A/N Prepare to see an old face, one that most of you have probably totally forgotten about! The confrontation with Draco is incoming too, but there's a bit of a plot twist. Read on to find out!
The next few days were tense as I waited for Draco to come and yell at me or something, but I didn't see a trace of him until Transfiguration. Even briefly talking to Fred the day before hadn't livened up my mood, which just goes to show how big of a deal this was because he had never before failed to cheer me up. As I stepped into the classroom two minutes before the bell, I noticed Draco sitting at his desk with Crabbe. They were hunched over, whispering to each other. Suspicious, I walked quietly over to them from behind, hoping to hear what they were saying, but a loud group of Slytherin girls walked in and made them turn, just enough to see me.
Trying to act like I wasn't just about to eavesdrop on them, I gave them an awkward wave as I moved past to my seat. His glare was burning the back of my head, but I couldn't blame him. If I'd heard someone talk about me like that, I would go and punch them straight in the nose, so this was definitely preferable. The rest of the class slowly trickled in, including my friends, who had been caught by the common room door as they went to get their bags, so I wasn't sitting alone the whole time. The lesson started without a hitch, but I was intensely aware of the malevolent boy behind me. After taking a series of severely complicated notes that I was having a hard time paying attention to, we set to practicing the spell. Just forget him for now, Alexia, I told myself. He'll speak up sooner or later.
Surprisingly, it was later; he didn't say anything until the end of the double period. Professor McGonagall had given us a minute to pack up before the period ended and I was just shoving my textbook back into my bag when he said, "That's not how I am, you know." Assuming he was talking about what Pansy said, I winced slightly and replied, "Yeah, I could have said that better, but it wasn't really meant for your ears."
He frowned, confused. "But…you were talking to me. How could it not be for my ears?" Now it was my turn to be confused. Wasn't he talking about what Pansy had surely told him, probably magnified 10 times worse than what I'd actually said? "But Pansy- you know what, never mind that," I quickly covered up. "And are you sure that you don't assume an apology solves everything? It seems like something you would believe."
"What's that supposed to mean?! And what did you say about Pansy?" Nope, I'm steering the conversation away from that. "Well, you're an only child, right? You weren't exactly surrounded by other children when you were growing up, so, like some only children, you don't know very much about relationships and the various back-and-forth's of them," I answered, ignoring the last question. "That's very stereotyping for someone who's only known me for a few months at most," he returned angrily. "Maybe I do, maybe I don't believe that, but it's not your place to say what I am without having known me for years at least."
He had a point, but I wasn't just anyone. "Draco, I notice things others don't. For example, I knew you were an only child. You didn't tell me that, nor did either of our Dads. I could just tell," I pointed out. "Yes, but that's just one part of me. How could you possibly know if I think an apology fixes everything, huh? You may be more observant than other people, but you aren't that good," he spat disdainfully, stabbing my ego repeatedly. "Now stop avoiding my question. What did Pansy say or not say?" Harsh much? But I guess he kind of had a point. "I don't know why she didn't tell you, but I won't breathe a word and nothing will change my mind on that," I said vehemently. There was no way in the world that I would tell him what Pansy had been planning to! For that matter, why hadn't she?
"If you'll excuse me, I need to, um, get something," I excused myself, leaving him glowering but not bothering to following me. The bell rang and the rest of the students flooded out into the hallway, so I flitted through them, looking for Pansy, after telling Melanie that I'd meet them in the Great Hall. When I finally spotted her on the floor just below, she was headed to a bathroom at the end of the hall, so I followed her there.
"Pansy!" I called, almost catching up with her. She turned at her name, saw me, frowned and whipped back around, determined to ignore me. "Wait, Pansy! Why didn't you tell Draco what I said?" We had reached the bathroom door, but she paused with her hand on the handle. With a smirk, she replied, "Are you complaining? And I thought you didn't want him to know! Maybe I should have told him anyway."
"No, I am definitely not complaining! But what made you stop?" I asked as she pushed open the door. Haughtily, she answered, "Why should I tell you? It's over now; I won't tell him. Just get on with your life, will you?" Sheesh, no need to be so rude! I turned and stalked away from the bathroom as the door swung shut behind her. Why couldn't she just answer my question? She was obviously hiding something, but I wasn't sure what it could be. My curiosity was piqued now; I just had to know!
After lunch, I decided to head to the Library again, this time without Jessica. She had to help Max with a charm, with Melanie along for moral support, and that couldn't be done in a library. Secretly, I was hoping to spot Pansy there and see if I couldn't find out what she was being so tight-lipped about, but she was nowhere to be seen. It will take more than luck to find out. If you really want to know, you'll have to follow her around all day, every day, which would be counterproductive and boring, not to mention that that would probably break dozens of school rules.
