Call of the Circle

by RoBoC

During the summer after his fifth year, Draco Malfoy has an encounter that will forever alter his world.

41. The Grey Raven

Stephen Whatley, seventh year Ravenclaw Prefect, took two steps inside the door of the Prefects' Common Room, saw Draco and jumped. Within a second, he had remembered some incredibly important thing he had to do elsewhere, apologised for intruding and all but ran out the door. It was ridiculous, he actually apologised! On a normal day, Draco would have found it odd or even amusing, but on the day it was, and the fact that Stephen had been the fifth prefect to do it, made it really annoying. That was it; he had had enough. He stood up, took out his wand, crossed to the door and locked it. Draco turned round to see Hermione staring at him with a look of confusion on her face. He got the impression that she was misreading his intentions. He smiled.

"Now," he said, "that's better."

Hermione's face blanched in shock. "Is it?"

"Yes." Draco crossed over to the table that was still just about visible beneath all of their books and parchment scrolls. Hermione sat up straight and eyed him warily, a fact that only made his grin broaden.

"Why?" she asked him nervously.

"Ohh, I don't know…" Draco let his voice fade out as he walked around the table slowly to stand beside her. Hermione looked up at him wide eyed; he could almost see her tense in expectation of whatever he was about to do to her. 'This is going to be fun!' he thought as he reached down slowly. "It makes it easier to…" His fingers passed within an inch of her face. Draco paused for half a heartbeat and then moved rapidly to grab the stack of Arithmancy notes from in front of her, "get some work done!" Draco stepped back and turned away so she wouldn't see him grinning so wide he felt as if his face would split in two. He exhaled a deep breath and managed to school his features before turning round and sitting down again. He waited for a five count before looking at her. She was wearing an expression of surprise, and, he could just about make out, disappointment. He flashed a grin at her. "You have a dirty mind, Granger. Do you know that?"

Hermione snapped out of it when she heard the question. "I do not," she said indignantly, though she was blushing furiously, "and my name is, Hermione, remember?"

Draco nodded. "I remember," he smiled again, "and if you don't have a dirty mind, do you mind telling me what you thought I was going to do just now?" He leaned forward and strummed his fingers on his chin inquisitively. Hermione struggled to come up with an answer for several moments, then turned her face away and stared at the table. Draco laughed. "I thought so, little miss Hermione is having some wicked little ideas, methinks," he said with an air of triumph. Hermione didn't seem to appreciate the joke. She just sat there, staring at the tabletop and wringing her fingers together nervously. 'Fuck!' Draco dropped the notes he had borrowed from her and laid a hand on top of hers. "It was just a joke, Hermione," he said quietly, remembering how upset she had been earlier, "I was only teasing you."

Hermione didn't look up or respond in any way. Draco felt a lump form in his throat. 'Shit, please don't start to cry again.' He shuffled his chair toward her. "Hey," he said as he looped his arm around her shoulder. "Really, I was only playing around." He tried to reassure her. Hermione didn't move; he couldn't see her face but he imagined she was crying again and that hurt him.

Then, all of a sudden, her head spun round. "BOO!" she roared in his face before exploding with laughter. Draco nearly jumped out of his skin. He tried to stand up but his feet slipped from under him and he fell back over his chair. To make matters worse, Draco's arm was still around Hermione's shoulder. Her laughter became a frightened yelp as she was pulled out of her chair and onto the ground along with him. They landed with a thud, one on top of the other. Draco's head bounced off the wooden floor hard, but, before the pain of the impact had even registered, he felt another pain explode in his jaw as her forehead collided with his chin. The impact caused him to bite down hard on his lower lip. There was an instant flash of the unmistakable taste of blood in his mouth. Hermione recovered first. She lifted herself up off him and hissed as she rubbed her forehead.

"Thanks for that," she grumbled.

Draco fought the urge to spit the blood out of his mouth before he answered. "You're welcome, I'm sure."

Hermione looked down at him and paled. "You're bleeding."

"No?" said Draco sarcastically, wiping at his mouth. "Really?"

Hermione scowled and disentangled herself from him. "Serves you right," she said in a huffy voice, "for casting aspersions on my morality." She stood up and started to brush herself off.

Draco sat up and rubbed at the sore spot on the back of his head. "My head is really sore, Hermione," he said, wincing in pain, "so could you please translate that?"

"It means," Hermione extended her left hand to him, "that you insulted me."

Draco took her hand and clambered to his feet. "Is that what I did?" he asked, moving closer to her and wrapping his arms around her.

"Yes," she said, pushing him away and stepping back. She dug about in her bag for a moment then tossed him a tissue. "For your mouth," she said on seeing his confused expression.

Draco dabbed at his lip. "Ouch!" he hissed as it stung him. "The next time I insult you, can you just yell at me or something instead of resorting to violence?"

Hermione laughed and walked back over to him. "I didn't resort to violence, Draco, it was your own fault that you got hurt." She paused, her lip twisted into a wicked little smile. "Oh, and if there is a 'next time,' you had better hope I don't resort to violence." She was joking, Draco was sure she was joking, but then, was she?

"Erm…"

"Shhh," she took the tissue and wiped his mouth free of blood, seeming to pay no attention to his winces. "There, that's better," she said as she finished and tossed the bloodied tissue away.

"Is i…" was all Draco managed to say before her mouth closed over his. His injured lip gave out at the sudden pressure, but Draco ignored it. He let his eyes slide closed as his arms wrapped around her. 'Damn, this girl is unpredictable' he thought as his mind switched off. 'Trying to keep up with her is a full time job.' Hermione broke the kiss. Draco was half afraid to say anything for a moment, then he swallowed. "What was that for?"

"I thought you'd suffered enough," said Hermione through a smile. She let him go and stepped back to the table. "Now, where were we?" Her mind went off on yet another tangent.

Draco shook his head and stopped trying to guess what was going to happen next. Going along for the ride, he supposed, would be more fun. "Somewhere in the middle of Arithmancy, I think," he said, sitting down and opening his notes again.

Hermione skipped through the textbook and stopped on a specific page. "Right," she said. "Quantum Variables!"

With that she launched into a full scale lecture. Her tone and manner were precisely the same as any of the teachers', but, to Draco's surprise, he found that it wasn't anything like listening to Vector or any of the others. Draco marvelled as Hermione talked on and on, hardly bothering to refer to the text, never seeming to tire: she hardly even seemed to pause for breath. Draco listened intently as she spoke and even found himself making notes as time passed.

