WHATTTT. I updated within a week! I am overjoyed! This story is finally becoming fun to write, and I'm really enjoying it. This story will probably be 18 or 19 chapters in total, and I'm super glad I went ahead and planned them all last summer.

As always, I am operating without a beta here. Any and all mistakes belong to me alone, and I will be grateful if you notice anything glaring and mention it to me. But if you could PM it to me, that would be my preference.

Hermione wasn't a stranger to felled hopes, and expectations.

And she'd been expecting this one since Ron's last two letters. She sat at the edge of the dock, her toes skimming the water, and it felt as if she'd found herself in that exact same spot too many times already. She ripped the seal from the closed letter, one that had been delivered by a tawny owl that nipped her fingers and glared at her when she refused to give it a treat.

Malfoy had chuckled under his breath at breakfast as she retorted to the bird that she couldn't just reward bad behavior.

She'd known as she whispered to Lisa that she would be at the lake around dinner time, having put off reading the letter for the duration of the day, what was inside the missive. Leaving everyone in the company of the three other counsellors, Hermione had meandered down to the lake, kicking stones as she went with far more force than necessary.

The letter was heavier than the others, and it was irritating that the one he wrote the most for, was the one where he ended things completely. Night was falling around her, the sun meeting the surface of the lake, and she heaved a slow breath before unfolding the parchment.

The words didn't matter, not really. It was a long winded apology for not ending their relationship before the parted ways. She was pretty sure he had left the hope still burning so he wouldn't have to face her when he said 'It's just not working, Hermione.' And it stung like a badly cast hex.

Knowing it was coming didn't soften the blow one tiny bit.

Hot tears were slipping down her cheeks before she realized she was crying at all, and Hermione balled the parchment up in her hands. Why should he hold any sort of power over her at all? They had given it a chance, and she believed they'd owed it to themselves lest they wonder what could have been later in life.

She didn't notice footsteps sounding behind her. In her defense, they were light against the boards of the dock.

"Granger?" he asked hesitantly, softly, and she froze in place.

Hermione incinerated the letter without her wand, without so much as a word before she looked over her shoulder. "Is something wrong? Do you need me for something?" she replied, far harsher than what was considered polite for someone she thought she could possibly get along with now. "I'm sorry. I'm just—"

"It's fine," he said, his tone clipped. Great, she'd fucked the semblance of peace they had going. "It's not my business, but for what it's worth, you deserve a hell of a lot better than Weasley."

She could see her eyes widen in the reflection of the water. "I—thank you, I think."

He snorted, shoving his hands in his pockets. "He's a prick if you ask me, but it's not as if I know him. If he's willing to break things off through a letter, he's a coward. Lisa didn't tell me what was going on, but I recognized that something was off with you all day."

Hermione hiccuped, wiping her eyes. Merlin, being dumped was bad enough, but to be caught crying Malfoy was even worse. "So you came to check on me? Careful there, Malfoy. I might think you actually care about me."

"You talked me through a bad night, and it was pleasant to know that someone gave a damn. I don't like owing people, and I thought you needed the night to yourself. I'm shite for comfort, Granger, but I was a prefect, and Head Boy, albeit a terrible one. Take the night off."

She craned her head back, staring up at the dark look on his face. "I can't leave you to man the camp with Michael and Hannah. The three of you will rip each other apart."

He rolled his eyes. "Abbott isn't going to do anything that Leanne doesn't whisper in her ear, which is ridiculous and eventually should be nipped in the bud. The Ravenclaw is a ponce, but I can get along with him for a few hours."

She nibbled her lip. Her hands slid against the dock as she braced herself against the surface, a splinter sliding right in between her skin and her nail. "Ow!" Hermione hissed, plucking it immediately. "You're sure?"

He nodded. "I'll make sure your precious lions and the rest of the litter are safe. I'm serious. I don't want to see you doing any sort of work. There's a bottle of Firewhiskey in your room if you'd like it."

"Okay — how did you get past my wards?" Her eyes narrowed.

He smirked. "Your wards on your cabin are shit. It's like a first year did them."

Hermione scowled. "Liar. I know they're strong enough to hold."

"You're right." he shrugged. "I summoned a house elf from Hogwarts to leave it in the cabin. There's a Sober Up potion on the nightstand." He turned away and left without another word.

