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Pansy's Volcano	By : Bluemidget57 Category: Harry Potter > Het - Male/Female > Draco/Hermione Views: 206366 -:- Recommendations : 6 -:- Currently Reading : 8
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor any of the characters from the books or movies. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 1-Pansy's Volcano
- 2-Two
- 3-Three
- 4-Four
- 5-Five
- 6-Six
- 7-Seven
- 8-Eight
- 9-Nine
- 10-Ten
- 11-Eleven
- 12-Twelve
- 13-Thirteen
- 14-Fourteen
- 15-Fifteen
- 16-Sixteen
- 17-Seventeen
- 18-Eighteen
- 19-Nineteen
- 20-Twenty
- 21-Twenty one
- 22-Twenty Two
- 23-Twenty Three
- 24-Twenty Four
- 25-Twenty Five
- 26-Twnety Six
- 27-Twenty Seven
- 28-Twenty Eight
- 29-Twenty Nine
- 30-Thirty
- 31-Thirty one
- 32-Thirty Two
- 33-Thirty Three
- 34-Thirty Four
- 35-Thirty Five
- 36-Thirty Six
- 37-Thirty Seven
- 38-Thirty Eight
- 39-Thirty Nine
- 40-Forty
- 41-Forty One
- 42-Forty Two
- 43-Forty Three
- 44-Forty Four
- 45-Forty Five
- 46-Forty Six
- 47-Forty Seven
- 48-Forty Eight
- 49-Forty Nine
- 50-Fifty
- 51-Fifty One
- 52-52
- 53-53
- 54-54
- 55-55
- 22
- 23
- 24
Chapter Twenty Three

�Well,� Draco said as they left the Headmaster�s office. �That was - unexpected.� Hermione fought the instinctive need to leap to the defensive. Civilized - we�re being civilized, she chanted You have to forget that his mouth ever touched yours. Now you�re just two people getting a job done.

�Yes,� she agreed stiffly. She couldn�t manage to slip on the mantle of professionalism as easily as Malfoy could. It felt awkward and unwieldy trying to be polite around him. He was the sort of person who inspired volatile emotions in others; it had been hatred at one time and now it was - lust? Passion? She wasn�t sure which, but it was undeniably difficult for her to behave as if they were simply two people carrying out an assignment professionally. She envied Malfoy his ability to turn off his emotions at will. Or maybe that was the difference; for him there had been no emotions involved - whereas she, fool that she was, had allowed him to get under her skin and now he couldn�t be ejected.
Draco studied her sideways reading from the rigid set of her spine that there would be no point in trying to approach her now. �I�ll go and get the word out to the rest of my guys about this new - development,� he said deciding discretion was the better part of valour. �I�ll meet you by the main doors at 12.30 then?�
Hermione stiffened her spine visibly and took a calming breath before replying neutrally, �Yes. I�ll go along to the library and see if I can find any of the Hufflepuffs or Ravenclaws and get the message over to them, also.� And then she was gone; before Draco had the chance to open his mouth she had disappeared around the corner and out of sight.
Hermione didn�t relax her rigid stance until she reached the doors to the library, where she collapsed momentarily against the wall before entering. She tried to decide if the encounter with Malfoy had gone well or not. Eventually, she settled on yes. Her own shortcomings aside, the morning could easily have taken a much worse turn; Ron was hurt but coping and Malfoy was being cool and remotely polite again. On the whole, a far better result than she could have hoped for. Of course, she still had to deal with an afternoon in his unrelieved company, but as long as he didn�t tempt her she felt able to say she probably wouldn�t actually jump him on her own.
She unrolled her own invitation again, and examined it to see if any topic had manifested itself there since breakfast, but it still only showed the words which had been there before. Sighing, she put it back into her pocket, and pushed open the library doors.
Madam Pince looked up from her desk to see who had entered, and gave Hermione a small nod of acknowledgment. Hermione managed to pull her mouth into something resembling a smile and returned the greeting. As she had hoped, there were a couple of Ravenclaw students sitting at tables working on their assignments. Aside from Hermione herself, the Ravenclaws spent the most time in the library of all the houses.
