Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the characters or anything associated with the Harry Potter universe. Mores the pity.

Draco had known there would be a fall out. There was no way he could do what he'd done and expect no repercussion for it. He'd hoped it could be avoided until at least the end of school.

Walking through the halls with Hermione, having just come from the Headmasters office, he knew his hoping had been for naught.

"It would seem that there are some here who don't approve of your actions, Mister Malfoy." the ancient Headmaster said. "Nor, it would seem, of your friendship with Miss Granger. I'd like you both to please be on your guard, and be sure to report anything else such as this. I and the rest of the staff will be questioning the portraits in your corridor, as well as the ghosts who partook in the River tonight. Until we have more information though, I'm afraid there isn't much more we can do."

Fat load of help he'd been. Draco could scarcely believe that someone had threatened the Head Boy and Girl of the school and the best advice the administration had was "Watch your back". Rubbish. They made their way back to their rooms for the second time that night. Draco expected himself to feel more shaken than he was. After all, he had been expecting this eventually. He was a bit on edge to be sure, but it almost felt good not to wonder will it or won't it in regards to some kind of retaliation.

Who could it have been though? His guess was as good as any. It seemed likely that it was a Slytherin, given the hinting at lost family. But who specifically? And moreover, who was stupid enough to threaten them? He wasn't one to toot his own horn (okay, he was) but he was no slouch when it came to a fight, magic or otherwise. And he knew first hand that Granger was solid on both fronts as well. It had to be someone who either didn't know either of them well, or someone who was so governed by their emotions that they didn't think their little ploy all the way through.

Simpletons, Draco thought, what shoddy planning. I could've concocted a better scheme in my first year.

It was rather annoying though that they'd managed to conceal their identity. No matter, it would make it all the sweeter when they found out who it was. And they most certainly would. Between he and Hermione, they could solve this and not even lose rank in their classes. It was just a matter of trying.

Speaking of Hermione, she was looking rather well put together. He'd expected her to look at least a bit frazzled by the events of the night, but she seemed more determined than anything. She was still limping, as she'd stubbornly refused to go to the Hospital wing for something that will "be fine by morning thanks much". Obstinate to the core, Draco laughed in his mind. He rather liked that though. Weak wills made for boring sparring partners.

She was very clearly lost in her own head, trying to puzzle this mystery out. He should have known she'd meet this adversity the same way she always did, with relentless single -minded determination. As it was, she was barely paying attention and he was practically guiding her as well as playing crutch to keep her weight off of her injury. It was a bit sweet, Draco thought, that she'd trust him enough to get her back okay that she'd all but checked out of awareness. So much so that she didn't realize they were back to their rooms until he cleared his throat louder than necessary.

"What?" she said dazedly, as though still coming back to reality. Draco smirked and said, "We've arrived, dear oblivious one." She blushed at having been caught up in her own head and said "Oh, right. Sorry about that. Thinking, you know."

"Don't be sorry, Hermione. Your way of thinking is easily the best part about you, it's hardly something to make apologies for."

He saw her blush deepen and felt a glimmer of masculine satisfaction at making a pretty girl blush. "Um, this might be easier if I carry you," he said. The portrait hole was a bit difficult to navigate, probably something to do with how the room was formed, and it would be a real bitch to get through hobbling. "Oh no, I couldn't possibly make you carry me! Honestly Draco, you've done enough by helping me walk all this time and really I did it to myself so I sho-" He'd listened long enough to be sure that her protests were based on trying not to be a burden (silly twit) and not any real objection to being carried before he lifted her with the arm supporting her back and used the momentum to swing her legs up until they were hooked over his other arm.

"It's ten paces, I won't die. You weigh next to nothing and besides, what are friends for?" He smiled at her, and gave the password before she could give another protest. By the time he deposited her on the loveseat, she was positively scarlet. "Oh come now Hermione, you didn't really think I was going to make you walk through that? You can be rather stupid at times, you know."

"Don't call me stupid."

"Then don't act stupid. Why is it such a big deal, anyhow? You're having difficulty walking, I was more than capable, it seemed the most expedient solution." He really was confused as to why she'd be embarrassed about such a mundane thing.

She grumbled in frustration and said, "It's a muggle thing, you wouldn't understand. It's stupid anyhow."

