Chapter 14

Silver Blood

….\~/….

Friday, November 1st:

The sun was slowly starting to rise when she looked up. A sketchbook was in her lap as she ran her oil pastels over the page, smearing them to create the many colors of the sky she saw at the moment. Reds clashed into oranges which collided into pinks and finally slammed into the light and dark blues that painted the above. Dawn had to be her favorite time of the day.

Logan looked out, shivering at the cool zephyr that blew past her. The reason why she wasn't in the dormitories like everyone else, but instead outside under the beautiful sky was because she couldn't sleep. So many thoughts swirled in her mind, it wasn't even funny. How come she knew how to speak troll? Did she know any other languages?

She frowned, putting the quill to the bottom right of the page.

Many Colors of Dawn- 11/1/91

She slid her sketchbook into her bag and laid back, putting her bag under her head. Other than the library and the lake, she often relaxed on top of the astronomy tower. She liked the smells of metal mixed in with the natural aromas that Earth carried throughout the wind. She liked the smell of the pine trees that surrounded Hogwarts. And she liked the smell of the light mist that waded off the lake.

"I'll be right back; I left my book up here!"

Logan's ear twitched when she heard footsteps clomping up the metal staircase. She didn't give any attention to whoever it was and tried to stay quiet, but the person took immediate notice to her.

"You're going to fall off."

The werewolf looked over her shoulder, through the crevice her folded arms gave. A pretty young girl stood there with long, dark hair and narrowed, dark eyes. She was tall and Logan took notice to the green that framed her hood.

"You're point…?" Logan questioned, returning her gaze to the sky. The girl growled, "I'm just trying to help, okay?" she asked, obviously annoyed. Logan ignored her which irked the girl even more, but she fought to calm herself down.

"Listen, I know you're the one that sent that box of Hiccough sweets to Flint earlier this year."

So this was Stella Lawrence? The Slytherin that got along with Gryffindors pretty well by what the Weasley twins had told her. She seemed alright…for now. "Yeah, what about it?"

"I'd like to thank you." She smiled sheepishly. "Ever since that, Flint's gotten off my back and I appreciate the space that you've created for me. I want to know if there's anything that I can do to repay you."

"Yeah, go shove him and Draco into a hole."

Stella gave a light laugh, "I wish I could…" She trailed off. "Can I, um, sit up there with you?" she asked, hesitation hinting in her voice ever so slightly. Logan shrugged which she interpreted as an invitation and set her bag down, climbing up onto the roof.

"You seem nice…for a Gryffindor."

"I can be mean…"

Stella laughed again. "What's your name?" she asked. "It's Logan Wolfram."

"Well, it's nice to meet you, Logan. I'm-"

"Stella, I know." Logan's eyes were closed, hoping that she could catch some sleep before breakfast, but it looked like that little wish was slowly going downhill. Damn Slytherins…always getting in her business…

"What are you doing up here?" If this was her way of becoming friends, she would have to learn that Logan needed peace and chatting up a storm wasn't going to cut it. Stella, however, caught on pretty quick, immediately shutting her mouth.

After a few minutes of silence, Stella opened her mouth to speak, but Logan beat her. "I like it because it's peaceful…I feel relaxed. I don't have to deal with any everyday crap up here." Her eyes popped open and she sat up. "Crap…"

"What?"

"Birds come up here…"

"Yeah, so what?"

"They can be troublesome when they want to…" They both looked at each other and laughed. Stella looked down when her friend called her out, "Stella, are you coming?!" The dark-haired girl sighed, flipping her hair over her shoulder. "I'm coming!" Stella smiled back at Logan, "I talk to you later."

It was a lost cause; she knew that Logan wasn't going to respond. She was a Slytherins and it looked like the first-year didn't exactly appreciate them. Stella jumped to the room, grabbing her bag before running off with her friend.

Logan looked over the trees, towards the now visible sun.

"Dear Lord, she wasted my sleep time." Yeah, and sleeping on the roof was the safest idea…right…

….\~/….

Hermione was grateful to finally have her friend back, even though the excessive eating could've left and stayed put, but at least Logan was eating again. For awhile there, she wouldn't even touch her food. Hermione wasn't the only one that noticed this behavior though; a number of students would come up and ask her if Logan was feeling alright, but the answer would always be no.

The bookworm watched as her scarred friend ate every last thing that she piled onto her plate. She wasn't the only one watching. Percy, who had also been worried about her, showed a considerable amount of relief when he spotted her ferocious eating again.

