A/N: Chapter 3! Hope you like it <3
***
It was weird being back at Hogwarts. Something about it still didn't feel right. After the war, it was unimaginable for you to come back here and finish school. But they took their time and closed it off for over a year. The school got rebuilt, the victims buried, the survivors tried to heal and move on. On the first anniversary of the end of the war, McGonagall – the new headmistress of Hogwarts – publicly announced that the school would open for the coming year and the seventh graders were given the chance to repeat their year.
You were excited about coming back and seeing your friends again, gaining a little bit of normalcy. School, homework, petty drama – you wanted nothing more than to be busy with all of those things. Yet something felt different when you stood in the Great Hall for the first time after your arrival. Something had changed. You had changed.
"You're daydreaming again, Y/N."
Ginny's voice pulled you back into reality. Your best friend sat across from you with her eyebrows raised, chewing on a croissant.
"Tired," you replied and smiled briefly.
"From what?", she asked. "You left super early last night!"
"Yeah, because it was super boring."
The redhead shook her head. "It was not! There was a fight between two Hufflepuffs and that's the best indicator for a fun party."
You chuckled. "Is it though?!"
"Or," suddenly she put down her croissant. A devious smile appeared on her face and she began talking with a lowered voice: "Did you leave the party early with your date to –"
"I beg you to not finish that sentence, please!"
Ginny laughed. "Oh come on! McLaggen is kinda cute!"
"He's awful."
"He doesn't need a good character to –"
"Ginny!" You playfully threw an apple at her. She caught it, laughing. "You're the worst," you said and shook your head.
Just when you wanted to change the topic, someone else started walked in. You stopped midsentence, staring at the couple who were coming down the hall, holding hands.
Ginny saw them too and she knew what you were about to do next. "Don't, Y/N," she said softly. "Stay here. At some point, you'll have to face them. They're our friends. He's my brother. We have classes together now."
You knew she was right. Yet, running away still seemed like a better option to you. Ginny sensed that, reached over the table and squeezed your hand. "Stay," she repeated.
Ron and Hermione sat down right beside you, cheerfully wishing you a good morning. You didn't reply but smiled at Harry instead who sat down next to Ginny and gave her a kiss. They were a cute couple and you were happy for the both of them. They finally found each other.
The four began to talk right away. It was still exciting to be in the same year as them, to finally share classes and spend so much time together. Well, not for you to be honest. You could happily live without seeing Ron every day.
You tuned out their conversation after a while, still debating whether or not you should leave the table. Your eyes drifted over the other students in the Great Hall and got stuck at the Slytherins. Not many people sat there as most of them had already finished breakfast. Before you knew what you were doing, you noticed he wasn't here.
You felt a little sting of disappointment and frowned. Where did this came from? As if you cared about seeing Malfoy.
Saying that you didn't replay that kiss in your mind over and over again would have been a lie. When you left the small room last night, you felt dizzy and confused. Yet you repeatedly told yourself that the kiss meant nothing. It happened so you didn't get caught. Good god, it was Draco Malfoy, probably the last person in this school you wanted to kiss (well, besides McLaggen). So no. This kiss didn't mean anything.
"Y/N?", you turned your head when Hermione said your name.
"Why are you staring at the Slytherins?", she asked.
You shrugged but the blush on your cheeks betrayed you. "No reason. I was thinking."
She frowned. Ginny and Harry looked at each other in confusion.
"So? What is it?", you asked.
"Right, um, we wanted to ask if you'd like to come play Quidditch with us?"
You raised an eyebrow. "Since when do you play Quidditch?"
"Ron taught me over the summer," she smiled at her boyfriend. "Besides, they have to try out for the team in two weeks anyways so why not practice a little."
You looked at Ron who stared at his plate. He probably felt as comfortable with the thought of you playing together as you did. The way he avoided your eyes made you angry though.
"No, sorry", you quickly said and suddenly stood up. "Homework." This was it. You had to leave.
***
You gritted your teeth angrily as you made your way up the stairs. God, you still hated him for how he treated you three months ago. You were supposed to be friends and he fucked it all up. Now you could barely stand the sight of him and every encounter left you feeling like you needed to punch a brick wall.
Being so lost in your thoughts, you almost ran around the corner, crashing into someone.
"Watch it, Y/L/N!"
Great.
"Watch it yourself, Malfoy!", you snapped.
