After a while of walking around and clearing his head, Draco decided it was time to go back inside and face Katherine.
When he arrived in front of the painting with the old couple, he furrowed his eyebrows, feeling jealous.
The couple was cuddled up as they were talking, not having a single clue about the blonde guy that was watching them.
"Excuse me," he spoke up a few seconds later with a disapproving look in his eyes.
Both of them turned their heads towards him, an apologetic look appearing in their eyes.
"Oh, sorry, dear," the woman in the painting said to him. "We didn't expect any of you to come at this time. It's quite late, shouldn't you be sound asleep in your room already?"
Draco crossed his arms on his chest, getting annoyed.
"I believe my sleeping pattern is none of your business."
The old woman tilted her head, felling concern about the young boy.
"Is something worrying you, child? Have you and Katherine been fighting again?"
"What do you mean again?!"
"Well..."
"You know what?" The Slytherin raised his voice. "I don't care, I don't have time for this. To infinity and beyond."
The couple in front of him exchanged a confused look, making Draco confused as well.
"I said," Draco tried again, "to infinity and beyond."
They stared back at him with a pitying expression.
"Why are you not doing anything? Let me in!" He commanded, getting frustrated with the situation.
"Draco..." The old man started talking to him. "That's not the password."
The blonde's eyes widened at his words.
"Yes, it is. Stop messing around and let me in, I have to talk to Katherine."
"No, it's not," the woman said. "It was changed."
"What? When?!"
She just gave him a sad look.
"I'm sorry, but we cannot let you in unless you give us the right password. You could try to guess, though, it's similar to the last one."
He furrowed his eyebrows, deep in thought.
"To the Moon and back?"
"No."
"Forever and always?"
"No."
"Go beyond?"
"Where are you getting these from? But no, that's not correct either."
"This is ridiculous! You know this is my Common Room, you know exactly who I am! Let me in!"
"Sorry Mr Malfoy, but those are the rules," the man said. "No password, no entry."
"Where am I supposed to go, then? I have to sleep somewhere."
The couple just gave him a shrug.
"Those are the rules," he mumbled in a mocking way, sitting down next to the painting and leaning his back on the wall. "Just wait until my father hears about this..."
After a few seconds of silence, he heard the old woman's voice again.
"Do you perhaps want to talk about what happened?"
"Between me and Katherine, you mean?" He asked back, not bothering to move from his spot, he didn't wish to see their faces anyway.
"Yes."
"I guess, I have nothing better to do anyway since you two won't let me in."
He let out a sigh as he ran his hand through his blonde hair.
"Long story short, I received a letter from my parents, who would like to meet her, which in my opinion is pretty understandable. Katherine, on the other hand, got upset, so she decided to throw herself off the stairs and break her ankle in the process, so we couldn't go visit them, obviously. Then she got upset once again after she got out of the Hospital Wing, then she told me she wanted to be alone, so I let her be. I said I would be in the Common Room if she felt like talking to me again, but then I had to leave because of Blaise and now I'm stuck here."
"Poor girl," the woman said.
"Poor girl?!" The Slytherin scoffed. "If I'm not mistaken, she must be sleeping in the comfort of our bed right now, while I'm stuck out here in the cold corridor. You should be feeling sorry for me, not her."
"She must be really scared to meet your parents," she commented, ignoring everything he just said.
"Why would she be? They're my parents."
"Exactly."
"What are you trying to say?" He narrowed his eyes, though they couldn't see it.
"Have you met your parents, Mr Malfoy? They don't exactly seem like the welcoming type, I'm not at all surprised at the fact that she is afraid of meeting them."
Draco glanced down, thinking her words through.
Were his parents that bad?
He clenched his jaw, his eyes hardening.
"Still, we're going to get married in the future. She will have to meet them eventually, so why not get it over with?"
"Give her time, Draco. She's a really nice girl, but she's a bit slow. Let her get completely comfortable and used to you first, then I'm sure she will have no problem with meeting your parents."
"Excuse me, but who are you? You're talking like you know her so well."
"We do talk sometimes, so yes."
"Cool. Now leave me alone, I'm tired."
He expected the lady in the painting to keep bothering him, but she fell silent.
Trying to find the most comfortable position he could, the Slytherin tried his best to fall asleep. After a while, he somehow succeeded.
The corridor was pretty dark and silent, until the entrance of their Common Room opened, revealing a tired-looking Katherine.
She decided to stay up and wait for Draco to come back, but time passed and he was still gone, so she came out to try and search for him.
She didn't have to go far, though. The moment she stepped foot outside their Common Room, she noticed his body on the floor in a sitting position.
His head was resting on his arms, his eyes closed.
She crouched down next to him and started shaking his shoulder slightly in order to wake him up.
"Draco..." The Hufflepuff whispered. "Draco, wake up."
The boy narrowed his eyebrows, slowly opening his eyes to look at her.
"Katherine?" He asked tiredly.
"Yes. What are you doing out here?"
"I'm testing out what it's like to sleep on the corridor," he said sarcastically.
She was surprised at his ability to make a sarcastic comment just a few seconds after waking up.
"And?"
"It's not that great, I don't recommend trying it."
Katherine smiled, tilting her head to the side.
"You weren't informed about the new password, right?"
Draco nodded, not having the energy to make another comment.
She gave him a light smile, then she stood back up, reaching her hand out.
"Come on, let's go back inside."
"Are you not angry with me anymore?" He asked, looking up into her dark eyes.
"Right now I just feel sorry for you, you shouldn't be sleeping out here."
"Aw, are you concerned about me, Katherine?" He smirked while taking her hand.
She helped him up from the ground.
"Of course I am."
The Slytherin smiled, not letting go of her hand.
Katherine pulled him so they were standing in front of the painting. The couple was looking at them with a smile.
"There's a snake in my boots."
"There's a what in your what?" Draco asked with furrowed eyebrows.
"There's a snake in my boots," Katherine repeated herself while the door to their Common Room opened.
"What kind of password is that?"
"A cool one," the Hufflepuff grinned. "You wouldn't understand."
"Whatever, let's just go and sleep. I'm exhausted."
The girl nodded with a smile, then they made their way up to their room, their hands still intertwined.
A/N:
Hello, everyone. Sorry for ghosting you again.
Thank you for all of your kind comments & patience! I really appreciate you all!
I hope you are alright. Please stay home if you can & remember to wash your hands, etc. Take care and stay healthy, please!
I promise I will post the next update in a few days since I actually have time now.
Question: I don't plan on ending this story just yet, but when it does end, would you guys be interested in a story about their kids? I kind of have an idea, so I thought I would ask if you would read that or not.
Thank you for reading! I will be back soon! Have a great day!