36. Chapter 36: Draco

Ack, multy-ficcing is a lot harder than I'd initially thought... x.x Good thing its the holidays, otherwise I'd probably never get this done in time before you guys start throwing random unhygienic objects at me. XD Too bad there's only one more week to go before school starts... T.T And with school naturally comes homework, meaning I'll have even less time than I do now to write my fics.

Most likely I'll put S U R V I V O R on the backbench for a little while, because it needs reference anyway and you guys are probably used to me hardly ever updating that. Sweet and Sour will continue, mostly because I have the next couple of chapters typed out, which should last me until the next break, during which I will be writing like crazy. And of course, all this leaves more time for my main fanfiction...

& so here is...

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10 Ways to Kill Draco Malfoy

Chapter 36

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DRACO

It's a beautiful day today.

The birds are singing their hearts out; the cicadas are chirping from their many hiding spots and the sky is completely blue. Not a trace of cloud can be seen for miles on end, and the sun shines down from directly above us.

All in all, it's basically another boring day, and it hasn't been made any better by another boring lesson that I am currently suffering through. I sigh and flick a ball of parchment at the back of Blaise's head.

He spins around almost immediately and I try my best to keep my face straight, nearly losing control of my expression when he glances around wildly like an idiot. Professor McGonagall notices his frantic movements and fixes her glare on him. "Mr Zabini! Stop wriggling in your seat and pay attention," she barks at him. He quickly turns back and gives her a sugar-coated smile. When she faces the other way he does the finger to her back. A second later a small paperweight flies into his face, which makes Blaise yelp in pain and fling it away.

The offending paperweight then soars, as if in slow motion, towards the rest of the class. It bounces off the heads of Pansy, Goyle and a couple of others. Immediately shrieks of pain (from Pansy, of course) and grunts of protest (from Goyle) fill the room. McGonagall looks up, realizing quickly that using a solid object to punish a student isn't exactly the best idea due to the fact that it can be thrown around - especially a paperweight with a bouncing charm on it.

Suddenly, the shrieks get much louder. I look around and see a huge rat running around squeaking at the heels of all the girls. Some idiot must have transfigured it as a joke. Soon girls are screaming their heads off and jumping around, clinging to each other and wimpering. The boys try to snatch the creature, resulting in several heads being bumped on the edge of desks and even one guy who gets knocked out cold. Only a few of us are still sitting calmly at our desks, including me. I stifle a yawn as the Professor shouts loudly for everyone to get back to their seats, and for the silly person who transfigured it to own up. Obviously no one did, and I snicker as I watch the havoc that resulted from just one little bit of parchment.

By the end of the period, none of us had learned enough about the spell Opaludum - which confused the victim - to put into an essay. It also seemed as though the look McGonagall sent me when she announced our homework was more venomous than the one she gave everyone else. Or it might have just been my imagination. Well, not that it matters much, I muse as I head towards the common room. She already dislikes me enough as it is. One more little incident won't make a difference. I say the password and head inside, sprinting to my dormitory as fast as I can and dumping my Transfiguration books on my desk. Then I run back out and crash right into someone with long brown hair.

Hermione, I think and quickly grab her to help her up. "Sorry, Her- oh."

The girl standing in front of me blushes and lowers her eyes. "U-u-um... sorry! I'm really sorry!"

"It's OK," I mutter, picking up my books. Now that I look at her, she looks nothing like Hermione except for the hair. How could I have mistaken her? Or maybe I was just thinking about her too much. Lately we hadn't been able to go out very much, and she seems to be spending a lot of time with Weasley - probably patching up their friendship from the last time she was angry at him. But still... it would be good if we could get together more often. I sigh. It was startling and a little scary how she was infiltrating my thoughts all day, every day. Sure, there had been plenty of pretty girls that'd had me hooked at the beginning, but none that had lasted long. Certainly not this long.

During Potions, Snape gives us a surprisingly simple tough concoction to make. I squint at the board and sigh when I read the instructions: 'Put in sliced leeches and stir precisely 67 degrees counter-clockwise, then 549 degrees clockwise'. What the fuck? I estimate 65 degrees and stir, hoping it would be close enough. By the muttered protests from the people around me, I wasn't the only one having trouble. Snape glides over to me. "A little more clockwise, Draco," he says through the corner of his mouth so that only I could hear. I smirk and thank him by inclining my head in a neck-only bow, and do as he says.

