After the punch

12. "It's just, you."

After hours of preparations Hermione was waiting outside the oak doors with Viktor. She was a little bit anxious about the big reveal, but when Viktor and some of the other Durmstrang students had complimented her enthusiastically in English and Bulgarian, her confidence had returned.

The doors opened and Hermione and Viktor made their way into the Entrance Hall, she saw some people gaping at her and some whispered her name in confusion.

As soon as Hermione walked by Draco's jaw fell to the floor. She didn't look like the bushy haired bookworm, who clearly needed some more sleep judging by the dark circles under her eyes. She looked absolutely flawless. The periwinkle-blue of her dress matched perfectly with her hair colour and her new perfect teeth made her smile so perfect that he would become a Gryffindor just to earn it.

He watched as Hermione glided over the floor to McGonagall and then she began to dance. She wasn't clumsy or graceless. She moved smoothly, making her dress twirl swiftly. He realised that he was actually jealous of Krum. Krum was her polar opposite. Dancing was clearly not his strongest point as he was quite stiff. Draco would've done anything to show him he could be a better dance partner for her. However, he was quickly pulled onto the dance floor by Pansy.

He tried to keep his eye on Hermione, but soon noticed that he was not the only one watching intently. Weasley looked almost mad and plenty of boys were eyeing her with the same feeling he had, he was sure of it.

After the dance, the students were told to take a seat for dinner. He sat with his usual group, but his eye was focussed on the table reserved for the champions and their dates. Hermione and Krum were having a lively conversation, even Krum seemed to talk a lot. And Hermione was listening closely. At one point it seemed like she was trying to teach him how to pronounce her name, which was quite a funny scene.

Soon the Weird Sisters began to play their music and all the students began to dance. Pansy definitely knew how to move her body, but Draco couldn't help but look over at Hermione who was dancing to her heart's content with a big smile on her face. At least until she took a break to sit with her friends. Draco couldn't catch much of the conversation but he thought he had heard Ron yell 'Viktor' and 'enemy' and eventually Hermione stormed off.

Draco felt the strange urge to go after her and so he told Pansy that he had to go to the bathroom. He wasn't sure where Hermione would have gone but he thought the grounds and the library were a solid bet. He decided to go to the grounds first. The rose gardens did look especially nice that night.

He walked through the front doors and scanned the area. She was nowhere to be found, so he made his way to the third floor to check the library. The library was dark and empty, but her blue dress stood out. He walked up to her and she turned to look at him, tears in her eyes.

"Piss off, Malfoy." She said with a sniffle, "I've had enough crap for one night."

"They say beauty is pain, but I never imagined it like this." His expression softened. She let out a chuckle and used a spell to let her tears evaporate before they could stream down her face. "I'm only letting you know this because you're crying, but you really did look beautiful tonight, you know."

Hermione looked up, trying to stifle the tears. "I'm not in the mood for jokes, Malfoy." She said.

"Good, because neither am I. Tomorrow I'll go back to bullying you, but for tonight you look great." He gave her an awkward apologetic smile.

"Thanks" She sighed.

"Was Weasley a prick?" He asked

She looked up at him. "Pretty much, he thinks I'm fraternising with the enemy."