A/N: Whew! I'm still a little tired from that last chapter. As soon as I posted 18 I wrote 19 as fast as I could because even I thought it was mean how long I had been delaying the lovin'. I hope y'all think it was worth the wait though. My bf ended up helping out a bit, I think he brought in an edgy style to it, a little more "rough" maybe or more carnal then I ever could make it lol.

Sorry if some of you were hoping for a really submissive Hermione/dominant Draco sex-slave thing. I considered going that route but I couldn't figure out anyway to not have Draco be really mean and I would like to leave Hermione's character with some dignity. Maybe in another fic perhaps?

And isn't that a scary thought…. but I can't pretend this fic isn't about to come to an end. It's been real. I've even been day dreaming about a sequel, or perhaps just continuing this one making it really long. I think it would be fun to try to end the war J.K. Rowling is setting up for in book 6 in my own little way. With incorporating a lot of what's really going on in the books….and plenty of D/H action on the side of course. But if that doesn't sound like something you guys would want to read then I'll save myself the time. Let me know? Sweet. Awesome. Next chapter!

… … …

Draco awoke at dawn to an empty bed. While the pleasures of the previous night still flowed through his veins and he physically felt better than he ever had before, he couldn't help but worry about Hermione. He wondered where she was right then and what she was doing.

Hermione was finishing her lap around the lake. She woke at sunrise and got ready for the day, but she needed to go somewhere completely void of any other person so she could figure things out.

Last night had been the best of her life. Never before had she felt so much pleasure and satisfaction. She felt so alive as he brought the wild and passionate animal out of her. That was the closest she's ever felt to another person before, like they were connected and one. But what did it all mean? Did he feel the same amazing feelings? Or was she just a conquest? A fling? Just another girl on his list. Was she blowing things way out of proportion? Perhaps she should just talk to him. But what if she felt completely different than he did and he laughed at her? What if it meant nothing to him and he responded like the arrogant ass she's known for the last 7 years? What if he was just totally used for her body, or worse, just a tool used to prove to the world he could get any girl he wished, even an arch-enemy?

Hermione wasn't completely out of bounds thinking that. After all, Draco's first plan was to hump'n'dump her to save his own sanity. But was that what he stilled wanted to do to her? Was he actually capable of being so cruel to something so sweet? True, he's been able to do some pretty low things in the past, but even he couldn't deny the unique and new feelings he had for her. However, He didn't know if he could trust those feelings, what if she just made him believe that's what he was feeling? Maybe he wouldn't be being cruel to someone so sweet, but someone who totally lied to him by pretending to want to do it. It's not like she didn't have a lot to loose that night, she could've been faking the whole thing to save herself.

But would he even be allowed to be mad at her for lying if she was? What if he made her so desperate for escape that she sacrificed her body to him so he wouldn't tell on her? Draco felt so much from the evening that he would be truly heartbroken if she was faking feeling it as well. But could he blame her? He made her life a living hell. Maybe he gave her no other choice. What if she regretted the whole thing? Was he still just a slimy git to her? Draco wondered if she was still just a nerdy mudblood to him, but deep down he already felt the answer.

Besides, even if he still stuck to the screw her once and then ignore her plan, would it help him? Was he cured of his infatuation? Did he no longer want her now that he had her? 'No,' he thought, 'I still want her, in fact, if she were here now I'd do it all over again…and then again after that….. but only if she wanted to.'

He was too aroused last night to mind that she might be pretending, but now the idea made him ill. He hated the thought of her not really wanting to be with him. He couldn't believe he went through with so much last night without being positive of her intentions. How could he have such low standards? But she was just so tempting, he couldn't resist the opportunity.

They both wanted to confess the feelings they had, but both were too scared to be the first one to do so. What if the other laughed in their face? What if the other was just being deceitful? Either one of them could have been faking to get something in return. How could they ever find out what they were feeling if both were being so careful not to show how they really felt? Quite the predicament.

Hermione breathed in the fresh air and watched the breeze create ripples across the surface of the crystal blue lake. Although she was concerned, it was impossible to be tied up in knots about it just yet. She was still so relaxed from the previous night's activities that nothing could bother her too much. She felt like a different person. Her only hope was her woman's intuition. She wondered if Draco would take her disappearance as a dark omen, and he did. He was more pessimistic about the situation than she was. She had a few instinctual urges on what to do, and she prayed that what they were telling her was accurate, opposed to some petty unrealistic emotion. Her hormones after all, were going insane. Damn being a girl. They feel way too much.

Once again they were prisoners from their own homes, steering clear of their head quarters all day. And once again, avoiding each other failed, they ran into each other in the Ravenclaw commons.

