DISCLAIMER: Harry Potter and all other characters and locations belong to J. K. Rowling

A/N: My apologies for not posting last night but it is the Civic Holiday in Canada (Have a great Civic Weekend everyone!) and I got invited to a party when I was in the middle of formatting this…I mean a night on the main strip of Wasaga on a long weekend isn't something I can miss. Sorry.

Chapter 4 - Warring Wolves

Draco stared dismally at the plate of food sitting before him. His fork had left grooves through the scrambled eggs and the porridge was far too runny for his taste. He blinked his eyes tiredly before glancing at the individuals sitting to either side of him, both looking anxious and worried at the same time, their eyes focused on him.

"What happened Draco?" Pansy hissed softly as she carefully spread jam across a thick slice of toast. He sighed before raising a hand and sliding fingers through his hair, trying to figure out how he could tell his friends he dreamed of emerald eyes and flesh that tasted of chocolate covered strawberries.

"Yeah Draco," Blaise muttered around a mouthful of bacon, eyes narrowed on the blond. "It's not like you to skip class. Hell, everyone goes to class on the first day, it's the easiest day of the entire semester." Draco snorted and rolled his eyes at Blaise's logic.

"I got distracted on my way to class." He replied, telling the truth yet going nowhere near what had really happened. Out of the corner of his eye, he watched the pair exchange a look behind his back.

The sudden increase in noise from the opposite side of the Great Hall had everyone at Slytherin table quieting and turning to look at the Gryffindors. As always, the Lions were in an uproar over something. His icy eyes narrowed as Dean and Seamus walked around the table to stand next to Harry, slapping him on the back as they exclaimed over something the dark haired wizard had done.

"Draco!"

He tried to turn his head but felt the Tiger come growling to the surface. Internally the massive cat flashed fangs and hissed, a jealous rage creeping up its spine as it watched the two wizards playfully trying to haul Harry to his feet. A jab of pain had Draco sucking in a breath and jerking his head to glare at Pansy. Raising an eyebrow in silent warning, she loosed his injured hand and handed him a napkin, watching as he dabbed at the small bloody half moons she'd left in the back of his hand.

"Care to explain what that was about?" She muttered, elbows planted on the table as she lifted a cup of hot tea to her mouth. Draco winced but was unable to stop his eyes from drifting back towards the Gryffindor table. The only sound now rising from the table was the occasional scrape of silverware. An elbow in his side had his eyes narrowing and a quiet growl trickling from his mouth as he watched Harry toss a quick look at the Head Table. His eyes followed the movement and he found himself looking at his Godfather, who was in return glaring at the Gryffindor table.

"Draco?" Blaise growled, his name was quiet but the warning in the sound was undisguised. If he didn't pay attention to his friends he might end up under a very mad wolf.

"Yes, Blaise?" He replied, prying his gaze away from the Lion's and picking up the cup of tea placed next to his elbow. The liquid was lukewarm and he curled his lip in distaste before pushing the cup away and motioning for Pansy to pour him another.

"Are you planning on telling us what distracted you or should we assume you saw a bright little birdie and couldn't resist the temptation?" Blaise drawled, pushing the steaming teapot closer to Pansy. Draco smirked at Blaise's words; a bright little bird indeed. More like a dark little raven who was walking alone down a hall marked as out of bounds.

"I highly doubt you'd believe it if I said I was actually chasing a bird so let's just say I stopped to chat with a fellow cat." Draco murmured, claiming his fresh cup of tea and taking a grateful sip, eyes drifting closed in pleasure. The loud scratch of metal on metal had him sliding one eye open and peering at Blaise who was holding a fork in one hand and steadying an empty plate in the other. "What?"

"You're supposed to be avoiding the Gryffindors Draco! Any little thing seems to be setting your animagus off and all we need is you running into another student and attacking them. What were you thinking?" Pansy snapped, setting her cup down with a bang and ignoring the liquid that sloshed over the edge. Draco was thinking that he'd never seen the Gryffindor run so fast in his entire life. The Tiger was thinking his flesh tasted of chocolate and his blood of strawberries and running into the Gryffindor again would mean another little taste of heaven.

