If You Go Down To The Woods Today

Gaps of Misery: Oh, thank you for saying that. Although it does make it sound like a computer game, huh? Bella Snape has made the level rise from three to four; lol! And yeah, naïve and idiotic Hermione doesn’t sit to well with me either, she might be insecure but she is not naïve. And, yep, she certainly does need a more challenging and intelligent man than Ronald Weasley. Oh, btw, I have actually grown to like Ron; so don’t hit me if there are certain scenes that come up with him in them.



BuffyXO: Yes, Hermione is going to be a LOT more active in this story than she is in the others. There might be scenes I have hinted at in my other stories that might come into fruition in this one, as it seems to be fairly appropriate to this story. I hope you enjoy the drama in this one. Oh, and as for McGonnagall and Dumbledore – might I refer you to Riddle Her This, it’s a Hermione/Tom Riddle one, with a young Minerva and Albus in it... email bellasnape1@yahoo.co.uk okay, and I’ll give you the link.



Dee Dee: Yep, there could be a very angry Blaise, but read this chapter to find out what Blaise feels – slightly. As for the detention; well, not this chapter but I’d say two chapters ahead. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. As for jealous females, watch out for a particular one.



Angel: Nope, it can’t be good can it? Wonder exactly how Lucius would take to that? I think you’ll sort of see in this next chapter.



Wolf: Lol! Either you haven’t read the books or you don’t like Zabini... Blaise is definitely a Slytherin and I like him... so apart from that, do you like the story?



EmmyloveDraco: Thank you and here’s an update.



Koppe: Thank you for all those wonderings. I wonder to what Ginny’s reaction is going to be, and when you read this chapter you’ll probably wonder even more! As to Harry/Ginny, and Hermione/Lucius having accidents – well, possibly... I think we can wait a bit for them – if I decide to do that. I hope you continue to review after this chapter.



BuckyKattGirl: Hmm, well I have a theory about Blaise, and that might make it into this story. Anyway, I happen to like Slytherins so there! I am going to put Blaise in a story if I can, as I like him. The other options were either Terry Boot of Ravenclaw or Gregory Goyle... now you see why I chose Blaise. And don’t worry; Luscious will make another appearance soon, I promise.



Michiko: Here is the update. I am glad you like the story.



Luciana_Malfoy83: Zabini vs Lucius? Yep, the gloves are off and it’s round one... but do you think Lucius is going to take that lying down? Hmm, not sure! And you should wait for what I’ve got in store for detention... as for the one single florid movement of the wrist... yes, very sinister, hey! I hope that you like the action in this chapter.

Let the Games Begin



Hermione was musing over the possibilities of how she could play Professor Malfoy up to the max. She liked the idea of pushing all his buttons. She also liked the idea of using Blaise Zabini. Although, she mused, that was not a very good idea. Using Slytherins were fine by her but she couldn’t help but think it took great guts for Blaise to ask her out in front of his mates, even if it was smarmily done. She shook her head, the day she began to feel sympathy for a Slytherin was the day she’d die. She walked down to the Great Hall the next morning with a smile on her face and a new confidence in her stride.



Instead of heading straight to the Gryffindor table though, she made her way to the Slytherin table. Ron was already sitting at the Gryffindor table, his eyes swung immediately on his ex girlfriend; his jaw was falling on the table. He wished he hadn’t been so weak with Lavender and tried to stick to Hermione now. Hermione tossed her hair to one side and looked at her target. Blaise was sitting there with a confident smirk on his face.



“Hello, Blaise,” she said in a husky voice. The teachers were keeping watch on this turn of events. McGonnagall looked at her prize student beadily, making sure she wasn’t going to get hurt. Lucius Malfoy on the other hand was almost shaking with fury.



Blaise raised an eyebrow and looked at the young woman before him with more than mild interest.



“Hello, Mia,” he replied in a deep voice.



He stood up. He was about six foot tall and he almost towered over her. He was lean she’d give him that; with panther like grace and an absolutely dazzling smile. She stammered:



“I was wondering,” she said. Not aware of how quiet the Great Hall had become. “I was wondering that, as it’s a Hogsmeade Weekend, would you like to spend the day with me on Saturday.”



Everyone was watching and listening with bated breath. This was probably the first time in Hogwarts history that a Gryffindor had actually asked a Slytherin out. Lucius watched the whole scenario with narrowed eyes.



“Of course, Mia, I’ll pick you up here at ten o’clock,” he replied. He stepped up to her and wrapped an arm around her waist and brought her close to his body before claiming her mouth with his. He broke the kiss and looked into her eyes. “I can’t wait.”



