Chimera

Chapter 23

Wednesday morning passed quietly. Hermione was still tired from the past few nights of disturbed sleep. Draco worked in silence, stealing occasional worried glances when Hermione yawned and rubbed her eyes.

"Oh my god," Hermione said mid-afternoon, startling Draco. "I just realised - I totally forgot to ask about your Halloween dinner! How did it go?"

"Yeah, it was alright thanks. Mum outdid herself as a host. She had to spend the weekend in her room recovering, though."

Hermione nodded. Social events affected her that way sometimes too.

"But now she's feeling better and has announced we're going to the Hogsmeade Bonfire Night tonight, which is a bit weird."

"Why's it weird?"

"Well, my parents were always a bit funny about Guy Fawkes, what with him being a pure-blood supremacist and all," Draco shrugged, a disgusted twist to his mouth. "So every year they would be torn between being glad his martyrdom is remembered, and being angry his death is celebrated. Plus the whole thing has been taken over by muggles, so father would always have a bit of a rant about that."

An uncomfortable silence settled between them. Draco was momentarily lost in unhappy memories of his youth. The War shook his belief in the importance of blood status, and in turn had affected his view of his parents.

"Anyway," he continued, snapping out of his reverie, "I love a good toffee apple, and Blaise says the fireworks display is pretty decent. I hear it'll be a bunch of Weasley products."

"That'll be cool, I hope you both have fun!"

"Won't you be going?"

"God no!" Hermione laughed, missing the disappointment in his voice. "I hate this time of year. I'll be at home with as many sound-protection charms on my flat as I can be bothered to cast. All the fire and explosions makes me jittery."

Draco was startled by this rare moment of candid openness. He nodded silently, unsure of how to respond. Just then, Ellie knocked on the door and the moment was gone.

*****

Hogsmeade was crawling with crowds when Draco and Narcissa arrived. She shrank back slightly at the noise, lurking in her son's shadow.

"Are you alright?" Draco asked, reaching for her thin arm.

"Yes, yes, of course," Narcissa said.

She pulled out of his grasp and stalked onward, head held proudly. Draco had to lengthen his stride to catch up with her. Narcissa's gaze swivelled as she walked, peering into the long shadows cast by floating globes of light. Suddenly she sharply changed direction and Draco almost lost her. Shaking his head, Draco followed. He found her talking animatedly to the Greengrass family outside of Zonko's.

Mrs Greengrass grabbed Draco by the shoulders and air-kissed either side of his cheeks. Her flowery perfume mingled with the smell of nearby barbecues and the blazing bonfire.

"Uh, good evening," Draco said, his hand being firmly pumped by Mr Greengrass. "It's lovely to see you all."

The light pouring through the shop window glowed on Astoria's hair. A Slytherin scarf was wrapped tightly around her neck and face, leaving only her large, blue eyes showing. They crinkled in a smile when Draco looked her way.

Next to her sister, Daphne rolled her eyes. She was also snugly enveloped in a green and silver scarf, and a green bobble-hat covered her short, blonde hair. Without a word to any of them, Daphne pushed past the Malfoys and joined her group of friends nearby.