Hermione must've torn the castle apart looking for Ron. For someone who was supposed to be the brightest witch of her age, it didn't occur to her to look in the Gryffindor Common Room. Perhaps she had known deep down that that's where he'd be. She just didn't want to face him. What could she possibly have to say to him? That she regretted dating Malfoy? Not one bit. That none of what she had told him was true? None of it was a lie. Ron had gotten a harsh slap in the face by reality and that, yes, was what Hermione was sorry for. That he had an enormous tree fall on him instead of just a leaf or a twig.

"Where's Ron?" Hermione asked once she approached Ginny and Harry. Surprisingly the Common Room was empty. She wouldn't be surprised if Ginny had had something to do with clearing it out.

"He left." Harry said.

"We tried to get him to stay but…" Ginny sighed. "Well, you know my brother."

Hermione frowned and nodded. "Yes, I know your brother. Ginny," she began to horribly pick at her fingers. "Do you mind if I talk to Harry alone?"

"Not at all,"

Ginny left them. It was quiet in the room and Hermione honestly had no idea where to start as she sat down across from him. At least he wasn't raging.

"I hope you're not mad at Ginny for not telling you."

"Why would I be?" Harry asked. "It wasn't her secret to tell. You should've told me."

"I know." Hermione quickly agreed. "But can you at least see why I didn't?"

Harry didn't look at her. He did nod, though.

"And I was going to tell you. Ron too. It's just… It's Malfoy, Harry. Draco Malfoy. What we have is…is strange and unconceivable and-"

"World-shattering?" Harry offered. "Because your…whatever it is you have with him is that, Hermione. I know that you're a grown woman and you can do what you want, but he was a Deatheater. Charges against him dropped or not, that's what people are going to see him as. He could ruin you."

"Or I could make him better." Hermione countered. "My reputation is just as strong as his. It can go both ways, Harry."

"That's not what this is, is it?" Harry questioned suddenly. "You're not with him out of pity are you?"

Hermione gasped. "How could you even think that?"

"Because it's like you said. It's Draco Malfoy. You couldn't have just woken up one day and decided to pursue a relationship with him."

"Well, of course not. No one wakes up one day and decides to make someone their lover."

Harry cringed.

"But I do care about him." She continued. "About what he's been going through, his feelings, and all of the negative backlash since the war. It…hurts me to see him down on himself, and maybe yes, I do take pride in helping him rise from that, but it's not all. I know it's not because I fell for him before I even really knew him. Everything else after that was just…the toppings, I suppose, for lack of a better term."

Harry was astounded by her words. She sounded so genuine. So sure. So much like…how she used to talk about Ron.

He looked away. "Hermione-"

"I'm not marrying him, Harry."

He snapped his eyes to her. "Merlin, he didn't ask-?"

"No. I'm only saying that we've only been a thing for a short while. Can we just take this one day at a time? Please?"

"You mean me."

"Sorry?" Hermione furrowed her brow.

"You mean can I take this one day at a time." Harry clarified. "Because we both know that you don't think in days. You plan for weeks, months, years ahead. It's one of the defining traits about you." He added with a chuckle. "You wouldn't be with him if you didn't see anything there."

"I hope you keep that in mind." She told him. "Maybe then you'll trust my judgment about him."

Draco wasn't the consoling type. It wasn't that he didn't like doing it (although no one could persuade him into thinking that it was a pleasant experience), but it was just that he wasn't sure how to do it, or if he was doing it right. Granger hadn't taken Weasley's dismissal of her very well and she moped constantly. Yes, of course she told him that she was okay and that she was fine, but he hadn't stayed alive during the war by being so oblivious. Nor stupid. It had hurt her. Deeply. And although he was supposed to be her pillar of strength at the moment, he couldn't help but feel weak.

Was it natural to feel such pain when your friend was mad at you? Draco felt that the answer should be no, and his mind went wild at the thought. Could it be possible that Granger felt so strongly about this because she cared more for the git than she had originally told him? Or maybe she just hadn't realized that her feelings for him had not, indeed, fizzled out. Maybe she realized that she still loved him…

"You're grinding your teeth, Malfoy."

Draco immediately stopped the action he hadn't noticed he'd been engaged in and then frowned. His mouth hurt. And on cue he felt Hermione's lips kiss his under his jaw –soft, sweet lips dulling away the ache. He closed his eyes and let her snuggle even closer to him.

