A/N Hey guys! Well, I'm back from camp. Being a camp counselor is so fun! Here's my newest chapter, it's getting really good I think. Thanks to my reviewers. Chelsea, you are right, I haven't had very many reviews for my story (hint hint), but thanks to all who did! I'm glad to know you like my writing. (

Draco sighed as he left the spa. His entire body felt at ease and cleansed. He saw Hermione waiting for him on a bench. She looked absolutely amazing. Her hair had been trimmed off a few inches and streaks of red and blonde spiced up her look. He approached her, trying to figure out what she was staring at. After standing behind her for a moment, he looked up and saw what she was so in awe of. It was getting later and the sun had almost finished setting, leaving by far one of the most beautiful sunsets he had ever seen. Wisps of pink and salmon danced across the sky, which changed from blood red to orange to deep purple. High clouds added to the spectrum by allowing rays of yellow filter down to the earth below.

"It's the perfect canvas," he thought to himself, "Vibrant colors, being watched by a figure that is only black, it's breathtaking."

"Lovely isn't it?" he heard Hermione ask, not turning around. He stood behind her and rested his hands on the back of the bench. They stared at it in silence for a few more minutes. When the sun had dropped out of view Hermione stood and they began walking back to the Leaky Cauldron. When they finally reached it they went up to their shared room (once again, their arrangements had been messed up, but Draco had contained his rage, remembering Hermione's fit the first time) they shuffled around the room, arranging bags and sorting books. Eventually, Hermione pulled out a book and began to read on the bed whilst Draco retreated to the small balcony. She read for quite some time until she finally realized it was past 9 and they hadn't eaten yet. She closed her book and went to the balcony.

"What are you working on?" Hermione asked softly after she realized he was focused on a large notebook in his hand. Draco startled at her voice and quickly flipped the cover closed. He threw what looked like pastels into a bag and placed his items in a drawer. "He's really protective of his art," Hermione thought to herself, "First curtains in his room, now hiding everything in drawers, he must expose himself in his art or else he wouldn't care if other people saw it."

"Ready to eat?" Draco asked as he washed his hands in the sink.

"Yep," Hermione answered as she put her shoes on. She followed Draco downstairs into the pub. They sat at a smaller table and began perusing the menu. They each ordered and sat waiting for their food to come. When it came they both slowly ate, barely speaking. After a few minutes of silence, Hermione noticed a small band had entered.

"What are they?" Hermione asked as she smiled at the small men taking out instruments.

"What, you've never seen Hobbits before?" Draco asked as he played with the remainder of his food.

"No, what are they?" Hermione said smiling, "They look so sweet." She had to smile at the tiny men, no higher than four feet, each with shaggy curls and huge hairy feet. They all were jovial and chipper as they joked with a few customers around them.

"They're from one of the hidden realms, a place called the Shire. There aren't really very many at all, they stay pretty close to home usually," Draco explained. One hobbit struck up a lively tune on a fiddle and was quickly joined by a recorder and hand drum. The last hobbit began to sing softly and sweetly to the song. A busboy came and took their plates and Draco paid him.

"Anything else sir?" the busboy asked Draco.

Draco glanced at Hermione repeating the question mentally. "Do you want to stay a while or head upstairs?" he asked.

"I don't see why we shouldn't hang around a while longer and enjoy the excitement," Hermione answered.

Draco nodded and directed the busboy, "Two butterbeers." The busboy quickly returned with their drinks. Hermione giggled a little as two couples began dancing to the music.

"What's funny?" Draco asked as he took a sip.

"Well, you just don't expect to see dancing like that anymore, it just seems so old fashioned," Hermione said as the couples swung and hopped around in a circle.

"What kind of dancing do you do?" Draco asked.

"Muggles dance... erm... more sexually than this," Hermione said uneasily. Draco's eyes went up in shock.

"Like how?" he asked. Hermione shook her head nervously.

"Well, they just kind of... grind and freak, you know?" she asked.

"No, I don't," Draco said, enjoying her discomfort.

"Everyone is just pretty much in a large crowd dry-humping each other," Hermione said quickly. Draco almost choked on his drink. He quickly wiped his mouth, still astonished.

"WHAT?" he yelped.

"Yeah, they just sort of rub up against each other," Hermione said. Draco was still in shock.

"And no one cares that they are 'grinding and freaking' complete strangers?" Draco asked.

Hermione shook her head, "Not really..." Draco just shook his head.

"I'll take our dancing any day over muggle dancing!" he said. However, he stopped and thought for a second, "Well, there might be a few instances where I'd try it, I'd just have to have the right partner to rub up against," Draco said winking at Hermione.

"OH COME OFF IT!" she exclaimed with a half grin on her face. She swigged the rest of her butterbeer and Draco followed suit.

