She had only been home from work for a couple of hours, but Hermione was already on her third glass of wine. She almost felt guilty imagining Harry's reaction if he saw her now. She had to admit she was a little disappointed in herself, but she managed to chase away the one thing, or person, who made her forget all about her troubles. He was ignoring her and she didn't have a clue as to why.

Standing in front of her mirror, she smiled to herself. She looked pretty good. She felt good, too. A decent buzz would give her just what she needed to start the night out on a good note. She tugged her red dress down a bit to mid-thigh and threw on her jean jacket as she heard Ginny's voice call from the living room.

"Coming, Gin!"

She slipped on her black heels and after a dab of red lipstick, downed the rest of her glass and headed out to greet her friend. She felt unexpectedly self-conscious when she walked out and saw Ginny practically gawking at her. She wrung her hands in front of herself uncomfortably.

"What?"

Ginny smiled. "Uh, nothing. You look amazing. I've just never seen you wear quite so much red. It really is your color, you know."

Hermione smiled back. "Thanks. You know you don't look half bad yourself. I'm surprised Harry let you out in that."

The redhead grinned and touched the flowing pink fabric of her dress. It was knee-length, and a bit more modest than Hermione's, but it still clung to her in all the right places. The pale pink hue made her skin look milky smooth. "Actually, I hope you don't mind, but Harry's meeting us there. Is that alright?"

Although the smile left her eyes, Ginny didn't notice. The news immediately put a damper on her night. She loved Harry, but he reminded her of every problem and heartache she ever had. He didn't do it on purpose, though, and she knew he'd feel horrible if he found out he made her feel that way.

"That's fine, Gin. Of course. Let's go, shall we?"

Harry was standing near the door when they arrived at Mervin's. He seemed nervous, Hermione noted, but decided that Harry always seemed a little awkward in big groups. Shrugging it off, she briefly hugged him before heading to the bar for a drink. She perched on a bar stool as she waited for the bartender to take her order. It was busier than usual, but she liked it. It made her feel like part of the crowd. It made her feel more invisible. The bartender set Hermione's drink in front of her. She had opted for an especially strong mixed drink called an Alakazam. It was Mervin's specialty, and her absolute favorite. She was taking her first sip when Harry joined her.

"Hey, Hermione. We need to talk about something."

When she turned to look at him she tried not to look impatient, but didn't he know how much she needed a trouble-free night? She wanted to dance and have fun without wasting so much as a thought on Ron, her parents, or Draco. Although she knew this was impossible no matter how much she drank, she could still try.

"Harry, I'm sorry but I really don't want to get into anything serious right now. I just want a night off. You understand, right?"

His voice took on an urgent tone. "Hermione, I really think it'd be best if-"

"No, Harry." She waved her hand. "I think it'd be best if we didn't."

With a smile and semi-apologetic look, she made her way back into the crowd as an exasperated Harry was left at the bar, wiping the back of his neck with his hand.

Purposely wedging herself in the very middle of the crowd, Hermione tried to focus on the music. She loved dancing. It let her release energy and, with it, stress and anxiety. She couldn't think of a better feeling than moving to the music with a drink in her hand.

Well, she could think of one.

Just then, she felt someone tug her arm. She turned to see Ginny mouthing something she couldn't hear, and her face was alarming. Ginny motioned for Hermione to follow her so she grabbed her hand and followed her out of the crowd. After making their way out of the sweaty crowd, Hermione pulled Ginny's hand back, stopping her in her tracks.

"Ginny, tell me what's going on!"

Harry walked up beside Ginny and Hermione suddenly felt ganged up on. Her shoulders slumped as she asked again, "Harry, what is it?"

He took a step toward her. "Let's go outside and talk."

Hermione stared into his eyes as if trying to read his mind. Finally, with a sigh, she gave up and brushed past the two. "Fine."

It was chilly, and Hermione had left her jacket inside. She rubbed her arms impatiently as she waited to hear whatever it was that was so important. "Come on, then. Out with it."Harry hesitated. After clearing his throat a few times and two annoyed huffs from Hermione, he started talking.

"We found out how those cronies knew about your parents, and our mission; how they knew it was Draco and not me, and how to trick you into coming to them."

Hermione perked up as soon as he mentioned her parents. She stared at Harry. "How?" she asked quietly.

Harry pinched the bridge of his nose, and his eyes were still closed when he spoke.

"Ron."

Her head started swimming and she thought she might faint. Instead, she swallowed hard and, blinking back tears, she slowly nodded. Harry continued talking, but she only heard bits and pieces.

"…apparently drunk off his arse talking to the bartender…" "…all they had to do was listen…" "…you know he didn't mean to, and he probably doesn't even…" "…I'm sorry, Hermione…"

Her head snapped up at the mention of her name, and she hoped she didn't look as crazed as she felt. Her own friend- best friend- had drunkenly revealed secrets and information to complete strangers. They easily learned about her search for her parents and it was the perfect trap for her to fall into.

