Author Note: Thank you for all the wonderful activity this story keeps getting. I apologize for the late update. I haven't quite adjusted to the new medication I've been put on just yet. It was making me sick. The good news is, this is no longer going to be a short story. I foresee this going for quite a while. Here is the new chapter. Let me know what you think.

A special thanks goes to: punklena, ndavis77, roon0, Legolas' Girl 31, pgoodrichboggs LightofEvolution and Ruselly Adita for the wonderful reviews.

Another special thanks goes to: Slyllumi, SassenachStarbuck, k2swis, HarryPGinnyW4eva bookworm6023, Dougyes62,Usagi Grandchester, PartyLikeGinger, jennifercmcfadden, darkcarola17, EIE1966 and Sylvid5 for becoming followers to this story.

Chapter 8:

Draco didn't know what to do other than keep watch on the sleeping woman on his couch. He could still see the violent flames that threatened to consume the entire apartment building Hermione lived in. He never expected things would progress this fast. It made him wonder how long Harry knew about the death threat before he finally let him in on the information.

Sitting down on the a bar-stool next to the counter, he looked down at the newspaper. His father's trial once again made headlines. He cringed at the thought of all the publicity it was getting. He hated all the attention and would rather live in peace. Out of the corner of his eyes he could see Hermione turning frantically to her side, softly whimpering in her sleep. A nightmare was most likely ripping her slumber to pieces.

He went through every moment from the alley forward, trying to find some kind of evidence that something hadn't been right about the whole situation; but nothing stood out to him. Lifting his bottle of beer to his lips, he took a swig from the opening. The clock on the counter flashed repeatedly, reminding him that it was only eleven. The night was still fresh as he stared across the room to the large windows that gave the best view of the city.

A soft knocking came to his front door, interrupting his thoughts. He quietly moved to the door and opened it gently. Harry stood with a concerned look upon his face. He was breathing heavily, which meant he probably ran the whole way there from his home from across the city. When he called The Ministry about the fire and about the possibility that the dead person they found was indeed Janey Nissel, he knew they would want to do an investigation of their own. That, of course, meant informing Harry of what happened.

"What happened, Draco?" Harry asked as calmly as possible.

"Keep your voice down. She's sleeping." He said taking a step to the side to let Harry inside.

"Explain to me what happened?"

There really wasn't much to explain. He moved to sit back down on the stool. The bottle of beer found his lips once more, contemplating on what to tell his boss. Hermione's cries still echoed inside his mind and the way she trembled against him in sobbing fits for the woman she had considered a friend. "She came here right after Janey arrived at her place all beat up. I assume whoever did that was the one who set the fire in Hermione's apartment. They were hoping to catch her inside." Draco answered.

"The body they found was indeed Janey's. The Ministry confirmed it an hour ago; however, according to the report...she was dead before the fire caught her body."

"So someone broke in and killed her, then set the place on fire. Someone really didn't want her talking to Hermione about something."

Harry turned his head to look at the still sleeping form of Hermione. He couldn't imagine how she was going to handle everything once it was all out in the open. He also couldn't ignore how Draco looked at her. There was something happening between them whether he wanted it happen or not. He hoped that it would turn out okay for the long haul. She deserved to be happy after everything she's been through over the years. The test now was keeping her safe from whoever has made the threat on her life.

Hermione stirred. Her eyes slowly opened to hear voices, familiar voices. Draco's rough dialogue mixed with Harry's soothing vocal point, except Harry wasn't calm. He was harsh and it was Draco that was the calm one. "This gets more and more complicated the further we dive into it." Harry commented.

"What get more complicated?" Hermione asked sitting up from the couch.

She looked around, realizing that she wasn't in her own living space. It was Draco's subtle coloration and open windows she loved to look through. That's when it all came back to her. The fire and her own screams as she frantically tried to get out of Draco's arms to save Janey. Her eyes opened wide, the color on her skin paling that her original color. "Hermione..." Harry called moving to sit down next to her.

"I just...remember what happened..." She replied in a whisper.

"It wasn't your fault."

Narrowing her eyes in anger, she stood up from abruptly. "How is it not! She came to me for help and what did I do? Fucking nothing!" She yelled with the glassiness returning to her eyes. Draco was stunned by her choice of words; but also, it surprised him to see her so torn apart about this death. She had seen death many times before; but somehow, this one really shook her to the core.

"Hermione...she was dead before the fire happened." Harry explained.

"Do you really think that changes things? She's still dead and I have no idea why. Why would anyone want to hurt her?" She asked turning away, grabbing the bottle of beer on the counter and took a long drink from it.

The bitter flavor rolled down her throat before turning to look at Draco fully. She could tell there was something on his mind and hated the fact that he could calm the fury within her with just one look of comfort. He reached for her hands, rubbing her knuckles with the pad of his thumb. "I believe she was targeted because whoever did this wants to hurt you." He said, hoping that she didn't pull away from him.

"What do you mean?"

It was Harry's turn to come forward. There was a lot he hadn't been saying and that stuff he was hiding from Draco. He's told no one, not even Ginny. The one person he told everything to, regardless if she wanted to know it or not. There was a brief glance between the two men, signifying that it had to be said. "A month or two ago a letter came to us. It was a threat of death upon your head. There was no signature or prints on the paper or even a magical one. I tried so many things to figure out who would attempt such a thing...nothing came of it."

"So you both knew something was wrong and you didn't tell me..."

"I only informed Draco a few days ago of the threat, because I needed more help. Obviously, he's taken his job seriously..."

