Anyone with a shred of intelligence would have known the disclosure of their plan would send Malfoy into a psychological downward spiral the likes of which had not been seen since the days and weeks following the Battle of Hogwarts. What no one could have predicted, however, was the speed at which he compartmentalized the affront, locking away any outward signs of disapproval with the ever-present skill of marked indifference. With nothing more than a clenched jaw and curt nod of his head, he excused himself under the guise of making yet another perimeter check, leaving Harry, Ron, Theo, and Hermione to marinate on the particulars of the upcoming mission in his absence.

This cold, disdainful version of Malfoy was unfortunately one Hermione had experience dealing with, but despite that fact, she found herself no better equipped to handle it.

He remained gone long after the quartet had concluded their assembly for the evening and long after Hermione had retreated to the lone bedchamber in search of a scant measure of respite from the turbulent day. As she lay in bed fighting the urge to depart the cottage to seek him out, her mind was drawn to her earlier exchange with Harry.

She chewed on the questionable advice she'd received from her trustworthy, and not to mention levelheaded companion, easily seeing how Harry would think that telling Malfoy how she felt was the logical solution to her current conundrum. But what Harry failed to realize was that love and logic did not often go hand in hand. That's not to say she was in love with Malfoy, of course. The notion itself teetered somewhere between glaringly nonsensical and comically imprudent, notwithstanding the simple fact that his impending marital status rendered the very idea a moot point.

Glancing down at her wristwatch, she bristled at the late hour and wondered not for the first time if some sinister series of unfortunate events had befallen Malfoy while on his rounds. Reminding herself of the Ministry's impenetrable wards, along with the fact that Malfoy was a perfectly adept wizard, she tamped down her swirling anxieties in exchange for a recap of the forthcoming day's agenda.

Theo had ebulliently agreed he'd be the most suitable candidate for a recanvassing of the Hegazy estate, opting to go undercover as a shipping dock worker to establish a comprehensive appraisal of the mote's enchantments as well as the varying levels of protective spells outside the compound.

Meanwhile, Harry, Ron, and Hermione refined their foolproof strategy for entry, beginning with the expressly pragmatic approach of Hermione and a heavily-Glamoured Harry arriving by thestral-drawn carriage at the north end of the property. A brief skirmish would ensue between Harry and the dock workers, allowing Theo ample time to load the "cargo" onto the boats amid the diversion. Hermione would sail with its contents to the main docking point inside the residence's wards, bypassing both guards and protective enchantments. Once inside, she'd remain tucked away within the warehouse stores until which time the opportunity to take flight within the headquarters presented itself.

As a precautionary measure, she cast Protean charms on five Galleons to ensure uninterrupted communication with the others who would remain nearby but well outside the confines of the Hegazy estate.

Once the plan was in motion, with any luck, she would have no trouble locating MacNair and his Egyptian overlord sidekick, stealthily overtaking them with the use of several well-practiced restraining spells, and be able to lower the wards from within without being detected by anyone else who may be inside the estate. The appearance of a simple three-letter Latin word, "sol," emblazoned across the surface of each coin, along with their sudden warming, would be the others' clear indication that the mission had succeeded and it was safe to breach the residence.

On parchment, the plan appeared succinct and infallible. It didn't allow for much sway in terms of the unexpected, but Hermione considered herself no stranger to the pitfalls of even the most well-thought-out missions. She remained confident in her ability to circumvent nearly any obstacle that should come her way, which plainly speaking, was the sole reason both Ron and Harry remained committed to her rather unconventional methodology. In time, she knew Malfoy would come to see that this was in fact the correct course of action and maybe even one day he would commend her for her efforts.

But, for now, he remained ever the capricious sod who continued to cast his dark shadow over her brilliant strategy. She made a mental note to address his ceaseless shortcomings with him when he returned, as well as to ask what he wanted his role to be, if any, in this exceedingly straightforward endeavor.

Before she knew it, she was startled awake by the raucous exchange of loud voices volleying from within the cottage. As a matter of reflex, she grabbed her wand from atop the nightstand and jolted upright, swaying unsteadily on her feet from the force of the groggy maneuver.

As she tiptoed toward the room's threshold, aiming to get a better sense of the clamorous melee, her breath caught on the uptake with the startling recognition of a female's voice ringing garishly from the area right outside her bedroom walls.

Who on earth could that be at- she squinted down at her watch which was scarcely illuminated by the razor-thin streaks of moonlight breaking through her drawn curtains- at 3 o'clock in the morning?

Without preamble, she carefully cracked the door to have improved access to the burgeoning exchange.

"Pansy, what in the hell are you doing here?"

She immediately recognized Draco's contemptuous voice as he growled in a disdainful pitch more than an octave above a harsh whisper.

"Well, I certainly didn't come here to see you, now did I? So, if it's all the same to you-"

"For fuck's sake, Pansy. Didn't anyone tell you I'm here on official Ministry business? You can't just come traipsing in here like you're on some sort of extended beachfront holiday- wait, what did you just say?"

