Disclaimer: Not mine, not yours. Only JK Rowling's.
A/N: Well, I'm back. Sorry for the slight delay. I found an awesome manga (you know, Japanese books) and I can't stop from reading it; thus, the delay. Meh, at least our tests are done! Next week will be our last week in school and well, it's really a 'free' week already since we have no classes already so expect me to be not-so-busy anymore! Besides, Christmas break is fast approaching!
Haha, anyway, enough of this. I just have to apologize, though. This chapter is 'half-Beta'd'. I feel so sorry for my awesome beta since she's so busy and all while I'm free already. Well, I don't really care. I still love her to pieces, anyway!
That's it. Enjoy!
Chapter Seven: Accident Prone
It was Hogsmeade Day, and students from Years Three to Seven were undoubtedly happy to take a break from their classes and assignments.
Hermione, Draco, Blaise, and Teddy were seen walking together in the streets of Hogsmeade, oblivious to the attention they were getting from their schoolmates and other passersby. Or at least, the three males were; it was only Hermione who noticed the newfound (and unwanted) attention she was getting.
The stares, the giggles, the winks — those actions had shocked the former Gyffindor beyond comprehension. She had been getting them lately, mostly from her female classmates, and it had unnerved and bothered the brunette to the point of cowering behind Blaise or Teddy, wanting to hide from vicious "admirers."
"You'll get used to it," Blaise had told her one time after concealing herself behind his back. "Just ignore it."
Teddy, on the other hand, seemed to be enjoying the attention. "They're really nice," he commented once when he was accompanying Hermione to the library. "Just smile back and give a small wave with your hand. Their faces will be priceless afterwards."
Alas, their pieces of advice were useless. Hermione had been used to being stared at before. After all, being best friend of the The-Boy-Who-Lived, and being one-third of the so-called "Golden Trio" of the Gryffindor House ought to teach her a thing or two of being a local "celebrity." But this time, the stares were different. And Hermione was too disgusted to think of the right word to describe them.
"It's your first time in Hogsmeade, right?" Blaise suddenly said, bringing her back to the present.
Hermione looked at him, emotionless. "Yeah," she said and inwardly laughed. She had been in Hogsmeade countless times before. She was even willing to bet she had gone there more often than her fellow seventh years.
Blaise gave her an amused smirk before staring back straight ahead, the smirk still on his handsome face.
She reckoned something had changed with her Italian friend; she just couldn't pinpoint what it was. A few days after her conversation with Dumbledore, she had noticed the sudden small changes in Blaise's actions. There were times when she caught him staring at her, amusement written all over his face. And when she would frown at him, his smirk would only change into a charming smile before he would return to his endeavor.
This newfound attention from the Italian made things weirder for Hermione.
She had once asked him if something was wrong. His answer was so vague it left Hermione thinking about it for minutes before concluding it was not an answer at all, the sneaky Slytherin.
Her eyes snapped back to Teddy when he draped an arm around her shoulder.
"Well, I'll give you a tour around Hogsmeade then," he suggested happily, winking at the seemingly clueless "Hermes Austen".
She only nodded her head in agreement. Teddy had been nice to her after she apologized to him and offered him sweets.
His carefree nature still bemused the witch. The devil-may-care attitude extended to him neglecting his homeworks in lieu of his happiness, a fact she had shaken her head over, thinking he was wasting his intelligence.
Like what she had observed days before, Teddy had a huge potential to be a great wizard. If he chose to be, he'd be an excellent Auror after graduation.
"Ah, there's more to life than studying!" was his only answer when she pointed out that he had not yet finished his Potions essay that was due the next day.
Sighing, she softly chuckled at that memory. Teddy reminded her of Ron. Both were happy-go-lucky, fond of choosing pleasure over duty. The difference between the two was Ron seemed more mature than Teddy, and that was saying something.
Come to think of it, she thought, Blaise also reminds me of Harry. They had the same calming nature, and Hermione always found herself at ease whenever she was around them. Both were also good advisers when she needed help.