Since Ravenclaw didn't have any problems with any other house, it was normal for all kinds of kids to congregate there. It was Saturday night and Hermione thought it would be good for her to hang out with friends again. A lot of the 7th years showed up and Hermione went with Harry Ron Seamus and Ginny. Everyone was playing some games or talking and listening to some music. Hermione was enjoying herself as she had a good time talking with everyone. Much to her Gryffindor cliques' dismay, Slytherins began to arrive.

Hermione suddenly felt very uncomfortable. She looked up and realized Pansy's beady little pug eyes were staring at her harshly. Not just her either, but her skanky gang as well. She shifted in her chair awkwardly as they began whispering to each other. Her 1st thought was that Draco had already told everyone and now the whole school knew about their night, she felt like she was going to vomit.

Harry and Ron began to notice the loss of color in Hermione's face. They looked around and began to realize Slytherins were surrounding them. Hermione, who didn't want what she predicted was coming up to happen in front of everyone, excused herself.

"I'm gonna go get more punch," she announced as she got up.

"But, Mione…" Harry started to say.

"That's ok Harry," Hermione said through gritted teeth, "I can get it myself."

Harry didn't understand why, but he knew his friend well enough to know that she wanted him to stay where he was. He didn't want to, with Slytherins drawing nearer, but he loyally did as his friend implied.

Ron began to rise, if something was going to go down, he wanted to have Hermione's back. But Harry stopped him from following her.

As far as the boys could see from their seats, they had exaggerated the situation. Only Pansy and 2 of her tagalongs followed Hermione. But the boys watched the intently, ready to intervene at any moment. Soon even Seamus and Dean noticed the awkwardness of everyone, but only because they realized Hermione got up, making it difficult to hit on her if she wasn't there anymore.

"Think you're hot shit don't you bitch." Pansy said to Hermione upon reaching the punch table.

"Excuse me?" Hermione said, afraid of how she might answer.

"You cursed my man."

Hermione was nervous and couldn't help but laugh. "What are you talking about?"

"DRACO!" Pansy screamed, causing a few heads to turn, "He's under your spell!"

Hermione didn't know what to say, was she for real? Or was she just beating around the bush, trying to drag what happened last night out of her. "I'm afraid you're mistaken Pansy," Hermione said, "I've never used magic on Draco before." She was telling the truth.

"Don't tell me you haven't bewitched him you filthy muggle!" she cried shoving a text book under her nose. "Just look at what he's been writing during crazy delusional fits while under your power!"

Hermione recognized the book as a head's edition, there was a slip of paper in between on of the pages. She read the words "She's the most beautiful muggle I've ever seen."

"I KNOW THAT"S ABOUT YOU!" Pansy snarled, she sounded insane. "I saw you two making eye contact in class and then he got all weird and started writing that absurd nonsense. You mudblood bitch!"

Hermione was pissed; she was no longer going to tolerate anyone calling her mudblood. "Sure, Pansy, blame his total disgust for you on me." She said staring her coolly in the eyes.

Hermione felt the harsh sting of Pansy's hand across her face. Shocked, she whipped her head back up and stared at her. Everybody was looking at them now. Before Hermione realized the magnitude of her retaliation, Pansy went heels over head and fell back onto the floor, her hands at her nose, with blood beginning to trickle down her lips and chin. Hermione had punched her square in the face before Ginny and Lavender could even reach her side to help defend her.

Hermione looked up and saw that everyone was staring at her. Her cheek burned, she knew there must be a red mark. She looked through the crowd to find the closest exit. At the door she saw none other than Draco himself, he looked as though he just arrived. She couldn't be sure but he seemed as though he had seen the whole thing.

Hermione apologized to her Ravenclaw friend Roger Davies for making a scene at their party. Then she walked towards the door, she stopped right in front of Draco.

"Could you do me a favor and escort your friend Pansy to Madam Pomfrey." She said with no emotion. Then she left. Harry, Ron and the other Gryffindor's soon followed after her.

"What was that all about?" Ron demanded to know as the rest of her house friends swarmed around her as she power walked down the hall.

"It's no big deal guys, Pansy's just insane." She responded, quickening her pace.

"Hermione!" Harry yelled, trying to keep up with her, "why do you insist on not tell us!"

Hermione felt a ping of guilt. "I'm sorry," she said, "I just don't wanna talk about it." She looked at their angry faces and knew that wouldn't fly. "It was just a misunderstanding is all….really. Pansy saw a note Draco wrote about some girl being pretty and she thought it was about me and she went all crazy."

"But why did she think it was about you?" Ron asked.

"Yeah," Harry said, "who was it really about?"

"How am I supposed to know!" Hermione screamed while avoiding their eyes, annoyed that she couldn't look her friends in the face and lie.

"Something else is wrong Mione, why won't you tell us what it is?" Harry asked earnestly.

