A/N: Hi! So, this story really hasn't gotten too many reviews/alerts, so I'm not sure if people like it or not. That's why it took me so long to get around to writing this chapter. SO, if you do like this story/want it to continue, please let me know because at this rate I feel like it's not worth all the effort I've been putting in. Thanks!

Earlier that evening…

Astoria Greengrass did not like to be called a princess. Her sister, Daphne, enjoyed the frills and lace enough for the both of them. She was not immune, however, to the lure of a ball. It was times like these she allowed herself to become Daphne's doll; her brown curls pinned to the top of her head, loose strands framing her pale face. Her makeup accentuated her delicate features and tamed her freckles; she couldn't help but feel like she was wearing the mask of a prettier girl. She looked enough like her sister for everyone to acknowledge Daphne as the prettier one; the Greengrass' legacy. Astoria was always the misfit; the Ravenclaw in a family of Slytherins. On nights like tonight, however, Astoria left Daphne's shadow and thoroughly enjoyed herself. When they greeted their fellow purebloods, people saw her as an equal. It was easy to lose herself in the disguise.

The Malfoys' annual Christmas dinner was well-anticipated by all those dignified to make the guest list. Daphne and Astoria had spent the entire day getting ready and picking out the perfect outfits. Astoria wore a sky blue, floor length, strapless dress she borrowed from Daphne, while Daphne wore an off-the-shoulder black dress that reached her knee. Dressing up was fun on occasion, but tonight it was also to make the Greengrass' look good. When in the company of the most elite of the wizarding world, it does well to make one look elite themselves.

Astoria made pleasant small talk to various members of the Sacred Twenty-Eight before being seated for dinner. She listened to her sister excitedly ramble about Theodore Nott's failing relationship, she had an affinity for people she couldn't have, as she played with the food on her plate. Moments later, Lucius raised his glass and rattled off a toast that, although met with applause, left a hollow feeling inside her chest. She didn't agree with pureblood ideals, a great source of disappointment to her parents, but as long as she didn't vocalize these doubts her parents didn't bother her about it. They felt she had already been punished enough.

As everyone finished dessert, and were ushered into the next room, Astoria was more than happy to leave the foreboding air the room had taken on ever since Lucius' speech began. She followed Daphne out of the room, only to see a pout appear on her sister's face.

"I left my lip-gloss in there, could you please get it for me? It must've rolled under the table."

Astoria, not one to say no easily, smiled at her sister before turning on her heels and reentering the room. Checking under the chair and not finding anything, Astoria resorted to crawling under the table to look. No wonder Daphne didn't get it herself. After a few seconds she found it, and went to poke her head out from under the draping tablecloth, when she noticed how quiet the room had gotten. Quiet except for one voice.

"After all, if you don't join his legions, people might talk; the Malfoy name is not to be sullied by your cowardice."

Malfoy name…what problem could Lucius have with Draco? He's the perfect pureblood; stuck up, arrogant, bigoted…

Slap.

The sharp sound echoed around the room and Astoria's hand flew up to her mouth. She couldn't believe what she had just witnessed. No one should be treated that way. Maybe he's not as aloof as he seems.

"Answer. Me."

Draco's only a fifth year, Lucius can't possibly want to thrust his only son into he-who-must-not-be-named's hands?

"I heard you, sir."

"That's wonderful, Draco, I'm glad to know you're simply dumb and not dumb and deaf. However, I believe I asked you a question pertaining to your future allegiance to the Dark Lord, did I not?"

Astoria's heartbeat picked up. This could not end well.

"Of course, father, I realize the importance of establishing the right connections. Neither of us want to see the Malfoy name, or loyalty, questioned."

Am I actually hearing this right now? Draco's agreeing to be a death eater…he can't be older than 15.

"Excellent, Draco, I knew you'd see things my way. Now, I've been away from our guests for far too long, if you'll excuse me."

She heard one pair of footsteps walk dangerously close to her before exiting the room, but did not hear Draco move. I have to say something, anything to him. He can't think that's his only option. He has to know he's not alone. Just as she found the courage to crawl out from under the table, she heard Draco sprint from the room. Ugh.

She slowly crawled from under the table, then stood, dusting herself off. She could pretend she hadn't heard the exchange, since no one knew she had been in the room, and get back to the party. Or, she could wander around the home of a known death eater in search of his son who also just pledged his allegiance…

Steeling herself, she exited the dining room and wondered where to go next. So he ran from the room, clearly upset. He wouldn't have thought about how he was drawing attention to himself, going for the first possible exit… that's when it hit her. He must have run outside. Glancing around to make sure no one was watching, Astoria pointed her wand and whispered accio cloak, causing her cloak to rush towards her, and crept outside. Once she was outside, however, she realized she didn't have much of an idea of where to go now. At that moment a house elf appeared, startling Astoria so violently she fell backwards into a snow bank. Luckily her cloak was charmed to repel the elements, snow included.

