Henrietta Potter || Draco Malfoy

20 - In His Eyes

So, I save Dudley's fat arse and the next thing I know I'm being expelled?!

This is just so typical of my life. I mean, I can't even sneeze without accidentally killing my fucking boyfriend.

Anyway, Dumbledore eventually pulled his finger out and sent a bunch of misfits to rescue me from the Dursley's. They took me to a secret house which happened to belong to my godfather. Awesome, another rich 'relative' to leave me shit loads of gold in their will.

I would have been happy to be there, but I was still shit depressed about what happened in the graveyard. So everyone got the moody stick from me.

I had to take a trip to the Ministry with Mr Weasley, to sort out this expulsion stuff. Luckily, Dumbledore saved the day and I was allowed to go back to school. Yay, I guess.

And I would have been happy about this too, if it wasn't for the fact that both Ron and Hermione were made Prefects and I wasn't. I mean - that's so unfair. It's not like I was nearly expelled or anything.

So, my big phat mood continued, to the point where my own friends didn't even like hanging out with me.

A sigh of relief all around when the first day of September arrived. Sirius came along to say goodbye in dog form. It was a risky move, but hey ho.

As soon as we got on the train, I was pissed off to learn that Ron and Hermione were to abandon me for their Prefect duties. Sulkily, I went with Ginny to find a compartment. We came across one with Neville, and a girl I was introduced to as Luna. She was quite the dotty one.

Ron and Hermione came back with the news that Draco and Pansy were the new Slytherin prefects. Fucking typical. Something else for that smug bastard to lord over me with.

And of course he wasted no time in coming to find me.

"What?" I spat at him aggressively as he stood smirking at me from the compartment door.

"Manners, Potter, or I'll have to give you a detention," he drawled. "You see, I, unlike you, have been made a prefect, which means that I, unlike you, have the power to hand out punishments."

"Yeah," I said, "But you, unlike me, are a fucking prick, so get out and leave us alone."

Draco's lip curled. Our eyes met and a frisson of hatred sparked between us.

"Tell me, Potter, how does it feel coming second best to Granger and Weasley?"

"Shut up, Malfoy," Hermione said sharply.

"I seem to have touched a nerve," Draco said, smirking. "Well, just watch yourself, Potter, because I'll be dogging your footsteps in case you step out of line."

"Get out!" Hermione said, standing up.

Sniggering, Draco gave me one last malicious look and departed, with Crabbe and Goyle lumbering along in his wake.

I felt unnerved by what Draco had said. Did he know about Sirius? Had he recognised the dog on the platform, somehow?

I tried not to let it bother me as the train trundled us in for another year at Hogwarts. Thinking about Draco Malfoy was such a waste of time.

***

I stopped, flabbergasted at the sight before me. The once horseless carriages that took us to the castle from the train station, were now being pulled by these horrific skeletal looking creatures.

And if that wasn't bad enough, our new Defence Against the Dark Arts Teacher was basically a toad! Ew, she gave me the creeps - I recognised her from my hearing at the Ministry. She was a horrible little woman.

Straight away, Professor Umbridge took a dislike to me. She called me a liar in front of the whole class. And that's another thing - no one believes that I saw Lord Voldemort rise in the graveyard. No one believes that Cedric died at his hands.

No one that is except Ron and Hermione. And of course, Draco Malfoy.

Although he took great pleasure in teasing me over my newfound lack of popularity.

"Oh look! It's the girl who tells lies!" He snarled with glee as he caught me leaving the Great Hall after dinner one evening.

"Fuck off," I snapped, really not in the mood.

"Oooo, language, Potter. I think I may take fifty points from Gryffindor for that." He chuckled, smugly fondling the green and silver badge pinned to the front of his robes as he walked alongside me.

"Like I give a fuck," I muttered, trying to quicken my pace so as to get away from him.

"Detention, Potter." He said, speeding up too.

"Really?" I said incredulously, whirling around to face him. "And just how exactly am I supposed to fit that in around my detentions with Umbridge?!"

Draco eyes glittered as another smirk played on his lips. "Not my problem, Potter. You need to learn to start being a good girl."

Huffing angrily, I pushed him aside to carry on my way up the corridor.

"And just where do you think you're going, Potter?"He called to me.

"To the library to do my homework!" I spat back. "Not that it's any of your business."

"It is when you're supposed to be in detention with me," he drawled lazily.

I stopped in my tracks, fury taking over as I spun around and stormed back to him.

As soon as I closed the space between us, I placed my hands on his chest and pushed him furiously against the wall behind him.

"Don't fuck with me, Malfoy!" I hissed in his face. "Do you really think I'm ever going to listen to you after what I witnessed your daddy doing in that graveyard?"

I was pleased to see anger fleck through his cold grey eyes. Grabbing my arms roughly, he thrust his face dangerously close to me so that his lips were practically touching mine.

"All the more reason to do what I say then, Potter,"

Our eyes locked onto one another, almost daring the other one to blink first.

We didn't move.

We didn't even speak. My lips suddenly felt horrendously dry and my tongue swept automatically over them.

A look flickered in his eyes, and before I could work out what it was, the sound of approaching footsteps made us spring suddenly apart.

My heart hammering noisily in my chest, I turned around and strode away as fast as I could without running.

He didn't attempt to call me back this time.

When I got to the safety of the library, only then did I admit to myself what I saw in his eyes.

Desire.

***