Chapter three.
Draco found Harry sitting alone under an oak tree beside the lake, tears streaming down his cheeks as he cried silently. Sighing; the Slytherin prince sat next to him and put his arm around Harry's shoulders in an awkward one arm hug. The saviour of the wizarding rested his head in the crook of Draco's neck and sobbed.
"I can't do this" Harry whimpered into the Slytherin's pale neck. "Can't do what?" Draco asked as he drew random patterns on the Gryffindor's arm.
"I almost hurt someone Draco, I was so angry that he hurt you!" Draco's heart skipped a beat, he had always wanted Harry to get angry for him, always wanted the boy's friendship if only to be closer to the Gryffindor. "I felt so much rage, so many dark thoughts. My body moved on its own and it scared me, I don't want to hurt anyone!"
Draco sighed and kissed the raven locks "you won't hurt anybody but if you're that scared then just stay away from things that make you angry!"
"You make it sound so simple." Harry murmured sarcastically into the Slytherin's neck and then they sat quietly for a moment and watched the rippling waters of the lake.
"Why did you kiss me before?" Draco looked down at the flushing Gryffindor and smirked "do you need a reason?" a small smile tugged at Harry's lips and Draco had the sudden urge to repeat the scene from that morning "I would like one, yes."
Draco chuckled and rested his chin on the top of Harry's head "if you really must know then it was because I had a sudden curiosity to find out what a Parselmouth would taste like." Harry laughed and Draco felt proud of himself for being the one to cause the joyful sound.
"Do it again?" Harry murmured almost inaudibly. Draco looked down, in surprise of the question, into two green hope-filled eyes. 'Oh gods, is he asking what I hope he's asking?' Draco hoped desperately that it was and he smirked to cover up his nervousness.
"Do what again?" his smirk grew when the disappointment on Harry's face was obvious, but Draco's triumphant moment only lasted a minute because a pair of warm lips hesitantly touched his neck, a shiver was Harry's indication that he was doing the right thing and he did it again with more confidence. "Kiss me again, Draco." The young Malfoy had to swallow a moan when his my name was murmured against his neck.
Draco pushed Harry to the ground with a moan and crashed his lips onto Harry's. This kiss was nothing like the gentle touch of lips like before, this kiss was a passionate war between tongues and teeth. This kiss was filled with the desire that the two boys felt for each other.
Harry clutched one hand on the back of the Slytherin's neck and the other tangled in the soft blonde locks to pull him closer. Something inside him had clicked into place when their lips had touched and Harry had no idea what it was.
Their tongues tangled together and Draco moaned at the sweet taste of the Gryffindor, he pulled away to nibble and suck on the tanned skin under his ear. He sucked ruthlessly on the skin, leaving a red mark, his mark. Draco licked the wound earning a moan from the smaller boy.
Harry pulled the blonde's head back up for another kiss; he groaned when the Slytherin bit at his lips and then ran his tongue around his panting mouth before plunging his tongue in.
The two boys broke apart to breath and Draco smirked again when he looked down at Harry who was breathing heavy and had not yet opened his eyes. The blonde boy pressed gentle open mouthed kisses against his closed eyes and he sighed contently.
He opened his eyes slowly and his green eyes stared into Draco's silver ones, a nervous smile pulling at his lips. "Does this make you my, um..." he trailed off; a blush creeping into his cheeks. Draco watched amusedly as his blush deepened when the raven haired boy glanced at Draco. "I think the word you're looking for is; boyfriend?"
Harry nodded nervously and Draco grinned "and yes, although I prefer to use the term lover." Harry chuckled "Hermione always told me I was obsessed with you, I guess she was right."
"Well of course she was right, who isn't obsessed with me?"
"Ron, for one." Draco grimaced "well I should hope so!" Harry laughed again and then there was a loud impatient screeching beside them. Both boys turned their heads to look at the giant brown owl. Draco looked back down at harry who just shrugged. Pulling himself up Draco detached the letter from the bird's leg and it ruffled its feathers before flying away.
