Never
The next few days went on normal. As normal can it can get for Harry Potter. Estella seemed to have forgotten him barely giving him a second glance. He followed the suit. He went on concentrating on Cho Chang who seemed to blush when she caught him staring. Cho was very beautiful. But he still couldn't get her alone to start a conversation. She always seemed to be followed by friends.
As weeks passed, Umbridge seemed to have a vendetta against him giving him detention every other week. Harry too helped her cause by shouting at her frequently about voldemort's return. Almost everyone seemed to believe the ministry version of events which made him more angry. Ron had been selected as the quidditch keeper for Gryffindor.
After sending a letter to Sirius, Harry was about to leave the owlery when he bumped into Cho Chang.
ʹHi,ʹ said Harry automatically.
ʹOh… hi,ʹ she said breathlessly. ʹI didnʹt think anyone would be up here this early… I only remembered five minutes ago, itʹs my mumʹs birthday.ʹ
She held up the parcel.
ʹRight,ʹ said Harry. His brain seemed to have jammed.
ʹNice day,ʹ he said, gesturing to the windows. His insides seemed to shrivel with embarrassment. The weather. He was talking about the weather…
ʹYeah,ʹ said Cho, looking around for a suitable owl. ʹGood Quidditch conditions. 1 havenʹt been out all week, have you?ʹ
ʹNo,ʹ said Harry. 'I was in detention'
That Umbridge womanʹs foul,ʹ she said in a low voice. ʹPutting you in detention just because you told the truth about how ‐ how ‐ how he died. Everyone heard about it, it was all over the school. You were really brave standing up to her like that.ʹ
Harryʹs insides re‐inflated so rapidly he felt as though he might actually float a few inches off the dropping‐strewn floor. Cho thought he had been really brave. For a moment, he considered accidentally‐on‐purpose showing her his cut hand as he helped her tie her parcel on to her owl… but the very instant this thrilling thought occurred, the Owlery door opened again.
His insides seem to deflate and he was in shock as Estella Malfoy came into the room. Harry knew he looked like a deer caught in headlights as Estella looked at him suspiciously. Her eyes fell over Cho who was attaching the parcel to the owl.
"let's go Harry" Said Cho smiling brightly at him. He saw Estella's lips curl into a snarl
" Well Well look who it is. Chang and Potter. What a lovely couple" drawled Estella making Harry and Cho blush.
"Go away Malfoy" said Harry as she was blocking their way
"Why should I Potter? So that you can continue you snogging session here? Leave the poor owls alone. They have probably been scarred enough witnessing your pathetic groping of Chang" Estella breathed fire.
"Its none of your business whether we are snogging or not, Malfoy. Not that it should matter to you, but Harry's kissing skills are far from pathetic" Said Cho stiffily.
Harry has never been more embarrassed in his entire life. He saw Estella looking at him with accusing eyes as though he betrayed her. Cho grabbed his arm and they left the owlery leaving Estella who seemed to be frozen on the spot.
"Thanks" Said Harry to Cho still red on face.
At the entrance of a corridor that led towards the west wing of the castle, Cho said, ʹIʹm going this way. Well, Iʹll… Iʹll see you around, Harry.ʹ
ʹYeah… see you.ʹ
She smiled at him and departed. Harry felt elated that Cho had stood up for him. She had called him brave. And she seemed to think his kissing skills were excellent. Estella's face was worth a laugh when she heard that. Was she jealous? Harry wondered. She certainly behaved like that in the owlery. She had no right to be, concluded Harry. They had decided to end that. He tried to forget the look of betrayal that flashed across Estella when she discovered him and Cho together. Not that they were doing anything. But Estella seemed to think otherwise.
Of course, Cho had preferred Cedric, he knew that… though if heʹd only asked her to the Ball before Cedric had, things might have turned out differently… she had seemed sincerely sorry that sheʹd had to refuse when Harry asked her…
ʹMorning,ʹ Harry said brightly to Ron and Hermione as he joined them at the Gryffindor table in the Great Hall.
ʹWhat are you looking so pleased about?ʹ said Ron, eyeing Harry in surprise.
ʹErm… Quidditch later,ʹ said Harry happily, pulling a large platter of bacon and eggs towards him.
ʹOh… yeah…ʹ said Ron. He put down the piece of toast he was eating and took a large swig of pumpkin juice. Then he said, ʹListen… you donʹt fancy going out a bit earlier with me, do you? Just to ‐ er ‐ give me some practice before training? So I can, you know, get my eye in a bit.ʹ
ʹYeah, OK,ʹ said Harry.
The rest of the breakfast was done as they discussed about Sturgis Podmore who was sentenced to Azkaban for trying to enter into the department of mysteries.
