A/N This story is rated M, please keep that in mind. Children will swear in this fanfic among other things. And remember that Hermione, Draco and Blaise are far more mature then the rest of the kids their age; they were raised in the upper class of society. Thank you for reading. *Enjoy -

Chapter 8

"Dray, you're over reacting. I think Weasley just said that to get at Percy not me." Hermione pleaded as she was dragged towards the Slytherin table. Draco didn't hear her as he was too busy silently communicating with Blaise. She highly suspected they were forming a plan to keep her away from any and all red heads for the duration of her natural life.

She cast her eyes towards the staff table, seeking Mr – no, Professor Snape's sharp gaze. He looks even more intimidating in his black teaching robes than he ever had in his customary black muggle slacks and button down shirts. The first time she met him was at Dray's 8th birthday party. Well, more a banquet than party. She, Blaise and Parkinson were the only other children there. It was a dreadfully dull affair. He did not even acknowledge her presence until he caught her later that same night in the Malfoy's library reading Hogwarts: A History. From that moment on, he became like an uncle to her. A serious uncle that doesn't buy you candy but rather educational textbooks about herbs.

When she caught his eyes, she noticed them sparkling in amusement, she scowled in reply. Help me! She tried to project with her expression. The professor laughs soundlessly as to not attract the attention of his fellow teachers. But to her relief he stood up and made his way to Slytherin table. His gaze set upon the trio of first years, two of which and yet to see him coming.

"Mr Malfoy, may I ask why you saw fit to drag a helpless Gryffindor into a snake pit. And I see another cub followed you." His low tone of voice indicating that he was not so amused anymore, he noticed the older Slytherin's eyeing the young Miss Granger hungrily. She is quite attractive for a ten year old, when you imagine looking at her from the eye of a teenager.

"But Uncle-"

"Professor Snape." Severus calmly stated.

"Professor, Weasley insulted Mi and I will not stand for her being in his presence. She may have been sorted into Gryffindor but she belongs with me." Draco answered his godfather with a deadly serious face, Mi will one day be his wife and so she belonged with him. Nobody could deny that logic, Draco though smugly.

"You are quite right Mr Malfoy," Draco grinned at Blaise and gripped Hermione's hand under the table, "she was sorted into Gryffindor, as was Mr Zabini. Thus both of them should be back at their house table, befriending their new house mates. And I am certain that Miss Granger is capable of handling herself in the face of an ignorant pre-teen boy." As he finished his declaration, Severus pulled Hermione and Blaise up by their arms and lightly shoved them in the direction they had just come from, Draco looking sullen, puffed up his chest and loudly declared that he wanted to be re-sorted.

A declaration that was shot down by Severus with a firm and resounding "No"

Hermione and Blaise made their way back to their table, sitting down with twin sighs. Hermione was starving and she was grateful for the plate of Shepherd's Pie Blaise handed her. He knows me so well.

She thanked him with a soft smile. She could feel all her energy start to leave her body making her feel light headed.

"It's my pleasure Mione." He returned her smile with his toothy grin. He could hear the Brown girl growl into her lamb curry 'he'll like me better one day'

Harry gave a pitiful mewl at that and blushed scarlet when he realized it was out loud, dropping his head further into his plate of veggies. Blaise giggled at that and Harry's head swivelled in his direction.

"Don't worry," Blaise whispered to him, "I'm sure she'll get over me soon enough and you can have her, I don't mind." Blaise winked and Harry turned an interesting shade of vermilion. Blaise couldn't help it; his hand automatically went to ruffle his hair. He just looks so adorable blushing like that; it was the same thing he used to do to Mione when she was still super shy around him.

"It's okay; I don't like her like that. I'm just picturing how annoying she'll become the longer you ignore her in lieu of Hermione. I live with an attention seeker back at the home and the longer you ignore him, the more dangerous the consequences."

Hermione and Blaise looked at each other, the home? Blaise nodded at Hermione, indicating that she should approach the subject.

"What do you mean 'the home' Harry? Are you in an orphanage?" She hesitated only slightly on the word orphanage; she never thought that The Harry Potter would be in an orphanage, everyone assumed he was sent to live with relatives.

"Yes, I live at the Home for Angels in central London. It's run by nuns. They weren't surprised at all when Professor McGonagall turned up claiming I'm a wizard. Apparently I wasn't the first wizard to come out of the home. But they never told me who else was a wizard. I hoped I would recognize someone here, but so far I don't see anyone." Harry said looking around him, trying to spot someone he knew.

Hermione and Blaise didn't know what to say to that. Neither of them had ever been in this type of situation.