"I wasn't thinking, the Tiger was thinking and at that moment Potter was prey. It wasn't my fault...he ran." Draco said quietly, eyes darting towards the Gryffindor table which was emptying slowly as the students headed off to class. His eyes locked with a pair of dancing emeralds before darting back Pansy. "I promise in the future I'll try and avoid starting anything I can't finish without bringing the Tiger to the fore."

Pansy and Blaise exchanged another long look before sighing and nodding in agreement. Draco drained the rest of his tea from the cup and rose smoothly, stepping over the bench and straightening his robes carefully. He withdrew a pocket watch from the recesses of his pocket and checked the time before nodding his head. "It's time for class. We have double Potions with Severus and the Gryffindorks, let's be on our way." Draco muttered, his eyes once again drifting towards the now empty Gryffindor table. The Tiger snarled unhappily and began to pace, tail lashing as he stalked back and forth. Rolling his eyes at his counterpart's actions, Draco led the way from the Great Hall.

Harry shifted in his seat and raised a hand to his throat, fingers brushing the slowly mending skin. In a strategical move to avoid confrontation with Hermione and Ron, he had turned the collar of his shirt up to hide the gashes. He drew a deep breath in as several Slytheirns filed past the desk he sat at and took their seats on the opposite side of the room. A thought tugged at his mind and he couldn't help but follow it. If the Gryffindors sat on the right side of the room and the Slytherins on the left, when they had class with a different house we're they kicking them out of their normal seats? It was pretty much a unanimous decision to remain seated with your own House, there was no intermingling and rarely was there actual intellectual speaking between the Houses.

"Harry?" Jerking his head and quickly suppressing the urge to grab his injured throat, he turned and looked at Hermione who was seated next to him. Already her books and parchment were open on the table, prepared as always for whatever Snape threw at them.

"Yes, Hermione?" He asked, reaching under the desk to grab his book bag. He heard her sigh, before patting him lightly on the arm and returning to her studies, obviously whatever she wanted was no longer of any importance. Glancing at Ron, he rolled his eyes before leaning closer to stare at the picture the red head was drawing. "Are those supposed to be Slytherins?"

"Yep, pretty nice, eh?" Ron muttered, quill still moving over the parchment before him. Harry grinned and opened his mouth but froze when a familiar scent slammed into him. It was the musk of fur and forest, the same smell that clung to his skin after being in his animagus form.

His Stag grunted unhappily and took a halting step forward, one hoof striking the ground in agitation. Harry searched his mind for the reason behind his animagus' actions but found only the overwhelming urge to protect Hermione and Ron.

"Are you okay?"

Harry shook his head and looked at Ron who had frozen with his quill above the sketched image, a small drop of ink sliding off the tip and erasing the face of one of the stick figures. "I'm fine. I was just thinking about asking Dean if I could borrow his History of Magic notes from yesterday." Ron nodded and turned back to his work but was halted when the door flew open at the back of the class.

The snap of dark robes and the thump of feet, heralded the arrival of Professor Snape. His dark eyes were cold as they searched the room, the professors whole body stilling as the door at the back of the class creaked open again. Draco, Pansy, and Blaise sauntered into the room like they owned it, moving quietly to their seats and making themselves comfortable before directing their attention to Snape.

"Today, we will be brewing a potion called Dragon's Fire. It is elemental in assisting dragon tamers in calming dragons for shipping or training purposes. Does anyone know what the base ingredient for this potion is?" Snape growled, tapping his wand against his index finger as he searched the room, a smirk riding his face as his eyes fell on Harry. "Mister Potter, any guesses or words of wisdom?"

Harry gulped and shook his head numbly, fingers clamped around his quill in an effort to hide the urge to fiddle. He ignored the elbow shoved into his side and Hermione's soft whisper, preferring to take the dive rather then having house points removed. Snape curled his lip before tearing his gaze away from Harry and resuming his lesson. Harry remained in a state of shock and shame for several minutes before tuning back into Snape's voice, ears picking up the words all students dreaded hearing while in Potions.

