I was shocked. My hand begun shaking slightly while I remained holding the pergamin from him.
Before I had realised it, a tiny tear fell down, soaking the paper a bit. I quickly wiped the rest of them away. My heart stopped. That meant- Draco Malfoy was alive.
My fragile core found new hope. The one that was strong enough to find some will to live. I took a deep breath. The first thing that came to my mind was that, I have to find Harry.
I was walking really fast now. Everything around was blurry, it was just me and the light letter in my hands. I was seconds away from entering the Gryffindor Common room, where I was hoping to find Harry, and luckily, I did.
"Thank God." I exhaled with relief. He looked at me as if I was gone for a month or more. My mouth closed, not knowing were to start from. How do I explain that I've got a letter from 'supposed to be dead' Malfoy?
"What happened? And where have you been?" He asked. I could tell he was very tired, quite exhausted I'd say. He has a lot of work around now and I can see the guilt permanently attached to his back. He blames himself for all of that.. I need to give him more time of mine..
"Yea, what happened?" Ron questioned. Of course, we were in the common room, how could we be alone here. I gave Harry a distinct look, showing that I have to tell him something eye to eye.
"I see how it is" Weasley sighed again but I didn't really care at the moment. He was literally my last concern. The only stressful thing now was that I had to explain everything to Harry. There was no going back now, as we were already in his room.
"So?" He asked. I swallowed nervously and passed him the letter. His eyes revealed how shocked he was now. I took another deep breath as he was already opening the envelope.
"What is this?" He questioned me again. I stood right in front of him with my eyes pierced to his tired face. I wanted to watch how his expressions change while he finds out that Draco Malfoy is in fact alive.
"Is this a joke?" He exclaimed after a moment. I stared at him with the confusion raising in me. He didn't look mad, as I expected him to at some point. He was just- confused as well?
"What? Did you read it?" I asked as soon as the words left his mouth, immediately responding.
"Read what? Seriously Maya? An empty paper?" He suddenly appeared irritated. The confusion only grew in me, standing in front of him, with no idea about what was actually happening.
"Huh?" The quiet expression was the only thing I could release, while staring at him and waiting for more sentences to leave his mind.
"Nothing is on it, what is it Maya, just tell me." He suddenly spoke. My eyes widened and I grabbed the letter. Everything was clear and visible, which made me even more unsure about what exactly was his issue.
"Here, read it!" I pointed at the text.
"Read what?" He raised his voice, visibly annoyed now.
"You can't see it?" I questioned, slowly starting to understand where was the problem. I really forgot how inteligent Draco actually was...
"See what? Can you please explain why are you showing me an empty piece of pergamin for over ten minutes now?" Harry uttered. I sighed slowly, making my finger run through the paper. I was right, there was no traces or concavities from the text.
"It's not empty- the ink is under a spell I believe." I revealed my thoughts. He raised his brows, sticking his eyes to my face.
"What the hell are you saying." The fastly formed sentence left his mouth in seconds. Few moments later he passed me back the letter, with clear disbelief on his face.
"Okay, you have to.. just trust me" I begun explaining myself. "Draco wrote a letter to me, alright? He's alive... He says that he escaped. He's there somewhere-"
"Draco is dead, please underst-" Harry overtook me, but I immediately did the same thing.
"No wait. He really left this letter for me in.. our place. Can you just.. for fuck's sake believe me Harry!" I almost yelled, feeling a major misunderstanding. After all these years he didn't even bother to put the tiniest bit of trust in me. I felt.. upset? mad? I felt as it was unfair that there was no one that would listen and at least try to help me. The bare minimum effort wouldn't hurt, would it?
"How could he escape. Everyone died that night, okay? Someone is playing a brutal joke on you Maya, I am so sorry" I looked at him disappointed. Pure fury escaping my eyes. I believed that it was from Draco. It had to be.
"Look, just trust me for once. Can we go and look for him? He must be somewhere there, what if he's not safe.." my voice lowered as I finished my statement. I had no idea where to look for him, but I was willing to do anything in the world to indeed assure myself that he's in no danger at all.
"By the time the battle happened he was an adult, which means he had free will. The only thing he can bring us now is danger. Don't believe this, I bet he's dead." Harry's tone changed dramatically. He was inflamed now too. As if Draco being alive was a problem to him?
"Are you kidding me?" I literally couldn't believe in what he just said. "I bet he's dead"? My teeth tighten and I turned to leave just few seconds later.
"Maya wait," he stopped me quickly. I heard his quiet cuss, and I hoped that he had realised how badly he just fucked up.
"No, you don't get to say that. You don't get to tell me what the hell am I supposed to do now" I shouted. I hate it when I have to start yelling and I automatically lose control then. I just have to let the anger out somehow.. there is no other way that works for me...
"Look around and think about it. Let's support and be there for people that are alive. Cedric needs you, and so does everyone else. I think that you should forget about-"
"And I think that you should shut up and never speak to me again. I can't believe you just said all that." I hissed, feeling how out of control the tension was getting.
"Said what? I'm begging you wait and talk with me" he spoke, trying to stop me. Our faces were so close now and my eyes were deeply attached to his. Pretty sure he was able to watch the flames build in them as I continued speaking confidently.
