Two weeks had passed since the incident of Hermione's almost kidnapping. With Draco's help and with the information gathered from the arrested Death Eaters, Harry was on a lead to catching McKinley.

Draco had wished to go with him on raids, but Harry was adamant about refusing him.

,,You're not an Auror, Malfoy. I can't let you come with us. I'm sorry." Harry would tell Draco every time he brought up the subject.

Draco could only growl his disapproval and sit still while Aurors went and caught small groups of Death Eaters hiding across the northern regions. McKinley was still evading their every attempt and Draco grew more restless by the day.

One evening, Draco was sitting with his mother on the sofa, having a cup of tea. They had been sitting quietly for a while, until Narcissa finally broke the silence.

,,Have you seen Hermione Granger lately?" she asked, glancing sideways at her son.

,,No, not since... since that day." Draco said calmly, despite being surprised by his mother's sudden interest.

That was true. Draco hadn't seen Hermione since that day at the hospital. He only knew she was doing well and that she got back to working at St. Mungo's. He'd been upset with her decision but knew very well he couldn't do anything about it.

,,I see. That's too bad." Narcissa said quietly.

A soft huff could be heard from the small painting frame that overlooked their sofa. Both Draco and Narcissa ignored it. Ever since that conversation, Draco had avoided his father, making sure he wasn't in the room when Lucius entered his portrait. Narcissa thought this attitude was very childish but she couldn't blame it all on Draco. Lucius had been too blunt about something Draco subconsciously tried very hard to deny. She had to admit that, after the first conversation she had with Lucius's portrait, she found his approving attitude towards Hermione quite shocking. She concluded something must have happened when the two met that made Lucius see Hermione in a different light.

This is how Harry's stag Patronus found the Malfoys, a few minutes later. Draco was sitting with his arms crossed, frowning at the floor, his mother was sipping her tea, calm as ever, and Lucius was absent from his painting.

,,Draco, McKinley has attacked. Come to St. Mungo's immediately! The Janus Thickey ward." the silvery stag said urgently in Harry's voice, before dissolving into silver smoke.

Draco's heart sunk, his whole body freezing.

The Janus Thickey ward? But that ward is for treatment of spell damage. Did McKinley manage to hurt someone, and they were in the hospital?

,,Hermione." He said under his breath.

As soon as the thought crossed his mind, his insides went cold. He jumped to his feet and disappeared on the spot. He Apparated the closest he could to the entrance of the hospital and from there he broke into a run towards the Janus Thickey ward. As soon as he reached the place, he realized he didn't know where he could find her. Potter was also nowhere in sight.

Letting out a loud curse, he ran along the hallway, hoping he would see Hermione there and sure enough, he soon heard her voice coming from one of the rooms on the left. He sprang forward hoping he would reach the door but was immediately stopped by several healers.

,,Sir, you are not allowed in here. You have to go back and wait in the hallway." A young female healer told him, while three male healers grabbed him by the arms and tried pulling him away.

,,Get out of my way!" Draco growled, his nerves tensed to the maximum. He could barely control his anger and was looking quite frightening.

,,Sir, we must insist you wait here. If you tell us who you're searching for then maybe, we can..."

Draco let out another loud curse, breaking free from the men's hold and raised his wand.

,,If you don't get out of my way this instant, you'll regret it." He snapped, eyeing the healers dangerously.

Because of the rage, he didn't even notice the female healer turning to leave. Moments later she came back, followed by someone else.

,,What in Merlin's name is happening here?" Hermione said breathlessly, looking at the scene in front of her.

As soon as he heard her voice, Draco's head snapped in her direction, analyzing her almost hungrily. He noticed a small cut along her cheek, blood dripping from the wound. That made him curse inwardly, feeling his blood boil. But he had to admit that other than that she seemed to be perfectly alright. Apart from the anger she was displaying in the way she looked at Draco, of course.