Hermione wasn't sure what to say. Malfoy had reassured her, in a backhanded way, over her breakup. And he had attempted to console her by leaving booze to erase her problems.

Which wasn't what would happen, but she wouldn't think about it that night either.

It started as a loud conversation over breakfast.

Dennis and Olivia argued over the last ration of bacon, and she won out after leaning forward, batting her eyelashes before snatching it right out of his hand. "That's not fair!" Dennis shouted, his cheeks coloring.

Interesting, Hermione thought. A bit strange with the one school year difference, but clearly a minor crush had formed since the beginning of summer. She smiled to herself as she chewed her food, washing it down with water.

"Hermione?" Oliver asked, balancing his plate on his knee as he sat in the dirt. "I don't know what you have planned today, but can I make a request?"

She nodded, raising her napkin to her mouth as she swallowed. "Sure, what is it?"

"How do you cast a Patronus?"

It got the attention of everyone in the camp, and she was gobsmacked. "I'm not sure I could teach you." she said.

Michael laughed, stabbing his fork into his plate. "Are you kidding? Of course you could teach them. We were both in Dumbledore's Army. I'm sure we could manage it. And what better activity than one so hands on?"

Oliver's face lit up. "Could we see yours?" he asked Hermione.

She gave a tight smile, not that sure she could manage the spell after the night she'd had. Her head was still fuzzy from the lingering haze that was half a bottle of Firewhiskey. The Sober Up potion was shit in comparison. The sun fucking hurt. Her limbs ached, and she wanted nothing more than to crawl back into bed. "Sure." she croaked.

Malfoy leaned over from his spot beside her, whispering in her ear, "You're hungover, aren't you?"

She glared at him. "Did a fucking first year brew that potion?" Hermione hissed under her breath.

He chuckled. "No, because it wasn't a Sober Up potion at all. It was one for the common cold, little daft witch."

Hermione gaped at him, rearing back and punching him in the shoulder while he sniggered. "You're a prat, Malfoy!" Her outburst caught the attention of everyone, and she only turned her nose up before continuing to eat in angry silence.

His newest hobby was earning the ire of the curly headed witch that stood in the middle of the clearing. She wiped her sweaty palms on her jeans before tying her hair back in an elastic that ought to have snapped halfway across the clearing.

"You're staring," Padma said quietly, eyes flicking up to his as he leaned against the tree. "Michael noticed. You should really curb that unless you want more problems on top of the ones you already have."

He rolled his eyes. "She's teaching us something, isn't she? Am I not meant to be watching her?"

Padma huffed. "You know exactly what I mean, but you're too stubborn to admit it."

"You think that you already know so much about me, but you don't." he shot back, folding his arms across his chest. Granger was anxious, nibbling her bottom lip as she often did as she discussed the lesson with Corner.

"Well," she easily sang, "I know that you two are hitting it off, and you're probably on your way to a nice friendship if you can manage not to hex each other in the process."

He arched an eyebrow. "I had no idea."

"Playing coy isn't a good look for you. I saw Granger leave your cabin last week, and it was terribly late. The pair of you looked pretty cosy on the porch."

Draco's eyes widened a fraction before narrowing and he glared down at her. "And did you tell anyone else that?"

She shook her head. "Of course not. She may not have noticed it, but there was a stupid grin on your face."

"I don't grin."

She scoffed. "Keep telling yourself that, but I saw you."

"Expecto Patronum," came the near silent incantation as she whipped her wand through the motion. A translucent otter burst from the tip of her wand, wisps of what looked like smoke following it as it darted around the children. It wiggled as Granger laughed, but the patronus didn't hold his attention for long before he looked back to her.

She was ecstatic to see her Patronus, wearing an expression as if she was surprised to see it. She hadn't expected to be able to cast it. It was like a load of bricks hitting him, and he was curious. Did her breakup with Weasley affect her so? Maybe it was lingering effects of the war?

Padma jabbed him in the ribs with her elbow, a triumphant smile curving her lips. "You're really noticeable."

He brushed her off, shaking his head.

Henry piped up from the front of the crowd, clutching his wand tightly as he watched Granger with bright eyes. "Only Harry Potter could cast a Patronus so young, I heard."