They were in his bedroom.

It was a cold day in hell –several, as a matter of fact, seeing as she'd been spending occasional nights there ever since their thing had gotten leaked in the library. It was better than sneaking around in the Room of Requirement like they were ashamed. Although they did think it best for her to come and go when the other Slytherins were sure to be asleep. Why walk into a warzone when there was no need?

"First you nearly break your jaw, now you're squeezing the life out of me." Hermione said as she looked up at Draco. "What's wrong?"

Draco swallowed as he loosened his hold on her. "Nothing."

"So much for the theories that Malfoys are good liars."

He couldn't help his smirk. "We are. It's just somehow I can't lie to you."

"So why try?" She asked sadly.

Why try indeed…

Draco took a deep breath and stared into her eyes. She was worried. He didn't just see it. He could feel the tension in her body and the way that she clung to him. He regretted his words before he even could say them.

"Do you still love Weasley?"

Hermione bolted upright. The look on her face was a mixture of an infinite amount of emotions. The sadness was still there. But now there was anger. Perhaps she also felt appalled? In sum, she was not pleased and Draco wished he had his hands on a Time-Turner.

"How on earth could you ask me something like that?" Hermione demanded. Draco sat up just the same and used his wand to light the room. Big mistake considering now he could see how furious she really was. "Answer me."

"I'm sorry." Draco apologized. "I shouldn't have said anything. I-"

"Well, it's a bit late for that isn't it?" She scowled viciously. "How could you honestly ask me that? Back in January I told you what I felt for Ron and I meant it."

"I know that you did, I really do. But you haven't seen yourself these last few days. The way you've been moping around, hardly eating, hardly doing…anything. All because your friend is upset with you?"

"Yes, because my friend is upset with me. My friend. Don't go making wild assumptions about me just because you don't understand what a true friendship is like."

Those words were very much like a slap in the face to Draco. Hermione felt it. That was the second time in a week she'd something out of line and already she could see his resolve crumbling even more than it already had.

"Oh Merlin…" Hermione said as she reached out to touch him. He flinched. "I didn't mean that. I shouldn't have said-"

"It's a bit late for that isn't it?" Draco sneered at her. Hermione shrunk back. It had been a long time since anything resembling something so sinister had been directed at her. She almost felt afraid.

Almost.

Instead she ignored any flinching of his and pulled him into a hug. She held him tight, one arm around his back and the other around his neck to lock him in place. She held him for Merlin only knew how long until Draco's arms had wrapped around her. She sighed a breath of relief when he did and then spoke in his ear.

"I'm very close to my friends, Malfoy. My actions may seem a bit outlandish to you, but think about it. Think about Zabini, and I'm sure you have other friends too. How would you feel if any one of them were mad at you?"

Draco couldn't think about any of his other friends. The only person he could think about was Blaise, and he didn't get mad. The man was too happy-go-lucky to be mad at anyone. So to think of him like that, upset with him, it didn't sit too well with his conscience. It even made his chest hurt.

Draco pulled away from Hermione slowly so that he could catch her gaze as he conceded. "You're right, and I'm sorry. Again,"

"I'm sorry too. But you listen to me good, Draco Malfoy," Hermione said sternly. "If you ever accuse me of loving Ron or anyone else again, you'll find yourself getting fed to the giant squid in the lake."

Draco laughed as he kissed her forehead. "Yes, Miss Granger." He kissed her nose, "I will never," he kissed her cheek, "Ever," he kissed along her throat, his tongue trailing as he went, "Accuse you," he gently lay her down, "Of loving Weasley or anyone else."

Draco was on top of her now, and Hermione automatically closed her eyes as she felt him nestle himself between her. How convenient it was, really, that they both wore so little to bed these days. He bent his head low to capture her lips, kissing her once before he said, "I promise."

There it went.

Promise.

Another word to add to Hermione's pleasure vocabulary. Of course it would be the latter end of the word to appease the brunette as its tail-end slipped past his lips and onto hers.

And she had to admit, she never thought that the hiss of a Slytherin would taste so good.

Author's note: At least Harry's not jumping down Hermione's throat about Draco, so there's that :). And, of course, there's nothing like a few encouraging words and a threat to be fed to a giant squid to get yourself back on track.

Also, a HUGE thanks to everyone who's been reading my story. It went past 200 follows since the last chapter and it couldn't have been done without you :D

Until next time!

-WP