Better Be Slytherin
XLIV
Playing With the Big Boys

"Stop being such a baby, Daph!" schreeched Queenie and finally forced the Sleakeazy potion out of Daphne's hand after a fierce struggle ending with Queenie overpowering the other with a swat on the arm. Millicent chuckled to herself and wondered if Queenie realised that se was being just as much of a baby as Daphne was.

Their dormitory was exactly like the boys' in shape and furniture placement. It was circular with five beds placed around it, each with a bedside table and a serpent-shaped hook on the wall. In the middle there was a fireplace. Only two small windows were in the room, casting a greenish glow over the room from the black lake's water outside. They had the same dark green velvet curtains around their four-posters as the boys, yet in decorations it was wildly different.

There were colourful, moving posters of the Weird Sisters and each bedside table except Millicent's were overflowing with beautyfing potions and makeup. Over Millicent's own bed hung a Quidditch poster; over Queenie's bed a poster of Gilderoy Lockhart in his prime. Pansy's pillows were bright pink. Over a shared vanity, there were cut outs of articles on different ways of applying makeup spellotaped to the wall. Stashes of Witch Weekly could be found here and there. A large tabby cat were sprouted on Millicent's bed waving its tail impatiently around, its yellow eyes fixed on Pansy. Under the vanity a few dark bottles stood – their stash of Firewhiskey. There were pictures of the girls together in moving group photos all around the walls. A wireless was playing upbeat music loudly. Pansy's part of the dormitory was always messy, probably because she was used to House-Elfs picking up after her at home, Millicent thought with an eye-roll.

Daphne, who was wearing glasses and pink pyjama bottoms, her long blonde hair less polished than usual, finally finished scowling at Queenie and turned to Pansy.

"So what are you and Malfoy doing today?" she tittered, propped up on Tracey's bed, looking at Pansy in front of the vanity. Pansy was dabbing her cheeks with a large powder brush.

"Don't know, do I. He said it's supposed to be a surprise," said Pansy smugly, "but knowing Draco it'll probably be really good."

Daphne and Queenie giggled, and Tracey rolled her eyes, saying, "Honestly, what else can you do other than go down to Hogsmeade?"

Millicent knew, as everyone knew, that things had been tense between Pansy and the half-blood for months. Pansy let a hint of anger shine through her face as she looked at Tracey through the mirror, but she quickly disguised it.

"Well with that lack of imagination I see why that's what you'd think – but I assure you Draco has more imagination than you."

Tracey bent her head down into her book again looking irate.

"Had any cards today, Mils?" said Pansy in her taunting voice, looking up at Millicent in the mirror while dabbing Pimple Removing Potion on a spot on her chin. Queenie and Daphne erupted in laughter and Millicent bellowed, "Shut up Pansy!"

"What are you lot doing today anyway?" Queenie asked Daphne, Tracey and Millicent.

"We've got that essay for Professor Carrow, don't we," muttered Millicent.

"It's saturday, Bulstrode, honestly!" piped up Daphne. "And Valentine's Day!"

"Well, I'm doing it, for one," said Tracey, underlining something in her History book with her quill.

"Then I might go and see what Vince and Greg are up to," said Millicent quickly. "They're always doin' fun stuff."

"Like beating up little kids and eating pastries?" said Queenie dryly. Pansy laughed loudly.

"And I'm hoping to see Blaise," said Daphne, a tentative smile on her face. "He and Theodore had an early breakfast so I suppose he'll return to the common room soon..."

"Yes, if Tracey hasn't made plans with him," said Pansy viciously. A clear hurt was visible on Daphne's face at once.

"Why would Trace..." began Daphne, her voice shaking slightly, but Tracey interrupted her.

"Leave it, Pans! Why would you say that?" She was glaring at Pansy, who smirked slightly, shrugged and turned back to face her own reflection in the mirror, looking satisfied.

"Seen how you've been looking at him."

Daphne's mouth fell open at this and Millicent felt nervous. It was no secret Daphne had fancied Zabini for years. Queenie looked between Pansy and Tracey, incredolous.

