The shop had been running for two weeks now, quite successfully too. Draco was pleased to get half the profits and Fred kept the other half, depositing a quarter of them into Hermione’s Gringotts bank account. Draco hadn’t seen Hermione for two weeks, the last time was when he had lasagne at their house and had saved Hermione from nearly falling over the chair... and he missed her. Draco Malfoy was missing Hermione Granger. He hated to admit it but he thought about her as he worked, as he disapparated home and when he tried to sleep at night. Although he had decided to stay away from her since he couldn’t feel what he was feeling right now.

 Draco closed the front door as a bunch of noisy sixth years rollicked out into Hogsmeade with bags of products that they had bought. He didn’t know how they would be able to get into Hogwarts with Weasley products but he assumed security was loosened now that Voldemort was dead. Today had been crazily busy and Draco felt like he could faint on his feet as he locked the front door and straightened some products that had been knocked over by students. He was just picking up a love potion from under the shelf when he heard Fred.

‘Everything is done. I’ve counted the money, just need to save it in Gringotts,’ Fred explained, coming out of the back room. Draco nodded and eyed the envelope in his hands. Fred held it out for him, ‘here’s your money. Half the profits as always.’

‘So you’re going home now?’ asked Draco, taking the envelope from him. Fred nodded unhappily and Draco frowned at him, ‘usually you would be happy to go home because of Granger. Something wrong?’

‘She’s just... um, been acting a little strange. Emotional. One minute she’ll be really happy, taking my jacket off and leading me to the kitchen, showing off what she had baked and then the next she’d start shouting at me and fighting,’ Fred shrugged and Draco raised his eyebrows, ‘she’s pregnant. What else can I expect from her?’

‘Astoria was very hormonal when we found out. I wasn’t complaining when she wanted me to go to bed with her earlier than usual,’ Draco shrugged and then laughed, ‘that was great but then we started to fight too and... everything sort of fell apart. The first sign of the relationship falling apart is when she doesn’t want to, you know... sleep with you.’

‘Yeah?’ asked Fred, leaning against the shelf. Draco smirked wickedly to himself as Fred shrugged disheartened, ‘what’s the second sign?’

 ‘Well, Astoria sort of faked headaches when I asked her what was wrong,’ Draco said and Fred looked up at that suddenly, ‘and she kept a lot of secrets from me.’

‘Secrets? Well, she has been a little distant for the last two weeks,’ Fred shook his head and rubbed his face, looking tired, ‘I better get home. She’ll be waiting.’

‘See you tomorrow at nine.’

Draco went to the back room, leaving Fred to ponder over his words. Suddenly he felt a little wave of something crash though him. Could it be guilt he was feeling? He did this on purpose, of course. Planting doubt into Fred’s mind, which Fred worried ceaselessly over, was a hobby of Draco’s but a deep part of him wanted Fred to leave Hermione just so her heart could break and she would try and find someone else. Draco tugged on his clock as he though this. He didn’t want Hermione for himself, of course not. What would Astoria think or his child or his... friends of sorts? He couldn’t like a mudblood, that was just dreadful.

Certainly Draco had to admit that he felt some strange attraction towards the frizzy brown haired bookworm. Her attitude, her energy, her smartness and of course her ability to turn to him and say what she really was thinking with no regard to Draco’s feelings, were what made Draco think about her non stop. He also felt a great deal of physical desire towards her. Draco put his feelings down to lust and nothing more. She was pregnant, he was single and bored and she was so vulnerable. Nothing more than that.  

 Draco disapparated home. This was another day where he would have to heat up some leftovers and then eat it and taste the artificial flavours that made him miss his mother so much. At least she made better food than what Blaise could make. Draco ate the left over chicken as though someone was after him. He just wanted to go to bed and sleep but he knew that he wouldn’t go to sleep straight away. He usually tortured himself by thinking about Astoria... and then Hermione who would probably be snuggling  up to Fred while he tossed and turned. Draco laughed at this thought as he ate forkfuls of chicken. He hated the thought of Hermione even touching Fred let alone kissing him but Draco took pleasure in the fact that she didn’t seem to be interested in him physically... even though the reason for that may be that she was pregnant but Draco didn’t care. He felt better knowing that.

