Hermione held the spot on her face where Harry had hit her. She tasted blood in her mouth and looked at Harry. He looked like he could kill her. She tried to run again but he grabbed her and slammed her against the wall, his hands pinning her shoulders to the wall. He was holding her very tightly and glaring at her. She whimpered, "Harry, you're hurting me." Harry took a look at their position, let go of her, took and step back, smirked and said, "Good." Then he turned back and went into the Great Hall to get his stuff for potions. Hermione leaned back against the wall and slid to the floor. Once again, she pulled her knees up to her chest. Only this time, the tears never came. She just shook. She shook with both anger and fear. Her best friend of 6 years had just hit her. How could he do that to her!? Honestly, a true friend would understand and at LEAST hear her out, but nooo. She found herself crying now...and...late for potions. This couldn't get any worse could it? She ran back into the great hall, grabbed her bag, and ran as fast as she could towards the dungeons. When she got to the door, she burst through and found the whole class staring at her. "Late? Miss Granger...25 points from Gryffindor...My God, what did you do to your mouth?" She lifted her hand to her mouth and felt something wet in the corner. She looked at her hand and found it covered in blood. Apparently the injury from her bloody cheek had gotten worse and was seeping out from between her lips.
"Oh, um...I..." She glanced at Harry. He glared at her and gave her a smirk. "I bit my cheek Professor Snape."
"Ah, well let's not be so clumsy Miss Granger. Have a seat before you further disturb my class and I'm forced to take more points from your pathetic house." She murmured a "yes sir" before taking her seat between Ron and Harry. Ron gave her a questioning look when she scooted her seat closer to him. She was now right up against him and had about a foot between herself and Harry. When class was through, she quickly grabbed her bag and ran to transfiguration with the Slytherins; hoping to find a seat with Parvati and lavender so she didn't have to risk sitting with or even near Harry.
Draco was sitting at breakfast and saw Hermione sitting and laughing with Brown, Patil, and the Little Weasley. She seemed happy enough. She was ignoring and avoiding Potter, which was a very good idea. He went back to his breakfast and looked up when he saw potter stand up from the corner of his eye. He watched as he approached her and then they left. He assumed that they were going to talk about their fight and was tempted to go help, but he figured that doing that was only mess things up even more, which, for a change, he didn't want because Hermione would be the one to suffer. And he didn't want her to suffer more than she already had. She had had a long hard summer and didn't need anymore crap. He checked his watch and saw that he had potions. 'Nice.' He had always loved potions. One, because his head of house taught it, and two, because it was the only class that he had beat Hermione in. He picked up his bag and headed towards the dungeons. When he left the great hall, he saw potter storm towards the dungeons and looked in the direction he had come. He thought he heard a small whimper and was going to go investigate but had to get to potions. However, when he had gotten to potions and saw who was missing, he wished he had done otherwise. After about 10 minutes, he was getting slightly worried. He was getting restless but then he saw the door burst open and her rush in. She looked very rushed and was breathing heavily. Snape took some points and then said something about her mouth. Draco looked at her lip and saw the there was blood coming from it. Ok, now he was worried. It had to have been her who he heard crying. And he saw potter come from that same place. 'Bloody hell what did he do to her?' He decided he would question her about it in the common room next period; because both Gryffindor and slytherin had a free period.
In the common room, Hermione sat on the floor, rocking herself back and forth. She could imagine how pathetic she looked, but right about now she could not care any less. She had her eyes closed and was trying to think of anything other than her and Harry's confrontation at breakfast. She kept trying but it just wouldn't work. Anything she could think of made her think of Harry. Eventually, she found herself crying again. 'I cry too much,' she thought to herself. Suddenly, the door to the common room opened and Draco ran in. He dropped his bag as soon as he saw her and sprinted over.
"Are you ok? What happened? Potter did it didn't he? I'll kill him." He couldn't believe he was making such a big deal out of this, when did he start caring? She laughed softly.
"Breath, Malfoy. I'm alright."
"Well!? What happened to you? Why were you bleeding?" She took a deep breath and launched into the story about their fight. Malfoy smiled, an actual genuine smile, when she said that thing about him being a sweet guy. "Did you really mean that? About me being a sweet guy?"
"Well, at the time, my goal was to make him as angry as possible. But...yes...now that I think about it...yes, I did mean it. I don't know what has come over you. But I like it." She smiled at him and he returned the gesture. They just looked into each other's eyes but finally Draco broke the comfortable silence.