At the end of the lesson, only my potion had the right consistency and the color was close to the lime green that was said on the board. Goyle's had turned horribly pink and spat out sparks whenever it was moved, while Millicent Bulstrode's had set like cement in her cauldron. When Snape sees my potion, the corner of his mouth curls up and he mutters something about 'being around Granger' and 'increase intelligence'. I pretend to ignore him and stalk out, nevertheless amused by his comment.

Snape's still as mean as ever towards Hermione, but he seems to think that she has a positive influence on me. I smirk at the thought. So what am I doing? Influencing her negatively with my charm and dropping her IQ by taking up so much of her study time with snogging? Actually, I wouldn't be surprised if that was really the case...

As I pass a gaggle of 6th years, I unwittingly catch snippets of their conversation:

"... heard something about Hermione Granger... Weasley doing some kind of dare... turned pretty ugly..."

"... really?"

"... yeah, he, like, snogged her or something..."

"... my God! Teeheehee... that's so romantic! Taking advantage of a dare like that..."

"... likes her or something, otherwise he wouldn't do that - I mean, they're best friends! Come on..."

"... true, but I can't believe he was dumb enough to do it in front of everyone..."

Something screeches in my brain and I resist the urge to turn back and interrogate the girls for more information. What was going on? Hermione and Ron? Was this true? The urge to go back and threaten the girls for more info grew stronger and I nearly stopped, but I calmed myself down and thought about things logically.

Anyway, I'd heard enough. It was plenty for me to know what was going on with those two.

I can't believe she would do that kind of thing, though. Hermione never struck me as a cheating type... which means it must have been Ron who made the move, not her. The thought made my blood boil and I started to imagine all sorts of ways that I could murder him. Skin him alive, piece by piece? Making him drink a ton of water and then forcing him on a see-saw until the water moving inside his gut made him explode? Dunk him in hot oil, then cold water, and then hot oil again?

By the time I reach the Slytherin common room I have thought up 257 ways to make him die horribly. Some were similar to each other but all of them were satisfying, even to fantasize. Occasionally I would get carried away and bang the table or make a peeling motion along with sound effects, which earned scared looks from the people around me. By the time I stopped myself the room had become a lot less populated from when I came in.

All through my afternoon lessons I feel like some kind of bird in a cage. I want to smash up Weasley yet I can't exactly just walk casually out of my class and into his class, beat him up and then stroll calmly back to my classroom. I mean, how would I explain my bloody knuckles and the small sprays of blood on my clothes? In the end, the only satisfying lesson is Histroy of Magic, where I take out my parchment and quill, and instead of writing down notes (which pretty much nobody bothered to do anyway) I draw some gory cartoons depicting me holding various sharp objects and poking Weasley with them. Of course, I end up being sent outside for disturbing the class with my evil, maniacal laughter.

At dinner, Pansy plagues me in her usual annoying manner, although oddly tonight she seems a bit more intent on arguing with Blaise than cooing over me. Not that I'm complaining, but it's just weird. Normally Pansy and Blaise get along pretty well, but at the moment they look more like a couple who have been married far too long than good friends.

I really wonder what they're arguing about. But they're turned away from me and the noise of the other people clacking their cutlery on their dishes drown most of the conversation out. "Shut up! Stop banging the plates!" I yell at one point. The thought of Hermione and that Weasel kissing are filling up my head, making me even more unable to stand the noise than usual. Everyone around me looks frightened and immediately stop their clacking. "Thank you," I mutter, and spoon some mashed potato into my mouth.

I decide eventually that rumors were just rumors. I wouldn't assume anything or do anything to anyone until I got solid evidence that something was indeed up between those two. I should have spent more time with her, I think regretfully. Since Weasley's always at her side, maybe she felt lonely and took comfort in him... or whatever.

I shake my head firmly. My imagination was starting to run wild all over again.

That night, I opt for an earlier bedtime rather than try to finish my homework. My heart just wasn't in it. I could scribble some rubbish and hand it in to the professors, but it would probably get me an F. I never did develop much of a talent for speed-writing essays.

After about 5 minutes of tossing and turning, I get up and take a drink from the pitcher at my bedside.

Another 5 minutes later, I try lying on my stomach and smothering myself in my pillow. It proved to be rather uncomfortable.

