It was late by the time I returned to the castle and, annoyingly, I'd missed dinner.

My plan was to go straight to the hospital wing and give Draco the news of my findings. It would be solely up to him, but that night, if he wanted, we could safely remove the Dark Mark with a spell I'd found.

It wasn't going to be easy - the formula was tricky and complex, the incantation containing words I was not even entirely sure how to pronounce. But given Draco's advanced wand skills and my general high intellect, I figured that between us, we could get this.

But my journey was interrupted before I even reached the fourth floor.

"Hermione! There you are!" Ron puffed, his face red and sweaty as though he'd been running. "Harry needs to talk to us urgently! Come on!"

"I'm busy," I snapped, not impressed when he tried to pull me along by grabbing my elbow. "Harry will just have to wait."

Ron wheeled around, looking angry. "Busy? Doing what? And where have you been this past week? You've skipped meals and everything. The only time I've seen you is during examinations."

"It's none of your business," I said sharply, irritation prickling at the edges of my mind.

I still hadn't forgiven him over his reaction to the reveal of mine and Draco's secret affair. I didn't know if I ever could. And I was still angry at Harry, too, for all those months he had kept the truth from me.

So, I was less than pleased when it appeared Harry was barking summons to us as though what he had to say was more important than anything else in the world.

"Oh. I see." Ron said darkly, a shadow falling across his face as he glared at me. "You've been off cosying up to him, haven't you? No doubt he's been feeding you lies about the things you used to let him do to you in bed."

"Don't judge others by your own low standards." I retorted. "But if you must know, I haven't seen Draco since the day you saw fit to nearly kill him and slut shame me at the same time."

"Look, I was wrong to say the things I said, 'mione," he said, finally dropping his hard expression. "I can see now that he'd been manipulating you into bed, taking advantage of you when you were so heartbroken over me-"

"Is it so hard for you to believe that you are not the only male in the world girls want to sleep with?" I scoffed, giving a loud bark of laughter. "Merlin, and to think I used to think Draco was the arrogant and conceited one."

Ron gave a heavy sigh, driving a hand through his hair. "Okay, hate me. I get it. I was a git to treat you the way I have and for what it's worth, I'm sorry. But please, I'm begging you, just come with me now and hear what Harry has to say. He's pretty worked up and he needs our help about something."

I bit my lip, wondering what to do. If someone needed my help then I always wanted to give it, especially if it meant solving problems. And Harry had been kind enough to lend me his Invisibility Cloak... eventually.

"Alright," I sighed, caving in. "I'll come."

*****

"Say that again?" I asked once Harry had finished his important announcement.

"Dumbledore's taking me out tonight and I don't know what to wear."

"Out? Where, exactly?" This was all very odd. I could only conclude that Dumbledore's private lessons had taken an interesting turn.

"He was very sketchy on the details," Harry confessed as he gave his glasses a little lift off his nose, "but he did warn me that things may get a little wet."

"Hmmm," Ron hummed thoughtfully as he sucked hard on a lollipop. "A wetsuit, maybe?"

"Nah, they don't do much for my thighs."

"Well, how about this, then?" I suggested, getting the Invisibility Cloak out of my bag and throwing it in his face. "That way, you won't even need to style your hair."

Harry caught it, pulling a sulky expression as he silently folded it up and tucked it into his pocket.

"So, what do you think it's about?" Ron asked eagerly, "a Horcrux?"

"It doesn't matter what it's about," Harry answered gravely, his expression solemn, "what matters is that Dumbledore and I will be out of the castle tonight which means it's going to be left unprotected. So, I need you two to keep watch and look out for any unusual activity. Lives could well be in your hands tonight."

"Surely you're the one going to be in danger and not us?" I pointed out. "Who knows what you'll be facing?"

Harry stood tall, puffing out his chest. "I'll be alright, I'll be with Dumbledore."

Well, that certainly didn't age well.

*****

By the time I reached the hospital wing, Draco was no longer there and Madam Pomfrey seemed to be taking it as a personal insult.

"Discharged himself twenty minutes ago against my advice." She explained haughtily as she frowned down at her clipboard. "He was adamant that he had more important things to do than putting his health first. I don't know, teenagers these days think they know it all."

"Did he say where he was going?" I asked, suddenly feeling anxious, although not entirely sure why.

She gave me a long, hard stare, regarding me with a curious look. "You were here visiting on the day the boy was brought in, weren't you?"

Slowly, I nodded. I had a sinking feeling I knew what was coming. "Yes- I just wanted to make sure he was alright."

