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Tango	By : Alcoholic_Rootbeer Category: Harry Potter > Het - Male/Female > Draco/Hermione Views: 18416 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 2
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, and I will not make a profit from this story.

Chapter List
- 15
- 16
- 17
Hello and Welcome to another chapter of Tango! I'm sorry for the delay. I was holding off because I wanted everyone to get their updates, and fanfiction has been having difficulties...anyhoo, I'm here.
This chapter wouldn't have been possible without two special ladies: LondonsLegend for beta'ing, and LightofEvolution for bouncing ideas off and giving me Blaise's fashion expertise. ;) LondonsLegend and I get to see Fall Out Boy in October! Heck YEAH! If you're a hardcore fan, you know my penname comes from them.
LondonsLegend recommended a song that I think fits pretty darn well for Tango.
Despacito by Luis Fonsi ft Daddy Yankee and Justin Bieber. Yes, I know. (gasp) the biebs. But give a shot, yes?
"Come and move that in my direction
So thankful for that, it's such a blessin', yeah
Turn every situation into heaven, yeah
Oh, you are
My sunrise on the darkest day
Got me feelin' some kind of way
Make me wanna savor every moment slowly, slowly
You fit me, tailor-made love, how you put it on
Got the only key, know how to turn it on
The way you nibble on my ear, the only words I wanna hear
Baby, take it slow so we can last long"
-Despacito
Down Stage Right: (continued)
Hermione and Ron continue their chat. Tea and crumpets are untouched. Such a shame.
Ron leaned back in his chair, thoroughly perplexed. The tea in his cup had barely made it to his lips before Hermione word-vomited her apologies, her explanations, and her laments. By the time she finished, no doubt Ron's tea was chilly, as was his disposition.
"So," he said, his voice low and quiet, eyes focused on the amber liquid in his cup, "you don't see this...working out…"
Hermione cringed, staring at the plate of untouched crumpets between them. "Not really, no…"
"Bloody Hell, Hermione." Ron sat his teacup down on the table with shaky fingers before rubbing his face with his hands. The disappointment in his tone was palpable, but he remained stoic, for the most part. "You could have told me from the beginning."
"...I know." She rubbed her hands together. Dear lord, why did this have to be so difficult? Her guilt felt like an iron-on patch still hot off the steam press. "Are you upset?" She knew it was the wrong thing to ask, because the tips of Ron's ears turned a violent red.
"Well, yeah. Of course I'm upset." Ron scratched at the red stubble on his cheek. "But um...I respect it." He gave a large, drawn out sigh, gathering his words. His eyes were distant. Pensive. "I know we haven't been close after our breakup. I guess I thought it was 'cause you didn't want us to fall into a routine and get used to being 'just friends' again."
"It isn't that I don't want that," she admitted. "I just know we want different things in life, and I didn't want to give you false hope by being around each other all of the time. In retrospect, I now see how ridiculous that really was."
Ron snorted indignantly. "You can say that again."
Hermione began picking at the cuticles of her thumb. "There's one more thing."
"You're dating Krum again?" he asked blatantly.
"What?" She gave a laugh. "No. Why would you think that?"
"He was in town, wasn't he?"
Hermione rolled her eyes. "Am I not allowed to have friends who happen to be male?"
"No...I mean, well, yeah, of course you can…" Ron dipped his head. "S'just weird that one of them happens to be Malfoy."
"Are we on that again?"
"Why wouldn't we be on that again?" Ron snapped, suddenly serious. "Merlin, Hermione. The whole wizarding world's gonna think you're cozying up to him. And if you're not dating Krum, and you're single, well...it's not hard to see it that way when you've got your head in Malfoy's lap. Y'know, I can take you not wanting to be with me. I really think I can. But it's a thorn in my side to see you snuggled up to Draco sodding Malfoy."
