Chapter 12

A Christmas Party

"Please?"

"No."

"Please?"

"No."

"Malfoy!"

"Granger, if I kill you what will I do for company?"

She groaned, knowing he had a point. "You're so selfish! You refuse to kill me because you want me around. What about me? Tonight I'll have to suffer through a date with Cormac McLaggen! Why won't you put me out of my misery?"

"Like you said, I'm selfish. You should know this by now."

"Why did I have to agree to go with him?" She been curled up in her old ratty chair with her legs pulled up to her chest. She let out another loud groan and dropped her head onto her knees.

The Slytherin snickered. "You've made your bed, Granger. Now you have to lie in it."

She looked up to glare at him. "I hate you."

"So I've heard."

He watched as she sighed and reached to grab her essay from the table. Looking at her now, it was so strange to think that just a few short weeks ago they had hated each other. In a matter of weeks they had overcome years of hatred and developed what he could now say was friendship. Not that they ever called it that. They never actually really talked about it since he had claimed they were simply "coexisting." He wasn't sure either of them had been willing to admit what this really was.

He watched as she brushed a lock of hair away from her face. He couldn't help but think she was beautiful, even in the simple uniform which they wore. She had such warm eyes that lit up when she laughed. He found the tiny freckles that dusted her nose to be adorable – not that he would ever admit to finding anything adorable. Her smile was one of his favorite things about her, and there were times when he felt sorry that he had once mocked her buck teeth. (Honestly though, they had been ridiculously mock-able).

He felt a twinge in his heart and frowned. He hated what she made him feel. He hated that he shouldn't feel anything for her but contempt. He also hated the fact that though she no longer hated him, he knew she would never reciprocate his feelings.

"You still haven't mentioned to anyone that you're going with McLaggen, have you?"

"No, I haven't."

"Well, that's something to look forward to," he offered. "When you drop his name in front of Weaslebee that oversized head of his might explode. Wasn't that one of the reasons you agreed to go with McLaggen in the first place?"

The witch gave a small smirk. "Yes, it very well could explode. It'll be quite the sight."

"The day is halfway over, Granger. Remember, just a few hours at this party then you never have to look at McLaggen again," he encouraged.

Hermione nodded in agreement, "Just a few hours." She stood up and started collecting her things. "Come on, you promised you'd come to Transfiguration class today."

He heaved a sigh and gave her a dismissive wave. "You go first, I'll be on my way."

She gave him a look that said she questioned his word.

"Go on. I promised you I'd go."

"If you don't show up, I'll set fire to your chair," she warned as she turned to walk away.

He knew he really shouldn't go to class. While he had been enjoying her company, having the Gryffindor witch around all the time had seriously hindered his progress on repairing the Vanishing Cabinet. He was still upset about the necklace plan falling through. Draco had hoped to have Dumbledore at least fall ill by the end of the term, but he was up and about just as healthy as ever.

A knot twisted in the blonde boy's stomach and his mouth went dry.

He didn't want to kill the headmaster. The thought alone made him want to retch. He would help the Death Eaters get into Hogwarts but he couldn't imagine actually taking someone's life.

But he knew he had to do it.

He grabbed his belongings and made his way to leave after deciding that he would spend tonight working on the Vanishing Cabinet.

Hermione made her way to the Room of Requirement, eager to tell her friend about Ron's reaction to news of her date and to thank him for the stunt he pulled in Transfiguration class.

Ron and Harry had been paired up and Harry had cast a spell that left Ron with a ridiculous moustache. This caused Hermione to fall into a fit of laughter – it had caused everyone to fall into a fit of laughter – and the redhead did not take that very well. In retaliation her fellow Gryffindor thought it would be funny to mock her eager reaction to answering questions.

Though she had taken to being angry with Ron all the time, she only felt hurt at that moment. She knew she had always been a bit enthusiastic, but he never complained about it when she was helping him with his homework. Or helping them all survive.

Evidently Draco had seen this and was not amused by Ronald's antics, so he accidentally aimed incorrectly and hit Ron with a spell that gave him rat whiskers. The class roared with laughter and Ron nearly attacked Draco. Professor McGonagall had to remove the whiskers herself as Draco claimed not to know how. After the Professor deducted ten points from Slytherin, the blonde boy gave her a small smile and she knew what he meant: It was worth it.

