Chapter 47: Suspicion

My Dearest Caradoc,

There are times in which we must decide whether we're ready to make the difficult choice, or the easy one. You were never afraid to make the difficult choice, and I am afraid that I may have disappointed you in that area. Sometimes, I think that my cowardice may have been your downfall. I can only apologise for not being as brave as you or our daughter.

Madeline… Your daughter is a wonderful witch. I don't tell her enough, but I just hope that she has your good sense and knows that of herself. She is growing up so fast. We always said she would, didn't we?

I miss you. I've missed you every day you've been gone. I pray that one day, you'll find your way back to us. There is not much I wouldn't do to hold you one last time; to let you hold Madeline one last time.

Yours forever,

Eloise.

There were many benefits to Draco Malfoy being a Prefect. Madeline's favourite was, of course, the fact that he could clear the sixth year dorm room anytime he wanted. Which meant, of course, that the two of them had plenty of time and opportunity to be alone whenever they wanted (because who would dare go against Draco Malfoy?).

Which is how they ended up here; on Draco's bed, kissing like it was the end of the world.

Madeline couldn't quite remember ever feeling like this. It had started with the two of them trying to complete their potions homework, Madeline helping Draco understand a recipe of some sort- Merlin did she remember what it was. Then, Draco had looked absolutely kissable with his messy blonde hair and oversized dark green sweater. And after she'd stumbled pronouncing a fair few potion ingredients twice after he'd flexed his hands, the potions homework was discarded.

And that's how Madeline ended up straddling Draco Malfoy's lap, a sentence she wouldn't have thought possible six months ago. But he was such a good kisser; his lips were plump and soft and fit just right against hers. His cologne was all that she could smell, something so intently his. Her lips found his neck, and Madeline relished in the deep groan that came from Draco the second her lips found that special spot underneath his jaw. Merlin, his jaw.

Draco's hands; one on the back of her neck tangled in her hair, and the other on her waist. Her own hands were in his hair, tangled around the blonde strands. His tie had been discarded across the room, his collar undone under the sweater, leaving Madeline with plenty of room to kiss down the column of his neck.

Before she could register what happened, Draco pulled her back up to his face, kissing her square on the lips with as much passion as he could muster. She kissed back just as passionately, her hands travelling down to the edge of his sweater, pulling at the edge, asking for permission. Draco separated from her for just a moment, pulling the sweater over his head and across his room, reattaching his lips to her neck.

It was a lot, but Madeline certainly wasn't complaining.

Her fingers wound up curled around his shirt collar, holding on for dear life as he continued to kiss her neck. She really really like it when he did that.

"You are," Draco panted, kissing her neck once more between words, "Exquisite."

Madeline tried to contain her giggle, but she couldn't quite, "You sound like a pervy old man with that word."

"Do not ruin this for me right now Bisset."

Madeline laughed into his neck, his chuckles vibrating down her back. She looked up at him and- he looked gone. Pink-kissed lips, the slightest visible blush on his cheeks, his hair an absolute mess… He'd never looked better, in her opinion.

"Why didn't we think about your room before?" Madeline asked, "We could've saved ourselves all the trips to the Astronomy Tower."

"You loved the secrecy, don't lie," Draco teased, grinning.

"Maybe I do," Madeline teased, inching closer to his face, their lips once more just an inch apart as she whispered, "You'll have to find out the hard way, Malfoy."

Draco smirked, leaning over to her ear, "Call me Draco."

Their lips met once more, and Madeline was starting to believe that she'd be happy doing this forever. That is, until the grandfather clock in Draco's room started chiming. Eight o'clock. Which meant…

Madeline groaned, falling back in a huff onto Draco's bed. She glared at the clock, "Stupid Snape with his stupid detentions."

"You're still doing detention with him?" Draco questioned in amusement, "What did you do to get him so pissed?"

Madeline sat up on the side of the bed, straightening herself out before lying, "Nothing, really. He asked me for help organising his old potions cupboard before Slughorn took over, and now he wants me to help him clean some chalkboards, or something."

"So, you're his personal house elf?"

Madeline slipped her shoes on, rolling her eyes. She leant over, planting one final kiss on Draco's lips, "I'm too cute to be a house elf."

"That, you are," Draco agreed, leaning forwards to catch one last kiss from her, "See you later?"

"If he lets me out," Madeline laughed, squeezing his hand, "See you later."

"One more time, Miss Bisset."

"Professor, I don't think repeating the exercise again will do anything productive," Madeline panted from her seat, having just endured the Imperius curse once more. They'd been practicing for hours with no success, "It hasn't quite worked so far."