"You know Granger, once you get to know you, you're not so bad. I could get used to this."
"Get used to what exactly?"
"Well, this," he put his arm around her, "and, of course, some of this." And he leaned in and lightly brushed his lips against hers. She still had her eyes closed but she was smiling,
"Yeah, I could definitely get used to this too." And she repositioned herself so she was more comfortable and rested her head against his shoulder and he put his head on hers. And this is how they stayed for the rest of their free period, talking about anything and everything.
Draco ran as fast as he could from transfiguration towards the common room. He was now more worried than ever. During the class, he saw Potter look over at Hermione and saw that she had tears streaming down her face. Brown and Patil had their arms around Hermione and were lightly talking to her. They must have known what had happened because they were glaring at him and Brown had kept messing up his project. They were supposed to be turning jewelry boxes into chess boards. Brown would inconspicuously flick her wand in the direction of Potter's jewelry box right when he tried to do the spell and make it turn into a plant rather than the chess board. After Professor McGonagall told him that he needed to work more on it and gave him extra homework, she was satisfied and went back to her own work. After class, he grabbed his bag and headed towards the common room. He was nearly there and was about to draw his X when Pansy came up to him. "Heyyyy Drakiiiie," she purred. "Have any plans for the free period? Want to come to my dorm for awhile?" She asked this and was running her hands up and down his chest. He looked at her in pure disgust. "Do you have any idea how disgusting you are? And are you aware that I would sooner hang myself with barbed wire than sleep with you?" Her jaw dropped in disbelief and she turned and stormed down the hallway, approaching another guy. He rolled his eyes and entered the common room.
He saw her on the ground crying, dropped his bag, and ran to her. During the story, he wanted nothing more than to hunt down potter and punch him firmly across the face. But, when she got to the part of saying he was a sweet guy, he found himself smiling. And she meant it too. He decided to try something and he put his arm around her. After she didn't protest, and actually seemed to like it, he leaned in and kissed her lightly. "Yeah, I could definitely get used to this too." 'I wonder if she likes me. She's certainly acting like it.' He decided to just ask. "Hey Granger?"
"Yes?"
"Do you, well, um, did you ever think that maybe you might..." He trailed off. She looked questioningly at him.
"Draco?"
'She just said my name.'
'I just said his name.'
"You said my name."
"Yes, why would I call one of my friends by their surname?" She smiled at him and he smiled back.
"That is a very good point, Hermione. Now as I was saying before, do you think it possible at all, that you might, well, have feelings for me?" He asked sincerely, he actually wanted to know.
"Well, Draco..." she trailed off. 'Do I? I mean, he's been so sweet to me lately, he held me while I cried. He KISSED me for crying out loud. Yes, yes I think I just might.' "Well, yes, Draco, I think I just might." She flashed him a large, genuine smile.
For some reason, hearing her say that she liked him made him feel very happy. He'd seen the real Hermione Granger over the past few days, and he really liked her. Not to mention, with Potter being so aggressive, she'd need someone to protect her. He would never forgive himself if something happened to her.
'Wow, I never thought I'd see the day that I'd be telling Draco Malfoy I liked him, right after he kissed me too! If someone had told me last year that I'd be in this position this year, I'd have laughed in their face. I wonder if he likes me as well...' "Um, Draco?"
"Yeah?"
"Same question." 'I think I do, I've seen the real Hermione, and I like her a lot. I could definitely get used to hanging out with her...'
"Well, yes, Hermione, I think I just might." He took hold of her hand and gave it a squeeze. She smiled at him and she seemed truly happy.
"Well this won't go over well with Harry, but Ron is a great guy, he'll understand."
"Well, I've got to get to Charms but if you have any trouble at all with either of them just let me know and I'll be there." He gave her a wink and kissed her lightly on the temple. "See you tonight." And then he let go of her hand and got up and left, picking up his bag on his way out.
Hermione thought back on what had just happened. Draco Malfoy had kissed her and then she had told him she liked him, which she did. But then, he had said he liked her back. 'Bloody hell.' She slapped her hand to her forehead and shook her head. He liked her?! This was something that any other day than this, she'd have pinched herself silly to wake herself up from the nightmare. But now, it was like a dream come true. Other than the fact that her day had started with a slap in the face from her best friend, it was going surprisingly well. She looked at her watch...she had to get going. She had History of Magic.
