A/N: Hey guys! This is my first real fanfic good enough to publish. So… Tell me what you think! Enjoy! Oh, and criticism and love are both welcome!
Disclaimer: I do not own the Harry Potter book or movie series. If I did, this would have happened.
"Faith Matthews." Every head turned to the group of First Years and Professor Snape froze.
"What an American name?!" a Slytherin called out.
"Somebody better go make her a bloody corndog!" another shouted.
"Maybe if we feed her some fish and chips, she'll become more British!"
Rude comments and laughter filled the Great Hall as Snape stood. "Silence!" he demanded.
Everyone fell silent and turned to the teachers' table. Snape actually stood up for a First Year? How bizarre. A short, skinny girl pushed her way through the mass of First Years and Snape kept a close eye on her. Once he got a closer look at her, he knew that this was definitely her. Before she could ever approach it, the Sorting Hat announced a house name.
"Slytherin!" The Hall fell silent of murmur and every pair of eyes glued themselves to Faith.
A small smile found its way to Snape's lips as the First Years made a path down the center of the group. Faith made her way down the perfect walkway that was formed just for her, he long blonde hair looking as if it disappeared as it faded to black, but was beautifully noticeable as her curls gently moved against her robes. Unlike the others, she sat at the other end of the table, secluding herself from the other Slytherins. All eyes were on her; an American student who didn't have to approach the Sorting Hat to be announced Slytherin and was stood up for by Snape. She stood out and it made everyone uncomfortable.
After the rest of the students had been sorted and the feast had begun, all eyes turned to the food; all but the striking gray pair belonging to a blonde Second Year Slytherin; one that Snape knew very well and wanted to keep Faith away from at all costs; well not the boy, just his family. He kept a close eye on the boy as he stood.
"I'll be right back," the boy mumbled to his friends. They all shrugged as he walked towards Faith.
He sat in the seat in front of her and she briefly looked up from the book she had in her hand. She looked back to her page and continued to read. "Can I help you?" she asked in a snobby voice.
The Great Hall fell silent and turned to the Slytherin table when they heard her unfamiliar accent. A proud smile threatened Snape's lips and he continued eating, trying to hide how proud he was of her.
"Well, I can see why you're a Slytherin," the boy said glaring up to tell everyone to look back at their food. They obliged, but stayed silent. "You've got a lot of nerve talking to a Second Year like that, especially me."
"What makes you so special?" she asked closing her book and looking at him. "Do you really think you're going to get extra respect just because you're Draco Malfoy? I should give you less, just for that absurd assumption."
A loud "oh!" spread through the hall, but Draco just smiled.
"You know who I am?" he asked, his face lighting up.
"I'm American, not stupid," she responded with a slight look of disgust on her face. "No offence, wait, I actually want you to be offended. What do you want?"
"Well, you're all alone," he said quietly. "I just thought that you could use some company."
"How very Hufflepuff of you," she almost whispered.
"Everyone needs a little Hufflepuff sometimes."
An "Awe" erupted from the Gryffindor table and every pair of eyes shot back to the two Slytherins. Not noticing, the two continued to stare at each other. They both knew that there was something special about the other and felt as if they would do anything to find out what it was. Students began turning in their seats, plates of food in their hands, to watch them like they were in a muggle cinema. For the first time, Draco didn't care. Faith's eyes were a soft green, but still looked dangerous, sending chills down his spine. She almost reminded him somewhat of Snape.
Almost.
"What's your name again?" he asked. He swore he felt a leg brush against his and his face turned red until he looked like someone glued a Gryffindor tie to his face.
"Faith Matthews," she whispered, starting to blush herself.
He opened his mouth to stay a cheesy pick-up line (probably something stupid like "If I was a professor, I would give you ten points just for being so beautiful") but cut himself off when he noticed everyone standing to leave.
"We better get going," he said looking down.
"Malfoy!" an annoyingly familiar voice yelled.
"What do you want, Potter?" Draco spat.
"Leave the girl alone. I'm sure you're making her uncomfortable," Hermione responded for him.
"Oh no, Ms. Granger, he's actually making me feel quite welcome. You're the one making me uncomfortable." Faith gave her a condescendingly warm smile, gathered her things, and walked out of the Great Hall to the Slytherin common room.
