Madam Pomfrey made her stay overnight along with Blaise.  She didn't seem entirely convinced that they were telling the whole truth, but with all she'd seen in her years at Hogwarts she didn't press them further. 

McGonagall was away at the Ministry, but they were told she would be needing a word with them upon her return. 

"She isn't taking visitors, Mr. Malfoy."  Madam Pomfrey was saying in an exasperated tone.

She could hear muffled arguing before footsteps drew nearer.  She saw the tall black figure enter the hospital wing at a brisk pace.  "Malfoy!  Come to join the party?" Blaise smiled upon seeing his friend.  Draco waved his wand back at him and Blaise clasped a hand over his mouth, his voice muted. 

"Hagrid mentioned you had to be taken here," he said in a rush.  He cleared his throat, looking uncomfortable all of the sudden.

"I thought you were gone?" Vega furrowed her brows.

He frowned at the way she received him.  "I'm back now." Draco straightened his posture, standing tall and lithe as he stood at her bedside.

Vega nodded, "Well, I'm fine."

"Then what happened there?" He gestured to the bandage over her cheek.

Vega looked over at Blaise who was attempting to shout at them.  The veins bulged in his neck, but he made no sound.  "Ask your friend.  He did it," she grumbled.

"And did you do that to him?" He glimpsed the boy's arm fixed into a sling.

"No," she looked offended at the question.  "Something else did that."

"Like what?" He cocked a dark blond eyebrow.

"I don't know," she whispered, "I didn't see it."

When she looked back up at him, he was smirking down at her.  He lifted his hand to inspect her cheek and clicked his tongue in disapproval.  "What did you do to piss him off?"

"Haven't the foggiest," she murmured.

Draco chortled and sat down at the end of her bed.  "You'll be all healed up by morning.  Madam Pomfrey is a skilled healer.  I've been in here a time or two."

"Yeah?  When?" Vega questioned.

"Second year I fell off my broom in quidditch.  Third year I was attacked by a hippogriff."

"You were attacked by a hippogriff?" Vega's mouth fell agape.

He chuckled and scratched at the back of his neck.  "I probably deserved it.  I was a vicious little prat.  I bowed to it, it bowed back, even let me pet it.  Then I called it ugly and it clawed my arm.  Had to wear it in a sling for a while."

Vega held back laughter.  "You shouldn't have insulted it.  Hippogriffs are very proud creatures."

"I know that now." His shoulders slumped.  "I know a lot of things now."

Vega stared at him, not knowing what to say.  "I brought you something," he said suddenly.  He held out a few pieces of parchment.  She took them and read the words before snapping her focus back up at him.  "Peace offering." It was his handwriting depicting the proper way to brew the Vadon potion.  "I'm sorry for leaving without saying anything.  I had to go early and you looked too peaceful to wake."

Vega beamed at his words and blushed.  Draco put a pale hand over her blanket clad knee.  "Its okay," she breathed.

"No, you deserve better than that.  Better than me." He looked down at his pressed black slacks. 

"Make it up to me then," she suggested.  His head snapped up to stare at her in confusion.  "I've still never seen Hogsmeade."

Draco smiled.  "Alright then, I'll take you this weekend.  If you'll let me."

Vega nodded happily and leaned in as he pressed a single kiss to her forehead.  "Sleep well," he whispered into her hair.  He pulled the blankets up around her and left with a smile.  He flicked his wand at Blaise before sweeping out of the room.

"Blood traitor!" Blaise yelled and Madam Pomfrey came hurrying into the room.

"Mr. Zabini that will be quite enough!  Here." She pushed a small cup at him and he downed it without question before collapsing onto the pillow and snoring loudly.

Vega suppressed a giggle and let her own eyes close for the evening.

She slept soundly without a single nightmare plaguing her dreams.  When she awoke, her sole thought was Noori.  She wanted to check on the wolf and thank him for helping her.  If he hadn't bit Blaise, she shuddered to think what all would have happened.

Blaise's bed was empty.  His blankets were neatly folded at the end of the bed with his pillow stacked on top.  "Miss Candlewood?  You've missed breakfast," came the tiny voice of Madam Pomfrey.  "I brought you some pumpkin juice to get something in you before class."

Vega accepted the glass from her and sipped at it.  "Thank you," she muttered.  "Am I okay to leave?"

"Yes, yes, of course," she fussed, already beginning to fluff her pillow.