"It will," Snape snapped, lifting his wand, "Imperio!"

Once again, Madeline's mind filled with calmness. She was relaxed, but she knew that was no good to resist Snape. And so, with all the strength she could muster, she forced herself to be on edge. She would not let herself fall prey to some Death Eater trying to use her.

"Tell me what you saw in the Ministry of Magic."

Madeline's eyes widened. So far, Snape had only attempted to make her do physical actions, like lifting a cauldron or hopping on one knee. This was a new territory; how was she meant to have a strong mind if she couldn't resist the physical commands?

"Professor-"

"If you cannot resist the Imperius curse, you must find a way around it," Snape replied simply, "Think, Miss Bisset."

Madeline's brain was foggy from the effects of the curse, but she closed her eyes, trying to concentrate. She didn't want to reveal anything to Snape. Her free will was still there, at least. But her lips wanted to move desperately and- that's it! Her lips wanted to move to answer him, but she just had to let the one part of her mind that was still unaffected by the curse do the talking.

"I don't know what you're talking about, Professor," Madeline managed, "I was never in the Ministry of Magic."

"You're lying," Snape replied, "Tell me the truth."

"I don't know what truth you're asking me for, Professor," she replied. It was getting easier to resist the curse, she just had to concentrate and not think about what she'd seen in the Ministry. But still, she could feel the physical toll it was taking on her. She could feel the sweat on her forehead and her hands shaking. She felt as if she was holding her breath, but if she relaxed, she'd fall victim to Snape's effects.

Snape eventually dropped his wand, and Madeline felt the air rush back into her lungs. She almost collapsed, catching herself on the side of a desk as her knees buckled, taking deep breaths. Merlin, that was hard.

"Barely acceptable effort, Miss Bisset," Snape retorted, "That was a weak charm. You must practice harder if you wish to guard your mind from the effects of the Dark Lord."

Madeline wanted to snap at him and scream down this whole room, but she knew he was right. She needed to try harder; find a way to resist, somehow. She took a deep breath, pulling herself back on her feet.

"Again, Professor."

The first Quidditch match rolled around; Gryffindor playing Slytherin. Of course, it was as always, a momentous occasion. The Great Hall was full of students decked out in their house colours that morning. The Slytherins were particularly rowdy, booing each Gryffindor that passed them.

Usually, Madeline didn't care all too much about the Quidditch games. But it was the first time she'd be watching Draco as more than a housemate. And so, Madeline had opted to wear Draco's old Quidditch jumper from a few years back, the one that was now too small for him but perfectly sized for his girlfriend. Yes, Madeline was still a little awestruck that she was his girlfriend.

"That jumper suits you," Daphne teased as Madeline sat down for breakfast, although she herself was wearing a green Quidditch jersey, "Someones excited to see their boyfriend play."

Madeline shrugged with a grin, pouring herself a cup of coffee, "To be honest, I'm more excited to see him wipe the floor with Gryffindor."

Both Draco and Fred were due to play the game, which made Madeline somewhat nervous. She knew her boyfriend was known for his… Temper during Quidditch games. He wasn't afraid to talk smack or play a little dirty, which wasn't exactly the most admirable traits in a person, but it got Slytherin to victory, so…

"Haven't you heard?" Blaise questioned as he sat down next to Daphne, having just overheard their conversation, "Malfoy's pulled out of the game."

Madeline's eyes widened in concern, "Is he alright?!"

Blaise shrugged, "Said something about being ill. Urquhart isn't happy; says he's off for the whole season, apparently."

Madeline frowned. He hadn't mentioned anything to her. In retrospect, she should've noticed when he didn't follow her down for breakfast. But it still worried her; Quidditch used to be everything to him. He must've been really ill to miss such a big game.

"I can't believe it," Madeline shook her head, "I hope he's alright…"

"We should've seen it coming, really," Blaise huffed, "He kept skipping evening practice and showing up late to the morning ones."

At that, Madeline frowned. He'd been telling her that he'd been going to Quidditch in the evenings… But if he was skipping, where was he going?

A deep sense of dread filled the pit of her stomach. It was like Fred all over again. First it was the lies, then avoiding her… She was not going to make the same mistake twice. If he really was skipping Quidditch practice, she was going to find out exactly what was going on.

As if on cue, Urquhart took the seat to the left of Blaise, immediately stabbing his fork in a pile of scrambled eggs, "Oi Bisset, talk some sense into your boyfriend for us? He's backing out of the game like a wimp."

