Chapter One- Scales

The student body of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is full of secrets and false fronts. Hogwarts is a school that gives young witches and wizards a chance to excel in their knowledge and enable them to get jobs after schooling, but it does not help them establish any connections they may need to get the job of their desire.

For hundreds of years, the students have known this and, for hundreds of years, they have taken this matter into their own hands. Secret organizations have been established throughout the school. Each organization has a different purpose, and different rules for acceptance. One secret organization, for example, may only consist of Ravenclaw's who want to get jobs at the Ministry, whereas a different organization may wish to include students of any house and may aim solely to get a variety of well established witches and wizards in to lecture them.

Any student who is not connected to any organization, either wishes desperately to be accepted into one, or cares nothing about such affairs and thinks them to be a load of hogwash. One such student, who believes she has never heard of anything less beneficial in her life, is Hermione Granger.

“I think they're a complete waste of time.” Hermione had once said to Harry and Ron when she overheard them talking about organizations, and which ones they would most like to join. “They just give students with nothing going on in their lives a feeling of importance and secrecy. I'd feel very betrayed if a friend was in a secret society and didn't tell me.”

“But Hermione,” Harry had protested. “The thing is, students who are in an organization aren't allowed to tell anyone else. It would be breaking their rules. They'd get kicked out.”

She hadn't responded to this, just muttered that it wasn't right.

During her years at Hogwarts, Hermione, with her outstanding perception and silent observations, had been able to learn a few of the secret societies, and determine who was involved in them. A girls-only Hufflepuff and Gryffindor organization, called the `Leaders,' was alive to give members more confidence in getting where they wanted to go.

Another, called the `Feigns Brains,' was for students who were less lucky in the intelligence department, and wanted to meet and listen to success stories of accomplished witches and wizards, who were not overly bright themselves. Hermione had figured Neville to be a member of this organization, along with Lavender. The majority, however, Hermione perceived to be Hufflepuff's.

Hermione knew nothing of any Slytherin-only secret societies, though she was sure they existed. Slytherin students kept more to their own house then the other three, therefore any secretive behavior was normal for them.

When Hermione entered her seventh year at Hogwarts, she still maintained her opinion that being in an organization gave you no advantage over those students who were not. She sat in on all her classes, never missing one, and paid rapt attention to each word that came out of her Professor's mouths. Hermione continued to be one of the top students in her year level, and Harry and Ron continued being average students, but incredible Quidditch players.

A few weeks after the school year began, Hermione walked into her Potions class and sat down next to her two best friends who, she noticed, conveniently came to the end of their conversation when she reached them.

“What were you guys talking about?” she asked curiously, pulling out a fresh sheet of parchment and her bottle of ink.

“Nothing important.” Ron said with a shrug. “Where were you? I didn't see you at breakfast.”

“I slept in. I had to choose between breakfast and potions.” She pulled a disgusted face. “I stupidly enough chose potions.” Her stomach gave a rather loud rumble. “I'm starving, I wish Snape would just get here and speed the lesson through so I can go get some food.”

Ron looked at her sympathetically. “I hate being hungry.”

Harry looked almost guilty that he had allowed himself a big breakfast, when Hermione had so unfortunately missed out. “Just leave now.” He suggested. “Snape's not here yet.”

Hermione seriously considered this, but as luck had it, the next moment the dungeon door burst open and in strode Professor Snape with his usual stormy expression. He began the class by stating he was severely disappointed in the results of the test he had given them a week previously.

He then strode menacingly about the room handing the papers back. When he reached Hermione, he gave her an offended look and thrust the test in front of her. Hermione's eyes gleamed when she spotted the mark she received.

“What did you get, Hermione?” Ron asked, peering over her shoulder. His face fell when he saw the `E' scrawled in black ink in the top corner, and he hastened to cover up his test before she could see the mark he had gotten. Hermione had already seen the `P,' however and knew Ron would feel inadequate if compared to her, so didn't push the matter.

“Oh, that's really great.” He congratulated her when his paper was safely tucked away in his books. “I wonder how anyone can be so smart. In all subjects too. I don't know how your brain can handle it.”

“I'm not that smart, Ron.” She said, because she did not enjoy being gratified for her intelligence. Sure, she consented that she was smart, but didn't like others feeling like she was better then them because of it.

Snape handed the last paper back with a smile at its recipient. Draco Malfoy read his mark and a smirk crossed his face in triumph. Snape turned to the class from his position next to Draco's desk.

“I hope you all take in your grades and begin seriously considering whether you should continue in potions this year. I do not teach failures. I will not have any student who I think will get below an `O' in their NEWT's. I think that if you are all at least smart enough to know what is good for you, more than half of you won't return to the next lesson.”

The students who had received poor grades all sunk in their chairs and swallowed hard, Ron and Harry included. Hermione tried her hardest not to look smug, but she had told them to study harder before the test.

“Who got the highest score, Professor?” Draco Malfoy asked, fully believing that his name would be spoken, and he could then follow it through by throwing it the Gryffindor's faces, most of all Hermione's. Snape, however, turned to look at Draco in a rather disconcerted manner.

“I don't think that information needs to be known by everyone.” Snape said with a raised eyebrow.

“Come on.” Draco pushed.

Snape looked down at him. “Fine.” He said slowly. “The highest scoring student for the test was,” he cleared his throat, and in a voice noticeably softer, said, “Hermione Granger.”

Draco's eyes widened at he turned in his seat, along with the rest of the class, to stare at her. Hermione felt her face redden and acted as if she didn't notice their jealous looks. Once the class returned their attention to Snape, Hermione allowed herself to look up from her hands. As soon as she did, Hermione saw that a certain pair of gray eyes remained fixedly on her face.

She stared back at Draco, not allowing herself to be the one to look away. His eyes were icy with speculation, and a small sneer lifted the corner of his mouth. When it seemed he had reached a conclusion of some sort, he slowly turned his gaze away.

Hermione frowned at this, but forgot about it as soon as she began copying notes from the board.

“We have a problem.” Draco said quietly from the front of the room.

He was in a small dungeon towards the outskirts of the underground level of Hogwarts. The room was occupied by a very select group of Slytherin males. Five, in fact, was the total of this secret organization. Draco had been involved from the start of the previous year, and now seemed to control the group. The other four members allowed him to do so, because they felt a leader was necessary and he was certainly the best of the lot.

Not one other student attending Hogwarts knew of the `Scales.' Four of the five Slytherin's were in seventh year, only one being in sixth. The Scales enjoyed not being known of, as they didn't have to deal with other students asking whether they could join. Their aim was to make themselves known to wizards and witches of power, so they had a chance being in a position of power themselves one day. Connections always help. Being in Slytherin for nearly seven years had also set them back, because any respectable place would be hesitant of hiring a person who had a fair chance of following the dark side.

Devon Hutch, a brown haired, blue eyed guy who was considered highly spunky by the majority of girls in the school, said “What's wrong, Draco?”

The other members all looked towards Draco with worry. There was Taylor Smith; a short, stocky sixth-year with brown eyes and a rare smile, Mark Darcy; a fair-haired, aggressive looking guy, who had a reputation for starting (and finishing) fights, and Corey Mackell; a reserved, bland looking guy, who wasn't noticed in most places he went.

Draco took a deep breath and replied, “I've been having trouble booking that seminar we were talking about. The organizers are very particular about who they allow in.”

“What do you mean?” Mark asked, in a growling voice. “Surely the five of us can't be that difficult a group to book.”

Draco stared at him coolly. “In actual fact, we are. The bloody secretary sent me the terms and conditions, and having read them I know it is impossible for us to go.”

“Why?” Corey asked softly.

“Because,” Draco pulled a sheet of parchment out of his pocket and held it up for him to read, “It says here, `The Exclusive Seminar can be arranged for any private group, big or small, for a previously negotiated price. The terms and conditions are as follows: We do not run a Seminar for a group of less than five people.'”

“That was close.” Devon commented.

Draco nodded and continued. “`We will run a Seminar for students, at student prices. But we will not run a Seminar for a group of students of only one sex, as this is unfair, and some speeches relate more directly to one gender than the other, so we find your money is more worth your while with both sexes.'”

“That's ridiculous!” Mark interrupted. “They can't do that.”

“Apparently they can, and they will.” Draco said. “Another thing that is unnerving is this more direct knock back. `Mr. Malfoy, you informed us that you wish to book for a small group of students that attend Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. We are unable to allow you to book a Seminar until we know the Houses of the students you wish to book for. It is also unfair to present a Seminar to you if you are of the same House. We request that a member of your party be of a different House.

Thank-you for your co-operation, hope to hear from you soon,

Isabel Lim, Leading Secretary.'”

“From another house?” Taylor exclaimed. “You're right Draco, now it's impossible to go. Unless one of us claim to be of another House.”

“And another sex.” Draco responded dryly. “And I am not putting on heels and lipstick, and I think I'm safe to assume that neither will any of you.”

“So what do we do?” Taylor asked. “I think we really should go. I mean, there are some very accomplished wizards that we could get to know. The people you have connections with make the possibilities of getting where you want to go a lot bigger. And I know I wouldn't mind having some help once I get out of here.”

There was a pensive silence, broken a few minutes later with a hesitant suggestion by Corey. “Uh…perhaps we could recruit one new member.”

“What do you mean?” Draco asked him sharply. “The Scales is a very strict society, and it always has been ever since it was founded hundreds of years ago. We can't just recruit someone.” He said with a sneer.

“I think we should at least consider it.” Corey objected to Draco's downright refusal.

Draco took a deep breath. “Fine.” He paused. “Who would we recruit?”

“Just one other.” Mark said firmly. “A female and a non Slytherin. Kill two birds with one stone.”

“From which House?” Devon asked.

“Rule out anyone from Hufflepuff.” Draco told them in a hard voice. “No idiots are allowed in the Scales.”

“So Ravenclaw and Gryffindor to chose from.” Devon nodded.

“We have to make sure they have all the qualities needed to be a Scale.” Mark contributed. “Intelligence, bravery, secrecy, stealth, ambition & determination and no attachments. No friends that this chick might feel obligated to tell about us. She needs to be able to keep secrets. Big secrets. She needs to be trustworthy. And she needs to be smart enough to compete with us. As I said, I don't want a dumb arse in the Scales.”

“Here, here.” Taylor said.

“Right.” Draco said, still not appearing happy with the decision to recruit a new member, let alone a female and a non-Slytherin. “So look around during the week, and next meeting we will discuss possibilities. Until then, Scales.”

Hermione sat up straight in her chair and raised her arm till it was fully extended. Only a few quick moments later, Professor McGonagall turned to Hermione from writing on the blackboard, and looked at her from over the rims of her glasses.

“Yes, Miss Granger?”

“Do you want us to have all that memorized by next lesson?” Hermione asked, indicating to the instructions that were written on the board. McGonagall looked between the instructions and the students in her class a few times.

“Ah, actually I think I'll give you two lessons to memorize that, Miss Granger.” She replied with pursed lips.

Hermione nodded and continued to copy down the work, completely oblivious to the set of eyes that was watching her. Draco wore a disgusted frown, but realized he couldn't dismiss Hermione as a potential Scale. She was undoubtedly intelligent; no one could deny her that. But she was a Gryffindor and Granger for that matter. He sighed and resumed copying the complex instructions from the board, feeling at a loss with the entire situation.

Taylor Smith sat quietly in the back of the Charms classroom, surveying the sixth year Ravenclaw girls with some perplexity. Every now and then he would notice one that may be considered, then she would talk with ditz in her voice or get scared of a fly that landed on her sleeve and he would roll his eyes and move on. By the end of class he had not one person to present that could possibly be agreed upon, and he exited the classroom, hoping that Gryffindor would present girls to be a bit more likely.

Devon and Corey sat together in Potions the next day, with Draco sitting in front of them. Each was observing the Gryffindor girls who were scattered about the classroom. Parvarti and Lavender were sitting not far from the boys, therefore were immediately dismissed due to their constant giggles and girly talk.

The only girl in the class who caught their attention and held it was naturally enough, Hermione Granger. Her knowledge was not to be questioned and surely one with her mind was bound to be ambitious. Corey put her top spot on his list, as did Devon.

Draco glared at the back of her head, and was determined to find someone else. He would not allow a mudblood into a pureblooded organization.

However, after a week of observations had been made, the Scales met again in the small dungeon to talk and express opinions. Taylor said, with some annoyance, that he had been unable to find anyone suitable in the whole of Ravenclaw's sixth years.

“Nor could I find any Ravenclaw seventh-years.” Sighed Mark. “And I looked very hard. I saw plenty of girls I wouldn't mind having for the view, but as far as having bravery combined with brains, they're all out.”

“How about from Gryffindor seventh-years?” Taylor asked. “I checked the Gryffindor sixth-years, and the only possible one was Ginny Weasley.”

“No way is a Weasley becoming a Scale. I completely forbid it.” Draco said sternly, scowling at the mere suggestion.

“Ok.” Taylor replied, slightly put off. “So what about the Gryffindor seventh-years?”

Devon and Corey exchanged a glance. “Well,” started Devon. “We have noticed that…” he broke off when he noticed Draco glaring hard at him in anticipation of the name he was about to mention. “Come on Draco. She's perfect for it, and you know it.”

“That's exactly what bothers me.” he said in a quiet voice.

“Who?” Taylor questioned.

“Hermione Granger.” Corey said regretfully. “We'd much prefer a Ravenclaw, but she seems to be our best bet.”

“Granger?” queried Mark. “She's Scarhead's friend, isn't she? The pretty brunette?”

Draco laughed at him. “Yes, she's Potter's friend but no, she's not a pretty brunette.”

“So,” Devon pushed on. “We propose the idea to her, put her through initiation,” every single one of them grinned wickedly at the mention of initiation. “And then we let the organizers of The Private Young Wizards and Witches Seminar know we've got the right figures and we book the bloody thing. Agreed?”

“Agreed.” Three of the guys responded. They then sighed and looked at Draco who had presumably remained silent.

“Have you guys forgotten something?” he asked incredulously. “Do you really think that Granger is going to immediately join a secret organization with Slytherin males for her only company? She hates the idea of these organizations almost as much as she hates us. I think it may be a problem.”

“I think you're wrong on one point there, Draco.” Corey informed him. “She hates you, not us. We're probably not her first choice of character, I'll give you that, but you're the only one she truly despises.”

“I see your point.” Draco said grudgingly after considering it a moment. “But what the hell has it got to do with anything?”

“To get her to agree to come to an introduction meeting, we tell her about our dilemma, and ask her if she would consider joining.” Corey suggested. “Put no pressure on her, and `forget' to mention who is in the group. She can decide if she wants to continue with it when she sees you here. But by then, she'll have thought about how wonderful an opportunity it really is.” He smiled. “We do it that way, and we've got her.”

Draco nodded and a smirk slid across his face. “Fine. Which one of us will tell her about it? Not me, and it better not be Mark- you can be a little intimidating, mate- which leaves you three.” He pointed to Devon, Taylor and Corey.

Taylor said, “Well I hardly know who she is, so I'm trusting you guys on this one. She wouldn't have a clue who I am, so it better not be me either.”

Corey and Devon exchanged a glance. Draco also considered them and reached a conclusion. “Devon. You're the man.”

“Why?” He asked in confusion.

“Because,” Draco said slowly, as if it were obvious. “You are…uh. Well, you are known to the girls' as- I don't know…”

“Spit it out, mate.” Mark said, with a smirk.

“All right. He's attractive. She'll see his looks before theperson behind them.” Draco said with difficulty. “And you don't know how creepy it is to say that to another guy.”

“Oh.” Devon said with a nod of understanding. He then smiled and raised an eyebrow in a way that he believed would be alluring. Devon then shifted his face to have a sort of pout and puppy dog eyes. He began to shift his expression once more when Draco interrupted him in repulsion.

“Devon mate, we know you can get any chick you want, but please don't practice your methods to us. We trust you to make the right decision in regard to what your face will look like when you approach Granger.”

The other guys sniggered at Devon, which made him blush slightly, but he soon regained his composure. “So when do you think I should approach this chick? Soon? Or leave it a while till we know for sure that we want her?”

“The sooner the better, I think.” Draco said unhappily. “The only vacancy for a private audience of this seminar is over the Christmas break, and we want to get that before anyone else does.”

“Draco,” Mark said thoughtfully. “We don't want to miss this seminar. So, why don't you just book it now? We will get this Granger girl eventually, even if we have to try a few different methods, and if you just tell the secretary that we have her already, we will all rest easier.”

Taylor nodded. “That's a good point. The secretary won't know she's not a member yet, but she will be by the time Christmas comes.”

“Ok.” Draco consented. “I'll write tomorrow. But if I do that, we have to work extra hard at getting Granger in. You all up to that?”

“Why wouldn't we be?” Mark asked, seeming to take offence at Draco statement that they weren't prepared.

“Because,” Draco answered with a glare in Mark's direction. “She is a Gryffindor. We are Slytherin's. She will not appreciate being addressed by us, unless we act civil. Civil is going to be difficult when she does not act the same in return. We'll-”

“How do you know she won't be civil with us?” Taylor asked hesitantly. “Is this chick a bit dangerous or a rebel or something?”

“No.” Draco smiled. “She's quite the opposite. But I know her, and her least favorite people are Slytherin's. We need to act like we mean her no harm. Like we actually want her to be a part of us. I don't know how we're going to manage to keep that front, but we'll have to try.” He then turned to Devon. “We have potions tomorrow afternoon. I think that would be a good time to run the idea by her. I think she'll knock it back at first, but you never know your luck. Try to be as smooth as possible, without scaring her off. Through my observations, I don't think she's used to being sought out or talked to by many guys aside from her two freaky friends.”

Devon nodded and then thought about potions class. “Uh, Draco? Can I do it after class? I don't think Snape would appreciate my whispering privately in his class.”

“Yeah sure.” Draco said off-handedly. “So we'll give you this week to try reeling her in. Next meeting will be the `introductory' meeting. If she doesn't show, then we'll have another one the week after till you finally persuade her to come. Agreed?”

The other guys all agreed.

“Good.” Draco smiled at the progress they had made, although it wasn't exactly in his favor. “In the time being,” he paused to look at them individually with a near malicious grin on his face. “Think of something for the initiation. I don't want this smart arse to have it easy. But until then, Scales.”

Chapter two- Recruitment

Examining Hermione every chance he got in potions the next day, Devon noted down many things that he thought she wouldn't appreciate, and a few approaches that she probably would. She was working on the other side of the room with her red headed friend, and they were often in conversation, so he hardly had the chance to catch her eye. He did at one point however.

Hermione was glancing about the room with disinterest as the potion bubbled, and Devon tried to arrange it to make it seem that he looked up just as she looked at him. When their eyes met, she almost moved on indifferently, but he held her eyes with his startling blue ones, and she continued to gaze at him for a few seconds longer than intended.

He winked at her with a slight smile, and it was immediately apparent that she didn't get that very often, because she turned hurriedly away with a slightly flushed face. After watching her for a few minutes afterwards, he decided on a suitable approach.

Class finished not long later, and Hermione split up from her friends when they told her they were going to train for Quidditch. Devon trailed her down a few corridors until the last of other students had disappeared. Hermione walked slowly towards what Devon knew to be the Gryffindor Tower.

Speeding up, he reached her within moments and walked beside her for a few more. As she cast him a sidelong glance, he returned it with a small, almost shy smile. She frowned at him and quickened her pace. He sighed and realized he was going to have to stop her before she broke into a run.

“Hermione, isn't it?” he asked her.

She stopped and turned to face him defiantly. “Yes. Who's asking?”

If he was taken aback he didn't show it. “My name's Devon.” He replied with a smile, holding his hand out in front of him for her to shake. She looked at him with narrowed eyes, but did not take his hand.

“What do you want?” she asked him bluntly.

He furrowed his brow and put on a very small pout. “Why do you think I want something from you?”

“Why else would you be casting me looks in class, then following me around afterwards?” she asked. “You are a Slytherin, and Slytherins don't usually go out of their ways to befriend Gryffindors- unless you want something.”

Devon wasn't positive of what to say, but he knew he couldn't lose her at this point. “Hermione, you're right.” She smirked at this. “I do want something from you. And I'm desperate.” He reached out and rested his hand on her shoulder.

Hermione pulled back in shock and looked at him worriedly. “You don't mean…I'm sorry, I'm not like that.” She began to walk away, but he called out.

“Hermione! That's not what I meant.”

She stopped despite herself, and turned once more to face him. “Then what did you mean?”

“Well, I have a proposition to make. And a favor to ask you. But first you have to promise to keep it secret, because no one else can know. If you can't promise that, then I'm sorry to have bothered you.”

Hermione looked at him for a while, and he could tell she was stuck between curiosity and making a promise to a Slytherin. Finally, she sighed and said, “You have my word.”

“Ok.” Devon said. “The favor I want to ask is very big, and I'm sure you'll decline at first, but please hear me out.” He took a deep breath. “There's a group of us who get together once a week in secret-”

“As in an organization?” she interrupted curiously.

“I suppose you could call us that. We get together and do things that will give us an advantage once we leave Hogwarts. Meeting important wizards, establishing connections, digging up dirt on-” he cleared his throat as she narrowed her eyes at him. He continued quickly, “And there's this one thing we really want to go to. It will be fantastic for us and very beneficial. But we have a problem.”

“Which is where I come in?” Hermione guessed.

“Too right it is. We can't get into this seminar if we're all one sex and all from the same House. It's their rules, no matter how unfair we think they are.”

“So you want me to tell them that I'm in your organization so you can go, but pull out at the last minute claiming illness?” Hermione asked with a raised eyebrow.

Devon stopped in a dumbfounded manner. “Actually, no.” he thought quickly over several moments then continued, “I don't think they'd buy that. They appear very strict. We were wondering if you'd like to join us.”

Hermione stared at him. “You want me to join your secret society?”

Devon nodded and looked at her with what he hoped were twinkling eyes.

“You mean, you want me to join your secret Slytherin society.” She searched his face suspiciously. “And you're all males? Did you think this offer would make me jump for joy and beg to be signed up immediately? You're wrong if you did, because there's no way in hell that I would dream of it.”

“But…” Devon was at a loss. “Why not?”

“I think it's pretty self explanatory.” She told him condescendingly. “Now excuse me, I have to go. And it's ok, I won't tell anyone about your little `organization.'” And before Devon could say anything else, she turned on her heel and walked down the hall, leaving him glaring after her.

“Bloody Gryffindor.” Devon muttered before walking back to the dungeons, thinking about another approach to use.

Hermione lay in bed that night staring out her open window, trying to avoid her most persistent thoughts. She tried to shift her mind on to Harry and Ron or Ginny, or even Dobby, but nothing worked. She could only see Devon looking at her and laying his hand on her shoulder pleadingly.

The offer Devon had proposed was too hard to think about, because every time she did, the more she became unhappy with her refusal of it. She could join a secret organization. She was asked to join a secret organization. It was with Slytherin males, which was its downside, but the opportunities sounded beneficial.

Hermione wondered why she had never wanted to join a society before, and concluded that it was because she had never been asked. Now that the chance had come, Hermione realized that she desperately wanted to do it. But she had said no, and every time she thought of that, she felt a regretful twinge in her stomach.

Stopping in her thoughts, she realized that she had finally found out about a Slytherin organization. Smiling almost triumphantly at the starlit sky, Hermione thought about how much it had cost them to tell her about it. Hermione thought that although she had turned down the first offer, they wouldn't give up on her so easily. If she just told Devon that she had reconsidered, surely she wouldn't be ignored.

The next day, Hermione found out how right she was.

Writing her homework in her diary and packing it away, Hermione stood ready to leave the Transfiguration classroom. She scanned the room and for the first time noticed that Devon was in her class. He was also standing and gathering his books, talking with Draco Malfoy.

Hermione almost smiled, as she thought about herself in a secret Slytherin organization that Malfoy wasn't even a part of. He would die if he found out a mudblood had been asked in and not him. As the students filed out of the classroom, Hermione arranged herself so she would end up walking next to Devon.

As it turned out however, she was walking next to Devon, but had Malfoy on her other side. She cast a look at Devon and he caught her eye. She whispered, “Can I talk to you?” under her breath, and he nodded very slightly in response. Hermione then felt a pair of icy gray eyes boring into her from her other side, and looked over at Draco.

He was smirking, for no reason apparent to her, as he studied her face. She pulled a disgusted face at him. “What's your problem?”

“Nothing.” He replied as they walked out the door, then he turned and headed off with Crabbe and Goyle.

Hermione waved Harry and Ron on, claiming to have an undone shoelace and would meet them in the Great Hall for dinner. Once the rest of the class had gone off on their own separate ways, Hermione stood from pretending to tie her shoelaces, and faced Devon.

“I'm sorry about yesterday.” She apologized. “I shouldn't have been so rude to you when you were offering me such an opportunity.”

Devon smiled inwardly, but kept a straight face. “Ok. Apology accepted.” He made no effort to ask her if she had reconsidered. He knew that she had, and wanted her to suffer the discomfort of asking him.

“I was, uh, just thinking about your offer last night.” She started. “And I think I was being stupid.”

Devon nodded his agreement, but said nothing.

“And I was wondering if you would, er, possibly still accept my agreement to join you.” She asked hesitantly.

Sighing deeply, Devon took a step towards her. Hermione thought for one awful moment that he had already found someone else to recruit, until he beamed at her. “Of course we will. We would still love to have you.” He tried very hard not to sound sarcastic as he said this. “But,” he added as the thought occurred to him. “I have asked a few other people, and they've all shown interest too. But only one of you can be accepted. So, I'm afraid if you're serious about this, you'll have to go through an initiation process. Are you serious about this?”

“Of course I am.” She replied.

“Then good luck.” He said. “We will have an introductory meeting with just you on Monday night. You're not to know who the people you're competing against are.”

She nodded.

“Monday night. Nine o'clock, here's the place.” He handed her a small piece of card with a room number on it. “See you then.”

As he walked off, Hermione looked down at the card he had given her. One side said `Dungeon 37. Nine o'clock, Monday.' The other side was blank, aside from one word written in a spidery script.

`Scales.'

Chapter Three- Initiation begins

Closing the door behind him, Devon turned to face the rest of the Scales. It was Monday night and they were gathered a half-hour earlier then when Hermione was due to arrive. Devon smiled triumphantly at them all and took his seat.

“She's coming then?” Mark asked gruffly.

“Yep, sure is.” Devon nodded smugly. “She couldn't resist the chance to be with this spunky Slytherin.”

“You flatter yourself, mate.” Draco told him.

“No seriously.” Devon said. “She declined at first, but after thinking about it for a day, she sought me out and asked if she was still able to join. But there's one thing I should tell you.”

“Which is?” Corey asked.

“I told her that we had asked other people to join. I warned her that she would have to go through an initiation process to try outdo all the others. She seemed really determined. I think we can have a little fun with this one, guys. We've definitely caught her interest.”

“Cool.” Draco said, the corner of his lip curling in a sneer. “But no matter how much fun the initiation is, she'll still get in. And I'm still not happy with Granger being the choice of the day. She's a mudblood entering a pure-blooded society. It's not right.”

“Draco.” Mark said patronizingly. “You act as if we can't get rid of her once the seminar is over. Mate, we get back here and don't want her anymore, we drop her.”

Draco's smirk widened at the thought. “Good idea.”

“So about this initiation we're going to make up.” Taylor said. “What's it going to be like? I'd tried to think of some things, but I don't know what track I should be on.”

Draco straightened; a clear sign that he had thought this through earlier. “I think we should each test her on a different matter. We each choose something that is needed to be in the Scales.”

“As in…” Taylor wondered.

“Intelligence, bravery, secrecy, sacrifices and not having any attachments. We can all pick one and make up a way to see if she's got it.” Draco suggested.

“Fair enough.” Taylor consented. “I don't know this chick though. So I bags intelligence. I know that she's intelligent. I've heard her name thrown about by the Professors many times about her being one of the smartest in the year. My test is complete. I have come to the conclusion that she is intelligent enough to join the Scales.”

“You bugger.” Mark said enviously. “All right, I'll make sure she doesn't have any attachments. I'll make sure that Potter and Weasley won't be a problem. Once I've talked to her, she will have promised not to tell them a thing.”

“Good.” Draco said. “Corey? What do you want?”

“Uh, bravery, I think.” He then smiled in a self-satisfied matter. “Um…ok, she passes.”

“Hey, you can't do that!” Draco scolded him. “You have to make her work to get in here. You can't just pass her because you can't be bothered.”

“Yes I can.” He argued. “I know that she's brave. She's Potter's friend, and we know for a fact that she's had to do plenty of stuff that required bravery. We know that she went with him into the Department of Mysteries two years ago. If that didn't require bravery, I don't know what does.”

“Fine.” Draco said through gritted teeth. “But this isn't working out how I had planned.” He then turned on Devon. “And what are you going to do?”

“Sacrifices.” He said quietly, looking at Draco strangely. “I'll see how much she is willing or able to sacrifice. If she passes my test, then she's bloody good. But you'll all have to take my word that she's passed, because I'm not going to tell you what the test is.”

“Likewise.” Draco said, smiling. “I get secrecy. Perfect. I'm gonna make her wish she never wanted to join.”

“Draco.” Taylor said sternly. “We do want her to join, you know. Don't scare her off.”

“I'll try not to.” He said, a smirk still fixed on his face.

“So,” Corey said, trying to change the subject. “Draco. Did you send away a letter to book the seminar over Christmas break?”

“Yeah.” He nodded. “They should let us know by the end of the week if we got in.”

At that moment, before anyone could question Draco further, there was a soft knock on the door. They all exchanged glances and Devon moved forward to open it. He slowly opened the door and Hermione stood in the entranceway looking extremely nervous, holding the card he had given her. He smiled and gestured for her to come in, taking the card from her. “We don't want anyone else to see this.” He told her softly.

As Devon closed the door behind her, Hermione looked at the people in the room. She seemed surprised that there were so little of them. “Is this all of you?” she asked, turning to Devon, as he was the only one she really knew.

“Yep. Just us five.” He answered. “This is Corey,” he gestured to where Corey lounged on a chair. “This is Taylor. And he's Mark.” Devon then pointed at Draco and tried his very best not to smile at her reaction, “And this, as I think you already know, is Draco.”

Hermione's face paled noticeably as she become aware of Draco in the room. All of a sudden she looked much less sure of herself and glanced quickly towards the door.

“You frightened of me, Granger?” he asked her, cocking an eyebrow.

She turned back to look at him, her eyes instantly icy. “Not in the slightest.” She retorted. “Disgusted by your presence, is all.”

“Nasty.” He smirked, then he pointed to a chair. “Sit down.”

She moved hesitantly to where he had pointed, casting a worried glance at Mark. Draco laughed at her. “You don't have to be scared of him, just because he almost beat your redheaded Weasel into a pulp. He can be a decent guy, if you get on his good side. So I suppose you'll have to make a bit of an effort.”

Mark remained silent and didn't look at Hermione as she sat in the seat next to him.

Hermione felt very out of place. She had tried to prepare herself earlier for coming, but the sight of Malfoy had shocked her. He had a complete advantage over her, as he was comfortable where he was, and was superior to her in this situation. In her short moments of being in the room, Hermione guessed that Draco was the leader of this little group, as he was standing at the front and they were all facing him.

“Now,” Draco began softly. “You are here because most of us believe that you could be suitable in the Scales.” As he said this, Hermione knew that he was the only one who disagreed with her being chosen. “We do have a few other options, however, and feel you must prove yourself to us. You will be put through a few small initiation tasks. Depending on how you go on those, we'll decide whether we still want you.”

Hermione swallowed hard, dreading the task Malfoy would come up with. “Fair enough.” She said.

Draco looked at the other guys in the room. “Hopefully,” he said, making it clear that he was opposed to having hope in the matter, “You will pass these small tests. If or when you do, you will keep us a complete secret. You will not act any more civil to us in the corridors or classes as you usually do. And you will not annoy us with your mudblooded ways.” He added.

“Understood.” She replied in a strained voice, looking him in the eye, though it took all her strength not to hex him for his last statement.

“Good.” He said through gritted teeth. “Any questions?”

Hermione looked at the other guys, who all looked back at her. Devon smiled encouragingly, knowing she needed it after Draco's dissuasive talk. She looked back at Draco with a bit more confidence. “Yes.”

“Here we go…” Draco muttered under his breath in irritation. “What?”

Having Draco treating her in this awful manner made Hermione suddenly intolerable to it. Sure, he had more power than she did in this situation, but they had invited her here. She hadn't imposed herself upon them. And Draco was now using this as an opportunity to make her feel inadequate.

“First of all,” she started dangerously. “Stop acting as if you don't want me here. Even though you don't, I don't need to be aware of it.”

“I don't think that's up to you to decide.” He answered, raising his eyebrows at her.

“Well, I can decide to leave.” She said standing up. “I'm choosing to be here, and now I'm choosing to leave. You have other `applicants,' so use them.” And she started walking towards the door.

The other four guys glared daggers at Draco and then tried to stop her from leaving. Corey looked at her pleadingly, and Taylor quickly stood in alarm, ready to protest. Devon took hold of her arm gently and begged her not to leave, while Mark growled at Draco. “Draco, you dumb shit. We need her.”

Draco shrugged. Mark took a menacing step towards him, which made him shrink slightly. “Mark, you wouldn't. So don't even pretend that you would.”

“Wanna bet?”

“Of course not, because then you would punch me just to win the bet. It would be entirely in your hands, and that is unfair on my side.” Draco replied calmly.

Hermione turned around as she was reaching for the door handle, hoping to witness Draco getting his face punched in but had no such luck. Mark growled something quietly in Draco's ear, then shoved him forwards towards Hermione. He turned around to look at Mark in disbelief, but Mark just glared at him, and Draco faced Hermione once more. “Don't leave.” He said, probably more harshly then he'd intended.

“Why not? I'm clearly not welcome here.” Hermione retorted.

“Yes you are.” He said forcedly. “At least by them.” He pointed ungraciously at the other guys, who were now all standing up and looking at her in concern. “But you know I don't welcome you anywhere, so why is it so much of a surprise?”

“Draco.” Mark snarled.

“Ok.” He sighed irritably. “Please stay here. At least until we've answered all your questions.”

Hermione remained silent, but didn't leave. She glanced at Devon and found him looking at her imploringly. Corey and Taylor looked quite similar. Mark was still glaring at Draco. And Draco was watching her with an expressionless face. She closed her eyes for a few seconds then looked back at Draco. “Alright.” She sat back down again.

Each Scale seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, and Hermione wondered what they thought of the other possibilities if they were so worried about her leaving. They mustn't be very good, she concluded.

“What were your questions?” Draco asked in a controlled voice, once they were all sitting again.

“Easy one.” she said. “Why are you called the `Scales?'”

“Because we're all in Slytherin, and scales represent those of a serpent.” He answered.

“And if I join, what then will you be called?” she asked curiously.

“Excuse me?” Draco asked, taken aback. “What makes you think we would change our name?”

“If you haven't noticed, I'm not in Slytherin.” Hermione informed him. “Therefore `Scales' wouldn't be a true representation of all members. I don't believe a lion's key features are scales.”

He remained silent for so long and with such a hostile look on his face, Hermione thought to try leaving again. “We would have to think about that.” Draco answered finally. “Next question.”

“What the bloody hell is this seminar about? It's the reason you need me to join, but I know nothing about it.”

Draco quickly ran through the larger details with her. “But we can't get in without you.” He concluded. “Or one of the other possible girls.” He added hastily.

Hermione nodded her understanding. “How old are the Scales?”

“Hundreds of years old. The Scales have existed for generations, and most people who are asked to join have an ancestor who was a Scale themselves.” Draco replied. “My father was a Scale, so was his father and grandfather.” He paused. “Any other questions? And remember that if you are chosen, you'll have plenty of time to ask questions.”

“Right.” Hermione said, well aware that he wasn't enjoying answering anything she asked him. “No then. That's all.” She finished.

“Good.” Draco said, obviously wishing to get out of there as much as she did. “Anything else, anyone?”

They all shook their heads, except Mark who said, “Actually, I'd like to speak with you, Hermione. Once everyone else has gone, of course.”

Hermione tensed, but swiftly said, “Of course.”

“That finishes this meeting.” Draco said. “Until the next, Scales.”

Everyone walked silently out of the room after that, Draco staring at Hermione with piercing eyes as he moved passed her. Only the intimidating Mark remained as company. He sat down and fixed his dark stare on her. She shifted nervously under his gaze, but didn't move away.

“Hermione.” He started. “I need to talk to you about your friends.”

“What about my friends?” she asked, a bit worried that he was going to ask permission to bash them up.

“I need to know that you won't tell them about us. Potter and Weasley are the biggest threats. If you tell them, or even think that you might tell them, I need to know now. Do you think you will?”

Hermione tried hard to convince herself that she wouldn't, but she knew she couldn't guarantee that. She shook her head, “I honestly don't know.”

“I thought that would be the case.” Mark said. “So I have to tell you something that we Scales found out last year. We like to know everything that goes on at Hogwarts so we never have to suffer from a nasty surprise. Corey managed to get some information regarding the Gryffindors.”

“What about us?” Hermione asked hesitantly. “You're not going to use blackmail on me, are you?”

“In a sense.” He replied. “We happen to know something about your two friends that I don't think they've told you.”

Hermione frowned, but remained silent.

“They are a part of a secret group themselves.” He told her seriously.

“No they're not! They would have told me.” Hermione defended them.

“Yes they are, whether you choose to believe it or not. They both joined at the same time last year. It centers around Quidditch and learning to be as good as, say Victor Krum.” Said Mark, saying Krum's name with a strange glance at Hermione. “They haven't told you because it is against their organizations rules, and because you have no interest in Quidditch whatsoever.”

“Are you positive?” Hermione asked quietly.

Mark nodded, and Hermione couldn't help but believe him. Harry and Ron had always wanted to join a group, and Quidditch would be the perfect reason to. Thinking about it, Hermione realized how much they had improved in their flying skills in the past year, Ron especially. Sighing heavily, Hermione looked up at Mark, and stated firmly, “I will never tell a soul. Including Harry and Ron, as they have never told me of their `commitment.' Trust me, Mark. It will never escape my lips.”

Mark smiled and told her that she could go. As she walked through the halls of the dungeons, she thought about what she was doing. She was trying to join a secret organization. An organization that, for hundreds of years, has solely consisted of Slytherins. Hermione thought about Harry and Ron, and what Mark had told her about them. They had been part of a group since last year, and had never told her.

The disappointment she felt towards them was understandable, but she could not let it show. If Hermione told them that she knew about their Quidditch group, they'd question her about how she knew, and soon enough, they would have gotten the truth about the Scales out of her.

Hermione knew that a group which focused on Quidditch was not much to be jealous of, and soon her mood had been lifted. If she joined the Scales, then she would be a part of a better organization then theirs. Although Hermione knew thinking this about her friends was wrong, she couldn't help feeling better at the thought.

Turning a corner in the dark stone corridor, Hermione noticed Draco up ahead. He smirked from his spot leaning against the wall when he saw her, but didn't move or speak to her. Hermione frowned at him, but decided to just walk straight past.

Lifting her chin slightly, she quickened her pace. As she moved past Draco, she heard him whisper something to her. “Back away now, mudblood.”

Hermione stopped despite herself, and turned to face him. “What is your problem, you prick of a pureblood?” she demanded.

His eyebrows raised slightly in surprise, but his lips began to curve into a smirk. “You are my problem.”

“Well I'm not going anywhere, so you'll have to get over it.” she replied tartly.

“Watch your tongue.” He told her with narrowed eyes.

“That would look stupid. So no.” she said.

“You already look stupid, so what difference would it make?”

Hermione glared at him. “I know you don't want me in the Scales. And I would much prefer to not be a part of it, without you, then to be a part of it with you.” Hermione stared into his stony gray eyes, and something suddenly became clear to her. “In fact, I don't want to be a Scale. The opportunities I'd get from it would be completely cancelled out by my having to be in the same room with you.”

Draco sneered in a self-satisfied manner, and Hermione immediately knew that was exactly what Draco had wanted to hear.

“What's going on here?” Mark's gruff voice demanded from behind them.

Draco turned quickly and his expression turned guilty. “We were just talking.”

Hermione scoffed. “No, I was just leaving.” She turned to Mark. “Thanks for the offer to join the Scales, but I'll have to decline. Malfoy has so kindly brought me to my senses.”

“He's done what?” Mark yelled, turning on Draco, who instinctively shrunk back against the wall.

“I didn't do anything.” Draco defended himself.

Mark looked towards Hermione. “What did he say to you?”

Hermione shrugged and tried to wipe the smug look off her face as she watched Draco being bullied. “He just made me realize how much I would hate to see him outside classes. I mean, in class is bad enough. But I know where I'm not wanted, and in the Scales is definitely one of those places. Sorry to have taken up your time, Mark.”

She looked at Draco coldly, and he stared back with a neutral face. His eyes bore into her, and she found herself unsettled. Shivering slightly, she gave Mark one last apologetic glance and walked off down the hall.

Draco looked after her in satisfaction, that is, until Mark grabbed the front of his robes and pulled him so they were face to face. Mark was livid, but Draco was determined which, in his case, was just as frightening.

“You let her go.” Mark spat. “You know you're going to have to be the one to get her back.”

“No I'm not. Because she's not coming back.” Draco said confidently. “We'll get someone else.”

“Who else, Draco? No one else is good enough for us. She's the only one who stands a chance of matching our abilities and determination. There is no one else.” Mark said slowly.

“I'm not having Granger.” He stated firmly.

“She passed my test just before.” Mark told him. “She swore to me that she would never tell a soul, including Potter and Weasley. Other chicks won't be that easy. They'll have a close girl friend that they share all their secrets to. Draco, she will work. If you will stop scaring her off.”

“I didn't scare her off. She chose to go.” Draco said

“Because you scared her off.” Mark repeated. He then rolled his eyes. “I'm going to go talk to Devon.”

“Why?” Draco demanded.

“So he can talk to Hermione and win her back.” He replied. “And so he can begin his test on her. Once Devon has finished with her, you'll be next. And yes, you will do it. She will finish the initiation and become a Scale so we can go to the seminar.”

“Whatever.” Draco said, waving him off and walking down the corridor.

Mark glared after him, breathing heavily in irritation. He muttered to himself, “That bloody seminar better be worth all this shit.”

Between classes the next day, Devon approached Hermione. He talked to her about her decision not to become a Scale. She continued telling him that she would love to join, but she just couldn't bring herself to spend more time with Malfoy by choice.

“Why not?” he asked her in confusion to this statement. “We all do.”

Hermione couldn't help smiling at him. “It's the choice I have made.”

“You can change your choices.” Devon told her.

“I don't think so…” She said, though Devon could tell he was having an effect on her.

“Come on, Hermione. You want to be someone one day. This is your chance to ensure it. If you want to face your challenges front on, this is it. Do you want to prove yourself to Draco? This would be the way to show him up, and prove to him that you're not weak. Show him that you make your own choices, and he can't effect your final decision.”

“Well…” Hermione said, at a loss of what to do.

“Hermione, you know that the last thing Draco wants is to have you join the Scales. But you want him to be unhappy, don't you? You want to make him resent you.” He paused and looked at Hermione with an odd expression. “I know you want to make him respect you.”

“Respect me? Why would I want that?”

“Because that way, you would no longer be a filthy mudblood in his eyes. You'd be his equal.”

“What do I care about being Draco's equal? I'd prefer to not be equal with that stubborn snob.”

Devon cocked his head at her. “No, I think you do care. You would prefer to be his equal.”

Hermione consented, “Fine. But how would I get him to respect me? Defying his wishes of me not to join you guys wouldn't really be the way.”

“Yes it would.” Devon said. “That way, you have stood up to him. You have shown Draco that you're not scared of him-”

“I'm not scared of him.”

“-And that you will do what you want. Not what he wants.” Devon continued. “He won't admit it to anybody. But that's the way he works. I'm sure of it.”

Hermione considered it for a few minutes. “You know, you're right.” She said to Devon. “I don't want Draco to be happy. I think I'll be happier, knowing that my presence makes Draco suffer. Devon,” she looked at him. “Do you mind if I keep trying to get in?”

“No.” He smiled at her. “Not at all.”

“Thanks for this.” She said in appreciation. Then she confided that, “I really do want to join. I'm glad that you think I'm worthy enough to come after me. I hope that with all my messing around I get in.” she looked slightly worried. “Not that I wish bad luck on the other girls you have lined up.”

“Of course not.” Devon said tolerantly. “Now Hermione.” He started, leaning in. “I have a small task for you, but I don't think I should tell you out in the open. Are you able to come and meet me at the Astronomy Tower tonight?”

“Um,” Hermione thought briefly. “Yes. That shouldn't be a problem. What time?”

“Around ten, I suppose. And be prepared for something you mightn't like. I hate to do it to you, but I need to know if you're good enough.” Devon apologized.

“Ok.” Hermione nodded, although she didn't know what he meant about being prepared. “See you then.”

Chapter Four - Devon's task

“Are you ready?” Devon asked when she joined him on the Tower. They were overlooking the grounds, the lake and a small part of the Forbidden Forest. The night sky was clouded over so there was barely any light.

“I'd say so.” Hermione replied.

“Good.” Devon said. “I'll go through what this task is about. To be a Scale, you have to show abilities in a few different areas. I have to test you on your ability to make sacrifices. I know that this test may be difficult for you, but you're able to go a few different ways with it.”

Hermione swallowed. “Uh…alright. What do I have to sacrifice? Do you want me to…I don't know, cut off my pinkie toe or something?”

Devon laughed. “No, nothing like that.” His smile disappeared and he looked at her almost hesitantly. “In fact, it's something harder and possibly more painful then that. I'm sorry to have to do this to you. You're starting to grow on me, Hermione, but this is necessary.” He paused again. “I know that you and Draco share a certain repulsion of each other. Therefore, I must ask you to sacrifice some part of yourself to him.”

Hermione was shocked. “You're asking me to sleep with Malfoy?”

“Take it anyway you want.”

“Well, that doesn't give me many options.” Hermione said dryly. “Sleep with him, or get him to chop off my foot for me.” she frowned. “Why Malfoy?”

“Because he's your biggest challenge. Even being in the same room with him the other night looked painful. You wanted to leave because of him.” Devon explained.

“Oh. I get it.” Hermione said unhappily.

Devon looked anxious. “Would you like me to give you a different task?” he asked. “I haven't told any other Scales about this, so I can change it if you think you won't be able to do it.”

Hermione's face set in determination. “No, I'll be able to do it. Don't you worry.”

“Do you want me to give you a little hint?” Devon asked, wishing to be of help in this dreadful task.

“I won't object to that.” Hermione smiled.

“If you want to find him alone, he likes to find solitude by the lake. I come up here at night sometimes, and I've noticed him sitting by the side of the lake, also looking for silence. You might be able to find him there sometime, if that suits whatever plan you devise.”

“Thanks.” Hermione said, thinking about what she had to do with a certain amount of unease. “I'll do my best.” A thought occurred to her, and she gave Devon a surprised look. “You're not going to watch to make sure I pass, are you.”

Devon flushed slightly, and replied quickly. “I hadn't even thought of that, and most definitely no.”

“Good.” Hermione said with a yawn. “Do I have a time limit?”

“Give it your best shot in the next fortnight, but if you need more time, let me know.”

“Great.” Hermione said brightly, but Devon was sure he could detect sarcasm somewhere in her voice. “I'll see you around.”

“Yeah. See you.” Devon said and watched her depart from the Tower. He turned and looked out across the Forbidden Forest in thought. He didn't know what part of Hermione Draco found foul. He thought she was a nice girl and would be great in the Scales. He smiled when he remembered Draco's face at the mention of changing the name of the Scales.

Hermione did have a point though. She wasn't a Scale. She was something else. Devon laughed, and said quietly, “Those who are Scales will soon be joined by a Tail.”

During the nights that followed her meeting with Devon, Hermione ventured across the grounds to the lake. She waited in the cover of a section of trees that were a part of the Forbidden Forest. They stood very close to the lake, and the shore was almost in the trees.

For a few weeks, Hermione continued to do this, but each night she would walk back to her dorm without having met with Draco. Beginning to question whether Devon had told her the truth, Hermione thought that she would try later at night. Instead of wandering down to the lake just after ten, Hermione waited in the common room with a large pile of Potions homework until midnight approached.

Putting her homework away, Hermione stashed her wand in her robe and quietly left the common room. By the time she reached her usual spot by the lake, the time was nearly half past twelve. Hermione meandered down to the shore and looked at her reflection in the calm water. Her brown hair was casually tied back in a low ponytail and her robe was opened at the neck.

Suddenly, Hermione heard a quick intake of breath and turned to see Draco lying on the ground not far from where she was. He was glaring at her icily, obviously angry with her for intruding his solitude. Draco said nothing, and appeared to be hoping she would just leave by the knowledge of his presence.

Hermione wasn't about to leave, however. Not after all her nights searching for him alone. When Draco realized that she wasn't going to leave, he said angrily, “What the hell are you doing here?”

Hermione ignored him, which she was in a habit of doing anyway. “No matter what you think of me, I will be a Scale. Then you'll never be able to escape from me, not even to here.”

“You'll never be a Scale.” Draco told her firmly, raising himself so he was resting on his elbows.

“You guys need me.” she replied.

“I don't care.”

“The others do.” Hermione said. “Devon has already given me his task. I'll pass it, and there's nothing you can throw at me that I won't hesitate to complete.”

Draco scoffed at her last remark. “You say that now.”

“And I'll say it again later.” She retorted. Draco shook his head at her angrily, and she continued. “If you won't accept me, then you might find yourself kicked out. It's out of you and me, I think. And they need me, not you.”

“You're too confident for your own good, Granger.” Draco told her.

“So are you Malfoy.” Hermione said. Then she swallowed, loving her argument with Malfoy, but knowing that it wasn't the smartest idea this far away from help. Hermione looked at Draco and found his steely gray eyes glittering in the moonlight. Unsure of whether he was enjoying the argument, or had just thought of something that she didn't want to know about, Hermione continued.

“I don't suppose your father would be impressed if you lost your position in the Scales to a `mudblood.'”

Draco was on his feet in a matter of seconds, and his eyes narrowed dangerously. He took a step towards her. “Don't you dare...” He warned her quietly.

Hermione looked at him defiantly. “Lucius would lose all pride for you if that happened. He was in the Scales himself, didn't you say? That'd be quite a disgrace to the Malfoy name.”

Draco walked a bit closer to her and looked her up and down noticeably. “I don't want to hurt you too badly, Granger.”

“Then don't.”

“It's not that easy.” He smiled as if what she had said was funny and shook his head.

Hermione knew she was getting close, and as much as that fact bothered her, she persisted. “I've been warned against you, Malfoy. But I know you're helpless around me. You could never bring yourself to touch a mudblood.”

Draco continued to smile at her. “You're wrong there. I don't have the smallest problem touching a mudblood, as long as the touch is beneficial to me.”

“Beneficial to you? You mean you don't have to ask your daddy's permission? You can touch me all by yourself, congratulations.” Hermione said sarcastically.

His smile vanished. “Shut up. I'm warning you.” Draco said through gritted teeth.

“Do you think that scares me?” Hermione asked archly, trying her hardest to cover up how scared she really was. Draco was much stronger then her and she was too far away from the castle to yell for help. Hermione stopped and reminded herself that this was what she wanted Draco to do.

“I know it should.” He moved forward so he was only feet away from where she stood. “If you don't leave now, without a word, then you're going to wish you had.”

Hermione forced herself to raise her eyebrows. “Ooh.” She said in mock fear. “Did your daddy teach you how to sound scary?” she then shook her head. “Because he didn't do a very good job.”

“How about this?” Draco asked harshly. He raised his hand quickly and hit her across the face, causing her knees to weaken from the unexpected blow.

She looked up at him, her eyes blazing instantly. “Surely that was below you.” She said wincing. “Unless you and your dad have a little competition going. How many mudbloods can you bring down?”

“If you don't stop mentioning my father…” he raised his hand again in threat.

“What? Draco Malfoy has a weak spot? You'll have to give me a bloody good reason not to spread it around.”

“Easily done.” Draco spat, hitting her across the again, much harder then the first time. Hermione's knees buckled and she fell to the ground, her hand moving to her face to protect it if a third blow was to occur.

“You're a bastard.” She said quietly but with venom, wondering if she would bruise from the two punches, or if she should get a third for proof.

“I'm a what?” Draco demanded, kneeling down next to Hermione. He moved quickly with strong hands to push her down so she lay flat on her back with her head hovering above the surface of the lake. Draco then straddled her and leaned close so his face was inches from hers, placing his hands on the ground on either side of her head. “What did you call me?”

Hermione considered lying, but knew that this was exactly what she needed. She repeated herself, much to Draco's chagrin. “You're a bastard, and so is Lucius. Like father like son, huh?”

Draco growled and grabbed her face before she could twist away and pushed it under the water. Hermione struggled and tried to get his hands off her face, but he continued hold her under. She swallowed a large amount of water in her panic and coughed, trying in vain to get it out of her lungs whilst she remained below the water.

After only a few seconds Hermione's struggle weakened, but she continued to try to pry Draco's hands off her face. Giving up when they remained fixedly on her she tried biting him. Catching his little finger in her mouth, she bit down hard. Hearing no sound from the surface and no release of his grip, Hermione realized that that wouldn't work either.

Beginning to swallow down water Hermione decided drastic action had to be taken. She struggled and twisted her body under Draco, managing to get her knees to her chest. With a final effort, Hermione lashed her feet forward and kicked Draco hard. Where he would most definitely feel it.

With a muffled cry, Draco's hands left Hermione's face and she lifted it upwards until it broke the surface. Coughing loudly and taking deep, shaking breaths Hermione sat up as far as she was able, with Draco still pinning her from the waist down. He was hunched over, cursing loudly.

“Did I hurt you?” Hermione asked with cruel sarcasm once she had stopped coughing.

He looked at her coldly, though his pain was evident by the way his mouth curled. “Why did you do that? I was only kidding.”

“Death is not a joke, Malfoy.” She replied quietly. “I was drowning.”

“I wasn't going to keep you down there too long. Just long enough to scare you.”

“Well, in that case, I'm scared. Now get off me.” She pushed him off her and he stood quickly to get his balance.

Hermione coughed again, and as she did so Draco watched her closely. How she was able to keep her fear from showing so it seemed that nearly being drowned happened to her all the time was incredible. She was filled with anger. Anger towards him. She hated Draco, that much was clear. He suddenly smirked as a brilliant thought struck him. He could use her hate of him to his advantage for his task.

Hermione stood after a while and wiped water off her face then she turned to face Draco. He had hit her twice and nearly drowned her. It was all she needed. “Thank-you.” She said, causing Draco a lot of confusion. She then turned and walked back to the castle, leaving Draco utterly bewildered as to why she would thank him after such a meeting.

Hermione entered the potions classroom alone, and sat down the back. She would no longer be sitting with Harry and Ron in this class, as they had taken Snape's advice and decided not to return. Both had picked up Herbology instead, pleased that they could do it once more instead of dreaded potions.

The lesson was long and boring, but eventually it came to an end. Hermione grabbed her books and started to move quickly out of the dungeon, but stumbled over someone's foot as it was suddenly placed in her path. Her books fell to the floor and she nearly followed them, but someone grabbed her by the shoulders to steady her.

Glancing over her shoulder, she saw Devon remove his hands off her, and Draco pull his foot back. They both glared at each other, Draco at Devon because he'd ruined his fun, and Devon at Draco because he was being a bastard. The other students had left the classroom, so Hermione was able to talk to them freely.