Hermione continued to talk for over an hour before they were interrupted by a loud banging on the door. The suddenness of the sound made them both jump. Hermione looked over at the door and frowned. "What the hell?" she asked.

Draco was confused too for a moment until he remembered locking the door. "Someone's trying to get in, I suppose." He shrugged.

Hermione glared at him. "Well, hadn't you better open the door then?"

Draco thought about it, but then remembered why he had locked it in the first place. "No, not really."

"Why not?"

"Because," he sighed, "It's probably just some random idiot who's heard that Draco Mal…that I'm back from my little holiday and has come here to gawp." He turned and flipped idly through the pages of notes in front of him.

"They don't want to gawp at you, Draco," said Hermione, taking hold of his hand. "Besides, they might not even know that you're in here."

"Come off it, Hermione," said Draco. "The whole bloody school knows by now."

"Well…maybe, but we can't just leave the door locked, this room isn't ours to commandeer you know."

"Who says? It's not like we're hurting anyone, are we? We're working and we need some peace and quiet."

The door rattled again. Hermione looked over at it and then back to Draco. She really didn't look happy about the idea but in the end she nodded. "Ok then, but we had better get back to work or we'll be here all night." She scanned the page before her and chewed on her lip briefly. "I think we should have enough covered to attempt the essay now."

Draco frowned. "Essay?"

"Yes, the summary of chapters three and four, remember?"

Draco didn't remember. Hermione scowled and pointed out a specific coloured block in the study journal. It was labelled:

'EsAgt: SumAriTxt CH3-4'

"Right," Draco said, frowning. "I see. What is that? Some sort of code?"

Hermione scoffed. "It's shorthand, Draco, saves time, but it's simple. Es is short for essay, Agt, assignment and SumAriTxt means Summarise Arithmancy Text."

Draco nodded. "Oh! Do you make all your notes like that?"

"No," she said. "Only the rapid revision ones I make just before exams. I find that they help me remember a lot of things in a short amount of time," she paused and picked up Draco's notes, the ones he had made during her lecture. Hermione read over them in silence, occasionally mouthing a word or phrase. "Ok," she said, setting the notes in front of him. "You can use these, just lay out the points you have made and expand on them. Try to put them into your own words so that they make sense."

Draco looked at his notes again and nodded. He didn't see the point in doing an essay that was due over a fortnight ago, but he got the impression that Hermione might simply explode if he tried to argue the point. There was nothing else for it so he picked up his quill and started to write.

-

BAM!

The door of the Slytherin Common Room slammed shut so hard that Etean was surprised that it remained on its hinges at all. He looked up to see Pansy storm over to the fireplace and hurl herself into her usual chair. Regal turned on his perch on the arm of Etean's chair to look at her. He clucked his beak and ruffled his feathers in annoyance at the scowl on her face. Etean smiled as he reached up to stroke his head.

"Yes, Boy," he said in a voice just loud enough for Pansy to overhear him, "Somebody really isn't in a good mood today."

"And just what is that supposed to mean?" Pansy snarled, glaring at him.

Etean smiled. "I thought it was pretty self explanatory, Parkinson. What the hell has got up your nose this time?"

"None of your business, Etean!" she snapped, turning back to the fire. Etean knew full well what was wrong with her; her thoughts were coming through so clearly that it was all he could do not to let them overwhelm him. Someone had told her that Draco was back in the school and she had just spent the last hour hunting for him with no success. Etean wondered for a moment just where Draco had gotten to. He focussed his thoughts and sifted through the torrent of noise in the Ether until he found Draco's pattern. The image of the Prefects' Common Room floated into his mind. He saw a page covered in somewhat untidy handwriting, a pile of badly stacked books and…Granger! Etean snapped back from the contact, shattering the image. He ground his teeth in annoyance. He should have seen it coming. So, Draco was all alone in the Prefects' room with Little Miss Perfect, was he? Etean had to bite back a snarl of anger before he managed to shut that part of his mind off. Regal's head snapped round and he bit Etean's thumb.

"Ah!" Etean hissed. Regal merely ruffled his feathers at him. Etean realised that he must have rubbed Regal a little harder than was his intention, the bird was merely exacting revenge. Etean shook his hand. "Sorry boy," he said, silently conjuring a tiny treat for him by way of an apology. Regal eyed the scrap of meat for a moment before lunging out and snatching it, apology accepted.

Etean checked his watch, it was heading for four in the afternoon and classes would be over soon. He had arranged to meet Ginny in the Entrance Hall in about five minutes, which meant he would be late. Swearing under his breath, he stood up and held out his arm to pick Regal up. Pansy looked as if she was going to say something to him as he passed, but she apparently changed her mind, preferring to continue to stare at the fire. Somewhere deep inside Etean was a small thing that felt sorry for her. Whatever else was going on in her baffling mind, she really seemed to care about Draco, in her own way at least. Etean wondered how she was going to react when she learned about Draco and Hermione. Not well, would be the tamest way to say it, not well at all.

But that was Draco's problem, not his. If Draco wanted Granger he could have her, but he was going to have to take everything that went with her as well. Etean paused at the base of the dungeon stairs. It occurred to him that Draco had absolutely no idea just how much of a shit he was letting himself in for. That could be a problem! Maybe Draco had enough on his plate as it was. Maybe he didn't need her to worry about along with everything else. Etean considered altering the situation. It wouldn't take much, just a little neural nudge and she'd drop out of his mind entirely.

"No," Etean sighed. He couldn't do that to him. Draco had earned the right to have his own mind and make his own choices, even if they did lead him to mistakes.

Etean had been right: he was late. Ginny was waiting for him in the Entrance Hall.

"You're late!" she scolded, though the grin on her face eliminated any hint of seriousness in her voice.

Etean raised his hand to his heart. "My sincerest apologies," he said in a joking tone. "I was inexplicably delayed by a most interesting phenomenon."

"Really?" Ginny asked, raising her eyebrows in curiosity. "And just what phenomenon was that?"

Etean looped his left arm through hers and started to steer her toward the door. "I'll tell you," he said, "as soon as I can think of something sufficiently interesting, that is."

