The Malfoy Diaries (A Draco Malfoy Fanfiction)

f i f t y - t h r e e 💛

He wasn't sure how he managed it, but eventually Draco Malfoy fell asleep. 

A vial of Dreamless Sleep had been taken before he had done so, of course. Draco had a tendency to have nightmares. He had such a tendency his entire life but it had been especially present recently. 

He didn't waste any time in getting up out of bed, getting ready and then leaving the Slytherin common room. 

Life was about to change drastically for him and he knew it. That was one of the reasons why it was sort of a relief to find Aria out in the hall. Her copper-brown hair was tied up into a ponytail and it didn't take long for her honey eyes to lock with his. 

"Hey," she said. It came out a little breathy, as if she hadn't been expecting to see him there. Where else would he be, though? After all, this was the Slytherin common room. 

"Good morning, Honey," Draco said, as a small smile played at the corner of his lips. "It's good to see you." He said the words sooner than he could stop himself from doing so. "I'm glad to see that you're in one piece..." he trailed off. What in Salazar's name was he doing? 

Aria gave a subtle nod, unsure of what to say next. 

"You seem a little tired," she commented. 

"Well, I am. I didn't get to sleep until late and that was only after ensuring Harry and Hermione were safely back in the castle and not in the Forbidden Forest," he said. 

Aria's eyes lit up with curiosity, then. 

"They er...went there in search of Death Eaters, thought they could fight them," Draco explained. 

Aria gave an understanding nod in response to that. Her eyes grew a little warmer in her admiration of the fact that Draco had kept her friends safe. She then had to remind herself that he was essentially doing the bare minimum but she was just glad that for once, the two of them were getting along with each other. 

"Thank you," Aria said, "For keeping my friends safe." 

"Well, I'm your friend, Aria. It's kind of what I'm here for," Draco said with a playful smile. 

At his warm words, Aria found herself almost instinctively moving towards him. 

Aria was about to respond but Ron soon approached the two of them, so she cleared her throat and turned to him. 

"Morning Ron," she said. 

"Morning! I'm so frustrated that I missed out on all the fighting Death Eaters in the forest thing last night. If I had been there, I would have taken them out," Ron said boldly. 

Ever since the war had begun, Ron had seemed ever-so confident that he could destroy literally every threat in existence. 

Aria knew that this wasn't exactly the case, though. However, she did have to admire that Gryffindor bravery and determination. 

"I know the risks, of course I do! I just think that the sooner we start fighting them, the better. They're a terrible threat to Hogwarts but now is not the time to skimp in bravery," Ron said. 

"A real hero, Weasel. Thanks for that," Draco said with apparent sarcasm, which caused Aria to turn to him with a warning look.

"Look, just because you are allegedly on our side now, Malfoy, doesn't mean that I can't put a crack in that wand of yours sooner than you can say Quidditch," Ron threatened. 

Draco released a gentle chuckle at that. 

"Ron," Aria said. 

"What? I'm not afraid to say what everyone else is thinking. Nobody should judge me for that," he said, as he slightly adjusted his sweater.

"Did you make that?" Draco asked. It was meant to come out as mocking but it ended up just sounding like a genuine question, which caused Ron to turn to the blond with an expression of subtle surprise. 

"Yeah. I did, actually. I pay attention to when mum makes clothes sometimes," he said. He then flushed slightly, after that confession. 

Aria's gaze softened, as she smiled at the thought of Ron and Molly Weasley bonding over knitting. 

Ron had such strong relationships with his family that Aria had occasionally envied him for it.

  "Nice sweater, Ron," Hermione said, as she walked over to Ron. He wound an arm around her shoulders and pulled her into his side with a warm smile upon his face. 

"Thank you, 'Mione," Ron replied. 

Draco looked between the two of them with amusement evident in those sparkling grey eyes of his. An eyebrow rose as the corner of his mouth twitched up slightly. For a second, he looked towards Aria to find that she was gazing right back at him. Unlike him, he felt a little nervous. He ran a hand through his hair and made up some excuse about having to head to the library to do some light reading. 

Aria didn't question it, but she had to admit that she felt slightly like a third-wheel in Hermione and Ron's presence. 

"Very original," Hermione added, as she moved out of Ron's hold. She could sense that Aria was getting a little anxious with their PDA. "Anyway, we should get to the Great Hall...I think that Harry is getting closer to discovering what the next Horcrux is. At least, I'd like to think that he is." 

Hermione was still immensely dedicated to their task of finding the last few Horcruxes. It just seemed that it was going to be a little more difficult than she had initially hoped. They had spent weeks trying to figure it out. No leads yet. So much for being the brightest witch of her age, she thought bleakly.

"Perhaps the Horcrux isn't a thing..." Aria said quietly, which caused Hermione and Ron's eyes to dart to her. 

"What?" Hermione asked. 

"Yeah- what she said," Ron said. 

"Perhaps the Horcrux isn't an object but a person," Aria said. 

Hermione's eyes widened slightly then. 

"Something happened on that night he killed Harry's parents- something happened to his curse, to his soul. I just...it's only a hunch but-" Aria cut off, then, as she determined how best to provide her friends with her thoughts.