"How exactly did you do that?"
"Stop asking questions or I'll cut your insides out and feed them to you."
Claire was tired of waiting for Draco to wake up, and she was tired of Blaise, Theo, Daphne, and Ron asking questions. Harry and Hermione basically knew everything, so they mostly just tried to change the subject.
"I really think he needs Madam Pomfrey," Hermione said to the group. They had taken Draco back to his dorm, where he had yet to open his eyes after over an hour.
Claire shuddered as she remembered the last look in his eyes. Before he had acceptance in his eyes, but he looked right into her eyes before he was going to hit the ground and she only saw panic and fear. That was when she made a forcefield appear beneath him, but he was so close to the ground that it didn't help enough. Claire only blamed herself.
"I thought he was pushing me," Harry muttered sadly. "I'm sorry."
"Why are you even here?" Theo asked angrily. "You're the one who pushed him. This is all your fault."
"Fuck off," Ron defended his friend.
"It's not his fault," Claire snapped. Theo glared at her and sat back, crossing his arms and tapping his foot.
"From what we could see, it looked like Draco was reaching too far and Harry didn't push him hard enough to push him off. Draco just slipped, and it didn't help that Harry pushed a little," Daphne spoke up.
"He never should have pushed," Blaise practically growled. Harry just looked upset with himself and didn't respond. Draco twitched and Claire held her breath, grabbing his hand. He squeezed her hand but didn't wake up, making her sigh sadly.
"Okay, we're back," Annabeth announced quietly. It was late enough that most students were asleep or not paying attention, but some professors might be walking around and she had to bring some healing potions from her dorm all the way in Ravenclaw towers. "I grabbed everything I thought we might need."
"I grabbed some wraps," Leo shrugged. Annabeth rolled her eyes at the boy and moved past.
"So, what do you think is wrong?" Annabeth asked. She stared right into Claire's eyes and she noticed that Annabeth had a faint ring of gold around her irises just like she did.
"He hit his head," Claire responded, lightly pushing back Draco's hair. She could hear the shake in her voice so she cleared her throat and then continued. "I think he bruised some ribs too, but they're not broken. Nothing is broken, just bruised."
"Maybe this one," Hermione suggested. Hermione and Annabeth went through all the potions and decided on the three that would work the best.
"Don't kill him," Theo spoke up, his voice half joking and half serious. Everyone held their breaths while Annabeth gave Draco the potions. It only took a moment before he groaned and then opened his eyes, looking around with confusion clear on his face.
"I'm so important, aren't I?" Draco joked. Claire laughed and then carefully jumped onto his, shoving her face in his neck as she hugged him. He greedily accepted the hug, his hands shaking as he wrapped them around her.
"I was so scared," Claire whispered so only he could hear.
"I could never leave you," Draco whispered back. Claire leaned back and smiled at him, lightly cupping his cheek with her hand to wipe away the tear before the others could see.
"Next time you try to die, do it earlier so it won't keep me up," Theo joked. Draco flicked him off while Blaise chuckled.
"Malfoy, I'm sorry," Harry spoke up. "I promise I didn't mean to push you."
"It's quidditch," Draco shrugged, wincing at the pain. "I was too far off my broom anyways."
Harry and Draco both nodded at each other like some sort of truce had been made. Ron looked confused while Hermione looked hopeful that maybe the two would stop fighting all the time.
"What all hurts?" Annabeth asked. The girl would make a great healer one day because she was always ready to help others, and she was good at it.
"My head and my chest," Draco told her. "How am I not dead?"
"Mate, Claire just shrieked and then this giant light was beneath you. It made you bounce and then you kinda just dropped," Theo explained, his eyes wide as he thought back.
"We thought you were going to die when you started falling," Daphne said, her voice a little shaky.
"That's why there's Gryffindors in my room?" Draco asked.
"I didn't want to be an accomplice to murder," Ron tried to excuse.
"You would be even more of an accomplice by helping us bring him here and staying with him," Leo responded, an almost annoyed look on his face. Leo still didn't like Ron after the year before.
"Ignore him," Hermione sighed. "But it's time we get back now that you're awake. Feel better."
Draco nodded awkwardly, looking a little upset that so many people saw him fall and had helped him. He shared a nod with Harry as he left. Annabeth explained which potions Draco needed to take and then left with Leo. The four were tasked with keeping Draco awake in case he had a concussion.
