I want to apologize for the late update! I've had this chapter ready for two days..but my Beta hasn't replied. Anna..are you okay? I'm worried for you! I also want to apologize to my Beta, Anna, for updating w/o her collarboration..:( Anyways, it's a sort of short chapter! Sorry, but filled with drama! Bwahahaha! A lot of people have asked for a Theo/ hermione alt ending..so I'm trying to write it! From what point do you want me to start it at? From the party? Let me know!

REVIEW REPLY :)

Nicole Lovely: Thank you! It was a hard chapter to write!

DramioneLover123: I have not read any where they kill off Theo! :/ I'll have to look into it! :) Blaise..italian? Where'd you get that from? LOL..but if not this ending..then what ending were you hoping for?

CourtneyUchiha94: You'll have to wait and see what Pansy and Theo will think of! ;) And I believe Courtney WILL make another camo in a future chapter! :))

catlover93: I know what you mean. Me too. Completely. 3 :)

Dasey123: Awww you're so sweet! Thank you so much! xxx

Emeraldserpent36: So do many reviews! :))) hahaha. But seriously, I adore you. You're so uplifting! 3 :) I don't deserve all this praise..but I'll take it! Bwahaha.

froggirl101: All of them? Seriousllllyyyy? :O That makes you awesome! I feel so blessed that so many people like you keep checking back for another update! I hope I continue to please you lot! I appreciate the review, hun! :)) 3

animalllover: Fistfight? Catfight? That sounds great since I hate Pansy haha with a passion!

DRAMIONE ALL THE WAY XD!

That much? THAT much? YAYYYY!

I SAW IT! 4 times actually...hehehehe. He was SUCH a hot bad boy! ;)

Hugsssss xxxx

Thank you everyone who reviewed! Keep up the good work, pleaseee! xxxxx

Chapter 23 ;)

Hermione stood between two pairs of angry boys in Potions class. Harry and Ron were on her left side, Blaise and Theo on her right. Professor Slughorn had asked the class to get into pairs, but with the uneven number of students, there would be one trio. Naturally, Harry and Ron had invited Hermione into their pairing; however, Theo and Blaise had also asked her to join them in light of their new friendship. After that, chaos had erupted between the four boys. Hermione was trying to salvage the situation before the professor noticed; however, she was having no such luck.

"We asked her first!" Harry hissed at the Slytherin boys.

Blaise rolled his eyes, "What are we? Five years old again?"

Harry flushed hotly at the retort. Ron clenched his fists, "Bugger off! Why don't you ask Malfoy or Goyle? You know, one of your own kind..."

"One of our own kind? What kind, exactly, is that?" Theo growled at the redhead.

Hermione glared at both Ron and Theo, "Stop fighting! It's ridiculous!" She whispered harshly.

"You know-the twisted pathetic kind." Harry snorted.

Blaise laughed bitterly, "I believe the pathetic ones are you and Weasley. You are, after all, the ones playing hero all the time."

"Harry doesn't play hero, he is a hero." Ron sneered. "He's a better person then you could ever hope to be."

Hermione gasped, "Ronald!"

Theo grimaced at Ron's claim. "You don't have any idea what kind of person I am."

"I know enough, Nott. You're a selfish, inconsiderate, low life scum." Ron spat.

Blaise took a step towards Ron threateningly in defense of his friend, "You take that back!"

"Blaise! Please, stop it!" Hermione whimpered, pushing at his chest.

Blaise ignored Hermione, knocking her hands off of him. "I said take it back, Weasley!"

Harry narrowed his eyes, "He will not. Every word is true. Even his father was a traitorous coward! A Death-Eater! Not even a good one at that, getting caught breaking into the Department of Mysteries and sent to Azkaban!"

Theodore's body shook with quiet rage at Harry's sneers. Ron saw the dangerous look in Theodore's eyes, and pulled at Harry's cloak to try and silently communicate that shutting up would be a brilliant idea about now. But Harry continued, shaking off Ron's hold.

"I'm not surprised though, not really. After all, he probably couldn't function because his wife died, leaving him utterly useless. What a pity."

Theodore had pulled out his wand in a flash, and it was now pressing into Harry's jugular. Harry instantly paled, frozen to the spot in which he stood. Hermione gasped, and gripped Theodore's arm. She tried to pull it down but Theodore flexed his arm and kept it steady.

