(a/n) I'm so sorry this was on hold for so long! But.. It's baaaaack (: So, you probably don't remember this story, so you might wanna brush up a bit.. But I hope you enjoy is just the same. Review so I know that there are still people reading after this year of quiet (: ENJOY!!

Trades and Sightings

"Are you sure that's that choice you want to make?" Draco asked, a smirk tugging at his mouth. He was walking over toward the desk set beneath a window close by. "Because I'm not kidding about telling McGonagall…." He was now leaning over the desk, sifting through rolls of parchment trying to find a clean one.

"You're bluffing…you wouldn't do it." Hermione put her hands on her hips and rolled her eyes. "You wouldn't do it, would you?" She added with a bit of hysteria. "You wouldn't do it, right? Right, Malfoy?" She marched over to the desk, afraid of what she may find because Draco was now scribbling frantically on the parchment. Hermione leaned over to see what he had written just as he pulled the quill away from the paper.

Professor McGonagall-

I'm sorry to disturb you, but I thought you should of some unlawful activities I came across this evening. It appears that the new Transfiguration professor, Andrew Havlock, has a slight interest in none other than the Head Girl, Hermione Granger. I happen to know this detail because, well, to be blunt, I found the two alone in the Heads' common room (they were horizontal on the couch). I'm sorry this news is so shocking, but I figured you would need to hear about it sooner rather than later.

Take Care,

Draco Malfoy, Head Boy

Hermione gasped and grabbed at the parchment; however, Draco was too quick and snatched it away just before her delicate fingers could get a grasp.

"Uh, uh, uh," he teased, shaking his pointer finger in front of the Head Girl's face. "Not until you agree to help me." He smirked and began rolling the parchment into a size suitable for owl delivery. "But, I mean, if you don't want to help…" the Slytherin began walking toward the portrait hole- the first step toward the owlery.

"I hate you, ferret. I really hate you," Hermione said in defeat; she had no other choice but to agree. "Give me the letter, please, give me the letter back." She stuck her hand out and began moving toward the Head Boy.

"And how do I know you won't just take the letter and run, huh? I believe I need some… collateral." The blonde smirked once again and he too moved closer to the girl.

Hermione froze mid-step, slightly thrown off by the blonde. "What kind of collateral?," she scrunched her face as she asked the question.

"I'm not sure yet… give me a night to sleep on it."

Hermione's voice rose every so slightly, "and I'm supposed to trust you to sleep on it. I'm supposed to trust you to not run and send that letter the second I leave the room?" She then scoffed and took a step toward the boy and the letter he was holding that was causing so much trouble.

"Yes, you are," he answered plainly, unfazed by the brunette's frenzy.

"No, I won't. I'll give you an hour, two hours tops, to decide." Draco raised his eyebrows out of curiosity. "And during that time, we will both remain in this room. Neither of us is getting out of this easy, ferret. You may have the letter, you may be able to get me expelled, but I am the one who can help you with Lillyana." She then stood up a little straighter and spoke with a little more confidence. "Yeah, yeah, Malfoy, you wouldn't send that letter. You couldn't send that letter, because I won't be able to help you if I'm expelled now, could I?" She let a smirk of her own creep onto her silky features. "So what are you going to do now?"

"I am going to sit here for a couple minutes and decide what collateral I want, because, mudblood, you may think you have the upper hand, but you don't. You get expelled, Havlock gets fired, my life is easier. No more pesky know-it-all princess, no more transfiguration. I could deal with Ana alone. It might take time, but I could if necessary. However, I am willing to accept help because Blaise is my best friend," his speech was smooth, calm, and collected. "So, Granger, what do you say to that? I get collateral, you get the letter, you help me, lover boy stays. Doesn't that sound good? Everyone happy all at once." His face looked devious, as if he had ulterior motives, yet he hid it well behind the infamous Malfoy smirk.

She thought carefully before she spoke; she took her time trying to collect her thoughts before saying, "to that I say: think fast. My boyfriend is expecting me for dinner in twenty minutes…"

Draco watched as the Gryffindor sauntered toward the couch and plopped down. She looked so sure of herself, so cocky, that he was surprised.

"Boyfriend…. You mean Weasel? Ha, he probably won't even notice you're gone if that Brown girl is there." Draco rolled his eyes as he walked over to the armchair next to the fireplace.

Hermione turned her hand and began looking at her fingernails as if he hadn't said anything at all. "Tick, tock," she said in a bored tone.

Draco was very shocked when the girl gave no reaction to the boyfriend talk. And then, after that response (or lack-there-of) she bothered to 'tick' at him. Draco thought about it for a second and then immediately a light bulb went off in his mind: he knew exactly what he wanted as collateral.

He stood from the chair and walked over to the fireplace, stroked the wooden mantel with his hand. "I know what I want for our trade." He grinned at the petite girl as he turned back toward the couch where she was seated. "And I'm pretty sure you aren't going to like it."