Hermione clenched her jaw and walked out of the hall, Harry following close behind. Ron stayed behind and looked to Draco. "Did you find that attractive as well?" Draco nodded. "Glad I'm not the only one."
Ron rushed to catch up with his friends and Draco looked around the hall; he had the strangest feeling in his stomach. He felt a tall presence behind him and turned around.
"Mr. Malfoy," Snape said glaring down at him. "I want you to stay away from Ms. Matthews. It is now my job to protect her from everything and that includes you. Am I understood?" Draco nodded and gulped and Snape smiled. "Good. Now get to your house. I don't want you to be late for potions in the morning and I believe Faith needs rescuing from your little girlfriend." His face shrunk up.
"You mean Pansy?" Draco asked, about to burst into laughter. "She is not my girlfriend."
"No matter, Mr. Malfoy, please return to your house."
"Yes, Professor," Draco mumbled.
"And give this back to Ms. Matthews, please." Snape handed him a Second Year Potions book and left.
Draco stared at the book. Why does she have a Second Year book? he thought to himself. He shrugged it off and walked to the Slytherin common room where Faith was sitting on the floor in front of the fire place, reading another book. She was wearing a plain white, long sleeve shirt and a pair of grey sweatpants, her hair in a messy braid. The way the fire glowed against her made Draco's heart flutter.
"Why are you out here? It's late, you should be in bed," he said sitting next to her.
"Pansy kicked me out," she responded, a hint of sadness in her voice.
"What? Why?" he asked trying not to sound mad.
Faith closed her book and set it down on the pile next to her. "She said I don't belong here and the first step of getting me out was to kick me out of the dorm, so here I am. It's no big deal; I'm used to being kicked out."
"No," Draco demanded. "It is a big deal. You're a student, too, and you deserve to be treated fairly."
"Are you okay? You aren't acting like I hear you act," Faith said looking at him concerned.
"How do people to describe me?" He looked at her confused and blinked.
"A Slytherin." She looked at him like he was the slowest person to ever live then looked to the book in his hand. "Is that my Potions book?"
"Huh? Oh, yeah." He handed her the book with a small smile. "Why do you have a Second Year book?"
"I'm a Second Year." She looked up at him and realized how close they really were. "My brother didn't have enough money to send me last year, so he homeschooled me."
Draco P.O.V
Oh, God, I wanted to kiss her so bad. I took a deep breath and tried to focus on what she was saying rather than her eyes.
"You have a brother?" I asked hoping that was what she really said.
She isn't moving. Why isn't she moving? Wait, is she actually getting closer to me? Is she going to kiss me? What if she does?
My brain was going a million kilometers a second and I let out a small sigh of relief when she laid on the ground.
"Yeah," she said sighing. "My parents left me on my aunt's door step a few weeks after I was born." Her eyes glistened with tears. "She wasn't really my aunt; she's just obsessed with my uncle. I guess my dad trusted her because she was pretty much in love with him when they came here. She called me 'Mommy's Little Brat' and abused me because I look so much like my mom. Anyway, when I was about four, my neighbors called the police and had her arrested. They sent me to an orphanage in Florida and on my sixth birthday, my eighteen-year-old big brother adopted me.
He told me that my parents homeschooled him because they didn't want him to be in any danger. He gave me a notebook and told me that our father had left it with him to give it to me. He promised to take care of me to the best of his ability and he always worked two jobs, but he still didn't have enough to send me with the costs of books and my wand. He promised that we would look for our parents over the summer to make up for it, but they could be anywhere, and we just don't have the money to try and find them."
By instinct, I grabbed her hand, but she flinched like I was going to hurt her. I let go and she sat up and held her face in her hands. I sat up next to her and rubbed her back, trying to calm her down.
"Pansy should be in bed by now," I whispered trying to sound comforting. "You should be able to get some sleep. It's getting late."
She simply nodded, gathered her things, and walked upstairs.
3rd P.O.V
Faith quietly put her books away and climbed into bed. She grabbed the pillow next to her and hugged it as tight as she could. She had never told anyone her story, let alone someone like Draco Malfoy. She cried herself to sleep and slept until she couldn't anymore.
Faith woke up at exactly 3:13 with tears running down her cheeks like she did every morning. She wiped them away and sat up. She decided to take a shower and reluctantly got out of bed. She grabbed her school robes and a towel and slugged her way to the showers. She took a long, hot shower, got dressed and started up the stairs to the girls' dormitory. Not being able to see, she ran straight into Blaise Zambini.
