A snowy owl tapped softly on the enchanted dungeon window. Draco was in his dorm alone, his dormmates were all in the common room doing Merlin knows what. Probably downing all the sneaked-in Firewhiskey.
Draco hadn't even known that owls could get through dungeon windows. Outside their dorm was supposed to be the lake and the windows were only enchanted to look like the night sky. Regardless, the owl tapped the window again, this time a little more impatiently.
He gently set aside the potions book he was skimming (he exclusively read potions books for recreational reading) and went to open the window. He had his wand at the ready to repel the lake water that was supposed to be leaking, but nothing happened. The owl flew inside and Draco gawked at the opening. Hell, it actually looked like the night sky. He supposed owls had something really special.
The owl was tiny. It was like a cute little furry snowball, bouncing gracefully on Draco's palm once he flew in. He fluttered his feathers and Draco stroked him softly with a finger.
"Hello, aren't you a cute little fellow," the blonde-haired boy said gently.
The little owl hooted softly and nuzzled his fingers with his wing. He tilted up a leg and widened his round brown eyes a little.
"And who is this from?" Draco asked as he untied the parchment carefully.
The owl gently shook his tiny little head, as if saying no.
Draco was intrigued. "No? Why not?"
He merely shook his head again and ruffled his wings importantly, as if on a mission.
"Well, I'm going to find out once I read it, won't I?"
Draco swore he saw a mischievous glint in his eyes before he took off from his palm surprisingly strongly, hooting into the dark sky.
The rolled-up parchment was tied with an elegant red ribbon. He freed the bow and slid the window shut before walking curiously back to his green and silver four-poster bed, sinking into the warm covers.
Slowly, he unraveled the pure white parchment.
Dear Draco Malfoy,
Do you know the things you do to me?
Reeling me in, your mesmerizing eyes
As if enchanting me with an addictive spell
Clouding my thoughts
Over all of the years
You're beautiful, Draco Malfoy. You have no idea, don't you? I've known since I first laid eyes on you. Wild, yes. I understand if you're startled. You're probably disgusted. I don't mind. I just wanted you to know. Hopefully, it will make your night.
Love,
Your Secret Admirer
Draco sucked in a breath. That was intense.
He never expected anyone to like him like that, not with that much intensity at least. Whoever this was, he actually felt a strong wave of empathy toward them.
Draco knew first-hand how stomach-flipping, heart-wrenching long-term crushes could be.
He loved Harry Potter.
If possible, he wanted to give the anonymous person a big hug. Tell them, "Hey, it's okay." He was also itching to tell them that the acrostic poem was just a tad tacky but that might hurt their feelings. They might even become friends if they ever were to talk for a bit (if he leave out the constructive criticism).
Sighing, he slumped back on his pillow, musing over fragments of thoughts. He wanted to comfort the anonymous admirer. Contact them somehow.
But it was getting late. Rolling his eyes as he heard a loud belch and several shrieks from his crazy eight-year peers from the common room four flights up, he tucked the silky red ribbon under his alarm clock on his bed stand. The letter, on the other hand, was at a much safer location in his locked-up and heavily warded drawer.
Pulling up the covers, he drifted off to sleep, thinking about the anonymous admirer and a certain pair of gleaming, emerald, and lively eyes.