I know its been forever since I updated, sorry! Thank you for all of those who reviewed this story and all my other stories. I really appreciate the warm feedback! :D I know I messed with the time line a lot but that's just kinda how I made it to fit the story. Sorry! I hope you guys enjoy the new update and I'll start working on the next one as soon as my job allows. :D

Oh. I don't own anything. :)

Chapter Two: Freedom To Friendship

Lunch was half over before Draco reached the Great Hall. Instantly he spotted Gage, who waved at him from the Hufflepuff table with a smile. Grinning back despite the twinge in his split lip Draco motioned for him to wait just one more minute before hurrying over to the Slytherin table where Theo was sitting at their usual spot. Feeling a little guilty for keeping him waiting, Draco hoped he wasn't too upset.

"Where have you been?" Theo demanded as soon as he spotted Draco. His attention was diverted however by the large split in Draco's lip. "What the hell happened?" The tone in his voice clearly declared exactly why he'd been sorted into the Slytherin house despite his generally sweet disposition.

Draco grimaced, knowing Theo was going to be upset no matter what Draco said. Theo was extremely protective of Draco just like Draco was of Theo. "I got in a little fight with Weasley."

"That bloody wanker!" Theo growled, rising to his feet with a thunderous scowl. He looked fairly intimidating, taller and broader than Draco would ever be. "How dare he?"

"It doesn't matter, Theo, its over and done with and he has detention with Snape for two weeks." Draco said quickly, hoping Theo wouldn't do anything stupid. Although Lupin had been on Draco's side not many of the Professors would side with a Slytherin over a Gryffindor, especially any of the golden trio, so it was best if Theo did nothing.

"Ha, it serves the bloody idiot right." Theo grumbled, reluctantly admitting he wouldn't do anything to Weasley despite the desire to do so. Two weeks of detention with Draco's godfather would be enough punishment for anyone, especially considering Weasley had detention for hitting that same mans Godson.

"Now, come one, we're sitting with someone new today." Draco told his best friend with a smile. Again he ignored the desire to wince in pain and instead enjoyed Theo's surprised look.

"Who?" Theo asked incredulously as he gathered up his bag. He knew no Slytherin would want them to sit with them, perhaps a Ravenclaw?

"Someone in my DADA class." Draco informed him as he led the way towards the Hufflepuff table. "He invited us to sit with him."

"A Hufflepuff?" Theo whispered in surprise, seeing Gage turn to wave at Draco and Draco return the wave. It was absolutely unheard of for Slytherins to associate with the loyal Hufflepuffs let alone sit at their table.

"What happened to your lip?" Gage asked in surprise when Draco was close enough for him to notice the split lip. He motioned the both of them to two empty seats across from him, two other boys watching them a little cautiously on either side of Gage.

"A little fight with Weasley." Draco murmured, touching his fingers to his lip for a moment to feel the damage. After a moment he waved a dismissive hand. "Theo this is Gage Sanstrom, Gage this is Theo Nott." He introduced them as he and Theo slid into the empty seats.

"Nice to meet you." Gage said with a charming smile, his green eyes sincere. He motioned to the boy to his right. "This is Nicholas Harper."

"Call me Nick." The brunette said pleasantly with a shy smile. His dark brown eyes were a little wary but warm all the same.

"And this is Alex Calhoun." Gage finished, motioned to the blonde to his left.

"Nice to meet you." Alex greeted exuberantly, his sandy blonde curls falling endearingly over his dark blue eyes and he bounced in his chair.

"Thanks for letting us sit with you." Draco said sincerely with a slightly solemn smile, Theo nodding in agreement. He wasn't sure if the three other boys caught the significance of his words but by the looks that crossed their eyes he thought they did.

"It's no problem at all!" Alex exclaimed, his eyes excited. "Anybody Gage says is a friend is more than welcome." He tucked several fat blonde curls behind his ear with a grin.

"I agree." Nick said, seeming to lose the last bit of his wariness. A light blush colored his cheeks as he smiled at the two of them. "You're more than welcome."

"Besides, we've never sat with a Slytherin before." Alex chimed, much to Draco and Theo's amusement, who laughed slightly at the boy's enthusiasm.

Gage smiled at Alex, used to his displays of exuberant energy. He then turned his green eyes to Draco, focusing on his split lip again. "So how'd you get in a fight with Ron?" He asked curiously, his expression sincerely curious rather than wary. Nick and Alex both mirrored his expression as they watched Draco grimace.

