A/N: This one is a long chapter, so sit back and relax :) It is also my favourite so far and I've enjoyed writing it the most. I think my writing has gotten a lot better in this one too (not meaning to brag :p). Have fun!

6. Hermione's Realisation

Hermione lay in bed, the first morning of the Christmas holidays. She was the only one left in her dormitory; everyone in Gryffindor had gone home except for three first years, two fourth years and two sixth years. She looked at her clock, it was seven thirty. She rolled over and closed her eyes, just a few more minutes, she thought. Images from the other night flashed before her eyes. Draco, pinning her against the wall, kissing her neck, leaving her wanting more. She hadn't decided what to make of that night. Did she like him? She had to admit it was pretty hot, how he took over like that. Dammit, he was good. Not wanting to think about it anymore, she got up and went to have a hot shower. She got dressed in her casual clothes (jeans and long sleeved top) and made her way down to breakfast.

The Great Hall looked different than usual. Instead of the four long house tables, there was one long table down the centre of the hall to accommodate for the little amount of students there were (all up, about fifty students) The hall was decorated like it always was each Christmas, big pine trees that Hagrid cut down, sparkling with decorations.

Hermione sat down and helped herself to some porridge, not feeling very hungry though. She just played with it, running her spoon through the thick gluggy mixture, making lines and watching as they disappeared. It was only the first day of the holidays and she was already bored. On the other end of the table, sat Draco. Should she go up and talk to him? Should they discuss what happened the other night? But she couldn't do it now, not while there was people around. She saw him quickly look in her direction. Crap! He caught me staring.

Ha! Thought Draco. She can't keep her eyes off me. I bet she was thinking of the other night. He ached for her perfect body under his own. She'll be head over heels for me soon, only a matter of time.

Just then Professor McGonagall came over to the table, "Attention third years and above, you now have permission to go into Hogsmeade during the holidays. So if you have your permission slips please hand them over and you are free to go."

Hermione grew a little excited, she completely forgot about the Hogsmeade trip. So she was going to have something to do after all. She scoffed down her porridge and raced back up to her dormitory to get ready. She threw on a thick black coat, dark purple scarf, black gloves, grey beanie and snow boots. She stuffed her permission slip in her pocket and headed out.

The cold chill in the air made her breathe come out puffs as she trudged along the snow covered road. She couldn't wait to visit Honeydukes to pick up some sweets. She thought she would get some things for Harry and Ron too for Christmas.

She finally reached Hogsmeade, it looked beautiful. Christmas lights hung from the street lamps, shop windows were decorated with twinkling tinsel and fairy lights and snow blanketed over the roofs. She made her way over to Honeydukes. It was warm inside and the whole shop smelled of sweets. Jars and jars of sweets in every colour lined the shelves. She could have stayed in there forever. She ended up buying some Fizzing Whisbees for Harry, Drooble's Best Blowing Gum for Ron and some Sugar-Spun Quills for herself. She exited the shop, carrying her purchases in a bag with one hand while sucking on a sugar quill with the other.

She made her way slowly down the road, looking into shop windows when she stopped in her tracks. Malfoy was looking into a shop window absentmindedly (Dervish & Banges), he was alone.

A jolt went through her stomach. If she was going to speak with him, now would be the perfect time. She made her way over to him, butterflies in her stomach. She had no idea what she was going to say to him but was determined to speak to him.

"Malfoy," she called out as she trudged through the snow.

Draco turned towards her; a smile crept on his face. He knew it; he knew it was only a matter of time before she came for more.

"Couldn't stay away from me any longer I see," he chuckled.

Hermione blushed a little, "Where are your cronies?"

"They went home for the holidays, what do you want?"

"Look, can we talk? How about The Three Broomsticks? I need to go inside, I'm freezing."

Draco wished he could have held her in his arms, blocking her from the harsh winter wind. But he had to remain strong, he couldn't act needy around her. He would only have to put up this facade for a little while longer...

They entered The Three Broomsticks and walked up to the bar to order their drinks.

"I'll have a butterbeer with some ginger in mine, please," said Hermione.

"Make that two," Draco said.

"You like yours with ginger as well?"

"Yeah, that's how I've always had it, why do you sound so shocked?"

Hermione just blushed and looked the other way.

They collected their drinks and Draco led her into a secluded spot at the back of the shop. They both sipped on their drinks silently. Hermione was sitting on the edge of her seat, bouncing her leg up and down nervously, her eyes darting around the room trying to look anywhere but at Draco. Draco was sitting back in his chair with one elbow resting against the back of it, studying her face intently.

