Green and Silver

(Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or its characters.)

[This oneshot starts in the middle of their 4th year.]

~*~*~X~*~*~

Hogwarts Heartaches

~*~*~X~*~*~

Hermione Granger, age 14

Viktor Krum was staring at Hermione again.

Hermione, who was at first embarrassed, secretly admitted to herself she sort of liked the attention, so long as it came from Viktor. Contrary to how conceited or rude she had previously assumed he was, she had only heard good things about Viktor. He was genuine, kind, funny, intelligent, clever. And whenever he stared at Hermione, her stomach did flips.

Viktor and Hermione saw each other at the library so often they had taken to studying together. Well, Viktor wasn't studying so much as staring at Hermione. She did find that a bit annoying, because it made her self conscious and she couldn't focus on her work. Sitting with Viktor also earned Hermione jealous glares from countless girls she passed by throughout the school, Hogwarts, Durmstrang, and Beauxbatons girls alike. She didn't really like all the extra attention she was getting, but she had taken a liking to Viktor, so she was willing to deal with it.

On the occasions where they did have full on conversations, Viktor was always asking her questions, firing them one after another, committed to getting to know her better. Viktor, normally taciturn with others, spoke very freely with Hermione. She liked it; it made her feel special. Different. Which she was.

One day, though, she realized she didn't know anything about him.

So, one day, when Victor asked her a question about her life back in Wiltshire, where Granger Mansion was, Hermione playfully stopped him mid-sentence to ask him a question instead.

"No, no more twenty questions for me," Hermione said, turning the corner of her mouth up into a smile. "Now it's your turn." She purposefully, briefly, broke eye contact with him ever so often, so as to avoid getting too lost in his gaze, and therefore avoiding her brain drawing a blank. "How was life back home, in Bulgaria? I know you're...famous and all, but I still really don't know much about you."

Viktor smiled. Hermione briefly felt her heart beat faster when he did. "Vell, I grew up in a small village by the mountains. It vas, eh, quiet, peaceful. All you could see for miles vas mountains, trees. Just nature. My family all lived there."

Hermione tried to imagine a place like this in her head. "It sounds beautiful. Do you have any brothers or sisters?"

"No, I am an only child."

"Did you ever get lonely growing up?"

"Yes, sometimes. I did not know many others my age."

"Surely you've been traveling a lot, for Quidditch. What're your favorite places you've seen?"

"Greece, by the ocean. I love the Mediterranean. The veather, the food, the land. Iceland, the most beautiful land I have ever seen. When Durmstrang lets us leave for the veekend, I like to go there. And...Brazil, in the forest by the Amazon River. The culture is, eh, unlike anything I have ever experienced," he finished, in awe. His eyes gleamed, as if thinking of a distant memory.

Hermione had never given much thought to traveling before. But Hermione was curious, always eager to learn and see what she has never experienced or done. Hermione realized she would jump at the opportunity to leave Britain and go somewhere new.

"If you weren't a Quidditch player," Hermione started, "What would you want as a career instead?"

Viktor hesitated for a second, taken by surprise. "I…don't know," he said, contemplative. "I have never thought about it before. I vill get back to you, Hermy-own-ninny." Hermione smiled when he pronounced her name wrong. At first it annoyed her; now she didn't mind so much.

As much as Hermione could sit and listen to him talk for hours, she had to get going. She had History of Magic in about twenty minutes. She bade goodbye to Viktor, packed up her things, and strode out the library, unable to keep her grin off her face.

In class, she whispered the whole conversation between her and Viktor to Pansy, who was eating it up excitedly. Normally she didn't like to share her personal life with other people, but she was dying to tell someone about Viktor, and the rest of Hermione's friends were boys; only Pansy would understand her giddiness. So she had taken to updating Pansy on the progress between Hermione and Viktor quite regularly.

"I can't believe it. Viktor Krum," Pansy giggled as she and Hermione strode out of class. "I'm guessing you'll be going to the Yule Ball?"

Hermione grimaced briefly. "He hasn't asked me," Hermione said. "I suppose it's too much to hope for that, but I haven't seen him spend quite as much time, or any time really, with any other girls at all." Hermione shrugged. "I don't want to expect it, so I won't get my hopes up, but…" Hermione trailed off in longing. "We'll see."

Pansy nodded in agreement. They'd reached the Great Hall; it was time for lunch. Hermione scanned the crowds of students for an empty spot. Finding one, she veered to the left and sat down. Pansy sat next to her.

Well," Hermione said with a smile creeping onto her face as she turned to Pansy, "What about you? Who do you want to take to the ball?" Hermione felt a pang of sympathy for her sometimes-friend; when Hermione looked at Pansy, it was as if Hermione felt Pansy's state of frustration and panic.

