I pulled away from Draco, a rush of feelings flowing through me. "This is getting out of hand." I mumbled in-between kisses.

"Whatever...do you mean?" he asked.

"Well...people...could be starting to...suspect me...of something...Okay, hold on, I need to breathe." I gasped as my lungs protested.

Draco laughed and looked at me with a smile, melting my heart. "What are people suspecting you of? It couldn't be that you're seeing the Prince of Slytherins in secret. That would be totally ridiculous."

I laughed, too, and leaned back against the wall of the broom cupboard. "No, they're just wondering where I go off to. And you know Hermione is scolding me about skipping classes. I mean, I love her to death, but I think she needs to calm down. I'm a big girl now, I can handle-" I was cut off as he leaned forward and placed his lips on mine, a sure sign that I'd begun babbling. I blushed as he pulled away. "Sorry."

"It's okay," he said gently, brushing my hair out of my face. "I think it's adorable."

I giggled like a little schoolgirl and looked at him. "So what about you? Anything new?"

I expected a quick, "Oh, nothing much," or "McGonnagal keeps making her essays longer, I swear," but I was met with silence. It only lasted about two seconds, but it was enough to tell me something was out of place.

"No, nothing new." he said just a moment too late.

"Draco," I said suspiciously. "Is everything alright?"

"What?" he asked, chuckling nervously. "Why would anything be wrong?"

"You seem like you're hiding something." I said, narrowing my eyes. "Are you?"

"No," he said, his voice a higher pitch than usual. "No, nothing to hide. Oh, look at the time. I'd better be getting to Charms class. Wouldn't want to miss the charm for turning things into bugs, would I?" And with that, he scrambled out of the closet, leaving me sitting on an upturned pale. I didn't even have to look at my watch to know there was still a solid fifteen minutes before the next class, and that wasn't counting the fact that turning things into bugs was Transfiguration work. Something was wrong, and he wasn't telling me what.

. . .

It was a week after the mishap in the broom cupboard, and I'd wisely avoided the subject of new occurrences. Draco seemed more like himself around me, even though I knew something was wrong. I kept noticing how he disappeared more often, sometimes even skipping Potions or Care of Magical Creatures, though Snape overlooked his absences and Professor Grubbly-Plank didn't seem to care. He was jumpy, too, and paler than usual. The strange thing was, most of the Slytherins became defensive when asked about his whereabouts. They acted like they were hiding something, too. I wanted to know what, but I knew Draco wouldn't tell me directly. I finally made up my mind to talk to someone about this issue, and figured Ginny was the safest person to tell.

"Ginny," I whispered as I crept into her dormitory after everyone else was asleep.

No answer.

"Ginny?"

"Mff...what?" came the muffled reply. I followed the sound and located her bed.

"Ginny, it's me, Em." I said, gently shaking her. "I need to talk to you."

"Because now is better than dinner time." she groaned irritatedly. "What do you want?"

"I'll explain in a moment. Get your slippers on and follow me."

With much quiet moaning and soft complaining, she pulled on her robe and slippers and followed me out of the dorm and down to the common room. There was only one person there, and he was asleep, his face squashed against a text book and his glasses a little askew. I saw Ginny look at him with an odd look on her face. "He's so cute when he sleeps."

"You're dating Dean. I don't want to hear about you chasing after Harry." I hissed.

"Oh, all right." she muttered, rubbing her eyes. "Why'd you bring me down here, anyway?"

"Is he really asleep?"

We watched him for a moment, and when he didn't stir, I turned back to Ginny. "You have to promise not to scream." I said as I dragged her onto the couch.

"Can't be any scarier than what Fred and George put in my underwear drawer last July." she grumbled.

"I wouldn't bet on that." I said quietly.

"Go for it." she dared.

"I'm dating Draco Malfoy."

If I hadn't pounced on her right then, she not only would have woken Harry, but possibly all of Hogwarts. "I told you not to scream!" I hissed.