Another sigh escaped Hermione's lips as she placed her head in her hands. "I know," she whispered. "I know. I made a mistake." I've begun to fall for him. Great Morgana, I'm losing all sensibility. "But none of this is the thing that I wanted to talk about. I...IinvitedCharlietoMalfoy'swedding."
There was long pause. "...Huh?"
"I said," she cleared her throat, "that I invited Charlie to Malfoy's wedding." She waited. "As my plus one."
Now it wasn't just the tips of Ron's ears that were crimson - it was his entire face. "Charlie." He blinked. "Charlie? Are you and Charlie even close?" The horrified sound in his voice was hard to miss.
"Well, we've always got on. And I thought-"
"-You thought you'd rub salt in the wound?"
Hermione felt her mouth fall wide open. "No! No, not at all, Ron!"
"'Cause that's what it feels like, 'Mione."
"It's a wedding plus one, Ronald. We're not running up to the Ministry and signing a marriage certificate!"
A long pause fell between them as they glared at one another.
"So, d'you have feelings for Charlie, then?" he asked curtly.
"I...I'm not sure."
"Or are you just gonna lead him on, too?"
"That isn't fair, Ron. I never meant to lead you on."
"But you did, Hermione, whether you meant to or not." He swiped at the corner of his eyes. Is he crying? Hermione froze in mild embarrassment. If she acknowledged it, he would surely snap at her further, and she wanted to avoid a fight. "For my brother's sake, I hope you figure out what the bloody Hell it is you think you want out of life." Ron stood up and brushed down the front of his shirt.
"Ron-" She jumped up to meet him, blocking his path before he could retreat to the door.
"-I know, Hermione. I know. You're sorry." He inhaled deeply, managing to calm himself, and then he placed his hands on her shoulders, rubbing his thumbs along her skin absentmindedly. "S'just gonna take me some time to...wrap my head around it. I'm always gonna love you. Just...um…"
"You need time."
He nodded. "Yeah." His eyes were red and strained.
"I don't want us to stop being friends."
His eyebrows creased as his eyes searched hers. "Neither do I. Y'know sometimes my anger gets the better of me...I know you wouldn't hurt me or Charlie." He cleared his throat. "Are, um, you okay? This whole thing with Malfoy s'the reason I came over-"
"-I've got it under control," she lied. "I promise."
"You sure?"
"You're just going to have to trust me. I'm sure this entire mess will all blow over." She attempted a smile. "Now, um, can we just skip all of the I'm sorries and get straight to the part where we hug?"
With a lopsided, semi-serious grin, Ron nodded. "Yeah, Hermione. I'd like that."
Down Stage Left (continued)
Draco and Astoria finish some activities...but Draco isn't into it.
Draco laid on the floor in a puddle of nerves next to a yawning Astoria. In his hands, the toy (secretly gifted from his Mother) vibrated. He shut it off as Astoria curled into his side and smiled against his shoulder. "Mister Malfoy, I had no idea you were so open to the idea of toys in the bedroom."
"Technically, this isn't a bedroom," he quipped, masking his lack of confidence. Somewhere in the mix between shucking off his pants and finding Astoria's lips around his favorite appendage, his mind had wandered to images of whipped cream and desserts. By the time it had come to the main course, so-to-speak, his appetite craved something -someone- else besides Astoria. With guilt welled in his chest, he'd pretended to care about only Astoria's pleasure to hide the fact his cock was only able to make it to half mast.
Really, it was by sheer luck that they toy was there to give him an excuse to push her over the edge without having to explain his new lack of attraction. Had his mother anticipated this from the get-go? Surely not. That would have been more than mildly disturbing…
"Your turn?" Astoria offered, trailing her fingers down his abdomen.
Draco couldn't put his finger on the reason for his flaccid cock. Astoria was a gorgeous witch. Great tits. Round, toned bum. A waist so trim it never needed a corset. And yet here he was, trying to pretend he didn't feel strange every time their lips touched. "I, er...have to meet Blaise at noon," he told her. It wasn't a lie - he really did. But it was nice to have an excuse.
