Hermione's Quarters
6:40PM
Thursday, October 31st, 1998
Hermione stood in front of the mirror, carefully pinning a lock of smooth hair out of her face. She had spent the afternoon trying to tame her hair with Sleekeazy's, but her ever persistent hair still turned up at the ends, giving her large curls which hung around her face. The overall effect was quite pleasing, she thought, rather than having lots of long, dead straight hair hanging limply down.
During her last visit to Hogsmeade, she had found a black dress which she had fallen absolutely in love with. Floorlength, it was a tight fit down to her knees where the fabric let out slightly, pooling to the ground with a slight train. It had thick sleeves over her shoulders and a classic neckline, giving the dress an elegant feel without looking too old, in Hermione's mind.
Ginny, who found it terribly amusing that Hermione could help defeat the Darkest wizard of their time but couldn't use eyeliner to save her life, had visited whilst Hermione's hair was smoothing out to apply her makeup. She had worked her own magic to create a smokey eye with a light pink lip. The look had been covered with a Beautification Charm, one of the few spells Hermione could never correctly perform purely from a lack of desire to do so, ensuring the makeup wouldn't smudge throughout the evening.
Just as Hermione smoothed down her dress there was a knock against the wall of her front room. She had instructed Theo to come straight up and wait in the living room if she wasn't ready. She smiled at her appearance and went to greet her date, trying not to topple over in the teetering heels Ginny had picked out for her.
"You clean up well," Theo said, holding out a large box to her. He creaked the hinges open to reveal a delicate necklace. It was simple and elegant, a carefully designed silver choker. Hermione refused to think of the price of something so lovely.
"You didn't need to buy me a necklace," Hermione frowned but she found the piece truly astonishing.
"I buy all my friends the same necklace. Drake is too shy to wear his in public but I know he loves it." She laughed as he stepped behind her to clip it into place, smoothing out each segment until it lay in perfect harmony with her dress. "Besides, you agreed to sit with my friends, so getting you something nice is the least I could do."
Hermione had agreed to sit with Theo's friends after Ginny had decided to sit with the other girls from her own year who had ended up without dates for the night, but she didn't mind.
Since beginning their Potions assignment, Hermione had found that she and Draco had plenty to talk about that was related to academia. They shared similar interests around Potions, but also the same fascination with Ancient Runes and Arithmancy that Hermione had coveted since her third year. She was certain that, should they be brought into conversation related to things outside the scholastic sphere, they would still have plenty to talk about.
The only person she could see herself having any bother with was Pansy who had made no offer of piece, nor accepted any proverbial olive branch held out to her by other students. As Pansy would be on Draco's arm for the evening, Hermione was certain there would be some level of tension at the table, particularly when she and Theo arrived.
"You ready?" Theo asked, holding his arm out to her. Hermione nodded and accepted the offer of balance, appreciating his slow pace as they made their way to the Great Hall. "How did Weasley take the news that I was going to be your date tonight?"
"Jumping into the deep end headfirst, I see," Hermione said. She had been planning on avoiding the topic of her fiancé for the evening. It was still a sore spot and his reaction had been exactly has she had predicted. "Not so well. But I told him when we were in Hogsmeade together and in the middle of a busy street, so he couldn't exactly lose his temper. Admittedly, he did storm off and it took him a week and a half to respond to my owl, but I like to pretend that his reply just got lost along the way."
Theo laughed, helping her through the throng of students. A few had started to whisper at the sight of the very publicly engaged Head Girl on the arm of a Slytherin. Hermione lifted her chin and pushed through the crowds, ignoring their excited whispers. A few were encouraging, complimenting her appearance or wishing her an enjoyable evening, but most were just confused.
"Miss Granger, Mr Nott, there you are," Professor McGonagall appeared in front of the pair looking flustered. "You two along with Mr Boot and his partner will open up the dance, much like the champions did at the Yule Ball. Students are beginning to file in and take their places so on my signal, I want you to enter."
She hurried off again, instructing students to file into the Great Hall in an orderly manner. Terry and his date, Pavarti Patil, turned up. Both looked somewhat disgruntled at their choice of partner though they still looked very smart. Terry had opted for a sleek black suit, whilst Pavarti looked very pretty in a periwinkle blue dress.
