Chapter 13

Draco did take in consideration of what Pansy said to him that night. He played the conversation over in his head plenty of times. It bothered him like crazy, but it still lingered in his mind. He thought about it the rest of that night and the next day up until the afternoon when he was getting ready for the Halloween Ball. He was alone in the master bedroom changing into his costume. Well, it wasn't much of a costume. Draco was never really a Halloween type of person so he opted for simple black robes and a mask.

He sat down on the bed with his head in his hands. The feelings had been eating away at him constantly and he couldn't take it anymore. He didn't even act like himself anymore. He didn't feel like himself. Draco Malfoy does not stress over a girl. He stood up suddenly and decided that tonight he would tell Hermione what he felt. Grabbing his coat from the closet, he left the bedroom and left to the Great Hall.

Hermione had gone over to Ginny's dorm after dropping of the kids at the children's center. The little red head was eager to help her get ready and Hermione couldn't say no to her best friend. Hermione had chosen a fairy for her costume, somewhat similar to Eleina's. She wore an elegant, white, strapless dress that had jewels all over. Ginny charmed her wings so that it would stick to the back of the dress. Her hair was pulled back into a high ponytail and she wore very light make-up with glitter all along her bare skin on her face and arms.

Ginny took a step back to admire her look and a wide grin grew on the girl's face. Hermione couldn't help but blush a little. She looked in the mirror for the first time and a little gasped escaped between her lips. Hermione was never one to be conceited nor was she self-centered, but the moment she saw herself she felt beautiful.

"Ginny! You're a miracle worker!" Hermione exclaimed as she flew to her friend and wrapped her arms around the girl.

"Well, it wasn't hard. I didn't really do much considering you're already pretty. Wait until Jacob sees you! He'll just die!"

"Ginny," Hermione laughed, "We're only going as friends, nothing more."

"So? He will still gawk over you, I'm sure of it. All guys are alike. When they see someone who is as gorgeous as you, they'll go after them."

"Since when were you such an expert on boys?"

"Since forever. Now, let's get you back to your dorm before Jacob arrives."

Hermione nodded and followed Ginny out the door. They walked down the corridor heading towards Hermione's dorm when they spotted someone standing near the doorway. The person was wearing long black robes and had greasy black hair. It looked like Snape, but why would Snape be lingering down the corridor? The two girls reached the person and tapped them on the shoulder. Hermione and Ginny burst out laughing when they saw who it was wearing the robes and black wig.

"Harry," Hermione said and paused to laugh more, "What on earth? Are you dressed as Professor Snape?"

"Yeah, great costume, right?" Harry said with a grin.

"Why in Merlin's name are you dressed as Snape?" Ginny asked, still laughing.

"You're supposed to dress up as something scary for Halloween, right? I think my costume is great. Can't wait to see what Snape thinks about it, though."

At that, Hermione and Ginny doubled over with laughter. They wiped the tears from their eyes before recollecting themselves. Hermione was about to say something to Harry, but when she turned to him she saw him staring at her with his mouth slightly open.

"Close your mouth, Harry Potter. That is so rude." Hermione said to him.

"Sorry Hermione, but you look stunning."

"Doesn't she? I think so, too." Ginny said, putting a hand over Hermione's shoulder. Hermione just smiled at her two friends and walked over to her portrait.

"Thanks again for helping me get ready, Gin. I'll see you later at the ball, Harry." Hermione called to them before entering.

Hermione went up to her bedroom expecting to see Draco, but the room was empty. She walked over to the mirror and reapplied some of her make up before she heard a knock coming from the portrait. She hurriedly ran downstairs and walked out of the dorm to see Jacob, dressed as a knight in shining armor, waiting for her.

"Hermione, you look absolutely gorgeous!" Jacob greeted her and leaned down to give her a kiss on the cheek. A blushed crept onto Hermione's face as she smiled at him.

"Thank you, Jacob. You look great!"

"You don't have to lie to make me feel good."

"I'm not lying!"

Jacob chuckled and held out his arm for her. Hermione took it and walked with him towards the Great Hall. Once they reached there, they saw a crowd of people standing outside the doors. Dumbledore stood in the front of the crowd.

