The Dining Hall was filled with usual buzz of voices, when the doors slammed closed drawing everyone's attention. Albus Dumbledore entered looking very serious. He stood up in front of the tables and spoke so loud that even the people at the back could hear him without any trouble.
"Prefects, please lead your houses back to their dormitories at once, where your Head of House will explain what happened. Hermione, Draco, as the Head Boy and Girl, please remain behind."
Hermione watched as the hall emptied, mouth open. Something tragic must have happened.
"Please follow me to my office." and with one swift movement, he hurried away. Draco, who had quite long legs, had no trouble following him but Hermione had to run as fast as she could on order to not fall behind.
"Ice Mice" Dumbledore spoke softly as the stone gargoyle they had stopped in front of sprang to life revealing a staircase. Hermione climbed the stairs and stood transfixed, looking at Dumbledore's luxurious office. Dumbledore's long sigh brought her back to reality. She looked at Draco, and couldn't help but notice how handsome he looked. All trace of amusement disappeared from his eyes, and for the first time Hermione found herself admiring how seriously he took his job as the Head Boy.
"Tell me, are you two familiar with Miss Alexandra Guzelle?" all shine has disappeared from Dumbledore's stormy eyes.
Draco stirred "Sascha? Yeah I know her. Has something happened to her?"
"Miss Guzelle was assaulted last night."
Hermione gulped "As.. Assaulted in what way?" she already knew the answer.
"Hermione, I think we all realise in what way." Draco's voice remained cold even though it no longer drawled in bored tones "Did she see the face of her attacker?"
Dumbledore heaved a sigh "Maybe she has, maybe she hasn't... She is unable to tell us."
Hermione gasped "She isn't... is she?.."
"No miss Granger, she isn't dead." Dumbledore watched Hermione relieve some of the stress "But our attacker was clever. He put a Memory Charm on her, and a strong one too. It is impossible to remove."
"But... but that means we can't identify him..." Hermione sank into a chair.
"Oh really, Hermione?" Draco's sarcastic voice filled the air "I thought that was the problem in the first place, a girl got raped and we need to find the offender."
"Draco, you don't have to be so damn cold about everything!" Hermione was forgetting Dumbledore was in the room. This was going no-where, just like one of the quarrels they had at prefect meetings.
"No, I DON'T, but I choose to be! It's better to be cool about everything rather than sit here sobbing about all every single little problem like SOME PEOPLE!"
"Why can't you be just a bit more SYMPATHETIC!?! A girl got RAPED for Christ's sake!!!" Hermione found herself standing, screaming into Draco's face, but he wasn't the type that backed down.
"You know what? You're right."
Hermione froze "I... I am?"
"Yeah! Sure you are! Let's all sit down, feel all sad about Sascha, and wait to for the offender to just run in screaming 'IT'S ME!! I DID IT!!!' opposed to actually DOING something." Draco sat down and heaved a long sarcastic sigh "Poor Sascha..."
Hermione turned around and walked out of the office, down the stairs and towards the Gryffindor dormitory.
Draco stirred and looked at Dumbledore who didn't look at all too pleased of his sarcasm rally.
"Draco, if I knew that you couldn't get along with other students, I wouldn't have made you the Head Boy, however, currently that is not the issue. Sascha knew her attacker."
"Oh?" Draco looked interested "How do you figure?"
"Alexandra was assaulted on the edge of the Forbidden Forest, and it didn't look like she was forced there. My theory is, the attacker had arranged to meet her."
Draco sat deep in thought for a few minutes and then stood up "Was that all you wanted to tell me?.. Well... US before Hermione ran off..."
"Yes, Draco. That indeed is all I wanted to tell you. Also, when you go back to the Slytherin dormitory, do tell the girls to not ever go meet anyone or just go for a walk late at night. We can't afford for that to happen again."
Draco looked into his deep blue eyes "I know." and with that he disappeared in the doorway.
