Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor any of the characters from JK Rowling's fantastic books or films, I'm just borrowing and playing with them for a little while and get no monetary reward for doing so.

A/N: I was feeling romantic . . . and a little naughty ;). Many thanks, as always, to my marvellous beta, Mamacita. I hope you enjoy. Dx

'So, tell me again why we're going there?' Hermione asked, sounding confused, as she, Ginny, Luna, Hannah, Parvati and Padma boarded the train at Euston.

'It's a traditional place for witches and wizards to go to celebrate their hen and stag do's,' Ginny said. 'It'll be fun.'

'Isn't it a bit Muggle, though?' Hermione asked curiously. 'I'd never thought of Blackpool as a particularly magical place.'

'The lights are nice,' Padma said.

'Yeah, I know that, but I still wouldn't have pegged it as a hotspot for wizarding folk,' Hermione said dubiously.

Ginny grinned. 'You've got to be joking — the place is famous for it; although to be fair, most people do try to go "Muggle" rather than whip out their wands. It's a real laugh. I went there with Alicia and her mates last year. We got so drunk we couldn't walk. And there's some real top totty there as well, which doesn't hurt.'

'Which isn't really going to be of much interest to me, is it?' Hermione said dryly.

'Oh, I don't know, you can always have one last fling,' Hannah said, then she giggled maniacally as if she had said something wicked.

'I can't see Ron being very happy about that,' Hermione retorted.

'What he doesn't know and all that,' Ginny pointed out with a grin. 'Anyway, you've no idea what he's up to and knowing my brothers . . . .'

'I'd rather not think about that, if it's all the same to you,' Hermione said a little stiffly. She frowned. 'Anyway, why aren't they going to Blackpool, if it's the be-all and end-all?'

'You can't both go to the same place, silly,' Luna replied. 'How are you supposed to enjoy yourself if you know your fiancé's around somewhere? You'd spend all your time either trying to avoid him, or worse still, tracking him down to see what he's up to, and you wouldn't have any fun. It's much better this way. You can both relax, knowing you're not going to bump into each other, and have a great time.'

'Hmmm,' Hermione said, not sounding convinced. 'So where has Ron gone, anyway?' She looked at Ginny.

Ginny shrugged unconcernedly. 'I've no idea. Harry wouldn't tell me and you know what the others are like. I'm just the stupid little sister.'

'Forget about them,' Hannah advised. 'Let's just enjoy ourselves. I'm sure that's what they're going to do.'

'That's what worries me,' Hermione whispered. She sighed and put her weekend bag in the storage compartment above the seat, then sat down. 'So, does anyone have any idea of what we should be doing when we get there? I mean, we're going to be there for three days. I assume there's more to do than just drinking, seeing the lights and going to the fun fair, isn't there?'

She missed the look the others gave each other, wondering what else Hermione wanted from a hen weekend at the seaside. Surely she wasn't expecting high culture, was she?

'Don't you worry your pretty little head about that, I've got it all sorted,' Ginny said cockily, and she pulled a piece of parchment from the bag at her feet. She unrolled it and looked at it, grinning as she did so, then clearing her throat she began to read dramatically, 'Friday, thirteen-o-five, arrive at Blackpool station. It's only a couple of minutes' walk to the hotel. We'll dump our stuff, get the slap on, and head off for a pub crawl and check out the amusements and the piers, too. Back to the hotel after we've found somewhere to have dinner, get changed into something more interesting, and then we're going clubbing where we're going to drink ourselves under the table and go flirting with some fine lads.' Hermione looked as if she was about to say something but Ginny cut her off. 'Yes, you too, Hermione. There's nothing wrong with a bit of flirting. It's all part of the hen weekend experience. It's just a bit of fun, after all . . . and don't worry, none of us are going to go running back to tell Ron about it, so stop getting your knickers in a twist and just relax.' She looked back down at the parchment. 'Anyway, that's about it for today. I've got a load of stuff for us to do tomorrow but it depends on how pissed we get tonight, to be honest. Can't be doing roller coasters if we've got stonking great hangovers, and I don't know what time we're going to get back to the hotel, so we'll play that as it comes once we've all got up tomorrow.'

'I brought something along to get us started,' Hannah said with a smile. She rummaged around in her bag and eventually pulled out a set of what looked like test tubes full of coloured liquid. She passed one to each of the girls in the group. 'Down in one!'

'What is it?' Padma asked, holding up the glass phial and looking interestedly at the green liquid within.

'Sour apple shots,' Hannah told her. She looked around at Hermione, who was shaking her head. 'What? It's just a bit of a laugh.'

'It's nine o'clock in the morning,' Hermione said in dismay.

'Yeah, but we're on holiday and we're girls behaving badly,' Ginny pointed out with a wink. She pulled the cork stopper from her phial and sniffed the contents. 'Mmmm, that smells nice. Come on, let your hair down for once in your life.'

Hermione watched as the others unstoppered their phials, too. She knew she was being a real stick-in-the-mud but if she was honest she hadn't really wanted a hen weekend in the first place. She had assumed there would be a quiet and brief bridal shower at the Burrow similar to the one that had been held for Fleur before her wedding to Bill, but instead Ginny and Luna had organised this brash whirlwind of a weekend and she was having trouble getting her head round it.

She knew Ron was going away, too, although he had been rather cagey when she had tried to get out of him exactly where he was going and told her he had no idea, as it was a surprise being organised by Charlie and George. Hermione wasn't entirely sure she believed him.

