Author's note: A snow day off from work can lead to productive things…okay, well I spent the first half of the day curled up on a couch with a blanket watching soaps and talk shows, but I did manage to squeeze in some writing, which led to this. I hope you enjoy. Thanks to all who have read and reviewed…
Chapter Six
Saved the Best for Last
"And now we're standing face to face
Isn't this world a crazy place
Just when I thought our chance had passed
You go and save the best for last"
"Sometimes the very thing you're looking for
Is the one thing you can't see"
(Vanessa Williams/"Saved the Best for Last")
While Harry and Hermione were enjoying their truly Muggle date, Ginny Weasley was pacing back and forth in the Astronomy Tower, waiting as per usual for Draco Malfoy's arrival. She cursed herself again for not having the willpower to turn him down. She wasn't usually weak about anything, but in this one area, she was definitely defeated. He had her where he wanted her, and a part of her thought he truly enjoyed it. She sometimes couldn't shake the sinking suspicion she had that he was possibly doing all that he was to get back at Ron, Harry, and Hermione. It was no secret that there was no love lost between the four of them.
Yet, when she felt like that, she reminded herself that while he may have seemed uncaring, selfish, arrogant, and priggish to the "Dream Team", he wasn't that way with her at all. When he was with her, Draco was caring, attentive, and sweet. She laughed to herself as she thought about the look on Ron's face is she tried to describe Draco Malfoy in any of these terms. He'd look at her as if she'd just sprouted another head.
"Hi," the familiar voice of Draco Malfoy called to her. She turned around and saw him staring at her.
"Hi," she whispered, a faint smile playing at her lips.
"I didn't know if you'd come," he said. "I know it was short notice and all, but I wanted to see you."
"You knew I'd come," she said, smirking at him. "Don't play like you didn't."
He looked somewhat sheepish as he came toward her. "Well, I had hoped you would."
"Yeah," she said. "So, what did you want?"
He had a gleam in his eye as he ran his hand down her arm.
"You know what I want," he said huskily. "You know what I've always wanted."
"I told you that I wasn't ready," she said, shivering at his touch. "Not for that."
He nuzzled her neck and she smiled as his tongue tickled her skin. "You're saying what you think you're supposed to say."
"Oh?" she asked coyly. "Am I now? When did you get to be such an expert on me?"
He lifted his head away from her neck to look her in the eyes. "I know everything about you, Red. I know how you think. I know how you feel. I know what you want."
She felt breathless as he smiled at her and leaned in for an intense kiss.
"You know what you want, too," he said, rubbing her cheek with his hand. "Don't fight it anymore, Ginny. Don't think about it. Just do what you feel."
She tried to keep control as he began to unbutton her jumper. She knew she should stop him, but she didn't want to. She didn't want him to ever stop. Any coherent thought she had went away as he gently unbuttoned the last button and she watched as her jumper fell to the floor.
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Harry and Hermione were giggling as they made it back to their common room just a few minutes after 1 am. They'd both enjoyed the movie and when it let out, they'd found they'd had a few minutes before they had to use the portkey to get back to Hogwarts.
Hermione had mentioned a craving for ice cream and they'd gone to an all-night store and bought a small container of Ben & Jerry's Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough. Harry had neither tasted of it nor heard of it before, which Hermione found so hard to believe she insisted they had to buy some to take back with them.
"You just wait until you try this," Hermione said. She took her wand out and transfigured two quills into spoons and she and Harry settled in on the couch. "Harry, you will absolutely love this."
"You have the same look on your face that you get when you get a good mark on a test," he said. "It must be pretty good then."
"It is," she said. She took a bite of the ice cream and then offered Harry the container. He pulled out a spoonful and tasted it.
"That's really good," he said.
Hermione greedily took back the container.
"Hey," he said. "I'm the one who has never had any of that before."
"Well, now you have," she said, grinning mischievously at him and leaning back on the couch.
"So, did you have a good time?" he asked as he finally managed to get the container back.
