A/N: Narcissa's my queen. And, um, thank you again guys for all the support you're giving me. I hope you will like this chapter, I had a hard time writing it.

As you will see, I went straight to the end of the year after the Easter part. So a lot of stuff is gonna happen. Be prepared. :D (god I hope you will like it)

Pansy and Draco had stayed in the common room for the rest of the night to talk about more things and just to catch up for the time they had spent not talking to each other. He had explained more things to her about his condition, too. She needed to know, she needed to be informed and he needed to answer her questions. Even if they were tired, they were both feeling better and it's in a good mood that Draco had left the castle the next day. He had missed his home and definitely enjoyed his holidays there. But even once back at Hogwarts, after those holidays, something was stuck in his head. A few things, actually, but this one was probably one of the most important.

During the night spent with Pansy in the common room, he had admitted something out loud for the first time, even if he hadn't directly said it. He had admitted that he liked Hermione more than he should. And during the holidays, he had made his decision. He had had a conversation with his mother and had taken a decision about his fate. Kind of. Because it wasn't working this way. It wasn't so easy to get what he wanted in this case. Which was unusual, but exciting in a way. He never really had to fight for what he wanted, but he knew that it might be a bit different this time. But it was too late to back out, now.

He had written her a letter and he could remember really clearly the conversation he had had with his mother just before that, he could remember clearly what it meant.

It had almost been the end of the holidays when Draco had heard someone knocking on the bathroom door. He had glanced at it as he was putting his black shirt on.

.

"Yeah?"

"Are you done?" He heard his mother ask. As soon as he did, he smiled a little and hurried to button his black shirt, not liking to let his skin too visible. He walked towards the door as he was buttoning his sleeves too. His parents didn't know about the injury on his arm, they just thought he had been attacked by Buckbeak and he had ended up saying that it hadn't left a scar too visible to avoid them looking at his arm.

"Yes, you can come in," he told his mother once he had opened the door. Narcissa walked in the huge bathroom and approached her son, putting a hand on his cheek as she kissed the other.

"How did you sleep?" She asked and he gave her a little smile. It was actually pretty late. Draco hadn't slept well that night because of his dreams and instead of getting up early as always, he had stayed in his bed to try and get some more sleep, which he finally did. Then, he got up and proceeded in having a long bath to try and relax. He was having more nightmares than usual and knew why. He was too anxious, that year, everything that was going on at school was putting a lot of pressure on his shoulders, resulting in bad dreams and tiredness, as well as nervousness.

"Better," he simply said. His mother was starting to put his shirt's collar properly, looking at it, glad that he had been able to calm down.

"The Parkinsons are coming over this evening, would you like your friend Pansy to sleep over?" Narcissa asked as Draco was putting his shirt in his pants. He blinked, not looking at his mother for a second. A week before that day, he wouldn't have said yes. He would have been aggrieved by having Pansy around just for dinner. But that day, he smiled at his mother again.

"That'd be nice, yes," he said, looking at her again. He was still growing up, they were almost the same height already and soon, he would probably be taller.

"How is it going with her? She's a really nice girl," his mother said as she was finally able to meet his eyes. Draco chuckled and shook his head.

"I already told you, Mother, I don't fancy Pansy."

"Too bad you don't, she's a good girl," Narcissa said on a very matter-of-factly tone reminding Draco of Hermione. He quickly made her image go far away from his head as he avoided looking in his mother's eyes.

"But I do not see her like that, she's... You know, my friend. Furthermore, she doesn't fancy me either," he said, not really wanting to talk about it. They already had twice in the past.

"And... Are you interested in anyone?"

"Not really," Draco lied, trying to stay evasive. He knew his mother wouldn't use Legilimency on him but he was still very nervous.

"That's vague," his mother noted, tilting her head a bit.

"Yeah, well, I don't know. It's kind of weird. I don't want to talk about it. Girls are complicated anyway. When they don't cry, they're angry, it's too much pressure for now," he simply said as he tried to smile, walking past his mother to look at himself in the mirror and checking his outfit. "Don't you think I'm too young to find someone anyway?" He asked without really expecting an answer. Narcissa came next to him, crossing her arms. "Anyway, will Father be here tonight?" He quickly added to change the subject. Through the mirror, Narcissa looked at her son for a moment before she softly ran her fingers through his hair to replace them.

