DISCLAIMER: I do not own 'Harry Potter'.

A/N: And I'm back! So sorry for the delay, my muggle technology was screwing up. Well, here's the next chapter – one of my personal favourites. Enjoy! :)

BETA: Reeah Noseworthy.

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Chapter 10 – Exploring The Original Baby

Ryuu

On Monday, I found a small, ordinary looking note on my pillowcase.

MEETING.

TONIGHT.

THE USUSAL PLACE.

THE USUSAL TIME.

Shame on you, Ronald Weasley. I thought as a smile crept across my face. Scribbled in the corner was a pure white ferret, the letters TFT written on its abdomen.

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This time, the three of them beat me to the Great Hall."Sorry I'm late, I ran into Peeves." I lied. I hopped up onto a table and sat next to Hermione. This time Ron had brought along four boxes of chocolate frogs. I grabbed one and began to open it.

Harry got straight to the point, eyes two green flames. "Umbridge is taking over the school." It was true, Umbridge was walking around Hogwarts like she owned the place. I'd seen her waddling through the corridors like a rosy pin cushion with legs. If only I could jab a needle into her.

She'd recently started creating new rules as well. There was to be no 'time wasting' in-between classes. I would've thought this rule understandable, except for Umbridge's definition of time wasting. Apparently, just walking slowly was a crime. Poor Neville Longbottom had been yelled at for holding up a crowd because he was still getting the hang of manoeuvring with crutches. The staff were also being tested. Barely a day went by where the toad wasn't lingering at the back of the classroom, interrupting the lesson with her absurd fake cough and piping out absurd questions about the Professor's teaching methods and personal lives. ("Excuse my intrusion Professor Flitwick; but you're parents were both wizards, were they not?" she'd asked as her sharp gaze flitted up and down Flitwick's small form. Bigot.) I hated it of course, but held my tongue. The faded scars on my arm still tingled.

I absently noticed that my wizard card displayed the sour face of Herpo The Foul. "I know. But the problem is, what are we going to do?"

Both of the boys looked at Hermione who went into a thorough explanation about what the Order had told them. "…And I was thinking, if Fudge thinks that Dumbledore's making some sort of wizard army against him, then maybe we should do just that." She finished with a smile.

I did a sideways nod. "Sounds brilliant."

Ron nodded. "That's what I thought."

Harry sat down next to me on the table. "The problem is, they want me to teach everyone Defensive magic."

I stared at him evenly, noticing with a touch of confusion the lines of worry around his mouth. "Sounds brilliant," I repeated brightly.

Ron nodded again. "That's what I-"

"Well it's not." Harry cut in. "Everyone at school thinks I'm a nutter. Why would they want to learn anything from me?" His voice had raised and he was snarling.

Suddenly there was a strange fluttering noise from above. We froze and my hand flashed to my wand, but as I looked up it was only to see a bat swooping across the ceiling. Hermione let out a sigh of relief and Ron broke the tension, with an amicable shrug. "Look at it this way, Harry. You can't be worse than the pink toad." he said reassuringly.

"Gee, thanks Ron."

"No problem mate."

I turned my head to look at Harry. "Just don't even think about it. The point is, they need a teacher and they know it. And if anyone is going to teach them, it's going to be you." I considered if I should eat the leg off my chocolate frog, but it was still squirming in my fingers so I released it. I'd never really had the stomach or the heart to eat those things. I turned back to see that Harry still didn't look to convinced so I forced what I hoped was a reassuring smile. "Look, they may think you're a little crazy – but this world's a little crazy, and Umbridge is a lot crazy, and I'd rather be learning from a semi-trusted madman than a completely insane stranger. Plus, you're only a nutter if you're wrong."

Ron stared at me. "Wow, Ryuu. Since when did you get so wise?"

I scoffed. "Wisdom is the ideal of fools. All you need to learn anything about life is intuition. Or power, if that's how you like to do things."

There was a pause in which Ron tilted his head, considering my words and Hermione smiled slightly, before narrowing her eyes and continuing on. "So, have you got any more news?" she said as she twisted a brown curl through her fingers.

"Well…" I began, taking a deep breath and mentally cringing, "Draco…kind of - asked me out on a date."

To my shock, Harry cursed and handed five sickles to a jubilant Ron, who pumped a fist in the air and said: "Got you this time, Harry!" Hermione threw him a glare, and Ron's grin sank.

"What the-! You were betting on this?!" I gasped, my mouth hanging open.

