Author's Note- Figgie the House Elf is kinda like the Dobby of Slytherin. Just pretend that she was part of the series.
Disclaimer: Not mine- I wish… but, o well….
Um, Whoops?
Detention, again! Harry thought with a groan. He hadn't even done anything to merit this one- he'd only glanced at Professor Snape to see if the man was hovering over him. But that, of course, had gotten him twenty points off and a detention. His housemates had all looked on with pity as the callus potions master sneered with glee at having been able to punish the Boy-Who-Killed-The-Dark-Sodding-Lord.
The Slytherins had sneered, but that was all. After the war ended, the whole lot of them were revealed to be on the light's side. After testifying under Veritaserum, of course.
When he'd left the dungeons, he'd bumped into Malfoy. The sodding gorgeous prat had looked down his nose and gleefully informed him that Snape would make mince meat out of him. Harry had wanted to punch the other boy, but he was several inches taller and a whole lot heavier, so he hadn't. Harry hated being so short and scrawny!
During dinner, he'd told Hermione that, and she'd laughed at him and ruffled his hair. Another reason that he hated his body- girls thought he was 'cute', and boys didn't think he was 'worth the effort'. It's not like he wanted people to go out with him, was it?
But Hermione had been busy snogging Ron, and Harry's crush had just insulted him, and he had a detention.
So now he was on his way down to the dungeons, after dinner, to do Merlin knows what for the sadist.
Lovely.
He pushed open the door to the classroom and peered in, finding Snape seated behind his desk. The greasy git looked up and scowled, gesturing at a seat. "You're instructions are on the board. Please, attempt to finish the potion, and don't blow yourself up? I'd hate to explain that to the Headmaster."
Harry growled under his breath and made his way over to the desk. He was supposed to make a potion he'd never heard of, much less seen on any of Hermione's study charts. Something called Animalia Regalia.
He started the potion, throwing the ingredients in haphazardly. He really couldn't care less about getting the potion right- he just wanted to get out of there.
Twenty minutes into it, Harry was frowning with concentration over how he was supposed to add the ingredients. He'd looked up a couple minutes before and seen that Snape had left the room, and the door to his quarters was open.
He was reaching over to drop in the manticore scales when his sleeve caught the edge of a glass vial full of acromantula venom. He watched in horror as it toppled slowly into the bubbling potion. The potion literally exploded, and the last thing Harry remembered was thinking, I hope Snape can fix whatever's wrong with me.
breakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreak
Snape had left the classroom for a minute, needing something out of his rooms. He'd figured that Potter would be alright, given the aura of concentration he had while working over the potion. Too bad he never had that in class. He'd been absorbed in a seventh year Ravenclaw's essay on the properties of Eagle's Bane when he heard the explosion in the classroom.
He ran in, coughing and waving the acrid smoke away from his nose. He peered through the fog, calling, "Potter! Where are you, you idiot boy!" When he got to the cauldron, he stopped in horror. There was nothing there but a pile of clothes, a pair of glasses, and a wand.
Breakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreak
The cub mewed plaintively when he hit the stone floor.
Hard.
He struggled to his feet as he looked around, confused. He wobbled, his feet unsteady under him as he staggered across the expanse of unnaturally smooth stone he'd landed on. It was so dark, and he couldn't see a thing.
He panted, struggling to see in the gloom, to no avail. Suddenly, he walked into something hard, stubbing his nose on it. He yelped, sitting abruptly on his haunches. He leaned forward gingerly, trying to see what he'd run into, when a familiar smell caught his attention.
Wood! He crowed, happy to have something familiar. He planted his nose on the wood, and then trailed downwards, trying to find the earth it grew from. When his head was level with his feet, he smelled- stone. The wood grows from stone?! He got up and stumbled away, shaking his head furiously. What kind of place was he in? He stumbled sideways a little, and then noticed a tiny bit of light emanating from another one of those weird trees. He crawled over to it, pathetically grateful to be able to see.
He was almost on top of it when something above him shifted. He froze, growling silently in his throat. Carefully, he rose to his hind legs and rested his feet on the comfy/squishy/mossy green thing, and peered at the creature that made the sound. It was pale, and shone in the not-star light. It was fur-less, and its limbs were all long and covered with the green thing.
He leaned in closer, and the thing shifted again, muttering something. His ears pricked, catching the words, "…Potter…snitch…goddamn turkey legs…" The cub wrinkled his forehead- he had no idea what those sounds meant.
The pale not-furry thing shifted again, but the cub was okay with that. It shifted a lot.
Suddenly, a limb was flung out and over the cub, drawing it closer to the creature. The cub wriggled meeping a little, but the grip was too strong. He was dragged up onto the green thing and trapped under the creatures limb. He waited for a blow, or something, but nothing happened. He tried to move, but the grip just got tighter until he stopped. Resigned, he examined where he was. The green thing was really comfortable, and really soft. He rubbed his head against it, rumbling with pleasure.
Curiously, the creature didn't stop him from doing this. The cub settled down, tired. It had been a very stressful day, and he was exhausted. Before he fell asleep, however, the creature muttered something else. He flicked his ears just in time to catch the soft noise, "…fuzzy blanket…miss my teddy…" The cub grumbled. He'd figure out what the noises meant in the morning.
Breakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreak
Snape ran to the Headmaster's office, his cloak billowing behind him. This is not good, this is not good… he muttered over and over to himself as he reached the Gargoyle. The stone creature swung open and he darted inside, running up the stairs. When he got to the office, he was relieved to find the old man in there, along with Minerva.
Dumbledore looked up at the entrance of his potions teacher. He jumped to his feet, however, when he saw the state the man was in. He looked as though he'd run here from the dungeons. "Severus," the headmaster cried, "What happened?"
Snape sucked in a deep breath, and said, "There's been an incident."
breakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreak
Dumbledore sat back as Minerva lashed out at Snape. She had, very nicely, waited until he'd told the whole story before beginning her tirade. He listened to them fighting in the background as he thought.
He interrupted them by clearing his throat. They'd begun to repeat themselves, after all. "Severus, you are certain the boy is still alive?" he asked. The potions master nodded. "Yes. But his clothes and his glasses are lying on the floor of the dungeons, as is his wand, so where ever he is, he's bound to attract attention." Dumbledore nodded.
