Chapter 21: My Everything


Happy Halloween all! Isn't that like the coolest holiday ever?

Major thanks to everyone who reviewed! Not going to give you some excuse for not updating as quick as I used to but unfortunately, life just had to get in the way, life as in school…blah. But I suppose I just had to update today cuz it's my birthday lol 16 feels old...Enjoy!

I wanted to you to know, I love the way you laugh

I want to hold you high, and steal your pain away

I keep your photograph, and I know it serves me well

I want to hold you high, and steal your pain.

'Cuz I'm broken, when I'm open

And I don't feel like that I'm strong enough

'Cuz I'm broken, when I'm lonesome

And I don't feel right when you're gone away.

Damned knots! Damned tangles! Damned hair!

Frustrated, the princess forcefully hurled her ivory comb across the room where it hit the burgundy walls and dropped unharmed into the sea of purple carpeting below. Huffing, she glared at her wild, frizzy haired reflection in the mirror then threw her head into her arms. Hermione had been in her room all morning for the king had insisted she take the whole day off from her lessons to prepare for the ball that evening. "Who in the world would require a whole day to prepare?!" She'd wondered. But as it turned out, the whole day wasn't going to be enough! She'd need at least another week! Her hair alone would take a minimum of four whole days to fully untangle and her eyes were completely shot from her lack of sleep the previous night. All night long she'd had nightmares of marrying eighty year old uncles or cousins or some other elderly relatives. The prospect couldn't be describe as anything short of horrifying. And then of course….there was Hadrian. He haunted her dreams each and every night ever since she'd begun avoiding talking to him. Hermione hadn't had a proper conversation with him for weeks now aside from the mandatory formalities, but every time when she looked his way, it seemed his sharp blue eyes pierced into hers, drawing her in. A strange tingle still flowed through her body when she thought back upon him. Then, there was of course the most prominent figure in her flash of dreams. A silver-blond someone. Endymion….or so he called himself. She would find out for certain tonight. Once and for all.

"Princess?" A gentle knocking at her door shook her out of her reverie.

She immediately recognized the familiar voice. "Come in and it's Hermione" she corrected.

Hestia promptly made her way in ignoring Hermione's comment and picked up the ivory comb along the way. "Drop something?" she asked raising an eye brow.

"I got frustrated." The princess muttered brushing the frayed strands of hair away from her face.

Ugh! I would kill for just a drop of conditioner…

"Ay, sit up, let me help you." The girl offered.

"Thanks….." Hermione was silent for a moment as the maid started on the giant mass of tangles at the back of her head. "What am I supposed to wear tonight anyway?"

"I don't quite know. Your father had a gown brought in from Venice just yesterday I believe. Took eons to get here. But I have yet to see it" she replied working on a particularly stubborn knot.

"A dress is a dre-OW"

"Sorry."

"It's fine. —a dress is a dress. Does it really matter where it's from? I already own enough to clothe the whole country!"

The handmaiden tittered to Hermione's great annoyance. "Tonight's a special night and you know it. A special night calls for a special gown." The brunette frowned and began rifling through her numerous jewellery boxes. This was such a ridiculous way to spend such a large amount money! Instead of buying so many useless gowns she could be using the money to help the less fortunate! But unfortunately, homeless people had to be the least of her worries that day. A sickening feeling arose in her stomach just at the thought. She, Hermione Aurelia Granger, age 16 had to select a husband…..tonight! She had less than 24 hours to fall in love…..this was undoubtedly mission impossible. It had taken her a full 5 years to even admit to herself that she was actually falling for Harry and he, himself still didn't know. Hermione could see only one bright side to the whole night; she couldn't get turned down. There would be no Cho to steal away her "love."

At least that's what she hoped.

Love my arse….

Truthfully, the only person she had the slightest bit of interest in was Endymion. But if……if he really was lying to her again. She wouldn't know what to do. Of course on the other hand, there was still Hadrian to fall back on. And he wasn't exactly hideous. As a matter of fact, he was quite the opposite. She found herself lusting after the dark-haired man, but it was purely in a physical sense. In truth, he frightened her. Something about him just didn't seem right.

