DISCLAIMER: I don't own Harry Potter, nor am I affiliated in any way with J.K. Rowling.

Hermione was tired…so tired. Her eyelids fluttered, unsure if they can stay up by themselves. Her whole body felt like it was made of concrete. The only thing that seemed to be working properly were her ears, as she could hear voices:

"Do you think Zella had anything to do with this?"

"Wouldn't put it past her. Stupid ghost doesn't have any respect for sleeping schedules."

"How did she even get in here?"

"Dunno. Rumour is some third year found her collapsed and alerted the professors. Could just be rubbish though…"

"Well, we can ask her when she…hey, is she waking up?"

Hermione felt a cold hand press against her forehead and she tried to frown but her muscles weren't responding as she wanted them to.

"G'off," she muttered irritably.

"What?" the voice she now recognized as Harry's murmured as he leant down closer to hear her.

"Get off," Hermione repeated, slowly coming around from what felt like being hit with eighteen thousand broomsticks at once.

"Oh. Sorry."

His hand lifted and Hermione opened her eyes fully. Ron and Harry were stood over her anxiously.

"Hi," she whispered, her throat scratching as she tried to get the word out. She coughed and grimaced at the pain it brought. "Ouch. My throat feels like I drank sandpaper."

"She's not making any sense," Ron said worriedly. "Should we get Pomfrey?"

"I am making sense," Hermione insisted. She flicked her eyes around the room. "Why am I in the hospital wing?"

"You collapsed the other night," Harry explained gently, perching on the side of her bed. "Someone found you and brought you in here. Madam Pomfrey gave you a potion or something that enabled a dreamless sleep. You've been out for awhile."

"How long is awhile?" Hermione asked, suddenly concerned. How many classes had she missed?

"It's Monday night now and you passed out Saturday night," Ron told her, standing awkwardly on the other side of the bed. "We were really worried."

"Did you get my homework?" Hermione asked, her hand falling on Harry's as she looked up at him seriously.

"Yes," Harry smiled. "Of course we did. You got a surprising amount of it considering you were only asleep for one school day."

"I should get up," Hermione told herself decisively, although she felt nowhere near ready to do so.

"Oh, no you don't," Ron answered, pushing her back down gently when she made to sit up. "You're exhausted, don't try and deny it. You need to rest. The professors don't have a problem with it…well, except for Snape. Miserable bugger."

"He's going to be so mad at me," Hermione groaned, closing her eyes.

"Don't worry about it," Harry assured. "No doubt I'll breathe the wrong way or do something else to direct his anger back at me."

"The way it should be," Hermione nodded with a weak laugh. She tried and failed to stifle a yawn. "What was in that sleeping potion anyway? It's really strong."

"It's supposed to be," Harry told her. "We'll leave you to get some more sleep."

"Yeah, visiting hours are nearly over anyway," Ron agreed. "Night Hermione."

"Goodnight," Hermione smiled back to both boys.

As Hermione sank back into the pillow and closed her eyes, Harry and Ron walked out of the darkened, cavernous room. As he had been the previous times they had visited Hermione, Draco Malfoy stood waiting for them outside the hospital wing doors.

"How is she?" he asked, the same as he had done previously.

"Awake," Ron answered shortly.

He wasn't happy with their arrangement. On Sunday morning they had discovered Malfoy about to enter the hospital wing and quizzed him on it. When it was revealed that he was there to visit Hermione, neither Harry or Ron took it very well. In fact, the phrase 'get the hell lost' may have been used. Several times. A grudging agreement had finally been reached that, although Malfoy wasn't to go anywhere near Hermione when she was so vulnerable, he could be updated on her progress.

"So I can see her?" Malfoy pressed, standing up straight against the wall he had been leaning on.

"No," Harry scowled. "She'll be back asleep soon anyway."

"More the reason for me to see her now," Malfoy told him, his jaw tightening. "I wouldn't want to see her if it wasn't important."

"Your definitions of important are surprisingly insignificant," Harry told him with narrowed eyes, silently thanking that Hermione's vocabulary had apparently rubbed off on him. "So no. You aren't going to go anywhere near her while she's still in the hospital wing."

