News of Katie Bell and the cursed necklace had spread around the castle quickly, even by Hogwarts standards. Everyone knew about the incident by that evening. Katie had been escorted to Saint Mungo's, and it was unclear when she would return, if at all. Only her friend had been there to witness the full thing, so over the next few days she had been frequently cornered by curious students.
The details had gotten jumbled up, and within a day there were several different versions of the story circulating, including one which claimed Katie had been attacked by ghosts from the Shrieking Shack.
The whole matter was concerning, for obvious reasons. The fact that it had even happened in the first place worried me. And if the real target for the necklace had, in fact, been Dumbledore, then that meant that Voldemort had someone – a student, likely – inside Hogwarts working for him.
Of course, that's assuming it was meant for Dumbledore. But if Dumbledore hadn't been the target, then who? Harry? Maybe… but it was difficult to tell… like I said, this event shouldn't have even happened in the first place. And who was the culprit? It couldn't be Draco… because I'm Draco. My natural suspicion was Zabini, but if I'm being objective, there wasn't any more evidence to suggest he was the culprit than there was for most Slytherins. And to the best of my memory, Zabini hadn't even been at Hogsmeade then, he was in detention. Of course, this didn't mean he was innocent.
But again, all this speculation was based on the assumption that the culprit was a Slytherin (it likely was, but still, anything was possible at this point).
A minor thing that bothered was that the necklace had been Draco's idea canonically… so why and how someone else came up with it was a bit confusing.
But anyway, over the next few days I kept an eye on my housemates, just in case there was something out of the ordinary. But apart from heightened nerves (among the more sensible Slytherins) and sense of satisfied glee (among the more brain-dead Slytherins, who unfortunately made up the majority in this case) there wasn't much to note. After a few days, the hubbub about Katie had died down. The investigation was still ongoing of course, but the general student body was no longer as interested in it.
A week after the incident, I was eating breakfast by myself, because that was a thing I did now. I still hadn't patched things up with Daphne. I had tried approaching her in the past week but she always vanished before I could get to her, or took refuge with a passing group of students, usually other DA members.
God, the next meeting was gonna be awkward.
She needed more time to cool over, and having to wait for that time to pass was my punishment. Words really couldn't describe how much I wanted to kick my past-self in the balls for saying all that stuff. In truth, I was lonely without Daphne. She really had been my everything in this place.
I looked up from my breakfast to the Ravenclaw table, where Daphne was seated with two other girls. She was chatting with them casually, which annoyed me for some reason. I thought I saw her briefly glance my way, then look away again, but I may have just been imagining it.
The sound of fluttering wings and screeching owls signaled the arrival of mail. A copy of the Daily Prophet fell in front of me, which I quickly picked up. The massive headline, black and bold, dominating the page read:
AZKABAN ATTACKED – FIFTEEN DEATH EATERS ESCAPE
…fuckfuckfuckfuckFUCK!
My eyes scanned the article, absorbing every word. Azkaban had been attacked by Death Eaters and Dementors in the early morning hours. Ever since the dementors had defected, the prison had been guarded by Aurors and Hit-Wizards. The article was frustratingly vague on details. It said 'some Hit-Wizards and Aurors were fatally wounded' but no exact number given, didn't even say how many Death Eaters had attacked. The only figure it did give was the number of escaped Death Eaters – fifteen – but didn't give any names.
My stomach seemed to twist into a knot, and I could feel my breakfast coming back up. I slid out of my chair and left the Great Hall for the grounds. It was a nice day outside, as far as Mondays go. Slightly cloudy, with a nice breeze, but there were darker clouds on the horizon. The mountains around the castle were snow-capped despite only being halfway through October, but the grounds were still clear. I took a deep breath. The knot eased slightly, but my mind was racing.
So many Death Eaters had escaped… Voldemort was back, stronger than ever. He had regrouped.
But an even more worrisome thought had occurred to me. It was starting to seem, in a way, that things were supposed to go a specific way. The battle at the Department of Mysteries, for example… logically it shouldn't have happened. I had averted the circumstances that led to it in the books, yet it ended up happening anyway.
And when Voldemort's Death Eater army had been crippled – another deviation from the canon version of events – this breakout happened, and now he was as strong again as he'd been at this point in the canon.
The thought made my head spin. It made me feel a bit helpless. Granted, I hadn't always been the most proactive person, but still! I had done a lot! And yet… things just reverted back to a path roughly similar to canon.
Wait a minute… that's right! I had done a lot! Most of the Horcruxes were now destroyed because of me! I had gotten Umbridge kicked out, I saved Sirius, I (kind of) beat Bellatrix! Because of that so many Death Eaters had been captured. Even if a lot of them had broken out now, them being in prison (and Voldemort going into hiding) had prevented a solid 4 months' worth of atrocities!