The house elf looked terrified to have surprised Astoria, and wrung her hands tightly as she said, "if miss is looking for Master Malfoy, she would find him to the left, in the back gardens."

Astoria nodded her thanks as she ran off to the left, worried what would happen if she didn't find Draco sooner rather than later. As she approached the back gardens, she saw a lone figure on a bench and slowed her footsteps so she wouldn't alert him to her presence. Once she got closer, however, she realized this wouldn't be a problem because Draco was far beyond noticing his surroundings. He was gasping for breath, practically choking, and shaking horribly, although Astoria had a feeling it had nothing to do with the cold. She closed the distance between them, desperate to help him, but not wanting to push her luck.

She knew she had to get him to calm down before anything else could be done. So, in the calmest voice she could muster, she coaxed, "shh, Draco. You need to breathe."

Silence pressed on, and Astoria almost repeated herself, when a desperate plea reached her ears, "I can't."

She decided it was important to sound more confident than she was. "Yes, I promise, you can," she continued, as she sat down on the bench next to him, "just follow me, alright?"

She took his silence for agreement, so she began to vocalize a slower breathing pattern.

"In…out…in…out…"

She repeated this slowly for a while, and although it seemed to make no difference at first, Draco slowly but surely began to take more even breaths. Not sure why she did it, Astoria began to rub circles on his back, hoping it would help him to have something else to focus on. After several long minutes Draco's breathing had returned to normal, although he didn't raise his head from his hands, elbows still propped up on his knees. Astoria continued to rub his back, not wanting to interrupt whatever he was thinking. She was glad she could help him. She cast a warming charm on both his and her clothes because she wasn't sure how long they would be out here. Not that she minded.

"You shouldn't be out here."

The emptiness in his voice unsettled her; it lacked its usual derision.

Not sure how to respond, she uttered "neither should you."

Draco rubbed at his eyes tiredly and Astoria could tell he was struggling with something.

"I mean it. You could get in serious trouble."

He's trying to protect me? Astoria wasn't sure how she felt about that, either.

"Mhmm."

He seemed to be out of protests against her presence and Astoria was silently thankful for this. No longer enthralled with the idea of parading around the party like a puppet, Astoria realized she would be content to sit here as long as he needed her to.

Back to present…

Draco would have never ended the silence. If he could package it, if it were a tangible thing, he would wrap it up tight and never let go. Reality was crashing back towards him, however, and he knew he had to face it sooner rather than later. Exhaustion making him feel extra heavy, he lifted his eyes to view whoever was next to him. Whoever he had been expecting, it wasn't her. She was breathtakingly beautiful, to put it simply. Draco racked his brain trying to figure out who she was. I have been attending these parties with the same people since the day I was born. There's no way I don't know her. Suddenly, he was aware he was staring intensely, so he chose instead to look at his feet, awkwardly clearing his throat.

"Are you alright?"

That blasted question.

"I guess that's a rather stupid thing to say, of course you're not…"

Draco was surprised at the concern on her face, but he was also uncomfortable with the whole situation. He was now painfully aware she had just witnessed his complete mental breakdown.

"Thanks for…uh, thanks for…even though, you know, it's…so…cold."

The witch started giggling at his stuttering and Draco felt a flash of annoyance. He was a Malfoy; not something to be laughed at. But just as soon as it appeared, it was gone; he didn't have it in himself to sustain the emotion.

"Don't worry about it, Draco."

She knows who I am. I have to figure out who this girl is to make sure she doesn't spread this.

"Is anyone up there going to miss you?"

She thought about it for a moment, before responding, "probably not. What about you? It's your party."

"Well, since they haven't noticed yet, I doubt they'll miss me for a little longer."

She seemed to want to say more to this, but didn't. He turned to face her, now aware that he was staring, but he couldn't help it.

"So, do you want to talk about it?" she questioned.

"Talk about what?" he said quickly, procrastinating slightly. If she noticed, she didn't say anything.

"About why you were upset."

He assumed his facial expression changed to slightly murderous, because she added, "only if you want to, though."

He mulled this over. He didn't, at all, want to talk about his father. He also, however, didn't want to go back inside.

"How about we talk about you?"

If she was surprised, she didn't show it. She has a good handle on her emotions.

"What about me?"

He didn't want to ask her anything she could potentially flip on him, so he settled on "your favorite subject," since he assumed she was a student at Hogwarts.

Her eyes lit up, "astronomy, definitely."

Draco actually snorted, "seriously?"

"Yes! I love the stars and planets.."

"What do you even do with that?"

She looked a little hurt but said, "I'm only in my third year, I'm not worried about that yet."

"You're only 13?"

"No, I'm 14," she said, "my birthday's in November."

Draco nodded, adding on "only one year younger than me."

They both understood, however, that living in their world aged them much faster.

"What's your favorite subject?"

"Potions, definitely."

Now it was her turn to look appalled, "Snape's a git! How could you possibly consider his subject your favorite."

