Hello, everyone, nice to see you again! And again I thank you very much for every reviewing, reading, subscribing and or putting my story on your favorite lists! I try my best here to update the story every week; hope it is according to your liking. So far I've got positive reviews, but indeed if there is something nagging your mind about this story, feel free to tell me about it on your review. Here is the third chapter. Enjoy!

CHAPTER III

Hermione Granger was patrolling the corridors of the fourth floor by herself. Her wand was stuck out in front of her as she performed Lumos when passing through a dark corridor with hardly any torches on the walls. It was very quiet. All residents of Hogwarts seemed to have retired in their dormitories.

Tell me again, then, why do I still have to be patrolling at this time of day? she thought, and tried to suppress a yawn.

Of course she had to patrol, it was a rhetoric question; she had already known the answer. It was because she was the Head Girl. Oh, yes, after six years of hard work and eyeing the position, she finally made it to seventh year and was appointed the Head Girl. Everyone had already expected it, actually, because who else female students at her year who could come any nearer to her academic scores, which were practically Outstanding in every subject?

There had been, however, a few candidates for the Head Boy, all had been prefects in their sixth-year, so some were quite surprised when headmaster Dumbledore decided to give the position to Ernie Macmillan, the former prefect of Hufflepuff. Academically, they said Anthony Goldstein of Ravenclaw was a better candidate, but everyone agreed he lacked leadership skill. Draco Malfoy might make a better leader, but everyone knew the Slytherin was a too horrible bully to be given such an important position. Who knew how far he might abuse it? No one wanted to take the risk. Ron, meanwhile, well… although he was one of Hermione's best friends aside of Harry, she knew better than to entrust the position to a person whose both academic and leadership capacities were very much questioned, let alone his sense of responsibility. Even she had to admit that. Harry could have of course made a good Head Boy, but he had not even been a prefect during their sixth year, and that had yet to mention his not-so-bright academic records.

So, well, actually nobody should have been surprised. Ernie was only the most rational option. Academically, although he was below Anthony, he was still slightly better than Malfoy.

Speaking of Malfoy, she couldn't help but being more than surprised that the snobbish brat had a little sister, let alone who looked very much like him, especially because of that strikingly similar platinum blond hair. She honestly couldn't imagine anyone like Malfoy having a sister, he was too much of a cocky and spoilt brat to be other than a single child (yeah, well, she was a single child, too, but that's beside the point). And his sister … she couldn't help but thinking she was very pretty. Hermione was sure she would be a heartbreaker as she grew up. Not that Hermione thought Malfoy -Draco Malfoy, she meant, not the younger Malfoy girl- was ugly. In fact, although she hated to admit it, he was indeed one of the best-looking guys at school Lavender and Parvati often talked giddily about. So, there was no surprise actually, that his sister would be good looking as well.

But, what surprised her even more, or more like shocked her, actually, was the fact that the Sorting Hat sorted Crystabelle Malfoy into Gryffindor. She thought she almost had a heart attack, although really she had no heart issue, when she heard the hat shouting "Gryffindor!" after it had been placed for quite some time on the little blonde's head. She wasn't being prejudiced, only thought it had been impossible for a Malfoy to be placed in a house other than Slytherin. Yes, it had come across her mind how funny it would have been if the girl had been placed in another house as she had seen her walking toward the Sorting Hat. But, brief as it was, the idea had been far from a serious thought.

And now that the younger Malfoy was really in her house, she could not imagine how it would be for her and for Malfoy -Draco. She was actually a little bit worried that her friends at the House would use Crystabelle to get back to Draco for all the bullying he had been doing to them all those years. As much as she hated Malfoy (okay, it really was difficult to change her habit of calling that prat with his last name, although it could be quite confusing now that there were two Malfoys at the school), she could not possibly let anyone harm the innocent little girl. Yes, she was a Malfoy, and there was a big possibility that she could be as snobbish as her brother, but she was just a little girl and she had been sorted into Gryffindor for God's sake! Surely that meant something, perhaps that she was at least not as evil as her brother.

Hermione decided, not just because she was a Head Girl, but also because she always had this inclination toward helpless creatures (like she had done with the house elves and S.P.E.W, a losing battle she had in the end decided to leave), that she would protect her no matter what. She cringed as she remembered what Ron had told Harry in the Great Hall shortly after the Sorting Hat announced Crystabelle's membership in their house,

"Merlin's beard! She's sorted into Gryffindor! Harry, do you know what this means?" Ron grinned stupidly.

Harry, who was still in awe like the others, could not even process what Ron had said as his eyes followed the little blonde, prompting Ron, who was strangely the faster responder this time, to continue.

