Practikalmagik: Draco is a little possessive. I think it's craving for power. *pats Draco on head* What can you do? They're only men. My spelling and grammar do require improvements yes but you don't have to point them out. *blows bubbles*
Anaitia: Wow......... Long long long review! Excellent! I don't think I have Draco's character perfect. I think I probably have a rendition of his character through my eyes. Malfoy being the knight in shining armour maybe a little too much to hope for. I think you are right about the pride thing. He does rely on his image a lot and is naturally very proud of who he his and where he's from even if he is defying it. Methinks Harry and Ron will not get it together but don't tell Snails. Bad luck about the French.
Shaders: I am sure the Lucius's love for DobBy is a side issue. If I ever wrote a sequel I would be sure to put in Lucius's love for DobBy. I never said he did something with his mouth, he can talk and 'play' at the same time! I'm sure he's had lots of practice. My mistake on the grammer but you don't have to point it out.
Wildchartermage: Your pen name is interesting. Thank you so much for the compliment. I hope you enjoy this chapter just as much.
Haystack: My reviwers have generally cool names... Glad you love this fic so much. Great to hear. I hope this update is soon enough and thanks for your review!
Thatonechick: I'm glad you like it. And I'm impressed with your insertion of bloody into absolutely. Skill, my friend, skill.
Star: Well tell old shady-pants not to tell you bits of it. I'm glad you enjoyed it. And I hope you continue to enjoy it old bean.
Haftmassa: Another reviewer with a cool name. Thank you for your review. I have to tell you I do know where Sweden is, I do know the capital (Stockholm, though maybe not the spelling) and I do know they bank very well. I also think Marilyn Manson is underrated. Enjoy!
Chapter Six
Wrath of the Dragon
Harry blinked for a minute then sped back up the stairs he had climbed down. Ginny's eyes remained fixed on his butt until he was out of sight. "How do you know?" Ron asked Ginny confused and slightly panicky.
"Her bed. It's empty. And there's a big long knife embedded in a pillow." Ginny said hurriedly. Ron instantly relaxed however and turned back up the stairs. "What? Where you going?" Ginny asked still in mild panic. Harry and Hermione both appeared at the top of the stairs coming down calmly.
"I was in Harry's room." Hermione explained quietly, blushing slightly. Ginny's face fell. "I couldn't sleep in my own room, a little too scared. I suppose I was clever." A dull silence followed.
"Ginny go fetch McGonagall. Hermione you'd better go and find out what the knife in your bed is about." Harry ordered, glad to be rid of Ginny who was gazing at him with irritation and wonder.
Hermione opened the door to the room. She jumped when she saw a flash of movement in the corner of her eye. Luckily it was only the blowing of curtains in the wind. She walked to her bed where she saw the glint of metal in the early morning's light. The dagger was jewelled with snakes writhing up and down the handle, out of their collective mouths the blade came. It was well polish and with the gleam that told her no one had touched this without gloves on.
She used the corner of her dressing gown to pull it out and carry it back down the never-ending dormitory stairs to Harry. She gave it to him as fast as possible and stood well away next to Ron. Harry was grimacing whilst inspecting the dagger which he held between his thumb and his index finger. "Right." He said, partly to himself, partly to his companions just as McGonagall stepped in accompanied by Ginny.
McGonagall was not smiling. "Is that the dagger?" She asked taking it from him, swiftly removing it from sight of first years who were gawking at Harry and McGonagall with their bleary eyes. Harry nodded. She sighed. "Get dressed all three of you and report to Dumbledore's office." She ordered before sweeping out the room.
-*-
Lithliya dropped down on her bench in the Great Hall with a thud. She heard Draco elegantly plop down next to her but ignored him. She'd finally got some sleep, finally and now all she wanted was some more. She laid her head on her arms and closed her eyes.... ah.
"Miss Dremae, Master Malfoy?" It was McGonagall. They both looked up and McGonagall shrewd gaze rested on Lithliya for a little too long for Malfoy's liking. "Dumbledore wants to see you in his office immediately." Malfoy nodded and rose instantly whilst Lithliya took a minute to lament her fate of never being able to get any sleep again.
