The anxiety that twisted a knot in her stomach did not let up all through break, but only intensified as the minutes ticked by and neither of the boys she kept an eye out for made an appearance. She found herself being incredibly grateful for the distraction the rest of the Quidditch team provided Ginny, Harry and even Ron. After a quick check in, where she did the whole "obligatory-complaints-about-Snape" thing, she was allowed to eat and worry in relative peace.

When she entered the classroom again she was surprised to find Draco already seated and working on grading another essay. The room was eerily quiet, as if someone had cast the Muffliato charm on her instead of the room. She saw Snape shift in his chair and both their quills scratched away but no sounds reached her ears as she made her way back over to her previous location. It almost startled her when the legs of the chair did, in fact, scrape against the stone floor as she pulled it out.

She glanced at both Draco and Snape, just to double check that they were not experiencing the same impairment, before she sat and resumed her assignment. The sound of her rustling the papers forward made her almost certain that she was in some sort of invisible bubble, where she could hear everything on the inside but nothing beyond its reach. A deep breath filled her lungs as she tried to stop herself from outwardly panicking. She knew she should alert Snape and head to Pomfrey immediately... But what if he thought she was faking just to get out of her punishment?

There did not seem to be any other effects than her sudden selective hearing loss... And chances were that whatever it was would dissipate on its own given enough time. If not, she could always make the visit after her time had been served, giving the still scowling man at the front of the room no reason to add on to her almost completed sentence.

Nearly an hour (and three very mediocre ramblings) later she had quit checking to see if her predicament had gotten any better. If anything it made it easier for her to concentrate solely on the task at hand. The tedium she had been dreading actually helped fill the minutes that would have otherwise been devoted to agonizing over what Draco and Theo's absence at lunch could possibly mean.

So she was thoroughly engrossed in Dennis Creevey's detailed explanation on how an advanced shielding charm placed on the interior of likely places for an infestation would be sufficient, when a loud bang vibrated her ear drums. A violent confirmation that she had been correct in the dwindling effects of whatever had caused her short-lived deafness, but she didn't have time to ruminate over the who, what or why of that entire situation.

Her body reacted instinctively: going into fight mode at the perceived threat long before her conscious mind could take in any added stimuli. In the next second she was on her feet, facing the door, her hand on her wand in the pocket of her thick wrap cardigan. A spell on the tip of her tongue to deflect any incoming curse…

Filch stood in the doorway, his shoulders heaving as he struggled to catch his breath, no doubt from running all the way from whatever had caused the explosion. His eyes widened at her reaction to his appearance but he ignored her as he made his way up the aisle to whisper something to Snape. Hermione's heartbeat thundered against her ribs as her knees threatened to buckle out from underneath her from relief. She quickly sat back down in the chair at her side, afraid that if she didn't she would end up on the floor.

The two men at the front of the room started to raise their voices above hushed whispers and she struggled to hear them over the hammering in her chest. She was able to catch the words "Peeves", "Dozens" and "Dungbombs" and was able to guess what was causing the caretaker such distress. Her hand shook from the sudden burst of useless adrenaline as she pretended to go back to the sentence she had been reading.

"He is lobbing them at students, Severus! You need to do something..."

"I still do not see how that is my problem. As you can see I am quite busy."

"You know we are short staffed today. Flitwick is busy with the Choir. McGonagall was called down to Hogsmeade to discuss the business of the upcoming visit. Burbage is busy dealing with an outraged parent over Floo. Trelawney, well she is in no shape to be helping anyone, you can be sure of that. The Bloody Baron is nowhere to be found..." The shorter man rambled, much to the chagrin of the taller one. He glanced out the corner of his eye at her and lowered his voice back to the whispered frenzy that she could barely make out. "And the others are out near the Pitch... If we do not get him under control the Great Hall will be unusable for dinner tonight."

Snape shook his head, his long dark locks falling into his face before he sighed. "Very well. I will be there shortly."

Filch nodded his understanding and quickly fled the room, presumably off to taunt the poltergeist that he had found someone to come and deal with him. Their professor stayed sitting, glaring at the top of his desk. The look on his face showed his deep seated desire to be anywhere but there. For the second time that day she felt empathy for him flare up inside of her. As if he could feel her studying him, his eyes flicked up and caught her nervous stare, while his own reflected anger at her witnessing his moment of perceived weakness.

Snape glared at her for a long stretch of time before clearing his throat and speaking. "I have things to do elsewhere. Miss Granger, as unlikely as it is, if you finish your stack before I return- you can start cleaning the cushions in the corner of the blood and sweat of this week's grimy ineptitude. No magic... And Mr. Malfoy, you can leave when you are done. I have faith, no matter how misplaced, that the two of you will be able to act like adults long enough that when I return, my classroom will not be destroyed by petty squabbling."

They echoed each other with simple assurances. The man's eyes went between her and Draco multiple times, searching both their faces for any signs of lying. Eventually he must have decided that helping Filch was more important than making sure she and Draco didn't maim or kill each other because he rushed up the aisle, his robes billowing out behind him. Only stopping for a moment to mutter something in the boy's ear. She peeked over her shoulder and saw the flash of mutual animosity exchanged before the older man continued out of the room.

