The Boy of Hermione's Dreams...Literally

"I promise I won't hurt you, I'll give you my wand for proof." A cloaked figure put about 9 ½ inches of wood into Hermione's hand.

"You're crazy! Where are you taking me?" The mysterious boy took her and led her away from the castle. He refused to speak until they got to where he wanted to go; when they reached that destination, he told her to open her eyes. They were in front of the Lake.

"Why did you take me here, of all places?"

"Look!"

"I AM LOOKING!"

"No, really look...what do you see?"

Hermione saw a lake surrounded by impenetrable darkness, save the shining stars that filled the sky. She saw fairies spaced throughout the area, and she saw the moon's reflection off the frigid water. She told him her observations.

He replied, "'Wanna know what I see?"

"What?" He moved her closer to the water so that she could see her mirror image.

"I see an intelligent, gorgeous girl. I see a girl who is so caught up in her academics she forgot how to have fun and let loose. I see a girl with a kind, loving heart. I see a girl who wants the best for herself and her friends; I see a good girl who deserves the best. But, I also see a girl troubled because she isn't sure who she is anymore. I see a girl who is battling with her own emotions, I see a girl who wants somebody to hold her and to love her, I see a girl who is lonely."

Hermione drew in a deep breath of icy air that cut her lungs. Who was this mystifying boy and how did he know so much about her? What right did he have to tell her all of this about herself?

"Who are you?" She questioned, her voice showing no signs of the confusion she felt inside of her heart.

"Shhh..." And he kissed her.

Hermione Granger awoke with a start. Her palms were sweaty and her heart was beating furiously as if she had literally just run from the lake back to her four-post bed. But she knew that wasn't the case, she lifted her fingers and softly touched her lips... She had been having this dream for the past two weeks. It always ended the same; she never found out who this enchanting boy was. The bewildering aspect of these dreams was not that she didn't know who this boy was, but that they felt so real! Every night when she got heaved out of her fantasy world she could still sense the tenderness of this boys kiss lingering on her lips. She could still smell the spicy scent that her mysterious dream lover wore every night. And she could still feel her heart pulsating in her chest the way it did when the boy she knew nothing about embraced her.

She racked her brain and consulted many books for an explanation of what was happening to her. But for once, her vast amount of knowledge and her sacred library failed her. Hermione knew that she couldn't talk to her best friends about it; she could just imagine their response. Ron would feel uncomfortable about the kiss and then get a twinge of jealousy evident in his flushed cheeks. Ron always got upset when Hermione talked about boys, she wrote it off as a protective brotherly role. Harry would be more reasonable, but he still wouldn't know what to think about it, and wouldn't be able to give her any real advice.

Hermione sighed and tried to go back to sleep, but it was no use. She decided to just lay and think. 'The dream boy is right; I am lonely! Lonely in spite of my friends, Lonely in spite of my high marks...' She didn't know what was missing. Sure, she would love to have a boyfriend but that was never a major concern of hers! She lay there contemplating until she eventually drifted off to meet her dream boy again.

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"Hungry, Mudblood?" Draco Malfoy sneered.

"I see your even more malicious this early in the morning, but I do not feel like fighting right now. I'd much rather eat in peace, thank you." It was amazing how Hermione could let Malfoy's remarks roll of her back and not get upset. Only if Ron were that mature.

"Go away ferret boy, and DON'T call Hermione a... you know!" The tall, red headed boy exclaimed.

"Oh! A morning greeting from the weasel! Shouldn't you be enjoying your breakfast as well? I'm sure you not used to such elaborate feasting at home. But it's not your fault your dad doesn't make any money at his mediocre Ministry position! And you, Potty, I heard that the muggles don't feed you either!"

Ron and Harry both jumped up, wands out, until Hermione gave them a death glare and they sat down. Malfoy took this opportunity to slip away, knowing he couldn't take on the dream team without Crabbe and Goyle.

As he was walking towards the Slytherin table, he thought Pity the power that girl has over them... Draco was always one to love the finer things, such as power, beauty, purebloods and wealth. It was a shame that girl was a middle class Mudblood, because she was certainly pretty and powerful.

Back at the Gryffindor table Hermione was shoving down her eggs at top speed, eager to get to the library before her first class; potions. Ginny looked at her in bewilderment but didn't say anything. She knew better than to question Hermione when she got like this.

