**My apologies for the formatting glitches in the last chapter. That'll teach me to write on two separate computers.
MetroDweller – Given all we know about the Weasleys, I can just picture Bill having far too much fun at his siblings expenses. Heh heh. And as for what Draco needs the potion for… well, you wouldn't want me to give away all my secrets yet, would you? (don't answer that.)
Shahrezad1 – You know, tea leaves are really easier to read if you don't leave them in tea bags. Just a suggestion. Lol. At any rate, you're not quite right. And as for guilt, it's the first crack in Draco's armor. Bwahahaha. Read below for another…
Everyone else – Read!! Review!! Or I will send Ginny and her Bat-Bogey Hex after you!!
Chapter 7
Cara grumbled as she approached the classroom. "Stupid bloody Slytherin ass…" she muttered under her breath. She'd spent almost an hour trying to write out what her mistakes last night were. She'd ended up with nearly two feet of parchment, and hadn't that been a depressing thing.
She could do everything BUT potions, she thought with a sigh. Charms? Outstanding. DADA? Exceptional. Arithmancy? Above Average. Potions? Troll, she thought gloomily, picturing her future OWLS scores.
She fiddled with her wand as she pushed the door open. Hah, she thought, glancing around the empty room. She'd beaten Mr. I'm-So-Bloody-Cool Malfoy. And what was he doing yesterday, she thought for the millionth time that day, picking on her for not knowing how to heal bruises? So she didn't know healing spells. Everyone knew you only learnt those in 7th year, if you were taking the NEWTS Mediwizard Prep Course. Honestly. Where did he get off?
She scowled and thumped her bag down on a table. And did he have to be so bloody smug? Not to mention sure of himself. And damn attractive.
Attractive?
Cara gulped. She did NOT just think that. No no no no no, she thought. Draco Malfoy was a Mean, Know-It-All Slytherin Prat. In capital letters. He was NOT attractive, not by a long stretch.
The door opened at that moment, and the boy in question stepped through. "Your parchment, McDouglas?" he said in a cool voice, not bothering with a greeting.
See? She told herself. Not attractive. Except for the fact that he was pretty damn cute. Arrgh!
"Here," she muttered, shoving her admittedly sloppy list at him. She just hadn't had enough chocolate today, she decided. Next thing she knew, she'd be thinking that Dennis Creavey was her soul mate, poor sad little boy. He was almost slavish in his devotion to her and Ginny. Ugg.
Malfoy was skimming over her list, one eyebrow raised disdainfully. Cara scowled. Jerk. He was probably thinking of mean things to say.
He looked up and caught her watching him, and smirked. "You forgot a few, McDouglas," he said in that cool drawl of his. He tossed the parchment back at her. "Make the potion again. This time, without all of those mistakes."
Cara rolled her eyes as she turned to get her cauldron out. "Right, like that's going to happen," she muttered.
"You'll make this potion until it does," came that maddeningly cool voice behind her. She gritted her teeth as she pulled out potion ingredients. Attractive? Bloody hell, there was no way. It was a chocolate shortage, she thought, lighting her fire. And that was that.
**********
Draco sat back and watched the little Gryff working. "Medium flame, McDouglas," he said in a bored voice. Merlin, she was making the same mistakes all over again. How brainless was she? The girl glared at the fire.
"Stupid bloody subject," she muttered under her breath. "Only damn thing in the whole damn school I can't damn do…"
One of Draco's eyebrows shot up. "Language, Miss McDouglas," he drawled. Hah. At least this girl was amusing him from time to time. Her little rants, such as last night, and now the profanity that littered her speech…
Just as he expected, she shot him a glare. "Bite me," she told him, before peering at her parchment. "Three teaspoons of pumice," she muttered. "Teaspoons. Not tablespoons." He watched as her hand reached for the tablespoon. "Dammit," she muttered for the ten thousandth time that evening. "Teaspoons."
And that was how the entire evening went. She'd make the same mistakes again, and most of the time, he had to correct her. Every now and then, she'd catch one herself, but it was usually him cutting into her mumblings with some sharp remark.
