A/N: Hello readers! I'm getting better! It only took me 5 months to update instead of four years! Haha... that was a joke. Not a funny one, though, sorry. I wish you could understand my life and how busy it is. I really do write at every chance I get now. If you're still with this story, bless your soul. This chapter is a little more intense, not quite as funny, but the funny comes back, I swear! I thoroughly hope you enjoy :)

All Characters belong to J.K. still.

**Chapter Eight- Clever Clues Lead to Real Talk**

Hermione awoke the next morning in a rather foul mood. It was a Hogsmeade weekend, and one she wouldn't be able to attend, per punishment for the essay Draco had written. She rolled out of bed and glanced at the time. If she got ready quickly, she might be able to make it to the Great Hall before Ron and Harry (and probably Ginny also) left for the village. If so, she'd try to convince them to stay with her and keep her company. Her detention for that day wasn't until late in the evening and she relished the thought of being bored all day. She rapidly gathered her things for the shower and opened her door just in time to see Pansy crawling out of the portrait hole and into the castle.

Her brow creased in disapproval and she glanced across the way to Draco's door. He was leaning against the frame with dazed eyes and a sated grin. Hermione glared at him, mildly disgusted and she sauntered downstairs to the bathroom.

She let the hot water pour over her skin and thought about what had happened at her parent's house the night before. Her dad and mom had really crossed a line but without even realizing they had done so. She felt so badly for Draco. He was definitely being forced into the situation and he'd had to endure criticism and thoroughly painful memories. She decided that instead of a payback prank to Draco, she needed to do something nice for him, as a thank you. What, though? She decided she would talk to Blaise and see if she could get some hints from him. Instead of going downstairs to find her friends, she needed to find out where Blaise's usual hangouts were.

Hermione got out of the shower, dressed quickly and re-entered the common room. Draco was lounging in front of the fireplace reading a book. His hair was not slicked back in his usual style. Instead, it fell slightly over his eyes and was in mild disarray. He looked…hot.

"Uh, Draco?" she muttered.

He looked up from his book and marked his place by closing it around his index finger. "Yeah?"

Why was everything he did today so attractive? She took a deep breath to calm herself. Why she was so flustered? She internally laughed it off.

"Would you be able to tell me where I might find Blaise today?"

"Blaise?"

"Yes."

"My best friend, Blaise?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Well, I need to talk to him about something."

"What?"

"Um, I don't really see how that's any of your business."

He scoffed. "If you need my help to find him, then it's a little my business."

"Just because I need your help to find out where Slytherins lurk does not mean the topic of conversation is your business."

"Well, I'm not telling you where he is until you tell me what you need to talk to him for."

"Jesus, Draco! You're so immature. Please, will you just answer the damned question?"

"Hermione, I'm not going to help you plan your next prank on me with my best friend. How thick do you think I am?"

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Do you hear yourself when you talk? What kind of a best friend would he be if he did that?"

Draco smirked, "One that never shies away from a good laugh."

Hermione sighed in frustration, "Son of a bitch, Draco, I wanted to surprise you with something nice to apologize for the way my parent's treated you yesterday evening and I need Blaise's help to do that because I don't really know a damn thing about you, but you're so un-fucking-trusting, I couldn't even do that, could I? Ugh!"

Draco looked shocked for a moment, then angry. He put his book down on the table and then stood.

"I don't need your pity, Hermione." He sneered.

"It's not pit…"

"YES IT IS. You can't empathize with me so it means you feel sorry for me. That's pity and I don't want it."

He brushed past her toward the portrait-hole to leave. Her eyes followed him and as he passed her, she caught a glimpse of a scar on his back just below the hem of his shirt and she decided that she'd find Blaise anyway.

After thoroughly terrifying some first year Slytherins (probably to the point of long-term psychological damage), Hermione was able to acquire the most likely location of a one Blaise Zabini.

She walked to the Dungeons, and then walked three corridors past where the Slytherin Common Room was located, made a left turn and located a spiral staircase immediately to the right. She tentatively climbed the staircase and came to a tiny little landing with a window and a built-in bench that overlooked the Forbidden Forrest. It was the perfect little hide-a-way. True to the young first years' words, Blaise was sitting on the window bench with his eyes closed, a breeze ruffling the pages of the book in his hand.