Minerva was shaking with silent fury. Finally, she couldn't help it and burst out, "What are we going to do, Albus? We have to tell people, we should-" she was cut off by Dumbledore's raised hand. "No, Minerva." he said gently. "We can't tell anyone." Before she could start screaming, he continued. "We will tell the Aurors. We will tell Remus Lupin and Sirius Black. Beyond them, however, no one should be told. Need I remind you that there are still Death Eaters out there, looking for a way to avenge the death of their Lord?"
She shook her head miserably. The headmaster went on. "If they ask, everyone else will be told that he was sent on Order business, and will be back, we just don't know when." Snape and Minerva both nodded, neither happy with this but understanding the reasons for it. "Minerva, you will please tell all the teachers." She nodded her assent and turned to go. "Severus, please analyze the potion and see if you can tell what went wrong. Maybe we can fix whatever it was."
He nodded, then both teachers went to do what he'd asked of them.
Dumbledore sighed as he turned to his fire place. Somehow, he'd been hoping that the time after the war would be easier than during it.
Breakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreak
Draco stretched, listening to his back crack. He cast a wandless tempus and looked at the time with narrowed eyes. Once again, he was awake before his alarm clock went off. He moved to roll over, but stopped when something black and fuzzy filled his vision. He scowled. If Pansy had climbed into his bed again, he was going to kill her. For real this time, not a couple of measly hexes.
He reached for his wand, and the movement disrupted the covers enough to show who had really been in his bed all night. Or rather, what.
There was a cat of some sort curled up next to him. It was large, about as long as his torso, and it was still asleep. He couldn't help himself. He reached a hand out and gently stroked the cat's side. That woke the feline up, alright. It shot off the bed and ended up in a corner of his room, huddled into the wall and growling. Draco's eyebrows were in his hairline by now, his slightly scratched hand held to his chest.
He took a good look at the creature, taking advantage of its position. It was actually larger than he'd assumed, and covered with black fur that he knew from recent experience to be silky. Its ears were flat against its skull, and claws were protruding from its feet. He had a horrible thought then, and quickly checked to make sure the beast hadn't damaged his sheets. He breathed a sigh of relief when his inspection told him his 1,000 count Egyptian cotton sheets were still in one piece.
An idea wriggled in his head, and he glanced back over at the cat- more specifically, its feet. Then he stared. It's feet were huge. Draco wasn't an idiot- he'd had more than his share of pets and knew that whenever an animal's feet were abnormally large, they were still growing. He gulped. He had a cat of unknown breeding in his room, he had no idea how it got there, and it was still a baby. Given its current size, it was gonna get large, too.
Gingerly, he slid his legs over the side of the bed and stood. That made the cat cower some more, and he rolled his eyes. This was promising to be interesting. He folded himself down onto the floor, taking a tailors seat, and placed his hands palm up on his knees. The cat, after a couple of minutes, relaxed and cocked it's head. Draco smirked and thought of that muggle saying, curiosity killed the cat, but satisfaction brought it back. Hopefully, the saying held water. He did not want to go to class after having been clawed to death by a wild animal.
He was brought back to the present by the sight of the cat getting to its feet and slowly wobbling over. Draco frowned. Any animal of its age, which he guessed to be about six, seven months, should know how to walk. He had a horrifying thought. Someone must have had the cat as a pet, abused it, then kicked it out. It had somehow found its way to Draco's room, gotten in, and maybe? decided he was safe.
Draco was furious.
But he didn't let that show, and the cat, after a couple of minutes, ended up in his lap. Draco wasn't sure how it had gotten there, but he wasn't complaining. The weight of the animal was comforting.
Slowly, he raised his hand and placed it on the feline's back. It tensed, but didn't bolt, and he began rubbing soft circles into its fur. It was funny, in a way, to see the cat beginning to trust him. They sat like that for ten, maybe fifteen minutes before Draco's alarm went off. It didn't blare, like some of his housemates' did- it sang a lullaby his mother had taught him a while ago. That memory always allowed him to wake up nice and slowly, just like he loved.
The cat had tensed at the sound, but the melody must have been okay because it relaxed again. Five minutes into the song, about when Draco would be rolling out of bed, he noticed the cat was asleep. Gently, he lifted it and cradled it in his arms before putting it on the bed. Curious, he lifted its tail and saw that it was a he. Now he just needed a name.
He thought about it while he took a shower, but couldn't think of anything suitable. Maybe if he knew what type of cat it was, he could think of something, but… He called for Figgie when he was dressed.
The elf popped in, bowing as she said, "How can Figgie help Master Draco?"
He pointed to the cat and said "Two things. Have you ever seen that animal before?" the elf shook her head.
"Alright. Do you know what a growing cat should eat?"
Figgie nodded her head, pleased to be of assistance. "Figgie will be right back, Master Draco, and Figgie will bring you something to eat as well!"
True to her word, the elf came back two minutes later with two trays- one piled high with meat of all kinds and the other carrying eggs, toast, pumpkin juice and fruit. He thanked her with a smile, and she disappeared.
He walked over to the bed with a piece of meat held between his fingers, trying not to puke at the feeling. He rubbed the cat's head, and he woke up, lazily blinking his eyes. Draco waved the meat in front of the feline, and watched with amusement as the cat's gaze sharpened. He was prepared for the cat to snatch at his fingers along with the meat, but the feline carefully took the meat in his teeth and waited for Draco to let go before digging his claws into it and ripping smaller pieces off.
Draco saw to it that the cat ate as much as he could, and when he refused the last piece, he was astonished to see that the creature had eaten almost everything on the tray. He laughed when the cat lay back, his stomach distended with the amount of food he had eaten. He cast tempus and muttered "Oh, shit!" He had ten minutes to get to Potions.
Quickly, Draco shoved food in his mouth and grabbed up his bag, cursing inwardly at the fact that if he wasn't Head Boy, he'd have roommates to remind him of these things. A last glance at the cat showed that he was asleep, and with a flick of his wand conjured a litter box. He hoped the cat knew how to use it. He bolted out of the door, making sure it was locked and warded before he ran down the hallway to the dungeons.
Breakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreak
Draco was out of breath went he saw some Slytherins rounding the corner. He frowned. Weren't they all in his Potions Class?
He'd managed to pull himself together by the time they saw him, however, and Pansy got that big, stupid smile she was so fond of showing off.
