A/N: hello again to my one reviewing reader! I may have other readers who simply can't figure out how to click the tiny little bluish button on the bottom left hand side of the page and type in what they thought, sigh it really would be a good skill for them to learn…. And you know, I'm not going to be one of those annoying authors who says they wont update until they get x number of reviews but it does encourage me to update a little faster…maybe, because I know it took me a long time to update this, I think like over a month, oh whoops, almost two now (sorry!) and I promise I'll try never to do that ever again but I make no promises, my life is a bit hectic.

So yeah….. I know I know, long author's note, but you'll forgive...I hope…and now I give you DUN DUN DUN…….CHAPTER #3!


Draco flooed back to Hogwarts the very next day, during breakfast. No one in Slytherin ever missed a meal, so the common room would be empty. Or so he thought. When the tired blonde opened his eyes again in his common room, he came face to face with an expectant looking Pansy Parkinson, the very person he didn't want to see at the moment, and coincidentally, his girlfriend.

He sighed, and braced himself as the eager girl flung her arms around his neck and kissed him wetly on the cheek. Ick.

"Hi pansy" he said flatly.

"Drakey!" she shrieked, making him wince as his head gave a dull throb.

"Why aren't you at breakfast?"

"So how was it?" she asked excitedly, completely ignoring his question, and kept talking, "I bet it was great, you are so lucky you know my dad would never let me go to one of those things did it beg and scream, I bet it did, worthless thing , it's a good feeling isn't it."

"What is?" he asked, the image of the girl swimming into his consciousness, her defiant sapphire eyes standing out against stark white skin.

"There's one less mudblood to muck up the wizarding wor-" he cut her off

"Yeah, it was great, listen I'm tired" said Draco coldly "I'm going to bed"

"Ok Drakey, tomorrow you can tell me all about it"

"Right, sure pansy"

He paused and turned around at the base of the stairwell, "pansy?"

"Yeah Drakey poo?"

"She didn't beg."

With that he walked up the stairs into the 6th year boys' dormitory, not caring that classes were starting in twenty minutes, and remembering how much he despised the name Drakey.

Pansy simply stood where she was, had she really just heard her Draco, the Draco Malfoy, refer to a mudblood, as a 'she'?

Because of the impending classes, the dormitory was deserted as he rounded the corner to his room. The blonde walked over to his bed, which was the closet one to the window (enchanted to mirror the outside, much like the ceiling of the great hall, since they were in the dungeons) and pulled a vial of navy blue liquid out of his trunk. Dreamless sleep potion, and just enough left to last him until morning, when he would have to make some more. He drained it quickly, and fell onto his bed, pulling his deep green curtains closed as he did so.

Walking into the great hall that Monday was like walking into a bee hive for Hermione Granger. It was the first time she had been out of Gryffindor tower since Friday's dinner. Having had Harry or Ron bring something back for her at meals, she really just hadn't felt the need to make an appearance, preferring to read, or do school work.

And it was now quite obvious she had missed something in her absence. Hermione had never been a gossip monger, she preferred facts to rumors, and she wasn't about to go searching for the source of the excitement this time. It's not like she had long to wait before the news would come to her.

Seconds after she sat down at the Gryffindor table, Ginny Weasley bounded up beside her in a flurry of long red hair.

"You would not believe what Amanda just told me!" at Hermione's silence she continued, obviously unperturbed by her lack of enthusiasm.

"Draco Malfoy is missing! No one's seen him since Friday!" she was practically squealing from the excitement of having heard this new bit of gossip.

Hermione looked sternly at Ron and his muttering, at the moment he was saying something like "it's about time, bloody git"

"Ron! What if something really happened to him?"

"Why do you care Hermione?" he snapped "isn't this the guy whose been torturing you for the last 6 year? How many times has that asshole called you a mudblood?"

"And when was the last time I cared Ron? You're no better, you start just as much as he does" she snapped right back, she really wasn't in the mood for one of his little Malfoy hating sprees at the moment, she hadn't had enough sleep for that this early in the morning.

"You're just sore at him because you can never come up with a comeback" Ginny added, and Hermione couldn't quite honestly deny the accuracy of the statement.

"And besides, no matter how much of a git he was, he was hot." She added calmly, taking a bite of egg.

Hermione almost sprayed her pumpkin juice all over the table. "Ginny!"

"Well, he is the hottest guy here . . . besides Harry of course" It seemed she was still working on sounding like a dutiful girlfriend, no matter how much she acted the part.

"While I think Ron's pushing it, how can you consider someone as awful as Malfoy…hot?

"Um, because he is? Duh Hermione, come on. You've got to admit you've caught yourself staring at him once or twice, it's basically impossible not to."

"Not for me its not."

"Okay Mione, sure….HARRY!" shrieked Ginny suddenly when she saw Harry coming through the great hall doors.

Running from the table and to her boyfriend of three months, the red head threw her arms around his neck and kissed his cheek. She had never been one for subtlety.

They walked back to the table with his arm around her waist, both smiling broadly and whispering in each others ears. They really were sickenly happy sometimes.

Hermione looked over at her own boyfriend. Ron was stuffing food into his mouth with amazing speed. She sighed. It wasn't that she didn't like Ron, she did, a lot. She just wasn't sure she loved him, as she had been telling him since he told her he loved her at Christmas. She had said it back, not wanting to hurt his feelings and had been regretting it ever since.

