hello everyone! i know i haven't updated this fic in forever but i had a bunch of ideas for my fic on the Black sisters, so i had to write them down and this story jsut got put on hold. but don't worry, i really do have every intention of finishing it. originally, this was going to be one chapter with the next chapter, but once i made it to 7000 words and i was no where near finishing, i decided to cut it into two. don't want you all to get overwhelmed. lol :)

thanks a bunch to Akira loves slytherin pocky, Tasha27, and -Loves The Used- fro reviewing and subscribing, i really appreciate it. oh, and my sister, of course. :)

remember, i do not own the wonderful world of Harry Potter, J.K.R. does.

enjoy! :)

Draco woke up for the first time that week fully rested. He was, he noted with surprise, strangely happy. He opened his eyes blearily. A wave of warmth flushed through his body as he recognized the figure lying beside him, curled up against his chest, honey-brown hair tickling his shoulders and neck. Carefully, slowly, he lifted one hand from her hip and gently stroked her hair. Kate stirred briefly, pressing herself closer to the warmth given off by his body, before settling into a quiet sleep once more.

The green curtains were drawn around his four-poster in the Slytherin dormitory, shielding them from the other five seventh-year Slytherin boys. As he lay in his bed, he could hear the snores of Goyle, and the light scratching of quill on parchment. Draco had no idea what time it was, though judging by the fact that Goyle was still asleep, he was sure that it could not be passed eleven o'clock; Goyle may oversleep past breakfast, but he never missed the midday meal.

They had left that classroom late, scurrying to clothe themselves before returning to the Slytherin common room to finish the row they had started. But the conclusion never came; there was nothing more to say, nothing more to do, to demonstrate to the other the pain and anger that had filled the week when they had been ripped apart. And so Draco and Kate had established something short of friendship – more of mutual agreement that settled into a truce. Neither could forget what had occurred, but they could forgive.

The nightmare that had haunted his nights had not come this time, for which Draco was immensely relieved. The storm was over; he had reached the shore that he had yearned for so long. There, he had been greeted by the lone figure with the honey-brown hair and fiery brown eyes. The figure had not been a woman, as Draco had thought. She had been an angel, waiting for him, showing him the light at the end of the tunnel, proving to him that there was indeed a reason to keep fighting. And when he reached the shore, he had rested his head in the arms of the angel. She was not a typical angel – she had no wings, no gold halo that he could see. She was the kind of angel that could bring him home. Even during this time of turmoil and fear, even during this time in which there was no home because home had become a strange place where strangers dwelled; even during this time of which nothing was for certain, nothing was taken as the truth.

But Draco was sure of one thing: he would follow her wherever she went.

*** *** ***

There was a hushed excitement rippling through the Great Hall when Draco arrived for lunch. Students, no matter their year, were huddled together in groups, whispering elatedly to each other. Even the Slytherin table was buzzing with eagerness. Draco frowned as he found a spacious area on the Slytherin table, feeling discomfited as he attracted several stares from students, including those belonging to non-Slytherins. Draco reached for a roll of bread, glancing up at the teachers' long table. It appeared that the excited buzzing had infected the professors as well; they, too, were leaning in close to whisper news into another's ears, lips barely moving.

Draco knew at once that the gossip flying around the school held far greater importance than Mrs. Norris being chased by a mysterious dog (who he found out had, indeed, been Kate). If teachers deemed the news worthy enough of being exchanged among themselves, then it was, without a doubt, significant news. Had a student disappeared? But then, the atmosphere in the Great Hall would have been taut with fear and resentment, not excitement. And the Carrows would have been particularly sour and malicious. Draco craned his head now to glance at the Carrows, sure that they would look quite ugly with the whisperings and enthusiasm of the school. What he saw shocked him.

Truly puzzled now, Draco studied the Carrows. They did not look at all upset; on the contrary, they seemed just as animated and elated as the students of Hogwarts! What could have possible occurred that would have both the whole of Hogwarts and the Death Eaters so cheery this Sunday afternoon? And why didn't Draco have a clue what was happening?

Just then, Amycus Carrow's gaze settled on Draco's. Draco gazed steadily back at the cold stare. At first, the squat Death Eater just stared at him, but then Amycus Carrow's face broke into a great, jaunting sneer. Unnerved, Draco blinked but did not look away until Amycus's attention was diverted to his sister. Draco's heart began to thump harder as he shifted to face his plate once more. Something had happened; something dire had happened, and he had to find out what.