"An exchange of nasty names and of course Weasley's infamous short temper." He replied, hoping they wouldn't hold it against him even though he was a Slytherin.

Nick smiled, just as shyly as before. "I suppose he isn't a redhead for nothing then." He then turned his eyes to his plate of food as though embarrassed. Draco noticed Theo seemed more interested in Nick than he did Gage and Alex and fought off a light smile.

"Well, what are you guys waiting for?" Alex asked, eyes going to their empty plates. "Dig in and you're welcome to sit with us any time." He himself dug into a plate of ham sandwiches with his characteristic enthusiasm.

"We appreciate it." Theo said lightly, beginning to fill his plate with some of the roast beef sandwiches.

Draco watched Nick blush as Theo spoke and felt a surge of amusement. It seemed Theo wasn't the only one interested. With that thought in mind he began to fill his plate as well. "So do any of you play Quidditch?" And with that the conversation was off. It seemed Gage and Alex were quite the fans of the Appleby Arrows which just so happened to be Draco's favorite team.

The five of them didn't notice the quiet that had swept the hall as the two Slytherins sat at the Hufflepuff table, or the speculative glances that everyone kept sending them. They didn't notice the raised eyebrows or the disbelieving frowns. They didn't notice the furtive whispers and the intrigued looks. They didn't notice any of that; they were too busy in their excited conversation to notice anyone else. The two Slytherins were just glad to make friends, it didn't matter what house they were in and the three Hufflepuffs didn't care that these new friends were Slytherins. It was the first time in years that a persons house didn't matter to any of them.

/

During Transfigurations Draco found his mind wondering to his new friends. He couldn't quite believe that he and Theo had actually found people that wouldn't scorn them, on the second day of school no less. It was exhilarating and fascinating. It was an experience he'd never had before. His father had controlled his friends just like he'd controlled everything else Draco did.

Lucius would never have allowed Draco to befriend a Hufflepuff, let alone sit at the same table. Draco nearly grimaced as he pictured his father's sneering face if he were ever to find out, which Draco was sure he would at one point or another. Except now he wouldn't be able to do anything about it, not locked away in Azkaban as he was. In the past Draco would have received a menacingly polite letter (Malfoy's were too dignified to send Howlers.) and he would have been fairly sick with terror. He would have waited for the next holiday home with dread, panic stricken, knowing his father would have a 'suitable' punishment set out for Draco when he arrived home. Of course Lucius' idea of suitable was quite a bit bloodier than most peoples.

A shift in the seat beside him snapped Draco from his thoughts and his pale blue eyes looked up just in time to catch the glance Granger sent him. Professor McGonagall had assigned seats as soon as class had started and she'd for some reason stationed Hermione to his right and Harry to his left. Ron was oddly enough not present in the class and Draco assumed he hadn't passed his Transfigurations NEWTS. As it was Draco could feel the tension between Harry, Hermione and himself and if he hadn't been almost immune to such tension then it would have made him quite uncomfortable. As it was, the experience was vaguely similar to a family dinner with Lucius. Something he'd been more than used to in his seventeen years of life.

He wondered if this might be some attempt to get them to become friends. If it was Draco knew Professor McGonagall had quite a long journey ahead of her. Although he supposed if he wanted to he could very well offer the trio his friendship, after all he had the freedom to do so now, but he found himself not wanting to. Draco thought there was just too much history between the four of them to just forget, even if Draco tried his damndest. There was no way he was ever going to escape his past, even if he had only been doing what his father told him to do, and Draco honestly really didn't want to. The Golden Trio would never understand and Draco really didn't feel inclined to try to get them to understand.

"Now that we've gone over some of the review lessons I'd like to go over what we'll be covering this year." McGonagall said, bringing Draco's attention back to the front of the class. Her eyes were just as shrewd as ever as they passed over the small class. This year there was only twelve students in Advanced Transfiguration. "You are all here because you're the best at Transfiguration. You have all scored above average scores and this year we will be covering a skill that only the best at Transfiguration can manage. Can anyone tell me what this skill is?"

Draco knew of course, there wasn't anything harder than becoming an Animagus. They'd all been taught about Animagi in 3rd year of course but he had a feeling she wasn't just talking about learning about the skill. He was a little surprised that Hogwarts would permit trying to teach students to become Animagi. The skill was fairly dangerous after all, it often backfired painfully. One had to be an extremely powerful witch or wizard to perform the initial transformation. He didn't bother to raise his hand, he'd never been called on before in McGonagall's class so he didn't see much point. Hermione of course got the answer correct, like she did most of the time.

