A/N: Thank you to Black_Phoenix24 and CharliPetidei for all their amazing alpha and beta work!

World 3: Draco's POV

Even in the crowded hallway, it was easy to spot the bush of Hermione's hair. It appeared that no matter what world Draco was in, her hair would always be large and disheveled enough to be mistaken for a bird's nest.

He ran to catch up with her, weaving through the bustling corridor filled with first years running in the opposite direction, terrified of being late to Dark Arts class. When he finally reached her, he maneuvered himself directly into her path, blocking her from moving forward.

She glared at him. The flow of traffic parted around them, leaving grumbling students to shift left and right to accommodate the roadblock. He didn't give a fuck.

With the annoyance of someone who had uttered the same question too many times for one morning, he demanded, "Are you insane?"

He let out a huff when he realized he was being dragged by the arm to an alcove on the left.

It was dark: the shadows obscuring them from the passing students. An angry gargoyle sat against the wall, baring its fangs at them, with its wings spread out as if it was ready to attack.

"Why did you pull me in here? Are you insane?" Draco repeated. "I thought you were trying to get away from me, that's why I had to chase after you." He brushed some imaginary dust off his clothes. "And I'm not interested in being caught in a snogging corner with you."

He heard a whispered Muffliato as a hand darted out to slap his mouth shut, effectively silencing him.

"I'm not insane, but you must be daft," she hissed. "You cannot let anyone know that you aren't from here." Her hand went back down to her side while she glowered at him. "And I wasn't trying to get away from you; I was just trying to be on time to class, but that plan went out the window when you accosted me in the hallway."

"I accosted you?" Draco spluttered. "I'm not the one who dragged someone else into a dark, secluded corner! And I'm not the one who spent the better part of my morning with my wand threateningly pointed at someone else."

"I think you're being a tad dramatic."

"I'm being dramatic? You divulged a murder plan to someone you don't even know moments before you skipped off merrily, and I'm not allowed to question your sanity?"

She opened her mouth to interrupt him, but he was having none of it. He ignored her grunts of protests and continued with his line of questioning. "No rational person would want to be involved with the death of the two greatest wizards in a century. Why would you kill Dumbledore, and immediately start planning on killing the Dark Lord? Are you trying to seize power?"

Granger scoffed. "Don't be ridiculous. I've been planning on killing him for years."

"I'm sorry. Was that supposed to comfort me?"

"— And Dumbledore only had a few weeks left to live — he wanted me to kill him" — she winced while the corners of her mouth dipped and her forehead crinkled —"Well, he had planned for me to kill him."

Regret, he saw with surprise, was one emotion this psychotic version of Granger was able to display. So far, he had only seen apathy and annoyance.

"What?"

"Did this not happen in your world?" she sighed. "The stupid man put a Horcrux on his hand."

"What the fuck is a Horcrux?"

To his dismay, she shook her head, indicating it was a topic for another time.

"Look, I don't know what you're planning—" Draco started to say before he was interrupted again.

"—I thought I was clear earlier. You're going to help me kill the Dark Lord."

Draco snorted derisively.

"In case I wasn't clear, Granger," — he spit her name out with disgust as if it left a bad taste in his mouth — "I have no interest in your plans! You're carrying out a fool's errand. He can't be killed. The Harry Potter from my world has already tried, multiple times. And unlike him, I have no interest in dying."

She pursed her lips before replying,"I know you want the Dark Lord gone as much as I do —"

"You may have forgotten, but you don't actually know me! You know an insane version of me — one who clearly must have been psychotic if he was willing to put up with you. I can assure you that I am not him. Not to mention that I don't know you either. Why the fuck would I want to help you?!"

She ground her jaw and poked a finger into his chest. "You may not know me, but I know Draco Malfoy. He is my best friend. He hated the Dark Lord, and from what I know of parallel universe theory, people are not fundamentally different in the various parallels. That means that you want him gone too."

His left eye twitched as footsteps echoed down the hallway. It was probably coming from a student going to the loo in the middle of class.

"I do not hate the Dark Lord," Draco insisted.

"Please," she laughed. "You're a shit Occlumens, but you're an even worse liar."