"Finally," Blaise groaned. "I don't know how you spend so much time with them, Claire. They're so...Gryffindory."
"What does that even mean?" Claire questioned, her eyebrows furrowed.
"You know," Blaise started.
"Loud, obnoxious, rude," Theo continued.
"They're not that bad," Daphne defended. Claire rolled her eyes at the boys.
"I'll hang out with him first," Claire suggested so that they wouldn't keep complaining about her friends.
"That works," Daphne nodded. "I'll be next."
"You mean I have to stay up all night?" Draco groaned.
"Yep," Claire confirmed. The blonde didn't look happy, especially since Theo and Blaise kept wiggling their eyebrows at him and Claire.
"I was so scared," Draco whispered once everyone had calmed down and gotten into their beds, all of them closing their curtains for privacy.
"Me too," Claire responded. "I didn't know what to do. I just felt helpless."
"But you saved me," Draco told her. "I don't know how, and I've learned not to press you for an answer until you're ready to talk."
But Claire was ready to talk so she told him about her visions and explained why she sometimes zoned out and got sick. She left out being the child of two werewolves because she didn't know if Draco would even remember the conversation in the morning.
"That actually makes a lot of sense," Draco nodded. "So, where do you see me in five years?"
"It doesn't work like that," Claire laughed softly, glad that he didn't freak out. "I can't always decide what to see. I can sometimes think of someone and see a little, but I guess the universe decides what to show me. I actually don't know that I've ever seen you in a vision."
"Do you know who's going to win the first quidditch game?" Draco asked. Claire furrowed her eyebrows and tried to look.
"We do," Claire said happily. But Draco just looked concerned and she realized that her nose had started to bleed. "It does that sometimes. Even my eyes and ears will bleed too if it's a bad vision."
"You shouldn't have to deal with all of this," Draco said sadly.
"Neither should you," Claire told him.
"I can handle it."
"So can I."
Draco just smirked at her and then shuffled around a little.
"Are you hurting?" Claire asked him.
"A little," Draco admitted. "I'm fine though. Don't worry about me."
"I'm going to worry," Claire said with an eye roll. She looked at the variety of potions and handed one to Draco.
"I don't need a babysitter," Draco complained but he took the potion anyways.
"It's either us or Madam Pomfrey," Daphne told him. They both jumped because they didn't realize how long it had been. Daphne yawned and pulled her nightgown tighter as she sat opposite Claire with a heavy sigh.
"Goodnight Draco," Claire whispered, leaning over and placing a lasting kiss on his cheek.
———————————
"But what if we pay you?"
"I don't need money," Claire told the twins as they followed behind her.
"We need your help for this prank," Fred complained.
"In case you didn't notice, Professor Umbridge just declared herself the High Inquisitor. I have to lay low," Claire told them. The girl had woken up to see that the horrid woman had gotten even more power by making up a new position. On top of that, she was examining all the other professors.
"We already have detention," George reminded her. Claire sighed and stepped into an empty hallway, the two boys following her.
"I'm sure you guys know that I'm not exactly normal. I can't let Professor Umbridge have a reason to get me in trouble," Claire sighed sadly.
"What if you wont get in trouble?" Fred asked.
"You said that last time," Claire snorted.
"Hermione won't let us sell our products and now you won't help," George complained.
"I'm a prefect, too," Claire reminded them.
"But not a real one," Fred told her. Claire rolled her eyes and shoved past the boys. She had too much on her mind to worry about their pranks.
First, Draco wasn't yet fully recovered after almost a month, and she was worried about that. Her worry made her have some brain fog that made her grades drop and Professor Snape had to warn her that she might have her badge taken away if she wasn't careful. On top of that, Harry had gotten to talk with Sirius, and she was a little jealous that she hadn't gotten to talk as well. Although, the conversation wasn't exactly happy and Professor Umbridge seemed to know about it, so it's probably best that she wasn't there.
"I have to get to class," Claire interrupted when they continued to try and convince her. "But I can convince Draco not to go to the Ravenclaw corridor at that time and if no one is there then no one will know who did what."
"You're the best!" Fred gasped, ruffling her hair as he passed. Claire frowned and tried to fix her hair as she got in line for potions.
"Man, I'm not at all straight, but I might be for George," Daphne said, biting her lip as she watched the twins walk away.
"I hate you," Claire said seriously. Daphne just winked and then laughed. The Slytherins all simultaneously either cursed or groaned when they saw that Umbridge was observing the class. Professor Snape didn't seem too happy either.