The boys exchanged a guilty glance before Harry shrugged. "Well, yeah…"

"But how- how did you know that he'd ask me out?!" I'd never heard myself sound so shrill.

Ron pocketed the silver coins. "Oh come on, Ryuu. Everyone knows that Malfoy has a thing for blondes… personally, I'm more into brunettes myself." At this, I saw Hermione bite her lip. I couldn't completely tell in the darkness, but it looked like the tops of her cheeks reddened slightly. Ron however, noticed nothing.

I focused my attention on the boy seated next to me. "What do you think Harry?"

"Oh, um-" he stuttered, looking away shyly, "you're great Ryuu- but I really just think of you as a friend…"

"I mean; about the blonde theory!" I said, rolling my eyes.

"Oh. Right. Well, err…" his eyes searched for help and locked on Hermione, who answered his unspoken call. "I don't think that that's the only reason Malfoy has taken a fancy to Ryuu…" she began weakly.

"Can we stop talking about this now? Malfoy's a creepy guy and I don't really want to think about what goes on in his head." Ron added, shifting uncomfortably.

"Agreed," said Harry.

Hermione spoke directly to them. "I don't suppose that either have you have considered that Malfoy's interest in Ryuu consists of more than appearances?"

The two boys looked at each other, frowned and spoke in precise unison. "No."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Boys…" she muttered, mostly to herself.

I took this opportunity to voice my concerns. "So, what do I do?"

Ron's blue eyes met mine. "Well go along with it of course! Can you imagine the things you could find out if you were Draco's girlfriend?"

"I'm not sure I want to imagine," I whispered to no one in of them were staring at me now. Harry and Ron appeared indifferent, Hermione however was frowning slightly."What do you think?" I asked, hoping that she wouldn't agree.

She leaned against the wall opposite me, and tapped the heel of her left shoe onto the top of her right. "It's wrong to take advantage of other people's feelings… however; it's important for the mission." She nodded, as if she was convincing this to herself. "Besides, this is Malfoy we're talking about. And… frankly he deserves it." Hermione said this last part in a sinister tone that I'd never heard her use before. Her eyes stared at me unblinkingly for a moment before falling to the floor.

I'd never fully realised just how much Hermione hated Draco.

As usual, Ron sealed the meeting, and we parted ways. As I sneaked around the shadows of the castle, I went over and over what had just occurred in my mind, still a little shocked at what all three of them had said. This is not going to end well, I couldn't help but think.

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"Um- Ryuu!"

Dennis smiled as I turned to face him. "Yeah?" I said, making sure that Draco was out of sight.

"I err- wanted to ask you something…"

"Go ahead." I rifled through my bag, pulling out Star Maps: Your Fate Is Above You as we passed a suit of armour that was polishing its shield. Dennis and I were in the same Divination class, so we always walked together on the way. It was fun having Divination with Dennis. I'd taken the subject out of interest in third year, and was somehow still stuck with it in my timetable. I didn't agree with the entire premise – predicting the future, why would anyone want to know? And plus, Trelawney's methods were total crap. I'd never heard her give an accurate prediction. But my constant sarcastic remarks during class made Dennis laugh, and when Dennis was happy and laughing, he even cracked a few jokes as well.

"Well, um- a lot of Gryffindors are meeting up secretly at the Hogs Head tomorrow-"

I clapped my hand over his mouth. "Shhh! Quieten your voice, Den!" I whispered as I flung my gaze to see if anyone had heard. They hadn't.

I released my hold, both of us apologizing in synchronisation. Dennis shuffled his feet, glancing up at me. "Err- do you know about it?"

I didn't like lying to my friends. "Of course I do. I overheard Ernie McMillan talking about it in the Prefect's Common Room. He said Potter was up to something."

"So… um… are you going?" There was a gleam in his eyes that I hadn't seen before.

No. I'll be on my date with Draco Malfoy.

"…I don't know. People might not want me there, because I'm a Slytherin…"

"Oh…" His expression of eagerness seemed to slip slightly and I quickly burst out a response.

"But I definitely think you should go!" I said brightly.

"Me? Really?" I could see that he was nervous about breaking the rules.

"Yeah. I'm sure you'd enjoy it." I actually didn't know how Dennis would react to a secret rebellion of Defensive magic, but I knew that I wanted him to do it. Maybe we all need to know how to protect ourselves… I thought, thinking of Umbridge.

A strand of sandy hair fell into his eyes as he grinned shyly. "O-okay then! I will."

