A/N: Thanks again for those who read. I love the help you all give me!
Rilicious: Thank you. I want it to be believable, not just "lyke omg, ur so sXy. Kiss me!" Hehe.
Antanaqui: I looked up the name. I wanted to find something that would fit well along Draco, Lucius, and Narcissa.
Rkgrl: Thanks! Hey, I love adore it if you would let me know what parts have confused you. Then I can clear it up and tweak up the story to make it better!
Rose: Thanks for you sweet review. I love Damien Rice as well…I wrote that chapter w/ Blower's Daughter playing.
Morf21489: Thanks so much. I will try to keep it good!
Draco'sBlackRose: Actually, this story is set in 7th year, not 6th year. That's why the prologue was discussing graduation. Sorry if I wasn't too clear on that. Thanks for the review!
KriCketXO: I missed your reviews! Thanks for coming back, haha.
willow fairy: Hm, if you really want to see the cover, you can always reach me by email or aim…xxbuffyroxmysoxx…and I'll give you the link. Thanks for reviewing!
Cherbib161: Thanks for your review. That's exactly what I was going for with the kiss and it means so much to me that you noticed that.
Lilycarverjb: Thanks, you totally got that kiss, haha. Thanks again for reviewing!
Hermione shoved a wriggling gummy worm into her mouth as she scratched out another name on her parchment, frowning. She swallowed the candy, gulping, and pulled her knees to her chest. It was midnight, two days before Halloween, and she had yet to make any real progress in the planning of the Halloween festivities. She found it slightly unfair that she'd been placed in charge of everything, while the Head Boy, a Ravenclaw she barely knew, had only been placed in charge of decorations. It wasn't like he couldn't just wave his wand and create them. Instead, the duties of food and music had been given to her and it couldn't have been going worse. Of course, she had Malfoy to help her, but he hadproven to be little more than a distraction. Ever since the moment--she still refused to recognize it as a kiss--they had shared in the library, their relations had been admittedly strained. He hadn't exactly been rude to her, but he hadn't been nice. He'd come to tutoring every day and he'd usually stay after in the library, researching his new familial addition, and they'd altogether abandoned Halloween. Hermione tossed down her quill. She'd tried everyone--from the popular rockstars, The Squibs, to the 80s musical sensation Toil and Trouble. Unfortunately, the overweight lead singer was busy planning his marriage to his 4th wife--a 20 something with unbelievably large breasts--and the drummer was in rehab for a cocaine addiction. Even with their retro feel, the band wouldn't be much with only a guitar player, a base player, and a couple of 45 year old groupies. Perhaps she could hire a cover band? At least there would be music. She shook her head, to no one but herself. The music would be crappy. And everyone knows that no music is better than crappy music. Giving up, Hermione crumpled up her parchment, tossed it onto the floor, and snuggled into her covers.
The coffee was bitter against the back of his throat as he gulped it down. It was an early Saturday morning and Draco was sandwiched between Crabbe and Goyle at the Slytherin table. "So, Draco," Pansy began from across the table, smoothing her lip-gloss with her pinky, "We never see you around anymore." Blaise Zabini, who was sitting next to Pansy and munching on toast nodded his head vigorously.
"Seriously, man. Where have you been?"
"You know Dumbledore fucked me over with all those punishments. Potter and Weasley got off clean and I got left with everything."
"Fuckin' hag needs to be replaced," Pansy ran a hang through her dishwater blonde hair, frowning. Crabbe and Goyle grunted in agreement.
"Speaking of hags," Blaise cleared his throat, "How is it? Working with the mudblood?" Draco didn't answer for a second.
"It's…awful. Pure torture." Blaise chuckled.
"I bet. Does she ever shut that big mouth of hers? She could put it to such better uses…" Pansy cackled at this remark.
"Yeah. Right, Blaise. Like she's ever done anything remotely sexual. She's the ice queen." Pansy and Blaise looked to Draco, waiting for his usual biting comment. He forced out an awkward chuckle.
"Unless she's fucking Potter and Weasley." Pansy squealed with joy, her face lighting up.
