A/N: Sorry I didn't get this up on time. It is, however, the longest chapter I've ever posted in any story, over 4000 words. Enjoy.

Tania picked at her breakfast, her mind whirling to come up with something to get her out of this trip. Well, most of her mind was. There was a small, rebellious part that wanted to go and be with Blaise. That part admitted that she liked him, that he was cute, but that part didn't get much attention. It was almost too late, it was Hogsmeade morning. Laughter caught her attention. Mark was laughing at something Hunter said. Traitor. How could you do this to me? He could have forbidden Blaise to take her, but no, he had done the opposite. She was not speaking to Hunter at the moment, but he didn't seem to notice.

People around her began to leave in small groups. It was time for one last desperate escape. If she could make it to the Girls Dorm before Blaise found her, she was home free. No matter how sneaky he was, even Blaise Zabini couldn't get up to the Dorm. That decided her and Tania finished the last of her juice as she stood. Glancing around for her target she made her way out of the Great Hall. In the press of people, she couldn't see him. Suddenly a boy was standing right in front of her. Beyond she could see the stairs leading down to safety. She glanced up and identified Blaise, but couldn't make herself look him in the face so her gaze settle around his chest.

"Ready to go?" Blaise asked cheerfully. At least he hadn't caught her ditching him. He seemed to be completely oblivious to it.

Could she just dash around him and down the stairs? No, her honor would never allow it. "Sure," Tania said quietly.

"Good. Cloak!" A warm black cloak popped into existence at his command. Tania resigned herself to one very long day. Biting back a sigh, she held out a hand to take the garment. Smoothly Blaise helped her into it and she froze. He was... being a gentleman. No one did that. Tania had always done such things herself. Father had never even allowed the House Elves to get a cloak for her. If she wanted something, she got it herself.

On top of that, though, Blaise was also inside her personal space, and she fought with the massive desire to hit him and run as far as she could. He seemed to not notice her panic and bowing slightly, he offered her his arm. After a long minute of debate she laid hesitant fingers on his wrist half afraid they would burn on contact and allowed him to lead the way out to the chill fall day.

Hogsmeade was everything she had imagined and more. Everything was better in real life, especially to witches. The magical Auras of the town itself were a rainbow of sensation that Muggles would never understand. The magic, the sense of history, was amazing. It was a crisp fall day and Tania was very glad of the cloak Blaise had given her. The two Slytherins joined the crowds entering the main street through Hogsmeade.

"Where do you want to start?" Blaise asked, breaking into her survey of the buildings.

Tania shrugged and tried to affect a little more unconcern, though it was really hard. "I don't know. What do you suggest?"

Blaise pointed to a larger building on their right. "Why don't we start in Honeyduke's and work our way from there. Maybe Zonko's, the Theater, and something else quick before lunch. How does that sound?" She nodded and they began to make their way out of the center of the street.

Honeyduke's was crowded, but no one seemed to mind. Every centimeter of every wall and counter was filled with candy and sweets. Tania had never seen such amounts of candy and didn't eve recognize most of the wrappers. She inhaled and the mix of chocolate, caramel, and sugar was heavenly. It took massive effort, but she managed to mostly keep her composure, at least she thought so. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Blaise grinning. Tania couldn't tell if he was amused by her or the candy, he was a boy after all. The press of bodies became greater and forced her to take a step closer to Blaise.

It's crowded in here. I'd better stick closer to Blaise or I might lose him with all these people.

Yeah, right. You just want to stick close to Blaise to be close to Blaise. Admit it! You like him.

Tania inwardly glared at her rebellious self. No. He's a Housemate and he's being nice, but that doesn't mean I like him...there's no point. You can't compete with a Bellmonte.

What does a Bellmonte have to do with this?

Blaise only asked me because Alex couldn't go. Do I have to spell it out for you? Her mental conversation was interrupted as someone shoved into her. Tania lost her balance as a small scuffle broke out between a Hufflepuff and a Ravenclaw. She felt herself being steadied.

