"Repeat it back to me."
"For the last time, Malfoy, we understand your idiotic rules," Theo groaned in response.
Draco had kept true to his word from last night. Still on that prefect high, he was more than vocal about discussing the decided "rules'' for the new study location Theodore and I had founded. His main concern being curfew it seemed, despite the fact that Theo and I had already put some thought behind that.
Since we wanted to maintain the hidden aspect of the passage, our main focus had been to maneuver around when to use it. Being on the third floor, the only other notable areas of interest to students were the Charms classroom and the Library. Professor Flitwick would sometimes work in the classroom after lessons, but his office was on the seventh floor tower, so he never stayed long. And with the Library closing at eight, the latest any students were seen still wandering was at half-past then. But with curfew at ten, we only had about an hour window to work with.
Taking that all into consideration, as well as Draco's nagging, we decided to hold the meetings at nine. Still, Draco insisted we were not allowed out any later than midnight. Meaning, including travel time, up and down several floors, we were looking at a narrow two to three-hour window of allotted studies. Although, as of now, we could still use the hidden aspect of the passage as an advantage. I was sure it wouldn't take Draco more than a few weeks to find the location and make good on his threat of detention. As annoying as he was, he was clever enough when he focused his attention on something.
"Where is it that you two are going off to study?" Daphne asked curiously.
"None of your business," Theo and I both replied. Clearly not the answer she wanted, Daphne pouted down to her breakfast.
"Is it someplace you two want to keep private for a reason?" Blaise called mockingly from his plate. I rolled my eyes in response.
"It's somewhere I would rather you not decide you want for yourself and leave us to have to find somewhere new to study," I frowned, but he simply raised his mug at me.
"All I heard is, it's a place I would like, and you two want to keep it for yourselves," he inferred, pointing the cup my way before gulping down the remainder of his coffee.
"You won't even tell me?" Daphne continued to moan. "Why does Draco get to know?"
"He doesn't," Theo shook his head at her, but it was Blaise who smiled.
"Volkov, and here I thought you and Malfoy had some sort of annoyingly unbreakable bond. Keeping secrets, are we?" he teased, raising his newly filled cup towards me.
"It is annoying, isn't it," Pansy spoke in a plain tone. I frowned away from them, but saw Draco roll his eyes next to me.
"I wouldn't consider it unbreakable when it's only one-sided," Draco took a bite of his eggs. "She keeps whatever she wants from me, but Merlin help me if I accidentally forget to mention something to her."
"There is a difference between accidentally and accidentally," I narrowed my eyes at him. Draco gave me a smirk.
"You'd bite my head off either way," he insisted, roughly filling his fork with more food. I rolled my eyes in turn.
Above our conversation, the school's owls began to fly across the hall. Some just dropped letters and parcels alike before being on their way, while more familiar ones occasionally landed near their owner. Among the more standard owls, Draco's hawk-owl stood out, landing on our table. He landed perfectly amongst our food, not disturbing a single dish, as any well-trained owl should. With him, he brought the day's paper. Carefully, he hopped lightly forward, stepping closer between us.
"Good morning, Zary," I called, petting his head lightly before taking the Prophet.
"For the hundredth time, stop calling him that," Draco groaned beside me. "It's Balthazar."
"Not anymore," Blaise smirked up at him, earning a frown from Draco.
"It's my owl—and my plate!" he called out to me this time, watching me reach for a piece of sausage.
"You said it was your owl, so I'm feeding him from your plate. Either way, he likes me better, don't you, Zary," I cooed, feeding his bird the piece of meat. Zary caught it as I tossed the piece into the air for him. But before Draco could complain, someone else spoke.
"What do you suppose that's about?"
Theodore pointed curiously, watching the staff table. The professors all looked to be discussing something. From their posture they were clearly trying to have private discussions, whispering between one another, their expressions somewhere between stern and grim. All except Umbridge, at least, who was focused on her meal, only occasionally glancing up at the other Professors disapprovingly.
"Don't suppose the Minister decided to give her a raise?" Pansy offered with a chuckle. But with a frown, I shook my head.
"No, that's not it," I spoke softly, opening up the pages of the Daily Prophet. Draco leaned over my shoulder curiously to see, before letting out a frown of his own.
