It wasn't a long while after when Rebecca and Draco finally reached the end of what they were beginning to think was a never ending tunnel. They had stopped talking quite some time ago and were finding it a little awkward that they couldn't escape each others' presence.
They roughly climbed a steep ascending cavern which lead to an old, dark and dusty shop which homed bits and pieces of everything ranging from light bulbs to skeletons. Nobody else was in there, and it appeared closed. Or perhaps closed down. Draco went straight for the door as Rebecca carefully took in her surroundings. Weirdly enough, the door was unlocked, and the pair left before you could say 'alohomora'. They found their way from the strange shop and back the main street silently, and left for their separate ways with hardly a 'goodbye'. Rebecca noticed Draco return to The Three Broomsticks. She had to walk a few streets more to return to the dress shop where she found Hermione and Parvati still minding her blue dress. Rebecca apologised for taking so long. Hermione, checking her watch, insisted that it wouldn't take forty minutes to ask a simple question. Rebecca made it out that Draco insisted on having a butterbeer as they talked about the assignment. She could tell Hermione didn't really believe her, and she didn't fully understand why she just didn't tell her the truth.
To keep Hermione and Parvati waiting much longer, Rebecca quickly chose a pretty pair of sparkling silver heels to go with her dress. Now that the main chore of their Hogsmeade trip had been fulfilled, they were left to spend the last hour that they had left doing whatever they pleased. As they left the dress shop Hermione insisted on knowing what Draco had asked Rebecca. She simply replied that he didn't fully understand a part of it which Rebecca had to sit down and explain to him. Both Rebecca and Hermione knew the only assignment they had was the Potions assignment, and they both knew that Draco was one of the top students in that class. Rebecca remained very suspicious to Hermione, while Rebecca continued wondering about what Draco could possibly have wanted to ask her. She couldn't really answer Hermione, because she didn't know.
As the three returned back to the main street of Hogsmeade they ran into Harry, Ron, Seamus and Neville Longbottom. They joined them on their trip to Honeydukes, a wonderful lolly shop. It was their last stop before heading back to Hogwarts. Hermione, Harry and Ron all left before Rebecca, Parvati, Neville and Seamus. They all loaded each other with lollies and returned to Hogwarts, stocked with sugar.
It was Saturday night, and Hermione, Harry and Ron hadn't returned to the Gryffindor Common Room until late. They came back with the news of Katie Bell who had been cursed by a necklace on the way back from Hogsmeade, which the trio had witnessed. The three joined Seamus, Neville, Rebecca, Parvati, Dean Thomas (Seamus' best friend who was currently dating Ginny Weasley; Ron's little sister who had also accompanied him), Fred, George and Lee Jordan (the twins' best friend). Harry quite openly blamed Draco Malfoy for Katie's unfortunate incident, and Rebecca said nothing. She did notice Hermione watching her carefully, however.
It was getting even later and it was unlikely now that the elder Gryffindor students were headed for bed anytime soon. They had been sitting in the Common Room for the past few hours, moving on from Katie and giggling and finishing off their weekend's supply of sugar in one night. The sugar had affected them terribly as they were being awfully loud and finding it hard to sit still. There weren't any other students left in the Common Room, apart from the lively group.
A few of them were laughing uncontrollably for no good reason and the rest of them were thinking of something fun to do.
"Truth or dare!" Dean yelled over the top of everyone.
"No way, it's been played too many times." Ron objected and the rest agreed.
"I want to play something outrageous, something against the rules!" Fred said, gasping from laughter as.
"Oh yeah… you mean something like chasy, or hide and seek?" Ron said sarcastically.
"Yes! That's what we'll play!" George exclaimed very excitedly, jumping up from his seat on the floor.
"Chasy?" Harry asked weirdly.
"No, hide and seek!" Fred corrected loudly.
"Please remind me, how is that anywhere near outrageous and against the rules?" Ron asked.
"We'll make it so it's against the rules." Fred grinned mischievously, clearly following where his brother was going.
"But it's such an innocent little game made for six year olds!" Seamus complained. The twins' grins appeared to be getting bigger.
"We'll play out in the corridors… where it's dark," Fred began.
"And we'll have to hide from Filch and his cat as well!" George added. Everyone began smiling and chattering at the idea.
"We can't go out into the corridors, it's against the rules!" Hermione cried.
"Exactly!" The twins responded eagerly.
