Disclaimer: You know, the usual, so stop asking me if I'm JK Rowling because you very well know that I am not her! And I do not own the wonderful Harry Potter series, okay?
A/N: Okay, so I'm back :D I tell you, this is a very, very, very long chapter. Almost 22 pages in Microsoft Word and more than 13,000 words! Woah!
Okay, so I will explain this chapter briefly. This chapter contains some memories/events/happenings that really should have happened between Hermione and Draco from Year One to Year Four (the title is pretty self-explanatory). Since the title said it all, this is only Part I. The next part will be memories/events/happenings from of our favorite couple from Year Five to Year Seven. So, patiently wait for the continuation of this chapter, okay? For now, just read this. Enjoy and then review afterward!
What Really Should Have Happened: Part I
Year One:
Eleven-year-old Draco Malfoy was absolutely irritated right now. His eyes were closed with the right side of his head resting against the cold window of the compartment. Also, a frustrated frown was now seen plastered on his pale, handsome face. The reason of his irritation? The two first year students (like him) who were seated across from him.
'Oh, honestly, they're giggling like silly, little girls,' he angrily thought as he fully opened both of his eyes and glared at Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle. "Can both of you please shut up?!" the blond exclaimed. Crabbe and Goyle just stared at him, wide-eyed. It was as if they didn't understand a thing Draco had said.
The little Malfoy's eyes landed on the toad that was clutched between Crabbe's beefy hands. "Leave the toad alone. He didn't do anything to both of you. Give that thing a favor, will you? He was born as a plain, ol' toad. Allow him not to die on both of your stupid hands," he ordered. Crabbe and Goyle, being the obedient cronies they were to Draco (even if all three of them were still starting their very first year in Hogwarts), released the poor toad and he hopped around their compartment. Goyle opened the compartment door and freed the jumping toad. Watching this animal made Crabbe and Goyle snicker softly to themselves again, irritating the already irritated Draco more.
"I cannot believe that I'm stuck with these two buffoons here," Draco murmured as he buried his head in both of his hands. He was tired. He truly was because just yesterday, his godfather, Severus Snape, went with him to the Ministry of Magic for him to sign all the legal documents so that he could claim all the Malfoy possessions his deceased father and mother left him. Yes, indeed, both of his parents were dead.
Draco's father, the infamous Lucius Malfoy, was revealed to be one of Voldemort's Death Eaters. And how did the MoM discover this? Of course, his one and only son just confessed to the Minister, Cornelius Fudge, a few months ago that his father was one of them. Lucius Malfoy received the Dementor's Kiss a week after the discovery of where his true loyalty really was.
Narcissa Malfoy, in the other hand, grieved for the death of her beloved husband to the point that she became deranged. She was sent to St. Mungo's since the Healers declared that it would be dangerous, most especially to Draco, if Narcissa continued to live in the Malfoy Manor. A month after her confinement, she died, still crazy.
Now, that left Draco all alone. He became an orphan. Since this little boy was still too young to live on his own, his godfather took the whole responsibility to be his legal guardian, which Draco felt very thankful for since he was very close to his Uncle Severus.
His musings were immediately cut when the door of their compartment opened.
"Excuse me, but has anyone of you seen a toad?" a little female voice asked the three of them inside.
Draco looked at the female intruder, planning to glare at her until she cowered back and run away. 'Oh, seriously,' he thought. 'Why does everybody think of a bloody, stupid toad?' Once Draco's eyes landed on the little girl, his jaw instantly dropped. His eyes widened as he gazed at the owner of the little voice. "What the…"
"I will repeat my question," she said, eyes furrowing because of confusion. "Has anyone of you seen a toad? A boy named Neville lost it, you know. Let's see… umm… the name of the toad is… Trevor. Yes, Trevor. That's right."
Crabbe and Goyle just ogled at this little girl with some sense of authority and bossiness in her aura. Draco, too, just stared at her as he examined her from head to toe. 'Bushy brown hair… buck-teethed… and asking if we saw any toad…' The little blond gasped, his mouth kept on opening and closing.
"Are you… are you all right?" she asked, now looking at Draco only with suspicion present in her eyes. "Is my question hard to answer?"
"N-n-no! No!" he cried quite loudly, surprising the little girl. Draco stood up and took a small step forward.
She smiled in uncertainty. "Okay…" she said. "But honestly, for me, you do not look well at all. You're kind of… pale."
"I-I'm fine," he stuttered softly, eyes still trained on the little girl. Yes, he must be right. She might be the little girl Hermione made him promise to befriend. But the one that shocked him the most… 'Hermione didn't tell me that the little girl will bloody look so much like her!' he exclaimed in his mind. "As for your question, we-well, we did see a toad."
The little girl that greatly resembled his best friend Hermione brightened up. "Oh, thank Merlin!" she exclaimed. "I've been helping Neville for a quite a few minutes now but the people I've been asking didn't see a toad at all." She looked around. "Umm… so, where is Trevor?"
"Who?" Draco asked, still surprised.
"Trevor. The Toad. Neville's toad," she repeated, now frowning slightly.
"Oh, umm… they" – he pointed at Crabbe and Goyle which both goofily smiled at the little girl – "released him. Now, I have no idea where it went."
The little girl groaned. "Oh my… I can't believe I still have to keep looking!" she exclaimed.
"Err… do you want me to help you?" the blond offered softly… a little shyly.
The little girl smiled. "Sure. Thanks," she said.
"You're welcome," Draco answered back with a smile. He couldn't help but notice the blush that crept on both of the little girl's cheek which made Draco smirk a little.
"By the way" – she stretched her right hand – "the name is Granger. Hermione Granger."
Draco's jaw immediately dropped. 'Hermione. Hermione. Hermione… argh!' the little Malfoy exclaimed in his mind. 'Hermione didn't also tell me that the girl I will meet in my first train ride will be also named as Hermione!'
The little girl's smile faltered as she stared at her still lifted hand. "Aren't you going to shake it? I might as well put it down already," she said, a frown now adorning her cute face.
Draco immediately gripped her right hand ('Soft, smooth, and warm') and eagerly shook it. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I just… I just remembered someone," he told her truthfully.
"Oh, you know someone with the name 'Hermione', too?" she asked.
"Yeah."
"That's cool," she said, now smiling widely again. She retrieved her hand (which Draco stared at quite disappointedly) and now directed her smile towards the blond. "I still don't know your name."
"Oh, uh, Draco Malfoy," the little blond said.
"Well then, Draco Malfoy, can you please help me look for Neville's toad?" Hermione Granger asked, her smile still plastered on her face.
Draco returned her smile. "That's fine."
"Okay, then. Come on." And with that, Hermione Granger disappeared from their compartment door.
The little blond looked at his other companions. "Do not follow me, anymore. Is that clear?" he asked.
Crabbe and Goyle just stared at him.
"Oh for the love of Pete!" Draco exclaimed and ran to catch up with the new person he met – Hermione Granger. "Hermione Granger…" he murmured followed by a small smile. Even though they still hadn't arrived Hogwarts, his first train ride was already a memorable one.
Draco was walking along the dark corridors in Hogwarts at the middle of the night. A huge frown was found on his face as he just blindly took one step at a time. His new housemates were weird, in his opinion. Yes, they welcomed him and all when the Sorting Hat immediately announced that he now belonged to Slytherin but the way they welcomed him almost freaked Draco out. Don't get him wrong. He liked his new House but… his housemates… Crabbe, Goyle, and Pansy Parkinson were his housemates, too!
The little blond groaned softly as he ignored the staring portraits he passed by. Hogwarts at night, he discovered, was very creepy. Draco made a mental note to tag along Crabbe or Goyle or both if he wanted to roam around Hogwarts. He honestly didn't care if a teacher now caught him and gave him his very first detention in his whole history in Hogwarts. He just… wanted to walk… and to think. Mostly about a certain bushy, brown-haired, buck-teethed, little girl he just met in the Hogwarts Express and a beautiful teenager he met in the past.