"Have you seen the ebony chest?' Hestia's voice broke through her train of thought once again. "It's a gift from Dame Hecate."

Hermione's copper hues wandered over to the direction Hestia had gestured to. A small, delicate ebony chest with only a tiny silver clasp contrasting rather violently against the black. Upon closer inspection, the ebony box was certainly not as plain as it seemed. Complex designs were carved all around it. "What's this say?" the princess asked as she noticed a string of characters inscribed along the border. Sic erat in fatis

"It looks like Latin. You should know. You're the one taking lessons aren't you?" the maiden teased.

Her brows scrunched up as she stared long and hard at the words.

So….so it...was…something…

No matter. She would look it up later. Gently, she undid the clasp and pushed the lip back. No sound was emitted when she gasped as she finally laid her eyes upon the object within. It was a large, gleaming, blood-red ruby pendant intricately carved into the resemblance of a rose. The fine, golden chain that was threaded through seemed far too delicate to be able to hold up the weighty gem stone.

The Pansy-doppelganger snorted loudly. "It's a bit loud and kitschy don't you think? Dame Hecate always was one for such ostentatious bits and pieces."

Carefully, Hermione lifted the stone into her hand and held it up. The streaming sunlight shone clear though the stone casting ghostly yet ethereal crimson flecks across her bare skin. It reminded her vividly of blood. "It's incredible" she breathed running a finger across the blood-like stains. They seemed so real…

"Really now, well, I suppose it's alright. As long as you like it. That's all that really matters." said Hestia. Hermione caught sight of the maid in the vanity wrinkling her nose in distaste.

"I want to wear it tonight" she said firmly as she carefully placed the gem back into its ebony chest.

"But what if your dress is, oh I don't know…say….blue? It'd clash horribly!" Hestia protested.

"I don't care. I just…..want to wear it. Tonight." Hermione stated. Nothing would change her mind.

"Alright then, it's your choice." The girl sighed in resignation and simply continued untangling Hermione's wild mess of curls.

.:.

"Will you boys please hurry up?" the countess cried impatiently from the bottom of the stairwell.

Prometheus stuck his head over the banister and called back to his mother. "Just five more minutes!" before scurrying over to Draco's room and forcefully pushing the door open while trying to button up his shirt.

"What?!" the platinum-haired boy barked irritably as he stood before his wardrobe shirtless, rummaging for something decent to wear.

"Can I borrow your dark-green tunic for tonight?" asked the dreadfully rumpled looking boy who had only his head sticking through the crack of the door.

I could just walk over there right now and clip off his head…

No. I'm wearing it" he replied stiffly. Draco truly had no intentions of wearing his green tunic that night, nor any other coloured tunic. The less dressed up he was, the less noticeable he would be and no one, especially Hermione would be able to find him.

"Fine then." Prometheus replied curtly and slammed the door behind him.

The Slytherin huffed aloud into the empty room. He would never let the Harry duplicate get anywhere near his possessions; brother or not. After minutes of searching through his now cluttered chest, he came out with a simple black button up adorned with uncomfortably puffy sleeves and a matching pair of trousers that were just a bit too snug for his liking. As he finally finished lacing up his impeccable black boots, Draco stood before the mirror admiring his reflection. Only he could make such simple clothing seem so sexy and stunning. Automatically, his hand reached over to his desk for a comb, but at the last moment, he decided against it. Draco merely ran a hand through his freshly washed hair and left it looking neatly muddled. The laid back look. He rather enjoyed it.

"Adonis! Quit admiring yourself in the mirror and let's go! The princess won't be waiting around all night!" cried Phaeton banging loudly at Draco's door.

A strange fluttering feeling arose within the pit of him. What emotion he was feeling at the moment was completely foreign to him. He'd never felt it before and he wasn't sure if he liked it the least bit. Quickly, Draco took one last glance around his room, but just before he was about to leave, his storm-cloud orbs fell upon the painting. A faint crease crossed his forehead. The blood on the necklace had dried with a murky brown. Right in the centre, was an odd patch of brown that seemed darker than the rest. Squinting the slightest bit, he zoomed in on the no longer crimson pendant. The blood had dried in what appeared to have been in the shape of a dragon.