"Good." I nodded and started walking again. As Dennis hurried to catch up, I smiled. Yes, Dumbledore's Army will be good for him.

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Draco

Wearing two jackets was surprisingly uncomfortable; but necessary. My father had told me that girls always get cold. So it was immensely annoying to see that Ryuu, who was strolling along beside me, didn't appear cold in the slightest. Not even the smallest shiver shook her shoulders.

"Are you cold?" I asked, keeping my tone as polite as possible.

Her green gaze scrolled over me, narrowing on the strange bulk in my torso. "…No."

Dammit. "Are you sure? You can borrow my jacket."

She smiled. "I'm fine. Really." I turned my head to the side to release my grimace. Looks like I'm going to have to wear two jackets.

"So where are we going?" she chirped. She stumbled slightly in the snow, but regained her balance. The snow wasn't too heavy, but because of the grey cloud cover it looked like it was going to get windier.

"To lunch."

"…And where will be having lunch?"

"A restaurant. Or a café', or bistro… whatever you want to call it." I searched the street for a place to dine. I hadn't made any plans in particular and was actually just hoping for the best.

Sighing, she turned her head to face me. "Am I going to get any specific answers out of you?"

"That depends." I replied smartly.

She rolled her eyes.

As we rounded a corner a teahouse came into view. It was toppled onto the side of a hill and had a paved pink roof, each single looking the scale of a salmon. Steam protruded from four chimneys scattered higgledy piggledy around the building. Patterned curtains were drawn across the windows and outside the front two flamingos stood sentry to the door, looking a sickly faded colour in this weather. Painted on the roof were two words in sprawling, curly letters.

Madam Puddifoot's

"So is this the restaurant/cafe'/bistro we will be eating at?" she queried.

I glanced at her, smirking. "Apparently so."

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Ryuu

As we passed the two flamingos, the one on the left remarked in a rather rude drawling voice: "Another couple I presume."

"Well, umm…" I cast Draco a sketchy glance as the flamingo eyed me with pupils like yellow bullets.

The flamingo had made a sound that could have been a sigh and absently waved his wing towards the door. "Go inside and ask for a table for two. I trust you won't find it that difficult."

Bastard, I thought as we walked up the steps. I was beginning to understand my mother's dislike of birds. Draco gentlemanly opened the door and I walked in ahead of him…

…into my nightmare.

The room was insanely pink with frilly bows and lace lining the walls, furniture and anything that was in the space; including the people. The teashop was extremely cramped and I instinctively backed into the doorway, where I could feel the chilly air stab my cheeks. Steam blanketed the room, so that everything appeared to be an amorphous of thousands of shades of pink. Every now and then the haze cleared to show a table with a couple sitting, looking googily into each other's eyes. Almost every chair was occupied and the customers, smiles stitched on their faces, sipped from their teacups. All at the same time… I shuddered.

"What do you think?" asked Draco, his face twitching.

"I think…" I began, staring at the scene in front of me in amazement. "…Umbridge and a building had a baby, but then it didn't turn out the way they wanted it to; so they adopted a new one and made it this."

Draco's laugh choked on the steam as he led me outside.

The snow had gotten thicker very quickly. Already, most people were clearing the streets and seeking warmth. To my amusement the rude door flamingos were looking rather displeased as more and more snow began to fall, coating them in white flakes so they looked as if they'd been sprinkled in sugar. I wondered briefly how Harry, Ron and Hermione were doing in recruiting people for Dumbledore's Army, then quickly deterred my mind from that as if fearful that Draco could read my thoughts.

This time he insisted on lending me his jacket and I was quite glad that he did. It was only as we made our way back to the main street that I noticed something peculiar, and barely hid my smirk. "Draco?"

"Yes?"

"Why were you wearing two jackets?"

He raised his eyebrows, as if surprised by my question. "What?"

I stopped and stared at him, nodding to reassure myself. "You were definitely wearing two jackets."

"No, I wasn't." He looked down at his torso and ran his hands down the front of his coat.

I pointed at him, a smile seeping across my face. I couldn't believe that his boyish charm was actually working. "Yes you were! You just gave me one and you've still got one on now."

Again, he looked down at his chest and his expression morphed into one of shock. He feigned a tone of exclamation. "Oh! It appears I was wearing two jackets… how odd…"

"Hmm… yes it is very peculiar," I said teasingly, "So Draco; I don't suppose you wore two jackets so that you could give me one without getting cold yourself?"