Getting up stiffly, Draco took a deep breath before going to sit farther down to the back of the table, where a slender figure sat, mahogany waves brushing the tabletop as she leaned across the table towards her friend, chattering with the same hushed excitement that was pulsing through the school. Her hazel eyes remained intent on her friend until Draco came to a rest by her shoulder, his robe brushing her arm. She looked up at him.

"Do you mind?" He indicated the empty place beside her.

Tracey hesitated, but shrugged, giving a tiny half-smile uncertainly. Draco was quiet as he lowered himself beside her, and did not miss the flicker of puzzlement that was exchanged between Tracey and Daphne. He was aware not only of the intensity, but the guardedness, of the focus of the pairs of hazel and green eyes.

"What's up, Draco?" Daphne broke through the slight tension first, propping her elbows on the table and lacing her fingers together, leaning her head on them. When a loose chocolate curl fell into her face, she blew it back; her green eyes, however, never left Draco's face.

"I was wondering," Draco said slowly. "If you knew what all the talk was about."

Tracey and Daphne exchanged looks again, and Draco's heart sank. Whatever it was, it was bad; why else wouldn't two girls be eager to fill him in?

Tracey paused, but the smallest of nods from Daphne prompted her to begin.

"Potter has been spotted." She stated hesitantly. Draco blinked, puzzled, but kept his face smooth and emotionless. With another swift glance at Daphne, the Head Girl continued.

"There's talk that Granger and Weasley may have been spotted as well. Not far from here either."

"Where were they seen?" Draco forced his voice to come out indifferent, with just a touch of curiosity.

"Gringotts." Tracey answered, and now Draco was completely confused. Gringotts was located in Diagon Alley; there was no way that Potter could have come anywhere near Gringotts without being seen. At some point, going in or out, he would most certainly have been caught and taken to the Dark Lord.

"Word is that he stole a dragon and used it to escape." Daphne added before Draco could ask anything. "You know how the older, more valuable vaults have extra protection?" Oh, Draco knew all right. He had been hearing rumours of exactly what curses and traps were set to protect the deeper vaults for years. The vaults located at the deepest level of Gringotts were not only the largest, but also the most protected, and happened to be where all his family vaults were located: the Lestranges, the Malfoys, and (the oldest and grandest of them all) the Blacks.

But what was the significance of all this?

"But what was Potter doing at Gringotts? I'm sure he wasn't doing any early Christmas shopping." Draco's gaze bounced from Tracey to Daphne. There was no denying the heavy reluctance of the girls now, which made Draco all the more anxious for the answer.

"Well, no, not Christmas shopping. He broke into the Lestranges' vault." Tracey informed him slowly, cautiously. Draco stared at her, dumbfounded. He didn't blink, didn't move, heard the words but could not understand their meaning.

"They…how did Potter and Weasley get into Au- the Lestrange's vault?" He asked stiffly.

"No one knows how they did it." Tracey answered softly, and Draco did not miss Daphne's shift of discomfort. "But…yes, Potter managed to get in. And…" But here she paused and exchanged another look with her friend. Draco looked to Daphne, who licked her lips before answering.

"Something was taken." Her voice was quiet, but self-assured. She looked up at Draco's face. "Something was stolen, even with all the enchantments put in. No one knows what Potter and his friends stole; some second years are taking guesses as to what, but no one believes them."

"He was angry though." Tracey's voice was so soft Draco could have pretended not to hear her. "He was very angry; Lucius Malfoy and Bellatrix Lestrange are lucky to be alive." She raised her eyes from the floor, peeking into his face, which he kept pressed into an expressionless mask. "He murdered almost all of the goblins at Gringotts. That's how he angry he was."

Draco just stared at her. He seemed unable to accept what she had just told him. If what Tracey and Daphne said was true, then he – and his family – were in tremendous trouble. He did not have a clue what it was that was hidden away in Aunt Bella's vault that was so important; but if Potter had gone through all the trouble to steal it, and it's disappearance was the reason to the Dark Lord's rage, then he would release his fury on the Malfoys. And Aunt Bella – especially Aunt Bella, for it was her vault in which this item had been so confidently tucked away.

It all made sense now: why the students were so excited, why the teachers appeared so full of hope, why even the Carrows had looked gleeful. Harry Potter had been spotted, along with Weasley and Granger. The Chosen One and his friends were alive, and as long as they remained as such, the students and staff of Hogwarts would continue to resist against the new regime. As for the Carrows, the ultimate downfall of the Malfoys had finally come. That, plus the gradual decline of the Dark Lord's old favorite follower, would give them the opportunity they needed to gain higher favor with the Dark Lord.

