A/N: Before reading this chapter, read over the end of Chapter 11 if you haven't read it after the 22nd June 2020 ,because I have made some changes to the Dramione moment in the shop. I have lengthened their conversation into 'something much more'.
Hermione stumbled down the steps, taking deep breaths and telling herself that everything'll go fine. The fact that this was her first social occasion as a boy wasn't the only thing making her anxious. She had something planned for tonight and ,well, if it went wrong... Entering the doors, Hermione scanned the Great Hall for her friends ,completely oblivious to the number of stares she had drawn towards herself. Spotting them among the crowd, Hermione made a beeline towards the gathering ,but ,on her way, was confronted by none other than Harry Potter who glared at her.
'What?' Hermione asked ,exerting much more confidence than she actually felt.
'I want to warn you ,Hermes Orion' Harry snarled. 'Forcing my fiance to fraternise with your lot. You'll pay for this!'
'Fiance?' Hermione scoffed 'Tell me, where's the ring?'
Pushing Harry and his scantily clad date out of the way, Hermione continued to head towards her friends.
'Hey' she greeted ,sitting down on one of the stools.
'Hey, what did Potter want?' Ginny asked.
'He wanted to warn me about the consequences of making you fraternise with the enemy' Hermione rolled her eyes 'Where's Theo? I thought he was your date.'
'He is' Ginny replied 'He's gone to get drinks and don't worry about Harry. Dumbledore let him off this time ,but I've got a feeling he won't be as generous a second time.'
At that moment, Theo arrived with the drinks.
'The teachers have banned alcohol after what happened at the last ball' Theo explained offering Hermione and Ginny a glass of coke mixed with lemonade.
'Good' Hermione nodded 'They've got the right attitude'
'You'd say so' Ginny chuckled after thanking Theo for the glass with a kiss on his cheek ,causing Theo to try and hide his blush by drinking a large gulp from his glass.
'What'd Hermes say?' Blaise asked ,coming over with Draco and turning to Hermione 'You really need to take a break from being a goody-two-shoes'
'Haven't you got a date to annoy?' Pansy asked ,alerting everyone to her presence ,her voice more interested than accusatory for a change.
'Ummm, actually I don't have a date' Blaise mumbled ,looking down at his feet.
'Wait ,you don't have a date?' Ginny asked ,looking surprised at the italian. He shook his head.
'But why? It's always you whose saying that every girl likes them.' Pansy said ,a glint of hope in her voice.
'I didn't feel like asking anyone' Blaise told them 'and when I was asked ,I refused'
'Bold of you' Pansy noted before rushing off to get a drink. ,cheeks flushed
'He's got it bad' Draco whispered to Theo ,only noticing afterwards that he wasn't listening to a thing that he said ,but was busy flirting with his date. Smiling with affection, he turned his attention to the disguised girl ,who was smiling at her friend.
'So, are you having fun?' he asked.
'Oh ,yeah' Hermione assured him. 'The drinks are really nice'
Enjoying herself for the best part of the rest of the evening, Hermione found herself chatting with Draco when Ginny came up next to her ,pulling at her sleeve and giving her a look.
'Right, got to go' Hermione said quickly before rushing out of the hall with Ginny.
'Thanks' she breathed ,once in an empty classroom 'You're the best. Do you know how long I've got?'
'About ten minutes until Dumbledore calls your name' Ginny replied ,teasing a dress out of a small beaded bag around her neck.
Hermione fidgeted with her hands nervously before taking the dress from Ginny's hands 'Thanks' A pause 'You sure I'm being sensible ,right?' Hermione asked.
'Ofcourse you are!' Ginny cried 'You're just trying to live life. Just beacuse you're undercover, doesn't mean you can't have a bit of fun while you're at it. Now change. I'll be outside'
A few minutes later, Hermione appeared from the classroom ,beaming at Ginny ,while twirling around in her dress.
'How do I look?' she asked.