"You've never muggle danced before have you?" Draco asked quizzically, "I mean, you wouldn't ever..."

Hermione grinned at his mischievously, "When in Rome..." He stared at her, his mouth agape, but quickly regained himself.

"Well, let's try it the right way," he said as he stood and grabbed her hand. He dragged her out into the open space where several couples were now dancing.

"Draco no!" Hermione persisted, jerking her hand out of this and attempting to escape to the stairs.

"Oh no you don't!" he exclaimed as the song finished. He grabbed her around the waist as a particularly fast song began. He took her front hand and attempted to swing her around to face the dance floor.

"Draco no! This is humiliating!" Hermione growled as she tried to escape his grip to no avail. She looked up and saw that a few of the hobbits had started laughing at them. Hermione frowned and looked down, "They're laughing at me!" she growled to Draco.

Draco leaned in her ear and whispered, "No, they're probably laughing at me because you won't dance with me. If anyone looks like a fool it's me, I can't even get a girl to dance with me." Hermione looked at Draco annoyed as he placed a pouty face on.

"Well, here, let me borrow his violin then I'll play a sad song for you," Hermione teased.

"Or you could just dance!" Draco said with a smirk as he pushed his way onto the dance floor and began leading Hermione around in the circle. Hermione's cheeks turned bright red at this. She felt like an idiot. She looked up and saw all the other couples laughing and cheering as they jigged around the dance floor. "Just watch my feet," she heard Draco say in her ear. She stared at the floor and watched his feet weave a pattern.

"Front, side, Front, slide, Front, side, Front, slide," she thought to herself as she followed Draco's feet. She stumbled for a minute or two, but then basically picked it up and began to flow with him. She looked up and glanced around as she realized they were dancing just like the other couples. A small laugh escaped her lips as they whirled and danced for several minutes. Draco even twirled her a couple of times after she had gotten the hang of each dance.

When they were both completely out of breath, they tripped off to the side, both laughing and wiping sweat of their foreheads.

"Well, that is certainly a change from muggle dancing!" Hermione exclaimed.

"Not that you'd know or anything," Draco teased.

"No, of course not," Hermione said suspiciously as she averted his eyes.

"One more dance?" Draco asked, offering his hand. Hermione nodded and went back onto the dance floor. Draco sadly let his vacant hand drop. Once out there, Draco gripped her waist and Hermione took his hand, both ready for another dizzy round. Instead; however, the pace changed. A slower song began and the violin sang softly, followed by a singer's gentle tenor voice. Hermione looked into Draco's eyes, wondering if slow dancing was the same for wizards. Somewhat, she discovered. Draco moved closer to her, knowing what to do. His hand on her waist wrapped around her and his arm reached across her lower back. With his free arm he held her hand stiffly out to the side. He slowly relaxed his grip and raised their arms up and then even with their heads. Once there, he pushed against her hand and Hermione gently spun. Hermione glanced over and saw that the other couples were doing the same. After a few rounds, Hermione relaxed, knowing the dance and gracefully spun and twirled. Draco's face was somber when she looked at it.

He was thinking about something. But what? He was thinking about her, but his thoughts were hard for her to decipher, he was keeping his thoughts cloudy. He wanted to tell her something, but didn't know how to do it.

Draco leaned down to her ear and whispered, "Don't pry into my mind. If I can feel you in my head then you're obviously trying to hard."

Hermione looked down, she'd been caught. She didn't mean to pry, it just sort of happened whenever she touched people, especially Draco.

"It feels so good to dance again," Hermione said softly. Draco nodded lightly. "It's nice to have a dance partner..." she began, but quickly stopped herself.

"What?" Draco asked.

"Nothing," she lied. She had suddenly remembered her most treasured object, hidden in her chest back at Malfoy Manor. If only her parents could see her now. Even after her family and home were gone, she still found a reason to dance. Not to dance at recitals for her neighbors, or dance at weddings with her family, but just to dance. To dance and let your body express what words cannot.

"Ready?" Draco asked from far away. Hermione looked back up and realized the song had just finished. She nodded and they made their way to the stairs. She longed to stay there and dance till the stars disappeared, but she went upstairs instead.

When they reached their room, they both changed into their clothes for the night. Hermione ran her fingers through her shiny brilliant hair and smiled. After she had brushed her teeth and changed into a black wife beater and satin pajama pants she slowly began throwing decorative pillows off the bed.

"Hermione," she heard Draco say softly. She glanced up and saw that he was leaning against the wall. "Do you trust me?" he asked.

Hermione stared at him for a minute. "No, I don't," she answered.

"What not?" he asked.

