Hermione woke up to the bed jarring beneath her. Instinctively, she reached for her wand, fearing that she was being attacked. She looked around the room, her eyes blinking as she tried to determine what was rocking the bed. Her brain was still groggy, unable to focus on where she was exactly, and a soft moan behind her made her roll quickly.

She sighed in relief noticing it was just Draco beside her.

You're safe. You're in bed. Everything's fine.

But then, Draco jerked beside her, his voice weak and barely audible.

"No…" Hermione could see a sheen of sweat across his forehead, and he was so tense he was shaking, every muscle standing out through the fabric of his t-shirt. "Please… no…"

She didn't hesitate. The way he'd awoken when she'd touched his Mark, terrified and aggressive, never once crossed her mind.

"Draco," she said, brushing her hand through his hair, his sweat damp and cool against her skin. "Draco, wake up."

"Please…just…" He pushed her hand away, his eyes clenched tightly as he fought against whatever demon still lived in his dreams.

"Draco." Brushing her hands across his face, scratching through his stubble, she tried to speak as soothingly as possible. "Draco, wake up."

With a loud gasp, he sat straight up, coming close to crashing their heads together before she jerked out of the way.

His breathing was still shallow, the sound of it harsh against the otherwise stillness of the light, and the moonlight reflected off his eyes, showing them wide and still terrified.

She heard him swallow, and he turned away from her, swinging his legs off the edge of the bed and burying his face in his palms.

She scooted closer toward him and reached out tentatively to lay her hand across his back. The moment her palm brushed against him, she felt him tense beneath her, his muscles growing rigid beneath her hand. When he didn't pull away, she moved her legs on either side of his and laid her head against his back, rubbing what she hoped were calming touches down his arms. After a moment, she felt him give a heavy sob, and his shoulders heaved.

He was trembling slightly, and when he tried to speak, his breathing became shallow again. She'd seen it enough in herself to know; he was fighting it, but she could feel him slipping, falling beneath the weight of panic, and all she could do was hold onto him until it passed.

She sat up onto her knees and wrapped her arms around him, rubbing her hands up and down his chest and whispering to him. "I'm here, Draco. I'm here with you." She remembered how he'd sat with her on their first week here by the granian pasture as she sobbed into her shirt sleeves. He had never said a word, just been there, never leaving her side as the panic attack ran its course, his arm brushing against the sleeve of her jumper.

After a few moments, the shaking in his shoulders subsided and his breathing slowed. She kissed the back of his neck before sitting back down behind him, the inside of her thighs resting against the outside of his.

When his breathing was back to normal, he swallowed once and started to speak. "I'm… I'm…"

okay?

"Sorry," he said, and the dejected quality in his voice had her fighting back her own tears. "I'm sorry I woke you."

She shushed him softly, kissing his shoulder, and said, "You have nothing to apologize for."

He sighed, rubbing his hands down his face, and turned on the bed to lie back down. She shifted to lay back down beside him, her head on his chest and one hand beneath his shirt, her fingers gliding across his chest.

"Do you want to talk about it?" she asked, after they were silent for a moment. She knew he wasn't asleep, and if his nightmares were anything like hers, chances are he wouldn't be able to for a while. She was sure it had something to do with Seamus' memories a few days ago. She'd woken to a few of her own after that, but thankfully none that had resulted in a panic attack or accidental magic.

He didn't respond for so long that she began to wonder whether or not she was wrong, and he'd actually fallen back to sleep, before he said, "Not particularly."

"Okay." She leaned up, resting on her elbows to kiss him. She pressed her lips to his cheek, tasting salt on his skin.

"If you want to, I'm here," she said, lying back down beside him.

After another long silence, he found her hand in the dark, laced his fingers through hers, and muttered, "I know." Rolling over to face her, he burrowed into her hair and added, You've done enough… just being here. Thank you." His words tickled across her neck, muffled slightly beneath the weight of her hair and the pillow beneath it.

He dropped her hand and wrapped his around her, pulling her closer to him and breathing deeply. She thought he was surely suffocating beneath her hair, but when she said as much, she felt him shake his head.

"Your smell… helps." She smiled to herself, understanding all too well what he meant. His smell brought her the same comfort, but it lit a fire in her chest to hear him say the same.

"Is that weird?" he asked and started to pull away, but she clung to him, holding him in place.