"Drakey!" she called. He was itching to hex her, but Sev would kill him. "What, Pansy?" He gritted out.
"Potions was cancelled, and we were coming to tell you because you weren't in the Great Hall for breakfast, and…" he ignored the rest of what she was saying, instead focusing on Blaise.
Blaise grinned- he knew exactly what temptation Draco was resisting. "Yeah- Dumbledore himself told use there would be no Potions, and Snape wasn't at the staff table."
Draco raised an eyebrow. That used to mean that the potions master was at a Death Eater meeting, but since Voldemort wasn't a threat anymore… "Well? What are we going to do for the- what? Four hours until our next class? Which would be lunch?"
The rest of the group grinned. They were happy about not having potions for the simple fact it was a triple period, and then they had lunch, and then a free period, and then Care of Magical Creatures.
Pansy wrapped her arms around Draco, and said in what she thought was a sultry tone, "Draco, baby, I was thinking we could go back to your room and, you know, hang out."
Everyone froze. One simply did not proposition Draco Malfoy in the middle of a hallway, with an audience, and expect to get away with it.
Draco leaned down and said, "Pansy, darling," she grinned, believing she was going to get her way after all, "You are never to speak of, or go near, my room again."
She froze. Something in his voice had reminded her there was a reason he was the Ice Prince of Slytherin.
"Do you understand?"
His silky question forced her out of her trance, and she stuttered, "Y-yes, I do."
"Good." he shook her off, then turned to the crowd of silent snakes.
"So what shall we do on this fine day?"
Breakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreak
Snape scowled. He was having no luck with figuring out what went wrong. There were so many possibilities, so many variables! If Potter had been a Slytherin, Snape could have at least known he'd followed the steps correctly up to a point, but it was Potter, for Merlin's sake!
He rubbed his tired face and sighed. He'd get nothing done if he couldn't take care of himself.
Breakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreak
Draco slipped back into his room after hours full of pranking other houses. It had been odd, but he couldn't remember seeing Potter anywhere. He shrugged it off. However much he wished, Potter wasn't his concern.
He looked around for the cat and saw him sitting in the window, his tail flicking back and forth as he watched…something. The black feline had barely acknowledged him when he'd entered the room. He sent a glance over to the litter box, and was surprised to see it had been used. He cast an evanesco on it and conjured more litter, then went over to stand next to the cat.
Draco reached down and rubbed the cats ears, grinning a little when he started rumbling. It was a lot deeper than it was supposed to be, but that was definitely a purr. A chance glance at the cat's stomach showed it to be as flat as it had been before Draco had fed him, and with a sigh, he called for Figgie.
Instead of feeding the cat himself, he placed the tray in front of the creature and moved back. He was surprised when the cat opened his mouth and waited for Draco to feed him. Snorting, he did so, thinking, what have I gotten myself into?
He left the cat asleep on his duvet when he went down to lunch. Sitting with his house, he noticed the concerned glances the rest of the school was sending to the spot Potter usually sat at. It was empty. A glance to the staff table confirmed that Severus was also missing.
What the hell is going on? he thought to himself. Something was up, and he didn't like one bit that it involved his god father.
Or Potter, for that matter
Breakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreak
The cat waited until the tall pale creature left before hopping back onto the window sill. It was fascinating out there, and the cat liked watching all the other tall pale creatures run around.
He got bored quickly, though, and turned away from the window. He stretched, trying to mimic the movement he'd seen his pale creature do, but he landed on his nose. At least no one was there to see that. He was getting steadier on his feet, and walked up to the hole his pale creature walked through. He bumped it with his nose, but nothing happened. Turning away, he saw another hole and walked toward it. This time, he was able to squeeze past the weird wood guarding it.
The room he walked into was much the same as the one he'd left, but it didn't have the squishy green thing. Instead, it had a low, brown thing, covered with lumps of soft stuff. He jumped on that, then curled up in a circle. It wasn't as comfortable as the pale creature's green thing, but it would do. The cat was too tired all of a sudden to want to get up.
Breakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreak
Draco let himself into his room after Care of Magical Creatures, automatically looking around for the cat. He frowned when he didn't see it, but then he noticed the door to his sitting room was open. He looked in and laughed at what he saw. The cat was sprawled across one of the leather couches, in what looked to be an extremely uncomfortable position.
He pushed off the door frame and walked into the room, ignoring the way the cat watched him. With a wave of his hand, a fire sprung into being in the hearth, and he dropped his bag on the floor as he made himself a cup of tea. With a sigh, he dropped down into an armchair and turned his attention back to the cat. He'd been staring at it for a while when he realized what was wrong with the creature. He was visibly bigger.
The Slytherin made a squeaky noise, hoping to entice the cat to come over to him. It worked. The cat's head shot up and he looked around until his gaze came to rest on Draco. He made the noise again, and the cat oozed off the couch and walked over to him, his head cocked to the side. Draco made the sound once more, and ended up with a lap full of cat, with whiskers brushing his face.
The boy laughed and brought his hand up, scratching the animal's side. The cat collapsed, turning into a puddle of fur. They stayed like that for some time, until Draco's stomach growled. It had been a long time since lunch. A glance at the cat's stomach revealed that he should be hungry as well, so Draco called Figgie. She arrived with food for both him and the cat. He thanked her, and she disappeared with a big smile on her face.
The cat, once again, forced Draco to feed it, and though the boy thought that he should be getting annoyed by it, he wasn't. It was kind of endearing to have someone, even if it was a cat, be so dependent on you. Again, he stuffed the cat to bursting, then started in on his own dinner. Mashed potatoes, ham and gravy, corn on the cob, and a tall glass of pumpkin juice…
Delicious.
He Summoned his school bag over and rifled around through it, getting out an ink pot, parchment, and several notebooks and textbooks. He had two essays due tomorrow, and they were both three feet long. He sighed. Hopefully, no one would notice if his were a couple inches shorter than they should be.
Breakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreak
Snape and Minerva were in the Headmasters office, surrounded by frustrated Aurors. The Aurors couldn't find anything on the whereabouts of one Harry James Potter, and it was driving them insane. How do you lose the Savior of the Wizarding World, even if it was through a fluke?
Inconceivable.
Snape had told them that so far, he was having no luck figuring out what had gone wrong with the potion, and no one questioned him. He was the best potion maker in the whole of England.
