And if we dream - Draco Malfoy/ OC

Chapter 5- Confrontation.

Summary: Like some magnetic force, like some unbreakable bond she was drawn back to him again and again. And now, staying away was an inconceivable notion. "Always." she murmured, one hand finding his, the other tangling into his platinum hair, "Always."

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"So. All I need today is a potions textbook, DADA textbook and a collar for my baby. Who would have thought so many people would have brought all black cats." Avery mused to Hermione as they dawdled slightly behind the large Weasley family, through Diagon Alley, the day before they were due to be at platform 9 ¾. She had a sneaking suspicion, however that Ron and Harry were eavesdropping into their conversation when she heard Ron mumble, "Bloody women and their cats."

"That's why I brought Crookshanks." Hermione replied, pointedly ignoring the annoying ginger ahead, "No one buts tabby cats at Hogwarts."

"You'd think I'd be able to recognise my own cat," Avery mused, "But the only difference between Dragon and other cats is the white stripe on his stomach, I cant very well go around lifting up all the cats I see! There's five black ones in Gryffindor tower alone."

"As fascinating as I'm sure your conversation is," Ron interrupted, "You need to get your potions textbook from here."

"I knew you were listening to us!" Hermione shrieked, "You're so rude Ronald, we could have been talking about anything!"

"Instead you were talking about cats." he grumbled, stepping into the shop ahead of us."

"You're like a married couple." Avery laughed to her friend, "The day you two don't bicker Harry and I will throw a party. Honest to Merlin."

Hermione huffed, pushing past the red headed girl to make her way into the shop. Avery swallowed and took a big gulp of fresh air before stepping inside. This place always reminded her of Hogwarts library, the smell of musty books and paper always very overwhelming and the hoards of people made it hard to move around. The last time she had been in here was in second year, when Harry had been accosted by Gilroy Lockhart, the extremely fake 'hero of the hour' and generally awful DADA teacher, then accosted by the Malfoys, leading to the whole Ginny- Chamber of secrets fiasco. Every other year Matilda had, had her textbooks ready for her, knowing of her distaste for shopping in general let alone this store. This year however, Avery, knowing she would be staying with the Weasley's and Harry, had decided to get her own.

"Potions over here Avery!" Harrys voice called from somewhere in the shop and Avery found herself wondering why it was that wizards thought it a good idea to make their shops so bloody tiny. Avery hadn't been to any muggle towns, but from what she had heard from Harry and Hermione the shops were much bigger and held many more people. Avery glanced around the shop, standing on her tip toes to see over some taller students she didn't recognise. She spotted familiar bushy hair over by a shelf of darker looking volumes, spines cracked and greasy looking even though they were brand new textbooks for sixth years. "Figures." she mumbled, "Anything related to Potions seems to be dark and gloomy."

She pushed her way through the line of people, not looking forward to joining the queue herself in a few minutes, "Excuse me, excuse me." she said, angling herself around other customers. She flinched as she felt something solid slam against her legs and stomach. "Sorry!" A young voice called as she glanced down to see a kid who couldn't have been more than eleven, staring up at her with wide eyes.

"That's okay." Avery smiled, thankful she hadn't unintentionally glared at the kid as a first instinct, she still remembered how it felt to be an eleven year old, visiting these stores for the first time, "Is everything alright?" she asked, kneeling to the boys height. The kid nodded, "My mum told me to meet her at the herbology section but I cant remember where that is."

"I'll show you. What's your name kid?"

"David Boyd."

"Well David I'm Avery and the Herbology books are just over there," she pointed, eyes finding a woman with the same black hair and brown eyes, "is that your mum?"

"Yes. Thank you!" the kid called before hurrying towards his mother. Avery grinned and made her way towards Hermione who was already laden with books. "I thought you had all your books Herm." She stated as she reached the girl who was intently reading the back cover of the top book, remembering that she had seen the girl reading one the first day she had arrived at the Burrow.

"Not all of them." Hermione replied distractedly.

Avery rolled her eyes, "Well knowing you, we probably don't even need half of the books you've brought. Or you'll be using your time turner again. Do you still have that?"

"Anyway," Hermione continued as if Avery hadn't even spoken, finally glancing up, "These two," she handed over the two books from the bottom of the pile, "are the ones you need. I grabbed them for you, I saw you with that kid."

Avery nodded, "Thank you. Have you got all you need?"

"Yes. If we but these, we could go and look for a collar for Dragon?"

"Sounds good. I thinking pink, with ribbons?"