Not wanting to startle him, Hermione quietly cleared her throat. Blaise inhaled and singularly opened his eyes. When he saw Hermione, his brow furrowed and he sat up.

"Hermione?"

She smiled, "Hi, Blaise. Surprise."

He smiled back, "Yeah, it is. How did you find me here? Only Slytherins know about this place and only Draco's friends are allowed to use it."

Hermione frowned. "Of course that's how it is. I, uh, might have threatened to take the remaining house points from some first years if they didn't tell me where to find you."

Blaise chuckled, "Dang, Granger. Abusing your title. I didn't know you had it in you. You know, you could've asked Draco."

"I did ask Draco. He wouldn't tell me."

"Probably because you wouldn't tell him why you wanted to talk to me, right?"

"Well… yeah and when I did, he got very cross. Did he tell you this already?"

Blaise smiled again. "No. I just know my best friend very well. So, why are you here?"

Hermione sat down next to him on the window seat. "What can you tell me about his relationship with his father?"

Blaise scrutinized her for a moment. "A fair bit more than most people. Why do you ask?"

She sighed, "After we'd slept together and I put graffiti on the wall, Draco was taken home for a week. When he got back, I was in detention and he came in completely riled up. He lifted his shirt and showed me his back. There were fresh marks… everywhere. He also told me his dad used an unforgivable curse on him. I've tried to talk to him about it but he won't hear it. Last night at dinner with my parents, somehow we got on the topic of mudbloods and my father accused Draco of being ashamed that I was one and that's why he hadn't told his parents about us 'dating'. Draco said he couldn't just tell his parent's about us and so my dad basically said that made no sense at all because it's not like he'd get beaten when in reality, that's exactly what would happen. I wanted to do something nice for Draco, to apologize, and I figured you'd know what. When I finally told Draco that, he got mad and left. I caught a glimpse of his back again and I just couldn't leave it alone so, here I am."

Blaise rested his back against the window frame and sighed. "I'm not really sure what you're asking me, Hermione. It sounds to me like you have a pretty solid grasp on what's going on."

"When you and I first met, you said Draco had been dealt some rough cards. Clearly, this is what you meant by that. I guess I'm asking 'How can I help?'"

Blaise scoffed, "No offense, Hermione, but you can't. Draco is my best friend. Don't you think if there were something I or anyone else could do about this, we'd have done it already?"

"That can't seriously be all you have to say about it. It's not fair. He shouldn't have to go through this!"

"You're right, he shouldn't, but he does."

She groaned in exasperation. "Does anyone else know about it? Do any of your other friends? Do Crabbe, Goyle, Pansy?"

Blaise scratched his head and then smirked. "Pansy probably does. She's seen him naked dozens of times."

"This isn't funny, Blaise! So, what? She just ignores it, too?"

Blaise became angry. He stood from his relaxing spot on the window seat and firmly asked, "What do you want us to do, Hermione? Do you think telling the Headmaster is going to help? Do you think confronting Draco's father is going to help? In fact, Draco already knows how to handle it. He's actually pretty fucking great at avoiding it. He'd gone almost an entire year without getting the shit beat out of him until you came around. So, you want to help, Hermione? Stay away from him."

Tears welled up in her eyes. She stood, "He shouldn't have to walk on eggshells around his father. I only wanted to help… and I mean, legitimately help."

Hermione determinedly walked down the spiral staircase. She'd figure something out, with or without Blaise's input.

Hermione had just made it back to the ground floor when she heard Blaise's breathless voice, "Hermione, wait!"

She turned around, "Yes?"

"I just thought you should know, Draco's favorite desserts are Treacle Fudge, Caramel Cobwebs and Ice Mice. He likes first editions of rare books, anything he can learn about quidditch, he's all over, and believe it or not, he's obsessed with mirrors."

"Mirrors? You can't be serious."

Blaise smiled. "Serious as a heart attack. Most of the presumptions people make about Draco aren't true, but if you presume that he's vain, you've hit nail on the head. Give him a mirror and he preens like a peacock for hours."

Hermione laughed and, in turn, so did Blaise.

When they'd finished, Hermione said, "Thanks, Blaise. I can do a lot with that."