“Grow up Malfoy.” She spat at him. “I can't believe you get enjoyment out of tripping someone over. Why don't you pull my hair and throw stones while you're at it?”

“If you promise to hold still, sure.” He smirked. Hermione faced the two guys, and noticed Devon was looking at her sympathetically. Suddenly, his eyes narrowed and he leaned closer to her, staring at the side of her face. His jaw dropped slightly, as his fingers traced her cheek which was bruised and a black-blue colour.

“How did this happen?” He asked with concern. Hermione looked meaningfully at Draco, whose eyes widened at the fact he had caused so much damage. Devon turned on him slowly, not wanting to believe his friend capable of such disgraceful actions. “Did you do this?”

Draco held Devon's eyes, but decided to stay silent. His face was passive, but it was obvious he had been the culprit. Hermione watched this exchange closely, and could have sworn that Devon was shaking in anger as he glared at Draco. “How could you do that? She's only a witch, she means no harm.”

“She means harm when she tells me she'll replace me in the Scales.” Draco sniggered. “She provoked me, I was only doing what she obviously wanted me to do.”

As if realising something at these words, Devon looked at Hermione who touched her face gingerly and winced. “Can I speak to you alone Devon?” she asked, giving Draco his cue to leave. He breathed in deeply and pushed passed her to get out of the room.

Once his footsteps faded, Devon turned to Hermione, “Why the hell did you provoke him to hit you? You should know he wouldn't take much encouragement when it comes to you.”

“It was my task.” She replied with a smile. “You asked me to sacrifice a part of myself to him. You know I hate him, and would never let him dominate me in any situation if I can help it. So, I let him hit me, therefore allowing him to rule over me. There was nothing I could do once he got angry, and he certainly bruised more than my face when he took it out on me.”

“What do you mean?” Devon asked, kneeling down to pick up her books from the ground. When he stood, Hermione went to take them from him, but he shook his head and winked. “What sort of gentleman would I be if I made a witch carry her own books?”

“A very common one.” Hermione answered, but she smiled and walked out of the class with him.

“Now answer my question.” Devon said. “Where else did Draco bruise you, aside from your face? If you tell me he tried any lower I will personally make him regret it.”

Hermione shook her head. “No, nothing else physical. He bruised my dignity and pride, as you can only imagine are very important to a Gryffindor.”

“Good point.” Devon conceded. “Ok, you pass. Congratulations. In return for your triumph, you may have your books back.” Hermione smiled and took her piles of parchment and text books from him.

“Thanks.” She said with a small smile, before turning and walking down the corridor towards the hospital wing, where Madam Pomfrey would surely have something to remove the hideous bruise on her face before Harry and Ron saw it.

Chapter five - Draco's Secrecy Test

Entering dungeon 37, Draco slammed the door behind him. The other four members of the Scales turned to look at him expectantly, knowing he was about to start a rant about Hermione. Draco faced them with such a look of anger that he could have scared a dragon into flight. He walked to the front of the room and sat down behind the desk that usually belongs to Snape.

“Over my dead body is that filthy Gryffindor entering the Scales.” He stated darkly, then lay back in the chair and waited for the argument. Devon had a feeling this statement had something to do with Hermione purposefully making him hurt her, just so she could pass a test.

“Perhaps that can be arranged Draco. We have access to plenty of deadly potions in this very room, I doubt it would be hard.” Mark murmured.

“Shut it with your smart-arse comments, this is serious.” Draco snapped at him. “She will ruin this society. All that we have ever stood for will go straight out the window if she joins. She's too `good' for us. Too…” he trailed off, unable to find a fitting word.

“Innocent?” Devon suggested.

“Brainy?” Taylor tried.

“Independent?” Mark said dryly, knowing this was what bothered Draco about Hermione. Hermione wouldn't allow herself to be ruled over. If there was something she didn't like, she spoke up and didn't allow Draco to intimidate her into remaining silent. Draco glared at Mark for stating the truth and tried to force him to stay quiet by narrowing his icy eyes.

But once Corey continued the guessing game by suggesting “Attractive?” each person looked sharply at him. However, Draco was the only once who sneered. Devon looked pensive, Mark's face was neutral, and Taylor seemed a little confused as he tried to remember what Hermione looked like.

“What do you mean she's too attractive for us?” Draco spat. “Considering she looks like a dog I can't see how your suggestion is applicable.”

“Ok…well, obviously we have varying opinions on that issue then Draco.” Corey said. “I think she's quite pretty, and because of this you don't want her to join the Scales incase you begin to feel attracted to her. That would be terrible because she is a Gryffindor and you've hated her the past seven years. Oh, and also because you don't know if you would be able to let her go after the seminar.”

There was a few seconds of silence where everyone just stared at Corey. He shrugged and looked at the ground. “But I may be wrong.”

“May be?” Draco nearly exploded, “What the hell is wrong with you? Have you gone completely insane? I can't believe you would even think that about her, let alone say it aloud. Not only does it erase any respect we had for your judgment, but makes us wonder how you got into the Scales with such an easily corrupted mind. You know she wants guys to think that about her. I'll bet she walks around with her wavy brown hair in its low ponytail, pink lips and neat black robe just praying for guys to notice. All of her swaying and sauntering with those two dickheads, in the hope that while people are watching her friends, they'll just happen to notice her too. And you fell into her trap…how weak.”

“I wouldn't be saying that too loudly Draco.” Mark cautioned with an amused smile, starting to think the upcoming months might prove to be interesting. “Sounds to me that you've noticed her as well. Corey's not the only weak one.”

Draco's head snapped to look at Mark. “Excuse me?”

“Just tell us why it is you don't want her in the Scales.” Devon interrupted. “Hermione passed my test the other day. The only test she hasn't passed yet is yours, and that's only because you're trying to put it off. Once she finishes yours, that's all of us, and then you have no reason to reject her.”

“She's a filthy mudblood. Can't any of you see that?” Draco sneered.

A few seconds of silence followed, then Taylor said softly, “We've always known that Draco, and will never be able to forget it while you're around.” He took a deep breath and continued, “I have a suggestion. Are any of you willing to hear it?”

Draco just glared at him, but the other three nodded.

“How about we just don't go to the seminar?”

Devon immediately shook his head. “Not after we've brought Hermione in this far. I agree that we are going to too much trouble just for a bloody week of guest speakers, but we've come this far. Stopping now would be stupid. We may as well succeed.”

“Good point.” Taylor said.

Draco gritted his teeth and said, “Fine.” He stood abruptly and swept around the desk in the direction of the door. Once he pulled the door open aggressively, he turned to glare at the Scales. “I'll test her as soon as I can find her. Is that okay by you?” He said the last part in a tone that implied he'd pull out his wand and kill whoever objected.

“Fine by me.”

“Sure.”

“Whatever.”

“Why are you still here?” Mark was the last to respond. Draco glared, turned sharply on his heel, slammed the door behind him and was gone down the corridor before another word could be spoken.

Why the hell wouldn't they understand? Draco brooded about the other dim-witted Scales as he stormed through the castle. Eventually he reached the Entrance Hall and received strange looks from other students as he started up the marble steps with a determined look on his face. With the time being just after dinner, he had a bigger chance of finding her than at any other times outside of classes.

Draco was proved right moments after the moving staircase delivered him to the fourth level corridor. He turned the corner of the Ancient Runes corridor and saw Hermione dawdling along with her nose stuck in a book. Draco smirked at her stupidity to walk alone. Breezing down the corridor behind her, Draco was careful to make no noise until he was directly behind her. Quickly and without a word, Draco reached around Hermione and snatched the book away from her grasp.

Gasping in surprise, Hermione spun around in the hopes of catching Peeves before he got away from her. However the thief was someone quite different than the expected. Hermione recoiled in disgust, and outstretched her hand, “Give it back.”

Draco's eyes glimmered in the candlelight of the corridor as he stared at Hermione, making no move to return her possession. Hermione stood firm and didn't flinch under his cold glare, and she noticed Draco's eyes narrow further at her bravery. “Hmm…” Draco slowly looked Hermione up and down, his eyes appearing to take in every detail of her figure, and Hermione felt an involuntary chill run down her spine. “Trying to outdo Potter in dim-witted acts of heroism, Granger? Standing up so boldly to a Slytherin, when you know he would love nothing more than to recite every hex he knows, using you as the victim.”

“You value our rivalry too much to do that to me.” Hermione stated, trying to shake off the feeling that she wouldn't escape this encounter without incident.

Draco didn't respond to that comment, but said “I've been told that you've passed all the tests.”

Hermione frowned at him, knowing his sentence wasn't finished. “You haven't tested me yet.”

As Draco began to sneer at her, she knew she'd found the reason for him being here. He was about to test her. Hermione remembered what she'd allowed Draco to do to her for Devon's test. Nothing could be as bad as that, she thought to herself. He'd almost drowned her. Whatever Draco's initiation test was, Devon's had to have been the worst one. How little she knew.

Draco looked down at the book Hermione had been reading, snorted in contempt when he saw it was for potions homework and tossed it over his shoulder. Hermione took a step forwards without thinking to retrieve it, and suddenly found her shoulders grasped by Draco's strong hands.

Hermione flinched under his grasp when he whispered in her ear, “And where are you going, my infuriating enemy?” She attempted to take a step away from him so he'd let go, but he held her firmly in place as he waited for an answer.

“Surely dominating over me in this manner doesn't give you satisfaction?” Hermione said instead. “It shows weakness of mind, to resort to physical strength. Just like the other night. You couldn't beat me in an argument, so you resorted to violence. Do you plan to do the same right now?” Hermione demanded. “If I can stand you beating me, I get to join your little club?”

“Oh no, Hermione.” Draco spoke her name, and she wished he would never say it again. It chilled her, and she knew that he said it to get this exact reaction. “You have to be able to stand something much more...intolerable. And the point of this exercise is to tell no one. Secrecy, Hermione. That is the key. Do you think you can do it?”

“I have kept bigger secrets than anything regarding you could ever match.” She spat. “You're not worth telling anyone about anyway.”

Draco's mouth slowly spread into a smile. It wasn't humorous, but was intended to inform her that she couldn't be more wrong. Hermione looked away from him with a scoff, and glanced over his shoulder at her book, hoping he would get the drift that it was more important than him, and let her go. But he didn't.

Instead, he shoved her none to gently against the corridor wall. His stone strong body held her firmly in place, and Hermione found that she was unable to free herself. “What's your game, Malfoy? This is ridiculous.” She suddenly found herself missing their young teenage rivalry, which consisted of venomous words and midnight duels. Now however, Draco's eighteen year old body was very differently inclined. She silently cursed guys' ever present need for sex, recognizing the look in Draco's eyes as they roamed down her neck and continued down her robe. Hermione pulled her head as far away from Draco's as possible. Unfortunately, that was about five centimeters backwards until it made contact with the stone wall. “Shit.” She cursed aloud.

“Profanity? From Golden girl Granger?” Draco asked, his head leaning towards hers in a purposeful manner.

“If you touch me any more than you already are, I'll scream louder than a Banshee.” She warned, knowing it probably wouldn't do any good. All students had been taught silencing charms in fourth year, and Draco would never forget a charm that could one day be used to his advantage.

“I find it hard to scream when someone's mouth is covering my own.” Draco remarked slyly. Hermione's stomach flipped as his mouth inched ever closer to hers, knowing she had approximately two seconds before they made contact. Her pitiful tactic was to turn her head quickly to the side, so Draco kissed her cheek.

He pulled back with a click of the tongue. “Naughty, naughty.” He lifted a hand and placed it under her chin, then turned her face so she was looking at him once again. “Don't do that. It'll take longer if you do, and neither of us want that.”

“I know I certainly don't want any of this, so just let me go.” Hermione tried. But Draco just shook his head, and promptly leaned down and placed his lips firmly over her own. Hermione squirmed slightly, lifted her hands up to his face and tired to push it away. But to no avail. Draco, whilst leaving his lips pressed against hers to prevent her screaming, grabbed her hands and pinned them to her sides. Then he moved forwards so she was even unable to squirm.

His concentration was then brought back to the job at hand when Hermione tried to speak. Though his kiss prevented any noise from coming out, it allowed him to slide his tongue in. This movement obviously shocked Hermione, as it was a passionate progression she wasn't expecting. Draco lifted his eyes from her sides when he was sure her arms wouldn't struggle free, and noticed that her eyes were open and stared into his.

For a reason unknown to him, Draco felt the need to see an emotion other than disgust in her eyes. Slowly, he removed his tongue from her mouth, for he knew it wasn't doing any good. She slumped slightly in relief, and waited for him to pull off her altogether. But he didn't. His hands slowly lifted off hers and slid up her body and under her robe. Hermione's eyes flashed in a `Don't you dare,' fashion, and Draco knew his mission wouldn't be accomplished by violating her. Not that he wasn't already violating her.

His kiss became soft and gentle, though it disgusted him to do so. His hands moved up to her face and cradled it in one while the other stroked her hair. He kept it up until he saw her eyes close. Though he knew she still wasn't enjoying it, she was no longer disgusted. This was good enough for him. In one final movement, Draco pulled back and stepped away so Hermione could go free.

Hermione gasped, due to relief and also a lack of oxygen. “Thank God.” She finally murmured.

Draco smirked at her, and ran his tongue over his lips. “Now don't tell anyone, or there's no chance for you in my `little club.'”

“What, don't tell anyone that you nearly killed me of asphyxiation?” Hermione asked with a snicker. “Don't worry, Coldblood. I won't tell a soul. As if I would. I'd be regarded even dirtier than I already am.”

Draco stared at her coolly. “Hmm…no, I don't think that's possible.”

“Shut up, you prick.” Hermione spat, walking behind him and picking up her book from where he'd thrown it to the floor. She walked determinedly back over to him and whacked him over the back of the head with it. “Now, if you never do that again I'll be greatly appreciative.”

“I'll never even consider it.” He assured her, subconsciously raising a hand to rub the back if his head. Then he turned on his heel and walked away, not wanting to be the one left standing, staring after her. He heard no sound of footsteps, and figured Hermione to be watching him. When he reached the corner, as much as he wanted to keep walking, he looked back at her. Draco had wanted to smirk when she started at being caught staring after him. But unfortunately for Draco's ego, Hermione was sitting in the corridor, back to the wall, reading her book. He scoffed and disappeared around the corner.

When Hermione thought he'd gone, she glanced discretely down the hall. He wasn't in sight. Slowly she put down her book, placed her face in her hands and started to cry. Never in all her life had she felt so abused. Draco's kiss had hurt her more than violence or words ever could have. At least she knew it was over. She would keep this secret with her, and would become a Scale. She wiped her tears away and stood, grasping her book tightly.

She closed her eyes momentarily, took a deep breath then headed for the Gryffindor tower, the secret already stored away in her heart.

Chapter six - Another Blowup.

Hermione glanced up as the door to the potions classroom banged open and Draco stalked in. He glared around the room to ensure no one would question his tardiness, and in doing so, finished up staring at Hermione. Her eyes hardened and she silently challenged him to look away first.

Draco's eyes narrowed and a small smirk spread across his face. Even after Professor Snape made the nonchalant remark, “You're late Mr. Malfoy. Take a seat,” Draco continued his charade by running his tongue over his lips lightly as he walked towards his chair, maintaining eye contact with the repulsed Hermione. She didn't feel threatened by this action however, or think for one second that she was in danger of him repeating yesterdays kiss. Hermione knew that Draco was as sickened by the thought as she was. He was purely attempting to bother her.

Draco looked away once he reached the desk, and seated himself. Fortunately for Hermione, there was a row of desks between where Hermione sat, and where Draco had chosen to sit. As she finished copying a line off the board, she glanced up to read the next sentence, and noticed that Devon was sitting in front of her. She hadn't noticed him at first because his brown hair is fairly nondescript, however when he turned in his seat and began staring right at her, he couldn't fail to catch her attention.

Hermione shot a quick glance to her right, and only then remembered that Harry and Ron were no longer her companions in this class. Scanning the dungeon for Gryffindor's, Hermione realized that there wasn't anyone who would care if she talked to Devon.

“What?” She mouthed at him, dipping her quill in her ink as an excuse for looking up incase Snape saw her.

“Welcome to the Scales.” He said softly, smiling at her. Hermione frowned, because she thought they would have waited a few weeks to see if she would tell her secret, before accepting her. From next to Devon, Corey turned and looked at Hermione with an amused expression.

“Draco trusts you won't tell a soul.” He told her with a raised eyebrow. “About…whatever the secret is. The bastard won't tell us.”

Hermione sighed in relief that they didn't know. That'd be all she needed. “Awesome. Thanks.”

At that point, Draco spun around in his seat with his wand in his hand and a deathly expression. Devon and Corey didn't notice this, because they were still facing Hermione. But she did, and watched as he muttered something under his breath while pointing his wand at them. Hermione motioned that they should look at Draco, and once they did, Devon tried to speak to him. But he found his voice silenced. Glaring accusingly at Draco, Devon waved his arms about to indicate Draco should remove the charm, but Draco just shook his head, and glanced meaningfully at Hermione. It was obvious to Hermione that he had instructed them not to speak to her. But they had, and therefore had to suffer the consequences of a silencing charm. It was almost reassuring to find that Draco was a bastard to his friends too, not just to her.

Discreetly pulling out her wand once Draco had turned around, she counteracted the silencing charm, and gave them a wink. They smiled at her, but weren't stupid enough to risk verbally thanking her.

The end of potions came, and the class packed up and left the dungeons. As Hermione walked out, she glanced down the corridor that led to the back of the dungeon floor, where the Scales meeting room was located. Devon brushed passed her, and murmured “Monday night, nine o'clock.”

Hermione hardly bothered to knock before entering dungeon 37. She glanced around the room once she'd closed the door, and saw that Mark, Draco and Taylor were the only Scales who had arrived already. Mark lounged in a chair massaging his cold hands, and Hermione figured this to be a subconscious action used to intimidate others. Taylor was sitting down with a Muggle Studies textbook open in front of him, with his head resting in the palm of his hand in despondency.

Draco was sitting behind the desk at the front of the room, where the teacher normally sits during classes. His hands had been resting behind his head before Hermione walked in, and his feet had been propped up on the desk as he lazed in his chair on two legs. But as Hermione moved forwards to take a seat, he rested the chair on the ground properly. Draco scowled at her and watched with his piercing gray eyes as she sat down next to Taylor and glanced at his work with interest.

“What are you studying?” Hermione asked curiously.

“Muggle Studies. We have to answer this question sheet, but I don't know a few of them.” Taylor replied in a tone of voice that showed he didn't know what tone of voice to use when talking to her. He glanced at Draco who was still staring at Hermione, and figured it was worth a shot. “Do you know anything about sixth-year Muggle Studies, because I could use a bit of help, if you wouldn't mind…?”

“Of course she knows stuff about Muggles, dick head.” Draco spat. “She's a mudblood.”

“Oh. Right.” Taylor looked back at Hermione, ignoring the fact Draco had just insulted her. “So, would you mind helping until we started the meeting?”

Hermione followed Taylor's lead in ignoring Draco, knowing nothing would stop his constant flow of abuse towards her. “Of course. What questions are you stuck on?”

“Uh…they're to do with War and Medicine.” Taylor glanced down at his sheet, then read one aloud. “`Name three things Muggles commonly use as weapons.' I've already got two written down. Knives and poison, but I can't remember a third.”

Hermione glanced at him and said in a voice she hoped wasn't patronizing, “Let's make the third one a weapon wizards don't also use. Can you think of any of those?”

Taylor thought hard for a few seconds, and then said “Well, there's the one where they put pieces of metal in each other really fast…”

“That's called stabbing someone.” Draco interjected dryly.

“You're on the right track.” Hermione encouraged, continuing to ignore Draco. “Here's a hint. Wizards use curses that stun, Muggles shoot bullets out of a…”

“Gun.” Taylor supplied, quickly scribbling down the answer. “Another question is...`When a muggle has a wound that won't heal over by itself, what do the nurses do to help it heal?'”

“They blow on it and hope it closes over because it's cold.” Draco said, interrupting for the sake of irritating Hermione. It seemed to work.

Hermione glared at him, and hissed at him, “Don't be stupid.”

“I'm not the stupid one. It's you and your muggles who sew each other up like you do your socks.”

“Oh yeah.” Taylor said slowly, recalling stitches once Draco spoke of them. Hermione sighed and nearly told Draco to shut up and not give away the answers, but knew it wouldn't so any good. “Ok, the last one I didn't know was, `Name three famous muggles and how they died.' We're sort of doing history too.” He explained.

“I'm sure you can think of this one.” Hermione told him. “There are so many.”

Taylor paused and tried to think back on previous study. “Um…well we've learnt a lot about this Jesus character and his importance in muggle life. Apparently he was nailed to big wooden cross and left to die.”

Hermione motioned for him to write this down. As he did so, Mark pulled a disgusted face and muttered, “That's sick.”

Taylor finished then poised the quill over the paper. “Then there was the guy from Parliament, like Fudge…The President for the United States of America; he was murdered with a gun. But no one knew who shot him.”

Draco frowned at this, and asked no one in particular, “Do muggles have assassins?”

Taylor looked at Hermione, hoping he wasn't asking too much from the Gryffindor he hardly knew. “And…who else?”

“Surely you can think of one more. There are heaps to choose from.” Hermione said, wondering how much information about well known muggles was taught to wizards and witches at Hogwarts. After receiving a blank look from Taylor, she sighed and said “Ok, think royalty.”

“Oh.” Taylor said, now remembering the lesson about English royalty. “Princess Diana died in a car crash. It shocked everyone.”

“What?” Draco said sarcastically. “You mean to tell me that traveling faster than a Firebolt in a hunk of metal with no Protection charm can kill you? Who would have thought.”

“Bloody hell. Muggles die in so many ways.” Mark remarked with a frown.

“That's because they're cruel and design things for the very purpose of killing.” Draco explained.

“What did the wizard who came up with Avada Kedavra have in mind, I wonder?” Hermione said to him with feigned curiosity. At that moment, the door opened and Corey entered with Devon close behind him. Hermione turned to watch them as they walked in, and received a smile and a wink from Devon.

When she looked to the front of the room again, she noticed Draco glaring hard at Devon for no apparent reason. Devon shrugged at him and sat himself on the other side of Hermione to Taylor. “It's time we got started.” Draco said in his most authoritative tone. All five members turned to face him, waiting to hear how he would bring about the issue of Hermione this time.

Draco paused a moment, reveling in the silence. “It is now obvious we have ourselves a new member.” He said, as if speaking to a group of a hundred people, not his close friends. “Welcome,” He sneered in a barely audible voice, “Hermione Granger from Gryffindor.”

They all looked at her and Hermione found herself uncertain of what she was expected to do. She decided the easiest thing to do was to remain silent. Devon clapped a few times, but he was instantly cut off when Draco sent him a venomous glare.

“I'm trying to make her actually feel welcome.” Devon defended himself. “You said it, but hardly meant it. She is a member now, and there's no reason for us to exclude one of our own.”

“Granger is scarcely one of our own. We are the Scales, hardly a distinguishing feature of a Lion.” Draco said, clearly upset by Devon's statement.

“Oh yeah.” Hermione said, causing the males to look back at her, “that reminds me.” She looked at Draco sternly. “We were going to discuss the name of this society if I got in. Scales, as you say, is not a true representation of my House. And surely all members should be represented in our title.” Although Hermione did not yet regard the Scales to be her secret society, she knew talking as if she did would certainly irritate Draco.

Draco scowled and held her eyes. “And just what do you have in mind?”

“It has to sound good.” Mark said. “I don't want anything like, Serpents & a Lion, because that sounds so lame.”

“The name Scales will remain in the title, no matter what.” Draco said resolutely.

“What features does a Lion have, that we could adopt in to the name?” Corey asked. “I mean, all it's really got is fur, and mane and a tail.”

“Hmm.” Mark thought aloud. “Scales describe the hide of a serpent. I don't think we also want something that describes the hide of a Lion. We could pick a discerning feature.”

“The tail.” Taylor said simply.

“Why the tail?” Devon asked curiously.

“Because it's the rear end of the creature, and best describes the arse's that make up Gryffindor.” Draco said with a smirk, obviously amused by his own comment. Mark scoffed in agreement, but then turned his attention to listen to Taylor's reason.

“I thought it would be obvious.” Taylor said. “It's one of its defining features, and also sounds good alongside Scales. Personally, I think `Scales and a Tail' doesn't sound too bad. I mean, it's a hell of a lot better than combining our two House names and calling ourselves `Slythendor' or something idiotic like that.”

“Damn, I was just about to suggest that.” Corey muttered, and Hermione couldn't tell if he was serious or being sarcastic.

Draco closed his eyes and took a deep breath, apparently unable to grasp the concept of changing the name of a secret society that had existed for hundreds of years. “Fine.” He said quietly. “Scales and a Tail. Whatever.”

“Thank-you.” Hermione said, though no one believed she was thankful towards Draco for a second.

Draco didn't even look at her. “Next issue. The Ravenclaw society `Sharp Sparks' have begun their meetings again this year. We know that without Chang leading the group, they'll have to appoint a new person in charge. Although this society focuses on school work, tutoring and revision, we need to know who their leader is so we can keep track of their meeting schedule, so there are never any surprise run-ins if we go wandering the corridors at night.”

“What are the Sharp Sparks?” Hermione whispered to Devon.

“A Ravenclaw secret society whose purpose is to maintain the Ravenclaw trait of intelligence.” He explained. “They dislike the top student in any subject being from another house.” As he said the last part, he gave Hermione a significant look, who was the top student in every subject she participated in.

“Can we get through an issue without becoming distracted?” Draco said, staring at Devon. “We'll need to find out when their next meeting is, because Taylor found out that's when they're electing their new leader. This should be easy for us. Just a bit of trailing the members from last year, eavesdropping, or if worse comes to worse, Veritaserum and Obliviate.”

“Why would you go to so much trouble over something so insignificant?” Hermione asked with a frown. “It's just a bunch of Ravenclaw's studying.”

Draco turned to her with a withering look. “Because it is our duty to know about everything at this school, no matter how insignificant.” He said through clenched teeth. After a moment it looked as if he was about to smile. “You'd better be careful Granger. We know a lot about you that you'd wish we didn't know.”

Hermione wasn't stupid enough to ask the question, `Like what?' although she couldn't think of anything that could be used to embarrass her or as blackmail. Instead she rolled her eyes at his attempt to intimidate her.

Draco moved back to the topic at hand, “So Taylor and Mark, you guys have the task to find out when and where their next meeting is, because you share the most classes with Ravenclaw's. Then, pass on the information, and either myself or Corey will go in and listen to the election. Sorry Dev, the cat's just not going to cut it this time.”

Hermione frowned and looked at Devon, hoping for an explanation. Devon glanced at Hermione, then at Draco, obviously seeking permission to explain. Draco shrugged and said, “She may as well know. She passed the secrecy test, so we know she won't tell anyone.” Hermione shuddered in memory of the secrecy test, and waited for Devon to speak.

“Well Hermione.” He started. “We've all become unregistered Animagus. We've found that it helps us snoop unnoticed around the castle while finding out anything we need to know. It will also be a helpful disguise if the castle is ever under attack.” He added in an undertone.

When Hermione nodded in understanding, but didn't appear overly shocked or appalled. Draco said, “Don't you dare tell anyone,” in the hopes of getting a better reaction.

Hermione rolled her eyes at him, “Oh, come on. Do you really think you're the first unregistered Animagus I've come across?” Draco's face fell slightly, and Hermione knew she had succeeded in making him feel slightly less like a badass. “I can think of at least three others.”

“Who?” Mark asked, leaning forwards. The others all remained quiet, waiting for her to answer the question. It was then that something clicked in Hermione's brain. The Scales thrived on knowing everything about everyone. These were the male variants of Gossip Queens. Except they didn't tell anyone else, just felt superior in their secret knowledge of private matters.

Hermione barely contained her smirk. “I'm not saying. It's none of your business.”

Their reactions were priceless. Mark looked highly affronted, Corey looked disappointed, Devon sent her a warning look but was obviously irritated by the secret, and Taylor appeared to be more worried about Draco's reaction than his own dissatisfaction.

Draco stared at her threateningly, and Hermione could tell he was about to yell at her. He took a deep breath, one that would allow him to rant for a good thirty seconds without pause, but then stopped when Hermione started talking. “If you don't include me in your matters, there's no way I'm going to include you in mine.”

“What the hell are you talking about?” Draco demanded loudly. “We've let you in our society for Merlin's sake! If that's not including you in our matters, I don't know what is.”

“I didn't notice you including me in this Ravenclaw thing.” Hermione said accusingly. “Why should I tell you my secrets if I'm not an active participant in Scales and a Tail?”

Draco fumed for a few moments and glanced at Mark in the hopes he would say something to shut her up, but he didn't. “You can't help because you don't have classes with Ravenclaw's.”

“How do you know that?” Hermione asked belligerently.

“How many times do we have to tell you?” Draco yelled. “We know mostly everything! Especially about you. We couldn't risk admitting you to the Scales and then having you pull a nasty surprise on us. We know what classes you're taking. We know about your unnatural interest in study. We know that you and the Weasel had something going on in your sixth year, but it never came to anything. We know you were behind the creation of Dumbledore's Army, yet Dumbledore paid the price. We know without you, you're friends would have failed most of their classes, aside from Divination. We know that you and Krum were together in your fourth year, but ended when he returned home, most likely because of his invitation for you to visit him, which scared you off due to its sexual implications.”

“HOW DARE YOU!” Hermione screamed at him. “How dare you say such things to me; things you know nothing about! You have no proof of any of that!” In her anger, Hermione stood, not caring that her chair fell backwards, and glowered at Draco. “You said that I had to be able to keep secrets, not have to tell you all of my own!”

“Hermione,” Devon said, attempting to calm her. “You don't' have to tell us anything… we're just curious.”

Taylor and Corey exchanged a nervous glance, unused to the rage of a female. Draco's status in life made him a difficult person to get along with, but his outbursts were so constant they were to be expected. But having someone fight back, especially a mudblooded Gryffindor, was something they were unaccustomed to. When Hermione began yelling again, they shifted back in their seats, and remained silent.

“I don't care about Mark and his bloody question! It's Malfoy and his promotion of my private matters!” She fumed, then turned on Draco once more, and noticed he had stood also in his preparation for battle. “I can't believe how tactless you are, you infuriating Cold-blood! You…you FUCKING WRETCHED PRICK!”

Four of the Scales' eyes widened in alarm, but Draco's face paled in fury. Hermione noticed his hand reach into his pocket, obviously going for his wand. She pulled hers out of her robe and had it aimed at Draco's throat in an instant. “Try me.” She whispered, slowly backing towards the door. Hermione knew if she didn't get out of there quickly, one of them would inflict serious damage on the other.

Her hand fumbled behind her and found the doorknob. Opening the door, Hermione scanned the room, and would have found the awed expressions of the other four amusing had she not been so angry. She backed out of the room, and just before she closed the door, she muttered `Impendio Pummel' aiming her wand at Draco's stomach. She saw Draco double over as the curse hit him in the stomach and he received a painful sensation as if someone were pummeling him in the abdomen. Her smirk of triumph wasn't heartfelt as she fumed off down the dungeon corridor.

Chapter Seven - Skiving Snackboxes

That Wednesday afternoon, Hermione sat in the library completing her Transfiguration homework. Harry and Ron were in the Divination section attempting to find information that Hermione couldn't supply them with. When they returned, both were muttering irritably about all the homework they had to complete before they could go to bed.

“If you'd done it yesterday instead of play Quidditch, you wouldn't have this problem.” Hermione told them in her best I-told-you-so voice.

Ron rolled his eyes. “You don't understand Hermione. Just because you don't have any interests aside from studying, doesn't mean everyone else has to be deprived of a life.”

“I have a life.” She snapped. Harry sighed, resigning himself to a bout of their bickering.

Ron scoffed, “Oh yeah, I forgot. You think an extra-curricular activity such as knitting House elves woolly bladders counts as a life.”

Hermione swelled with indignation. “Woolen hats are a damn lot better than some things House elves wear. At least I'm doing something worthwhile with my free time. As if Quidditch will get you anywhere.”

“Hermione.” Harry butted in, feeling this jest was directed at him too, not just Ron. “Quidditch is just as beneficial as knitting. So will you please just get off our backs about it?”

She opened her mouth to say something but thought better of it, and closed it again. Ron looked slightly smug, so Hermione elbowed him hard in the ribs. “Ow! Hermione!”

Suddenly, the three became aware of Madam Pince towering over them. “You.” She pointed a finger at Ron, who she had heard due to his loud exclamation. “Out. Now.”

Ron sent an angry look at Hermione, packed up his books huffily and stomped out of the library. Harry turned to Hermione with a frown. “Now look what you've done. As if he can do any work without these books.”

“So borrow them and take them to him.” Hermione suggested snidely. Harry shook his head with a sigh, and gathered the relevant books for their Divination homework.

“See you at dinner, Hermione.” He said softly, in an attempt to part on better terms than Ron did.

“Yeah, sure.” She replied with difficulty. “See you then Harry.”

He left, leaving Hermione feeling guilty about her spat with Ron and her rudeness towards Harry. Although their bickering wasn't uncommon, she usually felt bad about it once Ron was out of sight. She had a terrible temper when pushed, and she found that her recent dealings with Malfoy had her constantly on edge. Hermione made a decision. She would no longer let Malfoy get to her. Responding to his immaturity was just what he wanted. From now on, Hermione would remain calm. At least, she hoped to.

Now that all was silent around Hermione, she was easily able to hear whispers from the Herbology section. Ignoring them at first, Hermione continued her scribbling, but soon she began to recognize the voices and thought eavesdropping may prove valuable. It was Padma Patil speaking in a quiet voice to someone who Hermione believed was Luna Lovegood.

“…if that's alright with you.” Padma was saying in hushed tones. “I mean, Friday night might not suit everyone, but if it's at ten o'clock, any other engagements should be finished.”

“Friday is my favorite day of the week.” Luna replied.

“Ok.” Padma said calmly, obviously used to dealing with Luna's strange mannerisms. “But will you be able to make it?”

“Mmm.” Was Luna's reply. Padma apparently took this as an affirmative.

“Good. Flitwick has given us permission to use his classroom, so we'll meet in Charms classroom number three. See you.” Padma whispered, and walked off. Hermione smiled to herself, and hoped desperately that Taylor and Mark would be unable to find out the meeting time or place. She'd show the Scales that she wasn't to be mistaken for a useless Gryffindor.

Hermione lay in the common room, on one of her favorite cushy couches, pretending to be asleep. She had noticed a pattern in Harry and Ron's disappearances, and figured them to have meetings with their secret Quidditch society on Thursday nights.

They sat in the chairs next to her, scribbling furiously at their Charms assignments. Hermione waited another half hour, getting more impatient as the time slipped away; she could be using this time for homework. Instead, she needed to give Harry and Ron no reason to skip their meeting, so she feigned sleep so they would leave under the impression that she'd wake up and think they'd gone to bed.

Eventually, at half past eight, Hermione felt Harry and Ron quietly stand and pack their books away. Instead of walking up to the boys dormitories, Hermione heard the portrait hole open and knew they had just left.

Sitting up and stretching, mainly for the show of the others in the common room, Hermione ensured her best friends had indeed left. When she saw no sign of them, Hermione walked as inconspicuously as she could up the staircase leading to the boys' dormitories. Entering Harry's dorm, Hermione moved quickly over to the trunk at the foot of his bed. Shuffling through it, she soon came across his Invisibility Cloak. She closed the trunk, draped the Cloak over herself, and made her way down the stairs, then quickly heading up into her own dorm to hide away the cloak.

When it was safely stashed in her own trunk, Hermione walked back down to the common room and began the potions homework Snape had set the class that afternoon.

“Listen up, seventh years!” Flitwick said brightly from his place on the large pile of books behind his desk on Friday morning. “There are a few precautions I need to warn you about before we begin work on our next topic, Illusion Charms. And don't forget, I will be collecting your homework at the end of class…” Draco's attention was lost immediately.

He sat staring at the blackboard in a bored stupor, waiting until he'd actually be able to use the Illusion Charm. He was sure most students in the class were experiencing the same longing to leave that he was, but his spirits lifted slightly when he thought that it must mean they too were unhappy. He glanced to the front where Hermione sat next to Potter and Weasel, and sneered as she sat in rapt attention. Then he went back to his glazed state.

However after only a few minutes, there was a disturbance from the front of the room. A few Gryffindor's were gathered around someone who was slumped over their desk. Professor Flitwick paused in mid sentence.

“What is going on over there? Miss Granger?”

Hermione glanced up from the gathering students at the desk next to hers. The look on her face was one of disapproval, but she managed to make herself look half worried. “Um…I believe Ron just fainted.”

“Wha- how?” Flitwick asked incredulously.

“I don't know.” She said in a voice that made Draco quite sure that she knew full well how Weasley had fainted. “Mustn't have been feeling too well, I guess.”

“Oh, well.” Flitwick said sounding quite perturbed. “How strange. Mr. Potter, would you please take him to the infirmary?” Potter nodded and draped Weasley's arms around his neck and carried him out. As he passed Draco and his friends, Draco noticed a small victorious smile spread across his face.

Flitwick launched back into his lecture about Illusion Charms. Concentrate. Don't let the image waver. Ignore enemies who act as if they can see you, they are most likely pretending and hoping to scare you into revealing yourself. Blah blah blah. Just as Draco felt his eyelids begin to droop, another commotion erupted from the front of the class. A Gryffindor boy had his hand cupping his nose, and blood clearly stained his sleeve.

“What have you done to yourself, Mr. Thomas?” Flitwick demanded, quite disturbed at his sudden nosebleed.

“I don dow Brofessor. It jus starded.” Dean answered with his voice thick, as his nose was blocked from the streaming blood. Flitwick sighed and asked Seamus to escort him to the hospital wing. Again, as they neared the back tables, Draco noted Seamus giving Dean a concealed thumbs-up and Dean winked back at

him. Draco brow creased at the good fortune of the four Gryffindors.

Looking back at Flitwick, Draco raised his hand. The Professor turned to him, half expecting Draco to give him a problem that would send him out of class. “Yes, Mr. Malfoy?”

“Excuse me, but have you noticed that four Gryffindors have now gotten out of class?” He asked with a smirk and a raised eyebrow. “And with the small amount of students in this class, that's nearly half of them.”

Flitwick glanced around the room, astonished. “Why, you're absolutely correct, Mr. Malfoy. But I don't think that has any relevance to what I've been talking-”

“No, of course not Professor.” Draco said, slipping into his acting role of a respectful student that he sometimes found necessary to use to get other students (generally Gryffindor's) into trouble. “And no offence, but your topic isn't exactly captivating. I do wonder if the Gryffindor's have been purposefully injuring themselves to get them out of class.”

Flitwick looked slightly suspiciously at the remaining Gryffindor's. They looked innocently back at him. Professor Flitwick smiled and shook his head. “I don't think so, Mr. Malfoy. It is just a coincidence.”

“Are you sure, Professor? Go check the infirmary for yourself after class. I can assure you that Madam Pomfrey will deny ever seeing Weasley or-”

“Shut up, Malfoy!”

Draco turned his head slightly to see Hermione looking at him through narrowed eyes. Draco put a hand to his chest and put on a largely false offended expression. “Did you just tell me to `shut-up' Granger? That was uncalled for.” He smirked. “I'm only stating the facts.”

“They're lies. Now shut up so the Professor can talk-”

“Thank you Miss Granger, but I really can speak for my-”

“Be quiet.” She told Flitwick absently, turning her full attention to Draco, who was now smiling viciously. Draco's suspicions had just been confirmed by her attempts to cover for her friends. Hermione knew that he could get the Gryffindor's in to a lot of trouble if they were found to have something that could get them out of class. “Malfoy, you'd better stop accusing us of trying to get out of class. We're not stupid enough to hurt ourselves just to escape boredom. No offence Professor, I love your classes-”

“Granger.” Draco said, standing up so he could intimidate her. “Stop covering for your friends. I know you disapprove of what they're doing. Just admit it.”

“There's nothing to admit, so shut your mouth about it.”

“Ooh, getting aggressive. That's a danger sign. Lucky I'm all the way back here, or you might slap me again…”

“I can walk, Malfoy-”

“Congratulations.”

“-and I'll make a special little trip, all the way over to you to give you what you deserve, if you don't shut up.”

“Surely I deserve something extraordinary-”

“I seriously doubt it.”

“-so how about some of those things that are helping you Gryffindor's get out of class?”

“I've already told you, those grievance were random. As if we have anything that would injure us.” Hermione said through gritted teeth. The class had been silent throughout their exchange, watching them with a growing interest, and very pleased to have a bit of excitement to break up the dreary lesson. But when a third failure in health occurred in the front corner of the classroom, their attention was removed from the fighting pair.

Draco's eyes however, remained fixedly on Hermione. She closed her eyes and sighed in exasperation. She slowly looked over at the student who was now vomiting all over their desk. She raised her eyes skywards and shook her head very slightly. Draco smirked. The Gryffindor's definitely had something, but what it was and where they'd gotten it from remained a mystery.

“Mr. Longbottom! This is now getting ridiculous!” Flitwick exclaimed from his place on the pile of books. With a quick spell he cleared up the sick on the table and gave Neville a penetrating look. “Why is it that you are ill, yet when you walked into my class not half an hour ago, you were perfectly fine?”

Neville looked helplessly at Professor Flitwick, then at Hermione. She jumped in, before he could answer. “Actually, he was complaining shortly after breakfast that he was feeling unwell. Maybe it was something in the food.”

“No one else seems to be affected, Miss. Granger. And we all ate the same food for breakfast.”

“Perhaps he's allergic?” she tried.

“Hmm. Maybe, but I doubt it.” Flitwick frowned.

“What? You're not going to start believing that wildly stupid story Malfoy has been saying.”

“Hey, I don't talk stupid Granger.”

“Really? Well, you could have fooled me-”

“Be quiet, the both of you!” Flitwick interrupted sharply. He turned back to Neville, who was retching weakly. “Miss. Brown, will you kindly escort Mr. Longbottom to the hospital wing?”

“Yes Professor.” She said, and grabbed Neville by the arm. She slowly walked him out of the classroom and the Slytherin's all exchanged glances. The remaining Gryffindor's tried to look as innocent as possible under the Professor's suspecting gaze.

“Now do you believe me, Professor?” Draco asked casually, sitting himself back down again. Hermione cast an irritated glare over her shoulder at him, but kept quiet. Flitwick faced Draco with raised eyebrows.

“Something is definitely strange in this class, Mr. Malfoy. I don't know if it is only the Gryffindor's though. Slytherin's don't have a clean reputation either. I will speak to the Head Professor's of both your houses and see what they know or have heard. Now, if you will all just remain silent and healthy for me, I need to finish giving you all the details about Illusion Charms.”

Draco immediately turned his attention to more important things, like the fly sitting on the bookshelf, the splotches of ink on the desk and the tiny piece of green something stuck in Flitwick's white beard that wobbled dangerously whenever he talked. The class ended soon after and Draco gathered his books and stood up with a large amount of relief.

He followed his friends to the door, but stopped in the hopes of an argument with Hermione. It didn't take long.

“Get out of my way, you pathetic loser.” Draco heard Hermione speak flatly from behind him. He turned on the spot in the middle of the doorway and leaned against it casually, checking that she was the only student remaining in the classroom. He stood, blocking her way, eyeing her up and down. Her eyes blazed immediately and she took a threatening step closer to him.

“Do you have control over all your senses?” she asked him coldly.

Not quite sure of where her question was going to lead, Draco answered with a simple “Yes.”

“Including your eyesight?” she persisted.

“I think so.”

“Than make sure you keep those bloody eyes to yourself.”

“I am keeping them to myself.” He lied, knowing that his lie would irritate Hermione more than admitting he'd looked her over would.

Hermione raised a finger and pointed in his face. “Don't you ever let me catch you looking me up again, or I will rip your eyes out, mash them up, add starch and sand, mould them into squares and stuff them back in your sockets and see if you like that.”

Draco smirked at her, and in an attempt to revolt Hermione out of her senses, reached his hand forward to rest lightly on her waist. Hermione's expression showed the repulsion Draco had wanted, but the anger that succeeded it was unexpected.

WHACK!

Draco pulled his hand off and raised it to the side of his face. “You hit me.” He stated in shock, his eyes narrowing dangerously.

“You touched me.” Hermione said, making it clear she believed this was much worse.

Draco let his hand drop, and he straightened his stance menacingly. “So Granger. You Gryffindor's have actually managed to come up with a way to get yourselves out of class. That's quite a secret to have kept to yourself.”

“We haven't come up with a way.” She answered evasively, ignoring his implication that she should have told the Scales about this.

“I know you have, stop denying it. I'm no fool.”

“Are you sure, because-”

“Shut up.” Draco leaned towards Hermione and lowered his voice. “We will be discussing this on Monday. If you don't talk, we will find out for ourselves, but mark my words, we will be very unhappy.” With that, Draco turned and walked off down the corridor, leaving Hermione glaring after him, seriously wishing looks could kill.

“Hi guys.” She greeted Harry and Ron at lunch time, joining them by the fireplace in the common room. “Enjoy your time off classes?” her expression turned disapproving.

“Uh…” Ron looked at her guiltily. “Not really, but we managed to finish our Divination homework. What did we miss?”

“Nothing important. Just things about saving your life with an Illusion Charm. But I suppose as long as you both have your brooms to fly to safety with, you don't need to worry.” She turned to Harry. “Did you even take Ron to the hospital wing before you gave him the antidote for the Fainting Fancy?”

“No. Brought him straight to the common room. Why?” Harry said.

“Because that jerk Malfoy is making stuff up about the Gryffindor's using things to get out of classes. I'm sure he's never heard of a Skiving Snackbox before, but he told the Professor to check with Madam Pomfrey if you came by the hospital during that class time. He seems to know your illnesses weren't genuine.”

“Oh, bugger.” Ron said, his face falling. “Do you think Flitwick will check with Madam Pomfrey?”

“He said he was going to talk to the head of our houses about it. Who knows what they'll say? But I think you guys did overdo it a bit. After you Ron, Dean gave himself a blood nose, and Neville took a puking pastille and vomited all over the table. I think Flitwick agreed with Malfoy that something was suspicious.”

“Well, we won't use them for a couple of days then.” Ron concluded, as if that would make the teachers forget about it all. Hermione sighed.

“I don't think that'll work. But a better idea would be to not use them at all.”

Ron ignored this comment. “At least the sudden rush of needy Gryffindor's, Hufflepuff's and Ravenclaw's got Fred and George's joke shop some required profit. They were stoked at how much they sold, just to Hogwarts students.” Ron told them.

“Good for them.” Hermione said curtly, wishing they could come up with something that might assist students in learning, not restrict.

“C'mon Hermione.” Harry said, holding out his fist with something concealed in it. “Want to Feign a Fever on Monday in Potions?”

“I wouldn't dare, especially with Snape teaching.” Hermione turned him down, frowning slightly.

Harry sighed and put it back in his pocket. He picked up his quill again and tried to concentrate on his Transfiguration homework, while ignoring Hermione's attempts to make him empty his pocket of all Illness Illusions and throw them in the fire.

Heading towards History of Magic later that afternoon, Hermione made sure no one from another house was around then said to Harry and Ron, “The teachers may be on the look out after this morning for students who leave class due to sickness but don't show up in the hospital wing.”

Ron rolled his eyes. “We know that Hermione. You've only told us,” he counted on his fingers, but found he ran out of them, “What is it, eighteen times now?”

Harry shook his head. “Nope. Twenty three times.”

“Well, at least it has sunk in.” Hermione concluded. “So make sure you don't use anything from those Skiving Snackboxes, no matter how sleepy Professor Binns makes you get.”

“Yes Hermione.” They both said in unison.

Half an hour later, most students had either dozed off or were playing hangman while Professor Binns continued his lesson, completely oblivious to his students' boredom, as usual.

Hermione was taking notes, and was just beginning to find the stuffy classroom a bit difficult to bear. She noticed Malfoy occasionally looking around at the Gryffindors, waiting for them to fall unconscious or something similar. At one point, she caught his eye and glared at him. He glared back, and for some reason, Hermione had the distinct feeling he was about to smile. But he didn't; just went back to sleeping with his head on his folded arms.

A/N - Hopefully this chapter wasn't confusing, and yes it does relate to the story on a whole! The next chapter should help you make sense of this one! I love all you guys and girls for reviewing, thank you so much.

Chapter eight - equal enemies

At about nine forty-five that night, Hermione walked quietly down the corridors leading to the Charms corridor. Slipping into Charm room number three, she hid in the corner at the back of the classroom, with Harry's Invisibility Cloak wrapped firmly around herself.

It only took a few minutes before the door was opened, and Ravenclaw's began to file in. Hermione recognised many of them, but there were also quite a few, that had she run into them in Diagon Alley, she wouldn't have had the faintest clue that she went to school with them.

It didn't take long for all of them to settle and take their seats. Padma stood at the front with a small stack of parchment in her hand. “Ok, listening up. This meeting is going to be very brief because Terry has informed me that Peeves is floating around the fourth corridor and could easily hear us and come on a terrorize mission.”

A few young Ravenclaw's smiled, but most had experienced what Peeves was capable of first hand, and knew it to be no laughing matter. Padma held up the stack of parchment, “These are little voting sheets. I've listed all of our names and placed boxes next to them. I want you to place a number one in the box next to the person who you think should be Leader. A number two next to your second preference, and so on. Afterwards, I'll collect all the ballots and work out who Sharp Sparks' Leader will be.”

The others nodded in agreement and waited for Padma to walk around handing out the ballots. Hermione sat and waited for ten minutes, listening to the scratching of quills and watching Luna stare into space, chewing absently on the end of her quill. Padma stood and looked at them once again, “Is everybody finished?”

The group nodded, and Padma walked around collecting the pieces of folded parchment. She came to a pause in front of Luna's desk. “You're meant to place a number in every box, not just number one.” She pointed out.

“It won't make any difference.” Luna said vaguely. “Everybody put number one in the same box anyway.”

“Hmm.” Padma replied, taking the parchment and moving on. Hermione agreed with Luna that everyone in their right minds would have made Padma their first choice of Leader. And since it was a room full of Ravenclaw's, whose minds were more often right than not, Hermione had a feeling Padma was the go.

Hermione shuffled slightly to take the weigh off her right foot, which was steadily gaining a bad case of pins and needles. As Padma sat at the front of the room, the other Ravenclaw's began talking amongst themselves. Mandy Brocklehurst was chatting with Lisa Turpin and Anthony Goldstein about Ancient Runes, hoping they could work on that at their next meeting. Michael Corner sat up the back playing thumb wars with Terry Boot. Luna glanced over her shoulder to the back of the room and scanned the wall. Hermione frowned, wondering what she was looking for and hoping she wouldn't walk over to where Hermione was hiding.

Padma stood up, with a strange expression on her face. Hermione guessed she was trying not to look impressed with herself. “It seems Luna was right. All but one person, that being myself, labeled the same person, that also being myself, as number one. I think that means that I have to be Leader. Thanks guys.”

The group gave a soft cheer and some muttered charms so streamers and balloons floated out the end of their wands. However, it was obvious that they still feared attracting Peeves. With the Leader decided, they made plans for their meetings to take place on Wednesday evenings from eight thirty till ten o'clock, and quietly left the classroom, heading towards the West tower.

Hermione smiled to herself. She had found out when the Ravenclaw's meeting was, knew who they had named Leader, and also had heard when their meetings were going to be each week. She desperately hoped none of the Scales had tried their stupid tricks like Veritaserum, and that she would be the one to bring them the news at Monday night's meeting.

The weekend passed in a haze of homework and Hermione felt her next Scales meeting approaching too quickly. The prospect of another blow up with Draco didn't seem overly appealing. Although remembering her decision to keep her calm in Draco's presence, she knew it wouldn't really be that easy.

After dinner, Hermione casually walked down the stairs leading to the dungeon floor. She tried to look as inconspicuous as a Gryffindor in Slytherin territory could, hoping to appear as if going in search of Snape's help for potions homework.

When she reached the dungeon at the end of the corridor, she opened the door and walked in. All the other members were there already, and it appeared to Hermione that they had been there for a while. Their conversation broke off as she closed the door, giving Hermione a large reason to suspect them of speaking about her.

“What were you talking about?” she asked, suspiciously, moving forward and sitting down next to Taylor.

Draco stared at her from the front of the classroom and smirked, “Nothing important.”

“With a response like that, coming from you, I take it I was the topic of conversation.” She said, figuring out his evasive reply.

Draco's smirk widened, “So what if you were? You were late to the meeting, it's not our problem if you missed the first issue of the evening.”

Hermione was positive she wasn't late. “So you called an early meeting, but didn't inform me of it? I see.” She glared accusingly at Devon, having believed he would have informed her if no one else had. He looked guilty, and couldn't manage to hold her stare. Looking back at Draco, she said, “So, do you know who the new Leader of the Sharp Sparks is then?”

Draco shook his head slightly. “We're working on it.”

Hermione smiled victoriously. “Hmm.” Her expression was obviously one of a person who knew something that others didn't. They all looked at her skeptically, waiting for her to speak. “Well, that's strange. I would have thought that the `Scales' would have been able to find out, if a lowly Gryffindor could.”

Mark stared at her incredulously. “You discovered when and where the Sharp Sparks first meeting was, managed to sit in on it without being noticed and found out who their new Leader was?”

Hermione nodded at him. “And heard what day and time they scheduled their weekly meetings at.”

Draco glared at her. “You did not.”

“Really?” Hermione asked with raised eyebrows. “And what evidence did you steal to back up that statement?”

“I don't need evidence.” He scowled. “If we couldn't find out when it was with all our practice, as if you could.”

“Interesting theory, but I'm going to have to prove you false.” Hermione said. “Their meeting was on Friday at nine o'clock in one of the Charms classrooms. They elected Padma Patil as their new Leader, and their meetings will be in that same classroom every Wednesday from eight thirty until ten o'clock. Go do your research and you'll find me correct.”

They all stared at her, obviously impressed. Aside from Draco, of course, who stared at her, quite obviously unimpressed. “How did you find that out, mudblood?”

Hermione's mood darkened at his mention of the dirty word. She chose not to inform them that she discovered it due to luck. She also chose not to say anything at all. To keep her composure, Hermione would not talk to Draco when he insulted her, instead of her previous tendency to insult him back.

“Hermione?” Devon said. “How did you do it?”

“I have my ways,” she replied, knowing it aggravated them when she didn't explain herself properly. “You don't tell me our meeting time was moved forward, I don't tell you how I found out. We're even.” She said, hoping to stop any further pursuit of the matter.

“Next issue.” Draco said through gritted teeth, glaring at Hermione. “What is with the Gryffindors? You're getting sick all over the place, and managing to get out of classes. How the hell are you doing it? We discussed this earlier and decided this is no coincidence. You've found some Sickness Spell or something.”

“Let's strike a deal.” Hermione said coolly. “I tell you what we've got, you promise not to tell anyone, including teachers, no matter how tempting it might be to get us into trouble.”

“Fair enough.” Corey said. “As long as we have the information, we're happy.”

“And... since I'm helping you with something you want, you have to help me with something I want.” Hermione added, hoping they would accept.

“Deal.” Draco said, surprising everyone in the room. He leaned back in his chair and folded his arms behind his head, getting comfortable to hear the accounts of the Gryffindors.

“Well,” Hermione began, feeling guilty already, knowing she was betraying the Gryffindor's trust. “Do you know Fred and George Weasley?”

