Hermione was ashamed as she, Harry, Ron, and Malfoy were marched through the halls of Hogwarts behind Filch. Not once had she received a detention, even back when she attended her old school. Whether it was because it was her first year to prove herself as a worthy witch, or simply the fact that Hermione Granger did not receive detentions, she was ashamed to be walking with the group down towards Hagrid's.

Although she felt like dissolving into a puddle, Hermione kept her head held high as they made their way out the main set of doors leading down to the edge of the forest, or more so, Hagrid's hut. Filch had already made it clear to them who they would be spending their evening with, as well as filling their utmost curiosity with tales of the old punishments given at Hogwarts. More than once, Hermione refrained from letting her dinner come up into her mouth. The caretaker certainly had an odd sense of "fun" and "amusement".

Trekking down the sloping hillside, Hermione could spot the flickering fire outside of Hagrid's hut, illuminating the half-giant and question as he stared into the flames, a somber expression across his face. The closer they came, and when Filch's story about apparently hanging children by their thumbs in the dungeons (which Hermione found incredibly disturbing) drifted far enough for him to hear, he quickly hoisted himself to his feet and gave a loud sniff.

"You'll be serving detention with Hagrid tonight," Filch reminded the trio and Malfoy for the hundredth time that night. Hermione almost released a sigh, but Filch finished his statement before she could. "He's got a little job to do - inside the dark forest."

She felt her face pale at the small and twisted grin that spread across his face. Although Hagrid had been a reasonable person they would be serving detention with seeing as they were the ones to get him into trouble in the first place, Hermione had vaguely wondered beforehand what Hagrid could have in store for them. As her eyes trailed over the crossbow that Hagrid hoisted up into his arms, she swallowed back her sudden array of nerves and a hint of fear. Obviously whatever it was, it wasn't anything good.

"Sorry lot you've got tonight, Hagrid," Filch exclaimed, his lantern swinging out to the side as he gestured towards the group. When Hagrid made no reply, and barely even acknowledged them to begin with, Hermione caught sight of Filch's eye roll. "Oh Merlin, man, you're not still on about that little bloody dragon are you?"

Once again, Hagrid gave no reply. The glare he sent Filch's way, on the other hand, was enough of an answer as it was. Suddenly confused at his words, Hermione looked over her shoulder at Ron and Harry, both of whom were exchanging uneasy looks with each other. Their fellow classmate joining them seemed rather focused on the fire, trying to force back the smug smile she could tell he was just itching to show. She clenched her jaw and her eyes narrowed, willing her mind to knock the stupid smirk off of Malfoy's face. She had begun reading up on a few different types of magic in her free time, one of which involved turning the one unfortunate person of whoever the spell may have been cast to into the desired animal. Hermione could easily see Malfoy as a snake, or perhaps even a ferret…

"Norbert's gone," Hagrid sniffed, snapping Hermione's attention back to him. Her sudden annoyance with the blonde beside her was replaced with an overbearing sense of pity, and some of which she was sure was a nice combination of guilt. "Dumbledore sent 'im off ter Romania ter live in a colony."

Racking her brain for something that could console him in the least, Hermione asked, "Well, that's alright, isn't it? He'll be able to spend time around other dragons, and be with his own kind!"

"Yeah, but what if he don't like Romania?" Hagrid shot back, clearly on the brink of tears again. "Wha' if the other dragons are mean ter 'im? He's jus a baby, and - "

"Oh for Merlin's sake, man, pull yourself together!" Filch snapped, cutting Hagrid off from his rambling. He sneered in clear disdain of Hagrid's haggard state of getting so worked up over a simple creature, and Hermione had the overbearing urge to pipe in for Hagrid's defense. Once again, Filch beat her to it. "That bloody dragon won't be needing you blubbering over him anymore, will he? Besides, you're going into the forest! Got to have your wits about you…"

Filch trailed off and rose one crooked eyebrow in Hagrid's direction, daring him to fire back. Beneath his beard, Hermione could see Hagrid's jaw clench in retaliation, but he settled for turning back to his supplies and finishing with what he needed.

"The forest?" Malfoy asked beside her, a sneer pulling back the corner of his lip. "I thought that was a joke!"

