"I'm so glad I went to Ibiza," Golda said as the trio looked at the rain as it hit the window. She had been telling Maurelle and Chester all about her family holiday as Chester mentioned she looked pretty tanned.
"I'm not, I had to spend the summer knitting with my grandmother cause both my friends, might I point out only friends- were on holiday."
"Hey, I only go on holiday once in a blue moon. I'm taking any chance I can get." Maurelle said.
"Yeah but I bet you spent most of the time locked away reading your new book," Golda said as she pointed to the book in Maurelle's hands.
The redhead only rolled her eyes and stood up. "I'm going to go get changed before this sweater suffocates me." She said motioning to the swamp of yarn her mother had mashed together and given to Maurelle before she left.
On her brothers, the sweater was form fitting and cozy, on Maurelle's frame it looked like someone had thrown a blanket on a stick. Ginny had also suffered the same fate.
"Don't get lost or die," Chester called out though he kept his focus on the game of exploding snap he was playing intensely with Golda.
Maurelle walked the length of the train until she reached the toilets and waited outside patiently when she saw it was occupied. It didn't take long before the door unlocked and Draco Malfoy exited, tightening his tie.
"Draco," Maurelle said in greeting and he nodded back.
"Maurelle." He said simply. A year ago if he would have used her name, she would have assumed it was because there was malicious intent behind it, however with all the long letters that had passed between them, he now said it casually in greeting. Of course, only if it was just him and her.
"You've changed your hair." She noted aloud, not meaning to speak her mind.
"Uh," He subconsciously touched the blonde strands that were no longer confined to his scalp. "Yeah, yeah I did." He coughed in awkwardness. "You, er, you've changed yours also. It's longer."
The redhead blinked in surprise. No one had noticed the subtle change in her appearance and if they did they didn't say anything, not even her brothers had noticed and the boy she hadn't seen for a couple of months took all of a minute to realize.
She couldn't fault others for not noticing as she had grown it from the chin length bob her mother hacked it into, to a length that barely brushed her shoulders.
"Did you like the book?" Maurelle asked in a quieter tone and he nodded.
"Yes, thank you for sending it to me. I have been meaning to give you a new one."
Over the summer, after Draco had gifted her with a book he had in his library at home, Maurelle allowed him to borrow her copy of Romeo and Juliet. He hadn't known it was a muggle book until he read it but he hadn't made any complaints to her about it. After that, they continued to send each other books they have enjoyed. It was something between them that no one knew of and the pair were happy to keep it that way.
"Perhaps later-"
Maurelle's words were cut off when she was lurched forwards into Draco, him grabbing onto her arms as they fell into the door of the toilets behind him. The train came to a halt with a loud screech and the two looked at each other in concern.
They watched as the window beside them became blurry, a layer of ice grew steadily over it and blocked their view of the outside. Draco's grip on her arms tightened. Something was out there and whatever it was, it was boarding the train.
