Bones ⋆ Draco Malfoy (3)

| TEN: Goodbye / Good Night

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TEN GOODBYE / GOOD NIGHT

     THE TEACHERS, FOR THE NEXT few hours treat him oddly. Differently. Strangely. But, it's all gone by the evening, in terms of the teachers' treatment. Livvy figures that Barty's covered up for him. He doesn't know whether to feel relieved or the punch the dickhead for making his blood naturally boil at the thought of his sister.

     (Just that slight mention makes his bones jitter with anger. Livvy hates this. Livvy doesn't want this, Livvy doesn't want to hate his sister. He doesn't, deep down, but, his body's reacting with all of the negative emotions someone would have towards someone they hated so terribly.)

     He avoids his sister, for the most part. It's easy, really. Well. He's got a feeling that the avoidance is simple because every time he sees his sister, or his friends make some remark about her arrival, Livvy feels venom injecting into his blood, which — he's learnt — makes it even easier to sneak off and keep out of someone's way.

     One time, around second period, Livvy had been within a metre of Briar, but he had pushed out of the crowded corridor with the might of a madman. He doesn't think his sister noticed him, though. She was too busy talking about the Yule Ball with her newest best friend, Fleur. (He still doesn't get how Briar charmed a fucking Veela.)

     He wishes that he doesn't feel so angry towards his sister because, admittedly, he really needs her help. He doesn't understand anything about the golden egg he's gotten from the first task. Nights were being spent hold up in the library, and Livvy's still at square one.

     He sits in the same spot of the library again. Next to him, Draco's pacing around, the conclusion of his Potions essay yet to be scrawled, and his mind elsewhere. Livvy lets out a sigh. He thinks, I'm going to have to ask him out eventually, or else he'll settle on someone else.

     But, Livvy's still unsure about the whole thing. So, he looks at Draco, and he nonchalantly (nonchalantly) asks, "So, gotten a date yet?"

     "I think I'm going with Parkinson," Draco explains. Livvy's head fills up with thoughts around the lines of, bitch beat me! "Well, she asked, and I figured, if I wasn't asked by anyone else, I'd just go with her. Good deed of the year, I guess."

     Livvy narrows his eyes. "Is there someone you want to go with?"

     "I mean, yes, but, I'm certain Father won't approve, so," Draco explains, and he looks Livvy dead in the eye. "I don't think they'll ask, either, though."

     Accidentally (accidentally), Livvy mutters, "Your eyes are pretty."

     Draco frowns. "What?"

     Livvy blinks. "What?" After a minute of silence, Livvy says, "You could just ask this person out. They're a girl, right? Society kind-of makes it the boy's duty to ask out the girl, so, maybe that's why."

     For a minute, Draco looks at Livvy in both surprise and exasperation. Livvy isn't sure why. But, he shrugs it off, and he stands up, and he says, "I don't know. Ask them out, I guess."

     "What about you, then?" asks Draco.

     "Oh, I don't know," Livvy says. And, without thinking, he drawls, "I mean, a lot of the boys from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang have asked, but, I'm not sure. But, really, I thought, maybe it'll be easiest just to go with a girl, because — no fucking doubt — I'll get even more stares if I walk in with a boy as a date. Like, I'm open about this, but, like, I don't think everyone would know. And, I dunno. I don't want to be stared at, but, um," and he stops. And he thinks, I want to go (or get) with you.