Thank y'all for the reviews! In response to some of them… yes, it's Draco/Harry. No it's not eight-year-old Draco/Harry. And… how did you know he was eight… I only wrote six…

I'm amazed.

Anyway. Yep, he is eight. Not six. As revealed in this chapter. As for why his hair's brown… perfect reason for that. Kinda. Why Harry's being so mean to him… another reason that I'll bring up later on. I tried really hard not to make this story like others where either Harry or Draco turn small. Also… I've got more chapters on my LJ, just taking my time on FF.Net ^^ So you guys don't have to suffer. As normally I'm a lazy git anyway, I decided to post one chapter a week on FF.Net so I have more time to write other chapters. I'm actually about two chapters ahead. So.

Disclaimer (I forgot this in the last chapter): Harry Potter and other characters belong to J.K.Rowling.

Hermione Granger. AKA Perfect Prefect, Golden Girl, Bossy Bookworm and various others.

Yep, that's me.

I'm also known as 'Mudblood'. Not a nice nickname. Officially issued to me in the second year by a not very nice boy.

Draco Malfoy.

He's so… ugh. Words can't even begin to describe him. Spoilt, snobbish… he's so full of it. 'Arrogant' doesn't do him justice. Pretentious, haughty prick.

He's been trying to make our lives a living hell since the first year. Note the word: trying. Did a damn good job of it in the first few years, but eventually we've gotten to ignoring him, and eventually he started being less of a nuisance. Hardly did anything to us in the fifth year, in fact.

Then suddenly he left. Can't say we were sorry to see him go. Ron even proposed holding a celebration party.

So much for a peaceful farewell though. Harry… I don't think I'd ever seen him angrier than he had been on that day. I suspect Malfoy did something to him to get him so upset… I was just so thankful he was gone. I never wanted to see his haughty face again.

So when Professor McGonagall announced his return all those feelings flooded back. I wanted to scream. He was coming back? No! How could the professors have let that happen? Why couldn't he just have… have stayed where he had been?

I seem harsh. Believe me, I'm not. Not really. You have no idea how much trouble that Malfoy has caused us… you have no idea how much I hate him…

"But he's so cute!" Hermione said, watching the boy bounce happily, squealing in laughter on Harry's bed. "How can he possibly be Malfoy?"

"Also the fact that he's not blonde" Ron said, looking at the boy's mouse-brown hair, messy and spiky. Harry walked into the room.

"McGonagall says she's going to try find some clothes for- hey!" he shouted. With the speed of a well-trained Seeker he shot his hand up, grabbed Draco roughly by the front of his overlarge t-shirt and hurled him onto the floor.

"Don't bounce on the bed, understand?" Harry yelled heatedly.

"Harry!" Hermione went to the small boy immediately.

"Are you alright?" she asked softly. The boy turned his head and Hermione caught a glance of tear-filled eyes.

"Did you have to be so rough?" she asked Harry angrily. Harry didn't reply.

"Here" he said, tossing Draco a sweater. "Put it on. You'll get cold"

The boy took the sweater and silently slipped it over his head.

"It's too big" he said as it slipped down to hang around his small shoulders.

"Do I look like I care?"

"Harry!" Hermione stood up. "Alright, that's it, I don't care if this is Malfoy, but you can't go treating little children like that."

She turned to the boy and extended a hand. "Come on kid, let's go"

The six-year-old looked at her hand. "My name is Draco Malfoy" he said, his voice cold. He glared tearfully at Harry as he stood up. "I thought you would understand," he said.

Then he turned and walked out the door, slamming it behind him. The trio could hear his tiny footsteps pattering, quickening as he ran along the cold floor.

"Well. That went well" Ron commented.

"Aren't you going to go after him?" Hermione asked.

"Should I?" Harry replied.

"Fine, if you won't, I will!" Hermione stormed to the door. She turned back. "I don't know what's wrong with you today Harry, but if you think bullying a small kid is the answer, you're wrong"

With that, she left the room.

Hermione found Draco sitting, head bowed, outside the castle by the Great Lake. He had taken off his socks and shoes and rolled his trousers up, and was now kicking his feet gently in the water. He didn't seem to care that the water was freezing cold.

"Hey!" Hermione walked over.