Draco's eyebrows knitted together as he pictured this little girl inside his head. Just a while ago, Hermione Granger was sorted in Gryffindor, making Draco's heart sink in actuality. Since Hermione past (he decided to call the Hermione he met in 1990 that so that there wouldn't be any confusion) made him promise to befriend that girl, Draco had to do it in order to do anything for his very first crush. But, how would he do that when he was in Slytherin and she was sorted in Gryffindor?
Before his thoughts were continued, a rather large sigh was heard by the little blond. Draco whipped around together with his already drawn wand. "Who's there?" he called. Draco's heartbeat quickened as he looked around wildly. 'Lumos!' he exclaimed and waved his lit wand around frantically until he spotted someone. Draco walked closely, his wand still ready until he was a few inches in front of the somehow intruder of his. The little blond gasped as he recognized the intruder – Hermione Granger.
"Draco?" she asked, squinting her eyes to see.
The little blond sighed and smiled. The little Gryffindor was seated on one of the steps in the stairs in Hogwarts ('Honestly, they're too many for my own liking,' Draco thought). "Hey," he whispered, approaching her. He sat down beside her. "What are you doing here?"
Hermione frowned and looked at her feet. "To be alone," she whispered sadly. Draco caught the tone of her voice that was why he sharply looked at her.
"Was your first day in school a very bad one?" Draco asked softly, his smile slowly turning into a frown. To his utter shock, the little brunette beside him started to sniff softly. Draco's eyes widened and his jaw dropped. "Are you… are you crying, Hermione?"
Beside him, Hermione started to wipe her tears that stubbornly fell from her eyes. "I'm sorry," she softly squeaked.
"Uh… err… um… I… you… I mean…" Draco spluttered who was feeling very nervous since he was seated beside a crying little girl whom he had just met a while ago. "Did I… did I do something wrong?"
She released a small laugh and shook her head. "No, no, you didn't do anything wrong," she reassured him, still wiping her wet face. "It's just that… it's just that" – she started to cry again – "I miss Mommy and Daddy already!" she wailed and then covered her face with her hands. "Oh, no one likes me at all in my new House!"
"That's… that's not true," Draco answered lamely.
"Yes, it's true!" she exclaimed, lifting her wet face. She looked straight at Draco (he noticed that her bottom lip was adorably trembling) and said, "After dinner, one first year girl said straight to my face that I'm a bossy, buck-teethed, Muggle-born little girl and she doesn't want me to be her friend."
"That... hurts," he commented half-heartedly as he discovered another similarity of Hermione and Hermione past – both of them were Muggle-borns.
Hermione sobbed louder. "Yes, it is!" she wailed softly. "Nobody likes me here. I want to go home now."
"I said, that's not true," he repeated again.
"All right, fine," the brunette said, slightly glaring at the Slytherin. "If that's not true, then who likes me?"
"I do," he whispered. "I like you."
Hermione blinked several times. "What?" she asked, her glossy eyes wide because of surprise.
"I like you… to be my friend," Draco repeated in a whisper again.
"You swear?" she asked, a smile slowly growing on her lips.
"I do," he swore.
"You really, really, swear?" she asked.
Draco sighed. "Yes."
"Even if you're a Slytherin and I'm a Gryffindor?" she asked.
"Yes," Draco said, rolling his eyes. "I don't really care what House you belong."
"Even though your Slytherin housemates might condemn you for the rest of your life because you're befriending a Gryffindor?"
The blond rolled his eyes. "I told you I don't really care what House you belong."
"You really, really, really, really, really swear?" she asked.
"For the love of…!"
Hermione giggled. "That's nice," she answered. "I thought you do not want me to be your friend, too. Though," she shyly looked at the floor, "I want you to be my friend, you know."
Draco blushed slightly. "Let's go back to our own Common Rooms now," he said quite quickly. "A teacher might see us and give us detention."
The little Gryffindor nodded and stood up. "Okay," she said. "Goodnight, Draco."
"Goodnight, Hermione," he answered. Then, the both of them walked in separate ways.
"It's your bloody fault, Weasley!" Draco shouted in anger as he glared disgustingly at his redhead classmate. He then averted his glare from Ronald Weasley to the one and only Harry Potter. "And you didn't do anything at all, Potter! I thought you were the one who defeated You-Know-Who?!"
Ron rolled his eyes. "Oh, don't be so melodramatic, Malfoy!" the redhead retorted back, gasping for air. They had been running for minutes already towards one of the girls' bathroom. And their sole reason was to save Hermione Granger.
Under his breath, Draco grumbled, 'Stupid gits' or 'Hope they go to hell'.
"All right, all right, let's not fight anymore," Harry gasped. Apparently, he was starting to get out of breath, too. "We have to concentrate on more important matters." Harry slowly looked from Ron to the still fuming blond. "Save Hermione Granger."
Just then, a loud shout was heard in the rather almost empty halls. The three boys' eyes widened in recognition.
"Hermione…" Draco whispered and then started to run fast.
"DRACO MALFOY, COME BACK HERE!" Harry screamed as he watched one of his classmates do something harsh just to save a Gryffindor. And he was a Slytherin! "All right, Ron. Let's follow him."
Once Draco arrived at the supposedly-attacked-by-a-troll girls' bathroom, all he did was drop his jaw and widened his eyes. He blinked rapidly suddenly as he couldn't believe at what was happening. There, under one of the sinks, was a frightened, crying Hermione as she wailed for help because a troll was attacking her. Draco snapped out of his shock as the brunette released another deafening shriek when the troll smashed the sink where she was hiding. Hermione immediately ran inside one of the cubicles but then, the troll was absorbed in attacking the brunette he kept on following her.
"Hermione, look out!" the blond warned.
The crying Gryffindor brunette looked around and a look of pure relief crossed on her tear-stained face once her eyes landed on the Slytherin. "Draco!" she exclaimed, and then screamed once the troll smashed her hiding place again.
And then, Harry and Ron arrived. Their reactions were the same as Draco's earlier reaction once they saw the mess the troll had made in the girls' bathroom. Both of them instantly attacked the troll when they saw that Draco was trying to fight it. A look of guilt also crossed Ron's face when he saw the frightened look on Hermione's face.
"Yaaaahhhh!" Harry exclaimed when he jumped on the troll's back and poked one of the troll's nostrils with his wand. The troll grunted and swayed around and around, bringing Harry with him. "Do something!" he screamed to Ron and Draco.
"What?!" both of them screamed in unison.
"Anything!" Harry screamed. "Woah! Woah! Woah! Stop moving, stupid, ugly, disgusting, wretched troll! Do something now!"
Out of desperation and panic, Draco did the first thing that came into his mind – He kicked the troll where it had hurt. Big, fat tears of pain rolled down the troll as he clutched the tender spot and started to howl in pain. "Ronald Weasley, do something now!" Draco screamed.
Ron started to panic. But then, when he spotted the troll's club, an idea crossed his mind. Brandishing his wand, the redhead cleared his throat and pointed it towards the weapon. "Wingardium Leviosa!" he shouted. The club floated above the troll's head. Ron flicked his wand and the club fell on top of the troll's head, knocking him out of his consciousness. The troll fell with Harry on his back.
The redhead stared, dumbfounded. "I did it," he whispered.
Everything was silent at first except the heavy breathing of the three occupants of the bathroom and the brunette's soft sobbing. Harry moved and retrieved his wand from the troll's nostril with a disgusted look on his face as he looked at the disgustingly-looking some-kind-of a booger wrapped around his precious wand.
Draco scrambled towards Hermione and helped her up. The brunette hugged him tight and started to cry again. The blond, surprised, turned red from head to toe. "Oh, that was so… so terrifying!" she wailed as her grip around the Slytherin tightened.
