"Look at him!"
Harry Potter followed his friend's gaze to find Draco Malfoy, looking drawn and tired. "Yeah, what about him?"
Hermoine sighed. "Honestly, Harry! Look at him and tell me he's not about to fall over and die."
Ron snickered. "Let's hope he does. Then we wouldn't have to worry about him trying to get us into to trouble all the time."
"He hasn't even insulted us once in the past week!" she pointed out.
"Come to think of it," started Harry slowly, "I can't remember seeing him at all lately."
Seamus Finnigan, who had been listening to their conversation intently as the stood outside the Potions room waiting for class, leaned forward and grinned. "That's because he's been in the Hospital Wing."
Harry was about to ask why when the door opened and the two groups of Slytherins and Gryffindors began to file in. He, Ron, and Hermoine immediately headed towards the back of the room and took their seats.
He looked up just in time to catch Snape cast a worried look at Malfoy before starting the lesson.
The class passed quite uneventfully until Neville's potion exploded with only five minutes left. Harry could hardly believe his eyes when Snape simply looked up, waved the mess away, and sent another concerned glance at Malfoy.
What shocked him even more was that Malfoy did not grab this opportunity to degrade the Gryffindors and stared gloomily at the cauldron before him.
As the students began to leave, Snape called out to the retreating backs, "Mister Malfoy, if you would please stay behind. There is something I must discuss with you."
Harry's eye caught Hermoine's. He was sure she had noticed the professor's strange behaviour as well.
"Draco, I realize your experiences of late are not something you are ready to openly share."
The Headmaster smiled kindly at him and Draco glowered back. He was vaguely aware of Professor Snape standing not far behind him and a girl he did not recognize in the far corner of the office. He decided his best bet would be to keep stubbornly silent.
"All I ask is that you speak with Melissa for a few nights and see if she might be able to help you out of -- "
"Out of what?" he burst out in anger, unable to contain himself any longer. "Out of my 'situation', Professor Dumbledore? Stop acting like this is my fault! And stop meddling around in my life!"
Draco grabbed the table nearest him and tipped it over, spilling its contents across the floor, then stormed over to the door and threw it open. Without a second's pause, he raced out of it and down the hall. But as he turned the corner, he abruptly stopped.
There stood the girl from the office.
"You're afraid that if he found out about this, he would increase the torture he puts you under," she said quietly.
He stared at her for a moment, then said, "Go away."
"No."
A rush of emotions swelled up inside him, the most prominent one being fear. "Please," he whispered slowly, afraid that at any moment he might break down and cry, "he'll kill me."
She shook her head, "He won't."
"How do you know?"
"I'm a vampire," she answered as if that explained everything.
Draco scoffed. "That makes perfect sense. Why would Dumbledore hire a vampire to save me from another vampire?"
"Have you ever heard of fighting fire with fire?" She began to walk quickly towards him and he was momentarily taken aback.
Her clothes, which until now he hadn't noticed, swirled about her with each movement. Beads hung in long strands around her neck, wrists, and ankles. She wasn't just a vampire.
"Gypsy." The word felt like poison on his lips.
She scowled. "Born and raised, but long forgotten."
"The gypsies were a gang of murderous thieves."
"Yes, we were."
He held out his hand. "Draco Malfoy. It's a pleasure to meet you."