"Don't look like a joke anymore, does it?" Filch asked, the same sickly amusement dripping from his croaked voice.

"Well, we can't go in there!" Malfoy fired back again. "Students aren't allowed, after all."

Hermione barely refrained from letting her jaw drop. Here Malfoy was talking about following the school rules when he was the one to land them in detention in the first place. Not to mention the countless other things she had witnessed him do first hand this year that showed perfectly clear what Malfoy thought of the very rules set for Hogwarts.

"And there are - well, you know - " Malfoy's light sputtering was cut off by an all too perfectly timed howl in the distance. Hermione briefly looked towards the forest edge, her eyes wandering over every dark curve, corner, and shadow. There was no doubt there were things in the forest that were ready to punce and devour the first thing in sight. Even with four wands, a crossbow, a few extra weapons she probably hadn't yet seen, and the mighty Fang that clambered down the hut steps and over to Hagrid, a sinking feeling began making its way into her stomach.

"There's more than werewolves in those trees, lad. I can assure you of that," Filch replied in a chilling mutter. The smirk that curled his lips to reveal his gnarled and yellowing teeth when Malfoy cast a worried glance at the forest curled Hermione's stomach in further, threatening to overspill her dinner for that night. "Nighty night, then."

With that, Hermione moved aside as Filch's lantern swung out and barely missed her head as he turned on the spot and began making his way back towards the castle. It left the remaining group in silence for a moment because Hagrid released a determined grunt.

"Right," he started, clearing his throat again and blinking back what remaining tears were threatening to fall. "Let's go."

Without much more than that for a warning, Hagrid turned his back on them and began walking towards the forest edge. Looking back over again to see that Harry and Ron were just as reluctant to follow as Malfoy was at trying to conceal his worry and fear, Hermione was the first to follow in Hagrid's footsteps. Nothing but the swaying branches filled the silence between the group, along with Fang's quiet grunts and staggered panting.

It was like walking into another world all together. Following so close behind Hagrid she could have grabbed his fur coat, Hermione took in what she could around her as she tried to even out her heartbeat. The deeper they went into the forest, the more eyes it seemed were watching her every move. Every tree branch hanging over the disgruntled pathway seemed like fingers ready to snatch her up. Every uprooted tree seemed like another thing to trip her on her way out for a quick escape. Every sound, hoot, howl, scurry seemed like it was coming for her. She didn't check to see how the others were doing behind her, and the sensible part of her mind told her she was simply overreacting. Her heart, on the other hand, she was sure was going to leap right out of her chest.

As the minutes ticked by, and Hagrid's dim lantern was the only light leading their way through the trees and shrubs, Hermione began genuinely wondering what it was they were here for in the first place. What business could four first years and a keeper of keys have in the middle of the Forbidden Forest in the late hours of the night? A simple answer would be nothing. But as Hermione had learned since the moment an owl landed on her window sill informing her that she was a witch, her time at Hogwarts would be anything but simple.

After her feet finally began to ache from the many crevices in the path she had missed to notice, Hagrid finally stepped out into a small clearing. In front of gnarled bush with climbing and bare branches that disappeared into the dark trees surrounding them, Hagrid bent down over his lantern and appeared to be inspecting something. Her brow furrowing in confusion, she turned to look at Ron and Harry for an explanation. The two already seemed to be distracted with figuring it out for themselves, and her eyes unceremoniously traveled to the only other person she could look towards.

The very moment Hermione's eyes drifted over to Malfoy in confusion, his silver ones snapped over to her. In the shaded light and dark surroundings, they stood out like moon-light over a lake of still water. The fact in itself that she thought that was bad enough, but her shrugging in confusion as his pale brows furrowed with hers just seemed out of place. Turning away from him, she watched as Hagrid got back to his feet with nothing in his hands.

More so, something on his fingers.

"Hagrid, what is that?" Harry asked, eying the liquid coating his hands.

A silver and thick liquid dripped down to the forest floor as Hagrid held it up for them to see. Hermione could have guessed it was almost some sort of melted down reflective metal, but the shimmery and star-like look to it seemed entirely unnatural.

