You’re slipping, my mind taunted me, your secret will soon be obvious if you’re not careful. My mind kept repeating what I should have done, until I snapped at it outloud.

When I was finished I dried myself off and dressed in the shower cell self-consciously. I barely glanced at the long, jagged scars on my stomach and my wrists. I was too ashamed to even look at them. They were just another secret in my long line of such.
 
 
 
 

 “Being in Gryffindor isn’t easy, you know!” I said slightly louder. “You don’t have to deal with them insulting our family!”

 
Draco's eyes softened, and he sat down next to me.
 
“Yeah, I can imagine it’d be hard."

Later, after dinner, I decided to put my date-Ron plan into action. I gathered up all my homework and found my victim sitting on the couch with Harry on one side. I grinned, hoping that I didn’t look too mischievous, and plopped down on Ron’s free side, a little bit closer than I normally would have sat. He gave me a surprised glance, and then smiled.
 

As Marko's friendship with Harry seems to be falling apart, a new relationship will seemingly blossom out of its ashes.