Secrets, Secrets Are No Fun...

Hermione and Draco hugged and then ran off in opposite directions to their respective common rooms. Hermione's stomach was in knots as she thought about the heart she was about to break. She wasn't in love with Ron, but she still loved him very much, and didn't want to hurt him.

She headed towards the common room quickly, breezed past the Fat Lady, and was greeted by Ron in the form of a big hug and a kiss on the cheek. "Where have you been, Hermione? I didn't even see you last night."

"Oh... I went to bed early, sorry," she lied hastily.

"Well what about this morning?"

"I went to the library."

"For that long?"

Hermione's patience was wearing thin. "Merlin's beard, Ronald! Give me some space, I'm a grown girl! I'm allowed to go off by myself once in a while! Just because we are dating does not mean we need to be together every moment of the bloody day!"

Ron's mouth dropped, and his eyes filled with hurt as he released Hermione from his arms and walked a few steps away. "Um... I'm sorry," he mumbled. "Didn't realize I was so bloody clingy."

Hermione gave him a small smile and said, "Ron, I love you. So much. But I have to tell you, I liked it better when we were simply best friends. Everything was so much easier. I think we can see if anything would happen in the future, but for now, I want to focus on my studies, defeating Umbridge, and learning as many spells as I can with my best friends by my side. I love you, Ronald. But I'm not in love with you."

"Oh. Well, I suppose... I can... see where you're coming from, then. I-I-I guess I'll just, uh, go upstairs... now... and study."

Hermione ran up to him and pulled him in to a hug. "Please, Ron. Don't be upset with me. I just want everything to go back to normal, like the beginning of this year. Please?"

Ron nodded. "I understand, Hermione. Just... just give me some time, to get over it, okay?"

Hermione smiled gently and let him head upstairs with his head hung, probably to tell Harry. True to her prediction, six minutes later as Hermione was relaxing in front of the fire, Harry sprinted down the stairs and ended up next to her.

"Bloody hell, Hermione! He's a wreck! Why did you break up with him?"

"Because I'm not in love with him, Harry," she said sternly.

"Couldn't you just... pretend, or something?"

"For how long? Should I pretend to get bloody married to him? Harry, if I don't like him, I'm not going to lead him on! That's even worse!"

Harry just shook his head. "Fine, fine. But he's going to be annoying for the next few weeks. Just so you know."

"I know. But I know he'll get over it. Plus, I've been noticing Lavender Brown sending him glances for two years now. Eventually she'll get up the courage, and I'm sure they'll end up together for a while!"

Harry laughed a little, but then his face got serious. "This is about Malfoy, isn't it?"

Hermione could feel red blotches appear on her face. "N-n-no. Why d-do you think th-that?"

"Hermione, it's ridiculously obvious. Honestly, I don't even understand what you see in him. He's vile!"

"He's not vile, Harry. He's different, you know, when you get him alone. He's not so terrible. He's very romantic, and he loves me a lot."

"How do you know, Hermione? How do you know it's not just some cruel joke?"

"I don't know. Sometimes you have to take a risk in life. Like with a certain asian Ravenclaw?"

Harry blushed and Hermione nudged him. "Stop trying to change the subject," he muttered.

"I'm sorry, Harry. I don't even know what's going to happen with Draco right now, we're just feeling it out. Ron will come around. And you need to know that you two are my best friends. I will never switch to another side, I will never go against you, you come first, and you know it."

Harry nodded. "Alright, Hermione. I don't like it, but I don't like ignoring you even more, so let's just see what happens."

Hermione gave him a huge hug and kissed him on the cheek. "Thank you for being so understanding. Now, I have to run out for a minute, but I'll be back in a little while."

Harry waved, looking suspicious, but let her be nevertheless. Hermione practically skipped back to the Room of Requirement, feeling like a huge weight had been lifted off of her shoulders.

When she got there though, she found Draco with a solemn look on his face. "What's wrong? I did it, I'm free!"

"I'm happy for you, Hermione... I wish I could say the same."

Hermione laughed. "What do you mean?"

"Pansy wouldn't let me break up with her. She said if I did she would owl my parents and tell them about us."

"I thought we weren't worrying about this anymore. I thought we were ignoring everybody."

"I know, but, you realize I will get pulled out of Hogwarts and you will be in danger, right?"

"I suppose.''

"Hermione, for now, this is the best we're going to get." He pulled her in to a kiss, exploring her mouth and lacing his hands around her waist. They were there for a while, just enjoying each other and the feeling of lips on lips.

"What the bloody hell are you doing, Draco?" Pansy's voice echoed down the hallway, filling every cob-webbed corner with her piercing shrieks. "That's it, Mudblood. I have had enough of you trying to steal my Draco away. Do you not get it? You don't belong together. It's never going to work! He's a Slytherin, I'm a Slytherin! Oh, and we're both purebloods," she added nastily.

"When are you going to realize that blood doesn't mean anything? Neither do houses! If I love Draco and he loves me, why can't we just be happy together? Why are you so jealous? Just leave us alone, he obviously doesn't want to be with you!"

Defeated, Pansy just glared at the two of them. "Your father will hear about this, Draco. I'm sure he can put you in your right mind. Or at least kill the Mudblood."

"He'll have to kill me before Hermione, Pansy, so I hope that doesn't happen. Tell my father. I don't care anymore. I love Hermione, and that's how it's going to be. So go on, send an owl. Here, you can even use mine. He's on the third floor of the owlery, brown with white spots. Have fun."

Pansy's mouth hung to the floor, and she gave out a loud, "Hmmph!" before turning and stalking away.

Hermione pulled Draco in to a ferocious kiss, thanking him silently, telling him how much it meant to her that he had just stood up for her like that. He kissed her back with an equal amount of passion, letting her know that it was nothing, that he would do it again in a heartbeat, that he would take a killing curse for her.

But Hermione knew that they were still equals. Because just as Draco would take a killing curse for her, she would take a killing curse for him, without a second thought.