OUR DARLING D

Chapter 14

For some reason, Draco feels like he's being watched.

Well, he is being watched by people hired by his Father so he's always being watched but now though, it felt different. Too deliberate, too calculating, too... Too familiar, actually.

But it is different, because it only ever happens when Draco is out on his morning walks. It continued on for a week and Draco has taken to dragging Blaise out of bed to take his morning walk (while dragging a sleepwalking zombie behind him named Blaise).

Days went past and he was still feeling the incessant staring. Pansy was getting tired of Draco being fidgety as of late (enough to threaten Draco she's revoking his morning walks), the only solution Draco thought of was Draco had to turn his morning walks to evening walks. After dinner, Draco heads towards the direction of the lake and walks by the courtyards before circling back and going back to the dorms just before curfew starts. So far, it's proven to be quite effective and so he became accustomed in his new routine for about a week. Homework, after all, can be done during free time.

The night air was different from the fresh morning breeze but there is something about it that had him in a good mood. A refresh and a time to reflect on the times he's said words he didn't mean to 'lesser blood'.

How do you hurt peoole you actually don't want to hurt?

Even he didn't know the answer to that.

There was also the problem of dementors, of course. He couldn't deter the feeling of everything he didn't want to feel when he ever comes close to any of them within ten feet. Apparently, according to the very informative Monster Book, his sensitiveness to magic extends to creatures and they all get curious to feel his core. (That explains why the cats always tried to follow him and some other animals look at him curiously).

He doesn't know if a dementor counts as a legit magical creature but it sure does love to linger in his vision when he's outside before disappearing. It happened more times than he is comfortable to admit. He sighed, there's just too many dementors in Hogwarts at the moment.

There was a rustle in the bushes in front of him that had him tensing up. Draco was currently sitting by the outskirts of the lake and the Forbidden Forest and it's highly likely that it's a magical creatur.

He carefully stood up, his hand clutching his wand instinctively. Uncle Severus stated that there were too many vicious creatures in the Forbidden Forest at the moment. (It's why he has so much free time; because the Potion making part of his life is put on hold with the Potions Master having to help detain unwanted creatures in the said forest.)

He narrowed his eyes as the bush moved again. It was too dark to make out but Draco knows for sure something is there.

"Who's there?" He said, frowning. He took a step back. "Come out!"

Now, Draco was expecting a centaur for the most part, maybe a niffler. He certainly wasn't expecting a huge black wolf.. wait no, a huge black dog shaking thorns off his fur to come out.

There was a part of him that said it was dangerous, to run away. But something about the dog who whined pitifully at him had him regarding the situation differently.

A stray dog.

In Hogwarts.

Who is he kidding?

"Now how'd you get passed the dementors and the wards, I don't even want to know. You poor thing." Draco murmured, kneeling down and stretching a hand out to the dog. The dog stared at him suspiciously before he sighed helplessly. "It's fine if you don't approach me but I'd get the thorns off faster than your incessant shaking."