Author's Note: Again, a million apologies. I really should update a LOT quicker and it's not through lack of thinking of this. If you want the whole excuse – my computer's broken, I've lost a lot of work and it's only now that I'm home that I can continue updating. Am going to stick up the next few chapters and then that'll be it for another two weeks but I promise I'll make it up to you during the summer months I have off from Uni. I really do appreciate all the comments you guys make and really hope you can find it in your hearts to forgive me and maybe post a review or two ..?

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CHAPTER IX

Hermione awoke the next day, her head lain on a pile of books. Opening one eye at a time, Hermione squinted at the sunlight which was pouring through the window of the room. with a start, she realised that she must have fallen asleep during her meeting with Malfoy.

Lifting her head, Hermione looked around the room. Malfoy was gone. What had happened, she wondered, where's Malfoy? Hermione scanned the room, looking for a clock and, finding none, abruptly gathered together her books and left the room. She darted inside one of the deserted classrooms along the corridor and looking at the clock, realised that it was already ten in the morning; she had missed almost all of her Divination lesson.

Quickly Hermione ran towards the tower where the lesson was held, and bounded up the stairs, taking two steps at a time. She burst through the door, slightly out of breath with her cheeks flushed. Instantly, the whole class turned to face her; their faces portraying looks of shock that Hermione Granger could be late to class.

Hermione almost ran towards Professor Trelawney, who was currently standing behind the desk where Malfoy sat. She gushed apologises at the teacher who stood silently, watching her.

"Well it's a good job, Miss Granger, that Draco managed to hand in your assignment," Professor Trelawney smiled, all anger had left her face. Hermione's jaw dropped open; she looked from the face of her teacher to that of Malfoy.

Eventually she thought to look the pile of paper that was the homework assignment that she and Malfoy had handed in. In the professor's hand was a bundle of paper, on which she recognised her own writing. When had she written that, she thought, raising her eyebrows, her gaze shifting to rest on Malfoy.

With relief, Hermione went to sit at her desk, next to Ron and Harry. She spent the last five minutes of the lesson, deep in thought; not really listening to what Professor Trelawney was saying. How had she managed to do that assignment last night, Hermione thought wearily, the last she remembered was the conversation with Malfoy about his father.

Hermione noticed Ron's strange looks in her direction, as if he knew she was hiding something. He couldn't know that she had kissed Malfoy, could he?! Attempting to avoid his questioning eyes, Hermione looked away finding herself, once again, looking at the back of Malfoy's blond head.

The rest of the day passed in a blur for Hermione; she hadn't given Ron a chance to talk to her and she avoided Malfoy. At the end of the day, as she sat on the edge of her bed, looking at a piece of parchment on which she had begun her Potions homework, she Hermione was distracted by a small noise.

"Psst. Hermione," came a voice from outside the girls dormitories. The door was slightly ajar and she could see a dark figure walking across the gap, but she couldn't see who it was. Walking slowly towards the door, Hermione was surprised to see Ron standing there, nervously shuffling his feet.

"We need to talk," Ron said, grabbing her hand and leading her down the stairs towards the common room. The sound of excited chatter floated to their ears as they neared the rest of the Gryffindors. Ron lead her forcefully to the far corner and pushed her into a large red chair. Hermione unconsciously rubbed her wrists, where Ron had been holding her, they had turned red from the amount of pressure that had been pushed on them.

"Right," Ron scowled in her direction, "do you know what's going on with you and Malfoy yet?" Ron didn't want to let Hermione know that he had been spying on her the previous night and hoped that his question was vague enough. Hermione looked shocked and so Ron continued. "Well, you've spent a fair amount of time in his company now; has he done anything yet?" Ron was becoming more and more agitated with Hermione's silence. "Well?" he pushed.

"Nothing's happened between me and Malfoy. All we were doing is homework last night." Hermione saw Ron's unbelieving looks and decided to ignore them. Hermione took a deep breath, deciding to tell Ron most of what she remembered from the first night she and Malfoy had met. "He didn't give me a love potion, you know. It was a strange mixture; peach and Cochgrayne juice, Malfoy had said."

Hermione watched as Ron's eyes widened. She opened her mouth, as if to say something, but quickly shut it again. No, she decided, she wouldn't say anymore about her meetings with Malfoy, not just yet at any rate. Ron, although realising that Hermione wasn't telling him the whole truth, allowed the subject to slide, amazed at this new information.

