Once his father left, Draco walked towards his dorm to rest for a few minutes before dinner. A lot had happened, and he needed to think. He felt like the world was dripping between his hands, and there was nothing he could do to fix it. Everything was spiralling out of control, in a weirdly calm way. A lot was going on, but very slowly. He slowly put his two feet on the floor, as he sat on the bed, contemplating his room in the calmness of the evening. In a few hours, his roommates would come up and start making a mess, shouting, and disrupting the silence that now seemed to give him so much comfort. Nothing was particularly making him sad, but everything at the same time seemed too much for him. He felt alone and overwhelmed. Everything was wrong, but not much had changed. Was his life always falling apart? He couldn´t tell. He felt as though he was walking in a very thin line, and about to fall down at any moment. He decided to go downstairs to have dinner with the rest of Slytherins.
Cedric had been Ellie´s first kiss back when they had started dating. Now, a few months later, they were very comfortable with each other, and the little kisses were like routine for them. Following Violet´s tips, Ellie had managed to sneak into Hufflepuff´s dorms. Teachers didn´t go inside of them, so it was easy with a few basic spells to get inside.
Cedric had given her presents for her birthday, first, an album for the many pictures that she had taken and were kept in a box under her bed. He had also a few muggle books that he knew she really enjoyed and some chocolates. However, between Cedric´s quidditch match and Ellie´s lack of sleep, they had both fallen asleep in Cedric´s bed, curled into each other. Ellie had ended up sleeping on his chest, hugging him like a pillow. He had woken up a few times during the nap, but had only looked at her, smiled, and gone back to sleep.
Like a clockwork, at around dinner time, Ellie opened her eyes and sat up in a rush, like she was being late to something.
"Oh my god, what time is it?!" she asked stretching out.
Cedric observed her, still leaned back on his bed.
"Dinner time, I guess. Did you have a good nap?" he asked with a smile.
"It was wonderful, I really needed that. Did you?"
"Very much." He responded. "Sorry that we haven´t gotten up to much on your birthday. We could go to Hogsmeade this weekend."
"No, I think it´s been good in its own way. But if you really want to take me to Hogsmeade and invite me to chocolates, I wouldn't say no…"
"It´s a date then."
"Great… by the way, I´ve been meaning to talk to you about this" she said and faced him in the bed. "Are you going to put your name up for the Tournament?"
Cedric was surprised by this question, and he didn´t try to hide it.
"Of course, El, I thought it was obvious, it´s a big opportunity"
"I thought you would, but I just wanted to ask. Are you sure? Aren´t you like… scared?" she asked, cautiously. Although they had been dating for a few months, they hadn´t had many disagreements, and that was weird for Ellie, who was very used to having confrontations all the time as a Slytherin.
"Why would I be scared?" Cedric asked, still smiling.
"It´s not exactly a walk in the park, Cedric, don´t be naïve, there are risks."
Cedric leaned towards her, still sitting down, and he held her hands.
"The odds of me being chosen are low – and even if I got chosen, I can take care of myself, I promise" he said. Cedric always talked with certainty, like everything he was saying was being written down in a Bible. The end of the world could be right before her very eyes, but if Cedric said it would all be fine, Ellie would believe it.
`I can take care of myself, I promise´ Ellie repeated those words in her mind for a moment. She knew she would go back on them if he was chosen, and she knew there was a high chance he would. He was a prefect. He was amazing, and she couldn´t see how he wouldn´t be chosen.
Cedric was meeting a few friends before dinner, so Ellie strolled down the stairs by herself. It had been a long day, and her stomach was loudly longing for some food. She had eaten nothing but chocolates and sweets for the entire day, thanks to her friends presents, and she needed some substance. She also wanted to see Harry, Ron and Hermione, as she had barely talked to them throughout the day. She obviously couldn´t sit with the Gryffindors, but a little chat wouldn´t hurt anyone.
"Elizabeth! Hi!" Hermione said with enthusiasm, almost announcing her arrival while she subtly elbowed Harry prompting him to stop talking, which he did, abruptly.
