"MALFOY!" Ron exclaimed while Harry let out a bark of laughter.
"Oh shut up!" Hermione looked around wildly and pulled the boys into an empty classroom whilst Ginny followed with what could only be describes as a 'told you so' expression on her face and shut the door. Hermione quickly cast muffliato and turned around to see a very red in the face Ron and a completely amused Harry.
"What the hell do you mean Malfoy?"Ron growled at her.
"Oh, come on Ron." Harry laughed. "She's obviously making a joke."
"I'm not making a joke!" Hermione shot Harry and firm look. "There is a lot that has happened that you don't know, He is a completely new person to who he used to be."
"Okay now I'm starting to worry that your not joking." Harry narrowed his eyes at her.
"She's not." Ginny rubbed his shoulder sympathetically. "Believe me, I had hoped that she was kidding too when she told me."
"Draco. Bloody. Malfoy, Hermione?" Harry growled. "Okay. You have 2 seconds to tell me that this is a very elaborate joke."
Ron's face looked so red that it could explode at any minute. "Hermione, after everything, how could you possibly trust anything that slime ball has to say!" He yelled. "She's probably under the imperious curse!"
"Then give me some veritaserum!" Hermione yelled back, getting wound up, even though she had promised herself she wouldn't. "Or better yet, give it to him!I would have thought that after all these years my word would be enough on it's own."
Harry rolled his eye's, still looking furious. "And I would have thought that after all these years you would know better than to trust Malfoy!"
"Draco isn't the person you you think he is..." Hermione trailed off when she saw the looks on the boy's faces at her use of the name Draco, but she steeled herself to continue. "I swear, I hated him for ages, you both know I did, but so much has happened and he has changed so much. He doesn't want to be like his family, he wants to be good. Like I told Ginny, I would swear my life on his loyalty."
"So you're okay with this?" Ron glared at Ginny. "How long have you known?!"
"Not long." Ginny snapped back sharply at Ron. "And I reacted the same way that you both did. But then I remembered that this is Hermione." She emphasized her name give both of the boys a hard stare. "If we can't trust Hermione, who can we possibly trust?"
"Well, Draco Malfoy apparently." Harry said sarcastically before getting a smack to the arm from Ginny.
"Oh bugger." Hermione sighed exasperated as she looked at the clock on the classroom wall. "I have patrol duties in 10 minutes."
"Maybe you should go anyway Hermione." Ginny sighed. "It might be better if I explain things to them."
"Okay, I'll see you guys tomorrow." Hermione darted out of the room, avoiding Ron and Harry's still incredulous stares.
She closed the door behind her and headed up the corridor to the other side of the castle where her and Draco's common room is. She sighed, thinking of how badly she would love to go back to the simpler time before the war started to escalate and her and Draco could just enjoy each other with out the stresses of other people. It didn't seem fair to her that they got so little time to just be happy. Well, with the state of things she thought to herself, not much is fair in many people's lives right now. She shook her head to clear the negative thoughts and cheered up at the thought of a night spent with Draco before it would all change. Hermione turned the corner to see Draco waiting impatiently outside their common room, checking his watch.
Evon grinned down at him from his portrait. "I'm sure the time is exactly the same as when you checked it 10 seconds ago." He laughed.
Hermione quickly interjected before what she saw was a scathing retort about to leave Draco's mouth. "Someone is impatient today I see."
Draco took a quick look up and down the hallway as he strode towards her and planted a big kiss on Hermione, giving her a quick squeeze on the bum as he did.
"Hey!" She laughed, slapping his hands away. "Act like the Head of the school would you!"
"I'll act however I see fit thank you very much." He grinned arrogantly at her. "And I'm always impatient. You should know that by now."
"Yeah you should work on that." She grinned at him and headed down the hallway without checking to see if he was following her.
"Where were you anyway?" She shot her a sideways look as he fell in step with her.
"That's what I need to talk about..." She trailed off with a sigh. They turned around a corner to see a group of third year Hufflepuffs hanging around the corridor. After sending them on their way Hermione continued.
"Things are escalating." She felt a sad look flit across her face. "In the war, and fast. I think we will have to carry out my plan soon."
"Yes I know, my parents got a message to me." Draco slid his hand into hers.
"They told you?" Hermione looked shocked. "What do you know? I mean, when are they planning an attack?"
"They didn't say an exact date, they just said to be prepared. I swear I would tell you if I knew anything." Draco looked off into the distance. "Apparently a Death Eater at the school is a liability."
"Well that's a good thing right?" Hermione tried to be optimistic. "You don't have to be worried about being forced to do anything."
"Well not yet anyway." Draco grinned sarcastically at her.
"You don't seem very worried."
"Denial is a wonderful thing Granger."
"You would think you had no faith in me at all!"
"Yes well clearly I have complete faith in you." He jokingly fluttered his eyelashes at her.
"Okay, I'll pretend that sounded more sincere than it did." Hermione said. "We're gonna be prepared and this plan will work!"
"So when are you going to tell me the ins and outs of what is going to happen?" Draco looked at her with curiosity.
"That's what I have to talk to you about." Hermione looked over at Draco apprehensively. "We are meeting people from the Order in McGonagall's office tomorrow evening. I've just come from seeing Harry, Ron and Ginny."
"Are you telling me Potty and the weasels know about you and me?" Draco sneered.
"Get that look off your face." Hermione rolled her eyes. "You are going to have to stop calling them that. I'm not asking you to be friends but you will have to be civil. Besides, they will have a hard enough time believing you as it is, you need to help your case as much as you can."
"If you think for one second I will suck up to those idiots you have another thing coming!"
"They are not idiots!" Hermione took a deep breath and changed her tack. "I'm not having another argument tonight. The fact of the matter is, things are changing soon and you need people on your side. Tomorrow we will sort out the plans so we are ready to go."
"Ahhh, so I take it that telling them didn't go well." Draco laughed. "Well, the feeling is mutual."
"I'm not going to argue about this tonight Draco." Hermione sighed. "I'm too tired. Tomorrow, however, is another story."
A sly look flitted across Draco's face. "Well I guess that means we had better make the most of tonight." Hermione let out a squeal as he pulled her in the direction of their common room, both ready to forget the troubles of their world for the night.