Draco forced himself to walk back to the Slytherin common room instead of sprint. So this is what the Dark Lord meant about pain...but why Potter? He thought bitterly. He yelled the password at the portrait and it glared at him. No one was in the common room save three seventh years studying for their next class. He stomped up the stairs to the boys' dormitories and saw an envelope addressed to him. He picked it up and just stared at it. The Dark Lord told him that there was more to the deal, and he didn't want to know what it was. Reluctantly, he ripped it open and unfolded the letter.

Draco

By now, this girl should have caused you a rather small amount of pain compared to the other things that she will do. Remember; don't utter a word about this to anyone. To add onto your punishment, I have issued you a time limit. The moment your eyes meet the bottom of the page, a timer will begin. You have until the last day of term to make her your fiancé, and the marriage arrangements will be made for you...Sound too good to be true? To a point, it is. You're first-born will be taken from you to serve my heir at the age of three, who will be the same age. A girl, preferably. I would not have given you a chance to escape death if there wasn't the possibility of success. If you fail, you come to me to receive the Dark Mark; I'm sure you didn't want it, since you ran back to Hogwarts so quickly.

You're time begins...now

Draco dropped the letter when it burst into flames, the ashes falling to the floor. Even after I get Riley to marry me, life still won't be perfect...so long as she's with me, her life will never be perfect... he thought, sitting on his bed with his head in his hands. It started as a few tears, but once he let the first one fall they just wouldn't stop coming. Maybe I don't deserve to live...He crawled under the blankets and buried his face into his pillow and cried himself back to sleep.

"He did seem more distressed than usual..." said Riley, and Hermione nodded.

"Just imagine Harry dating the one person you hate the most, and being happy with her. I thought I would never say this, but I feel almost sorry for Malfoy..." said Hermione, barely believing the words coming out of her mouth. Harry walked up from behind Riley and took the empty seat next to her.

"Hello again, Harry," said Riley, blushing when he held her hand under the table. Hermione was beaming at them.

"Remember, five thirty...I have to go and get my books. I forget them this morning," he said and Riley nodded. He kissed her on the cheek and she blushed like mad.

"So where's Ron, Hermione?" Riley asked, and it was Hermione's turn to blush.

"I'm not sure, he said he had to go do something...and he told me to meet him at five thirty as well..." she said, a thoughtful look on her face.

"Hm, what are they planning?" muttered Riley, and the bell rang.

Hermione and Riley picked up their book bags and headed to Defense Against the Dark Arts. On the way, they met up with Ron and Harry. Harry held Riley's hand all the way to Professor Lupin's classroom, and hastily let go when her father grinned at them. They took seats in the middle of the classroom, and Riley looked around to see her classmates. Draco wasn't there yet, and Riley started to worry once her father began his lecturing.

Halfway through the class, Filch told Riley she was to do detention with him once her classes ended at three o'clock, and to tell Professor Lupin that he found a boggart in the Astronomy Tower that he needed to get rid of.

The homework that was assigned was the amount to be expected for their seventh year at Hogwarts. Next was Charms, a place where you could keep a conversation quiet, and still work at the same time.

Professor Flitwick gave the beginning of the year lecture as well, and gave them a list of charms to have down in two weeks. They were difficult, but it was possible to memorize them in two weeks. Riley looked around the room, and still no Draco. Where was he?

They were let loose to start performing the spells on their list, and Harry, Ron and Hermione gathered in a corner. Riley followed them, but she was starting to get really worried about Draco. He could be anywhere; doing anything...he could be hurt, he could be dead for all she knew. The worry must have reached her face, because Ron looked at her funny.

"What's bothering you Riley?" Ron asked, noticing her worried face.

"Nothing..." she said, and he shrugged. Hermione knew exactly what she was worried about.

Lunch arrived after Charms, and Riley was starving. She was sure that if Draco was okay, he would either be in the Slytherin common room or the Great Hall during lunch. She joined Harry at the Gryffindor table, and even though she was starving she poked at her food.

