TEN

Saturday, 31 October 2020

The faster Halloween approached, the more Hermione wished she could time travel. She had never been a major fan of this holiday and even being told she was a witch at the age of eleven wasn't enough to sway her opinion on the matter. Of all the holidays celebrated within the walls of Hogwarts, Halloween seemed the most stressful. Especially when she was left in charge of planning the party while simultaneously keeping everyone and their goulish antics at bay.

At least Fred and George graduated already otherwise Hermione might have had a heart attack at the age of eighteen.

So far, it had taken over every aspect of her life. The only thing that might have calmed her down was the quiet of Professor Riddle's office during their tutoring sessions, but even that got taken away from her. The week that followed their impromptu debate about history instead of speaking about what happened at Hogsmeade was the first to get cancelled. All because the Hufflepuff Fifth Year Prefect got sick testing a batch of prank candy someone was trying to perfect for Halloween.

Hermione had already been running late after going back to the dorm for the paper she was in the middle of writing when the knock sounded. She ignored it in the hopes that Draco would get to it first, but after several more attempts followed by the sound of her name, Hermione sighed and answered the door. With her dormmate nowhere to be seen, Hermione told the student on the other side she would cover the patrols. As the Sixth Year Ravenclaw Prefect waited in the hall, Hermione penned the fastest note in her life and just as they left, she charmed it to get to Riddle's office as quick as possible.

Whether it affected him one way or another, Hermione couldn't tell when she arrived at his class the next morning. But by then, she was too exhausted to care either way.

And when the following week rolled around, it was Riddle who cancelled on her. She'd discovered his brief note slithering around in her bag when she rummaged through it to let Harry copy some of her notes. She'd skimmed it, picking out the words staff meeting and perhaps next week before crumpling up the paper and shoving it further down her bag and out of sight.

As bummed out that she wasn't able to see him alone yet again, she was grateful for the bit of downtime she would have to herself that evening.

And luckily she had gotten it too because the week that followed was hectic in ways that Hermione never thought possible. So much so, that even Draco steered clear of her. And when she was unavoidable, he was beyond nice to her. She took it at face value since he was the one helping her with all the details. Details she couldn't care one way or another about. Had she been able to pass this off on Pansy or Daphne, things would have been much better.

By the end of the day Friday, Hermione was at her wits end. She was more than ready for everything to be over so she could go back to focusing on her school work rather than the school itself. But somewhere between being sleep deprived and stressed, she had agreed to spend the night before the holiday with Ginny inside Gryffindor tower. So when she woke Saturday morning, it was to a small group of girls already buzzing about as they started getting ready for the day.

Hermione groaned at the sound of Lavender's squeal of excitement, but regretted it a moment later as she realized it had alerted her and Ginny to the fact that she was awake.

"Do you even have a date to this thing?" Lavender asked without so much as a hello or good morning.

Hermione shrugged as she sat up and began to stretch. "Harry probably," she replied as she covered her mouth to yawn. "Why?"

Ginny and Lavender both rolled their eyes as they moved to the bed on the other side of the room. They both leaned over it, picking up jewelry they must have laid out to pick through. "I'm surprised the two of you haven't made it official yet."

Hermione's face morphed as if Lavender's words had left a sour taste in her mouth. "Some of us are here to learn and expand our minds," she replied, getting to her feet to stretch a bit more. "Not all of us are boy crazy."

Ginny laughed softly as Lavender's face brightened. "I've only been crazy about Won-Won since Fourth Year. He's worth a little time outside the library."

Hermione met Ginny's gaze over Lavender's head. They both shared a secretive smile and rolled their eyes before Hermione stepped away to use the bathroom. It was only as she freshened up and started brushing her teeth that she realized she should probably ask Harry if he was available to be her date for the party. Over the years, neither of them had ever asked the other, it had just been assumed they would go with one another as friends and that was that.

As she spit in the sink and rinsed her mouth, she wondered how many times of late she had just been a cover story so Draco wouldn't get jealous?

