A/n- Yo, what's crackin? Uhm, no. Hey I'm back. Real quick, just wanted to say thanks to everyone who reviewed chapter 3! I got a good amount so keep em coming, it makes me feel special!

Also thanks to everyone who commented on the plot.

Onto the fiction!

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Chapter 4- Rebel

Draco felt like the rest of the week flew by. Surprisingly enough, Hermione had kept to her word. She told no one about what had happened in the common room that night. Draco was grateful, considering he didn't want Potter and Weasley on his back about it. It was the last thing he needed right now.

On top of his regular classes, he had his Head duties and quidditch to worry about. Homework was very intense now, at it was his N.E.W.T year, and the classes themselves were difficult as well.

Saturday morning at breakfast, Draco stood up to address his fellow Slytherin classmates.

"Oy! You lot! Shut it!" he screamed, quieting down not only his table but also the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff tables. Gryffindor remained as chatty as ever, pretending he did not exist.

"Listen up. Quidditch tryouts are today at two o clock. Don't be late. If you want to try out, just show up. We have all chaser positions open as well as Keeper position. I'm playing Seeker, and Crabbe and Goyle are playing beater. So, if you wanna play, come down and try out." He sat down.

Todd was sitting next to him as usual. The two boys had started getting a bit closer this year; rather than Draco and Blaise hanging out, Draco hung out with Nott whenever he had spare time, which wasn't very often.

"I think I'm going to come down for tryouts," Nott said while chewing on some eggs.

"Good idea," Draco said, taking a sip of pumpkin juice. "Listen, I gotta run. I have to do some planning thing of events with Granger. I'll see you at the pitch."

Draco pushed his plate away from him, took a long, draining sip of pumpkin juice, and stood up. Hermione saw him stand and walked over, and they headed upstairs.

"So, Hermione, what do we have to do here?" Draco asked. Draco expected they would work in their dorms, but Hermione lead him towards the grounds outside.

"I figured we could start working on planning the Halloween dance. Gryffindor seems really excited about the prospect of a costume dance. Did you talk to the Slytherins about it?" she asked eagerly. She was carrying a roll of parchment, ink and two quills.

"No," Draco scoffed, laughing. "Are you serious? They don't care as long as the punch bowl is spiked."

"Well, it won't be. I'll make sure of that," she said matter-of-factly. Draco gave her a look as they opened the doors and a fresh blast of fall air hit them. Draco was surprised to feel warm air wash over him, as opposed to cold air as it was usually.

They both passed over the grounds and settled by the lake, underneath the shade given by a big oak tree. Hermione unrolled the parchment on a flat stone and unscrewed the cap to the ink bottle. She handed over a quill to Draco, and then dipped her own in ink.

She poised the quill over the paper, and then scribbled a title to the top of the parchment. Draco peered over and read 'Halloween Ball' neatly written.

"I see. Well, what do we have to decide?" Draco asked impatiently. He glanced at his watch, which told him it was just past 10. He was very anxious to go to the pitch and just fly around.

"Costumes or no costumes?" Hermione asked, ready to write. "I want costumes. I think it would be entertaining. Or at least little masks."

"Uhm, well I think we should have costumes," Draco decided, and Hermione excitedly scribbled down 'costumes' underneath the header.

"Ok then, good. How about, what do you think for food? A feast beforehand, or after? Or during? Or do you think just little snacks? Or a buffet, so they can go whenever they want?" Hermione said all of this very quickly.

Draco, who was still recovering from her fast speech, had a look of amusement on his face. He didn't reply at once, just watched Hermione's face. She seemed very excited. Just as Draco was about to answer, Harry and Ron called out to Hermione from the top of the sloping lawns, and began heading over.

Draco groaned, and Hermione shot him a very nasty look. She turned back to Harry and Ron, who had finally reached their spot, and were out of breath.

"What's up Hermione? How goes the ball preparations?" Ron asked, swooping down and giving her a quick kiss on the lips. Draco got an unsettled feeling in the pit of his stomach, and he wanted to punch Ron. Not that this was different from any other time, but it was more pronounced this time. Draco clenched his fists together and stared at Ron.

"What's wrong with ferret boy?" Harry interjected, looking at Draco oddly. Draco went to stand up, but Hermione pulled him back down onto the grass.

"Harry, be nice. And the preparations are fine, so we're all set. Go play some quidditch, we'll be done shortly." She smiled at Ron, who leaned down for another kiss. Hermione backed up and whispered something in Ron's ear.