Malfoy snorted. Of course, it was always Saint Potter, wasn't it? Chosen One and all of that rot.

It didn't go amiss by Granger, who glared at him. She turned back to the small crowd in front of her, watching with a muted expression as her otter disappeared. "That doesn't mean you shouldn't try." she said.

So they tried, all of them but Draco who kept his spot against the tree. Corner's was successful, but he didn't care to see the shape it took. Padma's darted around his feet, a miniature cat that attempted to paw his legs, and latch onto him.

He gave her a sharp look, the corners of his lips twitching as she sniggered.

On the way back to the camp for dinner, Adelaide and Henry stuck to his side. Henry bumped his shoulder against Draco's side as he peered up questioningly. "What is it?" Draco asked.

"What's your Patronus?" Henry asked.

Draco froze in place, not noticing how Granger brushed passed him having heard the question. "I can't cast a Patronus." he murmured quietly.

Hermione jumped out of the bed at a roar that echoed throughout the middle of the night. Her wand was gripped tightly in her hand as she looked around the room. Her shoulders relaxed, only a bit, as she saw her fail safes were still in place. Her mind jumped to the worst possible circumstance, her free hand flying to the charm around her neck.

She huffed. It wasn't fair to assume Malfoy would do anything wrong, not when he had been pleasant as of late. Not to mention it wasn't burning, and it was charmed to scald her if she were asleep.

She slid on her trainers, opening her door quietly as she padded down the steps. All of the cabins seemed to be undisturbed, and there was no waiting chaos just outside her front door. She supposed she probably could have gone back to sleep, but naturally curious and not willing to leave things to chance, Hermione looked around.

It was well after midnight. While her mind had decidedly jumped to a nightmare scenario, the wards had not been compromised. It was more likely that a child had snuck out after the forced curfew, but then again, a small child could not have made that sound either.

Hermione crept along the forest's edge, taking silent steps into the thick of it while she avoided the leaves and branches on the ground. Her eyes widened as she came to the clearing they'd visited earlier.

Malfoy was standing in the middle, his shoulders tense and the muscles of his back visibly taut through the thin material of his jumper. "This is a fucking waste of time. I can't cast this," he growled under his breath.

Her head snapped up at the other voice just as she'd started to move away.

"Are you usually this impatient? It's an advanced charm, Draco. You need to open your mind, and stop expecting to be able to cast a corporeal Patronus on the sixth try." Padma rolled her eyes. "Try again," she motioned to continue as he glared.

"Has it only been six attempts?" he asked, running fingers through his hair.

She nodded. "I counted. I thought you might be a prat about it."

Hermione's mouth dried. He had told her that Padma wanted to be friends, but she'd falsely assumed that it wasn't anything like the playfulness she shared with Ron and Harry. But Padma was completely comfortable teasing the Slytherin.

He couldn't cast a Patronus. Hermione had thought it might be the case. Given his time spent using the Dark Arts, casting the charm would be near impossible.

"I don't have a happy memory," he snapped. "What do you think of? The first time a wizard got his hand up your jumper?"

"I'll pretend you didn't say that." she replied smoothly. "I think of Parvati if you'd really like to know. Our parents owned a villa in Spain, and we spent several summers there."

Malfoy looked like he'd been slapped. "I'm sorry I —"

She waved him off. "Did you say something prattish? I'm sorry, I wasn't paying you any mind." Padma laughed. "I know the charm is difficult, but you shouldn't give up."

He shook his head, grimacing. "This is a waste of time. I can cast any Unforgivable, but this is light magic, Patil."

Hermione's laugh was muffled behind her hand as the dark haired girl reached out and flicked Malfoy right between the eyes. Worried the sudden sound would get her caught — and she'd really rather not have to explain why she was still watching — Hermione retreated to camp.

Once back in her room, with her back pressed flush against the door, she slid to the floor. Her mind was filled with questions, as nosy as she was. But it was all too clear to her now —

This summer was changing things in ways she had only hoped for.

The storm hit in the middle of gathering ingredients for a healing salve. Hannah was at her side, wide eyed as she looked up to the sky that was hidden behind the clouds. "This is bad." Hannah said.

It was an understatement.