She smiled to herself, thinking about how far along she and Draco had come. Never in ten lifetimes would she have believed their relationship would morph into what it had. It was times like these when she felt grateful for having remembered the Room of Requirement on that horrible day that felt so long ago. And now that she thought about it, that day no longer seemed so horrible.

Noticing that the Slytherin was not at his usual place at his table for dinner, she decided to cut hers short as well. She needed one more pep talk before getting ready for what she was sure would be one of the worst nights of her life.

The witch was surprised to see that he had not been sitting in the area that they had claimed as their own. She chuckled inwardly as she realized that they had become part of The Room of Hidden Things.

She heard a faint sound in the distance and walked toward it in search of her companion. She cast a quick silencing spell, deciding it would be fun to scare him since he had a knack for sneaking up on her.

She listened intently to the faint sound of movement. Something being opened or closed? When she heard him swear to himself, she took a right and then peeked around a mound of objects, not wanting to be seen yet.

As she stood from her spot, she had a good view of the blonde looking upset and dragging a hand through his already messy hair. She had a view of his side, but his back was still slightly toward her so he could not see her. The exasperated boy rubbed his temples as he slammed a hand against the object in front of him.

Hermione couldn't fight her curiosity and took a few steps forward, wanting to see what had upset the usually calm Slytherin.

Getting a better view of the object she wondered why it seemed familiar. After a moment, she gasped. She removed her silencing spell.

"Draco," she started, taking another step forward to make sure her eyes were not deceiving her.

Said wizard nearly jumped out of his skin at the sound of her voice. He turned to look at her with wide eyes. "Wh-what are you doing here?"

She swallowed, trying to will away the lump forming in her throat. "I was looking for you," she started. Her mind was running wild, flashing back to the night they followed him to Borgin and Bukes. "What are you doing with that?" she demanded.

"I was just…" he trailed off. "It's just an old cabinet I found. I was just poking around it, looking for anything that might be in it."

She shook her head. "No. That cabinet looks exactly like the one in Borgin and Burkes. I remember seeing it when I went in. Is that it then? It that what you told Borgin to hold on to? With all this extra protection placed around the castle, I know you did not sneak this hefty thing in so this must be part of a set?"

He narrowed his eyes at her. "You were spying on me?" he challenged.

She faltered for a moment before she remembered she was angry at him. "Yes! We saw a sixteen year-old turn down Knockturn Alley and Harry wanted to follow him. So we did, and we learned that said sixteen year-old managed to intimidate a wizard over twice his age, and this sixteen year-old had a friend names Fenrir Greyback!" she spat.

He flinched. She felt her anger melt away.

"What is it for, Draco?"

Silence.

"It's for him, isn't it?" she asked quietly. "Voldemort. You're working on something to help him?"

Tears began to blur her vision, but she could still see the pained look on the wizard's face. He looked like he was fighting an internal battle.

Hermione shook her head, the tears finally escaping. "Harry was right."

Draco called her name as she turned and ran. She didn't stop until she was in her room and collapsed on her bed. She couldn't remember how she got there, or if anyone had seen her. She had been granted mercy in the form of privacy as the other girls had not returned from dinner.

She continued to sob.

She had grown to truly care about Draco. She had so much on her mind all the time and being with him was always a nice reprieve from that. That room was a sanctuary. He had been her solace.

And now… now he was Malfoy again. The same horrible person whom she had known for five years. He was a horrible, lying, treacherous monster...

But she knew that wasn't true. She knew that wasn't who he was. She knew she could never see him that way again.

Hearing footsteps approaching, Hermione forced herself to sit up and start getting ready.

It was time to get this horrible night over with.

Hearing Filch's wheezing voice, Severus looked up from the mundane conversation he had been holding with Slughorn.

"I discovered this boy lurking in an upstairs corridor. He claims to have been invited to your party and to have been delayed in setting out. Did you issue him an invitation?"

Severus watched as Draco broke free of Filch's grip on his ear. "All right, I wasn't invited! I was trying to gatecrash, happy?"

Merlin, Draco was making things difficult.

"No, I'm not!" Filch claimed though the glee on his face was evident. "You're in trouble, you are! Didn't the headmaster say—"

"It was my fault!" a female voice interjected.