During history of magic, Hermione sat by Harry and Ron and for some reason, was perfectly comfortable. Her mind was centered on Draco so she really couldn't care less about Harry. She hadn't thought about him the whole class period but that died when he turned to her in the middle of Professor Binns' lecture. He put his hand atop hers and gave it a light squeeze. She tried to pull away but he just held onto it even tighter to where it was painful. She whispered to him, "Harry! Let go of me!"
He glared at her, "No, not until you give me what I want."
Her heart started to beat even harder than it had been before. Surely, he wouldn't try anything here.
"And what is that exactly?" Her voice was much more confident that she felt.
"Come to the dance with me." It was more of a command than anything else. She didn't feel like she had much of a choice.
"No." She answered flatly.
"And why not? The only good excuse you would have is if you already had a date. And I know you don't. Ron is going with Lavender, Seamus with Parvati, Dean with Ginny, I mean, even Neville has a date for crying out loud. Who else is there?" Harry had an idea of who it might've been. But he prayed that it wouldn't be him. Harry still loved Hermione; he was just taking a different approach to getting her now.
Hermione knew she didn't have a date. But having a date was the only way she could get out of going with Harry. And going to the dance with Harry was definitely not what she wanted. She did know of one person who she did want to go with. But she didn't know if he'd want to go with her. He liked her, but would he ask her to the dance? "Yes, Harry, I do have a date, now if you'll excuse me," she pulled her hand out of his grasp, "I have notes to take."
Then she went back to her taking notes and listening to the lesson. After the lesson, she was planning on telling Draco what had happened in class. When they were dismissed, she grabbed her bag and hurried out the door. She was about to enter the Head Tower but she felt herself being pulled into a dark corner. "You don't have a date do you? If you did have one, you would have told me. You just are stalling so you can find a date so I can't take you," Harry hissed at her. 'Oh geez, he knows me way too well. I guess it was kind of predictable wasn't it?' She didn't plan on giving in that easily though. If there was any way out of this, she was going to find it. "You're wrong Harry. I do have a date. And I'm very happy to be going with him." She was planning on telling Harry she was going with Draco and explain everything to him later on. She started to walk away but Harry grabbed her and pulled her back and she gave a small scream of pain as her back slammed against the wall.
Harry was more furious than he could ever remember being. Hermione was going with someone else. And there was only one person who it could have been. "WHO IS IT THEN!? WHO ARE YOU GOING TO THE DANCE WITH!?" He shouted angrily. She didn't respond. He raised his arm, seemingly about to smack her again. But he pulled his arm back in a different way and in the last second his flat palm balled into a tight fist. His fist was flying towards her face and right before it hit her, it stopped right where it was and another fist hit him hard in the face, causing him to fly backwards and onto the ground. She looked up and saw the one person who she had hoped to show up standing there smirking down at him.
"She's going with me Potter...you got a problem with it?" She heard the voice that used to make her skin crawl and now it was the voice that seemed to release an amazing amount of butterflies in her stomach. He had grabbed Harry's arm, thrown it back to his side, and then punched him hard in the jaw. She saw his face smirking down at Harry, who was a good 5 inches shorter than Draco at his 6 1 height and smiled brightly. The fact that she was about to be beaten by one of her best friends didn't matter anymore. He was here. She was looking at him and he finally met her gaze and smiled. "You alright Hermione?" She was about to respond when Harry's furious voice cut her off.
"OH so now you call her Hermione do you Malfoy?! What happened to the countless taunts and calling her mudblood huh?! Where'd that run off to?!" Draco cringed when he heard the word. He used to either snicker when he heard it or it had not fazed him at all. Now it hurt
him to know what pain he had put her through.
"Well then, I didn't know what a great person she was. And I didn't like her then either now did I?"
"WHAT?! You like her now? Does she know about this?" He glanced at Hermione.
"Yes, Harry, I know. And I like him too." She smiled at Draco and squeezed herself out of the corner between Harry and the wall and walked over to Draco. She stood next to him and he put a protective arm around her waist. "And, yes, Draco is my date to the dance." After she said this he have her a little squeeze. "Now, if you don't mind, I'd much rather spend my free time with someone who really cares about me than someone who wouldn't think twice before hitting me if I dared to anger him." With that, she and Draco walked back to their common room, leaving a very stunned Harry in their wake.