With these thoughts in mind, a smile gradually grew on her face. Even if she was in Slytherin, she was happy to know that people like Blaise and Teddy were good reminders of her Gryffindor best friends.
"Not now, Nott," was Draco Malfoy's sudden annoyed drawl. "I thought you said you needed to buy something in Knockturn Alley."
Hermione's smile vanished, replaced by a small frown, while Teddy's eyes widened in realization, remembering the things he was supposed to buy in the said alley.
"Oh yeah, right," he said, sheepishly scratching his head. "Thanks for reminding me, Draco." Then, he flashed his adorable smile towards the blond, who rolled his eyes in return.
How the two became best friends, Hermione would never know, nor understand. Malfoy was an annoying prat while Teddy was the complete opposite. But it seemed like Teddy really liked Draco as a friend and it was real obvious every time the two interacted.
Malfoy's lack of appreciation for Teddy's kindness to him slightly angered her. Then again, according to Teddy and Blaise, Draco Malfoy started to act… differently at the start of the school-year.
"You know his circumstances, Nott."
Those words Blaise had uttered a few days ago still rang loudly in Hermione's head. Was Malfoy really having a hard time acting as a Death Eater for Voldemort and a spy for Dumbledore? If she were in his position, there would be a big possibility she would have a hard time, too. Actually, she was certain it would be a fact in her case.
She remembered the time when she first discovered that Malfoy was a spy. Harry was primarily indignant at Dumbledore, telling him it was a decoy. That maybe it was Voldemort's orders for the blonde to act as a spy for the Order when, in truth, he was spying for the Dark Side.
"He has a reason, Mister Potter," Dumbledore had said. "And it is a really good one."
She never pegged Draco Malfoy as someone who would risk his life just for the greater good. Sometimes, she did wonder what the real reason behind his sudden change of heart was.
"Uh," Teddy said, not giving Hermione time to elaborate further on that thought. "Can we stop by that store?"
Hermione followed the direction his finger was pointing to and found herself staring at Honeydukes. Beside her, Blaise released a soft chuckle while Malfoy emitted a sigh.
"What?" Teddy sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck. "My supply's almost gone. I need to buy new ones."
The brunette found herself laughing and Teddy, grateful, showed his trademark smile. "I'll treat you for giving me sweets before, Hermes," he offered.
Hermione shook her head, still laughing. "No, no," she said. "I'm not really fond of sweets, so let me treat you."
If possible, Teddy's smile grew. "Okay," he answered and started to happily walk towards Honeydukes, his roommates trailing behind.
"Seriously, Nott," Draco said, "I won't be surprised if one day all of your teeth fell."
Teddy scowled while Blaise chuckled once again. To her surprise, Hermione found herself amused at Malfoy's comment.
Hermione had never been to Knockturn Alley and ever since second year, she never planned to go there at all. According to Harry, it was an unpleasant place with weird creatures roaming around the streets. He had an unfortunate accident of stumbling into Knockturn Alley instead of Diagon Alley on the summer before their second year, and he commented that he'd rather not go there as much as he could help it.
Slightly paling upon nearing the entrance to Knockturn Alley, her steps gradually slowed down. Diagon Alley was way merrier than this, and she almost — almost — pleaded with the other three to continue on their own and leave her to amuse herself around Diagon Alley.
They seemed at ease (well, except for Teddy, who was slightly frowning). It made her think that they had probably been to this alley more than a few times already. Shivering, she did not want to imagine what they could be buying in this place.
Hermione gave Diagon Alley one last forlorn glance before the four of them was completely entrapped by the gloom of Knockturn Alley. It had surprised her when Dumbledore allowed seventh years to visit Diagon and Knockturn Alley during Hogsmeade Day ever since last year. From what she had heard, a lot of seventh years were complaining that the things they should be buying for their schoolworks were not available in Hogsmeade, so they ended up not doing their works at all.
"Why is it always so damn cold in this place?" was Teddy's furious question, clutching Blaise's arm. The Italian rolled his eyes and dislodged his arm from his friend's grip, taking a few steps away from the other Slytherin.