The Slytherin looked at the seal and frowned "it's for you!" He said as he passed it to Harry; who took one look at the seal and tore the letter open reading it faster than Draco could imagine. "It's from the ministry!" he dropped the letter into his lap and stared off into the distance "they know..." he whispered. Draco took the letter out of Harry's limp hands and read the letter.
Dear Mr. Potter,
We have just recently been informed that you have come into your Animagus heritage and have been for quite some time. As you know it is against wizarding law to be an unregistered Animagus and we regret to inform you that being the 'boy-who-lived' does not excuse you, but do not mistake that we are not thankful for your defeating the dark lord.
We expect to see you within two days to fill in the appropriate forms. If you fail to do so, then you will be arrested until further notice.
We hope you have a nice day.
Yours sincerely,
Albert j. Baggleton.
"How did they find out?" Harry asked no one in particular. Draco linked his fingers in the Gryffindor's who looked at the blonde. Draco was glad that there was no blame in his stare. "You're going to have to tell McGonagall, Harry" Draco said gently, Harry sighed and then nodded.
"When are you going to tell her?" Draco asked and Harry shrugged "now I suppose, there's no way I'm going back to class now but you'd better."
"Where'd that Gryffindor courage go Harry?" Draco teased and received a playful shove and laugh. "I'll see you at lunch?" Harry asked and Draco nodded "of course" and then Harry placed a quick, shy kiss on his lips before fleeing.
Harry stood outside of the Headmistress's office as he tried to dredge up the courage to knock on the door. He took a deep breath and knocked on the door and then entered when he heard the muffled 'come in'.
"Ah, Mister Potter, how are you?" McGonagall asked as she motioned for the seat in front of her desk "I'm fine Professor but I have a bit of a problem."
"I'm sure you have, I heard about what happened in Hagrid's lesson and I advise you to try and keep a lid on your temper." Harry hung his head in shame and nodded "of course Professor but that's not the problem I was talking about."
"Oh?" she simply said and Harry took a deep breath before continuing "well, after I met Sirius and he told me about my dad and how they were all Animagi, I found a book on Animagi in the school library. I read it from cover to cover and-"
"I think I know where this is going Mister Potter and all I need to know is did you succeed?" Harry nodded his head "and I'm guessing that the ministry has found out?" Harry nodded again and refused to look at his Professor who sighed "I'm both proud and disappointed with you Mister Potter." McGonagall stood from behind her desk and motioned Harry towards the fireplace "before we go Mister Potter would you satisfy this old lady's curiosity?"
"A panther, Professor" McGonagall nodded a small smile tugging at her lips "congratulations Mister Potter, now if you will?" she gestured to the Floo powder and Harry smiled "ladies first!" and he bowed at the waist causing McGonagall to chuckle quietly "very well" and then she grabbed a handful of the powder and climbed into the fireplace.
"The Ministry of magic!" she yelled and then threw the powder to the floor and was swallowed up by the green flames Harry sighed before following and when he arrived at the ministry he dusted the ash from his robes and followed McGonagall.
Harry had been gone all morning and when Draco didn't see him at dinner he had started to feel uneasy. "Calm down, love!" pansy said to him as he paced in the common room. 'How the hell did they find out? Surely Pomfrey wouldn't tell?' Draco growled irritated at himself as he continued to pace. 'She promised not to tell, but she obviously did!'
"Draco would you bloody stop that, you're making me dizzy!" Blaise yelled from his seat at the study table. The blonde growled at him but sat down in a huff and crossed his arms over his chest "really now, Draky what's got you so stressed?" pansy crooned as she shuffled closer to him on the couch. "He hasn't seen Potter all day and he's feeling neglected!" Blaise answered mockingly and Draco glared at the dark skinned boy.
Blaise and pansy knew about Draco secret infatuation with Harry Potter and the Slytherin prince sighed when he realised Blaise was right, the ice prince was feeling lonely. "Oh come now Draco, I'm sure potter has a reason for ignoring you."
