Author note:
This is the dress that I have taken inspiration from, when describing Hermione's dress.
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…
Chapter 23 - Year 4, part 4
December 25th, 1994
Ginny stood behind her, appreciating the work she had put into Hermione's looks, with a wide, mirthful smile plastered on her face. "They're going to lose it."
"Don't say it like that." Hermione answered with a frown as she smoothed down the already smooth fabric of the dress. "It's not like I want them to fall down the stairs or anything."
"No, I know, but it would look good if they did." Her friend's grin was contagious and Hermione soon found herself smiling along at the mental picture of her friends falling head over heels by the looks of her.
Hermione stepped back from the makeshift oversized mirror that had been conjured in Ginny's dorm to help Hermione get ready. She turned her back to the mirror and looked as good as she could, over her shoulder at the reflection of the fall of the dress and the ENTIRELY open back.
It was without a doubt, the most beautiful thing she had ever seen in her entire lifetime. And she was wearing it. This forest-green, tight-fitted, long-sleeved, mermaid dress was hers, and it was so exquisite.
Really, there were so many adjectives she could use to describe the dress, and those were only the ones already used by either Ginny, Natacha or the woman selling her the dress in the boutique in Hogsmeade.
She had told Daphne that she would be wearing a statement… She sorely hoped that wearing something entirely in his favourite colour, would do the trick.
"I love this." Natacha gushed as she stood from the bed where she had been relaxing while Ginny had helped her into the dress. She softly lifted Hermione's hair from her back and touched the silver chain that went from one shoulder to the other, making sure that the dress wouldn't casually slide over her shoulders and bare her to the rest of the school. "What are you wearing for jewellery? And what about hair and makeup?"
"Oh, just this." Hermione said with a soft smile while lifting her wrist that proudly showed Draco's bracelet. The sleeves of her dress were long enough to reach just beyond her wrists and up the back of her hands. It meant that though her back was completely naked, she would be kept warm without the use of warming charms. But it also meant that - thankfully - the only way for her to wear her bracelet was on top of the dress.
She didn't have the nerves to tell Draco how she felt at the moment… But she could damn well show him that she cared - even if he didn't get the hint with the colour.
"The rest, I haven't planned."
…
30 minutes later she arrived by the corner just off the Grand Staircase. At that moment she was so ecstatic to be wearing her flats. Her mum had told her that she could wear a pair of kitty heels if she liked, but Hermione didn't fancy having sore feet for an entire evening. This was much more pleasant. But it also meant that as she neared the Grand Staircase, she could hear Daniel and Harry's reactions to Ginny arriving.
She hadn't planned for them to arrive separately - but at the very last moment, her bladder decided that now was the time. Thinking that she may not get much time to do so, she had told Ginny to go ahead.
As she stood there listening, she found herself grateful for the normally unwelcome urge.
Ginny was wearing a dark blue, strappy dress. Not unlike the one she, herself, had worn at New Years last year, yet this one didn't look as poofy or over the top as her own had. But it was still very pretty on her. Paired with a simple headband, she looked stunning.
"Ginny… You look… Merlin, Gin." Harry stammered and Hermione heard the sound of Clapping. Though it was sort of hollow. Peaking around the corner, she saw Daniel with a bright smile, clapping his best mate on the top of the shoulder as Ginny arrived in front of them.
Hermione quickly stepped back, allowing her friend to have her moment, before she herself would step forward to meet her friends - and Viktor.
She took a couple of deep breaths, smoothed down the fabric of her beautiful dress one more time, straightened her back and shoulders, and turned around the corner.
You can do this, Hermione. You can do this.
Lifting her dress just a little bit so as to not trip in it while going down the stairs, she took the steps one at a time. She wasn't purposefully walking slowly, but even though the dress was spelled to weigh nothing, it was still a different sort of clothing to be walking around in. She didn't want to make a fool of herself. While she had been looking at her friends - some of them gaping like a fish out of water, others were smirking victoriously - she had very little eyes on them in return.
As she was walking down the steps, Draco with Pansy at his arm, and Theo with Daphne walked up the stairs from the dungeons. Like some sort of magnetic force, she instantly locked eyes with Draco. He stopped so forcefully, Daphne almost walked right into Pansy - who already looked on edge.
