Night had already settled over Hogwarts when Harry, Ron and Hermione made their way back down to Hagrid's hut, whispering heatedly as they crossed the grounds; their breaths misting in the cold night air. The shadows stretched long across the grass, and the lantern outside Hagrid's door glowed like a tiny beacon. They had been trying all week to piece together the truth, and every trail led back to one person, Snape. They were worried of what he's been upto with the trapdoor and moreover the strange behavior surrounding the third floor corridor. By the time they reached the wooden steps, Ron was wound up enough to whisper loudly.
"I am telling you, Harry. Snape was trying to get past that giant dog. You saw his leg. Something clawed him."
Hermione nodded, her face pale but determined. "And what else would he be after except whatever Dumbledore is hiding down there?"
Harry knocked, and Hagrid pulled open the door, looking startled to see all three of them so late.
"What are you kids doing out at this hour?" he asked, stepping aside as the warm firelight spilled into the night.
They filed in quickly. Ron spoke first, pointing toward the kettle. "We need to know why Snape was trying to get past the three headed dog."
Hagrid nearly dropped his teacup. "How do you know about Fluffy?"
Ron's eyebrows furrowed in sheer disbelief. "That thing... It has a name?"
Harry stepped forward. "Because we saw him. And Snape has been acting suspicious since the start of term."
Hagrid looked pained. "Snape is a professor at Hogwarts. He would never try something like that. Dumbledore trusts him."
Hermione's voice softened, but her eyes stayed sharp. "Hagrid, he is hiding something. Please. Tell us what Fluffy is guarding."
Hagrid muttered under his breath, glancing away. "That business is between Dumbledore and Nicolas Flamel."
Ron blinked. "Who?"
Hagrid stiffened immediately. "I shouldn't have said that."
There was a long pause. Then Harry noticed a heavy looking parcel wrapped in cloth on the table. "Hagrid, who gave you that?"
Hagrid rubbed the back of his neck. "A stranger. Hood pulled low. Played cards with him at the pub. He offered me a dragon egg."
Hermione gasped. "He gave you a dragon egg?"
Hagrid nodded miserably. "We got talking. He asked about magical beasts. Asked how to calm Fluffy. I told him you just need to play music."
Hermione's jaw dropped. "Hagrid. That is valuable information."
Ron threw up his hands. "That means whoever he was knows exactly how to get past the dog."
Before Hagrid could respond, there was a rustle outside the window. The trio froze. Hagrid grabbed his latern and opened the door in one sweeping movement. The lantern light spilled across the pumpkin patch, catching a pale face ducking clumsily behind a squash the size of a boulder.
Draco Malfoy straightened awkwardly, brushing dirt from his robes. "I was not spying," he snapped immediately, which of course meant he absolutely was.
Hagrid's expression hardened. "You have no business being out here."
Draco tilted his chin high. "Neither do they. They are out of bed. Past the curfew."
Ron groaned softly. Hermione closed her eyes. Harry felt tension coil in his stomach.
Hagrid pointed toward the castle. "You are all going back. Right now. And I will be speaking with Professor McGonagall."
Draco smirked triumphantly at Harry, clearly delighted that he had managed to drag the famous Potter and his minions down. A short while later McGonagall's disappointment rang sharper than any punishment. She did not raise her voice. She did not need to. Harry felt each word like a stone sinking in his stomach.
"Out of bed at this hour?" she asked. "You four all serve detention with Hagrid."
Draco's victorious expression vanished instantly. "Professor, I guess I heard you wrong. Did you just say 'four'? I was trying to catch them!"
McGonagall's mouth thinned. "Even though you had pure intentions, Mr. Malfoy, that still does not change the fact that you were also out of bed. You will join them."
Draco fell silent, seething, his smirk was nowhere to be found.
The night air felt colder than usual as Harry, Ron, Hermione and Draco trudged across the grounds behind Hagrid. The lantern in Hagrid's hand swung with each heavy step, throwing long shadows that danced across the grass.
Harry walked with Ron and Hermione, trying to ignore the knot forming in his stomach. Draco, on the other hand, looked as if he wanted to run straight back to the castle. His pale face shifted between outrage and nerves, though he did his best to hide the second.
Draco frowned at the trees towering ahead of them. "The Forest? I thought that was a joke. We cannot go in there. Students are not allowed. And there are werewolves."
Harry glanced at him sideways, fighting a grin. Draco's voice had risen a little too high, and his eyes kept flicking nervously into the darkness.