"There, there, it's over," he consoled.
Suddenly, Professor McGonagall arrived together with Professor Snape and Professor Quirell. "What happened here?!" the surprised Head of the Gryffindor House demanded. Her eyes landed on the guilty looks of Harry and Ron and instantly, her eyes narrowed slightly. "Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley, did you do this?"
The two Gryffindors only looked at the floor.
"Umm… actually, Professor, it was my fault," Hermione whispered as she released Draco. "I was… I was not being careful, Professor McGonagall, I'm sorry."
The Transfiguration teacher looked surprised. "Well then, Miss Granger, five points from Gryffindor for doing something rash that almost put you into danger," she said. Her eyes then landed on Harry and Ron. "And five points each… to Gryffindor for" – she looked at the unconscious troll – "defeating this troll."
"And five points to Slytherin for helping them," Professor Snape added as he stared at the smirking Draco Malfoy.
"Yes, yes, now off you four go," Professor McGonagall said. "Go back to your dormitories and we'll do something about this… about this mess."
The four obeyed and scrambled out of the wrecked girls' bathroom.
And that night, a special, strong friendship between the four particular students formed.
"RON!" Hermione shrieked as the knight Ron was riding on was smashed by the opponent's queen. She quickly ran towards her fallen best friend and cradled his injured arm. Draco also ran towards them. At the corner of his eyes, he saw that Harry was about to approach them but the Slytherin stopped.
"No, Harry!" Draco exclaimed as he looked at the frantic Gryffindor. "You go on and fight You-Know-Who!"
"But I… I can't leave the three of you," Harry said with his eyes wide. "Ron's injured… Hermione and you are… I can't leave all of you here."
Hermione looked at Harry with tears sliding down her eyes. "Draco's right, Harry," she said. "Protect the Sorcerer's Stone from You-Know-Who. You should continue without us."
"Yeah, Harry," Ron agreed, face scrunched in pain. "It's just a… a scratch."
"Are you sure?" Harry asked.
The three of them nodded. "You can do it, Harry," Hermione said. "You're strong. I know you can do it."
A determined look was now seen on Harry's face. "All right, then," he said. "I won't disappoint all of you." And then, Harry continued inside the wooden door to meet Lord Voldemort.
Hermione sniffed as she helped Ron.
"Now, stop crying, you silly, little girl," Draco grumbled as he stood up. "I will call for help. Stay here and take care of Ron."
The brunette glared at him. "I'm not worrying for Ron!" she protested.
"Hey!" Ron exclaimed. It seemed like he was affected by what Hermione had said.
Hermione looked at Ron sheepishly. "I mean… yes, I do worry for Ron but Harry…" – she started to cry again – "Harry has to fight… has to fight… Vold-Vol-Volde-Voldemo-Voldemort." All three of them flinched by the name.
Draco sighed. "You know that he's the only one who can defeat You-Know-Who," the Slytherin said to his best friend.
"I know that," she whispered.
The Slytherin then patted Hermione's head and made a small smile. "Why is it that every time I'm with you, you're crying?" he asked.
Hermione softly giggled.
Draco grinned. "Now, stay with Ron and I'll call for help." Draco started to run back but the brunette stopped him.
"Draco!" she called out.
Draco looked at Hermione. "Yeah?"
"Be safe," she whispered.
The blond smiled again. "Yes… yes I will."
Year Two:
"What's going on here?" Hermione asked as she, alongside with Ron, came running down the Gryffindor stand to approach the Gryffindor Quidditch team (which included their best friend, Harry Potter). The brunette also caught sight of her other best friend, Draco Malfoy, who apparently was part of the Slytherin Quidditch team.
"We were supposed to play here in the Quidditch Pitch, Hermione," Harry said, seething. "But they" – he pointed one, lone finger towards the smirking Slytherins (except Draco, of course) "told us that Professor Snape gave them permission to use this stupid Pitch."
Hermione looked at Draco for confirmation. All the little Slytherin blond could do was shrug and mouth, "I'm sorry."
"I'm telling you, Pucey, us Gryffindors were the first ones who were given permission by Professor McGonagall," Oliver Wood, Gryffindor Quidditch Captain, told the Adrian Pucey, Slytherin Quidditch Captain.
"Yeah, fine," Pucey sneered. "But sorry, Wood, your time is up. It's our turn."
Oliver narrowed his eyes and clenched his hands into fists. "It. Is. Our. Turn," he said, through gritted teeth.
"Wrong!" the Captain of the Slytherins bellowed with a growing smirk on his face.
"Hey! You heard him!" Ron exclaimed, bravely stepping forward. "It's our turn, you bloody Slytherin! Give everyone a favor and get lost! They want to play."
"Stupid Weasley," Pucey mattered, raising one, eyebrow. "You're not part of the Gryffindor Quidditch team, anyway. Wood did everyone a favor because he didn't recruit you."
Ron turned into a terrible shade of red. He pulled out his newly fixed wand (though, a Spell-O-Tape was wrapped around the crack) and pointed it at Pucey. Hermione held Ron's wand hand and forced it to point downwards so that he wouldn't hurt anyone.
"Ron, he's not worth it," Hermione whispered. "Something might happen to your spell if you did something to your wand." The brunette looked at the watching Draco and glared. "Do something," she mouthed.
"What?" Draco mouthed back nervously.
"Anything, stupid!" the brunette mouthed back. Draco just shrugged, making Hermione frustrated.
"Are we done conversing now?" Pucey asked. "Because our team really wants to play, you know."
Hermione the directed her glare towards the Captain of the Slytherins. "Adrian Pucey, you had heard my housemates. They were the first ones who were granted permission by Professor McGonagall. Accept that simple fact and just play some other time."
"No one asked you to talk, you filthy, little Mudblood!" Pucey exclaimed. Everyone, except Harry, gasped in surprise. Hermione looked at Pucey and blinked several times. After she got over her shock, a tear slid down her right eye which she didn't bother to brush away. Adrian Pucey seemed satisfied with what he had done.
"You'll pay for that, Pucey!" Ron exclaimed, pointing his wand towards the Slytherin Quidditch Captain again. "Eat slugs!" But then, his spell backfired and he flew backwards. The Gryffindor Quidditch team ran towards Ron. Hermione knelt down beside him and shook him slightly.
"Are you all right, Ron? Say something!" Hermione cried, tears still freely flowing down her face.
"I…" Ron didn't have the chance to answer Hermione since he started to vomit big, fat slugs. Everyone in the Pitch watched in disgust and pity for the Gryffindor.
"Hey! That's enough!" Draco bellowed as he ran towards his best friends, too.
"Malfoy, get back here!" Pucey ordered. "I'm the Captain of the squad and I'm ordering you as the leader to get back here!"
"No! You heard them, Pucey. They were the first one who were granted permission to use the Quidditch Pitch," Draco said. "I think it will be better if we just find a new slot tomorrow or later this afternoon."
Adrian Pucey's eyes narrowed into thin slits. "Are you siding with them, Malfoy?" he asked.
Draco lifted his chin up and met his Captain's glare. "Yeah. So what?" he asked bravely.
"Then, you're out of this team, Draco Malfoy," he said. "I'll find someone who is more suitable in being the Slytherin Quidditch team's Seeker."
The little blond released a small laugh. "You can't ban me out of this team, Pucey," he confidently told the older Slytherin. "I was recommended here by Professor Snape. The last decision will always be his."
Pucey's glare darkened while Draco's trademark smile grew.
Adrian looked at his other teammates. "Come on, team, let's go," he ordered. "We might catch their 'bad luck' virus." And with that, the Slytherin Quidditch team, except Draco, walked out of the Quidditch Pitch.
