Draco was really annoyed that he had been disturbed mere moments before he got to discover if Hermione was as good of a kisser as she had been in the story. He fully expected her to be just as good as she had been in the book, but now he would have to wait until later to find out. In fact Draco now wasn't sure when, or even if, he would get another chance with Hermione. He was worried that if he didn't act when her thoughts and feelings were still fresh from the story that she might not give him a chance.
Still mentally cursing the idiot at the door, Draco pulled open the door. Draco had fully intended on telling whoever was at the door to bugger off but upon spotting the headmaster he realised that wasn't an option, no matter how tempting it was.
"Mr Malfoy, may we come in?" Dumbledore asked.
It was only at the word we that Draco realised the headmaster wasn't alone. Professors McGonagall, Snape, Flitwick and Sprout were all standing behind the headmaster. As if that wasn't strange enough, his four friends were also present as were all the Gryffindor boys in seventh year and Ginny.
As Draco stepped back to let everyone into the common room he realised that almost everyone had featured pretty heavily in the medieval story. Draco suddenly had a funny feeling what was about to happen, it just seemed like too much of a coincidence that everyone should show up not long after the story had ended. Draco was now pretty confident that he hadn't been the only person in the story that shouldn't have been there, from the looks of things the entire cast had been present in the tale.
Hermione had also seemed to come to the same conclusion, as when everyone trooped into the room she had become distinctly uncomfortable. Refusing to look at anyone, Hermione kept her eyes focused on the plush carpet below her feet. It was mortifying enough that Draco had been in the story and had memories of being intimate with her but she didn't want to believe that everyone else had been present. Snape and Ginny especially were her major concerns, just remembering what she knew about them was bad enough but she shuddered to think that her best female friend and her Potions Professor had memories of being together in a sexual way.
"Miss Granger, we've come to talk to you about your immersion book." Dumbledore began, once everyone was gathered around the seating area.
"Please tell me you weren't all there." Hermione whispered, clinging onto the hope she had just been jumping to conclusions.
"I'm afraid so." Dumbledore said. "Although it was actually rather fun, if not a bit unexpected." He added with a smile.
"Speak for yourself." Snape muttered. "I didn't have fun."
"Really?" Draco grinned mischievously from beside Snape. He had just been passing his head of house to return to his seat on the sofa when he had heard the muttering. "From what I remember you were having plenty of fun."
"Draco, shut up." Snape snarled at the Head Boy.
"Sorry, I was under the impression you liked redheads." Draco shrugged. "Or maybe you just objected to the kinkier nature of the sex."
"That is enough." Snape yelled, turning bright red at Draco's implications. "Come to my office tomorrow morning and we can discuss the weeks' worth of detentions you've just earned yourself."
"Man you would think someone with the memories of constantly getting some action would be in a better mood." Blaise muttered as his friend slunk down on the sofa.
"Thank you, Mr Zabini, for volunteering to join Mr Malfoy in detention." Snape glared at Blaise. "I'll expect you in my office with him in the morning."
"That's not fair." Theo protested. "It was Granger that cast you as a kinky king in her little fairy tale. She should be punished, not us innocent Slytherins."
"Now I have a set of three for detention." Snape declared, giving Theo the exact same instructions as Draco and Blaise regarding his whereabouts the following morning. "Would anyone else care to make a comment?" He asked, turning his frosty glare on the group of Gryffindors, who all hastily shook their heads and kept their mouths shut.
"Perhaps we can got back to the reason we're here." McGonagall tutted. "Finding out why we all ended up in the book."
"Granger clearly messed up the spell." Theo snorted.
"I did not." Hermione retorted, glaring at the Slytherin. "I cast the spell perfectly."
"Clearly not, or we wouldn't have all ended up in the book." Theo snapped back.
"Enough." Dumbledore called, raising his hands as he called for silence. "Miss Granger, could I please have a look at the book so I can see the spell."
