Chapter 12

Hermione's day didn't get any better. The pounding headache from whatever Cormac had given her refused to relent. She felt like she was being punished for something she had absolutely no control over. If she had done this to herself, she could probably manage with a little less resentment.

She certainly didn't want to hang out, especially as everyone was giving her funny looks. She couldn't blame them really, she would probably do the same if it had happened to someone else.

She wasn't even sure it was possible to feel this awful and still be alive. How could the world be so cruel? How could Cormac be such a complete arsehole? And how was it even possible that he has been sorted into Gryffindor?

To make everything worse, there were flowers waiting outside her door when she got home. They were waiting in an expensive crystal vase, which she promptly kicked over. Obviously they were from a Slytherin, which just made her stomach turn, no one else would send a vase like that. They could be from Blaise, or from (nausea inducing) Malfoy, or even from friggin Marcus Flint. Was she collecting Slytherins? How had she gotten into this situation?

She finally relented and picked up the card on heavy vellum paper. It said "D". Oh just great, they were on first name terms now. She guessed that is what a full on public make out session gets you. She kicked the vase again and it broke. Then she felt bad. The vase being a complete innocent bystander in this whole proceeding, recently being created in some workshop without a clue until someone came along and kicked it in a fit of annoyance. Ending its short existence of being a beautiful flower holder. She fixed the vase with her wand.

She decided that a bath may help her frayed nerves. It might serve to block out the world for a while. And it worked until there was a persistent owl at the window who refused to go away until she got up, dripping in bubbles to let the damned thing in.

It was a howler. Three guessed who that was from. Seriously, it could be a number of people. She got back in the bath and tried to not think of the number of people who would be slightly upset with her making smoochies with Draco Malfoy.

Harry would hate her, Ron would detest her. Blaise, oh who cares. Ginny obviously found it amusing. Maybe it was from either Lucius or Narcissa Malfoy, both would obviously be trilled. But seriously, they would think their glorious son making out with a mudblood below their requirement to notice. Then there was the Slytherin girls, who may object to her kissing no less than three Slytherins in a fairly short period of time.

The howler sat on a stool in the kitchen. She didn't deserve this, she reckoned. It was completely unfair.

After she got out of the bath, which didn't take long because the howler had ruined the little piece of consolation it created. She made herself a cup of soup in an effort to appease her stomach. Then turned her attention to the offending envelope.

Fine, she said. Might as well let it do its thing, so I can be rid of it. Her little sitting room/kitchen area would fill with screaming for a while, the it would be over. She pulled the little tongue and let it go for it. There wasn't screaming, it was actually completely silent for a while.

"I am very disappointed in you." It said quietly, it was from Blaise. "Marcus told me that what happened hadn't been your idea, but now…who knows? And Draco of all people. You are obviously less than I thought you were. If you did this to hurt me, then you have succeeded."

The thing tore itself apart. It actually would have been better with screaming. Blaise sounded genuinely hurt. What right did he have to be hurt after what he'd done to her, her mind flared. Well, he was obviously back to thinking the worst of her. Maybe she didn't have to run around and avoid him now. Maybe he would avoid her.

It still rubbed her the wrong way that he had a faulty impression of her. With Marcus, she was angry that he had so easily assumed faults in her character. With Malfoy the evidence was kind of overwhelming on the face of it, even though she was the abused party in reality. She didn't want to think about it anymore. She just wanted to go to bed and sleep it off.

Seriously though, her mind started again as she tried to relax, Malfoy must have realised that she was under the influence of some seriously mind altering substance. He couldn't believe that she would actually do that of her own free will. Things would be seriously awkward if he thought that she had acted on feelings for him.

If she looked at it objectively, if it had been someone else, she would assume they were drunk and the lower inhibitions would allow them to act on their true feelings. She groaned at the thought. Those were not her true feelings. And it was absurd to even think they could be. She must have thought he was someone else. Or maybe it was a Flint thing, he had kissed her and she was too out of her mind to do anything about it.

