"You fought a what?!" Orion looked stunned at his partner as she went over to her desk while shrugging off her uniform robes.
"A werewolf." For once speechless all he could do was watch as she rolled up her shirt sleeve to reveal several abrasions all down her lower arm. Cyril rolled his chair over to her to grab a hold of her while he took out his wand to mumble some healing charms. The witch rolled her eyes at him but let the auburn-haired wizard do as he pleased.
"Wait! Back up there, Prince. You say that you just fought a werewolf in the Forbidden Forest and it looked like it knew you?" Zacharias was sitting on his desk with the same dumbfounded look the rest of them had. She nodded at him.
"Yes, but I didn't recognise him. It didn't even try to chase after the others but it was clear it was taking orders from some other wolf inside the Forest as they were calling each other while I stood there. It ran when I gave it the chance though". Orion shook his head in disbelief.
"You honestly think the werewolf knew you? It probably got attracted to all your power and wanted to test its might." Artemis glared at him.
"You know that is not true, things run away from me inside the Forest. Nothing even dares to come close to me." The office turned quiet as Orion sat down to think. They had all gotten a surprise when the witch had gotten back from the detention she had to go along with earlier that night. At first, the brunette had looked unwilling to tell them what had happened before she finally told them that a werewolf had attacked them while they were in the clearing. The others had run while she had stayed behind to take care of it but how the creature knew her was uncertain. The blond frowned as he tried to think of someone he knew who was a werewolf but came up short.
"Ace, get me a list of all known werewolves in the country." The other blond looked at him with raised eyebrows.
"Pardon me for saying this King, but that is a hopeless request." Everyone looked at Septimus while the man rolled his eyes.
"Most werewolves are not known unless they were brought in for questioning after the war as of a consequence of being caught in the act of killing someone." Orion huffed.
"Well get me a list of the ones we do know then." Septimus smirked at him before he nodded and started to write something down on a piece of parchment.
"Artemis, are you sure you are alright? You didn't get bitten or scratched?" The blond looked towards Cyril who was waving his wand over Artemis who looked annoyed at him.
"I am fine. It didn't even touch me and who knows if that would even work on me." Orion raised his eyebrow at her as she made a point. It wasn't sure she would even be able to get lycanthropy but it was not a chance that was worth taking.
"What about the kids? They alright?" Zacharias crossed his arms as he looked at the witch who nodded.
"They all ran out and were fine. I followed Malfoy back to his room and after getting myself yelled at by a younger version of all of you I went back here." Queen started to laugh.
"Boy got guts. I'll give him that. Who else would yell at a demon straight in the face?" The blond huffed at him as he looked back to Artemis who was looking at him with a slight smile. A wave of reassurance splashed over him which made him close his eyes to take it all in. Artemis must have clearly noticed his worry even if he was trying his best to hide it. Of course, at this point, he should have known that it was useless to hide anything from the witch.
The others moved around the room as he sat there quietly and focused on the bond. After getting more than a few hours of sleep he felt more alive and alert. His body filled with all of Artemis's feelings and he had to take a deep breath to keep control of them all. What hit him first was the reassurance she had sent him last but he was quick to find the anger, sorrow and slight guilt that was lying underneath it all. Even if he knew she hated to be pitied he couldn't help but feel it. So much had happened during the last weeks that it was getting hard to keep track of it all.
He was still trying to figure out what kind of magic Burns had used on the crystal and it annoyed him that progress was going slow. The little piece that Zacharias had managed to get off should be small enough not to do any difference for the bigger crystal but on the other hand, should be small enough for him to get some information out of it. So far the only thing he could one hundred percent say was true was that it was one from Eminence's shop. But as the witch had clearly stated that Burns had not bought it they were at a dead end. Of course, she could have gone in under a Polyjuice Potion without the tall witch's knowing but to Orion that seemed highly unlikely. Burns was not the type of person who could pretend to be someone she wasn't. She was too narcissistic for that. They still hadn't told anyone that they had found the classroom which the blond assumed they had to do over the weekend to not get Artemis into any more trouble than she already was. The feelings in the bond changed into worry and he opened his eyes to meet the familiar chocolate brown ones of the said witch.
"You alright, Orion?" He gave her a soft smile.