"There's something wrong, Riley, why don't you tell us what it is?" Harry asked, but Hermione touched his shoulder and shook her head. She stood up and motioned for Riley to follow. Without saying a single word to the guys, they left. Hermione took her to an empty classroom on the first floor, and rounded on her.

"Hermione, I can't stop worrying about him! I can't tell Harry that I'm losing it because Draco's missing from class! He wouldn't understand..." said Riley, tears forming in her eyes.

"He loves you Riley...he will understand anything. If you want me to tell him, I will. You shouldn't worry about Draco so much. He's old enough to take care of himself," said Hermione, but it didn't do anything about the worry churning in Riley's stomach.

"I just...I can try, but I don't think it's going to work..." said Riley, and Hermione shook her head.

"You may be worried about Draco, Riley, but Harry, Ron and I are worried about you. You look just as miserable as Draco...something other than worry is bothering you," she said, and the tears fell down Riley's cheeks.

"I know every last thing that has happened to him, Hermione...it haunts me and it didn't even happen to me...he's been through as much in a year as Harry has in three...he's only seventeen, Hermione! I'm only seventeen! All of us, and between Harry and Draco, this class of seventh years has been the most involved with You-Know-Who since he was in Hogwarts," sobbed Riley, and Hermione hugged her. "And I'm involved with all three of them...I'm dating Harry, I'm helping Draco, and Draco has told me things that could get me killed for even knowing..."

"We should get back to the Great Hall before they come looking for us...it's going to be alright, Riley...everything will come out okay," said Hermione, and Riley nodded. Riley's eyes were all bloodshot and puffy from crying, but she ignored it as if it didn't exist.

"We might want to get going if we want to make it to the dungeons in time," said Riley, avoiding Harry's face, staring at her plate.

"Riley, we have twenty minutes before we have to leave to make it on time. Why won't you look at me?" asked Harry, and Riley forced herself to look into his green eyes. It made her want to cry again. He would think she had feelings for Draco if he knew she was worried sick about him. He pulled her into a hug and whispered in her ear.

"If you ever need anything at all, just come to me, okay?"

Once it was time for them the walk down to the dungeons for Potions class, Riley was even more worried about Draco. He didn't come down to lunch, and he wasn't sitting in Professor Slughorn's classroom. He gave the same sort of speech as the rest of the teachers, and assigned them to brew a potion from the year before as a review. Riley was following the directions subconsciously with her mind elsewhere. Once the class was almost over, Crabbe and Goyle burst through the door, panting.

"What is Merlin's name are you two doing in here?" asked Professor Slughorn, and it was Crabbe who spoke.

"It's Malfoy, Professor. He won't get out of bed or eat or drink anything. He won't talk to anyone or let anyone up into the room. Everyone who has tried has been yelled at, and told to leave immediately. He asked for a Riley Lupin," said Crabbe. It had to be the most intelligent thing he had ever said. "And you might want to hurry...Pansy said she saw blood."

Riley thought she was going to faint, but she abandoned her potion and sprinted as fast as she could to the Slytherin common room entrance. Everything inside of her went cold, and her mind was blank.

"Let me in!" she screamed at the portrait, tears running at a steady pace down her face.

"Password?" it asked, unaware of anything that was happening.

"Forget the password! Just let me in, damn it!" she screamed even louder, but Goyle gave the password once the portrait was in earshot. It swung open reluctantly, allowing her in.

Shoving people out of the way, she went up the stairs to the boys' dormitories and someone standing outside the door pointed to the one across from him, and she nearly broke the door down fumbling with the doorknob. When the door finally opened, she saw Draco lying motionless in his bed, and Pansy was right. There was blood.

"Draco! Are you insane? What have you done...?" she yelled through her sobs, stumbling over to him. She clutched him to her chest, crying into his robes. She spotted a dagger with blood on it, but she heard a quiet moan and set him back down. She checked his arms, and on the inside of his left forearm, there was a long, diagonal cut from the inside of his elbow to his wrist. There was no way she would be able to get him to the Hospital wing before he died...