Pansy groaned. "I've no idea, not at all! Help," she whined.

"I know! What about Marcus Flint?" Hermione suggested.

Pansy spat out the water she was drinking, taken aback.

"Oh, don't be so dramatic," Hermione snorted, rolling her eyes. "What? He's older, Pureblood I think, handsome, and well liked."

Pansy's face scrunched up. "Older? He's in his eighth year, the idiot failed out of his seventh," Pansy said. "I want an older boy, not one that was held back!"

Hermione scoffed. "Tracey Davis?"

"Halfblood, and ugly," Pansy scoffed back.

"What about my family friend, from Durmstrang? Kole?" Hermione had almost forgotten about him. "Sixth year, sexy as hell, half vampire, and-"

"I don't want a date who can eat me, you prat." Pansy spat.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Adrian?"

"Adrian who?"

"Adrian Pucey," Hermione specified. "Fifth year, good looking. I used to hang out with him. I could set you two up." Hermione grinned mischievously.

"Oh, he's taken," Pansy pouted. "Some Durmstrang girl."

Their conversation was interrupted when Theo and Blaise approached the table and sat opposite Hermione and Pansy.

After greeting each other, Pansy grilled the two boys, irritated. "Well, what about you two? Who are you taking to the ball?" Before giving them a chance to answer, Pansy started again. "I've got no one at all, at this point I might as well just go with Goyle, or worse, Crabbe." Hopeless, she buried her head in her hands, whimpering, earning a snicker from Theo.

"I haven't got one either," Blaise shrugged.

"Oh, Blaise, you're so choosy. You're good looking, smart, rich, and Pureblood," Pansy snapped. "You can have anyone in this entire school, so I don't want to hear it!"

Blaise snickered as plates of food appeared in front of them. Everyone dug in.

"I've got one, so I'm good," Theo said, carefree with a large bite from a chicken wing in his mouth.

There was a pause. "Say, where's Draco?" Hermione wondered, looking around her.

"Farther down the table with Crabbe and Goyle," Blaise replied. There was a moment of silence; calling Draco over to sit with them meant Crabbe and Goyle would follow. And no one wanted that.

"Pansy," Theo said. "Why don't you and Draco go together?"

Hermione bristled, though she didn't know why at first. She ate a spoonful of her clam chowder soup, and peered at Pansy out of the corner of her eye, awaiting her response.

Pansy's lips curled into a crooked grin. "You're right...I didn't even think about it," Pansy said. "He's quite good looking, I guess I assumed he would already have a date."

"I'm sure he does have a date already, you know him," Hermione attempted to dismiss her.

"Well, it can't hurt to find out," Pansy replied.

"I'll ask him if he does," Hermione said.

"Oh, thank you, Hermione!" Pansy said, excited now.

Hermione's brows furrowed for a quick moment. Yes, she said she'd ask, but she wasn't sure if she meant to ask for Pansy.

Hermione would be lying if she said she had never thought about Draco as more than a friend before. He was decent looking; a talented wizard; one of the Twenty-Nine sacred Pureblood families, like her own; clever, confident and sure of himself; and of course, he knew Hermione better than anyone else. What wasn't there to like?

But then she thought of Viktor. Mature, ambitious, genuine. Not to mention he was a professional athlete. He was beautiful, and built like a god. He was from another country, a land she'd never seen. He was curious and eager to learn, he valued his family, and was ridiculously easy to be around. Everything Viktor did, he did with full dedication and effort. He was ambitious, persistent, and a strong leader. Viktor was everything Hermione knew about herself, everything she was still discovering about herself, and everything she'd never experienced before, all in one.

He'd make a fine Slytherin, Hermione thought absently.

After finishing lunch, Hermione and her friends regrouped in the Slytherin Dungeons. They sat in the outermost alcove jutting out into the Black Lake like they always did, and Hermione, Pansy and Blaise started working on homework while Theo and Draco, who had met up with them after lunch, were deep in debate on whether the Chudley Cannons or the Falmouth Falcons were going to win the match this weekend.

Hermione had had enough of Draco's loud arguing. In a flash of irritation, she whirled in his direction to shush him when all of a sudden, she was no longer in the Common Room. Now, before her, was darkness. She examined her new surroundings and saw she was in a closet of some sort; with the door slightly ajar.

She was about to try and push the door open when she started hearing voices from outside the closet.

First she heard a man's voice. "We cannot put our family any more at risk, I don't know why-"

"If we don't do this, we are putting our family at risk," the woman's voice interrupted. "Look at the Grangers, the Averys. Even Severus. Ever loyal, ever safe. We would do well to follow their example."

"He'll be back, you know it. That means our son will be a Death Eater, when the time comes."

