Hermione was trying to convince her body to sleep after rounds. After Malfoy had pulled her into a broom closet exactly 30 minutes before the first set, her brain had been absolutely on fire and had no interest in calming down for something as boring as sleep. And so she wandered the corridors in the silence of a castle.
Just as she rounded the corner, she tripped over something warm, stumbling to gather her footing and reach for a wand at the same time. She eyed the foot sticking out from a particularly dusty tapestry with rage.
"Thirty points from-" She ripped back the fabric to identify whoever was tripping students in the hallway at midnight. She recoiled in horror at the dark mop of curls plastered against his head in a mix of blood and sweat. His face was swelling painfully and he was missing a tooth.
"Merlin, Nott!" she hissed, instantly falling to her knees and pushing his hair out of his face. She winced as he groaned, her hand coming away painted. "Theo! Can you hear me?"
"Urgh…. Granger? Is that you?" he slurred out. "Fancy meeting this time of night."
"What in the hell happened? You look like you were run over by a herd of hippogryphs."
She cast a gentle cleaning charm on his hair, clearing away the fluids until she could identify the source. A small gash near his forehead was swiftly overflowing again but-all in-all looked much less worse than all the blood had led her to believe.
" Vulnera Sanentur."
She started to breathe easier as the blood slowed to a trickle. She was no healer, she needed to get him to Madam Pomfrey.
"Can you walk?" she asked.
"Don't worry about it." He coughed and she tried not to cringe as blood splattered onto her shirt. His breathing was rough, pulled from his chest in harsh shaking gasp. "I'll be fine-"
He groaned clutching at his ribs. In spite of her statement from the last time, she had no qualms about unbuttoning his uniform to his weak protest. She hissed angrily when she was met by a collection of deep black and purple bruises coating his torso and curving around his ribs. Without even touching it, she could see where his breast bone was broken, caving in where it shouldn't be.
"You won't be fine. We have to get help." She held up her arm trying to remember the charm that would let the school nurse follow her patronus. Before she could cast it, Theo's hand fell with a hard thunk on her arm, his own wand pointed at his chest.
" B-brackium emendo ."
A sick gurgling sound emitted from his chest as the bone snapped back into place with an audible crack that set Hermione's neck hairs on end. Suddenly breathing easier, Theo leaned back against the wall and sighed.
"S-see. 'M fine."
"Are you insane?" Hermione yelled, the words echoing off the corridor.
They were too far from any of the dormitories to be heard but if any teachers were working late in their office they may come to investigate.
"You are still bloody and bruised and we need-"
"Granger stop," he groaned, sliding his hand off of her arm. "If I make a big deal about this it will just be worse next time."
"Worse?" she questioned, even as she began to rifle through her beaded bag. "How could it possibly be worse? You're nearly dead."
He looked at her meaningfully and the action spiked her temper. Haven't they all suffered enough.
"I'm a ghost in these halls," he said. "I would like that to remain figurative."
"Ghosts don't bleed this much," she countered, finally pulling out her first aid kit.
"Hence the figurative."
With a practiced hand she began to unravel a roll of flex tape that, after last year, she vowed never to be without again. Casting a cleaning charm on the wound she had no sympathy when he flinched at the rough treatment.
"Ow."
"Don't complain," she tutted, packing some cotton against the wound tightly. "If you want a proper healing you have to go to the hospital wing. This is just a field dress, it will probably scar if you don't get some essence of dittany for it."
"I have tons in my room." He waved dismissively but otherwise let her continue her sloppy bandaging instead of enraging her further. The sentence just sat like a cold stone in her stomach.
When she finished, she set to work on his face, her episkey taking care of the broken nose, lip and cheek. Whoever had hit him would at least be coming away with a cracked knuckle or two.
Summoning her bruise paste from her bag— silently thanking George for the industrial amount he had sent— she paused staring at the dark splotches all over his stomach and chest.
"Give it here," he sighed, holding out his hand with an exasperated look on his face.
She set the tub in his hand, listening to him mutter as he spread the slave across his skin, slowly fading the damage layer by layer.
"Honestly Granger, you won a war. Touching a man's chest shouldn't send you into a panic."
Coughing awkwardly she looked anywhere else but his face, her brain pulling up images of a bare chested Malfoy shuddering as she traced his collar bone. It was unhelpful.
"Oh that's a story I need to hear," he chuckled, letting her flush in silence. After a few minutes he handed back the tub, a weak smile on his face.
