Disclaimer: Same old stuff, I'm not J.K. Rowling so I do not own Harry Potter. I am simply another obsessed HP fan who happens to enjoy writing about situations that will never happen in the actual books.

A/N: I'm sorry for taking so long to update, but school has been more busy than usual lately. I was also having a problem with writers block, so OI started writing another fic. I'm not going to post it for a while, but interestingly enough, writing that, totally helped cure my writers block for this chapter of this fic. Weird how that works out, huh? So yeah, so anyone who maybe have writers block troubles, when nothing else works, try writing something else, it helps to clear your mind.

Now, as always, thank you to all my awesome reviewers! You guys never cease to brighten my day!

jesska-14, roundrockrules, Sirius-harry-n-remus, lhearttomfelton, SwTnDrEaMyPnAy03, Me, Chantal J, zuvalupa, – You guys rock! Thanks for the reviews!
FallenBrokenAngel – no you're right he was being a bit two-faced, but he wasn't doing it to hurt her, he was doing it to help her. While it may not have been the noblest way of helping her, it was certainly the way a Slytherin would behave! Thanks for the review!

Alcapacien – what happens in the common room stays in the common room. Ok, maybe not entirely, but as far as I can tell at the moment, Hermione is never going to find out what Draco told his housemates. And yes he did do it go gain their trust again. Good question . . . what is up with Blaise? ;o)
Calgal – Wow, you really think so? Thank you so much!
elektra30 – lol I definitely love long reviews, and your review certainly made my day! I'm so glad you think that I've portrayed all the characters emotions accurately, and I'm glad you liked the ending. I know a lot of people get a little impatient with endings like that, but I think they add some suspense. By the way, you're doing a great job on your fic!
FalconWing – lol I love your analogy about the wind up toy cars! Hermione certainly would not be happy, which is why Draco is most likely not going tell her. Mainly, I used that scene to reveal certain things about certain Slytherins (one of whom you guessed, however I do not want to tell everyone else who it is) But one of the things I wanted to remind everyone is that Draco is a Slytherin, and he is still cunning and deceptive, even though he loves Hermione, it doesn't completely change who he is.

Chapter 10: Hogsmeade

For about a week after the prefects meeting, Hermione repeatedly considered asking Draco how he had managed to stifle his housemates. She didn't fail to notice that the few times she had asked him, he had side-stepped the question by saying something such as, "they're all brainless idiots anyway," waving his hand as if it were nothing. Quite a few times she had come close to pressing the issue, but in the end, she had always come to the same conclusion. If Draco didn't want to tell her, then she probably didn't want to know anyway. The thought made her a tad uncomfortable, but perhaps this time, the ends justified the means, whatever those means happened to be. After a week, she stopped asking altogether, though the question still crossed her mind whenever she passed a gang of Slytherins and got only scathing glares instead of taunts and shoves. It wasn't that she didn't enjoy the change, it's just that it happened so suddenly she still needed to get used to it.

Besides, she has plenty of other things to worry about. On top of her heads duties and her homework, the yearbook was beginning to get going as well. In response to the flyers she had made, the students began sending her and Draco dozens of owls. Most people sent in pictures of themselves and their friends, some students offered to help, and a few anonymous people informed Hermione rather rudely of what a stupid idea they thought the yearbook was. Draco thoroughly enjoyed reading those letters, Hermione scoffed at them and attempted to destroy them before Draco saw them.

Things also began to lighten up between Hermione and her friends. This was mostly because quidditch season was approaching and Harry and Ron's free time was spent practicing or devising new plays, leaving them with little time to be angry at Hermione for anything, which made her rather happy. The downside of quidditch season however meant that Draco's free time was also being filled with quidditch practices. That meant that unless they were working on heads duties or homework, he and Hermione rarely got to spend a minute alone together. Needless to say, their lack of free time together was putting an increasing strain on their relationship. In fact, time to relax was so rare, that even Hermione, queen of schoolwork was eagerly anticipating the first Hogsmeade weekend. By the time the Saturday arrived, the entire seventh year class seemed ready to explode from the amount of stress they were under.

Much to Ron's displeasure, Hermione and Draco planned on spending the entire day in Hogsmeade together, although they did agree that the best idea would be to stay away from the more popular areas of the town in order to avoid conflicts. Ron had tried to talk Hermione into hanging out with them in Hogsmeade, but Ginny silenced him by stamping down hard on his foot. She didn't even bother to be inconspicuous about it, which had caused Hermione to laugh, and Ron to limp away muttering angrily at his little sister.