"I said, I didn't come here to see you so if you don't mind-"

Hermione inched through the doorway and padded slowly down the hallway toward the living room, growing more and more curious with each tenuous step. As she rounded the corner, her eyes flit over to where Harry and Ron staggered gracelessly through the kitchen with their tired eyes wide and their wands raised.

"What the hell is going on in here?" Harry grumbled, blinking back confusion at the importunate scene in front of him- a pyjama-clad Draco pacing tensely in front of a dark-haired woman who stood firmly in the entryway of the cabin with her hands on her hips and a bevy of luggage stacked at her feet. He glanced over toward an oddly flustered-looking Theo who wore a pained expression like he wished the floor would open up at that very moment and swallow him whole.

Draco's head swiveled around to meet Harry's. "Potter, Weasley- you remember Pansy Parkinson from our time at Hogwarts. She was actually just leaving-"

"Don't be ridiculous, Draco- I'm not leaving. In fact-" She side-stepped Malfoy like he was a nettlesome flea, as she brazenly made her way over to where Theo sat, shifting his weight with obvious discomfort with every step she took in his direction. When she finally came to a halt in front of him, her hands regained their post atop her hips as she glared down. "Don't you think it would have been easier to just tell me where you were going instead of forcing me to resort to this irritatingly plebeian tactic of tracking you down?"

His cheeks flushed pink and his mouth flapped sheepishly, unable to form a fitting response.

The action caused her eyebrows to fly higher up her face, "Well, don't you? Theo, when you didn't come home, I had to wake my father up out of a sound sleep- in France, mind you! Lucky for me, he still has a few unscrupulous friends at the British Ministry who were able to accommodate my request for a Portkey! Otherwise, I would still be lying in a cold bed, wondering when in Merlin's name you'd return!"

"Pansy, I told you," he finally managed hoarsely- but not before Draco bound his way over to where Theo slouched even deeper.

He stared in varying stages of bewilderment from one to the other before his eyes finally settled on Theo's.

"What in Godric's name is she on about, Nott? Better yet, why is she calling you 'Theo?'"

It seemed the cushion of Theo's chaise couldn't sink any deeper as he tried to look anywhere but at his Slytherin mate. Seconds dragged on in awkward silence before realization suddenly dawned on Draco. "For fuck's sake, you two are shagging, aren't you?" With a grimace of utter revulsion, he swallowed down the bile in his throat.

Pansy's eyes instantly narrowed into slits as her lips scrunched together. "You didn't tell him we're together?" she asked Theo, the timbre of her words dangerously low as her jaw clenched violently.

"I mean-" Theo's voice quivered slightly.

"I don't fucking believe this!" Draco roared, pulling away from the pair so swiftly it was as if their mere proximity might make him retch. As he charted an embittered path around the davenport, Ron and Harry's eyes remained locked on the convoluted scene. "So, am I to assume that this is the favor you spoke of when I asked you about Pansy vacating the Manor?" Draco asked, choking back a mirthless laugh as he rounded the corner of the armchair. "Because forgive me for pointing out- it appears as though you were doing yourself the favor!"

"What is he talking about?" Pansy asked, her voice rising to a piercing shrill as she yielded to the tawdry accusation.

"Yes, Theo," Draco spat, "why don't you explain to us how Pansy ended up departing the Manor only to end up in your bed?"

Hermione sighed and rubbed her eyes, having lingered in the same spot for close to five minutes and being no closer to unraveling the confounding exchange. The soft noise that escaped her mouth was just enough to alert the others to her presence, causing Draco to halt in his tracks as his eyes ricocheted over to the hallway. When he discovered Granger standing there, looking ever the part of a cat caught with the canary, he huffed out another humorless breath. "Brilliant! You've awakened Granger!"

Hermione peered around the room at the five sets of eyes now trained on her and decided then and there that this rather pitiful skirmish could use a heavy dose of castigation. Raising her chin ever so slightly, she charged forward into the room, painting a confident expression befitting a British DMLE head on her otherwise overly-exhausted face.

"I couldn't help but overhear that our already tight quarters are being stretched to accommodate another houseguest," she began, gazing past a barely blinking Malfoy over to the party responsible for the disruptive intrusion.

Pansy glanced around shamelessly, for the first time taking in the abysmal surroundings before scrunching up her nose in disgust. "Ewww, no," she said, giving the dowdy sitting room another once over with a disdainful scowl before adding, "Theo and I will be staying in a hotel on the Mediterranean in daddy's executive suite. Here, I can leave the address if you need it." She plunged her arm elbow deep into her dragon skin handbag, hastily searching for a slip of parchment before a male voice from off to the side interrupted.

"Pansy, Theo isn't going anywhere," Harry said, causing her head to snap up with a flustered annoyance. "He's here on official Ministry business. In fact, I'm sorry to say I'm going to have to ask you to leave, considering we are here conducting a high-stakes mission that involves only a task force of elevated clearance Ministry employees, of which you are not."

"Woah, woah, woah," Theo interrupted, rising from his seat with a confidence he hadn't possessed only moments prior. "You can't just kick her out. We're in the middle of Egypt for Merlin's sake- in the middle of the sodding night. Where do you think you're going to find a Portkey back home at this hour?"

