An update! A fight! Another Slytherin comes into the mix!

I Own Nothing

Hermione spun around, immediately shoving Blaise away, fire in her eyes.

"I'm really beginning to think that I never knew you, at all. I don't have anything to say to you. What is so hard to understand about that?"

Why couldn't he see that this hurt, that standing here, in front of him, hurt? He'd betrayed her trust. He knew how much faith she had in him and he used that to his advantage. Looking at him and not knowing whether to hug him or hurt him was heartbreaking. He'd seen parts of her that not even her friends had seen, and now, a part of her couldn't stomach the sight of him.

Blaise briefly closed his eyes, heaving a small sigh before stepping towards her. Hermione almost unconsciously took one back, but then she remembered who was at her back, and she froze. She could feel his penetrating gaze stabbing heat into her back, like a hot sword.

Blaise reached out towards her, his fingers an inch away from her arm before letting his arm drop in defeat.

"I know that- that I'm going about all of this ass backwards. I know that I should have talked to you about all of this before it happened…"

Against her better judgement, Hermione asked:

"Talked to me about all of what?"

Blaise held her gaze and Hermione felt her shoulders sagging slightly, losing some of their tension.

"I would never just hand you over like a bargaining chip. I would never…sell you out," he said through clenched teeth.

"But you did…!"

She snapped her mouth shut, briefly closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. She had almost forgotten where she was.

"…but you did…," she repeated, much quieter this time "…like I said before, Blaise. Actions speak louder than words and your actions say that I was merely-."

"You cannot believe that you mean that little to me," Blaise spat in frustration.

"What else am I supposed to believe? Your words? The words that you're trying to sell to me, right now? Forgive me if I have a hard time believing anything you say," she hissed.

"You know me, Hermione-."

"No, I don't. I never knew you at all," she scoffed.

"Granger…"

"One more word from you, Malfoy, and I'll turn you inside out," she venomously threw over her shoulder without so much as turning around.

She heard him chuckle and she snapped, spinning around so fast, her hair almost slapping Blaise in the face. She glared up at the tall blond.

"Is this amusing, Malfoy? Do you find enjoyment in what you caused? What you ruined?"

He said nothing, simply gazing down at her through bright eyes, a faint smirk on his lips.

"…in a manner of speaking."

Hermione hurled herself at him, determine to ruin his pretty face, when strong arms wrapped around her.

"Let go of me!"

Before Blaise could respond, or do just that, someone called her name from a few rows over. Hermione glanced up as she heard it again.

"Hermione?"

Blaise scrambled away from her as if she were on fire, and one glance behind her revealed that Malfoy had disappeared. She turned back around just in time for Ginny to round the corner, pausing in shock at finding Hermione in the aisle with Blaise Zabini, alone.

Ginny's eyebrows furrowed as her eyes flickered between the two of them before finally resting on Hermione.

"Hermione…," she slowly questioned, uneasy.

Hermione didn't spare Blaise a glance as she walked towards Ginny, grabbing the younger witch's hand and pulling her out of the restricted section. Hermione ignored Ginny's protests to slow down as she practically sprinted out of the library. She didn't stop until they were well into the corridor, when Ginny roughly tugged her hand from her own, forcing her to turn around.

"Ginny, we can stop as soon as we-."

"No."

Hermione paused at the firmness in Ginny's voice as her friend looked at her with hard, questioning eyes. Ginny frowned even more, lips pursed as she glanced back towards the direction of the library.

Hermione sighed in defeat, throat becoming incredibly thick as she could see Ginny putting the pieces together.

"It's Zabini…isn't it? He's the guy…isn't he?"

"Gin…"

"Answer me," Ginny demanded.

Hermione's chest was heavy as she looked down. There was no need to confirm, Ginny already knew, but she knew that confirming Ginny's suspicions would lead to confirming who the friend was. Ginny knowing everything would make it all so much more tangible. Before, she could at least pretend that it had never happened. Leading a double life tended to do that. Now…now her separate world that she shared with Blaise was infiltrating the one she shared with her friends, and that made everything so much more real. Now, she couldn't pretend.