The day of the Hogsmeade trip, everyone awoke in high spirits. Hermione and Draco were among the last to leave, mostly because Draco slept late, recovering from Friday evenings strenuous quidditch practice. But Hermione didn't mind leaving after the rest of the students because it meant that they could be alone on the walk down and she wouldn't have to be concerned about the other students watching them together. Once Draco had finally gotten out of bed and the pair was in Hogsmeade, they bypassed Zonko's, Honeydukes, Three Broomsticks, and all the other usual stores where their classmates were happily shopping and relaxing. They were off to an area of Hogsmeade that Hermione had read about, which was supposedly much less frequented, but just as charming as the more well known area of the town.

Their journey led them passed the road that led to the Hog's Head; Draco couldn't help but look down towards the pub. He felt a definite wrench in his stomach as he recalled his last visit there. Hermione instantly noticed the tense cold wave that had enshrouded Draco, and she curiously followed his gaze. Once she realized what had caused the abrupt change in her boyfriend, she squeezed his hand and looked up at him sympathetically. Draco turned his head in response, and seemed to relax again once his eyes met Hermione's. He smiled slightly, let go of her hand, and wrapped his arm around her waist, then he leaned over and kissed her lightly on the head.

After walking through what was apparently a residential section of the town, they finally reached a quaint little street filled with shops and a couple small restaurants. As it was already past noon, they first stopped at a deli for some sandwiches. After that, they decided to browse around a bit. They had been meandering by the shops for about 5 minutes when suddenly Hermione squealed with excitement. Draco was startled, and didn't even have time to ask what had happened before he was being dragged inside one of the shops. Once inside, Hermione released Draco's hand and went searching through the shelves. Draco just stood in the doorway looking around. The shop was filled with shelves and shelves of, what else but, books. 'Of course' he thought to himself with an amused roll of the eyes, 'a bookshop, what else would get her so excited?' Hermione was already lost amongst the shelves by the time Draco finished his thought. He slowly walked towards the back of the shop; he was looking for Hermione, but was in no rush to make her leave, he liked seeing the excitement in her eyes that he glimpsed when she had been dragging him inside.

Upon closer look Draco figured that this must be an antique bookshop, because all of the books were old and dusty, the names on most were faded. Usually when he saw books like that he would have thought they contained dark magic, or obsolete spells, however, he didn't get the sense that these were spell books at all. He didn't feel the sense of magical energy emanating from them like he felt from magical books, such as the spell books in the library. He was about to pull out one of the books when the hairs on the back of his neck stood up and he got the feeling that someone was watching him. Sure enough, he turned around to find who he could only guess to be the shopkeeper, eyeing him from behind a counter. The shopkeeper was a very old woman, but one who still looked full of life, she smiled when Draco turned around, "can I help you with anything dear?"

Draco took his hand off the book and strode over to the counter, "actually yes, what kind of books are these?"

"Oh there are several types of books here dear; most of them are antique works of fiction," she answered with a smile.

Draco nodded in thought, so he had been right, these weren't spell books. Draco turned back to the old woman, "you didn't by any chance happen to see which way the young lady I came in here with went did you?"

The old woman let out a genial laugh, "I believe she went back that way," she pointed towards the very back of the shop.

Draco nodded again, "thank you very much."

"Of course dear, if either of you need any help, don't be afraid to ask."

Draco turned and quietly made his way to the back of the shop. When he finally found Hermione, she was nestled on a large pouf in a small reading corner next to a window which was spilling sunlight into the shop. She had a massive volume opened up before her, and she was intently reading with a small smile on her lips. Draco watched her for a few moments, when it became clear to him that she had no clue he was there, he stepped forward and settled himself next to her. She snuggled up next to him, a bigger smile on her face, but she did not stop reading.

Draco leaned his head next to hers, and eyed the book, skimming through the words. It was a moment before he realized that he knew the story she was reading. It was a story he had heard several times when he was young. It was one on many stories that just about all pure-blooded children were told, much like muggle nursery rhymes, or fantasy stories.

As Hermione read, Draco recalled the times he had heard stories such as this. From what he could remember, at first he had enjoyed hearing such stories, imagining that life could really end with a 'happily ever after'. However, as time went on, and he began to grow older, Lucius' teachings began to turn Draco cold. Eventually he had stopped believing in the stories at all. Through Lucius, Draco had learned that there was no such thing as love, that power was all that mattered, and that is did no good to believe in foolish fantasies. And for the majority of his life, Draco had blindly accepted what Lucius taught him. It hadn't been until last year when he and Hermione started dating that he again learned to believe in the fantasy of the stories again, for she had shown him that love was more than some foolish fantasy.

