Hello!
Thank you for all the lovely reviews, you guys are seriously amazing! I so so so appreciate it. Here is the chaos you have all been waiting for...
Enjoy
M. x
Blaise Zabini was never really an expert on French food, but as he sat in the most well-known and lavish French restaurant in Wizarding London, he had to admit that it didn't really matter either way. He picked at his escargot with disinterest. It was with disinterest that he viewed most things these days: women, status, work, life… and right at the top of that list was polite, though forced, social interactions. And awkward didn't even begin to describe the scene he had set himself in. Not only had an entire hush fallen over the crowd when Harry Potter had walked in, no, now every single patron of the place was whispering madly and casting excited looks at the extremely odd party in the center of the room.
As soon as Potter had sat down, Weasley number one on his right and Weaselette on his left, there had been a few intense moments of sizing up and rude staring. Mostly on Weasel's end but Theo and Blaise were not to be intimidated by a couple of Griffindicks, even if they were Aurors. Pansy had thrown Blaise a threatening glare before turning to Potter's squeeze to chat happily. Blaise rolled his eyes with annoyance, of course she expected him to be the responsible one, he always was. With an utterly bored expression, he turned back to the enemy.
"Potter, Weasel. You're both looking well." Theo glanced at him with a snort before bringing his drink to his lips.
"Zabini." Potter nodded with a strained grimace. Weasley laughed, looking between Blaise and Theo.
"Always thought you were a bit of a poof, Zabini. Had no idea you two were a couple." Theo's face drew into a menacing snarl but before he could bite back, Pansy opened her mouth.
"Weasely, don't be a prat to my friends or I will be forced to reveal all your dirty little secrets to the rest of London." She indicated, with a meticulously manicured hand, to the gossiping crowd around them. Ginny Weasely smirked, turning her gaze to the two Slytherin men.
"Hello, boys."
Theo smiled lasciviously, licking his lips at her. Blaise almost choked on his whiskey at the death stares Theo was receiving. Ginny seemed unabashed by his gaze, and the tension increased. Blaise smiled; maybe this would be less droll than he had previously thought.
He was wrong. Pansy ordered several bottles of champagne; her and little Weasel ploughed through them, while Blaise had been forced to sit there and endure the presence of these idiots while maintaining peace. He was utterly fucking bored. Why Pansy had insisted on inviting them was completely lost on him. He could understand she had a lot to gain by aligning herself with them…but hanging out with them? Being friends? It was completely absurd. Even if they weren't on opposite sides anymore, there were still years of animosity to keep the fire well-fueled. Just as Blaise put down his fork and was about to excuse himself for a smoke, Sirius Black strolled through the front doors in leather pants, his sunglasses still on. He looked like a fucking rock star and the restaurant erupted in admiration at once. Sirius smiled and winked as he made his way through the tables before reaching them. He kissed a blushing Ginny hello, before slinging himself into a chair next to Pansy; he threw a kiss on her cheek, set down a present in front of her and picked up her glass of champagne as he slung an arm around her chair. Pansy was beyond pleased with this entrance; she looked perfectly in her element. "Don't open that until we are in my bedroom tonight…" Sirius grinned broadly and turned to his Godson.
"Looks like I'm more famous than you these days!" He barked, throwing back the champagne. The Slytherins found great amusement at this, and soon the tension ebbed. Black ordered shots for everyone and Theo seemed to warm up to him considerably after that.
As the drinks flowed, they ate course after course of deliciously prepared dishes; talk of Quidditch erupted and even Ron had joined in with the light banter. Blaise however, was watching Pansy, who kept checking her watch and smirking, wider and wider every time. His eyes widened in shock when she pulled out a muggle phone and began typing on it, her eyes turning positively wicked. She returned the phone quickly to her purse, muttered something into Sirius' ear and then indicated towards the two empty seats across from Potter. Blaise was suddenly very curious, could there be more entertainment on the way? Pansy's eyes fell to Blaise and she gave him a look of great anticipation, such an impishly sexy smile could mean only one thing: Pansy Parkinson was plotting. A storm would be coming.
There was the sudden sound of breaking of glass from the entrance and a woman's voice echoed throughout the room.
