"Help." Hermione slid open the van door and stood pathetically with the wetsuit pulled off haphazardly. She couldn't get it past her elbows.

Malfoy stood on the pavement just outside, waiting to collect the wetsuit to give back to Danny. He was wearing black shorts that were tight around muscled thighs and a black tshirt and flip flops. He laughed at her predicament and tossed his own suit on the floor of the van before climbing in to help her.

He yanked the top half further down and finally freed her arms. She shimmied the bottom half over her bum carefully, so as not to pull her bikini bottoms off too and really give Malfoy a show. She was already slightly mortified to be in this position. He hopped out of the van and helped her pull the rest off one leg at a time. The suit finally came off in a jumbled heap. He focused intently on righting it and not on staring at her practically naked body. She quickly slipped into her blue flowy jumpsuit and put her sandals on.

"I'll just take this to him, be right back." Malfoy threw the suits over his shoulder and jogged back to Danny by the helicopter. Hermione took the moment to shake off the embarrassment. She was not usually so self-conscious. It's just that nobody had seen that much of her body since... well since Ron. And the last time was long before their divorce. God, she hadn't gotten laid in almost a year now. Oh, she'd had plenty of orgasms. She was no stranger to self-love. But being naked with another person was quite a bit different.

She filled a glass with ice cold water with her wand and drank deeply. She'd left the van door open, waiting for Malfoy to come back. It was late afternoon now. And she'd promised to buy him dinner. But she wasn't sure what his plans were. She just knew she wasn't ready to say goodbye yet. She really liked the person she was getting to know. But, she was at the very beginning of her trip. And Malfoy had a job and a life here. It's not like he would drop everything just to hang out with her.

He hopped into the van then. "So, how do you like seafood?" He slid the door shut behind him and grinned.

"It depends." She flicked her wand and the van readied itself for travel again. She walked to the front and had to squeeze past him to push the curtain aside and sit in the drivers seat.

"on what?" He asked, taking the passengers seat.

"On if it's wrapped up in rice and served with soy sauce or not." She jammed the key into the ignition and started the engine.

Malfoy laughed, "sushi it is!" Crookshanks hopped onto his lap and he jumped a bit. Malfoy dropped his hand to pet him but the cat hissed and he froze. "You can sit on my lap but I can't pet you?"

Hermione chuckled. "He's warming up to you actually. He wouldn't ever let Ron touch him." She cleared her throat, sorry to have brought him up.

"Oh really? Weasel isn't a cat guy?" Malfoy went with it, unaware or unwilling to let it be weird.

"It might have had something to do with Ron keeping Peter Pettigrew as a rat for years and Crookshanks trying to eat him." Hermione shrugged.

Malfoy laughed. "I wish you had, cat. He was a waste of space. Snivelling rodent." Crookshanks purred his approval.


They parked at the restaurant but they were still a few minutes before it opened. They were both starving though after the day's activities and ready for an early dinner. Hermione decided to change while they waited.

"You don't need to dress up, it's casual." Malfoy stayed behind the curtain in the passenger seat to give her some privacy.

"I know, but I don't want to wear a bathing suit all night. Plus I got all sweaty in that wetsuit. And I have my house right here with me. I kind of love it. Living in a van. Taking everything I own with me wherever I go. It's so convenient." She stripped down and got into the shower, rinsing quickly and wetting her hair. She dried off with her wand and set her curls. Then she slipped on the one dress she had bought. It was white cotton with a low cut v-neck. Short but wide flowing sleeves, big flowing skirt that draped perfectly on her thin frame and came down just above her knees. The hem was a bit higher in the front than the back. It was still casual, but cute at the same time. It took her about 5 minutes to get ready. She tried not to feel self conscious about not wearing a bra. This was the new Hermione. She would be free and confident. She was still young and perky and could get away with it. She stuck the neckline down with her wand though so she didn't pop one out accidentally in the restaurant.

She took a quick look in her little mirror. The white against her tan skin looked fantastic, and her brown hair had streaks of gold curls throughout, bleached naturally by the sun. She felt radiant. "Ok, ready. Is it open yet?" She pulled back the curtain and Malfoy swiveled the chair around.

"Five more..." he looked her up and down and cleared his throat. "Five more minutes."

"What? Is it too fancy?" She lifted the hem outward and turned a little. "It's still casual, right?"

His pupils dilated and he bit his cheek, unable to stop himself from looking her up and down again. "No, Granger, it's not too fancy. I just like your new style, that's all." He stood then, needing to lighten the mood quickly. "Have you got another one for me?"

