𝐔𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐥 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐁𝐮𝐫𝐧 𝐎𝐮𝐭 {𝐃𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐨 𝐌𝐚𝐥𝐟𝐨𝐲}

| 𝐂𝐈𝐑𝐂𝐄 | 𝘢 𝘴𝘢𝘧𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘯

"Lorcan?"

Lorcan looked up brightly, delighted to finally be granted permission to speak. "That, my dearest, wonderful, darling Angel, was wandless magic! I can't believe you actually did it!" he blabbered. "I mean, of course, they don't use wands in other parts of the world, and we don't really need them, but-"

"Wandless magic?" I interrupted. "That wasn't just casting Lumos or a Levitation Charm, she sent him flying halfway across the bloody house before, quite literally, in-cin-erating him!"

Lorcan tossed the cloth over the side of the bucket. "And we're angry about that... why, exactly?"

"I'm not angry, but how exactly did you do that? I mean- I mean, we're barely twenty-five, for fuck's sake!"

"Plenty of people have done wandless magic," he contended, as-a-matter-of-factly. "Old Dumblykins did it all the time, Merlin rest his soul. Harry Potter and Hermione could probably do it if they tried. Hell, even you and I could, if we practiced hard enough. And in case you've forgotten, Jelly and her baby here are basically the Second Coming."

I blinked rapidly at him in disbelief. It was truly astonishing that no one else seemed the least bit concerned that our best friend had just cremated someone with her bare hands. And I wasn't even going to acknowledge that ridiculous nickname he had just come up with. "Right. Okay. I guess that's all peachy keen, then! Also did no one hear what Lucius said just before he became barbecue? 'Codrus, do us proud'? Are we going to talk about that?"

"Looks like Ferret Boy's got himself an illegitimate brother," shrugged Lorcan.

"How can you be so calm?" I squawked frantically. "You're all acting as if we didn't just almost die back there! And that- that Codrus! He's an absolute lunatic! He's going to come back for you, you know?" I stuck a finger at Angel accusatorially.

Before she could respond, Susan's head popped around the corner. "Must you be so bloody loud?" she whisper-scolded. "We have a half-dead person trying to rest back here! Anyway, dinner's ready."

⋇⋆✦⋆⋇

We sat at the table, stone-faced and staring at our plates. Susan had prepared quite the spread - warm bread, fresh fruits, and a bowl of stew each. Lorcan ate heartily. Susan stirred her spoon around listlessly, making a fifteenth circle. I was quietly counting them in my mind.

Angel had not even put her hands on the table. "Will Draco be alright?" she asked in a small voice. Susan stopped stirring. "Of course, love! He'll wake up soon. He just needs some rest." Then, sensing what Angel was about to ask next, added gently- "I think it's best if we don't disturb him for now."

Although crestfallen, Angel picked up her spoon and began to eat. At this, a great, secret weight lifted from my body, leaving space for my hunger to flood back in. I was suddenly ravenous. I reached for the bread. Cut off a sizeable hunk of meat. Inhaled my soup. Susan followed my cue, and we polished off everything in twenty minutes flat.

"Good with animals, putting back broken bones, and a whiz in the kitchen? Where do I subscribe to a lifetime membership?" Lorcan patted his stomach and winked at Susan, who turned a deep beetroot. I rolled my eyes.

After dinner, we settled at the hearth, preferring the carpet over the couch. The tent was closed, but the rain made the air inside cold and damp. The crackling of the flames made me think of Lucius' simmering flesh, and it seemed to have that effect on the others as well. We were all quiet, each waiting for the other to speak first. It was Lorcan who eventually shattered the glass veil.