"Have you no respect?" Blaise's voice was cold and haughty. Both fighters paused and turned toward the sound. "Brawling like Muggles, which, for all the magical aptitude you've shown since coming to school, you might as well be..." He arched an eyebrow, staring down his nose in utter disgust. "Disgraceful. Now, I believe you owe the lady an apology for daring to disturb her."

Tania mimicked Blaise's tone in her facial expressions. She may be the invisible Slytherin in her House, but she was still a Slytherin and a Pureblood. Besides, this was fun! She liked having the upper hand for once, even if it was Blaise's doing. One day, she promised herself, she would be able to do this on her own. The other two glared at Blaise and stayed silent. The crowd was silent also, waiting to see who would win the showdown. Blaise continued to stare at the other boys, clearly waiting to be obeyed. Soon the whole store fell silent. Who would break first? The shopkeeper pushed his way through the students until he was beside the staring contest. It seemed now they would never know who would win.

"Boys, you do owe her an apology. You almost knocked her over." The older man was firm in both tone and gaze. The Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff looked at the ground and then mumbled apologies. They slipped away into the crowd and the noise picked back up.

"I apologize as well. I should have been watching more closely." Blaise said, losing his 'outside of House' mask.

Tania shook her head and gave him a small smile. "No need. I wasn't paying attention either." She was going to drop it, but Blaise was shaking his head now.

"No, it was my fault and I insist that I make it up to you." Blaise lead her over to one counter. On it were piles and piles of all shapes and sizes of peppermint. "Please, allow me to buy you some. I would be forever shamed if you refused."

Tania considered trying to refuse without shaming him, but he seemed really intent. He must really like peppermint or something. She was realizing that it was pointless to argue with Blaise, at least for the little things. It saved her a headache and gave her a small advantage in the bigger things. Besides, it was a matter on honor. She understood those. "Alright, Blaise, thank you. Choose what you will." Blaise shot her a grin and began to pull together candy...lots and lots of candy.

"So that was Honeyduke's. Where to next?" Blaise asked as they emerged into the sunlight and the wind. Tania now carried a very large bag with the words Honeyduke's Candy chasing each other on it. Both of them pulled their cloaks a little tighter.

"I don't know anything here. You chose." She offered.

"Well, since you say so...on to Zonko's."

An hour later, and another bag of stuff, they entered their third building of the day, the Post Office. He informed her it was a good place to know, especially if one had sensitive letters to send. Tania didn't really argue. She was more concerned with how Blaise had managed to talk her into letting him buy her a bag of prank supplies from Zonko's. She hadn't intended to agree, but he had talked so fast and his logic was twisted and she had said yes before she'd realized it.

"Here, come this way. I've something to show you." Blaise called from a doorway. Tania pulled herself back to the situation before her and walked over to the new room. She couldn't fight a grin as she saw what was inside. Zipping around the room were dozens of small and really cute owls. They were little balls of fluffy feathers and no girl has ever been able to ignore that. The owls circled them, hooting inquiringly.

Blaise's hand shot out and he ensnared one of the fluffy projectiles. There was a startled squawk as its flight was suddenly halted, followed by double glares as the bird turned its head to its captor.

Tania chuckled, "Aw, poor bird. I'm sure that wasn't fun." She accepted the little bundle from Blaise and softly stroked it's head. "Beautiful. You are a cute thing." The owl's disgruntled stare began to soften as Tania petted it. The other owls began to land on Tania's shoulder or circling closer to get some of the praise or petting.

After a few minutes, Blaise came to her rescue and started freeing her from all her new friends. Soon she only held the one original owl, which she released. The two of them made their escape from the room and went back to the main room of the Post Office.

"Well, now that the swarm is gone, shall we go?" he asked, motioning toward the door. She nodded and followed him out, debating on whether she should pick the owl feathers out of Blaise's hair. When he received a strange look from a Gryffindor passing by, she knew she had to act. It was a matter of personal and House pride. Tania touched Blaise on the shoulder to make him stop and reached up to grab a feather out of his hair.