Sirius Black was convinced that it was a plot by the remaining Death Eaters( this is where he glared at Snape) to resurrect the Dark Lord. No one bothered to try and talk him out of it. Everyone knew that the way Potter had gotten rid of Voldemort was as complete and irreversible as anyone knew. He had, after all, gotten hit with the Killing Curse, came back to life, killed Nagini, then shot Voldemort in the back of the head with a 9mm Glock.
Merlin only knows where he'd gotten that from.
Snape shook himself, then stood. Everyone hushed as he said, "I'm going back to my lab to see if anything has changed. Professor," he nodded to Dumbledore, "I would like to cancel all Potions classes until such a time as I find an answer, or something else is discovered." Dumbledore nodded in agreement.
Snape swept out of the room, mind already turned to unraveling this mystery.
Breakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreak
Draco put down his quill triumphantly, massaging his hand with a weary smile. He'd gotten three and a half feet for both essays, and they were good. He looked around for the cat. It had been a couple of hours since they'd eaten, and Draco wasn't surprised to feel his stomach rumble. A quick tempus told him it was close to midnight, and he thought it would be incredibly rude to call for Figgie at this late time.
He spotted a darker than black shadow in a corner of the room, and got up and went over to it. He snorted. The cat was draped across his book bag, and asleep. Draco crouched down and gently shook the cat. It woke up, and mrow'ed at him, and batted at his hand. Draco shook the offending hand, then got up and walked away. He just barely heard the cat get up and follow him, but he'd been expecting it. When he got to the portrait that led to the hallway, he cast a spell on the cat that didn't allow it to get more than ten feet away from him.
He opened the portrait and stepped out, then waited for the cat. He slunk out of the room like a black shadow-noiselessly and maybe even not really there. After closing the door, Draco cast lumos and started off down the hallway.
When they got to the kitchen, Draco felt a little bad for having placed the charm on the cat. He hadn't strayed even three feet from the boy since they'd left the Slytherins rooms. He tickled the pear and the handle appeared. Opening the door, he stepped inside and waited for the feline to follow. Once both of them were in the vast area, he shut the door and made his way over to the pantry, where the elves put snack food for hungry teens.
After looking around, Draco found a container of ice cream and a spoon for himself and a hunk of ham for the cat. He sat at a table and placed the ham on a chair for the cat. When the cat finally came into the light, Draco was shocked by how large he had gotten. If he was standing, he would probably come up to the Slytherin's hips, and he was over six feet tall.
It just didn't seem possible that anything could grow that fast, and yet this cat had done so over the course of three, no four now, feedings. Draco watched the cat as he ate his snack. He had pulled the ham off the chair and onto the floor, placed both front paws on it, then proceeded to rip shreds of meat off. Draco rolled his eyes with a snort. At least the beast wasn't insisting he feed it any more.
By the time the Slytherin was only halfway through his pint, the only thing left of the ham was a round bone- even the marrow had been sucked out by the cat. Said feline stretched, muscles expanding and contracting in a manner that would have concerned Draco had he not been the one feeding the creature. He strolled over to the blond, then collapsed onto his feet with a heavy sigh.
In the bright light of the kitchen, Draco took the opportunity to study the cat. Aside from the rapid growth, the beast was starting to look increasingly like a panther. Draco frowned. But how was that possible? Panthers were native to the America's, not to northern England. The short, rounded ears, the short, thick black fur that had little, almost invisible grey rosettes patterned through it, the musculature, everything suggested the cat was a panther.
Draco frowned. He thought he'd remembered something, something about panthers in England, but he couldn't clearly remember what it was.
He scowled, finishing his ice cream off. He went to get up, then belatedly realized that the cat was still on his feet. He wiggled them, and the cat only lifted his head, then thunked it back onto the stone floor. Draco sighed, then squirmed until his feet slide out from under the big cat. He stood and made his way over to the garbage, disposing of his container and cleaning his spoon before replacing it in the drawer.
He turned to the cat and said in his best 'obey me now' voice, "Come on- lets go." He watched in satisfaction as the cat, grumbling, got to his feet and stalked over to the door. The Slytherin followed, opened the door and watching with amusement as the creature flowed out of the room into the hallway.
Breakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreak
The cat stalked out of the food room and into the passage. He didn't want to leave the place- he'd caught a whiff of the creature that brought him meat in there and had wanted to find her and play. But the pale creature wanted him to leave, so leave he would.
He stayed close to the creature on the trek back to his rooms, leery of the stone that surrounded them. It wasn't that he didn't like stone- it was that there was so much of it. He couldn't even remember going this way before, and the stress of it was what was making him stick so close to the being.
When they reached the rooms, the cat flowed into them and headed straight for the green thing. After jumping on it, he watched the pale creature take its fake skin off, then say something to him. The creature went through a door that had just appeared, and the cat heard a rush of water. Intrigued, he got off the bed and slowly stuck his head in the room.
He snorted in surprise. There was water pouring out of the roof, and the entire room was a blinding white. He stepped into the room, and the movement caught the attention of his…caretaker. It said something, then made a beckoning gesture with its hands. The cat walked over to it, and realized when he got closer that the creature was male, and not an it.
He stepped backwards, under the water, and the cat followed, curious. He froze when the first drops of water hit him, and almost backed out again when the male started laughing at him. With another snort, he walked the rest of the way under the spray and quickly got soaked.
The cat was surprised that the water was warm, hot even. For some reason, he'd been expecting it to be cold. What he hadn't been expecting was to have the male pick something up and squeeze it over his back. He was even more startled when the creature started rubbing the stuff into his fur. The scent was strong, but not overwhelming, and the cat realized that this was what the male smelled like all the time. A little bit of vanilla, some cinnamon, and a musky scent were the main components of the foamy stuff.
The cat closed his eyes as the sensations of having his fur rubbed finally got to him. He started purring, and that made the pale creature start laughing again. He didn't mind, however- if this was what happened every time he got wet, then he'd do it more often!
Breakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreak
Draco laughed as the cat started purring. He hadn't meant to give the feline a bath, but it had followed him into the bathroom, so… He didn't think the cat minded, given the sounds he was making. He noticed that the cat sounded different, depending on how he was rubbed. When Draco rubbed the wrong direction against the hair, the purr got loud enough to classify as a growl, and when he followed the direction of the hairs growth, it softened until it was barely audible.
It was a soothing sound.