"Wait, Pucey!" Draco called out, stopping the Slytherin Captain.
"What now, Malfoy?" he asked angrily.
Draco pointed his wand and flicked it. And then, the spell had hit Pucey squarely on his chest. The Slytherin Captain turned into a brilliant shade of purple with some mixture of green and then, like Ron, he started to vomit slugs. The Gryffindors gasped in surprise and stared at Draco, wide-eyed and in awe. Draco directed his smile towards the still vomiting Ron. "I believe that was what you want to happen, Weasley," the blond said. "You owe me something."
Ron laughed but then started to cough up slugs again.
The blond's eyes then locked with Hermione's wide, glossy ones and his smile instantly faltered. "Harry," he said, still looking at the crying brunette. "Bring Ron to Hagrid. He can help him."
"All right," he said and then helped Ron up.
Oliver Wood placed a hand on Draco's shoulder. "Thanks, Draco Malfoy," he said. "You're not bad at all."
Draco smirked. "What? You think I'll be bad, too, like the other Slytherins?" he asked.
The Gryffindor Captain smiled at him sheepishly for confirmation. And then, he looked at his team and ordered, "All right, everyone, mount your brooms and we're going to practice now!" And with that, only Hermione and Draco were left. The Slytherin blond approached his best friend and crouched down in front of her.
"Hermione, are you all right?" he asked.
Hermione sniffed and shook her head. Draco sighed and pulled her up. Together, they went inside the Hogwarts castle. As they were walking along the corridors, Hermione's head was bowed, her eyes trained on the cold floor but Draco could tell that she was still crying.
The blond sighed. He had done it. He had just official made known to his housemates that he was best friends with Gryffindors, but not just some Gryffindors but Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger themselves. Don't get him wrong. It was not that he was ashamed of the fact that he was close friends with them. It was just that… he knew, he knew deep inside the first time he saw Hermione Granger that his housemates would look at him scornfully for fraternizing with the enemy. But now, he didn't seem to care. All he cared about now was the fact that one of his best friends was crying because of what his housemate had told her.
"He called me 'Mudblood'," Hermione whispered, breaking the silence. She said this followed by a sniff.
"I think I heard that, Hermione," the blond whispered back.
Hermione raised her head and looked at Draco through her tear-stained face. "Mudblood means 'dirty blood', doesn't it?" the Gryffindor asked. When Draco didn't answer, she continued. "It's a really foul name for a Muggle-born, right? Someone with non-magical parents." Hermione looked at the ground again. "Someone… like me."
Draco gulped nervously. "Yes… I mean, no!" he exclaimed. "Look, Hermione, ignore Pucey. He's like that, especially to Gryffindors. Trust me. I lived with him for almost two years already. He just has the… ability to hit a nerve." Hermione continued to cry which made Draco sigh. "Hermione," he said, stepping in front of the brunette. "You're no Mudblood, okay? Some of my kind really tends to be… harsh to people who aren't like us… like Purebloods." The blond looked around and was thankful that they were near the Slytherin dungeons. "Wait for me, here." Draco ran away from Hermione and went inside his Common Room.
The Gryffindor brunette waited for him, though, her tears still continued to fall. And then, Draco came back. Hermione looked up and watched as he walked towards her, a big smile plastered on his face.
"Adrian Pucey is a big jerk, Hermione," Draco said, almost inaudibly. "But remember this. He cannot think of a spell you can't do. You're ten times better than him in many, many ways. So, just… forget that guy."
Hermione made a small smile.
Then, the blond showed her something… something that made her small smile bigger. "Oh, Draco, that's adorable!" she exclaimed as Draco passed her a teddy bear. Hermione hugged it tighter to herself. "What's his name?"
"Mr. Beady," the blond said sheepishly. "Let's just say that a… very important person gave that for me as a birthday present."
"Oh," Hermione said, her smile wavering. "And, you're giving it to me?"
Draco scratched the back of his neck. "Yeah," he said. "Don't you like him?"
"I do! I promise I do!" she said as she placed a kiss on top of Mr. Beady's head. "But… it seems like he's important to you, Draco. I won't accept it." She gave Mr. Beady back to Draco but he didn't accept it.
"Don't be silly, Hermione. He's yours," Draco said. "Yes, he's important to me but right now, you need him more than I do."
Hermione smiled and kissed Mr. Beady's head again. "Thank you," she said, grinning widely. The blond just grinned back. "Draco…" she said. "Why do you always make me feel better?"
Draco's smile disappeared. "I do?" he asked while his brow furrowed together.
"Yeah… I mean," Hermione looked at her feet. "You make me smile when I'm crying. Why is that?" The brunette's face was contorted into pure question now.
"I… I really don't know," the blond truthfully said while fidgeting slightly.
Hermione sighed. "I hope we'll know the answer someday," she said. And then, Hermione released a huge gasp. "Oh, that's beautiful!" she said as she looked around Draco's neck.
"What?" he asked. And then, he saw his necklace, visible to someone else's eyes. It seemed like Hermione caught sight of it already. "Oh, this?" he said, fingering the ring. "It was given to me by someone very important, too."
"A girl?" the brunette asked, eyes now trained on Draco's face. "The ring sure seemed kind of… girly."
Draco's face turned into red. "Ye… yeah," he answered. "It's Her… her gift for my tenth birthday… the best birthday I ever had."
Hermione looked at the ring longingly. "Can I… can I have it?" she asked slowly in a whisper.
"No!" Draco exclaimed, clutching the ring around his right hand. "If I gave this to you, then, it'll… mean something." The last part was said by Draco in a whisper.
"What?" she asked.
Draco gulped. "Umm… can we… can we visit Ron now?" he asked, changing the topic. He prayed to Merlin that Hermione will remember about their best friend's present predicament. Thankfully, she did.
"Oh my! Ron!" she said. "Come on, then, Draco. Let's go to Hagrid's Hut." Hermione hugged Mr. Beady tighter to herself and then started to run outside the Hogwarts Castle. Draco released a huge sigh of relief and followed her.
Harry, Ron, and Draco solemnly and quietly went inside the infirmary as their eyes were trained on Hermione. She was petrified. They were told by Professor Dumbledore that they had seen Hermione petrified by a basilisk together with Penelope Clearwater, a Ravenclaw prefect.
The three boys perched themselves on Hermione's bed, their eyes still not leaving their petrified best friend.
"This… this is horrible," Ron said in a whisper as he gulped nervously and touched Hermione's hardened hand. "This is bloody horrible."
Harry looked around and still saw everyone who was petrified in the Hospital Wing. There was Colin Creevey, though, Harry couldn't see his camera anymore. There was Justin Finch-Fletchely and Nearly-Headless Nick who were both petrified at the same time and same place. There was Mrs. Norris with a sobbing Filch on her side. There was Penelope Clearwater and of course, there was Hermione. Harry counted inside his head how many they were. All in all, six were already petrified.
"Hey, what's this," Draco suddenly said, breaking their silence. He was holding Hermione's right hand and was surprised when a paper was clutched inside it. The Slytherin forced the paper out of the brunette's hand. Finally, he removed it and gave it to Harry.
He opened the piece of paper and all he saw was Hermione's handwriting on it. "Pipes," he whispered. "That's what it says."
"Pipes?" Ron asked. "Why in Merlin's beard will Hermione write 'pipes' in a piece of paper?"
"Maybe, it means something," Draco offered. He snatched the paper away from Harry and stared at it. "Pipes… pipes… pipes…" He turned the paper around and was surprised that a word was also scribbled at the back of the torn paper. "Basilisk…" he whispered and then gasped.
"Basilisk?" Harry and Ron asked in unison.
"A basilisk is a giant serpent. It's also known as the King of Serpents," Draco told his best friends. "A basilisk's gaze is very deadly. You'll instantly die if you look directly at his eyes."
