"Who's this?" an all too familiar voice said. Draco looked up at the owner of it and saw Granger. She observed Mr. Consolatio with a sweet smile, when she saw Draco get up from the corner of her eyes, she raised her eyebrows towards him.

"It's yours?" she asked. Draco didn't answer, he just glared at her. She turned back to the teddy and looked at it closely, when she turned back to Draco she found him staring at the bear with a worried frown.

"What's its name?" she asked him softly as she handed the sweet bear over to its owner.

"Mr. Consolatio." He muttered silently when he received it. He stood there awkwardly and didn't look at her. He wasn't sure if she'd heard him, but she didn't ask again.

"I- I won't tell," she found herself saying. Draco looked at her and she managed a small smile, Draco sneered and hurried past her down the corridor. He was embarrassed, humiliated. He stormed into the boys' toilets, some first years hurried out in fright, to wash his face. He put his bag on the floor and started to pace back and forth in frustration.

After a few minutes of pacing, he stopped, ran his hands through his hair and glanced at his bag, where Mr. Consolatio were visible. He took him out and glared at him.

"You just had to do that didn't you? You just had to fall out of the bag for her to see!" he threw the teddy across the room and glared angrily at it. After a few minutes, he realized his faults and got over to where his friend was lying to pick him up. He leaned against the wall and sunk down.

"This is all fucked up" He muttered to himself as he hugged his bear.

It was a week before Hermione saw him again, outside of class; he showed up, sat in the back staring at nothing, with an expression that showed he was troubled. He didn't even storm out after a big outburst anymore. However, whenever Hermione tried to catch him after the lesson ended, he seemed to disappear quite suddenly.

But today, he came down to dinner. He sat down at his usual spot, at the end of the Slytherin Table, and ate slowly. He didn't even eat all of it up when he got up and left the Great Hall. Hermione wasn't going to let him slip out of her hands once more, so she got up, before telling her friends a hasty goodbye, and followed Draco out of the hall.

Draco turned, climbed the stairs, and strolled down the corridors. He didn't seem to notice he was being followed. The blonde thin boy stormed into a room at the end of the corridor, the boy's bathrooms. Hermione stopped outside the door, pondering if she should walk inside or not. That's when she heard sobs and talking. Had he found someone to talk to?

"I don't know what to do anymore," she heard the familiar voice say from behind the door. "Don't look at me like that, we both know she's in danger."

How hard Hermione tried to listen, she could not hear anyone answering him.

"I have to, No, I do!"

Is he talking to himself? The brunette pushed the door open slowly, to keep it from making any noise, and peeked inside. There, with his back towards her, sat Malfoy, crossed legged, and head hung. She did not see any other person. She slowly made her way into the dark-lit room. In his hands she saw the sweet, soft teddy-bear. He was... He was talking to a teddy. She couldn't help but to think that the world's gone mad.

She got down on her knees behind him and placed a hand on his shoulder. Draco jumped up on his feet and hid the teddy behind his back. She had really scared him. His eyes were wide when he stared at her. He seemed embarrassed.

"What are you doing here Malfoy?" she asked him and tilted her head.

The blonde did not answer her.

"Why are talking to that bear?" she tried instead and nodded towards his hands behind his back. He sighed and slowly brought it out for her to see. He didn't look at her.

"He's the only one who is listening," he mumbled barley enough for her to hear, but she did. She frowned and took the bear from him, he didn't do anything to stop her, and she observed the sweet creature. At least he was talking, even though it was to an un-talking bear. She gave the bear back to Draco and observed him instead. He looked so broken, so confused. She felt so sorry for him.

"Talk to me," she whispered, it made him look at her even more confused.

He opened his mouth as if to speak, but nothing came out.

"Please," she begged when she saw his torn eyes.

"Why?" he managed to ask her.

"I want to help you," that wasn't all lie, and she guessed he saw through that, because he chuckled without and humour what so ever.

"You can't help me, you couldn't help even if you did want to, cause I know you don't Granger," he said as a matter-of-fact and walked past her.

"So you'd rather talk to a teddy-bear instead of a real human being with real answers?" that stopped him, and she continued. "Maybe I can't help you, but you can help yourself. I know, you know you need this, you really can trust me Malfoy, maybe not entirely, but if you honestly think I would tell anyone what you tell me, you really are thick."

"How do you suggest I'll talk to someone I cannot trust? Someone I don't even know enough to even talk to properly?" he walked closer to her, the previous scene slipped from his mind. "Listen to me Granger, and listen good, I do not need your help, I do not want your help, so leave me alone!" he glared down at her and sneered when he noticed he didn't scare her.

"You are so blind Malfoy," she said calmly. "You cannot handle all this on your own, you know that. Before you know it, you'll be digging your own grave and..."

