Note: Again, I'm introducing a new muggle. I'm doing this because I feel that it is easier for my readers to relate with a character other than my main ones. Character: Liam Holtzworth. Liam is very charming, but overall he is only interested in one thing *wink wink*. He's mainly around for seduction purposes. Enjoy!

Chapter 20

7:33 p.m., Dining Hall, Gryffindor Table, Hogwarts(Tuesday)

"So you're telling me that Jacob made his way from the Astronomy tower all the way to you in the hallway outside of Herbology?" Hermione asked Vixen. She nodded.

"Strange, right?" Vixen asked her. Hermione nodded quickly.

"Oh, so now he is strange, is he? Why just last week I believe he was charming. That's what you said, right? Charming?" Ron asked raising an eyebrow at Hermione. She rolled her eyes at him.

"You think Jake could be like a mutant, or something?" Vixen asked while stabbing a peach slice with her fork.

"You mean like a superhero or something?" Ron asked her. Vixen shook her head from side to side.

"Not exactly, Ron. Do you think maybe Jacob is special, like all of you?" Vixen asked looking to the three surrounding her.

"I really doubt it. You get informed of your abilities when you turn thirteen in our world. So if he was like us, he would already know, and Dumbledore would know as well," Hermione explained. Harry nodded.

"Okay, so maybe he isn't a wizard. Do you think he could be a werewolf?" Vixen said jokingly.

"You know, that would make sense," Ron said pointing at her. Hermione laughed.

"Oh please, Ronald," she told him.

"Think about it Hermione. This werewolf showed up when all of the muggles arrived. Don't you think it could be possible that one of them is the werewolf?" Ron added. Hermione opened her mouth but was cut off before she could say anything.

"Weasley has a point," Draco said standing behind Ron and Harry. Vixen smiled when she heard him speak.

He looked slightly better than when she had seen him earlier. The circles below his eyes were slightly lighter and his skin was back to it's normal shade. Vixen felt relieved that he was starting to make contact with others again.

"You agree with him?" Harry asked in disbelief.

"I suppose. I just really hate Jacob. So anything that makes everyone else hate him too is just a plus," he pointed out.

"Do you two honestly believe that Dumbledore wouldn't have noticed a werewolf roaming around in his castle?" Hermione said.

"I thought you were supposed to be the brain of the group, Granger. Maybe you didn't read Professor Snape's assigned reading on werewolves closely enough last year," Draco said to her. Hermione narrowed her eyes at him.

"What did it say?" Vixen asked him. Draco looked to her and felt his stomach grow heavy.

"Young werewolves are extremely hard to detect without seeing them shift. Adults are slightly more capable of remembering certain parts of what occurred in their wolf state, whereas a teenager or child wouldn't even remember changing at all. So if the werewolf doesn't even remember shifting, it's not like anyone could pick their brain and obtain that information," Draco began to lecture. Hermione was impressed that he had retained so much information from the previous year.

"Do they ever remember shifting?" Vixen asked leaning closer to the table. Draco forced himself to not look at her.

"No. They don't remember the shift. However, they are able to recall any traumatizing events that occurred when they were wolves. Usually, they won't recall any of this incident until they are triggered by something to remind them," Draco replied. Vixen bit her bottom lip.

"Triggered?" Ron asked.

"Yes. For example, a teenage werewolf attacks a construction worker at night. Later, when in human form, say the werewolf walks past the construction sight. This could trigger memories of the incident. But sometimes they still do not realize that they were there. They may think they dreamt it all," Draco said, finishing his lecture. The other four sat quietly at the table.

Vixen was staring down at her plate, her mind racing with the thought of werewolves. Ron was fidgeting in his seat, his eyes darting around at the people sitting near him. Harry continued to eat and Hermione sat quietly. Draco shifted his weight to the right and was getting ready to exit the scene. Before he did, he reached into his pocket.

"Here," he said placing Vixen's iPod onto the table. She looked up at him.

He stood still for no more than five seconds with his eyes locked onto hers. He wanted to tell her everything that was going on right then and there. He wanted to grab her by the hand and run away to a place where nobody could find them. He wanted to protect her. But he couldn't. So instead, he walked over to his house table without any goodbye.

9:30 a.m., Muggle Studies Classroom, Hogwarts(Wednesday)

After dinner the previous night, the Gryffindor students dropped the subject of werewolves. Vixen didn't pressure them to discuss it any further, either. So instead, she waited quietly for Draco to arrive to class this morning. She smiled to herself when he walked in looking even better than last night. He took his seat without even glancing her way, making her smile fade.