The woman was silent for a moment. Hermione knew the voices on the other side of the door. They were the voices of Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy. But Hermione couldn't explain why she was hidden in a closet in what seemed to be Malfoy Manor. The only explanation she could think of was that she was somehow seeing something of Draco's: a dream, or a memory. But how was that possible?

She turned her attention back to the voices, straining to hear, but soon her surroundings dissolved, and now she was back at Hogwarts, in the Common Room. Theo, Pansy, and Blaise were all staring at her. Draco gasped, looking completely taken aback.

"Merlin's beard, Hermione, what the bloody hell was that?" Draco demanded.

Hermione cleared her throat.

"Hermione," Theo said, "Are you alright?"

Hermione took a deep breath. "I just saw-" she stopped herself. "Er, nevermind. I've got to go," she said hastily, gathering her things into her bag. She stood up, and when Draco looked at her questioningly she squeezed his arm reassuringly before she left her friends.

Hermione had been seeing more and more of these strange visions, but she could not figure out what they were, what they meant. And whenever Hermione didn't have an answer to something, there was one place she could always go to for answers. She had to go to the library.

~*~*~X~*~*~

Blaise Zabini, age 14

Blaise couldn't help but notice how Hermione's hand lingered for a second longer than necessary on Draco's arm before she hastily got up from her chair and left the Common Room.

Blaise had noticed, several times, little interactions between Hermione and Draco, interactions that potentially suggested something else was going on between them. Whether either of them were aware of it, Blaise wasn't sure.

Blaise wondered what it was exactly that Hermione saw in Draco. Draco Malfoy was not even close to a man, not like Blaise was, not like Theo was. Sure Draco was talented, but there were other things to consider when looking at someone that way, Blaise thought. Blaise felt repulsion and slight disappointment at Hermione's taste in the opposite gender.

As for Hermione's sudden leave, Blaise didn't know what happened either. She was mid-sentence when she abruptly stopped talking, and her eyes widened, staring at something beyond her surroundings. She almost seemed like she was in a trance of some sort.

Blaise knew something was up.

Blaise and Theo had only just recently started getting closer to Hermione, and he knew Hermione saw Theo as a confidant. Blaise wasn't sure if he considered Hermione as a friend, but he knew Theo did. And Theo was one of the few people in this school Blaise liked. He trusted Theo's judgement, and if Theo saw Hermione as a friend, someone he could trust, then she must be alright.

When Blaise glanced in Theo's direction, he saw Theo's curious yet concerned stare after Hermione.

Blaise cleared his throat. "Theo, did you still want to head to the library to finish our papers?"

Theo looked confused for a split second, for they had never made plans to go to the library, but quickly caught on. "Yeah, I've got loads of homework to do. Anyone else want to come?"

Draco and Pansy groaned "no." So Blaise and Theo packed their things, and followed Hermione out of the Common Room.

Blaise and Theo walked fast, in effort to catch up to Hermione. They both knew that Hermione's favorite place was the library, so they agreed to check there first. Sure enough, in the back rows near the Restricted Section, they saw the top of Hermione's head buried in a thick, old book.

Theo cleared his throat. Hermione looked up, her brows furrowed in surprise.

"Theo? Blaise? You've got homework or something?"

"Oh, come off it, Hermione," Theo said. "What was that, back there? In the Common Room?"

"I don't know what you mean."

"Oh, shut it," Theo responded. "We're not stupid. You...saw something. And whatever you saw, it looked like Draco saw it too. Something happened."

Hermione bit her lip and her gaze flickered nervously between the two boys. Finally, she took a deep breath and said, "I've been having...visions. Or...dreams. They're...always random, like once I saw my mother, or rather, I was my mother, and just now I...I was Draco. I was at Malfoy Manor."

Blaise's eyes narrowed in thought. Visions? Where she was someone else? Blaise had an idea of what could be happening, but yet he still couldn't quite believe it. He needed to know more.

Theo sat in thought. "I don't know what this could be. Can you describe your dreams in more detail?"

Hermione led the boys to a small table at the end of the row of books. "Yes," she said, sitting down. "Well...first...I was in a strange place, and there was a...man with me. When I looked down at my arms, well, I had a Dark Mark on my left arm. It was my mother's arm, but it's like I...was my mother. And the man, we had some sort of connection, through our minds."

"A connection through your minds?" Theo said. "Have you had other dreams like this?"

"Yes. And...in the Dungeons, just now, well, I saw an argument between Draco's parents. I was hiding in their house, listening. I...I've had...other dreams like these, but never often enough to become suspicious of them. But lately..."

"How old were you when you were in Draco's house?" Theo asked, curious.

"I dunno, young," Hermione said.

"Younger than Draco is now?" Theo pressed.

"Yes."