Draco Malfoy stood in front of you, one hand in the pocket of his pants, the other gripping your arm to prevent you from falling down. It must have been out of instinct because as soon as he realized he was touching you, he let go as if you were a hot plate.
"Someone got up on the wrong side of the bed," he stated dryly.
"Shut up," you mumbled, lowering the tone of your voice a little. "And let me through."
He did neither. "Did McLaggen find you after all?!"
"None of your business, Malfoy!" With that, you pushed him aside and continued walking down the corridor. You were too mad for Malfoys bullshit.
"Y/L/N!" Apparently he was particular talkative this morning.
You ignored him.
"I couldn't care less for your obvious boy troubles –"
Who did he think he was?!
"– however, I still have something that belongs to you."
This made you stop dead in your tracks and turn around. "What?", you asked, brows furrowed in confusion.
He smirked. "Your shoe."
Oh. Oops.
Annoyed, you shrugged. "So give it back to me."
"It's in the Slytherin common room."
"I'd rather die than go down there."
"I'd change the attitude if I were you. After all, you want something from me," his voice grew colder.
You were unimpressed by that. "Make me," you shot back.
There it was again – that look on his face. The same look he had yesterday as he gazed over your body in the small room. It made you shiver – and for a second you weren't sure if it was the good or the bad kind of shiver.
Then he smirked again: "Quidditch field. Tonight after dinner." And while he already started walking backwards he added: "I'd rather die than be caught talking to a Gryffindor."
Goddamn Slytherins.
***
It was unusually cold for a September night. You shivered and zipped up your jacket, regretting that you didn't bring a scarf. No student or teacher seemed to be outside at this time, only the occasional crow flying above your head and the rustling of leaves accompanied you on your way to the Quidditch field.
The reason why Malfoy chose the Quidditch field of all places to give you back your shoe was beyond your knowledge. Yet you didn't complain. In about half an hour, your friends would join you. Before the war, this was one of your favourite spots to just hang out and talk.
When you arrived on the field, it took you a while to spot Malfoy. He sat way up on the bleachers. You groaned and made your way up the stairs. Malfoy didn't notice that you came as he was busy writing something in a small green notebook. Huh. Interesting.
He flinched when you sat down beside him and quickly closed the book.
"What are you writing?", you asked curiously.
Malfoy pretended not to hear your question and instead reached inside his bag. "Here," he pulled out your shoe, handing it to you.
"Thanks," you put in the small bag you brought. "So what are you writing?"
He looked at you with an annoyed expression. "You have what you want so you can go."
"You're no fun, Malfoy."
"Says the Gryffindor."
"Excuse me?", you raised an eyebrow. "We're more fun than all the Slytherins combined."
"Right," he scoffed.
Still, you didn't move or leave so with a sigh, he added: "Do you have no friends to bother?"
You grinned. "I do. In fact, they'll be here in –", you took a look at your watch, "– twenty minutes."
Malfoy rolled his eyes. "Perfect."
"Why did you tell me to meet you here?"
"I was gonna be here anyways," he shrugged. "Easier to make you come to me."
You ignored his sly remark. "You were going to be here anyways? Alone?"
Another shrug.
Leaning back, you watched Malfoy from the side. He had dark circles under his eyes and kept his gaze focused on the field, his fingers playing with the sides of the notebook. Something (beside you sitting next to him) bothered him.
"So what was up with you this morning?", he broke the silence.
You raised an eyebrow. "As if you care."
"No," he admitted. "But you're obviously not leaving until your friends come and that question might make you stop staring at me."
You chuckled softly. Then you realized that he was actually waiting for an answer. "Nothing important."
"I figured."
"You're a jerk."
"Probably," Malfoy stated without any emotion in his voice.
You were silent for a few seconds. Part of you wanted to get up and leave. After all, Malfoy was probably the last one you could trust. He didn't care and it was literally none of his business. You didn't even like each other. Keeping it simple and vague was probably the best approach: "Dumb stuff, really. Like you said – boy troubles."
Malfoy shifted without noticing it, turning his body more towards you, leaning in a little. "Well, now I'm curious. Who managed to make Y/L/N this mad and can he teach me?"
"I don't know if you're keen on Ron being your teacher," the sentence just slipped out. You regretted it right away.
