Cornelia had never felt so alone as she did that evening. By the time she got back to the common room neither Draco nor Theodore were anywhere to be seen, and Cornelia headed straight to the dormitory, climbing into bed and pulling the covers over her head.
Whilst Theodore approached her cautiously the next day, Draco refused to even look at her. Theodore didn't share her concern for crossing the line, and she didn't bring up the guilt she felt about the situation. He was more impressed that she had left the Headmaster's office punishment free.
"It wasn't like he got that badly burnt, and Madam Pomfrey healed him in a second." Theodore had said dismissively, and then proceeded to congratulate her on the power of her fire rune.
Cornelia was distracted. She felt doubly awful for both Justin and Draco and Theodore's words just made her feel worse. Try as she might to retain the defence mechanism Aunt Cissy had taught her, chin up and gaze down, she often found that her mind had wandered and she was scrunched anxiously in on herself.
By the end of the day it was clear that Draco wasn't going to approach her and Cornelia was torn about what to do. On one hand she felt awful for how she had treated him, especially when he had been the only one that had comforted her, but on the other hand she had never had to be the one to apologise before. No matter whose fault it had been when they had fallen out previously, Draco had always been the one to come crawling back, often with a gift of cake or something else delicious.
Days passed and the castle around them was transformed into some kind of grotto in time for Christmas, and still Draco stubbornly refused to acknowledge Cornelia even existed. Theodore had tried to push her for answers on what had happened between the two of them, but Cornelia had refused to share, too ashamed to repeat what she had said. She knew she was also being stubborn by not apologising, but the more time that passed the more difficult it became.
Eventually the time came for Christmas break and Cornelia and Draco still hadn't said a word to each other. It had been 2 weeks since Cornelia had screamed at him, and now she was faced with a week alone in the manor with him. She sat with Theodore in a separate compartment on the train home, and nervously emerged onto the platform to see Draco already being embraced by Lucius and Narcissa. Lucius caught sight of her as she approached slowly and smiled warmly at her, patting her affectionately on the shoulder when she was within reach.
"It is good to see you Cornelia. How have you found Hogwarts?"
Draco side glanced awkwardly at her before turning back to his mother who fussed over him tearfully.
"I've really enjoyed it Uncle Lucy." Cornelia replied meekly.
They made their way back to the manor, flooing directly into the entrance hall hearth, and Draco immediately made his way into the sitting room with Aunt Cissy. She seemed to realise that something was amiss between the two of them as she glanced back at Cornelia with a confused frown, who was making her own way up the stairs to her room.
Dinner was a quiet affair, without much conversation or sounds beside the clinking of their knives and forks. Aunt Cissy kept passing concerned looks between the two of them and sharing meaningful glances with Uncle Lucy.
When they had finished eating and stood around the table waiting for Lucius to close the door of his study behind him, she turned to Cornelia. "Would you join me in the library please Cornelia?"
Cornelia nodded and followed her into the grand room. It was cold and dark in the library, but with a wave of Narcissa's wand a fire burst into the grate and the chandelier threw the room into light. Every inch of wall was covered from floor to ceiling with bookshelves, and the room smelt like slightly musty parchment. There was a desk in the centre of the room and comfortable deep sofas surrounding the fireplace, and this was where Narcissa led them to.
"Why don't you tell me about your time at Hogwarts." She said kindly before snapping her fingers. With a crack Dobby appeared cringing before them, his tea towel as filthy as ever. He saw Cornelia and his ears lifted slightly before drooping quickly when Narcissa snapped "Bring us tea and cakes." He bowed deeply and disappeared before returning swiftly with a delicate blue and bone china set and a platter of scones and cakes.
Cornelia didn't see why Aunt Cissy and Uncle Lucy were so cruel to Dobby, he had always been kind and nurturing towards her, and she found his big eyes and expressive ears cute. Whilst she was used to the way they treated him and knew better than to say anything, she would always attempt to comfort him later.
"It has been fine Aunt Cissy, I am enjoying Charms." She said politely.
"Just fine? Have you met any friends?" Cornelia knew that Aunt Cissy would be working around to finding out what had happened between her and Draco.
