A/N: Thank you all so much for your lovely reviews! I appreciate all the love and support you all are giving this story! I noticed that many of you were requesting Draco's POV, and while I had planned on bringing that perspective in later, I realized, this might actually be a good chapter to do this. I am working on chapters as fast as I can right now, while I have some down time between classes, work, and life in general taking over, but I appreciate your patience.

Also please bear with this chapter, it has some repeat material from the last couple of chapters, but it's from Draco's perspective so hopefully it hits different.

"It's been a fucking week!" Draco looked down the table to where his friends were sitting and watched as Pansy slammed her hand down on the table. Daphne started to say something to her, but Pansy was up in a flash, and was headed over to the Gryffindor table.

"What do you reckon that's about?" Draco asked Blaise, watching as Theo, and then Daphne chased the bitchy blonde.

Blaise turned to see what Draco was looking at, and shrugged. "No clue. You could always ask Theo what's going on," he suggested turning back around.

Draco reached his long arm over the table and flicked Blaise on the forehead. "He's not talking to me remember?"

Blaise swatted Draco's arm away from him. "Stop that. Maybe you shouldn't mess with the only one of your friends who's still talking to you then."

Draco scowled at him, but ignored him. "Why is Pansy talking to Weaselette?"

Blaise shook his head. "I have no clue. Why don't you go ask her."

Draco waved his hand, and kept watching the Gryffindor table. Hermione was starting to blush at something Pansy had just said. He watched as Pansy waved her hand in the air, and then Granger yelled, "You did what?"

Even Blaise couldn't ignore that. He turned around, and started watching the Gryffindor table. "Looks like Granger's pissed again." He said.

"Shhh," Draco hushed him, trying to figure out what was going on. He watched as Theo tried, and failed to diffuse the situation that was quickly escalating. Clearly, Theo didn't know how to handle his own sister, as even Draco could have told him, it was better to just let Granger blow. Her bark was actually better than her bite.

"Keeping yet another fucking secret from me! I've had enough of everyone's damn secrets! So just tell me!" Hermione shouted at the group, and then fled from the Great Hall.

Draco watched as girl Weasley stood up, and then interestingly sat back down, and watched as Daphne left the Great Hall, with a determined look on her face. "Interesting." He muttered.

"Shame she didn't punch anyone again." Blaise chuckled, turning back to his breakfast.

Draco shook his head. "She wouldn't do that in here. She's got too much of an image to maintain."

Blaise eyed Draco suspiciously. "And how do you know that?"

Draco shrugged. "I've been in almost every class with her since first year, and trust me, there's a lot more to Granger than meets the eye. She has an ability to fit in to whatever situation she's put in. With Potter and Weaselbee she's the nerdy friend. With professors, she's the know-it-all goody two shoes. With me, she's a cat from hell. I've watched the bloody Golden Trio for long enough now that I started to figure out the difference between Granger's personalities."

Blaise raised his eyebrows. "Right…" He said slowly.

Draco threw his napkin at Blaise. "Cut it out. I know what you're thinking. And come on, Theo just left, and I want to see if I can find out what pissed Granger off this time."

He got up, and waited for Blaise to join him, and together they walked out of the Great Hall. The two boys had only made it a few steps when he saw Ginny and Theo standing on the steps talking. He stopped at the bottom of the stairs, and made a show of looking in his school bag for something. While he couldn't hear the specifics of what they were talking about, he didn't dare attempt to get closer to hear them. He kept digging, ignoring Blaise's snort of derision at his eavesdropping tactics, and only looked up when he heard Theo call in relief, "Hermione!"

At this he took his chance, and pulled a random book out of his bag and moved up a couple of steps, stopped, and then opened the book.

"I'm so sorry Hermione! I wasn't trying to keep you out of the loop, I just wanted to do something nice for you." Weaselette exclaimed.

"I know you weren't. Daphne and I talked, and she actually helped me a lot. But from now on, no more secrets. From either of you." Hermione responded.

Draco tried to think of what Daphne could have said to Granger, and thought to himself that maybe he should ask Daphne to put a good word into Theo for him. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Theo fidgeting with his sweater. "Does this mean we're okay?"

"I'm still mad that you didn't tell me everything, but I realize that you were just trying to figure this out. I'm still trying to as well. But I really do mean it, you have to be honest with me from now on. That's the only way we can move forward." Draco knew that she'd been upset about the contract, and that Theo had kept it from her, but what else had Theo kept from her?

"Deal." Theo's voice was full of relief.

Weaselette cleared her throat. "In the full spirit of transparency, George has a meeting with Skeeter's photographer tomorrow, and I'm sending Parkinson as well."

"I want to be there as well." Granger responded, and Draco's eyebrow quirked up.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Theo asked, and Draco had to try not to laugh at Theo's inane question. "I mean, Pansy's pretty threatening without even trying, and Twin Weasley always managed to scare the pants off of us when we were younger."

