Hermione hadn't seen Harry since their first Apparition lesson, and spotting him alone in the corner of the Gryffindor common room, apparently engrossed in whatever he was reading, she took the opportunity to play catch-up with her friend.

"Hey," she said, dropping into the armchair next to him. "Since when do you read for fun?" she teased, gesturing to the book in his lap.

Startled, Harry looked up. "Um, well…" he trailed off, guiltily.

Hermione's eyes narrowed. "What are you doing?"

Harry removed his glasses, massaging his temples for a moment before answering. "I know you don't want to hear it, but I just know Malfoy's up to something. I can feel it in my gut."

Exasperated, Hermione snatched the piece of parchment out of Harry's lap, peering at the moving figures on it. "So now you're stalking him using the Marauders Map? Honestly Harry, you're worse than a first-year with a crush!" she said, rolling her eyes.

Harry made a move to reclaim his map, but she held it out of his reach. "I am not," he huffed, crossing his arms with a sullen look on his face.

Hermione burst out laughing. "Case in point," she said, grinning. "And now you're pouting, just like a first-year." She settled more comfortably in her seat, examining the map. She found Ron and Lavender first, their dots practically on top of one another in an empty classroom. She sneered and switched her focus to the Slytherin common room. "Malfoy's in his common room with Pansy Parkinson."

"Yeah, that happens a lot," Harry admitted.

"What's so suspicious about that?" Hermione asked pointedly. "They're friends, and they're hanging out in their common room. Not unlike the two of us, right now," she said, handing the map back to Harry.

"Nothing really, I guess. But you didn't hear him arguing with Crabbe at our first Apparition lesson! Something's going on, Hermione. He was telling Crabbe and Goyle to stop asking questions, and to keep a lookout for him. People don't have lookouts unless they're doing something sneaky," Harry responded, eyebrows raised in emphasis. "Plus, Malfoy sometimes goes missing from the map entirely. Explain that one!" he said triumphantly.

Hermione twisted a strand of hair between her fingers for a moment, pondering the situation. She couldn't argue with Harry's point. Malfoy was being sneaky, and there was no denying it. And she knew exactly where he was going when he disappeared off the map, but it wasn't as if she could admit to her friend that Malfoy was in the Room of Requirement without it turning into a game of twenty questions. There was no way in hell she could allow Harry to find out that the reason Malfoy was pulling a disappearing act was because he was shagging her senseless on a regular basis. She decided to try to divert Harry's attention.

"The thing with Crabbe and Goyle is odd… But Harry? Don't you think that if Malfoy were truly up to something, Dumbledore would catch on to it? He is, after all, probably the most powerful wizard alive right now." There, that was good. The headmaster was aware of what Malfoy was up to, hence her strange new mission. And come to think of it… "Furthermore, didn't he ask you to try to get that unaltered memory from Slughorn? Dumbledore knows what he's doing. You have a mission, and if I were you, that's what I'd be focusing on right now," finished Hermione, mentally patting herself on the back.

Frustrated, Harry exhaled loudly. "I have no idea how I'm going to get the memory from Slughorn. It seems like an impossible task. He refuses to talk about it with me. And what if Dumbledore is missing something? He's so busy these days, with his trips and stuff. And he still trusts Snape, which is obviously a mistake." He pushed a hand through his hair. "I'm not suggesting that he's slipping, or that he's daft or anything… Just that a little extra vigilance might not be a bad idea."

"You're absolutely right, Harry," agreed Hermione.

He looked surprised. "I am? I mean, you actually think so?"

"Yes," she said decisively. "When you put it that way, how can I argue?"

"Huh." Clearly, Harry was expecting more of a fight from her.

She smiled sweetly. "A little extra vigilance, as you put it? I can help you with that." Harry stared at her expectantly. "I have prefect duty with Malfoy twice a week. Do you want me to keep an eye on him? It wouldn't really be any trouble."

"Yeah actually, that would be great." Harry looked slightly mollified.

"Done," announced Hermione. Two birds with one stone. She got Harry to relax a little bit, and now she didn't have to worry about him checking the map while she was out with Malfoy. Silently congratulating herself once again, she rose from her seat. "I'll start tonight."

"Thanks, Hermione. Mischief managed," he muttered, and stowed the map away in his pocket. "Guess I'll just see if Seamus is up for a round of wizard's chess then." Harry stood up as well. "But be safe, okay?" he requested, putting one hand on her shoulder. "If he is up to something, don't let him know you're onto it. There's no telling what he might do, and I'd never forgive myself if he hurt you."

Harry looked so sincere as he spoke his last words that Hermione had to bite back a twinge of guilt. For about two seconds. Because the truth was, she liked it when Malfoy hurt her just a little. She grinned at Harry again as he set off to find Seamus, and tried not to look too gleeful as she left the common room to make her rounds.

She was a little early to meet Malfoy, so when she arrived at their meeting spot, she took a seat on the stairs to wait for him. Leaning back against the banister, she let her mind drift, trying to decide what she was in the mood for once they completed their rounds. Their last encounter in the potions store room had been quick and dirty, and before that, during Christmas break, they had been almost sweet with one another.

Tonight, after smoothly navigating a difficult scenario with Harry and coming out on top, she was feeling confident and more than a little feisty. In fact, she wouldn't mind coming out on top with Malfoy, so to speak. Smirking at that thought, it also occurred to her that Malfoy would probably appreciate her cunning in handling the situation, twisting it to meet the needs of her agenda. He'd probably even suggest that she had a little bit of Slytherin in her. Her self-satisfied smile grew wider at that. Hermione wanted nothing more than to have a little Slytherin in her tonight, and he there was no doubt that he could handle her cun-

"Hey, isn't that my job?"

Hermione's head snapped up as Malfoy's voice broke her train of thought. "Isn't what your job?"

"Making that face. What's got you looking so damned smug tonight?" asked Malfoy, extending a hand to help her up off the staircase.

Accepting his assistance, she took advantage of the chance to lean in close to him as she stood. "I've just been dreaming up all of the wicked things I'm going to do to you later," she breathed into his ear. Then she dropped his hand, turned, and took a few steps up the stairs, giving him a spectacular view of her arse as she ascended. Pausing for a moment, she glanced back over her shoulder to make sure she'd had the desired effect on him.

He scampered up the stairs after her like a good boy.