25 May, Tuesday, 1000 BST
Draco watched her sleep for a good hour after he woke up. It was a little after 10 a.m. Tuesday morning. She had slept soundly, probably due to fatigue. Had she been in her right mind she would have realized that she lay next to her childhood enemy.
He watched her wrinkle her nose. He smiled in spite of himself. He pushed a strand of hair off her cheek and then pulled his hand back as she stirred. He watched her eyes flutter.
He watched her take a deep breath, as she looked straight into his grey eyes. He smiled at her. She was slightly taken aback.
"Morning," he said softly, studying her face.
She gulped. "Morning to you, too, Malfoy."
He stared at her intently. "Haven't we known each other long enough to be on a first name basis, Hermione?"
He watched her turn a deeper shade of pink. She slowly got up to a sitting position. He sat up as well.
"What time is it?" she asked as she looked at her digital alarm clock.
Draco smiled to himself noting how she changed the subject. "It's, um, a little after ten in the morning," he said as he reached for the glass of water and the green pill he had pulled from the medicine canister. He handed it to her.
She nodded at him. She swallowed the pill and drank half of the glass. "Thank you," she said, and then added, "Draco."
Draco nodded at her. They sat for several moments in silence. She slowly got off the bed. Draco watched her exit the tiny bedroom. He sighed as he waved his wand, uttering the cleaning spell Scourgify. The bed righted itself. He exited the bedroom as well. He looked at the closed bathroom door before heading to the couch.
Hermione took a breath as she looked at herself in the mirror. She turned the faucet on and took a swig of water. She splashed a palm full of water on her face. She leaned against the basin.
She turned to wipe her face and then took a breath as she stared at the door. She could just stay in the bathroom for the rest of the day, she thought to herself. She closed her eyes for a moment before she stepped towards the door.
She watched as Draco lifted picture frames from her bookshelf, studying both Wizarding and Muggle photographs. She ducked back into her bedroom and pulled out a change of clothes. If Malfoy insisted on infiltrating her sanity with his presence, she was going to be as comfortable as she could be.
She changed into a dark grey gym shirt with the name Gryffindor emblazoned in maroon with gold accents. She slipped on an old pair of Muggle jeans. She ran a hairbrush through her hair before putting it up in a ponytail. She took another breath before she took hold of the doorknob. She walked out of her room barefooted onto the dark wood flooring.
Draco looked up at her as she entered the living room. She walked past him into the kitchen. He leaned against the doorway to the kitchen watching her busying herself in the small rectangular room.
She filled up the coffee carafe with water from the faucet. She poured it into the coffee maker. She opened up the canister of coffee grounds. The strong aroma wafted into Draco's nostrils. He smiled. So this is how coffee's made, he thought to himself as she spooned the appropriate number of servings into the filter that she had placed into the Muggle machine. She pressed a button that illuminated red before turning.
"Over medium, right?" she asked as he watched her open the white box that held things cold. She pulled out four eggs and a package of bacon. He watched her pull out three fry pans. He watched her pull out several vegetables as he sat at the table.
She quickly prepped the potatoes, onions and the peppers for her home fries. She turned three burners on and sprayed two pans with some sort of spray. She placed the vegetables in one pan and started to crack the first set of eggs in the other. She placed the contents of the whole package of bacon into the last pan. He was amazed at her dexterity and her ability to multitask, stirring the potatoes and the other vegetables while tending to the eggs and bacon.
"Do you need any help?" he asked taking his place next to the sink.
"Uh," she said avoiding eye contact. She finally looked in his direction. "You could pour out some coffee."
He nodded as he took the two mugs sitting next to the sink. He warily pulled the carafe from the hot plate of the coffee maker. He poured the dark liquid into one and then nodded as he got the hang of it. He had never had to pour his own cup of coffee before, let alone do any sort of menial work for himself. That's what house elves at the manor were for.
He watched her nod at the creamer and sugar station next to the coffee maker. She watched him as he placed three teaspoons of sugar into one of the mugs. She took in a breath as he placed three teaspoons of sugar and then three teaspoons of creamer into the other cup, the way she usually took her coffee.
He nodded at her as he placed the cup near her. The kitchen began to fill with the wonderful aroma of cooked breakfast items that he remembered from mornings at Hogwarts. He smiled remembering the memory. She plated the first set of eggs, over medium as he had liked it. She placed a serving of potatoes on his plate and five slices of bacon before handing it to him. He took a seat at the small kitchen table.
She finished her own over medium eggs and plated them. She shut off the burners before grabbing her plate and her cup of coffee. She headed toward the table. Draco had not started on his breakfast.
"Are you waiting for the royal poison taste tester first?" she asked as she sat down.
He started to laugh. She eventually joined in. He looked at her smiling. She took in a breath as she looked down into her coffee mug.
He took a sip as well. "Where would my manners be if I started eating before the woman of the house reached her seat?"
She took in a breath as her cheeks flushed slightly. He nodded at her as he picked up his fork to start his breakfast. He savored the taste of the simple breakfast fare. She watched him smile as she also started to tuck in.
They ate quietly for a while. She finally looked up. He was watching her intently. "How did you get in?" she asked softly already knowing the answer.
"Apparated, of course," he said taking a sip from his cup.
"In the Muggle world, that constitutes breaking and entering," she said looking up at him.
He smirked. "Well, I guess you'll just have to give me your spare set, then."
"What do you want from me, Draco?" she asked with a slight hitch in her voice.
He just smirked at her as he finished his plate. "I'm assuming you'll be back on your regular schedule," Draco nodded at her as he took a sip from his coffee mug. She looked puzzled. "Forty eight hours on forty eight off."
She nodded. She took a sip from her coffee cup, wondering what he was getting at.
"So you'll be going to the Potters' for the usual biweekly Sunday dinner," he said.
Hermione took in a breath. "How did you know about . . ." she nodded. "Know thy enemy."
Draco smirked at her. Her face flushed. "I won't let you hurt them," she said, her voice almost cracking.
"Then I suggest you be at that dinner," he said nodding at her as he stood up. "I'll be on my way. You'll be all right, I gather."
She gulped. Her eyes started to water as she watched him disapparate.
7