"They could be memories, then," Blaise said immediately, catching on to Theo's thoughts. What else could they be?

"You should ask Draco about this, ask him if that dream has actually happened to him," Theo said.

"No!" Hermione said a little too loudly for the library. After earning several glares from nearby students, Hermione took a deep breath and lowered her voice. "You can't. Both of you, you can't tell anyone. Not until I know what's happening to me."

Blaise leaned back with his chair, his hands up innocently. "You won't hear a thing from me."

Theo nodded in agreement.

Blaise had a few ideas on what could be going on, but he decided to keep his theories to himself, at least for now. He didn't want to tell Hermione one thing and then turn out to be wrong. Might as well wait until you're sure, Blaise thought.

Blaise wasn't sure at first why Hermione had decided to confide in Blaise about something like this. He knew Hermione and Theo talked about everything, but Blaise had made a habit of distancing himself from Draco's friends. From everyone, really.

Now that he thought about it, however, he and Hermione had been spending more and more time together lately. He, Hermione, and Theo. They studied together, they ate together, they hung out together on their free time, and they talked freely. More freely than when the rest of Hermione and Theo's friends were around. And now they were confiding in each other, coming to each other for their problems. It was as if Hermione genuinely saw him as one of her friends, someone she could trust.

As much as Blaise disliked talking to other people, he decided Hermione was alright. The three of them got on well and Blaise found he actually respected her, saw her as somewhat of an equal.

One thing he didn't like about Hermione, however, was her family. She was born into a family that was heavily associated with the Dark Arts, and the Dark Lord. Even though the Dark Lord was gone, his influence was still around, in families like Hermione's. And Theo's. This was why he was always indifferent or dismissive of Hermione Granger until now. He had yet to figure out if she agreed with her family's notorious faith in the Dark Lord.

Theo was another story. Blaise usually looked past Theo's beliefs, mainly because he was one of the only people Blaise liked at Hogwarts.

Blaise didn't really like choosing sides; he'd rather stay out of it. He did look down on anyone who wasn't a Pureblood wizard, but he wasn't about to go torturing and killing people over it. Extremists like the Dark Lord and his followers were exactly the kind of people Blaise didn't have patience for.

He wondered if it was a wise idea to surround himself with people who were so greatly associated with the Dark Lord. What were the odds that the two people he could actually tolerate at this damned school would have been destined to be Death Eaters, had the Dark Lord still been alive?

Good thing he isn't alive, Blaise thought. Otherwise, he would be completely alone. Sure, he didn't mind being alone, but when one spends his whole life holding people at an arm's distance from him for their differences, when one does not see others as his equals so easily, one will eventually become lonely. Blaise so often buried his longings for someone, anyone, to get close to him that now he welcomed his loneliness, that he was becoming accustomed to it. This was why he tolerated Draco and his friends a little more than he should, and this was why he allowed himself to become friendly with Theo and Hermione despite their families' Death Eater statuses. However he saw fit to judge them, it seemed they were his friends.

Well, some of them. Definitely not Crabbe and Goyle. Draco was a maybe. Or, sometimes. As for Pansy, Hermione and Theo? Those three, he could actually tolerate most of the time. Almost always, now that he thought about it. Pansy was too girly for him sometimes, and Hermione and Theo both came from Death Eater families. But those three people were probably the closest things to friends Blaise had at Hogwarts.

Blaise looked out the window. It was almost sunset. Despite Blaise's revelation that he actually somewhat liked his companions, he grew tired of them. He wanted some time to himself. He was alone so much, he liked it now. He gathered his belongings and announced to his friends he was going outside for some fresh air.

Blaise was looking forward to his alone time; that was, until Hermione's head popped up and said she was going to come along.

Sighing, he proceeded with Hermione toward the back of the castle, where the Whomping Willow stood nearby and the gamekeeper's hut stood farther down the hill. There, they saw Draco, Crabbe and Goyle, tormenting a group of Ravenclaw fourth years.

Blaise saw Hermione sigh and roll her eyes as they came closer to the other students.

Two of the Ravenclaw students' faces paled at the appearance of two more Slytherins; Draco, seeing their reactions, turned around to see Blaise and Hermione.

"Ah, come to see the show!" Draco taunted loudly.

Blaise sighed. He and Hermione approached the group.

Hermione raised her brow, unimpressed. "Right, what's going on then?"

"These prats decided to get into it in the corridor," Goyle spat. "I had the brilliant idea to have a little duel. So here we are." Goyle waved his arms before him, gesturing to their current location.

Draco took out his wand, his face taking on a mischievous expression. Crabbe and Goyle took out their wands as well, imitating their blond friend perfectly.

Draco said loudly, "Petrificus Totalus!"

