The night was dark, and the weather was temperamental as Hermione followed Theodore's determined steps inside of the Manor.

The wind was oddly wild for the time of year, only adding to the sombre mood of the man that she was purposefully trailing behind.

Let Nott go first; let him face the brunt of the dangerous decision of letting Hermione through the gates of the Malfoy estate once again.

Hewould not be happy; she was almost sure of it. If it was Narcissa who had once again forced her to come to their home, then she was certain that Malfoy would not know about the decision until she walked through the door.

Hermione's hands were shaking at the thought of what she would be made to do, so she kept them fisted by her sides as she walked with her head down.

She could hear the disgusted tuts from a few portraits in the main hall that were still awake as she passed by, clearly showing their distain from having someone they viewed as 'lower' than they were in their home.

"You won't see him straight away." Theodore's voice was deep and daunting as he threw her a glance over his shoulder. "There is more than likely to be a struggle of power between mother and son before you are let anywhere near the boy."

"Why me?" She asked in a small voice, clearly showing her discomfort at being made to come back to the Manor once again. "Surely there is a family healer or-"

"There isno one, Granger." He growled back at her. "You need to understand that people like us work alone."

He stopped in front of her, just before the door to that would lead to the main hall of the staircase. "Narcissa Malfoy is a proud woman-" He stood tall as he spoke of her, his brown eyes set on her. "- believe me when I say that the decision of having you back in her house again would not have been a light one to make."

Hermione gave him a hard look in return. "Then she clearly sees something in me that no one else does."

She watched the corner of Theodore's lips move upwards a little as he viewed her.

"And she is apparently not the only one."

She frowned at that, but he did not go any further with their short conversation. Instead, he pushed the door open that lead to the grand hall; a gothic aesthetic met her eyes in a way that she had missed the first time she had seen it; a beautifully decorated masterpiece that suited the style and manor of the people who lived within its structure.

And there, on one of the middle steps of the split staircase to greet them;

Draco Malfoy.

Hermione swallowed at the sight before her, feeling her hands go clammy.

A shirtless Draco Malfoy was not something that she expected to see again for a very long time. And standing before them so casually, no less.

There appeared to be no urgency about his demeanour for his situation either, which raised alarm bells within her; but that was not her concern.

The man looked drained of sleep as he stood there with a souring expression on his face as he looked up on them. His overly calm exterior had shocked Hermione more than the former.

His eyes were deep and almost dangerous looking as he looked at them both; hands in his pockets and his braces still attached to his pants as they hung at his side.

Theodore appeared to know what to say as he moved forwards, seeming to ignore the state of Malfoy's undress as he approached the man.

"I'll assume your mother has made you aware that we were arriving." Malfoy just gave the man a silent stare, which unnerved Hermione as she watched him from a short distance. "Where is he, Draco?"

Malfoy still said nothing, just continued to watch both his friend and Hermione like they were not really there; his eyes the only give away of his annoyance that either of them were in his presence.

Theodore stopped in front of him, giving his 'friend' a once over. He appeared to sigh and shake his head slightly, to which Malfoy gave him a sneer.

"You choose to do thisnow?" Theodore's voice was low, but Hermione could hear the desperate tone that he appeared to use. "When heneedsyou?"

Malfoy's darkened eyes met his friends, but his stance remained as casual as before, like it was disconnected from his feelings. "The decision was already made by mydearmother as soon as I was given the order to come home." And his tone spat venom at the wavy-haired man in front of him. "Wouldn't let me see him until I had takenit."

There was a deep breath from both men as Hermione felt the tension rise. She could feel the anger bubbling to the surface of both men, but their indifferent masks remained much the same.

It was almost an artform.

"Because she knew if I didn't –" Malfoy continued as his eyes landed back on Hermione, and the realisation hit her like a bludger to the stomach. "- I'd rip everyone apart and burn down the fucking Manor down to the ground just to find outwhodid it to him."

Self-sedation.

Malfoy had been made to sedate himself by his own mother with some form of narcotic.

Apparently, it was the only way to stop himself from causing a massacre.

Hermione felt the chill in the air at the thought of exactly what a man like Malfoy could do when he became unhinged.