"Oh I'm so sorry! My fault, completely." A male voice laughed, it sounded vaguely familiar. All heads snapped up and a hush fell over the entire place. Blaise was sure that Christmas had come early; there stood Hermione Granger in the sexiest black dress he had ever seen. And right behind her, all dashing and devil may care, was Draco Bloody Malfoy. Hermione was blushing deeply as she quickly tried to make her way through the crowd, though the affect was somewhat ruined by her unsteady walk in much too high of heels; but she was beyond stunning. Draco walked close beside her, his hand resting on the small of her back. He was sauntering grace, his smugness radiating throughout the room. Damn, Blaise couldn't believe how perfect they looked together. Some of the people dining had actually taken out cameras and were now openly discussing this most sensational event. As soon as they reached the table, Hermione kissed Ginny and Pansy hello quickly before slipping into the seat next to Zabini.
"Well, well, well…what do you think, Theo? Is this not the most wonderful of surprises?" Malfoy smirked, as he took his seat next to her. "You look stunning, Hermione. It's truly a pleasure to see you." He swiftly grabbed her hand bringing it to his lips. She smiled at him.
"Thank you Blaise, you're looking rather dashing yourself." Ron snorted, Hermione acted as if he wasn't even there.
"You remember Theo, no?" Hermione nodded, looking at Theodore Nott. He had certainly gotten handsome. What was with these Slytherin men? In their all black suits…Damn, it was doing her head in.
"Hello, Granger. Looking mighty fine, never realized what a set of tits-" Draco growled at him.
"Play. Nice. Theo." Theo's innocent eyes landed on Blaise.
"What? I was just trying to give the lady a compliment."
"Granger, you look fucking amazing!" Pansy shouted quite loudly from the end of the table.
"Thanks, Pansy." She muttered, laughing despite herself. She turned her gaze to the man sitting across from her. Harry looked weary as well as angry; Hermione wasn't sure but she might have seen a hint of betrayal slip across his features, or maybe it was jealously.
"Hello, Harry." He cleared his throat uncomfortably.
"Hermione, you look beautiful." Draco arched an eyebrow at him before turning to look at the Weasels', neither were happy about the unspoken interaction between their two friends. Hermione looked away first and conversation resumed. Harry waited a few moments for Ron to become distracted, before attempting to gain Hermione's attention, discreetly. Lowering his voice Harry leaned towards her over the table.
"I've thought some more about your proposal…I think it's a solid plan, but we are going to have to work it out together, okay?" Hermione nodded, blushing a bit as she chanced a glance at Draco, willing him to stay silent. He had one eyebrow raised and was definitely curious.
"So." He began, turning his eyes to Harry. "I'm guessing that means Granger here didn't tell you about her little plan? To use me as part of this scheme?"
She closed her eyes. Harry shook his head, apparently too shocked at Hermione confiding in Draco to speak. Malfoy lowered his voice even more, so that no one else could hear, as something Sirius said sent the rest of the table into peals of laughter.
"Did she mention that us being seen together in public would bring Umbridge out? She told me you approved her plan." Harry looked at Hermione with shock.
"I didn't. Hermione, I told you I would think about it and we never discussed details… You went over my head." He looked thoroughly annoyed at that.
"I-I was… The idea just came to me, and Malfoy agreed." She threw him a dirty look.
"So that's why you are here together." Harry said with a grimace.
"No one else can know Harry or it would ruin the whole thing."
"I'm not happy about this Hermione, not one bit-" But they were interrupted, apparently their private discussion had gained some attention.
"What are you whispering about over there? You just missed my best joke." Sirius pouted and Hermione abandoned the conversation with relief. Draco was still looking at her curiously, trying to figure out why she had asked him out if the plan wasn't set into motion yet. Perhaps she just couldn't stay away, he smirked at that thought.
"Hello Sirius." Hermione threw him a dazzling smile.
"Hermione, glad to see you steady on your feet again." He glanced down at her heels. "Well, kind of."
"Pansy made me." Hermione argued reaching for the glass of champagne Draco poured her.
"Yes, she does have that effect doesn't she?" Blaise continued to watch these interactions with growing amusement.
