Chapter Five:
"Anne!" Blaise called as he ran to catch up to her.
Anne barely registered his presence. She was walking purposefully toward the castle library, intent on deciphering the pieces of Draco's thoughts that she had glimpsed the night before. She needed more information, and the Restricted Section seemed as good a place to start as any.
That man, no, that thing… at Malfoy Manor. Knockturn Alley… Borgin &… The images flashed through her mind, heedless of Blaise's voice trying to break into her thoughts. She had nearly reached her destination when a loud THUD directly in front of her stopped her short. Unable to stop himself in time, Zabini collided with her back, nearly pitching her forward.
"Watch it," she snapped, her train of thought at last broken.
Blaise stepped away from her and straightened himself before replying calmly, "No, you should watch where you're going," he said, pointing upward, where Peeves was making faces at them.
"Spoil my fun, will you, ickle Sssslytherins," he wheezed, dropping another book dangerously close to their heads.
"He nearly got you," Blaise commented, ignoring Peeves, "Where are you going in such a rush, anyhow?"
Peeves' presence only increased Anne's annoyance at being disrupted. She pushed past Blaise and called up at the poltergeist as she walked the last few steps toward the library entrance, "Peeves! Get him."
Peeves, who was already preparing to launch another book missile, saluted and began hurling his ammunition in earnest at Blaise, who stood momentarily frozen in place by Anne's abrupt dismissal.
The poltergeist cackled gleefully as he continued chucking books not only at Blaise but at other passing students on their way to the Hogwarts library. A few first years screamed and ran the other way, forsaking their homework in favor of personal safety from falling literature.
"Ow," Blaise rubbed his head as Peeves hit his mark and aimed another shot, "you little shit!" He reached out his hands and caught the next book as it flew toward his face. "I'll get the Baron after you," he threatened.
That seemed to give the mischievous little man pause, and he let the armload of books he was carrying drop all at once before blowing a raspberry at Blaise, disappearing in a blink.
Satisfied, Blaise barked at a couple of passing Hufflepuffs, "Clean this up!"
Without stopping to see if the frightened students followed his order, he turned on his heel and strode into the library in search of Anne.
•¥•
Blaise Zabini wasn't a terrible student, by any means, but he wasn't really the sort to spend an excessive amount of unnecessary time in the library. Upon entering, he immediately felt lost among the thousands of shelves crammed with books. He scanned the room, looking in all the general reading areas scattered about, where other students were busy trying not to attract the attention of the incredibly strict librarian, Madam Pince.
The severe woman trained a suspicious glare on him as he walked past her, but went back to dusting the shelves. Blaise headed toward the back of the library where he thought he had spotted Anne reading at a table near the Restricted Section.
She was muttering to herself when he reached her.
"Damn it, Draco." He heard her whisper. "What the hell were you doing there?!" She punctuated this last by slamming her hand on the table, causing Madam Pince to brandish her duster at them in warning.
Blaise stifled a laugh and took a seat across from Anne. He cleared his throat and cocked an eyebrow, waiting for her to acknowledge him.
She exhaled in an audible puff and shut the book she had been reading impatiently, "Yes?" she asked, still annoyed. "I see Peeves managed to pop you at least once," she added with some satisfaction.
"What's with you today, Anne?" he commented, "You seem a bit… put out."
"Well, that's a bloody understatement, isn't it?" she huffed in answer. "Yes, Zabini, I'm put out," she continued with a dry laugh, "just a bit. Although it's nothing you should concern yourself with," she shrugged, digging through her pockets for something. "Aha."
She stood and gathered a few books into a stack and seemed to pause thinking of how best to carry them.
"Do you need some help with those?" Blaise offered.
"Mm, no," she wrinkled her nose at him, tucking her long hair behind her ears and lifting the stack in one arm, "I've got it."
She walked toward the librarian and handed her the slip of parchment she had pulled from her pocket. The woman studied the note carefully, clearly reluctant to let Anne go, and then nodded curtly and waved her out.
"You, boy," the woman turned on him. "If you're not looking for anything, I suggest that you leave."
•¥•
Anne was reading in the common room when Blaise found her again. She had skipped lunch. In fact, she skipped a lot of meals, it was an irksome habit of hers that he was beginning to notice a lot more frequently. He shook his head and walked toward the boys' dormitories. When he returned, he found her dozing on a chair using a book as a pillow.
He shook her gently, "Prince," he spoke softly, she looked so peaceful. She stirred but didn't wake, so he nudged her a little more insistently. "Prince, wake up."
"What, Draco?" she murmured drowsily.
Blaise's eyes went dark briefly. Malfoy… Why is she so hell-bent on him today? He cleared his throat loudly. "It's Blaise," he said, "Zabini. Wake up. You missed lunch, so I brought you something."
He placed the chocolate frog unceremoniously on her lap as she sat up rubbing the sleep from her eyes.
She picked it up slowly and stared at him in confusion. "Oh, Blaise," she yawned, "thank you."
He wanted to laugh at her gentle tone. She had been so unapproachable and dismissive earlier; her nap must have mellowed her out.