Draco stormed down the corridors at a leisurely pace taking pleasure in the mornings cold sunshine and the squeals of frightened first years who made the mistake to get in his path. He was big, he was tall, he was strong. Lithliya trailed behind not quite able to keep up with his leisurely pace, especially as walls kept lurching out at her. Several corridors from Dumbledore's office Draco turned round and grabbed her around the waist and carried her along.
Before they turned the corridor that held Dumbledore's office Draco spun her round and put her against a wall. "I'm betting this will be about the attack last night. So watch what you say." His grey eyes scanned hers. Her eyes were not quite focused and she was having a hard time keeping them open. He shook her a little and that seemed to wake her up a little. He then released his grip that pinned her to the wall and let her fall into his arms. She moaned a little before trying to set herself on her feet.
A third year Griffindor was staring at them wide eyed. Malfoy turned to him, still trying to support the girl in his arms. "Do you have something you'd like to say, boy?" The boy looked at him stonily. Oh god another 'hero'. Malfoy let go of Lithliya, who managed to stand quite well, and walked towards the boy. "Five point from Griffindor for staring. Do you want any more points taken off?" He asked quietly. He didn't see Harry advancing towards him. The boy shook his head quickly. "Then get lost." The boy darted off down the corridor. Malfoy spun round coming face to face with Potter. Malfoy smirked at him before walking over to Lithliya and strolled very close to her down the corridor to the Gargoyle. Hermione and Weasley were already there.
Just as they arrived the Gargoyle began moving, revealing the staircase. All trooped up it, Slytherins first, then Harry, Hermione, Ron. Dumbledore smiled at them cheerily as they walked in. There were five identical chairs spaced out in front of Dumbledore's desk. Malfoy took the furthest chair, Lithliya the one next to him, Harry the one next to her, Hermione after him then Ron on the farthest seat.
"Well, it's good to see you all together." The old wizard smiled, his face crinkling up. The portraits murmured sounds of agreement. The students looked at the floor, except Harry and Malfoy. "Well, let's not beat around the Hippogriff. There was two attacks," All the students heads darted up staring in surprise at the Professor. "One on the head girl, and one on the deputy." Malfoy leant back in his chair, his face devoid of anything that could be related to emotion. His hands told a different story as they were balled into fists.
Harry glanced over at Lithliya, who was looking at the floor, her feet curled up under her and her arm crossing her stomach. He saw no visible sign of injury. Her gaze swept up to meet his, her face coloured and a bright red scar stood out on her forehead which her blonde hair had been covering before. Her looked back at Dumbledore waiting.
Hermione glanced over at Lithliya then at Malfoy. He looked like murder. Lithliya was looking at the floor. Then she looked up... at Harry. Hermione let a small smile tickle her lips and she looked back at Dumbledore. "Now I will not conceal from you this is a very grave situation. We have two Death Eaters about the school with invisibility cloaks, meaning they could be anywhere. We have put up spells on certain places in Hogwarts, such as this office which alert the owners of the room of anyone entering and exiting. However it is not practical for it to be done to the common rooms."
"This morning a team of Aurors will be arriving from the ministry to hunt down these Death Eaters. But Hogwarts is a large place. We know who they are targeting." Dumbledore's eyes rested on Lithliya and then Hermione. "We know they are trying to establish fear. What we ask is that you try to keep up with your studies. We do not want you to fight these Death Eaters unless you have to. Your fight will be later." The boys moved uncomfortably at this sentiment and looked at the floor. "We are doing all we can. Remember you need to send out the invitations for the banquet soon."
-*-
Malfoy paced up to the third floor. His eyes were flashing and his hand was gripped on his wand. All portraits stayed silent as he passed, all things moved out his way. He was Draco Malfoy and everything knew that. Except a little girl.
She appeared crying halfway down a corridor, she was small, perhaps the smallest girl in school. Her hair was black and in messy plaits down to her shoulders. She was Korean in origin, wearing the colours of Ravenclaw. She looked up at him through tear stained eyes as he stormed round the corridor. "Please!" Her voice wavered with a sob as she climbed to her feet and ran to him. "I've been lost for ages, please tell me where I go to get to the Divination tower?" Malfoy eyed her carefully.
