Who's ready for a new story?! Believe it or not, I still own nothing.

Chapter 1

Saturday night.

The last place Draco Malfoy wanted to be on a Saturday night was stationed outside Room 273 at St. Mungo's. He had been on his way home when he received a call about a disturbance in Diagon Alley. The Golden Quill, the alley's newest bookshop, had been vandalized and the owner injured. He'd arrived with backup long after the suspect fled, and found Hermione Granger, unconscious and bloody, near the cash register. While his team combed the store for evidence, he Apparated her to the hospital for treatment.

Now, he waited. Not for news on her condition, but a reprieve. He wanted to sleep, and sleep wasn't something he got standing guard. An hour passed before Harry Potter, his supervisor, arrived. Draco sneered when he arrived. "Good of you to show," he muttered. The pair, despite their years working together, didn't get along. Old school rivalries had not dissipated, and it ground Draco's gears that he had to report to Harry Potter.

Harry scowled, pushing dark brown locks away from his face. "Because I've been sitting on my arse this whole time," he quipped. "Has a healer been by? Do you know anything about Hermione's condition?"

The blond shook his head and pushed away from the wall. "Am I free to go?" he asked.

"Actually, no," Harry replied. "Aside from the report you still need to file, there's something Kingsley wants you to do. There, uh, letters were found at the shop. We think they're from whoever did this. Judging from the content of the letters, someone wants Hermione dead. Shacklebolt has decided you're to guard her, keep her safe."

"What? Why me?" Draco demanded.

Harry shrugged. "Hell if I know," he muttered. "You've done guard duty before and those people are still alive. I guess he figures you've got a good track record or something. Look, I don't care why he picked you. Just do your job and protect her."

Draco glared at him as he walked away, muttering under his breath, until he found a healer. Minutes later, Harry returned, and without a word, entered Hermione's room. "It's a concussion," the healer explained. "My guess is she hit her head somewhere behind the counter, if Mr. Malfoy's assessment is correct. She was unconscious when he brought her in, but she should be waking up soon."

"Auror Malfoy," Draco muttered. "And I didn't say she hit her head. I said something hit her on the head. It was a mess around her."

"You think she was actually attacked," Harry said. The face Draco made said it all. "Okay, I'll send a team back to reexamine the store, test for any magical traces. You stay here with her."

Draco rolled his eyes. "Could I have a chair this time?" he requested, a facetious smile gracing his pale face. Pulling out his wand, Harry conjured a chair that knocked into Draco's knees. "You're a peach, Potter."

Half an hour went by before Hermione awoke. A strangled sob escaped her lips, alerting Draco to her recent development. Standing, he ran to the door and called for a healer. Returning to her side, he attempted to keep her in place. "Granger, you're alright," he said, his voice soft and soothing. "You're fine. Just be still."

When the healer arrived, he was asked to step out so Hermione could be examined. Draco stared at his pocketwatch, counting the seconds and minutes as they ticked by. Five minutes passed before he was allowed to reenter her room. Following a quick briefing on her condition, the healer left the room.

"Why are you here?" Hermione asked when they were alone. Scowling, Draco reclaimed his seat and told her he was now her bodyguard. "Why you?"

"Because Potter hates me?" he guessed.

The brunette frowned as she touched the sore bump on the back of her head. "Funny, I didn't know he hated me too," she joked. For the first time since arriving at the hospital, Draco smiled. "You really don't have to do this. Harry's a bit overprotective, but I can take care of myself."

"Yeah, clearly," he muttered, settling back in his seat. She glared at him, daring him to say more. It was a bait Draco willingly took. "All I'm saying is this is the, what, fourth time your shop's been broken into. They managed to knock you out without you getting off a spell, I reckon. But okay, you can handle this yourself."

Hermione shifted beneath the thin blankets, uncomfortable with the fact that Draco Malfoy was right. She dove behind the counter when she heard intruders, and seconds later, darkness claimed her. Though she didn't know what hit her head, she knew it was heavy enough to render her unconscious.

"They're discharging me at noon tomorrow," she informed him.

Draco nodded. "We'll stop by my flat to pick up a few of my belongings," he decided. "I really hope you have more than one bedroom. I don't sleep on sofas."

Brown eyes widened as Hermione sat up straighter. "You're not staying with me," she said defiantly.

Sighing, Draco leaned his head back and shut his eyes. "This isn't up for discussion," he stated. "I can't keep an eye on you if you're somewhere else. Potter's made it clear I'm to be with you at all times."

With a huff, she looked away, staring at the tree outside her hospital room window. She could allow Malfoy to stay in her flat, and it wouldn't be hard to slip away while he slept. "Just you?" she asked. "No backup?"

"I'm sure we won't be able to shake Potter," he mumbled, trying to fall asleep. "Who needs backup when you have the Chosen One?"

Turning back, she noted his closed eyes and even breathing. "Should you really be sleeping?" she inquired. "It wouldn't be hard for someone to come in and attack me right now. I'd hate to tell Harry that you failed your assignment ten minutes into it."

With an angry groan, he sat up and stared at her. "It's two in the morning," he said through clenched teeth. "I've saved your arse once tonight. No one's going to attack you here. Go to sleep."

Taken aback, she said nothing else and let him rest. Try as she might, she couldn't get comfortable and spent the next few minutes resituating herself before giving up. With a sigh, she stared at the ceiling, willing sleep to come. All she could think about was Draco Malfoy though. How could they ever work together? Would they kill one another before her mystery attacker could? Most importantly, though, she wondered - what was Harry thinking?