"Sure," he said agreeably.
He wanted to ask her what she felt for him. She knew how he felt about her. He had stupidly blurted it out, and while she was friendly towards him, he still didn't have a clear answer on how she had taken his confession. He knew he could have any girl he chose yet this girl seemed immune to his charms, and it only made him want her more. She was so obsessed with Malfoy today. Why? It was driving him mad.
"Are you all right?" she asked, opening the chocolate frog and immediately biting its head off. As she chewed, she studied the card. "Hm, Slytherin again," she snorted. "Do you collect these?"
Zabini shook his head, watching her intently.
"Well?" she inquired, pulling her wand out of its holster under her sleeve. "Are you going to answer me or do I have to jinx it out of you?" she teased, waving the wand in his direction.
"You're really strange, Prince."
"Huh?" she stopped, her smile fading.
"Nothing," he shook his head, "I'm all right. Are you all right, Anne?"
"What d'you mean?" she asked, putting her wand down.
Blaise was silent for several beats before he finally broke. Gesturing wildly at the stack of books at her side and her general nonchalance over her odd behavior that morning.
"This," he barked. "What is wrong with you today? Why were you at the library on a Saturday morning? I know for a fact that isn't homework." He pointed an accusatory finger at the book she had been sleeping on, "And you called me Draco," he spat. "You haven't at all acknowledged what I told you after Quidditch tryouts. And I just… I don't get you, Anne!"
She was taken aback by his sudden outburst. What's eating him? she thought. Quidditch tryouts felt like they happened ages ago and for a while she couldn't place what Zabini was saying. What does he mean? What did he tell me after tryouts? She cradled her head in her hands, fighting off the headache that was threatening to surface. Shaking her head to clear it, she took a deep breath before addressing him.
"Okay," she began. "First, I'll admit that I wasn't the nicest to you today. I'm sorry, but I had other things on my mind. Second of all, you're right. This," she held up the book, "isn't homework. It's a side project I'm working on, and it's none of your business. Third, when did I call you Draco? And lastly, what are you talking about, Zabini?"
"Unbelievable," he said, pronouncing every syllable of the word. "You really don't remember?"
She gestured, as if to say, Well, obviously, you moron.
He hated to seem childish, but to hell with it, let her figure it out. So what if it meant he would have to suffer some more. He would not admit that again. So, pushing back his feelings, he forced himself to smile at her.
"It's fine, Prince," he told her, "I'm fine. Just, eat something, okay?" He stood then and picked up the discarded chocolate frog card, "I'll get rid of this for you." Pocketing it, he walked away from her and back to the boys' dormitories.
•¥•
Anne stood outside of his room that night with her hand on the doorknob, ready to just walk right in. She hesitated briefly before taking her hand off the knob and opting to knock instead. When no one answered, she again considered simply letting herself in and was about to do so when the door swung open.
If he was at all surprised to see her, he didn't show it.
"Draco's not here," he informed her.
"You're awake," she managed, sounding more surprised than she intended. She had half-hoped to find him sleeping again.
"It's still early," Blaise shrugged, leaving the door open as he returned to his bed allowing her the choice of whether to enter or not. She chose to do so, closing the door behind her.
"You weren't at dinner," she began awkwardly.
"I'm surprised you were," he responded without looking up from his parchment. The implication stung.
She frowned, opening her mouth for a clever retort, but the words died before she could get them out. Sighing, she took a seat at the foot of his bed. They sat in silence for a long time. She attempted to start a conversation several times.
"What are you working on?" she asked politely, watching his careful quill strokes. It looked like Potions homework. He had made a few small mistakes, but she didn't want to disturb him by pointing them out. "Do you need any help with that?" she offered.
Blaise put down his quill and shut his textbook.
"Why are you here, Anne?" he asked quietly. "I told you, Draco's gone. I don't know when he'll be—"
She closed the distance between them, realizing as she did so that she had wanted to do it for a while. He hesitated at first, taken aback by the suddenness of it, Anne guessed. But then they were kissing—really kissing—until, blushing, she pulled away.
"I'm not here for Draco," she said softly, putting space between them again as she slowly retreated to the foot of his bed. He let out a long breath, not saying anything as he fell back slowly onto his pillow. Anne rose to leave. She was halfway to the door when Blaise lifted his head.
"Where are you going?"
She looked at him, trying to think of a logical response to his question, "Um, I just… nowhere?"
"Mm, you could stay here," he suggested.
He moved his books off the bed and patted the space next to him, inviting her to join him. She stood between his bed and the door, wondering what she should do. She was still in shock from kissing him, a myriad of emotions running through her mind. Why had she come here? I made a mistake, she chastised herself. After a few minutes of silence, Blaise shrugged.
"Goodnight, then," he said, adjusting himself more comfortably and closing his eyes.
Anne sighed and walked back toward his bed, taking a seat beside him. Although his eyes were already closed, she knew he couldn't possibly be asleep yet.
"Blaise?"
"Anne," he whispered, pulling her toward him. "Stay with me."