A warm hand suddenly touched his, snapping Draco out of his stupor.

"I'm sorry." Tracey told him quietly. Draco believed her; he could see it in her face, knew that she understood. Draco said nothing as he nodded twice before rising slowly. Daphne was looking into her plate, suddenly entertained by swirling her spoon around in her soup. Draco knew that she was saving him the humility, the shame. Draco trudged out of the Great Hall in a helpless daze, the excited whispers of Hogwarts buzzing in his ears, his heart pounding with growing fear.

Draco smiled wryly as he stepped into the girls' bathroom on the second floor. He got a sense of déjà vu as Kate settled herself on the floor by the grand window, facing him. Draco let the heavy door close on its own, with a solid thud, before making his way towards the girl. He knew what she wanted, what her plans were, and he once again resented her knack to knowing exactly how he felt. How she did it, he didn't know. The only one who could read him as well as she could was his mother – oh, and Tracey, but he had a feeling that this was just due to her unnatural ability to guess correctly.

"So, what happened?" She looked up at him expectantly, big brown eyes penetrating his. No beating around the bush with this one, he thought dryly as he settled himself beside her. There was no subtlety with Kate; either she attacked or she didn't/ Draco took his time before answering.

"Potter has been spotted. He broke into Gringotts – our bank." He explained when she frowned. "He broke into my aunt's vault. He stole something from in there. Something valuable, something he needed, something…." But he trailed off, because he did not know what that something was. It was so frustrating! To be so involved, to be so wrapped up with everything that was happening, but to be so uninformed and in the dark!

"I don't understand. What does his stealing anything have to do with it? Surely the dark lord is angry just because he was spotted? I don't think it would have made a difference where he was seen, it's just that fact that he was seen and none of you could catch him."

"Maybe," Draco said slowly, frowning. But he didn't think this was the case. There had been something about Tracey had said it. Potter had gotten into the Lestranges' vault. And the Dark Lord had been so furious that he had severely punished both his father and his aunt. "Lucius Malfoy and Bellatrix Lestrange are lucky to be alive". That's how Tracey had put it, which meant that the Dark Lord had seen reason to call upon two followers, who had been on house arrest and therefore couldn't possibly have failed to detain Potter, to demand answers and explanations. Draco could not help feeling that there was more to the puzzle than was being said.

"So how did he escape this time?" Kate gave a mocking smile. "Did he finally accomplish something witty and clever?"

"No," Draco snorted. "According to the rumors, he hijacked some dragon that was down in the lower-"

"There is a dragon down in your bank?" She asked sharply.

"Yea, it guards the lower vaults – that's where mine is. Anyways, word is-"

"What type of dragon is it?" She interrupted. He glowered at her.

"How should I know?" He demanded, and she pressed her lips together, disgruntled. "The dragon isn't the issue here, Kate. It's that Potter – precious Potter – has once again gotten away, which means my father is going to get tortured again, and Aunt Bella, and then he's probably going to come after me." Heart drumming, his grey eyes searched Kate's as his fears tumbled out of his mouth. She said nothing, just watched him, face no longer displaying displeasure about the dragon at Gringotts. Right now, she just seemed empathetic about his situation. "I don't want to go under the Cruciatus Curse again, Kate." He said softly. Then, so low Kate could barely hear him, "And I don't want to have to do it to Father, either." And the blond Slytherin buried his face in his pale hands.

He feared the latter just as equally as the former. Lucius Malfoy was a man with dignity, with pride. He was the man that Draco had admired for years. To see him writhing on the floor, probably begging for relief, under his son's hands was not an image that Draco wanted to experience first-hand. He had never been asked to torture his father, but there was always a day for firsts, and Draco waited in frantic anticipation for that day to come, wondering what he would do when – if, he corrected himself firmly – the moment presented itself.

"I haven't even heard anything about my mother." He scrubbed his hands over his face as this new worry came to him. "I don't know how she deals, what with Father and I Death Eaters, and all the prisoners being sent to our house, and now this." He grimaced. "I've done a lousy job taking care of her."

"Your mother's a strong woman, Draco. She's taken up passive resistance, but believe me, she's strong enough to not crack under all of this."

Draco shook his head.

"She shouldn't have to put up with it, though. She's not even a Death Eater!" Kate reached over, placing a cool hand on his forearm. A mangled smile appeared on her face, but her brown eyes darkened.

