"Tell me, Mister Malfoy, why you would feel the desire to poke the bear?" Severus Snape said, his manner prowling, though he stood nearly at attention behind Draco.

"The bear, sir?" Draco said, turning innocent eyes at his Housemaster.

"Potter." Snape snapped back, "You smirked at him, when he accused you of having something to do with the disappearances."

"Did I?" Draco said, shaking his head, "I'd clear forgotten, sir. To tell you the truth, riling Potter and his merry minions is just so easy, I can hardly keep track of such trivialities."

"You did it, didn't you, Malfoy?" Potter said, leaning towards Draco Malfoy.

"Would you believe me, either way?" Draco Malfoy drawled, "I think not. You should never ask questions whose answers you could not bear to trust. They will always disappoint."

"If you truly did nothing, Draco Malfoy, why would you let half the school rain punishment down on you?" Snape snarled.

Draco didn't have a real answer for this - so he lied. "Anger burns itself out like a wildfire, sir. I'd hoped that they would simply... reform. They're good children, sir, just as I am."

Harry Potter was now making faces at Draco, which would have annoyed Draco if he wasn't dead certain they were inadvertent. Apparently Harry thought him daft enough to think Hufflepuffs were evil.

"This seems to have been a tactical error." Professor Snape said.

"A rather large one, sir." Draco Malfoy said.

Professor Snape, "Mister Malfoy, you appear to have acquired a rather large collection of spirits. Do you know how that has occurred?"

Draco Malfoy responded, "No sir."

Dumbledore spoke up, "Mister Malfoy, would you indulge an old man in speculation as to why spirits of vanished children seem to attend your very person?"

Draco Malfoy looked up, and said, "No, I would not care to speculate." He turned to his head of house, and asked, "May I go?"

"Yes, you are dismissed." Professor Snape said.

McGonagall spoke up before Draco had made it fully out of his seat. "You as well, Potter."

Harry opened his mouth as if to object, but seemed to think better of it, for once.

He left the office on Draco's heels, but seemed confused when Draco turned around and nearly ran him over. "Door. Ear" Draco said.

Harry's face cleared, and they both pressed their ears to the door.

"No rationale for why the ghosts are following Mister Malfoy around," Snape said stiffly.

Minerva responded, "You'd hoped the presence of Potter would knock something loose?"

Snape shrugged, "It was worth a try."

Dumbledore looked up, and his voice echoed with twinkling. "They aren't ghosts. Ghosts dwell where they've been killed and I can assure you no Muggleborn has been murdered here in half a century."

The boys fled as they heard the two Housemasters preparing to leave.

[a/n: sorry this is so late! embarrassment, from having screwed up where Luna was spotted. Need to rewrite last chapter. Leave a review?]