The Patronus.
Draco nervously glances around at the dark forest surrounding them. He grips Harry's hand and begins to move forward, following the light blue torches that lead the way. Harry follows him, looking behind them ever so often, watching out for anything. They keep walking till they reach a small lake. Harry suddenly freezes up, pausing in his steps.
"What's wrong?" Draco asks, his voice cutting through the silent atmosphere.
"This is the lake me and Sirius almost got the Dementors Kiss in third year," Harry whispers, staring at a platform of small rocks, just poking out over the lake.
Draco gulps and tries to move on, pulling Harry along with him. They watch their back as they pass the lake, not lowering their guard till they reach the other side. Draco pauses for a moment, listening out for anything. A twig snaps nearby. Draco bolts upright, Harry doing the same. They hear another twig snap, much closer than last time. Harry pulls Draco behind him, pulling out his wand and pointing it at the shadows.
"Lumos," He murmers.
A light appears at the end of his wand, illuminating a few feet in front of them. A figure steps out of the shadows, slithering towards them. Draco tries to see its face, but it has a hood on. It slithers to them, hissing and whispering words that Draco can't quite catch. Harry has gone still, his wand starting to shake in his hand. Draco suddenly realises what it is. It's Voldemort's first form, the figure he and Harry saw during their first year in detention. Draco grabs Harry's arm and whispers in his ear,
"It's just a Boggart, Harry. You can do this."
Harry straightens up at his words, pointing his now steady hand at the figure.
"Riddikulus!" he shouts. The figure wobbles before its cloak turns bright pink.
Draco can't help but burst out laughing, he can feel Harry chuckling beside him. The Boggart shrieks before scambering back into the shadows. Harry sighs and continues forward, grabbing Draco's hand again. They continue, reaching a large tree, covered in cobwebs. They decide to take a breather, sitting down on the floor. They hear footsteps nearby and voices. They both scramble up, pointing their wands at the trees in front of them. The footsteps get closer, and two people burst out of the trees, panting like mad. It's Ron and Blaise. Blaise spots Harry and Draco first, smacking Ron on the arm before turning to the pair.
Shit, that isnt them. Draco thinks. He glances at Harry, who seems to come to the same conclusion.
"Hey, guys. We were just running from a Manticore." Ron gasps out, seeming to catch his breath.
"You two okay?" Blaise asks, not sounding winded at all, considering they supposedly just ran from a Manticore.
"Yeah, we're fine. You two good? Doesn't seem like you're having the best time." Harry says, trying to chat.
Ron scowls at him,
"Yeah, we're fine, not that you would care." Ron spits out, turning to Draco.
Draco and Harry lock eyes; these definitely weren't their friends.
"You doing okay?" Ron asked, eyes still looking at Draco.
Draco nods curtly, turning to Blaise.
"Blaise-" Draco starts, but he gets cut off.
"What are our names?" Harry asks, looking at the pair in front of him.
Blaise's eyes narrow, and so do Ron's. Draco realizes the creatures in front of them are Hidebehinds. Blaise and Ron begin to change shape at the same time, their faces contorting, legs and arms growing longer, bones snapping into place. In front of Harry and Draco now stand two fully grown Hidebehinds, growling and hoping for some human snacks. Harry reacts before Draco can reach for his wand, casting a shield spell. Some conscious part of Draco's mind takes in that Harry cast the shield spell without his wand, but there are more pressing matters at hand. The Hidebehinds start banging on the shield, swinging at it, and getting angrier when they get shocked. Harry is holding his hands out, trying to stop the shield from collapsing. The Hidebehinds dont stop and keep swinging, hit after hit after hit. An idea comes to Draco. He takes out his wand and casts a disguising spell, making it look like he and Harry are just bits of foliage. He whispers what he did in Harry's ear, assuring him that if the shield falls, they will be safe. Harry nods and drops the shield. The Hidebehinds stop swinging their fists and sniff the air a bit before stumbling away into the forest.