"That's the problem, though, isn't it? Ironic, how the more people you care about, the more people you love, the more people you care about, the harder others can hurt you." Draco swallowed uncomfortably, knowing she was talking about family. His, though strained and hurt, was still alive. Her family, however, had been murdered by the followers on the Dark Lord – among those followers, his father.

"You need family, Kate." He told her quietly, firmly. "You don't leave your family. We may not be good but we are loyal and true to each other. I need them, Kate." Pain clouded her deep brown eyes, and she looked away to hide it.

He said nothing. No words of comfort or sympathy could heal what had been done to her. Her friends were gone, her village demolished, and her family burned. He could not imagine being without his parents. He could double-cross just about anyone, if it meant escaping unbearable pain or further bettering his name. He would feel guilty, of course, for using someone else's demise to bring forth his gain, but the guilt would pass and he would forget. Family, however, would always be there for you, would fight and scheme for you to the end; that was a lesson his mother had taught him, it was something his father repeated. It didn't matter if the world was falling around him; he would always have his mother and father to turn to, and they would always have him to protect them. You didn't just turn your back on family.

"What is good?" She asked, breaking the silence. Draco glanced up at her, confused. "You said that you might not be good. What's 'good', to you? What's a 'good' person?"

"Well, a good person is someone like Potter, isn't it?" He responded darkly. "Someone who is brave, who is liked by everyone, or almost everyone, is 'good'. Someone who fights for everyone else, instead of defends himself. Like a Gryffindor," he gave a cold barking laugh. "You don't have to be sensible or intelligent, but people like them and they are 'good'." He looked at her, dead in the eye, eyes as cold and hard as steel. "Anyone not a Slytherin is 'good'. Slytherins are 'evil'." He spat he word, anger bubbling up in his chest. That was the difference between 'good' and 'evil'. It was Potter versus the Dark Lord. Oh, it used to be about the purity of one's ancestral blood, and the preservation of the purity. But now, it was good and evil. The pure-bloods – the Slytherins – Draco, himself – were tossed in with the Dark Lord, and branded as 'evil'. Everyone else got brained-washed to follow precious Potter with his stupid scar. That was the difference between 'good' and 'evil'.

"People aren't born evil, Draco." Kate spoke calmly, gently, yet firmly. "It's what you do, how you do it, and why you do it that makes you bad or good. There are no bad people."

"No bad people?" Draco questioned in disbelief. "Am I hearing you correctly? So you don't consider – oh, I don't know – the Dark Lord to be evil? After everything he did to you, and me and hundreds of other people?"

She thought carefully before answering.

"My heart resonates with every living organism that contains a heart. I am connected to just about all creatures. I am connected to the birds, the dogs, the squid in the lake," she cracked a tiny smile, "But I am also connected to people, Draco. I am connected to every child here in the school. I could have been connected to every single Death Eater – though, quite frankly, I was so furious at the time that I pushed those connections away. I am connected with you." She peered intensely at him. "Probably more so than I have ever been connected to anyone else, too." Draco felt his insides warm at her words, felt his mind go giddy. Though he was pleased with her words, for her praise, he still could not determine what this had to do with people being evil – or not evil, as was the case.

"But I am not connected to the Dark Lord, or his snake, for that matter." Worry etched across her face. "It's very odd; I have never encountered something like that before. I cannot reach him, I cannot hear him. It is as if he is not human."

"Well, he's not, really. I mean, well, have you seen him?" Draco scoffed. "He doesn't bloody well look normal, now does he?"

"No, no, you misunderstand me. He can look as disfigured as he would please, and I should still have some connection with him. What I mean is: it is as if he no longer has a heart. He no longer has a functioning, beating heart." She frowned.

"No heart? But, you can't live without a heart. You'd die." Draco's brow was furrowed, as he tried to make sense of the girl's nonsense. If the Dark Lord had no heart – literally, had no heart, not that he had no compassion – then he would be dead. Draco knew, solidly, that the Dark Lord was very much alive.

"I know! That's why it's so odd. I can't figure it out. His snake too. It's as if… it's as if the heart has been ripped apart, and only a tiny piece of it has been left in each of them. Not enough to consider having a heart and being whole, but just enough to be able to escape death." Her frown turned down the corners of her mouth, and her brown eyes gazed off as she immersed herself in her own thoughts.

Draco just stared at her. The girl was making no sense whatsoever. How could someone have their heart ripped out? They would die, surely. There was no magic that could replace or meddle in the very basic laws of nature and biology. For one to live, one needed a heart, plain and simple. Oh, all right, unless you were a tree or perhaps a unicellular organism like an amoeba or bacteria or something. But Kate didn't classify those things as animals anyways so it didn't matter.

