This may be a little disjointed, it was written at odd times between revision. My descriptions of Hogwarts are pretty much made up by me. I've used the Harry Potter Lexicon for some facts but generally it's just made up. I figure it doesn't matter since the castle changes all the time anyway.

Review loads for this chapter, I only need 14 more reviews til I reach 400!

Thanks to:

ScruffyWes

Dreamer Child

Darla56

Hermione Malfoy – hey you're back! And with Pedro!

Renna

Lolly6 – I'm not a big reformed Draco fan so I see him being a DE. I don't see him being around much in this fic though.

Sabia

Wllw979

Lexinator – lol you're right, from now onwards things are going to slowly start to build up to something big. You'll soon see, maybe you'll even figure it out!

Kyra2

Silver Warrior- lol Hogwarts library will be referred to next chapter!

Chapter 25 – Dobby and Draco

Buffy, Faith and Giles left the Great Hall and walked through the hallway outside. They were able to fully appreciate their surroundings now, as it was empty of students. The stone walls reached far above them, curving over to make an arched roof. They crossed it and began to climb a wide sweeping marble staircase. Buffy ran her hands over the banisters, the polished marble cool under her fingers.
 "We should've got the Marauders Map," she murmured and Giles nodded. "Oh well, it's more exciting if there's the possibility of getting lost." At the top of the staircase they turned right and walked down a broad corridor lined with portraits that watched them pass.
 "Weird," Faith commented, watching a little girl play with her puppy. A few doors led off of the corridor but they were all closed and they passed them. Another staircase was at the end of the hallways and they ascended, Buffy first. She stepped onto the fourth step and then nearly hit her head as her foot sunk through it.
 "Ouch!" she yelped, looking down at her leg, calf deep in the stair. Faith grabbed her arm and hauled her out the step. Buffy looked down at it and poked an experimental finger through it.
 "This place is freaky," she said, looking around her. "I need to pay more attention." She avoided the step and continued up the staircase. They reached another landing and Faith darted across the hall to an open door. Giles and Buffy followed more cautiously and they opened it and found an empty classroom.
 "Boring," Faith declared and they moved on. They climbed and descended the variety of staircases in the castle.
 "We're lost," Buffy said finally and Giles shrugged. They stood in a dingy stone corridor, in the basement part of the castle with eerie torches lining the walls.

 "Maybe we should ask," Faith suggested and pushed open a dark wooden door, with heavy brass studs in it. As the three entered the room, a class of students turned and stared at the newcomers. Faith moved further in and Buffy followed.
Much to her disgust she saw Snape standing at the front of the classroom.
 "You," he snarled when he clapped eyes on her, but quickly he covered his disgust. "Come to see the class?" Faith narrowed her eyes in dislike, remembering the one time she had met this man and how he had cursed Buffy.
 "Not exactly," she replied coolly. "We got a bit lost as it goes." Snape smirked.
 "Yes I understand that you might find Hogwarts difficult to navigate," he said silkily and Buffy could see that he was just about preventing himself from being openly rude. The presence of the students made that impossible, he had to at least keep up the pretence of being polite to Dumbledore's relatives. She looked over the class and saw with surprise that Harry was present. She did not acknowledge him, as she knew many students were looking at them but he, Ron and Hermione beamed at her, Giles and Faith.
 "So are you going to help us?" Faith asked rudely. Snape stared at her frostily.
 "If you insist," he said shortly and turned to the class. "Potter, assist our guests in finding the Entrance Hall." Harry nodded and got up. He led the three out of the dungeon and back out into the corridor.
 "How are you liking Hogwarts?" he asked and Faith grinned.

"It's weird," she said with a shrug. "Lots of weird stuff here." Harry nodded.
 "Are you going to the Shrieking Shack after dinner?" he asked Buffy, who nodded.
 "I'm missing Padfoot already," she confessed with a smile. They followed him through a complicated route of passages and found themselves back in the entrance hall.
 "I'd better get back," Harry said hurriedly. "Or Snape'll poison me."
 "Come by and visit us sometime," Faith suggested. "We'll let you know where our rooms are and we can hang out properly."

 "That'd be great," Harry said with a grin and disappeared down a nearby corridor.
 "Well we're back where we started," Giles said speculatively. "What do you want to do now?"

 "Not wander round the corridors," Faith said, wrinkling her nose. "Being lost sucks."
 "Let's check out where you guys are gonna be resting your heads," Buffy suggested and as the others agreed she snapped her fingers three times in succession. At once a tiny creature appeared in front of them, only reaching the height of Buffy's belly button. He had tennis ball sized green eyes and a long thin, pencil-like, nose. 

 "You wish to go to your rooms?" it squeaked in a high pitched voice and Buffy nodded in surprise. "Follow Dobby, he will take you!" Buffy, Faith and Giles walked quickly to keep up with the tiny creature as he led them quickly through the corridors.
 "If you don't mind me asking," Buffy said, hurrying to keep up with him. "What are you?"

 "Dobby doesn't mind miss asking," the creature said, looking up at her with large green eyes. "I is a house elf."