"I'm sure you'll find someone here you know. Or maybe they go to Drumstrang?" Blaise said while rubbing Harry's hair once again. Harry seemed to like it by the way he leaned into the touch; Blaise gave a small smile at that.

"So Hermione…" Percy started, seeking her attention, "why did Mini Malfoy drag you over to the Slytherins?"

Embarrassed by what Draco had done, she tried to explain to Percy how Draco has always been overtly jealous and protective of her.

"He claims that we will one day get married." She finished her tale.

"But that's ridiculous! You ought to have a say in it, don't you think?" Percy could not wrap his head around how this, how could a ten year old have decided on who his future bride will be? He'll surely change his mind by the end of his school career.

"I believe I do have a choice in the matter. Even though our parents are all good friends, no betrothal contact has been put forth by either party, my father said that he wants me to be free to choose my own husband and Draco has vowed to do his best so that I may one day choose him."

"So you're not his fiancé?" Ron interjected hopefully.

Turning to face him, Hermione replied, "For all intents and purposes, I am his fiancé. I want to marry him as much as he claims to want to marry me."

"So you are alright with him being controlling and possessive of you?" Hermione nodded her head. "I thought muggle women were even more feministic than witches."

"Oh they certainly are, but not with my family. My mother and father taught me that for a relationship to stand the test of time both involved must be on equal footing. Neither of them believes their respective gender is superior to the other. Men have some great qualities and so do women and both genders have their faults as well." Hermione finished, smug smile tracing her lips she reached for her rose water, who can drink that awful pumpkin juice?

"Speaking of parents Mi, we should send our letter tomorrow morning informing them of our sorting. I'm sure Mr and Mrs Malfoy will have a nice laugh or two about my placement." Hermione giggled softly, she could just imagine Uncle Lucius and Aunt Cissa laughing with her parents as they explain why it is so humorous that a Zabini was sorted into Gryffindor, I wonder how his mother will react to the news?

"You're not worried about what your mother will say, are you?"

"No. Her family weren't all in Slytherin. Her grandmother was a Gryffindor too!"

Hermione sighed with relief both at what Blaise had said about his mother and also that they were dismissed to retire. She distantly heard Percy's voice calling for all first years to follow him to the common room…

4 years and many embarrassing moments later…

"I haaate stairs…" Blaise complained rather loudly to Hermione and Harry, both of whom just shook their heads at their whiny friend.

"I haaate potions… Why do we have to have potions at the end of the day? Don't the professors know Gryffindors have to walk up seven flights of stairs? Seven!"

"Blaise! If you shout any louder you'll wake the dead."

"Nah Harry, the dead's already awake thanks to Weasley's snoring last night." The Gryffindor trio laughed heartily at that. It was common knowledge in their house; maybe even the whole Hogwarts that Ronald Weasley's snoring is the loudest in history. After the laughter died down a bit, Harry nudged Hermione lightly.

"Hermione," Harry started shyly, "would you please help me with my essay tomorrow?"

"Sure Harry. Same place as usual?" She asked, ruffling through her shoulder bag, face indifferent.

"Does Dray still come to your little study sessions?" Blaise asked through a yawn.

"Yes." Replied both of them simultaneously. Hermione continued; "But he is a great help. Dray is really smart," Harry and Blaise could see stars forming in her eyes. Teenage hormones were a blessing for Draco. They all knew Hermione thought Draco was very handsome and they knew he spend nearly twenty minutes in mornings to getting ready.

"And besides, Harry's starting to warm up to him." She said with a shrug, like that solved the whole issue. Blaise froze; Harry is willingly spending time with Dray now? Blaise pictured Harry sitting next to Draco in the library, heads bent together over a single book, shoulders touching. His heart gave a painful tug at the image. All thought his brain could conjure up is: No. Harry is my friend! Draco cannot take him away.

"Blaise, are you alright?" Harry noticed the scowl on his best friend's face; he was worried that he might've done something wrong. He was only joking with Hermione about getting married; he was only teasing her about Draco! But Blaise wouldn't get angry at that, he wouldn't care much about whom Harry married one day. Sighing Harry walked quickly up the last couple of stairs and disappeared through the Fat Lady, leaving a puzzled Hermione and jealous (although he didn't know it) Blaise behind.

"What's up with him?" Hermione asked, Blaise just shrugged in response and hurriedly followed Harry.

"What's up with you?" She shouted after his retreating back but he ignored her. Shaking her head she climbed through the portrait hole, not aware of the eyes that followed her every move, and quickly disposed of her heavy bag and settled in bed for a quick nap before she had to go patrol the castle. Maybe Dray would sneak out to come see her later, she hoped.