He then hit her with his arm into the wall, a sickening crack echoing round the corridor spinning round in his heel to face... nothing. "Coward. Show yourself." A laugh came from behind him and he spun again. Macnair's face appeared hovering in the middle of nowhere. "You haven't changed." Malfoy sneered straightening up and appearing to lose his fighting stance.
Macnair's face contorted into a mask of disgust. "You're really pathetic, Malfoy. You could have been everything. But look at you. You've got nothing." Malfoy laughed, annoying Macnair.
"I've got so much more than you have." Malfoy laughed advancing towards the Death Eater. "I have wealth, I have women, I have power. I have my own mind. And that's something you'll never have. Not under your mudblood lord." Macnair half-heartedly sneered and backed away.
"You know nothing of the Dark Lord's real power." Malfoy raised an eyebrow.
"And he knows nothing of mine. You have your uses Macnair. As does Dolohov. But not that many. Watch whose toes your treading on. Touch any Slytherins and I'll kill you. Touch the head girl or deputy head girl and I'll kill you. I'll let you stay for now, Macnair, but don't think you stand a chance against me." Macnair's eyes were widened.
"How did you know it was me?" A deep rough voice came from behind. Malfoy turned slowly smirking. Dolohov was a sight for sore eyes. His left eye was swollen shut and across his face ran little red lines evenly spaced. Malfoy laughed.
"Have a little trouble with the deputy head girl's cat, Dolohov?" He jeered, his wand idly clasped in his right hand. "It had all the trademarks of being you. Raping in broad daylight. Had Dolohov written all over it. Even Potter knew it was you. Now finish your business here and leave." Malfoy ordered quietly. He made to leave, passing the way he had come.
"Malfoy." Macnair called him back. "What if our business involves Slytherins and the mudblood?" Malfoy's face flickered from dark to darker.
"Then I suggest you find out who you're more afraid of. Me or your mudblood lord." He turned to leave again, but stopped himself. "Mobilicorpus" He said to the first year Ravenclaw. Her body floated up from the ground, her head at an odd angle. "Have you released her?" He asked Macnair who nodded solemnly.
Malfoy began striding back towards the Hospital Wing, the body of the girl flying a little way behind him. He managed to scare several Gryffindors who he passed on the stairway with the girl behind him. If he had been in a lighter mood he might have laughed at them. They got to the doors of the hospital wing before he stopped and turned to the girl. "Ennervate" He said. Her eyes opened and she clasped her head moaning. "Shut up." He said and she looked up at him fearfully. "Obliviate." He said and the girl promptly fell to the floor. Malfoy knocked on the door to the Hospital Wing before turning back down the passageway and disappearing from sight.
-*-
"What the hell did you think you are doing?" Goyle advanced on the 5th year Ravenclaw boy. The boy trembled and stepped back, gaping at the large 7th year in front of him. "Eh? What?!" Goyle had backed the boy into a wall. Behind him stood Crabbe who was equally aggressively positioned then behind them Parkinson and some other 7th year Slytherins. The boy's support in Ravenclaw consisted of a girl and two boys both 5th year.
It was the beginning of lunchtime. Harry had stopped eating in the regular lunch spot in favour of patrolling the corridors, instead taking in lunch in the kitchens during one of his frees. In NEWT years you had only three to five subjects leaving you with blank periods on your timetable meant to be used for studying or sports or prefect duties. At first patrolling he had felt like he was fumbling in the dark. The Death Eaters could have been walking next to him and he wouldn't have known. So instead he'd made use of his own invisibility cloak.
Now he was standing watching the scene from a corridor. He would interfere, being head boy, but he did not wish the Slytherins or more pacifically Malfoy to know of his cloak. And besides this was turning out to be interesting. All the Ravenclaw boy had done wrong was ask the girl out by going down on one knee, a little over dramatically. And the Slytherins had acted like he'd attacked one of their own. "I ... was ... just asking her outttttt" The boy spluttered his glance travelling to the Ravenclaw girl, who's eyes were on the floor. Did she know why the Slytherins were acting like this?