"Yes, I have a friend called Theodore Nott."
Aunt Cissy's eyebrows raised and she looked impressed. "The Nott child? A good choice of companion." She raised her small cup of steaming tea in praise. "Do you spend time with Draco at school?"
Cornelia shifted a little in her seat. "Yes Aunt Cissy."
"You didn't seem to travel together?"
"No Aunt Cissy, I was with Theodore."
Aunt Cissy paused whilst she softly placed the cup in its saucer before returning her gaze to Cornelia. "Draco has always been a good friend to you."
"Y-yes Aunt Cissy."
"Although it may not seem so, I have always taken great pleasure in how close the two of you are."
Cornelia felt extremely awkward and didn't answer, simply taking a deep draught of her tea. "Sip please Cornelia and remember your posture." Cornelia sat a little straighter and held the cup and saucer lightly in her lap.
"Sometimes friends upset each other. They may say things that they do not mean and fall out." She prompted but Cornelia remained quiet, watching Aunt Cissy with the same blank expression she had picked up from Theodore. The silence stretched between them and Cornelia could see Aunt Cissy becoming frustrated. "As it is you two are not simply 'friends', you are our legacy. Together you represent the strength of the Malfoy and Lestrange families and it will not do to show weakness of any kind. Do you understand?"
Cornelia frowned faintly, she really didn't. "Not really Aunt Cissy."
"I want you to make up with Draco."
Cornelia opened her mouth to argue and Aunt Cissy raised a hand, silencing her immediately. "I do not care for who said what or who is to blame, you will apologise."
Cornelia scowled, her insides churning angrily. She despised being told what to do by Aunt Cissy and she wished she hadn't come back to the manor for Christmas.
"Do you think I agree with everything Lucius says?" Aunt Cissy continued and Cornelia resisted the urge to shrug. "No. But I hold my tongue and keep a united front. Why do you think that is?"
"To keep Uncle Lucy happy?"
Aunt Cissy smiled tightly. "That is simply a beneficial side effect. It is because together we cannot be beat. Even though we are bonded by marriage, do you think that fortress would be impenetrable if we didn't work together?"
"But who are you fighting?" Cornelia asked, even more confused than before.
Aunt Cissy laughed lightly and leant forward to pat Cornelia's knee. "Anyone who isn't us, darling."
Cornelia waited until later that evening, her stomach full of butterflies as she listened out for Draco entering his room. It wasn't until 1am when she still hadn't heard anything did she stick her head out of her own door. His door was shut, meaning he had snuck into bed without her hearing a thing. The butterflies swooped sickeningly as she grabbed the cake she had rescued from the assortment Dobby had provided earlier and tiptoed across the hall.
She was right outside his door before realising that her and Draco hadn't shared a bed in months, and all of a sudden the thought felt awkward. She hovered for some time wondering what to do before forcefully pushing away her worries and sliding in through the door.
She didn't climb straight into bed as she usually would have done but instead tiptoed around to look at Draco's face, scared to break the peace of the room. She had no idea how Draco was going to react to her, never had they fallen out for more than a few hours, never mind weeks.
Finally she whispered "Draco?"
Draco's sleeping face twitched slightly and she repeated his name a little louder. His eyes fluttered open and then he sat up sharply at the sight of her, scowling deeply. "What are you doing?" His whisper was sharp and Cornelia winced, she had no idea what to say so instead she held out the cake wrapped in a napkin. Draco took it from her looking confused as he unwrapped the sticky parcel. "You woke me up to give me cake?" He asked mockingly after she didn't explain.
Cornelia took a deep breath, her eyes on her feet as she shuffled nervously, before saying quickly "I came to say sorry."
"What for?" Draco asked and she knew that he was trying to drag out her apology to make her suffer and that she had to endure it. She forced herself to look into his face and recognised his expression as the mean look he wore around Hogwarts.
"For shouting at you." She said sullenly in response to his expression.
Draco shifted, and she could see that he was enjoying watching her struggle. "Not for what you were actually shouting?"
She bit back the anger that was simmering in her chest, she hated Draco mocking her, he never mocked her. "For that too."