"Well, I think we know what has the staff table all in a huff," Draco hummed. Taking the paper from me, he set it down, spreading it between us on the table.
In the newspaper below, ten faces stared back at us. Ten photographs illustrated the front page; nine wizards, one witch, all labeled with their names and crimes. Above all, the headline made it clear who they were before their crimes needed to be read. All ten were notorious incarcerated Death Eaters… Or, at least, they were…
"Mass Breakout From Azkaban," I mumbled the title aloud. None looked up at my call, having read the headline themselves.
"Happened just last night, it would seem," Theo added, reading along with the article.
"Ugh, they look hideous. Is that what Azkaban does to you?" Daphne made a face at the photographs staring back at her.
"I think there might be something else you should be focused on," Pansy mumbled, looking like she was trying to read the rest of the article.
"Like what? We have nothing to worry about, do we?" Daphne responded, taking a sip of her tea.
For a moment we paused. There was silence between us, but it seemed as though we were all thinking the same thing. She was right.
"Greengrass has a point," Blaise was the first to speak up. Back to his usual casual tone, he reached past us to take a piece of bread. "Why should we care about this?"
"There is still reason to be cautious," Theo gave him a particular look. He looked to be thinking something he couldn't quite say aloud.
"Of what?" Blaise went on, biting into his bread. He continued to talk, even with his mouth half full. "You got some muggle blood in you that we don't know about, Nott?"
"That's not what I meant," Theo mumbled down to the article still between us. "This is a sign… Things are moving quickly."
"Well, we knew it would happen eventually, right?" Draco called back casually, but I saw him turn a glance my way.
"You're one to talk, Malfoy. Expecting a family reunion, are we?" Blaise smirked up at him. Glancing back to the newspaper below, he extended a hand and turned it towards himself. "Think Aunty Bella brought any gifts from her high-security cell?"
"Where do you think they'll all go?" Daphne frowned down at the paper again, tilting her head to the angle at which Blaise had set it.
"They'll most likely hide out for a bit. There is still a power imbalance, it would be unwise to get too comfortable so soon after a highly documented breakout like this," Theo frowned, like another thought had just popped into his head.
"So no gifts just yet," Blaise gave a mocking pout at Draco. But I interrupted before he could respond, a thought having occurred to me as well.
"Did you know about this?" I asked seriously. It felt as though he wasn't as surprised as the rest of us. But Draco watched me for a second more before shaking his head.
"Either way, we shouldn't speak of details here," Theo interrupted before Draco could continue. He looked up, taking a glance around the hall, before settling back down on us. "Although, I am curious as to how Fudge will navigate this fiasco."
"What do you mean?" Daphne turned to him curiously.
"Well, he's been denying the Dark Lord's return since he took office, hasn't he?" Pansy scooted forward on her seat to look down at the faces staring back. "Now there's… ten of the most dangerous and heavily guarded Death Eaters walking free. What's he got to say about that?"
"Eleven if you count Black," Daphne nodded at her. I gave a frown at the comment.
"They do seem to be pinning the blame on him," I mumbled, focusing on the latter part of the headline.
"You don't think he's at fault?" Theo asked, having caught something in either my face or tone.
I continued to frown down at the letters written below before turning up to Draco. He seemed to have the same idea. Black wasn't a true Death Eater, not if he was with Potter and their Order. It couldn't have been him that let all of the Death Eaters free.
"Let's just say there's reason to doubt," Draco answered for me. Turning up, he reached for his drink. "But it was bound to happen."
"The breakout?" Pansy asked earnestly, and he gave her a nod. Draco leaned in, making the rest mirror his movement.
"They've been recruiting," he began quietly. "Most recently some giants. There's been some Dementors too. Bound to want some Death Eaters back as well."
"There was mention of that, during Potter's trial," Theo commented, turning to me. At his signal, the others did as well.
"Dumbledore had mentioned he suspected Dementors had turned to the control of someone besides the Ministry," I nodded solemnly. "Fudge, of course, denied it, but that doesn't mean it couldn't still be true. And if that were the case, it would make it easier for them to aid in an escape."
"So if that's all true, why only take ten?" Blaise frowned between us. "If they've got an inside man, so to speak, might as well go for the whole pot."
"You're assuming they would want any more," Theo shook his head at him. For a second, he glanced down to study the faces in front of him. "It's possible these ten were hand-picked. Or that they wanted to keep the numbers low for plausible deniability."