Hermione looked down at the phial in her hand. She really didn't want to start drinking this early in the day, but everyone else was looking at her like she was some sort of party-pooper and they were doing this to celebrate her wedding.

She sighed and pulled the cork from the tube. Thank Merlin she wasn't getting married for another week. It was going to take her that long to get over the hangover. She took a sniff of the liqueur and her head snapped back. God, that smelt strong . . . and revolting.

Hermione looked around at the others. 'Okay, let's do it,' she said resignedly and raised the tube. The others followed suit.

'On three,' Luna said.

'One,' Padma intoned.

'Two,' Parvati said.

'Three!' Hannah and Ginny both said it together.

The six girls downed the contents of the phials in one mouthful, Hermione and Padma both shaking their heads as they swallowed the shots.

'Bleurgh,' Padma said, her face screwed up in revulsion. 'That's disgusting!'

'Really? I thought it was scrummy,' Parvati said and she tipped the empty tube into her mouth as if trying to get another drop from it.

'Don't worry, I've got raspberry, too,' Hannah said with a grin. 'That's a bit sweeter.' She looked at Hermione and smiled. 'See, not that bad, was it?'

Hermione shook her head. 'No, but I can't have any more. I'm enough of a lightweight as it is. If I keep drinking shots I'll be drunk before we even get there. I don't want to spend all weekend in the hotel sleeping off a hangover.'

'Good point,' Ginny said. She slung her bag on the overhead compartment next to Hermione's, then sat down heavily beside her and slumped in her seat. She looked at her watch. 'It's just gone nine o'clock. How about if we limit it to a shot every hour on the hour — that way we'll have had five by the time we get to Blackpool.'

'Five!' Hermione blurted out, sounding dumbfounded. 'You did just hear me say that I'm a lightweight, didn't you? I won't be able to walk after five shots.'

'Not if you have them all at once,' Ginny admitted. 'But these will be an hour apart and we're going to be eating and drinking in between, so I bet you won't even notice.'

Hermione sighed loudly.

'Come on, Hermione,' Luna said cajolingly. She sat on the other side of Hermione and nudged Hermione's elbow with her own. 'We can always stop if you think you're getting too drunk.'

'God, you lot are a bunch of nags,' Hermione said, but she smiled. 'All right, on the hour . . . but no more. And once we get there I'm going to need a few soft drinks before we start drinking again.'

'This is going to be a cracking weekend,' Ginny prophesied.

Hermione's head was spinning, but then it had been that way for the last hour or so. She and her friends had been up and down the Promenade, in and out of every bar, pub and club on the strip. She'd had so much to drink that she couldn't walk straight, but she had to admit she'd had a bloody brilliant evening and that was definitely due to her friends.

Although she hadn't wanted to, they had forced her to dress up for the occasion in an outfit they had bought her, especially for the weekend. It was a bride's outfit, but it was nothing like the demure dress she intended to wear for her wedding.

Short and sassy, with a busty boned corset top and flouncy tutu skirt, it showed off far more than Hermione had ever shown in public before; and when they gave her stockings and high heels to wear with it, she had initially refused point-blank. She could imagine what Ron would say if he could see her dressed like this, and she knew he would be furious if he thought she was considering going out wearing the outfit.

But then her friends had revealed their own gowns, similar attire to her own but in bright pink rather than the virgin white she had been given, and eventually, after a few more shots she had been coaxed into trying it on.

By the time they left the hotel for the evening she was also sporting a pink and white garter belt, a large sash with the legend "Bride in Training" written across it in the same shade of pink as the "bridesmaid" dresses — her friends had sashes with "hen party" written on theirs — and a sparkly pink and white tiara with a mini-veil. Hermione was aware she was probably showing off far too much of her body but the alcohol she had already consumed that day had done a good job of dulling her inhibitions.

At every stop she was the centre of attention, and as Ginny had said, there were plenty of fit young men who were more than happy to buy Hermione and her friends' drinks for a little harmless flirting. Some of them tried to touch her, which had freaked her out a little at first, but she soon discovered that as long as she made it clear from the outset that she was a strictly hands-off girl it didn't seem to affect the attention they received in any way.

They were currently on their way to the largest club in town, called Syndicate, to which Ginny had given rave reviews and seemed to be the place that everyone made their way to eventually. It was huge and brightly lit and the music was so loud it could be heard from the street.

Hermione had to admit she was quite glad this was the last stop for the night as she was beginning to flag. She was hoping to find somewhere to park herself while she waited for her friends to get fed up with dancing, as she didn't want to put a downer on what had been a wonderful evening by asking to go back to the hotel.

Hannah and Ginny headed straight for the bar as soon as they arrived. Padma and Parvati disappeared off to the toilet and Hermione and Luna stood to one side of the dance floor, making sure they were in a space where the others could easily find them. Luna was swaying, but Hermione thought she was dancing rather than ready to fall over as she remembered Luna dancing at Bill and Fleur's wedding. She could feel herself swaying as well, but she wasn't dancing. The alcohol was definitely affecting her; she really needed to stop drinking before she did something to embarrass herself.

'Are you all right, Hermione?' Padma asked. She and her twin had just returned from the loo and she was peering appraisingly at Hermione.

Hermione nodded her head but stopped that fairly quickly as it was making her dizzy. 'I think I'm drunk,' she admitted. 'I could really do with a sit-down.'

'I have to admit I'm feeling knackered,' Luna said, 'although I really like the music.' She drifted off, dancing again.

'Guess who we've just found at the bar,' Ginny said, sounding excited as she arrived back with their drinks. She handed them out. 'You'll never guess.'