"Which part?" His smirk was growing into a smile and his eyes were no longer hard. Cornelia knew that he was going to forgive her, she just had to give him what he wanted.
"For saying that you were spoilt and that you were what was wrong with me." Her own sourness melted away with his and after a moment's pause Draco pulled back the covers and shifted to the left to make room for her, he seemed satisfied.
Once she was comfortably laid on her side face to face with Draco, he finally smiled. "It's about time." He muttered. "Do you really think I'm spoilt?"
"Yes, but I don't mind." She grinned back at him and he shoved her arm playfully. "I missed you actually." She added awkwardly and Draco grabbed her hand.
"I missed you too."
The Christmas break was quite enjoyable after that. It seemed that Uncle Lucy and Aunt Cissy had dialled down their disciplinary levels with Cornelia and Aunt Cissy was particularly pleased to see her and Draco getting along again. It was nice to have one-on-one time with Draco again and there didn't seem to be any sign of the mean-spirited Draco all Christmas.
Life back at Hogwarts seemed to reach a new equilibrium as well after the break, and it seemed that the students had short memories. Cornelia noticed half the amount of glares and stares she had been used to receiving. Draco seemed to accept Cornelia and Theodore's friendship with a little more grace than before their argument, and Cornelia no longer felt tense when she went to spend time with Theodore.
Theodore tried to engage her with several more plots, including one to punish a Gryffindor girl by the name of Lavender Brown who had insulted Blaise Zabini's mother earlier that day. Cornelia, who had no attachment to Zabini, wasn't invested enough to pursue and was a little worried about plotting against anyone after the Justin incident, who literally turned and walked in the opposite direction if they ever caught sight of each other in the halls. She suggested that he send her a howler calling her the same things she had called Zabini's mother and washed her hands of it, sitting back to enjoy the screaming envelope with the rest of the school the next day. She disregarded the rest of his suggestions at large scale plots with similar harmless (at least physically) ideas that seemed to satisfy Theodore.
News got back around to Zabini about her involvement with the howler and for the first time since Cornelia and Theodore had become friends, he joined them for dinner.
"May I join you?" He had asked quietly, catching Cornelia's eye until she nodded and then slid into the space beside her. "I don't think we've actually been formally introduced, I'm Blaise." He held out his hand and Cornelia shook it firmly, familiar with the formalities of a noble house.
"Nice to meet you, I'm Cornelia."
"Oh, I know who you are. I think I might owe you a favour."
Cornelia raised an eyebrow at Theodore who shrugged with a smirk. "What did you have in mind?"
"Is there anyone I might be able to 'help' you with?" Blaise spoke in the same low tones that Cornelia and Theodore communicated in.
Cornelia smiled, finding herself slipping into a similar façade that Draco wore, one of condescension. "Nobody that I couldn't manage."
Blaise looked faintly impressed. "Anything you want then, within reason of course."
Cornelia looked blankly at Blaise and found her eyes wandering past him to where Draco sat further down the table chatting with Croyle (a nickname her and Theodore had created). "I think I'll hold you to that offer." She finally said and Blaise nodded respectfully before slipping into a more casual conversation with the two of them.
Blaise continued to spend time with her and Theodore after that, and Cornelia slowly began to realise, as days passed into weeks, that she had been made an unspoken leader to the two boys. She experienced, for the first time in her life, a sense of power, and she could now see why Draco kept Croyle around. She found that she always had the final say in any ideas or plots, and was consulted immediately for advice or if anybody bothered them. She found that she was attracting far fewer glares from younger students, most of them looking away quickly, and the ones that did glare seemed to encounter far more nasty scenarios than the ones that didn't. She felt protected, although she was sure that Blaise would turn coat if she showed any sign of weakness.
She didn't particularly trust Blaise as he didn't have the, admittedly relatively loose, morals that her and Theodore shared, and instead seemed to just enjoy watching people suffer whether they deserved it or not. However, he did have a wicked sense of humour, and often had Cornelia cackling in the middle of class with some sarcastic comment. He was also incredibly charismatic and could twist most people he spoke to around his finger. He was a very good student, although he shared Cornelia's distaste for the outdoors, and Cornelia found she had an appreciated study partner in him.
