The details of their mission were discussed immediately. The two boys sat down on a big comfy sofa in the Gryffindor common room and Neville went over what he needed Draco's help with.

"I have a toad, Trevor," Neville started in a hushed voice.

Draco nodded, silently wondering why the chubby boy was whispering. The room was empty apart from them.

"Yesterday, I found a note attached to Trevor when he came up to me in the evening."

"A note?" Draco raised his eyebrows.

"Yes, just a little note. Here, have a look," he said and gave Draco a small piece of paper.

The blond boy eyed the note with interest. The handwriting was a bit sloppy, but he could tell that whoever wrote this tried their best. "Meet me tomorrow at 4 pm, I'll be waiting in a clearing in the Forbidden Forest. Just take Trevor near the entrance of the Forest and he'll guide you to me. See you then!" he read out loud.

Neville took the note back from him. "It's weird, isn't it?" he asked. "I don't know who it is, or what they want from me."

"It's suspicious, yes. Do you think we should report this to a Professor?"

Neville sighed. "I don't know. It's suspicious and I'm scared. But at the same time, I'm curious. You know, Hogwarts has been really boring for me so far," he confessed.

Draco glanced at the chubby boy with interest. He seemed to be lost in thoughts.

"Everyone is doing something interesting, hanging out with friends and having a good time," Neville continued in a quiet voice. "But I'm not like that. Nobody talks or hangs out with me, I'm just alone and sad the whole time. But this," he said and waved the note in front of his face, "this might be an adventure. I was too scared to go alone, but then I saw you and I thought that you also needed an adventure. So, I decided to be brave and ask you if you would like to go with me," he concluded, eyeing Draco shyly.

The blond boy was silent for a moment. He felt bad for Neville and for never approaching the lonely boy before. The chubby boy might not be a Dark Lord, but maybe he could be a good friend. And so, Draco nodded his head. "I'll go with you."

That afternoon, the two boys went out of the castle, Trevor held carefully in Neville's hands. There was definitely a hint of excitement in their steps, but also no small amount of fear in their heads. If they were caught in the Forbidden Forest they would be in a lot of trouble and they both knew that. Still, they continued walking, perhaps both not wanting to be seen as cowards.

"I'm really thankful that you agreed to help me," Neville said as they passed by a couple of older students. "But you know, it could be dangerous, we don't know who wanted to meet me, so if you prefer to stay away I will understand."

Draco shook his head. "It's okay, we will be safer together. And, you know, housemates got to help each other," the blond boy said, sounding a bit more confident than he truly was.

Neville smiled at him. "You're nice Draco, I'm glad that I spoke to you. I never imagined that I would like a Malfoy," he added quietly.

Draco eyed him with a grimace but decided not to comment. The boy was probably right, he would also feel scandalized by the prospect of being friends with a Longbottom before he went to Hogwarts. Still, after being sorted into Gryffindor, Draco decided that his father might not have been the greatest influence. The people in Gryffindor really weren't that bad. And I am one of them now.

Some minutes later, the two boys arrived at the entrance of the Forbidden Forest. They tried to lay low, walking sneakily and making sure that they weren't seen. With the forest now before them, it was time for their mission to truly start.

"Are you certain that you want to go with me?" Neville asked once again, looking more than a little scared.

Draco gulped nervously, took a deep breath, and nodded. "We are Gryffindors. Brave like lions," he said quietly to the other boy's surprise.

"That's true," Neville said. "We are brave, aren't we?"

"Yes, we are," Draco declared proudly.

Ever Trevor seemed to be in a brave mood, as the toad made a loud sound.

"Then let's go," Neville said. "We have to follow Trevor, let's be careful not to lose him," he added and put the toad on the ground.

It seemed to look around curiously for a moment, not quite knowing what to do with itself, until it suddenly leaped straight into the forest, the two Gryffindors running after it.

"I didn't know toads are so fast!" Draco said in between breaths as the duo continued their run, trying their best to keep up with the toad.

"Me neither!" Neville replied, the chubby boy finding it difficult to keep up with the toad and the skinny blond boy.

After a few more minutes of running, Draco suddenly froze and Neville almost ran into him, only barely managing to avoid hitting the other boy in the back.

"Why did you stop?" Neville asked, breathing heavily and wiping sweat from his forehead.

Draco put a finger up to his lips. "Be quiet," he whispered. "There's someone there," he continued and pointed to a small clearing that was in front of them. The two boys were hidden by a big bush.

Trying their best to stay hidden, the pair glanced at the clearing. There was someone there, and after a moment, they could hear a voice, humming something quietly. After another moment, they could tell what the voice was humming.

It was a well-known song about flowers and their smells and beauty, often sung to little children. However, the voice they were hearing made it seem much less beautiful than it should be.

"Oh Merlin," Neville whispered and looked at Draco with big eyes. "It's Professor Snape… and he's completely tone-deaf!" the boy sounded absolutely terrified.

Draco struggled not to laugh. His uncle was picking up flowers and singing to himself. If he knew that a student could see him doing this, he would be furious.

"We have to wait until he goes away," Draco whispered to his terrified housemate.

They kept sitting in the bush quietly, listening to more of Snape's horrible singing. After a few minutes, the Professor finally went away and the boys could breathe again.

"That was… so scary!" Neville said, his body still shaking just a bit.

Draco nodded. "It's okay, he didn't catch us," he said soothingly.

The boys got themselves together, but soon realized that they were in trouble.

"Trevor!" Neville moaned. "We lost him!"

Draco grimaced. "He didn't stop with us… we have to find him," he said.

Neville sighed. "I think he went that way." He pointed. "Let's go."

"Let's go," Draco replied and the unusual duo continued their march through the forest, this time much slower.