Author Note: Thank you for all the concerns and comments you've given me, it means a lot. Everything is okay now. Hopefully I'll be able to get these chapters out a little more quicker than before. Onto number twelve, let me know what you think.

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Chapter 12:

December 10th

Hermione awoke fairly early and sat up in the bed she now called her own, at least for the time being. She knew that Draco was just down the hall in his own room, which gave her a little sense of security knowing that he wasn't that far away if she needed anything. The problem now was that her mind just wouldn't rest. It was going in a million different directions, most of which were about Janey and the death threat; but others were on Draco himself.

Her feelings for him were growing and couldn't understand where things changed between them. Though, it didn't matter when it happened. She just knew that it had and her heart was racing at the mere thought of his lips on hers or his hand brushing against the skin of her hip. The way he looked at her was full of sincerity, no hidden motives.

She rolled to her side and then stood up out of bed. Her bare feet hit the cold wooden floor, sending a chill up her back. Grabbing the soft robe draped over the arm of the only piece of furniture in the room other than the bed itself, she slid her arms through the silky material. Quietly, she made her way out into the living room where the sun was just rising over the building of the city.

Snow had fallen sometime in the night, causing the white to reflect the light from the sun intensifying the brightness. She turned to look at the Christmas tree in the far corner of the room. The decorations she had given him were neatly hung on the branches and a real smile finally tugged at her lips for the first time since Janey's death.

"You're up early." Draco said startling her from the thoughts inside her mind.

"Couldn't seem to sleep any longer." She replied turning around to look at him.

His pants hung low to his hips while he remained shirtless, exposing his surprisingly well toned chest and abdomen. She never realized just how good of a shape he was in. It made her question if Quidditch was really that physically demanding. She also knew that he no longer played for a reason no one knew about, though she was sure that he had been asked a million times over to continue.

Her fingers itched with the need to touch his bare skin. His low chuckle allowed her to refocus on reality and not her inner desires. Draco took the opportunity to close the gap between them and stand next to her. "You seem a little...lost in thought. What are you thinking about?" He asked obviously knowing that his appearance was making her nervous.

Closing her eyes for a second, she shifted around to look back out the window. He blinking a couple times, realizing that there really was something going on in her head. Pushing the desire down, he reached out for her hand. "What do you think happened to her?" She asked after a few moments of silence between them.

"Janey?"

"Yeah..."

"Judging from all the stuff you took from her apartment...I'd say she knew the person who wants you dead and was probably a part of it at first, until..."

He stopped himself to really think about what he was going to say next. Hermione noticed the hesitation and pulled her hand out of his to turn back around. She saw his expression and was almost stunned by it. His eyes were closed, his lips no longer with a teasing smile. There was nothing but remembrance for him. "Draco..." She called, concern etched in her voice.

"I can relate to her...if that's how it all went down. If she was against you in the beginning and then grew to like as time passed...I can relate."

"Draco...you were taught to hate people like me. I don't fault you for that."

He let out a sigh as he stepped away from her. She watched him back away and retreat down the hall. Biting her bottom lip, she gave chase and followed him to his bedroom. He opened his closet door and pulled out one of his uniforms for the Ministry. She knew that he was going to leave for work soon enough and the tension from the prior conversation was eating at her.

She leaned against the frame of the open door, staring at his bare back. Several scars littered the pale skin. Assuming that they came from the war or at some point before it, she put the question at the back of mind. "I used to hate everything you stood for. The fact you were smarter than me just pissed me off more. Of course, my parents weren't happy with the knowledge that a muggle born witch was getting better scores than me and they were constantly yelling at me to do better."

Hermione listened to him express his feelings, which was entirely new for her. She never knew him to be open about anything. She also hadn't known what pressures his parents put on him. To her, it seemed ridiculous and unfair. "Instead of being the better person, I called you names and took great pleasure in the hurt it caused you. Until...I saw you laying on the foyer floor in my own home with my aunt taking pleasure in causing you pain..."

"Draco..."

"I hated you...and now when I look at you..."

"What? What do you see now?"

She was curious now. What was he going to tell her about what he saw now? What he expressed were things she already knew. She knew that he changed from day his aunt tortured her and the day she stuck up for him in the elevator at the Ministry. Draco finally turned around to look at her. Hermione took a couple steps in his direction. His hand cupped the side of her face, drawing her in closer. She couldn't help but enjoy the feeling of his touch on her flesh. There was so much comfort surrounding it.

"I see a woman who is my equal in every sense of the word."

