Platform 9 ¾ was flooded with Hogwarts students, both new and returning. Some were dressed smartly in their school robes and others in their personal clothes. Draco wore his usual black suit. Of his fellow students that filtered around him, only some eyed him warily. The rest cast him sympathetic eyes or ignored him altogether. A strange energy buzzed among them—excitement laced with uncertainty.
Draco kissed his mother's cheek in farewell and moved toward the train. Crabbe and Goyle intercepted him before boarding, greeting him with the usual grunts. He could always count on their blind loyalty, even if that's all it was.
Just before Draco climbed into the car, he noticed a flash of white-blond out of the corner of his eye. He stopped to look, but if Grey had been there, she was on the train now. Instead, his eyes found her tutor. For a brief moment, their eyes met and she smiled smugly at him. Draco ignored her, the only way he could take back even an ounce of power from an otherwise loss, and boarded the train. He settled into the Slytherin car across from Blaise and Pansy while Crabbe and Goyle lingered nearby.
"Draco!" Pansy exclaimed before she quickly suppressed her joy. "How are you?"
And so the nightmare began, the flood of questions that would surely come from nosy classmates, some truly sympathetic and others just anxious for gossip. He didn't have the patience for it.
"Fine," he replied curtly in a way that let her know he wasn't interested in discussing it. There was a moment of awkward silence.
"I like your tie pin," Blaise said, thankfully skipping polite greetings.
Draco's hand started to lift to his chest but stopped. He was complimenting the silver tie pin engraved with the Malfoy family insignia. When Draco had returned to his room the night that Grey had visited over the summer, he found her golden-wrapped box sitting on his bed. Tippy had to have secretly fetched it for him. Inside was the tie pin and a small note.
Dear Draco,
Society does not give your name worth. You do that,
through your actions and spirit. Always make Malfoy a
name to be proud of. Happy birthday.
Love, "Grey"
Just thinking of the note made him tense up. It had been a lovely sentiment, even if that's all it was. Signing her name "Grey" had even cracked the smallest and briefest of smiles, the only time he smiled all summer. He hadn't expected her to give him such a perfect gift. He knew he shouldn't wear it, but he wanted to. It suited him.
Draco nodded to Blaise in thanks and the three of them eased into light conversation as the train finally began to move. It wasn't long after their journey started that he began hearing the occasional murmur from the other students as they filtered between cars—"Did you see?" and "Amaris Grey!" and "I can't believe it's her." His frown deepened.
Eventually, Theo squatted down at their table, blocking the aisle, and greeted everyone present.
"Good summer?" he asked the others, nodding at their answers. No one asked him how his summer went. Theo's father had been arrested with the other Death Eaters. It was no secret he had had a miserable break. "And you?" He looked at Draco and smirked.
Draco wondered how he could be so upbeat. He understood that Theo's positivity was his armor, but he wore it all the time. Did he really never need to recharge?
"You know how my summer went," Draco said tightly.
Theo nodded, thumping his thumbs on the table. "Have you seen Amaris today?"
Draco's jaw muscle feathered as he tamped down on his emotions. He let his glare be enough of an answer.
"Imagine Christmas," Theo continued, "but without the thigh split."
"What are you talking about?" Pansy asked.
"Pansy," he swung his head in her direction, "I'm talking about Amaris Grey finally revealing to the whole school that she's no longer Lady Gravefoot." He chuckled and winked at Draco. "Too bad her uncle pulled the match, mate. Now you're gonna have a lot more competition."
Thunder roared in Draco's head as he imagined the way Grey was dressed, realized that all of these boys had seen her. It didn't matter. They were never seriously matched. He had made sure they would never speak again. He didn't want to. He didn't want her. He was a Death Eater and she was a blood traitor, there was never a future for them. So why was he so angry?
"It's not a competition," Draco sneered, "when you're not competing. I couldn't care less about Grey, how she looks, or who she's with." He scoffed and looked away. "I told you, the match was fake."
"Right," Theo hummed as though he didn't believe a word that Draco had said. Then, he changed the subject, chatting mostly with Blaise while Draco stared out of the window and did his best to ignore them.
-o-
Draco stepped off of the Hogwarts Express with a smug sense of triumph laced with lingering rage. The crunch Potter's nose had made was gratifying, but he was still angry. He could have done more—should have hexed him into primordial sludge—but he didn't want to draw unnecessary attention to himself. Not with his family's lives on the line.
Draco glanced around. The platform was mostly empty save for a few lingering students, and none were looking at him. He adjusted his jacket and started toward the castle when a familiar voice caught him by surprise.
"Keep your head held high," Locke Hayden said. "Don't let them see you're unnerved."
"Yeah," Ember Ballard chuckled. "You're a lot taller in those heels. They might not even know it's you."
"That's not funny, Ember," Grey mumbled.
"Sure it is."
Draco turned around to see the three girls coming toward him. His entire body locked up. Grey wore a black dress, modest in every respect save for the way it hugged her body. High heels clicked on the concrete. Flanked by two girls in Hogwarts uniforms, Grey looked like a woman.
She was being shown off again, but this time to all of the school's eligible bachelors. Their association had left Grey in the bitter position of a broken match with a disgraced wizarding family. Clearly the other families were leery of getting involved with her, so her uncle was choosing to appeal to her potential suitors rather than their parentage. How many of their peers would be angling for entry into her knickers now? It was infuriating to consider it, but he had enough problems to deal with.
"You look great," Ember continued. "Who cares why!"
"She's right," Hayden said. "You should own it—"
Hayden's words died in her throat when she saw him, her eyes narrowing into slits. Then Grey saw him and paused, but her friends pulled her along.
"Keep going," Hayden murmured.
"Don't even look at him," Ballard whispered.
But they both whispered like trolls and he heard every word. Draco stood very still, his eyes locked on Grey. When she finally looked at him, it was with a guarded expression. And then her gaze dropped to his chest where she must have seen the tie pin because her eyes widened, brows furrowing. She looked at him again in surprise and confusion, silently begging for him to explain himself.
He couldn't… He couldn't smile, couldn't sneer, could only stare. And then her friends moved her down the platform toward the castle grounds and their eye contact broke. Draco quietly released his held breath, waited until they were at the far end of the station, and followed behind them.
Author's Note: He actually wears a tie pin in Half-Blood Prince. I could never see it very clearly, but this is my take on what it is and where it came from! Also, I realized too late that the Hogwarts school year goes through June, so his birthday actually happens while they are at school... Sorry!