"No. I like it." She draped her leg across his waist and snuggled into him.

After a second, he said, "Well, now I am suffocating."

She pulled away from him, slapping his arm playfully, and lying together, their limbs intertwined, her breath ghosting across his chest, they both fell back asleep within minutes.

"Is there going to be singing the entire time?" Draco grumbled from her left, and Nicola threw a handful of popcorn into his face as she shushed him.

"Yes, there is, and you're going to love it," Hermione said. She frowned at the groan that he and Seamus simultaneously gave and added, "Or at least you're going to be silent while you watch and then pretend to love it."

"Those were the rules," Nicola said, effectively shutting them all up and returning their attention to the television in front of them. They were less than ten minutes into Nicola's pick for movie night, and they were already complaining.

On the previous two nights, they'd watched The Lost Boys and Romeo and Juliet. They'd unanimously loved the first film, much to Dennis' excitement, but after Seamus and Draco complained throughout the entirety of Hermione's choice of film, the "no complaining" rule had been instated.

…Though it didn't seem to be in effect at the moment, as Seamus loudly smacked his forehead on the table in aggravation when yet another song began.

"It's astounding. Time is fleeting."

"Madness takes its toll," Hermione and Nicola chimed in unison.

It really was unfair, their movie selections, given that only half of them had any notion of Muggle films whatsoever, but out of sheer boredom, they'd all agreed regardless. The last three nights had been rainy, forcing them all indoors after group where they would have normally sat around a campfire in front of the lake, and after Walt had introduced them all to the television in one of the other dayrooms, movie nights seemed to just fall into place. But tonight's viewing of The Rocky Horror Picture Show – on Nicola's request – seemed to be the straw that broke the camel's back.

"What the hell is going on?" Seamus asked, looking incredulously at Draco who shrugged in return. Following his memories on Sunday night and Seamus' words and pseudo-apology after, he and Draco had fallen into a strange but not altogether unpleasant friendship. "Who's this bloke, and why is he wearing fishnets?"

"Just shut up and watch," Parvati said, slapping Seamus on the arm playfully as Draco shrugged, clearly just as perplexed as Seamus was. Parvati didn't seem to really be enjoying it either, but at least she wasn't actively grumbling about it. Hermione looked over at Dennis, though, and he appeared to be completely engrossed as Nicola explained the plot to him.

"Please tell me this gets better," Draco whispered to her left.

"I actually love this movie, but if it makes you feel any better, Harry and Ron hated it too when I forced them to watch it."

"Hmm, maybe they aren't complete idiots – Ow!" he said with a jump as she pinched his hip.

"Don't you-"

"Shh, I'm trying to watch a movie," Draco said with a smirk in her direction. When she started to pinch him again, he snatched her hand off his ribs and held it tight between his own. They were sitting to the left of everyone else in the dark room, so no one noticed as he brought her hand to his lips and planted a soft kiss to the inside of her wrist, forcing her to sigh contentedly.

She wound her fingers through his as he dropped their hands into his lap, rubbing circles into the back of her knuckles. They'd gotten more and more bold with their affections since coming back from their camping trip. They weren't actively telling anyone, but they weren't exactly trying too hard to hide it either.

After they'd gone back to his room following Ron's admission on Sunday, she'd been surprisingly calm. Despite learning that one of her best friends had betrayed her in such a way, she felt a bit numb to it somehow – like, after everything else, this was just another day. She'd been hurt more than anything because she'd expected him to be different, and then, learning that he'd once again hurt her – for another girl, no less – it was almost laughable. It would be laughable if it wasn't so sad.

But Draco had surprised her, as he was wont to do lately. He never once talked badly about Ron, nor did he placate her. Well, he did shudder once when she brought it up, likely for the same reason it disgusted her to think of Ron being with Pansy, but otherwise, he simply held her and tried to take her mind off it all.

And he did a pretty great job of that, she thought, a blush rising up her neck.

"Did he just kill that guy?" Seamus asked, pulling Hermione from her thoughts and turning her attention back toward the television where the doctor had just killed Meatloaf, the sound of Columbia's subsequent screams filling the room around them.

Nicola ignored him, too wrapped up in the film to bother, and Seamus turned to Draco and said, "This is shite."

The rest of the film went by in similar fashion with Draco concluding that it was about nothing more than "debauchery and music," which Nicola denied wholeheartedly.