His jaw clenched as he pushed her up against the wall, caging her between his two arms. "You've been going through my thoughts?" he roared. He shoved his hand into his robe pocket, coming back up with his wand.

She blinked twice innocently at him, and if she was intimidated by their positioning, she made no indication of it. "Well yes, of course. In the bedroom, earlier."

"Is that why you were keeping eye contact with me?" he demanded.

"If you expect me to feel guilty about it — I won't. You were acting strange; I wanted answers. So, I went through your memories and they were completely different than what I had expected. That's how I figured out you were from a different universe. And quite honestly, it was too easy. You really are a terrible occlumens."

"Granger—" he started to hiss.

"Ahem." Theodore Nott was standing with his arms crossed in their shadowed corner, tapping his foot. He did not look amused.

"I'm not sure I want to know, but why is it, that whenever you're missing, I can always trust to find you in this alcove?"

Hermione muttered something under her breath, but the words were unintelligible. "Theo," she said, giving him a wide grin, "It isn't what it looks like."

Theo did not look convinced, exhaling dramatically. "One day, you know — you're gonna go missing—"

"Theo, we—"

Theo waggled a finger at her. "No, no. I'm talking now. One day, you'll go missing, like actually missing. Like, kidnapped or something. And I won't come looking for you, because I'll think you're here. Then, wanting to spare my eyes — and who can blame me for wanting to spare my eyes — I'll just leave you be. And then you'll just stay kidnapped. And maybe you'll die. Is that what you want? Is that worth it for a quickie in an alcove during class? "

"Of course not, Theo," Hermione replied with a straight face and a deadpan voice. But her lips were quirked up in a playful grin.

"Then just — please, please — take pity on my soul. And don't go missing."

"Alright." Hermione said with exasperated fondness.

Theo's eyes sparkled as he clapped his hands together. "Great! Come on then. You can do this later. Flitwick sent me to find you — so if we could just head to Charms..."

"Sure, just give us a second, Theo. We're just wrapping something up." Hermione smiled sweetly at him.

"Gross. Nobody wants to see that. I'll be waiting around the corner for you." Theo turned on his heel, and started towards the classroom.

As Theo rounded the corner, Hermione turned back to Draco. Any trace of the smile she flashed at Theo was gone, replaced with a cold glare. She sighed.

"You're not as smart as I would hope but —" Her shoulders slumped and her hand tightened around her wand. She looked tired. "Can I at least trust you to be self-preserving enough not to go around spreading that you're from a different universe?'

"Why would it matter if anyone knows?"

"We don't have time for this right now. Just — make sure to keep your mouth shut," she said before turning the corner to join Theo without waiting for a response.

He trailed slowly behind Theo and Granger with silent footsteps. As they made their way through the hallway towards the Charms classroom, his eyes traced along the familiar portraits.

It should have been comforting that the castle was the same as the one he's always known, but instead it felt eerie.

Their bizarre trio entered the classroom, the door clicking shut behind them. The room looked the same as he remembered, with Professor Flitwick standing on a pedestal in the front of his classroom. Forty curious eyes peered back at them as they entered, but none seemed surprised that Theodore Nott, Draco Malfoy, and Hermione Granger had arrived together.

"Thank you for collecting them Mr. Nott," Flitwick said with a shaking voice. "Please take your seats Mr. Malfoy and Miss Granger."

Unabashed, Granger marched over to the only empty desk and plopped herself down. Flitwick resumed the lesson as if he was never interrupted.

He seemed bored as he taught the theory behind the Levicorpus spell. And nobody seemed concerned that they were learning a jinx in charms class.

The next 45 minutes passed slowly as they learned the theory behind levitating people. Flitwick's eyes began to droop, and he moved from standing to sitting on his teaching pedestal. Honestly, Draco found that he agreed with Flitwick. This was a waste of time, and even Granger didn't appear to be paying attention, unless Flitwick was looking their way.

He was quick to learn that this Granger was as much as a swot as the one he left behind. This one, however, in his very honest opinion, was much worse. Because this one was two faced and seemed to be a Slytherin in every worst way.

