No Strings Attached

Hermione Granger and Draco Malfoy Together - Weasley Jealous?

Has The Golden Trio Broken Up For Good?

Harry Potter Has No Comment for Granger's Relationship with Malfoy

Hermione Granger and Draco Malfoy Seen Together Once Again

Granger and Malfoy Getting Serious

The headlines over the next month seemed to revolve around the surprising new 'relationship' between Hermione and Draco. If they only knew. . . .

They actually had become very comfortable with each other during the past month, spending everyday together and whatnot. They didn't even have a problem now with showing displays of affection when the papparazzi thought they'd caught them in a 'personal moment'. They'd created a tradition of some sort - going out every Teusday, eating take-out on Sundays, and they ate Hermione's mediocre cooking the rest of the time, but Malfoy was convinced it was 'splendid'.

They also enjoyed categorizing themselves on their nights out. For example, whether they were going to be the 'sickly sweet, head-over-heels couple', the 'sexy "under-cover agent" couple', the 'awkward teenage couple', et cetra. It was actually rather fun, and the paparazzi and the rest of the public who creepily followed their relationship completely believed it. It was somewhat unnerving, really.

However, Hermione had a couple rules, such as: no tongue, no groping, and no other such things. She didn't want people seeing that, first of all . . . and she also didn't trust Draco any differently.

She had been successful in avoiding Ron and even Harry, but she knew it was only a matter of time. Harry was probably getting tired of giving her space, and a month was a long time for them to not see each other.

It was only a matter of time - with everything.

XXX

Hermione sighed and plopped the Daily Prophet down on the counter. "Well, we've made quite a spectacle of ourselves."

Draco came over with his coffee to inspect the pictures of him and Hermione at dinner the other night, and of Draco kissing her over the table.

"You know, I really like those pants I was wearing," he noted, only half-joking, "The gray brings out the blue in my eyes, don't you think?"

She elbowed him, laughing. "Draco!"

"Sorry - well, to be honest, I don't really care." he said, shrugging as he collapsed onto the couch, almost spilling his hot drink everywhere.

She sighed and turned back to the paper. "Of course you don't," she muttered, "You don't even care that you're being chased down by Merlin-knows-what."

"What was that?"

"Nothing." she said innocently.

"So, what are we doing today?" he asked, shrugging it off.

She turned to him and frowned. "I don't know, actually. I've got work again, but I get off at five. We could have dinner out, if you want."

He groaned. "What am I supposed to do while you're gone?"

She gave him a look. "Finally get a job?"

XXX

"So if you have any openings, that'd be grand." Draco said, tapping his fingers in mindless beat on the counter.

The teenage girl behind the counter nodded, looking extremely bored, and pulled out an application. "Fill it out, and I'll give it to boss. To be honest, I'd be happy to give you my job."

Draco cast a look around the dusty book shop and all the books that weren't put in their proper place and slightly grimaced. "Yeah, I'm sure you are." he muttered, then shoved the application in his pocket and walked outside.

He was about to walk across the street to fill out the application at the cafe across the street when -

"What the fu - "

He was pulled roughly by the arm into the shadowed alley, and had a Silencing charm put on him. He was shoved against the brick wall and one of the two hooded men looming over him pressed his hand to Draco's throat.

"Think you're safe just because your messing around with the Granger girl?" the taller one who was holding his neck hissed, "Don't get too comfortable."

"You can't run forever." the other one snarled.

Draco managed a smile. "Says who?"

"You cocky little - "
Draco took a blow to the stomach then, and went to double over, but the hand was still at his throat. He choked, and the two men snickered.

"Not so tough now, are you?" sneered the taller one.

Then, the other punched him across the jaw, leaving Draco's head hanging. He could taste the blood in his mouth and knew his lip was bleeding.

"We'll be watching, Malfoy."

And they Disapparated, leaving Draco choking for breath, doubled over. When he finally straightened, he spit blood from his mouth, still breathing heavily.

"Fuck."

XXX

Draco decided it was best to apply for the job despite what had happened, so Hermione wouldn't bite his head off. He was rather unnerved by the encounter, but of course he wouldn't let that show. He'd just . . . go on like it never happened - until he had he had to deal with it, which would very likely be the last minute.

He was trying to figure out how to work the big black box when Hermione walked through the door, and she laughed at him. He glanced at her and scowled.

"How the hell do you work this thing?" he exclaimed frustratedly, "I've tried knocking on it and talking to it and everything!"

Hermione put down her purse and took off her coat, a smug, amused expression on her face. "Draco, you should probably wait for me until you try to work Muggle objects," she advised and laughed as she bent down to look at it, "I hope you didn't break it, that's my only one."

"Yes, well. . . ." he muttered distractedly, actually enjoying the view of her backside.

She glanced back at him and rolled her eyes. "Good God, Draco, you're such a man," she sighed, and waved him down next to her. "Look - this is how you turn a television on." she said slowly, grabbing his finger and using it to push the biggest black button that had the words 'ON' above it.

Moving pictures immediately appeared and he stared up at it in joy. Hermione glanced at him, amused.

"You just want to watch TV tonight?" she asked.

"What's TV?" he asked absently, still grinning up at the television.

