Since the moment Draco informed me what our detention was going to be, I couldn't keep my mind straight. I had to spend it with stupid Potter and his stupid minion Weasleybee, at my favorite place ... And uggh... just the idea of us being at the same place makes me puke.

The day passed in blurry, and when the time for the detention came it seemed to me that this day never even started.

The forest itself wasn't the problem, in fact it would be easier if the Potter and his company weren't here... There's so many things that could go wrong.

We arrived at the entrance of the forest just when the sun disappeared from the sky, and I was so glad to see that Filch went back in the castle as soon as we arrived.

He couldn't stop talking about old ways of punishments and detentions, and that made this situation a lot scarier.

Everyone was quiet while walking down the path inside the forest. Well it wasn't that quiet, Hagrid was in grief because he had to give up on his dear dragon, Draco was shivering beside me, and just a few minutes ago he was trying so desperately to show us all how brave he is.

Hagrid suddenly kneeled, which made me almost bump into him. When he got up he had something sticky and silver on his fingers.

"Hagrid is that unicorn's blood?" I asked as quietly as I could.

"Unfortunately yes, and that is why we are here," He answered in monotone tone. "I found one dead a few weeks ago, and this one is badly hurt."

I don't know if it was just my imagination or the forest just become a lot more scarier. There was some awfully creepy sounds and the wind seemed to be circling around us. This is not the same place I am used to.

"And our job is to find that poor beast," Hagrid finished after small silence. "Ron, Hermione and Esther, you are going with me!" You could hear silent crying like 'Okay' coming from Weasley. "Malfoy, you are going with Harry!"

"Fine then I get Fang!" Draco shouted, he clearly didn't want to be alone with Potter, but unfortunately Fang isn't going to be of any help.

"Okay, but just so you know, he is a coward!" Hagrid cracked a small smile, but fear flashed on Draco's face along with Fangs whining.

"Esther I can finally tell you what we found out so far," Hermione spoke up as soon as we went our way.

"We found out that the thing Snape wanted to steal was actually a Philosopher's stone and it can grant immortality."

"I can't believe that she still thinks that my father wants to steal something." I thought while half listening to her.

"Help!" Suddenly an single word popped in my head.

"... Nicolas Fla.." It appears that Hermione didn't hear anything since she just kept talking.

"Stop for a second!" When she stopped I heard it again.

"Did you hear that!?" I asked and when nobody replied I started running, I could hear Hermione telling me to come back but I ignored it. It felt like the voice was telling me exactly where to go, and I just couldn't stop.

I relayed on voice rather then my eyes and when I turned to se if Hermione was behind me I tripped, and fell.

When I opened my eyes I saw that I was lying in front of someone's feet.

Draco and Potter screamed in horror when they saw me.

"Are you crazy I could have died just now?!" Draco said while trying to calm down.

"Sorry but we don't have time I heard somebody, and he needs help!". They agreed to help me look and we went down the path .

I stopped hearing the voice and I soon found out why.

An dead unicorn was lying spread across the ground and on top of him was an figure cowed all in black.

The creature realized that it was being watched and it slowly lifted its head. I fighted the urge to scream when I met his faceless head.

"I heard the voice of an dying unicorn," I whispered while tears streaming down my face. I was frozen in place and I was so lost that I didn't hear Draco calling my name.

In that moment Draco grabbed me and the next thing I know we were running towards Hagrid.

Hagrid quickly went towards Potter who was left alone.

When we went outside of the forest I lost balance and collapsed on the grass. I pulled Draco with me and he too fall beside me.

"W... what was that?" Draco asked while trying to stand up.

When he turned around to face me his, face dropped, and he quickly come to my side and grabbed my face.

I was crying like crazy, and I was constantly repeating the same thing.

"I heard the voice of an dying unicorn.. I heard the voice of an dying unicorn."

"Hey Esther, calm down... hey!" Draco was shaking me but with no use.

I was out of place, I haven't heard a single thing he said. The only thing I could think of was that terrifying moment.

