A/N: Sorry for the wait, I won't bore you with excuses, I know there are things you would rather be reading. Enjoy!

Chapter 13 - Dares

"So Miss Granger," smiled Draco. "I finally have you all to myself."

"Want to finish that chess game?" She asked, quickly changing the subject.

"Changing the subject on me? Alright, I'll bite. If I win, what do I get?" He asked, a mischievous glint in his eyes.

"Um, I don't know. What do I get if I win?"

"Name your price Granger, and I'll name mine." He smiled.

"I don't like the sound of that Malfoy."

"We're both sporting the same risk."

"Hmmmmm" she pondered. "And there's no getting out of it?"

"None at all" he smiled wickedly. "Write what you want down on a piece of paper, and I'll do the same. Whoever losses picks up the other person's piece of paper and has to do what it says."

"And what happens if they don't do it?"

"Then the winner gets to punish them however they see fit." The wicked smile was still on his face.

"Alright Malfoy. You have yourself a bet."

They both wrote their demands on separate pieces of paper and placed them folded them. They the put them under the chess board.

"You ready to lose Granger?"

"You wish Malfoy." She currently had the upper hand, there was no way she could lose.

Apparently, there actually was a way. She noticed that she did not have more pieces than him anymore, and the next thing she knew, her king was in checkmate. She looked at him, dumbfounded.

"But... how?" she muttered. I had you, and then I didn't, and now..."

"A few years ago, my father got me a wizard's chess training board." He explained. "I had complained to him that no one would ever play chess with me, so he got me a board that could. It has about ten levels, from really easy to absolutely impossible. Well, after 4 years of lonely summers and christmas holidays, I am proud to say, I managed to beat the absolutely impossible level. One of the tricks I learned was so surrender a few unnecessary pieces at the beginning of the game so that your opponenet doesn't think you are as strong an opponent as you actually are. Then, once they get confident, slowly sneak up on them and trap the king before they realize what has happened."

"That's brilliant!" She exclaimed. "You must have been laughing when we made that bet, you knew there was no way I could beat you. We're both sporting the same risk my arse."

"Okay fine, I tricked you." He laughed. "Any way I could make it up to you?"

"You have to do mine too."

"Do your..?" He looked confused.

"You have to meet my demands."

"Ah, so we both end up having to follow through?"

"Yes."

"You know, if you wanted a snog this bad you could have just asked." He winked at her.

"I wouldn't be surprised if that's what yours says" she muttered.

"Naw, too predictable. Plus, I don't really need to go to all this trouble to snog you Hermy, I know you're more than willing."

"What did you just call me?"

"Hermy." He said, smiling. "I quite like it."

"No."

"No? I don't think you can decide what I like Hermy."

"Stop calling me that."

"Don't think I will Hermy."

"Stop. Calling. Me. That." Her anger was rising.

"What'll you do Hermy? Hex me?" He smirked.

"Don't tempt me Malfoy."

"Hermy, no need to go back to last names again."

"STOP CALLING ME HERMY!" She bellowed at him. She hated that name. He could not have know that the kids at her old school had called her 'Hermy Germy', but it infuriated her nonetheless.

"Hermione, calm down, it's a joke." He said softly, getting up from the other side of the table to sit next to her, then placing his hand over hers. "How about we see what the other one has to do?"

"Ok"

They both picked up the opposite piece of paper from under the chess board.

You, Hermione Granger, are required to spend one day with me, Draco Malfoy, and are not allowed to think things through. You, Hermione Granger, will be required to, for once in your life, do whatever the hell you want, consequences be damned.

She smiled at the eloquence in this. She had expected something tacky, but he had thought this through. She heard Draco laugh as he read hers.

"Draco Malfoy is required to read thirteen books, chosen by Hermione Granger." He laughed. "Wouldn't have expected anything else 'Mione."

"Draco, how am I not supposed to think things through? That's just what I do."

"Well 'Mione, it's very simple, you just think of things you would like to do, and do them. Don't worry, if you run out of ideas, I'll just start suggesting things, and you say yes or no without thinking. It's simple really, it's how most people live their lives!" He smiled.

"Alright Draco, when will this day be?"

"Yet to be determined. What books do I have to read?"

"I'll give you the first one when you leave tonight, and the next one after you finish that one."

"Alright then 'Mione, it's a deal." He smiled. "So, what are these board games you told me about? I want to get as familiar with the muggle world as possible, it's my quiet rebellion you see."

She went over to their game cupboard and open it, taking all the games out and putting them on the table.

"Pick one" she told him. He obliged, standing beside her and looking through the board games as they were the most spectacular things in the world. He finally decided on operation.

"Ok, here's how you play" she began, getting the game out of the box, and began to put all the little pieces in the figure. "You have to use these tweezers to get the pieces out of the holes, but you can't touch the edges of the hole or else you lose your turn."

"How do I know if I've touched the edges of the hole?" He asked curiously.

"Try it and find out" she was enjoying Draco being completely oblivious far too much. He took the tweezers and rammed them into the edge of the one of the holes, and jumped about four feet in the air the is starting buzzing and the light went on. After he regained his balance, he gently placed the tweezers on the edge again, not jumping slightly less this time.