"He was hoping Corner would said yes," Theo leaned to say in Hermione's ear and she tried to stifle her laughter. McGonagall waved from the side of the hall and they both straightened up as the music began inside. Theo led the way into the hall, down a corridor of students who clapped appreciatively. Hermione's breath was taken away by the inside of the Great Hall.
Whilst at the Yule Ball, everything had been glittering blue and white, it was now filled with rich autumn colours. Hundreds of pumpkins floated in the air, decorative cobwebs curled up every possible pillar. Each table was carefully decorated with an amazing centrepiece of candles and at the centre of each lay a different ornate mask, a long observed tradition of All Hallows' Eve.
"Looks good, doesn't it?" Theo said as he grinned at the crowds of people.
"Amazing," Hermione breathed, coming to a halt in the middle of an organised dance floor. Hermione had the feeling some sort of charm had been placed on the room to double its size, or perhaps the absence of the usual long tables made the room seem larger. Theo's hand slid to her waist, and she placed one hand on his shoulder, the other in his own.
The music struck up, an orchestra of self-playing instruments charmed by Professor Flitwick, echoing a slow waltz throughout the room. Feeling overwhelmingly self-conscious, Hermione allowed Theo to take the lead and spin her around the floor. She had never been a very good dancer, having thought to be a trivial and useless activity, so she was thankful to have a partner who appeared to have a solid knowledge in classic styles. They were certainly outshining Terry and Pavarti who were making stunted movements in a circle as she and Theo danced around them.
Slowly, other couples began to join the floor, encouraged by Neville and Luna's rather audacious example of dancing which featured a lot of hopping on the spot, paired with a small amount of traditional Irish folk dancing. Hermione's feet started to ache and she felt that she had played her part well, getting other students involved and excited for the evening.
"Want a drink?" Theo asked, sensing her slowing pace as they continued to twirl. When she nodded, he brought them to an abrupt stop and looked around the room for his friends. Draco and Pansy were nowhere to be seen, but Blaise and Daphne were engaged in conversation. "Go sit with Blaise and his girl. I'll bring your drink over."
Somewhat hesitantly, Hermione made her way to the two Slytherins. She felt her confidence drop when Daphne came into full view. The Slytherin girl had always been one of the most attractive people in the school, with full, delicate blonde curls that tumbled to her waist and bright blue eyes. With a pale complexion, her naturally pink lips always stood out in a perfect pout, and though she normally dressed sensibly for her lessons, hair tied back in a neat ponytail and a pair of still-flattering glasses perched on her nose, she still radiated natural beauty.
Tonight, with the opportunity to put extra effort in, she looked closer to a Veela than just a simple witch. Her dress was an elegant silver, the material seeming to pool over her like water rather than any fabric Hermione knew, and it fit her body snugly to accentuate any feature that may normally be lost beneath their unflattering school uniforms. It was strapless and floorlength and so beautiful that Hermione thought her dress to be horribly ugly in comparison. The blonde witch had worked magic on her hair so it fell in its usual luxurious curls, though this time with more volume and precision, ensuring there was not a hair out of place. Her face had been carefully painted with dark pink lips and natural looking eyes which stared at Hermione through thick lashes as she approached.
"You look stunning, Hermione," Daphne said upon her arrival, gesturing for her to sit down. "Where is Theo?"
Caught off guard by the compliment, Hermione took her time to reply. "Getting us all drinks," she said once her composure had returned. "You two look lovely."
Daphne's cheeks flushed a delicate pink and Hermione was once again struck by how flawless she looked. "How are you and Draco going with your Potions assignment?"
"Quite well," Hermione nodded, pleased with how well they had been progressing. "He's a lot smarter than I gave him credit for," she admitted and Daphne offered a dainty laugh.
"Drake's full of surprises like that," she said, Blaise nodding in agreement. "You're lucky, Hermione. When he gets passionate about something, he'll work tirelessly to achieve its end. I'm sure you two will end up with the best grade in the class."
"But that's not unusual for you, I guess," Blaise added, his first words to Hermione for the evening. They were not laced with any aggression, but instead accompanied by a brief smile.