"You're not a beast who needs to trap himself inside a cage, Draco." Theodore answered back at him, standing on the same step of the stairs now that Malfoy was, to meet him head on. "What you're doing is dangerous. Surely there are other ways to keep that side of you under control-"

Malfoy gave the man another sneer. "Fuck off with your lectures Nott." His voice sounded positively venomous as it juxtaposed the casual way in which he was holding himself. "I am in no mood for yourholier-than-thouattitude tonight."

Hermione could tell that Theodore was going to give a biting retort; she could tell from his stance that he had become highly irritated by Malfoy; the very idea that the man had taken something in order to control himself whilst his son appeared to be sick had not sat well with Nott at all. But then, it was apparently Narcissa herself who gave him the order to take it, so the man's rage must have been through the roof for his own mother to suggest that he sedate himself to such a level.

"Theodore?" A familiar female voice came from the top of the staircase, a dark figure appearing in the candlelight. Mrs Malfoy's face looked pale and gaunt as the shadows cast an eery glow over her.

Her eyes were tired, much the same as Malfoy's, but the panic within them caused Theodore to spring into action immediately, his gripe with Malfoy already forgotten.

"Bring her –come." Her voice was strained as Narcissa's eyes trained themselves on Hermione for a second. And then she was gone again, the short train of her dress dancing across the carpet behind her as she disappeared into the darkness of the landing above.

Theodore gave Malfoy one last, dark, parting look before he started to make his way up the staircase without a second glance back. This left Hermione in a predicament; she would have to walk directly past Malfoy to get up the stairs.

And that action had been made extremely more difficult now that the blonde man was watching her with careful eyes as she approached slowly.

The silence was thick around them as she continued to walk towards the bottom of the staircase; more of him coming in to view as the candlelight lit up his alabaster skin, a warm glow that did not match the darkness of his eyes.

And she could not help it.

As she came just a foot or two away from him, her eyes landed on the trail of pink, healing flesh on his left-hand side that she had tended to not long ago.

He did not miss the look she gave him.

And as she passed him, his eyes followed her frame and his body turned into her.

Her breathing quickened at the impending confrontation that she knew was about to happen. He knew she was looking at him. Looking at the marks up on his battle-damaged skin.

His voice was a dangerous whisper, only for her.

"I have more wounds on the inside than out." His rough voice echoed through the small space between them. He knew she had been looking at his new scar.

Her eyes fell again to his pale skin as it stretched taunt over the expanse of muscle from his broad chest and shoulders; the man was as intimidating without his shirt on as he was fully dressed, cap and all.

She could see the new scar that she had patched up clearly now that she was so close to him though; pink staining the flesh of his chest from his collarbone and right up, to just under the left of his jawline.

"Stillthink I'm not a Monster, Granger?"

Malfoy's eyes were on her, taking her in as she stood there speechless next to him. "Because if my scars haven't shown you what I am, then my actions tonight certainly have."

The violence that had been done to his body through the years was a mere means to an end for the man; a price to pay to get what he wanted. But tonight… a trail of events that had lead to his current state had caused even him to see himself for what he truly was; a broken man who could not be put back together.

But no.

For all of the disgusting things that he had appeared to have done over the years, and all of the ways that he had treated people that he did not trust – herself included – she still could not be harsh enough to brand him as something that was less complicated than the deeply troubled man that he appeared to be.

"You're not a Monster, Malfoy." Hermione answered finally, feeling a chill creep into her bones as he stood tall above her now, his intense stare fully engaging with hers. "But I don't think there are any words for what you are right now." She saw something flash in his eyes. "We do what is familiar in times of crisis."

We cry. We hurt. We withdraw. Or we help.

But not Malfoy.

He hurt. He withdrew. He boiled with anger. He erupted.

And now he had to contain himself in the only way that he knew how. In the only way that his mother knew how.

He self-imploded in order to keep his family safe. Safe from danger. Safe from himself and what he would do otherwise.

And he smirked at her words, causing her to hold her breath.

"I do bad things, Granger." Dangerous tone. Still standing tall, a good foot or so taller than her. He was looking down at her, taking her in. "The Devil's work. Never forget that when you're trying to associate me with a metaphor that will never really fit."

