Draco sat down next to Blaise, who hadn't yet touched his potatoes. He was forking them around on his plate, not paying attention to what his hands were doing. He was watching Theodore Nott out of the corner of his eye like his best friend had asked.
"Why did it take you so long to get down here?" Blaise asked as Draco sat down. He watched as his best friend tried to flatten his messy hair with no progress, and the light bulb inside went off.
Blaise stifled a smile. "Oh."
Draco cleared his throat and gave up on his hair, letting it stick up how it desired. "Shut up."
Blaise snickered but dropped the subject, and glanced at Theo again, who was shoveling eggs and bacon into his mouth in between swigs of his juice. He didn't seem to notice anything at the moment but the plate in front of him. Blaise leaned closer to Draco, keeping his voice low.
"Are you ready?"
Draco nodded. "I'm ready for this to be over."
Blaise nodded in understanding as Draco poured himself a glass of pumpkin juice. He narrowed his eyes as he looked at Theo for the first time.
"I hate seeing him in those Quidditch robes again."
"Well, it won't be for much longer." Blaise said. "I promise."
Draco nodded, and then glanced toward the Gryffindor table, where Harry Ron and Hermione were huddled together at the end of the table, speaking in hushed whispers.
"Just be careful." Hermione commanded. She looked to Harry then to Ron, and back. "You'll be careful, won't you?"
They nodded, and Ron grabbed her hand in reassurance. "Don't worry, Hermione. Everything will be alright."
Hermione grabbed Ron's hand in reply. "Keep Draco safe, too. When it comes to Theo, he doesn't think straight; make sure he doesn't do anything that wasn't part of the plan." Harry nodded.
"And Blaise, also." Hermione added. "Make sure he's alright."
Harry smiled at Hermione's worry. "Hermione, relax. Everything is going to be alright."
Harry looked over then, and saw Draco watching them. He gave a barely noticeable nod, and Harry recognized it as the sign. He took a deep breath, and then stood up, calling out to his team, who immediately dropped their utensils and stood to leave for the Quidditch Pitch. The Gryffindor, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw students cheered for them as they made their way to Harry, whose Captains badge shined slightly in the sunlight. Hermione wished her two best friends luck as they lead the group out of the Great Hall. Harry turned and winked before disappearing out of the Great Hall.
Hermione watched them leave, and then slid down the bench to sit next to Neville, who smiled.
"You excited for the match, Hermione?"
She nodded, and forced a smile on her face. "Can't wait."
She didn't listen as Neville and a few other students discussed the upcoming match; she was too nervous for Harry and Ron. Her hands shook so badly that she had to set down her fork, not wanting anyone to notice.
In her head, she counted down the seconds until she had to leave.
Ten…Nine…Eight…Deep Breaths…Six…you can do this Hermione…Three…Two…One.
Before she got up, she looked for Draco, who was already looking in her direction. Nott was busy flirting with a small redhead, so Draco could mouth 'I love you' to Hermione without Theo noticing. She smiled, and mouthed it back.
After Draco looked away, Hermione said a quick goodbye to Neville, and then made her way toward Professor McGonagall, who was heading out of the Great Hall and toward the Quidditch Pitch.
Hermione called out, and turned her face into one of distress. "Headmistress McGonagall!"
McGonagall turned, and her eyes widened as her eyes landed on Hermione's panic-filled face. "What is it, Granger? Is everything alright?"
"Headmistress, Peeves has gone mad! He is flooding the fifth floor, and I don't know what to do!"
"Damn Peeves." The Headmistress muttered under her breath. She pulled out her wand and looked at Hermione. "Show me where he is, Granger."
Draco watched Hermione nod and lead the Headmistress out of the Great Hall. He waited thirty more seconds before standing up and beckoning the Slytherin Quidditch team. They stood up, and the rest of house cheered. Draco, with Blaise a little behind him, led the team out of the Great Hall.
As they walked, Draco readied himself internally to be angry at Blaise. Even though Blaise was his best friend, he didn't get special treatment when it came to Quidditch; no one would think it was odd that Draco would snap at Blaise for a Quidditch related mistake.
Right on cue, Blaise groaned in frustration.
"I don't have my gloves." He said.
Draco stopped and gave his friend a look of outrage. "Did you really forget them?"
"I'm sorry, Draco. Give me two minutes, I'll run back to the castle and get them."
Draco gave Blaise a disapproving look. "Fine, but you better hurry."
Blaise apologized once more, and then took off toward the castle. Draco leaned his broom against the wall, and Theo looked up at him questioningly.
"We're just going to wait here?"
Draco nodded. "We always go to the Pitch together."
"Just because he's your best friend doesn't mean-"
"We always go to the Pitch together." Draco repeated.
"Why does it matter?" Theo challenged.
Draco narrowed his eyes. "It's the tradition that this team has honored for years, and I will not the first Captain to refuse to follow it."
Hurry, Potter. Draco thought. This isn't supposed to happen. He's not supposed to get angry at me. Hurry up Scarhead. I can't do this without you.
Luckily, Theo didn't seem to want to argue with his Quidditch Captain, especially after Draco was put in a bad mood by a forgetful teammate. Theo dropped the subject, but didn't look happy.
The team followed Draco's example and set their brooms against the wall, but none of them sat down. They all stood at a sort of attention, all mentally preparing for the match ahead. Draco, however, wasn't focused on the match at all.
If everything went according to his plan, there wouldn't even be a match to watch.