"I've not been looking at him whatsoever," said Tracey through gritted teeth.

"Flirting with him too," continued Pansy, ignoring her friend.

"I most certainly have not!" Tracey put the book down, angry now. Pansy let out a snort laugh.

"All right, all right, don't be so sensitive"" A gleam was visible in her eyes. Tracey looked close to jumping at Pansy to strangle her.

"Settle down, girls," grinned Queenie, "let's not get carried away..."

Tracey gave out an angry deep breath and placed herself back against the head of the bed, with the book in her lap. There was silence for a few minutes while Pansy finished applying her beautifying potions and makeup. And then Queenie laughed nervously. Daphne still looked positively depressed.

"Girls,why don't we go down to Hogsmeade and look for some real men," said Queenie. "Forget Blaise Zabini and all these little boys..."

Pansy cleared her throat warningly at the hint of her boyfriend being called a 'little boy', and Tracey quickly said, "I haven't got the need to forget about Blaise. He's a classmate."

She was now looking straight at Daphne, who met her eyes unsurely.

Pansy snorted sceptically again and Tracey pinched the bridge of her nose tiresomely.

"It's all right, honestly," said Daphne quickly, sounding insincere. Millicent wondered why they were even fighting over Blasie Zabini, if that was what they were doing. Daphne had no relationship with him, and thus no say in who he flirted with. Millicent briefly wondered why Tracey was always changing who she fancied. Hadn't she been obsessed with Warrington just last Valentine's Day? Not to mention how she was always looking at random Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaw boys in the corridors...

"Perhaps we'll bring back a bit of Ogden's finest from Hogsmeade... Have a bit of a party," suggested Queenie. "Pansy and Malfoy can't come obviously... They'll be on their little date..."

"We won't want to come to your childish drinking gathering anyway!" said Pansy at once, indignant. "We'll probably be in London at a fancy restaurant by then..."

All the girls except Pansy broke out in laughter. "Dream on," shouted Queenie.

"Chance would be a fine thing," Pansy shrugged, unable to hide a grin.


Draco was running across the Hogwarts grounds, the castle's lights gleaming in the far distance. The grass was dark green, the trees high around him, surrounding him, suffocating him as he ran across the stone steps leading down from the entrance.

"Lumos" he muttered, and his left hand, his wand hand, was shaking as he pointed it. He was there on Snape's orders – well, in theory, on Amycus' orders – to check that Potter wasn't trying to sneak into the grounds from the forest or from Hogsmeade village. It was a job he would prefer to be rid of, he wouldn't mind assigning it to someone else, because after everything that had happened with the Dark Lord, he didn't feel comfortable in the dark anymore. It was too quiet, too dark, so that he felt completely alone on the grounds, there wasn't even the whispers of trees or distant voices from the village, and that made the hairs on the back of his neck stand out. It was unnatural.

His heart beating fast and his breath creating puffs of condensation, he turned around and hurried back towards the castle. He needed to get out of there. What if some strange creature from the forest came along? Something lethal that the oaf, Hagrid, probably kept in there... He thought of giant spiders and werewolves but mostly he thought of the Dark Lord.

He was running now, feeling as if the Dark Lord was behind him yet knowing he wasn't. Finally he came back to the entrance hall, and hurried across it, his steps echoing throughout the entire castle, or so he imagined, and he ran as if for his life through the dungeons until he came to the common room entrance. There, he stopped, clutched his chest, panting, realising how silly he'd been for running as if something was chasing him. Nothing was chasing him, he was in the castle, he was safe, Voldemort was far from here... He tried to steady his breathing as he climbed through the hole in the wall, but jumped out of surprise when he came through.

Pansy was standing there looking demandingly at him.

"Goodness," he panted, "you scared me. What are you doing standing around in the dark?"

Pansy looked impatient. "Looking for you obviously! Where've you been? I thought something must've happened. I was just about to go out there to see if the DA had gotten you!"

He ran a hand through his hair and straightened up, "I'm fine."

"Where've you been, then?" she said, both hands on her hips and eyes narrowed.