"Sure thing. Draco deserves something nice and you're the first person in a while who has cared. You're not so bad, Hermione."

"Turns out, most of the presumptions people make about me aren't true, either. Bye, Blaise."

He nodded, "Bye."

Hermione sat in the Gryffindor common room waiting for her friends to return from the Village. After speaking with Blaise, she had gone to the Owlery and sent an owl, along with a small bag of money, to Ginny, requesting a few items. Afterwards, she headed to Professor Snape's office to server her detention.

Hermione looked at the clock and read 8:47. Her friends had missed dinner, clearly opting to dine in Hogsmeade. Just then, Ginny, Harry, Ron, and Lavender walked into the common room.

"Hey, Hermione!" yelled, Harry. "What're you doing here on this fine evening, oh bushy-haired friend of mine?"

Hermione quickly surveyed the situation, noticing Harry's slouchy posture against Ginny with his arm draped around her along with the annoyed looks on the rest of the party's faces.

"Hi, Harry." She mouthed to Ginny is he drunk? To which she rolled her eyes and nodded in response.

Hermione got up from the sofa and walked over to Harry and gently said, "Harry, you seem exhausted. How about we get you to bed?"

"Bed? Are you gonna come with me because I don't think Gin here would like that very much."

"Harry!" Hermione scolded. "That isn't appropriate at all."

Ginny sighed, "It's fine. He's just completely sloshed because I've told him I won't accept his proposal until we've both got through our seventh year. Now, what exactly is so unreasonable about that is completely beyond me, but clearly, it was unreasonable enough to make my boyfriend drink himself into oblivion."

Hermione was about to look to Harry for his response but his unexpected deadweight flattened her to the floor, as he passed out on top of her.

"HELP!" Hermione squealed.

If that wasn't enough to deal with, Harry's drool on her cheek certainly was. "Seriously!" Hermione squealed, "He's drooling on me! Get him off of me!"

Instead of receiving assistance from her friends, all she received was laughter. It wasn't until she started gasping for breath from the weight of Harry that they actually pulled him off. When she finally stood up, she shot her amused friends a harsh glare.

Ginny chuckled slightly and said, "Come on, you would have laughed too."

Hermione knew Ginny was right so she changed the subject, "Were you able to get the things I asked for?"

Instantly, Ginny shifted into girl mode, squealing excitedly. "Yes! Come see all the things I've got for you. Draco's going to love it." She led Hermione to the portrait hole, where she'd put down her haul of items from Hogsmeade.

Hermione watched in growing excitement as Ginny pulled out an assortment of treats from Honeyduke's, a First Edition copy of The Tales of Beedle the Bard, and an enchanted mirror that changed its reflection based off of the mood of the onlooker.

"Ginny, thank you so much. This is perfect. I also ordered this broom kit I once gave Harry that he absolutely loved. Apparently, it's a must for any Quidditch enthusiast."

Hermione had forgotten that Ron and Lavender were also in the room until Ron asked, "So, all this stuff is for Draco? Why?"

Hermione sighed, "It's a bit of a long story but at dinner last night, my parents said some things about Draco and his parents that were really inadvertently hurtful. This is my apology."

Lavender playfully swatted Ron on the arm. "Hey!" she exclaimed. "How come you never apologize with a bunch of presents?"

Ron raised his eyebrows and incredulously responded, "How is it that everything Hermione does always turns into a conversation about something I don't do?"

Ginny dryly said, "Because, Hermione's not stupid. You are."

They all laughed and Lavender asked, "So, how are you going to give them to him?"

Hermione shrugged, "When I figure it out, I'll let you know. Now, do you guys need help hauling Harry up to his room or should we just leave him passed out there?"

They all made eye contact with each other in turn and simultaneously said, "Just leave him."

Hermione sat in the low light of barely burning embers on her common room couch, finalizing the details of how she was going to give Draco his gifts. She had decided to send him on a treasure hunt with a list of clues leading him to each gift. After a few hours of careful planning, all she had left to do was place the items where they should be and get Draco to play along.

Just as she was thinking this, the common room door opened and Draco stumbled in. Hermione glanced at the clock and read 3:18 a.m. What was he still doing out?

"Hermione? What are you still doing awake?" he asked.