"You're snogging Malfoy, I think I have the right!" she panted as she pushed me off of her. "What in the name of Merlin's saggy left buttock were you thinking?"

"He's not evil." I said desperately. "It's just that he can't be nice to people without putting himself in danger."

"But, Em, we're in danger just by living!" she whispered.

"Think about it," I said. "His every move is watched. If he does something wrong, he could be killed. We could get killed no matter what we do, so it doesn't it really doesn't matter. And he's actually really nice and classy if you just give him the chance." I persisted.

She narrowed her eyes. "So why are you coming to me about this?"

"Well, I needed to talk to someone because...because, well, I think there might be a problem." I said nervously.

Her eyes widened. "Oh, Merlin, he knocked you up, didn't he?"

"What? No! Oh, God, no!" I said, whisper becoming shrill. "No, I'm saying I think he might be in danger or something. I mean, I refused to become a Death Eater and Voldamort and his followers haven't stopped trying to punish me for it. He did, too, and, with where his parents stand, he might be getting it worse."

Ginny looked skeptical. "Come on, Em. His daddy will protect him if danger arises."

I shook my head. "I don't think so. He keeps going on about how his dad is weak and will bow down to anything Voldamort says. And, if you haven't noticed, he doesn't actually like Draco. He just uses him to gain a more impressive status."

I was pleased to see that she actually seemed to be thinking this over. "I have noticed that. I just figured he didn't care."

"You can't just not care about something like that."

She thought for a moment. "So you really like him, don't you?"

I sighed. "More than I ever thought possible."

She nodded. "I thought so. I knew there was someone special, the way you've been sneaking off and skipping classes. I just...I never suspected it would be Malfoy."

"Please don't sound so disgusted." I said burying my face in my hands. Suddenly, Harry shifted in his sleep, and we both froze. When it was obvious he wasn't waking up, though, Ginny turned back to me. "So why exactly are you telling me this?"

"Because I needed to talk to someone. And because Merlin knows he needs an extra set of eyes looking out for him." I pleaded.

"All right. I won't tell anyone about this."

"Oh, thank you!" I whispered, pulling her in for a hug.

"But, just to clarify, I'm not doing this for him." she warned.

"I know. You can go back to bed now, if you want." I told her.

"Okay. You coming up?"

"Nah. I'm going to stay here a little longer. Night."

"Night."

I turned away as she went back up the girls' stairs, staring into the glowing remains of the fire. Embers, I thought randomly. I imagined Malfoy staring into a similar fire in the Slytherin common room, thinking my name in his head. It made me smile a little to think of it.

"You're thinking about him, aren't you?"

I jerked upright and stared at the now wide-awake Harry, an unreadable expression on his face. "I – I thought you were-"

"Asleep? Yeah, I know. I was, originally." he said, rubbing the back of his neck. "Sorry, I sort of overheard your conversation."

I stared at him blankly. There was no trace of anger in his voice, and his face looked genuinely composed. "You – you aren't mad?"

He shrugged. "I don't suppose I have that choice, do I? From the way you talk about him, it seems like no matter what anyone says, you're going to keep seeing him."

"I expected you to be livid if you ever found out."

"I was at first," he said. "When I heard you say you were dating him, I about lost it right there. But then I heard your reasoning, and, well, I suppose I have to agree with you. That doesn't make me like him any better, it just makes me think he's not that evil."

I sagged against the couch with relief. "I still wish you wouldn't have found out." I said.

"Why not?" he asked, looking at me curiously.

"Because Ginny can easily keep this from the others. You, on the other hand, will get seriously chewed out if they figure out you've been keeping secrets." I told him.

He shrugged, sighing. "The way I see it, if they don't ask, there's nothing to tell."

I could have cried right then. "Thanks, Harry."

"I just don't want you to get hurt. And I'm not just talking about Malfoy, though I'll probably bring that up later. Now, we should really be getting to bed."

"Agreed."