Chapter Twenty Two

On Thursday Malfoy didn't respond for almost ten minutes during her lunch break, Hermione knew the book would be positively ear splitting by that time and he still didn't respond. She was halfway into struggling into her coat when his message finally came through.

Granger. Keep your hair on. I'm fine. I buried your bloody book under a pile of blankets so it wouldn't scream at me. D.

Hermione was equal parts agitation and relief.

I made the book loud so I would know that if you didn't respond you were in trouble. Don't hide it again. H

Sorry. Didn't sleep much. D

Hermione didn't like that he apologised to her. Malfoy simply didn't apologise to people, it wasn't in his nature. He must have really had a rough evening for him to be so out of sorts. Finding herself worrying about Malfoy during her work hours was still one of the oddest sensations she had ever experienced in her life and yet, try as she might, she couldn't help it. The rest of the day she kept checking the notebook to see if he had written but the page remained blank.

By the time the clock chimed eight Hermione felt like she would crawl out of her skin with apprehension.

Are you alright? H.

I've barely slept for four days, Granger. No I'm not bloody alright. I'm taking one of those bloody potions whether you like it or not. D.

Hermione sat up so quickly Crookshanks hopped off her lap with a reproachful glare and sauntered over to an empty armchair.

You've barely tested those, you don't know if they're safe. H.

Safe or not I need some fucking sleep. D

Can you at least let me test them first? Please Draco, for my sanity.

Hermione didn't realise until she had finished writing the message that it had been the first time she had used Malfoy's first name. Hastily she sent another message hoping he wouldn't have noticed it.

I can come over there and test them really quickly and be out of your way. Or if you don't want me over you can come here, I'm sure Theo gave you my address. Just Please let me test them before you take one H

Every second that passed felt like a minute as Hermione waited. She really didn't want Malfoy to die on her watch when Theo and Blaise had essentially entrusted his well being to her.

You're that desperate to test these potions that you'd invite a Malfoy, willingly, into your home? God's Granger, you have such a bloody saviour complex. Fine. I'll bring you the bloody potions. Don't worry, Theo told me about the back staircase, I won't scandalise your neighbours. D

Hermione's stomach dropped.

Lovely. Malfoy was on his way to her flat.

She really hadn't thought that through, she should have left it at offering to go to his place. Resigning herself, she grabbed her potions kit and pulled out several potions she had made. As soon as Theo had warned her that Draco had bought untested potions she had gotte to work on making every diagnostic potion she could think of or find.

She poured herself a glass of wine to calm her nerves and paced around her kitchen, every so often peering down at the alleyway below to see if she could catch a glimpse of Malfoy.

Even though she was expecting it she still jumped when the knock at her door came. Her fingers were trembling slightly as she undid the latch and unlocked the door.

Malfoy stood at her door, hands stuffed in the pockets of his coat and his hood up. She stepped back and let him step into her flat.

Once the door was safely closed he dropped his hood. Maybe it was because he had literally been knocking at death's doorstep the last time she had seen him but sh was pleasan surpised to see him lookin better. Nott and Blasie must have been taking good care of him.

"You cut your hair," she said, surprised.

Where his hair had been long, nearly hanging past his shoulders, it was now ear length and pushed back from his face, a slightly more mature and stylish version of how he had wore his hair at school.

Hermione never would have thought she was glad to see him look like himself but when his hair had been long, it had been disconcerting how much like Lucius he had looked.

He paused arm halfway out of his coat, an eyebrow raised. "Blaise cut it while I was sleeping, apparently he decided it was time for a new look. Do you have any idea how disconcerting it is to wake up to new hair?" he asked.

"Luckily, among his many talents, Blaise is a decent hairdresser otherwise I would have killed him."

She had to give Blaise credit, it was a nice haircut.

He shrugged out of his coat the rest of the way and folded it over his arm as he looked around the room taking it all in.

"I'm a little disappointed Granger, I always pictured you living in a library. I thought there would have been more books." He told her.

"There's more in the other rooms…" she muttered.

He let out a snort of laughter. "Of course there are more in the other rooms."

Hermione tried not to feel self conscious, she hadn't criticised his home when she had been there. She hadn't made a single snarky remark about how cozy his damp and chilly dungeon of a house was. "Can I have the potion please, Malfoy?" she asked cooly.

"What? No more 'Draco' now that you got your way? Really Hermione, that's harsh." He said sarcastically as he held out a small vial.

Hermione ignored him and took it to her table to start. She didn't like how her first name sounded coming out of his mouth, it made her exceedingly uncomfortable.

As she began rubbing tests on the vial she kept half an eye on Malfoy as he wandered around her living room, examining her bookshelves and the photos on the mantle. She was fairly certain, out of the corner of her eye she saw him sneer at a photo of Ron and Harry and flip it face down.

Since he seemed to be mostly behaving himself she focused her attention on the potion. She needed to concentrate, the sooner she finished the sooner he could get out of her flat.