Once she was convinced that Snape was not going to return she turned so she could look at Draco and raised an eyebrow. "What did he say to you?"

"I am supposed to 'Leave the girl alone'. But the question is... Do you want me to?" His hypnotizing gray orbs swam with an entertainment she did not quite understand, regardless they held her mesmerized for a second before she shook her head and returned his playful smirk. He leaned forward, pretending that he did not know how she would answer.

"Very funny..."

"I know. I am hilarious."

She huffed and shifted herself back in front of Dennis' essay, intent on getting everything done so that the long day could finally be behind her.

"You do know that it is rude to ignore someone who has gallantly provided you with a believable excuse to spend time with them, correct?"

Her eyes widened in surprise as her shock had her turning back to face him. "Wait... You provided Peeves with 'over a dozen' dungbombs? What about Theo?!"

"Yes... Yes I did." He drawled slowly, annunciating each word carefully. "And what about Theo?"

"Well... I thought... After you both didn't show up at lunch... That... You know..."

"That I would erase his memory in the middle of a Sunday afternoon, with people filing in and out of our dorm and common room all day?"

When he put it like that she felt rather foolish for even entertaining the idea. "Ummm... Yes?"

His eyes narrowed for a moment at the admission but he shrugged and turned his attention to the gray skies outside the window. "You do not give me much credit, Kitten... Of course I wouldn't be that dimwitted. That was easily taken care of last night, with enough time left over for his complete recuperation before the castle started stirring. I told you to trust me..."

She shook her head at the confirmation she had been dreading. While she understood the twisted necessity for the act, all of them were safer without him knowing, the fact that he could sit there as if he was discussing the weather chilled her. "I don't understand... How did you pull that off at two o'clock in the morning?"

"I woke him and told him I needed his help with something..." His jaw clenched as the memory must have played in his head, the only indicator that he was actually affected by the choice. Again his shoulders lifted with a shrug as his gazed stayed on the window. "He followed me into the broom closet that is closest to our common room, asked what I needed and I was honest with him. Easier to get to the memories if he is already thinking of them, you see. And... And I erased anything to do with the note and you, brought him back to his bed and he slept it off. Quite simple."

"Simple... Right..." She murmured, her own mind conjuring up dark images to match his words. All of them featuring a hard-masked Draco enjoying toying with his friend. She hated the way her stomach twisted in revulsion so she quickly changed the subject. "And then you managed to convince Peeves to cause a distraction, not to mention breaking about ten rules in the process, to spend all of twenty minutes alone with me?"

The accusation caused a smile to break across his face and his eyes to find her again. "Who says I had to do any kind of convincing? Or that it will only be twenty minutes? As for all that rubbish about breaking rules... Only half as many as you and your friends break at any given opportunity, so please do spare me the lecture."

"Th... That... I wasn't going to lecture you!" She said dismissively.

"Mmmm... For some reason I highly doubt that."

"Why don't you get back to finishing your assignment Draco? Instead of trying to guess what I might or might not be planning to do..." She snapped before turning back around, effectively cutting off the conversation.

"Nag..."

The teasing tone of his jab was the only thing that stopped her from hexing him on the spot, instead all she did was smirk and respond in kind. "Asshole..."

His answering laugh warmed the ice that had built up inside of her from his earlier nonchalance. She couldn't help but chuckle under her breath before going back to the same paper for what felt like the hundredth time. It was surprising when she found herself at the end without being interrupted again.

Just when she was about to look behind her to see if Draco was following her suggestion, one of his arms wrapped around her from behind and the other slipped the quill from between her fingers, returning it to the inkwell. His free hand then came up and brushed her hair from her shoulders before he leaned in and whispered in her ear. "Do you truly want to waste the time we have together reading the prattle of asinine children pretending to know what they are talking about?"

"I... Well... Not particularly, but I also have much more to get done then..." The sensation of his lips on her neck instantly caused her to be distracted by the overwhelming desire that started to boil in her veins.

"Good..." He murmured into her skin before his slender fingers slipped down the front of her sweater. Sliding over the swells and dips of her curves to where the belt rested around her waist, holding the fabric closed, and started to work the knotted material apart.

A soft sigh fell from her own lips involuntarily as she bared her neck for him. Lost in the feelings of need that flared each time he found one of the sensitive bits of skin on his way up to the shell of her earlobe, she didn't even notice when he got the knot undone. Very slowly her white tee was inched up to gather around her middle…

The sudden freezing chill that strung her skin was enough to break through the haze. She jerked away from his questing hands as how far he wanted to go became crystal clear. Hermione quickly pulled the shirt back into place before sliding out of the chair and moving so she could lean against the table. Her maneuver forced him to stand, giving her the space she needed between them so that she could think clearly.

His eyebrows came together in confusion as he placed his hands on the back of the chair she had just vacated. He didn't say anything, letting the silence stretch out, as he stared across the short distance at her.

"I'm... I'm sorry. I don't feel comfortable doing this... Here." She told him truthfully. The thought of Snape returning and seeing them in an intimate embrace flamed her cheeks scarlet.

