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Stranded

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By Queen of Serpents

Disclaimer: The story is loosely based on the theme of Lord of the Flies by William Golding. I am fortunate to be able to use the characters of Harry Potter but alas I do not own them.

Author's Note: Well, I supposed I lied when I wrote in my previous chapter that I would update more frequently. I'm ashamed to say that's its been a year. I really don't have a valid excuse either. Real life just got in the way, I'm afraid. I'm so sorry. I just wanted to let you all know that I wont ever abandon this. I'll not take another year, though. That was my fault and I deeply apologize. I hope a few of you still stuck around.

Remember to visit my website to probe me about my stories. I'll let you know about the status of updates and I'll also give out little previews of the next chapters there.

By the way, I previously thought I would finish this story by the 10th chapter. I'm not sure if that will happen, but we'll see. )

Enjoy!

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Chapter Eight: Of Anxiety and Anticipation

They left together towards camp, laughing, hoping, and holding hands. They didn't notice how uncharacteristic this behavior was. It felt natural and why question something that felt so instinctively right?

Above, the sky was getting darker. The clouds congregated and decided to make rain.

They stumbled to get back. Anticipation ran through their veins.

Why were people looking for them? What did they find? Was it Harry? Pansy? Or better yet, did they find a way to get back home?

Hermione's mood was so light and giddy that she forgot Ron's angry, hurt face. She squeezed Draco's hand. He looked down at her and winked, flashing her a dashing smile.

But wait.

Was it a smile or a smirk?

Hermione released his hand as if burned. She furrowed her brows, refused to answer his questioning eyes, and hurried her pace. She looked straight ahead, trying to clear her muddled, frazzled mind.

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Pansy woke up to the sound of flies incessantly buzzing in her ears. She wrinkled her nose.

"God! What is that smell?" she yelled, covering her nose.

She opened her eyes slowly and pried her sticky hair away from her face. She noticed they were slightly wet and dried in some places. She sat up. It was still dark. She couldn't see but she knew that there was blood on her fingertips.

She felt a person's body as she scrambled up. She stopped moving and tried to look at the figure lying underneath her. Who was it?

"Hello? Hello, wake up!" She shook the figure frantically. It was cold and stiff under her touch.

Was the person dead?

Realization hit her and she quickly stood up straighter, horrified. A hand covered her mouth but didn't mute the scream that echoed from her lips.

Raindrops fell on top of her cheeks and nose. One. Two. Then dozens. There was lightening, then a clap of thunder.

From the quick flash of light, she saw the familiar face of the dead body. The figure was her D.A.D.A. professor.

She screamed again, this time louder and in anguish.

Then she ran. Puddles splashed under her feet. Her tears blurred with the water from the rain.

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Draco frowned at Hermione's sudden change of behavior. He felt the emptiness in his hands and tried to search her face for answers but she avoided his eyes.

"Granger?" he called out to her as he watched her pick up her pace. Confused and curious, he hurried behind her. "Hermione!" He caught up to her by then and grabbed her wrist, pulling her towards him when she stopped in her tracks.

"We have to go," she told him stiffly, trying to pry her hand away from his grip. Her voice was low and pained. It sounded as if there was a quiet battle raging inside her mind. She still avoided his eyes.

He called out her name again. This time, he said it softly, in a smooth sultry voice. He pulled her towards him, turning her around to look into her warm, honey eyes. He sighed and leaned closer to her. "What's wrong?"

She drew away from him and took a few steps back. She winced when her back hit a tree and looked away from his piercing gray eyes. "Nothing," she mumbled.

He came closer yet again and cupped her chin, raising her face to lock her eyes with his. His thumb rubbed her jaw line smoothly. His body pressed against her and she took a quick intake of breath.

"It can't be nothing," he replied smoothly. His hand slipped up her wrist and around her waist. He saw her eyes dart away from his and then chuckled with newfound understanding. "You're afraid," he stated.

Hermione quickly raised her eyes to look at him darkly. "I'm not afraid." She pried his hand away from his face and crossed her arms across her chest. "Least of all, of you, Malfoy." Her voice sounded defiant but he knew better than to believe it.

When he raised his eyebrow and smirked, she sighed. "They're calling us," she explained. "We should get back."

