𝐴𝑅𝑅𝐴𝑁𝐺𝐸𝐷 | 𝐷𝑀

~ T H I R T E E N ~

Huffing her way out of his room and slamming the door, Lilith was thankful she had the whole manor to yell in because her sister and her mother had left for Hogsmeade and her father was at work, like always.

She walked down the stairs and toward the door that led to the garden, wishing her father could have at least chosen someone other than Draco to marry. As she sat down on the grass and let it kiss the back of her legs from the blue skirt she was wearing, she had to remind herself the reason she was doing this for, and just when she was doing that, she felt someone sit down next to her.

"Jones," he said as he crossed one extended leg over the other.

"What?" Lilith hissed, glancing at him quickly. He was wearing the blue suit she had chosen for him, although it didn't look as formal as it had in his closet that day. 2/3 suits worn, 1 more to go.

He sighed at her attitude and decided to softly speak to her, as to not alter her mood, "Neither of us wanted this. We didn't choose each other, we didn't choose this path, but this is it. I'm sorry to tell you but it's true. We are both doing this for our families and whether we like it or not, we're it for each other," Draco stared at the trees ahead.

Lilith looked down on the grass and fiddled with it on her fingers, "I know," she brushed off the topic and soon went back to her charming ways, "So, let's ask each other questions and that way we'll get to know each other."

"Where's your sister?" Draco asked, looking around the garden, not wanting to push her to express her emotions with him because he wouldn't know what to do.

"She left for Hogsmeade with my mother this morning. She wants to ease my sister into not being around me all the time, you know? Especially since I will be going back to Hogwarts soon and then- and then you and I will be living together so I won't be seeing her everyday."

"Jones-"

"Alright, I'll go first. When did you find out we were getting married?"

Her change in topic surprised him but he played along. Draco expected her to ask at some point but was still taken back at how urgently she seemed to ask, "About two weeks before classes started."

"And why didn't you tell me?" Lilith was still playing with the grass, pretending not to be so curious.

"Because it wasn't for me to tell, Jones. This decision was made by our parents, so it would only be appropriate if my parents told me and yours told you, don't you think?"

"What I think doesn't matter," she muttered under her breath, "Your turn."

"How did you react when you found out? Were you sad?" Lilith immediately thought back to her father talking to her and she unconsciously brought her hand to her neck, where the necklace her father gave her was gracefully hanging.

"I wasn't sad, I was angry. I was angry my parents had my whole life planned out for me. I was angry I was never going to be able to choose who I wanted to marry. I was angry I wasn't going to be able to choose who to love," she smoothed out her last words, not wanting to shed a tear because she saw them as a weakness, "How did you react when you found out?"

"Obviously I was angry at my parents, my father especially, but I got over it when he threatened to take away my inheritance," just as Lilith was doing before, Draco was playing with the grass.

"So you chose an inheritance over a life you could shape for yourself? I would rather leave all of this," she gestured to the manor behind them, "and live my own life."

"You don't understand, Jones. It'd be easy for you, but it's different for me."

Lilith looked at Draco and furrowed her brows in confusion, "What do you mean?"

Draco further explained, "You weren't a death eater. Despite my family being pardoned, including my father, the world foremost sees me as someone who brought even more destruction to the wizarding world," there was a deafening and noticeable silence and after a couple of seconds, Draco spoke again, "Do you hate me, Jones? For everything I've done?"

Immediately Lilith responded, "Was it your choice?"

"No."

"Then no," she simply said and went back to looking down on the grass, "I would've done the same for my family, especially for my sister. I can't imagine waking up every morning knowing something could happen to them if I didn't do something. So, truly, I understand, and I don't hate you," once again, silence followed but this time it was comfortable, "Do you regret what you had to do?"

Confiding in her and expressing himself, he answered, "Yes and no."

Lilith stopped playing with the grass but didn't stare at him. Instead, she extended her legs and brought her back down to the grass while putting her arms under her head as a pillow, "What?"

Not wanting to be the only one sitting on the grass, Draco followed her actions and spoke gently, "Obviously I regret what I did but when I was going through all this shit, I learned who my real friends were, and I learned how words can have a huge impact on someone's life."

"Okay..." she urged him to continue.

"Blaise and Pansy were the only people who noticed I wasn't being myself so they would constantly check on me. They were- are the only 'friends' I have. Blaise even volunteered to help me with my tasks but I couldn't ask that of him or else I'd be placing him and his family in danger, and Pansy was there for me when I wanted to hurt myself," he took a deep breath and continued, "Actually, when I stopped acting like a 'snob' and stopped trying to one-up you, you asked me if I was okay. Whether you meant it or not, it felt comforting to know that I wasn't invisible to everyone. That's when I learned how asking someone if they were okay could go a long way."

"I- I'm sorry. I would've done something if I knew what you were going through," Lilith wanted to look at him but she didn't want to overwhelm him.

This time Draco was the one to change the subject, moving from talking about him to talking about her, "I am sorry about Blaise, you know, but he is my best friend and he deserves someone who could give them everything, and you and I can't do that for anyone else."

"I know." Lilith sighed in recognition, "Malfoy, do you hate me?"

"No," he answered right away and cleared his throat, "I don't. I've always just wanted to be the best at everything, so when I met you, I strived to beat you at anything I coud."

"I don't know what to say to that," she chuckled—the first smile she had shown since she saw Blaise.

"Jones, I met my match- my rival, in you." Lilith turned her head to look at Malfoy, his grey eyes ever so beautiful, "I think we should both feel honored."

"We are the best and smartest Slytherins, you know?" Lilith brought her arms to rub her eyes, "Everyone knows that."

Too busy trying to shield how tired she was, Lilith didn't realize Draco sat up on the grass, leaving her laying down, "We'd make a good team, Jones."

Lilith moved her hands away from her eyes and looked at Draco, who was already staring down at her with a grin, "You think so?"

Draco stood up and smoothed down his white t-shirt while patting down his grey sweatpants. When he was done fixing himself, he extended his hand for Lilith's arm to help her stand up, and she took it. Grabbing her by her elbow and Lilith's hand on Draco's upper arm, they were standing in front of each other. When Lilith had smoothed out her clothing, she looked up at Draco.

Draco was no longer holding unto her but he brought his hand to the side of her face and pushed her hair to her back as he stared into her green hues, "I know so."