By the end of Aster's detentions with Umbridge, there was now a permanent scarring on her left inner arm, just below the crook of her elbow, which read I must be respectful. It was faint, but it was certainly there, and for some odd reason she couldn't disconcern, she missed the feeling of the quill slicing her arm.
Umbridge had now begun to supervise lessons of Dumbledore's staff, and unfortunately for Aster, she could see the pink toad standing near Professor Grubbly Plank as she arrived at Care of Magical Creatures class.
It started off fine enough, Umbridge kept peppering Grubbly Plank with questions about Hagrid's disappearance, but was unsuccessful in retrieving information. This seemed to put Umbridge in a rather sour mood, and she turned her questioning onto the students. She asked what creatures they had learned about, and when everyone seemed to know their creatures, she then began asking about Hagrid's teaching methods. Which, then, Malfoy had to open his big fat mouth.
"Now, I hear there have been injuries in this class?"
Goyle gave a stupid grin. Draco hastened to answer the question.
"That was me," he said. "I was slashed by a hippogriff."
"A hippogriff?" said Professor Umbridge, now scribbling frantically.
"Only because he was too stupid to listen to what Hagrid told him to do," said Harry angrily, and Aster rolled her eyes as she looked over at her brother. He could never manage to bite his tongue.
It seemed both Ron and Hermione agreed with her thoughts, as they both groaned. Professor Umbridge turned her head slowly in Harry's direction.
"Another night's detention, I think," she said softly. "Well, thank you very much, Professor Grubbly-Plank, I think that's all I need here. You will be receiving the results of your inspection within ten days."
"Jolly good," said Professor Grubbly-Plank, and Professor Umbridge set off back across the lawn to the castle.
As class ended, Aster rounded upon Harry, uncaring that the lingering Slytherin's would see her approach him.
"Why the bloody hell did you have to open your mouth?" Aster snapped, crossing her arms.
"Malfoy was looking for a reason to get Hagrid in trouble!" Harry insisted, shoving his arms in the air. "Was I supposed to just stay silent?"
"Yes!" Aster, Ron, and Hermione said in unison.
Harry looked put out. "Well, I can't just stand by and let her try to sack Hagrid."
"If it's going to happen, it's going to happen," Aster said hotly, shrugging her shoulders. "I doubt you're the best person to be standing up for him, seeing as Umbridge absolutely despises you."
"Well if I don't, who will?" Harry exclaimed.
Aster groaned in frustration. "You can't save everyone, Harry!"
She turned on her heel, and stormed off to the castle. Much too frustrated to sit in the Great Hall and pretend to eat something, she headed for the library. It was never a place she would be found in her previous years at Hogwarts, which made it the perfect place for her to go to now. It was untouched by memories of Cedric.
Aster sat at a table near the back, a book on Herbology open. She was having problems focusing on that class, and she knew it was because of Cedric's memory. She had gotten better, but her grades there had started to slip enough that Professor Flitwick had suggested she get a tutor. She was to meet her tutor there after lunch, but she was there early as she had skipped the Great Hall.
Abandoning the book that she found she couldn't focus on, she began making bubbles come out from the tip of her wand, her chin resting in her hand. She heaved a heavy sigh, her mind wandering to worry about Harry. How could he always manage to be so foolish? Perhaps it was just a Gryffindor thing.
"I can see why you're failing Herbology."
Aster started, and turned to see Draco Malfoy setting his bag on the table with a disdainful look on his face.
"You're my tutor?" Aster asked, bewildered.
"Perhaps if you spent more time reading the book and less time blowing bubbles, you wouldn't be in need of my services." Draco gave her a distasteful look, pulling out his own Herbology book.
"I find it hard to believe you know anything about Herbology." Aster blurted out, setting her wand down on the table. Draco's jaw clenched, and she found herself staring at his sharp jawline.
"I find it hard to believe you're failing a class, but here we are," Draco snarked, setting her book bag onto the floor. "It was either me or Longbottom, although with the company you keep, I wouldn't have been surprised if you would rather him."
Aster rolled her eyes. "You're one to talk about the company a person keeps. I mean, Crabbe and Goyle? They each share the same filthy brain cell!"
Draco actually cracked a smile at her comment, and Aster again felt an odd feeling in the slowly healing wound in her chest. "I think you're being too generous, it's roughly half."
The two of them shared a laugh, and then things grew silent and awkward.
"So, you're really good at Herbology?" Aster clarified doubtfully, unaware Draco had any talent beyond Potions.
"My mum loved Herbology," Draco explained, an almost peaceful look on his face as he spoke of his mother. "Growing up, it was our hobby we shared together. We have a rather large greenhouse in the back of the manor, and my mother considers it her pride and joy aside from me."
Aster smiled. Again, Draco was seeming to be more human. He began quizzing her on the basics they were learning this term, looking more and more annoyed when she was only able to get a little over half correct. Nearing the end of their hour, Draco had placed tabs in the sections of the book he wanted her to read by next week, when they would meet again for their next tutoring session.
Aster was putting her things in her back when Draco suddenly blurted out a question.
"Why weren't you at lunch?"
Aster paused, slowly setting her bag on the table. "I wasn't hungry."
"You hardly ever eat at mealtimes." Draco pressed, his grey eyes narrowing as he looked at her. His eyes shifted downwards, to her bony hands, and Aster nervously tugged her sleeves down to cover them.