Draco sighs a breath of relief, taking the charm off when he is sure they are far enough away. He turns to Harry, who is breathing heavily, wiping sweat from his forehead. Draco grabs his hand and sets off again, those Hidebehinds could return. They try and stick to the path, following the faint light of the light blue lamps. After what seems like hours of walking, they arrive at a patch of grass, trees surrounding it. Draco glances around nervously, but Harry charges on.
"Follow the torches, the light blue ones." Draco hears Harry murmuring under his breath.
They stop in the center, looking out in all directions. Draco shivers, a feeling of cold and emptiness suddenly overcoming him. He turns to Harry, who has his wand in his hand and is staring at the sky, searching for something. Draco sees a dark cloak glide onto the grass in front of him. It's a Dementor. Harry doesn't notice, he's still scanning the sky. Draco tries to tell him, but his voice seems to have disappeared. The Dementor continues to glide towards him, sucking in the air, making horrible rasping sounds. Draco doesn't know how Harry isn't hearing this, but he can't think about it. He can't think about anything. The Dementor stops a few feet in front of Draco, watching the pair. A ragged grey claw-like hand reaches out from under the Dementor's cloak and gestures for Draco to come nearer. Draco can't control his body, but his legs start moving. He tries to move his head, tries to scream, but he can barely breathe. His legs keep moving forward, despite Draco trying with all his might to resist. The Dementor grasps Draco by the neck when he gets close enough. The Dementor lowers its hood and angles Draco's face towards it. Draco feels air being dragged from his body as the Dementor lowers its gaping mouth to Draco's. Suddenly, Draco hears Harry scream,
"EXPECTO PATRONUM!"
The Dementor immediately drops Draco and flies backward, screaming at Harry before zooming off into the forest. Draco falls to the ground, gasping for air. He spins around to see Harry stroking a stag before sprinting over to Draco. Harry drops to the ground, holding Draco in a tight hug. Draco is surprised to feel tears streaming down his face, but once they start, he cant stop them. He sobs into Harry's shoulder, trying to calm down. Harry just holds him close, still keeping an eye out for anything else trying to attack them. Draco manages to stop crying, his breaths coming in slowly. Harry lifts Draco's face to look at him before pressing a light kiss to Draco's lips. Draco smiles weakly and stands up, Harry standing alongside him. They hold hands as they exit the clearing, still following the light blue torches. They walk for a while before they hear screaming. A human one. Draco and Harry look at each other before sprinting toward the sound. They run till they reach a crater. Inside, they see Pansy and Hermione backed against the side. On the other, the Hungrarian Hortail, roaring at the girls.
Harry wastes no time. He slides into the crater, whipping his wand out. He hears Draco following behind him. They reach the bottom just as the dragon is approaching the girls. Harry summons his broomstick and jumps on, flying over the angered dragon's head.
"Aguamenti!" Harry yells, spashing a stream of water at the dragon.
The dragon turns to the flying figure, roaring and spewing fire everywhere. The crater is too deep for the fire to get anywhere near the trees, so Harry doesn't worry about setting the forest on fire. He flies around the dragon, shooting spells at it to make it weak.
"Confringo!" Harry yells, blasting the dragon right in the eye.
The dragon roars before dropping to the ground in defeat. Harry flies over to Pansy, Hermione, and Draco, who went to the girls to protect them from other creatures that might be attracted to the noise.
"You both okay?" Harry asks, hugging Hermione.
"Yeah, we're fine. Thanks, Harry. we would've been dead meat if it weren't for you." Hermione says, smiling a little before turning to Draco.
"Thank you as well. You made sure we weren't hurt. Thanks, Draco." She hugs a very bewildered Draco while Harry and Pansy try not to laugh.
"You're welcome? Have you guys had any encounters with other creatures? We've met a Boggart, a couple of Hidebehinds, a Dementor, and now the dragon." Draco says.
"We've met a Dementor, a Manticore (although we just saw it passing), a Troll, and a Graphorn," Pansy replies, grimacing as she says the last one.
