Dramione

10* Midnight Picnic

The next day, he got up early. He had spent Friday evening studying with Hermione for the O.W.L.'s and Saturday had been devoted to preparing that evening's date. It was time to do his homework. If it weren't for Crabbe and Goyle, he would have missed breakfast, he had gotten so absorbed in it. He even brought his textbook with him to the Great Hall and forced himself to glue his eyes to the page.

Draco finished the last line of his essay with a flourish. He sighed in relief, and packed up his books. He walked the familiar path to the tapestry on the second floor and disappeared behind it. He found Hermione there, in the archway where they had begun meeting once they had begun dating. She smiled brightly at him, and reached into her bag for the invisibility cloak. She tugged it over his head, and for a moment he could see the small specks of green in her eyes, and she could see the dark gray ring around his irises. They both blushed and turned away. Under the cloak, Draco led her to the dungeons. She wanted to ask where they were going, but since they weren't sure if there were any enchantments placed on the walls, she didn't dare. Near the Hufflepuff dormitories, Draco ducked out from beneath the cloak and entered the kitchens while Hermione waited for him in the corridor. He returned with a wicker basket, and Hermione couldn't help but beam. Draco held a finger to his lips as he ducked under the cloak with her again. She took hold of his hand as they made their way outside the castle.

Once at the shore of the lake, Draco enchanted the cloak to hang in midair behind them facing the castle. Then he laid out the red blanket while Hermione shook with joy.

"A midnight picnic by the lake? Oh Draco..." She couldn't help herself.

He smiled at her. "I won't be able to see you all summer. I wanted to do something special before that." And before I have to say goodbye to you forever. A new voice in his head whispered. He winced at his own conscious' words, and sat down on the blanket. "Here's a pasta salad." He said placing a bowl on the blanket. "And something called brosketta. Dobby said it was a good idea."

Hermione laughed and sat down. "Bruschetta." She corrected him. "Dobby helped you?" She asked. Her stomach twisted to think of him ordering poor Dobby around again.

"Well, only a tad." He lied. "He saw what a hopeless case I was in the kitchens and volunteered to assist me." He brandished a bowl of fresh fruit. "I made it all the muggle way. Or mostly."

"Did you really?" Hermione asked bewildered. Draco spooned some of the pasta salad onto her plate.

"I did really." He answered. "It's not easy, is it? Sorry if anything tastes a little funny. I didn't even know you needed water in order to make pasta." He shook his head. "But I learned a lot from Dobby yesterday."

Hermione took a bit of the salad. "It's fantastic Draco." She said. "Really." She suddenly looked down at her plate. "Really this is good. How is this so good?" She asked taking another bite.

Draco laughed. "I have no idea. Dobby said I did well with pasta. But it was so easy." He took a bite of his own pasta. "But you're right, this is good."

Hermione took a piece of bruschetta and bit into it. "Wow, this too. Draco, perhaps you have a natural knack for cooking."

"Thanks. I think. But it's a bit of a useless trick for a wizard, isn't it?" He said, taking a piece of bruschetta for himself. "Oh, I also brought this." He said, pulling a glass bottle of sparkling pumpkin juice out of the basket.

"Do you have goblets?" She asked. His face fell. "No worries." She swept her wand over two nearby stones, which transfigured into two long glass goblets.

"You're brilliant Hermione." Draco said filling their goblets.

"Likewise." She replied.

Draco held his glass up. "To us."

Hermione joined him. "To us!" They clinked glasses and drank. "Oh." She inhaled quickly as she stared out at the lake. The moonlight shimmered above them and the dark water of the lake reflected the stars and cast the grounds around them in a hazy dream like light. Draco watched her take it in. She had come to Hogwarts for five years, but it had never seemed this beautiful before. Her eyes sparkled with the reflected stars in the lake.

This is the moment. He thought. I should kiss her. He shook his head. I can't. That would only make it deeper. And I have to end it eventually. Sooner rather than later. I shouldn't. Father would never approve. He frowned. His father had nothing to do with this. His father had taught him that creatures like Dobby were unworthy of even a name. That they existed to be beaten into subordination, or even just for fun. And the best part of kissing Granger is that father would detest it.

He looked away from her. No. That's not the right reason. He looked back at her. She was lost in thought. He couldn't read her expression. But he could see the intelligence in her eyes, and the slight pink in her cheeks that told of her innocence. I want to kiss her because I love her. He realized. His subconscious knew that he had to end their relationship soon, and it kept finding ways to distance him from her, from his own feelings. But just for one night, he decided to set all of that aside. His father, his subconscious, everything.

He reached his hand out towards Hermione. She turned when she felt his hand brush her hair behind her shoulder. Something kept her from speaking. Draco brought his hand under her chin and pressed his lips to hers. Hermione's eyes fluttered closed as she realized what was happening. And she willingly gave Draco her first kiss. He raised his other hand to cup her chin as they deepened the kiss. Hermione brought one hand up to his neck, and with the other, she ran her fingers through his white blond hair. His fingers got trapped easily in her brown hair but he simply disentangled them and kept on.

When they finally broke apart, it was only long enough for Hermione to gulp in breath, and for Draco to whisper "I love you." against her lips. Then he claimed them a second time.

Draco happened to notice a flash of light. He pulled away quickly, becoming alert. He pressed a finger to her lips and pointed towards where he saw the light. She nodded and looked over her shoulder. The unmistakeable sway of Mr. Filch's lantern was casting long rays of light on the grass just around the corner of the castle.

The couple waved their wands and swished everything into the basket as carefully as they could. Hermione magically folded the red blanket while Draco carefully released his charm from the invisibility cloak. They huddled underneath it, Draco keeping a protective arm around Hermione's shoulders, and bolted from the lake.