"Draco? I need you to do something for me, okay? Please try and stay alive...I'm begging you, Draco! Do it for me, please!" she shouted, and he gave her a small nod, and the smallest of smiles. Sobbing uncontrollably, she tore the entire sleeve off of her mother's old robes and ripped it to create a type of gauze. She tightly wrapped his left forearm with it and tried to find a way to carry him. He wasn't exactly the lightest thing to carry. She smacked herself on the forehead, and pulled out her wand. She muttered a spell and levitated him out of the room. Jumping down anyone's throat who spoke to her while crying at the same time, she left the Slytherin common room. Once in the corridor, she ran faster than she ever thought she could to the Hospital wing. She caused a huge racket in the Great Hall when people tried asking her questions. She even yelled at Harry for trying to help her. Right then, she didn't feel guilty about it. Draco would kill her if he found out Harry even touched him.

"What is going on out here!" shrieked Madame Pomfrey, but when she saw Riley and Draco, everything fell into place. Riley slowed down to a fast walk until she stopped to rest Draco on a bed. Madame Pomfrey unwrapped the piece of Riley's robe from Draco's forearm and gasped. Riley snatched the length of sleeve from her and watched her perform her magic. After a dose of a potion that created more blood for the body, she tried shooing Riley away.

"He'll be fine after some rest; you can get back to your classes now, Miss Lupin. Oh, and throw that filthy thing away," she said, indicating the bloody piece of robe. She ignored Madame Pomfrey and found a chair to sit in. She sat down and rested her head by Draco's shoulder, holding his uninjured arm. She put the bloodied and torn sleeve in her pocket, and held onto it. She'd never lost anyone before...well, other than her mother, but that was before she knew her. Draco told her everything, he trusted her...and he almost died because of her. She knew it had to be the fact she was going out with Harry...maybe she should end it with Harry, but that wouldn't be fair to him. She still really like him, but she would have to tell him that she couldn't come at five thirty today...not while Draco was still in the Hospital wing. She wouldn't leave until he woke up, no matter how many detentions she would get for disobeying Madame Pomfrey and skipping detention with Filch. It was worth every hour of detention she would have to serve, and she couldn't quite explain why.

After a few hours, and after many failed attempts by Madame Pomfrey to get Riley away from Draco's side, Harry, Ron and Hermione came into the Hospital wing to see what happened.

"I knew something was wrong...I just knew it..." said Riley before they could get a word in.

"Where did your sleeve go?" asked Ron, causing Riley to laugh for the first time that day.

"It's right here," she said, pulling her torn up sleeve out of her pocket, smiling.

"Oh, Riley...what happened?" asked Hermione, and Riley's smile faded.

"I ran to the Slytherin common room, to the boys' dormitories...I went to the room Draco was in, and he wasn't moving. Pansy said she saw blood, and she was right...it was all over his sheets, and he was paler than ever..." Riley started crying again, and Harry went over and held her before she went on. "That's when I lost it and ripped off my sleeve and wrapped his arm with it. I was so out of it, I forgot I was a witch...I tried to carry him, but then I snapped back to reality and levitated him. I screamed and yelled at anyone and everyone who tried to ask me anything...I am so sorry, Harry...I didn't mean to yell at you like that, and I don't think I can make it at five thirty with the horde of detentions coming my way," said Riley, completely dazed. She left out the part about begging him to stay alive; they would definitely take that the wrong way...she would tell Hermione later.

"I know you guys hate him, but he's done nothing wrong to me...he's been nothing but honest with me and was there when no one else was...however weird that may sound, it's true..." she said, and Harry let her go.

"Harry, Ron...I'll catch up with you later. I need to talk to Riley about something...you know, girl things," said Hermione, and they left without question. "Now that they're gone, what did you leave out?"

"I think the only reason he held on long enough for me to get him here was something I asked him...'Draco? I need you to do something for me, okay? Please try and stay alive...I'm begging you Draco! Do it for me, please!'..." said Riley, wiping her eyes.

"It was a good thing you left that out..." said Hermione cautiously.

"Oh no, you told Harry what was wrong with me this morning? What did he say...?"

"He didn't take it very well...first he started yelling at me, then apologizing, then wondering why. He doesn't understand how you can show compassion to him...he has never understood that part of you. He's never experienced it...he made a point to have me tell you that," said Hermione, and Riley sighed.