"I should ask you the same question. It's after three." He stepped into the barely visible light and she caught sight of his face. "Draco, have you been crying?"

"I'm just tired. I need to go to sleep. Goodnight, Hermione."

"Draco, wait." He turned around. "Are you going to be around tomorrow?"

"Yes, why?"

"Just curious. Get some rest. You know, if you need to talk, I'm here."

He nodded and climbed the staircase to his room.

A solid hour and a half later, Hermione re-entered the common room of her dormitory after carefully and strategically placing each clue of Draco's treasure hunt where it needed to be. Only one envelope remained and it was the one that belonged in Draco's bedroom. Hermione crept up the stairs and tiptoed to Draco's door. She turned the handle and carefully peeked in. She saw the motionless form of Draco on the bed and heard the steady sound of his breathing. With the ease and silence of a cat, she placed the envelope on his chest of drawers where he was sure to see it.

She was almost back to his door when the sound of him rolling over stopped her. She turned around to check if he'd woken and the light from the moon was shining on his now exposed back. Her brow furrowed in concern and she slowly sidled back over to his bed.

Hermione couldn't stifle the gasp that escaped her mouth. She could see on his back both the purple color of fresh bruising and the yellow/green color of several old ones. She leaned in for a closer look and saw the faint white of already healed scars. She knew at that moment that the bruises were the result of a lighter form of punishment than his father had previously seen fit to administer.

Her eyes welled up with tears. Hermione was certain that he'd had no physical injuries that first night they slept together and Blaise's words from that morning echoed in her mind. He'd gone almost an entire year without getting the shit beat out of him until you came around. So, you want to help, Hermione? Stay away from him.

If Mr. Malfoy found out that Draco was having these dinners with her, there would be no telling what would happen to him. Hermione decided on one last surprise for the end of her treasure hunt, leaned down over Draco, softly kissed a bruise on his back, and quietly slipped away.

Hermione finally let herself fall to sleep not knowing that Draco had awoken at the feel of her lips and had watched her leave the room.

The next morning Hermione sat in the Great Hall with Ron, Ginny, and someone who vaguely resembled Harry slouched over the table.

Ginny gently slid a glass of orange juice over to Harry and said, "Harry, darling? You should drink this. You'll feel better."

"Yeah, mate! You should also eat these scrambled eggs with toast." Piped Ron.

Harry emitted a noise that sounded like gagging before sitting bolt upright and mumbling, "Or perhaps I just need more sleep and new friends who care enough to actually put me in my bed."

Hermione, Ginny and Ron all started laughing loudly, causing Harry to glare at them and storm off in a huff.

Ginny chuckled and said, "He'll calm down once he feels better. You look tired, Hermione. Didn't you get enough sleep?"

"No. I was up half the night coming up with a clever way to give Draco the things I've got him. Once I figured that out, I actually had to execute it. I didn't get to bed until near 4:30."

"Wow. It must be a really big plan, to keep you up that late. What did you end up doing?" Ginny asked, chewing on some toast.

Hermione took a sip of her pumpkin juice, and then replied, "I sent him on a treasure hunt. He's got to find five envelopes that have a clue to the next one in it. If he decides to play, which, seeing as it's Draco, is debatable, he'll end up at an outdoor dinner I'll have prepared by the Black Lake. That's where I'll explain what everything is for and apologize."

Ron and Ginny were staring at Hermione, both with rather stupid smirks on their faces.

"What?" Hermione asked.

Ron raised his eyebrows at her. "Are you sure you don't like him, Hermione?"

She groaned. "I told you last week that I just wanted to be his friend. That's all this is, okay?"

"Yes, but last week you also told me that you wouldn't force the friend issue. I thought you were taking my advice. I wanted to say something to you last night after Ginny showed you all the stuff, but it wasn't the right time."

Hermione sighed. "You're right, Ron. I did say that, but at dinner on Friday, he apologized for writing that horrid article about me and spreading it around the school.

"So?"

"So, I think it means he might be okay with being friends. Even if he's not, he shouldn't have had to deal with what my dad said to him, so I'm doing this. I'll leave how he reacts up to him and then go from there, okay?"

"Okay." Ron said placing his hand on top of hers. "I just don't want you getting hurt."

She smiled, "I appreciate that, Ron, but it'll be okay."