The wind ripped around them, pulling Hermione's jumper flush against her as it started to pour. "We need to get back to camp as soon as possible," Hermione yelled over the wind, covering her ears when thunder cracked. "Do you remember the way back? I can't bloody see anything."

Hannah shook her head, holding a branch back from the tree ahead of them so they could slip past it. "I have no idea. Should we take cover? Michael and Malfoy will come looking for us, won't they?" Her lower lip trembled as she uttered Malfoy's name.

Hermione shook her head. "I'm sure they will, but they need to stay with the kids. Not to mention I don't trust Michael to get along with Malfoy for long. If Leanne starts another row, he's not going to stop them."

The blonde woman blinked, looking down at her feet in shame. "I haven't stopped her either. I'm sorry."

"Now isn't the time for apologies. It's fine; Malfoy doesn't want any of us to be a buffer between the two of them," because he thinks he deserves it, doesn't he, Hermione kept her thoughts to herself, pressing on through the forest. The earth was mush below her feet, and her trainers were quickly being weighed down mud. "Anyway, if you really feel sorry, you can discuss it with her when we get back."

It happened as Hermione blinked, and Hannah threw herself backward, sending them both rolling across the ground. "Fuck, fuck, fuck!" Hannah shrieked. For a moment, the Gryffindor was silent, and despite the turn of events she was still certain that Hannah had never cursed as she just has.

Propping herself up on her elbows, Hermione stared in abject horror. Lighting had split through the night sky, severing a large tree before them, and it was slowly tilting. "We have to go move." Hermione gasped. She sprung to her feet, whimpering at the hot pain at her ankle as she hauled Hannah out of danger.

"I could have died," Hannah wheezed, her hand flying to her throat as she stared at Hermione. "Your ankle…"

She shook her head. "Not important right now. We need to get out of here before something worse happens."

In the back of her head, she knew that she was in for a proper scolding by the time they did make it back to camp. Malfoy had said that it was going to rain, and she had bloody ignored him after performing a weather charm.

For her pride, it would have been accurate, but this was a storm fueled by magic. Her working theory was that residual dark magic on the grounds of Hogwarts, which wasn't very far away at all, had caused the storm system. She'd never seen a magical storm in all of her years since learning she was a witch, but if there was anything she didn't want to find out, it was how dangerous a magical storm could be when it was within the ley lines that Hogwarts was founded on.

And that was why she told Hannah absolutely nothing.

As Hermione took a step forward, she winced. "I won't be able to walk back." she muttered, ignoring the widening of the other girl's eyes. "Unless...how are you healing spells? I'm fairly certain it's broken."

Hannah shook her head. "I won't be able to heal it."

Hermione nodded, propping herself up against the tree. "Get back to camp, and I'll find shelter for the night. Send someone for me in the morning, yeah? I'll send a Patronus with my location."

"You can't stay out here all night, Hermione. It's freezing."

Another side effect of a magical storm surely. Water dripping from the trees were quickly turning to icicles. "I'll be okay." Hermione replied. "You need to get back while you can. It's probably going to get worse."

Hannah was conflicted, but she slowly settled with a nod before raising her wand and collecting her thoughts. "If it lets up, we'll come back immediately."

"Don't." she ordered.

The young woman left her with an unsteady, "Point me,"

He'd fucking told her that today was not the day to make a trek into the Forbidden Forest. He had fucking argued with her in the kitchens that her weather charm was inaccurate, and she should have bloody well listened to him considering how the night was going now.

Granger and the Hufflepuff had yet to stumble back into camp. With each minute ticking by, he clenched his jaw tighter as whispers sounded around him that they might not make it back. "Everyone, go to bed," Malfoy barked, his gaze lingering on his own charges as they pouted. "Now." he bit out.

Corner stayed at his side, a fierce tick in his jaw and his arms folded across his chest. "We should go after them."

"Granger can handle herself in the storm, so can Abbott. They'll be safe together, and we can't very well leave everyone." Malfoy said. Though he would like nothing more than to tear into the forest and wring Granger's skinny neck. Only because he'd told her not to do this.

Corner was insistent. "Padma could watch over them. One of the cabins is large enough to hold everyone and they're unlikely to — oh, fuck," he sucked in a breath as Abbott tripped at the edge of the tree line. "Hannah!" he hollered, sprinting for her. He picked her up from the ground, sliding an arm around her waist and half carrying her.