"Are you telling me that…"
"Yes, Harry, I think a basilisk did all of these," Draco said, gesturing towards the occupants of the infirmary. "Hermione already discovered it but was unfortunate to be petrified by a basilisk."
"Petrified?" Ron asked. "How come they were only petrified?"
"Because, Ron, they didn't look directly towards its eyes," Harry explained to Ron. "Colin saw it through his camera, so, he didn't really see it directly. Justin might have seen it through Nearly-Headless Nick. Even though Nick's case was worse than the others since he might've seen the basilisk directly, he can't die. He's already dead, anyway. Hermione… was holding this mirror!" Harry exclaimed as he held the hand where Hermione was clutching a mirror. "Penelope might be looking through it, too."
"What about Mrs. Norris?" Ron whispered, looking at Filch at the corner of his eyes.
"Remember, we saw water there, Ron," Draco continued. "Mrs. Norris might have seen the basilisk's reflection through the water."
Ron scratched the back of his neck. "Okay… so, why did Hermione write the word 'Pipes' on that paper, too?" he asked.
"Maybe…" Draco said.
"The basilisk is hiding in the pipes!" Harry exclaimed. "I'm a Parselmouth, remember? I can understand the language of snakes and a basilisk is one." The Gryffindor sighed in relief. "I understand now why I hear voices in the walls because the basilisk was communicating with me. Remember that there are pipes in the walls, Ron."
"Oh," Ron said in realization. "Then… let's find a way to go inside the pipes!"
"Yes, that's right, come on," Harry scrambled up with Ron trailing behind him. Harry stopped and looked back. Draco was still sitting on Hermione's bed. "Aren't you coming, Draco?"
The blond looked at him and shook his head. "I'll stay with Hermione," he said. "Maybe, I can also help Madam Pomfrey to brew the antidote for basilisk petrification."
"Okay, just wish us luck," Harry said.
"Take care of Hermione!" Ron said as he waved goodbye.
Once they were gone, Draco looked back at Hermione with a frown. "That's what you get for being too bloody intelligent, Granger," he told the brunette and touched her hand again. "You should have at least asked for our company so that we can warn you if we saw the basilisk. Stupid Gryffindor bravery."
After a moment of pause, Draco then laid his head just beside Hermione's. "Wake up, Hermione," he whispered… pleaded. "Yes, Harry and Ron are there to accompany me but I know that they'll be busy killing that basilisk and saving Ron's little sister. And besides, it will still be different if you're not there."
Draco sighed and straightened up. He retrieved Mr. Beady from his robe and showed it to the brunette. "See, I brought Mr. Beady. He'll keep you company while I help Madam Pomfrey," Draco said and laid the teddy bear beside the brunette. The blond then stood up. "Be well soon, Hermione. I'm already missing you," he whispered and bent down to kiss her forehead.
The Slytherin then talked to Madam Pomfrey and together, both of them brewed the antidote for basilisk petrification.
Harry and Ron successfully defeated the basilisk and saved Ginny Weasley. All of those who were petrified were successfully revived. In the end, the Chamber of Secrets was closed again; the heir of Slytherin, who was really the soul and kind of memory of Tom Marvolo Riddle or Lord Voldemort disappeared, and everyone was safe again.
Year Three:
"DRACO MALFOY!" Hermione shrieked as she stomped inside the Gryffindor Common Room. No one was there except her lounging best friend, Draco Malfoy. Even though he was a Slytherin, he was already granted access in the Gryffindor Common Room by the Fat Lady because she already trusted the blond ever since she discovered that he was a best friend of the great Harry Potter.
Now, as Draco looked up from his book and watched Hermione, he rolled his eyes and went back into reading. Harry and Ron had left him and went to the library (which greatly surprised Draco, mind you) for research. "What's your problem, Granger?" he asked her, his eyes still not leaving his book. Hermione ripped the book away from Draco's grip. The blond scowled and glared at the fuming brunette. "Hermione, you're disturbing me, do you know that?!" he asked her as he matched her glare.
"Where is Crookshanks?!" she asked in exclamation.
"Don't you dare accuse me," Draco said, his glare darkening. "I didn't do anything to your precious cat, Granger. I followed your order. I left him alone."
Hermione released an angry noise. "We both know that you bloody hate my cat, Draco! Where is he?! Tell me where he is!" she shrieked.
"I told you I didn't do anything to your ugly cat, Granger!" Draco shouted back.
"Ugly? UGLY?! Did you just call my cat ugly?!" she screamed and crouched down so she would be eye-to-eye with the Slytherin.
"So what if I did?!" Draco shouted back, crossing his arms across his chest.
The brunette seethed. "My. Cat. Is. Not. Ugly," she said through gritted teeth. "Now, show me where you locked Crookshanks then everything will be all right, Draco."
Draco released a long sigh. "How many times do I have to tell you that I didn't lock Crookshanks anymore?" he asked her. "Ask Ron. He hates your bloody cat, too. Now that I think about it, who doesn't hate your bloody cat?" he asked her.
Hermione clutched Draco's front shirt and pulled him towards her suddenly. The blond blinked rapidly as he stared at the brunette, shocked.
"Show me Crookshanks," she said in a low whisper as she allowed Draco to stand up. Hermione pulled him down so that he would be in the same height as she was.
"I didn't hide him," Draco whispered back, his eyes trained on her red, parted lips.
"WHERE IS HE?!" the brunette screamed.
"Granger," the blond said, still in a whisper as he painfully averted his eyes away from those two tempting things. Now, his eyes were trained on Hermione's eyes. "If you don't shut up, I'm going to do something that you won't like."
"I DO NOT CARE! WHERE IS MY…!" Hermione didn't have the chance to finish her sentence because, quite suddenly, Draco crashed his lips against hers. As soon as it happened, Draco pulled away, though, his right hand was still placed at the back of her neck.
Draco stared at Hermione's wide eyes. "See…" he whispered and watched as Hermione blinked three times, "I told you that if you don't shut up, I'm going to do something you won't like." Before the brunette could do anything like react or something, Draco gently pressed his lips against hers.
This time, though, much to Hermione's greater surprise, Draco tilted his head and started to move his lips against hers. His hand at the back of her neck traveled down to her waist and pulled her closer, earning a soft whimper from the brunette. For her, the kiss he was giving her right now didn't have the purpose of shutting her up.
But then, the brunette found herself slowly closing her eyes and giving in to the kiss. How couldn't she when his lips tasted like sweet chocolate? How couldn't she when he bloody kissed her so well? How couldn't she when he was making her oh so comfortable? Hermione's hands curled themselves on the front part of Draco's shirt. How couldn't she stop herself from kissing him back when he made her feel something? Electricity. Sparks.
Hermione released a huge gasp as she pushed him away from her. Hard. Draco looked at her with a dazed expression on his face, blinking rapidly as he stared at the red brunette.
"I…" he started.
"No. Don't!" Hermione shrieked, covering her mouth with her right hand.
Suddenly, a very disgruntled Ron followed by Harry (who was shaking his head) entered the Gryffindor Common Room. Upon seeing Hermione, the redhead groaned loudly. "Hermione! Can you please stop your bloody cat from chasing Scabbers? Your precious Crookshanks is chasing him in the Great Hall again. Can you please stop that bloody cat of yours before I do something… something unpleasant to him?" he asked, eyes furrowing because of frustration.
Hermione turned redder upon knowing that she accused the wrong person.
"Hermione…" Draco said, encircling his right hand around her wrist.
The brunette, feeling the sparks again, jumped a little and without thinking, punched Draco. She realized it too late that she had exerted way too much force with that single punch because she had heard the painful impact of her fist with his jaw.
At the corner of her eyes, she saw the dropping of Ron's and Harry's jaw at the same time. Hermione would have laughed when she had seen this but now, she really wasn't in the mood to do that. The brunette's jaw dropped, too. Draco looked at her in bewilderment.
