Harry Potter One-Shots

Secret Admirer (Draco Malfoy)

WORD COUNT: 1433

I stared listlessly into the crackling fire in the Y/H/N common room. My half-finished Potions essay lay spread out in front of me, but the ink on the tip of my quill had dried up, just like my motivation to finish this assignment. It was a Friday night, why was I stuck doing homework? Because you didn't make the Quidditch team, otherwise you'd be on the pitch practicing with them right now, complained the nagging little voice in my head. My bad mood worsened; if I had only flown a little more over the summer holiday, I probably would've made it. There was a boy who lived down the street from me, Justin, who was a year above me and on the Ravenclaw Quidditch team, I'm sure he would've practiced with me.

Quit getting distracted, this is why you can't get any work done. Wow, my inner monologue was really negative tonight. I scowled and started flipping angrily through my Potions textbook, looking for an antidote to an incorrectly-brewed Sleeping Draught. On page 67, there was a passage about incorrectly brewed potions, so I stopped to read there.

As I was reading, the wind blew furiously against the window, and I suddenly realized that I had been studying for close to three hours already. The common room was empty and the sun had long since set. I was angry with myself for putting off my homework for this long. And during exam season no less!

As the night drew on, I felt myself beginning to nod off. As I drifted in and out of sleep, I was suddenly jolted awake by a tapping at the window of the common room. Outside, battling against the heavy wind, was a sleek grey owl with a letter tied to its leg. I quickly hustled over to the window to let the poor creature inside, where it waited at my table for me to remove the letter.

"Is this... is this a letter for me?" I asked tentatively, reaching out to unfasten the parchment. The owl hooted softly in return, and once the letter was detached, flew right back out the open window, which slammed after it. I hadn't written a letter to anyone, and both of my parents were Muggles so they didn't know how to use owl post. Who would be writing me a letter? I slid the envelope open with one finger and began to read.

Y/N -

Meet me in the Great Hall at midnight tomorrow night. Wear something nice. I'll be waiting.

I read and reread the letter in confusion. It was addressed to me, but there was no signature or sender's name. I even flipped the parchment over to the back to look for any type of clue or hint, but there was none. This mysterious letter, plus all the frustrating homework I still had left to do, was all too much for my tired brain to handle, so I tucked it inside my Potions book along with my essay and climbed the stairs to my dormitory for a night of restless sleep.

--

The next morning, I was sitting at the breakfast table with my friend Claire, the letter completely chased from my mind as she regaled me with tales from last night's Quidditch practice.

"And then, Luca tried this super cool new defensive move, and he -" Claire's story was interrupted by the whooshing of wings overhead. The sight of a large grey owl like the one from last night brought back the memory of the mysterious letter. As I watched, the large grey owl soared down over our table, and eventually stopped... in front of me? When I looked closer, it seemed to be the same owl as last night, and the handwriting on the outside of the envelope looked the same. I hastily opened this new letter.

Y/N -

Looking forward to seeing you tonight. I know you'll look beautiful.

I showed Claire the new letter and explained about the one I got last night. By the end of my story, her face held an expression of shock and excitement.

"Y/N, you know what this means, right? You have a secret admirer!" she squealed, grabbing my arm excitedly. I blushed and yanked my arm out of her grasp.

"What if it's just a prank? For all I know it could be those awful Weasley twins playing a joke on me and I'm going to wind up getting my nicest outfit covered in slime or worse," I hissed, trying to keep my voice low so the people around us couldn't hear.

For the rest of breakfast, Claire kept pointing out random boys to me and speculating "Ooh, what if it's him!" or "He looks cute, I bet he sent you those letters!" or "I know, it's that one!" Every time she pointed out someone new, I rolled my eyes and brushed her off. However, when she pointed at a tall, thin, pale Slytherin boy in our year, and I met his eye, I had a feeling she might have guessed right.

"Do you think it's Malfoy?" she asked, almost reverently. Since first year, Claire and I had shared a mutual crush on the mysterious boy, though he had never paid either of us much mind. One time, I helped him with his wand work in Charms, and he had been polite to me, but we hadn't talked since.

"I don't know... I don't think he would do something like this though, would he?" I whispered back. Heads together, still scheming, we grabbed our things and headed to the library to finish up some homework before our Hogsmeade trip.

--

The entire time in the village, I kept wondering, why couldn't my admirer just ask me to Hogsmeade? It would've been a lot easier. Every boy I passed was looking at me, it felt like.

At the end of the night, as Claire was getting ready for bed, I felt like my day was just getting started. Claire was in the bathroom washing her face as I was applying my makeup and styling my hair. As she switched into her comfortable pajamas, I slipped into a silky green dress my mother had bought me for my fifteenth birthday. I hadn't worn it yet, but she insisted I take it to school because "it brought out the green flecks in my eyes." At quarter to midnight, I said goodnight to Claire and the other girls in my dormitory and sneaked out of the common room. I had to be careful not to get caught by a teacher or patrolling prefect, which wasn't easy, but eventually I made it to the Great Hall.

Pulling the huge wooden doors open in the dead silence of the night felt like a huge commotion, so I only opened them wide enough to slip inside and not cause a total ruckus. Once in the hall, I gasped when I saw it. On the Y/H/N table, at the very far end, were lighted candles softly casting a romantic glow over a full picnic spread of desserts. Sitting on one side of the table, all alone, was Draco Malfoy.

I don't know what surprised me more - the food, or the boy. Draco Malfoy was my secret admirer? I couldn't wait to tell Claire. As I approached him, his face broke out into a shy smile. It was an expression I wasn't used to seeing on his face, but it made him look younger and more approachable.

"I'm sorry I didn't ask you in person, Y/N, I was just... I just got so nervous every time I tried to talk to you," he stammered, gesturing for me to sit. I couldn't believe my eyes or my ears. Draco Malfoy, sitting in front of me at a romantic picnic for two that he had planned for me, telling me that he had been nervous to talk to me?

"It's okay Draco," I cleared my throat. My voice was hoarse, and I was definitely letting on about my nerves. "May I ask... why didn't you just ask me to go to Hogsmeade with you?"

"Why, do you not like it?" He asked, looking crestfallen. Wow, great going Y/N, you've made him upset already.

"No, I love it! I just... nobody has ever gone this far out of their way for me."

"Well, you're a special girl Y/N, so I had to do something equally special to make you see."

"I'm flattered," I grinned, reaching for a chocolate-covered strawberry. "I've never had a secret admirer before."