Malfoy's eyes narrowed when Granger didn't follow. "Where is she?" he asked.

Her face was streaked with rain, or tears, he wasn't all that sure, but it didn't bode well for his question. "She broke her ankle pulling me out of the way from a falling tree. Hermione said she couldn't walk back to camp."

His nostrils flared. "So you just left her?" Malfoy snapped. "Are you serious? What about loyalty and all of that rot?" He was towering over her, displaying more emotion than he had the entire summer, and the girl shriveled beneath his glare.

"Back off, Malfoy," Corner warned. "I'm sure there's a reason. Isn't there?"

Hannah's breathing was shaky at best. "She told me to come back. Hermione said that we needed to take cover for the night, and that she'd send a Patronus with her location in the morning."

The morning.

The morning?

Fucking Gryffindors.

"I'm going after her," Malfoy said smoothly, his voice strained. "If you're smart, you won't let anyone outside tonight. It's no normal storm."

"Wait!" Hannah shouted, latching onto his sleeve. "It's too dangerous. You can't go into that. Trees are falling left and right —" her voice died in her throat.

"So we should leave Granger in the thick of it? She saves your life from the very thing you're warning me against, and you believe her when she says to leave her? Fuck you." he sneered.

"Malfoy," Corner started. "If it's a magical system, Hannah is right. You might not find Hermione, much less make it back out of the forest."

Draco glared, wrenching his arm free of Abbott's grip. "She would never leave any of us out there. Does she not deserve the same courtesy?"

He turned away from them without pausing to listen to their bumbling replies, or their weak defenses of how they weren't terrible, it was just so dangerous. Malfoy thought it was a bunch of rubbish, and that if these were the people Granger believed she could count on, maybe she should re-evaluate that decision.

Which he would tell her as much, after he yelled at her until his voice was hoarse.

The Forbidden Forest was suspended in darkness, creatures fleeing across it as they worked to take cover. His clothes were drenched, sticking to his skin, and he could have cursed himself for not casting a warming charm. The biting cold wasn't the worst part. He was more worried about trees breaking from lightning, or the ice that was forming along the branches.

"Granger!" he yelled. And so it went, making his way farther into the forest while he called her surname, absently wondering if he was anywhere close to where she was.

"Malfoy?" came a croak.

He whirled around to see her, her head sticking out from a hollowed out tree and all the colour had drained from her face. His shoulders slumped as he grabbed her hand, tugging her under his arm. "We won't be able to make it back, but there's a chance that tree is going to be blown to bits if you stay in it." he growled.

She tripped, hissing and clutching his shirt. She shook her head. "I can't walk. Didn't Hannah tell you? Oh, Gods, why are you even out here? Do you have any idea how dangerous it is? You were right. It's a magical —"

"— I know, Granger." Without an explanation, he slid an arm around her back, slipping the other behind her knees. "There's a hut back here somewhere. I'm sure we can manage a fire if we try."

She whimpered as he carried her, hurrying through the trees. "You shouldn't be out here."

He smirked down at her. "I wouldn't be if you had listened to me. Tell me, do you normally have to learn everything the hard way?"

Granger's nose crinkled and she sighed. "Yes. It's what my mum always told me."

Malfoy kicked the door open to the hut that he sincerely hope would not fall apart on top of them throughout the course of the night. He set Granger on the couch before sealing the door, and layering wards over the hutt. "We're stuck here, but with any luck, the wards will prevent it from caving in on us."

She was shivering on the couch, soaked to the bone, and her clothes sticking to her. "I should have listened to you."

He nodded, but didn't bother to rub it in. "I know you're not going to like this, but you need to strip."

"Absolutely not." she mumbled, closing in on herself.

He rolled his eyes. "I don't give a fuck about your modesty. You'll freeze if you don't." Draco crouched in front of the fire, surveying what they had, and breathing in relief when he saw bundles of wood in the corner. "Take your clothes off, or I'll do it for you, Granger."

Her eyes widened in fear. "That's —" she spluttered.

"—Exactly what I'll do if you don't listen to me. You can make me invoke an oath if you want the promise that I won't speak of it if you like." Using his wand, he got the fire going, the embers crackling as he stood.

