Drarry - The Boggart

FORTY

(The official song for this chapter is Screen by Twenty One Pilots. ((you can find it on Spotify, YouTube or iTunes, so yeah, no excuses.)) I'll tell you guys when to start playing the music - if you choose to do so - with a little purple heart 💜! Enjoy!)

He started walking nervously through the empty castle. Blaise and Pansy trailed behind him, but otherwise the hallways were void of any students. Technically it was class time, the first of afternoon classes, but even when Draco glanced into classes, the only occupants were confused teachers. He was excited and a little uneasy about whatever Harry had done.

Draco was afraid it'd be too big, draw too much attention to him.

A year ago, attention was all Draco wanted. His whole life that'd been all he wanted from everyone but his parents. Attention and respect. But ever since that boggart... he tried not to think about it too much. Sometimes he and Harry would talk about that day, if Draco ever brought it up. Harry was a good listener. He never expected Draco to continue with a sentence he'd trailed off on and he knew when to fill silences and when to let them be there and just be full of silence.

Ever since then, Draco didn't want attention from anyone at school. Except for Harry, obviously. And he was ok with Blaise and Pansy paying him attention. Anyone else was a nuisance.

"Draco, this feels like some sort of trap. Are you sure you trust him?" Pansy asked nervously, looking around every corner as if she were waiting for the missing students to pop out at her.

"No, Pansy, I have no trust in him at all. I love him with all my heart but I don't trust him one bit. That makes complete and total sense" His voice rang with light-hearted sarcasm. He could feel Pansy rolling her eyes. "Don't be paranoid, I know him better than you. He's not leading me into a trap, its a birthday present." Draco confidently followed the map in his mind of where Harry had said to go. He trusted this a little more after he'd said that to Pansy. After all, it was all true.

Blaise scoffed. "One time my father led me into a trap for my birthday. Fourteenth. It had been to 'test my strengths as a wizard'. My cousins had quite a laugh at that one."

"I remember this story! Is this the birthday that you were stuck in that hole where a jinx had been cast over it so that only one spell worked and it was the only one you could use to get out. So then you just when along casting every helpful spell you knew until you reached the one that would work." Pansy laughed, Draco joined her when he remembered Blaise recounting the event to them for the first time.

"Don't remind me. I got dirt all over my suit, and it took months to get all that out of my hair too." He grimaced just thinking of it. This only made Pansy laugh more at him, of course.

"We're almost to the exit towards the greenhouse." Draco stated, hinting that he didn't care about their story and just wanted to get to get to Harry.

"No we're not, we're just entering the quad." Blaise pointed out. Pansy nudged him.

"He wants us to shut up." She scolded.

"Well when it comes to Harry does't he always want us to shut up?" Blaise asked

"You know what Blaise, you are absolutely correct about that one!" Draco responded in a mock-cheery voice. He heard his friends laugh at his irritation with them but all he wanted to do was get to Harry.

"Wait whats this?" Blaise asked, stopping and putting his hand out to stop Pansy. Draco turned around swiftly. "You know, I don't have time for your games Blaise, I would like to see my boyfriend already." He complained.

"No, look, theres a paper." Pansy stepped forward and picked a white square of paper up off the ground. Draco's hand darted to the pocket inside his cloak, where Harrys note and quill stayed.