𝐃𝐄𝐀𝐑𝐁𝐎𝐑𝐍 | Draco Malfoy

24: Umbridge

CHAPTER 24: Umbridge

It was her first night back in Hogwarts, and she couldn't sleep.

She should've seen it coming, really. After all, a few months away doesn't exactly change the fact that the last time she'd been in Hogwarts grounds, Cedric had died. She shouldn't be surprised that every time she tried to sleep, her mind would bring back memories of that night.

And perhaps that's how she found herself in the Hogwarts kitchens once more, in dark grey joggers and Fred's jumper, huddled under the same window her and Cedric had shared the night before the final task. Back then, she hadn't known it would be the last time she'd get to spend time with her friend.

She stared out of the window with a hot mug of tea between her hands, staring at the darkness that shrouded the Hogwarts grounds. The House Elves had gone to sleep, leaving her alone in the dimly lit kitchens, only the sound of the wind keeping her company.

She still hadn't spoken to Fred; not yet. She wasn't exactly avoiding him, but she did rush out of the Great Hall the second the feast was over, dragging Daphne and Theo down to the dungeons so she could calm down and stop thinking about the damn Weasley.

It was fine. Everything was going to be fine once she got a chance to speak to him, but it didn't make things any less intimidating. Of course she was excited to see him, but she was also scared of what everything meant. Because what if his silence over the summer was because he realised he didn't want to date a Bisset?

She huffed, taking a long sip of her tea. She loved the power that came with a high-class powerful family; that was something that she could never deny, not really. Did it make her a bad person? Maybe. But it meant that she was in control, that she could make decisions no one would dare question. That Fred would never question, and that unsettled her a little.

She made a decision. Tomorrow, at breakfast, she'd march herself to the Gryffindor table, sit down next to her boyfriend, and talk to him. Daphne would be proud of her, she was sure, and Theo would probably be unfazed at her sudden burst of confidence.

"Madeline Bisset is not a coward," Madeline whispered to herself, rubbing the rim of the mug, "Because she can't be. I'm not allowed to be afraid. Never again."

◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌

It was surprisingly easy to creep her way back to the Slytherin common room. No one wandered the halls at night, not on the first day and after a feast that big, but she still proceeded with caution, only removing her invisibility cloak outside the Slytherin entrance.

"Salamander," Madeline whispered, the door opening easily as she folded the robe between her hands.

She'd decided to try and get at least a couple of hours of sleep for her first day. Hell, she'll need them for when she faces Fred, and the series of classes she'll have to face after. Honestly, the idea of her comfy Slytherin bed was becoming more and more inviting-

"You're up late."

Madeline shrieked at the voice, jumping half a foot in the air as her hand flew to her chest. She looked at the blonde boy on the Slytherin sofa with wide eyes, glaring as she tried to catch her breath.

"What the hell?!" Madeline huffed, "Warn a girl next time you're going to lurk around in the dark, will you?"

Draco shrugged, closing the book in his lap. The fireplace was on, a low fire barely illuminating the small space of the sofas. Draco was still dressed in his Hogwarts uniform, but his robes had been discarded, leaving him in his white shirt and slacks, the Slytherin tie hanging loosely from his neck. His hair wasn't dishevelled, but it wasn't styled in his usual meticulous look. Madeline realised the boy hadn't even gone to bed.