Oh, thank you all so much for reviewing!!! Those of you who noticed misspelled words, I'm sorry! I was in a rush to get it out. About the little mix-up with Ginny's name: call me an obsessed fan but J.K. Rowling has an official website and I read Ginny's name was Ginevra. I looked it up again at (her website) and it is in fact Ginevra. Sorry for confusion and mix ups!!! On with that little disclaimer and then, the story!!! Disclaimer: I own nothing that has to do with Harry Potter or the town they are in. Harry and co. belong to a brilliant writer by the name of J.K. Rowling. The town belongs to the state of Massachusetts in the United States. I just like making stories.

Hermione woke up to the sound of the toilet being flushed and Draco moaning and groaning. 'Wonderful' she thought as she sat up and yawned. On her bedside table were the assignments that batty old woman had handed her.... Filch's mother. She picked them up and walked toward the bathroom door. She knocked.

"What?! What do you want, Hermione. I'm kind of busy here and you're hurting my head. Stop knocking!" Draco replied through the closed door.

Hermione smiled to herself, but stopped pounding on the door. How she loved to torment him. It was so much fun and he never did anything to get even. Well, he did call her names... but what are names compared to the torture of extremely painful head aches? The toilet flushed again and she could hear water running in the sink.

"Draco, an old woman stopped by last night while you were off in dreamland beside the toilet. She gave me our assignments for this week. I'll put yours by your bed." She paused and there was a groan in response to her news. Suddenly, she felt that pity again. That cursed pity for the boy who had made life at school practically unbearable. Ron always said her heart was too big... she shook herself. Thinking about Ron hurt. If she never saw him again, he would remember her for turning him down as a boyfriend.

"Draco, do you need anything?"

"Yes. I need you to go away and leave me alone! I really can't stand it when you're bugging me, Granger!"

She frowned at the closed door. 'So much for being nice' she thought to herself. After a final tap on the door, she returned to the bedroom and put the assignments away. Then, she walked into the kitchen in search of food. She found some cereal in the cupboard. While she ate, she wondered what she would do today. Trying to contact Ginny all the time would be murder on the phone and there wasn't much to say anyways. Draco would only bug her if she went anywhere with him and he was in no state to leave the house. She decided to look for Alex and talk with her. After all, she was extremely helpful the day before. So she washed her bowl and got ready.

She walked past the bathroom for what seemed like the hundredth time that day. 'No shower today' she thought bitterly. Once again, she insisted on making her presence known to him by banging on the door. An angry cry followed her to the room, causing her to smile. Maybe this wasn't so bad. After all, he brought it on himself.

She stepped out into the street. The sun was shining brightly at the half- way mark in the sky. It was around noon. Hermione did not have to search too long before she found Alex. The young girl was walking up the street toward the tennis courts when Hermione called to her. She turned and waited.

"Hey, Hermione what's up?"

Hermione explained about how Draco was bent over a toilet and she decided to find Alex so she wouldn't be stuck with him. Alex laughed. Then, Hermione asked her, "So what are you up to? I'm not interrupting anything, right?"

"Oh no, you're not interrupting. I'm just on my way home after trying to convince a stubborn boy to talk to my friend. The one from the tennis courts, you remember him? Yeah, he won't talk to her because a bunch of others bugged him."

"Oh, that's not very nice..." Hermione said frowning. She didn't really know what to say. Alex wasn't really listening, however. Her eyes were on Hermione's face, searching for something. Then, she shrugged slightly and continued to walk with Hermione following.

"Alex, what's wrong? What is it?"

"Huh? Oh, nothing it's just you remind me of someone in a story I read. But... No that's impossible! It was just a story." She laughed a little, as if to assure herself. She seemed nervous and thoughtful.

"What story?"

"It's about this boy who goes to a school for wizards. You remind me of one of his friends. They are very interesting books."

"What are they called" Hermione asked, unable to keep the nervous shake out of her voice. What if there was a connection? What if Alex found out? What if she got suspicious? What would happen?

Alex stopped walking and pulled a book out of her bag. She handed it to Hermione and on the cover was-

"Harry!" Hermione squealed. The boy on the front looked just like him with thick, black-rimmed glasses, baggy clothes, messy black hair, and of course, the most crucial detail... the scar. The books title was Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. She could only assume they meant Sirius.