Luna was sitting beside Anthony Goldstein immersed in a whispered but seemingly intense conversation, when Hermione spotted them. As soon as Luna looked up and saw her approaching, she began to collect her books together; by the time Hermione had reached the table, Luna was on her feet and preparing to depart. She gave Hermione a large abstracted smile and disappeared accompanied by a jingling sound from her over-sized earrings.
Hermione wondered why Luna would rush off as soon as she appeared. Had she already heard about the break up with Ron, and decided to ostracize Hermione? Was this the kind of reaction she could expect from the student body in general? She sat down opposite Tony and sighed again.
�Hello, Hermione,� he said, and she looked at him suspiciously. He also seemed to have an odd expression on his face. Damn.
�Hello, Tony,� she replied, trying to act as normally as it�s possible to act when you have suddenly developed a paranoid belief that everyone is talking about you behind your back. �Did you receive your invitation for the Christmas Dinner?� He nodded, apparently surprised at this topic of conversation. �May I see it?� she continued, taking her own out and laying it on the table between them.
�Um - sure, let me get it,� Tony said, pulling his book bag towards him. �I poked it in here somewhere after breakfast.� He rifled through the contents of his bag pulling several text books out onto the table before coming up with the required parchment. He passed it to Hermione who opened it and laid it beside her own. Like hers, Tony�s only contained the actual words of the invitation, with his name in place of hers.
�Professor Dumbledore just had Malfoy and I come to his office to talk about this event,� Hermione explained. �Apparently, it�s not as innocuous as it seems. Instead of being just an entertainment, the party is actually part of our graded school work to complete 7^th year -�
�It�s what?� Tony asked surprised, now totally immersed in what Hermione was telling him and seemingly forgetting any rumours he might have been hearing. �How can we be marked on a Christmas party?�
�Well, he didn�t exactly say how we�d be marked, just that there were certain expectations of us when we are attending - and he didn�t mean just behaving appropriately and not hexing the Slytherins while they aren�t looking,� she grumbled darkly. Tony couldn�t prevent the small grin from breaking over his face at her words. �Everyone�s invitation has been charmed with a dinner conversation topic. It�s our assignment to research this subject in detail so that we can carry on polite small-talk about it during the event. There is a charm which will reveal your topic supposedly in time for the dinner. Some of them have already manifested; according to Malfoy, Vincent Crabbe has to study up on greyhound racing - it�s a kind of Muggle dog, very sleek and fast. People place bets on races at dog tracks, and win money,� she explained, off Tony�s confused look.
Tony suddenly broke out into laughter, earning them a quick reprimand from Madam Pince, and he tried to stifle his mirth. �I�m sorry, Hermione,� he gasped, �But you have to admit the idea of Crabbe having to research a Muggle sporting event is kind of funny! He�s in my Muggle Studies class, you know, and he just doesn�t get it. Will they all be Muggle topics, do you think?�
�I really have no idea. Mine hasn�t shown itself yet, nor has yours by the look of it. Dumbledore said that the staff, the Governors and the Ministry guests would be passing around chatting with us to make sure we�ve done the assignment. I expect Arthur Weasley will be in charge of the Muggle testing. Anyway, I needed to tell you so that you could pass it on to your house, otherwise they might be a bit confused when random phrases start popping up on their invites. I need to find someone from Hufflepuff as well.� She sighed, and he became serious for a moment.
�How are you doing with Malfoy, Hermione?� he asked. �Is he pulling his weigh this year? It seems like it�s you off running Dumbledore�s errands. Where�s he gone?�
�Oh, he went to tell the Slytherins. It�s not like anyone of them would be accessible to me anyway. They hardly come to the library or mix with the rest of the school unless they have to, and it�s not like I could get into their Common Room to tell them anything. So he�s gotten charge of his House.�
�That�s not what I asked, Hermione,� Tony pressed firmly.
Hermione groaned inwardly. Why was it that she couldn�t go a whole thirty minutes without having to talk about Malfoy again? �I�m sorry you didn�t get the Head Boy, Tony,� she said truthfully. �I think you would have done an excellent job, and I would have liked to work with you, but we have to make the best of what life throws our way, and it threw me Malfoy.� She reached across the table and squeezed Tony�s hand briefly, smiling as his cheeks flushed either with pleasure at her praise or embarrassment at her actions, she couldn�t tell.