Astoria pouted her lips. "Do you? Why?"
"Blaise asked for my personal opinion on some new line of clothing the Zabini's plan to showcase soon."
"Oh?" Her head perked up. "What is it?"
"No idea. But if he asked me to be involved, it must be important."
Astoria leaned forward and pressed her mouth to his. Draco kissed back, but was relieved when she didn't go for tongue. Since when had his sexual appetite shriveled into nothing?
"I'll be sure to pay you back tonight, then. After dance lessons."
Dance lessons... "Sure…" he muttered, sitting up and shrugging his pants back on.
"...With all of this out in the open - the press and the headlines," Astoria added, fixing her skirt, "I had wondered…"
"Wondered?" he asked.
"Your private lessons with Miss Granger...will those continue?" There hung an anxiousness in the back of her throat as she asked the question.
Shit. Draco hadn't thought of that.
Center Stage: Draco and Blaise
Setting: Zabini Fashion Industries, INC
"Put these on."
"No."
"What? Why?"
"Why would I?"
"I need a personal opinion on how they fit. I've asked some other models, but I don't trust that they weren't blowing smoke up my taught arse to get a gig."
"I'm not putting them on."
"Why not?"
"They look...tight."
"That's the point, Draco."
Blaise waved a pair of elegant looking briefs in the blond's direction. Draco stepped back from the offending underwear and shook his head. "Nope. You couldn't pay me a lifetime supply of Honeydukes to get me into those."
Blaise smirked. "Fine. Let's talk about Granger, then."
Draco paused. "Give me the damn underwear." He snatched them out of Blaise's hand and headed for the dressing room nearby. As he slammed the door shut and began to shimmy out of his pants, he heard a thunk. No doubt, Blaise was leaned up against the other side of the door. Draco could just imagine him with his arms crossed and a his smug smile plastered across his face.
"So... Granger's head ended up in your lap. How does that happen?"
"I told you I'd try on the undergarments, so you can stop talking about Hermio-Granger."
"Ooh, Hermione, is it?" Blaise chuckled.
"Stop getting off on this." Draco threw his slacks purposefully over the door to smack Blaise in the face. A muffled 'oof!' was his reward. "I'm already in enough shit as it is with the presses, my mother, and Astoria."
"And Daphne," Blaise commented. "She's none too pleased with you for going off on your own with someone other than her sister."
"Maybe if Astoria hadn't given me the silent treatment, I wouldn't have felt the need to occupy my time."
"With Granger," his friend added.
"...With Granger." Draco slipped the underwear on and squinted in the mirror. "These are extremely too tight."
"I'll be the judge of that. Step on out here!"
"How do I know you don't have a camera waiting on the other side of that door?"
"Draco, you flatter yourself too much. Just shut up and get your arse out-"
The door swung open, causing Blaise to stumble to find balance. Draco's cheeks were fire-hot as he leaned against the doorframe and smirked. "Happy?"
Blaise considered Draco in the underwear for a moment. "Where do they feel tight?"
"Everywhere."
"But in particular?"
With a smirk, Draco replied, "Where do you think?"
"Definitely your arse."
This was NOT what Draco expected to hear. "My arse?" He was flat insulted. "I have a spectacular arse, thank you very much!"
"Some would call it a smart-arse," Blaise grinned.
"Cheeky." Draco knew he'd given it a double meaning, and both men tried to contain their toddler-like sense of humor. "And anyway, there's no room for if I were to grow."
"Thinking about Granger?"
Draco narrowed his eyes. "Why do you continuously bring her up?"
"Oh, I don't know. Maybe it's because you rented out an entire ice cream parlor just to eat sundaes with her."
"I should never have told you any of the details."
"Mate, you know you're my... well, mate. So, listen to me when I say: I haven't seen you this confused since Granger punched you in the face our third year."
