Hidden Wings - Part II

Time is ticking

What happens when you should study, but you don't want to?
...You write fanfictions...

This will be enough for the three. Use it wisely.
Use the Beast whistle when the dragons come. One week.
S.

Draco carefully untied the bottle and the golden whistle from Aries' leg. The Short-Eared Owl glared at him while the wizard set down the Strengthening Potion.

"Thank you, Aries", said Draco quietly and eyed his owl's shredded tail feathers.
"I guess the ones that attacked you are in a worse condition than you are."

The owl's orange eyes gleamed proudly.

Draco hesitated for a moment. But then he shrugged mentally. If Aries would scratch him, then at least he could use his healing skills to practice.
He slowly reached out with his hand, noting how Aries watched him suspiciously.

Then Draco lightly placed his hand on the owl's back. The feathers were soft and warm.
The wizard held his breath for a second as the Short-Eared Owl regarded him with a look of surprise. But Aries didn't scratch him, as expected.

After a moment the owl looked away and fluttered off the table onto the pole of Draco's bed. There, he tucked his head under his left wing.

Draco had to smile slightly. He turned to Severus' letter and snapped his fingers. A small yellow flame sparked to life and burned the parchment, reducing it to ashes in a matter of seconds.

His next step: getting Nagini's scales to Severus. It certainly had not been easy to obtain them from the Dark Lord.

The memory of the incident came into Draco's mind.

He walked quickly, his head held high. No one questioned where he was going and no one would, as long as appeared as if he had an important task to fulfill.

The Dark Lord had gotten the best quarters at Malfoy Manor, much to Lucius' dismay. However, not much could be done about it if they wanted to keep their heads.

Draco had sent the Dark Lord a request to meet him and had gotten the instructions to be at eight p.m. in the Malfoy library.

His footsteps echoed in the hallway as he rounded the corner and descended a staircase. The torches glowed in a green light, typically Slytherin. Their glow was eery and felt cold. Rarely any sunlight found its way into this manor.

Draco swiftly approached the great library doors and opened them with a flick of his hand. They closed behind him with a soft click and he quickly strode into the dimly-lit room.

Thick curtains made of black satin covered the large windows, casting long shadows on the bookshelves that swallowed up half of the room. In the center were several couches and armchairs arranged in a circle around a low table. To Draco's right was a fireplace, the hearth cold from the lack of use.

Ahead of him in a black armchair sat the Dark Lord, fixating him with his red eyes.

"Draco", said the Dark Lord smoothly and gestured to the armchair opposite of him. "Have a seat."

Draco bowed slightly, then did as asked.

Once Draco had leaned back into the armchair, crossing his legs and feigning his composure, Voldemort put the fingertips of his hands together and examined Draco thoughtfully.