Beneath Her Skin

Chapter Three

The bags were prominent under Alastriona's eyes.
So much so that Finn wanted to order her to go back to bed but he knew she needed to see her friends today.
"Alastriona--" He said, catching her just before she walked into the fireplace. He sighed heavily and just drew her in to his arms, hugging her and trying not to hurt her. He kissed the top of her head and watched as she followed after Darcy, the two girls disappearing in the green flames.

Alastriona walked out of the fireplace and into the Zabini Manor sitting room.
Darcy hadn't waited for her. Things had been weird between them since Alastriona had unintentionally confessed what Cedric's final words had been and it was taking its toll on her, she wasn't used to fighting with Darcy and she was struggling to deal with the guilt that had taken up permanent residence in her head.

Alastriona breathed in deeply before continuing on through the now familiar mansion. When she made her way past the immaculate kitchen and through the back doors she stepped foot onto the lush green acreage that belonged to Adelaide Zabini.

Alastriona took a few steps forward and watched Darcy reunite with their friends.
Dawn had come back from Romania early to see them all, and Theo was currently messing with her as Blaise gave Darcy a hug.
Tears brewed in Alastriona's eyes.

'What will they say if they find out how much I've lied?' Alastriona asked herself.

Alastriona shook her head and turned around, she couldn't be here, she wasn't ready--
"Draco." The name fell from her lips in a breathless gasp.

He was standing just outside the door. Alastriona always found it odd to see him in jeans and a sweater instead of the usual Hogwarts uniform but she never had any complaints about it and seeing him now made her heart stutter.

Draco must've arrived just after Alastriona and he'd stepped out and was just watching her watch their friends. Creepy, maybe, but there was something off, she was tense. He winced as he saw her hands curl into fists and her nails dig into her palms, they were shaking.

When she turned around he didn't know what to do. The dark circles beneath her eyes, the slouch in her shoulders, he had no idea what was going on inside her and all he wanted to do was take away her pain.

Draco barely heard her say his name. He took long strides to arrive in front of her and when he did her arms snaked up and around his neck.
His arms curled around her waist and he picked her up, holding her close to him, her red locks were tickling his face but it didn't bother him in the slightest, he was finally home.

Alastriona sat on the grass with her head on Draco's lap, smiling easily as she listened to another of Dawn's dragon sanctuary tales.

Theo waited not even a second after she pulled her sleeve back down, covering her newest burn mark, he had to know.
"Please! Tell us about the Weasley!" He begged.

Dawn laughed but it didn't reach her eyes. "His name is Charlie, Theo." She replied evenly. "And there's nothing to tell. I know how he feels and he knows how I feel but nothing will happen anytime soon."

Darcy groaned at the same time Theo did and they both rolled their eyes.
"Why?" Darcy asked, they all stared at Dawn.

"We've both decided to wait until I permanently move there. That way our parents will accept it easier." Dawn replied, cracking her knuckles, a habit she'd recently picked up.

Blaise was confused. "I don't understand. You're both of age, you could even move to Romania now if you wanted to." He stated.

Dawn nodded. "In the wizarding world, yes. My mum is muggle-born and seventeen in the Muggle world isn't legal age for anything, besides her and my dad would be so upset if I left Hogwarts before graduating. So, Charlie and I can just continue being friends for now and then once I move to Romania we'll see if there's anything there."

Darcy's nose scrunched up. "So you just have to shove your feelings down?" Darcy questioned, the distaste evident in her voice.

Dawn shrugged and just said, "It's not so bad." She smiled at Theo, "Have you and Katie Bell talked at all?" She asked, wiggling her eyebrows at him.

Theo scoffed and shook his head. "No, no. We're just mates."

"You were found in a broom closet at the Yule Ball!" Draco guffawed at him.

"Well, yeah..." Theo admitted, "But neither of us wants anything serious so we're just... messing around a little."

Alastriona couldn't help but giggle at this. "Imagine if we'd told you a couple years ago that you'd be 'messing around' with a Gryffindor."

The others laughed at this and Theo shook his head, "I try not to think about Gryffindor when I'm with her." He shuddered but the smirk on his face let everyone know how much he'd changed over the years.

Draco ran his hand through Alastriona's soft curls. He hadn't felt this calm in what felt way longer than the weeks he'd been away from her.

"Not to ruin what is a borderline perfect day," Theo began, probably on his way to ruin a borderline perfect day, "but are we going to talk about You-Know-Who?"

His question had an instant effect. Draco's calmness vanished and his hand left Alastriona's hair to go to her shoulder as he felt her tense up.

Darcy cleared her throat and shuffled uncomfortably on her spot on the grass. "What about him? There hasn't been any news, nothing reported in the Dailey Prophet and the Ministry hasn't said anything." She stated, she didn't want anyone to suggest otherwise.

Dawn huffed and crossed her arms over her chest. "That's just because the Ministry is lying and they're influencing the news." She was adamant about it. Charlie had told her so and he'd been in contact with Professor Dumbledore, but he wouldn't tell her how.

Darcy sighed heavily and a tired look came upon her face. "I just think that if You-Know-Who was back that there would be some big events happening or you know... a lot of missing people and deaths, like last time."

Draco's body tensed up when Alastriona sat up. She'd been off all day and Draco had been on the receiving end of her rage enough times to recognise that the twitching of her hands was never a sign of good things to come.

"Then what happened to Cedric?" Alastriona asked, words soft and quiet. "If You-Know-Who isn't back then why would Professor Dumbledore say he was? Why would Harry say he was?"
She met Darcy's intense stare. The others sat in silence, unsure of where this was headed, Darcy and Alastriona, to their knowledge, never fought and it was hard to watch even this.
"I know it's scary to think that You-Know--" Alastriona scoffed and rolled her eyes, "Voldemort, is back." Her friends flinched at the name. "It's terrifying to admit but it's true. Voldemort is back and he killed Cedric. The Ministry is scared and they're lying to us. But Professor Dumbledore and Harry, they know the truth, Harry saw Voldemort with his own eyes."
Alastriona dropped her eyes to her hands, unable to stop the slight trembling that was present. Draco reached over and took her hands in his.

Alastriona looked up at her friends again. "Everything is going to change now." She said. "Nothing will be like it was."
And they all knew, Draco, Theo, Darcy, Blaise, Dawn, they all knew she was right.