Everyone in the room turned to see Hermione Granger step forward.

"He was supposed to my guest, but we had a falling out. He had been trying to apologize, but I kept ignoring him." She swallowed before continuing. "I-I finally told him that I might consider speaking to him after the party, so he was just waiting for me. Really, if anyone is to be punished, it's me. I'm the only reason he was here."

A flurry of whispers erupted as the curly-haired witch concluded her speech.

"Ah, the affairs of the young and in love! Don't worry, dear Miss Granger, Mister Malfoy is welcome to join us! It is Christmas, after all," Slughorn reassured the young witch in his bellowing, slightly tipsy voice.

The dark-haired man watched as Draco made his way hesitantly to Miss Granger. They exchanged a look and Severus decided it was time that he found out what exactly what had transpired between the two.

"I'd like a word with you both, Mister Malfoy and Miss Granger."

Slughorn hiccuped before waving a dismissive hand at the taller man. "Oh, now, Severus, it's Christmas, don't be too hard—"

"I'm Mister Malfoy's Head of House, and I shall decide how hard or otherwise to be," he said curtly. "I just need a word with him and Miss Granger. Now, would you two please follow me?"

As he turned to leave, he did not fail to notice everyone whispering excitedly about what had just transpired. McLaggen was seething. Potter and the Weasley girl looked bewildered. Lovegood had the same dreamy expression with a slight hint of curiosity. Everyone else looked scandalized.

After looking back to make sure the two had been following, he made a beeline toward his office. He was not about to have this conversation outside of a party of gossips.

He slammed the door to his office shut after ushering them in. Tonight he was getting answers.

"Sit. Both of you."

Granger immediately complied. Draco shot him a dirty look and only sat after the witch tugged on his sleeve.

"Now, I want one of you to tell me what exactly is going on between you two."

When it was clear Draco was not going to give him any answers, Granger sighed. She was usually so eager to answer questions, but she looked like it pained her to respond to him.

"Draco and I… We're friends." It was strange hearing her say his first name. "Something happened and I needed a place where I could get away from my surroundings. He just so happened to be in that place. After our initial run-in we decided to just coexist in the same space. Then that turned to friendship."

The professor tried to enter Draco's mind to find out how much exactly Granger knew, but the boy was exceptionally good at Occlumency.

"Let your guard down. I have a question I need answered."

"No!" the boy snapped. "Ask me the bloody question and stay out of my head!"

"Fine," Severus dragged out, "How much does she know?"

She glanced at Draco then looked away, seeming thoroughly distraught. She cleared her throat then turned to face the young wizard. "How much do I know, Draco?"

The boy looked torn.

Severus felt torn. He had not expected this to happen. Draco's feelings for the girl had always been something that concerned the professor, but he never imagined his two students would ever develop a relationship beyond one of enemies.

Finally the young Malfoy stood up and began pacing back and forth. He finally stopped in front of her and dropped down to his knees. He took her hands and breathed her name, "Hermione." He hesitated. It was even stranger hearing Draco address her by her first name. Severus could not see his face but he could hear the pain in his voice. "I have been working for the Dark Lord. He's given me a mission that I have to do in order to protect myself and my family. Hermione," his voice cracked when he said her name. Severus saw Granger had started crying and he briefly wondered if Draco was going to also.

The blonde Slytherin lifted up the sleeve of his shirt revealing the mark that they all knew too well.

Her body stilled. She bit her lip and looked away from him.

Once again, he was reminded of Lily. The first time she realized who exactly his friends were, she cried the way Granger was. Lily eventually got over it and overlooked his choice in friends. Until Severus had made the mistake that ended their friendship.

Granger sat there, not saying a word.

Severus found himself wishing he had taken the opportunity to imbibe more at the party than he had.

This was going to be a long night, and he was not sure he would like the way it would end.

A/N: And so now Hermione knows the truth. I got a little impatient because I really wanted her to find out so they could hash things out. Which they will in the next chapter! Hermione, Draco, and Severus will decide on a course of action to deal with Hermione's new knowledge.

How do you think she'll take it? Well this is a Dramione fic, so you can imagine how this will play out. But it will be far from easy.

I know our dear professor only got a bit of time in this chapter but we will get more from him in the next update!

Thank you all for reading!