After a while, Draco grew tired of silently sitting, after all he hadn't come all the way here just to sit and watch Hermione read all day. He could do that any day he wanted at school. He shifted on the pouf and broke the silence, "this was one of my favorite stories when I was younger."

Hermione finally turned her attention to him, "you know this story?" she asked with mild surprise.

"Mmhmm," Draco answered, "Mother used to tell it to me before I was old enough to read."

"Really? This doesn't seem like your kind of story," replied Hermione skeptically.

Draco chuckled. It was true, the beginning wasn't much to Draco's taste, he preferred the perilous adventures that came later in the story, "that's because you haven't gotten to the good part yet. I usually made Mother skip ahead to the parts I liked."

"Do you think you remember it well enough to tell it to me?" Hermione closed the book, and rested her head on Draco's chest.

Dracvo shifted on the pouf, and lifted Hermione a bit so that she was lying across him, his arms wrapped around her waist. Draco took a deep breath and opened his mouth to tell the story, when he suddenly realized that perhaps he didn't remember it as well as he thought. In his mind he knew the story perfectly; however knowing a story yourself is very different than being able to tell it to someone who had never heard it. Still, he'd do his best to at least get the general ideas across. Hermione relaxed in his arms, and beamed at him, with an excided twinkle in her eye.

"Well, let me think," he began. "You already read about the young wizard, Ramon's miserable life."

"Right, he's not allowed to make any decisions for himself, and he's being forced to become a farmer like his father," added Hermione. "So what happens next?"

"Well, one night, a group of thieves invade his village; they charge into the village riding on thestrals, they plunder everyone's homes and kidnap the village chiefs' daughter. The chief offers a reward to anyone who is able to find her and return her safely to her home. Ramon sees this as his chance, so that night he sneaks away, out into the woods, armed with only his wand. He picks up the trail left behind by the thieves, and traveled all night in search of their hideaway. It took him days, and along the way he had several small setbacks, but the exciting part comes when he finally arrives as the abandoned castle where the thieves are. He stalks up towards the entrance, but before he can find a way in, something sneaks up behind him."

"What is it?" whispered Hermione.

"A wyvern, it approaches him from behind, half stalking half slithering, its fiery red eyes blazing, ready to kill. Ramon throws every defensive curse he can think of at the wyvern, but its skin is too tough. The wyvern lunges at him, jaws snapping, eager for the taste of meat." Draco proceeded to give Hermione a detailed blow by blow account of Ramon's fight with the wyvern. Hermione couldn't help but smile with amusement, it was clear that this was one of the parts of the story Draco enjoyed.

"So he managed to lead the wyvern to the gorge, it charged at him, but even with his injuries, he was too quick for it, it went hurtling over the edge. Ramon knew he didn't have much time to get into the castle. The wyvern would fall for a while, but it had dragon wings, and would soon be flying back up, and raging mad. Ramon scrambled across the grounds, wincing in pain from the burn on his back; he could already hear the wyverns' wings beating up and down, coming towards him. He wrenched open the castle door and slammed it behind him with an echoing bang." Draco paused to take a breath.

"So what happens next?" asked Hermione eagerly.

Draco smiled deviously, "I think we will have to continue this story at another time."

"Oh, but why?" pleaded Hermione

"Because it's a long story, and this is a good stopping point, plus, believe it or not, we've got to be heading back to school if we want to make it in time for dinner."

"Already? Aww," moaned Hermione. She hated having a good story interrupted. She had always loved fantasy stories when she was little. Of course, that was back when she had thought that magic itself was a fantasy, but even now, she loved muggle fairy tales. Amazingly enough, in all her reading, she had never come across wizarding fantasy stories. She had always stuck to reading school books, and informative books. In fact, that was the reason that she had chosen that book in the first place. It was one of the few she had seen that had a partially legible title. She could not read the main title because it was too faded, but underneath, it said A Collection of Classic Tales. Her curiosity was aroused, and she pulled the book down to skim through it. As soon as she began reading, she could not stop, she hadn't meant to get lost in the book, because the stories were long, and she knew the book was much too expensive for her to be able to afford, but she couldn't stop reading, she was hooked.