However, I did get to meet another unpleasant someone. As I was scribbling away at an essay for Professor Binns ("A foot and a half?! He's crazy, that's what he is."), Felix Hall plunked himself down across from me. While the library tables were free for anyone to sit at, people usually went and got their own table instead of sitting with random strangers. I wasn't a stranger to Felix, but I didn't like him at all, which he knew full well. He was just doing this to mess with me and I wasn't going to give him the satisfaction.
After a few moments of silence where I didn't even look up at him or acknowledge his presence, he said, "Wow, no hello, Alexia? I'm hurt, I really am." I didn't reply, completely ignoring him, hoping he would go away if he figured out that I wasn't going to react to him or anything he said. "I see; the cold shoulder. Is that how you should treat your savior?"
Savior? Even Felix wasn't narcissistic enough to claim to be someone's savior without reason. This earned him a glance of disbelief from me, but a glance was all he needed to know that I was listening. With a grin, he proclaimed quietly, but still proudly, "Yes, I have saved you from the brink of social suicide, or something of that manner." When was I ever about to commit social suicide? He had my full attention now; I actually set down my quill and asked, "What do you mean by 'social suicide'?"
"Oh, nothing, nothing at all. So, how was your day?" He abruptly switched topics and tried to move the conversation along with small talk. He probably just said he was my 'savior' because he knew I would ask him about it, thereby roping me into a conversation. Now that I had asked, he had nothing to say about it and was trying to cover up. Whatever. If I moved on, maybe I could find an opening to tell him to leave. Ha! Giving himself a pompous title like 'savior' is just like him, I thought scornfully.
"It was great; thanks for asking. Now, if you don't mind, I'll try to get on with it," I said and looked back down at my essay. He ignored that obvious dismissal and continued talking, "That's good. I see you're doing homework. How are your classes coming?" I rolled my eyes in annoyance. "Give it up, Hall. There's no way you actually care. What do you really want?"
"So it's 'Hall', now is it? Since when do you call me that?" he asked with a hurt expression that I could see right through. "Since now, and stop avoiding my question," I replied forcefully, wishing he would go away so I could concentrate. "I only wanted to check up on my favorite little Meta. Is there any harm in that? Why are you so cold?"
"You idiot, of course I'm your favorite 'Meta'; I'm the only one you know! And I'm cold to you because you're arrogant and you appear at the least opportune moments," I retorted in a low voice, conscious of the fact that we were still in a library and our conversation was getting louder. A few of the surrounding students were glancing at us, some curious and some annoyed. He frowned and said, "You always push me away, Alexia. What have I ever done to you?" Now that I thought about it, he was just annoying most of the time. He really wasn't that much of a nuisance, just an inconvenience.
Before I answered, I gave what I was about to say a lot of thought, "Truthfully, the only thing you ever do when you talk to me is annoy me in some way or another. At the Quidditch try-outs, at Mayfield, that one week when you 'helped out' with my training; all of those times, I ended up annoyed, either because of something you said or did." He was silent for a second before replying, "It that it? I annoy you, so you push me away?"
"Um, yeah? Do I need a better excuse than that?" I asked, wondering where this conversation was going. "No, I get your point," he answered and then his face brightened with a confident grin, "If that's it then I'll have to try harder next time! Challenge accepted!"
"Oh, come on! I thought you were about to see the error of your way or something deep like that!" I complained, drawing a few more irritated looks. One girl, probably Ravenclaw, got so mad that she actually hissed, "Take your lover's quarrel somewhere else!"
"We're not lovers! In no way, shape, form, or stretch of the imagination!" I hissed back, trying to control the blush that started to creep across my face. Lovers? With him?! Ewwwww! "Whatever," she replied, "Just take your argument elsewhere, would you? Some of us are trying to study!"
Felix was grinning like a 5-year-old who had just seen a giant piece of candy and was determined to get it. "Come on, dearest," he said, pulling me from my chair and gathering by stuff. "Let's go somewhere more private." Urgh, that little sneak, playing the part just to annoy me! "What do you think you're doing, Hall?! That's my stuff, not yours, and I intend to use that to finish my essay before free period ends! Put it back," I ordered. "No, sorry, I can't do that. The general public is angry at us right now, so leaving is the best answer at present," he answered, still toting my bag towards the door. I hurried after him, using my best do-as-I-say! voice, "Hand it over, Hall! I need to do this essay; it's due tomorrow! And you're making a scene!"
Almost everyone in the Library was looking at us now, and Madam Pince was giving us the evil eye. "No, you're making a scene," he replied. "If we just leave, like I say we should, these lovely people can move on with their lives and we can continue this discussion uninterrupted." Because he was still playing the part of the boyfriend, he said this last part like there were other meanings behind it. Madam Pince seemed to agree with him, at least about us getting out. "Either check out the book or leave it here, but finish your business elsewhere," she commanded.