"All getting along well, I see," Theo said, returning with four Butterbeers balanced precariously in his hands. He handed Blaise and Daphne their drinks, sitting beside Hermione and slinging an arm casually over the back of her chair.
"We were just talking about our Potions assignment," Hermione supplied and Theo rolled his eyes.
"The one night Hogwarts actually encourages us to party and you all talk about homework," he said. "Typical."
"What do you propose we talk about?" Hermione asked, wrapping her hands around her Butterbeer. Her engagement ring twinkled in the candlelight.
"The after party," Theo grinned and Hermione saw Daphne roll his eyes.
"He's obsessed with making the most of having the day off classes tomorrow," Daphne explained. "And he figures he has the perfect place to continue the night."
"The Room of Requirement," Theo clapped his hands together, looking like a five year old with his first broom.
"It was destroyed," Hermione frowned, unwilling to attend anything that may compromise her position as Head Girl. She remembered Ginny's frustration at being unable to get in there when Harry had stayed for the night.
"Only partially," Draco's cool voice made her jump slightly in her seat and she heard the high pitched laughter of Pansy as the couple arrived. Perhaps chivalry wasn't quite dead, Hermione thought as Draco helped his date into her chair.
Pansy had taken advantage of the chance to dress up, making herself look very pretty in a lilac coloured dress with a long train. The fabric had been cinched in tightly at the waist, emphasising a perfect hourglass figure and pushing up her already ample bust. A single teardrop diamond hung directly between her cleavage, the position making Hermione feel awkward just to admire the jewel. Her hair had been piled atop her head in a complex updo and she had dark makeup on around her eyes, making her eyes seem brighter beneath the thick layers of grey and black.
Theo rolled his eyes at his best mate's date. "If you're really precise, and I mean really precise, then you can get in."
"And you'll get everything you ask for," Draco added, sitting himself down on Hermione's other side.
The three boys had all opted for similar outfits, expensive looking tailor made suits with black bowties, each choosing to match their pocket square to the exact shade of their date's dress. She noticed Draco's cufflinks shimmering in the light, looking like perfect emeralds. She automatically assumed they were the real stone and not some cheap imitation. Theo had opted for more modest, plain silver cufflinks, though Hermione was certain they were probably made from some rare metal only found in the remotest regions of Siberia.
"And it's not even breaking the rules, Granger," Draco continued, "seeing as, technically speaking, the Room of Requirement is an anomaly and isn't even on school grounds. So we can do all the drinking we want and still remain completely free of guilt when we go back to our dormitories."
"If we can make it that far," Blaise corrected and Theo laughed. Daphne rolled her eyes.
"Just come for an hour, Hermione. Please? I'll be there, just to keep an eye on this one," she nudged Blaise with her elbow, "but I'll probably turn in early."
"Yes, come on, Granger. Let your bushy hair down for once," Pansy said, earning a scowl from Theo and a sigh from Draco.
"And you're sure we won't be breaking any rules?" Hermione clarified, ignoring Pansy's dig at her.
"Promise," Theo said. "Besides, the Head Boy has already signed his name up for it. I reckon he's just itching to get Corner drunk off his ass and make a move."
There was a murmur of agreement from the males at the table, comments about how reluctant he looked to be attending the Ball with Pavarti on his arm.
"If you're all finished gossiping," Daphne interrupted them, "I'm absolutely starving. Blaise, could you get us some more drinks, please?"
Theo mimed a whip cracking as Draco supplied the sound effects when their friend got up and kissed Daphne's lips quickly, pushing through the crowds to get to the bar. Hermione hadn't had a clue that two of her tablemates were together, and she wondered if the same was true about Draco and Pansy. They all turned down to their menus, beginning to order in a similar way as the Yule Ball.
When her plate of pork chops appeared, Blaise returned with their drinks and they all focused on their food for a while before Daphne decided to break the silence.
"Hermione was telling us about your Potions assignment before, Draco," she said, looking up from her bowl of soup. "She didn't get a chance to mention what you were working on before Theo decided to interrupt, however."
