Kassidy had retreated to the Slytherin dormitories to try to escape everyone talking about Hogsmeade, but it had backfired. The students wanted to hide their candy and toys they had bought, and all rushed back to their rooms. Kassidy sat on her bed, arms crossed as she watched Daphne Greengrass boast about having the most sweets from Honeydukes. She couldn't stop the scoff that left her lips, flopping onto her side, ready to sulk for the next few hours. She frowned when she felt her bed dip, and a moment later a Chocolate Frog was placed in front of her face. She looked up to see Pansy sitting there, looking a little embarrassed.
"It melted a little in my pocket, so…" Pansy shrugged, making Kassidy snort.
"You're all heart, Parkinson" Kassidy giggled, pushing herself upright.
"Draco didn't even come on the trip. I wore my new perfume for nothing" Pansy grumbled, as Kassidy popped the candy into her mouth.
"I think there would be better boys to stalk, Pansy. The Malfoy's aren't exactly a good family" Kassidy frowned, continuing to chew.
"Have you even met them? They're rich, Kassidy. Like stupid rich" Pansy insisted, as Kassidy gave her a look.
"And all supporters of—" Kassidy began, but was cut off by a girl's scream.
Both girls whipped around to see one of the first years sprinting into the dorm, tears rolling down her cheeks. She looked terrified. The girl could barely talk, her breathing was so erratic.
"He's here! Sirius Black! He tried to get into Gryffindor!" She exclaimed, shakily.
Kassidy couldn't hear anything after that, as all the girls in the room started to run out in a panic. Kassidy's heart pounded as Pansy grabbed her arm, pulling her up from the bed. Her lips were moving, fear etched over her features, but still Kassidy was deaf to her cries. All she could hear was her own heart beating. They kept running until they were out of the dungeons and running up the main stairs. The prefects were insisting that they head to the Great Hall, trying to keep some sort of order on the students.
Neville!
"I…I need to find my brother" Kassidy stuttered, a sick feeling growing inside her.
"Wait, you can't just…" Pansy trailed off, as she watched Kassidy sprint off into the crowd, knowing she wouldn't be able to stop her.
Kassidy searched the crowds for her brother's tall figure, but it was impossible. They were too many students. She was quickly pushed forward by some of the sixth years, all trying to get to the Great Hall as soon as possible. Kassidy tried to turn around, knowing they wouldn't let her leave once she was there, but she couldn't find a gap in the crowd. She gasped as a cold hand suddenly grabbed her wrist, pulling her behind one of the nearby pillars. Kassidy's eyes widened as they connected with Draco's grey eyes, his fingers still wrapped around her arm.
"I saw him and Potter a few minutes ago. He's probably already in the Great Hall by now" Draco told her, answering the question on her lips.
Kassidy let out a shaky sigh of relief at this news, as Draco let go of her wrist. She was amazed at how he seemed to know exactly what she had been thinking.
"Have you seen Black? In the castle?" Kassidy asked, her Draco shook his head.
"No. Only the Fat Lady has, and that's not saying much, is it?" Draco pointed out.
"I don't understand how he could have gotten in here" Kassidy mumbled, as the pair joined the crowds.
"With Dumbledore running this school, I'm surprised it hasn't happened sooner" Draco scoffed.
"What exactly has Dumbledore done that's so bad?" Kassidy questioned, quirking an eyebrow.
"Well, he's…he's old…" Draco stuttered, making Kassidy laugh.
"Very convincing, Malfoy" Kassidy mumbled, as they came to the large doors of the Great Hall.
Her eyes scanned the crowd, quickly finding Neville, who was on his tiptoes, trying to look over the other students for her. The siblings rushed towards each other, as Neville pulled her into his arms, giving her a tight hug. Normally, she might have been embarrassed by the display of affection, but in that moment she didn't care. Neville was safe, that was all that mattered.
"I thought he might have taken you" Neville admitted, sounding like he was near to tears.
"Hey, none of that, Nev" Kassidy insisted, pulling away, as Neville wiped at his nose.
"Why do you think he's here?" Neville questioned, as Kassidy let out a long sigh.
"I don't think I want to know" Kassidy confessed, looking down at her feet.
"Kassidy!" A voice screeched from nearby, as Kassidy turned around to see Pansy rushing towards her.
"Don't run off like that again! You left me alone in the corridor with a load of Gryffindor students…no offence, Neville…" Pansy grimaced, giving a curt nod to Kassidy's brother.