As Harry flew higher into the quidditch ground he felt relief washing through him. He had missed this. He had been flying alone well after the team left. Even Ron had left after practicing with him. Harry had stayed back as he tested his moves in the air. He had tried Wronski Feint several times before mastering it to perfection. As he flew higher , darkness fell on the ground as the sun set. Harry looked around to see someone watching him from the stands. Somehow Harry knew who it would be. He flew down and walked towards the stands.
"Fancy seeing you down here Malfoy" Said Harry.
The girl looked at him. She had brown hair, brown eyes, a long nose with a lot of freckles. She had dark complexion with thick eyebrows.
"How did you find out?" Asked Estella not even bothering to deny it was her.
"you should have removed the Malfoy bracelet on your wrist as well as your signature smirk. I have seen you in quite a lot of disguises. I can spot you now" Harry replies easily as he sat beside her. Normally he will be shouting at her for spying in the quidditch field. But he was in a good mood after flying. Moreover Harry felt she was not here to do spying.
Estella was gifted when it came to glamour charms. Though she couldn't even vanish an ant she was probably the best in potions and glamour charms. He had seen her in quite a few disguises as they had visited hogsmeade during third and fourth year. Many of his classmates actually believed he was dating someone from drumstag last year since they had spotted him with her. In the end, Estella had put some glamour charm on him as well to make him look more handsome. Blonde hair and pale skin seemed to be her definition of that. Which Harry didn't agree.
He had accompanied her only a few times when he had spotted her wandering alone. And it was an added benefit that since she used glamour charms on him, he didn't have people staring at him.
"You notice quite a lot about me Potter" said Estella as she removed the bracelet and put it in her purse.
"Are you here to pick up a fight ?" asked Harry furrowing his eyebrows. He was too tired to fight.
He sensed Estella relaxing beside him." No Potter. I was watching you fly"
"why?" asked Harry bluntly
"Why not Potter? It is a free country." Said Estella stiffly.
"I like watching you fly. I have bad taste" added Estella
Harry didn't reply. He looked as he could see the stars in the sky. It was a beautiful night. They sat in silence
" I am sorry about what happened in the morning. I have no right to be jealous" Said Estella
Harry turned towards Estella in shock. She was apologizing to him. That never happened. He wondered whether he was dreaming. That would be bad since he didn't want to dream about Estella. She was still staring at the stars determined to not look at him. She had not put a glamour charm on her lips. It was still same. Red Soft plump. Harry looked back into the sky with difficulty.
"Fine" said Harry. He paused for a moment before letting out " I hadn't kissed her, you know. We were just talking"
Why? Why did he have to explain it to her. She seemed to be thinking the same as she replied
"No need for explanations Potter" said Estella though she looked a bit more cheerful after that.
"Still in detention with Umbridge I hear Potter. If I didn't know better, I would have suspected of you of having a crush on that toad as well" Said Estella with her mouth twitching slightly.
"You have been taking far too much interest in my love life Malfoy. Back off" Said Harry
"ooh you are defending her now? Pathetic choice" smiled Estella
Harry glared at her.
"Chang seemed to be interested in you. She keeps on staring at you." Said Estella casually. Harry felt she was not as casual about it as she let on.
" hmmm" mumbled Harry. He was not sure of having a conversation about Cho with Estella. He had a nasty feeling that Estella might prepare some deadly potion and feed it to Cho. After all she was a Malfoy.
He decided to change the subject. "So how are you?" asked Harry. Harry groaned inwardly. That question seemed to be a stupid attempt to change topic..
Estella raised her eyebrow catching him at his feeble attempt for changing the subject. But she let it slip. "Oh you know. same story. I managed to vanish Mcmillian while practicing the vanishing charms. I was supposed to vanish the cat. Then in transfiguration I blasted the the entire classroom."
Harry chuckled. "yeah I heard about that. I wonder how you escape detentions"
Estella sighed " I think they have given up hope on me. Father certainly has. He didn't want me to come back to school. I hadn't passed the exams for DADA and Transfiguration. I think Dumbledore cut me some slack and allowed grace marks. " Estella seemed to be unaffected by it all. But Harry noticed the slight drooping of her shoulders.
"Atleast you are not labeled as the attention seeking git who hallucinates Voldemort's return. I receive hate mails often telling me to get admitted to St Mungo. Given my recent actions, I have considered it myself" said Harry
Estella looked at him and smiled. " Angry young man….You should really stop shouting back to Umbridge in DADA. I think the whole school knows your version of the story. Its upto them to believe it or not."
"But I am telling the truth" Growled Harry , his voice rising rapidly.
"Of course you are. But not everyone is intelligent enough to realize it, Harry" said Estella calmly
Again She had used his first name .Harry cooled down and looked at her.
