Wildfire • D.M

E i g h t

Draco leaned onto the palm of his hand, glaring nastily at Harry who picked at his food and moved  it around his plate. Alora was nowhere to be seen at dinner and both boys, whether they admitted it or not, were waiting to see if she would show up.
Harry, who was still gloomily drawling over the half failed date, wondered what had triggered her to react such a way and demand to return back to Hogwarts immediately. He remembered her pale face as she spoke shakily, her pretty face stunned with fear.

Alora, who had recently awaken from her sleep, rubbed her puffy eyes and red cheeks as she swept her feet out of the wrinkled sheets. Scared was an understatement, she was terrified of the person whom she assumed she had seen at hogsmead. For a while she actually felt safe and protected within the walls of Hogwarts but all that was fading away quickly.

She shuddered at the thought and immediately swiped her coat from her closet to hastily run outside, she felt an overwhelming feeling of suffocation and desperately needed fresh air. She was in such a rush that she hadn't fully realised that she was running barefoot until her feet touched the icy cold stone floor, moreover, she was dressed in her nightgown so freezing was an understatement. She wrapped herself tightly in her soft coat as she deeply inhaled what felt like her first breath after emerging from deep waters. Her nerves began to settle as she took in the simmering silence and the scenery of the night sky above her and she leaned against the cold stone side of the castle walls. Only the sounds of her heavy breaths, the frigid passing wind and the faint noises of the school could be heard.

After many passing moments the stars were prominently gleaming in the sky. Alora smiled for the first time in a while. Stars were one of the things she loved about Hogwarts, because you can't see the stars in the city. When she was younger she was forced into hiding with her mother and lived in a small apartment in the busy city of London amongst the muggles. From there, the stars could barely be seen behind the foggy skies and wicked rain.

Curiously, Alora got up on her bare feet and walked towards the railing at the edge of the balcony. Her cold toes gingerly inched closer towards the edge and the height of the balcony became clearer. A harsh wind blew making her stumble slightly and she panicked latching onto the rails. Grasping onto the edge tightly, she tiptoed to see over the edge and gasped at the long drop down.

Suddenly, two hands fiercely grasped her waist and forced her backwards colliding with another body.

She landed with a thud and crashed down on her grazed elbows.
"Are you stupid?! You could have killed yourself!" Draco yelled.

His face expressed a confusing mix of fear and anger.
"I wasn't going to jump! I was just looking."
Alora dusted her sleeves hastily.

Draco frowned with relief.
"What were you even doing up there?!" He breathed aggressively.

"N-nothing.nothing. I wasn't gonna do anything."

Draco stared unconvinced.
Alora huffed, and gave an exasperated sigh as she brushed past his shoulder and stormed away.

"Hey wait!" Draco grabbed her arm before she could leave.
Alora turned, her chest rising and falling rapidly, that's when he noticed her red and puffy eyes decorated with purple bags underneath it. She'd been crying. He immediately felt a slight pang of guilt rush through him.

He cleared his throat. He was unsure what to do in the moment.
"Sorry... for scaring you.. I just. I just didn't want anything bad to happen."

She stared tenderly and sighed. Alora walked to a safe distance from the edge and once again took a seat on the cold stone floor. Draco gingerly followed after and sat a comfortable distance away from her.