Vega slipped out of bed and half jogged to her dorm to change into something other than her blood splattered clothes.  She opted for a gray sweater, to hide her bruises and Draco's mark that was ever present on her neck, and a pair of black pants that tucked into her boots.  She slipped on a clean cloak and hurried down.  She'd missed her first class, but she was looking forward to seeing Draco in Potions.

She practically skipped down to the dungeons.  "Vega!" She skidded to a stop.  "What are you doing?" Her father stomped over to her.

"Potions," she breathed out, "I'm going to be late." She turned around to leave and felt his fingers curl around her bicep.  "Ow!" She winced when he dug into her skin.

"I told you I wanted you to do well here.  And now I hear you're starting fights and sneaking about the castle with some boy!  If you step another toe out of line, I'll-"

"Is there a problem, Professor Candlewood?" McGonagall was standing off to the side with her hands neatly clasped within the sleeves of her green cloak. 

"Just discussing personal matters with my daughter," he said shortly.

The aging woman gave him an unconvinced look and took a few steps.  "Miss Candlewood has just spent the night in the hospital wing.  If I'm not mistaken, she has a class to get to as well," she said through pursed lips.

Vega swallowed and looked back at her dad.  His fingers were still burrowing into her arm painfully.  "In the hospital wing for fighting, I heard."

"Defense.  I've already heard the account from our grounds keeper." Her tone left no room for argument.  "If you'll be so kind as to release Miss Candlewood, I'm sure Professor Slughorn will be grateful."

He sneered and reluctantly tore his hands away.  Vega rubbed at the sore spots and gave McGonagall a fleeting look of thanks before scurrying down the corridor to the dungeons.

She was pleased to see that Blaise was sitting with a sling on his arm and a bitter look on his face.  Pansy was desperately trying to get Draco's attention, but his eyes were on the raven haired girl who had entered with reddened eyes.

She sat beside him and didn't speak.  Slughorn drawled on about the importance of stirring in the proper direction while everyone politely pretended to listen.  She jotted down a few notes to give him the illusion that she heard him, but her mind was on her father.

Her arm burned from his tight grip, as they always did when he grabbed her, but this time was worse.  McGonagall has seen.  It was always kept behind closed doors, but with the dark lord's defeat, he had been under tremendous stress to prove his worth to the ministry.  Traitor and Death Eater were common terms hurled at him since they came out of hiding.  No amount of showing off his muggle wife could cease them.  Because it was just that, a show. 

He'd taken her mother when she was a teenager still in school.  He didn't give a damn about her.  He'd erased every memory of her from her family and kept her like a little doll as a statement to his change in character.  Vega being born was just a little stunt he had pulled when the Ministry had threatened to expose him.  She'd been a pretty prize ever since.  Her only purpose, as he so eloquently reminded her, was to make him look good.

Draco nudged her knee with his beneath the table and stirred her from her thoughts.  She gave him a small smile that never quite reached her eyes.

"How sweet," drawled Pansy.  "You sure you're not supposed to be in Slytherin?  Throwing yourself at these two the way you have, I'd say that's cunning and determination if I'd ever seen it."

Draco's fists balled at his sides.  "Remind me what it is again that makes you feel like your words hold any value?" Vega quipped.

Pansy screwed up her face as if she'd just smelled something bad.  "Draco," she whined, "make her stop."

Draco did nothing.  His eyes were glued to his workbook, but he seemed a million miles away.

"Blaise, you'll shut her up won't you?" She batted her lashes at him with a pout.

"She'll get what's coming to her.  All mudbloods will, right Draco?  Or did you already give it to her?  Is that your mark on her neck?" He turned to Draco with a smug look.

"We're going to do a demonstration on Friday to show you what the potion should look like." Slughorn interrupted their snide comments.  "Do I have any volunteers that would like to test the potion?  We'll be doing it in the forest just behind Hagrid's.  Don't be shy now, it'll be fun!" He tried to encourage them.

Pansy shot her hand out and grabbed Vega's quill as she was writing.  She slowly shut her eyes and blew out a breath.  "May I have that back please?  Some of us are actually trying to learn something in this class."

Pansy took out her wand and tossed the quill into the air.  Vega shot her arm up to snatch it when she heard a delighted sound behind her.  "Miss Candlewood!  Excellent.  You and Mr. Malfoy will be our first.  Can I get two more?"