"I'm not confused," Draco grumbled, slamming the door shut again. As he slipped the underwear off, he added, "I love Astoria."
"Oh, no doubt about it."
He took a moment to slip his clothes back on and reached for the handle, pausing. "Have you and Daphne ever hit a...a dry spell?"
"Like, with sex?"
Not just sex. "Everything."
Blaise seemed to ponder it, because it was some time before he spoke again. "Sure, I think we all get them."
"Does it change? When you get married?"
"Sex?"
"Why is everything about sex with you?" Draco growled. "Everything." He was glad he was on this side of the door so Blaise couldn't see the uneasiness on his face.
"Look, mate. I'm not going to pretend to know what's going on between you and Astoria, but what I can say is that getting married doesn't solve the issues that are already there. It's not a cure-all. So, don't look for it to be."
"I hate the way you know me."
"Would you rather I lie to you?"
"Maybe."
"Your arse did not look big in those skivvies. - But real talk? It's obvious you and Astoria are having some issues. Daphne sees it. I see it. The papers are starting to see it."
"The papers think I have something with Granger," Draco corrected. "I don't."
"And you're sure about that?"
"What the Hell is that supposed to mean? Astoria and I are perfect for each other."
We are, he thought. Astoria was the only one who had seen him at his lowest points after the war. She helped him when he was too broken to realize he needed fixing, like a watch forgotten about in a drawer.
"On paper, sure. You two are ideal," Blaise agreed. "Still, you can't deny the way Granger has some kind of hold on you."
Draco hated the way Blaise could see right through him and his vulnerabilities. It made him feel weak, and weakness was unbecoming of a Malfoy. But if anyone understood him, it was the snarky, off putting fellow on the other side of the door.
"She doesn't."
"Fine, she doesn't. - Let's say you have a hold on her, then. You see the way she looks at you, right?"
Blaise was right in one sense - Hermione never looked at him the way Astoria did. She never walked on eggshells to impress him. She was always ruffling up his feathers and calling him out on his bullshit. Only heartless imbeciles would kick a puppy when it was down, so that meant she must have seen him as something else. Something stronger. How strange…
But he couldn't admit any of what he noticed to Blaise. If he said the words out loud, it would solidify them. There was so much pressure riding on this wedding, but things felt different now.
"Is this all you need from me?" he grumbled.
"Actually, I could use your opinion on a new line of shorts."
Draco rolled his eyes. "You can rot in Hell, Zabini. I don't do shorts."
With a sigh, he pondered what to do with Granger.
Really, there was only one thing to do. Though the idea had his stomach twisted in inconvenient ways.
Small Spotlight off Stage Right: Hermione enters
Setting: Dance Studio Uno
Hermione's breath hitched as she walked into Dance Studio Uno. She'd taken it upon herself to arrive early, as per usual, but apparently, so had Greg. He was stretching when she arrived, and his eyes shrouded in a somewhat-friendly, but also colder, demeanor.
Really, one look and she could tell he'd read the news.
"Miss Granger," he nodded formally, tensing his posture ever so slightly. "You're early."
"So are you," she tried, nervously fidgeting with her bag.
"So it would seem…" There was a lengthy pause. "How's your cat?"
"Crookshanks? He's fine, why do you-" It then dawned on her about the lie Malfoy had come up with last night. The one about her cat escaping the house.
Greg's mouth drew in a thin line. "I take it Draco Malfoy located your kitty just fine?" The double meaning wasn't missed.
Hermione's cheeks burned a brilliant shade of magenta as she started, "Greg, I can explain-"
"-No need," he shrugged, turning his back to her. "I think the papers said it all."
"Forgive me. For a moment, I thought you were an intelligent individual who didn't listen to the fodder in the tabloids." Hermione pulled the strap of her bag up her shoulder and proceeded to pass Greg to the other side of the room. She caught his reflection in the mirror, and his expression softened.