"Exactly wha' we're here fer," Hagrid explained in a low voice. "See tha'? Tha''s unicorn blood. Beau'iful creatures they are, unicorns. One o' the purest creatures there are. Apparently, summat in here don' think so."

Hermione could hear her pulse in her ears as a shiver ran up her spine. Something felt so very off about where they were in the forest. Something was watching, and it wasn't just from the worried glances past around the group.

"I found one dead a few weeks ago," Hagrid continued, a slightly pained expression crossing his face at the memory. It was quickly looked over with determination, one which Hermione had to admire. "Now, this one's bin hurt bad by summat."

Hagrid cut off his sentence as another howl echoed across the trees. His eyes wandered to their surroundings, and Hermione couldn't help but follow his gaze. The hairs on the back of her neck were practically standing up on static point. A rustle here, a distant shift of leaves there.

They certainly weren't alone.

"So," Hagrid started again, slowly looking back over each of them. "It's our job to go and find the poor beast. It'll be easier to cover more ground if we split up, so stay close if you can, and just be on the lookout for the lanterns."

"Ron, Harry, yeh two will come with me," Hagrid exclaimed, gesturing to the two of them. Hermione glanced over at the two hoping to give them a hopeful smile, but Harry was transfixed on the edge of the clearing and Ron's face had gone so pale it nearly matched Malfoy's eyes.

"Ok," Ron croaked out, his swallow audible from across the clearing.

"An', Hermione...yeh'll go with Malfoy," Hagrid finished, his nod firm as his hold tightened around his crossbow. Hermione nodded as she glanced towards the blonde out of the corner of her eye. His shoulders were slumped and a deep scowl had taken over his face. She refrained from rolling her eyes as she turned to look at Hagrid again.

"Fine, then we get Fang!" Malfoy snapped, his snarky comment clearly trying to inflict some blow across Hagrid. Hermione was satisfied when he didn't even flinch and clucked his tongue lightly in an almost amused way.

"Alright then," he exclaimed. "Then jus so's yeh know, he's a bloody coward."

Hermione could have slapped Malfoy with how quickly the smug look slipped off his face. Fang let out a low whine just as confirmation, and Malfoy's face paled considerably more than she could have expected. She, once again, barely refrained from holding back a smug expression of her own.

Patting the side of her leg, Fang slowly made his way over to the two as Hagrid handed a spare lantern over to Malfoy. He took it as if he were holding a bug, and Hermione didn't try to hide her eye roll. Hagrid didn't miss it.

"Hermione," he whispered, calling her over to his side. Lowering his voice so only the two of them could hear, he asked, "If Malfoy is the bugger tha' he is out there, yeh can always come an' find us if yeh'd like. 's easier sometimes ter cover more ground, but if he's goin' ter be a bloody prat 'n I'd rather jus - "

"Don't worry, Hagrid, I can handle Malfoy," Hermione whispered back with a reassuring smile that she couldn't even fake for herself. "He's not the only self-centered boy I've ever met. Frankly, I'm not quite sure yet if he's the worst."

Hagrid gave a small chuckle and nodded his head, a wide smile beaming beneath the tangles of his beard. "Righ' then, off yeh go," he said, gesturing to one of the off paths from the clearing. "The forest is no joke, an' i trust yeh enough ter know yeh're not silly enough ter touch summat tha' looks good enough. If yeh happen ter find the poor beast out there, shoot up some sparks an' we'll be there quick as a snitch!"

Giving him a final determined nod, Hermione took a steadying breath as her heart began picking up its pace again. She watched as Harry and Ron followed close behind Hagrid and the three weaved in and out of the trees. Only Fang's low groan of fear snapped her back to her senses. Deep breath in, deep breath out.

"Well, are you coming or not?" Malfoy snapped, waving the lantern towards the trees. Now without Hagrid there to nit-pick him if he stepped out of line, she expected as much to come from Malfoy and his snarky remarks.

"Which way then?" Hermione returned, trying her best to keep her voice even and civil, rather than drip with sarcasm as she so desperately wanted to do.