Either way, she figured she would take her chances and find out last minute. It wasn't as if it mattered; the one person she wanted to go with was off limits anyway. A fact that only served to worsen her mood as the day wore on.

Listening to Lavender talk about Ron and Ginny talk about Seamus- or was it Dean?- was something she was used to tuning out. In fact, she had gotten rather good over half listening to typical girl speak. Unless Ginny was asking for advice or having a serious discussion, Hermione almost never listened. But now, as they spent the day cooped up in the dorm, doing each other's hair and make up for the party, Hermione couldn't help but feel jealous.

She knew it was silly; that by not saying a single word about it since it happened, Riddle had made his stance very clear on where they stood with one another. That it was over before it had even begun. Whatever it had been in the first place. But since there was nothing she could do about it, she kept silent as she continued to get ready with her friends.

By the time they finished, Hermione hardly recognized herself in the mirror. Her normally untamable curls were charmed into a braid that hung over her left shoulder. Her dress was a deep purple with fluttering cap sleeves and a flared skirt that was slightly longer in the back. The only pieces of jewelry she wore was a gold necklace and some embellishments Lavender had convinced her to decorate her braid. Her make up was on the smoky side, but still subtle enough that it wasn't over done. And to finish it off, she transformed her normal shoes into golden flats because she refused to wear heels no matter what the occasion.

But when they came down to greet their dates, Harry was nowhere in sight. According to Ron, he had already made his way to the Great Hall so he could get first pick at the Treacle Tart. Hermione had rolled her eyes, but couldn't help the laughter that slipped past her lips. After promising Ginny that she would meet them there, she made her way to her dorm to put her things away so that when the party was over, she could just go straight to her own bed.

Draco was on the other side of the door when she pulled it open, both of them doing a double take at the sight of the other. He gave a low whistle as his gaze swept up and down her form. "You clean up nice, Granger."

"You look less like a prat this year," she said, pushing past him to set her bag down. They both exchanged a smirk before she realized he was alone in the dorm. "Where's your date?"

"Going stag this year," he replied, tipping his head to the side. "You?"

"Usually it's Harry," she said with a shrug, studying him for any sign of reaction. "But I forgot to ask him this year."

"I'm sure he won't mind," Draco said as he opened the main door for her so they could step back into the hall. "You're his best friend, after all." He then extended his arm for her to take and before she could respond, he asked, "Shall we?"

She snorted as she took his arm. "Let's get this over with," she replied as, arm-in-arm, they made their way to the Great Hall.

After thwarting three separate attempts to spike the punch, Hermione finally turned her back on the fourth. She waited long enough for them to finish what they were doing and then scooped herself the first glass. The alcohol burned its way down her throat, but after half a cup, it was working wonders on her frazzled nerves.

So far, the party was going exactly as she expected it too. Not only had students snuck alcohol in, but there were plenty of Fred and George's products floating around to create an overflow at the infirmary later that night. Pranks galore were being played on student after student, but after awhile, even the teachers were joining in. All in all, it wasn't a bad night.

Harry had been the one to approach her and Draco when they entered the Great Hall. He even made a joke about being replaced as her fake date for the evening. Draco laughed it off and the pair split off together, leaving Hermione to make sure everything was off to a good start. But she hadn't missed the spark of jealousy in Harry's eyes at the sight of her arm entwined with Draco's.

But it was nothing compared to the one that darkened Riddle's gaze.

The sight of it had her do a double take, but he had turned so fast that she was left imagining if it had ever really been there at all. Yet, as the night wore on, she felt his gaze lingering on her from wherever he was in the room. It didn't matter what she was doing; scolding other students, chatting with friends, eating- he was watching everything she did. She tried her best to ignore him, but every so often her resolve would slip and she would meet his gaze for a split second before he looked away, pretending he had never been looking in the first place.