.:.

"She keeps staring at you."

Turning, Draco pretended to look out the window. She was indeed staring at him.

"Subtle isn't she" he muttered turning his back to her. Draco certainly wasn't in the mood for any snogging sessions tonight, at least not with her.

How in the world did she find me…

"Isn't it a good thing? She's rather pretty" Prometheus stated, eying the rather conspicuous maiden.

The blond boy merely shrugged and headed over to the food table, hoping to break her unnerving gaze. So far, everything seemed fine. Boring, but fine. He had yet to see Hermione for he had missed her grand entrance. A part of him felt anxious to see her, but the other part was afraid. What was he going to say her? What was he going to do? And most importantly, who was he going to be?

"Ay, look! I think she's heading this way!" Prometheus pointed out, nudging Draco out of his trance.

The Slytherin groaned quietly, reluctant to turn around and face her until she finally reached him. He was forced to turn around rather reluctantly when she tugged at his sleeve.

"What do you—" he stopped abruptly in mid-sentence. "Princess!" quickly Draco shot a glare at Prometheus who edged away sniggering softly. They stood staring at one another for a moment, Draco felt oddly naked, as she seemed to be looking at something that wasn't there. But the most unnerving part of the situation, was, well her. She looked exactly like his unfinished portrait. Her hair cascaded like a waterfall of auburn locks across her bare shoulders and down her back. It barely brushed the top of her bottle-green, Basque-style velvet gown with intricate brocade woven into the bodice. The dress trailed down with a black velvet skirt which would have picked up much dirt from the floors if not for the glass slippers she bore beneath. It was as if she'd stepped out of his canvas and was standing right before him. How could he not have noticed the similarities before? What confirmed the eeriness of the situation was the necklace. Upon her neck was the crimson neck piece he had painted. It seemed both out of place and perfect at the same time.

She was beautiful.

"Would you mind going outside with me?" Hermione asked shyly looking him in the eyes. "I know we usually end up meeting outside, but tonight I just—"

Draco quickly intervened, "I'd love to. It's far too crowded in here for my liking anyway." It seemed the anxious part of him had won.

As quiet as can be, the two slipped out from the ballroom and out the doors; hopefully unnoticed.

.:.

It was a particularly cold night that Halloween, a light wind brought about rain clouds that hung over the castle just waiting to relinquish upon the unwary innocents below. Slowly in an awkward silence, they made their way into the winding floral gardens.

In spite of the looming rain clouds above, the moon somehow managed to still shine brilliantly across the grounds, illuminating the landscape and those around. Light drops of rain every now and then fell aimlessly down to Earth, eventually once reaching Hermione. Nervously, she ran her fingers through her hair, careful not to shift her tiara. It was now far more practical for Hestia had applied scented oils into her hair, smoothing out the frizz and taming the unrelenting tangles.

"How….How have you been?" she asked setting herself beside the seemingly enchanted roses. It had been quite a while since she'd last seen them, but they were still as lovely as ever.

"I've….been okay, I suppose." Draco replied, lightly running his fingers across the petals. "How are you?"

"Fine. Well, much better now that I'm out here." Hermione smiled at him as he looked up at her. He could already feel his heart beat increasing with each second that passed by. "I was going absolutely mad in there!"

"Yea, well, being in a room full of people trying to win you over can be a bit overwhelming at times" he grinned, swiftly plucking a single white rose from the bush. "For you, fair Princess."

"Mmm, thank you, it's lovely. But you're bleeding now" she frowned, cautiously accepting the rose so as not to prick herself as he had.

"It's nothing," he said offhandedly wiping his hand across his black trousers. "Where'd you get that necklace?" Draco added as he noticed how the weak rays of moonlight pierced through the ruby pendant creating flecks of crimson across her throat. It was a strange sight to behold. Like she was bleeding, but in reality, wasn't.

"A gift. From Dame Hecate." The princess replied, rubbing her thumb across the velvet, milky-white petals as she walked on deeper into the gardens.

