"I've got a job to do," said Draco.

"Well, then, you must go on and do it, my dear boy," said Dumbledore softly.

But Draco couldn't move. His hands were trembling and his stomach was in turmoil through a mix of fear, revulsion and utter panic.

"Draco, Draco, you are not a killer."

"How do you know?" he asked at once. "You don't know what I've done!"

"Oh yes, I do," Dumbledore said mildly and continued to list all of Draco's wrongdoings. And then he tried to distract Draco. Asking him all kinds of questions.

"There is little time, one way or another," said Dumbledore. "So let us discuss your options, Draco."

"I haven't got any options!" he said, "I've got to do it! He'll kill me. He'll kill my whole family!"

"I can help you, Draco."

"No, you can't. Nobody can. He told me to do it or he'll kill me. I've got no choice."

"Come over to the right side, Draco, and we can hide you more completely than you can possibly imagine. What is more, I can send members of the Order to your mother tonight to hide her like-wise. Your father is safe at the moment in Azkaban… When the time comes, we can protect him too. Come over to the right side, Draco… you are not a killer…"

Then the Death Eaters came. All of them. Even Fenrir Greyback, who he hadn't wanted anywhere near his friends.

And then Snape.

And Dumbledore whispered, "Severus…" begged, really, "Severus… please."

But Snape did not care. Decades of friendship and defending him against those who mistrusted him meant nothing to him. "Avada K-"

"Ahhh," Draco screamed and sat up straight. He was shacking all over, his heart was racing and tears were streaming down his face.

A soft nose poked him and a soft, wet tongue licked the tears from his face. He dug his fingers into the black fur and without conscious thought, hugged the dog until he stopped shaking so bad. It was quite comforting.

Once he calmed down he realized that the dog was actually a grown up man his bed so he kicked the dog off the bed. "What are you doing?" he asked incredulously.

On the floor, Sirius turned back into his human form. "You had a nightmare, a pretty bad one, and when one has nightmares there is nothing better than a dog. Trust me on this one."

"Thanks," Draco muttered and pulled his blanket over his head.

"Are you alright?"

"I'm fine. Leave me alone," his muffled voice could be heard from under the blanket.

"You don't sound fine and that was a pretty intense nightmare for someone who hasn't been through a war or spent years in Azkaban."

But Draco didn't answer so Sirius decided to leave him be for now.

To Draco's surprise, having Sirius around worked out quite well. They did not get caught and more often than not, Draco would have fun with his new roommate, which might have been due to the fact that Sirius was still half a child and Draco himself was only half a grown up.

After every meal he would bring Sirius some leftovers to eat. They would talk and play all sorts of games. Draco helped Sirius organize a present for Potter – a Firebolt – although he knew it would most likely be confiscated.

There were also days on which Draco had to leave Sirius alone all day, when his family visited relatives or friends, or someone came to visit them.

All was fine for a while, but during the second week, Sirius grew restless and irritated.

"I want to go outside," he would say every few hours.

"No," was Draco's answer every time. "What if someone sees you?"

"I could run around as a dog," he said. "No one would know."

"No."

"But I'm getting cabin fever in here."

"No."

"Okay... Fair enough," Sirius finally conceded. He stayed silent for a few minutes, which made Draco wary. Silence was not something he was used to from Sirius. After a while, Sirius asked, "You are going to Diagon Alley tomorrow, right? With your parents?"

"Yes," he didn't like where this was going.

"I have an idea."

Oh, he didn't like where this was going at all.

In Diagon Alley he met Crabbe, Goyle, Pansy, Astoria and Daphne.

"Hey guys, merry Christmas,"

"Merry Christmas, Draco, and thank you for the present," Astoria replied.

The students exchanged small talk for a while. Then they went shopping. Florish and Blotts, Gambol and Japes Wizarding Joke Shop, Obscurus Books, Sugarplum's Sweets Shop, Slug & Jiggers Apothecary, Quality Quidditch Supplies,... They went to several shops and Draco bought quite a few potions, clothes, candy and a new broom – the next Quidditch match was not far away and the school brooms were so horrible Draco could not fathom why they gave them to people who couldn't fly. Those brooms made learning how to fly harder than it had to be. Draco also bought some necessities Sirius had advised him on. It was rather obvious that Sirius planned to continue his pranking legacy through Draco and his friends - which was fine by Draco. But once he had cleared Sirius' name, he would have to introduce him to Fred and George.

