the boy who had no choice [d.m]

𝖋𝖔𝖗𝖙𝖞 𝖊𝖎𝖌𝖍𝖙

"Well, he said he could help," Amelia said, giving Elara the biggest puppy dog eyes. "Don't be angry! I have a Charms exam tomorrow and I don't know how I'm going to remember the proper pronunciation for Wingardiosa Leviosum!"

"Wingardium Leviosa," Draco corrected, stifling a smile, slender fingers tapping on his bicep.

"See?" Amelia wailed and Elara shot him a look, sinking into the chair on the right side of the table, Draco at the head and Amelia at the tail, and taking her younger sister's hand.

"I can get Hermione to help you with that," Elara held back a smile herself, remembering the way the Gryffindor witch had scolded Ron in the first year class. "She does do pronunciations wonderfully."

"Except she's got her head too far up her -" Draco halted when Elara narrowed her eyes at him.

"Didn't you have a crush on her?" she said, coolly, raising an eyebrow.

"No way!" Amelia squealed, clamping a hand over her mouth. "Malfoy likes - 'Mione?"

Draco glared at Elara as she smirked back at him, waiting expectantly. "Liked. Past tense."

"I knew he liked someone!" Amelia gasped, flailing her hands. "I knew it. He keeps daydreaming and I even told him that -"

"I do not daydream."

"Yes, you do," the young girl replied, stubbornly. "I told him that he should go ask her out on a - date. But I didn't know it was Hermione!"

Elara stifled a giggle at Draco's mortified expression, traced the letters of the engraved title on the Astronomy book she'd picked up. "But I thought you said relationships were - yucky."

Amelia huffed. "I said boys were yucky. But Malfoy likes a girl - you know, Hermione - and girls are great."

Draco groaned, dropped his face into his hands. "I don't like -"

"I think it's her eyes," Amelia barged on, as if Draco had never even spoken. "They're such a pretty brown, you know."

"Maybe it's her hair," Elara added, helpfully, smiling slyly as Draco lifted his head to glare at her. She realised with a start that his eyes were ringed with dark circles, his skin pallid.

Her smile faded. Had he looked this tired when they'd made out in the broom closet two days ago?

"It's probably her intelligence," Amelia babbled on, giggling, picking up her quill again.

"It's none of the above," Draco drawled, sitting back in his chair and draping his arm over the back of it. "I do not have a crush on Granger - even the thought is repulsive."

"That's rude -" Amelia gasped, offended, reaching over to pinch his hand that was resting on the table.

He waved her away with a scowl but Amelia was unperturbed, sinking back into her seat and continuing to spout words.

"Well, if it's not 'Mione, then who is it?" she goaded, her lower lip jutting out. "Don't tell me - oh, blimey! I haven't even introduced you two, have I?"

Draco met Elara's eyes, the corner of his lips turning up. "No, I don't think you have, Amelia."

"This is Elara, my sister," Amelia said, proudly, gesturing towards her. "But I call her Ellie for short. She's my third eldest sibling - then there's Freya and Isaac -"

She halted, blinking. "But that's useless. Elara, this is Malfoy - I don't know his first name - and he's a Slytherin but don't hate him, alright? He's actually very good at teaching even though he snaps at me when I mix up my numbers in Arithmancy."