"Where're you going?" he asked, jogging to catch up with her. For someone wearing a layered dress and high heels, she walked at a rather quick pace.

"Just follow" she said simply. Without another word spoken between them, Hermione led them side-by-side, up the leaf strewn path to their sacred apple tree.

As they arrived, they found it to be just as inviting as ever. Possibly even more so. A gentle wind with specks of rain rustled the vibrantly coloured autumn leaves that scattered across the ground circling the tree.

"Help me grab an apple will you, Malfoy? It's too far up" she huffed, reaching up for an apple hanging just above her head.

Draco chuckled and effortlessly plucked the apple off the tree. "Here you go, Milady. Eat up, maybe it'll help you grow a couple of inch—OW.

Caught in the act

The blow came so fast, he never saw it coming. She had hit him with such force that his mask had clattered to the floor and somehow, he still hadn't taken notice of that. Hermione stood before him with a burning anger, raging within her eyes. Her fists were clenched so tightly around the rose that the thorns began to draw blood that trickled from her fists.

The Slytherin boy stared at her in shock and confusion. His cheek still throbbed from the after-effects of her hand connecting with his face. "You know, when someone helps you, you usually say thank-you, not slap them" he said scowling.

"I-think—" she grated, "that when someone repeatedly lies to your face, you gain that—privilege."

"I did not l—" he began, but Hermione abruptly cut him off.

"Don't lie to my face, Malfoy. Not AGAIN. I think this—", she snatched the mask from the ground and thrust it into his chest, "is enough proof of your lies."

Draco stared at the mask, and then absentmindedly ran a hand across his face.

"Why did you lie to me?" she asked, her eyes filling with unwanted tears.

Dropping the disguise, he looked up at her. For some strange reason, it hurt him to see her like this. She wasn't supposed to feel this way. He wasn't supposed to care. "I—I don't know."

"That's not an answer." Hermione whispered coldly, wiping back the tears from her eyes.

He truly didn't know what to say, why had he even bothered lying to her in the first place?

Because he was afraid.

He was afraid of being with her.

"I didn't want to."

"You didn't want to what?" she countered, angrily as the hot tears continued to stream down her flushed visage. She could no longer hold them back. Everything within her had been so unceremoniously inverted so that she could't tell what was what any longer. She had seen it coming, but why did she care? He was Draco Malfoy. She wasn't supposed to care what he did. She wasn't…

"I didn't want to lie to you. I didn't want to hurt you…." he trailed off staring hard at the ground before her feet.

"You're not supposed to care about me" she hissed, failing to control the words that seemed to flow unstoppably from her lips.

"I know." Uncertainly, he looked back up at her. "I'm—sorry."

For the second time in his life, he had uttered the s-word and to the very same person.

A strange expression crossed her face, it seemed, almost pained. "Don't be. You still haven't answered my question."

Slowly, words fell with extreme caution from his mouth. "Maybe…. It's because I like you."

Hermione stared at him with a horrified expression upon her face. "You can't say that."

"I think I just did."

"No. You can't." she repeated, clutching her dress tightly and backing away from him.

"You can't tell me you don't feel anything." Draco softly and steadily, but his eyes filled with anger and passion as he followed her steps.

Her mouth opened, but no words would come out. Without another glance, she whipped around and ran from him. Draco stared after her feeling like his world had just come crashing down in horrendous disarray. In her hands she still held the now blood-stained rose.

What had he done?

.:.

"Good lord, what happened to you?" the King cried, as he finally tracked down the belle of the ball.

Strands of her hair were matted down to her cheeks that were sticky with the residual of her salty tears. Her eyes were framed with the pinkish-red outline that could only have been acquired from crying.

"Nothing." Hermione replied rubbing her arms with both hands trying to warm herself, at long last noticing she still held the bloody rose.

"Ah, there's no time to fix you up anyway. It's time for you to make your announcement. Come now, follow me" he ordered, as he quickly brushed the hair away from her face.

Feeling nothing but misery and guilt, she trailed behind him through the crowd up upon the stage.