"Draco is alive, do you understand that? He mentioned the wand that I gave him." I uttered as my eyes remained bored to his. Not a single blink was made, since I tried my best to make him believe me.. I would really use some understanding now..
A mere silence took over the room. Just us both standing dangerously close to each other while having our eyes unable to tore away from one, another. And before anything could happen, he spoke again.
"Someone is making fun of you Maya, it's cruel but you know how people are..." his voice lowered a bit.
"You don't understand, I know he's alive.." I whispered, with my eyes finally capable to tore away. I looked down, feeling helpless and slowly losing hope.
"Oh Maya" Harry sighed, and delicately tried to embraced me with his arms. The anger quickly run back to me.
"No- I'm not crazy. Here it is." I distinctly pointed at the letter. " For fuck's sake, believe me! Draco is somewhere there and he might need our help" I took a step back, making his hug break. Well, no words of his bothered to respond..
"Harry James Potter!" I raised my voice yet again, hoping to get any kind of reaction.
"You should realise that you can't bring people back to life.. I wish we could do so. But they were killed-" This, even unfinished sentence, made me so disappointed in him that I hurriedly over took him.
"Well clearly he wasn't!" I almost yelled.
"You know I care for you right?" He questioned and that appeared to be the breaking point.
"Oh don't even-" I sighed irritated. Quick turn on my heel and I was already facing the door. The way I slammed it, as I walked out, made a loud noise. I heard some quiet stutters from him, but didn't even bother to wait or turn back. I was so done with him now.
Again, I was in the common room. And of course, Ron was there. As I continued walking through it, I looked at him, noticing how scared and confused he was at the same time. I only run him up to down with my eyes and left our house as well.
My life became a run from people who didn't understand me. There was no one who could I trust or no one who would listen to me without openly judging me. Actually, that was Cedric. He was always so.. supportive. The thoughts about him being in pain that continued to overwhelm my mind right now, were like the thorns, driven into my wounded heart with simple impunity.
I walked into our library. It was repaired already, so I could use it as a place to hide. Not only from other people. I wanted to hide from my problems and most importantly my whole life. It's never been the easiest so I should be strong and tough by now, right? But how long can a simple human flight for, if there is no support from their loved ones?
I sat down between the bookshelves, grabbing a random literature. I had it now in my hands, and used it only to hide my face in it. I would really appreciate some privacy right now, as I felt like everyone in the world would just consider me as a weak being.
I begun overthinking how quickly my father has left me, making me an orphan. For the first time ever I felt as if he had abandoned me. Simply felt alone..
My mind was also overwhelmed with one question - "what now?". I knew I had to do something. I had to help Draco. But how? How can I do that If no one actually believes me? For the first time, my independence turned out to be not enough...
Draco left me without any possibility to help him. I'm assuming, that as he wrote, he doesn't want me to get into any danger because of him.. Putting the ink under a spell was a smart move in that situation. So, finding solution to such problem was a bit of a challenge.
The door was clearly closed, so maybe I should start looking for a window?
"Maya?" I hear a surprising familiar voice, which snapped me away from my dark thoughts. The only tone that was so bright and joyful like no other. The voice rung in my head, as I took a deep breath. I really missed her.
"Mione?" I questioned back. She stood above me, looking really concerned. I had no idea how she'd found me.
"What are you doing here?" She crouched next to me, looking at the book I was 'reading'. "'Muggle studies - cooking'?" She questioned again, reading the title out-loud.
"Oh, that- yeah I wanted to learn more.." I figured the worst lie in the world. No one in this school would believe that I would ever extra study for muggle studies.
"Your mascara is all over your face Mays" she said slowly while comfortably sitting down. "You know you can tell me, right?"
"I thought I could tell Harry too.." I whispered to myself but she was still able to hear that. As soon as I mentioned his name she got the hint that something must had went terribly wrong.
"Do you want to talk about it?" Hermione suggested. I didn't know if I wanted that now. What if she won't understand anything either? What if she won't believe me too? But I needed to reveal my emotions to someone..
"Why? Why this?.. why me?" I sobbed. Before I could whine more, she pulled me by my head, into her embrace. My face was surrounded by her arms, as I was leaning onto her chest now. Could sense her heart beat, which calmed me down a little. Well, didn't stop the salty tears while they continued to stream down.
"Explain to me, okay?" She requested quietly. I pulled a little away and nodded. Seconds later I begun speaking again, pointing every tiny detail, hoping that this will make her understand me. I also told her about me and Adrian, emphasising the fact that I was drunk and didn't want it. She looked shocked and broken. As if she never expected to hear this from me. I also told her about the letter from Draco and now harry accusing me of being crazy. My tone was quaking while I spoke, but that didn't stop Mione from understating what I went through. Her face revealed pure concern and sorrow, rather than judgement. I could slowly exhale, letting my blood cool down.
"I- I don't know what to say-" she whispered, after I was done explaining to her everything I went through.
"Just tell me you understand me, okay?" I requested, with a tender voice. She looked at me with tears fighting to escape her eyes.