He picked up his bag and slapped Goyle on the back. “See you in class, Greg.”



Greg nodded. He looked up and smiled at Hermione. Hermione shrugged her shoulders and smiled back. She made her way to her own table and sat down as if nothing momentous had happened. She tucked into her scrambled eggs and drank her coffee.



“You do realise no one has ever done that before,” Neville said. “No Gryffindor has ever asked a Slytherin out like that.”



Hermione shrugged her shoulders again, and looked at her friend. “So, it’s about time we all got over ourselves and started to at least try to show civility towards each other.”



Ron snorted. “You call that being civil? I call that setting up home.”



“You can call it what you like, Ron, but I am only doing what the Sorting Hat has been urging us to do for the past few years. It’s about time we all became friends.”



“Ron, don’t reply back,” Harry said. “If you do you’ll only give me a headache.”



Hermione shook her head and smirked. She finished her breakfast and pulled herself up. She had to make her way to Arithmancy. She looked over to the Ravenclaw table and saw Terry Boot get up. He walked over to her, and smiled a weak smile.



“Just to make sure no one hurts you,” Terry said. “You did do a very unusual thing today.”



Hermione sighed and rolled her eyes. She didn’t see what all the fuss was about. She walked out of the Great Hall with Terry in tow. Harry gave him a thankful look. They had made the first flight of stairs when Lucius Malfoy confronted them at the top of the stairs.



“Might I have a word with Miss Granger on her own,” he said to Terry. Terry bit his lip but she nodded for him to go ahead. Terry walked a few paces looking back at Hermione every now and then.



“What was that little play about, Hermione?” Lucius whispered.



“Hmm, I could ask the same thing of you yesterday afternoon with the musical chairs routine; Professor,” she said. She was about to walk forward but he sidestepped thus blocking her way. “I’ll be late for Arithmancy.”



“Really,” he sneered. “Perhaps I don’t care about that.”



Hermione sighed and pushed him aside. She was three steps ahead when his cane, being pressed lightly on her shoulder, stopped her.



“You better be careful, princess, or you might end up kissing the frog.”



“I kissed you, what could be worse?” she answered back.



She brushed his cane off her shoulder and stormed off to her Arithmancy.



It’s like that, is it? he asked himself. Well, two can play at that game.



He watched her stride purposefully off to her classroom. He wondered whom he could use to play against her Zabini card. He wondered who at Hogwarts could make Hermione seethe with absolute jealousy. He watched the students pour out of the Great Hall ready to make their last minute dashes to their various classes. He looked at a row of Ravenclaw students. Hmm, no, definitely not; and there was no one in Gryffindor that would suit either. He would rather be fed to a rather hungry school of piranhas than try anything with a Hufflepuff and therefore looked towards his own house.





There wasn’t a single female he felt he could plausibly use to make Hermione jealous. He sighed at the lack of good Witches. He did think briefly of using Miss Weasley; but that wouldn’t have worked, and besides he wasn’t that desperate. He swept his gaze on all the girls there and tutted in dismay. Until his eye fell on Pansy Parkinson. She was a Slytherin, and she was ALMOST Draco’s. Also, it would really annoy Hermione to the enth degree; he knew that.



He smiled at that thought. Pansy Parkinson was rushing up the stairs and in her haste she almost tripped on the stair.



“Allow me,” Lucius said charmingly. He offered her his arm and she blushed as she accepted it.



“Thank you, Professor Malfoy,” she said huskily.



He groaned inwardly. She was pleasing to the eye – but only from a distance. She smiled appreciatively up at him.



“I couldn’t let you fall and break your pretty features now, could I?” he said with a sweet honeyed tone to match the gesture.



Pansy giggled. She straightened herself up properly and looked over at Millicent. The two girls linked arms and Pansy kept glancing back at Lucius. Lucius back was now turned and she couldn’t see the look of revulsion on his face.



“He’s a wonderful piece of Wizard, isn’t he?” she giggled.



“Tell me about it,” Millicent said. “Lucky girl.”



“Oh,” she said haughtily. “I plan on marrying him. I failed with his son.”



She had walked by Hermione when she said that. Hermione was still waiting outside the door for her Professor to turn up.



“I wish you joy of him,” Hermione said sardonically to Pansy.



Pansy turned around and looked in the eyes of the girl that she had always hated, and not just because she was a Mudblood, but for something else.



“Why, want him for yourself?” she asked tartly.



“No,” Hermione said stiffly. “I have my pride.”



Pansy snorted. She looked at the other woman with distaste.



“Goes to show how much you know about men,” Millicent said.



“Say’s a woman who look likes one?” Hermione said tartly.



