Disclaimer: I do not own any of J.K. Rowling's characters, nor the world in which they reside. I do, however, own the puppy, though I might give it to Draco for his birthday.

It was typical November weather; the sky was bleak and changing, but only with shades of grey, the ground was damp, even though it

hadn't rained properly in two days, and leaves flew endlessly from the trees and scuttled haphazardly across the ground, having no other

place to go. A small patch of pale blue sky could be seen behind Gryffindor Tower, but it didn't change anything. All was still dark, colourless

and unchanging. Draco glanced to his left where lay the Forbidden Forest, it's trees swaying ominously, backwards and forwards. All of a

sudden, a high-pitched howling noise from the direction of the forest pervaded the air and died on the wind. Draco started, then shuddered

and turned away. He looked towards Gryffindor Tower again. The patch of blue sky was gone, but lights were burning from inside. Draco could

make out several figures huddled close to one of the windows. He recognized the roundish figure of Longbottom, and two shrimpy, mousy-

haired boys, one clutching a camera. The others had their backs to the window and he couldn't see their faces. As the sun set lower, (though it

wasn't visible,) the lights in the tower seemed brighter, and the expressions on the conspirator's faces could be seen. The Mousy Brothers

were staring, transfixed at Longbottom, who appeared to be delivering an inspirational speech. This prospect amused Draco so greatly, he

almost managed a smirk. He could just hear it now:

"Don't worry, Potter will save us; Potter will fix everything. Just wait, Potter will come soon!" Potter this, and Potter that, even though the git

hadn't had the decency to show his famous face for months, even for the sake of his beloved friends.

Yes, the "Chosen One" would soon be there to pull them out of all their adversities; Saint Potter, Savior of Gryffindor, Protector of Mudbloods,

would single-handedly defeat the Dark Lord, with his wand hand tied behind his back no doubt, and restore peace and harmony and sunshine

and all those ridiculous things. Idiots. They were only setting themselves up for severe disappointment and, most likely, painful and drawn out

deaths. Just how thick were they, drawing attention to themselves when they were still unknown to the Dark Lord, still able to hide? And that

was obviously all that could be done now.

The wind was howling again, and the clouds drifted like ghosts across the blackening sky. Goodness, it was dark.

"Bloody hell." Mumbled Draco, remembering that it was, (according to the Carrows), nightfall. That meant he was in quite a fix, as he was

outside and all the other students were inside. Now what? He couldn't very well go striding through the castle doors after curfew, especially

not with the Carrows constantly patrolling the corridors. And though he was not likely to be missed in the Common Room, the prospect of

staying out all night was not so inviting.

Damn, there was that howling again. It didn't sound very threatening, but seemed to have gotten closer. Draco stood up, though there wasn't

much point in doing so. Where was he supposed to go? He was about to start walking, then gave up and stamped his foot hard against the

ground. Something yelped, and Draco whirled around to find a pair of large eyes staring at him. Quite paralyzed for a moment, he was able to

get a good look at them. They were far from sinister, but it was still dark and windy, and whatever it was was still staring at him.

"Go away." He said, stepping backwards slightly. Though it was hardly an inviting thing to say, the creature moved closer, seemingly

encouraged by it. Draco didn't move. It blinked at him and began to whine piteously.

"Stop it. Go on then." Said Draco, pointing towards the forest. But the creature moved closer again, this time brushing up against his leg. Draco

stared down at it, and saw through the darkness that it was a little dog, with a short nose and folded ears.

"Well go on," he said again. But the dog wouldn't go. It kept looking up at him expectantly, as if it wanted him to do something. Draco felt

quite bewildered. What the hell was he supposed to do, pet it? He had seen people petting their dogs, even stroking them lovingly, as if they

were the most wonderful creatures in the world. He had also seen people allow their dogs to lick them in the face, which was revolting.

Well, perhaps he would pet it, since it seemed so bent on having him do so. He knelt down and touched its head, deciding that if it tried to lick

him he would kick it. But it attempted no such thing, and just stood there, wagging its tail, as if it were having the time of its life. It was a bit

adorable, Draco decided. Then he began wondering what a such a tiny thing was doing inside the Forbidden Forest.

Suddenly, a shaft of light from the castle shot across the grounds, narrowly missing Draco and the little dog, who remained concealed in the

shadows. A moment later, a stooped figure emerged from behind the open door and came out onto the steps. Draco breathed a sigh of relief;

it was only Filch. He was hobbling about, shining his lantern in very direction, though it didn't really illumine anything. Now all Draco needed to

do was perform a Disillusionment Charm over himself and, very quickly, slip inside the castle while Filch wasn't looking. He got to his feet, and

was immediately accosted by the dog's bright eyes, staring sorrowfully up at him. Draco bent and patted its head consolingly, then got out his

wand, and performed the charm as silently as he could. He was quick about it, but needlessly so, for Filch was being extra thorough, thus extra

slow. The door had already fallen shut behind him, but he would have to go back in at some point.

Draco crept noiselessly towards the castle and waited. So did the little dog. It sat down beside Draco, as the latter hid in a corner by the

steps leading up to the castle. Draco began petting it again, thinking to himself that there was something oddly comforting in doing so.

