the malfoy boy

II

"Riverwood." Abraxas Malfoy stood in the carriage doorway with a pleasant smile on his face. After the shock of being partnered with someone of such a tainted name, he finally calmed down enough to put his persona back on. The persona that smiled at people, complimented them, charmed them with a silver tongue.

He had stared at his reflection over the last couple of days, wondering if this was his life now. Engaged to a Riverwood. And it was. There was nothing more he could do about it. It's not like he was particularly fond of any of the 7 in the program anyways, but he would've done well to be partnered at least with someone in his house. Aside from that wretched MacKenzie and her Gobstones obsession. And that Thompson whose tongue never left Nott's tonsils. Not to mention Abbott undoubtedly would've spent every last Knut in the Malfoy name. That just left Gonzalez who definitely would've talked less than Riverwood but also would've made a rather boring partner.

No, he supposed he couldn't have done much better in the program lottery than Riverwood. He had no interest in either Ravenclaw girl, and though Posani wouldn't have been bad, Dune would've ruined his name for sure. Riverwood was probably the best of the lot. Her family tree branched out far into Muggle territory, with plenty of half-blood branches, but the pure-blood line? Merlin, Abraxas had heard stories about the lineage of Riverwood. There were great duelists, brilliant inventors, high-brow officiants, and everything in between. Their biggest downfall was their honesty and acceptance. Many met their untimely demise because they refused to compromise their integrity to join the winning side. Some branches simply went so far into Muggle territory that eventual heirs of that line were deemed "muggle born".

"Hello, Malfoy!" Joey's friends were giggling at him again. They tended to do that, and he doubted he would ever get used to it. He was well aware of the effect he had on people around him, but that didn't mean he had to like it. He nodded to them in greeting and turned his gaze back to his intended.

"Good afternoon, Malfoy," she greeted him with a smile. That damned smile again. He was ready for it this time, knowing just how smiley and chipper she was. It had taken him by surprise at the assigning. She had looked so peaceful before the ceremony started that he had fooled himself into believing she wasn't the chatty girl he had seen over the last 5 years, that she was wearing a persona just like him. And then he spent more than 4 minutes with her and realised that she wore her entire heart on her sleeve.

"Tom has asked me to invite you for tea," Abraxas said. She looked at the other girls, including the other Hufflepuffs he didn't recognise and a Ravenclaw. They all giggled, and she shushed them as she stood up. She was in a black t-shirt that was tucked into green, high-waisted jeans. It was a simple look, but it looked good on her.

"Lead the way!" she beamed at him. He wanted to roll his eyes at her enthusiasm but instead just turned and did as asked. She followed him with that stupid walk she did when she was clearly pleased about something and had a destination in mind. Her steps were long to match his, and her arms dramatically swung at her sides. A stupid little smirk was on her face, and she was matching his every step. A student came stumbling out of a noisy carriage in front of them, and Abraxas had to stop in his tracks to avoid being touched by the child's sticky hands. The kid looked up at him with wide eyes as Joey crashed into him from behind. He squeaked an apology and darted back into his carriage to the sounds of laughter, muffled as the door closed behind him. Abraxas turned and looked at Joey, who looked up at him sheepishly. "Sorry..."

Abraxas sighed lightly and continued walking, this time with her walking normally behind him, if not a little crestfallen. They made it to the dining carriage that his friends were sitting in, and he offered her the inner seat of their side of the booth before he sat down beside her. Their booth found her and Abraxas on one side, Tom and Avery on the other. There were other booths taken by their group, not that Abraxas cared. He was more focused on making sure none of them harassed Joey. She was an easy target, a smiley Hufflepuff and all. Plus, she was his intended, his fiancee. She was going to be his wife. And nobody disrespected the Malfoys.