When Draco waved his wand; however, the oldest Ravenclaw student stepped forward and beat Draco to it. "Protego!" he exclaimed.

When the white light of Draco's spell zoomed forward, it bounced off some invisible shield and hit Crabbe straight in the chest. Immobilized, Crabbe's body fell like a brick to the ground.

Whimpering, Draco looked toward the Ravenclaws. Seeming to reconsider, he looked toward Goyle and spat out his name. "Let's go!" he said.

"Wh-What, and leave Crabbe!" Goyle called after him.

Draco didn't turn back. Goyle groaned and followed Draco back toward the castle.

Blaise and Hermione shared a pointed look as the Ravenclaws left; they were triumphantly high-fiving each other.

Blaise watched as Hermione stepped forward and uttered the correct counter-curse, pointing her wand at Crabbe. Sure enough, Crabbe's body slowly came back to life.

Crabbe sat up when he was able to, angry. "That wanker! He left me! Him and Greg!"

"Some friends you've got," Hermione muttered. She gave Blaise a look, which Blaise translated to her telling him to help Crabbe up. He did so.

Hermione's brows furrowed. "Why do you let him treat you that way? I'd hex him in a split second if he did something like that to me."

Crabbe hesitated. Blaise was surprised, for once, at Hermione's words. Hermione liked Draco. Or Blaise thought she did. And Blaise was almost never wrong. He was incredibly perceptive and observant, and caught all the signs Hermione unknowingly gave that proved she did have feelings for Draco.

Crabbe cleared his throat. "If I try to stand up to him, he'd get on me, curse me or something," he said.

Hermione raised her brows. "Right, then," she said, dropping the subject. The three of them walked back to the castle in silence, all deep in thought the whole way.

~*~*~X~*~*~

Hermione Granger, age 14

Draco had been bothering the Gryffindors all Herbology class. When Hermione was younger, she might have joined in, but now she was just tired. She had no idea how Draco so often had the energy and the pleasure of tormenting other students, especially Harry Potter and his dimwit friend.

Hermione had always thought her feelings toward Draco in the last couple months were justified. He was witty, clever, handsome, and a talented wizard. However what she saw in front of her earlier today forced her to see something about Draco she could not believe she missed before; he was a coward. Draco did not know how to be brave, nor did he desire to, and that made him weak. It made him less of a man. Draco always ran away from things, always hid in his friends' shadows. Sometimes even Crabbe and Goyle had more balls than Draco. Goyle wanted to stay and help Crabbe, but Draco fled with no hesitation.

Suddenly Hermione felt ashamed for ever having been interested in Draco in the first place. How could she be with someone like that? You are only as good as the people you surround yourself with, her mother always used to say.

Hermione sighed and headed to the library once again to work on her homework. She spent almost all her free time at the library this month. She was swamped with work, and what with all the Triwizard Tournament stuff going on she had little to no time to do her homework anymore.

She was in the middle of her Arithmancy paper when someone took a seat in the previously empty chair before her.

She was not surprised when she looked up. It was Viktor.

"Good afternoon, H-Hermy-own-ninny," he said slowly. She smiled. "Vould you like to take a valk? Are you done with your vork?"

"Er," Hermione hesitated, "Sure," even though her paper was still incomplete. She would finish it later, she decided.

Viktor smiled and stood up, gathering her books for her. She took them and put them in her bag. Together they walked out of the library.

Hermione wondered where they were going. Viktor led them through the main courtyard and outside the main gates.

"Where are we going?" Hermione said, trying to cover her excitement.

"You'll see," Viktor smiled. "I hope you have been having a good day so far."

"I have, thank you," Hermione said. "I got a letter from my brother this morning. He sends his regards...and wants your autograph."

Viktor gave a laugh. "You say he is in Bulgaria?"

"Yes, he's there, I'm so jealous," Hermione said longingly. "I've heard it's incredibly beautiful."

"Ah, yes, it is," he replied enthusiastically.

They were headed down the hill now, toward the Black Lake. Hermione had always loved the Black Lake; she had a certain fondness for nature in general. How Viktor seemed to know this, Hermione was not sure.

Hermione turned to him to ask him a question when suddenly, in his hand he held a single flower, a white rose. Hermione found the gesture extremely romantic, especially since he was always wearing black all the time.

"Hermione," he said, barely but finally pronouncing her name right. She knew what he as going to ask her. Finally, she thought. She couldn't believe Viktor Krum, world famous Quidditch player, was going to ask her to the ball. She was ecstatic, but as always, she hid it well.

Lately, though, she'd gotten to know Viktor far beyond his public reputation. At first, she wasn't sure she liked him, as Viktor showed his interest in her physically, almost primal, while Hermione knew her way better with words. But after getting to know him better, she realized there was a connection between them, and her liking to him went deeper than wanting to date a famous celebrity. Liking Viktor taught Hermione that appearances weren't always what they seemed.