He frowned. "What are you doing?" She held up the feather and his eyes widened. Quickly he ran his fingers back and forth through his hair. Several more feathers fell out.

"I don't think owl feathers are in this season," Tania drawled.

Blaise shot her a grin. "I can make them in season." He pointed to the Theater. "Let's check the times before we head anywhere else."

They walked over and scanned the show listings in front of them. There weren't any shows until this afternoon. Tania hadn't heard of any of the performers or the show, but she didn't tell Blaise that. He seemed to be lost in thought for several long moments. The sensation of being watched filled her and Tania risked a glance behind her. Standing on the other side of the square was Falon and a few of his friends. He was watching her, he had found her. The older brother smirked when he noticed she was watching him back.

Oh holy hell, she thought, I knew this was a bad idea. Hunter, if Blaise gets hurt, I blame you. She shivered at the thought of Blaise with Falon. Next to her Blaise stirred.

"Are you cold?" he asked Tania kindly, smiling at her.

She nodded yes but said quietly, "N-no, I'm fine." Yeah, let him think it was just cold. The wind had picked up while they had been standing there, but she had hardly noticed. Now it was Tania's turn to come back from spacing out as Blaise lightly, slowly, and very gently slid an arm around her shoulders.

"Let's go get warm," he said, "We're both frozen in our steps and I, at least, am starving." She nodded as that rebellious part of her mind shouted for joy. The rest of her prayed that Falon had somehow missed it, knew that he hadn't.

It was blessedly warm and Falon-free. Both were equally important right now. A mixture of smells and sounds wafted at them as they were lead to a table near the door. This was also a good thing, in Tania's mind. It meant that they had to keep their cloaks on, which meant it would be harder for her brother to find them, should he come in here to search.

"Is that better?" Blaise asked as they sat down. She nodded, still thinking about her brother. Maybe it would be better to come up with a reason for Blaise to take her back to school. He'd be safe there, until she could talk to Hunter about what to do now.

"So, do you have anything in particular you wanted to try?" Blaise asked, picking up his menu. "Everything here is good, I can vouch as I've eaten it all at least once." Tania shot him a look. Really? He's eaten everything? Apparently, Blaise wanted to talk, since he kept going.

"Oh yeah. First off, the Dragon Steak. It isn't real dragon. I know. I've had real dragon. It is a really good try though, so if you aren't sure you want to try actual dragon it's a good place to start. The 'House Sauce' is a little spicy, but you can always ask for regular barbeque if you want it a little milder."

Tania had only been partially listening as her mind whirled with plans and plots. Now that he had been spotted, every part of her hummed with the knowledge that danger was close. Blaise's last comment, however, had felt like a challenge, and she reacted accordingly.

"Spicy is fine." She replied. It was subtle, the response to the challenge, but Tania always used subtle if she could. Blaise must have picked it up though, 'cause he grinned. Tania's respect for him grew a little. He was as smart as he didn't appear to be.

"It's good either way. Just don't drink Butterbeer right after you take a bite. It'll cool your mouth like adding pure alcohol to a campfire will put it out." He grinned ruefully. "I know. I've tried it."

Tania snickered, not at Blaise per se, but at the sudden image of Falon with his head afire. The shock of flame coming out of his mouth and ears, then catching his hair was hilarious.

Blaise sniffed dramatically. "Yes, yes. Do go on and laugh at my pain. How I enjoy it so." She couldn't help it. She laughed. Blaise's comments and Falon's image were too much for her. Tania was smart enough to keep her menu in front of her.

Deciding that she wouldn't let Falon ruin her day and that Blaise had worked hard enough to see past her masks for a little while, she retorted, "Yes, you poor boy. So abused."

"Really." Blaise insisted pitifully. "I am. Will you be the one to save me from this cruel world and the women in it?" What a drama king! He should be in theater.