And in a flash of another dark look on his features, she started to wonder if Draco Malfoy was, in fact, a metaphor for the Devil himself.

"Granger?!" Hermione's head whipped around to the top of the staircase, where Theodore stood looking down at her. "Get up here." It was a heavy command, which caused her to nod her head and then look back at Malfoy for a second, whose eyes were still heavy up on her.

"Whyyou?" A simple question with a dark undertone.

She knew that if he were not under the influence then she would have a far greater battle on her hands tonight.

She thanked heaven for small mercies.

"Becauseyouapparently need my help." His eyes were cutting through her like a knife, but she stood her ground. He would not throw her off balance, not tonight. "And if you can't admit that to yourself, then you are far less of a man than I thought."

At that, his posture straightened as he peered down at her with nothing but contempt in his stare. His tongue clicked against his teeth with distain as his eyes stabbed her like glass shards. It made her skin prickle.

"You'll have to keep scraping that metaphorical barrel of yours then love," his voice dropped to an almost tormenting level, causing her breath to hitch. "Because a man like me will always be at the bottom of it in the eyes of someone like you."

Hermione straightened herself, attempting to match his confident stance. "Regardless; it does not change the fact that for whatever reason, you still need my help – I am doing as I am told by your mother while I am still on shift."

It took a few seconds for his features to shift, but then he sneered at her. He looked her right in the eyes and gave her a look that took her back to their youth. It was the first time she had seen the Draco Malfoy she had recognised from their childhood, hidden beneath something much darker and tormenting.

But he was still there, in one form or another.

There was silence for a moment, it lingered between them as they stared at each other, making the air around her feel heavy.

"My son ismylife, Granger." He finally growled, her name rolling off his tongue dangerously while his eyes were dark with warning. "If anything happens to him in your care, then Godfuckinghelp you."

And Hermione knew right there and then as Malfoy left bottom step and disappeared into the darkness of the ground floor hallway that she knew she had found Draco Malfoy's weakness. Had found his downfall; his Achilles heel.

His son.

Draco Malfoy would destroy the world in a heartbeat to provide safety for his son.

The room did not look like that of a small child's. It was dark and empty of anything that Hermione could deem as child-like. The only sign that a child slept there was the small, frail figure in the middle of the bed.

Hermione had not had the chance to have a proper look at the little boy the first time she had laid eyes up on him. She had not had the chance to take in just how bright his hair was or how pale his skin was – just like his fathers. But the differences between them were also quite jarring.

As Hermione approached the bed – Narcissa and Theodore stood at the head of it in deep conversation as she entered the room – she could see the soft expression on the boy's face as he slept the night away, but the tell-tale sheen of sweat on his brow was a slight cause for concern.

"How long has he been like this?" Hermione could already feel Narcissa staring her down as she kept her eyes on the little boy in the bed, trying to remain as professional as possible.

Assess. Decipher. Give a clinical result.

Do not become more involved than necessary.

"Just after dinner." Narcissa's voice was shaking, but the woman tried not to show her fear for her only grandchild.

Another step closer. Close enough to watch the little boy's chest rising slowly. Close enough to see his eyes wince in sleep with each breath her took. Close enough to see the pale bags under his eyes – a tell-tale sign that he had struggled with sleep since falling ill.

"Nausea?" She was at his side now, looking down on his frail little body as his fringe stuck to his forehead. The boy's small hand clung to his teddy bear for dear life.

"Yes, complaining of stomach ache but he has been sick several times." Narcissa answered her as she sat on the edge of the boy's bed, reaching out her hand to touch his gently.

Hermione caught Theodore outstretching his hand absentmindedly, intent on placing it on the woman's shoulder in support, but something appeared to stop him, causing him to put his hand back inside his trouser pocket instead.

"What can be done for him?" Narcissa was looking up at her intently now as Hermione tried to keep her focus on the boy named Scorpius. Noticing without even needing to go into further detail that he had the same facial features as his father did in his youth – sharp. The boy was an advocate for the Malfoy family genetics.

"I want to say it is food poisoning." Hermione bit her lip as the boy in the bed moaned, seeming to stir from his sleep and grab at his stomach. "If he were properly poisoned, he would be unconscious by now or possibly even dying."