Hermione nodded and rushed off to her bedroom, pleased to be away from the crowd in the common room. Once in her room, Hermione took her time gathering the book. She was totally mortified that everyone had been present in the book and despite her protests she was now worrying that she had cast the spell incorrectly. Normally it wouldn't be something she was worried about but she had to admit when she cast the spell she had been annoyed at Draco and was doing it more to prove a point to him, rather than she was actually ready to do the spell.
Knowing she couldn't delay her return any longer, Hermione composed herself before leaving her bedroom and heading back to the common room. Handing the book to Dumbledore, Hermione sat back down on her chair and continued not to make eye contact with anyone.
"Was the spell sealed?" Dumbledore asked, as he examined the spell in the front of the book. "It hadn't been tampered with had it?"
"No, it was sealed. I opened it minutes before casting the spell." Hermione answered.
"You'll be pleased to know, Miss Granger that you didn't cast the spell wrong. Like you said, you cast it perfectly." Dumbledore smiled reassuringly at Hermione when she looked up, visibly relieved that the strange events hadn't been caused by her.
"If Hermione cast the spell right, then what happened?" Ginny asked, speaking for the first time since telling Dumbledore about the immersion book in the first place. "Why did we all end up in the story?"
"We all ended up in the story because that's what this spell is designed to do." Dumbledore explained. "This book doesn't have the right spell attached. It is a genuine immersion book but the spell had been changed so that everyone in the story will experience the tale."
"How is that possible?" McGonagall asked. "What sort of a place would sell a book like that without a warning?"
"I have no idea." Dumbledore replied. "As I said the book is a genuine immersion book and all the instructions clearly state that the spell caster only will enter the book as the lead character. All I can think of is that someone somehow managed to tamper with a batch of the books and change the spells."
"Then we need to inform people." McGonagall declared. "Miss Granger, where did you buy the book?"
"I didn't buy it. It was a birthday present from Harry and Ron." Hermione answered, looking at her two best friends for the first time since they entered the room.
Everyone's attention switched to the two Gryffindors. Harry and Ron were standing with their heads bent and they were shuffling guiltily from foot to foot. One glance at the pair revealed to everyone that they had some sort of idea what had gone wrong with the book.
"What did you two do?" McGonagall asked the two boys. "Did you tamper with the spell?"
"No." Ron shook his head vehemently. "We never touched the spell."
"Where did you get the book?" Dumbledore asked.
"Well we looked in Diagon Alley but they were too expensive in Flourish and Blotts." Harry explained. "We then heard of a shop selling them for half price so we went there."
"Where was this shop?" Snape snapped, annoyed with the long winded explanation.
"Knockturn Alley." Harry muttered, sheepishly.
Harry's confession was met by disbelieving looks by the Professors, Hermione and the other Gryffindors. The Slytherins however burst out laughing at the revelation, with both Blaise and Theo making a few scathing remarks to the Gryffindor duo.
"What were you thinking, shopping in Knockturn Alley?" McGonagall questioned in an unimpressed voice. "You were just asking for trouble."
"We didn't know the book had a dodgy spell." Ron protested.
"Yeah, because Knockturn Alley is a totally respectable place and it's a complete shock that you picked up a dodgy book." Blaise scoffed.
"I'm just shocked the little goody goody's had the balls to shop in Knockturn Alley." Theo said, looking at the two Gryffindors in surprise. "I thought they would have taken one step into the street before turning and fleeing."
Harry and Ron glared at the Slytherin, both annoyed that he had figured they would be too afraid of Knockturn Alley. They were both trying hard to forget that in fact they had been pretty spooked and had practically sprinted out of the street once they had the book in their possession.
"I'm disappointed in both of you." Dumbledore announced, stopping the bickering between the students with his serious tone. "We need to have a serious talk about this, but that can wait until tomorrow. Right now, I think it's time we all headed back to our respective rooms."
"What about the spell?" Snape asked. "Will there be any side effects."
"No, there shouldn't be any." Dumbledore replied. "The spell is basically just an altered version of the one that should be there, so we'll be fine."
"Good, I can leave now." Snape declared, turning on his heel and storming out of the head dorms.