Ginny laughed and slapped him. Regal shifted and dug his claws in, making Etean wince. "So," Ginny said, ignoring his discomfort, "where are we going?"

Etean scowled at Regal for a moment, then turned back to Ginny. "Outside, I feel like some fresh air, and I thought I'd let Regal stretch his wings for a bit. He gets very irritable if he's cooped up for too long." 'He's not the only one!' he added to himself. They exited the castle and Etean released Regal. Together, they strolled slowly across the muddy lawns toward the edge of the lake. A chill wind washed over them as Etean watched Regal soar across the sky. The sensation invigorated him. Unlike most people in his experience, Etean actually enjoyed the feel of a chill wind: it opened his senses and made him feel more alive in a way he couldn't really explain. Ginny didn't seem to share his feelings. She shivered and stopped in her tracks.

"It's freezing out here," she mumbled as she bundled herself up and moved closer to Etean. He smiled and draped his cloak around her. Circle cloaks were not designed to be warm. Wrapping it around her was really just an excuse to wrap his arms around her and hold her close. Etean drew Ginny around in front of him and rested his chin on her head as he watched the tiny black dot that was Regal soaring high over the forest. He smiled as he heard the faint echo of Regal screeching on the wind.

"Can I ask you something?" Ginny asked.

Etean was miles away, watching Regal soar. Ginny's question dragged him back to earth, "Go on then," he said, "ask."

"Why do people call you Etean?"

"It's my name," said Etean, smiling.

"I know that," Ginny laughed, "But I meant, why don't you like people to call you by your first name?"

"Oh," said Etean, releasing Ginny and taking her hand to lead her toward a large clump of boulders, "that." He turned and sat on one of the stones. Ginny dropped into his lap and pulled his cloak about her again. Etean shrugged, "I just prefer it the other way, that's all."

"But why? Don't you like your name?"

"I like it fine," Etean adjusted his position to make himself more comfortable, "it's just…"

"Just?"

"Well, it's hard to explain," he sighed. Etean's mind started to bubble and toil, conjuring up a twisted, convoluted story to spin for her but he stopped himself. Ginny was staring at him with a look of genuine curiosity and it occurred to Etean that he didn't actually want to lie to her. "It started when I was young," the first sentence came out of nowhere. Resorting to the truth was something that Etean did so rarely it seemed, that it surprised even him. "You see," he carried on with barely a noticeable pause, "I never had many friends growing up. I was always surrounded by servants, guards and the like. Not one of them ever called me Robert, never. To anyone but my father, I was 'Master Robert'," he emphasised the word to show his disdain for it. "I hated that stupid title. I wasn't anyone's master, and nor did I want to be to tell you the truth, but they called me it all the same. It was the proper way to refer to me after all, but, over time it became more than that."

Ginny frowned, "I don't understand."

"Imagine you are a kid growing up, and every day, everyone you meet addresses you as Master. They smile, nod, and even bow on occasion and they are always, always on guard around you, afraid to do or say the wrong thing in case you take offence," he let a frustrated growl escape from his throat, "That was my world, my life for as far back as I can remember has always had an air of…formality about it I suppose. My world and the relationships I had were defined by that formality. Over time it became as though there was a barrier surrounding me…sort of a wall, insulating me from the world."

"That must have been lonely," said Ginny, putting her arm around him as though to comfort him.

Etean shrugged, "Maybe, but I got used to it. In the end, I actually grew to like it. It made life…simpler somehow. It meant that I never really had to deal with people or any of their stupid nonsense. 'Master Robert' had to smile and bow and make pleasant conversation with simpering morons on practically a daily basis, but I didn't have to bother. I was free to think and be whatever I wanted to be and it never mattered, people only ever saw him."

Ginny nodded, "And now that you aren't 'Master Robert' anymore?"

Etean smiled, "I just traded 'Master Robert' for 'Lord Etean', and one wall replaced another. The new one did the same job as the old one, but it also had more to deal with. Even more is expected of Lord Etean than was of Master Robert," he grinned, "Lord Etean has a lot more to hide, so the wall is even higher now."

"And where does Etean fit in to all of this?"

"Etean?" Etean smiled, "He's the wall within the wall, the face I show at those times when Lord Etean doesn't fit. Etean is different but he's the same, just another layer of insulation."

Ginny's eyes narrowed slightly, "And…what's inside that wall?"

'Good question,' Etean shrugged, "I don't know," then he smiled, "it's been a while since I checked."

A touch of concern crossed Ginny's face, "So you just…exist behind your wall…hiding from the world?"

"I wouldn't call it hiding, not really. I'm just…accustomed to keeping the world at arms length."

Ginny paused, Etean could see the next question coming a mile away, "And…me? Are you still keeping me at arms length…Robert? Or am I allowed inside the wall?"

Etean looked into her eyes as she stared back with a hint of nervousness, "Do you want to be? You might not like what you find in here."

Ginny lifted her hand and stroked the side of his face, "I think I will," she leaned forward and kissed him gently. Etean folded his arms around her and returned the kiss just as gently.

A sudden shrill shriek split the air. They both spun to see Regal banking low over the surface of the lake, skimming the waves. "Someone's enjoying himself!" said Ginny brightly.

Etean shook his head, "He's a bird and he's flying…not exactly a challenge for him is it?"

Ginny turned back and smiled at him "No, I guess not." They kissed again, Etean delighted in not having a single thing to worry about outside of the two of them for those few, precious moments. The wind picked up again, sending a cold shiver through Ginny. Etean tightened his hold on her and deepened the kiss. Then he felt her!

It was Etean's turn to shiver as he broke the kiss, but it was shock, rather than the cold that was the cause. He looked round, tightening his senses to track her down. What the hell was she doing here? His eyes settled on a small birch tree at the edge of the forest. Regal was perched on a low branch, preening himself and beside him was a staggeringly familiar, slate grey raven. Etean frowned when he saw her sitting there, staring at him.

"Oooh, Regal's got himself a little friend," Ginny cooed.

Etean forced his mind to restart, "Apparently," he said. "Let's head in," he added, turning his back, "It is a bit cold out here." Etean draped his arm over Ginny's shoulder. She allowed him to lead her up the slope to the castle. As they were climbing the steps, Etean focussed on the raven behind him and imagined the journey from the entrance of the castle to the Training Room. He sent it to her as a rapid burst, trusting that she would get the message. If she was here, then there had better be a reason, and it had better be a good one. He looked down at Ginny walking beside him. She had seen her, which meant this was going to get complicated.

