𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐑 𝐘𝐎𝐔𝐑𝐒 - 𝐝𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐨 𝐦𝐚𝐥𝐟𝐨𝐲 (𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝟏)

9 - Herbology Partners

1 day until the Yule Ball, Christmas Eve

The grounds were entirely decorated for the holidays. I'd spent the week with mostly Draco, we sat next to each other in nearly every class now. We entered Herbology together, sitting down in our now normal seats, hand in hand. "Today we will be researching a plant of your choice," Professor Sprout exclaimed. "You may choose off the following list," she handed out a small piece of paper to each table. The list read:

Asphodel
Devil's Snare
Dittany
Fluxweed
Gillyweed
Moonseed
Niffler's Fancy
Puffapod
Star Grass
Water Lily
Wormwood

I read down the list, slowly. "Today you will be working in partners," she stated. Draco and I smirked at each other. "I, will be choosing," She looked at us quite specifically. Draco's smile faded, I looked down at my desk. "Draco, you'll be with Lavender Brown," she pointed to the other side of the classroom. "Bloody ridiculous," Draco sneered under his breath, slowly trudging towards the empty seat next to Lavender. "Caroline, you're with Terry," she pointed. Terry winked at me; he had asked me out to the ball. I said no. Unfortunately Draco saw, his hand tightening into a fist. I slowly sat down next to him, feeling quite uncomfortable.

Professor Sprout separated everyone else into partners. Hermione got lucky and was partnered with Ron. "Let's do Moonseed," I said quickly, pointing to the list, hoping to get this over with as soon as possible. Terry scooted closer to me. "Sure," a smirk crept onto his face. He looked me up and down. I looked to the back of the classroom. Draco was practically boiling in anger. "I'll write the notes, you research and underline what I should write," I put quite simply. Terry opened his book and began annotating.

I wrote a few notes on what I already knew about Moonseed. My father had told me about its use in poisonous potions.

Green stem and leaves.

all parts of plant are poisonous.

Most common in North America.

Shaped like a crescent moon.

Main Ingredient in Moonseed Potion.

I noted. Terry moved closer to me. My face scrunched up in disgust. "You wanna write this part down?" he whispered into my ear, putting his arm around my shoulder. I looked back to see Draco swiftly stand, his eyes flaring with anger. Before Draco could make his move, I took hold of his arm, twisting it backwards, throwing it back to his side. "Don't, touch me," I sneered quietly, pushing him back into his seat. Draco simmered down, sitting back into his seat. I could see a small smirk on his face.

DRACO'S POV

I watched as Terry moved closer to Caroline, making her clearly uncomfortable. I tried to contain my anger, until he wrapped his arm around her shoulders. How dare he touch her. I'm going to kill him. My hands turned to fists, my nails digging into the palms of my hands. I imagined my metal rings slamming into the bridge of his nose, his face bloody. Caroline was mine. Before I could take action, she grabbed his arm, twisting it clockwise.

My eyebrows rose out of shock. She slammed his hand back to his side, as he whimpered in pain. "Don't touch me," she sneered towards him. I sat back down, some of my anger releasing. Watching her defend herself was attractive. I wondered how she wasn't in Slytherin; she definitely had the right attitude.

The class ended, and I quickly grabbed my bag, waiting outside the door for Terry. Caroline walked out first. "Hey, you okay?" I cupped her face, worried. "I'm fine," she said through gritted teeth. I could see anger still blazing in her eyes. He swiftly walked out of the classroom, his friends clearly amused at what he had done during class. His laughter boiled my blood. I swiftly walked up to him, firmly grabbing his wrist, tightening my grip.

"Touch her again, I'll bloody kill you," I whispered aggressively into his ear. I released his arm, walking back towards Caroline. I grabbed her by the hand, and we ran straight to an empty classroom. "What are you doing, Draco?" She asked, confused. I pulled the door shut and closed the blinds.

CAROLINE'S POV

"What are you doing?" I repeated myself. He pushed me up against the wall. "Nobody gets to touch you except me," he whispered into my ear, his cologne intoxicating every breath I took. He kissed me passionately on my lips, gently choking my neck. He moved his hands against my waist, pulling my me closer to him. He kissed my neck, finding my sweet spot quickly. I let out a soft moan, my hands running through his soft hair. His kisses got lighter, and less aggressive.

"Feel better?" I asked quietly, looking into his eyes. The anger I'd seen in them had softened back into icy gray. "Yeah, I'm sorry I got jealous," he whispered, looking back down at the ground. "No need to apologize," I gave him one final, soft kiss. He cusped the side of my face. "I was scared he was gonna hurt you," his voice filled with worry. "well, as you saw, I've got quite the defensive skills," he smiled at my words. "I've got to go prepare for tomorrow, I'll meet you at the bottom of the stairs at the entrance to the ball," I gave him a small peck on the cheek. "See you," I smiled, covering the mark on my neck with my hair. "See you," he smiled back.

****

That night, I prepared Draco's Christmas present. I placed it inside of the small black box, I wrote out a note, and placed it inside, wrapping the present in satin green wrapping paper. I gently sat mine next to the other ring on my night stand. I hope he'll like it.

I went down to the common room to find Harry sitting on the couch in front of the fireplace. "Hey Harry, could I borrow your invisibility cloak for something quickly? I've got to deliver Draco's present," I asked politely, hoping for a yes. "Go ahead, just bring it back when you're done," he nodded, handing me the cloak. "Thank you," I slipped it over myself, walking out the door and into the dimly lit grand staircase. I walked all the way to the Slytherin common room, slowly sneaking through the door. A few students sat in couches around a large, green fireplace. I hid Draco's gift behind the other presents, being careful not to make any noise. I slipped out as quietly as I slipped in, a big smile on my face. I returned to my dormitory, giving the cloak back to Harry. "Successful?" he questioned. "Very. Happy Christmas Harry," I smiled, walking back up to my room.

"Happy Christmas."