"You should know the truth. After all your father works for him" Harry grumbled.
"Yes I know the truth. But despite what you think Harry, my family dinner doesn't involve discussing the Dark lords plans of defeating a high school student."
Harry looked disbelievingly at her. Estella sighed and continued "Father doesn't discuss such things to us. He believes Malfoy ladies must be ..er.. traditional. Keep to the houses and look nice I wouldn't know a thing about his activities outside. Though I do believe in pureblood superiority –"
Harry snorted.
"and the need to uphold our wizarding traditions , I don't believe killing is the way to achieve that"
"So if you have no idea about the death eater plans then how you know he is back?" asked Harry
"Because you said so" Said Estella without missing a beat.
Harry was stunned for a moment before regaining his senses. Was she lying to him? But why would she?
"You seem to have gone in shock Potter" remarked Estella
"You believe me" stated Harry in what he hoped was a casual voice. He felt a twinge of happiness that she believed him. Harry knew it was irrational since she was bound to know Voldemort's rise
"Yes" Estella responded simply. " And my father is more tensed and angry than ever. So I figured out that it was connected"
"I thought he would be happy for his master" said Harry
"A coin has two sides Potter. A servant remains a servant" Said Estella cryptically.
She stood up and gathered her school bag. "I have to go Potter"
"Try not to blast another classroom Stella" said Harry with a smile. She seemed to look at him with a weird expression
"Its Estella Malfoy"
"Ok Stella" said Harry enjoying the look of slight annoyance on her face. He could see the corners of her mouth twitching as though she was trying to fight a smile.
"I will try to blast you Potter if you keep annoying me"
"Good luck with that , furball" laughed Harry
He could see her struggling with rage as he used her nickname. She huffed and turned to walk towards the castle. Harry watched her go before thinking over her words- A servant remains a servant. She never ceased to surprise him
With Doleres Umbridge appointed as the High Inquisitor, life at Hogwarts was becoming terrible. She seemed to enact new rules every day just to annoy people. Harry seriously considered murdering her and going to Azkaban. Even Snape seemed to be a darling compared to Umbridge. Harry was pretty sure she gave Trelawney the grade Troll for her teaching. Harry couldn't blame her completely though with Trelawney predicting his death every day.
"Did you hear? Malfoy got herself in detention with Umbridge." Said Ron looking as though Christmas had come early.
"What happened?" Harry asked trying not to sound worried.
" Apparently she again blasted the transfiguration classroom while Umbridge was present for marking Professor Mcgonagall. And the funny thing is that this time she managed to blast it towards Umbridge who had to be taken to the hospital. The rest of the students had only smoke on their face. But looks like Umbridge has broken her arm" said Hermione with satisfaction
"So what happened to Malfoy? Will she be expelled?" asked Harry
"Oh no, Her father is close to the minister. I suppose Umbridge will give her more detention. And it was an accident. It is not the first time she has blasted a classroom" Sighed Hermione
Harry looked over the slytherin table to see Estella with Draco Malfoy. Draco seemed to be scolding her along with Theodore Nott. But Harry was surprised to find that she looked fine, almost as though she wanted to laugh. Suddenly, Harry wondered whether it was an accident.
Unfortunately Umbridge seemed to have recovered within two days and was vicious as ever. Harry landed himself again in detention for supporting Hagrid against her. As Harry entered Umbridge's office he saw Estella sitting there writing lines.
"Ah Potter. Come join Miss Malfoy. You both seem to love my detention " said Umbridge sweetly.
Harry settled down beside Estella and started writing lines. As he looked at her, Harry noticed that Estella looked tired. Her skin had lost its glow. She looked pale with dark circles around her eyes. She looked sick. She suddenly looked up to him and gestured to start writing. Harry started writing. His hand was stinging but he had an inner conflict in mind
Take her hand. Take it ..his mad inner voice was urging him
But you have ended it. You cant go back now. She is a Malfoy for merlin's sake. The logical Harry argued
But she looks sick. She is ill
That won't change even if you take her hand. You don't have healing hands.
Harry's inner battle seemed to rage on until the logical Harry won by a narrow margin. He kept his hands to himself . It was nearly midnight when Harry and Malfoy left Umbridgeʹs office that night, his hand now bleeding so severely that it was staining the scarf he had wrapped around it.
As they walked around the corner , Harry noticed Estella was walking slowly. Almost as though she couldn't walk.
"Are you alright?" asked Harry concerned
"oh yes. I probably need to take my strength portion. I will take it once I reach the common room." Said Estella
Her breathing was labored. She collapsed into the floor and Harry caught her midway.
"Stella.." Harry gasped.
" I am fine Harry. I need my potion. "
"We need to go to Madam Pomfrey. You are sick" said Harry worriedly
"Nonsense Potter. I am going to the common room. This is nothing. Just a bit tired" Said Estella stubbornly.