-

Draco hissed under his breath and dropped his quill. Hermione watched it drip ink onto the surface of the parchment. She frowned and looked up at him,

"What is it?" she asked.

Draco flexed his wrist and then shook it hard, "My wrist is sore," he hissed, "I guess I'm still not used to writing left handed."

'Left handed?' Hermione thought, but then remembered, "Oh," she said, "how…how is your hand?"

"Not all that good," said Draco. He held his right hand up and slowly clenched a fist. "Getting better though," he added as he just as slowly unclenched it. "I can use it, just not quickly or well enough for most practical purposes." He lowered his hand and smiled, "But, on the bright side," he lifted his left hand and worked it in a rapid circle, "I have learned to do most things with my left hand."

Perhaps it was the playful way he said 'most things' or maybe it was the fact that learning to use your left hand didn't sound much like a bright side to anything, but Hermione felt the urge to kiss him again. 'It might make him feel better,' she thought, followed immediately by, 'What the hell am I thinking? Get a hold of yourself Hermione.'

She shook her head and tried to return her attention to her own work. She started to flip through the pages of her Arithmancy text, pausing to scowl at her hand. A strange tingling sensation in her fingers dulled the sensation of touching things. It almost felt as if she was wearing gloves. She shook her head, her hand was just asleep, that was all. Hermione closed her Arithmancy book and, clumsily, she tried to lift her charms book. The tingle in her fingers grew worse however, and she dropped it.

"Careful," Draco grumbled as the book missed his hand by half an inch, "hey, what's this?" he asked, picking up a scrap of parchment that had fallen out of the book when it landed.

Hermione recognised it instantly as a drawing she had made during the last Charms lesson. "Oh," she said quickly, trying to snatch it back, "that's nothing…just an idle doodle."

Draco held the drawing up to the light so he could see it better, "Is this the wolf from your dream?" he asked.

"Sort of," Hermione answered. Draco frowned, Hermione realised that he was staring at it very hard, "What?" she asked, sounding nervous.

Draco shook his head and looked up at her, "Oh," he handed it back to her, "No…I just thought I recognised it is all."

"You recognised it?" said Hermione, suddenly excited, "From where? Does it mean anything? Where did you see it?"

The questions poured rapidly out of her mouth. Draco shook his head and waved her down, "Easy…easy…I don't know where I saw it, or what it means, I just…its familiar somehow that's all, but I can't place it."

"Oh," Hermione sighed, disappointed. For a moment she thought she was about to get something, a clue about what was going on in her head. She tried to think of something else, anything else. She failed. Instead, she simply stared blankly at the page in front of her. Draco hissed in discomfort again. Out of the corner of her eye, Hermione could see him working his wrist in circles. Draco hissed again and picked up his quill again. He instantly dropped it however and snarled in discomfort as he shook his hand rapidly, "Right," he grumbled, "time for a break." He raised his hand to his mouth and used his teeth to pull his glove free. He flexed his wrist and then started to rub it clumsily with his right hand, grimacing in pain. When he noticed her staring at him, he moved his hands down out of sight below the table. Hermione got the impression that he didn't want her to stare at his hand, which was, she realised at last, exactly what she had been doing. She blushed and fought for something else to occupy her attention. Her eyes settled on his essay. She reached out to pick up the scroll but stopped short. Her hand was shaking.

Hermione stared at her fingers as they twitched feverishly in the air. Her hand felt strange, almost like it was asleep. She concentrated, willing her fingers to stay still, but they wouldn't. A sudden wave of panic shot through her as she realised that her hand was beyond her control. In desperation she tried to close a fist, but it just didn't seem to be happening. Her mind flailed, 'What the hell is going on? A fist, close a fist…how hard can that be?' Her fingers continued to twitch before her eyes.

"What's wrong?" Draco's voice came out of nowhere. The sound made her start.

"My hand…I don't…I can't…" she stammered.

Hermione concentrated with all her might and tried to get her hand to obey, but it still didn't work. Draco reached out, instinctively she pulled away but he was too quick for her. He caught her hand and held it. Hermione could only just feel his touch as he started to slowly massage her palm and fingers. Gradually the feeling started to return as the twitching subsided. The odd sensation faded back to a slight tingle in her fingertips, her hand felt as though it was back to normal, but Draco continued to massage it. Hermione shut her eyes as she relished in the sensation of his hand on hers.

"Is that better?" Draco asked in a tone that suggested that he knew full well that it was. Hermione found that she couldn't answer except by nodding. Draco continued to rub her fingers, Hermione found them instinctively looping and tangling up with his. She looked into his eyes and smiled.

"Thank you," she said.

Draco grinned and released her hand, "Glad to be of service."

Hermione looked down at her hand again. Her fingertips were still tingling as though they were asleep, but at least she could move them now. She must have looked funny or something because Draco laughed. She felt her face explode with red fire as he stood up and walked around to stand behind her. She shivered as his fingers traced a line up her arm and across her neck. Hermione rolled her head and let out an involuntary little moan as his grip tightened and he started to massage her neck. It wasn't until that moment that she realised how stiff it was. Draco seemed to know what he was doing, even one handed, his fingers seemed to locate all of the knots in her muscles and tease them out. Hermione tried to relax, wanted to relax but she couldn't. Her heart was racing and her every breath caught in her throat. She shut her eyes and willed her body to calm down.

"WE CAN SEE YOU!"

The voice came out of nowhere and echoed inside her head. Hermione sat bolt upright. Her eyes slammed open and she felt as though she might just pass out in fright.

"What's wrong?" Draco sounded worried, "I didn't hurt you did I?"

"What?" Hermione said through ragged breaths, she looked up, wide eyed as Draco came from behind her and knelt down, "No," she remembered to answer him at last, "you didn't…sorry."

"What then?" he asked, frowning.

Hermione shut her eyes as she fought for an explanation that would make sense. Her mind struggled to come up with another lie, another excuse to hide what was going on in her head. 'Tell him!' her own voice sounded in her ears. She opened her eyes again and looked into his. The candlelight reflected off his eyes made them seem to sparkle. She felt his gaze steady her mind, "I heard something," she said quietly, fighting the urge to break down, "A voice in my head." She shut her eyes and shook her head, "But it wasn't real…it was…from a dream."

