Artemis sat at the base of a tree, resting his back and head against its trunk. He closed his eyes, enjoying the peace and quiet of the outdoors. It was a cool evening, and as far as he could tell, he was the only student outside of the castle. He was completely alone, as both Vanessa and Alex stayed up at the castle to work on some of their homework. The solitude was both welcome and not all at the same time. On one hand, he didn't have to deal with Alex's near constant talking; on the other hand, it left him alone with his thoughts, and that was the last thing Artemis wanted to deal with right now.

    Even in the relative quiet, his mind was loud.

    Between jumping back into class and all the drama, he was admittedly exhausted. And they had only been back at Hogwarts for a few days. The assignments were already piling up, and he just wasn't in the right mindset to deal with them. His stress levels were the highest they had been in recent memory, and he hoped just being away from the castle for a few would at least ease his mind temporarily.

    Artemis was, by nature, a patient individual. He had waited for the perfect moment to strike in several of his schemes throughout the years. But this whole thing with Vanessa was proving to be quite the test of his limitations. He wanted to be a good friend- a good person- and let her figure out this relationship with Malfoy so she would be completely comfortable finally being with him. But it was oh so difficult to act as if all was fine and that he wasn't bothered by the fact the girl he loved was off snogging and shagging someone else.

    Truthfully, it was beyond infuriating, beyond painful to know that she was still seeing him. Artemis couldn't think of anyone less deserving of Vanessa than Draco Malfoy. He treated her horribly, belittled her and called her slurs no decent wizard would ever call someone they hated- let alone loved. It was disgusting, to say the least. Just the thought of Malfoy calling her 'half-blood' but then claiming to love her made his blood boil.

    Artemis had played all of his cards right, carefully strategizing his every move. He did everything he was supposed to. And despite Vanessa saying she wanted to be with him and to just give her some time to leave Malfoy, Artemis couldn't help but feel like he was losing. This should've been a straight-forward victory. Yet here he was, failing. So close, yet so far away. Especially since she told him about what happened when the two of them took off the night before.

    Vanessa now knew Artemis hadn't been lying about seeing the Vanishing Cabinet in the Room of Requirement. Malfoy had finally shown it to her, under the guise that Snape had given him extra credit to repair it. Artemis highly doubted that, as Snape never gave out extra credit. Malfoy's story had gaping plot holes, but until he had solid evidence Malfoy was truly up to something nefarious he couldn't exactly disprove anything either. Unless he asked Snape directly, of course, and Merlin knew how that would go. But that wasn't all she told him.

    Malfoy also told her he was going to turn over a new leaf, and sort of apologized for the way he had been acting to her. He promised her things would be "on the up and up," as if there was anywhere else to go from rock bottom. Artemis rolled his eyes. Vanessa doubted things were going to get better- and Artemis knew that they wouldn't- but she insisted on seeing if he proved her wrong. What a joke that was going to be.

    While he felt slightly vindicated, he also felt absolutely gutted and admittedly pissed off. It was a strange mixture of emotions boiling within him. What the hell did Malfoy have to do for Vanessa to finally stop giving him chances to redeem himself? He was the villain in this story, and she was too blinded by lust to see it.

    Crack.

    Artemis' eyes shot open at the sound. He was the only one around- or so he thought- so hearing what seemed to be twigs snapping underfoot caught him a bit off guard. He glanced in the direction the sound emanated from, trying to place the source of it. It didn't take long.

    Walking some paces away, completely oblivious to his surroundings, was Malfoy. He had his hands shoved in his pockets, and was looking down at his feet as he walked briskly away from the castle. Every few paces, the Slytherin glanced over his shoulder, obviously paranoid he was being followed. Artemis raised an eyebrow at the sight. It appeared to be that Malfoy was sneaking off to Hogsmeade, a trip that was forbidden ever since the Katie Bell incident. Sure, they all broke the rule together back before the Christmas party, but surely there couldn't be any good reason for Malfoy to be heading there now alone.

    Artemis debated just letting him go, but only for a brief second. He wanted to- no, needed to- know what Malfoy was up to. Artemis was sure Malfoy hadn't seen him; he was sitting far enough away and in the shadows. Out of sight, out of mind. Artemis was sure if he was careful, he could follow Malfoy and get to the bottom of this once and for all. Once Malfoy was a sufficient distance away, Artemis carefully stood, making as little noise as possible before he pulled his wand from his robe's pocket. As he had done with the Room of Requirement spying, he quickly performed a disillusionment charm before he began following his enemy at a distance, keeping to the shadows of the trees despite the fact he was invisible. He was taking every precaution.

    Artemis had always hated the path to Hogsmeade. It was a bifurcation off the road to Hogwarts, and it led through the Forbidden Forest and some fields in the mountains that surrounded the school before it ended in the village. It wasn't a short walk by any means, so whatever Malfoy was going there for had to be big- otherwise he would be risking punishment for nothing. But no one ever said Malfoy was bright.

    At least on this trek, Malfoy's constant paranoia was providing some entertainment.

    When they finally reached the village, it didn't take long for Malfoy to reveal his destination. The Slytherin boy stepped into The Three Broomsticks, glancing over his shoulder in the process. Artemis thought about following him inside, but wasn't fast enough. The door closed before he could reach it, and he knew that it opening again without someone stepping inside would only raise suspicions. So he took a post at one of the windows, peering inside.

    The pub was uncharacteristically empty, so Artemis had a very clear view of Malfoy speaking to the bartender, Madam Rosmerta. The blonde woman was talking to him about something, but she didn't seem to be quite her normal self. The expression on her face seemed wrong, and not anything like her usual cheery self. If Artemis didn't know any better, she almost seemed hypnotized. While that was strange, it was nothing compared to what he witnessed next.