Hermione sat up straight in her chair, afraid of what her enemy might say next. After waiting half a minute Hermione grew impatient. "What? What do you want for the trade?" Annoyance seeped out of her mouth with every word.

"I'd like you to give me your panties." He said the words very casually, as if he were asking for a tissue or class notes. Hermione's jaw dropped and her eyes grew wide. "I mean, if you still want the trade…" Draco's smirk was so intense now that, if Hermione hadn't know him, she may have mistook is for a genuine smile.

"My panties? You want my panties? WHY?" The words came out of pure confusion- she was too confused to even be mad.

Draco chuckled and shook his head. "Geeze, I thought you were supposed to be smart or something…" Hermione narrowed her eyes but kept her mouth shut in hopes of an explanation. "I want your panties so that, if need be, I can use them as blackmail. I have your panties, Weasel's seen your panties, well, presumably. You don't help me, and Oops! They might just fall out of my pocket in front of him." Draco's smirk wavered every so slightly, but it happened so quickly that Hermione didn't catch it.

"So you want me to give you my panties? And if I don't help you, you'll show them to Ronald? But if I do help you, you'll give them back?" Hermione processed through the information, trying to take in what she would need to do to keep McGonagall from knowing what she had done.

"Exactly."

"And I know you'll give them back because…?"

"Because I'll be… grateful… for your help. And trust me, that's not easy for me to admit."

"Oh, I believe that one…"

Draco stood silently as the girl contemplated what she should do. After several minutes, Hermione stood from her spot on the couch and slowly moved towards Draco. "I'll be back in one minute." She moved quickly toward the bathroom that was connected to the common room. Less than a minute later she returned with a little bundle of black fabric in her hand.

"Here," she said as she shoved the underwear towards the Slytherin.

Draco took them in his hand and, without looking at them, put them in the pocket of his school robes. "Black panties, Granger? I wouldn't have expected it from you." He then handed her the letter and left the room before she could say anything else.

------

Hermione sat at the Gryffindor table next to Harry with Ron sitting across from her. She stared down at her empty plate, trying very hard to ignore Ron's eyes, Draco's eyes, and Professor Havlock's eyes. She sat in silence as long as she could until it would become clear, even to Ron and Harry, that she was avoiding conversation.

"Where have you been all day, baby?" Ron asked his girlfriend, forcing her to bring her to face him. He looked at her lovingly, as if he expected the answer to be the library.

"Oh, just… around. I've been around." Hermione blushed at what she said. To Ron, it was completely innocent, completely normal. To Hermione, it was the awful truth: she had been around.Around with another guy.

"I've missed you," he winked at her.

Just then Hermione tried to steal a glance at Draco only to find that he was watching her. As their eyes met he smirked and turned his head toward the Transfiguration professor. Hermione followed his gaze only to have her eyes met by Andrew's.

He smiled at her, almost apologetically, before removing his gaze.

Hermione looked back to Draco with a scowl on her face, but he was no longer looking at her. He was now looking straight ahead with a blank look on his face. Then Hermione saw Pansy Parkinson next to him, and she saw exactly where that pug-face's hand was. She crumpled her face in disgust and turned back to her two best friends.

"-trying to do it for ages, and I just today figured it out!" Ron was saying through bites of his food.

"Figured what out, Ron?" Hermione asked, slightly humiliated to show she hadn't been paying attention.

"Oh, just some move on my broom. It's kind of Quidditch stuff, I don't think you'd understand." He then proceeded to shovel three more forks-full of food into his mouth before returning to his conversation with Harry.

Hermione quietly excused herself and stood from the bench. As she headed toward the door she saw someone move out of her peripheral vision- Andrew Havlock.

She sped up slightly, trying her hardest to avoid this confrontation, but the meeting was inevitable; just outside the doors he caught up to her.

"Hermione, about last night…" he started as he closed in on her. "I'm so sorry. It was my fault. I shouldn't have let it happen. I should've known better. I should've stopped…" He looked genuine, but yet something about his apology irked the girl.

"It wasn't just your fault. I… I was really the one to blame. I- we- Malfoy-" She stopped for a second and took a deep breath to help unjumble her thoughts. "This can't happen again." She stepped away from him but, before she could finish the step, her heel hit the wall.

"Hermione, it was an honest mistake," he cooed, tried to calm her down.

"Yes, and we need to learn from our mistakes!" Hermione added very quickly.

"You're right," he said as he closed the distance between them. "We need to learn how to stay a secret." And with that, his pressed his lips into hers.

She didn't respond at first, but willpower can only get a person so far. She kissed him back, slowly and timidly, but back none the less.

And just as she broke off the kiss she opened her eyes to see none other than Draco Malfoy standing in the doorway watching them.