Broken: a Draco Malfoy Love Story

Chapter 21 - Queen of Hearts

Alexia had to find someone to go to Hogsmeade with, otherwise it would be showing Eva that she had won. Cormac McLaggen was good enough, so Alexia set off to find the Gryffindor.
She wandered all over the school in search of Cormac. As she walked she realized how stupid she was deciding to take a Gryffindor; it would be yet again another thing gossiped about. But she also thought that maybe people would see that she wasn't just a cruel failure, maybe they would see some good in her.
"Cormac?" she called, spotting him as she rounded a corner on the sixth-floor corridor.
He turned and grinned surprisingly at Alexia, "Hey Alexia!"
Alexia smiled back at him and shuffled closer, "Hey," she said casually.
"I'm hoping you're here about the Valentine's Day thing?" Cormac said.
"I am, and I'm wondering if you want to take me to Hogsmeade." Alexia told him, trying to sound confident.
"Yeah, you bet I do!" he exclaimed, doing a little fist pump to himself.
Alexia pretended to laugh at his immature and slightly stupid gesture, "Great!" she said, "I know people might think it's weird, I mean, you and I are from houses that are complete rivals, so maybe we should keep it a little more quiet for now."
Cormac nodded, "I agree, I'm sure my fellow Gryffindors will pay me out for it too, but hey, I'm Cormac McLaggen and you're Alexia Burke, whatever they think doesn't matter."
"Exactly," Alexia said, cringing at the haughtiness she could hear in his tone.
"You know," he began dramatically, "I was seriously considering taking my name off your list! I thought I would never be asked being a Gryffindor but then I found out what went down between you and Malfoy," he blabbered, "He seems pretty proud about it, so now its time I showed him he's not the only one who can get you."
Alexia chuckled, "Oh what happened between Draco and I isn't true you know?"
"What!" Cormac said suddenly, "You mean he was lying?"
"Yeah- wait... he?"
"Yeah... Malfoy, who else?"
"What?" Alexia said.
"He was going on about it at lunch," Cormac told her.
"The little git!" she said angrily.
"Wait, so is it true?" Cormac asked, completely confused.
"Sorry Cormac, I'll talk to you after dinner tonight. I need to go." Alexia quickly muttered, then bolted off, this time to find Draco.

She stormed down the many staircases and marched through the hallways.
"Hey sweetheart," Sullivan Fawley said suggestively as she walked past.
"Hi Sullivan," she replied automatically, not even stopping or looking up at him.

When Alexia found Draco, she was even more angry than she was with Eva. 
"You didn't even bother asking me what I wanted!" Draco had said.
"Well I didn't realise what you wanted was to spread it around the school!" Alexia furiously said back.
"I didn't want that Alexia, but you were so ignorant of me, it was fair!" 
"It was not fair! It was completely selfish!" 
"Selfish? What I did was selfish? What about you?"
They went on and on until Alexia could not go on any more. She stormed off in a huff and had an even larger feeling of resentment towards Draco than before. 

•••

On Saturday morning, it was cold and frosty. Before going for breakfast, she headed to the Owlery to send a letter regarding a dress order she needed for Valentine's Day. The circular stone room was freezing as the glassless windows which allowed the owls to come and go freely, also let the overnight snow and morning wind blow through.
Like always she was extra careful in her designer boots not to step in the owl droppings which littered the straw covered floor. Although the snow was easing as winter started coming closer to an end, some of the higher landings where the owls nestled had a thin layer of ice on them.
Alexia's eagle owl, Athena, had seen Alexia enter the Owlery and flew down from a higher perch to a lower one closer to Alexia. Alexia stroked Athena's beautful coloured feathers, admiring the unique dark splotches and freckles on her tawny-buff body. She attached the letter to her owl's claws, then stood back to let her fly. Athena's vivid orange eyes twinkled in the early morning light, she shook her feathers briskly, then flew off out through the open window and out into the air. Alexia watched the owl vanish into the distance and once she could no longer see the shrinking figure, she turned to leave and go back to the main part of the castle.