Tom had seen some wild stuff in his life.
But this? This was new territory.
A fire dragon. A living, breathing fire dragon.
Tom had never even laid eyes on an adult one before.
He really hoped this one wasn't cranky when it woke up.
Tom and Draco backed up together until they were pressed against the wall.
The stone behind them radiated scorching heat into their backs.
Still, it felt almost cool compared to the terrifying blaze rolling off the dragon.
Should he just go for it? Fight the thing to the death?
Before Tom could move, the unicorn leaped down from above, planted itself in front of him, and roared at the dragon.
The fire dragon stopped. It studied Tom and Draco for a long moment, snorted heavily through its nostrils, then backed off and curled up on the ground again.
This time it didn't close its eyes. Those ruby-red pupils stayed locked on the two boys. One wrong move and it would pounce and rip them apart.
"Tom… Tom, what'd it say? You can understand magical creatures, right?"
"Uh…" Tom could barely believe his own ears. "It sounds like… it's someone's pet. It's here guarding something important."
He glanced over his shoulder at the ancient runes carved into the wall behind them.
Was that it?
The fire dragon was protecting this long stretch of magic that no human could read?
But it didn't seem to mind him studying the stuff.
Tom tilted his head and crouched down to get a better look.
"You're seriously still looking at that?" Draco hissed.
"Gotta have goals, man. It's not hostile—it just misunderstood us at first." Once Tom had the situation figured out, he relaxed.
Seeing Tom so calm, Draco took a deep breath and turned around too.
The second he did, the fire dragon shot to its feet and glared straight at him.
"Damn it! Fine, I won't look!" Draco spun back around, face miserable. "I swear I won't look at the stupid wall again."
Why the hell could Tom look but he couldn't?!
The unicorn had put in a good word for Tom!
Couldn't it throw Draco a bone too?!
Now it just looked like he was getting excluded!
He was a pure-blood wizard, for Merlin's sake!
"Tom, what exactly are those things you're staring at?" Draco asked without turning around.
"Mm… some ancient stuff. I don't fully get it yet, but it seems like…"
Some kind of magic!
A spell that could take you somewhere else!
"Uh… I'll just wait outside for you?"
When Tom didn't answer, Draco took it as a yes and slipped out of the crater.
Once he was gone, the fire dragon closed its eyes again, its restless tail twitching lazily.
---
Sunset.
The Momo Mountain Range looked way creepier at dusk. Multiple pairs of eyes watched them from the shadows along the path.
Thankfully the unicorn guided them, so Tom and Draco made it down the mountain without any trouble.
Back at the manor, Draco yanked off his long robe.
The mix of nerves and the roaring fireplace had him breaking out in a cold sweat.
"I really thought I was gonna die today… Merlin, Tom, you have no idea. When that fire dragon stared at me, my whole life flashed before my eyes. And I saw something I shouldn't have.
I saw Hermione! She was standing right in front of me, reaching out, asking me to hang out. She wanted to go to Hogsmeade with me!
Tom, do you think… because that's what Hermione was thinking, it created some kind of vision for me?"
Tom: "————"
Uh, Young Master Draco… that was just a classic near-death flashback. You were literally about to die, that's all.
Kid had one hell of an imagination right before kicking the bucket.
"Stop dreaming."
"But what if?!" Draco clenched his fists, eyes full of hope. "I should go ask Hermione myself. I mean, I'm a pure-blood! There's no way she'd turn me down.
And maybe… she really does like me!"
Even after getting crushed over and over these past few days, Draco still had that unbreakable spirit.
It was almost admirable. Tom was a little jealous.
Why didn't he have that kind of confidence?
"Decided. Tomorrow I'm going to the Weasley place to see Hermione. Want to come with me?" Draco invited.
Unfortunately, Tom turned him down.
He said he had other things to do tomorrow.
Compared to Hermione and the Weasleys, Tom was way more interested in figuring out what was in that fire-dragon cave.
Those ancient runes definitely held some secret.
When he got close to them, he'd felt a hint of deathly aura.
Deathly aura was hard to describe.
On Voldemort, Tom had sensed pure evil.
Evil was evil, death was death—they were very different.
"Fine, suit yourself. I'll go alone. You can eat out or have the house-elf make you something."
The Malfoys had servants, but Draco rarely ate at home.
At school he ate in the Great Hall. At home he preferred going out with his buddies to show off how rich he was.
Tom nodded.
---
The next day.
When Draco woke up, Tom was already gone.
No need to guess where—he was probably back at the mountain.
After using the bathroom, Draco noticed the bath was still damp.
"?"
This guy took a shower before going to the Momo Mountain Range?
—
Had he already finished his workout? What time was it—7:33.
What time did that guy even wake up?!
Draco mentally cursed Tom for being such a try-hard.
He'd never met a wizard so diligent it was impossible to find fault with him.
It was like the twenty-four hours in a day existed just to limit Tom!
Draco left the house and headed for the Weasley residence.
It was pretty far from theirs.
From a distance, Draco spotted the countryside house.
The boy with fiery-red hair at the door told him he was in the right place.
The Weasleys' most obvious trait was that bright red hair.
"Master Malfoy?" George spotted him and put heavy emphasis on "Master." "What brings the young lord to our humble home in the middle of winter?"
