A/N: disclaimer- I don't own any of the characters in the story and everything within is just for my enjoyment and the enjoyment of others.

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Hermione passed another pile of precariously tilting things, all sorts of items lost and forgotten by time or students. She hadn't been to the Room of Requirement since Umbridge had blown it open and pulled them out like parasites. Her hand cramped at the memory and she shook it away.

The Room looked different now, so unlike the wide open practice space they had used. Thin aisles wound through the room like bands of ribbon, each stack, a sliver of the past. The further she ventured the easier she understood why he chose to come here to get lost.

The Room's purpose was to give the finder what it needed, so in a way it made sense that to him it looked like this. Hermione was only surprised that it opened up for her and delivered her to him.

Up ahead, the murmur of a spell being cast caught her attention. Uneasy silence followed and then the slow creaking of wood.

Frustrated grunts turned to short intakes of breath from around the corner and as she neared closer, she stopped to watch. His shoulders curled forward in a way that looked so foreign on him; gone was the arrogant young boy she had watched so often through the years. White hair hung over his forehead as he kneeled at the foot of a large cabinet, his hands—slower now—slapped the wood, dull thuds echoed where his rings hit.

She swallowed, only just realizing she was intruding on something private enough to make Draco Malfoy cry.

Harry had been watching him for weeks on the map, agonizing over his every move, theorizing over what he was plotting; and here he was, breaking down alone.

There was no plotting, only a scared boy too worried about what people might think if they saw him like this. She supposed it must be hard for him with Voldemort back and his father in prison, the pressure must be incredible. She shook her head, that was why she was here.

Taking a few steps back, she tipped over a mannequin head adorned in silver and blue stones and watched them clamber to the floor. The noise was enough that she heard him startle and shuffle to his feet.

"Who's there?" His voice was cold, but worry laced his words.

Hermione stepped into his view and his eyes widened for a moment before he brought his face back to the cold impassive stone she knew so well. "Sorry, I… I didn't mean… I didn't know you were here."

"What are you doing here?"

"Oh…" this moment had played so many different ways in her mind that she wasn't entirely sure what to say now. "I was looking for something lost."

A noise of contempt escaped him. "Something lost huh?"

"Yes, but it seems to have brought me to you."

Draco readjusted his grip on his wand, and his lip trembled before he sniffed and sneered at her. "I don't know why you would think that. I'm not lost, I'm exactly where I'm meant to be. You're the one who's lost."

This had been one of the scenarios she had imagined in her mind when she thought about finding him. It didn't surprise her that he reverted into the boy he pretended to be, it just made her sad.

"Perhaps. Sorry, I'll leave you to it."

He narrowed his eyes at her and wrinkled his brow when she gave him a sad smile. Something about the way he was looking at her made her think he understood, and was trying to force himself to ignore it.

Turning to leave she said, "Harry watches you… on the map sometimes, he sees you vanish."

His words came before she could take another step, "What does that mean?"

"There's a map… Harry has it, it shows students locations on it; all the time. He sees you vanish in here. I just thought I'd let you know, for privacy sake."

Still facing away from him, Hermione followed the little pathway back the way she came; stopping to pick up the mannequin and crown that she had pushed over.

"Why are you telling me this?"

She had his attention now, and for the moment he wasn't being unkind. Hermione steadied the crown and walked back into the clearing, shrugging as she said, "You've been uncharacteristically withdrawn for a while now. I know it's not any of my business but I wanted to make sure you were alright."

"You're right," he raised his eyebrow, "it's none of your business."

As she opened her mouth, the words died in her throat. Causing Draco to smirk, and run a hand through his disheveled hair.

"Cat got your tongue Granger?"

"No I… I just… I didn't…" she sighed, "I just wanted to say that I was here if you ever wanted to talk. Without anyone knowing. Harry doesn't even know I'm here."

"I'd take my chances talking to dirt and hoping it would answer before I came to you."

Hermione closed her eyes and shook away his words. He was frustratingly good at talking down to others and it still made her eyes sting, even after all these years.

"I was just telling you that I study in the back alcove of the library, if you ever get tired of waiting for mud to answer." She glared and the force behind her words surprised her.

As she stormed away, retracing her steps for the second time, she called, "you're welcome by the way."