"A word of advice, Miss Granger," she said, her voice stern as she narrowed her eyes, "stay well clear. That boy is more trouble than he's worth. With a father like that... well, I'm sure you don't need me to tell you. You're a bright witch. I suggest you keep it that way."

I felt a flash of fury on Draco's behalf. I wasn't even sure where it had come from because only just a week before, I would have completely agreed with her.

But after working tirelessly since then trying to save him, I realised that even though I couldn't remember how to love him, it still provoked a strong feeling in me - knowing that he was capable of loving me... a Muggle-born.

He was clearly not the monster people like Harry painted him out to be.

"On the contrary," I said in a defiant and unwavering voice to Madam Pomfrey's face. "But I think Draco Malfoy is worth saving just as much as anybody else is. If not, more so."

She looked taken aback by my response, but I did not care, instead, I wheeled on the spot and walked purposefully away.

My memory wiped of my previous encounters with Draco, I had, of course, no recollection of ever journeying to his room. However, he had since told me that it was located in the dungeons, not far from the Slytherin quarters, so I headed down below the castle.

I tried every door until I came to a locked one. I knocked, but there was no answer. Removing my wand, I was about to shout Alohomora when the door clicked open at the simple tap of my wand.

My heart racing, I stepped inside, and I knew straight away that I'd found the right room.

I looked around, being overcome by a feeling of extreme deja vu as my eyes swept across the bed, the desk... the sofa.

The exact same sofa I'd been sitting on with Draco in my memory. I couldn't help but go to it, wanting to immerse myself completely in the recollection.

I sat down and closed my eyes, bringing the memory to the forefront of my mind, trying to imagine Draco sitting right next to me... his scent... his touch... his voice-

"Hermione?"

My eyes flew back open to see Draco standing in front of me, a bewildered expression on his face. For a confused second, I thought my mind must have conjured him up.

"Oh!" I gasped, feeling a little flustered at being caught making myself at home on his furniture. "I- um... I came to find you."

"I can see that." His voice held a touch of amusement as his eyes twinkled softly down at me, and - as my heart fluttered and my stomach flipped, for an entire moment I'd completely forgotten why I was there.

"Um- how are you?" I asked, stalling while I tried to compose myself. "You look a little... better."

He didn't. In fact, he looked awful, as though he were about to walk to his death.

"I could always tell when you lie," he murmured, a smirk twitching at his lips, "you are truly quite dreadful at it."

I looked away, feeling unnerved by the way he spoke as though he knew me so well.

Because, of course, he did. I'd just forgotten.

"I remember sitting here," I said, feeling I ought to at least explain what I was doing. "I was hoping it would trigger something... another memory or feeling perhaps."

"And has it?"

I shook my head. "No. Sadly not. But this room... it has such a sense of familiarity to me."

"As I said before, you were here quite often. It was the only place we were ever really... us."

There was that word again. Us.

Silence fell and our eyes met, a spark of something in the air between us.

"Sit with me." The words fell from my lips before I could stop them.

He looked just as startled as I felt, but he did not hesitate, moving almost at once, evidently afraid I might change my mind and snatch the invitation away.

"You have to forgive me," he said, as he made sure to leave a safe distance between us, "but if I sit too close then I'm afraid I might not be able to stop myself from taking you into my arms."

My eyes widened at his confession, and I immediately wondered what it must be like to be held by Draco Malfoy.

"We cuddled a lot?" I asked, my voice becoming light and breathy as the faint scent of his cologne hit me.

His lips twitched up at the corners, his eyes twinkling softly. "Usually. But... uh- don't tell anyone. That side of me is strictly saved for you."

His eyes crinkled as his smile grew wider, and I realised I liked him smiling. I liked him smiling a lot. It gave him a look of such purity, something of which I'd never seen even a hint of in all those years he'd bullied me.

"Can we... can we try it?" I asked tentatively, suddenly feeling bold. "Cuddle, I mean? It might help to retrieve my memories."

He stilled, his smile faltering as his tongue nervously darted out and swept across his lips. "Are you sure? I mean, cuddling aside, are you sure you want to remember? After what you said last week-"

"Just shut up and put your arms around me."

Arguing no further, he zipped his lips and scooted swiftly across the sofa towards me, gathering me into his arms almost at once as my own arms circled around his torso.

It was like discovering the best flavoured ice cream in the world, every fibre of my being tingled in pleasure as our bodies sighed against each other, singing at the joyous reunion.

"Oh, Hermione," he murmured softly into my hair as his arms tightened around me. I responded by blissfully nuzzling my face against his neck and deeply inhaling his citrusy scent, causing a feeling of great contentment to spread throughout me, warming me and protecting me like a safety blanket.

