Not Alone After All

Chapter XLVII

Laura's feet guided her through the corridors and before she knew, she found herself sitting on the windowsill of the third floor staircase.

She tried. She honestly tried to befriend Slytherins, her own house, but they were impossible to endure. Pansy was the worst. She always made fun of the Weasley's and of her dead, muggleborn mother. She couldn't help the tears that started to flood her vision as she thought back on her mother, Lily. She had never met her, but hearing someone say such horrible things about her made her blood boil, which always made her cry, which only made her even more mad.

"Are you alright?" she heard a voice from behind her. Laura glared at Malfoy who looked slightly uncomfortable seeing her cry.

"Yes, Malfoy. I'm great," she snapped before turning back to the window. Draco sighed.

"I told Pansy to stop. She isn't going to, but I tried."

"It doesn't matter," Laura shrugged. "Why do you even hang out with her?" She wondered out loud. But deep down she knew. She knew that Draco wasn't any different.

"Why do you hang out with the Weasley's?" He shot back, sounding insulted.

"Because the Weasley's are the closest thing I have to a family," she snapped at him. "And unlike you and your friends, they don't spend their free time tormenting younger students and insulting them because of their bloodline! That's fucked up," she told him and stood up.

"Hey, it's not my fault they're blood traitors," Draco practically spat at her.

"If you have such a big problem with muggleborns, why are you taking to me?"

"Your father was a Pure Blood."

"He was also a blood traitor according to you. And my mother didn't have a drop of magical blood in her family."

"Well, she's dead, isn't she?" Draco yelled at her. Laura clenched her jaw in pure surprise. It was clear that Draco immediately regretted what he said, but Laura wasn't going to let it slide.

"Yes, she is, Malfoy," she confirmed, no emotion in her voice but her knuckles white form clenching her fists.

"I didn't mean that--"

"I think you did," Laura cut in.

"Everything alright?" She heard George's voice call out. The two slytherins turned around and saw the Weasley twins standing there, both with frowns on their faces.

"They wouldn't say something like that," Laura finished off. "That's why I hang out with them." She said and walked past Draco- who still looked very sorry- and towards her two best friends.

George immediately threw an arm around Laura's shoulder, pulled her close and started walking with her. Fred stayed behind for just a second, throwing a glare that made Malfoy's whole body go cold. Still  he managed to roll his eyes at the ginger.

"What did he say to you?" Fred questioned her as soon as he caught up with the two. Laura shook her head.

"Nothing, it's fine."

"It's not fine, he made you cry," George shook his head.

"He didn't make me cry."

"What did he say, Little Potter?" Fred asked her again, his tone softer this time. Laura sighed and stopped walking, Fred and George stopping in front of her.

"He might have insinuated that my mother deserved to die because she was muggleborn," she mumbled. George's jaw dropped and Fred's fists clenched by his sides.

"What?" Laura flinched at the harshness, even though she knew it was by no means directed at her. "If that's what he said, then what could Pansy have said that was so horrible it made you cry?" Fred questioned her.

"She said something about us didn't she?" George mumbled after Laura refused to say.

"What?" Fred frowned, looking confused at his brother.

"She did," George sighed. "As long as you hang out with us the Slytherins won't stop picking on you," he guessed. Fred sighed and ran his hand through his hair.

"Yeah," Laurie nodded.

"Okay, then," Fred said, shrugging.

"Okay then what?" Laura frowned.

"We don't have to hang out," he told her. Laura couldn't believe her ears.

"Huh?" George asked in shock.

"Excuse me?" She demanded.

"If it's better for you-"

"Its better for me to have friends thatll stick up with me no matter what," she snapped at him. Even George couldn't believe what his brother had said. "But I guess I don't have those."

She walked past him, purposefully bumping into his arm as she did so. As she turned the corner towards the Slytherin common room, she missed the angry expression on George's face and the shove the younger twin gave his older brother for his pure stupidity.