"Why were you two so tardy? I find it impossible, that you of all people, Hermione, would be late." He commented. Hermione looked dumbstruck by the question, horribly flustered in fact.
"Well, we-" She started to improvise.
"Why have dinner when you can skip right to dessert?" Was Malfoy's shocking reply. Potter's eyebrows flew up on his head and he snapped his gaze to Malfoy's with rage.
"And what the fuck does that mean-?" Ron spat. Pansy kicked Ron underneath the table.
"You said you would behave-" Ron cut her off with an annoyed glare but fell silent.
"We were working on a new potion, and we…got caught up, lost track of the time. Not that it's anyone's business." Draco smiled at Potter with satisfaction.
"Plus it takes Granger ages to fix her rat's nest."
"Thank you, Draco." She snarled. Ginny laughed.
"It's true, plus you had to look extra special for your date tonight." Pansy interjected, smirking in delight.
"What date?" Ron asked quickly. "You're already dating? Wow, Hermione you really-"
"And you really don't want to finish that sentence." Hermione growled.
"Who is he?"
Draco rolled his eyes in obvious annoyance.
"You really are fucking thick, Weasely. Aren't you?" Theo drawled with amusement. Ron looked at Hermione and Draco; his arm was slung over her chair, and their bodies were much too close together…
"What? You're kidding me…this has to be a joke." He scoffed in disbelief. However a dark look had entered Draco's eyes.
"I can assure you, Weasely, my intentions are very serious." It looked as though Potter really didn't enjoy the sound of that..and as Weasely opened his mouth to retort, the look that Pansy sent him made him snap his mouth shut and mutter something to Ginny instead.
Blaise smirked to himself. Well this was definitely getting interesting. Apparently the four of them living together had clearly done their heads in. He was allowing his gaze to scan over the rest of the joint, when his eyes fell on the most horrid of creatures. Rita Skeeter had just sat down at the bar and wasn't even trying to pretend that she wasn't watching them. She was full on staring, practically foaming at the mouth with the story she could throw together about this little outing.
Miraculously, they made it all the way through the cake and Pansy opening her presents, and even another round of shots before shit took a serious detour for disaster. Everyone was pretty buzzed if not, full on sloshed by this time, and Blaise was sure nothing good ever came from a "polite social interaction" turning into a full out boozy debauchery. Guards were let down…egos a bit bruised… and the tension. Merlin, he could taste it. There were too many secrets just waiting to burst at the seams, and as he took another sip of his gin, Blaise exchanged a knowing look with Theo.
Weasely was definitely the drunkest of all, second only to Sirius, who seemed to be climbing higher and higher into good spirits. Pansy followed Ron, only slightly behind and Little Weasely looked as if she had had too much. Hermione was holding her own, though that might have been because she had refused any and all shots. And Blaise couldn't tell if Draco was drunk or just bored. It was a rare thing for Mr. Perfectly in Control Malfoy to really let loose like a wild man. His eyes finally came to rest on Potter, who looked ready to cry, or pass out. He was steadily drinking, his fingers tapping impatiently on the tabletop as Ginny and Pansy went on and on about shopping. Potter's gaze was flicking to Hermione and Malfoy so often that it looked as if he had a twitch.
"I'm bored." Drawled Theo. "Amuse me." Blaise turned to tell him to amuse his fucking self but then he realized Theo's eyes were locked on Ron Weasely, who was returning his comment with a very nasty glare.
"How's this for amusing? How much do you think Malfoy paid Hermione to be seen on his arm?" Theo chuckled as Malfoy's head snapped up at the sound of his name. Hermione's eyes flashed with murder.
"Not all of us can be bought, Ron." Ron's eyes snapped to her; fury clashed with fury.
"Actually, Granger pursued me."
"What!?" Ron yelled. Then he began to laugh. "Now you're amusing me. Ridiculous. Absolutely not! Anyone else, just not the ferret; Merlin…I'd rather she was shagging Harry!" Pansy was overcome with glee at this insane outburst and Blaise had to admit that things had definitely taken quite a turn in conversation.