***
Hermione sat in front of the fireplace thinking. How could Draco be so calm when girls in Hogwarts are in such grave danger? She felt a familiar touch on her hand. Without moving her gaze off the burning flame she knew who it was.
"Hello Harry."
Harry kneeled next to her "Hermione, are you okay?"
"Did Professor McGonagall tell you what happened? About Sascha?"
"Yeah... she was raped... What kind of a dick would do that to a girl?" Harry looked at the floor.
"Draco was so cool about it... not even sympathetic!" Hermione's eyes burned reflecting the dancing flames of the fireplace as she told him all about the meeting in Dumbledore's office "He is so IMPOSSIBLE! It's like the guy hasn't got a heart!"
"Hermione..." Harry sighed "You won't be angry if I express my point of view?"
Hermione looked at him "Am I ever?" Her heart wanted to melt looking into those emerald eyes. She wanted to kiss his pale lips and feel his strong sunburnt arms wrapped around her, but she knew her didn't see her in that way. To him, she was like Ron. The only relationship that ever existed between them was friendship and he didn't want that to change. He was just so-
"I think Draco did it." Harry's voice pierced the air like like a knife cutting through a pile of jelly. It brought Hermione back to the common-room seat in front of the fireplace leaving her day-dreaming behind.
"WHAT?? Harry, don't be silly."
"Remember what Justin said? When they had lessons with the Slytherins, Draco always kept staring at Sascha when she didn't notice him. He had a thing for her, and now we find Sascha raped. Tell me, could anyone but a Slytherin have done something like that? And it shows in the way he acts too... how he keeps being all cool about her getting raped... so up himself. I think it was him."
"Draco is the Head Boy, and a damn good one too!" Hermione's eyes narrowed "Harry, do you remember how you thought Draco was the Heir of Slytherin? Was he? Although I am pretty sure he acted up himself then too."
"Hermione, that's a different story!"
"No it's not! It's exactly the same! You alwas assume stuff with absolutely no evidence, well guess what? Assumption is the mother of all fuck-ups! So what if Draco looks at her? So does every other guy! She IS a very pretty girl!"
"HERMIONE..." Harry groaned. He said the wrong thing and set her off... again.
"And what about Lia? She is the nicest person you would EVER meet!"
"Ok... one, she is NOT a person, she is a vampire, and two SHE'S A SLYTHERIN, and there must be a reason she is one!"
"HARRY POTTER!" Proffesor McGonagall's angry voice rang through the common room "Do my ears decieve me or are you discriminating against Priscillia Donovan because of her roots?"
"No Professor..." Harry mumbled "I wasn't..."
Professor McGonagall's face softened. If Harry said he wasn't, he wasn't, she must have misheard him.
"Actually Professor, he was!" Hermione was standing, Harry was not getting away with it again. "I heard him quite clearly myself." Harry was looking at her with pleading eyes mouthing 'please Hermione...' "But don't worry Professor, I'll take care of it."
As Professor McGonagall stroll out of the common-room, Harry looked at Hermione furiously "What the? What kind of a friend are you?"
"I don't know Harry, but I know that I am a good Head Girl. 50 points off Gryffindor." and with that she ran up the girl's staircase into the Head Girl's room that she was appointed.
***
When Draco walked into the Slytherin dormitory, he automatically scanned the room. He didn't realise himself what he was looking for until he saw Lia sitting on the same couch they sat on yesterday, immersed into Moste Poteste Potions. She was wearing glasses, something that made Draco smile. The square-ish blue tinted spectacles made her look sophisticated, not nerdy. He could never believe that glasses could look so good on a person, and once again he was proved wrong.
"Girls' Dormitories taken again?"
Lia looked up at Draco and smiled.
"Hi! Not as far as I know, but I still prefer sitting here. As cold as that fire is, it's still a fire."