"And if I do…who will save the women from you?" Tania asked, teasing him as she would Hunter. It was different and freeing. It was nice to allow her quick mind to have a work out. And Blaise seemed able to keep up well.

"Alas!" he clutched his heart. "You have wounded my soul, but I cannot deny your claims. Come dearest! Make an honest man of me! Marry me!" That froze her in her mental tracks. That was untouchable grounds, especially for her. She risked another glance around, relieved to see that Falon had still not shown his face. What he would do with that comment!

She tried to get back in the teasing mood, but it wasn't as easy as before. "Make an honest man of yourself then ask me. You might like the results better."

"Uh," Blaise said after a pause, "I recommend the Griddle Ribs. They come however you like them, with half a dozen sides and," he reached over and tapped a picture with one finger, "this lovely awesome chocolate…dessert…thingy."

Tania fought back another grin. Trying to distract her with chocolate. That probably usually worked. Alright, she'd let it go.

Tania decided to keep track of how many glares she received as they entered the theater. Blaise had his Pureblood mask back on and was shoving his way through the crowds. She shot the glarers pointed smirks as she threaded her way behind Blaise. There were very few open seats visible, but that didn't seem to bother Blaise in the least.

Making his way to the front row, he pointed to a pair of seats right in the middle. Offering a hand, he lead her down the row adding his own sneering grin to hers as those in the second and third rows became more and more agitated. The front row was only half full, with the rest of the seats reserved. Most of the students considered the second row to be the first, since they could never get tickets for those seats. Now two Slytherins were joining the adults who were already in the front row.

Once they were seated and Tania had stowed her bags, she leaned over to Blaise, "They are so hating us now."

He grinned back, "Of course. That's the way it should be." He frowned as popcorn hit the back of his head. Blaise stiffened and started to turn around. Tania grabbed his arm.

"Wait," she hissed, "Let me." Blaise shot her a startled look, but didn't finish his turn. Tania pulled a mirror out of a pocket, obviously to check her makeup, and watched as more popcorn was thrown in their direction. Marking the culprits, she muttered several spell words. Screams of surprise and fear issued from behind them and the popcorn stopped. Satisfied, she closed the mirror and smiled at Blaise.

"Well done. I'm impressed," he said, "and I am in your debt."

"No, no, we are not starting that again. I had fun doing it and that's the end. No debts." She waved a finger in his face and he grinned again.

"As you say, milady." The lights dimmed as the curtain rose and the show began.

Purple smoke filled the stage as the show continued. It was an amazing mix of magic and showmanship and Tania was enthralled with it all. She had never seen such an act. The only theater she had ever seen was the fall asleep kind. An explosion went off right in front of the two Slytherins and Tania instinctively grabbed Blaise's hand. Once the fear had passed she blushed and took back the offending fingers.

"Sorry," she whispered.

Blaise grinned and leaned over, "Don't worry, I don't mind." The show set off another explosion and they both laughed at the Hufflepuffs' screaming. Soon the purple smoke was replaced by green. Tania inhaled and automatically started identifying the ingredients.

"Kelp juice…no powder, anleberries, liquid maple bark and...and" she muttered under her breath. What was that last compound? Something for color, since those other three ingredients would never make green.

"Zinc Corbamine," Blaise whispered, not taking his eyes off the stage. She smiled, that was it! Zinc Corbamine was exactly right. But...why did Blaise... She risked and inquisitive glance. He caught her look and smiled.

"What?" he whispered, "You think you're the only one who does that?" She shook her head and they both returned their attention to the show.

The two Slytherins emerged into the sunlight, blinking rapidly. Tania still had her two bags and the owl feather from Blaise's hair. Now she added a program from the theater, the signatures of several of the performers and a vial of green smoke. Blaise had taken her backstage to meet the actors and the stage crew responsible for the visual effects. It had been amazing to see.

