Like A Rose
dangerous-fox
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Disclaimer… I don't own any characters or settings that you recognise… the plot belongs to me.
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"Love is much like a rose; beautiful and calm, yet willing to draw blood in its defense"
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--«-- Chapter One » Draco's POV --«-
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I detest her.
Walking… no, make that storming down the corridor, I growl out the password to get into the Slytherin commonroom.
I scorn her.
Stepping into the room, I slam my fist into the nearest object, which just happens to be the notice board. Ow! Damn those stupid pins…
I can't stand her.
Rubbing my reddened and sore hand, I settle for kicking the nearest chair instead. Not caring whether it's occupied or not, I aim a swift kick to the wooden chair next to me. It snaps in half, sending Goyle crashing to the floor. By this stage, I'm beyond caring… not that I ever would've in the first place.
I hate her.
Can you tell that I'm not in the best of moods right now? Hearing a snigger coming from the middle of the room, I glance up to see the other Slytherins watching me in amusement. I glare at them and spit out, "just what the fuck are you staring at?"
I spurn her.
A year ago, they would've been cowering under my glare and none would've dared to confront a Malfoy. Especially one in a pissed off mood… but that was a year ago, and this is now.
I curse her.
"Ooh, I'm so scared!" A burly fifth year Slytherin cries out in a mocking voice. I can't believe this! I'm a bloody sixth year student, being disparaged and slandered by student younger than I am! I take a menacing step closer, but he doesn't even flinch.
I despise her.
He stares back coolly at me while a fourth year drawls, "whatcha gonna do, Malfoy? Face it… that filthy Mudblood has you tamed like a little lap dog. No ones intimidated by you anymore"
I bite back the instinctive urge to jump to my girlfriend's defense… what the hell am I saying? Make that ex-girlfriend. I turn to look at the fourth year, a venomous look in my eye, and am pleased to see that she does cower back the tiniest bit. A fourth year student? That's worse than the fifth year!
Without another word, I leave the main room and head for the cool stone steps that lead to the boys' dormitories. My eyes narrow as I hear some a muted comment and snide laughter trailing behind me. This is what my life has become… a joke. One big, fucking joke… all because of her.
Hermione "I'm so perfect" Granger.
A know-it-all, snobby and bossy Mudblood… I hate her. At least, up until the fifth year. Up until Dumbledore decided to hold some special leadership training crap for Prefects, Quidditch Captains, Head Boys and Girls.
Preferring to push the thought out of my head, I push open the door to the dormitories and slam it shut behind me. Scanning the room, I'm relieved the find that it's empty… at least I thought it was.
"What the fuck do you want?" I growl out, not in the mood for small talk.
"Now, now… is that anyway to speak to a lady?" Pansy Parkinson inquires in a silky voice from where she is leaning back against the headrest on my bed, one slim leg crossed over the other. Though her voice is casual, her emerald green eyes remain hard as ice.
"Lucky for me, I'm not talking to a lady," I snap, despite the fact that she is most definitely all lady with a model's body and all the curves in the right places. Loosening my Slytherin tie, I chuck it onto the bed beside her. I swear Pansy's eyes flashes a deeper shade of green as she glowers at me.
"What's the matter, Draco? Trouble in paradise?" she asks with a slight edge in her voice. I cringe, her words cutting deeper than I would've thought.
"Wouldn't you like to know…" I mutter darkly, pulling off my cloak and throwing it over my tie, "now, shall we address the question of what the hell a girl is doing in the boy's dormitory?"
Pansy snickers as she tosses her dark chocolate brown hair back over one shoulder. Unlike Granger's slightly wild and bushy hair, Pansy's is silky, rich and naturally straight. "Oh come on, are you telling me that you have never been in a girl's dormitories before?" she asks with a roll of her eyes.
"You know what, Parkinson?" I say, grabbing her arm and yanking her off the bed, "I'm really not in the mood to talk right now. So why don't you hurl your pretty little ass back down those stairs and into your own bed?"