"Never been better. Queen, don't you have the first shift today?" The blond turned his attention to Zacharias who had walked across the room to sit at Artemis' desk. He saluted while he smirked at him.
"Yes, Sir. Right away, Sir." A few chuckles travelled around the room as the dark wizard went over to his own desk and pulled his uniform robes on.
"Is it just me or are these kids more behaved now than back in the day? I have only caught a handful of them out of bed in the time we have been here." Artemis laughed at him then and he looked back with a raised eyebrow.
"You clearly didn't sneak out much, Zabini. They are getting better at not being caught. That's the difference. Peeves are really the only threat these days. I mean look at Potter, with that cloak of his he can go anywhere." The wizard stood there looking like he was thinking it over before shrugging a smirk on his face.
"I snuck out more than you think, Prince. See ya all in a few hours then!" Orion rolled his eyes again as the wizard bowed deeply while grinning before walking out of the painting.
"Speaking of Mr Potter. Did you escort him back to the tower, Artemis?" The witch looked at Septimus with a quizzical look.
"Not all the way no, why?" Smiling he tilted his head at her.
"Mr Potter is probably wandering the castle again as we speak then. Seems he is getting closer to finding out something for himself." Orion gave him a hard look but the wizard ignored him as he kept eye contact with Artemis who in return looked at him with the same puzzled look.
"The boy is just bored, that's how it goes when you used so many years of your life focused on saving the world." The blond peeked at Cyril who was now studying Artemis' lower arm for more wounds and the usual jealousy flared to life as he watched the man touch her so freely. It was Septimus's turn to smirk widely.
"Perhaps." The dark blond went back to looking at his documents in front of him as Orion glared at Cyril so that he rolled his chair back to his desk with his hands up in defeat. As if this whole thing wasn't complicated enough, now they had to keep an eye on Potter too.
~𓆗~
Draco was lying in his bed with his arms flung over his face. His mind was a mess of emotions and thoughts from what had happened in the Forest. The howl from the werewolf had frozen his blood to ice and all he could think of was to escape the sharp claws that were right behind them. However, it had surprised him that he had actually stopped to run back to get the Auror even though he knew that she could take care of herself.
After they had come out from the Forest the big dog had lost its mind and started barking ferociously at whatever was inside. Obviously understanding the danger. Sweat had been pouring down the blond's neck as he continued to stare helplessly into the black void. Hagrid had stopped Potter more than once from trying to run in again to see if he could help. That was when they had heard the huge explosion and mere seconds later the witch had emerged from the dark Forests' edge like nothing out of the ordinary had happened.
Auror Blackmoore had followed him back to his room after the detention and the second they had entered it Draco had let all of his worry and anger out on the witch. Looking back on it now that he had calmed down he realised that she had only stood there and let him say what he needed before saying good night and left. His thoughts were suddenly interrupted by someone knocking on the door. Frowning, he removed his arms and looked towards it.
"It's open!" Nothing happened and his frown deepened as another knock was heard.
"Are you deaf? I said that it's open!" Nobody entered this time either. Draco let out a grunt of annoyance as he got up from his bed and walked over to the door to open it.
"I swear Zabini this is not funny." He tore the door open but the look of anger on his face was quickly replaced by confusion as the hall was empty. Even more, confused the blond walked into the hallway and looked down towards the stairs but he saw nobody.
"Bloody first years." Mumbling annoyed to himself he went back into his room and closed the door behind him. Draco almost felt his soul leave his body as his eyes met the emerald green ones of Potter, who was standing in the middle of his room.
"Fuck! Potter! Where the bloody hell did you come from?!" The wizard looked a little guilty as he threw the invisibility cloak over himself only to remove it moments later.
"Sorry, Malfoy. We didn't get to talk so I thought this was a good place." The blond stared at him dumbfounded.
"How did you get into the Slytherin common room? You don't know the password." Potter scratched the back of his head as he gave the blond a goofy smile.
"Didn't have to. You told me about the secret entrance to it when you were helping Auror Blackmoore." Draco wanted to facepalm himself for being stupid enough to forget that part. Of course, the Hero had just used it to gain access to the common room and since the dorms were more or less the same it was easy to find the boys' sleeping quarters, him having the Map or not. The Slytherin sighed in defeat as he walked over to his bed and sat down at the edge of it and motioned Potter to do the same.