"Patrolling the grounds. Carrows' orders. You've done the corridors right?"

"What? I wasn't supposed to do the corridors tonight!"

Draco stared at her. "Yes you were! The two of us were on schedule tonight! What, so you mean to tell me nobody's checked the corridors tonight?!"

Horror-struck, Pansy held her hands up defensively, "I wasn't on schedule! It was Runcorn and—"

"No!" said Draco, "Look!" and he dragged her along to the notice-board where the Prefects patrol schedule was pinned. His and Pansy's names were certainly on today's date.

Pansy gaped. "Shit," she said and covered her mouth with her hand.

He sent her a fuming look, "Nobody's checked the castle, Pansy! God, I have to go and do it then!"

She clung onto his arm, "No, Draco, let's just skip it! We can't go out there now, if the Carrows sees us they'll know we forgot to do it earlier!"

"You forgot!" he corrected her. "And don't say anything else," he hissed, his face close to hers, "I think they've got us surveiled. They've got eyes and ears everywhere..."

He looked around, and pointed his wand around the room. He was sure they had some sort of magical monitoring device in every common room so that they could hear what the pupils were saying. Pansy was looking at him sceptically, as he traced the stone wall with his hands, and then shoved everything off the coffee table to the floor (mainly old rolls of parchment, empty ink bottles and sweet wrappings), in search of said device.

"Paranoid much?" she said hesitantly. "You're acting mad..."

That made him snap out of it, and he sent her another glare. He straightened up and said, "Well, thanks to you, I now have to go out and search the castle to make sure the DA isn't up to their usual funny business."

Pansy sighed, and he knew she was about to try and coerce him out of it again, but he was already moving towards the exit.

"Fine," she whinged, "I'll come with you."

He rolled his eyes behind her back and heard her coming after him. "Fair enough, since you caused this."

"Oh, stuff it."

Torches lit the walls, and he heard Pansy grumbling and trailing after him, his eyes scanned the staircases and the portraits. Most of them were sleeping but a few were talking to each other, and a couple of the staircases switched positions...

"Why is that staircase moving?" hissed Pansy and immediately clung onto his arm. "Do they do that even when nobody's around?"

"I didn't think so," he said, with a sinking feeling in his stomach... What if the DA really was up there somewhere? What if there were plenty of them, and he and Pansy were just on their own...

They quickly checked the first and second floor corridors but a mere glance told them it was abandoned. No light, movements or sounds anywhere. They made their way higher and higher in the castle and came as far as the sixth floor without seeing anything. By then, his nerves were calming down and he was beginning to think he'd soon be in bed and done with this mess. But then they heard it...

Draco and Pansy turned to stare at each other at the same time. Pansy gaped. "Voices," she mimed.

Draco's heart sank. There were voices coming from the seventh floor, where the Gryffindors had their common room. He swore under his breath.

"What are we going to do?"

He thought for a second, and then he said decisively, "Let's go wake up Carrow straight away. We don't want them getting away again."

"Alecto's office is nearest," whispered Pansy and nodded towards the end of the sixth corridor. Draco sighed. Rather Alecto than Amycus, frankly, but he despised them both.

"Come on," he said, dragging Pansy along with him.

He knocked on the door, and they heard scuffling and moving from inside, and then Alecto appeared in the door crack, wearing a hideous nightdress and with very tired, red eyes and messy hair. "What!" she barked at the two of them.

"Sorry to bother you so late, professor," said Draco quickly, "but we've just heard voices from the seventh floor."

"Well, who is it then?" Alecto's small eyes widened in delight and she pulled out a wand from somewhere in her clothing.

"We, er, don't know, we came straight to y—"

"You don't know? You didn't bother to check?"

"Well, it's coming from where Gryffindor has their common room, and besides, anyone who's up roaming the halls at this hour is breaking school rules—"

"Fine, let's go!" she barked. They hurried back to the staircases and Draco, who knew a shortcut, turned to a door to open it. It was locked. He tried Alohomora but it didn't work. He swore under his breath and headed back, and just as he was about to take a staircase, it moved before he could get on it.

