Draco was released from the Hospital Wing the day after Ariana had visited him. He begrudgingly returned to classes, avoiding any questions as to where he had been. The pain in his torso was lessening by the day, but the scars that he had been left with were too hard for him to even look at.
He had gone straight back to trying to fix the Vanishing Cabinet, a new found determination within him to not fail his task. Ariana would accompany him at meals when he talked himself into having a break, but this was usually when most students had finished their own meals and the Great Hall was emptying.
He had passed Potter a few times in the corridors since leaving the Hospital Wing, both of them glaring daggers into each other but never speaking. The long lectures he had had to endure from Severus since the incident made him feel like he was the one being punished instead of Potter. It was mostly talks about the importance of his task and, to Draco's immense frustration, staying away from Ariana.
After one of these conversations, finding himself incredibly agitated at constantly being watched and ordered around by others, he entered the Great Hall one evening to eat early, his eyes scanning for only one person.
"Draco, you're finally joining us!" Pansy appeared beside him, beaming.
Peering over her head, he barely looked at her. "I'm actually looking for someone."
"Everyone is at the table already." She said, grabbing his sleeve.
He spotted her coming through the large doors, her Hufflepuff friends by her side. He felt unfamiliar nerves surge in the pit of his stomach, but he ignored them. He moved past Pansy before reaching out to grab Ariana's hand to halt her. She turned to face him, the confusion on her face quickly disappearing, a smile taking its place.
"Draco." She said, not pulling her hand away from his. Susan and Leanne looked on with wide eyes, as did Pansy nearby.
She had not expected to see him here, but she was very glad to. He had changed out of his robes and now wore a shirt and trousers, all black, back to looking as flawless as he had at the beginning of the school year. Even whilst looking so underweight and tired, she found herself forgetting to breathe at the sight of him.
"Walk with me." He said, lifting her hand slightly.
The gesture seemed so small, but she was taken aback by how gentlemanly it had been. And so unexpected.
"Of course." She replied, feeling her face redden. She gave Leanne and Susan a grin before following Draco back towards the doors, her hand still in his.
She forced herself not to turn around to witness Pansy's face.
It was close to the end of Spring, so it wasn't completely dark out yet, and there was still a warm breeze in the air. They walked out to the grounds, past the greenhouses and towards the owlery. There were students still scattered about, but no one seemed to notice the two of them.
"I apologize for pulling you away from your friends." Draco said as they walked.
"Don't be sorry." Ariana replied. "I'm happy you asked me to walk with you. Are we... walking somewhere in particular?"
Draco smirked and shook his head. "I just wanted to see you."
Ariana had to work hard to compose herself with that comment. "How are you feeling?"
"Nearly one hundred percent again." He said, knowing she was talking about the incident. He wasn't even close to one hundred percent in other regards, though.
"Thank goodness." She breathed out. He noticed her hand on her heart again. Precious.
They eventually reached the owlery and made their way up the stairs towards the top, knowing that there wouldn't be anyone up there at this time. It was becoming slightly darker outside now, but the top of the tower always stayed lit with lanterns.
"How are things with the cabinet?" She asked him as they ascended the stairs.
The last thing Draco wanted to do was talk about the bloody cabinet, but he knew it was a fair question for her to ask. "Still working on it."
It was part of the reason he wanted to see her; if he didn't have much time left, he wanted to spend as much of it as possible doing what he wanted to do. They got to the very top and he watched Ariana walk straight over to an owl and begin patting it, her voice high as she spoke to it.
"Is it your's?" He asked her.
"Nope." She replied, walking over to another owl and then another. "They're just so beautiful."
Draco leaned against the wall of the tower, his arms crossed, watching her coo at all the owls, laughing quietly to himself as he heard her say things like "hello little babies" and "oh wow, such a handsome boy". He knew that anyone else doing this would have disgusted him, but not with her. She was his exception.
Ariana finished greeting and complimenting all the owls and then made her way over to Draco, standing in front of him, her cheeks pink. "Sorry. Can't help myself."
Draco let his arms fall to his sides. "You're just too good for this world, Winters." He said, still smiling.
She snorted. "Yeah, right."
They gazed at each other in silence for a moment, the warm breeze moving their hair slightly. The owls hooted softly nearby, and Draco inhaled the cinnamon scent of Ariana's hair. His heart pounded and he felt something stir inside him. With his back still against the wall, he leaned towards her and kissed her, praying she would kiss him back.
She did almost instantly, so he brought his hand up and held the back of her head gently. He felt her fingers graze his jaw and a shiver ran down his spine. It prompted him to deepen the kiss, his hand moving from her head to the side of her neck, his other hand on her waist.
Ariana gripped the front of Draco's shirt with her free hand, overwhelmed with how close he was at that moment. She felt as if his breath was the only air she could survive on.
Draco pushed off the wall and spun around until Ariana was up against the stone, emitting a small gasp at the sudden movement. Her head spun violently as she felt his knee push her legs apart slightly, his thigh providing much needed friction to her core.
The accidental moan that slipped out of her lips shot straight through him, his hand tightening on her waist. He was surrounded by the smell of the fresh night air and cinnamon, his mouth desperate to taste more of her. Unexpectedly, Ariana nipped at his bottom lip and Draco groaned, suddenly very close to being pushed over the metaphorical edge.