"Honestly? Because you've given me no real reason to trust you. You've bought me things and we've had fun, but you haven't done anything that has convinced me that this all isn't some act. That you aren't going to change back into the Draco Malfoy I've known for the past six years at school," she answered truthfully.

He held up a small clear crystal vial. "Do you know what this is?" he asked as he sat next to her on the bed. Hermione shook her head. "It's Veritaserum," he answered, "If I take it, everything I say is the absolute truth until the sun rises."

"What do you need it for?" Hermione whispered. Her mind was racing. He was going to make her take it, then he'd ask her questions about everything, her family, her friends, the Order, herself. She couldn't fight him off if she was twice as strong, he'd still overpower her easily.

She glared at him, ready to do battle.

"I'm going to take it," Draco answered. Without a word, he quickly downed the vial. He looked up at Hermione who just stared back at him in complete shock. Draco breathed heavily as he felt the potion begin to take effect on him. His mind became crystal clear as every truth about him was opened.

"Why did you do that?" Hermione whispered.

"This is the only way I can convince you I am sincere. Like you said, you won't trust me till I trust you. I'm allowing you to learn anything you want about me and my life," he answered softly, "I'm trusting you." Hermione looked down at the bed. "Ask away," he said.

"Why do you hate muggle-borns? Why did you torment me because I'm a mudblood?" she asked, looking him square in the face.

"I despise muggles and their way of life. They use up everything they find and throw it away without a second chance. Muggles think they are the masters of this world simply because they are the smartest animals. I hate their arrogance. They've killed thousands of our kind over the centuries because they realized they weren't all-powerful," Draco responded.

"You didn't answer the rest of my question, why did you torture me?" she asked, frowning.

"When I see a muggle-born, I think of just that. Muggle-arrogance, disrespect for the earth, its creatures, and even their own kind," he answered.

Hermione analyzed his answer for a moment, and then asked, "Are you arrogant Draco Malfoy?"

"Yes, I just might be," he said.

"Then isn't your hatred of muggles somewhat hypocritical?" she asked.

"I'm a different kind of arrogant," Draco said. Hermione scoffed. He continued, "There's a difference in being arrogant at school because you know the answer before the teacher asks the question and being arrogant because nothing can stop you, so you decide to take what you want and leave behind what isn't valuable."

"What about being a pureblood? Don't you think you have the same mentality of muggles?" Hermione questioned.

Draco stared at her for a second, then asked, "What do you mean?"

"Well, purebloods, like your family seem to think they are the highest and mightiest on all the earth simply because you have the most money, the most magic, and the most history. Who made you God?" Hermione snapped. Draco looked down in either shame or thought, Hermione couldn't tell.

"We are proud or our heritage," he answered.

"Well I'm proud of mine," Hermione answered. She lay back on the bed and stared at the ceiling.

"Is there some secret plot in CLAW to bring Voldemort back to power?" she asked bluntly. She looked over at the shocked Draco. "Answer me," she ordered.

"Yes," he said quietly.

"I knew it! This is all some scheme your father is planning to bring Voldemort back!" Hermione said, excited at her discovery. "What is it?" she asked.

"Some members of CLAW, not just my father, are planning on reinstating his magic once we are in Eden. Magic will be spreading and covering the alternate world for the few hours after the spell, so some of it can easily be concentrated in the form he has right now, bringing his completely back to life and fully energized again," Draco said painfully.

"And you've known this all along!?" Hermione pressed.

"Yes," he answered.

"And you were going to help them accomplish this?" she asked knowingly.

"No," he replied. Hermione sat up and stared at him in shock. He couldn't lie.

"You were planning something though, I've felt it," she asked, getting closer to him.

"Yes," he answered.

"What?" she pried.

"I'm going to stop his from being taken to the alternate world," Draco whispered. Hermione gaped at him, her mouth open. Draco? Plotting against Voldemort? Why?

"How?" she asked.

"His potion," Draco began, "I'm going to switch it with another."

"What potion?" Hermione demanded.

"A time travel potion, it will transport him to the future. By the time he returns to the present, it will be too late, he'll be trapped in the muggle world," Draco explained, looking into Hermione's eyes.

"But why can't he come back before he takes it and stop himself?" Hermione asked.

"Because, the spell we will use for the return will be absolute. All magic in this world will be transferred to Eden when we say it. The timelines will split, then there will be no way he can ever get to our world because he will be in a separate timeline," Draco answered.

"What if he thinks of a way though, I mean, he is extremely powerful," Hermione said, worried.

"It won't matter. ALL magic will be on our plane; none will be left on this world, including what magic Voldemort might possess. If he does come back, we'll be gone. It will be as if our world never existed here. His magic will be gone, he will be mortal... muggle," Draco explained.