She simpered and smiled sweetly at Flitwick while he looked at them. Flitwick smiled adoringly back. Once he turned around, however, she slumped her head down, rolled her eyes, and turned her head towards Theo. They made fun of Flitwick's voice together.

She clearly knew how to win approval. No doubt she knew how to maneuver her way to wherever she wanted.

That made her dangerous. And he was terrified.

Exactly as he remembered, Granger couldn't keep her mouth shut. She answered Flitwick's questions incessantly. But this version of Granger wasn't desperate for attention. She wasn't desperate for praise. She didn't shove her hand in the air and wave it around, waiting to be called on.

She answered without permission, taking command of the room and forcing everyone to pay attention to her. She spoke with the assurance of someone who knew she was the smartest, knowing that nobody would challenge her. He wouldn't be surprised if she expected everyone to throw themselves at her feet as a thank you for sharing her vast knowledge with them.

Beyond trying to tune out her voice, the class passed uneventfully. And finally Flitwick stopped talking, inviting them to move the tables to the side of the room so they would have space for the practical portion of the lesson.

It was hard to contain his excitement at the prospect that he would no longer have to listen to Flitwick's squeaky voice drone on.

Granger partnered with Theo — to Theo's surprise — leaving Blaise with Draco.

After ten minutes, Blaise still had his feet planted firmly on the ground, despite Draco's multiple utterances of the incantation. At each failed spell, Draco's cheeks grew more tinged with pink.

He narrowed his eyes at the sight of Theo hovering effortlessly 10 feet above the floor. Draco had never heard of the spell before that class. It had been Granger's first attempt at the spell too, so how could she do it so easily if they were learning about it for the first time today? He was as well read as she was, but he had never come across the spell.

Where could she have learned about the spell beforehand? It was very rare for people to successfully cast such advanced spells on their first try.

Upon surveying the room, it seemed that Granger would be the only successful student that class.

It was absolute mayhem, and it reminded him distinctly of the Cornish pixie debacle from second year. Except, there were 17 year old adults flailing in the air instead of 20 centimeter blue creatures.

Someone had successfully executed Levicorpus but couldn't execute Liberacorpus, the counter curse, causing a Gryffindor — Lisa, if he remembered correctly — to dangle helplessly in the air as she begged to be let down. Flitwick waddled unhelpfully (and very foolishly, in Draco's opinion) under her floating body.

The professor raised his hands as if to counter the spell, but not before Lisa fell on top of him. Flitwick crumpled to the ground, leaving professor and student to lay in a heap on the floor.

In his periphery, Draco saw Granger roll her eyes, while still keeping Theo steadily in the air. Theo seemed to be wiping tears out of his eyes as his chest heaved up and down from hefty laughter.

"Class dismissed," Flitwick squeaked from his pile on the ground. "Miss Granger. If you could please help me by assisting your classmates with their countercurses."

Out of Flitwick's limited field of vision, she rolled her eyes again. "Of course, Professor."

She made quick work of it, and soon they were all exiting the class, leaving the tangled bodies of Flitwick and Lisa behind.

Blaise, Theo, Draco, and Hermione walked in a line down the hallway before parting at the intersection marked by Moaning Myrtle's bathroom.

"We'll meet up with you after your meeting with Snape, yeah?" Theo spoke as a parting. He and Blaise rounded the corner.

Immediately once they were out of sight, Granger pulled him into the abandoned bathroom.

"Myrtle? Are you in here?" she called, as they walked past the sinks. "Myrtle?" She pushed open the door to Myrtle's usual stall.

The echoes of Granger's voice against the walls were the only answer she received. Satisfied that they had no audience, Granger whipped her wand out and jabbed it into his neck.

"What the fuck, Granger! Is this really necessary for the third time today?" he exclaimed.

"I'll make this quick, because we're going to be late to our meeting with Professor Snape."

He scoffed. He couldn't believe this. It wasn't like he had asked to be shoved into the bathroom. "Honestly Granger, I don't even want to be here. So if you would just. Let. Me. Go. I'll be on my merry way."

"I need to make this as clear as possible. So you're going to listen to me carefully," she sneered. "We are going to talk to the Headmaster about the Heads' duties, and you are not to let him know that you're not from here. You can't let anyone know."

