There was a shimmering light in the fire, catching the young man's attention. The light grew bigger until a silver shine was clearly visible.
The old man stood from his resting chair and walked carefully over, kneeling before the flames.
'In all my days, I thought I would never meet you.'
The silver light shone brighter and the man reached inside the fire to touch it. A smile lit his face as his fingers slid through the light, and then a small pop was heard as the man and the light disappeared into thin air.
There was a small shimmering ball left on the floor of the small room in the place of the old man, but that was all that was ever known to have been found. Or so the muggle's thought.
'I need some more time, just give me five minutes then I'll come to dinner with you.' Hermione said annoyed to her friends.
'Five minutes, Hermione you have been here for hours.' Ron whined, but Harry put a hand on his shoulder and shook his head.
The two boys sat down by a table and looked at Hermione, kneeling before a book and muttering under her breath.
'What's that about?' Harry asked causally.
'The orb of light. Professor Vector assigned us to do a project on a wizard who mysteriously disappeared fifty years ago in his home. The only thing found in his home after was the orb of light.' Hermione looked up at Harry with expectation.
'I've heard of that.' He said trying to sound knowing.' I think.' He added as an afterthought.
'You have? That's amazing because I can't find anything on it in these books. There are only vivid descriptions on what it looked like, but nothing on how it could have affected the old man's disappearance.' She said annoyed with herself.
'Who was the bloke?' Ron asked, mildly interested.
'Rudolph Benjamin Hector.' She answered him, putting a book back and pulling a new heavier one out in its place.
Ron's mouth hung open as he stared at her.
'Ron seems to know something about him, why don't you try asking him Hermione?' Harry said with a mild enthusiasm, not really expecting Hermione to hear him.
The girl looked up at his words nevertheless and saw Ron's face.
'So you do know something.' She stated.
Ron sat up straight and rolled his eyes.
'I know that if you're planning on investigating him you won't be coming to dinner in five minutes and I'm hungry.' He said and put his bag over his shoulder.
'Ron I know he doesn't exactly carry a good reputation.' She began.
'Hermione he's a fraud. No one knows what happened to him, that's the way he would have wanted it I'm sure. He was a magician, who lived his life performing simple magical tricks for the amusement of muggles.' Ron was getting heated, while Harry sat in his chair looking back and forth between his two friends.
'He knew more spells and ancient magic then most people, and he carried a potions supply in his home greater then professor Snape's. He was as much a worthy wizard as any, in fact Dumbledore told me where to look for him and promised me a note for getting into the restricted section to research later.' Hermione got to her feet and the thick book she had been reading lay forgotten on the floor beside her.
'Who was he?' Harry said not sure if it was a good idea to interrupt Ron and Hermione's steadily rising voices.
He had certainly held a point when that thought went through his mind because the two in front of him glared openly at him.
'Forget I said that.' He said and took his bag, starting to leave.
'Harry, wait.' He heard Hermione saying, but he had already reached the end of the row of shelves and wasn't planning on turning back, so he waved a hand at the two left behind and walked out of the library.
'Draco do you ever think of the future?' Ginny asked looking up from her parchment.
'Yes and no. Why do you ask?' Draco replied writing on the transfiguration essay.
'What will happened once you have graduated Hogwarts, will they take you away to the war? Will the dark lord still be out there? Will you remember me?' she said and looked away.
Draco looked up from his writings, some blond hair being left in front of his one eye.
'Do you really think I could just take off and forget you?' He said dropping his quill onto the table and standing.
Ginny turned back tears running freely.
'It's so cold out there, and it scares me. Thinking about that I might have to be here alone without you. I can't even tell my brothers about you. When I was in Hogsmead Fred asked me why I was out alone. I wanted so much to tell him I wasn't but I lied and said that Hermione was waiting for me at the book shop down the road.' Ginny whispered.
'Then tell them. I don't really care anymore. Father can't do anything about it and Dumbledore is here.' He said, walking over to standing in front of her.
