That night, Hermione made up her mind. She needed to talk, and who better than Luna and Ginny? She crept over to Luna's room across the hall. "Luna? Is Ginny in there with you?" She whispered. Luna nodded, and said, "Yes. And you're late. We expected you half an hour ago." She opened the door wider though, and Hermione squeezed through. She sat down on the floor, and Luna and Ginny joined her. 

"Okay... don't hate me for this, but I think I've fallen in love with Draco Malfoy. As in, legitimately." Hermione made a face.
Luna and Ginny rolled their eyes. "That's it? We already knew that." Ginny said.
"Be nice Ginny." said Luna.
"Wait, how did you know?" Hermione said. "I didn't know!"
 "It was obvious, Hermione. The kiss in class, the way you seemed as upset as humanly possible when he 'cheated on you', the way you were acting in the bleachers. And we don't hate you. We were trying to set you guys up!" Luna said.
 Hermione was shocked. "What?! Well, not you, I expected this from you, but Ginny?"

Ginny gave her a look. "Please Hermione. I told you. I may not like it, but I'm not going to lose my friendship with you over it."
 Hermione blushed. "Okay... but still. Can we please talk about how insane it is that I am in love with Draco freaking Malfoy? ...do you think he slipped me a love spell?"
"I always thought there was something between you." Luna noted. "But no. No love spell. Mother makes all the food." 

"I... this seems like some big trick he's trying to play." Hermione muttered. Luna and Ginny looked at each other and grimaced.
"Hermione, he loves you back." Luna pointed out.
"Remember his reaction to the short skirts?" Ginny added. 
"On me, when he was being a prat, or on other girls, when he was also being a prat?" Hermione asked warily. 

"What about the way he totally hates Jonathan Jones?" Luna asked. 
"Everybody hates Jones." Hermione pointed out. "Especially since Jonathan hates Malfoy particularly." 
 "Please Hermione. He wanted to snog you before we got here!" Ginny scoffed. "Have you seen the way he stares at you? It's a bit odd." 
"A bit obsessive, really." Luna agreed. "Though he seems harmless. Just staring at you from across the hall. And now you like him!" 

"This is turning into Pride and Prejudice!" Ginny pointed out.
"Stop!" cried Hermione. "You both need to give me a chance to refute you!"
Ginny grinned. "Why would we do that? Now I know I can be successful in the world; I can win an argument with Hermione Granger."
 There was a knock on the door. "A galleon its him?"
"Oh, Luna! It's so obviously him! Why would I lose money agreeing with you?" There was another knock on the door, and Hermione sighed.

"I'm going to get the door, which was probably your plan all along..." She got up, and walked over to the door, and opened it.
 It was Draco, shifting awkwardly from foot to foot. "You weren't in your room, and I wanted to talk to you." He said by way of explanation. "I... finished 'Pride and Prejudice'." 
"Really, what did you think of--?" Hermione was cut off by both of them being pulled into the room. 

"Why have we been kidnapped by Lovegood and the Weaselette?" Draco asked Hermione. 
"Because they can't mind their own business." Hermione huffed. 
Luna cracked her neck. "Well, that's a matter of perspective. You're our friend, we want you to be happy." 
"Even if it's with Ferret-face." Ginny sighed, shooting Draco a look. 

He stuck out his tongue at her before turning back to Hermione. "What do they want, Granger?" 
"They want me to confess my undying love to you." Hermione sighed. 
"Oh. That'll be a cold day in hell then. No, seriously, Granger, what do they want?" 
Hermione sighed, but didn't say anything. 

"Granger, you're scaring me." 
"I already told you." 
"...Lovegood, this isn't funny." Draco huffed. 

"Don't blame Luna. I'm here in the first place because it's true." 
Draco froze. 
Hermione sighed. "Go ahead, Malfoy. Tease me incessantly. I know you're dying to do so." 
He cocked his head at her. "Now, why would I do that...? See, now I suppose that I won't become a Death Eater, because I'm going to snog you senseless." 
"Very funny, Ma--" 

He cut her off with a kiss. "Did you really not know I felt the same way, Granger? Brightest witch of the age indeed." 
"Yeah, yeah. You're one to talk." Hermione pointed out. 
 "So, the reason that I'm here... still think I bear a resemblance to Darcy, personality wise?" Draco asked, wrapping a tentative arm around her waist. Ginny and Luna smiled. "Well... only if I act like Elizabeth Bennett." Hermione admitted. He grinned at her. "Of course. You're just as logical, strong-willed, smart, stubborn and courageous as she is."