It was then that Zabini stepped forward with an icy face. Crabbe and Goyle backed off slightly letting Blaise take charge. "You were just asking her out?" Blaise repeated in a voice not far off a whisper. Blaise turned to his audience that had gathered around him at this incident. "Here this now, all of you. If any man," Blaise paused, smiled and winked at the Ravenclaw girl, "or woman so much as looks at this girl in the wrong manner they shall have the entirety of Slytherin house upon them. And that goes for any female in Slytherin and all under the girls who belong to a Slytherin. Or boys." He added tossing his head of black hair and smiling.
Harry's invisible face formed a frown. This was new, chivalry. Malfoy really was turning them around. Harry felt something touch his back and he whirled round. The head girl was standing gaping at the space in front of her. She stepped back and was about to scream when Harry hastily clamped a hand over her mouth. "It's me." He whispered glancing back to see if anyone had noticed. They hadn't. Apparently Zabini was a born thespian.
Lithliya's eyes popped back into her head and she nodded. Harry smiled but then remembered she couldn't see him. However she was trying to gage where to look at and it was disturbing to say the least. He grabbed her arm, not wanting to risk talking again. He took her into an empty Charms classroom. He pulled back the hood of the cloak. "I was patrolling the school. Without them seeing me." He explained hastily. The he looked at the floor.
Lithliya blinked for a second then leant back upon the desk behind her. "Are you feeling up to par, Mr Potter? Your face appears to be a little flushed and your eyes appear to be transfixed upon the floor." Oh no, Harry thought with dread, she's in one of her long word moods.
"Yes I'm fine, thanks, Liya." Lithliya eyed him and suppressed ansigh. He was showing all the signs of an awkward teenager confronted with a girl who he really really fancied. Oh dear. She looked down at herself. It would be so much easier if she didn't like him too. No actually that would make it better. What the real problem was came in two words that just rolled off the tongue, Draco Malfoy. "Are you sure you're okay? After... last night..." She cocked an eyebrow. 'After last night' usually referred to a night of virgin's hot sex.
And Harry just realised this. Lithliya quelled the traitorous urges to coo at him as he blushed a lovely shade of pink and shifted uncomfortably. But he still looked like the brave Gryffindor. She was a traitor to her house. She knew it as she stepped towards him, standing on tip-toes to gain that extra inch of height so she could looked into his eyes. Her hands found his invisible solid chest, her eyes found his lips... her lips found his lips. Perfect. Utopia for two seconds. For that is how long the touch lasted.
Her lips nor his lips moved, they just remained touching for those two seconds. His arms did not sweep round to hold her up. Her arms did not circle around his neck to deepen their kiss. One of her legs did not 'accidentally' move between his legs. Their tongues did not meet. Utopia for two seconds was just to feel his lips brushing hers. For just two seconds.
She stepped away and smiled up at him. "What must never be, Mr Potter. As you saw back there. What must never be." Her bottom lip twitched, she couldn't stop it. She saw his face fall from shock to confusion. She blinked, her eyes were dry, she looked to the ground by her feet, then to the door then which she headed for straight away. She did not hesitate by the door but walked straight out, head high, body strong, face impassive. A huddle of Hufflepuffs darted out her way.
-*-
Hermione looked up from her work. There was no one there. She sniffed and began to pour back through the thick textbook. She picked up her quill and made a note on the parchment. She was disturbed again by the hair band in her hair falling out. She sighed irritably, the wind sending her bushy hair into her face. She picked up the hair band from the table beside her. Getting up she closed the window in the library with a bang. This was her free period so there was nobody to disturb, except Madam Pince who was busy down the furthest end of the library.
"Damn wind." Hermione complained as a couple of pages were turned in the text book, ignoring the nagging voice that told her that her hair band would have landed on the other side of her if it had been blown by the wind. And that the pages were turned after she closed the window. After all the wind was the only logical answer.