When he finished sudsing up the cat, he flicked his hand and directed the water to spray on to the cat's back. Merlin, I love wandless magic, Draco thought. As the water pounded on the cats back, he rubbed his hands rapidly up and down the cat, making sure all the soap was off.
Once he was sure the cat was completely clean, he looked down and pulled a face. The entire bottom of the shower was covered in short black hairs. Quickly, he waved his hand and cast a scourgify, watching in satisfaction as the hair disappeared.
He picked up his bottle of expensive French shampoo and snorted when he saw how full it was. Or rather, how not. He'd had to use almost half the bottle to cover the cat in suds, and now only a quarter was left. Oh, well. I'll just have to go get some more on the next Hogsmeade weekend, he though with a smirk as he put some on his hands. A sudden noise startled him, causing him to get soap in his eyes. He was thankful that it wasn't harsh muggle stuff, because that would have stung. As it was, it took him a minute to clear his eyes, and when he did, he quickly found the culprit. The cat had been nosing his hair and body care bottles, and several had fallen over when he'd pushed too roughly.
With a sigh, Draco levitated the bottles back and washed the soap out. As he picked up some exfoliating body wash, he realized that the cat was still in the shower with him. He frowned. Didn't cats hate water? He banished the thought as he watched the cat pouncing on the bubbles flowing to the drain, then stand up on his hind legs and swat at the water coming out of the shower head, causing it to spray everywhere. His eyebrows were in his hairline when he saw the cat on his back legs. The feline equaled him in height, and he was over six feet tall!
Making sure he was completely soap free, he waved his hand and turned the water off. The cat looked a little surprised, but then looked at Draco with a what now? expression. Draco summoned his wand(he could really only do small spells wandlessly), and cast two drying spells- one on him and the other on the cat. The expression on the cats face was priceless- he was startled as hell to be completely dry. Draco watched as he walked over to the shower and gently patted his paw on the tile, then look at it and then back at Draco. A small smile on his face, the Slytherin cast a drying spell on the cat's paw and the entire bathroom.
He went to pat the tiles again, and when his paw came up dry, he turned and bolted out of the bathroom, Draco's laughter following him.
Breakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreak
The cat was astonished. The pale creature could control things! He'd made the wet go away just when he'd been getting tired of being soaked, and then he'd dried the whole room. The cat watched as his creature came out of the white room, waiting for him to control something else. He didn't have to wait long. He watched as the fuzzy cloth around the creature's waist dried and folded itself up, watched as the creatures white fur braided itself, watched as fake skin appeared on the creatures legs. The cat couldn't believe it. How had he missed the fact that this creature could control such things! He hid in a corner as the creature got ready to go in the green thing.
After a few minutes, the creature turned to the cat and said something. The cat cocked his head, curious. The creature gave a frustrated sigh and said, pointing at the green thing, "Get in the bed."
The cat flicked his ears, looked at the bed, then back at the creature. He huffed. "Get in the bed!"
The cats eyes widened. So the green thing was 'bed'. Okay. He sulked over to the edge and climbed on, warily watching the pale creature. He lifted a layer of green and slid under it, then turned and wrapped his arm around the cat, pulling him down until they were snuggled together.
Once they were settled, the cat pressed his blunt head into the crook of the pale creatures neck. After a few minutes, they were both asleep.
Breakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreak
It had been three days since the 'incident', as everyone in the know called it, and Snape was no closer to discovering what had happened to Potter than he had been previously. Of course, he'd finally figured out what Potter had done wrong, and from what he could tell, it had been an accident. The foolish boy had added glass to an already volatile potion, as well as increasing the amount of acromantala venom and ignoring the manticore scales. That had caused the explosion, but he was still working on how it had made the boy disappear.
Of course, having Black and Lupin breathing down his neck the whole time didn't help, but the Headmaster had warned him against hexing them out of his laboratory. If he had been a child, he would have thrown a tantrum at that. As it was, he took great pleasure in ordering them around- after all, the Headmaster had said nothing about that.
He sighed. He was too exhausted to do anything useful right now. He pushed his chair back and stood, stretching. Perhaps a visit to his godson was in order. He must be worried.
Breakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreak
Draco was relaxing on his couch when he heard a knock on his sitting room door. Getting up, he grabbed his wand, hoping it wasn't Pansy. She couldn't seem to follow instructions for more than a couple of days, at most. But when he opened the door, he got a pleasant surprise.
"Sev!" said Draco with a smile. He opened the door wider, allowing his godfather in as he pelted him with questions. "Where have you been? What have you been doing? Where the hell is Potter?" He would have continued, but Severus held up a hand to forestall any more queries. He sighed as he sat on the Slytherins couch, conjuring up a bottle of brandy and two glasses. Filling them up, he handed one to Draco and said, "Can I trust you to keep this to yourself?"
The boy raised an eyebrow and nodded slowly. Whatever it was, it must be important. "Alright. Potter is missing, due to a Potions disaster in detention, and I've been in my lab trying to figure out what went wrong." Draco sat in silence as he absorbed the news. Potter was missing? Why hadn't anyone been told? He repeated that question to his godfather, and the older man sighed. "Dumbledore decided that it would be safer if only those who had to know, knew."
He took a drink of his brandy and continued. "There are still Death Eaters running loose, Draco. For once, I completely agree with his decision."
They sat in silence for a while, then started talking about how Draco was doing in his classes. "-heard from Flitwick that you're top in his cla-Draco, what on earth is that?"
Draco twisted around to see what the man was looking at. He laughed when he did. "I've been meaning to ask you about him," the boy began as the cat finished slinking out of his bedroom into the sitting room. As the cat glided over to Draco, he continued. "I found him in my bed on Tuesday morning. Haven't a clue how he got there, or even what he is."
The boy turned to Severus with a hopeful expression. "Do you?"
Severus swallowed as he watched the big cat climb onto his godson's lap and start purring, all the while pinning him with those glowing yellow eyes. "Yes. Yes I do."
Draco looked at him with an expectant expression. Severus cleared his throat and said, "The cat in your lap happens to be a Pangaran Panther."
Draco was stunned, to say the least. Pangaran Panthers were thought to be extinct, hunted for their fur and the magical properties of their innards. Some people had tried to domesticate them, but their natures were too fierce to have them tame for long. The most one could expect out of them were a few, very few days of obedience, then all hell would break loose. They had been classified as Class XXXXX by The Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures.