'He's getting married next Saturday as well,' Hannah added.

'Who is?' Hermione asked interestedly. She took a swig of the bottle she had just been given.

'Draco Malfoy,' Hannah said, sounding awestruck.

'Draco Malfoy. And he's here?' Hermione asked in surprise. She couldn't imagine the rich boy choosing to hold his stag weekend in Blackpool. Perhaps it was the centre of wizarding high jinks after all.

'He is,' Ginny said excitedly. 'And he's got a whole bunch of lovely guys with him, including Blaise Zabini. He is so hot.'

'What about Harry?' Hermione asked as she took in the dreamy look on Ginny's face.

Ginny shrugged. 'What about him? I told you, it's only a bit of harmless flirting . . . just a bit of fun. Come on, Hermione, you have to admit Blaise is absolutely gorgeous.'

Hermione glanced over towards the bar where Draco and his friends were still standing, apparently getting ready to down shots. She looked at the tall, dark-skinned man who was laughing at something one of the others had said. Ginny was right, he was absolutely gorgeous. Hermione's eyes moved to the blond who was standing at the centre of the group. He was even more handsome than his friend. In fact, he was astonishingly handsome. His white shirt, worn under a brocade waistcoat, was unbuttoned a little and for some reason that she couldn't quite fathom it made her heart beat faster. His hair was tousled from where he had unthinkingly run his hands through it, and he was quite clearly drunk and having a good time.

She looked at the bottle she was holding and groaned inwardly. Oh god, she had just thought that Draco Malfoy was gorgeous. She had to be completely pissed; she really needed to stop drinking before her judgement was clouded any further.

'Oooh, shots,' Hermione heard Ginny say as she headed back towards the bar with Hannah and the twins in tow.

Luna was still swaying next to Hermione, who didn't know whether to leave her and follow the others or wait to see if they came back. She turned to look back at the bar and realised that her friends had joined Draco and his friends, Ginny positioning herself as close to Blaise as she could possibly get without it being indecent.

She saw one of the men — was it Greg Goyle? She wasn't sure because the man was definitely much more attractive than she remembered him from school, but he was of the right build — pluck at the sash Parvati was wearing as the woman laughed. Hermione realised she was focussing on them a little too heavily, so she turned back to Luna. She didn't want them to think she was staring at them.

Then, almost immediately, she heard more laughter and turned again. Her friends were having a laugh and a joke with Draco and his mates. Had they forgotten about her? But a moment later Ginny was waving, calling out Hermione's and Luna's names and beckoning them over to join the group. Hermione looked at Luna again.

'Ginny wants us,' she said.

Luna nodded dreamily. 'More drinks.'

'Do you want to go or do you want to stay here?' Hermione asked. 'I don't mind either way.' She glanced again towards the group and once more her eyes caught Draco, but this time he was looking at her and he smiled and raised the shot glass he was holding.

'Come on, you two,' Hannah shouted, only just audible over the sound of the music, and she too raised a shot glass that she had obviously just been given.

'That handsome one is over there,' Luna announced dreamily. 'Let's go and talk to him and have a drink.'

She wandered past Hermione towards the group. Hermione followed, idly wondering which of the men Luna thought was handsome. It was probably Draco. He was quite obviously the most handsome guy there, probably the most handsome in the whole club, and it wouldn't surprise her if Luna had a bit of a thing for him.

'Come and have a shot,' Ginny said, grabbing her arm and pulling her into the group so Hermione was standing opposite Draco.

'I don't think I want another shot,' Hermione said honestly. 'I've still got this.' She raised the bottle she was still carrying.

'Rubbish, we need more shots,' Ginny said, and with a grin, she flung herself at the three guys from Draco's party who were still at the bar.

A few minutes later they were back carrying handfuls of shot glasses which they distributed to the group. Hermione reluctantly took the glass she was offered, watching with interest as Luna completely ignored Draco and instead made a beeline straight for . . . was that Theo Nott?

'So you and the Weasel are actually doing it, then,' Draco said, sounding dismissive. He moved forward so he was standing directly in front of her. He reached out to touch the sash she was wearing, looking at the words on it. 'What training are you after, Hermione?' he asked, his voice husky. Then he laughed loudly, which made her start in surprise.

She went to pull back from him but before she could get away he moved even closer and tapped his glass against hers.

'Don't run away. We've got a toast to drink to.'

Hermione was trying very hard to concentrate. Her head was spinning again, the room was very warm and Draco was too close for comfort; she could smell his aftershave and something else, something that was uniquely him. He smelt so good. She shook her head, trying to clear it.

'Just the one, then,' she told him. 'I've already had more than enough, really.'

Draco chuckled. 'You're still standing, so you haven't had anywhere near enough yet.'

He tapped her glass again. 'To our weddings,' he said and lifted his glass in a toast. Hermione lifted her glass as well and they both drank.

Around them, Hermione realised the rest of the group was drinking, too, but she was having trouble concentrating on anyone but Draco. However hard she tried not to look at him, she found herself staring; at his tousled hair, his beautiful ice-grey eyes, his succulent mouth . . . .

'More shots,' he called, and the spell was broken.

'So, when are you getting married?' Draco asked.

'Next Saturday afternoon — two thirty,' Hermione said, trying to return to the here and now rather than an unwelcome fantasy that had just popped into her mind. 'And you?' she added, to be polite.