Hermione watched in mild amusement as Teddy was back beside Blaise, the former seizing the latter's arm again.
"Honestly," Blaise proclaimed. This time, he just allowed his roommate to cling to him.
Teddy pouted at him. "Can you come with me, huh? You know how I'm still uncomfortable roaming around Knockturn Alley."
He was about to refuse but after some incessant persuasions from the child-like Slytherin, he succumbed to his wishes.
Blaise shot a worried look at Hermione. This had left the brunette confused. He then looked at Draco, who seemed like he'd rather be alone than accompany the other three.
"Wait for us here," Blaise instructed Draco. The blond looked at him as if he'd eaten a dozen hippogriffs simultaneously. Draco's eyes then landed on Hermione, a scowl now visible on his face.
"With him?" he said, rudely pointing a finger at her.
"Hey!" she interjected, affronted.
Blaise only sighed and looked at Hermione. "Will you be all right?" he asked. Hermione only frowned. "Don't worry. We'll be back soon."
"I'll be quick, I swear," Teddy said, his right hand raised as if he was pledging.
Draco's scowl only darkened while Hermione released a soft sigh. "Oh, all right," she said. She shot a dirty look towards the blond's direction. "But do make it quick, okay?"
Teddy nodded his head enthusiastically and dragged Blaise towards a shop; she did not even want to know what it was selling.
An awkward silence settled between her and Malfoy as soon as jolly Teddy and Blaise were out of their sight. Hermione had been avoiding having much contact with Draco as much as she could ever since he had insulted her after she apologized. And now that they were alone together, she couldn't believe her luck.
"Stay right here, Austen," he drawled, a slight glare visible on his face. "I have to buy something for my Potions homework."
"Don't tell me what to do," she shot back, crossing her arms in defiance.
Draco only rolled his eyes and sighed. "I am serious, Austen. Stay just right here. You're not familiar in this place and trust me when I say that you should not interact with strangers." A disgusted look settled on his face. "But then again, you attract danger. I won't be surprised if we all returned back to Hogwarts with an injured you."
Hermione was about to retort something when Draco suddenly turned away from her and strode to Merlin-knows-where, leaving the brunette behind.
As soon as he was out of sight, she bristled in anger. 'The nerve of that guy,' she thought, angrily running a hand through her hair. 'How… how dare he! I'll show him.'
She defied his orders and soon roamed around Knockturn Alley, stubborn and curious at the same time.
Her anger simmered down after minutes of walking around the alley. She had seen a lot of weird stores. She even swore she saw a shop selling human body parts.
She made a face and slowed her pace, once in a while glancing over her shoulder to see if the others had returned. Her stomach dropped upon noticing that she did not know where she was in Knockturn Alley already.
She was lost.
'I should have listened to Malfoy,' she said, nose scrunched up in worry.
Hermione took a few turns around the alley and still, she was not able to find the place where Draco had left her. Dread started to settle down Hermione's heart. What was she to do?
"Oh, seriously," she told herself, fishing out her wand from the pocket of her trousers. She was a witch; she could use magic to bring her back to her previous destination.
But before she could even utter a single spell, five looming shadows fell upon the brunette and Hermione looked up in surprise, her brown orbs wide.
Five gorgeous ladies, she reckoned, were blocking her way. She secretly scrunched up her nose in disgust, noticing the skimpy outfits adorned on their rather shapely body. 'Honestly,' she thought, 'if they want men to notice them, at least they should do it in a more modest way.'
"Um," she started, clearing her throat. "Excuse me. I have to pass that way."
"Come with us," the woman in the middle, probably their leader, purred. Hermione's eyes shot up at the husky tone she used on her. And then, she frowned upon seeing the huge smiles on their faces, as if eager to do something she couldn't understand.
"I'm… sorry," she slowly said, looking from one lady to the other. They were gorgeous, truly gorgeous, and were probably in their mid-20s already. "But I have to get back to Hogwarts already. Excuse me, ladies."