It was only an hour and a half into the party before the spiked punch was flowing readily through everyone's systems. Shortly after that, couples and groups started forming in the center of the room to dance to the music. Hermione found herself being dragged into the thick of it by Harry early on, despite her protests. He refused to listen and spent a few songs trying to get her to loosen up. It was when the song changed to a slower one that they mutually decided it was time to take a break.

She stood with Harry at one of the buffet tables. While he sampled treat after treat, Hermione stared at the couples pairing off. She heaved a sigh at the sight of them holding one another close, even if more than a few of them did so rather stiff and awkwardly. It was the ability to do so that made her heart ache. Against her better judgement, her eyes scanned the room, stopping short at the mirrored emotions of Riddle's gaze on the other side of the room.

She tore her gaze away, choosing instead to turn her attention towards the buffet like Harry. She wasn't even the least bit hungry, but she let her eyes rove over the treats that had been prepared for the night, following the line as she decided what she was going to select. It wasn't until she was near the end of the line that she felt the warmth of someone standing a little too close. She didn't even have to look up to know it was Professor Riddle; her body would forever recognize his after being pressed so intimately together no so long ago.

"Miss Granger," he murmured, reaching for something far enough away he had to lower himself closer to her ear.

"Professor," she returned, trying to keep the shake out of her voice despite the effect his proximity was having on her.

He pulled away enough to allow her room to breathe, but when his hand fell back down to his side, she stilled as it brushed against her own. She thought it might have been an accident, but he kept his hand there, his fingers ghosting over her skin as if he were trying to resist taking her hand. Too caught up in the moment to think clearly, Hermione inched her hand a little closer, nearly lacing their fingers together.

She saw the tick in his jaw a moment before he pulled away again. Hermione resisted the urge to roll her eyes as she stared back at him. Without a word, he turned and walked away. Had she not seen the tilt of his head, beckoning her to follow, she would have been at a complete loss. As it was, she waited a moment and then went after him, making sure to keep her distance in the hopes it wouldn't be obvious. She caught up with him to the right of the main corridor outside the Great Hall, just before the path leading down to the dungeons.

Hermione was prepared for another speech on why this was a bad idea; another let down despite being mutually interested in one another. But the moment Hermione was in reach, she found herself being tugged forward and surrounded in the heat of his embrace. It was a stark contrast against the chill of the stone wall at her back, but she didn't care. She simply closed her eyes and inhaled, letting his scent invade every bit of her; something she could cling to later.

His forehead rested against hers as he settled one hand on her hip while the other came up to lightly take hold of her chin. The tip of his thumb tickled the edge of her bottom lip as they stood there, breathing each other's air. Her own hands had risen to lay flat on his chest where she could feel his heart beat wildly beneath her fingers.

While her body trembled with anticipation, she still braced herself for the words she knew he was about to say. She could tell in the way he sighed a moment before his lips parted. "Not here," he mumbled, instilling a sense of deja vu in her.

"Then where?" she asked, realizing the middle of the hallway just outside a party involving the entire school probably wasn't a wise choice.

"Hermione-"

"I'm an adult," she returned, knowing he was about to pull away. And yet, despite still having been braced for it, the loss of his warmth left her more frigid than the draft from the nearest window.

"It doesn't matter," he argued, raking a hand through his hair. "You're still my student. I-"

But the rest of his words were drowned by the sound of shattering glass and more than a few screams followed by the shout of a certain ghost known for his antics. He shot her an apologetic look, but took off back to the Great Hall to investigate the noise. Instead of following him, Hermione wrapped her arms around herself and leaned back against the wall. Whatever was going on in there, she found she'd rather not know. She had her own problems to deal with.

However, her moment was cut short by the sound of a throat being cleared. She did a double take at the sight of Draco standing there, studying her with concern. She swallowed hard, wondering how long he had been standing there and if he had seen anything. If he had, he kept it to himself as he stepped forward and offered his arm like he had earlier that evening.

"What do you say, Granger? Wanna ditch this party with me?"

"Please," she replied, taking his arm.

With that, they left the party arm-in-arm; exactly as they had arrived.