Title: How We'll Always Be
Summary: Ah the Draco/Pansy relationship... Bewildering! Simply bewildering!
Disclaimer: I own some things..
A/N: I wanted to put a different spin on Pansy's character. There are probably a lot of different things in this story compared to the books etc etc but yeeaaaah.
Romance/Drama/Humor
According to Trelawney I'm optimistic, stubborn and going to be battling against The Grim... again. This woman's babbling never ceased for one second of the 45 minutes of torture I have to put myself through every Monday morning. Imagine having to wake up and then ten minutes later be shoved into a tiny room full of potent smells of lavender and some sort of weed. Not to mention the potent smells of Gryffindors whose egos take up 90 per cent of the room. This is why I felt so squashed and claustophobic as I sat near a small window which wouldn't even open. Why is it there if it doesn't even open? There isn't a fantastic view since all I can see are cobwebs and-
"No, a hippogriff means danger!" Ronald Weasley. Not even smarter than a skrewt let alone the class.
Those Gryffindors. Seeing them in dismay over what this tea cup meant or what that dream foretold was seriously the highlight of my day. Weasley's ears going red while Potter struggles to pick up the shards of broken tea cup off the floor. Pure bliss. Granger wasn't in this class. Dare I say it that she actually had a good idea for once. This had to be the most pathetic class in Hogwarts history.
"What are you doing tonight?" Draco leaned over and put his hand on my thigh.
"Studying." I replied monotonously.
"Why?" He whispered sharply as he tightened his grip.
"Why do you think?" A rhetorical question of course. And something that earned me an icey glare from Draco.
He turned away from me and started to talk to Crabbe and Goyle. Those two are too stupid to even be in Hufflepuff. The way they fawned over their "leader" again and again was positively sickening. Not that I can blame them; Draco had that special appeal and charm which got him to the top of most social ranks. Since first year he had been the most dominant Slytherin. Even more so than those older than him which I ultimately found very attractive.
"Can I borrow your quill?" I turned to look at who had tapped me on the shoulder.
"What's the magic word?" I smirked at Millicent who rolled her eyes at me. She snatched my quill without a word and continued writing out her parchment. I do enjoy Millicent's company but she has an annoying habit of neglecting personal hygiene. Just because the Head of our House is greasy beyond belief doesn't mean we have to follow in his footsteps.
"You my dear... the cup dear, the cup!" In the mean time, Trelawney had floated over to me, blinding me with her numerous revolting bangles.
"Well, what can you see?" She was almost hysterical with excitement. I simply stared at her, trying to muster up a reasonable answer.
"The Grim." She jumped at this. As did the Patil girl.
"Oh my dear..." Trelawney threw her hands up in the air and started pointing to something non-existant on the ceiling.
I sighed lazily and closed my eyes for a moment. I could hear the soft scratching of my quill behind me and Draco muttering something under his breath. Why was this class going so slow!
"Pansy..." I opened one eye and saw Draco staring at me.
"Hmm?" I hadn't enough energy to form a complete sentence.
"Will you be studying all night?" Draco asked quietly, leaning into me. His cologne was intoxicating, not to mention suffocating and mixed terribly with the scent of lavender.
I placed my hand on his, "I'm sure you can find some other girl to entertain you tonight."
Another glare. He had really perfected it over the years.
He smirked, "Fine with me." I'd be lying if I said his words didn't sting a bit.
"Good for you." I replied hastily. Possibly the worst comeback I've ever heard. Draco let out a harsh laugh and cocked his head to one side, staring at me intently.
"I'll just pretend your actually going to be studying and not blatantly lying to me then, shall I?" I felt my face go hot as he said this.
I glared back at him; A glare I'm proud to say is a worthy adversary of his own.
"What are you talking about?" My voice was rising but he remained unmoved,"Are you aware that O.W.L's are this year!"
Still no reply.
The bell rang and we both stood up at the same time. I snatched my quill back off Millicent who protested with a grunt and pushed past Draco quickly.
"What's the matter with you?" He asked sternly as he grabbed my wrist.
"Nothing." I huffed indignantly and made my way to the door, very aware that I was dragging Draco with me. I came to a halt as the rest of the class was filing out of the tiny doorway and subtley tried to pry his hand off me.
He started laughing when I was unable to even remove a finger. I felt so weak and vulnerable and apparently he found this very amusing.
"Isn't this how our first time began?" He stated arrogantly as a look of mirth crossed his haughty features.
"With me rejecting your advances? I think you're right!" He let go of my wrist and I managed to finally squeeze through the door and out onto the tower landing. Draco pushed his way past two Gryffindors and caught up with me on the stairs.
"Interesting theory... but that's not the way I remember it," We had arrived at the bottom of the stairs and allowed the crowd to rush past us,"The way I remember it is you wanting it just as much as me. Possibly even more." He smirked and pushed me gently into a corner, grabbing both my wrists as he did so.
"You have an awful memory then." I whispered sharply, his face only inches away from mine.
"Pansy?" I looked over Draco's shoulder to see Theodore Nott standing a few meters from us. Draco saw my gaze shift and turned his head to see who had interrupted, still holding onto me tight.
Smirking maliciously he said, "Well, well, well. Nott. Surely you have somewhere else to be? A dark corner perhaps, we all know how much you love those. Or maybe somewhere which requires no friends would be easier."
Theodore simply looked past him and straight at me.
"We still on for tonight, Pansy?" Draco's smirk faltered as he turned back to me. His look was indescribable; a mix of surprise, distaste...envy? I dropped my gaze and stepped out and away from him. I could feel his glare burning into the back of my head as I walked towards Theodore.
"Yes," I stuttered, trying to force a smile.
