Hermione was sitting across from Draco in Professor Snape's office, the two of them were serving their detention together...

Well...sort of...

When they'd arrived, their Defense Professor had placed two sitting chairs across from each other, on the other side of his desk where he was currently ensconced—grading essays...his red quill scratching furiously over the parchments like they'd offended him personally.

Hermione didn't know how long she and Draco had stood there, waiting to be addressed but both of them figured it might behoove them to exercise a bit of patience.

When Snape finally did acknowledge them both, his brow was furrowed with irritation.

"Sit.." he growled and they both parked their arses down simultaneously, warily facing each other with trepidation as they didn't know what to expect.

Severus moved stealthily from around his desk and stood to her left side, as he stared his rather prominent nose down at them.

"For this evening, we will be working on your Occlumency in a different way, Miss Prewett." When Hermione's expression registered momentary confusion, Snape just sighed. "Mr. Malfoy will be the one attempting Legilimency on you. He is aware of the basics of the craft, having worked with me since the beginning of last term. Normally, I would recommend you try and block him from your mind, but that is not the purpose of this lesson. I wish for Mr. Malfoy to guide your mind to a specific memory of his choosing."

"And that will do what?" Hermione asked, intrigued.

"Your magic has been feeling off, except for those times when Mr. Malfoy is able to have direct contact with you, yes?"

Hermione nodded.

"But you can't be with each other day in and out, correct?"

Again she nodded.

"My theory is such that I suspect as we get closer to Mr. Malfoy's seventeenth birthday, your powers will continue to express more and more often as your magic senses its mates magic reaching full maturity. Therefore, it may become more difficult for you to diffuse these outbursts without some kind of anchor to ground you."

"I'm confused, Professor..." Hermione began hesitantly, "I do have the ability to speak telepathically into your mind as well as Theo's. I haven't attempted to do so with Draco but how is what you're proposing any different?"

"Because in those instances you are asserting your mind into others but in this case, Draco will be your anchor." Severus drolled out with just the right amount of exasperation, his tone suggesting the answer was obvious. "He will be directing your thoughts."

Hermione bit her lip and nodded, ignoring the smug smirk from her newly minted intended as he was watching her.

"Fine." She acquiesced reluctantly, before glaring at Draco—who couldn't even manage to pretend he wasn't enjoying this.

Snape lifted an eyebrow at the petulant tenor of her voice, but didn't reply. He then deferred his attention to Draco and drawled in his bored manner, "Do you have a memory you wish to seek?"

He nodded immediately, causing Hermione's eyes to narrow slightly before Draco lifted his wand and made eye contact...saying the word legilimens softly and entering her mind.

Hermione noted almost instantly, the differences in how Draco's magic flowed into her mind compared with Professor Snape. Where Severus did so with an evident design to break down her defenses in an insidious manner, Draco's technique was completely non-threatening. It was almost like he was an innocent bystander perusing through a photo album...lazily flicking though each page until he got to the one he wanted.

And when he got there, Hermione didn't realize it until it was too late.

They were back in Professor Slughorn's class first day of Potions this year and Hermione could see herself at the front of the room, identifying each potion as if slow motion. She felt Draco's amusement as she got to the final one of Amortentia, her head bent down slightly as she took in a gentle whiff of the pearlescent swirls lifting off the cauldron.

Hermione could see her former self's eyes glaze over for a moment as she recited the first two smells she'd picked up on from the love potion.

When it got to the third...right before her former self spoke she heard Draco's voice in her mind.

And the vision stopped like a Muggle photograph, the words 'spearmint toothpaste' just waiting to fall from her lips.

"Right here..." his voice hovered between them as smooth as sin, and Hermione felt her exasperation spike, but hearing Draco chuckling in her mind made her wonder just how badly he'd been wanting to know what it was she'd smelled that day.

"You fibbed, Princess." His easy drawl continued to flow into her mind. "There was a brief pause as if you couldn't reconcile what it was you were actually smelling. But this time, you're going to tell me the truth."

Hermione could hear her mental scoff, but Draco's mind just hovered over her prickly feelings like a warm blanket. She could feel his amusement, but she could also feel other emotions coming to the forefront too. There was a cursory academic interest, a light smugness, a needful pleasure, amused indulgence...but the overriding emotions were comfort and safety.

It was as if his mind was letting hers know that it was safe to share the truth with him.

She gazed around the room in her mind and noticed Draco's former self eyeing her with a keen interest, his breath holding as if he was anticipating her answer with something akin to need.

Hoping...

The memory slowly picked up again, and as Hermione's former self pulled away completely from the cauldron, the words...green apples...came tumbling unbidden from her mouth.

Her shock was only mitigated by the happy chuckle of her intended as he pulled from her mind even more gently than he'd entered...

...leaving her feeling slightly bereft at the loss.

When the moment broke—Hermione's face went scarlet, but Draco just had a pleased lopsided grin plastered on his face.

Snape's eyeroll and disgusted shake of his head, let them both know he'd rather not be privy to the particulars of their shared experience.

"I take it was a success?"

"Yes, Professor." Draco replied, his voice controlled even if his expression wasn't.

"Good," Severus droned, "You will need to practice this technique at least twice per week for now and as we get closer to June, I am hopeful you will be able to do this Draco without need of a wand or oral recitation of the spell itself. It should become fairly instinctive."

"And you think this will help?"

"I believe it will buy the necessary time for you both," Snape's voice was even, "as there is very little in the way of information about Sorcery and the binding of an ancillary, I do believe the better your minds are prepared—the easier it will be to cope with the inevitability, when the time arrives."

Both Hermione and Draco nodded, as it seemed like sound logic.

Neither one realizing at that very moment that they'd end up owing everything to their Defense Professor's due diligence when that fateful time arrived.