I was floating.

"Rory, are you listening?"

I blinked. Cedric was waving a hand in front of my face.

"Sure, sorry - you were saying something about breakfast?" I said, stumbling around in my head, trying to remember what Cedric had been talking about exactly. I'm sure he had mentioned an egg.

"The clue!" He chortled as I gave a giant yawn. "Keep up, sleepyhead. Is that carriage of yours not very comfortable?"

The truth was I had barely slept at all. Draco and I had sat up in the Astronomy Tower all night, exchanging kisses and touches, just revelling in being together and having no one trying to keep us apart.

It had gone two o'clock in the morning by the time Draco had insisted on walking me back to the carriage as my head kept lolling sleepily onto his shoulder.

"I'd stay all night here with you if I could," he had assured me through my protests. "But look, you're freezing and you need to sleep in a proper bed."

It was true, it wasn't exactly warm up in the Astronomy Tower - and even with Draco's jacket and the small ball of fire he had conjured up for us to sit by, my teeth were still chattering furiously as we huddled together.

But today was a new day, and I was sat at the Hufflepuff table looking anxiously up at the Slytherins, wondering if a certain white-blond boy was going to make an appearance.

It was lunchtime - everybody had slept in over breakfast due to recovering from the Yule Ball.

Fleur had crept into the carriage long after I had returned, waking me up as she stumbled and giggled her way to bed. As I had peered out of the window I could see a boy who certainly did not look like Roger Davies swaggering away.

"So, you were saying about the egg?" I prompted, wanting to stay away from the topic of last night before Cedric asked any awkward questions. "I thought you'd already worked out how it works?"

"Yes I have, but as I was saying, do you think I should tell Harry? He did help me out with the first task, after all."

I shrugged my shoulders, glancing back up to the Slytherin table. He still wasn't there.

"Sure, it would be nice to return the favour." I mumbled distractedly.

"But it's cheating though," Cedric agonised, "and I'm worried it could get me in trouble."

I sighed, turning my attention fully back on my brother. Cedric was always such a stickler for the rules.

"Harry didn't get in trouble for helping you, though," I reassured him, "and this isn't exactly the same, you are not telling him what the clue means - just how to hear it."

"Yeah," Cedric nodded, "yeah, you're right. I'll go tell him now."

Clattering his knife and fork down on his empty plate, Cedric stood up and wandered over to the Gryffindor table where Harry was sat with Ron and Hermione, all three of them looking rather gloomy.

I felt a pang of guilt at having ditched Harry the previous evening, but it soon dissipated when I recalled how vile he had been to Draco.

"I thought he was never going to leave."

My heart raced at the familiar drawling tones. I looked up over my shoulder to see Draco stood behind me, his silver grey eyes glinting down into mine.

"Where did you come from?" I asked, looking bemusedly back over to the Slytherin table.

"I had a late breakfast," he chuckled, "I was waiting for you out in the Entrance Hall, but judging by the amount of times you keep glancing over at the Slytherin table, I guess you've been waiting for me, too."

I felt heat rise instantly to my cheeks, cursing myself inwardly for getting so easily flustered around him.

"You know, you get these cute little dimples whenever you blush," he grinned, causing the flaming in my cheeks to intensify.

"I'm not blushing," I said, trying to steady my racing heart by concentrating on placing my knife and fork neatly upon my empty plate. "Someone must have cranked the heating up."

I cringed as he let out a soft, throaty chuckle. "Sure, Aurora. That must be it."

"You said you were waiting for me?" I reminded him, trying to change the subject.

"I just wanted to know if you fancied hanging out together?" He shrugged noncommittally. "You know, maybe taking a walk or something?"

My heart thudded crazily in my chest. Draco was asking me out on a date. And despite what we had shared the previous evening, I was suddenly horrendously nervous.

"Uh - yeah, sure..." I answered, glancing up anxiously in Cedric's direction, who was still talking to Harry at the Gryffindor table.

"Worried big brother won't approve of you hanging out with a Malfoy?" Draco smirked having noticed my hesitation.

"No, actually," I lied, irritation biting at me, "I just noticed that Pansy's heading this way."

Draco's face filled with panic as he whirled around, looking fearfully behind him.

It was my turn to smirk. "You know, you get these cute little worry lines whenever you are terrified of being seen by a certain fourteen year girl."

I stood up, amusedly watching his face flood with relief when he realised Pansy was nowhere to be seen.

"That was cruel," he muttered, following me out of the hall.

"It was worth it to see the look on your face," I grinned, "seriously, Draco, can't you just tell Pansy that you're not interested? Is she really that scary?"

"Yes!" He hissed, glancing up warily at a crowd of Slytherin girls who had just ascended the dungeon stairway into the Entrance Hall. "I'd quite like to see another day... especially if you're in it."

I halted in my tracks, staring up at him. My heart immediately started pounding against my ribcage.

"That was sweet," I said, my breath quickening under his intense, burning gaze. The air charged with electricity.

I suddenly wanted to touch him, to put my arms around him, to run my fingers along his lips.

"It's true, Aurora," he murmured softly, leaning in and reaching out a hand to softly graze the back of his fingers down my cheek, "I couldn't wait to see you today. And I already can't wait to see you again tomorrow."

I melted under his touch, sighing as my body sang out for him. Every inch of me tingling, yearning, wanting him.

I couldn't speak, instead I allowed him to take my hand in his, to lead me away from the Entrance Hall and up the marble staircase.

"Where are we going?" I asked, breathless with anticipation as we practically flew down another corridor.

"Somewhere where we can be alone," he growled, clutching my hand tightly in his.

He stopped suddenly, pushing open a door on our right, and pulled me through, before slamming it shut behind us.

"What is-"

But I never got to finish my sentence as Draco roughly pulled me to him, connecting his lips immediately to mine. His hands were in my hair, on my back; stroking, groping every part of me he could find as our kiss intensified, our lips attacking the other, our tongues wanting to get in on the action as their tips darted hesitantly against each other.

I didn't have to think as my body responded naturally to him, as if it had been made and designed especially for this very moment, especially for Draco.

We pulled apart, panting, pressing our foreheads together as we tried to steady our breathing. Draco's arm tightened around my waist, looking down at me as he cupped my face in his hand, tenderly stroking his thumb softly against my cheek.

"I'm sorry," he murmured huskily, "that's all I've been thinking about since the moment I left you last night."

"Me too," I confessed, laughing softly as I melted into his arms.

We spent the rest of the afternoon in that empty classroom. Kissing: touching; talking; laughing.

We came back the following day, and the day after that - sitting out the remainder of the Christmas holidays together.

All thoughts of the world outside our temporary hideout forgotten about: Cedric, Pansy, the Triwizard Tournament.

Draco and I had created our own little world. One that contained just him and me.

And it was perfect.