"Good one, Draco." Blaise reached over the table and clapped him on the shoulder, chuckling. Draco wasn't sure why, but the clap that normally would have left him feeling proud and powerful felt like a slap. Like he was being punished. He lowered his head, his head snaking out to grip his mug. And that's when his eyes connected with Granger's. He hated the connection they always seemed to make when their pupils met. It was magnetic. Her lips were in a tight frown, her eyebrows down turned. She looked…mad? Disappointed? Hurt? He watched as her eyes darted away from his and to the left of her, where Potter was sitting. Her fingers, tinier and daintier than he remembered, toyed with the ends of her hair as she listened intently to Potter. That was one thing about her…she listened. She didn't just look blankly, staring off into space, hearing every other word. She heard every word, every syllable. Even when he spoke, she seemed to block out every other sound and listen. He liked it. No one had ever listened to him in that way. Sure, the Slytherin gang listened to him. But it wasn't out of respect. It was in awe and fear. Granger didn't fear him, this he knew. She had a tendency to take the reins in every conversation and he found this incredibly strong. Even when they'd kissed. Draco took a gulp of his coffee, wincing. He had to stop thinking about that.
Well, you're just across the street
Looks a mile to my feet
I wanna go to you
Funny how I'm nervous still
I've always been the easy kill
I guess I always will
Hermione was in an awful mood. Tutoring had finally ended, after three grueling hours. She'd only had two prefects helping, as Malfoy had decided to skip out without even informing her. Now the library was deserted (as it had seemed to be so much lately) and she was stuck cleaning it all by herself. To make matters worse, three more bands had declined her offer to play at the following night's festivities. She had no idea what to do. Hogwarts was old and even though the magic world was finally catching onto the idea of portable music--with their own twists of course--the castle had no such luxuries. Hermione removed her robes and set them on her chair, then rolled up her sleeves. It was sweltering in the old library. Grimacing, she grabbed an old wet rag and began wiping down the tables. Just as she'd made her first wet streak upon the dusty table, the ethereal quiet was broken. She could hear pounding footsteps coming down the hallway. She didn't need to ponder who the intruder could be.
"Granger!" Draco Malfoy barked, rather forcefully, as he entered the library, his robes billowing out behind him.
"What?" Hermione raised an eyebrow, perplexed by Malfoy's sudden appearance.
"I have an idea for the music." Draco strode closer to her, sitting down on the table.
"Don't sit on the table," Hermione scolded, "And thanks for showing up today."
"I had better things to do. Do you want my idea or not?"
"Fine. What is it?"
"My Father bought me a Screecher 5 for my birthday." Hermione was familiar with the term. A Screecher 5 was a fairly modern introduction. It was the magically powered, non-electronic wizard version of a stereo system. The Screecher 5 was an amazing advancement, but very expensive. From what she'd heard, it made music sound live and responded to vocal commands.
"And?" Hermione folded her arms in front of her chest.
"We could use it here. It'd be better than any one hit wonder band, anyhow." Hermione nodded, slowly.
"True. What's the catch?" Draco smiled, feigning innocence.
"Catch? What catch?"
"I'm not stupid. What's the catch?"
"I need you to come to my Father's party tomorrow night. We can bring the system back with us. We'll be back before the festivities even start."
"Why do you want me to come, Malfoy? And what would your Father say? He hates me even more than you do!" Malfoy sighed.
"I have to bring a date. If I don't, I'll be forced to be glued to my father's side all night and I'll never get a good look at Tynan."
"So bring Pansy. Or Layla." Draco chuckled.
"They'd be glued to me all night as well. You're the only person I know that has any idea what's going on."
"Maybe."
"Don't be a bitch, Granger. It will get you your music, and me my answers."
"Do I catch an undertone of begging in that voice?"
"I will not beg!"
"Maybe not. But you will say please." Draco looked flabbergasted. He watched as Hermione smiled slyly, her hands on her hips. He felt his cheeks flush in frustration.
"Please." He spat it out, angrily.
"Please what?"
"Please come to Father's party, Granger."
"My name isn't Granger."
"Christ, woman! You're intolerable!"
"Just ask nicely. It isn't that hard."
"Please come to my Father's party…Hermione." Hermione smiled.
"See, it wasn't that hard."
