Flashback:

"Draco is torturing himself, Hermione is one clueless witch, I'd give her that."


Hermione sleepily opened an eye. The smell of medicine filled her lungs. What happened? she asked herself. She tried to remember what had happened. A memory of flying popped into her head, along with falling. But other than that, nothing. Her head spun, and she sat up abruptly, earning her shot of pain in her head.

"Please, Madam Pomfrey," a soft voice said. "Could I see her? It'll be fast, I promise, she wouldn't even see me."

"I'm sorry, Mr. Malfoy, but she's still unconscious—" Draco? Hermione mused. Who's he visting? Pansy broke her fingernails again?

"But that will be even better! Please," he pleaded. Pleaded? That is so unlike Malfoy, Hermione thought. Who's he visiting, anyway? Pansy? Maybe she broke another nail, she mused.

"—either way, I don't see why you want to see her. Last time I checked, you hated each other," Madam Pomfrey reasoned, ignoring Draco's pleas.

"But I saved her, isn't that enough an excuse?" Draco asked, anger building in his voice.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Malfoy," the nurse repeated. "I'm afraid you can't. You can come back tomorrow; she'll still be here by then."

"Fine," Draco said curtly. "Tomorrow. Thank you, Madam Pomfrey, for your time. But can you do me a favor? Tell her I didn't come." As Draco's retreating footsteps were fading away, Hermione tried to stand up, but her spinning head made her unable to do so. Madam Pomfrey was instantly at her side.

"Ms. Granger," she said. "Not yet, dear. You need to stay here until tomorrow morning. It'll pass, dear, your friends have already told your teachers that you are ill, and that you need to rest."

"I… I'll miss two days of lessons; I can't rest for another day! Please, let me go to class. Please."

"I'm afraid, I can't. You need to rest. Besides," she added, "I don't want to lose my job." Hermione laughed, feeling a lot better. But that was before her head hurt once more. The nurse handed her a potion and said, "Drink this, it'll make the pain diminish, I suggest you get some sleep. I still need to attend to Ms. Parkinson, she broke another nail, she's been complaining for about 30 minutes now." Hermione nodded, giggling and the nurse left her.

After a while, her eyelids felt heavy, and just before she drifted off to slumber, she murmured, "Draco."

!i!

This sucks, Draco thought as he headed toward the Slytherin boys' dormitory, to his – and Blaise's – room. He could hear Daphne's irritated voice as he clutched the doorknob. He pressed his ear to the door, like Muggles do in the… what do you call it? Tellycushion?

"… you never pick me up after class, you never walk with me in the hallways and now you don't sit with me at meals! And don't forget, I saw you with the Weasley girl…" Blaise's girlfriend ranted.

"Daphne, that's just about enough," Blaise yelled. "Ginny is with the Boy Who Lived, I'm with you. You're the one who doesn't sit with me at meals anymore, so I thought, why bother? Besides, why are you being so paranoid?"

"Ginny, hmm?" Daphne said, spitefully. "Didn't know you were on first name terms with Ginny, Blaise."

"Merlin, Daph. I said a lot and all you can process is Ginny? What is your problem? No, don't answer that," Blaise yelled. Then he lowered his voice. "Maybe we need a break, Daphne. To sort things out."

"Break? Sort things out?" Daphne roared. "Are you… breaking up with me?"

"No, Daphne, it's not like that… I'm not breaking up with you. It's just…"

"Just so you could suck face with Weasley?" Daphne interrupted. Draco could imagine what was happening now, Daphne's hand flying to her mouth, her eyes all wide. He could imagine Blaise's expression, his eyes narrowed to slits, his mouth set in a hard line, looking very like his mother when Blaise disobeys her.

"If that's how you put it, Greengrass, I guess this is officially over," Blaise said, the finality unmistakable in his tone.

"B-but, Blaise! I didn't mean it, really! It just slipped out, I'm sorry!" Daphne said, desperately trying to fix something shattered into a million pieces.

"Oh, you meant it, alright. And for the record, I did love you," Blaise stated. Draco stepped back just as the door opened, and Blaise gently shoved his ex-girlfriend out the door.

"Blaise, you're making a mistake! I'm telling you, I'll get you back for this—" Her threats were cut off as the door slammed in her face. Blaise smiled half-heartedly at his best mate.