"Don't apologize for telling me the truth." He snapped before taking a deep breath and continuing in a much more moderated tone. "What I meant to say was... Thank you for telling me the truth. I do not suppose there is any chance I could convince you to sneak off somewhere you would feel more comfortable would there?"

"Ahhhh... No." She said smirking over at him out of the corner of her eye. "But… Thank you for understanding."

Once again he shrugged as if her admission was a simple thing. "I told you to tell me if anything I did made you feel uncomfortable. I am not going to pressure you to do something you do not want to. I might be a... How did you put it? Oh yes, an asshole... But that is a line I do not ever wish to cross."

She didn't know what to say so she gave a quick nod, keeping her eyes on the table across from her so he wouldn't see the relief that washed over her at his reassurance. There was no doubt in her mind that he would misinterpret the feeling as her thinking him capable of something exceptionally heinous. When that was the furthest thing from the truth... Every time that he reinforced the belief she had in this deeper Draco, she felt like all the lies and manipulation would be worth it. In the end…

A disgusted snort at her silence had him continuing. "It's true, whether you would like to believe it or not. I can see why you would wonder if I am capable of that... Considering my past crimes."

"I know that you are capable of choosing evil, Draco." She said slowly, searching for each word before she said it. Her eyes automatically shifted to the spot on his arm, buried underneath layers of clothing. "But... I wouldn't be here with you if I didn't trust you not to hurt me."

He snorted again and when her eyes finally traveled up to meet his, they were glaring at the ground. She stepped away from the table so she was directly in his line of sight and he was unable to look away. "I mean it."

"Really? I don't scare you?"

"Everything about you scares me, but not for the reasons you think."

His hand wrapped around her waist and pulled her against his chest in a tight hug that only lasted a second. When she looked up at him confused, he gave her a peck on the lips before pulling away and putting a few feet of space between them. "Wouldn't want Potter's cryptic powers to start working and him to catch us in such a compromising situation, right?"

"He should be busy with Quidditch Practice at the moment... I would be more worried about Snape or another professor coming to check that neither one of us has disfigured the other..." Hermione said off-handedly, as if the possibility was ludicrous.

"True..." He inclined his head in acknowledgment of her reasoning.

Another long stretch of silence settled between them. It was much more comfortable as they both used the time to stare at the other and take a personal inventory. Or at least that is what she did. She could never be one hundred percent certain what was going on in his head. Eventually her mind drifted back to her assignments and she sighed softly. "I should get back to grading if I want to get done with everything before midnight... I am sure once Snape comes back there will be a million other things for me to do..."

"Awww! Poor Miss Granger, having to do her time... Just like the rest of us." Draco smirked down at her.

"Maybe I should let slip how you like to get poltergeists to do your dirty work? You know... That way you can do your time, just like the rest of us." She teased back.

"If we could be left alone for the night it just might be worth it..."

She laughed, ignoring the internal recognition of the appeal in breaking a slew of rules if it meant the potential for a few more stolen minutes. "I highly doubt that."

"You would... There probably isn't much that would be worth another detention on your record, right?" He razzed with a raised eyebrow.

"And you would be surprised what I would sit another detention for... Unfortunately you will not be finding out anytime soon. Only so many seconds in a day, after all." She said, glaring over at the still large stack of papers she still had to go through.

He shook his head but didn't contradict her this time. "Once again your wisdom astounds me, Kitten."

"Why thank you." She said with a roll of her eyes and a mocking curtsey before she sat back down in her chair. Ready to get on with it…

The attention she would have preferred to concentrate on the words in front of her was diverted by the distinct feeling of him staring at the back of her head. It wasn't exactly uncomfortable but distracting enough that no matter how hard she tried to focus she could feel it. She quickly gave up with an exasperated sigh and looked over her shoulder at him.

He had been so lost in his thoughts that her sudden movement startled him and he quickly stood up straight. Showing off that perfect posture. He hesitated for a moment before blurting out. "What would you say if I asked for a redo of the other night?"

"Uhhhh... What?" She asked, completely thrown for a loop by the odd request.

"What. Would. You. Say. To. A. Date. With. Me?" He reiterated. This time taking a page out her own playbook, though she did tend to use the tactic more when she was angry than... Teasing? Annoyed? She couldn't tell through the nervous way his eyes scanned her reaction.

"A date? With you? Where to The Three Broomsticks?" She found herself asking incredulously.

"Well... No. Not The Three Broomsticks, obviously. You've seen what can happen when I set my mind to something, so you shouldn't be doubting my abilities to pull it off. If you accept that is..."

Hermione sat there with what surely could have only been described as a dumbfounded look on her face. That was exactly how she felt... Dumbfounded. Was he just messing with her? That had to be it... She had never gone on a real date before. Not even with Victor, unless the Yule Ball was counted. Which she doubted, considering how public every second was. They hadn't even kissed for the first time afterwards like many suspected. That was two weeks later... In the library...

She blinked back into the moment and realized she still hadn't answered him. And she didn't know what she should do... There was an added pressure to accepting a "date". Just the use of the word made things feel more official than anything else had.

Was she ready to cross that invisible line as well?