“Who doesn't?” Corey said. “Everyone in third year and above had pranks played on them by those mischievous twins.”

“Plus they come from a muggle loving pureblood family, who disgrace the very meaning of the word pure.” Draco added bitterly.

“I'm sure they'd ditch the title of a `pureblooded family' in an instant to severe any connection between Weasley and Malfoy.” Hermione responded, noting her anger rising at the insult against the Weasley's.

“Why don't they?” Draco asked rhetorically. “I know it would bring us real purebloods much relief.”

Hermione glared at him with fire in her eyes, but did not answer. Instead she took a deep breath to calm herself, and continued. “Anyway, they opened a joke shop about a year ago, and have an item on the market called Skiving Snackboxes. They're designed with the intention of getting a student out of their class. They sell all different types of health problems, to “cater for everyone's preferred illness.” Some prefer to chew a Fainting Fancy, or Blood nose Blister, or Laryngitis Lozenge or even a Fever Fusion. They've been developed with an antidote. As soon as you walk out of the classroom, pop it in your mouth and you have the remaining class time to yourself. Simple as that.”

The five Slytherins looked impressed, including Draco. “Never thought the Weasels were capable of such cleverness.” He admitted with a frown.

“You're wrong more often than not, I've noticed.” Hermione said snidely. “So I'm not surprised.”

“Shut up. No one likes a smartarse.” Draco said coldly. “So what was it you wanted?” he asked after a moment. “You said you wanted us to help you with something in exchange, so what is it?”

Hermione knew it wouldn't go down well, even before she said it. “I want you to help me become an Animagus.”

The silence that greeted that remark lasted longer than she expected. They all stared at her, obviously trying to figure out if she was pulling their legs. After a few minutes, Mark said gruffly, “You want what?”

“I want you to help me become an Animagus.” She repeated, although she knew it wasn't necessary. They'd all heard. Hermione was in the middle of wondering how they would reject the notion, when Draco helped her out.

“Uh…no.” he said, pretending to have thought about it.

“And why not?” she asked, raising an eyebrow. “You're all Animagus because you're in the Scales. Now I am, so I should be able to become an Animagus too. It's only fair.”

“I don't think so.” Draco said, shaking his head in finality.

Hermione glowered at him. “I told you about the Skiving Snackboxes. You can't reject this. That's going back on a deal. I thought you were all decent enough not to do that.”

“We didn't shake on it.” Draco informed her.

“Don't be so childish.” Hermione scolded. “If I wasn't asking for something so important, you wouldn't have had a problem helping me.”

“That may be true.” Mark agreed. “But this is important. So we're not going to help you.”

Hermione was about to snap at him, but was suddenly struck by reality. “You're not going to help me, because I'm not really in the Scales, am I?”

She looked at Draco to see his reaction to her question. His face remained expressionless, but he made no move to correct her notion. After a moment, Hermione continued. “I should have believed it earlier, but this is proof. You're going to ditch me after this bloody seminar, so why would you help me become an Animagus if I'm only here for a few months…very smooth.”

All the guys had the decency to look ashamed. Even Draco wouldn't meet her eyes, strangely enough. Hermione wasn't quite sure what to do now that she'd confirmed their plans for the future. Well, whatever she did, she wasn't going to give up that easily. “Can I ask you all another question?”

Corey glanced at her in acquiescence. Hermione spoke, “Did any of you have to go through initiation, or were you all invited to join the Scales? Did you put me through that because I was a Gryffindor? I was there, so why not take the opportunity to do some serious psychological damage to me?” she said the last part directed at Draco, whose test certainly did damage. Then again, she was certain he'd scarred himself in the process.

“We did have to go through initiation.” Corey answered. “And although I don't actually know what the tests Draco or Devon set you were, I can only imagine you had it worse than us. I mean, we were actually wanted in the Scales, so ours was easier to pass. Sorry.”

Hermione nodded. “Well, I did pass. So that means I'm in the Scales. And you did invite me to join, so that should also mean I'm part of the Scales. But for some reason, you're all being uptight racist pricks about it, and are planning on ditching me after my job is done.” She paused, considering her next statement. “So it seems we have to make a decision this meeting.”

“Which is?” Mark asked is his usual grumbling voice.

“Do I stay or do I go?” Hermione said. “If I go now, right now, through the door, I promise not to come back. I won't tell a soul about the Scales, and you have enough time to find a nice, quiet girl to take my place before Christmas. Perhaps a Hufflepuff. But,” she continued. “If I stay, I stay for good. There's no getting rid of me after the seminar. If I stay, I become a Scale. Or should I say, we become the Scales and a Tail. If you try kicking me out, know that you will make yourselves a very dangerous enemy. I would let your secret out. Not only am I intelligent and probably know more spells, hexes and jinxes than all of you combined, but I'm best friends with The Boy Who Lived. If you kick me out, you'll discover Harry lived for a reason. To curse your miserable arse's till I say you've had enough. This, I daresay, would be after a very, very long time.”

The five guys stared at her, all with their jaws hanging open. It was obviously a very rare occurrence to have a slender female, who they could all snap in half with their bare hands, threatening them so seriously. They all knew she meant it.

Hermione looked at Draco, expecting to see him sniggering or drawing his wand. But he was watching her speculatively. When she locked eyes with him, he almost seemed to smile at her. “Stay.”

Hermione drew her head back in surprise. “Huh?”

“Please stay.” Draco repeated, maintaining eye contact with Hermione so she couldn't mistake his being serious. The guys glanced at him, then at each other. After Hermione's speech, it was no surprise to them Draco wanted her to stay. He appreciated people who weren't afraid to get what they wanted. She wanted to stay in the Scales and not be used. So she calmly gave them two options, the second one including a slightly disturbing threat, no doubt being the one she wanted them to choose. Bullying was a large part of Draco's life. He could appreciate a good threat when he heard one.

“Are you shitting me?” Hermione asked, and in her incredulity forgetting not to swear.

“I don't shit people, Granger.” Draco said in distaste. “I'm sure it's a condition, but thank Salazar it's one I don't have. Can you imagine the pain?”

Hermione was silent for a moment, then realised he'd taken her question literally. Before she could stop herself, she laughed. Just a short, quiet peal of laughter, but it was enough. She froze when she realised what she'd done. Laughed at something Draco had said. As if he was funny. She looked at him apologetically. “Sorry.” She mumbled. He looked at her strangely, wondering if she was feeling alright.

“So,” Draco said slowly. “You want to be an Animagus. Have you thought about what form you would take, or is this the first time you've considered it?”

“I've been thinking all week actually.” Hermione replied. “I'd love to be able to fly. Brooms scare the life out of me, but I've always wanted to fly. So if I was an animal that's a natural flyer, I wouldn't feel like I'm about to plummet towards the ground at any moment.”

“Uh-huh.” Draco said, locking away Hermione's fear of broom-flying for a future day. “So what animal?”

“An owl is fairly inconspicuous in the wizarding world. Especially around Hogwarts.” Hermione replied. “And none of you are owls.”

“True.” He agreed, pausing for just a moment. “Deal. You choose the owl, we'll take care of the potion. We've brewed it five times before. It takes a few months to brew and another few weeks to take effect. We'll need a feather or some part of the owl by the start of the fifth week.” Draco stared at Hermione seriously. “This will seal the deal. We start making it as soon as possible, you have to stay. It won't be finished until after the seminar, and some of the ingredients will be difficult to get, so we won't do this lightly. If you want to leave, now is your absolute last chance. You can't leave after tonight. Once we start this potion, you're officially a Scale.” Hermione cleared her throat loudly. Draco sighed in exasperation. “Fine. You're officially the Tail of the Scales and a Tail.”

Hermione stood and walked to the front of the room where Draco sat. She extended her arm towards him. “Deal.” Draco glanced at her hand in slight revulsion, but reached out and shook it. Her hand was warm and delicate, and he felt a bit worried about squeezing it too hard and breaking it. When he realised what he'd just thought, he squeezed her hand tightly.

Hermione breathed in sharply and quickly withdrew her hand, giving him a dirty look. She turned back to the others and said, “Well, now that that's resolved, I think I'm going to go off to bed.” She walked to the door, placed her hand on the knob and glanced over her shoulder. “Goodnight boys.”

Although she didn't see the confused glances they all exchanged when she closed the door, she could imagine them well enough. She was going to become their equal very quickly.

Chapter nine - The Deal

The following morning, Hermione had Defense Against the Dark Arts with Harry and Ron. Although they worked together on their theory work, Hermione was beginning to sense that Ron and Harry weren't completely happy with her. Unfortunately, she couldn't think of anything she'd done that could justify their standoffish behaviour, therefore couldn't easily correct the situation.

As they filed out of class for lunch, she saw Ron cast her a sidelong glance when she smiled a `hello' to Ernie Macmillan. “What Ron? Is there something bothering you?”

“Huh?” Ron started in surprise at being addressed. “Um…no, nothing's bothering me.”

She frowned at him, but refrained from commenting further. As they entered the Great Hall, the three walked passed the Slytherin table. While Ron and Harry sent them a routine glare, Hermione glanced casually and caught Devon's eyes. He winked at her, and she smiled faintly in response.

During lunch, Harry and Ron continued acting slightly bizarre around her, and when she parted from them in the corridor to go to potions, they cast her a clearly insincere smile. This behaviour continued for a few days, but had faded by the weekend.

However, at the next Monday evening, it became obvious why they had been acting this way. Hermione sat in dungeon 37 with Taylor, Devon and Draco, waiting for the other two to arrive. She sat in silence, not wanting to say anything that may eventually cause a fight between Draco and herself.

After a few minutes, the door swung open and Corey and Mark entered. They both looked directly at Hermione, and Mark said, “We have a problem.”

Draco sat up straight in his chair, apparently loving to hear these words. “What's the matter?”

“Her friends.” Mark replied, pointing at Hermione. She frowned, wondering whether Harry and Ron were alright.

“You told them about us?” Draco asked dangerously, turning to bear down on Hermione.

“Of course not, you idiot.” She sneered. “I'm not that stupid.”

“She didn't tell them.” Corey said to Draco. “That much is obvious by what they're doing now.”

“What are they doing now?” Hermione asked nervously, unable to picture a worst-case-scenario, as there were too many to choose from.

“Looking for you.” Mark answered shortly. “Walking around the castle, asking everyone they come across if they've seen you. Eventually they'll reach someone who saw you come down here.”

Hermione's frown deepened, as she realised what this could mean. This could either destroy her tenuous acceptance within the Scales or make Harry and Ron seriously pissed at her. And this wouldn't only happen if they had a magnificent stroke of luck and managed to find her in the deepest dungeon of Hogwarts. Harry still had the Marauders map. Within minutes they would have scanned the whole map, to find her in the last place they would expect. If they saw that she was in the dungeons with a group of Slytherin boys it would be hard to explain… `uh, yeah, we were doing a potions assignment.' However Draco's presence would make even that excuse somewhat flimsy. She had to tell the rest of the Scales about the map.

“This could be a worse situation then you guys think” she started, noticing Draco's angry glare in her direction for daring to interrupt his thoughts. “Harry has the Ma…a way of finding me, and everyone I'm with. If he sees me with you five then he's going to make trouble. Oh, and Ron would also make a bit of a scene.” She didn't want to just tell them about the map, as it was more Harry's secret then hers.

Devon and Corey exchanged glances then Devon spoke.

“Well, we're just going to have to move you. As much fun as we were having tonight it seems like your going to have to leave early, I'll fill you in tomorrow.” This last part earned another angry glare from Draco. He seemed in a worse mood than normal.

“Yes, Hermione has to go. But before she does I have a few questions; ones that you all should be asking. Apparently, Harry has a way of seeing Hermione's location within Hogwarts, as Hermione finally shared with us.” Draco turned to Hermione with a cold stare. “Do you mind telling us how he does this? Or is that too much to ask from little Miss `I-only-tell-my-secrets-when-it's-absolutely-necessary?”

The others turned to look at Hermione. She swallowed and tried to sound nonchalant. “It's just a charmed piece of paper, that's all. Nothing to worry about. But I should be going now, before they find out where I am.” It even sounded weak to her. She sighed, feeling incredibly guilty for sharing this information. “It belonged to James and his friends. It's a map of Hogwarts and can identify every single person inside the grounds.”

The Scales sat stunned, not believing such a thing existed. Draco was the first to speak. “So that's how he's been doing it all these years. Unbelievable… that little shit.”

“Yes, well. It's all very astonishing, but I'd better go.” Hermione said, quickly rising and walking to the door, perfectly aware of five sets of eyes following her.

Clearly under the impression that this disruption to their meeting was Hermione's fault, Draco spoke, “Then go. Meeting rescheduled to Wednesday night. Nine o'clock. And don't bring your friends in your wake.”

Hermione glared at him, but didn't rise to his bait. She slammed the door behind her, and ran down the corridor as fast as she could. Taking the steps that lead to the Entrance Hall two at a time, she nearly ran in to Pansy.

Pansy stopped short and looked at Hermione in confusion, forgetting in her surprise to be a bitch. “Granger? What the hell are-”

“Sorry.” Hermione mumbled, pushing past Pansy and continuing her run up the stairs leading to the Library. It was her goal to reach the library, and then make her way back to the Gryffindor tower from there. When she reached the library, she sat down on the ground heavily, not being used to so much physical exertion. Within moments of sitting down however, she heard voices coming up the dark hall. Quickly, Hermione crawled along the floor to hide in the door way of the library. However, before she was able to distinguish the murmuring voices, someone suddenly appeared next to her in the shadows.

Hermione jumped in surprise, but had enough common sense to remain quiet, incase it was Filch coming up the corridor. Once her eyes finished adjusting to the dark, she realised it was Draco standing next to her. She couldn't believe her eyes. How could anyone be so stupid? “What the hell are you doing?” she hissed at him. “If they have the map open…you'd better have a good excuse lined up.”

“The map...what a load of shit.” Draco whispered, also aware of someone coming up the hall towards them. “I don't believe you.”

Hermione glared at him but didn't respond, as the nearing voices came into range. They both listened to the conversation in silence.

“This is pointless.” Ron's all familiar voice spoke from down the hall.

“It is not. The point is to find Hermione. I mean, what if she's in danger?” Harry replied, causing Hermione to smile at his caring so much about her.

“Yeah, understood Mr. I Fight Danger Like No-one Else. But what if she's in some guy's bed? Do you really want to walk in on her then?” Ron pointed out. Hermione frowned that Ron would even think about that, and then became fully aware of Draco standing next to her. She rolled her eyes at the next few seconds of silence, knowing all three males were thinking about Hermione in that situation. To vent her irritation, she `accidentally' stomped on Draco's foot. He glared down at her, but did look slightly guilty, as if he knew why she'd done it.

“At least we'd know she's safe.” Harry said to fill the silence. By now, the two of them were only meters away from the library. Hermione listened to them approaching helplessly, then noticed that one pair of footsteps had stopped.

“How long are we going to keep this up?” Ron asked, clearly the one who's stopped.

“Until we find her.” Harry responded.

“What if we never do?” Ron whined. “I'm hungry Harry. Can we go down to the kitchens?”

“No.” he answered sternly. “Oh! I forgot I brought the Marauders Map with us. Hang on, we'll find her quickly now.”

Hermione glanced warningly at Draco, and he narrowed his eyes. Apparently he didn't like Hermione being right. “Get out of here.” She told him, “Or you'll have to explain this situation, because if it's up to me, I'll tell the truth.”

Draco, looking ready to kill, turned his back and quietly disappeared into the shadows. Hermione hoped he was moving very quickly in the opposite direction, or else Harry and Ron would see him standing only a few meters away from them. Hermione spun around and opened the door to the library but didn't step through the threshold. She let it shut behind her with a snap, and walked out in to the corridor.

“Harry? Ron? What are you two doing here?” she asked, pretending to have just left the library.

“Hermione?” Ron asked, smiling at his good fortune. “We were just heading down to the kitchens. Were you in the library?”

“No, I was just using it as a short cut to get to the Great Lake for a swim.” She said sarcastically.

“But Hermione,” Harry said with a frown. “You don't have any books.”

“Oh,” Hermione said, slightly disheartened at this obvious fact. She had been doing so well. “I was studying, not doing homework. You know, just doing some reading in preparation for our NEWT's.”

“They're not till the end of the year.” Ron said, looking at her as if she was crazy.

“Never too early to start, Ronald.” Hermione told him, beginning to walk towards the Gryffindor tower. “Are you two coming?”

“Um, we'll catch up with you soon.” Ron said. “I really do want to go to the kitchens. Harry, is the coast clear?”

Harry glanced down at the Marauders Map. “Let's see…oh.” Harry sounded annoyed, and Hermione could bet she knew why. “Malfoy's moving around down there; obviously he's been locked out of the Slytherin Common Room again.”

Ron laughed, and Hermione breathed a sigh of relief. Draco wasn't stupid enough to hang around and see if the map would work or not. “Alright then, Hermione.” Harry said. “I suppose we'd better just come back to the common room with you.”

Ron looked sorely disappointed, but followed the other two down the corridor. Hermione went to bed fairly soon after they reached the west tower. She sighed as she snuggled under the covers, hoping Harry and Ron wouldn't go looking for her again. Hermione decided she would have to make an excuse each time she went to a meeting, instead of disappearing, so they wouldn't feel the need to rescue her from possible danger.

Hermione made the excuse to Harry and Ron that she was going in search of Professor Snape for help with potions work, then set off towards the dungeons. She arrived to the rescheduled Wednesday meeting fifteen minutes early. Pushing open the heavy dungeon door, Hermione entered to see that only one other Scale was there.

“Good evening Hermione.” Draco greeted coldly.

“Draco.” She replied, following his suite of acting civil. She moved into the room and sat down in her usual seat. Draco had been standing in the far corner at the front of the room, but moved forwards and sat at his desk.

“Did you manage to get an owl feather?” he asked, and Hermione could tell it was difficult for him to ask in such a well-mannered way.

Hermione nodded and drew a brown feather out of her robe pocket. Draco reached out and she handed it to him. “It's from a school owl. Brown, fairly nondescript. Doesn't look as if it would draw attention to itself.”

Draco nodded, “Good. I started the potion on the weekend. The willow roots are already softening.”

Unsure of what to reply, Hermione simply nodded. Draco sighed and glanced at his watch, then rolled his eyes. Taking a deep breath, he said “Hermione, before the others arrive, I've been told to tell you something. Whether you buy it or not is up to you.”

Hermione frowned, but waited for him to continue. “Apparently the other guys have been feeling…” Draco broke off, obviously not wanting to have to continue. He looked at Hermione with an irritated glare.

“What?” she snapped before she could stop herself. Hermione was sure she hadn't done anything to deserve him glaring at her that time. Aside from existing.

Draco's eyes narrowed further, and he shook his head at her. “You just can't help yourself, can you Granger? You can't let me vent my dislike of you in a glare. You always have to say something.”

Hermione glared at him, and this time, didn't speak.

“Better.” He commented bitterly. “Anyway, getting back to what I was saying before you rudely interrupted me. The others feel…we argue too much. They think we prevent progress in our meetings due to our arguing. And so,” Draco said, shifting his gaze towards the floor unhappily, “they've told me to make a pact with you. No arguing, bickering, or yelling.”

Hermione sat looking at Draco, wondering if something like that would really work. Figuring it would be worth a shot, Hermione stood and walked over to where Draco was sitting. He also stood, and extended his hand towards her. Hermione took it without hesitation, and shook it. As she withdrew her hand, Draco held her eyes with his steady gaze.

“First one to break the pact and start egging on the other has to…” Hermione tried to think of something awful to do. Draco supplied the answer for her.

“Go spend a night in the Forbidden Forest.”

Hermione shuddered, thinking of all the terrible creatures that dwell in that dark place. She knew she wouldn't break this deal too quickly, and from what Hermione could remember of Draco's fear of the forest, he wouldn't be either. “Deal.” They shook hands again, and Hermione returned to her seat.

They sat in silence until the others arrived. Devon walked in first, and shot a curious glance between Hermione and Draco. He sat down next to Hermione and smiled at her. “Hey Hermione. How are you going?”

“I'm alright.” She answered. “Yourself?”

“Not too bad.” He said with a wink.

Once the others had seated themselves, Draco began. “Ok, I'm going to try get through this as quickly as possible, because I'm buggered from Quidditch practice. Hermione's Animagus potion has been started, and so if all goes well, she should be an owl by mid to late February.” Draco paused and looked directly at Hermione with a strange expression. “Which, around that time should come in handy.”

Hermione frowned and looked at the others, but they were all avoiding eye contact with her. “What do you mean by that?” she asked skeptically.

“Never mind. You'll find out soon enough.” Draco said quietly, and then cleared his throat. “I received a letter from the secretary of the seminar. She said we're all booked in, and she has reserved accommodation for us. So we're all set to be there in three weeks time. We have to be there by three o'clock the day after Christmas, and it goes for the following five days. Any questions?”

“Yeah,” Corey said. “When do they want the money for it?”

“Ah,” Draco checked the letter, which he'd had in his pocket. “Says two weeks before the seminar. So send off your fifteen galleons as soon as possible boys, because that only gives you one week.” Draco glanced uncomfortably at Hermione. “You don't have to worry about paying Hermione. We roped you in to this, so it's not fair for you to have to pay. I'll take care of it.”

The surprised expressions on the other Scales faces put Hermione under the impression they hadn't discussed this as a group. It was obviously a decision on Draco's behalf. Taylor spoke up uncertainly, “Do you want me to send an extra three galleons to cover my fifth of Hermione's payment?”

“No. I'll cover it all.” Draco said, with no trace of sarcasm. He glanced at Hermione again, and she couldn't help but smile faintly at him in thanks. However, it seemed smiling at her wasn't something Draco was prepared to do yet, and so he dropped his eyes and cleared his throat. “Is there anything anybody wanted to bring up this meeting?”

“Oh,” Corey said, apparently just thinking of something. “Does Hermione have a ring?”

Draco frowned, and looked at Mark. “Have you done that yet?”

Mark shook his head and looked vaguely guilty. “No, not yet. I didn't want to, incase she didn't end up staying with us. You know how there was that problem.”

Draco nodded, aware he'd been the cause of this issue. “Well, make her one. I want her to have it by the weekend.” In her need to figure out what ring they were talking about, Hermione realised that each of them wore a silver band around one of their fingers. Draco wore his on his thumb, Mark on his index, Taylor on his pinky, and so on. Hermione guessed they wore it on different fingers so it would be harder for someone outside Scales to realise they all had the same ring.

Mark nodded, and then asked “What size do I make it?”

Without answering, Draco stood and walked over to where Hermione sat. He knelt down beside her and asked, “Which hand would you like to wear our ring on?” Hermione thought about this, held up her right hand, and waggled her index finger. Draco extended his own hand towards her, palm up, and pulled out his wand with the other arm. Hermione tentatively placed her right hand in his, and watched as Draco used the tip of his wand to trace a circle around the bottom of her index finger. As the wand moved over her skin, a thin piece of string appeared, and once he'd traced the whole length, the string was the right size to model the ring off.

Draco took the string and gave it to Mark. “That length should be about right.”

Mark nodded and placed the string carefully in his pocket. “I'll make it after classes tomorrow.” He told Hermione.

“Ok.” She said. “Can I ask what it's actually for? Or is it just a token to represent my being in the Scales?”

“Well,” Mark answered, “It is a token that we all have, but it has a bigger purpose. If someone wants to call a meeting outside regular meeting times, all they have to do is cast a heat spell on their own ring. All the rings are magically linked, so they'll all grow warm, therefore alerting everyone to get to this dungeon for the meeting. It's for immediate meetings only. There's no way to cast the date or time on the rings, so it's for emergencies.” He finished, then added as an afterthought, “Although sometimes we do prank each other.”

“Oh, right.” Hermione nodded. “I did something similar in fifth year, using galleons. We all had one, and I'd change the date on mine, and it would change on everyone's, therefore indicating the time of the next meeting. But that was for Dumbledore's Arm- ” Hermione fell silent, suddenly realising how big a secret she nearly let out in a matter of seconds.

The Scales seemed to sit up straighter. “For what?” Draco asked quietly.

“Um, Dumbledore's… arm.” Hermione paused, mentally slapping herself. “Hand… or pocket, rather. Yeah, he wanted me to make one for him so I could let him know when Harry's scar hurt. It was quicker then having to run around the castle trying to find him. He just kept the galleon in his pocket.”

Silence greeted her poor attempt at a lie. Draco turned to the other guys. “Ok, she needs lessons in how to lie convincingly. Can you remember that, and remind me later?” They all nodded, and turned back to Hermione. “Explain yourself.”

Hermione tried her best to pretend she didn't know what he was talking about. Although they would know she was keeping another secret, this was one she was not going to let out. She decided to take his question literally, therefore avoiding answering the question he wanted her to. “Ok, my name's Hermione Granger. I'm in Gryffindor, and so are my best friends Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley. I have brown hair, and brown eyes, and have a slender build. I feel as if I live in a state of constant danger, probably because I'm one of the only very close friends Harry has. Therefore, most likely making me susceptible to an attack by Voldemort, as that would wound Harry emotionally.”

“Hermione.” Draco interrupted. “That's not what I meant. Although that was an interesting fact you just pointed out.”

“A fact that has no doubt occurred to you all already.” She said to him, and he nodded in agreement.

“You and Weasel both are in danger.”

Hermione's eyes narrowed. “Don't call him that.” she told him sternly.

Draco smirked and leaned back in his chair so only two legs rested on the floor. He looked her up in a cocky manner, and replied, “What's going to stop me?”

Hermione pulled her wand quickly out of her pocket, and muttered a spell under breath. Before he could save himself, the legs of Draco's chair snapped and he fell heavily to the floor. Mark laughed loudly, and the other Scales allowed themselves to smile at Hermione in appreciation. Draco stayed on the floor in shock for a few moments, and then turned his gaze to look at her with a slight smile. “That hurt.”

“It was meant to,” she smiled back, trying her best not to look smug.

Draco stood up without breaking eye contact with Hermione. “Have fun in the Forbidden Forest,” he said, raising an eyebrow in amusement.

Hermione's eyes widened when she realised what he meant. “Oh, come on. Surely that doesn't qualify.”

“You pulled your wand on me. Of course it qualifies.” Draco said. “That was the deal. Now you have to spend a night in the Forbidden Forest.”

“Draco, don't be an arse.” Mark said gruffly. “It was funny, not an act of violence. Leave her alone.”

Draco looked taken aback, but didn't argue. Hermione wondered whether this was because he'd suddenly realised the deal was the first person to egg the other on. And he had definitely egged her on. Draco sat down on the edge of the desk and glanced at Hermione with an expression she couldn't read. She assumed it was displeasure, but she could have sworn he looked the slightest bit impressed.

“Is that all?” Devon asked. “Can we go now?”

“I have a ten foot long essay to write for McGonagall tonight.” Corey said unhappily. “So I have nothing to bring up.”

“I'm good.” Taylor agreed.

“I'll do the ring tomorrow.” Mark said in closing. Devon, Corey, Taylor and Mark all began to stand to leave. They stopped when Draco spoke.

“Hermione?” he said, looking at her. “Is there anything you would like to discuss?”

Hermione's mind went blank at being addressed. “Um,” she stuttered. Closing her eyes in irritation, Hermione thought briefly about the question. She shook her head, then reopened her eyes.

Draco held her eyes for a few seconds, and she flushed at her lack of articulation. Draco released her gaze and clenched his jaw to stop himself from smiling. “Ok. Meeting is next Monday. Until then, Scales…and a Tail.”

Chapter ten - Late night meeting

Hermione walked out of Transfiguration on Friday afternoon with a headache. She had so much homework to do over the weekend, she didn't think it would be possible to finish it all. Harry glanced at her as they passed through the threshold, and frowned.

“Are you feeling alright today, Hermione?” He asked gently. “You've seemed a bit off.”

“I don't feel too good.” She answered, raising a hand to her forehead in weariness.

“I haven't felt right today either.” Harry said, raising a hand subconsciously to touch his scar.

“I think you need an early night.” Ron said to them, leaning in front of Harry so Hermione could hear him. “A good sleep is the best thing to prevent you getting sick.”

“I think I already am.” Hermione said unhappily, swaying slightly on the spot. Harry looked at her in concern and stopped walking. Ron moved forwards and took Hermione's books from her.

“Hermione, I think you need to go see Madam Pomfrey.” Harry said to her sternly. “Here, Ron and I will take you there right now.”

“Alright, I'll go. But you two don't need to walk me there.” Hermione said. “I think you should start your Defense Against the Dark Arts essay.”

Ron and Harry slumped at the mention of homework. “Good point.” Harry said.

“Are you sure?” Ron asked, adjusting her huge stack of books as they began to slip from his grasp.

“Yes.” She answered with a smile. Her two friends smiled back grimly, and headed off to the Gryffindor Tower. Hermione sighed and started walking to the hospital wing, hoping Madam Pomfrey would just give her a tonic so she could get some homework done before bed.

She turned the corner and passed a group of fifth year Hufflepuff's, exchanging polite smiles with them. Soon they were out of sight and Hermione was walking alone. As the candles that lit the corridor flickered, Hermione realised how scary Hogwarts castle would be with no light. Hundreds of corridors and cold empty classrooms. Hermione shivered, and then quickly put her hand out to the wall to keep herself upright as a wave of lightheadedness came over her. She had a fleeting image of flashing green light as she missed the wall and fell to the ground. Hermione groaned, feeling so ill she nearly started to cry.

“Hermione.” A familiar male's voice said from behind her. Whoever it was quickly knelt down near her, making sure she didn't see his face. “Tell me what's happening to you.” He said in concern. Hermione realised it was Draco talking, but didn't look at him.

She just groaned and slumped down with her head in his lap. Draco pulled back in shock and stared at her. Something was wrong, that was obvious to him. It certainly wouldn't be on a normal day that Hermione would rest her head in his lap, of all places. But what was wrong? Hermione had appeared perfectly healthy in Transfiguration a few minutes earlier. Suddenly his brow creased in understanding. No, it couldn't be -

“Answer me.” He snapped at her, more harshly than he'd intended.

Hermione didn't even try to look up at him, just answered helplessly, “I don't know, but please make it stop.”

Draco, judging by the way Hermione was continuing to slump in his lap and down to the floor, acted quickly. He closed his eyes and carefully but swiftly entered Hermione's mind with his own. As soon as he got his bearings in the complicated female's mind, Draco's suspicions were immediately confirmed. There was a dark presence spreading though her that did not belong. Draco gathered his will and struck fiercely, shoving the other presence out of Hermione's mind. It went without a fight, obviously caught off guard by the resilience. When he was sure the darkness was gone, Draco retreated.

He looked down at Hermione as she blinked a few times, and then sat up cautiously. She met his eyes, and Draco noticed his understanding of what had just happened was mirrored in her eyes. He didn't speak, just stood and helped Hermione to her feet.

Hermione was shaking as she asked, “How did he get in my head?”

Draco held her gaze with his stony grey eyes. “He's getting stronger. He wants to strike before we're ready for him.”

“Well he's accomplished his goal.” Hermione said faintly. “I thought I was about to die. It was so quick. I just got weaker and weaker…”

Draco shushed her by shaking his head. “You have to think strong thoughts now. Bar your mind from outsiders. If it happens again, come to me, Snape or the Headmaster immediately. Only those skilled in Occlumency can get him out of your head. Aside from yourself, of course.”

“So it was…Voldemort?” Hermione asked with a feeling of dread.

Draco nodded. “You said it yourself the other day. Being friends with Potter has made you susceptible to attacks from the Dark Lord. It seems he's more prepared than we thought, wanting to get you out of the way already.”

Hermione shuddered. “Do I tell Dumbledore?”

“I have no doubt he already knows.” Draco said. “But tell him if you want.”

Hermione tried not to think about what had just happened. She wondered whether she should tell Harry and Ron, or whether it would just worry them too much. She decided against it. Harry obviously needed to be free of stress at the moment. Hermione hoped Dumbledore would tell him to prepare for a final battle with Voldemort.

“So, how come you were following me?” she asked Draco.

Draco reached into his pocket and pulled out a silver band. “This is your ring.” She looked surprised, then took it and slipped it on to her finger.

“That didn't take very long.” She commented, turning and beginning to walk towards the Gryffindor tower. It was obvious she no longer needed a tonic from Madam Pomfrey.

“Mark is very quick. He's made five already, so he knew what he was doing.” Draco answered, sounding strange. Hermione realised it must be because she had never heard him sound so civil with her. It was…different. Hermione shot him a sidelong glance, as something he's said earlier registered.

“So how do you know Occlumency?”

“Snape taught me.” Draco said quickly, without explaining any further.

“And why do you know Occlumency?” she questioned further.

Draco remained silent. Voldemort's attack might have startled him in to act civil with her, but he wasn't about to start telling all his secrets just yet. Hermione watched him with a frown as they walked down the corridor. As they turned the corner and entered another empty corridor, Draco looked at Hermione with such a stony gaze, she was suddenly reminded of the time he hurt her by the Great Lake. Subconsciously making the distance between them bigger, Hermione quickly averted her eyes.

“What was that?” Draco asked her quietly.

“What?”

“What you just did.” He explained. “You moved away from me. Since when I have intimidated you?”

Hermione stayed quiet a few moments, and then decided there was no harm in answering. “Since that night by the lake.”

Draco lowered his eyes to the floor as he remembered what he'd done. “You insulted me on purpose. You got what you wanted. Why would you be scared of something you'd planned on me doing to you?”

“Because you actually did it.” She said softly.

He couldn't argue with that. “It's been weeks since that night. Why haven't I noticed this before?” Draco asked, for some reason interested in what she had to say.

“This is the first time we've been alone together since then.” Hermione said, glancing at him. Although her face was impassive, Draco could still see the nervousness in her eyes. He frowned at her.

“No it's not.” He said. “We were alone the other week when we made the pact to not argue with each other.”

“Yes, but I knew the others would be coming at any moment then. There's no one around to stop you now.” She kept her eyes firmly on her feet and her pace quickened ever so slightly.

“There was no one around when I did my initiation test on you. I didn't hurt you then did I?” Draco asked. Hermione kept her eyes on the floor, and even in the dim candlelight he could see her blushing. Draco frowned and tried to remember that night. All he'd done was kiss her…With a wave of realisation, Draco suddenly understood that most times he was alone with her, he had done something to hurt Hermione, whether it be physically or emotionally.

“I'm sorry.” He mumbled so incoherently, that Hermione wasn't sure if he'd just said something, or if he'd just burped.

“Did you say something?” she asked, noticing the corridor to the Gryffindor tower up ahead. Draco shook his head and looked at her like she was growing another head. “Oh. I thought I heard you say something.”

“No.” he said. “See you.” He watched her briefly as she headed towards the west tower. Rubbing a hand over his eyes, he proceeded to the dungeons. Two events in one night was almost too much for him to handle. An attack from Voldemort attempting to kill Hermione so Harry would be emotionally wounded, and a near apology from himself to Hermione. The world was spinning out of control, Draco thought dryly.

On Saturday, Hermione tried her hardest to ignore what had happened the night before. She wasn't sure if she had made the right decision to keep it a secret from Harry and Ron, and so decided that if anything happened again, she would tell them immediately. To keep her mind off Voldemort, Hermione spent the entire day studying. Harry and Ron joined her for the most part, except when they went outside to train for Quidditch.

Hermione noticed that Harry looked pale and as if he hadn't slept at all the night before. She mentioned this to him, but he merely smiled and shook his head. “I just had a headache, that's all.”

Hermione knew it had to have been more than a headache. Harry's scar hurt whenever Voldemort was feeling something strongly, even when he was miles away. Last night, Voldemort's mind had been right inside Hogwarts, so no doubt Harry had been in severe pain. At one point during the afternoon, Harry left to use the bathroom, and Ron spoke worriedly to Hermione.

“He didn't sleep last night. Or the night before.” Ron's eyes showed his anxiety. “I'd bet I would be within my rights to assume he hasn't slept for a long time before then either. And the other day in Herbology he got me worried. Remember how his scar hurt him so bad he nearly passed out? Do you think this means V- V…Voldemort is about to try take power?”

Hermione looked at Ron, and didn't know what to say. She decided to warn him without saying too much. “I think you and I had better be careful. If Voldemort is coming to power, he may want to wound Harry emotionally before they fight. And surely he knows that out of anyone, he holds you and me the dearest.”

Ron's eyes widened and Hermione saw the fear creep across his face. “What do you think he will do to us?”

She shook her head. “I don't know. Perhaps enter our minds and hurt us from within. I suppose if we begin to feel strange at all, we should go straight to Dumbledore.” Ron nodded in agreement, oblivious to the fact Hermione was speaking from experience. Ron would assume that if anything had happened to her, she would immediately tell Harry and himself. Although it made her feel wretched, she knew that if she did say anything, they would begin living in constant fear.

Harry returned and they didn't say anything more. He glanced between the two of them as he sat down. “What were you talking about?” Harry asked suspiciously.

“Nothing.” Ron said quickly, causing Hermione to groan inwardly. If you don't want someone to know that you'd been talking about them, `nothing' is the cover-up most commonly used. Harry narrowed his eyes and looked at Hermione.

“What?” he demanded, and flash of his temper coming to the surface. “What were you saying about me? There's no point denying it.”

Hermione exchanged a quick glance with Ron, who looked like he didn't know what to say. “You just look tired, that's all.” Harry continued to glare at her, waiting for her to explain further. She sighed, “We're sure what you're feeling is more than just a headache.”

Harry dropped his eyes and lifted a hand to touch his scar. “We don't have long. I can feel it. The pain was so strong last night I thought Voldemort must have been in the room with me.” Ron's eyes widened and he looked over his shoulder worriedly. Harry smiled faintly, “It doesn't hurt now Ron, I think we're safe.”

For now, Hermione thought to herself.

Hermione went to bed early that night. She still felt tired from the night before, and had a headache that simply wouldn't leave her alone. She had left Harry and Ron sitting in the common room, and hoped they would be safe.

She wasn't asleep long before the nightmare started.

Hermione was standing in dungeon 37 with the other members of the Scales. Draco walked to the corner of the room and opened a trap door in the floor. Suddenly, wizards and witches cloaked in black poured out of the trapdoor and into the castle.

Hermione watched helplessly as the invaders killed students as if they were flies. It was only a matter of minutes until the entire castle had been scoured and all children found were murdered. Hermione saw McGonagall, Hagrid and Snape fall as a bolt of bright green light passed through them all. She screamed in horror at the monstrosity, and a hooded wizard turned to where she hid. He raised his wand and cursed Hermione to death, causing a rush of blinding heat to surge through her.

As the curse worked its evil magic, Hermione heard the wizard whisper in a hideous, high pitched voice,

`Alone you will die.'

She woke with a start. Remembering the nightmare she'd just had, Hermione shuddered. The words still echoed in her head, and she felt feverish. As she focused on calming herself down and steadying her breathing, Hermione realised her right index finger was still burning hot.

She held her hand up in concern and saw the ring Draco had given her the night before. Touching it with her left index finger, she confirmed it was definitely hotter than it should be. Hermione sat in confusion for a few seconds, before remembering what she had to do when her ring heated up.

It meant an emergency meeting was being called. With her nightmare still fresh in her head, Hermione jumped out of bed and rushed out of her room. She had been asleep for a few hours, so the common room was empty, aside from a few people by the fireplaces. Moving silently, Hermione managed to slip past without them noticing her.

Running down the corridors, Hermione wished she had put slippers on her feet. The stone floor was freezing, the candles were very dim and she stubbed her toes on uneven stones many times. When she reached the dungeons, Hermione became cautious and moved carefully. She didn't want to run into any wandering Slytherins, as she had no excuse prepared for lurking in the dungeons in her pajamas at eleven at night.

She reached dungeon safely, opened the door and practically fell into the room in her haste. “What's the matter? What's happened?” She asked, quickly turning and closing the door securely behind her. When she was greeted by silence, Hermione spun around to see Draco standing alone in front of her.

“Have the others been taken?” She demanded fearfully, lifting the wand she clutched tightly in her hand.

Draco appeared extremely surprised by her entrance, and seemed incapable of forming a sentence. He looked her up and down with raised eyebrows and only then did Hermione notice the slight expression of guilt on his face. She snapped herself back to reality and out of her nightmarish mind frame.

Clearing his throat, Draco finally spoke. “Um…I'm sorry I worried you Hermione. There is no emergency.” He sounded genuine, and Hermione wondered why he had called her if there was no emergency. “And…I think the others are in bed.”

Hermione blinked in confusion. “So, what's going on?”

“I was just testing your ring.” Draco explained. “I must have forgotten to tell you last night that I would. I have a few things to show you and something to ask you, but I was basically just seeing if it would work.” Draco regarded her once more with a slight look over, and then he undid the clasp of his robe and slipped it off. Underneath he wore black pants and a blue singlet.

Hermione frowned at him. “What are you doing?”

Draco met her eyes with a small smile. “Did I forget to tell you that we're going to have sex? Damn, it must have slipped my mind.”

Hermione's jaw dropped and she took an alarmed step backwards. With a wave of embarrassment, she suddenly became aware that she was in her night clothes. The purple satin nightgown hugged her body, leaving hardly anything to the imagination. The most prominent thought in Hermione's mind was that she was not wearing a bra.

Draco saw her embarrassment and his smile widened. “I haven't seen you embarrassed in a long time Hermione.” He handed his cloak to her. “This is for you, so you can bear staying until I've finished showing you everything.”

She took it uncertainly and slipped it on. Wrapping the cloak around her, Hermione noticed it was still warm and smelt faintly of cologne. “Thank you.” She mumbled gratefully.

The smile slowly faded from Draco's face and he turned abruptly and sat down. Hermione seated herself next to him and asked, “So what did you want to ask me?”

“Can you drive a car?” He asked her.

“Yes, but only an automatic.” Hermione replied in confusion. “Why?”

Draco sighed. “The seminar is held 40km out of Hogsmeade, and we have no way to get us all there. A car seems like it would work.”

“Why can't we just Apparate? We all have our licenses.” Hermione said, wondering how he could have overlooked this obvious option.

“Taylor doesn't.” Draco objected. “He's only in sixth year, and we can't really leave him behind. 40km is a very long distance to travel on a broom.”

“And the Floo network?” Hermione suggested. “Why can't we use that?”

“Apparently the building of the seminar is undergoing some problems with their Floo network connection.” Draco explained. “They'll have it fixed by the time the seminar is over, but we'll have to find another way to get there.”

“Ok, if you can organize a car, I'll drive us there.” Hermione agreed.

“I think there's a muggle vehicle hire in Hogsmeade, so that shouldn't be a problem.” Draco said, then paused a moment as Hermione shivered underneath his large cloak. “Why did you come rushing down here? None of our meetings have been that important, so you did have time to change.”

Hermione flushed again. “Um, I just thought…no it's stupid. Never mind.”

“I'm minding.” Draco said with one eyebrow raised in curiosity. “Tell me, no matter how stupid it sounds.”

“Well, last night got me worried, and Harry says his scar's been hurting almost constantly. Then I just woke up from a terrible nightmare about the school being attacked by Death Eaters…” Hermione trailed off. “I just thought something bad had happened.”

Draco didn't scoff like she'd expected him to. Instead he frowned, “What's Harry's scar hurting got to do with anything?”

“Harry's scar is a curse he's always had to live with. Not only because it brings him unwanted attention, but because it gives him an insight in to Voldemort's emotions.” Hermione explained. “Whenever Voldemort's angry, Harry's scar hurts so badly he nearly passes out, or when he's really happy the same thing happens. We can say Harry's scar is in tune with Voldemort's extreme emotions. The other day, Harry's scar hurt him so much it made him chop the head off a Gunk-Filled Cactus, causing Ron and himself to go to the hospital wing to be treated with goop burns.”

“So basically, you thought Voldemort was here.” Draco said, and as he did Hermione realised how silly it sounded.

“It crossed my mind.” Hermione admitted after a pause. “And before you look at me so patronizingly, muddled thoughts are common for someone who was woken from a nightmare because a ring was burning into their index finger.”

Draco ignored her last comment, and instead said “You'll know when Voldemort comes here. Trust me.”

“When Voldemort comes here?” Hermione questioned, now the one to raise an eyebrow.

He frowned at her. “We both know it will happen, so don't start thinking I have inside information. My father is still in Azkaban, and if you haven't noticed, my forearm is surprisingly brand-free.”

Hermione couldn't stop herself glancing at Draco's forearms to see if he was serious. Draco rolled his eyes in irritation. “Do you think that I should be a loyal Death Eater and destroy all good in the world just because my father did, and hey, because that's what Slytherins do? Is that what bothers you so much about me? You just don't know what I might one day do?”

“No, of course not.” Hermione said, lamely attempting to lie. Draco glared at her pitiful effort, and she sighed. “Well, actually that's exactly it. I'm sorry. I suppose I've always associated you being a bastard to us, Harry in particular, with being a dark wizard.”

“Oh, come on Hermione.” Draco scoffed. “Every one has to have an enemy, and you three were mine. Just because I hated you…that doesn't make me evil. I mean, think of it this way, you were all bastards to me, so should I be suspecting you of being Voldemort followers?”

Hermione thought about this and realised how unjust she had always been. “Good point.”

Draco smirked slightly, “Actually, I suppose I was a dark wizard in-the-making until my father went to Azkaban. Then I realised I had to choose my side carefully. Voldemort doesn't care too much about the lives of this Death Eaters, and I would no doubt end up dead or in prison as a one of them. This way, I get to fight with the school and Dumbledore - an incredible force. Besides, I know how much Harry and Dumbledore scared Voldemort at the Ministry two years ago. This is obviously the side to be on.”

“What if the stakes change?” Hermione asked, shifting in her seat. She tried to stifle a yawn but without much success. “Will you move across to Voldemort's side?”

“It's too late for that.” he said, noticing her fatigue. “I've chosen and he knows it.”

“Right.” Hermione nodded, her head feeling heavier by the second. Just as she was about to say goodnight and head back to bed, Draco spoke.

“I know you're about to leave, but I need to show you something. You're a Scale now - or perhaps I should call you the Tail - and so you need to know about certain things. If you think you can stay awake for just a few more minutes, will you come with me?”

Curiosity immediately got the better of her. Hermione nodded and stood up. Draco stood also, and instead of leading her out of the dungeon like she thought he would, he headed towards the front of the room. Resisting the urge to ask where he was going, Hermione watched as Draco stopped in the front corner and knelt down. He reached out towards the stone floor, and lifted something that looked like a tiny loop attached to the ground. Giving it a heave, Hermione was startled when Draco lifted a small square of the floor like a trapdoor. He looked over his shoulder at her and couldn't help smiling at her expression.

“Didn't know this was here, did you?” Draco turned back to the job at hand and climbed down the hole in the floor. Hermione frowned and shook her head slightly before moving over to look down the trapdoor. It could have been a black abyss for all she knew, and yet she turned around and climbed down the rungs after Draco. Hermione climbed down at least fifteen steps before her foot touched the ground.

“Lumos,” Draco murmured, and Hermione turned around to see a large underground chamber light up. The chamber was freezing, and Hermione wrapped Draco's cloak tighter about her. “This is our storeroom.”

She could see that. Shelves lined the walls, and trunks were stored away along the edge of the room. Hermione moved forward for a closer look. “What have you got in here?”

Draco looked understandably smug at her reaction. “Everything.” When Hermione scoffed at the absurdity of his statement, Draco proceeded to list out the storerooms contents. “On this side of the room we have potion ingredients that could rival those of Snape's storeroom. Here are spare robes and other clothes incase of an emergency, various food and drinks - mainly for long meetings when we can't be bothered going to the kitchens - a shelf of old books, a cauldron with your Animagus potion brewing in it, first aid supplies…and here we have a few Invisibility Cloaks.”

“You even have Invisibility Cloaks?” Hermione asked, forgetting not to give Draco the satisfaction of seeing her in awe of him. He nodded and pulled one off the shelf, and then to her extreme surprise, he handed it to her.

“This one's for you.”

“Huh?” she said articulately.

“We all have one. They've been stored here for hundreds of years. They're left behind by past Scales. I don't think yours is in the greatest condition, but you won't be seen while wearing it, so what does it matter?” Draco said, moving over to the cauldron where Hermione's Animagus potion was brewing. “This is going well. It will definitely be ready for you at the start of February.”

Hermione walked over and peered in. A faint perfume wafted up from the goo bubbling thickly inside. “It looks gross, but it smells like thistle sap and Oak bark.” Hermione said, glancing at Draco for confirmation that she had guessed the ingredients correctly. He looked at her, appearing slightly impressed for a fleeting moment. Then his face turned impassive and he shrugged noncommittally. Hermione yawned again, and decided she wanted to go back to bed. “Is that everything?”

Draco looked at her and nodded. “Yeah, now get out of here.” He said, and although he didn't smile, Hermione knew he didn't intend it harshly. Hermione turned and began to move towards the ladder, but Draco delayed her when he spoke. “Wait. There is something else.”

Hermione turned and said sarcastically, “And what's that? We haven't had sex yet?”

It was obvious that Draco fought very hard to keep a smile off his face. “Sorry to disappoint you. It's just that I think I'll need my robe back.”

Hermione glanced down at the Slytherin robe she had wrapped tightly around her. “Oh right.” Turning so her back was to Draco, she quickly undid the clasp at the neck and shrugged it off. As she tried to pull on the Invisibility Cloak to cover her - or make her invisible - she dropped Draco's robe. “Damn it.” She said, bending over to retrieve it. When she straightened up, the hastily thrown on Invisibility Cloak dropped to the floor also.

Hermione scowled at her misfortune, and began to bend down to get the Invisibility Cloak when Draco stopped her. “Just give me my robe Hermione. Then cover yourself. It's obvious you can't multitask.”

Sighing, Hermione turned and handed Draco his robe. He took longer than necessary to reach forward and take it, and when Hermione looked up at his face, she didn't meet his eyes as she'd expected to. It seemed his eyes were busy looking elsewhere. “Excuse me, they're mine and not to be looked at without my permission.” She snapped.

Draco started in surprise, but didn't have the decency to look embarrassed. Hermione quickly donned the Invisibility Cloak, and climbed up the ladder and out of the dungeons. Once she reached her dorm, she shrugged off the cloak, folded it carefully and placed it at the back of her bottom drawer. Hermione fell asleep quickly, with all thoughts of her late night visit pushed to the back of her mind.

Draco waited a few minutes after Hermione had disappeared from sight before sighing to himself. He climbed up the ladder and closed the trapdoor carefully, so it would not be visible to those who were not aware of it. Draco fastened his cloak at the neck and left the dungeon, wondering why he didn't feel as if he'd had a bad night.

Chapter Eleven - The Great Lake

Sunday passed in a haze of homework, and before Hermione knew it, it was Monday lunchtime. She sat down next to Ron and dished up a large bowl of vegetable soup. He glanced at her with a smile and continued eating his sandwich.

“Did Harry sleep last night?” she asked him quietly, stirring her soup to cool it.

Ron looked at her unhappily. “I'm not sure. He looked like he was snoozing for a while, but when I woke up at sunrise to go do a bit of training, he was gone. He wasn't on the pitch either. So I don't know when he got up, but I have a suspicion it was still dark out when he did.”

“I'm worried about him.” Hermione stated. “Look after him over Christmas, won't you? Tell Molly that he needs to rest. Make her put a sleep inducing herb in her cooking, or something.”

“That's a good idea.” Ron smiled. “Are you sure you don't want to come to the Burrow as well? There's plenty of room for you.”

“I appreciate the offer Ron, but I think mum and dad have missed having me home over the past couple of Christmas breaks. I think I'll make them happy and go home.” She sipped her hot soup and wished she could go to the Burrow too. It was always so much fun with the Weasley's. Hermione glanced over at the Slytherin table as she thought about whom she would be spending her holiday with.

She noticed Draco looking tired, and as she scanned the table uninterestedly, Devon caught her eye and winked. Hermione smiled back when Ron turned around to grab some more pumpkin juice. In a manner that made her feel as if she must have been embarrassed, Hermione quickly looked away. And straight into a pair of familiar gray eyes. She must have jumped in surprise because not only did Draco smile slightly, but Ron turned around curiously.

“What happened?” he asked inquisitively.

Hermione floundered for only a moment, then she realised Harry had arrived. “I didn't notice Harry until just then.” Ron looked up and started when he saw Harry sitting down opposite them.

“Oh. Neither did I.” Ron stated. “How are you feeling to day Harry?” Harry shrugged glumly and bit into a piece of plain wholegrain bread. Frowning, Ron asked, “Aren't you even going to butter that?” When Harry shook his head and continued staring at the tabletop, Hermione stood up and walked around to his side of the table.

“Harry, you have to eat. We know you're not sleeping, and you're hardly studying, but you have to eat.” Hermione sat next to him and dished up a small bowl of soup. “Now you can dip your bread in there, and once you've finished it, eat the soup too. Ron, can you pour Harry a cup of tea from the pot next to you?”

Ron nodded and quickly poured his best friend a hot cup of white tea. Although Harry didn't take sugar with his tea, Ron put some in anyway, deciding he would need the energy boost. Hermione and Ron exchanged a worried glance when Harry didn't protest to being fussed over. Watching Harry closely for the next fifteen minutes while he ate, Hermione forgot about her silent exchange with the two Slytherins until she glanced up quickly to find them both watching her.

She almost became flustered at the knowledge that she was being watched, then Ron said, “Hermione, we're late for class,” and she promptly forgot all about them once again.

That night, Hermione entered dungeon 37 to realise that she was the last one to arrive. “Sorry, I must be late.” She apologized, quickly sitting down next to Corey and Devon.

“Not at all.” Draco said dismissively, “We're here a bit early.” Not noticing the surprised looks from the other Scales at their civility, Draco quickly got down to business. “Ok, firstly, Hermione's Animagus potion is coming along well, so we hope that will be ready in time.”

“In time for what?” Taylor asked with a furrowed brow.

Draco paused and glanced at Hermione. Clearing his throat, he decided to start the beginning. “Hermione was attacked on Friday night. By Voldemort. He entered - ”

“What?” Devon exclaimed. “Why haven't I been told about his earlier? Friday night? You should have called an emergency meeting!” He quickly turned to Hermione and grabbed her hand. “Are you alright? What did he do to you? I can't believe this!” Devon turned back to Draco accusingly. “She was attacked and you didn't do anything to help. I would have killed him.” It seemed that Devon was too outraged to realise the lunacy of stating that he could kill Voldemort.

Draco's gaze turned cold and he waited a few moments before replying. But Hermione beat him to it. “He did help, Devon. He stopped Voldemort from killing me…or from doing whatever it was he wanted.”

“Oh.” Devon said, looking disappointed. “So, how did Voldemort get into the castle? I don't understand why Dumbledore hasn't closed the school down and sent an army after him.”

“He entered Hermione's mind.” Draco explained, his voice still cold. “He didn't physically enter the castle. Fortunately I was with Hermione at the time, and able to recognize what was going on, and use my Occlumency skills to fight him off.”

Mark folded his arms in amusement, and without Draco noticing, exchanged a glance with Taylor and Corey. All three guys noticed Draco's boasting, although he didn't seem to recognize it himself. Devon, it seemed, was preoccupied with other issues to notice. “What were you doing with Hermione?” he turned to Hermione. “He wasn't harassing you, or hurting you again, was he?”

Hermione shook her head and held up her hand with the ring on it. “He was just giving me this.”

“Oh.” Devon said again, though this time he sounded relieved.

“So,” Draco continued,“it seems Voldemort's attempt to take over the wizarding world isn't far off. And I'm hoping Hermione's Animagus potion will be ready in time for that.” he gave Devon a direct stare as if to tell him to remain quiet. “Moving on, our transport to the seminar has been arranged, so we don't need to worry about that anymore.”