Well, now his interest was piqued. Evidently there was something about carrying her that he'd missed. Ah, cultural differences. Making things slightly awkward since forever. He continued to look at her, obviously looking for further explanation, and waited until she somewhat reluctantly said, "In some muggle customs, it's traditional for a man to carry his new bride over the threshold of their living space the first time the enter it. It's a wedding thing."

Draco couldn't help himself, he laughed. "What a ridiculous tradition! What on earth could a threshold have to do with marriage, that's absurd!" She glowered at him and said, "Wizarding society has plenty of nonsensical wedding traditions too! Or are you going to say that tying a knot of twine around each others fingers is perfectly normal?"

"Ah but that's based in magic, isn't it? It's said to keep the couples ghosts together even after they pass."

"Right, otherwise known as a load of rubbish. Ancient muggles believed that a bride shouldn't wish to leave her fathers house and therefor needed to be drug out, and others believed that spirits would be waiting at the threshold in last ditch attempts to curse the couple and therefore the bride needed to be carried over lest the spirits enter through her feet. It's all a load of bollocks but traditions often have stupid roots, muggle or magical."

She was rather attractive when she lectured him, Draco decided. There was a fire in her eyes and a conviction in her tone that did things for him. Head out of the gutter Malfoy, control that stupid teenage imagination he told himself. "Alright fine, you win. I'm sorry if I embarrassed you. You certainly seem to know a lot about wedding lore, planning on having Weasly make an honest woman of you there Granger?" he teased, before fully realizing what he'd said. Oh fuck, please let that have come out as joking as I meant it. He didn't know if she was at a point where she could laugh about the Weasel situation and like the prat she'd always accused him of being, he'd thrown one of her biggest insecurities in her face.

To his utter relief, she barked out a laugh. "Oh Godric no. Ron's brother Bill got married over the summer - to Fleur Delacor, you remember her? - and he had me look up all sorts of wedding traditions to see which ones suited them best."

Makes sense, Hermione would be the best person to research anything, though he was willing to bet that Other Weasly had gotten a much more throughout report back than he'd planned on. He smiled at the mental picture of the ever studious Gryffindor handing off a twenty page annotated report on wedding customs. Taking the cushion beside her on the loveseat, he propped his feet up on the coffee table and said, "Right then, shall we begin brainstorming? I'd much like to know who terrorized poor Hansel and Elise just when their relationship was on the mend."

"Take your feet off the table-"

"No."

"- and who are Hansel and Elise?"

"Why Granger, I'm ashamed of you. They're the couple in the portrait, of course. I'd assumed you'd have talked their paint off by now."

"Hhmp, I actually have friends to talk to Draco"

Ouch, that stung a bit. He didn't have very many friends, just Blaise and Granger and perhaps the fire haired harpy his best mate called a girlfriend. Not that he wanted many, the ones he had were enough, but there was enough truth in her statement for him to feel the bite. It must've shown on his face because she was immediately repentant. "Oh Draco, I'm sorry. That was rather rude of me to say, I wasn't really thinking."

She was cute even when remorseful, he thought. No stop it, none of that. Focus!

"It's fine Hermione, really. Now, back to the matter at hand," he said before being overtaken by a powerful yawn. "Merlin, excuse me. I don't know where that came from." But he did though. The events of the day, truly the week, had worn on him. The couch was so comfortable, too, and it was nearly five in the morning. They'd spent hours with their professors going over everything. "Draco," said the equally tired voice of the girl beside him, "I think we ought to call it a night. I'm wrecked, and my body is still a bit achy."

"Maybe you shouldn't have turned the stairs into a giant death slide."

"Maybe you should get your shoes off the table you giant baby"

Draco chuckled at her quip and that was the last thing he recalled before dozing off right there in the living room.

He awoke several hours later, disoriented by waking somewhere that was clearly not his room. He realized that he must've fallen asleep on the loveseat. Blinking slowly, he made to stand only to realize there was a weight in his lap. His awareness returned enough for him to realize that he wasn't the only one who hadn't made it to their bed. Hermione Granger was curled up next to him and had her head pillowed square in his lap.

Draco wasn't quite sure how to proceed. Did her wake her? Did he move around and let her think she woke alone, sparing her the embarrassment of being caught sleeping on him? Salazar knew he didn't want to embarrass her any further after the threshold nonsense and the near disaster of the Weasel Wedding joke.