The leader bristled, her eyes wide as she looked at her other companions. They, too, seemed surprised with Hermione's actions. She scowled, beyond disgusted. She guessed they were never turned down by a guy before.
'Disgusting whores,' she thought, sidestepping their group to slip away from them.
But before she could even take a step, the leader of the posse had grabbed her wrist and held on to it rather tightly. "Come with us," she repeated once again. "And we'll make you very, very happy."
Hermione's eyes widened, alarmed. "I'm really sorry," she said, tugging her wrist away from her firm grip. "I really, really need to go back now. My friends are probably waiting for me already."
She tugged and tugged again but the lady wouldn't budge. "Let me go," she said, now a bit panicky. "Let me go, please."
She remembered that she was still holding her wand. She pointed it on the hand of the woman to blast it away from her wrist. She was about to utter a soft 'Expelliarmus' when her wand was suddenly thrown away. Hermione's eyes widened as she looked at the direction of her wand. It was too dark for her to see and the lady's grip was now so firm she swore a bruise would soon form.
"Let me… ah!" She gasped as the lady twisted her hand behind her back.
"Come with us," she hissed. A horrified look settled on Hermione's face upon noticing that her voice had changed. "And we will make you very, very happy."
When the brunette turned her head around, she almost screamed in fright. The gorgeous ladies were gone, replaced by grotesque hags who were looking at her as if she was some mouthwatering dessert.
An alarm went off in Hermione's head, knowing that she was in danger. Just looking at the snarling faces of her sudden captors were enough to make her panicky.
She struggled once again but the leader's grip with her wrist tightened. She gasped in pain and to her surprise, the hag chanted unknown words to the brunette. A wave of dizziness washed over her and soon, she could already see black spots in front of her eyes.
'I should have listened to Malfoy,' she reprimanded herself again, her eyes slowly closing.
The next thing she knew, she was on the ground, face pressed on the cold and dirty pavement. 'Wait, what?' she asked herself, forcing herself to sit up.
She dodged an unconscious hag and stood up quickly, regretting it immediately. She clutched her head in pain and grimaced.
Her eyes landed on her savior and her mouth almost dropped in astonishment.
Draco Malfoy.
He hexed another hag, which screeched and also fell, unconscious, on the ground. The blond had this furious look on his face Hermione was almost afraid to approach him. He was viciously lashing his wand to and fro and blasting the other two members of the group until the leader was left standing, astonishment visible on her gruesome face.
She tried to escape, even knocking off Malfoy. He toppled over and fell; his back painful making contact with the street. The hag found it the perfect time to leave the scene but Draco was faster than she was. He immediately sprang upright and hexed her. She released a deafening screech and raised her arms in surrender, sobbing noisily as she gathered her other 'friends' and disappeared from the Slytherins' sight.
As soon as they were gone, Hermione released a breath she didn't realize she was holding with a loud 'whoosh'.
She watched Malfoy as he swallowed deep breaths, his back facing her. And that was when she noticed blood oozing out from a large gash on his back.
He was hurt.
"Ma-Malfoy," she stammered, still reeling in shock. "You're…"
Her words were left hanging in the air as soon as Draco swiveled around so fast Hermione swore she almost heard his neck crick.
"ARE YOU INSANE?" he thundered, taking quick, big strides towards the brunette. "I PERFECTLY TOLD YOU TO STAY WHERE YOU ARE AND WAIT FOR ME!"
"There's no need to shout," she whispered, taken aback by his sudden outburst. "And… I-I'm sorry."
Draco took a few calming breaths, closing his eyes for the desired effect. And when he opened them, his mercurial eyes were a shade darker because of repressed fury. "I should have known you are this dangerous, Austen," he spat. His voice was filled with venom, making Hermione wish that he was shouting instead.
"I'm sorry," she repeated again, humbled. She realized her mistake and cursed her curiosity and stubbornness. "It's just that… I… thank you."
And she meant it with her whole-heart. She actually thought something bad would have had happened to her if he did not arrive just in time. She slightly paled upon knowing that she almost landed herself in another dangerous situation before saving her parents.