"Might as well head off the opposite way they went," Malfoy sneered, gesturing towards the other maze of trees to their left. Even with his lips pulled back into a sneer, she could see the flicker of fear behind his eyes. "The farther we get from that oaf, the better."

"Don't call Hagrid that!" Hermione snapped. Her tone was sharp and to-the-point, causing even Malfoy to look momentarily off guard. It was a quick fracture in his indifferent mask, and he quickly amended it by rolling his eyes. One hand resting on Fang's head rubbing gentle circles, and the other fidgeting away with the side of her robe, Hermione released another slow sigh. "Look Malfoy, I don't want to be out here any longer than you do. The best thing we can do is to just find this creature, get it the help it needs, and then be done for the night. But if you go slinging insults at Hagrid again, I promise, I'll find some way to push you into an empty ditch in Merlin even-knows-where we are!"

Malfoy cocked one pale eyebrow at her, and his sneer pulled down into a mastered indifference. She wasn't sure which set herself more on edge. "Mighty high coming from a Gryffindor," he finally scoffed. "We could be finding that thing if you weren't standing here wasting more time, Granger."

"The feeling is mutual, Malfoy," Hermione muttered under her breath, making sure it was quiet enough for him not to hear. Gesturing with her hand, she waited for Malfoy to reluctantly join her side as the path illuminated itself in a new given light. Covered with rotting shrubs and twigs, Hermione felt another uncomforting shiver run down her back. This was going to turn into a long night.

Making their way forward, Hermione and Malfoy set off forward down the uncharted walkway. She forced herself not to jump at every snapping twig or scuttle in the trees around them, but on more than once occasion, Hermione caught a glance of both herself and Malfoy jumping at a sudden noise or distant howl. She was usually so comfortable in different territories. They were something to be explored, to be studied, and something she could learn and experience.

At the moment, she was sure there were things in the forest that were eager to learn and experience exactly what her bones and flesh would taste like.

As the minutes ticked by in silence, Malfoy's insistent and quiet mutterings became much more easy to decipher.

"I can't believe this," she caught him mumbling as he glanced around through the lantern light again. "Just wait until my father hears about this. Honestly, this is just servant stuff!"

"If I didn't know any better, I would say you were scared, Malfoy," Hermione cut in, having had enough of his complaints for one evening.

"Scared?" Malfoy scrunched his nose in disgust and rolled his eyes. "I'm not scared, Granger."

Something accustomed to a low moan rang out from around them, echoing off the trees from a distant creature awaiting them in the darkness. Beside her, Malfoy stiffened significantly as his silver eyes darted to every available spot. "Did you hear that?" he whispered.

Hermione only gave him a small nod. Next to her hand, she felt Fang nudge it in silent condolence. Although the poor pup was shaking, it was a small comfort to know she wasn't the only one, beside the boy who had been keen on making Harry, Ron, and a bit of her own life miserable since the moment they stepped into the castle of Hogwarts, who's nerves were on edge.

"We should keep moving," she stated, trying to make her voice as even as possible, this time out of fear. "The longer we're in one spot the more time we waste."

It was Malfoy's turn now to nod, and he took the first steps forward, lighting up more of the trail for them to see. The two continued forward through the rounded swoops and dips of the trail, around and through a few shrubs and underbrushes, and even across a thin stream at some point. What worried Hermione most was the fact that she was mostly following a dog blind into a forest that could swallow her with one bite. It seemed Malfoy had the same idea as the two remained engulfed in silence.

What felt like an eternity later, a divot in a cleared area was surrounded by deep and overbearing roots protruding out of the ground from all sides. While she wanted to be out of the forest as quickly as she could, Hermione was in need of a slight break. Although she and Mr. Granger did enjoy their summers with a bit of hiking, those trails certainly had not prepared her for the ride of the Forbidden Forest. She could feel her heels burning and soles of her feet ached with a slow and growing pressure.

Tramping down the slope, Hermione's eyes were more focused on not tripping and tumbling down through the vein pattern of tree roots. Malfoy followed close behind with the lantern, though he wasn't much help when it came to giving them both of much needed light to see. Relying solely on her own eyes, Hermione jumped down into the clearing, brushing off her hands on the side of her robes and mildly satisfied of her small accomplishment.