"Hey, watch where- oh. It's you," Blaise said looking down at her. "Why are you out here, it's four in the morning."
"I should be asking you the same, Mr. Zambini," Faith responded.
The two knew each other quite well. Her mother worked with her brother while visiting the American Ministry on a business trip and the two became good friends. Whether he wanted to admit it or not, Blaise really liked Faith and wanted to protect her.
"It's been a while." He smiled and hugged her.
She nodded and hugged him back, taking in his smell. He made her feel safe and at home. She nuzzled in the crook of his neck and he placed a gentle kiss on her forehead.
"You know he likes you, right?" he whispered calmly.
"Yeah, I know," she whispered back. "But I haven't decided how I feel about him yet."
"Well, have you decided how you feel about me yet?" he asked running her fingers through her slowly drying hair.
"Come with me." She abruptly grabbed his hand and dragged him out of the Slytherin common room.
"Faith, we aren't supposed to be out of the common room." Blaise grabbed his jacket before he was forced out into the hall.
"Shut up, it's after four. Just relax."
She dragged him upstairs and out to the edge of Hogwarts property. As soon as Faith let go of his hand, Blaise pulled on his jacket.
"We aren't supposed to be out here. And it's freezing, how are you not cold?" he asked.
"You get really annoying sometimes. Just trust me," she said rolling her eyes. "So are you sure you want to know how I feel about you?"
"Well, yes, I've been waiting since last summer when-." He was cut off when a pair of soft lips stopped his mid-sentence.
Thin arms wrapped around his neck and Faith's small lips pressed harder against his own. Blaise let his eyes close and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her closer. He forced her shy lips opened and they started to make out deeply.
Draco woke up around four thirty and decided to go for a walk. He got out of bed, took a quick shower, and walked outside. When he got to the Forbidden Forest, his heart shattered.
Faith was pressed against a tree, her top robes on the ground, leaving her in her pressed shirt and slacks, and Blaise was pinning her against the tree by her hips. But that wasn't all of it; they were trying to eat each other, starting with their mouths.
When the two separated for air, Faith opened those big green eyes and smiled. It dropped when she saw Draco on the verge of tears. Blaise turned to see what she was staring at. His face started to pale as Draco walked towards him.
"You two should get inside before anyone gets suspicious," Draco said picking up Faith's robe and handing it to her.
They both nodded and walked back to the castle. Faith silently put her robe back on and as soon as they were out of sight, Blaise laughed.
"Did you see his face?" he laughed out. "He looked like he was about to cry!"
"He was, Blaise," Faith responded.
Blaise stopped, surprised at her response, but she just kept walking. She walked through the common room up to the girls' dormitory, gathered her books and walked upstairs for breakfast. She sat at her place at the end of the table and picked up a muffin. She began to read her Potions book (she was already on chapter twenty-seven) and eat her muffin when Blaise rushed into the hall. He set his books in front of her and sat down.
"Are you alright?" he asked with obvious concern.
The entire hall looked at them with shock. First Draco, now Blaise? What was up with this girl? Faith merely nodded and continued reading.
"No, you're not. I know when you're upset. Is it about Malfoy?" This was starting to make Blaise mad. She always did this.
Faith sighed and closed her book. "Blaise, I'm fine. I'm just trying to get ready for my classes."
Before he could respond, Draco burst through the doors and sat in his spot in front of Pansy. He started eating and Pansy chuckled.
"What's wrong, darling, you haven't insulted anyone yet." She kept her sly smile and rubbed her leg against his.
"Pansy stop," he demanded.
She made a face and the two continued eating. Faith pulled out a piece of paper and scribbled something on it before standing with her books and starting to leave. As she passed Draco, she dropped the note on his plate. Pansy looked at him then watched Faith leave.
"Are you two dating?" she asked, sounding a little mad.
Draco didn't respond. He opened the folded paper and was shocked at what it said.
He might like me but he wants Parkinson. Give it a week. Trust me. I want someone else too. Just look out for Pansy. I see the way she looks at you.
Pansy took the note from Draco's hand, but he took it back before she read anything. He neatly folded it back up and put it in his pocket. He just sat there, blankly staring into space, thinking about who it was that Faith really wanted. He sighed. It was going to be a long week.