Perhaps he should just let her sleep. He was rather comfortable, and she looked to be sleeping peacefully. Unconsciously, his hand moved out to smooth some of her curls back from her face. He froze not when he realized what he was doing but when she began to stir. He thanked every ghost in the castle when she merely made some sleepy mewls and nuzzled her face closer into his stomach, sighing almost contentedly.

He looked at her then, really looked at her. Her warm skin was marred a bit by sleep lines, her dark lashes feathered against the tops of her cheeks. Her lips were a dark pink and slightly pillowed, though the bottom one was chapped from the way she constantly worried it with her teeth when lost in thought. Her hair, the mass of chaos that was much softer than he'd anticipated, was spread all over his legs and pillowed one of her cheeks. Her eyebrows were shaped nicely and bolder than he knew most girls wore them these days. He wasn't quite sure why that observation mattered but for some reason it just solidified the fact that the girl on his lap was unlike any other girl he'd known.

And damn it all to hell, he was attracted to her. There was not reason to deny it right now, not when she was unconscious and he was uninhibited. She truly was a beautiful girl.

Somehow, he felt like he was admitting something to himself that he'd known for far longer than these last couple of months. Why else would he have stared at her the way he did when he knew he wasn't being watched? Why else would the way she sometimes chewed her lip or fiddled with her hair drive him to such distraction? It even somewhat explained his reaction to thinking Blaise had wanted to shag Granger.

He'd been jealous.

He was bloody well aware that Hermione had grown to a young woman's body - he was a young man was he not? He was aware of the way her shirts slightly hugged the swell of her modest chest, aware of the way her bunched robes currently dipped enticingly into the curve of her waist. He was painfully aware of the way the skirt of her uniform did nothing to hide her ample backside. She wasn't just beautiful or cute or attractive, she was dead sexy as well.

Having always been an arse man, Draco couldn't help but glance down to where the spread of her hip was before a familiar heat behind his navel signaled him that things were about to start happening. Fuck fuck NO! Okay alright don't panic, quick think of something, think of anything. Think of the Queen, think of Snape or Potty or the Weasel. Madam Pomfrey in a bikini! Oh thank Salazar and all his servants.

Draco had never been so mortified and simultaneously grateful that Hermione was still asleep and he'd been able to control himself before things got uncomfortable. What kind of lecherous pig was he anyhow? One minute he was admiring her and the next he was struggling to keep an erection from forming. He decided this was pondering better left to when he was more fully in control of himself. He summoned a pillow for him to shove into the corner of the couch and a blanket to over Hermione from the window bench.

He then shut his eyes and tried his very best to fall asleep before the mental picture of a scantly clad Pomfrey transformed itself into the shapely brunette in his lap.

When Hermione awoke, it was to strong daylight streaming in through the window. My bedroom doesn't have a window. She blinked harder to clear the sleep from her eyes until she realized she was in the living room. Not only that, but she was sleeping on Draco's lap. He was snuggled against the back cushions, canting slightly to the right so that his hips almost cradled her head. She expected her neck to have a crick in it but she was surprised to find that her whole body felt oddly relaxed. Which was a good thing because she felt certain she would have been panicking by now if her body wasn't still half asleep.

She drowsily looked up at Draco's sleeping face. He looked almost sweet when he slept, she thought. Like the pressures of his upbringing and the realities they now faced were nothing more than a dream. She couldn't say specifically what was different since he was so good at throwing up that unfeeling mask all the time. There was just something. Like the still surface of a lake who's waters were usually perilous but for the moment were as safe a haven as any.

Hermione blushed when she realized she was staring at him again, and went redder still when she remembered how she'd practically ogled him the night before. Merlin what was wrong with her? It was probably a good thing that she was noticing other boys, a sign of progress, but him? He was... well, Malfoy! Godric, she sounded just like Ron, didn't she? Why ever shouldn't she be allowed to like looking at him? He was quite fit and it was no secret. Briefly, she marveled in the differences between a boy who took pride in being well groomed and one who couldn't care less. There she went again, comparing Draco to Ron, but really she didn't have much other basis for comparison now did she?