She returned the book to its place on the shelf, and followed Draco out of the shop. The old shopkeeper was bid them good day with a smile, welcoming them to come again as they exited. There was a definite chill in the air outside, and Hermione wrapped her cloak tighter around her to block out the cold. Draco noted the bookshop sign as Hermione adjusted her cloak, Literary Antiques. Once Hermione was ready to go, they wrapped one of their arms around each others waist, and slowly they made their way back to school.

Hermione expected Draco to say something, but after walking all the way up to the familiar part of Hogsmeade without speaking one word, she broke the silence. "Hey, what are you thinking about?"

"Oh," said Draco as if just realizing that he wasn't alone, "I was just thinking about the story, it's been years since I last heard it, and I can't believe I remember it like I do."

Hermione smiled, "you were really good at telling the part about the wyvern."

"Yeah, that was always my one of my favorite parts."

"That doesn't surprise me; you're somewhat of a wyvern yourself," commented Hermione.

"What is that supposed to mean? I've heard tons of people have called me a dragon, but never a wyvern," reasoned Draco.

"Well, yeah dragon makes sense too, after all that's your name." answered Hermione matter-of-factly. "But you're a dragon in the serpents' house. Half dragon, half snake, that's a wyvern."

"You know, I've honestly never considered that, but I like the idea."

Hermione laughed, "I thought you would."

The pair of them passed by the shops, which were now free of noisy Hogwarts students, all of whom had already left to return to school. As they passed Three Broomsticks, Hermione stopped, looking into the window, a mischievous glint in her eye. Draco stopped as well glancing quizzically between Hermione and the shop, "did you see something?" he asked once he determined that he saw nothing out of the ordinary.

"No, I was just having a thought," answered Hermione turning her mischievous look to Draco.

"Ok . . . . care to elaborate?" suggested Draco.

"Well," Hermione paused as if deciding whether or not she really wanted to share her thought. She bit her lower lip slightly, and then seemed to decide that it was indeed a thought worth sharing. "I was just thinking, what if he didn't go back to school in time for dinner? What if we stayed here a while longer?"

Draco gaped at her with exaggerated surprise, "Hermione Granger I believe I'm starting to have a bad influence on you!"

Hermione beamed at him as if he had just given her the greatest complement she had ever received. She then grabbed his hand, and led him into the pub. Draco allowed himself to be dragged inside, an amused smile playing on his face. He loved this impulsive, more daring side of his girlfriend, and what he loved even more was that he knew that he was one of the few people who ever got to see this side of her.

Hermione led them over to a table in the corner, which provided them with a measure of privacy while not completely secluding them. They sat down next to each other, and decided what they wanted to eat. Hermione waited at the table while Draco went up to the counter to order their meals. She didn't really know why she had suddenly has the impulse to stay in Hogsmeade, but she was glad she did. She had forgotten how much she missed just being with Draco without working, and she was not ready for the day to end just yet.

Draco returned momentarily with their meals, and placed them down on the table in front of them. He then returned to his seat, and wrapped one arm around Hermione, in turn she shifted so that they were closer together. "Hey Draco," she said softly, "I know that spending all day in a bookstore was probably the last thing you had in mind, but I really enjoyed hearing that story, and I can't wait to hear the rest of it."

Draco smiled at her lovingly. "Alright you want to rest of it, here it goes, the wyvern bursts into the castle after Ramon. Ramon is flung across the room, adding more bruises to his numerous cuts and burns. While he is unable to move, the wyvern breathes fire at him. Then while Ramon is on fire and unable to escape, it snaps him up in his jaws and eats him alive." Draco spoke as if he was telling a thrilling tale, and when he was finished he maintained a completely serious expression.

"Draco!" cried Hermione with stubborn amusement as she pushed him away, "that's not what happened and I know it!"

"Really? Have you heard the story before then?" Draco asked with raised eyebrows.

"No, of course not."

"Well then how do you know that's not the way it ends? That's why it is my favorite part of the story, the 'hero' gets eaten alive, you can't get a much more exciting ending than that!" Draco just about added that this was what he had been hoping would happen to Harry at the Triwizard Tournament during the first task, but he stopped himself just in time. Something told him that was not a thought Hermione would enjoy hearing.

Hermione gasped indignantly, "then why did you tell me it was so long then?" she countered.

"Because I didn't think you would like that ending, and I needed time to come up with a different one, so I fibbed a bit before."