"Alright class! I hope you are all ready for today's assignment. Now, rather than interrogating your muggles today, we are going to sit back and watch all 15 of them interact with one another instead. This way we can understand how they mingle in the muggle world," Burbage said to the class. Draco was relieved that he didn't have to speak to Vixen, and she was excited to meet the other muggles.

With a flick of her wand, Burbage arranged the classroom with the muggles up front and the Hogwarts students aligned like an audience. Vixen looked to her right to see Jacob standing next to her. She swallowed hard, slightly nervous. She then turned to her left. She noticed an unfamiliar boy who was much taller than herself standing beside her. He was quite attractive with a pointed chin and chestnut colored hair. He caught her staring at him and shot a wink her way. Vixen turned her head quickly, blushing like crazy.

"Go ahead muggles. Mingle," Burbage urged. Without a second thought Vixen quickly turned to her left.

"Hello," the boy said with a smile on his face. Rylen who was a few steps away watched them intently, ignoring the boy who was trying to talk to him.

"You know what, class? Why don't we do this slightly more organized. I'll put two muggles up at a time for you to observe," Burbage said. With another flick of her wand, Vixen and the boy she had been talking to were pushed closer to the audience.

The other muggles stepped back away from the two. Rylen kept his eyes glued to the two while Jacob yawned, obviously bored. Draco watched Vixen with a heavy heart. He thought he was going to vomit when she spoke.

"Hello," she said.

"My name is Liam. Liam Holtzworth," he said smiling widely down at her. Vixen smiled back.

"It's nice to meet you Liam. My name is Vixen Charm," she replied slightly swaying in her spot.

"You're very attractive," Liam told her. Vixen's face became blood red, and Jacob tuned into the conversation now.

"Alright, that's enough of you two then," an awkward feeling Burbage said waving them off. The two walked back to the others and Rylen was pulled up front with Avery.

"Hi man. I'm Avery," he said sticking his hand out to Rylen. Rylen stood still, staring at him quietly.

"Umm...you okay man?" Avery asked slowly pulling his hand back.

Draco looked over at Luna Lovegood. She was sitting happily in her seat with her face blank as it usually was. Draco returned his attention to Rylen.

"Seriously, are you alright?" A confused Avery asked reaching his hand out to touch his shoulder. Rylen grabbed his wrist before he could touch him.

Vixen grew slightly concerned. She had just met Avery the previous night, but she didn't want Rylen to hurt him. Liam noticed her tense up beside him. Avery started to struggle trying to pull his wrist from Rylen's grip. Rylen started to tighten his hold on him. Liam stepped up toward the two.

"Dude, let him go!" he said walking over to Rylen. Rylen reluctantly released Avery.

"What the hell man?" Avery yelled while rubbing his wrist. The Hogwarts students sat quietly in shock.

"Feeling brave, are you?" Rylen asked Liam angrily. Liam cocked his head to the side.

"You're like ten times his size, man. That's not fair," Liam pointed out calmly.

"I'm not a fan of others, kid. I suggest you should back off as well," Rylen threatened taking a step toward Liam.

"Rylen, I think that's enough," Luna quietly and calmly said while standing up. Rylen quickly directed his attention to her.

"You should probably apologize to that boy you hurt," Luna told him. Rylen nodded.

"I'm sorry I hurt you," Rylen told Avery. Confused, Avery nodded his head.

"I don't like that guy," Jacob whispered to Vixen. She looked at him slowly.

"Which one?" she asked him. He thought quietly to himself for a moment.

"Both of them," he replied nodding his head. Vixen shrugged.

"They're different I suppose. But everyone has their own quirks," she replied.

"I suppose," Jacob said scratching his head. Vixen looked up at him.

"What're your quirks, Jake?" she whispered to him. He looked down at her.

"Me? Hmmm. I'm not really sure I guess. I'm pretty fast," he said shrugging. Vixen sighed mentally.

"Oh," she replied turning her attention back to the two boys.

"That's enough for today I think. Go on to your next classes children," Burbage said warily. Vixen walked over to her group.

Rylen glued his eyes to her, and Jacob glued his to Rylen.

11:43 a.m., Dining Hall, Gryffindor Table, Hogwarts(Wednesday)

Many of the students that were present in the Muggle Studies room earlier this morning were feeling very on edge. Yes, many of them had witnessed fights before, but something was different about the dispute between the muggles. Many group members were distancing themselves from their muggle subjects as a result. However, Luna Lovegood continued to act normal around Rylen. As a matter of fact, Rylen was different with Luna. The other students noticed he was smiling and laughing when he was with her. It was a complete personality change from this morning.

Vixen sat quietly with no more then a glass of water sitting in front of her. She was one of the numerous people in Hogwarts that was watching Rylen. It was as if Luna and Rylen had a deeper connection with one another. Vixen was glad to see Rylen so happy, but she was concerned about his life in the muggle world away from Luna. Was he just some boy who shut himself off from the world back in her world? Her thoughts faded when Ron spoke.