Millicent opened her big mouth and was about to pound on Hermione when the Professor turned up. Millicent drew back and let Pansy lead her away. Hermione was thankful; she still hadn’t got over the last fight that she had with the girl.



“I’ll get her,” Millicent hissed to Pansy.



Hermione walked into the classroom and Terry sat beside her. She was shaking with the effort of trying to keep her temper. Terry noticed that she looked like she was about to blow up the classroom if she was allowed to.



~*~*~



Professor Malfoy was teaching the sixth years. He carefully avoided looking at Miss Weasley and Mr Creevey. He looked around and decided to teach them some of the basics of Non Verbal magic. He looked at the class and smiled viciously.



“Hello, children, now we will start with a basic first year charm, shall we? Anyone care to volunteer?”



Ginny put her hand up. “I can already do one, sir.”



“Really, and what would that be?” Lucius asked.



Ginny shook her head and lifted her wand up in the air and aimed it at his crotch. The flies spread apart and the class all laughed.



“Very useful if you live in a family of six brothers and you want to shut them up, I can tell you,” she explained in a sweeter than honey voice.



Lucius curled his lip in a snarl and shook his head. “Well, Miss Weasley, I’m sure that it is. But how useful would that spell be in the heat of a battle?” He waved his hand at his crotch and fixed his trousers.



“I think it would be fairly useful, if you’re opponent is male and you need a quick getaway,” she replied. He arched his eyebrow. She was certainly not the timid little Miss he thought she would be in front of him.



Lucius cocked an eyebrow at her. “Well, that’s one demonstration; anyone else care to demonstrate what they know?”



A Slytherin put his hand up and sneered at the Weaslette. He raised his wand and lifted the empty chair up in front of him with his wand.



“Much more impressive, at least Mr Paines has a more useful spell that would be more effective in combat, Miss Weasley.”



Ginny coloured. She looked at the jerk and decided to show him how much else she knew Non-Verbally. She pointed her wand at him from under her desk and set the Bat Bogey hex on him. The class screeched and all dived underneath their desks. Malfoy offered nothing more than a smooth flick of his wand at Mr Paines, and glanced at Ginny.



“That’s detention for you, Miss Weasley, and fifty points off Gryffindor for causing unnecessary havoc in my class.”



She glared at his turned back. He was just like Draco but taller. She looked down at her desk. She heard Hermione’s voice in her head at the thought of Gryffindor losing one hundred points in two days. She shook her head; surely McGonnagall wouldn’t allow this outrage? She looked at her fingers and hands thinking that at least Snape only took five or ten points off maximum.



She sighed; already looking forward to the end of the lesson, and her lunchtime where she could snuggle up to Harry and have him kiss her better. The rest of the lesson passed with not much else happening apart from the basic ins and outs of Non Verbal magic. Ginny was bored by his lecture; he was saying nothing she hadn’t already heard from either Harry, Ron, or Hermione.



The bell rang much to Ginny’s delight and she scrambled her books in her bag and was almost out of the door when a Slytherin pushed her into the wall; Malfoy’s back was turned.



“I’ll get you for that you little blood traitor,” he snarled. “You come from a family of nothings, and you’re a nothing!”



Ginny wasn’t frightened. She looked into the boy’s eyes and kneed him in the balls. He clutched at them, screwing his face in pain.



“Try reproducing after that!” she snarled. She walked off clutching a few books to her chest and swinging her hair behind her. Once out of sight of the classroom she ran to the Great Hall wondering if Harry was already there. She wasn’t disappointed. She ran up to Harry and flung her arms around his neck. He was startled but she started crying. That soon snapped him out of his reverie.



He began stroking her hair and held her to him tightly.



“What’s the matter?” Harry asked.



“He’s horrible, Harry, I thought I could be brave and I tried but as the lesson wore on all my second year flashed before my eyes and looking at him; well, it just reminded me that he had brought me almost to my death. Now he’s put me in detention and taken fifty points off Gryffindor.”



“Why?”



“Because I sent a Non Verbal Bat Bogey hex a Slytherin’s way.”



Harry groaned. “Ginny, why did you do that?”



“Because he was getting on my nerves. I wanted to show Professor Malfoy exactly what I could do,” she breathed on his chest. “Harry, we’re going to have to work extra hard on that Quidditch Game we have coming up in a fortnights time.”



“I know,” he sighed. “Listen, Ginny, if he tries to do anything dodgy, you go straight to McGonnagall.”



Ginny sniffed. “Yeah, Harry, I will.”



“Good.”



The Great Hall was soon filling up with students ready for their lunch. Hermione had come in shortly to see a distressed Ginny. Harry whispered to Hermione what had happened to her in the classroom. Hermione nodded and offered an arm around the girl. She vowed to have words with him.