As soon as Hermione got inside the common room and the portrait was closed behind them, she let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. She spun around to where Draco was standing behind her and collapsed into his arms. "Oh Draco, I'm so glad you came! I don't know what would have happened to me! He probably would've hit me till I agreed to come to the dance with him. Thank you SO much! You saved me from a bad date and probably a black eye." She rested her head on his chest and relaxed against him. After a moment of comfortable silence, she lifted her head and looked at him, "Draco...did you mean what you said? Are you really going to take me to the dance?"
Draco walked back to the common room, keeping his arm around her the whole time. When they walked in, he read Hermione sigh heavily and watched her spin around. He knew what was coming so he opened his arms just in time for her to fall into them. He listened as she thanked him. Although, all he really made out was "thank you" considering her voice was muffled since she was talking into his chest. After just standing there, very much enjoying having her in his arms, she looked up to him. "Draco...did you mean what you said? Are you really going to take me to the dance?" Draco had meant every word of it. He had planned on asking her anyways. Not just because he had to because of the bet, but because he really liked her and wanted to take her with him.
"I meant every word." He had responded. She smiled at him and he smiled down at her.
"Good. I was so worried that I'd have ended up having to go with him. You're the only person I wanted to go with." She looked at him for awhile and her eyes clouded over and she looked as if she was just staring at something over his shoulder. He watched her eyes flash with pain, then fear and anger. Then her eyes started to fill with tears.
"You alright Hermione?" He asked her, sounding very concerned.
"Yeah, I was just thinking. He was going to punch me...he used to be my best friend. I felt so safe around him and now I'm scared to be alone with him. For all I know, he could lash out at me at any minute." She felt the tears spill from her eyes and pour down her face and mentally cursed herself for being so soft. He leaned down and brushed his lips against her cheek where her tears had been before. She looked up at him and gave him a little smile.
He watched as she vented about Harry. She was right. For all either of them knew, he could attack her at any time. But he was willing to do anything to keep him from doing it. "Don't you worry. I won't let anything happen to you." She smiled at his words and pulled away from him. The dance was this Friday, so she only had two days. And she didn't have anything to wear! The dance had a muggle theme so everyone was required to wear muggle clothing. She would have to go to Hogsmeade tomorrow.
Hermione was going to Hogsmeade today at free period. History of Magic was nearly over and then she'd be going. She listened as Professor Binns droned on for the last 15 minutes about the Troll War and then grabbed her bag and went to her common room to get ready. When she got there, Draco was already on the couch. He was sitting and reading and he flicked his eyes up at her than back at his book. "Where are you going in such a hurry?" She looked over at him and didn't answer. She ran into her room, changed into a pair of blue jeans and a maroon blouse and ran back into the common room. She ran towards the door, slinging her purse over her shoulder, and shouted back to him, "HOGSMEADE!"
Draco strutted back to the common room happily after telling Pansy and Blaise about Hermione. He left out that he had real feelings for her until Pansy had left. While he was telling her what was going on, her jaw had been dropped and she looked as if she had left it hanging open much longer she'd have flies making nice cozy homes in there. But Blaise, on the other hand, had been smirking the whole time. You could tell that he was happy for him because he really didn't want Draco to have to deal with pansy for the rest of the year. When pansy stormed off, he had turned to Blaise. "Dude, you gotta help me. I'm falling for her!"
"Yeah I know."
"What? How do you know this?"
"It's obvious. You're always looking at her and not to mention I heard the Gryffindors talking about how you had stood up for her." He raised his eyebrow at him. "Bet getting a little out of hand?"
"Well, I've been spending a lot of time with her, and she's a really cool girl. There's nothing not to like about her. I can't help it!"
"Dude, don't worry about it. Now you won't have to pretend. It'll come much easier now. You don't have to act or anything now. Just enjoy it. Enjoy her. She's a good-looking girl. And she's really seemed to come out of her shell since you've been hanging around her. Have fun with this." Then, he had walked away. But Draco realized how right he was. He would have no problem winning the bet now. He didn't have to pretend. So he walked back to the common room, plopped on the couch, and started to read. He had been reading for awhile but then she had burst into the room. When he had inquired as to where she was going, she hadn't responded. But after being in her room for a bit, she ran out and told him she was heading to Hogsmeade. He would have joined her but he had History of Magic essay due next period that he had yet to start on.
