Author's Note: J.K. Rowling's world, not mine.

She knew he had heard her, but he didn't move. Hermione crouched down and held his shoulders as she looked him right in the eyes. "Draco, listen to me, we need to get out of here right now." There was panic in her voice, mostly because of the Death Eaters, but also because when she looked into Draco's eyes, she could see nothing but fear. "Come on, Draco, we have to leave," she said with urgency. She pulled him off his stool and the words finally seemed to get through.

"Did they see you? Are you okay?"

"They didn't see me, at least I'm pretty sure and yes, I'm fine," she told him. He took a deep breath and called Paulie over. Draco reached into his pocket and threw down a large stack of bills. "If anyone asks, Paulie, we were never here."

"Who was never here, sir?" Draco nodded at the bartender and took hold of Hermione's hand as they made their way to the back of the pub.

"We should Apparate from the lavatory. I'm the only woman who ever comes in here and I think it's far enough away so they won't here us," Hermione said.

"Where are we going once we Apparate? We need a plan. We can't just Apparate somewhere willy-nilly and hope they don't find us." Draco was keeping an eye out as they entered the women's restroom. Everything was clear.

"I have an idea. We'll have to Apparate to my flat first, and then go by Floo."

"Do you reckon your flat is safe?" he asked her, still clasping her hand. She assured him that it was, as Hermione had Moody help her put up a ward, in case such a situation arose (she'd thank Merlin everyday of her life for Moody's "Constant Vigilance" teachings). Without thinking, Hermione put her arms securely around Draco and Apparated them to her flat. Crookshanks didn't seem to care that Hermione had brought home someone, as he just went back to sleep on the couch when they appeared. She brought Draco right over to the fireplace and took out the Floo powder from a pot (shaped like a tooth) on the mantle. Hermione passed him the powder.

"Floo to 'Mariner's Cove'. I'll be right behind you," she said, shoving him into the fireplace.

Hermione came out of the fireplace at Mariner's Cove ungracefully, though Draco was there to catch her fall. As she cleaned them up, Hermione noticed Draco looking around curiously.

"So what is this place?" he asked her.

"It was an inn on the coast of Devon, which is where we are by the way" she explained, "my uncle owned and ran it. He didn't have any kids so when he died a few years ago it went to my parents, but they're dentists so they just closed it up after the season and we'd used it as a summer holiday house. No one really comes here anymore."

"Why not?"

"My parents are busy working, I've always been busy with school, then training at the hospital."

"And you're sure we're safe here?" he asked her, though he didn't seem frightened.

"No one knows about this place, not even Harry or Ron. Just my parents, me, and now you," she emphasized. "Come on," she said grabbing his arm, "you can pick out a bedroom. You're going to be here for a while." Hermione led Draco upstairs to a hallway with many doors. She smiled as she remembered their Alice in Wonderland conversation about the hall of doors. It seemed so long ago now.

"There're several rooms for you to choose but not this one," she pointed as they passed a closed door, "that one's mine. But might I recommend the one next door, there's a lovely view of the shore." He nodded and let Hermione lead him into the room.

It was a decent sized room in a pale blue shade with a large canopy style bed. The sheer hangings were pulled back, displaying a very comfortable looking place to sleep. At the end of the bed was a large trunk that doubled as a bench, and a writing desk and hutch combined sat in the corner of the room. There were large windows complete with two layers of curtains, one of dark blue pulled back and another layer of sheers under it, letting in the remainder of the days sunlight. Hermione's modest description of the view was just that, modest. From the balcony, you could see the shore for what seemed like miles and could easily get lost in the sounds of the ocean.

Hermione let Draco take in the view for a minute. He'd had a long day and needed peace of mind. That's another good thing about the shore, Hermione thought. It seemed like no matter how bad life had gotten you, everything was okay when you were at the shore; you could watch the water wash away footprints in the sand and erase all the bad things that happened so far, because tomorrow was a new and better day. She watched Draco look out over the balcony at the last few rays of sunlight and couldn't help but wish she was a Legilimens. A million thoughts must have been running through his mind.

"Draco?" Hermione called, taking him out of his daze. She led him back into the bedroom, "so there's the bath, and the fireplace which are all connected by Floo Network," she pointed out, "though I don't really think you should be going anywhere."

"Where have I got to go, Granger?" he asked sympathetically.

"Well, in any case, if you thought to go back to your flat for anything I should say that it's not a good idea."

"No, Granger," he said wandering about the room, "I don't think I can ever go back to my flat." He sighed, "what a pity. I really did like it there."

"Well," Hermione said trying to find words to comfort him, "I didn't mean it like that. Just that, er, it's probably not safe to go there now if you wanted to get some of your things and all. After this mess is over you can go back there, or you could find somewhere else to live, or you could travel for a while and be a nomad or something. See different places in the Muggle world."

"Granger, do you always babble when you're nervous?" he asked her with a genuine smile she didn't think he was capable of showing in a time like this.

"Yes," she said as the color in her cheeks rose. Hermione crossed her arms in front of her chest and let her eyes wander around the room. "Well, I guess I'll leave you alone. I'll be in my room next door if you need anything."