He frowned, and tilted his head upwards, considering this. "Such a fine day for an outing…" he said mischievously, changing the subject. I laughed, and he joined in. For a moment there was a silence as I considered Draco's random act of chivalry –or was it selfishness?- before the smooth sound of his voice interrupted my thoughts.

"So where do you want to go?"

I looked around. We were now standing in the middle of Hogsmeade, outside of the Post Office. Honeydukes was just behind us, with Zonko's Joke Shop further down the street. Students flooded both buildings. Shouldn't go in there. I was already risking it now, being seen with him. The ever present shadow of Hogwarts loomed over us and I allowed my eyes to search the areas outside the village. Instantly, I saw the dark silhouette of The Shrieking Shack and my curiosity stirred. The building's silhouette was so mysterious, so… tempting.

"I think I know a place."

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Draco

She's mad. I thought as I reluctantly entered the haunted grounds of the Shrieking Shack. Even though I tried to repress them, nightmares from my childhood crept into my mind. It was common knowledge that horrible things had happened within the Shrieking Shack. Disappearances, murder… some folk said that there used to be screams during the night of a full moon.

However, as I approached the building, my childhood imaginings dwindled. It was smaller than I had presumed, but tall. The walls groaned in the wind, and they looked like they could crumble upon the smallest impact. The timber had a dank grey pallor. Something about the shack looked old and sickly; probably the jaunty angle the building leaned on, almost as if it was exhausted. It certainly wasn't the looming building it appeared to be from a distance. From here, the Shrieking Shack looked more like an old shed.

"Alohomora." I said, and the large padlock on the door opened with a profound click.

I quickly entered, surprised to feel warm air inside. It was also strangely large. From the outside, the building had appeared no larger than a broom cupboard, but from within the room's dimensions were noticeably bigger. It's probably an area illusion.

A gust of cold air breathed from behind me and as I turned, I realised I was alone. Ryuu hadn't moved from the doorway. "…You coming in?" I asked.

Her head peered into the room and she gasped, her eyes widening. Ryuu quickly retreated, stepping back a few paces from the doorway, biting her lip. "Could you open the window first?"

"What, you afraid of the dark?" I sniggered.

She threw me a look of scorn. "Could you please just do it?"

I folded my arms over my chest, amused. "So you're just going to start bossing me around now?"

"Please Draco." Her expression changed slightly. I noticed her hands were balled into fists.

Sensing I'd struck a nerve, I walked over to the window. It was boarded up with planks of aging wood. "Diffindo." The timber snapped and broke away, and the blinding white light of the snow filled land outside spilled into the room. "Okay." I said.

She hesitantly entered the room, green eyes flickering towards the open window. Ryuu breathed a sigh of relief, relaxing slightly. "Thank you," she said.

I leaned back into the wall beside the window, listening to the shriek of the wind outside. "You're welcome, but if you don't mind me asking -why so mysterious?"

She half smiled, shaking her head. "It's nothing."

I raised an eyebrow.

"It's nothing…" She repeated, frowning now.

I lowered the eyebrow and raised the other one. A reluctant grin seeped across her face, and she managed a small laugh. Watching her fluid shift between facial expressions made me smirk. I approached, and she folded her arms over her chest, smile gone and regarding me with an unwavering glare."Seriously though; that wasn't nothing," I said.

Sighing, she sat down in the light of the window and looked out at the snow covered treetops, her mouth stitched in a taut line. I joined her, waiting patiently. After a few seconds, the corners of her mouth twitched and she looked over at me, eyes shifting.

"Fine." she burst out, staring up at the ceiling to avoid eye contact. When she spoke her tone was frustrated. "I'm claustrophobic."

She'd spoken so quickly that it took me a moment to decipher her words in my head. "Oh… right." I began, carefully. "And, what does that mean?"

Ryuu tapped the tips of her fingers against her knee, one at a time, still refusing to make eye contact with me."Claustrophobia is a fear of confined spaces."

I felt my eyes narrow. "So, you can't be in a small room?"

She shook her head. "No, it's more complicated than that. I'm not actually sure of how small the area has to be, but I know that as long as there's a window I'm usually, okay…" I saw her eyes flicker to the window above us, and her fingers ceased their tapping. "…but, I'd still rather be in a larger space."

I sensed that this was a delicate topic, so I repeated my question in my mind a few times before saying it. "Why windows?"

Ryuu's green gaze locked on mine, face blank. "It's all psychological. My mother explained it to me when I was a child. She said that the image of a window reminds me that I can see out. It's like I remember that I can escape," she looked around the room solemnly. "I didn't realise how tight it was here until I saw it up close." As she explained, her voice became increasingly monotonous. I began to think that being claustrophobic angered her.