The last part of his statement caught Draco off guard. He never expected him to say such a thing. Did he really think his attraction to Hermione was because of the job he had been tasked with? He turned to look at his boss with a look of disdain. Hermione watched closely before opening her mouth to speak her opinion on the matter. She was indeed angry; but didn't want to loose her composure completely. "So you think the only reason Draco asked me to dinner was because of the job you gave him to 'so called' protect me?" She snapped pulling her hands from Draco's to clench them at her sides.

"That isn't important here. Your life is in danger and I need his head in the game. I don't want to bury another person important to me."

"When isn't our lives in danger, Harry? There is always some kind of darkness that wants us dead for what we did to Voldemort. You should have told me about the letter the second it came in. Oh, and my happiness is important to me."

Harry remained wordless. He knew that she was right in the fact that he should have told her about the threat. She took a step back, behind Draco's tall frame. It hurt to know that she trusted him more than him, though he couldn't blame her. He wronged her and that was going to take some time to heal. "I'm sorry, Hermione. I really thought I could do this without having you bury yourself in more work than you already do."

"That was my choice to make. Tell Kingsley that I'm taking a few days off."

"Of course..."

"I need a shower, Draco..."

He walked towards the hallway to open the small closet across from the bathroom to pull a large dark green towel then walked into his bedroom to find her something to wear. Pulling out a black t-shirt and a pair of sleep pants, he handed them to Hermione. She nodded as she stepped into the bathroom, closing the door behind her. "You better keep her safe, because if anything happens to her...The Ministry will be the least of your worries." Harry stated opening the door, then slamming it shut behind him.

XxXxXxXx

Hermione stood under the hot spray of water. The words of her best friend rolled across her mind over and over again. Someone wanted to end her life and took Janey's because of it. That was a lot to take in and it hurt more than she was willing to admit. Janey was full of life and her smile could brighten anyone's day. Now that was gone and it was her fault. "Was this how Harry felt during our years in school?" She asked herself mentally.

Turning the water off, she slid the curtain open. The cold air hit her skin sending chills up her spine, prickling her skin with goosebumps. Wrapping the towel around herself, the softness embraced her. The clothes he had given smelled of him, putting her a little more at ease. Finally emerging from the bathroom, she realized that Harry had left and Draco was sitting on the couch with his back to her. He looked as if he was reading something. "Come here, there is something else you should see." He said without turning to look at her.

She padded across the room, turning around the corner to sit down next to him. On the coffee table, there sat a report and the book that was missing from her office. "Harry also gave this to me a week ago. He wanted me to see if there was a connection between the threat and this sighting." He explained.

"Was there one?"

"None that I could find so far; but of course, I had no clue what I was looking for. This is something you specialize in, not me. That why I kinda took the book."

"I see that..."

No matter how mad she wanted to get at him, it still wasn't as bad as the hurt she felt when it came to Harry hiding things from her. Janey's death was on her conscious and that wasn't going to go away either. "I just feel numb..." She admitted.

"I'd say that's pretty normal. You lost something you were close to."

"Thank you for letting me stay here tonight."

"I wasn't going to let you sleep on the street or your office. You know...that food is still in the fridge if your hungry."

She had forgotten all about the dinner he had made for them to share before all hell broke loose. A slight smile appeared on her lips as he stood up, holding his hand out to her. Hermione hesitantly placed her own into his, with him lifting her up to stand against him. The hard muscles of his chest were under her palms, begging to be explored. "You know, you look fucking sexy in my clothes." He whispered at her ear.

His warm breath caressed the sensitive flesh. The way he spoke the words as if they held all the meaning in the world. She stood frozen, watching him move around the kitchen to heat up the food from earlier. Draco noticed her rigid stance and chuckled softly to himself, realizing that he caught her by surprise with his comment. It wasn't a lie, he did find her extremely hard to resist while dressed in his clothes. Something about it drove his cock to harden just looking at her. "Why don't you sit down." He said pulling a chair out from the small round table centered in the middle of the kitchen.

Hermione took the offer and tried her damnest not to look at him. He was dressed in bed clothes that consisted of a white t-shirt that was practically see-through and black sleep pants that hung low to his hips. She had seen him dressed this way once before, remembering how her body reacted to it then. Now that she has experienced his skillful lips, the reaction was most definitely more intense.

Slouching forward, she rested her head over her crossed arms. Suddenly her eyes felt heavy once again, trying so hard to fight against sleep. Draco turned from the oven to see Hermione laying across the table. Letting out a sigh, he knew that she was asleep again. "You will be the death of me." He commented softly closing the distance between them.

Bending down, he slid an arm under legs and one around her shoulders. Lifting up, he held onto her bridal style in his arms. She snuggled against his chest unconsciously, which made his heart race with the smallest gesture. He carried her to his bed room and laid her down gently, allowing her head to snuggle into the pillow. Pulling the blankets up, he bent back down to place his lips against her temple. "I will protect you..." He whispered before turning away from the bed.

"Thank...you...Draco..." She answered just as softly.

"Goodnight..."

There was no answer. Leaving the room, he returned to the kitchen where the food he had made was in the oven heating. Once again, he turned the heat off and re-covered the dish in foil before putting it back in the fridge. Making sure the door was locked, he shut the lights off then made his way to the couch. Collapsing upon it, he lay back staring at the ceiling replaying the nights events in his head over and over again.

He just had to protect Hermione from whoever was out to get her. There had to be a way to find out who before anything bad happened to her. It wasn't just Harry's threat that bothered him. He would never forgive himself if he allowed her to get hurt. In the short amount of time they spent together, his attraction to her has grown. More than he ever thought it could grow. It scared him just as much as it scared him to loose her to the enemy. That was all the motivation he needed to keep her safe. It wasn't too much longer and sleep finally took over, allowing his mind to finally be at ease. At least for the time being.