Draco sat down next to her. He never felt that way before, he never felt he wanted to be that close to someone. He heard of people talking about love at first sight, but it was all a load of shit. Love didn't exist. For Draco it was all just lies that one made to try and prove that he's commited to another. 'It just happens' they say and 'it can never be broken' but then why the hell did more that 50% of people got divorced? It was all just mind candy for easily persuasive fools. I am just infatuated with her, that's all.
"Hello-o-o.. Earth to Draco" Her smooth voice pierced through his thoughts. She was looking at him with an amused expression.
Draco looked at her and felt himself flush "Uhh... how long have I been sitting here daydreaming?"
Lia checked her watch "About four minutes. Is something wrong?"
"No. Nothing's wrong... I guess I'm just worried about the NEWTs coming up..." He looked up and couldn't help but laugh at how official those glasses made her look.
"Nice spectacles!!"
Lia laughed and chucked one of the emerald velvet cushions at him "HEY! Just because not everyone in the world has perfest eyesight! And anyway.." looked at him with an evil-ish look "Didn't your parents ever teach you to no mess with... VAMPIRES!!! I might just drain the blood from your body.."
"Can you really do that?" Draco looked at her, with a serious expression on his face "I mean... do vampires just like... lurk in the shadows attacking and killing every human that passes by?"
"Tsk, tsk, tsk... Draco, you are in seventh year and you don't know anything about vampires... A bit behind on Defence Against the Dark Arts, aren't we?"
Draco flushed a perfect shade of pink as Lia dissolved into giggles. The way his whole manly handsomeness could leave his face in a moment to be replaced by that cute look of a little boy who just saw something naughty, would make ANY girl giggle. She was the only girl to ever make Draco flush.
"Draco," she spoke quite seriously "The vampires that suck the blood out of people, existed only up until 16th century. After the death of Dracula our kind began to die out, many bred with humans, much like the wizard kind, for the species to preserve in whatever smaller fraction. I don't need blood to function. My ancestrial line includes so many human beings that now I am practically indistinguishable from one. I need food an water to live, just like you do, I need to sleep to save up energy, just like you do, and I myself bleed when cut, or damaged. I have a stomach that can digest, I have lungs that can breathe, and I have a heart that can beat, a heart that can break."
"But... what about the... you know..." Draco made an awkward gesture that indicated her oversized canines "Why do you still have them?"
"Draco, Draco, Draco... Human beings have no tail, and haven't for millions of years, yet you still have a tail-bone, to remind you that no matter how long ago, but you had one. I don't need to suck bodies dry, but I will always have my canine fangs, to remind me of my lost kind."
Draco sat deep in thought for a while thinking about what she said, while Lia immersed herself back into Moste Poteste Potions for about half an hour, until she finally closed the book, put her glasses in a pretty emerald-hued velvet pouch and rested her head on his shoulder. Draco shivered with surprise and looked at her, eyebrows raised.
"Don't worry, man." She spoke in such a careless tone "I am not making a gesture or anything, these cushions just really tick me off..." and wth that she closed her eyes.
***
He was out of his dormitory again, a smirk upon his face, running up the stairs to the Astronomy Tower. Traces of sweat appeared on his forehead when he reached the top, as he glanced down to the golden watch he wore around his wrist. It was just past midnight. He looked up and saw her, a pretty Ravenclaw brunette, waiting for him.
"What took you so long, man? I'm afraid being here by myself, you know, that rapist going all over Hogwarts, what is it that you wanted to tell me?"
"Something urgent." He reached out and stroked the side of her face.
"Don't touch me!" A look of realisation crossed her face "You disgusting pervert!" and with that she showed her hand in her pocket, but clutching nothing but empty cloth.
"Looking for this?" He was twirling her wand in his hand "Nice, mahogany seven inch with unicorn hair... very nice indeed."
She looked at him with a glare of bitter hate mixed with fear "I can't believe it's you..." and with that she made a break for the stairs, but it was too late. He leaped and caught her by the wrist, crushing so tight she wanted to scream in pain, and she would have, but her vision blurred and disappeared into darkness.
iAuthor's note: Mwahaha! I'm gonna keep teasing you people! Any guesses who the rapist is?
