Gilded Soul

Chapter Seven: Cornered

Draco and Hermione sat in the library, choosing to skip breakfast in order to try and find a cure for Harry the Rabbit. “So you said it was purple?”

Draco nodded. “And smelled like carrots,” He added.

Hermione huffed and glared at the tiny bunny again. Draco was already looking through the index of one large volume, trying to see if anything stood out, while idly stroking the bunny on the table. Hermione looked at the scene with a twinge of amusement.

Breakfast was coming to an end, and they still didn’t have any idea what potion was used, when Hermione interrupted their studies. “Maybe I should ask Dumbledore?”

Draco narrowed his eyes. “How would you explain it, exactly?”

Hermione thought on that a moment, but finally sunk her head in defeat and continued to work until it was time to go to Potions. “Do you want me to lug him around?”

Draco looked down at the soft fluffy Harry and shook his head. “No, I don’t mind.” Hiding Harry away in his robes, Draco exited the library with Hermione and made his way to Potions class.

--

Neither Draco nor Hermione thought to come up with an excuse for Harry’s absence from class until Professor Snape came in looking furiously at Harry’s empty chair. “Mr. Malfoy,” he sneered, “can you kindly tell me why your partner declined to grace us with his famous presence?”

Draco shrugged. “I’m afraid I wouldn’t know, sir,” he replied, trying his best to look unaffected by the question.

“Well, if any of you do see him,” Snape gloated, looking directly at Hermione, “make sure he’s aware he lost Gryffindor one hundred points.” The Gryffindor students mumbled amongst themselves for a moment before Snape brandished his wand and bellowed for silence.

Once the students all quieted and went back to their bubbling liquids, Draco pulled Harry from his robes and set him on his lap. He was idly petting the bunny in his lap while adding to his Wolfsbane Potion report when a visitor in the form of Pansy took a seat beside him. Draco looked around for Snape, not wanting to draw more attention to himself, but the grumpy professor had stepped out of the classroom.

“What are you doing?” Draco chided in a whispered tone.

Pansy smirked and held out a letter, “This came for you at breakfast, but you weren’t there.” Handing it over she continued in a silky voice, “where were you?”

“None of your business!” Draco huffed angrily.

Pansy made a rude gesture and moved to get up, only just then spotting the tiny furry animal in Draco’s lap. She instantly squealed with glee and reached for the bunny, only to be swatted away by Draco. Pansy was undeterred however and managed to pull the bunny from Draco’s defenses and clutched it to her chest, cooing at him annoyingly.

“Oh, Draco! It’s so cute! Where did you find it?” she exclaimed in a shrill baby voice.

Draco made a grab for Harry, but Pansy quickly moved him out of reach. “Again, it’s none of your business. Now give him back!”

Pansy looked shocked. “He? Do you have a name for your little boy bunny, then?”

If looks could kill, Pansy would have been a foul smelling puddle on the floor. “Har… No, that would be silly,” Draco muttered, making another unsuccessful swipe for the rabbit.

Pansy laughed cruelly. “Oh, I see. But carrying a bunny to Potions class isn’t the least bit silly.”

She has me there. Still, if she only knew… “Pansy, give him back this instant!” His last grab proved fruitful in getting Harry back from her cloying embrace. He quickly tucked the bunny back into his robes, just as Snape burst back into classroom in a flurry of rage.

“Twenty points from Slytherin for being out of your seat, Miss Parkinson,” he said slickly, before returning to his desk. She stood with a huff and stomped back to her own desk.

--

As Draco left the Potions classroom, he felt a small hand on his elbow pull him into a side corridor. “That was close, Malfoy.” Hermione whispered as soon as they were out of earshot.

Draco sighed. “I know. I did everything I could, though. It’s a good thing I kept his glasses in my pocket so that it just looked like a tiny bunny. I think the glasses would have been a dead giveaway that I have a tiny furry Harry in my pocket.”

Hermione stifled a giggle and straightened herself in a more serious demeanor. “Look, maybe I should hold onto him for the rest of the day.”

Draco looked down at the cute little bunny, “I don’t know…”

“How about I keep him up in my room?” she offered.

Draco sighed. “I guess that might be easier than carrying him from class to class. When is your next free period?”

“After Transfiguration, you?”

“Same,” Draco replied. “Get Harry and meet me in the Library afterwards, and we can work through lunch to try and revert him.”

Hermione nodded, took the small furry animal from Draco, and hurried off toward her common room as Draco headed straight for Transfiguration.

--

Right after Transfigurations class, Draco made his way to the library, where he grabbed a couple of potion volumes and sat down at his usual table in the back. After he studied the index of the first book, Hermione entered looking worried and disheveled. Draco leapt to his feet and ran over to meet her.

“What happened? Where’s Harry?” he demanded.

Hermione pulled him back to the table before handing over the small bunny. Draco took him without a word and cuddled him to his chest. “He’s shaking like a leaf. What happened?”

Hermione fell unceremoniously into her chair and clutched her hand to her forehead as if to ward off a headache. “When I got to my room, I found Crookshanks trying to attack him. He had Harry cornered under a hutch in my room.”

“You let Harry get attacked by that mangy creature?” Draco demanded angrily.

“Look,” Hermione said through gritted teeth, “it’s not as if I meant it to happen. I just didn’t think about it. Let’s just focus on getting him back to normal.”

Draco glared at her furiously and opened the second book in his pile. He clutched Harry to his chest as he scoured the index of the large volume in front of him. He was interrupted by the sound of soft sobs coming from across the table. He looked up to see Hermione trying to focus on her book, while shaking with tears.

“Hermione, stop,” Draco said, still angry but trying to muster the most neutral tone he could. “You didn’t mean for anything to happen to him.”

Hermione sniffled. “I know, but what if Crookshanks had…” She sobbed, unable to finish her sentence.

Draco reached across the table and touched her hand lightly. “It’s alright. Harry’s fine, just a little scared, and I’ll take care of him until we find a cure. Everything’s okay.”

“Hermione smiled slightly through her tears. “Do you know how funny that is?” Draco just gave her a confused look and she continued, “Harry is safer with you, a Malfoy, than with me, his best friend.”

Draco smirked as he realized how much had changed in such a short time. “I guess it is sort of funny.”

They went back to their books, both a little less upset. “You had better hope Harry doesn’t remember any of this, or he may fillet your cat.”

Hermione just sniggered and continued to read.

--

“I found it!” Hermione shouted, startling Draco from his reading. It had been a quarter of the way into lunch and Draco was beginning to think they would never find a cure for Harry.

Draco looked up hopeful. “Well, what is it then?”

Hermione skimmed the passage one more time, “It’s called Dasypodis potion. It’s extremely rare because of the difficulty to brew, and turns the drinker into a small hare,” she recited.

“But how to we reverse it?” Draco pleaded.

Hermione pouted and chewed on her bottom lip. “It doesn’t say.”

Draco sighed. “Well, at least it’s a start. Now we just need to look at all references to that potion.”

Hermione nodded and they got to work. They had almost run out of time before their next class when Draco found a passage that referenced the potion.