Without hesitation, Hermione stepped forward. "Theo, Harry's right. We can't have a civilian traipsing in here and breaching what scarce security we've barely been afforded."

"Yeah," Ron huffed into the crosshairs. "If Pansy's allowed, then what's to say Lav can't be here! Hell, Harry, let's get Ginny to come too. It'll be one big party!" He was frustratingly winded as his face burst with a color that didn't suit the obscenely late hour.

Draco sidestepped the couch as if he was going to enter the fray, but instead, he grumbled a quiet request to Hermione to speak privately in the bedroom.

Pansy watched their retreat with a frown as she took in the tense sight of three pairs of eyes staring ahead at nothing. Whatever Draco had to say in private, she hoped it was a silent plea on her behalf. She didn't fancy being tossed out on her arse in the middle of the night in a foreign country.

Draco's voice was as rigid as his stance as he closed the door behind them and migrated toward the middle of the room.

Hermione found herself instantly weary of his presence. Following their row, he had made it more than clear he had no interest in being near her, yet here they were, alone for the first time with nothing more than a sliver of moonlight between them.

"You of course have the final say on what happens with Pansy, but before you make a decision, I want you to hear what I have to say on the matter." Draco noticed her standing across the room with folded arms and her mouth fixed in a hard line as if something contentious was threatening to come out, so he stepped forward, his smug expression slightly fading as he lowered his voice. "It was completely moronic for Pansy to show up here in the middle of the night- that much I know we can agree on. But given the fact that we're only hours away from being able to secure her a Portkey- and for the simple fact that her only real offense here this evening is her rather abhorrent taste in men- I'd rather not toss her out into the abyss- alone. I realize it's far from ideal, considering the already cramped quarters, but I assure you, I will handle it come morning."

Hermione should have been outraged and argued, but something about the way he interceded on his friend's behalf thawed her icy glare. "Fine," she finally managed.

"Fine?"

"Yes, it's fine if she stays the night, but as soon as the sun comes up, it is your job to see to it that she returns to Britain."

"I'm pretty sure that's what I just told you I would do."

Surly grey eyes fell on her with a combative expression that made her stiffen.

"Right. And if it's all the same, I'd rather you be the one to go back out there and tell the others of the arrangement. If you'll remember, I have a mission I'm heading up and I need to get my proper rest." She hadn't intended on bringing up the subject of their ongoing contention, but his snarky disregard for her directions caused a vibrating undercurrent of irritation to fester within her.

"Fine."

The lack of hesitation in his single-word response told her his temper still hadn't been assuaged on the matter. Which was fine with her. She couldn't allow herself to forget the fact that she was in Egypt with a very crucial job to do, which left the growing tension between them far down the list of vital matters she needed to concern herself with.

He hadn't even twisted the knob of the bedroom door before he abruptly stopped, addressing her with his back still turned.

"Would you object to me sleeping on the floor in here tonight? I don't think I can stomach being mere centimeters from where the two of them lay groping each other." The strained chords of his voice told her he had to humble himself to an uncomfortable level to muster up the gumption to utter the request.

Hermione blinked twice before choking out a parched reply. "I don't have a rightful claim over any room in this place. So you're free to do as you please."

The moment passed like ones before where tension swept through, heavy like the Earth's gravitational pull. When Draco finally left the room, she exhaled a long-suffering sigh wondering if the threads of cordiality they had basked in the past fortnight were about to snap.

The restlessness she felt the prior evening returned with renewed vigor as she sank into her musty pillow and yearned for a stagnant mind.

Her inexhaustible preoccupations only intensified the moment she heard the crack of the bedroom door and the subsequent patter of quiet footfalls.

Her spine tightened, unease spreading across her shoulders forming a knot at the base of her neck.

She wasn't sure if she should acknowledge him or pretend she was asleep.

Just as she was wavering between the two, a swell of guilt washed over her when she heard him recline onto the hard wooden floor, a hollow rustling sound causing her to wince. Of all the unfavorable attributes this wizard possessed, she could think of none that warranted him deserving a night on a cold, inhospitable floor.

She took several breaths to stop herself from feeling the nerves welling up as she faced her dilemma head-on.

"Malfoy," she whispered, pushing herself onto her elbows and craning her head over the side of the bed. When she heard a barely-audible fraction of a whisper in reply, a tiny part of her wanted to rescind her offer, but she continued nevertheless. "Malfoy, if you'd be more comfortable, you're welcome to occupy the space on the other side of the bed."

Her mood sobered when from the corner of the room, she saw the shadowed outline of his body rise to stand. The look he flashed her in the inky darkness was that of unspoken gratitude as he padded toward the other side of the bed and sank into the mattress.

"Don't worry. I'll be sure to stay as far away as possible," he clipped, sensing her hesitancy.

Hermione shifted her weight as she lay back, adjusting the covers along with her.

"Goodnight, Malfoy."

She turned her head and yawned as exhaustion bled into fatigue.

"Goodnight, Granger."