In passing, Draco mentioned that a stray dog was running around his house and just wouldn't live him alone. The sisters wore matching shocked expressions.

"Weird," Goyle just huffed, not particularly interested.

"Hey Goyle?"

"Yeah?"

"You got something in your hair."

"Ahh, is it a spider? Take it off, take it off!"

"Shh, hold still," he reached toward his head.

"Ouch," Goyle yelled.

"Got it," Draco said.

"I think you got some of my hair, too," he complained.

"Oh really? Sorry," he muttered.

The day in Diagon Alley was quite fun. They even saw Neville and Draco and the sisters waved to him when the others weren't watching.

Back home in the early afternoon he asked his parents whether one of his friends could visit them.

"Of course," his father had said, and Draco quickly made his way back into his room.

"You are back," Sirius exclaimed excitedly. "How did it go?"

"I got the hair and the potion and my parents said yes. I'm still not sure, however, if this is really such a good idea."

"Aww, where is your sense for adventure?"

"I don't have one. I'm a Slytherin, we value self-preservation. Something you are obviously lacking. It's a wonder you're still alive."

Sirius made his way over to Draco, choosing not to comment. "Let's do it!"

Reluctantly, Draco handed over the potion and the hair. Sirius put the hair into the potion at which it turned murky brown. Sirius wrinkled his nose as if he already knew it would taste disgusting. This made Draco think that he might have used this particular potion a few times already. Sirius held his breath and chucked it down.

Immediately, he doubled over and clutched his stomach, dropping the vial. Gasping, he went to all fours and before Draco's eyes he started to transform into Gregory Goyle.

"Wow," Draco whispered, poking the newly transformed Sirius with his index finger. "That's amazing!"

Sirius jumped up and sprinted to the closest mirror. "Couldn't you have picked a more attractive friend?" he asked as he examined himself.

"Between Crabbe and Goyle? Believe me, you already are the better looking one." Not by much, though.

Sirius frowned. "What do I need to know about this guy?" he asked while changing into some of Draco's clothes. They were a bit too small but nothing too obvious once Draco had cast a few spells on it.

"Hmm," Draco thought about this. "Your name is Gregory Goyle. We've been friends for years. Goyle is pretty stupid… Scratch that, very stupid. He isn't very nice, either. Very typical pureblood…"

"Wow," Sirius muttered, "Anything nice to say about him? Why are you two even friends?"

Draco shrugged his shoulders. "He is very loyal and a good friend and… I used to be like that, too. Thought I was better than everyone else because of the family I was born into… I am not proud of that and I have changed my mind."

Sirius didn't say anything.

"You know, people can change their minds. And they deserve to be given a second chance," Draco continued.

"Maybe you are right," Sirius pondered. "Anyhow, enough seriousness for one day. Let's have some fun. How much time do I have?"

"About 6 hours, the shopkeeper said."

Sirius' eyes twinkled, "Let's go," and he left the room.

Draco trotted after him. "Mother! Father? Goyle is here."

Lucky for him they were both busy and did not care much.

Sirius acted like a little child, which amused Draco to no ends. They grilled marshmallows in the fireplace and had a huge snowball fight. Then they played Quidditch. Draco had never seen Sirius so happy.

When they came back into the house the house elves had made them some hot chocolate and they drank it in the living room, happily chatting about Merlin knew what.

"Draco, Gregory," Lucius Malfoy entered the room. "We have a guest."

Draco turned his head and wasn't even surprised by his bad luck. In front of him stood the last person he wanted in a room with Sirius Black with. He schooled his features, put on a polite smile and said:

"Good evening, Professor Snape."

TBC

20 chapters - I am quite proud of myself^^ Big thanks to everyone who is reading my story :) I'm quite busy at university and I'm sick as well but that won't keep me from uploading a chapter every day all through November :)