"How are you feeling?" she asked. Logan stopped, teeth still on the bone, but her eyes shot towards the bushy-haired girl. Logan dropped the bones, sucking on each finger, and licking her lips before responding with a, "Fine and dandy!"

"So, a house-elf made that especially for you?" Hermione flicked her eyes towards the lamb chop and back at Logan who was scanning the area, giving a small smile. "Maybe…"

"Oh, Logan…"

"What?! What did I do?!"

"You were born!!" Pansy shouted from the Slytherin and the whole group of them laughed haughtily. Logan looked over her shoulder, smirking. She spun around in her chair, "So where's Drakie?" she asked. The Slytherins faces became grave.

"Someone snuck in last night and put bulbadox powder in his uniform." Pansy started. "He came running in the common room with boils all over him."

Logan spun around, resisting the urge to fall on the floor, laughing. Hermione arched an eyebrow. "It was you, wasn't it?" She watched as Logan covered her mouth, giving her a mock-shocked look. "How can you believe me, an innocent, caring, perfect girl, do something that awful to Mr. Malfoy?" she asked, putting on her "innocent" face.

Hermione snorted, "You're going to hear about this later."

"I know!"

Hermione looked over Logan's shoulder when Professor McGonagall stopped behind her student. "Miss Wolfram, I would like a word with you." The older woman was already walking out of the Great Hall when the green-eyed girl jumped up, jogging to keep up.

….\~/….

Once outside, McGonagall led the girl all the way to the hospital wing where she skipped in, stopping shortly after entering when she spotted Draco. He was sitting on one of the beds, stripped to his boxers. His face was twisted in a way that anyone could tell that he was pissed…VERY pissed. The blonde swatted Madame Pomfrey's hand away when she tried to slather a green paste on his skin…his boil-covered skin.

Draco looked over his shoulder, eyes narrowing into mere slits when his glare rested on Logan. "You did this to me!" he yelled, pushing Madame Pomfrey away. He started to walk over to the girl, but Professor McGonagall grabbed his shoulder. He growled at Logan's amused smirk, her arms uncrossed, and acting as if she were invincible, untouchable.

Draco pointed at her, "I saw you last night! It was you!"

"And it was you that did this to me!" She pointed at her bruise, suddenly growing upset. "You're so stupid! You're completely flabbergasted when someone pays you back for the havoc you wreak on them!"

"Oh, shove off…" Draco muttered, never losing his scowl.

McGonagall looked at both of them. "You two will both be having detentions tonight." Draco's jaw-dropped. "Don't you see the condition I'm in?!"

Logan perked up, "I think you look quite lovely in red!"

Draco pushed past McGonagall's arm and shoved Logan back roughly. "Say that again, Wolfram!" The girl growled, shoving Draco back. "If ya don't quit, I'm going to have to say you look better in black and blue!"

McGonagall frowned, breaking apart the two. "Stop this childish behavior." She spat, looking between the two. "You're maturing into young men and women so act your age." Once she knew that the two wouldn't strangle each other, she let them go. The teacher turned to Draco first, "You'll be assisting me in my grading essays tonight." Logan was next, "You will be assisting Professor Quirrell in any way. I'm not sure what he'll have you do, but I know he's in need of some company and assistance."

This was not going to be good…

….\~/….

Coldness was the only thing that she earned from the man. Cold glare, cold shoulder, cold frown, anything that showed no approval, happiness, or anything of the sort was never given to her. It was established, Professor Snape did not like her, even though she was fairly good at his class.

Today they were sitting at their desks, scrawling down answers to the questions he had assigned.

17) Who invented the Wolfsbane Potion?

Logan tapped her quill against her lip, pondering. The light bulb in her head went off and she wrote down, Damocles Belby.

For such a genius, how come he couldn't make the potion sweeter?

Snape paused to look at her work and nodded, going on. Was that approval? Or did she get the answer wrong and he proved himself right that she was a dimwit? Logan watched as Professor Snape stopped beside Draco, looking down on his work. The platinum blonde received two pats on the very top of his head and Snape continued on his patrol, hands clasped behind his back. Draco looked back at Logan, giving her a sneer. She, in return, made a face at him which earned her a scowl.

Fortunately for her, potions was almost over. Freedom was near…

….\~/….

"That was too easy an assignment." Hermione said with a slight bit of pride her voice. They traveled in a group: her, Logan, Harry, Lunar, Ron, and Neville. "I swear, Snape's going easy on us!"

Ron's face scrunched up, "But you're smart, Hermione so stop boasting all the time." This earned him a dirty look from the bushy-haired girl, but it quickly subsided when she spotted Professor Quirrell coming towards them.