"I did," she said, smiling at him. "That was without a doubt the best date I've ever been on. Mind you, I haven't been on too many."
"Great," he said, trying to look taken aback. "So, how do I compare to the great Viktor Krum?"
He instantly regretted saying this. Why had he brought up Viktor? Would this make her uncomfortable? It sure as hell was making him uncomfortable, Harry thought, cursing silently to himself for his stupidity.
To his surprise, Hermione didn't seem insulted or uncomfortable at the mention of the Bulgarian.
"Well, you've gotten my name right," she said. "So, you are way ahead of him in that regard."
Harry took another bite of ice cream. "I could call you Hermy-own-ninny, if you really wanted me to."
"No," Hermione said, deadpan. "That's quite alright."
"So things between you and he never worked out?" Harry asked, looking away from her.
"No," she said. "There wasn't really anything in common between us."
"I can't say that I'm sorry to hear that," he said truthfully. He sure was being bold tonight, Harry chastised himself.
"Well if we're being entirely truthful, I wasn't sorry to hear about you and Cho Chang, either," she said frankly. "I never really liked her."
"You didn't?" he asked her. "I never really liked Krum, either."
"I wonder why that is?" Hermione asked thoughtfully. "I didn't like Cho and you didn't like Viktor."
"I don't think I would have liked anyone you dated," he said. He'd been honest with her all night. He figured he shouldn't stop now.
She blushed a little as his remark.
"What?" he asked. "I was just being honest."
"Okay," she said, looking at him. "I don't think I would have liked anyone you dated either."
"Why is that?" he asked her, seriously.
"I think we both know why, but we're afraid to say it," she said, returning the intensity of his gaze.
"It's funny that we should be like that when we've known each other for so long," he said, feeling somewhat uncomfortable and completely at ease at the same time with the direction this conversation had taken. "You'd think we'd be able to say anything to each other."
She gave a half-hearted laugh at this. "Maybe, its' because we've known each other so long," she said. She put the ice cream on the table and leaned back on the couch once more.
He took her hand is his.
"I like you, Hermione," he said nervously. "I've liked you for a long time."
"We're best friends," she said, avoiding his gaze. "I would hope that you liked me."
"No," he said. "Please look at me."
She did and he felt her hand shaking somewhat in his.
"I don't just want to be your friend, Hermione," he said. "I want us to be more."
She didn't say anything. She just stared back at him.
"I've not been able to think of anything else but you for a long time," he said. "I know it sounds a little cheesy, and maybe it is, but it's the truth. I want to be more than just your friend."
She still didn't speak a word.
"You're killing me here," he said, with a slight laugh. "Now, would be a great time for you to say something."
She didn't think she could speak. She looked into his green eyes and felt herself leaning in to him. Their faces were inches apart. She closed her eyes and felt his lips brush against hers. She felt his arm rest on her waist as he pulled her closer and he deepened the kiss.
"Does that answer your question?" she asked breathlessly when they finally pulled away from each other.
He nodded.
"I've wanted to do that for a long time," he said. She smiled and rested her head on his shoulder as they both looked at the fire, feeling content and happy.
"I've wanted you to do that for a long time," she said happily.
"You want to know something funny?" he asked her a few moments later.
"What?" she asked, her head still rested on his shoulder. Their hands were intertwined.
"I think somehow I always knew it would end up with you and me right here," he said softly.
"Okay, Trelawney," Hermione said with a laugh.
"Not like that," he said, laughing. "You're the only one that I feel I can be myself with. It's not like you expect me to be someone I'm not. You just know me as me. And I'm babbling, aren't I?"
She lifted her head up and smiled at him. "A little, but I know what you mean. I feel the same way about you."
He kissed her again softly. He wrapped his arms tightly around her and they fell back onto the couch. He pulled away from her as they lay down on the couch. Hermione laid her head on his chest and he wrapped his arm around her as they fell asleep.
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It was after four in the morning when Ginny walked back through the portrait hole into Gryffindor Tower. The room was deserted to Ginny's great relief. She stifled a yawn as she ascended the stairs to her dormitory.
