Chapter 8
His visit home dulled the worry he felt about repeating the same mistakes as before.
Making a change left him feeling more powerful and in control than ever before.
That's why running into the Muggle Studies professor on the way from Hogsmeade station startled him more than it should have.
He froze in place, staring blankly into the distance for long enough to draw attention of his friends.
"What's wrong?" asked Goyle. He didn't answer.
Ever since the school year began, he'd avoided looking at the teacher table.
Draco focused on being able to look at Severus, Crabbe, and a handful of other students without remembering their deaths, so she had mostly remained forgotten.
She was alive and unhurt. Talking to her third or fourth year students with excitement about the new term starting.
Draco felt sick. With no explanation for his companions, he rushed towards the closest toilets.
That night, after hours of tossing and turning in pursuit of sleep, he dreamt of darkness and distant noises.
He was stuck, unable to move, speak, or see even a sliver of light.
He wasn't sure if he was breathing at all, but he tried to hold his breath all the same when unfamiliar voices approached slowly.
He was almost certain he heard a mention a snake and his name in their conversation, but every sound was muffled and distorted by his heartbeat drumming in his head.
He fell out of bed with a cry, lungs burning and tears building up behind his eyelids.
Draco felt his whole body shake only after someone held him close.
For once, he didn't have the energy to be angry about getting comforted by a peer.
Instead, he let Nott sit by him on the floor until his breathing calmed.
"Sorry for waking you, Nott."
"Come on now, Draco. We're all friends here, call me by my name."
He shook his head without replying.
"Do you want to talk about what woke you up?"
"I don't think it'll help. I'd rather forget about it, really."
They sat in silence once more for a while, watching faint light from the lake dance across walls. It was only once they began yawning that they got up.
"Goodnight, Theodore." he whispered as he drew the curtain of the bed.
He heard a chuckle in return. "You sound like my dad, but I guess it's good enough for now."
The nightmare didn't repeat itself again, but he was haunted by memories of death in his sleep.
Ever since the first night Draco cast silencing enchantments around his bed, and ignored concerned looks from Theodore at mealtimes when disturbed sleep started to show.
By midweek his eyelids were sliding closed to rest in every lesson.
Transfiguration was particularly difficult to follow while dozing off - he only managed to partially transfigure his lizard into a green pipe with curious eyes and an ashen tongue.
"Mr. Malfoy, a word if you please." Professor McGonagall said once the lesson finished.
"You've been distracted and unfocused ever since the holidays.
Now I understand Professor Snape is your Head of House, and you might want to talk to him instead, but I'd like to see you back in form during my class. Is there anything I should know?"
She levelled him with an inquisitive look he tried to avoid.
"It's nothing, a bit of trouble sleeping this week." Draco said.
"Is there anything happening in your dormitory that keeps you awake?" He couldn't tell whether she was concerned for his safety or looking for a reason to deduct points. Slytherin had been comfortably ahead of all other Houses for a while.
"Just some... unpleasant dreams, Professor." He answered reluctantly.
"I see," she quickly scribbled a note and handed the small parchment to him. "Take this to the Hospital Wing."
After thanking her politely, Draco left.
If he could obtain a Sleeping Draught instead of waiting for the weekend to brew his own, he wouldn't complain.
As luck would have it, that's exactly what Madame Pomfrey gave him, right after listing directions - use no more than thrice per week, only a single vial dose, and other warnings he already knew very well.
Nevertheless, he thanked her and promised to be very careful.
Madame Pomfrey turned to the next student, a girl requesting a Pepper-up Potion between sneezes.
He almost dropped the vials in surprise when he recognised her.
Katie Bell, who nearly died by a cursed necklace he gave her in an attempt to kill Dumbledore.
He almost killed this girl, he realised with a sinking feeling in his stomach.
She looked up at him with a confused look on her face and sneezed again.
He had to get away to somewhere quiet and private, to shut off those thoughts.
Draco rushed down a flight of stairs and through corridors, pushing slow students out of his way, including a familiar face that towered over him.
Draco knew this death definitely want his fault, but it didn't make eye contact with Cedric Diggory any easier.