"Meet in the common room, say around 8ish?" I nodded at his reply and he smiled before striding down the corridor.
"Theodore." Draco spat loudly.
I stood in the same place for a while, with my back to Draco. This shouldn't be so awkward! I mustered up enough courage and spun around to see him leaning lazily against the stone wall.
"Poor choice if I say so myself," He sneered viciously and took a step towards me,"So you were lying."
My temper was starting to flare up, "Even if I was, it shouldn't make any difference! You have no right to pry into my private life."
His vicious tone faded slightly, "If it shouldn't make any difference then why did you lie?"
"It's not a lie Draco! Theodore and I are going to be studying tonight in the library."
He looked down at me with a small frown forming across his fine features.
"Is Draco Malfoy jealous?" I mused trying to lighten the dismal mood.
"Don't flatter yourself," he started to walk away from me,"As you said, I'll find someone else." I let out a quiet gasp. I'm brave enough to admit that these words cut reasonably deep.
"Someone with no spine since that's all you can handle!" I shouted as his pace quickened.
"You saying you have no spine Pansy?" He yelled back smugly when he was out of sight. Ugh!
I went to the library straight after dinner. I had told Theodore in Potions that I thought it best if we just met in the library instead. This was indeed harder to do than how I'm describing it now. Everytime I attempted to speak with him, Draco would conveniently interrupt me with some pointless question or rude comment. These are a few that stuck in my mind...
"I reckon the stress of O.W.L's is getting to you. Your skin used to be flawless!"
or
"Pansy, I reckon your starting to resemble a certain mudblood, what do you think?"
or my favourite one..
"I reckon you should go to the library instead of dinner. I'm sure your thighs would appreciate it."
He really is the most charming person I've ever come across. Eventually I settled on writing Theodore a note and slipping it into his robe pocket on the way out of Potions, an arrogant Draco Malfoy assuming he had succeeded.
Theodore arrived at the library right on time... unlike Draco who always showed up an hour late for no reason. The only reason I can think of is that he just enjoys being a jerk.
"Hey." I said simply as he took a seat opposite me at my secluded table. My seat actually had a view for a change. A reasonably entertaining view of the Quidditch pitch which was currently vacant.
He gave a quick smile which I took as a "hello". He began pulling out his books and setting up his quill. So efficient!
"Erm, okay. I was thinking we could start with Ancient Runes? I've always had trouble with that subject," He stared blankly at me,"I mean, if that's okay with you!" I said hurriedly, trying not to sound too bossy.
"Fine with me." He smiled at my hastiness. There was something calming about his smile. Perhaps it was because it was a genuine smile and not a smirk. Not that there's anything wrong with smirks...
"Okay, great! Maybe we could start by discussing the upcoming essay?" He nodded as I said this and I felt a strange relief wash over me.
Theodore didn't intimidate me. No one does. But throughout the night I caught myself on numerous occasions trying to gain his reassurance and eventually his trust. The latter was difficult to achieve since he was quiet and kept to himself. For a Slytherin, I found this fascinating. Even the way he had treated Draco earlier I found fascinating. This guy was very sure of himself and obviously needed no one else to make him realise so.
"So, how's fifth year treating you?" I asked politely for conversations sake. About two hours into the study session, I had come to realise that I knew very little about the guy sitting across from me.
"Not bad. A lot of work though as I'm sure you've realised for yourself." He laughed quietly as I nodded and gestured at my essay in disgust. Conversation was flowing much more smoothly than it had done when we first started.
"Why did you ask me to study with you?" Theodore put down his quill and stared at me.
"Well, I just, erm," Is it weird that I actually didn't know?,"I know you're a good student who isn't afraid to study for his brilliant results, even if it's classified as not-very-Slytherin by a vast majority of our House."
"Perhaps more so by one person in particular." He muttered under his breath. I laughed loudly and earned a glare from Madam Pince.
"Draco is naturally smart and rarely studies. Very fortunate for his fragile ego but unfortunate for the rest of us." He joined in with my laughter since I understood where he was coming from. The tenseness between us had considerably lessened.
"So how long have you two been together?" He asked suddenly. I coughed to hide my surprise and began staring out the window. The Quidditch pitch was no longer vacant as swirls of blue flew around the goal posts.
"Oh. We're not an item." I felt my cheeks redden slightly. This sort of topic was always awkward especially with someone I hardly knew.
His brows furrowed when I said this,"Really? I always thought-"
"You thought wrong." I snapped quickly. Ah, yes. The Slytherin side of Pansy. Always a joy.
"My apologies." He smiled hesitantly and sat back in his chair, arms folded across his chest defensively.
"No, I'm sorry I snapped at you." And now the "other" side of Pansy. The one I couldn't label as anything specific. The nice side?...I laughed inwardly. Let's not exaggerate.
Once again, that reassuring smile spread across his face as he leant forward and put his hand on my arm gently.
"All in the past." A simple statement that meant so much to me. An underrated statement if I say so myself and one that more Slytherins should try to adopt.
"Well, don't we look cosy here?" I turned my head to see Draco swaggering up to our table.
He shot an icey glare at Theodore,"Weren't you just leaving?" Theodore kept quiet. How does he manage to contain himself?!
"Prefect duties Pansy," Draco sneered bluntly, "or has Nott been so devastatingly charming that you've forgotten what day it is?" I stood up and glared at him.
"Sorry Theodore," I said this without my eyes leaving Draco,"To my extreme displeasure, he's right." Draco raised an eyebrow at me before I turned to pack up my things.
"Same time next week?" I asked Theodore as I got ready to leave.
He nodded kindly. I smiled warmly. Draco's smirk vanished.
A/N: The story continues...perhaps...review?