Glancing back to see Malfoy nearly tripping over a root on his way down, he quickly amended his mistake by wiping his hands off as if he were covered with disgusting germs. Hermione couldn't help but roll her eyes again.

It took her a moment to realize Fang was no longer by her side, rather standing behind her as a deep growl emitted from his throat.

Turning to face the pup, Hermione furrowed her eyes in confusion as Malfoy came to stand next to her with the lantern.

"Fang, what is it?"

"Granger…"

Hermione's head snapped up to Malfoy. She had never heard her name from him sound so quiet or so weak. He wasn't looking at her, rather at something up ahead. If she thought he had looked pale before, it was nothing compared to now. His face could have matched the moon and his eyes the stars.

Following his gaze over Fang, Hermione felt every muscle in her body freeze as her heart skipped a beat.

Up ahead and hunched over the frame of a still unicorn, it's eyes still wide and unmoving from a dreaded fate, a cloaked figure seemed to be making a fair time of the unicorn's neck. Splattered around her were spots of silver, glimmering against what little light there was to begin with.

Fang's growl grew louder as he took a step back, knocking into Hermione. She barely registered the bark that escaped him as her eyes widened with fear. The cloaked figure slowly rose its face away from the unicorn and turned to face them both.

Beneath the cloak, every other feature besides its mouth was guarded by its mask of darkness. On the other hand, and as clear as day, drips of metallic blood ran down the side of its jaw and chin, staining it an ugly and beautiful facade of death and choice of killing such a creature. Something accustomed to a growl bubbled up from beneath it, and it was only when Malfoy screamed that Hermione found her own shock and fear catching up to her.

Her screams quickly joined in with his. With Fang now sprinting towards the sloped incline of the divot and back towards the weary path, the two were quick to follow and ran after him. Not longer bothering with whether she could see or not, Hermione jumped up and over every root she thought she could feel. A sudden breeze whipped her hair behind her as her cheeks were stained a bright pink, wind blown and chest heaving as she ran alongside Malfoy and tried to keep a trace on the dog up ahead.

The farther they ran from the divot where the sight of a dead unicorn and haunting beast feeding itself, the sooner Hermione found herself gradually falling behind. Malfoy was fast, there was no doubt about that. She was thankfully close enough that if she were to reach her hand out, she could take hold of his robe and keep up her pace with him.

However, in the darkness and cover of night, and Malfoy's insistent habit of keeping the lantern light to herself, she didn't see the tree root strung out from the side of the path until she felt the sharp contact radiate up her leg.

The ground was hard, cold, and stung as she skidded across it, twigs, bushes, and shrubs digging beneath her uniform and into bits and pieces of her skin. The air was knocked from her lungs as she tried to scramble to her feet. Pushing herself forward, Hermione fell back to the dirt again with a strangled yelp.

The terrifying thought that something had grabbed her ankle gripped her insides with a chilling fear. Daring herself to look behind her, she frantically tried to tug her leg free from what she soon found to be the clutches of the tree root itself. In the tangle of vines, her foot had somehow lodged itself in between the roots and vines and the dirt of the forest floor.

Her breathing shallowed with fear as she desperately tried to tug her foot free, frantically tugging away at the vines in her way to try and untangle herself from what had to have only been a trap.

When something brushed by her shoulder, Hermione couldn't help but yelp with shock. She scrambled to reach for her wand beneath the pocket of her robes, but her hand froze midway there. Leaning forward to tug the rest of the vines away, the briefest hint of relief washed over her as Malfoy pried the vines from around the tree root, trapping her down to the confines of the Earth.

In her slightest moment of delay, Hermione shook her head and joined him. The two scrambled and tugged, finally managing with one final twist to slip her ankle out from the root. Neither Hermione nor Malfoy had time for celebration as both looked to the path behind them. In the vague distant, the silhouette of a dark, cloaked outline stalked forward, trailing their path back towards what was hopefully Hagrid, Harry, and Ron.

"Come on!" Malfoy shouted next to her ear.