'Three thirty next Saturday,' Draco said, sounding a little dismissive. He looked over towards the bar. 'Where are those bloody shots?' he called out to Blaise, who was buying drinks with Ginny. 'Come on, keep them coming. I'm nowhere near pissed enough yet.'

'So why are you marrying Weasley?' he asked Hermione suddenly. He had moved another step closer and was gazing at her intently.

'Why do you think I'm marrying him?' Hermione couldn't help the tartness of her response. 'Because I'm in love with him, of course.'

Draco gave a huge sigh. 'Never could understand that. I mean there you are, gorgeous and sexy . . . and brainy as well . . . and he's just a real dolt.'

'You don't know anything about him,' Hermione said, suddenly angry. 'He's a fine man . . . and a better person than you'll ever be.'

'I doubt that sweetheart,' Draco said smoothly, and before she knew what was happening he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close against his body. 'I bet I could make you cum harder than he does,' he whispered in her ear.

Shocked, Hermione struggled, trying to get out of his grip, but he just held her tighter and laughed.

'Oh look, the bride and groom have got it together,' Hermione heard someone say. She had no idea who it was, but it was a man. She heard a woman's high laugh in response.

'Don't try to fight me,' Draco said, his voice still quiet in her ear. 'You can't beat me.'

'Let me go, Draco.'

He looked at her for a moment, then shook his head and said in a lazy drawl, 'No, I don't think so. I haven't had a kiss yet.'

Hermione looked at him in astonishment. 'A kiss? Why would you want a kiss?'

'Why do you think?' Draco asked. He could feel Hermione squirming again and pulled her even tighter to stop it.

'Oh yeah, what are you two up to, eh?' Blaise asked as he and Ginny suddenly appeared at their sides. Hermione saw the woman give her a massive grin. 'Shots?' He held out two glasses.

Draco unwrapped one of his arms a little reluctantly to take one of the glasses but he didn't let go of Hermione completely. Hermione reached out for the other, hoping to use it as an excuse to move away, but Draco was still holding onto her too firmly.

Draco grinned. 'I was hoping to talk Hermione into a kiss,' he told his friend candidly. 'I mean, with us both getting married and—'

He was cut off by a squeal from Ginny. 'Oh yes, Hermione, you must.'

Hermione glared at Ginny and hissed, 'I'm marrying your brother, remember.'

'It's only a kiss,' Ginny explained patiently. 'You are allowed one final kiss with someone else before you get married, you know. That's what this weekend is all about — getting it out of your system.'

'Not for me it isn't,' Hermione retorted, sounding unhappy.

'Oh, for god's sake, Hermione, it's only a bit of fun,' Ginny chided. 'It's just a kiss. What harm's it going to do?'

'Time for shots,' Draco said, breaking the tension that was rapidly building between the two women, and he lifted his glass. He was still looking and smiling at Hermione.

Hermione looked around. She and Draco were now at the centre of their group and it seemed that all her friends had paired off with friends of his. That really wasn't going to help.

'To last kisses,' Draco said with a wicked grin as he clinked his glass against Hermione's.

There was a roar of approval at this from the group as they all downed their drinks. Greg and Blaise immediately peeled away to head to the bar once more. Before Draco could do anything, Hermione pulled out of his arms and moved away from him.

'I need to go to the loo,' she muttered and pushed her way through the group. Hannah followed her.

Draco watched her go and gave a deep chuckle. 'Just as uptight as ever, I see,' he observed. 'She really needs more shots.'

'She's okay. She's just a bit hung up on Ron. You know what Hermione's like.' Ginny laughed and shook her head. 'Gods, if she only knew what he was up to this weekend—'

'What is he up to?' Draco asked interestedly.

Ginny shrugged. 'I don't know for certain, as they were all a bit secret-squirrel about it every time I was around, but I did manage to pick up a few hints and I know it includes strippers — and if my brother Charlie's got anything to do with it, probably prostitutes as well.'

'I bet Hermione wouldn't be very impressed if she found out about that,' Draco said, sounding amused.

'She changes the subject every time Ron's stag's mentioned,' Ginny said with a sigh. 'She's extremely good at turning a blind eye, our Hermione . . . especially where my precious brother's concerned. I just wanted her to loosen up for once and have a bit of fun before it's too late.'

'I'm sure we can help with that,' Draco said as Greg passed him another shot glass. He clinked glasses with Ginny and they both drank.

Ginny looked appraisingly at Draco. 'I always thought you had a bit of a thing for Hermione when we were at school, with all that arguing and stuff. You were worse than her and Ron sometimes.'

Draco shook his head. 'She was an annoying know-it-all back at school.'

'Yeah, but you still fancied her,' Ginny said shrewdly.

Draco ignored the jibe. 'I assume you really won't say anything to your brother about anything Hermione does while she's here?'

'Why? What are you going to do to her?' Ginny asked, her voice slightly sharper now.

Draco raised his hands. 'I'm not doing anything. I was just checking that you really are going to let her have fun . . . if she wants it.'

Ginny glanced at Blaise, who gave her a cheeky wink. She winked back and reached out a hand to stroke his face.

'We're all here to have fun, aren't we?' She glanced over to where Luna and Theo were already busy snogging each other, then she looked back at Draco. 'I don't think anyone would have any cause to say anything about this weekend . . . at least I hope not.'

Draco smirked. 'I'm glad we understand each other. Don't worry about Hermione; I'll look after her.' He looked towards the dance floor where he could see Hermione and Hannah coming back from the toilet. 'I must be able to get her to dance, surely? A dance can't hurt.'

