Hermione gave an aggravated huff as she tried to bobby pin some of her loose curls back from her face. She didn't normally go through the effort, but since tonight was the Slug Club party she thought it would be appropriate.
She wore a dark red dress with a V-neck that showed just enough cleavage to be suggestive but modest enough to still have an elegant look. It fell just above her knees. Instead of the annoying heels she had worn during 6th year, she opted for a pair of lacy black flats. Her hair cascaded around her shoulders in soft waves, a look that took an hour to fully charm her hair in such a way.
For makeup, she wore a light blush and only a little bit of mascara. She had never been one to wear makeup. The Yule Ball had been an exception since she had girl friends to do it for her.
Over the past week she had observed Blaise and Malfoy getting closer and she didn't quite know how to feel about it. She wasn't exactly thrilled, since Malfoy had been the one to torment her all throughout their schooling. He had also been one of the witnesses during her torture session with Bellatrix. Oh right, the scar. She had almost forgotten. Frowning, she stuck out her arm and cast the strongest glamour charm she knew. It concealed the scar temporarily, with only the faintest hint of lettering if one looked closely enough. She didn't blame Malfoy for not intervening, but that didn't mean she disliked him any less.
Despite her feelings about Malfoy, Blaise seemed to be happier having another companion. In the mornings the two of them talked together over meals about quidditch or current events. Blaise admitted that he felt less lonely now that he had someone else to chat with. The glares at Blaise had lessened significantly and things in Slytherin seemed to be balancing out again with their friendship. When she asked him if he considered Malfoy his friend, he just shrugged and said "that's not really how it works in Slytherin."
There was a light knock on her door. "Hermione, are you ready to go?" Blaise called to her.
"I'll be out in just a minute!"
They hadn't talked about going to the party together or anything. She just assumed that they would go together and he hadn't said or done anything to contradict that belief. And indeed, there he was at her door.
After sticking the final bobby pin in place, she put her wand in the leg holster just underneath her dress, grabbed a small purse, and walked over to open the door.
Blaise was wearing a simple black suit with a white dress shirt and dark green tie that really brought out the green color of his eyes hanging untied around his neck. Behind the tie was his mother's trademark silver pendant. She gave him an appreciative look over, but then blushed after realizing she had been staring. She had to admit, he looked good. In fact, Blaise Zabini was very handsome. She had never really noticed it until now, but she did notice younger girls staring dreamily at him as they walked in the hallways sometimes.
"Er, can you give me a hand with this?" He asked, grinning sheepishly as he motioned at his tie. "I don't know the charm for ties. Usually one of my housemates would do it for me," he explained.
Rather than using magic, Hermione reached out and fixed his tie with her hands, noticing their huge height difference for the first time. Blaise was about 6'1 while she was only a mere 5'2. He tensed up at first, but soon relaxed under her touch.
"You look nice," he murmured shyly.
"Thanks," she blushed. "So do you." After smoothing out the tie, trying to ignore the heat rushing to her face at the feel of his chest, she stepped back. "Alright, let's go."
Blaise couldn't help but stare. Hermione looked beautiful. He had always thought she was pretty, especially after seeing her at the Yule Ball during 4th year. Like many other Slytherins, he noted that over the years she easily grew out of her "bucktooth" stage and into a gorgeous young woman. Even during the war, at the final battle she possessed a fierce and rugged look.
He had almost groaned when she smoothed out his tie. Wait, inappropriate. He tried to keep his thoughts under control as they entered the Slug Club's private room. Rather than the dim lighting and creamy curtains that Slughorn used during 6th year, the room was well lit with lanterns floating around the room. The color theme was a mix of all the four house colors, which somehow complemented each other in the places he had put them.
Professor Slughorn greeted them cheerfully and brought them glasses of sparkling cider.
"I'm so glad you two could make it!"
"We are too, professor. It's an honor to be here," Hermione beamed at him and took a sip of her drink and began chatting with Slughorn. Blaise looked around at who else was there.
Sitting around the large table in the center he saw Astoria Greengrass, Terrence Higgs, and a 5th year Slytherin boy he didn't know. Astoria and Terrence were some of the Slytherins that didn't give him glares every time he walked by. At the other end of the table was Hannah Abott and another girl from Ravenclaw that he didn't know either. By the food table he saw Ginny Weasley, Dean Thomas, and Susan Bones. In the corner by the window he saw a familiar figure with blonde hair with his usual blank stare. Draco.
"I told you he'd invite Draco," he whispered smugly to Hermione after Slughorn left them to go mingle with others. She pursed her lips and shrugged.
"I guess you were right." They made their way to the food table and gathered small plates with a bit of everything that was there.
"Hermione," a feminine voice greeted. He noticed how she tensed up as she recognized the voice. The Weasley girl made her way over to them with a small envelope in her hands.
"Hello, Ginny," she replied stiffly. "I didn't know you liked potions so much."
Ginny reached into her purse and pulled out an envelope. "I don't really. I guess I just do better than the rest of my class," she explained and held out the letter. "Ron wanted me to give you this."
Hermione flinched at his name. "Why didn't he send it himself then?"
"You know why," Ginny said, slightly narrowing her eyes. Blaise noted the uncomfortable exchange between the two of them. What was going on here? He knew the Weasley girl and Hermione didn't talk anymore but he didn't know they didn't like each other. He was also confused at why Hermione would be so averse to receiving a letter from Weasley. Weren't they together at one point? Merlin, the whole school was aware they were infatuated with each other over the years. He was suddenly surprised at the rush of jealousy he was experiencing.
Hermione tentatively reached out and took the envelope. Ginny walked back to Dean without another word. She stuffed the letter into her small purse, hands shaking slightly.