    Malfoy reached into his pocket, and handed her a small vial. Rosmerta nodded, before turning and grabbing a bottle of mead off the shelf behind her. The woman opened it and then the vial, pouring its contents into the larger bottle before sealing it once again. Malfoy continued to say something to her, Rosmerta nodding along with his words.

    Artemis took a deep breath, willing his racing heart to steady. What had he just witnessed? From his vantage point, it certainly appeared that he had somehow convinced Madam Rosmerta to poison a bottle of mead. Perhaps he had befriended her? Or had he used something more sinister, like the Imperius Curse? But if that is what happened, Artemis had more questions. Such as, why? And who was the recipient of said mead?

    He had been so focused on what he had just witnessed that Artemis nearly missed Draco heading towards the door. In a panic, Artemis pushed himself away from the window and scrambled around the side of the building, his back pressed tightly to the wall. He heard the door to the pub open and shut, and for a moment, Artemis thought he had avoided detection. At least until he heard Malfoy's voice.

    "I should've known it wasn't just Potter following me around all year."

    His heart sank, knowing fully well what was coming. He had been too engrossed in what he was watching to realize the disillusionment charm had worn off. Artemis silently cursed himself as he turned to face Malfoy. There was no playing this off as a friend looking out for the other, not after everything that happened. The last few weeks certainly proved the two of them would never be friends. And now, Artemis knew he could no longer avoid this confrontation.

    "Someone has to be keeping tabs on all the shady shite you've been up to," Artemis replied, unable to hide his smug annoyance as he moved away from the wall. "May as well be me."

    Malfoy huffed, offended. "I'm not doing anything shady."

    Time to set him straight. "Well, for starters, you're off school grounds when it has been banned," Artemis replied nonchalantly.

    "So are you," Malfoy spat. "You can't rat me out without telling on yourself."

    Artemis hated that he had made a good point. Nevertheless, he persisted. "I could truly care less about you leaving school premises," Artemis continued, his voice sounding calmer than he felt. Especially since he was about to drop a bomb on his enemy. "However, I know about the Vanishing Cabinet, and I know about you having Rosmerta poison that mead just now. So give me one good reason to not report you to Dumbledore the second I return to the castle."

    Artemis saw the hesitation in Malfoy's eyes in between his annoyance. "You have no evidence of any of that," he snapped.

    "I don't? I saw the Cabinet with my own eyes, and you showed it to Vanessa. If you thought she wouldn't tell me about it- or anything else, for that matter- I have some bad news for you," Artemis retorted. "As for the mead, I can't necessarily prove it was poison you had her spike it with, but you did have her spike it with something. There isn't any good excuse for that, and surely Rosmerta wouldn't have acted on her own accord."

    "You just think you have it all figured out, don't you?" Malfoy snarled.

    "I may not know everything about what you're trying to accomplish yet, Death Eater," Artemis mused, "but what I do know is that you aren't going to succeed in these endeavors. Not with your little plot. Not with Vanessa."

    Malfoy pulled his wand from his pocket, aiming it directly at Artemis' face. Artemis was calm; this wasn't the first time someone had drawn their wand on him, and surely it wouldn't be the last. It was a power play, a jest; despite the empty pub, there were far too many people walking the streets of Hogsmeade for Malfoy to curse him.

    And even if there weren't possible witnesses, Artemis knew Malfoy was a coward.

    "You say a word of this to anyone, and I will personally kill you," Malfoy threatened. "Between your instigation and shagging my girlfriend, I don't need much more of a reason to kick your arse."

    Artemis smirked. "You have no proof I did that. Vanessa is merely my friend, and you are delusional." It was a lie, and it hurt a bit, but Artemis knew he had to play along with Vanessa's wishes. Deep down, he wanted to blurt everything out and let Malfoy know every dirty detail of his affair with Vanessa. All in due time.

    "I don't need proof; I know you did it," Malfoy persisted, jabbing his wand towards Artemis to emphasize his point. "I've always known you two weren't just friends."

    Artemis couldn't resist rolling his eyes. "I assure you, we are," he replied. "But by all means, continue to be a jealous git."

    Malfoy snarled, moving closer to Artemis. His wand's tip was only a few centimeters from Artemis' nose now, and yet he remained unmoved. "Just shut up," Malfoy continued. "You speak to anyone about any of this, I will make you wish for something as sweet as death."

    Artemis still wasn't feeling even remotely terrified. "Hurt me, and I promise you, you will lose Vanessa."

    That comment seemed to have struck a nerve with Malfoy, as he ever so slowly lowered his wand. He left it pointed at Artemis' chest for a few more seconds before eventually stowing it in his pocket once more. Artemis knew he wasn't going to curse him. At least not right now.

    "This isn't over, Fowl," Malfoy spat.

    Artemis didn't get a chance to reply to him before Malfoy turned on his heel and left Artemis standing there alone in the alleyway. He took a step back, leaning against the wall again as he processed everything that just happened. The plot continued to thicken, and Artemis knew here was no way in hell he wasn't going to say something.

    Both to the Headmaster and Vanessa.

*****

Hi everyone! Sorry for the delay! Work has been keeping me busy this month. I picked up some extra shifts, as we are short-handed like many businesses right now. Once September hits, I will go back to my usual weekends only schedule, so my writing time can be a bit more predictable again. I thank you all for your patience with me. It means a lot to me.

Hope you all are staying safe out there!

~arty_writes