Draco was thinking too much. Did he overreact? Was he right? Should he have stayed? Would they have had a bigger fight if he had?

A migraine was brewing and he was certain that his glass of firewhiskey wasn't helping. As he let his gaze linger on the swirling liquid in his hand, he had a passing thought that maybe he was an alcoholic. No, no he wasn't. He didn't drink that much, honestly. But it was without question that he needed to find another outlet for when he was upset.

"I thought I'd find you here."

Draco looked up from his drink and promptly scoffed. "You were looking for me?"

"Unfortunately," Harry replied as he sat down next to him at the Leaky Cauldron's bar. "According to Hermione you just took off after you fought. She was upset."

"Oh," he frowned. He stared at his glass guiltily as he asked, "Did she tell you what happened?"

"She did. And you know, she only did it because she cares about you. Merlin knows why."

"Thanks, Potter." Draco sneered.

"She didn't do anything wrong." Harry continued. "You do know that, don't you?"

Draco slowly nodded. "I do. And I appreciate it, yes, but unlike what she wants me to believe, I didn't get into the Auror Training Program on my own."

"But your scores-"

"Should have," the blond finished. "But they didn't. They were just the reason that the Auror Head couldn't turn me away. Admit it, Potter." Draco egged him on. "If it wasn't for Granger, I wouldn't have gotten into the program at all."

That was the last thing that Harry wanted to admit to. But, sadly, he was right. Harry knew Quintin. He knew him well. His biases would have let that application gather dust, dirt, and grime at the bottom of a trash bin.

Draco took Harry's silence as admission and finished his firewhiskey. "I'm not mad at Hermione, just…the situation, I suppose. I just wish that I had gotten in on my own merit. Not because of hers or because she bested an arse like Warren."

"I guess I can understand that. Although, there's nothing wrong with getting a bit of help. I should know that better than anyone." Harry added with a chuckle. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but…go to her. She's a wreck."

"Is she home?"

"Yes,"

"Alright,"

Neither man moved though. Draco didn't know why Potter hadn't, but he knew why he hadn't, and figured he'd get this over with.

"Potter, I've always meant to ask… That first day in training? Why did you choose me to duel Travers?"

"Oh, that?" Harry laughed. "He was an arse. Cocky, no sort of self-discipline whatsoever. He actually reminded me of you back at Hogwarts."

Draco flinched. "Merlin. That was the worst insult you could've ever given me."

Harry shrugged. "Regardless, he needed to be knocked down a peg or two. I figured that you could do it, and you did."

Draco fought the tug on his lips upwards. Instead he narrowed his eyes some as he said, "You're not going to hug me, are you?"

"Not even if Hermione was watching, Malfoy."

"Good. And thanks…" Draco paused before adding, "Git."

"Prick." Harry replied without missing a beat. He left then and Draco smirked as he turned down a refill on his drink.

Draco had been wise to purchase a Sobering Up Potion at the Leaky Cauldron before heading to Hermione's apartment. After his embarrassing display following his incident with Theo, he had never wanted to be drunk around Hermione ever again. So now he was tumbling gracefully out of her fireplace –not entirely surprised to find her sitting on the sofa and looking like she'd been run over by a threstral-drawn carriage. He felt guilty all over again.

"Hermione, I'm sor-"

"No, wait." Hermione said as she rose to her feet. "Let me just say one thing."

Draco snapped his mouth shut and nodded.

"Okay. First things first, I am not going to apologize for what I did with your application. You don't know Quintin. He's just…ridiculous. He's absolutely prejudiced and should be ashamed of himself. And trust me, I understand where you were coming from back in my office. Technically speaking, I interfered. I did. But if it wasn't for Quintin you would have definitely gotten in on your own. This was just…an obstacle that you had to get across and you didn't even know you had this stumbling block in front of you! I couldn't just sit back and let this happen.

'And for the record I'll always stand up for you if or when something stupid like this happens again. I'll do it because I love you and because I just despise people treating you like-"

"What did you say?" Draco interrupted. Hermione furrowed her brows.

"Well, I said quite a few things. You'll have to be more specific."

"Hermione," he said almost breathlessly as he got closer. "You just said that you love me."

"Oh," Hermione replied, her nervous habit of wringing her hands together kicking in. "I...well, I guess I did."

"You sound surprised." Draco chuckled. Hermione nervously smiled.

"I am a bit, to be honest. I mean, I had wanted to say it for some time now, but no time ever seemed to be right, and I over-analyzed it terribly, not wanting it to sound forced or rushed but rather naturally –and of course it would slip out when I was explaining myself to you and-"

"You're rambling." Draco said, a smile wide on his face as he put his hands on her waist.

"Yes, I know."

"And you love me."

Hermione sighed, a furious blush taking over her skin. "Yes, I do."

"You're rambling like a mad woman and you love me."

"You seem to like those two things about me."

"I love those two things about you." Draco said happily, brushing strands of hair away from her face. "I love everything about you."

Hermione smiled, leaning into his touch as his fingers gazed her cheek. "I really do love you, Draco."

Draco let out a ecstatic sigh –one that perhaps he didn't even know he was holding. "Yeah? How much?"

"Hey, I never asked you how much when you said it to me."

"You can ask me the same after."

Hermione laughed. She placed her hands on the sides of his face and kissed his lips once, taking a moment to look into his eyes –grey, shining, and vibrant. They were wonderful to look into.

"I'm pretty sure that I'll love you for the rest of my life."

Draco's heart could have very well stopped at that moment. In fact, he was certain that it had.

"Do you promise?" He asked almost in a whisper. Hermione nodded, kissing him again for good measure.

"Yes," she replied, her "S" leaving its impression on his lips. "Do you? Do you promise?"

"Yes," Draco answered her, capturing her lips in yet another kiss.

A deeper one.

A longer one.

One filled with the very promise that they'd both made.

Author's note: She said it! She said it! She finally said it! And bromance moments for Harry and Draco. I'd say this chapter was a win-win, yes?

Also, hugs, claps, and trophies for you for pushing this story past 400 reviews! Thanks!

-WP