Battle Scars {Draco Malfoy}

Chapter Four

The carriage ride up to the castle had almost been enough for Clara to call it quits right then and there. As soon as she entered the carriage, she could hear the gasps from one of the other students who were already in there. She didn't have much of an option as she didn't feel up to walking. What made it even more awkward was how her fellow peers refused to speak the duration of the trip. Before the scars, people Clara didn't even know would feel more than comfortable approaching her. She was an easy person to get along with, but somehow the scars tainted that idea. 

The scars suddenly meant that no one could speak directly to Clara. She kept her gaze focused outside of the window to keep the tears from falling down her face. She refused to cry in front of any of them. On her way to the carriage, she caught sight of her old group of friends and she was well aware that they had seen her as well.

She wanted to wave at them and it appeared that they wanted to join her as well, but instead they looked around as if they hadn't seen her and climbed into one of the carriages. That hurt her more than any of her physical wounds would ever hurt her. Knowing those people since she was eleven years old and growing up with them, only to be abandon during the time she needed them most. Especially since she had stuck by them during tough times, like divorcing parents and bad break ups, Clara had been the one to offer her shoulder to let them cry on.

Her mother cursed her friends' names over the summer, calling them worthless and all sorts of colorful names that Clara didn't feel comfortable repeating. Yet while one in Clara's situation would more than likely agree, Clara defended her friends even though they had abandoned her. She couldn't bear to look in the mirror, how could she expect her friends to look at her every day?

A chilling sensation raced up Draco's spine as he arrived in front of the castle. Everything looked as it once did, as if a war had been fought inside and outside the castle walls. But Draco was well aware of what happened, he could see everything that had taken place. Some of the memories became so vivid in an instant that he had to close his eyes for a second to block them out. Finally, he gathered himself enough to head inside where students were being directed into the Great Hall.

He saw Professor McGonagall first, she had become the Headmistress and upon seeing him, the two exchanged no words but only knowing glances. Just because some people forgave him, it didn't mean they forgot what he had done.

Taking his place at the end of the Slytherin table, Draco placed as much space between him and his fellow Slytherin peers. They seemed to want to do the same as they scooted further down the bench from him. He silently waited for the first years to come out and be sorted, in the meantime, he glanced around the Great Hall to see if he recognized any returning faces.

Looking straight across at the Gryffindor table, he easily found Hermione Granger seated by several other students talking. She seemed to be one of the students in better spirits after the war wearing a smile on her face. It was weird to see her with Ron or Harry with her, but he was well aware that Ron and Harry were working very closely with the Ministry rounding up remaining Death Eaters that were on the run.

Not wanting to make any eye contact with her, Draco looked away only to have his eyes fall on the girl he had seen on the train. She was sitting at the Hufflepuff table, near the end like himself and her eyes focused on the table before her.

Due to their encounter on the train, he understood why she had hid beneath her robes. Even though she was looking down at the table, he could still see the fresh pink scars that were raked across her face.

She must have sensed him staring as she looked up and met his gaze. He didn't want to look away, because he knew if he did then it would probably hurt her feelings. Instead he kept her focus until she looked away.

Clara was internally panicking when she met the grey eyes seated across from her at the Slytherin table. She waited for him to look away in pure disgust now that he had a full view of her face, but instead, he just continued to hold her gaze until she looked away first.

Draco now realized who the girl was, outside of the possible encounters they had during the years before the Battle of Hogwarts, Draco had heard of the girl who had been attacked by a werewolf during the battle. There had been several students who had been attacked by werewolves that were recruited under Lord Voldemort, Lavender Brown had been one of them, and unlike the Hufflepuff girl, she hadn't survived.

The Hufflepuff girl bore the scars across the left side of her face and from what he could see on her arm as well where her sleeve was raised. He watched as she pulled sleeve down quickly in embarrassment. He hadn't spoken to the girl beforehand,  but he remembered that she had been one of Pansy's targets when it came to teasing. For some reason, Pansy hated the girl, probably because she was considered a popular female among the school and Pansy didn't like competition whatsoever.

He remembered that she also had a decent amount of friends that normally told Pansy to piss off whenever she had something rude to say to the girl, but as he looked down the Hufflepuff table, he saw those same friends had come to abandon the girl as they sat away from her.

There she sat, a girl who had fought bravely during the battle only to be left to fight her own battles completely alone.

That didn't sit well with Draco.