"I have two boys demanding my time. One of them I love, and the other...is unlike anyone I have ever known...Draco needs me, Hermione...Harry has you and Ron, and Draco only has me to come to. Just like I told all three of you...he's there when you aren't, and he just seems to say the right things at the right time..." said Riley, laying her head back down by Draco's shoulder.

"Anything else you need to tell me?" she asked, looking concerned.

"Please don't tell Harry...but, I think I might have feelings for Draco, even if they're subtle. They'll come out, but right now, Harry is the one I like, not Draco. You can let him know what I said to Draco if you think he's ready for it, and let him know he's the one I like...maybe it will make him feel better..." said Riley. Hermione nodded and left her to be with Draco alone in the Hospital wing.

Riley didn't know how long she was sitting in that chair, but Madame Pomfrey went to go get McGonagall, assuming that she could make Riley leave. She felt her eyelids get heavier and heavier. The last thing she remembered was holding onto Draco's arm like she had been for the past few hours before falling asleep.

Draco's eyes slowly eased open, and he saw the white ceiling of the Hospital wing. How did I get here? He thought, and he felt something on his arm. He looked over to find Riley holding it, sleeping. Everything that happened that day came rushing back to him.

He woke up to find that every Slytherin that had a free period was standing at the foot of his bed.

"What do you all think you're doing! Get out of here! All of you, now!" he yelled, and all but Crabbe and Goyle left. "That means you two goons as well! Get out of my sight!"

Remembering the letter from the Dark Lord, he tried finding a way to make Riley fall in love with him. After almost a half hour of thought, he came to a solution. She wouldn't have to live in a hell if he wasn't alive...Someone came through the door, and it was Blaise.

"Come on, Draco. Get out of bed, lunch is in the Great Hall, not our room," he said, but Draco just yelled at him too.

"Out! What did I tell everyone! Get the bloody hell out of here!" he bellowed, making Blaise jump. He left silently, and Draco grabbed the dagger he kept under his pillow. Ever since the beginning of sixth year, he needed something in case of a sneak attack on him. He unsheathed it and slid the blade diagonally from the inside of his elbow to the inside of his wrist. His blood oozed out of his wound, and he dropped the dagger. Someone else came through the door, and it was Pansy. She screamed, and he laughed.

"Get me Riley...now, Pansy..." he said, and she nodded and ran out of the room. Riley was the only person he wanted to see. He started to feel dizzy, and everything went black.

"Draco! Are you insane? What have you done...?" yelled Riley's voice through her sobbing. She came over to him and he felt her hold onto him, crying into his robes. He felt horrible now...he was putting her through more pain now than he ever could...if he died today, she wouldn't outlive him by long...

"Draco? I need you to do something for me, okay? Please try and stay alive, I'm begging you Draco! Do it for me, please!" she shouted at him, crying harder than ever. He managed to nod and smile at her...just in case it would be the last time. He heard a tearing noise, and she began wrapping something around his injured arm. Weren't those robes the last thing she had to remember her mother by? She tried picking him up, and Draco began to wonder why she didn't just levitate him. Was she so terrified she forgot how? His doubts vanished when he floated up into the air. Everything else was a blur. He could hear her screaming, something he had never heard her do. Everything went black again, and he thought he was going to die.

"Riley," he whispered, and she started muttering things in her sleep.

"Please Draco...don't go, you can't go...I won't let you," she said, and tears were rolling down her face. It pained him to see her like this.

"No...don't leave me here all alone, you're all that I've got..."

"You have Harry, remember?" he whispered, but she screwed up her face for a second and it returned to normal and she kept arguing with him.

"But Draco...it's not what I want, I want to be with you, forever and always...if you die, I'm taking that dagger and stabbing myself in the heart with it..." That was a tear-jerker.

"But I'm going to be okay," he whispered back, seeing what else she had to say.

"No, no you're not...Draco? Come back! No! Wake up, please! Don't leave me here! DRACO!" she was shouting by the end of her sentence, and he shook her awake.

"Wha—What happened? Oh, Draco...you're alright...I was having the most terrifying nightmare," she said smiling. No doubt, he thought.

