Chapter 2 ~ "Presence"
Disclaimer: As usual, I own none of the characters, names, places, etc. I'm just playing with JKR's world, and making no profit from it.
This pain was unbearable. It was excruciating and unending.
"I cannot
believe Mandy Brocklehurst just wore robes from Gladrags to my party! You'd
think a Ravenclaw would have enough sense to wear something custom-made to the
Parkinson estate,." droned Pansy.
Draco silently thanked the storm, which
was drowning out most of what Pansy was saying. He would be shopping with Blaise
in Diagon Alley instead, if he hadn't been neglecting Pansy so much lately.
Narcissa had stressed that he shouldn't avoid the girl that she and his father
had deemed a suitable match for him. However, this time of year he didn't want
to do much socialising.
"…Then Millicent broke another of Mother's
vases." Pansy continued, "Honestly, didn't her parents make her take lessons in
how to behave like a lady? That girl is about as graceful as a drunken giant.
No, wait. She's as graceful as that atrocity that they call Grounds Keeper and
teacher. Are you listening, Draco?" Pansy asked impatiently.
Draco took a
second to recall what she had been talking about.
"Yes, of course I am.
You were talking about that big oaf, Hagrid." he replied as quickly as he could,
so as not to give her the impression he was ignoring her again.
Pansy
seemed to be placated. She went back to going on and on about things that didn't
matter and never would.
"Oh, look! It's that shop I like. Come on Draco,
let's go in and look around."
Hoping to hear someone other than Pansy
talk, he switched the umbrella he was holding to his left hand, and opened the
door to the shop with his right. Pansy entered the building first. She was quite
giddy and giggly. Draco took a quick glance around him and saw why. The display
closest to him was of lipsticks that were 'Always the prefect shade of the
perfect colour to attract the perfect man.'
"Ugh! They just let anyone in
here, don't they Draco? What ARE you grinning at, Lovegood?" asked
Pansy.
Draco looked up from the display to see Luna smiling at him before
she said "Nothing in particular." and turned away.
The saleswizard
emerged out of the back room carrying some books. "Sorry to keep you waiting
Miss, but the box these were in had been shelved incorrectly," he apologised as
he handed them to her. "There you are, everything we have on Entrancing
Enchantments."
Entrancing Enchantments?
Luna took the books from
the wizard as Pansy exclaimed "Entrancing Enchantments? You're looking at
Entrancing Enchantments? You can't snag Longbottom on your own? Anyone could do
that!" Both she and Draco burst out laughing.
Wasn't it Weasley that she
fancied, though? Why anyone was attracted to that filth? Then again, she wasn't
exactly right in the head. Sirius Black was dead. He was not the lead singer of
some group. You know Draco; you aren't a git… Maybe she was right about
some things, but that did not make up for the fact that she had seen his father
being arrested and taken to Azkaban. She had gone with Potter to the Ministry. A
wave of anger washed over him. Pansy was still gasping for air when he said,
"You should be careful though. Don't want anything to happen when you're
experimenting, do you?" He had hoped to see a hurt look on her face, or an angry
one like Potter's after the last Quidditch game he had played in before getting
banned.
There was nothing, just like every other time he had tried to
coax a reaction out of her. She just paid for the books, placed them in her bag
and drifted dreamily out of the shop without any further acknowledgement of his
presence. Another wave of emotion washed over him, this time, fury. How dare
she? Everyone should fear the Malfoys; even those select few that were suitable
enough to be graced with their company. He would get a reaction out of her yet,
but not now. He had to stay with Pansy long enough to satisfy his mother before
he could go after Luna. Fuming inwardly, he put up with Pansy for a few hours
before he parted with her and went to the graveyard.
The whole reason for
this trip was so he could go to Trisana's grave. He'd go looking for Luna after.
He had stupidly lent his umbrella to Pansy, so he was soaked by the time the
rain finally stopped.
He walked up to his favourite cousin's grave. She
had been the one who had taught him how to fly. They had played Quidditch
together for hours. He had always been able to talk to her and ask her any
question he wanted. There were so many questions running through his head, so
many things he wanted so desperately to ask someone. He couldn't ask Trisana
anymore, because she was gone. He was alone. He placed a Slytherin green rose on
her tombstone before he left the graveyard, his mind far from anything but
memories of a once happy childhood.
A/N: Props to Sazii, Dawniky, and
Star Katt for getting the names that I made up right. I suppose I should have
been more specific, though. I made up the name of one object (Moon Phase
Umbrella), one place (Inconvention Alley), and two character names (Trisana
Malfoy and Diana Eulalia Lovegood). I also want to thank everyone who's been
supportive of this fic and this ship. It means a lot to me. A thank you goes out
as always, to my beta Jesabelle, who ROX.
A/N II: I meant to have this as
part of chapter one, but I didn't want to keep you waiting until I finished
everything. The next chapter will have new events, I promise. I'm in the process
of typing it up, so that'll be out in the next week or two if we all keep our
fingers crossed. Well… maybe I shouldn't. It'd be hard to type like that.
^_^
A/N III: I hate it when author's put in ten million author's notes,
but it couldn't be helped this time. My Draco/Luna site is here. There is a Luna layout,
and a Draco layout to chose from. Enjoy. :)