"Of course he will," she said, knowing that Draco was craving his presence like he was craving hers. "He will come home late but he will be there."

After a moment during which she kept looking at her son, Narcissa asked, "Would you like to go for a walk?" And after a second, Draco nodded.

.

They were walking outside the manor, Narcissa was holding her son's hand, the other one was around his arm. Draco had always enjoyed these walks, especially when he had a lot on his mind.

"Is it really important that I find someone so soon?" Draco finally asked, looking in front of him. As always, when a subject was bothering him, he was talking about it after giving it some thoughts.

"Not now, you have time for that. But you know, it's still important for you to be around good people already," Narcissa said, looking at her son. Draco pursed his lips. "Is there something bothering you?"

"No, well, not about that. I know how important it is. I know what I have to do. But... It feels like..." He ended up shrugging and his mother looked in front of her again.

"You know that you can tell me anything, don't you?" She asked. Draco looked at his mother, knowing that he could. And at the same time, he knew that he couldn't. Because even if she would listen to everything, she wouldn't approve of everything. And he didn't want to disappoint her. He didn't want to change the way she was looking at him. He didn't want her to stop giving him those rare but warm smiles she was only giving him or his father. He had already changed their lives once, he didn't want to do it again. He didn't want to ruin everything for good.

"It just sounds like... I can't be in a... You know, like it doesn't matter if I love my future wife," he finally sighed. Narcissa didn't laugh nor smiled but she had found those words kind of amusing.

"Of course we want you to be in a love marriage. All we want is for you to be happy," she said. "But you need to fall in love with someone decent."

"No, I know that, of course. I'm just saying, it's..." He couldn't find the words.

"A lot of pressure, isn't it?" Narcissa had asked, knowing the subject pretty well.

"Yeah..." Draco muttered, a bit surprised that she would understand that. He had always been stressed out about talking about that. How would his mother react? But she knew that those were questions he would ask one day. It was something he knew he had to do without knowing the reasons besides the purity of their line. And since he had never asked anything yet, she knew that he would do it one day. Draco was a bit different than the way she had been herself when younger. She had never questioned anything, why would she have? Even when her sister had betrayed her family, she hadn't questioned her punishment. It was just logical for it to happen this way.

But Draco was a curious boy, always had been, always asking questions about everything, always wanting to know reasons behind anything. When he was way younger, he had to ask why his mother wasn't working like his father. Why his father was working so much and why he wasn't home more often. Why he had to learn how to dance for the balls, why his father wasn't smiling much, why he had to eat his vegetables, why people were talking to him like he was a kid, where they had found all their books, how their parents had met. Why his mother loved his father. Why his father loved his mother. Why they loved him. "Did you... Ever thought you would end up in nothing more than... An arranged marriage, if it wasn't for Father?"

Narcissa smiled. It was a bit cold, as she was looking in front of her, thinking about some of the marriages of her family. If she hadn't met Lucius, if she hadn't fallen in love with him, she might have ended up marrying one of her cousins, after all, it wouldn't have mattered if she wanted to or not. But Lucius did appear in her life and caused an avalanche of new feelings. Of true feelings.

"I knew it would happen eventually if I didn't find anyone worthy of marrying me. But with your father pursuing me during most of our school days, I didn't really worry about it."

"Father was pursuing you? Didn't you want to be with him at the time?" Draco asked. One thing he knew for sure was that his parents loved each other. He knew that they had met at Hogwarts and it had always made sense to him that they had just fallen directly in love.

"Let's say that... I liked the attention, I didn't mind making him wait," she explained with a little but sardonic smile. Draco couldn't help but chuckle.

"And he never lost hope?" He asked with a smirk.

"Your father? You know him as well as I do, if he wants something-"

"He gets it," Draco finished her sentence and he chuckled again as his mother smiled at him.