Deep down Hermione knew he was joking, but he was so good at looking serious that she wasn't entirely sure if he were telling the truth. After all, not all stories had happy endings, and maybe the lesson young witches and wizards were supposed to learn was to not mess with dangerous magical creatures. She had just about convinced herself that Draco could have been telling the truth, when a suppressed chuckle issued from his mouth.

She had been so distracted with her thoughts that she didn't notice that Draco had been trying to contain his laughter for a while. "Draco!" she slapped him playfully and he cringed as if she had mortally wounded him, though it wasn't very convincing as he was laughing the whole time.

"You're too gullible Hermione, I can't believe you fell for that!" he cried in between laughs.

"And I can't believe you would tell me something like that!" she was more embarrassed than angry because looking back on it she really did feel stupid for even thinking that he had been serious. She turned her head away to hide the blush.

"Aww, Hermione, don't take it like that, it was a joke," he smiled.

Hermione responded by stubbornly lifting her head up so that her nose was in the air, and keeping the back of her head towards Draco.

Draco didn't speak until he was sure he wouldn't laugh when he opened his mouth. "I know how to get you to pay attention to me," he said in a deep yet quiet voice.

"Ha!" said Hermione, she kept her head turned away so that Draco couldn't see her smile. She thought she had an idea of how Draco was planning on 'getting her attention' and if truth be told, that's what she had been going for.

She felt him shifting behind her, and her heart sped up slightly. She felt his hands on her shoulders, holding her still. She could feel his slow breath on her hair, she breathed in deeper, and closed her eyes. Draco could tell that she was eager to feel his kisses against her skin, so of course, he prolonged it as long as possibly to make her sweat. He leaned close to her ear and whispered huskily "you know what I think?" he paused. "I think I like this little wild side you've got. I think that we should embrace that wild side by sneaking off alone together more often. But when to do it is the difficult question. I mean you of course wouldn't want to miss class, I can't miss quidditch practice, not to mention the fact that sneaking off could quite possibly mean breaking more rules" Draco had begun speaking in a businesslike tone, even though his head was still directly next to hers, and he could easily be kissing her.

Hermione huffed in frustration and turned her head slightly so that the tips of their noses were touching. "you really need to learn when to shut up you know that," she whispered with half annoyance, half amusement. Draco suddenly let go of Hermione and started to stand up, "wait! Where are you going?" cried Hermione, concerned that she had inadvertently hurt his feelings.

"I got you to pay attention to me, that was the goal wasn't it? Clearly I succeeded, my work here is done" he answered with a smug smile on his face.

"Get over here!" she ordered, pulling him towards her as she too stood up. She pulled him into a kiss, which he instantly responded to by pressing her body up against his. Hermione's hand looped around Draco's neck and held his head to hers. Draco just about forgot where the were, as he made to turn the kiss into something more, but this time it was Hermione's turn to suddenly back away. Draco gazed imploringly into her chocolate brown eyes, silently begging her to let him kiss her again. "And now," she whispered seductively, "I have your attention." She turned away with a haughty look, and led the way out the door.

Draco shook his head with disbelief and pride as she walked away; "You are evil!" he called once they were both outside.

Hermione turned around and began walking backwards as Draco strode to catch up, "Well," she said sweetly, "you did say that you have had a bad influence on me, I guess this means you're right."

"I always am," answered Draco confidently. He had finally caught up with her, and he had his hands on her hips again.

"Yeah, sure you are," Hermione smiled and rolled her eyes. But as she made to turn around and walk frontward again, Draco tightened his hold on her and lifted her, he lifted her so that she was slung over his shoulder. Hermione yelped, "Draco! Draco let me down!"

Draco just chuckled, "I don't think so, if you're going to try to be difficult to deal with, then I'm going to be damn near impossible."

Hermione let out a cry of frustration, although she wasn't really frustrated, she was a bit uncomfortable. "Come on Draco, this hurts," she whined.

Draco stopped walking; he tightened his hold on her legs, and moved her so that he was carrying her in a more traditional way. She grinned and wrapped her arms around his neck as he continued walking.

"You know I could get used to this," Hermione mused after a while.

With that, Draco stopped and suddenly dropped down a few inches. Hermione screamed and tightened her hold around Draco's neck. Draco laughed and raised her up again, he had succeeded in scaring her, which of course was what he had been going for.

"DRACO!" cried Hermione, she began kicking, and thrashing about so he would put her down.