"Everything alright?" He asked. She nodded distractedly, not looking at him. He frowned but decided he would ask again later. "I'm going to talk to Draco. Do you want to come?"
Her eyes widened for a moment before she gulped. She definitely didn't want to be by herself. "Yeah, ok."
They made their way over to the window. Draco turned to look at them.
"Blaise. Granger."
Blaise grinned at him. "I didn't know you had received an invitation, Draco."
"Yeah, neither did I. Must have been a last minute thing. I found the invitation on my bed this morning," he explained. His eyes darted to Hermione's arm and then quickly away. "How are you, Granger? It's been a while."
"Fine, Malfoy." She replied politely. "It's…good to see another familiar face."
To their surprise, Draco gave a short laugh. "Yeah, I suppose it is."
Blaise watched in amusement as the two former rivals talked almost pleasantly for the first time in years.
Hermione was utterly floored by Draco's change in demeanor towards her. There was no hint of malice or arrogance in his eyes anymore. In fact, he simply looked at her like a normal human being for a change. Although she had noticed his gaze dart to her scar for a moment. But maybe Blaise was right. Maybe Malfoy had changed. Or maybe he simple didn't have the motivation to hate her anymore. Either way, she couldn't help but feel like something was off about him.
The three of them casually talked about classes for a few minutes until Professor Slughorn gathered everyone around the table.
"Thank you all for joining. It really warms my heart to see such bright students taking full advantage of all education has to offer in the finest of academic subjects, potions!" She saw the two Slytherins at the end of the table roll their eyes at this.
As Slughorn talked endlessly, her thoughts drifted back to the envelope Ginny had given her. She hadn't quite been expecting the girl's coldness towards her. She thought that they had simply drifted apart. She didn't know that Ginny was upset with her, or at least that's what it seemed like.
The thought of reading anything from Ron made her want to vomit, and the thought of all the other Weasleys made her incredibly depressed.
The evening had otherwise been surprisingly nice. She wasn't normally one for lavish parties, but being with Blaise made it bearable. Even Malfoy had added some entertainment. Thinking about the letter made her nervous. As soon as Slughorn finished speaking and people went back to their groups, she quietly dismissed herself while Blaise and Malfoy continued talking and went into the hallway.
Taking a few deep breaths, she opened the envelope and took out the letter.
Hermione,
I've been thinking a lot about us and what happened. I have a lot to say, but I would rather tell you in person. I asked Ginny to give you this because I was afraid you wouldn't accept it if I sent it myself. Let me know when a good time to meet would be.
Ron
She almost laughed at his lack of tact. It wasn't even an apology. There was no hint of remorse or regret written anywhere in there. She especially loved the part where he just blindly assumed she would want to see him again.
Perhaps she was being a bit too harsh. Maybe one of the many things he had to say was an apology?
She heard footsteps behind her as Blaise came to stand by her side.
"What's wrong?" He asked. "Party too stuffy for you?"
She smiled weakly. "That and other things."
"Weasley?" She nodded.
"What happened between you and Weasley, Hermione?" He asked, completely serious now. She looked worriedly at the door to the party and pulled him over to the balcony that was at the end of the hall.
"I don't want Ginny to overhear if she comes out," she explained.
Now Blaise was beginning to get worried. Whatever happened between them must have been pretty bad.
"Ron changed a lot over the summer. I don't know if you know this but his brother, Fred, was killed at the battle. It ruined him and his family," she began. "Ron…his depression manifested itself into a drinking problem. And when he drinks he gets angry." Hermione looked down at her feet.
She could sense his realization as he sharply took a breath. "Weasley forced himself on you?" He asked angrily. When she nodded in confirmation it only enraged him further. "Did he rape you?"
"No. I stopped him before it got that far. That's when I left. Shortly after I came to Hogwarts and here we are now," she gestured around them.
It felt good to tell someone else her secret. Blaise was slowly becoming her confidant, privy to things that she never talked about with anyone except Harry.
"Where was Potter during all of this?" Blaise asked. He narrowed his eyes. "Where is he now?"
She crossed her arms over her chest and looked away. "I stayed with him before I came here. I don't know where he is now since he hasn't responded to any of my letters, but he's busy with auror training. I don't expect him to have time to write me every day or anything…"
"I'm sorry about them, Hermione. If the Weasel were here I'd curse the asshole," he said earnestly.
"He wants to talk to me. He says he has things to say about what happened," she said, showing him the letter. He scanned it quickly and swore under his breath.
"He can't be serious. You're not going to talk to him are you?" He asked in disbelief. When she didn't say anything he folded the letter back up angrily.
"I know it looks bad. But he was my best friend for 7 years, Blaise. I can't just ignore all of that just because he made a mistake…I don't know if I'll meet with him anytime soon."
"Hermione. Weasley was the one who's made you miserable all throughout Hogwarts. Draco contributed, but when it counted, Weasley wasn't there for you right? Not during 4th year and certainly not during 6th."
Hermione blinked at him. "I wasn't aware that you knew about those things. You've been paying that much attention to me?"
"Let me go with you," he said ignoring her question. "I don't want you to face him alone." The expression showed that it wasn't really up for debate. She had to admit that she was grateful for his protectiveness. Normally if Harry acted that way towards her she would be hugely annoyed. Coming from Blaise though, it seemed…sweet?
"I promise," she nodded. She didn't know exactly what pushed her to do it, but with a sudden rush of courage, she leaped forward and embraced him. Her arms wrapped around his neck and she buried her face in his chest as his arms wrapped around her back and waist. "Thank you, Blaise."