"Exactly. You're like him, for that," she said, pleasing her son. He had a proud little smile on his lips as he tightened his grip on his mother's hand. "Actually, you're a lot more like him than you think," she added, glancing at her son who was already physically reminding her of Lucius when he was younger but with shorter hair. Draco turned his head to look at her and their eyes met. Clearly, his son was asking for more information on the matter. "Well, you sure have my brains, but you two are nonetheless alike. I'm sure you're also a hopeless romantic, just like him, really."

"Right..." Draco said, suddenly a bit skeptical.

"Don't you believe me?"

"Father, a hopeless romantic? It is indeed hard to believe, yes. Are we talking about the same person?" Draco asked, looking at his mother again.

"Please. I will have you know that when he was trying to court me, he did write me a seven pages letter to invite me to a ball," Narcissa said with a proud little smile that Draco had obviously inherited from her the same way he had inherited of her arrogance. But the writing thing, he had it from his father, apparently. Or had they just in common their passion for talking about stuff obsessing them? Draco was able to write endless letters when it came to talk about the Potter boy and what was going on in the castle, like his father was writing endless letters to conquer her heart.

"Are you serious?" Draco asked as he stopped walking.

"I couldn't be more," Narcissa said as she stopped too, facing her son. "And his handwriting is not what you can call big."

Again, Draco chuckled. He was feeling so good at home, he couldn't help but being amused by everything his mother was saying. "And... What did you say?"

"I simply wrote that I wouldn't say yes if he wasn't asking me directly, nothing more, nothing less."

"And did he?"

"He showed up at my door the very next day," Narcissa said as she started to walk again. Draco did too, still holding her hand and still not believing what he was hearing.

"He did not," he articulated, a little smile on his face as he was looking in front of him. It was hard to imagine his father acting this way.

"He did. He asked me out in front of your grandfather, saying that he only did it by letter by fear of having someone else asking me before him."

"So you accepted? I mean, he did what you asked."

"He would have thrown himself from the Astronomy Tower if I had asked him to, it was ridiculous. But coming all the way to ask this in front of my own father... What do you think?"

"That it was pretty brave?" Narcissa looked at him and Draco thought that she was looking strangely amused. At least, he was pretty sure he could see an ounce of amusement in her eyes.

"I didn't talk to him for two entire weeks. Never answered his letters, which he kept sending me, and once at school, I totally ignored him."

"But why?"

"To see if he was that dedicated, what do you think? He never stopped trying to get my attention. When another boy from a good family asked me to the ball in class, I said that I was already going with your father. He couldn't stop bragging after that but I have to say, it was kind of... cute."

"Kind of weird, more like," Draco said as he made a face, frowning a little. This time, Narcissa gave her son that one special smile, that was making him feel warm inside.

"Like I said, you're like him. When you will find the girl you love, you will do anything to have her, no matter what you actually have to do. We will see if it's weird when the time comes. But it is something you still have for now, time. Don't engage yourself in this kind of things too fast," she said, looking in front of her again. Draco glanced at her, not realizing what she wanted to tell him with those words. He couldn't tell that she wanted to keep him for herself a little longer.

"But... Do you think... That whatever I might do... Might not be enough?" Draco asked a bit more quietly, not looking at his mother. But she turned her head, also knowing that it would come up some day. "No one will ever want... You know. I'm not... You know."

"I do not, no," she simply said as she looked in front of her again. Draco blinked but didn't say anything else, feeling good and bad at the same time.

Back in his bedroom, Draco thought a lot about this conversation. He wouldn't do everything he could to have someone. On that, he wasn't like his father, he was sure of it. Or almost certain. If he was, wouldn't he have already acted on what he was beginning to feel for Granger?

No, Draco would wait for a sign telling him he had to do something. If no sign was coming, he wouldn't act on this.

He jumped a little with surprise when he heard his owl knocking against one of his windows with its beak. He pursed his lips. It wasn't a sign, right? It was just a coincidence that he was coming back when he was thinking about writing a letter to Hermione, right? Right.

His owl was coming back after having delivered a letter to Lupin. Draco had felt oddly good when his teacher had asked him to write to him during the holidays, just to let him know how he was doing. Draco had also used this opportunity to ask him about him and Snape. He was still curious about whatever had happened during their school years.

