Draco's ulterior motive and a visit to the theatre. I hope you enjoy. Ta ta.

S. White

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.

Chapter 11 - K is for Kindness

Draco had gone pale and looked like he was considering hiding behind the couch. Hermione almost laughed. Ginny walked in and froze, staring at Draco standing there, an empty mug with a snowflake on it in his hand.

"Hi, Ginny. Mal-Draco, sorry, was nice enough to send me some DVDs to keep my occupied while I had a hangover, so I invited him to watch them with us."

"Draco sent you DVDs. Wait, why are you hungover?" Ginny said in confusion.

"I pointed out that if they're going to be 'fake' dates they should use each other's first names," Megan said happily. Draco quietly walked over and left his mug on the counter by the sink, putting the kitchen table between him and Ginny.

"Well, yes," Hermione began. "You must have read the article in the Prophet. We had just left the restaurant when this Prophet reporter started asking us questions and Ron and Brown showed up. Well, there were some angry words, and actually the reporter got it mostly right. I was pretty upset and I started crying, so Draco suggested we stay out and he knew this place."

"Turns out she's not a bad dancer when she's really drunk," Draco supplied and Hermione spun around to point a threatening finger at him.

"No one asked you, Malfoy." She coughed and turned back to Ginny. "Well, I had a lot to drink, but he kept me safe from my fellow dancers and brought me home safe."

"He did?" Ginny said weakly.

"I can vouch for that," Megan volunteered. "He had Hermione's phone and he responded to my texts all night and he got her home safe and sound, if a little drunk, and he even offered to help take care of her."

Draco shifted his weight uncomfortably.

"You did?" Ginny said.

"Uh, yes, I did. Please don't hex me."

Megan and Hermione laughed and after a second Ginny joined in.

"I'm not going to. Mione's a big girl, she can make her own decisions about who she spends her time with. But I do want to thank you for getting her home safe and also I don't think I ever got to properly thank you for buying my bridesmaids their dresses," Ginny said and extended a hand, which he shook.

"Not a problem, Mrs. Potter. I owed all of you anyway."

"Yes, too bad about Mione's-" Ginny began, but Hermione realized she was about to mention the navy blue dress and made frantic gestures behind Draco's back and Ginny closed her mouth.

"What?" Draco said, looking at them with confusion and suspicion.

"Nothing, it's fine," Hermione said too brightly, but no one seemed to notice.

"Yes, well, thank you for the tea. I need to get to work, now. Lovely to see you, Mrs. Potter, Hermione, I'll be in touch, yes?"

"Okay, Draco. Don't work too hard. And thank you for the Sherlock. Oh, would you like to borrow the book?" She said, picking up her copy and he paused in the act of shrugging on his peacoat.

"Am I invited to watch more?"

"I think so."

"Then no, I don't want to spoil the endings," He said with a grin.

"Fair enough. I'll see you later, Draco."

"Thank you, Hermione, Mrs. Potter, Megan."

"You're welcome anytime, dear, Mione will love to see you," Megan said and Hermione glared at her.

Draco nodded to them and let himself out. The three women stood in silence for a while and Hermione looked at the door. That had actually been kind of fun, and yes, she wouldn't mind him coming over again to watch more. She jumped when Ginny sighed.

"Okay, sis, I think I can see why you agreed to have a fake date with him now."

"What?" Hermione said, blushing.

"He's almost likeable. Anyway, tell me about yesterday, what did that idiot brother of mine say?"

Hermione made another cup of tea and one for Ginny as well. Hermione was going to need the comfort. The three of them sat together on the couch as Hermione retold what had happened the night before and as much as she could remember of their argument. Megan listened as well because Hermione hadn't had a chance to tell her the full one yet. When Hermione told her about Ron's continued accusations that she had cheated on him with Draco, Ginny shook her head in frustration. Hermione also told her that she had definitely seen the silver and amethyst bracelet she had told them about on Brown's wrist.

"I hope you gave him what for, sweetheart," Megan said sadly.

"Um, actually, he asked if I would have been happier if he had given it to me and I told him I thought it was tacky," Hermione said, looking sheepishly at Ginny, but her friend laughed.

"He deserves it, hon," Ginny said, patting her knee.

"You might want to read this, too," Hermione said, picking up the letter from Brown on the table and handing it to Ginny.