And if someone could teach Hermione something like that, he must be worth keeping around.

~*~*~X~*~*~

Blaise Zabini, Age 14

Blaise remained seated at his bed when Draco came into the dormitory. His blond friend had his green and silver Slytherin tie tied around his head and he tossed his books on the floor by his set of drawers, looking quite triumphant.

"I've just asked Pansy to the ball," he smirked.

"And she said yes?" Crabbe asked.

"What d'you think?" Draco smiled. "I knew she was going to say yes."

Theo looked up, raising his eyebrows. "Really?" he said doubtfully. "She could probably do a little better."

Not by much, Blaise thought to himself.

Draco threw his jacket at Theo's face and forced a laugh. Blaise scoffed softly. Draco knew Theo was right, but Draco wouldn't dare pick an argument with Theo, not like he would Crabbe and Goyle. He saw Theo as an equal, if not better than him.

"Well, I was going to ask Hermione, but Pansy told me she's already got a date," Draco added, his tone suddenly sour.

"Yeah, right," Goyle said, "Hermione was probably trying to make you jealous."

"I doubt she could get a date, I was sure one of us was going to have to take her," Draco said, trying to dismiss it.

With how observant he was, Blaise noticed Hermione with Viktor Krum not too soon after the first task was announced. Whenever Blaise would study in the library to get away from the overflow of students now living in their school, he would see Krum staring at Hermione across the library tables, trying to work up the courage to start a conversation with her. When Viktor had his fangirls squealing after him in the halls, he would stare not at them, but at Hermione as he walked by. And a few times, Blaise caught Hermione staring back. On the trip to Hogsmeade last week, Hermione had brought Krum with her.

Draco was quiet, all too quiet; he simply gathered his towel and soap and left to take a shower.

Theo shrugged. "She's pretty, but I think I see her too much as a friend. I don't mind keeping it that way."

Goyle nodded. "What d'you think, Blaise?"

Blaise shrugged too. "She's alright, I guess."

"Well, who're you bringing, then?"

"What?"

"To the Yule Ball."

Blaise thought for a moment. There was no one he wanted to take, really. He hadn't really thought about it before now.

"I dunno, maybe I'll see if Hermione really does have a date," he finally responded. Chances were, she already did, but Blaise didn't really feel like asking anyone else. At least with Hermione, they could go as friends.

~*~*~X~*~*~

At breakfast the next day, Blaise ate with Theo and Hermione. The meal was mostly silent today, though none of them really cared. It was a comfortable silence, one among friends. Blaise was ready to ask Hermione to the ball. It was now or never. Theo was only interested in the newspaper and the plate of donuts in front of him, thankfully. Blaise cleared his throat to speak, though he was not sure how to start the conversation.

"Draco's got a date for the Yule Ball," he said before he could stop himself.

Hermione did not look up from her newspaper, but her brows furrowed. "Since when do you care about what Draco's up to?"

"I don't, really," Blaise said, shrugging in an effort to look nonchalant. "Just thought he wouldn't be able to pick up a date is all."

Hermione smirked, looking up at him. "I was surprised, as well, until I found out it was Pansy he was taking."

This statement earned a small laugh out of Theo. Blaise scoffed. They both knew Hermione didn't care for Pansy sometimes.

Blaise suddenly decided it was alright to throw Draco under the bus for his benefit. "He was going to ask you, you know."

At this, Hermione raised her eyebrows. "Was he, now?"

"He said Pansy told him you were already going with someone else."

"Well, I would have probably said no to him anyway," Hermione said, taking a bite of her pancake.

Blaise was satisfied with her response. "So you've got a date, then?" he asked.

"Yes, in fact, I do," Hermione said matter-of-factly. Blaise decided it was time to drop the subject. Out of the corner of his eye, Blaise saw Theo's slight shake of his head in pity.

Hermione looked up after Blaise was silent. "Do you have a date?"

Blaise shook his head.

"Were you going to ask me? Just now?"

"I don't have anyone I want to go with, really," Blaise said.

Hermione nodded sympathetically, but something behind Blaise caught her stare.

Hermione quickly turned back to Blaise. "Did you see that? Those girls were looking at you."

Blaise followed Hermione's gaze to a group of Durmstrang girls that had just passed by them. Blaise didn't even notice.

"Oh," he said.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "You boys can be so oblivious," she said. "Look, I know one of them. See the short one with the big wavy hair? That's Nadine Shiraz."

Blaise looked at the shortest girl in the group, a little thing with dark, thick hair with waves as soft as those of a calm ocean. She had an amazing figure with high cheekbones and light-colored eyes. She looked exotic, maybe of Middle Eastern descent, and she was one of the only girls in the group not staring at Blaise.