But in front of him, there was this blank piece of parchment and he still had his quill in his hand. He closed his eyes for a few seconds before he sighed and started to write. It didn't mean he was like his father, right? He had told Granger he would write to her when he would have read the book. Well, he was doing as he had said, that was it. Did it really matter if he had finished the book before the beginning of the holidays? Of course not, he just didn't have the chance to talk to her long enough before to discuss the book, that was it.

Or maybe it was because he was ready to take his chances. To try to get closer to her.

Maybe his owl coming back right at that time had been the sign he had been waiting for, hoping for. Knowing that she was staying at Hogwarts for the holidays, he just hoped her stupid friends wouldn't see this letter.

.

And now, back in the castle, a few things were frustrating him. But the Granger thing was the most infuriating for him. Not long ago, she had slapped him. Hard. Full of confidence before, he had felt ridiculous, humiliated in front of his friends. And hated by the girl he liked.

Well, Draco could admit that he had been rather insensitive, but he couldn't act properly when Granger was around.

The day he had written her the letter, he had told Pansy about it. She still didn't think it was really clever but she was kind of curious and had asked what he had told her. Draco had stayed very evasive and he just wondered if she would write back. Pansy, on the other hand, wondered if Granger wasn't just hoping he would write to her in order to make fun of him later with Potter and Weasley. Draco had never thought about that and discovered a new kind of anxiety. So, he had just said that Granger wasn't mean and that if he had to be honest, it sounded more like something Pansy and him would pull out.

Then, they had been talking. She had indeed answered to his letter and even back in the castle, they had discovered that it was way easier to talk to each other this way. Draco was using Hogwarts' owls, just in case anyone would recognize his own owl, and they didn't have to meet in the library to have five minutes to talk.

They were still doing that too, of course. Sometimes, between classes. It was weird, but Draco had tried not to wonder what Hermione was thinking about all of this. They were more comfortable around each other and he wanted to pat himself on the back every time he was making her smile or laugh. But now, things were a bit different, he was angry.

That brainless chicken had attacked him, he didn't care for its fate. It was nice that it got to die and that the oaf was sad, it was his fault anyway. All Draco needed now was for him to be sacked. Draco smirked at the thought of Buckbeak dead and crossed his arms, leaning against the wall next to the door of Snape's office.

How had she dared slap him? He was so angry that he had ranted about it to Pansy once alone with her and after he had made sure his friends wouldn't go and tell people about it. Actually, the more time was passing, the more he was talking about Granger to Pansy. He was sure that he was annoying her, actually, but she had never asked him to stop. Allowing him to talk about her wasn't really helping, since it made it impossible for him to stop thinking about her. Now that he was more or less accepting what he was feeling, it had been easier to accept his thoughts and the way he was acting when around Granger. Like a fool, basically. He couldn't help it. But now, his ego was hurt and he was mad at her.

One of the other things annoying him was the results of that year. Not only his grades had suffered because of his mood and the events, but his House surely wasn't about to win the House Cup and they had lost the Quittidtch final. After a long conversation with Flint regarding Draco's health at the time of the last match, Marcus had made several changes in the team. They had played in the most dirty way they ever had and still lost. Draco was very bitter about this and sometimes, he was catching himself thinking that it was his fault. If he had been in good shape, they wouldn't have had to play that way. And maybe, just maybe, he would have been able to catch that stupid Snitch. Well, at least, unlike the year before, Flint wasn't mad at Draco for not having seen the Snitch first, he knew how exhausted Draco had been during this match. The whole team was annoyed because they had lost, but at least no one had told anything to Draco, knowing that he was sick. He and Pansy were the only ones knowing that he was "sick".

But Draco wasn't kidding himself anyway. Potter was better at Quidditch. Of course he was. Potter was always better at everything, wasn't he? What a joke.

And there was also another thing driving him crazy but he wouldn't say anything to anyone.

Lupin. Why was he so distant lately? He hadn't even answered to his letter during the holidays. Draco had felt really bad and when he had gathered the courage to ask Lupin about it during one of the following cycles; his teacher had looked disrupted by the question and had mumbled an apology.