Utterly fed up with her own musings, she shut her eyes and burrowed her head into her pillow. Perhaps she'd suffocate and be free of whatever lunacy had overtaken her. Unfortunately, she'd forgotten that her pillow happened to be the lap of her cohabitant. She'd accidentally snuggled her face directly into the partially uncovered stomach of the boy who was now rousing from his sleep. What do I do, What do I do? How embarrassing! What do I say, what is he going to say? Why can't either of have just gone to our beds!?

Her silent panicking meant that she hadn't opened her eyes again yet, though she heard Draco yawn and felt him stretch beneath her. She prepared herself for his exclamations of shock, or worse for his mockery. She was not prepared, however, for the hand that softly swept her hair back from her face and then stroked it with equal care. She was stunned into immobility. Why was he touching her like this? And why wasn't she outraged? Why was she actually enjoying the light ministrations?

She felt the back of his fingers glide delicately over her cheek, a finger brush the spot that he'd healed the night prior, and then his hand slowly slip through her curls until he was lifting her head so he could stand. He placed her head on a pillow she assumed he'd been using - it was still warm - and though her back was to him, she could sense that he was still watching her. She waited until she heard him walk somewhat hurriedly to the bathroom and heard the shower start before she sat up. Idly she felt a blanket she hadn't grabbed fall from her shoulders and was well on her way to dissecting every bit of what had just happened, when she heard a knock on the door.

Not Ginny or Blaise then, since neither of them felt the need for such niceties as knocking and barged in whenever they felt like it. She walked to the door and said, "Who is it? Her wand was in hand and at the ready. She may be entirely inept when it came to boys but Hermione Granger knew how to take precautions and protect herself damn it.

"Mione, it's Harry open up."

She sighed with relief and started to open the door when a sudden thought took her and she said, "Who's with you?" She wasn't in the right frame of mind to deal with her ex whatever right now, and besides he was still as banned as Parkinsons.

"It's just me, I swear. I left Ron in the Great Hall. And just for good measure, you can be sure it's really me; otherwise how would I know that back in fourth year, you let Viktor Krum get you out of your top?"

She shoved the door open so fast that if Harry hadn't been expecting it, he would've been knocked on i ass. "He did NOT get me out of my top and you know it!" she said, indignant at his suggestion. Her blouse may have had a few buttons undone but nothing as drastic as what her idiot best friend was suggesting.

Said idiot grinned at her and said, "I know. But it got you to open the door didn't it?" and slipped inside before she could change her mind. His grin fell however when he said, "I heard what happened last night. Or at least, I heard a rumor. Are you okay, Hermione? Why weren't you in morning classes, are you alright?"

So many questions before she'd had caffeine. Life was cruel. She sighed and said, "Yes Harry, I'm fine I swear. I wasn't in morning classes because I didn't get back here until almost five in the morning." She glanced at the clock on the mantle that read 1 o'clock. Not bad, considering how wiped she'd been. "And as for what happened, Draco and I came back after patrols to find our portrait door vandalized and a vaguely threatening note pinned to the wall. Nothing overly serious but the staff were thorough all the same."

Harry, to her surprise, didn't look surprised. "Yeah, I thought as much. We need to talk, I think. All of us." He was starting to look much too serious and Hermione's 'Harry's Got Trouble' sensor was going haywire. "Harry? What is it?"

He let out a strained breath and pulled a piece of parchment from his trouser pocket before saying, "You two aren't the only one's who have a secret admirer."

Standing in front of the water's spray, Draco momentarily considered the merits of drowning himself. What the hell did he think he was doing, stroking her face like that? What if she'd woken up? He hadn't been able to stop himself though. She'd looked like perfection, and any seventeen year old who woke up with her in his lap would've done the same. They also would be faced with the problem he now had, the reason he'd had to make a getaway instead of sitting with her a while more.

It had been that fucking nuzzle that did him in. He'd woken to the feel of Hermione's lips against the sensitive skin just above his trousers, her small puffs of breath trailing over his flesh like the most wicked of caresses. He indulged in the urge to stoke her hair, to trail his fingers over her face, before he realized that her innocent sleep movement was causing quite the opposite of an innocent reaction right behind her head.

He'd lifted her from his lap as quickly as he could without disturbing her and put an actual pillow under her head to replace where he'd been. He studied her a bit then, took in the slight suggestion of her shape beneath all of the layers, and the memory of her lips on his stomach took full hold of him. He'd rushed to the shower and here he stood, simultaneously cursing himself and trying to wish away the persistent stiffness between his hips.

