Just as she thought she might die the pain and pressure disappeared. She lay there gasping, trying to take in as much precious oxygen as she could when she felt two large hands on her arms and she screamed.

"Get off me!" She struggled, using the little strength she had left but the hands were too strong.

"Hermione!"

"Leave me alone!"

"Hermione - it's me!" A different face came into her line of view, a handsome face with beautiful blonde hair that flopped into soft, grey eyes. Without a seconds hesitation, Hermione sat up and threw her arms around Draco's neck, holding onto him tightly. "Are you okay? He fell on top of you when I cursed him."

She heard Draco's voice and she understood the words but to answer she would have had to let him go so she just pulled him closer as a response, clinging to him. She knew she should be really angry with him but the truth was that she had never been so glad to see anyone in her entire life. She inhaled deeply, drinking in the delicious smell of him. After a few brief moments she felt Draco move away from her, unlinking her arms from his neck.

"We need to go right now. He won't have been alone so we have to leave right this second," he spoke slowly as if he was talking to a small child. For a moment she stared at him blankly, just like a small child and then her lightning quick brain engaged and the sluggish, strange feeling went in an instant.

"Harry sent his Patronus..."

Draco cut her short. "I know - it said we need to go to his house - the one with the tree..."

"How do you know that?" Hermione returned the favour and interrupted him back. She noticed that his eyes looked tired, dark underneath and his hair was flat on his head. He looked awful, if that were possible. "Where did you go? Are you okay?"

"Never mind that now - let's just get out of here." Draco looked around and then back to her. "Where does Harry live now?"

Hermione shook her head. "No - it can't be there and anyway it would be an obvious place to go to."

"So where else has he lived...that place with his aunt?"

"That wasn't his house...I can't remember if it had a tree."

Draco grabbed her arm and dragged her away from the sea, back onto the grassland. "Keep walking and thinking. I can see someone..."

Hermione felt her stomach churn and she followed him, almost running to keep up. For the hundredth time she wished she had inherited her Father's side of the family's height and legs instead of her Mothers. The thought just came to her in an instant and she pulled Draco to a halt.

"I know where we have to go," she said.

"How? Where?"

"Grimmauld Place - it became Harry's just as the stag said. Sirius Black gave it to him."

"What about the tree?"

"The Black Family Tree - there's a huge diagram of it in the Drawing Room," Hermione nodded. "I'm sure I'm right."

Draco grabbed her arm, looking behind them. "Right or not we have to apparate now, Hermione. Now!"

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

To her surprise, Hermione apparated straight into the kitchen of the house. She thought this was impossible but maybe Harry had given her special permission or something. Draco looked around curiously.

"This is Grimmauld Place?" he asked, his voice betraying his distaste.

"Yes - awful isn't it?" Hermione said. She was shaking from cold and fright. "Do you think we're safe now?"

Draco looked over at her, taking in her appearance for the first time and he stepped close again, taking her arms. "You're freezing and you look awful." He looked around. "I wonder if there's food in here?"

"There will be," Hermione answered and Draco looked at her questioningly. She shrugged. "There just always is." She shivered and the room swayed slightly.

Draco pushed her onto a seat. "Sit down before you fall down. Wait here - I'll be back in a second." He returned moments later with a fluffy, brightly coloured jumper. "There are fresh clothes in the wardrobe - not ours this time obviously but all new and clean and in the right size." He threw the jumper at her. "Here, put this on and I'll make us something to eat." Hermione hadn't the strength to argue and she put the jumper on. She watched as Draco made her some toast and a hot drink. He put two plates down and then sat opposite her. "Eat." His one word instruction left no room for argument so she did as she was told.

They didn't speak the whole time they ate their toast but Hermione didn't care. The jumper was working and for the first time in 24 hours she began to feel warm, they were safe at Grimmauld Place and Draco was here. Draco was back with her. She put her tea cup down, the little boost of energy making her ask the obvious question.

"I can't believe you left me. Why did you leave me?"

Draco looked over at her, his grey eyes soft. "I didn't leave you! As if I'd leave you there on your own!"

