Draco POV

They landed in a dark, slightly wet cave. Hermione instantly began casting wards, as well as a permanent drying spell. Draco watched her, admiring the smoothness with which she cast her wand.

Draco had not thought this through. If what had been happening to her was bad enough, it would be worse for the both of them if they were caught by the Death Eaters. There was no time to regret it now - he had made his decision, and now they both had to deal with it.

"Aren't you going to send a message to your lapdogs?" Draco asked Hermione. He had just noticed how odd it was that he was not being accosted by Potty and Weasel. Surely they had some sort of contingency plan.

"We never really decided what to do if we were separated… Truthfully, I'd only foreseen one instance in which that would occur. A Patronus would be too obvious; it could give away their hiding place. Ron found us after he left; maybe he could do it again…" At this, Hermione began to tear up.

"The Weasel left? Why?"

Hermione began to explain her story to Draco. She was clearly omitting parts of it, but Draco understood. He wouldn't trust himself, either. When she got to the part about Weasley leaving her and Potter behind, he was irate. "I thought Weasley was panting after you, ready to produce a dozen heirs like his overly-fertile mother. He just left? Out of anger?"

Hermione looked down at her feet. "Yes. His anger was exacerbated by… something. But essentially, he left and could not come back. My wards were too strong."

"How did he find you then?"

Hermione paused, clearly trying to decide if she wanted to share something. "Dumbledore left him a magical object. He said he heard my voice and a ball of light hit his chest, leading him back to us."

Draco was silent. Then, suddenly, he began to laugh. Loudly. After about a minute, Hermione joined in.

"A ball of light? What sort of drivel has he been reading from Witch's Weekly? Honestly." Hermione stopped laughing and looked serious. "After he returned, we found out the hard way about the taboo. Ron knew, but forgot to tell us not to say his name."

Draco felt all the guilt returning. For Merlin's sake, this girl had been tortured and nearly brutalized on his drawing room floor, and he was sitting here laughing at Weasel like a third year.

Hermione POV

Hermione could tell that their conversation had hit the point where they either needed to talk about what had happened, or completely change the subject. She cleared her throat. "I have a few food items in my bag, but we will have to find a way to gather supplies soon. I can go out and try to find some vegetables or something." Hermione worried her bottom lip. She had only just realized that Harry and Ron were on their own for food.

"I would say I'm not picky, but I think we both know that would be a lie. I am, however, hesitant to let myself starve, so I will eat anything you have to offer."

Hermione raised her eyebrows at Malfoy. He seemed sincere, and of the strange things that had happened to her in her life, Draco Malfoy being nice was the one thing that was not making sense.

"Okay… I will look for supplies tomorrow."

"We."

"What?"

"Granger, I did not just save your arse to let you die scavenging for mushrooms. We will go look for supplies tomorrow."

Hermione fought a laugh. This is weird, she thought. I can't believe I am getting comfortable with Draco Malfoy.

They sat in silence for about twenty minutes. Hermione thought about Harry and Ron, and hoped they were doing fine. She hoped that they were being smart and taking care of themselves. At this thought, she chuckled a bit, and Malfoy started.

"Something funny, Granger?"

"Not really."

"Oh come on, share with the class. We know how much you love to do that."

Hermione narrowed her eyes. "Well, if you must know, the thought crossed my mind that I hope Harry and Ron are being smart."

Malfoy stared at her and cocked a brow. "Well," he drawled, "I can certainly see the humor in that."

They both laughed.

Draco POV

Draco had not laughed for a long time, and here he was, laughing for what seemed like the tenth time in the short span he and Granger had been in the cave. He wondered if this is how it was for Potter - relaxed banter with his friends, laughing until his sides hurt. Friends. Draco didn't think he had anyone he would describe as a friend. He had no one to confide in; no one who truly understood what was going on in his head. He frowned.

"Something wrong?" Granger genuinely looked concerned.

"Not really." Draco lied, hoping she wouldn't push it.

"If you want to talk about anything, just know I'm here. It's the least I can do, since you saved my life."

They both sat in silence after that. Eventually, Granger began to dig in her bag.

"Obviously it would be difficult to set up a tent in here, but I do have some other supplies and I can transfigure some things for us to sleep on."

"Granger, I am perfectly capable of transfiguring my own bed. I am not Potty and Weasel."

Granger looked irritated, but she did not scold Draco for making fun of the two idiots. Draco considered what he had said, but he did not change his opinion - he could not imagine how Granger's lapdogs could possibly live a day without her assistance.

The two set about transfiguring some blankets into mattresses and set up some cots. Granger truly had everything in that bag of hers. Finally, they looked at each other. It had only just occurred to Draco that they would be sleeping a few feet apart from each other.

"We need to take turns keeping watch. I will take the first shift, and I'll wake you in two hours." This made sense to Draco, and he wondered why he hadn't thought of this. Granger truly proved to him every day that being Muggleborn did not make her inferior.

"No, you need your rest. I will take the first shift."

Draco could tell that she wanted to argue, but she merely nodded. She had to be exhausted after the day she had.

"Okay. Remember, two hours." Draco nodded in agreement, but he knew there was no way he was waking her after two hours. She needed at least five of uninterrupted sleep. He would wake her if he felt in danger of falling asleep himself.

Granger laid down in her cot and was soon snoring quietly to had to fight the urge to watch her while she slept. She looked peaceful, but still worried, even in sleep. Her hair looked almost sentient as it fluttered across her face. He turned away and stared at a cave wall. Draco suddenly wished he had asked Granger for a book - it was going to be a long night.