"Shit!" he hissed, "they're going to hear that the staircase moved!"

"Better hurry then!" said Alecto, without lowering her voice this time. They ran up the stairs, wands raised, Draco privately wished they had called for back-up, because he knew the DA were usually several people...

As they rounded the corner, he briefly saw "SUPPORT THE BOY WHO LIVED" and "REMEMBER ALBUS DUMBLEDORE" written largely over the entire seventh floor corridor wall.

"Just what I expected!" exclaimed Alecto. Ginny Weasley and Longbottom jumped. "Kneazle's out of the bag now!" she jeered.

"Stupefy! Stupefy!" Alecto shouted, waving her wand furiously as if she was hitting someone. Weasley and Longbottom managed to duck or jump to the side though.

"Expelliarmus!" said Draco, and Pansy caught their wands. They were a good team after all, he thought fondly.

Longbottom and Weasley held up their hands, as Alecto hurried forward to stare them right in the face. Draco hurried after her but Pansy stayed back. "There's no explanation for this," breathed Alecto, her eyes widened.

"Oh, there's an easy explanation actually," said Weasley, "we snuck out and used our wands to create this piece of art here on the wall..."

"Rude girl!"

"I think maybe you meant, 'there's no excuse'?" Weasley went on, sneering.

Suddenly, Alecto smacked Ginny in the face with the back of her hand. Pansy gasped.

Nobody flinched seeing the physical violence anymore. Not even Weasley showed more than a slight discomfort, as she clutched her already reddening cheek.

"You're not getting away easy this time, missy," said Alecto, breathing heavily. "Nor you, chubs," she added, sneering at Longbottom.

Longbottom who looked furious opened his mouth to retort, but Weasley put a hand on his arm and said, "Honestly, she's not worth it."

"You have a rather bad habit of speaking your opinion when nobody has asked for it, Weasley," said Draco quickly. Why couldn't both of them just shut up and stop rebelling?

"Where did you come from, Malfoy? Got released from Parkinson's leash?" snapped Weasley, "Why don't you piss off back to your pug girlfriend."

"I will," he smirked, "and you can piss off to wherever Miss Carrow decides to keep you for punishment. Enjoy..."

"Well done, Malfoy, Parkinson, you can go back to your common room. I've got it from here." Her eyes were glinting malevolently. "These two are going to be chained in the cellar in the dungeons."


Draco and Pansy didn't speak all the way back through the castle until they reached the common room and were safely inside. He noticed Pansy had been walking looking down onto the floor, biting her lip.

He himself was extremely uncomfortable with what had just happened. He could hardly believe fellow students, one of them not even of age yet, would be chained in a cellar all night or possibly longer. He felt disgusted. He didn't think the Carrows would actually take it this far, but that might've been naive, since they had the pupils practicing Unforgivable Curses on each other. This was just the next step. But it made him absolutely nauseous.

He glanced at Pansy, and she glanced back. Then he said ernestly, "That was sick." It was the first time he'd said anything negative about the situation, all year.

Pansy nodded. "That Weasley girl seriously needs taming, but... chaining them up?" She was staring into space. He didn't think he'd ever seen her this frightened.

"I'm scared," she said, turning to look at him.

He sighed sadly. "Don't be. Nothing's going to happen to you."

Pansy looked down. "I know that. But still… It shouldn't be happening to them either."

"Yes, but there's nothing we could do. It's hopeless. They're in charge. Snape's never around, and even if he was I'm not sure he'd be on our side. He employed them after all."

He didn't dare say anything more to Pansy, but he though he could feel a quiet agreement between them. Or at least, so he hoped. Perhaps he could start being a bit more honest with her now?

Because if it was the choice between himself or someone else getting a Crucio, the choice was easy for Draco. It was the choice of being a dead hero or an alive coward. And for Slytherins that choice was always easy.

But the lines were being blurred.


"Somewhere… lets see.." Pansy rummaged around in her chest of drawers in the dormitory.

"Ah," she said, a smile spreading on her face, "there we have it"

She pulled out a flask of Fire Whiskey from her knicker drawer, and it made Draco snigger.

