shades of cool | theo nott

37 || hurting

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"𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙮𝙤𝙪'𝙧𝙚 𝙡𝙤𝙤𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙮 𝙨𝙪𝙨𝙥𝙞𝙘𝙞𝙤𝙪𝙨
𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙗𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙮 𝙥𝙡𝙖𝙣𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖 𝙝𝙚𝙞𝙨𝙩"
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With the excuse that they would be getting sending owls to their parents and sending notice to the house elves to fetch their night clothes, Pansy and Vera ran upstairs, collapsing onto a bed in a guest bedroom.

"Why is Draco being so... weird?" Vera asked in a hushed voice, as if the blonde was going to pop out from behind the door at any given moment. "There's something going on that he isn't telling us."

"Well— his father is in Azkaban." Pansy said, her tone getting slightly defensive for her... boyfriend? situationship? best friend?...whatever they were.

Vera shook her head, ignoring the sarcasm. "Yeah, I got that part. But this is more than that. Theo told me that at the Department of Mysteries, Draco's father was supposed to be the leader, alongside Bellatrix. Only Bellatrix escaped whilst Mr. Malfoy was caught and tried immediately. Mr. Nott was only caught on a technicality and he got a lesser sentence." The girl twisted some of her hair between her fingers, a nervous habit. "Everyone else at the Department of Mysteries was also arrested but who was that all because? Certainly not Bellatrix because she was fresh out of prison and the Dark Lord needed someone who knew their way around the Ministry and had contacts who could tell them when Potter and his friends arrived." She was thinking aloud at this point but Pansy listened intently, soaking up every word with fervor.

"You can't possibly mean...?" Pansy trailed off, beginning to chew on a fingernail as her anxiety grew.

"The Dark Lord was caught because of the failure at the Department of Mysteries." Vera knew she was repeating herself but she got up from the bed and began to pace as she recited all the facts that she knew. "He would have had an easier time if everyone hated Potter and thought he was a liar."

"He'd be extremely angry. It probably caused the plan to completely switch up with a chunk of his followers in Azkaban and whatnot." Pansy chimed in, tapping her knee.

"Exactly. And we know that Bellatrix didn't fail the most, per say. She still murdered Sirius Black and was able to rile up Potter, which was part of the goal: to get him reckless and dangerous so he's easier to beat." The girl let out an exhale, shaking her head. "The blame would fall on Mr. Malfoy."

Pansy sighed. "It makes sense. He was supposed to lead the Dark Lord to victory." She lowered her voice. "If Potter defeats him, Mr. Malfoy will be safe, but otherwise..." Pansy chuckled softly, running a hand through her short dark hair. "He can't hurt Mr. Malfoy while he's in Azkaban, at least."

Vera's face was full of sympathy as she next spoke. "Pansy." Her tone was soft and warm yet terse at the same time. "Think: if the Dark Lord can't reach Mr. Malfoy to punish him for his failures, who would he go to next?" She asked gently, watching realization bloom in her best friend's eyes.

"Oh Salazar!" She cried out, tears forming in her eyes. "He's going to hurt Draco! How did I not realize?"

Vera enveloped her best friend in a hug. No matter how much Draco irritated her, she loved him to bits. He was her first friend, and she did not want to see him in pain. "We don't want to see the people we love in pain, Pans. It took me this long to realize."