However, now it appeared it wasn't Draco that she had to worry about, as the boys seemed lost when she left them to spend time with Draco, something she felt no urge to lessen now she had friends of her own. Nobody could replace her cousin. Theodore and Blaise could always be found lingering nearby, shooting impatient glances in their direction and barely talking. It seemed that she had transformed two loners into quite the dependent companions.
As it was, she had quite an uneventful rest of her year, mainly avoiding any grander scale punishments and resorting to cunning and untraceable smaller ones. She adamantly avoided Neville Longbottom, who appeared to have palled up with Harry, Ron and Hermione and so Draco despised him by association. She found she was forced to play the difficult game of somehow distracting Draco where she could from picking on him, which was difficult as Neville was an easy target for Draco. She was sure that Theodore at least had picked up on her tactics with his sharp eyes, as he never suggested that they play with Neville.
Draco continued on his war path with Harry and co, and Cornelia avoided getting involved where she could. That was except for one time, when Draco had gotten into a fight with them at a quidditch match (that Cornelia and Blaise avoided) and had come back sporting a black eye. Cornelia had almost blown a fuse in the fury that engulfed her at the sight of him as he stormed back into the common room, but she simply stood up, pointed at his eye and asked coldly "Who did that?"
When Draco had told her, her only response was "Right" before she had turned on her heel and ushered Theodore and Blaise together with a sharp call and stalking from the common room with them hot on her tail. Draco had watched her leave with a wicked smile on his face, he knew that Potter and Weasley were about to taste the wrath of Cornelia Lestrange, a revenge much sweeter than anything he could dream up.
Theodore and Blaise had been a little intimidated by her anger that she had suppressed in front of Draco, her wild curls almost seemed to fizz, standing statically up from her head, her jaw clenched and eyes flashing wildly as she hissed furious plans of how she could inflict the worst pain possible on Potter and Weasley. Sharing multiple startled looks, the tables were turned as the boys had to work together to calm her down and convince her to go along with a plan that just fell short of grievous bodily harm.
In the end, Cornelia and Blaise combined managed to convince Peeves the poltergeist to follow the Gryffindor trio for a full day, tripping them, pelting them with objects and ink and shouting loudly in their ears, finally finishing off by tipping a jar of itching powder over their heads as they entered their final class, a sight that fully satisfied Draco, and half satisfied a still fuming Cornelia.
Pansy had been subdued for a small amount of time after her take down earlier in the year but had soon scooped up Sally-Anne to replace Millicent and therefore gained back some of her previous swagger. Whilst Sally-Anne was no match for the muscle that Millicent provided, she had a sharp tongue and was pretty fearless. Pansy had become a regular participant in Cornelia, Theodore and Blaise's activities, although she never realised it, and it could be said that she didn't have as easy a time of her first year as she had perhaps hoped.
End of year examinations approached, and even Theodore joined Cornelia and Blaise in studying anxiously. Cornelia was pleased that Blaise excelled in Potions and Transfiguration, whilst Cornelia was best at Charms and Defence Against the Dark Arts. Theodore was surprisingly proficient in Herbology, remembering how to look after a great deal of plants when he seemingly took no notice during their classes. He just shrugged off Cornelia's observations saying it was obvious to him. They worked remarkably well as a team, and Cornelia felt confident if not slightly nervous as she walked into her first exam.
None of them really liked to discuss the exams afterwards, preferring to move outside now the weather had warmed considerably. Cornelia and Blaise created a game where they would enchant a frisbee to fling itself in unpredictable patterns whilst the other person attempted to catch, block or pin it. Cornelia had forgotten how much she used to enjoy running around the grounds with Draco, breaking Aunt Cissy's strict instructions to play tag or hide and seek with him, and she easily kept up with Blaise. Theodore preferred to watch, not enjoying physical exercise, and their activity even attracted Draco and Croyle, who for the first time all year, joined forces with Cornelia, Theodore and Blaise between and after exams.
