Relentless - A Dramione FanFic

Fun While It Lasted

a/n: so this update took me longer than usual because initially I had way more stuff at the end of this chapter. I decided to split it into two, and have the next one almost complete, so there may be the possibility of a double-update today!! YAY!!

Thank you so much to everyone who has taken the time to read this story! I really get excited every time I see there is a new read or comment. I try my best to respond to all comments because I love hearing from you guys.

~E

***

The first thing Ron noticed when he got out of the shower was the smell of bacon. It made his mouth water... almost as much as Hermione had when she surprised him at the door in only her towel. He dressed quickly and stepped from his room onto the landing. His pleasant mood instantly turned to rage when he saw the scene at the bottom of the stairs.

Hermione bracing herself against the island and Draco in the middle of the kitchen, both of them doubled over in laughter.

"WHAT IN THE BLOODY HELL...?" Ron fumed from the top of the stairs.

Their laughter ceased as they snapped upright. Hermione turned to find Ron halfway down the stairs, the fire of hatred burning in his eyes as he glowered at Draco. "HOW DARE YOU MALFOY?!?" He spat.

"Ron, he hasn't done anything." Hermione pleaded, hoping he wouldn't notice the small steps she took to position herself between him and Draco.

"HE'S STILL HERE, HERMIONE!" Ron glanced at her for a moment, then returned his glare to Draco. "HE'S HERE AND HE'S ACTING LIKE HE'S NOT A FILTHY DEATH-EATER! HE'S GOING ON ABOUT HIS LIFE AS IF HE DIDN'T HELP VOLDEMORT RETURN AND KILL OUR LOVED ONES! HE'S COME BACK HERE, -- TO THE PLACE WHERE FRED DIED -- AND NO ONE BATS AN EYE; MCGONAGALL EVEN SETS HIM UP IN THIS COTTAGE WITH US. HE SHOULD BE LOCKED UP IN AZKABAN, NOT HERE, ENJOYING THE LUXURIES OF THIS PLACE." Ron's eyes locked with Hermione's as he continued, lowering his voice to a malicious tone that caused her to shiver in fear. "And then I find you, my girlfriend, the one who's supposed to be on my side no matter what, laughing it up with him like you two are old friends sharing an inside joke. Tell me Hermione... What was so funny that you could put aside who he is and engage with him in this little giggle fit?"

Hermione pursed her lips into a tight line. She wasn't going to reward Ron's outburst with an answer. The moment she and Draco shared had been spontaneous. Genuine. Merlin knows there was no way she could tell Ron that. He wouldn't understand for one thing. But for another, she had rather enjoyed it, and was desperate to keep it for herself.

Ron was still stalking forward and had Hermione backed halfway into the kitchen. Draco retreated several steps to the edge of the island. He was prepared to round the corner and use it as a barrier if needed.

"Its a simple question, Hermione. What was so funny?" He asked once more.

He wasn't going to let this go, so she did the only thing she could do... she lied. "Well, its stupid, really... There was this spider repelling from the ceiling. Draco didn't notice and walked straight into it. He slapped himself in the face over and over trying to get it off. Of course, that made me laugh. When he finally swatted it off and stepped on it, he must have realized how funny he looked and began laughing as well. So, there you go. Like I said, it was stupid."

She felt guilty for lying to Ron, but the truth would have escalated the situation rather than diffuse it. Ron's posture relaxed slightly as he pictured Malfoy with a spider crawling all over his face. She knew the lie would be most effective if Draco looked bad in some way. She placed her hands on Ron's chest and locked her eyes with his. They were still on fire. She tenderly cooed, "It was nothing." Another lie, but it worked.

The rage left his eyes, and he pulled her into a tight embrace. "I'm sorry for overreacting, Hermione. You didn't deserve that." His words were sincere, but they lacked emotion. It upset her that he could put intensity into snarling at her, but not into apologizing. From Ron's arms, she peeked at Draco who was now directly across from them on the opposite side of the island. His head was bowed and she could tell that he was trying to avoid looking in their direction.

She pushed off of Ron's chest and took a small step back. She wanted to say something about how he'd been overreacting a lot lately, but knew better than to poke the unstable bear. She settled for, "How about we enjoy this lovely breakfast? We have to be to class in less than an hour." She wanted to give Draco credit for preparing it, but knew that, too, would provoke Ron's sensitive temper. Instead, she locked eyes with the Slytherin, hoping her look could convey the gratitude she felt not only for the food, but more importantly for Draco silently taking Ron's verbal assault. His nod was almost unnoticeable, but enough for her to know he'd received her message.

"You don't have to ask me twice" Harry's response to Hermione's question rang from the landing, shifting everyone's attention to him. "It smells bloody amazing!"

Ron's eyes widened as he looked at the food in front of him for the first time. In true Ronald fashion, his stomach overrode everything else in his body, including the recent anger as he agreed with his best friend. "Yeah, it does! Who would have thought the kitchen elves had new tricks up their sleeves after all these years."

Hermione was about to correct him when Draco caught her eye and subtly shook his head. Her mouth snapped shut and she gave him a look of confusion laced with gratitude. The hint of a smile briefly floated across his lips. He inconspicuously disconjured his apron and walked toward the stairs. "Oh, heck no," Hermione thought. "He's might not get any credit for it, but there's no way I'm letting him not eat it as well."

"Aren't you going to join us?" She blurted out.

Draco stopped in his tracks. His heart swelled. He couldn't accept her invitation of course, because it would cause another scene with Weasley, but she had asked. He looked over his shoulder, straight into her eyes and replied, "I already ate." Of course she knew that was a lie, and her eyes melted with a sympathy he'd thought she'd never be able to feel for him. Before she could argue, he continued to his room.

Though her stomach churned angrily, Hermione refused to join Harry and Ron who were now stuffing their faces. "I'm just too nervous for the new term to eat anything." She assured them convincingly. It was now a matter of principal, and she would not enjoy the fruits of Draco's labor if he couldn't.

***

As Harry and Ron were finishing their second round of breakfast, a loud bang disrupted their small talk. The three friends turned to find four pieces of parchment hanging on the mantle. Hermione retrieved them. "Class schedules." She informed them. "There's a note on both of yours saying Professor McGonagall needs to meet with you before classes today."

"Ugh." Ron moaned. "On the first day... Really? I was hoping to avoid her office this year if possible."

"I promised Ginny I would meet with her this morning. We better get going so I can let her know about McGonagall's summons." Harry stated. "Are you ready?" He directed toward Ron.

"I don't really want to leave Hermione here alone with that ferret." Ron motioned his head towards Draco's room. "I'll just catch up with you."

"Oh for goodness sake, Ronald. He's nothing I can't handle. Just go with Harry. I'll see you in Potions." Hermione protested.

Ron looked back and forth between his friends, Harry annoyed and impatient; Hermione just plain annoyed. "Alright...just let me grab my wand. I left it in my room." Ron relented hurrying up the stairs.

Harry turned to Hermione, catching her off guard as he urgently said, "We don't have time now, but I am going to need the details of what happened this morning. I heard Ron yelling when I got out of the shower, so I know I missed something."

Ron returned to her side before she had a chance to respond. He pulled her into a side hug and planted a kiss on the top of her head.

"Goodbye, Hemione," the boys chimed in unison as they walked through the portal door.