"I just forget to." Aster explained. It was partly the truth. She hardly had an appetite, and the gnawing pain in her hungry stomach felt good. She would get caught up in other things, like missing Cedric or worrying about Sirius or worrying about Harry or being mad about Umbridge, and simply forget to eat. And when she actually showed up to meal times, she could only force a few bites down before the crowded room would overwhelm her.
Draco scoffed, clearly not believing her. "Perhaps you should sit by me then, so I can remind you."
Both of them seemed to freeze at his words, and Aster decided she imagined the flirty edge he had to his tone. She quickly mumbled a maybe, and excused herself from the table. The odd feeling was back in her chest again, and the flames seemed to evaporate. She didn't know what to think, and decided it would be best to leave it alone and try to forget about it.
The beginning of the following week, Hermione stopped her in the hall and pulled her quietly to the side behind a statue. She was breathless and her cheeks were pink, and Aster gave her a concerned look.
"I wanted to catch you while you were alone," Hermione explained, panting slightly. "Ron and I are trying to get Harry to teach a group of us Defense Against the Dark Arts. Umbridge obviously won't be of any help, and with the way things are going, we need to be prepared. Would you like to join?"
"Absolutely," Aster replied without hesitation. "When do we meet?"
Hermione beamed. "First week of Hogsmeade, at the Hogs Head."
That was how Aster found herself hardly able to concentrate during her next Herbology session with Draco Malfoy, which happened on the Friday before their Saturday Hogsmeade visit.
Draco noticed, of course, and grew increasingly irritable with her. "I don't know why I'm bothering to teach you anything if you won't even listen to me!"
Aster looked up from the parchment she had been doodling on, to see Draco with a furious expression and the tips of his ears pink. Aster felt bad, and quickly apologized. "Sorry, Draco, I've just got my mind elsewhere."
"That much is apparent," Draco scoffed, slamming his Herbology book shut. "You realize I don't get my extra credit if you don't show improvement?"
For some reason, his mentioning the extra credit rubbed her the wrong way. "I didn't realize you were receiving extra credit for tutoring me."
"Obviously I am," Draco let out a rather cruel laugh. "Why else would I waste my Friday evening with you?"
The words stung Aster, and she could feel the biting tears of humiliation prick the back of her eyelids. She too, slammed her book shut, roughly shoving it into her bag. Her chest began heaving, and she hurried out of the library. She had just made it around the corner when she suddenly became dizzy, and would have stumbled to the ground were it not for the pair of arms that caught her roughly.
"You alright?" Draco asked, attempting to steady her.
Aster slid to the floor, her head in her hands. Her head was swimming, and her vision was getting spotty. She focused on her breathing, hoping it would help. "Dunno."
"When's the last time you ate?" Draco demanded, crouching down next to her. The scent of his cologne invaded her senses, making it much harder for her already jumbled mind to think.
"Erm, yesterday afternoon, I think?" Aster recalled, lifting her head from her hands. "I had half a sandwich at lunch."
Draco let out a frustrated groan, and gently but firmly pulled her to her feet. "You're bloody ridiculous."
He drug Aster along the hall, leading her to the all familiar hallway near Hufflepuff, the corridor she had refused to step foot in all year. Her stomach was churning, but she didn't have the strength to stop Draco from pulling her along.
When they reached the fruit, Draco tickled the pear, causing the entrance to the kitchens to spring apart for them. He pulled Aster in with him, and ordered her to sit at a table a house elf pulled up for her.
The smell of the kitchen was heavenly, and Aster found herself truly hungry for the first time in awhile. Draco soon reappeared with a house elf carrying a plate of grapes paired with a sandwich with very soft looking bread, and a glass of pumpkin juice. The elf sat the plate down in front of Aster, bowed, and scurried away back into the kitchen.
"Eat." Draco demanded, crossing her arms and giving her a cross look.
Aster nodded, and bit into the peanut butter and jelly sandwich. She was acutely aware of Draco watching her every movement, and he didn't stop until she finished the last drop of pumpkin juice. Once he was satisfied, and again took hold of her arm, and led her back out the door, heading towards the Slytherin commons room.
"Why?" Aster asked suddenly, her head clearing up as the food settled into her system. Her stomach felt quite full, and it made her uncomfortable, longing for the hollow and biting feeling she was used to. "Why did you bring me there?"
"I couldn't have you drop dead on my watch," Draco scoffed, shaking his head. "I may not like you, but that doesn't mean I want you to starve to death."
For some reason, hearing those words come from Draco's mouth stung harshly. Again, tears pricked the back of her eyes, and Aster rushed to her room, leaving Draco standing in the doorway slapping a hand to his forehead in frustration.
Aster sat on her bed, knees curled to her chest. From underneath her pillow, she grabbed Cedric's scarf, and pressed the worn fabric into her face as she cried. She no longer wore the scarf around school, instead leaving it for night time when his absence would hit her the most. She had no idea why Draco Malfoy upset her so badly. Why did she care whether he liked her or not?
Her chest ached again, and the flames returned, licking with a vengeance. She further pressed Cedric's scarf to her face, and willed for the world to stop.
sorry for the late update! i ended up testing positive for covid, so that's been lovely to deal with. hope you all are doing well, and enjoying this update!
-TheFlyingGraysons