Malfoy narrowed his eyes and leant towards Harry threateningly.

"Fine," he hissed. "When she mysteriously collapses again, you'll have no one to blame but yourself."

"Is that a threat?" Ron asked, his fist clenching.

"It's a fact," Malfoy corrected coldly. "You know as well as I do that she can't take sleeping potions for the rest of her life. Her nightmares will catch up to her and next time I might not be there to-"

"What do you have anything to do with her fainting?" Harry interjected angrily. There was a pause as comprehension dawned. "You took her to the hospital wing?"

"Against my better judgement," Malfoy said with a smug nod. "If I'd have known that I wouldn't get anything out of it then I would've left her there."

Thwack!

Ron smacked his knuckles into Malfoy's face, almost quivering with rage.

"Ron, leave him!" Harry shouted as Malfoy looked set to lunge forward after recoiling. He stepped in front of his best friend, glowering at Malfoy.

"I knew you'd bring Hermione nothing but trouble," Ron spat. "Stay away from her!"

"Ron," Harry murmured, glancing backwards. "Come on, let's just go. He's not worth it."

"Damn right," Ron growled, glaring at Malfoy.

After a few more moments of silent yet heated tension, Ron stalked away. Harry followed him quietly, pausing only to shoot a warning glare at Malfoy.

Draco, of course, ignored all the looks of hatred he had been thrown. He was too preoccupied with the consuming anger coursing through his body. For the first time in his life, he had actually tried to help somebody. Yes, it had also benefited him but only to a certain extent. He should've just taken her damn necklace from day one. Would've saved him a lot of trouble. A lot of trouble.

He lifted his eyebrows as an idea struck him. Visiting hours at the hospital wing were almost over, but they weren't just yet. And Potter and Weasley had stormed off so couldn't know if he sneaked in…

He opened the doors resolutely and glanced behind himself before closing them again quietly.

"Visiting hours are almost over, Mr. Malfoy," Madam Pomfrey warned as Draco strolled casually over to where Granger lay.

"This won't take long," he promised her. "Hello," he added in surprise as Granger looked up at him through eyes that were struggling to stay open. "I thought you'd be asleep."

"So did I," Granger replied in voice so laden with weariness that it made her sound like a child. "But maybe the potion doesn't kick in for a couple of minutes?"

So he had a couple of minutes to pass before he took her necklace. Fun.

"Do you…" he cleared his throat awkwardly. "Do you remember anything about the night you fainted?"

"Not really," she answered, then closed her eyes for so long that Draco thought she had fallen asleep.

He leant forward to remove her necklace before jumping back as she spoke again.

"I remember that I was with you though, so chances are that you were the one who brought me here?"

"What?" Draco asked, almost spluttering. "W-why would I want to do something…I mean, you're a-"

"Don't worry, I won't tell anyone," Granger assured him with a small laugh. "Otherwise your reputation as Evil personified would be ruined, am I right?"

Draco chuckled and almost immediately flinched. Since when do I chuckle?

"Right," he instead settled for answering.

He had no problem letting Potter and Weasley know that he was the one who had helped their friend, but for some reason he couldn't tell the girl herself. Didn't matter anyway. Once she discovered that he had stolen her necklace she wouldn't want anything more to do with him. Which was good. He could do without her constant references to a text that he hadn't read, even if she could be funny sometimes. And, yes, okay, he would miss having someone intelligent around, even if he spent a lot of the time visualizing bad things happening to her friends. Of course, he didn't have to steal the necklace…but then, things would prove difficult for him in the long run. No, it was better to go with the instincts he was used to and just fend for himself.

"Draco?" Granger murmured, catching him completely off-guard. This was due more to the fact that she had called him by his first name than anything else.

"Uh…yeah?" was his intelligent response.

"I'm glad you're here," she finished off, her eyes slowly sliding closed. "And thanks for bringing me here when I fainted. I had a theory about that but I guess that I forgot…"

Her words became more and more indistinguishable until she stopped talking completely.