"I've heard," Madeline replied, "I had no idea, but don't get your panties in a twist about it, alright?"

Urquhart huffed, "Harper is playing instead of him. We'll still win, but I figured Malfoy would've jumped at the chance to brag about beating Potter again."

"Draco once got a whole game rescheduled because of an injury, didn't he?" Daphne mused aloud, "He must be really ill this time."

"Vaisey is off as well," Urquhart grumbled, clearly not happy about his teammates not being present, "Got hit in the head by a bludger doing practice, and Madame Pomfrey won't speed up his recovery. The old bat…"

"Well, no use crying over spilt milk," Daphne tried, "You're going to bring the whole houses mood down like that! Come on, cheer up. We've still got this in the bag, right?"

"Right," Blaise agreed, scoffing down another mouthful of his breakfast, "Do you lot want to head down to the pitch?"

Madeline shook her head, "I'll meet you down there. I'm going to try and find Draco, check he's alright. Save me a spot?"

The Slytherins nodded, waving her goodbye as she left the Great Hall. She got a few odd looks from the Gryffindors, but it was nothing new. Clearly, the news of Draco not playing had reached them, too.

Half an hour later, Madeline had yet to find Draco. She'd checked his dorm, the common room, the library, the Hospital Wing and the Astronomy Tower. Absolutely nothing. No one had seen him either it seemed; she'd asked the few Slytherins who'd stayed back instead of watching the game.

Evie Sterling was one of them; she'd broken her ankle from a particularly nasty fall in Care of Magical Creatures yesterday, waiting for Madame Pomfrey's treatment to take full effect. Instead of attempting to climb the stands at the Quidditch game, she'd opted to stay in the common room, leg resting on the coffee table as she read a book.

"I don't think I've seen him at all this morning, actually. And I've been sat here for hours," Evie explained, gesturing to her ankle, "I saw Theo about ten minutes ago, though. He seemed like he was in a rush."

Madeline raised her eyebrow. She'd forgotten that Theo hadn't been at breakfast either.

"Thanks, Evie," Madeline answered, "Hows your ankle doing?"

"It doesn't hurt anymore, but it's more of a pain in the ass," she explained, "I'll tell Draco you're looking for him if I see him."

"I just want to make sure he's alright," Madeline confessed, "It's not like him to miss a game. But thank you, Sterling."

"No problem, Bisset," Evie replied, "And hey, let me know how the game goes, will you?"

Madeline nodded, bidding Evie a farewell as she set back off through the castle. The game must've started by now, but she wasn't in a rush to get there anymore. Instead, her mind was plagued with thoughts. She had a feeling that there was something going on with Draco, but she hadn't addressed it because she'd assumed it was just him being his brooding self. Her thoughts were interrupted by another body bumping into her just as she'd gotten to the top of the dungeon stairs.

"Theo," Madeline observed, "You're not at the game?"

"I had a breakthrough with an essay, wanted to get it on paper before I went," Theo smoothly replied, "I'll walk there with you if you want?"

"Sure, but I was actually looking for Draco," Madeline explained, "Have you seen him?"

"Not since last night," Theo shrugged, looping his arm around Madeline's and pulling her away from the dungeons, "Come on, let's go watch. Apparently Katie Bell is still out of commission, so Gryffindor is down a player."

"We're down two," Madeline muttered, but allowed herself to be dragged away by Theo.

Slytherin lost the game.

The disappointment was tangible in the air as the Slytherin students slugged back to their common room. Madeline and Theo had arrived just in time to watch Ron Weasley save goal after goal, playing better than anyone had ever thought he was capable of. Meanwhile, the Slytherins struggled without two of their best players. Harper had almost caught the snitch, but Potter had distracted him somehow, stealing it for the Gryffindors instead.

It was chaos. Absolute chaos. The Gryffindors cheered loudly from their stand, singing 'Weasley is our king!' over and over until Madeline's ears burned. In a way, she was glad Draco wasn't here to witness it.

Madeline was one of the last to leave the pitch, having spent an extra few minutes ensuring Draco wasn't there, just in case. She'd just set off from the Slytherin changing rooms as Harry emerged from the Gryffindor ones, forehead still coated in sweat despite the frosty weather.

"Madeline," Harry greeted, hiking his bag higher on his back, "You alright?"

Madeline nodded, "Good game, Potter."

"Cheers," Harry grinned, the two beginning their walk towards the castle, "We were kind of stressed, with Katie Bell not playing. I guess you lot were the same about Malfoy and Vaisey?"

Madeline shrugged, "I reckon Urquhart got it in his head that we were losing from the beginning."

