Who Are You? (Draco Malfoy)

Chapter 6: Changing Tactics

I walked into Dumbledore's office and took a deep breath, mentally preparing myself for the topics we would be discussing. If Professor McGonagall was telling the truth, then it would be very similar to the talk that we just had. I was rehearsing the same answers that I told her as I saw him standing by his desk, seeing me and giving me a small smile.

"Miss Elena, do come in." he invites and I nod to him, coming over and sitting down in the chair he gestured to me. He sat down in his chair behind his desk, leaning forward slightly and putting his hands together as he studied me. "How are you, Elena?" he asks and I give him a tight smile, still trying to make my anger go away from my argument with Malfoy. "I'm okay." I say and he lets out a small hum as he thought about my answer.

"Did you tell this same lie to Professor McGonagall?" he asks and I let out a sigh. "Honestly, Headmaster, I'm doing as good as I can be. What's the point of saying otherwise?" I ask and he gives me a soft smile. "Elena, I'm sure Professor McGonagall told you this as well, but you can't keep doing this. Eventually you'll need to tell someone how you're really doing." he says and I frown at him before thinking of a solution.

"What if I told you?" I ask and he chuckles at my question. "Elena, my dear, you don't need to tell me. You need to tell someone who can help you through this. Whether it be by distracting you or giving you a new outlook on life, you need someone who can challenge you enough so that you can pull yourself out of the lull you've been in since the summer began." he says and I sigh, slouching in my chair a little bit.

"How am I going to find someone like that?" I ask and an amused smile comes to his face as he studies me. "How's Draco doing, Elena?" he asks and I look at him startled. "Draco? Why would you ask me that?" I ask confused and Dumbledore keeps the smile on his face, not faltering at all.

"I've noticed that you two have become very close over the last week. I was sure you'd know how he was doing." he says and I felt the heat rising to my cheeks as I stared at Dumbledore. "We aren't close!" I yell angrily and he chuckles. 

"I see you in the hallways with him, Elena. You've talked more to him in a week than you have to anyone else in the whole five years you've been here." he says and I feel my cheeks getting hotter by the moment because of what Professor Dumbledore was insinuating. "H-he hates me! I hate him too! His father is the one responsible for my parents' deaths! How could I possibly like him?!" I say defiantly and Dumbledore nods. "Yes, that is true. But Draco is not like his father. I'm sure you can figure that much out for yourself." he says calmly and I huff, not liking this conversation we were having.

"I think Draco would be good for you, Elena. He's already challenged you and gotten under your skin. And even if you don't realize it, you've confessed how you really feel about certain things to him without thinking about it." he says and I blush again as I think about what he was saying before realizing it was true. Sometimes I really dislike how Dumbledore seems to know everything. "He just makes me angry, that's all. I say things I don't mean whenever I'm angry." I say flustered and I hear Dumbledore chuckle again, which makes me feel even more uncomfortable about the situation.

"If I'm wrong, please tell me. But I think that there is a certain level of fondness between the two of you. Mutual liking." he says and my face is probably scarlet by now as I stare at him incredulously. "A-absolutely not! He...he j-just infuriates me! He's an tantalizer!" I say in a high-pitched voice, watching as Dumbledore raised his eyebrows at me, obviously not believing what I said. "And yet he saved your life and went to go get your missing work? He even carried you to the hospital wing." he says and I so desperately want to bury my head in my hands, but I know if I do that Dumbledore will think he's right. So I fist my robes and try to keep a straight face.

"He was the one responsible for my falling, so he only did it to save his own skin. He doesn't actually care about what happens to me." I mutter and Dumbledore chuckles. "If that's what you think, Elena." he says and all I can think about is crawling underneath my bed and staying there for the rest of the weekend. "I am serious, though. You need to find someone to help you. Draco may end up being the last one you'd expect to help you, but deep inside there's a good man with a good heart. You'll see that there is good in him. He has secrets as well that I'm sure he's desperate to tell someone." he says and I raise an eyebrow at him. "You don't have to take my advice, but I am hoping that you trust my judgement. Now, I've got someone to take you back to your common room. It's getting late and I don't want you wandering around by yourself." he says and I nod to him, standing up from the chair.