"Mother said that in the first war," Draco said softly. "All they wanted was to keep pure-bloods elite, to keep the pure magical line from dying off. That was the whole point; just keep the Muggles out, because they get jealous that we have magic and then they start attacking us. It's happened many times, each time because some fool has the brilliant idea that Muggles and wizards should mix. That's what the war was about last time. It made sense. I'll admit, it got a bit out of hand, but it made sense. But now… we're fighting something that doesn't make sense anymore. I don't want to fight anymore. I don't want to do the things I have to do."

There was quiet between the two then, the only sounds the rhythmic dripping of water from one of the broken faucets. Her fingers eventually found his left arm, and Draco become blissfully aware of her thin fingers brushing over his skin, returning to her habit of tracing the black skull and snake on his forearm. Her touch flushed him with warmth, and the quiet lulled him into a content state. His eyes were just beginning to flutter close when she spoke, hesitant and quiet.

"You know, you never did tell me what happened between you and that old man last year."

He jerked his head up stiffly, and her brown eyes bore into his grey ones. So, they were back to this?

"It isn't important. Not anymore." He mumbled, looking away. He didn't want to talk about this; he really didn't want to talk about this. Not now, when things had seemd so peaceful between them. Why couldn't she just let it go? Why did she feel the need to pry out the deepest, darkest part of his heart? He had buried that memory way down in the depths of his soul so that it could never bubble up and haunt him again. He had promised himself not to allow that memory of that night to affect him, to weaken him.

"Draco, please? I need to know. You keep trying to make it seem like it was no big deal, but something happened that night that bothers you. I know that you were asked to kill him! I know that he died, that he was killed.

"You could never understand." He snapped, as irritation pricked at him like a million needles. Why couldn't she just let it go, damn it! He was not some dead insect ready to be dissected in Transfiguration! Besides, what would come of it? She would hate him; how would she not, when he hated himself, was repulsed by himself, because of that night? She would leave him forever, thinking ill of him. He had lived through that once; he could not do it again.

"What wouldn't I understand?" Her voice rose several notches, exasperated, and she pushed herself to her feet.

"Why must you know so much about everyone?" His voice rose to match her volume, and he could hear the bitterness in it.

"I don't want to know everything about everyone, I just want to know about you because I care, Draco, and I know how it is to feel alone! I've felt pain, too, I can help you if you would just let me!"

He didn't answer, just cast his gaze down at the floor and began to pick idly at his black school robes. Well, wasn't this ironic, he thought wryly. He had just gotten her back, had finally come to terms with her, and now look where they were: back to the beginning, bickering about the same thing.

"Why? Why are you closing up on me again? Draco I'm here for you! Whatever you want to believe about the world, and about good and evil, and anyone else, you must know that I am here for you."

Draco resisted the urge to roll his eyes; it took great effort, but he knew it would not help his case in this matter – not with Kate.

"Kate, I know what you are going to say, but I've told you, I don't need you help-"

"You need to let it out, Draco! You need to tell me what happened that night, because you are never going to find peace until you do. And I want to be here for you – truly I do – but I can't wait forever! I'm tired of being pushed away. You can't keep everything locked up to yourself forever!"

"Oh yes I can!" Draco mumbled childishly, but instantly regretted it. She huffed with impatience.

"No, you can't! Like it or not, it's the way it's got to be. If you want to love me, you need to love yourself first."

Then she whirled around and stalked out of Myrtle's bathroom, leaving the pale blond boy gazing after him, two emotions battling each other on his face: anger from a wounded pride and sorrow from a torn heart.

well, that's all for now. oh, i shoud mention that two songs inspired some of these motifs/symbols/quotes. Whatever It Takes by Lifehouse, and The Good Left Undone by Rise Against.
things will be speeding along after this chapter. you all already (i'm assuming) have read the books, so i won't be ruining anything by saying that the Battle of Hogwarts is coming up!! yay! can't wait to start writing on that.

anyways, if any of you are interested, my other HP fic is ont he Black sisters, and it's called "Sisters Forever". it's just a collection of short scenes that show the relationship of Bellatrix, Andromeda, and Narcissa. oh, and if you could visit my profile and answer the poll question that would be great, because i would love to know how you all pronounce "Andromeda".

ok, i'm done, hoped you enjoyed, and please leave a review! :)