"In English," Blaise narrowed his eyes at him, making Theodore roll his.
"A handful of missing Death Eaters can easily be pinned on, for example, Sirius Black," Theo spoke slowly, to prove the point. "He recently escaped Azkaban himself. If you remove the Dark Lord altogether, he is a high-value suspect who could have even worked alone on the breakout."
"Whereas if you were to release the entirety of Azkaban prisoners who follow the Dark Lord… Not just any common criminal could pull that off," I finished the thought, as Theo nodded along.
"And, it's a little harder to sweep under the rug," Draco added in a low voice. He turned his head above the group for a moment to glance at something before turning back down to us. "It's almost time, why don't we talk about this on the way to Herbology?"
Nodding in agreement, all of us quickly finished what was left of our meals before standing from the Slytherin table. Being the one to grab it from Zary, I rolled the copy of the Daily Prophet, bringing it along with us. We all slowly filtered out of the Great Hall, not in any rush to get to the greenhouses. Draco was the last to follow, having waited until everyone from our group gathered, before taking a glance back.
"We're not the only ones who know about this," Draco began. Blaise scoffed next to him.
"Why would we be? It was on the front page of the Daily Prophet," he continued to mock. "Sure, not everyone is an old witch who reads the paper every morning—"
"Well, thanks to this old witch," I glared back at him, "we seem to be some of the few that know first."
"Word should travel fast," Theo mumbled, still thinking about something else it seemed. After a moment, he turned his gaze up to Draco. "Who in particular was it that you caught reading the Prophet?"
"Who do you think?" Draco glared in return. "Potter was huddled around a copy of the prophet, along with the beggar and mudblo—ow!"
"I've told you not to call her that," I kicked Draco in protest. Beside him, Blaise let out a laugh.
"I don't think now's the best time to be getting defensive over muggle rights, Volkov," Blaise chuckled, making me frown. That was true, but…
"Either way," Draco called attention back to himself, although I could hear the huff in his tone, "there's not much we can do about it from here."
"I suppose you're right," Theo was the one to respond. "For the moment, we will just have to wait and see. I doubt there is much for us to be concerned with either way."
"We could always write home and ask," Pansy suggested quietly. "Some of our parents may know a thing or two."
"I can think of four in particular," Blaise cooed at the group, pointing and wiggling his finger between us.
It was true, four among our group had family that could be seen as suspected Death Eaters. None were ever officially jailed, but Malfoy, Nott, Crabbe, and Goyle, had all been sent to trial for suspected dealings with the Dark Lord. Meaning, Draco, Theodore, Vincent, and Gregory, all had fathers who were not so innocent of the title. Not that any of them would fess up to it now, but it would be naive to think none of them were ever involved.
"Don't expect me to write to my father over something moronic like that," Theo was the one to break the silence first. Behind him, Draco let out a laugh.
"We still don't know if it means anything," Draco waved away the comment, but I saw him turn a glance at me again.
"I do think it's best to wait and see for now," I agreed quietly with a nod. "Or, at the very least, wait until the news of this settles."
"Not to mention how Umbridge is sure to overreact," Theo continued to frown. "She's cautious enough about the spread of rumors within the school, she might not be too keen in letting them get out."
"She might intercept letters home," I frowned, finishing his thought. Theo gave me a nod.
"More important than all that, who wants to take bets to see how long it takes before Umbridge has a full mental break," Blaise smirked, turning as we reached the Herbology greenhouses. Theo frowned at his tone, watching him be the first to step in.
"I don't think you should be so cavalier about this."
"Be so what?" Blaise turned back to frown. "Sometimes I wonder… You know English, don't you?"
"Carefree," Theo translated, taking a step past him into the room before turning back. "I feel as though you are being facetious. That is not that uncommon of a word."
"I'm being what?"
"Read a book," I grumbled, stepping in myself. "Have you heard of a dictionary? In the English that you love so much, it essentially means you're being annoying."
"So any time he's getting on my nerves, I should call him 'facetious'," Draco smirked, pushing past Blaise to get in. He gave Draco a fake laugh in return, before holding up a very rude gesture back.