"This means Malfoy can no longer wander around acting like he's a king and owner of the world! He cannot bully us anymore because if he does, we can easily get him back through his sister!" Ron's grin grew wider.

Harry finally stared at him, contemplatively, while Hermione disbelievingly.

"Ronald, please!" She decided to say something because Harry was obviously hopeless.

"She is just a little girl! How would you exactly get Malfoy back through his sister? I can't believe you have the nerve, that you would stoop that low into intending to use a little, innocent girl to get back to your enemy! Stay away from her, Ron! I mean it!"

"Her… Hermione! That's not what I mean!"

"What do you mean then? You. Tell. Me!"

"Well, err… we can threaten Malfoy, say we will harm his sister if he does anything that is of our dislike, but… but we won't actually do the threat! Yes, we won't actually do the threat, Hermione. Right, err.. Harry…?"

"Well…" Harry finally decided to speak, while righting the position of his glasses, "that will be ok-kay, I suppose … won't it, Hermione?"

"You are both impossible! You will NOT go anywhere near her, you listen? I will DOCK our own House's points if I have to and give you both detention for the WHOLE YEAR if you try to do anything to her! I can't believe I befriend two mean, heartless people who have it cross their mind about harming a little, innocent girl!" She then furiously rose up from her seat at the long table, deciding to leave the Great Hall at once, too fed up with her two best friends' childish act.

Not that she really believed her best friends could really do something awful to an innocent little girl. She was just angry because they, especially Ron, could even think about some ill ideas, even if they were not gonna take them into actions.

She ignored Harry's calling her and shouting, "We're sorry!" and, before leaving the Great Hall, sneaked a glance to the little blonde that sat near the other Gryffindor first-years at the other end of the table, although they stared rather apprehensively at her and seemed rather reluctant to engage her in conversation. It reminded Hermione of herself when she had been a first year, and she couldn't help but feeling somewhat a sympathy toward the youngest Malfoy. She immediately felt better, though, as she saw the undeterred look on the little blonde's face as she ate her food casually and threw her glance here and there across the hall, absorbing everything around her with amazed and eager look on her eyes, ignorant of her apprehensive peers. It looked like she would be okay.

Back to the present, Hermione decided to end her patrol as it was past midnight and she believed Ernie, who inspected the third floor and under, had retired to his dormitory anyway (she would not come anywhere near the dungeons, which was why she picked up fourth floor and above). She had started up late because she had been too stuck up in the library after dinner, what with her being angry with her two best friends.

She was just about to turn left at a corner when she caught a glimpse of a blonde in the trophy room she had just passed. She drew to a halt, and stealthily directed her steps back toward the room. She then stood still at the entrance, watching a little blond girl busily examining cups and trophies inside the glass cabinets for a moment before deciding to break the silence.

"Crystabelle…?"

The younger girl started, and turned around and looked at her with wide eyes. Her hand, which had been brushing one of the glass cabinets, was now still.

Crystabelle stared at the brown-haired, brown-eyed Head Girl that she immediately thought was very beautiful. She always secretly wished she had hair like that -dark, thick and wavy- because she thought her platinum blond hair made her look like a sick albino. She tilted her head, observing the elder girl more intently, and immediately thought she had pretty eyes and nose and lips and chin as well. She then noticed the red-and-girl strip of her tie signifying she was a Gryffindor and the silver badge on her robe reading "Head Girl". Crystabelle immediately beamed, and stared up straight into the Head Girl's eyes.

"What's your name? Are you the Head Girl?" her voice and the glint in her eyes could not hide her excitement over prospective acquainting with the Head Girl, neither did the way her hand left the glass cabinet and how she turned around to fully face the taller brunette now.

The gestures made Hermione, who had rather stiffened with her wand ready upon encountering the younger Malfoy at this time and place at night, softened at once. She inwardly cursed herself for subconsciously suspecting the first-year of an evil deed or plan just because she was a Malfoy. Quite contrary to her earlier defense of the younger girl before Harry and Ron, actually.

"Yes, I'm the Head Girl. My name is Hermione Granger," Hermione tried to smile as nicely as possible so that the little blonde could not detect her previous suspicion. "And you are Crystabelle Malfoy, correct? What are you doing here this late at night, Crystabelle? Shouldn't you be sleeping in your bed right now?" She also tried hard not to sound mother henning, although was rather itchy to do so considering the circumstance. But, Malfoy or not, Hermione did not want to give the younger girl a bad first impression of herself by instilling in Crystabelle's mind that she acted like a mother hen, which her Gryffindor friends and juniors other than the first years, who were not familiar with her yet, seemed to agree.

