Draco's POV:

Having the Potions master as a godfather is very convenient when your best friend has been poisoned. Professor Snape knew that Lizzie and I are friends, so he kept me updated on the progress of the antidote.

"Any day now, Draco," the man drawled as I walked out of his classroom a few weeks after Liz had been attacked.

That one sentence had made my mind begin to whirl. Any day now Lizzie will wake up. She'll wake up and I'll see her for real. I mean, I see her everyday when I visit, but that doesn't count. She can't hear me, she can't respond. But once the antidote is finished, I'll be able to apologize to her for real. To her conscious face. I'll be able to look her in the eye and tell her how much I missed her.

Her eyes. Oh Merlin, I missed her eyes. They were so solid, so dark, so beautiful. Dark smokey grey. Just thinking about her eyes makes me shiver.

Please, please, please wake up soon Lizzie.

I had gone in everyday to visit the girl. I would check on her before breakfast and then immediately after my last class ended. It broke my heart every time I walked through the large, wooden doors of the hospital wing because I knew I was there to visit my best friend who had no idea I was there with her.

Every morning it was the same deal when I went to see Liz before breakfast. Today was no different.

I gently pushed the doors open and peeked through. Madam Pomfrey was beside Lizzie's bed giving her some sort of potion.

I walked up to the bed and sat in the chair.

"Good morning, Mr. Malfoy," Madam Pomfrey greeted me, slipping a bit more of the light blue potion down Lizzie's throat. She was always giving Liz a potion when I came in.

"What potion is that?" I asked quietly.

"Well, this one is a substitute for food. Since she is unconscious, she can't eat but her body still needs nutrition, and this potion provides that. I also give her a potion that keeps her hydrated. I give her one that keeps her body from becoming weak from no use for a month," she replied, as the last of the potion disappeared into Lizzie's mouth. I nodded. "You're a very good friend, Mr. Malfoy. She is very blessed to have you."

"You only see the tip of the iceberg. I'm not as good as I may seem," I replied, leaning forward with my elbows on my knees. My eyes went to Lizzie's lips. They were parted slightly, as always, but today they seemed to be moving almost.

"I see more than you may think," Pomfrey winked. I cocked my head at this. Does that mean she knows how I treated Liz when I first found out her blood status? "Yes, I know about your little falling out with Ms. Samuels. She is still very blessed to have you as a friend. You come in here a few times every day simply because you want to, because you want to see how she is doing. No one else has come to see her."

"No one?"

"No one. When Ms. Samuels wakes up, make sure you tell her how much you appreciate her. In fact, why don't you tell her now?" she suggested, clearing Liz's bed stand.

"She can hear me?" I asked sitting up.

"She sure can. I'll leave you alone now. You know where to find me if anything happens," she told me, walking to her office.

My eyes flitted to Lizzie's still form once again. Her eyes remained shut, her hands still, her mouth unmoving. The only sign of her life was the slow up and down movement of her chest. I placed her left hand in mine.

"Lizzie, Pomfrey says you can hear me. I don't know if you really can, but here I go. I miss you. I miss you more than anything. You could have died. Your heart almost stopped. But it didn't and this has been the wake up call I needed. It physically hurts how much I want to hear your voice. If I start to think about what's happened, my chest constricts and I want to punch someone. I miss the way you used to throw your head back when you laughed, and the way your nose crinkles when you smile. I miss taking walks around the school with you and talking about anything and everything. I miss being up on the astronomy tower with you. I know we only went once, but I miss it. I want to take you there again and watch the stars longer. I miss you Liz, please wake up soon." I finished my monologue and realized there were tears running down my cheeks. I fleetly wiped them away, a little embarrassed.

"Look at me," I laughed, "crying over a girl." I took a second to collect myself. "But you're not just any girl, Lizzie. You're my best friend and I need you back." I looked down to Lizzie's hand inside both of mine. I usually wasn't one for holding hands, but every since Liz had been poisoned, I wanted her hands in mine all of the time. She felt like my rock. I know it should have been the other way around, but I couldn't help that.

"Well, I should probably get to breakfast before Crabbe and Goyle eat it all. Wouldn't want to be grumpy like you when you miss breakfast. I'll see you later, Liz." I squeezed her hand once more and stood up, wiping my face.

Father always disliked it when I cried as a child. He had forcefully taught me that crying is weak and that strong men do not cry. How he would hate me right now. Not only crying, but crying over a muggleborn girl.