"…yes," she whispered in defeat.

She looked up just in time to see Ginny place her hands on the top of her head in shock. Her mouth fell open and her eyes took on a glassy sheen as she stared at Hermione in disbelief.

Ginny felt like the wind had been knocked out of her as the reality set in.

"No…," she breathed.

"Ginny-."

"No, no!"

Ginny dropped her arms, shaking her head.

"This isn't true. This can't be true, because if it is…if he's the guy, then it's pretty bloody obvious who the best friend is and I refuse to believe that," Ginny spat, eyes blazing.

Hermione said nothing, simply lowering her head in shame. Ginny screamed in frustration.

"What have you done? What have you gotten yourself into, Hermione?"

Hermione felt anger bubble inside of her and she swallowed, resting her eyes on Ginny.

"What happened to the understanding girl who sympathized with my conflicted feelings? Where's the girl who was rooting for me before all of this happened?"

"That was before I knew we were talking about Zabini and Malfoy," Ginny harshly hissed.

"Does it really make a difference?"

Of course, Hermione knew that it made all of the difference in the world.

"Yes! Malfoy is dangerous, Hermione, and guess what? That makes Zabini dangerous by association."

"Funny, you didn't seem to believe that weeks ago," Hermione found herself saying.

"That's because I didn't know who it was! What would even possess you to get involved with the likes of him, anyway?"

"Have you completely forgotten all of the good stuff I told you about him? He's not all bad, Ginny."

"Yes, and him not being 'all bad' is exactly why you're in your current predicament, right?"

Hermione sharply inhaled as if she'd been slapped.

Ginny huffed, angered, annoyed, and worried all at once.

"What the hell were you thinking?"

"I was thinking that they aren't all the same-."

"But clearly they are," Ginny interrupted.

Hermione shook her head.

"Why…why are you suddenly acting like Harry?"

"Why are you defending him?"

Hermione snapped her mouth shut, taken back by the question.

"I'm not," she weakly said.

"You are. You're defending him. Look, maybe I had some understanding before when I thought we were talking about regular students, regular Slytherins here, but Hermione… Have you completely forgotten the part where Malfoy is a suspected Death Eater?"

Hermione swallowed and glanced away as she recalled staring the Dark Mark in the face.

Ginny did not miss this, and she took a step forward.

"What was that?"

Hermione's eyes snapped to Ginny, the younger girl taking another step forward.

"What was what?"

"That look," Ginny threw out.

"I don't know what you're…," Hermione trailed off as Ginny's eyes seemed to light up.

"You've seen him…all of him…"

"Thanks for the reminder," Hermione bitterly replied.

"He has the mark, doesn't he? He's one of them, isn't he, Hermione?"

Hermione didn't need to answer that because they both knew the truth.

Ginny swallowed, a sick feeling in her stomach as she imagined Hermione around him, beneath him…a Death Eater.

"Are you kidding me? There's a Death Eater roaming these halls like he's one of us, and you haven't said one word," Ginny accused.

"Yeah, because that sounds like a smart idea. You think I haven't thought about this? You think I haven't thought about the fact that I slept with a Death Eater? Someone who serves a vile being who is intent on destroying myself and everyone else like me? You don't think I've mulled over the fact that he made an attempt on Dumbledore's life? That, more than likely, he was tasked with killing our Headmaster?"

Ginny seemed to snap out of her anger induced fog and her shoulders sagged as she looked at Hermione, really looked at her, in sympathy. Hermione was struggling with this, much more than Ginny could possibly imagine, and she suddenly felt selfish.

"Hermione…I'm sorry…"

"No, I get it, okay? I understand your anger and confusion and urge to probably slap me silly. Believe me, I get it, because it's all I can think about since it happened. Not only that, but Blaise clearly knows about Malfoy, and I don't know what that means. Is he trying to save his friend or…," Hermione trailed off, unable to bring herself to voice her thoughts.