"You selfish prat!" Ginny spat at her brother, she was looking shocked and hurt that he would say such a callous thing. Potter had spilled his wine all over the table; he was beyond flustered; a nervous waiter came running over to fix the damage. But Blaise was pretty sure the damage had just begun. Malfoy was watching Potter's eyes with complete vindictiveness.
"I don't believe Potter would object to that, would you?" Harry's fingers were clenching his wand; his glare was filled with hate. Hermione was sputtering champagne all over herself; she looked at Pansy with immense betrayal.
"You told him?" She accused, her gaze swinging back to Draco. Pansy locked eyes on him and he took the opportunity to do something rash; he read her mind with ease. He wanted to know what the fuck was really going on.
The things he saw from Pansy and Hermione's interaction late, last night completely blew his mind. So it was true. Her and Potter had been fucking. And apparently so had the Weasel and Pansy. Hermione agreeing to her little plan: use him to set the Weasel off? Oh wasn't she just the sneakiest little wench, so she wanted to play games, did she? Lead him on just to provoke another man's attention?
And on top of that, she had lied to him, told him Potter had approved her stupid, little scheme. Why did he possibly think he could trust her? Did he deserve her trust? Probably not, and he had just given her a very good reason not to.
"You fucking dick!" Pansy hissed as she tore her shocked eyes from Draco's steady stare. "He used Occulmency on me! Hermione I swear I didn't say a word…"
So his guess had been right. Potter had gotten her. He had been torturing himself over something that had actually happened. Draco felt justified in his spiteful rampage.
"You told her?" Potter's eyes had hardened into intense betrayal as he stared Hermione down. "You told her?"
"Not in detail!" Hissed Hermione, tears springing to her eyes.
Blaise felt a smile curling up on his lips despite himself, Weasely was looking particularly lost, but Ginny's eyes had cleared of the alcohol and she was staring at Harry with extreme intensity; magic seemed to be rippling off of her in waves.
"Told her what?" Her voice was shaking slightly.
Draco continued on as if she had not spoken, his gaze locked on Hermione.
"And as tempting as it is to believe that you might have asked me here out of the goodness of your heart, what I just saw in Parkinson's twisted little brain suggests otherwise." Malfoy's eyes moved away from Hermione's shocked face to land on Ron with malice. Used. To make a Weasley jealous? He was not their toy. "Is that why you slept with Weasely two nights ago, Pans? Was it all part of the plan?" Not taking his eyes off Ron, he felt great pleasure at the shocked gasp that tore through the table.
"Gross." Theo made a face. Blaise rolled his eyes. Ron turned to Pansy.
"You were plotting against me?"
"Congratu-fucking-lations Weasley, you finally got there." Draco taunted.
"You slept with a Slytherin?" Ginny turned slowly to her brother in utter disgust.
"Now now," Theo crooned. "I wonder what dear Professor Snape would say to that, Weaselette. You know the dungeons aren't as cozy as your tower, sound…echoes down there. So, don't be a hypocrite. It's not nice." He chided her like a small child.
"What do you- I don't even know what you- SHUT UP NOTT!" Ginny was looking much too frazzled; Pansy was staring at her like she had never seen her before.
"Yes, well. Severus always did have a soft spot for redheads." Was Sirius' preposterous reply; chaos erupted. Poor Harry almost choked to death as Ron grabbed Ginny roughly by the shoulders, shaking her and screaming at her incoherently, Pansy was laughing so loud that several tables covered their ears at the shrieks she was omitting. Hermione was trying to stop Ron while Harry was yelling at her and Malfoy was staring at Theo with amused irritation. Merlin, it was great to have the gang back together, and my God, if Black wasn't one of them.
"How come you weren't in Slytherin?" Blaise asked over the noise, but Sirius just smiled and shook his head.
"Another time!" He yelled back, lifting his glass with a salute. They mimicked him and all drank deeply.
"Shut up!" It seemed little Weaslette had finally lost her shit. She stood suddenly, almost knocking Ron off his chair.
"Oh come on Weaslette. Don't ruin all our fun. " Was Draco's scathing reply.
"Fuck, you Malfoy. It's always you, isn't it? Stirring up a ton of shit. You and your bloody henchmen!"
