,,Granger, you really should stop coming back looking like this" Draco said with a halfhearted sneer.

Draco studied her for a second, then let out a soft gasp at the sight of her. He crossed the room swiftly and was beside her in a moment. He knelt in front of the armchair, placing a hand on each of the armrests, slowly taking in her entire disheveled look. Her cheeks were flushed, her hair was untied from the neat bun she always wore it in, and her eyes were wide and glossy.

,,Granger, what happened?"

He tried to speak in a casual tone, but Hermione thought she could discern a bit of concern in his voice. Draco's eyes stopped suddenly on her left arm and a sudden searing pain confirmed what Draco's surprised eyes showed her. She was hurt. She was bleeding profusely from a large cut on her forearm, the blood dripping and soaking her clothes.

,,N-nothing" Hermione uttered frailly. ,,Nothing, I just..."

,,This is not nothing, Granger!" Draco snapped at her. ,,Actually, this is the opposite definition of nothing. I thought you were the brightest witch of our age for Merlin's sake" Draco raised his voice angrily.

He was now staring intensely at her and Hermione could see hot anger in those stormy gray eyes. Hermione looked at him, baffled by his, rather explosive reaction, not knowing what to say or do, but before she could come up with anything, Draco sprang to his feet, taking her by surprise.

,,I'm going to check the surroundings. Stay here!" Draco said taking his wand out.

,,It's not safe. There could be more of them" Hermione said hastily.

,,I can take care of myself, Granger. You should be more worried about them" Draco said in a grim voice.

,,Still, it's too dangerous" Hermione insisted. ,,This wasn't some accident, it was a premeditated attack. The one who attacked me, he knew I would pass by that place."

,,All the more reason to..." Draco started to say but was cut off by Hermione.

,,No!" Hermione said vehemently, frowning at Draco.

Draco stared at her quietly. After a moment he raised his wand and thin silvery vapor started to form in the tip of his wand.

,,Alright, I won't go. Instead I will call Potter here to..."

,,No, not Harry!" Hermione exclaimed in a panic-stricken voice.

She jumped to her feet and grabbed Draco by the arm, startling him. the silvery light flickered.

,,Granger..." he said but was cut off once again by a very agitated Hermione.

,,Don't call Harry" she said, looking imploringly at Draco. ,,He'll worry and... just... please Draco" she finally said in barely more than a whisper. Draco opened his mouth to say something but closed it as soon as he registered Hermione's words.

Draco?

His eyes widened and he stared transfixed at Hermione's face. He wondered since when had she felt close enough to him to use his first name. Or perhaps was it due to the shock of the moment, just like it had been for him when he called her by her first name.

Draco lowered his wand slowly, still feeling Hermione's grasp on his arm. The silvery light flickered again, then died out. Hermione pulled her hand away quickly, looking flustered. The place where her cold fingers touched his skin was burning, sending a shiver down Draco's spine.

After a brief moment of inner struggle, Draco's expression changed as he quickly composed himself.

,,Fine! I won't call Potter if that's what you want" he said simply, pocketing his wand. ,,But on one condition" he continued, slowly brushing a hand through his hair.

Hermione looked at him apprehensive. She swallowed hard and nodded, knowing very well nothing good could come of it.

,,And what is that?" she asked slowly.

,,You let me treat your wound. It's bleeding a lot and it's making quite the mess"

Draco's voice was rather calm, and he seemed almost relaxed, as if they were talking about something as natural as the weather outside. For the shortest of seconds, Hermione thought she saw concern flash in his eyes when he looked down at her limp arm. Her expression, on the other hand, was that of pure shock. She had expected him to say anything but that. Nevertheless, looking down at her clothes and overall appearance she had to agree with him. She was indeed a mess, with her bloodied skirt, her left sleeve shredded up to the shoulder and her already flushed face.

,,S-sure" she stuttered, carefully avoiding his eyes. ,,Thank you" she added quietly.