"A dream? You mean that one you had with the wolf?"

"No," she said, "Well…yes, sort of. It's a long story," she sighed.

Draco reached up and ran his finger down her cheek, "I got time," he said with a tiny smile.

Hermione took a deep breath and looked into his eyes again, "Ok then," she said and then she started to talk. She told him everything, every detail she could remember about her dreams, the corridor, the mountain top and the eyes! When she finished, there was a heavy silence in the air between them. Finally Hermione couldn't bear to look at him anymore, she turned away and stared at the tabletop, not pretending to be upset this time, "Crazy huh?" she asked him in a tiny, choked up voice.

"Eyes in the dark?" he said slowly, "Staring at you?" She nodded. "Well," Draco sighed, "I have to admit it…you're nuts!"

Hermione spun her head to look at him. Draco simply stared back from behind his twinkling silver eyes. He held his stare for a full ten seconds before his face cracked into a grin and he started to laugh. Hermione released the breath she had been holding and then to her utter astonishment, she started to laugh along with him. They laughed on and on, Hermione felt all the fear and tension pour out of her with each passing moment. Part of her head was screaming at her, reminding her that this wasn't funny, that it was a real problem and that it really scared her, but she couldn't help it. She just sat there, laughing her head off, and feeling for the first time in a long time that the fear couldn't touch her.

"There," said Draco once he had gotten hold of himself, "that's better. They're just dreams, Hermione, that's all, just silly dreams."

"No," Hermione shook her head, the laughter faded, "They're real. I can feel them, the eyes…I can feel them watching me sometimes even when I'm awake. It's as if…oh I don't know."

"What?" he asked, shuffling closer to her.

"Well…sometimes," she sighed, "it's almost like they're judging me or something." She laughed quietly, "Like I said…crazy."

"You are not crazy," said Draco sternly, "At least…no more so than the rest of us."

"But then why am I…" but she never finished the sentence.

Draco took hold of her hand and squeezed, "Listen to me," he said in a quiet whisper, "there is something wrong, something…weird going on inside that head of yours. I don't see any reason to lie to you and to pretend otherwise and I'll be honest, I have absolutely no idea what it is, but I promise you…we will find out."

Hermione felt her lip quiver, "We?"

Draco laughed, "Why not?" he nodded toward the table, "You're helping me after all…besides," he stood up and kissed her on the forehead, "I love a good mystery."

Hermione watched as Draco returned to his seat. He picked up his quill and scanned his essay, scowling.

"Now," he said, dropping the quill again, "I don't know about you, but I'm about studied out for one night."

Hermione looked at the pages in front of her. It was still early but for once she didn't really feel like studying. Draco nodded at her and started to pack up his things. After a moment Hermione realised that she should pack up too, so she started to gather her things. They packed up in silence, Draco unlocked the door and the left.

Outside in the deserted corridor, he turned to face her, "Right," he said quite loudly, "This has been fun, but now," he glanced down the corridor with a foreboding look on his face, "I have to face the hounds of Slytherin House," he said with a scowl. Draco stared into her eyes again for a long while before he shook himself and smiled. "One for the road," he whispered and moved forward. Hermione barely had time to realise what he was going to do before he was kissing her. A tingle shot through her whole body as she looped her arms around his neck. She had barely joined her hands behind his head when Draco broke off and stepped back, "See you later," he said, and he was gone.

Hermione stood, still tingling as she watched him walk away. She felt a sudden loneliness as he slowly moved away from her. Did she miss him already? She shook her head. The practical part of Hermione's brain roared at her. What was she doing? Spending time with him was nice but was she actually contemplating a…a relationship with Draco Malfoy? She bit her lip. No, whatever it was between them wasn't like that, not yet, but that's what it could turn into and she knew it. So, was that really what she wanted? A question, something Ginny had said to her came to Hermione – "Does he make you happy?" Hermione smiled as Draco turned to wave at her before he disappeared round a corner. When she was with him, her problems seemed far away. When she was with him, she could relax. When she was with him, she was happy!

-

Draco paused for a moment in the shadows outside the Slytherin Common Room. The bare rock that hid the door glistened with moisture. He could hear the quiet dripping of water on stone somewhere in the distance. He focussed for a moment on the memory of that last kiss and steadied himself. Draco screwed up his will and took a deep breath, "Here goes," he whispered and stepped forward, "Carnivore."

Etean had told him the password and, to Draco's relief it hadn't been changed today. The last thing he wanted was to have to stand outside the door and wait for some random Slytherin to let him in. The wall slid back silently to reveal the door beyond. Draco paused and shut his eyes again for a moment before opening the door. The murmur of conversation from within greeted him as he stepped inside. Then…silence! Every single person in the room shut up as one person and turned to stare at him. Draco drew himself up to his full height and set his hands on his hips.

"Ok then!" he hissed, moving his eyes from student to student, glaring at each of them in turn, "Take a good look, all of you and get it out of your system now because I promise you," his eyes settled on a dark haired second year boy whose name he couldn't be bothered remembering, "this will be your first…and last chance. If I catch anyone staring at me from this point on, or whispering behind my back, I swear I will skin them alive!"

The boy he had chosen to victimise cowered and shrank back in fear. Draco turned his gaze to another, a girl this time, Rachel Monroe. He let his stare drill into her until she too turned away. By now the others had got the message, one by one they all turned away and pretended to return to their previous conversations. Draco hit them with one last burning glare and stormed out of the room. He passed a couple of students on the stairs but just drove past them. He wasn't sure if his will would hold much longer and he needed to leave them with the impression that he was serious about his threat. If they were afraid of him, then they'd leave him be, at least that was the theory. Draco entered his bedroom. The other beds were empty, quidditch practice, Draco assumed. Oh well, at least he would have the place to himself for a while.

He was wrong. The door behind him had barely closed when it burst open again. Draco turned just in time to see a solid ball of darkness speeding toward him. It hit, and Draco was blind. He felt arms wrapping around his neck as the force of the impact bundled him off his feet. The back of his legs encountered the end of Etean's bed and he tumbled backward still blinded by a veil of dark cloth. Draco shook his head as he landed. A strong scent filled his nostrils, a scent he knew.