"Ugh, it's awful. That woman is disgusting," Megan said, making a face. Ginny pulled out the letter and her expression went from distaste to disgust to anger, and finally to fury as she read.

"How dare you? How dare she write something like this to you?! Ugh! This is terrible, sis. Why didn't you get rid of it right away?"

"Evidence in case things get too bad." Hermione shrugged.

"Oh, sis, I'm so sorry my brother is putting you through this. I really don't understand why he's so determined to lie. I wonder if he's told himself so many times that you were cheating that he actually believes it."

"I wouldn't be surprised," Hermione said sadly.

"Draco treats her much better, anyway," Megan supplied happily.

"Megan!"

"Apparently." Ginny laughed.

"Really?! Are you two gong to gang up on me, now?"

"I keep telling her she should stop pretending these are fake dates." Megan grinned.

"Mm." Ginny looked at Hermione who felt her face getting hot. "Maybe."

"Not you too!" Hermione said angrily.

"Well, from the sounds of it I'm glad we didn't tell him what Ron did to the other dress he bought you. He's going to be angry."

"Yes, I think he is."

"I still can't believe he did that." Megan shook her head.

"I wonder if he was trying to get me to leave him. Like he didn't want to do it himself so he decided to just ignore me until I left and now he's trying to exonerate himself," Hermione said sadly.

"Alright, well, Malfoy took care of the drinking tons of alcohol and the hangover stages, now I'm here for the emotional support part. I'll be back in a second," Ginny said, standing up and disapparating.

She appeared again a second later with a large tub of ice cream and Hermione and Megan laughed. They curled up with heaping bowls on the couch and watched more movies together, chatting over them. Despite the Prophet article and how terrible Ron and Brown were being, Hermione actually thought she was enjoying herself. Draco was fun to be around and she always had a great time when she was with Ginny and Megan. Luna joined them a little later on and was promptly given ice cream as well. Hermione was sad when the day was over and it was time for them to leave and she hugged her friends tightly, so thankful that she knew such supportive people. She was so lucky that she had a surrogate family who believed her over their own real family, and although Ginny and Harry still spoke to Ron, they were careful about what they believed.

November passed quickly for Hermione. For their second 'date' Draco took Hermione to Hogsmeade for a butterbeer at the Three Broomsticks which was a lot of fun. They got a lot of looks which made Hermione a little uncomfortable, but that was what they were technically going for and besides, people stopped watching them after a while. Another reporter found them and yet another article appeared in the Prophet the next day, but they hadn't done anything particularly newsworthy, so they had been shunted to the second page this time. Ron was trying to get back at her in little ways, most of which seemed to be sending her hate mail and complaining bitterly to all their mutual friends.

She spent a lot of time with her friends, now that she had all this free time. She organized Ladies' Nights with Ginny, Megan, and Luna, she hung out with Harry, George, and Angelina, and Draco occasionally visited to watch more Sherlock with her. He took her out for tea at her favourite cafe and to Flourish and Blotts and listened patiently to her continuous talk of books. When they left she saw Ron down the street and he flushed as red as his hair, but Draco grinned, waved, and led Hermione away. She tried not to laugh.

Draco surprised her one night by picking her up for their arranged date, but instead of heading towards wizarding London, he grabbed her coat and tossed it to her, and hailed a muggle cab. She was impressed he knew how. When she got in and he told the driver the name of a West End theatre she actually fell sideways and hugged him tightly. He laughed and commented that he hadn't told her what they were seeing yet, but brushed that off as largely unimportant. Besides, she trusted his judgment for that.

It turned out to be Phantom of the Opera and she spent the whole show leaning forward in her seat and watching with amazement on her face. Draco was sitting lazily in his chair but Hermione suspected he was enjoying it as well, he just wasn't so obvious about it. He had also gotten them box seats which were a wonderful experience even if it was so...so...Malfoy. She did wonder a little why he had bothered with all this, coming out with her, dressing up, getting box seats, when it was highly unlikely any other witches or wizards would see them. She could understand a little more when he pointed out the other boxes and told her which companies the men and women in them owned.

"So you're showing off, is what you're saying," Hermione said during intermission.

"Of course."

