In the first week, everyone returned to Hogwarts. Well, almost... Stephanie was late by one week. People began saying that she had been expelled, but it seems she was only late by a week - she never said why. Elisa, Anna, and Selena kept avoiding Katherina. Cabble and Goyle kept following Draco everywhere. Richard had made it his life mission to make their existence at Hogwarts hell, while every single one of his failures backfired. His family was losing money every week until they eventually told him to stop. Perhaps it would be better to allow time to pass, lay low, and hope the Malfoys would eventually forget of them.
Draco felt guilty. He had grown more estranged from the only person who ever cared to ask him if he was alright; if he was in pain... His mother's gift had served him well in taking his mind off of things. He found a new love for the Astronomy tower, where he could spend the entire night in silence, sketching in the moonlight. About a month before the end of the year though, he began to have some company.
"What the hell are you doing here?" he yelled the first time he saw her in the Astronomy tower, all alone and deep in thought.
She jumped. "What the hell do you care?" Katherina couldn't think of a better comeback.
"It's my spot," he hissed his argument.
"Really? Your name isn't on anything here, though!"
He stormed off. On the following night, he rushed to be the first one there and climbed up as soon as their classes were over. Several hours later, Katherina climbed up as well with small, quiet steps, careful not to be heard by another.
"I told you it was my spot, Caesarius!"
She frowned. "Well, it used to be mine before you came back."
"Not anymore, as you can see!"
"Go to hell!" she said in a lower voice than she had intended. "You don't own Hogwarts!"
"I might as well do," he mumbled.
This time, he watched her sit at a desk and light a candle. She had brought a journal and spent most of her time writing in it. Draco didn't say anything as he turned back to stare at the night sky and sketch the face of the full moon. He could easily pretend he was alone, that she wasn't even there. His ears barely picked up the sound of her quill moving over the paper, and an occasional sigh every here and there.
Halfway through their last month of the first year, he noticed that he had been sketching her. He worked in dark green ink and was nearly through his sketchbook, and he had found himself drawing her portrait from their first day, back when she confronted Richard Avery with the bravery of a Gryffindor and the sharp tongue of a Ravenclaw. The realization struck Draco as hard as a brick, heavy like the boot that broke his ribs in the Great Hall. He wanted to throw his sketchbook across the room, or better yet, to rip out the page and let the late spring wind take it to the Black Lake and drown it.
He did rip it out, but as he stood, he looked at it again. He couldn't just crumble his hard work in his fist! He had been working on it for hours, after all... Taking one careful look behind him, he noticed that Katherina seemed to had fallen asleep at the desk. He decided this would be the last time he came up here. He didn't need a reaction, and he didn't need an answer. He left the portrait on the corner of the desk, gathered his things, and sneaked back into the Slytherin dormitories. He did have his own room which he didn't need to share, he could spend his time there, in true solitude.
As hard as she tried, which wasn't much at all, Katherina couldn't talk to Draco about the portrait. Whenever she entered a room, he would be the one to leave. If she tried to address him, he'd call her a mud-blood and push his way right past her. Too proud to keep chasing an explanation, she let it go.
On their last day, she grabbed Malfoy by the hand. She knew he was going to try and yell another insult at her, so she slipped a piece of paper into his palm and left in a rush. It was an invitation to meet at the Black Lake and talk, as it was their very last chance to sort things out before the summer. She sat on the shore of the lake, watching a few bubbles rise to the surface every here and there and weeds flowing gently just below the surface. The sight was beautiful and calming, and Katherina managed to find a few moments of peace in the chaos that has been her first year at Hogwarts. She hadn't given any details to Malfoy, hoping that if nothing else, his curiosity would nudge him over to their meeting place.
After what felt like an hour, the girl finally heard steps behind her. Thinking it was Draco and trusting him to not do anything to physically hurt her, but rather throw insults instead, she didn't turn to see.
"Took you long enough..." she mumbled.
An unfamiliar voice spoke just as she noticed a pair of shoes beside her that were too large to be those of Malfoy. "Yes, I thought I had missed my chance. Traitor!"
Before she could react, Katherina felt a strong hand lifting her off the ground by the neck, as a second palm wrapped itself around it. Space between the thumbs and index fingers was closing in fast, leaving little room for her throat to expand and allow air into her lungs. She dug her nails into his hands, feeling them bend slightly right before they cut through his skin, but Richard didn't seem to notice. He was seeing red.