"I-"

Hermione cut Blaise off. "Yes, I know you're choosy, but what's not to like?"

Blaise gave up. It wasn't like he could complain, though; as Hermione said, Blaise was very selective when it came to girls, along with everything else, but Nadine Shiraz was something exquisite, a beauty Blaise had never seen before. He decided he would wait and see what Hermione was going to do about her.

Since it was a crowded breakfast that morning, there were barely any empty spots left. Out of the corner of his eye Blaise saw Harry Potter and his friends walk down the aisle. The benches next to Blaise and his friends were one of the only empty spaces. They sat down, and they looked over at Blaise, Hermione and Theo for a second before turning away and started opening the mail that had just landed in front of them.

That was another reason Blaise didn't mind being with Hermione and Theo. Neither of them felt any need to bully other students; Hermione used to bully the Potter boy years ago with Draco, but she'd seemed to grow out of it. Blaise, Hermione and Theo all knew they were better than the other Houses; the difference was they didn't feel the need to shove it in other people's faces every chance they got. If Draco had been sitting there at that moment, Potter most likely wouldn't have sat anywhere within hearing distance of Blaise and his friends. Whenever Draco wasn't around, the two groups usually just acknowledged each other and left each other alone, especially after the end of last year when Hermione and Theo time traveled with the Potter boy.

"Whoa, no way, Hermione," Theo laughed and pointed to his newspaper. The article he was reading, written by none other than Rita Skeeter, of course, was titled, "Hogwarts Heartaches," and there was a small bit written on Hermione.

"What!" Hermione grabbed the newspaper and read aloud. "Miss Granger, a pompous and ambitious girl, daughter of the Ministry for Magic's Cesaire Granger, seems to be developing a taste for famous wizards. She has been seen on multiple occasions with Mr. Blaise Zabini, son of famously beautiful and wealthy witch Ravenna Zabini, though her latest prey, sources report, is none other than the Bulgarian bonbon Viktor Krum. Since the arrival at Hogwarts of Viktor Krum, Bulgarian Seeker and hero of the last Quidditch World Cup, Miss Granger has been toying with both boys' affections. Krum is openly smitten with the devious Miss Granger, has already invited her to stay with him in Bulgaria over the summer holidays and insists that he has 'never felt this way about any other girl.' No doubt Miss Granger will take advantage of holding the affections of an international star."

Hermione slammed the paper on the table. "You're joking," she fumed. "If she writes one more lie about me I'm going to-"

"The hag writes lies about everyone, Hermione," Blaise interrupted. "Who cares?"

"Easy to say when you're not the one being written about," Hermione remarked. She sighed. "I hope Viktor doesn't see this."

Ah. So it was Viktor who she was now seeing. Blaise's hunch had been correct.

"Actually, Hermione, I am mentioned in this article. You're toying with my affections," Blaise snickered.

Hermione slapped her newspaper against his arm, smirking.

"Even if Viktor does see this, he seems nice enough. If you just explain what a horrible bleeding reporter this hag is, he'll understand," said Theo.

"Besides," Pansy said, as if appearing out of nowhere, "Is she really even lying?" Pansy sat down beside Hermione. "You are seeing Viktor, after all."

Theo smirked. "So is it true, 'Mione? You're staying with your Bulgarian bonbon over summer?" He and Blaise snickered, earning a death glare from Hermione.

"He may have asked me," Hermione admitted, "But I haven't given him an answer yet."

"What are you lot on about?" Draco walked over, to Blaise's slight dismay, and sat down and shoved Weasley, who was sitting by them with Potter, practically off the bench and onto the ground.

"Shove off, Malfoy!" Fay, a Gryffindor girl, spat.

"Let's just go," Potter muttered. He and his friends got up, gathered their things, and left.

Harry Potter was a rather mundane boy; he wasn't particularly dim witted, like some of Draco's friends, but he was moderately intelligent. Potter was also a fair Quidditch player-not exceptional, but not terrible. All in all, Harry Potter was, disappointingly, an average, half-blooded wizard, and Blaise didn't hate him for that. What Blaise looked down on Potter for was that he did not at all live up to all the legends and tales that were told about him. He was one the most average wizards Blaise had ever seen.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Do you always have to make a scene, Draco?"