Ron pulled out his wand, aiming it at Theodore. This ensued in Blaise's wand also entering the arena by pointing it at Ron. Hermione looked around at each boy, horrified.

Professor Slughorn had just noticed the group, and was heading towards them fairly quickly. The other students had surrounded the five, watching in awe as each boy's wands never wavered.

"Either you apologize, Potter, or I will curse you right here." Theodore bit out between clenched teeth.

Hermione shook her head, "Harry! Apologize!" Her eyes pleaded with Harry's.

Harry remained quietly stubborn. Ron's eyes flickered from Theo to Blaise fearfully. Hermione's eyes sought out Draco's, and once she found him, her eyes begged him for his help.

Draco nearly melted at the look in Hermione's eyes, nearly ran to her in order to hold her tightly to him, nearly shouted at the boys to drop their wands for her sake. Nearly, but he held himself together. He stood, approaching Theodore and Blaise.

"You heard him, Potter." Draco sneered. "Of course, I hope you choose to ignore his warning. I'm sure we'd all manage without you…alive." Draco smirked.

Hermione turned to Draco in disbelief, "Draco!" She exclaimed, hurt.

Draco looked at Hermione and shrugged. "I'm just being honest."

Professor Slughorn finally reached them, mouth gaping open at the scene before him. "Put your wands away!" He ordered.

Ron looked from the professor to Harry anxiously. Harry sighed angrily, "Fine. I'm sorry."

For an instant, it appeared that Theodore was going to hex Harry anyway, but then Theodore slowly lowered his wand. Blaise, then Ron followed suit. Hermione sighed in relief, and ran a hand through her hair.

"1000 points from Gryffindor and Slytherin!" The professor yelled. "What was all this about?"

A student in the class called out, "They were fighting over who got Hermione Granger in their group."

Professor Slughorn's eyes drifted to Hermione in shock, "Excuse me?"

Harry winced, realizing how incredibly stupid their fight seemed.

"It started like that, Professor. It got out of hand when Harry exchanged some words with Blaise about Theo's father…" Hermione sighed wearily.

The professor flinched at that, "I see." He looked around to each student, "Seems from now on I'll choose partners for everyone since you all can't be trusted with the simplest tasks."

The class groaned at that, casting angry looks towards the four boys. "Back to your seats!" Professor Slughorn called out, eyes disappointed.

The students trudged to their pupils, disheartened.

"Now, I suppose that the original pairings can be kept…" The professor began once the class was seated and quieted down.

The class cheered. The professor continued, "…except for the five students involved in this scandal."

Professor Slughorn looked at the culprits. Blaise put his head down, muttering. Theodore remained stony faced, staring straight ahead. Harry and Ron frowned, eyes downcast in shame. Hermione blushed, ashamed of this entire situation.

"It might help house unity and sanity in this classroom if I switch up your pairings." The professor began.

"Meaning?" Blaise asked mournfully, sure he knew where this was going.

"Meaning, Zabini you will be partnered with Weasley." Blaise's lip curled in disgust. "Mister Potter, you will be teamed with young Nott." Theodore slammed his fist on his desk.

"I refuse to be partnered with him!" Theodore yelled hotly.

Professor Slughorn's face grew red at the outburst, "You will if you want to pass this class!"

Theodore quieted down, glaring daggers at the Professor.

"Now, that leaves Miss Granger…" Slughorn trailed off, looking at the other students in the class.

"Miss Patil…who is your partner?" The professor asked.

Padma grimaced, "Draco Malfoy."

"Ah. Perhaps you could use one more in your pairing?" The professor asked hopefully.

Padma nodded, offering a smile towards Hermione. "Of course."

Hermione offered a tentative smile back. Professor Slughorn beamed at the admission, "Good. There's no time left to get any real work done, so we start tomorrow. Class dismissed."

Everyone began to collect their books and parchments quickly, glad of being dismissed ten minutes early. Hermione watched as Harry and Ron walked out of the class room in haste, most likely to avoid a lecture from Professor Slughorn. Blaise and Theodore hung back at Draco's table, sneers on each of their faces as they discussed something. Hermione bit her lip, looking around but everyone else had already left the classroom. The Professor grabbed a parchment and left rather quickly as well. Hermione trudged over to the boys cautiously.

Blaise looked up first, "Sorry 'bout that, Hermione." He offered, grimacing.

"I don't understand why you all can't get along." Hermione frowned, scrunching her eyebrows together in confusion.