The royal courtier flanked the opposite side of the King and called for the attention of the entire room. It wasn't a very difficult task seeing as everyone was eager to hear Hermione's final decision.

"Ah, I do hope everyone is enjoying themselves tonight!" her father began. A respectful applause acknowledged him.

"First of all, I would like to thank each and every one of you for attending; I do hope my daughter has had a chance to meet with each of you young gentlemen personally." A quiet murmur swept across the crowd. "After tonight, I hope you will all come visit us some time! Well, then I suppose I won't keep you all waiting! Now, is the moment you have all been waiting for. Will you all please remove your disguises. Princess?" he gently beckoned his daughter upstage. Mechanically, she complied. Looking out, she could see the vast collection of young men, more than half of whom she had never spoken to, all looking up at her hopefully. "Have you made your decision, dear?"

Numbly, Hermione looked up at him, and then back down to the crowd. Just then, from the corner of her eye, she caught sight of the side door opening a crack with a familiar blond head entering. He stood at the back of the crowd, trying to conceal himself but refused to meet her eyes.

"Well, Princess? Don't keep us waiting now." King Titan said jovially.

"I— " she paused, having not the slightest idea what she was going to say.

"Yes?" he pressed on.

With a deep breath, Hermione finally made her decision," I haven't chosen anyone."

The room was silent, her eyes had finally caught hold of Draco's. He stared at her with a stunned expression upon his face.

The King coughed uncomfortably and clapped his ring dominated hands together. "Well then, that's a shame."

It was Hermione's turn to be stunned. That was it? She wouldn't have to wed?

"Ladies and Gentlemen, the Princess shall be wedded to Prince Hadrian of Spain in no later than a month!" he announced.

All and sundry broke out in a forced applause and phoney smiles, a veneer that disguised the fact that they were all appalled she hadn't chosen one of the men that had attended.

"Thank you all for coming then, I bid you all a good night!" and with that, he stepped down from the stage while the room began to disperse, flooding out of the room two by two.

A feeling of vomiting crossed Hermione's stomach. She would be wedded to Hadrian….

Not knowing where to go, or what to do, she stepped down from the stage, and headed out once more, not caring that the rain was now drizzling down from the night sky.

.:.

She wandered aimlessly into the night, her hair and dress growing heavy with the weight of the rain. Somehow, her feet, or perhaps her heart had led her to her apple tree where she had been with Draco, a mere hour before. Collapsing beneath the weight of the world, she fell to her knees and began to cry. She had never felt this lost and alone. Securely, she wrapped her arms around her knees and pressed her face against her water-filled skirt. The sound of the rain slowly drowned out the sound of her tears, and gradually, everything else. She never even noticed when two arms came around her and held her, keeping her safe and sound from all the problems of the world.

"Don't cry." The voice said soothingly as her tears began to slow down.

In surprise, Hermione leapt up to her feet, stumbling back a few paces.

"You" she gasped, her glittering bronze orbs wide in disbelief.

"Me" he said standing up to level himself with her.

"Why?" she asked, her eyes pleading him for the truth.

"I told you." Said Draco quietly, "I like you. A lot."

More than I should…

Hermione bit her lip in pain and shook her head wildly sending a spray of rain drops flying from her hair. "No! No…no…no…."

A pained look was etched upon his face as he saw her shaking her head in denial. Stepping towards her, he drew her closer and looked her straight in the eyes. Her cheeks were dripping with fallen raindrops that blended so perfectly with her tears. The rain and her tears had long cleansed her face of any cosmetics.

He hated seeing her cry.

"Why can't you just admit it?" he asked desperately, holding onto her as if he would lose her any minute.

"I don't know" she choked out, burying her face in his chest.

A dull pain awoke within him, throbbing to the steady pulse of the rain that seemed to shield them from the world around.

"Just tell me you want to be with me" he said hoarsely, blinking away the drops of rain that blurred his vision. He had always prided himself in being able to see clearly when others couldn't.

Trembling, Hermione looked into his storming eyes. "Y-you're Draco Malfoy...and...I—I don't want to get hurt again" she whispered, her grip upon him tightening.