"Good morning, professor!" she chirped politely,, making Ron roll his eyes. He always thought of her as a kiss-up. It was horrible watching her try to get on Snape's good side, but always fail. The man just didn't like Gryffindors…or Hufflepuffs…or Ravenclaws even… Snape only liked Slytherins and there was no way to change his mind.

"G-Good m-m-morning, k-kids." he stammered, fidgeting with his fingers. His eyes rested on Logan who looked back with disdain. She didn't like this guy and he was quite aware of this fact. Ever since she smelled the garlic on him, then in the forest, she knew that there was something going on and he made sure she knew too. Also, the twitch in his turban ever so slightly made her give him narrowed looks.

"L-Logan, I-I just c-came t-t-to tell you, that you'll b-be c-coming to my o-office at t-ten. I n-need s-some help on r-retrieving s-some…things," His voice got unusually steady. "a-at Hagrid's."

Logan nodded once, her eyes never giving him a kind look.

"I'll be there."

Quirrell nodded, walking away. The smell of garlic never faded though.

"What did you do to deserve detention with him?" Ron asked, jutting his thumb in the teacher's direction. "He's an oddball!"

"She put bulbadox powder in Draco's robes last night." Hermione stated before Logan could respond. The werewolf's mouth clasped shut, setting her lips in a thin line. Ron laughed hysterically. Harry gave a confused look, "What's bulbadox powder?" he asked.

Hermione sighed, "It's a powder that causes whoever to touch it to break out in boils." She clicked her tongue, "Don't you ever pay attention in Herbology, Harry?" The black-haired boy looked down. "No, sorry." Hermione narrowed her eyes, readjusting her books in her arms.

Ron wiped his eyes, "That's rich, Logan!"

The brown-haired girl beamed.

"Please Ron, don't praise her. It'll only get her into more trouble."

….\~/….

10 P.M.

….\~/….

Her bag bumped up against her legs. It was a rule of hers: always come prepared. Inside, she had her sketchbook, art supplies, bandages, needles, matches, and other random things. If one person asked her for something, she'd probably have it. Her bag was like Mary Poppins' bag; she could probably put a lamp in there if she really tried. Oh wait, she had that flashlight that she found in the junkyard!

Logan knocked on the door before coming in, never waiting for a 'Come in' or 'Enter.' She poked her head in, scanning the creepy classroom. That's when she saw a figure move, and Professor Quirrell came walking up, black cloak around his shoulder.

"H-Hello Miss W-Wolfram; a-are y-you ready?" he asked. She nodded, pushing the door open so he could get through. He strode out, gesturing for her to follow.

"C-Come…"

….\~/….

A light mist swirled around them with each step they took. A wolf howled in the distance and an owl hooted above them. Logan peered up curiously and looked just in time to see the owl fly away, disappearing in the gloomy trees. Somewhere close, she could hear hooves pounding against the ground. Logan pulled her teacher behind a tree, just in time to escape the sight of a herd of centaurs running through the forest.

"This is centaur territory so be extra, extra careful."

Quirrell nodded, looking grave as he stepped out. They continued to walk further into the forest. They turned their heads towards the right to see a grassy forest floor with a family of wolves. This one was different from the one she experienced from two months previous.

"They're all females." she stated, smiling at how three adorable pups ran out, playing with each other. One of them looked up from the pile and spotted Logan. The girl didn't notice this though, but the small pup trotted up to her, sniffing at her. It barked appreciatively, little tail wagging back and forth. The mother looked up and growled in warning at Logan and Quirrell who shoved the pup back with his foot.

"G-Go on; s-shoo!"

The pup growled too, but ran back to its mother. Logan waved good-bye to the pack before resuming her following.

"Professor Quirrell, what exactly are we looking for?" Logan asked. They stepped over an unearthed root. "We're l-l-looking f-for u-unicorns." He stopped suddenly, holding out his arm to hold her back.

In front of them, were two unicorns-one pure white and the other gold. Their heads were bent down low to collect the remaining grass between their teeth, chewing slowly. Quirrell stepped forward, only to press down on a snapping twig. The adult unicorn raised its head, looking around the area.

"D-Don't m-move."

Logan stayed in place, her foot slowly falling asleep. The numbness started going up her calve, and up to her thing until her whole leg was asleep. "I have to move."

"Don't." he hissed, slowly sliding his hand into his robe. Logan watched him pull out a dagger, large enough to kill an organism. "What are you doing?" she asked, worry rising up in the pit of her stomach. Once the unicorn bent its head back down, Quirrell made his move.