"Harry, how did they know about our plan? I mean, obviously if Ron blabbed only about my parents, it wouldn't have been detrimental. It's no secret that I'm searching for them, but how did they know about Draco being polyjuiced?"

"Well, Ron was quite upset at us after we didn't let him go on the mission. So he went out again after you left and ended up spilling all the details of our plan. Look Hermione," he said suddenly, "he feels terrible about this. I know I shouldn't be making excuses for him, but maybe just take some time before doing anything rash, alright?"

Rash, thought Hermione. Like how Ron acted and almost got them all killed? A frightening sense of calm came over her. She inhaled heavily through her nose, and blew out a long breath.

"Alright." She shrugged off Ginny's hand on her shoulder as she walked back inside. "Where's my glass?"

Draco was at work on the weekend. He was at work, but not actually working; more like trying to keep busy. For whatever reason, he couldn't shake the frustration he felt when he thought about Granger. He twirled his quill in his hand as he rocked back and forth in his chair. A gentle tap at the window made him jump, and he opened it to let a tawny owl with bright green eyes in. Taking the piece of parchment from its beak, he quickly unrolled it. Maybe it was the information he was waiting for. His brows drew together after he read the hastily scribbled note.

Malfoy, need you at Mervin's ASAP. HP

Harry watched as Hermione took another gulp of her drink. He felt helpless. After he had told her about Ron's unthinkable mistakes, he expected her to blow up; yell, scream, throw a fit. He had been prepared for that. What he didn't expect was for her to calmly walk back into the pub and begin dancing again.

"Don't worry," said Ginny, rubbing Harry's back, "she'll be fine. She just needs to blow off some steam."

Harry clenched his jaw. He knew how Hermione dealt with her problems. He also knew that she had seemed happy for a short while before they got the note about her parents. As much as he didn't want to admit it, he knew it was because of Malfoy. Hermione had cemented that notion when she drunkenly told Ginny in the ladies' room that she missed him. Ginny said she seemed genuinely distraught, so he sent his owl a half-hour ago and in the meantime, Hermione had gotten increasingly intoxicated. He looked around impatiently. Where was Malfoy?

Draco stopped a few steps before the door to Mervin's. He had no idea what was going on or why Harry wanted him to come. Hopefully it wasn't some bloody party for Granger and Weasley's engagement or something. He ran his hand through his hair and pulled the door open. When he walked in, the first thing he saw was a bright red dress with long brown hair swinging back and forth over the back of it. Even charmed, Draco could recognize that hair anywhere.

Granger was dancing, and a little more provocatively than he would expect. Great. Did Potter call him here just to torture him? She turned her face so he could see her left cheek which was blushed and had a faint sheen on it from sweat. He watched as a tall dark haired guy walked up behind her and placed his hand on the small of her back, silently asking permission to dance with her. She was startled at first, but gave him a small smile and grabbed his hand. The guy was blatantly staring down her dress, and Draco took one step toward the dance floor before he was almost run over by Ginny.

"Oh good, you're here!" she sighed and linked his arm, pulling him over to Harry as he tried to keep an eye on that scoundrel.

"Hey, Malfoy. I hope I didn't alarm you with the letter. I wasn't sure if you carried a cell phone or not so…anyway, I wanted you to come because we learned some information today that is pretty important."

Harry proceeded to tell Malfoy about Ron's drunken blabbermouth and the more he talked, the hotter Draco's blood got. He looked over his shoulder at Hermione, who was still dancing with the idiot, and he noticed that even though she was moving lively enough and smiling, her eyes held a sort of deadness in them.

"…and Ginny told me that she was particularly upset with you about something, which is another reason I wanted you to come. She seemed to take the news about Ron rather well, but I think she's ignoring her pain. From what Ginny says, she seems inclined to speak only with you. Merlin only knows why."

Draco couldn't help it when sorrow for Hermione overtook his anger for Weasley. He also felt a strange sense of responsibility for her. "So, Potter, did she finally get rid of Weasley for good after she found out? I don't want to barge into their relationship unwelcome just because she's mad at him."

Harry looked at Draco like he didn't know whether he was being serious or not. "I don't know what you're talking about, Malfoy. They aren't together anymore."

Well, that was unexpected. Draco didn't want to ask Potter too many questions about his friend's love life, but he needed to hear it from Hermione.

"So what do you want me to do with her? She seems to be having a grand time over there."

Harry sighed. "Malfoy, she's drinking again. She's drank a lot tonight, and she's been asking about you. I don't know why, but she has. She's self-destructing in front of my eyes, and I can't help her. So I'm hoping you can."

Bloody hell. How did he get involved in this?

"Draco?"

He met Harry's pleading eyes and an understanding passed between them. He didn't want Hermione to know he called him there. He plastered on his suave smile and turned to greet her.

"Granger. Nice dress."

She looked down at herself as if she forgot what she was wearing and Draco swore he saw a blush creep to her cheeks. Then again, maybe it was from dancing.