“How are we getting there, then?” Mark asked curiously.

“Hermione is going to dive us in a muggle car.” Draco answered. “They rent them in Hogsmeade. So we'll meet here in the morning, walk to Hogsmeade, hire one and drive there. Then we can take the Floo network back here, because their connection should be fixed by the end of the seminar. Easy as that.”

“Sounds good.” Mark agreed.

“Ok.” Draco said. “We have no meeting next week, unless someone feels the need for one. If you do, perform a Heat charm on your ring at six that night, and we'll all know to meet here at normal time. If there is no meeting, remember to meet here at 9am Wednesday week. Is there anything anyone wants to bring up?”

“Yeah. Hermione, look after yourself, ok?” Corey said, looking at her in concern. “It seems obvious that you'd be a target, but it's a shame that that general assumption is true.” Mark and Taylor nodded in agreement, then stood up and walked out of the room.

Devon still held Hermione's hand in his, and when she made to withdraw it, he squeezed it gently. She smiled and stood up. “I'll see you around.”

“You look tired.” Devon said worriedly. “Are you sure you're alright?”

“I'm always tired, Devon.” Hermione responded as Draco walked over to them. “And I'm fine. Really. All I have to do is get through this week, and then it is holidays. I think I need a bit of time to rest.”

“What are you doing for Christmas before the seminar?” Draco asked her.

“I'll go home to visit my parents, and then I'll come back on a train to Hogsmeade that night.” Hermione replied. Draco nodded, and walked towards the door with Hermione and Devon. He stopped to extinguish the candles, then met them in the corridor. The three made their way down the corridor, and when they reached the staircase that Hermione had to ascend, they stopped.

“So I'll see you two in classes then.” She said, unsure why, but definitely feeling uncomfortable being alone with these two. Draco smiled at her slightly and started to walk off, but then turned in time to see Devon move forward and give Hermione a hug. Hermione, although taken aback, returned the hug.

Devon stepped back, said “Goodnight Hermione,” then walked to catch up with Draco, who was watching him closely. Meeting Draco's eyes, Devon smirked and raised his eyebrows in challenge. Draco lifted his chin in response, but when he glanced at Hermione and saw her watching him apprehensively, he decided against hugging her.

“`Night.” He said to her quietly, and stalked ahead of Devon to the Slytherin common room.

When Hermione stood wearily to go to bed on Wednesday night, Ron glanced at her in concern. “You and Harry are both worrying me. Harry - well, it's obvious why he's worrying me, but you're starting to look very drawn, Hermione. Is there something wrong?”

Hermione's headache and lightheadedness had returned, but she didn't want to admit to herself what it might mean. “I feel terrible, Ron. I think I'll try getting some sleep. If I'm not up in the morning, it's because I feel awful and just want to sleep in. There's no doubt I'll be up by lunch.”

Ron frowned. “If you're not up in the morning, I'll send Ginny in to see if you're alright. Sleep well Hermione, although it seems I'm the only one around here who seems to be doing that.”

“Thanks Ron.” She replied, kissing him goodnight on the cheek and walking up to her dorm. After undressing, and slipping into her purple nightgown, Hermione opened the dorm room window to allow a cool breeze to sooth her headache. Hermione then climbed into bed and within moments, fell into a troubled sleep.

It was late, but Draco didn't feel like going inside to his dorm yet. Quidditch training had finished almost an hour ago, but Draco was still flying around the grounds. He was completely dissatisfied with how his team was training, and yet taking recent events into account, Quidditch mattered little to him. Especially if Voldemort struck before the season even began.

Draco knew there was more of a chance of Quidditch being cancelled, than Slytherins ever winning the Quidditch final with Harry playing in good health. Voldemort's return- or at least the time when he would try return was close. If he was strong enough to get into Hogwarts, even with his mind, then an attack on the school was to be expected. Draco hoped Dumbledore had something planned in defense.

Draco sighed in frustration as he remembered Monday's Scales and a Tail's meeting. Every time he thought about it, he would then think about Hermione, and then an image of her wearing a purple satin nightgown would involuntarily pop into his head. Draco shook his head, and turned his broom in the direction of the Great Lake.

The water had very few ripples on the surface, and if Draco looked down, he could see the blurry shape that was his reflection. Flying around the entire outside of the lake as fast as he could, Draco returned to hover near the castle. His eyes had filled with tears due to the icy air whipping across his face, and as he blinked to clear his vision, he saw something that made him freeze.

A figure was floating out of the castle and heading quickly towards the Great Lake. Draco wiped his sleeve over his eyes to clear them, hoping what he saw was just a tree distorted because of his blurred vision. But sure enough, a human body was now hovering horizontal above the centre of the lake. Draco frowned in incomprehension and flew quickly towards it to figure out what was going on. As he drew nearer, his mouth dropped in shock. It was Hermione.

“What the hell is going on?” he demanded of the world. Picking up speed and flying closer, Draco saw that Hermione was unconscious. Then, as he drew closer still, he could hear a very faint snoring sound, and realised that she was not unconscious, but asleep. “That explains the nightgown.” Draco muttered, his frown deepening.

As he was about to call out, something happened that caused his stomach to flip in alarm. Hermione dropped. It was the only way to describe it. It was as if someone had been holding her in a large, invisible hand, but they suddenly let her go. Falling quicker than Draco would have expected, Hermione's hair flew about her as she plummeted towards the dark water.

“Hermione!” Draco shouted, steering his broom sharply down and zooming after her as fast as he could. She didn't seem to hear him. “She must be some heavy sleeper.” Draco mumbled to himself in amazement.

“Hermione!” She seemed to hear him the second time. Lifting her head suddenly and looking around in fear, Hermione started to scream. However, her scream didn't last very long. She hit the hard surface of the lake back first, and as the water engulfed her with a splash, Hermione's scream was stifled.

“Holy shit!” Draco exclaimed, flying after her in disbelief. He reached the lakes surface and pulled to a halt where Hermione had hit, and waited for her to surface. After a few frantic moments, Hermione's limp body broke the surface a few meters away. Draco flew over to her and hurriedly turned her over so she was lying tummy-up.

“Hermione!” he whispered urgently. When she didn't respond, a terrible thought occurred to Draco. She had hit the surface very hard and fast, so her being winded or even rendered unconscious was understandable, but also easily dealt with. If she'd swallowed water however, he had no idea how to get the water out. Desperately, Draco tried to remember any spells that involved the lungs. Giggle-Hex…no, Lung-Expansions…no, that's for singers, Lung-Removal…definitely not…Lung-Compressor…no, that's used for torture. Wait, Draco thought, that might work.

“Compressus Lungen!” Draco said quickly, after pulling his wand out of his robe pocket and aiming it at Hermione's chest. Draco watched in repulsion as a large amount of water spurted out of Hermione's mouth and her body jolted. Her eyes flew open and she gasped haggardly, reaching out and grasping on to Draco's shoulder. He grabbed her and pulled her on to his broom, but as he tried to fly off, Hermione started slipping.

“Hold on.” He instructed harshly. He hadn't intended to be mean, but he was so shocked over what had just occurred that he couldn't control his voice. Hermione simply shook her head and continued to slide off. “Hermione, don't make this difficult.” Draco instructed, but she didn't seem to hear him. Growling under his breath, he wrapped an arm tightly around her waist, pulled her against him and held her there until they were safely by the shore of the lake.

Draco slid on to the ground quickly and caught Hermione as she flopped off the broom. “Hermione, sit down.” This time, she obeyed him. Flaccidly, Hermione flopped down onto the shore. Draco stood still for a moment, unsure about what he should do. He stared at Hermione as she sat shocked, drenched and near-naked on the ground in front of him. Draco suddenly snapped to his senses and decided that he couldn't deal with her alone. He raised his wand to his ring and performed a Heat charm. Within five minutes, the Scales would be waiting for them in dungeon 37.

“Come on.” He said gruffly, kneeling down next to Hermione. “We have to get you inside.”

Hermione blinked a few times, and looked around as if only just realising where he had taken her. “Is this your spot?” she asked quietly. “Where you like to come and think? The same place I found you a few weeks ago, where you- ”

“Yes, this is the place.” Draco cut in quickly, not wanting her to mention how he'd hurt and nearly drowned her. “I come here for a reason, you know.”

“Yes, I know. You come here to think and to get away from everyone.” Hermione said, resisting Draco's attempts to pull her to her feet. Draco sighed loudly and decided to try again in a moment.

“Those are the reasons I come outside, yes, but not the reasons I come to this exact place.” He said to her, moving over to the line of trees that were a part of the Forbidden Forest. They stood very close to the lake, with the shore almost in the trees. Draco disappeared into the forest for a few moments, and Hermione could hear a loud rustling noise followed by a strange creaking. Draco reappeared, and as expected was greeted by a look of interest from Hermione.

“What were you doing?” she asked, her brow furrowing as her mind tried to think up every possible answer to this question so Draco wouldn't surprise her.

Draco smiled and held out his hand to help her up. “Curiosity killed the cat, Hermione.”

“But satisfaction brought it back.” Hermione shot back weakly,but managed to raise aneyebrow. Although Hermione was trying to act normally, Draco could tell she was extremely shaken. He pulled her gently to her feet and escorted her into the forest. Hermione rested her hand tentatively on his shoulder as she felt her knees weaken, and to reassure her, Draco slipped his arm about her waist to support her. A few meters in they came across a large tree with thick trunk. Hermione started in surprise to see that the trunk had a large hole in its side.

“Lumos.” Draco lit his wand, and guided Hermione over to the hole. “This is a pathway that leads to the secret chamber below dungeon 37. As do most secret pathways leading to the castle.”

“But, that can't be true.” Hermione countered. “What about the passage that leads to Honeydukes, or the Shrieking Shack? I've followed those personally, and they've never lead me to that storeroom.”

Draco was unable to disguise his surprise at Hermione's knowledge of such secretive matters. Shaking his head, Draco reluctantly realised that Hermione was one of the best people the Scales could have possibly recruited. Distractedly placing a hand on the top of Hermione's head to prevent her bumping it on the top of the opening, he asked “How do you know about those?”

“You forget who my friends are.” She replied, ducking her head and stepping through the threshold. “But you haven't answered my question.”

“The room underneath dungeon 37 is far bigger than what I showed you. It has many vast rooms adjoining it, that cause it to spread over quite a large distance. To my knowledge, all passageways excluding the one that leads to the Shrieking Shack, connect to it. The thing is, not many people know that part. The tunnel that leads to Honeydukes for example, appears to lead straight there. However, at the point where the tunnel passes under the Hogwarts boundary, there is a door on the right hand wall of the tunnel. It blends right in with the wall unless you know it's there. All you have to do is press your hand against it for five seconds, and it swings open, revealing an adjoining tunnel that leads directly here. It's the same with any of the other passageways.”

“Why five seconds?” Hermione inquired as Draco climbed in after her.

“It prevents the door opening if it's just touched by someone stumbling in the dark.”

Once inside the dark tunnel, Draco replaced the wood panel blocking the entrance and turned to lead Hermione down the passage. “Wont people notice a tree with a hole cut in it and a makeshift door resting against it?” Hermione asked, frowning at the lack of camouflage.

“There's a Concealment Charm on it from the outside. So long as that piece of wood is there, the charm warps it into part of the trunk.” He replied, slowing down as Hermione stumbled on the cold, dirty ground. “Are you feeling alright?”

“Never been better.” She replied sarcastically, although she sounded more depressed in her current state of tiredness. “I've been hovered out of my bedroom window to the lake, where I can only imagine I was dropped and left to plummet to my death. If you hadn't been there, I would certainly have drowned. Now I'm tired, sore, confused, and freezing, not to mention very inappropriately dressed considering the present company. So, thank you for asking. I'm feeling just wonderful.”

Draco couldn't help but smile at her response. “That's what I thought.”

It only took them five minutes of walking before they entered a large chamber. Draco led her across it to an opening on the right hand side. Walking through it into another chamber, Hermione noticed a few shelves against the far wall. “What's over there?”

“I think that's food supplies.” He replied, glancing over. “Incase anyone ever gets stuck down here.”

Hermione frowned, wondering how pessimistic the wizards who made this underground maze must have been. “Stuck down here?”

“It could happen. Call it a possible sanctuary in an emergency.” They moved quickly through the room, into another, then another, and finally came out into the original storeroom Draco had shown her four nights ago. By the time Draco led Hermione to the ladder that led up into the dungeon, her face was ashen and she was leaning on him heavily for support. “Shit.” He mumbled. Quickly thinking of how to get Hermione up the ladder, Draco gently lowered to the ground. “I'll be back in a moment.”

Scaling the ladder swiftly, Draco pushed open the trapdoor and climbed into the dungeon. He was greeted by four very surprised Slytherins staring at him. Mark moved over to him, “What the hell is going on?”

“I'll explain in a minute. But for now, I need your help.” Draco motioned down into the storeroom. “Stand here, and help pull her up.”

Mark frowned, but knelt by the opening as Draco quickly descended. “Hermione, stand up.” He practically lifted her to her feet, and then let her get her balance. “Here, Mark's going to help you.”

Hermione slowly looked up and saw Mark staring down at her in bewilderment. Mark turned and called over his shoulder, “It's our Tail. And she doesn't look good.” After Draco had helped Hermione climb the first half of the ladder, Mark reached down and took her hand firmly and assisted her the rest of the way up. Draco climbed the ladder after her, using almost all of his self-control not to look up.

Once he emerged and closed the trapdoor after him, Draco turned to see that Mark had taken a step back and the four Scales were staring at Hermione with very bizarre expressions. Draco frowned when he realised they looked nervous. “What's wrong with you guys?” he demanded, wondering why he was the only one who was willing to take Hermione's hand and lead her to the nearest chair.

Mark, Taylor and Corey exchanged glances, and then looked back to Hermione. Aside from the fact that she was wet and tired, she was also clearly in just a nightgown. A very skimpy nightgown at that. Mark couldn't help smiling, although he knew something bad must have happened. “Can't wait to hear the story behind this one.” Mark said, then glanced over at Devon and almost laughed out loud.

Devon was standing frozen on the spot, looking from Hermione to Draco. His mouth was agape and his expression was one of someone who didn't understand what he was seeing. “What…?” was all he could manage. Hermione heard, and looked up at him. It was as if this look snapped him out of a trance. Suddenly he was at her side, “Hermione, what happened to you? Are you alright? Here, take my cloak, you look freezing.”

Quickly unfastening his cloak, Devon removed it and gently placed it over Hermione shoulders. He rested his hands on her shoulders once she was covered, and left them there. Hermione smiled slightly, and then looked up at Draco, waiting for him to explain to the others what had happened. Draco sat down on one of the desks and recounted the events of the last half hour or so.

“I think it was Voldemort's doing.” He said, finishing off the story. “He's entered her mind before, so he wouldn't have any trouble locating Hermione again. For a wizard as powerful as Voldemort, I don't think performing a simple Hovering charm would be very difficult either.”

The other guys were silent for a few minutes while they thought about what they'd just been told. “So you think he was actually trying to kill her?” Taylor asked quietly.

Draco nodded. “I'd say so. I mean, removing her from the castle late at night while she's sleeping, and then dropping her from a huge height into the middle of the Great Lake does seem to scream murder.”

Hermione shuddered, and Devon rubbed her shoulders reassuringly. Draco looked at them unhappily for a moment before continuing. “So what we have to discuss now is what to do. Do we tell Dumbledore? Do you think he already knows? What risks do we take leaving Hermione on her own?”

“Dumbledore should be notified.” Mark stated firmly. “Something like this can't happen without him being told, even if he already knows.”

“I'll go to his office tomorrow.” Hermione said softly. “I think I would feel better telling him myself.”

“Of course.” Draco agreed. “Did you want one of us to come with you?”

“No.” Hermione declined with a half-hearted smile. “I'm sure I'll manage.”

“I think Hermione should stay within the sight of one of us at all times.” Devon said seriously. “We can't risk anything happening to her again. Two attacks in one week is too much. We know now that Hermione is a target, so he'll keep trying until he succeeds.”

“You know, at the moment Voldemort probably thinks she'd dead.” Corey said. “Draco, you mentioned that Hermione looked like she was dropped from the sky. Do you think that could have been the moment Voldemort released his hold on her, and so has no idea you saved her? We might have a bit of time before he realizes and tries to attack again.”

Everyone was silent for a moment. “That's a bloody good point there, Cor.” Mark said approvingly. “I think Hermione has enough time to get a good sleep in and at least another day of normal living before he realizes.”

“Wait.” Hermione said, her brow suddenly creased in thought. “What if we were to make him think that I was dead?”

“How?” Draco asked dryly, not knowing what she could possibly mean. “By killing you?”

Hermione rolled her eyes. “By getting a bit of media coverage.”

The five males looked at her incredulously. “Huh?” Mark asked abruptly.

“I know a reporter. I could get her to write a story on a mysterious death at a wizarding school. No names, or specifics of any kind, but enough for Voldemort to believe I'd died and Dumbledore was just trying to hush it up.”

Draco nodded in appreciation. “Alright. Let's see if that works. Hermione, are you able to get in contact with this reporter of yours as soon as possible?” She nodded wearily. “Good. So you can do that tomorrow morning or something, and also have a talk with Dumbledore.” He paused. “Do you want any of us to do anything?”

“Nothing that I can think of.” Hermione replied, yawning. “But I think I need to go to bed if you don't mind.” Hermione began to stand up, and Devon quickly moved in to help her.

Draco watched the two of them solemnly as Mark, Taylor and Corey stood and began to walk towards the door. Then as he watched Hermione sway slightly on the spot, he was struck by an idea. “You're unsteady on your feet.” He said to Hermione. “Here, I'll take you up to the Gryffindor tower.”

Devon looked up, startled. “It's alright, Draco. I can take her.” He offered, not letting go of Hermione's hand and fixing him with a meaningful stare. The other three guys slowed down and looked over curiously.

“Nah, don't trouble yourself.” Draco replied easily, moving forward and smiling slightly at Hermione.

“Oh, it's no trouble at all.”

Draco's eyes hardened. “I would feel much better after what I've witnessed tonight to know that Hermione is safe in her dorm.”

“So you're calling me untrustworthy?” Devon asked, his voice raising slightly. “Are you really saying I wouldn't get her there safely? Do you think you're the only capable one here, Draco?”

“How about I take her?” Corey said firmly, quickly moving to stand in between the two arguing Slytherins. They both looked at him in surprise. “It seems to me that I'm the only one who remembered to grab my Invisibility Cloak before rushing down here. Therefore I'm the only one who could make it back to the Slytherin common room this late at night without being seen.”

Devon and Draco exchanged an unhappy glance, and both nodded tersely. Devon squeezed Hermione's hand in his and said, “Take care, Hermione. Don't hesitate to owl me if you need anything.”

Hermione smiled, and then glanced at Draco to see if he would part with any words of support. But he just moved away, and wordlessly walked in front of Mark and Taylor to the door. Hermione silently watched his retreating back and wondered why the image made her feel forlorn. As if understanding her unfamiliar sensation of wanting to see him again, Draco turned to look at her over his shoulder as he was opening the door. The slight frown that disturbed his handsome features as he locked eyes with her, caused Hermione to wonder if he was experiencing the same thing. Then he was gone and Mark and Taylor followed in his wake.

Before leaving they offered words of advice. “You've had a big night. Get some rest.” Mark suggested.

“Yeah. And don't go to classes in the morning.” Taylor added. “Sleep in, visit Dumbledore and then write the letter to that reporter.”

Hermione nodded with a smile and they both left. Once her attention turned back to those remaining in the dungeon, she realised Devon was still holding her hand, and Corey was looking slightly amused. “We'd better go.” Corey said lightly, gesturing needlessly towards the door. Devon let go of her hand slower than necessary, and then they all walked towards the door.

“Oh.” Devon said suddenly, stopping. “You still have my cloak.”

Hermione rolled her eyes before turning around to face him. She couldn't believe her bad luck. She had originally bought the silk nightgown because she'd known that no one would ever see it. She thought it looked comfortable and not as if it would hinder her when she turned and rolled over to get comfortable in bed. But now things were just getting ridiculous. Without preamble, Hermione slipped the cloak off and handed it to Devon.

With a smile and a wink, he took it from her. As much as she tried not to be affected by his charm, Hermione felt herself smile back with a faint flush. “Thanks.” he said. “Goodnight.” He looked as if he were about to hug her, but then must have realised that their relationship didn't allow for it with Hermione dressed as she was. Instead, he smiled again and left.

When Hermione turned to Corey, she found him standing with is back half turned and his eyes averted. Smiling at his gentleman-like behaviour, Hermione asked, “Should we go underneath it together?”

“I suppose we should,” Corey replied uncertainly, after pausing to think. “It's too late for either of us to be allowed out of bed.” He seemed uncomfortable about doing so, but Corey lifted the cloak about himself, then covered Hermione with it also.

They moved quickly and quietly through the castle, and eventually reached the portrait of the Fat Lady. Hermione stood staring at the painting for a few moments, unsure of what she should do.

“No Slytherin has ever been inside there before.” Corey whispered to her.

“I should hope not.” Hermione replied with a smile. “I'm pretty sure I can get myself up to my dorm from here. Thanks so much, Corey.” She briefly laid a hand on his shoulder, feeling pleased that she was finally making friends with the Scales.

“No problem.” He replied, smiling at her genuinely. “See you later.”

Hermione stepped out from beneath the cloak and cleared her throat to wake the snoring Fat Lady. When she didn't rouse, Hermione spoke. “Excuse me! I'd like to get in please.”

“Hmm?” The Fat Lady opened her eyes wearily and gave a theatrical sigh when she spotted Hermione. “When will you students go to bed and remain in bed?”

“I don't think I can answer that for you.” Hermione said apologetically. She glanced over her shoulder, unsure whether Corey had gone or not. She shrugged to herself, deciding that she could trust him not to abuse the knowledge of the Gryffindor password. “Skiving Snackboxes.”

Chapter Twelve - To the Seminar

Hermione woke late the next morning. Once she had showered and dressed, she noticed a note sitting on her dresser next to her bed. She picked it up curiously, and noted it was written in Harry's swift scrawl.

Hermione,

Ron and I hope you're feeling ok this morning. You don't normally skip breakfast. Or your first class. We hope you'll come down to lunch, but if you don't, we want you to go to Madam Pomfrey. You have been tired recently, so hopefully all you're doing is catching up on sleep. If you're sick and end up in the hospital wing, we come and visit you before dinner.

We love you Hermione, hopefully we're worrying needlessly. Harry and Ron.

Hermione smiled about her friends caring so much for her. She knew Lavender or Parvarti must have brought the note up for Harry, because the staircase didn't allow for boys to enter the female dormitory. Harry's letter suddenly reminded her that she had to write to Rita Skeeter. Pulling out a sheet of parchment and her quill & ink, Hermione sat on her quilt and wrote.

`Miss Rita Skeeter,

Although I normally wish for your writings at the Daily Prophet to contain the truth, I hope you'll forgive me for becoming inconsistent. I hope that you have no problems publishing in tomorrow's paper this article that I've written, without asking any questions. I wish for it to remain anonymous.

“The Ministry has been secretly informed that the death of a student has taken place at a wizarding school. Although the school to which thiswitch attended is not known to the Daily Prophet, nor indeed, the actual student, our deepest sympathies are with the students family. We advise the strictest safety measures be taken at all wizarding schools to ensure the protection of all students in these troubled times.”

Thank you, your secret is still safe with me,

Hermione Granger.'

Hermione took the letter to the Owlery and, after placing it inside an envelope, sent it off using one of Hogwarts' many owls. She then decided to try Dumbledore's office to see if she could speak to him about the night before. Reaching the large gargoyle on the seventh floor, Hermione stopped short, encountering the same problem many students had in the past. Dumbledore's password was unknown to her.

“Why can't he have an office where all you have to do in knock?” Hermione wondered in frustration.

“Because that would defeat the purpose of remaining mysteriously elusive.” A cold voice said from behind her. Hermione jumped to see Snape approaching from a few meters away. “What are you doing out of class, Miss Granger?”

“I need to see the Headmaster.” She explained, gesturing to the gargoyle which guarded the entrance.

“You can see him later.” Snape snapped.

“But it's very important.” Hermione replied, not going to give up easily.

“Has it got anything to do with Potter?”

“No-” Hermione began, but was cut short by Snape's sardonic comment,

“Then it can't be important.”

Hermione looked at him in surprise, but figured that in the past, most things to do with Harry were important. “But Prof-”

“No buts, Miss Granger. Get back to class.” Snape said, a smirk sliding across his face. Hermione ran a hand through her hair in frustration, trying to think of a way to bring Snape around. “Oh, and ten points from-” He stopped suddenly.

Hermione opened her mouth to protest the ten point deduction, when she realised that he was staring at her hand. Or more specifically, at her ring.

“Is it really important, Miss Granger?” he asked quietly, staring at her with his black eyes. She nodded seriously, and Snape made the closest expression to one of regret she'd ever seen. “Fine. Pygmy Puffs.”

The gargoyle sprang to life and stepped aside to admit Hermione. Smiling at the choice of password, she glanced at Snape in thanks, and then walked up the stone steps. After knocking on the large door and hearing “Enter,” from within, Hermione walked into the now familiar office of Albus Dumbledore.

“Miss Granger.” Dumbledore said with a serious face. “What can I do for you?” He gestured towards the chair sitting opposite his desk and Hermione sat down.

“I have a few things I need to tell you, Headmaster.” Hermione told him, holding his blue eyes in a serious, we've-got-to-talk manner. Dumbledore sighed, giving Hermione more reason to believe that he already knew at least some of what she about to say.

“I'm all ears.” Dumbledore replied, placing his hands together on the desk in front of him.

Hermione, not quite knowing a best way to begin, told Dumbledore of Harry's recent headaches. She then informed him of her suspicion that Voldemort would try to harm herself and Ron to weaken Harry before they finally confronted each other.

“And have you any evidence to support this theory of yours, Miss Granger?” Dumbledore asked, although the severe expression on his face informed Hermione that he already assumed the answer.

“Yes.” She said softly, then told of how she believed Voldemort had entered her mind and tried to weaken her, perhaps to death. “If Draco hadn't been there to drive him out I don't know what would have happened.”

“Ah. I had thought something like this was going to happen soon.” Dumbledore said quietly. “I would have warned you, but I wasn't certain and I didn't want to alarm you needlessly. Hermione waited silently for Dumbledore to continue. “Mister Malfoy was with you at the time?” Dumbledore inquired, his face impassive.

“Um, well yes.” Hermione admitted. “He had been walking down the same corridor as I, and noticed something was wrong when I dropped to the ground. Lucky coincidence, I suppose.” For some reason, Hermione didn't want Dumbledore to know that she was involved in a Slytherin society. If he didn't already know, then he didn't need to know.

“Very lucky, Miss Granger.” Dumbledore agreed. “And is that why you believe Voldemort may be trying to kill you?”

Hermione shook her head. “That's not the only reason I have for suspicion.” Hermione then informed Dumbledore of what had happened the previous night. “I woke from the shock of the cold water.” She said in what she hoped was conclusion, unsure of how she would keep the Scales role out of the event.

“And you managed to swim all the way to shore? Then walk up to the castle, and up to your dorm? Then you decided to simply go to bed?” Dumbledore questioned gently. “Tell me, have you woken up in the middle of the Great Lake before, and so found less extraordinary than someone like myself may have?”

“No Headmaster.” Hermione replied, lowering her head. She sighed, wishing the story wasn't so implausible without mention of Draco or the other Scales. “There's a bit more to it than that.”

“Let me guess.” Dumbledore said with a slight smile. “You haven't allied yourself with a certain Slytherin society, have you?”

Hermione stared at Dumbledore in confusion. Her best friends didn't know about her inclusion in the Scales, yet Dumbledore who she rarely saw, was privy to that information. Go figure, she thought to herself. Hermione cleared her throat, “Uh, it's certainly a possibility, sir.”

To Hermione's disbelief, Dumbledore smiled. “That makes things much easier.”

“In what way?” Hermione asked with a frown. How in the world would a Gryffindor allied with a small group of Slytherins make anything any easier?

Ignoring her question, Dumbledore's expression turned serious once again. “Is there anything else you'd like to tell me, Miss Granger? Any information that may prove useful in the future?”

Hermione thought for a moment, and then suddenly remembered something that should have occurred to her days ago. “Dumbledore, are you aware of all secret passageways leading out of the castle?”

Thinking for a quick moment, Dumbledore replied, “I believe so, but if there is a passageway that I don't know about, I wouldn't really know that I don't know about it, would I?”

“Good point.” Hermione said, feeling stupid about phrasing the question the way she had. “I was just curious if you knew of the passageway that leads to the dungeons?”

“I am aware of it.” He informed her with a nod. “And I have to admit that it causes me discomfort knowing it leads to all the other secret paths around the castle. I can't help thinking it may cause problems in time.”

Hermione felt a shiver run down her spine. She couldn't help thinking about her dream. “I had a dream that showed Death Eaters entering the castle through that trapdoor in dungeon 37. Do you think they know about it? Hardly any students even know about it, so I don't suppose it's possible that Death Eater's would. Right?”

“Which student's are aware of the passage?” Dumbledore asked quietly.

“To my knowledge, just myself and the Scales…Oh.” Hermione was struck down by a sudden case of realisation. Past Scales would know of the passage, and past Scales were all Slytherins, and Death Eaters were most likely ex-Slytherins, so it only followed that a Death Eater somewhere knew of the passage. “Can we block it?”

“Yes.” Dumbledore replied tentatively. “But, I don't know if it would be wise to block it at this point. We may need it.”

Hermione nodded, although she didn't completely agree that it was worth the risk. Dumbledore shifted in his seat and cleared his throat.

“I appreciate you coming to see me Miss Granger, at the expense of your Transfiguration class. I will inform Professor McGonagall that you were with me this morning, so she doesn't remove any points from Gryffindor.” Dumbledore said, concluding their conversation. “Unless there's anything else you wish to discuss?”

“You don't think Ron and I are in danger? Especially since we're both leaving the school tomorrow for Christmas break?” Hermione exclaimed in worry.

“You will be perfectly safe where you're going.” He answered. “And Ron will be in no harm when he is safe at the Burrow. Things may be different when you return to Hogwarts, but until then, you don't need to worry. Merry Christmas to you.”

“Thank you.” Hermione replied, frowning at Dumbledore's assurance that she'd be safe, although he couldn't have a clue where she was going over Christmas. She stood up and opened the door. “Merry Christmas to you too, Headmaster.”

“Well, we're glad you're alright, Hermione.” Ron said, as they sat in the Gryffindor common room late that night. Harry and Ron had waited until after dinner to ask why Hermione wasn't in class that morning. Hermione refrained from telling them about talking to Dumbledore, and merely explained that she was ready for the Christmas break. The term had taken its toll on her, and she had simply required a sleep in before she began to get sick.

“Yeah.” Harry agreed. “You worried us. It's not like you to miss any classes.”

Hermione smiled at them reassuringly. “You have nothing to worry about. The term is over, and I'll be going home tomorrow morning, all ready for a rest over the holidays.” She found it difficult to keep the smile on her face. After the attack the night before, and knowing she wouldn't be resting but attending a seminar over the break, she felt guilty about telling so little to Harry and Ron. They cared so much about her.

Hermione decided that if Voldemort attacked her one more time, just one, then she would tell them what she could without giving the Scales away. Even though it would cause them to worry and probably add a distraction they didn't need at this point in the year, they would have to know. Secrets were not kept lightly between the three friends.

The term ended to the joy of the students and to the relief of the professors. Ron and Harry journeyed to the Burrow for the break, while Hermione went home to her parents' house for Christmas. Although she was very happy to be spending some time with her family, Hermione couldn't seem to push the upcoming seminar out of her mind. By the end of Christmas lunch, Hermione's stomach was filled with butterflies, although she had no idea why she should be nervous about a seminar.

After kissing her dad and teary-eyed mum goodbye, Hermione boarded the Hogwarts Express. There were only a few other students who had decided to ride home on Christmas night, and Hermione had no trouble finding herself an empty compartment to work on her Potions holiday homework.

Hermione pulled her books out of her bag and opened her parchment, only to remember why she hadn't finished it the day before. Hermione had been unable to recall what effect the ingredient dried Phlox caused in most Energy Draughts, and had been unable to locate it in her potions textbook. This irksome memory blank was preventing her from continuing her essay.

Then, Hermione began to remember Snape lecturing them in Potions a few months ago. She stopped and stared hard out the window, struggling to locate the piece of information in her memory. Snape had said something about dried Phlox not being the cause of the energy, but causing a release of -

“Do you want some company?”

Hermione's thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a voice from the doorway. “What?” Hermione snapped, glaring hard at the intruder. She started in surprise to see Draco standing with Mark beside him, both appearing taken-aback by her waspish greeting. “Sorry.” She apologized, mainly towards Mark. “What?” she asked again, though noticeably less harsh.

Draco smirked at her, “Never mind.” He slid the door open further and walked into the compartment, seating himself opposite Hermione. Mark moved in and closed the door behind him, and then settled himself next to Draco.

Hermione stared hard at Draco. He was responsible for losing her concentration when she'd nearly remembered the effects of dried Phlox. Draco frowned at her, and then glanced at Mark curiously. “I wonder what I've done now.”

“Your presence would be enough to trigger that look.” Mark muttered, and then said to Hermione. “So, what's up?”

“You made me lose my concentration.” She accused Draco. He raised an eyebrow, glancing at the text book sitting next to her.

“Potions?” he asked, his smirk widening. “And I thought you knew everything about everything in Potions. You know, if you're having too much trouble, I can help.”

“I don't want your help. I don't need your help.” Hermione glared. Although not actually annoyed with Draco and more at her memory, Hermione was quite pleased at having someone to vent her frustration on.

“Touchy.” Draco commented. Hermione returned to staring out the window with the guys both watching her in amusement. The silence lasted a good minute, before Draco lost interest and attempted to talk to Mark. However, he was abruptly cut off when Hermione cleared her throat loudly. Their attention was drawn to Hermione's hand that rested by her side, clenching and unclenching. Only when Draco noticed that it was curled tightly around her wand which was unsurprisingly pointed at Draco, did he decide to put a stop to her brooding behaviour.

Draco reached over quickly and snatched her essay right out of her hands. Ignoring her words of protest, Draco scanned the page and quickly reached the point where her memory block came into play. “It releases endorphins.” He stated, looking up at her. “So the sudden energy boost feels more like a natural high than a potion-produced adrenaline rush.”

Hermione came close to whacking herself on the forehead. “Of course! I can't believe I couldn't remember that. Thank you Draco!” She whisked the paper out of Draco's hands and began scribbling furiously.

“Do you think we're allowed to talk now?” Draco whispered to Mark.

Draco walked into dungeon 37 the next morning to find Devon, Mark, Corey and Taylor already waiting with their bags. They glanced at him as he placed his heavy bag on the floor with a loud thud. Mark smiled, looking somewhat bemused. “You're late.”

“I would only be considered late, if I were the last one to turn up.” Draco replied, his gray eyes looking over them all. “But it seems the female of our group is yet to arrive. Probably trying to squash enough clothes to last three months into her bag. Packing all her skirts although it's snowing outside. Something ridiculous like that, I'm sure.”

Draco didn't notice the guys all raise their eyebrows at his comment, and hauled his heavy pack over his shoulder. He moved to the front of the room, readying himself for climbing down the open trap door. “We could at least start walking.” Draco said with a sly grin. “She'll catch up.”

“That's what I had suggested.” Hermione's voice sounded suddenly from next to Draco. His eyes snapped down to see her emerging from the secret chamber below, giving him a self-satisfied smile. “But they all said you were too slow a walker to catch up.”

Draco stared at Hermione as she stood next to him, not really knowing what to say. He quickly became aware that she would have clearly heard his previous comment about her packing. “I'm not sexist.” He said defensively, although no one had yet accused his of being so.

She gave him a look of feigned shock. “You mean you weren't making a generalized observation about the entire female population, you were compensating for a diminutive phallus through demeaning lexicology?”

After a few moments of uncertain silence, Draco replied, “Yes.”

“Really?” Hermione questioned further, raising an eyebrow.

Draco hesitated, trying to decide which option would be better to admit to. “Stop it.” He said abruptly, deciding against both. “You know I didn't even mean it.”

She smiled, and then turned to the other Scales. “Are we all ready?”

After giving a murmur of agreement, they all climbed down the ladder and into the chamber with their luggage on their backs. Although Draco had been proven wrong about Hermione being late that morning, he was right about her being a little too over prepared with her supplies.

“Five days Hermione.” He said in an undertone as she tried to arrange three bulging bags securely on her back. “We're only going for five days. Do you really need all that?”

“Just because you can survive with only a toothbrush and fresh underwear, doesn't mean we all can.” Hermione pointed out, glancing almost enviously at the tiny bag he had over his shoulder.

Draco smiled and shook his head, but his expression was quickly replaced by one of alarm. “My toothbrush!” Quickly peeling his bag off his back and pulling it open, Draco rummaged through his belongings. “Man, I forgot to pack it.”

Hermione couldn't help laughing at him as they began their trek through the passageways that would take them to Hogsmeade. “Don't stress yourself.” She said to him quietly, as they walked side by side. “I packed a spare.”

Draco turned his head to look at her incredulously. “A spare toothbrush? You packed a spare toothbrush? No wonder your bags are so full, Hermione. You're not only packing for your personal needs, but for the endless situations of `just incase.'”

“So what if I am?” Hermione asked, flushing slightly. “It means you get to brush your teeth this week, doesn't it?”

Draco suddenly smiled at her. Then, much to Hermione's surprise and gratitude, he removed two of her three bags and hefted them over his shoulder. In answer to her questioning look, he explained, “Well, it's not fair if you're made to carry bags that contain things I'll be using.”

Hermione smiled at him in appreciation, and they continued their walk in silence. Throughout this exchange, neither of them noticed Devon walking a few meters behind them with a scowl on his face.

The keys jingled in Hermione's hand as she exited the car rental store half and hour later. She tossed them high into the air and caught them easily, for some reason feeling in high spirits. Hermione walked out to the road where the car was parked, and noticed the five Slytherins standing around it. Taylor, Corey and Mark stood together, casting apprehensive glances at the car, while Devon and Draco were talking in hushed voices a few meters away from the others.

“What's the matter?” she asked once she reached them, unlocking the door on the driver's side. “I'm sure you've all been in a car before.”

“I haven't.” Mark said, seemingly worried about the prospect.

“Well, there's nothing for you to worry about.” Hermione told him comfortingly, opening her door and unlocking the back door from the inside. “I know what I'm doing. Now pile in. There's plenty of room for four in the back. The guy in the store said he has already placed an Expansion charm on it.”

Mark, Corey and Taylor all climbed in once they'd put their bags in the boot. Hermione looked over at Devon and Draco, who looked as if they were annoyed at one another. “Are you two coming?”

Draco sent her a peeved look and Devon smiled at her charmingly.

“Of course I'm coming.” Devon said to her, ignoring Draco's withering look and walking over to the front passenger door. As he slid into the car, Hermione watched Draco move forward and climb into the back seat next to Corey.

Once Hermione ensured they were all wearing their seat belts; a task made slightly exasperating due to Mark's incompetence in the field of road safety, she began the drive. Devon directed her out of Hogsmeade and on to the road that would take them the 40km to the seminar.

“So Hermione,” Devon began quietly after a few minutes, “Did you have a good Christmas?”

Not taking her eyes off the road, she replied, “It was alright. I couldn't stop thinking about the seminar though. How was your Christmas? You stayed at Hogwarts, didn't you?”

“Yep.” He said, answering her second question first. “It was ok. There was something else on my mind too.”

“Really?” Hermione asked distractedly, walking straight into Devon's trap. “And what was that?”

“You.”

Hermione's stunned silence was made more profound when combined with the silence from the backseat. She heard Taylor clear his throat and ask Corey a spontaneous, needless question to cover the awkward silence.

Hermione blushed, swallowed and kept her eyes firmly on the road. “Oh.” In her peripheral vision, Hermione saw Devon smile, as if shocking her was his desired effect. Bastard.

“I'm sorry.” Devon said gently. “I shouldn't have said that. I've embarrassed you.”

“Take the next right.” Draco coldly navigated from the back, giving Hermione an excuse not to answer Devon.

“Thanks.” Hermione flicked her indicator and slowed for the upcoming turn. Quickly thinking of something to say so she didn't feel awkward, she asked “How are you feeling in the back there, Mark?”

“I prefer flying.” He answered, a definite note of nausea in his voice.

“You're not getting travel sickness are you?” she asked, extremely relieved for an excuse to stop her conversation with Devon. Hermione glanced in her rear-view mirror and couldn't help smiling. Mark looked very different than his usual macho self. His face was pale and he looked back at her helplessly.

“Whatever it is, I'm not having fun.” Mark muttered unhappily. Hermione's smile widened, and she turned the car down the road on their right.

“Let me know if you need to be sick and I'll pull over.” She told him.

“Stay alert.” Mark informed her dryly. “It won't be long. Unless we're nearly there.” He glanced at Draco in hope, who merely shook his head.

Hermione focused on driving, making it seem as if it required all of her concentration. Devon sat silently in the seat next to her, allowing her to ignore him. Hermione felt a twist of guilt in her stomach. He had just openly expressed that he liked her and all she did was blush and shift the conversation. Devon was a nice guy; out of all of the Scales, he'd been the first one to accept her, to befriend her. But Hermione couldn't imagine being with him.

“So, what do you actually have to do to drive?” Devon asked, breaking the silence, and glancing at the wheel apprehensively. “Is it difficult?”

Hermione shook her head. “No, not really. It just takes practice. With an automatic, all you really need to do is accelerate, break and steer.”

“Uh-huh.” Devon nodded. “So, can I try?”

Hermione had to refrain from laughing. “I don't think so. Not because I think you wouldn't be able to do it, but because I'm in no mood to teach it. Sorry. I think, for Mark's sake, we should just get there.”

“Fair enough.” Devon conceded.

“Uh, Hermione?” Corey spoke urgently from the back. “I think now would be a great time to pull over.”

Hermione immediately slowed to a stop on the side of the empty road, and turned to see Mark clamber over Draco to be sick out of the open window. Draco's face screwed up in disgust, but he patted Mark on the back a few times. After a moment, Mark's vomiting subsided, giving Draco time to open the door and climb out, so Mark could stand in the fresh air.

Hermione turned the engine off and got out of the car. She moved to stand next to Draco, while Mark doubled over and was sick again on the side of the road. Draco remained silent, but glanced at Hermione with a strange expression. Although it wasn't clear to Hermione exactly what the look meant, she could easily tell he wasn't happy.

“He'll be fine.” She said, misunderstanding the reason for his displeasure. “We're nearly there anyway. About another ten minutes, I reckon.” Draco nodded, but didn't reply. He then moved forward to give Mark a supporting arm as he stood, wiping his mouth with the back of his sleeve.

“That was so disgusting.” Mark said weakly, “I don't know how people can stand it.”

“It's not generally something people choose to do.” Hermione pointed out. She waited until Mark and Draco were both back in the car before hopping back into the front seat and starting the engine. “Mark, we have about ten minutes. If we all open the windows, you should make it, no problem.”

Hurriedly, everyone wound down their windows as far as they would go, and turned to look at Mark. “Stop it with all this attention.” He said jokingly. “You're embarrassing me.”

Hermione smiled, and pulled back on to the road. After a drawn-out thirteen minutes, with all in the car wondering if Mark was going to be sick again, Hermione pulled up a long cobble-stone driveway. The drive wound around a small rise and soon the building which would hold the seminar came into sight. It was a few stories high, built of stone, with large shuttered windows. Hermione saw smoke rising out of various chimneys across the roof, and couldn't wait to get inside and defrost her hands, which were icy due to the windows being rolled down.

Parking a short walk from the entrance, Hermione pulled out the key and they all piled out of the car. Hermione hung back while the guys crowded around the boot grabbing their bags. She frowned when she moved forward however, as none of her bags were left. Glancing around, she saw that Draco held the same two he had carried to Hogsmeade and Devon held the other one. A strange feeling came over Hermione as she looked between the two guys, and she hoped her sudden wave of intuition was wrong.

“You coming Hermione?” Taylor asked, breaking Hermione out of her thoughts. She nodded, and followed the five males inside the unfamiliar building. A comforting waft of warm air made Hermione smile as she glanced around the small entrance hall. A door stood open in front of them, and Hermione assumed it led to the dining room, judging by the smells drifting out. A fire crackled in the fireplace on their right, next to a large mahogany desk, with a sign reading `Reception.'

“May I help you?” A young lady asked from behind the desk. She held a large stack of paper work in her dark hands, and looked at them over the rims of her narrow glasses. “Are you the lot from Hogwarts?”

“Yes,” Draco replied, somewhat coldly. “We are the lot from Hogwarts.” He approached the desk, pulling out a piece of parchment from his pocket and handing it to her. While Draco took care of signing them in and getting their keys, Hermione glanced to her left and noticed a stone staircase spiraling upwards. Her view was obstructed however, when Devon moved to stand next to her.

“Are you getting your own room?” He asked her curiously. No matter how much Hermione tried not to believe it, she knew why he was asking. And for the first time since sleeping arrangements had first occurred to her, Hermione had hoped she wasn't given her own room. Otherwise, she wouldn't know what to do if Devon came to visit her. Hermione knew she'd be more than safe and respected if she were to lodge with Taylor, Corey or even Mark. But having own room, would be to invite danger.

Suddenly, a pair of keys was dangling in front of her face. Hermione snatched them off Draco and glanced at him in irritation. “Thank you.” She said shortly. “Where are the rooms?”

“Up stairs.” Draco directed, and they all began walking up the stone staircase. “On the third floor. There are a few rooms in which the speakers will be in during the week on the second. Your room numbers are on your keys.”

“Cool.” Mark said, almost bouncing up the stairs. He was feeling much better being out of the car. Hermione jingled the keys in her hand as they reached the second floor and continued up the flight of steps. Once they reached the landing, Mark and Taylor looked at their keys and moved off to the right, Corey and Devon glanced at their allocated rooms and headed down the corridor that ran directly in front of them, and Hermione noted that she needed to head to the left.

She rearranged her three bags on her back, which she had taken from Draco and Devon, and walked down the high roofed corridor. Hermione glanced behind her and saw that Draco was trailing her. “Your room down this way too?” she asked in surprise. For some reason she had assumed this must have been the female wing. She was obviously wrong.

Draco nodded and looked at the floor silently. Frowning at his almost guilty expression, Hermione glanced at the number of her room again. Number seventeen. She glanced at the number on the doors as she walked past. Thirteen… fifteen…and seventeen. Hermione looked over a Draco to give him a smile in farewell, but froze in shock to see him peeling off to stop in front of number seventeen.

“What number is on your key?” She asked him, deciding he must have read his number incorrect.

“Seventeen.” He said with a frown. “Why, what's yours?”

“Seventeen.” She said softly, dropping her three bags to the floor in dismay. “Shit.”

Chapter Thirteen - The Tail Finally Gets A Freaking Clue

Draco, apparently unfazed about having to share a room with Hermione, bent down and retrieved her luggage from the floor and unlocked the door. Kicking it open with his foot, he walked inside, leaving Hermione standing surprised in the corridor. After a few moments, Hermione took a few stabilizing breaths and followed Draco.

The room was reasonably spacious. It housed a large bookshelf with miscellaneous books and scrolls, a couch that was long enough to seat three people, a fireplace, a door that obviously led to a bathroom, and in the centre of the right wall, one queen sized bed. One. Just one.

Hermione groaned in despair.

Draco raised his eyebrows suggestively.

Hermione glared at him and decided it would be wise to remove any such thoughts from his mind as soon as possible, even though he had only done it to tease her. “Hmm. That seems like a lovely bed for one person.”

“Just one?” Draco asked in mock sincerity. “Then I suppose I'll just have to sleep on the couch.” He placed his belongings on the floor by the couch, and moved over to the bathroom. While Draco explored the room they had been given, Hermione sat on the edge of the bed thinking about her luck. Or lack of it. There was no way she would be able to sleep in the same room as Draco; he would see her in her nightgown. Wait, Hermione thought to herself, he'd already done that on several occasions.

“Surely this doesn't bother you that much.” Draco asked her noting her expression, coming out of the bathroom and lounging on the couch. “It's only for a week.”

“That's beside the point.” Hermione said. “It's just…” she trailed off, unable to defend herself without sounding incredibly prudish.

“What would Potter and Weasley think?” Draco supplied for her with a sneer. Hermione's eyes snapped to look at him, having completely forgotten about Harry and Ron's thoughts on such a matter. They would pummel Draco ten times over. She smiled, thinking of how elated Ron would be to have such an excuse.

“Stop smiling at me like that.” Draco said, with a frown on his face. Hermione's smile vanished, and was replaced by one of anxiety when she remembered her current predicament. “Hermione.” He said to her sternly. “There's nothing to worry about. Stop being so paranoid.”

Hermione felt her cheeks flush when she realised how stupid she was being. It was just Draco. They'd been alone together a fair few times recently, at night for that matter, and there had been nothing to worry about. She sighed and stood up. “Sorry. I think about things too much sometimes.”

“More like all the time.” Draco muttered. “A spare toothbrush, for heaven's sake.”

Hermione glared at him, but couldn't keep the smile off her face when Draco suddenly grinned at her. She shook her head and they walked towards the door, planning on meeting up with the others downstairs for afternoon tea. Draco reached the heavy oak door first and held it open for Hermione. “Ladies first.”

Although surprised at such a gentleman-like action, Hermione smiled and walked over the threshold. Then she remembered her previous inkling regarding both Draco and Devon, and she glanced over her shoulder at Draco. Sure enough, his eyes were watching her retreating figure. Or, to be more specific, her behind.

“And I thought you were being a gentleman.” Hermione commented dryly, watching his eyes snap up to meet hers when he realised he'd been caught. Draco closed the door and they walked in silence through the corridor and down the two flights of stairs. After walking through the door that led to the dining room, Draco led their way to a table where the other Scales were sitting.

There were many other young wizards and witches sitting around eating afternoon tea, which they had gotten the buffet at the front of the room, but everyone seemed to be sticking to their own groups. Although each individual group would have private sessions with each guest speaker, all students who had booked in dined in the same hall, and shared a community lounge for relaxation.

By the time Hermione and Draco reached the table, each of the four Scales had stopped talking, and sat staring between the pair in silence. Mark wore a sly grin, Corey's eyebrows were raised, a ghost of a smile could be discerned on Taylor's face, and Devon stared in open-mouthed outrage.

Hermione assumed they had figured out that she was sharing a room with Draco. She cleared her throat, said, “I'm really hungry. I'll be back in a few minutes,” and disappeared leaving Draco to explain.

“Explain yourself,” Devon said through gritted teeth, his blue eyes not leaving Draco as he sat down opposite him at the table. “Because we all know this is no coincidence.”

“So I asked the receptionist to put us in the same room,” Draco shrugged calmly. “So what?”

“So what?” Devon repeated incredulously. “She's a girl! You can't share a room with her. Especially one of the rooms in the west wing. I checked with reception and they informed me that they're all for couples; a queen-sized bed only. What are you thinking?”

“What am I thinking?” Draco asked quirking an eyebrow coolly. “Hermione has had two attacks on her life already. I'm not going to risk not being around when there is a third.”

“You don't know there will be another one.” Devon stated, even though he knew better.

“Another what?” Hermione queried from behind them. She seated herself next to Draco with a tea in her hand and an apple in the other. Quick glances were cast between the males, forming a tacit understanding not to trouble Hermione with the truth.

The five sat silent at the table for a moment, before Corey explained, “Apple. Draco saw you with your apple and was hoping there was another one.”

“Oh.” Hermione said, her face falling slightly. “There aren't. This was the last one on the tray.” She glanced at it, then placed it on the table in front of Draco. “Here. You can have it.”

Draco looked down at the apple, then up at Corey, and back down to the apple, shaking his head. What a ridiculous cover-up, he thought. Then again, she had bought it. “Nah. It's alright. You eat it.”

“I'll halve it.” Hermione suggested, pulling her wand out of her pocket and pointing it at the apple.

“It's not import-” Draco started, but Hermione ignored him.

“Just a flick of the wand.” She was saying, and after a moment, the apple split in two perfect halves. Hermione then levitated one half and floated it in front of Draco, under the impression he would find it tantalizing. “Here.”

Mark snorted in amusement, and attempted to cover it as a sneeze. Hermione looked at him in concern, her concentration wavering, causing the apple half to bonk Draco on the nose repeatedly. Devon sniggered and Draco snatched it out of the air, glaring at him coldly.

“Hermione,” Devon said, breaking eye contact with Draco. She turned her attention to him with a questioning expression. “Draco tells us you're sharing a room with him. I was thinking you might be more comfortable sharing with me, what with all the animosity you both have shared in the past.”

Swallowing hard, Hermione tried to think of an excuse, any excuse, but before she embarrassed herself, Draco spoke up icily. “I'm sure Hermione suffers no discomfort around me. We'll be fine where we are.”

Devon narrows his eyes at Draco, who stared right back challengingly. Hermione cleared her throat uncomfortably. “Draco's right, Devon. We're over our grudges about the past. But I do appreciate your offer.”

Devon met Hermione's eyes. “Ok. But if you feel even slightly uncomfortable where you are, I'll be more than happy to swap.” He sent her a charming smile that she couldn't help return.

A short while later, Mark, Taylor, Devon and Draco all got up with the intention of taking a look around. They left and Hermione was left with Corey, who had surprised her by not going with the others. She glanced at him as she took a sip of her tea, and noticed him watching her closely.

“Hermione.” Corey began confidentially, sliding over a few feet so he sat by her side. “I would be careful if I were you.”

She frowned. “How do you mean?”

“You don't want to encourage them both.” Corey got straight to the point, and Hermione couldn't pretend to not know who he was referring to. “Pick one, or ignore both of their attentions. Otherwise, you'll cause trouble here. Devon uses his charm to manipulate people, and so is used to getting what he wants. Draco uses his will power, as you may have noticed, to get his way. So neither are accustomed to giving up easily when they think there is still a chance. You're different from what they're used to; you're a highly intelligent and independent woman. Which, to put it simply, means that you're a challenge to them. And Slytherins love a challenge, especially if the reward at the end is something they want. I hate to make it sound so dirty, but Hermione, alongside the victory of beating the other, you're more than enough to make them rise to the challenge.”

Hermione stared at Corey, rendered speechless. Although Hermione did have suspicions, Corey's observation made it clear that she wasn't imagining things. She would have to be careful. Or even worse, she would have to make a decision. A decision between two males she hadn't realised she liked until this moment.

The first guest speaker of the seminar would be at ten the next morning. After dinner, the five Scales and their Tail sat in the community lounge, talking and taking it in turns to play games of chess. Hermione proved to be the winner, as she had had so much `intense training' playing Ron over all the years.

Hermione decided she would go upstairs to bed when she started yawning around ten thirty. Taylor noticed her stand and said, “Sleep well Hermione. See you tomorrow morning. And thanks again for driving us here this afternoon.”

The other guys paused their conversation, and turned to look at Hermione as she smiled at Taylor. “Not a problem. Goodnight.”

The others all wished her a goodnight, and Hermione retired to her bedroom upstairs. After she had unpacked her belongings into one of the two chests of drawers that were placed under the window, she gathered her pajamas and toiletries, and moved into the bathroom.