Malfoys eyes widened. "No fucking way." Then he began to smirk – that evil, 'I'm-better-than-you'-smirk he had perfected over the years.
Your face felt like it was on fire and you were glad it was getting dark already. Maybe he wouldn't notice the blush. "Oh, be quiet!"
"Weasley?", he scoffed, not believing it. He stared at you with quite the interest now. There seemed to be a lot more to you than he would have guessed. "How the fuck did that happen? Isn't he dating the ... isn't he dating Granger?"
You knew what he wanted to call her but were surprised that he stopped himself. That never happened before.
"Yes, he is," you mumbled and gave him a suggestive look.
This caused Malfoy to laugh. It was a dry, short laugh. He leaned back a little. "You're kidding, right? Fucking hell, Weasel managed to not only screw you but do so while dating Granger?"
"I like how eloquently you phrased that," you said sarcastically.
He ignored you. "How did that happen?"
"Okay, first of all", you began, "... they weren't dating when it happened. I'm not a homewrecker, that's probably more of a Slytherin thing."
"Does she know?"
"Know what?"
"Does Granger know you two f–"
"Geez, Malfoy, watch your language," you interrupted him quickly, before you added: "And no."
"So cheating isn't a Gryffindor thing but lying is?", Malfoy concluded, smirking again. "Good to know."
"Oh, shut up," you raised your chin. You were right about this in the beginning – you shouldn't have told him anything. How were you supposed to get this right? Even though there was no reason for you to explain yourself to him, you still felt the need to: "They were going through a crisis and broke up and well ... I spent a few weeks with their family and I always considered Ron a good friend but ... but something happened. And then he ended things with me and got back together with Granger. Well, he got back together with her first and announced it in front of everyone, including me."
"That's how he told you that you two were over?"
You nodded. "Yup."
"Phew," Malfoy let out a whistle. "Wow. I must admit, I'm impressed."
"Sure you are."
Suddenly Malfoys facial expression changed from amusement to confusion. "So what's the big deal now? You two screwed a few times and now he's playing house with Granger again."
You sent him another suggestive glance which caused him to let out another laugh.
"Please don't tell me you got feelings for the Weasel," he said in complete disbelief. Then his eyes suddenly began to wander further down and you realized he was looking at your ... body. Rude. Before you got the chance to put him in his place, he simply said: "You can do a lot better, y'know."
Oh. This was unexpected. You felt a blush creeping up your cheeks again and felt actually a little flattered by his words. Yet, they confused you. Why would he give a Gryffindor a compliment?! Was there a hidden insult in it? Maybe a slight undertone you didn't notice?
"It goes without saying that this conversation stays between us," you cleared your throat. "No one knows about this whole mess except Ginny. And you."
Malfoy nodded. "You put an awful lot of trust in me."
"Don't disappoint me then."
The two of you were quiet for a few moments. It was almost completely dark by now and a nervous glance to your watch made you aware that Ginny and the rest of her friends might appear any second now. The silence grew uncomfortable after a while.
"What's up with that whole engagement thing, you mentioned yesterday?", you wanted to know, remembering that weird comment of him. "And don't act all mysterious again. I told you my mess now you have to share yours."
Malfoy snorted. "Ask away."
This was easier than expected. "Are you dating the little Greengrass?" Totally understandable if he was – Astoria was the perfect mixture of smart and drop dead gorgeous. A lot of guys were into her.
"No."
"She called you 'honey'."
"Yes."
You frowned. "I'm confused."
"Do I really have to explain to you how pureblood marriages work?", Malfoy said with a mocking undertone.
"Of course not. I just thought we left that behind us when the war ended", you remarked.
He gave a dismissive wave of his hand. "As if hundreds of years of tradition can be forgotten with one war."
"So you're forced to marry her?", you tried to understand the situation better.
"No, it's an arranged marriage which is not even official yet," Malfoy shifted slightly. "Mother would like it because the Greengrass family is still respected and ..."
"... rich."
He glanced at you quickly. "We lost a lot."
"I bet," you scoffed.
Abruptly, Malfoy got up and grabbed his bag. "I should leave."
Out of instinct, you extended your hand to reach for him but stopped just inches in front of his arm. "No, I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that", you apologized. Feelings of guilt and pity appeared inside of you as you didn't expect him to be so openly hurt by what you said. "I heard ... well, everyone heard about the trials and your parents and all that. Sorry."