Intensely aware of the eyes on me, I stiffly took the book out of Felix's arms, marched over to her desk, and checked it out. It was taking all of my self-control not to slap Felix for getting me kicked out of the Library. I strode past him, giving him no choice but to follow with my stuff. Down the corridor from him, I whipped around and started yelling, "I can't believe you! Why on earth would you do that?! You got me kicked out of the Library; I'm probably the first Ravenclaw in the history of the school to get kicked out! And I am not your girlfriend; I never will be, either. Now you owe me an explanation for everything that just happened in there!" My voice echoed around the hallway, and I'm pretty sure they could hear me in the Library, which was fine by me. He looked sheepish, but he was still grinning, "I was just playing along for the crowd. Loosen up at little, Meta. You'll turn your hair red or something."
"Why did you even talk to me, huh? We both know that I don't like you and you don't like me, so why?" I asked angrily, pointing out the root of the problem. "I was fine and dandy until you plunked yourself down, calling yourself my savior or something." Acting affronted, he answered, "I was bored in there, with no one to talk to. Then I saw you, and I thought, 'Hey, entertainment!'"
"I can't believe you!" I repeated vehemently. "For one thing, the Library is a place of work, not play. Secondly, I'm not your 'entertainment'! I was doing my homework, for crying out loud! That's your number one clue that I don't have the time to deal with you!" Ripping my things from his grasp, I stormed off to the room where the others were practicing the spell, on the second floor. Felix at least had the sense not to follow me and keep annoying me.
I knocked on the door when I got there, alerting them to my presence outside the door. Hopefully when I opened the door, Max's charm wasn't about to bounce off and hit me in the face, because that would be just my luck, you know? Swinging open the door, I entered the room, still in a foul mood, but not as bad as before. I'd had time to cool off on the way here. Max was still trying to charm a chair purple, with no luck so far, and Jessica was giving him pointers. Melanie was sitting off to the side looking bored, but she brightened when I came in. "Hello, Alexia! Did you get all your work done?" she called across the classroom.
I huffed and answered, "No! Felix decided to come and mess with me right in the middle of my essay, and I actually got kicked out of the Library! I'm just lucky that Madam Pince allowed me to check out the book before I left." Max stopped in his attempt to master the charm to say, "Hey, that's my brother you're talking about! He would never do something like that. Sure, he's a bit of a jerk sometimes, but he wouldn't go that far." I shook my head at his obstinate belief in the good of his brother. It was really clouding his vision about Felix. I mean, you don't really want to believe that your role model has any sort of dark side, but it was starting to get on my nerves, though, which were already frayed from Felix.
Jessica seemed to find his devotion amusing, like when we'd found out how Felix had told him that the sorting ceremony was an obstacle course. "That sounds exactly like something Felix would do, actually," she replied with a smile. He glared at her and shot back, "You don't know him like I do. He's not a bad person, like you seem to think he is." He was right that we often insulted Felix while around him, but he was the one who chose not believe us. I dug my essay out of my bag and showed it to him. "Here's your proof, dude. He called himself my savior, too, if you can believe it, but I think that was just to make me talk to him by asking about it." Max just shook his head disbelievingly and went back to practicing.
Giving up for now on trying to convince him of the darkness in his brother, I got comfortable on a chair next to Melanie and pulled a desk over to write on. She, having already completed the essay, gave me a few tidbits of information that I missed here and there as I finished it. The bell rung for the end of free period just as I dotted the last period. Rolling up the newly finished essay, I exited the room with the others three and we headed to Defense Against the Dark Arts. Professor Quirrell wasn't really an attention-grabber of a teacher, even though he was talking about scary stuff like hags. He was kind of like Professor Binns in that respect; Binns could make bloody goblin wars boring just with his monotonous voice.
"H-h-hags are usually f-f-found in Europe and R-R-Russia," he explained nervously, but then again, he said everything nervously. He was stuttering worse than usual; most people thought it was because he'd dealt with a hag while he was traveling the world to get some field experience. Must've been pretty nasty.
Throughout the whole lesson, and the one after that, something kept bothering me. Felix had called himself my savior from social suicide. As much of an arrogant twit as he was, he wouldn't say something like that without a reason, and it would be a better reason than just wanting to be entertained like he said. Social suicide…that was a very specific danger. There was no way that would just pop into his head. When had I been about to commit social suicide?
An idea popped into my head; not quite suicide, but something like it. I couldn't believe it didn't occur to me earlier! Pansy and Draco!
A/N Dun dun DUN! Could Felix have something to do with the mystery of Pansy? "I dunno, does he?" Probably, but who can say for sure? "Um, I don't know, maybe you? You're the author here." ...yeah, so? *facepalm*