"Rather then let you choose your partner, I have taken it upon myself to put you into pairs. Listen closely because I don't want any confusion." Harry closed his eyes and dropped his head to the desk, he couldn't be paired with Draco. The blonde would kill him or he'd end up hitting him when the Stag decided he was in danger. "Parkinson and Weasley, Zabini and Granger, Potter and Knott, Malfoy and Thomas." Harry sighed in relief before glancing at Ron. His friend had a horrified look on his face and appeared to be trying to talk himself into gathering his books and changing desks.

Harry leaned backwards and looked at the steaming potion sitting before him. Knott was carefully stirring the brew, while Harry was scribbling down their observations. Pausing, he tipped his head and frowned. Reaching into his mind, he found the Stag and called it lightly to the surface, surprised when the massive animal flicked its ears and cautiously moved forward. With stronger senses, he was better able to pick up the sounds and scents of the classroom.

A low rumble barely audible had his eyes widening as he kicked the back of Ron's chair lightly. The sound was echoed by a deeper more bass growl, this one coming from slightly to the right. His eyes flicked to the desk next to Ron's and he caught Hermione's eye, surprised to see she had frozen with the stirring rod above the orange brew. Sliding his chair back, he looked across from him and stilled, eyes meeting blue orbs before they were shuttered and turned away. A movement had him jerking his head and watching Blaise rise slowly, body tense as he glared at Ron.

The explosion seemed to occur suddenly, chairs scraping and potions flying as Ron lunged across the aisle, hands reaching for the throat of Blaise Zabini. The Stag screamed in warning, throwing his head back and shaking his antlers at the sky. Harry in turn, tried to leap out of the way as the potion on the desk in front of him toppled over. Pandemonium broke out as students tried to get out of the way and others jumped into the fray.

Harry caught a glimpse of platinum blonde hair and the quick moving form of Draco as he slid silently into the fight. For a moment, Harry thought he glimpsed a flash of thick red fur against a fluffy white coat. The musk of fur and blood was strong in the room, mingling with the smell of the spilled Dragon's Fire. Jumping to Ron's side, he wrapped a hand around the other wizards arm and tried to tug him away from Blaise, surprised to see Draco doing the same thing on the other side of the small fight. Slitted blue orbs met rolling emeralds as both fought the instinctive urge of fight and flight.

It was with some relief that Snape intervened, his hands catching the collars of the fighting boys and dragging them free of each other. With a rough shake, he tossed them in different directions and planted his hands on his hips, eyes narrowed mercilessly.

"Detention! Two weeks with me starting tomorrow night at eight, be prompt or I'll double it." The Potions Master growled before whirling around, cloak billowing behind him as he waved his wand and began to clean the mess made by the skirmish.

"Come on Ron, I'll take you to the Hospital wing." Hermione whispered, reaching down and wrapping a hand around Ron's upper arm, carefully pulling him to his feet while digging through a pocket for a handkerchief. "Harry, will you get our stuff?"

"Sure." Harry responded, still stunned at the turn of events, his brain running on automatic as he began to gather his stuff. The room emptied around him as he jammed papers, and quills into their proper places, collecting stuff from off the floor that had been knocked aside in the heat of the fight. He froze when a pair of shining black boots appeared under his nose, one toe tapping as his eyes traveled upwards slowly.

"Potter," Malfoy drawled smoothly, his arms loaded with the books and bags belonging to Blaise and Pansy.

"Malfoy." Harry responded cooly, standing and straightening his robes as he stared at the blonde before him. Uneasy silence fell between them as they both shifted, waiting for the other to say something.

"Keep your friends away from mine Scarhead." Draco whispered, stepping into Harry and rumbling softly in his throat, the low growl heard only by the black haired wizard. Instead of retreating, Harry took a small step forward, pressing closer to Draco, noses practically touching.

"My friends and I have as much right to be here as you do, Malfoy." Harry replied, his tone deeper then it should have been. In his mind, he watched the Stag shake his antlers in threat before turning around and bounding away, pausing once to snort and lay his ears close to his head. Harry agreed with the Stags strategy; strike and run before being wounded. "Keep your friends away from mine."

"Lame, Potter, terribly lame." Draco sneered, as Harry turned and headed for the door. Stopping just outside the door, Harry spun around slowly and withdrew his wand, brandishing it in the general direction of Draco.