Ron shrugged and he and Harry jogged away towards the pitch. Hermione shook her head and looked down at the parchment, apparently waiting for Draco's answer.

"Oh! Right! Answer! Uhm, buffet, I think. Everyone is hungry at different times, you know." Hermione wrote it down and then looked at him. "What?" he asked impatiently.

"What was that with Harry and Ron?" Hermione asked angrily. Draco shot her a bemused expression. He raised his eyebrows.

"How was that possibly my fault?"

"How wasn't it, you were standing up to fight Harry!"

"Or Ron," he mumbled. Hermione gave him an awkward look, but turned to look at the lake.

"Something you want to tell me?" Hermione asked.

"No," Draco muttered, cracking his knuckles nervously.

"Are you positive?"

"I'm good Granger, thanks."

Hermione didn't ask any more questions about it, and they finished the preparations, both of them in a bad mood. Draco got up quickly and rushed away.

He wanted to lie down, but he also wanted to fly. He settled on flying, since he needed to be at the pitch in a few hours time for tryouts anyways. He grabbed his Firebolt and headed back down to the pitch. There were a few Gryffindors lingering around, tryouts had probably just finished for the Gryffindors.

Draco mounted his broom and headed into the sky. He soared at a decent pace, not paying attention to his route. He let the wind sift through his shaggy blonde hair, letting it play a dance on his face softly. He began to think, while he barely controlled his broom.

He couldn't possibly…no. The mere thought of it was… well crazy. Suicidal perhaps. No, there was no way he…could he? Was it so bad? There was something about… no, stop.

There was no way he liked Hermione Granger. Absolutely not. That feeling as not jealousy, it was disgust. Yes, disgust. Watching Granger and Weasley kissing is no walk in the park. Or maybe, anger. Watching such a pretty…did he just call her pretty? No, such a smart…what was he doing?

He did not like Hermione Granger. No way, not in a million years. He'd rather cut his wand in half. Well, maybe not his wand. His broom? No. Well, he still didn't have feelings for her. That was preposterous. It was completely insane to even worry about this.

Draco realized he was flying over the lake. He turned around and headed back towards the pitch. He glanced at his watch, noting the time, which was only 1:35. He paid more attention to the internal battle raging inside of his brain.

He honestly didn't like Hermione. He didn't like anyone at all. He never did. He just shagged girls and then dumped them. Like Pansy. And Shana. And that other girl in Ravenclaw with the…who was he kidding.

He liked Hermione. It was inevitable. In the end, he was sure this would have happened. He needed to fall for someone eventually. The problem was, he needed to complete this dare. Technically, he could complete the shag part. The dump, maybe, but by then, who knows how attached he'd be.

He needed to get these thoughts out of his mind. He could never and would never date Granger. Ever in his life. Nope…never.

He liked Hermione Granger. He liked Hermione Granger. He damn well liked Hermione Granger.

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After a very tiring set of quidditch tryouts, Draco dragged himself up the marble staircase and into his common room, where he collapsed into an armchair. He was beyond exhausted, both mentally and physically.

It was still too early for dinner, so Draco decided to take a shower. He headed upstairs to his room, knocked on the bathroom door, and stepped in.

At first, he thought Hermione was taking a bath. Then he realized she was actually swimming, and did indeed have clothes on. How unfortunate. But, still, the sight amused him.

"Hello Hermione," he said formally, and she cast him a glance. She swam over to the edge and pulled herself out of the water. It looked quite warm.

"Draco," she said, nodding, and reached for a towel.

"Hey! Where you going so fast?" Draco asked, grabbing the towel from her. She tugged it at.

"I was just going for a swim. You can take a shower or something now," she replied cautiously, and gave a tug at the towel. Draco pulled it back.

"Come for a swim or something with me."

"No." She tugged at the towel.

"C'mon. I'm not so bad."

"I'd suppose not." She let go of the towel. Draco smiled triumphantly and put the towel back into the cupboard. He stripped right down to his boxers. Smirking he looked up.

He caught Hermione staring at his smooth, pale skin. He eyes washed over his abs, broad shoulders and long legs. He had a seeker's body; perfectly built, and in shape, but not too muscular. He still needed to be light so he could be quick on his broom.

"Taking it all in Hermione?" he suggested, cocking his eyebrow. She looked away, blushing.

"Of course not," she huffed angrily. Draco's eyes followed from her head, down past her chest, to her stomach, thighs, legs, and back up, stopping at her chest again.

