Here's the next chapter- yay! Hope you enjoy it. More of the cute Draco we love and a little of the pissed off Draco we're used to. McGonagall and Draco are slightly OOC, btw...

Surprisingly, as Hermione fell asleep, Draco noticed she looked less strained and more content in his arms. He leaned against the headboard of her bed while she curled further into his chest. Her tears had soaked his shirt but, instead of pushing her away, he only held her tighter. All those hours today I spent pissed as hell at her and she was up here crying! I am the worst excuse for a human being EVER! He needed to get rid of his pent up anger, but it would have to wait since he had promised not to leave her. It wouldn't really matter if he left, since she was asleep now, but he felt like he owed it to her to stay. Draco sighed.

The one thing he was having trouble wrapping his mind around was the information he had read in the second letter. Everyone thought that the Line of Gryffindor died off years ago. Could I really… could I really be holding the last descendent in my arms right now? There had been rumors when the last descendent and his wife died… some said their daughter died with them and others said she had been hidden away… Did her parents really send her off to live with Muggles!? I suppose that would be a damn good way to keep other Wizards from taking advantage of her. He gasped to himself as all the pieces clicked together. Her talent with magic… her intellect… the Sorting Hat had placer her quicker than anyone else he had ever seen… It all makes sense! Draco was in awe. He couldn't believe it!

Does this mean I like her now? Well, I haven't hated her for awhile now… I mean- I wouldn't have saved her from Lucius if I hated her. Shit, this is so fucked up!

-Draco, you know you liked her before you found out all of this. You wouldn't have checked on her, whatever you think your reasons were, if you didn't like her.

Ugh, shut up! I do not like her! And even if I do, it would only be because she's a Pureblood now- well I guess she was always a Pureblood, but I know it now!

-You wouldn't have helped any other Pureblood like this, even if their parents had died.

But none of my friends' parents HAVE died!

-So you see her as a friend now?

No! I didn't say that!

Surrrrrrrrrrrrre Draco… you know you're lying to me, and I am you, which means you're only lying to yourself.

Stupid fucking head won't shut the fuck up! He couldn't believe he had just had an argument with himself, and lost! Draco shifted into a more comfortable position.

"No!" Hermione whimpered, grabbing his shirt tighter. "No, don't leave me alone!"

"Shh… I'm here." He caressed her arm, trying to soothe her. "I'm not going to leave you. You're okay." She shifted so that her head was closer to his; her eyes were closed. She's still asleep. "It's okay; it's just a bad dream."

Her sigh filled the room as she sank deeper into sleep. "Draco…"

What!? Sh-she said my name!?


Draco had barely fallen asleep when Hermione's alarm clock started screaming. Ugh! What the hell… 6:30!? That's why we never fight over the bathroom!? Hermione moaned and attempted to stretch as she woke up, hitting Draco in the process. "Oh!" She shot upright in alarm, startled to see him. Emotions flashed across her face so fast that he couldn't register them before she burst, once again, into tears. "It wasn't a dream; it really happened then!"

"Hey… you're okay! Come on, please don't cry!" Like most men, he HATED crying girls. He tried brushing away some of her tears, but more kept coming. "Umm… come on. Please?" Shit this is scary. What am I supposed to do?

"S-sorry… I just-just can't help it right now!"

He was pulling ideas out of his ass by this point. "Well… how about you take a shower and I'll get you some breakfast before class?" It came out as more of a question than a suggestion.

Hermione shook her head, trying to control her tears. "N-not going… Dum-Dumbledore said I'm excused for t-two weeks." Her eyes went wide and her hands clasped her mouth closed. She mumbled through her hands. "I-I didn't say that…"

Time to lie! "Oh… are you really that sick? –or did Weasley do something to hurt you?" Even though he knew it had nothing to do with Ron, when he jealous. What the hell!? Why am I jealous? She was still hesitant to talk to him. "Look, I know you don't like me and we definitely aren't friends, but something is really wrong and you look like you need to talk to someone… I know you're in a fight with your friends and I just… I just want you to know that I won't be an ass if you need me."

She uncovered her mouth and grabbed his hand. Hesitantly, she spoke, refusing to look at him. "Y-you… you can't…"

"I won't tell anyone."

"O-kay… I- m-my parents… th-they… my parents di- m-my parents…"

Okay, any normal person would understand that, I suppose… I guess I can save her from saying it now and still not have her be suspicious. "Shh… I understand." He pulled her into a caring embrace.

She cried harder, but partly in relief this time. "T-thank you f-for not making me s-say it… a-and for last n-night…" Hermione pulled him closer, clinging onto him for dear life. "I-I like you when y-you're nice… 's weird, b-but I like 'this' you…"

"Well… I guess I'll keep that in mind for awhile since it's the only thing that seems to calm you down somewhat." Wait, did I just say that!? And… and it's TRUE! She did calm down when I acted nice!

