Beneath The Facade
Chapter 9
Anger and Sorrow
Pansy Parkinson awoke with a start and she sat up in her bed, with sweat glistening across her face and neck. Her breathing was heavy, and the rate of her broken, beating heart had increased considerably.
She heaved a relieved sigh as she realized that the horrific images were only another nightmare.
These nightmares had steadily gotten worse, and with every passing night Pansy found it was getting harder and harder for her to bear.
They were all filled with darkness, despair, and death.
It had been days since Blaise's death and yet the memory of his agonized cry continued to plague her mind. Every night it haunted her, tore her apart slowly with the inevitable guilt that accompanied it.
Pansy slowly averted her eyes to the chestnut nightstand beside her bed, and felt her eyes begin to sting with tears; on it was a picture of her and Blaise, together, sitting by a lake, laughing, and smiling.
The moving silhouette of Blaise suddenly looked up at her and grinned, though beneath his dark eyes a certain sadness lingered.
With a trembling hand, Pansy slowly brought the picture to her quivering lips and held it there as bitter tears began to flood down her pained features.
She sniffed and closed her eyes tightly as her heart began to feel that all too familiar ache; it felt as if it had been brutally stabbed a thousand times.
"I'm sorry," she whispered again the glass of the picture; she inhaled a shaky breath, "I'm so sorry, Blaise."
She kissed the photo of Blaise's blissful face and then held it to her heart.
She leaned back and lay on the bed, feeling the pounding of her heart through the back of the framed image.
Pansy closed her eyes and struggled for the comfort of sleep; it finally came and offered the ease of her troubled breaths.
All the torture she was going through temporarily slipped away as her mind cleared and her heart strove to heal in the peace of her slumber.
A flood of light suddenly poured across the floor and over Pansy's sleeping form, as a figure entered the room.
His silvery hair reflected the moons light, which glistened through the open window.
A gentle breeze swept through the silence, as the boy shuddered and walked over to where the girl slept.
He bent low, his pale hand coming in contact with her smooth skin, and his fingers traced along her cheekbone and outline of her lips.
Presently his eyes rested on the framed picture placed over her heart, and he gently took it from her fragile grasp.
As he looked upon it, he felt a sting in his own eyes, but he held back the tears; he was Draco Malfoy, and taught to mask his emotions.
Sighing uneasily, he placed the picture back in her hand, and just stared down at her for a few moments longer, before leaving the room and allowing the darkness to engulf the interior once more.
…………………………………………….
Harry Potter sat at his desk, in Professor Snape's potion class, staring down at the blank of sheet of parchment that should've been covered with notes.
He allowed his eyes to wander over to where Pansy sat and he sighed as he noticed the tear-stains that covered her face.
His hand ached to comfort her; to hold that face in his hands and tell her it would all be alright.
How he wished he could be the one to hold her at that moment; to caress her beautiful face; to show her how much he cared.
If only she could she his heart; she would see that he would hold her every moment spent in suffering; he would show her the words which couldn't be spoken; he would do anything she desired, anything she asked.
A smile found its way to his lips as she glanced at him, his eyes holding a bittersweet glint.
"Mr. Potter!" Harry suddenly jerked his head up to their potions teacher.
"Must I remind you to pay attention when I speak?" Snape continued with an angry look in his dark eyes, "I do not stand up here every day saying words only to have them heedlessly heard or, in your case, not heard at all."
Harry nodded slowly, but with defiance in his eyes, "yes professor."
Snape sighed, "Twenty points from Gryffindor."
He turned as an angry huff was emitted from the lips of Hermione Granger.
"And another ten, due to your temper, Ms. Granger."
A snicker was heard from the Slytherin side of the room, and Hermione sent a glare in their direction.
"Oh look, I think Mudblood means to scare us with that temper of hers," the voice unmistakably belonged to Draco Malfoy, "maybe we'd better stop before she murders us or something." He jeered with malice.
Another howl of laughter arose, as Draco and the others continued to taunt Hermione, with Severus Snape half-heartedly trying to calm them all down.
However, all the noise was silence in Pansy's ears; she had froze at the word, 'murders' and her thoughts were again haunted with the same scene of Blaise's death; her head rang with his scream of pain and agony.
Harry had been trying to calm Hermione, when he suddenly looked over at Pansy and saw how pale she looked.
His eyes began to glisten as he watched her in her painful state; she needed someone, anyone at this moment.
So he stood unsteadily and, unsure if he was making the right choice, made his way over and knelt down in front of her.
She seemed to come back into reality as he took her cold hands in his, and smiled slightly as she saw him, "Harry." She choked.
Harry nodded and touched her face, caressing it gently, "yes I'm here Pansy, I'm here."
All the noise suddenly ceased as all heads turned to Harry and Pansy; Professor Snape closed his eyes in frustration and disappointment.
Draco Malfoy quickly rose to his feet in attempt to break-up the little, 'moment', but Hermione Granger stepped in his way.
"Leave them alone, Malfoy," she ordered with fire in her eyes.
Draco looked her up and down, a look of pure disgust on his face, "that's my girlfriend, Mudblood, and I'm not just going to stand by while Potter has his filthy hands on her."
He made to pass her but she cut him off again, "I said, leave them alone."
Draco glared and started to utter a comeback when he was interrupted by Pansy, "Draco."
Draco looked over Hermione's shoulder, "Pansy."
He shoved Hermione out of the way and walked over to his girlfriend.
As he reached her, he sent a loathing glare in Harry's direction, before taking Pansy in his arms.
Pansy slowly wrapped her arms around his waist and closed her eyes against his chest.
Harry watched this affectionate exchange between the two, with hurt in his eyes, and sadness in his heart.
He swallowed slowly and then turned to walk away.
"Harry! Wait…"
Pansy grabbed his wrist and Harry looked back at her.
"Pans-" but Draco's protest was abruptly cut off, "thank-you," Pansy continued to Harry, "again."
Harry nodded, "I told you I would always be here for you, and that is what I intend."
Pansy nodded and gave him a weak smile, "y-yeah, I know."
Draco's eyes slowly narrowed into Harry's, and Snape saw this as an opportunity to break through the rising tension, "alright!" he said with frustration, "sit down all of you so that I may continue on with this lesson."
Pansy released Harry's wrist and smiled reassuringly, Harry returned her smile but glanced at Malfoy briefly, who was glaring with absolute hatred.
Harry slowly turned and walked to his desk, taking the seat with a heavy heart.
Draco roughly let go of Pansy and sat in his seat with an outraged expression on his face; his heart was pounding madly, and his breath was uneven and uncontrolled, his blood boiling with fire.
He let a closed fist fall on the wooden desk, which shook at the powerful impact.
Pansy glanced at him worriedly before sitting at her own desk, concern for Harry's well-being on her mind.
'Potter's love for Pansy,' Draco thought furiously, 'How could I have not seen it before'