So Harry fucking Potter thinks he can just tell her she's going to be his bride? Let him try. She won't fall for some skinny seeker. She prefers the studious type, someone she can relate to when it comes to academics, someone much like himself. It had been too hard to give up Quidditch for his plan to fail because of some Boy-Who-Lived. Who cares if said boy completely annihilated Voldemort in first year? Who cares if he saved her from a Merlin-damned troll? Who cares if he's sweet and friendly to everyone? Who cares if he… If he… FUCK! He's perfect…

Draco slumped down the wall he's been hiding behind waiting for Hermione to come back out of her House, hands fisted his hair but he didn't care. Who was he trying to fool, Hermione deserved someone as strong and brave as Potter. He could never compare to the Saviour of the world. He let the pent up emotions flow from him, he felt the oncoming tears and did little to stop them. She deserves the best; he always believed he could be the best. Be a man worthy of her. He was wrong; he was nothing more than a cowardly snake. Someone who relies on cunning plans and black mail to get what he wants, she deserves so much better than him, she deserves to have the best and Potter is the best. He let the tears fall freely.

Hermione woke up suddenly with this strange feeling, more like a tugging sensation in the pit of her stomach, urging her go outside the common room. Something was telling her that she was needed. Never one to question her deeper instincts she followed. Wand held tightly in her right hand, she cautiously pushed the portrait open with her left.

She immediately heard muffled hiccups and slight groaning and panting. Someone was crying desperately outside Gryffindor. She hurried over to where the sounds were coming from but couldn't see anyone at first. Then she heard a sharp intake of breath and looked down, there sat her Draco, knees pulled up to his chest, eyes wide and hands gripping his shins making him look like a lost child instead of the 16 year old he really was.

"Oh Dray…" She fell on her knees next to him, her wand falling on the stone floor as she embraced him, burying her face in his neck. They stayed wrapped in each other's arms until Draco slowly pushed her back, his eyes were down cast as he tried to say the words that would forever break him, "Mi, my love, we… I cannot keep… I don't think we should… Get married." He forced them out; it felt like words literally burned his throat.

Hermione sat shocked, she could feel all the blood leaving her face, she felt light headed and not in the I-just-found-a-non-shocking-wand way, she did not believe him. No, this must be some prank, a rather nasty one at that. Oh no wait! She was still asleep, that must be it and this is just a nightmare. Come on Hermione wake up! You don't want to see this. Parkinson will definitely show up and kiss him. This was her worst fear; Dray was telling her he loves someone else. That she wasn't good enough for someone as great as the next Lord Malfoy. But this was a dream, yes, just a dream. She'll wake up and go on patrol and the real Draco, her Draco, will find her and kiss her forehead or her hand and tell her she was his. Hermione started violently pinching herself, she wanted her Draco and the sooner she woke up the sooner she could get to him.

Draco was so startled when Hermione began pinching herself that at first he couldn't comprehend what she was doing, but then he saw her arms. There were welts springing up where her hands left, he couldn't believe his eyes! He grabbed her hand securely in his and shook her hard.

"What are you doing?" He was angry, why would she hurt herself like this? He rubbed her arms soothingly, biting his lip when he felt sticky blood on her left arm. Hermione began to laugh, loudly. She sounded like a deranged lunatic. He was worried; Draco couldn't understand what was happening to her.

"You're not real." She got the words out while still laughing.

"This is just one of those nightmares you can't wake up from, y'know? I figured it out!" She exclaimed, grinning widely at that, a bit too widely. She looked like that cat from Alice's adventures.

"Hermione, listen to me. You are not dreaming. This is real. Do you understand me?"

She gave him a look that clearly meant she questioned his sanity. He wasn't the one laughing their head off a moment ago. He flinched slightly when she suddenly cupped his face in her palm,

"But it is a dream Dray. My Draco would never say we shouldn't get married. My Draco loves me." She stated with a soft tone and a confident smile.

"Mi, you have to believe me, I love you, I will always love you but you deserve so much better than me. This is real." He pinched himself and gasped at the pain, an angry red mark was already visible on his pale skin, "Look Mi, see it hurts? I felt pain, you felt pain. This is real."

"This… Is real?" She looked confused, like this was an ancient rune she couldn't translate. Draco just stared her straight in the eye and nodded. He could see the confusion subside in her eyes as comprehension dawned on her.

She was standing before he could blink, she had her wand in her hand and shot a stunner at him so fast he hardly had time to think let alone defend himself.

PS I like a crazy unstable witch with a legendary wand at her disposal… :P