'I know it's not fair of me to ask you things like that, but I can't help feeling so alone. I want you to sit beside me at the family dinners. Hermione and Harry are always with us during the festivities, and I want you to be there too. They would understand. I know they would.' She finished desperately.
Draco looked out through the little window. The heavy snowfall was a reminder of the Christmas holidays. He turned back and lifted the crying girl up to her feet and pulled her into a embrace.
It wasn't like him. He wasn't like that. He had never cared for anyone. He was Draco bloody Malfoy, he didn't hold crying girls. He made a bad comment and made them cry harder.
Shaking his head he allowed the girl in his arms to sob freely, and wondered for not the first time the last few months what would happened in the future. In a year or more…
Harry walked quickly down the passage to the Great Hall, and was busy looking at the floor when he heard his name being called. First he thought Hermione or Ron had followed him, but when a slender hand gripped his he realised it wasn't who he had presumed.
'You shouldn't be running away like that. You look troubled, care to tell?' a girl said.
Her blond hair and pale skin reminded him of Malfoy, the other one. She was looking up at him intently.
'I don't feel like talking right now. I had a bad day. I just want to get some dinner and some sleep.' He said knowing he wouldn't get rid of her so easily.
'If you wanted to be alone so badly why didn't you tell me so? I have to go talk to my brother anyways.' She said looking down and pulling her hand back.
'Wait.' He said turning around and opening his hands in a defeating gesture.
'No you're right I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that.' She said letting her hands mimic his gesture, purposely or not Harry didn't know.
'It's all right. Care to join me for dinner?' he asked motioning at the doors to the great hall.
She stopped and looked at him for while.
'The best plan so far.' She said but not enthusiastically.
'Dana, you can talk to me anytime, it's just that lately has been troublesome. And you're still a Malfoy I can't get past that easily.' He said.
'I know. I appreciate you trusting me at all, in your position I probably wouldn't. she said. 'Draco is a good guy.' She said defensively.
The two of them walked into the great hall, Harry sitting down at the Gryffindor table and Dana heading for the Slytherin.
'Take care.' She said before moving over to her usual spot beside a girl in her own year.
Hermione turned back to look at a red eared Ron.
'Why didn't you stop him?' she asked threateningly.
'Me? What about you?' he replied. 'Harry is Harry, let him be.'
'No I don't want to fight with either of you.' Hermione replied looking at the book on the floor.
'You don't seem to mind it too much.' Ron said and turned as if to leave as well.
'How dare you Ronald Weasley?' Hermione asked, and bent to pick up the book.
She placed it back where she had reached for it and grabbed her bag from the chair beside where Ron was standing.
'Where are you going?' he asked her.
'Somewhere I can study.' She said.
'You haven't' had any dinner, at least come down and have something to eat first.' He tried.
'I should go talk to Ginny, I promised to help her with her Muggle studies.' Hermione said.
'She takes muggle studies?' Ron asked.
'No.' Hermione replied. 'She just wants to know how the muggle world works.'
'Have you decided what you're going to do over Christmas yet?' he said tentatively.
'Don't pressure me, please Ron. You know how much being with you and Harry means to me, but I haven't seen my family for a long time. They are practically demanding me come home.' She said looking at her feet.
'Then go home, Harry and I will come with you.' He said.
She looked up at him a smile spreading.
'You wouldn't if you got paid. I live in a purely muggle community, with nothing magical surrounding the place.' She said.
'Harry gets by doesn't he?' Ron said innocently.
'Shouldn't we ask him first. And possibly your family. Ron I know you mean well but your family needs you as much as mine needs me.' She didn't want him to do something foolish for her sake.
'I'll be back after Christmas. ' she said.' Now let's go down to dinner I'm sure Harry is feeling lonely.' Hermione finished and picked Ron's potions book from the table they had been using.
'You might need this tomorrow.' She smiled as she said this thinking of their last potions class.
'Wouldn't want to miss that for the world, would I.' Ron sarcastically added. 'Dinner then.'
Draco and Ginny had decided to head down for dinner. They made company until the hall by the library where they parted.
There was always the fright that someone might find them. That they would have to come with insults to cover it up, but they weren't really sure if that would work.