Hermione glanced up at the Staff table and there he sat as if he owned the school and continued looking at him with an angry glint in her eyes. Lucius looked up and saw her staring at him angrily. He knew that red haired chit must have told half of Gryffindor by now what had happened.



Hermione turned her face away from him and started eating her lunch. Malfoy sneered, and brought his attention back to his egg and bacon quiche. He did glance at her through his eyelashes, though. She was talking animatedly about something.



Another was watching Hermione as well, and that other also noticed her looking at Lucius. Blaise Zabini wasn’t stupid; he knew something was going on between those two, and he wanted to figure it out for himself. He heard Pansy natter on and on about how she would become the second Mrs Malfoy. He had enough and walked over to the Gryffindor table and decided to make his presence known to her. They were now officially dating, and they had also kissed, so that made them boyfriend and girlfriend. He wasn’t going to let his girlfriend look at another man the way she had looked at Lucius.



Lucius watched the show with well-concealed contempt. He was about to get up to leave and prepare for a class of third year Hufflepuff’s and Ravenclaw’s when he felt another pair of eyes burn into his back, he turned around and noticed Pansy looking at him. Oh, Merlin give him strength!



He walked out of the Hall. He was beginning to think of a very interesting detention for Hermione. Once he reached his office he sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. No wonder Snape was the way he was. He had only been here for a day and a half, and he felt like having a nervous breakdown.



He strode over to the desk. He needed her, that’s what it was. He knew that. He had been eyeing her for weeks, and he finally had her. But now she was playing him. He couldn’t believe she was capable of that. He smirked a little at how a little Slytherin in a Gryffindor Muggleborn can actually be a good thing. He only wanted her more.



He sat down and started writing out the three detentions he had already handed out. He wrote Miss Weasley’s first, and then Potters; that one was particularly satisfying to write. He then turned his attention to Hermione Granger. He wrote it well, and he placed it carefully in the envelope.



He whistled for a house elf and one turned up. He cocked his eyebrow at Dobby. Dobby squeaked when he beheld his old Master.



“Have these delivered to the appropriate people, Dobby,” he said. Dobby nodded. He looked at the name on the envelopes and tutted. He knew that as they were his friends he should rightly burn them, but he still feared Lucius Malfoy and the bond between Master and Elf wasn’t easily broken.



Dobby had placed them on the beds of the individuals and shook his head. He couldn’t believe that Miss Granger was put in detention, as she seemed to be the most well behaved girl in the school.



~*~*~



Hermione walked in her bedroom and saw the letter on her bed. She opened it up and gasped in shock at what her letter said.



To Miss Granger



Your detention shall be served Friday night at eight o’clock in the evening: in my office.



The one thing you won’t need during your detention is your school uniform.



Professor Malfoy



“Oh, it’s like that is it?” she fumed angrily to herself in her room.



Ginny burst into the room and held her letter.



“My detention’s with Slughorn,” Ginny said distastefully.



“Mine is with Professor Malfoy,” Hermione said.



Harry ran in to. The trouble with Head Girl rooms was that boys could actually enter them.



“I’ve got a detention with Filch, tonight!” Harry said.



“Lucky you,” Hermione replied. “I wish I could trade places with you.”



“Why, who’s yours with?”



“Malfoy,” Ginny said, “and mine’s with Slughorn.”



Harry looked at them and sighed. He had actually gotten off quite luckily, he thought. He didn’t like Filch but he hated Malfoy and Slughorn more.



Harry placed an arm around Ginny’s shoulders and steered her out of the room. He noticed Hermione looked pale. He knew it, she had always overworked herself, and this was the price she was paying. He looked at his girlfriend and whispered something to her, and she blushed. They both left the room and looked at Hermione once before they closed her door.



When she was alone she fell on her knees and found herself wanting to scream, cry, laugh and shout all at the same time. She looked at his note again and scowled at it. She crumpled it up viciously in her hands and threw it at the bin. It landed squarely in the middle and she went to her bed.



How could she have been so stupid as to allow herself to become his lover? Now, he feels that he has a claim on her. She should have known that playing the Zabini card was going to be dangerous. She turned around and stared out of the window and didn’t know when it was she had fallen asleep.



A/N – Well, there you go. Lucius has ordered Hermione not to wear her school uniform for detention, he’s also going to play the Parkinson card against her Zabini card, and they are going to be fighting to the death. Ginny hates his guts and is slightly scared of him and madly in love with Harry and Blaise does have an inkling of what might have happened between Lucius and Hermione and he isn’t going to take it sitting down... phew! I think I need a lie down!