‘We need to talk,’ Blaise stood against the kitchen door way, watching Draco leaving his dirty plates next to the sink. Draco turned to face him and knew what he was going to say as soon as he opened his mouth, ‘I need you out of my house.’

‘I know. I told you I’m working on it,’ Draco sighed, leaning against the counter and fixing him with a cold and level stare, ‘It’s just taking some time.’

‘This is about her, isn’t it?’ Blaise asked, walking further into the room, ‘you love her, don’t you?’

‘I don’t know who you’re talking about? The only girl I love is Astoria and she’s-’ Draco was cut off as Blaise stood right in front of him. They stared at each other, regarding and cold.

‘Granger,’ Blaise spat out the word like it was cow dung. Draco narrowed his eyes at him and hoped he would be too afraid to go on but Draco must’ve been losing his power because Blaise did, indeed, talk, ‘you love her and you don’t want to hurt her.’

‘Granger is nothing to me. You’re only a fool to think that I would love a mudblood like her,’ Draco argued in a cold tone that could compete with his eyes. He stared fixedly at Blaise, ‘I will do it and then I’ll leave this apartment.’

‘You better leave and soon,’ Blaise said but Draco had already passed by him, on the way to his room, ‘never thought a Malfoy would ever fall in love with Granger. Disgusting and vile mudblood.’

Draco slammed his door shut and sank to the floor with his head in his hands. Anger rolled off of him in waves and he didn’t look up until he was sure he wouldn’t say or do something stupid. Finally he stood up slowly and turned his light on, letting himself calm down completely. Draco walked over to the desk where Blaise’s owl was perched as it usually liked to sit in his room. He grabbed a piece of parchment and let his quill hover over it, dropping ink onto the paper. Draco wrote:

Mudblood,

                  I can practically hear your voice in my head, scoffing at the word ‘Mudblood’. Fine. Granger? That better?

Anyway, work is over and I was thinking about poor Freddie and how he said that you are too talkative after work. He gets a headache when you talk too much and believe it or not, he told me that he doesn’t even want to sleep next to you.

 Wow, sounds like you’re really lucky to have him.

Don’t tell him I told you this, okay, sweetheart? If you do, he’ll fire me and then we won’t be able to keep our little affair going on, right? I’ll be forced to tell him how you grabbed me that first night and kissed me against my own will. Don’t roll your eyes at this letter, you know it’s true. You wanted to kiss me.

Hexes,

D. M.

Draco folded the letter and wrote Granger on the top. He secured it in the owl’s mouth and let it fly off into the night sky. He hated to admit it but... he would feel really bad about what he was about to do to Hermione and Fred. He would feel bad for about... two hours and then get over it. Draco smirked to himself and stared out the window at the rippling night sky when it started to rain lightly.

---

*Hermione’s POV*

Hermione crossed her legs as she fell onto the sofa beside Fred. She had tied the kitchen, washed the clothes and put away leftovers, all she wanted to do was relax in front of the TV. Fred had been quiet ever since he got in but now he was different. He started to pay with her hair and Hermione leaned into him a little, eyes on the TV. Fred slowly moved her hair away and started to kiss and caress her neck with his lips.

‘I’m not in the mood, Fred,’ Hermione sighed as Fred tried to kiss her. He moved back a little, hurt definitely on his face. Hermione tried to justify her reason, ‘I’m tired okay?’

‘Hermione, we never-’

‘But we don’t have to have a physical relationship, Fred. Isn’t it enough that we can be comfortable with each other rather than have our lips glued together?’ Hermione snapped at him and then turned to the TV that had an advert about something she didn’t really care about at this moment. She turned back to find Fred staring at her angrily and a part of her felt bad since he was a man and had been extremely patient with her but the other and more expressive side snapped, ‘turn the volume down and stop staring at me like that!’

‘Hermione, sometimes I wonder if you even love me or if the very thin thread joining us together is this... this child!’ Fred hissed at her, getting up. Hermione stood up too and caught his arm as he tried to walk past her in a huff, ‘let me go. It’s fine. We can stay under one roof and not act like a bloody couple.’