He walked towards them, leaving Ginny and Blaise, who had already lost interest in anything but each other, behind. Hermione saw Draco coming towards her and tried to move away but she wasn't able to walk properly after the amount of alcohol she'd had and wasn't very successful.

Draco held out his hand. 'Will you dance with me?' he asked.

Hermione stared at him without saying anything until finally, Hannah nudged her in the back.

'Well go on,' she urged. 'Dance with him.'

Hermione gave a brief shake of her head and stared meaningfully at her friend but Hannah just laughed.

'It's just a dance, Hermione. He's not trying to get in your knickers.' She chuckled. 'Just lighten up a bit. It's just a bit of fun, that's all.'

Draco grinned and said smoothly, 'It's true. I just want to dance.' He grabbed her hand and brought it to his lips, then pulled her towards him and wrapped his other arm around her waist. 'I'm saving your knickers until later,' he whispered in her ear then laughed loudly as Hermione, looking horrified, tried to pull away from him. 'That was a joke,' he told her rapidly at the sight of her face. 'Let's just dance.'

'I think Ginny's got a bit of thing for Blaise,' he said with amusement as they danced. He looked across at the couple who had also taken to the dance floor.

'She's supposed to be going out with Harry,' Hermione said tartly. 'But look at her. She's all over Blaise like a rash.'

'Perhaps you should take a leaf out of her book,' Draco said quietly. 'I mean, you'll never be able to do it again, not once you—'

'I'm sorry if I'm ruining everyone's weekend,' Hermione said waspishly, 'but I don't understand why everyone's so keen for me to whore myself out.'

Draco looked at her in surprise. 'I don't think anyone's suggesting that, Hermione. They just want you to relax and have fun for once in your life.'

'Perhaps I don't want to relax,' Hermione snapped.

'That's a ridiculous attitude to have,' Draco told her. 'After this weekend you're going to be stuck forever with that idiot you're marrying. At least try to have some fun before it's too late.'

'For your information, I have lots of fun with Ronald,' Hermione said, her eyes blazing with anger. 'And I'm fed up with everyone telling me to lighten up and have fun.' She pulled out of Draco's arms and added coldly, 'I'm sorry Draco, I don't want to dance . . . not with anyone.'

'Hermione—'

Hermione shook her head and stalked off the dance floor. Ginny broke away from Blaise to join Draco.

'What did you do to her?' she asked accusingly.

Draco shook his head. 'Nothing. I was only dancing with her. She's fed up with people trying to get her to have fun. She's feeling pressured and it's making her fight against it. I think you've all been trying too hard, especially on the first night.'

'We haven't really overdone it, though,' Ginny said defensively.

'Not with a normal person, maybe, but you know what Hermione's like. With the way she is you should have taken the fact that you managed to get her to go out in public in that amazing outfit as a triumph and left it at that for tonight,' Draco told her. 'If you keep pushing her she'll just refuse to do anything you suggest and she'll go the opposite way. You know what she's like.'

'You like the outfit, then?' Ginny asked with a sly laugh.

Draco rolled his eyes. 'Of course I like it. I don't think there's a red-blooded male in the whole of Blackpool who isn't extremely grateful to you lot for getting her dressed up like that. But that doesn't change the fact that she's feeling uncomfortable about what you're trying to get her to do.'

'Why don't you just kiss her?' Ginny asked. 'I know you want to.'

'Even if I was considering it — which I'm not, by the way — she's not ready to relax her morality enough to be kissed by someone other than Weasley,' Draco said brusquely. There was a frown on his face. 'Anyway, I'm not forcing myself on her. If she doesn't want my company, it's not my loss. Go back to Blaise. I'm going to go and prop up the bar for a while.'

Ginny shook her head and sighed. 'No. It's time I had a proper talk with Hermione . . . to make sure she's all right. I know she wasn't particularly eager to have a hen weekend in the first place. We sort of dumped it on her after we'd organised it and we didn't really arrange anything that she enjoys doing because we wanted it to be a fun weekend, not educational.'

Hermione was feeling extremely uncomfortable. The argument with Draco seemed to have sobered her up a little, and standing alone as she now was, she was becoming very aware of the looks she was being given by other men in the club. All her friends were off dancing, enjoying themselves as they kept telling her she should enjoy herself, and she was defenceless, wearing this stupid tarty outfit that now she was thinking slightly more clearly she realised was definitely a mistake.

She wanted to go back to the hotel, wanted to get away from the club and its men with their leering looks and their crude comments, away from Draco and his beautiful eyes that stared at her too deeply, his perfect mouth that she had more than once considered kissing this evening, wondering what it would be like to be with the handsome man she'd had so many intense if unpleasant moments with during her time at school.

And that was the main problem. She wanted to kiss Draco.

When he had suggested it she was shocked, but her drunken mind had quickly run with the idea, realising she was enjoying him holding her. But then she remembered Ron and a wave of guilt rushed through her and she had to get away.

It was all very well for Ginny and the others to treat it in such a blasé way, but she couldn't. She was a week away from becoming Mrs Ronald Weasley and she couldn't just ignore that. She wasn't Ginny, able to forget her boyfriend on a whim because there was another beautiful man around to be snogged instead. Hermione had always been faithful to Ron and now wasn't the time to change that — especially not with the man he still detested most in the world.

She thought again about Ron and wondered for a moment where he was and what he was doing, but then realised she didn't really want to know. She had been trying to ignore all of Ginny's less-than-subtle hints at what her fiancé, his brothers and Harry were going to be getting up to ever since they had met up at the train station in London. Was he in a club, wherever he was?

