Author note: Thank you for taking the time to check out this short Dramione piece! I'm guessing it'll be four, possibly five parts, and I've already got the storyline almost entirely developed, so it should go quickly. I'll be posting this in between chapters of Between the Pages, which is much longer if you're looking for a slower, more emotionally charged fic.

Enjoy! And feel free to reach out with reviews and messages :)

Chapter 1

Mr. Malfoy,

Ms. Granger will not be in today. Please make the appropriate accommodations within your department.

Thank you,

Administration

Draco stared down at the small memo as it flapped and fluttered under the two fingers that he had holding it down. It struggled for another moment before settling down and straightening out its creases.

He sat back and ran a hand through his hair, muttering to himself.

"Well. What to do now?"

Not that he didn't know what to do - Granger was more than caught up on her paperwork, so he wouldn't have to worry about that. But they'd been taking shifts on the Moonwart potion, specifically because they couldn't trust the small team of Ministry employees working under them to complete each step effectively.

Which meant that he'd be skipping lunch, skipping the late meeting he'd scheduled with the patent office...

Draco's arm shot out and the memo was crushed in his tight grip.

"Really, Granger?"

He'd never admit it, but after four years of working together, he had a habit of speaking to Granger as if she was in the room with him. It helped him order and prioritize his thoughts.

And in four years, she'd never once called out of a day of work. So he didn't even want to consider what could possibly have gone wrong.

Draco glanced at the clock, trying to re-order his entire day as a small part of his mind worried about his colleague. Finding it an unacceptable expenditure of emotion, the rest of his brain quashed it.

Two days later

At exactly 7:45 a.m. sharp, the office door opened and Hermione stumbled in, grimacing as her ankle rocked in a heel. She didn't even glance his way, but headed toward her desk and put down the tea and to-go bag she'd been carrying. Then, without turning to face him, she slung her bag onto her desk and started unpacking a ridiculous number of books. I mean, really. Who needed to bring so many books to work, when there was a perfectly functional library on the seventh floor?

Draco waited patiently with his quill still poised above the patent documents that he hadn't been able to finish in her absence. He was annoyed and worried all at once. Especially when she turned around.

He'd been ready to give her what for, but paused with his mouth open. Granger's hair was pulled up into a sensible bun and she wore her usual professional clothes; sheer tights, a skirt, a cream coloured blouse. But her face was splotchy and there was no hint of makeup, today. Probably because she'd very obviously been crying.

"Do I want to know?" he asked flatly.

Granger shook her head no and walked around the desk, sitting down heavily.

Now they faced one another. He looked down at the patent paperwork, then up once more at her ragged face. And then his quill began scratching away again.

"Ron broke up with me."

The quill stopped.

Her voice was rough and it made him squirm uncomfortably in his chair to realize that she must've really cried it out. Over the Weasel? he chided internally, but it wasn't something he'd say out loud until he'd navigated this situation. And this Granger, this mess of a woman slumped in her chair, wasn't someone he had dealt with before.

"I'm assuming that's why you've been out the last two days then?" he asked, feeling like an idiot as soon as the words left his mouth.

Granger, apparently too tired to bust his balls, just nodded and brought a tissue up to her nose.

"Yes. And to think - I wasn't even thinking about Valentine's day, you know, I've never been one for romantic holidays, and he seemed in such a hurry to end it all before then -"

Her eyes widened as she met his gaze. "Do you think...do you think it was just to be rid of me before the holiday, or because he had someone else in mind?"

He could see the tell-tale glistening beginning at the corners of her eyes and bit back a groan. Draco hated emotional women. It was why his sex life had all but dried up over the last seven months; he just couldn't be bothered with their anger or self-pity. And here was Granger - Granger! - falling to pieces in their office.

"Granger, I would be entirely surprised if Weasel ever found another person on this earth who was attracted to him. I'm still baffled as to how he managed to keep you for as long as he did."

Well, he must have said something right, because the panic on her face eased just a bit and she sniffed lightly. "Thank you," she all but whispered, and he ignored it for both their sakes, going back to his paperwork.

When he didn't hear Granger start in on any of her daily tasks, which included writing out a meticulous schedule in half-hour increments, he glanced up at her. She seemed to be suspended between the decision to continue moping or to begin the day.

Draco gave her a sharp chuck of his chin and a hard gaze, and she nodded back, leaning forward to sort out her desk.