"How long have you been here?" he asked, and she looked at the clock.

"Since one forty five," she said, and he decided to check the clock himself. It was almost seven.

"How did you manage to stay in here that long?" he asked, and she shrugged.

"When Madame Pomfrey left to go get McGonagall, I think I fell asleep. That was about three or four hours ago," said Riley, and she blinked a couple times.

"What about detention?" he asked, one eyebrow raised.

"Slept through it," she said, smirking.

"What about your five thirty date with Potter?"

"Slept through it," she said, and he laughed.

The next few weeks of school went by uneventful, and rumors about Riley and Draco ran rampant. Even though she was still dating Harry, the feelings for Draco that she predicted would come out were getting stronger and stronger everyday. The full moon was approaching, and she tried finding ways to predict whether she would change fully or not change at all. Taking the potion made the chances of changing and being calm more probable, but behaving like a werewolf when she was still human scared her. The last time that happened, she woke up with cuts and scratches all over her legs and stomach, and then to add onto it her entire body was almost all black and blue from falling off a small cliff she woke up at the bottom of.

"Riley," said Harry, who was sitting next to her during breakfast. Only three days until the full moon...

"Yeah, Harry?"

"Do you remember the day you were supposed to meet me at five thirty?" he asked smiling, and Riley blushed while she answered.

"I'm really sorry about that Harry..."

"Oh, no it's alright. I know I would want you there if it happened to me, anyway, that's beside the point. Now, can you meet me today at five thirty?" he asked, and Riley's heart lifted.

"Of course I can, I served all of my detention," Riley's mouth twisted over the word "detention".

"Okay, that's great. Remember, by the lake..." he said, and Riley kissed him. She hardly ever did that in public. His eyes widened, and kissed her back. When they broke apart, there were whistles and cat calls coming from all over the Gryffindor table, which just make Riley's cheeks redden even more.

After that day in the Hospital wing, Draco's feelings for Riley just grew. She skipped a date with her boyfriend to stay with him until he woke up. That had to mean something. She even skipped detention, and that was something not even Pansy would do for him.

He was sitting at the Slytherin table eating breakfast, staring at Riley, who was sitting at the Gryffindor table with Harry. He was surprised they were still dating after the stunt she pulled at the Hospital wing. Across the room, he saw Riley lock lips with Potter, wishing it was him instead of Harry.

How could he repay her for saving his life and being there for him? Normally, he would give any other ordinary girl the opportunity to snog with him. With Riley though, she would rather die than cheat on Harry. The full moon...he thought. It was going to be a full moon in three days, and Riley was half werewolf. This might just turn out to his advantage...Harry didn't know where Riley went when she transformed, and didn't know what happened when she transformed; Draco did. He would come to her in her time of need, just like she did for him.

The bell rang, and everyone in the Great Hall started bustling about, getting their things and heading off to class. Harry kissed Riley this time instead of the other way around, and she went off to find Draco. She dedicated the first free period of her day to him, and sometimes the first and second, depending on what they talked about. It wasn't about You-Know-Who anymore, it was more just talking. After talking to him about his troubles in sixth year for an entire week, talking to him became a habit in the mornings. Riley had to lie to Harry about what they talked about, because first, it was none of his business. Second, Harry would insist that she never spoke to him again.

She found Draco waiting for her at the Slytherin table, as always. The only thing different today was that there was an odd look on his face, something that said, "I'm trying, I'm failing, and I don't like it."

Once they reached the Room of Requirement, Draco dropped onto the couch, slouching. Riley sat next to him, and he sighed, refusing to look at her.

"Draco, if you have something to say to me, just get it over with and say it," said Riley, getting irritated. She knew he liked her, but he refused to admit it. Kissing Harry had to be the reason he wasn't looking at her. She didn't expect him to admit it today or any day, but she knew it was true.

"Okay, Riley, since you seem to want to know so badly," he said bitterly, and Riley blinked.