Hermione looked at him helplessly, "There's nothing else! Jeez! Why won't you drop it?" There's no way she could tell Ron and Harry or anyone from her house for that matter that she slept with Draco Malfoy. Or that he wrote a note about the most beautiful MUGGLE.

"But Hermione…" Ron started to argue.

"Honestly guys!" Dean interrupted, "she doesn't want to talk about it! C'mon Hermione, I'll take you out for some air."

Hermione, glad for any excuse to get away, turned to walk outside with Dean. Dean smiled wickedly back at Harry and Ron as he took Hermione out to the grounds, just the two of them.

"I can't believe it," Pansy sobbed pathetically, "the love of my life...likes a mudblood."

"I told you Pansy, STOP calling her that." Draco said as loud as he could without Madam Pomfrey hearing them from her office.

Pansy laid out on one of the informatory beds with an ice pack on her nose. Madam Pomfrey had already cast the spell to make the bleeding stop, but Pansy insisted on staying, milking her injury for all it was worth. She also cried when Draco tried to leave, so the nurse asked him to stay with her until she was ready to go. Draco had no choice but to stick around.

She wailed and wailed and Draco could barely stand it. "Why her Draco?" she squealed, "Why her! What has she done to you?"

"UGH! Nothing Pansy, you don't know what you're talking about." He groaned.

"Don't you remember Draco?" she exclaimed dramatically, "Don't you remember when we were in love!" Draco was kicking himself, how could he have given her the book that he wrote that in to borrow? He could be so dense sometimes!

"Don't you love me anymore?" she whined, pulling an ugly attempt at a puppy dog face.

"I swear to Merlin Pansy, I'm so glad Hermione already socked you because I can't hit a girl! That was 2 years ago, why can't you just get over it?"

"Get over it? How can I get over my true love? My soul mate? Don't you see? Don't you see Draco? We're supposed to be together! Even our parents think so!"

"No, Pansy, we're not, I don't like you like that anymore!"

"So who do you like then? That filthy disgusting muggle born? How can that be? You and that freak! Say it isn't so!"

"YOU SHUT UP! Don't you dare say such things about her, and don't you dare go near her again. She is no business of yours!" Draco said, losing all patience with her.

Pansy looked at him evilly through her dog face. "Well then, I guess her out strolling with Dean Thomas is no business of mine either!" she said snidely.

"What are you talking about now you git?" Draco asked

Pansy pointed with her head out the informatory windows. You could see the lake through them. Draco peered out and saw that Dean was leading Hermione by the hand to a porch swing on the shore. Draco's heart stopped. Dean pulled her down next to him and put his arm around her. Draco turned away. Pansy giggled obnoxiously, snorting out dried blood.

"Shut the fuck up you idiotic whore!" he screamed as he stormed out, leaving Pansy alone, who erupted into overly dramatic tears again.

… … …

Draco, your typical male, was furious. He was expressing his hurt, envy, insecurity and confusion all through anger. The fist sized indent on the astronomy tower's oak door will testify to this. He punched it. Then he whipped the door open, muttering to himself as he stormed up the tower and charged out onto the roof. He stopped at the edge, and looked up into the black depths of the sky; the stars were faint that night.

Something about the night sky had always soothed him, and the dark solitude of the tower was calling to him, but Draco doubted there was any therapeutic place comforting enough to get him to calm down. He tried breathing deep and counting to 10, but it didn't work, he stilled yearned for Hermione. "Dean Thomas," he uttered harshly, "a muggle Gryffindor, how splendid." He wanted to pummel him. He didn't know if he was glad or not that he couldn't see the lake from this tower. True, he didn't have to see what they were doing but his imagination was conjuring up the worst case scenarios anyway.

'Who am I kidding,' he thought to himself, 'Gryffindor or Slytherin, it doesn't matter who, anyone with her I'd wanna kill…..' He had feelings for her. He couldn't deny it anymore. He couldn't believe he assumed he's infatuation would end once they did it, because now it was 10 times as strong. Ashamed he ever dreamt of doing her just to ruin her, he wished desperately he could take that back. 'Why do you always have to realize how great something is after its not yours anymore!' he thought angrily.

He was still fuming, but he knew kicking Dean's ass to get her back wouldn't impress Hermione much. And now with his undeniable feelings for her he never wanted to plot evilly against her again, so calling her names and bullying her wasn't something he wanted to do to get her back.

As much as he hated to admit it he'd have to confront her about it. He could already tell this is one of those things you can't suppress, and that it wouldn't go away with time. He'd have to tell her how he felt. He knew she'd just laugh in his face, and tell him to stay away from him. He'd have to hear about how he was used, rejected and replaced. It would be the most painful thing he'd ever have to sit through, but at least it would be closure. This wasn't something he could just pretend never happened. If he didn't get all his feelings off his chest and hear those finalizing words from her mouth, he'd go insane with doubt, and always wonder.