Yet another 5 minutes later, I can't stand the insomnia anymore and decide to go out for a walk. Maybe it would tire me into falling asleep when I got back.

Now, where is the most tiresome place I can go to around here?

Instant answer: Astronomy Tower.

From my knowledge and experience, the stairs are bound to make me dog-tired as soon as I get up to the top; walking down again will be just a guarantee that I would start snoring as soon as I crawled to my bed. Not that I snored, of course. Malfoys don't snore unless they are forced to, due to the fact that everyone in the family gets their tonsils removed quite early in their life. Snoring is for uncivilised brats like... oh, say... Weasley?

I navigate my way to the tower, avoiding the ghosts and trying not to alert Filch or Peeves (who would bring Filch, which basically means the two options are the same). It was harder than it seemed, because the ghosts kept popping out of walls from right in front of me. It took a lot of self-control - possibly more than I had exerted in a looooong time - to not yell out in shock and surprise, especially when they dove right through you.

The climb was horrible, as expected. By the time I got to the top I was wheezing. I'd never really ascended all 1379 steps of the tower in one go, and I wasn't used to this much stair-climbing. I walked at a snail's pace and sat down on the telescope platform, leaning against the telescope stand while huffing and puffing.

I feel like going to sleep already.

After half an hour of dozing out here in the open, the cold evening breeze starts to get to me and I shiver. "Better get back," I mumble to myself, yawning and rubbing my arms to keep warm. The moment I stand up, I hear footsteps from behind me. I freeze. Could Filch have climbed all the way up here to catch me? No, I doubt it; Filch isn't exactly the fittest person in the castle, and it isn't likely that he can make it up this far without collapsing.

But there is a chance that he saw me go up somehow and is waiting at the bottom for me to come back down. I turn pale. Suddenly coming up to the tower doesn't seem like such a novel idea after all. I bite my lip and kick the telescope stand.

"Whoa, calm down," someone says in an amused voice behind me. I whirl around and see Hermione standing there with her hands on her hips, a grin on her face. I look closer and notice that the grin doesn't seem quite natural. "What a coincidence. Great minds think alike, don't they?" She notices me staring. "What are you looking at?" she asks playfully, leaning down to tweak my nose affectionately and plant a warm kiss on my lips.

I shake my head as she sits down. "It's nothing. You just look a little stressed, that's all."

Her mask slips a little and I see a sad look fleetingly cross her features. Instinctively I put my arm around her and she leans towards me, sighing. "You're more perceptive than ever, Draco. But it's nothing big, just a little something I have to settle with a certain someone." She spits out the word venomously, and I am taken aback. If I was right in guessing who it is that she's going to settle things with, I would definitely not expect her tone to be like so.

"Is it one of your friends?" I ask innocently. Her head turns sharply, confirming my thoughts. "Ah, I guessed as much. Who's bothering you, Hermione? Tell me. I'll settle things for you with Mr Fist here." I wave my hand in front of her face and she giggles.

"I don't really think I want you to help me, in that case," she says, grinning. "I'd rather they not end up in the Hospital Wing with several broken limbs. I know how you can get carried away with you get into scuffles, Draco."

I poke my tongue out at her. "Guilty as charged." She laughs but doesn't say anything. I make a lightning-fast decision and decide to ask her about those rumors I heard. It's going to be hard to confront her, but I'm not used to feelings of betrayal and it's getting hard to keep a lid on my emotions. Before, it was always me who occasionally cheated on my girlfriend but I had never had the same done to me. It wasn't something I was proud of but I always took it in my stride and never really looked back on it.

God, how had things become so twisted all of a sudden?

"Hermione," I began cautiously.

She turned her brown eyes towards me. "Yes?"

I rub my temples slowly. "OK, I'm just going to say this. Lately I've heard rumors about something going on between you and Weasley. Apparently it was during some kind of game. I don't want to sound like I'm smothering your social life but..." I sigh. "Someone kissing you is just overstepping the line."

Judging by the paleness of her complexion, I've probably hit the mark. So the rumors are true then. An unpleasant feeling settles and makes itself at home in my gut, and a small wave of anger washes over me. "I-I... Draco, I have to explain this to you. It was nothing, just a mistake. I'm sure Ron didn't mean it."

