Half-Dimension

Part 26

Draco was preoccupied with what the Professor had stated, and it was noticeable when he had come back to the Slytherin dorms. He was not often distracted, at least, not without cause, and knowing that the Potter gang was in the same class as Draco left both Severus and Lucius on edge, and as such, worried. Especially considering that he seemed to be horribly thoughtful at the current moment. It worried them, greatly. There was never a good thing when Draco was lost in his thoughts. Well, not always, but from what they could see it meant one of two things.  Either something bad had happened, and he was contemplating what to do about it, or what to do about it as a general whole. The other option was him contemplating how to get revenge. From what they could tell, neither meant anything good. Of course, there was other options, however Lucius and Severus was not too certain that anything that would be a good thing assuming that it caused Draco deep thought. 

"Draco?" Lucius ventured first, breaking the silence that had descended on the Slytherin common room. .Almost everyone else had left, sensing that bad things were about to happen, and knowing Draco was in a sketchy mood at the current moment. Even the other members of the Slytherin house were realizing that Draco was not in the best of moods at the current moment. Lucius and Severus did not really know how they should take that. It did not seem as though it would be a bad thing, perhaps they were just agitated that others were beginning to realize how to read Draco as well as they were capable of doing. 

"Huh?" Draco glanced up at Lucius, flinching back slightly, before recovering. It was slow enough that it would not typically be picked up, but Lucius and Severus were not exactly typical of course. They were incredibly observant, and they were Slytherins as well. They of course noticed the movement, and it really just made them more worried rather than less. Draco flinching from Lucius had not happened for a while now, they had managed to get Draco's trust quite a while ago, and while there were times when Draco was clearly uncomfortable with Lucius in his space, he had not flinched away from him for quite some time now. Severus glanced at Lucius, and they made eye contact before sighing mentally. There was no way to back down now, and they could not help but be worried. "Oh," Draco gave himself a small shake and smiled at them a bit, his mind still clearly lost in thought. "I am sorry, I was not really paying attention to my surroundings." Severus bit his lip to stop the scoff that wanted to fall from him and instead stayed silent, letting Lucius take this one. 

"That much was clear. Are you sure that you are alright?" Lucius questioned, watching Draco carefully. Draco blinked up at the two of them, staring at them blankly. 

"Why would I not be fine?" Draco wondered, staring at them with faux confusion. Severus shouldered himself forwards, moving to stand next to Lucius. 

"Hey, no more deflecting. What happened? You have been having trouble with the Potters, but I get the feeling that it is not them, at least, not this time. Rare, but still. What happened?" Severus questioned, his tone stern and ruthless. "If you do not tell me, I shall have to figure alternative methods to figure it out, and I would really prefer you to just let us know." Draco bit the inside of his cheek at the last sentence which Severus had added. 

He knew that his godfather was a skilled occlumens. It would not be too far off the stretch to find that he was a skilled legilimens as well. Draco knew what that threat meant, he knew what other methods his godfather could use that would not technically cause any lasting harm, or really any physical harm at all, to him. He was not stupid, he also knew that Severus would never state such a thing unless he was legitimately worried about him. Part of him was grateful, the other part was a bit...resentful. It was nice to know that his godfather...or...his...father's friend...or wait, no, he was his brother's friend now, either way it was nice to know that Severus was worried about him. Still, he did not really relish the idea of someone so strong going through his memories. He did not know what he would find, and Draco found it rather dangerous. He did not want to deal with all the potentials, and therefore just sighed, slumping backwards elegantly. 

"I know it is stupid, but the Professor had said something to me that was a bit...concerning, or at least curious." Lucius and Severus stood, just waiting for further information. Draco groaned mentally, he did not really want to deal with all of this right now. Rolling his eyes, he crossed his arms and refused to look at them as he continued, knowing that he would not get this over with until he divulged more than just that. "He was worried I could be presenting already. It is a bit...ludicrous though. He says this just because I've had a small headache. It is not as though that is uncommon. People get headaches all of the time, how is it that they automatically corrolated it with my presentation." 

"The reason for that," Lucius explained gently. Not wanting to spook the boy, but also knowing that it was important for him to know. "Is because you are later in the presentation than is strictly normal. Anything, even if it is seemingly small, that matches the symptoms are worrisome. Especially considering we are not entirely certain what you are going to present as. You could be a myraid of mixes in creature forms and that concerns everyone, not just us. Although..." Lucius glanced at Severus who nodded. "We think you may present further as a Veela, rather than anything else. We cannot say for sure until you actively do so, but...we believe it to be possible."