"Prefects, please lead your houses back to their dormitories at once, where your Head of House will explain what happened. Hermione, Draco, as the Head Boy and Girl, please remain behind."
Hermione watched as the hall emptied, mouth open. Something tragic must have happened.
"Please follow me to my office." and with one swift movement, he hurried away. Draco, who had quite long legs, had no trouble following him but Hermione had to run as fast as she could on order to not fall behind.
"Ice Mice" Dumbledore spoke softly as the stone gargoyle they had stopped in front of sprang to life revealing a staircase. Hermione climbed the stairs and stood transfixed, looking at Dumbledore's luxurious office. Dumbledore's long sigh brought her back to reality. She looked at Draco, and couldn't help but notice how handsome he looked. All trace of amusement disappeared from his eyes, and for the first time Hermione found herself admiring how seriously he took his job as the Head Boy.
"Tell me, are you two familiar with Miss Alexandra Guzelle?" all shine has disappeared from Dumbledore's stormy eyes.
Draco stirred "Sascha? Yeah I know her. Has something happened to her?"
"Miss Guzelle was assaulted last night."
Hermione gulped "As.. Assaulted in what way?" she already knew the answer.
"Hermione, I think we all realise in what way." Draco's voice remained cold even though it no longer drawled in bored tones "Did she see the face of her attacker?"
Dumbledore heaved a sigh "Maybe she has, maybe she hasn't... She is unable to tell us."
Hermione gasped "She isn't... is she?.."
"No miss Granger, she isn't dead." Dumbledore watched Hermione relieve some of the stress "But our attacker was clever. He put a Memory Charm on her, and a strong one too. It is impossible to remove."
"But... but that means we can't identify him..." Hermione sank into a chair.
"Oh really, Hermione?" Draco's sarcastic voice filled the air "I thought that was the problem in the first place, a girl got raped and we need to find the offender."
"Draco, you don't have to be so damn cold about everything!" Hermione was forgetting Dumbledore was in the room. This was going no-where, just like one of the quarrels they had at prefect meetings.
"No, I DON'T, but I choose to be! It's better to be cool about everything rather than sit here sobbing about all every single little problem like SOME PEOPLE!"
"Why can't you be just a bit more SYMPATHETIC!?! A girl got RAPED for Christ's sake!!!" Hermione found herself standing, screaming into Draco's face, but he wasn't the type that backed down.
"You know what? You're right."
Hermione froze "I... I am?"
"Yeah! Sure you are! Let's all sit down, feel all sad about Sascha, and wait to for the offender to just run in screaming 'IT'S ME!! I DID IT!!!' opposed to actually DOING something." Draco sat down and heaved a long sarcastic sigh "Poor Sascha..."
Hermione turned around and walked out of the office, down the stairs and towards the Gryffindor dormitory.
Draco stirred and looked at Dumbledore who didn't look at all too pleased of his sarcasm rally.
"Draco, if I knew that you couldn't get along with other students, I wouldn't have made you the Head Boy, however, currently that is not the issue. Sascha knew her attacker."
"Oh?" Draco looked interested "How do you figure?"
"Alexandra was assaulted on the edge of the Forbidden Forest, and it didn't look like she was forced there. My theory is, the attacker had arranged to meet her."
Draco sat deep in thought for a few minutes and then stood up "Was that all you wanted to tell me?.. Well... US before Hermione ran off..."
"Yes, Draco. That indeed is all I wanted to tell you. Also, when you go back to the Slytherin dormitory, do tell the girls to not ever go meet anyone or just go for a walk late at night. We can't afford for that to happen again."
Draco looked into his deep blue eyes "I know." and with that he disappeared in the doorway.
***
Hermione sat in front of the fireplace thinking. How could Draco be so calm when girls in Hogwarts are in such grave danger? She felt a familiar touch on her hand. Without moving her gaze off the burning flame she knew who it was.
