Lumos (A Draco Malfoy Love Story)

5

As I sat with Harry, Ron, and Hermione, I didn't really feel welcome. They talked and laughed and tried to include me in their conversations, but I made it clear that I wasn't in the mood to speak. I was a little confused with my thoughts at the moment; they were clouded and unintelligible. Ever since I had saw the Dark Mark on Draco's wrist, I hadn't been able to think straight.

"Val?" Ron asked, looking at me. I jumped, and turned around. Today, Ron and I were sitting next to each other while Hermione and Harry were sitting across from us. It seemed that Ron and Hermione were disputing. They couldn't even look at each other without glaring.

"Yes, Ron?" I asked, looking at him. I scratched at my own wrist, a random movement that had come over me. My thoughts got blurry for a second...a Dark Mark, slitted eyes...

"We heard you're a really good Quidditch player," Ron said admirably. I took a millisecond to glance at Hermione's expression. She was boiling. "Harry and I need another person on the Quidditch team. Do you want to join?"

I looked over to Harry. "Got a Seeker?" I asked.

Harry laughed a little. "'Fraid that's taken by me. Anything else you're good at?"

I shrugged, pursing my lips. "I wouldn't mind being a Keeper or a Beater. I have a strong arm and a very strong will on the broom. I could help your team." I leaned a little closer. "But, if I see the Snitch, I'm going to catch, it no matter what position I am."

Harry laughed. "I'll be looking forward to that."

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I looked out the window of the Owlry. I was waiting for my mother's weekly parcel, but it was taking a long time.

I suddenly found myself thinking about the Dark Mark. I traced the bones on my wrist, thinking about having the tattoo myself with sudden fascination, until I heard a voice behind me. "Fancy the view?"

I turned and smiled in relief. Draco.

He walked towards me and smiled before sitting down next to. We played with the shriveled grass on the ground for a while until I spoke up. "Can I see your wrist again?" I asked.

He tried for a smile, but it didn't really work as his sleeves fell from his wrist. I touched it, feeling the snake wrigling under my fingers. I looked for a while until I let my hand drop. "Why...why couldn't you fight against it?" I asked finally, taking a deep breath.

Draco looked mournful. "I couldn't choose it," he muttered. "I was Chosen."

He looked different today. His eyes were dark, and purple bags under his eyes marred his pale complexion. I wondered what he had been thinking about lately, but in a way I already knew.

I looked away and stared out the window, and a black owl swooped in, holding nothing but a small note and what appeared to be a stick.

Madge!

I whistled for her to come to me, and I rubbed her right under her ear. "Draco, this is Madge," I said, feeling much better just by holding her. "She's been my pet since...I don't know. It's been a while." Draco reached out to pet her, and his pale fingers looked white against her midnight fur.

I looked down at her curled-up claws and looked at the not. The "stick" was actually a pen. The note read:

As soon as you get this, write the letter "M" on the back of this note.

You know how to do that. Make sure to remember your childhood, and

how we read together.. Love, You-Know-Who.

Confused, I looked up at Draco. "I don't know who this is from," I said. "It's deifnitely not my mother. Her letters are long and extremely detailed. This is short, and it's asking me to write the letter 'M' on the back of it." I took the sleek pen from Draco's hands and turned the note around. I wrote the "M" like a "W".

When I was younger, I had mistaked an "M" for a "W" while reading. My father had scolded me, but my mother had laughed, as if the entire ordeal had been nothing but amusing to her. She made a point to "mistake" all her M's for W's. Was that what the letter had meant? And why had the person signed the note as, "You-Know-Who"?

I sighed, then motioned for Madge to send the letter back. She flew away, her brilliant, jet black wings spreading to an impossible length before disappearing.

I looked back at Draco, studying him again. I had been warned against doing it to people, but I just couldn't help it. I was curious with about everything.

Draco looked back at me with an equal curiousity. Finally, I turned away and motioned for Draco to hold out his wrist again. He quickly oblidged and I traced it once more. "Have you met Him?" I asked suddenly. He nodded slowly. This vexed me even further. I was starting to really get interested in this.

"Only once. It was torture to be next to him. Honestly, I hated it. He had a weird...kind of demented smile, and it looked like he was gliding and floating rather than walking and standing. He's very...nonchalant, but is also very powerful. You can't help but bow your head towards him."

He took a shaky, small breath. "He was talking to me about...living up to my duties."

"Duties?" I asked.

He nodded. "My aunt, Bellatrix, showed me the killing curse and demanded I perform it on..." He wavered, and I looked at him, seeing his eyes glisten just slightly. "But, I refused, nonetheless," he said, and I knew he wasn't ready to talk about it.

"Duties?" I asked again gently, looking away so he wouldn't get awkward on me. "What do you mean by duties?"

"You know what I mean, Valise," Draco replied breezily, so I looked away, wanting to change the subject. I rubbed my arms absentmindedly before finally looking back at him once more.

"Do you know what 'valise' even means?" I asked suddenly, not knowing what else to say. "It means bag, or carry on."

Draco smiled slowly. "Why would your parents name you that?"

"Maybe the name Valerie was too mainstream and they were looking for some excuse to nickname me, 'Val'." I laughed weakly. "You never know with my parents. They're two crazy people." I smiled at the thought of them, then sighed. "My mother was so upset about the scholarship to Hogwarts. Even when I told her it that it was just going to be the rest of the year, she was just...I don't know, annoyed."

"Annoyed?" Draco asked.

"Upset," I replied, changing my answer. "She was upset. And my dad? He didn't really care. Just kind of said, 'Good job' without anything else. But what else can I do? I couldn't very well say 'no' to Madame Maxime."

"You could've. You just didn't want to defy her."

I glanced at him. Malfoy was smarter than he let on. When he noticed me looking, a light pink blush spread across his cheeks. I smiled slowly.

"You know, you're way better than what I thought you'd be," I said, looking him over. He laughed, his rouge disappearing. "Seriously, though. I thought you were just some British prick who got a good laugh out of hurting people." My words sounded harsh, but I was sure he knew I was joking. "But...that's not it. You're more. In fact, you're better than a lot of people at this school."

He looked at me for a long, hard moment. "And you're the first person to ever say that to me."

"I'm glad."

Maybe it was impulse, or just fate, but I gave him a kiss (just a small one) on the lips. My heart raced as his eyes fluttered open again. He gave me an unsure look.

What was he afraid of?

"Draco?" I asked.

"Yes?" he drawled.

"You okay?"

"I'm fine. Wonderful. Amazing."

I smiled just a little before getting up and helping him to his feet, too. He didn't let go of my hand as we walked out of the Owlry.