'How many bags should I pack?'

Draco rolled his eyes and flipped from his stomach onto his side to watch Granger move swiftly around her room, picking up books and scarves and more books and shoving them into different piles on her kitchen counter.

'One? It's for two days Granger,' he replied incredulously and she shot him a death glare over her shoulder.

'Yes I am aware how long a weekend is Draco, thank you. I meant should I take a bag for clothes and a bag for books or should I just put them all together?'

Draco stared at her for a moment. 'No, I'm sorry. Did you just say you wanted to take an entire bag for books?'

'You know for someone so sure of himself, you really should have your intelligence levels checked. Yes, I did just say that,'

Draco shot off the couch and sprang towards her, pinning her against the counter and smirking as she dropped the book she was holding in surprise. 'Draco, I'm supposed to be packing,'

'Granger, you've been trying to pack for over an hour. And you keep getting distracted,' he leant down and placed a lazy kiss against her lips. 'How am I interrupting so much more than that book of yours?'

'You know how,' she smiled shyly and glanced up at him, pushing away his bangs with the palm of her hand.

He trailed lazy open mouth kisses along her neck, her teeth catching her pulse point before she gasped and pushed him away, a reproachful but almost disappointed look in her eyes.

'No marking me, remember?'

'Right, the Weasel would become suspicious,' Draco let his sarcasm cover the initial pang he always felt when he remembered that she wasn't his. He was her thing on the side. Her dirty little secret. But then she was his, so he couldn't really complain.

Hermione glares and rolls her eyes at his nickname for Weasley and turns her back to him, still shoving books and sweaters in the open bag. 'Yes Ronald would.'

Draco walked up behind her and slipped his arms around her waist, pressing a light kiss against her jaw. The apology he still couldn't say to her whenever his 'crudeness' ran away with him and upset her.

'Leave this till after.' His hands ran down her arms, stilling her movements. 'We have rehearsals now. Let's go,'

XXXXXXXXX

Pansy delicately dragged the brush along her fingernails, the deep purple staining her nails with just the right amount of gloss and shine. With a small smirk she flicked her eyes up to look at the people sat in a circle, waiting for the lesson to commence. Tori was shuffling through the various drafts of coursework in her lap, her eyes fluttering to the door of the hall a small knot forming between her eyebrows as she frowned. As if on cue, Draco swaggered into the room, smiling softly at Tori as he went to take his place at the seat next to hers.

'Five…four…three…two…one,' Pansy murmured under her breath, and rolled her eyes as of on the count of 0, Granger entered the classroom. How predictable. This little routine of Granger's and Draco's was not amiss to Pansy, who arched a carefully plucked eyebrow at the bushy haired girl, who blushed at her gaze and quickly pecked the Weasel, practically falling into her chair.

'Feel free to turn up as late as you want to rehearsal Granger,' Draco drawled and Granger narrowed her eyes at him, unable to come up with one of her usual annoying, witty remarks. 'Anyway Granger, Zabini- it's your turn to shine' Draco continued, nodding his head at the stage behind him.

XXXXXXXXX

Leah shifted through the mail, her phone pressed between her ear and shoulder as her friend Katy wittered on about some guy trouble she was having. She dumped the mail on the table and murmured a noncommittal noise, trying to shift her book from under the various papers. With one last tug letters and bank details fluttered to the floor and Leah squeezed her eyes shut in frustration. She shifted the phone from her left ear to her right and her hands stilled on a specific piece of paper that had fallen to the floor. She slowly stood, her nails denting the paper as her mobile fell to the floor, the battery flying across the floor.

/Three Hours Later/

'Leah?'

'Max.'

'What's wrong?'

'You've been called up. Which is strange, because I thought you'd promised to leave the army and never go back. I thought you'd promised to stay with me.'

'Leah…'

'Don't you dare. Don't you even dare, you promised me Max/'

'I can't live this life.'

'A life with me?'

'A life without the army,'

'You mean a life of safety.'

'Does it matter?'

'Considering you could die? Yeah, I'd say it does.'

'Do you hate me?'

…

'You know I couldn't.'

'You should.'

'It doesn't work that way.'

'I need to hear you say it. This, all of this, will become easier if I hear you say it.'

'Why the Hell would I do anything to make this easier for you?'

'I don't know.'

…

'I hate you.'

'I love you.'

'Cut!'

Hermione blinked as Tori's words pulled her out of her acting trance and against the bright light of the stage, she glanced down at her teacher who was grinning up at them. 'Good job guys, come down so we can work on the script that we haven't run yet,'

Blaise raised his hand and Hermione slapped his with hers, smiling as he slotted his fingers between hers and squeezed tightly, using her hand to pull him to her side.

'I hardly see you anymore my beauty,' he drawled and she tilted her head up to look at him, his tone of voice one she just couldn't place.

'Work, Work, Work,' she replied back, keeping her voice light as her eyes sought out Ron who was watching the pair darkly. She tried to subtly tug her hand of Blaise's grasp but he held on strong, keeping her near him as he stopped walking, holding her back from joining the rest of the group.

'You mean, Ron, Ron, Ron,'

'Well him too,' she smiled nervously and Blaise's eyes flashed. 'Blaise, we've been through this…'

'No Hermione, we haven't.'