Draco scoffed loudly, drawing the group's attention. "You've got to be joking, Hermione. We've been enemies with them from the start of our years here at Hogwarts."

"But you were enemies with me as well, and we all get along just fine now." Hermione shook her head.

Draco gave her a lazy smile, "Well, you've been quite… friendly with us."

Hermione blushed, "I-that is you-…" She stuttered.

Theodore's heart tugged as he watched Hermione get all flustered and embarrassed. Draco reached out and stroked Hermione's cheek, offering her a dazzling smile. Hermione's shy smile back at him caused anger to boil in Theodore's heart.

"Look, it's not completely our fault. Potter and Weasley don't want anything to do with us either." Theodore grunted.

Blaise nodded, "I agree. Your friends don't seem too keen on offering an olive branch of peace to us."

"Well of course not! You all are horrible to them!" Hermione exclaimed.

Theodore tensed, "If I recall correctly, it was your Gryffindor friends who began the higher insults."

"This time." Hermione rolled her eyes. "You all are always butting heads. It seems that you take turns on who has the first and last words."

"Whose side are you on?" Draco frowned, taking a half step back from her.

Hermione froze at his question. "I'm not on anyone's side! I'm just saying that you all should be a tad nicer." Her eyes begged Draco for him to understand.

Blaise watched the duo, sensing that there was something going on between Draco and Hermione. He chuckled, "There's no way."

Draco nodded towards Blaise, "I agree. We can't just back down because you feel sorry for your goody good friends, Hermione. They want a fight? We'll give them one."

"Draco!" Hermione frowned. "I don't want any fighting!"

Theo watched as Hermione easily placed her hand on Draco's arm, gently squeezing it as she spoke. The touch's easiness suggested intimacy and trust between Draco and her. Draco relaxed under Hermione's touch, offering her a small, apologetic smile. Theodore bristled, seeing red. He laughed bitterly, "It seems no one around here ever gets what they want."

Draco's eyes flickered to Theodore's. "I usually do." Draco smirked at Theo.

Hermione felt uneasy at the exchange between the two boys. It was as if they were no longer talking about Harry and Ron, but of her instead. She looked at Theodore and Draco closely, grimacing.

"Let me guess…it's because you're a Malfoy." Theodore drawled.

Draco's smirk deepened, "Exactly."

Blaise stood next to Hermione, and he pulled her back a step with him. Hermione looked at him, confused. Blaise didn't meet her gaze, instead keeping his eyes on the two in front of him. Blaise could feel the tension in the air, and he was sure a fight would break out between Draco and Theodore. He wanted to make sure that Hermione didn't get caught in-between them when it broke out.

Theodore narrowed his eyes, "You're such a pompous prat, Draco."

Draco laughed loudly, eyes mocking Theodore. "Are you seriously trying to pick a fight with me?" A big grin adorned Draco's lips, his eyes alight with mischief. "Here's some advice, only pick fights you can win." Draco winked at Theodore, his grin still in place.

Blaise pulled Hermione another few steps back, and covered her mouth with his hand, muffling her protests. "Shhhh. This is going to be interesting." He whispered into Hermione's ear gleefully. Blaise was usually very calm and easygoing, but even he enjoyed a good fight. Hermione looked up at Blaise incredulously, outraged that he would let the two boys continue on the path they were on.

"It seems to me you should take your own advice. If I remember correctly, all the fights you've started with Potter, you've sorely lost." Theo said smugly.

Draco's grin faded, and his eyes grew stormy. "You're pathetic, Theodore. The only reason you have to insult and fight me is that you fancy Hermione Granger, and she doesn't return those feelings…at least not for you."

Those last words were the last straw for Theodore. Theodore's fist connected under Draco's jaw, sending Draco sprawling onto one of the desks. His head slammed against a corner of the hard wood, an ugly sound echoing in the room from it. Blaise held Hermione back as she tried to rush forwards to aid Draco.

Theodore watched as Draco stood back up shakily, and raised a hand to the back of his head. Theodore's hands remained tightly clenched into fists, knuckles turning white with the effort. Hermione gasped at seeing the vibrant red stain on Draco's hand from his head. Blaise shifted his weight from one foot to the other, getting a bad feeling. This fight wasn't going to be a fair one, and an unfair fight held no appeal to Blaise. Before he could stop the fight from continuing, he watched Draco's arm cut through the air towards Theodore.

