Halloween Mix-Up

Halloween Mix-Up

by: Tassana Burrfoot







Chapter Sixteen: Friendships





"Could you had me a bread roll?" Ron asked as they sat at the dinner table.



Hermione reached over and grabbed a roll from the platter before handing it to him. She then returned her attention to the book she was reading.



Ron just shook his head. "I don\'t think I\'ll ever understand you. Here you are, magnificant feast before you, and you\'re busy reading a book," he commented before taking a huge bite out of the bread.



She rolled her eyes. "I\'m not that hungry," she admitted. "Besides, I want to make sure I understand Professor Snape\'s assignment."



"Understand? Hermione, you know he\'s going to give you an Outstanding," the boy assured her . "You could probably turn in a blank piece of parchment and he\'d still score you high."



She slammed the book closed and glared at him. "It\'s not like that, Ron, and you bloody well know it! If anything, he grades my papers harder because of what you say! I will not have it going around that he favours me, for any reason," she told him.



He just shrugged. "All I\'m saying..."



"Just drop it," Harry interrupted. "Hermione is right. She doesn\'t need any rumours spreading about."



"Too late for that, mate," Seamus pointed out. "In case you haven\'t notice, there\'s already rumours about her. Sixth year and she\'s got her own apartment? Some think she might be carrying a wee one."



"What?!" Hermione demanded, staring at the Irish boy in shock.



Seamus nodded. "That\'s only one rumour, love. There are plenty more. Snape\'s been nice to you, the teachers stand off from you. Oh, and you\'ve got a certain Slytherin Prince constantly by your side. Just the other day I had to set a bloke straight who thought Snape might be the father," he informed her. "Nearly broke my fist, he did."



Hermione blinked. Her? Pregnant? Hell no! She and Dumbledore had taken extra precautions to ensure that that sort of thing would not happen while she was in school. "You don\'t think that gang has anything to do with this?" she asked, concerned.



All three boys shook their head, though it was Harry who answered, "Even if they were looking for a way to \'get even\', they\'re not stupid enough to do anything to get themselves expelled or sent to Azkaban."



"You know they all got Howlers from their parents? Draco told me about it earlier. Had the entire Slytherin Common Room blasting from the noise," Ron said with a laugh. "He actually did a pretty good rendition of it... Harry\'s right. As dumb as Crabbe and Goyle might be, even they aren\'t dumb enough to step out of line."



"Your secret is safe," Seamus assured her. "But, someone is spreading rumours."



Ron cracked a half smile as he threw an arm around Hermione\'s shoulders. "Probably some jealous girl or git. Can\'t understand how she\'s getting all the attention while they get none. Though, to me, the reasoning behind it is obvious."



Hermione didn\'t know what was worse: learning about these rumours or having Ron gently stroke her arm. It had been two weeks since the ordeal with the Slytherin boys. Since then, things have slowly changed.



She could tell that Harry, Ron, and Seamus were trying to control themselves, for her sake. Neither of the boys had yet to sleep with her. It was getting harder for them. Slip ups, like at this moment, with Ron holding her, starting popping up more often and in the most inappropriate places.



She appreciated their chivalry, but she wished they would just get it over with. Waiting for them to crack was worse then watching grass grow. Much longer and she would be scared to sleep with them. Scared of whether or not they would hurt her.



She excused herself and quickly left the table. She wanted to study, she needed to study. And apparently, she wouldn\'t be able to do so at the diner table. Trouble was, she was having a hard time studying anywhere.



Draco and Snape both spent loads of time in her apartment. Snape would allow her to help him grade papers, until their grading ended up in kissing, touching, and finally having sex. And then, they would spend the rest of their time in each others\' arms talking about... well, anything.



Draco was a bit the opposite, but also the same. He would come into her apartment to study. The studying would lead to them talking, either discussing the subject or whatever else was on their minds. That would then lead to kissing, touching, and sex. They would fall asleep in her bed, exhausted from love making.



Every free moment she had, Hermione devoted it to her studies. Whether or not the teachers would be lenient on her, she didn\'t want it. She wanted to do her best and strive to be the best at what she did. It wasn\'t enough for her to get an "Outstanding." She wanted to do better than Outstanding.



Hermione muttered the password to her room and went inside. She plopped onto the couch and sighed. "Why can\'t I just lead a normal life like every other witch?" she asked the fireplace in frustration.



Of course, she knew it did no good. The fireplace wouldn\'t answer her back. Not unless there was someone on the other side, and her fireplace wasn\'t connected to the Floo Network.



She felt the drain on her friendships and her school work. She hadn\'t talked to Ginny in Merlin knew how long. In fact, she couldn\'t remember the last time she had spoken with any of her female friends. She wasn\'t even sure she had any left.



As for her school work? That was a joke, for the most part. Yes, she still made perfect grades, but she didn\'t feel as... into it as she used to. She used to be so enthused about school work and perfecting her grades beyond what was necessary. Now she just wanted to get it over and done with.



A knock at her door startled her. She knew they couldn\'t get in without her approval. It was an ingenious idea she had come up with with Dumbledore.



It wasn\'t enough to just have a password. Sure, the password kept unwanted invaders out. But, what if she was in the middle of something with one of her beaus? That wouldn\'t exactly be a pleasant experience! Especially considering how private Snape is...



In order for the person to speak the password, Hermione had to "grant them permission." This meant, she would have to first wave her wand in the direction of the door and say "Enter." Then, if the person was trustworthy, they could speak the password and enter into her quarters. It was simple, but effective.



Sighing, she waved her wand and granted the visitor permission to enter. She did not look up to see who it was, for there were only so many who had her password. She kept her gaze focused on the hearth, waiting for her visitor to speak.