Draco's head lifted towards her and his mouth opened - not much, but enough for her to wonder if he had stopped breathing and suddenly needed an extra way of getting oxygen into his body.
She instantly grew flustered and felt all too self-aware of what she was wearing. Though she didn't want to, she felt the need to break the very obvious eye contact they had been holding, and turned instead her focus to her friends as she took the last couple of steps towards them.
An arm was flung over her shoulder. "If any of you guys say anything about Nene except the fact that she is one of the most beautiful women in the entire world, I'll be breaking your necks." William kissed the crown of her neck and whispered, "You look amazing, you really do." He gave her one last squeeze before letting go and moving back to where Ellinor and Max were looking at her with equally bright smiles. She could do nothing but smile back, with all of the happiness she currently felt in her much too small body.
"I'm lacking words, Hermione. No offence, gin, you look beautiful - but I can't say anything about what's going on right there." Harry finished as he waved one of his hands in a circle in front of Hermione.
She laughed. "Thank you, Harry, I really appreciate it."
"Herm-own-ninny." Hermione cringed internally at the butchering of her name as she plastered on a not-so-real-smile, and turned towards Viktor who stood there loud and proud in his school uniform. "You look very beautiful."
"Thank you, Viktor, you look very dashing yourself." Someone snort-laughed somewhere out of her peripheral view, and she internally sent a one finger salute towards Theo. It wasn't a thumbs up.
No sooner had she taken Viktor's arm, before they were opening the ball with the other Champions. Luckily, the dancing would wait a bit because she was absolutely starving. But the entire dancing part? She wasn't sure how she felt about that at the moment.
…
The evening was pleasant and the food was delicious. She was seated between Roger Davis and Viktor, which meant that she spent most of the night talking to her date. Davis was all too engrossed in his Veela date, and had neither time nor eyes for anyone else in the room. If it was just the Veela magic doing the talking or an actual infatuation with the blond girl, Hermione didn't know. And frankly, she couldn't care less.
By the time dessert finished, she had almost taught him how to pronounce her name correctly - yet they had still ended on 'Mione'. She didn't particularly like it… But it was better than whatever he had done before. Also, during the night she had gotten so enormously sick and tired of him saying it incorrectly, that it somehow turned into her life's mission to find something that would work.
At the Head's table, the professor stood and signalled for the students to do the same. As Hermione pushed her chair in, the food disappeared, followed by the entire table. Underneath their feet, a dancefloor appeared.
Knowing that it was their cue - the Champions and their dates made their way into the centre of the dance floor and positioned themselves appropriately.
Her heart was hammering away in her chest. Could it possibly go any faster? She very much doubted it.
She placed one hand on his shoulder - not so easy since she he was so much taller than her - and the other in his prepared hand. His other hand came to rest just above the small of her back. A bit lower than they had been taught by Professor McGonagall, but not entirely inappropriately so. That didn't mean she liked it.
His surprisingly warm hand against her bare, naked back made chills erupt instantly and she hated every second of it.
She couldn't do this.
She was itching to step away from him and suddenly realised that it had been a very bad idea to say yes to accompanying him.
The music started so suddenly she almost lost her footing as Viktor stepped forward, but she managed to save herself at the very last second.
"Don't worry 'Mione, I've got you." He said in a low laugh and his hold on her back seemed to tighten.
Hermione found herself wondering in what way he meant that, because had she not been clear enough in how she felt about him when he had asked her to the ball?
She decided to not answer him, but forced a smile instead.
The rest of the rehearsed dance followed smoothly and without incidents, and just before the last couple of notes were to run out, the professors joined in - thereby inviting the rest of the students to join.
She and Viktor made a turn at some point, and her line of sight was directly at Pansy and Draco. Pansy's head was thrown back in a laugh, as she clutched onto Draco's forearms. Draco laughed along, and Hermione felt her heart clenching a little bit at it.
She wished so deeply that it could be her in Pansy's place. But she knew it couldn't.
Did they even stand a chance?
