Sixth Year, Month by Month by Kolrega
DISCLAIMER: All characters, places, events, creatures, etc. mentioned in this FF that originate from JK Rowling's material belong to the amazing JK Rowling. Any other character, place, event, creature, etc. that is not found in HP cannon is mine.
Mirror Mirror, On The Wall, Who's The Handsomest Of Them All?
(Draco's August)
Draco Malfoy looked at his image in the mirror of his bathroom, smugly examining his toned arms and chest, while brushing his platinum-blond hair out of his face. Preening in front of his mirror was one of his favourite pastimes, along with Quidditch, snogging silly witches, and mocking Potty, the Mudblood and Weasel-litter.
"Young Master Malfoy," his mirror commented, "you are the most fine-looking Malfoy to grace this manor since your ancestor Scorpius the Second died from a backfiring spell in 1786."
Although utterly uninterested in history, Draco smirked; even his mirror knew how handsome he was.
He turned this way and that, trying to decide if his left side was more perfect than his right, before finally deciding that his flawless body was just too perfect to be human.
"Naturally, both my sides are equally perfect," he mused aloud.
Unfortunately, his preoccupation with his own face in the mirror caused him not to notice the wand pointing at him from the doorway, barely registering the squeaked warning of "Careful!" coming from the mirror before the "Stupefy" hit him squarely in the back.
The last thing he saw was a pair of ruthless brown eyes, gazing calmly at him from behind, reflected in the mirror.
"Now I know how Narcissus Malfoy's magical pool felt firsthand," the mirror remarked, as the unconscious body of his Master Draco was unceremoniously dragged out of the washroom.
Chapter 4: September – Part I
The teens' Hogwarts letters had arrived by the end of August, and it came as no surprise that Hermione and Ron were once again Prefects. A real cause of celebration was when Harry opened his letter and found that he was the new Gryffindor Quidditch Captain, immediately igniting a long-awaited spark in his eyes. But it was Ginny's letter that started the drama at the breakfast table, when a Prefect badge tumbled out of the envelope. Congradulations were heard from all aroud, and Mrs. Weasley couldn't help dabbing her eyes. The twins set off some mini fireworks, which were spelled to always remain room-temperature as a safety precaution, and Hermione gave Ginny a hug.
Unfortunately, Mrs. Weasley took one look at the fireworks, and immediately ruined the good mood.
"I am so glad that Ginny became a Prefect," she gushed. "So far five of my children have done some good for the Weasley name at Hogwarts, and although I know I couldn't expect Fred and George to contribute to the family honour, I am so glad that my baby has! This just shows that she has a respectable future."
The table went quiet, and although they didn't let on, Hermione could tell that the two boys were stung by their mother's blatant disapproval and lack of support of their preferred carreer. The rest of breakfast was a hushed affair; the silence only broken by Mrs. Weasley's happy humming.
September first arrived, and as usual, Platform 9 ¾ was crowded with the student of Hogwarts' School of Witchcraft & Wizardry, who were bursting with excitement as they made their way onto the Hogwarts Express with their trunks, dragging around their parents as they met up with their friends.
Harry felt many stares and whispers following him as he walked alongside the Weasleys and Hermione. Being the boy-who-lived, then the boy-who-was-doubted, and then believed (only after breaking into the most guarded departments in the Ministry of Magic to reveal Voldemort to Fudge) had inflated his worth as gossip-material a hundredth-fold. Apparently that was even possible.
It didn't help that he was a part of the most noticeable group of students on the platform, and that the twins were bowing at all those who questioned their return to school and were generally wreaking havoc on unsuspecting students by sending various spells flying in all directions, not at all minding if any of the spells accidentally hit a parent. Or two. Or three.
"Hey Ron, who do you think's gonna try out for Keeper this year?" Harry asked, only to find Ron craning over the sea of heads, obviously searching for someone.
Ron didn't answer, not hearing his mate's question.
"Since Ron's out looking for his 'secret' admirer, I think that Cormac McLaggen's gonna try out. Merlin knows, he's tried out every year since his second year five years ago. He was barely bested each year," Ginny commented.
This sparked a Quidditch conversation that lasted all through the boarding of the train, even managing to capture Ron's attention as well as Fred and George's. Hermione, uninterested, let Crookshanks out of his basket for the ride, and made her way to the Prefects' Carriage for the start-of-term meeting with Professor McGonagall and the Head Boy & Girl, pulling Ron along with her.
They joined the group of prefects that were going into the compartment, easily spotting Malfoy and Parkinson, the Slytherin Prefects. Hermione found it slightly out of the ordinary that Malfoy hadn't used the opportunity to ridicule her when she stumbled after being nudged into the compartment by Pansy Parkinson, and even odder that Ron didn't use the disturbance as a reason to confront the Slytherins. Although, at the meeting, Hermione couldn't help but notice that Luna was sending dreamy smiles in Ron's direction, and that Ron was rubbing his reddening nape while shooting glances in return.
"Do you mind if I… er… head off to Luna and Neville's compartment? Neville said he…err… wants to show me…" Ron had turned to Hermione at the end of the meeting, trying to ask her to excuse him, but couldn't quite find a believable excuse.
"Show you what?" She replied, with a small smirk in Luna's direction.
"A Groaning Gardenia!" Ron finished somewhat triumphantly, his ears turning red.
Hermione smiled her consent, not mentioning that the plant was, in fact, called a Growling Gardenia, that the smallest size recorded for that specific plant was larger than Hagrid, or that it was native to China. Hermione watched as the two walked ahead, standing closer than necessary to each other, and made a mental note to tell Ginny that she owed her a butterbeer.
Suddenly, a pair of strong arms wrenched Hermione painfully into an empty compartment, and she was slammed against the windows. Her scream was silenced by a pale hand, almost suffocating her as it covered all her mouth and half of her nose.
When Hermione finally looked up, she forced herself not to flinch at the sight of the two evil brown eyes belonging to…
TBC
A/N: YES! It's a cliffy!! And although my cousin here tells me I should be ashamed, since I haven't updated in God knows how long, and now I'm apparently whetting the appetite of my faithful readers, I will not succumb to the feelings of guilt.
Shoot. I already have. So now I apologize for the rather long delay. I make no excuses. I suck at updating.
But maybe, just maybe, could I get some more feedback? Maybe a good, swift, kick in the arse would do as well, but since this is all virtual, a review would work just the same.
Fancy giving it a shot?
-Kolrega
PS:
ZutaraFWHG4eva: I know, I know, I'm lazy. My grandmother says it's because I'm a Pisces. I blame it on being a teenager. I won't lie; those annoying little shortcuts will probably crop up like dandelions in my writing. Hopefully my less lazy side will be working more efficiently while I type in the future. But, I dedicate the "Professor McGonagall" (see above) to you!
MrsJulyhaMalfoy: This isn't much of an improvement, but it is a step forward, right? )
nomanslandvicki: I totally agree on the action, and so far 100 percent of the people responding to my question in Ch.4 do as well, since you're the only one! So, as long as no-one disagrees, action's-a-coming!
CrzyInsaneFanatic: Some chances for suspense were probably ruined in this chapter.
daphee: Thanks!