom and drifted to the ground, not able to look the team in the eye.
The crowd had erupted with cheers, except for the Slytherin side. They stared in disbelief. Draco searched the stands for Hermione and found her staring at… Was it possible? Him?
Immediately, she turned away. Draco sighed and gazed down a the damp ground. Harry made his way through all his teammates and managed to shake Draco's hand before he was carried away.
Draco trudged into the locker room. "What was that, Malfoy? He offered you the Snitch, and you turned him down!" someone roared. It was Jerry Catafro.
"You lost us the whole game! If we lose one more, there's no possible way we can win the trophy!" Prestode Fikrig added angrily. Crabbe and Goyle grunted their assent.
"I can't believe you! And you were talking about 'playing fair' and everything! How stupid is that?" Jerry continued.
"Yeah! When have you ever played fair, Malfoy? I thought that was pretty hypocritical," Jake Sweitzer put in.
"And – "
"WOULD YOU ALL JUST SHUT UP FOR A GOD DAMN MOMENT?" Draco hollered. Everyone fell silent.
"Guys, leave him alone. Everyone has an off day," Blaise ordered kindly. Draco shrugged his eyebrows towards him: a thanks.
"An off day? More like a day where you lose your girlfriend," Prestode snorted. That was the last straw. Draco grabbed him by his robes and pushed him against the wall, lifting him several feet above the air.
"If you know what's good for you, you'd shut up right now. Who asked you, Newton?" he threatened. But Prestode Fikrig had gone too far to stop then.
"Just how important is she, anyways? Wasn't it all just a bet, to get her in bed? Isn't that way you hooked up with her? That's what all the rumors are saying, anyways. That's supposedly why your father hasn't taken your head yet."
"You leave my asshole of a father out of this," Draco commanded.
"Who would believe that Draco Malfoy is obsessed with a dumb girl? A mudblood, to be exact! Especially Hermione Granger!" Prestode ranted on.
"THAT'S IT! THAT'S WHERE I DRAW THE LINE! YOU WILL NOT INSULT HER IN FRONT OF ME, YOU HEAR? FIFTY POINTS FROM SLYTHERIN! YES, NEWTON, MY OWN HOUSE!" Draco bellowed.
"Malfoy's right, Newton. And why shouldn't he fall for Granger. She is pretty hot, after all. If Malfoy didn't have dubs on her, I'd shag her senseless," Jerry Catafro mused.
"SHUT UP! Twenty more points from Slytherin! You will not talk about her that way, got it?" Draco shouted, pulling out his wand and pointing it at Catafro with his free hand. With that, he dropped Fig Newton and stormed out of the locker room.
There was a knock on the portrait. "Hey-sss!" the snake hissed. Draco got up from the sofa and opened the painting.
"Drakie! I'm so sorry you lost the game. Aww," a voice cooed. Draco rolled his eyes when he saw Pansy Parkinson.
"Parkinson… What do you want?" he growled warningly. Pansy closed the picture and came into the common room, scampering up to him and immediately linking her arm into his.
"It's so nice to see you without her around," she sniffed, snuggling into his chest. Draco stiffened. "I don't know how you were able to stand it, Drakie! She's just like an annoying puppy, following you around."
"Parkinson! Get off of me!" he ordered. But Pansy refused to listen. She pressed against him and even managed to slip one hand underneath his shirt.
Draco jerked away angrily. "Leave me alone, you filthy slut!" Pansy pulled him back and began to kiss him. At first, he was so surprised, he didn't move.
He closed his eyes and imagined Hermione kissing him. Hermione… She was such a good kisser. But he had trouble imagining it.
Pansy was such a bad kisser. She slobbered all over him, playing with his shirt buttons. Hermione would just press her lips against his lightly.
Draco yanked himself away. "You're a horrible kisser, Parkinson. Get away from me," he snarled. Pansy pretended to pout.
"You didn't think so before. You didn't think so all those times you had sex with me," she retorted. Draco paled.
"That was a complete mistake. I never should have done it with a bitch like you," he spat out. Pansy just smiled.
"You don't really mean that, Draco. Don't you want to do it now? Release all that energy and tension?" she asked hopefully. Draco had to admit, he did want to do it. Just not with her.
"I don't love you, Parkinson. Why should I do it with you? I hate you!" he said. Pansy took a few steps towards him.
"I know why you would do it with me. Because you want to. Because you want to get that stupid mudblood out of your system…" With that, she began to kiss him. She pushed him onto the couch and began to push her hand under his shirt.
At that exact moment, Hermione pushed her way throught the portrait. She froze when she saw them. Draco instantly shoved Pansy away and leapt up.
"Hermione!" he cried as she darted out of the room and down the corridors. He stared after her, not wanting it to be true. "Get away from me, you bitch!" he shouted when Pansy tried to kiss him again.
Dashing out of the room, he hoped that he would find her in time.
Hermione rushed past the crowds of people, her eyes filling with tears. He told me that he loved me… And I believed him. I loved him back. She blindly stumbled through the halls and burst into an empty classroom. Sinking to the floor, she let the tears fall.