"Maybe you should worry less about what I'm doing and more about who your boyfriend is doing." Hermione sucked in a sharp breath and Pansy kicked at him under the table. She threw him a glare that meant he was on her shit-list. Like he fucking cared. They started this, now he was going to be the one to end it
"What does he mean by that, Harry? What the fuck is he saying?" Ginny raged.
"Isn't it obvious? I though you had brains, unlike your darling brother." Draco spat.
"Harry?" Harry was silent.
"Someone! Please tell me what the fuck is going on!" She was screaming now, and Rita Skeeter was practically having an orgasm. Blaise set down his drink with an exasperated huff. My God, was he really going to have to be the bearer of bad news? The bearer of evil tidings hath but a losing office, yes he had definitely read that somewhere. Maybe it was in one of those Muggle classics that Draco complained Granger "left all over the damn place." He took a deep breath:
"Potter and Granger clearly had something going on, at some point in time. Most definitely; Hermione confided in Pansy about this little mishap, and judging by the look on Potter's face, no one was to ever know about it. And Draco," He pointed at Malfoy for the seemingly dull intelligence that the Weasely's possessed, was exacerbated by their mouths hanging open in shock. "just blew up their spot, intentionally? Possibly. He seems pretty disturbed about the things he just saw in Pansy's mind and therefore is now questioning his own judgment, and reverting back to being a complete dick bag. Granger is already thinking of her next move and the closest way out of here while holding onto her dignity. Weasely is still trying to comprehend everything that I am saying because he is beyond furious that his sister was literally doing "Extra Credit" in Potions for her entire seventh year. Pansy is pouting and Black is well, being Black. Did I get everything clear, Theo?"
"Sparkling." He drawled and began clapping as if he were watching the most divine of performances. Blaise's monologue was followed by a supreme silence that even Sirius didn't dare break. Ginny sat back down and turned to Harry, holding his hands tightly between hers.
"Is it true?" She sounded utterly defeated. "Did you two…were you together?" Harry looked up at her with tortured eyes and she jerked away as if she had been slapped.
"When? Still?" Harry closed his eyes and breathed deeply.
"Ginny, please. Can we not talk about this here, with all of them-"
"Please. Harry. Please I need to know." There was long silence.
"It was, when we weren't together. I didn't tell you because…I didn't want you to look at Hermione differently." That was apparently the wrong thing to say.
"What?" She started laughing. "Oh it's not because you were afraid I would leave you, or because you knew it would hurt me…? Hell I could understand that, but of course, of course it was about protecting Hermione, about making sure her feelings didn't get hurt, that she maintained her perfect little reputation. You disgust me!" She screamed, jumping up again. "You don't think I realize that you're in love with her? That you always have been and you always will be? I just thought, I thought I could make you love me enough." She was sobbing openly now. Everyone but Ron reached for their drink.
"Ginny, I do. I do love you-" Harry lifted himself out of his seat, reaching for her. Her hand shot out so quick there was no blocking it, she threw him an upper cut that knocked his glasses clean off his face, then she turned on her heel and took off, leaving all her belongings behind.
"FUCK!" Harry dropped back into his seat and looked at Ron. He was sitting silently, staring at the table. Blaise was sure there was about to be an utter blood bath.
"Ron-" Ron stood suddenly, the look he shot Hermione was pure devastation; and the one to Harry, was one of finality.
"You win." He eyed his best friend and worst rival with pure jealously and loathing. Weasley spat at Potter's feet, he grabbed his coat, and stalked from the restaurant; not before upending an entire table and smashing the glass doors on his way out. Harry's eyes found Hermione's and they shared a tortured, intimate look. Sirius rose quickly to his feet.
"Come on, Harry. Back to the prison we go. You can have your old room, I'll just move Buckbeak in with Snape." He kissed Pansy goodnight before heaving Harry to his feet. "Cheer up, I have some 20 year Ogden's back at the place, that is, if Granger hasn't drank it all." With one last wave at the crowd he departed with his nearly defeated Godson.
Pansy and Theo returned to murmured conversation as waiter's buzzed around fixing the damage that had been done. Hermione quickly snapped out of her trance, took a moment to compose herself and then threw back the rest of her drink. Draco watched her with an emotional intensity that Blaise had not seen in him before. What could this be? He wondered.