Gripping one of her wrists, he pulled her up from the ground and turned them around, following what they could see of the outlines trail. For a short period of time, Hermione let Malfoy semi-drag her along the path, using the lantern as a means of getting back to wherever it is they thought they could go. Every shadow, twist, and curve looked the same, and the forest seemed to be a never ending maze.

When Hermione's lungs began to burn, she had managed to run up enough to keep a pace with Malfoy running beside him, and the flickering of the lantern was barely any help at all, she felt the grip around her wrist slacken ever so slightly as Malfoy came to a slow stop in the middle of another clearing. Just like the others, winding vines surrounded either side of the trees, Fang was gone, and she had no doubt that the two of them were lost.

Hermione clutched one hand over her chest as she tried to regain her breathing. The air knocked from her lungs hadn't fully returned and her heart was racing faster than she knew possible. Her face she knew was flushed from the bristling wind, and her hair; Hermione barely held back a snort at just imagining what it might look like.

Beside her, Malfoy released short and stiff pants, as he set the lantern down on the forest floor. Just as she did, his usually sleek and gelled-to-no-tomorrow hair had gone a bit array, falling across his forehead and over his face, which was now stained a faint pink.

The minutes, or what Hermione assumed were minutes, ticked away. She had already sent the red and flared sparks into the sky, signaling to Hagrid where exactly it was that they were. Her breathing and pulse returned to its normal rate, and her flushed and warm cheeks had receded back to their normal color. Across from her, Malfoy had done the same, though he refused to acknowledge the girl across from him.

In all understanding, Hermione couldn't blame him. Still, as she lowered her gaze back to the flickering light of the lantern and watched as it cast an array of dancing shadows around them, she could feel the words biting in the back of her throat, waiting to be released.

He had saved her.

He did come back to help her.

No matter what rough exterior he put up, Draco Malfoy wasn't a complete and utter prick who would most likely marry his own reflection if he could.

Not knowing exactly where to look, Hermione settled for keeping her gaze on the lantern, rather than on him or the surrounding woods.

"Thank you," she muttered.

She could feel Malfoy snap his eyes up to her, but she refused to acknowledge them just as he had ignored hers. Even with an overbearing sense that he was practically drilling holes into her head, she kept her gaze firm on the lantern, captivated by the flames routine.

"Don't get it into your head, Granger," she heard him scoff. "I'm a Slytherin through and through, but I'm not that heartless."

It was an odd notion to think about that for once in her life, she actually agreed with Draco Malfoy on something. Daring herself the chance, she glanced up to where he was sitting. They had seemingly switched positions, him now ignoring her gaze and herself staring down at him. There was no doubt that Malfoy was an arrogant prick who seemed to be so self-centered at times that the ego he carried wasn't big enough to fit through the corridors of Hogwarts.

As Hermione took in what little that she could before he glanced back up at her, if only for a brief moment, she took notice of the sudden flush that crept up just above the collar of his shirt, and the faint pink tint to his ears. The two remained silent for the remainder of the time before the distant barks of Fang rang out around them, along with Harry and Ron's calls.

Despite having to put up with one another for her first ever detention, Hermione found herself wondering if there was a small part of Draco Malfoy that she didn't fully understand. From what she had figured, she would have been left behind to whatever it was that had killed the poor unicorn in the first place. What she hadn't expected was for the platinum-haired boy across from her to come back and aid her in her escape from a gnarled tree root.

She had a feeling that he hadn't expected as much from himself either; her thanking him even was a surprise as it was. Even if he did brush it off like it was something he would have done for anyone seeing as he wasn't a complete and utter git, Hermione knew the embarrassed flush that had crept up his neck wasn't from simply outrunning an evil cloaked spirit.

Maybe more so that, deep down, he knew he had a heart, and someone else had realized it, too.


Hello my fellow Potterheads!

I hope you guys enjoyed this little drabble I wrote...instead of sleeping! No joke, I actually wrote out majority of this story between 1-2:30 in the morning, and I'm posting it now for the sake the idea for this fanfic wouldn't leave me alone from about midnight and on. So, if the storyline seems a little off or kind of jumbled, I apologize! But, overall, I hope you guys enjoyed :)

And, as always to all you lovely readers out there, I hope you have a great morning, afternoon, evening, or night!

-Summerwinds