Battle Scars {Draco Malfoy}

Chapter Eight

"It's lovely to see you again, Miss Easton, I'm glad you decided to come back." Professor Sprout greeted Clara as she arrived to the Greenhouse for the morning lesson.

"To be honest, Professor, I was very hesitant about all of this but I'm glad I came back too." Clara smiled at her.

Professor Sprout placed her hand on Clara's shoulder. "I'm beginning to think Hufflepuff should dawn the title of house of the brave." she said in a low voice to Clara.

Clara couldn't help but laugh. "Try not to let the Gryffindor's hear that." she said before taking her seat. She looked around the greenhouse and saw a few tattered and beaten plants that seemed to be under the care of the Herbology professor. She recognized one of the plants as the Snargaluff, one of the plants that Professor Sprout and some of the students had used during the battle against the Death Eaters. 

They were interesting plants, resembling gnarled stumps but if the plant felt threatening thorny vines could whip out and deal several nasty blows. It was definitely a plant to watch out for. Clara kept a safe distance as she witnessed a part of the plant move. She took out her textbook, curious as to what they were going to cover during that lesson as other students piled into the greenhouse.

She ignored Rebecca and Sadie as they quickly moved down the way, away from Clara to avoid anymore of the girl's justified anger. Clara wasn't expecting anyone to sit next to her, so when the sight of robes caught the corner of her eye, she couldn't help but look up.

A slight frown appeared across her features as she saw Draco Malfoy had taken the seat beside her. That was not what she needed. She didn't want him anywhere near her, but it wasn't just him, it was anyone. She didn't want anyone near her. Clara just wanted to be left alone and try to finish out the year going completely under the radar.

"Do you know what topic we're covering today?" She heard him say. She peeked out from behind her curtain of dark hair to look at him, but quickly shook her head no.

Draco wanted to pretend he didn't see the frown appear on her face as he sat down beside Clara. He wanted to believe that she wasn't frowning at the fact that he chose to sit next to her, but after countless of attempts of preparing to take a seat to only be met with nasty glares,  he decided to sit next to the person he believed wouldn't say anything mean to him. He was right to believe that she wouldn't say anything mean, but the look hurt just as much as the rest he had received, if not a little more.

He decided that maybe he could ask her a question to show that he wasn't going to make a nasty remark, probably something she was accustomed to when it came to the Slytherin house.

But the mere shake of her head reiterated that she did not want to talk to him. He wasn't upset with her but with himself. Perhaps if he had been a better person in his earlier years, people would have been more forgiving of him and his actions. He didn't expect people to forgive him though, how could people forgive him if he couldn't forgive himself just yet?

Suddenly, he watched as the girl's hand reached over to his book and opened it up to the appropriate page that Professor Sprout had called out.

Clara wasn't sure what was running through Draco's head, but he looked like he was stuck in a day dream of some sort. Professor Sprout had called out the page for the class to turn to. Apparently they were just reviewing the topics that they should have covered over the previous years in the first lesson. She saw that he hadn't opened his book as he seemed to be staring off again, so she took it upon herself to help him by opening up his book.

She saw the look of surprise stretch across his features before she pulled her arm away quickly pulling her sleeves over to cover up the marks on her arm.

"Sorry." she whispered to him. "But Professor Sprout said we were looking over Fanged Geraniums."

She felt like such a dunce for pulling such a bold move. She was considering throwing herself at the  Snargaluff plant to escape the torture she felt being under his gaze until he spoke back.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome." 

Draco watched the panic on her face disappear as she focused back on her own textbook and seemed to relax.

He only found himself half-listening to Professor Sprout during the lesson. If he was being honest with himself, he never found Herbology fascinating. If he were to create a scale of how interesting the subject. He would be at the bottom with completely uninterested and Neville Longbottom would have been at the top with overly interest.

Glancing over at Clara, she would probably be somewhere in the middle. She didn't seem to be listening all that much, but he could see her eyes scanning the pages of the book.

He was preparing himself to say something, when he saw her hand move towards his book again and turn to the correct page that he had once again missed.