"I suppose you want to know what happened that night then?" The ravenhead looked unsure before he sat down.
"Well, you did kinda say that you were going to update me later." Draco rolled his eyes at him.
"Bloody Gryffindorks and their promises." To his surprise, Potter laughed at him before nodding.
"I know, it's a pain in the butt sometimes. I kinda understand why you don't like us so much. We are pretty stuck up." The blond huffed in response as he nodded in return.
"I'll say."
Both wizards were quiet for a long time as Draco's mind was racing. He could be Obliviated for telling the man next to him too much but at the same time, he owed telling him something. It was starting to get to him when said wizard cleared his throat and just started to talk.
"You know, Auror Blackmoore told me something the night when we had the party in the Room of Requirement. I just kept walking next to her and words just fell out of my mouth and she listened patiently to what I had to say. She even gave reactions to stuff that told me that she was actually paying attention even! It was a good feeling to finally have someone listen." The emerald green eyes shone with sadness and Draco had to look away after a few seconds to not be drowned in them.
"The same thing happened to me when she became the officer that took care of me before my trial." This was something that he hadn't told Potter about before. He knew nothing about the backstage stuff that happened during Draco's trial and he bit his lip in regret of opening his mouth. Potter chuckled a little.
"What she told me has actually kinda stuck with me the past weeks. It's the reason that the others are kinda ignoring me these days. Not that I blame her for it, of course! I'm actually grateful. Other than you nobody really says anything straight to me anymore but she did." The ravenhead smiled at him. A genuine one. There was no humour or mischief present at all and Draco was a little unsure of what to feel about it.
"So what did she tell you?" Potter smiled again.
"' Tell only one person your deepest secrets and keep the rest in the dark. Not everyone needs to know everything and sometimes keeping people in the dark is better for you in the end. It might sound harsh but some friendships are not worth keeping longer than necessary. Especially if they can't accept you changing in front of their eyes. You saved the world, Harry, your job's done.Time to be what you want to be.'" Draco looked at the wizard next to him with big eyes as he quoted what the witch had said. That explained why Potter had been so stubborn to try and get to know himself and the rest of the Slytherins. He was simply forging his own path now that he was free to do so.
"I watched it so many times in a Pensieve now that I know it by heart. Kinda stupid, huh?" The blond shook his head.
"No. I understand. That explains a lot actually. So you're not telling your Gryffindork friends as much anymore then?" Potter shrugged.
"As Auror Blackmoore said it might be harsh do to so but if I'm being honest about it now that the war is over Hermione and Ron are busier with themselves than me anyway. They just ask to be polite." Both of them got quiet again after that and Draco used the time to process what the ravenhead had told him. Had someone told him a couple of years ago that he would be sitting in the same bed with Potter and talking like friends he would have called them crazy.
"So what do you want to be?" The wizard looked at him confused.
"What?" Not stopping himself he hit him over the head.
"What do you want to do with your life now that the war is over, Saviour?" He had to grin at the slightly annoyed look he got from the other wizard before he answered.
"I wanna be an Auror. I'm sure of that now. Do you think any of them would be able to take me on as their apprentice?" Draco wasn't surprised at what he heard and had to roll his eyes at him.
"Just stay away from Auror Zouch and you'll be fine. That man is seriously scary." They both laughed at each other before going silent.
After a few minutes had passed and Draco had heard Auror Silver's threat over and over in his head he rubbed his eyes in frustration.
"Potter, how good are you with wards?" The ravenhead looked at him confused.
"Wards?" The blond leaned down and grabbed the other wizard's ankles to get him to sit on the bed fully before he mimicked his position. Concentrating for a second he managed to close the drapes of the bed with wandless magic and pointed to Potter.
"Put up some wards, just to be sure nobody can hear us." Seemingly understanding what the blond was hinting at he took out his wand and waved it around in an intricate pattern multiple times while mumbling several spells. He put his wand in between them when he was finished and nodded proudly to himself.
"That should do it." Draco took a deep breath as he tried to decide on what to start with. It was a fine balance he needed to keep, although by telling the other wizard anything he had already broken the promise he made with Auror Silver. Hopefully, Potter's wards were solid.
"Alright, you explain first. You overheard Burns talking to someone?" Looking serious the ravenhead nodded.