�And actually, I suppose he really hasn�t been that bad. The Halloween party genuinely was all his work, as you must know. You were there during the preparations. He has toned down a lot of the insults this year; I haven�t seen as much of the pureblood rubbish as before. We had a talk and decided to be civilized. Dumbledore did threaten us at the beginning of term, you know, to make sure we got on with the job. Maybe he took it to heart.� It was oddly refreshing to be able to get her confused thoughts about her working relationship with Malfoy out into the open to someone who didn�t have an instinctive knee-jerk defamatory reaction to hearing the name.
�Well - er, that�s good - um, isn�t it?� Tony stuttered out is response to her words, and she grinned at him, thinking how sweet it was that her compliment had made him so flustered. Working with Anthony Goldstein would have been an entirely different experience than the one she was living now.
Hermione took a look at the time and said, �You know, with this being at a hotel in Hogsmeade and all, I had thought there wouldn�t be as much organizing to be done, but Professor Dumbledore has made an appointment for us to visit the function coordinator for the Felton Arms this afternoon to select menus and make seating plans. I have absolutely no idea what we�re supposed to say to this man; I�ve never done anything like this before. It must be something like arranging a wedding.� She stood up, �This was nice, Tony. Thanks for listening to me; if you should see Ernie or Hannah or any of the others could you pass the word on for me in Hufflepuff?�
Tony immediately stood up also, gathering his books and pushing them into his bag. �Why don�t we go to lunch now?� he said. �You should probably eat something before you go to the village, and we�ll be sure to see someone at the Hufflepuff table we can give instructions to.�
Hermione tilted her head to one side thoughtfully, �That seems like the sensible solution,� she agreed. �I haven�t actually told anyone in my house either yet - they were having a Quidditch practice this morning, and I didn�t think they�d be finished yet when we left the Headmaster�s office. But they�ll be hungry after training, so I expect that�s where we�ll find them, too.�
They said goodbye to the librarian as they exited and made their way back down to the Great Hall chatting easily. Hermione had always found Tony to be an intelligent friendly boy, and was sure that if the sorting hat had decided to place her in Ravenclaw after all , that they would have become good friends. However, her six years of strategizing for the Boy-who-Lived had left little time for forming friendships outside their self-contained unit. Now, with her break up from Ron looming over their triad and threatening to tear them all apart, Hermione began to regret not broadening her circle of friends when she had the opportunity.
Tony opened the doors to the Great Hall for her to precede him, and on mutual agreement, he walked over to the Hufflepuff table and asked Ernie MacMillan to join them both at the Gryffindor table. Parvati and Lavender were already scribbling on napkins, designing outfits to wear, leaving Neville, Dean and Seamus to talk amongst themselves. The Gryffindor Quidditch team had just entered the showers according to Seamus who had left them momentarily to come to lunch. Tony sat beside Hermione and Ernie took a seat opposite as Hermione explained again Dumbledore�s directions for the party. They all pulled their invitations out and took another look to see if any subjects had appeared.
Neville had been assigned Italian cookery, Lavender had Russia and Parvati had Dragon taming. Lavender and Parvati promptly burst into tears, wailing that they couldn�t possibly find enough about their subjects and that they were going to Fail Parties! Even Neville looked a little green at his choice. Cookery seemed a little too close to Potions in his mind; all stirring and measuring and preparation, and as Professor Snape would tell anyone who cared to listen, Longbottom had never been much of a potions student.
Hermione and Tony shared a quick amused glance at the reactions of their peers and Hermione felt her spirits unaccountably lifted by the exchange. �I don�t think it�s so much about getting it right,� Hermione tried to soothe. �It�s more about making the effort and expressing your opinions with confidence in a social setting.�
�Easy for you to say,� Lavender mumbled darkly, �When you know everything about everything anyway,� and Parvati nodded supportively.