"No, don't!!" Logan screamed, running forward, but not only did she catch her foot on the root, Quirrell whipped around and smashed the butt of the dagger in her head, causing her to fall to the ground.

Her vision became blurry, but she refused to fall unconscious. Logan listened, as her head spun, to the last whinny the unicorn would ever cry out. A second later, something smooth splashed onto her face, covering her lips. She knew that scent-blood-and she wouldn't dare lick it off.

Finally, her vision became focused again and she watched as Quirrell made his way towards the foal who staggered away. She noticed how a large gash was already in its leg, causing their leg to become useless.

Logan stood up, running up to the teacher, grabbing his arm. He struggled against her, pounding his fist repeatedly in her shoulder, but she wouldn't let go. Her arm was slowly starting to go numb and he took advantage of this, slowly overpowering her. "You murdered one; I'm not letting you commit that crime again!"

They snapped their head in the direction of a howl. A large wolf was running towards them. He launched himself towards Quirrell's arm, sinking his teeth into the flesh. Quirrell screamed out in pain, letting go of the dagger. Logan scooped it up, throwing it into her bag before she scooped up the foal.

It whinnied, frightened as hell, but Logan wasn't about to let it be killed. She ran away from the scene as fast as her legs could carry her. If she wasn't worried that the foal would get hurt, she would've stayed to finish Quirrell off. Thankfully, the rest of the pack returned, engaging in the protection of the unicorn as well.

A small howl came from her left and she looked down to the see the small pup from before running next to her. Was that his battle cry?

"Go back to your pack, little one!" she ordered it. Logan's bag slammed into the back of her legs, causing them to give way. She toppled to the ground, the foal landing on the dirt floor with a loud thud. It whinnied in pain as it has fallen on their injured side. Logan quickly regained her posture, digging in her bag for needles, a few matches, bendable wire, and bandages. She slipped off her shoes, rolling her pant legs up. Her robes and sweater came next, throwing them on top of her bag. All she was wearing now were her pants and dress shirt.

'I'll come get them later.'

Over her shoulder, she saw Quirrell making his way towards her. Logan quickly scooped the foal back up, running with ease now. Her bare feet were calloused with all the running she had done when she was younger. Logan quickly looked over her shoulder to see that Quirrell was quickly closing distance between them.

The edge of the forest was near, she could see it. Smell of smoke from Hagrid's hut filled her senses. The pup managed to keep up surprisingly.

Logan smirked when she felt grass beneath her feet. She was almost to the castle, but it would take her some time. On grass, she didn't have that much grip as she did on dirt-covered ground. Her first stop was going to be to Professor McGonagall's room. She knew that Draco had detention and knew how long it took to grade essays; there was a high chance that she'd be in there.

"Come back here!" Quirrell yelled, running even faster. Logan started to gasp for breath, her lungs not allowing her to take deep breaths anymore. Her sides were cramping and her chest felt like it was on fire. Logan felt herself slowing; there was no doubt about it. Pretty soon, she came to a halt, gasping for breath.

"I have…got…to get…back into…shape…" She coughed, her throat on fire. A cold hand grasped her shoulder so tight that she'd probably have bruises there. "Let me go!" she shouted, punching backwards. Quirrell stumbled, but quickly regained his posture.

"I'll make sure to never tell anyone about tonight." For a frail-looking man, he was fast. His fingers were clenched around her throat, throttling her. Oxygen was slowly becoming scarce. She dug her fingernails into his hands, struggling to get out.

A loud yell came from behind him and Quirrell was knocked back. "Run, child, run!!" Logan fell to the ground, holding her throat, thanking God that he had sent the troll from the day before. Her lungs filled with oxygen once more and even though her sides were feeling like someone was plunging knives in every time she breathed a nagging sensation in the pit of her stomach forced her to get up.

The golden unicorn was nearly unconscious when Logan picked them up once more and hopefully for the last time. "Get out of here!" the troll ordered, swinging his club towards Quirrell. The man gave a panicked look when his unwanted student started running again.

….\~/….

Draco groaned, rubbing his eyes to rid the oncoming sleep. Essays were hell-boring as hell, long as hell, and incorrect as hell. Whoever wrote the last one (he was too tired to remember) was god awful at grammar. Hell, it might've been his.

McGonagall had become tired herself, but in reality, was sick of hearing her student's constant whining. "Wait until my father hears about this!" Draco was in for a surprise when he would get a letter from his father saying that it was shame that he got a detention.

The blonde looked up when he heard slapping of feet against stone. He waited to see who the source of the noise was, but ended up scowling when he saw Wolfram coming around the corner.