"That Liam boy was rather forward don't you think?" he asked while shoveling a bagel into his mouth. Vixen shrugged.

"I suppose so. He seems a little fake to me," Vixen admitted. Ron nodded.

"Agreed. I mean, what kind of idiot would try and stand up to that Rylen kid? He's huge!" Ron replied pointing to his own biceps. Vixen smiled and shook her head.

She picked up her water and held the frosted glass to her lips. Before taking a sip, she caught the eyes of Draco Malfoy from the Slytherin table. He had his infamous smirk on his face and his gray eyes locked on Vixen. Vixen smiled to herself and took a quick sip of her water, placing the glass back onto the table. She then lifted her hand next to her face and wiggled her fingers jokingly at him. She noticed him scoff and smile before turning his head to the left. Vixen laughed on the inside.

"Looks like he is doing better," Ron said, noticing who Vixen was subtly communicating with. Vixen nodded and put her glass to her lips again.

"Let me guess, you'll be sneaking off to meet him in the middle of the night again?" Ron said nonchalantly. Vixen choked on her water and started coughing.

"You know about that?" Vixen asked, concerned. Ron raised an eyebrow at her.

"Sure do. I felt it was necessary to check on you in the middle of the night and many times you weren't there. One can't stop themselves from jumping to conclusions," Ron told her. Vixen started to blush.

"Conclusions about what?" Harry asked taking his seat at the table. Vixen looked at Ron quickly.

"Who is going to win the Quidditch match next week," Ron lied quickly. Harry laughed.

"Well Gryffindor of course," he told them. Vixen smiled at Ron.

10:17 p.m., Slytherin House, Hogwarts(Wednesday)

Draco was hunched over his desk looking at an open Potions textbook in his bedroom. Crabbe and Goyle weren't home yet, which meant he had the room to himself for a while. Draco let out a frustrated sigh and leaned back in his chair when he noticed he had been re-reading the same sentence over and over.

He slowly ran his hands over his face and took a deep breath, exhaling slowly. He couldn't stop himself from thinking about Vixen tonight. He had tried his hardest to avoid her due to the fact that when he saw or heard her he just wanted to die inside. How could he get himself into such a mess? How could he have let his guard down so easily? He stood up from his seat and pushed his chair in.

He shoved his hands into his jean pockets and walked over to the window. He rested his head against the glass and looked out into the courtyard below him. He kept seeing every incident he had had with Vixen there in his mind. He remembered every word she had said and every movement she made. He lifted his head from the glass when he saw Vixen walk into the courtyard. She was wearing a long gray sweater with some dark wash jeans and her infamous green converse that he had grown so accustomed to. He looked down at himself.

He wasn't happy with his attire that consisted of black socks, loose fit jeans and a white "wife-beater" shirt. He quickly grabbed his usual white button up shirt and threw it on without buttoning it. He then grabbed some black leather shoes and tied them quickly. His Prefect badge was already in the back of his jeans so he didn't worry about that.

"I can't believe I'm about to do this," he thought to himself, standing beside his bed. He took a deep breath and left the room.

The entire walk he started to plan out what he was going to say to Vixen. He had to tell her exactly what was happening. He didn't want to keep it a secret any longer. If he told her now, maybe she stood a chance at surviving. He walked into the courtyard slowly, the grass curling beneath him. Vixen turned around to see him and smiled widely at him. This just made his heart drop.

"I'm so glad you came," she told him happily. He swallowed hard.

"Vixen...," he began quietly, clenching his fists at his sides. She started to walk closer to him.

"Yes?" she asked calmly, still smiling. Draco felt his heart start to race and his palms start to sweat.

"I um...I need to talk to you," he managed to say. Vixen was now standing right in front of him.

"Just wait. Just one second," she told him, placing her hands on the back of his neck.

Draco felt chills run down his spine at her touch. Her fingers slowly ran from the base of his neck to his hair where she spread them, lightly rubbing his scalp. He couldn't take his eyes off of the girl in front of him. If his heart tried to beat any faster it would explode. He felt her lightly pulling him down closer to her. Without much resistance, he gave in, allowing his lips to fall upon hers lightly.

He missed this. He thought that he could stay away from her, but not after tonight. Not after this moment of pure sensuality. He missed being so close to her. He could feel her warm breath on his lips, making it hard for him to stand still. His eyes flew open when he felt her pull away from him. She bit her bottom lip while smiling at him.

"Now you can talk to me," she said happily. His heart dropped into his stomach once again.