"You apparated away! I was on my own all night...I was worried to death and scared..."

"I just told you I didn't leave you. I slept upstairs."

Hermione gaped at him. "What? Upstairs in the house?"

Draco nodded. "Of course."

"What do you mean, of course? You told me you would leave if I sent a message to Harry."

"And you bloody well did it anyway!" Draco's words were insulting but his eyes told her a different story, his tone was affectionate.

"So you pretended to go?"

"Yep."

"Jerk."

"Thanks."

"I should be screaming mad at you! Don't you know that this isn't the time to be acting like a child having a tantrum?" Hermione said.

"I wasn't the only one acting like a child," Draco leant forward. "Anyway, stop moaning, I thought you were happy to see me." He said this in a slightly suggestive tone and smirked at her.

"Huh!" Hermione grunted. "If you hadn't been playing silly games then maybe I wouldn't have got attacked." She stopped speaking suddenly, her eyes opening in terror. "Merlin! What if they used the spell on me? The new spell? What if I'm not a witch any longer?" She started ferreting around for her wand but Draco held his hand up.

"Muggles can't see Grimmauld Place, Hermione," he said, quietly and she stopped and stared at him, feeling slightly stupid.

"Oh. Of course not."

Draco continued talking. "Anyway, if you'd done as Harry told you to you wouldn't have been attacked."

"I did do as Harry told me to!"

"You were supposed to spend the night there and then apparate straight to here," Draco pointed out. "Instead you decided to have a wander around on the beach!"

"I was trying to work out the puzzle!" Hermione protested.

"You couldn't have done that in the house?"

"If you were there and spying on me, why did it take so long for you to come and rescue me?" Hermione shot this back at him.

"I thought you were going to do what Harry had instructed. I didn't even know you'd left the house! I was going to appear just as you were about to apparate," Draco said and then he sighed. "We're arguing again." He put his head to one side. "And anyway, I know that you did miss me - I was watching you, remember?"

Hermione let her eyes wander over his face for a moment. "Of course I missed you," she said, quietly. There wasn't much point in denying it as it must have been obvious how upset she was last night, she really didn't want to argue with him again and she certainly didn't want him to go anywhere without her. "That's why I didn't follow Harry's instructions," she confessed, surprising herself.

"I don't understand?"

"I didn't know you'd seen the stag so I thought that the moment I apparated here, that was it. You were gone because there would be no way to contact you and you wouldn't know where I had gone," Hermione bit her lip. "So I was delaying it - hoping you'd come back."

Draco's expression was soft, his eyes gentle. "Good - I'm glad."

"You're glad even though I'm uptight, touchy and I wouldn't know a good time if it hit me in the face?" Hermione asked, using his insults from yesterday but diluting them with a small smile.

Draco crinkled up his nose. "Mmm...sorry about that."

"Sorry I called you pathetic," Hermione volunteered her own apology.

"You should be sorry about that!" Draco said, standing up. "We should get cleaned up and then try and get some rest. We can cook dinner later." Hermione nodded - the thought of a hot shower and a comfy bed were very tempting. She stood up and started to walk towards the door when Draco's voice stopped her. "Hermoine?"

"Yes?"

Draco was standing by the table and she watched him with interest because, for once, he didn't look his usual confident self. He was fiddling with their empty plates. "You should never have believed that I would really leave you - not after everything we've been through."

"You were convincing."

"Well, just so you know, you have my promise I won't leave you until this is over," Draco said. "Not for a minute."

Hermione nodded. "Thank you." She turned to leave the room again then stopped. When she turned back, Draco was still staring at her. She hesitated, not sure if she should say the next words or not. "What about after all this is over?" Her voice was just above a whisper and she wasn't sure if he could actually hear her until she saw his expression. His eyes widened, his mouth parted slightly, his lips curving up at the edges. He ran his hand through his hair and then looked at her from under his lashes before answering.

"That's up to you."

Hermione nodded again, her heart racing at the implication of his words, before she left the room closing the door quietly behind her.

No cliffy on this one - thought the last few chapters were more than enough! Does this story need a bit of Dramione? I think it does. So next chapter maybe? x