ᶜʰᵃᵖᵗᵉʳ ³⁶⁻ "ʸᵒᵘ ᵉᵛⁱˡ, ᵇˡᵉᵃᶜʰᵉᵈ, ˡⁱᵗᵗˡᵉ ᵗᵒᵃᵈ"
That summer, I was shipped off to Ireland. Daphne had been sent to Greece and Pansy to Paris. The boys were home and had been made to attend meetings that our fathers attended and go to events with our fathers.
According to Blaise's letter, they were being made to learn combative magic and had been taught more advanced spells by different death-eaters.
I had been receiving letters from everyone- my aunt, my father, Theo, Blaise, Daphne, Pansy, Crabbe and Goyle. Everyone but Malfoy. Not that I wanted him to write or anything. Even though we weren't exactly friends, we would always write to each other during the summer we would spend away from each other.
I would seldom go out of the suite my aunt had arranged for me. Most of the time I was just thinking of everything. I needed to do something very quickly. And I needed help.
My aunt would often visit me. She was unwilling to tell me about the situation back home. I knew she hated lying to me so I stopped talking about it altogether.
The both of us hadn't talked about anything of importance, like the war or Sirius Black. We mostly just sat in silence or engaged in small talk.
The months passed away in a blink and it was time for me to return home.
--
I was welcomed by my aunt who engulfed me in a hug before I could step foot inside the house. A tiny house-elf ran past me and took my bags upstairs to my room.
The mansion looked disturbed. It reeked of cigarette smoke and firewhiskey. There were elves cleaning some broken vases and scrubbing the walls to get rid of the black burnt marks on them. There was a lingering presence of evil in the very halls I roamed as a child. The peace and purity of my home seemed to have been stripped off during these 'meetings'.
My aunt told me the Malfoys would be visiting us in some time and I had to get ready. I decided to greet my father before getting changed.
I knocked on the door of his study and walked in when I heard him telling me to come inside. He seemed tensed and edgy. There was some fear I could sense as well. He was writing something when I walked in and stopped instantly when he realised it was me.
"You've arrived," he smiled. "How was Ireland?"
I took a seat in one of the chairs placed opposite his chair, a table between us. "It was good," I answered, unable to say anything more.
"I suppose you should get ready," he said turning his attention to the papers in front of him. "Although you needn't go out of your way to make an impression"
"Excuse me?"
"Well now that it's-" he began to mutter but stopped and looked up. "Oh, Salazar, has she not told you yet?"
Just then, my aunt came inside the office. "Cassie, love, the Malfoys will be here. Are you-" She stopped her sentence to check what was going on between my father and me.
My father entangled his fingers and sat comfortably on his chair. "You still haven't told her?" he asked my aunt.
"Told me what?"
My aunt took a deep breath and took a seat in the chair next to me. A look was exchanged between my father and her and then she began speaking.
"Cassie, we've been meaning to talk to you about something," she whispered making me incredibly nervous. The way she had begun her sentence made me think someone was dying.
"You know how you have to get married?" she asked. "And for that, you need a suitable youngster," she explained. I raised an eyebrow and gave her a confused look. Why was she explaining to me how marriage and offers for engagements work?
"Oh, for Merlin's sake, Lillian," my father let out an annoyed sigh. "Just tell her the news"
"Will you be patient, Arnold?" she shot back. "One cannot just blab such news. I need to slowly and steadily inform her about things. And if you are such an expert, why don't you tell her?"
"What is happening?" I couldn't just not talk because I was sure they would turn this into a fight and forget all about me or what they were telling me.
Both of them cleared their throats. My aunt was about to open her mouth to continue when she was interrupted by my father. "We have accepted the Malfoys' offer. You are engaged to Draco and will marry him when you graduate"
"What?" My shriek was loud enough for the entire country to hear.
"Arnold!" my aunt scolded him with wide eyes but the damage had been done.
My breath shuddered as I tried to comprehend the news. I was engaged to Draco Malfoy? How long ago had this been decided? Does Malfoy know? If he did, why didn't he tell me?
My aunt put a hand on my shoulder in an attempt to comfort me. "Are you alright, my love? Do you need some water?"