Leaning forwards, Hermione pressed the back of her hand against the boy's forehead. Hot. Hot, but not worryingly so.

"Is he keeping water down?" Her question was direct as she very gently picked up Scorpius' wrist, feeling his pulse beneath his skin still going strong.

"He will sip, but nothing more."

Hermione nodded. "Keep offering it to him." She looked up to see both Mrs Malfoy and Theodore looking at her seriously. "What was he given for his dinnertime meal?"

"Roast chicken breast with vegetables." Direct and to the point.

Hermione felt quietly confident as she carefully placed the boy's tiny wrist back onto the bed and stepped away, looking back up once again at the two adults on the other side of the bed.

"Food poisoning."

"Can you be sure?" Theodore wanted her to be thorough. There was no room for mishap where Scorpius was concerned. "We cannot take our chances with Scorpius, he is far too important –"

"I am as confident as I can be." Hermione told him boldly. "But you have to remember that my medical training is limited – the only way to know for sure is to take him –"

"We cannot take him anywhere, miss Granger." Narcissa's tone was heavy but final. Almost like she understood what Hermione was saying, but that there was no point in her trying to finish her sentence as it would fall on deaf ears.

"His safety is paramount; he is not to be discovered. As long as you are absolutely sure that his condition will not deteriorate, we will have to make plans to interrogate the kitchen staff."

Hermione frowned. "Surely this was accidental? When chicken is not cooked through the results can be-" but she stopped at the look that was passed between Mrs Malfoy and Nott.

Clearly, this had not been the first time.

Narcissa moved herself, starting to pace now at the end of Scorpius' bed. Hermione watched Theodore's eyes as he took her in; he was unsettled and the look he gave her was an almost deep yearning one that rocked Hermione more than it should have.

He hated to see the woman in pain. He could hardly bare it.

"We need to get away." Narcissa announced as she paced, more to herself than to anyone else in the room. "I'll take Scorpius somewhere that nobody knows him until he is better and the situation within the household is under control."

Nott stepped in, anxiety etching his usually calm and controlled features. "That will expose him, Cissa." He stepped towards her without even thinking, grabbing her shoulders gently, stopping her from her almost frantic pacing.

"You will be a walking target wherever you go; even more so when Scorpius becomes common knowledge."

Hermione watched Narcissa draw in a breath at the wordwhen. Notif. Clearly the wheels had already been set in motion; Hermione was not the only one on the outside of their close-knit community that knew about Scorpius Malfoy.

She took another lingering look as the small boy slept on in a bed that was clearly too big for him. So daunting and almost cold in structure. He must have struggled to sleep. His face had turned towards her in his sleep, allowing her to see his profile from a different angle.

He was much softer than his father. His face was in the shape of a love heart, his little chin jutting out as he grated his teeth in his sleep. Chubby little hands clenched and unclenched whilst dreaming. Cute. Cute, innocent, and far too young to be caught up in the type of trouble that his family brought up on themselves.

She felt nothing but pity for the child.

"Blaise? Pansy? We have cottages in France and Belgium-" Narcissa's voice was starting to sound shrill and panicked.

"All of our houses and your sanctuaries will no doubt be being watched." Theo answered her sternly as Hermione turned back to the pair to see the man looking Mrs Malfoy deeply into her eyes. "Draco has an inkling over who is out there, but until we can get close to the threat-"

"They are already here, Theo!" Narcissa pulled away. "This house is not safe and I refuse to keep Scorpius-"

"How long has this been going on for?" Hermione cut in, the conversation stopping dead at her words. It was almost as if the pair had forgotten that she was there. But their eyes looked straight past her and to the door behind her.

"About as long as you have been serving behind the bar atThe Gallow's, love." A dark and almost sinister voice came from behind her, the effect almost akin to having a bucket of cold water thrown over her. "Strange coincidence that, isn't it?"

Hermione turned towards the door swiftly to see Malfoy leaning against the frame, now fully dressed and looking much more like himself.

But now his eyes were hollow and lifeless, which only made him look more dangerous.