Perhaps people liked dogs so much because they were so stupidly devoted to you. Of course, he had had enough of that for a lifetime. But

perhaps animals loved you too. Were they capable of that? He knew some people were; animals could be too.....

"What on earth are you doing?" Came a thin, shrill voice from inside.

Draco looked up, and saw Alecto Carrow step out from behind the door. Filch spun around on the spot and made a clumsy bow, taking care to

conceal his lantern behind his back. A second later, he seemed to wonder why he had done this, and brought the lantern out in front of him

again. Alecto glared, and he swung it sharply backwards again, resulting in it flying out of his hand and smashing on the stone steps.

"I asked you what you were doing out here!"

Alecto sounded furious.

"Nothing, Your Highness.....that is Your Lady..er, My Lady......Proff-"

"Silence, you filthy squib!" Screamed Alecto.

Filch jumped backwards, treading on Mrs. Norris' tail. The cat yowled and ran. Draco glanced down at the dog, expecting it to chase her, but it

remained in its spot, complacently watching the comical seen by the door.

"Stupid mongrel!" Muttered Draco.

"My cat!" Cried Filch, making to run after Mrs. Norris.

"Just get inside, you fool!" Screeched Alecto, drawing her wand and pointing it at Filch. Draco's fists tightened in frustration. All this distraction,

and he still couldn't get to the door. What he needed was a proper diversion. He glanced down at the little dog, who was now resting its head

on his lap. It stared up at him, with its big, round eyes; there was something slightly moving about them........but not moving enough. Quickly,

Draco grasped the dog with both hands, and flung it over the steps after Mrs. Norris. It let out a frightened yelp and immediately set off after

the cat. This was too much for Filch, who gave a hoarse kind a sob, and ran down the steps.

"Get back here, you defected, incapable, mutated scum!" Yelled Alecto, as Mrs. Norris, followed by the little dog and a horrified Filch, ran back

up the steps. Mrs. Norris ran under her legs, causing her to trip and fall backwards on top of Filch. As the two struggled on the ground,

entwined in each other's flailing limbs, Draco was able to run up the steps and into the castle.

The Great Hall was empty, but Draco didn't pause so much as to realize it. He ran straight through, then turned left towards the dungeons.

The smile that had appeared on his face due to his vast amusement at the previous scene faded as he reached the passage way to the

Slytherin Common Room. He could hear low voices issuing from behind the door. Glad that he was still partially invisible, he pushed it open

slowly and peered into the room. It was less than half full, though it was still very early in the evening. As usual, it was very quiet. Most of the

first and second years were probably in their dormitories, but here and there were scattered a pair or so of them, poring over homework and

whispering secretively to each other. Draco remembered when it was a sport to reprimand them for being overly boisterous, but there was no

need for that this year. Now almost all the Slytherins were quiet. Blaise and his lot were the only ones who made much noise these days, the

only ones who were cheerful enough not to forgo pastimes like tripping Hufflepuffs in the corridors, or racking up house points for no good

reason. (Not that there were many points dispensed at all this year; it was speculated among the students that no one was likely to break a

hundred by the end of the first semester.)

Draco glanced over at where Blaise and Nott were sitting, attempting to converse with each other, and smirked. They both looked very

frustrated over something, and were talking in harsh whispers, sounding more like those of an angry cat. Pansy was leaning against Blaise's

chair, looking up from time to time to simper, but he was paying her no mind. Draco smirked again, then spotted Crabbe and Goyle hunched

over by the fireplace, guffawing over a game of Exploding Snap.

"Dear Lord," thought Draco, "they've finally figured it out."

He had a slight inclination to go over and make a show of congratulating them for their exceptional mental prowess, but he had no

desire to be seen by anyone tonight. Instead, he slipped silently into the room to retrieve two of his school books from behind a chair in the far

left corner, and then disappear to the dormitories. As he was leaving the room, he almost collided with a girl who had just emerged from the

girls dormitories. He ducked into the hallway quickly, but she hadn't noticed him. She was staring distractedly towards the door of the Common

Room, as if expecting someone to walk through it at any moment. After about ten seconds, she bit her lip in a disappointed sort of way, and

turned back to the dormitories. It was dark, but Draco caught a glimpse of her face as she brushed passed him. It was roundish, and came to a

dainty little point at her chin, and the corners of her large eyes were framed by curling whips of dark brown hair. It took a moment for Draco to

recognize her. He was sure he had met her before last year. She was the one who had flushed red when he bumped into her in the library

last week, and had looked so pretty walking out on the Quiditch pitch in October. What was her name again? No matter; she had just shut the

door behind her now, and there was no point in standing there in the hallway wondering about her. Draco rubbed his eyes, and walked down

a short flight of steps to the seventh year dormitories, wondering why he had never liked dogs, and why that silly girl never said hello to him.

Maybe if he said it first she would talk to him. It would be nice to have someone to talk to.

So there is part one of this interview of sorts. If you liked it, I could find another for you, but it won't be like a second chapter; just another little snippet. Any thoughts?