So that was it maybe… some things were going to happen no matter what, but the details of the events, the way they unfolded, could be changed. The knot in my stomach eased a bit more at that thought.
However, assuming my theory was true, there was now a very dark cloud on the horizon.
The Battle of Hogwarts.
[…]
The rest of the day was a blurry haze. Everyone was chattering about the breakout, between classes, during classes, you name it. Naturally, since the Prophet's article had been so vague on details, there were now dozens of conspiracy theories running around about what had really happened… including the standard It Was An Inside Job™ and numerous others.
I wasn't able to concentrate much in class, and was more focused on planning ahead – something that I should have done WAY more a long time ago. Harry and the trio were probably gonna step up the DA meetings now, but I'd have to find time to practice on my own, and look up new spells as well. I had made a lot of progress since last year, but I'd need all the skill I could get now.
I just hoped it wasn't too late… I still had time, but who knows if it would be enough?
I had patrol duty tonight, which, for once, I was glad about. I needed silence and seclusion to think. I arrived at my usual patrolling area, and slipped out onto my favorite hidden balcony. It was cold, but the view was as nice as ever. I took out the map and opened it, but my attention wasn't on it. I was still thinking about the mass breakout, and what would inevitably come.
It was by pure chance, after fifteen minutes of silent pondering, that I noticed a name on the map that shouldn't be there, and it was rather close to my area.
Theodore Nott.
Interesting. Never really pictured him breaking curfew, but oh well. I should probably send him back before someone else caught him. I went back inside, walking down the hallway and turning right into the corridor where Nott was. He was peering around the corner at the other end of the hall and didn't notice me coming from behind.
"Shouldn't you be in bed?" I said.
Nott jumped and turned around. "Oh! Draco- er… yeah, sorry!"
"What're you doing here?"
He looked at his feet and said sheepishly, "Erm… smoking."
"…smoking?" I repeated.
"Yeah," he reached into his pocket and pulled out a pack. "Muggles do it… stress relief, but its pretty addictive."
"Yes, I know what smoking is," I said. "Why are you smoking here is my question… and how did you even get cigarettes?"
"Oh I got them over the summer… and I didn't want to smoke in the dormitory."
"So you decided to smoke on the sixth floor?"
"…well I'd heard someone hid a pack of cigarettes behind a statue here and I was running low, but there weren't any."
"Wow…" I said, shaking my head. "I'll have to confiscate those, you know."
"Yeah…" he looked ruefully at the pack before tossing it over to me.
"Now off to bed."
"Wait that's it? No… points or anything?" Nott asked.
"Eh… you're a first-time offender, so I'll let you off the hook for now. Now get going, Granger won't be so forgiving if she catches you."
After he'd gone, I returned to the balcony and examined the pack. There were only three cigarettes left. I'd never smoked before to be perfectly honest, and I was curious. Just as I was considering lighting one, I heard the door open behind me. I quickly stuffed the pack into my pocket and turned around to face the newcomer. It was Hermione, peering into the balcony from the door.
"Hey," she said softly. "Thought I'd find you here."
"Hey," I said, in what I hoped was a casual tone.
Hermione stepped onto the balcony and closed the door behind her. "I didn't see you at the DA meeting today…"
"Wait, there was a meeting today?" I asked.
"…yeah."
I dug around my pockets trying to find the charmed galleon, but nada. I had lost it.
Great. Just great.
"Erm… I think I lost my coin."
"Oh," she said. "Well, I'll make you a new one. Got a spare galleon?"
I reached into my pocket and dug one out, accidentally causing the cigarette pack to fall out my pocket as I withdrew the coin.
"Are those…" she said in a hushed voice.
"Er… cigarettes yeah," I said, quickly picking it up and putting it back. "Confiscated it earlier."
"Oh…" she said, calming down a bit. "Right, of course."
"Did you think I was gonna smoke?" I said.
"I- no," she said, shaking her head. "Of course not, that's stupid."
"Heh…" I said. "Anyways here's the coin."
I tossed it to her and she caught it. She took out her wand and began casting the charm with all kinds of complex wand movements and muttered incantations. Then she took out her coin, tapped it with her wand and then tapped my coin. They glowed blue briefly, and Hermione let out a satisfied sigh.
"Here you go," she said, handing it back to me.
"That was amazing," I said, pocketing the coin.
"Oh, its just a simple bit of magic, really," she said with a chuckle.
"I dunno, looked pretty complex to me."
She beamed at the compliment. Then an awkward silence fell. So I took out a cigarette and lit it with my wand.