She giggled and swatted him playfully. He slid the door open and hopped out, holding his hand out to help her down. She took his rough calloused hand and smiled at him as she stepped down. Crookshanks jumped out too and took off down the street. She shut the door and locked the van. They joined the short queue waiting for the restaurant to open.

Malfoy was kind and attentive, like any date should be. She found herself wondering what mannerisms were bred into him, versus what he picked up on his own out here. He was in a completely different culture. Not just wizard to muggle, but English to American. And he'd fully immersed himself. He was completely at ease. She was mesmerized by him.

They ate and drank their fill and it all passed by too quickly. As they walked slowly back to the van, Malfoy spoke up. "So, I didn't mean to commandeer your trip, but there's one more thing I'd like to show you tonight, if you're up for it." He asked tentatively.

"I mean, you already took me in a helicopter to a glacier. Do you really think you could top that?" She bumped him with her elbow and grinned at him.

"I think so." He said confidently. "Although I can't take credit for anything you see. I just happen to live in the most beautiful place in the world."

Crookshanks came striding up to the van out of nowhere. "Just in time, bud." Hermione let them all in and let Malfoy drive them this time.

"Are you up for hanging out with other people for a bit? A buddy of mine is doing a bonfire. We have to wait until it's dark for the main event." He was very at ease behind the wheel. It was surreal to watch.

"Yes of course, that sounds fun. I can't wait to hear all about your embarrassing moments from the last five years." She teased him.

He rolled his eyes at her. A few moments later, they left the city area and things started to spread out, larger homes with big properties were sprawled out past the city limits. "You can stop watching me now, it's freaking me out." He gave her a side eye.

"Where'd you learn how to drive?" She asked, she didn't turn away, she kept watching him unabashedly.

"Rod, the guy who gave me my first job in LA, he taught me how to drive in his old jeep. Said a man's not a man unless he can drive."

"He sounds like a cool guy." She smiled.

"He was. I'm sure he could sense something off about me. But I'm grateful he was bored and alone and took pity on me. He never asked about my past or where I came from, or why I didn't know things, like how to drive or how to use a telephone. He just taught me. He was the most selfless person I'd ever met before. And don't you dare try and bring up Potter right now."

She swatted his arm, laughing. "So what happened to him? Is he still in LA?"

"Yeah. I initially turned down the offer to come up here, out of loyalty. Or fear. But he wouldn't have it. Told me to get the fuck outta there and live my life. And to not look back." He cleared his throat then, blinking rapidly. "He was the father figure I needed."

She looked away then, as tears sprang to her own eyes. "Well I'm going to look for him when I make it down there and give him a big hug." She laughed.

He laughed too. "He gave me the nickname Drake, you know? He said 'son, what's your name?' And I mumbled Draco, and he said 'that's too fuckin weird for out here. I'll call you Drake.' And that was that."

She lost herself in a fit of giggles. When she finally caught her breath she sighed, "I literally haven't laughed this much in years."

He glanced at her briefly before looking back at the road. "It looks good on you."

"Thanks." She smiled. "It looks good on you too, you know? I barely miss the sneer."

He rolled his eyes and gave her the look. "That's the one." She pointed at him, laughing some more.

He turned down a long gravel drive to a cabin. The sun was getting low now. There were a few cars parked near the house. He parked the van at the end of the row and turned it off.

"Do you have a blanket you don't mind laying on the ground?" He followed her behind the curtain.

"Oh, yeah we can use these. No big deal, when I can clean them magically in an instant." She pulled the quilt off the bed. She had purchased bedding and other necessary household things in Washington and Canada before she made it up here. It had been a learning week, figuring out what she needed and wanted and what couldn't just be transfigured or charmed. She didn't spend too much money. She had budgeted for a year but if push came to shove she would make a quick trip back to England to get more. It would be a hassle and take a few hours at most. But the nice thing about working so much and never taking a vacation was that she had plenty to last for even longer than one year if she wanted.

"Did you ever get a wand again? Or locate any other wizards out here?" She rolled the quilt up and set it in his out stretched arms. Then she dug in the drawer for her cardigan.

"Nope. I've gotten pretty adept at basic wandless magic. And I use it sometimes. But... I dunno. I didn't want anyone to find me. So I stayed away." He shrugged. "It's not bad, living without it."

She felt an overwhelming desire to kiss him right then. She'd felt a steady attraction growing, a friendship building. But she hadn't felt the urge to kiss him or anything like that yet. She stared at him and chewed her lip. "Well, I'll be damned. I never thought I'd hear those words from you. Of all the people in all the world-" she started to say in an exaggerated singsong voice to lighten the mood because if she didn't, she might very well grab his face and plant one on him.