"I thought you would have been sleeping after your shower, Draco." Narcissa's hard tone came from behind her now as Hermione kept her eyes on Malfoy. She daren't look away. Daren't turn her back on him. Ah… so that was why he was half-naked when she last saw him. "The sedative you took usually-"

"I only took enough to take the edge off,mother." He bit out, the darkness in his eyes now seeking out his mother. "Apologies if my presence is untimely and unwanted."

He stepped into the room then, his black coat sinking into the darkness around them. His presence really was a daunting one when he appeared to not be in the best of moods. And right now, he did not appear to like the idea of Hermione being so close to his son.

"She has been vetted and I know her personally from outside of our circle." Theodore announced before Draco had a chance to round himself on Hermione. The look the blonde man threw him was one of suppressed anger. "If you're looking for someone to blame, do not blame her."

"We stepped up security-" Malfoy's jaw ticked dangerously.

"It is not enough when you don't see the danger coming." Nott replied back hotly, coming to stand directly beside Narcissa. "We were just discussing the next steps; your mother appears to want to disappear for a while until the threat is gone."

"We have a mole." Draco announced, his eyes flicking past Hermione and over to the bed where his son slept. "A mole that needs smoking out."

"Do you think they have told others about Scorpius?" Narcissa asked quietly, glancing herself back to the bed where Scorpius was. "Surely they would know what the consequences for that would be if you found out who it was?"

"Money talks more than sense to some people." Malfoy's tone was low. "Someone has been paid a large sum of money to play spy against us – this was notaccidental."

He said it like he was reading Hermione's mind. The prospect of this simply being a case of accidental undercooked chicken was now an afterthought.

Someone had tried to poison Scorpius intentionally.

"It was a warning." Theodore cut through the silence with his low voice.

Everyone looked at him. Malfoy was studying him closely.

"I thought as much myself." The blonde man admitted, a hand going behind his neck to rub the back of it, deep in thought. "Someone does not like the idea of us taking over so many brewery's… amongst other things." The dark and knowing look that passed between the two men was there, but it gave nothing away.

"And you would have us staying here like sitting ducks?" Narcissa asked boldly, stepping up to her son. "Trapped in here to wait for the next hit?" She took a deep breath. "Think of poor Scorpius-"

"AllI do is think of Scorpius." Malfoy's tone was threatening, not liking the audacity of his mothers outburst. "But there is nowhere else to go."

"What about a hotel? Or somewhere in Muggle London?" Hermione knew she should not have spoken up, but she just could not help herself.

Malfoy gave a dark chuckle, low in the back of his throat as his eyes cut to her. "We're being tracked, most likely." His eyes looked her up and down, done to intimidate her. she stood her ground and kept her eyes on his. "Our sort is not welcome in hotels, much like St Mungo's… and we would not be caught dead at a Muggle institute."

Hermione's features hardened. "Then you might be caught dead after all, if you cannot exhaust all of your options in front of you because you think some of them to be so beneath you."

Malfoy looked like he was about to spit venom at her, a step closer in her direction.

"What aboutherplace?"

This made both Hermione and Draco stop and look over at Narcissa with wide eyes.

Surely she did not mean –

"She is not part of us. She will not be being tracked. No one will suspect her." Narcissa swallowed as Malfoy's eyes narrowed at her. "It is highly unlikely that anyone will care about her enough to know where she lives –"

"No."

"Scorpius could recover there, and he could be kept safe." Narcissa went on, hardening her resolve as Hermione's world was crumbling down up on her bit by bit. "He would be under constant watch and when the threat is gone we can-"

"I saidNo." Malfoy practically hissed out at his mother, his eyes glaring dangerously at her. "For you to even think that it would be an option to put him in the hands of –"

"I would be there." Narcissa cut in again, taking steps towards her son until she was standing in front of him. "He will be under my constant care until he is well and when you find out who has caused the danger and fixed the wards, we will both return."

Hermione felt like time had stood still. She had not offered her home to the Malfoy's, never mind agreed to have them living there for the foreseeable future. It put so many things in jeopardy. Her undercover work would have to cease if this were to happen.

She just hoped that Malfoy would stand his ground.

"It would provide the privacy we need." Theodore spoke up, only adding to the increasing deadweight in Hermione's stomach. Nott looked over at her. "And it would be a chance for Granger to gain a little trust from people who have yet to give her any."

Bastard.