Hermione looked to her Potions partner to explain. "It's a potion to heal scars which are otherwise unaffected by the current medicines we have," Draco said, looking up from his meal.
"I didn't realise there were scars like that," Pansy commented and Hermione bit her tongue to stop a snide remark from spilling out.
"You don't realise a lot of things," Theo supplied and everyone else laughed. Pansy even included a guilty giggle. "Isn't that going to be tough?"
"Well, yes," Hermione began. "But we're basing a lot of our work on the very first healing potions, and by starting with such an ancient base, we're able to work with the barest foundations of the potion. In turn, this allows us to build on it with our own discoveries, figuring out precisely what will work and what won't."
Draco continued: "And we're also combining our studies of the potions with an analysis of different types of Dark magic to figure out what ingredients will cure the largest number of injuries."
"I'm a little bit embarrassed to talk about what potion Pavarti and I are working on after that," Daphne admitted and finished her soup. "But it's something that does the opposite of Sleekeazy's."
The males laughed but Pansy looked genuinely interested.
"Pavarti was complaining about how she can never curl her hair properly and she's not really the best at Potions, so we decided that something cosmetic, and therefore quite straightforward, would be best," Daphne finished, cheeks still pink from the boys' laughter.
"If you need a test subject, I'll be willing," Pansy said. "I can never get my hair curly. At least you don't have to suffer that, Granger."
Hermione grinned over her Butterbeer. "If I could give you some of my curls, Parkinson, I'd hand them straight over."
"I wouldn't have said that if I were you," Blaise said. "She's probably going to go back to her dormitory and start sharpening her scalping knife."
Another round of laughter from the table before Hermione politely excused herself. She had promised Ginny she would find her at some point and she wanted to do so before the dancing resumed at it became impossible to cross the floor.
She bumped into Luna along the way, stopping for a brief conversation and trying not to stare at the absurd flower perched precariously on the Ravenclaw's head. Luna assured her it was a flower that pleased the ghosts and had to be worn for protection on Halloween, but Hermione wasn't sure how a plant could frighten off malevolent spirits.
Ginny's table was giggling when Hermione arrived, pulling an empty chair over from the gathering next to it.
"How's your date?" Ginny asked. She had warmed up to Theo after they were partnered in Potions, finding him to be just as charming and witty as Hermione had originally described him to be. For the evening, she had dressed in a simple white dress which grazed the floor and Hermione thought she looked like a goddess with her bright hair and slender frame. The whole outfit had been accented with gold jewelry, bringing it all together well.
"Surprisingly good," Hermione smiled. She had given up saying that Theo wasn't her date after the eleventh time Ginny had called him that. "They're all very…civil."
"Even Parkinson?"
"Pansy is tolerable, though I think calling her civil would be stretching it. But she was really the only one I expected to have any difficulties with." Hermione leaned in a bit closer. "Are you going to the after-party?"
Ginny laughed loudly, rippling her long red hair which she had curled for the evening. "Everyone is going to the after-party. Did Theo only just tell you about it?"
"I supposed he assumed I would rat him out to the Headmistress," Hermione frowned and, if it hadn't been her date for the night planning the event, she probably would have alerted one of the teachers to the occasion. But as it was, she wanted to celebrate. After all, what didn't she have to celebrate? It was her last year of school, the war was over, and she was happily engaged to the boy she had wanted on and off since she was twelve.
"What are you going to wear?" Ginny asked. "I'll get stains on this dress if I go to any sort of party in it and Mum would kill me."
"Seeing as I just found out about it a few minutes ago, I haven't thought that far ahead. You can come back to my dorm after the ball and we can get ready together, if you want," Hermione offered and Ginny enthusiastically agreed. "I should probably get back to my table, but I'll see you at eleven."
The dance floor had begun to fill up, making it harder for Hermione to find her way back to the table. When she reached it, Blaise was the only occupant, watching other students make fools of themselves to The Weird Sisters.
"Where is everyone?" she asked, raising her voice to be heard over the din of the music.
"Pansy and Daphne wanted to dance and I was the first to say no, so your date and Drake got dragged off with them instead," Blaise grinned. "I imagine they'd be right at the middle at the moment. This is Daph's favourite."
