Truly Unique

Chapter Six: Truth be told

3'rd Person's POV:
Draco sat at the table in the Great Hall silently as everyone around him divulged in their food. He rested his chin on the palm of his hand as he looked down towards the end of the table, seeing Lyra missing. He couldn't help but feel regretful for making her so upset in class, and the idea of her hating him made him not want to eat. It's not like him to care what people think, but for some reason, the guilt was eating away at his chest. He took a sip off his chalice before getting up from the table. "Where are you going, Draco?" Pansy asked. "I'm not hungry." He told her before walking out of the Great Hall, heading towards the Slytherin Common Room. 'What if I see her there?' He asked himself. 'What do I say? I'm sorry? But I'm not sorry. It was only a joke.' His thoughts conflicted with each other, and it wasn't until he saw her sleeping in front of the fireplace with the book on her chest that his thoughts finally stopped. He could see the peaceful look on her face from the doorway, and he wasn't sure if he should wake her up or not. 'Why do I care what this mudblood thinks, anyway?' His mind questioned, but deep down he knew the answer. She was different. She's stubborn, and she's never afraid to put him in his place. It was refreshing to say the least.

He slowly made his way over to her, mentally preparing himself to wake her up. He shook her on the shoulder slightly, but she didn't react. "Lyra." He shook her again. She groaned, gently grabbing his hand. He froze at the sudden contact. "Stop shaking me." She ordered. "You're missing dinner." Draco told her. She slowly opened her eyes, looking up at him. He could see the exhaustion in her face as she yawned. "I had a big lunch so I'm not that hungry." She told him. He nodded in understanding before sitting beside her on the floor. "Are you okay?" He whispered. She nodded before sitting up, putting her book down on the stand behind her. That's when she noticed the time. She turned back around to look at him, narrowing her eyes suspiciously. "Why aren't you at dinner? It's not time for people to come back yet." Draco looked down at his shoes. "You weren't there so...I got concerned." Her confusion grew as she processed what he said. "Were you...looking for me?" She asked. He slowly nodded his head yes, his voice refusing to work. He began regretting his decision approaching her, because he felt awkward trying to be nice. "Why?" She asked. "I...don't really know?" Was his pathetic response. She quietly chuckled to herself. "You were concerned. How sweet."

"Shut up." He grumbled. She turned to fully face him, sitting cross legged. "Is there something you wanted to talk about?" She asked. He pondered his choices carefully, debating if he was ready to apologize. Apologizing is not his strongest suit, and he knew that. As he thought to himself, he noticed the sparkle in her eye as she stared into the flames in the fireplace. It lit up her eyes like fireworks, and he almost forgot what he was thinking. Finally, he cleared his throat. "I'm sorry." He choked out, looking at the fire. Her head whipped around quickly as she looked at him with a shocked expression. "I beg your pardon?"

"I said I'm sorry." He watched her struggle to come up with a response, looking around the room like a cornered animal. An apology wasn't something she expected, least of all from Draco Malfoy. "You're apologizing?" He nodded slightly. "For making you upset earlier." She stared at him for a moment. "So, what you're saying is, you're only sorry for making me upset and not because you bully my friends?" She could see the panic start to set in his eyes as he struggled to come up with an answer. 'Do I lie and say no? How upset will she be if I say yes?' She smirked at the sight of him struggle, and Draco began chuckling nervously. "I guess?"

"I'm sorry too." He tilted his head in confusion. "Why are you sorry?" She sighed. "I lost control over my temper for a moment. I insulted you in front of people and I put my hands on you when I should not have. I'm sorry." He took in her apology thoughtfully. "I guess I deserved it." She stared down at him as if he had two heads before she gasped loudly, cheering, 'You're being nice!'. He hushed her, but the smile could not stop spreading across her face. "I knew you had a nice bone in you somewhere. Maybe I should start yelling more often." Draco quickly declined the idea. "How about you stay being the nice, pleasant girl in school." She giggled. "It'll be my secret weapon then."

"That's a good idea." He joked. "I can't help it. Sometimes I can't control my temper, but I don't like showing it either. It always gets me in trouble." That comment caught his attention, and he perked up at the mentioning of it. "Get's you in trouble?" He quoted. "I was raised by, I guess you could say, normal people. They didn't take too kindly to anger just the same as them not liking magic." Draco finally began connecting the dots. "You were raised by muggles?"

"What's a muggle?" She asked curiously. "non-magic folks." He explained. She slowly nodded her head. "Where were your parents?" Lyra looked down towards her feet, fidgeting with her fuzzy socks. As he was met with silence, he began to think. "You don't know who your parents are, do you?" She slowly shook her head no. "I was dropped off in a basket on the doorstep of an orphanage. Hagrid said my mom past away, which could be why I was there, I don't know." She muttered to herself. Draco's guilt began to grow in his chest. All this time, he's been harassing her about family that abandoned her. He didn't even realize it. "It doesn't bother me too much though; not knowing my parents."

"Why not?" He asked. "I stopped caring at six years old. Eventually you get tired of families coming and going, always choosing the kids downstairs and never considering talking to you. At some point, you have to realize that you should care about the person who is there for you instead of worrying about those that aren't."

"And who is that one person to you?" Draco asked curiously. She smiled sadly at him. "Me. It's always been me."