Dating For Dummies

Disclaimer: Don't own it… never have, never will… sniff

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Hermione woke the next morning to several taps at her window. She looked over to see Draco, perched on his Nimbus 2001, grinning at her. She groaned, throwing the covers off of herself and walking over to said window. She threw it open and shivered. It was freezing!

"What are you doing?" she asked.

"Taking you out…" he said, "Remember that date you promised me?"

"Draco, we have class," she said, "We can't go out now…"

"Um… sorry to say, but you slept all through classes," he said.

"What?" she screamed, "Oh my GOD! I can't believe you didn't wake me up!!!"

"Actually, Dumbledore wouldn't let me wake you up," Draco said.

"Hermione gave him a quizzical look and he sighed. "I'll explain everything later. For now, let's go."

"But it'll take me at least an hour to get ready…" she fussed.

"Are you a witch or what?" he asked.

She smiled. "Oh… right," she said, and, with a flick of her wand, was dressed and ready to go.

They entered the little café that Draco had told her about and settled into a booth at the back. He ordered coffee, black, and she ordered a mocha latte with cocoa. She looked at him expectantly and he sighed.

"Okay…" he started, "Dumbledore, of course, knows that I know about your assignment. He arrived this morning just as I awoke and told me to let you sleep. He also wants to speak to us after dinner tonight in his office. Remus, by the way, is furious."

Hermione's face fell. I knew he'd be mad… she thought.

"But let's not think about that right now… we're on date, and you deserve to have some fun," he said.

Their drinks arrived moments later and they sipped them in a companionable silence. Hermione finally set her cup down and looked him in the eye.

"Why are you acting like this?" she asked.

"Like what?" he replied, raising his eyebrows at her.

"Nice. What made you like me of all people?" she said.

"Well… for one, you're smarter than any witch of your time. You're a lot prettier than you seem to think… and I guess, just because- I don't know- you're you," he said, smiling into his coffee.

Hermione grinned. "That's sweet," she said.

"Oh yes, terribly sweet!" Pansy said, walking over to their table.

"Oh great…" Draco groaned.

"How cute, Draco… first you denounce your own father, and now you're dating a pathetic little mud-blood," Pansy sneered, the six other Slytherins behind her, copying.

"Why don't you go… find some pie and occupy yourself, Parkinson… we're kind of busy," Hermione scowled.

"Ooh… when did you get a little courage?" she said sarcastically.

"Since I realized that I could kick any of you arses hands down," she retorted, twisting her wand between her fingers.

A few of the Slytherins ran out as soon as they saw her pull out her wand, but Pansy only winced.

"Intimidation won't work on me, Granger. Because, unlike you, I'm a pureblood, and I won't let some little mud-blood bitch-"

"You know what?" Hermione exclaimed, standing up and pointing her wand at Pansy's pudgy nose, "Unless you're going to take some action and either pull out your wand or throw a God damned punch, then I would much appreciate it if you would leave me to get back to my date. Thanks!"

The rest of Pansy's "friends" were long gone by now, and Pansy now felt the urge to run as well, when faced with a wand in the hands of Hermione Granger. She knew full well that she wouldn't stand a chance in hell if she dueled with her, but she was too proud to admit it.

"What? Does Draco need you to fight his battles for him now?" she said.

"No," Hermione smirked, "But I'd rather he didn't exhaust those skillful hands of his, taking out trash like YOU!"

Draco grinned, cocking an eyebrow. Skillful hands, eh?

Pansy scoffed. "Well, I'm not wasting my wand on you, so I guess we'll have to settle this the muggle way…"

Hermione laughed. "Unless you plan on sitting on me and crushing me into a fine powder, you don't stand a chance!"

Pansy's face grew red. "We'll just see about that!" She pulled back her arm, balling her hand into a fist, and threw a punch as hard as she could. Hermione easily side stepped it, as she was much quicker, and Pansy lost her balance, toppling over into a heap on the floor.

Draco burst out laughing and Pansy ran from the café. "You're not human, Granger!" she yelled as she ran through the door. Draco and Hermione continued the date as though nothing had happened, and when they left they made sure to leave a large tip because of the trouble they had caused.

After dinner they met outside of Dumbledore's office. They glanced at each other, preparing themselves for the worst. Hermione grabbed Draco's hand in her own before they muttered the password and walked up the stone staircase.

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Do I make you mad with all of my cliffhangers? Lol. Just make sure you review! Min of 15 before the next update. Thank you!