Professor's Sprout and Flitwick followed Snape, as did the Slytherin's after saying goodbye to Draco. When the Gryffindors began to leave Hermione stopped Harry and Ron, ordering her friends to remain behind so they could talk. Ginny also stayed behind with her brother and boyfriend, eager to see what sort of reason they had for shopping in Knockturn Alley.
"Mr Potter, Mr Weasley, I want you both in my office tomorrow morning." Dumbledore told the two boys, before turning to Hermione. "Miss Granger, I'll take this book for safe keeping but I'll make sure you get a real immersion book in its place."
"That's really not necessary, Professor." Hermione protested.
"Nonsense, I insist." Dumbledore said with a smile, before leaving with McGonagall.
Once the Professor's had left, Hermione turned to glare at her two best friends. "Why did you do it?" She demanded. "You didn't have to go shopping in Knockturn Alley just to make me happy, I would have liked anything I'd gotten from you."
"We heard you telling Ginny how much you would love an immersion book and the idea stuck." Harry said, trying to explain their reasoning to Hermione. "We really wanted to get you something special."
"I appreciate that, I really do." Hermione smiled at the duo. "But why didn't you just get me something else when you couldn't afford one in Diagon Alley."
"That was my fault." Ron admitted quietly. "I really wanted you to have an immersion book."
"Why?" Hermione looked puzzled as to why Ron was so desperate for her to have an immersion book.
"Isn't it obvious?" Draco questioned with a laugh. "Weasley thought that if you had an immersion book he would end up being your leading man. Hell, he probably deliberately bought you a racy one in the hope that you would want to experience the real thing when you finished the book."
"That's not true." Hermione said to Draco before turning to Ron, who was looking pretty sheepish. "Tell me that's not why you bought the book, Ron?" She pleaded with her friend.
Instead of answering Ron hung his head as he turned red.
"I can't believe you." Ginny tutted at her brother. "What sort of idiotic plan was that?"
"It would have worked fine, if it wasn't for him." Ron muttered, glaring at Draco. "He wasn't supposed to get the starring role."
"I obviously got the starring role because Granger would rather shag me than you." Draco smirked, unable to resist taunting the redhead.
"Only in a story, she wouldn't touch you in real life." Ron snarled back.
"Stop it the pair of you." Hermione snapped at the bickering duo. "Ron, I'm sorry but I'm just not interested in you in that way. You're one of my best friends, but that's as far as it goes."
"What about him?" Ron asked, glaring at the blond haired Slytherin. "Is there anything going on with him?"
"No, not that it's any of your business." Hermione responded as she stood up. "I'm off to bed now, I trust you can see yourselves out."
Once Hermione had stormed off to her bedroom, slamming the door behind her, Draco turned to the three Gryffindors. "You can leave now." He said, gesturing to the door.
Harry and Ginny immediately headed for the door but Ron remained where he was, glaring at Draco.
"What's the problem, Weasley?" Draco asked with a sigh. "Have you forgotten your way back to your dorm?"
"No, I just want to give you a warning." Ron said, causing the blond to raise an eyebrow in his direction. "Leave Hermione alone."
"Is that it?" Draco sighed.
"Yes." Ron nodded. "Stay away from her."
"I really think that's Granger's decision to make." Draco replied, finally managing to manoeuvre Ron out of the common room. "And just so you know, I have no intention of leaving her alone. I want her and I'm going to get her."
Ron gaped at the Slytherin and his confession but before he had a chance to respond, Draco slammed the door in his face. Turning away from the door, Draco smirked at the look on the redhead's face but the smirk faded as his thoughts turned back to Hermione.
Draco stood in the common room for a bit while he debated over whether or not to go and speak to Hermione. She may have stormed off angrily but her anger hadn't been aimed in his direction and before Dumbledore had arrived they had been on the verge of kissing. Making the decision to speak to Hermione right away, Draco strode through the common room and headed upstairs. Once upstairs he paused slightly before knocking on Hermione's door, he could hear the Gryffindor pacing and muttering inside and he hoped he was doing the right thing by not leaving her alone.