"Well," Hagrid said gruffly, "you two will be with me. Draco and Harry will go together."
Draco perked up suddenly, as if grasping onto anything that might make him less afraid. "Okay. Then I get Fang."
Hagrid turned to him, unimpressed. "You can if you want to. But let me warn you, Fang is a coward."
The dog whined on cue. Draco stared at him, instantly regretting volunteering. They entered the forest. It swallowed the light, the path, even their footsteps. The deeper they walked, the more the trees curved over them, branches twisting like claws.
Draco kept close behind Harry, refusing to admit that he was doing so. "My father will hear about this," he muttered. "This is servant's work."
"Your father is not here," Hagrid said, not looking back. "You got yourselves into this. Now you'll see it through."
Draco fell silent, though his glare burned a hole into Hagrid's massive coat.
Draco tried to scoff, but it came out thin. "Well, yes. The entire forest is dangerous. There are all sorts of creatures… poisonous things… deadly things… enormous spiders…" His voice wavered, and he straightened quickly as if Harry had noticed.
"Quiet," Harry whispered. "Hagrid said there is something in here hurting unicorns."
They followed a shining trail of unicorn blood that glimmered on the leaves like moonlit snow.
Draco shuddered. "That is unicorn blood. Something that can hurt one of those is not something we should be anywhere near."
Harry looked at him again. Draco's hands were stiff at his sides, too stiff.
"If I didn't know better, Draco," Harry said quietly, "I would say you were scared."
Draco's head snapped toward him. "Scared, Potter? Did you hear that?" He tilted his chin up, as if daring Harry to challenge him. "I am not scared."
Fang whimpered and hid behind Harry's leg.
Draco pointed accusingly. "Well, he is certainly scared. Not me."
Harry snorted softly. "Right."
They moved deeper into the trees. The shadows thickened. A low hiss echoed somewhere far ahead. The trees opened into a small clearing. Moonlight poured over a pale shape in the grass. Harry's chest tightened.
"That is unicorn blood," Draco whispered. "Do you know how fast you have to be to catch a unicorn? Whatever did this is not something we should be anywhere near."
Harry knelt to look at a brighter patch on the leaves, and Draco hovered above him anxiously, refusing to get too close. A rustling sounded behind the trees.
Draco stiffened instantly. "Potter… what was that?"
Harry swallowed. "I do not know."
They stepped into a clearing. The unicorn lay motionless on the forest floor, gleaming under the moon.
Draco's fear cracked through his voice. "It is dead."
Harry took a slow step forward. The moment his shoe touched the grass, a soft dragging sound came from behind the trees. Fang whimpered louder.
Draco's breath hitched. "Potter…" His voice shrank. "Potter, there is something there."
A hooded figure slid out of the shadows. It bent over the unicorn, face lowering to drink the shimmering blood. Harry froze. His scar ignited with pain so sharp he nearly fell. The figure lifted its head. Its pale face glinted under the moon.
Draco screamed. He spun on his heel and ran without looking back, Fang bolting after him. Branches snapped as he crashed blindly through the forest, his scream echoing between the trees.
Harry remained alone, gasping, the creature gliding toward him. The pain intensified as his vision blurred and knees buckled. Just as the hooded figure reached him, thunder shook the clearing. A centaur burst from the shadows, rearing with a cry that shook the ground. The hooded creature fled instantly, disappearing into the trees.
Harry collapsed to his side, panting, hand pressed to his scar. He had watched Draco vanish into the trees, his scream still echoing, and something unexpected settled in Harry's chest. He had always seen Draco as someone who boasted loudly, strutted around like he owned every hallway, and acted older than the rest of them. But watching him run, he suddenly realized Draco was just a kid too. Scared and smaller than his pride made him look. For a moment, Harry almost felt sorry for him. They were both eleven year olds in a forest full of monsters, pretending they were braver than they felt. And now Harry understood Draco's swagger hid fear, not strength.
Draco crashed through the trees, breath ragged, his scream still ringing in his ears. Humiliation burned hotter than fear. He had always imagined himself brave, the one who mocked others for trembling, yet the moment that creature lifted its face he had bolted like a terrified child. His pride shriveled at the thought of Harry seeing him like that. But beneath the shame sat something he hated even more admitting. A flicker of worry. Had Potter escaped? Was that thing still after him? Draco clenched his fists, furious at himself for caring, furious for running, and even more furious that he could not turn back.