Was he acting like Draco, or worse, like some of the other men who had tried to talk to her . . . had tried to grope her? At least Draco hadn't done that. He had only danced with her. She looked at the dance floor and her friends wrapped around Draco's friends. For a moment a vision of Ron engaged in snogging some miscellaneous, shadowy girl entered her mind but she pushed the thought away. It didn't matter what Ron was doing; there was nothing she could do to stop it and she didn't need to know about it, either.

She turned as one of the men closest to her leant in to proposition her. Hermione moved away a little, not sure she understood what the man had asked her to do but feeling even more uncomfortable. She really didn't want to be here any longer, but at the same time, she desperately wanted another drink in the hope that it would restore her good mood that had now completely evaporated.

'Are you okay?' Ginny suddenly appeared at her side, seeming to effortlessly brush away the men who had been attempting to talk to Hermione.

'I don't feel very comfortable here,' Hermione admitted honestly. 'I want to go back to the hotel. I've had enough.'

'Do you want another drink? —Hang on,' Ginny said. She turned her head to smile sweetly at the man who had just lewdly propositioned Hermione, her brown eyes glinting. 'If you don't take your hand off my bottom this minute I'm going to get my brothers to come and kick your stupid scrawny arse,' she said fiercely. 'Now piss off and take your perving somewhere else.'

Hermione looked at Ginny in astonishment. The man looked surprised, too, then swore nastily at the two women before walking away, punching his mate's arm as he went when the man started laughing at what had happened.

Hermione and Ginny looked at each other for a moment then burst out laughing too, the tension between them broken.

'Your brothers aren't here,' Hermione said.

'He doesn't know that, though, does he?' Ginny pointed out. 'Anyway, I'd have got Draco and his friends over if he'd given us any trouble.' She turned to look at the departing man. 'Don't worry about him, he was a tosser. So, do you want that drink?'

'I think I've sobered up,' Hermione said morosely, 'and I'm not really in the mood now. I feel extremely uncomfortable in this.' She tugged unhappily at the bride outfit. 'I can't believe you persuaded me to come out dressed like this.'

'You look hot,' Ginny told her, and she grinned. 'And let's face it, Hermione, you never look sexy. It's just not in your nature. I know you're feeling a little uncomfortable right now, but it'll be good for you to be out of your comfort zone for a few days. Come and have a few more drinks, and if you still want to go then we'll leave.'

'One more drink,' Hermione said, still sounding unhappy.

'One and a shot,' Ginny bargained.

Hermione gave a small half-smile. 'Okay, but then that's it.'

Ginny returned the smile. She was sure she could get Hermione to stay for a bit longer than that.

'And just remember, what happens in Blackpool stays in Blackpool,' she said as she led Hermione back to the bar. She winked lewdly. 'So go on, give Draco a snog if you want. I reckon you've both been dying to do it for years.'

'I most certainly haven't,' Hermione said indignantly, but she could feel her face flushing as she said it and the memory of how she had considered kissing him came into her mind. She shook her head. 'I will not be kissing Draco Malfoy. I'm sorry, Ginny, but I just don't understand this "last fling" nonsense. I'm not interested. I will have a couple more drinks and I'll dance with him again if he asks me, but that's it — it's not going any further than that.'

Ginny shrugged. 'Whatever. Just as long as you're happy. We're supposed to be having fun this weekend, remember?'

Hermione was attempting to make her way back to the hotel. She was generally pissed off with everyone and everything at the moment and was trying hard not to cry. She had ended up staying at the club for several more drinks; so many, in fact, that she had lost count and was almost seeing double. But then Ginny had broken her promise and refused to go back to the hotel as she was busy getting a bit more intimate with Blaise than Hermione thought was appropriate, considering she already had a boyfriend.

She had no idea where Padma and Parvati had got to but she suspected they weren't alone as Greg and Adrian had both disappeared, too. Luna and Theo didn't appear to have come up for air for over an hour and Hannah was busy dancing with Alex. Only Hermione and Draco were left, and after his earlier comments about kissing her and with her burgeoning desire for him that was completely untenable, she had not wanted to go anywhere near him even though he had managed to persuade her to dance with him a couple of times.

Unhappy, angry and definitely not thinking properly due to the excessive alcohol in her bloodstream, Hermione had decided to abandon her friends. If they wouldn't go back to the hotel with her, she would go alone. But now she was outside and she wasn't sure she was going the right way because the roads had got darker and there were far fewer people around.

She had thought she could vaguely remember where the hotel was, but they had been to so many places since leaving it earlier that now she couldn't work out whether she was even going in the right direction. The stupid high heels she was wearing were hurting her feet, too, but she couldn't take them off; and she was having trouble walking, both because of the shoes and because of the alcohol.

To add to her problems she had attracted the attention of a group of lads who were hanging around outside a kebab shop she had passed a few minutes back and they were following her down the street, making shockingly suggestive comments and drawing ever closer, circling her like a pack of hyenas.

Hermione was attempting to ignore them, her concentration centred on keeping upright and walking. She just wished her head wasn't spinning so much. She was sure she was going to be sick and was desperate not to do so whilst she was out in public, especially with an audience.

'Hello, darlin', are you all right?'

Hermione blocked out the man who had broken away from his friends to walk next to her. She focused her eyes ahead of her as best she could and breathed deeply, hoping it would help to remove the dizziness.

'You're looking very sexy, babe. You lookin' for a good time?' The man was even closer now and she could no longer pretend he wasn't there. She could smell the beer on his breath, stale and unpleasant, matching the unkempt look he was sporting — a wrinkled white shirt, chin full of dark stubbly growth, and a shock of dark hair that had too much gel in it.