It was the best fun she had had all year, and she began to dread the fast-approaching last day of term. She didn't want to return to the cold manor where her every move was watched and picked apart, and where she was unable to express herself as freely as she did in Hogwarts. She wondered whether she would even be allowed to see Theodore or Blaise during the summer holidays. Whilst Draco and Theodore didn't interact, it seemed that he and Blaise got along well, although Cornelia was yet to find a person who disliked Blaise if he put the charm on them. She comforted herself with the thought that Draco would probably be willing to invite them over under the guise of his own friends if it came down to it.
After their exams, gossip circulated that shook most student's end of exam exultation. The rumour was that somehow Harry Potter and his friends had snuck into the third-floor corridor and come face to face with Voldemort who had been possessing Professor Quirrell all year. Draco was the one to tell her, his face twisted with spite as he spoke.
"And obviously the whole school believes it. There's no way Potter would be able to come away from facing the Dark Lord alive. It's probably a rumour that Potter started, he obviously wanted to finish his first year with a bang." Draco continued whilst Cornelia stared at him in shock. It seemed everyone in the common room was talking about the same subject.
"Wait… Professor Quirrell? Is that true?" Cornelia pressed, unconcerned about Harry Potter's wellbeing or popularity.
Draco shrugged. "That's what they're saying."
"Who?"
"I dunno. I've heard it from a few different people. And Quirrell's nowhere to be seen. All of the professors look pretty serious." His voice was sulky and Cornelia left him to it, knowing she wouldn't get anymore useful information out of him when he was in that kind of mood. She instead went to seek out Theodore, who looked like he had been waiting for her to turn up.
"Have you heard?" He asked lowly.
"Do you think it's true?"
"I don't know about Harry Potter but I think there's some truth to the Dark Lord possessing Professor Quirrell."
"Why do you think that?"
"I've been listening to Leo." He gestured his head in the direction of the Slytherin Head Boy. "He's been informed by the Professors to be on high alert for any suspicious activity and to try and suppress any rumours. Of course he's been blabbing his mouth off about it to anyone who'll listen."
Cornelia nodded grimly, her eyes wide. She couldn't help the tremor of fear that ran through her at the thought of being within touching distance of the Dark Lord all year. She had been brought up with stories of his greatness but also detailed accounts of his totalitarian style of ruling, something she had tasted through her own upbringing and was looking forward to escaping entirely. She couldn't help but acknowledge the relief that swooped through her that Harry Potter had defeated him again, if the rumours were to be believed.
The evening of the end of year feast arrived and everyone was in high spirits, especially the Slytherins who had won the House Cup. Cornelia was completely content placed between Draco and Theodore, that was until Professor Dumbledore stood to make his speech. In a coincidence that just so happened to tip the scale in Gryffindor's favour for the House Cup, Dumbledore unorthodoxly awarded Harry, Hermione, Ron and Neville extra house points for their bravery, cunning and friendship. Cornelia was amongst the rest of the Slytherins who seethed at the blatant and outrageous favouritism, but also saw the act as a confirmation for the showdown between Harry and the Dark Lord.
It wasn't the ideal ending to the year for the Slytherins, who could no longer enjoy their final meal together due to the unfairness of it all and couldn't look across the hall without making eye contact with a gloating Gryffindor. The evening came to a close quickly and before they knew it they were on the train home the next morning. This time Cornelia, Blaise, Theodore, Draco and Croyle all shared a compartment. Even with their snatched victory and approaching separation, a bubble of happiness inflated inside Cornelia as she laughed and chatted with all of the people she held dear.
We've reached the end of Cornelia's first year at Hogwarts! I must say that it has taken much longer to write than I expected but I think it was worth it, don't you? We've got to see the beginnings of a little gang forming, maybe not so little if Cornelia et al and Draco et al join forces! It makes sense to me that Cornelia is mainly friends with boys as her only friend growing up has been Draco, I also can't see her responding well to girls' ways of fighting (bitchiness) can you? I hope it didn't seem too rushed after Christmas break, but really like I said in the notes of the first chapter, school is pretty straight forward for Cornelia in the first two years as she isn't involved in Harry Potter's adventures, and 22000 words seemed like enough for one year. Let's see how she gets on with a basilisk, an extremely prejudiced Draco and scheming Uncle Lucy shall we?
Until next time.