"I…" the brunette said, confusion and distress evident in her voice. She didn't know what to do now. So, she only did one thing – she ran out of the Gryffindor Common Room.
At first, the three of them were silent. Until, Harry broke it.
"Woah," he said and watched as Draco cradled his smarting jaw. "That was… that was…"
"Shut up, Potter," the blond said, glaring at the bespectacled boy (Even talking was painful for Draco!). "Don't you dare continue your sentence!"
"Why the bloody, burning hell did Hermione do that to you, Draco?" Ron asked, immediately forgetting about the present predicament of his beloved rat.
The blond closed his eyes and sighed in frustration. "Let's just say that she wrongly accused me of hurting her beloved cat," the blond murmured softly.
"But a punch?" Harry said, still in awe. "Why did she do that?"
Draco shook his head. "Please, leave me… ouch… alone," he said and walked out of the Gryffindor Common Room. "I'm going to the infirmary. I think a bone broke."
Ron looked at Harry. "What's their problem?" he asked.
"Don't ask me, Ronald," Harry answered the redhead. "I don't think like they do."
The redhead shrugged. "Wanna eat? I'm starving," he said.
Harry sighed and rolled his eyes. "Whatever, Ron."
Hermione sighed as she looked at her watch again. She was now seen seated on an empty bench, waiting for her mother to fetch her. 'Mommy's late,' she thought with a frown and looked around the King's Cross. To her dismay, people in King's Cross were becoming fewer and fewer as they started to leave. The brunette sighed again and massaged her forehead as a small headache started to form.
She placed her elbow on her right knee and placed her forehead on top of her hand. This had been a tiring year for her, in her opinion. Their adventures this year were more tiring than last year. Discovering that Scabbers was really Harry's father's old best friend, Peter Pettigrew; meeting the infamous Sirius Black who was wrongly accused for murdering Muggles (it was really Pettigrew); using her time-turner with Harry to save Buckbeak and Sirius; and frighteningly soaring up in the sky while riding at the back of a hippogriff. All were exhausting for the brunette.
But really, they were nothing compared to her true predicament.
After that happened, she started to avoid Draco the rest of the year. It was painfully obvious since Harry, Ron, and Ginny noticed it. It was painfully obvious because a lot of Slytherins (who despised Draco for mingling with Gryffindors and Mudbloods) noticed it.
Hermione released a rueful sigh. She was sorry it had happened but, she really wasn't the one to be blamed for their present relationship. He ruined it. He ruined their blissful camaraderie. Hermione was already content in having the bestest friend she could ever had but then, with those two kisses, he ruined it. The brunette softly cursed the blond under her breath. Everything was really his fault.
The brunette massaged her forehead again.
"Hey."
The Gryffindor jumped on her seat and abruptly looked up. Her eyes instantly narrowed and then, she quickly averted her gaze back to her lap. Her hands were placed on it, curled tightly into fists. A stubborn frown was now evident in her face. Her hair curtained her face away from her intruder. 'How dare he show that… that… face of his!' Hermione screamed inside her mind as she refused to look at Draco.
The blond sighed and sat down on the bench, too. He made sure that there was a wide space between them so that he wouldn't freak the brunette out. Draco knew she was still angry with him. Her reaction when she saw him just a while ago was enough proof. But then, the Slytherin blond wouldn't give up. It was truly, definitely, agonizingly, painfully hard to avoid her when she was standing under the same roof as he was. Their fight wasn't petty, he knew that. It wasn't like their quarrels in the past. It was… something he couldn't understand but still dreaded. So, Draco had a huge feeling that if he didn't apologize now, Hermione wouldn't talk to him ever again.
Draco clutched Mr. Beady for support. Yes, he might be inanimate and all, but Mr. Beady was important between his friendship with Hermione. Ever since she didn't talk to him, Hermione returned the teddy bear to him and as much as he want to deny it but, it broke his heart into two.
The Slytherin then took a huge deep breath. "All right, you're gonna make me say it, aren't you?" he said bravely. "Fine then… I'm sorry." There, he had said it and boy, it made him feel as if a huge load in his chest was removed.
Hermione still refused to look at him. Now, she crossed her arms across her chest.
Draco sighed and placed Mr. Beady between the two of them. The blond knew what he was going to do was stupid but still… "Forgive him now, 'Mione," Mr. Beady said, though really, it was Draco who was talking. "He's sorry. Please forgive him now." Draco nudged Mr. Beady against the brunette's right arm. "Forgive him. Forgive him. Pretty, pretty please with your favorite fruit on the top. Forgive him. Forgive him," Draco said through Mr. Beady again and again like a mantra.
And to his huge relief, Hermione emitted a soft giggle. It was brief, but still, a giggle. Draco broke into a huge grin and sighed.
"Merlin, Hermione, I…" He didn't have the chance to finish his sentence when Hermione suddenly snatched Mr. Beady away from him. Draco watched as the brunette placed a soft kiss on top of his teddy bear and he couldn't deny the sour feeling he suddenly felt.
"Oh, Mr. Beady, I really missed you," the brunette cooed as she hugged the teddy bear tighter.
"What the - ? Hermione!" Draco exclaimed in frustration. "What do you want now, huh? All right, I'll repeat it again. I'm sorry!" He threw his arms towards the air and released an angry noise. "What else do you want me to do? Kneel down and beg? Because if you want me to do that, I'll" – he stood up – "do it."
Hermione looked at him, surprised, and then sighed. "No, sit down," she ordered. Draco obeyed and sat down on the bench again. This time, though, the gap between them was smaller.
The blond stared at Hermione, waiting for her to talk.
"Granger… just say something," he said.
"Something," the brunette said, staring at him without any expression on her face.
Draco smacked his forehead. "Be serious, Hermione!" he exclaimed. "I'm saying – ."
"They didn't mean anything, right?" she asked suddenly.
"What?"
Hermione sighed and placed her chin on top of Mr. Beady's head. "Those" – she nervously gulped – "kisses didn't mean anything, right? Please tell me honestly, Draco."
Draco nervously gulped, too, and looked at his lap. He couldn't deny the feeling he felt when he kissed her. But, did they really mean something to him? Just anything? The blond sighed. "No," he curtly said. Now, who was he bloody kidding?! "They were just meant to shut you up."
The Gryffindor shook her head. "The second one didn't seem to have a purpose to shut me up," Hermione pointed out.
"I said they didn't mean anything at all, Granger." And he knew he was lying.
"Really?" she asked, her eyes wide as she stared at the Slytherin.
"Yes."
"Really, really?" she asked again.
Draco let out a puff of breath. "Yes, yes."
"Sure?"
"Ugh, Granger! What do you want me to say? That they did mean something to me, huh?" Draco asked in exasperation.
Hermione just grinned. "No," she said. "But are you really, really sure?"
"How many times do I have to - ."
The brunette started to laugh. "All right, all right," she said. "I forgive you now."
Draco's eyes widened. "What did you say?" he asked, scooting closer towards Hermione.
Hermione sighed while grinning. "I said I forgive you. Are you happy now?" she asked.
The blond broke into another wide grin. "Very," he answered. He then stretched out his right hand. "So, friends?"
The Gryffindor stared at Draco's stretched hand. She looked up at him and then back to his hand. And then, she slowly grasped it and shook it. "Best friends," she corrected him, a small smile now evident on her face.
Draco couldn't help but to smile back.
Quite suddenly, Hermione wrapped her arms around the blond's neck and hugged him tightly. "Oh, I missed you so!" she exclaimed, now laughing quietly. "I missed you so much! I'm sorry for being a stubborn, silly girl."