In other words, the cat currently purring contentedly on his lap was part of a breed of wizard killers, a breed impossible to tame or domesticate. Right up there with Dragons, Basilisks, and Chimera's.
Draco swallowed. "Well, damn."
Breakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreak
The panther continued purring, even though his caretaker had tensed up. He'd decided over the past couple of days that he liked his creature. It was easy to see why. His every need was catered to, and he never had to do anything. Well, unless his creature told him to, but that was a different story. His creature was powerful, and fed him. What wouldn't he do for him?
He snorted. His creature was still tense, even though he'd been purring. He amped up the volume, ignoring the other pale thing in the room, and rubbed his head into his creatures chest. There, he thought in satisfaction. The male had loosened up and started stroking his chin. The panther closed his eyes, enjoying the sensation, and pressed his skull up into the bottom of the males jaw.
He heard a sharp crack, and before the reverberations had faded, he'd jumped off the couch and leaped on top of the giggling house elf. The panther was astonished- he'd never caught her before! He rubbed his head into her stomach, causing the creature to giggle louder. She finally wriggled out of his grasp, then gasped when she saw the two creatures in the room. He watched in consternation as she bowed low and said something in a quavering voice. His creature had never been mad at her before, and she'd never acted like that before. The panther growled as his attention turned to the new creature.
Breakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreak
Draco started laughing when Figgie appeared. It was obvious that the panther had been waiting for her, and his patience had finally paid off. He watched them fool around for a minute, until his godfather broke into his thoughts. "Do they do this often?" he asked, astonished. He'd never thought there would be a day when he saw a Class 5 designated animal playing with another magical creature.
However, before Draco could respond, Figgie realized that Master Draco had a visitor. She quickly bowed and started apologizing, saying, "Figgie didn't know Master Snape was here, Figgie is sorry for her actions, Figgie will go punish herself-" her tremulous voice was cut off by an eerie, other worldly growl reverberating from behind her. Draco watched, speechless, as the panther rose up from the floor behind Figgie, his forbidding growl directed towards Severus.
Before anything could happen, Draco said, "Hey! What do you think your doing?" The panther turned to Draco, his growl turning into a curious whine. "Come here," Draco said, and made a beckoning gesture with his hand. The panther cocked his head, but stalked over anyway.
Once he was close enough, Draco wrapped an arm around the beast and pulled him onto the couch next to him. When he was sure he was settled, he turned back to Figgie and said, "Don't worry about it, Figgie. I didn't know he was coming, either." the elf nodded, eyes firmly glued to the floor. The Slytherin sighed. "Can we have a light snack, and the usual for the cat?" the elf nodded again, and disappeared with a sharper than normal crack!
Draco turned back to Severus, who was looking at him with an odd expression. "What?" he asked defensively. The older man shook his head, saying, "I never thought I'd live to see the day where a animal like that wouldn't rip your throat out for the way you handle him. That's all." His godson rolled his eyes, but his comeback was interrupted by the arrival of food. Severus watched as Figgie placed two platters on the low coffee table, then as she turned to go, get sidetracked by a whine from the couch.
She looked at Draco, who nodded permission, then went over to the couch and petted the panther, slipping him something. Draco snorted when he saw what it was. The elf had snitched a couple of chicken hearts from the kitchen for his greedy pig. She left with a bow.
As the panther started in on his meal, and Draco and Severus started picking at their goodies, Draco remembered something he'd wanted to asked his godfather. "Sev," he began, watching the panther with an assessing eye, "When he first showed up, he was a lot smaller." Severus nodded. But the blonde shook his head. "I don't think you understand what I mean. When he first showed up, he was the size of a medium dog, or a really large cat. He's been eating about forty pounds of meat a day, and its been three days."
Severus put down his treacle tart to stare at the panther. His mind was running as he thought of all the reason that could happen. Finally, he said, "It is possible that he was malnourished before he came to live with you. As a magical creature, he is probably able to immediately turn the food into muscle and bone. You say he eats about forty pounds a day?" Draco nodded.
Severus continued. "Keep feeding him as much as he'll eat. A magical male panther, fully grown, weighs about two hundred and fifty to three hundred pounds. If he keeps growing at the same rate, he should reach full growth by the beginning of next week."
Draco nodded, a little stunned at how big the panther would get. Their conversation turned to other things, and eventually Severus admitted he had to go. "Not that staying up late matters to you- after all, you don't have Potions again tomorrow."
Draco groaned theatrically. "What am I supposed to do with my time? I've already finished all my assignments!"
Severus grinned. "I could always give you another one…" he said teasingly.
Draco's eyes widened in mock horror. "N-no! I'm good, honest."
They started laughing. Draco stood, walking over to the door with his godfather. "Will I see you tomorrow?" he asked hopefully.
Severus sighed. "You might. However, I doubt it. But once classes are finished for the day, come to my lab. Maybe you can see how Potter screwed this one up." They both chuckled, then Severus took his leave.
Draco turned to his room, absently casting a tempus. He groaned when he saw the time. Half an hour past midnight, and the panther is probably gonna want to eat again. Quickly, he called Figgie and had her bring up a tray of goodies for the beast, then bid her goodnight. Once the cat ate, they both curled up together. Draco was busy thinking about Potter and what the hell might have happened to him, and the panther was busy not thinking at all.
Eventually, though, they both fell asleep.
Breakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreak
Draco knocked on the door of Severus' lab, expecting his godfather to open the door. Instead, Sirius Black stuck his head out and scowled at the Slytherin. "What do you want?"
Before Draco got a chance to answer, Remus Lupin wrapped a hand in his friends shirt and yanked, pulling him out of the way.
"Come on in, Draco." the old Professor said. "Severus told us you were coming."
He nodded to them, edging by the dark face of Black and the weary one of Lupin. He looked around the room, spotting Severus leaning over a cauldron and muttering to himself.
Draco rolled his eyes. Obviously, Sev hadn't heard the commotion at the door.
The cauldron was bubbling, and suddenly let out a cloud of gas that smelled faintly of lemons.
Severus sat back in disgust. "Dammit! Another dead end." he growled.
Draco leaned over the brew, sniffing. "Smells like it would be a good disinfectant," he offered tenuously. Severus glared, then relented and nodded.