Ginny cleared her throat. "That was a nice little moment you two had there, but I've got some assignments to finish up so I'm just going to go to the library. Bye."

"Bye" chimed Hermione and Ron.

Hermione then turned to Ron and asked, "What are your plans for the rest of the day, seeing as Harry will probably be sleeping off a hangover?"

Ron shrugged, "Dunno. I'll probably get some practice in on the Quidditch Pitch. You?"

"I've some Head Girl duties to see to, and then nothing until this evening. I'll probably just hole up with a book somewhere."

"Sounds good. See you later, Herms."

"Bye, Ron."

She got up from the table thinking she might read her book in the little Slytherin hideaway 'only Draco's friends were allowed to use' because after tonight, she probably would be one.

After seeing Hermione sneak out of his room, supposedly unnoticed, Draco had given the place a quick once over and had almost immediately located the envelope she'd left on his chest of drawers. He waited for a solid five minutes just to make sure she wasn't coming back before hopping out of bed and retrieving it. He flicked his wand, whispered 'lumos' and illuminated the dark.

He recognized Hermione's handwriting on the outside of the envelope that read Open Me. He followed her instructions and removed the enclosed parchment.

Whatever am I, You may wonder?

I'm the first of five that you will ponder.

Follow the clues that I will leave,

For each ends in gifts you will receive.

Where practice makes perfect with many tries,

You'll find the next clue and your prize.

Don't look on a shelf or behind a door.

Look under a desk on the second floor.

Draco turned the parchment over to see if there was more. Nothing. That was it. Leave it to Hermione to send him gallivanting all over Hogwarts with nothing but clever little riddles he'd have to figure out to lead the way. Well, it wouldn't be Hermione if she didn't give it her one hundred percent. He was definitely too tired for this right now. Reading the clue once more, he decided he'd figure it out when he awoke.

Nine hours and fourteen minutes later, Draco awoke in a cold sweat. He'd been having what he thought was a nightmare until the dull pain of his body reminded him that it wasn't.

He glanced at the clock and read 1:59 p.m. Blimey, he'd slept his Sunday away. He untangled himself from his sheets and headed downstairs for a hot shower, completely forgetting about Hermione's clue.

It wasn't until he'd had his shower, dressed, and had begun to make his bed that he stumbled once more upon the informative piece of parchment.

"Oh yeah," he mumbled to himself, "I forgot about this. Look under a desk on the second floor."

He knew it would be somewhere they'd have in common. The only thing he could think of that they both had on the second floor was Defense Against the Dark Arts. Where practice makes perfect with many tries…

"My desk in the DADA classroom. That wasn't so hard."

He grabbed a jacket and headed down to the classroom, definitely not wanting to admit how excited he was.

When he arrived at the door of the classroom, he quickly checked his surroundings to make sure no one was around before quickly pouncing inside.

He pranced over to his desk and almost squealed in glee, for just underneath it sat a pristinely decorated gift basket that held his most favourite treats from Honeyduke's. He saw Caramel Cobwebs, Treacle Fudge, Sugar Quills, Chocolate Frogs and Ice Mice (just to name a few). Although he was seventeen, he'd never once received something like this from his parents or even his friends. He had just popped a mouse into his mouth when someone cleared his or her throat beside him.

He looked up into the eyes of Professor Lupin, whom was smiling and holding a new envelope. He handed it to Draco with a wink and returned to his office without saying a word. Draco curiously opened the clue.

I'm the next clue that you will need,

If you are to find a book to read.

I am a witch that is blind to some,

For most people have two, but I've only one.

By me you'll find the third clue and your treat.

I'm the entrance to a path that ends in a sweet.

Draco stared at it. This one was a bit tougher. Why would he want a book to read? That probably wasn't the point. He read the clue over three times. A witch that is blind to only some? How could a witch be an entrance? Wait. The statue of the one-eyed witch! The entrance to a path that ends in a sweet! The one-eyed witch's hump opens and leads to Honeyduke's. Wow, he had to admit, Hermione was good.

He grabbed his basket of sweets and headed to the one-eyed witch's statue. He arrived five minutes later and saw a box with a big bow sitting near the witch's feet. He picked it up and shook it like a child on Christmas. Something heavy flopped around inside. He grinned, ripped off the bow and tore open the box.