The blond then slowly wrapped his arms around her waist and placed his chin on top of her head. "I missed you, too," he whispered, eyes slowly drifting shut. But then, he willed his eyes to open up. He admitted to himself that he was slightly getting carried away. He broke the hug, not wanting to do something he liked but she wouldn't like. "So… can you still go to my house this summer break? The invitation is still open."
Hermione grinned. "Of course."
And again, Draco couldn't help but smile back.
Year Four:
Hermione sighed as she continued to waltz around with the arms of the Quidditch Keeper Extraordinaire, Viktor Krum, wrapped around her waist as he led the way. The brunette couldn't help but smile as she caught sight of some more boys staring at her. As much as she hated to admit it, she liked the attention she was receiving, especially from boys, right now. The way their eyes enlarged once they saw her descending down the stairs while she was all dolled up made her quite smug. The periwinkle dress her mother had sent her was seen adorning the petite body of the Gryffindor and her hair (which was thankfully tamed) was tied into a loose bun while some tendrils were covering her glowing face. All in all, she was definitely beautiful.
Viktor twirled her around and met her eyes. Hermione smiled when his eyes shone because of admiration. In her opinion, the Bulgarian Seeker was sweet. The brunette had liked the way he asked her to be his date for the Yule Ball. The brunette liked the reason he had given her why every time she went to the library, he was there. She liked his attention. It thrilled her through the bones.
"You're beautiful," he whispered, making the brunette blush scarlet.
"Thank you, Viktor," she answered him sincerely. Yes, Viktor Krum was definitely charming. Very, very charming. Even though he couldn't pronounce her name properly. But, Hermione just didn't seem to care. Even though he was three years older than her, Hermione didn't care. He was just charming and sweet and all.
But there was something missing. Hermione could feel it. Her forehead scrunched up as she mused on that thought again. 'What? What was missing?' she asked herself as Viktor twirled her again and dipped her down. He pulled her closer towards him. 'There's something missing. But what?'
Her thoughts were immediately forgotten once her eyes spotted her best friend's vivid blond hair. Hermione triumphantly smirked at him as his eyes narrowed more. The brunette stuck her tongue out at him and had let Viktor to twirl her again, breaking her eye contact with Draco.
Hermione's smirk grew. 'Take that, Draco Malfoy!' the brunette thought inside her mind. 'Who said that no one will dare ask me to the ball, huh? Ha! Someone did!'
The Gryffindor was angry with her Slytherin best friend. And her reason? He was angry because he discovered that she was Viktor Krum's date. He told her that she was fraternizing with the enemy. He told her she was betraying Harry because she was the date of the a student from their rival school. All Hermione did with his words was roll her eyes. She knew his real reason why he was angry with her.
She deflated his overly-sized ego. And that made Hermione smug. An hour before the ball, Draco asked her to be his date. But since Viktor asked her two days before the ball, Hermione, being kind and all, agreed to be his date. And so, when Draco asked her to be his date, the brunette had no choice but to turn him down. And, mind you, no girl had ever turned Draco down. And so, that blew his inflated ego.
'It's his fault, anyway,' the brunette thought as Viktor stepped on her feet. "Oof!"
"I'm so sorry, Herm-own-ninny!" the Durmstrang student exclaimed, shock evident on his face. "I'm so sorry!"
"No, no, it's all right, Viktor," she said, massaging her throbbing right foot. At the corner of her eyes, she saw Draco laughing. The brunette glared at him and 'hmphed'. She held Viktor's hands again and they started to waltz around.
'Asking me to the ball an hour before it? Oh please! Who in their right minds will ask a girl to the ball an hour before the ball itself?!' the brunette screamed inside her head as she glared at Draco again. The Slytherin blond gladly returned it. His glare, though, was darker than Hermione's.
The song then stopped. Viktor looked at the beautiful fourth year Gryffindor and smiled. "Vould you like some punch, Herm-own-ninny?" he asked.
Hermione flinched slightly at the name he kept on calling her. It was not that she didn't like but, it was just that it wasn't her name. It made her… weird inside every time he called her that. She forced a small smile on her face. "That sounds nice, Viktor," she said.
"I vill get you some, then. Vait for me," he said. And with that, he disappeared from her sight.
The brunette sighed and looked at the entrance door of the Great Hall longingly. She strode towards it, not failing to notice the stares she received from some occupants and took a deep sigh once she was out of the noisy Great Hall. She chose a bench near the Hogwarts Lake and sat down on it. To her shock (and amusement), she could see that the Giant Squid was dancing with the music inside Hogwarts. It seemed like even the creatures in Hogwarts were partying with them.
Hermione softly laughed and stared up at the sky, trying to pinpoint all the constellations she knew. She saw the Great Hunter, Orion, and the Tres Marias, his belt. She saw Sirius, Cassiopeia, and many, many more. The brunette sighed and closed her eyes, her head resting against the bench. A slight breeze blew against her face, billowing the loose tendrils of her hair. 'This is life,' she told herself.
"Enjoying yourself?"
The brunette's eyes snapped open and narrowed themselves as they focused on her intruder. "What do you want now, Draco? Scold me for fraternizing with the enemy?" she asked the blond as she watched him while he looked down at her.
"Well, that's what you were doing, Herm-own-ninny," Draco said, emphasizing her name. He didn't fail to catch the flinch Hermione made. And that made him smirk.
"Stop calling me that," she said with a scowl.
"But that's what dear Viktor calls you," the blond answered back.
"You're not Viktor so stop calling me that, Malfoy," Hermione spat, eyes darkening.
"Oh, so now you're siding with the enemy," Draco said, his glare darkening, too. "You danced with him for countless times, Granger. So, what's next? Kiss him under the moonlight? That's bloody romantic, if you ask me."
Hermione blushed scarlet but thankfully, it was dark so Draco didn't see it. "What the hell is your problem, Draco? Ever since I turned you down, you started to get mad at me."
"That's exactly my problem, Hermione. You turned me down," Draco said loudly. "And it's all because you said yes to that bloody Seeker buffoon!"
The Gryffindor couldn't believe him. Ever since he discovered that the one and only Viktor Krum would visit Hogwarts, he couldn't stop talking about him. But now, she couldn't believe that he just insulted her date. "But that's not my fault, Draco!" she screamed, now standing up and glaring at him. "You asked me an hour before the ball!"
"But… but that's because I thought that no one will ask you to be his date!" Draco answered back.
Hermione turned into a terrible shade of red because of angry. She placed both of her hands against her hips and narrowed her eyes into thin slits. "But someone asked me. Ha! So, really, it is your fault!"
"NO!" Draco exclaimed. "It isn't. It is your fault. You said yes to the enemy!" he pointed out.
"Why do you keep on calling Viktor 'The Enemy'! It's as if you're considering him worse than You-Know-Who!" Hermione shrieked.
Draco crossed his arms across his chest. "Because, that's what he is. An enemy," he spat. "And you're flirting around him."
"I am not flirting!" Hermione screamed indignantly. "I was merely being nice, Draco Malfoy! He asked me to be his date two days before the ball. It's only nice to say 'yes' to him!"
"And it's better to do that than say 'yes' to your best friend?" the blond asked, meeting the brunette's burning eyes with his equal burning ones.
The Gryffindor brunette released an angry noise. "What do you want to do now, huh, Draco?!" she shrieked, hands thrown up in the air because of frustration.
"Dance with me!" he exclaimed loudly.
"Fine!" Hermione screamed back.
"Fine!" he answered.
Both of the fourth year students gasped for air. A tensed silence hung around them except the noise of the crickets. Hermione's glare faltered as she realized what Draco had asked her to do. He wanted her to dance with him. Millions and billions of butterflies started swarmed around her stomach as she blinked rapidly and broke the glaring contest she was having with the blond.
"Dance with me," Draco repeated, this time though, he said it in a whisper.
