Chapter Thirteen

Hermione

"Can you fasten this for me?" I ask Ginny, holding back my hair so she can get to my necklace. Ginny and I are getting ready for Slughorn's party- which she is also attending- in the girls' dormitory. I'm wearing diamond earrings, a black beaded necklace, black shoes, and a red dress. The dress goes a little above my knees, and the shoes have a slight heel on them. I've learned that people dress formally for these events. After she fastens my necklace, I let my hair down. It cascades down my shoulders in its usual waves; it's not frizzy like it used to be, thank goodness.

"Don't we look good?" Ginny says, spinning around, and I laugh.

My watch says that there's less than an hour until the party begins. Draco should be out of the detention he earned yesterday by now. I carefully go down the stairs with Ginny behind me, both of us trying not to fall. When we reach the end of the steps, Harry looks up and smiles at Ginny and me. Harry says something to Ginny when she reaches him and they kiss. Then Harry saunters over to me.

"You look nice," He compliments me, grinning, and I thank him. Things between Harry and I have never been romantic, and everyone except Rita Skeeter knows that. Harry compliments me, I compliment him, but we have always been just friends, and we always will be just friends. Our friendship is too beautiful for it to be possibly ruined by romanticism. Ginny understands that.

"I'm going to go get Draco," I tell him, walking towards the portrait hole, "I'll see you at the party." As I walk out of the room, I look back, and notice that Ron is staring from me from the couch. I walk a little faster, and the portrait shuts behind me.

The corridors have a lot of people in them. Most of them are dressed nicely, undoubtedly headed to the party themselves. I smile at them and thank the ones that compliment me. Finally, the door to the common room appears after I draw the pattern, and I walk inside.

What I see is breathtaking. Draco Malfoy is standing in the middle of the room, adjusting his leather jacket. He wears this over a white button-down dress shirt and dark jeans. He looks ; the most beautiful thing I've ever seen. Like someone millions of fourteen-year-old girls would swoon over.

"Wow," He exclaims, walking over to me and beaming. In my awe, I didn't realize that he saw me. "You look brilliant." When he reaches me, he grabs my hand.

"Thanks," I reply, grinning, "So do you. Especially in that jacket."

"Oh, this old thing?" He asks, pulling at the sleeves, "This is something the person who lived in my apartment before me accidentally left. I thought it was nice, so I kept it."

"Nice is an understatement," I laugh, and I check my watch.

"Let's go," I tell him, "The party starts in a few minutes."

Draco opens the door for me and we walk out into the corridor. People watch him and me as we pass. Seeing us holding hands must be astounding to them, but it couldn't feel more natural to me.

"How was detention?" I ask him, and he looks down at me as he talks. He looks like a beautiful, valuable painting. Every facial feature stands out, his eyes accentuating his pale skin and hair.

"Fine. Bane was the instructor. I suppose McGonagall has too much on her plate to be bothered with delinquents like me." He jokes, smirking. When he does that, he does look like a bad boy. For a second, I'm reminded of his old self.

"True," I laugh, playfully punching him in the arm, "But, in all seriousness, I did expect there to be a new Transfiguration teacher. It must be difficult to have that position and also Headmistress. I guess she didn't want to give it up."

He shrugs, and after an extended pause, he says, "If Weasley ever says anything to you, tell me. I don't want him messing with you. Or anyone else, for that matter." He removes his hand from mine and moves it to my waist, drawing me closer to him. Draco is very protective, and I love that.

"Ron didn't used to be like this," I explain, looking down at my feet. "Ever since he wore that horcrux locket... He just hasn't been the same."

"People change," Draco replies, "Our mistakes can damage us. But those mistakes make you who you are."

"You sound like Dumbledore," I tell him with a small smile.

Before I know it, we have reached the dungeons, where the party is being held. When Draco opens the door, music and strong aromas immediately flood out of the room. We walk inside. Slughorn really fixed it up. There are drapes hanging from the ceiling and giant tables of food ranging from pumpkin pasties to treacle tart. A band is playing in the corner. Slughorn himself is in the middle of the room greeting people as they walk in. Across the room, I see Harry and Ginny and I walk over to them, bringing Draco with me.

"Hello, you two," I say to them when I reach them. Ginny looks down at mine and Draco's interlocked hands.

"Hey," They reply together. "Quite a party, isn't it?"

"Yeah," I laugh, and when I look beside me, Draco and Harry are shaking hands. I can sense that at some time since their last encounter, Draco has sought out Harry and apologized to him about all of his past actions. I smile a bit as I listen in to their conversation.

"So, some of my friends and I are getting together for a scrimmage game of Quidditch tomorrow. Would you like to participate?" Harry asks Draco.

"Yes, of course." Draco responds, beaming. They may not be friends yet, but it's getting there.

"I'm going to get something to eat," Harry informs us, grabbing Ginny's hand and leading her to the table of food.

