A Christmas dance, just what she needed. Hermione sat in the Great Hall, for once in her seven years at Hogwarts, not listening with rapt attention to words coming from her Headmaster.
“The ball will commence at seven o’clock on Christmas Eve and will end at midnight,” Dumbledore informed the students.
Hermione was, to put it lightly, dreading the holiday. She had broken up with Ron a month ago and she still felt lonely. She didn’t regret ending their relationship; they just made more sense as friends than as boyfriend and girlfriend. Still, this was just one of the reasons she would be attending the ball alone. Harry had started dating Ginny at the end of his sixth year, and Ron had just recently taken up with Lavender Brown. She was determined not to ruin their fun though and made sure to look excited. Not really understanding why, she glanced across the hall to the Slytherin table.
“A ball, this is going to be perfect!” sighed Ginny Weasley.
“Definitely,” Harry grinned at his girlfriend a slight blush showing on her face.
Hermione smiled happily at them before stating that she needed to finish her homework and hastily running up to Gryffindor tower.
So what if she didn’t have a date? She was determined, and that’s all that mattered.
From a distance, a pair of silver-blue eyes followed her exit from the hall.
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Draco Malfoy was far from ignorant. As such, he knew when to admit that he was wrong. Alright so it took him sixteen years to figure out that he could be wrong, but that was the past. In the case of Hermione Granger, he was very wrong. Who would have thought that the bushy haired know-it-all would become the girl who preoccupied the majority of his thoughts?
She didn't become a raving beauty over night, nor did he suddenly stop caring about looks (he had his standards after all), he did however come to appreciate her type of beauty. She still had unruly hair, but the buck teeth and boyish looks were gone. She wasn’t whisper thin either, but she carried her weight where a woman was supposed to. And she had beautiful eyes that reflected her every feeling like a mirror. Likewise she was intelligent, brave, and fought for what she believed.
Draco had long since gotten over his pureblood mentality. After the Dark Lord fell, it didn’t seem to matter any more. It was as though he was finally seeing clearly after a long time spent in the dark. Hermione was aware of Draco’s change of heart as far as the war was concerned, but she wasn’t aware of exactly how drastically Draco’s opinion of her had changed. He wondered if he would ever be able to let her know what he thought of her.
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December twenty-fourth had finally arrived. Finally; Hermione laughed, maybe she was a little excited after all. She spent the morning with Harry, Ron, Ginny, Lavender, Parvati, Dean, Neville, and Seamus having a wild snowball fight. Needless to say, by the time she got back to Gryffindor tower at eleven, she was cold, wet, and in a very good mood. Perhaps she’d been worrying for nothing. She would still have a great time and all of her friends would be there. Who needs a date?
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Draco had spent most of the day avoiding a certain Slytherin by the name of Pansy Parkinson. She was determined to be his date to the ball regardless of what he said. He had insulted her, threatened her, and tried to avoid her but nothing had worked. His brief interest in her during his fourth year had apparently marked him as her property in Pansy’s eyes.
“Draco,” she cooed.
“Parkinson, the name is Malfoy,” he sneered.
“Oh don’t be so silly,” she giggled.
Draco just rolled his eyes. The girl was in denial and it was driving him mad. Any normal person would have backed off, but this girl was not normal.
“I’m wearing pink tonight.”
“And I would care because?” he said coldly.
“Well that way you know what color corsage to get me,” she replied as though it were obvious.
“Look Parkinson, for the last time: We are not going to the ball together. I am not your boyfriend, or your friend. We are an acquaintance, that’s all so stop pestering me!” And with that Draco stormed off leaving a very disgruntled Pansy in his wake.
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At five o’clock Hermione left Ron and Harry in the common room so that she could get dressed for the ball.
“Hermione you’ve got two hours! It doesn’t take two hours to get dressed.” Ron looked confused but Harry just told him to let it go. There was no way Ron would be able to win an argument against her.
Hermione wanted to make a real entrance at the ball. She had done it at the one held during her fourth year, but she figured that was just because she had a professional Quidditch player as her partner.
This time it would just be her. Lavender and Parvati had started getting ready a full hour before Hermione and asked if she was crazy to get such a late start. She just smiled at them and turned away.