Draco nodded stiffly and, without another word, he turned on his heels and headed for the kitchen.

,,M-maybe I should go and change first?" Hermione said tentatively, looking unsurely at Draco as he was rummaging through a cupboard, his back turned.

,,Just sit down, Granger and shut up!" Draco snarled without turning to look at her.

Hermione flinched and without realizing what she was doing she took a step back and sat on the armchair, careful to keep her bleeding arm from staining the fabric.

Upon my word! He sounds just like his godfather, Snape. And here I thought only Harry resembled his godfather. Are they both possessed or what? Did Snape and Sirius finally met in the afterlife and decided to mess around with the living instead of each other?

As Hermione mused about those things, Draco came back, carrying an armful of vials with potions.

Careful to avoid her stare, he pulled himself a chair and sat across from her. He then proceeded placing two of the vials on the armrest, withing Hermione's reach.

,,Draught of Peace" Draco said gesturing towards one of the vials that contained a silvery white potion, ,,and this one is a strengthening potion" he added making a small gesture towards the second vial, who contained a potion of a beautiful shade of turquoise.

,,Yes, indeed" Hermione said quietly.

She had suspected that's what they were judging by their color and was glad that Draco confirmed her thoughts.

,,The Draught of Peace was brewed earlier today so it's quite fresh. I found the strengthening potion in the kitchen earlier when I searched for ingredients. Apparently, there are all sorts of potions and helpful remedies in the cupboards."

Draco was speaking coolly, stubbornly avoiding looking Hermione in the eye. They spent a few more minutes in a rather uncomfortable silence, with Draco cleaning up Hermione's wound and muttering healing spells from time to time, while Hermione watched his every move with an intense stare.

,,I never got a chance to properly thank you for what you did the other night" Hermione said after a while, carefully watching Draco.

,,It's alright" he said curtly.

,,No, it's not" she said, fumbling with her fingers. ,,I should have done it ages ago"

,,I said it's alright. Besides," Draco added in a dismissive tone, ,,I did myself a good that night. Your ear-splitting screams disturbed my beauty sleep and were in danger of waking up the whole neighborhood."

,,All the more reason to..."

,,Granger..." Draco snapped but, for the third time that day, he was cut off by Hermione.

,,Would you stop being such an annoying prat and just accept the damn thanks? I swear, it's harder to say thanks to you than it is to fight Dementors" she snapped at him angrily.

Draco stopped healing her, and simply stood there, gazing at her dumbfounded. He couldn't understand how she could go from the calmest and softest demeanor to this aggressive and feisty attitude.

Could she really be mental like the Weasel used to say?

Draco risked a glance up at her. She looked positively furious. Her eyes were narrowed dangerously, radiating with anger, her cheeks were flushed, and Draco wouldn't have been surprised to see fumes going out of her nostrils.

Now I know why Potter and Weasley behaved when she was around. She's even scarier than McGonagall.

Draco gulped quietly and steeled himself against Hermione's fiery stare.

,,Say your damn thanks and be done with it!" he said under his breath.

,,Thank you" Hermione said curtly.

,,You're welcome" he retorted in the same tone, shoving the Draught of Peace vial in her hands. ,,Take this first, give it a minute, then take the other one."

Hermione nodded and did as he instructed. She almost said thank you again but quickly swallowed her words along with the potions. Meanwhile, Draco busied himself with the rest of the vials, uncorking them to give them a sniff, then sealing them again.

,,Take this before you go to bed tonight. It's a dreamless potion" he said, answering Hermione's questioning look. ,,I'm sure you would want to avoid another experience like the one from two nights ago."

Hermione nodded again and took the small vial from his hand. Their fingers brushed against each other for the briefest of moments, making them both flinch, then as if following the same signal, they both leaned back away from each other.

