Disclaimer: I don't own the universe of Harry Potters or the characters within: Joanne Rowling does. All rights to her. No copyright intended. No profit is being made from this. I only own the plot line and the Ocs.

Rating: M

Warning/s: Not much to say just yet.

Author's Note: I hope you all enjoy this chapter! Please review! It would make me smile. - El x

Familiar Ties

Chapter Two

October 31st, 1996

It was Halloween and the Great Hall was filled to the brim with decorations and students. The feast was enjoyed by many, followed by sweets and laughter. Curfew had been slightly extended to accommodate for the festive time. Students were extremely happy to munch on Chocolate Frogs and Bertie Bott's Every-Flavoured Beans and complain about the earwax flavour. Draco Malfoy scowled at the immaturity of some of the students, hoping to get the feast over and done with shortly. He couldn't help but look over to the fair end of the Great Hall, where Amelia Scarlett, sat telling her fellow housemates a joke and gaining laughs from everyone around her. Draco had a feeling she was telling another one of her dumb muggle jokes and despite wanting to be pissed at her for being a traitor, he couldn't help but admire the knowledge she held inside of her. She knew so much about the outside world that Draco had never once questioned about. He knew the muggle world was off limits and yet, he remembers their fateful accidental kiss on October 3rd.

Amelia makes Draco want to do more with his life than just sit down and obey orders. She makes him curious about the world around them and the things he was yet to learn. She had made him intrigued by the muggle world. He hated himself for wanting to go and see what the festival looks like tonight. He's angry at himself that he can't stop staring at her. He knows he should look away before one of the boys notice his gaze in the direction of the Gryffindor table. He knows it's wrong to want to see the festival, to go out passed curfew. He knows it's wrong to spend time with her and vaguely know he'll enjoy it. He knows it's wrong to find out if her lips are always that pink and soft and if she's the best kisser in Hogwarts. He knows it's wrong to want to know what it feels like to have her body pressed up against his, but the truth is Draco can't help it anymore. He can't keep his hormones in check after what happened that night in the village.

She had finally gotten under his skin.

He remembers her words from that night and he's stayed up every night reliving them over and over. He wants more out of the world than to just a lap dog. He wants to make his own choices in life, to be his own person and he's furious that doesn't want to live in his father's shadows forever. He wants to be angry at Amelia for making him want to know more about what the Dark Lord is planning. He wants to hate her again and to forget all about her because she's messing with his head. He was perfectly fine being in the dark and just obeying orders; that's what Death Eaters do. They never question the Dark Lord and they blindly oblige because that's their role in life.

Draco isn't sure he wants to play his role in life anymore. But he's going to anyway, despite the seeds of doubt she's planted in his mind. He knows what is expected of him and how much is riding on him. He cannot fail his father or the Dark Lord. This is his part to play in all of this and he has to accept it and not attempt to fight against what's happening.

"You keep glancing over at Scarlett, Draco," Blaise Zabini's voice travels to Draco's ears, alerting him he's been caught once more. "You've been doing it for a few weeks now. Has something happened? Has she pissed you off again?" The dark skinned boy asked his best friend, awaiting the common answer Draco always gives: "She's a blood traitor. She's always going to piss me off".

But to everybody's surprise, he doesn't.

"Forget about it," he comments, "This feast is a joke and I'm leaving," he says as he stands up. He pushes his chair in and begins leaving. He doesn't expect anybody to follow him, they never do and yet he catches the attention of one Gryffindor girl. He goes to the one place he knows he could be alone with his maddening thoughts.

The Blake Lake is as still as the night, not a sound from the squid that lives inside of it. The trees are beginning to lose their leaves, piles of orange and brown leaves scattered underneath them. Fall was always a pretty season to Draco, not that he'd ever tell a soul. He'd take it to his grave if he had to.

"What are you doing out here, Malfoy? It's a little chilly."

Draco looked up and scowled the moment he noticed that curly, brown hair. He hated her stupidly, perfect, curly brown hair. Even more so than usual. He can't keep them out of his head and he can't stop being curious about how they feel twirled around his finger. It was an absurd thing for him to wonder but he did anyway, in secret of course.

"Are you going to ignore me forever," Amelia Scarlett asked, taking a seat beside the blonde boy. "Says the one avoiding me," Draco retorted drily, rolling his eyes. They hadn't had a fight in twenty eight days. It was a record for them. They usually fight quite frequently. The absence of a fight was starting to catch notice of all of their peers. It was odd for them not to confront each other for something dumb they thought they'd done and most of time, they had done the stupid thing. Draco wondered why she had been avoiding him. She didn't even stick up for Potter. It was weird.

"I'm not avoiding you, per say," Amelia said, struggling to find the right words. "I was giving you…time to think about what I said. Yeah, time to think," she said, as if she was hoping the answer wold suffice because she didn't know the truth herself. Draco snorted, "Yeah, sure."