"Marvellous!" He exclaimed. "Does this run on eclekticity?" He asked with wide eyes, reminding her for a moment of Arthur Weasley. She started laughing at him.

"Electricity Draco." She laughed.

"Right, eclektricity."

"Electricity"

"Electricity?"

"Yes"

"Ok, shall we play?"

"Alright, you can go first."

"And what's the wager this time?"

"Do you bet on everything?" She sighed.

"Normally no, but I find it much more amusing with you." He smiled genuinely

"Alright, if I win, you have to cook me dinner." She said with a smile, imagining Draco trying to cook. She doubted he would even know how to turn the stove on.

"Am I allowed to use magic?"

"Sure" she took pity on him. At least with magic he might stand a chance.

"Alright, if I win, you have to admit your feelings for me." He said proudly.

"My feelings?" She asked skeptically. "What makes you think I have feelings for you?" She half expected him to grab her again and make her force defeat, a part of her wanted him to as well.

"Well of course you have feelings for me. Even when you hated me you had feelings for me. They were just feelings of hate." He explained.

"Oh, so what you really meant was I had to tell you what my feeling towards you are."

"Yes, that's what I said."

"Alright , you're on."

He wasn't as good as this game as he was chess. Twice, she caught him trying to use magic. At the end, she had 9 pieces to his meagre 3.

"Alas, I am defeated." He sighed. "Too bad, I really wanted to know."

"Well you can't be good at everything Draco."

"I supposed not" he sighed again. "Alright, shall I get to dinner then?"

"You mean you're actually going to cook me dinner?" She was shocked, she had expected him to try everything in his power to get out of it. Instead he was looking through the cupboards and fridge for ingredients.

"Well of course 'Mione, a deals a deal!" He smiled at her.

"The deal wasn't to burn my house down" She told him.

"I know" he laughed.

"Or poison me" she added.

"I am aware of that. Why would I want to poison you? I've become quite fond of you." He said, still riffling through the fridge. He had taken out the milk, butter, chicken and mushrooms. From the cupboard he extracted some thin spaghetti. He then found a large pot and filled it with water and place it on the stove. The turned the element to 'light' and cast some flames out of his wand. She stared at him as he went about doing all this.

After he covered the pot of water with a lid, he began to cut up the mushrooms, and then on a separate cutting board, the chicken. He took out a fry pan and began to cook the chicken in the butter, and after it was done, added the mushrooms. While this was happening the water had boiled, and he had quickly put the spaghetti in and turned the temperature down, and placed the lid back on. After the chicken and mushrooms were done, he poured the milk in, reaching and putting some spices she could not see in.

He placed the milk and butter back in the fridge, and checked on the spaghetti.

"Almost done" he said with a smile to a still openmouthed Hermione.

"You..." she sputtered. "You can cook?"

"Ah, so your challenge was meant to embarrass me, was it?" He laughed. "You aren't very good at this whole humiliating thing, are you? Maybe I'll teach you a few tips and tricks during dinner."

"But.." she stuttered, still in shock. "But how?"

He took the pasta and put it through a colander, put the pasta back in the pot, and poured the sauce with the chicken and mushrooms into the pot as well before answering."

"Well, after the war, I didn't really have much to do so the whole rest of the year and summer, I got our house elves to teach me how to cook. I think they were grateful for the help, they were really marvellous teachers." He explained. "It was a good distraction, and it was nice to do something for a change, not just sit around and be waited on. I guess I also like quiet rebellions." He added in jest.

He served the pasta into two bowls, and placed them on the table, along with two forks and two spoons.

"Anything to drink m'lady?"

"Just water, thanks."

He poured them both a glass of water, and sat down. Hermione took a bite and was amazed at how good it was, it could almost rival her dad's cooking. Almost.

"Well?" He asked, eyeing her.

"Mmmmmmmmm" she sighed.

"You seem to favour that sound around me" he winked at her. She rolled her eyes.

"Shut up and eat your food Draco."

Draco left around 10. As he stood in the doorway, he smiled.

"What? No goodbye kiss?" He looked hurt.

"No, but if you play your cards right you might get a goodbye slap." She teased.

"Alright Granger, no need to get hostile now. So, about that book?"

"Oh!" She exclaimed. "I almost forgot!" She proceeded to run up the stairs, and grab The Complete Works of Sherlock Holmes off her bookshelf. She ran down the stairs again and placed it in his outstretched hands. He looked at the thick book and sighed.

"I guess I couldn't expect a light read from you, Granger."

"Actually, I think you'll enjoy it. It's a muggle classic, so you can continue your quiet rebellion." She laughed.

"Night 'Mione" he said and before she could stop him, he placed a kiss on her forehead and Apparated.

She sighed, looking at the place where he had just vanished. She had forgotten how much she enjoyed his company. For all his faults, he could hold a good conversation, and argument for that matter. He challenged her, and not only at chess. Plus, though she would never mention it to him, he was one hell of a good snog.

A/N: Well, there you have it.

Any suggestions on what books she should make him read would be greatly appreciated.

Again, I would like the wonderful human being that takes the form of my editor, as well as all those who gave me such wonderful reviews.

Thanks for reading!

Always,

Shan :)