Vega stared at the professor with her mouth hanging open.  The quill fell from the air and landed on her desk, splattering ink all over her robes.  "Are you fucking kidding me?" Vega groaned and blotted at the ink with a cloth hanging off the table.

"So sorry about that," Pansy stuck out her tongue. 

"I liked you better when you were crying.  Blaise stop!  Please Blaise!" He mimicked her begging and she felt something snap in her.  "I didn't get the chance to dive in for myself, but Draco can fill me in on the details.  Was she good?  Nice and tight little cunt?" Pansy and Blaise broke into laughter at her expense.  Draco moved at the same time, both lunging at Blaise.  They bumped into each other and knocked over the beaker in front of them.  It spilled over Blaise and Pansy and they both stopped laughing. 

Their screams echoed around the classroom and gained everyone's attention.  "Its burning!" Pansy cried.  Black lines ran down her face from her mascara.

Draco and Vega settled back into their seats, both pleasantly surprised at the turn of events.  "Do something!" Blaise bellowed at Slughorn.

The Potions teacher stood wide eyed, making no move to help.  He looked positively gobsmacked at the situation being presented.  "Don't just stand there you blubbering fool!  Do something!" Pansy screeched in agony.

"Mr. Malfoy, Miss Candlewood," he seemed to find his voice, "uh..."

"Hospital wing," finished Draco irritably.  Slughorn nodded vigorously, no doubt thankful that he didn't have to figure out how to finish his sentence.  Vega took her time standing up and loading her textbook back in her bag before following Draco out with the two Slytherins.

"Wait until your father hears about this," Pansy threatened through whimpers.  "Siding with a mudblood!"

"I think I can see some bone there.  I do hope it won't scar."  Vega simpered at the distraught girl.

Blaise was hissing with every step.  "If I know Lucius Malfoy, he'll kill her," he seethed.

Draco didn't respond, instead putting his hand out and shoving Blaise a few steps.  "Filch!" He flagged down the caretaker.  "These two need to be taken to the hospital wing," he ordered.  The crooked man grumbled some words under his breath before snatching both students by the hood of their emerald cloaks. Blaise and Pansy's whimpering echoed back to them until they rounded a corner and disappeared.

"Do you want to leave?" he asked suddenly.

"What, school?  I still have a Herbology class."

"Just for a little.  We can go sit down by the lake."  Draco offered, and then, as if he regretted his words, he quickly changed his mind.  "Or we could study for potions in my dorm.  No one will bother us in there."

Vega chewed on her lip.  "Okay, but my dad is probably going to be looking for me today.  I really don't want him to see me sneaking into your dorm."

Draco smirked and took both her hands in his.  "Take a breath." She barely had time before she felt the molecules in her body being stretched and twisted every which way as Draco disapparated them into his dorm.  She stumbled and fell back on his couch, her head throbbing.  "Have you never disapparated before?"

"No," she said in a strained voice.  "I thought you couldn't do that inside Hogwarts anyways."

"Dumbledore never reinstated that spell before he died, and McGonagall thinks if students would have been able to use that it could have saved several lives," Draco murmured.

Vega gave him a quizzical look.  "I heard about that.  His friend killed him, right?  Snape, I think his name was. Head of Slytherin?"

Draco bristled at her question.  "I don't want to talk about that," he said solemnly.

"Then can I ask you where you found the recipe for Vadon?  I've combed through nearly every book in the library and can only find-"

"Bits and pieces.  I know.  The library at Malfoy Manor is far more extensive than this place."  She nodded her understanding.  "I think I'll skip the demonstration."

"What?  Why?  I don't want to do it in front of everyone all by myself!"  Vega leapt up from the couch.

"I'm not about to change into some fluffly little bunny with then watching." Draco laughed without humor.

Vega quirked a brow.  "I highly doubt that Draco Malfoy will take the form of a fluffy little bunny.  You're more likely to be a dragon."

A mischievous glint lit up his pale eyes and he rounded on her.  "Why do you say that?  Because I can flick my tongue like a reptile?"  She gasped when his hands darted out and grabbed the hem of her pants, tugging them down.  She let her head fall back into the cushions while he pulled her knickers to the side.  True to his word, he flicked his tongue rhythmically against her little bundle of nerves. 

She lost herself in the feel of him and tried to stifle her moans to no avail.  Studying was the last thing on their minds.