"I...you're right, Hermione. Forgive me." He huffed a sigh and chewed at the skin of his lower lip, thinking of what to say.
"Obviously," Hermione muttered, setting her book bag to the floor, "what Malfoy told you was a lie. That much I can say. He was just trying to sabotage our date."
"It worked," Greg said, taking slow, lengthy strides until he stood behind her. Their gazes met in the mirror. "Was it really going that terrible you'd take his bait?"
Hermione turned around, meeting him eye-to-eye. "Admittedly, I was frustrated."
"Because of the sorting hat discussion?"
Hermione nodded.
With a lofty smirk, Greg leaned an arm against the mirror beside Hermione, halfway caging her in. He smelled of peppermints as he released a laugh and rolled his eyes. "It's called a debate, Miss Granger. I would have thought a woman such as yourself would recognize one."
"What?" She raised an eyebrow. "You were arguing with me on purpose?"
"I was trying to keep up," he nodded, a sincere smile on his face. "Apparently, trying to seem more intelligent than I really am has bored you to the point of leaving halfway through dinner."
"I'm sorry about that," she apologized.
Greg shrugged. "So, this mess with the papers, then. It isn't true?"
"Of course not!" She shook her head.
He looked relieved at her response. "Would me apologizing for being an unmitigated ass a few moments ago be an acceptable thing to do in this situation?"
Hermione felt her cheeks warm as she cleared her throat. "It would be a start."
"Let me try again. One more date. I promise not to try to impress you if you promise not to walk out on me before dessert."
The word dessert sparked an image of her drunken dreams from last night, and a naughty blond doing unholy things to her. The fact that Draco's cheesecake note had contained the words 'whipped cream' had been a surprising coincidence, but she hadn't been able to leave the images behind since.
"And if it goes terribly?" she asked.
"I promise to concede and try my luck elsewhere." He leaned in closer, their noses inches away now.
"Can I think about it?" Hermione asked.
"Of course. Take all the time you need." Greg leaned up and stepped back a few paces, a satisfied grin on his face. "And here I thought things between us might be tense. I have to say, it's a relief to hear this entire situation with Malfoy is one big blown up tabloid piece. I wasn't entirely sure what the situation was when Malfoy stopped by an hour ago to cancel the private lessons."
"He what?"
Greg's expression dimmed. "I was under the impression you knew."
"I…" Hermione felt her stomach drop. "I had no idea." She tried her best to keep an even expression as she continued, "Did he say why?"
"I imagine the papers had something to do with it, but no, he didn't express a reason."
Hermione tried to reason with herself; of course, it made sense that Malfoy would cancel the private lessons. Under the force of the Daily Prophet and the rumor mill, it would only make sense. Still, there was a large portion of her that betrayed her logical side and was extremely hurt by the gesture. Nothing had happened between them. They had remained platonic and respectful. Had this been under Astoria's gesture? Or did Malfoy intend to push Hermione's friendship away, now that everyone had seen them together? Did it have to do with the 'infidelity' rumors? Or did the reason stem from something deeper? A smidgen of insecurity rose up, and Hermione wondered, for a brief moment, if it had anything to do with her blood status. She pushed the thought away quickly, reprimanding herself for thinking it.
"Are you alright?" Greg asked.
"I'm fine," she assured him, taking in a breath to calm her nerves. "I just thought maybe our friendship was worth a little more than that."
Without another word, she made her way over to the bar along the mirror and began to stretch, dreading today's lessons.
The lioness within her was furious and hurt. And, as everyone knew, it wasn't in good form to upset a lioness in her prime.
Don't fret! Much more Dramione to come! I know, the slow burn is torture, but it will be soooooo worth the wait. Before you get gunshy, remember - Draco, Hermione, Astoria, Ron... they're all adults and need to act like it. Decisions need to be made, plot points need to be turned.
Be prepared for another update soon! Please leave a little love so I know I did alright?
With love
~A.
- 15
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- 17
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