DISCLAIMER: All characters, settings, and magical occurrences were all conceived and created in the brilliant mind of J.K. Rowling. Nothing except the glorious plot is property of mine. No profits are being made from my writing.

.-.

Chapter 16

The morning that followed held a quiet and mellow atmosphere. Remus nor Draco had any words to exchange. It was as though everything was already out there and there didn't need to be a verbal exchange. They both just already knew.

Somehow they'd managed the stay comfortably on that old, worn out couch. Sometime the blanket had been pulled down, but neither one would've have been able to tell you when. And as the morning sun rose to greet them, Remus realized something. He didn't feel any regret.

That was a big thing in all honesty. Sure, he'd gone through with it, but he fully built up that he'd hate himself afterwards. That Draco would probably hate him afterwards for Merlin knew why. He'd been ready for the worst. And as he lay there, watching the blonde sleep, tucked in his arms, across his chest, he'd been waiting. He'd waited for the world to come crashing down around him. But it hadn't happened. There wasn't a parade or an announcement or even a Dementor coming to take him to Azkaban. It was just them. And that felt right.

Sometime near morning, Draco had finally woken, eyes taken a customary moment to adjust to the light in the room. At first, he'd thought he'd just had a meeting but his mind quickly flashed to the night before and the hurry to get out of there before anymore explaining happened had escaped him.

"Morning." Remus' voice sounded very small and weak for a moment. Draco hardly felt that any reservation be felt between them, not after what had happened.

"Morning." Though when his own voice came out just as meek, he felt compelled to retract that statement. It wasn't as easy as it looked.

They watched each other a moment, both trying to get a read of the other. Draco watched waiting for Remus to pick up and run at any moment and Remus watched waiting for Draco to tell him he'd made a mistake. Neither, of course, happened.

"I'd say we've probably missed breakfast."

"You're probably right. Always thinking with your stomach, aren't you?" Draco gave a sigh and let his head rest back upon Remus' chest. There had to be a word to describe how he was feeling. Content.

"I was merely stating a fact. And I don't always think with my stomach. It's just more common than not." He paused a moment. There suddenly were so many things he wanted to say. Things he had to say, but how was he ever going to open his mouth and actually say them? "I've been thinking."

"MMHMM."

"Once we leave, I was hoping that you'd been done with your spying. I can't stand the thought of you going ho the meetings anymore. I'd been a little quiet about it before, but I just can't do that."

"That might do nothing but put me in more danger." Draco looked up seriously. He'd considered it, but it had always been more of, I'll keep going until they find out otherwise. On that same note, he'd known that Remus didn't want him to any more. It was getting more and more sparse of who actually did.

"I know." It was a plain statement. That was enough for Draco to ensure that it had been the point. "You'll be safe at Grimmauld Place and I want to know that you're safe. And if you're off running around doing Dark deeds, I can't be sure."

"I'm not sure if I can just do that. I'll be putting everyone at risk just by being there anyway. Let alone defying everything I'm supposed to stand for."

"Everyone of us put ourselves at risk when we joined the Order to begin with."

"But it isn't quite the same. You don't knowingly have a known spy living amongst you. I've seen what he'll do to people." Draco sat up a little on the couch. "I couldn't stand knowing that me being there, puts you in any kind of danger."

"You told me last night you'd be where ever I am. Did you not believe that was true for me as well? I'd be in danger no matter what. Grimmauld Place is the second safest place you could ever be." Remus soon followed suit, resting his back more against the arm of the couch.

"You keep saying that." Draco countered seriously. "But, being the first Malfoy to deny the Dark Lord might be interesting enough." Draco desperately was clinging to anything he could find to lighten the mood. As much as he'd been telling himself before he was helping, he knew that he was running out of time. He also knew he was doing very little to help Snape's cause. In fact, there were so many things that would change if he were to stop. For the better even.

"So what does that mean?"

"It means that I'm finished." Draco lifted Remus' face to his own, bringing their lips together, bringing himself closer again to the werewolf.

.-.