After getting ready, Hermione ran to Gryffindor common room to meet Parvati, Lavender, and Ginny. They were all going to go shopping for the dance and just have a girls' day. The only classes left in their day were DADA and Charms and Lupin and Flitwick had given them free periods to prepare for the dance the following night. She arrived at the portrait and was greeted by the fat lady. "Why hello dear! Haven't seen you around these parts lately. Where've you run off to?" Hermione smiled kindly at the portrait and told her about the new position as head girl she had achieved and then gave her the password to enter. "PARVATI! LAVENDER! GINNY! YOU GUYS READY?" She shouted up the stairs to the girls' dorms.
Ginny was the only one to reply. "Yeah! We'll be down in a minute Mione!" Hermione took a seat next to Seamus and talked to him for a few minutes before the girls finally came down. "Well, I'll see you later Seamus. Buh-bye!" The four of them set out for the trail to Hogsmeade chatting idly the whole way. Parvati was the first to ask what had been bothering all of Gryffindor for the past few days.
"So, um, Mione...What's going on with you and Malfoy?" Hermione hadn't been expecting this and it caught her way off guard.
"Oh, Draco? I, um...well..." She was trying to find a way to explain it shortly but ended telling them the whole story starting from the situation in the dungeons when he had first helped her to her feet. By the end of it, all three of them were jealous. They would say things like "Aww you are SO lucky Hermione!" or "Aww I wish I had a boyfriend!" They all believed every word of it and decided that they were going to make Hermione come fully out of her shell for this dance. Draco had fallen for the bookworm Hermione. The Hermione who had hidden all her curves underneath overly large sweaters and robes. They had decided amongst the three of them that they were going to make Malfoy see a whole new side of Hermione, they decided that she would look outstanding and that Malfoy wouldn't even believe it was her. They were going to do all this whether she liked it or not.
When they got to Hogsmeade they walked up to the new muggle clothing store. When they walked in, they all split up. They decided to meet by the dressing rooms in an hour to try on what they found and settle on what to by. Hermione went off to the left, lavender to the right, Parvati straight ahead, and Ginny went somewhere in between. Hermione went and found an ankle length jean skirt with a slit up to the knee and a black sweater and then headed to the dressing rooms. The other girls were already there and had pretty much the opposite of what Hermione had chosen. Parvati had chosen a tan knee length skirt with a modest slit up the mid-thigh, and a white, fitted blouse. Ginny picked a faded pink knee length skirt with a white spaghetti strapped shirt. Lavender had a jean skirt that went to around the middle of her shins but had a slit that went up to her mid thigh and a fitted maroon off the shoulders tee. When Hermione had showed them her outfit, they had actually started laughing. "No, no Hermione. That just simply won't do." Ginny had said. "Come on ladies; let's pick her a real outfit." Then they had dragged her back to the clothes and picked out an outfit that Hermione wouldn't have worn had they given her the choice. Her outfit consisted of an above the knee black skirt and a dark green tube top blouse. They had also bought her hoop earring, a black choker, and black boots. They had dragged her back to the castle and ignored her cries of "YOU DRESSED ME IN SLYTHERIN COLORS! I'M IN GRYFFINDOR NOT SLYTHERIN!" However, Hermione had no choice but to give in after they had put a silence charm on her so she showed them the way to the tower and told them how to get in. They needed to know this considering this was where they would meet their dates and they decided to get ready in Hermione's room.
When they had entered the common room, Draco and Blaise were sitting on the couch talking but had quieted themselves the second the portrait opened. Draco raised his eyebrows in interest after seeing Hermione's mouth moving but nothing coming out. After she had told them how to get in, they had put the silencing charm back on her knowing full well she'd start complaining again the second she got the chance. Ginny noticed Draco's look and said simply, "She didn't agree quite agree with the outfit we got her. Okay okay, she didn't like it at all. But I can promise you one thing Malfoy; you definitely are going to enjoy it." He smirked at this and laughed when he saw Hermione blushing. That definitely made him curious. Blaise, Draco, Lavender, Parvati, and Hermione all sat and talked for awhile but then Blaise, Parvati, and lavender said they had to go. Lavender, Blaise and Parvati had already gone but Ginny had stayed a little while afterwards and when she was about to leave she turned around, "See ya tomorrow Mione!" She said with a wink in Malfoy's direction. "Buh-bye Malfoy." Draco had spent a while talking to the little Weasley and realized she wasn't all that bad. When she was nearly through the portrait he called out to her, "GINNY!" She turned around, eyebrow raised. "It's Draco." She smiled at him and replied, "Alrighty, Buh-bye then Draco." Then she had left. Leaving Draco to his curiosity and Hermione to her embarrassment. After they left, they had sat in silence for awhile but then Hermione couldn't take it anymore. So she gave Draco's hand a little squeeze, smiled at him, and left for her dorm for the night. 'Bloody hell, what a day! I can't believe they're actually going to make me wear that!' But she started to think about how Draco would react and fell asleep smiling, picturing his face, jaw dropped and eyes wide.
