Draco's POV
"Draco." I nod to Blaise as I enter the common room, making my way slowly over to where he, Theo and Pansy are sitting.
"You haven't been answering our owls all summer and then you weren't on the train, we've been worried." Pansy spoke softly as she moved to sit beside me. Without thinking I tilted my head towards her and inhaled. The scent of musk surrounded me and I frowned as an empty feeling settled over me.
'Not my mate.'
"Draco?" Theo tried as they all looked at me weirdly.
"I've been ill all summer." I spoke quietly.
"What's wrong with your voice?" Blaise frowned and I cleared my throat self-consciously.
"Nothing."
"It's…. it's like…." Theo frowned trying to come up with a word to describe it.
"Entrancing." Pansy finished. I briefly spared her a sideways look and then paused when I noted the dreamy look on her face.
"Not exactly the word I would use Pans." Theo snorted but then stopped when he too saw her look.
"Pans?" Blaise asked.
"Shit." I swore as I looked down to the floor.
"What the hell Pansy?" Theo tried, snapping his fingers in front of her face causing her to blink rapidly.
"Huh? That was weird." She whispered.
"I'll say. What the hell happened to you?" Blaise asked but I tuned out, looking around the room.
Carefully I let my magic flow outwards, as I sniffed the air. Almost immediately dozens of scents hit me and I felt disorientated and dizzy. I blinked rapidly, desperately trying to draw back my magic. A harsh burn settled in my chest as I held my throbbing head with one hand and rubbed at me temples with the other.
"Draco? Mate are you okay?" I let out a low groan as I let my eyes close, the light suddenly too bright.
"Drake?" I flinched as a small hand touched mine, my pain immediately flaring as I quickly withdrew.
"Don't touch." I growled lowly, my own voice foreign to even my own ears.
I felt rather then saw a small flutter of movement from nearby causing me to raise my head. I watched in horror as every female in the room looked unseeingly in my direction.
I felt my heart rate spike, my blood pounding loudly in my ears as I gripped the arm of my seat. A metallic taste flooded my mouth and I hissed in anger as I felt my fangs lengthen. The pain within me intensified and I let out a whimper as the need to find my mate and Mark her became too much.
"What the fucking hell?" Blaise muttered.
"Blaise." I grunted against the pain.
"Draco you're white." Pansy gasped.
"Get me out of here." I whispered as I finally opened my eyes and looked in their direction.
"Holy shit." Blaise swore.
"Your eyes…" Pansy gasped.
"Their black." Theo finished and I hissed in anger.
"Get me out of here NOW." I growled. Within seconds all three seemed to come to their senses and stepped towards me.
"Pansy…don't touch…just Blaise and…Theo." I grit out as I let my eyes close again, struggling to remain calm and not scream in agony.
"Pansy get the door to Draco's room. Don't worry mate we've got you." Blaise spoke as he grabbed me from one side and Theo the other.
"Put him on the bed." Pansy spoke softly as she closed my portrait door behind us. With a cry of pain I struggled out of their hold and stumbled to the corner of my room, trying to place as much distance as I could between me and the door.
"Draco… are… are you okay?" Pansy asked as she took a step towards me.
"Stay." I hissed as I curled into a ball in the corner. I watched in relief as Theo's hand shot out and pulled her back, putting his body between her and I as they watched on.
I took a deep breath and concentrated on my breathing, trying to calm my inner beast as I fought for control. Slowly but surely my fangs retracted and the pain started to recede.
"I'm okay.' I breathed out after a long stretch of silence.
"What the hell was that?" Theo asked in shock.
"Sit down, I have a lot to tell you all but you have to promise me you won't breathe a word of this to anyone." I spoke quietly.
"You have our promise Draco." Blaise spoke softly as he edged towards my bed while Pansy and Theo stayed standing.
"It started the beginning of summer, I thought it was just a cold. Then it got worse. Snape tried every potion he could think of but none had any effect. My parents didn't know what to do so Snape called in Dumbledore."
"Dumbledore? As in the head master?" I nodded once and looked towards the window.
"It was clear by then it wasn't an 'illness' but Snape didn't want to jump to conclusions, he convinced my parents to bring in the head master. It had been three weeks and my mother was… hysterical by that point. My father was ready to agree to anything."
"What did Dumbledore say was wrong?"
"What Snape had guessed. What do you know about Veelas?" I asked as I turned back to face my friends.
"They're protective creatures. They mate with only one person their entire life, if their mate dies, they too die." Theo spoke confused.
"But if they find their mate and their mate rejects them then they die. They can't live without Marking their mate and vice versa." Blaise finished and I nodded.
"Are… are you a Veela Draco?" Pansy asked carefully and I nodded once.
"Dumbledore and Snape said I was going through my 'transition' period. The Veela in my blood was waking, but I don't remember much after that. By the end of summer I was bed ridden in so much pain, nothing would completely get rid of it. Snape brewed me a potion that helped me stay asleep but when I woke the pain was always there. Then yesterday I woke up and suddenly I was fine again. My body ached and I felt… disorientated but I wasn't in pain."
"So what happened downstairs exactly?" Theo asked as he pulled out my desk chair to sit on.
"It started with Pansy, and I'm still new to this whole thing. To find our mates we expel our magic outwards, feeling out for magic that matches our own. At the same time we 'scent' the air surrounding the person. I tried it with Pansy…" I said feeling guilty as I looked up at her.
"And?" Pansy swallowed.
"You're not my mate Pans." I cracked a smile at her visible relief.
"Oh thank god… I mean…"
"It's okay Pansy. When we do that it sends the female into an enchanted state, they feel drawn to the Veela. Attracted to them I guess you could say." I shrug as I shakily get to my feet, still leaning heavily against the wall.
"And the rest of the females down stairs?" Blaise asked with a smirk.
"That was a mistake, one I won't do again." I muttered darkly.
"What happened Drake?"
"It worked with Pansy, so I thought it would work the same with the rest but there were too many to process at once. I got dizzy and disorientated, the pain started to come back and I started to lose control over my Veela side. It's strong, whereas I'm still weak from my transition. Until I regain my strength, or find my mate whichever comes first, I can lose control easily. Snape and Dumbledore warned me but I didn't realize it would be like that." I shuddered.
"Pain?"
"The pain of not finding my mate, not having a claim to her like I need to. When I've concluded that a female, like Pansy for instance, isn't my mate I can't stand her touch. Sorry Pans nothing personal. It's painful just as it will be if another male touches my mate."
"You'll feel that?"
"I'll feel everything my mate does, even before I know who she is. Right now I can't because I'm weak but when I get stronger I'll be able to. It's another way of finding her and also keeping her safe and protected after she's been Marked. Veelas crave being connected to their mate in all aspects. I'll be able to feel her emotions, her pain, her presence…" I trail off as I look back out the window.
"And her?" Pansy asks.
"It goes both ways but only once she been Marked. She'll feel an attraction, a claim over me that she might not understand before I come out to her and she lets me Mark her. She won't feel any type of pain though, even when another touches me because Veela's protect their mates against that. Sadistic right?" I ask humorlessly.
"So right now all you know is that Pansy's not your mate?" Theo asked for clarification and I nod in agreement.
"And every other girl back down in the common room?" Blaise asks with a smirk.
"I don't know. I don't have the strength right now to scent large groups. Do me a favour would you and remind me of that tomorrow before I walk into the Great Hall." I ask pleadingly.
"We got your back, don't worry Drake." Blaise promised while Theo and Pansy nodded their agreement.
"Thanks."