He pulled back, leaning his forehead against hers. "You're killing me, Winters."
Those eyes of hers that he had always described as 'sleepy' were suddenly so sultry, leaving him almost breathless.
As Draco dipped his head to kiss her again, Ariana couldn't hold in a question that had been on her mind her for years. "Why me, Draco?"
He paused, lips barely brushing hers. Ariana wondered if he was confused by her question, his stillness making her heart pound. The breeze made her shiver slightly.
But Draco wasn't confused. He often wondered if she would ever ask him that question. He had always been nervous of her asking, as he had no idea how to answer it.
"It was always you."
It wasn't an answer to her question, as there wasn't really a definite answer. He thought back to all the times over the years he had been a complete prat, laughing at other's expense, pretending he was better than everyone around him, acting as if being a Malfoy made him special. And whilst people either turned on him, cowered from him, or followed him, she did none of those things. She saw him for who he was, even when he had no idea who that was. Until this year.
"If I'm going to die, I need you to know that I've always wanted you." He said, tilting her head up gently.
Ariana kissed the corner of his mouth softly, willing herself not to cry. "Why can't we run away?"
Draco swallowed the lump forming in his throat. "I wish it were that simple, Ariana."
"I'd follow you anywhere." She said, that determined look in her eyes again.
The feeling in his chest was overwhelming; was it fear? Adoration? Sadness? He took her face in both hands and kissed her again, feeling a familiar wetness on his cheek. When he pulled away from her to check her eyes for tears, he realized they were his own.
He didn't want to die. Especially not now she knew everything.
*****
With the night of the Yule Ball upon them, everybody was up in their dorm rooms getting ready. Ariana appreciated how much easier it was getting ready for an event with magic in comparison to without it in the muggle world, but she was still incredibly nervous.
She had gone dress shopping a few days earlier with Susan, Hannah, Leanne, and Megan, all of them picking out dresses together. Ariana had picked a black, floor length dress, the top half of it sleeveless lace, then transitioning into a chiffon bottom half, a split up one side. It had been enchanted to sparkle, even in the dark. The other girls had gone with equally beautiful dresses, but in brighter colors. They had insisted that black was 'her color'.
She had used her wand to curl her hair and spent much too long perfecting her makeup. With the help of Glamour charms, they were all able to ensure their skin was flawless and bright, and that their hair would not move throughout the night.
The group left the dorm and made their way down to the common room, where Justin and Ernie, Leanne and Hannah's dates for the night, were waiting. Megan would meet her date, Terry Boot, at the Great Hall. Ariana and Susan had been happy to just go with each other, not exactly feeling confident enough to ask any boys or having been asked by anyone else.
"Looking beautiful, ladies." Ernie announced once they were all downstairs. "We better get down there."
"Such a sweet talker." Hannah laughed as she took his arm.
Once outside the Great Hall, Ariana could feel her nerves getting worse as she looked around at everyone else attending the ball. They were all so beautiful, and she suddenly felt very out of place. Like she didn't belong in a dress like this. Her confidence had taken a slight hit at not being asked to be anybody's date to the Ball.
They were soon lead into the hall, the decorations so beautiful that all Ariana could do was gawk.
"Ari!" Susan called, getting her attention.
She was waving her over to stand with the rest of them, as the Tri Wizard Tournament Champions would soon enter.
She jumped slightly as the music started, and one-by-one, the Champions began entering, each with a date on their arm. They cheered loudest for their own Cedric Diggory, proud that Hufflepuff was finally getting some recognition.
Then the dances began. She did not envy them having to dance whilst all eyes were on them. She was happy to dance afterwards knowing that nobody cared enough to watch her.
After the dance had ended, the music moved on to a new but familiar song. One that they had been practicing before the Ball, and required them to switch partners throughout the dance. Ariana took her place on the dance floor, across from her partner like everybody else, and began the waltz. She and Susan giggled to each other as they danced, their hands touching as they circled around one another.
After a few counts, she moved up the line to a different partner, the next few people she wasn't very familiar with, so she blushed through the whole thing. As she moved on to her last partner for the dance, her heart skipped a beat.
Draco Malfoy was dressed in stunning black dress robes, his expression soft as he held out his hand to her. She slowly placed her hand in his, having to remind herself that this was only a dance routine.
They way he moved made her wonder how long he had been dancing for. Was this something that pureblood families taught? She wasn't an awful dancer, but she looked like she had two left feet in comparison.
Draco cursed himself for only have two eyes in that moment. The way her hair fell around her face as she turned her head, how her dress twirled and flared out at her feet, the slight glimmer to her perfect, olive skin. She was a vision and he wanted to be able to watch every inch of her as they danced.
With her hand placed against his, her fingers so delicate, he worried he'd break her if squeezed it.
They kept their eyes locked on one another as the dance continued, their expressions unreadable, both not wanting the moment to end. But it was no time at all before it did end, the song concluding, partners bowing to each other.
Ariana sucked in a breath as she watched Draco bow slowly in front of her, his eyes not leaving hers. She felt so warm she had to stop herself from fanning her face with her own hand. Merlin, he was perfect. With her hands clasped in front of her, she dipped her head slightly and smiled sweetly at him.
Before either of them could speak, the music had changed to something much more upbeat, the dance floor becoming rowdy and crowded, swallowing them both before separating them completely.