AN: Hey if anyone would like to correct me on spelling (apart from colours, realise and what not which is because I am Australian and that's how we spell those words) please do. I do try to reread but I always miss something :)

"You cannot escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today"

Abraham Lincoln

The night was becoming darker and Neville's eyes had begun to look back towards the halls, back to safety. Scarlet feeling bad ended up suggesting that they start heading back, after all she'd kept him a lot longer than he had previously intended.

Neville offered to take Scarlet back to her dorm but she refused thinking for one that him being there probably wasn't good for his own safety and also that there was no way she was actually going back yet. Draco's party was sure to go on till the morning hours and she just simply couldn't face the image of him off with some other girl, especially not her best friend.

Once Neville had said his goodbyes,which by the way were without even a thought of getting a kiss out of her, Scarlet started up a walk again. At 12.40 am Scarlett could no longer escape her tiredness and boredom and therefore was forced to begin her sulk back to the Slytherin dorms.

While walking Scarlet was mentally preparing herself for the worst but that proved unwise as she only narrowly escaped a meeting with Filch, and even then only by someone grabbing her arm and speedily pulling her into what she realised after a few seconds of her eyes adjusting was the Transfiguration class room.

Draco had now missed most of his party walking around the halls every now and again stopping and looking out of the large window archways to ask the stars why he had to deal with all this shite... this was until a girlish screech enveloped Draco's silence followed by a very fast cat running towards him. Filch's cat!

Draco ran to the nearest classroom, shut the door, and held his breath while mentally praying to Merlin that he wouldn't be found. There was no sound after a while so he crouched to his knees and looked under the crack at the bottom of the door, and just in time too because what he saw was Filch far down the hallway looking behind a knights statue luckily facing away from freaking Scarlet! who was meandering along looking at the ceilings thoughtfully. What the hell did she find so interesting up there any way? She was always bloody looking at the ceilings and just look what it was bringing to her, (and now undoubtedly him as well) trouble.

Under any other circumstance (well with anyone but Scarlet) Draco would have enjoyed letting them fall right into Filch's hands, but that girl did something to him. It was as if she'd crawled under his skin, climbed to his bodies control center and smashed all the cords that linked to any kind of common sense.

Alas it was Scarlet in the hall and so Draco stupidly risked himself being caught by quietly and swiftly opening the door and unceremoniously pulling Scarlet into the room with him. Her eyes widened as they let go of the oh so interesting ceiling and fell first upon Filch before turning to her saviour pulling her into the room and against the wall.

Draco's hands quickly found her mouth and covered it before she could let out a squeal of a noise. Once her breathing had slowed and the noise of Filch's footsteps began to fade he let her go only now realising the proximity he had put them in. Scarlet didn't say a word she only stared up at him.

What was with this guy? Acting like a total arse, and then almost putting himself out on his arse to save her from the clutches of the creepy caretaker. He was so, so, difficult, but difficult could oh so easily stray in her mind to being different and then to being interesting and then mysterious and then.... well lets just say she could see his good qualities.

"What in heavens name were you doing! You almost got us both caught!... where's Longbottom?" Draco said still quietly but in a very fast pace. Scarlet scowled and made a muffled sound, which was when Draco realised he was still holding his hand over her mouth, he let her go. "It was totally your own choice to help me Draco Malfoy so don't start blaming me for your actions"she said not feeding into his assertions once she could speak again already in defence mode having just been musing about Draco being so annoying .

He didn't even seem to hear her, the primary question now sorting itself into 'the unimportant category' in his mind for the moment being, and the Longbottom question being promoted to 'The must be known right this minute category'. "Where's Longbottom?" he asked again not having elicited the response he had wanted.

Scarlet didn't answer him she just shook her head at him as you might in disbelief at a really bad joke. "Well go on" Draco prompted. "Not that it is what so ever, even in a close vicinity to any of your business" she said dramatically. "Neville has gone back to his dorm for the night" she said pointedly saying his first name where Draco used his last.

A little arrogant smirk played at the Draco's lips."What past his bed time is it?" he asked smugly. "No, he just. Why am I even explaining this to you? It's almost morning anyway! And why aren't you at your oh so spectacular party?" Scarlet asked turning the questioning onto him. Draco snorted "don't get cranky at me, I just saved you remember."

Yes she did remember it was two seconds ago. Scarlet was beginning to think he enjoyed her getting mad at him. "Draco what are you even doing here?" she asked more calmly now. Draco's smirk became a sombre expression and turned his gaze to look at his feet avoiding the girls eyes as if that would somehow help him avoid the conversation altogether. "I- just felt like a walk, that's all, too many adoring fans can make you want some fresh air you know" he said trying to keep up his bravado. "Whatever" Scarlet sighed, it being obvious she wasn't going to get anything out of him except egotistical excuses involving his self assertion.

"So how did the date go?" Draco said teasingly but his face betrayed him with a downtrodden look. That look made Scarlet feel suddenly very guilty. But why should she feel guilty when she'd done nothing wrong? Draco had never once said that he fancied her, he'd never even implied it! Yet she felt as though a pile of bricks had just knocked her down a peg.

"It was alright" She mumbled. "Right" he said nodding. An awkward atmosphere suddenly had consumed them making words seem sparse, an occurrence that never normally happened between the two. "Do you think Filch is gone?" Scarlet asked after they had been looking at each other with no words for too long. "Yeah, we should probably be heading back to Slytherin" Draco suggested. Scarlet nodded and followed Draco out of the room.

They made clumsy glances at each other every now and again as they walked a silent walk back to the dorms. When they arrived there were still a few stragglers in the common room but it seemed as though after Draco left most people had dispersed.

Draco unthinkingly walked Scarlet to the steps that led her to her room. Not quite looking at her he mumbled a goodnight. Scarlet felt ill looking at his retreating figure. She couldn't let him leave like that. Perhaps it was because of something her mother used to say 'never go to sleep in a silly quarrel when you might wake up dead' So that might be a bit morbid and over the top but Scarlet agreed with the sentiment. She would hate to leave the world with things like this... with him.

"Draco?" Scarlet said in a strangled voice. "What?" Draco asked turning to look at her with the eyes that Scarlet couldn't help be magnetically drawn to. "I, I don't fancy him" Scarlet stuttered now feeling incredibly foolish. She blushed and bit down on her tongue asking her brain what the hell it thought it was doing. But Draco didn't make fun of her or look at her like she'd grown a second head, no he simply stated "Good".

That utterance could have meant a number of things, most obviously that he was glad a fellow Slytherin wasn't to date an enemy Gryffindor, but that wasn't what was being said, no there was a mutual feeling of understanding that passed between them, an understanding of what that small word meant so momentously for them both. His eyes burned into her own so feverishly that she had to turn from them. "Goodnight" she said in a quiet high pitched voice and entered her room.