She took a warm shower before taking a seat at one of the vanities in the girls’ bathroom to get ready. On the last Hogsmeade weekend before break, Hermione had managed to find a book containing glamour spells. Pointing her wand at her wet, bushy hair she said, “Lisciare.” Instantly her hair fell gently past her shoulders in silky, shimmering waves. She couldn’t help but smile to herself- it was definitely an improvement. Leaning forward she studied her face. What else should she do? Flipping through the book in her lap, Hermione found a spell that caught her eye. Again she leaned close to the mirror and muttered, “Turchese.” Instantly her honey brown eyes had flecks of turquoise in them, it was an odd combination, but she had to admit, it looked beautiful. She applied black mascara to her eyelashes making them look twice their length, and a clear gloss to her full lips. Lastly, she brushed a translucent shimmering powder on her arms and chest that smelled like vanilla.
Hermione entered the dorm just in time to see the retreating forms of Lavender and Parvati. She glanced at the clock, 6:14. Walking over to her trunk, she removed a large box-- it held her gown. She was insistent on hiding it, she wasn’t entirely sure why, it just made the dress that much more special she supposed. It was beautiful. Her dress was a deep cream color that shown almost iridescently, like a pearl, in the light. It left her shoulders and collar bones completely exposed, with spaghetti straps and shear billowing, bell sleeves that started in the middle of her triceps and fell to her finger tips. The gown was completely formfitting in the bodice, and flowed out at her hips. It gently touched the floor, the semi-full skirt pooling around her. She gazed at her reflection in the mirror and smiled.
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Draco had been sitting at one of the many round tables with his cronies Crabbe and Goyle as well as the rest of the Slytherin quidditch team. He leaned against his chair looking bored, his arms crossed over his chest. He had been at the dance for a half hour, just to make an appearance of course, and was about to leave when the doors to the great hall opened.
There stood the one girl he was interested in seeing tonight. She had an aura of grace and innocence that he couldn’t help but notice. And the way she moved, it was as if her dress were made of liquid that clung to her feminine frame. He was surprised to see that she had come alone. Perhaps this was his chance? As long as she couldn’t tell that he was nervous, he would be fine.
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Hermione entered the Great Hall nervously; well aware of the stares she was receiving. In particular she noticed a certain platinum blond gazing intently at her. However she refused to let her apprehension show and quickly made her way to the back of the room.
She admired the room around her. Live fairies and the starry sky of the hall gave off a romantic silvery glow. Christmas trees dotted the edges of the room, each one decorated magnificently, with small round tables spread between them.
She looked around for her friends; she was tired of standing awkwardly by herself among so many couples. Looking around, she saw them on the dance floor clinging to their partners. They seemed so happy.
Hermione suddenly felt like she was hollow.
Wanting a breath of fresh air, Hermione slowly made her way to one of the balconies. What she didn’t realize was that someone had been watching her, and decided to follow her.
She leaned against the marble railing and stared out at the lake. A silent tear fell down her cheek as she released the breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding.
Suddenly a warm hand cupped her face, wiping the tear away. Hermione turned to look into the silver eyes of Draco Malfoy. What surprised her more than his gentleness towards her was the fact that he was smiling. He wasn’t smirking or sneering; he had a genuine smile on his face. She couldn’t help it as the corners of her mouth curved upward.
“Would you care to dance?” he asked her.
“I’d like that,” she replied nodding. Gently he took her hands in his, leading her away from the balcony and placing them around his neck. His arms lightly encircled her waist pulling her close, and they began to sway to the soft music playing in the background.
When the world is cold,
I will feel a glow just thinking of you...
And the way you look tonight.
Yes you're lovely, with your smile so warm
And your cheeks so soft,
There is nothing for me but to love you,
And the way you look tonight.
With each word your tenderness grows,
Tearing my fear apart...
And that laugh that wrinkles your nose,
It touches my foolish heart.
Lovely ... Never, ever change.
Keep that breathless charm.
Won't you please arrange it?
'Cause I love you ... Just the way you look tonight.
Mm, Mm, Mm, Mm,
Just the way you look to-night.
When the song ended he leaned down and placed a sweet kiss on her lips. When he pulled away both he and Hermione were smiling.
“What was that for?” she asked.
“Mistletoe,” he said, leaning his forehead against hers. She looked up and grinned back at him, tilting her face up for another kiss.
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A/N: Please review, good or bad, it's much appreciated. The Way You Look Tonight is a Frank Sinatra song (just in case some people didn't know).