"Snape's my godfather," he said curtly.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't mean-"

He wasn't really listening; he was used to people disliking his godfather. Besides, if he'd been busy being offended he would've missed the huge clue she'd just given him.

"You don't like Snape? That's interesting, a Sacred Twenty-Eight not in Slytherin…"

She regarded him slowly, before saying, "I know, I've heard it before. I'm in Ravenclaw."

He felt bad suddenly for bringing it up after all she had done to help him. "Well, Ravenclaw is definitely the next best house."

She smiled slightly, before adding, "tell that to my parents. It's hard enough being the younger sibling to Daph, the perfect, Slytherin daughter."

It clicked suddenly. This is baby Greengrass. God, I didn't even realize she was old enough for Hogwarts. She looks so grown up.

Draco just nodded, still processing the fact that Astoria was sitting here with him.

"You know, Draco," she said thoughtfully, "you can talk to me, whenever."

He didn't answer right away, so she added, "I'm told I'm a good listener."

He considered her proposition. He didn't want to talk to her at this moment, but he wasn't sure he would last the rest of Christmas break with no one to talk to. Besides, she was a marked improvement on his other so-called friends.

"Yeah, maybe…thanks, Astoria."

She beamed back at him, and he knew instantly that he had made the right decision.

"Of course, Draco."

They sat in silence for a moment, able to see people dancing still, silhouetted in the window. They watched until only a few figures were left, twirling to imaginary music, before Astoria cut through the silence.

"We should probably get back up there."

Draco knew she was right, but he didn't want to admit it. He dreaded that his earlier conversation with his father wasn't over, but she had done enough for him for today.

"You're right."

Draco stood, legs numb after sitting for so long, as he offered his hand to Astoria. She accepted, blushing slightly, as they walked hand in hand back towards the Manor. As they reached the front door, Draco dropped Astoria's hand to open the front door for her. The pair walked inside and Draco undid the warming charms on their clothes. They went to walk towards the ballroom, but were met several feet from the front door by Lucius.

"Ah, Draco, how nice of you to join us," he purred, completely overlooking Astoria, "care to tell me where you've been for the last hour?"

Draco gulped, but before he had time to invent an excuse, Astoria cut in, "sorry, sir, it was my fault. I didn't feel well and Draco offered to escort me outside for some fresh air. He really is quite the gentleman."

Draco had never been more thankful for anyone; Lucius' shoulders immediately relaxed and a genuine smile appeared.

"How thoughtful of you, Draco, I knew we raised you well. Please see to it that Astoria receives any potion she might be requiring."

Draco nodded, and with that, Lucius swept back toward the ballroom. Astoria smiled shyly, and Draco found that he was running out of ways to thank her.

He was about to try, when anything he might have said was interrupted by the arrival of Daphne.

"Tori, I looked everywhere for you! I needed my lip-gloss like, forever ago." She cast a look to Draco before saying, "Nott was flirting with me all night and now he's left. I needed you! Where were you?"

Seeing his opportunity, since Astoria was now at a loss for words, Draco jumped in, "she was indulging me, Daph, I had a headache and needed to get away from the music for a bit."

Daphne seemed to find this odd, but didn't get the chance to comment on it, as the last of the guests filtered from the ballroom to the front door, the Greengrass' parents among them. Draco got the chance to say a rushed goodbye before the girls were whisked away, and Draco was left alone with his parents.

"Well, what a lovely evening," Narcissa said with a smile, "I'd say we should all go to bed, no?"

Draco nodded, he was beyond exhausted, and Lucius nodded, too.

Draco wished his parents goodnight and climbed up the stairs, the day had been eventful, but not completely horrible. He entered his room, tired but content, and the first thing he noticed was the large stack of presents he had overlooked this morning. He knew an overwhelming majority would be from his parents, who loved to endlessly try to buy his affection for them, so he ignored the well-wrapped, glossy packages to examine who else would send him presents. There was one from Severus, Crabbe, Goyle, Pansy, and…Tiki? He ripped into Tiki's present and discovered a small vial of acromantula venom. How the hell did she get that? It's so rare. He made a mental note to thank her tomorrow. Reaching for Pansy's present, he remembered that he abandoned her after his father had gotten mad. I'm sure she'll be pissed. I'll have to owl her tomorrow and apologize. The thought exhausted him further, so he decided to go to bed and save opening the rest of the presents for tomorrow morning.

He got ready for bed quickly, shedding his dress robes before changing into sweatpants and a t-shirt. He climbed into bed, and his thoughts turned to Astoria. Maybe I can owl her tomorrow, too. Maybe I can…talk to her about things on paper. At that thought, he had an immediate desire to push her away, like he always did when people showed him compassion. This time will be different, he promised himself. She seems patient, and as long as I don't do anything incredibly stupid, I think she could be a friend. Comforted by this thought, even if it didn't really work out, Draco was able to fall asleep peacefully for the first time in a long time.