'I'll see you in the hall, you should go leave your books first.' Draco said.
'I know, you should too. Dumbledore said he was going to announce one last Hogsmead trip before Christmas holidays.' Ginny said enthusiastically.
'I suppose that might be a good choice.' Draco said, only mildly interested, but rather watching her red locks portraying her face.
'Are you going home?' he asked.
'Yes. Ron is too, and I think Harry is coming with us.' Ginny answered.
'Not Granger?' Draco said surprised.
'No, her family wants her home. I guess they have a fair point, they never see her otherwise do they?' she explained.
'They're all muggle?' Draco asked.
'Yes, all they know about the magical world they know through Hermione.'
'Assuming she's clever she has told them about Voldemort hasn't she?' Draco.
Ginny shivered noticeable at the dark lord's name.
'Don't say that. Please, I hear it often enough from them.' Ginny said referring to the three Gryffindors that included her brother and his best friends.
'Why are you afraid to say it? He can't hurt you for that. He presumably won't hurt you at all.' Draco said.
'Why would you say such a thing?' Ginny asked looking up confused.
'Pureblood. Weasley? He wouldn't want to kill you off in the first place. He's much cruller then that.' Draco said. ' I won't let anything happened to you.' He added quickly.
'Are you going home a well?' she asked not sure of the answer.
Draco's father, Lucius Malfoy, had been sent to wizarding prison in the end last spring. Now Draco was in his sixth year and had been joined at the school by his younger sister, Dana Malfoy, who had befriended Ginny since they where in the same year.
The little Weasley girl had come into a fight with the well known Slytherin prince, and almost won, but the two had settled for a truce.
'Yes mother wants me there.' He answered.
Since then they had begun talking, and getting to know each other. Draco never usually opened up but the girl knew more about him then any other. And he felt confident that he knew more about her then most could imagine.
He had kissed her once.
Draco Malfoy was a cold hearted arse and he knew it.
But that didn't stop him from loving her, or her from loving him.
'I have to go, Ron and Hermione are up there.' Ginny whispered suddenly.
Draco's head shot up and he saw Granger and the older Weasley on the top of a flight of stairs presumably having left the library.
'Go, you can still catch them.' Draco said, before shouting. ' Go on running Weasel.' As Hermione looked down.
'You be nice or I'll have to call a teacher again ferret.' She said smugly, before turning and heading for the two on the landing.
'Did he hurt you?' Ron's voice was the first thing she heard.
She didn't feel like having this conversation just then, and turned back down to look at the white haired Slytherin devil he was supposed to be. He met her eyes and after being reassured she would be fine he turned and left.
'No.' she said to Ron. ' He couldn't. Ever.' She followed Hermione's lead towards Gryffindor tower.
Harry had been expecting Hermione or at least Ron to show up before he was finished.
But they hadn't, and so he stood up and decided to go up to Gryffindor tower and finish his Transfiguration essay. He couldn't believe he was about to have forgotten about that.
Hurriedly he walked out of the hall and up the staircases, but before he reached the first landing he bumped into someone.
'Watch it Potter.' A cold voice was heard.
'Careful Drakie, the dark lords coming.' Harry returned.
'Watch what you wish for Potter.' The hard voice of Malfoy continued.
'Not really no… I don't mind him and me having a little chat face to face sometime soon. Why don't you tell him that?' Harry raised an eyebrow.
'So you still haven't figured it out. And I always took you for the smart one.' He finished.
'No, actually that's Hermione. Or as you know her, Granger the muggle born. Out smarted you in the OWLs didn't she?' Harry mocked.
'No, I meant you as the smart one. Hermione is the clever and wise one, the logic behind the trio. But not the smart one. And Ron, he's brave and good hearted…' Draco was saying it like he meant it but adding gestures of sarcasm to it.
Harry shrugged, not in the mood for a heated argument with the Slytherin.
'Your sister is alone down there, you should go keep her company.' He finished off, and turned as if to keep walking back towards the Gryffindor tower.
Draco nodded.
'She's worse than me, she'll be fine by herself.' He finished lamely…