*************
Draco was sitting between Vince and Greg when the door opened and Granger appeared with Anthony Goldstein in tow. Greg�s invitation had revealed that he needed to research kangaroos when he finally stopped using it as a nose scratcher and opened it up. Draco had ensured that all his Slytherins were aware of what was expected of them, and had made suggestions as to where they could find books to aid their studies. He wasn�t going to have his house shown up by all those brainy Ravenclaws, and he was sure that Granger would do most of the research for those idiot Gryffinroars of hers.
He himself still had not been given a subject, but he secretly hoped for a Muggle topic. He really wanted to try out something that Professor DiBona had been teaching about last week, called the internet. Apparently the answer to all questions could be found within this miracle of technology, and he was sure he could persuade the Professor to let him use her password. He was the favourite student after all, even if as yet he didn�t quite understand what this internet actually did, or where it stored all of its information.
As usual, once Granger was in the room, everything else faded into a blur around the periphery of his concentration. His eyes hungrily followed her every move, as she parted company from Goldstein and went to her own table. Except that Goldstein only detoured to the Hufflepuff table, and after a brief word returned to Granger�s side with one of their 7^th year prefects accompanying him. He further proceeded to infuriate Draco by sitting beside Hermione and apparently helping her explain the charm and the party instructions to the Hufflepuff and those 7^th year Gryffindors currently present at the table.
Draco actually understood the phrase �seeing red� when his Hermione turned to Goldstein and they shared a conspiratorial grin over the reaction of the other two 7^th year Gryffindor girls. As if it wasn�t hard enough watching her cuddle up to that revolting red head, now he had to watch her bestowing her sparkling smile on a bloody Ravenclaw!
�Blaise!� he hissed down the table to where Zabini sat talking to a couple of 6^th year girls. Blaise smiled charmingly at his companions, and shuffled along the bench so that he was sitting in front of Draco. �What�s up with Goldstein these days?� Draco asked quietly, forcing himself not to look at the Gryffindor table. �He�s been really huffy with me lately, and we never used to be on particularly bad terms.�
Blaise thought for a moment, and then turned slowly to search the room. He nodded knowingly when he found the person in question sitting with the Gryffindors. �He�s just jealous, I suspect.�
Draco looked momentarily baffled. �Because I got Head Boy?� he asked. �I wouldn�t have had him pegged for being petty over something like that.�
Blaise shook his head. �No, not that. Well, yes and no - but not entirely. He definitely wanted Head Boy, but he also had an ulterior motive - he�s had the hots for Granger for quite a while now. I imagine he would have like the opportunity to spend a lot more time with her this year, if you get my meaning? I guess he�s just annoyed at the injustice of it. You get the job, and the girl - well, metaphorically speaking. I would have thought he�d have stopped sulking when she hooked up with Ron Weasley though, took herself out of the running.�
Draco barely heard the end of Blaise�s sentence. He had to pull out his invitation again to give his shaking hands something to occupy themselves; he was on the verge of giving himself away and he knew it. He had barely enough common sense left to hold himself in his seat. Two months ago he would have laughed at the very idea of there being two guys - and himself - competing for the affections of Hermione Granger, and yet here he was today, ready to rip the head off a boy he had never especially disliked - had even respected in a abstract way - because he had dared to assume he could approach Granger as more than a friend. How dare he make a move on a girl who was already taken?
Watching them now with the insight of Blaise�s information, Draco could see clearly how Goldstein was trying to move in on Hermione. It was screamingly obvious in his body language; the way he leant towards her as she spoke, whispered little comments for her hearing only. That shared smile he had caught moments before assumed an alarming significance when considered in the light of this new knowledge. Was Goldstein actually trying to break Hermione and the Weasel up?

But would that actually be a bad thing? The little voice piped up; you want Granger and Weasely separated don�t you. Why not let Goldstein do the dirty work, and then you can just nip in and claim the prize. As an idea it was typically Slytherin in nature; it had the added benefit of making Goldstein the villain, and leaving Draco�s way cleared of obstacles with no blame being attached to him. He was quite sure that the honorable Ravenclaw boy had not laid a finger on Hermione, but was just languishing from afar. Draco had the advantage of knowing that Granger reacted to his touch like the spark to a flame. She might hate it, but she was unable to conceal it. The only fault with this cunning plan was Draco�s fear that he wouldn�t be able to control his own jealousy whilst he watched Goldstein make his pathetic attempt.