"Uh, none taken?" Neville frowned, unsurely.
"Merlin's beard, Pansy. How did you survive?" Kassidy teased, with a roll of her eyes.
"Hey, I think they want to separate us into our houses—" Draco announced, walking over to the group, but was cut off by Pansy's dramatic squeal.
"Oh, Draco! I was so scared" Pansy exclaimed, practically throwing herself into his arms.
"Um…there, there" Draco mumbled, patting her on the back, awkwardly.
He seemed to suddenly remember his arm was supposed to be injured and dropped it back into its flimsy sling, hoping none of the other students had seen. The last thing he wanted was to have to play in the next Quidditch match.
"C'mon, we better do what they say otherwise Snape will give us detention for the rest of the term" Kassidy exclaimed, seeing how Snape was already glaring at them.
She managed to prise Pansy off Draco after a few sharp pulls, as the blond gave her a grateful nod. Kassidy turned to see Dean Thomas pulling Neville towards the other Gryffindor's, as he waved a quick goodbye to his sister. At least Pansy's crazy antics could help distract them all from the murderer possibly skulking around the school's corridors.
Draco's eyes fluttered open a few hours later, feeling a chill go through him. He pulled his sleeping bag up to his chin, stretching his aching limbs a little. His father would hear how Dumbledore had forced them to sleep on the floor—
A whimper from nearby had Draco's head snapping up, as he looked over the sea of sleeping bags surrounding him. He quickly found that the sound was coming from Kassidy, who appeared to be having a nightmare, from the way her face was drawn in a grimace. Draco bit his lip as he debated what to do, seeing that Pansy was also beginning to stir from the sound. Pulling himself out of the sleeping bag, he crawled over to the brunette and shook her shoulder lightly.
"Kassidy" He muttered, but she still didn't wake up.
"Hey, Kassidy. Wake up" Draco insisted, shaking her a little harder.
A second later, her eye's shot open, her breathing heavy, as she flinched away from Draco's touch. He held his hands up in defence, worried that Kassidy might strike him in a daze. She pushed herself into a sitting position, clutching at her chest, feeling her heart pounding underneath.
"You okay?" Draco whispered, as Kassidy nodded slowly.
He was surprised as a laugh left her lips when she turned to look at him properly. His expression turned into a frown when she reached out to brush the top of his hair, her slender fingertips catching the blond strands.
"Your hair's a mess" Kassidy giggled, seeing how it had been sticking up.
"I'm glad you find me so amusing, Longbottom" Draco scoffed, shrugging away from her touch.
"…Where are the teachers?" Kassidy inquired, looking around the hall, to find out Filch remained, but he seemed fast asleep.
"Searching the castle for Black" Draco shrugged, rubbing his hands together.
"Are you cold?" Kassidy asked, earning another half-shrug from the boy.
Grabbing a piece of paper from her pocket, Kassidy crumpled it in her palm before throwing it in the air, mumbling a spell under her breath. Draco's eyes widened as the paper suddenly caught fire, heat already coming off it in waves. Kassidy grinned as she saw his impressed expression, moving the paper to rest in the air a few inches above from her hand.
"Where'd you learn to do that?" Draco questioned.
"I used to get cold a lot at my Grandmother's house…I can't hold it for very long" Kassidy told him, as the paper already started to simmer down.
"Incendio" Draco exclaimed, his hand raised out.
The pair jumped as the paper seemed to suddenly explode into a fireball, causing Kassidy to drop it to the floor. The paper quickly started to burn into the floor, as Draco crawled back a few paces.
"Extinguo" Kassidy gasped, letting out a sigh of relief as the flames instantly vanished.
"…Always the show-off, huh, Malfoy?" Kassidy teased, making Draco roll his eyes.
"Shove off" Malfoy muttered, pulling his sleeping bag over, so he could tuck himself inside.
"Hey, if your still cold I bet Pansy wouldn't mind sharing her body heat" Kassidy mocked, poking him in the back.
"Go to sleep" Draco replied, hiding his face, so she couldn't see the small blush growing on his cheeks.
Kassidy giggled to herself as she laid back down, pulling the sleeping bag over her shoulders, getting comfortable. Draco shook his head at her childish behaviour, but also couldn't stop the smile that tugged at his lips.
A few days later, Kassidy was rushing towards her Defence Against the Dark Arts class, knowing she was already five minutes late. She was relieved when she saw no sign of Lupin and walked towards her usual seat next to Pansy. However, before she could sit down, she saw Draco ushering her over, looking like he had something to tell her.