Draco quickly released her legs, and once her feet her firmly on the ground he released her completely. Once she regained her footing, Hermione shoved Draco away, but he was too quick for her, he grabbed her arm, and she went stumbling along with him. She laughed as she fumbled around to catch her footing, and Draco stopped her from falling. After that, they both seemed to feel as if they had toyed with each other enough, and were ready for some peaceful quiet time. They were now well out of Hogsmeade, and the castle was growing larger with every passing moment. The sun had already set, and the scene thwi the twinkling stars was so picturesque that Hermione sighed with happiness.

The rest of the walk was calm and relaxing, it was almost as if they were an entirely different couple then they had been when they left Three Broomsticks. Hermione liked the fact that she never knew what to expect around Draco, it kept things interesting, and she really liked surprising him by becoming a bit more daring herself. She was having such a great time that she never wanted their walk to end, but of course all good things must come to an end, and all to quickly they arrived back at the castle.

Draco held the large door open for Hermione, and then followed her inside. Their steps echoed through the hallway, and the flames from the torches were sending shadows dancing across the walls. They had just passed the stone gargoyle when they heard a sound of scraping stone behind them. Out of curiosity, they turned, and saw that professor Dumbledore was exiting his office. He faced them as soon as he stepped off the stairway, almost as if he had been expecting them. Hermione's breath caught in her chest, 'did he know they had stayed out? Were they going to be punished?'

Draco felt Hermione tense, and though he kept his eyes on professor Dumbledore, he squeezed her hand tighter, and rubbed the back of her hand with his thumb to relax her. She held his hand tighter, but did not relax much.

Professor Dumbledore walked towards them, a twinkle in his eye, and a smile on his face. "Ah, here are my two heads; I trust you had an enjoyable time in Hogsmeade?"

"Indeed we did Professor," answered Draco formally.

"Excellent!" Dumbledore smiled with a clap of his hands, "well, goodnight to you both." Dumbledore turned and began to walk away, and Hermione finally let out the breath she had been holding since she spotted him. "Oh, and Miss Granger," he said turning round to face them again, "you may want to go down to the Gryffindor Common Room and let Mr. Potter and Mr. Weasley know that you are alright. I believe I heard them mention something about sending a search party out to find you. And unless I'm much mistaken, if Miss Weasley hadn't stopped them, I believe they would have done it themselves." Dumbledore smiled knowingly as Hermione blushed pink.

"Thank you professor, I'll do that," she muttered.

Professor Dumbledore nodded, and then turned to continue on his way. Hermione bit her lip and held her head down as she and Draco turned around. Draco was still holding her hand, but he suddenly seemed much colder than he had been the entire the day. Clearly, he was not appreciative of Hermione's friends' overly protective concern for her whereabouts. The couple continued towards their common room in silence. Hermione wishing more than anything that they could be back in Hogsmeade where the world had been peaceful.

They arrived at their portrait, but before Draco said the password, Hermione spoke. She was looking towards the floor; "I guess I better at least let them know I'm fine. I don't want them to end up ambushing you tomorrow or something."

"Yeah right," said Draco coldly.

"Draco, I'm really sorry, I really don't feel like dealing with them right now any more than you do, but I don't want to be thinking about what they're going to do when I could be here enjoying a night alone with you." She finished in an innocent tone, hoping to warm his demeanor a bit.

Luckily her efforts were at least a little successful, "just don't stay away too long, I was looking forward to a night alone with you too," responded Draco.

"I'll be back as soon as possible," she whispered, before standing on her tiptoes to kiss him. She turned and hurried through the corridor. More than wanting to reach her friends quickly, she was eager to return to the common room. Draco said the password as he watched her dash away; he heaved a heavy sigh, cursing her meddling friends.

Hermione stopped with a skid in front of the portrait of the Fat Lady, and gave her the password ("chizpurfle"). The portrait door opened, and Hermione entered the partially full common room. "Hermione!" cried the voice of Seamus Finnigan as soon as she entered the common room, "how are you? You know Harry and Ron were really worried about you when you didn't come to dinner, they thought something might have happened to you in Hogsmeade!"

"I know, professor Dumbledore told me," answered Hermione shortly, "do you know where Harry and Ron are?"

"I think they're up in the boys dormitory," answered Dean Thomas who had been sitting with Seamus playing a game of exploding snap.

"Ok, thanks," said Hermione in a huff.

"Anytime!" called Dean and Seamus as Hermione disappeared up the stairs to the boys dorm.