Her actions seemed to depict the words but he needed to hear it from her. He needed to know.

Caressing her chin gently, he brought her lips near his own. "I'll never hurt you, Hermione. Ever" he promised.

His eyes seemed to show her the truth, his promise, she wanted so desperately to trust him, to be with him. But she was so afraid. It just hurt so much….she would never be able to withstand the pain of further heartbreak.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry" she cried, striving to restrain the tears that seemed to flow endlessly. She had long lost control. "I just—I don't know."

Draco's heart seemed to fill with more and more pain with each word she uttered. Didn't she want him? To be with him? His head spun with confusion but the only thing that seemed clear in his mind was that he wanted to be with her, Hermione. He wanted to be with Hermione Granger.

Pushing her wet locks away from her face, he leaned his forehead against her own. He could feel the intense heat from her reddened cheeks and her hot, rapid breathing. Closing his eyes, he let his hands drift down to her waist. He could feel the heavy material drenched beneath his fingers. Taking a deep breath, he let go of her waist and took hold of her icy hands.

"I don't want to see you hurting, Hermione. I want to take away your pain, I want to save you, I want to be your redemption, your saviour, your knight in shining armour. Hermione Granger, I want to be with you…..I want to be with you."

He could feel her breathing slowing down and her hands lying limp within his own.

"Harry hurt me." she said finally. "...It hurts."

His heart stopped at her words. "It only hurts if you still have feelings for him. Do you?" he asked, dreading the answer.

Silence, save for the rain still increasingly falling with each minute that passed by, surrounded them. Why did he have to ask her that? He knew he didn't stand a chance against the Golden boy. Now he would lose her forever…but he would never give up.

"….a flickering flame." Hermione sighed, shattering the tension that had built up within Draco. "But the pain feels so vivid. I just wish it would go away."

Tenderly, he cupped her face inside his hands and looked her in the eyes, as if trying to tell her with his silver-grays exactly how he felt about her. "I want to be the one who makes your pain go away" he whispered softly.

Shaking, she wrapped her arms around his chest and held him tightly.

"It's raining" she said, slowly pulling back from him.

"Does it help put out the fire?" Draco asked.

A faint smile crossed her lips as she stepped into him. "Indefinitely, but now a new one's just taken its place." Ever so slowly, she slid her hands up his chest and entwined her arms around his neck.

"I want to be with you, Draco Malfoy" she breathed.

A crack shattered the ice upon his frozen heart, and he held her tightly against him. She had never felt so safe in her life before. The rain struck down in a steady stream around them but he didn't care.

"And I, you." he whispered, and slowly, he leaned forward and tenderly met his lips with hers. At last. They were together. Draco had never felt happier in his life.

Mother Nature carried on her own stream of tears, but they were undoubtedly tears of happiness that rained down upon the two lovers that were finally united. Together, they stood beneath their apple tree, wrapped safely in one another's arms.

Together at last.

A/N

Lmfao I hope no one's caught onto the lil stupid thing yet lol nope no one notices…but it works! So all good! Hope you all enjoyed that! After so many chapters lol!

Broken- Seether ft. Amy Lee (best song in the world!)

Wellpz see you all in a bit! Still have to prepare stuff for my party…haha…you're all invited by the way! Anyone figure out what country I'm from yet? Lol, pretty obvious from my spelling but whatever! Rambling on….

Nov 2 2004 - 6:23pm Important Notice (yes, I'm indecisive, it was on another chapter, but that's retarded so here I am…)

Gahhhhh lol did that last chapter seem so finalized? Sorry if you thought this was a chapter by the way, but I really have to point out THAT WASN'T THE LAST CHAPTER! THERE WILL BE MORE!

I'm taking this notice down as soon as I update which should be sooner cuz I already started on it! So yea, thanks for sticking with me for so long you guys are awesome!

And yea, lol my history wasn't that great, but think AU here cuz it's in their minds and all. But yea, just makes more sense if I try to make it more accurate I suppose. Right okay, thanks much then!

Dhr rules!

-Finally-defeated

ps. Er, nice try, but I'm not from Germany