The next morning at breakfast, all the girls were chattering excitedly about the dance that night and all the boys...well...the boys were talking about Quidditch. They had all been talking but stopped immediately when Dumbledore stood up. "Good Morning all," he said a little too cheerfully for how early in the morning it was, "the professors and I have decided, that since today is the ball that all of you have been looking forward to for so long, all classes for today have been canceled so all you ladies can have all the time you need to get ready for tonight. Thank you for your time and have a great day." After that he sat down, it was quiet for a few seconds before deafening applause rang out through the great hall. Hermione rolled her eyes at the high-pitched girls and was about the go back to her breakfast when she felt herself being dragged from her seat out of the great hall. She was released just outside of the doors and looked up to her captors. "WE HAVE ALL DAY MIONE COME ON!" A very excited Ginny screamed. Then she, lavender and Parvati ran off in the direction of Head tower. Hermione reluctantly followed mumbling to herself about how she only need about 10 minutes to get ready, but when she got to there, she was proven wrong. She was only a few minutes behind them being that they ran the whole way, but in the few minutes between them, they had managed to have her room covered completely in hair care products and makeup. Hermione usually would just skip the makeup and put on her outfit but she didn't have that option this time. The moment she closed her bedroom door behind her, she was ambushed by the girls and attacked with brushes, hairspray, and eyeliner, and wasn't released from their grasp for a good 2 hours; and she wasn't even dressed yet. Hermione looked in the mirror and gasped at what she saw. Her hair was stick straight and since it was so straight it went well past her shoulders and went to about mid back. Her eyes were lined in black but it was thin and she had very thin green eye shadow on the very end of her eyelid and she had shiny lip gloss over her lips. She did enjoy the made up look but it had taken a long time to do and she didn't even know what everyone else would think of it. Ginny and the girls had gone on for what seemed like hours about how gorgeous she looked but soon she had grown tired of it and walked away.
Draco had decided on wearing black jeans and a white muscle tee for the dance and sat in the common room waiting for the girls to finish. They had been in there all day long giggling and laughing but he noticed that not once did he hear Hermione's voice in there. She must have been their victim. He was very curious about what she would look like and silently prayed that 7 o'clock would come quicker. He heard a knock on the portrait and with a flick of his wand; it swung open and revealed a bored looking Seamus Finnigan, an anxious Dean Thomas and a furious Weasley. They must have been Ginny, Lavender and Parvati's dates. They all sat in silence for awhile until Weasley broke the silence. "What have you been doing Malfoy!? Hermione would never in her right mind like you let alone go to the dance with you! What did you do to her?!" Draco laughed lightly. He hadn't done anything to her. He had only been nice and she'd fallen for him. Well, he really didn't have room to talk; she hadn't been the only one doing the falling. "Look, Weasley, I didn't do anything to her. And I don't plan to. I really like her, honest I do, and I would never dream of doing anything to hurt her. I know we've been enemies for as long as I can remember and I don't blame you if you don't want to be friends. But, I know it would kill Hermione for us to be fighting when she and I are together. So, if you agree, I'll be willing to make a truce." Then, he took a deep breath and held out his hand. Ron was taken aback by his proposal at first, but then, after a minute, looked as if he was seriously considering this. Hermione was his best friend and if making a truce with Malfoy would make her happy, then he was willing to do it. He took Malfoy's hand and they shook, making a silent agreement not to fight anymore, at least not when she was around. They were quiet after that and it was starting to get uncomfortable but then they heard Hermione's door open and they all looked up.
Hermione was ready. She looked in the mirror. She really liked this new look. She was wearing her black mini skirt and green shirt, her black choker, earrings, and her new black boots. This wasn't something that she was used to but she didn't mind it all that much. She couldn't wait to see the look on Draco's face. Ginny, Lavender, and Parvati were going first. They insisted on giving Hermione a little introduction before she came down. Ginny was reaching for the doorknob but Hermione stopped her, "Gin! Wait, listen." The four of them stopped and listen to Ron yell. They practically had to hold Hermione back so she didn't go out there and tell Ron that nothing was wrong with her, but she didn't have to. Draco did that himself. Not only did he explain that to him, he proposed a truce; and Ron accepted. Hermione was so happy. Maybe with Ron on his side, he could help convince Harry. Lavender and Parvati were really excited for the dance so they walked up to the door. "I'm going out there," Lavender said, and she opened the door.