"Aw no, not-"

That's when he noticed the half-dead foal in her arms, shimmering blood covering her front. "Where's Professor McGonagall?" she asked, out of breath. Her green eyes scanned the area, worried eyes.

"She went to her office…what the bloody hell happened?" he asked. Logan shook her head, pulling him along with her as she pushed the classroom door open. She laid the foal on the ground, digging stuff out of her pockets.

"Get me some water and a washrag." she ordered.

Draco's face scrunched up, "Maybe I don't want to."

Logan shot him a dangerous glare. "Now, Draco! It's not the time for your whiney-ass attitude. Get me it now!" Draco's cold, silver eyes flicked across her face several times before moving sluggishly towards the basin.

"You know I'm only doing this for the unicorn, right?" he questioned, running the water into the bowl. He made sure it was hot, just like his mother always instructed him to do in situations where injuries were involved.

"I don't care who you're doing this for, just…" Her words trailed off. Draco turned to only stop and watch his worst enemy sit there with the foal's head in her lap. Her lips were next to the unicorn's ear, whispering. Right hand petting the foal's mane softly, the sight almost made his hardened face soften. She seemed so dedicated to save this creature's life.

"Here." he muttered, handing her the bowl. "Thank you." she said softly while taking it. Draco jumped up on the desk, watching her intently. First, Logan cleaned out the wound with the washcloth, gritting her teeth every time she had to wash away the golden blood. Second, she lit the match, holding one end of the wire over the small flame. Rotating it between her fingers, he noticed how the metal was beginning to melt, piling up into a knot.

Logan then poked the wire through the needle and bit her lip as she stuck the needle through the foal's skin. It whinnied a bit, but settled back down due to the lack of energy. Logan shushed it, running her fingers through its mane.

Draco narrowed his eyes, clutching the desk. "Where'd you learn how to do this?" he asked. Logan didn't look up, "I read it in a medical book one."

"And you remember every detail?"

"…not exactly…"

Logan continued to sew the wound closed, but when the door burst open, the distraction made her lose concentration and she pricked her finger. "What is going on here?!" Snape demanded, clutching the scruff of Quirrell's robes. Professor McGonagall was close behind them, dressed in her night robes.

"S-See, I-I-I t-told you, P-Professor Snape, M-McGonagall."

McGonagall came to the middle of the room, "But Professor Quirrell, all I see is Miss Wolfram trying to save this creature, not trying to kill it." The woman looked down at her student, studying her.

The foal was starting to thrash because of the adults yelling, scared. Logan snapped her head up, "SHUT THE HELL UP!!"

All commotion in the room quieted, and Logan continued to sew the wound shut. When she was finally finished, she broke the wire and melted a knot into that end also.

"May Deus tribua vos votum of pacis quod benevolentia." And withthat, Logan placed her lips on the creature's head for a second or two, placing her hand on the wound. She opened her eyes and stood, looking at her bloodied hands.

The wolf pup stood beside her, panting.

The foal opened its eyes and sat up.

And the adults just looked at her with a blank expression on their faces.

….\~/….

Saturday, November 2nd:

Logan walked outside, hands shoved in her pockets. The wolf pup, who trotted beside her, had been the center of attention at the four tables, every girl cooing over his cuteness. No matter what she said, the pup would just follow her.

So she named him Wolveren.

The night before, Hagrid had come in and taken the foal back to his hut, giving it medicine to stop the pain and hopefully heal the wound. She had sewn it enough to where the wound had stopped bleeding and the foal would be able to stay alive.

So she named her (it was classified a her) Aureus. Cliché, but the foal seemed to enjoy being called 'golden' in Latin.

Logan whistled to herself as she made her way towards the fenced ring that Aureus now rest. When the two approached, the small foal whinnied, walking up slowly to the side so Logan could pat her head. "Good morning." Logan dug in her pocket and fetched out some carrots she had swiped from breakfast and smiled when the unicorn gulped them down.

"Logan!" She looked up to Hagrid standing near his door. He was holding up her bag and robes. Grabbing them, she smiled when she discovered that everything was still in place. "Thanks Hagrid." she said, grinning up at him.

"It was no problem really. The centaurs saw ya rescue that foal last night and got yer things fer ya." He smiled back at her, shaking her shoulder. "You did great."

"I feel great."

Hagrid chuckled, "Say, would ya like ter come in an' have some rock cakes. Fresh out of the oven!" Logan nodded, following him in, shouting the door behind her when Conan ran in.

May Deus tribua vos votum of pacis quod benevolentia-May God grant you the wish of peace and good will. It's Latin...