Draco sat on the front steps for quite a long time, until his hands finally
told him it was time for him to head back inside by all but freezing to the
point where he could barely move his fingers. He cupped his hands and blew
warm air into them, rubbing them together in an effort to try and revive
them. No one had ever said anything like that to him before (as least not
anyone who mattered at all). He wasn't quite sure how to take it.
'How dare she talk to me like that,' he fumed to himself. 'Where does she come off saying and assuming those things? She doesn't know me at all. She is wrong about me and she is going to pay for it!'
He hurried to the dungeon so as not to run into Filch or Mrs. Norris (or any other teacher that might decide he needed detention, as he was out of the house a good deal after curfew). He reached the dungeon and absently gave the password climbing into the room and collapsing automatically into his usual chair before the fire. The common room had cleared of students and he just stared at the flames before him, pondering.
"I take it you did not take my advice and come in before you froze to death," a voice from the opposite corner said quietly. Draco stiffened.
"I wasn't ready to bloody come back in yet," he growled slightly. He heard her footsteps as she crossed the room. She held something in front of him and stared at the flames.
"Drink it," Bronwyn said as he eyed it warily. "It will make you feel better. I promise that I did not poison it. If I were going to kill you, I would choose a much more original means of doing it."
Draco took the mug she handed him and drank the entire contents. He suddenly felt warmed from the inside and he could feel his hands and feet again. He handed the mug back to her. Bronwyn flicked her wand and the mug disappeared. She sat in the chair to one side of him, staring into the flames of the fire in front of them. Draco stared at her and all his anger started fuming again. He glared into the fire.
"Who do you think you are, talking to me like that?" he snapped and Bronwyn stared at him blankly. "You, with your 'better than thou' and holy attitude. You walk around here like you are the queen or something, expecting everyone to bow down to you. You can't claim I am all those bloody things without saying them about yourself as well. You aren't 'Little Miss Perfect', you know. You are no better than anyone else – and I think you know that. You just don't want to have to admit it. And that's why you hate me. Because I am better than you and it pisses you off." Draco leveled his glare on Bronwyn, searching for some kind of reaction.
Bronwyn started laughing. She threw her head back and just laughed at him which, given the look his face took, was not exactly the response that Draco was hoping for or expecting. He scowled harder and sank back into his chair. "Are you that desperate to think that I am wrong? Fine. Believe whatever it is you want to believe. And do you know what? Out there, when I saw how much that appeared to have affected you, I thought I might be wrong. Maybe I was wrong about you and you are not as much of an arrogant jerk as you play yourself off to be. Maybe there was a decent human being lurking under that gelled hair and cocky smile just trying to get out. But it looks like I was right after all. Thank you for proving that to me, Malfoy." Bronwyn stood up quickly and turned away, starting across the room towards the stairs to her dormitory.
"You always have to have the last word, don't you Zoruman?" Draco snapped, jumping to his feet and following her quickly across the room. "Can't stand to let someone else one up you in a fight?"
"This is not a fight, Draco. Because for it to be a fight, I would have to care."
"Look, Brownie – " Draco started, but Bronwyn cut him off.
"Look, I shouldn't have said what I said out there, but I did and that's over now. I've said my piece and you've said yours, it is obvious that we hate each other and that's not going to change, so let's just leave it at that and go on with our lives the way they were," she said softly to the wall, her back to Draco.
"I asked out there," Draco hissed at her back, taking deep breaths. She wondered if he was trying to save energy and make her angry at him again or if he was trying to calm down.
"I know..." she trailed off. She sighed, taking a deep breath. She spoke quickly, so as to get everything out at once. "It's just that I've had five years to mull over all the things that I don't like about you and all the reasons I should and do bloody hate you. I should have just picked one instead of letting them all come out."
"So that's all the reasons, then?" Draco snapped.
"Well...no. There's more, but those are the ones that popped into my mind first," Bronwyn mumbled.
"I see." The two stood in silence, motionless, for a few moments. Draco tried to remain mad and upset at her, but there was a small voice tugging at his mind. He tried to shake it off. There was something about the way she stood, her eyes staring at the floor. For some reason, he knew it was his fault. And a small voice in his head told him to fix it.
Bronwyn just closed her eyes. She was tired. She was exhausted. She was sick of fighting this fight with him and she was sick of the energy it took to hate him actively. She shook her head. She turned back to him and stared at him for a moment. He was trying to hide pain behind his eyes and the scowl. But she could still see it. She had hurt him. She sighed again and brushed at the tears that threatened her eyes.
"Well...I guess I'll leave you now. I should go try and get some sleep. You probably should too," Bronwyn said quietly, turning away from him as she started to climb the stairs.
"Bronwyn – " Draco started, his voice breaking slightly, but Bronwyn cut him off.
"Don't say it, Draco. I know you don't mean it and I do not want to hear it unless I can believe it and, coming from you, I cannot believe that."
"How do you know what I was going to say?" Draco tried to tease, but there was still an edge to his voice.