"Well, I certainly have been," he said, winking. Hermione gave him a half smile. Draco headed towards the pool, and gave Hermione's ass a little smack before diving into the clear blue water.

Draco swam around underwater for a few moments before surfacing. Hermione was sitting in the shallow end, grumpy.

Draco laughed and ducked underwater again, coming up right behind her. She turned around and received a splash of water in the face.

"Ah! You're totally going to get it Draco Malfoy!" she shrieked, splashing water at him. Back and forth, they thrashed the water at each other until Draco seized Hermione by the waist and tossed her head first into the deep end.

She came up, spitting water and looking angry. "Bastard!" she pouted, crossing her arms. Draco swam over, grabbing her again, and launching her back into the shallower point of the pool.

"That's it!" she said, stomping through the water to him. She stepped right up to him and stopped, realizing how close she was to him. Her mouth was halfway open in awe of his being close to his skin.

She looked up at Draco, whose eyes were fixed onto hers. Before he knew what he was doing, he was leaning down and kissing her. She melted into the kiss; she didn't pull away or struggle or anything. He snaked him arm around her waist, pulling her into his body, and her hand found its way onto his stomach.

Draco licked her bottom lip, and her mouth opened slowly, letting his tongue slide onto hers. They enjoyed a passionate snog, until Draco had to push for more. His hand moved from his side to her stomach and edged its way up, ending on her breast.

Hermione permitted this until he tried to maneuver it into her bathing suit. At that moment, she grabbed his hand and shoved it to his side, breaking their kiss.

"Damn it…" she cursed, knocking herself on the head. Draco looked quite pleased with himself. "Stop looking so triumphant you big head. That meant nothing."

"Don't deny you liked it," he countered smoothly. Hermione pulled herself out of the pool.

"That's hardly the point," she retorted, taking a towel out of the cupboard and covered herself with it.

"Aww, don't ruin my fun."

"What fun? That's all the fun you're getting."

"What? I was just getting started. You wouldn't believe the types of things I can do with this body."

"That's very nice. Find someone else do those things with," she said matter-of-factly, turning on her heel and heading towards her bedroom door.

"So, now you really cheated. We both know that wasn't an accident." Hermione stopped, her hand inches from the doorknob.

"Well…" she said, then trailed off. She cleared her throat and opened the door, disappearing into her room.

"Well what?" he yelled through the door. He got up, snatched a towel and draped it over his shoulders. "Well what Hermione?" she said, catching the door before it closed.

"This is… not happening," she said, while shaking her head. Draco spun her around and looked into her eyes, bringing the pit of his stomach further down. He wanted to swoop down, give her another kiss, and show her how it's done. But he knew she wouldn't permit it.

"No. I think it is happening," Draco corrected. Hermione seemed to be in deep thought.

"Well. Obviously, this can't continue happening. Maybe I should…" but Draco's lips cut her off. This time, their tongues connected almost instantaneously. Draco slowly led her back onto her bed. She tripped over the edge, lying down, and Draco moved her into the center before lying on top of her.

Their tongues clashed and meshed together, Draco's hormones getting the best of him. Apparently Hermione was apparently in the same type of situation, because she seemed to have forgotten about Ron.

Hermione's hand reached for his hair and she ran her hands through the silky blonde strands. Draco caressed her stomach, making his way back to her chest. She didn't object to his sneaking inside of her bathing suit this time.

Draco surely felt they would be caught. In the back of his head, he had this odd feeling.

"Mmm," she softly moaned as he began to kiss her neck. "Stop…" she murmured quietly, not using force.

"Why? I don't think you want me to," he said cockily, kissing her law line back to her lips.

"I can't do this to Ron…" she said slowly, but flipped him underneath her nonetheless, kissing him all the same.

"Then dump him," Draco found himself muttering back to her softly, sending her another wave of quick kisses. His hands found the string tying her bathing suit top on. He began to undo the knot when Hermione rolled him over.

"Don't do that," she complained. Draco sighed, but returned his hands to her front and cupped her face.

"Break up with him Hermione," he almost pleaded. Pleaded? Malfoy's don't plead.

Hermione seemed to think about it for a second. "Alright." She went back to kissing him.

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A/n- Sorry the chapter took a little longer than I projected. There were some personal issues I had to work out… Anyways, I hope you enjoyed.

Drop a little review. If you like or don't. I don't mind criticism, as long as you provide explanation.

Thanks, Krista.