* * *

By seven o'clock, the party is in full swing. The band has taken a break, so their live music has been replaced by a record. Slughorn seems to be enjoying himself immensely; he is on his fifth glass of firewhiskey. A black-haired girl is dancing with Professor Bane, and a girl with pinkish hair is in the corner throwing up, probably due to unknowingly eating a puking pastille. I make a mental note to stay clear of that area.

Ron showed up around 6:30. He's been lingering around Harry and Ginny, since he doesn't have a date. Therefore, Draco and I have simply been alone the whole time. Not that that bothers me.

"Have I told you," Draco begins, beaming at me, "how lovely you look tonight?" I grin as he pushes a piece of hair behind my ear.

The record cuts off and the band takes the stage once again. Everyone looks at them expectantly. They start to play a slow, soft melody, and the couples flock around the edge of the stage, which has apparently been unofficially labeled as the dance floor. When I look back at him, Draco has his arm extended to me, and asks if I care to dance.

"Of course," I answer, placing my hand in his. He leads me out onto the dance floor, placing his hands on my waist as I place mine around his shoulders. The way he looks at me makes me melt. His grey eyes barely reflect the light in the room, and the corners of his mouth are slightly drawn up. We don't speak much; we just gently sway and relish each other's company.

"I wish you would have told me," He suddenly says, his voice low as to prevent others from eavesdropping.

"Told you what?" I ask, for I haven't the slightest idea what he's talking about.

"Yesterday, you know, when you didn't come to the common room, I was worried about you. And with good reason, too."

"I'm sorry," I answer, "I didn't know that I was going to visit the library. I would have told you. I didn't expect to be gone long, or for any of... that to happen."

"It's okay," He tells me, drawing me closer to him. I expect him to continue, but he doesn't until about a minute later.

"Hermione," He whispers in my ear in a smooth, almost velvety voice that gives me chill bumps. He pauses for a moment before continuing. "I'm in love with you." And then it's just him and me in the room, gently swaying to music I can barely hear. I feel like we're dancing on air.

"And I with you," I answer. He is mine, and I am his, and in this moment, nothing has ever mattered more.

The song ends, quickly replaced by a fast pace song about a mountain troll. Everyone exits the dance floor, including Draco and I. The moment may have passed, but the elation hasn't; he still has one hand firmly around my waist, and we're both sporting a large grin.

"I'll be right back," I say, "I'm going to get something to eat. Do you want anything?" He nods his head, and I turn and walk to the table of food. I get a couple of pumpkin pasties and another cup of butterbeer and saunter back towards Draco. But he is not where he was just a mere minute ago. Standing on the tips of my toes, I look for him in the crowd, but I don't see his platinum blonde hair anywhere. I do find Harry and Ginny, though, so I walk over to them.

"Have any of you seen Draco?" I ask them, hoping that they'll say yes. Ginny shrugs, but Harry nods his head. He waits until he swallows his food to speak.

"Yes, actually. I think I saw him heading out of the door a minute ago." Harry informs me. I feel a bit nervous.

"Do you think I could borrow your Marauders' Map, Harry?" I question him. He nods, and leads me over to the corner where a book bag resides.

"I didn't mean to bring this," He says, "but I guess it's good that I did." He pulls the map out of the front compartment of his bag and hands it to me.

"Are you sure you're not going to stay for the rest of the party? I'm sure Draco is fine. He's probably in the lavatory." He inquires, but I shake my head.

"No, I'm going to look for him." I tell him, and I walk away. When I exit the dungeons, I open the map, scanning for his name, but I can barely concentrate; there are odd noises protruding from the dungeons where the party is going on. I walk further away and see the pink-haired girl running down the corridor, her hand firmly placed over her mouth as if she's about to throw up again. I walk the other way. Slughorn's parties can get pretty wild.

Finally, when everything is silent and all I can hear is the buzzing of my thoughts swirling around in my head, I look at the map again. But it is to no avail; Draco's name is not on there. My heart begins to beat faster as I jog to our common room.

When I reach it, I quickly draw the pattern and barge inside. It is dark, but not to the point where I cannot see whether he is in here. I look around madly- under the blanket, on the couch, even behind the bookshelves. But he is not in here.

I rush out of the common room, slamming the door shut behind me. Surely he hasn't left Hogwarts? I open the map again and take another look before it dawns on me: the Room of Requirement doesn't show up on the map.

I start running before I even realize it. The few people that are in the corridor watch me as I rush by them. I accidentally knock a couple of them down in my haste. I'll apologize later. I have no time to waste.

The portraits yell at me as I pass them, telling me to slow down and such, but I ignore them. The Room of Requirement is in clear view, and I run even faster. When I reach it, I walk past it a few times, for this is how the doors to appear.

I need to find Draco.

I need to find Draco.

The door appears, and I realize that I'm breathing very fast. My heart is almost beating out of my chest. If he's not in here, I have no idea where he might be. My hands clammy and shaky, I pull open the door.

And then I see him, lying in a pool of blood.