HP • Legilimency | 𝐍. 𝐌𝐀𝐋𝐅𝐎𝐘

𝐃𝐫𝐚𝐠𝐨𝐧𝐬

─────▕⃝⃤─────

When Draco returned from his day with his father, Lady Malfoy let out a deep sigh of relief. Only with Draco's return within her sight did she seem to breathe properly. She had been quite worried since he left - And if Mrs. Tonks's gaze was any indication, Lady Malfoy always became apprehensive in this manner every time Draco was going to spend time with his father.

They would all return to Hogwarts a day before the term started again, and this time Tonks would join them in the compartment, making the journey quite enjoyable. She's a metamorphmagus, a rare ability, though common in the Black family.

She would transform her nose into different animals to amuse Astria and Draco. She even attempted to mimic Lady Malfoy's hair, which endlessly amused the older witch. Lago liked her a lot, especially when she let out a cat's meow, causing the feline to rise and respond with a strange and confused conversation on its hind legs.

It was a big surprise for Lago to grow so fond of Lady Malfoy; now he felt comfortable enough to curl up in her lap and purr under her caresses. Astria teased, calling him a traitor for leaving her lap.

When they finally arrived at Hogwarts, it was already night, and they went their separate ways to rest.

─────▕⃝⃤─────

The next morning, in the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom, as they copied down the various ways to treat werewolf bites, Professor Snape paced the room with his sharp eyes. A murmur from the Gryffindor trio caught Astria's attention. Harry and Ron were discussing what they would do with the Philosopher's Stone if they had it.

Astria's quill, which had been busy taking notes, abruptly stopped. She focused entirely on the boys' conversation. Memories of the vault at Gringotts resurfaced. Hagrid had been retrieving the Philosopher's Stone to keep it safe, and from what Astria had read in the newspaper on the morning they arrived at Hogwarts, the vault had been breached.

She mentally nodded to herself. She planned to spend some time in the library to gather more information. Not that the boys' minds weren't a good source of information, but listening to Ron Weasley's thoughts about buying a Quidditch team and huge piles of candy for himself wasn't something she appreciated.

Honestly, if he had so much gold, would he spend it on such trivial things? What a lack of ambition, she thought.

In the library, Astria spent the afternoon immersed in books. She cast covetous glances towards the restricted section now and then, but she knew she could only enter with a note signed by a professor. And such permission was granted rarely and only to seventh-year students planning to deepen their studies in Defense Against the Dark Arts.

Perhaps, someday, she could convince a professor to give her a pass. Snape might be an option, or even Lady Malfoy.

When she finally found information about the Philosopher's Stone, Astria avidly consumed the content. She discovered that the stone not only turned pebbles into gold but also produced an Elixir of Life. Nicolas Flamel and his wife, Perenelle, were over six hundred years old - Thanks to it. Dumbledore had collaborated with the old alchemist years ago during a war. Therefore, it made sense that the responsibility of protecting the stone had fallen to him.

What made no sense whatsoever, on the other hand, was Harry believing that Snape wanted the Philosopher's Stone for himself. The scar on that boy's forehead must be deeper than anyone imagined, for it seemed like he had a seriously cracked noggin!

─────▕⃝⃤─────

As the exams drew closer, Astria, much to Draco's dismay, would drag him to secluded corners to study together. They spent hours in the library, where she quickly realized that Draco took advantage of moments of distraction to read about hexes and curiously, about Animagus transformation.