At lunch, Draco and Hermione were smiling at each other a lot and things like that. "What's with them?" Ron asked.
"They finally got their feelings out in the open." Neville whispered. "Luna told me."
"Hmm? What happened?" Harry asked, putting down Pride and Prejudice. 

"Hermione is snogging the ferret. Willingly." Ron gagged.
"Grow up, Ron." Ginny huffed.
"I... just explain to me, how this blond nuisance we've hated for years now gets to snog our best friend!" Ron huffed. "Explain to me how he's not going to ultimately hurt her!" 

 "So who do you think you're the most like, Harry?" Ginny said, pointing to the book and trying to distract him. "Bingley, I guess?" He said, testing his famous Gryffindor courage and trying the chicken patty. Ginny smiled. Ron glared at Draco and Hermione across the table. "You're both mental, you are. Especially you, Hermione. It's Draco Malfoy. Have you forgotten what his favorite nickname for you is?" He blurted out.
Harry nodded slowly, gagging into a napkin. "I'm with Ron on this one. Until we get proof that Malfoy isn't a nasty git..." 

Hermione scowled at them. "And just why are you all ganging up on Draco? Would you rather I dated Jones? Besides, I can control my own life very well."
"You're snogging Draco Malfoy!" Ron cried.
"Yes, we've established that, Weaselbee." Draco rolled his eyes. "Do you have any new information for us?"
Harry and Ron both looked at Hermione, gesturing to Draco. 

"Be nice to them, or else." Hermione told him.
He smirked. "Or else what, Granger?" 
"Or else you'll have to put up with them a lot more."
"I can handle that."
"Just be nice to them. I'll be nice to your friends." 

"I don't have friends. I have followers. I am the Slytherin Prince, did you not know this?" 
Ginny sighed, breaking up the ensuing banter between the two. "Hermione, we're just worried." 
"You were fine with it last night." Luna pointed out. 
Ron and Harry both stared at Draco, before it devolved into glares. 
"Oh no. Potter and Weaselbee are angry with me. Whatever shall I do?" He asked sarcastically. "As if I need your opinions to validate myself." 

"You kind of do." Neville noted. 
Everyone stared at him, and he sighed. "I... I just... you spend a lot of time showing off, right? The broomsticks second year, the hippogriff third year... you like it when they acknowledge you." 
"As I recall, the hippogriff debacle ended with Hermione striking me." Draco huffed, burying his face in her thick bushy hair. 

"I have no opinion on their relationship." Neville shrugged as everyone else looked at him. "It's really none of my business, right? And, if it keeps him from turning out like..." An angry look crossed his face for a brief moment. "Lestrange... then who's in trouble here?"

 "Excellent choice, Longbottom. It keeps you safe when Hermione decides that Blondie here is effectively useless." Said a voice behind him.
"Jones." muttered Draco.
"What do you want, Jones?" Hermione asked.
Jonathan smiled at her. "Nothing. I just wanted to inform you that cheerleading tryouts were this afternoon, in case you didn't sign up at yesterday's."
"And I would be interested in that because?" Hermione asked. "Despite the obvious?"

Draco put his arm around her before Jonathan could say anything. "She's not going to be a cheerleader, Jones. So you can get your sick ideas about my girlfriend out of your American head." Jonathan scowled. "Just because you already have her doesn't mean the rest of us can't see her." Everyone at the table, including Neville, glared at him. Everyone else filed out of the cafeteria, even the lunch ladies. Jonathan produced a wand out of nowhere. "Now, I know you're all just Muggles, but even the Imperious curse should work on you."
"Why did we not realize he was a wizard?" Luna muttered to Ginny. 

"We were under the impression someone had to be clever to be magical." She snorted.
 Draco ignored them, and laughed out loud at Jonathan's comment. "Me? A Muggle? I am a Malfoy, one of the Purest-blooded families in England. Hermione is the brightest witch of our year. Of course, there's also Harry Potter, but you're stupid, so you probably didn't know about him. Honestly though, you thought we were Muggles with names like Draco and Luna?"