As if he was sorry.

Draco should have expected this. He was playing with him too, he just wanted him to get attached and then, he would make him suffer. No one was nice, in the end. And they were all wondering why he was so mean with everyone.

"Stupid people... Stupid school..." He mumbled as he started to pace the hallway again. Even Snape wasn't there. But it was important, he had to take his potion. He had to take his potion and go to the Shrieking Shack really soon.

Draco wasn't sure that Lupin's behavior was his fault, though. At least, that's what he was telling himself. He had wanted to talk to him about a few things but Lupin wasn't really talkative lately. He seemed really tired and one time, when Draco had gone to his office, his teacher had looked startled by his arrival and stopped looking at some sort of parchment he had in front of him. When Draco had tried to see what it was, he had discovered that it was blank. He hadn't understood and he hadn't asked anything, he was too annoyed for that and a bit too selfish to really try to discover what was wrong with Lupin.

Of course, he could have asked. He could have asked what was bothering Lupin. Weren't they... Friends? They had to be, at that point. They had got close during that year. So close that Draco could tell it was even bothering Snape. But since nothing was going the way Draco wanted, he had ended up talking more to Snape again. If change was the thing making him suffering, why would he keep the things changing his life around him? What if all he had to do was going back to the life he had before that year? Snape had seemed pleased to see that Draco had finally decided not to go mental again and had welcomed him back in his office and by his side.

So, Draco couldn't understand. Why would Snape let him down now? Draco clenched his jaw, walking towards the door. He hated when things weren't going the way he wanted them to. He put his hand on the doorknob and, surprisingly enough, it opened. Why would Snape leave his office but let it open? He was never letting it open and for once, Draco had knocked and called him so he was sure his professor wasn't in there.

Draco walked in, looked around and sighed. At least, he wasn't avoiding him; Snape really wasn't there. Draco knew what he had to do.

He walked towards one cauldron. A lot of smoke was getting out of it and Draco took a cup before he filled it with the Wolfsbane Potion. Where was Lupin? He had to take his potion too. As he started to drink it, Draco glanced at the clock. He almost choked on the potion as he saw the time. He quickly drank the rest of the disgusting liquid before he put the cup near the cauldron and he left the office in a hurry. What the hell was going on that day? He ran towards the stairs to get out of the dungeons but once upstairs, he had to stop.

"What are you doing here?" Percy called angrily as he saw Draco.

Nice, just what Draco needed. He was panting and he glanced at the big door. Should he make a run for it? Probably not. He didn't even have his wand with him. He usually had it with him all the time but not when he was going to turn. What if he was breaking it by accident or something? Percy walked fast towards Draco who took the most contemptuous look he could, given the situation.

"You're not supposed to run around the castle at this time of the day. Where are you going?" He asked. It was quite late, even if it wasn't the night yet. Still, the moon would show up soon, the sky would be dark even sooner. They just had to stay locked in their common room after the feasts lately, because of Sirius Black.

"None of your business, Weasley," Draco said very coldly. Percy didn't look impressed.

"Right, that's what we're going to see," he said. "Let's go see your Head of House, why don't we?"

"Maybe because he's not there," Draco said vehemently. He didn't mind taking it out on Peter or whatever his name was, even if he hadn't done anything to him, he was a Weasley anyway. Merlin, that's why he needed Snape with him, he couldn't wander around the castle alone, especially lately.

"We're still going to see if he's really not there. Just in case, you know," Percy said, not believing him at all. Draco clenched his teeth and his fists. If only he could punch him right in the face. He felt Percy's fingers gripping his shirt just above his elbow and he started to walk towards the stairs.

"I can walk by myself, I'm not a child, let go of me," Draco said angrily as he pulled his arm, but Percy wouldn't let go.

"So you can run away? Don't even try, Malfoy," Percy said. Draco chuckled. Fantastic. Everything was fantastic that evening. He was hoping it was just a big joke. He wanted to hit Percy. He wanted to laugh and to cry at the same time.

He also wanted to scream.