Something twisted his guts painfully, so Draco carried on as fast as he could to the snow-covered castle grounds.
The Great Lake continued to let Draco escape during the cold months, whenever he wanted to be alone and ride out the panic of helplessness.
His hands shook and head throbbed, body and mind exhausted by a barrage of memories.
He couldn't figure out why it was much harder to make peace with these people being alive again than their deaths.
By the time he calmed down and felt ready to face other students, Draco noticed it was nearing curfew and he had once again accidentally skipped dinner.
Perhaps he could still make it for dessert if he hurried back, he thought.
It wasn't until he was almost at the castle door that he heard the three first year Gryffindors making their way out, trying to be inconspicuous.
He had to follow them, hunger be damned.
They went down to the hut of the gamekeeper and were quickly ushered inside.
Draco cast 'Engorgio' on a nearby woodcutting log and used it as a stool to reach the windows.
Inside the small room Potter, his friends, and half-giant huddled together around a table.
He watched a large egg slowly crack to reveal a tiny dragon, which immediately set fire to Hagrid's beard with a sneeze.
He did his best to hold back a laugh, but somehow still gave himself away, because Potter looked up from the baby dragon and stared directly at him.
Draco raised his eyebrows in a challenge, but left as quickly as he could. He didn't want to be chased again.
Draco resolved not to scheme and get the Gryffindors caught this time, if only to avoid punishment himself.
The Forbidden Forest at night still terrified him, and he already had a sleeping schedule to fix.
That didn't mean he ignored poorly concealed discussions about dragons the three Gryffindors held in whispers at the library and mostly empty corridors ever since then.
On a Saturday more than a fortnight later, just as he was finishing a rare Charms study session with the Burzynski twins, who spent more time complaining about the gap in Hogwarts curriculum for ritualistic spell casting, Longbottom approached them.
"M-Malfoy? Can we talk," he requested shakily and paled when the twins looked up and asked what he wanted. "...Alone?"
Draco admittedly let curiosity get the better of him just to be led to an empty Ancient Runes classroom. Longbottom tried to begin a sentence a couple times, and appeared torn about some choice. He was nervously fiddling with a tattered book.
"What did you want to say, Longbottom? I don't have all day."
"Right, um... It's Ron. I heard he was in the Hospital Wing since last night, so I went to visit," he stammered. "And I think Harry and Hermione are going to get in a lot of trouble."
Draco didn't expect Longbottom to voluntarily inform him about the dragon. He wasn't sure how big of a change a single neutral interaction could bring, but it seemed excessive.
"Why would you want to involve me? I could get them in trouble very easily."
"I couldn't think of anyone else who could help. Stop them, I mean."
He pulled a letter out from between old pages and passed it to him.
Draco couldn't believe he could gain this boy's trust so easily.
The letter outlined a basic plan - smuggle the dragon from the Astronomy Tower that night.
He didn't have a lot of time to convince Potter to give up.
Would they even get caught without him raising alarm first, he questioned himself.
"No, it's not necessary. Look, I won't get in their way and keep what you told me a secret, alright?"
"Please stop them." he pleaded.
"I doubt Potter would stop breaking the rules for anyone, at best I'd probably anger him into making dumb mistakes."
"Then help them get rid of it. I won't ask anything else from you again."
"Just get them to the tower in one piece?" Draco conceded.
"Yes. I knew I could count on you." He left Draco to ponder on that bewildering statement.
Potter and Granger arrived at Hagrid's after ten, and were surprised to find Draco already there, carefully playing with Norbert.
"What is he doing here, Hagrid?" Potter tried not to look worried.
"Ah, he came 'fore yeh. Knew all abou' Norbert, so I let 'im in.
They get along real well." The gamekeeper didn't want to talk to him at first, but was instantly placated when he explained that he meant no harm to his 'child'.
Before the other first years arrived, they only spoke about the dragon's early development.
Draco thought it was the best Care of Magical Creatures lesson the half-giant ever gave.
"What's your plan, exactly? Waltz right through the school with a dragon half your size?" he asked.
"Why are you here? You don't need to talk to us, you already know enough to get us in trouble." Granger was already putting together signs that he had other motives. Clever as always.