"Pansy!" he mumbled through a mouthful of what turned out to be her hair. Draco scrambled to find purchase on her shoulders so he could free himself of her. Pansy seemed determined to hold on for dear life. With her robes covering his face and his mouth full of her hair, Draco was close to suffocation. "Get…off…me." He managed to take hold of her and shove her bodily off him. Pansy let out a stifled squeal as she missed the edge of the bed and tumbled over the side. Free and able to breathe at last, Draco gasped for air. When he had caught his breath he rolled over and sat on the edge of the bed. Pansy was rubbing the side of her head and staring up at him.

"What were you trying to do?" Draco growled on seeing her idiotic grin, "Smother me?"

Pansy laughed as though it was the funniest thing he could possibly have said, "I was….just happy to…see you, that's all," she giggled, "Is there something wrong with that?"

Draco fished one of her hairs from the back of his throat, "Whatever," he said, coughing, "just don't do it again."

He stood and stepped round her, brushing his robes off as he crossed over to his own bed. Draco didn't hear her move, but suddenly Pansy was behind him. He felt her arms wrapped around his waist as he lifted his bag over his head. "Sorry babe," she said in a muffled voice, her face pressed into his spine.

Draco tensed, 'Babe?' He dropped his bag and turned around, reaching down to untangle her arms. "What did you call me?"

Pansy's face fell, she stared up at him, "What?"

"What did you just call me?" Draco's voice had turned to ice.

Pansy ignored his anger, "What…Babe?" she said, reaching up to trail a finger across his chest, "I always call you Babe, Babe."

"No," Draco took hold of her shoulders, "you don't. You tried it…once…and I told you never to do it again," he lowered his eyes to her level and glared at her, "Did you forget?"

Pansy laughed, "I remember you saying something like that," she smiled demurely, "but I knew you were just joking."

"Joking?" Draco released her as he felt a surge of anger boil up from his heart and explode in his head, "I'll give you joking." He felt his fist ball and his shoulder tense. He lunged forward and was an inch from lashing out and hitting her when he stopped himself. The look in his eyes seemed to do the job for him.

Pansy's smile faded and she drew back, "Right," she said quickly, "I get it…don't call you Babe. Fine," she was out of breath as she finished.

"Good…don't forget it again." Draco turned away from her and tugged off his tie. He looked over his shoulder to see her standing there, staring at him. "Was there something else you wanted?" he asked without turning round.

"Som…something else?" said Pansy in a shocked squeal, "What kind of question is that?"

Draco turned to look at her with the coldest stare he could muster, "A genuine one, Pansy, so answer it."

Pansy's face fell, "I came here to welcome you back, Draco," she said, almost in a murmur, "You sound as though you're not pleased to see me," she finished in a sulky voice.

Draco actually found this slightly funny, "Should I be?" he asked, then seeing Pansy's expression he raised his hand, "No, don't bother…just forget I said that OK?"

Pansy smiled brightly, "OK," she said in a bewilderingly chipper tone. She turned and walked over to sit on Draco's bed. "So," she said in a somewhat more sombre tone, "do you want to talk about it?"

Draco felt the colour drain from his face, "About what?"

"About your mother…about what happened to her…"

"My mo…." Draco lost the power of speech. This girl had all the tact of a drunken goblin. He willed his mouth to work again, "No," it came out as a whisper, "I don't."

Pansy stood up and walked toward him, "But you have to, you need to let it out," she said, "you can't just keep it all bottled up inside." She raised her hand to touch his cheek, "I know you don't want to appear weak to all those idiots," she pointed at the door with her free hand, "but I'm not one of them."

Draco had to fight the urge to slap her again. He resisted and pushed the emotion aside, burying everything beneath the full weight of his will, "I said," he snarled, stepping back and batting her hand away, "I don't want to talk about it, not to you, not now, not ever."

"Come on, Draco, you can't…"

"No Pansy, I can," Pansy retreated as he advanced on her, "I can do whatever I want to do. If I want to 'bottle it up', then that's precisely what I will do…understand?" Pansy had backed into the pillar of the bed and now had nowhere left to go, he saw her gulp, and then she nodded quickly. "Good," Draco took a deep breath to get himself under control and stepped back, "Now if you don't mind," he pointed to the door, "I'm tired." His tone left no room for interpretation.

Pansy straightened up and nodded again, "Ok, I'll leave so you can rest then," she took half a step forward as if to kiss him goodnight, but stopped almost before she had started. Draco merely grunted at her. "Remember that I'm here," she said, "and I'll be ready to listen when you do want to talk!"

With that she spun on her heel and left, disappearing around the corner of the door with a swish of cloth. Draco stood and stared at the open doorway for a long while, he couldn't believe it, had she heard a word he had said? 'That girl really needs to learn to take a hint!' he sighed to himself as he threw himself down onto his bed.

-

Etean shut the door of the Training Room behind him and sighed. Turning round, he saw the raven sitting on the table, looking at him with its cold eyes.

"What the hell are you doing here?" he asked, letting his eyes flash to show her that he meant her to answer. He paused, waiting, staring at the bird's eyes until it looked away. There was a tiny hissed grunt and a ruffle of cloth as the bird grew and changed.

Vash sat on the table and ran her hand through her hair, "Pleased to see you too, Rob," she flashed him her usual, cheeky grin. "Though the welcome leaves something to be desired I must say."

Etean glared at her, "You shouldn't be here Shel, and you know it. What kind of welcome did you expect?"

Vash sniggered, "My you are the grumpy old goat aren't you?" she smiled. "What is it? Is the schoolboy uniform too tight? Or did they give you too much homework?" Vash collapsed in a fit of laughter.

Despite his annoyance, Etean was had to fight to keep himself from laughing along with her. She had always had a way of making him laugh, even when her jokes weren't funny. A smile had just about got through his defences when he saw a tiny flash of pain in her eyes, a tiny wince that she was clearly trying to hide shot through her.

"What's wrong?" he asked, stepping forward.

Vash's smile faded, "Nothing," she lied, shrugging her shoulders, "I'm…ouch!" she yelped as another wave of pain shot through her. Her hand jerked, moving an inch toward her left hip before she stopped it. It was the only clue Etean needed. Looking more closely, he saw a dark, wet stain on her robes. He stepped forward, extending his senses to examine the injury. He saw it instantly, a twisted glare in her abatile.