"That has to be the least discreet thing I have seen in my entire life" Ron laughed.
"Ronald!" Hermione grumbled. "Sorry El, we were talking about Draco and I didn´t want you to hear us… but I guess Ronald here had other plans" she dedicated Ron a fulminating smile.
"Oh no, it´s fine, I appreciate the thought, but I really don´t care about him" Elizabeth assured. That was the second time someone had called her El – or at least the second time she had noticed. Was that how nicknames were born? Someone just randomly picks up a name for you and everyone copies them? It was not like it bothered her, she just found it funny. She liked it, she felt closer to Hermione, like they were friends.
"By the way, thank you for the presents, guys. I loved them" she said. However, it seemed like the trio was still caught up in the conversation they had been holding before she arrived.
"Alright guys, what happened?" she demanded, crossing her arms on her chest.
Harry opened his eyes widely and looked at Hermione for help. Hermione, however, put her hands on her hips and pointed at Ron with her eyes.
"Okay, I guess I made my own bed so I have to lie on it … well…" he gulped. "So Seamus heard from Colin, who heard from Cormac that he heard Mr. Malfoy tell Draco that he was ready to become a Death Eater"
"It´s just gossip but…" Hermione said, trying to make it better.
Elizabeth squinted for a second, staring at Ron, waiting for the punchline. Once she realized, he was serious, she let out a soft giggle.
"What? That´s surely …. Not true- I´m sure he heard wrong. I highly doubt Lucius Malfoy would be saying things like that out loud at Hogwarts… come on guys" she said, and she was convinced it was merely gossip. If there was one thing, she knew well was Lucius Malfoy, and his secrecy. He would never say things like that if there was a remote possibility that anyone could hear him.
"Guys I´m certain that is not true" she repeated.
"Right, that is what we thought." Harry agreed. They kept giving each other glances like they were hiding something, which made Elizabeth nervous.
"Maybe you should ask him about it" Hermione gushed. Something wasn´t right, but Elizabeth couldn´t point her finger on it. "It´s a big deal"
"Yeah, maybe you should ask him about it. But don´t tell him we told you, I can´t be arsed to deal with Malfoy and his tears"
Elizabeth squinted her eyes again, which she did a lot when she was concentrating.
"Alright, I might" she noted and smiled as she turned around to go to her table in the Great Hall.
"Happy birthday, by the way!" Ron exclaimed as she walked away.
"Yeah, happy birthday" Harry agreed with guilt.
It was funny how the trio had come to accept and joke about her relationship with Draco. Obviously, it was hilarious to them, as they couldn´t see anything redeemable about the guy. It was a common topic that they discussed when hanging out in the common room, as much as it puzzled them, it was like a bad soap opera that kept on giving. Ron thought Draco had completely manipulated Elizabeth into liking him. Harry and Hermione, on the other hand, understood that they couldn´t understand their relationship, but were also sad for her because they could see how much she suffered for him. That´s why they had decided, that afternoon right after Hermione had caught Elizabeth tearing up as she took her pictures out of the box and put them in the album, that they needed to help her get closure. Ron was against it, but Hermione had convinced Harry to lie. It was unlike her to lie, but she was sure it was for the best.
The Slytherin table was quite empty. She sat shily in her usual place, a few seats away from Draco, on the other side. The food wasn´t on the table yet, and there were less than a dozen of students sat down. To their eyes, they were alone – and the ambient was so tense it could be cut with a knife. She considered whether to talk to him, let him know about the rumours, but she was sure they weren´t true. Still, it was a possibility and moreover, a chance, she had something to say. She could just say it and leave if it went wrong.
Draco could see Ellie on the corner of his eye, and he was certain she could too. He was surprised she had sat down, it felt like an invitation to talk, and he really wanted to take it. He felt alone, and lost, and this was like a glass of water in the middle of the desert. However, none of them moved. Ellie opened her mouth to say something, but immediately closed it, unable to find the words. The Slytherins were not known for being brave, and for a second they both wished they would muster the courage to say something.
But they didn´t, and when the other students arrived, the opportunity was gone.