If anybody belonged in Slytherin, it was her, he thought. As she poured them two glasses, he grabbed the framed photo on her bedside table. It was the two of them dancing and laughing at the Yule Ball, with Crabbe and Goyle in the background.

"We look like royalty."

"Pureblood royalty," Pansy filled in, leaning her head on his shoulder to look at the photo.

"Nobody had dress robes as nice as ours," drawled Draco.

She laughed and said, "Why did you ask me? We were only friends then."

"Oh come on, who else would I have asked? You were already my counterpart by then. You always have been. I'd hardly spoken to Greengrass and the lot. You made me laugh. And I knew nobody else would ask you."

She was running hand through his hair and tugged playfully at his hair. "How rude! And may I ask why? I was very fanciable I'll have you know."

With the ghost of a smile, he said, "Because nobody in Slytherin would dare ask my girl out."

She smirked. So did he.


Pansy was watching Draco in the common room for a several seconds, usurped in him as if nothing else was in the room. And for the first time she realised how much he'd grown. He was sitting in his usual armchair with Goyle and Nott next to him, actually conversing with Nott. He used to be the same height as her, back in fifth year, but now he was a full head taller than her and she had to stand on her toes to kiss him. He used to be skinny and small but he was broader now, more of a man. And his eyes had seen things. He was more mature than her now, and she didn't fully understand him anymore. Both of them had always been rather immature but now she felt like he was on another level. It intrigued her and scared her at the same time. Was the Draco she'd fallen in love with disappearing? Or was he just evolving into a better man? What if he outgrew her? What if she didn't like this new mature and more serious Draco as much as the old one? Or what if he wouldn't like her?

She was snapped back to reality when Draco caught her looking and sent her a genuine smile that made her heart jump. She couldn't help but to smile back. They would be all right.

She looked around to rejoin the conversation – Zabini, Crabbe and the girls were discussing Harry Potter's break in to Gringott's.

"You've got a thing for the Chosen One, don't you, Queenie?" Pansy taunted.

"I do not!" exclaimed Queenie at once, and she sent glares around her at the other girls who were laughing.

"Too bad he's taken..." Pansy went on, a gleam in her eyes, "Although I don't see Ginny Weasley sticking to him, what with her history... Not to mention how she's always hanging round all those Blood Traitor boys."

"I can't believe they almost got caught," pondered Tracey loudly.

"I can," sneered Draco, and at a glance, Goyle laughed too.

"I wonder what purpose they had at Gringott's, though," interjected Blaise distractedly.

Pansy was chewing a Sugar Quill while her eyes darted between Tracey, Blaise and Draco.

"They probably need gold," said Daphne confidently, "For their cause. Or whatever it is they're doing."

"Potter's got loads of gold," said Draco shortly, frowning at her. "He doesn't need to rob a bank to afford food."

"I didn't say it was for food, did I!" Daphne held up her hands agitatedly, staring at Malfoy. "I said for their cause! They're fighting the Dark Lord, aren't they!"

"Why would they need gold to fight the Dark Lord?" grunted Crabbe. "They've got their wands, ain't they?"

"Perhaps you don't realise this, Vince," said Draco rolling his eyes, "but war is expensive, and it needs funding—"

"For what?" Crabbe raised his voice at once, eyes blazing at Malfoy. Daphne flinched.

"I don't know—advertising!"

Tracey quickly stifled a laugh while Blaise's eyes narrowed. "Advertising?"

"Well, that's what they're doing on that blasted radio show isn't it!" Draco quickly defended himself. "Trying to gain followers and supporters for their cause."

"I hardly think Potter broke into Gringott's because he needs money to help sponsor a radio show," sneered Blaise.

Draco groaned, defeated and annoyed. "Shut up, Blaise!" Pansy screeched, quick to defend him.

Blaise laughed, "Clever comment, Pansy."

Pansy rolled her eyes. She'd never be fond of him, actually. Ignoring Blaise's condescending sneer, a hand appeared in front of her face – Malfoy's outstretched hand and instantly she was filled with unexplainable warmth.