"Longbottom" He hissed, as she mouthed a 'sorry' to Pansy before going to sit in the empty seat beside him.
"Where's Lupin?" Kassidy whispered, taking her book out from her bag.
"No one's seen him since Halloween. They're saying he's—" Draco began, but was cut off as the classroom door behind them was slammed shut.
"Turn to page 394" Snape's voice boomed, as he closed all the shutters in the room with his wand, throwing the classroom into the gloomy darkness.
"Excuse me, sir. Where's Professor Lupin?" Harry Potter asked as Snape pulled the projector canvas down.
"That's not really your concern, is it, Potter?" Snape retorted as the other students opened their books.
"Suffice it to say your professor finds himself incapable of teaching at the present time" Snape continued, walking to the back of the class, as Draco nudged Kassidy with his 'good' arm.
"See, I told you. There's something wrong with him" Draco insisted, in a hushed voice.
"Yeah, but what?" Kassidy pointed out, as Snape turned the projector on.
"Werewolves?!" Ron Weasley squealed, when he saw what was on page 394.
"But sir, we just learned about red caps and hinkypunks. We're not meant to start that for weeks nocturnal creatures for weeks" Hermione exclaimed.
"Quiet" Snape muttered, dismissively.
"Now, which one of you can tell me the difference between an Animagus and a werewolf?" Snape asked as both Kassidy and Draco looked to the floor, hoping he wouldn't pick on them.
"No one? How disappointing" Snape scolded, not sparing a glance at Hermione who was shaking her hand in the air.
"Please, sir. An Animagus is a wizard who elects to turn into an animal. A werewolf has no choice. With each full moon, when he transforms, he no longer remembers who he is. He'd kill his best friend if he crossed his path. Furthermore, the werewolf only responds to the call of its own kind" Hermione explained, as Draco let out a howl, earning a laugh from Goyle who had been forced to sit next to Pansy.
"Thank you, Mr Malfoy" Snape mumbled, clearly having to stop himself from rolling his eyes.
"That's the second time you've spoken out of turn, Miss Granger. Are you incapable of restraining yourself or do you take pride in being an insufferable know-it-all?" Snape snapped, as Kassidy's jaw dropped open due to his harsh tone.
Kassidy wasn't exactly a fan of Hermione but Snape, as always, had taken his comments too far. Kassidy cringed as she watched Hermione bite her lip, her eyes becoming a little watery.
"Five points from Gryffindor" Snape announced, as all the Gryffindor's let out a groan.
"You know, Lupin disappeared for a few days last month too, I heard. Maybe he's sick…" Kassidy trailed off, noticing Draco was now busy scribbling away on a piece of paper.
"Maybe" Draco replied, dismissively.
"What are you doing?" Kassidy asked, trying to peer over his shoulder, but he pushed her away.
"Just trying to boost Potter's morale" Draco grinned, placing the paper into his hands.
Whispering into his palm, the paper suddenly began to transform into a beautiful bird-like object, as Kassidy watched on in amazement. Draco then blew it away from his hands, as the bird flew over to Harry Potter, who caught it easily.
"Sharing love letters with Potter now?" Kassidy teased, making Draco grumble.
"No! I was just…it was a drawing—" Draco began, but Kassidy cut him off.
"Oh, how sweet" Kassidy mocked, as Draco rolled his eyes, in annoyance.
"Miss Longbottom! Unless you wish to spend another evening in detention I suggest you stop talking and open your book" Snape exclaimed, making her flinch.
"Yes, Professor" She mumbled, quickly doing as she was told.
"Yes, Professor" Draco mocked her, putting on a girly voice, as she nudged him with her elbow.
"As an antidote to your ignorance, and on my desk, by Monday morning two rolls of parchment on the werewolf, with emphasis on recognizing it. Now, as many of you may know, a werewolf will turn on the night of a full moon. But in the week before, their personality may change. Becoming more irritable, more like the wolf inside. And after, they could appear ill, not being able to carry out their usual duties…" Snape trailed off, as both Kassidy and Draco turned to each other with wide eyes.
With their mouth's slack, they turned around to face Snape, finding his dark eyes had been watching the pair. Quirking an eyebrow towards them, Kassidy gulped, wondering if they were just reading too much into his words. Their teacher couldn't actually be a werewolf…could he?