She knocked on the door, heard a muffled "come in!" then opened the door. Sure enough there were Harry and Ron, sitting on their beds in deep discussion. They both turned to Hermione as she entered, and suddenly jumped up as if they hadn't seen her in years. "Hermione!" they cried, rushing forward to hug her.

"We thought something horrible must have happened to you, why weren't you at dinner?" demanded Ron.

Hermione rolled her eyes, "as you can see, I'm perfectly fine, and for your information, Draco and I decided to eat dinner in Hogsmeade."

"What!" cried Harry, "but you could have gotten in trouble! You can't let him force you to do stuff like that Hermione, you've got to stand up to him.

Hermione stared at Harry with annoyed disbelief. "There is no way in Hell I am going to listen to you of all people give me a lecture about rule-breaking and playing it safe Harry. And for your information, it was not Draco's idea to stay in Hogsmeade, it was mine, and you know what, I'm glad we did it."

The boys gaped at her in stunned silence. And since Hermione was in no mood to begin another battle with them, and she was looking forward to being with Draco again, she decided to let this battle go. "Anyway guys, professor Dumbledore told me you two were worried about me, so I just came by to let you know that I'm fine. Alright? Thank you guys for being so concerned about me, but really I can take care of myself."

"You're leaving?" asked Ron with disappointment in his tone.

"Yeah, I missed out on an entire day's work, and I really need to catch up," Hermione lied without even flinching. The boys blindly accepted this excuse, as it made perfect sense coming from Hermione.

She walked much slower back to the common room, thinking about what she had just done. She had been joking before when she had said Draco was having a bad influence on her, but maybe she hadn't been entirely wrong, perhaps Draco was having a bad influence on her. She certainly never would have been able to lie to Harry or Ron before, not even about something trivial. The strange part was, she didn't feel guilty, and she had rather enjoyed bending the rules and living a bit more rebelliously than she was used to. It gave her a bit of a rush, and she liked the feeling.

-

Draco entered the common room. He slumped onto the couch; somehow he doubted that Hermione would be back anytime soon. And when she did come back he was almost certain that she would not be in a good mood. He huffed in annoyance at her friends, why she allowed them to keep her on such a tight leash was beyond him. Though when he thought about it, he had to give her credit, it must have taken a lot of guts for her to get involved with him to begin with considering who she had for friends, and this was completely ignoring who she was, and who he was. It amazed him that they ever got together in the first place.

"But what's the use of being together if you never get to enjoy it!" he voiced out loud. He hit the couch, and got up to change into his pajamas. He didn't bother hurrying, as he didn't expect Hermione to return for a while anyway.

Draco was in the bathroom when Hermione returned, so he didn't hear the portrait door open. but Hermione, hear the water running in the sink of Draco's bathroom. She smiled mischievously as she tiptoed into her room. She knew that Draco was likely to be in a slightly sour mood, so she figured that the best way to cure him of that would be to have a little fun with him. She silently changed into pajama pants and a light blue tank top listening intently for sounds indicating Draco's movement. She was sliding her feet into her soft slippers when she heard him crash land onto the couch. She giggled silently, knowing that he was completely oblivious to her presence.

Hermione carefully poked her head out of her doorway, and was pleased to find that Draco was staring into the fire, away from her. She bit her lip to prevent herself from giggling with excitement as she carefully padded across the carpet behind the couch. She was careful to remain far enough behind him so that she was not in his range of vision if he were to for some reason glance upward. She paused a moment, then lunged forward, grabbing his shoulders and shouting "BOO!"

Draco screamed and leapt off the couch, whipping around as he did so. He glared at her breathing heavily, she meanwhile was doubled up over the back of the couch laughing. "What the Hell was that for!" he demanded.

In between laughs, she answered, "You . . you should have seen . . .your face! It was priceless."

"Oh, you're going to be sorry you did that! No one scares Draco Malfoy and gets away with it!" Draco charged behind the couch towards her, and grabbed her around the middle. She shrieked gleefully, still laughing. Draco carried her into her room and threw her over onto her bed. He quickly joined her on the bed, threw the pillows onto the floor, and pinned her arms down above her head. Hermione had finally managed to quell her laughter, and was now just breathing heavily and smiling a lot.

"Well?" she asked with raised eyebrows, "I'm waiting for you to make me sorry."

Draco leaned down so that his lips were millimeters away from hers, "you will be" he whispered roughly.