Hermione met his eyes and saw that he too was quite uncomfortable with their current situation. The brunette raised her hands so that she could place them on the right positions. Draco, too, raised his hands. But the two seemed reluctant to touch their partners' appropriate body part, making the brunette frustrated.
"Oh for heaven's sake!" she exclaimed as she placed her right hand on his shoulder. She felt him place his left hand on her waist and a blush crept on the brunette's cheeks. Again, she was thankful that the place was dark. Unbeknownst to her, the blond was red, too, from head to toe. When Draco gripped her left hand with his right, a strong surge of electricity shot down the brunette's body.
'Sparks, sparks, sparks,' the brunette thought again and again. She didn't have any idea that Draco, too, felt it.
Hermione's breath started to hitch slightly as she sniffed Draco's cologne. The brunette bit her bottom lip. He bloody smelled nice. She felt him pulling her closer to himself and surprisingly, the brunette allowed him until she was slightly pressed against him. Her head ended buried against his neck while his chin was gently pressed on top of her fixed hair.
They started to waltz in front of the Hogwarts Lake. The Giant Squid followed their every move. Even though there was no music coming from the castle, they continued to dance, pretending that the sound of the crickets was a song.
They danced around and around. At times, Draco twirled Hermione around. At times, Draco dipped Hermione's head low until it almost touched the ground. But then, she would be back into his arms again. Her head would end up buried against his neck and his chin would end up placed gently on top of her fragrant hair again.
They just danced around and around. Hermione's eyes drifted shut as she allowed him to lead her. Draco's eyes drifted shut as he allowed himself to smile because she had allowed him to lead her.
The blond tightened his grip on the brunette. A soft sigh emitted itself from his lips involuntarily as he felt her slightly snuggle against his neck. He remembered the time he danced with Hermione past. He remembered the feeling he felt when his cheek was slightly pressed against her stomach. He remembered the great feeling he felt. But this time, though, the feeling was greater… more powerful.
His hand holding her waist unconsciously wrapped itself around the brunette's waist. To his surprise, Hermione had let him. A small smile, just a small one, started to form itself on his lips. He pulled her closer to himself, wanting to hold her tighter to himself. He didn't know why but right now, he was feeling slightly possessive. "Hermione," he whispered.
"Hmm?" the brunette asked, face still buried on his neck.
"You're… you're…" he said, willing himself to say those words.
Hermione slowly looked at him, her nose slightly skimming his jaw. "I'm what?" she asked softly.
Draco looked down at her and instantly, his breathing stopped. Her face was close… too close. Draco's hug tightened. He didn't know why but, he had another great urge to feel her lips against his again. But with all of his willpower, he stopped himself. He didn't want to sacrifice his friendship with this brunette again. "You're so…"
"HERM-OWN-NINNY? WHERE ARE YOU?!"
The brunette instantly broke away from Draco. "I…I have to go," she whispered and then turned around. She ran away from him, trying her best not to look back.
Draco sighed. Curse that stupid, Quidditch Keeper! Curse him! He ran a hand through his hair and closed his eyes. "You're so beautiful, okay?" he told her even if she wasn't there anymore. The blond plopped himself down on the bench Hermione occupied a while ago. He buried his face in his hands and he released a huge sigh.
He was so confused. Really, really confused.
"What are you doing here, Hermione?" Draco asked as he slowly advanced towards the bench Hermione was currently sitting on.
The brunette looked up and gave him a small smile. "Contemplating," she said as she looked back to the Hogwarts Lake and sighed.
"About?" the blond asked as he sat down beside her. He, too, looked at the majestic Hogwarts Lake and watched as the Giant Squid did a backstroke. This made Draco chuckle softly to himself.
"About… things that happened this school-year," the Gryffindor answered him as she stared at him. "Don't you agree with me that this year is the most tiring year of all?"
Draco rolled his eyes. "Granger, every year keeps on getting tiring and tiring for us and you know that," the blond said.
Hermione sighed again. "I know that," she answered him. "It's just that… I think it isn't fair anymore."
The Slytherin raised an eyebrow. "Why do you think so?" he asked her.
The brunette ran a hand through her brown tresses. "I mean, everything that happens to us normally doesn't happen to normal people."
"That's because we are not normal, Hermione. Remember that. We are magical beings."
Hermione rolled her eyes. "I know that, too, Draco. No need to point it out," she told him. "What I mean to say is that all the things we are experiencing – Harry, Ron, you, and me, normally happens to older people. I bet you my most favorite book in the whole world that Professor Flitwick hasn't fought a Dragon or… or… thousands and thousands of Dementors in his whole life. And he's almost a hundred-year-old being!"
"All right, all right, I get your point," Draco answered her. "You should get used to it, Hermione. We're best friends with Harry Potter, anyway. Harry is supposed to defeat You-Know-Who. Now that he's back, the future of the four of us will be more exhausting than these past few years."
The brunette sighed. "It's still not fair," she said with a stubborn pout on her face. "I just… I just want to experience all the things that normally happen to a teenager."
Draco released a soft chuckle. "Too late, Granger. It's already too late," he told her.
Hermione scooted closer to the blond and placed her head on his shoulder, surprising him greatly. The brunette closed her eyes and just released a huge sigh. Draco looked at her and made a small smile. He then looked back at the Giant Squid whose eyes were carefully watching them.
"Draco," the brunette said.
"Yeah?"
"I still haven't figured out why you always make me feel better," the brunette said.
Draco closed his eyes and placed his cheek against her head. "I think I already do, Hermione," he whispered.
"Really?" she said. "So, what did you figure out?"
"I won't tell you," the blond told the brunette. "I think I'd rather let you discover it yourself than tell you. You're a bloody smart witch, Hermione. You'll figure it out someday."
"Hmm," the brunette said.
"And I hope that that someday will be soon," he added inaudibly as he felt Hermione's deep breathing. She was already sleeping. Draco opened his eyes and ever so slowly, he wrapped his right arm around her waist and pulled her closer to his. He placed a gentle kiss on top of her head and closed his eyes again. 'Hermione past,' he said in his mind. 'What do you think I feel now?' Draco emitted a soft sigh. 'I mean, don't get me wrong. I like you. I really, really like you. Even now. I told you I'll always like you. I honestly thought that I'm in love with you.' The blond softly chuckled. 'But you see, what I feel now is… is so different from what I feel for you. It's greater… more powerful.' Hermione slightly stirred in her sleep and murmured something incoherent. Draco grinned. She was talking in her sleep again. That was one of the things he knew that Harry and Ron and anybody didn't know. Draco inhaled deeply, sniffing her wonderful scent. 'Do you think… do you think this is what you call 'love', huh, dear Hermione?' The blond placed another sweet kiss on top of her head. 'And you know what? Even though you don't answer me, I think I already know the answer to my question.' Draco gripped the sleeping brunette's right hand with his free one.
'Yes,' he thought as he slowly drifted into sleep. 'Yes, I think I'm in love with Hermione Granger.'
A/N: End of chapter!
Okay, so yes, the two also have their own 'bench'. I really don't know why I thought of that. Benches seem important in this story, eh? Review!
Anyway, so I made an announcement in my other story (Princess in Disguise) that I will make a very important news in the end of this chapter. So, here it goes...
What do you think of this story having a sequel because honestly, I already have a plot in mind. I already have a title, a complete summary, and the summaries of the first six chapters. That's how I organize my story, you know. I will think of an appropriate title for that chapter and then underneath it, I will right a short summary (or sometimes long) about it. This are some of my plans: This story mainly focuses on Hermione's perspective, so the sequel of Time's Up! will focus on Draco's perspective and Time's Up! is quite light and fluffy but the sequel will be more dramatic and all. Oh, and lastly, Merlin will be there again! So, what do you think of this story having a sequel? Please tell me about your opinions/feelings in your reviews, okay? It's still important to know what your opinions are.
That's all.
With love,
2booklover4 :D