In fact, the more he thought about it the worse of an idea it seemed to be. Tony was not like the Weasel; a Quidditch obsessed red haired moron. The Ravenclaw prefect had been Draco�s only serious challenger as Head Boy. Not only was he was tall and attractive in the way that girls seemed to like, but also pleasant, scholarly and intelligent. Should he decide to put a concentrated effort into winning Hermione, he might actually pose a serious threat. Certainly in Draco�s opinion, Tony possessed more of the qualities which he imagined a girl like Granger would look for and actually need in a partner.
Draco was unable to cope with the torment of his own fertile imagination any longer; he looked at the clock and decided it was time to remove the Head Girl from the competition. No doubt the actual - as opposed to the potential - boyfriend would arrive shortly, and that could lead to even more unbearable displays of affection towards Granger, which he would be forced to witness. He had to get her away now.

He stood decisively and announced to Blaise, Vincent and Greg. �Granger and I have to go into Hogsmeade this afternoon for a planning meeting at the hotel. I don�t know when I�ll be back.� He pulled his robes around himself and set off to collect the Head Girl.
For the second time that day he found himself standing behind Hermione at the Gryffindor table. A flustered giggle from Lavender Brown, who had made a concentrated effort to get him in bed last year, alerted Hermione to his presence, and he saw her back stiffen before she turned - more cautiously this time - to see him. Oddly enough, Tony Goldstein who had barely spared him two words strung together this term, also turned towards Draco and greeted him pleasantly, as he would have done last year.
�Granger,� he said trying to present a bland façade, �I believe we should get moving if we are going to get the carriage in time.�
Hermione frowned at him and then looked at her own watch as if she was hoping to catch him out in some inaccuracy. However, since she could apparently find no fault with his attitude or his timekeeping, she conceded with a small nod. Standing up beside him, she was careful not to make the same mistake of the morning, and stepped gracefully out from the bench leaving as much distance between them as possible. She smiled brightly at her companions and told them much the same story Draco had just given his friends. Draco barely managed to suppress a growl when Goldstein gave her a definite sympathetic smile, as if he felt her pain for being forced to spend the afternoon in the company of a Malfoy. He was hard pressed not to grab Hermione by the wrist and drag her away without a chance to speak.
They walked out to the main doors quietly, just outside of each other�s personal space. Hermione finally broke the awkward silence by saying, �I probably should have brought a notebook, and some pens. I�m sure there will be a lot more to this than just chatting with a hotel employee. I -�
She didn�t get the chance to say more, as Professor Dumbledore suddenly opened the doors and came in from the grounds. �Ah! There you both are,� he said rubbing his hands together. �Punctual as usual. It�s getting quite chilly out, but it should be warm enough inside the carriage. I just wanted to meet you before you left and give you this list of everyone who will be attending on the 16^th. I�m sure Mr Pringle will want to see it.� He held out a folded parchment and Draco reluctantly took it from the Headmaster. �Aside from the 7^th years, the four Heads of Houses and myself, there will be the six members of the Board of School Governors, four ministry officials and four Aurors attending. Do remember that we need everyone to be well mixed up and spread about!�
�Yes, sir,� mumbled Hermione and Draco, almost on the same breath.
�Good, good,� Dumbledore beamed. �I will just walk with you to the carriage then and you can be on your way.�
Hermione winced as they walked down the sweeping stone steps and she saw the thestrals harnessed to the front of a coach. She still hadn�t gotten over her first sight of them after Sirius� death, and even now two years later she still cringed - not so much from their appearance, for they truly weren�t hideous - but from the knowledge of the loss which had made them visible to her. She wondered suddenly if Malfoy could see them yet. He had not been able to in their 5^th year she recalled, but then neither had she at that time.
�Yes, I can,� he muttered quietly as they followed Dumbledore and it was almost as if he had read her mind. She gave him a startled look, she had been sure she had not spoken out loud, and he shrugged. �You shuddered. It was obvious what you were thinking about from the look on your face, so I answered you.�
But Hermione found this almost more disturbing than the sight of the thestrals themselves. She didn�t think Ron or Harry had ever read her mind as accurately as Draco Malfoy had just done, nor taken the time to acknowledge the fact. It was unsettling in the extreme to think that Malfoy was so attuned to her wavelength that he could answer her thoughts before they became speech.