"That was odd," Draco muttered, making a mental note to keep Granger away from any further sleeping potions, as it obviously made her delusional.

He found that his hands were shaking slightly as he looked around the room for any potential witnesses. When he saw none, everyone in the relatively empty hospital wing either asleep or being tended to, he slipped his hand under the unconscious Granger's neck and felt for the clasp of her necklace.

"Merlin, you have a lot of hair," he told her as strands of it tickled his wrist. "Seriously, do you never get this cut or has it always had the consistency of a forsaken shrub?"

He found the clasp and reached with his other hand to undo it. But the stupid, fiddly little thing wouldn't undo. Thinking that it was stuck fast, he yanked the chain roughly in such a way that, if she hadn't been heavily sedated, Granger would've screamed at him for. When it didn't yield, he scowled and repeatedly tugged at it. He was definitely no jewellery expert, but something was amiss here.

The necklace wouldn't come off.

The necklace would not come off!

"Wonderful," he hissed, trying to pull the necklace apart.

"Mr, Malfoy, what on earth are you doing?"

Draco jumped and quickly retracted his arms. However, Madam Pomfrey folded her arms impatiently and glared at him for a response.

"I…lost something," Draco improvised.

"Under Miss. Granger's neck?" was the highly sceptical response.

"…Yes?"

Madam Pomfrey's face softened suddenly and she uncrossed her arms.

"I know that this must be a difficult time for you, with Hermione unconscious. I know that you must miss her terribly." She patted a horrified Draco on his arm sympathetically. "If you want to spend more alone time with her then I won't begrudge you it."

"Thanks?" Draco managed, his face a frozen mask of ill-concealed distaste.

"Of course," Madam Pomfrey said with a smile and an understanding nod. "You just hold in there."

She walked away, murmuring to herself about the beauty of young love. Draco, meanwhile, suddenly felt like downing the entire contents of the potions cabinet in an effort to forget that conversation. A healer thought a Pureblood was in love with a Mudblood? It was like a sketch show, a very badly scripted, unrealistic sketch show.

He shook his head determinedly to get rid of the sudden mental image. Giving up on stealing the necklace (again; he was the worst would-be thief ever) he nodded goodnight to the unconscious Granger and left.

A/N:

Hello and Merry Christmas (Happy Holidays)! This was somewhat of a filler chapter, although there are a couple of hints about what's to come in the future. Thanks for your reviews, they are so very much appreciated! :D

Now, because I'm in a good mood from plotting the downfall of my ex (bad break-up, don't ask :P) and because it's Christmas and because I have a strong - yet healthy - affection for you, gentle reader, I'd like to write some Dramione fluff. You don't have to read it because it isn't related to the future plot of 'Echo' in any way. It's just, y'know, a random happy drabble.

Anyway, happy holidays everybody!

- Momo

"Grang…uh, Hermione, wait a second!" Draco called, still finding her first name foreign on his tongue.

Hermione stopped treading through the snow and turned around, smiling as she saw who had called her name. Harry and Ron stiffened beside her, still uncertain about their new truce with their once-enemy. They watched Draco walk briskly across the grounds, his scarf flapping in the light yet icy breeze, until he reached them.

"Draco," Hermione greeted in a voice warm enough to melt the snow around them.

Ron and Harry nodded in a way that was between cold and friendly. Draco responded in the same way before turning to Hermione, the only one who actually seemed glad to see him.

"Take a walk?" he asked awkwardly, his breath misting in front of him.

"That's kind of what I'm doing," she said with a slight laugh, gesturing around herself.

"I meant, with me," Draco corrected, daring to glance at her.

"Okay," she answered before turning worriedly to her friends. "I mean, if that's-"

"Just go," Harry told her with a smile. "Consider it our Christmas present to you."

Draco and Hermione began their walk, trying to hold a conversation and avoid being bombarded with magic snowballs. One was difficult but combine the two and it made for an uncomfortable walk.

"So, they give you a walk with me as a Christmas present?" Draco tried, raising his voice above the playful shouts of the lower years around them. "Seems like more of a consolation prize to me."