Ron had been pushing a lot farther lately than the usually shy red head ever had before, and she knew he wanted to have sex, and soon. But Hermione just couldn't picture it, it wasn't that she was a prude, but she had certain ideas about sex, some delusions she knew, but she just wanted her first time to be special, with someone she loved, who loved her back. She loved Ron, but she wasn't sure she loved him the way she should, she wasn't sure she was in love with him.

They had come close a few times. But every time his hand came to rest on the snap of her jeans or the band of her skirt, she just couldn't do it, her heart wouldn't let her.

It wasn't his fault. He was always the perfect gentleman, ok, so maybe he didn't have flawless table manners or the best study skills, and maybe he wasn't he most perceptive person on the face of the earth, but he was sweet and caring, and never pushed her farther than she wanted to go. He always accepted it when she said no. He respected her, and most of all: he wanted her, her, Hermione Granger, mini McGonagal, the school know-it-all, and he wanted her.

And even though she wasn't sure she loved him, she was in love with the feeling of being loved. She couldn't end it for this reason, she couldn't help it. She had grown attached to the feeling of safety that came with his always being there. She always had someone to pull her close or hold her hand, and she wasn't sure if she was ready to let that go, or if she even wanted to, despite his imperfections, at least he was there.

Currently he continuing to shovel food into his mouth and at the same time, attempting to talk to Dean Thomas, who was trying to conceal his look of disgust at the sight of his friend's half chewed food. Hermione couldn't blame him, she was grossed out too. She laid a gentle hand on Ron's shoulder. "Dear, chew, swallow, then speak." She said quietly into his ear.

He swallowed, "oh, sorry" he mumbled, before going on with his conversation. Hermione saw Dean give her a look of gratitude, "you're welcome" she mouthed over Ron's shoulder, then smiled and pushed away her almost full plate, she wasn't really hungry anymore.

"Guys, I'm going to the library, I'll see you later Ron" she said, getting up from her seat and pecking Ron softly on the cheek.

"K Hun, I'll se you in potions."

Ugh, potions, she had almost forgotten about potions. Hermione hated potions, even though she knew how necessary they were. This was for two reasons. One was the very existence of Draco Malfoy, as potions gave him ample opportunity to attempt to terrorize her. The other was much simpler; Snape was an ass.

But maybe today, due to the glaring absence of one of those problems, it wouldn't be unbearable.

Or not.

Being that his favorite student was missing, Snape wasn't exactly having a wonderful day in the neighborhood. And from her first step into the potions dungeon Hermione could tell it wasn't going to be a pleasant day in potions class either. She sat down in her assigned seat and pulled out her essay, along with very well read volume: Hogwarts, a History. It always numbed her brain when she was thinking too much, and therefore was something she read very often. Slowly the rest of the class filed in, Harry and Ron trailing in just before the bell. And when Pansy stumbled in five minutes late, the yelling that followed on Snape's part almost drove the pug faced girl to tears. Unfortunately for them, it only got worse as time went on. When Snape ordered them all to take out their essays, everyone had brought theirs, except of course, Ron. Hermione heard the red head swear quietly beside her. His essay was sitting on his bedside table, ink newly dried, completed. And needless to say, Snape wasn't happy.

"Mr. Weasley. If you do not want to come to class prepared perhaps it would be better if you simply did not come to class at all. And perhaps if you find yourself above this class, maybe you should just return home, since school, seems to be such a trivial thing to you at present, what Weasley, too busy ogling some whore to do the assigned work? And after all, if you do not have the dedication to make it through this class, exactly how do you expect to make it through 7th year? To survive outside this school? You won't always be living off mummy's money you know. Now then, is there any answer you have for me? Any explanation of your lack of dedication to this class?" he paused, and Ron sat in silence "None? Fine" he went back to his desk, and continued "Do not expect to be able to turn in this assignment late and get any credit, since everyone else managed to get theirs in," hissed the dark eyed teacher, and now that Hermione looked at him, his hair looked strangely clean, but maybe she just hadn't noticed it before.

Hermione sighed, why was it that she was always the one bailing Ron out of this stuff?

Luckily for Ron, Snape was called out of the room a few moments later. Apparently Peeves had been in his office again, and had knocked over a test tube rack, which, upon hitting the floor, shattered, and resulted in a minor explosion.

Careful to keep it under her desk, she pointed her wand in the direction of Gryffindor tower, and thinking of Ron's essay she had proofread the night before, whispered "accio potions essay."

About five minutes later, she heard a rustle under her chair, and upon investigation, saw a roll of parchment bearing Ron's distinct handwriting. Thank Merlin everyone was too busy with the complicated potion Snape had written the instructions for on the board, and had left them with the order that it was be completed by his return, to notice the parchment's arrival. She pulled it out form under her chair, and tapped Ron on the shoulder, dropping the essay next to his bag.

"Psst! Ron!" she whispered

"What?" he asked, concentrating on counting under his breath as he stirred his potion, or, what looked to be his attempt at the potion.

"By your bag, look!"

He glanced down to his bag, and grinned widely at her. He picked up his essay, looking at it incredulously, and kissed her softly on the cheek, "And that, is why I love you"

Meanwhile, in a dungeon not far away, a grey eyed boy slept on, blissfully hidden from the harsh light of day.

A/N #2: again, please please please please please please please review, I'll love you forever if you do! And just FYI, I only do one disclaimer per story, in the first chapter, and this one will be no different. REVIEW! . . . . . please?