Much to everyone's surprise, Dennis sided with her. "No, it's about being different and embracing it. The doctor was mad, sure, but he also challenged them all to be different. That's what the entire last song is about." He looked around, expecting someone to answer, but found them all staring at him in awe.

Nicola laced her arm in his and pulled him from the room. "And that's exactly why you're my favorite. None of these other peasants appreciate art." She gave Hermione a wink as they walked out, and Draco huffed in indignation.

"That wasn't art. That was appalling," he said, shaking his head. Hermione gave a chuckle, certain that no one had ever called him a peasant before.

The rest of the week passed by without incident, save when Hermione and Nicola almost burned the kitchen down trying to make dinner. When the smoke alarms sounded, the rest of the house found the two women in the middle of the kitchen floor laughing like children. They were both soaking wet from having sprayed water across the room in an attempt to put out the paper towels that had somehow fallen onto the hot stove.

In bed later that night, while making fun of her, Draco blushed crimson after he let slip, "We'll just have to let Winny do the cooking when we get out of here, then." The blush faded quickly when Hermione silenced his backtracking with her lips on his.

They hadn't exactly spoken about what life would be like outside of here, but Hermione knew how she felt about him; he was quickly becoming the most important person in her life, and after their original conversation in his tent, it seemed he felt the same. She didn't want to ruin that by putting a label on it, so they just ignored the obvious as they reached the halfway point of their time at the Willows.

Thursday afternoon, they all stood at the Apparation point waiting for the portkey that would take them to the States for the "special trip" that Walt told them about that morning during breakfast. Most of them were excited, as was Hermione. So far, each of their trips, excluding the very first one at the ropes course, had turned out to be really fun, but Walt was practically bouncing with anticipation. The Welcome mat in the middle of their group began to quiver, and they all took the hands of the person on either side of them. All at once, they were snatched through the air.

They landed with an oomph in soft sand, and Hermione immediately recognized the smell of saltwater. She took a look behind her and let out a faint gasp at the beautiful sight. The sun was just beginning to rise behind her back, illuminating the water in front of her in bright pinks and orange, as the waves nipped closer and closer to their feet.

"Damnit, Walt," Hermione heard to her left, and she turned to find Parvati shaking her wet shoes out after once again having Apparated knee deep into the Pacific Ocean. She was laughing as she said, "Can you at least pick someone else to end up in the water next time?"

"Sorry, sorry," Walt said with a chuckle. "Surely, you know this isn't on purpose. If I had my pick, it would at least be Seamus who ended up floundering." He flicked his wand toward Parvati, instantly drying her pants, and turned to face the rest of the group. "Today, we're in for a real treat. I've actually never done this before, but I've always wanted to. We're going to go out there," he paused to point out at the expanse of water behind them, "on those," then pointed toward a row of kayaks leaned against a small shack to their right. "All of you can swim, yes?"

Of course, she could swim, but Hermione still felt a bit queasy at going out onto something as powerful as the ocean in a 10-foot kayak. Apparently, she wasn't the only one…

"Umm, Walt. Need I remind you what my original boggart was?" Nicola asked, her face taking on an ashen quality despite the colorful sunrise over the water. "I'd rather not be eaten by a shark, thanks."

Before Walt could speak up, Seamus said, "Come on. Where's your sense of adventure? How many witches can say they died by shark attack?" A large smile played across his features as he took in the apprehensive look on Nicola's face.

"Exactly none, Seamus. Witches who've been eaten by sharks can't say anything," she deadpanned in his direction.

"Nobody is going to get eaten by a shark. In fact, sharks tend to steer clear of the water here altogether," said Walt with a smirk. Without another word, he turned toward the shack and beckoned them all to follow along.

"Is no one else worried about whatever it is here that makes the sharks steer clear?" Parvati asked sheepishly. Honestly, the thought hadn't crossed Hermione's mind until then, but most of the group was already halfway into the shack before she had a chance to ask.

Draco's voice across her ear sent tingles up her spine as he asked, "Can you swim?" He had his jumper pulled tight around him, and his hands sank into his pockets as he blocked out the cold wind blowing in from the ocean. But the warmth of his breath across her skin brought a flush to her cheeks despite the chill.

"Of course, I can swim," she said, bumping her shoulder into his as they walked toward the building behind the others. "It's you I'm worried about. I imagine swimming lessons don't fit in well with your typical aristocratic upbringing. Don't worry. I'll save you if you fall in." His scoff beside her had her quickly amending her statement though. "Actually, it isn't the swimming that concerns me. It's the whales."