"You didn't have another motive? Let me guess, they all look older, I bet a few of them are being mentor-ly and trying to set you up with their secretaries."

"...you're too clever for your own good, Granger. They've only tried it twice, but after the second time I thought I needed to do something."

"Why?"

"...second row from the top, third box over."

"Yes, there's a middle aged lady, a couple of men behind her, and -oh! He is cute," Hermione said with a laugh. Draco turned to look at her with an eyebrow raised. "What?"

"Well, his name is Alex, and I'm not sure if he would be interested in you, because the middle aged lady, his boss, tried to set me up with him. He's her secretary," Draco said glumly and Hermione laughed so hard people turned to look at them.

"And you aren't interested? Shame," She said, wiping away a tear from her eye.

"He's not my type."

"Why not?"

"He's blonde, for one. We'd look like brothers. And I'm not gay."

"Says the man worried about his hair colour matching his dates'." Hermione laughed.

"Just because I have impeccable fashion sense does not mean I'm gay." Draco grinned and Hermione paused, taking in his tailored suit.

"Okay, I actually have to concede to you on that one."

"And score one for Malfoy."

"You could have picked a fake date who didn't argue with you quite so much, though," Hermione pointed out.

"And take the fun out of it? No. I'm surrounded by people who think their jobs depend on saying yes to me-not that they aren't sometimes right-but I don't need that when I leave work too."

"You need reminding that you're not the second Merlin, you mean?"

"I suppose, although I don't see any problem with me, naturally. Me now, at least. Besides, you needed the fun too."

"And this has certainly been fun." Hermione laughed, but her laughter died away quickly. As soon as the words were out of her mouth she wished she hadn't said them.

"Yes, it has," He said quietly as the curtain rose for the second act.

Now why had she gone and said that? And more importantly, why was she upset about it? "This has certainly been fun" implied that it had been nice, but it was going to end soon, and she would be okay with it when it did. Well, she certainly didn't want their new friendship to end. He had been there for her when she needed someone, even if he had also needed a fake date, as she now knew. If they stopped seeing each other, would his clients start trying to set him up again? In that case, it would be better for him to keep it up until he found a real date. That was probably unlikely for both of them; it was hard to meet new romantic interests when most of the time they went out it was together and people thought they were a couple. Well, she could worry about it later; the Phantom had come on disguised as Don Juan.

Draco took her arm when it was time to leave and she thought he nodded to a few people as they walked out. She assumed these were some of his clients. That would be good for him; word would go around that he had a lady with him. There was a huge crowd of people outside and the two of them looked at each other. It would take a while to get a cab here.

"Would you like to walk for a while?" He suggested.

"Sure. I can't move very quickly in these heels though."

"Leisurely stroll it is." He grinned and took her arm again as they began to walk, but they were interrupted as someone called to them. It was the middle aged woman, her secretary Alex behind her.

"Mr. Malfoy! Mr. Malfoy!"

Draco stopped and closed his eyes as if he was gathering his patience, but when he turned and walked over, Hermione in tow, he had his calm mask on.

"Good evening, Mrs. Hill. I hope you enjoyed the show."

"Oh, Mr. Malfoy, wasn't it good? Alex liked it too, didn't you Alex?"

"Yes, Mrs. Hill, the acting was excellent."

"So clever, Alex, isn't he, Mr. Malfoy-oh! Who is this, Mr. Malfoy?" Mrs. Hill beamed at her secretary before she noticed Hermione, who was trying not to laugh.

"Mrs. Hill, this is Hermione Granger."

"Nice to meet you, Mrs. Hill," Hermione said with a smile.

"Oh, oh," Mrs. Hill looked mildly disappointed and glanced back to Alex, but then she brightened. "Nice to meet you too, Ms. Granger. That is a lovely dress, and you look lovely in it, dear. Has Mr. Malfoy been treating you well?" She gave Hermione a conspiratorial wink.

"Oh, yes, Mrs. Hill. I certainly can't complain."

"I should hope not." Draco chuckled.

"Good, good. It's good for a young man to have someone," She said with a sigh.

"Yes, Mrs. Hill," Draco said blankly and Hermione looked at him, but his face was back in his calm mask.

"Did you know I was going to be here, Mr. Malfoy?" Mrs. Hill said, back in her jovial mood.