"Good god Granger you call this wine?" She spun around from her chair to see Malfoy in her kitchen holding her abandoned glass of wine with a horrified expression. "Forget poisons, I'm fairly sure Blaise would die on the spot if he tasted that."

"Malfoy! You can't just go around tasting other people's drinks! That's incredibly rude and unhygienic!" She marched into the kitchen and grabbed her wine glass from him.

"Well it's incredibly rude not to offer your guest a beverage." He countered.

"You just insulted my wine, why on earth would you want a glass?" She asked exasperated.

"Because as horrible as it is, it's wine and at this point I'd pretty much drink rubbing alcohol if it took the edge off." He told her.

Grumbling to herself she fetched a spare glass and poured him some wine. "There, now can you please go sit down on the couch or something until I can get this potion sorted?"

He sauntered back to the living room with his wine and Hermione took her's back to the table. She took a long drink.

The wine wasn't that bad.

Several uninterrupted minutes later Hermione brought the potion back to the living room and froze. Her brain was having a hard time comprehending what her eyes were seeing. It was as if she had walked into another dimension.

Draco Malfoy was sprawled comfortably on the sofa reading a muggle book, his long legs dangling off the end, absently petting Crookshanks who was curled up on his chest

"Granger. You didn't tell me you had a cat." He said looking up from the book. "A very, very fat, friendly cat. I'm lucky he didn't break one of my ribs jumping on me"

"I didn't think Crookshanks would come out while you were here" she said honestly. "He normally hides when I have guests over and he hates men. Well he hated Ron anyway… Practically attacked him any chance he got"

Malfoy looked down at the purring ginger cat with something close to adoration. "This cat just became my favourite cat in the entire world, I'm assuming you are not amiable to sell him to me?" he sighed when Hermione shook her head. "Ah well, it was worth a shot, any animal that hates the Weasel is an animal worth having. Has my potion passed its tests with flying colours?"

Hermione nodded and handed it back to him.

"Marvellous. Right, then I'll be on my way." He said starting to get up.

"Wait" Hermione said and he froze. "Could you take it while you're here just to be sure? I… I'd just feel better if you tried it and waited a bit in case something happens."

Draco hesitated then resigned himself and lay back down. "Fine. But I'm only staying until the potion starts to take effect. I'd rather not be stuck in your flat any longer than necessary. It's oppressively small, one would think you'd be able to afford something more livable considering you were one third of the reason the Wizarding World survived. Guess being a hero isn't all it's cracked up to be." He told her, uncorking the vial and downing it in one swallow.

Inwardly she breathed a sigh of relief, she didn't want to be laying awake all night worrying about him. He already occupied far too much time in her head as it was. She scooped up a book and sat down in the armchair next to him.

"Granger, I know I'm utterly magnificent and stunning, but it is really hard to concentrate on my book when you are staring at me like I'm about to sprout a beak or explode." He told her irritably after a few minutes "I can feel you watching me and it is highly disconcerting, put your nose back in your book where it belongs. I promise I'll let you know if I start to die."

Hermione didn't realise she had been staring at him and she refocused on her book, embarrassed.

Try as she might she couldn't concentrate and found herself re-reading the same line over and over again.

After what seemed like hours she finally decided it had been an appropriate ammount of time and snuck a look to check on Malfoy.

The book he had been reading had fallen to the rug and his eyes were closed. Hermione felt her stomach drop and she was halfway out of her chair when she saw his chest gently rising and falling. If the world hadn't been turned on its head before it certainly was now, because Draco Malfoy was fast asleep on her couch.

She should wake him up and send him home she knew but he looked so tired. She chewed her lip considering she really didn't want him in her flat but if he stayed and something went wrong he would be able to call her for help…

She got up and grabbed a blanket from the basket and draped it over him, avoiding Crookshanks. It was odd how un-Malfoy-ish he looked when he was sleeping.

Maybe it was the absence of his sarconic expressions or his sneer but he almost looked handsome with his high sharp cheekbones and corn silk hair. On the record she would never admit to thinking Malfoy looked anything but repulsive but she was beginning to see how so many girls at school had fallen all over themselves over him.

Hermione took the wine glasses to the sink and rinsing them out. Malfoy didn't stir as she cleaned up the potions on the tables or turned off the overhead lights, leaving the lamp in the living room.

She curled up in her armchair and pulled Ginny's blanket over herself, watching Malfoy sleep. She didn't intend to drift off but eventually her exhaustion from the day caught up with her and her eyes drifted closed.

Something brushed against Hermione's cheek as she slept and she stirred, trying to bat Crookshanks away.

The click of her door finished pulling her from sleep and she sat up quickly glancing at the couch. It was empty except for Crookshanks, the blanket she had wrapped around Malfoy last night was folded neatly on the cushion.

She stretched and checked her watch.

8:05am.

She was very late for work.

Swearing she threw off the blanket and ran to her room to get dressed.