"Please. George was always the idea man of the twins. Fred was the one who was willing to engage in some action. George is only operating at 50% now. And Parkinson, well, as scary as you may find her, Rita won't. But she'll show if I'm there," Hermione responded. "And think of it this way. This is how you can apologize for keeping me in the dark."

"Been missing fighting battles, Mione?"

There was a pause, before Hermione answered Weaselette. "Not really. But after everything she wrote last year, I've been itching for a chance to go after Rita again."

"What do you think Malfoy, want a go at Skeeter?" Hermione asked him directly all of a sudden.

Draco nearly jumped out of his skin. "Sorry, were you talking to me?" He asked, looking up at the four people, trying to act as though he hadn't just heard their entire conversation.

Daphne put her hand on her face, clearly exasperated, Ginny snorted in a very unladylike way, Theo glared at him, and Blaise slapped him on the back. Hermione rolled her eyes, and crossed her arms over her chest. "Don't act like you haven't been listening to every word we said."

Draco shook his head earnestly. "I was reading up on a theory for ancient runes." He answered.

Hermione unfolded one arm, and pointed at his book. "You pulled out the transfiguration textbook, and its upside down."

Blaise howled at that, and Draco turned to glare at him. He slammed the book shut. "Fine, I was listening. I was merely concerned about my friends, and…" He paused, unsure of how to refer to Hermione. If she was anyone else, he'd call her his intended, but he had a feeling that would not end well for him. "And for you," he decided finally.

Hermione gave him a look that made Draco wonder if she was possibly a legilimens, and he made a mental note to work on his shields again. "Anyways, I asked what you thought Malfoy. Want a go at Skeeter?" Hermione asked him.

Draco swallowed, and then walked up the last few steps to stand on the one right below Theo and Ginny. "Can't you take care of her on your own?" He asked.

"Yes, but she didn't write just that one article since the war ended. I seem to recall some pretty nasty rhetoric during all the trials." Hermione answered.

Draco looked at her confused. "What not nice things did she write about me?"

"She called you a death eater." Hermione answered emphatically.

"Did Bella's curse leave you with memory issues Granger?" He noticed her prickle at that. "Let me remind you, I was a death eater." He said pulling up his left sleeve and showing the faded dark mark to her.

"Bullshit." He gaped at her. "That mark means nothing. Snape had one. Regulus Black had one, and they ended up fighting for his downfall. Not to mention, you were, as Harry phrased during your trial 'the worst death eater in the history of death eaters.'"

Draco pulled his sleeve back down, aware of students starting to leave the Great Hall and looking over at the odd group. "I took it willingly."

Hermione shook her head. "He threatened your mother. That isn't willing. And you couldn't even kill anyone. You fucked those up so badly, that I think subconsciously you wanted them to fail. You are certainly smart enough to actually kill someone if you wanted to." She took a breath. "And you didn't identify us, even when you knew who we were. Who I was." She finished softly.

Draco looked at her left arm, wondering how bad Bella's knife had gotten her.

"You didn't identify them?" Theo asked quietly, speaking to Draco for the first time in a week.

Draco shook his head, his mouth suddenly dry. Try as he might not to think about that day, especially recently, Granger's screams still haunted his dreams whenever he was asleep. "It was the most I could do," he said finally, in a soft voice, unable to look any of them in the eye.

"It was the only thing you could have done." Hermione said firmly. "Anything else would have been suicide."

Draco looked up at her. He was going to marry this girl someday, he thought to himself. He was going to marry her, and she was going to be bound to him, and there was no escape for either of them, but especially her. And suddenly he felt like he might vomit from the guilt.

"I don't think he should go." Theo said interrupting Draco's thoughts.

Everyone looked at Theo. "Why do you think you get a say in that?" Hermione asked in a low voice.

Theo must not have had any self-preservation in him to keep speaking, and Draco groaned internally. "Well, I am your brother."

"And?" Hermione asked putting her hands on her hips. "Do you think I can't take care of myself? That if Ferret over there says something that I'll suddenly break? I can bloody well take care of myself." She jabbed a finger into Theo's chest.

"First year, I faced all those trials. Second year, I brewed Polyjuice potion. Third year I faced down a convicted mass murderer and helped him escape. Fifth year, I helped start the DA, and fought a hoard of death eaters in the Department of Mysteries. Sixth year, I helped defend the castle from invaders. And last year, I spent a year on the run, fighting monsters, and hunting down objects that would bring Voldemort down!" She argued passionately. "Not to mention, I managed to keep Harry and Ron alive throughout all of it. They would have been dead by the end of our first year if it wasn't for me. I'm more than just the brains in our friendship. I'm also the only person who has a fucking sense of self-preservation. So I think I've proven over seven bloody years that I can take care of myself!"

Ginny laughed at that.

"But you shouldn't have had to do any of that!" Theo finally exploded. "Every time I think back on one of the stories that came out about your adventures with your friends, or when you tell me about something you did, I get fucking terrified!"

