Serpent On Fire | DRACO x OC | HERMIONE x OC

Calm and Steady

Io spent most of her nights walking around the castle. Despite the time away with her uncle and sister outside of the castle, the insomnia set in as soon as they set foot on Hogwarts soil. The holidays were a brief respite from everything that happened thus far - learning that Dumbledore knew he was going to die, finding out that Draco was a Death Eater - among all the insignificant things like classes and gossip.

She sat at the very top of the Astronomy Tower, letting her legs dangle off the ledge with ease. The moon was high and bright as she admired the Black Lake and the surrounding forest edge. The air was always fresh here, and the glimmer of light refracting on the water put her mind at ease.

It was well past midnight. After several days of tossing and turning to no avail, Aster gave up trying to help ease her sister's mind, instead electing to leave her alone to deal with it however she could. Io would just wander into new rooms, evading the ghosts under the shield of her Animagus disguise, and stare at the moonlight until sleep finally found her. The Astronomy Tower was her favorite spot.

The air ceased its winter chill, slowly warming up to a cool spring breeze.

The clock struck one, letting her know it was about time to head back to the common room. Hopefully, she'll finally be able to sleep. She started to make her way down the tower. The sound of shifting stones pulled her attention elsewhere.

When she turned the corner to inspect the source of the noise, Draco Malfoy emerged, looking as if he'd just walked out of the wall. He turned to look at her, almost appearing to be caught in the act. He was still wearing his uniform as if he never found the time to change.

Draco approached her slowly.

"I thought I heard something." Her eyes met his.

"I couldn't sleep." He said, emotionless. The circles under his eyes screamed insomnia, but his demeanor said otherwise.

"Neither could I." As Io spoke, she struggled to push away the memory of Dumbledore saying Draco's name. "I haven't been able to since we got back."

"Where were you -"

"- the top of the Astronomy Tower. Just to clear my head."

Draco loosened his tie. "I imagine it'd be quite easy for you to slip out of the common room as a cat."

Io grinned in the slightest, amused that he recalled this detail about her. "Not as easy as it would be for a Prefect. Though I doubt you were up here doing something related to that."

"I heard your sister wrote to Blaise over Christmas."

"They've grown very close." She nodded. "It's nice, he's a good friend to her." Taking a better look at him, Io could now see that he looked far worse than he did before. "Are you okay?"

Draco rolled his shoulders back, purposely ignoring the question.

"You just... You don't look well."

"You're starting to sound just like him. I don't know why my health is suddenly a concern to everyone."

"Would you rather I don't care at all?" Io reached into her pocket and pulled out a caramel, wrapped tightly in gold foil. "It's not food, but I don't think they'll serve dinner this late - not even for a Prefect."

Looking cautiously at the sweet in her hand, Draco accepted it, surprised but now understanding why this was her favorite.

"There you go," she giggled. "I can already see the color in your cheeks."

He didn't mean to do it. But seeing her delight in such a small gesture made him smile. He fiddled with the foil, smoothing it out and folding it over and over again.