I hurried to the Great Hall and sat down beside Blaise who was busy eating a bowl of porridge.

"Hey mate," he greeted me while I transferred a small pile of eggs to my plate. I replied with a nod. Pansy, who was sitting on the other side of Blaise, chose that moment to speak,

"Good morning, Draco, where have you been? Breakfast is almost over," she said around the tall boy between us.

"Visiting Liz, just like every other morning, Pansy," I told her exasperatedly. Pansy asked me every morning where I had been, and every day my answer was the same.

"Why do you bother going to see that mudblood?" she asked darkly. "It'd be better for everyone if she just got it over with and died already." I slammed my fork on the table and stood up angrily.

"Don't you call her that," I barked at her. "I don't want to hear you call her that name or say anything similar to that ever again, understood?" I pointed a finger at her viciously. Pansy nodded briefly, and I stormed from the hall, my appetite gone.

This isn't the first time someone has said something like that about Lizzie around me and it made me so angry. If she wasn't a muggleborn, no one would have anything bad to say about her. That's how sweet and loveable she was. The fact that she is muggleborn is literally the only bad thing people have to say about her and I hated it.

My bag slipped off of my shoulder and I angrily lifted it back up. The people in the portraits watched me as I stomped past, whispering to their neighbors. I glared at each and every one of them. It probably wasn't good that I was going to Umbridge's classroom angry, but I honestly didn't give a left bollock about it. Let her say something to me. Let her set me off. Let her give me detention. I would show her how bad an angry Malfoy was.

There was still several minutes until class started when I entered the horrible woman's classroom, but I figured I could use the time to cool off. Merlin knew I needed it.

I plopped myself down in a cold chair in the back and set my head down in my arms. The coolness of the chair seemed to spread from my bum and throughout my body, and the lack of sound allowed me to relax.

"Mr. Malfoy, is that you?" the voice I least wanted to hear at the moment called out to me. I lifted my head. Umbridge was standing in the doorway of her office looking at me with a curious and daring face.

"Yes, Professor," I returned cautiously. She smiled and walked to her desk.

"Perfect, you are just who I wanted to speak to. As you will know, I recently passed an Educational Decree that disbands all student clubs and organizations, but I have reason to believe that there is a club running in secret. I am recruiting several students I trust to form an Inquisitorial Squad to help enforce this decree and any others that might be passed in the future. Would you be interested in joining?" I furrowed my eyebrows once she finished talking.

"An Inquisitorial Squad?" I questioned.

"That is correct. I will require full obedience at this school, and if Headmaster Dumbledore won't enforce the decrees, I will take matters into my own hands."

"What's in it for me?" I asked cautiously. She raised her eyebrows, but continued to smile.

"How about I take away your assignment each night so you have time to fulfill your duties as a squad member," she suggested.

"And what exactly does a member do?"

"That I will share once I have more information about who will or will not join. Are you interested?"

"Yes, Professor. Keep me updated if you would, I wouldn't want to miss a meeting." I smiled at the woman, but internally, I wanted to strangle her. I didn't want to join her little club, but I definitely didn't wanted to do the essays she assigns us every night.

---

Later that day when I went to visit Liz, I had brought my bag full of books and homework. I was planning on spending the rest of the day with her and finishing up some of my work.

The hospital wing was cooler than normal, and when I asked Madam Pomfrey why, she said that she had cast a cooling spell because Lizzie had been running a fever. The air felt chilly and crisp against my skin.

Lizzie's bed was the same as it had been for the last few weeks. She hadn't moved one bit, but the small wooden chair beside her bed was instead on Lizzie's right instead of her left. I sat down quietly beside her and looked at her. She was beautiful in the afternoon light dancing in from the windows.

"Hey Liz," I greeted her. Ever since Pomfrey told me Liz could hear me, I had been talking to her about anything and everything. "You'd never guess what happened in potions today." When I visit, I ishare about my day just to have something to talk about. "Seamus Finnegan blew up his cauldron and just about took my hand off. The bloody fool put ladybug legs in his potion instead of billywig legs. Snape got all angry and took a bunch of points from Gryffindor. Potter looked like he wanted to curse Snape." I laughed. "I'd ask you how your day went, but-" I trailed off.

I leaned forward and grabbed Liz's right hand and squeezed it. "I miss you," I told her, looking at her closed eyes. A rough patch of skin on her hand stole my attention, however. I glanced down and furrowed my eyes in confusion. Scabs covered the back of her hand in the shape of words.

I must not tell lies.

"What the hell is this?"