"It wouldn't work for most instances of annoyance, but with him yes, the majority of the time would be correct," Theo answered, watching Blaise move the rude gesture in his direction now. Behind him, Draco let out a chuckle.
After Herbology, word began to slowly spread. It still seemed that many students were unaware of what had been announced that morning but, through lunch specifically, I heard the name mentioned more than a few times. At first, it seemed to come from a group here or there, eventually passing on through different house tables. With a sigh, I kept my head down. This wasn't something I wanted to deal with just yet, but I knew it would be something to deal with soon. And it didn't help that I had plans.
That evening, after a quick meal, I headed towards the Entrance Courtyard. While the grounds were usually filled with students from all houses, not many were around as most continued with their dinner. But only a minute passed before George came to meet me. Greeting me, he leaned down and gave me a kiss, before grabbing my hand and leading me further away from the castle.
"How was dinner?" he asked, though his tone sounded distant.
"Fine," I shrugged back, letting him lead me forward. "Yours?"
"That's good," he mumbled, seemingly ignoring my question. I waited a moment and continued to watch him. Appearing to process the rest of my answer more fully, he let out a frown to himself. "Sorry, yes. It was good too."
"Are you sure about that?" I asked, smiling a little.
"No," George sighed, slowing down to a stop.
We paused at one of the sides of the school, against the castle walls. It was still out in the public, but places like this did have a bit more privacy to them. Taking advantage of this, George wrapped an arm around my shoulders, leaning himself against me. I rolled my eyes but didn't step away. He looked bothered by something. But I didn't ask. In fact, I had a feeling I already knew what that something was.
From the time of breakfast, word should have surely spread through to Gryffindor tower, considering who Draco had witnessed reading the Prophet. Whether George had read of it himself, or simply learned of it later, I was sure he knew. I had known this conversation would come soon, but that didn't mean I was ready to have it. And, I had a suspicion George was feeling the same way. Our ways of thinking were too different, and I didn't want to argue now. We had just come back from Holiday, just gotten back to simple, pleasant conversation. We were just returning to normal, and now this…
Obviously, if the question were, would you have wanted a mass breakout, the answer would be a resounding no from both sides. But anything beyond that… it could lead to a debate. What would the aftermath be like? What would we choose to do then? Those were all questions that would lead to separate conclusions. We were very different people after all, and I had enough to deal with. With a breath, I turned to him on my shoulder.
"You look tired," I called softly, watching his expression, as he began to turn towards me. "I don't mind rescheduling. Why don't you go up to the tower for a nap and we can—"
"I heard something interesting today," he spoke over me in the same tone as before. I wasn't sure how much of my sentence he had blocked out, but I decided not to ask.
George took a step from me, closer to the castle wall. I watched him a moment before following after. When he saw me reach him, George leaned himself along the brick, sliding down to sit against it. Once again, I watched him do so before more carefully doing so myself. We stayed silent for a minute, watching as the grounds became less empty, with students finishing up their dinner. Then, he broke the silence.
"I'm ready whenever you are."
"I'm sorry?" I asked, not understanding the sudden comment.
"You're forgiven," George responded with a lazy smile.
"That wasn't an apology," I rolled my eyes, and leaned myself back. But George kept his expression set.
"Oh, if you've got a better one, I'll wait," he continued to give me a relaxed smirk. A bit confused, I smiled back.
"Hold on. Can we move back a moment?" I mumbled, trying to understand what steps I had missed in the conversation. "What are you on about, exactly?"
"Did you get a chance to read the Prophet this morning?" George prompted.
Already, I didn't like where this was heading. If I thought back, he had said that he was ready… Most likely, he was ready for a row. But I wanted to avoid any confrontation, if possible. With that goal in mind, I gave him a simple nod.
"I did," I answered honestly. But George watched me carefully.
"And?" he asked, needing more than that.
"And what? I'm not some old witch who reads the newspaper front to back," I mumbled, making use of Blaise's earlier insult.
"You wouldn't have to read it from front to back," George finally frowned. "It was on the front page."
"What was?" I mumbled again, but he wasn't having it.
"The mass breakout from Azkaban," he spoke the words clearly to me.
"Oh, that. What of it?" I brushed off the statement, but that only seemed to upset him more.
"What do you mean, what of it?" George's frown deepened. "Are you saying you don't care?"
