Chapter 7

Draco stalled as long as possible, and then some.

It was Monday morning and the Gryffindors would be sharing a Transfiguration class with the Slytherins first period. A transfiguration class where the students would be transfiguring their pets. It wasn't that Draco thought Granger was lacking in skills, he just didn't really want to feel the need to be turned into a floating teapot.

So when Granger had gotten ready and went to go down for breakfast, Draco had done the only thing he could think of. He hid. The whole time he was behind the bed in his room, he chastised himself that Malfoy's do not hide. 'Yeah, well no other Malfoy was about to become target practice to some shape shifting spells.'

Granger hadn't put much thought to the fact that he hadn't joined her for breakfast. She had either figured he just didn't want to go, or that he was avoiding Sasha, which he had attempted to do all day Saturday and Sunday. So when she had come back up to get him, she was shocked at this lack of appearance at the opening of the portrait.

"Tanaka!" he heard her call from the entrance. Draco pushed himself farther into the corner farthest from the door, into the shadows although that wouldn't help much with his white fur.

"Come on, Tanaka. We've got to get to class." There was a pause and then Draco heard her shuffling around the common room and then up to her own room. After she went in her room, everything went quiet. The silence was broken after a few minutes when she called out again.

"Tanaka? Where are you, boy?" Draco laid down and put his head on his paws as he heard her come back down the stairs. It was then he considered his options. He could stop hiding and go to the class, or he could stay where he was and hope to Merlin Granger didn't find him. He really didn't want to experience another change, fearing it would be as painful as he last time, so he stayed where he was and kept quiet.

Draco knew his luck had run out, however, when he heard her approach his room. She hesitated for a moment, and Draco wondered what she was doing, then she knocked. Draco raised an eyebrow.

"Malfoy? I don't suppose you finally decided to show up, did you?" she asked through the door. "I didn't think so," she said after getting no answer.

Draco's ears drooped when the door opened and Granger stuck her head in. Her gaze swept over the room that remained the same since the first time she had checked, a little over 5 months ago. Draco quietly sighed. 5 months and he was still a damn dog.

Granger's survey stopped when she finally saw him in the corner. She didn't say anything, just looked at him. After starring at him for a few moments, she opened the door wide and leaned against the door jam.

"What are you doing in here?" she asked softly. Draco wasn't sure he would have heard her if he hadn't had his dog-ears.

After watching his for a few more seconds, she took a second look around the room, this one slower, and Draco found himself following her gaze.

The room wasn't anywhere near as big as his room at the Manor, but it was cozy and all him.

The walls were dark beige, one of his favorite colors for a room. To the left of the entrance, against the wall, was a huge, four poster bed with deep green and black silk sheets. At the head of the bed was a Birdseye maple chest that had some of his things in it. The bed was made, but was scattered with his bags. All but one were unpacked. He had been unpacking the last when he had come across his leather-bound journal. He had sat down to go through it and to add what had happened when he had denied the Dark Mark. He had just finished writing in it when he had realized what time it was and where he was supposed to be. Draco had carelessly tossed it to the side, where it still laid open on the bed to his last entry.

Granger's gaze, along with his own, paused at the open journal for a moment before continuing their journey. Past the bed and chest, where Draco was crouched down, was a door to a closet on the left of the wall.

Straight across from where Granger was standing, was a large oak dresser that had most of his clothes in it. The main thing that Draco had decided he was going to like the most about his room had been a large window and window seat that took up the whole wall to the right.

Draco's gaze slid back to Granger, and he could see the mild confusion that had been there since the first time seeing his room. Draco figured it was because she didn't understand why his room was so small compared to her own. Draco just didn't want any reminder of the Manor.

"Come on, Tanaka. We have to get to class," she beckoned him, after she finished looking over his room again. When Draco didn't move, Granger did something she hadn't done before; she came into his room.

"Come on, we don't have time for your games this morning," she growled as she came to stand in front of him. Draco sat up and leaned away from her. This seemed to make Granger pause for a moment, and then she got that 'thinking' look in her eyes.

"Lay down," she commanded, and Draco stared at her in shock. She was giving his a command?! But then, the thought that she might let him stay if he did as she said had him reluctantly lying back down.

"Sit," was her next command and Draco wondered if he had been a dog for too long as he sat back up. She then held her right hand out and Draco looked at it curiously.

"Give me your left paw." Draco sighed, rolled his eyes, and held out his left paw. He had better be allowed to stay back from class after all this.

"I knew it!!" Granger exclaimed as she let his paw go.

'What the hell is she on about now?' Draco thought to himself as Granger calmed herself down.

"I knew it! You can understand what I'm saying, can't you?" That caught Draco's attention. This was it, Granger had finally used that brain of hers that she was renowned for and was going to figure it all out and help turn him back! But…what if she just laughed, and made him stay like he was? No, she wouldn't do that. She was too much of a good person to do that to someone, even him.