Granger was standing behind them, making her way closer to the fire. "I'm keeping my knickers on."

"You'll hear no complaints from me, It's just in my best interest for you to not freeze to death." Draco replied, pulling his shirt over his head. He noticed her lingering stare, the colour rushing to her cheeks, and normally he might have teased her for it, but if he did...she'd never get out of her clothes.

Granger was painfully shy as she peeled her jumper off, kneeling and laying it in front of the fire. She unsnapped her jeans after kicking her trainers off, and setting her socks beside his. After sliding her jeans down her legs, she laid them flat in front of the fire. "Oh, Merlin, I think I'm even colder now."

He moved the couch closer to them, leaning against the back of it after shucking his trousers. "Well, that's the other thing you're not going to like."

She glared at him, recognition clear in her features. "No."

He shrugged. "It's all your fault I'm in the middle of the goddamned storm from hell. The least you could do is help me not freeze to death. Keep in mind that I don't want to cuddle you either."

She rolled her eyes. "Oh, I know. You'd much rather cuddle Padma." Still, Granger shuffled toward him, leaning her shoulder against his as she brought her knees to her chest.

He didn't stare at her breasts, he swore. "What are you on about? Padma is a friend, nothing more." Malfoy chuckled. Hoping she wouldn't offer him a reenactment of third year, he slid an arm around her shoulders and tugged her into him.

She stilled, and hung her head. "I just thought there was something there."

"She's a pain in the arse, and I would never date her, but she's a…" he grimaced as if the words pained him to say "friend."

Granger nodded. "That's great."

He didn't say anything. He wasn't interested in the mindless chatter she seemed to bring.

"You're quite warm." she muttered, turning into him a bit more. Her cheek rested against his shoulder, and her breath fanned across his collarbone. "And absurdly pale."

"Fuck off." he sniggered, his laugh echoing throughout the cabin. "Unless we want them to discover us mostly naked in the morning, we should probably set up locking charms."

She looked horrified at the thought. "It would be rather awkward." Granger agreed, and she casted the necessary charms.

In a move that was sure to only invite more conversation, he muttered, "Padma would hound me about it without a doubt."

Granger didn't say anything to that bit. Several minutes passed, all of them with him being all too aware of the feel of smooth skin against his. And then she asked, "Why did you come after me? Surely you realised how dangerous the storm was."

He gritted his teeth. He'd expected this, her curiosity and questions and the fact that she was going to think he liked her. Malfoy stared at the ceiling, his fingers tapping an uneven rhythm against her shoulder. "I'm forewarning you not to read into this like you're sure to do as I'm not going to answer questions of whether we're friends, ot not."

She snorted. "I don't expect you to think of me as your friend."

He didn't miss the subtle deflection or the brief way her shoulders tensed. "I was worried." Malfoy said simply. "Abbott and Corner were willing to let you stay out here all night, but you wouldn't have let any of us do that."

"Oh," she murmured quietly.

"I suspect that even if it was me, you would have charged off into the forest regardless. It's ridiculous not to extend the same courtesy."

Her head dropped to his shoulder, her body relaxing in front of the fire. "You were worried," Granger mumbled under her breath, more to herself than to him. "You have a habit of getting me out of tricky situations."

"You'd already cast a cushioning charm when you were going to fall into the lake. It would have been fine."

She nodded. "I suppose, but you didn't have to come back to catch me, and you certainly didn't have to brave the worst storm in the last century to make sure I was okay."

He wasn't sure if she heard him over the crackling fire when he replied, "It was the right thing to do."

But she did lean into him a bit more, so he would hazard the guess that she had heard it after all.

There will be a warning at the top of the next chapter, but while I was looking over my outline today, I realized that there is a scene that I did not provide a warning for at the very beginning. I am grossly apologetic for this considering it is my job as the writer to be sure you know what you're walking into. In the next chapter, the very last scene deals with Draco, and self-harm, and I want readers to be aware. I'll add the notes, and it will also be a scene you can skip if it is too traumatic. (It's a bit traumatic for me to write. It's the only trigger I have.)

That wraps up this chapter. Please review and fingers crossed I will see you by next Tuesday again. :)