Ron was sitting alone in the common room that morning when Harry came down. There was a bit of worry that tinged his face as well. The red head hadn't come back the night before nor had anyone heard or seen from him since he'd left the common room in pursuit of Malfoy. It wasn't too encouraging.

"Ron! Where have you been?" Harry reminded himself instantly of Hermione from the night before. He'd teased her mercilessly only to walk in her footsteps the next day. He'd leave that part of the retelling out.

"I was just out."

"Doing what? There really are only so many things you can do in the middle of the night. Believe me, I know." Harry suffered with insomnia for a long while and it was well known. It wasn't an uncommon thing for him to wander the halls in the middle of the night or to be up doing something outrageous in the middle of the night. Hermione had told him it was all probably from worry and that he should get a sleeping draught but something had stopped him. Like he was waiting for something and he didn't want to be in a dreamless sleep when it happened.

"Harry, I love your imitation of Hermione but it really isn't the time for it." He wasn't even certain he could provide his best friend with a reasonable explanation anyway. He'd been gone for who knew how many hours.

"Ronald Weasley! You've been gone for fifteen hours! What could you possibly been doing to risk something like that?" It seemed someone did know. And you didn't need two guesses. He only wondered how she'd known so quickly he was back. "I've been up all night worried sick."

"You don't need to worry, Hermione. It wasn't as though I were out practicing Dark magic with Snape."

"No, I was more worried that you might have been kidnapped or something to that effect. Really, how utterly irresponsible of you just to disappear like that." Her customary lecture began. Though Ron had heard it enough that he probably could've recited it to himself and avoided her condescending tone.

"Well I'm here. And I'm fine. So no worries."

"And…?" Harry knew he was probably prying but Ron didn't just go disappear for several hours like that. There had to be an explanation.

"And I'm going to sleep."

"No, where were you, Ron?" Hermione's tone told him enough that he wouldn't sleep until he'd shared ever sordid detail. He sunk back down into the armchair, in defeat.

"I'd gone to find Malfoy, like I said. I'd heard he was outside only when I'd gone, Parkinson was the only one out there. And she didn't look to good."

"As opposed to normal?" Harry joked but Ron didn't look as amused as he usually would've. "What?"

"And I'd asked her where he was but of course she wasn't about to tell me. So I asked her what was wrong."

"What happened to her?" Hermione took a seat on the couch beside Harry so she could watch Ron as he gave his retelling. She already wasn't very sure about this story.

"She told me about what had happened with her parents and why she was still here."

"What happened with her parents?" Hermione was slightly intrigued now. Most of the Slytherins she knew had nothing but their family name to hide behind. Without that, most of them were hopeless.

"That probably isn't any of your business." Hermione looked mildly offended but Ron continued on with his story without concern. "And we got to talking and when it got dark she asked me to go back to the Common Room with her so I did."

"You were in the Slytherin Common Room with Pansy Parkinson? I'm sure Malfoy loved that." Harry knew well enough that he'd been sticking around for the break as well. He couldn't blame him though he could relate to him. Neither of them had a home to go to anymore.

"I never ran into him. Actually we never ran into anyone because we were up in her dormitory the entire time and everyone who was normally there was gone."

"You spent the night with Pansy Parkinson?" Harry was staring back at him in something that look like awe.

"Well not like you implying but yes, I guess I did." He stared away thoughtfully for a second as if he hadn't even considered it like that.

"What exactly does that mean?" Harry tiptoed around the question, not trying to make it sound offensive but with the underlying tone of what the bloody hell are you thinking.

"I'm not sure but I told her that if she needed to talk, I'd be here for the break." Ron just shrugged as if it were no big deal. Harry reasoned that maybe it wasn't but the look on Hermione's face was enough to tell him that it just might be.

"So let me just get this straight. You spend the entire evening as the crying shoulder for a girl you used to hate and I can't even get you to ask me on a bloody date!?" Harry's eyes widened as Hermione lashed out. He hadn't seen her so angry in a while.

