It might look reckless, but that wasn't really the case. Perhaps Pansy had noticed something. Or maybe she wanted to remind someone not to forget the agreement between them. That was why she couldn't wait, choosing a moment when all three of them were present to say something that might very well change the dynamic between them…
As for choosing a dance partner, Draco hadn't given it much thought before. He simply wasn't the romantic type, nor did he enjoy the spotlight the way Lockhart did once he put on a mask. More importantly, with the Dark Lord looming as a threat, Draco had no spare energy for something so trivial. If he really had to open the dance as a champion, the most likely outcome was that he'd grab the nearest witch and muddle through it. As for who that witch would be, it would come down to whoever happened to be closest to him at the time…
But ever since Hermione had flipped certain switches atop the Astronomy Tower, Draco found his attention drifting toward these "small matters."
And naturally, with Pansy failing to make a move and Hermione acting even later than her, Draco's first choice was obvious. It was Hermione, the one who had been sneaking out night after night to practice dancing with him.
Speaking of those late-night outings, both Draco and Hermione seemed to enjoy them far more than they let on. Even though Hermione had long since mastered partner dancing, neither of them showed any intention of stopping. Without ever saying it out loud, they continued this strange sort of rendezvous.
As for how long it had been going on?
Just look at the dark circles under Hermione's eyes, so deep that even magic couldn't fully hide them, and recall that shocking moment when she actually nodded off in A History of Magic. That told the whole story.
What puzzled Draco, though, was that whenever he brought up the subject of dance partners, that stubborn little thing would immediately change the subject, dodging it as if she were deliberately avoiding the issue. At first, he'd assumed it was just shyness. But now, it didn't seem that simple.
Because when Pansy made it clear she wanted to… wanted to be his dance partner, Hermione's sudden silence immediately put Draco on guard.
He didn't believe for a second that Hermione had missed the implication in Pansy's words. After all, the fingers gripping his had tightened so hard they'd gone pale.
And yet, despite that, this clever witch who usually argued with Pansy at every turn behaved as if she hadn't heard a thing, showing no intention of stepping in at all.
"Draco, are you even listening to me?!"
"...."
He turned his head to glance at Pansy, who was poking his waist with her finger, then looked at Hermione. She had turned her head away, but her small hand was still resting against his side.
Draco's expression twisted oddly, then slowly shifted into one of realization.
"You two… don't tell me you made some kind of deal behind my back?"
The moment the words left his mouth, the expressions on the two girls' faces stiffened noticeably.
Pansy, who always seemed especially meek around Draco, panicked and waved her hands.
"Huh?! W-what are you talking about? I… I don't understand at all!"
"That just makes it even more suspicious…"
"Heh."
Watching Pansy try to laugh it off with a silly grin, Draco shook his head in helpless amusement.
He had no idea what kind of agreement the two of them had made without telling him, but knowing he wouldn't get a straight answer anyway, he decided not to press the matter further.
Of course, between Hermione's slightly unnatural expression and her earlier reactions, Draco had already more or less guessed what was going on…
...
As if trying to change the subject, Hermione, looking a little guilty, pulled several sheets of paper out from beneath her robes and spread them open in the warm winter sunlight.
"What's this?"
"The Daily Prophet. Today's issue."
Draco didn't know why Hermione would be carrying The Daily Prophet around, but he caught a hint of a smile in her pretty eyes. It stirred his curiosity about what she was up to.
Her gaze was angled toward Pansy, who had already leaned over, craning her neck to look.
Following her line of sight, Draco turned his attention to the paper.
It was an article. More accurately, a feature that took up an enormous amount of space, accompanied by a black-and-white photograph of Harry Potter holding up the House Cup.
The witch who wrote it was no stranger to any of them. Her name was Rita Skeeter.
[I believe my parents gave me strength. I know that if they could see me now, they would be immensely proud of me… Yes, sometimes at night I still cry for them, and I don't think there's any shame in admitting that… I know nothing in the tournament can truly hurt me, because they are watching over me from somewhere beyond.]
That sort of self-encouraging reflection wasn't the important part. What mattered was what came next.
"What on earth is this woman writing?!"
An outraged shriek rang out beside him.
Before Draco could finish reading, the paper was snatched straight out of his hands. Pansy stared at it with wide, beautiful eyes, as if checking again and again to make sure she hadn't misread the name or mistaken the subject.
After reading it several times in a row, she finally clenched her teeth, forced to accept that everything written there was real.
In short, the article went into painstaking detail about Harry Potter's life and upbringing. Under Rita Skeeter's pen, every aspect of Harry Potter was laid bare, exposed to the entire world without reservation.
And yet, in an article that should have had nothing to do with her at all, Pansy's name appeared near the end.
Because Pansy had been "fortunate" enough to become the female lead in the story.
More precisely, Pansy was described as Harry Potter's first love, with an entire section devoted to portraying this so-called first romance.
No wonder Pansy had been furious enough to tear The Daily Prophet to shreds.
Hermione blinked as she watched Pansy seething. The smile in her eyes only became more obvious.
With her curved brows and bright eyes, Hermione looked almost teasingly pleased.
Who ever said Hermione only knew how to bury herself in books? She clearly had a mischievous streak too.
As Pansy stomped on the torn remains of the newspaper, a light voice drifted to her ears.
"First love~"
Hermione's offhand murmur was enough to make Pansy's already foul mood turn even darker, especially with the earlier dance partner incident still fresh in her mind.
"Granger!!"
"Ahem, you've misunderstood. I wasn't trying to make fun of you…" Hermione said, before letting out an involuntary snort of laughter.
"Hermione Granger!!!"
Grinding her teeth, Pansy didn't hesitate for a second before pulling out her wand. The look on her face made it seem as though she was ready to duel to the death, which sent a guilty Hermione breaking into a cold sweat as she hurriedly hid behind Draco.
Ever since Draco had confiscated her wand, she knew full well she was no match for Pansy's Transfiguration spells.
While the two girls glared at each other from opposite sides of him, Draco noticed something about the article that felt off.
"You two… how do you think she found all this out?"
His question made Pansy pause mid-thought, just as she was deciding how to deal with Rita Skeeter and Hermione. At the same time, Hermione's eyes lit up as she turned toward him.
"…Of course you'd notice."
"Notice what? What are you talking about?"
"Don't you see it yet? How Miss Rita Skeeter knew every little thing Harry Potter does at school."
Grades, favorite foods, close friends, even the recent invitation to Pansy to be his dance partner. Some of it could have been learned from other people, but many of the details were things Harry Potter himself might not even have consciously noticed. Yet all of it had been written down in the article.
Pansy wasn't stupid. With Hermione's reminder, she quickly caught on to the inconsistencies and the underlying problem.
"This… so that's why you…"
"If I remember correctly, The Daily Prophet has a very close relationship with the Ministry of Magic, doesn't it? Then what about this reporter, Rita Skeeter?"
Hermione's question made both Draco and Pansy turn serious.
There was no need to think long about it. The answer was obvious.
So was this Miss Skeeter acting on her own initiative, or was she being directed by the Ministry of Magic?
And was the information she had obtained limited to Harry Potter's school life alone?
More importantly, how had she managed such long-term, detailed, almost constant surveillance in the first place?
...