His erection was as stubborn as the rest of him though, and the steam of the shower only made it worse. In here, he didn't feel so guilty that he'd been secretly wanting her for years(especially since he hadn't fully known). He didn't feel weird remembering the way her breath on his skin made him shiver. And, as he unconsciously reached for the problem that demanded solving, he couldn't bring himself to feel anything other than desire for the witch who'd spent the night with him.

Sure they'd done nothing but sleep, and even that had been by accident, but that was of little import. Draco was in the full throws of a hormone take over and lucky for him, he had a very active imagination. His hips started to move in time to his tugging as the night reshaped itself in his mind.

"Maybe you should take your shoes off the table."

"Maybe you should make me, Granger."

The brunette beside him raised her eyebrows at the challenge, then slowly, daring him, she leaned back against the other arm of the loveseat. Her uniform was shorter and tighter than it was in reality, but this was his fantasy damn it. "I know the perfect way to get your feet down," she said with a coy smile.

Draco, eyes appreciatively running up and down her form, said, "What's that?"

"Come here and find out."

Being the smart boy he is, he didn't need telling twice. He was lying over her in seconds flat, legs intertwined and his thigh pressed against her most sensitive parts. She sucked in a small pleasurable gasp at the intimate contact and ran her hands up his arms before threading her fingers through his hair.

"You said not to take another lover unless he would respect my pleasure and show me the time of my life. So don't start this if you won't hold to that," she said in that slightly haughty voice that drove him fucking crazy. Oh he'd respect her pleasure alright.

In lieu of an answer, he dropped his mouth to claim hers and applied more pressure with his thigh. Kissing her was like nothing he'd known, hot and sweet and unbridled. She kissed him back as though she was desperate for him. He locked one hand on her hip, pinning her beneath the still tame pressure he had on her apex. He wanted her to enjoy the slow growing heat until she boiled over for him.

He let his other hand explore, running down the side of her soft thigh and hiking it up to give him more room to maneuver. He rocked against her and let his hand trail in over her hip and across the smooth plane of her stomach. Somehow they'd lost their shirts and he was exploring the heated skin just under her breast. His mouth dropped kisses along her jaw until her found a particularly receptive spot just under her ear and sucked on it just as he took her bra clad breast in his hand and increased his thigh movements, rubbing against her at a frenzied pace.

Hermione threw her head back, giving his more access to her neck and thrusting her chest into his manipulations. The keening sound coming from her was almost more than he could take, and she was shaking beneath him, her breath coming in strained pants. "Draco, please" she moaned at him, low and pleading like he was the only thing she needed. She jerked her hips up, grinding herself against his leg to alleviate the ache he'd been stoking in her, and-

Draco lost nearly all control as his climax brought him back to reality. He was literally seeing stars as he spilled himself on the tiles, and struggled to gain control of his breathing as he came back down. He could scarcely believe he'd just tossed off to a fantasy of Hermione Granger. And more than that, it'd been the hardest he'd ever come by himself.

He couldn't even bring himself to feel bad about it, honestly. It wasn't as if he planned to suddenly start harassing her or anything. He'd act towards her as he always did, and save the rest for Fantasy Granger. Because he had no doubt he'd do it again. It had felt too bloody good to not have an encore or five.

He went about washing himself, still high from his orgasm and considering giving himself another go to see how far in the fantasy he could get, when the object of his lust walked straight into the bathroom.

"GRANGER WHAT THE FUCK!" he shouted, hiding his indecency with his hands.

"Oh please Draco, I can't see anything. Your nudity doesn't concern me-"

If only you knew, Granger. Especially when you say 'Oh please Draco' like tha-stop Malfoy, focus!

"And you're needed out here, it's important. Harry got a letter too, and I think it's from the same person who left ours."

A/N: Naughty, naughty, Mister Malfoy! Tell me honestly guys, how was that? I've read plenty of smut but this is my first time writing it lol ans since I plan on more (I regret nothing) I'd like your feedback on it!

Also, Guest Reviewer: You say ruining the plot, I say expanding on and layering the plot. This IS listed as romance/drama after all. I love a good bit of fluff but I like some meat on my stories so that it's not all relationship. But if that's not your cup of tea well, sorry bout that.

Enjoy guys!