Hermione showered, and once she had dried her washed hair, brushed her teeth and slipped into her nightgown, she walked out to go to bed. She moved over and placed her robe in her drawer, and turned off the lights aside from a single lamp next to her bed. She didn't notice Draco lying on the couch watching her until he spoke.

“This couch had better be comfortable for your sake.”

Hermione jumped in surprise and spun to see him looking at her, appearing amused. “Don't startle me like that.” She reprimanded, quickly pulling the covers back on the bed and snuggling under modestly. “Or else I may hex you in fright. And trust me, I wouldn't settle for simply making you burp slugs. Although Ron has assured me that it's not one of the most comfortable experiences.”

Draco laughed softly, remembering that day so many years ago. He didn't doubt it was uncomfortable to have slugs pass up through your mouth. He stopped laughing to shudder in repulsion. “Sorry. It's not my fault you failed to notice me.”

“Well, it'll be a one-off occurrence, I'm sure.” Hermione said, staring at the roof. “It's hard not to notice you.”

Draco remained silent, and Hermione had time to think about her spontaneous statement. She groaned inwardly for not being able to keep her mouth shut. It was strange, Hermione thought to herself, that she hadn't consciously noticed how often her eyes seek Draco out until now. Recently, whenever she entered a classroom at Hogwarts, she would scan the room for white-blond hair, just so she knew where he was. In the past, she'd always done this so she knew where to expect an attack from, but now…Now it was different.

Hermione sensed that she needed to say something to cover the awkward silence. “And I mean that in a strictly `I still hate you' kind of a way.”

Draco laughed and Hermione smiled as she listened to him. His voice was low and almost husky, and Hermione could have almost described him as chuckling. Her smile widened when she thought of his reaction after being informed that he chuckled. Hermione suddenly noticed Draco moving in the shadows and pulled the covers tight when she saw his silhouette move towards her. But, he walked right past the end of the bed and over to the window. Kneeling down, he opened his chest of drawers and rummaged around for a few moments.

“Hermione?” he queried into the shadows, unable to discern her figure in the blankets.

“Yes Draco?”

Draco hesitated for a moment. “Uh…have you got that toothbrush?”

Hermione slowly felt herself waking up from what she believed was an extremely comfortable night sleep. Not only was the mattress perfectly soft, but the blankets were warm wool, and the fire had burned all night, keeping the room a lovely temperature. Hermione kept her eyes closed, enjoying the liberty to remain in bed for while, not get up and rush to classes. For all her love of school, Hermione loved holidays just a tiny bit more.

A quiet rustling of the covers made Hermione pause in her thoughts. She could have sworn she hadn't moved. After a moment, Hermione felt something warm brush against her leg. She eyes flew open when she remembered she hadn't brought Crookshanks with her to the seminar.

She quickly discovered that she was lying face to face with Draco. The shock at finding him sleeping in her bed immobilized her. Hermione stared at his pale face, which lay only inches from hers. As Hermione began to gain control of her limbs and shuffle away, Draco opened his eyes and looked straight at her.

“Morning.” He whispered groggily, managing a smile at her expression. Hermione's eyes narrowed.

“Don't `morning' me, Draco Malfoy.” She said indignantly, ensuring the covers were tucked tightly under her chin. “What the hell are you doing in my bed?”

“There's a question I don't hear very often.” Draco murmured, still sleepy at having just woken up. “Usually girls know what I'm doing in their beds.”

“Well I'm not like other girls.” Hermione stated, her cheeks flaming despite herself. “And I don't want you here.”

Draco rustled under the covers, and his hand emerged to rub his eyes. “But this bed is so comfortable.” He explained. “That couch is awful. You can't imagine how hard it is to sleep when you're restricted to a place the width of your own body. And the cushions kept falling out from underneath me every time I moved. Hermione,” he said, causing her stomach to flip involuntarily at the huskiness the morning lent to his voice. “I tried the couch, honestly, but I couldn't sleep. By two in the morning, you looked so comfortable sleeping up here, that my sleep deprived body couldn't resist you any longer.” He stopped, aware something wasn't quite right about his previous statement. “It.” He correctly quickly, causing Hermione to raise her eyebrows. “I couldn't resist it any longer.”

Hermione stared at Draco. “I see. I think you know what I'm going to say in response to that.”

Draco guessed, “You'd have preferred me to go without sleep, rather than break our agreement and have me sleep with you.”

Even though Draco's wording had been entirely suitable to their situation, Hermione couldn't help shifting uncomfortably at their ambiguity. “Exactly.” She said quietly. When Draco didn't comment, Hermione glanced at the clock on the wall and saw that its single hand was pointing at the word `Breakfast'. “Draco, its breakfast time. I'm hungry but I'm not going to leave this bed knowing you're watching me.”

“Why not?” Draco asked in feigned curiosity. “I've seen you in those nightclothes three times now. What's one more?”

“You've been counting?” Hermione asked, even though she herself had counted three, too.

“They're not images I'd readily want to forget.” Draco informed her, his gray eyes locked with hers. “But,” he continued, seeing her eyes that she was unwilling to give him another image for the collection. “If you're so paranoid, I'll go get changed in the bathroom so you can keep your modesty out here.”

Hermione smiled in gratitude, only to have it replaced by a look of annoyance when Draco pulled the covers off. He applied much more force than required, resulting in the exposure of them both. Hermione instinctively reached over and slapped Draco on the arm, while his eyes darted over her scantily dressed body for a fourth time. She pulled the covers up to her chin, and glared over at Draco as he stood with a self-satisfied smirk and walked over to his chest of drawers.

The glare slowly melted away as she realised what she was looking at. Draco knelt, wearing only a pair of black boxers and bed socks. In a different situation, Hermione would have found the fact that he wore bed socks amusing, considering he didn't bother to keep any other part of himself warm. However, this morning as she stared at his lean, pale back, Hermione felt something so close to attraction that it scared her.

Draco suddenly stood up with a robe in his hands and turned to face her, forcing her gaze to snap up from his toned figure to meet his eyes. They stared at each other in silence for a few seconds, before Draco winked at her with only the slightest trace of a smile. “I'll give you five minutes to change. Then I'm coming out.”

Hermione nodded and watched him walk into the bathroom and close the door with a snap

Chapter Fourteen - Day One

The Scales sat in the community lounge after breakfast. They had ten minutes until they had to be upstairs ready to listen to their first speaker. Taylor and Mark were nearing the end of a game of Exploding Snap, while Corey sat watching. Draco and Devon sat on the couch, purposefully ignoring the other. Hermione entered the room from having to use the bathroom, and made her way over.

Deciding that the spare seat in between Devon and Draco would not be the best place to sit, she perched on the edge of a stool.

“So, what's first up?” she enquired, pulling her hair out of her face and tying it securely at the nape of her neck.

“Don't pretend you don't know.” Draco said with the hint of a smile. “As if we didn't see you memorize the entire week's timetable over breakfast this morning.”

“I was just making conversation.” Hermione said, feeling slightly silly. “Well, do you want to know what we have first?”

“I do already.” Draco said, reminding Hermione that he'd examined the timetable over her shoulder.

“Well, I'd like to know.” Devon said with a friendly smile.

Hermione returned the smile. “The first ten minutes, is an introductory lecture by the administrator of the seminar, telling us what to expect this week. Then, we have our first guest speaker.”

“And who is that going to be?” Devon asked, his eyes glancing at Mark and Taylor as they packed up their game.

“It didn't say.” Hermione responded with a frown. “Some guest speakers want to remain anonymous until we're in the room with them, I suppose.”

Draco stood, causing the other five to follow suit without thinking. Without a backward glance, Draco led the way through the corridors and up the stairs to the second floor. Hermione found herself walking in silence next to Mark, with Devon directly in front of her. His brown hair looked soft in the morning light filtering in through the windows, and for a brief moment Hermione caught herself wondering what it would be like to run her hands through it, ever so gently… Mark cleared his throat and caught her eye. The grin that threatened to show itself betrayed that Mark knew where her thoughts had been.

“Careful.” He muttered, allowing his grin to break the surface.

Hermione glared at him half-heartedly, and then kept her eyes firmly on the ground. She sighed inwardly at the amount of confusion Corey's words of advice had caused her since the previous day. Now that Corey had pointed it out to her in black and white, there was no mistaking Devon's intentions towards her. Especially since Devon had more or less told Hermione that he liked her. Draco's intentions remained slightly less obvious, yet having him decide to sleep in the same bed as her struck Hermione as a telltale sign. Not that Corey needed to know about that particular development.

It wasn't long before Draco led them to the room where their speeches would take place. After entering the small room, the Scales sat down behind a row of tables. Hermione chose to sit at the far end; Mark sat next to her, followed by Devon, Corey, Taylor and on the opposite end, Draco. Hermione thought that Mark's decision to sit next to her wasn't as unintentional as he made it seem. It was clear that Mark was helping Hermione avoid sitting next to Devon so she wouldn't have to make any choices so soon.

Hermione shook her head when she realised what she was thinking. As if Mark had thought that much about where he sat. He probably just looked for the comfiest chair. Hermione was making too much of a deal about her predicament, and her wild imagination was trying to include everyone into it. At least, that's what she was convincing herself until Devon smiled charmingly at her over Mark's shoulder, and attempted to talk to her, but was quickly cut off by Mark.

Soon after, the door opened and a young wizard walked in. He closed the door behind him and moved to stand in front of them with a smile. “Welcome.” He said, pausing to look at each of them. “Thank-you very much for coming and supporting this new seminar. I hope you will find it extremely beneficial, and leave for Hogwarts at the end of this week knowing where you will work next year. Your program not only includes guest speakers from various fields of the wizarding world, but small workshops to increase various skills needed in the workforce, and free time to relax and enjoy the benefits of the snow here in the mountains. This week also provides you with a wonderful opportunity to meet many of the other young witches and wizards here. All of whom are here with as much determination for success as you, so I suggest making your connections now.”

The young man stopped speaking for a moment, and glanced at the six youths in front of him. “Oh, sorry.” He smiled apologetically. “I'm Gareth Pendleton. I've given that same speech six times in the past half-hour, so forgive me if I'm beginning to forget the simple things such as introducing myself.”

“I'm Draco Malfoy.” Draco said formally, standing and extending his hand towards Gareth. Gareth moved forwards with a smile and shook his hand.

“Lucius Malfoy's son?” Gareth asked politely.

“The one and only.” Draco replied, his voice becoming cold. He turned to face the others. “This here is Taylor Smith.”

“Taylor Smith, son of Benedict Smith?” Gareth inquired, shaking Taylor's outstretched hand. “Creator of Zooming Brooms™, specialists in the very best Quidditch broomsticks?”

Taylor nodded with a smile, appearing pleased that this man knew something about him. Draco then motioned to Corey. “This is Corey Mackell.”

Gareth shook his hand with a curious expression. “Mackell? Now where have I heard that name before? You're not related to Lysander Mackell, are you? Rather large fellow; fruitlessly attempts to tame Dragons in Romania?”

Corey nodded uncomfortably, “He's my uncle.”

“I don't suppose you want to follow in his footsteps?”

“He wrote a book once.” Corey said. “Although I don't want to go anywhere near Dragons, I'll walk down the path of the novelist anytime.”

“I see.” Gareth mused momentarily, and then turned to Devon. Before Draco could introduce him, Gareth smiled in amusement. “Now I'd know your face anywhere. Goldenpearl?”

Hermione noticed Mark snicker next to her, and wondered what in the name of Merlin Gareth was talking about. She cast a glance at Draco just in time to see him roll his eyes and shake his head in apparent disgust.

“Devon Hutch.” Devon supplied with a perfect smile, shaking his hand. “My mother was Juliette Goldenpearl, until she married my father of course, Sebastian Hutch.”

“Ah, beautiful Juliette.” Gareth smiled reminiscently. “Your mother drove the wizards of this world crazy every time she appeared in Bewitch magazine. I seem to remember her smile affected men the most.” Naturally, Devon's smile widened at this comment. “Hmm. It's clear she passed it on to you.”

Draco cleared his throat loudly. “Mark Darcy.”

Mark leaned over Devon and grasped Gareth's hand before Devon's ego had the chance to swell any larger. “Good to meet you, mate.” Mark said, watching Gareth for his reaction.

The confident smile slid off Gareth's face for a short yet noticeable moment. “Darcy, did you say?”

Mark nodded with a steel glint in his eye. “I take it you've heard of my father, Tristan Darcy? Unfortunately he is in Azkaban prison at the present. Slaughtered far too many Muggles and Mudblood's. Even Fudge couldn't pretend it wasn't happening. His mass murders in London Underground last year are what really did him in though. Very tricky for the Ministry to clean up. ”

The room was silent, while each of the male Scales waited for Gareth's reaction. It was clear that he knew of Tristan, but didn't know of his son, unlike Lucius and Draco Malfoy. Hermione however, had never heard of Tristan Darcy. She sat in stunned silence, staring at her hands while her eyes filled with sudden tears. Mark spoke of the appalling deeds his father carried out as if he had accidentally stood on a puppy's tail, but Hermione sensed it deeply troubled him. To have such horrendous acts associated with his name must be difficult to bear. Unless, Hermione thought, she had read him wrong and he was as dark a wizard as his father.

She glanced to her right and saw Mark's face was tense and his eyes dared Gareth to mention a bond between him and his father. Although relieved not to see Mark swelling with pride over Tristan's behaviour, Hermione desperately prayed Gareth wouldn't be stupid enough to ask “Like father like son, eh?” Hermione then looked over Mark's shoulder and met eyes with Draco, who had obviously been watching her.

Draco held her eyes, and Hermione hoped he couldn't tell that they were watery. She blinked a few times and forced herself to look away from his piercing gaze. Only to look directly into a pair of sapphire blue eyes. Devon smiled at her, and Hermione momentarily forgot where she was. That damn smile, she thought to herself.

“Hermione Granger.” Draco's voice caused Hermione to come back to herself. Gareth's head quickly snapped towards Hermione with incredulous eyes. When Hermione offered her hand for a shake, Gareth took it in his own and raised it gently to his lips. As he did this, Hermione noticed at least two of the guys shift disapprovingly in her peripheral vision.

“Hermione Granger.” He said softly in admiration. “Never did I think I would have the honor. Your services to the wizarding world have been plenty. Battling alongside Harry Potter and the youngest Mr. Weasley… and with such bravery for a young witch. I don't think I could name even one witch whose caliber is as courageous as yours. Not to mention one as intelligent. You are awe-inspiring to say the least.” Gareth paused for a brief moment, and Hermione assumed him to be catching his breath. “Miss Granger, you should have no problems in the future. At least in relation to finding a job. All you have to do is name your desired occupation and witches and wizards alike will step aside for you.”

Hermione smiled in embarrassment, not daring herself to look at any of the Scales. “Um…thank you.”

Gareth nodded and clasped his hands together. “Alright. Before your first guest speaker, I have a few things to mention. Magic is most certainly allowed here. We place no restriction on your use of magic, unlike at Hogwarts, where I remember a `no magic in the corridors' limitation. If you experience any magical mishaps or injuries of any kind, we have a hospital branch on this floor, down the far end of the corridor.” Gareth paused, clearly trying to recall what else he had to mention. “Ah yes. The other witches and wizards who are here at the moment will be here throughout the week, like yourselves. However, starting Wednesday, there will be others arriving with Day Passes. This enables them to attend the seminars which relate solely to their interests. The fire place in the entrance hall is now connected to the Floo network, so it will not be a problem for you to Floo your way back to Hogwarts. If you'd prefer this mode of transport to the car you arrived in, I can owl Albus Dumbledore and arrange for him to connect a fire for your return.”

Mark immediately raised his hand. “Yeah. Do that for me, will you?”

“Of course.” Gareth nodded. “Any questions?”

The Scales shook their heads, while Hermione spoke up. “Can we go outdoors at any time? Or do you lock the building after dark?”

“No, you're free to go in and out no matter what the time.” He answered her. “There's a track out the back which circles around a small lake, which is currently frozen over. Feel free to take a walk, or grab some skates from the storeroom on the ground floor. If you require anything else, my office is the room next door. I should be there if you need me.”

“Thank you Gareth.” Draco said on behalf of them all.

“I'll leave you to your first speaker. Morning tea will be in an hour.” Gareth smiled one last time and left them alone in the room. Hermione was still feeling uncomfortable with the praise she had received, and decided to simply stare out the window to avoid any unwanted eye contact.

“Well done Hermione.” Mark said over her shoulder, ruining her hopeless plan to keep a low profile. She turned to look at him and noticed all five males were watching her.

“What do you mean?” she asked, uncertain of what he was referring to.

“You're the only one of us Gareth knew.” Mark explained. “That's impressive.”

“I am not.” Hermione said with a frown. “He knew all of you.”

“No.”he corrected. “He knew someone we were related to. Not us individually. Although, I would have preferred that he didn't even know that much about me.”

“Oh.” Hermione said, realising the truth in Mark's words. “I suppose you're right. But I would also prefer that people not have any reason to know me.”

“Why not?” Taylor asked curiously, leaning on his elbows as they rested on the desk in front of him.

“Because,” Hermione said softly. “I would prefer to have never fought alongside Harry. No wait,” She corrected quickly, noticing their surprised faces. “That didn't come out right. I meant, that I wish there was no dark side to fight. I don't mean that I would prefer for Harry to fight on his own. That would be ridiculous. He wouldn't know what to do.”

Mark couldn't help smirking. “Is Harry not as bright a spark as you?”

“No, it's not that.” Hermione smiled. “Although it's true enough. Harry can be rash, that's all. He needs people to help him take a step back and see the big picture. Otherwise, he'd just head off to find Voldemort with no idea what he's going to do when he does find him. As long as he has his wand, he thinks he's prepared. Besides all that, Harry needs friends. He couldn't fight alone. No one can, in my opinion.”

“Not even the dark lord?” Draco asked with a serious expression on his face.

“Voldemort is no lord.” Hermione whispered with narrowed eyes. The Scales stared at her, surprised by her statement. “And no, even he has his Death Eaters. He was nothing when he was abandoned by them for all those years, and only returned to power when that bastard rat man found him. He stands strong so long as his men are with him. Just like every other wizard.”

“Well said.” A familiar voice commented from the front of the room. All six students jumped in surprise and swiveled their heads to see Dumbledore smiling at was to be their first speaker, dressed in his deep purple robe with silver stars. It seemed that none of them had noticed his entry due to Hermione's speech. “I wish everyone were as smart as you, Hermione. But it seems not everyone can figure out the simple truth. It is obvious once you discover it. Harry needs everyone's support. Not even Voldemort can fight alone.”

The guys remained silent, having never actually thought about this `simple truth' before. Hermione however, spoke up. “I hope Harry knows all this. It's too often that he thinks of rushing off on his own, to a place where Voldemort is surrounded by Death Eaters.”

“I think he has recently come to terms with it.” Dumbledore said with a wink, giving Hermione reason to believe he had spoken to Harry before he went to the Burrow. “Now,” Dumbledore continued, dropping the Tail's eye, and turning to look at the Scales. “Once you head back to Hogwarts at the end of this, there is the chance of a lot resting on your shoulders. All you have to do is tell me now, yes or no. Will you help us ensure that good has as much of a chance at winning than evil? There are things that can be done, but unfortunately, I myself cannot carry them out. The decision has to be unanimous. If you decide no, it is too much for you, then I will continue on to tell you about some possible career opportunities, each specifically related to your individual talents.”

More silence followed. Dumbledore had been as unspecific as possible. Hermione smiled slightly, knowing she would say yes, although she had not a clue what it would entail. She'd say yes to Dumbledore, no matter what he asked of her, if it would ultimately help Harry.

“What sort of things would we have to do?” Draco asked, a true Slytherin through and through; trying to get more information than he was permitted. “I mean, if you need our help so badly as to come out here just to ask, surely you can tell us a few things. It might help us to agree.”

Dumbledore nodded. “I can give you no specifics Draco. But, know that yours is the only society that can help with this problem. Not only will it require you to keep secrets from everyone - and I mean everyone - outside this group, but you'll have to lie to get your way. I have no doubt you'll have to make sacrifices to succeed. Determination is a must, for it will feed your bravery, which for this task, you'd be unable to complete without it.”

The Scales all exchanged glances, their curiosity piqued by Dumbledore's words. Hermione tried to hide a smile. Dumbledore certainly knew how to get these guys to agree. Make them sound as if they'd have to be superheroes to complete the task, and they're hooked. Although it he'd presented it in an abstract form, Dumbledore had used simple flattery to draw them in. Hermione almost rolled her eyes; Slytherins.

“Hermione,” Draco asked, snapping her out of her thoughts. “What do you think?”

“You should know that I'll agree to whatever Dumbledore asks.” She replied. “So of course I'm a yes. But I'll hold no grudges if you guys want to refuse. I mean, I can only imagine it will be a huge task, if we're talking about helping bring Voldemort down. So, just say no now, and we can get on to talking about our future careers.”

Five pairs of eyes narrowed at her. Then, they all glanced at each other, while Hermione winked at Dumbledore. Draco stood up and extended his hand towards the old Headmaster. “We're in.”

Dumbledore moved solemnly to Draco and shook his hand, sealing the deal. “Thank you.”

“So, what do we have to do?” Mark asked, eyeing Dumbledore closely.

“I'm afraid I can only tell you a part of that. You will hear the rest from another speaker later this week.” Dumbledore said, sitting himself down on a chair at the front of the room. He looked at them with an expression Hermione had seen only a few times; guilt. Hermione frowned and waited silently. “As we have concluded, Voldemort cannot fight alone. He needs his Death Eaters. But, we know he is not foolish enough to start the final war while Hogwarts is whole. Such a large force of witches and wizards, albeit only learning, would be unwise to overlook. So, as I'm sure you're expecting, he will initiate an attack on the school. What we need is to have him send as many Death Eaters as possible. This would leave him with little support were Harry to choose that time to show up.”

“How do you plan on doing that?” Taylor asked. “Hogwarts would have to be a big threat for him to send more than thirty Death Eaters. They do their job quickly and efficiently. I'm sure Voldemort wouldn't be after the domination of the school; just enough deaths to frighten us all out of resisting.”

“Yes, you're right Mr. Smith.” Dumbledore consented. “At the moment, that is his goal. Ensure the students of Hogwarts won't back Harry by scaring them. Not only would this leave Harry alone, but also tormented with visions of dying classmates. It is the perfect plan. Especially with Hogwarts structured the way it is.”

The Scales and the Tail frowned at his final comment, but before they could enquire after it, Dumbledore continued. “And yes, there is also the problem of not knowing when to expect the attack, therefore risking not getting Harry out in time. But to all of this there is a solution.”

The six students waited in bated breath for the explanation. “An infiltrator.”

“You mean have one of us pose as a Death Eater?” Devon asked bluntly, causing a shiver to run down Hermione's spine.

“It is a lot to ask. You can still pull out. Say no, and I'll mention the wonderful office off Pepperneck Alley that offers employees two months optional holiday per year. But say yes, and I'll leave it with you to decide who to send. Which one of you is the most likely to be accepted? You'll have to feed Voldemort false information about the school, and ensure he attacks at a time you suggest. It is so risky that I almost hope to hear you reject the notion, and yet a part of me believes it will work.”

“If I speak for all of us, consider it done.” Corey said quietly, glancing at the others to receive their nods.

Dumbledore watched them gravely. “I'll leave it with you to decide then. If you begin to doubt the idea's plausibility, please let me know. If you doubt yourselves, Voldemort will see right through you.” He stood, said “Thank you,” and disappeared with a loud crack.

It was only a few silent moments later that they all stood and made their way out into the corridor. They still had another half-hour until morning tea, so each peeled off to think about Dumbledore's words in solitude. Hermione wandered downstairs to get a breath of fresh air. Although it had snowed the night before, the path circling the lake had been cleared, so she walked it without getting her feet soaked.

The sky was a pale blue and the air was still and crisp. Hermione inhaled deeply, and sighed in resignation. She felt as if she lived in a state of constant anxiety. All her years worrying about Harry, and Voldemort's efforts to destroy of him. Now she had the Scales to worry about too. As she wandered slowly down the path, staring across the frozen lake, Hermione wondered which of the five guys would end up nominating themselves.

She doubted Taylor. Not because he wouldn't be able to handle it, but because the other four were older and would feel it was more their responsibility. Corey might, but he wasn't as bold as the other three. Although Hermione was sure he could do it; his quiet personality left little to be mistrusted, she felt the remaining three might nominate themselves over him. Then, Hermione came to Devon. More likely, she thought, pushing the image of his smiling face to the back of her mind. He had determination aplenty, as Hermione had seen in his efforts to woo her, and yet he wasn't as suited as someone like Mark.

Mark had a family history in the dark magic, and his general manner could certainly pass as malicious if he wanted it to. Hermione could envision Mark by Voldemort's side without any trouble, which caused her to shiver slightly. And yet, there was still one contender.

All Draco would have to do is fill in Lucius's shoes, and he would have his spot in Voldemort's inner circle. A trusted, loyal Malfoy to carry out the dark lords every demand. No one would ever suspect a boy raised by weavers of dark magic. He would be perfect. Hermione's stomach dropped and she felt her face fall as she thought about it. He was beginning to show a different side of himself; a bearable side, and Hermione found herself not wanting to lose it so soon. She was sure that as soon as he mingled with those evil prats of wizards, Draco would go back to being one himself.

Hermione walked around a bend in the path, only to come face to face with her object of contemplation. Draco stopped, and looked up from where he had been staring at the ground. His faraway expression cleared when he locked eyes with Hermione.

“Oh,” Draco said, in a way that made it clear he hadn't expected to run into anyone out here. “Hello Hermione.”

“Hi.” Hermione replied awkwardly, dropping his gaze. For some reason, she felt that Draco would know she'd been thinking about him just by looking at her. “I've just been thinking,”

“We all are.” Draco responded, turning around to walk by Hermione's side. A small flip of her stomach betrayed the way she felt about this small chance interaction. They continued to walk in silence, and Hermione didn't dare intrude his thoughts with needless words. He must be thinking of Voldemort, and the task Dumbledore had set them. As leader of the Scales, it would be Draco's decision to choose who would go to the dark side.

Hermione felt his arm graze lightly against hers as they walked, and acted as if she didn't feel it. When Draco didn't distance himself either, Hermione attempted sending him a discreet glance, to see how lost in thought he appeared. Unfortunately, Draco wasn't lost in any thoughts. He was looking at her with the faintest of smiles.

Once her stomach had done another spontaneous flip, Hermione smiled back. She thought of saying something for the sake of covering their strange silence, but knew she'd sound silly, so remained quiet.

“Who do you think should go?” Draco asked her, his arm now not simply brushing against hers, but gently resting against it.

“I…don't know.” Hermione faltered. “I can't decide.”

“Ok,” Draco accepted. “Then, who do you think shouldn't go?”

“Well,” Hermione began as they continued walking slowly. “Without meaning that any of you would be incapable, I've personally ruled out Taylor, because he's a bit young. Voldemort would be more likely to accept one of you older four than an underage wizard. Also Corey, although I do think he could pull it off.”

“What about Devon?” Draco asked, when she paused momentarily.

“It's my opinion that he shouldn't go either.” Hermione stated.

“Really?” Draco asked with a raised eyebrow, unable to conceal a smirk.

“Yes. I think we'll need him at Hogwarts all the time. We can't afford to have him skipping off to play bad guys with Voldemort when his good side is needed at the castle.”

Hermione felt Draco stiffen slightly and noticeably distance himself from her. “What is that supposed to mean? The rest of us don't have good sides? It doesn't matter if we go `skipping off' to risk our lives?” he asked, then added coldly. “Ah, that's right. I forgot Devon's more important to you.”

Hermione turned to stare at Draco in surprise. “That's not true and you know it. Don't say such stupid things. I just think Dumbledore is going to ask us to do more, and I think I know what it is. If I'm right, we'll need Devon.”

“I see.” Draco said, his voice no longer cold, but his distance from her remaining. “Can you tell me what this suspicion is?”

“You'll find out soon enough. I'd hate to tell you and be wrong.” She replied, pushing her frozen hands into her pockets. Then, bringing their conversation back to their task, Hermione asked “So, who do you think should go?”

“I think you're right... like always.” Draco said, staring out across the frozen lake. “Either Mark or myself.”

Nodding solemnly, Hermione raised her frozen hands to her mouth and breathed out warm air in hope of defrosting them. A few unsuccessful moments later, she rubbed them together rapidly, hoping this would work instead. Hermione continued her fruitless attempts unless Draco stopped walking and stood looking at her.

“Here.” He said, holding out his hands to her, palms turned up. Hermione didn't think twice before surrendering her numbing hands to him. Draco's were warm despite the chilly air, and he gently pressed her hands between his own to warm them. As they stood, Hermione looked at Draco, and as always, found him watching her. His gray eyes held the same warmth as his hands, and Hermione dropped her eyes before she began to blush. A few moments later, Draco released her hands.

“Thank you.” She said softly as they began walking again. They had almost completed an entire lap of the lake, and were nearing the large stone building.

“Time for morning tea.” Draco commented, filling the silence.

“Thank goodness,” Hermione said. “I could really use an apple.”

Draco smiled as they approached the large doors. As he pulled it open and stood back to allow Hermione to enter first, he said, “Me too.”

Chapter fifteen - The "children's" afternoon

The six Hogwarts students ate morning tea in silence. Each was lost in their own thoughts, thinking through all possible options of Dumbledore's task before a group discussion. Their silence was noted by the surrounding students, who were beginning to mingle outside of their school groups. At one point, a game young wizard approached the table with his eye on Hermione, whose back was to him as she sat staring out the window.

As he neared, Draco and Devon both looked at him with such displeasure that he changed direction mid-step and introduced himself to the witches on the next table. This dark-haired wizard was the only student who came close to introducing themselves to the Scales that morning. Not a word was exchanged as they walked up the stairs to their session at eleven o'clock.

Hermione opened the door to the room, only to stop walking the moment she saw who was waiting for them. Their timetable had said `Ministry for Magic Representative'. Hermione hadn't expected the Minister himself to make an appearance. Regaining mobility, Hermione made her way to the seat on the far side of the room.

Gareth must be some sweet talker, she thought to herself. Not only did he get Dumbledore, but Cornelius Fudge to come out and talk to the students. Not to mention some of the other speakers who would arrive later in the week.

Fudge stood watching them with the definite air of a person who thought himself superior to everyone around him. Hermione didn't think much of him because of the way he had disregarded Harry and Dumbledore's warnings about Voldemort two years ago. It was clear by the way raised eyebrows and flat stares of the Scales, the guys felt the same dislike, if not for the same reason.

“Good morning students.” Fudge said, bouncing back and forth on the balls of his feet. “I'm sure you're feeling pleasantly surprised and I daresay intimidated by my presence. As much as I would prefer you to think of me as just a fellow wizard, I'm sure my superiority to you is a little difficult to ignore. But not to worry, I seem to have that effect on children…”

Although Fudge continued to speak, the six youths suddenly stopped listening. They all froze for a few seconds, blinked in confusion, then exchanged incredulous glances. Children? Their dislike of Fudge had just increased ten-fold.

Hermione couldn't help smiling at the deep scowl on each of the males faces. Even Corey looked pissed at the Fudge's ignorance. However, none of them were rude enough to walk out on their Minister, and so they all remained glowering where they sat.

For the next hour, they sat in a bored stupor while Fudge rambled on about how great it was to be Minister. At one point, he attempted convincing them all to work for the Ministry for Magic. “I'll admit,” he said with a smug air, “unless you're the Minister - like myself - the pay isn't all that good, but you get a great feeling of patriotism. So isn't one worth the other?”

They all stared at him, and Hermione couldn't help scoffing loudly. Only once she received amused glances from Mark and Taylor, who sat closest to her, did Hermione attempt to pass it off as a cough. Unfortunately, her reaction time was too slow to fool Fudge.

“If you don't want to be here Miss, you can leave. Though bear in mind, other children would give their eye-teeth to be here with me.”

Hermione rolled her eyes at him, the second mention of `children' causing her patience to snap. “I would hope for your sake the other “children” who take my place are actually children. Most people resent being called a child in such a condescending manner.” Hermione said loudly, standing up abruptly, causing her chair to fall backwards. She stared at Fudge for a tense moment while the Scales waited curiously for her to continue. “How can you stand there promoting your job? Oh how lovely it is to be the Minister for Magic; all the luxuries one gets to enjoy. Visiting Tokyo off-business for three weeks, did you say? What an interesting indulgence to treat yourself to while Voldemort gets ever-stronger. What a wonderful job you're doing ensuring your peoples safety. Giving yourself a holiday - all expenses paid, by all of the taxpayers out there -I couldn't think of a better solution for this problem.” She said sarcastically.

There was a moment of stunned silence as Fudge stared at Hermione with a highly affronted expression. Inarticulate sounds of rage issued from his mouth, but it seemed he couldn't find any words to express his astonishment at being so rudely spoken to.

Then, as one, the Scales broke into an applause. Without bending to retrieve her fallen chair, Hermione stormed from the room without a backward glance.

The Scales stopped clapping, and Draco stood up, clearing his throat. “We thank you for giving up your precious time to come and talk to us,” he said, his tone indicating no appreciation whatsoever. “But it seems you've upset our most sensitive member, so we'll have to stop you there.”

The other four also stood, and followed Draco out of the room. As they did, Devon caught Fudge's eye and sent him a nasty glare, leaving Fudge feeling quite bewildered.

“What strange children.”

Draco walked into the dining room followed by Mark and Devon. Corey and Taylor had claimed they weren't hungry and had gone down to the lake for a while to ice-skate. Draco spotted Hermione sitting at a table across the room, and led the way over to her. The three guys sat down and looked at her in amusement.

“You realise you just insulted the Minister for Magic, one of the most powerful men in our world?” Mark asked her in an approving tone. Hermione couldn't help looking sheepish as she sipped her hot chocolate.

“I didn't mean to,” she said in her defense. “It just sort of slipped out.”

“Slipped out?” Draco inquired with a raised eyebrow. “Well if that's the sort of thing that randomly slips out of your mouth, we'll have to be more careful where we take you.”

“Ok, so I knew exactly what I was saying.” Hermione admitted. “Fudge grinds my nerves, that's all.”

“I don't think you're alone in feeling like that, Hermione.” Devon said, casting her his charming smile. “I can understand how he irritates you. Cornelius Fudge is an extremely egotistical wizard.”

“I can think of another.” Draco muttered, loud enough for the others to hear. Mark smirked; Hermione held back a smile and covered it by quickly taking a drink, while Devon glowered at Draco.

YOU

“So Hermione,” Mark began; his smirk still present. “Is it alright to have a meeting in yours and Draco's room after dinner tonight? There are certain things we need to discuss.”

Hermione nodded, knowing he was referring to Dumbledore's task. “That shouldn't be a problem.”

“Good.” He approved. “Now, we were thinking that we've been a bit anti-social, and should probably talk to few of the other students here. We decided on our way down that we shouldn't all sit together at dinner. Have a go at mingling. Sound alright?”

“Sure thing.” Hermione agreed, glancing about the dining room to find some likely contenders. As she looked to the table on her right, she met eyes with the dark haired wizard who had attempted approaching her earlier that day. He sent her a friendly smile, which she returned before dropping her gaze to her lunch plate.

Looking up once more, she locked eyes with Draco, who gazed back with a cool expression. Hermione frowned to herself, wondering why she couldn't figure him out. Sometimes he was pleasant towards her, but at other times Draco would look at her like he was now, and Hermione would wonder what she'd done wrong.

Suddenly, Corey's words came to the surface of her memory, and she realised how ignorant she was being. There was the possibility that Draco liked her. Although Hermione still couldn't quite grasp that concept. Devon; now he made it as obvious as he could that he was interested. But Draco was so discrete that it was easy not to believe it. In fact, even though Hermione was subconsciously beginning to hope that Corey spoke the truth about Draco, she dared not to convince herself it was certain. Hermione took another sip of her hot chocolate while she pondered, but found herself looking at Draco again.

He was now staring flatly at the dark-haired wizard who had smiled at Hermione. The young man glanced casually over at Hermione again, but instead caught Draco's eye. Draco stared at him for a few moments before looking away dismissively.

Taylor and Corey joined them a quarter of an hour later. After lunch, they had an hour before their final speaker for the day. Hermione declined Mark's, Corey's and Devon's invitation to go out ice-skating, and instead sat in the community lounge with her Charms homework. Draco and Taylor sat by her with their books also open.

Draco glanced across at her work with a frown. “What Charms homework do we have?”

“Not much written work.” She replied without ceasing to write. “Just the main cautions to remember when using an Illusion Charm. It's just to see if we can remember what he told us at the start of the year. When we get back to Hogwarts we'll be practicing them in class. And then I'll try get my History of Magic presentation started.”

“Oh.” He stated simply, resuming his Transfiguration essay on the dangers of changing a small inanimate object to a large animate being.

“Had you forgotten about doing them?” Hermione questioned curiously, dipping her quill in the ink pot above her parchment. Due to being around Harry and Ron all her Hogwarts life, Hermione subconsciously expected most students to be like them and forget about most school tasks.

“Nah.” He said, pausing to watch her. “I've already finished it.”

Now it was Hermione's turn to say, “Oh.” Her quill wavered, betraying her surprise. “Already?”

“Why not?” Draco continued to watch her, a smile forming on his face. Hermione lay down her quill and frowned.

“That's exactly it.” She mused, apparently to herself. “I've been trying to tell them for years and they just don't get it.”

“Sorry?” Taylor asked, looking up from his parchment. “Who are we talking about?”

“No one.” Hermione answered distractedly.

Taylor turned to Draco for an explanation, only to find him watching the Tail with a half smile. Taylor let it rest, aware that these two had something going and knowing he should be thankful that Devon wasn't around. Taylor's observations had led him to the conclusion that Draco was winning their battle over Hermione. Although Taylor didn't know Hermione's disposition very well due to being a year below her at Hogwarts, he knew the guys.

Draco didn't find girls that he liked very often. Taylor had always figured this was due to his pure-blooded upraising to always aim for the very best. It was clear that he deemed Hermione to be of this quality. Whereas Devon went through a fair few girls each year; never being able to settle with one for very long. Being raised by a model as a mum had apparently taught Devon to love the limelight; constantly seek the attention of as many as he could. Outrageous flirting was his nature. Commitment was not.

Taylor knew that Devon had Hermione's best interests at heart; he just didn't know that he'd be dropping her after a few months when the novelty wore off.

“Listen you two, I'm just going to head up to my room.” He said quietly. Draco and Hermione both turned to him in surprise. It was as if they'd forgotten that he was there. “I left a text book up there. I'll just meet you on the second floor in half an hour, ok?” They nodded and Taylor walked out of the lounge.

For the next half hour, the pair worked in silence. As Hermione wrote, she kept thinking about how Draco's hands had felt covering hers earlier that day. Warm, slightly calloused from all his Quidditch training, and firm. The sensation of the latter is what played on her mind the most. He hadn't been tentative or repulsed by touching her, but had gently taken hold of her numb hands with what seemed like determination.

Her quill halted over the parchment as her eyes wandered casually to where one of Draco's hands rested on the table. She didn't realise Draco had been watching in amusement her until he spoke. “Do you need a hand?” he asked, making it seem as if he thought she had a mental block.

“What?” she asked, meeting his eyes almost guiltily. “Oh…no, I'm right.”

“I think it's time to go upstairs.” He told her, rolling up his parchment and stopping his ink pot. She nodded and also packed up. Once they joined up with the other guys, the treaded into their seminar room to find Taylor and a middle-aged wizard waiting for them.

“Good afternoon. I am Alfred Stuart.” The man introduced himself once they had all sat down. “I know I don't have very long, but this afternoon I will be promoting the benefits of starting your own business. Have any of you thought of starting your own business when you leave school?”

Hermione raised her hand, Devon murmured “I've thought about it,” while Taylor queried, “Do you mean starting a business specifically or just running one?”

“Either.”

“Then yes.” Taylor replied. “I've always thought I could take over my fathers business of Quidditch supplies.”

“Good.” Alfred approved, and then he turned to Hermione. “And you Miss? What businesses have you considered looking into?”

“Well,” Hermione began, “There's an organization that I tried to start in Hogwarts that never really took off. I called it S.P.E.W; Society for the Promotion of Elfish Welfare. I wanted people to realise that House Elves are creatures that deserve rights, just as much as any witch or wizard. I might try to keep it going once I finish Hogwarts.”

“Spew?” Draco queried in astonishment. “Is that what that was all about? I thought you lot had just gone mental, wearing badges promoting vomit. Then again, thinking House Elves actually want freedom is also a step towards derangement if you ask me.”

Hermione shot Draco a cool look, reminiscent of those she gave Ron when she first told him in fourth year, while the other guys sniggered. “Have you so quickly forgotten Dobby?” she asked quietly.

Draco's smile vanished and his eyes narrowed. “So we have different opinions. Let's let it lie.”

“And you young man?” Alfred asked Devon. “What areas of business have you considered?”

“I haven't thought that far.” Devon admitted. “I just think that it would be cool to have my own product.”

“Product?” Alfred queried with interest. “What sort of product might you release?”

Devon shrugged, though the others could tell he was pleased with the attention. “I was thinking something that would sell quickly. House-witches can be big buyers. Perhaps something to slip their husbands to make their lives more interesting.”

“What a fascinating direction to take.” The wizard mused, apparently unable to hear Draco and Mark scoffing at the other end of the row of tables. “Now, let me talk to you about the best ways to get started.”

For the next hour and a half, Alfred informed them about the business world. It may be difficult to start off, but Gringotts offer loans to trustworthy wizards and witches, and he was sure that Dumbledore would be more then willing to write each of them a letter of recommendation. All six students listened curiously, knowing that this may very well be a path they take in the future.

Once Alfred had wished them all good luck and disappeared with a loud crack, Hermione was ready for another walk. She was accustomed to a lot of daily walking around the expansive Hogwarts castle, so decided to go outside for another lap or two of the lake before dinner. By the time she'd exhausted any desire for further exercise, it was time for dinner.

The dining room was filled with socializing wizards and witches as Hermione entered. She had taken the time to have a quick shower after walking in the drizzling rain, and was now decked in a warm black jumper and her jeans. Remembering that she should introduce herself to other students, Hermione scanned the room for the most approachable looking group.

The dark haired wizard was laughing with a friendly looking bunch of students, so she decided to give them a try. She approached and stood a bit awkwardly next to their table, not wanting to interrupt their conversation. After a few moments, a witch with long blonde hair glanced up at her with a smile.

“Hi. Would you like to join us?” she asked, scooting over to give Hermione room to sit down.

“Thanks.” Hermione smiled, seating herself. “I'm Hermione.”

“Cool name.” The girl commented. “I'm Clio, and this is Eliza.” She said, motioning to the petite brunette sitting next to her.

“I'm Will.” The dark-haired wizard said with a smile. He then gestured to two students having a conversation at the end of the table. “And that's Lucia and Jack. We're from Durmstrang. Which school are you representing?”

“Hogwarts.” Hermione answered, dishing up her plate from the serving bowls in the centre of the table.

“Really?” he asked curiously, and then glanced about the dining room as if looking for something. “So then that guy over there actually is a Malfoy? I read that Lucius's son attends Hogwarts in an article when he was put in Azkaban.”

“Yeah,” Hermione nodded, following Will's gaze to where Draco was sitting. He was in conversation with a tough-looking wizard, stirring his bowl of soup absently with a spoon. “That's him. Only don't mention his father too loudly. It's a bit of a sensitive issue.” She understated, recalling the last time she'd brought up Lucius around Draco. He had bruised more than her skin in retaliation. The memory made her shiver, so she turned back to the Durmstrang students.

“So what do you think of this seminar so far?” she asked curiously, beginning to eat.

“I was just telling Jack that I reckon it's all a set-up.” The tanned skinned witch named Lucia piped up. When the others frowned at this comment, she explained. “Well, it is a very convenient time to group a whole lot of independent witches and wizards together and send highly influential speakers to talk to us. I just reckon it's obvious we're here for a reason.”

“What do you mean?” Eliza asked with a frown, while Hermione thought about Lucia's point. It was very suspicious timing with Voldemort gaining more power and the war about to begin. To have a group of talented and motivated students to fight would be a great advantage.

“Well, I don't know about this girl - sorry, what was your name…” Lucia asked Hermione distractedly.

“Hermione.”

“Right. I don't know about Hermione's situation, but after having that Auror speak to us and get us to practice our Patronus's, I reckon this is all a bit iffy.”

“What's strange about practicing spells?” Hermione asked, wondering what they learnt at their school if spells were considered odd.

“The fact that he told us to ensure that the entire school knew how to perform it once we got back.” Lucia stated with a raised eyebrow. ““For our own protection.” Yeah right. And for your war.”

“What Auror did you have?” Hermione inquired, wondering if she knew him. The fact that these students had been asked to do something once they went back to school played on Hermione's mind.

“I don't remember his name.” Jack contributed, when the others shrugged, unable to recall either. “He was scary looking though. Didn't you have him as well?”

“No.” Hermione shook her head. “We had Fudge and a guy telling us about starting our own businesses.” For some reason, Hermione didn't feel that she should tell them about Dumbledore. He hadn't appeared on the timetable, so obviously wanted to remain anonymous.

“Fudge?” Lucia questioned dryly. “As in the Minister? He didn't ask you to complete some secret mission for the Ministry, did he?”

“No, surprisingly.” Hermione replied bitterly. “Though you'd think that he'd try get us to do his dirty work, while he's holidaying in Tokyo next week. Maybe he'll ask the next group he talks with. I got the feeling we were more hostile than the children he's used to.”

“Children?” Clio asked with a frown. “Surely you're all of a mature age?”

“Yeah. He just didn't get that part.” Hermione said, pushing her now empty plate away slightly.

“Right.” Will commented unsurely, then brought the conversation back to Lucia's point. “Um, Luchie, I think you're taking this whole conspiracy thing a bit far.” He said. “The Patronus task is probably something he's asking everyone to do. For our schools own safety. Dementor's can be very overpowering from what I've heard. I won't be surprised if they're the first thing He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named sends to begin the war. Weaken everyone's souls before attacking.”

“Yeah. Whatever.” She shrugged, reaching for the large bowl of strawberries and cream. Hermione considered Lucia's and Will's arguments. Will believed that teaching a whole school how to complete a Patronus is to help protect the students from any attacks. Lucia believed that it was so all the students who did manage to come to grips with the difficult spell, could be used by the Ministry to fight the Dementors while the older wizards fought the Death Eaters. It did sound a bit far fetched, Hermione concluded. She'd just have to wait and see how her seminar with an Auror went.

“Hermione.” A voice said from behind her. “Are you ready to come upstairs?”

She turned in surprise to see Draco standing behind her. Missing the ambiguity of the question, Hermione nodded and gulped down the final mouthful of her tea, thinking of discussing Dumbledore's task with the Scales. When she turned to the table to say goodnight to the Durmstrang students, she noticed the girls eyeing Draco approvingly, and Will looking slightly disappointed. Glancing up at Draco, she saw him looking at her with a small smile. A few locks of his blond hair fell lightly over his brow and he brushed them away as he looked to the students, “I'm Draco.” He introduced himself. “I hope you don't mind if I steal Hermione from you.”

“Go ahead.” Jack said with a friendly smile. The girls glanced at Hermione, each with a `you go girl' expression. She shook her head quickly to rid their minds of such assumptions, but their smirks widened.

“Have fun.” Clio said cheekily, quirking an eyebrow up at Draco.

“We always do.” He replied slyly. Hermione stood and said a brief farewell to the students. As the pair walked out of the dining room, she turned to Draco.

“What was that?”

“What was what?” Draco asked her. He appeared so curious that Hermione was almost convinced that he didn't know what she was referring to. She bit back her explanation at the last moment, raising her eyes instead. After casting her a side-long glance as they climbed the stairs, his expression became amused. “I wanted to see your reaction.”

“Why?”

He glanced at her again, but this time didn't reply. They reached room number seventeen and walked in to join Mark, Taylor and Corey. Devon hadn't arrived yet. Hermione sat on the edge of the unmade bed, while Draco stood in front of the fire. The three guys were all seated on the couch.

Devon walked in a few minutes later and glanced at them all with a smile. “What did I miss?” he asked, walking forwards to sit next to Hermione on the bed.

“Nothing.” Draco replied flatly.

“Great.” Devon said, and then paused as his eyes looked at the bed more closely. Hermione's purple nightgown could be seen poking out from under the pillow where she'd placed it that morning. However, that wasn't what had caught Devon's eye. His prying eyes had noticed that although Hermione had supposedly slept in the bed and Draco on the couch, both pillows on the bed were sunken as if they'd both been used. His eyes snapped over to glare at Draco, who looked back without expression.

“So what does everyone reckon?” Mark asked with his eyes on Devon. “Who should go?”

After a few moments silence of no one wanting to simply come out and choose someone, Taylor spoke up. “Although I'll do it if anyone thinks that I should, I personally opt myself out. I have no connections with Voldemort whatsoever, so getting accepted into his forces might be a problem.”

Draco nodded at Taylor's reasoning. “Does anyone think it should be Taylor?”

When they all remained silent, Taylor sighed loudly. “Thank Merlin.”

“So that eliminates one.” Mark commented dryly. “And Hermione's out, obviously.”

“What?” Hermione asked in mock surprise. “I think I could do it. I'm sure Voldemort could simply forget that I've been fighting alongside his arch-rival for six years. Besides that, being a mudblood would be the key to acceptance, don't you think?”

“Exactly. So you're out.” Mark said, giving her a faint smile. Then he continued the elimination process. “What do we all think of Devon?”

Devon looked up from where he'd been staring at the pillows. Glancing at the others worriedly, he waited for their verdict. It was clear by his silence that he hadn't nominated himself.

“I think he should stay.” Draco said firmly, catching Hermione's eye. Devon noticeably sagged in relief when the others all murmured their agreement. “Not because we think you incapable,” Draco continued seriously. “I just think others of us will find it easier to be accepted.”

“Understood.”

“I have a question.” Hermione said tentatively. They all turned to look at her silently, giving her the cue to ask. “Why should we only send one of us?”

The males stared at her, as if sending multiple Scales hadn't even entered their heads. They thought about the question for a few long moments, before Mark spoke up. “You see Draco? This is why it's good to have a female around.”

“No,” Draco disagreed. “This is why it's good to have this female around.”

“Are you thinking of sending two or three?” Corey asked Hermione quietly. He had been quiet up to this point; his silence indicating his agreement on all issues. If Hermione had been thinking of sending off three, then in her opinion, they had their infiltrators.

“Only two.” She replied softly under the gaze of all five guys.

“Who?” Taylor asked strangely. Hermione felt that the way they looked at her was as if they were waiting on a judge's verdict. What she said would go.

Hermione cleared her throat, and stated, “Mark.”

Mark nodded, making it clear he knew it was coming. Taylor rested a hand momentarily on his back in a guy's version of sympathy.

“I agree.” Draco said regretfully. “Sorry Mark.”

“No hard feelings.” He said, quieter than normal. “I knew it was coming.”

After a few moments of them all feeling guilty about Mark, Devon turned to Hermione and suggested the second infiltrator. “And Draco?”

Hermione looked at Devon, whose earnest features told her that the animosity between Draco and Devon were being set aside for this evening. He wasn't suggesting Draco to try get him out of the picture, but because he thought Draco the next most likely contender. For a choice such as serious as this, the guys weren't going to let a silly grudge get in the way of making the right decision.

She then turned her eyes to Draco, who stared straight back. His sharp features certainly looked intimidating when they wore such a somber expression. Image wise, he would be perfect.

“No. Corey.” Hermione said softly, looking apologetically at the quiet Slytherin.

“Huh?” Taylor questioned in confusion, while Draco continued to watch Hermione with a frown. “But…Draco is Lucius and Narcissa's son. He'd be in easy. Besides, just look at him.”

“Look at Corey.” Hermione suggested, and they all did. Corey shuffled uncomfortably under their scrutiny. “He's unassuming. Intelligent. Connected to the dark side with his…” Hermione frowned, forgetting where the connection lay.

“Mothers family.” Corey supplied, while staring at the floor with glazed eyes. They could all tell he was thinking quickly about the consequences of Hermione's suggestion.

“But why would he supposedly want to join Voldemort?” Draco asked softly. Meeting his eye, Hermione realised that he wasn't asking out of curiosity; he knew an answer. He just wanted to see if she did.

“Mark's influence.” She suggested. “His desire to join has always been there, and Mark has inspired him to do it.”

“Sounds reasonable.” Devon said, a crease between his brows as he thought. “But why not Draco instead? As Taylor pointed out, he has both his parents as a connection.”

“Not anymore he doesn't.” Hermione said, her eyes returning to Draco's still figure by the fire. “If he wanted to follow in his fathers footsteps, he'd have done it when Lucius was first put Azkaban - take up his position as a Death Eater. Not wait until the suspicious time of right before the war. Besides,” Hermione directed at Draco in particularly. “Didn't you say Voldemort probably knew that?”

Draco subconsciously brushed the stray locks of hair off his forehead as he nodded. “Yeah. It'd be too suspicious for me to run to him now.”

“Oh.” Devon said.

“Right.” Taylor breathed.

“Shit.” Mark commented, turning to Corey. “There you go. If two of us go, it's you and me.”

“That's what I had figured anyway.” Corey said. “Draco looks that part, but just doesn't fit it.”

They all glanced at Corey in slight surprise. He was more observant than they gave him credit for. Draco spoke up, “So what does everyone think? Are we down to Mark and Corey?”

Five heads nodded.

“And do we send them both, or just one?” Draco continued.

“I don't know.” Taylor admitted. “I hadn't even thought about that as an option. Can we talk about it again tomorrow so we can have the night to think about it? It's all feeling a bit rushed for such a beg decision.”

“Good idea.” Draco agreed, and then sighed. “Is there anything else anyone else wanted to discuss?”

When he was greeted by silence, he continued. “Then I guess that's all.”

Once the guys left their room a quarter of an hour later, Hermione moved into the bathroom to have her shower. Draco noticed that the bundle of pajamas she carried in with her was definitely larger than the one from the night before. The reason behind this was made clear when she emerged dressed in a pink dressing gown with yellow duck prints.

Draco stared at her for a few moments, holding his pair of black boxers loosely in one hand. “And where did that come from?” he asked in amusement, looking her up and down.

“I bought it from that small store downstairs before dinner.” Hermione explained, stopping outside the bathroom door to glance down at it. “It was the only one they had.”

“Why do they sell…those things?” Draco asked, now beginning to look sickened by the ducks which had been magically altered to waddle and quack softly every few seconds.

“Incase guests forget them, I suppose.” Hermione replied. “It's a dressing gown, by the way. I can't believe I forgot to pack mine.”

“Me either.” Draco smirked, still watching the ducks in disgust. A few had seen him staring, and were attempting in vain to peck him although he was standing a few feet away. “You remembered doubles of everything else.”

“Just ignore the ducks, Draco.” Hermione told him, though she couldn't hold back a smile at his expression. “It's warm and that's all that matters.”

“I didn't know you were cold last night.” Draco said, his eyes finally leaving the ducks to meet hers. “You should have told me. I would have done something to warm you up.”

Hermione raised her eyebrows at his ambiguous comment.

“As in stoke the fire.” Draco explained, smirking at her apparent assumption. Contrary to his words, Hermione saw him subconsciously glance down at her body, and knew that if she weren't wearing the ridiculous dressing gown, she would have blushed.

“That wouldn't have been necessary.” Hermione said. “I wasn't really that cold.”

“So why the dressing gown, if not for warmth?” Draco asked. “Surely not because of its looks.”