And moment later everything was black.

I slowly opened my eyes and the first thing I noticed was that it was morning, that I was in hospital wing and that I wasn't alone. Potter was in bed across me, Weasley was right beside him and Hermione was sitting on the chair.

"Esther, you are awake!" Hermione got up when she saw me.

"Oh my God, you're okay... I was so worried!" She hugged me out of blue.

"I am okay!" I was petrified I didn't know what was happening, she was hugging to the point I couldn't breathe. "I can't breathe" I said with rough gasps.

"Sorry!" She let me go. "I am so glad that you are okay... There are so many things I need to tell you, you missed so much! "She was talking quick like always. Sometimes I wonder how she don't lose her breath.

"Wait, slow down!" When she finally shut her mouth I started talking.

"First of all how long I am here, and what happened with those two idiots? "

"Ugh... Where should I start?" She paused for second. I thought for a moment that she was thinking something terrible about me.

"Well you passed out the night of the detention and you haven't woke up since then."

"Wait, 'since then', how long I was here?!" I freaked out. What happened to me?

"Um you were asleep for a week," she whispered but ignored my expression full of fear, and kept talking. "And we found out who wanted to steal the philosopher's stone, and it was You Know Who, and we kind of stopped him, actually Harry stopped him, and Professor Quirrell helped him and now he is dead..." she started talking faster and faster and I become more confused then I already was. "So that is why Harry and Ron are like this." She finished with that, and she left me speechless, I barely understood her.

I can't believe that Voldemort is alive, I mean everyone thought that he was killed by Harry bloody Potter eleven years ago. But I guess that we all were wrong.

I opened my mouth to ask her about the details about all this, but enormous door opened and someone rushed in. Hermione quickly went back on her chair, when she saw who it was.

I straighten up while trying to see who the person was that scared off Hermione. And it turned out to be the last person I thought it would.

"You are finally awake!" Draco was cold as ever, sometimes it is hard to see if he really says what he thinks.

"Draco, what are you doing here?" He probably come to have a laugh at Potter.

"Icametocheckonyou!" he said quickly, really quickly.

"Sorry, but I didn't quite understand what you said."

"I came to check on you!" Draco avoided to look at me, and it was weird he never avoided anyone's eyes, he said that it will hurt his pride.

"Oh, really. I didn't expect that."

Draco slowly sat at chair beside my bed. And he looked like he was looking for the right thing to say.

"I thought that you was going to die back there, you were in some kind of trance," he stopped for a moment and I didn't want to interrupt him because he never, and I mean never talks like this. "Why were you talking about hearing the voice of a dead unicorn?" he looked me dead in the eyes seeking for an answer.

"Ugh... It is complicated I kind of heard the unicorn's voice before he died." I explained.

"Now you can tell me the real reason!" He sneered. He didn't believe me at all, and how could he, I mean I wouldn't believe if someone suddenly said to me that he can talk with animals.

"That is the true reason. I can talk with animals." I dropped my head I couldn't look him in his eyes.

"Since when?" Draco was extremely calm I didn't expect that.

"I found out when I was five years old, a cat scratched me and when I started crying she apologized, I freaked out and ran away." I laughed because of my foolishness. "Do you believe me?"

"I do actually. You can't fake the expression you made." I could see ghost of a smile on his pale face. It was a pleasant sight.

We sat there until Madam Pomfrey came and kicked him and Hermione out.

After that we had visitors all day, well Potter did. Hermione visited me few times but that was it.

Soon the first year ended and once again the castle was quiet as if no one was there. You could hear every crack and every squeal of heavy doors. And after a few weeks I left it too. My father and I went back home at Cokeworth and I was there almost the whole summer. I wrote several times to Hermione but we never had time to see each other. Draco, Pansy and Blaise were out of reach, probably because of their families, so it didn't bother me, but I really missed them all and I couldn't wait to see them again.

Since I was mostly alone with my father through the summer he taught me a few new spells and I also learned a few new recipes for potions. By all means this summer was quite good.