Screams Into Dreams // d.m.

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  "Seriously." I sighed and laid beside him. "You look like you were enjoying yourself at the ball the other day."

  "You know I don't care about stuff like that."

  "But you know what father actually does now, do you?"

  Eli did not even hesitate when he answered, "Yes, but you don't need to know about that."

  "Does it have to do with Harry Potter being at Hogwarts? The other students are talking about it." His whole body stiffened again. Eli definitely knew something and Maeve was determined to find out about it eventually.

  Instead he started to tickle her sides and he pinched slightly that it made her guffaw in laughter. The shrieks of plea rang through the air. Maeve was the definition of ticklish and Eli used it to his advantage.

  "Promise me you won't meddle with adult business, Maeve."

  "Alright! I won't! Stop!"

  Kane Whitlock was her saviour as the door to her room slammed opened. The shrills of happiness ceased and both children sat on the bed immediately. He was in his usual long sleeve shirt and a pair of jogging pants. This was the father she knew, not the one in stuffy suits sucking up to others. A man that was strong and somewhat cold, but she knew he loved her regardless. His head nearly hit the door frame above him when he stood straight. His presence made her room look smaller than it already was.

  "Supper's ready in 5 minutes." His tone is always so precise and he always has the last word before he leaves.

  A comfortable silence blanketed the room. Maeve's eyes wander to her shimmering royal blue dress that she wore to the Malfoy Ball a few weeks ago. It still hung by the cabinet, haunting her daily. It reminded her of her soon to be greatest enemy. Her biggest nuisance. A part of her was worried that school was going to be a disaster, with her being in the same house as Draco Malfoy but she decided she would never back down from a challenge.

  If Draco Malfoy was going to be a bully then so be it. She would bully him right back. Then she will make sure to kick his ass in quidditch tryouts next year.

  "Maeve..." Eli interrupted her thoughts. "Promise me you will be careful around Malfoy."

  It was the last thing she expected to come out of his mouth. "I'm not even friends with him, Eli. In case you forgot I stupefied him flying to a pool."

  "I have to admit that was pretty wicked." He snickered. "But be careful around your Slytherin friends. Especially Malfoy."

  "I have you don't I? You'll be there for me."

  He smiled at her sadly and Maeve wanted to ask him why. She never feared going to Hogwarts. Years before it seemed to drag by, listening to Eli's stories of magic and adventure. But now all the spark in his eyes dulled. There was not even a twinkle in his eyes, even if he talked about quidditch.

  "I hope I can always be there for you, Mae." Eli winked and walked out the door.

------

  Draco knew he was not supposed to eavesdrop on his father's meetings but this time it was not his fault. He was having dinner with his mother on the dining table, near his father's office. The door was left ajar by the guests so their voices can't help but be heard.

  Will he be of any help, Lucius? Have you lost your goddamn mind? His uncle Pius' voice no doubt. Hoarse and chalky all because of his years on the pipe. It took him sometime to figure out who they were talking about but eventually it was pretty clear.

  Do you want us to rule over the muggle world? We need someone with knowledge of their existence. The world muggle was thrown out there like a disease. A hindrance to society his father said often. Draco was always taught how superior wizards were, especially purebloods. How his father took pride in the name he preserved for a long time.

  Draco believed every word. As he stabbed his fork into a cubed juicy steak, he savoured it's umami flavour on his tongue. He deserved the best. Purebloods deserved nothing but pure gold.

  He's a filthy traitor! He mingled with those mudbloods! I can't stand being in the same room as him and his pitiful family! You know they are just using you for their finances? This time it was uncle Pius' wife, Greta.

  Let them. I have more than enough galleons to spare. He does not even know what we are working for here. We take what we need from him and then we kill him and--

  Draco did not realise he was looking at the door intently until his mother closed it softly, permanently muting their words. His mother stood there with a hand on her hip, looking at his son cautiously.

  "Now you know better, dear, than to listen in on your father's meetings." Narcissa Malfoy told him.

  "Why is uncle Pius so against having the Whitlocks work with us?" Draco asked innocently. He knew the answer, he just wanted a confirmation.

  "This is not your concern." She walked over and gave him a kiss on the forehead, before sitting right next to him. She filled his plate with more roast potatoes and some steamed asparagus.

  "But I have to agree, the Whitlocks are quite pathetic to look at." His smug little face nodded as he chewed. He remembered the way the whole family looked. Their second hand dresses from a garage sale in Hogsmeade and the fake jewellery around their daughter's neck. He remembered it's dull shine just before he hit the water.

  "Draco!" His mother slammed her fork on her plate, "I did not raise you to talk like that!"

  He simply shrugged, pretending to cut his already small steak, "It's true mother. Father said so to himself."

  "No matter what your father tells you, I taught you better than that." Her mother pinched his ear, earning a startled shriek. "Besides, don't tell me you don't have a thing for Maeve."

  This time his spoon clanked onto the table, "I do not!"

  Maeve Whitlock. She was surely going to be the bane of his existence. He did not think much of her before. Just some poor scrawny little girl that somehow managed to get sorted into his house. Her annoying looking face with a hideous point to her nose. Her untamed dark brown hair that can't seem to stay straight, or even in one place. Her hand-me-down robes that were a few sizes too big.

  He didn't think there was a Slytherin quality in her until he fell into that pool. That girl was a cunning minx and he won't let her get away with it.

  "There is a fine line, Draco, between hate, lust and love."

  "What does that even mean?" He rolled his eyes.

  "Just take good care of her. She's a sweet girl. Just a little bit out of place."

  "Yes she is." His mother would never understand. Slytherin house was regal and just. She tainted it in every single way. She caught his eye for sure, for all the bloody wrong reasons.

  His mother hummed as his father walked into the room. His presence has always made the room a little bit stuffier. Draco looked up to him. He wished to be him. To be headstrong, smart and calculative. His hero.

  "One day you'll understand Draco." His mother whispered in his ear. "See if you can be a good friend to her."

  At that moment, he didn't care. He was not going to be his friend, let alone be civil to her. 

  He vowed that he didn't care about Maeve Whitlock one little bit. 

HELLO LOVES I AM BACK!! I know it's been a long time and I hope you are all safe and well. I will try to update more often from now on. Let's hope life starts to be kinder to me. Anyway~ what did you guys think of this chapter? LET ME KNOW! Hugs and Kisses, Genevieve 🌻