“Don't be ridiculous.” She said. “If you really want to know, I was getting tired of always being seen in my nightgown.”

“Why?”

“Because it's embarrassing.” Hermione exclaimed as if it were obvious.

“What if I promise not to look?” Draco suggested with a quirk of his eyebrow. Hermione stared into his gray eyes for a few moments, and Draco dropped his gaze momentarily before a ghost of a grin appeared on his lips.

“Don't make promises you don't intend to keep, Draco.” She reprimanded softly.

“Alright, whatever.” He said, although he had difficulty fully masking his disappointment. “As long as you're comfortable.”

“It is really comfortable. You should feel it.” She said lightly. Surprising Hermione out of mobility, Draco took her words literally and moved forwards so he was standing only inches from her. He reached out and ran his hand lightly down the collar of her dressing gown. The ducks quacking rose slightly in volume, and Draco glanced down at them in irritation.

“You're right.” He commented. “I'm having a shower.” And with that he side-stepped around her into the bathroom and closed the door behind him. Hermione glanced at the door with an expression bordering on forlornness, before shuffling about the room readying herself for bed.

She pulled a book out of her drawer, took her dressing gown off, and settled herself into bed. Hermione had deliberately chosen the center of the bed so Draco wouldn't be under the impression that she wanted him to sleep with her again.

It wasn't long after Hermione had become captivated in her book that she heard Draco call out from the shower.

“Hermione!”

She frowned, wondering what could possibly be the problem.

“Hermione!” Draco called out again. “Are you there?”

“Yeah!” she called back, placing her book on the covers beside her. “What do you want?”

“You said you over packed.” Draco shouted, his voice echoing slightly because of the acoustics of the bathroom walls. “Does that mean you brought shampoo?”

Hermione rolled her eyes but couldn't help smiling. “You mean you forgot to pack some in that swag of yours?”

“Answer the question, Hermione.” He called. “I'm wasting water here.”

“Hang on.” She answered, pulling back the covers and rummaging in her drawer for her toiletries. Once she located her fragranced shampoo, Hermione walked over to the bathroom door. It was only after she opened it without a second thought and walked in did she realise what she'd done.

Her eyes were immediately drawn to Draco, who stood with his back to her, letting the water of the shower wash over him. His lean, muscular form and bare behind caused Hermione to blush. A few brief moments later, Hermione returned to her senses, realising Draco would soon feel the cool air flowing in from the open door.

Dropping her gaze to the floor, she spoke. “What the hell are you trying to do to me?”

Draco's head snapped around to look over his shoulder. When he saw Hermione staring intently at the ground, blushing furiously, he allowed himself to smirk. “What am I trying to do to you? I believe if anything has been done to you, you did it to yourself. You are the one who has chosen to walk in on me.” He pointed out, watching hercolour deepen but her expression harden.

“By the way you asked for shampoo, I expected you to be wearing a towel or something, knowing I'd be coming in.” Hermione explained lamely.

“Interesting excuse.” Draco mused, enjoying watching her squirm in discomfort. “I assumed as a witch you would have hovered it in.” he smiled when he saw the look of realisation cross her face. “Or at least closed your eyes incase I hadn't made it to the towel yet.”

Hermione couldn't think of anything to say, so remained silent. Draco sighed theatrically and asked, “Can I have the shampoo? You're letting all the cold air in. If you want to stay, can you at least close the door?”

Leaving the door open, Hermione shuffled forward with her eyes firmly on the ground and extended her hand. She would never understand how most males could be so blasé about being seen naked. Hermione heard the glass door open and saw Draco reaching out in her peripheral vision. Although she could feel Draco's eyes on her, there was no way she would let him feel her eyes on him.

His hand suddenly wrapped around the bottle, touching her as he did so. She withdrew quickly, and left the bathroom without a word, closing the door behind her with a snap.

Draco's smirk returned. His suspicions had now been confirmed. Had Hermione liked Devon more than himself, she would never have considered walking into the bathroom. Yet she had comfortably walked in before her brain could tell her to do otherwise. Draco poured some shampoo in his hand, and finished his shower with a slight smile.

Hermione however, was torn. Should she berate herself for being so air headed as to walk in on Draco in the shower? Or smile because she'd just scored herself a look?

Hermione smiled. To think that the owner of that body liked her. And now she knew she felt the same. Hermione had seen more than enough nude males, (more than enough being three), to be familiar with the disgust and slight horror that accompanies the sight. Although they'd all been streaking on a dare or a high, (a drunken wizard at the Quidditch World Cup, an elated wizard in the common room after Gryffindor won the Quidditch House Cup - that being Fred, and the other over summer at the Burrow - that being George) Hermione had seen enough to hope for a severe case of amnesia to loose the memories forever.

However, even though Draco had been much closer to her than these others, Hermione hadn't felt revolted at all. Only embarrassed that he would think she'd been perving on him. Suddenly the bathroom door opened, and in all his glory, boxers and bed socks, out walked Draco.

Chapter sixteen - Forked Tongues

Draco walked out of the bathroom holding his robes under his arm and shot an amused glance at Hermione. She was reading, snuggled under the covers, lying directly in the center of the bed. Draco understood that she wasn't ready to imply an invitation for him to join her by keeping to one side. Her ridiculous quacking dressing gown was draped across the foot of the bed. Once he'd put his robes away, he sighed and sat heavily on the couch.

Hermione didn't look up, although Draco could tell she was watching him. The fact that her eyes were staring at the same place of the book was a bit of a giveaway. “What book are you reading?” he enquired, deciding that she was still too embarrassed to begin a conversation herself.

“Just a bit of background reading.” She said noncommittally, her eyes not moving from the one place on the page.

“Background reading on what?” Draco asked, lifting his legs up on the couch to lie lengthways, causing Hermione to glance up and watch the process.

“Secret societies within wizarding schools.” She replied, meeting his eyes then looking back at her book hurriedly.

“What an interesting topic to be reading.” Draco stated. “And what have you discovered?”

Hermione sighed and closed her book. Draco smirked at her useless attempt to pretend that she actually wanted to read. “I read that all schools tend to have them. Some large societies have been around for centuries. Though unsurprisingly, the Scales isn't listed. I guess you guys have always taken secrecy to the extreme.”

“Is Forked Tongues?” Draco asked curiously.

“Sorry?” Hermione asked back, quite confused.

“Is the society Forked Tongues listed in there?” he elaborated.

“Um,” Hermione picked up the book once more and scanned the front page. “Yeah.” She replied with a frown. “Why, what's that?”

“That's us.” Draco told her. “Forked Tongues is the name you'll find in texts and documents. It's the code name for the Scales, but only members of the Scales know that. Anyone who tries to find the Forked Tongues fails and usually concludes that it's died off, or is still too secret to be located.”

“Where did the name come from?”

“A past generation submitted that name anonymously when a document was being published about all the different societies. They wanted us to be documented in history, but unable to be found. You'll never find the Scales anywhere.”

Hermione thought about this for a moment, while Draco walked casually over to the bed, picked up the spare pillow, and carried it back to the couch. Propping himself up on it, he turned to look at her frowning face. “What is it?”

“Nothing really.” She admitted, though her frown remained in place. “It's just that I could have sworn I've read about the Forked Tongues before.”

“Probably on a facts sheet about snakes.” Draco said dismissively. “I doubt it connects.”

“You're probably right.” Hermione said.

“Probably?” Draco questioned with a raised eyebrow.

Hermione couldn't help smiling at his attempt at egotism. “You can be so full of yourself sometimes.” She smiled, turning out the light and laying back on the bed. “Goodnight Draco.”

“Night Hermione.” He replied, not closing his eyes but watching Hermione snuggle under the covers in the moonlight. “Oh…Hermione?” he asked quietly.

“Yes?”

Draco was silent for a few moments, thinking about how to word his next question. “Would you be able to shut those ducks up?”

For the next half hour, Draco laid still and silent, waiting for Hermione to fall asleep. He was completely uncomfortable; the arm of the couch dug into his neck while his feet hung over the opposite arm. Draco waited until he heard Hermione's breathing change to deep measured breaths. It was only a few minutes later that the same thing occurred as the night before.

Hermione's nightmare began. Her breathing became distressed murmuring and her expression turned pained in the moonlight. Draco sat up worriedly and strained to hear what she was saying. There was every possibility that Voldemort would enter her mind again during the dark hours of night, and Draco knew he had to be on his guard.

Standing quietly and padding across to the bed with his pillow tucked under his arm, Draco hoped he wouldn't wake her. For some reason, he didn't want Hermione to become aware of her nightmares. They sounded as if they would be more than unpleasant to remember. She hadn't remembered her nightmare from the night before, so Draco knew that his spell had been effective.

Carefully pulling back the covers and climbing into the bed, Draco could now hear what Hermione was mumbling. “Harry…Please understand…He'll kill you…Don't hurt him…” She pleaded to the people in her mind.

Draco lay on his side, looking down at Hermione's troubled face. It relieved him that she was clearly experiencing a nightmare, not the mind games of Voldemort. Draco shifted closer to her, so his body was only few centimeters away from hers. He told himself that the close proximity was so the spell would work better, but Draco knew that it was so the opportunity to be near her wasn't wasted.

Closing his eyes and concentrating, Draco muttered the spell that would banish the nightmare and replace it with a dreamless slumber. Immediately, Hermione's breathing slowed and her murmuring stopped. Draco opened his eyes and looked down upon her again, only to see Hermione open her own eyes momentarily.

She gazed right into his surprised eyes, and then closed her's sleepily. Draco breathed a sigh of relief and assumed that Hermione hadn't really awoken, but had momentarily opened her eyes as she entered a new state of sleep. However, when she smiled softly, whispered “Draco…” and wrapped her arms smoothly around him, placing her head on his chest, he wasn't so sure.

Draco was roused from sleep the next morning when he felt Hermione stir. Her head still lay on his bare chest, and her arms still encircled his torso. One of Draco arms was wrapped around her shoulders, holding her gently against him. He kept his eyes closed, unsure of how he would explain their current position, and decided that it would be easier to pretend to be asleep.

He felt Hermione's eyelashes brush against his skin as she opened her eyes. Draco heard her inhale a surprised breath of air, but she didn't jump away. Instead she slowly lifted her head and Draco assumed she was checking to see if he was awake. Then she rested her head back down and closed her eyes.

Draco's lips curved into a soft smile, which widened when Hermione shuffled her chilly feet over to tangle up with his. And so, they both lay pretending to be asleep until they were startled by a sudden knock at the door.

Hermione and Draco immediately sprung apart, betraying to the other that they hadn't been asleep. They stared at each other for a few moments, and then there was another knock at the door. Hermione grabbed her wand from the bedside table and cast a locking charm on the door. And not a moment too soon, for the door handle gave a rattle, and someone called from outside.

“Hermione? Are you awake yet? Draco? You've both nearly missed breakfast.”

“Devon.” Hermione breathed, looking guiltily at Draco, who was sitting propped up in bed with his pillow behind him. “I'm awake.” She said loudly. When she glanced at Draco, it seemed that hewas about to speak. Scuttling quickly across the mattress, Hermione covered his mouth with her hand to prevent him calling out. “We'll be down shortly.” She called.

“Why is the door locked?” Devon demanded through the door, sounding more than suspicious. “Can I come in?”

Hermione's expression became slightly horrified while Draco smirked under her palm. “Why not?” he murmured, receiving a glare from Hermione.

“No.” Hermione replied. “I'm getting changed in here.” She expected Draco to whisper a sly comment about this, but contrast to this he went still and simply looked at her. “Stop imagining me getting changed, Draco.” Hermione hissed under her breath.

“Where's Draco then?” Devon called, beginning to sound a bit angry.

“Yeah Hermione.” Draco whispered, raising an eyebrow. “Where am I? Not in your bed, surely?”

Hermione ignored his comment. “He's in the shower.”

“Oh. Sure. I can't wait see you downstairs.” Devon's voice could be heard through the door.

Draco rolled his eyes at that comment, and Hermione sighed. When they heard Devon's footsteps fade down the corridor, Draco glanced at Hermione, waiting for her to remove her hand. Before she did, she asked, “What are you doing in my bed again?”

Hermione slowly withdrew her hand, feeling the warmth of his breath fade as she did so. Although not completely sure how she would take it Draco couldn't help replying, “Don't you remember? You told me last night I was unforgettable.”

“Shut up and answer the question.” Hermione said, hoping he wouldn't notice the faint flush that began creeping up her cheeks.

“I don't know which command to obey.” Draco told her, unintentionally glancing down at her bare legs. Hermione hadn't had time to pull her dressing gown on, and so was sitting there in her purple nightgown once again.

“Answer the question.” She demanded softly.

“I told you yesterday morning. I can't sleep on that couch.”

“You should have told me, then I would have slept on it and let you have the bed.” Hermione told him, frowning at his excuse.

“Oh come on.” Draco said, raising an eyebrow. “A couch is no place for a woman. Besides, you didn't even notice I was here until you woke up. And even then, you didn't seem to be troubled by my being here.”

Hermione flush returned, “What do you mean?”

Draco smiled at her in amusement. “I think I've been awake as long as you have.”

“Oh.” Hermione remained silent for several moments, processing what he had just said. “Fine then. Sleep where you like.”

Their first speaker for the day was to be an Auror Representative sent from the Ministry. Hermione wondered who would be sent, and expected a young Auror in training to be speaking. Surely the Ministry could not expend a fully trained Auror at this time. However, Hermione entered the room behind Draco and saw none other than Kingsley Shacklebolt standing solemnly, waiting for them.

“Thank Merlin.” Taylor breathed from behind Hermione. “I thought they would send that scary wizard who taught Defense Against the Dark Arts the year of the Triwizard Tournament.”

“Moody, you mean?” Hermione enquired, sitting down next to Draco while Taylor sat on her other side.

“Yeah, that's right.” Taylor agreed.

“I didn't like him.” Draco said quietly, his dislike evident by the expression on his face. “I preferred the Werewolf to Moody.”

“That's only because he turned you into a ferret.” Hermione couldn't help telling him. Draco scowled at the memory, and turned towards Hermione with his piercing gray eyes. She attempted to bite back a smile, but failed noticeably. “One of my highlights of fourth year, that was.”

“I can't believe you brought that up.” Draco said, his face impassive yet amusement in his voice. “As if ferrets don't plague my dreams enough each night, now you're reminding me of the demons in daylight.”

Hermione's smile widened, but before she could make a reply about him seeing a demon by merely looking into a mirror, Kingsley spoke. “Good morning students. I am Kingsley Shacklebolt from the Aurors Department of the Ministry.” He introduced himself in his deep voice. “I am here to speak to you about being an Auror, as many high achieving students seek this occupation. The department is in need of new Aurors during these dark times; however chances are you shouldn't bother.”

The six Scales blinked in surprise and waited for him to continue. “To be an Auror, much skill and determination is required. An initial aptitude test is set, and no more than five percent of applicants pass. Following this is an interview with the Head of the Auror Department, and then a six month traineeship if all goes well.

“Have any of you students considered pursuing a career as an Auror once you leave school?” Kingsley asked, glancing at them all in turn. Hermione and Draco were the only ones to fully raise their hands. Devon half raised his, and then pulled it down with a frown, and then raised it again with a nod to himself. After a few moments Devon's frown reappeared and he lowered it once again. Kingsley watched him with a raised eyebrow, until Devon settled with both hands on the table. “I see.” Kingsley said. “And how many of you think that you have the skills to be an Auror, even if you don't want to be one?”

Devon's hand extended without doubts this time. Draco began to raise his hand, but after a side-long glance at Hermione who sat with hands firmly in her lap, he lowered it again. For some reason, he didn't want to appear overly cocky and then have Shacklebolt somehow shoot him down. Mark raised his hand slowly, as if hoping to convey his feigned uncertainty to the others.

“Well,” Kingsley said, a small smile appearing on his generally solemn face. “Let's see how right you are.” He turned to the desk behind him and picked up a thin stack of parchment. “I have made up a small sample test for you all, similar to some of the general questions on the aptitude test. Shall we see how you would cope?”

Hermione nodded enthusiastically, while Devon suddenly looked unsure about his previous self-assurance. Kingsley handed out the three paged test and asked them to complete as much of it as they could within the next hour. “Please don't share your answers. I'll be back in an hour.”

Hermione pulled her quill out and started immediately, while Draco raised an eyebrow at her zeal. “You'd almost think this was going to be graded.” He muttered, dipping his own quill in his ink pot and turning to his parchment.

The students attacked the test in silence. Their concentration was only interrupted by Devon's whispered comments to himself. When he reached question five, List at least three telltale signs of a Death Eater, he muttered,“Yes, I know this one!” and began to write quickly. Mark and Corey both looked up at him in amusement, Draco rolled his eyes, Taylor glanced over to see what question Devon was up to, and Hermione continued writing as if she hadn't even heard him.

After an hour Kingsley returned. “Leave the papers on you desk and go have some lunch. Please return a quarter of an hour before your next seminar is to begin so I can give them back to you. Thank you.”

Hermione smiled at Kingsley as she walked toward the door and he winked in recognition. He didn't seem the slightest bit curious as to what she was doing in a society with Slytherins. Just as well, Hermione thought, because I hardly know what I'm doing with them. For some reason, `causing trouble' popped into her mind as an answer. Hermione frowned and deliberately sat down between Mark and Corey at the lunch table.

“Which one of you is Mr. Hutch?” Kingsley inquired once they had regrouped in the seminar room. Devon put up his hand, appearing slightly smug. Draco knitted his brow, hoping desperately that Devon wasn't about to be told that he could be an Auror, no worries. “I hope you have a different career path in mind.”

Devon looked slightly crushed.

“Same with Mr. Smith, I'm afraid.” Kingsley continued. “Mr. Mackell; you could be an Auror if you were serious about it, although a few years of hard training would be required. Mr. Darcy; you appear to have a great mind, that could be greater were it not so cynical. We rarely accept pessimists into our workforce. Mr. Malfoy; you shouldn't have a problem becoming an Auror if you fully apply yourself. And Miss Granger, I would be surprised to find a job at which you would be incapable.”

Hermione glowed at the compliment, but tried her hardest not to let it show. Kingsley looked at them all and said, “Would you like me to go through any of the test with you?”

Devon nodded vigorously, while the others shrugged. “You all answered the first page reasonably well, but the second page caused some problems. Question thirteen, `List four indications that an object is protected by dark magic, was answered well enough, but the rest weren't as good. For example, question eleven, If you had access to a suspected dark wizard's kitchen, what would you do? I'll admit, it is a bizarre question, but easy to answer. I had to deduct points from one of you who wrote `Poison all his food.'”

“Why?” Devon asked. “I mean…for that person's sake, can you tell us why that's wrong?”

“Because he's only a suspected dark wizard. Personally, I don't think killing an entire household on an inkling is the right thing to do. For those of you who wrote, `open the kitchen door and search house for evidence of dark wizardry' got the full points.”

“Oh.” Devon mumbled; put out.

“I enjoyed some of the creative answers for question fifteen, List at least three tell-tale signs of a Death Eater. Although they amused me, I could not give points to answers such as; a fondness for floating Muggles upside-down, suspicious black attire, higher-than-average use of Avada Kedavra, and my personal favorite, owning a Muggle car with the license plate DY MDBLD.” Kingsley said with a slight smile. “I heard you had Miss Granger drive you here. I suppose that gave you ideas.”

Kingsley went through the rest of the test for another few minutes, and then said before dismissing them. “I have to congratulate you on how well you did. Although you're not all cut out to be an Aurors, on average you did better than many of the daft souls who take the test. So well done. Now I'd better be off to make way for your next speaker, but I'm sure I'll see you all again reasonably soon.” He said in conclusion.

“Thank you sir.” Draco said on behalf of the Scales, wondering if there was more to the test than Kingsley let on. When they were alone again, awaiting the arrival of their next speaker, they sat in silence. Devon set aside his feelings of disappointment at not being Auror material, and decided to focus on something he was good at.

Draco, it would seem, was thinking along the same lines. He surreptitiously watched Hermione glance away from the window, and meet eyes with Devon, who didn't try hide the fact that he had also been watching her. Draco's eyes narrowed when she smiled at him, but he scowled when Devon then sent Hermione a charismatic smile-and-wink combo. His charm makes me sick, Draco thought in disgust. I might be sleeping in her bed, but I'll bet he's the one she thinks about.

“Hermione,” Devon said, his smile growing now that he had her attention. “You'll make such a valuable Auror one day, if that's the path you decide to follow.”

“Why do you say that?” Hermione asked, while Draco silently bristled next to her.

“Well,” Devon began, “from here I can see the amount of ticks you got. Three per answer seems like a lot.”

“Oh right,” Hermione replied, lowering her eyes for a moment. For a few seconds, Draco wished he had been the cause of her demure expression. That was until Hermione continued speaking. “I wasn't the only one. Draco got the same amount of answers correct as I did.” Before Draco had the chance to reply, Hermione's hand, which had been sitting in her lap, crept under the table to rest on his leg. Surprised as he was, Draco instinctively took up her hand and held it gently in his own.

Devon didn't continue their conversation, obviously put out about Hermione's mention of his rival. And so, as they waited for their next speaker to arrive, Hermione and Draco sat secretly hand in hand.

Chapter seventeen -The other Tail's tale

“May I ask how many of you were raised in the muggle world?” A brunette woman named Lyndal asked the Scales after a brief introduction.

This Muggle Relations representative had entered the room a few minutes ago, causing Hermione's hand to loosen in Draco's grip under the table. Draco figured she didn't want the woman to comment on them holding hands, lest the other Scales find out - Devon especially. However, Draco wasn't willing to let Hermione get away so soon after finally being able to hold her.

Draco had met eyes with her and squeezed her hand in his 's frown slid away when Draco's neutral expression changed, and one corner of his mouth twitched to give her a small lop-sided smile. Draco had given this charismatic smile to girls in the past, yet it had always pained him to do so. Their typical swooning often made him regret wasting his charm on such suckers. But for some reason, Draco actually felt fortunate to see Hermione's eyes melt at the sight.

Hermione wound her fingers back around Draco's in resolve, and he suddenly had an overwhelming urge to kiss her hand. The secret of their affection was saved only by Draco's remarkable self-restraint. He took a deep breath and turned to look at Hermione as she spoke.

“I was.” Hermione said in answer to Lyndal's question.

“Just you?” Lyndal inquired, looking at each of the males in turn. “I see. Then I assume you five students don't know nearly enough about muggles as you should.”

“Why do you assume that?” Draco demanded, feeling the need to defend himself instinctively rising to the surface, although he knew Lyndal was right.

The witch looked at Draco from over the top of her delicately framed glasses. “Because unless you were raised as a muggle, there will always be things you don't understand. I myself was raised in a pureblooded household, and even now, after ten years in Muggle Relations, I am still discovering new things about their strange culture.”

“Like what?” Hermione inquired in interest.

“Their machinery for one thing. It continues to confuse me. I am expected to use something called a computer to communicate with some muggles. No matter how confident I am that I'm doing the right thing, the computer will suddenly tell me there is an error and that I have to shut it down. I'm sure Muggles don't have to put up with that.”

Lyndal smiled. “But I'm not here to bore you with the problems of the profession. I'm here to stress its importance. Especially as we enter these dark times. Communication with the muggles will be vital for our protection - and theirs. Muggle Relations representatives are allocated in the muggle world in various occupations; journalists being the most common, politicians, ecologists, deep-sea divers, teachers, advertising managers, and even University lecturers on Myths and Legends - where we make a rather large appearance. It can be a fun job, where a lot of tact and even imagination is required.

“Any questions so far?” Lyndal asked curiously.

“What does an ecologist have to do with the wizarding world? Or a deep-sea diver?” Taylor inquired, his brown eyes questioning.

The witch looked pleased that he had asked her this. “Planting a witch or wizard as an ecologist will help keep muggles away from land which houses dragons, or other dangerous magical wildlife. If we get an ecologist to declare certain territory a conserved habitat, it'll reduce the amount of extensive shielding charms we have to place around the globe.” Lyndal explained. “And placing a witch or wizard as a deep-sea diver allows the pearl markets and oceanic expeditions to continue without muggles running into any magical sea-dwelling creatures; we just do it for them.”

“So basically it's about the protection of our world and ensuring the safety of the secrets we keep from the muggles.” Mark stated. “Sounds necessary.”

“It is.” Lyndal said, her excitement showing at the possibility of recruitment. “Are any of you interested?”

None of them jumped in acquiescence, and sat looking politely apologetic at rejecting her occupation. Lyndal frowned, sighed and continued to talk about Muggle Relations in a slightly disappointed tone.

At lunch, Hermione decided to sit with the Durmstrang students. As she seated herself at the table, Lucia asked, “So, are you expected to teach the rest of your school how to produce a Patronus, or how to fight a Giant, or how to kill a Death Eater while wrestling a mountain troll?”

“Sorry?” Hermione asked with a raised eyebrow. Clio chuckled at Lucia's question while Will rolled his eyes.

“Lucia is still under the impression that this is all a set-up.” Will explained to Hermione. “But how did your seminar with the Auror go?”

“Fine.” Hermione answered, pausing in the middle of pouring a cup of tea. “Strangely enough. All Kingsley asked us to do was complete a test to see if we would ever be Auror's or not.”

“What were the questions like?” Lucia asked immediately, leaning towards Hermione across the table.

“Um,” Hermione thought for a moment. “A bit bizarre to be on an Auror competency test, I suppose. But all requiring some sort of skill or knowledge to be able to get the correct answer.”

“Ha!” Lucia exclaimed, causing Mark and Draco to glance across with raised eyebrows from the table opposite theirs. Lucia lowered her voice and whispered to the others, “I knew it. He was testing you all to see what you're good at. The students from Brewnewt College were given the same test. They reckoned the Ministry is searching among us for warriors for the final battle. There's no doubt in anyone's minds that there's going to be one - a final battle, that is. That's going to have some serious consequences on the population. So many deaths and injuries; if the Ministry isn't building at least ten new hospitals as we speak, they're all ignorant, pus-brained morons. But regardless of the assured casualties, the Ministry wants to ensure they outnumber You-Know-Who's followers when they meet head on. That's were we come in.”

“You think they want us to fight Voldemort?” Draco asked loudly. The mention of the dark lord's name caused the entire dining room to fall suddenly silent, and everyone's eyes settled on the two tables.

Lucia looked at him steadily. “Yes.” She answered.

Draco didn't scoff like half the other students did. He simply gazed at her through narrowed eyes. The way Lucia shrunk slightly away from him betrayed that she thought Draco was about to yell at her, however Hermione could tell he was just thinking about what Lucia had suggested.

“And I suppose they'll have you healing the wounded?” Draco asked her seriously.

Lucia frowned at him and was silent for a few moments. “That's what I've been thinking because I come from a long line of Medi-witches…But why did you assume...?”

“It's not difficult to determine a healer out of a crowd.” Draco replied.

“How do you mean?” she asked in bafflement, unconsciously glancing down at herself to check she wasn't wearing a sign reading `healer' around her neck.

“It was in the way your eyes immediately found the scar on my jaw when you looked at me.” Draco explained. “In the way you immediately mended a witch's wrist yesterday morning when she fell on it while ice-skating. I didn't see it myself, but news like that travels. A Medi-witch doesn't have time to ponder the required method of healing; they just know it instinctively. And it's also in the way you have thought about how the final battle will inflict damage on people, not about how the final battle can be won.”

“Oh.” Lucia said softly. “I didn't know I was that obvious.”

“Maybe not to others.” He replied. “But reading people is something I need to know how to do.”

“What for?” she asked, her brow furrowing at him.

Draco held her stare for a moment, and then looked away without answering. The rest of the room went back to their lunches. Mark said something to Draco quietly, and was given a glare in response. Mark laughed, and Draco took his time before glancing at and Hermione and smiling faintly. The Durmstrang students had gone back to their lunch and didn't see this, but Hermione looked away from Draco, uncertain at what had amused him.

Lucia turned to Hermione as she bit into a biscuit. Her frown had been replaced by a sly smile. “What's that spunk's name?”

“Draco Malfoy.” Hermione replied immediately, involuntarily catching Draco's eye. Before she averted her eyes, Hermione noticed the large grin that spread across his face, and felt herself blush.

“Oh, not him.” Lucia said, shaking her head indifferently. “The one who just walked in.”

Hermione nearly groaned at the embarrassment she could have saved herself, and turned to look over her shoulder. Unsurprisingly, it was Devon who had caught Lucia's interest. He sat himself down next to Taylor a few tables away, and Lucia sighed appreciatively.

“He's gorgeous.”

“Yeah,” Hermione agreed, although her tone lacked the interest Lucia's held. “I suppose he is.”

“I heard that he's with you.” Clio said to Hermione. “Is that true?”

Hermione could feel Draco's eye boring into her, but she refused to look at him. She smiled hesitantly, “Where did you hear that?”

“One of the girls from Brewnewt College asked him if he was available.” Clio explained, looking at Devon with a swooning smile. “Apparently he said he was taken. She just assumed it was with you, considering the way he looks at you.”

“If he looked at me like that I'd die on the spot, I swear.” Lucia said wistfully, her tone completely changed from a few minutes ago. She was winding her long brown hair around her index finger, watching Devon as he laughed at something Corey had said. “Beautiful smile.” She commented absently. “What did you say his name was?”

“Devon.” Hermione supplied.

“Oh,” Lucia and Clio breathed together. “Devon.”

Madam Bridie struck Hermione as a stereotype. Her long blonde hair fell down her back in small braids, and her make-up was immaculately applied. Her light green eyes twinkled as she smiled perfectly at the six students sitting in front of her. The guys were all staring; Hermione was glaring.

“And how are you all this afternoon?” Madam Bridie asked sweetly, showing her dazzling white teeth.

“Good,” they responded synonymously.

“Even better now,” Mark added quietly, causing the guys to snicker and Hermione's eyes to roll.

Madam Bridie giggled at that, and said, “Well I'm glad about that, honey.” She then straightened her back and said in a clear voice, “Does anyone know what my occupation is?” As she said this, she perched herself on the edge of a desk and crossed her legs, causing her skirt to slide up and reveal her legs. The guys remained silent, apparently transfixed.

Hermione sighed, “A Medi-witch.”

“That's right!” Madam Bridie exclaimed in extreme surprise, as if Hermione had just described her ex-boyfriends hidden birthmark. “I'm a Medi-witch! And does anyone know what a Medi-witch does?”

Hermione gave the guys a few moments - during which their gaze did not leave Madam Bridie's legs - before answering. “Heal the sick, injured or dying.”

“That's right!” She exclaimed again, flipping her hair over her shoulder. “I help the less fortunate! And can anyone guess what department of St. Mungo's I work in?”

Hermione didn't even bother to give the guys a chance to reply. “St. Mungo's Unnatural Bodily Growths Wing.”

“Exactly!”

Draco blinked and turned to look at Hermione in perplexity. “How the hell did you know that?”

“It's on her name badge.” Hermione sighed, unable to believe how cliché the situation had become.

“Oh,” Draco said with a nod, and turned to look at her name badge. As did the other four guys. For quite a long time. Then again, perhaps it wasn't the name badge particularly; more like the badge's well-endowed vicinity.

“Eyes on my face boys.” Madam Bridie chirped happily. Five pairs of eyes snapped guiltily to her face. “Now, do any of you want to exercise you intelligence by working in a hospital?”

Silence greeted her question. “I see.” She said, picking up a mug of tea she had carried in with her, and sipping it slowly. “Did any of you know that I attended Hogwarts, like yourselves?”

They shook their heads, slightly surprised. “And can you guess what house I was in?” she questioned with a tip of her head.

Hufflepuff surely. Hermione thought. Then again, even they'd be ashamed to have this ditz as one of their own. Hermione shook her head politely as kept her mouth shut.

“Hufflepuff?” Mark suggested.

Madam Bridie giggled, “No. Guess again.”

Can't have been Ravenclaw, Hermione thought. They require at least a hint of intellect. This poor witch doesn't even have air in her head.

“Um…Ravenclaw?” Taylor guessed, although not sounding as if he would believe it if he was right.

“No,” Madam Bridie giggled again. “Try again.”

“Couldn't have been Gryffindor or Slytherin, could it?” Hermione asked bluntly, her patience wearing thin at the witch's idiocy. “I think you're meant to be talking about more important things that what house you were in when you were at Hogwarts.”

Madam Bridie's eyes came to rest on Hermione, and her smile looked as if she knew something Hermione didn't. Hermione almost rolled her eyes; as if Bridie could convince Hermione that she knew something.

“You're right.” Bridie said quietly. “I was in Gryffindor. Just like you. I'm afraid I wasn't cut out for Slytherin, unlike you boys.”

Draco frowned. “We didn't tell you what houses we were in.”

“You didn't have to.” Madam Bridie said, her expression missing the silliness that had plagued it a few moments ago. She turned to address them all, “So none of you want to be a Medi-witch or wizard?”

They all shook their heads, still confused at how she knew what houses they were in.

“How about working as an undercover assassin for the Ministry?”

The Scales suddenly fixed their eyes on her face in disbelief. An undercover assassin? Surely not this airhead…

Madam Bridie smiled at them craftily. “I thought that would get your attention. I am a Medi-witch, but it's my second profession. My cover is being a healer, while I carry out the Ministry's wishes upon the patients I tend to. Not all of them, of course, or else my cover would be blown immediately.”

“You kill the sick?” Taylor asked incredulously. “But you seem so…” he struggled to find the right word. Silly, two-dimensional, simple, incapable… “Nice.”

“Of course I do.” Bridie replied, her recently exposed intellect evident in her shining eyes. “No one suspects an idiot.”

“That's true.” Draco muttered. His expression was wary, as if Bridie might be fooling them with a surprisingly convincing display of brains. To put her authenticity to the test, he asked, “So what's your most recent job been? From the Ministry, I mean.”

Madam Bridie took a while before answering. She looked at them in turn, holding their eyes for a good ten seconds each. Hermione figured her to be assessing them, wondering whether she was safe tell them the secret information. While Mark was busy trying to stare Bridie out, Draco's hand dropped from the table to rest in his lap. A few moments later, he reached out and silently held Hermione's hand.

When Madam Bridie turned to hold Draco's steady gaze, he said, “We know how to keep secrets.” She didn't answer; just smiled secretively. The Scales exchanged glances, bewildered at Bridie's behaviour. She was hiding something else, but they had no idea what it could be. When Bridie met Hermione's eyes, the last of them all, she pursed her lips slightly, and narrowed her eyes in thought. Her eyes then darted to Draco, down to where their hands were joined under the table, and back to Hermione.

“Right.” Bridie said, taking a deep breath. “My last job was a few months ago. Since then, I've been taking some time off to try and deal with what it entailed.”

The Scales all watched her solemnly, getting ready to be told something unpleasant. “I don't only work in the Unnatural Bodily Growths Wing. I get moved from department to department, depending on what the Ministry wants me to do. There are only three of us assassins working at St. Mungos, because the influx of targets is not very high. Two weeks ago, I was working in the Midwifery Wing.”

Hermione winced, along with the guys, knowing that no happy story could include an assassin posing as a midwife.

“I was required to kill a witch moments after she gave birth.” Bridie said quietly, her eyes cast on the floor. Her haunted expression betrayed how hard that murder must have been for her; and how hard its memory continued to be. Hermione gripped Draco's hand tightly, disturbed by Bridie's words. He squeezed it reassuringly, although his set jaw indicated that he was also troubled by it.

“She was the wife of a Death Eater. She is the daughter of a dark wizard, and was raised as such. It was evident to the Ministry that their child would be raised to embrace the world of evil. Her husband is currently in Azkaban, and has been for a few months. He was recognised as one of the Death Eater's that accompanied You-Know-Who to the Ministry of Magic, and fought against Harry Potter and Albus Dumbledore.”

“But that was over a year ago.” Hermione said. “He's only been identified now?”

“I don't know much about that, I'm sorry. I think a guard who was working the night they attacked the Ministry saw his face. Apparently he recognised him and never knew he was remotely inclined towards the dark arts. The guard only woke up a few months ago from a coma those Death Eaters put him in. As soon as he did, he had Emmett Richardson put in prison.”

Hermione felt Draco's hand suddenly go limp in her own. Glancing at him, she saw that his face had gone pale and his eyes were unexpectedly glassy. Frowning in concern, Hermione placed her other hand over his. In a quick look at the others, Hermione saw that Mark's jaw was tightly clenched and he wore a stunned expression. She frowned, wondering why Bridie would be stupid enough to let slip a name that the others might know.

“You killed Georgiana Richardson?” Draco whispered accusingly.

Madam Bridie looked at Draco in shock. “Oh no…” she said, covering her mouth with her manicured hand. Her expression was convincingly apologetic, but Hermione couldn't help thinking that anyone can act if they've had enough experience. “I completely forgot that you might have known her.”

Draco's grief-stricken eyes suddenly narrowed. “Why do you assume that I would know someone on the dark side? Especially someone the Ministry wanted dead.”

“I'll get to that.” Bridie said, apparently distressed. “And I didn't know her name. She was just a…”

“Job?” Mark supplied icily.

“I'm so sorry.” Bridie said, nodding. “But if you did know her, then surely you understand why it had to be done.”

Hermione's frown deepened. Bridie had just said that she didn't know Georgiana's name. How would she have known Emmett's? Either she was hoping to appear less evil in Draco and Mark's eyes by pretending to have not known Georgiana. Or she had slipped up on purpose. But why would she do that? Draco and Mark remained still, their expressions accusing. “I thought she died giving birth.” Mark stated coldly.

“None of my jobs are known to be murders.” Bridie explained. “They are all covered with the cause of illness.” She paused and sighed. “I am sorry, but the dark side does it too, albeit more openly. They seem to find no point in killing good wizards if they don't get the credit for it.”

“But the `good side' likes to seem as if they are innocent.” Mark said cynically.

“Of course.” The assassin agreed, ignoring his tone. “That's why my job required secrecy. It can't be done by just anyone. It takes strength of will - and a lot of it. The sacrifice of innocence. And of course, bravery - many assassins pull out of the occupation, as they are unable to go through with the murders. One needs to have courage to continue with such horror.”

The Scales frowned at the requirements. It was a strange coincidence that they were identical to what their society prides itself on. Hermione frowned as something clicked in her mind. Not possible, she thought. Simply not possible.

“How did you achieve all of those traits?” Draco asked, the slight break in his voice conveying that his mind was still on Georgiana.

“During my final year at Hogwarts, to be honest.” She said, watching Draco closely. “I was admitted into a secret society that prided themselves on those exact qualities. I have reason to believe that it's still around today.”

“And what reason is that?” Corey asked, his eyes narrowed. The intense looks on the guys faces made it clear they were thinking the same thing as Hermione.

“Its current members are sitting in front of me.”

“I doubt it.” Draco said instantly, dismissing her statement. “We are not even a society. We're just a bunch of students all willing to gain connections for the future. You're obviously mistaken.”

“You expect me to believe that five Slytherins would generally allow a Gryffindor to accompany them to a function outside of Hogwarts? As if you're all friends? I don't think so.” Bridie said, her voice almost sounding disappointed. “You're meant to be good at lying.”

“I don't know what you're talking about.” Draco said, looking at Bridie as if she were sick. “We are friends with Hermione.”

“I can see that.” Bridie's eyes briefly glanced at Draco and Hermione's clasped hands. “But I had so hoped you would have figured this out by now. I'm sure it's written somewhere. The Scales is meant to be an intelligent society. A society that prides itself on knowing everything it can. Unfortunately, you've disappointed me.”

The six students stared at her; dumbfounded. She just mentioned the Scales, yet their society was secret. “What…? How can…?” Draco said in incomprehension. “Explain yourself.” He demanded.

“You don't really think Hermione's the first female Gryffindor in the Scales do you?” Bridie said, giving them a small smile. “I got my career from being the Scale's Female.”

“I'm their Tail.” Hermione said absently, confusion written all over her face.

“How clever.” Madam Bridie remarked with a smile. The Scales continued to stare at her, unable to believe what they had been told. “Secrecy is something the Scales works hard to maintain. However, secrets have also been kept from you. Generations of Scales have begun their association in the society under the impression that it is all-male. But each generation have admitted a female Gryffindor, believing her to be the first.”

“Why has it been kept a secret?” Taylor asked. “That doesn't make sense.”

“Exactly.” Corey agreed. “We know first hand that having a female in the society isn't anything to be ashamed of. I can't imagine keeping it a secret from future generations.”

“Things might change.” Bridie answered. “They always have. Witches have always ended up being something that `should never have happened.' And to prevent it happening again, the wizards of the Scales have placed importance on the rules of the society; small numbers, male only, Slytherin only.”

“So what happened with you?” Hermione inquired quietly. “Why haven't we heard of you before?”

“Ah.” Madam Bridie said; her smile fading. “Now that's a story for another time. After talking about my career, I don't think I can do that one too.”

“Ok,” Hermione accepted, understanding how difficult it can be to discuss painful topics. “Can you tell us about any other past female Scales? Their names? Anything?”

“I'm afraid not.” Madam Bridie said. “That information is classified.”

“Classified?” Devon frowned. “Surely that's information we can be privy to.”

“I would tell you. But these women don't - or didn't - want to be associated with the Scales anymore. I have to respect their wishes.” Bridie said regretfully. She then frowned, stood and opened the door. Glancing into the corridor, she gave a small, “Whoops.”

“It's time for afternoon tea!” She said brightly, assuming her ditzy pseudo-identity rapidly. “I hope you've learnt something from this session, and may I wish you all the best of luck in the future!”

“Thank you.” Draco said on their behalf, frowning at her sudden transformation. Hermione looked out the open door and noticed that students were walking past their room on their way to afternoon tea. Hermione quickly dropped Draco's hand and stood up. A few wizards who glanced into the room on their way passed, caught sight of Madam Bridie and stared openly. When Bridie saw them gawking, she winked slyly at them and blew them a kiss. Incredible, Hermione mused. She's so convincing.

“Do they have to stare so obviously?” Devon said rhetorically, walking out of the room. Mark, Corey and Taylor who were following him, murmured in agreement. Hermione scoffed loudly at Devon's statement, recalling how obviously the five guys had stared at Madam Bridie at the start of their session.

“What a sophisticated sound, Hermione.” Draco commented, turning to look at her with a smile. “Please do it again.”

She rolled her eyes and grinned. “Shut up.”

“You demand my silence after I pay you a compliment?” He said as they began to walk towards the door. “What a strange witch.”

Hermione smiled, then noticed Bridie watching them. Suddenly remembering something, Hermione stopped. “Excuse me, Madam Bridie? Can I speak to you for a moment? I just have to know where you got your make up from.”

Draco instinctively sniggered, then realised that Hermione didn't really wear make up. Frowning, he saw Hermione looking at him expectantly. “Oh,” he said, belatedly understanding that Hermione wanted to speak to Bridie alone. “I'll see you later on. I'm not really into the whole cosmetics craze.”

Once Draco had closed the door behind him, Bridie looked at Hermione. “What is it you want to know?” Bridie asked, back to her true self once more.

“Something about what you told us.” Hermione began; taking Bridie's lead and not beating around the bush. “It has a few contradictions. Things that don't make sense if you expect us to believe you're who you say you are.”

Bridie smiled, her eyes shining. “And what discrepancies were those, Hermione?”

“You claim to be an assassin, which means you have to be very intelligent, especially if you're working for the Ministry. But more importantly, you have to be good at lying.” Hermione said. “But you're not. First you `accidentally' let slip that you killed Emmett Richardson's wife. Then you said that you hadn't even known Georgiana's name - she was just a job. That doesn't follow.”

Bridie sat down on the corner of the desk at looked at Hermione speculatively. “What do you really want to know, Hermione?”

“You were in the Scales.” Hermione stated. “The male Slytherins would only have accepted you if you were exceptional. So basically, you slipped up on purpose. Why?”

When Bridie didn't answer, but just watched Hermione, Hermione continued. “Is it because there's something you want to tell me? But it's something you aren't allowed to volunteer. Perhaps something you can only tell me if I question it out of you?” she paused, as what she was saying rang true. “You slipped up, knowing that if I were as quick as you were when you were in the Scales that I would come and ask you about it, hence giving you an opportunity to tell me…something. Can you nod?”

Bridie nodded. “You have to ask the right questions. I'm under the Unbreakable Vow.”

Hermione's eyes widened, wondering what could be so dramatic that would require an Unbreakable Vow. “So here I am. Without you having initiated this conversation.” She said, stating what she figured to be the restrictions of the Unbreakable Vow. “I have a question for you. Why could you tell me that you were in the Scales, but not any of the other women?”

“I didn't cause a problem like the others did. Once we found out what happened in the past, I was thrown out. I had to swear not to speak of the Scales to anyone except those who were members - there's the loophole. The others didn't think my part would matter. Just my knowledge of the other witches. Who would believe me anyway? As far as future Scales would know, no females have ever been allowed in the Scales. They didn't think a witch would be admitted in the future.”

“You can't tell me who the females were, but what actually happened to the other female Scales?”

Bridie looked at Hermione, but didn't answer. “It was worth a shot.” Hermione sighed. “Do you think that I should leave the society?”

Bridie shook her head uncertainly. “You have to be careful. It is dangerous territory for a witch. Especially from Gryffindor. It can get you into very big trouble. But if you're smart enough to pick up the inconsistencies in my speech, you should be able to find them in the lies that sheath the Scales.”

“Can't you tell me at least one name?” Hermione implored. “Or just something for me to work with?”

Bridie lowered her voice, and glanced towards the door in unease. “I can't Hermione. It's as good as forbidden. But there are clues. You have to find out before it all happens again.”

“Before what happens again?” Hermione asked fruitlessly.

Madam Bridie shook her head apologetically, and raised a finger to her lips. “It will all click into place once you find out. But I can't help you anymore. Just don't stop looking; everywhere. Not only around the Scales, but in all areas of you life. Good luck.”

Hermione sighed and turned to leave, but Madam Bridie touched her arm momentarily.

“Hermione; just one more thing. Be careful with the boys. Don't get too close. Regardless of your feelings. The problems have always started there.”

Chapter eighteen - The Letters Above

Hermione walked slowly down the corridor after dinner towards room number seventeen. All of what Bridie had told her was echoing about her head, causing her more confusion than Hermione was used to. Don't get too close to the guys? Had Bridie said that because she had seen Hermione and Draco holding hands? Had she intuitively felt the warm shivers run down Hermione's spine at Draco's soft touch?

Hermione's thoughts paused as she dwelt on Draco secretive yet firm holding of her hand. She had desperately wanted to lean against him, wrap her arms around his chest and rest her head so she could the beating of his heart. But for some reason, she felt hindered to do so…ah yes. Devon.

Was that what had caused the rifts between that females and the Scales in the past? Relationship issues? Hermione nearly scoffed at the lunacy of that thought. It would have to be something more than that, surely. Then again, emotions did funny things to people.

Hermione reached for the door handle to her room, and exclaimed in surprise when it suddenly turned on its own accord and pulled away from her. Glancing up, she saw Draco look down at her in equal surprise from the other side of the threshold, the door handle in his grasp.

They both became still and silent, acutely aware of the small distance between them. Draco's grey eyes immediately softened and his mouth curved slightly as a subtle indication of how seeing Hermione made him feel. Hermione had the impulse to smile mischievously back at him. After a few moments of being unable to think of anything to say, Hermione began to move past him and into their room.

As she brushed past Draco's chest however, Hermione felt his hand gently take hold of her wrist. The tentativeness of Draco's touch assured Hermione's compliance to his unspoken request; Hermione stopped directly next to him. She couldn't bring herself to meet his eyes, as it would mean tipping her head up towards his, therefore creating a perfect chance to simply stand on tiptoe…

Hermione was startled out of her thoughts when Draco's other hand reached up and softly traced along her delicate collarbone. She had to force herself not to close her eyes and allow his hand to continue its journey downwards. Hermione wasn't sure what Draco meant by this, but she was sure that it was because she had made a move on him earlier. By simply holding his hand, Hermione had informed Draco that she wanted him. Not Devon. Although it hadn't been a public display of affection, Draco knew that didn't stop him teasing her while they were alone.

Draco's fingers reached the collar of her robe and traced it down to the centre. Before Hermione had to worry that he would venture underneath it - for it certainly felt as if he wanted to - Draco removed his hand altogether.

“The others will be here in a minute.” He said quietly, breaking the spell. Hermione blinked and realised that he was right. Over dinner, they had arranged to meet in Hermione and Draco's room at 8pm to discuss the events of the day. They had about five minutes before the others would walk down the corridor.

“Yes. Of course they will.” Hermione breathed, moving away from Draco in a manner resembling confusion. “I need… to use the bathroom.”

Draco watched with a raised eyebrow as Hermione quickly walked into the bathroom and snapped the door shut. Hermione sighed audibly, and turned to lean against the back of the bathroom door. “God,” she breathed, raising a few fingers to rest against her temple. She smiled, realising that in those few moments by the door, she had just gone against Bridie's advice, “Be careful with the boys. Don't get too close. Regardless of your feelings. The problems have always started there.”

Well, Hermione thought, I don't care what's happened in the past. Things change. They always change. However, the saying history has a way of repeating itself slipped unwanted into her mind. Hermione sighed again, and decided to brush her hair before the others arrived. When she heard Mark's gruff voice, and Draco's sudden laugh, she smiled. And to think, she had thought she detested Draco only a few months ago. Placing the brush on the vanity, Hermione gave herself a once over in the mirror.

Her newly brushed hair hung softly over her shoulders, with the ends maintaining their usual bushiness. Her cheeks were slightly flushed, most likely due to her recent encounter. Hermione's eyes widened when she noticed for the first time that the top button of her robe was undone, revealing her pale skin. Her lips curved in amused disbelief that Draco had managed to accomplish this without her noticing.

When Hermione looked into her own eyes, her thoughts suddenly halted. Why was she looking at herself in the mirror so closely? She never did that. Just a quick glance to ensure she didn't have a Pygmy Puff growing on her neck, and that was it. Why? Hermione wondered. Because I want to impress someone… even though it's obvious he's already been impressed. Rolling her eyes, Hermione left the bathroom to join the guys.

“Hermione, come sit down.” Devon said with a smile.

Hermione obliged, seating herself next to Mark, who grinned and draped an arm friendlily over her shoulders. “So what are your thoughts Hermione?” He asked. “You always seem to have an opinion about these things.”

“What things?” Hermione asked curiously.

“You know, about today.” Mark elaborated. “The Auror test we did, what those Durmstrang students think about this seminar, not to mention all the revelations we experienced with Madam Bridie. You must think something.”

“Well…” Hermione drew out. “I don't really know what the Auror test was about, but I don't think that it was just to `see if we could be Aurors.' I have a feeling that the information of our talents will be passed on; most likely to the Ministry.”

“So you agree with that Durmstrang girl?” Draco asked curiously.

Hermione paused, remembering something that had bothered her about Lucia and Draco. “You mean the `healer' that you've been observing?” she asked, catching his eye. “Yes, I'm beginning to.”

“What else do you think?” Devon questioned, looking up at her on the couch from his sprawled position on the carpet.

“I don't know what to think about Bridie.” Hermione admitted. “I know she was telling the truth in everything she said, but I just wish she had told us more of it. For some reason, I can accept that there were females in the Scales before me. But I have no idea what happened to them, who they were, or why they are such a secret. But I'm going to find out.” Hermione paused, while the guys raised their eyebrows at this news.

“Well, wouldn't you?” She asked them bluntly. “Especially if you were me. I'm just one more in the mysterious line of female Scales - who have been successfully hidden in the past. The only reason we found out was because one of the females told us. The chances of that were very slim, but it did happen. Unsurprising though, now that I look at it.”

“Why is it unsurprising?” Draco asked, his grey eyes searching hers.

Hermione waited a moment, knowing what she was about to say would sound stupid. “Because if Harry and Voldemort are part of a prophecy, why wouldn't we all be pawns in it too?”

“Huh?” Taylor commented, his brow furrowing. “They're part of a what?”

“A Proph--” Hermione stopped. “Oh. Hang on…” For a moment, Hermione wasn't sure if she could tell the others. Not too many people knew about the Prophecy of the Chosen One, but because of her close relationship with Harry, it had almost become old news to her.

“Some of us do know about the prophecy, Hermione.” Mark commented quietly, causing Draco to nod his head in agreement. Devon's blank face made it obvious that he was in the same boat as Taylor, but Corey's poker-face made it difficult to tell what information he was privy to.

“Right.” Hermione said, partly relieved. “Perhaps you can explain.”

Mark nodded, and told the others that a meeting between the Chosen One and Voldemort has been preordained. They both know it has to happen; one cannot exist while the other still lives. Voldemort and Harry have both been affected by the prophecy; they have to live their lives under its manipulation. “So Hermione basically thinks that if Harry and Voldemort are part of the prophecy, why can't it be more of a light side versus dark side kind of a thing? We are also controlled by it.”

“Whether we are on the light side or the dark.” Draco said quietly. Mark nodded, but didn't comment.

“Interesting thoughts, Hermione.” Corey said, catching her eye. She couldn't help wondering what Corey was thinking. What has the quiet Scale observed on this matter? “So what do you think Bridie's information has to do with the prophecy and our place in it?” Corey questioned.

Hermione had to think about that one. “I think…no. I'm sure the past is important. Somehow. Or at least our knowing about the past is. Perhaps things have to change. But we have to know about the past before we can change it.”

“Why do you assume we want to change it?” Draco asked. Hermione knew he wasn't challenging her opinion of them, but just ensuring she had a full argument to present her ideas with. Draco seemed to do that to her often. No opinion is valid if it can't be supported.

“Bridie said that something has always gone wrong when witches are introduced to this society. Bad things have happened. Not only am I sure that you guys don't want something `bad' to happen, but Bridie implied that the witches have never left on good terms. Although I might be wrong, I'm pretty confident in saying that I'm friends with you all. At the moment, none of us think that we'll part due to bitter circumstances.”

“I agree.” Taylor said earnestly.

“Too right.” Mark answered, giving Hermione's shoulders a little squeeze.

“We love you Hermione.” Devon said, casting her a charming smile.

“We love y - ” Draco began, then what Devon had said registered in his head. He frowned at Devon, and continued, “We love having you as a part of us.”

Corey stayed silent, though he nodded distractedly when Taylor nudged him encouragingly. “Hermione,” Corey began thoughtfully. “How do you plan to discover the past, if it is as well hidden as Bridie claims? You know the library probably won't help you out this time.”

“I know.” Hermione answered. “I'll just look everywhere I can, with patience and persistence. And a bit of luck, hopefully.” She added, crossing her fingers.

“This is getting too confusing.” Taylor blurted, speaking the minds of everyone with those five words. “Can we go back to Hogwarts?”

The others laughed slightly, knowing he was kidding. There was too much intrigue going on for them to leave. Especially for a group who prided themselves on knowing everything. Changing the subject entirely, Mark asked, “So what speakers have we got tomorrow?”

Devon chirped up with a response, and then said, “But Thursday's speakers are much more exciting than tomorrow's.”Apparently a renowned Quidditch player was coming to speak to them, and would stay for Thursday evening to talk to students who were interested in pursuing sport as their career. When it seemed the boys were all talking excitedly at once, Hermione felt content to just listen to them.

Marks arm tightened about her shoulders momentarily to get her attention. When she looked up at him, it was to notice an amused expression on his often gruff face. “You are aware that your top button is undone, aren't you, Hermione?”

Instead of blushing, and hurrying to do it up, Hermione sent him a mischievous grin. Mark raised his eyebrows in amused astonishment, and dropped his jaw in a strange sort of pride. “My Hermione, what a little devil you are becoming. I'm beginning to think we're a bad influence on you.”