'Look, I can't do this with you here okay? You want to talk find some other time, cos now is not appropriate…'

A sharp tug on her arm sent Blaise stumbling back and Hermione rocked back on her heels at the force of which the two had been dragged away from each other. Her eyes found Draco's with ease, and she immediately bought her thumb up to her mouth, chewing nervously on the nail as Draco advanced on Blaise.

'Keep your distance,'

'Woah Prof, I was just having a word,'

'You need to be professional Blaise, if you are incapable of doing that I will personally kick you off this team, do I make myself clear?'

Draco's voice rang out loudly, his tone like a drill sergeant as he stared Blaise down. Hermione quickly prayed to God this wouldn't get out of hand, that Draco wouldn't let his emotions get in the way. Protective and possessive were two words that described Draco well, and Hermione knew enough to know that this side of his nature was dangerous for the two of them.

She walked quietly back to the group as Draco jerked his head over to the others and Blaise followed his cue. She settled into the chair next to Ron and felt as he slid his hand into hers, his thumb drawing calming patterns over her skin.

She wondered if it would be like this forever. Draco the passion and Ron the calm. Problem was, she didn't know which one she couldn't live without.

XXXXXXXXX

Pansy bit her lip, smiling softly as Draco stood with his back to the group, his body obviously tense. She turned to the blonde stood next to her in the doorway and smirked, raising her eyebrows.

'Tell me darling, does that look like nothing to you?'

She watched as Queenie took a deep breath before slowly shaking her head, Pansy murmured in approval. 'There's something going on. I intend to find out what exactly it is I'm up against and then, like with everything, abolish it completely.'

'You're heartless.'

'Thank you sweetie,' Pansy said softly, leaning forward her lips dangerously close to Queenie's.

'What are you doing?' Queenie hissed, trying to jerk her head backwards causing Pansy to reach out her hand and grasp the back of the blonde's head, practically holding her in place.

'Hush now darling, no need to be frightened.'

'I am not frightened of you. You can do nothing to me now,' Queenie whispered furiously, her breath puffing out against Pansy's cheek, who smirked and trailed a newly polished fingernail down over Queenie's bottom lip.

'We shall see darling, we shall see,'

XXXXXXXXX

'It's just one weekend.'

'You never go away for the weekend/'

'Well, I am now.'

'How are you getting home, no wait, why are you going home? Your parents won't be there.'

'It's too see my aunt. It's her birthday this week and we always go and see her. Just because my parents won't be there doesn't mean I can't be. And, Dumbledore arranged for my transport.'

'I'll miss you,'

Hermione paused and turned back to Ron, a slight pained smile on her lips. Ron was rarely affectionate, at least with his words, so it was always a nice surprise whenever he would say something even resembling romance. It didn't help with the guilt though, that burning disappointment in herself and the secret pain she was causing him.

The kiss she gave him quickly got heated and she pushed her palms against his chest, turning her head away when she felt his hands slip under her top.

'Hermione…' he groaned softly, kissing her neck and just beneath her earlobe causing her stomach to twist and her legs to feel slightly weak. She couldn't deny she was attracted to him. She had been for years, but it felt… wrong. Nice, but like something very very important was missing.

'I'm sorry, just not today okay?'

'Will there ever be a 'right day'?' He asked quietly, and it was was the first time when after she had rejected him, in that kind of area, he actually looked hurt by it. Most of the time, he accepted that she wasn't quite ready to move onto such an intimate area of their relationship, but this was at least the 20th time she had pulled herself away from him, and maybe her continuous rejection had finally, got to him. She swallowed dryly, she couldn't keep up this relationship if she was able to commit herself to the 'physical' aspect of things, but the thought of not being with Ron made her head dizzy and her stomach sick. So, she did the one thing she was now very capable of doing.

She lied.

'Ronald,' she murmured softly, tugging him down for another kiss. 'Of course I want to. You must know the way I… react to you,' She pulled away gently, looking deep into his eyes and conjuring up every part of her acting ability she had.

'It's just it really really really, wouldn't be practical to engage in… that, right now,'

He frowned at her, the cute oblivious expression on his face and she smiled, shuffling nervously. 'It's my, err, my time of the-

'Oh.' Ron exclaimed, colour blooming across his freckled skin, Hermione laughed quietly, her palm against his cheek.

'That makes sense,' he uttered, pulling her in for a gentle hug as she buried her face in the crook of his neck, able to practically feel his relief at her non-rejection of him. She was a bad, bad person.

XXXXXXXXX

Draco watched as she turned the corner, sufficiently out of view of Hogwarts before he grabbed her suitcase off her and pulled her in for a brief hug. He pulled away and the two of them continued walking down the dark path to where his car was parked with the others.

'You smell like him.' He stated it. It was a fact. It was nothing more or less. A fact.

'He is my boyfriend.'

They left it there. It wouldn't be good to start the weekend on an argument, and in all truthfulness Draco wanted this to be perfect. But even he couldn't help the little bubble of nerves in his chest, because if they lasted this weekend, just the two of them, then this 'thing' they had, well, he would finally have to acknowledge that maybe there was something here.

And maybe for the first time, he really didn't want to screw it up.