"He's not ignoring me; he had to go see McGonagall." Draco muttered scornfully.
"Long bloody meeting, if you ask me" Blaise muttered under his breath as he turned back to whatever homework he'd left until last minute. "Shut it, Zabini!" Draco growled as he slouched lower in his seat. "Blaise is right sweetie..." pansy said as she attempted to pull Draco up into a dignified sitting position "what could be so important that a meeting with McGonagall would last a whole day?"
"I don't know" Draco sighed only being half true; He knew why Harry had gone to see the Headmistress but not why it was taking so long. Something moving in Draco's lap interrupted his thoughts and he looked down to see a small paper cat curling up in his lap "aww, it's so cute!" pansy exclaimed as the cat looked up at Draco with two green eyes and winked before unfolding to reveal a small note in messy handwriting.
Draco, meet me in the Astronomy tower whenever you can get free
(I know what pansy can be like.)
I'll wait until midnight.
HP.
As soon as Draco had finished reading the note refolded itself back into the cat, rubbed it's head on his thumb and then proceeded to pounce into the fire. "What did it say Draky?" pansy asked as she watched the paper burn. Draco smiled "just some secret admirer declaring their undying love for me!" she gasped "who was it?" she asked with an air of a killer.
"They didn't sign their name." Draco answered with a smirk as he stood and walked to the portrait "I'm going to get a snack from the kitchens, anybody want anything?" he asked hoping that nobody would speak up. No one did there were just a few shaken heads and Blaise said "no thanks, I need to finish this!"
The portrait closed quietly behind him and the snake glared at him. Draco sneered and then turned on his heel and began making his way to the astronomy tower.
The halls were relatively empty, save for the last few students that ran to their dorms. As Draco climbed the stairs to the astronomy tower he started to feel anxious and he bounded up the rest of the stairs three at a time.
Harry sat alone leaning on the rickety railings staring up at the darkening sky. He turned when Draco closed the door gently and smiled at the blonde. "What happened?"Draco asked as he crossed the room to his Gryffindor lover. Harry smile turned into a scowl and he gazed out at the sky again. "They put me on probation..." he said after what seemed like an age. Draco grimaced "how long?"
"Two months." He said simply and looked down to his interlaced hands. "Damn harry if I knew this would happen I would have told you not to save my life." That earned a smile from him but it only lasted a second "you did tell them you saved me right?" he nodded "and?" Draco pushed when the Gryffindor didn't answer "they said it didn't matter, yeah they congratulated me and praised me for being the chosen one, but I had been unregistered for so long that sort of overwrites saving someone's life!"
"Hey that life happens to be mine; and I am very thankful I still have it!" Draco grumbled and kissed the nape of Harry's neck, trying to cheer up the gloomy Gryffindor. Harry sighed and leaned into the blonde's body "doesn't matter, anyway it's only two months." He smiled weakly "so how has your day been?" he asked sarcastically.
"Boring; without you, I missed you at lunch" He said truthfully and he watched amusedly as a blush crept into Harry's cheeks. "Shut up Draco" he said but a small smile tugged at his lips "it's true..."Draco started as he nuzzled the smaller boys neck "even pansy and Blaise noticed how agitated I was!" he scoffed "the great emotionless Malfoy, reduced to a nervous wreck when his enemy disappears for a day!" Draco laughed "well they'll be surprised when they hear that I don't see you as an enemy anymore."
Harry hummed in agreement, and then suddenly burst out laughing. "What's so funny, harry?" the blonde asked with a small wary smile pulling at his lips.
"You should have seen the ministers face when he saw the hickey you left on my neck!" he chuckled; wiping tears from his eyes as he turned to look at the blonde. Draco laughed quietly then harry leant his forehead on the taller boys shoulder and sighed miserably.
Then Harry suddenly pulled away from his blonde lover "oh damn it!" he cried "what?" Draco asked startled by Harry's sudden outburst he looked at Draco desperately "I forgot I'm supposed to go back to the infirmary tonight, I have to go now!"
