Disclaimer: Not JK…
A/n: Written for the Next Gen Competition. The character was Lucy Weasley and the song that inspired this fic was Airplanes by B.O.B. Hope you enjoy!
Eight year old Darius Malfoy couldn't sleep; there were too many thoughts occupying his mind. His brother would leave for Hogwarts tomorrow, and he'd be left behind, again. Moving the drapes aside, he walked barefoot to the window in his room, looking out of it to the meadow. Their house was situated in a really pretty place, and he couldn't help but spend all his time staring at the meadow. Well, all the time he didn't spend spoiling his baby sister, that is.
She was there again, the little girl who lived in the house next to theirs. They didn't mingle much, and his father had warned him not to go to their neighbors' house without one of his parents accompanying him. But this girl was so sad, she seemed so sunken in despair, that Darius couldn't help but sneak out of the house, making sure to not make a sound and remembering to skip the creaky stair.
He breathed in the late night air, full of the fragrance of the night blooms as he walked to the fence that separated the two properties. The meadow was lying half in the Malfoy property and half in the other house's property and the girl was seared right on the fence dividing the field, looking up above. With a flash of light, a shooting star began making its way down, bathing the entire meadow in its golden light. Darius stood frozen at the sight, wondering how many other starbursts he had missed.
Collecting himself, Darius walked slowly to the fence, making sure not to crunch the flowers; his sister liked them too much. When he reached the girl, she was counting something with her fingers, pointing her other hand towards the sky and nodding to herself.
"What are you doing?" The girl didn't stumble or even seem surprised. She turned her head to look at him and smiled slightly, patting the spot beside her on the fence, which was almost as thick as a wall, now that he noticed. Shrugging, Darius sat beside her, looking at her as she looked back to the sky.
Her reddish brown hair was pulled back in pig tails, and Darius had the queerest urge to pull them. Shaking his head, he kept staring at the pretty girl, hoping she'd turn to look at him. She did turn after a while, the serene smile still on her face.
"Don't you wish on the stars?" Darius was thrown back by the idea; he had never given them much mind at all, honestly. He had been too stuck on the ground to worry about the sky.
"You don't, do you?" She answered her own question, and punctuating her words with a soft smile, turned back to the sky. Darius spent the rest of the night counting the stars; in her eyes.
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"Make sure you take good care of him, Scor. Stay out of trouble, Darius, alright?" Darius nodded solemnly as he boarded the train. As soon as the doors shut, he went looking for her.
"Hey Lucy." He sat opposite her without expecting her reply. She smiled at him in recognition before she said, "You're nervous."
Darius didn't bother denying it, she was the only person who'd tell him that to his face, anyway, "Who wouldn't be? We're going to be sorted tonight!"
"What's so bad about that?" She asked innocently.
"Nothing's bad, Luce. But what if we don't get into the houses our parents want us to?" He confessed in a whisper, bringing a smile out on her face.
"I don't think mine would care, neither should you. You'll do fine, Dari."
As it happened, he was placed in Hufflepuff, as was she. She, he had had no doubt about but him? Hufflepuff? But the Hat had been so sure, and he hadn't been able to deny its logic.
You care too much for others, boy, you live for others' happiness. You'll do your house proud Darius didn't understand, but he didn't have time to ponder, as two howlers flew into the hall. They opened it at the same time, identical smiles on their faces as they heard their parents yell at them for disgracing their respective families.
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"You have exams tomorrow." Darius stated as he plopped down beside her on the grass, watching her face as she counted the stars.
"So do you." Was all she said, still looking at the ink blue sky. But she leaned on his shoulder as she did so, a silent gesture that she wasn't ignoring him. Darius wouldn't have felt ignored anyway; he knew her silence spoke better than her words, or her eyes.
"Why do you do that?" He asked after a few minutes, seeing that she was running out of fingers.
"It's calming, don't you think? Counting the stars. They're always there, you know? They change direction, they disappear during days, but they're still there. Constant; reliable; like friends." Truth and honesty rang in her every word, as if she whole heartedly believed the stars were her friends. Darius hugged her to his side, keeping her close; he'd be there for her, even when the stars weren't.
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"We're going home tomorrow." Darius stated as he walked to the windowsill where Lucy was perched, looking outside. People thought she was insane, out of it. Maybe they were true, but he didn't care; they didn't know, and Darius was quite happy with keeping them out of the picture.
She never paid much heed to the real world because she was lost in her own imaginary one. A world where her parents wouldn't argue all the time, a world where her family would understand that she was a bit more than just a Weasley, a world where maybe, her actions would be understood rather than scorned upon, maybe a world where she'd have a better companion than himself.