Draco's ears perked as he stood, his tail beginning to go back and forth in his excitement.

"Okay, let's see. Just because you got all excited at that means nothing. I need solid proof," she stopped for a moment to think of something to say to him, and Draco rolled his eyes at her.

"Okay," she said as she reached into her bag and pulled out a piece of parchment and a quill. "Which one is the quill?" she asked as she held them out to him.

Draco didn't hesitate as he reached his paw out and put it on her hand that held the quill. If she kept wasting time doing this sort of thing, he would never get turned back.

"This is amazing. I've never heard of animals that can understand people before. I'll have to check it out in the library. After classes. Now, come on!" Draco sighed as his shoulders dropped in defeat. He could really live without her constant mood swings. Gone was the excited and curious Granger, to be replaced with the bookworm who couldn't miss classes. He reluctantly got up and followed her.

"Alright class, today, as you are all aware, we will be transfiguring your pets," McGonagall announced from the front of the class. Different reactions could be heard from the Gryffindors and Slytherins. Some groaned, not wanting to do any work, as usual, and because they didn't really want to do anything to their pets. This included Harry, as he was quite fond of Hedwig and he liked her the way she was. Ron was too busy trying to calm Pig down, who was squawking away and trying to fly laps around Ron's head, to pay any heed to what McGonagall was harping on about. Hermione was sitting up in her seat, surveying the area. She sent a glare to Ron and Harry, who just wouldn't be quiet with their shattering. Tanaka was sitting dejectedly at her side, shoulders sagging and ears drooping. Tyson was sitting in front of her, his black and white cat, Blacky, 'Because he's soo original,' she thought, on his desk purring loudly. Katrina was sitting down near the front with Lavender and the other girls she had made friends with. Sasha was sitting at Katrina's feet, tail going a mile a minute.

"Alright everyone, take out your wands. Mr. Weasly! Can you please control that animal of yours!" Ron slouched down in his seat as his ears began to enflame from his embarrassment. He snatched Pig from the air as he made another lap around his head.

"Okay, now that that's settled," she sent a pointed look Ron's way, "we can begin. I want it simple; a quill, or a teapot, or something of the sort. This is the same as transfiguring an inanimate object only this time what you are changing is alive. Remember that anything that you do can be fixed, so don't worry about harming your pets. Everyone ready? Begin!"

Hermione turned in her seat to face Tanaka, who was actually looking a sick. She didn't really notice in her excitement. She was a pro at transfiguring things, but she had never tried anything on a living creature. As she was saying the incantation, she had an idea. She would turn Tanaka into a quill, to see if he could write anything, seeing as he could understand what she was saying and such.

Tanaka only had time to widen his eyes before he was floating in front of Hermione as a quill. She carefully reached out and took hold of Tanaka and brought him over to a piece of parchment and let go. He hovered there for a moment before he began to move. She watched with trepidation as letters began to form. H E L P m E D r A

"STOP!" Hermione jumped at McGonagall's command, making her loose her focus and she watched with disappointment as Tanaka turned back into a dog, landing on her desk. He looked around, in a daze, before realizing he was on her desk. He cautiously got back down on the floor, still looking a little dazed.

"Raise your hand if you need help turning your pet back. Yes Neville, I'm coming. Trevor will be fine." Hermione heard McGonagall from the front.

She bent over to look at Tanaka, who still seemed a little disoriented. She placed a hand on his head to get his attention. The contact seemed to snap him out of it, as he turned his head towards her and his eyes focused.

"Help you what boy? Draw? Drag? Drain? Drape? I don't understand." She watched him closely while she was naming things that started with d.r.a, but none of them seemed to be the right answer. "It could also just be random letters thrown together and I'm over reacting," Hermione thought to herself. She was so deep in thought that she didn't notice when the class was dismissed.

"Come on Hermione, it's time to go," Ron snapped her out of her musing as he prodded her in the side. " Hermione thought to herself. She was so deep in thought that she didn't notice when the class was dismissed.

"Come on Hermione, it's time to go," Ron snapped her out of her musing as he prodded her in the side.

"Sorry, I was just thinking about…never mind," she was going to tell them, maybe get a second opinion, but decided to keep it to herself for the time being.

Tyson, Ron, and Harry all exchanged looks before shrugging. They all knew how she could zone out.

"How did you guys do? With your pets I mean." Hermione asked as she gathered her stuff up and made her way to her next class, Tanaka and the boys at her heels. It felt good sometimes to have that kind of power.

"I turned Hedwig into a snitch," Harry said as he tried to keep up with Hermione's fast gait. "He was a little dazed when she turned back and she kept trying to flap her wings really fast."