"Whales? Sharks aren't a concern, but whales are? Come on, Granger, what do you take me for?" They always reverted to surnames when bantering, and as much as she loved hearing her given name on his lips, it always brought a smile to her face when he called her 'Granger.'… like their own inside joke somehow.

She smirked at him and lifted her shoulders in a soft shrug before following the rest of the group into the shack. Once inside, her eyes widened in shock not having expected to walk into the expansive room she'd just entered. The outside of the building looked like any other small beach shack, but, here on the inside, it was as large as the Great Hall, covered in moving ocean murals and lit in an incandescent, shimmering blue light, as if you were at the bottom of the ocean.

Walt greeted a tall brunette woman with long dreadlocks down her back, leaning in and planting a soft kiss onto her cheek.

Hermione couldn't help but take in the beautiful artwork on one side of the room, where every manner of sea creature was seen swimming in the waves, gliding through the water in such a way that they appeared to be flying. As she walked over to join the rest of the group, Hermione nudged Draco and pointed toward one of the photos where a pod of orcas were swimming, rolling over onto their backs, their tails gracefully rising and falling in the clear blue water.

"Whales," she whispered to him as she nodded her head toward the photo. "Told you."

"You're afraid of that?" He lifted one eyebrow in that incredulous way that only he could do. He shook his head as he turned back to the photo where an orca seemed to be looking at them through the photo itself. A small whistling sound emanated from the photo as he said, "They definitely look daunting, Granger."

You'll see, she thought with a smirk, as her attention went back to Walt and the woman at the front of the group.

"This is Tari," he said. "I've been wanting to come do one of her whale tours for years, and I've just never gotten around to it. But I thought now was the perfect opportunity."

He motioned for her to take the lead, and she said, "Hey, guys. Like Walt said, I'm Tari. I'm so excited to have you all out here with us today." Her accent wasn't at all what Hermione had been expecting. The dreadlocks paired with being somewhere on the northwestern coast of the United States had Hermione expecting just about anything but the distinct Southern accent that came from the woman's mouth. "I've been running Crystal Ocean Encounters for almost a decade now, and I couldn't be more excited to introduce you folks to the amazing creatures we have out there."

Hermione turned to say something to Draco about the whales again when she caught sight of the look on Dennis' face. She almost laughed outright at the way he was so openly staring at their guide. His mouth was agape, and Hermione thought she could almost see stars in his eyes as he took her in. She wasn't the only one that noticed.

As they all started out the back door, following behind Walt and Tari, Seamus nudged Dennis in the shoulder. "Close your mouth, mate. Birds don't typically like the gawking type."

Dennis blinked a few times and looked around. "Did you hear her accent? I think I'm in love." Turning toward Hermione, he said, "I'm sorry, 'Mi. I know we've had this wonderful romance going on, but the heart wants what the heart wants. No hard feelings, yeah?"

Hermione clutched at her chest. "Only time will heal my broken heart."

"Thanks, love," Dennis said with a smile before running toward the front of the group to follow along Tari's heels like a lost puppy.

"Ten galleons on her chewing him up and spitting him out," Nicola said as she shook her head. "That sweet child isn't quite ready for an older woman."

They walked out onto a pier where a dozen kayaks sat on the water, and Tari divvied them all up, along with a group of canary yellow life jackets. "Before we get on the water," she said, her thick drawl making the word come out like 'worter,' "I need to go over a few rules just so we all stay safe, okay? There's really only two – First, we're all going to stay together as a group, so don't be paddling off by yourself. And two – these are wild animals. They may look friendly and sweet, and they are, but they also weigh about eight tons, so we won't be kayaking toward them, alright? Once we get to a pod, we're all going to stop paddling and just sit on the water. If an animal approaches you, just hang back and thank the good Lord that one of these magnificent creatures wants to be your friend."

Hermione looked out over the water before she stepped down into her kayak. It wasn't exactly something she ever thought she'd do, but she had to admit that it was extraordinarily peaceful out here. She felt the small boat twist slightly beneath her, and her breath caught in her throat for a second as got adjusted to the soft swaying.

"Eight tons, she said." Hermione looked to her left to see Draco looking a bit pallid as he said, "I don't suppose we'd be on the water with them if they were dangerous, right?"