"That's the only warning I'll give you Malfoy." Harry said before nodding his head and continuing on his way, hearing the snort of disbelief from the blonde.

Hermione had spent the last several hours in a corner of the library, dinner had come and gone and still she searched the large section on the Animagus transformation. Her mind had become muddled with terms and theories, each slightly more stressing then the one before. All she gleamed was that when ones animagus form was constantly communicating with the witch or wizard, it created a stronger bond between the pair.

The individual would be able to call on their form faster but would have to put up with small side affects such as the behaviorism of the animal. Ron's aggression had risen from his alpha wolf of course, the need to defend and protect his territory and pack. Sighing, she closed the dusty tome and gathered her stuff, retrieving the one book she had decided to check out before leaving the library. Her mind was already planning the dressing down she was going to give her friends when she returned to Gryffindor House.

Hermione slammed the portal closed and glowered at the students gathered in the Gryffindor Common Room. Several exclamations broke out about the time and appointments they were late for as the other students quickly cleared the room not wanting to be caught in the crossfire of the argument that was brewing.

"I told the pair of you to be careful. I remember clearly telling the pair of you what you should and should not do. What were you thinking?" Hermione began, her voice slowly rising as she got into the rant, one hand waving for emphasis as the other was planted firmly on her hip.

"Hermione-" Ron started, immediately snapping his mouth shut as the young witches eyes locked onto him, eyebrow slowly arching in warning.

"Yes, Ron? Perhaps you would like to try and make some sad sorry excuse for your actions. We were in class Ron. Blaise couldn't have done anything without being seen by the rest of Gryffindor. Do you realize how close you were to changing?" She screeched shrilly, the sound causing both boys to wince and raise their hands to their ears.

"It wasn't really his fault, Zabini was just as much at fault." Harry said softly, cowering back against the cushions of the chair he was perched on as Hermione's eyes fastened on him. One toe began to tap in warning.

"I don't want excuses I want promises. What happened in Potions is never too happen again, is that understood?" Hermione stated, glancing back and forth between the two as they looked at each other before nodding in agreement. "Excellent. I'd say it's time for bed then."

Harry and Ron watched as she glided towards the stairs and left them sitting there, both trying to figure out what they should be doing.

"I think she's finally lost it." Ron whispered, craning his neck so he could track her up the stairs. Harry nodded his head in agreement, wincing again when the movement put pressure on his neck. Rising from his place on the red couch, he picked up his bag and looked down at Ron. The red head was glaring into the fire with a wrathful look on his face.

"Leave it alone, Ron." Harry warned, rebuking his friend for the thoughts racing behind his eyes.

"Harry-"

"I like a good duel as much as you do but the Slytherins don't play fair and I'd rather not tempt fate. Besides, there'll be other fights and arguments, let's just be glad you didn't end up transforming. Things could have gotten really messy if you'd tried to bite him. You'd of had everyone wondering." Harry smirked with a completely straight face, jerking backwards as Ron snorted and swung playfully at him. The pair play fought for a minute before turning and dashing towards the stairs in a silent challenge to see who reached their dorm first.

A/N: Well, another chapter done. I thank everyone who took the time to review and give me some ideas for names. Unfortunately not everyone liked the name I had chosen for Ron and that's okay cause I didn't either but that means he's currently nameless. Also, one of our favourite wizard's is still nameless, so let's try this again:

Harry- Nomad? Odin? (stag)
Draco - Nomad? Snow? Beau? (tiger)
Hermione - Ginger (fox)
Pansy - Gem (mink)
Ron - Sparky? Ember? Apollo? (wolf)
Blaise - Frost (wolf)

Manny2003 – Thank-you for Pansy's name and I'm glad you're liking this story.
BloodyMarry – Wow, I can't say I didn't walk away from your review knowing nothing. Usually I love the mythology names but I'm trying to keep them English, though I doubt that will happen. Awesome suggestions though, and we'll definitely see Bambi in there somewhere.
Lady Silverhawk – lol, that's okay, I made her one before I knew what it was then I went and Googled it. Like a big ferret but kind of uglier, fitting I believe.
fourth-face-of-the-goddess – You might be on too something there…
websurffer – lol, sleep deprivation gets us all at some point….like right now for me.