"Well... what did you want to talk about Granger?" He said sharply, even though he had a good idea what it was.

"I...er... wanted to talk about what happened the other night."

"What about it?"

"I don't understand why you did it; do you like me or something?"

"Don't play dumb Granger; we both know how smart you are. I thought that would have been obvious by now, but yes, if you haven't figured it out already, I like you. The question is..." He leaned forward and put his hand on her knee, to stop it from bouncing, "...did you like it?"

Hermione was blushing furiously now, she was getting hot under her clothes so she removed her scarf and beanie, dusting the snowflakes out of her windswept hair.

"Well?" Crooned Draco.

Hermione cleared her throat, "I...I didn't... hate it."

What! She thought. Am I actually confessing to Draco Malfoy that I enjoyed being ravished by him?!

Draco smirked at her, "So you like me too, huh? I mean, not that any girl would have trouble with that."

"This does not mean we are in a relationship, Draco Malfoy," she said sternly.

"Oh, so you mean like 'fuck buddies'? Gotcha," he winked at her and drained the last of his butterbeer down.

"No! That's not what I..."

"Let me know when you want to go on a 'date,' if you know what I mean," he chuckled, got out of his seat and made for the exit.

Hermione sat there looking confused. Had she just made things better or worse?

It was Christmas morning and Hermione woke to find presents at the foot of her bed (she felt a pang of guilt as she realised the house elves must have put them there; she must remember to knit some more hats). She received a self inking quill from Harry, a book from Ron ('Powerful Witches & Wizards Through the Ages'), some homemade fudge from Mrs. Weasley and a new watch from her parents. She hopped out of bed, had a shower and headed for breakfast, humming Christmas carols as she went.

All the teachers and students were there in the Great Hall, including Dumbledore, who was sitting at the head of the table. There was an exchange of greetings and smiling faces all around, everyone chattering away excitedly.

Dumbledore stood up to speak and they all went quiet, "Tonight there will be a special Christmas feast for everyone, so make sure you are all here, dressed in your finest," he smiled. "Also I have another announcement. As a treat we will be having a New Years Eve party in the Great Hall. The heads of house have kindly organised it for all of you, so please give them a round of applause." Everyone clapped loudly at this news, they were murmuring to each other excitedly.

Hermione, now excited for the New Years Eve party was thinking about what she was going to wear (she would have to go into Hogsmeade again to find an outfit) as she headed back to the common room when she heard a "psst!"

She looked to her right to see Draco hiding in the shadows of a statue, clutching something in his hands. She looked around, to make sure the coast was clear and she walked over to him, he had a cheeky smile on his face.

"Got you something, Granger."

She gasped, "Why did you do that? I didn't get you anything!"

"Don't worry, you can...uh...pay me back later," he smirked.

She looked at him sceptically now as he handed her the gift.

He leaned down and whispered in her ear, "Don't open it here." As his lips brushed against her ear, it sent shivers down her spine. He took off down the corridor.

Hermione was back in her dormitory now, the present lying on her bed. What if this was just some prank? She was acting stupid, she thought. So she decided to open it. It was a red coloured gift bag with purple tissue paper sticking out. She reached into the bag and felt something lacy between her fingers.

She drew the contents out of the bag and gasped, that cheeky git. It was a pair of lacy black panties. She reached into the bag again to find a matching lacy black bra. Hermione laid the set out on her bed, staring at it in disbelief. She read the card that was attached to the bag:

To my little fuck buddy,

Think of me when you wear this ;)

Merry Christmas

~Draco

She suddenly felt hot under the collar; she felt the same adrenalin rush go through her like before. It started from the top of her head to the tip of her toes.

For the rest of the day, she stayed in the common room, not wanting to bump into Draco if he was out there. She looked out the window to see most of the students playing in the snow. There were only the two fourth years playing wizard chess in the common room, as well as her. She knitted a few more hats (she was getting much better) and started reading the book Ron gave her, not bothering going down for lunch, she was already full from eating Mrs. Weasley's fudge anyway.

She was just about to doze off on the couch when the three first years came in noisily, covered in snow. She looked down at her watch to see that it was almost five o'clock. Blimey! She thought. The feast started at six, so she decided to get ready. She stood up and gave a big stretch and went for the showers.

As this was a special feast, she decided to wear her special dress. It was a red cocktail dress that came just above her knees. The neckline was in a V-shape, but was modest. She wore a pair of black heels, not too high. Her hair was half up, half down, which was fastened with a silver clip. And she only wore a little bit of makeup (blusher, mascara and lip gloss). She checked herself in the mirror, gave a nervous sigh and headed out.