"I'll be fine Granger. I didn't mean to keep you up." He buttoned up his shirt, his movement stiff and blocky. She rolled her eyes before slapping his hands away and doing it herself.
"Honestly. Boys. You're just like Ron and Harry."
She deftly closed his shirt and scourgify the whole outfit. The blood had dried, leaving little stains but there wasn't much she could do about that.
"Kicking a man while he's down," Theo groaned when he tried to stand. "How very Slytherin of you."
"Shut up and stop trying to move," she chastised, holding him down with a hand on his shoulder.
She put away the paste and pulled out a small blue vial containing a mild pain potion. No better than a standard chemist pain reliever but it would have to do.
"Drink this. It will take fifteen minutes to go into effect then you can try to stand."
"Any chance you'll just leave me here to die?" he questioned darkly.
"So fatalistic." She settled down next to him after clearing a space of dust about a foot away.
"That's rich coming from the house that produced Thomas," he chuckled lightly. "That bastard's so dark he may as well be casting unforgivables."
"Theo!" she hissed, unable to hold the offense as a smile tugged at her face.
"Granger!" he mocked.
"Just call me Hermione. Honestly," she grumbled, pulling her knees to her chest.
"You have already seen me half naked," he agreed. "I suppose that demands a certain level of familiarity. Do contain yourself in the future though, I know my lanky body is irresistible to all women and I need to keep myself pure for our impending marriage."
"If I ever end up meeting you at the altar, I will be the one who needs to go to the hospital wing."
His laugh was cut off by a wince. He drew his hand to his side and took a deep shuddering breath. There were very few people who would be able to joke after what she could only imagine to be a rather brutal fight. Even as he bled all over her, he still joked and laughed like it had just been a playground scrap.
She wondered how she had gone her whole school life never really meeting someone so… well Theo. It was such a shame no one else could see it. She sighed, turning over the problem that was Theodore Nott in her head. After a few moments she had to make a decision.
"You said you weren't your father," she led, watching the way he grimaced.
"I'm not." Tight tension rolled through his shoulders like a crashing wave.
"What would I see if I looked at your left arm?" she questioned with a boldness she did not feel.
No one talked about the war if it could be helped, everyone was content to forget and mourn in their own way. She should leave it be, he was clearly paying the price no matter his actions. But she had to know, so she could choose correctly.
"Nothing good Granger," he muttered. She huffed indignantly at the title. He rolled his eyes. "Sorry. Nothing good Hermione . I don't have a mark but there is a reason I have been able to keep myself breathing through all this…. I have been practicing for years."
She nodded her head making her choice. Choices, lines, change, forgiveness. They were a generation full of scars, she may as well accept this as the new normal. After fifteen minutes was up she started to walk him to the dungeons even when he insisted not to. She helped him down the stairs, at the base of it she paused, waiting until Theo was half way down the corridor to ask.
"Anything I can do to help?"
"You've done enough Hermione. Thanks again for saving my sorry arse. Not that it's worth much of anything." He shuffled uncomfortably. "Keep this up and I'm going to think you just want my attention."
Hermione giggled at the blunt flirting and waved goodbye. She went up to her room in a fairly good mood, only scowling when she caught the boy's blood on her shirt as she changed. She stared at it for a long while before she slid into bed with a new found confidence. She had always done the right thing before, why stop now.
0000000
Draco was sitting at breakfast more than pleased with the previous night's activities. He had left Granger in a broom closet with her hair a mess, legs shaking and with new marks mottling her skin. He openly smiled— something that put the rest of the common room on edge— when Blaise and Daphne walked back in complaining about her being five minutes late to patrol check in.
Blaise himself was sucking back a coffee muttering about the set of third years he caught in the trophy room doing way too much for their age. It was a bit hypocritical of him but then again as far as Draco recalled, he didn't really become such a slag until their fourth year so maybe not.
Granger had just settled uncomfortably at the Gryffindor table between Brown and Girl Weasley and was laughing at some inane joke that Thomas had made. Draco packed the anger away for later, more than willing to put it to better use the next time he got her alone. He was growing to almost look forward to the day to day interactions as much as the little tryst.
He was of course still arguing with her in class, enjoying when he could get her riled up enough to hear that same pitch she got in her voice when her head was thrown back in ecstasy. But more than that, she had come back to life, begrudgingly admirable in her quick wit and encyclopedic knowledge.
