A Harry Potter Fanfic

Chapter 32

---------- Chapter 32 -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

               “You know, you shouldn’t frown so much,” the unfamiliar voice gets me glancing up in surprise.

I was sitting at the Gryffindor table in the Great Hall, rereading Draco’s letter for the hundredth time.

The voice belonged to the same cute guy from the other day in the common room.

               “Yeah,” I murmur back, wondering how I could ask for his name without making me seem like a horrible housemate.

               “Nate!” one of cute guy’s buddies calls from the Hufflepuff table. Cute guy, Nate, waves at his friend and sits down opposite me.

               “So, why are you so down so early in the morning?” he asks, taking a sip of his pumpkin juice.

               “Just reading a letter from a friend,” I confess. Something about his face and voice made me feel like I could confess anything to him. Weird, especially since I’ve only known him about...well...five minutes?

               “And friends shouldn’t make you upset,” Nate continues, smiling bright.

               “Ideally...but things don’t usually work out the way they should, right?” I retort quietly, setting my eyes down to my plate.

               “Anyway, it’s kind of funny. I mean I’ve only seen you around last year, but I don’t remember you from before then. And even after I found out you were the only student who had ever been sent straight to the fifth form, you have never been alone before, have you?” he asked.

               “You noticed all of that?” I asked incredulously.

               “It’s not that big an achievement noticing you, you know. I mean...you kinda do stand out,” he clarifies, smiling easily.

               “You smile a lot, huh?” I ask abruptly.

               “I try to. I mean, it makes me feel happy, and I guess if it can make someone else smile too, then it’s worth it, right?” he reasons, still smiling serenely. “I’m Nate, by the way. I’m in my seventh year,” he continues, holding his hand out to introduce himself.

               “I knew that,” I whispered embarrassedly.

               “Yeah, only when you heard the other guy call my name. But it isn’t a big deal. I mean, seriously, you can’t be expected to know everyone in the castle, right?” he continues, eating his omelette happily.

Just as I’m about to answer, the owls begin soaring in; mail time. I can’t help but look up, trying to spot Draco’s already familiar owl. And sure enough, there it is. It soars towards me, a package tied to its leg along with a letter.

I shakily untie the package and unroll the letter.

I don’t understand. You’re still mad at me, aren’t you?

I’m truly sorry. Were I not on the entire opposite end of the country, I would fly up immediately to see you.

Accept the gift?

D

I set the letter aside, my face set in irritation.

I glance at the package and set it down over the letter. I go back to my breakfast, pretending the little brown package didn’t mean a thing to me.

               “Well...aren’t you going to open the package? Maybe it’s something important from home?” Nate asks.

               “My parents wouldn’t send me a package. They’re muggles. I’m a mudblood, you see,” I whisper savagely, remembering what Pansy had called me in the Leaky Couldron.

               “That’s a pretty vile thing to say about yourself. No Gryffindor would speak like that,” he mumbled, a little fazed by me no doubt.

               “Yeah well, a Slytherin said that to me a life time ago,” I whisper.

               “Yes, and we all know which house the so called ‘pure’ wizards and witches originate from, don’t we? Who your parents are don’t even matter. I mean, you were one of Hermione’s good friends, right? You should know that being raised by muggles doesn’t make a difference,” he lectured, his face getting hard.

               “Forget I said anything,” I mumbled. I grab my package and letter and walk down the long room towards the door.

               “Maybe you’ve mixed around with Malfoy too much?” Nate suggests suddenly, making me freeze in my tracks.

               “Don’t you ever mention that name!” I half screech, causing the students sitting around me to stare in confusion. But I couldn’t have cared less, the mere mention of his name had floodgates crashing down, and within moments my vision was obscured by the torrential tears pouring down my face.

I run up to the common room and collapse into one of the armchairs, that’s when I notice writing on the other side of the parchment as well.

Fireplace, please?

Fireplace? What could he mean?

               “Deid?” Draco’s beautiful voice floats towards me, making me cry harder. I look around me, searching for the source of that voice I was yearning to hear.

               “Fireplace,” his voice floated towards me again, and I got off the armchair, feeling like a complete idiot. I sat on the floor opposite the fireplace and took a deep breath before looking in.

And there, part of the burning embers was the face that I both wanted to and didn’t want to see. His gray eyes took in my appearance, and his face softened.

               “What’s the matter?” he asked, his voice acting like a warm embrace, holding me together.

               “Everything!” I moaned quietly, almost certain I was going insane. Hello? Head in the fire talking to me...perhaps a trip to St Mungo’s was long overdue after all.

               “Talk to me, love,” Draco’s voice invited.

               “I can’t!” I groaned in frustration. I was contemplating putting my hand into the fire, hoping that by some miracle, I would be able to caress the face I so longed to see.

               “Of course you can. Pretend I’m right beside you, Merlin knows that’s where I want to be,” he whispers, his voice quieter and more subdued than before.

               “No...I can’t. I need to stop thinking about you. I need to stop loving you!” I murmur sombrely, rubbing the tears away.

               “What do you mean? Stop loving me? Why?” he asked, his voice less alarmed than I would have expected it to be.

               “Because this will end. And I’ll end up crushed and destroyed!” I scream.

               “No! I promised we’d make this work! De, please! I need you so much right now,” he whispers, his voice breaking slightly at the end.

               “Deidre?” Nate’s voice drifts towards me and I jump up in shock. “Are you alright?” he asks, staring at me cautiously.

               “Yes,” I breathe, throwing a quick glance at the fireplace behind me. As I expected, Draco’s face had vanished. Perhaps I had imagined it after all?