Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.
It had taken a few days, but Ron had finally come around with much poking and prodding by both Harry and Ginny. He'd slumped into the seat across from her at breakfast and had a miserable look on his face. "I'm sorry, Hermione."
She had stared up at him expectantly, waiting for the groveling to continue.
"Ginny and Harry have explained it to me how not all Slytherins are bad and we should give them chances to prove their own character. Hell, Pettigrew was a Gryffindor and look at how awful he turned out." Hermione had to say she was impressed with how long Ron was resisting eating anything. She appreciated the effort. "And, they pointed out how much you put up with Lavender, just because you're my friend. So, I guess, sorry I've been such a shite friend lately."
Hermione smiled at him, and she watched all the tension leave his shoulders. "Come on, Lavender isn't that bad." She cajoled him.
"Tell that to my lips – they are so chapped. She never wants to stop snogging." Ron said with a grimace. "I don't know, I am thinking we might break it off soon. We don't really do anything but kiss."
"I think it's a peeing on your territory kind of thing." Hermione told him, thinking of Pansy Parkinson.
"Wha?" He asked, his mouth now stuffed with scrambled eggs.
"Oh, animals pee on things to mark their territory, so other animals stay away." She told him, but seeing his complete lack of comprehension, she tried to explain it in a different way. "Oh, never mind, it just means she might be afraid of losing you. So she is trying to let other girls know that you're her's. Why don't you tell her she has nothing to worry about? She might back off a bit."
Ron grunted. "I don't know, Hermione. I was kind of thinking that you'd introduce me to Daphne." He told her.
Hermione smiled at her friend. Daphne would hate dating Ron. "She's err…taken. She just hasn't accepted it yet." She stared at Theo Nott across the Great Hall, who was looking miserable sitting next to Malfoy."You really don't mind if I am Graham's girlfriend?" She asked him biting her lip.
"No, I want to support you. If he's what makes you happy, then, I don't mind." Hermione smiled again at having her old friend back. Still, she was a little disappointed at the knowledge that she wasn't even sure if Graham did make her happy. "But I still wouldn't mind giving him a talk to ask his intentions. I am sure Fred and George would have something I could prank him with…"
"Ronald Bilius, you will do no such thing!" Hermione giggled at him.
"Alright, I will resist. But if he hurts you...Hermione you're my best friend and I just want to see you happy." He told her, resting his hand on hers on top of the table. "Now, what is our Charms essay meant to be on?"
"Ron, that's due in two days!" Hermione responded, glad to have her friend back.
Draco Malfoy was miserable. It had been a week since Graham and Granger had officially started dating. Merlin, that smug look on Montague's face made Draco want to wipe it off. It was even worse than when he'd come back from Hogsmeade with lipstick on his cheek. It seemed that everywhere he went, he was running into them.
Montague had completely taken over Hermione's little table in the library, which meant he'd had a front row seat to his shenanigans. He constantly teased her about all of her studying, distracting her with little kisses and touches. He'd felt his heart lurch when Montague would trail his fingers up her inner thigh and try to sneak under her school skirt. He was only pleased when he watched her shove his hands away from their quest.
She'd looked even more beautiful than ever that night, biting on the end of a quill, while she tried to work diligently. She would laugh at Montague with that little smile that had her scrunching her nose in amusement. Her eyes seemed to sparkle in delight. Why couldn't she look at him that way?
Graham had taken to walking her to several of her classes, if they were headed in the same direction. He'd dutifully carried her heavy books in his arms, despite her protests. And Draco could tell that she was secretly pleased at being treated like such a dainty lady.
Montague would kiss her soundly when they arrived at whatever classroom door, but he always seemed to push her more than she wanted. Draco could tell that she didn't really like the public displays of affection, but at the same time knew that Montague was trying to tell everyone that he'd gotten Hogwart's shiny new toy before anyone else had. Draco wondered if she'd disclosed the time she'd dragged him into a broom cupboard and snogged him silly to Montague. He doubted it.
Even his Quidditch practice had been invaded by the likes of Montague and Hermione's relationship. That git had flown away from the pitch to where she was standing by the Black Lake, and swept her up onto his broom to kiss her. Didn't Graham know that Hermione hated flying, Draco wondered? He would never just pull her onto a broom in a surprise attack like that. She deserved to be treated with patience and reassurance if and when she decided to fly on a broom.
He watched, helplessly, as she kicked and hit Graham on the back, demanding to be put back down on the ground, and Graham just grinned at her, before eventually setting them both on the ground. Hermione punched him hard in the arm. "Don't ever do that to me again." She demanded, before storming off.
"Oi, Hermione – I was only joking." Graham called after her, before shaking his head and returning to the pitch. He didn't even try to go after her or comfort her. But Draco knew that was because Graham didn't really understand her the way that he did.