Hermione shook her head. 'No, thank you. I'm just trying to get back to my hotel.'

The man grabbed her arm and pulled her to a stop. His friends were almost upon them now.

'You don't wanna do that, darlin'. You wanna come with us,' he said, obviously trying to sound seductive although it actually sounded more creepy than anything. 'We'll look after you, give you all the training you want.' He winked at her lewdly and pulled at the sash she was still wearing.

Hermione's senses were severely dulled by the alcohol but even so, she felt a sense of dread as the other men began to close in on her as well.

'No . . . please. I really need to get back to the hotel. I don't feel very well,' she said, trying unsuccessfully to break away from the group.

'We'll make you feel better,' said one of the group; a tall, bald man with an earring in one ear, his voice husky.

Hermione cried out as he grabbed at one of her breasts and was relieved to discover that the boned corset actually did a good job of blocking him. But it didn't block one of his friends who thrust his hand up under the tutu. Hermione twisted and squealed, causing her to stumble. One of the men grabbed her arm to pull her upright.

'No . . . leave me alone!' Hermione could hear the panic and fear in her voice as she tried frantically to stop them touching her. She was suddenly chillingly aware that there was no help to be found on this quiet street.

'Come on, darlin', you know you want it really,' the first man said, still trying to sound reasonable.

Hermione's head was swirling again and her stomach was churning and the men were grabbing at her. One, an Asian-looking man with acne scars on his face, had managed to get his arm around her waist and was pulling her towards him.

'Now be a good girl and come with us,' said another, also dressed in a white shirt. His voice was quiet but had an underlying tone of menace.

A blond dressed in a leather jacket and black jeans standing the other side of Hermione chuckled as he crowed, 'Good girl . . . look at her, Dean, she's obviously a slut.' He leant towards her, clearly staring at her breasts and said happily, 'A dirty little slut who needs a good seeing to.'

Hermione whimpered and dropped her head, not wanting to look at the men who were surrounding her, pulling and groping at her and making her heart hammer with fear. The tears that had been welling since she left the club were falling now and she was so scared of what was happening to her that she couldn't even brush them away.

There were too many men and she was too drunk and too frightened to be able to do anything to stop them; not that she could do anything anyway since her wand was back at the hotel, left behind so they could enjoy a "Muggle" night out, as Ginny had put it. Hermione sobbed loudly, unable to stop herself, and thought miserably that this served her right for being so stupid and leaving the club alone . . . for being idiotic enough to get drunk in the first place.

'Leave her alone!'

Hermione raised her head and saw a blurry Draco, looking completely sober, walking down the road towards them.

'Yeah, all right, Prince Charming,' the blond said sarcastically. 'Piss off. We found her and we're looking after her.'

'That's right,' the first man said. 'She wants to come and play with us.' He twisted Hermione's face to look at him, ignoring the tears that were flowing down her cheeks. 'Don't you, darling?'

'Draco,' Hermione whispered unhappily.

'This is your husband-to-be, is it?' the Asian asked Hermione. He grinned nastily.

'I said leave her alone,' Draco said again, his face a mask of fury as he approached the group. 'I'm warning you.'

'You all alone, boss?' the bald man asked. There was a hint of malice along with the amusement in his voice. 'I like your confidence.'

The whole group laughed, all thinking about how Draco would fare against them, knowing that by the time they had finished with him he would be in no position to help the drunk girl who was about to provide them with so much pleasure. This evening was getting better all the time.

'I don't need anyone else,' Draco replied imperiously, and pulling his wand from his pocket he pointed it threateningly towards the men.

The group's lack of surprise or laughter at the sight of the wand made it clear they were wizards. Draco assessed the situation rapidly but carefully in case they were carrying their wands, too. That would change the game completely. But if they had been carrying them they would have pulled them out by now, so he was still the one in charge here.

'Are you going to hex us all?' the first man asked, sounding distinctly unconvinced. He gave a snort of derision. 'Yeah, I don't think so, mate.'

The blond added, 'A bit of free advice for you, "Prince". You wanna stop your girlfriend going out dressed like a slut, otherwise she's gonna get treated like one . . . know what I mean?' He made a grotesque thrusting gesture with his pelvis and grinned maliciously. 'Does she like to gang bang? Does she like a bit of multiple penetration?'

Hermione squealed again as someone else stuck his hand up her skirt, trying to grab at her knickers.

'Last chance,' Draco said coldly. 'You will let go of her immediately and take your worthless, pathetic carcasses as far away from here as you can get, otherwise I'm going to hex you all.'

'You ain't doing nothing to us,' the man called Dean said, sounding belligerent. 'You're all talk, otherwise, you'd have already done it by now.'

He lunged at Hermione and tried to push his hand down the top of her corset, grabbing at her breasts. Hermione shrieked hysterically.

'Don't say I didn't warn you,' Draco told them, his voice positively glacial. He waved his wand, muttering quietly as he did so.

'Come here, Hermione,' he said gently but firmly to the terrified woman, then moved forward to help her as she disentangled herself from the frozen men. 'Gender-specific stupefying spell,' he explained as she looked at him in astonishment, then he wrapped his arms around her as she burst into a flood of tears once more and held onto her tightly while she sobbed.

'We really need to go,' he said sounding a little apologetic, after a couple of minutes when she had managed to calm down a little. 'Otherwise, I'm going to get into trouble for this.' He gestured towards the group of men who were still frozen. 'Where's your hotel?'