"I mean, they are called killer whales," Hermione said, as she tightened her lifejacket around her. There was something about scaring someone else that really made it easier to ignore the churning in her own stomach at the idea of being swamped by a whale three times the size of the boat she was in.

"Wait, what?" Nicola asked, as she stepped into her own boat. She sank down quickly as the boat tipped dangerously to the side, Nicola's knuckles turning white as she clamped down onto the sides. "Killer whales? Why –"

"Okay, guys. We're going to do this nice and slow. The boats you're in may feel a bit tipsy, but you have to really be dancing on there for it to flip with you," Tari said, as she spun her own kayak around to lead the group. "Everyone, follow me. If you start getting behind, just holler and we'll slow down a bit."

"I was just trying to scare Draco," Hermione said after waiting a second to allow Nicola to catch up with her. Even in the most unflattering yellow lifejacket, Hermione noticed how flawless Nicola looked… just like always, she thought, as she looked down at her own puffy upper body.

"I wasn't scared," Draco said from in front of her, but Hermione ignored him.

"They aren't dangerous. I suppose they could be, but they don't hurt people," Hermione said, trying to relieve the look of terror on Nicola's face.

"I'll jump in and save you, Nicola. If one of those big scary whales tries to pull a Jaws on you," Seamus said with a laugh.

Nicola tried to roll her eyes, but the action didn't really seem to alleviate the hard set of her mouth as she paddled along.

The sun had fully risen now, and the water reflected the bright yellow blaze in front of them like glitter. The smell of saltwater swam around them, and Hermione instinctively took a deep breath, relishing in the feel of the cold sea air in her lungs. She listened as Tari explained the proper way to paddle, trying to focus on using her core rather than tiring out her arms, and then they paddled further out from the dock.

When they heard a series of loud piping noises overhead, Tari pointed out a large bird flying above them. "That's a bald eagle, our national symbol. It actually has the most successful animal conservation story in the country as well. They were close to extinction in the 70s, but after being listed as an endangered species, their numbers are better than ever. And with a wingspan of over 6 feet, or three meters," she added with an over-the-top British accent, "it's also the largest bird of prey in the country."

"What's your national bird?" Tari asked, turning to look at Dennis to her right.

"Umm… I'm… I think…," Dennis fumbled before Nicola interrupted him.

"A robin," she said, rolling her eyes at Dennis. "It's a robin."

"Hmm…" Tari said, pointedly, with a shrug. "We can't all have the majestic bald eagle as our national symbol, can we?" She smirked at Walt who splashed water in her direction.

The retort on Seamus' lips died quickly, when all at once, a dozen or so meters in front of them, they heard a loud whoosh, pulling everyone's attention in that direction. Four large fins seemed to grow right out of the top of the water, and Hermione couldn't hold in a gasp as another popped up less than twenty feet to their left.

They all stopped paddling as ten or so fins popped up all around them. Hermione lost all sense of tingling fear that had been resting in the back of her mind since the trip began at the sight in front of her. It was quite overwhelming being this close to the water's surface, with only a few inches separating her from the water itself, and having these massive creatures all around them.

"Holy Morgana," Nicola said from behind her as the beautiful black fins glided past them, still thirty feet away at least.

"They're massive!" Seamus said, clearly in awe.

"Yes, they are." Tari twisted her kayak around to face the group. The sun's reflection on the water glinted off her nose ring as she spoke. "This time of year is perfect for them. The area where we're paddling now is deep, nutrient-rich water, perfect conditions for migrating fish, so the resident orcas come here every year to get their favorite meal – Chinook salmon."

As another whoosh sounded directly behind them, Nicola let out a squeal, turning sharply to see a large spiked fin, at least four feet tall glide past her kayak. "Gods," Nicola groaned barely audibly behind her, as the animal cut through the water like butter, and Hermione felt her heart slide up into her throat at the sheer size of it. It felt like it took a full minute for it to swim past her boat, and just as it cleared the nose of her kayak, it spun in the water, rolling over onto its back to show off the large white patches across its stomach and head.

"I know they can appear pretty intimidating, but there has never been a single documented incident of aggression from a wild orca against humans. Not one. Now, in captivity they can become very violent, but here, in the wild, open waters where they belong, they're perfectly at peace." Tari looked out over the water as the animal passed, its fin flipping up in a wave as it did, and said, more to herself than anyone else, "There's no place in the world that feels more peaceful than this."