The boys ran down the Astronomy tower stairs and parted ways at the bottom with a quick goodbye kiss and then Harry took off running through the halls.
When he arrived at the infirmary Madam Pomfrey was waiting for him with her arms crossed over her chest "about time Mister Potter, now drink this!" she shoved a black vial towards him and Harry took it tentatively. He uncorked it and watched as a faint blue smoke rose from the contents, he sniffed it cautiously but the potion had no scent and he shrugged before downing it, which he instantly regretted when he gagged at the disgusting taste, the potion slid down his throat almost reluctantly and Harry had to force himself to not sick it back up.
Pomfrey took the empty vial back as Harry took deep breaths to clear away the sickly feeling. "Very good Mister Potter, now come with me."
Harry followed Pomfrey into a hidden room at the back of the infirmary. The door was a huge metal thing with chains and locks and it gave Harry the chills. "This was built after the war; it's made especially for uncooperative werewolves and the like," She waved her wand and the door swung open easily "and it is where you will be staying tonight."
Harry walked into the room after her and looked around. The room was well furnished with wall tapestries, thick rugs. An over cushioned couch and a large bathroom with a shower and bath tub.
The bedroom was just as lavish. The huge four poster bed had a Gryffindor comforter laid neatly over the mattress. "I hope you'll be comfortable, I'll see you in the morning Mister Potter. Good night" Pomfrey said and smiled before she left the room "Good night, Madam" Harry said before the door was closed.
Harry looked around himself and sighed. He hated being confined, no matter how big or extravagant the room it reminded him of his time at the Dursley's.
He sat down in one of the arm chairs and waited, it was all he could do. The moon would rise soon and he would find out if the werewolf venom in his blood would be enough for the complete change.
It was. Harry doubled over when his stomach felt like someone was playing jump rope with his intestines. His bones started to snap and grow, fur, the same colour as his hair, shot from his pours and a tail sprouted from his spine.
It was agony but mercifully quick and soon in his place stood a midnight wolf with glowing emerald eyes. The beast lifted its head and howled.
Draco listened to the howls as they echoed through the halls, it was an eerie sound and it sounded so sad to Draco that he had to blink away tears. "A penny for your thoughts?" He turned and scowled at Blaise "sorry muggle saying." The blonde Slytherin lifted an eyebrow and Blaise chuckled "anyway, what's up?" Draco sighed and turned back to his book "nothing."
"Well if you're sure. Me and some of the others are going down to the kitchens; you coming'?" Draco turned back to his friend and mock pouted "oh so you go to the kitchens with the first years but not me?"
"Ha ha your hilarious, you coming or not?" Draco sighed "no I went earlier remember?" Blaise looked at him then like he knew that he hadn't really gone to the kitchens and Draco swallowed nervously. "Suit yourself." And then he left and Draco heard him shout "he's not coming" at the rest of them.
Despite the rumours about Slytherin's circling the school the snakes were loyal and faithful to each other. They were like the family that many Slytherin's never got because of their parents infatuation with serving the dark lord.
Another howl reached Draco's room and he sighed, dog earing his book he got off his bed and entered his bathroom. The bath began filling with warm water at a wave of his wand and he stripped off his clothes after pouring a bubble bath of his own creation into the warm water.
Draco lowered himself into the water with a contented sigh and relaxed completely. He stayed in the water for what seemed like hours, he brushed his fingers through his hair and frowned at the prune-like skin. He dipped his head under the water and then climbed out of the bath, wrapping a towel around his waist he spelled the water away and then used a drying charm on his hair. Combing his fingers through the blonde strands he re-entered his bedroom and pulled a pair of dark green silk boxers from his drawer and then a pair of black sweats from his wardrobe before climbing into his bed; pulling the bed-curtains closed.
As he drifted off to sleep he heard the hushed whispers of his Slytherin brethren as they returned from their nightly raid of the kitchens.
TBC.