A week passed since the Draco encounter after dinner. He hadn't spoken to me since. We'd pass in the halls, have a couple classes together, he'd mumble 'filthy mudblood' under his breath when he was around his peers, but other than some blank stares, I received nothing from him. No emotion, no real or direct words whatsoever.
~
My classes for the day had just finished. Cedric met me in the hallway after my last class.
"So.. how was potions?" He seemed so intrigued by how my day is going.
"It was alright. Nothing too interesting happened today." I respond. Draco had skipped out on this class today. Maybe he just didn't feel like speaking to me today.
"That's still good." Cedric commented, smiling down at me with those deep brown eyes. Hermione was coming up to me at this time.
"Eleanor!" She caught my attention. "This is a last minute plan. Do you want to head to The Three Broomsticks with me, Ron, and Harry? It's Friday after all."
"Of course. Let me head to my dorm to change and I can meet you at the gate!" I was excited to finally hang out with them again, especially Hermione. I look at Cedric. "I'm sorry, Ced. We can catch up later though." He nods and says bye to me and my sister.
I hurried over to my room to not keep them waiting. It was the coldest day of the year so far. It was actively snowing outside, I could see from my window, so I knew I would need to dress extra warm. I dug around in my dresser to find warm clothes. I decided to put on some jeans, a dark green long sleeve with my extra heavy long black winter coat. To top it off, I added a dark gray scarf and some warm fuzzy boots. I snatched my winter hat from my dresser and headed out the door.
Once at the gates of Hogwarts, we made our way down to Hogsmeade. Sometimes it felt weird that I was a Slytherin hanging out with the Gryffindors. It sometimes felt like others in my house, or other students in general, would look strangely upon us for being in such different houses hanging around each other. But my excuse was that one of them was family, so it was okay to hang around them. And if they didn't mind, then I didn't mind.
"Wow it is so cold. I'm ready for some butterbeer." Ron piped up on our way down the hill.
I also couldn't wait to get some butterbeer. Being so stressed not just with school but with this Draco situation had me on edge, and I was just ready to be out of the castle walls for a moment.
We made it to The Three Broomsticks. Inside, we found ourselves a table with benches. I sat next to Harry, with Hermione directly across from me and Ron beside her.
"Butterbeer for all of us, please." Hermione chirped to the man taking our order.
I found Ginny snogging someone in the back corner and mentioned it to Ron. I don't think he was fond of me in that moment since I just pointed out his younger sister was touching tonsils with a boy. He even threatened to leave after seeing that. Harry wouldn't stop staring at the bar area, to which I noticed Professor Slughorn. Or at least I recognized him from the back of his head somehow, and his mannerisms with the way he spoke to the man in front of him.
Whatever conversation the four of us were having, my focus was interrupted when I spotted white hair in my peripheral. I looked up to see him. Draco, in all his glory. His white hair stood out against the all black suit he was wearing.
We made eye contact and he slowed to a halt. I saw his gaze move from me, to Harry, me, to the back of Hermione and Ron's heads, then back to me. Once he got a look, he continued walking out the front door, shutting it behind him. Man, that boy is strange. By the time that encounter was over, Professor Slughorn was over at our table visiting Harry. How much of this conversation did I miss while staring at Draco?
Only a couple minutes pass for us to finish our conversation with Slughorn, finish our butterbeer, and we were leaving again. I wanted to stay just a little longer, but they probably had things they needed to do too and I wasn't going to stay there alone.
The snow storm had picked up while we had been inside. It was almost a blizzard now and couldn't see too far ahead of me as we walked back.
"Did you know there was a breakout at Azkaban?" Hermione babbled. "Yeah, I read it in the paper earlier. Bellatrix and other death eaters have broken out of Azkaban. Harry, we need to be watching our backs." I could tell Hermione was a little tipsy, because she told us such important information so nonchalantly.
Suddenly, there's a blood-curdling scream ahead and someone is lying on the ground. The four of us run closer to see Katie Bell, a Gryffindor girl, lying on her back in the snow.