They all sat in silence for a moment, each of them likely as transfixed by the awe-inspiring sight in front of them as Hermione was. Tari wasn't wrong. The calm, glass-like quality of the water was only broken here and there by the animals slipping almost soundlessly in and out of the surface of the water. Every few moments the silence was interrupted by a soft whoosh as one of the orcas took a breath. They were massive, bigger than anything Hermione had ever seen save the Ironbelly that she had ridden out of Gringotts and the Hungarian Horntail that Harry fought in the Triwizard Tournament. But somehow, being almost at eye-level with these animals in the water, made them seem so much larger than the dragons Hermione had seen.

Suddenly a loud swish came from behind Hermione followed by another, much louder, shriek from Nicola as one of the animals completely breached the water and landed less than ten feet away from Nicola's kayak, the wave pushing her a few feet away from the group and rocking it from side-to-side a few times before it settled back down.

Nicola's face was as white as a sheet as she watched the orca swim away to join the rest of its group, blinking quickly and staring wide-eyed between Hermione and Draco, the two closest to her. Then Hermione watched as Nicola's focus seemed to shift from her face down to the water again, as an even larger fin, at least six feet tall, stood rail straight out of the water as the animal swam gracefully toward Nicola's kayak, where it stopped less than three feet away from her.

"What… what do I do?" Nicola asked, her voice barely more than a whisper.

"Just stay still. He isn't going to hurt you. Orcas are very curious; he's just checking you out. The native tribes in this area have many legends surrounding the orca. Magical Native American tribes in this area actually associate them with strong magical cores and believe them to be both a sign of good fortune and a sign of protection if they choose to befriend you." The whole time Tari was speaking, Nicola's eyes never left the humongous animal that was hovering just beside her, its body completely dwarfing the kayak she was sitting on. "They believe that orcas are amazing judges of character, and this guy seems to be pretty taken with you."

Nicola let out a shaky laugh as the whale swam to the other side of her boat. The rest of the orcas had started to swim away from their group, but this large male appeared to not want to leave Nicola's side, and Hermione was completely in awe watching as Nicola seemed to soften at the creature's infatuation with her. Where she'd started out completely terrified, her breath uneven and her shoulders tense, she was now glowing with a carefree smile on her face, and if the sun's glistening reflection in her eyes was any indication, she was tearing up at the amazing encounter.

Tari had spun back around to face the orcas, watching them as they swam away from the group and the shore, pulling further out toward open water, but Hermione's attention remained on Nicola and the orca who was simply swimming circles around her kayak.

"Touch it, Nicola," Parvati said. "He looks like he wants you to."

"Don't do it, Nicola. He might just bite your arm off," Seamus said, with a laugh, and the look Nicola gave him had him laughing even more. The orca, however, didn't seem to think it was too funny. All at once, he lifted his tail and slapped the water loudly, sending a spray of frigid water directly into Seamus' face.

He wiped the water from his face to no avail, as his hair and clothes were completely drenched. He laughed and said, "Damn thing is smitten with you, Nic."

The orca swam back to Nicola and returned to its slow circles around her kayak. As if it could actually understand the conversation going on around them – and after so much time around Buckbeak and the thestrals in the Forbidden Forest, Hermione was sure that some animals definitely could – the orca spun over onto one side and lifted its fin out of the water toward Nicola. She looked at it for a second before leaning forward and stretching her hand out toward it. Hermione could see her hand shaking as she gently touched the side of the whale's fin before it continued flipping and submerged itself again.

"Wow," Nicola said, and a nervous laugh poured out of her mouth.

It came back up, swimming toward Seamus again, and he said, "You think it'll let me?"

"There's no way," Nicola said as Seamus stretched his arm out in the same way she did.

Hermione noticed there was no shaking in Seamus' fingers in the way Nicola's had been, and he said, "I bet it will." But, instead of allowing Seamus to brush against its skin in the way Nicola had, it sank back just beneath the surface, pulling its body out of Seamus' grasp.

"Told you," Nicola said, a large triumphant smile on her face. But just as quickly as it had pulled back beneath the surface, the whale came back up, and Seamus reached forward again. As soon as his hand reached outside the relative safety of his kayak, the whale opened its mouth, just an inch or two but enough to spray a stream of water directly into Seamus' face.