They arrived in front of Snape's office, which Draco had left open. He hadn't minded, at the time, he hadn't even thought about it. Now, he regretted it because Percy would go in and not just knock, which meant he would waste even more time there. Nervous, Draco was forced to follow him in the room. Weasley wouldn't let go of him and he glanced at him as Percy was looking around the office after having knocked uselessly on the opened door.

"Told you," Draco said. He would be smiling victoriously if he wasn't so nervous. Percy glared at him and turned around, still holding Draco. He had always thought the Weasley's were good for nothing but it was the first time he was really glad about this judgment. Draco would always consider Percy's lack of attention to detail at that very moment as one of his best qualities. He hadn't noticed the Wolfsbane Potion at all. He was probably too happy to have to bring Draco to his Head of House to pay attention to anything, really.

"Well then, we're just going to go see what Professor McGonagall has to say about this," Percy said, clearly trying not to grin.

"Don't worry, I'm not afraid of what McGonagall's going to say," Draco said, knowing it would annoy Percy. Actually, he was more worried about turning right in the middle of the castle. But he knew he wouldn't be in trouble for his little nocturnal walk. When it came to that, McGonagall was understanding. Too bad he couldn't tell it to Percy, too bad he couldn't just brag about it. Surely, Percy wouldn't feel so good if he knew what might happen if he kept pulling Draco around the castle.

"It's Professor McGonagall for you," Percy said coldly. Draco could hear the note of enjoyment in his voice regardless his coldness. Draco mimicked him silently before he rolled his eyes, tired of Percy.

And of course, they had to go to the third-floor. Of course, she wouldn't be closer, now, she had to be so far away from the front doors. It seemed like she was still in Class 34, one of the classes where Draco had been learning Transfiguration during his first year in this school. He was almost walking faster than Percy who was still holding his shirt tightly between his fingers. But again, Percy didn't seem to notice that. He was probably savoring the punishment Draco would have even before he had it. But Draco still wasn't worried about that.

Finally, they stopped in front of the classroom and Percy knocked. When they both heard "come in", Percy opened the door and walked in the room. McGonagall didn't look up from the essays she was apparently marking.

"Professor McGonagall, I am truly sorry for bothering you but I found this third-year student running around while I was finishing my round," he said. McGonagall looked up at once and as soon as she saw Draco, she stood up. Draco was looking as annoyed as ever. His jaw was clenched hard and he tried to pull his arm again. Percy just kept on going, "Knowing the danger we are all in these days, I thought it would only be proper to bring him to you, since Professor Snape is not in his office."

"Why isn't he there?" Their professor asked. Draco met her eyes and knew that she was asking him to answer, not Percy. But the Head Boy talked anyway.

"I don't know, Professor, and Malfoy refuses to tell me what he is doing wandering in the castle at this inappropriate time," he said, totally oblivious.

Draco would have laughed if the situation wasn't so dramatic.

"Um- You did well, Mr. Weasley," she said before she waved to tell him he could leave. "I will take care of this, you can go," she said.

"Are you sure, Professor? I can wait to walk him back to his common room," he said, not wanting to bother his professor with this kind of inconvenience. Draco thought that he was taking himself too seriously since he was a prefect and wondered who the hell genuinely thought he would make a good Head Boy. He really hated him. He was very nervous and kept staring at his teacher, hoping she would be able to make him leave.

"Mr. Weasley, if I say that I will take care of this," McGonagall began to say a bit more coldly, finally not looking at Draco anymore but slowly drifting her gaze towards Percy, "It means that I will take care of this."

"Sure, I'm sorry," Percy said as he finally let go of Draco. This one looked at Percy and couldn't help but smirk as the Head Boy had to leave. Once the door was closed, he lost his smile and looked at his teacher again.

"What on earth are you still doing in the castle?" She articulated, totally dumbfounded as she walked around her desk to face Draco.

"I would be long gone if this cretin hadn't seen me leaving," Draco said, probably a bit too aggressively. He couldn't help but be this way that day. He was exhausted, feeling sick and nervous. He was also angry because of Weasley. Seeing his teacher's look, he looked away as he clenched his jaw once again, feeling like he was about to throw up. "I was waiting for Professor Snape. He's... I don't know where he is," he just said.