Finally, Draco couldn't stand it any longer. "How do you manage to pass your other classes, McDouglas?" he demanded, rising and beginning to sweep the remains of her mess into the fire. "Your lack of attention is appalling. You'll do the same potion tomorrow night, until you can do it correctly."
Her face was flushed brightly, from anger and the fire, he guessed, and then wondered why on earth he'd noticed. Dammit, it was that getting soft thing again. "I do just fine in my other classes, Malfoy," she snapped. "I'm top marks in Charms and DADA."
"Then pray explain to me why you are unable to complete the simplest of first year potions correctly," he said silkily. Because he was really quite curious. It just didn't make sense.
She glared at him, face bright red. "I don't know!" she half shouted, before bursting into tears.
Draco stared. "Stop crying," he ordered. It didn't seem to have any effect, except to make the girl cover her face with her hands and turn around. "Dammit, girl, stop it!"
"B-bite me," managed to emerge from the sobs McDouglas was making.
"Is that your answer to everything?" he growled, extremely uncomfortable, and not sure what to do about it. What if Professor Stone or Professor Snape walked in? They'd think that this was his fault for making her cry. "I said, stop crying!"
She just kept wailing, these little shaking sniffles that was barely crying at all, but enough to make him very uneasy.
"Dammit," he growled again. There was no choice for it. If he wanted the bawling to stop, he'd have to do something. He wracked his brain. He had no clue what to do with a crying female.
Finally, digging some piece of an inane conversation he'd overheard back in third year between Pansy and Millicent, he pointed his wand at the tabletop. "Choco bittersweetus," he said.
A bar of chocolate appeared on the table, but the wailing girl didn't seem to notice. Cautiously, staying out of reach, Draco used his wand to push the chocolate closer. "McDouglas," he tried ordering. "Quit crying." He pushed the chocolate again.
Her head came up like she was going to spit something at him, her eyes blotchy and red and face wet. And then she seemed to see the chocolate, and her mouth dropped open. Draco felt a wave of relief. She'd stopped crying.
"Is… is that for me?" she asked in a rather squeaky voice.
Draco scowled. "Eat it and get yourself under control." He glared at her as she kept staring at him, giving the occasional sniffle. Merlin, why him? He bemoaned silently, not for the first time. He'd wager girls didn't wail all over Potter.
Her lips started to tremble again, and Draco started to panic. "You start crying again, and I'll show you the proper way to perform the silencio charm!" he snapped.
She closed her mouth with a snap, and seemed to glare at him then. "You're mean," she said, sniffling again. And she reached out and grabbed the bar of chocolate, tearing off the wrapper and taking an enormous bite.
He sneered, feeling vastly relieved, now that the waterworks seemed to be over. "So I've been told, McDouglas," he said. "Write out your mistakes again, and be here Monday, same time, to try it again." He smirked as he got up and started to gather his things. "Perhaps you'll get it right by the end of the month."
She took another bite of the chocolate, rather savagely, and glared at him through red-rimmed eyes. She mumbled something through the chocolate, and for a split second Draco was afraid she would start crying again. "You've wasted enough of my time tonight," he hastily snapped, before bolting for the door.
Safely in the hall, he blew out a breath of relief. He'd rather face Hagrid and that mentally deficient hippogriff from third year than go through that again.
She didn't even cry pretty, he thought. Pansy had tried pulling tears on him a few times last year, and had quickly found out he refused to be swayed by them. Draco mentally shuddered. But Pansy had mastered the art of crying without mussing herself. McDouglas, on the other hand, had bawled and promptly been covered in snot and other disgusting fluids. It had been so… messy. So genuine.
Draco blinked. Genuine? Where on earth had that come from, he wondered. She was an annoying little brat that he was forced to spend far too much time with. End of story.
Scowling at himself, he entered the Slytherin common room and made for his dorm. He needed some sleep, he thought. Clearly.