'Absolutely fabulous' Ginny gave her a thumbs-up. 'Now come on. We need to get to the stage'
'So, Theo, where's Ginny?' Pansy asked.
'I don't know. She just disappeared' Theo shrugged.
'I saw her go out of the hall with Hermes' Draco replied before sharing a knowing look with Theo.
'I hope she's alright' Blaise said sympathetically.
It was then that Dumbledore asked for silence.
'Can we please ask for silence and give a great round of applause to our first song of the night' Dumbledore indicated to the stage on which Hermione was slowly walking onto from the side steps. Bright spotlights focused themselves upon her and she walked up towards the mike centre stage.
Draco's eyes widened as he recognised who it was :the girl. He stared ,almost as if in a trance ,as Hermione began to sing.
Remember those walls I built
Well, baby, they're tumbling down
And they didn't even put up a fight
They didn't even make a sound
She searched for Draco in the large crowd of faces and after a moment or two ,saw him staring utterly shocked at her. He gave her a smile and Hermione returned it ,granted a much smaller one, and her confidence grew significantly.
I found a way to let you win
But I never really had a doubt
Standing in the light of your halo
I got my angel now
Her eyes strayed across to the other members of Hogwarts and landed on a beaming Ginny at the foot of the stage ,giving her a massive thumbs up and mouthing encouraging words.
It's like I've been awakened
Every rule I had you breaking
It's the risk that I'm taking
I ain't never gonna shut you out
Hermione let the songs flow from her heart as she submerged herself into the song.
Everywhere I'm looking now
I'm surrounded by your embrace
Baby, I can see your halo
You know you're my saving grace
Hermione's eyes found Draco's once again and latched onto them as she sang verse after verse.
You're everything I need and more
It's written all over your face
Baby, I can feel your halo
Pray it won't fade away
I can feel your halo (halo) halo
I can see your halo (halo) halo
I can feel your halo (halo) halo
I can see your halo (halo) halo
Hit me like a ray of sun
Burning through my darkest night
You're the only one that I want
Think I'm addicted to your light
I swore I'd never fall again
But this don't even feel like falling
Gravity can't forget
To pull me back to the ground again
Hermione smiled at Draco as she sang with all her heart ,letting the words fill the whole hall.
Feels like I've been awakened
Every rule I had you breaking
The risk that I'm taking
I'm never gonna shut you out
Everywhere I'm looking now
I'm surrounded by your embrace
Baby, I can see your halo
You know you're my saving grace
You're everything I need and more
It's written all over your face
Baby, I can feel your halo
Pray it won't fade away
Looking around to see Dumbledore give her a wink, Hermione lost sight of Draco ,who had disappeared from his place next to Theo. Confused, Hermione continued to sing ,but her voice was weaker now ,less enthusiastic.
I can feel your halo (halo) halo
I can see your halo (halo) halo
I can feel your halo (halo) halo
I can see your halo (halo) halo
I can feel your halo (halo) halo
I can see your halo (halo) halo
I can feel your halo (halo) halo
I can see your halo (halo) halo
Halo, halo
Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh
I can feel your halo (halo) halo
I can see your halo (halo) halo
I can feel your halo (halo) halo
I can feel your halo (halo) halo
Voice fading away, Hermione ended her song and was met with a loud round of applause. Beaming with adrenaline, Hermione turned to leave the stage ,but a familiar voice behind her halted her from going.
'Every year I sing a solo song ,dedicated to someone I know' Draco addressed the crowd 'But this year, I thought of something different to finish off with. A duet'
Hermione waited with baited breath for what Draco was going to say ,although she already had a very good idea of what was going to happen and it wasn't giving her any good vibes.
'I was wondering whether you would like to sing the female bit?' Draco asked ,looking directly at Hermione. The whole hall was silent. Hermione looked at Ginny ,but she was busy trying to work the new magical camera in her hands. Taking a deep breath, she decided to make a decision.