"Oh, are you going to tell me off now?" Draco asked angrily. Hermione sat down beside him silently.

"Aren't you cold?" she asked after a while. Draco didn't reply.

"Um… you know, there are mermaids in there" Hermione said.

There was a tiny "oh".

"They might catch your feet and drag you down if you stay there too long"

"It's too cold for them to come up. And mermaids don't eat humans"

"They can drag you down anyway"

"So my rotting corpse can mess up their floor?"

Hermione chuckled. "You know, you're pretty smart for a six-year-old"

"I'm eight"

"Smart for an eight-year-old, then"

"Its just logic"

"Still"

There was a short silence.

"You don't have to stick up for me," Draco said.

"What?"

"I know Harry disl- hates me"

"No he doesn't"

"He yells at me for everything" Draco took his feet out of the lake and placed them onto the grass, turning to face Hermione. He placed his arms on top of his knees. "He yells at me for telling my own name"

"Well, maybe he wouldn't get angry if you told your true name"

"It is my true name!" Draco said angrily. "Why doesn't anyone believe me?"

"Maybe because Malfoy left this school two years ago. And he wasn't eight years old"

"You prefer I lie then?"

"No, but-"

"Well then, my name is Draco Malfoy"

"It's just…" Hermione hesitated. "Harry… he didn't like Malfoy when he was around"

"Why?"

"He… was just really mean to him"

The little boy frowned. "How could I make him mad if I don't even remember making him mad?"

"See, that's the thing" Hermione said. "Harry didn't like Malfoy, and now you turn up… it just makes him mad"

"But I didn't do anything"

"It doesn't seem to matter, apparently"

Draco looked at the lake then turned his head back. "Do you believe me?"

"Believe… what?"

"That I'm Draco Malfoy"

"It's a bit hard to believe actually," Hermione admitted. Draco frowned.

"Would it be easier to think of me as someone else?" he asked.

"Maybe… b-"

"Fine" Draco said, sticking his hand out. "My name's Daryn. Hello"

Hermione stared at his small hand and laughed as she took it. "Hello, my name's-"

"Hermione. I know"

"It's okay you know" Hermione said. "You don't have to make up another name for yourself"

"No it's not" Draco was dead serious. "If it's easier to think of me as another person, then… I'll be another person"

Hermione smiled. "You know… just don't worry about it, alright? I'm sure Harry'll get over it soon enough"

Draco looked sad. "I hope so"

"If you don't mind my asking… why are you so… enthusiastic, on Harry liking you?"

Draco furrowed his brow and for an instant Hermione thought he didn't understand her. Then he asked, "What do you mean?"

"Well…" she shrugged. "Malfoy never liked Harry before"

"Why do you keep referring to me as another person?" Draco asked. Hermione blinked.

"I… I don't know, he just seems like an entirely different person from you, I guess"

"He's not"

"How do you know?"

Draco looked at Hermione, straight in the eyes. "How many Draco Malfoys can there be?"

"True" Hermione admitted. There was a pause. "You haven't answered my question"

"I…" Draco trailed off and looked away. "I don't know"

Hermione remained silent and after a while Draco continued. "I don't remember… I suddenly appeared into an old man's –the headmaster I think- office and the first thing I thought of was Harry and then all these other images kept coming to me and all I could remember was Harry and-"

"Hey, slow down!" Hermione said hurriedly.

Draco put his head in his arms. "I don't know… all I remembered was him… all I could think of was 'get to Harry, get to Harry'… like he was going to protect me"

"Protect you from what?" Hermione asked softly.

"I… I don't remember" Draco said and his small body shook as he started to cry.

Draco padded quietly to Harry's room and pushed open the door. Tired, he made his way to the bed… then turned and walked to a corner of the room where he huddled himself down to sleep.

Half an hour later the raven-haired teen walked in. He went to his bed then saw the boy sleeping there, in the darkest corner, knees curled up to his chest, head tilted, sleeping quietly. Harry hesitated then took his blanket. He walked up to the child and wrapped it snugly around his small shoulders, then went to his bed to sleep. Draco stirred and blinked sleepily, then realized the blanket around him. He looked at the bed where Harry slept and smiled.

A/N: I got the Bossy Bookworm idea from an RPG blog I saw online… go to