Severus walked back to his desk after bottling the potion for testing at another time. He handed Draco a sheet of papers, saying, " This details exactly what Potter did up until his disappearance. Read it and tell me if I missed anything."
Draco leafed through them, ignoring the snort from the door. Sometimes you need a new set of eyes to look at a problem. He sat at a desk and started reading the parchments.
Half an hour later, he sat up as something occurred to him. Quickly, he got up and went to a cabinet stocked with textbooks and pulled out one from the Advanced Potions Courses in the Cambridge Potions Masters Program. Flipping through it, he found the recipes for a dislocation potion and an animagus potion. Taking the book over to the table, he compared the ingredients and the order in which they were added. He couldn't believe what he found.
"Sev," he called, "I think you need to see this."
The man came over, snapping at the two canines to watch the potion he was working on. He leaned over Draco's shoulder as he listened to the boy compare them to Potter's mess-up.
Suddenly, he turned around and said, "Lupin, Black, get out of my lab. Draco, stay." They started protesting, but Severus gave them The Glare tm and they quickly left.
Once they were gone, Snape turned to Draco and explained what they were going to do.
"These two potions mixed have the effect of forcing you into your animagus form, and blocking all your memories. It also sends you to a different place. Given how inept Potter is at Potions, he can't have gone far."
So saying, they went to work creating the antidote.
Breakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreak
Draco stumbled into his room at three in the morning. Thank Merlin it's Saturday! he thought in relief.
After hours of brewing, Severus had gently kicked him out of the lab, saying, "You're too tired to be of any more help. Besides, it needs to sit for two days. Go to bed."
So Draco had gone. Now he was in his room, contemplating a bath, when whiskers brushed his hand. He was too tired to jump, and watched as the panther materialized out of the shadows. He looked him over, tired mind noting that the cat was filling out. He wasn't skin and bones any longer- he was putting on muscle.
Deciding he was too tired, he got up, magicking his clothes off before he fell on the bed. He grunted as the cat jumped up next to him, too tired to make room for the creature. The panther huffed, and then settled down with his head resting on the back of Draco's neck. Draco fell asleep, his brain vibrating comfortably in his head.
Breakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreak
Draco didn't wake up until noon that day. He thanked all his stars that he had an arraignment with Figgie to bring food to his room four times a day, or he would have had a very hungry cat on his hands.
He rolled over and squinted at the bright sun. He frowned, then brightened up when the curtains started to close. I love wandless magic! he sang in his head as he rolled over, thinking about staying in bed. A sound caught his attention, and he looked over at the door of his sitting room. The panther stood there, and he lifted his head to get a better look at him. When the panther realized that Draco was awake, he bolted over and jumped on the bed, then collapsed on top of the boy. Draco snorted, thinking, That does it. I'm staying in bed. With that thought, he wrapped an arm around the cat and dragged him up until his head was lying on Draco's chest.
They both went back to sleep.
Breakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreak
Snape stalked through the corridors, searching for someone in particular. He finally found her outside, watching the other Gryffindor's goofing around. He had been watching her for a while when she noticed him. Noticing he finally had her attention, he waved his hand, indicating she should come to him.
She hurried over, and when she reached him, he said, "Miss. Granger. I need to ask you a question about Mr. Potter."
She nodded, making a little 'go ahead' gesture with her hands. He raised an eyebrow, and smirked when she flushed. "Do you happen to know what Mr. Potter's animagus form would be, should he take it?"
He could see the wheels turning in her head. Finally, she opened her mouth and said, "Professor McGonagall showed us all our forms in class last year. Harry is, uh," she frowned, then brightened, "He's a big, black cat. I'm not sure what kind, but McGonagall was shocked by it. Anything else, Professor?" He shook his head, and she turned away.
Snape turned back to the castle. He had to find Minerva.
Breakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreak
Snape settled into his chair, thinking about the happenings of the day. He'd tracked Minerva to the staff lounge, and asked her about Potter's form. She hadn't had to think about it. 'Pangaran Panther' were the first words out of her mouth. Snape frowned at himself. How had he missed it? It had been there the whole time.
He glanced at the potion. It would be ready in time for dinner tomorrow night, and if everything went correctly, Potter would be human again for class on Monday.
Snape frowned, remembering something Draco had told him. "When he first showed up, he was the size of a medium dog, or a really large cat."
And his response- "It is possible that he was malnourished before he came to live with you."
His frown got deeper. Everyone knew that the Dursley's had been absolutely horrid to Potter while he lived with them, and Poppy had often ranted about his being malnourished. Maybe- he cut the thought off before it could really register. It is not possible, anyway. he thought. Anyway, by the time Potter was returned to human, the panther aspect of himself would be fully grown, and that was a good thing. Maybe it would make him less susceptible to the taunts thrown at him, make him steadier emotionally. Lord knows the boy is traumatized enough from the war.
Snape turned back to the Potion and stirred it twenty times, as required. He sighed. This would be a long weekend.
Breakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreak
Draco yawned as he rolled out of bed- for real, this time. He'd spent the majority of Saturday, and until now on Sunday in bed, or just in his rooms. He hadn't wanted to be around people, and the panther was surprisingly good company.
He stretched as he headed into the shower, looking to see if the cat would be joining him. However, said cat was lounging around in the sun, and sent him a bored look from him current residence.
Draco snickered. In just one week, he'd gotten wrapped around that cat's… well, his little finger. He knew it, but he didn't care. After all, the cat was good company, and Pansy had had a heart attack when she'd tried to climb into bed with him last night. He sniggered, wondering what she had done for the few hours she needed to be gone for everyone to believe he'd actually slept with her. He wrinkled his forehead in disgust. As if he would.
Yech.
He got out of the shower and strolled into his room, trying to decide what he was going to wear for his firat foray into the outer world in over thirty-six hours. He was going to dinner, so something dark, he mused as he ran through possible outfits in his head. Finally, he decided on a charcoal gray button up and black slacks.
He smirked. Even Granger would drool when she saw him in that.
Before he left, he summoned Figgie and reminded her to feed the cat while he was gone. She nodded, then bolted into his bedroom and pulled the panthers tail. The resulting shriek had Draco chuckling as he left.
Breakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreak
Snape waited in the kitchens until Figgie showed up. He hoped he hadn't missed his opportunity, and when he went up to the house elf, he found that the cat had not yet eaten. He sighed in relief, then handed her a bottle full of the antidote. Giving her instructions to put it on the cat's dinner, he told her it was supplements for his diet. He felt a little guilty, but... It had to be done.