‘Why is it so important for you that we do act like a couple?!’ Hermione roared, her anger overtaking her. Fred ignored her and rolled his eyes as he strode past her into their shared and messy bedroom. Hermione followed him, ‘is that all you can think about? Taking me to bed?’

‘Just drop it, Hermione,’ Fred muttered, unbuttoning his shirt as he spoke. He took it off and Hermione just stared at him, not caring or even noticing his body. She was too immersed in her anger to notice.

‘Why?! You wanted for us to talk and now we are! So talk, Fred, tell me how you only want me so that you can tell everyone you get it every night!’ Hermione seethed anger at him and Fred, after pulling his pyjama top on, turned to her and the anger scared Hermione a little.’

‘Just stop before I do something I’ll regret,’ he enunciated his words and pointed at Hermione, ‘get into bed and go to sleep.’

‘Don’t tell me what to do,’ Hermione said, walking up to him and stopping in front of him. She pushed him and his back hit the cupboard behind him, ‘I hate your attitude.’

‘So you want me to change? That’s all you ever want! You want me to be responsible and take care of you, what if I can’t or don’t want to bloody do that?!’ roared Fred, bouncing off the cupboard and towering over her. Hermione stared up at him, her jaw clenched and her eyes stubborn, ‘stop trying to change me.’

A tapping sound came from a nearby window and Hermione looked behind Fred to see an owl at the window. She glared at Fred for a second, wishing he would just leave her alone. Hermione bashed his arm as she walked past and pushed open the window. She heard Fred slam the bathroom door shut and the owl jumped at the sound. Hermione jumped too but took the letter as the owl hooted angrily. It flew off and Hermione closed the window then she opened the letter.

Mudblood,

                  I can practically hear your voice in my head, scoffing at the word ‘Mudblood’. Fine. Granger? That better?

Anyway, work is over and I was thinking about poor Freddie and how he said that you are too talkative after work. He gets a headache when you talk too much and believe it or not, he told me that he doesn’t even want to sleep next to you.

 Wow, sounds like you’re really lucky to have him.

Don’t tell him I told you this, okay, sweetheart? If you do, he’ll fire me and then we won’t be able to keep our little affair going on, right? I’ll be forced to tell him how you grabbed me that first night and kissed me against my own will. Don’t roll your eyes at this letter, you know it’s true. You wanted to kiss me.

Hexes,

D. M.

Hermione felt her eyebrows loosen slightly as she saw Draco had given her the letter. She felt a little happier since she hadn’t seen him for two weeks now. Her heart lifted slightly and she scoffed as she read “hexes”, smiled when she read “sweetheart” and indeed rolled her eyes as she read that she had kissed him against his own will. He really needs a recap on that, thought Hermione.

Then the confusion set in as she read the whole letter. The confusion was wiped clean and she felt angrier than ever. Fred said she talked too much and gave him headaches. I guess headaches didn’t stop his desires from taking over. Hermione complained to herself about the letter and Fred being annoying. She left it under a pile of books where Fred would never look.

‘Why aren’t you changed yet?’ he asked, coming out of the bathroom. Hermione glared at him as though he had no right to talk to her. Fred glared back at her, ‘I hate your attitude too.’

‘Just go to sleep, Fred. Save us all from a fight erupting,’ Hermione muttered and grabbed her clothes. She saw Fred pull back the bed sheets and then frowned, ‘I’m not sleeping next to you tonight. Maybe you should take the sofa.’

‘Hermione, don’t be stupid-’

‘Stupid?’ Hermione gasped at him. That word was a real insult to Hermione and she hated to be called stupid. Hermione grabbed the pillow from the bed and threw it at him, ‘get lost, Fred. Go out and grab a drink if you must. Just get out of this room.’

Hermione went into the bathroom and sat at the baths edge. Her hands felt around her stomach for a second and she felt the baby kick a little. It had been doing that at nights mostly. Hermione felt a tear drop down onto her hand but she quickly wiped it away and got ready for bed.