When she finally made it to the library she had no clue where to look. She tried the muggle section, because she knew of non-magic theories about dreams. When she had no luck there she decided to check into the Divination section, of course first checking to make sure nobody was watching. After Hermione stormed out of Professor Trelawney's class in the third year, dismissing her ridiculous subject while doing so, she would look foolish if anybody saw her. She was checking out titles such as "What You Didn't Learn in Unfogging the Future" by I. Canprophesize and "Omens of Death" by U.R. Doomed when she realized that all of this was rubbish. She turned around silently admitting defeat.

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"Today we will be brewing Pepper Up potions, Now can anyone, besides Ms. Granger, tell me the core ingredients?" So started the double potions with the loathed Professor Snape. "Anybody?" (Hermione raised her hand higher) When Snape realized that nobody except Hermione knew, he allowed her to enlighten them yet gave Gryffindor no house points.

"You will be working in pairs according to highest markings and levels of intelligence. Potter, you will work with Longbottom. And Ms.-Know-It-All Granger, you will work with Draco Malfoy." He finished pairing them up and took 10 points from Gryffindor because of Ron's protest to working with Crabbe.

"How in Merlin's name are Crabbe and I on the same level of intelligence?" Ron muttered under his breath to Harry. Harry, meanwhile, was trying to find a way to work with Neville without him messing up the potion.

Draco attempted conversation; "So Granger, How do you fancy being compared in wit with me? I must admit I have taken to the art of potions very well."

"Malfoy what are you getting at?"

He sighed, "Nothing, just concentrate on the potion."

If only it was that easy. Hermione's mind kept drifting to her recent dream and she kept racking her brain to figure out why it felt so real, and why it perturbed her so.

After Harry and Neville's potion was vanished by Snape, giving them marks of zero and after Crabbe and Ron almost dueled ("10 points from Gryffindor!") Draco and Hermione's potion was complete. Snape could not have said anything bad about it, because it would simply be a lie. They did everything perfect.

At the end of class, Hermione was putting her quill and books back in her bag getting ready to go to Transfiguration when she smelled a very familiar scent. It was... spicy? She looked around, almost everybody left already, she didn't see anything but Harry and Draco exchanging rude remarks and the potions master himself, giving a twisted grin (undoubtedly recalling his school days when he and James Potter used to fight). Hermione shook her head and thought to herself He couldn't be here, nobody in this classroom really knows me...other than Harry? She dismissed the thought at once just for the pure absurdity of it.

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Later that day Hermione found herself wandering down towards the lake when she was supposed to be in Care of Magical Creatures. It wasn't like her to not go to class, but she just had to go to the lake. It was calling her, and she was pulled towards it like a magnet. She took a deep breath. There was no frigid air, no icy feeling in her chest. There was no cloaked boy to blindly lead her. Hermione sat down by a tree and stared out across the lake. She thought about in potions, when she smelled that enticing scent that she could have sworn matched her dream boys. Was it Harry? He did know her, and it wouldn't be out of character for him to sneak out late at night to bring her to the lake.

She decided to tuck that thought in the back of her mind and get up to go to the castle.

Ron Weasley watched her from near Hagrid's hut, wondering why she would skip class. Something has been bothering her lately...I can tell. I am going to find out. Ron had always cared about Hermione, and recently his feelings had been getting stronger.

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Hermione lay in bed that night, once again letting her thoughts rule her mind. She thought about Viktor Krum, her old boyfriend. They broke it off because of the distance between them, yet the distance didn't keep Viktor from intruding her thoughts every once in a while. That was her first and only boyfriend. A silent tear slowly trickled down her profile. The drop wasn't for Viktor; Hermione didn't even like him all that much. She just, as shallow as it sounds, liked having a boyfriend. He was crazy about her and she didn't have a problem with it. She missed having somebody be there. Hermione's thoughts soon became unintelligible as she drifted off into her fantasy world. But this time it was a little different.

"You should know by now I'm not going to do you any harm!" The cloaked figure put about 9 ½ inches of wood into Hermione's hand, so that she would know he couldn't harm her. It was unnecessary though, she knew by know she was safe.

"You're crazy! Where are you taking me?" She found herself asking the same question she always did, although her subconscious knew the answer. The mysterious boy took her and led her away from the castle. They were headed for the lake.

"Why did you take me here, of all places?"

"Look around you!"

"I AMLOOKING!"

"Well, what do you see when you look?"

Hermione saw what she always saw; a lake surrounded by impenetrable darkness, save the shining stars that filled the sky. She saw fairies spaced throughout the area, and she saw the moon's reflection off the frigid water. She told him of this.

He replied, "'Wanna know what I see?"

"What?" She already knew his response. She moved herself closer to the water so that she could see her mirror image.

