Chapter 1

Draco let out another agonized scream. His torment had begun midnight on his 17th birthday. It alternately felt like his body was on fire and having the flesh stripped from it while salt was slowly rubbed into the exposed nerves.

He had thrashed in his bed for his entire birthday, if it even was still his birthday. It felt like this torment had gone on for days. The pain would neither kill him nor allow him to pass out. No, whatever or whoever had decided he should suffer for his past sins wanted him well and truly awake for his torment.

He would believe he had died and this was hell if he could not vaguely hear his mother's voice trying to soothe him and wiping his face with a cool cloth. He remembered once when he was sure he had gone mad that she could not possibly be happy about what he was doing to the silk sheets.

In the end something had ripped itself from his back and he finally passed out.

He fell in to a peaceful dream. He knew where he was, Hogwarts, although why he should dream about the place his mother was forcing him to return to after their full pardon he had no idea. He had caused so much pain there… Perhaps this dream would not be so peaceful after all.

Then he saw her. A woman walking towards him. Or more specifically, a veela. She was the most beautiful ethereal looking creature he had ever seen. She was made even more magical by the appearance of the morning star just over her right shoulder. He was so intent on her crystal blue eyes it took him a moment to realize she was wearing a wedding gown adorned with emeralds. The Malfoy emeralds he recognized. She held a hand out to him. She had the most compassionate look in her eyes; like she knew everything he had done and not only forgave him but would help him forgive himself.

He reached out to take her hand but his passed right through hers.

"Find me." She whispered.

That was when he woke with a start.

His mother flung herself into his arms. "Oh Draco! I have been so worried! I am so glad you are awake and alright darling." She wept into his shoulder.

He looked over in to the very concerned eyes of his father. He knew that most people believed his father probably treated he and his mother as harshly as he treated his enemies but that was not the case. At home Lucius was a warm loving father and husband. In fact too much sometimes. His obsession with protecting his family was what had led to the mess with the Dark Lord to start with.

So Draco had known this day would come, his father had not hidden it from him, but to tell an eleven year old on his birthday that he is a creature out of myth passed down from the Black side, one of the reasons the Malfoy's had been so keen on the match he was told, and having his seventeen year old self wake up screaming in agony as he transformed into a bloody dragon were two different things!

Draco was a Drakken. His name was not a cute coincidence, they had known at birth. Drakkens were a human subtype, as the Ministry classified them along with Veelas, who were granted full rights as wizards but were recognized as having unique physiologies. When provoked, their mates or families were attacked or under any number of situations he would transform into a huge white and silver dragon. Even when he was in his human form in some lights he seemed to glow from the scales just beneath his skin.

Usually Drakken are male but his mother was one of the rare female exceptions.

"Alright Cissy, let go of our son" said Lucius indulgently "he and I need to have a few father son words."

Narcissa sniffled a few more times and could not resist one last hug before Lucius firmly led her out with a laugh and closed the door.

"There is one part we left out son; it was just too much to burden an eleven year old with. You must find your mate before your eighteenth birthday if you do not…"

"I die?!" Interrupted Draco.

"What? No, don't interrupt. You won't die, but you will transform one last time in to a dragon and you will be unable to change back. You will lose whatever human mind you have and be lost to us."

"I wish you had told me I would die!" Draco shouted "How am I supposed to find this mate out of all of the women in the world? In one year?!"

"You won't have to search the whole world. The young lady will be someone you already met. You will be instantly drawn to her. She will be near your age, perhaps a year or two younger. She will match you in strength and intellect. She will compliment you in all ways. She will be your perfect mate."

Draco thought over this. He knew his parent's relationship was unique among his friends. While most of his friends parents were still married that was mostly because divorce was considered for the low class among pureblood families, not because they loved each other. His parents did. To a degree it had often embarrassed him and he had learned a key lesson in childhood, always knock on a closed door before entering.

"In addition, you would have dreamed about her at the end of your first transformation." His father continued.

Draco thought back to the veela "I did father, but I know I have never met her! She was beautiful" he began pacing the room "she was a veela. We were by the lake at Hogwarts."

"You have met many veelas, the Bulgarian team mascots… a little old… the Beauxbaton girls! Many brought younger sisters! It must be one of them! We will have to arrange a sensitive reason to gather…. Leave it to your mother. Your dreams of your mate will happen more frequently especially as you near your eighteenth birthday. They will become more…err… tangible. In the mean time I have bought some books for your use. Some are very old and expensive try not to eat chocolate frogs while reading them."

Ruin one ancient tome when you are twelve, never hear the end of it.

Draco read over the books his father had left for him until it was time for him to sleep.

The rest of the summer passed quickly enough. He spent it often enough with Blaise and Theo who were suitably impressed with his new physique. He could not blame them, it belonged to him and even he had been startled the first time he had looked in to a mirror. What he had seen had looked little like what he had started out at the beginning of vacation. His hair was longer and defied gel leaving him with a "just got out of the most amazing sex" hair His scales showed in water, a pearly white. When he did stretch his wings out they were sixty feet tip to tip, enough for him to actually use them. He did not have fangs or talons, those were only used in combat, and since no one had made him that angry there was no need for them.

He continued to dream about his mate on and off over the rest of the summer. He asked her once as they sat on the shore of the lake if she were real. She had smiled at him. "I am, and you are, but we are not. There is no way you would sit with me like this outside of my dreams." He had laughed and hugged her "I thought they were my dreams." She had laughed with him, he would never get tired of that sound. "I feel like you know the worst about me and forgive me anyway." He had said staring in to the waters. She had laid her head on his shoulder. "Draco, you did some unfathomable things. But there were some unfathomable things happening to you. I cannot say everyone would have acted exactly as you did, but not everyone had to make those choices." He reached up to cup her cheek. "I know that even though you knew you would die and your family would die if you didn't in the end you could not kill an innocent man." His hand had stilled "What do you mean he choked out" she took his hand and looked him in the eye "You are right, I know the worst, but also the best. I know you were lowering your wand when the death eaters arrived," She was right, he was but how could she know that? Could she read his mind? The dream had ended then.

On the day due at Kingscross his little elf Mipsy came to find him. She had been with him since childhood and he was quite fond of her. "Master Draco, it is time for you to leave now." He had pulled his hair back in a low pony tail and dressed in black muggle jeans and a button up black shirt that he left open at the throat. One look in the mirror told him he would need to keep his wand out to keep the witches off of him. He grinned before realizing how the thought of touching any witch besides the one in his dream disgusted him.

Shit there went his favorite sport outside of Quidditch!