"Hello Harry."
Harry kneeled next to her "Hermione, are you okay?"
"Did Professor McGonagall tell you what happened? About Sascha?"
"Yeah... she was raped... What kind of a dick would do that to a girl?" Harry looked at the floor.
"Draco was so cool about it... not even sympathetic!" Hermione's eyes burned reflecting the dancing flames of the fireplace as she told him all about the meeting in Dumbledore's office "He is so IMPOSSIBLE! It's like the guy hasn't got a heart!"
"Hermione..." Harry sighed "You won't be angry if I express my point of view?"
Hermione looked at him "Am I ever?" Her heart wanted to melt looking into those emerald eyes. She wanted to kiss his pale lips and feel his strong sunburnt arms wrapped around her, but she knew her didn't see her in that way. To him, she was like Ron. The only relationship that ever existed between them was friendship and he didn't want that to change. He was just so-
"I think Draco did it." Harry's voice pierced the air like like a knife cutting through a pile of jelly. It brought Hermione back to the common-room seat in front of the fireplace leaving her day-dreaming behind.
"WHAT?? Harry, don't be silly."
"Remember what Justin said? When they had lessons with the Slytherins, Draco always kept staring at Sascha when she didn't notice him. He had a thing for her, and now we find Sascha raped. Tell me, could anyone but a Slytherin have done something like that? And it shows in the way he acts too... how he keeps being all cool about her getting raped... so up himself. I think it was him."
"Draco is the Head Boy, and a damn good one too!" Hermione's eyes narrowed "Harry, do you remember how you thought Draco was the Heir of Slytherin? Was he? Although I am pretty sure he acted up himself then too."
"Hermione, that's a different story!"
"No it's not! It's exactly the same! You alwas assume stuff with absolutely no evidence, well guess what? Assumption is the mother of all fuck-ups! So what if Draco looks at her? So does every other guy! She IS a very pretty girl!"
"HERMIONE..." Harry groaned. He said the wrong thing and set her off... again.
"And what about Lia? She is the nicest person you would EVER meet!"
"Ok... one, she is NOT a person, she is a vampire, and two SHE'S A SLYTHERIN, and there must be a reason she is one!"
"HARRY POTTER!" Proffesor McGonagall's angry voice rang through the common room "Do my ears decieve me or are you discriminating against Priscillia Donovan because of her roots?"
"No Professor..." Harry mumbled "I wasn't..."
Professor McGonagall's face softened. If Harry said he wasn't, he wasn't, she must have misheard him.
"Actually Professor, he was!" Hermione was standing, Harry was not getting away with it again. "I heard him quite clearly myself." Harry was looking at her with pleading eyes mouthing 'please Hermione...' "But don't worry Professor, I'll take care of it."
As Professor McGonagall stroll out of the common-room, Harry looked at Hermione furiously "What the? What kind of a friend are you?"
"I don't know Harry, but I know that I am a good Head Girl. 50 points off Gryffindor." and with that she ran up the girl's staircase into the Head Girl's room that she was appointed.
***
When Draco walked into the Slytherin dormitory, he automatically scanned the room. He didn't realise himself what he was looking for until he saw Lia sitting on the same couch they sat on yesterday, immersed into Moste Poteste Potions. She was wearing glasses, something that made Draco smile. The square-ish blue tinted spectacles made her look sophisticated, not nerdy. He could never believe that glasses could look so good on a person, and once again he was proved wrong.
"Girls' Dormitories taken again?"
Lia looked up at Draco and smiled.
"Hi! Not as far as I know, but I still prefer sitting here. As cold as that fire is, it's still a fire."
Draco sat down next to her. He never felt that way before, he never felt he wanted to be that close to someone. He heard of people talking about love at first sight, but it was all a load of shit. Love didn't exist. For Draco it was all just lies that one made to try and prove that he's commited to another. 'It just happens' they say and 'it can never be broken' but then why the hell did more that 50% of people got divorced? It was all just mind candy for easily persuasive fools. I am just infatuated with her, that's all.