Kassidy grimaced as she pulled her raincoat closer to her body, feeling water continue to splatter against her face. The pouring rain was making watching the Quidditch match almost unbearable. She was thankful that the Slytherin's had managed to get out of playing the match, knowing that they would have likely lost in such conditions. Kassidy let out a gasp as a Ravenclaw swooped past their row, causing a wave of water to splash against her and Pansy.
"My hair!" Pansy cried, pulling at the soaking black strands of her hair.
"Can we leave yet?" Kassidy complained, wiping away some of the water from her face.
"I think this is an improvement on your usual appearance, Longbottom" Draco grinned, from the other side of Pansy.
Kassidy sent him a death glare, knowing that she probably looked like a drowned rat at that moment. Her forehead wrinkled when she saw Draco seemed perfectly dry, his hair a little windswept, but that was all. Her eyes flickered down to where he was holding his wand up and realised he must have cast a charm, only to keep himself dry, of course. Muttering a word under her breath, Kassidy was able to repel the rain away from her and Pansy.
"Thanks…but I'm still mad at you" Pansy told her, as Kassidy let out a long sigh.
Pansy had been pissed that she sat with Draco in class, and even suggested that she was trying to seduce the blond. Kassidy was quick to point out that it was Draco who had asked her to sit next to him, but Pansy still wasn't convinced. Kassidy doubted any chocolate frogs would be coming her way in the future.
"Two can play at that game" Draco smirked, casting the charm again, this time protecting their whole row from the rain.
Within only a few minutes, the pair had managed to escalate their challenge until all the Slytherin's were under the charm's range. However, neither could keep this up for long. With a smug grin, Draco was about to move this protection charm over a group of Gryffindor's, just as the charm broke. Kassidy had to bite her lip to stop herself from laughing, as a wave of water dropped onto their heads, soaking the cheering group.
"Good one, Draco" Pansy praised, as the blond puffed up his chest a little more.
Out of her peripheral vision, Kassidy noticed a dark object was falling from the sky and tried to get a better look. She gasped when she realised it was Harry Potter, without his broom, hurtling towards the ground. Draco followed her gaze, his eyes wide, as he raised out his wand. A second later, they saw Harry's movements come to a halt, as Professor Dumbledore stood to his feet, clearly having cast a spell. Everyone was rushing forward, trying to either get a better look or running towards the steps. Kassidy followed Draco, who had opted to sprint down towards the field below, just as Harry was carefully placed onto the wet grass. Hermione and Ron were the first to reach him, their expression's horrified.
"We need to get him to Madam Pomfrey!" Hermione exclaimed, her eyes surveying the numerous cuts covering Harry's face.
"Is he okay?" Draco questioned, arriving at Harry's side, a few seconds later.
"Like you care, Malfoy!" Ron hissed, an angry look in his eyes.
"C'mon, he's fine. Let's just go" Pansy muttered, grabbing Draco's arm and dragging him away, not seeing the look in his eyes.
Guilt.
"Do you see why Dumbledore should be fired now?" Draco grumbled, pulling his stool out from underneath the table.
"He couldn't have known the Dementors would enter the pitch" Kassidy retorted.
"Four Quidditch players ended up in the hospital! Dumbledore knew it was dangerous—" Draco began, as they jumped up onto their classroom seats.
"Just like you did? I see your sling is gone now" Kassidy pointed out, quirking an eyebrow.
"I've made a miraculous recovery; I'll have you know" Draco scoffed.
"The only miraculous thing is that anyone believed you'd actually still injured in the first place" Kassidy mocked.
"…I know the real reason your so angry" Kassidy mumbled, quietly.
"Oh, yeah? Why's that?" Draco asked.
"You feel guilty. Maybe if you had played, Potter never would have gotten hurt" Kassidy stated, making Draco huff.
"Please, I could care less what happened to Potter" Draco sneered.
"Uh-huh, so why did you raise your wand when you saw him falling? You were gonna' save him" Kassidy went on, in a sing-song voice.
"Maybe I just fancied being the hero for once" Draco grumbled, as Kassidy opened her mouth to reply.
"Lupin's back!" Ron exclaimed, as they all whipped around to face the ginger teacher.
Kassidy's eyes widened as she saw how sick he looked. His robes seemed to barely fit him now, appearing to have lost weight in only a week. Dark circles underneath his eyes, and new cuts covered his cheeks. She felt Draco nudge her, their minds obviously going to the same place. While the other students were busy complaining about the homework Snape had set them, Draco's hand shot up.
