Yes your probably wondering when is she going to write a decent long chapter… well I don't know when I will but when I end a chapter it ends cause it feels like it should J so hopefully this chapter is a lot longer hehehe its basically Diagon Alley and their first encounter but do they actually recognise each other? Read to find out!!

Review!!

***

Draco walked through Diagon Alley, scouting around for anyone he knew. He appeared full of charisma and confidence but yet he looked mysterious and curious to those who were not acquainted with him. He did in fact notice a few people watching. Faces that smiled at him and turned a scarlet red as he rested his eyes on each one for a heart beat. It seemed he was Mr Popular with the girls, once again.

As he kept looking around him for a familiar face, it felt like he was marching through a desert. The sun was irritating his neck and parts of his chest that were exposed to the sun. He needed to find people quickly so he could quickly retire away from the sun's eye. Just when he thought he would never find anyone soon, he spotted Blaise, Crabbe, Goyle and Pansy sitting together at a snack bar table, drinking Coke. He waved to get their attention.

"Draco Malfoy?!?!" squealed Pansy as she jumped from her seat and ran towards him. Her embrace was not a welcoming one. Draco didn't know what was wrong with him as he felt pure rage building inside, like as if he wanted to throw her away from him. Usually he could bare it after all she was his number one fan but now Draco squeezed his fists to control himself. A frustrated: "Ok Pansy will you get off?!" was all he could muster.

"Sorry!" giggled Pansy returning to her seat sighing as she went. All eyes stared at him, which he found unnerving. He remembered the wolves and how if they found a weakness in a pack, they dispose of it. He prayed there was nothing wrong that there wasn't a weakness.

"What are you all staring at? Its me? Its Malfoy?" He said whilst shrugged his frustration off as it crawled around his chest and shoulders, wanting him to explode. He walked around the table and grabbed a chair beside the group, were he finally sat in the shade and sighed knowing he could rest from the sun's abuse. He felt the back of his neck, it was hot to the touch, he mumbled a cooling spelling on his skin to give some relief.

"Wow mate do you have some kind of spell on your hair or something?" asked Crabbe bewildered at the sight. Draco felt his hair quickly, also bewildered at Crabbe's outburst. It was short at the sides but long at the top, which he messed up into a Mohawk shape. Many said it suited him so he had no idea what Crabbe was talking about. Its not like his hair had lice in it? Or many the cooling spell he casted there back fired and mucked his hair up?

"What do you mean? My hairs fine, I got it cut…I mean I used a spell there-did it back fire?" asked Draco stroking his head.

"No when your in the sun it's almost Gingery colour and when your in the shade it changes back to blonde. Isn't that weird?" laughed Crabbe. Draco eyes widened, things were just getting a little confusing more and more and he decided to shrug it off. That was probably why people smiled. Was it because he looked pretty hot with his new two-toned colour of hair? Or were people smiling to hide rude laughing fits? He sighed and after a while, ordered a Coke.

***

Hermione stuffed the second textbook, she collected so far, in her handbag. After a few attempts to fit it in, she resorted to the good old shrinking spell. She felt flustered and her dark brown hair fell about her face, not helping her at all. She blew it out of the way and removed her jacket to tie it around her hips, in the hope that it would cool herself down, after digging through mountains of novels for one, crummy, old textbook.

"I should have done that earlier," she huffed sarcastically to herself as she felt a lot cooler from removing her jacket. Pushing her bag strap on her shoulder, she began to walk onwards. She checked the name of the last textbook on the sheet in her hand: Secret Creatures and Features Untold. "Now where are you? You should be around the pet store area…which is…this way!" she thought to herself as he fixed her mind on where to go, creating a little birds eye view map as she went.

Diagon Alley was packed with many doing their last minute wand and pet shopping and frantic parents trying to find their sons or daughters new robes to fit their sudden growth spurts. Hermione literally had to weave herself in and out of the passer bys, irritating her even more. She passed the pet store and thought about the letter Dumbledore had sent out to them. It had said that students could bring a new pet as they may need the extra practice in class room activities as the spells were more complex this year. "I guess I could just pop in to see what there was offer?" she thought and so Hermione wiped her forehead and walked into the shop.

***

"Have you got what you need for this year?" asked Draco as they left the sandwich bar and began to walk towards the centre of Diagon Alley. The Sun catching his skin again for its second battle.

"Jeeze since when did you become worried if we have everything or not? You know we just bring the same stuff every year and hope its fine, plus the teachers don't mess with us anyway," replied Blaise, puffing his chest out and attempting to look hard and intimidating to the new first years that scurried past.

"Yeh but I want to keep my grades up this year anyway, Father would kill me…"

"The Dark Lord would more likely kill you," sniggered Crabbe. He had defiantly put on a bit more weight, Draco noticed, as he was now was almost a circle and waddled when he walked. Goyle wasn't too far off as well.

"I'm not taking any chances, I'd like to keep some of my life intact. Well I'll see you guys around or if not then save me a seat on the train," asked Draco as he walked away.

"Aren't you not the prefect this year? You get your own room sure," called Pansy, winking as if to hint something-"What a slut," he thought to himself.

"Go shag a cow Pansy," snapped Draco as he walked off. He hated her guts. Always following him around, holding him down as her play toy. For ages he had let this carry on but now he hadn't the patience for it. Her touch made him sick and he struggled mentally not to punch her every time he saw her, now-a-days. The only thing that remotely kept him near her was his reputation and that was just as bad.

