Draco hesitated for a moment before slowly crossing the room and taking the armchair across from Granger. She'd called him by his first name. That couldn't be good. It didn't ease his mind, either, that she seemed very focused on something. His eyes darted to the box of green vials in front of her.

"They're suppression potions," Hermione said, answering his unspoken question. He watched her run her fingers through her hair and stare at the box. "Dumbledore says it will help with my hunger. It's pretty effective."

"So, what? That means you won't be needing my services?" He meant it as a joke to lighten the uncomfortably tense mood. Granger's lips twitched slightly before falling back into a straight line. Something was wrong. "Granger?"

She kept her gaze on him. "Besides giving me these potions, he told me that there is a cure."

"A cure? For… for being a succubus?"

"So it would seem." She looked down at her hands that she'd clasped together at some point. "The procedure will clean away any part of me that is a succubus. I would return to my normal witchy self."

"Okay." Draco tilted his head to the side. "What's the catch?" Granger wouldn't be asking him for help if it were that simple.

"It would be painful and would take a while to completely clean my system." She leaned back in the chair. "But I'm not concerned about that." She swallowed hard and clenched her hands. "I don't know if I want to change back."

Draco watched her stare at her hands as if they would give her the answer she needed. "And you want my opinion."

"Please," she said, looking up at him. He was surprised at the amount of confusion and unease in her eyes. "I don't know what to choose. I've thought of both sides and…I need an outside opinion and you're the only one who knows about me."

"I'm hardly the best person to ask about life changing decisions." Draco hadn't really had the best record in that department. "Maybe you should tell your friends and ask them."

Granger chuckled slightly. "That would go over real well. 'Hey, guys. Guess what? I slept with a succubus after Ron dumped me and I turned into one. To keep from having hunger pains, I have to get sexual pleasure from Draco Malfoy. But it's ok because there's a cure. I may or may not take it because I like the confidence and sexiness of the succubus but hate it because the hunger pain is getting worse every day.'" She slumped back into her seat.

Draco frowned. He'd known she would be experiencing hunger pains but were they really that bad? His eyes dropped to the green vials. One looked empty. He returned his gaze to Granger. "How bad are they?"

"Enough to make me drink this crap." Granger glared at the vials. "It's about as appealing as it looks." Her fingers speared through her hair, pushing it away from her face before clasping her fingers in front of her lips. Her foot bounced on the floor.

"Granger?"

"The potion seems to be wearing off." She rubbed the back of her neck, eyes drifting closed in discomfort. "I can feel your desire and it's making me hungry."

Draco blinked. "I wasn't-"

"Subconsciously," Granger groaned, dropping her head into her hands. "Images, thoughts, ideas; they're all coming through even if you're not projecting them." She grabbed a vial from the box and downed the green liquid, grimacing at the taste. After a few seconds, her face relaxed and she sighed in relief.

Draco leaned forward, resting his arms on his knees. "You ok?"

She nodded and slowly opened her eyes. Red swirled in her pupils. "You've got one hell of an imagination, Malfoy." The joke was weak and she sounded tired.

Draco stood up and held out his hand. "You better get to bed. Rest a bit. You'll think better in the morning."

Granger groaned but put her hand in his and allowed him to pull her to her feet. She shuffled toward her room, Draco following behind to keep her steady. She was wavering slightly and had to lean against the wall when they reached her room. Draco fought the urge to reach out to help her. It might do more harm than good. He followed her into her room and waited until she dropped onto her bed. With a bit of work, he managed to get her shoes off and pulled a blanket up to cover her.

"So motherly," Granger joked weakly.

He patted the mattress next to her, the closest he dared to get right now. "Sleep."

She rolled over and pulled her pillow over her head. Draco stood and silently left, closing her door behind him.

Just from this incident alone, he was heavily leaning toward her going through with the treatment. He and Granger might have had a falling out because of their arrangement, but that didn't mean he wanted her to suffer from hunger pains. He didn't want her to suffer at all. He returned to their common room, his gaze landing on the vials. These were supposed to help Granger, but seemed to only dull the pains for a moment. They came back stronger, it seemed. Why had Dumbledore waited so long to give her these? Why hadn't Granger's problem been addressed before school? Draco shook his head. Well, he couldn't change the past. But he could have a say in the future.

He made himself a pot of tea and sat down in one of the armchairs. With quill and parchment in hand, he went about the pros and cons for the treatment, as well as any other thoughts that popped into his head about this whole situation. Granger might not be so sure about what she wanted to do, but he was going to prepare a case so strong she'd have to see things his way. She'd thank him for it later.

Someone knocked on the main door, breaking him from his streaming thoughts. Draco shot a look toward Granger's room, hoping the noise hadn't disturbed her. The knock came again. He put his quill down before crossing the room and opening the door.

"What do you two want?"

Weasley frowned, crossing his arms. "Where's Hermione?"

"Granger's resting in her room."

"Is she ok?" Potter asked. Draco could deal with Potter. He wasn't as annoying as the Weasel.

"She wasn't feeling too good this morning. Probably caught some kind of flu or something. All I know is that she went to bed and hasn't been out."

"She was supposed to meet us for a study session. Could we see her?"

Draco shrugged. "Sure. If you want to catch the same thing."

"What about you?" Weasley said smugly. "Aren't you afraid of catching it?"

"Weasel," Draco said, rolling his eyes at the red head, "I don't care if I get sick. I'm ahead in my classes and can afford skipping a class or two. Can the same be said to you?"

"You know what, you git? You-"

"Calm down, Ron," Potter said, grabbing his friend's shoulder. "Let's just let Hermione sleep." He looked at Draco. "Could you tell her that we stopped by and we hope she feels better soon?"

"Sure, Potter."

With a nod, Potter turned and pulled Weasley with him down the hall. Draco closed the door.

"Was that Harry and Ron?"

He turned. Granger pulled the blanket tighter around her shoulders, the ends trailing behind her and along the ground. She'd probably taken it off her bed. Her hair was frizzy and her eyes were tired. Draco walked to the small kitchenette and grabbed a mug as Granger took a seat in one of the armchairs.

"They wanted to know if you were ok. You missed a study session." He poured her some of his tea and held out the mug. She took it but didn't take her eyes away from the table. He followed her gaze and picked up his notes, holding it out to her. She made not move to take them.

"You think I should take the treatment." It wasn't a question.

"I think you'll be happier without the pain."

She was silent for a few moments. Draco didn't move least he break her thoughts. Finally, she spoke. "I didn't think I'd hit bottom so quickly." She rubbed her eyes as if they hurt. Her hand came down and wrapped around the ceramic mug. "I'll do it."

Draco blinked and dropped the paper to the table. "I thought I might have to fight you a bit more. I prepped and everything."

A slight smile twitched in the corner of her lips. "I'm sure you would have been very compelling."

He sank onto the edge of the table, studying her closely. "You're sure about this?" Granger nodded, wincing at the movement. "Ok. I'll let Dumbledore know." Granger slowly sipped some of her tea. "Who knows? You might be better in a week or so."

She shrugged, burying deeper into her blanket.