"That's correct, Miss Granger." McGonagall nodded, all a student could expect most of the time from the tough as nails woman. "This year we will not only be learning the academics of the Animagi but the mechanics as well. This class has been granted the extremely rare privilege of learning to become Animagi. The first class in almost fifty years to have such a privilege."

Draco arched a brow just as a several Ravenclaw and Hermione all raised their hands. To say he was surprised was putting it lightly. Only the most powerful witchs and wizards had the necessary power to become an Animagus and he knew without a doubt that half the people in this room wouldn't have the necessary power. So why teach them something they couldn't use?

"Yes, Miss Buckle?" Professor McGonagall asked dryly, as though she already knew the question, and Draco thought that she probably did.

"Isn't that really dangerous, Professor? I thought being able to transform was really rare. I doubt everyone here could manage it." The round faced Ravenclaw asked, her eyes worried even a little scared. Ravenclaw surely wasn't known for their bravery.

"Yes, Miss Buckle, the skill to actually succeed at becoming an Animagus is extremely rare." Her shrewd eyes passed over the class, back straight and looking as impervious as she always did. "I very much doubt even half of you will have the necessary power. In fact there are only seven Animagus registered with the Ministry at this time. It will take more than your average concentration and study to become an Animagus."

Hermione's hand shot up, an excited expression on her face. "Doesn't becoming an Animagus take not only extreme meditation but a fairly complicated potion as well?" She asked once the Professor called on her. She was nearly bouncing in her seat.

Draco raised a brow, curious as well, as he looked at Professor McGonagall. From the reading he'd done the potion took nearly seven months to complete, surely too long to really make in just one class if they were to have several months after taking the potion to meditate. Usually it took nearly a year and a half to finally transform, if you ever even reached the necessary state of mind to transform at all.

"Yes." Professor McGonagall replied with a dip of her head. "However at the beginning of last year Headmaster Dumbledore had Professor Snape begin the potions for this very class." An oddly pinched expression crossed her face and Draco had the sudden feeling that Professor McGonagall might have protested against this class. She certainly didn't seem very approving. "All that needs to be done is add a single hair to each students potion and the potion will be ready to be taken." Another Ravenclaw's hand shot up. "Yes, Miss. Truntman?"

"When are we going to be taking the potion?" The girl asked, seemingly just as excited as Hermione.

Draco nearly scoffed. She acted like she was actually going to be able to become an Animagus. Which in Draco's opinion was a fairly foolish hope to begin with. Draco figured perhaps two or three would be able to manage the feat, and he was almost positive one wouldn't be her. From what he'd read the ability was extremely rare and almost impossible to accomplish. Not only that but if one did manage to transform, it would be just another way the Ministry could keep a hold of a person.

McGonagall motioned to her large desk, where a tray of bottled potions sat waiting. "Each student will put there name on one of these potions and then put precisely one hair into their potions." She held up one imperious finger. "The potion will then need to sit for one week. Next Monday the potions will be ready to be taken." The blonde raised a hand, just the slightest bit irritated. "Yes, Mr. Malfoy?"

"This is all well and good, but what are the students that don't manage the transformation going to do?" His voice of snide cynicism in it as he raised a brow at the Professor. "I know for a fact that perhaps three students in this class will manage the transformation. What of the people that don't? What are they going to be doing in this class?" He felt Harry stiffen next to him, obviously not caring for his tone but Draco could really care less.

Professor McGonagall let out a uncharacteristic sigh, for once completely ignoring his tone of voice. It was then Draco knew he'd struck something she obviously didn't agree with either. "Excellent question, Mr. Malfoy. It should be fairly clear who will be able to manage the transformation after the first month. Those who will not be able to complete the transformation will be dropped from my class."

There were murmurs of protest across the classroom but Draco ignored them to ask another question. "Will we be able to pick up another class after that amount of time? I for one know I don't want to drop a whole class entirely just because the Headmaster gave us the privilegeof failing." He shook his head, a frown on his face as he began to think of which class he might pick up to replace this class.

Again McGonagall ignored his snide tone. "There will indeed be the opportunity to pick up another class if that's what you should choose to do, Mr. Malfoy."