"I didn't recognise the man but something sinister is going on with that woman. Apparently, Auror Blackmoore was hit with a spell that made her go into a coma so it was planned, so whoever it was she was talking to had to be one of the Death Eaters from that time in the Leaky Cauldron." Draco crossed his legs under himself as he scratched his cheek in concentration.
"Hm, seems likely. I didn't recognise any of their voices then either. But that time they were after me, they said so."
"Maybe it was a cover?" Potter shrugged.
"Hard to tell really. But they clearly stated that they needed her out of the way to get to you. So you should be extra careful now, Malfoy. Especially around Burns." The blond nodded.
"For once, Potter I'll listen to you." The other wizard grinned.
"I am right again? I need to make a list now, it's almost unbelievable." Draco rolled his eyes.
"Yes yes, good job Potter. Now back to the point. We need to watch out for Burns and now that her classroom has been found we probably have to torture our way through her classes again." The Gryffindor let out a groan of what the blond assumed was frustration.
"I would rather fight Voldemort again." He looked at Draco apologetically when he flinched from hearing the name again and subconsciously rubbed over the dark mark.
"Sooo, what happened that night?" The blond swallowed the guilt that was riding up his throat before answering.
"Artemis is… special. She has a condition so to speak." Confusion was swimming in the emerald green eyes.
"So she's sick? Is it serious?"
"Well, yes and no. It's complicated." Without warning, Potter scowled grabbed his hands and turned them over to inspect them.
"Potter. wh-"
"I'm checking for the Unbreakable Vow scars." He pulled his hands back while shaking his head.
"There is none." The ravenhead studied him.
"Are you under Taboo then? It's fine Malfoy I don't want you to get into trouble." Draco sighed.
"I'm not, but I might be Obliviated if I tell you too much." The emerald green eyes grew to the size of dinner plates before he started waving his arms around in desperation.
"Bloody hell Malfoy I just said I don't want to get you into trouble. But alright, Auror Blackmoore is special. I kinda got that part already, I mean she Apparated right in front of me, not everyone can do that inside the school." The Slytherin shouldn't have been surprised by hearing it but he still was it was now clear how the witch got around so quickly. To be so powerful that she could even disobey the rules of the castle was impressive.
"She needed help that day and I couldn't do anything for her so I needed to get the Aurors to do it. But I never got to know what actually made her sick." Potter had calmed down and looked at him with understanding.
"Whatever it was it passed quickly, yeah? I mean she showed up for breakfast the next day." It was Draco's turn to nod but he bit his lip in annoyance. Even if he knew everything that night was still a mystery to him and he had hoped someone would tell him but it was not his place to ask at the moment. Both of the wizards looked at their hands for a minute before Draco got reminded of something.
"You mentioned that She-Weasley suddenly started to accuse me of Imperiusing you. Do you have any theory of why?" Potter shook his head.
"No clue, well I mean she doesn't exactly like you, but she has never gone this far before. Luna said something reasonable the other day though, that she simply might be jealous that I've been talking to you so much. That she hates the idea that I'm suddenly talking to the 'enemy'." The Slytherin snorted.
"By implying that I'm Imperiusing you? A high amount of jealousy I must say."
"Yeah, doesn't make sense to me either. I've told her plenty of times that you don't have a wand so it's impossible for you to even do it for longer than a class! But no matter what I say she doesn't listen." The ravenhead put his head in his hands and Draco couldn't do anything but watch him.
Studying the boy he had to roll his eyes again at his unkempt hair, the man rubbing his scalp in frustration wasn't really helping either as strands of hair were standing up at odd angles all over. He turned his attention to his hands as he noticed something faintly written on the back of the man's left hand. From this distance, it looked like a scar and the blond scowled. It was his turn to grab the other wizard's hand in his and look at it up close. Potter yelped as he was pulled forward.
"Mal-"
"' I must not tell lies '? This is a scar from a Black Quill. Don't tell me, Umbridge?" The wizard looked away as he tried to pull his hand out of Draco's grip but he strengthened his grip on it.
"Potter?" Looking guilty Potter finally opened his mouth to talk after a minute had passed.
"I got detention a lot back in fifth year because I told people that Voldemort was back. Of course, Umbridge was having none of it. Her favourite method of punishment was using the Black Quill even if she knew it was illegal." It was Draco's turn to show guilt as he let go of his hand.