'Yes' she smiled 'I'll do it'
Draco beamed at her before giving her the song sheet and Hermione was glad to find out that she knew the song already and ,at some point, it was one of her favourites. Nodding at Draco, Hermione took her place next to Draco ,sharing the mike with him ,their faces close to each other.
Hermione began ,staring at the crowd ,while Draco stared at her intently.
I used to be so happy
But without you here I feel so low
I watched you as you left but I can never seem to let you go
'Cause once upon a time you were my everything
It's clear to see that time hasn't changed a thing
It's buried deep inside me but I feel there's something you should know
Draco stared at the girl beside him and revelled in the close proximity of their faces ,her breath caressing his cheek gently.
I will never forget you
You'll always be by my side
From the day that I met you
I knew that I would love you 'til the day I die
And I will never want much more
And in my heart I will always be sure
I will never forget you
And you will always be by my side 'til the day I die
'Til the day I die
'Til the day I die
Draco smiled as he began his part ,not staring at the crowd ,but at the girl beside him.
Funny how we both end up here but everything seems so right
I wonder what would happen
If we went back and put up a fight
'Cause once upon a time you were my everything
It's clear to see that time hasn't changed a thing
So what in this world do you think could ever take you off my mind (take you off my mind)
Hermione joined in with vigour ,forgetting the fact that she was Hermes Austen and that there were Death Eaters after her. The only thing that mattered to her at that moment, was the fact that she was singing a song in front of a large crowd with Draco.
I will never forget you
And you'll always be by my side
From the day that I met you
I knew that I would love you 'til the day I die
And I will never want much more
And in my heart I will always be sure
I will never forget you
And you will always be by my side 'til the day I die
Feeling it, loving it
Everything that we do
And all along, I knew I had something special with you
But sometimes you just gotta know that these things fall through
But I'm still tied and I can't hide my connection with you
Hermione noticed Ginny motioning on the side of the stage for her to get out of the situation quickly and swiftly before Draco started asking questions. Hermione nodded discreetly before turning her attention back to the song.
I will never forget you
And you'll always be by my side
From the day that I met you
I knew that I would love you 'til the day I die
And I will never want much more
And in my heart I will always be sure
That I will never forget you
And you will always be by my side 'til the day I die
'Til the day I die
'Til the day I die
'Til the day I die
'Til the day I die
'Til the day I die
'Til the day I die
'Til the day I die
Draco took the mike from its stand and advanced further towards the crowd ,while still staying on the stage ,allowing Hermione to ,still singing the phrase, sidle towards the side of the stage before rushing down the steps.
Feeling Ginny brush her arm against her own, Hermione unclenched her sweating palm as if to pull the red head with her and out of the door ,but for some reason Ginny removed her arm from her grasp in a bid to stay in the hall ,while Hermione ran to the empty classroom she had changed in before.
Noticing that Hermione had gone, Draco retreated down the steps on her side ,meeting Ginny on his way.
'Hey, Ginny' he called for her attention. 'Did you see that girl pass from here?'
Ginny shook her head apologetically before turning away from Draco.
Sighing with hopelessness, Draco was about to find Theo and see whether Hermes had returned from wherever ,when he noticed a glossy, square sheet of paper on the floor.
Bending over to pick it up, Draco recognised the picture as one that was taken of him and the girl while they were singing. The camera was focused on the brunette and their mouths were open mid-word. He smiled at the girl's beautifully, enraptured expression before pocketing the photo.
He never knew when it would come in handy...
A/N: I loved this chapter. Wasn't much actual headway in the story ,I know ,but it was essential for the next chapter to take place and I really wanted to add some good hearty Dramione in here. Tell me how I did it. I'm still not very good at the romance part. I'll get better ,I promise.
Don't forget to read the end of Chapter 11 if you haven't and review if you want the next chapter. Any thoughts, I'd love to hear them.