"Is it true that you previously applied to the position of Dark Arts professor?" Professor Umbridge asked once Snape had started class and the students were working.
"Yes," Professor Snape drawled, obviously not happy with the question.
"But you were unsuccessful," Professor Umbridge noted with a sick giggle.
"Obviously," Professor Snape said through gritted teeth.
"And why is that?"
"You'll have to ask Producers Dumbledore that question," Professor Snape said, barely hiding his anger. Claire tried not to laugh when he turned his back on the toad woman and started observing the students.
"Professor Snape."
"Yes, Professor Umbridge?" Professor Snape asked, annoyance clear in his tone. He was standing behind Claire and Draco, looking right at the other Professor with a glare in his eyes.
"Is it true that Miss. Lupin is your goddaughter?" Professor Umbridge questioned. Claire grimaced and tried to hide when all the students started whispering.
"I don't know what that is important," Professor Snape said uncomfortably. Claire made eye contact with Harry, who looked like he was enjoying seeing Professor Snape get annoyed at someone other than him. He shrugged sadly at her when she looked over and she grimaced even more.
"Well, it would help me understand why Miss. Lupin has such high grades in your class when she obviously can't read instructions," Professor Umbridge giggled.
"She suffered a concussion at the end of last year. Professor Dumbledore has asked us to help her with any struggles she has after that," Professor Snape defended.
"Miss. Lupin, what does the second line on the board say?" Professor Umbridge asked. Claire picked at the scar on the back of her hand, making it bleed once more.
"It says to turn three times," Claire muttered.
"And what did you do?" Professor Umbridge questioned.
"I got confused and skipped that step," Claire responded. She was shaking in her seat from embarrassment and anger.
"And why did you get confused?"
"Go fuck yourself."
The whole class gasped when Claire started right at the Professor, who just smiled as if she wanted this to happen. Claire had tunnel vision and she gripped her quill so hard that it broke.
"Detention with me for the rest of the week," Professor Umbridge said.
"I believe she can serve it with me, since I am the head of her house," Professor Snape spoke up.
"Oh, no. And I will be watching to make sure that no teacher treats her with special treatment just because of a...Concussion," Professor Umbridge giggled. Claire glared at the Professor and tried to calm her breathing. She ran out of the class as soon as it was over and she didn't stop until she was in the clearing in the Forbidden Forest.
"Fuck!"
Claire fell to her knees and was about to lose it when familiar arms wrapped around her from behind, wrapping her in an embrace that she longed for.
"I'm sorry. I've got you," Draco repeated over and over until she was barely shaking and the soft tears turned into just sniffles.
"I just want one year where nothing goes wrong," Claire whispered as Draco sat across from her, both of them sitting with their legs crossed and knees touching.
"I'm here," Draco assured her.
"It just feels like one thing after another. I thought that this would be my year to be happy, and everything is perfect other than that toad woman," Claire complained. "Is it too much to ask to have just one good year? Just one normal year?"
"There's always next year," Draco suggested. Claire laughed and started pulling up blades of grass.
"Next year isn't going to be good either," Claire sighed sadly. "You'd think that I wouldn't be as sad or freaked out since I see the future. But it's almost worse to see it. I live my life in anticipation of the bad things happening and feeling hopeless because I don't know when they're happening. I don't know why I feel so sad around other students and angry around another. I just have more questions than answers and they're pulling me down."
"I'm here to pull you up," Draco reminded her, a concerned look on his face.
"I know, but who am I to pull you down with me?" Claire asked him. "And it's not healthy to rely on someone else like that. I just have to do this on my own."
"What can I do to help?" Draco asked.
"Honestly, I need distractions," Claire admitted with a heavy sigh.
"Like a dance?" Draco suggested. Claire furrowed her eyebrows and tilted her head. "I was actually going to ask you to the Yule Ball before Leo did, but he was just too quick. I think that that's my biggest regret. So, may I have this dance?"
Claire grinned and let Draco grab her hand, pulling her up and then into his arms. They moved in sync with one another. Draco knew how to dance from years of being forced to balls, but Claire knew next to nothing so she just blindly let him guide her.
She realized just how lucky she was. Most people would run away when she opened up, but she had found people who wouldn't. She found people who accepted her for who she was and wanted to help her. She found true friends.
And maybe even true love.