Hermione shook her head miserably. 'I don't know. I can't remember.'

'What's it called? I'm sure you can remember that,' Draco pressed gently.

'The Castle, I think,' Hermione said, sounding unsure.

'Can you remember anything about it at all?'

'I know it's about five minutes' walk from the station in the direction of the town,' Hermione recalled.

'I think I know where it is. Come on, then, let's get you back,' Draco said. He put his arm around her waist. 'Are you all right to walk or do you want me to carry you?'

'Carry me?' Hermione almost shrieked. 'I'm not that drunk or that helpless.' Draco gave her a look that quite clearly said she was wrong. 'I'm fine to walk,' she insisted bullishly and began to pull away from him.

Draco kept hold of her. 'Okay, you can walk,' he told her mildly. 'But I'll just hold onto you to make sure you don't fall over or faint or something.'

'I'm fine,' Hermione insisted. But she stopped trying to pull away.

After another twenty minutes of extremely slow and somewhat meandering walking, they finally arrived outside Hermione's hotel.

'Is this the one?' Draco asked looking at it dubiously. It really wasn't much of a hotel.

Hermione squinted at the sign. Her head was still spinning and she was feeling tired now. She really wanted to go to bed.

'Yes, that's it,' she said happily. 'Thank you so much for bringing me back, Draco. I'll be fine from here.'

'I'll take you up to your room,' Draco said. 'I want to know that you're safe.'

'I'll be fine, perfectly fine. You don't have to come with me,' Hermione insisted.

'But I want to,' Draco said, his soft voice making her skin tingle.

'No . . . Draco . . . really . . . .'

But Draco was holding too tightly for her to get away. He led her up the steps and into the empty reception area.

'What's your room number?' he asked looking around the lobby of the rather dingy guest house.

Hermione looked at him, debating what to say. She didn't want Draco to know her room number, didn't want him taking her there — not when they were alone, not when he was looking so kissable and she was feeling so vulnerable and in need of a hug after what she had just been through.

'I'll be fine to go on my own,' she said again, suddenly aware that she might be slurring a little. She was really still quite drunk.

'But I'm not willing to let you go on your own. I want to make sure you don't break your neck falling over or anything,' Draco insisted firmly. 'Now, what floor are you on?'

Hermione sighed loudly then said reluctantly, 'Second floor.'

Draco led her towards the stairs. 'Number?'

Hermione didn't say anything but dragged her feet as Draco pulled her up the stairs. She was swaying again, too. She knew she was being idiotic but she couldn't help herself. They got to the correct landing and Draco looked around.

'Which way?' he asked patiently.

Eventually, when it became clear he had no intention of leaving her and was prepared to wait all night for her answer if need be, Hermione reluctantly pointed to the left.

They walked down the corridor, Draco looking interestedly at the rooms. The guest house didn't seem to be particularly busy; a lot of the doors were open, showing the empty rooms beyond and the place looked rather old-fashioned and was sorely in need of a bit of redecoration.

Breaking the silence, he noted, 'Bit of a quiet hotel, this one. The one we're staying in is packed. Mind you, it is on the seafront rather than out of the way like this one. What room number are you in?'

'It was cheap,' Hermione said as if that explained everything. She tried again. 'I'm not going to fall over, you know. You'll be perfectly okay to leave me here.'

'I'm not leaving you,' Draco told her adamantly. He looked at her interestedly. 'Why don't you want to tell me your room number, Hermione?'

Hermione stared back at him, suddenly embarrassed and not sure what to say. She couldn't explain to him why she didn't want him to know where her room was. But what was she supposed to tell him that didn't involve the truth? Unfortunately, she was too drunk to be able to think up a fast and rational response; he would know she was lying.

Draco chuckled. 'You don't want me to know where you're sleeping. What are you worried will happen?' Hermione looked away from him, even more embarrassed at being caught out. He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her close. 'I'd quite like that kiss now.'

'No . . . Draco . . . .'

'Shhh,' Draco whispered. He bent his head and his lips met hers gently.

The kiss was far less passionate than Hermione had expected, had imagined on the several occasions this evening when she had considered kissing Draco, and she found herself strangely disappointed. A kiss with him, illicit as it was, should be better than this, should have some substance; especially after he saved her from the men who would have done Merlin only knew what to her if he hadn't come along. He had rescued her and deserved a proper kiss.

Hermione wrapped her arms around Draco and pulled him into a far more sensual kiss, surrendering herself to it completely when he eagerly returned it. More kisses followed, heady and sweet; the dizziness Hermione had already been feeling was increased by the lack of oxygen as the kisses went on and on.

'Your room,' Draco whispered between kisses.

Hermione shook her head.

'Then we'll go in here,' Draco said, and still holding tight to Hermione he pulled her into an empty room.

'No, we mustn't,' Hermione tried to say, but Draco cut her off with another kiss, his hand moving surreptitiously to his pocket to pull out his wand. He stopped kissing her just long enough to close the door. Another wave of the wand and the bed was no longer just a bare mattress.

'I want you so much,' he admitted as he guided her back towards the bed. He pushed her down beneath him, his mouth finding hers once more.

'Draco, we have to stop this,' Hermione said, although her heart was beating faster and her blood was racing.

'Just lie with me for a little while. I like kissing you,' Draco told her.

'But we shouldn't—'

'Shhh,' Draco whispered again, more commandingly, and his lips found hers. His hand traced her leg, his fingers tickling the soft skin above the stocking he was stroking.