"I hope we didn\'t upset you back there," Seamus said as he took a seat in the armchair across from her.



Hermione casted him a sidelong glance. It was about bloody time! She shook her head. "No, you didn\'t," she assured him. "It\'s just been a long day."



"Long day or long month?" he pried, with a small smile that almost looked like a grimace.



The girl couldn\'t help but smile. "Long month," she readily changed her comment. "Definitely a long month. Sadly, it\'s only going to get longer as the months pass on."



"Yes, but there is some hope," he reassured. "Soon it\'ll be Valentine\'s Day. Your true love will be known, this curse will be lifted, and everything can go as it once was."



"As it once was?" she questioned.



She turned her full attention on him. He had reclined in his chair, but even from the small distance, she could tell he was struggling. He wanted her. Badly.



And who was to say that Seamus wasn\'t her true love? He had all the qualities to be so. He was very much the Gryffindor and had a lot in common with her, for the most part.



She disagreed with him, however, "It will never be \'as it once was,\' Seamus. My two best friends want me in a way that I am uncomfortable with. Even after the curse is lifted, the memory of this will still be there. As time passes, our friendship will become strained and a bit embarrassing. No matter how much life goes by, one never forgets passion."



He raised an eyebrow as he moved forward to rest his elbows on his knees. "So, you mean to say that you don\'t believe a friendship could survive this? I\'ve never thought of you as a pessimist, Hermione. Surely even you know that the bonds of friendship are strong enough to weather just about anything," he pried.



She shrugged. "I don\'t know. It all seems so... hopeless."



He shook his head and moved to join her on the couch. "Don\'t ever talk like that," he told her. "No matter how hard it may seem, nothing is hopeless as long as you believe. Everything will work out as it should, I promise. And while you may be correct about passion, perhaps you are wrong about the memory of it."



She glanced at him curiously. "What do you mean?"



He gave her a half smile. "Let\'s say you and Ron were to sleep together and it\'s found that he is not your true love. All that shows is the passion you shared in bed wasn\'t one of intimate love. It\'s something else. Perhaps it\'s the friendship you feel for one another. The two of you are such passionate friends, that that passion is able to draw itself out to help the two of you through this difficult time. There\'s nothing to be embarrassed about. No reason to strain yourselves. The fact is, he loves you so much, whether it\'s true love or not, that he wants to be with you. And you love him so much that, regardless of the outcome, you are willing to sacrifice yourself to give him what he needs."



"And what does he need?" she found herself asking, while watching, mesmerized by his lips as they slowly moved closer to hers.



"His sanity," he told her before he pressed his lips against hers.



The conversation was lost as he pulled her closer to him to give her a more passionate kiss. As his tongue slipped inside her mouth to explore, his hands began exploring her body.



Immediately, she could tell he had never done anything like this before. His hands were shaky, uncertain. His tongue and lips moved in an effort to please her, and yet were curious about it all.



Breaking the kiss, she smiled at him. She placed both her hands on his face, one on either side, and pressed her lips to his again. To her pleasure, he relented to her.



Hermione had never been in a dominating position before. Severus and Draco were both very dominate in bed, and did not allow for anything but a submissive counterpart. This was a nice change.



With experienced hands, Hermione unbuttoned Seamus\' shirt and pushed it from his shoulders. She then pressed him to the couch, nearly laughing in delight when he willingly laid back. Oh, she was going to enjoy this!



Her hands trailed over his bare bod as she sighed into his mouth. She was pleased when she felt him start to mimic her touches. With her help, he had managed to unbutton her blouse and send it to the floor.



It was a moment of exploration, and Hermione gladly allowed the Irish boy to explore. She slipped off her bra and shivered as he drew imaginary lines along her breasts with his fingers. She watched his face as he stared at her mounds in unabashed hunger. She could feel his erection pressed against her thigh and knew it would have to be soon. But, she wanted to enjoy this small time they had.



"Seamus? Have you ever been with a girl before?" she asked, though she probably already knew the answer.



He blushed as his eyes traveled up her bod to meet hers. His answer was husky, "No. Is that bad?"



She shook her head. "Not at all," she told him, her smile widening. "Actually, I like the idea."



He returned her smile as his cheeks returned to their normal colour. She kissed him again as she unbuckled his trousers. Then, to his amazement, she straddled him and, hitching up her skirt, Vanished her undergarments. Freeing his cock from it\'s enclosure, she wasted no time in slipping it into another enclosure... one he liked.



She was warm, and wet, and tight. She was everything he had ever heard of what a woman should be. And Seamus knew it was a woman, not a girl, atop him. A woman experienced in the art of lovemaking. He loved the way she felt upon him, the way she rode him like an experienced jockey.



It was his first, Seamus had admitted. His first with everything, save for kissing. He was pleasantly surprised at what he found. The way she moved, the way she felt. It was an incredible experience for him and he relished in it.



As she began moving faster, pounding on him harder, Seamus could not keep his eyes open. He couldn\'t watch her, for his mind was too far gone into the feel of her. She was like a drug that was coursing through his body. He could see the red of the explosion that was ready to come as he began bucking along with her thrusts. He couldn\'t keep up. It was too much. Then, everything was white. Ecstasy poured over him like rain and he panted as he emptied his seed into her.



He felt her convulse around his cock and he opened his eyes to look up at her. She was moaning loudly. Her head was thrown back, her hands planted firmly into his chest. He watched in amazement as she cried out her orgasm.



Then, she collapsed onto him, their sweat mingling with each other. A soft smile crept upon his face as he felt himself start to drift off to sleep. "Thank you, Hermione," he whispered before slumber took him.