"I'm already digging my own grave!" He growled hard, and made Hermione stumble backwards. "You have no idea what's going on do you? You do not know what kind of pressure I have on my shoulders, what people I care about have given up for me. ME. To keep me safe," Hermione listened to what he had to say, not daring to interrupt him. "They've put their own safety in danger because my stupid mistake!" the Gryffindor dearly wondered what this mistake, of what he was speaking, was. "Nothing I have ever done had been right Granger. Everything I know of is wrong, and it always has been!" He was pacing back and forth again, with his hands running through his hair and angry tears in his eyes, he had dropped his bear long ago, and now lay on the wet floor, staring up at the ceiling. Draco slid down to the floor and wrapped his arms around his legs.

Hermione finally coming to her senses got down in front of him.

"Go Granger, just go," she heard him whisper through his arms. But Hermione didn't move.

"I won't. If there's a time when you need someone who can talk back, it's now. Even if it is me," Draco didn't do anything to assure her she was right, nor wrong, she sighed and looked around. She spotted the teddy on the floor and reached out to grab him.

"He's a sweet bear, where did you get him?" Draco slowly looked up to see what she meant.

"Mother," came as a faint whisper. "My mother gave it to me."

Hermione nodded, without looking at him, and dried it with a spell.

"How old were you?" She continued.

"Three... I was three."

"Was it for your birthday?" This time she looked at the broken form in front of her, and noticed his eyes had soften, probably at the memory.

"No," he said as he shook his head. "she gave him to me to help me sleep." This made Hermione frown.

"Why?" She hadn't meant for it to come out as hard, but he didn't seem to notice.

"Nightmares," He said simply and distant.

"What kind of nightmares?" she whispered, she didn't want him to stop now when he'd finally started to open up, so she was taking things slow and carefully.

Draco closed his eyes hard and seemed to be in pain when he remembered whatever it was.

"The worst kind," he told her.

"What kind is that?" she pushed softly.

It took a while for him to answer, before he did, he looked at her.

"The real ones," he said and looked away.

"I don't understand,"

Draco sighed heavily and closed his eyes.

"My nightmares... they're events that's happened to me in real life," he whispered, as if he was ashamed.

Hermione gave him his bear, which he gladly accepted.

"What happened?" Draco looked from Mr. Consolatio to Hermione with a frown, and if he suddenly remembered to whom he was speaking, he got up.

"That's none of your business," he sneered. Hermione just sighed, got up herself and made her way towards the door.

"You... you won't tell... right?" she heard a silent pleading behind her.

She turned her head and looked at him. "I told you I won't. Don't worry."

And she left, leaving Draco Malfoy alone in the bathroom, with a teddy-bear as his only company.

"I will never be left alone now Mr. Consolatio. She will always be close enough to hear our thoughts; it's just a matter of time before she finds out about my inner secrets. Soon, she'll find out I betrayed the Death Eaters by telling them Muggles and Muggle-borns is just as much human as we are." he looked down at his bear and frowned. "Why do I keep talking to you? I'm not mad." He honestly felt stupid for talking to Mr. Consolatio, but just as all those years he'd had him, he always found comfort in the dark eyes of the Teddy-bear of who he was now watching.

Draco sighed, put Mr. Consolatio into his bag, and away from the world to see, and walked out of the bathroom, not noticing the Gryffindor lurking in the shadows.

A/N: Sorry if it says Mr. Cuddles anywhere.
that was Mr. Consolatio's first name, but I changed it.

(last week's A/N)
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MEEE!

Sooo, this is the longest chapter, yet!
A GREAT birthday gift from me to... eh.. you..
just becuase I'm being this nice you should review as crazy,
So that when I log in on sunday I'll be having LOADS of reviews!
It is my 18th brithday after all! (I'm feeling old... yes... yes I do)

(Today's A/N)
So yeah, as you probably guessed at the top of the A/N It's my birthday.
It wasn't a good morning though I tell you.
at the moment I am editing my final project film.
Awesomely epic music, SOME clips are good and the editing is hard.
But HELL I love it!

Soo... as this was MY birthday gift to you.
YOUR birthday gift for me should be to review.
you know... like... crazy. Long reviews, good or bad It doesn't matter..

oh, and as a side-note; the next chapter WILL take longer to update.
I am not yet finished with that! you know.
If it hadn't been my birthday...
(All the readers: "Your birthday! Really? when!")
...this wouldn't have happened. sooo it's my mum and dad's fault if it takes time.

with this I am going to continue my project(in which I am going to fail)
and you will press the little button, and review.
Just like I told you :)
xoxox
Niccogirl
(I do not watch Gossipgirl mind you.)