Hermione scrunched up her nose, confused as to how this racket could be distinguishable as a song, but she said nothing.
"You seem to have my housemates in quite a spell, Granger," Blaise continued, shifting a few chairs over so it was easier to be heard over the music. "You've even won Draco over, and that's no easy feat."
"I'm not sure I follow," she said, fiddling with her an empty glass on the table.
"Theo never stops talking about you," Blaise said. "And Drake is quite a fan of your work, too, apparently. I just want to congratulate you on winning over two of the wankiest wizards in England."
Hermione chuckled at his phrasing. "Theo's never been anything but polite to me, and Draco…he's changed. He isn't a kid anymore. I'll admit, I didn't think I could even stand to be around him at the beginning of the year, but he's working hard on this Potions assignment and him being so dedicated to such a good cause makes me think he isn't a total arse."
"I'm sure he'd appreciate that," it was Blaise's turn to laugh. "But he's still a bit of an arse."
"Oh, definitely," she nodded and the mood around them lifted.
"Speak of the Devil," Blaise said as a slightly dishevelled Draco broke through the edge of the dancing students, brushing his suit down and joining them at the table.
"Your girlfriend is an absolute nutter," he said to Blaise, drinking deeply from his water goblet. "I think she's desperate for you to dance with her."
Blaise groaned but agreed to relieve Draco as one of Daphne's backup dancers, pushing his way to the middle of the group. Hermione could almost feel the disdain pouring off him as he searched for his girlfriend.
"How long have they been together?" Hermione asked once Blaise was away.
"Ages," Draco said, drinking again from his magically refilled goblet and pushing his hair back into its neat place. "Since we were kids. Their parents signed some archaic marriage contract, betrothing them to each other before they could even speak. They didn't seem to care that it was all a business deal, though. Ted and I think they'd have ended up together either way."
"And you and Pansy?" she asked, watching as the dancing students all seemed to move as one, jumping to the beat in the same breath.
"Pans and I aren't together," Draco said, shaking his head slowly. "We used to be, back in sixth year, but now we're just friends. But we're always around each other so I suppose it's only natural that people think we're dating."
Hermione nodded, all too aware how scrutinising the public could be of relationships. She remember having to constantly deny rumours that she was in a relationship with Harry back in their fourth year, desperately trying to explain to a furious Ron that she and his best friend weren't secretly dating. And then there had been the event when they had been searching for horcruxes, how her now-fiancé had assumed that she and Harry were carrying on an affair behind his back.
"Congratulations, but the way," Draco said, pointing at her left hand. "I haven't said it yet."
"Well, we haven't spoken much before tonight," Hermione said. "But thanks." Out of habit, she reached over and started to twist the ring around on her finger.
"Right, well," Draco said, looking around uncomfortably as though he had just realised how odd the situation was. "I'm going to go and get another drink. Would you like one?"
"Thanks," Hermione nodded and he left her alone at the table. She savoured her moment alone, still twisting her engagement ring. It felt so strange to be at a celebration without Ron. For all the functions that had been held at the end of the war, all the ceremonies and public appearances they had attended, Hermione had always been on his arm. In their most recent appearances before she went back to school, attention had turned away from the War and to the happier topic of their impending wedding. She smiled to herself, thinking of the approaching ceremony when she would finally be in the position she had secretly been wanting for years.
But her smile faded when she remembered their fight the last time they had seen each other, how he had stormed away from her in the middle of Hogsmeade and apparated away. The shortness of his letter when he had finally responded. It was all well and good to joke about it with Theo, but she regretted how she had acted, how she hadn't given Ron a choice in the matter of her attending the ball with the Slytherin. Her heart hurt at thinking she had offended her fiancé, because all she had done in the past few months of their relationship was try and make him happy. He had been through so much that happiness was all he deserved, and she had just acted like a petulant child.
"Knut for your thoughts?" Draco asked, returning with two foaming Butterbeers. He stopped abruptly, staring at her face. "I can go if you want."