"I mean, what's the value in bringing it up?" I sighed, knowing there was no way around it now.
"Oh, I don't know," George sighed incredulously, sitting himself up from against the wall, "maybe I just feel like this is something we should talk about at least."
"Why?"
"Katerina," George sighed with a tone, making me the one to frown.
I hated it when he used that tone. He always used it when he found the conversation exhausting. Recently I had been hearing it more and more. But it's not as though having a conversation with him was always a stroll through the garden. I had my own set of issues to put up with; namely his own stubbornness.
"You really want to talk about this? Now?" I asked, pulling away from the castle wall.
"Well, if you'd prefer, we can reschedule for next week," he offered in a fake tone, before frowning down at me. "Yes, now."
"And say what of it?" I argued. "Just repeat to one another what the article stated? If we both read it, then we should both be on the same page. Or do you have some new information that even the Prophet wasn't able to obtain?"
"This isn't some stupid gossip article that doesn't affect us," George leaned closer to me in emphasis.
"It doesn't affect us," I repeated, meeting him halfway.
"Yes, it does," he insisted. "Or, are you telling me you've suddenly come to your senses?"
"Come to my senses? What is that supposed to mean? And let's back up for a second," I added, realizing I had more than just the one question. "What exactly did you think I was apologizing for?"
"Well, are you still friends with that little weasel Death Eater spawn?" George spoke in an even tone, making me place my face into my hands for a moment.
"Yes, we're still friends, George. He's my best friend," I groaned, pulling my face from my grasp.
"I know. Trust me, I know," he repeated with a tone. Taking in a slow breath, I let it out and stood.
"This is exactly why I didn't want to have this conversation," I called, stepping away from him.
"So you were avoiding the subject," George spoke accusingly, standing along with me.
"Of course I was avoiding the subject!" I snapped. "Do you really find me that daft?"
"You have your moments."
I glared up as George crossed his arms down at me. This wasn't going to be productive. It wouldn't be helpful. There was no good reason to continue this conversation. He always claimed me to be the rigid one yet, judging by his expression, I knew I wouldn't be able to simply walk away from this conversation. Taking in a breath again to calm myself, I took a step closer towards him.
"For starters," I spoke softly, still trying to keep myself centered, "this is not the place to be having this conversation."
"Then let's go somewhere else," he suggested, missing the point.
"Why do we need to discuss this at all?"
"Are you suggesting we ignore it then?" George asked, but didn't give me enough time to answer. "Do you not think this is a bad thing? Something we should be concerned about? Something we should do something about?"
"Do something about?" I repeated. He began to give me a look, but I shook my head. "No, really, I'm confused. Do what,exactly?"
"Something," he repeated, being of no help. "Are you suggesting we just sit around and do nothing?"
"Are you implying we do something? George, we're students," I reminded him, seeing as he'd obviously forgotten that bit of information.
"Oh, so now you want to take that label?" George scoffed. "I thought you weren't a child."
"Certainly there has to be a midpoint between a child and… whatever you're suggesting," I frowned up at him.
A laugh caught us by surprise. Ahead a group of Hufflepuffs passed by, a little ways from us. Pausing at the sight, my gaze followed them. I watched as they crossed the rest of the field, and so did George. Once they turned into the courtyard, George turned back down to me. I let out a sigh.
"Why are you insisting we have this discussion?" I asked again. George sighed down at me.
"I thought it was important," he responded, in the same tired tone as before.
"Well, to end this ridiculous conversation, let's think about what's happening," I continued, in a more hushed tone. "There was a mass breakout from Azkaban. Ten Death Eaters are now roaming free. More than that… we don't know. There are endless things that could be happening right now. They could be hiding, plotting, attacking, we have no way to know. So, until we have more information, I've decided not to waste my energy thinking about all the possible unknowns."
"So you're doing nothing," George concluded, missing the point entirely.
"From Hogwarts, as a student, what can I do? Nothing," I answered before he could. "So, until it becomes absolutely necessary for me to, I will do nothing."
"So because it's not directly impacting you, you've decided it doesn't matter," George continued once again focusing on the wrong conclusion. I sighed at him.
"What do you want me to do?" I gave him a tired groan, but he gave me a stiff smile.