Viktor chose that moment to pull her in closer. She was confused by the motion and tried to stand her ground as best as she could considering that they were actively dancing. It wasn't working for her and soon, she found herself too close to him. Their fronts weren't yet touching, but it wasn't far off. One deep breath from her, and her chest would be grazing him.
"This is fun." He said cheerfully.
"Yeah." She bit out through semi-clenched teeth.
Thankfully, the music changed into one more appropriate for another kind of dancing - the one where touching wasn't required. She breathed out a sigh of relief as the guitarist and drummer of the Weird sisters arrived on stage and started introducing the rest of the band, before giving it their all.
The rest felt like history as she danced and sang along with the rest of the school, to all of the classics that she had grown up listening to.
…
She didn't know for how long they danced, but at some point the band took a break, and Viktor suggested getting some drinks for the two of them and mentally she agreed wholeheartedly. She was about to say so, as Harry suddenly burst in from the side.
"Hermione! Ginny's looking for you outside!" He hurried, out of breath like he had been running to find her.
Hadn't she just seen Ginny dancing?
She frowned. "Why? Is she alright?"
"Yeah, I think so - but she needed to talk to you 'right now'." Harry used his fingers to visibly put the last two words into quotation marks while rolling his eyes heavily.
"Oh. Well, I better go find her." She smiled at Harry before turning to Viktor. "I'll be back in a bit." He tried to protest but she made it clear that she would be back, before turning and making her way outside without another word.
As she went through the door and into the magically made terrace - made for the party of course - she heard the music playing again. This time though, it wasn't the rocky songs they played most of the time but a more slow song that brought their piano and bagpipe into their true elements.
She walked around the heated platou and looked around for Ginny, but she wasn't finding the redhead.
What she did find was Theo hurrying directly in her direction. "She's back there." He smirked and pointed with his thumb behind him, before hurrying inside.
"How do you-"
Looking around to see if anyone had noticed their somewhat neutral interaction, she found the entire space deserted. She never finished her question before he was too far gone.
She was enjoying the silence out here - only hindered by the music - and the lack of people, and made her way towards the back where a part of the space was halfway hidden by some bushes.
There must have been some misunderstanding, because Ginny wasn't there. Draco was. But he was standing with his back to her, looking out over the black lake where the castle and its lights were reflected in the surface.
He hadn't seen her.
Looking over her shoulder before moving past the bushes, she caught Theo's large grin before he entered the castle again. She didn't know whether she should curse him all the way to hell, or give him another Christmas present, because he had certainly just handed her one with the help of her own best friend.
Turning back to Draco, he still hadn't seen her.
He must have been utterly elsewhere, because she managed to walk all the way up beside him before he realised she was there.
He took a small step back in surprise but quickly found his way back again. Only, this time he wasn't staring at the lake.
He was staring at her.
"Hello." she said in a low voice as he took her in. Why did her voice sound so shrill?
"Hi." He breathed, finally looking into her eyes. "What are you doing out here?"
"Just needed some air - but then I found you." She half lied. He didn't know that she had been fooled into coming outside.
He didn't say anything, only stared at her. He then visibly swallowed. "Dance with me?"
Dance? He had… He had asked her to dance? It felt like simultaneously seconds and hours since she had watched him with Pansy and concluded that she could never be so lucky as to be in his arms.
"Y-yeah. I'd like that." She stammered, and smiled softly up at him.
He held his hand out for her, and she put hers into him - only for it to be lifted delicately up onto his shoulder, before he softly grasped the other.
His hands were so soft.
She knew that of course, had felt them before when they had been sitting in the astronomy tower that one time. But feeling his hand in hers, and the other holding her just below the shoulder blades.
She was certain she would become a puddle on the ground if he didn't move.
As per command, they started swaying to the soft music fluttering out through the open door.
She didn't know how, or when… But somehow, they moved closer and closer together until there was barely any space between them.
She wondered how she could have been in almost the exact same position with Viktor all but an hour ago, where she had been begging internally to please be let go… Yet, now? Now she couldn't get close enough.
They had been walking in circles around each other for so long, and something was finally happening between them.
Feeling brave, she let go of her hand and lifted it so that she was holding on to both of his shoulders in a loose grip.
She heard his hard intake of air and instantly regretted doing it, only for his free hand to wrap around her to rest on her lower back.
