Your Grief is My Grief [DM] sequel to Beauty and the Beast

Chapter Nine

Draco's POV:

"Hey, Draco," Liz smiled softly at me. Her auburn hair was twisted into a simple plait down her back, but a few strands fell in her face. She was dressed in her white button-through shirt and skirt uniform, having removed her sweater and robe.

"Hey, love," I replied as she sat down beside me. We were sitting in the Slytherin common room on the leather sofa in front of the fire.

"How are you?" she asked quietly, snuggling up next to me, wrapping her arms around my waist. I slung my arm over her back and rubbed my thumb against her shirt.

"I'm alive," I sighed. "You?"

"I'm alive," she repeated in a whisper.

We then fell into a comfortable silence where the only noises were of the crackling fire, the quiet sound of the water from the lake, and the hushed voices of the other students working on Merlin knows what. I focused on the sound of the crackling fire and relaxed. The flames made a low whooshing sound that reminded me vaguely of the sound the wind makes when it rushed through the halls. There was an occasional pop or snap of a log settling. The sizzling comforted me.

I leaned my head against Liz's and took a deep breath. Hogwarts this year was stressing me out beyond belief. The fact that Liz and I were about to attempt to murder a man chilled me to the bones and made me shiver. It was as if ice were coursing through my veins rather than blood.

"Let's have a picnic," Lizzie said suddenly, lifting her head and looking at me.

"A picnic?" I asked a bit startled.

"Yeah," she affirmed. "We could get food from the kitchens and then go to the Room of Requirement. I'm sure it could give us a blanket and a nice place to eat." Her hair was slipping into her face as she spoke to me and her grey eyes twinkled brighter than I've seen for quite a while.

"A picnic." The idea was preposterous. A picnic? Considering all that we were going through?

"Nevermind, it's a stupid idea," she said, frowning, shaking her head, and laying back down on my chest.

"No, wait. I like it," I replied, not wanting to upset her. "Let's go have a picnic."

"Really?" she asked, lifting her head once more.

"Really," I confirmed. "Come on." We both stood as I lifted my arm and nodded my head towards it. "Shall we?" With a small nod of her head, she looped her arm through mine.

"We shall."

Together, our shoes clicked against the stone floor as we made our way to the seventh floor corridor that housed the Room of Requirement. I paced back and forth with Lizzie's arm still crooked in mine and the door began to appear.

"You go on in, I'll go to the kitchens and get the food." I placed a hand on her arm and smiled softly. She nodded and opened the door in front of us with a loud creak. Once it was shut, I turned and began the journey down to the kitchens.

Where had the idea for a picnic come from? Did she just want something to do with me? Whatever her reason, I didn't care. I loved Lizzie with all of my heart and adored spending time with her, no matter the situation. I was glad that I was going through these tough times with her, though I wasn't glad she had to. There was no one else in the world who I would rather be around. No one else I would rather hold at night. No one else I would rather kiss. No one else I would rather spend the rest of my life with.

I tickled the pear on the portrait that was the entrance to the kitchens and waited a few seconds as it opened.

As soon as I stepped inside, I was bombarded by a chorus of 'Hello's from the house elves, who were working feverishly to prepare the dinner for that night. I greeted them kindly, remembering Lizzie's views.