"No, I assure you, I didn't. No, I simply thought Ms. Granger would enjoy this show."

"And did you, Ms. Granger?"

"Oh yes, Mrs. Hill. I've read the book and it was very interesting to see how they adapted it."

"Good, good. Do you two need a ride?"

"No, thank you," Draco said a little too quickly.

"Too bad, Mr. Malfoy. I'll see you Tuesday, yes?"

"Of course, Mrs. Hill. Good night," Draco said, nodding, and pulling Hermione away.

"Alex says good night too!" Mrs. Hill called after them.

They walked calmly down the street for some time until Hermione couldn't hold in her laughter anymore. At first Draco glared at her but her laughter was infectious.

"Did you really not know they were there?"

"I really didn't. I just thought it would be a nice change and I know someone who got me a discount on the tickets, so why not?"

"That was really nice of you, Draco," Hermione said sincerely, but when he looked over at her she coughed and continued. "I can see why you'd want to say you're seeing someone though; Mrs. Hill sure is persistent."

"That's why I wasn't worried about letting them see you. They won't leave me alone just because you're here. I'd probably have to be seeing one person for a while before they would leave me alone."

"Oh." Hermione stored that comment away for further thought. Maybe, if he wanted to stop sometime, she could use this as an excuse to keep going. If she wanted to, that was. Not that she did. "It's a beautiful night."

"Yes."

There was something about the early night she liked. It was the orange glow of the streetlamps and their pools of light, the glitter of shop windows, and the crisp, chilly air. Even if the air was a little too chilly, she thought with a shiver. Malfoy looked down at her.

"Too bad you don't have a car," She teased with a smile.

"One of those muggle contraptions? No. I don't know how they use them. There are all those buttons and levers on the inside. Brooms are so much easier."

"Most of the buttons are for extra things, like heat or the radio; you don't need them to drive." She laughed. "I was too young to drive when I first went to Hogwarts, but I've been in them enough and asked my parents. A few pedals on the floor for speeding up and stopping, the wheel for steering, and a few other things are all you need to worry about."

"So like brooms except you push a pedal instead of leaning forward to speed up, that sort of thing?"

"Yes. More like brooms than people think. You know how people get about their brooms, the make, the speed it can go, that sort of thing? Well, muggles do the same thing with cars."

"Interesting."

"Is the Slytherin Prince actually thinking of getting a car?"

"Maybe I will, just to shock you."

"I would certainly be shocked."

"Oh, there's a cab." He hailed it, they got in, and he directed the man to her and Megan's flat. "So, are we still watching Sherlock Holmes on Wednesday?"

"If you're not too busy buying a car."

"I won't be."

"I'll stock up on tea, then."

"Hey, I happen to like that blend."

"Then I know what to get you for Christmas." She laughed.

"Yes, you do," He said thoughtfully.

"Thanks, Draco, I really did enjoy myself tonight. I've always loved the theatre. I'll see you in a couple days."

Hermione smiled and gave him a quick one armed hug when they reached her flat and left him in the cab. She spent the rest of the night talking about the play with Megan and thinking to herself about Draco and the conversations they just had.

He did join them for Sherlock on Wednesday and he took her out for tea on Friday. In the final week of November she received the promotion at work she had been hoping for which meant a pay raise, although she would be keeping her office next to Megan's. She and Megan had thrown a small party to celebrate, inviting all of their friends, and Draco came too. It had been a little awkward at first, but between her and Megan, and then Ginny, he ended up talking to the others. There was a tense moment when he and Harry looked at each other, but then they shook hands, Harry thanked him for the bridesmaid dresses and Draco thanked Harry for getting past him being a git.

Hermione entered December feeling much, much better than she had in years. She hadn't realized how beaten down she had felt and how miserable she had been until now, when it was all over and Ron was no longer in her life. He still continued to be hostile towards her even after the matter began to fade in the Prophet and it was clear that even his sister and best friend knew he was lying. In fact, Harry and Ginny started to spend more time with Hermione, Megan, and Luna. The two of the even joined Megan, Hermione, and Draco for a couple episodes of Sherlock Holmes at one point and Hermione had beamed at them all being so amiable to each other. When an invitation flew into her office in early December on lilac paper, asking her to the law department's annual Christmas party, she knew exactly who she wanted to come as her date.