"Thank you," she giggled. She sniffled a bit and looked thoughtfully up at him. "You don't know how happy I am to see you."

Draco would have had to have no heart for it not to melt a bit at that point. Still, he kept it guarded. "Yes, well, I didn't know you'd be here. I can't say I'm disappointed, though."

The smile she gave him could have brought him to his knees; if he was a lesser man, of course.

"Hey, Hermione, Ginny and I are going to head home if that's alright. Do you want to come with us?" Harry asked even though he already knew the answer.

"That's alright, Harry. I think I'll stay."

After saying their goodbyes, Harry and Ginny walked to the front door. He looked back at Hermione, and saw the dark-haired man walk up to her, completely ignoring Malfoy. He couldn't make out what the man was saying to her, but whatever it was, Malfoy didn't like it. He watched Draco step in between the two and lean forward to say something into the man's ear. When he pulled back, the man nodded curtly and walked away. Hermione was staring at Draco's back, dumbfounded.

"Looks like Hermione's got her hands full," Ginny said over Harry's shoulder. He smiled, and they walked out of Mervin's.

"Excuse me, Malfoy, I can take care of myself, you know."

"Please, Granger, the man was practically drooling down your dress. You can't possibly enjoy that kind of attention." At least he hoped she didn't.

She crossed her arms and made the face he loathed in school but found strangely endearing now. "Maybe I do. What's it matter to you, anyway?"

Good question. "It doesn't. Don't you think Weasley would be upset, however?"

He immediately regretted bringing up that redheaded dolt. Hermione looked like she didn't know whether to scream or cry. She opted for grabbing the drink out of the stranger's hand next to her and bolting toward the back door. Draco quickly handed the stranger a few sickles and ran to catch up with Hermione.

He spotted her as soon as he was outside. She was standing across the alley gulping down the rest of her stolen drink. He was pretty sure she heard him coming but still made sure to tread lightly so he didn't scare her away.

"You owe me six sickles."

She didn't turn to look at him. "You know, Ron is the one who sold us out. Not on purpose, of course, but how could anyone be that utterly stupid?"

Draco leaned against the wall so he was facing her. "He's Ron Weasley."

She laughed a bit and wiped her face. He didn't know she had been crying. "I guess you're right. He's one of my best friends, but sometimes I underestimate his thickness."

Draco's heart leapt at the term "friends". "So, you and Weasley aren't together? I assumed that day that he was on the porch that you two would…you know… sort things out."

Hermione snorted. "No, Draco. We sorted things out, but we did not get back together. We just don't work well under those terms. Lately, I'm wondering if we work well on any terms. I'm so mad at him, but I know he'd never put me in danger on purpose. I have no idea how I'll react when I see him again."

Trying to hide his elatedness, he smirked and said, "Well, judging by the amount you've drunk tonight I don't think anyone would hold you accountable if you decided to slug him. I certainly wouldn't." He winked at her.

She smiled and looked down. "Oh, Merlin, I know. I'm such a mess, Draco. For some reason, I only wanted to talk to you. You make me feel…better…somehow."

He looked at her and thought she was anything but a mess at that moment. Before he could stop himself, he gently grabbed her chin between his thumb and forefinger. "You may be a mess, Hermione, but you're a beautiful one."

She smiled bigger than he'd ever seen, and noticed her eyes watering again. When she took a step toward him, he panicked and dropped his hand like it had caught fire.

"Let's get you home, huh?" With that, he stepped around her and started walking, not even looking back to make sure she was following.

What just happened? He was pretty sure she had stepped forward to kiss him. But she was drunk, so wouldn't that have been taking advantage? He heard her footsteps getting closer behind him and glanced back. She was walking quickly to keep up, head down and arms folded over each other. He clenched his jaw; he had hurt her feelings.

"Granger, I was thinking that you could come by my office next week and go through all of those useless books you wanted to look at."

She looked up and gave him a small smile. "Sure, Malfoy. Thanks."

They apparated to Hermione's flat and Draco walked her to her door. It was awkward. Neither knew how to say goodbye without overstepping a boundary. Draco spoke first.

"It's always interesting with you, Granger. I hope you've got a hangover potion on hand."

"I do."

There was a long silence before Draco turned and started walking.

"Hey, Draco?"

He turned to see Hermione with a mischevious smile lighting up her face. "For your information, I don't enjoy men drooling all over me. I've always preferred a challenge."

With that, she smiled and walked inside, never noticing that her door had already been cracked.

Draco smiled to himself. She was up for a challenge, huh? He enjoyed a bit of a challenge himself.

Hey everyone! Thank you for the reviews, I love all the ideas and your creativity! I hope I don't disappoint. This chapter is the longest one I've written so far because I just couldn't find a good stopping point! I know things between Draco and Hermione are moving slow, but I've always liked the stories where they develop a real relationship before they actually get "together". Next chapter: Harry and Hermione talk, and Draco comes over for dinner! :)