November 24th, 2011

A/N: I'm awfully tired today and I don't know why. I stayed up past midnight this morning to post chapter twelve. My brother and I were playing Lego Harry Potter Years 5-7 for at least an hour, probably two. I hope you guys enjoy this (: Thanks Cat, for being a beta reader sent down from heaven!

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.

Chapter Fourteen

Hermione Granger Strikes Again!

The majority of the wizard community is aware that last Friday, Narcissa Malfoy hosted a gala to celebrate her birthday. Sources state that when Draco Malfoy arrived, he had none other than Hermione Granger on his arm, much to the obvious displeasure of Astoria Greengrass. Her anger at this can be understood as she is, if our sources are correct, expecting Draco Malfoy's child.

Could it be that Hermione Granger is the cause of the rift between Draco Malfoy and Astoria Greengrass? This would not be Granger's first time wooing famous, wealthy men. Several years ago, we reported on Granger's romance with the Bulgarian quidditch player Viktor Krum, which was hindered by her extremely close relationship with Harry Potter. Sources say that she has been toying with Potter's heart since then, and even Ron Weasley has been reported as saying that they are "closer than most," and that there have been moments that he has had to "step out of the way in order to allow them to have their relationship."

Is Granger the wedge driving Malfoy and Greengrass apart? Should Draco Malfoy even be keeping close company with someone that has been known to go after famous men? These questions and more are up for speculation, and we are sure this isn't the last we will hear about this tumultuous love triangle.

Even after they were out of school Hermione Granger continued to toy with dear Harry Potter's feelings. While they were searching for ways to defeat He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, the two had a romance Ronald Weasley can verify. Here is a snatch of an interview one of our journalists had with the war hero:

"What caused you to leave during the middle of the search?" our journalist, Sandy Whitman, asked.

"I was very determined to bring Voldemort down once and for all, you see, but when it became obvious that Harry and Hermione just wanted some peace and quiet so they could further their relationship, I had to leave. Then, when I came back because I realized they would never stay on task without me there, they seemed to have had a fight and Hermione ran back to me. I'm sorry to say that it probably caused Harry to be less trustful of others than before," Weasley replied.

Draco Malfoy certainly does not deserve that treatment. Ever since the war ended he has become a remarkable young wizard who works at St. Mungo's, fixing problems for others. I'm sure plenty of his supporters will send a message to Hermione Granger in Draco Malfoy's defense.

So there you have it, everyone. Stay tuned, though; the Daily Prophet is sure there is more to come.

Hermione threw the copy of Daily Prophet at Ron's face. "Would you care to explain yourself?" she asked once she finished reading the front page. She couldn't believe that something as silly as her love life was on the cover of a newspaper, again.

Harry quietly closed the door of Ron's office, muttering "muffliato" so they wouldn't have any unwanted eavesdroppers. Then he sat down in a chair and let Hermione do the talking – or rather, ranting.

"You know nothing has ever happened between Harry and I, and you still told Rita Skeeter, that awful woman, that something did! And you failed to mention the real reason why you abandoned us in the middle of nowhere," Hermione spat. "You know, I actually thought that you were above doing such a thing. Never did I believe you would stoop so low."

"Ron, you have to admit that you're in the wrong here. There is no possible way you can justify what you did to Hermione, Draco, and me," Harry added, frowning.

First Ron's ears turned red. Then came his neck, his cheeks, and eventually his entire face.

"You're taking her side? Harry, for the love of Merlin, she's dating Draco Malfoy!"

"Which is her choice – Hermione is plenty capable of choosing for herself. Have you even talked to Draco lately? He's not exactly the Death Eater we knew," Harry said, ever the calm one in that kind of situation. "And even then we didn't really know him."

"You did all of this because I moved on," Hermione stated, her eyes widening as understanding dawned on her. "I should have known! You never grow up, do you, Ronald?"

Harry's hand flashed out and closed around Hermione's wrist when the witch reached for her wand. If it hadn't been for his Seeker reflexes, Ron would have been hexed already.

"'Mione, don't do anything rash. Ron is still our friend."

"Is he, Harry? Is he still the boy I became friends with in our first year?" Hermione asked. She glared at Ron, yanked her arm out of Harry's grasp, and stalked out of the room.

Ron expected to get chastised by Harry some more after Hermione left. All he got was a disappointed look and sigh before Harry went back to his own office.

"He's taking care of a patient right now," Cassie said, offering Hermione a sympathetic smile when she stormed into St. Mungo's. "It shouldn't take too long before you can talk to him."

"Thanks, Cassie," Hermione replied softly, the anger drained out of her for the moment, although she knew it would rise again when she saw Ron. "I take it you saw what Ronald did, then."

"Healer Malfoy was upset too. Someone asked if he had seen the Prophet today and it took three of his coworkers to hold him back."

Hermione smiled slightly. There was no denying that Draco had a temper as fierce as her own.

Glancing around the room, Hermione noticed that half of the people waiting had the Daily Prophet in hand. She rolled her eyes at the looks she got, and resisted the urge to draw her wand when she overheard a few remarks made by the mothers of some children.