"What happened to you?" he asked, reaching out to examine the wound further. Vash moved to block him. She covered her hip with one hand and with the other she grabbed his wrist. Etean shook her off as gently as he could, "Settle," he ordered, "Let me take a look."

Vash relented. She sat back on the table and kept her hands by her side. Etean drew back her cloak, and then carefully opened her robes so that he could see the wound properly. He had to suppress a hiss of astonishment when he saw it. An area of her pale skin roughly the size of his palm was charred and burned black. "It won't heal," said Vash in a shaky voice.

Etean knelt to look at it more closely, silently conjuring a hovering candle to provide more light. He focussed his senses and examined it, it had healed, at least in part but, "Part of the spell is still in there," he said without looking up. The churning power of the curse was just visible in the very heart of the wound. It seemed to be burrowing deeper into her, charring and burning as it went. Etean's senses allowed him to see beneath the charred outer flesh to the muscle below. Healthy muscle tissue surrounded the wound, glowing bright red to his eyes. The muscle beneath the wound, however, was starting to turn a sickly green colour, "How long ago did this happen?" he asked, slightly worried.

"I don't know," was her answer, "Twelve…fourteen hours maybe."

"What?" he barked, "That long? What…Why didn't you go for help?"

"Where could I go?" she asked.

Etean growled under his breath, "You should have returned to the Academy. Or even to the Chateau, Dominic would have arranged for a doctor to look after you, you know that."

Vash shrugged, wincing again, "I couldn't have made it that far. The pain was too much for me to apparate and I lost my portkey…in the end, I had to transform just to avoid the pain. Once I was a bird I wasn't really able to think clearly…you know what it's like," she shook her head, "I just had to follow my instincts," she looked down at him, her eyes filled a distant sadness, "Where else would I go?" Etean nodded slowly. "Can you fix it?" she asked.

Etean returned his attention to the wound. He could fix it but it was not going to be a pleasant experience for her. "I'll see what I can do," he said, reaching out to touch her skin. Vash jumped back and hissed, "Relax," he scolded her. He needed to distract her, keep her mind off what he was doing. "Tell me how this happened."

Vash sighed, "I was doing my job," she said sarcastically, "I was sent to Coventry to examine the new Auror facility there."

"Oh yes, and what are the Aurors building in Coventry then?" Etean asked even though he new the answer. He would have to start prodding and poking about in the wound soon.

"You…AH…careful! You know full well what they're building," said Vash through clenched teeth.

"Humour me," said Etean. He looked back into her eyes, "and stop moving or I'll end up ripping your kidney out or something," he smiled.

Vash took a breath and steadied herself as he reached out to her again, "The Aurors…ssssss….are building a new Headquarters in Coventry, sort of a backup base of operations should the one in London be hit."

Etean nodded as he mentally invoked an extraction curse. The spell merely burrowed deeper into Vash's hip. 'Persistent little bastard!' Swallowing a curse, he persevered, "Sounds like a good idea, one of the few they've had so far. The facility is finished then?"

"Yes," Vash's voice trembled with restrained pain, "Looks pretty strong too, maybe even tougher than the one in London." Her voice trailed off, Etean looked up to see her staring at her hip. It didn't look all that good. If anything, his ministering had made it look worse.

"You were saying," he prompted her. She looked at him, "You were telling me about the facility in Coventry…"

"Y…yes," she said, "Well I looked around, did all that I had to do and then…"

"Yes?" Etean asked, returning his attention to the wound. He was zeroing in on the remnants of whatever curse had hit her.

"Yes, well it seemed that I wasn't the only one that was checking the place out."

"Really?" he asked as he finally managed to surround the spell and started to gently manoeuvre it outward, "Who else was there?"

"Bellatrix Lestrange!" she said quietly.

"WHAT?" Etean asked in genuine surprise. He lost his hold on the spell and it shot deeper into her. Vash roared in agony. The sudden pain carried through Etean's senses and slammed into his mind. Vash's arm made a mad swipe, searching for something to hold onto. Etean caught her hand and held it tight, "Sorry," he said, grimacing as she squeezed his fingers as hard as she could. Waves of pain rocketed through Vash again and again. She barred her teeth and fought to stop herself screaming. Etean held her hand and waited for the pain to subside. "Sorry," he repeated as she finally relaxed.

Vash punched him in the chest with her free hand, "Don't do that again, you fuck!"

Etean squeezed her hand, "I won't," he returned his gaze to the wound, "I think I nearly had it, but it's gone back in deeper now."

"Just get it done!" she hissed at him. Etean reached out harder than he had before. Vash hissed in pain and squeezed his hand but he carried on, this had to be done. His mind closed on the spell and took hold.

"Now," he said, looking her in the eye, "This is really going to hurt, Shel."

Vash looked at him, squeezed his fingers once more and nodded. Etean braced himself and concentrated on keeping hold of the spell. He took a breath and pulled. Vash let out a heart stopping scream and fell forward. Etean stood and pressed his shoulder out into her to stop her from falling flat on her face. The spell inched outward slowly, each movement causing Vash a further jolt of pain until, at last, it was out. Etean whispered a containment spell as his fingers closed around it.

Vash looked up at his hand as he held it aloft, the tiny ball of magic caged by his fingers. "That's it?" she hissed in disbelief.

Etean nodded, "Yes, this little thing." He closed his fist on it and it vanished with a tiny flash into nothing. Etean took hold of Vash's shoulder and stood up, gently lifting her back onto the table. He pulled her robes again back and set to work repairing her injury. "I take it we have Lestrange to thank for this?" he asked.

Vash nodded, "It was my fault really, I shouldn't have been anywhere near her."

"How's that?"

Vash shrugged, "I spotted her as I was getting ready to leave. I saw an opportunity and I decided to follow her."

"Decided? You mean you weren't ordered to follow her?"

"No," Vash shook her head, "But she's managed to keep under our radar for a while now, so I figured it would be good to find out what she was up to. I saw her sneaking around in the Auror facility and shadowed her."

"Simple as that was it?" Etean asked, raising an eyebrow at her.

"That's what I thought anyway," Vash smiled weakly. "It certainly started that way. I tracked her through a couple of apparations, bouncing all over the country."

"Took you on a nice little ride did she?"

"Something like that," Vash shook her head. "She went to a couple of houses first and met with some people. They didn't seem to be important from what I saw, just informers or the like. After that…"

Etean looked up from her fading injury, "After that?"