She couldn't breathe.
He was touching so much of her skin. It was too much yet not enough, all at one. But when he started caressing her naked back with his thumb, she was sure it would be her undoing. She could feel herself being electrified and resurrected by every single stroke, and it wasn't enough.
She moved her hands inwards on his shoulders until she could feel the naked skin of his neck.
She had barely grazed the hairs at the back of his neck before she found herself softly pressed into his chest. Though she couldn't possibly find places she wanted to be more than that, the position was a bit uncomfortable for her, so she pulled her hands down and instead wrapped them around his waist and rubbed his back on top of his dress shirt.
How the hell had he hidden all those muscles?!
The change in position resulted in one of his arms moving up to hold her across the shoulders while his hand at her lower back stayed there. But… It moved further across her back, eliciting goosebumps as it did, until the tip of his fingers was brushing the fabric on her other side.
His touch was intoxicating.
"You're so beautiful, Hermione." He whispered against the top of her head as he leaned his head down on it.
"Thank you - you look very handsome yourself." She whispered, before continuing; "Do you like it? My dress?" She knew it was a stupid question asking for praise that way, but she desperately needed to know if he liked it. If he had caught on to what she had been doing.
His hold on her suddenly seemed to tighten. She wasn't mad about it. "I - Yeah, I like it. It's gorgeous on your Hermione. You're gorgeous. Who would have thought you'd wear green so well?" He snickered and though she agreed with him, she felt like every part of her was burning up.
He was holding her so tight and whispering such sweet praise at her and she was lapping it all up like a fasting person being given food for the first time in weeks. Months.
"I was hoping you liked it." She muttered as she took a small step back and looked up at him, all flamed face and all.
"You… you did?" He asked, his voice sounding impossibly rough as he looked down at her in disbelief.
Was it so hard to believe that she would do something like that for him? Hoping that he would like it? That he would like it on her?
She nodded and smiled shyly at him.
She could feel his breath as he ghosted across her face in small puffs.
They were so close.
"I think I really like you, Hermione." He whispered as his mouth moved closer towards hers.
"I really like you too." She sighed as she finally told him how she had felt for so long.
His hands ended up on either side of her face as he inched closer to her. Their mouths barely touching.
This is it.
"Draco?! Are you out here?!" Pansy's shrill voice called out and Hermione heard Draco curse. Instead of kissing her on her all-too-ready lips, he pressed them to her forehead instead.
"I'm so sorry." He whispered as she leaned into him, before he quickly stepped around her and around the bush towards Pansy.
Hermione was frozen to the ground as her brain once again figured out how it was supposed to breathe without sharing the same air as Draco.
"I think I really like you, Hermione."
I think I really like you, Hermione.
It was like all her dreams came true in a matter of minutes, until it was ripped apart all too quickly. By Pansy. Again.
"There you are. What were you doing out here? I wanted to talk to you!" She called as she noticed him.
Hermione couldn't figure out if he had walked off to get Pansy away from Hermione, or if he simply didn't want to be caught with her.
I think I really like you, Hermione.
Hermione blushed so hard she was sure it would have been visible all the way down to her navel, had her front not been entirely covered.
She fumbled with her bracelet until their voices had trailed off enough for her to think it possible to sneak back in unnoticed.
I think I really like you.
…
Arriving inside, Hermione quickly found Harry. "Good walk outside? I think you missed Ginny." He said, and wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.
"Oh, shut up, you." she said though she couldn't hide the blush that once again crept onto her face.
"There you are!" Viktor said as he put his arm around her shoulder and hugged her into his side. She carefully stepped out of it and closer to Harry, though the Bulgarian didn't look like he quite enjoyed her slipping out of his hold. "Come on, I wanted to talk to you."
And then she was dragged out of the Great Hall without much consent. "Really, Viktor, I can walk by myself." She huffed though he either wasn't hearing her, or simply choosing not to.
They walked through the open door and out into the entrance hall where different couples were talking quietly.
He steered her out towards the wall right by the entrance to the Great hall, and stood there with her. It almost felt like he was framing her in, though she couldn't believe why he would do that.
