A/n: Hey, people! Sooo sorry I haven't updated as promised in December. I got lazy. Oo Heh. Sorry again. Anyway, I'm back, and raring to go! Tee hee! 87 reviews? Gosh! You guys are so wunnerful. I luv you dudes and dudettes to bits! I've got most of my plot set out now, I suppose. You'll just have to read to find out...

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter OR Draco Malfoy. sniff How sad.

Recap:

He wrote Hermione's name over and over again in his best cursive writing with his best quill and glittering dark green ink, on his best roll of parchment. Within minutes, the whole page was covered in glittering 'Hermione's in all sorts of shapes and sizes. Draco then got out some more parchment and began to draw a large heart and scratched his and Hermione's initials inside. He sighed and frowned.

Hah. I wish.

Draco stared at Hermione for a couple of minutes, before slumping down on his desk and doodling some more.

:End of recap.

Of All The People In The World

Chapter Nine..

During lunch, Draco and Blaise were eating roast beef and cakes in silence. Blaise watched intently as Draco delicately sliced his roast beef into quarters, then one by one, forked them and ate them, chewing slowly before emitting a soft gulp.

Blaise crinkled his forehead in worry. It wasn't usual of Draco to be so… odd.

"Err, Drake? You okay, mate?" Blaise asked, patting his friend's shoulder.

Draco looked up from his roast beef. "Yeah, I'm just thinking. Have you ever wondered how Hermione got her bushy curls under control? Or how her skins just glows like that. It's so… peachy."

Blaise plastered on a look of fake interest, masking a you've-gone-crazy look he was shooting at his love-sick companion. "Err… yeah. Just so peachy, innit?"

Draco let a dreamy sigh escape his pale lips. "Well, Blaise, what do you have to say about her?"

Blaise stared at Hermione hard from across the Great Hall and watched as she speared a potato with her fork as she chatted animatedly with Harry and Ron, who were, as usual, at her sides. "Well, mate, she's… smart."

Draco gave him a look that clearly said 'is that all you've got to say about the girl I'm practically goo-goo over?'

Blaise hesitated. "She's also very… uhh… tall. And… skinny. No, slim." He corrected himself at Draco's look.

Draco sighed forlornly. "Oh, Blaise, mate. I dunno what to do. I'm so confused! Why are all these feeling bombarding me like this! It's… it's… making me hallucinate! It's nice, yeah, but still. WHY?"

"Hmm. Nice weather we got today, eh?" Blaise said, trying to pry the subject away. Draco's hysterical pose – with both arms in the air and his mouth hanging open – fell flat as he stared at his friend as if he had gone mad.

"The weather! I didn't ask you about the weather, Blaise! I was asking you about HER! I don't care if you want to talk about chickens and dancing peas! ..Merlin, I'm going mad, aren't I?"

Blaise nodded slowly. "Yep, mate. It's such a waste of your good-looking youth. But don't worry, I'll try and get somemore info outta her. I'll talk to her now, infact. She's leaving the Great Hall.. without Pothead and Weasel-breath. Hey, she's got a muffin on hand! I shall bring one, too. That's rather companionable, isn't it, Drake? If your friend has a muffin, bring a muffin along, too."

Draco stared at him. "Good Lord, we're all mad. Well, shoo! I want you to go and ambush her along the way. Jump out from behind the statue of the one-eyed wizard. Act as… cool as possible. Gooo!" He gruffly shoved Blaise out of his seat. Blaise stumbled out with an audible "oof!" and had just enough time to reach for a blueberry muffin before Draco nudged him towards the exit.

Blaise walked quickly out the heavy oak doors, glancing back at Draco's hopeful smile. Pah, he thought. He bit into his muffin, then walked a bit faster. After several minutes, he could see Hermione in the distance.

She's going out to the Grounds! Just peachy, he thought, grimacing at the thought of Draco thinking Hermione was.. 'peachy'. It gave him the shivers.

--

When Hermione walked out to onto the Grounds, she felt a cooling breeze whoosh past her. She sighed as she stood still for a second, breathing in the clean air. She hummed a tune merrily as she made her way towards her favourite spot on the Grounds – the little lone cherry blossom tree.

She loved that tree dearly. Ever since she saw it in her first year, she loved sitting under the tree and just watching the day go by. The tree itself looked breath-taking. It was very old, so it's trunk was twisted and solid. It's long branches were laden with beautiful, scented pink and white cherry blossoms. Whenever there was a slight breeze, several blossoms would float down to the ground, and when Hermione got there, the grass around the tree was littered with the lovely blossoms.