"I understand you" she spoke slowly, making her statement crystal-clear. I smiled softly, feeling emotional again.
"Thank you" I whispered again, feeling tired as never before. Looking back, I really didn't have enough sleep lately...
"Shhhh" Mione's arms pulled me closer again. I rested completely in our embrace. The hug was so warm and I simply felt safe. Shouldn't be a surprise that my eyes had slowly closed..
Right then and there, I fell asleep on the library's floor, while being tightly hugged to Hermione Granger.
>some time later<
"Oh hello dear" her voice entered my head. Feeling the instant back pain, I looked around. I really just fell asleep in the middle of the day. A huge red flag when it comes to my life - I never sleep during the day.
"Did I actually-? How long-" I begun questioning her. She only laughed quietly, looking at me extremely amused.
"Thirty minutes or so, you're so funny" she continued giggling. A grin appeared on my face, noticing how purely sweet she was. Probably one of the first time I have actually smiled after the battle..
Minutes kept passing and she once again gave me more motivation to continue fighting.
"By the way, Cedric woke up, maybe seeing him would be a good idea?" she suggested.
<later that day>
"Ceddie?" I called as I walked into the hospital wing room. Of course, he was there, right on the same place he was the last time.
"Oh dear, how are you?" I questioned again, as I was already by his bed. He only smiled a bit and his eyes appeared to be watching me intensively. My Hufflepuff boy looked weakened. Not a surprise after everything he's been through, but I still found it hard to adjust to the thought that it will take a long while for him to be back to his old, physical self.
"Better" he responded shortly. A quiet tone of his made some goose flesh create on my tender skin. Oh, how I've missed his voice.
"I'm glad" I created an also short phase. His tired eyes were bored to my face now with some sort of woe in them? But I also noticed a smile, which confused me a bit.
"How could I leave you?" He asked suddenly. The look on his face assured me that he felt a major disappointment now. "You could've died"
"So could you, please don't blame yourself" I tried to calm him down, after noticing how the guilt didn't bother to stop building up in him.
"I promised to protect you, if it wasn't for Draco-" Cedric stopped there, but seconds later he continued "I heard what happened, I'm so sorry Mays, can't imagine such loss" He almost whispered. My hands made their way to grab his. While gently stroking it, I remained the eyes contact with him.
How could I explain that Draco wasn't dead? I was too afraid that he won't believe me, for some reason. Anyhow, I was welly assured that he wasn't really at his best right now.. I truly didn't want to confuse him even more..
"It's getting better too, don't worry" I uttered calmly. He only nodded, without breaking the line our eyes had created. The moment of silence was broken by his quiet smirk. Seconds later I joined him, smiling a bit. I leaned forward, making us hug.
"I've missed you" he confessed. My head raised to look at him again. We exchanged smiles before I decided to respond.
"Oh, I definitely did more"
"Dare to show me how much?" He carried the conversation, making me encouraged to prove my love. Instantly hugged him higher, resting my head on his chest.
"Love you" I murmured softly.
"Love you too my fallen angel" he whispered back.
And soon later we both fell asleep on each other. In the hospital wing, me and him, tightly hugged to one, another.
⊰᯽⊱┈──╌❊ - ❊╌──┈⊰᯽⊱
I was finally with Cedric. Someone who shared some care and love with me. And although the fight with Harry, Hermione helped... I should be able to rest now, right? Well, not until I figure something out.
Where is my blonde Slytherin boy right now?
I thought I lost him, but apparently he was still somewhere there. His bright soul continued to sparkle some light into this world.. well it wasn't all colourful with him but now I could only find positives to say about him. And the fact that I'll possibly have a chance to see him again- my heart was purely happy and the warm blood in my veins had distinctly cooled down.
Every next night, from now on, I analysed what could I do to possibly help him. I was willing to do anything a 17 year old girl can to make sure he's safe now. Unfortunately, I couldn't find a way to do so. Although, of spending majority of my time now, talking with Hermione about my problems. She understood and supported me. I adored how he showed genuine care and concern for us both. That really matter to me now..
Well, me and Harry didn't get along too great anymore. After some time passed, I realised I could have expressed my emotions to him differently then. So, I don't blame him but don't consider myself the cause of our fall down either. We just suddenly stopped working as friends.. for some reason..
But Draco wasn't still there.
⊰᯽⊱┈──╌❊ - ❊╌──┈⊰᯽⊱
I miss him,
And I will do so,
Till the day,
The bright moon decides,
To raise for both of us,
Again.
⊰᯽⊱┈──╌❊3.3k❊╌──┈⊰᯽⊱
Thank you for reading this chapter my flowers<3 I'm sorry it took me so long, but I've been surprisingly quite busy lately. I'm going on my holiday vacation soon too, but I will do my best to still write! Hope this chapter was worth the wait :)
We recently hit 10k reads here! I am beyond grateful for each one of you my beautiful people. Thank you for every vote/ each supportive massage you leave for me. Thank you for the comments with constructive criticism and correcting my typos. Thank you for your opinions on my work. And most importantly, thank you for reading. I truly adore y'all <3
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