"I see an intelligent, beautiful girl. I see a girl who can be too caught up in school and can forget how to have fun. I see a girl with a kind, loving heart. I see a girl who wants the best for herself and her friends; I see a girl who deserves the best. But, I also see a girl troubled because she doesn't know why she's alone. I see a girl who for once doesn't know the answer, I see a girl who wants somebody to hold her and to love her, and I see a girl who is lonely. I see a girl who I could make happy if given the chance. See Hermione, I'm lonely too; lonely in the midst of many people."

He never failed to tell her about herself; only this time he added information about himself. Who else is lonely? She wondered. Hermione drew in a deep breath of icy air that cut her lungs. But this time, she was extremely chilly.

"Who are you?" She shivered from the cold, anticipating what she knew was coming next.

"Shhh..." He took off his cloak and wrapped it around her. Before she could look up at his face, he kissed her.

Hermione woke up with the now familiar thumping of her heart, the recognizable spicy scent, and the sensation on her lips. But she also woke up with something else, a cloak.

She immediately sat up and looked around her. I haven't moved from my bed, and nobody's been in here...Hermione gaped down at the cloak she now held in her hand. It smelled like her mystery dream boy, and it gave off the presence of him. It felt like fine, expensive silk. Her heart was pounding and it wasn't from the kiss this time, something real happened. The feeling of uncertainty she was experiencing increasingly often lately flooded through her body. What happened? Hermione lay there mesmerized until she had to get up for breakfast.

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"'Mione, you've been acting very strange lately." Ron, Harry, and Ginny decided to finally confront their friend about what's been going on recently.

"I'm sorry! I've had a lot on my mind, with-er- school work and S.P.E.W and stuff."

Harry and Ginny left it at that, but they knew she wasn't being completely honest. However, Ron was growing more worried by the day; maybe she was losing interest in them? He hoped that wasn't the case... after all he did plan to ask her to the 7^th year ball. Hermione is all Ron ever wanted. He even dreamed about her!

Hermione didn't want to be questioned so she was oh-so thankful when it was time for classes to start for Slytherins and Gryffindors. As the lot of students were heading for the door she could have sworn she heard a "--I seemed to have lost my new cloak last night-- " She whipped around to see who had made the claim but the only boys she saw were Flint, the Creevey brothers, Seamus, Dean, Malfoy and his accomplices and... Harry. Once again, Harry was there when something relating to her dream occurred. Maybe it was him!

She didn't realize she had been standing still until an unwanted remark was made from a nasty Slytherin:
"Get out of my way Granger," drawled Malfoy. Seemingly in an even worse mood than usual.

She was too content to retaliate; Hermione may have found her dream boy at last! She rushed up to the girl's dormitory, to get one last look at the cloak before class. She was sure it was Harry's. After all, hadn't he said it was new? Well, Hermione had never seen him wear it! She took it out from under her bed. It didn't look any different in the light, nor smell any different. She grinned to herself not noticing a small dragon emblem against the dark green color. Hermione shoved the cloak in her bag with her books and headed of to class.

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Ron thought to himself, "Hermione is late!" First, she missed class, now she is late? He couldn't figure out for the life of him what was troubling his friend. Or--he beamed--potentially more than a friend.

Hermione came into class at that very moment, looking very pleased with herself.

Ron was happy that she looked so satisfied but was curious as to why all of the sudden?

For the first time ever, Hermione Granger didn't take notes in Professor Binns' History of Magic class.

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Hermione was sitting in the common room very late that night doing her homework when she suddenly got the urge to go for a stroll. She decided to take her books with her and find a lighted area on the castle grounds to finish her work. She snuck out of the common room, which had been eerily quiet and most often deserted since Fred and George left the school. She didn't have to answer to anybody, not even Ginny.

When she got out of the castle, she realized how nippy it was out and was cursing herself for not dressing more adequately for the weather when she realized she did have the cloak. She pulled it out of her bag and wrapped it around her.

It wasn't 5 minutes later that she realized she was inadvertently headed straight for the lake. When she got there, she was admiring the fairies and the way the moon painted such an exquisite picture against the water when she heard stirring behind her. She turned around expectantly, knowing whom she was going to see there.

"That's my cloak..."

She apprehensively looked up and saw none other than...Draco Malfoy! Yet, instead of the smirk that was usually on his face, she saw a genuine smile. For the first time Hermione noticed how good he smelled, and saw the solitude in his deep gray eyes.

She was perplexed, "What? But, how could it be..."

He kissed her, and she understood. And they weren't alone anymore.