"Was too." Hermione playfully punched Draco in the shoulder, laughing.
"So," Hermione sat down on the table next to him. "How am I going to go to this without your Father filleting me?"
"Well…it's Halloween, isn't it?"
Could it be that everything goes 'round by chance?
Or only one way that it was always meant to be
You kill me, you always know the perfect thing to say
I know what I should do, but I just can't walk away
"I…I..can't wear that!" Hermione sputtered, laughing. Malfoy was sitting across from her in the library, holding up a green garment
"Have anything better?" Hermione shook her head, taking the dress.
"But…I just can't, Malfoy."
"Draco, remember? You're supposed to be in Slytherin."
"Fine. But…I can't wear this. It's not me. At all."
"Yeah, and that's the beauty of it." Hermione stuck out her lower lip, pouting.
"Where'd you get this anyway? Have a secret you don't want daddy to find out?"
"It's Pansy's, Granger. It wasn't easy to borrow, either. I had to tell her my mum needs a dress." Hermione laughed.
"And she was dumb enough to believe that?"
"Naturally. Now do me a favor and go get changed. We need to leave soon." Hermione nodded, grabbed the costume from Draco and exited the library to change in the toilet.
As soon as Hermione stepped into the dress, she knew it was all wrong. It seemed odd to her that someone like Pansy Parkinson could own something so luxurious. Pansy always seemed unkempt, like she'd be accustomed to baggy sweaters...not a silky gown. Hermione stepped out of the stall and in front of a mirror. Pansy was obviously curvier than Hermione, so the dressed sagged a bit in the hips and bust, but it looked nice all the same. It was a deep forest green with black beading around the neckline. The top was a low v-cut, a style that made Hermione particularly uncomfortable. She had loosened the frizz of her hair into a wave once again and given it a deep side part. From the part, she'd French braided the first few inches of her hairline. She shifted her weight, feeling slightly uneasy in her shoes. She rarely ventured from flats, and when she did, the results were normally disastrous. She gripped the last piece of her costume--the mask. She slipped it over her head, tightening the strap in the back. It was a small mask; it only covered the lower region of her forehead and the upper bridge of her nose with eye-holes cut out. It was covered with the same green silk as the dress and encrusted with black onyx. She had to admit, it felt nice to be hidden under the secrecy of the mask. It made her feel…daring. She moistened her lips, took a deep breath, and exited the toilet.
"Not bad, Granger, not bad." Draco was standing in the hallway, leaning against the wall, smirking. He was dressed in black dress slacks, a forest green button up, and a black tie.
"I feel stupid," she laughed, adjusting her mask, "And this thing itches like mad." Draco shrugged.
"We better get going." He gripped Hermione by the elbowing, yanking her behind him.
"Ouch! How are we getting there, anyway?"
"Accio broomstick!" Draco stuck out his hand and his broom whipped around the corner and into his grip.
"Oh, no. No. I don't fly."
"Now you do."
"No. No. I can't!"
"Oh, stop Granger." Draco led the trembling girl over to a large window and settled the broom between his legs. "Sit behind me and wrap your arms around my waist." Hermione did just this, her nails digging into Malfoy's hipbones. The broom began to ease upwards and Hermione squealed. "Come on, it's not so bad."
"Yes, it is!" Draco lowered the broom.
"Granger, it's not that bad. You'll be fine." Hermione nodded into his back, pushing away the temptation to cry. The broom began to lift once again and Hermione felt her chest tightening.
"I'm scared."
"Don't be." They began to move forward out the window and Hermione's breathing started to become more erratic.
"Oh, God. Oh God." Hermione pressed her face into Draco's shoulder, whimpering slightly. She had never been so terrified in her entire life.
And then she felt it. A warmth so gentle she hadn't recognized it at first. Ever so slightly, Draco had slid his hand on top hers, cradling her clenched fingers until they relaxed.
And then they were flying.
So go on love
Leave while there's still hope for escape
Gotta take what you can these days
There's so much ahead
So much regret
I know what you want to say
I know people can't help feeling differently
I loved you
and I should have said it
Tell me just what has it ever meant?
To be continued…
A/N The lyrics are by Jimmy Eat World. Hope you enjoyed. Review, please!