"If it really was important, don't you think Brown or Parvati or even Weasel would've known too and told you?"

"Well they didn't know…maybe it was something that had to be said in a group." But Hermione doubted her own words before she even finished her sentence. If it was that important, they would've known by then.

"They know they have to blow the conch in case of emergencies," Draco reminded her.

Hermione sighed; he was right. "Well we should still go. Its getting dark and…" she felt a raindrop land on her cheek, "…and its going to pour really badly."

But Draco was in no hurry to leave so quickly. His thoughts about Pansy and being rescued were shoved aside. He remembered the feel of the soft wetness of her skin beneath his lips. He saw her body flush, her cheeks were red and she licked her lips. He watched her, his desire to kiss her growing stronger by the second. He wasn't going to let this opportunity pass.

He had a feeling whatever waited for them back at camp would change everything and before it did he was going kiss her and hold her in his arms like there was no tomorrow. There was something about this island that made things like blood and heritage seem trivial. Right now they belonged to this island, where rules and prejudices didn't exist. He didn't care who she was and who her family and friends were. His body wanted her and that was all that mattered to him.

And he knew she wanted him too. Her hesitance only meant that she was fighting against her instincts, too. But on this island, he understood that instinct was more significant than the mind.

Draco smirked at her and swiftly closed the distance between them again. "There's no rush," he purred into her ear. Her hands uncrossed themselves and fell limply at her sides. He drew her body flush against his own. He heard her blood thump loudly throughout her body. Her chest rose and fell in quick succession against his chest.

He loved the feeling of her soft, warm body in the circle of his arms. His hands traveled lightly and gently under her wet shirt. His lips tugged at her earlobe. He knew it was a sensitive part of her body. She titled her head to the side and his lips grazed her neck, teasing her, not quite touching it but leaving goosebumps on her skin.

He was trying so hard to control himself. The logical part in his mind wanted her to tell him to stop, so they could go back to hating each other and being normal. His desire to have her was messing up with his mind. He knew he was acting differently ever since he saved her from drowning and he knew he needed to stop before he lost his identity.

But she didn't ask him to stop. She just whimpered under his feathery light caresses.

And when she whispered his name in encouragement, he lost it.

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Ron paced back and forth by the lagoon. The air was thick with tension. He couldn't draw the image of Hermione and Malfoy bathing together. It was just too much for him.

He clenched his fists and was reaching his boiling point. If he saw them together one more time, he swore he would lose it!

"What's taking them so long?" Parvati mused aloud. Ron sneered at her and she frowned at him. "What's wrong with him?" she whispered to Lavender who just shrugged her shoulders.

"Blow the conch!" Anthony suggested. There were mutterings of approval. Ron simply shrugged and pointed to the conch which lay on the platform where Harry and Malfoy gave out their speeches.

Hannah took it and handed it to her boyfriend who stared at it, wondering how the bloody thing made noise. He tried blowing into it until his face turned pink. Fred and George howled with laughter.

"Why don't you try it?" Anthony hissed, throwing the conch at the twins.

Fred stared at George who shrugged and tried blowing into it. There was a faint sound but nothing like the booming noise that came when Malfoy did it. How were they supposed to use this blasted thing for emergencies when no one knew how to make it work!

Fred grabbed the conch from his brother and tried to blow on it. This time it worked, the sound echoing through the air. He grinned in pleasure and Anthony was muttering envious profanities under his breath.

"Shh!" Seamus cried, suddenly. "I see them coming!"

Everyone stopped bickering and looked in the direction Seamus was pointing. They held their breaths in anticipation.

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One touch of his lips on her flesh and Hermione forgot how to think.

He drew his face back from her and stared darkly into her eyes with such indescribable passion that made Hermione's knees quiver and her legs feel like jelly. His hand on the small of her back pushed her ever closer to his body while his face descended.

He kissed her then, first slow and then fervently. She sighed into his mouth, loving the feel of his lips. She wanted this for so long.

Hermione's hands traveled up his chest and around his neck, securing herself from falling. Her legs felt like jelly and her body was on fire. She moaned into his intoxicating mouth as their tongues met slowly and erotically.