Vash sighed, "She holed up in some grotty little hovel, waited until just before dawn and then went to an isolated graveyard. I watched her break into a mausoleum and then," she sighed, "I followed her in."

Etean rolled his eyes, "You didn't…please tell me I taught you better than that, Shel."

"I wanted to know what she was doing in there," said Vash hurriedly.

"You followed one of the most dangerous witches on the planet into an empty graveyard in the middle of the night, let her lead you into a small, confined space of her choosing and you're telling me you didn't sense a trap?"

"How was I to know it was a trap, Rob? How was I supposed to know that she knew I was there?"

"You would have known," said Etean wearily, "if you were trained to follow the likes of her. She's dangerous, she's vicious and she's smart. She probably knew you were there from the moment you saw her."

"How? I had my cloak!"

Etean sighed, "Being invisible doesn't guarantee that you won't be seen, Shel."

"What was I supposed to do then? Let her get away?"

"You should have reported in and told the others. They would have sent somebody else. Someone better trained for the field."

Vash drew back in indignation, "I am perfectly capable of carrying out my orders. I was just…unlucky that's all."

"This time!" said Etean. He finished healing her and pulled her robes back to cover her once more, "I don't know why they sent you to Coventry in the first place. What did Poliakov think he was playing at?"

"Lord Poliakov didn't send me. He's been…out of touch lately. I don't think he's left Geneva in a month. He's too busy getting that blasted treaty ready."

Etean's expression darkened, he had a nasty feeling, "Who sent you then?"

"The Council," she answered, avoiding his eyes.

Etean reached out with his mind and jarred her, "Who gave you the order?"

Vash made a face like she was trying desperately not to answer the question, but in the end she gave up, "Lord Menai."

Etean growled and stepped back. He felt the floor tremble beneath his feet as his mind reeled in rage, "MENAI!" he hissed.

"He was only doing what he thought was right," said Vash in an attempt to soothe him, "We needed the intelligence on the new Auror base, someone had to go."

"Someone maybe, but not you," Etean snarled, "He put you in harms way on purpose, just to get at me."

Vash didn't answer but she wanted to. Etean knew that for a fact. She knew him well enough to realise when to back off and leave him be. The floor stopped shaking as the sheer force of his anger subsided. Vash moved to stand beside him and took his hand again, "I'm alright," she whispered as she raised his hand and kissed it gently, "Thanks to you."

"You shouldn't have been hurt in the first place, Shel. He shouldn't have sent you."

"I got myself hurt, Rob, no one else. If I hadn't been such an idiot I would have been fine." She smiled at him.

Etean felt the last of the rage leave him, he grew calmer with every breath. "You always were an idiot!" he smiled and turned away.

"Yes," Vash sighed behind him, "I always was." There was a silence and then, "She's pretty…your new friend."

Etean stopped, his eyes slid closed, "Let's not have this conversation, Shel." He turned back to her, "Please?"

Vash smiled, "I don't want to have any conversation. It was merely an observation. You do think she's pretty don't you?"

Etean sighed, 'Here we go again!' "Yes," he said quietly, "I do."

"Does she make you laugh?"

"Come on, Shel, what's the point in this?"

Vash stared at him for a while. "I would just like to know, Rob. You owe me that much at least, don't you think?"

"What does it matter if she makes me laugh?"

Vash's eyes had gone slightly red, but Etean knew she wasn't about to let him see her cry. "I need to know because it doesn't make sense. Why her and not me? What has she got that I don't?"

"Come off it, Shel," Etean turned away from her again, he couldn't bear to have this argument again. "It's nothing to do with you. I told you that."

He heard Vash walk back and sit down on the table again, "You told me," she said, "I heard the words but I don't understand, Rob, I can't. No matter how many times I try, it just makes no sense. I mean, we were happy weren't we? At least, I thought we were. One day everything was fine and then….then your dad died and suddenly everything changed. Suddenly I wasn't good enough for you anymore."

Etean spun round, "Is that…tell me that isn't what you thought, Shel, please!"

"What was I supposed to think? I mean you just dumped me and vanished. I didn't see you for three months and then when I did, I barely recognised you. Since then I…"

"I didn't dump you, Shel," said Etean walking toward her. If he had to explain this to her again, he was determined for this to be the last time. "I was never with you. The Robert Etean you knew…the boy I was died the day I put this on," he held up his hand and showed her the ring. "This thing…it isn't just jewellery and it isn't just a symbol of authority either. Putting this on opened up a whole new world to me. The boy you knew learned things…he learned the truth about his life and it killed him in a heartbeat. So here I stand, all that's left. I am what I am, and I feel what I feel…" he trailed off and shook his head, "I can't explain it to you in words, Shel. Every time I try I mess it up. One thing I know is that he's gone, and he isn't coming back…he can't." Etean paused, and sighed, "I know you don't understand it, but I need to know that you can learn to accept it. Do you think you can?"

"No," she shook her head, "because you're still here. I can still see the boy I loved…the boy I will always love, even if you can't." She reached out for him but he stepped back from her. Vash left her hand hanging in the air for several seconds before she lowered it. She shut her eyes and took a breath. Etean turned his back as she started to fasten her robes again. He wasn't prepared for her to say, "She loves you."

Etean turned back to her, surprised, "No," he replied, "she doesn't."

"She's starting to," said Vash, "I saw it in her eyes. I know you see it too, Rob, so don't bother denying it."

Etean paused, "Yes," The look she was giving him nearly destroyed him, he shut his eyes again to avoid it, "I see it."

"Do you love her?"

"I don't know," he answered honestly. "I'm not sure that I can."

Vash shivered and drew her cloak about her. "Will you do something for me then, in that case?"

"What?"

"If you're going to leave her, do it now before she gets in to far over her head," she stood up and walked over to him again, "If you stay with her much longer she will grow to love you…the way I did. And then," she laid a hand on his chest, "when you leave her it will tear her apart inside. Don't do that to her…for me…please."

Etean couldn't speak. His mind retreated from her and his mask came up to take its place. Vash stepped back from him and looked at the door to the Academy, "Is that open?" she asked with a waver in her voice.

"Yes," he found his voice at last.

"Right, I suppose I should report in," she said with forced chirpiness. She lifted his hand and kissed it again before she left.