"Thanks Dr-Draco."


He had finally convinced her that a bath, or at the very least a shower, would help her calm down and relax. When she was done, much to his amusement, she admitted he was right. She had refused breakfast, especially since a single piece of toast had her running for the bathroom. They spent the entire morning relaxing, or at least trying to relax, on her favorite seat by the window; the beautiful view helped calm her by a considerable amount. She had freaked when she discovered he meant to skip his classes, but finally relented when he pointed out that she probably wouldn't want to be left alone all day. Both of them had gotten over the awkwardness of being nice to each other fairly quickly; they actually found that they were able to be somewhat pleasant given the present situation.

Much to his relief, he had been able to convince her to eat some soup for lunch and now she was sleeping again. She would be fine by herself after a few hours; he had something he needed to take care of. Just in case she woke, he left her a note.

Hermione

I've gone to get you some Calming Draught and Sleeping Draught from Slughorn. Don't worry, won't tell him anything.

Back Soon,

DM

McGonagall's office was in his sight. How dare she allow me to be bombarded like that! She's got another thing coming if she thinks this was over yesterday. Not bothering to knock, Draco stormed into her office, causing her to spill coffee all over the essays she was grading. If he had not been so mad, her expression would have had him cowering under a table. "Mr. Malfoy! What is the meaning of this!?"

"The meaning of this!? You want to know what the meaning of this is!? Maybe it's about the lie you told me yesterday. Did you think I wouldn't find out what was wrong with Granger!? How dare you let me walk into that situation merely thinking she was sick! I had to hold her all night to keep her from crying!"

"You… you what!?" No one, especially Professor McGonagall, would have thought Draco Malfoy was capable of showing compassion to anyone.

"Yes, I had to stay with her all night! When I tried to leave she freaked out!" He took a deep breath. "But that is not what I'm mad about!"

"You're not!? Well… what are you upset about?" She was shocked; he had shown compassion AND he wasn't pissed about doing so.

"Because you didn't tell me what was going on! I went to check on her and found her asleep from crying! And then I found those… letters! I understand about the whole adoption thing, but you couldn't at least warn me about her parents dying!? You seriously thought I would mistake her grief for sickness!?"

"Mr. Malfoy, I believe you need to sit down and stop screaming at me." He sat, although he was far from finished. "Now, Miss Granger requested that no one be informed of the deaths of her parents; not even Mr. Potter or Mr. Weasley have been informed of this. Also, I suggest you forget you ever read about her adoption. I believe that information upset her more than finding out about her parents. I apologize for lying to you, but, well the two of you have never been on friendly terms and we assumed it was for the best that we tell you she was sick."

"Merlin, I know I'm an ass and that Hermione and I have never been friends but you honestly think I wouldn't have any sympathy for her!? And, as of right now, I'm the only one she has to rely on since her friends are being complete assholes to her! Maybe you and Dumbledore, since I'm assuming that's who you mean when you say 'we,' should have listened to the gossip around school before you decided to let her deal with this herself!"

"I… I had no idea about a fight between Miss Granger and her friends; teachers try their best NOT to listen to the gossip around the school." Draco snorted. Yeah right, you teachers are worse than the students! "I will, however, speak to Professor Dumbledore about informing Mr. Potter and Mr. Weasley about the situation." McGonagall looked like she had a heavy weight pressing down on her. For a moment, she looked older than her years, a result from dealing with tragedy. "I must say, I am very impressed with you Draco. I am sorry for lying to you yesterday; I just never thought you would have stepped up for Miss Granger the way you did. I am going to award 20 points to Slytherin for your kindness. And, since Miss Granger is being excused from classes for the next two weeks, if you choose to continue the actions you have taken thus far, I will excuse you as well. If you are indeed that only person she has right now, and I will be checking with her friends, it would be best for her not to be alone."

He didn't even need to think about it, which was surprising since he would be actually helping Hermione for two weeks. "Yeah, I'll do it. And I know you think I'm only doing it to get out of class, but I'm not. We may not be friends, but I know she would do that same for me."

"That is very mature of you Draco. I must say I am very proud of the young man you have grown to be."

"Yeah, sure, thanks… Could you, umm… write me a note to get some Calming Draught and Sleeping Draught from Professor Slughorn? I told Granger that's where I was going when I came to see you, and I'm sure she's probably going to need it anyway." He stood up to leave, anxious to get back before Hermione woke up.

"Yes, yes of course." She quickly wrote out a note and handed it to him. "And Draco…" He turned around to look back at her. "Please remember to keep the adoption to yourself. Miss Granger was very adamant about keeping it secret."

"Sure, whatever…"

So what do you think? Let me know by revvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvviewing!

Not sure yet... but next chapter may have some confrontation between Harry/Ron and Draco... maybe, maybe not. Haven't started writing it yet, so anything could happen...