“I didn't intend to leave it undone.” She defended herself, though the smile hadn't left her face. “I just heard your voice from the bathroom and rushed out here to see you.”

“I knew you wanted me.” He teased. Mark glanced to ensure the others weren't listening. “Although I was certain by the way you and Draco were holding hands that your heart had been led astray.”

Hermione's mischievous mood evaporated instantly, which seemed to heighten Mark's. “Oh, you were secretive, but Draco's face gave you away. I have known him since we were children, and he doesn't look content very often. And no, Devon didn't see.” Mark consoled her. “Although you'll have to fix that problem. Otherwise you'll be a tease.”

“Don't worry yourself, I won't let that happen.” Hermione said, although she couldn't help wondering how she would let Devon down without hurting him. He'd been so good to her from the moment she had joined the Scales. She could easily picture herself with Devon, but she felt drawn to Draco, even when he was not around. “I'll defer his interest, I promise.”

Mark seemed satisfied with her reply, and joined in with the others' discussion, which was still on the Quidditch speaker for Thursday. “I hope it's Victor Krum.” He said, and Taylor nodded fervently in agreement.

Hermione froze, horrified for the second time in under a minute.

Hermione walked out of the bathroom to find Draco lying contentedly under the covers of the bed. “Had you been on the window side I would have kicked you out.” Hermione commented with a smile, placing her clothes in her drawer and sliding in next to him.

“I would have put up a fight.” Draco said to her softly. “I'm not about to get sent away after today.”

“What about today?” Hermione enquired, attempting to snuggle closer to him without being obvious. Draco watched her movements with a raised eyebrow, and after a few moments, snaked an arm about her waist and simply pulled her closer to him.

“I'm no longer in doubt about you.” He stated quietly. “Unlike someone else.”

Hermione lowered her eyes, not missing the reference to Devon. “I'll sort that out.”

“Good.” He said. “Because if you don't, I will. He doesn't back down easily, be aware of that. There's a reason he's in Slytherin, no matter how successively he can cover it.”

“Meanwhile you've never disguised the traits that got you into Slytherin.” Hermione pointed out.

“Is that an accusation?” Draco questioned, his fingers tracing circles around her back. “Should I pretend to be someone else, just because I'm not readily likeable?”

“Of course not.” Hermione told him, her voice becoming a whisper. “But sometimes you go too far in your own dislike of people.”

“I told you I was sorry.” Draco whispered. “I hate myself every time I think about what I did to you by the lake. I was full of anger, resentment, not to mention the pain that accompanies the loss of someone you are close to.”

Hermione was silent for a few moments, while a frown spread across her face. “Who did you lose?”

“Georgiana Richardson.”

Hermione breathed in sharply. Draco's hand was now motionless on her back, as he thought about Georgiana for the second time that day. “She was one of my mother's closest friends.” Draco explained quietly. “I saw her frequently when I was growing up. There was nothing sinister about her; she just happened to love a man whose interests lay in Dark Magic. When the Dark Lord returned a few years ago, his decision to become a Death Eater nearly caused their divorce. But she still loved him, so she decided to stay. Not long ago, they decided to have a child to mend the rift that had formed between them.” Draco said bitterly. “Then Emmett was put in prison, and so Georgiana was living on her own. My mother told me how difficult her pregnancy had been, especially without Emmett to help her. There was - or still is - every chance that Emmett will remain in Azkaban for a long time. Georgiana would have lived with her child in peace. Without any influence of Dark Magic. The Ministry fucked up because they think anyone who associates with dark wizards and witches must be one them self.”

Hermione was speechless. She had had no idea that the Ministry could have done so little research about someone they had murdered. “Did Mark know her too?” Hermione asked, remembering Mark being equally bitter about Bridie's admittance of Georgiana's assassination.

“His mother was also her friend. The three of them - Georgiana, Mark's mother and mine - would often get together, and we'd be dragged along. The two sons. The sad envy in Georgiana's eyes was unmistakable. All she'd wanted was a family. And look where it got her.”

There was nothing Hermione could say for a while. Draco was right. The Ministry had made a huge mistake. One that they were not even aware of. Bridie had thought that she was right in killing Georgiana; she had been the wife of a Death Eater after all.

“The Ministry isn't the best institution to trust.” She murmured as she wrapped her arms around Draco's chest and rested her head on his shoulder. “I think we need to start doing things for ourselves. Maybe that's the lesson to be learnt from this seminar. Fudge was a prat, who most likely ordered the death of Georgiana; just to stop a child from being raised to follow the dark side. He clearly didn't realise that the prophecy would be over by the time the child's magical powers could be a threat. Either the dark will rule, or the light will. One child will not make a difference.”

“Unless it's happened to more than one family.” Draco said. “I'm almost certain that it has. The Ministry is preparing for the war. Using emotion to weaken the opposition.”

“They're doing it too.” Hermione reminded him. “I know that first hand.”

Draco's hold on her tightened remembering Voldemort's attempt on her life to weaken Harry. “But that means we're no better than they are.” Draco pointed out. “We're resorting to their methods.”

“We'll change that.” Hermione whispered, closing her eyes and feeling sleep begin to make her thoughts fuzzy. “Let's not kill anyone. We'll prepare ourselves to fight, and only then will we overpower the dark.”

Hermione stood in front of the mirror on Wednesday morning, plaiting her hair to fill in the time before their first speaker. She had slept perfectly the night before, and on some level she knew it to be because of Draco's reassuring presence next to her. Although she had not mentioned it to anyone, Hermione was beginning to worry about Voldemort again. The article Rita Skeeter had published could only discourage him for so long. Besides,it is not as if Hermione was hiding. Anyone could see her alive and report it to Voldemort. Then he would not leave it up to a Great Lake to finish her off; he would certainly do it himself, until the certain end.

However, Draco had been capable of removing Voldemort from her mind the first time, and so Hermione took comfort in the belief that he could do it again. The only thought that troubled her was how and why Draco had learnt the recondite skill of Occlumency in the first place.

“Hermione?” A male voice called out from the main room of the dorm she shared with Draco.

“Yeah, I'm in here.” She called back, figuring it to be Draco. He's probably after another toothbrush, she thought to herself with a smile. Hermione twisted her hair tie around the end of her plait, and walked out of the bathroom, only to jump in surprise when she nearly walked into Devon.

Hermione was about to take a distancing step backwards, but before she managed it, Devon reached out and gently rested his hand on her waist. This act instantly rendered her immobile and momentarily speechless.

“Hermione. Can I please talk to you?” Devon asked, his blue eyes looking at her imploringly.

Hermione swallowed, trying to quickly think of a way to reject the request. She did not want to have to reject his affections, even though she had sworn to herself that she would. Now that she was face to face with the charming Slytherin, she did not know if she had the guts.

“I don't know.” She replied, manoeuvring out of his grasp to pretend to get a better view of the clock on the wall. “Do we have time? I don't want to be late for our first speaker.”

“We have half an hour Hermione.” Devon informed her easily. “Will you sit down?” he asked, motioning to the foot of the bed. Hermione sighed inwardly, but moved forward with a smile and sat on the bed. Devon sat next to her, and Hermione was sure that his leg resting against hers was no accidental touch. “Do you like this room?” Devon asked her, looking around as if he had not done so many times already.

“Of course.” Hermione replied all-too-brightly. “The view from the window is lovely. And the mattress is very comfortable.”

“It must be nice having a double bed all to yourself.” Devon remarked, watching her closely.

Oh that's conniving, Hermione thought to herself. “Oh yes.” She answered with a smile. “I like my space.”

Devon either did not notice her pointed glace down at their touching legs, or decided to disregard it. “You'll have to come and see my room. I had hoped that you might have done so already.” Devon said, and then added in a bitter tone. “But apparently you have all you need right here.”

“That's not true.” Hermione told him without thinking. She realised far too late that he would take the statement as encouragement to his pursuing of her, instead of reassurance that he was her friend as much as Draco was. Hermione quickly decided to ignore the pleased gleam in Devon's eyes as he looked at her, and said, “I'm sorry, it didn't even occur to me.”

“So will you come and see it?” he asked her, reaching out and taking her hand.

Hermione could only explain her acquiescence to his question with the confusion she felt. “Of course I will.”

“Great!” Devon exclaimed, standing up and pulling her to her feet with the hand he still clasped. “Come on then.”

“What, now?” Hermione asked plaintively.

“Why not?” He asked with a glance at the clock on the wall. “We have plenty of time.”

Hermione realised too little too late that she had been talked into a corner. “Well, alright.” She consented, making a silent pact with herself to have a peek in from the doorway, and then excuse herself. Hermione could not allow herself to be alone in Devon's bedroom. Not only because it would certainly be giving him the wrong idea, but because she knew Devon would tell Draco; it would be a score on his side of their competition.

Devon led Hermione down the corridors of the third floor with a smile on his face, while Hermione prayed fervently that Draco would not stumble across them and demand to know where they were headed. Before long, Devon stopped walking in front of room number 38. “Here we are.” He announced, turning his key in the lock and swinging the door open.

Hermione shuffled forward so she stood in the threshold, and peered into Devon's dorm. “Hmm.” She commented with a nod. “Cool.”

Devon turned to face her from where he stood near the single bed. Raising a questioning eyebrow, he asked, “Aren't you going to come in?”

“I can see it great from here.” Hermione lied.

“Nah you can't.” He disagreed, moving forwards to grab her hand and practically drag her into the room. “You have to see the view.”

“Oh, sure.” Hermione agreed, knowing she had no choice. Gently pulling her hand out of Devon's, Hermione walked over to the window to take in the view of the frozen lake. “Lovely.”

“I meant the view from the bed.” Devon said from behind her. Hermione's eyes widened and she turned to see Devon sitting on the foot of his bed. The first thought to run through her mind wondered if Devon would find it rude if she fled. The second thought hoped Devon would say he was only kidding and walk her to community lounge. The third and final thought that ran through her head hoped that none of the other Scales would come looking for them.

“Right.” She said, slowly seating herself next to him. “Of course you did.”

“Do you like it?” he asked her, shifting slightly so their thighs were touching.

“Like what?” Hermione inquired, hoping her wasn't meaning the touch.

“The room.”

“Ah, yes…of course. It's lovely. Very nice. Yes.”

Devon smiled at her and gently took her hand in his own. Hermione could not help her stomach, although she could not define whether it was due to excitement or slight mortification. When her thoughts jumped to Draco and the way his hand felt so secure and fitting in his own, she realised it was the latter. Although she knew she should remove her hand form Devon's and explain her choice, she did not think she would be able to bear his expression when she did.

“I know you're sharing a room with Draco at the moment,” Devon started, “But I've been wondering if you wouldn't be more comfortable sharing with me? I know I've asked you before, but that was when he was around, so his presence might have swayed your decision.”

“Oh goodness,” Hermione said, now wishing she had just told him she was with draco in the first place. What a predicament, she thought. “Devon, I - ”

“Because I can do his job just as well as he can.”

“You can - what?” Hermione stopped, suddenly having no clue what this Slytherin was talking about.

“The job he had taken up on himself without letting any of us help.” Devon explained. “The reason he requested to be put in the same room as you. You know, making sure You-Know-Who doesn't attack you again. He says he has hardly slept at all, so I suppose it's only fair that I take over anyway.”

“You make it sound like I'm just a job to share between you.” Hermione said quietly, dropping her eyes to the ground while she comprehended what Devon had just told her. So Draco had asked to be in the same room as her? Why had he done so without telling her?

“Hermione, don't start sounding upset.” Devon said, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. “Surely Draco has already told you this.”

Hermione silence answered the question for him. Devon slumped his shoulders slightly. “Oh…I thought he would have by now…Ooops. Sorry.”

“Don't apologise.” Hermione said, sending him a smile. “I'm glad I know.”

“I have something to show you.” Devon told her, deciding to change the subject.

“Yeah?” Hermione asked, suddenly worried about the possibilities of things he wanted to show her.

“But you are going to have to lie down.”

“Lie down?” she questioned, her voice slightly higher than usual.

Devon chuckled softly. “I promise that I won't touch you. All you have to do is look up. I just thought lying down is more comfortable than straining your neck backwards.”

“Oh, okay.” Hermione said, tilting her head back to look up at the roof. “Now what?”

“It's on the roof,” he explained. “Further back than where you're looking. As I said, you may have to lie down.”

Sighing inwardly, Hermione dropped back on to the bedspread so she was staring at the roof. Staring at the roof and reading three magical little words that were floating on the roof sparkling down at her. I like you. Hermione wished she had not smiled, but the romantic streak in Devon would certainly get him a long way. That is, if he put it to good use on girls who weren't a lot more interested in another guy.

The mattress bounced as Devon lay down on his side next to her, with his head propped up on his hand. His quizzical expression told her that he was waiting for her response to his written confession. “Devon, I - ”

“What the fuck is going on here?”

Hermione sat up as fast as a Firebolt and stared in mortification at Draco as he fumed in the doorway. Hermione had not even noticed that they had left the door open. Hermione had never seen Draco look so angry in all her years of purposefully infuriating him. His eyes were blazing, his jaw was locked and his hands were balled into fists. Hermione's face flamed as he turned to glare at her, and she found she had to close her eyes to escape their accusation.

“I said, what is going on here?” Draco repeated, his eyes now on Devon who looked almost as pissed off as Draco. Almost, but not quite.

“I am showing Hermione my room.” Devon explained icily.

“By lying her down on your bed?” Draco sneered. “And what else were you planning on `showing her'?”

`None of your business.” Devon snapped.

“It's more of my business than you think.” Draco said, taking a few intimidating steps into the small room. Devon stood, with his height equalling Draco's, so that they stood eye to eye.

“And how is that?” Devon asked scathingly. “Hermione's life is her own. You should stop interfering and let her make up her own mind.”

“I've been trying to.” Draco said loudly, his expression filled with anger. “At least I haven't lured her into a secluded bedroom and wasted all my senseless charm on trying to sway her choice!”

Devon's usually charismatic demeanour changed to one Hermione had never seen. His blue eyes narrowed threateningly, he pulled up the sleeves of his robe to reveal his prominent arm muscles, and he took a few steps forwards so that the two wizards were almost nose to nose. Hermione's eyes darted from one to the other in dismay. She knew for a fact that Draco could be dangerous when he was pressed, and now she was finally seeing why Devon had been placed in Slytherin.

“At least I gave her the choice of being in a room with me!” Devon countered. “You on the other hand, found it easier to simply give her no other option.”

Draco quickly pulled out his wand, while Devon raised his fist menacingly. Before either could take action however, a stern voice sounded from the threshold.

“If either of you so much as pull a hair off each others head, you are both out of the Scales.” Mark stood with his arms crossed commandingly across his broad chest. Hermione almost sagged with relief, while Draco's wand froze midair, and Devon's fist hovered uncertainly. “And don't fool yourselves into thinking I don't mean it.”

After a few moments, both the wizards lowered their arms, though they continued to stare at each other challengingly. Hermione looked to the doorway and blushed to see not only Mark, but Corey and Taylor all standing looking into the room tensely. Corey met her eye, and said quietly, “Hermione, come on out.”

Hermione glanced at Draco for a split second, and as she looked into his grey eyes, she knew she would never be more embarrassed in her life. For all his previous rage, Draco was unable to hold her stare, and he dropped his eyes to the floor until she had walked past him and came to stand beside Corey. Hermione allowed him to put an arm about her shoulders comfortingly and lead her down the corridor. Taylor glanced between the two retreating Scales, and the two pissed of wizards. He gave Mark an encouraging nod, and jogged down the hall.

Once they had disappeared around the corner, Mark turned to face Draco and Devon with a scowl. Shaking his head, he walked into the room. “Man, you two are embarrassing.” He muttered, pushing them away from each other to stand between them. “Now what the hell happened?”

Devon shot a glare at Draco. “I was showing Hermione my room, when he barged in here and flew off his rocker. As if he has any right to determine what we do.” Devon turned to speak directly to Draco. “You may be the unofficial leader of the Scales, but you have no right to try control us outside society matters.”

“It seems to me, that this is now a society matter.” Mark commented. “Had Corey not mused that it was strange you three were all missing, you two may have beaten each other to a pulp. That, I can only imagine, would have some consequences on the future of the Scales.”

“Maybe I don't want to be a Scale anymore.” Devon said, attempting to sound like he meant it. “If it means associating with him then I'll be happier out of it.”

“Oh, no you don't.” Mark threatened. “We're all in this mess together. There are no easy escapes. Besides, if I'm about to risk my arse by skipping off to follow the dark lord, there's no way in hell I'm going to let you nick off and live happily ever after.” Mark then turned to address Devon in confusion. “What did you think you were doing anyway? Threatening to punch Draco? Now that is one of the stupidest things I've known you to do. He had a wand in his hand. You would barely have touched him before he had you rolling about on the floor.” He stopped speaking and took a moment to reflect on the situation. “Witches really do cause wizards reason to vanish.”

“So what do you expect us to do?” Devon asked mockingly, while Draco raised an eyebrow at his old friend.

“Settle it like gentlemen.” Mark suggested. He almost continued on to tell Devon to just let Draco have Hermione, for she had clearly chosen him, however he stopped himself. Devon's pride would not stand for that. Mark suddenly realised that these two arrogant Slytherins could only sort it out by venting their frustration on each other. Well, if there was no other way, he shrugged. Turning to the wizards, Mark smiled with the anticipation only a Slytherin would feel about his suggestion. “With a duel.”

Chapter nineteen - Lupin's Task

“A what?” Hermione demanded of Mark in a fierce whisper. They sat in their usual classroom waiting for their first guest speaker, twenty minutes after the confrontation between Devon and Draco. Mark grinned at her, and Hermione rested her forehead in her palm in resignation. “Why would you even suggest that to them?”

Mark raised an incredulous eyebrow that basically meant “I'm a Slytherin.”

“I forget about Slytherins and their nasty traits.” She muttered under her breath in despondency.

“What's that supposed to mean?”

“`Those folk use any means, to achieve their ends,' I believe the Sorting Hat once said about Slytherins.” Hermione explained. “I mean no offence, but seriously, your determination can get to be a bit much. Especially if taken to the extreme of duelling with your friends.”

“That's not their fault.” Mark said bluntly.

“I'm causing too many problems.” Hermione said quietly to herself, shaking her head. Draco and Devon sat in an icy silence at the other end of the table, while Corey and Taylor talked together, ignoring their foul moods.

“If you had just taken Corey's advice and chosen one, we wouldn't be in this position.” Mark told her, the grin not leaving his face.

Hermione's head snapped up to stare at Mark in disbelief. “Corey's advice?” She echoed.

“You know, to just pick one of them and be done with it.” He said. Noticing her look of accusation, he explained. “This is the Scales Hermione. We know everything about each other, remember? Just because I wasn't there when he told you, doesn't mean I don't know about it.”

Hermione sighed and looked at him imploringly. “I know I should have ended this days ago. But I honestly didn't think things would take such a turn.” She whispered. “I didn't even think Draco really cared. I thought he was just in it for the challenge. Now I think it's the other way around.”

Mark's approving nod informed her that she was on the right track. “Dev likes you, sure.” He said quietly. “But he has only been encouraged to take things further because Draco has shown an interest. As you can now see for yourself.”

“Yes…but a duel?” Hermione asked plaintively. “Couldn't you have thought of something else?”

“Why?” Mark inquired, appearing genuinely curious. “It's a great idea.”

“No it's not!” Hermione exclaimed, causing the other four guys to look over at her. She smiled at them wanly, and turned back to Mark with a lowered voice. “No it's not,” she hissed. “They could get hurt.”

Mark's smile slid off his face as he regarded her. “It doesn't matter anyway. Sometimes all a wizard needs is a good duel.”

“How can that be?” Hermione asked. “How can a wizard need to get hexed?”

“Getting hexed is the downside.” Mark agreed thoughtfully. “But damn, sometimes you just need to vent out frustration by hurting someone.” Observing Hermione's horrified face, he quickly explained, “Oh, we only use simple, reversible hexes, nothing dangerous or overly painful. But surely you can understand. Maybe you don't do it personally, but I can only imagine Harry and Ron have nicked off to have a therapeutic duel.”

Hermione shook her head vehemently. “They've had enough real duels in their time to not require inflicting pain as a remedy to frustration.”

“Ah, it must a habit unique to us Slytherins then.”

“Must be.” Hermione commented dryly, as the door swung open and their first speaker for Wednesday walked in. Her eyes widened in pleasure as she beheld a familiar, shabbily dressed wizard. “Lupin!”

Remus Lupin looked up and a huge smile spread across his face. “Well if it isn't my favourite witch. How are you Hermione?”

“Second favorite,” she answered slyly, with Tonks in mind. “And I'm alright. How about yourself? It's been ages since we've seen you.”

“I'm alright too.” Lupin replied easily. Sitting behind the desk at the front of the room, Lupin looked at each of the Scales pleasantly. “I have no doubt you can all remember me, for I caused a bit of controversy when I taught at Hogwarts a few years back. In fact, Mr Malfoy, I believe you had me sacked.”

Draco did not respond, but his expression turned apologetic.

“Anyway, I'm afraid we don't have any time for idle chit-chatting.” Lupin began. “I am here as a follow up to Albus Dumbledore's visit on Monday. I'm told that one of you should now have been decided upon to carry out a certain task. May I ask which of you wizards - as it is clear you won't have chosen Hermione - has been selected?”

Mark cleared his throat and said gruffly, “That would be me.”

Lupin regarded Mark with curiosity. “Mark Darcy. You have a father who is reputed to be a highly dangerous wizard, and who in recent years has paid homage to Voldemort. I can see why you would be fitting to pose as a Death Eater. Can I ask, have you ever made it known that you do not follow your father's interests in dark magic?”

Mark shook his head. “Never.”

“Great.” Lupin said with a smile. Hermione noticed that no doubt crossed Lupin's face, although the reason Mark had never severed the ties with his father could easily have been because he was a dark wizard himself. “Are there any questions that you, or any one of you, have to ask about this certain task?”

Hermione raised her hand, and spoke, “Um, well we were wondering one thing. Is it possible to send more than one of us? Sending Mark alone seems a bit…harsh. If we could send Corey with him, they could find support in the presence of the other.”

Lupin turned from listening to Hermione, to regard Corey. It was a few moments before he answered. “Although I know Mr. Mackell would be able to complete the job effectively also, the Order has agreed to send just one of you.”

“Why?” Taylor inquired on behalf of them all.

Lupin sighed, and dropped his eyes to the ground. His morose expression betrayed the answer which Mark quietly supplied for him. “Because if we are found out, one dead is better than two.”

Hermione felt her throat tighten at Mark's unemotional tone. Glancing at him, she saw that although his face was set in determination, his eyes appeared less certain.

“Now Mark, please excuse me for cutting this morning session so short for you, but if you make your way into the room next door, you'll find a fireplace which is now connected to the Floo network. Say `Dumbledore's office' and you will be taken to the Headmaster's office at Hogwarts. There, he will speak to you and give you some instructions about the task you have decided to take on. You will be back in time for lunch.”

Mark stared at Lupin for a few moments, and then nodded. Slowly standing up, he looked at the others with the first expression of apprehension Hermione had ever seen on him. His decision to become a Death Eater was only now beginning to be a reality, even after having two days for it to play on his mind. Hermione gave him a reassuring smile, and he gave her a nod of thanks. Once Mark had walked out of the room, and had closed the door behind him, Lupin turned to the others.

“While Mark has his task to carry out, you will also have yours.” Lupin informed them. Hermione leaned forward with a look of concentration, waiting to hear what she had to do, while the others seemed to sink in their chairs. If Mark had to become a Death Eater, surely their task wouldn't be easy either.

“Voldemort is strong, and is already making moves to gain a hold over the wizarding world. His Death Eaters attacked the Ministry for Magic in Italy last night, but fortunately were held off. After a short time of fierce fighting and the death of a good man, they retreated. It would be fair to say that Voldemort is hoping to gain a stronghold and at the same time hostages, to use to get his way. He was unsuccessful at the Ministry in Italy, and we are fairly certain he will not attempt the Ministry in Britain, as it has been expecting an attack for months and is very closely guarded.”

“Isn't the Ministry in Italy as guarded as Britain?” Hermione asked in confusion. “I thought each Ministry took the same safety precautions.”

“They do.” Lupin answered. “But Britain expects an attack from Voldemort more than Italy does. They are not quite so tense. Gaining hostages from anywhere would have gotten Voldemort a free pass to almost anywhere he wanted. He could have asked for the Ministry in Britain to be evacuated, or he kills hundreds of workers. Had he been successful, neither Britain nor Italy would have had anyone to run the country. Chaos would have broken out.”

“But he wasn't successful.” Devon pointed out, trying to get Lupin back on track.

“So where do you think they will attack?” Draco asked, alike Devon, more interested in their task than possible scenarios.

“Hogwarts.” Lupin stated simply. “As I'm sure you can all figure out. What better place to invade, where they can hold the students hostage? As if the Ministry could not do Voldemort's bidding, when he is threatening to kill innocent children if they don't.”

“You're right; we have figured that out.” Hermione said to Lupin seriously, receiving surprised glances from the others. “But what do you and Dumbledore propose we do about it? Evacuate the school now? All go home so we're not giving Voldemort a chance of power by using us? Although it is a smart and safe thing to do…”

“It seems weak.” Draco finished off for her. Hermione glanced in his direction and caught his eye. She sent him a small, hesitant smile, not sure what he thought of her now he had seen her lying on Devon's bed. He did not smile in return, but he did not glare either. Looking at Lupin, Draco said “I want to fight. There's no way I'm running home like a weakling when I can fight the bastard and his followers.”

Hermione, although impressed by Draco's determination, felt a wave of despair at his thirst for a fight. Considering Mark was about to hold a duel between Draco and Devon, it was not reassuring that Draco was all for battling out his differences.

“I'm glad.” Lupin said, looking quite pleased at Draco's sentiments. “And I'm sure many of the students will agree with you.”

“I don't want to kill anyone though.” Draco added, in a noticeably quieter voice. Taylor glanced at him in slight surprise, but joined in with Hermione, Corey, and Devon in nodding in agreement. Even though he was only a year younger than the others, Hermione began to wonder how much Taylor still had to learn about the world. It seemed that he did not yet understand the consequences killing someone would have on the mind.

“And I don't expect you to.” Lupin said seriously. “There are a large number of spells that will cause your victim to fall unconscious immediately. Therefore, you don't cause any deaths, but you will not have an enemy about to kill you.”

“Wait a second.” Corey said. “You are not going to expect us to defend our school alone, are you?”

“Of course not.” Lupin said with a chuckle at the absurdity of that situation. “You will teach the other sixth and seventh years to hex and charm accurately and concisely.”

The Scales and Tail stared at him in silence.

It took only a few moments before Hermione spoke. “Uh…how do you expect us to do that, when I'm the only student who is not a Slytherin? The school is so segregated, that it will a near impossible task to get all the houses together in peace, let alone teach them complicated spells.”

“Besides, who are you to ask us to do something like this?” Draco asked. “If you're just speaking for Dumbledore, you can't really expect this to work. I mean, everyone knows that he has wanted the school united for years, but that hasn't made it happen. I agree with the man, but I'm going to need a higher power to command me before I attempt that impossible task.”

“If not Dumbledore, than would you attempt it for the Order of the Phoenix?” Lupin asked haltingly, apparently uncomfortable about exposing the Order. Hermione frowned, and figured Dumbledore must have instructed him to tell the Scales about the Order if they asked.

Draco's and Corey's eyes widened, while Taylor and Devon frowned. Hermione noted this with interest. The Scales prided themselves on knowing everything, and yet it was becoming more apparent that not all the Scales knew everything. There were secrets within the society. Surely something as important as the Order of the Phoenix should have been known by all members, and yet Devon and Taylor clearly knew nothing of it. “You're part of the Order?” Draco asked in disbelief.

Lupin nodded with slight hesitancy. “Yes. There are many members that will surprise you, but I'm not going into that now. And it is not merely Dumbledore, but all members of the Order of the Phoenix, who believe you are the only group of students capable of uniting the school. Without the school standing strong together, you have no chance of defeating the forces Voldemort sends in to Hogwarts. He will not be expecting the students to fight him.”

“Surely the dark lord will sendhundreds of Death Eaters, just in case some students stand to fight.” Devon said seriously, his handsome face set hard in concentration. “Can the Order really think there will be no children dying as a consequence? Even if you say it is ultimately their choice to fight, there will be many who are unskilled enough choosing to fight anyway.”

Lupin sighed. “I'm forgetting to start at the beginning. The Order did not compile theidea in sequential order, so forgive me explaining it in such a scattered manner.” He paused, and he turned to look at the ground as he gathered his thoughts. “Ok, when you go back to Hogwarts for the start of term, you are going to have to start uniting the houses. The Order has taken into account the fact that the Scales now includes a Gryffindor - especially a female, amongst Slytherins. The fact that most of you are of high social standing amongst your peers will make your task of uniting the houses easier, as most people will follow the leader. All we ask is that you keep us informed of any students who you think may cause a problem.”

The Scales and a Tail nodded, waiting for him to continue.

“You will then teach the willing older students - sixth and seventh years only - hexes and spells that they have not learnt in class. You must also revise the spells that they have learned in class, because chances are, they can't do them accurately either. I will teach you a few spells on how to render your attacker unconscious; Slumbernum and Comatosa. Two of you students shall have the task of enforcing these strongly on the other students.”

While Lupin paused for a moment, Taylor spoke up. “So, excluding the part where uniting the school is going to be a problem, and jumping to when we are going to teach them spells…do you have any idea how we're going to do that? Do we all group together in the Great Hall twice a week and practice with them, or what?”

“Ah,” Lupin nodded, “you bring me to my next point. You may recall completing a test yesterday morning with Kingsley Shacklebolt? Just so you know, most of it was not an Auror test.”

Hermione almost smiled. So Lucia was right. The speakers of the seminar were testing the students to see what they were good at.

“The results informed us of what areas of study you all excel in. Depending on these results, I am going to put you all in charge of teaching students a particular branch of self-defence.” He said, looking at each of them in turn. Lupin pulled a folded piece of parchment out of his pocket, opened it, and held it out in front of him. After a few moments of frowning at the parchment, he glanced up apologetically. “Give me a moment. I'm not even an old man, and already my eyesight is abandoning me.”

Lupin squinted at the sheet, and after giving it a once through, began relating its contents to the students. “Mr. Hutch, it appears your greatest talent is communication. So, the challenging task of joining the houses falls mainly on your shoulders. You are a readily likeable wizard, and so will have to make friends with students of other houses, and sway them to the opinion that Slytherins aren't all bad. Once the school is united, Mr. Hutch, you will join with Mr. Smith and his group of students.”

“Please call me Devon,” Devon said, “It's too formal otherwise. You are in on this massive secret with us; at least call us by our first names.”

Lupin smiled. “Alright. Together, Devon and Taylor, you will teach students how to knock out any attackers with the spells I will teach you. Although they are difficult, you two should not have an issue keeping them optimistic.”

“Hermione, you will teach the students anything falling under the category of concealment and disguise. Illusion Charms and such things. I believe you mentioned something about an Echo spell in your test; if you are able to complete one of these, please try teaching it to the groups of students.”

Hermione beamed, glad to have her inclusion of an Echo spell acknowledged. Hermione had read that an Echo spell was usually cast by a witch or wizard in hiding, to divert the attention of an attacker. If a witch was hiding under an Invisibility Cloak in a corridor for example, and they cast an Echo spell of footsteps while aiming their wand down the corridor, her attacker would hear the footsteps and hopefully run off after them, thinking it was the witch. Hermione nodded at Lupin in acceptance of her set task.

“Corey will join you in this.” Lupin added, glancing at the reserved wizard. “You seem to be a master of disguise in everyday life, choosing not to draw attention to yourself in most situations. I think you will teach the students how to hide themselves successfully.”

Lupin stopped talking, and along with Taylor, Devon, Corey, and Hermione, he looked at Draco. Draco looked around at them all, and then back at Lupin expectantly. “What do I do?”

Lupin's serious face spread into a smile, “And Draco, you will have the task of enforcing the hexes and jinxes students may already know. You will ensure they know how to complete these well enough that they will work on Death Eaters. And since there is every chance Voldemort will utilise his control over Dementors, you will make sure every student knows how to produce a Patronus.”

Hermione quickly raised her hand, “But Lupin - ”

“One moment Hermione,” he interrupted. “Draco, you will do all of this alongside Harry.”

“Wha - ” Hermione covered her mouth with her hand to stifle her protest, realising she should accept the Orders wishes. She had been about to suggest that Harry teach them the Patronus, and Draco do something else. But to have them work together? Then again, the school was meant to be united by that point, so Draco and Harry should be able to stand each other…

Hermione looked back at Draco to find him staring at Lupin without expression. Narrowing his grey eyes, Draco nodded curtly. “Of course. If you are the one to tell him.”

“Oh, that won't be a problem.” Lupin said with a look that put the Scales under the impression he knew something they did not. “But for now, let's all get up so I can teach you those spells. Let's begin with Slumbernum.”

The Scales sat down at their lunch table in a weary silence. They had spent the last forty-five minutes working hard to master Slumbernum and Comatosa spells. Hermione had successfully completed Slumbernum twice, once on Corey, and once on Devon, and had completed the Comatosa once on Taylor. She would have been able to do it more, but felt guilty making her friends unconscious. Draco had also put Hermione and Taylor to sleep, and knocked Devon out a total of five times. Devon, in an attempt to retaliate, had put Draco into a comatose state so strong, that Lupin had only managed to bring him out of it at the end of their session.

“You put me in a deep slumber that last time, Corey.” Hermione murmured, yawning widely and taking a sip of her tea. Corey smiled apologetically, as he rested his chin in the palm of his hand tiredly.

“I don't know how I managed it.” He admitted. “Since you first completed the Slumbernum on me, I haven't been able to concentrate through fuzzy-headedness.”

Hermione smiled in response, too sleepy to bother saying much at all. The Scales and a Tail did not eat much for lunch, nor did they talk. Not only because they were all too tired to think of anything worth saying, but because they were all aware of the tension passing between Draco and Devon.

Draco's head rested permanently on his hand throughout lunch, as he continued to suffer the side-effects of Devon's strong spell casting. Once they had all finished eating, they moved to the communal lounge to rest on the couches. By the time they only had five minutes before their next speaker, they were all starting to wake up.

Hermione glanced up from staring at the floor to see Mark walk into the lounge. He paused to glance around the room, and when he spotted them sprawled over couches in the back corner, he made his way over to them.

Hermione struggled to sit up and made room for him, “Hey Mark. Have a seat.”

Her voice caused Draco and Corey to open their eyes in surprise and blink a few times. Mark shook his head at Hermione, declining her invitation to sit down. Clearing his throat, Draco said huskily, “Mark…how'd it go?”

Mark's expression gave nothing away about what he had been told. “Fine.”

The Scales frowned, and shifted in their seats so they appeared more awake. “That's not good enough.” Draco said. “What did you find out? What are you going to have to do?”

Mark shrugged noncommittally. “This and that.”

“Mark - ” Draco began , but was cut off by Mark's gruff voice.

“No.” he said firmly. “If you know nothing, you can give away nothing, ok? Veritaserum is powerful stuff, as is the dark lord's Occlumancy skills. If you know anything, it can easily be revealed. You already know enough to have me killed, but it's best if you know nothing more.”

No one objected this time. It made perfect sense that anything they know could put Mark in danger. When Draco yawned sleepily, Mark looked at them all with a frown. Corey's eyes had closed again, Taylor was staring bleary eyed at the floor, and Devon's slumped posture opposed his usual proud stance. “What have you all been doing?” He asked curiously. “You all look as if you've been hit with a sleeping spell.”

Chapter Twenty - The Duel

`I would ask what Miss Granger is doing here, but I'm sure I don't want to know.' Severus Snape sneered from the front of the room. Hermione rolled her eyes at her luck. It would seem that not even at a private seminar, miles away from Hogwarts, could she escape the judgements of her potions professor. His black eyes regarded her coldly, causing the Scales to exchange glances. Snape turned his back on them for a few moments to write something on the board, and Mark leaned over to whisper in Hermione's ear.

`Snape used to be in the Scales.'

Hermione glanced at Mark in surprise, and then at Snape. When she thought about it, Snape being an ex-Scale made such perfect sense, Hermione became more surprised that she had not figured it out for herself. Snape turned to look at the Scales with a look of bitter disappointment, noticeably ignoring Hermione.

`I had thought you boys knew better than to accept a female, not to mention Miss Granger, into the Scales.' He sneered at them. `I am very displeased with your actions.'

Hermione's glare slowly turned into a frown when she connected a few pieces of information in her head. Glancing at the others to see if they had put it together, Hermione noticed Draco staring out Snape with icy eyes. Severus's scowl increased in intensity when Draco lifted his chin at him in defiance. Devon looked affronted that an ex-Scale would judge them so harshly; Taylor was avoiding eye contact with the Potions master; while Corey and Mark had raised eyebrows that betrayed their thoughts of up-your-arse-Snape, we-do-what-we-want.

Hermione cleared her throat, `Excuse me, Sir?'

Snape's gaze turned from Draco to rest disgustedly on Hermione. He did not even speak to her, merely waited for her to continue. `You act as if you're surprised to find me here, and yet as part of the Order of the Phoenix, it is apparent to us that you already knew about my place in the Scales. Besides that, you saw my ring that day I needed to get into Dumbledore's office and speak to him. You can't pretend that you were not aware of my recruitment.'

Snape raised his eyebrows at her coolly. `It matters little Miss Granger, whether I knew about you previously, or have only had this atrocity revealed today. I am still appalled about you being in this strictly male Slytherin society.'

Hermione scoffed. `As an ex-Scale, you have no right to lecture these guys on admitting a female, considering you probably did the same thing when you attended Hogwarts.'

Snape stared at her dangerously. `No female was permitted into this society when I attended Hogwarts. It hadn't yet sunk this low.'

Hermione stood up suddenly, causing her chair to wobble precariously on its back two legs before Mark reached out and set it straight. `I see.' She said hotly, her eyes boring into Snape's. `You make it clear that I am a canker to this society; in your opinion at least. Give your speech to the Slytherin males; I'll make it easy on you and leave. It's not as if I've ever cared about what you have to say anyway.'

That said, Hermione stormed from the room and slammed the door behind her.

Hermione lay staring out the open window in her room. It had been over an hour since she had left Snape and the boys in a huff. She had no homework to do and no access to a library that could help her research the past of the Scales.

The door to her room opened, and Hermione twisted her head to look over her shoulder to see which Scale was paying her a visit. She was unsurprised to find Mark looking at her in amusement.

`That's the second time you've stormed out on a speaker of importance this week, Hermione.' He told her with a grin, crossing the room to sit on the end of the bed. `If you keep this up, you may find yourself developing a bad reputation; the exact opposite of the reason we are here.'

Hermione winced slightly. `I know. I couldn't help it.'

`Professor Snape pissed you off on purpose, you know. It was clear that he did not want you there. You just gave him what he wanted by rising to his bait.'

`I know that too.' Hermione sighed. `But I didn't want to be there either. Why should I make up my own excuse, when I could just play along with his?'

`Fair enough,' Mark conceded. `Though you put him in a bad mood. None of us thank you for that, although we do respect you for not letting him get away with what he said.'

`Sorry about that. Did I miss anything important?' Hermione asked, sitting up on the bed and pulling her knees up to her chest. `Did he set us any tasks, or anything?'

`Much to our surprise, no,' he informed her, although Hermione noticed a strange look cross Mark's face for a moment. `He just informed us about his teaching career, and how he got to hold his position as Potions Master.'

`Oh,' she responded simply. `Good. I didn't miss anything then.'

Mark gave a low chuckle, and he cast her a sidelong glance. `Actually, you did miss one little thing. Once Professor Snape left, we all got up to leave the room. As Draco was walking - no, stalking seems to fit Draco's mode of movement more accurately - to the door, Devon barred his way.' Mark's smile slowly faded. `Devon suggested that Draco just give up now, so they did not have to bother with a duel. According to Devon, they both know that you want him, so why should they both get hurt just to come to that very same conclusion?'

Hermione frowned and sat up straighter on the bed. `Did Draco agree to this?'

Mark shook his head. `Oh come on, Hermione. Don't be daft. As if he would. He just shouldered Devon aside and continued stalking out of the room. It seems that you will have them duelling over you before the day is out.'

`That's it,' Hermione said firmly, swinging her legs over the mattress and standing up. `I'm going to go find Devon.'

`And what will you say?' Mark questioned with a raised eyebrow.

`I'll apologise to him, I suppose.'

`Right,' he said disbelievingly, smiling at her attempt of determination. `You do that. But in the meanwhile, the guys and I will be getting ready for the inevitable duel after our last speaker this afternoon. See you downstairs for afternoon tea.'

Once Mark had left the room, Hermione sat back on the edge of the bed with a sigh. Although the thought of Draco and Devon having a duel had horrified her, she hadn't actually thought they would go through with it. However, it was starting to sound more and more like it would. Hermione stood with the intent of going in search of Devon, only to turn and see Draco walking through the door.

Draco looked up, and stopped walking as soon as he saw Hermione. Glancing over his shoulder and down the corridor with a glare, Draco said stiffly, `Mark told me you weren't in here.'

`Mark lied.' Hermione said quietly, her heart sinking at Draco's cold manner. He nodded curtly, and turned around, about to walk right out again. `Draco, please don't leave.'

Draco paused, but did not turn around again to face her. Hermione moved towards him and rested a hand on his shoulder. `Let me explain.'

`I know you didn't do it on purpose.' Draco stated. `But you still did it.'

`I got swept up.' She explained helplessly. `Devon did not give me any chances to stop him.'

`Then you should have made chances for yourself, Hermione,' Draco told her, twisting around to look at her. `Last night, I thought I knew that you would not let anything happen with Devon. You would no longer lead him on. But after this morning, it is clear that you probably would have let him kiss you had I not walked in.'

`No!' Hermione exclaimed. `I was starting to tell him I wasn't interested when you barged in. You interrupted the one chance I had made for myself. I'm going to tell him now that there's no point in a stupid duel. I don't want him.'

`It won't do any good. He will duel anyway; otherwise he will loose all respect for himself. It is a matter of pride now, Hermione.'

`Then you must pull out,' she said, meeting his eyes desperately.

Draco regarded her steadily. `I can't. It would be taking away any chance Devon has to save his pride. That is worse than duelling him.'

`Then can you - '

`Do not ask me to lose, Hermione.' Draco warned. `I will not do that; even for you.'

Hermione sighed. `Then I guess I'll see you downstairs.' She said, and quietly quit the room.

To Hermione, there appeared to be more students in the dining room than there had been on Monday or Tuesday. She frowned, and noted that there were definitely some faces she had not seen before. As she made her way to the table Corey and Taylor were sitting at, Hermione suddenly remembered Gareth mentioning something about the seminar handing out Day Passes.

Corey looked up at her with a small smile, and motioned for her to sit next to him. Looking around the room, Taylor commented, `Is it just me, or are there more people here than before?'

`Day Passes,' Hermione stated, leaning over the table to grab a cupcake off a tray.

`Oh right,' Taylor said, nodding. `I forgot Gareth said students with Day Passes started coming on Wednesday. Did you notice them here this morning?'

Hermione thought back. `I suppose, but only now that you mention it. I was too preoccupied and sleepy to notice anything much at all during lunch. So they've probably been here all day.'

`They have been,' Corey said simply. `They got here just before breakfast. I was talking to someone with a Day Pass just before, and she said that they get to stay overnight, and leave just after breakfast tomorrow.'

`Why was she here?' Taylor inquired.

`I think she wanted to hear Professor Snape,' Corey said, pulling a baffled face. `Or at least, she mentioned that she wanted to pursue a career in potions, so I can only imagine it was to hear him.'

`So, do you think anyone from Hogwarts could be coming here with a Day Pass?' Taylor voiced his sudden worry with a meaningful glance at Hermione. She frowned that this possibility had not occurred to her before.

Corey looked around the room, and then answered, `I doubt it. I mean, they know we are a secret society. It's not as if they would allow us to be ratted out like that. Gareth would have least told us so we could be on our guard.'

`Good point.' Taylor conceded, glancing up. With a quick look at Hermione, he nudged her and motioned towards the door with a jerk of his head. Devon was standing there, staring at them with a melancholic expression. Hermione unintentionally met his eye and quickly looked away; but not before she saw his face fall at her disinterest. Groaning and placing her head in her hands, Hermione wondered what would happen if Draco and Devon really did duel. She was only able to look up when Corey murmured, `It's alright; he's at another table.'

Before Hermione had a chance to relax, Will startled her by appearing behind her and saying `Hermione,' louder than what she thought was necessary. She jumped and turned to face him while brushing droplets of spilt tea off her jumper. Will noticed what she was doing and winced apologetically.

`Sorry, it's just louder in here than usual. More people I guess,' he said, and then handed a bunch of parchment to her. `Take one and pass it on.'

`Oh, ok,' Hermione reached out and took the pile. `Thanks.'

`No problem,' Will smiled, and then indicated to the papers with a jerk of his head. `It should be fun.'

Once Will had returned to his table, Hermione passed the stack on to Corey, but kept the top one for herself. Glancing down at it, she read;

`Dear Students,

Please gather in the lounge area after you have finished afternoon tea. In place of a guest speaker shall be a session on team building. All will be explained when everyone is present. Thank you and have fun, Gareth.'

`G'day everyone.' An unmistakably Australian voice sounded from the doorway of the lounge half an hour later. All of the students who were attending the seminar fell silent and craned their necks in an attempt to see the speaker. The tall wizard standing directly in front of Hermione bent down momentarily to whisper in a friends ear, giving her a chance to view the striking wizard in the doorway. She observed his short, dark dreadlocks falling out from under a red headscarf that matched the bright, baggy pants he wore, before her view was obstructed once more.

Hermione heard the witch next to her sigh in admiration. `An Aussie hippie wizard. Have you ever seen anything sexier?'

`I'm Xavier, and I managed to draw the short straw last night with a mate.' He said with a casual smile. `As a result, I'm here, instead of surfing off the East coast of Australia. But hey, that's what happens when your boss books a seminar when you're on holidays. Not to worry; you look like a cool bunch of students, so I shouldn't complain.'

`Yeah, at least you have a job.' A young wizard called good naturedly from somewhere in the room, causing a few students to giggle and look around.

Xavier glanced in the direction of the voice with a smile. `Good point.' He nodded, and then continued. `Ok. I'm here to instruct you in a few exercises that will enhance your ability to work in a team. If you find it childish or boring, feel free to keep it to yourself and do what I tell you to anyway.'

Hermione smiled and glanced at Mark, who stood quietly next to her. When she caught his eye, Mark gave her a quick wink, and looked back at Xavier. Before following suite, Hermione's eyes scanned the room casually. After a few moments of searching, she spotted Draco standing at the front solemnly, and Devon standing with his arms crossed a few meters away from Draco. It appeared to Hermione that both were putting on a very good show of pretending the other did not exist.

`Before we begin I will briefly explain why we are going to be practicing working as a team.' Xavier said. `Although team work is often required in the workplace, there is a more important reason for it today. A war is coming, as I'm sure you are all aware, and who knows how long it will last. You will all need to work together, not as individuals, to fight with a hope to win. Even the most powerful wizards and witches cannot fight alone. You will learn that there are many curses and spells that require more than one being to cast it, to be highly effective.'

`I will begin by placing you in pairs; preferably with someone you've never seen in your entire life.' Matt told them, causing the students to glance around, as if to find the random stranger they would be placed with. `After I have established that you can work well in pairs, more importantly with someone you don't know, I will join you with another pair, where you will continue the exercises. This will continue until the entire room is working together. Sound alright?'

The students nodded in unison, and most prepared themselves to be placed with a student they had not even noticed were at the seminar. However some could not help but call out to Xavier.

`Hey mate! Did you bring your Kangaroo?'

`You ever been stung by a Billywig? Do they really make you levitate?'

`What about a Yeti? Have you ever spotted a Yeti?'

`Does surfing really mean flying on the water?'

Xavier held up his hand to silence anymore questions, while Hermione turned to Mark with a frown. `The Yeti comes from Tibet.' Mark merely shrugged at her in response, and she looked back to the front while Xavier shook his head in amusement at the questions.

`Struth, you all talk at once. For you information, Australians do not have Kangaroos as pets, nor do we ride them like a horse, as a common rumour seems to go. Yes I have been stung by a Billywig on many occasions; the levitation side effect is awesome. Yes, surfing is basically flying on top of the water. And …what uneducated student asked about the Yeti?'

All students in the room looked around, and eventually noticed a wizard raising his hand tentatively. Xavier raised an eyebrow at him. `The Yeti comes from Tibet, and lives in places where there is guaranteed snow to camouflage it. The centre of Australia is desert, and no where else has snow all year around. So no, strangely enough, I have never spotted a Yeti.'

`Right then.' The offending wizard mumbled, his face flaming in embarrassment. Hermione noticed Mark glance at her, pretending to be surprised that she had known the origin of the Yeti. She sent him a mocking know-it-all smirk, and waited for Xavier to split everyone into pairs.

Xavier began by pointing at Will, then pointing at someone on the other side of the room. This would apparently ensure that strangers would be placed together. After a few minutes, he gestured to Draco, and then turned to scan the room for a suitable partner. Hermione groaned when Xavier pointed at Devon with a friendly smile. `You two look like a good pair. Off you go.'

When the people around Hermione had been partnered up, Xavier turned to face her. He paused for the briefest of moments to send her a smile, and then pointed to the opposite side of the room. `You there; over here.' Hermione looked to see who Xavier had chosen, only to find Mark walking over. She quickly gathered that he had distanced himself from her so they would look like strangers. Scoffing to herself, she moved forwards to meet him half way.

`We're meant to be strangers.' Hermione said pointedly.

`Don't care.' Mark answered. `I can't work with them.'

`With who?' Hermione inquired in confusion.

`Strangers.'

`That doesn't make any sense.' She frowned.

`It does.' He countered. `Just not to you.'

Hermione stared at Mark, hoping his expression might give something away about what he meant. He could not work with strangers? Why on earth not? Hermione opened her mouth to query further, when something clicked. Mark was going to become a Death Eater once they returned from the seminar; perhaps the less people he knew, the less people he had to hide in his mind from Voldemort. Although this made perfect sense, Hermione frowned that he would choose to work with her. Surely she would need to be concealed from Voldemort the most. If he knew that Mark freely conversed with a mudblood, that would certainly create problems.

Hermione nodded at Mark in acceptance, and jumped when Xavier shoved something in her hands as he walked past. Looking down, she saw that it was a jar of green goo. Mark murmured, `I wonder what we're all going to have to do with that.'

It seemed that every pair had received the same thing, and everyone looked just as confused about it. Once Xavier stood at the front of the room, he explained. `You all now hold a jar of Sparking Slime. Can anyone tell me what that is?'

Hermione immediately raised her hand. Unfortunately, a tall wizard blocked Xavier's view of her, so he scanned the room without seeing her. `Well that's disappoint - '

`Over here.' Mark called, raising his arm and pointing down on Hermione's head.

`Ah,' Xavier said with a smile. The wizard in front of Hermione shuffled aside, and turned to stare at her along with everyone else in the room. `Good. Please explain it for everyone.'

`Sparking Slime is a form of firecracker.' Hermione said in a loud, clear voice. `The moment it touches a surface, whether it be stone, earth or flesh, the slime explodes. It's not a large explosion, just a few multi coloured sparks that fly off in any direction. Although not lethal if the slime lands on human skin, it can cause nasty, puss filled burns that usually disappear within twelve hours. The jar it is stored in is charmed to be immune to the slime's effects.'

`Spot on.' Xavier commented. `You could work in a joke shop with information like that.'

`I have friends who own one.' Hermione replied, by way of explanation.

`Right.' He said, and then turned to the students. `You are now going to stand roughly five meters away from your partner, with the jar of Sparking Slime on the floor between you - don't forget to open the lid.' Everyone followed these directions, careful not to touch the slime as they removed the lids.

Hermione glanced across the room to see Draco easing the lid off, while Devon stood back glowering. She felt a shiver of worry at the two being placed together, but felt reassured that they were under the watch of Xavier.

`With your wands, you much raise the jar so its rim touches the roof. This will require equal pressure from both of you. If one of you tries to take control, the slime will tip towards your partner, putting them at risk of being injured. If you get lazy and try to make your partner do the work, the slime will undoubtedly tip towards you, with the same consequences. Are we ready? Please begin.'

It only took ten seconds for the room to be filled with colourful sparks and explosions. Hermione and Mark took the entire process very slowly, and only spilled the slime once. This was not even their fault, but that of the partners next to them. The two witches accidentally sent their jar whirring through the air and into Hermione and Mark's. Fortunately the slime was hit with such velocity that it flew onto the robe of a blonde witch half way across the room, leaving Hermione and Mark unscathed. Assuming innocent expressions, the four students quickly resumed their tasks. Not long after, Hermione and Mark's jar attached itself to the ceiling with a thud.

`Good job.' Mark commented with a wink.

`Not bad, considering we've never seen each - ' Hermione was cut off by a loud yell and a large explosion from the front of the room. She quickly turned to see Draco glaring at Devon, while the left arm of his robe shimmered with the after effects of the slime.

`Let's hope he can look past that.' Mark murmured. His hopes were immediately dashed when Draco purposefully applied too much pressure to the jar, causing it to tip towards Devon. Devon jumped aside, and the slime landed directly next to his left foot. The purple and green sparks singed his shoes and robes. The scowl that spread across Devon's face made Hermione and Mark exchange a worried glance.

Before Draco could even anticipate being hit, Devon flung the jar of Sparking Slime at him with a flick of his wand. Hermione winced at Draco's reflex to catch it. It seemed that some of the slime had spread to the outside of the jar in its travels, and as it made contact with Draco's bare palm, sparks cracked into his flesh.

He threw the jar into the air with a pained shout, and caught it with his wand before it hit the ground. The room of stunned students watched on silently as the jar hovered between the two wizards. Devon's scowl had not left his face, and he clenched his wand with white fingers. Draco's narrowed eyes were the only indication that he was as pissed as hell. His stance was relaxed, and he had assumed his well practiced poker-face.

Draco waited, apparently unwilling to continue. Devon took this opportunity to tip the jar towards him once again. As the multi-coloured sparks sizzled through Draco's cloak and onto his shoulder, his jaw clenched in irritation. The jar of Sparking Slime splashed all over Devon before he realised he no longer had control of it. He yelped in pain, and sent it back at Draco, who blocked it with a wave of his wand. Back and forth it went, while the students watched on in astonishment.

Hermione saw Xavier standing in the centre of the room with his arms crossed across his chest. It seemed that he was not going to stop them from fighting, but simply wait until they had burnt each other to their satisfaction. `Should we do something?' she whispered to Mark.

`Nope.' He replied. `Let them battle it out now. If we stop them, they'll need to continue later. If they finish in their own time, this one should be enough.'

Before long, the jar was empty. Devon flicked it towards Draco, and only succeeded in producing a single green spark on his collar. Draco smirked and snatched the jar out of the air with his unscathed hand. Surprising the entire room with his change of tactic, Draco threw the jar at Devon as hard as he could. The jar hit him in the gut, causing Devon to grunt at the impact.

`Oh no.' Hermione groaned, foreseeing a drawn out physical fight between them. A duel that was all her fault. Mark placed his hand on her shoulder reassuringly.

`It's ok Hermione.' He said. `They won't kill each other. Worst case scenario is that they both get sent back to Hogwarts in a box, labelled “Body parts of recently departed wizards.”'