To her shock, Hermione realised that she had tears in her eyes, a few sliding down her cheeks. "Oh, no. It's alright," she shook her head to clear away her thoughts, quickly wiping at the salt water with the back of her hand. She made a note to thank Ginny for her clever charm when they met at the end of the night. "It's nothing."
Hesitantly, Draco resumed his seat and passed her drink over. "Are you coming to the after party?" he asked, deciding it to be a safe topic.
Hermione nodded, sipping from her bottle, letting the odd warmth of the drink shoot through her bones and calm her down. "I think so. Perhaps Parkinson is right and I should let my hair down."
"Pans is never right," Draco joked, his face adopting its usual smirk rather than the rare smile Hermione had only seen a handful of times. "So why did you come back to Hogwarts? You could have gotten any job you wanted, Granger. Why come back to this place?"
"I think I needed to get away from it all, after last year," Hermione said. "And I didn't really have a home to go back to, either. I suppose coming back to Hogwarts allows me twelve months to think about it and figure out what I'll do with my life."
"Pop out a lot of ginger kids, at a guess," her companion said, looking surprised for a fleeting moment when she laughed at his comment. He had been expecting an outburst of anger, not such a pleasant response.
"That'd please his mother, but I have other plans," Hermione said, feeling light and soft from the number of Butterbeers she had consumed.
"And what does our Head Girl want to do with her life?" Draco asked, watching as Hermione's face grew slightly pinker, her eyes glossier.
"Wizarding law, maybe," she nodded quickly. "I want to help house elves. Or be a Healer. I don't really know. I thought I did, but then the War came and I thought that doing what I wanted seemed to be so silly when there are so many things in the world that need to be fixed, so why should I just get what I want whilst others are suffering. So I thought that I should do something more meaningful." She swallowed the last of her drink, the colour spreading to the tops of her cheekbones.
"What did you want to do before the War?" Draco inquired, moving closer as The Weird Sisters played their final song for the night, easily their loudest yet.
"I wanted to own a bookshop," she said after a moment, keeping her eyes on the floor. "It's silly, really. But I wanted to work with really old books and get more people to read, you know? Like that Potions book I have in my room, the one with the first healing potions ever recorded. More people should know about stuff like that. And I wanted to have a second-hand bookshop in Diagon Alley but it's not really important anymore."
Draco's brows knitted together, his tongue feeling looser and his mind pleasantly fuzzy from his Butterbeers. He and Theo had also smuggled in a flask of Firewhiskey, the two of them making various trips to the bathroom throughout the night to take gulps of the spirit. "Granger, you should do what you want. You shouldn't take your freedom for granted."
"What?" Hermione's eyes looked heavy and Draco passed a water goblet to her, instructing her to drink before she fell asleep in the middle of the Samhain Ball.
"If there's one thing I've learnt in the past two years, it's that you have to do what you want to do, not what others want," he explained, tracing the rim of his Butterbeer bottle with his finger.
"I suppose you're right, Healer Malfoy," Hermione said, finishing a second goblet of water. She seemed to wake up almost instantly. "Oh, it's nearly eleven. I should start preparing people to leave. But I guess the party is just getting started for most of them, right?"
"It's only seventh years at our after-party," Draco said, getting to his feet as he caught sight of the rest of their tablemates. The Weird Sisters had gone off stage to raucous applause from their audience, and all the students dancing were returning to their tables looking sweaty and sore. "Didn't want to get anyone underage too drunk."
Students were starting to file out of the Great Hall when Theo reached Hermione's side, dropping his arm over her shoulders. "I'll walk you back to your dorm and wait for you to get ready for the after-party," he said and she let him lead the way to the front door of the hall where Ginny was waiting. She shrugged her way out of Theo's embrace to stand on her toes and attract the attention of the redhead before they were lost completely in the crowd.
"Theo's walking us back to my dorm," she explained when Ginny found them.
"You'll need my help getting into the party, anyway," he said, letting Hermione lead the way. She paused to lean against a wall and take off her heels, relishing the cool stones underfoot. "It doesn't technically start until midnight, but you two can get early entry with me and Drake, I suppose."
"How generous," Hermione rolled her eyes, tucking her shoes under her arm and tickling the tentacle on the painting until it became a doorknob. "You can wait in the living room while we get ready."