"…or help him," Ginny quietly finished.

Hermione swallowed.

"I don't want to believe that. I don't, but…I clearly don't know Blaise at all."

Ginny sighed, stepping towards Hermione.

"I know you don't want to hear this, but…you can't go near him. You can't be around him, anymore. Malfoy is one of them, Hermione. Zabini might be too…"

"He doesn't have the mark, Gin."

"…and what is that supposed to mean? You think they're going to mark them all? Who knows how many are in this school. Greengrass, Nott, Parkinson…Zabini. He's his best mate, raised in the same world that Malfoy was raised in. It's not a stretch, not by a longshot…"

Hermione could find nothing but truth in Ginny's words. Never mind the fact that he'd handed her off like a gift, but Blaise could possibly be one of them. Oddly, the thought had never occurred to her before. She knew that he would have to pick a side, eventually, it had just never crossed her mind that…that he might have already chosen.

"Why were you looking for me," Hermione suddenly asked.

Ginny smiled.

"I didn't trust Nott. Not one bit, and apparently my mistrust was not without reason," she answered.

Hermione chuckled.

"Thanks…"

"Are you okay? What happened back there?"

"We were just…talking," Hermione said with a sigh, suddenly drained.

"You looked really upset when I came around the corner," Ginny noted.

"I was," Hermione confirmed.

Ginny wanted to press, but she could see the fatigue and defeat in Hermione's eyes and decided to let it go.

"Come on."

She and Hermione walked down the corridor, headed towards the Gryffindor common room, unaware of the figure with crystal blue eyes that lingered on them, shock and fear swirling within their depths.

"One more word, Draco…," Blaise threatened.

"Or what? You'll what? Curse me, kill me? You're being an idiot, Blaise," Draco harshly whispered through clenched teeth as he stared the dark haired boy down.

"You're confusing me for yourself. You're the one who can't get your head out of your ass for one minute-."

"She's a prissy, self-righteous know-it-all who doesn't give a rat's ass about you. There's a reason that she won't give you more than sex," Draco threw out.

Draco found his back digging into the foundation of the corridor wall and he laughed, the sound drawing the attention of the few students in the hall. Class had only just been dismissed, but he knew that the time was approaching when more students would make their way into the corridors. Soon the corridor would be filled with them, but neither one of them cared.

Both Blaise and Draco could feel the imminent fight approaching.

"You're abandoning me for some girl? You think she's the love of your life," Draco sweetly mocked, a taunting smile on his lips.

Blaise pulled Draco away, only to slam him against the wall again with more force than last time. Brown and silver clashed.

"What's it to you?"

"You think she's special? You think she's different? Let me tell you something, Blaise…"

Draco leaned forward, his mouth right next to Blaise's ear.

"She's a dime a dozen," he whispered.

"You have such strong feelings towards someone who isn't all that special. Why waste so much time on someone who's so…common, as you say?"

Draco smirked, a cruel look on his face as he reached up and shoved Blaise away. He reached down to begin unbuttoning the sleeves of his shirt.

"She would have opened her legs for either one of us. You just got to her first," Draco quietly stated.

Blaise straightened up, fists clenched at his side.

"You sound…bitter about that, Draco," Blaise purred, eyebrow raised.

Draco's smirk grew and he looked at Blaise from beneath his lashes.

"Why would I be bitter? After all, it was only yesterday that I had her beneath me, trembling from my touch…"

The fire in Blaise's eyes grew.

"She was practically dripping for me, practically begging me to sink my teeth into that soft skin of hers. Alas, only my tongue could do the honors…"

A chilling laugh escaped his lips as Blaise took a step forward. By now, the sound of chatting students was beginning to reach their ears but neither one of them paid any mind. Draco finished rolling up his sleeves, deciding that he would take great pleasure in this. He smiled, pearly whites on display…

"If you had walked in just a few minutes later…who knows what you would have stumbled into? Me, on the other hand, well…I think we both know what I would have gotten myself into-."