`Mark!' she exclaimed, whacking him in the chest. He chuckled and turned back to the fight.

Devon murmured something under his breath and pointed his wand at Draco. A jet of iridescent blue light hit Draco in the side of the head; a sheet of ice immediately began to creep across his face, rendering his features immobile. As the ice spread down his neck towards his arms and torso, Draco raised his wand and muttered the counter spell. A moment later he sent Devon crashing into the wall behind him.

Devon took a few moments before he staggered to his feet. Draco did not hit him again, but waited to see what Devon would do to him in return. He soon found out. Devon gave his wand a fancy twirl and mouthed a few words, causing Draco's legs to be lifted out from underneath him and his body to land heavily on the stone floor.

As Draco prepared to give Devon what for, a young witch called out, `Will you two just give it a rest?'

A strange look past over the wizards faces, and they eyed each other calculatingly. They raised their wands in unison, and shouted loudly, `Comatosa!' A moment later, they both dropped to the ground unconscious. The students broke into applause, deciding they enjoyed the show because neither of the participants got seriously injured. Xavier sighed and asked for the medi-witch to be sent for.

Hermione pushed her way to the front of the students, and regarded the two fallen teens. They both had many burns from the Sparking Slime that were now filling with puss. She took a steadying breath when she saw a large bleeding gash on the side of Draco's head. Devon's jaw was bruising and his shoulder was twisted at an unnatural angle. Hermione's eyes began to sting, and her throat constricted painfully. Crying will achieve nothing, she thought to herself fiercely.

However, it became apparent that her body did not care about achievements. A strange, blubbery noise that can only be made when one is trying fruitlessly not to cry escaped her lips, and a tear fell when she blinked her watery eyes. Unwilling to make a spectacle of herself, she turned and walked quickly out of the room.

Mark watched her go with a resigned sigh. `Things can only get better.'

Chapter Twenty One - What Are You Doing Here?

A knock on the door roused Hermione from her fitful doze. The sun was setting out the window as she sleepily rolled over to see Mark's head popping around the door. He smiled at her and took a step into the room. `You missed dinner.'

`I'm not hungry,' she replied honestly.

Mark nodded in understanding. `Um…I'm just letting you know that Draco and Devon are spending tonight in the hospital wing. Devon is still out cold, and Draco started to rouse from his coma an hour ago.'

`Is he alright?' Hermione asked in concern.

Mark smiled at her. `This is Draco we're talking about. I'm sure you can figure that out yourself.'

`His head wound looked nasty,' she pointed out.

`Oh that. The medi-witch has already healed it. It's just all of those Sparking Slime burns that will take a while to heal. Twelve hours did you say they take? They should be out before breakfast.'

`How's Devon's arm? It looked broken.'

`It was,' Mark agreed. `But the nurse mended that easily too. You don't need to worry at all Hermione. Just get yourself a good sleep. It shouldn't be too hard; you do have the bed to yourself tonight.'

Hermione blushed and threw a pillow at him in indignation. `That's very presumptuous.'

`But true none the less,' Mark jested with a sly grin. `Anyway; get some sleep and we'll see you at breakfast. Make sure you don't go sneaking into the hospital wing to visit a certain someone. Those slime burns gave him a nasty temperature that the nurse has just managed to lower. I doubt she would appreciate you raising it again.'

Hermione gasped and threw the second pillow at him, only to have it bounce off the door as Mark closed it with a snap. She could hear him laughing down the corridor, and decided to give him a good slap when she saw him the next morning. Curling up under the covers, Hermione closed her eyes and soon drifted to sleep.

Hermione took the steps from the third floor to the second two at a time the next morning. Her stomach had been growling in hunger since the early hours of the morning, and now she was desperate to get to breakfast. She did not care if she had to face Draco or Devon, so long as she was within reach of something edible (not according to cannibalistic opinions), she could handle anything.

Moving swiftly across the short landing on the second floor to get to the stairs to ground level, Hermione was so wrapped up in thoughts of pancakes and orange juice, she did not notice the wizard coming from the opposite direction until she walked into him.

Had the torso of the on comer been less like a stone wall, Hermione would have been spared the humiliation of stumbling backwards and downwards into a startled ball on the ground. As luck would have it, she banged her elbow on the floor causing painful tingles spread up her arm. `Ow! You great big - '

`Hermione?' The offender inquired in a deep, accented voice. `Is that you?'

Hermione's head snapped up in shock. Victor Krum stood before her, a pleasantly surprised expression on his face. Her disbelief must have been evident on her face, because Victor chuckled and reached down to help her up.

`I thought it was,' he remarked with a smile. `I am sorry about walking into you. I was so surprised to see you, that I forgot to move out of your way.'

`No problem,' Hermione said, taking hold of his hand and finding herself on her feet a moment later. Victor's strong hand steadied her before gently letting go. `What are you doing here?' she blurted.

`I am giving speeches today about Quidditch,' he explained, looking at her as if it was obvious. `Or are you not attending the seminar to know that? I'm sorry, I just assumed…'

`No, I am,' she said hurriedly. `But the program only mentioned a Quidditch speaker; not who it was going to be. I wasn't expecting you.'

`Surprise,' Victor said with a smile. `I am a bit nervous though. I hope Harry and Ron enjoy what I have to say. They are still big Quidditch fans, yes?'

Hermione frowned at the mention of Harry and Ron. Victor must think that Hermione was attending the seminar with them. It was an understandable assumption; three years ago she was inseparable from them. Hermione just smiled and nodded, `Yes they are.'

`And Harry is still Seeking?'

`Of course,' she answered. `Nothing could stop him.'

`Good. I look forward to playing him in the Quidditch game we have lined up for this afternoon,' Victor said with a grin. `But, I had better go and look over my notes now. I don't want a mental blank during my speech. People are already dubious about my intellect.'

Hermione could not help but smile. `You're not stupid, Victor. And I'm sure you'll be great.'

Hermione walked down the stairs to the dining room, and noticed something had changed. For some reason she felt relaxed and comfortable, and was reminded very much of Hogwarts. As she reached the bottom of the stairs and headed towards the smell of pancakes and coffee, a loud and all too familiar laugh registered in her ears.

Hermione froze and hoped against all hopes that she had heard incorrectly. She strained her ears to hear it again, and a few moments later, she was rewarded by the same laugh. She paused for a moment, and then shook her head to rid it of such silly thoughts.

As Hermione entered the dining room, Hermione saw Corey and Taylor at the table the Scales usually sat at. They both wore serious expressions and when Corey saw Hermione walking toward him, he shook his head slightly, frowned and turned his back on her. Hermione paused in her advance, and glanced intuitively to her right. Sitting at the table directly next to the entranceway sat Harry and Ron, completely absorbed in what she figured to be an entirely amusing conversation.

`And then, Fred would throw the Floo powder into the fireplace and say the first word that came to his head!' Ron snorted with laughter. `George ended up on stage in the middle of a re-enactment of Dante's Inferno - some Muggle theatre show once. The entire audience thought he was the Devil, stepping out of the flames! He got a standing ovation and everything. The wizard who had connected the stage fireplace to the Floo network got the sack though. Mum nearly had George's head after that.'

Hermione could not help smiling at Ron's story. She had heard about it from George a few years ago. However, after a severe look from Corey, she realised what she was doing; standing in plain view of the boys. Quickly turning on her heel, Hermione started to leave the dining room. But not before Harry glanced up with tears of mirth in his eyes and looked directly at her. A moment later, she was out of sight.

Hermione pulled up short around the corner of the entrance way, groaned, and leaned against the wall. What were they doing here? How could Gareth have allowed them Day Passes when he knew that the Scales would be here? What would happen if they found out about her place in an all-Slytherin society?

`Hermione?' Devon spoke from right next to her. She jumped and turned to face him with an almost frightened look on her face.

`Devon, I can't be seen with you,' she blurted quickly. `You have to get away from me.'

The hurt that crossed Devon's face was nothing compared with the guilt Hermione felt for causing it. Devon did not let his emotion show for long; an angry scowl replaced his pained expression. `It's alright Hermione. Draco is still in the hospital. He won't see you with me. But if you're so set against me; your wish is my command.' He turned and stalked away from her into the dining room.

`Wait - Devon!' Hermione hissed after him. Devon acted as if he did not hear her, and continued to stalk across the dining room until he reached Corey and Taylor. Hermione peered carefully around the corner again, and noticed Corey jerk his head meaningfully towards the table where the Scales current problem sat. Devon looked over at Harry and Ron, and his eyes widened in disbelief. He looked at Hermione apologetically, realising that it was because of Harry and Ron that he could not be seen with her.

Hermione sighed, and shuffled up close to the corner, hoping to hear what Harry and Ron were talking about. She hoped that Harry had figured her to be a figment of his imagination, and they were still talking about the endless things the twins had done to get themselves into trouble. She heard Harry first.

`I'm telling you Ron, I saw Hermione!'

Ron sounded more than amused. `Of course you did. And while you were looking at “Hermione,” I was having a pleasant conversation with Snape; the second least-likely person to be at a seminar about Quidditch.'

Hermione jumped as someone walked passed her and into the dining room. The wizard sent her a disapproving sneer, but appeared curious about why she was hiding in the doorway. `Lurking around, Miss Granger?' Snape asked with a raised eyebrow. Her glare was enough of an answer for him, and he continued into the room.

A moment later, Hermione heard Harry laugh in astonishment. `Ha! If he's here, then you have to believe that Hermione is too.'

Hermione held her breath, hoping that Snape would not overhear him and rat her out. A few moments of silence passed, and Hermione breathed a sigh of relief. Ron, although sounded slightly stunned from the unexpected sight of Snape, maintained his opinion, `You're off your nut, Harry. Thought you ought to know.'

Harry scoffed in irritation. `I swear it was her. Just there, in front of us.'

`Now what would Hermione be doing standing in front of us?' Ron asked realistically. `Here, of all places. She doesn't even like Quidditch.'

`I don't know…hey! Maybe she's with Krum. I saw him earlier. That could be why she's been acting so sneaky recently…she's dating Krum again!'

`She would have told us.' Ron's reply was terse.

`She didn't last time. And your reaction when she did may have been enough to ensure she'll never tell us anything about her love life again.'

`Ok,' Ron conceded, attempting to placate his friend. `So even if she was together with Krum again, that doesn't explain why she would have walked passed us without saying hello. She did see us, didn't she?'

`I think so…maybe not,' Harry sighed. `I don't know.'

`Tell you what Harry,' Ron said. `Let's just agree to disagree, and if Hermione randomly shows up before we leave tomorrow morning, I'll do your Transfiguration holiday homework.'

`Deal.'

Hermione smiled, having found her cue to enter. She stepped out from the doorway, and walked into the room casually. Immediately noting the talk between her friends cease, she glanced indifferently at them, as if merely scanning the room upon entry. She met eyes with Harry first, and tried her hardest to look surprised. His triumphant smile almost broke her, so she glanced over at Ron. His bewildered expression was no better, so she allowed herself to smile in pleasant surprise.

`Harry…Ron,' she said. `What are you doing here?'

`I - we, um...everybody eats breakfast, Hermione,' Ron stumbled over the words, completely taken aback by her appearance. Hermione's smile widened and she turned to look at Harry again. He was watching her with a steady green eyed gaze, and she realised that he was going to be dangerous to have around. If he even began to suspect she was at the seminar with the Scales, she would be in trouble. Although the notion would seem absurd to him, Harry had had enough absurd notions proven true to be so perturbed as to stop investigating.

`I see,' Hermione commented, her stomach growling loudly at the smell of pancakes and raisin toast.

Ron grinned when he heard it, and gestured to their table. `Will you sit with us Hermione? Or are you here with someone?'

Avoiding the second question, Hermione nodded. `Of course I'll sit with you. It feels like months since I've seen you two.'

`We know,' Harry said, dishing up a huge pile of pancakes. `By the way Ron, I fortunately have my Transfiguration homework in my bag. You can do it tonight.' Ron sighed, and cast Hermione an accusing glance. Harry lavished the pancakes in maple syrup, and then sprinkling a thin layer of sugar over that, he offered them to Hermione. `Just how you like them. Hope you're hungry.'

`Oh yes, more than you know,' Hermione replied, accepting the plate gratefully. `Thank you.'

Ron and Harry then helped themselves to seconds (or thirds, possibly fourths in Ron's case). As they ate, Hermione noticed the boys exchanging glances. She could tell that they wanted nothing more than to ask what she was doing there, but they were too worried about being asked the same question in return. Hermione suddenly remembered that she was not meant to know that Harry and Ron were in a secret society that centred on Quidditch. `Hey guys, what are you actually doing here? I understand the seminar part, but how did you find out about it?'

Harry and Ron exchanged yet another glance. Hermione was curious as to whether they would tell the truth, or create an elaborate, highly unbelievable lie.

Much to her surprise, Harry hung his head slightly and said, `We have to tell you something, Hermione.'

Ron shifted uncomfortably, and avoided catching Hermione's eye. `Harry and I are sort of part of a secret society at Hogwarts. It's based on Quidditch.' He looked up and saw her watching him, and quickly turned defensive due to guilt. `We didn't exclude you on purpose Hermione, honestly. We figured that you don't like Quidditch or secret societies, so you wouldn't be interested.'

`Plus, we aren't allowed to tell anyone,' Harry contributed. `Society rules.'

`What's the secret?' Hermione asked curiously.

Harry and Ron stared at her in bafflement. She sighed and rephrased the question, `Why is the society a secret? Is there something more to it that focussing on Quidditch, or is it just for the sake of it?'

The boys fidgeted and frowned for a moment, clearly thinking for the first time why it actually was a secret. `Just for the sake of it, I s'pose,' Ron admitted with a shrug. `So it's not as if we have been keeping a terrible secret from you Hermione. It's Gryffindor/ Hufflepuff/ Ravenclaw only, so you don't have to worry about us socialising with Slytherins.'

`Oh,' Hermione said with false cheeriness, unintentionally glancing at the Scales' table. `Well that's good to hear. Where is the rest of the society? Or were you two the only members to come?'

`The others are here too,' Ron told her. `But they finished breakfast a while ago, and are checking out our rooms before the seminars start.'

`Your rooms?' Hermione asked, her smile tightening.

`We get to stay overnight. As long as we are gone after breakfast tomorrow,' Ron continued. `I suppose that's when you'll be leaving too?'

Hermione nodded, completely at a loss of what to say. She had no plan devised. It was easier to just go with the flow of suggestions. Harry took her silence to mean that she was still upset about their membership in a secret society.

`We are really sorry Hermione,' Harry said earnestly, leaning over his plate and holding her hand. `We knew that not telling you was a bad act of friendship, but…'

`It's Quidditch?' She supplied for him with a smile.

Harry looked thankful and nodded his head. `Yeah. It's Quidditch.'

`So you forgive us?' Ron asked hopefully.

Hermione nodded, `Of course,' and caused Harry and Ron to grin. Their grins did not last very long, however. As one, their eyes moved to stare just over Hermione's shoulder. Their smiles faded into disgusted and enraged scowls. Harry, who was still holding onto Hermione's hand, started squeezing so hard she yelped, and Ron said loudly, `What is that filthy bastard doing here?'

Hermione almost groaned aloud, but instead closed her eyes momentarily to remain calm. She had no doubt who had just walked into the room. `Who?' she asked, attempting to stay in character. Swivelling in her seat, Hermione looked behind her and saw Draco pause in line with their table, a strange expression on his face. He had clearly just entered the dining room from the hospital wing, and had been making his way to the Scales' table. Draco must have heard Ron's angry demand from beside him, and had paused while trying to place the voice.

A moment later, Draco's eyes widened in shock, and he turned to stare at Harry, Ron, and of course, Hermione. Although usually a master of disguise, Draco could not keep the horrified surprise from showing on his face.

`Looks like he was expecting us,' Harry said sarcastically. Ron laughed, while Hermione smiled weakly.

Harry and Ron then waited for Draco to insult them back, as went their usual exchanges. Draco however, glanced at Hermione with a freshly assumed poker-face. She just shrugged slightly to portray her own surprise at finding her friends at the seminar. Draco then raised an eyebrow at the two male Gryffindors, `What did you drag the mudblood here for?'

The way the insult simply rolled off his tongue caused Hermione to flinch. Draco had not insulted her for what felt like weeks. The revelation that Hermione's own friends brought out Draco's inner jerk was painful. Unless a miracle happened, causing them to unite, Hermione would always have to choose between them. One or the other; never both at the same time.

Without giving them a chance to respond, Draco turned on his heel and stalked across the room to sit with the Scales. Hermione watched after him, noticing his right cheek bore the faint scar of a slime burn. Fortunately, it seemed the puss had been drained from it before he had left the hospital wing. Hermione turned back around to face Harry and Ron. Ron was stiff with outrage, and was mumbling incoherently into his pumpkin juice.

Harry was watching Hermione with narrowed eyes.

Hermione instinctively shifted under his gaze, `What?'

`Nothing,' he replied, although she knew at times like these, he was most certainly thinking something. `Did Malfoy offend you?'

`No,' she replied casually. `I'm used to it. It's not as if I care what he has to say anyway.'

`Of course not,' Harry said, his gaze straying over her shoulder. Hermione took a sip of tea, feeling apprehensive Harry's occasionally accurate observations would get her into trouble. After staring at the Slytherins table for what, to Hermione, felt like minutes, Harry turned back to Hermione and inquired, `So what are youdoing here, Hermione?'

`What the hell are they doing here?' Draco demanded of Corey, Devon and Taylor as he sat down at the table. `Those little buggers have no right to be here. This is our seminar.'

`And they've stolen Hermione from us,' Corey continued quietly. Draco glared at him, daring him to put more words in his mouth. When Corey remained silent, Taylor spoke.

`So, how are you two?' Taylor looked between Draco and Devon. `Was the night long?'

Devon shuddered, while Draco answered, `You've got no idea how much those slime burns hurt when they heal.'

The night had been difficult to get through, with his burns and other miscellaneous injuries. Draco had also felt a strange, unusual sensation at sleeping without Hermione. When he had first felt the bizarre emotion, he passed it off as comfortable - being able to sleep without her next to him. But after a while, he realised that it was not unexpected comfort at all: Draco missed her. As soon as this realisation had hit, he had suddenly felt incredible pity for Devon, who had been lying in the bed next to his. `Dev?' he had said softly.

A long silent minute later, Devon had answered somewhat sullenly, `What?'

`I'm sorry.'

`You're what?' Devon had asked, having never heard those words come out of Draco previously.

`Sorry.'

Devon had remained quiet, and Draco guessed that he either found it easier to accept the apology in silence, or was fuming at the implications of Draco's apology: that Devon had come out last in their unspoken battle for Hermione. It had been almost fifteen minutes later when Devon had spoken again.

`So am I.'

`Why?' Draco had enquired in bafflement.

`I know you like her. And you don't genuinely like many girls; they shit you too much. But I like a lot of girls, and although while I like them, I really like them, my affection dissipates fairly quickly. We both know that Hermione shouldn't be played with, which is what I would have unintentionally done. I suppose it was just pride in the end. You had been such a cockhead to her; I didn't think you deserved her.'

`I know. I don't.'

Devon had laughed bitterly. `I'll have to remember your tactics next time; abuse a girl and she'll fall for you. I never would have thought of that.'

Draco had felt a surge of severe regret and self-loathing. He was unable to believe that he had hit Hermione and nearly drowned her just a few months ago. Clenching his fists, he had suddenly wondered why Hermione had fallen for him, despite all of the nice guys in the world.

Now, sitting at the table with the Scales, Draco glanced over his shoulder to watch Hermione. She wore her hair in a high ponytail, undoubtedly performed nonchalantly without a glance in the mirror. He felt a sudden compulsion to kiss the bare skin exposed on the back of her neck. He shifted his gaze, and immediately noticed Harry watching him, his green eyes speculative. Draco could not be bothered being a prick, so he just stared back instead of glaring or pulling some sort of nasty face. Much to his surprise, Harry frowned and did the same.

After both failed in their attempts to stare the other to death, Harry looked away casually and said something to Hermione. Draco watched her shift uncomfortably and wondered what he had just asked her. Harry's eyes darted back to Draco for a moment and caught him still staring. Frowning again, Harry looked back at Hermione expectantly.

A moment later, a newly arrived figure caught his attention. Striding into the room, Mark glanced about with disinterest. However, the instant he spotted Hermione with Harry and Ron, his interest made an appearance. He paused next to the table in curiosity, and Draco noticed with curiosity that Mark was about to say something.

`What are you doing here Hermione?' Harry repeated. Ron stared at her while munching on his pancakes. Hermione thought frantically about how to reply, but nothing came to her. Nothing but the truth. It's quite funny that you ask Harry, because I'm actually here as a member of a secret Slytherin society: Draco is a member too. Oh, and while I'm at it, I may as well tell you that we're sleeping in the same room. What's that Ron? Oh yes, of course, the same bed too. Hermione had strong doubts that that would go down well. Besides, she had vowed never to tell Harry and Ron about the Scales.

`Hey Granger,' said a gruff voice from behind her. Nearly melting in relief at being interrupted, Hermione turned around to see Mark standing there. Harry and Ron regarded him with narrowed eyes but curious expressions. `I think he's looking for you. Second floor.'

Hermione only took a moment before she caught on. `Oh right,' she said, somewhat coolly. `Do you know what he wants?'

`How should I know?' Mark sneered so sincerely that Hermione almost forgot that they had ever been friends. `My guess would be a shag before he gives his first seminar.'

Although they were talking about a fictional character, Hermione could not help from blushing and thinking of Draco. She lowered her gaze from Mark's face and noticed Draco watching their exchange from the Scales table. Her blush intensified, causing his frown to deepen. Then, the rest of what Mark had said registered. Before he gives his first seminar. Was Mark referring to Victor?

`Who is he talking about?' Ron demanded, looking between Mark and Hermione.

Harry shot Ron a don't-you-know look, and after a moment of concentration, Ron's ears turned pink. `Oh. Him.'

`So I guess you'd better go meet him,' Mark continued with a pointed look at Hermione. She nodded in a frazzled manner, and quickly stood up.

`Uh…I guess I'll see you guys at morning tea?'

Ron nodded and averted his eyes, while Harry managed a smile. `Sure. It's good to see you Hermione. We missed you at Christmas. It's a shame that you weren't able to come to The Burrow.'

`Yeah,' she agreed. `But we're together now.' Belatedly, Hermione remembered how shocking Harry had looked before the holidays. He had not been sleeping well, and had been receiving much grief with his headaches. He appeared quite happy now, although as his smile faded she saw the dark bags under his eyes. Hermione smiled at him warmly, though she was sure her concern was apparent.

Harry winked reassuringly, and watched her depart. Mark glanced at Harry and Ron, and then turned to walk away. Harry called out, `Darcy, isn't it?'

Mark stopped and turned back around. He nodded curtly.

`What are you doing speaking with Hermione?' Harry asked. `You two have never spoken two words in all the years we've been at Hogwarts. Why now?'

`Krum asked me to,' Mark said shortly. `And I'm not about to ignore what the greatest Seeker of the age asks me, even if it does mean talking to Granger.' Mark then turned abruptly, and left Harry and Ron sitting, silently dumbfounded, at the breakfast table.

Ron blinked, thinking about all that had unexpectedly passed in just a few minutes, and observed, `I feel confused.'

Harry nodded with a grin, `Perhaps we should have stayed at The Burrow.'

Chapter twenty two - The moment we've all been waiting for

Hermione glanced quickly over her shoulder to ensure no one was behind her, and then shut the door to her bedroom. Leaning against the door with a dramatic sigh, she wondered how unlucky she must be to be in this mess. Not only was she in a secret society, but naturally, it was with their worst enemies. Well, not their worst enemies; that would be Voldemort. Their semi-worst enemies. Their pseudo-worst enemies. Either way, the fact that her friends had arrived at the perfect time to catch her out was bad. `Very bad,' Hermione conceded to herself.

Hermione walked to Draco's side of the bed where he kept the week's timetable. Perching on the edge of the mattress, she checked which seminar would start the day. The innocent words QUIDDITCH SPEAKER stared up at her.

`Crap, piss, shit, bugger, bugger, bugger!' Hermione rounded off a series of curses, followed by a groan of self-pity.

`I've never heard you sounding so at one with the world, Hermione,' Draco's voice cut in before she could start cursing again. Hermione's head snapped up, as she had not heard the door open, or close behind Draco. He looked at her helpless pose on the bed with wry amusement. `It seems you've generated a problem for us all.'

`Me? No,' Hermione shook her head immediately. `It was your idea to recruit me for this seminar, so if my being here is causing problems, that would be your fault, Mr. I-Have-Goop-Burns-On-My-Face.'

Draco lifted a hand self-consciously to his face, and gingerly ran a finger along his jaw. There was a moment of silence and thoughts of the previous night's duel ran through their heads. Hermione decided that she did not want to get into that just yet. `Our “problem” didn't follow you up here, did they?' she asked, realising that the possibility of Harry and Ron catching her with the Scales could give her a genuine case of paranoia by the next morning.

`Yes, because I've always been their favourite person to stalk,' Draco said dryly. Hermione shifted uncomfortably, recalling the instances over the years where the trio had invaded Draco's private life. He did not seem to notice, and continued, `No. And Mark's already had a word with Gareth - he's deeply apologetic that he overlooked such a thing. He gave us a warning in his guilt; the day passes have generated a huge influx of students, especially for the Quidditch speeches. So the seminars today are not going to be private.'

Hermione groaned and rested her forehead in her palm. `Don't tell me. Just don't tell me.'

Draco remained silent long enough for Hermione to figure that they would be in the same seminar group as her friends. `It'll be an interesting day,' he murmured.

`Harry suspects something,' Hermione told him worriedly. `I know he does. Although the thought of me working with Slytherins would seem outrageous, Harry's farfetched notions have a disturbing tendency of being correct.'

`Quite an intuitive little bugger, isn't he?'

Hermione frowned, `Yes he is. Though he's going to find out soon when Lupin tells him about the Order's plans. You two will be working together - try not to be rude to him. It might make things easier.'

Draco's face went hard, but he did not argue. `So here's the plan we whipped up over the breakfast table. And yes, we were quiet, so neither Harry nor Ron overheard. They were too absorbed in their befuddled stupors to notice us anyway. In their opinions, you're here with Krum - Mark claims that he ensured that one in a spontaneous moment of brilliant quick thinking, though he won't tell us what he said.'

Hermione cleared her throat uncomfortably, and blushed as she remembered what her two best friends thought she was doing at this very moment. Draco's eyes narrowed at her pink cheeks and averted gaze, and grinned slyly. He reached forward, and before she had the chance to step out of reach, the top buttons of her shirt were undone. By way of explanation, he smirked, `May as well look convincing.'

Hermione's predisposition towards indignation bubbled to the surface, and she quickly did them back up with an embarrassed scowl. `I will not allow the seed that Mark planted to grow.' As soon as the words were out of her mouth, Hermione regretted them. Draco barely managed to cover his snigger, while Hermione's face achieved a complete colour change.

`My, my, Hermione, you little tramp. First it's Krum, and now you're telling me it's Mark?' Draco commented. `You've got quite a queue happening.'

Hermione looked affronted, but still felt the need to explain her previous choice of words, `The seed, as in the lie that I was `shagging' Krum - and I don't want it to grow, meaning that I don't want to make it any more believable…' she trailed off. With a flustered sigh, she snapped, `Just tell me the plan.'

Draco's smirk did not leave his face with he explained, `So they think that you and Krum have rekindled your love for one another, whereas Krum believes you're here with them. The Scales presence is just a damper on the whole affair. We have nothing to do with you. If you can keep everyone thinking you're here with someone else, this will pass smoothly.'

Hermione chose to ignore the shiver of premonition that ran through her at his words. `Smooth' did not best describe her situations of late. `So,' she said, `in Krum's seminar, I'll sit with Harry and Ron, but act smitten with the speaker?'

`That sounds about right.' Draco agreed. `Pretend we're not even there.'

As they turned to walk from the room, Hermione muttered, `That used to be so easy.'

---

Krum stood nervously at the front of the room when Hermione entered, though his stance was proud. Hermione locked eyes with him and gave a little wave, which he returned with a grin. She then scanned the room for her friends, and found Harry and Ron exchanging a knowing glance, almost certainly in regards to her. As she sat beside them, Hermione noticed the rest of the Quidditch society. She was unsurprised to see Dean and Seamus, and a mixture of familiar Hufflepuff's and Ravenclaw's.

`Hey Hermione,' Ron said with a small smile. `Had a good time since breakfast?' Although it was an offhand remark, Harry's pointed jab in Rob's ribs refreshed his memory of the supposed `good time' she had been having. Ron promptly turned red. `Oh right…'

`No guys, I didn't…do what you think,' Hermione explained falteringly. `I mean…I haven't even had lunch yet.'

Ron nodded as if this made sense, and Harry raised an eyebrow at her disbelievingly. Whether he thought she had slept with Krum, or did not believe the Krum lie in the place, she could not be sure. At that moment, the door opened again, and one by one, the Scales filed in. Mark was first, with his hostile expression firmly in place, followed by Corey, Taylor, Devon, and finally, Draco. As the door closed behind them, they stood in a row, staring at the other students from Hogwarts.

The Gryffindor's/Hufflepuff's/Ravenclaw's stared back.

Mark cleared his throat threateningly.

Harry placed his wand on the desk, his fingers lingering on its handle.

Hermione glanced from her House mates to the Scales, feeling powerless. Draco's wand protruded pointedly from his pocket, and he kept his eyes on Harry, aware that if any trouble would come from this situation, it would be from him. Mark glowered at each of the students, including Hermione. She noted the intensity of his glare lessen when she quirked an eyebrow at him, though he did not break character to smile. Corey and Taylor wore expressions that mirrored the Hufflepuff's and Ravenclaw's; uninterested yet unfriendly.

Devon caught Hermione's eye and winked, then said lightly, `So, where are we going to sit, guys?'

Draco rolled his eyes at the lack of inner-bully in Devon, and pointed to the back of the room. They stalked silently to the tables and sat down. Hermione was careful not to watch them, and shifted her glance back to Krum. He was frowning at the new arrivals, and the tension they had created in the room. Once the Scales had all folded their arms comfortably and were happily boring their eyes into the backs of the other students' heads, Krum cleared his throat and began.

Immediately, he had everyone's attention. Everyone's excluding Hermione's. She still could not understand what the big deal was with Quidditch. Yet when she glanced around the room nonchalantly, every single student had his/her eyes glued to Viktor. A glance at Harry caught him watching her speculatively, and she remembered that she was meant to be crushing on Krum. She smiled, and turned her attention back to the speaker with a besotted sigh.

After the hour was up, Krum concluded. `I hope you have learned something from today. If you are interested, we have a Quidditch match lined up for this afternoon. Make sure that you write your name on the list I have up the front, and we will place you in teams.'

Hermione blinked a few times to de-glaze her eyes, and glanced over her shoulder to the back of the room. The Scales were still lounging with their arms crossed, but were talking quietly and gesturing towards the list. She turned her attention to Harry and Ron, but discovered that they were no longer next to her, but eagerly signing their names at the front of the room.

Hermione stood up and meandered over to them. `Hey Hermione,' Ron said, `Do you want me to put your name down?' A raised eyebrow was all the response he needed. `Not this time, then?'

`Thanks Krum,' Devon said from the doorway. The trio glanced over in unison, and noticed all five Slytherin's leaving silently. Viktor looked up from the conversation he was having with a Hufflepuff, and frowned.

`You are not going to play with us, boys?' he inquired, indicating to the piece of parchment in Ron's hand.

Draco shook his head, and managed to look genuinely apologetic. `We don't think that would be a good idea, considering who our opponents might be.'

`Can't stand to be beaten everywhere you go, huh?' Ron jibed with a snigger.

`We were more thinking that we don't want to get into a fight today.' Corey explained, when he realised Draco was not going to reply. `Clearly you would encourage one, if that taunting remark is anything to go by.'

Ron looked confused, but Krum nodded. `Fair point. Thank you for listening.'

Corey smiled in response, waited for the Scales to all stalk over the threshold, and then closed the door behind them. Hermione's relieved expression went unnoticed by Ron, but Harry observed Hermione with a curious gaze. Shifting uncomfortably, she explained, `I didn't want you guys to get hurt, or kicked out, or something.'

`We don't pick fights for a living, Hermione,' Harry said pointedly. `You know he always starts them.'

`He used to always start them, Harry,' Hermione said, emphasising his name as he had hers. `Now you two can't help yourselves either. I get the impression that it's almost out of habit, instead of a pure hatred for one another. Is that not the way things have become?' Even before she had finished her sentence, Hermione wished she had not tried raising the issue of their animosity towards Draco.

Ron glanced at Hermione oddly. `Are you sitting on the fence in this?'

Hermione looked back helplessly. `Well…I suppose.'

`You're seriously not on our side, after all these years of what he's done to you?' Ron queried incredulously. `It was only a few months ago that you two were duelling in the halls.'

`I know, but…' she trailed off, kicking herself fiercely for bringing it up. If only she could think of a smooth transition into an unrelated topic of conversation. Knocking herself out, perhaps? That could work.

`Things have changed?' Harry suggested quietly. Hermione visibly wilted at his words, whereas Ron shrugged, and looked at the name sheet in his hand.

`Hey, does this mean we're playing against students from other schools?' He asked, unaware of the staring competition between his two best friends.

`Nothing's changed,' Hermione responded in a murmur.

`Yeah, I think so mate,' Harry said to Ron, while looking at Hermione.

`Awesome,' Ron replied, passing the sheet over to a blonde Hufflepuff girl, who took it with a smile of thanks. `Any one else up for lunch?'

----

Lunch was awkward, to put it mildly. Hermione sat with Harry and Ron, along with the rest of the Quidditch society. She decided early on to say as little as possible, so as not to draw attention to herself and be asked questions about her whereabouts the past couple of days. Hermione was half way through her lunch, and Ron was telling everyone a tall tale from his childhood, when the simple web of lies she had told that day began to tangle.

Draco and Devon walked into the dining room, not appearing all that relaxed in each others company, but it was clear that their fight had been resolved. Hermione watched Draco as inconspicuously as possible, and couldn't stop her thoughts from wandering as she did.

He was wearing a pair of loose jeans and a grey sweater. Nothing fancy, yet Hermione knew that it was of the highest quality, because as he had once pointed out to her, he could afford nothing less. Draco's grey eyes stood out against his white shock of hair, and Hermione was so absorbed in observing his advance across the room to the rest of the Scales, that when they suddenly snapped in her direction, her immediate reaction was to blush.

The smile that warmed his features and deepened his eyes betrayed that he had noticed, even though he had turned to face Mark. Wearing such an expression towards her would be dangerous in their current situation. Mark's affronted and mildly disgusted expression at being regarded so by Draco caused Hermione to snort in amusement. Harry cast her a side long glance, and thinking that she was laughing at Ron's story, said, `I thought you'd heard this one before?'

`It's still funny,' she countered with a roll of her eyes. Harry shrugged and went back to his lunch, clearly having heard Ron's account of when Percy was locked in a pyramid too many times to laugh.

Hermione carefully took her time in looking back to Draco, but when she finally did, he was watching her with a small smile still on his face. Unable to help herself, she mouthed `what?' across the room at him. Draco's smile widened, and after glancing at his plate for a moment, he looked back at her and mouthed back, `you're beautiful.'

Hermione's stomach dissolved and she dropped his gaze in abashed confusion. It did not seem to matter that she knew Draco liked her - it still came a surprised every time he acted on it. Suddenly Hermione longed for Harry and Ron to leave the seminar, and give her some time with Draco before school went back. For everything that had happened - including Draco duelling one of his best mates for her - they still had not kissed. That fact continued to strike Hermione as highly frustrating. She could safely say (though there's no one she could talk to about it) that it was all she wanted. To be held in his arms, unaware of everything except the physical sensations caused by their intimacy…

`Hey Krum!' Ron's loud words interrupted Hermione's fantasy, and she looked up with a start. `Hermione's over here!'

Viktor had just entered the dining hall, and looked around to find where his name was coming from. Hermione groaned, able to smell complication on the air. Krum smiled in slight confusion, but walked over. `Hello Ron, Hermione, Harry.' he said politely. `How have you been in the past two hours?'

`Fine,' Ron replied. `Would you like to sit down? Here Hermione, scoot over for him.'

Hermione smiled tensely and moved her seat to the edge of the table. She was aware of the awkward manner in which Krum sat down, and was sure that he could feel her discomfort next to him. `Are you worried about your next session? About how people will respond to your speech?' she asked to fill their silence.

`A little bit,' he replied. Hermione suddenly cringed in anticipation of the words that were bound to come out of his mouth next. `And you? What is the next session you have on the agenda?'

Hermione's cringe intensified and she cast a glance at her friends. Ron had turned away to join a different conversation, satisfied with his reunion of the two lovers, but opposite them, Harry was frowning and looking up at Hermione in perplexity. In his opinion, she was here with Krum, not to attend speeches. Hermione mumbled offhandedly, `Um, I'm not sure.'

`Really?' Krum asked, not out of any real surprise, but simply to continue the conversation. `I thought you would have known exactly what speaker you have when as soon as you entered the seminar.' As Hermione floundered to think of a follow up statement that would cause Harry to think that she had come with Krum, but cause Krum to think she had come with Harry and Ron, she felt a tap on her shoulder.

Spinning around, she saw Gareth squatting next to her. `Oh no,' she said instinctively.

Gareth looked mildly surprised at her sentiments, but ignored them, and spoke to her softly. `Hermione, I'm just passing the reminder around that all students attending the weekly seminar have a closing dinner tomorrow night.'

`Right' she acknowledged in confusion, hoping Harry couldn't hear their conversation over the sudden noise the Quidditch society were making. `So…we've had dinner every other night. What's the big deal?'

`Well, it's more formal, you see. We like to put on an evening of fine food, music, and dancing for you all. In thanks for attending, and also for a final opportunity to mingle and solidify some connections.'

Hermione frowned in dawning comprehension. `You mean it's fancy? As in I have to dress up?'

Gareth nodded with a smile, `Yup. This is the `special event' that we mentioned in the leaflet we sent out. Hopefully you took note of it and brought something nice to wear.'

`The leaflet…' Hermione muttered, having never seen a leaflet, and most certainly never having heard any mention of such a dressy occasion by the boys. She glanced up at Gareth with a smile. `Thanks for reminding me - I completely forgot.'

`No worries, enjoy the rest of your afternoon,' he said pleasantly, and moved on to another table.

`What was that about?' Harry inquired curiously, casting a peeved glance at the others at the table who had preventing him from eavesdropping.

`Oh nothing really,' she said breezily. `But I'd better get going.'

`Where?' Krum and Harry asked in unison.

`If you must know, the bathroom.' Hermione lied tartly. `Would you like me to report back to you when I'm done?' The last line was aimed at Harry, subtly telling him to keep his nose out of her business.

`No that's cool,' Harry said, only vaguely apologetic. Krum simply shook his head.

Hermione sighed as she stood and left the dining room. She walked to the entrance hall, but when she looked out the window, she noticed that it looked freezing outside, and the sky was dark with storm clouds. There's no way I'm going for a walk out there, she thought to herself, and promptly changed direction upstairs.

The second floor was relatively dim, and Hermione used the feeling of solitude that darkness often permits to curse about the happenings of lunch. `Bugger it all anyhow,' she muttered, as she mounted the flight of stairs to the third floor. `How is this going to resolve itself?'

Reaching the third floor, Hermione walked to her dorm room and pulled out her key. Just before she slid the key into the knob, Hermione tested the handle, as was an unconscious habit of hers. Surprisingly, it twisted in her palm. Hermione frowned, positive she had locked it that morning, and then pushed it open and walked in.

The room was dark, not only because the heavy clouds outside forbid much sunlight to get through, but also because the curtains were drawn shut. Moments later, Hermione spotted a figure standing up from the couch. She immediately recognised Draco's build and stance, and quickly closed the door behind her. He must have left the dining room while she was distracted with Krum or Gareth.

In a silent mutual agreement, they moved forward to meet each other in the dim room. Hermione soon stood before him, looking into his shadowed eyes as he regarded her softly. Realising she had seconds before her inhibitions would rise to the surface, Hermione stood on tiptoes and wrapped her arms around Draco's neck. He smiled tenderly at the move, and circled one arm tightly about her waist, drawing her securely against his chest. His other hand gently cupped her face, and he leant down and slowly kissed her cheek.

Hermione closed her eyes, and allowed herself to become solely aware of the contact of their bodies, the warmth of his breath on her face, the stimulation simply being this close to him was causing her and undoubtedly him, the tenderness of his lips pressing on hers…

His lips were soft and Hermione willingly obeyed every force in her body and mind that screamed to kiss him back. As she did, Hermione felt Draco's mouth part slightly, questioningly. Months ago, when Draco had kissed her as part of her `initiation,' which Hermione now knew was a complete crock, he had left her feeling violated. Now, she knew he was leaving the progression of their kiss up to her.

It wasn't much of a decision. Hermione gently parted her own lips and met Draco's tongue with her own, feeling the depth of her affection revealed as she did. He was…Draco. He was what he was, and that was all she needed, all she wanted. And oh how she wanted him.

As they kissed, Hermione unwound her arms from about his neck and placed them on his chest, while Draco took this as permission to do the same to her. Slowly, his hand travelled down her neck, along her collarbone, down her sternum, to meet his other hand that had left its position on her back. Together, they slid underneath the hem of her shirt to caress her stomach and the small of her back. Only once did he begin to inch them towards her breasts, but stopped when Hermione moaned her uncertainty and began to pull away. He quickly slid them back down to the safety of her stomach, and she readily melted into him again.

It could have been hours before they finally broke apart. When they did, Draco immediately took a distancing step backwards, and Hermione blinked as her perceptions of everything other than Draco reappeared. They didn't stand awkwardly, but were simply restraining themselves. Hermione had felt how much a simple kiss had aroused Draco, and knew how much it had done her. Sleeping arrangements would certainly make restraint more of a task than night.

Draco cleared his throat. `I should get to the seminar.'

`We should,' Hermione corrected him.

`I don't want to go.'

`I'd much prefer to stay too, but we have to go,' she said with as much reason as she could muster.

`Separately then,' Draco said. `We can't have anyone seeing us leave here together. Or walking together.'

`Right,' she agreed. `After you.'

Draco nodded, but took a few moments before he gained control of his body and walked to the door. `I…um…see you later on.' And with that, he opened the door, walked through it and closed it behind him with a snap.

Hermione suddenly sat heavily on the floor. Never had anyone made her feel as she had during that kiss. As she breathed in through her nose and out her mouth in an attempt to regain her breath, Hermione thought about how being with Draco could possibly work out in her life at the moment. She soon concluded that realistically, it couldn't. But she then decided that realistically, she never would have fallen for him in the first place, so realism did not factor into the equation.

It would work. Somehow, it would work.

Chapter twenty three - Getting closer

`Afternoon all,' a middle aged wizard greeted the Scales chirpily. `I am Roland Lang, secretary of Minister for Magical Relations. I'm here to discuss possible occupations in the field of my expertise. I do hope that I can maintain your interest for a while, although I know I cannot compete with your previous speaker.'

Hermione smiled dryly, thanking her lucky stars that there wasn't more than one speaker about Quidditch. From her seat in the second row, she noted the male Scales in front of her droop somewhat forlornly. Draco also seemed to slump slightly in his chair next to her, and initially she thought this to be an unconscious movement expressing his disappointment. However, when his head drooped onto his shoulder, and then flopped across to rest on her shoulder, she smiled understandingly. Moving under the guise of reassurance, Hermione reached her hand out and placed it on his thigh.

`Magical Relations is a highly rewarding, and mentally stimulating occupation,' Roland began. Not only does it deal with communication with wizards and witches outside of England, but it also covers communication with other species. In my time, I have interacted with gnomes and goblins-both are quite difficult in manner-yet there is the possibility to communicate with mermaids, giants, and so on and so forth'.

Hermione was fascinated by the requirements of Magical Relations, though was the most intrigued by the knowledge that she would most likely need to learn a second language, or even become multilingual. `Magical Relation's employees are often required to work with the media - writing up news stories or media releases that England needs to raise awareness of in other countries or communities. In this sense, you will need to be able to work under pressure and to a tight deadline'.

Suddenly there was a knock on the door. Roland paused, and called out, `Yes?'

A young witch popped her head around the door, and said quietly, `Is there a Mark Darcy in here?'

Roland frowned and glanced at the small group of students. Mark shifted in his chair, and cleared his throat. `That would be me.'

The witch's pretty brown eyes rested on him, and she gestured at him. `Could you please come with me?'

The room was still and silent for a few seconds, while all six students wondered who would want to speak to Mark, and not the rest of them. Then they all seemed to realise. In unison, the Scales and a Tail all turned to watch Mark as he stood with his chin held high and strode from the room. The door snapped shut loudly behind him.

Roland did not think on the matter, and resumed his speech. Unfortunately, he could have been offering the secret society a lifetime supply of galleons, and they would not have accepted for all they were paying attention. Mark was being called away without warning. It was most likely by Dumbledore, and had something to do with siding with Voldemort, but each of the Scales feared what he was going to have to do. Not to mention whether he was going to come back.

Hermione stared at the closed door, hoping desperately that Mark was as strong on the inside as he seemed on the outside. Convincing Voldemort that he wanted genuinely to be a Death Eater was not going to be easy, nor without possibly devastating consequences. Draco's arm slid around Hermione's waist and held her tightly, clearly aware of her distressed thoughts. `He'll be fine, Hermione. This is Mark we're talking about.'

She nodded,unconvinced, but didn't counter Draco's words. Roland continued to talk about the joys of working in Magical Relations, and although Hermione had previously found it fascinating, she could no longer concentrate on what he was saying. The seminar ended soon after, and Hermione walked to the common room with the Scales. They sat on a couple of couches, all facing each without speaking.

Hermione glanced tentatively at Draco, who looked back without expression. Devon stared at his shoes, while Taylor tapped his hands nervously. Corey broke the silence. `He'll be fine, guys. This is Mark'.

`What if he doesn't come back?' Devon asked worriedly.

`Then we know that it has started,' Draco said seriously. `We know that we had better get ourselves into order as soon as we get back to Hogwarts. Mark's risking his life out there, so we'd better make sure that it's worth his while…and for as short a time as possible.'

The Scales and a Tail nodded in agreement, though their anxious expressions did not change. As Hermione looked distractedly around the room, she saw Krum walk in with Harry and Ron in tow. Startled that she had forgotten they were at the seminar in her worry for Mark, she stood up from sitting quite close to Draco.

Krum glanced over at them, and began to walk over. Hermione, in her haste to move away from the Scales before Harry and Ron saw her, moved quickly towards Krum to meet him half way. Unfortunately, Draco was sitting with his legs sprawled casually in front of him, causing Hermione to trip and fall over at his feet.

Having not noticed the incoming problem, Draco grinned, `Not experiencing biological difficulties there, are you Hermione? Legs not working like they used to?'

Hermione scowled up at him, hoping that if her friends saw Draco's grin, its friendliness might be counteracted by her glare. Draco's grin slid off his face, still not having looked up. `I didn't mean it rudely. Did you hurt yourself?'

As he leaned forward to help her up, Hermione hissed, `Look who's coming, you dork'.

They both lifted their heads to see Krum still approaching happily, but Ron and Harry hanging back with frowns. Ron's frown was directed at Draco, while Harry's was at Hermione. Krum extended his hand towards Hermione. `Are you alright?'

`Fine, thanks. Losers make me loose my balance, is all,' she replied, with a pointed glance at the Scales.

`Ouch,' Draco muttered, appearing highly unperturbed as he leaned back into the couch, raising an eyebrow lazily. `It feels good to have that much influence over your mobility. If I constantly stay by your side, does that mean you'll constantly be falling over? Because I could handle watching that as a living.'

`Shut it,' Ron snapped, then turned to Hermione as Krum raised her to her feet. `We're going to go play the Quidditch match that Viktor has organised. Did you want to come and watch?'

`Oh,' she looked between the boys. Ron waited hopefully; Harry looked as if he already knew the answer and the reason behind it. `…Of course.'

`You can stay here, if that what you prefer,' Harry said, subtly tipping his head towards the couch.

`Why would I want to stay here?' she asked. `I'd much prefer to stand in the snow, watching you as little dots zipping around in the sky, with the wind whipping at my face and frost forming on the soles of my feet.'

A small smile spread on Harry's lips. `Okay, so stay. I guess just because we like playing in the cold doesn't mean you like standing in it. We'll see you for dinner instead?'

Hermione smiled. `That sounds great. It's so much fun having you guys here'.

Harry and Ron turned to leave, but Krum remained looking at the Scales. `If I do recall, you're all quite the fans of Quidditch…are you sure you don't want to play?'

Each of the four guys looked longing for a moment, but Draco was the first to shake his head. `No thanks. It's too cold for us'.

`Wimps,' Ron muttered, while Hermione whacked him on the arm.

`Don't encourage them, Ron.'

`Yeah Ron, don't encourage us,' Draco said snidely. `We're like wild animals. If you poke us one too many times, you might find that we eat you. Or hex you, depending on our mood.'

`Oh, stop it.' Hermione sighed at him, causing Draco to close his mouth. `Go on boys…and no, they're not playing Viktor, so just turn around'.

The three wizards nodded and started walking away, while Hermione stood a slight distance from the Slytherins until they had disappeared around the corner. Once the last of Harry's Quidditch robe had flicked around the corner, she sighed.

`You're all going to have to be friends when we get back to Hogwarts.'

`”Friends” is way too optimistic a term,' Corey commented, noting Draco's disbelieving eyebrow quirk.

`Well you'll at least have to exist without fighting in close proximity,' Hermione rephrased. `And at this rate, that's not going to happen easily.'

`It's not our fault. Ron seems to be set on baiting us as often as he can.' Draco pointed out. `That was me refraining myself, okay? Go talk to him if you want us to all get on.'

Hermione sighed in exasperation and flopped on the couch next to Draco. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and tugged her gently to his side. She smiled and rested her head on his shoulder. `There's so much to think about.'

Taylor laughed lightly. `Makes me wonder what it would be like to be a normal student. It would be nice to have a group of students stress and worry over my safety, without even knowing about it. Unfortunately, I'm in that group.'

`Sucks to be you,' Draco said jokingly.

`Sucks to be us,' Taylor corrected with a wry grin. Hermione smiled too and shook her head, while the guys all exchanged sardonically amused expressions. After a while, they pulled out work, books, or fell asleep until their final seminar for the day, which fascinated them all. Not due to its interesting qualities, but the fact that it had been included in the seminar timetable at all.

`I encourage you all to have children,' the woman said once they had all sat down. `As soon as possible.'

Hermione was taken-aback when the witch looked directly at her, and Draco shuffled awkwardly in his chair. The boys cleared their throats uncomfortably. `And why is that?' Hermione asked, frowning.

`Because after the war that is due at any time, we predict that a number of witches and wizards will be killed. The wizarding world in England is far too precious for its population to diminish, which is a high possibility. We do not want students leaving school to go fight, and getting murdered in the meantime, therefore reducing the number of vital reproducers. Parenting is just as much a job as any other.'

The Scales and a Tail stared at her. It made sense, but it wasn't exactly the choice they had been given by the Order of the Phoenix. They were to protect the school from war, by training those capable and competent. `Perhaps you should tell the other groups about this,' Devon suggested. `I don't think we're destined to copulate just yet'.

The witch looked disgruntled. `Just because you're young does not mean that you would not be wonderful parents.'

`I don't think that's what he means,' Hermione explained. `We have things to do at the moment. We might consider…having children…in the years to come, but just not right now.'

`Well…' the witch said in conclusion. `You can't say I didn't try.'

`We'll pass the message around,' Draco promised, his serious expression disguising his sarcasm.

`That would be wonderful,' she said to him. `Fine then, off you go. Yes, I'm letting you go early. There's not much I can say if you've already refused. Go practice abstinence or something.'

Draco cast Hermione a sly glance. `We will,' he muttered. Hermione reddened but did nothing to halt his intentions. The look in his eyes was inescapable, and bordered on unavoidable. She knew that she would never let Draco move too fast for her, but at the moment, she wanted to be as close to him as humanly possible. She rested her hand on his lower back as the Scales filed out of the room, but removed it when they all faced each other in the hallway.

`I guess I'd better do some homework; tomorrow is our last day here after all.' Taylor conceded. `Does anyone want to sit in the common room with me, for moral support?'

`Sure,' Corey and Devon said at the same time.

`I'd better not,' Hermione said. `I nearly got caught out last time. I think I'll read in my room.'

`I'll go…too,' Draco said. Ignoring the glances from the others, Hermione and Draco walked off down the hall and up to their room. Once Draco had unlocked the door and they were inside with it closed once more behind them, he turned to her. `So, are you still planning on reading?'

`Depends what my other options are,' she said cheekily.

`I know I'm one of them,' he stated, taking a pointed step towards her. `But it's up to you.' Draco moved closer again, then reached out and snaked an arm around her waist. His lips lowered gently to her ear, `I mean, if you can concentrate enough to read with me this close, then go ahead…'

`Pass,' Hermione breathed weakly, turning her head to cover Draco's soft lips with her own. He responded instantly, holding her tightly against his strong chest, all the while exploring her mouth with his tongue; tasting her, touching her, learning her. Their passion was such that minutes past by without them noticing. They pulled apart only once Hermione's knees buckled from standing up for so long without concentrating.

`Did you want to sit on the bed?' Draco suggested softly into her ear. His breath was warm and sent tingles down her spine. She nodded mutely, and he shuffled them backwards until they came to rest on the edge of the bed.

Although they had shared a bed for the past couple nights, Hermione felt something new between them that caused her to shiver with nerves. `Just remember; we do have to go back down later.'

`Which will undoubtedly be sooner than we think… you make me lose track of time,' Draco admitted. `I could spend a moment thinking about you to find that an hour has passed.'

Hermione smiled at him, and ran a hand across his cheek. `You're beautiful.'

Draco leaned forward and kissed her. Their pent-up affection over the past month was the cause of their state half an hour later. Draco's shirt had been cast aside, Hermione's was undone, though it remained covering her slender shoulders, and they lay side-by-side on the rumpled covers. Hermione pulled away from Draco's excitement; short of breath and reluctant. `I'm sorry, but we'd better neaten ourselves up. I have to go meet Harry and Ron soon, and I cannot look like this.'

`They'll just think you were with Krum.'

`They won't, considering he's been with them while they played Quidditch. I'm sure he was the umpire.'

`Oh…' Draco leaned forward and kissed her neck in an attempt to make her forget where she had to be. `How about you stay here with me anyway? If you're enjoying this half as much as me, then you'll say yes…'

`I do love this, but we have to get up.' She said without much conviction. `The sooner we get up and get this over with, the sooner we can come back here together after dinner…'

Draco grinned at her words and nibbled her neck. Hermione closed her eyes, allowing them this last intimacy before she went to meet the boys. Draco's mouth moved slowly down her neck, along her collar-bone, and down across her ribs towards her swelling breasts. Hermione groaned and wriggled out from underneath him to stand by the bed. He looked up at her, slightly put out that she had denied him the pleasure of burying his face between her breasts.

`Draco, that's too much right now.'

`I'm sorry.'

Hermione began to button up her shirt. `I don't know if you are, but I appreciate you pretending. Now let me have a shower and go downstairs without further interruption.'

Draco watched her retreating figure as she walked into the bathroom. `If I can't waylay you now, I might just have to prevent you from sleeping tonight.'

Hermione's head peeped back around the door to regard him with a cheeky grin. `If you must.'

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