Jonathan grinned. "Only one way to find out. Imperio!" He pointed his wand at Hermione, whose wand practically materialized in her hand, everyone else pulling out theirs in a timely manner. "Protego!" She yelled.
The spell bounced off harmlessly into a wall. Jonathan grinned. "Okay, so maybe she's a witch..." "Petrificus Totalus." Luna said calmly, guessing she wouldn't be high on his threat list."

 Jonathan dropped to the floor. "Oh Jonathan. Did you really think that you could take on Harry Potter, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley? Not to mention Draco Malfoy, son of a Death Eater, and me, who casts the best Bat-Bogey hex in Hogwarts? Or that you could take on a Ravenclaw fourth year with an Unforgivable when she had Mad-Eye Moody, (really Barty Crouch Jr.) as a DAtDA teacher the year before? Admittedly, you could take on Neville because he isn't allowed to buy his own wand, he must use his father's." Ginny sighed. Jonathan didn't say anything. "Don't try anything, Jones." Harry said. 

"Wait, what are you doing?" Ron asked.
"I'm lifting the spe--"
"Potter, are you insane? He just tried to use the Imperious Curse on Hermione." Draco sneered. "You can only imagine what he would have done to her!" The team left the cafeteria, Jonathan still frozen on the floor. 
"I was going to curse him in a way that we'd be able to see him react." Harry pointed out. 

"No you weren't. You're too noble." Ginny pointed out. 

As they were all walking home and Hermione and Draco were hanging back, Hermione buried her hand in his.
"Oh? What's this for?" 
"We need to get out of here." 
"Obviously. What else?" 

"Kimberley is likely a witch as well, so Jones will be unfrozen quickly, and when he does, he will be on his guard and coming after us." Hermione continued. 
"So? We'll put up wards. What, are you scared of the boogeyman?" He teased. 
She turned to him, her face blank. "Draco, he almost used the Imperious curse on me. He almost... I've been thinking about what he would have done, if I'd just been a second slower." 

"As if we would have let him get away like that." 
"Using me as a hostage? Or a weapon?" 
"I doubt he was smart enough for either of those." 
"What if we end up here forever?" 

"Then we will make lovely little halfblood babies and move far away from this land of corn." Draco smirked. "Well... I suppose the halfblood part can't be helped, but..." 
She shook her head. "Shouldn't they be looking for us?" 

"Of course they are. As if my--" 
"Father would ever let you stay here?" Hermione supplied. 
"I was going to say mother, but yes, that works as well." 
"It's just... they should have found us by now." 

"Look. We're not going to be here as long as Lovegood's mother. Mr.Lovegood thought his wife was dead. That's why he didn't go looking for her. But Luna? Everyone saw us try to Apparate, or whatever that was. We're too young to Apparate, anyway.... And the pack of Weasleys is going to be looking for their two youngest, not to mention my mother probably got my father to get half the wizarding world out looking for me." Hermione nodded. "Can I ask you something?" Draco nodded. "Why do you always seem to avoid talking about your father, unless you were threatening us? I say were because you don't do it anymore."

Draco shrugged. "I don't like to talk about my father, and he's one of the best threats I can come up with."
Hermione nodded. Luna fell back. "You guys better hurry up. Ron and Harry are scheming at the front." Then she went back up to her previous position between Ginny and Neville. Hermione and Draco were silent for a moment. 

"Can I ask you something else?" she said.
"I know what you're going to say. And everyone would, or at least should, fear someone who used the Cruciatus curse on his own son constantly, starting from age five." He replied bitterly. Hermione gasped. "That's-that's awful! How did you survive? How are you not twisted and warped?! Why didn't you ever tell anyone?!"

He shook his head. "I played the part. Playing the part made me who I am, and that's probably not going to go away anytime soon. That's how 'twisted and warped' I am, I suppose. And I never told anyone because it would have made him angry. And that just would have caused more pain, for me and Mother. And anyway, as long as I acted like his perfect little Pureblood, I was safer. I was the heir, the one who would carry on his work. I found out in my first year that he even had eyes in Hogwarts; that's why I was such a git to everyone. Just playing the part." He kicked a pebble in the path. They were silent the rest of the way back to Luna's mother's house.