Chapter 1: The investigation

In the end Harry never told anyone about the Dark Ones, there was just no way of explaining about them and not have to tell the rest of the story.

Four weeks after the encounter he was still no closer in understanding what had happened. His thoughts kept turning in circles as soon as he tried to think about it. He could not forget the look on Draco's face as they had lied together as well as the way he had looked when he left, those two faces, so different, hunted him in his dreams and made it impossible for him to sleep.

Some nights he woke up, cold with sweat from nightmares and sometimes hard and ashamed from other dreams. Unable to tell anyone he made it his mission to solve the mystery of the Dark Ones, for some reason he was sure that Draco didn't know anything significant. Even though he would probably pretend that he did if he asked him, but thinking about Draco turned him back into brooding so he stopped thinking about it.

Instead he made careful investigations, asking circumspect questions and generally kept his eyes open. He spent several hours each day in the library in the most diverse sections skimming through books, hoping to find something, some reference to these Dark Ones.

He had quickly understood that no one had been hurt that night, which at least, somewhat, had eased his bad conscience. However, that was as far as his investigations had led him in four weeks; he was starting to get frustrated. He also had seen neither hide nor hair of Draco; he admitted he might have been trying to avoid him somewhat, not wanting to see him until he had sorted out his feelings. But Hogwarts was not that large a school; unless Draco was avoiding him too they should have bumped into each other by now. The thought of Draco avoiding him made his head spin again with unclear meanings.

Sighing he tried to clear his head and focused on the book he had managed to pick out tonight, in an attempt at trying to forget Draco he intently concentrated on a tale about a wizard who had cut out his own heart for unknown reasons and managed to stay alive, the gruesome story at least turned his mind away from the difficult situation he seemed to find himself in.

He put the book away and picked up another one.

Thumbing through it he caught his breath, sitting carefully down on the library floor, he looked closer at the picture he had found. On it a dark shadow was roughly drawn, like the person drawing it was not completely sure what the creature looked like. But the artist had captured the sensation; the feeling of wrongness was there.

Harry stared at it lips pressed against each other: "Found you" he whispered and with a tentative finger trailed the edges of the drawing.

He turned the page over reading the text accompanying the picture, the book was about a legend of darkness spreading, apprehensive and vague. He read on, unconsciously scratching his forehead, he stopped, realizing that he was scratching his scar; he could feel it throbbing slightly.

The dark figures had no name, he supposed the Dark Ones would have to do, but the book was clear that they foreboded dark times. There was nothing useful otherwise, except that the author believed that strong light would scare them away.

He tucked the knowledge away as well as the book; he might be able to learn more from it later. Anyway now he had to sleep, he had a potion class early in the morning and if he stumbled in late again his teachers would get angry, again...

His friends was already starting to look at him strangely and asking him if anything was wrong. His long nights in the library and constant walking around, listening was getting them suspicious, and he could not, would not, drag them into this. Not yet.

He heaved a sigh, wondering if he was lying to himself, maybe he just didn't want to tell them about what had happened. He shook his head, feeling sad that he was not sharing everything with them, but he was ashamed, about what he had done, that he had let himself be distracted and that despite Draco's hard words, he wanted to see him again. He felt tired; obviously sleep would be hard to come by tonight as every other night.

~o~

The next day saw him bleary eyed and feeling exhausted, his normal dreams had been laced with foggy pictures of a dark threat hovering over Hogwarts while he in the dream was a small child playing with a toy, not seeing a murky shadow creeping up on him. Around him, the bodies of his friends where lying staring blankly up at the sky, but he hadn't noticed, busy trying to tell them how shiny his toy was and how much he enjoyed playing with it.

He had woken up with a stifled scream in his throat after that one. At breakfast he ate without joy, everything tasting like ashes.

"You ok Harry, something seem to be bothering you, you're not sick or anything?" Ron asked concern shoving as he looked over at his friend.

Harry tried a smile: "Sorry Ron, I'm not very good company today am I."

Ron laughed relived at seeing Harry's smile; "That's an understatement, any Slytherin would be more fun than you been the last couple of weeks."

"I'm just worried about the potion project, it's supposed to be difficult I've heard" It was almost not a lie Harry decided, after all everyone knew the upcoming potion project were a team of two worked over what was left of the school year was important and that the winners would be honoured at the end of the school year.

"Yeah about that" Ron started: "I've been trying to talk to you for ages about teaming up for it, but you have been so hard to find, always burying yourself in books." Ron looked slightly sorry.

"So I and Hermione asked the teacher to team us up." He looked at Harry trying to judge his response. Harry realized he been too busy to remember to select a partner for the project, he had assumed it would be with Ron or Hermione and hadn't worried. Now he realized he would have to be teamed up with someone random. Anyway the project really was far from his mind, and he didn't care, any work partner would do.

He smiled broadly to Ron, "Good for you, I'll congratulate you two at the end of the year then" Ron laughed, relived that Harry was ok with it.

"We will see Harry, maybe you'll end up with someone brilliant and we have to congratulate you!"

~O~

They rushed off to class, meeting up with Hermione on the way, all three laughing and making jokes. That was until they got into class and Harry stumbled on the flat floor, seeing Draco for the first time in four weeks. He looked, Harry searched for the word until he realized it was beautiful he was looking for and he felt his face flush over.

He was immensely grateful Draco had his back towards him, Hermione looked at him strangely, "It was not that bad Harry." Realizing she thought he was blushing because he had stumbled Harry shrugged his shoulders and found a seat and started to carefully study his own fingernails.

In the corner of his eyes he saw a patch of blond hair. Getting cold he saw it coming closer and a shadow fell upon his desk, not daring to speak he looked up, meeting ice blue eyes. Draco looked as he always did, a half sneer on his lips, but Harry didn't see that, all he could think of was how his skin had felt under his fingers, how his mouth tasted.

Draco, apparently without any problems in the speech department, said: "Well, well Potter is it. Haven't seen you in a while, now I suppose things will be different." He gazed at Harry for some reason with a slightly suspicious look on his face, or was it curious?

Harry tried desperately to understand and stumbled over the words feeling mortified as he realized his face was turning red again, "Hi Draco, what are you talking about?"

Draco smiled, a smile not reaching his eyes, "So, you haven't seen the list yet have you".

"What list?" Harry answered.

"The list with partners for the potion project, Potter it seems you and I will spend this year together. What did you give Slughorn to make that happen?" Harry stared at Draco, his partner in the project, he was unable to understand how that had happened. Although, since he had not chosen anyone the teacher had apparently paired him off with Draco.

When he didn't answer Draco turned away and went to his seat. Hermione leaned over to Harry, "That pompous idiot, you should complain, maybe you can change project partner."

Harry just shook his head at her, not sure if he had just doomed himself or if this was an opportunity, but opportunity for what? He never got to finish that train of thoughts as the class started and soon, thankfully, he was thinking of potions and their different uses instead of the tangle that his life had turned into.