Even more astonishing was the fact that he held open the carriage door for her to enter before him, and then politely settled on the seat opposite her as the Headmaster set the coach in motion.
Hermione�s natural curiosity could only be suppressed as far as the gates to the Hogwarts grounds, �Who -� she began but faltered as Malfoy�s face broke out into a triumphant grin.
�Hah, Granger!� he crowed in delight. �I knew you wouldn�t be able to resist; but I�m amazed, you lasted a whole three minutes longer than I thought you would.�
�Sod off, Malfoy,� she muttered, glad the interior of the coach was dim enough that he couldn�t see the bright flush which stained her cheeks. � I was just making small talk - you know, like we have to at the party!� He didn�t respond and she was left to stew about it again until the unbearable need to know got the better of her again. �Oh, alright you win, Malfoy!� she exclaimed snappily. �Who did you see die? Was it someone close to you?�
Malfoy watched her with a calculating expression until she began squirming in her seat. �No,� he muttered. The subject was actually quite delicate and personal and one he had never spoken to anyone about before. Now that he was done with teasing the Head Girl, he was forced to accept just how close he would be letting her get if he told her the truth about his ability to see the thestrals. Strangely though, his hesitation was not over whether to tell her but his realisation that he wanted to tell her, and what that meant.
�No, not family. No one I even knew, actually,� he said at last, �It was at Christmas in 6^th year. We had gone to see my father - Lucius -� Hermione couldn�t prevent a gasp of embarrassment and he saw her clap a hand over her mouth as if she now regretted asking the question in the first place, so he pressed on. �My mother wanted to spend some time alone with him, and I was waiting outside. Some of the inmates were exercising, if you could call it that - poor sods, and one of them just decided to make a run for it. Merlin only knows where he thought he could run to, but he just took off, and then there were dementors after him. It wasn�t very pretty, and then I saw the thestrals when I got back here after Christmas break.�
Hermione remained silent for a long time after he had given his succinct tale, and then just when he thought he had opened up his secrets for nothing, she reached across and rested her hand - only for a second - on his knee and said, �I�m sorry, Malfoy. That must have been horrible. I can�t imagine what it must be like to visit a place like that, let alone know that someone you love is stuck there.�
�Well, it�s certainly an efficient way of making you re-evaluate what you want out of life,� Draco muttered quietly, but he knew that she had heard him when she gave another small start. He wondered if he had said too much, too soon, or whether she would even pick up on the massive hint the was throwing out there in to the vast unknown. He wondered if he had completely lost his mind, implying to Hermione Granger of all people, that he was changing his beliefs and allegiances in these troubled times.
She was quiet, as he had expected her to be. He knew that she would want to analyse and dissect every word he had just said for hidden meanings and double crossing before she reacted in any way. He would have been disappointed if she had spoken on it immediately; she would not have been the person he was beginning to believe she was if she had.
Instead, she obliquely skirted the issue by asking to see the guest list Dumbledore had given him. As she examined the names on it, she said without ever looking up from the parchment, � I appreciate that it must be quite difficult for you seeing all the Governors coming to this dinner, and knowing that your father can�t. He used to sit on the Board, didn�t he?�
� He did, Granger,� Malfoy confirmed. �But he made his choices, and we all have to live with them now.�
Hermione nodded. �I disagree with every single thing that your father stands for,� she said finally, �And the same goes for you if you follow in his footsteps, but he is your father, and it wouldn�t be natural if you didn�t care for him and what�s to become of him. I hope this won�t be too painful for you.�
�Thanks, Hermione,� he said, for once exhibiting no sarcasm or contempt, and it didn�t go unnoticed by either of them that he had used her first name.
They both were to admit later, that this was the exact moment at which they both realised that it might become possible to put the first five years of aggression and dislike behind them and move forwards with a new understanding.
For right now, they both lapsed into silence, suddenly embarrassed by their kindness to each other, and not a little disturbed by the forced proximity in the cozy darkened carriage.
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