Hermione sat at her table, holding the letter in her hand. She had just finished getting ready for her date with Danny when the owl arrived.

"Hermione,

I'm terribly sorry I have to do this, believe me, but I will not be able to make our date this evening. An emergency has come up at work that I cannot ignore. Hopefully we can reschedule in the future.

Yours,

Danny"

Emergency my arse.

This had Lucius Malfoy written all over it. She didn't know how, or why, but she had been found out.

Before she could think much more about the subject, a second owl arrived. She knew where it was from, and she did not want to open it. Instead she threw it in the fire, put on her coat, and stepped out into the hall.

"Ah, wonderful. I see you received my owl promptly."

She froze. How was he already in her hallway? Whatever he had written in the letter must not have required a reply. Now it seemed like she was coming out specifically to meet him.

There was no point in backtracking now. She would just have to suffer through whatever scheme he had up his sleeve.

"Alright, lets get on with it then," She grumbled.

"My my, someone is in a less than pleasant mood. What could possibly have you so put out?" His expression was one of actual concern, but in his eyes she could see that he was pleased. This was all most certainly his doing. She supposed she should have expected it. After all, he was the master of manipulation.

She had entered the ring and thought she would win the first match. That was rather foolish of her, looking back on it.

"I thought we might like some dinner before we get to business. Perhaps there is somewhere in this…area you could recommend." It almost looked as if it pained him to mention her neighborhood without blatantly insulting it. Nevertheless, she was glad to get her choice. Since he had completely ruined her evening plans, she could at least attempt to make him uncomfortable.

He noticed the way her expression changed as soon as he inquired about dinner. She seemed almost gleeful, and that worried him.

He knew she was upset about her date cancelling. She probably also knew he was behind it. He had to admit that his plan to get rid of that idiot boy from the Ministry really wasn't up to his usual level. All it took was a thinly veiled threat regarding his job status, and the little fool was shaking in his boots.

Why Granger would even want to be seen with him is beyond me. Spineless doesn't seem to be her type.

Regardless, he couldn't have afforded her being seen out with another man, especially one so incomparable to himself.

They stepped out into the streets of London. This was not an area he frequented, and he must have looked exceptionally out of place. Muggles walked by and nodded at Granger, but as their eyes met his the friendly smiles turned to glares. Perhaps they were unfamiliar with the sight of money.

What do they pay her at the Ministry that she has to live in this wasteland?

The streets felt sticky. The air felt sticky.

Despite spending a significant part of his life around the filthiest Death Eaters, the muggle indigent still sickened him in a way nothing else could. No "rehabilitation" would ever change that.

They rounded a corner, and she stopped at a door he hadn't even noticed. A small, grimy window looked in on a dimly lit diner. She turned, smirked at him, and stepped in.

He noticed the way she walked across the entire room with a little sway in her hips. She made sure every eye in the place turned and looked at them. There were only about ten people, but they all turned and stared intently, not even trying to hide it.

An inept little man stumbled towards them as they sat beside the back wall, dropping plastic covered menus down on the table.

Why was everything here so sticky?

"Evening, Hermione. You're looking err…. a bit more dressed up than usual."

The man eyed Lucius uncomfortably.

"Yes, well I had other plans fall through. This is my work colleague, Lucius Malfoy. Malfoy, Tim owns the diner. I come here rather often, actually." She stressed the words 'work colleague'. It made him slightly uncomfortable. The entire place made him uncomfortable.

The pathetic little man extended his hand, but Lucius simply gave him a nod. The grime already setting in was enough for a lifetime.

It took all of her energy not to laugh as she watched Malfoy squirm in his seat. The 10 minutes they had spent in the diner so far were almost enough for her to gladly forgive him for whatever he had done to Danny.

She ordered the fish and chips. They were the best in the neighborhood. Malfoy sat opening and closing his mouth, so she interrupted and ordered him fish and chips as well, with a wink at Tom.

Her mood had improved significantly. She didn't want to go on a date anyways, so that part really wasn't all that disappointing. It saved her from having to break poor Danny's heart at a later occasion.

While this little outing wouldn't turn the tides in terms of the press, at least she was getting a bit of fun at his expense.

He was being uncharacteristically silent. If he enjoyed his food, he wasn't making it known.

She took the opportunity to just start rambling on topics he wouldn't find the least bit interesting.

"I know quite a few people in the area. I made a point of getting involved with my muggle community when I moved in. I feel like it really grounds me. Their pasts are so mundane, but they make even the simplest things seem monumental. It is just such a contrast to my life in the magical world. I joined a club that meets once a month just to talk about books. None of them fought in a war as teenagers, or were turned into a cat, or attacked by a troll. They just want to talk about television. Maybe I also want to talk about television without having to spend an hour explaining what it's for."

She looked back up at him. He had stopped eating and was just pushing the rest of his food around the plate. He looked up when he realized she had stopped talking.

"Right. Well, if we are done here I really would like to get on with the main event." He stood and put his overcoat back on. The heavy coat sent a rush of air towards her. It smelt like sandalwood, and expensive cigars. She found the smell much more comforting than the presence of the man looming over her. She slapped a handful of money onto the table. She knew the prices here well enough not to wait for a bill. Besides, it wasn't like Lucius had any muggle money.

They stepped back out into the night.

"Very well then, off we go. We have an appointment to keep."

Before she could begin to wonder what type of appointment they might have at this time of night, he steered her into the shadows, grabbed her elbow, and they disappeared.

A/N I'm back! I apologize for my extended hiatus, I honestly have no good excuse other than life. But I am back and hopefully right back into the swing of things! Thank you to all those who followed, favourited, and reviewed in my absence. I love you all, please stick around. This chapter was a bit boring, but I really needed it to get me back in the game and in the direction I had planned for this story 2 years ago. More soon, I promise :)