"Damn wind indeed." A quiet low voice came from... nowhere. There was no one there. It was just an echo on the wind. Hermione shivered and slammed the book shut. She'd do more studying later. It was a little too draughty in the library. She returned the book to the shelf, her back to the world, when she felt a warm breath down her back. Just a gust of wind. She hurriedly turned round and ran back to the table packing her quill and parchment into a bag. She felt something grab her wrist and she hit out at it with the other hand, gasping loudly.
"Macnair" The voice was loud and sharp in and directed as an order. Hermione did not comprehend the word nor the speaker, only that she was saved. She collapsed back into the chair sobbing a little.
"I never thought that they'd come to Hogwarts. I thought we were safe here." Her breath was in little gasps as if she were crying. "But they've come. I never thought..." She was stopped by a face appearing in her vision. The Malfoy cocked eyebrow and the Malfoy cocked sneer appeared in her field of vision.
"Hello Hermy." Draco said cocking his head on one side and smiling at her. "Nice day for studying isn't it? Not to hot and not to cold." He was laughing at her. She may have been distraught but she still knew when someone was laughing at her. "Smashed your spectacles didn't it Granger? Death Eaters in Hogwarts. Dumbledore wouldn't allow that would he?"
Hermione looked away, no longer confused but mad. Draco smiled satisfactory. He'd got her out of hysterics and now she was just mad. A mad Granger Draco knew how to cope with. "Well at least I'm not a Slytherin." She said huffily in return. Malfoy gazed at her through the raised eyebrow for a second.
"Is that it?" He asked. "I've heard Goyle use more inventive insults." Hermione sniffed. Draco smiled and leant forwards. He kissed her hard on the lips. She had no time to do anything before he pulled away and walked round the table idly playing with her quill. "Peeves got his benefits by the way." Draco commented hiding his mirth at her confusion very well. "Oh don't you remember? The night before last." He put in a sigh, as if remembering and hid his smirk.
"I don't particularly wish to remember." Hermione reprimanded him, turning in her chair to face him. His face was as ever his mask of what he wanted it to be. Draco's face looked like he was upset at this news.
"Yes. Peeves got a new stock of... Well let's say it might be best to invest in air fresheners for the near future." Malfoy let his act drop and laughed out loud as Hermione's face contorted into a cute grimace. He snubbed her nose and grabbed her wrist pulling her up out of her chair.
"What do you think you are doing?" She exclaimed. He smiled back at her holding her bag out to her. She took it carefully, checking through the top to see any snakes inside. It was just her packed bag. "What?" She asked faintly. He smirked at her before strolling off towards the door. She, not wanting to be caught alone again, ran to catch up.
"Come on, Hermy darling, we only have five minutes until Transfiguration starts." He said to her strolling down to corridor. The corridors were buzzing with activity as lessons had just let out and students were walking to their next lessons. Hermione tried to slow down, she did not want to be seen with Malfoy. But no matter how slow she seemed to walk Malfoy was able to stay only a few paces ahead of her.
They arrived together. Speech evaded Harry and Ron like Ron and Spiders. Some of the Slytherins offered to take the Gryffindors to Madame Pomfrey to have their jaw reattached. The Slytherins seemed to find the situation amusing. A mortified Hermione hurriedly pushed passed Zabini and ran into the classroom, Ron and Harry dashing behind, Malfoy strolling in laughing with Zabini.
In the five minutes before Professor McGonagall arrived the following happened: Pavarti leaned over to Hermione and whispered 'Nice one, he's got a fucking great arse and from what I hear a fucking big...', Ron and Harry after dismissing this with shuddering thoughts queried Hermione who told them as much of the truth as she dared which was not much (ie. Only telling them he met her walking back from the library and she couldn't shake him off), the Slytherins celebrated their leader with jeering catcalls and rounds of applause.
What the Gryffindors were wondering was why the Slytherins were celebrating...
-*-
Yeah... Now if you'll drag your minds out the gutter and please review. Not too many lewd comments if you please... THANK YOU!!!!
Next Time find out if: Lithliya breaks her never again, Peeves uses his new toys, Macnair and Dolohov strike again, Ron ever gets more than one line, Malfoy gets laid, and what this all has to do with a half eaten sausage...