"I'm here to either stop you or help you get to the tower. Depends on how asinine your plan sounds," he drawled.
Potter visibly bristled, cheeks flushed by anger.
He led Granger as far away as the small hut allowed and started whispering.
Norbert was getting agitated, stretching its wings out threateningly, and he didn't waste time before creating some distance.
Calming the beast down wasn't his job, and he certainly wouldn't put himself in danger for no good reason.
Eventually Granger walked him through their plan, and Potter reluctantly let him try on his Invisibility Cloak. Draco didn't realise they had it since first year.
"How do you plan to keep the dragon quiet and calm the whole way there?" He questioned.
"We'll give Norbert some food before we go, he might fall asleep," she explained, obviously worried about it.
"No good worryin' abou' it. Yeh'll figure it out if something' happens," Hagrid tried to comfort.
"Your plan could use a few tweaks, but I've heard worse." Draco concluded. "Nothing that can't be done on the way, a good silencing spell here or there is all you need."
"It's none of your business, Malfoy. We don't need your help."
"I'm not here for your sake, you pillock. You think I care about anything you do? Longbottom begged me to either stop you or help you. Let's just get the dragon out of the school so I can get back to not helping brain dead, ungrateful Gryffindors."
"Ugh, enough you two. We're all getting the dragon up there," Granger put her foot down.
The three of them held their heads down to keep the invisibility cloak covering their ankles.
Draco quickly set up a few enchantments to prevent detection and silence any noise they or Norbert made.
He ignored Granger's jealous stare as he cast another spell she hadn't encountered yet to lighten the weight of the cage.
Beside a couple stumbling steps up a staircase, and one scary moment when Norbert sneezed a cloud of dark smoke, all went well.
A bored and manic Peeves passed them unawares, giggling to himself about some chaos planned for the morning.
They held their breaths despite all other precautions, knowing it would be over if that troublemaker noticed them out of their beds so late.
Finally, with a coordinated push, the cage cleared the hatch of the Astronomy Tower.
While the others checked on Norbert and celebrated, Draco collapsed onto the stone floor in exhaustion.
"Physical labour," he complained incredulously to himself. "For Gryffindors, no less. If we get caught now, that's it. I'll die of embarrassment."
"Why don't you stop being such a drama queen, Malfoy?"
"Mind your business, Potter. Where are those Dragon Keepers of yours?" He closed the hatch and locked it with a non-verbal 'Colloportus'."
They waited tensely for a quarter of an hour at least, before four brooms flew into view from behind Ravenclaw Tower.
One was definitely a ginger Charlie Weasley, who penned the incriminating letter.
All four were extremely excited about breaking international magic laws, proudly showing off a harness connected between their brooms for Norbert.
Their enthusiasm about dragons and strength intrigued him, he always preferred the theory about magical creatures to practice.
They strapped Norbert in, and Draco gently gave it the last of the snacks Hagrid stuffed into the cage.
"You have a way with it, have you ever considered working with dragons... sorry, I didn't ask your name before?" Weasley asked.
"Draco Malfoy." He expected confusion or immediate dislike to show on his face, but Weasley only laughed heartily.
"Draco? Well, that explains the connection."
Potter and Granger shook hands with the others and thanked them profusely. They all watched on in silence as the Dragon Keepers disappeared into darkness over the Forbidden Forest.
"We're done here then, don't expect help from me ever again," he lied. If he wanted to keep changing things while he was stuck in the past, he'd have to help them out many more times.
"We didn't even want it this time." Potter spat out.
Granger wasted no time to cast 'Alohomora' on the lock and the Gryffindors stormed away.
Draco took a moment to sombrely look over the edge of the tower, as he did after every Astronomy lesson.
He picked up the Invisibility Cloak, forgotten by the others, likely in their haste to leave him behind.
As he began a rushed descent from the tower, he heard Peeves' uniquely shrill scream of "Students out of bed!
". Unfortunately, by the time he reached the Grand Staircase to help them hide, Mr. Filch was already apprehending his partners in crime.
What cruel irony it was, that his much altered intentions and actions had no effect on Potter's and Granger's ending to that night.