"You should be," he snarled, pocketing his wand. "You almost became a sex slave, Austen."
"A sex slave?" she squeaked, mortified.
"Yes," he answered with emphasis. "Anyone here should know that encountering suspicious gorgeous ladies disguised as hags is dangerous. Only idiots would still fall into their trap."
Hermione pursed her lips, not allowing herself to retort a witty comeback. After all, he still saved her and the least she could do was be humble in his presence.
"Thank Merlin I just came… I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHY I SAVED A NUISANCE LIKE YOU!" he hollered. His glare was so dark the brunette was forced to look away from him. "I should have known. I knew that I should hate you the moment my eyes laid upon you. I'm repeating this again: Stay away from me. I do not want some accident prone gracing my presence."
And with that, he turned around and stomped away.
The brunette just watched him go, guilt forming at the pit of her stomach as she stared at his bloodstained shirt. He was slightly limping, she observed, and once in a while he would cuss out of pain.
Draco was soon gone, leaving her all alone. She crouched down on the floor and groped for her wand. Her nose would scrunch up in disgust once in a while; touching things she wouldn't even dare to look at.
Finally, she was able to retrieve her wand a few feet away from where she was standing a while ago. She gripped it with her wand hand and grimaced. Like what she had predicted, an ugly bruise was now marring her fair skin.
"Point me," she whispered and watched as her wand whirled around. Hermione waited as it stopped, its tip pointing northwest. She followed its direction until she found herself once again in front of the shop Malfoy had previously left her at.
Hermione breathed out a sigh of relief and retraced the steps they had taken a few minutes ago.
"Hermes!"
She swirled around and was greeted by a worried Blaise, Teddy in tow.
"Where have you been? We've been looking all over the place for you," the Italian said.
The brunette just sighed and scratched the back of her neck. "Well, I got lost," was her sheepish reply, giving the two a small smile.
"Merlin, you made us so worried," Teddy butted in, swinging an arm over Hermione's shoulder. "I actually thought you encountered those horrendous hags that disguise themselves as gorgeous ladies to lure you and make you into a sex slave."
Hermione paled at Teddy's comment and Blaise was the only one who noticed it. He frowned and his eyes landed on her bruised wrist. "What happened to you?" he asked.
The brunette followed Blaise's line of vision. "Oh, this," she said, hiding her bruised hand from view. "I… I tripped along the way and bruised my wrist. But it's fine. I'm all right."
"Hey," Teddy said, looking around wildly. "Where's Draco?"
She looked at the ground, ashamed. "I think he went back to Hogwarts already… probably couldn't stand the presence of an accident prone." The lasts words were spat by the brunette and she was so embarrassed she had to be saved by Draco Malfoy, of all people in the world.
"Oh, you're no accident prone," Teddy assured her as he led the gang out of Knockturn Alley and into Diagon Alley.
Hermione glared at her bruised wrist. "Right."
"Um… Blaise, I'm here," was Hermione's greeting to her Italian friend.
It came as a surprise for the brunette when he told her to meet him in the Great Lake after curfew. She asked him why they couldn't meet in the common room or in their room instead, but all he answered was a small smile and repeated his request of her to meet him in the Great Lake.
The said Slytherin looked up at Hermione and gave her his usual charming smile, gesturing her to sit on the ground beside him.
Confused, she slowly sat on the grass, Indian Style.
Comfortable silence settled between the two. The only noise that was heard were the crickets hiding in the trees and the constant splashing noise made by the Giant Squid.
Hermione enjoyed the silence, calming her exhausted body. It was good that Blaise was also beside her; his calming personality was enough to put her at ease.
"Hermes," Blaise said, disrupting the peace. Hermione looked at him, eyebrows raised in question. "Give me your hand."
"Why?" she asked, suspicious. She pocketed her right hand, the bruised one, away from his sight.
"Just give it to me," he replied, followed by a sigh. "Come on."
Hermione gave him her left hand. Blaise, on the other hand, rolled his eyes. "The other one," he commanded, shooting pointed looks at her hidden hand.