Draco had really thought that that was a signal for trouble in paradise. But, he was disappointed when Graham showed up with Hermione that evening, her laughing at something he said. He walked her to her spot at Gryffindor table. Draco watched, annoyed, as Hermione shyly looked up at Graham and gave him a small kiss on the lips, not caring that her two oaf friends were watching, before Graham sauntered off in the direction of the Slytherin table.
Draco had retreated to his room after dinner. He was ready to admit to himself that he really liked Hermione and seeing her with Graham was too much for him. He'd been a foul mood for days and he'd only just figured it out when they were all at dinner. He wanted her to kiss her in front of her friends like she didn't care. But he knew that she would never do that with him. They had too much history, too much bad blood.
Plus, what would his friends think of him if he was in a relationship with Granger? Although most people in Slytherin had held their tongues about Montague's relationship with her, there were still people like Pansy, Tracey and Blaise who were talking about how he was sullying himself with a mudblood. At least it would get him out of taking the Dark Mark, he thought, bitterly.
Before his thoughts could get too dark, Theo came into his dormitory and shut the door behind him. Draco watched as he wordlessly put up a silencing spell, to keep their words confidential. His oldest friend sat in the chair at Draco's desk and stared at him. "Do you want to talk about it?"
"I don't have any idea what you are talking about, Theo." He responded, feeling surly.
"You've been in an awful mood all week. And we both know it's because Montague is dating Granger." Theo told him, his green eyes holding so much understanding.
"Why would that bother me?" Draco asked, breaking eye contact, not wanting to expose the hurt in his own eyes. Although Malfoys were taught to be pretty stoic, he'd been having trouble with keeping his emotions to himself lately.
"Because you're head over heels for Granger, that's why!" Theo told him. "I am not stupid like Greg and Vince. I know why you spend so much time at the library, and I saw how upset you were to find them in Hogsmeade together. You don't have to hide it from me, Draco. I'm your friend."
"We've been meeting in broom closets." Draco said, quietly, understanding that Theo wasn't out to get him, and that he really did need some friendly support. "She told me, we couldn't anymore because she was going to date that tosser."
"Well, why didn't you tell her that you wanted to date her?" Theo asked him, surprised with how far his friend had gotten with the little bookworm, without hearing even a whisper about it. He'd heard from Daphne about how Draco had kissed her on the way home from the party.
"I just don't see why we couldn't have continued on the way that we were." Draco told him.
"Is it because she's a muggle-born?" Theo asked delicately.
The affronted look on Draco's face surprised him. "What? You know I'm not like that…I don't think that way anymore. She's better than that. Better than just about every pureblood in this damn school."
"So then why all of the secrets? Hiding in broom closets?"
"Imagine what everyone would say, the rest of Slytherin, my parents, imagine what her stupid Gryffindork friends would do. They have already treated her poorly enough this year. So even if I wanted to have a public…relationship with her, it wouldn't work." The word relationship caught in his throat.
"Did I ever tell you about why Daphne and I stopped dating?" Theo asked his friend and when Draco shook his head he continued. "I asked my father if we could establish a formal courtship last year."
Draco was surprised. He didn't know that Theo and Daphne were quite that serious.
"Anyway, my dad brought up that the Greengrasses might have that one halfblood grandmother or something. I don't really care about the rumors. I told him I didn't care. That she was pureblooded enough for me." Theo looked very upset at the prospect. "My father told me that she wasn't pure enough for the Nott family and if I decided to carry on with her, I'd find myself disinherited."
Draco was sad to see his friend so broken up about the subject, still a year on. "So, what did Daphne say."
"Well, Daphne was hurt obviously. She…she told me she didn't care, that she loved me even if we didn't have any money. But I told her that we would be destitute. I told her that her being well taken care of by her husband was more important than our love. I asked her 'What would people say?'" Theo was obviously still feeling the pain of their split. "So that's why she's all about finding a rich husband, who cares how they look, sod love and all that. I hate seeing her like that, going out with Flint or rubbing up against Pucey, but then I have to remember that I did that to us. It was my fault."
Draco heard the little sniffle that meant his friend was crying. The thick sound of his voice gave it away too, but he respectfully ignored it to give Theo the illusion like he didn't notice.
Theo shook his head, gathering his emotions. "So, my advice for you, Draco, would be that if you like Hermione at all, you should say who gives a fuck what other people will say. You should give it a try with her. Just because you date in Hogwarts doesn't mean that you are going to end up married to the girl. Just have fun, and enjoy it." Theo told him, with a deathly serious expression on his face. "Don't make the same mistake I did, or you'll be a year on, still jealous of every bloke she bats her eyes at."
"I had no idea, Theo." Draco told him, quietly. "Have you tried to tell Daphne that you're sorry, that you made a mistake?" He was genuinely curious. He really hoped that he hadn't completely blown his chance with Hermione.
"Yeah, she just doesn't want to talk about that aspect of our relationship." Theo told him, his eyes an eerily bright green after his tears were blinked away. "We're still great friends though, because I'm a glutton for punishment, I guess. I can't let her go." Theo stood from the chair, unable to stay in the stifling room any longer. He'd just told Draco more than he'd told anyone about his situation and feelings and he could only be that vulnerable in front of someone else for so long. "Just think on it, okay?"