"Yeah, he definitely doesn't care for you very much," Tari said from the front of the group, having turned back around to face them at some point in the last few moments. Seamus was too stunned to react as water dripped down his face.

When the others all failed to hold it in any longer and the sound of laughter erupted around him, Seamus seemed to break out of the spell, and he turned to look at everyone, a smile on his face just as wide as Nicola's. "I don't know. How many people you figure can say they've been spit on by a feckin' whale?"

The whale turned back toward Nicola, circling her boat one last time before coming to rest right beside her. It lifted its head out of the water, a series of clicks and whistles pouring out of its mouth before sinking back beneath the surface and swimming away. When it disappeared too far below to see, Nicola let out a shaky breath. "Wow. That was –"

She was cut off by the same whale leaping out of the water about fifteen feet away. It completely broke the surface of the water and twisted to the side as it landed, sending a splash toward the kayakers, though only Seamus and Draco ended up getting wet at all.

"Apparently, he doesn't like men so much," Hermione said with a laugh, and she heard Nicola say from behind her, "Smart animal, yeah?"

"Okay, but we didn't actually bet anything," Seamus said during lunch. They'd all gone to a small café a few miles from the dock when they returned, and much to Dennis' excitement, Tari had elected to join them. He sat at the far end, hanging on her every word as she told him all about how she left a lucrative career at a women's prison in the southeastern part of the country in order to move to Washington and open Crystal Ocean Adventures.

"I distinctly heard a bet being made," Draco said beside Hermione as he dropped his napkin into his plate and pushed it away. "You heard him say, 'I bet,' didn't you, Hermione?"

"Oh, I definitely heard him say that." She smirked at Nicola beside her, enjoying the way they were all getting beneath Seamus' skin.

"Yes, I said that, but there were no bet parameters. So, there is no actual bet." He'd repeated that in various ways at least ten times since they left the dock, and each time one of them would take up the gauntlet, explaining that a bet had been made regardless.

"Fine, fine. What do you want?" Seamus asked, red in the face and finally conceding to defeat.

Nicola leaned back in her seat and placed a finger over her lips in contemplation. "Hmm, let me think…" She shot Hermione a wink when Seamus turned to Parvati as she laughed, inquiring as to whose side she was on. "I think…" Nicola sat forward quickly, a clear idea playing in the back of her mind, "I think you should dress up like Dr. Frank N Furter for Halloween."

Hermione and Draco both immediately broke into laughter at the look on Seamus' face.

"You mean that bloke in fishnets? Fat chance!" He shook his head and laughed at Nicola's knowing smirk.

"Come on, Seamus. Where's your sense of adventure?" Nicola asked, repeating his words from earlier back at him.

"I suppose if you're too afraid,- " Draco began before Seamus cut him off.

"I'm not afraid; I'd just hate for your girl to get one look at these legs and decide pasty and blonde isn't quite her color," Seamus said nodding toward Hermione, and both she and Draco gaped at him.

They both attempted to salvage the situation, but neither did a very good job.

"That's-"

"You don't –"

"What?"

Finally, they looked at one another, and Hermione covered her laugh with her hand and Draco merely shrugged. They turned to look back and Seamus and Parvati across from them, finding both of them holding in laughter.

"Ha! I knew it!" Seamus said, slapping Dennis on the shoulder, pulling him out of the conversation he'd been having with Tari. "You owe me ten galleons, mate! "

Noticing the blush on Hermione's face, Parvati said, "We won't tell anyone, 'Mi, if you're worried about what Ron and Harry would think."

Hermione glanced toward Draco, expecting him to be scowling, but he wasn't. He was looking at her with a guarded expression, as if he was waiting for her to backtrack now that it was out in the open. Even though they'd talked about it before, it was obvious he was just as worried as she was about how this was going to work out once other people were involved.

"I don't care what they think," Hermione said without hesitation, and the smile he gave her brought a warmth to her chest, radiating all the way to her toes.

The feeling grew throughout the rest of dinner, with the weight of his hand drawing circles on her thigh and the way he brushed her hair across her shoulder after helping her put her jacket back on before they left the diner. By the time they returned to the Disapparation point, the heat throughout her made the chilly October air feel like summer on her skin, and Draco's fingers laced in hers as they were pulled halfway across the world sent a shower of sparks up her arm, making her wish that her days would always feel like this.