She still couldn't process that she had been kissing Draco Malfoy. It was such an abstract idea, it just didn't fit in her head. It didn't even seem physically possible as he was certainly made of hard, sharp things. Nothing remotely kissable. She's surprised she wasn't sporting cuts. And it was probably a good thing that she didn't remember a single bit of it.

She woke up late the next day, which meant she was late for work. At least her head wasn't screaming at her. She didn't feel one hundred percent, but she could turn her head without vertigo hitting her.

There was a note on her desk from Ginny telling her they were doing lunch today. Hermione didn't want to go, but decided that she wasn't going to be a complete coward about the whole thing. She had done nothing wrong, and this would blow over like things always did. At least Ginny could see the funny side of it, maybe she could develop that perspective as well.

They met at one of the pubs shortly after midday.

"How are you doing?" Ginny asked.

"I am still suffering the after effects of the potion that complete arse poisoned me with." Hermione said sharply.

"That was out of order."

"Absolutely. I could prosecute him, you know." Hermione said. "It was completely illegal what he did."

"I am certainly not having him at any more of my parties." Ginny said. "He is banned from the wedding. Lavender thinks we're overreacting. There is something wrong with that girl."

"You just be happy she's not obsessed with Ron anymore."

"Could you imagine having her as a sister in law?" Ginny. "It would be awful."

Hermione was finally hungry and ordered a proper meal.

"So how are you?" Ginny asked.

"Just marvellous." Hermione said sarcastically. "Just a fantastic weekend for me. I'm sorry if I ruined your hens night."

"You didn't ruin my hens night." Ginny said with sympathy. "It made it interesting."

"Well, at least it served some purpose."

"You will find this funny one day."

"I know." Hermione relented. "It just hasn't quite come yet. He sent me frigging flowers."

Ginny could stop herself laughing even though she was trying really hard. "Oh, poor thing." She said before tightening her lips up to stop herself from outright laughing.

"Darling." Came the carefully crafted voice of Pansy, who sat down at one of the chairs. "A little birdy has told me something shocking." She said finishing on a high pitch.

Hermione didn't know how to respond. She could say that it hadn't been her fault, which sounded empty considering it was the second time around that excuse had been pulled out.

"I didn't know you had it in you, you saucy minx." Pansy said with a giggle. "You are incorrigible."

Hermione sighed. She didn't know what else to do.

"Kissing all the boys." Pansy teased.

"Try everything once, I say." Hermione finally said.

"And what are you trying exactly?" Pansy said coolly while Ginny was just looking back and forth between them.

Hermione just shrugged.

"Blaise is devastated, of course." Pansy said. "But he will get over it."

Hermione didn't like Pansy's tone. There was obviously something still in her that felt a bit protective of the relationship they had, even though she was not in the mind to mend it. She just didn't like the idea of what Pansy was whispering in his ear.

"Interesting to see your claws come out." Pansy said. "And you couldn't have picked anyone better than Draco. Blaise is livid. Probably more so because its Draco. Good choice."

"I didn't do this to hurt Blaise." Hermione said.

"Come now." Pansy said. "Don't back down now. You're not a stupid girl. But in case you are, you do know that you're just another week of entertainment for Draco. Make him chase you for a bit and you'll have his interest for a little while, but you have neither the breeding nor the qualities to keep him truly interested."

Ginny gave her a look like, 'You've been told'.

"At the end of the day, you're just another cheap whore." Pansy said with a flip of her hair before she got up and left. And that was as long as the niceties lasted before bitch girl revealed herself, Hermione thought to herself.

"She doesn't hold back on her opinion, does she?" Ginny said. She was obviously still amused. Hermione wasn't quite so amused. "Oh come on, what does it matter what Pansy thinks? Pansy's opinion has never mattered; don't let her get under your skin now. Degrading someone has been the Slytherin trademark forever and its useless as long as you don't care. And in all honesty, why would you?"

"You're right." Hermione said. "Its just… I don't know."

"Unless you see a future between you and Blaise."

"No." Hermione said, but if she was completely honest, she didn't like the idea of there being a complete finality to it. Maybe she was just a little weak that way.