When we align; a Neville Longbottom fanfiction

0. A bonus

a/n: this is a bonus scene I ended up not including in the story itself but one of my friends said I should still post! For a bit of context: this was supposed to happen in chapter 30 (A feeling like honey), when Theo and Cass go back to Nott Manor and meet Daphne. Here, however, it's someone else they meet. Hope you like it! -soph

When they reached Nott Manor, at dusk, they saw a figure sitting on the steps.

"Draco."

"Cassandra."

"I'll wait for you inside." Theo opened the door and took a long look at the both of them before leaving.

Cass motioned for Draco to follow her. They ventured into the rose garden. The cold air was filled with the sweet scent of the flowers, kept in bloom by a protective spell. Theo had been thoroughly caring for it as a last memento of his mother. Cass smiled to herself, he had done a superb job.

Draco ripped a petal off a peach rose and crushed it between his fingers. "We set the date for our wedding. It's going to be December of next year." He said, looking in the distance.

She nodded, carefully studying his demeanour. "You didn't come here to say that, did you?"

He chuckled, shaking his head. She realised she had never heard him genuinely chuckle before. She was used to his snarky remarks and witty comebacks, usually accompanied by sneers. He had never laughed.

His hilarity faded as quickly as it came. He turned serious, shifting his gaze to look at her.

"I couldn't wait for you." He said after a long moment.

"I never asked you to." Cass had replied instinctively. "I never wanted any of you to put your lives on hold for me." She turned around to observe the cypress where Nether had built its nest. Between the branches, if she focused hard enough, she could still make out the shape of it.

"I would have, if you asked me to." Draco's voice was way too close for her liking. She could practically feel his breath on her hair. She took a step forward, putting some distance between them, and he did the same, closing it. "I would have done anything for you."

"Except not become a Death Eater, I s'pose." Her tone was cutting. She hugged her cloak as she felt him taking several steps back, dumbfounded at her sentence.

She turned around, pressing her lips into a line, defiantly staring into his eyes. "All I ever wanted was for you to not become one of them. I still remember when in our fifth year I would hold my breath every time you rolled up your sleeves, expecting the tattoo to appear in your arm." The violent wind swept tears into her eyes as she motioned toward his left forearm. "My greatest failure." She scoffed.

He had covered the distance between them in a second. Cass' hand flew to her wand, but she was unable to extract it from her pocket in time. He had cupped her jaw with his left hand, lifting her head up, his other was pressed open against the small of her back. A glint of burning cockyness had ignited in her eyes, expanding to her lips, making her smile. He had always been too much of a coward to hurt anyone. She opened her mouth to ask him what he was going to do.

Draco took his chance. He closed the distance between them in a harsh, teeth against teeth kiss.

Cass froze. She felt her arms fall limp at her sides as he kept kissing her, pressing his body against her. His hand on her back clutched into a fist, desperately grabbing the fabric of her cloak.

His fingers twitched, squeezing her jaw. A swipe of cold terror set her stomach ablaze, making her press the palm of her hands against Draco's chest and pushing him away. She drew ragged breaths as the memories of her torture fluttered behind her eyelids, making her knees tremble.