Draco nodded, ignoring Harry and Hermione's stares, thinking on exactly what he was going to do. He doubted he was going to be one of the few that could accomplish the transformation. It was thinking realistically. Although he knew he wasn't the weakest wizard here he knew he certainly wasn't as free magically gifted as Harry was. He paid little attention to the rest of class, instead going over his options. He absently plucked a hair for the potion, not even paying attention to the hissing noise as it went into the potion. When McGonagall finally released them from class he was still thinking on which class would further his future.

/ooooooooooooooooooooo/

Draco stared at the thick wooden door, feeling anxious, excited and worried all at the same time. A frown pulled at his lips as his eyes stared, not really seeing the door but focused inward instead. Did he want to do this? Did he want to spend more time around Professor Lupin than he strictly needed to? What was this going to change? Would it benefit Draco in the long run? All these questions and more flew through his mind as he stalled at the DADA door.

If he were being honest with himself Lupin vaguely frightened him. Not in the sense that he thought the Professor would hurt him, but in a completely emotional sense. The man seemed to have a dangerously relaxing affect on Draco which was pleasant in the moment but frightened him afterward. Lupin seemed to be able to draw Draco's guarded secrets and thoughts straight to the surface. Which almost terrified him, having spent his entire life repressing his inner self to the point that he hadn't even realized he had an inner self until Lucius was gone.

Yet Draco wanted to stretch his boundaries. He wanted to do and say things his father never would have let him say. He wanted to be comfortable with his emotions. Hedidn't want to be so repressed that he never said what he really meant. He didn't want to be careful about everything he said. He didn't want to be sly or sneaky. He didn't want to be diplomatic. He wanted to be blunt. He wanted to be honest about everything he said. Most of all he didn't want to end up like his father. And Lupin seemed like just the man to help Draco.

With that in mind he took a deep breath and pushed open the door. There was no use being scared, he'd spent to much of his life being scared. And it wasn't like the Professor would be interested in Draco anyway. The idea was too far fetched to even consider.

/

Remus nearly breathed a sigh of relief when Draco opened the door and stepped into the class. It was almost 6:10 and he'd thought for sure Draco wasn't going to show up. It had upset him more than he cared to admit.

From the moment he'd eavesdropped on Draco's conversation with Theo he'd been unbelievably interested in the boy, both as himself and Moony. Both sexually and mentally. Having the boy as his assistant would allow him to have time to decide what he wanted to do about the situation. There was a lot to think about before he even contemplated getting into a relationship with Draco.

First of all he had to think of Draco and what the teenager would need mentally. He knew Draco had been abused and he was assuming the boy had been abused both sexually and mentally. Remus wouldn't ever hold that or the boy's reactions against Draco but he needed to think about what was best for Draco first. Would a relationship with Remus be the best thing for Draco after such a horrendous childhood? Did Remus have what it would take to help Draco? Or would it be better for Draco to find someone a little more...gently natured than Remus? All those questions would have to be answered before Remus took any further steps.

"Well, that should be everyone then." Remus announced walking around his desk, meeting Draco's eyes for a moment as the blonde took a seat. The blonde dipped his head, eyes on his desk and Remus almost smiled. "As you all know you're here to see which one of you will become my personal assistant this year. " He scanned the room as he said this.

Of course Harry, Ron and Hermione had shown up, the three of them sitting in the front row to his right. At that moment Harry and Ron were staring at Draco with confused faces, nearly making Remus frown. As much as he loved Harry and his friends he certainly wasn't going to stand for them pulling anymore pranks on the blonde. Three Ravenclaw sat just behind the trio, all three pairs of eyes focused on Remus very intently. Typical Ravenclaws. On the other side of the room two Hufflepuffs sat in the front, seated several seat apart and looked defeated as they cast glances at Harry. Another four Ravenclaw sat in the back row eyes just as intent as the other Ravenclaw. Draco was the only Slytherin present, seated at the end of the front row to his left, face down and eyes intently on his desk. Remus was sure most thought Harry would no doubt be his assistant this year.

Remus took this all in with a glance before he continued. "Before we get started I'd like to make sure everyone knows exactly how much of your time this is going to be taking up. This will be a very time consuming commitment. I'm going to need you every day except Saturday, two hours each day. From 4pm to 6pm on weekdays and from 9am to 11am on Sundays. That's 12 hours every week you would be spending here in my class on top of the class you take with me already." His eyes scanned the classroom again. "Would any of you like to leave before we begin the testing? I understand some of you can't make quite that kind of time commitment."