She sat down at her favourite nook inbetween two large roots. She sighed dreamily as she picked up a pink blossom and twirled it around in her fingers. This spot is just so peaceful and lovely! Not to mention fragrant with the smell of cherry blossoms. It's far away from the noisy bicker of all those gossiping girls. Really! They are so jobless. It would be so much more rewarding if they read a good book or finished a project of some sort, she lectured in her mind. Then, she mentally kicked herself.

"Look at me," She said softly to herself, smiling. "I'm nagging a bunch of girls in my mind! I think I might be coming down with something.."

"Believe me, Hermione, you're considered sane compared to Draco and I. We're always going wonky," said a voice from behind the gnarled trunk. Hermione immediately whipped around with her wand out, her bronze curls flying. She got ready to hex the intruder to oblivion, when she saw it was only Blaise.

"Whoa! Put that thing down, you don't know what damage that thing could do," he kidded, seating himself down next to her. Hermione stashed her wand away and turned to look into the distance. For several minutes, they just sat there in a companionable silence, when Blaise broke it with a small cough.

"Lovely weather we've got today, don't you agree?" he said. It was the only thing he could think of saying, and he mentally smacked himself. Not the weather AGAIN..

"Blaise," Hermione said, turning to face him. "Why are you suddenly being so.. friendly?"

"I've told you already, Hermione, it's because I, well… want to get to know you better. Why, does it say somewhere in some unwritten law that Blaise Zabini cannot associate with Hermione Granger?" he teased.

Hermione frowned. "Well, no, it's just.. so sudden. You used to call me a Know-It-All if we had to acknowledge each other's presence, after all."

Blaise wrecked his brain for a cover-up. And it better now be the weather again..

"Well, Hermione, people change, you know? It's the triangle of life. You hate someone, like someone, love someone."

Hermione wrinkled her nose. "LOVE someone? And don't you mean circle of life?"

Blaise's eyes grew big. "Oh, no, no, no, no, no! I don't LOVE you, Hermione Granger. I LIKE you. I simply enjoy your company. And yeah, it's circle, I suppose."

"Umm… right."

"Yes, that's it."

"Alright, then."

Hermione stood up. "Well, I'd better go back in now. The bell's about to ring, and Harry and Ron are probably looking for me. I'll see you around, Blaise." She gave him a quick smile before walking briskly back into the Great Hall.

--

"Arrgh!" Blaise cried, wringing his hands in the air when Hermione was out of earshot. "Damn! Pothead and Weasel just have to ruin everything. I was just about to ask her if she had a date to the dance yet. Poof. Weaselhead better have not made his move, or Draco might punch his guts out."

He sat alone under the cherry blossom tree and sighed. He picked up a white blossom. "I'd better go in and talk to Draco now, then. Come along, Flower."

He got up and dusted him pants before clutching his blossom lightly inbetween his fingers and walking into the school halls.

--

A/n: Well, that's it. I suppose everyone sounds wonkier than usual in this chapter, but that's probably coz it's ME that's gotten wonkier. I'm high on chocs now. Tee hee! Anyway, I hope that's alright. I just realised that it has nothing to contribute to my story, but it's something. If you've got any ideas, or you just want to comment, feel free to leave a review! I always try to reply to my reviewers in the following chapters, if you haven't noticed. Hugs and luv, -me. Xx

Here are some replies to my reviewers:

Smenzer: Yep, he's got the infatuation BAAAD. What WILL he do? ;-) Haha, yeah. He had a bit of roll with her.

Classicmovielover: Heh. Sowie, MUMMY. X-P They will? Awh, damn. Aah, well. I'm still in one piece, right? Thanks for the warning, though. You rock! You're one of my best reviewers.

Disaster Strikes Again: Sorry once again for the wait. Thanks, I DID have a good time.

Sienna: Sorry again! I shall frequent my chappie writing. I'm in form 1 in highschool now. Being a freshman on unfamiliar grounds isn't doing good to me. But I'll try update at least.. once a week.

tearsofdiamondsforyou: Oo Whoopsie. Sorry.

Sabrina: Well, thanks for leaving a comment, at least. Your 'brutal honesty' is actually quite appreciated, really. It makes me strive to improve my writing. But seriously, girl. If you don't like it, don't read it.

Independentskater: Hehe, thanks! That's awfully schweet of you. Sorry I left you hanging like that!

heka: hehe. You like? Blaise is a GIRL in the book! Wtf! Gosh.. Err, sorry to everyone out there for the severe gender confusement. Oo Whoopsie.. Malfunctioning dragon! Is he some kind of robo-dragon or su'in? Yeah, Hermy DOES giggle a lot, doesn't she? Okie, I'll try make her more.. mature.