"What the fuck..." I mumble, but thank Merlin Hermione didn't hear me or she'd be judgemental of my language.
Katie's body began sliding across the snow covered ground. It's as if she had no control over her body. It's as if an invisible force was dragging her back and forth through the snow until suddenly, that invisible force lifted her high in the air.
I could almost see the terror on her face, even though she was not present in her own body and couldn't control herself, I knew she was terrified. Her body brutally slammed onto the solid ground. I winced at the sight and I could feel Hermione empathizing my pain too. We didn't know what to do. She lied quivering on the freezing ground and Harry finally inched closer to her.
"Stand back." A strong voice could be heard from behind us. Hagrid appeared and bent over to take Katie into his arms.
Katie's friend, Leanne, stood next to Katie's bag that was now lying in the snow. I shift my gaze down to see what appears to be a necklace, a very beautiful opal necklace that had fallen out of its wrapper. I squat down to sift through the other items that had fallen out of her bag.
"Do not touch that." Hagrid uttered. I could hear the fear in his voice.
"We need to go, guys." I explain. It wasn't safe for us to be here, and I needed to see if Draco had anything to do with this.
~
Back in the castle, I searched everywhere for Draco Malfoy. That sly little bastard, where were you?
I searched the common room, the potions classroom, the Great Hall. I even stood outside the boy's bathroom for a while, hoping he would come out. No trace of him. It was getting late so I decided to finish my hunt soon.
I reflected on the past few weeks while strolling the halls. Why was Draco suddenly so.. different? I mean, for years he's been a bully, to me and everyone else that didn't fit his standards. And suddenly I give him a few witty remarks and he loses his shit? Did I break Draco Malfoy from his egotistical, antagonizing self? What exactly happened that week he was gone?
My train of thought was broken as I passed the library and heard sobbing. The library is closed, it's after hours, why would someone be in here? I thought to myself. "Alohomora." I chanted and the library door unlocked for me.
I shuffled my way inside, making an attempt to be quiet so I could follow the sobbing. I hear a few sniffles and head toward the sound, hand on my wand in case needed. I made a few paces forward and creeeak. Shit, this old ass floor just gave me away.
"Who's there?" I heard a low voice, but I couldn't decide if it had sounded familiar or not. It was hard to tell when they had been crying.
I inched forward more.
"Who.. is THERE?" The voice was louder, and threatening, and out from behind a shelf appears Draco. His wand was at ready, pointing at me. I could see the irritation in his swollen eyes, whether that be more from sadness or anger I wasn't sure.
"What are you doing here, Granger?" He scoffed at me, not lowering his wand. I put mine away and hoped he'd do the same.
"Put the wand down, Malfoy. I'm not here to threaten you."
He looked me up and down and slowly lowered his wand. "You didn't answer my question."
I gawked at him. He was trying to appear tough, because that's how he feels he should come across, but I had just seen (or rather heard) him in a vulnerable state. There is a soft side to him.
"I heard someone in here. I was just checking on you."
"Why the fuck are you following me around?" He wiped his under eyes from any tear stains that may have been there.
"I'm not." I assured him. "You just seem... off." He is being so defensive right now. I hope he opens up to me.
He chuckles. Not a chuckle as in he had heard anything funny. A belittling chuckle, as if I had said something stupid. Draco inched closer to me, his eyes heavy on mine. He gets within reach of me, and his hand grabs my wrist. I can feel his chilly rings against my skin, and his tight grip around my arm. He pulls me closer. His other hand wraps around my other arm. I can't move or else that would just deter him, and who knows how he'd react if I went against him right now.
His fingers slowly crawl up my arm, lifting my long sleeves higher and higher. His face is so close. He hasn't even broken his gaze with me yet. But then again, neither have I. Draco's hands make their way to my back and pull me just a little closer, if I could have gotten much closer to him anyways. There was almost no space between us now, and our noses were almost in contact.
Just as his face was creeping even closer to mine, I hear the library doors open. "Eleanor?" I hear my sister's voice. Fuck.