A/N: If you haven't already, please re-read chapter one! I also want to thank those who reviewed, you guys are amazing! I also want to point out that this is the very first full length FF I have ever done (even though it is considere short by most standards), so please bare with me!-JAS
The first day Malfoy was there was uneventful. Granger did not try to help him or talk to him or do anything Granger-esque. It was quiet, so quiet in fact that he could hear her footsteps on the carpet of her bedroom right across the hallway. It comforted him in some ways, just knowing he wasn't alone and that there was - in fact - somebody here in case anything should happen to him. That night he listened to the water run as Granger took the world's longest shower. Without meaning to he feel asleep.
The second day was very much like the first, in that there was very little movement from both parties living in the apartment. At one point he heard Granger leave, and planned to scavenge around for food, he hadn't eaten in almost two days and he was starving. To his dismay he found there to be very little food in the kitchen. In the fridge there was several types of juices, and odd bits of things like jelly and butter. He checked the cupboards and found everything pretty much in the same state. She had pasta, but no sauce. She had peanut butter, but no bread. She did, however, have tons of fire-whiskey and other variations of Muggle alcohol. If he didn't know any better he'd think she had a drinking problem.
After debating with himself on whether or not it was within his right as a prisoner to take one of her drinks, he decided that having one wouldn't hurt. He was opening all sorts of drawers looking for a bottle opener when he heard the door open… and two angry voices… heading right for the kitchen…
"Well why can't you?!"
"Because Ronald, he's my responsibility now, and I can't just throw him to the street!"
He scrambled around looking for a way to go back to his room without being seen, but that was impossible - the only entrance to the kitchen was facing the living room, which the front door opened up into - he could just hide, but where was he going to hide, he couldn't even fit anywhere!
Their angry voices were getting closer, he only had seconds to find somewhere to hide himself.
"Bloody hell," He muttered. The only place to hide was under her sink, a small little place covered by a green and blue curtain on a rod. It was small enough for about an eight year-old child to fit in, but he'd have to make it work.
He twisted himself to fit just in time for them to walk into the room.
"How are we even going to see each-other now?"
"You'll just have to get used to him being here." He heard the rustle of bags and clinking of jars. She had gone grocery shopping. He listened as silence followed and by her footfalls it seemed she was putting away her findings. Maybe about two minutes later Weasley spoke again.
"I don't like him here."
"Is this a trust thing?" She sounded exhausted, and he felt exhausted only hearing a few words from his impoverished mouth.
"He doesn't even have his wand Ronald, and he wouldn't do anything physical to hurt me and I'm the only thing keeping him out of Azkaban right now. I doubt he's stupid enough to do anything to jeopardize that." It suddenly hit him that he did not in fact have his wand, and instantly felt a sort of loneliness—like a part of him was missing.
"That's not what I meant." Weasley replied.
"Well he's not going to steal from me, where is he going to go that he won't be a fugitive?"
"No I mean, I don't know if I trust you." Granger was not the only one to suck in her breath. Even Malfoy knew how stupid it was to say that. Out of all the Gryffindor's he had the displeasure of knowing, he had always recognized Granger as one of the most loyal people ever. As annoying as it was to admit.
"You're what?" She was almost completely silent.
"I'm scared you're going to sleep with him."
Next thing Malfoy knew, verbal attacks were being thrown all over the place, the words, "incompetent," "slag," "untrustworthy," and "total arse," made an appearance quite a lot. His neck began to hurt like mad during their fight and he started rubbing it, really wishing that their fight would end right about now so he could go back to wallowing in his misery. Then he began wondering about his wand.
What happened to it? Did Potter still have it somewhere? Did the ministry have it? Would the Wizengamot allow him to have it back? Speaking of Wizengamot, what had happened to his mother? Where was she? Did she-
"Ron let go of me now." A lump formed in his throat, he hated when women spoke in that tone of voice, the voice where you can tell they're scared, but they need to sound strong. He had heard his mother use that same voice quite often.
"Hang on a minute, I'm just going to show you what we could do if Malfoy weren't here." He crinkled his noise in disgust.
"Ron, please stop. I really don't-" he heard a muffled sound after that, and that's when he really got sick. He was forcing her to something that she didn't want. He may have been a douche all his life, but never had he ever made a girl do something she didn't want. It was assault.
It was when he heard a muffled protest, a scream of sorts that he decided he was going to intervene, when suddenly she must have broken free and yelled, "Malfoy!"
He sprung out from underneath her sneak, causing Granger to scream and the stupidest look to cross over Weasley's face.
"You need to let go." Malfoy demanded, his neck bent to one side.
"I see it's already begun." Weasley looked between the two of us—Granger and me. She pulled her wrist from his grip and stood straight.
"I need you to leave this apartment now, and please do not return until I ask you to." Weasley sneered and apparated out of the apartment. As soon as the popping sound finished he saw Granger sag greatly, "thanks Malfoy," she said barely even looking up at him.
She was walking away, and he didn't know what made him do it, but he called for her to stop. Surprisingly she did.
"Does he do that often?" She stood still and silent for too long for him to believe it when she replied, "No, of course not."
That night he finished putting away the food for her.
Hermione did not take a shower. But he did hear her cry.
He fell asleep planning all he ways to slowly murder Weasley.
On the third day of his first week he woke to hear her cleaning, vacuuming actually. He flipped onto his stomach and tried to block out the noise with his pillow but his attempts proved to be futile. He lay there for about ten minutes suffocating on his own hot breathe until she finally knocked on his door, very lightly, so lightly in fact that he thought it must be his own heart beating.
"Malfoy I- What are you doing?" He set up and turned around quickly, letting the blanket fall down onto the bed and completely forgetting that he liked to sleep in only his boxers.
"Well I was sleeping until that infernal vacuum sound woke me up. Why are you cleaning so early anyway?" He saw her dig her toe into the carpet.
"Malfoy I actually came here to give you some news, I have some good news, not so good news, and some worrisome news."
He just looked at her.
"If you want my opinion, I suggest you listen to the worrisome news, then the good news, and then the not so good news, as you need to hear the good-"
"Granger please just carry on with whatever it is you have to say."
"Alright, well I've heard things about your mother, I'm technically not supposed to know but I think you should know her trial starts today."
"And…?"
"And I thought you might like to know."
She coughed awkwardly, this not being the reaction she had expected.
"The Ministry has you wand too. They're debating on whether or not to give it to you."
"And what news was that? The good or the not so good."
She shrugged, "Both, thought that I may as well rip off the band-aid." He nodded tersely and watched as she began to close his door.
"Granger… How are you? After last night?" Of course he wasn't actually worried, because that would mean he cared about her even a little bit. No this wasn't just about Granger, this was about Women everywhere. He had to stick up for the men because I was those low life pieces of rubbish that gave men a bad name. So really, this was about his self-esteem. He was just keeping it primped and sufficiently inflated.
She smiled, and he didn't know her well enough yet to know if it was genuine or if it was fake, and replied, "Yeah, it was no big deal, he just got a little carried away, that's all."
He eyed her warily, and silently worried for her.
The rest of the week carried on similarly, the only difference being the short talks they had as they passed in the hallways.
"Any news?"
"Not yet."
"But you'll-"
"Yes I will."
They had each adopted their own schedules, Hermione mainly operating in the morning and doing all the noisy chores then, and Draco mainly operating at Night where he was very courteous towards Hermione and her sleep. Did it annoy him that she did all the noisy chores during his relaxation periods? No, not really. Sleep rarely came for him and when it did it came at three hour intervals with an absurd amount of time between each bout of sleep.
He just really wanted to know what was going to happen to his Mother.