"You're still in love with him." He muttered softly. Was it hurt?
"Draco-" She was gathering her things in a hurry, but Blaise could tell she was actively thinking about it, apparently so could Draco.
"Then this isn't going to work." It was hurt.
"I'm not." She snapped. "It's just complicated and thank you for making it even more so." She got to her feet.
"Well hopefully you have learned your lesson." She sneered at his taunting remark.
"And what exactly is that supposed to mean?"
"Don't. Fuck. With. Me. That means, no lying."
"Oh, but we are allowed to read each other's minds without permission?" Blaise smirked, she had him there. Draco ignored her comment, bent on antagonizing her like a spoiled brat.
"And your little revenge plot-" Blaise had to interrupt there.
"Oh Malfoy, are you so redeemed and moral now that you can't even appreciate a little revenge?" Draco snarled at his friend. Hermione nodded in agreement.
"It was Pansy's plan, I just went along with it. I thought you'd annoy him the most. I mean, isn't that what friends are for?" Blaise would give it to the girl, she knew how to get under Malfoy's skin.
"How very Slytherin of you." Was his scathing reply.
"I learned from the best." She smirked at him and he conceded a bit. Another thing Blaise had never seen his mate do before.
"Just be careful, Granger. If you are going to continue to play with fire, I might take that as an omission that you enjoy getting burned." He leered at her with devious intent.
"Noted." She sniffed delicately before turning her attention to the rest of the table. "Goodnight everyone, I'd say it's been an exciting evening but that would certainly be a massive understatement. Happy Birthday Pansy, I hope it was everything you wanted it to be." Pansy grinned impishly.
"It was more."
Hermione was all set to leave yet she was stalling; Blaise raised an eyebrow at his friend, if he wasn't going to take her home looking that good then certainly she was up for grabs. Theo seemed to be thinking along the same lines.
"Hermione, would you like me to take you home?" Blaise asked and Draco threw him a very nasty glare before getting to his feet quickly. Hermione's eyes were dancing with merriment.
"Why, thank you Blaise. That would be very-" And suddenly Draco was planting a fiery kiss on her very tempting lips. Theo whistled. Several people gasped, and then Draco Malfoy was dragging Hermione Granger, heels and all, to the exit.
The three old friends shared a laugh, it was so typical of them to enjoy the suffering of other's, even if it wasn't meant to be vindictive. Chaos was just too much fun.
"Well, I had to provide you with a little entertainment." Pansy began with a quirk of her lips.
"Yes!" Exclaimed Theo. "What's dinner without a show?"
"Preposterous!" Pansy shrieked. Just then the waiter came over with the bill.
"Mademoiselle, the doors, the dishes…" He was stuttering nervously. Pansy opened her mouth to tell him to hunt down Weasely and make him pay for it, but Blaise pulled out a sack of galleons.
"I've got it, Pans. It was well worth it." He chuckled as he paid the relieved man, probably double of what was owed. Of course they could fix the physical damage with the wave of a wand; Blaise was sure this little charge was for disrupting the establishment. Yes, it had definitely been worth it. Blaise felt light, finally something other than disinterest was coursing through his veins. He felt alive from the storm that had exploded upon him. Since the war, he could hardly ever feel anymore. The brash and insane antics of those around him lit a fire of passion in his heart. Passion, that was it. That was what he saw in Draco's eyes. And in Granger's, and the rest of them as well; they were living! That's what Blaise was missing. Now he understood why Pansy put up with them. He turned back to his friends.
"What do you say we blow this joint? Hit the town for a bit? Like old times…" Pansy looked at him in shock.
"Merlin, Blaise, I thought it was past your bedtime? I'm shocked you even made it to dinner." Theo laughed in agreement.
"She's right you know."
"Well fuck it!" Blaise stood suddenly, his eyes alight with determination; the waiter clearing their table eyed him nervously. "Let's get into trouble."
Pansy and Theo exchanged a glance of wicked pleasure.
"Let's." Pansy raised her eyebrow to the waiter. "Pierre, we'd like another quick round of shots. On the house if you will, it is my birthday, you know."