**********
Cara sniffled one last time and finished the bar of chocolate. That had been almost… nice of Draco. Malfoy, she corrected herself. She'd started crying, because it was just too depressing, not being able to understand why she couldn't handle this class, and she couldn't have helped bursting into tears. All she'd been able to think was that she was going to fail, and Professor Stone would be so disappointed in her, and Malfoy would laugh and say he knew she was worthless all along, and then Ginny wouldn't talk to her anymore because she'd be a loser, and her parents would write angry Howlers and she'd be humiliated at breakfast when she had to open them in front of the whole school…
Just then the classroom door swung open and she gulped back her sniffles. Oh dear, she thought, as Professor Snape strode in. He stopped to glower at her. "What are you doing here?" he demanded.
"I… um… was working with my tutor," she managed to squeak out, tempted to cower under the desk, he looked so evil. Maybe he really was a vampire and was secretly prowling the school, looking for unsuspecting victims…
"Where's Malfoy, then?" Snape's cold voice brought her back to reality.
"We, um, finished for the night," Cara said, her voice wavering just a bit.
Snape raised one eyebrow as his eyes dropped to her cauldron. "And is that your potion?" he asked, scorn practically dripping off his tongue.
Cara gulped and looked down at the mess, ashamed all over again at her lack of brains. "I… haven't got it right yet," she said in a near whisper.
There was silence for a moment, and Cara could almost feel Snape smirking down at her. So when he spoke again, she almost swallowed her tongue, she was so surprised.
"Potions takes patience, persistence and a careful attention to detail. You have the first two, by virtue of your presence here," his voice said above her head. She was practically frozen with shock. "Mr. Malfoy is endeavoring to teach you the third. Follow his instructions, and you may possibly pass your class." She heard his steps begin to move off, and jerked her eyes up to stare after him, black robes billowing and bat-like. He paused and turned to survey her with cold eyes again. "Then again, you are a Gryffindor," he said. "That alone leaves you with a nearly insurmountable handicap."
And then he was gone into his office, and Cara was left gaping after him. Had he… had Snape… just been… NICE???
"Close your mouth, Miss McDouglas," came Professor Stone's voice from her office doorway. "He is quite a decent human being, you know."
"I… uh… ma'am…" Cara stuttered.
Professor Stone smiled at her. "Clean up and go to bed, Miss McDouglas. I think you've had enough for tonight," she said, voice warm. Cara blindly started to do as she was told, before her teacher's voice stopped her again. "They really are quite a bit alike, aren't they?" she said.
"Uh… who, ma'am?" Cara said, looking up at her in confusion, hands pausing in the middle of repacking her bag.
She was treated to a nearly blinding smile, before her professor stepped back into her office and closed the door. Cara shook her head, perplexed, and finished gathering her things. Boy, did she need to talk to Ginny. And some more chocolate couldn't hurt, although the stuff Draco had conjured had been very good, creamy with a slightly bitter taste, just like good Honeydukes Dark…
Malfoy, she told herself again. His name is Malfoy. Biting her lip, she headed for the Gryffindor common room. Definitely more chocolate.
**********
Draco stepped into the shower and felt the hot water run down his body, soothing the sore muscles. It seemed like some of the pain never left. There were always lingering aches in odd places.
It was just as well he'd not been invited back to the Quiddich team, he thought, slowly soaping his torso. His fingers ran across the thin ridges of scars, following them across his belly and around his lower back. There was no way he could have hidden these from his former teammates, not the way the showers were set up in the changing rooms.
He touched the one just under his left arm. That one had hurt the most, he thought, the memory dark and foreboding. It dragged him back into the past summer, back into memories of night and pain and curses and that damned crazy woman laughing… he shuddered and dropped his hand. Hence his research.
Briskly, trying to push the thoughts away, he reached for the shampoo. He was allowed to assist Professor Stone tomorrow, and then next week, he would begin his own work. Some additional research would be needed, in order to tweak the potion the way he wanted, but he had faith he could find a solution. After all, he was a Malfoy, and his family was not known for it's stupidity, no matter their flaws.