"I know. You'll come, won't you?" Darius nodded mutely, smiling reassuringly at her.
"You know I always do. But make sure you have your cloak on, okay? It will be cold and I don't want you to shiver."
"I'll remember." She ended up forgetting and he gave her his cloak, as always.
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"You're always here." Lucy stated out of the blue one day. It wasn't midnight for once; they were seated on the shores of the Black Lake, doing their homework. No matter that Lucy was a dreamer, she worked hard when it came to academics, something that bewildered and baffled Darius to no end.
"You noticed." A rare smirk appeared on his face, and she smiled too.
"It's not that, Dari. I feel bad, you know? Like I'm taking away all your time. You should get some other friends."
"This coming from the person who declares she needs no-one."
"Oh I do. I need the stars, and the butterflies, and the flowers, and…and you, Dari. You know that."
"Yes, I do. And wouldn't it make sense for me to stay beside you since the rest of your friends cannot help you do your homework?" She laughed liltingly before waving him away.
"I'm being serious, Dari. You should get friends. You'd get a whole bunch of them if you'd only try."
"Friends aren't bouquets of violets, Luce and I have enough already."
"I just didn't want to hold you back." She said in a low, vulnerable voice. Darius smiled knowingly and kissed her head.
"I know."
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"Luce! Lucy! What are you…What the hell?" He lifted Lucy off the floor where she must have been lying for Merlin knew how long. He had only just returned from patrols and had found Lucy curled up on the floor in one of the corridors.
"Lucy! Lucy! Lucy, wake up! Come on!" He shook her slightly, and Lucy's eyes moved behind the eyelids as she opened them.
"What happened?" He asked alarmed, checking her for any apparent injury. The only wounds he found were scorch marks on her palms and tears tracks on her face.
"Howler…parents…angry." She hiccupped between words, a new stream of tears following their predecessors.
"I'm taking you to the Infirmary." She protested weakly, but it died out soon, as she fainted once again.
"You can't stay in here, Mr Malfoy! I know you're her friend, but its past curfew!" Darius ran a hand through his hair, frustrated. Didn't the old woman understand? He needed to be with her. Something was wrong, he needed to comfort her, make her smile peacefully again. How could she not comprehend?
"Dari?" A weak voice interrupted their argument, and the nurse rushed to Lucy's bedside, Darius right behind her.
"How're you feeling, dear?" The nurse's voice coincided with Darius', "Are you alright?" Glaring at him, the nurse banned him to the other end of the room while she tended to Lucy. Darius ran a hole in the ground by his pacing for the entirety of ten minutes.
"Mr Malfoy!" Darius rushed to the bed, seeing that Lucy looked better than she had before.
"Uou can stay here for a few minutes…"
"Can he stay the night, Madame Pompfrey?" Lucy asked weakly. Looking at her tired and drawn face, the nurse nodded hesitantly.
"Don't make her stay up for long, Mr Malfoy." With that, she disappeared out the room. Darius took a seat beside her on the bed, ignoring the chair beside it.
"Thanks Dari. I don't know what would have happened to me if you hadn't come." Darius didn't reply, taking her hands in his to inspect her skin. It was unblemished now, no hint of the angry bruises in them.
"What happened?"
"I didn't open the howler and it burst in my hands." She shrugged, trying to make it sound casual.
"And what did it say?"
"Just the usual, you know? Them blaming each other and blaming me for everything else. I wonder why Molly never gets any howlers. Do you know?"
"Because she'd probably blow back up at them. You're the demure one, the one that never gets angry with anyone, the one everybody thinks can bully as they wish." Darius muttered through clenched teeth. Lucy placed a hand on his arm to calm him down.
"I can't help it, Dari. I'm like that, you know. It doesn't affect me."
"Yes, and you were having a goddamned party in the middle of the corridor amidst a pool of your own tears." He snapped bitingly, making her stiffen.
"Don't get angry, Dari. Don't." Her voice was filled with fear and horror and he let out a sigh, calming himself down.
"I won't hurt you, Lucy."
"I know." She rested her head on his shoulder, closing her eyes in peace. Her breath evened out in seconds.
Darius spent the rest of the night stroking her hair, watching the night sky she seemed enchanted with.
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"What's with you and Lucy Weasley, Darius?" Scorpius asked one afternoon, as they were lounging in the drawing room of the Malfoy manor. Scorpius was moving out today; the entire household was being turned upside down by their mother while the two watched. Draco was out with his daughter in the garden.