"Ok, ok, let's go before you start rhyming." He slid the door open and hopped out.

"Is this where you stay? When you're docked." She asked. Crookshanks scurried away through her legs and she shut and locked the van.

"Nah. It's too far away from the city and most of us don't have a car. This belongs to one of the guy's family members. We come out once or twice a year. It's the perfect viewing spot, away from the light pollution of the city."

"For what? Stars?" She pulled on the cardigan and tucked her keys away in her bag.

"You'll see, Granger." He said tauntingly. He took her hand and pulled her along around the back of the cabin. A small group was circled around a fire. Some on camp chairs, some on logs, some on blankets. They all cheered when they saw them approach.

"Ayyyy! You made it!" The guy from the night before hopped up and grabbed two beers from a cooler. He handed them to Hermione and Malfoy and motioned for them to set up next to him.

"This is Andrew, sorry I didn't introduce you last night. I was too thrown off by seeing you. Andrew, this is Granger."

"Nice to officially meet you." Andrew held out a hand and she shook it.

Andrew introduced her to the rest of the group, she nodded and waved and said hello to them all. They were a very laid back and friendly bunch. She didn't feel too out of place. She sat cross-legged on the blanket close to Malfoy and tucked her dress between her legs. She sipped from the bottle that Andrew had given her and looked around at the yard and the mountains. It was mostly grassy but a treeline started a few acres down. A low barbed wire fence that wasn't maintained spanned the length of the property. The sun was sinking below the horizon slowly.

They chatted pleasantly for an hour or so. Someone got out a guitar and played quietly. Andrew lit up a hand rolled cigarette and passed it down to Malfoy. He took a long draw and held it for a while before he blew the smoke out. He leaned over to her "ever smoked a joint before, Granger?"

She raised a brow, "of course not." She took it from him and mimicked what he did with it, coughing a bit after.

"Not bad." He grinned and took it back, passing it along the circle.

Her eyes watered and her chest burned, she tried to wash the taste out of her mouth with beer. But she felt pleasantly relaxed. They passed it around twice more.

Once the sun was finally gone, someone across from them stood and doused the remaining smoldering embers with a bucket. "Here we go, the main event." Malfoy whispered in her ear. They were very close to each other, he had his legs stretched out in front of him and leaned back on his hands. She looked over her shoulder at him, questioningly. He nodded up at the sky. She turned and looked up.

The sky lit up with the aurora borealis. She gasped in awe. It was incredible. Bright green, purple, and pink ribbons dancing through the stars. The group fell silent as they all watched the show. She uncrossed her legs and leaned back to see it better. Malfoy moved his arm out for her to lay her head on and brought his other arm up behind his own head. They lay there together, watching. Someone in the circle said "it's so magical!" Malfoy whispered for only Hermione to hear "it's better." She brought her hand up and threaded her fingers through his at her shoulder.

She was suddenly overcome with emotion. She couldn't explain why. The past 24 hours had been overwhelming. Seeing him here, how he was, it was something she didn't know she needed. But she was so grateful for it. She felt sad, because she knew the night would end soon and then what? He would go back to his life and she would leave? The thought wrenched painfully in her heart.

She let go of his hand and turned into him, breathing him in and holding his waist. He kissed her forehead and she felt a moment of dejavĂș. But she was unsure why. She looked up at him. "Will you stay with me tonight? Just once more?" she couldn't help staring at his mouth as she asked him.

He gave her a small smile, as if he too were thinking about how they would be saying goodbye soon. "Of course I will, Granger." He held her tighter and looked back at the sky. She turned and watched the lights dance and swirl. After a while they faded out and the stars twinkled brightly in the black sky.

Everyone started packing up. Malfoy shook out the blanket and threw it over his shoulder, saying goodnight to everyone. He held her hand as they walked back to the van.

She missed this. Just simple touches. Ron used to do this early on. But it had always seemed forced, or rehearsed. Like he was reading a checklist of things to do to woo a woman or something. As soon as they got married, he quit. As she was going through her divorce, she didn't feel lonely or like she missed being married, having a husband. But maybe it's just because he had never really been a companion to her and she never really knew what it was like. Being here with Malfoy, even though it had only been a day, it felt like home, in a way Ron never had.

Crookshanks was nowhere to be found. She wasn't worried though. The half-kneazle had a sense about when to come and when to stay away. She opened the van and stepped inside, pulling Malfoy along with her. He shut the door behind him and they stood there for a moment, facing each other, holding hands. His gaze softened and he grinned. "I thought you were a gryffindor?" He pulled her toward him by their entwined hands and caught her cheek in his other hand. Then he kissed her.