"So," Blaise drew her attention back to the current situation, "anyway, we've covered, Zonko's, Honeyduke's, the Post Office, the theater, the 'Museum of Hogsmeade stuff', and lunch or, as I dis-like to call it, Mistress Monocarp's Munchies. All that's left is, the Shrieking Shack, Madame Pudifoots, if you make me, and all of Supply Street. We've got maybe one more stop before curfew, where do you wanna go?"

"Wherever. It's up to you."

"Well, we aren't going to the 'Great Black Hole of Lace' if I have anything to say about it and it'll be cold up by the Shack by now. So let's jog down Supply Street on our way back to the Castle and you can tell me if anything inspires drool." Nodding decisively, Tania headed for Supply Street.

Tania slowly climbed the stairs to her dorm. I can't believe I not only helped Draco Malfoy, but I did it without knowing what was going on. The image from lunch suddenly, and oddly, came back to her and the amusement was enough to get her the rest of the way up the stairs. Reaching her bed, Tania flopped on it face first. Nap...what a magical, perfect word.

"Wow! You made quite a haul," the voice filtered into her brain and she decided that she'd better answer. Rolling over to see the rest of the room, Tania spotted the other girls in her year.

"Yeah, I guess I did." She responded. That seemed enough of an invitation because suddenly there were five bodies plopping on her bed. Someone pulled the cloak off her and threw it on top of her boots.

"So, tell us all about it. What did you do?" Faith Cromwell asked.

"We hung out…um, and had lunch," Tania ventured.

One of the twins, Laura Montgomery, sighed. "Look, Tania, we know you don't have any sisters and we've been trying to show you for the past two years. But obviously you're not getting it, so I'll explain. We talk about everything. We want details, so spill!"

Tania hesitated for a moment, then nodded. "Ok. We went to Honeyduke's and Zonko's as you can see. Blaise somehow convinced me to let him buy me this stuff. We had lunch and saw the theater show and went by Supply Street." Her face broke out in a huge grin at the image of Blaise sneezing uncontrollably.

"Come on, what's that grin for?" Rachel Ileum demanded.

"Well... Blaise inhaled some powdered feather fern." She explained. The girls exchanged blank looks.

"So?" Christina Asia asked.

"So... Humans are really allergic to powdered Featherfern. It makes them sneeze." All the girls broke out laughing as they made the connections. "His whole body shook. I had to find some Downis to make him stop."

The laughter picked up again. The dorm door opened and Tara Cromwell and Veronica Asia, Christina's older sister, stuck their heads in.

"Everyone have a good time, then?" Tara asked. The third years related the Blaise and the Featherfern story. The two seventh years exchanged looks.

"That's Zabini for you," Veronica said, "hilarious." The older girls said good night and left. A comfortable silence fell over the dorm.

"And that's why you confuse me, Dethart," Liana, the other twin remarked. Everyone looked at her.

"Oh? How so?" Tania asked, confused herself.

"You know all this stuff, like the Featherfern. Things a fourth year didn't know. Or Moody's questions in class. You always know the answers. And Professor Snape watches what you do very carefully." She paused, then added quietly, "But your grades don't show that and none of us knew it until now." No one spoke for several long moments.

"I can't," Tania finally admitted, "There is a very good, but secret reason why, but I can't. I can't appear any smarter than anyone else."

"Ok," Faith said.

Tania looked startled. "Ok? Just ok?" she repeated.

"You can't tell us, ok... but do you think you can explain Friday's Defense homework?" Faith's cheek's tinged red. A grin lit Tania's face.

"I can do that... tomorrow. Right now, I need your help. All the girls clustered in and Tania upended the Zonko's bag. Dumped its contents onto the bed. "Blaise tricked me into letting him buy all this stuff and I need to pay him for it." She ducked her head a little and bit her lip. "So…wanna help?" she asked shyly.

"Of course."

"How dare he trick you!"

"We'll get him."

"Oh, we'll get him good!"

Giggles followed the round of declarations and then the plotting began.