"Right...I suppose now is as good a time as any," he said unhappily. Vixen raised an eyebrow at him.

"Vixen, maybe you should sit down for this," Draco said taking her hand and leading her to a stone bench. She sat down and looked up at him.

"Alright. Well, you see...the thing is...well, you know how sometimes...when you care about someone...ugh damn it!" he said fighting with himself to spit the words out. Vixen smiled at him.

"It's okay Draco. Just take a deep breath and say what you need to say," she said. He ran a hand through his hair.

"You're going to hate me," he said shaking his head slowly. Vixen sighed.

"I couldn't hate you. Ever," she told him stressing the last word. He looked at her smiling face and knew in his gut that this wasn't right.

"Alright. Here it goes. Vixen, I'm afraid that I haven't managed to get anything arranged for your party tomorrow," he lied exhaling loudly. Vixen laughed.

"Are you serious?" she asked.

"I know, I should have taken care of this sooner. I'm sorry," he continued to lie. Vixen stood up and hugged him.

"You're insane. You know that? A party is hardly anything to get angry over," she told him. He shrugged.

"Now what am I going to do?" he thought to himself.

11:53 a.m., Dining Hall, Gryffindor Table, Hogwarts(Thursday)

"So, are you ready to examine me tomorrow Harry?" Vixen asked across the table. Harry smiled.

"Absolutely," he replied. Ron rolled his eyes.

"Careful doing that with your eyes, Ron. They could detach and fall out," Vixen told him while pointing her spoon at him. He shrugged.

"Say you guys, has Draco mentioned anything about getting together tonight?" Vixen asked them. Both boys shook their heads no.

"Oh yeah, we're supposed to have a party to celebrate our week aren't we?" Ron asked. Vixen nodded.

"Well, maybe you guys could put something together this time and invite Draco," she told them.

"Or we could not invite him," Harry added. Hermione took her seat at the table now.

"Of course we will invite him, Vixen. Now, let's start brainstorming ideas," Hermione said.

"How did you even know what we were talking about?" Ron asked in disbelief. Vixen smiled.

"Vixen, we will need your musical device. Be sure to bring that to the empty classroom tonight at 8 o'clock. We can handle the rest," Hermione continued, ignoring Ron. He crossed his arms over his chest and started to pout.

7:56 p.m., Potions Classroom, Hogwarts(Thursday)

Hermione and Harry had completed decorating the room for the party and were discussing his upcoming week with Vixen when Draco walked into the room. Harry unhappily walked to the other side of the room and sat down in a chair. Hermione reluctantly went to greet Draco.

"I'm glad you could make it," she said to him.

"I'm happy someone invited me," he replied calmly. Hermione nodded.

"She will be really happy that you came," she told Draco. He nodded.

"Her happiness is the only reason I'm here to begin with," he honestly replied. Hermione raised an eyebrow at him.

"You really like Vixen, don't you Draco?" Hermione whispered to him. He didn't reply.

Vixen and Ron walked into the room together moments later. Hermione greeted them both with a warm hug and they placed her iPod on a desk and played it. The four sat around one another on the floor and began to talk. Vixen was lying on her back with her head on Ron's leg. Hermione was leaning against Harry, and Draco was stretched out on his side holding himself up on his forearm.

"You guys know something really weird?" Vixen asked the group.

"No, what?" Ron asked her. She sighed.

"I only have two more weeks here before I go back home," she said sadly. Draco remained quiet.

"It's okay Vixen. We'll find a way to keep in touch," Hermione assured her. Vixen smiled.

"Well I hope so," she told them.

"It sure will be dull without you though," Ron mentioned. Harry nodded.

"Oh I'm sure you guys can get into your own adventures once I'm gone," Vixen responded. Harry scoffed.

"You have no idea," he said smiling. Hermione and Ron smiled back.

"Do you guys think we would get into trouble if we got caught down here?" Vixen said looking around the room.

"I doubt it. I have my Prefect badge with me, so I could get us out of any trouble," Draco told her. Harry looked his way.

"Why would you get us out of trouble?" Harry angrily asked.

"Harry, knock it off," Vixen warned. Draco raised an eyebrow.

"I would love to know what you're plotting Malfoy. I know you a lot better than you think and I know you aren't this noble and decent person that you're pretending to be," Harry angrily said. Vixen groaned.

"Harry! I said to knock it off!" Vixen said raising her voice at him.

"Don't worry about it, Vixen. I'll just be leaving since I'm causing so many problems," Draco said glaring at Harry and standing up. Vixen scrambled to her feet.

"You don't have to!" she yelled walking over to Draco.

"I do. I'll see you in class," he said before walking out of the room.

"Way to go, Harry," Hermione angrily whispered.