Draco lunged forwards, his arm swinging through the air swiftly as he punched Theodore straight in his left eye. Theodore stumbled back, tripping over a stool and onto the floor. Draco kicked Theodore's side viciously, a snarl on his lips. He stepped away, turning his back on Theodore. Theodore was curled into a ball, his side and face aching.

Draco felt light headed as the back of his scalp continued to leak his pureblood. It coated his platinum hair, causing it to be sticky and slick. He turned to Hermione, grimacing at the horror on her face. He nodded at Blaise, silently thanking him for holding her back.

"Draco!" Hermione yelled. It was his only warning as Draco felt cold steel and sharp pain on the back of his head. He staggered forwards weakly, falling onto his hands and knees. His vision dimmed, spots appearing. A heavy weight crashed onto his back, causing him to flatten on the ground violently. He was sure he had broken something from the impact, his ribs pounding while fire spread over his skin. Draco heard Hermione screaming, her sobs echoing in his head. One of the room's steel and wood stools fell beside him, narrowly avoiding his body. Draco's eyes rolled up, searching the room. He saw Blaise struggling with Theodore, pulling him to a corner of the room. Hermione rushed to Draco's side, tears streaming down her face.

Draco opened his mouth, "it's okay." His voice croaked out. His cheek lay on the cold floor, refreshing his burning body. His back screamed at him, and it felt as if a hot iron was laid across it. Draco felt Hermione carefully caress his head, and saw his blood coat her small hands.

"Oh, Draco." She whimpered. She pressed a kiss to his temple. "Blaise went for Madam Pomfrey."

Draco wanted to succumb to the darkness which clouded his vision, the darkness promised no pain or suffering. He closed his eyes, before fluttering them back open. He tried to roll over, to better see Hermione, but she stilled him with her hands.

"Don't move, Draco." She pleaded, while her hands remained gentle on his body.

Draco groaned in pain as he tensed his muscles. "I'm fine." He tried to reassure Hermione, even though he felt anything but. Hermione shook her head, not believing his lie.

"No, you're not." She whispered. "This is my entire fault…"

Draco closed his eyes as a fresh wave of pain vibrated through his head. "No, it's not." He reached for Hermione, placing his hand on her knee even though his body protested the movement.

He gently squeezed her knee, trying to calm her down. Just then Madam Pomfrey ran in, Professor Snape at her side. The nurse was pushing a cot which was on top of a wheeled cart. She bustled at Draco's side, shooing Hermione. Draco frowned at the nurse, "I want her to stay." He growled softly, indicating Hermione. The nurse sighed, nodding back at Hermione. Professor Snape's eyebrow raised at Draco's statement, the wheels in his mind turning as his sharp eyes watched Hermione and Draco's interaction.

Professor Snape internally cringed when Hermione kneeled down and kissed Draco's forehead softly. It seemed his suspicions were true; young Malfoy had begun a dangerous game of love and lust with Granger. Snape did not envy the couple, he knew of the pain they would soon encounter by having a secret love in these tumultuous times. His thought pattern was interrupted by Madam Pomfrey nudging him softly.

Madam Pomfrey nodded her head towards Draco, and Snape nodded in agreement. She voiced their opinion out loud. "We have to move you; it's going to hurt…" She warned.

Draco nodded, grimacing. As soon as they lifted his body, intense pain wracked his body. He convulsed, causing the injury on the back of his head to come in contact with someone's arm roughly. He couldn't hold back the darkness this time, and he drifted into it even as Hermione begged him not to. Losing consciousness was as easy as falling asleep, and he couldn't help but welcome the relief it brought him to just let go for once.

Madam Pomfrey began to wheel Draco out of the classroom and towards the Hospital Wing. Hermione began to follow, but was stopped by Professor Snape's grip on her arm.

"Thank you, Miss Granger; however, I'm sure you have classes you need to attend." Professor Snape droned.

Hermione stood open-mouthed, shocked. "I'd like to be there for Draco when he wakes up…" She said hesitantly.

"I am not sure that would be wise for your…situation." The professor said cautiously in his monotonous tone.

Hermione cocked her head to the side, "My situation?"

"The one you share with young Malfoy." Snape sighed, exasperated.

Hermione flushed a scarlet red at the implication. She hadn't tried to hide her feelings for Draco just then, but how could she when he was lying there hurt and damaged? He had needed her, and had even told Pomfrey that he wanted Hermione there with him…Hermione was sure that he would want to see her when he came to.