"Heard a lot, did you?" Blaise asked. Draco could only nod. "Mother will not be proud, she really liked her."

!i!

Colin Creevey grimaced as he was skipping stones at the Black Lake, his camera hung at a tree's branch. "Thought she'd actually notice, such a dimwit…" he muttered as he threw another flat stone. It skipped two times before sinking into the water. Before he had picked up another rock, a hiding Cho Chang said, "Colin."

"Just bugger off, Parvati," Colin said, not turning around. "I do not want anything that you're giving me at the moment. Cho approached him and tapped his shoulder.

"Look, Parvati, I told you," he said, whirling around. He saw who it really was, and said, "Oh, sorry. Hi, Cho."

Cho sensed a tinge of bitterness when he said her name. "Hey, Colin. What are you doing?"

"Skipping stones," he muttered, looking away from her to search if Michael Corner was anywhere near. "Want to try?" he asked, picking up a stone and handing it to her.

"Oh, I'd rather watch…" she said, trailing off. "I…"

"Come on!" Colin urged, adding a pout for good measure and took Cho's hand.

"Really, Colin, I'd rather—" But Colin, still tugged at Cho's hand like a child.

"Nonsense! It's really fun… er, depending on the person," he said, faltering a bit. He just did this to vent... and he wasn't at all sure if Cho will find it 'fun'.

"So… how do I do this thing?" she asked as Colin put the stone on her palm.

"W-what?" he asked, and realized she was asking about skipping stones. "Oh, just… toss it." She looked at him incredulously, like he was pranking her. She faced the lake and tossed the stone. It fell with a splash. Colin laughed, and Cho mock-glared him.

"Oh, really, Colin? Let's see you do better than that," she challenged. Colin smiled pompously. He picked a smooth stone and threw it swiftly, and Cho waved her wand. The stone turned to a pigeon and it flew away before it hit the water.

"What?" Colin asked, befuddled. "You cheat."

Cho opened her mouth, making it form a small 'o' as she feigned shock. "Did not."

"Did too," Colin replied childishly.

"Did not."

"Did too!"

"Did not!"

"Did TOO!"

"Did NOT!"

"Did not," Colin said, smiling.

"Did too…" Cho said, looked at Colin's triumphant smile, then got confused. "Wait… that sounds wrong."

"Ha! I win!" he yelled, punching his fist to the air. Cho stuck out her tongue in a very childish manner and said, "You cheat."

They didn't see Dennis Creevey taking a picture of that very funny moment. Chuckling as he walked away, he said, "Colin better thank me for this."

!i!

"Harry, tell me what's wrong, please," Ginny pleaded to Harry's back. "You can tell me anything."

"Doesn't mean I could, I would," Harry mumbled, facing her, but as soon as he looked at those deep brown eyes, he got lost. "Fine, then. What is up with you and Zabini?"

"Me and Zabini? You mean, Blaise Zabini?" she asked. "Nothing is up with me and him, Harry. I swear."

"B-but the way you talked to him… in the hallway… I thought, you know, maybe… maybe you liked him more than me," Harry stammered. Ginny shook her head, her auburn hair swinging left and right. She reached for Harry's cheek.

"I don't even like Blaise, Harry," she said, kissing his cheeks, slowly edging toward the corners of his lips. Harry, unable to take it anymore, crashed his lips on hers with a groan. "That better be true, Gin," he said against her lips. "'Cause I can't bear not being with you."


A/N

Me: Did this take too long? I'm sorry, if this chapter is lame, yadda, yadda, yadda–

Hermione: HELP!

Me: Whaaa–?

Hermione: I'm deaf! DEAF, I TELL YOU!

Me: Whaaa–?

Hermione: Draco was singing in the shower! SINGING! IN THE SHOWER!

Ginny: I think we all got that. What did he sing?

Hermione: He was singing... singing... singing...

Blaise: Any time now, Hermione.

Hermione: HE WAS SINGING RUBBER DUCKY!

Blaise: Rubber what?

Hermione: The song in Sesame Street! The stupid bath song! It goes like...

Me: OK, YOU PEOPLE! Let's just save that for another time...

Dumbledore: *walks in singing C is for Cookie*

C is for cookie that's good enough for me...
C is for cookie that's good enough for me... C is for cookie that's good enough for me...
Oh, cookie cookie cookie starts with C!

All: AAAAAAAAAAH!

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