"Did you take your potion?" His professor asked, genuinely concerned. Draco nodded.

"His door was opened, I went in and drank it," he shortly explained.

"Well then, I think it's time for you to go," she said as she put a hand on his shoulder, leading him towards the door. "Do you have any idea what time it is?" She asked. Draco had never heard her voice sound like this. He knew why she was nervous, or worried, or whatever she was. He might be turning in a few minutes, or in an hour, who knew? They couldn't see the moon from where they were, but it wouldn't be long before it would show.

"Of course, that's why I was "running around the castle" ", he said, imitating Percy. He only got a nasty stare from his teacher and he shook his head, getting out of the classroom with her. They started to walk down the stairs.

"Do you know where he is?" Draco asked, a bit concerned. McGonagall knew he was talking about Snape. "He never missed..." He mumbled, not finishing his sentence. Again, his teacher took her time to look at him, knowing what he truly meant by that. He had never left Draco alone for a cycle before, and clearly, her student was hurt but didn't want to show it to her.

"I don't know, but you did good by going in anyway," she said as they arrived on the first floor. Soon, he would be free.

"Professor Lupin-" Draco began. "I- He wasn't- I didn't see him either," he said. His teacher didn't stop walking fast but she glanced at him.

"What do you mean?"

"We usually take it at the same time, but he wasn't there, I don't know where they are, I don't think..." Draco stopped talking and walking. They had arrived in front of the big doors and he looked at his teacher. "I don't think he took his potion. He has to, it's... Do you know where he is?" Draco asked. McGonagall pursed her lips but shook her head.

"I do not," she said calmly. Draco looked down.

"Anyway, I..." He said before he looked outside. He didn't feel like thanking her. He shook his head and, noticing how dark it was already, he only glanced at her, briefly meeting her eyes before he walked out of the castle. His teacher stared at him as he was walking fast, his fists clenched.

Once he was sure she wasn't able to see him anymore, he started to run. He was so afraid, he still had to walk, or more like to run, all the way to the Shrieking Shack, he didn't want to turn in the passage. His heart was beating fast but he could see the Whomping Willow already. Luckily, it would be all over soon. His fear would go away, no one would be in any danger. Luckily, when he would emerge from the passage, he would find Lupin waiting for him. He would reassure him. Because if Draco had to be honest, he wasn't only afraid for himself.

Lupin probably hadn't taken his potion that night. Draco knew that the potion was helping a lot, even just for the pain they were having during the transformation. It was still extremely painful but it was way worse without the potion. Not that Draco knew how terrible it must been, he had always had Snape by his side to make it for him. Plus, Lupin would be out of control. The thought of turning around and run even faster to see if Lupin wasn't in his office crossed his mind but he pushed it away quickly. He wouldn't have the time. He would never have the time.

What if Lupin had been so exhausted that he had fallen asleep there? Draco could easily see that happening, he was tired himself, he didn't feel like running but the fear was making his body work. The adrenaline was keeping him even more awake than he usually was after a long and good night of sleep.

If he had to be true to himself, he'd say he was worrying sick for Lupin.

He was surprised, once he reached the tree. He stopped running, panting, apparently surprising Snape too.

"Draco-!" His teacher let out. He was apparently about to enter in the passage. What was he doing? Draco felt the anger taking control of his body again.

"What are you doing here? Why are you going down there?" He asked, not able to keep his voice down.

"Calm down, Draco," Snape said as he faced his student.

"Calm down?" Draco repeated. "Calm down? I was waiting for you, I thought I wouldn't even be able to take the- I thought you wouldn't show up, that- And you want me to calm down?" He said, indignant.

"Listen to me," Snape said in a rather strict tone, "You cannot go in there tonight."

Draco didn't know what to say. He did open his mouth but no sound came out. So he closed it. Opened it again, looked at the tree, and closed it again as he met his professor's eyes.

"Not tonight," Snape said calmly, seeing that the news had struck Draco enough for him not to lash out anymore.