"Hermione…"

"No, I'm going to finish. I've spent years trying to get you to do just that and you spend years acting like you want to but never following through. And then look a bloody fool I think that maybe this year will be different. But no. You come back from spending the night with that horrible pug!"

"Hermione, you never said anything to me that might have implied anything like that."

"I didn't think I'd have to! But I guess I gave you too much credit! You're as daft as everyone makes you out to be!" She stood up and climbed back of the stairs to her dormitory. There was the sound of a slamming down to be heard when she reached her destination.

"What the bloody hell was that all about?" Ron stared at Harry in disbelief. "She's obviously gone mad."

"Well you have been kind of leading her on all year."

"What are you talking about? Are you taking her side in all of this, Harry?"

"I just can understand. I never looked at it like you didn't realize what you were doing."

"I wasn't doing anything. She never said she liked me and neither did I. I may have but neither of us acted on it. That's as much her fault as it is mine!" And with that, Harry was left alone in the Common Room. Confused and with little hope for a quick resolution.

.-.

Harry gave it little thought as he rattled off the password into Remus' quarters. In fact, he gave it little thought when he saw the first robe strung across the arm chair. He began to give it thought after he saw the second, this one a school robe, tossed halfway across the room. And he really gave it thought when he heard two voices coming from the bathroom. Though he gave no thought when he opened the bathroom door and found Remus and Malfoy in there together. And he realized why the robes were strung across the room.

He'd instantly pulled the door shut, his hand being brought to his forehand. Though he couldn't say he was really shocked. Hadn't he just assumed there was something else going on? It was true but he hadn't actually expected that to be the case. It was Remus and Malfoy. That was as bad as Ron and Parkinson and one surprise would've been enough for that day.

Harry sat down in the armchair, pulling the robe from the back and tossing it on the couch. This would be nice and uncomfortable. A second later Remus had emerged from the bathroom this time wearing some sort of bathrobe, looking more embarrassed than Harry felt. He grabbed some of the clothes that had littered the room in a hurry, going back into the bathroom.

Harry couldn't help but feel very uncomfortable. He didn't really want to give too much thought to what it was he exactly had walked in on. It was probably best that way. For all of them. It had seemed that Remus wasn't taking this any better.

A few minutes later, the pair of them exited the bathroom, this time partially clothed. Where as Remus still look very uncomfortable, that customary heir about Malfoy was already back up in place. He took a seat back on the couch followed by Remus who made sure to keep enough distance between them. Obviously still hoping Harry had interpreted things wrong.

"Well this is awkward." Remus suddenly said as the trio stared at one another.

"What's to be awkward about? It's very bloody obvious what was going on, that is of course before Potter decided to interrupt." Draco shifted his glare from Remus to Potter, somewhere in the transition picking up a sneer.

"I didn't exactly think that would be what I found when I got here."

"I know, Harry. And Draco knows that as well." He gave the blonde a be nice glare before returning to Harry. "I'm sure you realize that it'd be best if you didn't say anything to anyone about this."

"At least not until graduation." Draco added, as if making it clear to Harry that it wasn't just a one time thing. Harry had a way of being very overprotective of his friends and he could just hear the lecture that would eventually come. The don't break his heart speech. He'd have to find a way to avoid that one at all costs.

"Of course. That's the last thing all of us need right now." Harry knew that he was being partially honest. He wouldn't tell anyone other than Ron and Hermione. Surely Remus had realized that with his statement.

"Was there something you needed, Potter, or did you just stop by to ruin my morning?" He leaned lazily back against the couch. Remus sent him another glare but he shook it off. The last thing Draco wanted to have to worry about right now was Potter.

"I wanted to talk to Remus about Ron and Hermione."

"Trouble in the Lion's Den?"

"That isn't any of your business." He stared at him skeptically as if implying he wouldn't say anything until Draco had let the room. Draco in turn was holding ground.

"Harry, Draco's not going to say anything. What happened?"

