BETWEEN REVENGE AND LOVE

46

"Professor!" someone squeals, entering the room unexpectedly. 

"The matter is urgent! I must ask you for Veritas-" 

Umbridge's loud voice sounds through the room like a clatter, making me wince. I get to watch her expression slip out of her control as fright enters her face. She's startled at the sight of us.  

"Oh." Her head tilts in a familiar angle while her eyebrows raise higher and higher transforming her expression into her standard surprised face. "I wasn't aware of students present in your classroom on Saturday noons?"

Her head turns to Snape and mine does to Draco. 

We look at each other, exchanging glances filled with the same kind of confusion, sharing the strangeness of this moment. He sure heard how she was about to mention Veritaserum. Though I hope he didn't, I hope I just misheard that. The thought of Umbridge having access to such things gives me nothing but serious unease. 

Snape wouldn't play into her favour, would he? 

Now all eyes are on him, standing there behind his desk, glowering at Umbridge. 

"Have we not already discussed this?" 

"If it salves your conscience Professor, take it as a request, not a question. An order from the very top if you want it that way." 

Umbridge's voice sounds too sweet for what she's saying. Her threatening undertone is not to be missed. 

Snape's reaction reflects great annoyance that no one could blame him for.

"To disobey me is to disobey the Ministry, Professor, it falls upon your duty to provide me with absolutely necessary resources that I need for my teaching. May we discuss this in private, please? I suggest you dismiss your students now."

As abrasive as Umbridge's viewpoints and manner of enforcing them make me feel, I do like her idea of dismissing us. Bloody detention could be over early. I'd definitely be able to think of at least a hundred better uses for my regained time. 

"Go," Snape commands, hissing, this time following her instructions without further resistance. Without hesitation, I collect my things and stuff them into my bag rather hastily. Umbridge though doesn't even wait for us to leave to start her persuasion anew. 

"If you aren't willing to follow the general rules I will have no other choice than to get Cornelius involved," she murmurs, quietly as if she intends to whisper but somehow also for everyone in the room to hear. 

Such an attention seeker, this woman. Unbelievable. 

Does she want us to witness her begging for Veritaserum that bad?

Veritaserum, about which I am positive of one thing: she assuredly won't be needing it in Defense Against the Dark Arts. 

. . .

"She's strange," I comment, it's the first thing I say after we slip out into the corridor, into us awaiting silence. 

The atmosphere out here feels so different, so much better. The air is cold, freezing even. With its roughly 32°F it sucks through my lungs and cools me from the inside, a much-needed refreshment. 

"Why should we care?" 

"Why? Because." Exhausted I rest my back against the wall, enjoying the coolness of the cold stones against my back. With a little luck, my whole brain will freeze rock-solid ice. I feel that would be nice. No more Umbridge worries, no more worries at all. 

"Because she's obviously not to be trusted? I know Y/n." 

"Not to be trusted, right." 

"I'm always right." Draco smiles. Smug and as usual pretty. Taking a few steps into the corridor he moves away from me.  

"Idiot." Yes, idiot, impudent idiot. I don't think there's another idiot in the whole world that could make me smile as I do now. It's bad, a very specific kind of smile.

No stop-being-so-unbearably-self-absorbed-I-can't-with-your-attitude smile, no. It's more of an I-can't-help-but-find-your-totally-unfunny-antics-funny-and-by-the-way-feel-your-voice-in-the-pit-of-my-stomach-every-time-you're-talking-to-me smile.

And I don't even want to start thinking about the magnitude of how embarrassing that is.  

So I stand there and smile. Smile my silly in-love smile like a brainless pile of wobble.

"It's literally freezing. Let's leave." His eyes dart up and down the corridor before he steps closer to me again. "If you're planning on staying just know I won't be the one thawing you off the wall once you freeze to it." 

"Hmm, fine," I nod in comprehension standing still as he braces his arms left and right next to my head against the wall, "would you still like me if I was frozen to a wall?" 

His answer doesn't come immediately. In silence he's busy brushing hair out of my face that fell into it, tugging a few unruly strands back behind my ear. 

"Who says I like you now?" 

"Take that back," I demand, confidently. 

I don't know what I expected him to answer, probably primarily because the question was more of a rhetorical one. 

"Want me to? Why?" 

The smile his lips shift into is more of a daring smirk and it lets me quite incidentally notice anew that he's so gorgeous it's upsetting.

"Why?! Isn't it obvious?" Now he just wants to embarrass me.

"It is indeed obvious," his smile grows, broader and broader, exposing his teeth. This sight imposes the next transmission pause in my head. Handsome smile, handsome smile, handsome smile, it echoes through the blank space behind my forehead. All that's missing is an alarm siren.

Merlin, I'm sick. Suffering love. And I'm pretty sure it's chronic.

"What's obvious?" I ask, completely thrown out of my concept.

"That you like me Y/n, it's so obvious."

"I don't."

He shakes his head, "now take that back, liar."

"Want me to? Why?"

"I only fall for people who like me back. What would be the point otherwise? I wouldn't make that much of a fool of myself."