"What am I supposed to do?" Draco asked quickly and desperately, not able to hide the note of panic in his voice.

"You need to go in the Forest, Draco, not in there."

"But Dum-"

"I'll tell him why I made you go there, I promise. But you need to go in the Forest and... And to run as far away as you can," Snape said. He sounded really calm, given the situation. Draco still didn't know why he couldn't go in the Shrieking Shack but with that demand, the thought of asking didn't even cross his mind.

"But..." Draco tried again. He still sounded desperate and he glanced at the tree before he met Snape's eyes again. "What if I get too far and don't find my way back tomorrow? What if something comes for me?" He had always been very uncomfortable when it came to the Forest. He knew a lot of different creatures were living there. In his human form, he might be attacked.

He was terrified.

Snape knew it and walked towards Draco.

"I'll come and find you first thing tomorrow, I promise you. You just find a safe place," Snape said. Draco gritted his teeth and glanced at the tree again. "Now, Draco. Run."

Draco looked away during a few seconds before, still gritting his teeth, he met Snape's eyes one more time, one last time. If he hadn't been so afraid, he would have been able to detect the little glow of torment in them. In the end, Draco walked past his professor before he started to run again, Snape staring at him.

Soon, Draco reached the trees of the Forest and found himself running between them. He was panting, it was even darker than before. The trees were getting bigger and the air smacking his face was getting cooler. He was pushing really thin branches out of his way, some of them hitting his face and other his hands as he was approaching a deeper part of the Forest. Still running, he loosened his tie before totally removing it, throwing it away. He didn't care. He didn't care about his clothes anymore. He didn't care about anything anymore. He almost ran straight into a tree because it was so dark.

To keep moving forwards, he hopped as he removed a first shoe and then his sock, before he did the same with the other foot, actually hurting the first one. But he couldn't care less, he began to run again, as he tried to unbutton his shirt, his shaking hands really not helping him. He didn't want to turn. He didn't want to turn there and most of all, he didn't want to turn alone. Not again. Not after all those months spent with Lupin. He didn't want to.

He didn't know for how long he had been running, he didn't know if he was far enough, he was feeling like he was running very slowly. Maybe it was because he was exhausted. He was feeling bad, a bit dizzy and his hands were shaking. He stopped, panting, and leaned against a tree as he tried to breath properly. His lungs were burning every time he was filling them with air and he coughed as he bent forwards, his hands on his knees. His sweat was rolling down his temples and his neck. He finally totally unbuttoned his shirt and removed it. He couldn't see the moon because of the huge trees around, it was really dark and he was totally lost. He tried to look around and he jumped a little with surprise when he heard a snap, like someone or something had stepped on a branch. He looked down, moving backwards. It was only himself. He couldn't even feel the pain in his foot, he couldn't feel anything, he was cold and afraid. What if something was lurking for him? He looked around as he thought that he had heard something. Was he really that far into the Forest? It didn't seem so. What if he had just turned at some point and came back near the castle without even noticing it?

He started to walk, hoping he was actually getting deeper in the forest. He was often resting his hands against the trees as he was looking around. He could make out the different shapes around him and that's when he noticed that the moonlight was somehow getting through the foliage. There were only a few rays of light coming through and lighting some spots on the ground, but the moon was definitely there. The moon was up and Draco suddenly felt even more bad.

He felt a soaring pain in his stomach. His vision became way better in the darkness as his pupils were dilating. He could see the trees' roots getting out of the ground, he could see the soil he had been walking on, he could see the moss covering some parts of the trees' bark. He could hear the sound of the wind getting through the leafs of the trees, when the fear had been making him deaf a minute before. He could hear himself scream as the pain became unbearable. He wasn't thinking about Lupin anymore. He wasn't thinking about Snape, about Granger, about where the castle was, about where he was. He wasn't thinking about anything anymore, he just needed to run and let all of his rage get out of him.

A shower of new smells reached his nose. Animals, creatures, soil, tree, fresh air, everything was going through his snout. Even the smell of a Hippogriff. Even the smell of humans, close enough for him to smell. Two humans were in the Forest.

His howl echoed in the Forest and he started to run through the trees again.