Pulling her arm free, Pansy twists around to face me with a slight smirk crossing her features. "Granger dumped you, didn't she?"
Pansy spat out the word Granger as though it were poison and stood watching my reaction carefully. Feeling heat rush up the back of my neck, I stride over to the door and hold it open for Pansy. "If I were you, I'd leave right about now…" I say in a dangerously hushed voice.
"Yes, you would… wouldn't you?" she sneers, "If I were you… I never would've dated that filthy Mudblood"
"At least I would've had enough sense not to date Weasley, of all people!" I retort, spitting out Weasley's name as she had Granger. Pansy's pert, dark lips form a thin line as she crosses the room towards me and slams the door shut with the palm of her hand.
"Watch what you say," she warns in an icy tone, hand still firmly pressed against the door. Bad luck to anyone who may want to get in. "Leave him out of this…"
"What exactly is this?" I ask, before smirking slightly at her, "and I never knew you still harbored feelings for that Weasel… didn't he dump you last week?"
Pansy makes a move as if to slap me, but I raise my hand quickly to intercept hers. "Damn those stupid Quidditch reflexes…" she mutters under her breath as I cringe slightly at the mention of Quidditch, still not letting go off her wrist.
"Tell me what you want, Pansy, and go"
"So you can go wallow in self pity over how Granger dumped you?" she asks with a nasty look in her eyes.
"Like you did when Weasel dumped you?" I retort. Curiosity finally winning over my pride, I ask, "how did you know about Hermione and I?"
"What? That she dumped you?" Pansy asks innocently, as though she loves reminding me at every chance she gets. Come to think of it, she probably is enjoying this…
"Tell me or get out," I order.
"Fine, but let go of me first," she says, and I release my grip on her. Pulling her wrist free, she massages it as she glares at me, "when Ron dumped me, I knew it was only a matter of time before Granger would dump you"
"And why is that?" I query, realising that this is the first time that I've heard Pansy admit that Ron had dumped her. What can I say? Slytherin's have pride… and to get dumped by a Gryffindor is the lowest of all low. Actually, Hufflepuff may be slightly worse.
Pansy sighs and leans back against the wall of the dormitory. I'm surprised no one else has bothered to come up the stairs yet. "Because when he… dumped me, he told me that Hermione was playing you the same way he was playing me," Pansy's voice turns to ice at the end of sentence, and it sends a slight chill down my back. Weasel must've hurt her bad…
Ignoring her tone of voice, I concentrate on her words. "Playing me?"
"What, didn't Granger tell you?" she asks, and I can't tell whether she's genuinely surprised or not. Slytherin's don't like to give away their emotions.
"Obviously not," I mutter tonelessly.
"It was all a bet," Pansy says evenly, emerald eyes focussed on my own cool gray ones. A bet? What the fuck is Pansy on about? I ask her just that.
"Think about it, Draco," she tells me, "why would goody-two-shoes Granger go out with a Mudblood hating Malfoy? You know deep down that wouldn't go for a guy like you… it was all a bet that she and Ron made up"
I clench my fists, feeling my anger building up. Should I believe what she's saying? "What were the terms?"
Pansy's eyes flash with a deep hatred though she speaks in a mild voice, "what else but to get us to give up everything to be with them, and then leave us with nothing"
I stare at her. What?
Of course I had thought it odd how Hermione suddenly went from despising to adoring me… I did everything I could annoy, ignore and reject her during the first few months after that leadership training. But eventually I gave up and began to see all her good points. Though right now, as far as I am concerned… she has none.
"I don't believe you," I manage to get out. Pansy glowers at me.
"Do you always have to be so damn stubborn?" she hisses, "I figured you'd be too dense to see the truth, which is why I want you to come with me"
I eye her suspiciously, "where?"
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I never knew Pansy had a Pensieve? Glancing sideways at her, I'm surprised to see the usually confident Pansy Parkinson looking slightly hesitant.
"Are we just going to stand here?" I drawl, glancing around the empty girl's dormitory. Pansy shoots me a look and takes out her wand. As though prodding and pushing around the thoughts, she frowns for a second.
