Draco's heart was not the only part of his body that was going crazy when Hermione stepped into his room. Luckily for Draco, Hermione was too inexperienced to notice the full effect she was having on him. She waltzed up to his bed, focused only on the parts of his anatomy that had made her feel so wonderful that day in her room, i.e., his hands and his lips. She leaned down for a kiss so confidently that a bystander might have assumed the two had been in cahoots for years.

Draco was not about to complain about this new-found confidence in Hermione Granger. In fact, he liked it. It seemed to suit the rest of her personality; after all, when was she ever too shy to speak up in classes or tell off her friends if they were doing something of which she didn't approve? He couldn't find a good reason she would be any shyer around him, even though his ego suggested he was supposed to be more intimidating than he was to this girl.

Why was he still thinking anyway? She was snogging him for chrissakes. Time to turn off his brain and melt into her kisses…even though he had pretty much melted already…

Before he knew it, she had lain down on his bed, and he had wrapped his green sheets around her to stop her from shivering. So much for using them to hide his lower half. Hermione's body was pressed against him, but if she felt the effect she had on him, she chose to ignore it. Their lips were still sliding together; they had not separated once since Hermione walked in. Their need to be together was too great. Things might have even progressed further if the two of them had not suddenly heard the creaking of Draco's door, and seen it opening enough for two cloaked bodies to fit through.

Hermione wrenched herself from Draco's arms, which had found their way around to massage the small of her back. She sat up straight, looking angrily around for the creatures that had dared to wreck hers and Draco's time together. Her mind raced through the possibilities of who or what the intruders could be, but still she was surprised when Draco drawled, "Potter," and Harry nervously pulled the Invisibility Cloak off of his and Ron's heads.

Ron looked horrified, as if he had suddenly found a giant web with tarantulas crawling in his direction. Harry, on the other hand, looked angry.

"What have you done to her, Malfoy?" he asked.

"He hasn't done anything, Harry," Hermione stated coolly.

Harry was not convinced. He raised his wand to point at Malfoy's heart, and then repeated the question. Malfoy remained unarmed. "What have you done to her?"

"Haven't done a thing, Potty," he replied. "If you'll notice, she came to my room, not the other way around."

"Did you jinx her? Stupefy her and drag her back here? Cast the Imperius Curse?" Harry kept asking stupidly. Ron still looked horrified. Hermione placed herself in front of Malfoy, so Harry's wand was pointed at her instead of Draco.

"Move out of the way, Hermione," Harry commanded. Hermione, of course, did not listen.

"Draco hasn't done a thing except be kind to me," Hermione told Harry. "He's not the cold-hearted creep you both think he is."

"I resent that," said Malfoy, from behind her. He took the opportunity of her sitting in front of him to put his arms about her waist, and his chin on her shoulder. Her hair was too bushy to see Potter any other way. Unfortunately, his lower regions were still excited by her presence, and as he moved closer to her he felt her twitch against him. So she had finally realized how much he wanted her. Too bad Potty and Weasel were still here; they were ruining his fun.

"He's called you a Mudblood countless times, Hermione. He tries to get us in trouble every chance he gets. He's a Slytherin, Hermione; of course he's a creep. And now he's done something to you, and I'm going to find out what it is."

Malfoy couldn't help but be a little happy that the Trio was fighting over him. And Hermione was defending him…definitely something he could get used to. He wanted nothing more than to start snogging her again in return for her loyalty, but for that to happen he had to find a way to get Potter and Weasley out of his way. He couldn't curse them; that would only make Hermione angry with him, and he knew it was always healthier to have her anger directed elsewhere. He knew she could hold a grudge for a long time, and he didn't think he could take it if she stayed mad at him for more than a few minutes. Not when they were just getting to know each other. If he couldn't force them to leave, he would have to convince them that he wasn't doing anything malicious to Hermione. There was only one way…

"I have done something to Hermione," Draco finally admitted. The Golden Trio looked at him, shocked, angry, and in Hermione's case, a little hurt. Harry looked the angriest of all.

"Tell us what you've done, so we can reverse it," he ordered. His wand was now pointed directly at Malfoy's face, and there was a murderous look in his eyes.

"Well, it's not quite that simple," said Malfoy. "It's almost impossible to counter. I've been looking for a way…but there's nothing magical I can find to cure it."

"We'll find a way," Harry said firmly. Hermione once again wrenched herself from Malfoy's grip, and stood between her two friends. It was where she belonged, Malfoy thought nostalgically. "Tell us now, or I'll curse you," Harry said, his wand at the ready.

"What I've done," Malfoy started, stopping to gaze into Hermione's downcast eyes, "is fallen in love with her."

Ron collapsed to the ground. Harry looked unconvinced. Hermione's mouth dropped open a little, and she brought her eyes back up to Draco's gaze. Just by looking in his eyes, she knew he was telling the truth. She loved him too. She was not ready to say it yet, especially not in front of her friends, but she knew exactly how Draco felt. And she loved him all the more for it.

With that, Hermione took charge. "I want you and Ron to wait in the hall for a minute. Draco and I need a moment alone. Then I'll come back up to Gryffindor with the two of you," she told Harry.

Unwilling though he was, he could see no other option but to comply with Hermione. She would return to Gryffindor with them, which was what he had wanted in the first place. He wanted his best friends upstairs to celebrate the Quidditch victory with him, and it hurt him to find one of them in the opposing team's bed right after the game. Of course, Hermione never understood Quidditch anyway, but she would still appreciate a good win.

Harry picked Ron off the floor and dragged him into the hallway outside Malfoy's bedroom door. "We'll be right here, Hermione," Harry said, casting one last dangerous look at Malfoy before retreating outside, the Invisibility Cloak once again over his head.

Hermione shut the door behind Harry, then returned to her seat on Draco's bed. "You really love me?" she asked.

"I do," Draco said gently. "I don't know how it happened, but I do."

Hermione gave Draco one last lingering kiss. Both savored it, as if they had never been kissed before in their lives. As they finally broke away, Hermione stood and walked to the door. "See you in Potions on Monday," she said with a tiny smile, which Draco returned. It may have been the first time Hermione had seen him smile, in all their years of school together.

Still half hidden under the sheets, Draco laid back down, his smile ever broadening as he watched the bushy haired girl tuck her Invisibility Cloak under her clothing and saunter out through his door.