 "Right," Buffy said uncertainly. She looked around as they sped along, desperately trying to memorise the way back to the entrance hall but failing miserably. They arrived at a portrait of a little girl who looked at them interestedly, putting down the embroidery she had been working on.
 "Professor Dumbledore tells Dobby that the password is Sunnydale," Dobby whispered to Buffy, casting a nervous look around him. Buffy grinned.
 "Thanks Dobby," she said and the house elf beamed.
 "If you are needing anymore help then just click," Dobby announced before disappearing with a loud crack.

Buffy, Faith and Giles faced the portrait.
 "Password?" the little girl asked, and Faith told her. The portrait swung forward revealing a small wooden door which they pushed open and entered the adjoining room.
 "Nice," Faith commented impressed. They stood in a heavily carpeted room, decorated in shades of red with a large roaring fire and four over-stuffed sofas. Bookshelves lined the walls with enough books to keep Giles happy for a long time. Six doors led off of the room, four to bedrooms and two to bathrooms. A door opened opposite them and Xander and Anya appeared, looking distinctly rumpled. Faith raised a wicked eyebrow.

 "Having fun?" she smirked.
 "Nice place huh?" Xander replied, changing the subject neatly. "The bedrooms are even nicer." He pushed open another door to reveal a bedroom, with a king sized bed, open fire and sofa, decorated in red once again. Buffy opened another door to find a neatly appointed bathroom, complete with thick towels and the biggest bath she had ever seen.
 "Bet you're pretty pissed you've got to stay in the Shrieking Shack huh B?" Faith said, flopping down onto a sofa with a loud sigh.
 "It's not a palace but it's where I spent the best part of a year," Buffy said, flopping down next to her. "It has loads of memories, the first time Sirius and I kissed, the first time we were together…."
 "Yawn," Faith murmured with a grin and Buffy swatted her arm. The door to the living room opened and Willow and Oz entered.
 "Nice," Oz said reflectively, looking round.
 "How was the lesson?" Giles asked and Willow smiled.
 "With the magical goodness," she said, eyes shining. "We went to a Charms lesson, with that cute tiny guy, Professor Flitwick. The students were doing basic levitation charms and while they practiced the Professor and I talked. Turns out he's in the Order too, and h knew who we were. I showed him some magic and stuff."
 "We got lost," Faith cut in breezily. "Ran into Buffy's friend."
 "The kid that gave you the finger?" Xander said, frowning.
 "You saw that too?" Buffy said in surprise. "What a little brat huh? I mean I'm a guest and –"
 "Not that one," Faith cut in. "The guy that cursed her a while back The one we wanted to kick the crap out of." Xander's expression changed to anger.
 "That jerk," he said with a snarl. "They let him be a teacher?"

 "Looks like," Faith drawled, lounging back on the chair. "I think we should mess with him." Xander and Willow nodded.
 "Definitely," Xander said firmly and Giles looked mildly concerned.
 "That's not a good idea," he insisted. "We are Dumbledore's guests; I doubt he'd appreciate us 'messing with' his staff."

 "But Giles you didn't see this guy," Willow implored. "I mean he totally laid into Buffy, said all this mean stuff and then he cursed her and she hit the wall. Really hard."
"Be that as it may Willow, I'd like it if we could leave a good impression on the people here," Giles said sternly. "The students have to think of us as civilised magical people." No one replied and Giles began to rifle through the books on the shelves. Buffy saw Faith, Willow and Xander exchange glances and realised that what Giles had said had had no effect. Buffy grinned to herself, deciding it was none of her business if they wanted to mess with Snape. She was an innocent bystander.
 "Wanna go get dinner?" Buffy said in a while and they all left the rooms. The combination of their navigation skills led them back to the entrance hall and they entered the Great hall to sit at the top hall with Dumbledore.

Dinner commenced immediately, Buffy once again sitting next to Dumbledore.
 "Did you enjoy your afternoon at Hogwarts?" he asked politely and Buffy nodded fervently.
 "The castle is amazing!" Buffy exclaimed excitedly. "Everything moves and changes. And the missing steps and the weird doors! It's crazy!" Dumbledore's moustache twitched in amusement.
 "I am glad you liked it," he commented. "And the accommodation is suitable?"
 "Perfect Uncle Alb," Faith said comfortably. Dumbledore smiled, eyes twinkling.
 "I take it you will be heading to see Padfoot after dinner," Dumbledore asked Buffy who nodded. "Would you like me to arrange a portkey or Floo?" Buffy shook her head.
 "It's a nice night, I'll walk it," she said cheerfully.

Consequently, when she was finished with her food Buffy said her goodbyes to her friends and left the hall. She had seen a door earlier which led to outside and would provide a shortcut across the grounds. Predictably within a few moments she was lost.
Buffy stood in the middle of a deserted corridor, turning back and forth to decide whether to continue onwards or try to make her way back the way she had come.
Loud footsteps sounded down the corridor and Buffy sighed in relief at the chance to ask for directions.
However the footsteps came closer and Buffy saw that they belonged to the boy with the white blonde hair. She took a deep breath and prepared to swallow her pride.
 "You," the boy said coldly as he laid eyes on her. "Are you lost?"