He went up to the Great Hall, arriving along with the last of the students. They scattered as he passed them, and he was hard pressed not to turn around and yell 'boo!' They probably would have wet their pants, he thought snidely as he sat.
Breakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreak
The cat waited anxiously for the elf to show up- even though he wasn't growing as fast any more, he was still very hungry. When she did show, he heaved a sigh of relief and trotted over to her, only to stop short when an unfamiliar smell hit his nose. It was coming off the meat, and he shifted back and forth, not knowing whether or not to eat it.
Figgie finally had enough of his dithering, and said, "Master Draco wants you to eat this, and Master Severus wants you to have the potion. So eat!" Saying so, she lifted a piece of meat and pretended to lick it. Then she held it out to the cat. Tenderly, he took it between his teeth and swallowed it. It didn't taste any different. So he settled down to eat the rest of the platter under Figgie's watchful eye.
Breakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreak
Draco spent a little time with his friends after dinner, telling all he hadn't done over the weekend. They had laughed over his laziness, then asked him if Pansy was full of shit. Draco had snorted and asked, 'When isn't she?' Of course, he told them that he'd had a spell up that made it seem as though there was a panther in bed with him, and when she'd seen it, she'd freaked.
They'd all gotten a good laugh out of that, then Figgie had arrived and told him in a low voice that the cat had eaten. He nodded, and she disappeared before anyone could ask her anything. They'd hung out, but they had all gone to bed early- Severus had told them that Potions would resume tomorrow.
He slipped into his rooms quietly. It was after curfew, and he didn't want to be caught at the last moment. He lazily shedded his clothes as he wandered towards his bed, automatically seeking and finding the large, cat-shaped lump on his mattress. He flopped down, rubbed the cat's head, and was out like a light.
Breakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreak
Draco woke lazily, once again, before his alarm clock. He stretched, noticing and dismissing the large, warm weight next to him. Sliding out of bed, he grabbed a towel and walked into the bathroom for a quick shower.
He snorted when he saw the almost empty bottle of shampoo on the ledge, and reminded himself to get more.
Twenty minutes later, he stepped out of the shower and cast a drying spell on himself, throwing the towel over his shoulder. He didn't even know why he used them, still. The walked into his room, a flick of his eyes confirmed the cat was still in bed, and he walked to his wardrobe to get out his clothes for the day.
He turned around with them in his hands, and turned around to put them on his bed. But they fell out of his hands at the sight before him-
Harry Potter was in his bed. And he was naked.
Breakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreak
Harry woke slowly, feeling stupid. His whole head felt muzzy, and he lifted his hands to his eyes, pressing them in the hopes of warding of the sudden, blinding headache. He let out a groan and sat up, not noticing the sheets underneath him were green and not red and gold.
He blinked rapidly, trying to get his eyes to focus, as he ran his hands through his hair.
Finally, finally, he could see, and he lifted his eyes to the foot of the bed. And saw the last person he'd expected- Draco Malfoy.
Breakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreak
Draco was stunned, and a little turned on, by the naked Potter in his bed. But there was only one thing he wanted to know, and that was- "Why, precisely, are you in my bed?"
He watched as Potter opened his mouth and tried to speak, but all that came out was a rough huffing noise. He cleared his throat and tried again. "I have no idea."
Draco narrowed, his eyes, taking in the other boy's appearance. He looked ragged, and confused, and just a little scared. Frustrated, and knowing that the boy had been missing for a week, he turned around and reached into his closet, pulling out a pair of sweats and a sweater. He threw them at the Gryffindor, barking, "Put these one, for Merlin's sake." He watched the boy blush, then slowly get off the bed. When he was straight, Draco swallowed whatever he had been about to say in favor of staring at the boy in front of him. He'd grown a good half foot, since he now seemed to be Draco's height, and his musculature he filled out as well. No longer was he a scrawny little boy, but one of the hottest guys Draco had ever had the pleasure of seeing in the nude.
Once Potter had finished getting dressed, he turned to Draco, then stood there, starting. "A-are you gonna get dressed?" He asked in a squeaky voice. Draco huffed, saying, "This is my room- if I feel like prancing around naked, I will." Of course, that statement had nothing to do with the fact that Draco liked how Potter was looking at him, like he was a steak, cooked to perfection.
Breakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreak
Once they were both dressed, Draco turned and walked out of the room, heading deeper into the dungeons- specifically, towards Severus. He could feel Potter trudging behind him, and he made sure to flaunt his assets, just a little. He smirked when he heard Potter's rapid intake of breathe after he'd stretched his arms upwards.
When they reached his godfather's rooms, Draco knocked. Five seconds later, the door opened, revealing a fully dressed Severus. He was scowling, but when he saw the sheepish Potter hiding behind Draco, his expression turned into one of triumph.
He told them everything that had happened, from the explosion to figuring out Potter was Draco's feline. At the end of his little recital, he turned to Potter and said, "Do you remember anything of what happened over the past week?"
Potter nodded, his face a little flushed. "Yeah, it's just a little weird, because it's still all from a cat's perspective." Snape nodded, then said, "Can you still turn into a panther?"
Potter shrugged, then concentrated. Suddenly, the air around him shifted, and in his place was the cat Draco had been caring for all week. Then it shifted again, and Potter was back. "Everything stayed the same. I mean, I didn't start thinking I was a cat again. I still remembered I was human."
"Lovely. Shall we go tell the Headmaster, and the canine's?" Potter brightened up. "Sirius and Remus are here?" he asked hopefully. Snape sighed. "Unfortunately."
Breakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreak
Once everything had been sorted out, and Everyone told that potions was again cancelled for the day, Draco went back to his rooms. He was a little lonely, having gotten used to having a cat around. He'd been sitting there for a half hour when there was a knock on his door. He opened it, and saw to his surprise, Potter.
The Gryffindor shifted from foot to foot, and Draco took pity on him.
He stepped aside and let him in the room.
Breakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreakbreak
Th-th-that's all, folks!
Hope you enjoyed it, there is a sequel, if you want (wink, wink, nudge, nudge)
MannyWitch
p.s. - I stole the name 'Pangaran' from Stargate SG1, but I don't remember what episode or even season. Sorry!