He tried slapping her wand away from him, but Granger was stubborn and surprisingly strong. Her wand stayed in place at his neck. "Yes, you mentioned that already."

"Well you never affirmed that you were planning on listening to me," she tapped her foot impatiently.

"Well you never explained why I couldn't tell anyone," he shot back.

"How thick are you? The moment that the Dark Lord knows that you're an imposter, you're as good as dead."

He shook away the chill that washed over him at hearing Granger refer to Voldemort as the Dark Lord, knitting his eyebrows together and wrinkling his nose. "You're really making no sense, Granger. And you haven't really given me much information that could help me understand. Wouldn't it be good if more people know? They can help me get back to where I came from."

She used her left hand to rub at her temples. "Why must I explain everything to you? Why can't you figure out anything yourself?"

"Hey—"

"You can't trust anyone because they could report it to the Dark Lord. And the moment that he knows that you're an imposter, you're as good as dead. You lack the knowledge and the context of this world. And that makes you utterly useless to the Dark Lord. Especially as you seem quite a bit more stupid than your counterpart."

He ignored her last jab. "Why am I useful to you then?"

"At the very least, you're an extra set of eyes that can read books, and follow orders — from me, just in case that wasn't clear." Her body drooped a bit from her usual perfect posture. "And the faster we find a way to get you back, the faster we can get my boyfriend back too."

"And why should I listen to you?"

She shrugged. "Well I could always just kill you. It would be helpful to have you look for a solution, but you're really quite disposable. So, are we clear? No telling anyone."

His jaw fell open, preventing him from answering immediately. Without the talking, the eerie silence of the abandoned bathroom was accentuated. The only noise came from the dripping of the leaky faucet behind them.

Her eyes narrowed at him, and her wand dug further into his neck. "Are we clear?"

"Yes. Fine," he spat. "I won't tell anyone."

At his response, her wand arm dropped back down to her side. Draco started rubbing at the spot in his neck, where a bruise was surely starting to form.

"Come on. Let's go then. I don't want to be late." Granger said.

She took his arm again and started dragging him out of the bathroom. Draco shook her off. "Enough. I am capable of walking myself."

They walked in silence towards the gargoyle entrance, passing the collection of suits of armor, and a gathering of portraits who were singing together in harmony.

Upon arriving at the entrance, they ascended the stairs without issue. Snape was waiting for them at his desk. His elbows rested on the surface, and his hands interlocked, forming a triangle with the table and his arms.

"Mr. Malfoy. Miss Granger. How nice of you to join me." He paused. "Stop standing by the door looking confused. Come sit down."

As Draco walked over to the chairs, he glanced around the room. Despite the recent change in ownership, the headmaster's office looked mostly the same as when Dumbledore had inhabited it, in either world. Dumbledore's silver gadgets whirred from the shelves along the wall.

As Draco scanned the shelves, Snape's voice snapped his attention back to the meeting,"Mr. Malfoy. If you would be so kind as to give us your attention."

Draco clenched his fists under the table but turned his head back towards the headmaster.

"Thank you," Snape continued. "Were you competent enough to have settled the schedules with the prefects?"

"Yes sir," Hermione answered.

"And have there been any incidences of whining from the Gryffindor prefects?"

"No, sir."

"Well I must say that I'm surprised to hear that. I trust you know it is not my job to babysit the Head Girl and Head Boy? So far, you haven't made me regret selecting you two as the Heads. Do not do anything to change that assessment. Now, for the real reason I've called you in today."

While Hermione didn't look surprised, Draco straightened his back in his chair.

"Have you made any progress in the task the Dark Lord assigned you?"

"Unfortunately, no." Hermione answered. "The Order is very meticulous with their secret keeping. It makes it almost impossible to track down Potter and Weasley. I've been researching how to break the Fidelius Charm."

"And any luck?"

"I've found a few books of interest. I'm making my way through them as quickly as possible."

Draco opened his mouth to talk, but Granger promptly kicked him in the shin under the table.

"Well. Just remember that the Dark Lord is not a patient man, Miss Granger," Snape drawled. "Be sure to let me know if you need any assistance."

"Of course, Professor."

"You may leave. Hurry along. Do not be late for your next class."