"What? There was no room to sit down." Draco saw the newspaper Theo was reading and grabbed it out of his hands. "'Dumbledore's Giant Mistake,'" he read. "Rita Skeeter interviewed me for this, look!" He cleared his throat and read:

Albus Dumbledore, eccentric Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, has never been afraid to make controversial staff appointments, writes Rita Skeeter, Special Correspondent. In September of this year, he hired Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody, the notoriously jinx-happy ex-Auror, to teach Defence Against the Dark Arts, a decision that caused many raised eyebrows at the Ministry of Magic, given Moody's well-known habit of attacking anybody who makes a sudden movement in his presence. Mad-Eye Moody, however, looks responsible and kindly when set beside the part-human Dumbledore employs to teach Care of Magical Creatures. Rubeus Hagrid, who admits to being expelled from Hogwarts in his third year, has enjoyed the position of Gamekeeper at the school ever since, a job secured for him by Dumbledore. Last year, however, Hagrid used his mysterious influence over the headmaster to secure the additional post of Care of Magical Creatures teacher, over the heads of many better-qualified candidates. An alarming large and ferocious-looking man, Hagrid has been using his new-found authority to terrify the students in his care with a succession of horrific creatures. While Dumbledore turns a blind eye, Hagrid has maimed several pupils during a series of lessons that many admit to being "very frightening." "I was attacked by a hippogriff, and my friend Vincent Crabbe got a bad bite off a flobberworm," says Draco Malfoy, a fourth year student. "We all hate Hagrid, but we're just too scared to say anything." Hagrid has no intention of ceasing his campaign of intimidation, however.

Blaise stopped Draco from reading any more. "We get it, Draco."

Hermione looked up and read the underside of the newspaper. "Hang on," she said, grabbing the paper and turning it over. "This one's about Barty Crouch."

Everyone was silent. They all knew he used to be a Death Eater.

Even Theo was paying attention now. "Go on, read it," he pushed.

Hermione looked at the article, muttering, "...hasn't been seen in public for months...house appears deserted...St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries declines comment," Hermione glanced up at Theo for a second, then looked back down, "...Ministry refuses to confirm rumours of critical illness…" She looked up. "I didn't even know he hasn't been seen for this long."

Theo looked at Hermione. "D'you think your brother would know more about this?"

Hermione sat in thought. There was a chance Alexei knew something. Somehow he always knew what was going on. He had his connections, Hermione guessed. She looked at Theo. "I can ask. It won't hurt."

"Yeah, do that," Theo said. "I know Crouch was a Death Eater, along with his son. It's got to have something to do with You-Know-Who."

"Just say the damn name," Blaise cut in.

"Alright, alright, look, I'll ask my brother," Hermione said. "He'll know something."

"Hope so," Theo said.

~*~*~X~*~*~

Hermione Granger, Age 14

The corridor in front of Hermione was dark, cold and unfamiliar. It seemed like some sort of castle, like Hogwarts, but it was...different. The architecture, the layout. Even the temperature. Hogwarts was known to get cold sometimes, especially during winter, but these halls were freezing. Hermione gazed up and down the spotless walls, until she came across a small, precise carving on the wall to her left. It was a triangle, cut in half down the middle, with a circle in the middle.

Hermione blinked, and suddenly she was in the Hogwarts library, sitting across from Viktor. Her fists were clenched under the table.

She remembered she'd been in the library this whole time. Viktor had just asked her to be his girlfriend, and she had said yes. He had also told her that when he asked Draco if he was dating Hermione, Draco had implied that he was in fact dating her. Hermione blanched at that, and quickly went to explain that while she had thought about it once or twice, she would never pursue anything more than friendship with Draco.

She would confront Draco about his lie later. Right now, though, Hermione couldn't have been more confused. She had another vision, and saw a symbol she had never seen before.

Viktor looked taken aback. "Her-Hermione, vhat...vhat was that?"

Hermione shook her head slightly in silence. Her mouth opened, but no words came out.

"Hermione," Viktor said again, lower and more intensely. "Why didn't you tell me?"

Now Hermione was confused. "Tell you what?"

"About your…" Realization dawns on his face. "Er, you should talk to your professor. The one who runs your House."

Hermione's face scrunched up. "What? Snape? Tell him what?"

"About what just happened. I've seen it-well, I haven't seen it before, but I know someone else who has." Before Hermione could question him once more, he explained. "The flashes. Of other people's memories, their thoughts."

"Thoughts?" Hermione said.

Viktor glanced around, as if he'd lost track of time. "Promise me you vill talk to him, Snape," he said. "I must meet with my headmaster. When I see you later, you vill tell me what he says." He kissed her on the cheek before swiftly getting up and leaving, his think winter cape flowing behind him.

Part of Hermione was relieved. She wasn't a freak, she wasn't crazy. Viktor knew someone else who saw the same sorts of visions. With new resolve, she packed up her things and headed straight to Snape's office.

~*~*~X~*~*~

A/N:: Thanks for being patient, to anyone who's still reading! Next chapter will be up soon, and as always, favorite and follow, read and review. Thanks, and hope you enjoyed it! Next chapter is on the way...