"Care," George let out a humorless laugh. "At the very least try to care about anyone but yourself. How do you think something like this would impact anyone who doesn't live the comfortable life you do? The dozens of students in this very school? How about all of their muggle parents? What about your own bro—"
"Enough!" I interrupted, louder than I meant to. George looked taken aback. I was surprised myself. But after a breath, I continued. "I said I didn't want to talk about this, alright? Not now. Especially not something like that."
"Fine," he agreed, probably realizing he'd crossed a line. "Let's take a break."
Not knowing what else to do, I sat back down. Needing the support this time, I leaned myself against the castle wall. George looked down at me a moment before following my lead. He sat beside me, but not as close this time. Instead, he looked ahead. Although there wasn't much around, his attention focused out on the grounds. We sat in silence for a moment, neither having anything to add to the conversation. That is, until George sat up beside me.
"It upsets me, you know," George spoke quietly, still not facing me. "Knowing you're so unbothered about things like this."
"It upsets me how emotional you get," I answered, repeating his condescending tone. He sighed at me.
"At least I care about something," George spoke under his breath. I wasn't sure if he had meant for me to hear that, but he didn't apologize when he saw the recognition on my face. Leaning down slightly, he lightly kissed me and stood, not looking back at me. "I love you. I'll talk to you later."
"Later," I waved, but he was already walking away.
I sat for a moment watching the wind move the blades of grass in front of me. That wasn't what I had expected from that conversation. Then again, that was how most of them had gone recently, and these talks were starting to happen more and more frequently. But George had always been strong-willed, easily leading into thick-headed. Clearly, he wanted to take some sort of action, but he was rushing without thinking of the consequences first.
I let out a sigh and stood. Honestly, I didn't think I was so out of place with my opinion. What could we do? We're students. He may be a little closer to being of age but that was still too young to be throwing his life away on a fool's errand. George was capable enough, sure, but he didn't need to force himself, or me for that matter, into a war. That's where this was all heading after all…
With a frown, I adjusted my bag and headed back inside. Not having many places to go, I chose to head towards the library. I wasn't yet able to meet Theo for our planned Defense Against the Dark Arts studies yet, we wanted to have a proper plan before those lessons. I had wanted to ask George more about that passage too but… that didn't happen.
I worked mostly on History of Magic, the most mind-numbing subject I could think of, to distract me from what had happened on the grounds. Recently I had been lagging behind on it anyway, this just solved two problems in one go. But the library had to close eventually, and Madam Pince eagerly sent the remaining students back to their dorms. Having rushed through dinner, and recently out of the library, I made a stop by the kitchen for a late night snack. All finished with their dinner clean up, I found the house-elves to be more than accommodating, as usual. I sat at one of the tables, finishing the thought Madam Pince had interrupted in my work, as I waited for my tea to be served.
Not long after, I made my way back to the Slytherin dungeon, what remained of my pastry in hand. Stepping through the common room entrance, I scanned the hall for the usual suspects. I didn't see much of our typical group of miscreants, until my eyes finally caught two. Blaise and Daphne sat alone, chatting amongst themselves near the fireplace. I contemplated letting them be, knowing how it was anytime those two were together, but decided to go meet them anyway. Finishing the rest of my pastry, I marched forward.
"Where is everyone?" I asked, taking a seat next to Daphne. But not seeming to register my question, she sat up quickly, her eyes running over me.
"What did you do to yourself?" she snapped, glaring down at my shoes and cloak. Looking down, it seemed sliding against a brick wall had left scuffs scattered around me. In all fairness, I would have normally dusted myself off at least, but I hadn't much been in the mood for that.
"And hello to you too," Blaise spoke up ironically, at my initial lack of a greeting. I rolled my eyes at both of them.
"Is your answer that I should have just gone to bed, because that's what it's sounding like to me," I replied, leaning away from Daphne's fidgeting as Blaise gave me a laugh.
"Draco and Pansy went to start their rounds," Daphne sighed, giving up on me for the night. "Since it is their turn, and it's technically curfew already, they went to patrol the corridors."
"Nott is apparently working on something and told us to stay out of the room," Blaise grumbled along.
"Millicent is taking a nap in our room and… I actually don't know where Crabbe and Goyle are," Daphne paused her explanation, turning to Blaise.
"Probably robbing some first year out of their leftover Christmas cakes," Blaise shrugged with a smirk. I nodded, seeing as all of those seemed in character enough to not need any follow up questions.