"Come on, Pansy," he ordered warmly. She didn't mind. She smiled and took it. "Let's go to bed."

She didn't care if her house-mates thought her and Draco were stupid and didn't know what they were talking about – as long as Draco appreciated her loyalty, she was content. As he led her away through the common room he placed a warm hand on her back and she knew – he didn't have to say anything – that he was thankful.

"Blaise is so stupid," she muttered to him.

"I know. Sod him." And then Draco gave her the smile that he only ever gave her. She snuggled up closer to him.

Inside his dormitory, he hung his cloak on the serpent shaped hook by his bed as she sat down on the duvet as usual. It was their routine. He then turned to her, smiled briefly, and lay down on the bed.

"You know, Pansy," he said calmly, not looking at her but pretending to study his wand. "I've realised you always have my back."

Pansy just looked at him, unsure of what he was getting at.

"And I appreciate it," he said slowly, turning to look at her straight in the eyes. She felt exposed; vulnerable by the way he was looking at her.

"I've never thought about it," she said earnestly. It's not like she'd gone out of her way to be loyal to him, it just came naturally.

"That's what I love about you."

Pansy felt like her heart stopped for a second. Or at least half a second. Did he just say love?

"Is that what you love about me?" she teased and she was glad he wasn't looking at her.

"Well," he smirked and fixed his eyes on hers again, "that and an abundance of other things."

She couldn't help but to smile widely. "Are you trying to get me to do something naughty in bed?"

He laughed. "Can't I ever pay my girlfriend a compliment without having ulterior motives?"

"It would be a first."

"Shut up," he laughed, and then he sat up suddenly, swinging his legs off the bed and beginning to search for something in his nightstand drawer.

"What are you doing?" she asked, eyes narrowed, trying to peek over his shoulder.

"Have some patience and stop being a nosy cow again!"

She slapped his arm. When he turned back to her, now sitting next to her in bed, he was holding a small, worn black velvet box.

"What is that?" she asked slowly.

"It's for you," said Draco. She frowned at him like he was mental. "It's not an engagement ring," he laughed.

Pansy mock-sighed of relief. "Thank Merlin. Promise?"

"I promise, but thanks!" he said sarcastically.

She opened the box and inside was a thin gold ring, antique looking, with a small emerald stone. It looked like it was worth more than her manor house.

"It is an engagement ring!" she exclaimed and stared at him judgingly.

"No it's not," he laughed again and took out the ring and threw the box aside like it was just an old parchment. "It's just an old family heirloom that I wanted to—"

"Just an old family heirloom?" she repeated blamingly. "You are asking me to marry you!"

"Shut it," he laughed and grabbed her hand. "If I were proposing to you, you'd know it. We're in the middle of a war. It's just some jewellery, Pansy."

"And what's the point of this jewellery I might wonder?" she asked, still sceptical, but a smile slipped through, while he slid the ring onto her finger. His fingers gave her chills.

"The point was for you to be a bit more grateful and possibly go down on me for the rest of the night—"

"Seriously—" she said, raising her eyebrows and smirking at him. He stopped and looked at her.

He softened. "Seriously," he said slowly, "We're in the middle of a war, and I don't know me and my family will survive. The Dark Lord is disappointed in us. Potter and his side are constantly trying to overpower him. If they win, I'll be a social pariah. So will my family..."

"Don't say that," she mumbled. His hand hadn't left hers after he put the ring on her.

"It's just..." he looked away, withdrew his hand from hers to draw it through his hair. Her hand felt cold at once. "I don't know how this will turn out... but I do know I want to be with you. So this is a – commitment –" he winced slightly at the word, "of sorts, to you. Because I do see my future being with you."

Pansy gave a snort laugh and looked at him lovingly. "I think that's the most romantic thing you've ever said to me."

That broke his trance. He drew his hand through his hair again and smirked, "I'm not romantic!"

"If we both survive this war, I'll marry you," she laughed.

"Well," he said jokingly, "I'm too handsome to die. So you might actually have to."

"Lucky you, then," she teased.

"Indeed," he smirked.