Twenty-Two

Luna was staring at her again, her large, unblinking eyes asking the same question that she had been silently waiting to be answered for the last week. The Gryffindor girl sighed to herself, flipping another page in the book she had spent the last hour searching for. She had taken to pulling every book on healing spells and enchantments off the shelves ever since she had finally been told by Professor Snape that she was more than welcome to return to her dormitory, instead of hovering over the Malfoy heir like he was made of glass.

She knew she looked like a mess. She had seen the dark circles beginning to form underneath her eyes from lack of sleep, as she stayed up late into the night practicing the incantations. Her school work was pushed to the side, done last minute, but it could not be helped. She had to.

She never wanted to feel as helpless as she did kneeling in Draco's blood ever again.

Her Ravenclaw friend would understand, she knew, if she told her, but she was not ready yet. The realization that she might not actually hate the Slytherin Prince like she had always believed, that the future she saw beyond the veil might be… real, left her breathless. The way her heart picked up whenever she caught a glimpse of him glancing in her direction from down a corridor left her unsteady.

How was she supposed to explain to Luna that she might… she might…

Kagome bit her lip, worrying the flesh between her teeth. She had wanted to ask him how he was feeling the last time she had seen him, but had stopped herself when she realized her feet were carrying her in his direction. What would people say? She already knew that she had Harry Potter breathing down her neck, convinced that all she wanted to do was snog the snake, and she knew that other students would notice how odd it seemed if the girl who constantly spat venom with the Slytherin suddenly walked up to him to ask him about his day.

It was best if she avoided him. At least from a distance she did not find herself constantly slipping into the gray expanse of his eyes to wonder over how they somehow found themselves wrapped around each other in such a bright glimpse of the future. How they could possibly become something more than a Gryffindor and a Slytherin who loathed one another, and—

"Kagome?" Luna's soft voice drew her attention. "Are you alright? You're crying."

Her fingers brushed underneath her eyes, feeling the moisture that had gathered there. She tried her best to smile, but she knew that it did not quite reach her eyes from the worried look Luna was still giving her. "I'm okay," she said.

"You know you can tell me anything," Luna reminded her.

"I know," she sighed. It was just so hard. She just… she just wanted to see him. She wanted to make sure that whatever dark magic Harry had used against him did not hurt anymore. "I'm just… not sure what's wrong. I think I might have taken too many classes this year, maybe."

Luna's knowing gaze drifted to the book in her possession, and Kagome knew that she was not convinced by her story. It had not even sounded all that convincing to her. She dropped her eyes when the Ravenclaw frowned a little at her, wondering what Luna would say if she told her the truth. If she revealed the future that she saw so clearly each and every day, and how she was starting to believe it might happen. That she just wanted...

Kagome shook her head, saying, "I'm sorry, Luna. I'm going to head back up to the Gryffindor common room, okay? Maybe I can get in a nap before our next class starts, that might help a little."

"Okay," Luna sighed, the sound almost whimsical.

Gathering up the books she had already checked out, Kagome quickly shoved them into her satchel. Her dark blue eyes drifted over her friend, and she felt awful that she was unable to gain the courage to ease Luna's worry. "I'll see you later, okay?"

Luna nodded, a small smile lifting on the corner of her lip.

The Gryffindor girl hurried out of the library as quickly as she could, knowing that that knowing stare Luna possessed would eventually break her if she stayed much longer. That she would spill every dark secret she had tried to convince herself of otherwise, allowing them to somehow become true by finally saying them aloud. The future she often found herself within was bright and wonderful, but how was it possible?

How could she and Draco ever…?

She clutched the strap of her satchel then, feeling herself beginning to slip through the veil with the thought. She shook her head furiously, telling herself again that becoming lost in the future would not make it happen. She needed to be here. She could not afford to become stuck in the rift between the here and then, basking in that brief glimpse while the world turned without her.

Lifting her gaze finally, Kagome felt her heart nearly stop. There… there he was, standing only a few feet away from her and leaned up against the wall like he had been waiting for her. She felt her mouth open a little in shock, unable to look away from those burning gray orbs he possessed.

Draco pushed away from the wall, his mouth tilting upward into his customary smirk from the confusion that drifted across her face. "Higurashi." He greeted her softly, his voice a deep tenor that sent a shiver down her spine.

"M-Mal… foy?" Oh god, had she stuttered? The way he was looking at her told that she must have, because he looked completely pleased with himself in that moment. She swallowed when she saw him take a step in her direction, feeling her face start to heat with his sudden proximity, and felt a small amount of panic when she realized that she… she… "C-can I help you?"

"What's the matter, Higurashi?" Draco simply asked, taking another step.

"U-um." She had been avoiding him since she had left him laying in Professor Snape's private room so that there were not any awkward questions amongst the rest of the student body, but she was suddenly very aware that maybe she should have avoided him for other reasons, too. She felt frozen, unable to speak, as he finally came to stand in front of her, and she could not help but wonder if maybe he—

The Slytherin Prince allowed his knuckles to drift across her cheek, hearing her gasp in surprise, before he grabbed her by the shoulder and pulled her away from the library entrance. She followed, almost tripping over her own feet, while she stared up at him with those large questioning eyes that tried so desperately to blink away the telltale signs of foresight.

"What are you—?" Kagome was certain that she had never seen the little alcove that Draco pushed her into, but she was not given the chance to think about it before he was invading her personal space. She put a hand on his chest, trying to find her voice so that she could ask him the question trapped in the back of her throat, but the feel of his hand settling near her ear and lifting her face halted any thoughts that she might have had.

"Kagome," his voice was so soft, as his other hand drifted down to lace his fingers through hers.

"D-Draco?" W… was he…?

Draco leaned into her then without hesitation, his lips soft and sure as they settled over her own. It was a fleeting caress, gentle, before he felt her press up into him and silently ask for more. He gave it to her, slowly coaxing her into opening her mouth so that he could venture into her depths and discover what she tasted like.

She felt herself drifting into the veil, and she tried desperately to stay here with him. Her hand grabbed onto the front of his robes, clinging to him, and she felt him tighten his grip on her other hand. He pulled her closer, fingers drifting into her hair, as he seemed to sense her desperation to stay here with him.

The future was so bright, but here, now, was so much better.