Alastriona Breen and Draco Malfoy were fighting and it was as clear as day to everyone inside Hogwarts. "I don't understand why you can't simply tell me what's going on." Darcy Mint huffed at her best friend, for the last week she'd been trying to get Alastriona to talk to her about her problems with Draco but the girl just wouldn't say anything.
Alastriona groaned and shut the book she'd been trying to read. The two were sitting in the library, a place Alastriona thought she could get some peace and quiet. "It's between Draco and I, Darcy." She said with a large sigh.
Darcy scoffed, "This is Hogwarts, Little Red, it's between you, Draco and everyone else who goes here." She had a fair point, the entire school was switching between gossiping about the drama between Draco and Alastriona and the Tri-Wizard Tournament which was set to end in just weeks.
Alastriona dropped her head against the table and groaned. "I just need time to—"
"What, time away from Draco?" Darcy asked, slightly panicked.
Alastriona's head popped up. "What? No! Of course not!" She let out another groan and ran a hand across her tired face. Merlin, she was tired. From the top of her head to the tips of her toes she was exhausted and she just wanted to be able to pause everything so she could just stop and think.
"This year has been horrible." She said quietly before looking across to her best friend. "Think about it: the Quidditch World Cup, Theo's mum passed away and he moved in with Blaise, Harry getting pulled into the tournament, Mad-Eye Moody somehow being both a good and horrible professor, everything that happened at the Great Lake..." She leaned forward on the table, "Darcy, I'm so tired. I just want to stop and rest and it doesn't seem like a possibility."
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Alastriona headed into the Great Hall for breakfast on the morning of the final task with Draco hot on her tail.
He grabbed her hand and pulled her closer to the wall so they could talk without being overheard. "Red, please, I don't like that we're fighting—"
Alastriona pulled her hand away from him but stayed standing with him. "I don't like it either, but I'm not ready to tell them yet—"
"You told me." Draco interrupted. "I know it wasn't easy to do it but telling them the truth is what they deserve and you deserve that too, it'll set your mind at ease." He pleaded with her.
"I was backed into a corner, Draco, I wasn't ready to tell you but if I hadn't you probably would've found out from your parents." Alastriona admitted, the hurt in Draco's storm grey eyes weighed heavily in her heart. "If I tell them the truth then I'm admitting to lying to them for the last four years. If I tell them then it opens up questions about my mother, what she was like, what she did and all the people she's hurt. I can't handle those questions, Draco," he went to interrupt but she continued on before he could, "and what if they learn of her and start judging me and my actions based off her? You can't deny that I've changed, Draco." She shook her head, her arms folded across her chest. "I've changed and if they learn the truth they may believe I'm turning into her." Her voice cracked. "Even the thought of that makes everything in me ache." She sniffed and wiped away a stray tear.
