A Child Of Darkness : A Draco Malfoy fanfic

26. A penmanship of luck

"I found you!"

Eleonora looked up from her book, greeting the boy as he rushed towards her bench. Cedric heaved a sigh as he extended his hand out towards her.

"Tear a page off your book", he asked.

Her green eyes had never grown wider and Eleonora hugged her book closer to her in defense.
"I'm not tearing my book".

"Oh come on", Cedric complained, laughing at the girl. "Just a tiny piece. The length of my finger". He held up his pinky to convince the girl.

Fawley sighed and flipped her note book to the last page. She ripped the corner off and held out the paper to the boy. "It better not be a stupid reason".

"Now write my name on it", Cedric instructed, crossing his arms in extreme focus.

"What".

"Just do it. You'll understand later".

Eleonora groaned but took out her quill and dipped it in the ink next to her without the need for a second instruction.
"What will it be? Cedric the twat Diggory?"

"Funny". Cedric placed his hands on his hips. "Just Cedric Diggory will do".

Eleonora scribbled the words on the paper quickly and held it out to him. The older boy took it and smiled wide.
"Right come on. Let's go put my name in the cup".

The girl smacked her book on the bench and words were caught in her throat as she attempted to make sense of it. "You're joining the Games?", she asked quietly.

"Hmm". He inspected the paper, a wide smile growing at the handwriting. "And I got it written by you for good luck".

Eleonora frowned, her gaze moving from the boy to the paper and back to the boy. She chuckled, shaking her head in disapproval. "I don't know if you haven't noticed but I don't exactly have a lot of luck".

Cedric smiled, dismissing her claim with a wave of his hand. "Come on!".

•••◇•••

"I hoped you were joking". Her words fell on deaf ears as the cheering from his friends masked her words.
Eleonora watched from afar, drawn by the blue flame that arose from the cup placed in the Great Hall. She watched Cedric walk past the Age line with no problem and as the paper disappeared into the flame, cheers arose from the group. Girls crowded around him, shouting out his name in awe and excitement. Cedric looked right at Eleonora, smiling wide and pointing at her.

The girl gave him a thumbs up as he was hauled out of the great hall by his friends, no doubt to celebrate his admission. Eleonora sighed and made her way to the girl she had noticed before.
She slumped down on the bench next to her, staring blankly at the flame.

"Not very happy about him joining?", Hermione asked, turning to face the girl.
Eleonora shrugged, still looking at the cup. "Just worried that's all".
"The triwizard tournament's history isn't exactly all positive", she added, leaning against the wall.

Hermione bit her lip, unsure of what to say but Eleonora smiled her way, indicating that Granger did not have to say anything.

The two watched as more students from the 3 schools entered their names, accompanied by cheers and some jealous cries.

The Weasleys had caused a scene in the middle of all that, attempting to fool the Age line that Dumbledore had personally cast. They had been quite foolish and Eleonora hadn't thought twice to voice her thoughts, as had Hermione.
But Fred and George had only dismissed it and immediately after, the two had sprouted white hair and beards setting off the crowd into fits of laughter.

"Told you", Eleonora mumbled and Hermione agreed with a chuckle. She watched the senior versions of the Weasley twins be accompanied by their friends out of the hall, leaving behind howls of laughter that was audible for some time since they left through the doors.

Eleonora leaned back, watching the students wander around the hall in groups. Some stared longingly at the blue flame while others engaged in animated conversations about the age limit. Unified cheers arose as some garnered enough courage to enter their names in the cup. The cycle seemed to repeat as Eleonora continued to stare blankly at the crowd.

The arrival of a group of Durmstrang boys however caught her attention. And she wasn't the only one. With none other than Viktor Krum leading the pack, students in the hall paused whatever they had been doing to stare at them. Excited whispers rose among the crowd and Eleonora crossed her arms as she watched the boy walk confidently to the cup.
Her gaze fell on the squealing girls surrounding him. Groups of students from all the schools followed behind, ready to pounce on the handsome lad.
The corner of her lips raised in amusement at the sight. Krum definitely did not pay any attention to them nor did the other boys from Durmstrang as they watched Krum walk past the Age line.

Eleonora inspected each one of them. Their manner and dress was successful in giving out a strong aura and it drew her in. They were no doubt, handsome, in ways that several of Hogwarts boys were not. It was a conversation she had shared with Ginny the night before in the Gryffindor common room. The memory brought a smile as she continued to watch the boys. One Durmstrang student had been scanning the hall. 

When his gaze had met that of Eleonora's, the girl smiled which the boy genuinely returned. He turned back to look at Krum, instantly giving him a firm handshake in congratulations.
The boy turned to look at Eleonora again, nodding his head in acknowledgement. The girl smiled in reply as the group headed out of the hall.