"You reckon?"

Madeline nodded, the two falling in an awkward silence as they trudged through the grounds. Madeline had one hundred and one things she wanted to ask Harry. Was he okay after Sirius's death? What did he know about the war? Did he know about her involvement? Was Fred actually dating Fay?

It was Harry who broke the silence.

"I just wanted to say," Harry began, "I just… We never really properly thanked you for being there at the Ministry that night. I don't know what would've happened if we didn't have you there to help us."

Madeline rolled her eyes, "Don't even mention it, Potter."

The two fell back into a silence, but it wasn't awkward. It was friendly, an unspoken friendship reinstated.

"So… You and Malfoy, ey?" Harry tried, "Didn't see that one coming."

"He's alright when you get to know him," Madeline played along, "I get that he's not everyones cup of tea, Merlin knows I used to hate him, but I think it's more of a defence mechanism than him genuinely being an arsehole."

Harry scoffed, "Never thought I'd see the day that someone tries to explain Draco Malfoy's behaviour."

Madeline was unfazed, "At the end of the day, he makes me happy, you know?"

Harry bit his lip, "I heard about Fred and Fay in the Three Broomsticks. If it helps, he's not actually dating her."

"Wouldn't bother me if it did," Madeline replied honestly, "He's allowed to do what he wants now, as am I."

"I get if you're still angry at him," Harry continued, "He got really in his head about your relationship after what Sirius said to him. I think it messed with him a bit, you know."

Madeline raised her eyebrow, turning to Harry, "What Sirius said to him?"

Harry seemed shocked for a moment, "He never told you?"

"We didn't really get much of a chance to speak after I broke up with him."

"Right," Harry muttered, "You should speak to him. About that."

"Right," Madeline echoed, the conversation taking a turn she had most definitely not expected, "Uh, thanks. I think."

"I made things awkward, didn't I?" Harry scratched the back of his neck, looking anywhere but at Madeline.

"A little," Madeline confessed, "But it's fine. I'm glad Fred didn't just suddenly decide he didn't trust me out of nowhere."

"Definitely not what happened, I swear," Harry shook his head. He paused, "Do you want to come to the Gryffindor common room? We're having a victory party, and I know Slytherin was the losing team, but I think quite a few of us miss having you around. And you could speak to Fred?"

Madeline shook her head, "I'll think about it, but I don't think so. I've still got a boyfriend to locate, after all."

"Right," Harry nodded as the two reached the castle entrance, "See you later, maybe?"

"Maybe, Potter."

"You're here."

Madeline had to blink herself out of stupor as she entered the Slytherin common room, Draco sat nice and snugly under a blanket next to Evie, reading a book. He looked up, his eyes lighting up when he set his sight on her.

"How was the game?" Draco asked as Madeline moved to sit next to him. His arm threaded around her waist, pulling her closer to him.

"We lost, but it was fine," Madeline answered, frowning, "Where were you? Blaise told me you weren't feeling well."

Draco shook his head, lowering his voice, "I spent the day in the Prefect baths. Almost finished this book. I didn't really want to go and watch a game I couldn't play."

And although Madeline had no reason to believe he was lying, it still didn't explain why he'd been skipping evening practices, and lying about it. She wouldn't be able to talk to him about it now, not with everyone in the common room. Although they'd lost, it seemed that every Slytherin had found themselves in the small room, chattering their afternoon away.

"I think I'm done with Quidditch altogether," Draco sighed, leaning back on the couch as Blaise, Pansy, Daphne and Theo moved to sit with the couple. Evie shifted over, Gabe perching himself on the couch too, while Daphne perched herself on the armrest next to Pansy.

Blaise snorted, "We kind of gathered that, mate."

Draco had a sneer on his face, his mind deep in thought as their friends continued their conversations around him. However, his expression didn't change. It was a sneer Madeline hadn't seen him wear for a long time.

"To be honest," he muttered, "Think I'd have to pitch myself off the Astronomy Tower if I thought I'd have to continue for another two years in this school."

Madeline didn't know if he was joking or not, but something felt off. Even as he turned back to his friends with a smirk on his face, there was something far too honest in his words. It unsettled her.

And she didn't quite know what to do about it.

A/N: Lots of new chapters flying out! I'm trying to push the story along a little more now that we're nearing the action, but I'm struggling to reach new audiences as well. I'm super thankful for everyone who has returned time and time again for each new chapter, but I'm struggling to get this story under new eyes. If anyone knows any way in which I can advertise or share this story, please let me know! Until next time!