"Tanaka was dazed when he turned back too. Must just be the high from being changed and then turned back," Hermione told them, glad that Tanaka wasn't the only one who had been out of it when he was changed.

"I turned Pig into a tea cozy. I wish he were that quiet all the time," Ron mumbled.

"I tried turning Blacky into a stuffed grey squirrel, like the big one's back home?" Hermione nodded her head, knowing what Tyson was talking about. They had some huge grey squirrels back home.

"Well, it didn't really go as planned. He was a squirrel alright, but he looked more like Scrat from Ice Age and he wasn't stuffed. That's why McGonagall ended it so fast. Poor Blacky's still twitching," Tyson said with fake sympathy. Hermione rolled her eyes. It was a wonder that cat still stuck around.

It was an hour after curfew that Hermione finally had anytime to go to the library. Tanaka had dozed off in his chair about a half hour ago and was still fast asleep. Hermione grabbed her bag with some paper and a pen in it. She liked using good old paper and pens when it wasn't school related. She quietly left the dorm and silently made her way to the library. She only had to duck behind a tapestry hanging in the halls once to avoid Mrs. Norris, that damnable cat.

When Hermione reached the library, it was as she had thought; empty.

She made her way over to her favorite table, in one of the corners, and laid her stuff out. Lighting her wand, Hermione began to look for books relating to animal communicating with people, mystical animals, and even a book on curses.

It was after she had gone through all but one of her books, the one on curses, that she heard something. She was just reaching out for the last book, when she thought she heard the library door open. Her heart rate accelerated, as it usually did when someone came into the library late at night when she was in there. She grabbed her wand and pointed it to the entrance.

"Hello, is anyone there?" She waited for a response, but didn't get one. She waited a few minutes, her ears straining to hear something else. Silence. Hermione shook her head. She must have been imagining things. Sleep was defiantly going to be of the good when she got back to her room.

She reached out and took the last book that she had picked out. She flipped through it, scanning its contents for something that stood out. She found it three quarters of the way through. It was called the Crusimaga Curse. There wasn't a lot of information about it though. Purebloods used it to punish ungrateful or incompetent slaves, mostly muggels. They turned them into animals.

Hermione read how the spell caused unbearable pain to the victim while changing form. Hermione agreed that it would make sense, seeing as animals had different bone structures than humans did. The book also stated that the victim retained a part of themselves when they were turned, depending on the will of the sufferer and that only the one who cast the spell could reverse it. A little note was scribbled into one of the margins said that some wizard who were turned whilst holding their wand preserved their ability to use magic. Her eyes widened with realization as she read the last little bit of information on the curse.

"There is only one way to know who the animal previously was. The animal always has the same colored eyes as they did while they were human."

Draco knew the second he entered the library that something was wrong. He knew that Granger had been there; she had said earlier that day that she would be going to the library when she got some free time. He hadn't meant to fall asleep but he had been exhausted ever since Transfiguration that morning. When he had awoken, Granger was gone. As he made his way over to the table that she always sat at, his unease grew. Something was defiantly wrong.

The large table was scattered with open and closed books. One book was lying open on the floor. He cautiously made his way over to the open book and looked at it. It was opened to a page with Crusimaga written boldly at the top. Draco quickly skimmed what it said, his eyes widening. That had to be what had happened to him.

'Granger found it!' he thought elatedly, but then remembered that something was wrong. He sat back on his haunches and surveyed the area. His hackles rose when he realized what must have happened. Along with Granger's sent was the well known stench of Deatheaters. One of the chairs was overturned and Granger's wand was lying precariously on the floor, like it had been tossed away. The sent was still strong, so they must have just left. Draco wasted no time getting to his paws and running out of the library.

As he followed the sent, he tried to think of what to do. They couldn't be too far ahead, the sent had been strong in the library and they couldn't apparate within school grounds. He could follow and catch up then…then he didn't know. Or he could go get Potter and Weasly and risk loosing them. Draco decided the choice wasn't as hard as he thought it was going to be. He rushed through the main doors, not really noticing how they had opened, only that they had. He didn't pause as he scanned the courtyard for any traces of Granger and her assailant. He heard the crunch of snow off to his left and veered that way. Sure enough, a large Deatheater was trying to carry a thrashing and belligerent Head Girl into the Forbidden Forest. She was thrown over his shoulder, fists flailing for all they were worth. She happened to look up and seen him running towards her swiftly. Her glassy eyes widened as she opened her mouth in a silent yell.

Draco was almost to them as they reached the forest. It happened in slow motion. The Deatheater stopped and turned to face the rapidly approaching Draco. A feral grin spread across his face as he reached out and touched one of the aspens. The last thing Draco saw before they disappeared was one silent tear rolling from Granger's left eye. They were gone.

"GRANGER!!!!" The entire forest and residence of Hogwarts were awoken by the anguished howl that broke the crisp silence of the night.