Above, there was lightening, then thunder. Rain poured and drenched them but the water didn't douse their fiery kiss. They were locked inside each other's embrace, not thinking, not wanting to think. His hands traveled along the sides of her body, making her shiver pleasurably. Her clothes became wet from the rain and she should've felt cold but the heat from his body was enough for her. She didn't want to ever let go.

It didn't make sense. Their relationship didn't make sense. Yet she didn't care. Her instincts told her it was okay. Things that felt right didn't necessarily need to add up mathematically. Sometimes things done in impulse were greater than things done logically.

They drew back for air and stared at each other, panting heavily. Hermione closed her eyes and rested her forehead against his chest. She drew in his scent, sandalwood and autumn leaves with a dash of expensive cologne. She drew small circles around his abdomen with her thumb. His transparent shirt just made his skin glow underneath.

She smiled and he held her in his arms, kissing her softly, almost tenderly now. His behavior was uncharacteristic but Hermione wanted to stretch out this moment for as long as she could. It just felt so good, so right!

Suddenly they heard a loud booming noise that made her pry her lips away from his mouth. Her heart pounded furiously in shock.

The conch! They were calling them!

As her breathing steadied itself, Hermione's mind was racing to regulate itself. She noticed how the rain was pouring harder than ever, drenching her body. Now the others were looking for them, calling them. It was something serious. An emergency perhaps?

She remembered that Harry was missing. A deep feeling of dread landed in the pit of her stomach. Something told her something wasn't right.

She pulled away from the circle of Draco's arms and shivered as the cold assaulted her body. "We have to go back," she told him as she hugged herself and rubbed her shoulders.

She noticed that Draco still had his eyes closed. His chest was rising and falling rapidly and she knew that he was trying to calm himself. She blushed at the thought that her kiss caused that sort of effect on him.

He opened his eyes slowly and nodded. His eyes were worried and serious. She knew he felt the tension in the air, too. Something wasn't right.

He wordlessly took her hand and they rushed back to camp, running. Puddles splashed under their feet.

She didn't know what to expect when they got back. She just prayed it wasn't anything bad.

Her heart felt heavy with anxiety.

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There was a figure in the dark, lying on the ground. Everyone hesitantly circled around it but most people were too scared to look closely. It was raining harshly. Darkness clouded the sky and every now and then there would be a loud clap of thunder that made everyone startle with fright.

Draco's jaw was set tightly and he clenched his fists, wondering what was wrong. He remembered what Parvati and Brown had said. How everyone was looking for them, especially him.

He wondered who the figure was.

There were gasps when the figure became more visible due to the lightening. There were screams.

Hermione drew away from Draco's arms and walked towards the body lying on the ground. Draco followed her, hesitantly. His wand was raised and lit and he clenched it so tightly, his nails were digging into his flesh. He drew in a deep breath. When he reached the body, he bent to look more closely.

He shivered when he saw the blood covered face. He noticed Hermione screaming and falling to her knees. His own stomach clenched and his knees quivered. He felt sick.

"It's the Professor," Blaise said. His voice was grave. "We thought we heard someone screaming in the jungle. Millicent and I went hunting to see who it was."

"It sounded like Pansy," Millicent said. Draco shuddered. "We told everyone that we probably found someone and asked for everyone to gather around."

"When we got there, we found the Professor lying there on the ground. There was blood everywhere and it was raining hard too," Blaise added solemnly.

"Where's Pansy?" Draco asked quietly. He turned the light of his wand off. He couldn't bear to see their Professor's bloody face.

"We don't know. We found what seemed to be an extra pair of footprints. We suspect it's hers but when we got there we didn't see her. The rain washed away most of her trail so we couldn't follow it."

Lightening flashed again to illuminate the body. There were a few gasps. Some people drew back, terrified. There were sobs and heavy breathing. Tears and rain mingled on people's cheeks. Despair rained down on them and they all felt incredibly doomed and forsaken.

The Professor was dead. There was blood all over her. How did she die? Was it due to the crash? But she was in the middle of the island…how would she crash and land there? Did someone – he gulped at the thought – kill her?

Harry and Pansy were still missing.

What if their fate was similar?

Draco shuddered at the thought.

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