"I heard Hermione's staying here for a bit."
"Oh yeah, she is. Hermione's our friend, so of course she can stay. But you still haven't said why you're here, Master Malfoy."
George and Fred both hated Draco.
Not just them—the whole Weasley family pretty much couldn't stand him.
Except one person—Ron Weasley.
When Ron heard the commotion downstairs, he opened his window, saw Draco, and quickly threw on clothes and socks before rushing down.
"Hey, George, this is my friend. He's probably here to see me."
George snorted. "He said he's here for Hermione. You called Hermione lately, short stuff?"
Ron scratched his head. "Draco, you here for Hermione or for me?"
"I'm here for Herm—I mean, I'm here for you. Just wanted to see Hermione while I was at it."
George looked annoyed. He leaned in to Ron. "Since when are you so buddy-buddy with this guy? Feels like—"
"Nothing. Remember that big Hermione Fan Club thing at school?"
George's expression changed instantly. "You joined that? I heard it caused a ton of trouble."
"No no, not me—it was Harry. Harry joined, and the president of the Hermione Fan Club was—"
Ron's eyes flicked toward Draco.
No further explanation needed. George got it.
So Draco was the one who started that club?
How lame.
"Whatever. Come on in. Keep the noise down if you're playing inside."
Once they were upstairs, the usually icy, arrogant Draco actually lowered his head. "Sorry, Ron. I caused you trouble."
Ron waved it off. "You and Harry are on the same side. I've got no reason to turn you away. Harry's my friend.
But… you came all this way just for Hermione? I heard some stuff went down at school. Any idea what happened?"
"No clue," Draco shook his head. "I only got bits and pieces. Basically, You-Know-Who got beaten, and Tom got hurt somehow. He's staying at my place now."
Ron: "Oh—wait, WHAT?!"
He jumped up. "You said Tom's at your house? You guys—"
"Get your mind out of the gutter! Professor Dumbledore said Tom had learned everything Hogwarts could teach him. There's nothing left for him in classes, so he sent him to my place to experience real wizard life.
These past couple days with Tom… ugh. I got wrecked in every single thing we tried."
Draco sighed and hung his head.
It was the first time Ron had ever seen the proud little wizard look this defeated. It was almost sad.
"It's fine," Ron patted his shoulder. "You're about to feel even worse. You came for Hermione, right? She's obsessed with wizard's chess lately. Want to play her?"
The words "wizard's chess" hit Draco like a switch. He shuddered and crawled into the corner.
"What the—?" Ron blinked.
Weird. It hadn't been that long since they last saw each other, but Draco seemed like a completely different person.
No more swagger, no arrogance—just a sad little puppy that had been kicked to the curb.
"Oh, nothing," Draco realized he'd lost his cool. He patted his chest and forced himself to calm down.
"Wizard's chess, huh? How good is Hermione at it? I mean… how strong is she?"
Ron shrugged. "She only learned the rules a few days ago. She's still figuring it out, but she keeps bugging Ginny and me to play with her. Says she's got someone she absolutely has to beat, so she's practicing hard."
Ron looked helpless. "You should give it a try. You're a pure-blood—you've been playing wizard's chess since you were little. No way you'd lose to Hermione—"
Finally! A chance to bully someone weaker!
Draco's dimmed spirit flared back to life.
This time he was taking back everything he'd lost to Tom—starting with Hermione!
Draco marched forward, knocked on the door, and when Ginny and Hermione let them in, he walked into the room with Ron.
The second he saw Hermione, Draco's eyes lit up.
Miss Hermione was as pretty and cute as ever.
That brown hair really was a gift from the heavens.
The old Hermione had a couple tiny flaws—some freckles and slightly big front teeth.
Not anymore.
After months of careful care, her skin was flawless and smooth, practically glowing.
Her teeth had shrunk to perfect size, and her whole smile was dazzling.
"Oh? Malfoy, Ron?" Hermione raised an eyebrow when she saw them. "Malfoy, do you play chess? I mean wizard's chess."
"Of course!"
Draco thumped his chest. "I'm Draco Malfoy, the youngest heir of the Malfoy family. There's nothing I can't do."
"Perfect. You two can play me."
Ginny smoothly stepped aside. She couldn't beat Hermione anymore anyway; she'd only been playing to keep her company and chat.
Seeing the arrogant blond sit down, Ginny smirked and muttered, "Hermione, be careful. Mom always told me—"
"Hm?" Hermione glanced back.
"Mom said blond guys are all players. Not a single good one among them."
Draco: "???"
What kind of color-based discrimination was that?!
Blond hair was the hallmark of pure-blood wizards!
After dropping that line, Ginny clapped a hand over her mouth, thought for a second, and asked, "Wait, what color is Tom's hair?"
Hermione smiled like she'd just remembered something funny. "Blond."
"Uh… well, most blond guys might be players, but it's just most! Tom's definitely the exception. A blond guy like him would be super loyal and totally lovable."
Ron, listening from the side, looked completely stunned.
Wait—what?
When did Ginny switch sides to Team Tom?
Is this still my sister?!
Who the hell turned my little sister into this?!
Has Tom even been to our house?
Nope. What kind of long-range magic is this that can mess with someone's heart? Pure evil!