Hermione licked her lips and raised her head for a kiss, but Draco had anticipated her move, and backed away. He then moved her hands together so that he could keep them pinned down with one hand, allowing the other free to explore. He positioned himself next to her, and his hand began by stroking her face. Hermione closed her eyes, enjoying the sensual feelings of his skin against hers. His hand traveled down against her neck to her collarbone. All the while his face was close to hers, but they were never touching. She could feel his deep breaths against her lips, and she longed for tose lips to be pressed up against his.

He traced her well defined collar bone softly, barely touching her at all. She tensed and held her breath a little, no doubt thinking where he was likely to go next, but he didn't. Instead, his hand moved directly to the hem of her shirt. He gently stroked her side, cause goose bumps to tingle across her flesh. Her breathing was slower and deeper now, and her eyes were still closed.

Draco touched his forehead to Hermione's and she opened her eyes, an intense look of desire in them. Draco leaned his mouth just above hers and caressed her stomach around her bellybutton with his thumb. Hermione moaned softly, and tried to raise her head to meet Draco's lips, but yet again he pulled away. "what are you waiting for?" she groaned desperately.

"For you to say you're sorry," he whispered gently, his hot breath blowing across her lips as she spoke.

She licked her lips again, more impatiently this time, "I'm sorry!" she cried almost desperately.

Draco smiled and leaned in closer, Hermione closer her eyes and smiled, clearly expecting him to finally kiss her, but instead all she felt was his breath kissing her lips as he spoke again, "I'm not sure you really mean it," he mused.

Hermione's eyes shot open, "I mean it! I'm sorry!"

For what felt like the hundredth time, Hermione could feel Draco's lips positioned just above hers. And finally, she was not disappointed. He kissed her slowly and sensually, releasing her hands as he did, so that she was free to move as she pleased (although truth be told, she could have easily escaped his grip at anytime had she wanted to try). Instantly her arms flew around his neck, and both of his hands held her waist. She ran her hands though his hair and along his chest. She was quite surprised with how annoyed she felt when she ran her hands along his chest and felt fabric instead of skin.

They continued snogging for a while, mostly just kissing, although Hermione had practically torn Draco's shirt off of him when the offending piece of clothing had become too annoying. Draco on the other hand, had not wanted to spoil the day by attempting to go further than Hermione was ready for, and he wasn't sure how far she was ready to go yet, so he had stuck to doing things that he already knew were ok with her. He was glad that he had restrained himself, because he had had a perfectly enjoyable time, and he was sure Hermione had as well, and now he was being rewarded by lying next to her, in her bed, holding her in his arms.

When they had first settled down, Draco had thought that Hermione was going to kick him out. Yet they had been lying together for quite a while now, and she had made no indication of wanting him to leave. He nuzzled his face in her hair, and she turned around to face him. For a split second, he thought that she was going to tell him to leave, but instead, she leaned her forehead into his chest, and rested her arm around his waist. She signed pleasantly, "I love you," she whispered.

"I love you too," he answered back.

"Good night," she said in a voice that was barely audible.

Draco kissed her head, and held her tighter, "good night," he whispered with a smile, not even daring to believe that she was intentionally allowing him to spend the night. Hermione quickly drifted off to sleep, dreaming lovingly of a certain blonde haired someone who happened to be right next to her. Draco lay awake longer than Hermione; but her gentle breathing soothed him, and made the entire world seem peaceful, and soon, he was lulled to sleep thinking only of her.

I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, please review and let me know what you think! And for anyone who may be wondering when something big is going to happen, I just ask that you be patient, because it will happen eventually.

Note: a wyvern (also spelled wivern) is a real mythical creature from Medieval Times; however the little story about Ramon (which will be continued later) is completely invented by me.

On a completely unrelated note, I would just like to share that I got my first flame for my other fic. I found it rather funny, to tell you the truth, the reviewer said stuff like that I need to reread the books, and that Hermione and Draco were completely ooc the entire time, and that the entire fic was terrible (note, they reviewed on chapter 12, which is not even halfway though, so how they could say that is beyond me). Also, I don't know about anyone else, but when I don't like a fic, I stop reading it rather than send the author potentially hurtful reviews. But anyway, the reason I'm telling you all this, is to thank everyone who has sent me constructive reviews on both of my fics, even if you didn't like everything I wrote. I don't expect or ask everyone to like everything I write, but I do appreciate those who tell me what I need to work on and offer helpful hits, that's constructive, and it helps me improve my writing in the future. So thank you very much to all of you, you are truly great people!

So again, I absolutely love hearing from all of you, and I hope you liked the chapter!