Hermione was staring at Draco in angry disbelief, her hands on her hips, her nostrils flaring, her hair frizzier than usual.

,,What do you think you're doing, Malfoy, coming here, yelling and threating people like this?"

,,I... well I..." Draco could feel himself deflating under her scrutinizing glare.

,,What are you doing here?" she asked again, gesturing for the other healers to leave.

,,Potter sent me a message. Told me to come to St. Mungo's because McKinley had attacked." Draco answered swiftly, barely taking in air.

,,Well, yes he did." Hermione said, letting out a huff of annoyance, brushing a strand of hair out of her face. Draco noticed her face was flushed and how she winced when her hand touched the wound on her cheek. ,,The bastard disguised himself as a patient and as soon as he got inside he started attacking people. Luckily, he wasn't in the killing mood, he just wanted to attract the Aurors' attention. I think he was feeling desperate. Since the Aurors caught most of his followers, he must have felt cornered, with no place to hide."

,,What happened to him?" Draco asked, slowly trying to compose himself, suddenly feeling very stupid at his outburst.

,,He had the misfortune to bump into me one minute after he started his rampage." Hermione said, her eyes flaring at the memory. ,,Nothing a simple stunning spell couldn't do, though. Harry was here to take him to the Ministry for questioning. He just left."

,,I'm going to kill Potter for this." Draco grumbled under his breath.

Hermione raised an eyebrow, clearly confused. It wasn't like him to do something like this for no reason. At that point she was feeling very determined to find out the reason behind Draco's confusing attitude.

,,Why are you here, Draco?" she asked again, this time staring at him intently.

Draco didn't miss her use of his first name. He felt his body tingling at the sound of his name coming from her. He returned her gaze, trying to decide on something. Before he could determine what to do, he was startled by Hermione approaching him. She stopped right in front of Draco, looking up into his grey eyes with such intensity that he found it difficult to think or even breathe. He wanted to take a step back, to get away from her, but his body wouldn't listen. He felt rooted to the spot, unable to do anything but stare into Hermione's soft brown eyes.

,,Why have you come, Draco?" she said in a soft whisper, her eyes widening slightly, anxious to hear his answer.

,,Because of you." he finally spoke, as if hypnotized by her stare. ,,Because I thought you were in danger."

,,And why would you care if I was in danger? You made it clear it doesn't matter to you what happens to me. Why would you care now?" she pressed, feeling the injustice of her words but shaking the thought away. She had to know, she had to hear him say it.

Draco felt his heart protest in front of that unfair accusation. Hasn't he shown her that he cared, that he was worried about her? Hasn't he, many times over, tried to keep her away from harm? How could she sit there in front of him, with those big, entrancing eyes, accusing him of not caring? He let out a huff of indignation and before his mind was able to process, his heart opened up to her, as he blurted out a confession he had been keeping hidden even from himself.

,,I like you, Hermione Granger." Draco finally said, feeling the truth of those words in every fiber of his being.

Hermione's breath caught in her throat. It was as if that was the very thing she wanted to hear from him. Taking Draco completely by surprise, she raised both arms, encircling him around the neck. She brought them closer and placed her lips onto his.

Draco's mind went black for a second, unable to fully register what was happening. Until, Hermione's body pressing against his, her smell and touch, all this invaded his senses. He picked her up and kissed her back as if his life depended on it. After moments that seemed like hours to him, he slowly let her down, but still keeping her close to him, a protective arm laced around her waist.

,,Do you think that 'like' can ever transform into love?" Hermione asked him, a small but warm smile forming on her lips.

,,I think it already has." Draco answered, smiling in return.

For once, smiling felt effortless to him. It didn't feel strained or fake, but natural and willingly given. And he felt something else that was quite new to him. He felt happy. He felt his heart light, but full at the same time, full of Hermione, full of an emotion he never knew he would ever be given the chance to feel. His heart was now full of love for her.

,,I like you too, Draco Malfoy." He heard Hermione whisper against his lips.