"There's been a slight change of plans. The Halloween ball will no longer be held here in the Great Hall. It has been moved outside. Now, if all would make your way out the front doors." Dumbledore announced and held his hand out to guide the students out of the castle.

Hermione and Jacob walked out the school to see the outside was completely decorated with Halloween décor. The moon was shining brightly in the sky and the millions of stars gave a romantic affect to the sky. Tables were set out for the students to enjoy dinner before the dance. Dumbledore reappeared in the middle of the dance floor and face them.

"Please, take a seat at one of the tables. Dinner will begin shortly."

Everyone started moving as they looked for friends and grabbed a seat at one of the tables. Hermione spotted Harry and Ron and guided Jacob to them. Pansy, Draco, and Millicent was also at the table. Ron was dressed as a werewolf, Millicent was dressed as a Healer, and Pansy was dressed as a cat, which reminded Hermione all too much of her second year. Jacob pulled out a chair for Hermione to sit and sat down right next to her.

"Hermione, you look great!" Ron said to her once she sat down.

At once, Draco looked over at her and had to force himself not to stare with wide eyes. That couldn't be Hermione sitting in front of him. No, it was an angel that had fallen from the sky. Her skin glowed under the moonlight, her cheeks flushed with a slight hint of pink, and her eyes were hazel brown filled with warmth. Draco shook his head and looked away. He couldn't look at her any longer. Little did he know that Hermione had already seen the look on his face.

Dinner appeared a few minutes later and everyone was enjoying the magnificent feast. The music began an hour later as student began to make their way to the dance floor. Jacob held his hand out to Hermione asking her for a dance. She responded by taking it and they too walked to the dance floor. Draco just glared at the couple, watching from the side lines.

"Do you want to dance, Draco?" Pansy asked. He looked back to the table and noticed that everyone save himself and Pansy were gone. Draco nodded and held out his hand for her. They entered the dance floor just as a slow song began to play. He looked over at Hermione and Jacob. They held each other closely, his arms around her waist, her arms around his neck, and her head was pressed again his chest.

"Quit staring at them, Mr. Obvious." Pansy said.

"I'm no.." Draco began, but Pansy beat him before he could finish.

"Don't even try to deny it." Pansy cut him off. He grumbled underneath his breath, but said nothing. "When are you going to talk to her?" She continued.

"I was going to tonight, but seeing that she's getting so close to that git I don't think it's the right time."

"Are you an idiot, Draco? You're going to wait until she get's closer to him and then tell her? Seriously, I thought you were a lot smarter than that."

"How the hell am I going to get the chance to talk to her if she's dancing with him all night?"

"I can help you with that."

Draco looked at her, confused, and she gave him a wink before walking over to Hermione and Jacob. He watched as she tapped Hermione on the shoulder and whispered something into her ear. Pansy pointed in his direction and the two looked over at him. Draco silently cursed her. The next thing he saw was Pansy dancing with Jacob and Hermione walking towards him. He stood up tall when she reached him and gave her a short not as to say hello.

"Pansy said you wanted to talk to me?"

"Yes, let's go over to where there are less people."

Hermione nodded and followed him around the castle. Draco sat down on a stone bench while she stood. For a moment, it was silent. The only sound that could be heard was the faint music coming from the ball and the howling wind that blew passed them once in a while. Hermione look at the leaves on the floor that had fallen during the season while Draco stared off into the forest. Finally, the silence was broken by the sound of Draco's voice.

"Aren't you going to sit?"

"Is this going to take long?"

Draco shrugged and returned his gaze to the forest. Hermione sighed and walked over to sit beside him on the cool stone bench. Another guest of wind blew towards them that made Hermione shiver. She rubbed her arms to gain some warmth, but suddenly felt a heavy cloth around her. She looked up to see that Draco had draped his cloak over her.

"Thanks," Hermione said as she tightened it around her shoulders. Draco responded with a nod. "So, what did you want to talk to me about?"

Draco waited before responding. He needed to gather his thoughts and come up with how he was going to tell her about his feelings. He was good a lot of things, but this, not very much.