When they heard the door open, they all looked up and Ron gasped and smiled. Lavender was standing in the doorway in her jean skirt and maroon blouse. Her long brown, usually straight hair was very curly and she was wearing large hoop earrings. Ron walked up to her and put out his hand, she smiled and took it and they walked back to the guys. Seamus stepped forward when he saw Parvati. She was all set with her tan skirt and white shirt. She had a white choker on and diamond stud earrings. Seamus gave her a big smile walked up and offered her arm, which she gladly took. They too walked back to the rest. Next was Ginny, she walked out in her pink shirt and white shirt, flashed them all a smile, did a little twirl and walked up to Dean smiling. She gave him a quick peck on the cheek and walked back to the doorway. "Now, ladies and gentlemen, I'd like to present to you, Parvati, Lavender's, and my masterpiece of the night. She simply refused to wear the outfit we picked for her. In her words it was just 'too slutty and most definitely the wrong colors' but we finally convinced her. Now, Mr. Malfoy, I believe you will especially enjoy her ensemble, and I expect plenty of thanks after the dance for this. Now, I've made you wait long enough, I'd like to present to you, the new and improved, Miss Hermione Grangerrrrr!!" She rambled on for a minute before finally introducing her. She moved out of the doorway she was blocking to reveal a very beautiful Hermione. Draco's jaw dropped when he saw her. 'Slytherin colors...nice' He thought to himself. She was wearing black mini skirt and dark green shirt, with knee high boots and a black choker. Her hair was straightened and her makeup was done. Draco just stared. She walked up to him smiling. "You like?" Then she gave him a seductive wink. Ginny had told her to have a little fun and tease him a bit. So, she decided to do it. He leaned in and right before the lips touched, she did what she did with Goyle. Minus the violence obviously. She moved her face to the side and whispered something in his ear. He grinned goofily and nodded. "So? What do you think?" She asked him finally.
He smiled at her, "You look...amazing." He extended his hand and she took it. Ginny, being the lively one of the bunch, dragged Dean up to the Portrait and yelled to them, "COME ONNNN LETS GET GOINNNNNNG!" She bounced out the door and everyone followed them, laughing at her never-ending liveliness. When they got there, the dance had already started. The house tables were gone but there were small tables in the corners where groups of people were sitting. The group walked over to a table and took a seat. They sat and talked about random things until a slow song came on. Each guy took their respected date onto the dance floor. Draco and Hermione walked hand in hand onto the dance floor. They picked a spot in the middle of the dance floor and she put her hands around his neck and he put his around her waist. He pulled her close enough so that her body was against his. She rested her head on his shoulder and he put his head against hers. They danced to the slow music for awhile before Hermione pulled back and looked up at Draco. "Draco?"
"Yeah?"
"What do I do if Harry comes after me again?"
"Don't even worry about it. So long as you're with me, I'll make sure nothing happens to you," he replied with a sincere smile. Hermione smiled at him. It was so comforting knowing that she had Draco to stand by her. She knew that he would protect her. Even though she had only liked him for about two weeks she had amazing confidence in him. She was here now looking in his eyes, and there was nowhere else she'd rather be.
Draco looked down at her. He had the strongest urge to kiss her. Should he do it? He didn't know if she'd kiss back or if she'd even go for it. For all he knew she could pull back or even slap him. But he'd have to risk it. He had the urge to kiss her and when a Malfoy had wanted something, they went for it. And right now, all he wanted was her. He looked down at her, smiled, and leaned in...
Hermione was so happy with him. She wished that he would kiss her. But what if he didn't even want to kiss her? She decided she was going to wait until he made the move, she didn't want to risk him moving away. But wait...what if he thought she didn't want to kiss her? Whoaaaa, she was obviously wrong...he was leaning in. 'YES!' She closed her eyes and went up on her tip toes to get to him. They were just about to reach each other when a sickening crack rang through her ears and she felt Draco letting go of her. She opened her eyes and saw Draco flying backwards. She looked behind her and saw Harry standing there, smirking down at Draco, who was now holding his hand to his bleeding jaw.