The brunette's frown deepened. "Why?"
"Oh honestly," he said, grabbing the requested hand. Blaise apparently had grabbed it none-too-gently for Hermione released a soft yelp in pain, flinching in the process. "I'm sorry. You were being stubborn," he pointed out, absentmindedly rubbing a comforting thumb on her bruise. "What actually happened?"
She blushed slightly, thankful for the dark. "You'd rather not hear about it," she said a bit too quickly.
To her surprise, Blaise released a soft chuckle. "Let me guess, you've encountered those grotesque hags in Knockturn Alley, yeah?"
"Eh," Hermione, rubbing the back of her neck in embarrassment. "There's no point in lying now."
Once again, Blaise chuckled.
Hermione's cheeks reddened. "It's not funny," she complained.
"Don't worry, men who aren't really familiar of Knockturn Alley often fall into their trap," he assured her, conjuring bandages.
"What are they… exactly?" Hermione asked.
"Well, to put it simply, they are hags disguised into gorgeous ladies to lure men and make them their sex slaves," he said, this time retrieving a soothing salve from his pocket. Hermione gave it a pointed look, which Blaise noticed. "Trust me, when you are with Draco and Teddy, oh especially Teddy, you need to have a soothing salve everywhere you go."
Hermione, despite her embarrassment, chuckled.
"Anyway, as I was saying, those hags use hypnotism to find victims and entice them. Men often fall into their charm." He allowed himself to show a small smirk on his face, shooting an amused glance at the brunette. "And I must say that if you were able to fight their hypnotism, you either have a very powerful magic or you are only a man incognito.
Hermione, unable to control it, released a loud gasp. She saw the surprised look on Blaise's face and quickly answered, "Well then, I must really have a very powerful magic, huh? Ha ha."
Blaise chuckled at her obvious discomfort. It was fun for him knowing his roommate's secret and teasing him just to see her bristle in embarrassment or nervousness. "Yeah, I guess," he answered.
He then opened the soothing cream, swabbed his index and middle finger, and then gently rubbed it on the brunette's bruise.
The brunette, on the other hand, was surprised at Blaise's actions. "Uh… thanks," she said, smiling at the Italian.
Blaise only shrugged his shoulders. "You know what, I feel like I should look after you," he truthfully said, this time now wrapping the bandage around her wrist. "Are you always like this? Don't be offended but you sure look like you're getting into a lot of trouble lately."
"Yeah," Hermione agreed with a sigh. "But, I'm not usually like this, you know. I'm never klutzy back in Durmstrang. I guess I just… changed."
"Hmm," was his thoughtful reply, clipping her bandage in reply. He gave it a small pat before looking at Hermione squarely on her eyes. "I'm here, okay?" he said. "And if you need some help, don't hesitate to approach me. Just… treat me like I'm your older brother or something."
The brunette beamed, thankful for Blaise Zabini. "Thanks," she voiced out. "You have no idea how much help I needed right now."
'Oh, I do. I really do, Hermione Granger,' he thought, smiling. "No problem," he said, now standing up. He brushed some dirt off his rear end. "It's late. I think we should be getting back now."
Hermione nodded and hastily stood up. "Okay," was her reply. And together, they walked back to Hogwarts.
A/N: End! Aww, I'm loving Blaise's character more and more! Do review and tell me about your opinions of this chapter.
I'm sorry I didn't put review responses on this chapter. Like what I've said earlier, I found an awesome manga and I'm not yet done reading it so I'm kinda rushing. No worries, though, it'll soon return. Just have patience.
Hahaha, OH, some people voiced out their interest in my new 'project'. I'm still not done with the outline and all but fine, I'll all tell you the pairing – it's Hermione/Edmund! Yeah, well, in my opinion, I find them adorable so any objections? Reactions? Disgusted retorts, perhaps?
So, that's it. *Bows* I do thank all of your patience. Don't worry, I'll soon be as free as a bird!
Ciao for now!
With love,
2booklover4