A Badger and a Snake: Draco Malfoy x Hufflepuff

9. Luna's Wise Words

"Oh my gosh!" I yelp. He uses our already intertwined fingers to pull me to the stairs. We both cover our heads with our other arms and descend as quickly as possible. Something falls behind me and I trip. Draco grabs my arm and pulls me farther.

"Why is it falling down?" I yell at him, my voice still strained.

"How should I know?" he yells back.

We finally make it out and Professor Dumbledore and Professor Umbridge are waiting for us. "What on earth were you doing, Miss Brown?" says Umbridge in that shrill voice of hers.

I look at Draco confused at why she was just asking me, but he doesn't say anything so I respond with tears in my eyes. "Nothing Professor. We were just talking and all of the sudden, the tower started to crumble on our heads." I look to Professor Dumbledore. "Why did this happen?" I ask him desperately.

He notices my tear filled eyes and my blotchy red face and then quickly avoids my eyes. "Both of you go straight to bed," he tells us.

"Hold on," says Umbridge. "We must punish them."

"That will not be necessary. They've done nothing wrong," he tells her.

"You don't know that!" she argues.

"Yes, I do," he says firmly. "Both of you go back to your rooms at once. And Alyssa," he says.

"Yes?" I ask.

"Please see me in my office tomorrow after dinner."

"Yes, Professor," I answer and look down. I don't know why Draco doesn't have to because we were both there, but Umbridge is happy with this solution.

"Yes," she says. "Go back to your rooms at once."

I'm still breathing heavy when I turn around. "Why is it only me that has to go to his office?" I ask Draco as we walk to our respective dormitories.

"I don't know," he answers. "But I suppose you'll find out tomorrow."

"I suppose." I nod. He doesn't say anything about what happened in the tower.
----
I lay in bed that night with such an awful feeling in my gut. I don't cry because all of my tears are dry.

I hear Gen, Hannah, and Daisy come in at different times but I pretend to be sleeping for each of them. I doubt Gen even knows that I know.

The next morning, I wake up before everyone else. I use this as a perfect chance to get a shower, get ready, and go to breakfast before Gen tries to speak to me. I quickly get changed into my clothes after my warm shower and rush to the Great Hall, but not before peeking a look at the astronomy tower. It's completely back to normal. Perks of magic, I guess.

There aren't many people awake at all, so I eat in silence. I can't help but think about Cara. I wish she were here to tell me how to deal with this. She would probably assure me that they didn't mean any harm, and I probably wouldn't believe her. I decide to write her a letter about everything after my meeting with Dumbledore tonight.

"Oh, crap," I say suddenly. After everything that happened yesterday, I totally forgot to study for the potions exam. I studied a little the day before yesterday but I really had planned to do the bulk yesterday.

I stand up and pace back and forth. I fish out my potions textbook and open on the table. I start muttering the steps under my breath.

"Relax, Brown," I hear Draco say behind me. "We all know that you're an insufferable know-it-all. You'll get top marks, easy."

I whip around, confused about his sudden change of behavior. "What?" I ask, but then notice the congregation of Slytherins behind him. Ah.

"Oh come on. You're worse than the Mudblood Granger. You always have to be right." He sneers.
I decide to use some of my newfound confidence on him. Just a little, though. "Sod off, Malfoy." I tell him. I see him flash me a quick smile before covering it up with a smirk and an eye roll. I see. This is a test.

I smirk back. "Male ligabis," I mutter under my breath and point my wand at his shoes. The laces from both of his shoes come untied and then wrap themselves around each other, making Draco unable to walk.

He takes a step towards me and then trips. Pansy grabs on to him and then he sneers at me. "I'll get you for this, Brown!" he yells as I run away.

I giggle the whole way to Potions, my mind completely off the exam. I'll do fine.

The exam comes and goes and Draco is right, I get perfect marks. I make sure to give him an appreciative look before I head on to my next class.

Before dinner, I decide to head out to the lake. I've successfully avoided Gen all day and I haven't even seen the twins.

I sit serenely watching the smooth waves as they tumble around each other. Water and forests have always been so calming to me. I love the beauty of nature.

I lay down for a while just listening to the noises of the world around me. Then, I feel a presence beside me. I roll over to see Luna taking a seat next to me.

"A beautiful day, isn't it?" she asks me.

I smile. "Yes it is."

"Are you avoiding Gen, now?" she wonders.

"Yeah, a little. She doesn't know that I know. If I'm around her, I'll probably forget and go back to my usual self. It's so hard to be mad," I admit.

Luna looks at me with a small smile. "It's okay to not be angry, Alyssa. It's okay to just be hurt."

I sigh in relief. "Thank you," I tell her. I needed that.

She pats my shoulder and stands up. "I better head to dinner then. Are you coming?"

"No," reply. "I'm not that hungry right now."

She leaves and I decide that I might as well head to Dumbledore's office now. There's no harm in being early.