He could feel the pain already sinking in, and he knew he couldn't put this off for long. The quicker she let him rip his heart out, then maybe just maybe, he's recovery would be faster. 'Not bloody likely though,' he thought glumly, wishing against all wishes that there was some way out of this situation. He wished so hard that he didn't care like he did, that he didn't miss her like mad, and that she wasn't killing a piece of him. He wished so bad that he didn't have to talk to her, that he didn't have to hand over his dignity and pride to a muggle Gryffindor. But everything he was belonged to her now. Even if she didn't want it, his pride was hers now, along with his heart.

Draco turned away from the ledge and slid down until he was sitting, his back against the cold stone wall. He thought longingly of her face. 'If only I could kiss her one last time,' He said to himself as he rolled his head back and closed his eyes….

There was a soft rap on the dorm room door. With everyone else asleep, Ginny wondered who could be calling at this hour of the night.

"Ginny?" She heard her name being called softly by her friend.

"Hermione!" she started to say in a flirtatious tone, turning to greet her, "How was the make out session with Dea…" She saw her friend's face for the first time as she turned on the lamp, she had obviously been crying. "What's wrong Miony!" she asked, very concerned.

"Everything!" she mumbled. And she proceeds to tell her just that, everything.

Ginny sat in amazement as she heard all about Hermione's addiction, and how Draco held it over her head. She couldn't believe when she heard about their intense fights and even less believable is what they did the previous night. Hermione explained why she had been acting so weird and exactly why Pansy slapped her. Then she told her about Dean coming onto her and not stopping. Not the same way Draco did, no, Dean wasn't gentle.

He was a clumsy hornball who lost his cool. He left a 6 inch scratches along her arm when his grip slipped from her wrist as he fumbled around her, trying to convince her to kiss him. It was obvious he just lost control of his temper and didn't know he was going to leave marks on her. But that didn't mean it was anywhere close to being ok. Hermione punched her 2nd person of that night.

"Oh Hermione!" Ginny cried, "You poor thing!" All she could do was hold her friend and let her cry. Hermione was so thankful that she had someone to listen to her. She felt like such a fool for not going to Ginny earlier, Ginny didn't judge Hermione at all! All she wanted was the best for Hermione. She told her she had nothing to be ashamed of, she didn't do anything wrong.

"But Ginny! Draco Malfoy! Ron and Harry would shit a brick if they found out! How crazy am I? I can't go on thinking I have feelings for Draco!...But I do!" Hermione said sobbing, "…I really do! What's wrong with me?"

"Hermione, its ok, you can't help who you love. I know liking someone you're not supposed to is hard to deal with, but you can't deny the truth, you just have to do what you feel is right for yourself." Hermione looked at Ginny, she sounded so wise.

"I can't believe you're not telling me to stay as far away from him as I can. After all the shit he gives your family..…"

"Well it's like you said, he learned all that from home. I know that if you must care for someone, then they have to be a good person deep down somewhere. Love is blind Hermione, not just to looks, but to names and up-bringings as well….and age…" she said slowly.

Hermione looked at her suspiciously, "How do you know all this?" she asked.

Ginny turned a little red, "I've been dating Oliver Wood!" She finally squealed.

Hermione's eyes widened, "Ginny!" she said excitedly, "How did that happen!"

"He visited the burrow last summer while he was near on the Chudley Cannons promotion tour, to catch up with Ron and Harry." She explained.

"And you two….?" Hermione wanted to know.

"He's so amazing Hermione! And he doesn't care that I'm only a 6th year!"

Ginny looked like she was so happy to get that off her chest. Oliver would be going on 21, but next year Ginny would be 18 and soon she'd graduate. "We tried to fight it but when it comes to these things you just can't. We're going to get married when I'm done with school. Ron is no where near being able to handle this information though so you can't tell him!"

Hermione laughed, "Believe me Ginny, I won't tell."

Talking with her made her feel so much better. She was no longer alone, and better still, Ginny kind of understood. You really can't help who you fall in love with, it just happens. It felt so good knowing she had someone who knew what she was going through, and someone she knew wouldn't tell a soul. Ginny promised not to let Ron and Harry know. Hermione still wasn't completely decided in what to do anyway. Ginny advised Hermione to just follow her heart, and Hermione agreed that was probably the best idea.

… … …

A/N: So I've basically have all the rest done, and I think I'll try to post at least one chapter a day. But I may go back and add/change a few things here or there if reviews inspire me to do as much, so if you have a comment please voice it asap.

I started writing this story out of my own personal HP obsession (lol) but I just wanted you readers to know that it has kind of turned into for you because the reviews just make me so happy J. It's kind of funny, because after I'd write the next chapter, I'd look back at the previous chapters reviews only to find someone asking for what I just wrote. Total connection you guys….whoa! lol. So thank you tons for the encouragement and constructive criticism.