Narcissa gave Theodore a look of thanks, before turning back to Malfoy. "It would be a means to an end, Draco." Malfoy's jaw was still continuing to tick as his eyes kept themselves on his sleeping son in the bed. "Get rid of the threat and we can return."

Hermione felt like she was sinking.

Should she refuse to have these people taking over her home? She almost spoke out, but her eye line went over to that frail little boy sleeping restlessly in his bed; a picture of innocence in an otherwise sinful situation.

He did not deserve this.

He did not deserve any of it.

And so, she kept quiet, her mind made up.

"If this fucks up andshe-" Malfoy stopped, his eyes on Hermione once again. "I don't trust her."

And that was the be all and end all of this whole thing between them.

Curiosity and mistrust. The reason for why he was always watching her every move. The reason why he never came closer than he had to. The reason why he mostly kept his silence around her.

Draco Malfoy did not want to give anything or himself away around her.

Not when he had no reason to trust her.

"Then, what better way is there to let miss Granger start earning it?" And Narcissa's tone was final.

Malfoy said nothing more; a man defeated as he looked at Hermione like he was trying to see inside of her. His eyes were asking her questions as Narcissa and Theodore started moving around them, draws opening and closing roughly as a bag appeared at the bottom of Scorpius' bed.

"She's got a long way to go." And the words were only meant for her to hear. Low enough for only her ears to catch the threat in his tone. "If anything happens to my son whilst-"

"I have nothing to hide." She whispered back, folding her arms over her chest and standing tall, looking him directly in the eye. "I am good enough for Pansy to want around in your little circle."

"But I keepmycircle even smaller, love." A small smirk played on his lips, framing the sharp features of his cheekbones. "If I want you around, you'll know about it. And the chances are, you won't be around long enough for that to happen."

Hermione glanced at the Fireplace within the room, watching the embers burning in the grate for the first time since being there. Anything to distract herself from holding his intense gaze now.

"You've kept me around." her voice was far quieter than intended, but she knew that Narcissa and Theodore were too busy packing things around them; although Nott did look over at her curiously. "For whatever reason, I'm still here."

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw him stand tall. Shoulders broad and stance as intimidating as his words.

"That's because I haven't quite figured out what you are yet, Granger." The shallow depths of his tone made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up.

He cut a dominating figure in the dim light of the mantlepiece; a dangerous silhouette of a man on fire.

"But when I do, I'll know exactly what to do with you."

She swallowed hard.

His meaning was not lost on her.

"And that all starts withtrust." Her words were bold, but she had to speak them. Something had to break between them; they could not carry on the way they were while half of his family would be temporarily living under her roof.

Malfoy said nothing else to her, instead he ripped his gaze away and walked over to his sons' bed, pulling back his covers gently and picking the small boy up with so much care and softness that Hermione almost did a double take.

The boy snuggled into his fathers' neck as he whispered soothing words to him, a hand stroking his back as Scorpius kept tight hold of his teddy bear, even in sleep.

"Address, Granger." Nott's voice disturbed her from her staring, but he caught on to where her line of sight was and his eyes narrowed. "I'll go with you to get a bed sorted – once we're ready I'll give word for Narcissa and Draco to bring Scorpius over."

The look he was giving her.

This was serious.

She was standing on a tightrope. If she fell now, everything would fall apart.

Theodore's life included.

"I don't need her address. I already know it."

Hermione's heart stopped when she looked over at Malfoy, who threw her a look that she could not place. It made her swallow hard.

Maybe he really was already planning on what he would do with her when he figured her out after all.

Hermione fumbled around in the darkness, looking for a light. It was mere seconds before Nott tumbled in to her fireplace after her, his eyes carefully trained on the darkness around them.

She found the light.

"Fuck, it's small in here." Nott was squinting; in distaste or from the bright light of the bulb, she could not be quite certain. "Cissa will show her disproval straight away."

"Then why did you let her agree to-"

Nott was looking at her seriously then. "Because Draco needs to see that you are not a threat, Granger." She watched his fists clench and then unclench, before he raised his wand and began to do checks on the strength of her wards. "You have barely got anywhere within the last two months – we need progress before things get out of hand."

Always a back up plan.

Always something in the background to give him an ulterior motive.

Always thinking.