"Thank you for fixing my head, Healer Malfoy."

"It wasn't a problem at all, Nicholas. Just try not to give yourself another eye again, okay, son?"

"I'll try my best!"

Draco clapped the boy on the shoulder before sending him back to his anxious mum. He caught sight of Hermione, held up a finger, signaling for her to wait a minute, and walked over to one of the wizards reading Rita Skeeter's column.

"Excuse me, sir, but I'm afraid that I can't serve anyone that reads that kind of rubbish. This is a paparazzi free zone, and we also disapprove of seeing the Daily Prophet here as well."

"Of course, Healer Malfoy," the man said, arching an eyebrow. He folded up the newspaper so it fit in his pocket, tucking it inside once he was done. He respected the healer standing in front of him, and he honored his request, although he'd be retelling the story to his wife when he got home.

Draco felt that the patient, or relative of a patient, would spread the news with others, but there was nothing he could do to stop him, and besides, Draco just wanted to make sure Hermione was okay.

"You want to get away from here?" he asked, stepping up next to her. "It's a slow day and I think they can spare me. What about you?"

"Gina was practically shoving me into the floo network when she saw what Ron did."

"I can believe that," Draco said. He glanced at Cassie, who waved, and started walking to the elevator.

"Where did you want to go?"

"How about going someplace Muggle?" Draco suggested. "That way we won't see any of Skeeter's 'writing' about."

"That's a good idea," Hermione replied, kissing Draco's cheek as the elevator doors closed. He was incredibly thoughtful and was the sweetest thing when it came to her and other people he cared about. Why hadn't she noticed that before? It could have saved her plenty of heartbreak involving Ron.

"I happen to be full of them," Draco said with a small smirk.

Hermione shot Draco a look but he pretended not to notice, instead offering her his arm once they were on the ground floor of St. Mungo's. The former smiled at her boyfriend's antics and allowed him to lead the way.

Once they were outside, Draco slipped into an alley with no warning, causing Hermione to panic and close her hand around her wand. They didn't need to apparate to get to a Muggle area of London, so the only reason Hermione could think of for hiding was that someone was following them.

"Draco?" Hermione whispered. "What is it? What – or who – did you see? Should we run? Disapparate?"

"Hermione, please be quiet for just a second," Draco hissed, craning his neck to peer out from around the corner of the brick wall they were pressed against. Hermione's eyes narrowed, but she obeyed.

His gray eyes scanning the crowd, Draco wished for the first time in his life that he had horrible eyesight and that that was why he saw Benjamin Warrant a second ago. Maybe he was imagining things. Maybe his paranoia was so bad he was starting to hallucinate. But no, of course not, because Draco Malfoy and Hermione Granger were involved and together the two of them simply attracted life-threatening situations, or at least dangerous ones.

"There's a Death Eater on the streets," Draco told Hermione quietly. He maneuvered his arm so her hand was clutched tightly in his and continued speaking. "He's the one that came to my flat the other day. We're going to have to escape inconspicuously so these Muggles don't get hurt in the cross-fire."

Hermione nodded, her mind already formulating a plan. "A little transfiguration should do the trick. I would normally just change into my Animagus form, but I certainly can't do that now. Alright, this might feel odd…"

Before Draco could process what Hermione was doing, his hair grew longer, shaggier, and light brown. His clothes were altered – mostly his shoes, Hermione called them Converse – and she also told him that his eyes had changed color so that they were green.

"Good, I would hardly recognize you if I hadn't been the one to do all this," Hermione said appraisingly. She waved her wand over herself and her hair straightened, turning as black as Harry's, and she made her eyes a shade darker as well. "Now we're ready to go."

Hermione was the one to actually start moving first. She flashed Draco a quick smile over her shoulder and stepped out of the alley.

"Now, where were we going before we got interrupted?" Hermione asked casually. Draco was marveling over her magical ability and it took him a moment to come up with an answer to her question.

"I heard there was a pizza place that opened up somewhere in Muggle London. I haven't the foggiest clue what pizza is, but I know you like it, and I figured we could see if the place was any good," Draco said, clearing his throat. He glanced around subtly and wasn't sure whether to be relieved or not that he could no longer spot Benjamin.

"How far away is it?"

"Not too far from here, if I'm not mistaken. Do you see him anywhere?" Draco didn't need to specify who 'him' was. He was positive that Hermione would know what he meant.

"He's tall, right? With black hair and a scar running down his face, and really bright blue eyes?"

"Yes," Draco responded, amazed that Hermione could remember that much from one look.

Hermione shook her head, but checked the crowd again to be safe. "I don't see him. That either means we should be glad, or very worried."

"I was thinking the exact same thing."

A hand on Draco's shoulder made him jump. How had he been recognized? Hermione had altered his appearance, hadn't she? The couple exchanged a panicked look before Draco turned around.

"Excuse me, could you direct me to King's Cross Station?"

Draco relaxed visibly as he pointed the tourist in the right direction. Hermione, on the other hand, did not let down her guard, and continued to watch for the Death Eater Draco had met.

