Author's Note: In this chapter: Hermione and Draco's relationship is evolving and a masquerade is discussed. And yes, their costumes are super cheeky given the circumstances, a point which Spike will be taking note of in the next installment ;)

Hermione collapsed on the couch in the Room of Requirement, her head pounding. "Is there any way to master Occulmency without feeling like your head is going to split open?"

"Not really," Malfoy admitted as he threw himself on the couch next to her. "But hey, at least you figured out a way for us to meet without the risk of Potter following us with that map."

Hermione winced. Sure she trusted Malfoy now but it still kind of felt wrong to have told him one of Harry's biggest secrets yet she'd had to so he'd understand the risks. "This solution won't last forever though."

Malfoy nodded his agreement. Hermione had begun borrowing the Marauder's Map once or twice a week, claiming that she needed it to sneak into the Restricted Section of the library. Harry had happily let her have it on the promise that she wouldn't be dragging him to study with her. The only drawback was, in order to make that story plausible, Malfoy and Hermione had to meet after curfew.

Hermione sighed and pushed herself up off the couch. "We should probably try another round or two before I pass out from exhaustion." Even she had to admit that Occulmency was the hardest magic she'd tried to learn so far, even harder than producing a Patronus.

But Malfoy surprised her by reaching out and pulling her back down on the couch next to him. "Let's just relax for the rest of the night. No more trying to break into each other's minds. And no more sparring either."

Hermione felt surprisingly comfortable with the suggestion even though, in the three odd months since they'd started their Watcher/Slayer arrangement, they'd never really done anything but train in some way.

"You have something in mind Malfoy?"

He tilted his head and gave her an appraising look. "You can call me Draco when we're alone if you'd like. I mean I figure we may as well be on a first name basis what with the fact that we occasionally trust each other with our lives."

Hermione smiled. "So let me rephrase that. You have something in mind Draco?"

Draco rolled her eyes. "Are you excited for the Halloween masquerade next weekend?"

"Not at all," Hermione scoffed. "Dancing. Costumes. Not really my cup of tea. Actually I may just sit the dance out and drink a cup of tea instead."

"Ah, come on. Your new Slayer reflexes should have definitely improved your dancing skills."

"I'm not sure it works like that. Sure I have increased strength and flexibility but it doesn't mean I have rhythm," Hermione pointed out. "And it's not just the dancing. Last time we had a Yule Ball? Well it didn't end well."

Draco leapt to his feet and screwed up his face in concentration. Hermione was just about to question the expression when music started playing and he offered her his hand. "Just forget about it all and let's test the theory on your dancing skills."

Once she accepted his hand he led her through a series of dances from a waltz to a foxtrot to a 'shake and shimmy with the beat' kind of dance. And to her surprise Hermione enjoyed herself far more than she had at the Yule Ball years earlier, a feeling she primarily attributed to the fact that, after months of Slayer training, she was more comfortable in her body than ever before.

So, in a way, Draco Malfoy's theory was exactly right. The music slowed and Draco looped her arms around the back of his neck, lacing his hands at the small of her back as they slowly revolved. "That wasn't so bad now, was it?" he teased.

"If only I could just spend the whole masquerade dancing with you." Hermione laughed then froze when she realized what she'd just said. She wanted to dance to dance with Draco Malfoy. It was a startling thought. And Draco's response surprised her even more.

"It is a masquerade," he reminded her. "As long as our costumes are good enough we could dance all night without anyone realizing it was us."

Hermione took a deep breath and peered out from behind her bed hangings. And, just as she'd expected, her dorm room was incredibly messy but also empty. The rest of the occupants had left for the masquerade nearly ten minutes earlier.

She frantically rushed around the room as she undid all the charms she'd put in place to hide her costume and other supplies. It had been a right pain in the arse to plan for the masquerade all while insisting that there was absolutely nothing her friends could do to convince her to go.

But she'd done it. She even had Harry's map and Invisibility Cloak so she could meet Draco in the Room of Requirement without any stray students noticing a late Gryffindor attendee and putting two and two together.

It didn't take her long to get ready, not with the beauty spells she'd been practicing when her roommates hadn't been in the room. "But if it's so easy why did I have to listen to Lavender and the others complaining about their hair and makeup for over two hours?" she muttered as she cast the last spell, the one that would temporarily change her eyes from brown to hazel.

She stepped back to inspect herself in the mirror. The lighter eyes, darker hair, and powered face, not to mention the lacy black eye mask, made her neigh on unrecognizable.

All in all, it was perfect.

So, after lifting her skirts and tucking her wand in one thigh holster and a stake in the other, she carefully slid the Invisibility Cloak over her head and carefully made her way to meet Draco.

Draco paced the Room of Requirement as he waited for her. He'd gotten ready there instead of with the rest of the Slytherins after having made an excuse about an emergency meeting with his godfather Severus Snape.

He kept adjusting his high collar and cape, not because it was uncomfortable (it was actually very similar to what he wore are formal winter dinners with his family) but because he was nervous.

Somehow that one night of dancing with Hermione had changed everything. After he'd first met her he couldn't stop thinking about her because she'd been an enigma. He'd been taught that Muggleborns were inferior in every way and yet she'd bested him at all their classes but Flying. She'd been intriguing. Then he'd become focused on her training, up at all hours of the night as he worried about keeping her alive.

Now he couldn't stop thinking about touching her in other, gentler, ways. It was driving him batty. Kind of ironic given the Dracula costume.

He was still reliving their dances when the door to the Room of Requirement slid open and Hermione walked in. Only with her makeup, magically changed features, and deep purple Victorian gown she didn't look a thing like the Granger he knew. Not that she looked bad, just different.

"So are we going to the ball or are we just going to stand here staring at each other?" Hermione joked when more than a minute passed and he still hadn't said a word or made a move in her direction.

"You look better when you're you," Draco blurted out.

Hermione's mouth fell open in surprise but she recovered quickly. "Well I don't really approve of your mustache either."

The two laughed and then Draco finally offered her his arm. "Come Miss Mina. The masque awaits."