"Okay, here we go…" she murmurs, and I feel a distinct sinking feeling. Looking into the Pensieve, I start to feel like I'm falling. Though I only closed my eyes for a brief second, when I open it again, I find myself standing outside the Three Broomsticks. Pansy is standing beside me.
"We might as well go inside," she sighs.
The Three Broomsticks is crowded with students, professors and other witches and wizards. Sitting in the back corner of the room is Pansy and Ron Weasley. It was the weekend, and they had mugs of Butterbeer sitting in front of them.
Moving closer to the table, I wave my hand in front of their faces but they don't react in the slightest. With a small shrug of my shoulders, I sit on an empty chair close by and listen in their conversation. It sounds anything but happy.
"What do you mean, you want to break up?" Pansy demands, her voice low and menacing.
Ron looks nervous as he glances everywhere but at Pansy. "I mean, it… uh, it was a mistake!"
Pfft, how the hell did Pansy manage to fall for this loser? Right now though, Pansy is looking anything but impressed with Ron's answer.
"I don't see how you can suddenly change your mind…" she growls.
Ron sighs and shifts uncomfortably in his seat. "If you really want to know," he mumbles, "there was nothing to change in the first place. I… well, I never liked you like that"
Ouch. Poor Pansy… I turn to see how she's taking this. Judging from the expression on her face, I'd say 'not too well'.
"What are you talking about?" she asks, though her voice has lost its cool edge and sounds slightly uncertain. Looking over my shoulder at the real Pansy, I'm not surprised to see her looking the other way in disgust. Not doubt this is one scene that she wants to forget… no wonder she was hesitant about showing it to me.
"Please, Pansy…" Ron says, looking worried, "don't cry!"
I can't help myself, I just have to laugh. The real Pansy knocks me over the head and mentions for me to keep listening. Glaring at her, I rub my sore head and continue to pay attention.
"Cry?" Pansy explodes at Ron, "do you seriously think that I am going to cry over you
Half the room falls quiet and Ron blushes furiously. Whatever guilt he had felt for dumping Pansy vanished as hard look came over his features. "You want to know why I never liked you?" he asked, his voice regaining its confidence as the other customers went back to their own business, "because it's impossible to love someone like you!"
Pansy's eyes go wide at this comment, "excuse me?"
"You're a Slytherin… you have no feelings," Ron said, faltering slightly. Hmm… maybe those Gryffindors are more prejudice than I had originally thought. "If you really want to know the truth, this was all a setup… Hermione and I --"
"Hermione?" Pansy cut in, incredulously, "just what does that Mudblood have to do with anything?"
Ron grits his teeth, "don't call her a Mudblood"
"Well, she is… isn't she?" Pansy counters in a logical tone of voice. Ron shakes his head in disbelief.
"You know what?" he asks, looking back up at her, "I was having second thoughts about this whole bet. But now I realise that Hermione was right all along, you and Malfoy do need to be taught a lesson"
My head snaps around at the mention of my name and I turn to stare sharply at Ron. This was beginning to get interesting. Pansy looks just as sharply at Ron as I am.
"Taught a lesson?" she repeats in a low voice.
Ron swallows, but seems determined not to lose his edge. "The day before we met up with you at that leadership program, Hermione and I were talking about how unfit you and Draco are to be Prefects," he says, "I mean, Prefects are supposed to lead the other students and set a good example. If everyone were to follow in your and Draco's footsteps though… well, what can I say? The world would be doomed, more or less"
"Oh, because you set a much better example, don't you?" Pansy sneers.
Ron shakes his head and makes a move as though to stand up, "I'm not sure why I even bother with this… I'm leaving"
Pansy just stares as Ron weaves his way in and out around the tables and starts towards the door. The real Pansy grabs my arm and drags me out after him. I frown as I look around outside where Ron is standing.