They had to establish certain rules before hand: they had to stay on the seventh floor, the same floor as the Gryffindor Common Room, no shoes, no wands, for Harry - no invisibility cloak, and that if anybody was unfortunate enough to run into Filch they would not dob in everyone else.
Managing to convince Hermione to play, the large group filed out of the portrait as quietly as they could. Some, however, couldn't help but giggle with their adrenaline pumping already. The portrait lady was woken up with the noise.
"Where are you going? Come back here right now!" She cried as everyone ran around the corner, escaping her. Fred was made the first to be in and they had just a minute to hide.
"Remember, every man for himself!" Fred shouted as quietly as possible while everyone disappeared down different corridors.
Running along the dark corridors Rebecca watched as her friends hid behind tapestries and clanked behind suits of armour. She hid herself on the top few steps of a staircase that led up to the floor everyone was hidden on. She was quite amused to watch a few of the others run past her frantically looking for a hiding spot without seeing her.
"Found you!" She stiffened and lay as low as she possibly could on the cold stone stairs, held her breath and hoped that Fred hadn't already found her.
"Oooohhhhhhh…!" She heard someone else nearby whine. They continued talking as they walked past. Fred had found Ginny. Just as they passed Rebecca, Ginny turned around and winked at her. She smiled at her just as she said, "Hey, Fred, I think I just saw George run around there!" Fred took off around the corner even though George wasn't really there at all. It was Rebecca's cue to change hiding places. She got up and ran down the corridor in the opposite direction that Fred and Ginny had gone. Every tapestry or suit of armour she considered hiding behind either didn't work or someone was already there.
Soon enough she could hear Fred finding the people where she had just been, meaning he had changed direction. It sounded like he had found most people by now.
Rebecca was running out of time and places, and she knew Fred was basically right behind her. Her last resort was to stand flat against the wall, preferably in the shadows, so that's exactly what she did.
Not a moment later Fred walked by, and she could hear him murmuring something which she made out to be that Rebecca had won this round because she was the last one he needed to find. Rebecca snickered in amusement and he instantly spun around, more startled than she'd ever seen him before. His face instantly softened up when he realised it was only Rebecca.
"Found you." He said with a devilish grin. They laughed back down to the end of the corridor where everyone was waiting for Fred to come back with her. Just as Fred announced that Ginny was now in, they heard a cat's meow. Every one of them froze at the sudden sound. They heard it again.
"Not Ginny, Filch!" George corrected his twin brother. Every one of them ran off in different directions to avoid Filch and his cat, Mrs Norris, whether they actually hid or just kept their distance.
Rebecca chose to keep moving as she thought it would be the safer option. She had been wandering the big empty corridors by herself for a few minutes now. She stopped when she heard Filch talking to his cat, asking it where the 'naughty students' were, in the same corridor that Rebecca was in at the moment. She could see the glow of his light slowly getting closer.
She turned around and started running. This was the exact reason for wearing no shoes; otherwise Rebecca's footsteps would easily be heard. She only just managed to escape around a corner when she ran into something head on.
All that was heard was a muffled 'oomph!' which Rebecca thought awfully resembled the sound of air being knocked out of someone. She nearly fell backwards in surprise, not able to figure out who it was. She held her breath in anticipation, dreading the possibilities of who it could be, especially at this hour. Then the mystery person shuffled around a bit and whispered 'lumos' so the top of their wand was dimly lit, revealing Draco Malfoy.
"Oh, it's only you!" He sighed, breathing out heavily as though he had also been holding his breath. Rebecca couldn't believe her luck. Draco could have been anyone. Before she had the chance to say anything, she heard Mrs Norris close by and turned her head just before the glow of Filch's light rounded the corner.
"Quick! Run!" Rebecca whispered harshly, clambering off the ground and looking straight past Draco as a look of realisation washed over his face.
They took off down the corridor and Rebecca took every left, right or staircase possible, whatever came first. She knew Draco was still following her because she could hear his loud footsteps due to his shoes on the stone floors, but for what reason she did not know.
The pair of them pulled over to the side of the corridor that was dressed in shadows, getting their breath back. While doing so Rebecca looked around the deserted corridor.
"What floor are we on?" She managed to ask between gasps of air. She watched Draco look around like she had just done.
"Uh… I think this might be the third or fourth floor." He let out amongst heavy breathing. As she looked around again, it appeared he was right. Not a moment later had she let out a big sigh and stood up straight once more.
"Should we go and hide?" She asked, looking around as though she was expecting someone to appear suddenly.