"Hey!" she swatted my arm. "Don't do that!"
"Why not?"
"You're a Prefect!"
"So?"
"It's against the school rules!"
"Oh, really smoking is against the school rules?"
"Yes?"
"Some free country this is," I said, shaking my head, but continued smoking nonetheless as I leaned on the balcony.
She swatted my arm again. "Those things can kill you, y'know."
"So can alcohol, but we all drink butterbeer, don't we?"
"Butterbeer doesn't count, no one gets drunk off butterbeer," she said.
"Not true, house-elves do!" I said.
"That's irrelevant," she said.
"Oh, so now that it's not convenient to your agenda, house-elves don't matter anymore?!"
"Wha- no, that's not what I'm saying!" she said, getting flustered.
I threw back my head and laughed.
"What!?" she demanded.
"Ahhh, you're so earnest Hermione, it's adorable," I said.
"I've never heard you call me by my first name before…" she said in a low, low voice.
"Um… does it bother you…?"
"NO! I mean- no, its fine," she said.
"By the way this," I waved the pack at her. "is the first thing I've confiscated during patrols in like a year."
"Your corridor is just unusually quiet, its way off to the side," she said. "Even in the day there's barely any traffic."
"Don't insult my corridor," I muttered.
"But mine on the other hand, loads of traffic," she said. "A few nights ago, I caught Bertram Aubrey from Hufflepuff sneaking off with a second year girl from Gryffindor, thankfully before anything could happen."
I stood up straight. "Isn't Bertram Aubrey… in the seventh year?"
She nodded grimly.
"What the fuck."
"Exactly."
"Did he get expelled?"
"No… but Professor McGonagall wrote to his family… and he has detention for the rest of the year."
"That's messed up, holy shit…"
"He's probably rotting in detention now," she said, checking her watch.
"Detention seems…too easy."
"I agree," she said. "But I doubt anyone's gonna forget it, or let him forget it."
She walked up to me and put her elbows on the banister, leaning on it.
"Honestly why do people smoke, it's disgusting," I said, coughing.
"Well I did warn you not to do it," she said, shoving my arm with her elbow.
I shoved her back, "You could have said it tasted like garbage… would have been more effective."
I extinguished the cigarette on the banister and flicked it at her, hitting her on the cheek.
"Hey!" She said but with a laugh. Then she checked her watch again, and the smile fell off. "Well, I really should be going back now…"
"Oh… well, it was nice talking to you," I said.
She turned to leave, but as she reached the door she turned back and said, "You've got some ash on your cheek, by the way."
"Huh," I rubbed my cheek. "Did I get it?"
"No, a bit up," she said.
I tried again. "Now?"
"No, wait," she walked up to me. "Let me…"
She touched my cheek and gently rubbed it.
"There," she said.
"Thanks."
She didn't immediately walk away, and in that moment, I really became aware of how close she was standing to me, and how her hand was still touching my face, how her pupils were dilating… how fricking pretty she was. her hazel eyes, the slight smattering of freckles on her nose, the blush of her cheeks- where the hell was I going with this?!
But it was true. Hermione had been cute before, but now that I stood so close to her, she looked seriously beautiful.
And she was moving even closer to me.
Her eyes were closed, and so were mine, I could feel her warm breath. And before I could really process the trajectory we were going, it happened. Our lips met. She kissed me, I kissed her back, her lips soft and warm in the cold night. It was gentle but passionate, I could feel Hermione's eagerness. I don't know how long it lasted, my mind was blissfully blank during it. All my worries had vanished.
At long last, we broke apart, and our gazes locked. A few moments passed before I realized what had just happened, accompanied by a weird, paradoxical feeling; a mixture of shock, glee, elation and horror. Hermione seemed to realize it too, but her reaction was vastly different from mine. Because while my mind was racing for something, anything to say, Hermione was racing for the door. She slammed it shut behind her as she disappeared back into the castle, leaving me alone and thoroughly confused.
…what the fuck had just happened?!
Hermione and I... had kissed. That came out of fucking nowhere. And it had been… enjoyable?
But then she'd ran away.
Wait… had the kiss actually been bad? FUCK I HAD BEEN SMOKING!
Oh shit.
No that's stupid, that's not why she ran away… probably.
But why had she run away then? Should I go after her? No… or maybe yes?
I leaned against the balcony and took a deep breath. Slowly my wits were returning, and amidst all the complicated feelings already making my head spin, I felt a sharp pang of guilt. Of all the places I could have kissed a girl… I did it here. The balcony where Daphne and I had kissed so many times last year, even this one. The same balcony I had snuck off to with her after winning the Quidditch Cup.