"What's the deal with this?" I ask, "you're still inside, so why is the Pensieve allowing us to go outside"
"It fills in the blanks?" she suggests with a nonchalant shrug and signals for me to pay attention as the other Pansy slams open the door to the Three Broomsticks and storms up to Ron.
"There is no way in hell that I am going to let you leave me like this," Pansy says, staring hard at Ron. Weasley, who is already looking miserable, glances down at his feet.
"I'm sorry…" he half-whispers, "it was a bet that went a bit far"
"All this time, it was a stupid bet!" she hisses, "all my friends have abandoned me, I'm made fun of by the other Slytherins and Snape doesn't even favour me anymore… and it was all because of a bet?"
"It wasn't just because of the bet… it was the bet," Ron mutters, purposely avoiding her gaze. For a second he looks over in the direction where I'm standing as though he knew I was there. Which, of course, is impossible.
"Would you like to clarify that a bit?"
"Hermione and I made a bet with a couple other Gryffindors that we can make you and Malfoy give up everything that made you… well, you
"That didn't exactly clarify anything," Pansy spits, arms folded across her chest.
Sighing, Ron kicks at the ground with his foot. "We've always had to put up with you Slytherins… all the teasing, snide remarks, insults… well, when you and Malfoy were made prefect, we decided that we wanted to do something to knock you off your pedestal that you're so fond of. We wanted you to know how it felt to be laughed at and mocked."
There is a short silence as both Pansy and I tried to process what Weasel has just said. Hermione was in on the bet? Fuck, fuck, fuck… how could've I been so damn stupid? Glaring hard at Ron, all I want to do it beat him to a bloody pulp… him and his dog Granger too.
"Well…" Pansy says quietly, finally breaking the silence, "congratulations. It worked"
Without another word, she walks off down the lane, leaving Ronald Weasley by himself outside the Three Broomsticks. Walking along side the Pensieve Pansy, I'm not too surprised to see the hard emotion of hurt in her eyes. Without warning, I feel lighter like something is dragging me through the air.
"Okay, well… I think that's enough of that…" Pansy says, standing in front of me with one hand on her hip. I look around to find myself back in the girls' dormitory. On the floor of the girls' dormitory... Looking up at the sultry brunette in front of me, I take note of the flashes of emotion passing through her eyes. Now, I'm not the one to go analyzing emotions and people's feelings… in fact, I tend to think of emotion as a person's weakness. Unless, of course, it's something useful like wanting revenge.
Revenge.
That's the look that I'm reading in Pansy's flashing emerald eyes now. I'm sure sees the same thing in my own cold eyes… revenge on Hermione Granger. The perfect Gryffindor prefect who thinks she's so great because she and Weasel managed to outsmart Pansy and I. Oh, is she going to pay for messing with me…
Getting up off the floor, I dust off my coal black robe. Pansy is leaning against the post of her bed as she watches me carefully, looking to see how I reacted to the Pensieve.
"Why did you show me that?" I ask, though I know the answer already.
Pansy looks away for a split second before locking her eyes on mine. "Ron hurt me," she said evenly, without any trace of emotion, "and I know that Granger hurt you just as bad. What I want to know is… what are you going to do about it?"
Well now, this was getting more interested. What am I going to do about it?
"Revenge," I mutter, barely audible. But Pansy has sharp hearing and she smiles cruelly at my reply.
"That's exactly what I was hoping you would say," she says with an arch of her eyebrow, "but before we do that, what do you say we show the other Slytherins who's who around here? They've become way too soft in our absence…"
I match her smile with a smirk of my own. Her idea sounding better and better all the time… I've had just about enough of being mocked by the other Slytherins. It was much more fun when I wasn't the laughing stock of the school, when the other Slytherins would cater to my every whim and needs and shrink back under my glare… ah, the good old days…
Granger and Weasel had better watch out.
Slytherin's Prince and Princess are back…
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«--.dangerous-fox.- - please review
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I had this posted up earlier, but took it down to re-edit it a bit. Please review and let me know what you think... whether I continue or not really depends on how interested people are in the story. So please let me know! Thanks