The hug alone wasn't enough and I wanted more. So, tilting my face up, I looked at him, our lips tantalisingly close, and I found I yearned to kiss him.

I could feel the fierce beats of his heart racing beneath his chest as he moved his lips closer, brushing them softly against mine. I shivered, closing my eyes at the overwhelming feeling of longing burning in the very core of me.

And then, out of nowhere, a flash of memory exploded in my brain, a memory so vivid that I could recall exactly how I was feeling at the time - we were stood in a classroom and I was upset about something, but then Draco was kissing me and I was so confused because I liked it, I liked it very much.

"Hermione?"

I blinked, focusing on the present. Draco had pulled away, his face etched in concern as his eyes looked searchingly into mine.

"I remember the first time we kissed," I breathed, my chest rising and falling heavily as adrenalin coursed through my veins.

His eyes widened. "You do?"

I nodded, euphoria making me smile. "We were in a classroom or somewhere, and- and I was upset, but you were there and we were kissing and I know it was our first time because I felt surprised that I liked it."

His face immediately softened and he lifted a hand to cup to my face, a shuddering sigh emitting from his lips as he rested his forehead against mine.

"You're coming back to me," he whispered ardently, his fingers trembling against my cheek, "you're really coming back to me."

And then, as though something horrifying had just occurred to him, he jumped back from me, his face suddenly draining of little colour it had.

"Fuck," he said, getting to his feet and twisting round as he agitatedly drove his hands through his hair. "Fuck, fuck, fuck!"

"What is it?" I asked, my heart racing fearfully. "Draco?"

"Hermione, listen to me, you need to get away from here, you need to get away, right now!"

He sounded panicked, afraid.

"Why?" I asked quietly, hardly daring to breathe.

"You don't remember," he continued, "but I- I had a task. Tonight I will complete it. You shouldn't be here, you need to get away and go somewhere safe. Death Eaters are coming into the castle and they will not hesitate to kill you if you get in their way."

My mind began to swim as I tried to make sense of what he was telling me.

"Draco, what are you talking about? Why would they come here?"

A silence.

"Because I'm going to let them in."

"Then don't!"

"I have no choice!"

"Yes, you do," I said at once, jumping up off the sofa to reach inside my pocket for the folded piece of parchment which I held out in front of me. "I found it, it's right here - the formula to remove your Dark Mark. Let me help you, and then we can escape to somewhere safe together."

He froze. "Together?"

I nodded, reaching out to clasp his hand in mine. "I don't remember falling in love with you, but I feel it. I feel the love inside of me every time I'm with you. My heart remembers even if my mind does not. I'll runaway with you, Draco - I'll runaway with you because I trust my heart even if I've yet to fully trust you."

His expression softened and he let go of my hand to clasp the back of my head and kiss my forehead.

"Hermione, my love," he murmured ardently, his lips moving against my temple. "You don't know how much I've been wanting to hear you say that."

"So, you'll do it?" I asked, my heart racing in pure joy as I looked back up at him, "you'll release yourself from the Mark?"

He hesitated. And, as he slowly dropped his hand from my head, his face falling with it, I knew what his answer would be before his lips had even parted.

"No. I'm sorry, Hermione," he murmured quietly as pain flitted across his face. "But I can't. I can't abandon my mother."

Lights dotted my vision and I desperately attempted to think straight, trying to ignore the crushing disappointment in my chest.

"But you're not a killer," I whispered, my voice shaking.

Draco turned away from me, bowing his head. And when he spoke next, his voice was low and deadpan.

"Get out of here, Hermione. Get yourself out of the grounds and Apparate somewhere far away. The wizarding world is no longer a safe place for you to be in."

"Draco, look at me," I tried, desperate to get him to see reason.

His back tensed and he lifted his head. Slowly he turned around, and I was disheartened to see that his face had hardened, his expression devoid of emotion. But worse than that were his eyes which had steeled over, not a flicker of warmth in sight.

"Get out, Granger. Get out before I throw you out myself. I've wiped your mind once before, and I won't hesitate to do it again if I need to."

I felt a bolt of anger where I expected to feel hurt. All fucking week I'd been busting a gut to try and help him, the ungrateful sod!

"Perhaps Ron was right all along," I snapped, throwing the parchment containing his freedom down on the sofa. "Nothing but a weak, pathetic coward."

I saw the brief twitch of his eye, but other than that his expression remained determinedly stoic.

Sucking in a sharp breath, I lifted my head high and headed for the door, making sure to barge angrily past him as I did so.

There was no goodbye, no more pleading or I love you's.

It ended with the firm closure of a door.

Then he went his way, and I went mine.

*****