Inside laid a copy of the Tales of Beedle the Bard. He had four copies of this book. Why a new one? He turned the front cover and saw the First Edition stamped on the page. The book must have cost Galleons! He carefully flipped through the pages of his favorite childhood stories. The book was in immaculate condition. How did she know how much he loved first editions of books? What was Hermione up to? He needed the next clue so he scanned his surroundings and saw another envelope at the bottom of the discarded box.

Congratulations! You've found the third hint.

I hope you enjoy your last gift of print.

Where multitudes gather and crowds will roar

For players through the air like birds do soar.

It's not on the pitch where the players zoom,

But it is in the place where they store your broom.

He rolled his eyes. That one was obvious, too obvious. He placed his new book carefully in his basket of sweets and headed down to the Slytherin locker room beneath the Quidditch Pitch.

After ten minutes of walking, he regretted not stopping by his dormitory to drop off his gifts first. The basket of treats was getting heavy, plus who knew what he'd have to haul back with him. Another five minutes passed and he arrived at the Quidditch Pitch. He navigated the hallways hidden by the stands to the Slytherin Locker Room.

All the locker rooms were large and heavily decorated in house colors. They stored several sets of quaffles, bludgers and the like. It had basically everything a good quidditch team needed to practice. There were also individual lockers with each player's name on it. The locker labeled D. Malfoy stored his broom, his uniform and few of his other personal belongings. He opened it and glanced inside. At the bottom he saw an item that was new to him. He bent down to pick it up and examined it.

It was a black leather box with silver lettering. He opened it up and found it contained a large jar of Fleetwood's High-Finish Handle Polish, a pair of silver Tail-Twig Clippers, a brass clip-on compass, and a Handbook of Do-It-Yourself Broomcare.

Draco was surprised, to say the least. He sniffed the handle polish and instantly regretted it. It smelled like varnish. He picked up the twig clippers and snapped them open and closed a few times before replacing them in the box. He then carefully attached the compass to his broom, admired it for a second, and then carefully stored the Broom Kit back in his locker before closing the door.

He sighed. There was no way Hermione could know him that well yet. They had barely started interacting in any start of civil way toward each other. Then his mind popped back to their brief interaction from the morning before. She'd wanted to know where to find Blaise. Blaise must have helped her in some way. He'd have to find his best friend and have a chat with him about all this. But that could wait. Now, he needed the next clue. He re-opened his locker and found it taped to the inside of the door.

The fourth out of five clues now you must read.

And it's back to the castle that this one will lead.

Your next gift, it can hang or be lying around.

With so many, where can this item be found?

This place in Hogwarts is where you get rest.

But it's not your bed, it's where you're seen best.

Draco was seated on a bench and was utterly dumbstruck. This one wasn't obvious at all. He had just reread it for the second time when he heard a soft knock on the locker room door. He looked up and saw his best friend leaning on the doorframe.

"Hey, mate." Said Blaise.

"Hi." Draco replied, in a rather suspicious tone of voice. His showing up couldn't be coincidental. "What're you doing here?"

"Looking for you, thickhead. What else would I be doing here?"

Draco raised his eyebrows and said sarcastically, "Hmmm, I don't know. Maybe you're really here to help me figure this out!"

He stood and dramatically held out the parchment to Blaise. Blaise took a step forward to retrieve the clue and read it quickly.

He looked at Draco curiously and asked, "No. I don't have a clue what this is."

"Don't play dumb, Blaise! I know you talked to Hermione."

Blaise nodded, "Well, yes, I did speak with Hermione yesterday morning, but I still don't know what this is. Are you feeling alright, mate?"

Draco was surprised. "Really? You don't know?"

Blaise shook his head. "It seems like some sort of riddle. You want to explain what's going on?"

Draco quickly told Blaise about the three other clues and all the things he'd gotten from Hermione that day. He ended his explanation with, "I could've sworn you were in on this. It's impossible she'd know all this about me on her own."

Blaise smiled. "Wow. She's good. Look, man. She came to talk to me yesterday about wanting to do something nice for you. I just gave her a short list of things that you like but I had no idea what she was going to do with that information. I'm impressed. It's pretty clever and kind of cute."