Although, I could tell that she was uncomfortable talking about this, I persisted. "How did you catch this?"

Her eyes narrowed, and she paused. "…Pardon?"

"Well, it's a disease right? So you caught it from someone."

Her mouth curved upwards. "Your knowledge of the muggle world really is limited, isn't it?" Ryuu stretched her legs out in front of her and looked out the window again. "Firstly, claustrophobia isn't a disease. It's a pathological fear. And no, I didn't catch it; I developed it. It triggered in my mind when I was six years old…" she hesitated. Her eyes glazed over and her face softened. A sigh of snowflakes wafted through the window, one of them landing in her hair. She brushed it away rather irritably.

I paused, forcing my tone to be gentle. "How did you find out?"

For a long time she didn't say anything, and I cursed myself for being so rude. But when she started talking, her voice was smooth and simple, as if she was reciting instructions for potion brewing. "It was three days before Christmas and my parents and I were going out to do some late shopping. I remember I was really excited because we were going to be taking the Underground; and I'd never done that before."

"What's the Underground?" I interrupted.

"It's a network of trains underneath London. They're not like steam trains though," She added quickly when she saw my confused expression. "They run on electricity and are really fast. You can get halfway across the city in a few minutes." I didn't know much about electricity, but knew that muggles used it in excessive amounts.

"Anyway; we were waiting for our train when one came along. I assumed that this was the one we were supposed to catch, and hopped onboard. But I was wrong. Before my parents could react, the train was already leaving, and…"

I looked into her green eyes. They were narrowed, but hardly.

"… that's when the claustrophobia kicked in."

For a moment, I presumed that she wasn't going to continue, but Ryuu merely tucked a blonde curl behind her ear before resuming. "There were so many people. I've always been short for my age - and I was tiny then, so I was shoved into a corner. I couldn't see anything. I couldn't move. At one point, I couldn't breathe. I was there for hours as the train repeated its circuit again and again and again…"

"How did you get out?" I asked hesitantly.

"My parents eventually found me after the crowds had thinned. They'd searched four trains already, and had even called the police. They found me underneath one of the seats. I was curled up in a ball and crying my eyes out. They took me to a hospital, but I fainted on the way there, so I don't remember much. I've never been to the Underground since."

A silence erupted and I shifted awkwardly. What do I do? She wasn't crying which was a relief, because I knew that my only method of condolence was a pat on the shoulder and a: 'There there…' I admired how even when Ryuu had just told me about her vulnerabilities she kept her head high and didn't falter.

After a while, she swivelled her stare towards me. Her eyes and mouth had changed, both were now smiling – she'd quickly recovered. "So, what about you Draco?"

"What?"

She crossed her legs and spun around so that she was looking directly at my profile. Placing her elbow on her knee and resting her chin on her palm she asked, in a tone that was slightly teasing; "What are you afraid of?"

I replied quickly. "Nothing." Liar.

"Liar," Ryuu snapped.

My composure stumbled for a moment."I am no liar!"

She rolled her eyes. "Oh, come on Draco. Everyone's afraid of something."

"That's because everyone else is ordinary and I'm spectacular."

A scoff escaped her lips, and she raised both hands, shrugging. "That's alright then. I understand."

My eyes narrowed at her tone. "…Understand what?"

Again, her green eyes locked onto mine, and I felt like I was being tested. "You're scared to tell me, that's all."

"Am not!" I retorted.

"Are so!"

"Am not! I'll tell you right now."

She smirked, voice smooth. "Go on then."

A frown twisted my face. "Well…"

"Yes?"

"Just let me finish!" I half yelled. "And don't laugh at me."

Her eyebrows lowered angrily, and her voice went flat. "Don't yell at me, and I won't laugh at you."

I sighed and apologised for raising my voice. I knew that I should be truthful. She'd just put her trust in me, and it was only polite to do the same. Quid Pro Quo again. My hand tightened over my wand as I felt her eyes on me and I sighed once more. "Well…" I began tentatively, "I'm scared of snakes."

Laughter erupted from Ryuu's mouth and she quickly slapped a hand over her mouth, in a futile attempt to hide her smile. "Right…" she giggled.

Fuming, I stood and walked over to the shadows. Her chuckling ceased and silence shattered throughout the room. "You weren't kidding were you?" I could hear the guilt in her voice. I didn't reply.