The group decides to continue, but they go their separate ways. Professor Brindlemore made it clear they should not stick together but always help others in need. They say their goodbyes and depart. Even though they are on the same path, they dont go the same direction. Harry and Draco keep heading south, to where the Great Lake is and where the torches are leading them. They walk for a long time, only hearing their own footsteps. The trees finally start to thin as the morning sun becomes more apparent through the foliage. Harry begins to walk faster, practically dragging Draco behind him. They both sprint when they see the far end of the lake and Professor Bindlemore standing there, talking to a few students who must have finished early. Harry slows down as they approach the group, aware that he and Draco are dirty and have blood on them. Professor Brindlemore freezes when she sees them, her eyes widening.
"Who did it become? Who did the Hidebehind become?" She whispers, urgency and fear leaking in her voice.
"It become Blaise Zambini and Ron Weasley," Harry replies, slightly confused.
"Oh no." Professor Brindlemore takes out her wand and holds it to her throat.
"ALL STUDENTS, PAY ATTENTION. IF YOU SEE A BLAISE ZAMBINI OR A RON WEALSEY, DO NOT APPROACH THEM. I REPEAT, DO NOT APPROACH THEM. I WILL BE BURSTING PURPLE SPARKS FROM MY WAND. FOLLOW THEM, NOT THE LIGHTS. THEY ARE ALL FAKE. DO THIS NOW." She lowers her wand and shoots up purple sparks.
She looks around at the group surrounding her and waves her hands to tell them to do the same. Soon, multiple students are surrounding them, all shooting purple sparks from their wands. Every so often, Professor Brindlemore puts her wand to her throat and repeats her earlier message. Soon, the entire class is there, everyone except Ron and Blaise. Professor Brindlemore makes a move for everyone to stop shooting purple sparks.
"Is everyone here? Everyone except Ron Weasley and Blaise Zambini? Good. Im now going into the forest to find them. Everyone who stays behind, read, chat, I dont care. Just do not approach the forest, no matter what. If you hear anyone shouting for help, stay put! They are trying to lure you in. I dont need more dead students." At this, she briskly walks through the group, picking out students to join her.
She reaches Harry and Draco and calls them up. The students she has picked include Harry, Draco, Pansy, Hermione, Dean, Higgs, Greengrass, Lavender, Theodore, and Goyle. After their 'dream team' was created, Professor ordered the other students to walk beside the lake to where they began. Professor juestured to our team to follow her and lit lumos on her wand. The group crept behind her, jumping at every sound. Finally, Hermione spoke up and asked the question everyone was thinking.
"Professor, why are you so worried? I thought you said nothing in here would seriously harm us."
"Oh, my dear girl, it's too late. They've already hurt one of us in this group. Mr Potter, come forward." Brindlemore replies, stopping in her tracks.
Harry walks forward, stopping in front of Brindlemore. She reaches for his face, brushing her hand across his eye and murmuring something Harry couldn't quite catch. She spins Harry around to face the group, who all gasp in shock at Harry, some even scrambling away. Harry frowns at them before turning to Professor Brindlemore, who is staring at Harry as well.
"What's wrong?" Harry asks.
"They've left their magic on you. A scar over your eye. When you cast that shield charm, they kept banging against it, using their dark magic to try and break through. It's a good thing you didn't use your wand, or that magic would've transferred to it and made it faulty or evil. Instead, since you cast it with your hands, it transferred into your hands. And after you broke it, you rubbed your eye, moving the magic to your eye and, in turn, corrupting it. Dont worry, it is healable, but it will leave a scar. But first, you must use it to find your friends. Since you have a part of the Hidebehinds' magic, when you close your uncorrupted eye, you will be able to see through the Hidebehinds' view. Hidebehinds are very protective and predatorial, so they will be guarding your friends. You will be able to track them and save your friends, but at a cost. You must give the Hidebehinds some of your blood to release the leftover magic and to sustaine them so they dont go hurting my other creatures. Now, do as I say, and find your friends." She finishes talking, pulling away from Harry.
Harry looks around at his friends, taking a deep breath. He nods and closes his normal eye, hoping to see his best mate, alive.