I was still in a trance, unable to process this news. "Does he know?" I murmured. "Does Malfoy know?" I had to force those words out of my mouth.
"Yes," my aunt answered. "Narcissa told him last year"
"Last year?!" I cried out. That dimwit had known this since the past year and did not bother to tell me? He had the nerve to get into squabbles with me and spend most of his day cribbing about Potter, but leave out such an important detail of my life?
"I- I have to go," I stuttered and slammed the office door on my way out. I was filled with rage and fortunately, the person responsible for it was coming to my house in a couple of minutes.
--
"You." I pointed to the smug blond standing in my drawing room as if he owned the place. He turned around when he heard a voice and a smirk fell across his face when he saw me with an enraged expression.
The boy had changed quite a lot over the summer. He had grown much taller and had developed some muscles in the right places. His hair seemed soft and bouncy instead of bleached and disgusting. His face had changed a bit too. It had become much more mature. But I was too angry to notice how beautiful he looked at that moment.
"You evil, bleached, little toad," I continued to advance towards him as I pulled my wand out.
I pinned him to the wall next to him as I dug my wand into his neck. My spare hand held the collar of his suit.
"Whoa, whoa, easy there-"
"Shut it!" I interrupted the bleached fool. "I am incredibly agitated so do not test me right now," I warned. "How could you do that Malfoy?"
"Do what?" the boy asked pretending to act innocent.
"Do what?" I mimicked. "How could not have told me about the engagement?"
He was taken aback by my words. "Oh. They told you?"
"Yes, they told me. How could you not have told me Malfoy?" I replied in a harsh tone.
"Would you have listened?" he retorted.
Listening to this, my grip on the boy loosened. I realised he was right. I let out a huff and let go of him.
"You could've at least tried," I said in a lower voice as I turned my wand between my fingers.
"I did. But you blew me off for Potter," he informed and sounded offended as he dusted off his shirt.
"That was what you were telling me that day?" I questioned and he nodded. "So, you couldn't have written to me or even tried to hint this was coming?"
"Is this something you would've wanted to know through a letter? And a letter from me?" He pointed out and he was right, yet again.
A few minutes passed in silence. "How are you so calm about all this?" I questioned looking at his undisturbed demeanour after some time.
"Why should I not be?" he counter-questioned.
"Because we are not friends," I reminded him. "We- we hate each other"
"I am a little offended you do not consider me your friend Ambers. And I never hated you, I was just kind enough to go along with your hatred for me."
"Oh really?" I scoffed as I crossed my hands in front of my chest.
"Yes. What is so hard to believe?" he asked with a confused expression plastered on his face as he too crossed his hands in front of his chest. In an attempt to mimic me, I supposed. I remained quiet and chose not to answer his question.
"Well, why do you hate me so?" the blond asked me.
"You don't know?"
He shook his head in response.
I let out a bitter laugh at the blonde's cluelessness, but that did not change his expression. He genuinely seemed to want to know.
I cleared my throat and began. "When we were children and would play quidditch when our parents met, you would be very mean. You threatened everyone if they picked me in their team. You would say there would be consequences. And soon, everyone stopped playing with me altogether."
He let out a laugh making me furrow my eyebrows. "That's what you hate me for? Because little Cassiopeia Ambers was denied one thing in her life?" he spat in his usual smug tone.
"It wasn't that fact that you denied me something, it was what you denied me Malfoy. You knew I loved quidditch and you knew my parents would not like it when I played quidditch and yet, you turned everyone against me." I informed. "And never, ever, use that tone with me"
He was quiet for some time. His face was full of guilt and regret. I had never seen Malfoy regret anything or even feel guilty about anything. He had done some questionable things, but he never seemed to feel guilty about them or regret doing them. This was the first time I had seen him feel guilty about something and regret it.
"I, I am so sorry Cassie. But do you know why I did that?" Malfoy questioned after a long moment of silence. I shook my head no to his question.
"It was because you were too good, better than me, for sure. And I was not too fond of that. I also wanted you on my team and my team only. Because I always liked you, Cassie," Malfoy turned red after confessing the truth.
I was about to laugh at the state of his face but controlled myself so as to not make him feel even more flushed.