"All the more reason for me to be there for him." Hermione defiantly told her professor.

Professor Snape grimaced. He did not expect Hermione to be so headstrong in this matter. She was usually a very logical girl, and he wasn't sure why she refused to acknowledge the reason behind his advice. Snape would just let her go to Draco, but he knew that the boy's father was already on his way to the infirmary to see his son. Lucius would not be pleased to see Granger fawning over his only son.

"Then perhaps you wouldn't mind being there for him along with his father." Professor Snape replied bitterly.

Hermione froze at that. Draco had asked her to keep this secret, because of his father…and she had agreed. But, she felt compelled to be at Draco's side. Hermione sighed, in turmoil about all this. "What am I going to do?" She whispered to herself.

Professor Snape frowned, eyes softening as he took in Hermione's disheveled appearance. "Go to your room, you'll be excused from your classes today. And when Malfoy's father leaves, I'll have someone send for you." Snape knew he shouldn't be so kind, especially in these times when his loyalty was being tested-but he saw some of himself in Hermione Granger. With her and Draco's relationship, he saw the undying love he had for Lily Potter…

Hermione nodded at the professor, "Alright. Thank you, professor." A tear slipped from her eye, and as she stared into Snape's eyes, she felt that Snape had been in her situation before-and that he had lost his life's love. Before Hermione could comment on her newest hypothesis, Professor Snape turned abruptly and left the room. Hermione stood alone, more confused than ever.

She began the walk to her room, worrying the entire way there. She felt angry at Theodore, and even Blaise. She knew Theodore wasn't exactly friends with Draco anymore, and that he was upset that Hermione had set him straight at the party-but that was no reason to nearly kill someone over. And Blaise! He just stood there and let the punches roll! Well, Hermione thought grudgingly, he did pull Theodore back when he went too far… She sighed, boys were so stupid.

Hermione arrived at the portrait, which swung open like so many times before. She was halfway across the room, on her way to her bed, when she paused. She looked back at Draco's bedroom door, which was slightly open. Hermione turned, and walked to his room instead. Pushing the door open, she took in the sight of his messy room. Clothes lay in a pile in one corner, his exercise equipment in disarray in another corner, his bed unmade… but Hermione smiled fondly at the disorder. He had been so busy lately, so scatterbrained with all that had happened between them.

Hermione's heart ached at the thought of him, so she stripped off her school robes and crawled into his bed in just her underwear. Its sheets and pillows still smelled of him, peppermint and expensive cologne, much to her delight. His smell was an intoxicating perfume which comforted her and made her skin tingle with awareness. She inhaled deeply, curling into a ball in the center of his bed. His silk sheets felt good against her bare skin, but she wished that it was Draco's warm body that blanketed her instead. A sob escaped her, and she whispered a quiet prayer that Draco heal quickly and that his father leave even more quickly.

This entire situation was getting out of hand, in so little time. It seemed that life had woven for her an intricate web of heartache. She assumed this was how Juliet felt for Romeo, and desperately wished that she and Draco wouldn't have a tragic ending such as theirs. Hermione sighed; she knew that she would have to go speak to Theodore eventually and somehow make this right. She didn't want him or Draco getting hurt over her, it was ridiculous and unnecessary. She felt so guilty over the entire thing…maybe she should cancel her "lessons" with Theodore. She wasn't even sure she could go through with it because her heart now belonged fully to Draco, ever since he had admitted his feelings for her. Hermione didn't know how she could even have such strong feelings for Draco, and she wasn't sure how Harry and Ron would take it whenever they found out. They were another matter; she would have to speak to Harry and Ron to back off of the Slytherin boys a bit because that was adding to the drama between her and her Slytherins. And then there was the dance that still needed to be planned…Hermione groaned into Draco's pillow, feeling like she was drowning in problems with no evident solution. Hot tears fell from her eyes onto Draco's sheets. Eventually, Hermione's cries lulled her to sleep, in which she dreamed of Draco singing to her once again.

How was it? Who were you rooting for? Theo or Draco? ;) Anywaysss, in a review or PM let me know! Oh, and please follow me on Twitter if you're reading this story! I'm going to start tweeting stuff for this fanfic (when I'm going to update, if I need any plot ideas, any new fanfics I do, etc) JesicaSchauer is my twitter name! Oh, and tweet me so I know you're a reader and I can follow you in return! 3 :) Love you all!