"Another name for a television." she answered, grinning.

He nodded in a daze. "Yeah."

"Okay," she said, standing, "I'll order the take-out. I think you'll like this one show called 'That 70's Show'. . . ."

XXX

Four hours later, with empty take-out boxes lying on the coffee table in front of them, the two of them were laughing their heads off at some joke the character Fez cracked. Hermione was so caught up in the moment she didn't even notice how close they'd gotten, and when she looked up to see his face, she realized his lips was mere inches from hers. Her smile faded away as she was suddenly overcome with a feeling deeper than just lust, a feeling she'd felt around Draco before. . . . She attempted to shove it away, but she found she couldn't, and she cound't stop staring at him. When he glanced over at her, he did a double-take at her expression. His eyes became darker and her lips parted absentmindedly.

And then they were kissing each other deeply, neither of them knowing where it had come from but neither really caring at that point. Draco ended up on top of Hermione on the couch, and he was starting to unbutton her top when -

"Oh, Merlin's balls!"

They both gasped and scrambled into sitting positions to gape at the person who'd interrupted them. The sound of the audience laughter in That 70's Show echoed in the background.

"Oh, shit." Hermione hissed.

Ron stood there with a hand clamped over his eyes, looking genuinely frightened. Hermione rolled her eyes and buttoned her blouse back up, and glanced at Draco, who looked like he was about to punch Ron in the face. She sighed and stood, grabbing Ron by the elbow and bringing him outside her apartment door.

"What the hell do you want, Ronald?" she hissed, closing the door behind her.

"I - just wanted to talk to you." he said quietly, finally looking at her, and his face fell. "You're still really mad at me, aren't you? You only call me 'Ronald' when you're really mad at me."

No matter how angry Hermione was with Ron, she still - curse her soft soul - had a place in her heart for Ronald Weasley. Despite all that he'd done to her - he was still Ron, and she could never forget that.

She sighed and pressed her lips together, refusing to succumb to him. That's what brought about the first disaster.

"Ron, you could've gave me a little heads up," she said through her teeth, "And you are certainly not permitted to Apparate into my flat uninvited at random times in the night!"

"I'm sorry, I - I just . . . couldn't stop thinking about you."

Hermione had been so caught up in shock that she forgot she was supposed to angry with Ron. Hopefully it seemed she was as happy as him in her 'relationship'.

She glared at him. "Don't even do this, Ron. You have a - girlfriend." she said, about to say something else along the lines of 'whore', but she thought better of it. She'd moved on, hadn't she? It'd been four months . . . wasn't that enough time?

"I know, I just - Hermione, hypothetically, if I wanted you back - well . . . " he trailed off, shrugging. His message was clear.

She looked at him with such a sadness, it almost startled her more than it did Ron. "Ron, you . . . you need to sort out what you want, because you have to understand one thing right now - I'm not waiting here for you. I have someone, but I . . . I still love you. I do," she said, putting a hand to his cheek, "but you broke my heart, and I don't think I could ever be with you again."

Tears welled up in Ron's eyes and he whispered, "I'm sorry, Hermione. I am."

And it was the first time she felt he meant it.

"If you still care for me, Ron, you'll let me be with who I want," she said, "and you'll try to accept him. Just like I'm trying to accept Wendy."

He hesitated, but then nodded. She nodded back and drew him into a hug. When she let go, he gave her one last look and a goodbye before he Disapparated. She sighed and blew her hair out of her face, walking back into her flat. She closed the door and stood there for a moment, becoming happier and happier at what had just happened.

"Okay," she breathed, "that went better than I thought it was going to."

"Are you talking to yourself?" came a chuckle, closely followed by its owner.

Draco walked into the foyer with his hands in his pockets and smirked at her. She swallowed thickly, suddenly becoming breathless.

"Okay, this," she said airily, gesturing hastily between the two of them, "isn't healthy - for our situaiton."

He came closer to her and she backed up against the wall. He cracked a half-smile. "Am I making you nervous, Granger? We've kissed plenty of times."

She could feel her heart beating fast as he dangerously close to her, and she had nowhere else to go.

"Not like this, Draco, and you know it. This just isn't logical, to have this kind of . . . real relationship - it's only for the public, and so your followers won't be so inclined to - "

Draco slid his hands up onto each side of her face and he murmured, "If I kiss you, will you shut up?"

She didn't try to conceal her fast breathing now, and searched his eyes helplessly, before nodding quickly. "Uh-huh."

And he kissed her like she'd never been kissed before, and they stumbled into her bedroom, laughing giddily when one of them would almost trip. He slid his hands underneath her shirt as he backed her up through the bedroom door, and he laid her down on the bed.

"Whoa, whoa, hold on." Hermione breathed, putting a hand on his chest.

He groaned, putting his forehead to hers. "You really need to recognize the moments when you just aren't supposed talk."

She smiled breathlessly and said quietly, "No strings attached with this, yeah?"

He met her gaze and after a moment, he nodded. "No strings attached."

And then, she let him kiss her softly, before they became deeper and more passionate.

Neither of them knew that they felt exactlly what the other was feeling - that weird tugging in their gut, like they had just made a decision that some part of them didn't agree with.