Hermione smiled a little, "what a cruel fate. The man who hated muggles so much he tried to exterminate them will become a muggle." Draco nodded. "So he'll be left here, with the war going on?" Hermione asked.

"Yes," Draco said, "Misery loves company."

Hermione thought for a few minutes, racking her brains to see if there was anything else she wanted to ask Draco about CLAW. She decided there wasn't, so she decided to switch subjects.

"Why have you been getting so fresh with me?" she asked.

Draco raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?" he asked.

"Oh, you know what I mean. First you put your arm around my waist, you dance with me, not to mention I woke up twice with you cuddling me," Hermione said.

"My my Granger, how do you know it wasn't you cuddling me?" he teased.

"Answer me," Hermione mocked, knowing he had to answer.

He moved on the bed and leaned in close to her. "You know why," he whispered, looking into her eyes. He reached up and ran his fingers along her jaw line. "I like to be near you," he said softly. He gave her a small smirk. Hermione knew he wasn't lying, he couldn't. She decided to test him. She reached up and wrapped her hand lightly around the side of his neck, letting her thumb rest on his cheek, stroking it softly. She looked deeply into his eyes and could sense his heart racing. His breathing had sped up, though he tried to conceal it. "Now who's getting fresh with who?" he teased. She smiled a little, but let her hand remain where it was.

"One more question," she said.

"Shoot," he said, with a smile.

"When you said you loved me at the Manor, did you mean it?" she asked.

Smiling again, he reached up and placed his hand on top of hers. Gazing into her eyes he answered, "I am under the most powerful truth serum in world and there is no way this could be a lie, you have to know that. Hermione, I know I've been scum to you for six years, and for the past years the feeling has been mutual. But when I saved you that day, when I saw what you had been through, my racist attitude towards you and muggle- borns changed. You are people too with lives, pain, and love. After I reflected on who you were as a person, not a name, I realized that so much of my hatred had been envy."

"Answer me!" Hermione demanded, tears welling in her eyes.

He continued to stare at her, "When I'm around you I feel that happiest I've ever felt. I'm not ashamed when I smile or laugh around you and I've never felt that way ever. You make me feel... not so alone in this world." A tear glazed Hermione's cheek, but he quickly wiped it away.

He finished, "I love you." Upon saying this, Draco slowly leaned in and pressed his lips to hers. She let his lips reside on hers for a few seconds. She felt his love. He had been alone all his life. No one had ever understood who he was as a person, until Hermione. He had been completely alone just as she had been for the past two months. Whenever he saw her he felt overwhelming joy and wanted to sweep her away where they could be together forever, to Eden.

Hermione pulled away from their kiss. She let her hand fall as she stood up. Draco reached out and took it again, but she only let it slip out of his hold. Standing out on the balcony, she stared up at the night sky.

"Hermione," she heard him whisper from behind her as he stood behind her.

"I can't," she whispered sharply.

"Hermione please," he tried again as he turned her and held her in his arms. "Please Hermione, please!" he begged loudly.

Tears rushed down Hermione's cheeks, "I can't!" she replied a little louder.

"Why not!?" He yelled in exasperation as he looked around, avoiding her eyes. "Hermione, why?" he whimpered. She felt a warm tear fall on her shoulder and it wasn't one of hers. He was crying. She felt his anguish. His soul was weeping, he had found the one person that could make him happy and now she denied him. He knew she wanted him, that she had hidden love for him too, but suppressed it with irrelevant logic. "I love you, I love you, why doesn't that change anything. I've done so much for you and I will sacrifice so much more, just don't leave me alone in this world," he pleaded.

Hermione shook her head as tears dripped off her face. "I can't.... We...we can't," she stammered shaking her head in uncertainty.

"Is one degree of uncertainty reason enough to deny your heart and mine?" he asked, placing his hand on her face.

"I don't know, this is just too much. I need... I need time, too much is happening. Everyone died, I lived, I'm here, you're here, I see other's minds, I love you, I hate you, I just... I can't take it all!" she cried. She fell against Draco's chest sobbing. He wrapped his arms around her and let her rest there, her tears dampening his white undershirt. They stayed there for a few minutes completely silent. Draco stroked her hair and back as she wept. He gradually led her into the room and mixed her a quick sleeping potion. They set on the bed after that; Hermione leaning on Draco's shoulder while he wrapped one arm around her waist.

"Everything's going to be okay," he reassured her. She closed her eyes for a few seconds as the potion began to set in. She opened them again and looked down. Draco slowly lowered her down and pulled the covers over her body. "You are amazing," he told her as she began drifting off.

"Liar," she mumbled as she fell into deep slumber. He watched her deep steady breathing for a while then stood and returned to the balcony. He watched the stars fade and watched as the black horizon slowly turned to invigorating hughes of pink and orange.