She immediately felt glad seeing the younger girl did not seem to be affected with her tone at all , what with her continuing to study her blatantly. But, it made her feel rather uncomfortable and self-conscious, nevertheless, so she cleared her throat, which made Crystabelle look up to meet her eyes again before deciding to come toward her; her glimmering eyes transfixed at the Head Girl badge on Hermione's chest as she approached.

Hermione noticed the younger Malfoy was rather tall for her age as she came to a halt in front of her; the top of her head was about the same level with her ears. Undoubtedly she would be taller than her in the next few years. Also no surprise here because her brother had grown up very tall in the past couple of years, a couple of inches over six feet she believed. Hermione also noticed that unlike her brother, Crystabelle looked nothing near evil nor snobbish. She looked completely innocent and truthful, and Hermione could not sense so far any condescending attitude from the way the little girl gestured and addressed her.

"Oh, the famous Hermione Granger! A muggleborn best friend of Harry Potter and the brain of the Golden Trio. I've heard a lot about you!" she cried with excited tone.

Although the blonde said it good-naturedly, Hermione couldn't help but cringing, especially at the last sentence. Surely she had heard a lot about her from her snobbish brother. But, she also took note on the younger girl's easy using of "muggleborn" instead of "mudblood" as she addressed her, which made her feel inevitably more friendly toward her.

"We haven't got acquainted properly. Yes, I am Crystabelle Malfoy, a first-year Gryffindor. Nice to meet you, Hermione," she unabashedly offered Hermione her small, pale hand.

Hermione decided it was overly silly to be worried over whatever it was she had thought the little girl could be possibly doing or scheming. She dismissed all cautious feelings she had felt ealier, and gave the younger girl a friendliest smile as she shook her hand.

"Nice to meet you too, Crystabelle. However, I believe this isn't the right place and time for us to get properly acquainted. Do you know it's past curfew? Are you having difficulties to get back to our tower?"

Upon catching the words "our tower", Crystabelle immediately beamed again because it somehow made her feel she would not be alone anymore. Oh, yes, although she barely had problems with being alone, in fact she enjoyed doing many things alone, it wouldn't hurt to have some friends, whom she wouldn't likely get anytime soon what with other members of her house either looked at her apprehensively or with hatred (she had strong reasons to believe Draco was to blame for that!). Practically all of them seemed to have decided to stay away from her, even her fellow first years whom most likely have been warned by their elder relatives or acquaintances against befriending a Malfoy. She had not met the Head Girl, however, and, upon this encounter, immediately think she could like her because she seemed very nice and friendly, not to mention she was very pretty and intelligent, and was a Head Girl, too, at that!

She decided to show Hermione Granger her best attitudes.

"Sorry... Yes, I know it's past curfew. But, I can't find my way back to our tower (she really liked the way the two words felt coming out of her mouth!) after visiting my brother at the infirmary."

Well, it was true. She did not need to mention, right, that she actually enjoyed being lost as she used it instead to start exploring the castle as soon as possible, as she had planned to do. She just could not wait any longer. She had been a little bit disappointed that her examination of the trophy room was interrupted, but, well, guess it was worth it, given now she got acquainted with the famous Head Girl! She most definitely could continue her explorations any other time.

"Oh, so your brother is still in the infirmary? He fainted just then, didn't he? What could be the problem?"

Crystabelle was a little bemused with the concerned look on the Head Girl's face. With all the bullying Draco had been doing to her (oh, yes, Crystabelle had heard a lot about how her brother constantly picked on the 'Scarhead', the 'Weasel', and the 'insufferable, know-it-all Mudblood'), she thought the muggleborn witch would have never given a damn care whether her brother was alive or dead. She probably even wished he had never been alive. But, well, as interesting as it was seeing the concerned look on the elder girl's face, especially because it triggered certain ideas in her overly-imaginative head, she decided it was wiser to just inform her of the situation.

"Oh, yes, that idiot brother of mine was shocked I was put in Gryffindor. He dreaded any moment that Father would ask him to explain exactly why I was not sorted into Slytherin as they think I should. Apparently he needs some medical treatment to ease his stress."

Hermione couldn't help but laughing, not only because of the content of the younger girl's speech but also because of the way she so casually said it, which made her sound much older than her age.

"But, it wasn't his fault, was it?" Hermione said as she finally managed to stop her laugh. "Why does he have to be so stressed out about that? Your brother is very funny. I mean, yes I understand he has reasons to be stressed, but not to the level where he must be treated in the infirmary. Anyway, indeed, I'm quite surprised myself that the Sorting Hat put you in Gryffindor. I thought every Malfoy should have been a Slytherin."

"Ah ya, well, about that … "

The muggleborn witch, however, decided it was wiser that they soon retire to their dormitories, and thus asked the younger Malfoy to continue her story while they walked up toward the Gryffindor tower.

Upcoming ... first Dramione encounter!