"What? Why?" Draco asked, looking at her weirdly.
"Oh. We're playing hide and seek… or we were until Filch came along and we ran for our bloody lives." She explained.
"Oh? We were running for our lives and not just to avoid a week of detention?" Draco asked, with a humorous smile playing on his lips. Rebecca couldn't help but think that humour looked good on his usually hard face. She blankly looked at nothing across the hall in thought.
"No, we were definitely running for our lives." She stated rightly. Draco and herself looked at each other for minute, though it was hard to see. Rebecca heard Draco hesitate as though he didn't understand her own humour. Rebecca began to laugh at him. Draco realised, feeling a bit stupid, but then started laughing too because, quite frankly, he didn't care.
The both of them leaned on the wall and sunk to the floor in laughter. They sat there for a minute and basked in their own giggly glory without speaking before hearing a door close loudly, silencing them immediately.
"You know what?" Draco asked in a whisper. Rebecca looked at him and shook her head.
"I think hiding might not be such a bad idea." He said quickly in a louder whisper. He got up off the floor, and being the gentleman he claimed himself to be, offered Rebecca a hand up. She gladly took it and the two of them walked down the corridor together.
The next corridor held nearly no shadows because one stone wall was full of large windows. The bright moon on that still, clear night turned the place white. Rebecca marvelled at its beauty, and Draco noticed. He watched her peer out the windows as they walked along, her long blonde hair bouncing with every step.
He was thinking about her. He suddenly noticed how quickly she put things behind her; their loud argument, and when Draco dragged her pointlessly around in the wet. She never asked anything. He wished everybody could be like that, and just forget.
She turned around to find him already looking at her. She wasn't facing the natural glow, her face shadowed. But even through the darkness, Draco couldn't help but think how strikingly beautiful she actually was. He was nearly ashamed that it took this long to notice. A pretty face with a personality to match.
"This way," He said quietly, turning to go down a flight of stairs. Then another, and then one more, reaching the first floor. Draco lead Rebecca this time, as they pressed against the stone wall along the corridor and then through one of the arch ways which lead outside and into a courtyard.
"We're going outside now? That would get us in even more trouble," Rebecca hinted.
"So we were avoiding getting in trouble just now?" He turned and raised an eyebrow.
"…No… I mean, if they caught us out here, we would be in so much trouble they'd kill us as punishment." Rebecca said with wide eyes in a humorous way. Draco caught himself chuckling and shook his head, continuing across the courtyard with Rebecca in tow.
"Behind the fountain!" Rebecca suggested excitedly, and she jogged over to sit down behind the large, round fountain in the centre of the moonlit courtyard. She looked over the top of the edge to see Draco exactly where she left him, looking at her strangely.
"Come on. Before someone sees you standing there like a real idiot!" Rebecca informed him. Draco cracked a smile.
"There's nobody here but us." He told her, putting his hands in his pockets as he watched her.
"Before someone comes then," Rebecca corrected, and Draco strolled over to crouch down behind the fountain with her.
"What are you on?" He asked sarcastically, and even though Rebecca knew it was a rhetorical question, she answered it anyway.
"It's not just me! All of us who were playing hide and seek are on it!" She played. Draco looked a little taken aback.
"And 'it' is…?" He asked, looking over her.
"Sugar." Rebecca smiled. He could see her face in the light now. Her defined features and her blue eyes that stood out against her smooth skin that was nearly as pale as his own. He looked at her for a long time. Her eyes... He stood up, catching himself. He looked around the courtyard.
"Hey," He mumbled incoherently, before leaving Rebecca and walking across the courtyard. He stopped and inspected the ground. It took Rebecca a slow moment to realise he was looking over their target. She then got up and wandered over to him.
It took Draco a moment to realise Rebecca was also standing there. They both looked at each other and then the target for a few quiet seconds. It looked like it hadn't been touched since the afternoon they first drew it there.
"Do you want to play?" Rebecca asked, the excitement returning to her voice. Draco looked at her again.
"Sure." He smiled. They looked around for a few similar rocks. After a few minutes of searching the courtyard Rebecca had found three smooth white pebbles. She looked up to see Draco still looking for his last rock. She walked back over to the target again and waited for him.
"You ready?" Draco said as he stood up from picking up his last rock. Rebecca nodded and Draco stood next to her. He had picked up three grey rocks.
"Ladies first," He gestured Rebecca forward. She tossed one of her rocks towards the target, then stepped back to let Draco have his turn.