Harry looked at her. She was staring back at him with determination. He knew she wouldn't agree to him. She seemed to regain some strength and stood straight.
" Fine then. I will drop you off to the slytherin common room" Said Harry defiantly. Why? Leave her there. Run Away. Harry's brain was giving him instructions but he just seemed rooted to the spot.
"My housemates will kill you" retorted Estella
He pulled out the invisibility cloak from his school bag. Ever since Filch had started following him , Harry had kept the cloak with him in case he needed to give Filch a slip.
"Only if they see me" Said Harry and pulled the cloak over the pair of them.
Estella opened her mouth to argue but then didn't seem to have the strength for it. She clutched on his arm and they made their way to the dungeons. Harry felt Estella should be thankful that he accompanied her. There was no way she could make all the stairs without his help. She had almost fallen over twice and Harry had put his arm around her to support her. He wondered whether they needed to go to the hospital wing. But Estella was adept making potions. He knew she took strength potions regularly since she fell sick frequently. Harry hoped it would cure her. As they made their way into the corridor towards the Slytherin common room, Harry had inadvertently pulled her closer to keep her from falling. This was a mistake since Harry could smell the faint lotus fragrance around her. She was lightweight just like holding a pillow. Harry flushed as his thoughts got bolder. At long last they reached the entrance of the slytherin common room.
Estella looked up to him. The silver orbs met the green one. Harry felt his heart do a somersault. What was wrong with him? She gave a tiny smile to him and whispered quick thanks before leaving him. As he trotted back to his common room, Harry felt disturbed by his thoughts. He could no longer deny he liked Estella Malfoy.
But that didn't make it any better for him. He needed to avoid her at any cost. Ron and Hermione will kill him if they knew he was fraternizing with the enemy. His heart seemed to do treacherous things when he was in close proximity to her. He almost was addicted to her scent. The faint lotus fragrance seemed to have activated nerve cells that he never knew off. He had wanted to pull her towards the alcove on their way back and ravish her. It had taken every ounce of this willpower to keep going. Maybe he should have kissed her. Maybe she would have slapped him and then he would come back to his senses and leave her for good.
The next few days went in a blur with Malfoy and Harry avoiding each other completely. They didn't even talk during detentions. Both of them were determined to end whatever game they were playing. As winter set in, Harry was busy with his class preparations for Dumbledore's Army. He was enjoying the DA classes, even controlling his temper with Umbridge. Estella too seemed to be busy with Theodore Nott, who to Harry's annoyance was following her like a leech.
"They seem to be a couple. Malfoy and Nott." Hermione told him when he casually remarked their closeness to her. "He certainly likes her. Well I guess she too must like him. They were laughing together during the entire Potions class. Snape didn't seem to mind. Everyone knows she is his favorite"
"They might well be the next Lestranges" sniggered Ron
Harry felt as though his insides were filled with burning potion. Maybe I should just kill Nott before he turns into a death Eater. He had the urge to use a jinx every time he saw Nott. Only because he is a death eater. Nothing to do with Estella, thought Harry.
But it has everything to do with her, A sly voice in his head reminded.
With a vigorous effort, Harry stopped looking at slytherins. He even stopped responding to Draco Malfoy's insults. The bloody blonde hair reminded him of his sister. His behavior astonished his friends. Hermione approved of his change while Ron was bewildered.
"Did you take a calming Draught?" Ron asked him as he again had given silent treatment to the Slytherins.
"No." said Harry with clenched teeth. He could barely contain his anger but he didn't want to see any slytherin. Especially the ones with blonde hair and red lips.
As the weeks passed, Harry couldn't help but notice Cho's growing interest in him. She would often make excuses to talk to him. And for once, she was the blubbering idiot ,not him. He seemed to throw her off balance all the time. He had caught her staring at him several times which made him go crimson. He liked her. He had considered asking her out. She was perfect for him. She was not slytherin, not Malfoy, not some stubborn arrogant girl who couldn't do a spell without blasting people off. The more Harry thought about it, the more he felt convinced of the idea. He had a crush on her. Maybe his heart didn't do somersaults for Cho anymore but she still made him blush. He could go out with her, probably grow old with her without worrying that she will kill him while he sleeps. Yes perfect, thought Harry.
He had talked to Cho during their DA meetings. Often she would mishit the spell when he came close to her. He too felt nervous while talking to her. There was too much tension between them. He missed Estella though. She was quite spirited at times as they debated on many topics. But this year she seemed to avoid him. They hardly had any long conversation other than the time she had come to see him on the Quidditch pitch. Harry knew why she was avoiding him. It was for the same reason that he had not gone after her. Some things were just not meant to be.