I heard her stand and walk towards me. "I'm sorry, Draco. I didn't think that you of all people-"

Her apology was interrupted by the small laugh I breathed out. The laugh grew, but not enough to block out Ryuu's annoyed exhale from over my shoulder. "Dammit, Draco. Quit messing with me."

"But it is funny, isn't it?" I said. "I mean, I'm a Slytherin Prefect, my family has been in Slytherin for centuries and my name literally translates to: The Serpent!"

"So why are you afraid of them?" Ryuu questioned, regarding me with a slight wariness.

I thought for a moment. "I think it's the way they move without any legs, it just creeps me out. Have you ever seen one? It's like…" I placed my arms by my side and wiggled my shoulders. It was some time before I realised how ridiculous I looked, and quickly stopped, straightened my jacket, and tugged my sleeves down.

But it was too late. A triumphant smirk practically danced on Ryuu's face and her eyes gleamed. She stifled a laugh. "I'm sorry, how does it go again?"

I sniggered. "You know what I mean."

She grinned as she retrieved her wand from my jacket and muttered, "Lumos." The tip lit up in a radiant silver glow. She took a few steps towards the stairs before turning and regarding me with a glance. "You coming?"

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Ryuu

Draco walked ahead of me most of the time, opening windows here and there. I was actually surprised at how calm I was. Well, it isn't too confined. I could easily take three steps from wall to wall in the hallways, and the rooms are considerably larger. The added comfort of the opened windows helped too, and because there were several gaps in the wood panelling of the shack I could constantly hear the whistling sound of the wind from outside. I smirked to myself. It sounds almost like Reeah Noseworthy.

In one room, a disturbing noise attracted us to the doorway. Inside was an obscenely large gramophone which was playing a slow broken record of twisted sounds. I tried to determine the song but the music was impossible to decipher. Draco stepped inside and held out a hand. "Care to dance?"

I crossed my arms and regarded him with something not so far away from scorn. "Sorry. I only dance on people's graves."

He smirked and took my hand in his own. "Apologies, Princess. Maybe I'll take you to a graveyard for our next date."

Next date? "Or the forbidden forest. Whichever's creepier." Draco ignored me and slid an arm around my waist in one smooth motion before I could react, and we began to rock from side to side. I raised an eyebrow at him, annoyed that he'd caught me off guard.

I clumsily moved my feet a tad slower than Draco's as I tried to keep in time with him. To my frustration, he found this incredibly amusing. "Weren't you there when we learned to dance for the Yule Ball?"

I grimaced at the memory. "Yes, I was actually. As you might not recall, I have been attending Hogwarts as long as you have, Draco."

His fingers twined in mine. "Who was your partner?"

I averted my eyes from his face and looked at the ground, flushing in frustration. "Professor Snape." I replied through gritted teeth.

Draco burst into laughter, which I at first despised before it became contagious. In a matter of seconds, my composure slipped and I simply laughed with him as I would with a person I was allowed to laugh with.

My feet slid next to his, vastly improved after the few minutes that we'd been dancing to the distorted tune. Our eyes locked, and I smirked privately to myself. Well, this is a strange scenario. Dancing in a haunted house with a boy I barely know. What could possibly go wrong?

I stopped moving, trying to ignore the intent expression on his face. I smiled at him, and pulled out of his arms. "Splendid dancing Mr Malfoy."

Draco hesitated for a fraction of a second before answering. "Likewise, Miss Veil."

For a moment he stared at me before I turned towards the door, my wand held at arm's length in front of me, hastily fixing my face into another mask. After an awkward silence, we moved onwards, humming the tune to ourselves as we did. The interior of the Shrieking Shack was coated in cobwebs and dampness. On some walls was a red substance that Draco and I had avoided eye contact with on several occasions.

As his footsteps echoed around the hallway, Draco spoke up from behind me. "I just realised something."

"What?" I replied, checking around a corner with the light from my wand.

"You know how you said that Umbridge and a building had a baby, but they didn't like it?"

I wondered where he was going with this. I stopped and turned to look at him. "…Yes."

"Well," Draco indicated to the frayed wallpaper beside him. "This is it. The Shrieking Shack is the original baby."

I couldn't repress a smile. "This baby is way cooler than the other one."

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A/N: Not creepy at all, walking around the most haunted building in Britain… how romantic. I do realise that in canon it's almost impossible to enter the Shrieking Shack without going through the entrance in the Whomping Willow but I changed that detail for obvious reasons.