Hermione left Draco who went back to staring out of the balcony. She couldn't help but wonder if he had ever been to the shore before. If so, he certainly didn't stay out in the sun very long. Hermione couldn't get Draco off her mind, but that was nothing new. She plopped down on her bed and thought about what was bothering her most. Were the Death Eaters at the pub for Draco or Hermione? Or perhaps they were there for both of them. Was it coincidence or merely bad luck that she had seen them before whatever plan they had was put into action. Maybe they weren't going to make a move tonight at all? Was it a reconnaissance mission? Worst of all, what would she do about this situation tomorrow at the Order meeting?

After a minute, Hermione got off the bed and went to her desk. She made a list of all the questions in her head. As she wrote, she heard a knock at the door. Hermione continued to write and told Draco to come in.

"Don't even look up to make sure it's really me? Granger, I could have been a Death Eater!" She smiled and wrote on.

"I recognize your footsteps. You have a distinctive walk. Even in times like these you have that strut about you. Sit down," she told him, "I'm almost done."

"Done with what?" he asked taking a seat on the trunk at the end of her bed. Her room was set up almost exactly as Draco's, only Hermione's had personal touches. Her choice of color on the walls, a blanket from home on her bed, some of her favorite books on the night stand and desk, and photographs (that didn't move) spread all about the room.

"I'm making a list," she answered.

"Ah, say no more," he replied. She was nearly done with her list when Draco spoke again. "I never would have reckoned you a purple kind of person, Granger." Hermione smiled as she finished her list.

"It's light lavender, actually, and it's soothing. When I was younger, I'd lay in bed at night with the windows open and fall asleep to the sounds of the ocean," she explained. "I'm sorry," she said shaking her head, "you wanted something," she said, not realizing that he had come in to see her with purpose.

"Yes, well, I was just wondering if–" Draco hesitated.

"Yes?"

"Um, nothing, forget it," he said, "It's not important." Draco went to leave but Hermione stopped him, coercing him to join her for a cup of tea downstairs. She had more of the house to show him anyway. Hermione gave him the tour as she led him downstairs and showed him the formal sitting area where not much sitting went on (one of those 'off limits' places; mums always have one somewhere). She showed him the dining room and the kitchen where she prepared tea for the two of them.

There wasn't much food in the kitchen but Draco told Hermione that he was perfectly capable of going to get food in the morning. Hermione insisted that it would be better if she went, as he had no idea where the store was. It was only once they had finished their tea did they decide that tomorrow morning they would go food shopping together. She also told Draco that she'd be staying at Mariner's Cove as well, for the time being, as she was unsure whether her flat was being watched.

"Well I think that's a good idea," he told her as they left the kitchen together, "but what'll you tell everyone?"

"I think it best to just tell them that I'm getting it painted or something the Muggle way, and that I need to stay with my parents for a while. They won't begrudge my staying with them, and I can just as easily Floo to the hospital from here."

"What about that cat of yours?"

"Crookshanks'll be all right for a day or two. I'll bring him back here eventually. Come on," she said, leading him to the other end of the house. "This is the library."

It was a very large room indeed, that must have taken up nearly half of the house downstairs. Bookshelves spanned almost every wall, and were each completely filled. There were several couches and chairs spread out; a cluster near the fireplace, a chair in the corner, a rocker near the windows. "You're free to come here whenever you want. You won't find any Wizard texts though, but there's probably every Muggle classic you can think of and a lot more. They're all in alphabetical order by author. Took me a week to get these all organized," she said sheepishly.

"And there's the piano," Hermione said, pointing to the one place on the wall where there were no bookshelves. She went over to the piano leaving Draco in his spot. She hit a key and listened for the sound. "My father had it tuned last year, but I was never really much of a pianist. My fingers always got sore after doing scales over and over, so now the thing just sits here collecting dust." Draco didn't say anything but perused the book selection. Hermione yawned to herself and looked at her watch. It was getting late.

"Well, your bathroom is stocked with a toothbrush and toiletries under the sink. And there should be some pajamas hanging in there as well," she said. "My parents like to keep the place prepared for guests."

"Thanks, Granger," he said, "for everything."

"You're welcome. Good night, Draco."

"Good night."

Hermione yawned again as she made her way upstairs to her room. She readied herself for bed and changed into her pajamas, falling asleep the instant her head hit the pillow. She woke up at 1:14 in the morning and got out of bed. Hermione went out into the hallway where Draco's door was open. She peeked inside his room only to discover it empty. Keeping her wits about her, Hermione went downstairs to the last place she saw him. She made her way down the stairs and to the library, as something guided her way. There, in the moonlight, was Draco Malfoy playing Mozart's Moonlight Sonata. She recognized the tune instantly and stood there listening to him play. It was a bit of a melancholy song; Hermione had always thought so. She crept into the room, going unnoticed by Draco who was absorbed in the music. Hermione lay quietly on one of the sofas and listened to the bittersweet song, closing her eyes for only a moment. When she opened them, the sun was beaming on her face and a blanket was covering her from the cool breeze of the ocean.

Author's Note–I know, I know, I promised more frequent updates and I meant to update sooner, but this is a longer chapter than the previous ones. Honestly, I had the beginning of this chapter planned and the very end. I just couldn't figure out something for the middle and eventually this came to me (and I changed the ending of the chapter too, and I like this one a lot better). I'm not sure when I'll update again (I'm aiming for mid next week, but don't hold me to that!) since I am heading down the shore (yes the shore, I'm from Jersey, that's what we call it) in the middle of next week. Thanks for bearing with me keeps and for the encouraging words. I did kind of feel bad leaving you guys on a cliff hanger for so long, hopefully you don't mind where I ended this one.