Draco's back slammed into the wall as Blaise ran into him and he immediately cocked his fist back…

"Gosh, it all just makes so much sense now. The looks, the sudden increase in animosity towards you. How could I have not figured it out sooner?"

"Ginny…please…," Hermione begged, pleading for her to drop it.

They walked down the stairs, approaching the Great Hall for breakfast. Ginny sighed, brushing her hair away from her face, the vibrant tresses spilling around her shoulders.

"I'm sorry. It's just…now that I've slept on it, it really is a lot to swallow. All of it…," Ginny said with a shake of her head.

"I know."

"Malfoy really is a tosser. He's…despicable and Zabini is no better, no offense. I know that feelings don't just go away, no matter how much you wish it. The things you've told me about Zabini, and then knowing its Zabini…I just… It's hard to correlate."

"I know," Hermione sighed.

"Merlin, I wish I could curse the both of them into the very pits of whatever hell they deserve. The nerve of both of them…and then to have Nott play their little sidekick. 'Slytherins never fight fair', ugh," Ginny repeated Nott's words in disgust.

"Ginny…I'm begging you."

"Sorry."

They stepped into the hall, not noticing the figure walking towards the entrance, preparing to leave when Ginny bumped into him. She looked up, an apology already on her lips when she paused. Hermione stood behind her and glared up at Malfoy as he narrowed his eyes at Ginny before resting them on her.

Malfoy ran his eyes over her, causing Hermione to take a step back, a slight smirk gracing his lips before they cut to Ginny.

"Watch it, Weasley."

The words had barely escaped his lips before Ginny threw him a right hook. Hermione gasped in shock, taken back by the bold move as Ginny threw herself into the young Malfoy before he even had time to recover.

Ginny saw the way he looked at her friend, could imagine the thoughts swimming in his head. Merlin, she was going to enjoy wiping that haughty look off of his face.

"You smug, vile Cretan!"

The scuffle drew the attention of everyone in the hall as Ginny had Malfoy on his back, the blond holding up his arms, to block her fists. Hermione jumped into action, not wanting her friend to get into trouble. She grabbed Ginny by the shoulders, pulling her off of Malfoy, with great difficulty. Ginny's hand was still clenched in Malfoy's hair, the blond's teeth clenched together as she held on with an iron grip.

Several students began to crowd around them and Hermione's heart stuttered as she caught sight of Blaise. Ginny noticed him too and let go of Malfoy almost immediately, only to reach into her robes and pull out her wand.

"Ginny!"

Before Hermione could utter another word, Blaise's face was suddenly covered in great, flapping wings, the black things obstructing his face from view. Hermione reached for Ginny's wand when…

"Everte Statum!"

Draco had just gotten to his feet, only to fly back across the hall, landing straight onto the Head table where most of the teachers had previously been seated. The majority of them had come over to investigate the commotion. Professor McGonagall was the first to reach them, snatching Ginny's wand out of her hand and gripping the young girl's arm.

"Ms. Weasley! What in Godric's name has gotten into you? If you were hoping on two months' worth of detention, then you've got it."

"Professor…," Hermione protested, but McGonagall held up her hand.

"Do you have anything to say for yourself?"

Ginny simply glared at Blaise as Professor Snape attempted to reverse the hex.

"Yeah…it's a pity that Unforgivables are forbidden," she spat.

McGonagall let out a soft gasp, so quiet that Hermione almost missed it. The older witch glanced at Blaise before glancing back at Malfoy, who was being attended to, eyes finally resting on Ginny in wonder. She led the redhead out of the hall.

"What the bloody hell was that about?"

Ron's voice came from beside her, but Hermione didn't answer. She looked to her right, eyes meeting Harry's as he frowned at her, a million questions swirling within his eyes. She glanced away, eyes completely passing over Daphne Greengrass, whose crystal blue gaze was focused on nothing but her.

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