Please Be There If I Remember

Chapter Forty-Seven: Nightmares

Draco honestly had no idea how Harry had managed to use the blood quill for so long that it had left a permanent scar. He had only used it once, and his hand was scabbed and red the next day, the words no longer distinguishable as his skin tried to heal itself. It would even twinge if he flexed it too much.

Draco was just glad it was on his left hand and not his right.

Last night, after Harry had left with a small smile, Draco had gone to his dorm and reached into his pocket, chugging down the calming potion that was in there with all the others that helped his random and spontaneous headaches. He had managed to maintain the act that he was fine and that it hadn't bothered him, but really, Draco had been twitching on the inside. His skin didn't feel quite right on his skeleton, and he wasn't sure if this was because of the Veritaserum running its course through his body, or if it was everything that had happened.

As much as he wanted to lay down on his bed and forget about it all, sleep didn't come easily, and Draco was left tossing and turning like there were bugs crawling along his bones.

When it did come, it was restless, his dreams filled with laughing toads. Draco could only stand and watch as their green skin morphed into something human, their mouths twisted into sneers until Umbridge was standing there. She was holding a clear vial, voices chanting around his skull like the resounding sound of metal against metal.

"Drink it, Mr. Malfoy. Drink it."

He was forced to stand there and take the potion. But when he pulled away the bottle, he noticed that the inside had turned red.

Blood.

Draco gagged, his mouth leaking crimson, and then the dream dissipated in a swirl of colours to Blaise's voice telling him that it was time to wake up.

~*"*~

Draco was quite used to people staring at him, but the constant, curious looks were new. So were the whispers. When Draco made it to the Great Hall, ignoring Umbridge from her seat at the staff table with great fervour, and had sat down on the bench, he was met with Pansy and Blaise whispering to each other. Worriedly.

"What is it with everyone today? Why is everyone looking at me?" Draco asked, because almost every eye in the hall was following his movements.

Pansy peered up at him from here she was in a low, heated conversation with Theo with concern on her features. Draco didn't like that.

Last night had been terrible, and he did not need anything else to make it worse. Not only that, but he was exhausted from such little sleep.

To be honest, he didn't even want to know what had happened.

Pansy looked to Theo as if in support, and he sighed.

"I guess I should probably tell you before someone else does—"

"Draco Malfoy, is it?"

Draco turned to stare at the young girl who had walked up to him. He guessed she was in either first or second year, based on her rosy cheeks and hesitant feet as they shifted on the floor.

"Um, yes? That's me."

"Wait—" Pansy got cut off by the girl before she could finish her sentence.

"Is it really true you don't remember anything?"

Draco froze.

"Who told you that?" He tried to keep his voice less threatening because it was basically a kid in front of him, but he knew some of the venom at her words had leaked through.

"Every—everyone's talking about it. I was just wondering if it was true, I—" The girl couldn't finish her statement since she ran away before Draco could learn any more.