Malfoy hesitated but then sat down again. His whole demeanour had changed in just seconds. He had almost been ... approachable but now the look in his eyes was as cold as ice again.
You cleared your throat. "Do you want to marry her?"
He didn't answer right away. You wondered what went through his head in this moment.
"I don't ask myself that."
The answer didn't surprise you. "Why not?", you tried to dig deeper.
Again, a few seconds passed before he mumbled: "No, I don't want to marry her. I hardly know her."
"Hmm," you nodded. "Does she want to marry you?"
"I don't know", he gave a half shrug. "She had a thing with Zabini over the summer so I guess ... I'm probably not her first choice."
The answer to all of his problems seemed so easy, you thought. Yet it would be met with much apprehension. Traditional pureblood families like his were difficult when it came to this stuff.
Knowing what his reaction would be, you still had to say it: "So don't get engaged." Before he could reply, you raised your hand. "Yeah, I know, traditions and all that bullshit. Why don't you just start breaking traditions?"
Malfoy shook his head. "My family works a little different than yours.
"Not that different to be honest", you whispered under your breath.
He heard you and you were met with a very confused look. When you didn't elaborate, he continued talking: "Anyways, I can't. I could try to postpone but I'd need a very convincing reason."
"Like?"
"Another girl from a good family."
"And?"
"And what?"
A grin appeared on your face. "There are at least ten girls I can name right away who'd love to get a shot with you."
Seriously, even most of the Gryffindor girls your age had been crushing on Malfoy at least once. He was very attractive and clever and that whole 'bad boy'-act made quite a few girls weak in their knees. You had noticed this too but being so close friends with Ginny and Harry those thoughts never found room to grow inside of you. In your mind, Malfoy had always been an arrogant jerk. Still is, you corrected yourself quietly.
"Have you spoken with them since I became a –"
... a Death Eater, you finished the sentence in your head. Looking at the young man in front of you, wearing his school scarf while sitting in a sports stadium, the whole concept of him being a dangerous criminal just seemed absurd to you.
"Besides it's a dumb idea", he continued. "It would be a fake relationship and no one in their right mind would agree to that." He let out a dry laugh. "Only a Gryffindor can think of something like that."
In that moment, your eyes met. Never before did you notice the unusual colors in them like you did now. The piercing grey reminded you of storm clouds on an autumns day. Yeah, a fake relationship. Who in their right mind would ... Unless ...
The sudden thought that appeared in your mind made you flinch. He seemed to be thinking the same when he quickly broke the eye contact, straightening up and staring over at the field.
You got up in a rush, swinging your back over your shoulder. To your big relief, Ginny and your friends had just entered the Quidditch field. Their laughter echoed through the whole area.
„I should go. There's Ginny."
He nodded. "Right."
"Thanks for the shoe." Could this situation be any more awkward?! You doubted it. Hastily you turned around and almost stumbled over your own feet when you made our way back to the stairs. Something else came suddenly to your mind.
"Oh, and Malfoy?", you stopped. He didn't turn to look at you but you knew he heard you by the way he slightly moved his head. "I know a lot of fucked up stuff happened and pureblood families are the worst but ... but don't spend the rest of the year sitting here alone. I bet that there are still quite a few of your Slytherin friends that want to spend time with you."
There was nothing you expected him to say in response to that so it surprised you when he suddenly said your name. "Y/L/N?"
"Yes?"
"Get over Weasley. It's beneath you."
You were glad he didn't see the big grin on your face.
***
Ginny was surprised to see you coming down the stairs and running across the field. She wondered what you did up there and frowned when he saw a guy sitting there with the all too familiar white-blond hair.
"Is that Malfoy up there? Were you talking to him?", she wanted to know when you finally reached the group.
"Oh, um," you stuttered. "We ran into each other."
Ginny squinted her eyes. "Right", she doubted. "How did you –"
Bang! You let out a short scream at the sudden noise.
"Sorry!" Someone shouted and a very distressed looking Seamus Finnigan appeared behind dark smoke.
"What the hell did you do?" Ginny squeaked and with that she forgot all about Malfoy.
You looked back up to where he was sitting just a minute ago. He was gone now. A weird feeling was left inside of you after the rather unusual conversation you had with the Slytherin. You shook your head, trying to get rid of it and turned your full attention back to your friends.