Hiraeth // draco malfoy

ELEVEN.2

slytherin v. gryffindor

Ophelia had been walking past the Gryffindor table in the Great Hall when she overheard Hermione discussing the subject of Slughorn's upcoming Christmas Party for the members of the Slug Club. "We're supposed to bring a date." She informed her friends and Ophelia stopped in her spot, leaning forward onto their table, curiously. Her interest had been peaked.

"Wait, is that a requirement?" She asked Hermione, before looking to Harry with a worried expression. "I thought it was just a suggestion?"

"No, didn't you hear?" Hermione asked kindly. "Slughorn specifically instructed that we must bring a plus-one."

"Shit." Ophelia groaned, leaning forward onto her arm, before looking up at Ron's plate and snatching a piece of bacon off of it. Ron's mouth practically dropped as she plopped it into her own.

"Bloody hell, Ophelia! That was my last one!" Ron shouted while Harry covered his face as laughter erupted out of him.

"Fred told me to keep you on your toes." She shrugged with a wide smile before prancing off to the Slytherin table and sliding onto the bench beside Pansy.

"What was that about?" Theo asked, sounding a bit sour over the fact that Ophelia still associated with the golden trio of Hogwarts.

"Apparently, we're required to bring a date to Slughorns Christmas party." She rolled her eyes at Blaise.

"Yes, I know. Were you not listening?" He asked, somewhat shocked.

"Apparently not!" She leaned her head on the table. "You wanna go with me?" She looked at him, with begging eyes.

"Sorry, already got a date, love." Blaise smirked, looking over at Pansy in indication.

"Fuck." She groaned.

"Why not just ask Draco?" Theo wondered aloud, and she glared up at him. "What?"

"I do not need that confusion in my life right now. Draco and I don't need to get our wires crossed by being dates for something. We're strictly friends, and we can't push those boundaries yet." She told him, and he raised his hands in self defense.

"Because we all kiss our friends." Pansy mumbled under her breath and Ophelia shot a sharp glare in her direction.

"I should have never told you that." Ophelia sneered, as Draco entered the Great Hall and found his seat beside Theo. Everyone grew quiet, and he glanced at all of them, confused.

"What?" He asked. They all shrugged, looking away from him and not wanting to bring it up. Draco was the one with the least sense of humor, and if he were the one being discussed, it usually didn't go over too well.

"You ready for the match?" Blaise suddenly asked as Ophelia beamed, enthusiastically.

"You know, as much as I hate to admit it, Harry kind of fucked up not having McLaggen on his team." She told them and Pansy let out a loud laugh.

"Defending your boyfriend, yeah?" She asked and Ophelia glared over at her.

"Okay, seriously enough." She groaned. "I'm just saying he's a far better keeper than Weasley." They all stared at her with wide smirks across their faces. Even Draco was finding the humor in it now that he realized she was actually repulsed by Cormac and his obnoxious ego.

"You've got a point there, Pierce. He definitely knows what he's doing." Theo agreed with a nod, before shoveling food into his mouth.

"Oh, Potter and his biases." Pansy commented while Blaise snickered.

— — —

Slytherin was doing great up until Ron suddenly had a burst of confidence and hit practically every bludger Ophelia and the other beater sent his way. Ophelia was getting angry. It wasn't that Ron was a terrible quidditch player, it was simply the fact that he wasn't the best. And somehow he managed to make this the game that he excelled in and it was driving Ophelia mad. Her pent up frustrations were beginning to show obviously to all of her friends. Each time she hit the bludger, she had unintentionally developed a habit of aiming it at Ron's face. Granted, because he was doing so well for himself, he was doing a fine job warding them off. This only infuriated Ophelia more, as her teammates, too, we're furious.

She knew she could win this game. Even with Ron on his streak of brilliant plays, she could easily have the bludger swerve around him inconspicuously just to go through. She was tempted, honestly, and maybe she would have. But her morals were holding her back. She wanted to win the game because she was good, not because she had the powers to do so. Any other Slytherin would probably take advantage of the gift she has, but her mother taught her otherwise.

Her eyes drifted over to the crowd, as she noticed Pansy and Theo watching from the stands. Beside them, was Draco. She was somewhat surprised to see he actually showed, and she couldn't help but smile to herself a little. His lips curled into a small smirk at her as he rose a brow, and the redness in her cheeks was beginning to radiate a low heat. She felt a sense of nostalgia for when he used to cheer her on, and she was needless to say thrilled that he had come. Even with their weird dynamic being so confusing, Draco had undoubtedly held a place in her heart. And seeing him caused a surge of butterflies to flush through her stomach. Oh, God, she thought to herself, her feelings for Malfoy were once again returning. And she wasn't entirely sure how to feel about that.

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a/n: hiii my loves. I'm so sorry, ive been in and out of the hospital for the past two weeks (i have crohn's disease) and then after i got home, managed to catch a pretty nasty cold. so i apologize for the delay in updating!! im working on writing more chapters, while also working on my blog and novel, so its been hectic. I know this chapter isnt very long or the best lol but i wanted to at least get something out there for you guys. But ily all & thank you for being understanding🫶🤍