Harry was still skeptical of saying anything but he did anyway, going against his better judgement. He had more than enough blackmail on him now anyway. "Ron was gone last night. He'd gone looking for Malfoy but he couldn't find him and he ran into Pansy Parkinson." Draco's attention was piqued now. Especially if he'd have to curse Weasley for saying something out of the way to Pansy right now. "No, it wasn't anything curse-worthy, they just talked. All night. In the Slytherin Common Room."

"Was she drunk? Cursed? Insane?" Draco interrupted, in disbelief of his friend willingly spending time with the Weasel.

"And when he told Hermione and I this morning, she lost it."

"What do you mean?" Remus questioned, not quite getting it all. He knew Hermione was pretty strict about the rules but he couldn't see her being so angry that he was gone all night.

"She said that she'd been waiting for him to ask her out."

"Oh."

"Oh? Why do either of you sound surprised? Weasley's been leading her own for years. It almost makes me feel sorry for her." The both of them gave him a surprised look.

"I wasn't aware you paid such close attention."

"You try sitting through a prefect meeting with him drooling all over her."

"Try sitting in classes."

"What was Ron's response to all of this?" Remus interrupted their banter to get a better idea.

"He told me that he hadn't intended on getting close to Pansy and that he had never really been involved with Hermione so he couldn't understand why she was angry."

"Typical." Draco muttered, eyes rolling in annoyance. Was he really that daft about everything?

"Harry, it sounds like they'll just need a little bit of time to cool down. But perhaps it's better this way. Maybe the two of them aren't as perfect together as everyone may have thought."

"I guess." Harry nodded lightly. "Well I guess I'll leave you two alone then."

Suddenly, there was a load crashing at the door as someone obviously demanded entrance. It caught the trio off guard to say the least. Finally, Remus stood and went to check. For the most part, anyone who would need to be there either was or knew his password. He very rarely entertained in his own quarters.

"Miss Parkinson. Are you alright?"

This much had Draco on his feet and in a race to see. He'd known Pansy wasn't doing too well but he hadn't realized the extent. When he caught sight of he, he almost felt himself wince. No even though something more had obviously happened, Pansy was almost as proud as he was. She'd scold herself later for being such mess. It made Draco regret Potter being there even more.

When Pansy caught sight of him, she instantly threw her arms around his neck, sobbing even more so. There was the few moments where her apologies could be picked up amidst the tears but otherwise, she was nearly inaudible.

"Draco, sit her down on the couch. I'll make some tea." Draco nodded slightly at Remus' comment and struggled to lead her over to the couch. He helped her to sit down and she finally pulled back, furiously wiping her eyes when she noticed she wasn't alone.

"I didn't realize Potter was here."

"It's alright. He'd pretty safe for the most part." Draco assured her, giving little note himself that Harry was indeed there. "What happened?"

"I went down to the Common Room this morning. I wanted to see if…well I was going to relax down there." She started hesitantly. It seemed she wouldn't be as open as Weasley had been.

"You wanted to see if Weasley was still there. Continue."

She didn't question how he knew, she just averted her eyes before continuing. "But when I got down there, he was gone. And Draco, your father was there. He was just sitting there on the couch. Just waiting. And he surprised me. I didn't know what to think. At first I'd thought he'd spoken to you but I knew you hadn't come back last night. So I tried to turn to leave but he wouldn't have it." She paused only as Remus handed her the cup of tea. She took a quick sip from the cup before continuing. Remus in turn, took a seat on the arm of the couch, watching her silently as the others did.

"He…his wand…I wouldn't stop fighting…He cast the Imperius on me." This caused her sobbing to start again in the recollection. "And he asked me where you were. Why you weren't there. And I was so scared, Draco. You and I both know what your father is capable of. I had to tell. There wasn't anything else I could do. I didn't want to. Merlin, I didn't want to." She began to ramble her apology all out at once, most of it failing to make sense. "And he's going to the Dark Lord, Draco. He wants you…well he wants to see you dead." She looked away, face contorted with tears once more. "I'm so sorry, Draco."

Draco sat there for a moment, just in the silence. Remus reached over and lightly touched his shoulder. Despite what he knew, he shrugged it off. He gave a fleeting glance at Pansy before leaving, in a right hurry.