"Sir, can I be excused to go to Madam Pomfrey's? My arm is hurting" Draco announced, as Lupin quirked an eyebrow.
"Other arm, idiot!" Kassidy hissed, as Draco realised he had raised his 'injured' arm.
He quickly swapped arms, as Kassidy pinched the bridge of her nose, letting out a long sigh. With a dismissive wave of his hand, Lupin allowed Draco to leave, clearly not wanting the bother.
"Follow me in a few minutes" Draco whispered, jumping down from his seat.
"Wait, what should I…" Kassidy trailed off, seeing Draco was already walking out of the room.
Kassidy spent the next few minutes trying to think of a good excuse but came up empty. Lupin looked like he was beginning to lose his patience when he saw her raise her hand.
"Uh, Professor. I forgot my book in the dorms, can I go get it?" Kassidy exclaimed.
"You can borrow someone else's book" Lupin pointed out, as Kassidy shook her head, vehemently.
"I wouldn't want to deprive them of learning from—" Kassidy began, as Lupin ran a hand over his face.
"Your excused" Lupin mumbled, with a shake of his head.
Luckily, no one seemed to notice her hurried exit. Well, apart from Pansy who was glaring daggers at her back as she left the room. Draco had been waiting further down the corridor and waved for her to follow him.
"Where are we going?" Kassidy complained, as Draco placed a finger to his lips, not wanting to be found out of class.
"You'll see" Draco exclaimed, as they rushed up a nearby staircase.
Kassidy frowned when she found they were standing outside of Professor Lupin's office, and realised what Draco was planning. This was not good, Kassidy thought to herself.
"You can't be serious" Kassidy said, crossing her arms.
"Don't you want to know what he's hiding?" Draco retorted.
"Not if it means getting expelled!" Kassidy complained, as Draco reached out to touch the doorknob.
"Oh, don't be so dramatic, Longbottom—" Draco was cut off, as the moment he touched the wooden handle, there was a spark of light and he was sent flying into a nearby pillar.
Kassidy gasped as she watched him flop to the floor, completely motionless. She rushed over to him, and for a sickening moment, she thought he could be dead. Kassidy's hands were shaking as she reached out to touch the blond's shoulder.
"Draco?" Kassidy called out, gripping onto his shoulder.
In response, Draco let out a pained moan, his hand flying to the back of his head. Kassidy let out a sigh of relief when she saw his eyes slowly flutter open, and helped him to sit upright. She turned back to Lupin's door and saw there was some sort of magical field visible, clearly protecting the room.
"Are you alright?" Kassidy asked, as Draco nodded, smoothing his hair down.
"Good" Kassidy exclaimed, before she punched him in the shoulder.
"Ow! What the bloody hell was that for?!" Draco cried, rubbing his now aching shoulder.
"For being a prat!" Kassidy retorted.
"Miss Longbottom, did you just strike another student?" A voice boomed from behind them, as Kassidy gulped.
"Uh…no?" Kassidy cringed, turning to see Snape looming over them.
"What are you doing out of class?" Snape questioned.
"I was, uh…just helping Malfoy get to Madam Pomfrey's. He's not feeling well" Kassidy replied, as the two pushed themselves to their feet.
"And you were on the floor because…?" Snape trailed off, crossing his arms.
"He fainted" Kassidy announced, as Draco glared at her.
"No, I didn't—" Draco was cut off as Kassidy slammed her foot down on his.
"He's very confused right now. We better get going" Kassidy insisted, grabbing Malfoy's arm.
"I'm sure Mr Malfoy can make it the rest of the way. Back to class, Miss Longbottom" Snape told her, ushering her in the opposite direction.
"Yes, Professor" Kassidy sighed, as Snape escorted her away, quickly.
Draco was just about to turn on his heel, ready to go to Madam Pomfrey, when he heard a clicking sound beside him. His eyes widened when he saw Lupin's office door open and took a cautious step forward, not fancying being thrown across the room again. A smirk grew on his face as he pushed the door open with his foot and got to work with snooping. Little did he know, Snape was wearing a similar expression, further down the corridor, his wand out.
Author's Notes: I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! What will Draco find out, and will anyone believe him? Please leave a review:)
marvynthephoenix: Thanks, I hope you like the new update:)
iReedem: I'm glad this story made you laugh! We got some more Pansy interactions this chapter, the Weasley twins will be coming up soon. Thank you for reviewing:)