The thing that pleased him most was sitting ahead of her in potions and watching her save the idiots behind her from certain destruction. She would continue to lecture them on being careful while they failed to look contrite and were just pleased she was helping them. Something she could only do because he was fucking the sense back into her apparently.
He had tested his theory incidentally. He had wholly ignored her for a week, wondering when she would just get too frustrated and come begging for it. After a few days had passed he started to see her slipping into that odd, distracted state. By the end of the week he was so unnerved, he ended up dragging her into an empty classroom just to snog her senseless enough that she could make it to class without an escort. On one hand, he didn't like having to take care of her. On the other, he couldn't help that cold lick of pride. In a way, it was sort of like having a very loud and annoying pet.
He was distracted by his musing as Theo lumbered into the Great Hall limping slightly. Draco grimaced watching his roommate and friend, an expression that drew Blaise's attention as well. They had both seen the bloodstained shirt on the floor this morning before the elves had been in to clean but his curtains were charmed shut.
The dark haired wizard began to make his way over to the table when a call rang out like a cannon ball across the Great Hall.
"Theodore Nott!"
Theo froze, his eyes shooting toward Granger as she pushed up from her seat dramatically, her hand on her hips as she frowned. Perhaps used to her's and Draco's classroom spats, the Great Hall fell silent, watching the confrontation with great interest. It didn't help that Granger was apparently trying to be as dramatic as possible.
"Don't you walk away from me."
Theo flinched, coming to a stop just a few feet from the Slytherin table and staring at the ground. He shoved his hands in his pockets and waited, never one to defend himself.
Granger stomped up to him, her hair flaring wildly around her as she came to a halt a foot away from him. Far too close for comfort for either of them. Her hand shot out and for a moment Draco was absolutely certain she was going to hit him.
But then, in a jaw-dropping turn of events, she rested the back of her hand against his head as if taking his temperature. Draco's possessiveness flared before being overrun with confusion at the target.
"How are you feeling?" she questioned as normally as if she was asking about the weather.
Theo's eyes flicked up, flashing with uncertainty at the witch in front of him. When Nott glanced at him Draco could offer no help other than to shrug. This wasn't his doing.
"Er. Better… Thanks Granger," he muttered, not that it mattered. Whispers carrying the commentary passed through the tables like lightning strikes.
She pulled her hand away lacing her palms together behind her back, an all too familiar position that he knew would leave her vulnerable to a variety of attacks. She huffed, blowing a single curl away from her face in the process.
"I told you to call me Hermione. Again, let me know if I can do anything to help."
She waited for Theo to nod awkwardly and flounced back to Gryffindor, taking her seat with a cool air of nonchalance as if she hadn't just stopped the morning meal on a dime. Theo stood there awkwardly for a moment, waiting for the stares to drip away. When they didn't he strode quickly to the table, taking a seat next to Zabini.
"What in the actual fuck was that?" Blaise commented just as the noise in the Great Hall began again.
"What?"
"Don't 'what' us Theo." Pansy baulked from his right. "Why on earth is the mudblood so friendly with you?"
"Erase that word from your vocabulary Pans," he hissed, shocking most of the seventh years who heard it. Theo didn't frequently pick a fight, when he did things tended to get very ugly.
"Fine." Draco diverted the conversation before it could escalate. He ground his teeth together, trying to force out the words as feigned indifference. "Then why is Granger touching you?"
Not quite what he was going for but apparently the table was too dumbstruck to notice.
"She's not so bad," Theo stated. He nibbled on an apple slice, looking as unbothered as possible considering the circumstances.
"But she's-"
"The Head Girl and a nice person," Theo finished before Pansy could say something that would result in retaliation. "We ran across each other last night and I mentioned feeling off. She was just checking in."
"Checking in? If you think that sullying your-"
Pansy's rant was cut off as Draco stood, glaring over toward the lion's table where Hermione appeared to be having a similar conversation with her housemates. She was staring at the table like she was hoping to catch it on fire.
"I'm heading to the library. Theo-" The wizard met his eye with a challenge, as if daring him to say anything. Draco schooled himself, catching Granger's eye as he replied. "Be careful."
"She's not dangerous Draco," he scoffed, rolling his eyes at the idea.
Draco simply blinked before heading to the door just as Hermione stood raising her voice at something Weasley had said. By the time he had cleared the Great Hall he could hear her yelling over the other voices in the room.
"He's still a fucking person! Lay off him Ron!"