The two teenagers continued to discuss, in hushed whispers, Hermione's discovery. Ron said he would look through some books to see what the effects of Cochgrayne juice were; he wasn't convinced that it was as innocent as Hermione thought it to be.

Eventually; long after all their fellow Gryffindors had left the common room, Ron and Hermione retired to their separate dormitories. Ron was clear, in his mind, as to what he had to do. Hermione's conscience was not so at ease; she couldn't work out what happened every time she was near Malfoy; not only did she react in a totally different way, she now couldn't recollect any information after the event.

Hermione found it hard to get to sleep, she tossed and turned constantly throughout the night. As her duvet slipped of the bed for the third time she swung her legs round and stood up. Tiptoeing, so as not to awake others who were asleep, Hermione crept up to the door and slipped silently outside, picking up a woollen dressing gown on the way out. Drawing the gown around her delicate frame, Hermione glided down the stairs.

Stepping into the deserted, dark common room, Hermione shivered as she made her way towards the fireplace at the other side of the room. It was still burning low from when the rest of the students had left the common room. She huddled in front of the fire, watching the flickering flames as they rose.

She didn't even hear the portrait hole as it was slowly pushed open. Nor did she hear soft footsteps coming closer to where she sat, her back to the entrance to the common room. Hermione froze as she felt warm breath next to her ear, and a gentle hand on her shoulder. Something inside of her told her that the hand belonged to Malfoy. Without even turning to face him, Hermione raised her own hand and placed it delicately on top of his.

The stranger behind her gently kissed her ear, his breath lingering on her cheek as he moved his lips down to her neck. Hermione allowed a small moan to escape her lips and raised her other hand to entangle his hair. With a start, Hermione ran her hands through his hair again. This didn't feel like Draco's hair, Hermione thought nervously, but then if it wasn't Draco…; Hermione turned slowly to face the student who stood behind her and emitted a short gasp as she realised who stood before her.

Ron stood before her, looking slightly dazed as though he hadn't realised what he had been doing. Hermione blinked a few times, trying to understand what had just happened. She tried to form words in her head, as to what she could say to him, but when she opened her mouth, no sound came out.

"I'm …. I'm …. I'm so sorry," Ron stammered, feeling his face turn bright red. He shuffled his feet, keeping his eyes on Hermione's face the whole time. What had come over him, he thought desperately, she would never feel the same way, and now, he realised frantically, she probably wouldn't want to talk to him again.

Hermione didn't move. She sat staring at the reddening face of Ron for a long time, thoughts ticking in her head. Eventually she sighed. "What happened Ron?" she asked, evidently still bewildered.

"Well, I think they call it a kiss," Ron replied sarcastically, the tips of his lips were pushed up into a small grin. The smile instantly disappeared as he registered Hermione's confused yet disgusted look. "Well, I'm sorry, I …. I'd better be going." Ron spun round quickly and retreated back to the boy's dormitories, leaving Hermione sitting dumbfounded on the chair.

As Hermione sat and thought about what had happened, the embers of the fires cooled down, leaving the room feeling cold and deserted. Hermione shivered slightly, wondering how long she had sat her, before retreating back to her dormitory. She slept effortlessly, her mind cleared of the days events.

Ron, however, did not have the same luck. Earlier, after his initial conversation he had returned to his dormitory, lain on his bed and had tried to get to sleep. This had been unsuccessful; his thoughts had been occupied by the vision of his best friend kissing Malfoy. Angrily, Ron had pulled on his black Hogwarts robe and had quickly made his way down the stairs and had left the Gryffindor area.

Silently, he had roamed the school corridors, listening carefully for any sign of Filch. He had not bumped into Filch but had seen something unexpected in one of the classrooms. Gently he had crept towards the door where he had heard the noises from. He heard a loud cackle which was cut off suddenly, before a flurry of whispers filled the room.

The room was darkly lit as Ron poked his head around the doorframe. At the far end of the room, silhouetted by the light of the moon, Ron could see two figures; one of a female and one of a male. Looking at his watch, Ron saw that it was one o'clock in the morning; what were two students doing in a classroom at this time, he wondered.