"I can walk by myself, you know." She huffed irritably.
It didn't have the desired effect. Instead, he walked closer to her. He was definitely framing her in. "What were you doing out there?" He asked with narrowed eyes.
"Looking for Ginny - you know that." She said truthfully.
"But Ginny was inside. I saw her." He narrowed his eyes at her
"But I didn't know that. What's this about? Can you back off, please?" She tried pushing him away but he only stepped closer.
He was too close.
There was not enough space to breathe.
"You know, Mione, I've been very clear in my affections for you, and I know you feel the same though you keep denying it. I see the way you look at me." He said, his voice taking a sudden predatorial stint that she didn't care for one second.
"What are you talking about? I've told you plenty of times that I'm not interested! Let me go right now!"
"No. You have terrible friends who fill you with lies and make you believe it. Like that blond one you keep looking at, like you look at me. Don't you think I see it? But he doesn't know that you're already mine."
"I'm not yours. Let me go, or I'll scream!" She sneered while pushing at his chest with everything she had. He wasn't bulging.
"I'd like to make you scream, Mione." He whispered and pushed himself fully against her. She felt him as every last breath left her body. Felt him, as he pushed his mouth towards hers.
The William manoeuvre. It had saved her before and it would save her again.
She lifted her right leg and pushed it back, prepared to smash it directly up into his junk, but instead of feeling his lips on hers and her knee between his legs, she felt a puff of air and heard a 'Umpf'. She staggering away from where she had been pressed against the stonewall. Her hands now clasped hard across her mouth as she gasped for panicked breaths in shock.
"She told you 'no', you arsehole, and I told you to bloody respect her limits." William roared at Viktor who laid on the floor, looking at her brother in complete disbelief as he clutched his face. A large bruise was already starting to appear on the side of it.
"Come on, let's get you out of here." Someone said and a soft hand grabbed hers, pulling at it lightly.
She looked away from Viktor and into calm, brown eyes. "Ellinor?"
"Come on, love." She pulled at Hermione again, and this time she let herself be led. "William, we're going." Ellinor directed at her brother who was quickly at her other side, a hand protectively around Hermione's shoulders.
Walking out of the door and into the courtyard, William quickly put his arms fully around her until she had calmed down. Hermione was almost proud of herself for not starting to cry in the middle of it all, but at that moment, she found that she almost didn't care.
She felt numb.
What was wrong with her?
First Lockhart and now Krum?
What was she doing wrong?
Whatever she had done she would never do it again. I promise.
I promise. I promise. I promise.
William stepped back and lifted her face towards his.
She didn't know what she would have said if William and Ellinor could actually see her face right now. But she turned her face away anyway and looked out into the courtyard and gasped.
… where someone with impossibly light hair stood too close to someone else.
… and the girl's hands came up and around his neck as she crashed her lips to his.
… but he looked stunned for a moment, before his hands came up to hold her to him.
And though she had instantly realised who they were, the surprise made her stagger backwards.
"Shit." William simply stated, but it was enough. Draco turned towards them, and Hermione saw the shock on his face and the smile on Pansy's swollen lips before she was turning around and disappearing back inside in a run.
It couldn't be.
"Nene!" Wills called after her and caught her by the hand as she took the first couple steps of the Grand Staircase in a run. Damn him and his long legs.
"No!" she shouted at him, tears welling up in his eyes. "I don't - I don't care! He can kiss whoever the fuck he wants! I just wish he'd had the tiniest bit of fucking decency to not run straight into her arms after having just-, after just-, he just said that-" she stammered and struggled through her tears as the door opened and Draco and a giggling Pansy walked through it.
His hair was beautifully tousled - but it wasn't by her hands… And his lips weren't swollen by hers.
"I can't do this." She whispered. "I can't-" She turned around and hunched her dress up with one hand before making her way back to her dormitory as fast as possible.
…
And as she laid in bed shortly after, tossing, turning and silently crying her eyes out, she realised something important.
She would never be able to see Draco with another girl.
Not while still being his friend.
…
Author note:
Song for this chapter:
Only love can hurt like this - Paloma Faith
playlist/1P5krpjY9txJkVXx1kTMJO?si=aa47171deb0f44fb