,,Y-yes indeed. My cat might not appreciate another one of your stunning spells. You already are his worst enemy at the moment" Hermione said breathlessly, trying to sound natural but looking evidently flustered.

Before he could stop himself, Draco snorted. For some reason, that made Hermione smile. She opened her mouth, hesitated for a moment, closed it, then opened it again.

,,Thank you for the potion" she said softly, spinning the small vial between her fingers. "I had finished mine two nights ago."

,,Two nights ago?" Draco asked confusedly. ,,But then, how come you had a nightmare if you took the potion?"

,,I did take a Dreamless Potion that night" she started slowly, then continued in a more confident voice, ,,Two nights ago I took my regular dose but the alcohol... it nullified its effect. That's why I had a nightmare. I knew that would happen, but that day had not been an easy one for me. Hence, the drinking in the bar and all the adventure than came with it."

Hermione finished with a strained smile, one that Draco did not return, though. Instead, he looked at her in disbelief. He didn't know why exactly she had confessed to him; he just knew it was a sign of trust. That's what his instinct was telling him, and he was inclined to believe it. The feelings and emotions that were born from that idea nagged at his mind, making him feel very confused. He absentmindedly brushed a hand through his hair.

His gesture made Hermione overly conscious of her own unkept hair. She quickly raised her arms and pulled at her unruly curls, using her fingers to try and untangle them.

,,Do Potter and Weasley know?" Draco asked suddenly, making Hermione jump.

,,Know what?" she asked, unsure of what Draco meant with his question.

,,Do they know about your nightmares?" he asked, avoiding to make eye contact with Hermione.

,,Harry knows," Hermione replied simply, staring at a spot right above Draco's left shoulder ,,Ron suspects I think, but I've never confirmed it , nor did he asked me openly. I guess he has them too, just like me and Harry do, though he never said anything to us about it. He chose a different way to deal with it."

Hermione stopped for a moment, then continued, a small smile forming on her lips.

,,Ron said he wanted to deal with creatures that are scarier than his dreams. That way, he'll never be terrified of falling asleep, but rather of waking up."

Draco gave out a strange sound, something between a snort and choke.

,,That's awfully intelligent and mature, coming from the Weasel" Draco said, clearing his throat and managing a small smirk.

Hermione chuckled and nodded in agreement.

,,Yeah, Harry and I thought the same thing first time we heard him say that. To be honest, we didn't think he would actually go through with it. Working with creatures such as dragons was something we never thought him capable of. I am glad he did it though" Hermione said with a soft smile, ,,Anything is better than to let the darkness of your mind take hold of you."

Draco hesitated for a moment. He wanted to ask her but didn't know if he should. He had been curious about it ever since his mother told him about Hermione and how she was going to be his counselor or sober companion, or whatever Narcissa had called her then. Draco took a deep breath.

"Why did you choose this job?" he finally asked in a quiet voice, fixing his grey eyes questioningly on her brown ones" ,,You could have been anything. You're a war heroine after all. This status alone would have allowed you to choose any job you wanted. You are smart so you would have done well in any field, so... What made you choose this?"

Hermione regarded him for a few moments before replying. There was something about that question and the way he had asked, that made Hermione frown in concentration. Others have asked her that in the years after the war, but neither one of them sounded like Draco just now. He sounded genuinely interested, as if her answer might help him find something for himself. She instinctively felt the urge to answer him honestly.

"I thought that if I helped other people get back to their lives, I would be able to pull myself together as well. After things calmed down, I felt like I was made of puzzle pieces that I needed to find and put back in their right place. Helping people did that for me. Each person I managed to help, was like a small puzzle piece that found its place, making me one step closer to being hole again."

,,And how is that working for you?" Draco asked, not entirely able to keep the tinge of irony from his tone.

,,Not well enough, it would seem" Hermione sighed, ,,I found myself facing difficult cases, some even impossible. We'll just have to see how your case works out, though, before I declare it a failure or a success" she finished with a small smile.