Draco looked around, and noticed that everyone had stopped walking and was staring at them. He opened his mouth to say something, but Daphne caught his eye, and shook her head almost imperceptibly, and Draco shut his mouth again. Hermione meanwhile looked like she'd been hit with a ton of bricks.

"Mum should never have sent you away. You should have been safe with me. I hate knowing that you had to do all those things, and stand up for yourself. That you were alone for all of it. I hate that you felt like you didn't belong in the muggle world because you didn't, and I hate that you had to work five times as hard to fit into this world. I hate that my friends made you miserable, and I didn't say anything because even though all the blood purity was bullshit, I kept my own mouth shut out of self-preservation." Theo took a deep breath.

"But the thing I hate the most is that you don't even realize how wrong it is that you feel like you can't trust anyone else to protect you, or ensure that you stay alive. Yes, you trust Potter and Weasley, but you had to know going into that mess that there was a chance you wouldn't survive the war. That you almost didn't, and that makes me want to kill them. And so now that I have you, I want to protect you. I want to go after anyone who makes you feel inferior. I want to be your brother." Theo finished, choking on a sob.

Hermione stood stock still for a moment, and everyone waited with bated breath to see how she would react. Suddenly, she launched herself towards Theo, and wrapped her arms tightly around him. Without missing a beat, he wrapped his own arms around her small frame and put his face down on the top of her head, his own taller frame shaking as he cried into her hair.

Blaise looked down at his feet, clearly feeling like he was intruding on a private moment. Daphne put her hand over her mouth, silent tears starting to flow. Draco looked up at Ginny and then motioned with his head at the crowd that had gathered. Ginny looked around at them, and pulled out her wand. "Right, anyone who doesn't want to end up in the hospital wing with bat bogeys, clear out now." She said sweetly, twirling her wand dangerously. At that, the crowd began leaving quickly, and Ginny turned back to the group, smiling, an evil glint in her brown eyes.

After about five minutes, Theo pulled away from his twin, but didn't let her go. "Please don't take him with you."

Hermione shook her head, tears glistening in her eyes. "It's up to him if he comes, but I think he needs to do something good for himself."

Draco looked down at his own feet.

"Then I'm coming as well." Theo said firmly. Hermione opened her mouth to argue, but Theo cut her off. "I'm coming and you're not going to fight me, because I know you can take care of yourself, but I want to be there in case."

Hermione nodded her head silently, and moved back in closer to him, putting her ear by his heart, and closing her eyes.

"Well goody. Apparently my solo adventure has turned into a group outing." Pansy said sarcastically behind everyone. Draco spun around, and everyone else looked at her in surprise.

"When did you get here?" Blaise asked, hand over his heart.

Pansy shrugged and looked at her nails. "About a minute before Theo started yelling loud enough for all of Hogsmeade to hear."

She put her hand back down. "So how exactly are we going to sneak all of us off school grounds without getting caught?"

Ginny sighed. "Leave it to me."

Hermione lifted her head, and opened her eyes. "What are you thinking?"

"I'm thinking that it's been two months since I saw my boyfriend, and he has a certain object that is going to come in a lot of use."

Hermione crinkled her forehead. "Harry already gave us the map though."

Ginny rolled her eyes. "He still has the cloak you dummy."

Hermione's eyes widened. "No. He won't just give you the cloak. Especially for this."

Ginny snorted. "Who said I was going to ask. I was going to stop by his house tonight, and take it."

"How are you going to do that?" Hermione asked confused.

Ginny smiled sweetly. "Well Harry tends to fall asleep after sex, and he'll know that I have to come back to school, so after he's fallen asleep, I'll just grab it."

Hermione wrinkled her nose in disgust. "I did not need to hear that about Harry."

Pansy laughed, and walked up the stairs, linking her arm with Ginny's who looked surprised. "What, you two never did anything Granger? All that time alone?"

Hermione looked as though she would puke. "Don't be gross. He's like a brother to me."

Ginny laughed. "Well as fun as this is, we do have class. See everyone later." She walked away, arm still oddly linked with Parkinson.

"So when Potter goes down on you, does he speak parseltounge?" Pansy asked as the two girls walked away.

Hermione shivered. "I have a bad feeling about the two of them being friends."

Theo chuckled. "Are we okay?" he asked her again softly.

Hermione pulled out of his embrace fully and sighed. "Yeah." She looked past him, at Draco.

"And you." She said pointing at him. "I don't like this whole marriage contract thing, but I refuse to spend the rest of my life being miserable so we are going to figure out a way to exist with each other."

Draco nodded his head. "Alright Granger."

She shook her head, her wild curls bouncing around her. "First rule. My name is Hermione. You have to call me that. And I will call you Draco."

"Not ferret?" Draco asked sardonically.

Blaise snorted, and Daphne slapped her face with her hand.

Granger, no, Hermione, smiled at him, and Draco felt his stomach flip. "No, just Draco." She grabbed Theo's hand and pulled him behind her to class, Theo following like an obedient puppy.

Draco was screwed.