"And where were you?" Daphne pouted over to me, having settled on the rest. "You left in such a rush after dinner, but you didn't even tell us where."
"I just assume you ran off with the beggar," Blaise chuckled, seeing Daphne's frown grow.
"Is that it?" Daphne squinted at me with disapproval. "You really shouldn't see him so often, you know."
"Yeah, he could rub some of his stank on you," Blaise smirked. Next to me, Daphne gave a stern nod, as though taking the suggestion seriously. Again, I rolled my eyes at the two.
"Not that it's any of your business, but I was in the library," I replied, knowing full well if I admitted to going to see George they would have some follow up questions, ones I did not intend to answer.
"If you were going to go all the way to the library, why not just go study with Nott?"
"Not that I need to explain myself to you, again," I began, giving Blaise a look, "but there was a text in the library that I specifically needed. Not to mention Theo didn't offer any sort of invitation and, unlike you two, I'm not one to stay where I'm not wanted."
"You're here, aren't you?" Blaise gave me a grand smile in return. I gave him a fake laugh before standing. But before I could take a step, Daphne grabbed my arm, pulling me back down to my seat.
"We want you here," she answered on my behalf, giving Blaise a look.
"Sure we do," he smiled, not even trying to make his lie sound convincing. "But seriously, what could you possibly be doing up there for so long?"
"Studying," I repeated with a look. "I'm not sure about you, but I don't much enjoy the feeling of being left behind."
"Behind what?" Blaise let out a snort. "Is second place not good enough for you?"
"It's not, but that's not what I meant," I frowned, leaning back against the couch. Draco and Hermione both had shown a clear understanding of the Protean Charm. It was rare enough among those qualified, yet two fifth year students had somehow used it to perfection. And what had I done? "It's just become more apparent recently that I need to stop wasting time."
"I think you need to relax," Daphne called, leaning herself back next to me. I turned a frown at her, but she continued. "You clearly do. All day, all I ever see is your head in a book."
"It's called reading," I answered, making her roll her eyes at me.
"Yes, I know. But there's more to life than reading," she repeated the word with thick sarcasm.
"I never thought I'd say this but, Greengrass is right," Blaise butted in. Ignoring the insulting preface, Daphne went on.
"You're a beautiful girl, you're smart, you come from a good family… You don't have to work yourself crazy like this. Instead you could, oh I don't know, marry Draco and live happily together forever," Daphne waved a hand between us, as if that would distract me from her only slightly biased suggestion.
"Or you could probably trick some other bastard into it. Malfoy would probably be the easiest, but just keep your trap shut for a bit and you're not half bad," Blaise gave me a mild shrug, as Daphne gestured to him, nodding along with the idea.
"How do you two always seem to have just the right words of wisdom to share?" I replied sarcastically, not nearly as amused as they seemed to be.
"My point is, it won't kill you to relax every now and then," Daphne pouted beside me. "You and Theo both. Really, it's like someone Imperioed you two into thinking of nothing but work!"
"She's still upset he kicked her out of our room, when she was so sure he'd let her stay," Blaise chuckled from his place, making Daphne's head snap up to glare at him.
"Not entirely," Daphne grumbled, not sounding at all convincing. "But, really, would it kill him to keep me company!"
Daphne soon went off on a tirade on the subject. For a moment the conversation went back and forth between her and Blaise, until it somehow settled itself into pleasant chatter. Staying silent for almost the entirety of it, I watched as they proceeded to their desired topics of conversation. No one could say these two weren't entertaining, and they made for a nice distraction. Most conversations between them ended up surrounding other people, and since I never cared much for idle gossip I was free to filter in and out as I pleased. But it was nice to know that, if I ever ran into a situation where I needed to find out information that I couldn't find for myself, I had some options in who to ask.
I sat with them for a while, time passing by quickly. In the background more and more students entered and left to their designated dormitories, settling in for the night. We stayed in the common room, waiting for Theodore to signal he was done with his work. Meanwhile, the chatterboxes made for some pleasant background noise. Daphne and Blaise stayed, most likely did so out of curiosity, while I simply wasn't tired enough to head up myself, so I decided to wait along with them. Although, I was a bit curious if his little project had anything to do with our plans to study soon, and figured I could just ask. But I never got that chance.