"What does it feel like, bitch? Do you like it? Do you enjoy it? This is what the motherfucking Malfoys are doing to all of us because of you and your big fucking mouth!" he hissed between gritted teeth.
Adrenaline was spreading through her system, but her air was running out fast. Katherina recognized her attacker and tried to use her wand and utter Incendio, but Richard realized her plan and threw her into the ground as hard as he could. Unprepared, the girl landed awkwardly and heard her arm crack loudly. Pain shot through her shoulder and upper left arm. Her head was light with pain and panic as she choked and gasped for air.
"How you didn't kill yourself by now is beyond me, but don't worry - I'm gonna fix that for you, bloody coward!"
Richard went after her as the girl looked on the ground for her wand. She managed to get a hold of it, but couldn't say the spell in time. Her throat was tight and swelling. She felt his weight as he stepped on her hand and forced her to let go of the wand.
"Avery! Fuck off!"
Taken by surprise, Richard turned to look who was calling for him, which gave Katherina the opportunity to grab her wand with her other hand in which she still felt her blood flowing.
"Incendio!" she coughed, quickly backing away.
"You bitch!" Richard's clothes caught fire. He immediately threw himself into the grass, rolling around to put out the fire.
When she looked up, the girl saw Draco placing himself between her and Richard, holding out his wand in a threatening way. Although she didn't see it, she could bet that his scary look was on.
"If you plan to see tomorrow, I suggest you apologize," he spoke coldly as he watched Richard tossing around on the ground like a worm. This image reminded him of the first time he heard Katherina call him a vermin.
Once he was no longer burning, Richard stood up and backed away. "You have no proof! I didn't do anything!"
"Bloody hell, Richard!" Katherina cried.
"You can't prove it was me!" Richard pointed his wand at the two juniors. "Bombarda!"
"Immobulus!" Draco managed to cast the spell a split second before the third-year, who couldn't finish the hand movement and so his charm had turned against him.
Immobile and unable to dodge, Richard took his own attach head-first, struck by several explosions which covered him in cuts and burns from head to toe.
"I can prove it was you, and I get the feeling my father will be very interested in this incident."
Katherina got over the initial fright and managed to find her breath again. She stood and attempted to brush off any dirt from her skirt with the hand she could still move.
"Thank you, Draco."
Still threatening Richard, the blond threw her a quick glance over his shoulder. "Consider it payback. It's nothing personal, though you may want to watch your back in the future."
She nodded. "About why I called you... I want to talk to you, alone. I don't want Richard to hear it and... please don't mention this to your father."
Confused, Draco turned to get a good look at her. "Did you hit your head, or what? He tried to strangle you! He openly admitted he wanted to kill you! Are you out of your bloody mind?!"
"I know!" She took a step towards him. "Trust me, Draco, I know! I didn't ask you to let him go, just to not mention this to your father. Let's make him into our servant instead. We all know your father has been prosecuting the Avery family over the first incident, so we can only assume it will be even worse this time." The girl held her hurting arm and tried not to let the growing pain affect her speech. "Right now, he could get expelled, and cause his family even more hardship. Let's use him instead."
Richard spat on the ground. "I'd rather die than serve a self-entitled mud-blood bitch and this fairytale prince supremacist who doesn't know what the fuck reality is! I'll tell daddy is your only real power, fucking baby!"
"Do you still want to show mercy to this wanker?" Malfoy looked at Caesarius with an angry glare.
The girl rolled her eyes and let out a heavy sigh. "Oh, bloody hell! The entire Hogwarts hates me already!" She used her wand to shoot blue sparks straight into the air, filling the evening sky with their bright light. "I don't give a damn who finds out about this! Throw him to the wolves!"
Richard began to shake as people were gathering around them, wondering what had happened. Katherina fell on her knees, exhausted from their interaction and holding her shoulder tightly. The pain was making her head spin. She looked up at Draco, who stood by her side in all of his aristocratic glory. He could well use a moment such as this, especially after Richard had been working day and night to vilify him. The prefect had started a hundred rumors about him being racist and misogynistic, a bully only of the weakest, a coward who backed away from every fight, a crybaby who relied on his father's power and influence to make it into Hogwarts, even implying that Draco bought his good grades instead of earning them just like every other student.
Madam Hooch was the first to arrive at the scene. She didn't need many explanations to understand the dynamics, but she still wanted the full story.
"Alright, you three - start talking!"
Fully confident in his role, Malfoy took it upon himself to narrate the incident.
Author's notes:
Please follow, favorite, and review. I'd love to hear from you, and in return, I may post another chapter sooner than intended.
