A/N: Ok, so ya, it's been a while. But that's what sucks about being a teen; you never really get to decide what you will do and when you will do it. (Hint: I MIGHT be a little pissed at my parents) BUT: I am back. Finally

A/N: Ok, so ya, it's a pretty boring chapter. And I'm not proud of it, but its the only way I can give you the set up for the story.

BUT!!!!

the next one involves a shirtless Draco! YAAAAY!!!

….Thank you to my lovely reviewers


Chapter 4: Negotiations End

Two and a half hours later, as the clock in the adjourning room struck three in the morning, Hermione sat alone in the dark kitchen with the painstakingly formulated contract before her. Always being one to take on responsibility, she had told Tonks and Moody that she would be happy to send off the parchment for McGonagall's approval.

As she looked down at the contract, she remembered the seemingly endless two and a half hours of arguing that had taken place just to agree on the somewhat loose terms of it. Malfoy was disrespectful and cruel to the elder Aurors, despite the fact that they held his life in their hands. He really was such a stupid little boy. Hermione eventually had to be the one to referee the immature dispute and ensure that it at least moved in the right direction. It seemed as if Malfoy had responded to her better than to the other, wiser members of the Order; probably because he was familiar with her and he assumed he could have better control. Well, he was utterly wrong. She had of course out-Slytherined the Slytherin and had a rather nicely arranged contract sitting before her, ready to be sent to the head of the Order of the Phoenix to be sealed in unbreakable magic. 'Score one for the mudblood,' she thought snidely.

Still, she had to admit, there was something so eerie about seeing her neat signature beside Malfoy's disgustingly elegant scrawl. It looked as if she actually trusted the nasty little git. He was supposed to be a spy according to the paper. 'Please,' she thought, 'Snape was a spy and looked how lovely that had turned out.'

Regardless of her own doubts though, she stood and headed towards the pot of red powder. The Order had created their own floo network after the Death Eaters had started their infiltration of the Ministry. It was only a matter of time before the bastards also infiltrated their network. Thinking this, as she tossed the powder and then the parchment into the flames, she made a mental note to keep Malfoy away from the stuff. As she watched the contract spin faster and faster into nothingness, she began to think of all the other things she would have to keep away from Malfoy.

Well, first and foremost, Harry. Losing Dumbledore had been terrible for him, more so than anyone else. Dumbledore had been his hero, his teacher, and even like his father. Hermione knew that he had so needed all three of those. She was certain that watching him die had been completely unbearable for her sweet friend. His reaction to it had proved it. Running after Snape and Malfoy had been the most rash, irresponsible, illogical response to such a situation imaginable. So of course, it was the very thing Harry had done. Hermione loved that about him though. When he had told her and Ron about the night, she could see all of his hurt and rage in each tear he shed. But more importantly, she could see the love and the courage that was causing those tears in his eyes. That was why she loved Harry so much. He had the most honest, beautiful eyes imaginable. She could always see what he was thinking and feeling. And it was always love and courage. He would do anything to protect the ones he loved, possibly even kill. Hell, he nearly did tonight. So step 1: Keep Malfoy away from Harry.

She continued that thought by concluding he would also need to be kept far away from Ron. Well, maybe. Ron had been so very frustrating lately. She wanted a boyfriend. She wanted a sweet, funny, loyal bloke to hold her, kiss her, rub her, and touch her and to make her shake and… well, other naughty things. Was that really so much to ask? She was nearly eighteen years old. Ron was acting like a twelve year old. They had had some really sweet moments over the summer, like when she laid her head on his shoulder at Dumbledore's funeral, and when he told her she looked so pretty earlier today at Bill's wedding. She just wished he would grab her, drag her to his room and snog the daylights out of her. Was that really so much to ask? Apparently, because he had yet to do one physical thing to show that he liked her. Remembering Malfoy's earlier comment concerning her apparel, she blushed and sat at the table, fuming. She hated it when the cruel things he said were true. She had deliberately dressed provocatively tonight after everyone had gone to bed, hoping that Ron would take a bloody hint. All he had done though was stutter a pathetic goodnight and run off to bed. She had then been so upset she couldn't sleep so she had buried herself in her horcrux research, which had now gotten her in charge of Malfoy. Of course, Ron had once again ruined everything. It was completely his fault she had yet another responsibility. At least it wasn't Harry's anymore though.