"Hello-o-o.. Earth to Draco" Her smooth voice pierced through his thoughts. She was looking at him with an amused expression.
Draco looked at her and felt himself flush "Uhh... how long have I been sitting here daydreaming?"
Lia checked her watch "About four minutes. Is something wrong?"
"No. Nothing's wrong... I guess I'm just worried about the NEWTs coming up..." He looked up and couldn't help but laugh at how official those glasses made her look.
"Nice spectacles!!"
Lia laughed and chucked one of the emerald velvet cushions at him "HEY! Just because not everyone in the world has perfest eyesight! And anyway.." looked at him with an evil-ish look "Didn't your parents ever teach you to no mess with... VAMPIRES!!! I might just drain the blood from your body.."
"Can you really do that?" Draco looked at her, with a serious expression on his face "I mean... do vampires just like... lurk in the shadows attacking and killing every human that passes by?"
"Tsk, tsk, tsk... Draco, you are in seventh year and you don't know anything about vampires... A bit behind on Defence Against the Dark Arts, aren't we?"
Draco flushed a perfect shade of pink as Lia dissolved into giggles. The way his whole manly handsomeness could leave his face in a moment to be replaced by that cute look of a little boy who just saw something naughty, would make ANY girl giggle. She was the only girl to ever make Draco flush.
"Draco," she spoke quite seriously "The vampires that suck the blood out of people, existed only up until 16th century. After the death of Dracula our kind began to die out, many bred with humans, much like the wizard kind, for the species to preserve in whatever smaller fraction. I don't need blood to function. My ancestrial line includes so many human beings that now I am practically indistinguishable from one. I need food an water to live, just like you do, I need to sleep to save up energy, just like you do, and I myself bleed when cut, or damaged. I have a stomach that can digest, I have lungs that can breathe, and I have a heart that can beat, a heart that can break."
"But... what about the... you know..." Draco made an awkward gesture that indicated her oversized canines "Why do you still have them?"
"Draco, Draco, Draco... Human beings have no tail, and haven't for millions of years, yet you still have a tail-bone, to remind you that no matter how long ago, but you had one. I don't need to suck bodies dry, but I will always have my canine fangs, to remind me of my lost kind."
Draco sat deep in thought for a while thinking about what she said, while Lia immersed herself back into Moste Poteste Potions for about half an hour, until she finally closed the book, put her glasses in a pretty emerald-hued velvet pouch and rested her head on his shoulder. Draco shivered with surprise and looked at her, eyebrows raised.
"Don't worry, man." She spoke in such a careless tone "I am not making a gesture or anything, these cushions just really tick me off..." and wth that she closed her eyes.
***
He was out of his dormitory again, a smirk upon his face, running up the stairs to the Astronomy Tower. Traces of sweat appeared on his forehead when he reached the top, as he glanced down to the golden watch he wore around his wrist. It was just past midnight. He looked up and saw her, a pretty Ravenclaw brunette, waiting for him.
"What took you so long, man? I'm afraid being here by myself, you know, that rapist going all over Hogwarts, what is it that you wanted to tell me?"
"Something urgent." He reached out and stroked the side of her face.
"Don't touch me!" A look of realisation crossed her face "You disgusting pervert!" and with that she showed her hand in her pocket, but clutching nothing but empty cloth.
"Looking for this?" He was twirling her wand in his hand "Nice, mahogany seven inch with unicorn hair... very nice indeed."
She looked at him with a glare of bitter hate mixed with fear "I can't believe it's you..." and with that she made a break for the stairs, but it was too late. He leaped and caught her by the wrist, crushing so tight she wanted to scream in pain, and she would have, but her vision blurred and disappeared into darkness.
iAuthor's note: Mwahaha! I'm gonna keep teasing you people! Any guesses who the rapist is?