"Potter, I'm sorry for busting the secret meetings you were having with the rebels back then." To his surprise, Potter was smiling at him.
"I know. I blamed you back then but after everything was over I was quick to realize that you never had a choice and were just trying to protect the ones you love. Don't worry about it, it's part of history." He was smiling a genuine smile at him and Draco couldn't help but smile in return. It was weird sitting here and talking about the war without any of them shouting at each other and the blond found that he liked it. Potter turned serious again.
"Listen, Malfoy. You should be extra careful going forward. Call me paranoid but something is going to happen, I can feel it." The blond returned the serious gaze.
"I get it. The Aurors have been watching me even more intensely now too."
His eyes widened suddenly when he heard someone knocking on the door. Both boys looked at each other in panic before Draco held a finger up to his mouth signalling the Gryffindor to stay quiet. He climbed out of the bed and made sure the curtains were shut tight before walking over to the door.
"Who is it?"
"Mr Malfoy? It's Auror Thompson." The blond breathed a sigh of relief that it was not Auror Blackmoore as she could probably tell that Potter was already in the room. He opened the door to reveal the auburn-haired wizard on the other side. The wizard smiled at him politely.
"Staying up late?" Draco took a peek at the clock and was surprised that it was past midnight already. Trying to act natural he shrugged.
"It is Saturday tomorrow, Sir. Something I can do for you?" The Auror chuckled as he made his way inside the room.
"Nothing in particular. Just making sure everything is alright. After what we just discovered we have to up the security. You alone?" The older Slytherin looked at the shut curtains of his bed with a raised eyebrow and a smirk. Draco nodded casually.
"Of course, Sir. Who else would be here and do you really think I would open the door if I had company?" Auror Thompson laughed.
"Fair point, Mr Malfoy. Fair point." The blond noticed that the Auror was casually swinging his wand around from the sleeve of his shirt and swallowed down his nervousness.
"Where is Auror Blackmoore?" The older wizard was opening his bathroom door as he answered.
"Taking a round on the grounds. With that werewolf attacking she is making sure that the wards around the castle are still intact. Good job listening to her for once by the way." Draco huffed.
"She gave me little choice. Not that I could have done anything either." Auror Thompson walked out of the bathroom and looked pleased with himself as he smirked at him again.
"Being pulled around by Potter has become a habit for you these days, huh? You two are getting along surprisingly well. Do I smell a love potion brewing?" Draco counted his lucky stars that he didn't have his wand at that moment as he would have hexed the man without a care in the world.
"Don't be ridiculous, Sir. I thought my love for Artemis was pretty obvious to you?" Thankful that Potter already knew this information he watched as the smirk on Auror Thompson's face was replaced with a cold smile. He walked closer and stopped right in front of Draco. Their height was similar but the blond still had to look slightly up at the Auror, which annoyed him.
"So it's a love now, is it? I would be careful with throwing that word around if I were you, Mr Malfoy. It carries a heavy burden. But I like you so I will wait and see how this turns out. Not everyone has the guts to shout a demon in the face after all." The Auror straightened up and gave him a polite smile.
"Seems like everything is alright here, so I will continue my round. Don't stay up too late now, Mr Malfoy." Draco felt like he was frozen to the ground as he watched from the corner of his eye the older Slytherin leave and close the door softly behind him. A few seconds passed before Potter emerged from the curtains looking relieved.
"Phew, that was too close for comfort. Think he knew I was here?" The blond pulled himself together as he looked at the other wizard.
"He was trying to conceal that he was doing a spell so hopefully he didn't detect you but you better leave just in case he comes back again." Potter nodded and he took out the invisibility cloak from his pocket and threw it over himself. His voice came from the thin air as he spoke.
"See you tomorrow then, Malfoy. It was nice talking to you, I actually had a good time. Who knew right?" Rolling his eyes for the hundredth time that night he opened the door and looked down the hallway before moving aside so the wizard could get out.
"Likewise, Saviour." A soft chuckle was heard as a mild breeze passed him and he stood in the doorway for a few seconds until he was sure the man was out before going back inside. Once the door was closed once more he leaned on the door and slowly slid down to the floor. His legs were shaking from the tone the older wizard had given him. It was an obvious threat and he sincerely hoped that none of the Aurors was going to stab him in the back one of these days.