Now that she thought about it, she realized neither of the boys would really have been capable of dealing with Malfoy. They were just too… male. Malfoy wasn't the normal bully. Ron was used to older brothers shoving him around and Harry had dealt with his obnoxious cousin for years. But Malfoy, Hermione smiled, Malfoy fought like a girl. He was vicious and cruel and made casual remarks that sliced like a knife. He could make a person cry without raising a finger. As much as Hermione hated to admit it, Ron was a very easy target for a boy like Malfoy. In fact, for six years he had easily hit Ron's sensitive buttons precisely and effectively every time. She remembered in their second year when Malfoy had gotten him so upset he had accidentally jinxed himself. So step 2: Keep Malfoy away from Ron.

She looked up to see the fire suddenly turn bright red again as two pieces of tattered parchment came spinning into view. One was the contract – the magic now complete with McGonagall's signature – and the other was a small note with the professor's neat script written on it.

Dear Miss Granger,

I owe you a great deal for all of your help this evening. I know this should not be your responsibility and I can assure you that everyone staying at the Burrow will also be watching Mr. Malfoy closely. However, judging by the incredibly beneficial terms of the contract you sent me, it is clear that you seem to have more control over the boy than anyone else in the Order does. I can only imagine why. I am not asking you to take full responsibility for Mr. Malfoy while he stays with us, but I would ask that you continue with the help you have given thus far. Have a lovely day.

Yours Sincerely,

Minerva McGonagall

Well bloody fantastic. Now she really had to keep an eye on him. She was going to anyways of course, but now it was practically demanded. She immediately pulled out a spare piece of parchment and a quill and began making a to-do list for everything that needed to be done before she slept.

Mrs. Weasley would be waking in about two hours and she needed to be filled in about the Death Eater now living in her home.

Then, Hermione needed to make sure everyone knew that agreement so that Malfoy would be safe. She quickly scribbled through this last one and placed it at the bottom of the parchment. It could wait, she figured.

Then she really ought to go speak with him directly and make sure he understood just who was watching whom here. Actually, that one would be last, she decided.

The list was about half a foot long when a soft voice interrupted her thoughts. She looked up to see the soft, sweet, tired eyes of her favorite DADA teacher ever: Remus Lupin. "What are you doing up still? Dora came to bed half an hour ago."

"O," Hermione giggled, "I was doing some work for the Order and I still have quite a bit left to do." She then began to ramble off what she had on the list thus far. She always seemed to ramble around Professor Lupin. She really needed to stop. She had gotten about half way through her agenda though when she noticed he was chuckling at her.

"Hermione, go to bed this instant. You are not the sole caregiver in this house. Frankly, I think Molly would be horrified if you tried to usurp her position. You are seventeen years old and you need to let the old and useless people handle the silly business like this."

Hermione was quite offended by these words. Here McGonagall had just asked her – nay ordered her – to handle things and Lupin starts treating her like a silly child.

"Thank you for your concern, sir," she began curtly. "However, Professor McGonagall asked me to take care of the situation. Clearly, she is unaware of my tender youth though. Perhaps you should speak with her."

He looked at the note she held out for him and considered it carefully for a few moments. After reading it thoroughly, he looked up and smiled warmly. God, Tonks was one lucky witch.

"Hermione, I don't mean to insult you. I just want you to know that you do not have to deal with this all alone," he stated simply and sweetly. There was something really kind about his words even if he was taking away her responsibility, which she loved so dearly. "Now go to bed dear. I'll take over for tonight, and then you can jump right back into control in the morning."

She begrudgingly stumbled from her chair and began to leave the room, barely remembering to thank him for his 'kindness.' She supposed it would be better if she got some sleep, but certainly no more than three or four hours. As she began to ascend the stairs, it occurred to her that she should still go talk to Malfoy. After all, McGonagall herself had said that she had more control over him than anyone else did. It was therefore her responsibility to make sure he understood the rules. Not to mention, his room was right next to hers.


A/N: as always, please review, Its the only way I can determine whether or not I should continue or just leave it to die in failure...

Also, it might take a while for the next update as well. Life's kinda in a hole right now. A really really dark, nasty hole.