"Katerina!"
Draco stormed into the common room, grabbing most people's attention. I frowned at him, not appreciating the loud call. He fervently glanced around the room before his eyes finally found me. Clearly frowning himself, Draco walked quickly towards our seats.
"What's your problem?" Blaise called out, noting the mood he seemed to be in. Draco didn't make any signs showing he heard the comment, his gaze still focused on me.
"Come with me," Draco demanded, not a second after he reached us. Before I had a chance to ask, Draco grabbed my arm roughly, pulling me out of my seat.
"Ow—what—"
"Now," he growled, switching his grip on me from one hand to the other, grabbing my waist in the process.
With his grip fixed on me, Draco pulled me forward as he stepped away from the seats. Surprised, it took me a moment before I began to fight against his hold on me. Not seeming to be struggling, Draco eventually loosened his grip as we reached a corner of the room. Glancing behind him it was clear his clamoring had garnered more than a bit of attention from those in the common room, but I was too upset to fully focus on the fact. I glared up at Draco in front of me, but his expression did not change.
"What exactly is your problem?" I hissed, taking a step towards him. But Draco didn't answer, instead asking a question of his own.
"Why is that beggar in your Room?" Draco snapped, with a low but clear voice. I leaned myself back, confused by the question.
"My room? What are you—"
My voice caught, realizing he didn't mean the dormitories. I turned to glance at the entrance of the common room, now understanding what he meant. But normally George would mention if he were planning on visiting. Then again, our last conversation hadn't left many openings for that. Slowly, I turned my gaze back towards Draco.
"How long ago?" I asked quietly, now very aware of the people around us. More specifically, aware of how their own voices seemed to have lowered.
"How long do you think?" Draco responded in the same venomous tone, not as concerned with our audience. "Now. Just now, he was in there."
"Why were you there?" I asked, but judging by his face it was the wrong question to lead with.
"Why the hell does that matter?" he spat, leaning closer. As if realizing his tone, Draco took in a deep breath before continuing. "I stopped by to grab a snack before I had to continue my rounds, but instead of a sweet, I found a pile of rubbish sat at your desk. So, I'm going to ask you again. Why?"
"I don't know," I spoke each word slowly to him. For a second I moved to step back, but he closed the distance, taking my arm in his grip again. With a look, I shook his hand off. "Would you stop already? Clearly I didn't know. Besides, you know he knows about the Room."
"Yes, I know. What I also know is that it's past curfew," Draco emphasized, as if that was at all significant. When he saw he wasn't making the point he was trying to make, Draco took a breath and tried again. "Why is the beggar sneaking down here, so far past curfew, in a hidden room, waiting for you?"
"I. Don't. Know," I repeated loudly, pushing my hands against his chest.
"Well, then. Get. Rid. Of. Him," Draco mimicked my tone, leaning in to emphasize each word. Holding his glare for a second, Draco let out a sharp breath and stood himself upright. "I have to go back to do a walk through of the halls, but if he's still there by the time I finish, so help me, I'll get him expelled."
"For what?" I mumbled, as he turned away, but Draco quickly snapped his gaze back.
"I know plenty. Hell, I'll blame some of what you've done on him. I'll make it up if I have to. The point is, get him out," Draco glowered. When he saw I wasn't moving, he stepped forward again. "Now!"
"Fine!" I screamed back, turning to shove past him.
I stomped my way back to the others, who had been very obviously watching this whole time. They weren't exactly trying to hide it, nor was the rest of the common room. Many eyes followed Draco as he stormed out, as the rest seemed to stay on me. But I didn't speak as I roughly packed up my things. Feeling two pairs of eyes specifically burning through me, I didn't look up as I got everything sorted. It wasn't until I threw my bag over my shoulders that their silence was broken.
"Since you won't, I'll ask," Blaise called out to Daphne before turning to look up at me. "What the hell was all that about?"
"I have to go take care of something. I'll be back, hopefully before Draco decides he has the authority to ship me off to Azkaban," I grumbled, not feeling I needed to give them any more explanation.
"Don't fret, sunshine. At least ten people escaped that place today. Let him ship you, you'll be fine," Blaise smirked, adding salt to the wound, whether he meant to or not. I gave him a fake laugh and made my way out of the common room.