Darius smiled at the thought of his father, who was so wrapped around his daughter's finger that he'd even make a fool of himself in public if that's what she wanted.
"We're friends." He replied evasively, turning back to his book, but Scorpius next statement had his blood boiling.
"How do you put up with her? She's so odd and freaky, Darius." Scorpius remained unaffected even as Darius jumped out of his chair, a threatening expression on his face.
"Don't you dare insult people you don't even know, Scor. Slight her again…" Scorpius chuckled before he replied.
"Calm down, Darius, it was just a passing observation; no harm intended. Man, one would think you were in love with the girl, the way you defend her." Scorpius went back to his magazine, noting his brother's face out of the corner of his eye. Seeing the telltale pale, epiphanic expression, Scorpius nodded to himself, satisfied.
Scorpius was just joking, right? He couldn't be in love with Lucy, could he? Was he?
Darius marveled at the ease with which the admission came.
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"What happened to you?" Darius asked as Lucy sat before him in the crowded restaurant.
"Lily. She came home yesterday and declared that she wanted to make me look 'enchanting'." Lucy replied off handedly, not noticing that she was garnering a few curious stares from the people around her. Even Darius, who had seen her at her best and worst, had to admit that she looked fabulous; definitely enchanting.
"I can see that she's an expert." Darius admitted, and a faint blush graced her cheeks.
"Stop complimenting me, Dari. If eveyone keeps saying that, I might actually believe all those lies." She replied self consciously, making him grin.
"Oh but that's the truth!" Lucy remained resolutely silent, so Darius changed topics.
"How's Lily? How's her life as the assistant to the world famous designer Victoire Lupin going?"
"She swears Vica is a slave driver."
"Ah! Poor girl. How's Tristan?" Darius asked with a sneaky look in his eyes and Lucy chuckled.
"Fine. They're still dating, and James is still pissed off at Tristan."
"Must have been a shock."
"You have no idea. That was the only time I ever saw smoke come out of a person's ears."
"What did Albus do?"
"He thought the entire thing was funny. I think he said, 'Finally, lil sis, you do something bad'. James pounced on Al for that." They shared a good laugh imagining the Potter brothers fighting.
"Do you and Scorpius fight?" Darius was taken aback. Did they?
"Not much. We're two very different people and we only have misunderstandings, sometimes. Even then, Bella intervenes."
"Your sister?"
"Yeah, she's amazing; so cute and naïve. She's like the axis of the family, you know? We all kind of revolve around her wishes. Dad's the worst."
"Is that why you haven't moved out yet?"
"Yeah. Scorpius was different; she was too young when he left for school and she slightly fears him. Me, I was almost like her playtoy before I went for school. She'd feel all alone if I moved out too. So I've decided to wait until she goes to Hogwarts next year."
"You love her." Lucy stated casually, looking over the rim of her goblet at him. Darius shrugged non-chalantly.
"I love too many people. I think that's why the Sorting Hat put me in Hufflepuff."
"Do you regret it?"
"Being a Huffleuff? Nope. I belonged there; I'd have stuck out like a sore thumb anywhere else."
"Not Slytherin then?" Lucy asked with a sneaky smile, and Darius laughed out.
"Could I ever have become your friend if I had been a Slytherin?"
"I guess not." Lucy smiled, pleased.
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"They're rowing again?" Darius asked as he sat beside her on the fence. It had been years ago that he had first found her here on a lonely night; the night that had sparked something of an eternal friendship between them; the very place where he had first kissed her, and had asked her out.
Lucy nodded wryly. It was in the dead of the night, and the stars were abundant in the night sky, but she wasn't looking at them. Her gaze was unwaveringly fixed on his face.
"What?" Darius asked self consciously.
"Nothing. Have you ever wished upon a star, Dari?"
"No. Why?" He lifted himself to sit beside her on the fence, his arms going round her shoulder protectively. She turned to rest her head on his chest, burrowing herself in his embrace.
"I did, once." She muttered to his heart, but he heard it all the same.
"Will you tell me what you wished for?"
"Yeah, since I already got what I asked." She looked up at him with shimmering eyes; tear filled eyes. He wiped them up instinctively, he had only ever seen her cry once before over her parents, and never wanted to see her be sorrow again.
"What did you ask for?" She remained silent for a few minutes before she whispered.
"A shooting star from the skies."
"Did you get it?"
"Yeah, you came to sit beside me the next instant." She closed the gap between them, since she wasn't that good with words at all anyway.
A/n: was it too abrupt? Too boring? Too long? Too short? Do tell me through a review!