Author's Note: I was convinced by reviews (and my own curiosity of the DP ship) to turn my one-shot into a chapter story. Thanks for the inspiration. This story will not be divided into chapters but short segments. It may be terribly long or horribly short. Thanks for your time—here's hoping for a review.

The hell that lurked beneath the surface broke loose the night Pansy told Draco goodbye. Pansy wanted to see him again, to touch that icy skin and prove that he was alive. Most of all, she wanted to hold him. It was selfish to want him to return when he was in so much trouble here, but she couldn't help it—every moment without him brought her pain.

She had waited for him for so long that every gruesome thought imaginable had passed through her head. Memories mixed with nightmare when she refused to close her eyes. Pansy remembered the summer after their first year at Hogwarts. The Malfoys had visited the Parkinsons at their Spanish coastal estate for a weekend retreat. Pansy and Draco had walked side by side with sand between their toes for the first time and experienced the awkwardness of having nothing to talk about for the first time as well. Draco was so young, a short snarky brat.

Pansy smiled to herself, not much had changed other than his height.

At that age, Draco had not considered her as someone of the opposite sex but another ally that he could brag to. He was in the middle of spilling an outlandish lie about a baby dragon when he began to climb a tall stone barrier. The wall was huge, at least twice the size of a tall man, and Pansy refused to join him. She watched from the ground, a hand above her eyes to shield her already blistered cheeks from the sun. He continued to shout down to her as he scaled the barrier, one brick at a time. Pansy nodded, adding a few spiteful comments in agreement with Draco's views on the Golden Boy, Harry Potter.

A moment later Draco had fallen, his fingers clawing for nothing, mouth hanging open in surprise. Pansy didn't scream; she couldn't move. The only sound was a dull thump as he hit the ground. He broke a bone in his arm, and a few hours later, he was healed, right as rain. But Pansy could remember that faint moment of panic, and it scared her because she had felt it all night long, since she muttered goodbye to the man she cared for most. In her mind, she saw Draco falling, except he was older, and he didn't try to catch himself. And when she leaned over him, his eyes were open, unblinking.

Tears poured down her face, and she told herself that her hormones were causing her to think this way. Yes, she thought, it's just the baby that's worrying me. She continued the mantra for hours. She didn't move from the closet until the sun was high overhead. When she did, the school was quiet, but terribly chaotic. She resisted the urge to clutch her bag to her chest and lower her head. People moved in and out around her, parents taking their children away and casting evil, suspicious glares at the faculty and remaining students. There was a low, steady whisper in the air that hurt her ears. Everyone had something to say, but none said it loud enough for her to hear. She walked amongst them, as if nothing in the world mattered. She could feel her bottom lip shaking, and she bit it painfully to keep herself alert.

"Pansy?"

She turned. Millicent stood behind her, a look of shock on her pudgy face.

"You're still here?" she asked.

Pansy took a breath between her teeth. Still here? As in, why didn't I leave with Draco . . . . "Don't ask foolish questions, Mill."

The other girl continued. "I didn't even have to owl my parents—they're on their way. I don't think you should stay either. The Slytherin common room is almost empty." Millicent leaned forward. "The Ministry will probably be questioning those that are still here. If they find out that you and Draco had a fling. . ."

Pansy's pale face flushed and her fingers curled into fists at her side. "A fling?" she asked through gritted teeth.

"Well, yes," Millicent mumbled. "You two were never 'that' serious, were you? It was just a physical attraction, just like it was when you were with Blaise, right?"

"If you don't know the answer to that, than it is obviously none of your business," Pansy hissed. "Now, you find your parents and run away. If the Ministry asks me any questions, I'll just tell them the truth. I was in the opposite side of the castle, screwing the brains out of a Ravenclaw prefect."

Millicent blushed, a small, embarrassed smile on her face. "Very well, but you should be owling your parents. I haven't seen them here."

Pansy smirked, raising her chin haughtily. "I think I will. I don't think I can take the smell of all these pouting mudbloods out in the corridors. Do me a favor and do not mail me this summer; I do believe my family will be monitored after this fiasco. Excuse me."

Pansy walked past her, barely registering the lies she had so smoothly given. She was indeed going to mail her parents immediately, to tell them that she was going to be staying at Millicent's home until the rush died down. Another lie. Pansy wondered if she would ever be able to tell the truth again. She glanced over her shoulder at a retreating Millicent. The girl had honestly been no help. Pansy had a least expected to learn who had died, but she could not risk asking the question outright. It was then that her ears caught a conversation going on between two paintings. A rather odd looking witch was blowing her nose in the first painting, tears streaming down her face.

She listened as the painting managed to blubber to her neighbor. "He…" The witch sniffed, wetly. "He was the . . . the v-very best H-headmaster. I remember when I was. . .a, a student, our. . . H-headmaster n-never. . . ."

Realization struck like a delayed toiling of the bell. Dumbledore. Dead. Draco did it . . . Oh, Merlin, I can't believe it. Pansy took a shallow breath, dizziness sweeping over her. Her vision doubled for a short moment and her toe caught a step. She stumbled, catching to the banister and putting her weight on it. Her lungs seemed to shake as she gasped, and she felt tears rise. No! she screamed at herself. Don't let them see you so weak!

"Are you alright?"

Someone's hand was on her arm, helping her up. She threw up her free hand to wipe at her eyes. Without daring a glance at the person who had helped her, she shrugged off the aid, pushing herself up the stairs. "I don't need any help," she grunted.

Her pace quickened until she'd arrived at the next floor. She rushed into the first room she came to, an empty classroom as was her luck. She pulled herself a seat and found an abandoned scrap of parchment. She wrote lies to her family to save herself, to keep them from coming. She only hoped it would stop them from arriving at the school. Thankfully they weren't the kind of 'rents who felt the need to check up on their child very often. She folded the letter gently. If she did this, if she lied to them, she would never be welcomed freely back into her home. But it had been Draco's will. It was the only choice she was left with if she wanted to keep his child. Pansy stood and walked out the classroom in the direction of the owlery.