"We're paranoid, we are," Draco mused when the lady had gone to relay the information to her family. "And here I was thinking that we were about to die."

Hermione said nothing, weaving through the sea of people with ease that came from going to school with hundreds of others. She wanted to fool herself into thinking they were safe, but she knew better. It was a good thing Hermione had spent such a long time around Harry; she could count on thinking clearly even while panicking.

"I think he's actually gone," Draco said. Hermione made the mistake of glancing at him and decided that for the time being, she would keep her thoughts to herself.

They went along with the flow of the crowd for a while longer, and even Hermione began to wonder if the man had mysteriously disappeared. She hadn't seen him for a good five minutes, and she had been looking around every second or so.

Draco tugged on Hermione's hand and she followed him into an Italian restaurant. She still hadn't transfigured them back to themselves, and she was fairly sure that the charms wouldn't wear off without her prompting either. All Hermione had to do was stop holding Draco's hand like it was her life line.

"So what is pizza, exactly?" Draco asked, waiting until the hostess had left to talk. He stared at the menu, his eyebrows furrowing together as he read it.

Hermione chuckled and opened her mouth to answer, but she was cut off by a waiter. She tilted her head to the side and ordered two Italian sodas. Hermione figured Draco might as well enjoy the whole experience.

"Pizza is…well, I don't know how to describe it, exactly. I grew up with it so I know what it is. It has layers, I guess. The bottom layer is crust, then there's tomato sauce, then cheese, and whatever toppings you want," Hermione explained. "A lot of Muggles and Muggleborns love it, including myself, but you already know that much."

"It sounds interesting," Draco said sincerely. "You can order. I don't trust myself." He set his menu down on the table and grinned at Hermione.

"Okay, if you don't mind having mushrooms on top of ch…"

Hermione trailed off, staring at the entrance to the restaurant. You're kidding me, she groaned internally. Is he following Draco? How does he even know it IS Draco? He ought to be a stranger to everyone he knows, and the only exception should be me!

"'Mione?"

"The Death Eater walked in," Hermione mumbled, picking up her Italian soda only to put it down again. "I think he's staying, too."

"Looks like lunch will have to wait, then, huh?"

Hermione cracked a small smile. "I guess so. Take it up with him if you're unhappy about our plans being ruined."

"Should we stay here or escape? I'm sure this place has a back door we could use," Draco said. Their waiter came by again, and since neither Draco nor Hermione wanted to arouse suspicion, they ordered a medium-sized pizza and sent the waiter on his way.

"And I was so looking forward to seeing your reaction at your first taste of pizza."

"Sometimes it's awfully hard to decipher when you're being sarcastic, love."

"I'll leave it up to you to decide whether I was being sarcastic or not," Hermione said, grinning. Strange, how I can joke with Draco when I'm worrying for our lives. Well, for all I know, that Death Eater doesn't mean us harm anyway. Huh, and Pansy Parkinson is my best friend, Hermione thought, knowing that she was being delusional and telling herself as much.

Draco watched as Benjamin was seated four tables away from him and Hermione. Throughout the meal Hermione fidgeted as much as a bird, and Draco couldn't help but get annoyed. They were in disguise, they were fine, and Benjamin wasn't going to speak to them any time soon. Draco was worried too, but Hermione was blowing everything out of proportion.

She had a feeling she was bothering Draco with all of her anxiety, but one could never be too careful. Hermione didn't want to take any chances. Not only would she be in danger if the Death Eater realized who they were, Draco would be as well, and she didn't want to risk his life in a fight.

"Let's go already," Draco sighed. "You're obviously not going to ease up until he's gone, so we might as well leave first."

"I'm sorry," Hermione said quietly as she stowed her wallet away in her bag. "I just can't help but think that something is going to go wrong."

"I know, 'Mione, and I understand, but if he wanted to harm us he would have done so already," Draco reminded her. He stood and, seeing Hermione's expression, laced his fingers through hers. "If it helps, I haven't been completely relaxed this entire time either. I just hide it better."

Hermione rolled her eyes and waited until she and Draco could not be seen before she apparated to his flat. Despite the fact that things had gone smoothly that day, she had a feeling something bad was going to happen soon, which was ironic because she had previously questioned Harry whenever he spoke along those same lines.

Draco sat down on his couch, bringing Hermione with him. She didn't protest and curled up, leaning her head on his shoulder before she remembered what had brought her to him after her meeting with Ron.

"Have you found out anything more about Astoria's alleged pregnancy?" Hermione asked, interrupting the silence that had lapsed between them.

Wincing, Draco replied, "No, I've honestly been avoiding her. She'll only make a big deal out of whatever I say."

"You might want to clear things up before she talks with your mother," Hermione said thoughtfully.

Draco's eyes widened, now their natural color. "Bollocks."

A/N: Okay, so I'm right rubbish with writing articles because I've hardly ever read a newspaper in my life, and that makes me even more grateful for Cat. I know I've already said this, but thank you very much :) I'm already halfway through chapter fifteen, guys, so you won't have to wait too long. I think you'll be okay with the wait, though, when you see what it contains.

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