Her fellow roommates were all asleep and snug in their beds. Ginny quickly changed into her dressing gown and slipped into the warmth and comfort of her four-poster bed. She was sleepy, but she didn't feel as if she would fall asleep straightaway. Too much was on her mind at the moment. She was still on an emotional high from what had happened just a few short hours ago in the Astronomy Tower.
She'd been scared, but he'd been quite gentle with her. He hadn't been rough at all. He'd been caring and tender and he'd held her close when it was over.
He'd even told her he loved her. She hadn't expected that. She'd cried when he'd finally said the words. She confessed the same to him. It hurt that they couldn't walk hand in hand down the halls. It hurt that she couldn't share her feelings for him with anyone. She wanted so badly to tell her mother that she'd finally met a boy who loved her as much as she loved him.
She couldn't do these things, though. He was a Malfoy. She was a Weasley. She was a Gryffindor and he was a Slytherin. It was almost like Romeo and Juliet, Ginny thought as she turned over on her side.
Someday, with a little time and understanding, maybe they could be together. Her family would be a little angry at first, and possibly alarmed by the relationship, but they'd understand, wouldn't they, Ginny thought. They'd see how much he cared about me and they'd accept us, Ginny said.
It's just going to take time for them to get used to it, Ginny said to herself. It was the last thought she had before she finally succumbed to sleep.
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The next morning Hermione awoke to find Harry gone. She was a little surprised by this, but she found a note on the table apologizing for leaving, but that he'd planned on meeting Ron for an impromptu Quidditch game.
Hermione smiled as she threw away the now melted container of ice cream.
She had loved sleeping in his arms last night on the couch. She had felt safe and content and warm there. She'd always felt that way with him. She knew some people might find that strange. In fact, she'd often heard people talk about how she could be friends with someone who often put her in danger just because of who he was. She didn't care about that, though. She knew that he'd never let anything happen to her. She knew that he'd never do anything to hurt her.
Besides, he made her happy. He made her so happy. She never in a million years could have imagined going on a date with him or hearing him say the things he'd said to her last night. She'd always hoped she'd hear him say those things, but she'd never thought it was possible. Yet, here she was. It hadn't been a dream. It had been real.
She was about to go into her room and change her clothes, when she heard a tapping at the window. She looked over and saw one of the barn owl's tapping impatiently at the door. He was holding an envelope. She crossed the room quickly and unlatched the window. The owl dropped the envelope in her hand before flying quickly out the window.
She recognized the envelope immediately. It was her parents' stationery. She'd given her parents the stationery set last Christmas. She opened the letter and gasped as she read.
Dear Hermione:
I hope that you are doing well with your studies. Your father recently had his annual checkup with Dr. Phillips. Apparently, his cholesterol level was elevated and the doctor has recommended that he cut back on his hours at the office.
I've been telling him for months now that he shouldn't take on so much, but you know you're father and his stubbornness well, as I think you inherited that from him!
Don't be alarmed, sweetheart. We just wanted you to know how he was doing. I'll keep you posted. Dr. Phillips thinks that with rest and relaxation your dad will be okay.
We're going to hire another colleague to help with the patient load.
Dad and I are so proud of you, sweetheart!
Love,
Mum
Hermione read and re-read the letter. She had tried to tell her father that he should take it easy, but he always brushed her off.
She hoped that her dad would heed his doctor's advice and take it easy.
She made a mental note to write her father that afternoon and let him know that she was thinking about him. She loved her parents dearly and she had no idea what she would do if anything should happen to them. She worried about them so especially when she was so far away.
Everything would be okay, she told herself. If there was really any need to worry, her mother would have said.
She exhaled in relief and walked toward her bedroom, saying a silent prayer that her father would be okay.
Author's Note: To clarify---in this chapter, Harry and Hermione didn't go all the way---they just fell asleep on the couch. I wasn't sure if I made that clear enough or not. Ginny and Draco, however, did go all the way.