The three that remained sat at stared hard at one another. Not quite sure where they were to go. There was a certain amount of animosity between all of them that it almost made it unbearably hard. Pansy finally stood, setting her tea cup down, making to follow Draco.

"Miss Parkinson, I think right now, it might be best to let him go." Remus halted her, sadness creeping into his voice.

"I can't just let him wander around the school alone right now. His father was just here." She argued, which Harry noted was much more in character than he'd just seen.

"I'm sure Lucius Malfoy wouldn't linger longer than he had to." He sighed, almost as though he were trying to convince himself of that. "I'm going to speak with Dumbledore of this. I'm afraid that there isn't much anyone will be able to do over your situation. Lucius Malfoy, despite his tarnished reputation, is a very powerful man. But certain precautions are going to need to be taken."

"Certain precautions!? That's it!? The man wants his own son murdered for treason and we're just going to take precautions. I'm not going to lose Draco because you didn't want to larger battle started with Lucius Malfoy." Her voice was full of contempt and venom as she began her attack. She almost couldn't believe her ears.

"And do you think I do!? I'm going to do everything in my power to keep him safe. Everything. But with things escalating by the day, this would be more than we could handle. The only thing we need to do right now is keep Draco safe."

"I know. And I think I know you will." In a way, it was almost like her giving him her blessing. He knew very well that she didn't approve of what was going on. Though honestly, the list of people that did was very short, nearly non-existent. But he knew that even though it was nice to hear her say something like that, it would've meant more for Draco to hear it from his friend.

"Potter, do you think that…"

"Where do you want me to have him meet you?" Harry didn't even need to guess. As much as he still didn't like the idea, he was going to try.

"Have him meet me near the Common Room." She gave a last glance at the two of them, and left herself.

"Remus, I'm sorry."

"You don't have anything to be sorry for Harry. No one does. Pansy did what she had to, to stay alive. You cannot fault her. And Draco. He's just going to need time to deal with this."

Harry nodded and left Remus alone for the first time that morning. He stared around the room a moment before finally picking up the remainder of the clothing in the room. He kept repeating his last line to Harry over in his head. He truly believed it but what he wasn't sure of was how much time it was going to take.

.-.

Draco went as far as he could in the castle before he realized that he didn't even know where he was anymore. Though it didn't bother him. He sunk down along the castle wall, falling to the ground. What was he going to do?

Though more so, the thought that plagued him the most was that his own father had no problem with seeing him murdered for his decisions. He certainly knew his father wasn't a nice person and they rarely got along. But in the back of his mind, he'd always believed his father loved him. That in some weird way, he was trying to do what he thought was best for him. It had all been shredded to pieces.

He felt awful for how he'd left Remus that morning. He knew that all he wanted to do was help him but this wasn't any kind of help anyone could give. He had to deal with it himself. And that was easier said than done.

.-.

A/N: Alrighty, that was out a lot faster than I'd figured. But I got into. The end bit was rewritten a lot and I'm pretty sure that's the way I'm going to be keeping it permanently. Originally, Lucius had showed up but I didn't like it as much. I dunno, I'm too finicky sometimes. Advice on the matter? Like/love/hate the end? I'd love to hear it. Leave me a review. And of course, for my wonderful reviewers (who make me all warm and fuzzy on the inside), my words of appreciation…

Dreamer'sWasteland: Thanks bunches and bunches! I'm so very glad I have that effect at all. And of course thanks for the kind words. As I've said above, I'm not entirely certain with this chapter but I had it written and I couldn't sit anymore tweeking it without going crazy. I hope you enjoy!

Betsytheripper: I probably laughed harder than I should've at your review. And I think I may have needed that. Break didn't last nearly long enough, though I'm beginning to realize that it never does. Oh well, I was getting sick and tired of my family back at home. And as crazy as this sounds, I'm looking forward to finals, cause I need to get into some different classes. My current schedule just sucks. Anywho though, I'm VERY glad you enjoyed the chapter. And hopefully this one followed suit.