A Magic Stronger Than Darkness ~ Book 1: Perfect Opposites

Chapter 21 ~ Coming Forward

Veronica POV

In February, I finalized the decision for Draco and I to go to Dumbledore about Pansy. As we stepped into the headmaster's office, we were greeted by Fawkes the phoenix, who squawked loudly to announce our arrival and ruffled his scarlet and gold feathers in greeting. Dumbledore looked over his crescent moon spectacles, giving Draco and I an interested smile. "Good morning, Miss Dovefeather, Mr. Malfoy. What an unexpected surprise. How can I be of assistance on this fine day?" He asked.

I stepped forward, "I'm so sorry for our unannounced visit, Professor Dumbledore. But Draco found out who cast that spell on me under the water two weeks ago." I said. Draco stepped forward, "It's true. It was Pansy Parkinson. She confessed her transgression to Gregory Goyle during one of our Potions classes." My boyfriend's tone was level, but his body was tense with residual fury. Dumbledore paused, yet he didn't seem all too surprised. Perhaps he had already heard the information from another source. Or perhaps he knew that jealousy could be an ugly and sometimes dangerous emotion, even in the wizarding world. Still, Professor Dumbledore appeared contemplative as he placed his quill back into the ink jar on his desk. "Miss Parkinson? That is a serious accusation, Mr. Malfoy. Are you one hundred percent sure?" He asked mildly. "I heard her say the bloody words themselves!" Draco swore, causing me to elbow him lightly in the side in a silent plea to stay calm.

Dumbledore nodded slowly, "I feared that Miss Parkinson may have had a hand in your unfortunate incident, Miss Dovefeather. But I did not believe she could be capable of such...violence...and for that, I apologize to you." Our headmaster admitted. "Very well, Mr. Malfoy. I shall speak to Professor Snape about Miss Parkinson's punishment. Unfortunately, without any physical evidence linking Miss Parkinson to the incident, we are limited in exactly what measures we can take, as far as expulsion goes. But, she will not go unpunished. Rest assured that you and Miss Dovefeather will not be mentioned, and the proper actions to ensure Miss Dovefeather's safety will be taken. Thank you both for helping to clear the matter up." Our headmaster finished describing the potential outcome to us.

Draco snorted in disbelief and I looked at Dumbledore apologetically. "Thank you, Professor," I said, to which Dumbledore smiled in response. "Have a good day, Miss Dovefeather, and you as well, Mr. Malfoy." He dipped his head to us both, dismissing our presence. "You too, Professor." I told him gratefully. Draco simply turned on his heel and started walking away. I glanced at Dumbledore, making sure he was finished speaking with us, and the older man nodded his approval for me to follow my boyfriend out of the room.

The confident Slytherin slowed down on the stairs so that I could catch up to him. "Don't take offense, but that was a little rude. It was your idea to go to Dumbledore anyway. There was no need to be disrespectful to the man, especially when he was trying to help us." I commented pointedly. "It's one of my many fine qualities. But perhaps I took it a bit too far." He replied teasingly as he reached for my hand. I gave it to him while rolling my eyes. "How am I going to survive dating you?" I asked sarcastically, causing him to smirk yet again as we continued down to the main corridors to go find something fun to do for the rest of the day.

In the coming months, Draco and I continued to spend time together whenever we could. However, in April I had discovered that my boyfriend was the person feeding insider information to the nosy reporter Rita Skeeter. It had been a sunny afternoon when I noticed Draco sitting outside under a tree and talking to something I could not see. He looked up at me as I approached, the usual smirk he wore falling from his lips as he dropped whatever it was he had been holding. I furrowed my eyebrows at him, "Talking to yourself now? If you want company, you could've just charmed another bird to come find me." I joked, helping him to his feet.

Draco chuckled, appearing as though he was going to say something smart and then thought better of it. Finally, he sighed and scratched the back of his neck. "I was not talking to myself, love. It was that Skeeter woman..." He paused, eyes scanning the vicinity and even checking the ground under his feet for something before continuing. "She's an unregistered animagus, a beetle, in fact. That's how she finds out everything about everyone. No one notices insects..." He whispered. It now made sense that he checked the ground again before continuing. "She made a deal with me, or rather, she blackmailed me. Either I spill what I know about the champions to her, or she would write an article about how you and I continuously break curfew. If the school or ministry were to find out, we both know what would happen." He explained. I nodded, "We'd be suspended, probably expelled..." I muttered. "Exactly." Draco confirmed.

While I was disappointed in discovering that my boyfriend was the one sneaking information to the press, I was more dismayed at the fact that he didn't tell me, which he apparently sensed. "I know I should have said something to you. But you've had enough to worry about with Parkinson as of late. I did not want to worry you about something I could take care of on my own. But you should know, I never gave Skeeter any information you relayed to me. It was only things I heard from Potter himself or the other students in Slytherin house. I would not betray your trust like that." He reassured me, expression more serious than I had ever seen it. I believed him. Besides, nothing I had told him about my friends had ended up in the papers, especially not in Skeeter's gossip column and I could completely understand why he had acted as Skeeter's spy.

June rolled around much faster than I expected. Draco's birthday was at the beginning of the month, on the 5th. The weekend prior, everyone had been allowed to go to Hogsmeade, and so I made the special trip into one of the magical shops to pick something out for the occasion. Thankfully, Draco had been held up with Blaise at the candy store, so I had some time to look around for his gift before he would find me. I did not give much thought about which shop I entered, but the moment I stepped inside, I noticed a shelf with several coat pins hanging from it on little strips of fabric for display purposes. They were all sorts of mythological creatures, like sphynx and centaurs and unicorns. But on the far left end of the shelf, an emerald green celtic dragon hung upon a black rectangular piece of wool. The meaning of Draco's name was technically "dragon" so I thought it would be a perfect fit for the Slytherin boy. Plus, it was in his signature shade of green. Obviously, it was an easy buy.

The look on Draco's face when I gave him the emerald dragon pendant was one that I would never forget. I had placed it in a silver box trimmed with onyx ribbon, and I watched excitedly as his fingers deftly unlaced the bow on top and lifted the lid. "Veronica, you really didn't need to get me any-" He began but the words were cut short as his eyes widened to the size of saucers. "I've seen this...in Hogsmeade..." He whispered, reaching inside to lift up the pin. His thumb ran over its smooth surface as he admired the design. "Veronica, I really don't know what to say..." He mumbled. "This is stunning..."

A moment later, he had snaked his arms around my torso and pulled me into his chest. "Thank you, love..." He whispered, voice thick with emotion. My eyes widened but I hugged him back. "Of course, Draco. Happy Birthday..." I replied. When we released one another, I held my hand out to him. "May I?" I asked, gesturing for the pin. Draco handed it over, eyebrows raised in keen interest. I carefully picked up the accessory and readjusted my body so that I was sitting on my knees, then I leaned over and lightly tugged on the front of my boyfriend's sweater, making sure it didn't stick to the white button-up he wore underneath.

Draco watched me, his expression one of combined amusement and weariness as I moved closer and unclasped the pointed end of the pin. I carefully slipped the thin, exposed needle under about a centimeter of the soft gray fabric, then pushed the needle back up through the front and clasped it once more. Draco had already been wearing his silver Slytherin pin, but the darker dragon contrasted beautifully with the serpent symbol. Once I was satisfied that it was secure, I leaned away from Draco and looked to his face. He was staring down at the two glittering pins on his shirt, but then he met my eyes with a smile, "It's perfect!"