"Dragon would kill you, he's far to masculine for that." Hermione grinned.

"Yeah. You know, sometimes I swear he's someone stuck in animangus form, or he's someone cursed to be a cat for all eternity or something." Avery mused.

"Like Salem!" Hermione cried.

"Who?"

"The cat, in Sabrina the teenage witch!"

"Who's Sabrina? Do we know her?" Avery asked perplexed.

"What? Oh! Sometimes I forget that you're as bad as Ron when it comes to muggle things. It's a muggle television show, rather good actually. About a teenage witch. Though I don't think it would hold much appeal here, since most people are, have been or will be witches themselves one day." Hermione rambled as the joined onto the end of the queue.

"Right." Avery laughed, "And a television is that thing you and Harry showed me right? The one where the people were on the screen?"

"Yes Avery. I really need to take you to London, a muggle town, and my house and show you everything. I have a feeling it would be very amusing. Ronald too of course."

"Sometimes, when I'm around you and Harry I do start to wish I ha taken Muggle studies. If I had had a bloody time turner like you did I probably would have!"

Hermione laughed and Avery admitted, "I am glad to be going back though, its hard not to, like Harry says, think of Hogwarts as home, or a second home at least." Her friend nodded in agreement, "Though I will miss these clothes, much more comfortable than wearing that uniform all day. I will wear trousers one day. I bet no one would even notice if I did."

"Oh I'm sure Professor McGonnagal would, and probably Snape too, any excuse to take house points."

"Yeah. You know, ignoring the fact that she is a Deatheater and all, that's part of the reason I'm glad I no longer live with my mother, wearing wizarding robes 24/7 gets tiring."

"I don't doubt that."

By the time they reached the counter, the two girls were reminiscing about how awkward Harry and Ron had looked in their formal robes for the Tri Wizard dance.

They paid quickly and bagged up their items, Hermione rushed to inform the others that they would be looking in the pet store and arrange a meeting point for later.

"Ah fresh air." Avery grinned, as they stepped from the shop, "So good to be free!"

"So dramatic." Hermione sighed, "Its not that bad."

"Oh Hermione, it really, really is!"

Hermione rolled her eyes in much the same fashion Avery had in the shop and replied with, "We're to meet them outside the twin's shop in half an hour."

It didn't take long for Avery to find something suitable for Dragon, in fact it took longer for her to convince Hermione that it was not a good idea to but another kitten. "Crookshanks would probably eat the poor thing."

" Leave some for the new kids."

The winning and most convincing argument however had been a simple, "It's against the rules."

"How long do we have?" Avery asked as they stepped from another shop into the cool air again. "Before we have to meet them?"

"Fifteen minutes?" Hermione guessed, hauling the bag of treats she had brought for Crookshanks into her other hand.

"Want to just go and wait?" Avery asked, juggling her own bags. She cursed as the bag from the bookstore tipped forwards and her DADA book slid onto the ground with a thud. Avery sighed, gently placed her bags onto the ground and knelt down to grab her fallen book, before she could pick it up however, a shiny booted foot landed hard on the cover. She gasped and yanked her hand back, thankful it hadn't been her fingers on the receiving end of the stomp. She glanced up to see, who else, Draco Malfoy sneering down at her, "Crawling on the floor now mummy no longer wants you Greenwood?"

"Still think you're better than everyone else Malfoy?" Avery shot back, wincing at just how lame her come back had been, "Give me my book."

"Defence against the dark arts. Most useless subject there is." the blonde growled, kicking the book a few feet away, "Really Greenwood, one would expect more than this from you, spending time with mud bloods and blood traitors."

"Malfoy." Avery glared, "You can insult me and my friends all you like, I've told you before, I don care what you think. I'm just waiting for the day you finally grow up."

"You have no idea." Malfoy sneered, a hint of smugness in his voice. And Avery had the urge to respond, Go hug more cabinets! But of course he didn't know they had followed him so instead she opted just to glare at his back as he sauntered away.

"Asshole." she grumbled, as she picked up her textbook, frowning at the footprint along the cover, "I hate it when he calls you that, and he's managed to ruin my book before I've even opened the bloody thing!"

"Come on Ave, lets go. He's not even worth your anger."

"Its my turn to punch him next though right?"

"Ave!" Hermione admonished, "Violence is never the answer!"

"Hypocrite." Avery groaned, placing the book back and hoisting her bags, "Lets go."

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So its like 2am so I had to leave it there!

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