"I will." Draco confirmed.
Hermione felt like all of her free time had been taken over by Graham. Not that she didn't appreciate some one-on-one time with her boyfriend – boyfriend! – she was beginning to understand where Ron was coming from. Still, she made time for them in the Common Room after classes and after her time in the library to catch up.
Hermione had been feeling a little upset since the way that she'd left Daphne though. They hadn't spoken in a week and Hermione felt awful for the way she'd lashed out at her new friend. Still, Daphne had told her that she was welcome to stop by the Room of Requirement whenever she wanted, so that's where Hermione was headed tonight.
She was in luck, as when she opened the door, she saw Daphne's bright blonde hair and familiar green flannel nightgown, as she was reading through a herbology journal that Neville had recommended to Hermione about soothing agents. "Hey. Mind if I come in?"
Daphne looked up at her surprised. "Oh, of course, I will have Muffet bring some hot apple ciders up for us." Hermione came in and sat down on the couch next to Daphne, before being handed a warm mug by a pushy little house elf.
"Listen…I just wanted to tell you, I'm sorry about how upset I got last time we spoke. I shouldn't have presumed to understand what you are going though." Hermione told Daphne, a sad smile on her face.
"No hard feelings Hermione. I think I needed to hear it." Hermione was surprised by Daphne's quick forgiveness. "Besides, you don't grow up in Slytherin without developing a bit of a thick skin. How are things going with you and Graham?" The blonde asked her tentatively.
"Honestly, I don't know how to feel." Hermione told her. "On paper, he should be perfect. But, I don't know, it feels like there is something missing. And sometimes when we talk to one another, I get the impression that he doesn't understand me at all. Not like…" Hermione trailed off, unwilling to say the name that she wanted to.
"Like Draco does?" Daphne countered. Hermione stiffened at the words, but didn't say anything. "Listen, Hermione, you were right about Theo. And you are right about me. I was so in love with Theo when he told me that money was more important to him and me, and I decided that I wasn't going to fall in love again, because then, at least…I would be well taken care of."
"But, why did you let him go if you loved him?" Hermione asked, truly curious.
"Theo was so worried with what people would say about us. And I thought that…him being happy was the most important thing for me." Daphne told her. "He's tried to talk to me about…us again, but I am so afraid of getting hurt again that I pretend like it was no big deal to me."
They sat in silence for a few beats, before Daphne began talking again. "Can I give you some advice, Hermione? I know I am probably the least qualified person to talk about following your heart."
"Go on." Hermione told her. She valued Daphne's opinion and advice, but it didn't mean she had to take it.
"If you are just dating Graham to date someone, don't." Daphne told her. "You deserve so much more, Hermione. You deserve romance and love and...maybe that isn't with Draco either. But if your heart wants Draco, than just give it a try."
"Honestly, I don't know what to think about Graham. He's overpowering, loud, a bit obnoxious, but he treats me well." Hermione told Daphne with a frown on her face. "That's not a good enough reason to date someone is it? Plus I saw him kissing Parkinson at the party he invited me too, and honestly, I haven't been able to get the image out of my head."
Daphne cringed. "Ew, Pansy germs." The girls giggled together. "No, I don't think that's a very good reason to date someone." Daphne finally told her, seriously.
"I have to break things off with him, don't I?" Hermione asked Daphne with a frown. "What will people think of me?"
"Who gives a fuck what people think of you?" Daphne asked her. "You are Hermione fucking Granger, brightest witch of her age!"
Daphne's little pep talk had Hermione feeling much better. "You're right. Who cares? Thank you so much for all of your help Daphne. You always know exactly how to make me feel better."
Daphne pulled Hermione into a hug and patted her on the back. "That's what Aunty Daph is for." The pair separated with grins on their faces. "Now, what do you know about business models? I was thinking about what you said, about selling my beauty products."
"Change of heart?" Hermione asked.
"I want my own wealth. That way, I can do whatever I want too." Daphne told her, a content look on her face. She was really satisfied that everything was going to work out.
A/N: Haha, I hope this wasn't too angsty for you. At least everyone is finally being upfront about their feelings, right?
Big thanks to those of you who favorited or followed after last chapter. And huge thanks to my reviewers: Dramione101, arabellagrace, Pwrmom2, BlueMarian, everlastingtrueromance, pianomouse, SereniteRose, WeDreamWhatWeWishToBecome, Xasmin, CrazyPendantic, Rejected Morgenstern, articcat621, HarryPGinnyW4eva, Guest, unicornz . 334, and boobearhplover! All of your kind words mean so much to me and it really makes me just want to write more and more!
I do have a new story out called Straight Into Your Arms. It's a James/Hermione story, and if you are interested, I'd love for you to check it out! Otherwise, please let me know what you thought of chapter eight and be on the lookout for chapter nine - the final chapter! - out next week!