"I know it's only the third one but it's my favorite. I've read it a million times!" Alex said looking at Hermione through narrowed eyes. She was getting suspicious. Hermione had to make a cover up story.

"I miss my books. They're back in England and I haven't read them in so long. I'm just glad to see a familiar face."

Instantly, Alex smiled. "I know the feeling. You can read if you want. I finished it at my friends' house while she was signing online. Just make sure you remember to return it. Oh, and be careful. Some of the pages are loose because I read it so often."

"Thank you very much, Alex. I'll read it tonight. I'm so happy I could jump!"

Alex laughed. "It's just a book, Hermione! You have as long as you need. Just don't forget to return it if you leave."

"Oh, thank you so much."
Several hours later, Hermione walked into the apartment. She had spent the whole day looking around town with Alex. Now, she dreaded returning to the waiting arms of Draco the Drunk Ferret. But when she got there, Draco was gone. On the table there was a note:

Hermione,
Sorry for snapping at you earlier. As you know, I was in no fit state to entertain. I have gone to check on something in town. I'll be back soon, I promise. From,
Draco

P.S. don't think you're getting away with things this time. Banging on the door was just pushing a little too far. You've been warned.

Hermione felt her mouth slide open in shock. Draco... the Draco Malfoy... was apologizing to her? This was just too weird. What, had the world turned upside down while she was sleeping last week?

With a small sigh, she sat down and pulled out the book Alex had let her borrow. She felt her nerves tightened as each sentence brought her closer to the truth of what went on in Hogwarts. This was no false tale. Who was this woman? How did she know about Hogwarts? This was too creepy...

Hermione looked up when she heard the door open and shut. How long had she been reading? She looked around. The sun was setting outside, sending beams of orange and red light into the room to dance upon her face. It illuminated everything with a dark and mysterious gloom. She shivered as a breeze blew in from the open window. As she stood closing it, she heard footsteps enter the room.

"Hey" Draco said, without much interest.

"Hey yourself." She replied. She didn't know why, but she felt like giving him the cold shoulder. 'He deserves it' she told herself. Plus she was bored and always found it fun to appear uninterested. Mostly, when it came to Draco, all she ever did was appear uninterested. He didn't care, so why should she?

As she sat down to read her book, she heard him sigh, and could just picture him running a hand through his hair. She smiled to herself, behind the shield of her book. She was finally starting to get to him. He crossed the room and sat in the chair facing her.

"Alright, what did I do this time?"

"What do you mean?"

"You're mad at me, Hermione. You know that's what I mean! Why do you do this?"

Hermione looked at him innocently over the top of her book. He was giving her a pained look. That look was familiar. She hid a startled gasp when she recognized it. It was the look Ron gave her when she got mad and distant with him. It reminded her of a dog who knew its owner was mad at it. She could almost hear him whimpering. She shook her head, and then spoke in what she hoped was her normal voice.

"First of all, Draco, I never said I was mad at you. Secondly, I don't know what you're talking about when you say 'why do you do this?' What exactly am I doing?"

Draco felt his face grow paler than normal and a small tint of red entered his cheeks. He felt, rather than saw Hermione's smile of satisfaction. Still, he held his ground.

"Oh, stop playing dumb, Hermione! You know what you're doing. You're acting like you don't care. Like... like it wouldn't even matter to you if I dropped dead right here." His voice was just a whisper and he sounded hurt. Hermione's pity returned at full force. Still, she continued to read her book, as if he hadn't spoken. As if he wasn't even there.

Suddenly, Draco fell to a heap on the floor. He lay there, not moving. Hermione put the book aside and looked him over. She couldn't tell if he was breathing or not. Hesitantly, she said, "Draco?"

No answer. She knelt next to him and whispered in his ear, "Draco?"

Still he didn't answer her. She could feel her panic rising as her voice got stuck in her throat. "D-Draco? Answer me!!"

A/N: sorry for the cliff hanger my friends!! I'm sorry! The next chapter will be great, I promise! Just hold in there for me!! I can't wait to start typing the next one!!! Oh yes sorry this is a mess... it wouldn't load right.