It felt strange to wake up and not find owls pecking at her closed window with letters from her friends. The realisation struck her in the heart. She'd finally succeeded in pushing them away; they'd grown fed up and come to their senses to know that she was nothing but a lost cause.

Despite achieving her goal, she couldn't bring herself to be satisfied. Instead, she lifted her head from her slumped position with a heavy heart.

She stared down at the parchment beneath her arms and cringed at the messy scrawl across it, the paper wrinkled and ruined by her tears. She forced herself to stand on shaking legs and sighed when she realised she'd fallen asleep in her dress by her vanity. She stretched, trying to relieve her muscles as she called for Lopsy's help.

Today, the family, minus Lucius, would be going into Diagon Alley for their school supplies since they'd be returning to Hogwarts the next morning.

At breakfast, their father had been absent, but even so, the conversation was a little dryer than usual. She didn't miss the looks Draco and Narcissa shared, nor did she miss their concern at the bags under her eyes.

They walked the streets of Diagon Alley with their heads held high, maintaining their prestigious stance. An easy but quiet conversation flowed between them as their mother pestered them with questions and distracted them from all of the judging or staring eyes. The Malfoy name wasn't exactly loved amongst most. It was just sad that no one would see behind their front. No one would see that Lucius was the only one to truly hold any prejudice.

"Why don't you head along to The Three Broomsticks and order for us?" Narcissa smiled. "Draco and I have something we need to take care of."

Despite being suspicious and not liking being left out, Cassie continued on as the pair veered around a corner. She took a deep breath, pushing the door open as she prayed for the place to not be busy.

Her prayers were heard, but fate threw another curve ball her way. As her gaze sweeped over the little clique's of people, her eyes were immediately drawn to the biggest group in their usual corner. One out of two boys with fiery red hair met her eyes, before his face lit up and he elbowed his brother. In tow, the rest of them looked up and turned to face her, before they jumped out of their seats and raced over to her.

In a matter of seconds, she was being engulfed in a hug from Fred, George, Serena, Angelina, Alicia, Lee and even Cedric. They were all mumbling over the top of each other and Cassie couldn't make out what they were saying until they pulled back.

"Jeez," George said, dramatically. "You had me thinking you were dead for a minute there."

"Surprise." She said, weakly.

Their reaction absolutely baffled her. She'd ignored them for the entire summer and had broken up with Fred, yet here they stood with open arms like nothing had changed between them. Cedric and Serena's presence made no sense. Surely this couldn't be coincidence.

They must have noticed her expression as their smiles dropped and they became serious. She averted her eyes to the floor, only looking up when Fred stooped right in front of her. He reached out and softly held her shoulder, forcing her to look up at his gentle expression.

"Look, we don't need to get back together, but I want to be there for you even if that's as a friend. We're best friends, remember? All of us." He said, gesturing to the nodding group behind him. "We don't want to loose you, Cassie. You're the glue that holds us together and here we are, a group of Gryffindors, a Slytherin and a Hufflepuff to show you how much we love and support you."

"For all I think he's mad," Cedric smiled. "I have to agree."

"Don't isolate yourself, Cassie." Serena said, softly. "You need us as much as we need you."

"We're not giving up on you, Cass." Fred told her.

"You're stuck with us." George said, but it wasn't so much of a tease.

"I'm sorry," Her voice broke and for a minute they were terrified she would make a run for it, but instead, she dropped into Fred's arms and cried into his chest as he held her tightly. "I'm so sorry. It hurt so much. I missed you."

Once they'd calmed her down and lead her over to their table, they eased into their usual conversation and it was like the whole thing had never happened.

Eventually, she realised she should probably order their drinks and luckily, Narcissa and Draco entered when she was at the bar to order. Her group of friends sent her smiles and nods of understanding as she bypassed them to sit at the table with her mother and brother. If either noticed anything, they were exceptionally well at hiding it and their day continued as normal.

Late that evening, Cassie was lying on the couch in front of the blazing fire as she watched the flames crackles and contort. Her eyes felt heavy from multiple nights of restless sleep and the warmth of the fire only lulled her to close her eyes.

That's where Draco found her. He quietly approached her, glancing around the room, before he slowly slipped his arms under her and gently picked her up in his arms. God forbid their father return home and find her.

As he walked in the direction of their rooms, a small smile tugged at his lips. For weeks, she had looked worse for wear. She'd been exhausted and always wore a troubled look. But now, as he gazed down at her, he was convinced he'd made the right call. She looked peaceful and the fact that she hadn't stirred gave him hope that she'd be able to sleep a little better now.

He gently set her down on her bed and pulled her fluffy blanket over her, before drawing the quilt across her. He pushed the hair back from her face and fished out the few strands that had fallen into her mouth. He placed a kiss on her forehead.

Crossing the room, his eyes fell on the letter she'd received from 'Blaise Zabini' the day before, and quietly hid it under her notebook from sight should anyone enter her room and find it. Namely, their father.

Draco would never admit to finding nor reading the letter from the older Weasley boy that held his sisters heart. He would never, not even over his dead body, admit to writing to that same boy, Fred Weasley. And until the day he died, he would never admit that he was the one to set up their little run in for ensuring his sisters happiness meant most to him.