Draco walked steady trying to control his temper but recently it had a mind of its own. He didn't enjoy the random urges to snarl at everyone who tried to speak to him. He just wanted to know what was wrong with him. He took a right corner and walked in the shaded side of the street. The Pet Store was ahead of him, just a few metres away and he decided to call in for a look. His Eagle Owl, Brigade, was now growing too old to deliver messages and Draco never forgave his father as the last his owl he had was killed just because it was a little old and now he had no doubts that when he would return home, there wouldn't any Brigade to hoot a welcoming "Hello," to him.

He sighed and entered into the shop.

***

Hermione gazed at the boxed rows of fish, swimming in a immersing fashion. There were goldfish, tropical fish and even little sharks, which you could find at any other Pet store outside the Magical World. She looked left at some more rows and raised an eye brow at the stranger creatures. There were water based herbs growing for their pet's needs and creatures like: Grindylows, Flobberworms, Lobalugs, with the words "Caution," writing on their glass boxes. Hermione stepped closer to look at the Grindylows. They were a pale green water demon and said to be found throughout the lakes in Britain and Ireland. Hermione recalled the name and remembered that they usually act with aggression towards muggles and wizards alike, but merpeople had been known to domesticate it. Definitely not the pet for her.

The door opened up and a small bell rang as the door closed again. She couldn't see who had come in because there were a number of heads bobbing along the isles of the store. She looked up to the signs were: " Water-Based," was printed right above her and caught site of the "Small Mammals and Birds" section and made her way towards it.

***

"Good Afternoon, Mr Malfoy," bowed the store keeper in a respectful way. Draco felt embarrassed, he didn't want people to bow down in fear to him, he wanted to be normal.

"I'm alright Albert, no need to bow to me," smiled Draco politely, "I have actually come to inquire if any new pet species were found? Or any you would recommend?"

The aged man grinned and pointed over the: Small Mammals and Birds, section. Draco said his thanks and strolled over to investigate the new selection of animals on offer.

***

"Oh aren't you so cute!" exclaimed Hermione at a baby Salamander. It appeared white, sleeping on a small flame were it then turned a purple colour and squeezed causing the vegetation next to it to explode into flame. Hermione gulped and stood back as the creature began to dance and play with the flames, "You would be a bit too dangerous for me mister, with that fire and all," laughed Hermione as she tapped the box and moved on to the next creature.

These next creatures where in a cage. They reminded Hermione of Wolf cubs of Husky pups but something about them were different. She read the board below them:

Species: Mix between a Niffler and a Mooncalf

Age: 7 weeks old, young puppies

Description: They have be said to contain extremely unusual magical properties: they can see perfectly in the dark and are able to spot invisible object. Can grow to be an average wolf sized height. It prefers Night to Morning and usually dances and sings in the moonlight. WARNING: howling to the full moon is common, so not a decent family pet. They have its Niffler properties of a longer snout and than a common wolf, this enables them to sniff out anything in a 50 metre radius.

Much care is needed: Grooming, Nail clipping, Training etc.

Hermione's heart raced. This creature was perfect and there was two left in the cage. There was a little bell beside the cage which she pressed to call someone over to help her. After a minute of gazing at the two puppies an old man with the name "Albert," appeared.

"Can I help you miss?" he smiled as he followed her gaze, "I see our Mooniff pups have caught your eye,"

"Why yes they have, I'm only looking for one though, is that what they are called? Mooniffs?" Asked Hermione interested in the pups which were yawning and coming awake now.

"Why yes, they are recently a new breed of dog-like, magical creature and so not much is known about them to be honest-however I do know something that may interest you, " he winked and sipped a finger in to scratch one of the pup's ear, "They change their fur so many people end up losing them because they are never able to tell if it's their pet or not-crafty devils, so I would advise you to put something on it like a collar or a marking so you can identify it."

"Oh don't worry, I'll get it something good," she bite her bottom lip in excitement and then asked, "What sex are they? Anything else I should know about them? Oh-how much is one?"

The old man laughed, he had scars and scabs from his many years of experience in working with so many different species of animals and there was a youthful and energetic vibe that radiated off him. He scratched his head, "Well it's a male and female in here and the female is the lighter coated one where as the male usually takes up the darker coat. I'm just trying to think if there is anything else you should know about them…it will probably pop in my head soon enough and the price…hmm…how about because your such a lovely girl and very keen on the pups I'll give you one half price?"

Hermione was flattered, she usually got this from people she didn't know and it was more regular as the summer past. She blamed her defined changes and how they caught someone's eye and made them come on to her and flirt. But she could tell that Albert was merely complimenting her and so she relaxed.

"That's great then, how much is that?" smiled Hermione reaching in for her purse. Thank goodness she had went to the bank last week and withdrawn the money she would need or else she wouldn't have been able to purchase what she wanted.

"That will be 10 Galleons and 5 Sickles, come up to the counter and if you want you can pick the puppy up later, before 5pm of course or you'll miss your train," laughed the old man. Hermione laughed as well, she was happy she got a good deal for the puppy.

Standing at the counter she got out the right amount of change, when a voice stated behind her: "Its OK Albert, I'll pay, this one is on me."