Three Ravenclaw at the back left, frowns on their faces. The two Hufflepuff were quick to follow. Remus waited another moment, just to make sure everyone had thought about the time this position was going to require. Just as he was going to speak Ron stood as well, patting Harry on the back and wishing him luck before he too left. Remus got a slight wave as the redhead left the classroom.

"Is that everyone then? Good, than we can get to the hard part." He grinned at the much smaller group as he picked up a stack of papers from his desk. "We're going to be doing a written test. The test should take you about forty five minutes." He began to hand out the tests as he continued to explain. "You may begin as soon as you have your test. Whoever gets the highest score will be my new personal assistant. Do your absolute best. Once you're finished you may place your test on my desk and head off to dinner. I will announce my new assistant at breakfast."

Hermione frowned, raising her hand, just as Remus had expected her too. "What about the practical part of the position, Professor? Surely your assistant will need to be able to duel properly?"

Remus smiled as he set a paper down on Hermione's desk. "I will be basing your dueling experience on your NEWT scores, that way we don't have to spend more time on choosing my assistant than we need to."

When he finally got to Draco's desk, Remus felt a spark jolt through him as the blonde looked up, meeting Remus' eyes squarely. He knew Moony was peering out of his eyes as he looked down at the blonde, his eyes flashing copper. For once he could see every emotion Draco was trying to hide, the fear, the anticipation, the excitement and most importantly the speculation as the boy peered up at Remus with his clear blue eyes.

In that very moment Remus made his decision. There was no way in hell he was going to let Draco get away from him. He wasn't going to pass up the opportunity to begin something with the boy even if it was only a temporary fling. Moony growled at the very idea of temporary but Remus ignored him. He was going to take whatever the beautiful blonde gave him.

"Good luck." Remus whispered to the blonde, a small smile curling his lips. He knew Draco heard him when the boy's eyes widened a fraction before lowering again to the desk, a lovely pale pink blush flushing his pale cheeks.

Inwardly delighted by the boy's reaction Remus continued to pass out the tests, Moony grinning widely in the back of his mind. As he went Remus began to think of ways to let the boy know he was very much interested. Because if Remus was one thing he was certainly interested.

Draco struggled to breath as Professor Lupin handed out the rest of the test papers, knowing he was blushing and absolutely hating the sensation. He'd never blushed before in his entire life and he certainly didn't want to start now. With supreme effort he fought back the heat in his cheeks and instead tried to focus on the paper in front of him.

After the first few questions Draco's thoughts drifted as he absently began to fill out the answers. Drifted right to Professor Lupin, who sat placidly at his desk, copper eyes drifting over the class. Draco frowned, not sure what to think about the Professor at all. One moment he was absolutely positive he saw interest in the man's gold eyes, and then the next Lupin's eyes were a placid chocolate brown again, giving away nothing.

Glancing up he caught the Professor's eyes for a split second and then looked down, struggling to fight the blush he could feel fighting to come back. Clenching his teeth Draco forced himself stubbornly to focus on the test. He should know better than to think Professor Lupin was interested, the very idea was preposterous. With that in mind he used his unique ability to compartmentalize his thoughts and turned his full attention to the test. He could think on Professor Lupin after he finished the test.

Remus studied the students as they all concentrated on the test, eyes passing over each student in turn before finally settling on the only blonde in the room. Draco was writing quickly, with absolutely no hesitation as he went through the test questions, just as Remus knew he would. After hearing Severus' revelation about Draco's intelligence he'd thought it over and wondered how he hadn't seen it sooner. Draco was intelligent in nearly every aspect of what he did, something Remus could see now that he thought back on Draco's history. So of course the boy would fly through this test, even if it was designed to be especially difficult.

After a while he found himself watching Draco's hands, an odd thing to notice surely but Remus hadn't ever noticed just how elegant the boys hands were. Draco had long slender fingers with a relatively small palm, pianist fingers Remus had heard them called. He held his quill very precisely, with only the very tip of his fingers and his quill strokes were light and quick. Moony purred in the back of his mind, sending Remus an image of those fingers touching him and Remus tried to focus on something else as he stifled a groan.

Eyes making another circuit of the room, he studied Hermione and Harry for a moment. Harry was biting the tip of his quill, a frown pulling at his brows as he stared at his paper, never a good sign. Hermione was answering the questions almost as quickly as Draco, only stopping every few moments to double think an answer. Despite how much he loved spending time with James' son and his friends Remus almost hoped neither were doing well. He wanted Draco to be his assistant very, very much.