"And they're not out of hand already?" Hermione asked him in a high voice, her eyes wide on him. "I now have the Malfoy family taking shelter in my bloody flat! What would Harry –"

"I'll tell him." He looked at her sharply. "There will be no communication with him until this is done, do you understand?" He was practically glaring at her. "There is too much at stake; too many lives will be brought down by this if we are not treading lightly."

Hermione huffed.

He was right, of course. But now she would feel like a prisoner in her own home. Her own home that had all of her personal belonging. Her own personal sanctuary that she could come back to and know that she was safe. Now it was being ripped apart and nowhere was safe for her; not even her own bed, by the sounds of it.

"Draco will more than likely ask for you to give up your bed for Scorpius –" Hermione was about to protest, but Theodore put up his hand. "Just go with it; seem flexible to him. It will also give him the option of staying with Scorpius if he feels like he needs to be close, which he often does."

Draco Malfoy.

Sleeping in her bed.

Preposterous.

"We can transfigure the couch and chair into smaller beds, so there should be more than enough room for everyone." He quirked his eyebrow at her for a second. "I'd transfigure a lock on your bathroom door though, Granger." His eyebrow went higher as she scowled at him. "Wouldn't want any unwelcome guests crowding you in the shower."

Hermione had never had need for a lock.

Besides her relationship with Ron, it had always been just her. Her own privacy had never been a problem, but now she seemed to be second guessing everything.

Her mind was going a mile a minute, trying to get to grips with what was actually happening to her life; to her home and everything that currently surrounded her.

She suddenly felt boxed in.

Another small huff. "All of this, just to get Malfoy to trust me a little."

It seemed stupid, really.

Malfoy was not a man that could easily be trusted, so why he expected such a high level in return was beyond her.

"Draco has always lived by the rule of 'better the devil you know'," Theodore told her, turning himself to face her as his features dropped back into serious mode. "Right now, he will feel vulnerable and that will make him a dangerous threat to be around. He will be on his guard, and it will be unlikely that he will drop it until he snuffs out the threat to his family."

Hermione gave a small nod, understanding Nott's words.

And then she gave him the first admission that had transpired between them before, almost as if she had to get it off her chest.

"He puts me on edge."

And he looked at her curiously, as if searching her for something.

"Because he looks at you?" It was a strange question, and not one that Hermione was expecting.

She gave him a curious look in return. "Because of whom he is." She answered carefully. "Although, the way he looks at me certainly doesn't help."

She watched the corner of Theodore's lip turn up slightly. "He can't figure you out, and it unsettles him."

"In what way?" She felt far too curious for her own good. Maybe it was good to get the upper hand on the situation, though.

"Everyone has an agenda, Granger." The smirk on his lips widened. "He just can't seem to figure yours out yet, and it has him rattled."

"Which is a good job, I should think." Hermione replied loftily, crossing her arms over her chest. "Otherwise, we would all be up shit creek without a paddle."

Nott gave a soft laugh, shrugging his shoulders. "He'll keep his distance until his curiosity gets the better of him. Draco has trouble reaching out, even when he wants to." And his eyes looked into hers knowingly then. "But he's been watching you from the beginning Granger. He's not reached out, but I bet he's thought about it."

Hermione held her breath.

"There's a reason for why he hasn't, I'm sure." He was still looking at her, his eyes darkening as he continued. "But only time will tell whether that is a good thing or bad thing."

The shiver that ran through her did not go unnoticed by Theodore Nott, who could only give her a pitying look in return.

Hermione opened her mouth to reply, but the familiar whoosh from the roaring floo stopped her in her tracks as a large, looming presence appeared in the grate, holding a small child in his arms as he stepped out and into his full height within the small space of her living room.

His eyes were upon her straight away, and she watched his arms tighten around Scorpius' frame. She swallowed at the sight of him; at his daunting presence now being within the confines of her safe space, leaving her nowhere to go and creating a need within her to be completely on her guard.

The look of dislike was already showing on the features of his face as he took a look around the cramped environment of her living room flat.

"Well then," and his tone was sarcastic and biting. "Let's get this shitshow on the road, shall we?"

And she took a deep breath, her nerves returning in full force.

Shitshow, indeed.