"You get to use your right hand this time." She pointed out.
"Yes, be prepared to lose, Whyte." He smirked. Rebecca raised her eyebrows.
"I wouldn't be so sure about that if I were you." She retorted playfully.
"Just you wait and see." He said, stepping back to let Rebecca have her second turn. She gently threw her rock towards the target and watched it land somewhere near the middle.
"See that? I'm going to win." She teased, stepping back once again.
"What? I didn't see anything. You're clearly going to lose." He said playfully, his rock landing just about where hers had.
"Go on, your last shot to embarrass yourself." He teased. Rebecca stepped forward, full of confidence and tossed her last rock. It landed somewhere towards the outer rings. Draco laughed as he stepped forward for his last throw. His shot didn't turn out much better than hers had. They looked at each other. Draco had eaten his own words, and Rebecca thought it hilarious.
"Go on, your last shot to embarrass yourself." She mocked him. He shoved her in the arm playfully before they went over to the target to add up their scores.
"One hundred and thirty." Draco stated proudly. Rebecca looked up at him and pursed her lips. She kicked all her rocks off the target before he had the chance to add up her score himself. He looked at her questionably.
"I won," She lied with a mischievous grin crossing her face. He continued looking at her funny, becoming a little suspicious.
"What was your score then?" He asked closing in on her.
"One hundred and forty." She lied again, except she laughed this time, completely giving it away. She slapped a hand over her mouth to stop herself from laughing even more.
"You're lying." He said, coming even closer.
"No I'm not!" She mumbled through her hand.
"Then why did you kick your rocks away?" He asked, sounding a little like a detective. She glanced at her rocks quickly at their mention and then back to him. She found herself backing away from him because of the close proximity.
"So... You wouldn't change them so you could win…?" She said feebly and laughed again.
"You're a really bad liar, you know that?" He began to laugh as well. Rebecca nodded.
"What was your real score?" He asked, even closer now.
"Not telling!" She laughed loudly, turning and running away from him.
She reached the fountain to hide from him, although when she got there she realised he was going after her, so she kept running. The both of them were laughing a little too loudly for comfort and Rebecca would scream playfully when he got too close. She was beginning to think that someone would come and find them very soon if they didn't either leave or quieten down. With that thought she ran through a different arch way that led out into the grounds.
She wasn't really sure where she was headed, but the only way she could really go was down the big hill. She quickly found that running down the hill wasn't the best idea. She changed direction so she was now running across the hill instead. She slowed down to see if Draco had followed her. He was literally right behind her. She slowed down so suddenly that Draco's body slammed into hers full of force, sending them both tumbling down the hill a few meters. They laid next to each other for a quick moment, recovering from their run in. As soon as Rebecca could, she quickly got onto her hands and knees in preparation to get up. Before she made to go, Draco got a grip on one of her ankles causing her to lay flat again. She rolled over onto her back and Malfoy quickly straddled her, holding her hands up above her head. Her stomach suddenly filled with butterflies. He was so close.
"Okay, okay! I lost, I lost!" She cried giving in much too soon again.
"By how much?" He prodded her even further.
"Thirty points! I only scored one hundred!" She said quickly. He raised his eyebrows questionably.
"I swear, I'm telling the truth!" She laughed, and Draco frowned.
"I thought it might have been more by the way you were acting," He said, sounding confused. "Nope. Just did it for the fun." She smiled. Draco hesitated slightly. He wouldn't have done that for fun.
"You're so weird." He mumbled, catching himself from saying she was different instead. Rebecca laughed at him, and he smiled a small smile. Rebecca's stomach flipped again.
Draco rolled off of her, and they both laid there in the lush green grass under the stars.
"Where are your shoes?" He asked her, as he noticed when he had grabbed her ankle. She laughed again at his sudden question. She had nearly forgotten herself.
"We all took our shoes off to play hide and seek so when we ran, it would be quiet." She answered him, and it occurred to him quickly that it was a good idea. He laughed with her.
They laid next to each other wordlessly and gazed at the night sky. The moon was nearly full, which explained the bright glow, and they could see every star, for it was a cloudless night. There was a gentle breeze that sent shivers down Draco's spine as he compared Rebecca to the night sky. He looked at her through the long grass between them, seeing her admire the starry sky peacefully. What he would give to be that at peace.
The whole atmosphere had the most precious charm to it. And the unlikely pair were surprised to feel completely at ease in each others' company.