"Granger, this is very difficult for me to explain. I don't usually do this type of thing, express my feelings, but for some strange reason you have led me to do it."

"I don't understand what you are trying to say. What did I do this time?"

"You…You're just…just you in general." Draco stammered.

"Well, I'm sorry for being myself. Care to tell me how I should act? You're good at that, aren't you? Controlling others?" Hermione said, slightly angry.

"Calm down, Granger. I'm not saying it's a bad thing. Most of it, anyway." Draco sighed before talking again, "I have this strange attraction towards you. I've never felt this way about anyone before. Maybe it's because I'm always around you that's led me to feel like this or maybe it's just who you are…what I guess I'm trying to say's I know it's not love, but I've been trying to figure out what it is."

Hermione sat there in shock. Draco Malfoy was sitting here next to her admitting to having feelings towards a person and not just any person, but her. She didn't know what to think or what to say. She had admitted her feelings to him weeks before, but she had hoped to get rid of it, eventually. Now that he admitted to returning the feelings, she didn't know what to do.

"Are you sure? Maybe this is just short term thing. It'll pass." Hermione asked, not looking him in the eye.

"I know what I'm feeling, Granger. When ever I see you with that Jordan fellow, I.."

"Jacob, his name is Jacob. Merlin, Malfoy! Are you ever going to get it right?"

"I could care less what his name is! Anyways, as I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted, whenever I see you with that Jacob fellow, I get this feeling in the pit of my stomach, like I want to punch the git."

"Jealousy"

"No, not jealousy."

"Yes, I think it is jealousy. There's no reason for you to feel the need to act violent towards him if you weren't jealous."

"Fine, maybe a little bit."

Hermione gave a short laugh. Was this really happening? First, Draco admitting that he had feelings for her and now he was even admitting to being slightly jealous. This has got to be some weird dream.

"What do you suggest we do?" Hermione asked in a voice barely below a whisper.

"Well, I'm not going to ask you to be my girlfriend or anything."

"Oh, because I was so waiting for you to ask me." Hermione said sarcastically. Draco just rolled his eyes. "I guess we just continue with the way things are and see what happens. If our feelings for each other decrease, fine, but if our feelings increase…"

"Then we'll snog every night."

"Malfoy!" Hermione exclaimed and smacked him in the arm.

"What?"

It was Hermione's turn to roll her eyes. "We shouldn't be thinking of that right now. We don't even know if we'll reach that point. Of course, we should stop having so many arguments. That would be helpful."

"You need to remind yourself of that more often."

"Here we go again. Let's just stop before this turns ugly. We need to start acting more like friends. No more fighting, especially in front of the kids."

"Fine."

"Say it like you mean it."

"That's a fine idea, anything you wish!" Draco said sarcastically in a perky voice, with annoyance written all over his face. Hermione just laughed and shook her head.

"Come on, let's get back to the party."

Hermione got up and dragged Draco along as she walked back towards the front of the castle. The ball was alive as ever when they got back. Most of the students were on the dance floor and everyone looked to be enjoying themselves. They walked back over to Pansy and Jacob who were talking on the side.

"Finally, I thought you two would never come back." Pansy said, with a smirk on her face, silently telling them she knew what had happened between the two.

"I'm so sorry to have kept the queen waiting." Draco said, sarcasm spilling out with every word. Pansy laughed and playfully punched him on his shoulder. A slow song began to play in the background. Jacob was about to ask Hermione to dance, but Pansy quickly grabbed him and pushed him to the dance floor, winking at Draco and Hermione before disappearing into the crowd. Draco shook his head at his best friend.

"May I have this dance, Hermione?" Draco asked politely, holding out his hand for her. Hermione was shocked to hear him say her name, but quickly got over it.

"Of course, Draco." Hermione smiled, and took his hand.

The two made their way into the center of the dance floor. Hermione wrapped her arms around his neck while he held her waist. She laid her head lightly on his chest, feeling his heartbeat. He hesitantly rested his chin on the top of her head as they slowly danced the night away, both wondering the same thing. Where is their relationship going to go after the night ends?