Draco sat back down, shrugged, and then frowned.

"What's that face, Draco?"

He looked up at his best friend and whispered, "She knows about my father. She feels sorry for me."

Blaise sat next to Draco and patted his shoulder. "I don't think that's what this is, man."

Draco looked over at Blaise and said, "I'm not stupid, Blaise. This is about something her father said at dinner on Friday. She feels guilty about it."

"Even if that is what this is about, Draco, pitying someone is different than caring for someone. You need to learn the difference." Blaise pointed at the clue, "That's a mirror, by the way. Probably in your bedroom somewhere." With that, he stood and left.

Draco pondered what his best friend had said. Did Hermione care for him? He couldn't imagine why. They weren't close except for at her parent's house, but she had to know that was pretend, right? He sighed, not having as much fun as he'd been having before, but still wanting to continue. He reread the clue again and realized Blaise was right. It was a mirror.

He opened the door to his bedroom and stepped inside. There was only one mirror in his room and it hung above his chest of drawers. He walked over to it curiously, placing his basket of sweets that still contained his book on the floor. This is where the first envelope had been. If there were something here, surely he'd have seen it when this whole adventure had started. He searched the whole of his room to find nothing. Maybe, the mirror wasn't in his room. The clue didn't say it was his room, it just said it wasn't his bed. Where else did he sleep? The couch downstairs was the only other place he could think of.

He traipsed down the stairs and scanned the common room. Leaning on the mantle was an antique silver handheld mirror. He'd either never noticed it before, or it had never been there before. He looked into the mirror and saw his reflection. After about a minute or so, the glass turned to a soft blue hue and even though his actual face hadn't moved, the reflection changed to an expression of utter calm. How strange, that was the emotion he was feeling—calm. Just then, the glass started changing to several different colors and the reflection was thoroughly confused.

"Whoa." He said aloud. "This mirror changes based on your mood."

He forced himself to stop looking into the mirror and placed it back on the mantle. Next to the mirror sat what Draco assumed was the final clue. He picked it up and read.

You've found the fifth clue and it's the last.

How sad, for this treasure hunt's now in your past.

This clue's a bit boring and it's not a ruse,

Just put on some nice clothes and wear some nice shoes.

I was awake until four doing all this, so for Heaven's sake,

Please, just come join me for dinner at 7:00 by the Black Lake.

Draco chuckled and headed for the shower.

Hermione sat at the table she'd prepared waiting for Draco to arrive. She'd outdone herself with this dinner. She'd enlisted the help of Lavender and Ginny to help her cook dinner and decorate. It was a quaint table for two that sat under a canopy of muggle Christmas lights, enchanted to illuminate. There were yellow rose petals in a circle around the table and some classical music playing in the background. It looked beautiful.

She wasn't quite sure how he was going to react to everything she'd done today. She glanced at the dainty watch she was wearing and read 7:14. Maybe he wasn't going to come or maybe he hadn't figured out one of the clues.

Just then she heard footsteps approaching and Draco appeared out of the dark. He was wearing black loafers, black pants, and black button-up shirt and a green tie. He looked quite handsome. He had nothing on Hermione, though. She wore a silver dress that sparkled when the light caught it. It cut low in the front and even lower in the back. It's hem started at her right knee and slanted down to the middle of her left calf. She topped it off with a pair of blue heels.

Draco stopped awkwardly when he saw her and the setting. He tilted his head at her as if to say 'what is this?'

Hermione chuckled and answered his unspoken question, "Don't worry, it's not a date. Now, come sit down."

Draco crossed the remaining distance and took a seat. "You look nice." He mumbled.

Hermione smiled. "Thank you. So do you, as usual. Did you like your gifts?"

Draco nodded but didn't say anything.

Hermione could tell he was just really confused by all this. "You want me to explain what all of this is, don't you?"

He nodded again and then said, "I guess I just don't understand what it is or what it was for."

Hermione took a sip of her drink. "It was an apology and a peace-offering. It's not pity, Draco, so don't get mad, okay? I just, I don't understand your relationship with your dad and I see pain in your eyes when he's mentioned. There's no excuse for what my father told you on Friday night. I guess I thought that if no one else had done anything nice for you before, it was about time someone did."

