Friday's Child // Draco Malfoy

12

The change in Draco was subtle, but, Juno was in tune with these sorts of things. He greeted her in good humour the first Friday back at Hogwarts following the Christmas break, but she could tell something had changed. He was a little more deflated, but more poised all the same. His jaw was tense, his shoulders raised, his fists clenched, like he was waiting for something - like he was constantly on the defence. His skin had gotten paler, and his cheeks more sunken, the sockets of his eyes purpling, as though he'd hardly slept a wink the whole two weeks they were gone. He was distressed, she knew it - no one else could tell, but she could see it from a mile off, and she felt a wave of sadness that, while she had been at home enjoying a lovely break with her family, Draco had been suffering in a cold and painful household. 

"I can't tell you how glad I am to see you," He huffed as he took a seat beside her. She looked at him, studying his features, her eyes skimming from the peak of his forehead to the dip of his chin, all along the valley of his cheeks, through the ocean of his eyes, lingering on his lips, and then back to his eyes again, offering him a ghost of a sad smile; 

"Was it really so bad?" She asked. He shrugged, turning the corners of his mouth up slightly, as if this one movement could convince her that he was okay - it didn't. She threaded her arm through his, squeezing it tightly in her own, resting her head on his shoulder. He took a deep breath in, casting his eyes on the water, collecting himself before he spoke. Juno's gentle touch meant more to him than she could imagine, it warmed him in every sense of the word, it grounded him - offering him just a sliver of comfort after such a horrible two weeks. He needed it - he needed that comfort more than anything, for someone to just acknowledge him, to make him feel as though everything would be okay, even if it wouldn't. He'd been that comfort for his mother over the last few weeks, she'd needed it more than he did, but now, the simple embrace of someone he was confident genuinely cared about him - he basked in that feeling, melting into it, savouring it, ignoring every other thought he should be having, just for that moment. 

"Let's just say, I'm relieved to be back," He chuckled, she noted the sadness in his words. 

"Come on, let's go for a walk, I don't fancy sitting here all afternoon. We can smoke-" Juno suggested, jumping to her feet, offering her hand to Draco to help him stand. 

"Oh, thank you, by the way-" She shot him a questioning look, "for the present, it was lovely. I needed the smoke, and I suppose the muggle book wasn't too horrendous," he teased, nudging her as they began walking aimlessly towards the forest. "I didn't get you anything," 

"It's okay, you paid for the drinks when we went to Hogsmeade," she shrugged. 

"And listen, about Blaise - I really don't think tutoring him is a good idea, he's never committed to a girl in his life - he just pretends to like them so he can get in their knickers-" 

"Believe it or not, I am actually capable of tutoring someone without taking my knickers off. That would be counterproductive, can't imagine we'd get much studying done-" 

"Juno, I'm serious-" 

"So am I, Draco. There's such a thing as actual tutoring, whereby we just study, and we don't have sex. I am very willing and able to not fall into bed with someone just because we're studying together-" 

"But Blaise, on the train he was saying you were fit-" 

"Oh, and because he thinks I'm 'fit' that automatically means I'm going to drop my knickers, does it?" 

"No- but-" 

"But, what? Blaise's intentions mean nothing - just because he might want to have sex with me, which I highly doubt he does, seriously, doesn't mean I'm going to have sex with him at the drop of a hat. I do have a say in this, you know-"