 "Something like that," Buffy said distractedly. "Can you help?"

 "I can," the boy said, narrowing his eyes. "Whether I will or not is another question."
 "What's your name?" Buffy asked, trying to be friendly. The boy stared at her superiorly.

 "Malfoy," he said disdainfully. "Draco Malfoy." Recognition dawned on Buffy but she kept it under disguise.
 "Got a cool James Bond thing going there," she commented lightly and Malfoy looked confused. Buffy had recognised the name; she had heard Sirius mention it when he talked of death eaters, as she recalled this boy's father was currently languishing in Azkaban prison. She had also heard harry and Ron mention his name, Draco Malfoy, their arch enemy at Hogwarts.

 "Anyway so are you going to help me?" Buffy asked brightly and the boy took a few steps towards her.
 "You'd love that wouldn't you," he said smoothly.
 "Excuse me?" Buffy said, a little confused.

 "It was obvious when you saw me that you wanted me," the boy replied with a self-assured smile. "Couldn't keep your eyes off of me."
For a few moments Buffy was gob smacked and couldn't find the right words. Then she began to laugh.
 "I'm old enough to be your mother," she chuckled. "Well maybe not quite but I'm twenty two and you must be seventeen. Aren't I a little old for you kid?" Draco smirked.
 "An older woman wanting a younger man, not unheard of. Probably trying to recapture your lost youth," he commented, stepping closer to her.

He was about an inch taller than her, despite their age difference. Buffy realised that he was trying to intimidate her, invading her personal space, and making her uncomfortable. He probably figured that as a new visitor she would be unsure, especially as a woman. Probably a trick he learned from his father, Buffy guessed correctly.

 "Sorry kid, it's been fun but I've got to split," Buffy said brightly. She turned to go but he brought up an arm in her way. She raised an eyebrow at him.
 "Not a good idea," she warned him. "You're out of your depth kid."
 "I sincerely doubt that," he replied coolly. "Not when facing an American mudblood." Buffy wanted to laugh but instead she grabbed his arm and flipped up over, throwing him to the ground. She was careful not to hurt him too much, just using a simple throw. He landed sprawled on the stone floor, hair in disarray. He stood up carefully, pushing back his hair.
 "Freak," he spat at her, keeping his distance this time.
 "Save it for when your voice breaks," Buffy laughed, before turning and heading down the corridor she had come from.

Buffy reached the Shrieking Shack in about twenty minutes and was surprised to see the change in the place. Dumbledore had properly fixed the place up, replacing all the furniture with clean, new things and cleaning the kitchen and bathroom thoroughly. It also appeared that they had hot running water now and well as wooden floors swept clean of dirt and dust and laid with thick rugs.
 "This place looks great," Buffy said after she entered through the kitchen door and greeted Sirius with a long kiss. "Though I do kind of miss the old style. It was very retro." She squealed as Sirius scooped her up and carried her into the living room, sitting down on the clean, dust free sofa with her in his arms.
 "How was your afternoon?" he asked, nuzzling her neck.

 "Pretty cool," Buffy said thoughtfully. "Me, Faith and Giles went on an adventure round Hogwarts and got lost."

 "It happens," Sirius said matter-of-factly.
 "Oh and I got sexually harassed," Buffy said lightly, kissing his neck.

 "You what?" Sirius asked hotly. "By who? I'll kill them. Was it Snape?" Buffy giggled.
 "You're cute when you're jealous," she murmured. "Relax; it was by that Draco Malfoy kid." Sirius began to chuckle.
 "But he's Harry's age," he commented.
 "Apparently I'm trying to recapture my lost youth through a younger man," Buffy said amusedly. "The little jerk totally invaded my personal space."

 "Probably like his father," Sirius said with a frown. "Lucius Malfoy was two years above us at Hogwarts and he had a reputation for being less than favourable of women. Used them as far as I can remember and treated them like dirt."
 "Looks lie his kids might have the same bad habits," Buffy commented. "I taught him a lesson about testing unknown opponents. He won't try that again in a hurry. Besides, I've always had a thing for older men."

 "Oh really?" Sirius said, raising his eyebrows. "You got anyone in mind?"

 "Just looking at the moment," Buffy replied nonchalantly. "In the meantime, let's the light the fire. I'm frozen!" Sirius did some quick work with his wand while Buffy fetched a blanket and they curled up together on the sofa.
 "If I were to die," she said softly. "I would want it to be at a time like this. If I were to die again I mean."
 "I know what you mean," Sirius said sleepily. "Moments like this, perfect happiness. If a Dementor were to show up I'd create the brightest patronus. I don't want anything to change."

 "Me neither," Buffy said, snuggling into his arms.

Kind of a smushy ending but I've got some plans which are going to shake them up quite a lot. I just want to get the Hogwarts thing done first so bear with me if you are waiting for some big action!