He still looked confused. "That's it?"

She laughed, "What do you mean, that's it?"

"I mean all of this was because of what your dad said to me? That's an awful lot to do just for an apology, Hermione. I feel like I owe you something, now."

Hermione was appalled. "What? No. That's not the point. I'm trying to be your friend, Draco. All I need back is a thank you."

"You want to be my friend?"

She nodded. "Remember during our first detention—Oh god, I say that like it's normal—you told me you didn't understand the kind of loyalty I had to my friends?"

He smiled, "Yeah. You told me to become one and I'd find out."

She smiled back, "This is what that feels like. Which brings me to my last surprise."

He sighed dramatically, "Oh, come on, Hermione. You can't be serious!"

"Would you relax, you big drama queen! My last surprise is simple. I'm going to tell my parents that we broke up and you won't have to come to dinner anymore."

He put down the glass he was about to drink from and asked, "Hermione, why? We've only been to two of them."

She looked down at her plate, "Because its—better—this way."

"No," he scolded, "You need to tell me the real reason. Why, Hermione?"

She swallowed hard, afraid of his temper if she told him the truth. "You'll get mad."

He grunted, "I won't. I promise. Tell me."

"Fine. When I went to put the first clue in your room this morning, you sort of rolled over in your sleep. I went to make sure you hadn't woken up and the sheet wasn't covering you all the way anymore." She watched his face pale and she started to tear up. "I saw all the bruises on your back, Draco, and they weren't there the first time we slept together. I knew—I just knew they were my fault. I don't want to know what would happen if your father ever found out you'd been having dinner with me and my family."

She didn't want to tell him what Blaise had told her. Somehow, she got the feeling that he wouldn't appreciate her and Blaise discussing this topic at all. She wiped the tears away and slowly looked up at him. He looked angry.

"You said you wouldn't get angry." She whispered. "It's not pity. Please don't be mad. As my friend, I can't be responsible for you getting hurt."

He blinked and a tear rolled down his cheek. He stayed like that for a long while. After a good ten minutes of silence he finally spoke. "I went home last night to have supper with my mum. My father wasn't supposed to be home. When I got there, he was sitting at the table, my mother was next to him and she looked like she was sorry for not warning me. I said hello to both of them and sat down. We had our supper and then my father asked me what I had done earlier in the day, so I told him I'd been in detention. He asked me why and I told him what I'd done to your essay. It didn't diminish his or my reputation in any way, it was pretty humiliating for you, and you'd think he'd be okay with it. I don't even know why it upset him. The next thing I knew he'd had me tied to the ground right there in the dining room and he was just beating me. It wasn't even a curse; he was just using his fists. He did something, though, because healing charms don't make them go away. When he was done, he just untied me and my mum got up and they both left the room."

Hermione was full on crying. "Why did you tell me that?" she asked through sobs. "It's not fair!"

"I told you so that you'd know that me not coming to dinner with you isn't going to stop my dad from doing whatever he pleases. I mean, sure, if he did find out, it'd probably get pretty ugly, but how is he going to find out? If I stop going, you're the one who's going to get hurt, Hermione."

She was still crying. "But I understand now why the idea of these dinners put you in such a panic. There's too much at risk for you. My parents aren't going to kill me if they find out I lied."

He laughed and said, "Neither are mine."

"You know what I mean. Don't joke about this, Draco. I'm telling my parents it's over."

"I know you want to help, but I don't intend for my parents to find out about this—ever, so there's no need to cause disappointment with yours. This is me being a friend to you."

"Okay." She sniffed loudly.

He chuckled, "Will you stop crying now?"

She laughed.

He said, "I have to commend you on that treasure hunt you sent me on. How on earth did you come up with that so late into the night? I'm impressed."

She smiled widely. "Oh, you think that was good? If only it had been written during the day when I was fully awake—you'd still be trying to find your way here."

He laughed. "Hermione, tonight's the first time I've ever really talked to anyone about my parents, except for Blaise, of course. It helped."

She reached over and put her hand on his and whispered, "I'm glad."

A/N 2: Ah, a budding friendship has started... it's still Draco and Hermione, though, so we'll see how long that lasts. The next chapter will be less dense... yes, lighter. I promise.

All the best,

XOXO elegantgoth89