Yeah right, I think sarcastically. Weasley had made his feelings clear more than once, but Hermione had never really took notice or just didn't see him that way. It was obvious her feelings for him were platonic because she made the decision to go out with me. It wasn't like I blackmailed her or forced her in any way. And yet, that fucking idiot still doesn't see what's right in front of him and give up his crush on her. I mean, she even agreed to go out with me in front of his stupid face. What would it take for him to realize that Hermione doesn't like him?

She belongs to me. And he is certainly not taking her away.

I stare at her. She fidgets and her face is pink. "W-well... OK, it started with Lavender. She invited me to play some game where someone dares random people in the group to do something. In one of the dares it happened to involve Ron and me, and things started to get a bit hectic..." I raise an eyebrow and motion for her to go on. She does so reluctantly. "And he... um, well... I suppose I have to admit he did kiss me. But I'm sure he... he didn't mean to. After all, the dare was for him to transfer a sweet to me by mouth. It's a little hard to avoid lip contact in that kind of situation."

Jealousy rears its ugly head inside my mind. I wave it away, wanting to stay rational for at least a few more moments. "But why did you accept the dare if you knew what it involved? Couldn't you have backed out or something?" I know I am questioning her into a corner, but I can't help it. I have to know the details, or I might go mad.

"Draco... I was caught up in the game. It didn't occur to me that I should back out, or even that I could back out. All I thought about was keeping up the fun for everyone else." She lowers her head, but not before I see tears glinting on her face. "I'm sorry, Draco. It's all my fault."

I grab her chin and force her to look at me. "It's not your fault. It's Weasley's. I don't care what you think, but I'm going to make his life a living hell until he begs forgiveness. It's what he deserves, the bastard." Cupping her face in my hands, I kiss her deeply but she doesn't respond.

Her eyes are wide and she jerks away from me. "Draco! You're not going to hurt one of my best friends, no matter what he's done! OK, he's done some pretty weird stuff and I know that in your eyes they're infuriating, but I won't allow you to do anything to him. You two have already fought enough in the past years to last a lifetime. And that's only the fights that I witnessed." She turns her best glare on full-force, and starts to stand up.

I tug on her wrist and pull her back down, pushing her against the cold, stone ground of the tower stand. I see a trace of fear in her eyes, but there's also an unmistakeable look of anticipation mingled with surprise in there. "Hermione. You're not going anywhere until I'm done with you," I hiss. My hands slowly unbutton my own shirt and I take it off, seeing the look of shock and sudden realization on her face.

"No! Draco, I order you to let me go this instant!" she yells, flailing her arms and trying to kick me off her. I pin her wrists to the ground and look right into her frightened eyes. "I'm not that kind of girl," she breathes, fixing me with another glare. "I'm not going to do anything here with you. So you might as well give up now."

Shaking my head, I peck her on the eyelid and smile down at her. "I'm not going to do that," I say. Then I sigh. "It's been hard on you, with all that trouble between you and Ron. I know I've caused you a lot of stress, especially between your friends. And I'm sorry for that." She looks surprised, and her eyes rapidly lose their frightened edge. "I've been a bad boyfriend, maybe. I haven't taken you out every possible moment and I haven't spent all my free time with you. I spend time with other girls - just kidding!" I chuckle, seeing the indignant and shocked look on her face - "But I've done what I can. I'm not a natural 'perfect' boyfriend. We've probably spent more time snogging when we're together than anything else... however," I pause for dramatic effect, grinning at the expectant look on her face. "I do genuinely care about you."

"Draco..." she says softly, putting her arms around my neck and pulling me close. "I'm really, honestly happy about what you said and I'm not going to see it as a 'I want to do the magic 3-letter word beginning with s' speech." She smiles. "But I guess this is what it's going to become, isn't it?"

I smirk. "As usual, you're perfectly right." I lean down and kiss her all over her face, pausing only to stop at certain places to lick her skin. Slowly and gently I move my mouth down from her chin to her neck, and eventually to her collarbone. Her top soon becomes an obstacle and I lift my hands from where they had imprisoned her wrists. As my fingers move to undo her buttons, I lean down and whisper in her ear,

"I'm going to make every single inch of you forget that bloody Weasel. I promise."

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I do not write sex scenes, so you'll have to make do with this. :D

This chapter wasn't that long, but I hope you enjoyed it. I wanted you readers to actually read an update rather than have me think up more things to make the scrollbar smaller. Ehehehe...