"Because, Draco, as much as I don't want to admit it and as much as you ignore it, I do know you," Bronwyn shrugged and continued up the stairway, leaving Draco in the empty common room before the happily crackling fire.
'How dare she talk to me like that,' he fumed to himself. 'Where does she come off saying and assuming those things? She doesn't know me at all. She is wrong about me and she is going to pay for it!'
He hurried to the dungeon so as not to run into Filch or Mrs. Norris (or any other teacher that might decide he needed detention, as he was out of the house a good deal after curfew). He reached the dungeon and absently gave the password climbing into the room and collapsing automatically into his usual chair before the fire. The common room had cleared of students and he just stared at the flames before him, pondering.
"I take it you did not take my advice and come in before you froze to death," a voice from the opposite corner said quietly. Draco stiffened.
"I wasn't ready to bloody come back in yet," he growled slightly. He heard her footsteps as she crossed the room. She held something in front of him and stared at the flames.
"Drink it," Bronwyn said as he eyed it warily. "It will make you feel better. I promise that I did not poison it. If I were going to kill you, I would choose a much more original means of doing it."
Draco took the mug she handed him and drank the entire contents. He suddenly felt warmed from the inside and he could feel his hands and feet again. He handed the mug back to her. Bronwyn flicked her wand and the mug disappeared. She sat in the chair to one side of him, staring into the flames of the fire in front of them. Draco stared at her and all his anger started fuming again. He glared into the fire.
"Who do you think you are, talking to me like that?" he snapped and Bronwyn stared at him blankly. "You, with your 'better than thou' and holy attitude. You walk around here like you are the queen or something, expecting everyone to bow down to you. You can't claim I am all those bloody things without saying them about yourself as well. You aren't 'Little Miss Perfect', you know. You are no better than anyone else – and I think you know that. You just don't want to have to admit it. And that's why you hate me. Because I am better than you and it pisses you off." Draco leveled his glare on Bronwyn, searching for some kind of reaction.
Bronwyn started laughing. She threw her head back and just laughed at him which, given the look his face took, was not exactly the response that Draco was hoping for or expecting. He scowled harder and sank back into his chair. "Are you that desperate to think that I am wrong? Fine. Believe whatever it is you want to believe. And do you know what? Out there, when I saw how much that appeared to have affected you, I thought I might be wrong. Maybe I was wrong about you and you are not as much of an arrogant jerk as you play yourself off to be. Maybe there was a decent human being lurking under that gelled hair and cocky smile just trying to get out. But it looks like I was right after all. Thank you for proving that to me, Malfoy." Bronwyn stood up quickly and turned away, starting across the room towards the stairs to her dormitory.
"You always have to have the last word, don't you Zoruman?" Draco snapped, jumping to his feet and following her quickly across the room. "Can't stand to let someone else one up you in a fight?"
"This is not a fight, Draco. Because for it to be a fight, I would have to care."
"Look, Brownie – " Draco started, but Bronwyn cut him off.
"Look, I shouldn't have said what I said out there, but I did and that's over now. I've said my piece and you've said yours, it is obvious that we hate each other and that's not going to change, so let's just leave it at that and go on with our lives the way they were," she said softly to the wall, her back to Draco.
"I asked out there," Draco hissed at her back, taking deep breaths. She wondered if he was trying to save energy and make her angry at him again or if he was trying to calm down.
"I know..." she trailed off. She sighed, taking a deep breath. She spoke quickly, so as to get everything out at once. "It's just that I've had five years to mull over all the things that I don't like about you and all the reasons I should and do bloody hate you. I should have just picked one instead of letting them all come out."
"So that's all the reasons, then?" Draco snapped.
"Well...no. There's more, but those are the ones that popped into my mind first," Bronwyn mumbled.
"I see." The two stood in silence, motionless, for a few moments. Draco tried to remain mad and upset at her, but there was a small voice tugging at his mind. He tried to shake it off. There was something about the way she stood, her eyes staring at the floor. For some reason, he knew it was his fault. And a small voice in his head told him to fix it.
Bronwyn just closed her eyes. She was tired. She was exhausted. She was sick of fighting this fight with him and she was sick of the energy it took to hate him actively. She shook her head. She turned back to him and stared at him for a moment. He was trying to hide pain behind his eyes and the scowl. But she could still see it. She had hurt him. She sighed again and brushed at the tears that threatened her eyes.
"Well...I guess I'll leave you now. I should go try and get some sleep. You probably should too," Bronwyn said quietly, turning away from him as she started to climb the stairs.
"Bronwyn – " Draco started, his voice breaking slightly, but Bronwyn cut him off.
"Don't say it, Draco. I know you don't mean it and I do not want to hear it unless I can believe it and, coming from you, I cannot believe that."
"How do you know what I was going to say?" Draco tried to tease, but there was still an edge to his voice.
"Because, Draco, as much as I don't want to admit it and as much as you ignore it, I do know you," Bronwyn shrugged and continued up the stairway, leaving Draco in the empty common room before the happily crackling fire.