"They'll get me something else," Hermione assured him, looking ahead to the forest which seemed more enchanted than usual under the cover of winter. "Although it might be another box of chocolates…they're not always great with Christmas presents for girls."

"Who is?" Draco muttered, conscious of the small, badly wrapped parcel in his gloved hand.

"Yes, because boys are easy to buy for," Hermione scoffed, kicking a small mound of snow out of the way.

"We are!" Draco protested. "It's difficult to get a girl something. They're stupid."

"What?"

"No, that's not what I meant!"

"Really? Because it sounded to me like you just called my entire gender stupid. That's a rather rash generalization."

Draco floundered for a moment before he realized that Hermione was joking. A small but playful smile had appeared on her lips. It lit up her whole face, Draco noticed with fascination.

"I meant that they're stupid to buy for," he corrected. "It's difficult to get them something personal but not too personal."

"That applies to boys as well." She glanced up and stopped walking. "Where are we going, by the way?"

"A little further," he told her. When she didn't start walking, he frowned slightly but tried to hide it with a joke. "What's the matter, don't trust me?"

Hermione smiled and began to walk with him, but remained silent.

"I suppose it's understandable that you don't trust me yet," Draco muttered, more to himself that to Hermione.

"I trust you," Hermione assured him with a smile that made Draco's heart skip a beat. "I'd maybe trust you a little more if I knew where we were going though."

"But that would ruin the surprise," he pointed out with a roll of his eyes.

Unable to argue with this, Hermione remained silent until the trees of the Forbidden Forest began to impose upon them.

"Draco?"

"Just a little further," he promised again.

"You're really abusing my trust here," she joked with an undercurrent of hesitation.

Still, she followed him into the forest until they came to a small clearing where the snow lay beautifully untouched. The trees stood around them, tall and proud. Icicles hung from their branches like decorations.

"I got you something," Draco blurted out suddenly. "For Christmas."

Hermione tore her eyes away from their surroundings to look at him. He offered her a small gift and she took it curiously.

"Was I stupid to buy for?" she teased.

"Incredibly," Draco groaned.

She laughed and tore at the wrapping paper. Like any boy, Draco had stuck Spellotape anywhere and everywhere and hoped for the best. It made the present difficult to get into but she was determined. Her gloved hands trembled slightly and she hoped he didn't notice.

"It's nothing much," Draco hastened to explain as Hermione got closer to unwrapping the paper.

"I'm sure it's…" she trailed off as the wrapping paper fell to the ground. She held up a golden brooch inset with red gems and turned it over and over. "Wow," she breathed.

The gems spelt out the letters HG in a subtle, understated way. The brooch was circular with wavy edges and Hermione couldn't remember when she had last seen something so delicately stunning. She caressed it gently before pinning it to her chest and looking back up at Draco.

"Thank you," she murmured. "But…"

"You don't like it?" Draco guessed worriedly.

"I love it," Hermione corrected. "But you didn't have to, was what I was going to say."

"I wanted to," Draco told her. "I know that Pott…Harry and Ron haven't completely forgiven me yet but you've made me feel welcome."

So it's just a thank you gift, Hermione thought, unable to quell the crushing disappointment she felt. Well, what else had she thought it meant?

"Thank you," she repeated, turning around so Draco couldn't see her eyes, stupidly filling up with tears. She was so ungrateful.

She jumped slightly when Draco's hand rested softly on her shoulder. She tilted her head around, surprised but unmoving when she realized how close they were to one another. He was standing so closely behind her that she could feel his breath on the back of her neck.

"I'd hoped you'd like it," he told her quietly. "It took me ages to find. I wanted something that was just right. Something that you deserved."

"You think I deserve nice things?" Hermione asked with a smile.

"You deserve so much more," Draco answered sincerely.

Hermione took a deep breath and turned around quickly. What she had been about to say died on her lips. Draco was so close. It would be uncomfortable in any other situation. But neither pulled away.

"Thank you," she whispered, and leant in towards him.

She kissed him.

Just once.

Just lightly.

But still, a kiss.

Then she pulled away.

"Merry Christmas," Draco said, when he found his voice.

And then he kissed her back.