"Well have you," Amelia asked, "Have you thought about what I said that night?"

"Of course, I have. I can't stop," Draco muttered, sighing. He looked out at the lake, feeling a little hopeless. He knew his place in the world and yet he felt like he didn't belong and that if he followed the path designed just for him, he'd disappoint her. He almost felt like he owed her something for that dumb conversation in the muggle village, but he knew he didn't. His life was his and she shouldn't be poking her nose in it.

"Well," Amelia pressed, "What did you think?"

"That it's futile to change the paths we are taking. Our lives were planned for us before birth and it's stupid to deter from the grand plan."

"That's stupid, Malfoy," Amelia said, angrily. "I don't want my life mapped out for me and you shouldn't either," she said, glaring up at him. Draco thought for a moment, sadness overwhelming him. "I'm stuck. I have to be Potter's enemy. It's the only way," he said, nodding more to himself than to her. "My life is set in stone. I'm Hogwarts' bully. Nothing will ever change that."

"That's where you're wrong, Draco," Amelia said, her voice softer and quieter. "You can still change that. Fight for what you want."

Draco shook his head, "You're an incessant fool if that's how you think, Scarlett. This is the real world, not a fairy-tale," he said, knowing his words were true despite his hope for them not to be.

"Then why don't I show you what this 'fairy-tale' looks like?"

An eyebrow raised in response. "It's passed curfew already, we are going to get in trouble either way. Why don't we make it worth it? The festival is still going strong. I can almost hear the cheering and smell the cotton candy. What do you say? One more adventure with me?"

The Slytherin hated himself for the fact that one more adventure couldn't hurt. He was already going to get in trouble. He may as well make it worth his while. He still wasn't sure if it was the best idea but her next words assured him it was going to be fine.

"I promise to leave you alone after tonight, Malfoy. You have my word."

"Then what are we waiting for? Let's hurry up and go so I can get the hell away from you," Draco said, standing up and beginning to walk where they were headed. They had to be quiet and dodged the Prefects and the Teachers. Draco still didn't want detention if he could help it.

The moment Draco's grey eyes landed on that muggle village, he couldn't help but gasp. It was even more beautiful finished. He scowled at himself for enjoying the sight. He shouldn't have come but he couldn't help himself. He wanted to see the finished product and what the festival would actually be like. He wasn't unimpressed. If anything, he was pissed because he knew he'd have fun. It was inevitable.

"What do you think?"

"It's all right," Draco commented, rolling his eyes. He shrugged and walked over to a shop. "What's this," he asked, pointing at Amelia's favourite cheat snack. "Fairy floss," she smirked, "You'll love it," she said. She went and brought some and handed it to Draco. He looked wary of it but as he watched how Amelia ate it, he copied her. He closed his eyes, willing himself to hate the beautiful taste of fairy floss but he couldn't do it. It just tasted that damn good. "I told you," Amelia giggled, "Let's go try the toffee apples, I'm sure you'll love them too."

And he did.

Some time passed, and Draco couldn't believe the kind of fun he was having. He wished he could stay in this moment forever, not having to go back to Hogwarts and be Malfoy again. He was happy to finally just be Draco, not having to look over his shoulder or worry about anything. He could just relax and enjoy his time. He never knew he'd be having a blast with muggles and their weird contraptions and Amelia Scarlett. Draco decided, just this once, tonight would be opposite day. He'd pretend to blend in with the muggles, as if he was one of them. As if, life was as careful as they were portraying it to be.

"You're not too bad for a blood traitor," Draco murmured, but the moment he had, he'd regretted it. He'd brought their world back into tonight and he couldn't take it back now. He sighed, knowing tonight would have to end here before he did something stupid – like turn down the Dark Lord's mission and just be Draco for once.

"And you're not too bad for a Pureblood stickler," Amelia said, chuckling which made Draco attempt a little laugh. He was rusty, and it was obvious. If she noticed, she never made it obvious. Draco couldn't help but appreciate that she knew when to have fun and when to shut her mouth. She wasn't completely stupid, he'd give her that.

He'd also give her credit for the fact she blended in with muggles a lot better than he did. He'd also acknowledge the fact that her brown hair was long and flowy in the October chilly air. He'd also pretend not to notice that her smile was pretty, though and that her lips were in fact very pink and inviting. He hated himself for the way he thought of her: beautiful, irresistible, unattainable and forbidden.

The sixteen year old boy begged himself to look away from her before he did something utterly stupid that he couldn't take back.

Before he could stop himself, he did the one thing he knew would get him in the most trouble.

Draco Malfoy leaned over and kissed Amelia Scarlett as if it was normal, as if they were just two muggles attending the Halloween festival together – without any cares or worries about what tomorrow would bring, and definitely no Dark Lord.

The Gryffindor kissed back as if she too was in on his fairy-tale thoughts.

Neither knowing that this would become a habit – a secret they both would swear to take to their graves and fail doing so.