With that his eyes went right back to Draco, this time focusing on the boy's intent face. The blonde had a delicate face for a boy, his features just as aristocratic as Lucius' but not nearly as masculine. Although had never really though Lucius was attractive, he found that Draco was beyond attractive. Currently the boy's face was set in a slight frown, sky blue eyes moving rapidly over the test paper. His full bottom lip was pulled between his teeth as his white teeth nibbled at it thoughtfully. He looked absolutely focused on what he was doing, not a single distracting thought entering his mind. Remus wondered what other things he did with such intent concentration.

With an exasperated shake of his head Remus made himself pull a book he was currently reading off of his desk. Even as tempting as Draco was Remus didn't want to become aroused in class again. As it was the last erection had taken a long session in the shower to go away. Moony moaned in disagreement but Remus ignored him with long practice, trying to focus solely on his book.

/oooooooooooooooooooooooooo/

Draco sighed when he was finally down, sitting back and flexing his fingers to ease the cramps in them. A slight smile curled his lips when he realized he was the first one done and it wasn't even seven yet. Which meant once he turned his test in he would have plenty of time to head to his dorm and meet up with Theo before they went to dinner.

With that in mind he stood, making his way over to Remus' desk with his test in one hand. He set it on the end of the desk and looked up, finding Remus' eyes on him. Draco nodded at his teacher with a slight smile. "All finished, Professor Lupin." He could feel several eyes turn to him as he announced this but didn't turn to see who was watching him.

"Hmm, finished in not even 30 minutes, Mr. Malfoy, impressive." Professor Lupin murmured in return, reaching out to take the test. His chocolate eyes flashed copper as he watched Draco's face. "In that case you may head off to dinner then."

Draco stared at the Professor's smiling lips for a split second, eyes glued to that mouth before he smiled a little nervously in return and turned to grab his things and go find Theo. He couldn't believe he'd just been staring at Lupin's mouth, it was absolutely ridiculous. As he hurried to grab his things Draco absently noticed Granger's eyes on him and flashed the girl a sarcastic smile, which made her flush and turn her eyes back to her test.

He felt almost instant relief as soon as he closed the classroom door behind him, glad to be out from under Lupin's eyes. The man made him feel so much when he was near him that it was almost unbelievable. How the hell could a few words make him blush? The Draco Malfoy who was known more or less as an Ice King? The idea was almost absurd. As he thought he absently began the journey to the Slytherin common room.

Beneath Lupin's placid exterior there was an intensity that Draco could practically feel. It was right there beneath the surface, so close that Draco had seen it flash in Lupin's eyes several times already. Did no one else see it? Was Draco the only one? Was it the Wolf in Lupin that Draco saw? The questions would likely never really have answers but all the same they circled Draco's mind.

There was one thing he did know without any doubt whatsoever and that was the fact that he wanted the intensity behind those copper eyes. Lupin had already brought more emotion to the surface in Draco than anyone ever had in the blonde's entire life, and he craved more. Draco could see himself easily becoming addicted to the extreme heat Lupin brought out in him. It was something Draco had never felt before and something he'd always craved. He'd seen people with that very intensity in their eyes before, between couples, and he'd always been so jealous of them. Draco had always wanted something like that but had kept the desire under lock and key his entire life. It was there in Lupin, he'd seen it himself.

But the real question was what was Draco going to do about it? He didn't even know if Lupin was attracted to him, or even if the Professor would even be willing to enter into a relationship with a student. Sure Draco was of legal age and it wasn't against the rules as long as Draco was of legal age but would Lupin want to cross that line? Not only that but Draco was almost positive the man had a son, with Nymphadora if Draco remembered correctly. Would Lupin even want Draco, an ex Deatheater, around his child?

By the time Draco got to the common room a fierce frown was twisting his lips and he very much wished he'd never taken the test in the first place. Professor Lupin was so far out of Draco's league that it was crazy that he had even thought he had a chance. There were so many complications, so many things to think about and why would Lupin want Draco when he had a son and probably had a girlfriend stashed somewhere?

A pounding headache was beginning behind his eyes but Draco ignored it, forcing himself to smile at Theo and banish thoughts of Professor Lupin. It would be best not to think on the situation. So Draco allowed Theo to distract him as they headed towards the great hall to join their new Hufflepuff friends, the brunette's chatter very much welcome.