All that seemed so long ago. I suppose it was, to an extent. But everything had felt different then, too. At least I had had a general sense of direction back then, an idea of what was coming and how to react or prevent it, even if I hadn't been the most vigilant about it. Now? There was no knowing for sure. Voldemort and the Death Eaters were one thing entirely, but even normal stuff was confusing now. More than it had been.
I looked at my watch. Eleven-thirty. There was still some time to go till patrol ended but my head was hurting bad, so I headed back to the common room. At the moment the only thing I wanted to do was crash in my bed and be carried away to a blissful dream world.
[…]
Detention did not suit Daphne Greengrass.
She had always been a good student, a result of her own ambition to do well, plus a sprinkling of family pressure. Her parents never outright said anything, which was still better than most Sacred Twenty-Eight families who'd all but threaten to disown, but the expectation was always there. An understood, unspoken agreement.
She did not want to imagine their reaction if they found out she had broken her six-year long streak. She had been the only Slytherin in her year that hadn't gotten any detention till now, which admittedly stung.
She had still gotten off easy. A single evening of rewriting some moldy old student records from the 60s, after failing to submit homework thrice in a row, was pretty lenient.
She glanced at her watch. Ten thirty. Still half an hour to go before it was over. Then she glanced to the side, to her fellow detentionee, a seventh year from Hufflepuff by the name of Bertram Aubrey, who wore the expression of someone utterly defeated and miserable. She wasn't sure what exactly he had done – there were quite a few rumors of course, but nothing confirmed – but whatever it had been must have been really bad, since he now had detention for the rest of the year, having already received a series of Howlers.
Well, Daphne could take comfort in the fact that no matter how shit she was feeling right now, it was probably nothing compared to what Bertram Aubrey was feeling.
At last her detention ended, and she got up and left. The halls were eerily quiet. Every step she took echoed. It didn't feel right, the castle being so devoid of noise and hubbub. She wasn't used to it, and she certainly didn't want to be. As she walked through the empty halls, her thought turned, as they so often had whenever she was alone, to Draco.
She had been angry at the way Draco had reacted, that day in the pitch. She had only been trying to keep him out of trouble, but Draco hadn't even bothered to hear her out. And then he'd stooped so low as to suggest she still had feelings for Zabini. Which was stupid, of course. She had once had a crush on Zabini, a long time ago, but after the horrible way he had rejected her before the Yule Ball had changed that. She had spent the whole evening in her dorm, alone. It had been the headline of Slytherin gossip for quite some time, but Draco had never cared much for Slytherin gossip, so that's likely why he hadn't known.
That incident had also been the reason Daphne had been a lot more reserved in the fifth year, to the extent that Draco sort of became her lifeline. Sure, she had other friends, especially now with the DA, but Draco had been different.
But now that some time had passed, the anger was gone and now it was just… emptiness. A lonely, miserable void. It was starting to affect her more and more. Her studies were slipping, she had become moody and distant. It was true, without Draco, she was miserable.
She stopped in her tracks.
She was miserable without Draco.
What was stopping her from patching things up with him?
She and Draco were unhappy without each other, that was obvious. And it was clear that Draco felt bad about what he had said; he had, after all, tried apologizing to her multiple times the past week. She hadn't listened to him then, and she wasn't entirely sure why, but now more time had passed. Her mind was clearer now, and she wanted the whole thing to be over.
A small part of her wanted Draco to apologize first, but the rest reminded her of the fact that he already would have done so, had she not intentionally turned away from him.
She started walking again, but not towards the common room. She was headed for the balcony where she knew Draco would probably be spending the night instead of patrolling.
Her heart was racing as she turned right into the specific corridor, her mind reciting the words she was going to say. She approached the large tapestry of goblins behind which she knew was the entrance to the hidden balcony. She pushed it aside and gently opened the door behind it, ready to call out for Draco's attention.
But what she saw on the balcony left her speechless, in the truest form of the word.
Draco. And Hermione.
They were kissing.
On the balcony.
Daphne stood at the half-open door, stunned, watching Draco and Hermione kiss passionately. It took a moment for her to get some of her senses back, then she very carefully backed away and closed the door as quietly as she could.
In the small space between the door and the tapestry, she collected herself, or tried to, at least. Tears were starting form in her eyes, and not wanting to be caught by Draco or Hermione, she pushed aside the tapestry and began running back to the common room.
[…][…][…]
Hello hiiii its been a while. Anyways big stuff in this chapter, there's gonna a lot of aftermath from this, so stay turned for the coming chapters (by the will of god I shall have a new chapter ready by 2025)
Hope you enjoyed the chapter!