Scorched and Bruised ; Draco Malfoy

☾｡✩˚𝓐 𝓑𝓻𝓮𝔀 & 𝓐 𝓛𝓮𝓽𝓽𝓮𝓻˚✩｡☽

Translations at the bottom.

˖⁺‧₊˚♡˚₊‧⁺˖────⋆⋅☆⋅⋆────˖⁺‧₊˚♡˚₊‧⁺˖

Tucked into her room, sheltered away from the biting November snow, Star sat around a cauldron and various ingredients as she tinkered with the potion she had long promised to brew. It'd been a difficult thing, gathering everything she needed. At least stealing Harry's precious book had been simple enough.

Star had scoured the pages but found nothing remarkable. The only intriguing detail was its previous owner, possibly a narcissist or someone titled "Prince," though this felt more like a lump of coal than a gem. What caught her attention was a spell whose purpose she couldn't discern and the shortcuts in potion-making that mirrored her favourite professor's techniques.

A body shifted behind her, an arm wrapped around her waist and pulled her closer.  Star glanced down at Cas' sleeping face. They were both on the floor, with Star sitting and Cas lying curled around her; he'd made a makeshift bed on the uncomfortable wood just to stay near.

The previous night had been filled with an unusually heavy load of homework, courtesy of Professor Flitwick. Sleep had only found Cas just as light peeked over the horizon. Star had stayed up with him—much to his joy—the preparation for Liquid Luck was tedious and needed precise measurements. Either way, running on little sleep was not a rarity for her.

The first step in crafting the potion was, of course, obtaining the instructions—which she didn't have. Star had needed a completely new book for the Felix Felicis potion, so she stole it. Next, she had to gather the supplies, which were now in Slughorn's possession. Snape's stores had been in the dungeons, and although they were protected by magic, it had always been relatively easy for her to manoeuvre through the spells.

However, with Snape's recent promotion, the supplies were moved and Star had no idea where Slughorn kept his ingredients.

After some discreet snooping—and what some might consider stalking—Star discovered that Slughorn kept the ingredients in his private office, which was connected to his Potions classroom. Accessing it was a challenge; he was almost always there. So, she had painstakingly mapped out his schedule to determine his whereabouts at all times.

When Star had finally gathered everything she needed, she celebrated excessively with liquor, leaving her feet unwilling to stay on the ground.

For the past few minutes, Star had been gently stirring in a clockwise motion, waiting for the mixture to turn a uniform shade of gold.

Cas slowly sat up and nestled his face into her neck. "Almost done?" he mumbled, pressing a kiss to the spot between her neck and shoulder.

She scoffed. "Of course. Who do you think I am, Cassy? Some talentless dolt like Seamus Finnigan who doesn't know the difference between lacewings and a simple fucking pixie wing?"

Cas chuckled deeply, his drowsy voice carrying a richer baritone than usual, sending a shiver through her.

Star had, as always, found shortcuts around the potion to hasten her progress.

The quiet they had settled into was abruptly shattered by a loud, unmistakable knock—Oceana's signature style. Blaise's knocks were gentle, Luna's soft voice would carry through, and Oceana's knocks always reverberated through the room. Meanwhile, Theo, Mars, and Pansy would simply barge in without any warning.

"Star?" Oceana's voice came from the hallway. "There's a rather confused owl circling the common room. I think it's looking for you."

Star, barely paying attention, opened the door with a flick of her wand and asked, "Why?"