"Every time you smile at him, touch him, kiss him...I wish it was me, and I hate you for it. I thought killing myself would make things better for the both of us, but I held on because you asked me to...if it was anyone else I would have died and things would be easier, Riley. You won't be able to know everything about me, because I'll die if I tell you...and if you didn't want me to die, I wouldn't be here right now...I'm here for you, Riley!" he was yelling by the end of his sentence, and Riley was stock still. She couldn't move, and she couldn't speak. He heard me? He stayed alive just for me? Oh, Merlin...she thought, and a surge of emotions billowed inside of her, emotions she had never felt before.

"Do you feel it now?" he asked quietly as if he knew it would happen. Did he put love potion in something? No, he would never sink that low, not even for her. This is Draco Malfoy were talking about here...was it something he did to the ring?

"Draco, please tell me you didn't use magic to do this," she said, closing her eyes.

"What? Why would I do that? No, I didn't use magic to make you fall in love with me, Riley..."

Riley stood up and walked over to a shelf. On it sat a goblet half full of water, and a small glass bottle filled with clear liquid. She uncorked the small glass bottle and dumped its contents into the water. I need to know what's going on, thought Riley, and walked back over to Draco.

"Here, drink this," she said, holding out the goblet.

"You take a drink first," he said, suspicious of her. She knew she would never find out...she took a drink of her own potion and handed it to him.

"Is there Veritaserum in there?" he asked, and she nodded. He sighed, but drank it anyway.

"Draco, what are you doing? I'm going to ask you things that could get you killed!" said Riley, and he shrugged.

"You were going to find out sooner or later...I'm being influenced by a potion, I don't think he'll pay much mind to that...I'll pretend that I didn't know the water had Veritaserum in it..." he said, and looked her straight in the eyes.

"What did you do with my ring when you saw it for the first time?" she asked, and he sighed.

"I performed a spell on it to prove it was the one I was looking for," he said.

"Why were you looking for it?"

"It was my punishment for failing."

"What is your punishment?" she asked, and he closed his eyes while he said it.

"I failed the Dark Lord and he put that ring in a random house for a random girl to find. I had to find the girl with the ring, and the moment I perform the confirmation spell I was doomed to love her for the rest of my life. We would be bound by the heart, and she wouldn't realize it until I could somehow talk her into marrying me. He said she would cause me more pain than death ever could...in other words; I have until the end of term to become your fiancé, or I am to receive the Dark Mark and serve You-Know-Who until I die...I'll kill myself before that happens," he said, and Riley was dumbstruck for the second time that day.

"What do you mean by more pain than death?" she asked, tears in her eyes.

"Well, because of what the spell did, I love you like I would my own wife, and seeing you and Potter together...was enough to kill me...if we even get married at all, it'll still be bad..."

"What! It gets worse? Please, tell me..." said Riley, wiping her eyes.

"Our first child will be a daughter, but we'll have to give her up to the Dark Lord to serve his heir at three years old...after hearing all of this, I couldn't put you through all of that...so if I died, you could be happy with Harry, and I could be out of your mind..." said Draco, head in his hands.

"How can you even say that you could escape my mind? You're always on my mind. I'm always wondering what you're doing, what you're thinking, how you're doing...even more than Harry. I never realized it until now...I think I fell for you, Draco Malfoy..." said Riley, and then covered her mouth. She forgot she took the Veritaserum as well...

He stared at her, face expressionless. She just stared into his eyes, those cold, grey-blue eyes.

"Do you really love me?" he asked, never taking his eyes away from hers. She had a whole minute to answer, and it was fighting to get out. She bit her lip, holding it back. Ten seconds passed. Twenty seconds. Twenty-five. Three, two, one...

"Yes!" she yelled, and threw her arms around him. She never wanted to leave that spot; she wanted to just have him hold her for the rest of her life. So that's what that whole surge of emotions was for...it was all for him...

She felt the Veritaserum wear off, and just when Draco was about to kiss her, she stopped him.

"Draco, I need to break up with Harry first...it will be bad enough for him, but knowing I cheated on him won't make it any better...please, I know of your roles were switched you wouldn't have wanted me to cheat on you minutes before I broke up with you..." said Riley, holding him an arm's length away.

Harry was in for quite the surprise.