Meanwhile, Draco was trying to make his way through the corridors, jumping up once in a while to see if he could see her. God, Hermione, how the hell did this happen? He hurried past a group of fourth years, nearly knocking them down. Hermione, please don't do this to me. It was all an accident. A mistake. I'd never leave you for her… She has to be around here somewhere!
Draco began pushing his way through doors, only to find empty classrooms. Empty… Empty… Empty… EMPTY! Just as he was backing out of that las one, a loud sniffle pierced the air like a gunshot. He froze and carefully tip-toed back into the room.
There was another sniffle, this one quieter. Glancing around, he saw a small ball of robes huddled in the corner. "Oh, Hermione…" he murmured softly, moving towards her.
Her head snapped up, fear flooding her eyes. "No… NO! Go away, Draco!" she shrieked, more tears falling.
The next minute, his strong arms were around her, lifting her up. She beat her fists against his hcest. "I believed you! Every second, I trusted you! I stood up for you! And… And-," she cried, but her sobbing and sharp intakes of air wouldn't allow her to continue.
"Hermione, please. It wasn't real. She… she took me by surprise, Hermione. I swear to God," he explained. Hermione burst into a new flood of tears. "Don't you believe me, Hermione?" he asked desperately.
"I-I want to! But this always happens! Every time I start thinking that I really love you – that you would always be there – something happens! Something tears us apart!" She swallowed hard and buried her face into his robes.
"I love you, 'Mione, I do. But you have to believe in me – believe in us. I can't be the only thing holding us together," Draco said gently. Hermione nodded. "So, do you love me? Believe me?" he pressed.
"Yes," she whispered. Draco hugged her tightly and kissed her eyebrow.
"Good. And now I never want to let you go. Come on. Let's get back to common room before somebody comes in here," he murmured. Grasping her hand tightly, they walked out together…
Only to run into Professor McGonagall. "There you are! You two will report to your common room. And quickly!" she ordered.
"What's wrong, Professor?" Hermione asked, confused. Professor McGonagall shook her head and waved them off.
"Go! Professor Dumbledore and I will be there to talk to you shortly," she said. Draco and Hermione hurried upstairs.
"I wonder what that was all about," Draco mused. Hermione shrugged. She muttered the password, and they slipped into the common room.
But they weren't the only ones there. A tall figure stood by the window, his back to them. His long, black cape was draped over his back, coming down to the ground. His long blond hair was enough to give himself away.
"Father!" Draco gasped. Lucius Malfoy spun around smartly on his heel. He came closer, a menacing look plastered on his face. "Hermione… leave," Draco managed to choke out, paling.
"No… Draco…" She held onto his hand frantically. Draco's eyes darted towards her. His gaze was stern but loving.
"Please, Hermione. Go…" Hermione nodded and turned back for the door, but Lucius wasn't too agreeable.
He flicked his wand, instantly locking the door. Hermione cowered in fear. "Father!" Draco sharply cried. "Leave her alone!"
"Quiet, boy! Reccio aringos!" Hermione, taken by the blast of magic, flew back into the wall and slumped onto the floor. Lucius advanced on Draco.
Draco stood up straight and tall, trying to look brave, although he really wanted to run away. "I see you decided to ignore my warning, Draco," Lucius began, rubbing his wand.
Suddenly, he spun Draco around and kicked him in the back of his knees. His legs gave in, and he collapsed onto the floor with a grunt. Lucius began kicking him repeatedly in random places. A sudden blow in the stomach caused him to jerk back, losing his breath.
"Stand up!" Lucius ordered. Draco scrambled to his feet, clutching one arm in pain. Lucius punched him in the back of his chest, causing him to fall on all fours. Quickly getting up, Draco braced himself.
Fortunately, the portrait swung open just then. In came Dumbledore and McGonagall, followed my Madame Pomfrey, Professor Snape and Professor Flitwik. Lucius Malfoy froze.
"Lucius? Isn't it quite odd that, after aurors supposedly killed you, you are standing here. There were witnesses to your death. Yet you're standing before my eyes. In my school. In the head's dorm. With your son, who has, oddly enough, been beaten, right at your feet," Dumbledore questioned.
Lucius quickly Apparated away. (I know, you can't Apparate on Hogwarts grounds, but this is my story, and I say they can). "Professor! You could have seized him right then!" Professor Flitwik squealed.
"No… He will be needed later on," Dumbledore replied gravely. "Madame Pomfrey…" The nurse quickly knelt over Draco and performed a few spells.
"There. The bruises should heal quicker this way. But I can do nothing to make them disappear completely. You have no broken bones, thank goodness," she informed him.
"What… What about Hermione?" Draco gasped, gesturing towards her. Madame Pomfrey nodded and scurried towards her.
"Hmm… She just seems to be unconscious. She does have a few bruises on her back, but nothing else," she reported. She flicked her wand, and Hermione slowly woke up.
"Now… Mr. Malfoy, Miss Granger, we have serious news… We found out what's wrong with your pracuer," Dumbledore began. "After a lot of research, we found out what it means… You two are in grave danger. You must get out of here…"