Draco made his way to the Great Hall. He was in his best suit, black shirt and tie. He didn't really feel like participating in this stupid school feast but he was hoping to see Granger, he knew she had been avoiding him all day and he knew it was because of the gift. He smiled to himself; he wanted to see the look on her face when she saw what it was. He pictured her wearing the underwear, the black lace panties stretched across her lush ass, the black lacy bra showing off her cleavage. Just the thought of it sent excitement through his body and into his pants. He had to have her.

As he made his way to the Great Hall, he heard heels on the stone floor. He looked up ahead to find none other than Granger coming in the opposite direction. His eyes popped as she came closer, taking her in. She smiled shyly.

"You polish up pretty well, Granger," he said as they met up in front of the entrance of the Great Hall.

"So do you," she said.

She looked exquisite. It reminded him last year at the Yule Ball, how she looked. Every guy had their eye on her. He had to bite down hard on his lip to restrain himself from whisking her away right now and doing unspeakable things to her. He tasted blood coming from his lip and quickly released it. He held out his arm and she gingerly looped her arm through, she was about to step forward when he held her back for a moment.

"What did you think of the gift?" he whispered.

"I...err...I," she stuttered.

Draco just chuckled and led her forward towards the Great Hall. It had its usual Christmas decorations lining the walls. The long table looked magnificent, it was covered in a while table cloth. There were white stick candles sitting in sliver arbours. Running down the middle of the table was an abundance of holly and nestled within it sat colourful Christmas crackers. The usual benches were replaced by elegant chairs with red cushions on it. The whole hall was ambient and dark except for the lights that flickered from the Christmas trees and the candles on the tables. Bewitched snow fell from the ceiling and disappeared inches above everyone's heads.

Everyone was dressed in their finest, students in elegant dresses and suits and teachers in dashing robes. Draco led Hermione over to the table, seated her and sat down next to her. Once everyone had arrived and seated themselves, Dumbledore, who again was at the head of the table rose from his seat, he clinked his goblet with a fork and everyone turned to listen.

"Just a few words before we begin our feast: wishing you all a Merry Christmas, you all look marvellous tonight," he raised his goblet. Everyone did the same, "Merry Christmas!"

The whole hall filled with chatter and laughter as they ate and drank. Hermione was making conversation with a fellow fifth year from Hufflepuff across the table. Draco was looking sulkily at his plate, playing with his food. He needed to move things along with Granger. He got an idea and a wicked smile played across his face. As Hermione was talking to the Hufflepuff, he moved his hand under the table and squeezed her thigh.

Hermione felt his hand on her thigh, she twitched her leg in shock, making her knee bump the top of the table almost knocking her goblet over. She felt herself getting flustered and she stuttered as she spoke. Her eyes quickly darted to the side, giving Draco a deadly look, trying not to make a scene. He just smirked back at her. She felt as he rubbed his hand up and down her thigh. It was turning her on a little.

Draco watched her as he stroked her thigh, her face and chest were all red, her hand shaking as she picked up her goblet to take a sip of water. Watching her getting flustered was turning him on majorly. He now reached under her dress, stroking her bare skin. She let out a little gasp and the Hufflepuff looked at her concerned.

"Are you alright? You seem nervous," she asked.

"Oh no, I'm quite alright...um... you were telling me about your parents?"

The Hufflepuff picked up where she left off and continued to chatter on. Malfoy had to stuff his fist in his mouth to stop him from laughing out loud. Hermione turned to him quickly and scowled at him.

Once the feast was over, most of the students and teachers stayed behind to continue the celebrations. Others, including Hermione, headed back to the common room. She didn't get very far when Draco grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her into a dark corridor. She let out a little yelp.

"Shh, it's me," he said, both hands around her wrists. "You were going to leave without saying goodbye?"

He moved both his hands down her back, down to her butt and squeezed gently, bringing her in closer. Hermione looked up at him, butterflies swarming her stomach. She craned her neck up, eyes closed, leaning in for the kiss slowly and her heart pounding fast. He leaned in closer as well. They were almost about to kiss, when Draco whispered, "goodbye," and whisked away.

Hermione stood there with a shocked expression, which then turned into a smile. So, he's playing hard to get? Trying to lure me in? It was sick, it was twisted, and it was...working.

A/N: I hope you enjoyed that chapter. I'm still working on the seventh, but it will be out shortly. I should really be doing uni work, but I will not rest until it is finished! This has Sirius-ly become my new obsession, ahhhh! XD