Never in a million years did she think that he would say such words to her; but in that moment it didn't matter. He had said them and her heart was racing because of it. She rested her hand on his chest, feeling his warm skin under her fingertips. Unconsciously, she moved her hand up to touch the side of his face and brush his bottom lip with the pad of her thumb. "I need to go." He said softly stepping back away from her touch.

"Okay..."

She backed away, leaving his room to give him privacy to change. She entered her room and quickly put on some clothes. There were some things she needed to do today. She also had to decide whether or not to take the offer to teach at Hogwarts for a couple months. Stepping into the kitchen, Draco was slipping into his coat. Hermione tried to smile at him; but the fact was, she didn't want him to go at all. "I won't be long today." He said picking up his briefcase.

"I'll be fine."

"You better be."

He placed his lips on her forehead before walking out of the apartment. She frowned in disappointment. There was a distance about him ever since Pansy showed up the day before. She didn't think the woman had said anything that would have caused the reaction or maybe she was just reading too much into things.

She waiting a little bit longer before putting on her shoes. She knew that she had to give him enough time to get far enough away that he didn't see her leave. Once outside, the little flurries of snow were beginning to fall from the semi-clouded sky. It always amazed her quickly the weather could change considering it had been pretty sunny a little over an hour ago.

The streets were busy with traffic as she continued to walk down the sidewalk towards where police tape had cut off a large section of land. The place where she once called home. It was nothing but a dark mass of chard wood and busted out glass. The plants that once surrounded the building were now piles of ashy snow.

Putting her hands into the pockets of her coat, she just stared at the burned memories. She remembered moving in. Harry, Ginny, Ron and Lavender had all been there to help. It was right before the depression of having no family set in really hard. Harry and Ginny just had their first child. She could still remember the baby's cries as her friend cradled him, loving him like only a mother could. Ron and Lavender were still fresh into marriage, not really thinking of kids just yet. It was then that she truly felt alone.

"Miss Granger?" A familiar voice called to her, bringing the memories to an end.

"Aiden. I never thought I'd see you again." She said turning to see who owned the voice.

"Likewise. I'm glad your okay. This was an awful night for a lot of us."

"I know. I'm okay. Have you heard anything about what caused the fire?"

Aiden looked at her curiously. She studied his facial features for any signs of information withheld. There was hesitation clearly written there; but nothing more. "No, I haven't. I'd like some answers to. My girlfriend died in that fire." He answered.

"I'm sorry for your loss, Aiden. I lost someone to."

"Take care, Hermione."

"You too..."

Aiden walked away, leaving Hermione alone once again. She looked at the destruction one more time before continuing on. Crossing the street at the crosswalk, she made her way into the park to look at the oversized Christmas tree. Sitting down on the bench, she overlooked at everyone walking the pathways or ice skating on the frozen pond.

XxXxXx

Draco made a point to visit Harry's office first thing. He wanted to tell him about the information Hermione had taken from Janey's apartment and then ask why it hadn't been collected by the Aurors in the first place. That just seemed odd to him that they wouldn't search her apartment if her death wasn't an accident.

"Mister Malfory, so good of you to come to work today." Stewart Lyons stated the moment he stepped into the Auror office.

Ignoring his comment, he walked passed him and headed straight for Harry's door. Not bothering to knock, he opened the door to see the man behind his desk signing a mountain of papers. His blue-green eyes looked up from the stack to see Draco standing there with his arms crossed over his chest. "Good morning, Draco. What can I do for you?" He greeted sitting his quill down on the desk.

"Why wasn't Janey's apartment searched when her death was ruled a murder?"

"How do you know it wasn't?"

"Hermione went there last night and searched it. She found papers linking her to the person that wrote the death threat. If it had been searched, you would have that information."

Harry raised an eyebrow at the man in front of him. Scooted the chair out a little so he could stand up, he stepped out around the desk to stand before him. Draco never moved from his position in front of the door. "What kind of information are we talking?" Harry asked leaning back against the edge of the wood of the desk.

"There is a letter from the person telling Janey there would consequences for not getting the job done. I'm assuming Janey had been a part of it and then turned against the cause. She died protecting Hermione."

"Where are these papers?"

"At my place. They aren't going to be able to be used for anything. Hermione found them illegally. She's not assigned to the case and I was off duty at the time, so I can't say I found them."

Harry narrowed his brows. The frustration was setting in. He wanted nothing more than to find who wanted his best friend dead and put them away for good. It was becoming harder and harder to do just that. Draco was the only person who was willing to help, it would seem to him. The Aurors in the office behind them were either new and had no clue what to do or just didn't care about the case. "I assigned it to Lyons. I'll bring him in later and ask him what happened with the investigation." Harry answered.