"Come here." Ron heard a rough growl from come from one of the figures, as he pulled the other towards him. As he did this, a beam of moonlight, which shone through the window, fell on his face, and Ron saw clearly the face of Malfoy. It didn't take him long to work out that the other figure belonged to Pansy Parkinson.

Ron's heart froze as he watched Malfoy capture Pansy's mouth in a deep kiss. How could he do this, he had thought angrily, even after what he had done with Hermione the night before. Ron fought strongly against the desire to go and punch Malfoy; it wouldn't help matters, he reasoned.

Still watching from the shadows, Ron felt his stomach churn with fury and disgust. His vision was blurred as his eyes filled with tears of frustration; Hermione deserved so much better than Malfoy, he thought regretfully, why hadn't he told her, all those years ago, what he had felt for her. He had known, but had tried to ignore, many intimate feelings that he had for Hermione since their fourth year at Hogwarts.

It had been at the Yule Ball before the Triwizard Tournament that he had first acknowledged her beauty and every day, since then, he had tried to disregard what he had felt. It hadn't seemed natural; Hermione was his best friend although the two had had many arguments, but he hadn't wanted to openly admit his feelings.

As Ron had left his thoughts and focused on the scene occurring of him. Malfoy and Pansy's whispers were now inaudible and Ron, intrigued, crept forward, staying low to the ground. Crawling under a desk close to where they stood, Ron stopped and strained his ears.

"How's the plan going baby?" he heard Pansy ask Malfoy, in a shrill voice. "You and that mudblood getting along just fine?"

Ron felt his blood rise at her words. What did she mean, he thought angrily. Soon he heard Malfoy's cold voice. "Everything's going exactly as we planned it," he sneered. "I'm guessing in the next few days Hermione will do anything and everything I ask her to."

Ron covered his mouth, stifling a gasp, as he watched Malfoy and pansy leave hand in hand. He had to tell Hermione, he thought desperately, she had a right to know this. He had thought about Hermione as he had returned to his dormitory; of their first meeting almost seven years ago, on the Hogwarts Express; of their petty arguments, which they had had over the years; and of how he had felt about her since the Yule Ball in their fourth year.

As he re-entered into the Gryffindor common room, Ron shivered as the cool air of the room engulfed him. He would tell Hermione in the morning, he thought, before climbing the stairs to go to his dormitories. As he reached the door at the top of the stairs, Ron paused. He had thought he had heard a shuffling sound. Creeping back down the stairs and poking his head around the corner, Ron saw a small figure clothed in a dressing gown, walk across the common room to where he had been sitting with Hermione earlier.

He watched as she glanced around the room and realised that it was indeed Hermione. Her face was pale and her eyes appeared slightly puffy. She couldn't sleep either, Ron guessed correctly. He sat down on the lowest step, watching as Hermione collapsed onto one of the large red armchairs.

It seemed strange to him but Hermione sat stationary for at least ten minutes, staring at the large fireplace. She looked so alone and weary. Thoughts ran through Ron's head and, before he even knew what he was doing, he had started to make his way towards where she sat. He moved silently step by step, until he stood directly above his best friend.

After a moment's hesitation, he bent his legs, leant his head down and placed a gentle kiss on the tip of her ear. He felt Hermione squirm under his breath and moved his mouth towards her neck. He felt her hand in his hair, gently entwining strands of it, until she suddenly stopped.

Hermione turned slowly to face him, her face portraying looks of confusion. Suddenly she let out a loud gasp, which would have continued to become a squeal if she hadn't stopped herself. Ron had jumped; he hadn't expected Hermione to be so shocked. Could she have been thinking that he was Malfoy, he wondered, in the few seconds that passed.

Overcome with embarrassment, Ron muttered an apology, lowering his face so that he no longer looked at Hermione. He heard Hermione's voice falter as she asked, rather unsure of herself, what had happened. Feeling resentment towards his friend, Ron had bitten back with a sarcastic reply before turning on his heel and making his way back up to his dormitory.

Now, lying in his bed, remembering the events of the last hour, Ron groaned and punched his pillow angrily. What had made him act that way, he thought, his face turning red with anger, did he honestly expect Hermione to feel the same way?!

As he lay there, still thinking, a new thought crept into his mind. This thought, however, instead of bringing anger brought fear to Ron. Now Hermione would never believe him about Malfoy's real plans, he thought, sitting up in panic, she would just think that he was saying it out of spite and jealousy.