"You do that, because personally I want to punch him in the face right now. It's a good thing I'm leaving then."

"You care about her, don't you?"

Draco stopped dead in his tracks just as his hand went for the knob on the door. He never expected to be called out on his feelings for Hermione. How was he supposed to answer that question when Harry was her best friend and was like a brother to her? Thinking about her only brought the rapid beating of heart back. The way she looked at him this morning was more than enough to know that their feelings were mutual. "I do." He replied simply, hoping it would be enough for him to let the subject go.

"Then I hope to see you both tonight at the Christmas party."

"They changed the date?"

"Yes, with all the chaos they decided it would be best to do it now."

He nodded and then walked out of the room, closing the door behind him. Not bothering to make eye contact with anyone else, Draco left the building. Outside, the snow was starting to fall a little heavier. Walking down the steps, he stopped a moment to focus his sight. Hermione was standing outside one of the corner shops looking in the window.

A smile tugged at his lips despite knowing that she shouldn't be out alone. She was simply beautiful standing there with the snow falling on her hair. He finally decided to make his way towards her and see what she was looking at. "What are you doing?" He asked stepping to stand right next to her.

She didn't answer at first. He looked in the window and saw what she was looking at. The dress on the mannequin was a lavender color, made of the finest silk in London. The straps were thin and material dipped down low to show some cleavage. "Looking at stuff. I was bored and went for a walk to clear my head."

"Did it help?"

"A little bit...yes. Then I saw how beautiful this dress was and it distracted me from going back to the apartment."

"You like the dress?"

"Oh yes, it's gorgeous."

He took her hand and proceeded to pull her with him. She was confused as to what he was doing when he opened the door to the store. A middle-aged woman with long ash brown hair streaked with gray. Her eyes were bright blue and a smile that was wide and cheerful. "Welcome, is there something I can help you with?" She asked flattening out the wrinkle in her blouse.

"Yes, this lovely lady right here saw the dress in the window and fell in love with it." Draco answered in his best well mannered voice.

"Oh wonderful. That is our newest design and comes in three different colors. Though, I must say it is our most expensive design."

"Price isn't an issue."

Hermione lost all words. Was he really considering buying that dress for her? The woman turned to look at her. "Let's get you sized and then I'll see what colors I have for you." The lady said softly pulling Hermione with her to the other side of the shop, leaving Draco alone to look at everything else in the building.

He knew the woman for having a reputation of being one of the best designers in England. His mother talked about her often enough for him to recognize the name on the outside of the window. Glancing back at Hermione, she looked up at him with a confused expression. He found it to be adorable. "Well...it looks like I have your size in red, lavender and light blue. So it's your choice, my dear."

"Draco...you don't need to do this for me." Hermione protested.

"Sure I do, the Christmas party is tonight and I plan on taking you with me." He answered with a coy smile.

Hermione was once against stunned by his answer. She hadn't intended on showing up to the party; but as it turned out, there was someone who wanted to go with her and was willing to buy a dress for her just for the occasion. "Lavender." She answered finally.

"A wonderful color for your complexion."

The woman folded the dress neatly into a box. Draco paid for the item and handed the box to Hermione, who took the present with shaky hands. She had no idea what to say to him. The dress was a lot of money and he had already spent enough on her to get new clothes after the fire. He had done so much for her and he wasn't even her boyfriend. Just a friend that has kissed her in the past and explored her body.

They spent the rest of the walk in silence, not knowing what to say to each other. Draco opened the door and allowed her to step inside first. She placed the box on the kitchen table and then slid her coat off her shoulders. "Are you okay?" He asked taking her coat from her hand.

"I'm fine...just a little dumbfounded is all."

"Why? Because I bought you that dress?"

"Well...yeah..."

He let out a soft chuckle at her expense. Her back was against the counter when he got closer to her. Her bottom lip curled between her teeth out of nervous habit. His warm breath tickled the sensitive skin of her neck. "It is going to look amazing on you. I wanted to see you in it tonight. No reason to be dumbfounded about the things I do for you. I do them because I want to."

"I'm not used to people buying me things. I'm sorry if I sound ungrateful."

"Don't worry about it. You accompany me to the Christmas party and it will be even."

"Fair enough."

He kissed her temple and then walked back to his bedroom to change. Hermione took hold of the box again and carried it to her room. She had no idea what to expect when it came to the work party. There will be so many questions about the death threat and then the obvious questions about Draco. How was she supposed to answer those questions when she didn't have the answers?