yellow ribbon | a harry potter fanfiction

hands full of chocolate

WINTER WAS SUCH MAGICAL MONTHS, even for Muggles. Wendy has always loved the beautiful moments the last few months of the year brought her; with Halloween and Christmas. In the world of wizards and witches seemed that these two holidays were praised in volume. Wendy thought that the banquets each night were already grand, but she found herself completely blown after experiencing the Halloween feast.

She took what's probably her last strawberry of the night and dipped it in the melted dark chocolate, observing the beauty of it. The contrast of the two opposing colours and tastes made it one of the best desserts in history. The care took to cultivate the sweet strawberry together with the hard work of making the fine and smooth dark chocolate came together to make one simple thing.

"Wasn't it great?"

Wendy looked behind her to find the silver boy—Draco Malfoy.

"Didn't pin you for a Halloween type." She smiled welcoming the boy at the table.

Draco looked at the empty seat next to the girl and grimace showed on his face. With his hands in his pockets, he stayed composed where he stood, "No, thank you—Wouldn't want to stain my clothes with Gryffindor dirt."

The girl just laughed at his comment, not really taking him seriously. The young Malfoy frowned, not expecting such a positive reaction to his insult. He usually receives insults back, little kids crying, or his friends backing him up with other insults.

"Right, Ron does get messy when he eats; I'm sure some bits of his food are still on our seats."

Draco kept looking at the girl, the sensation that she was out of place still haunted him. Not the same kind that he had thinking of muggle-borns in Hogwarts. He looked at her head to toe, hair in two braids tied with flamey red ribbons. Her face was bright and happy, the same glow that most Gryffindors seemed to have. He couldn't help but notice her eyes, they were plain brown, but something in them sparkled in energy that managed to warm him up whole, with just one look.

"How are you finding Hogwarts?" He found himself asking, as he wanted to make small talk.

Wendy looked at him with amusement, Harry Potter's rival interested on how her accommodations were going. She was confused but answered anyways, "I quite like it actually, and I never really thanked you for taking me to the hospital."

Draco was caught by surprise, he remembers quite clearly when he found the girl in the Hogwarts Express. Not once, he was expecting her to know that it was him who attended her.

"There's no need—I got a scare for a second finding a stranger unconscious, but I'm glad you're looking better." He smiled for the first time.

"Feeling better too!"

Draco nodded slightly. He really was happy to see her better. He longed in his position for a little while longer, searching for something to say back. Wendy kept her smile waiting for him to respond or finally sit beside her, but she knew her expectations were too high. She was left a bit surprised when he tugged his hands out and offered his right hand out. She looked at him, unsure of what to do, but seeing his hand out there she thought of the most natural act she could do at that moment and took it.

Draco shook her hand just once and turned around to walk away, whispering a stiff "Bye."

Wendy was left in her seat and observed the boy walking away. She looked down at her hand that was left too, hanging out. She chuckled at the boy and turned back at the last few assortment of sweets and candies left behind by the other Gryffindors, who were headed back to the Common Room.

Draco, on the other hand, couldn't believe what he just did. After seeing Harry Potter and his Gryffindor group staring at him from the big doors of the Great Hall, he fastened his pace. Not feeling like indulging himself into the Halloween Feast any longer, he decided to head back into the dormitory, but not before looking over his shoulder to see Wendy reunited with her Gryffindor friends.

Something about her seemed so out of place, like she wasn't supposed to be there and somehow he felt like she knew it too. Intrigued by the mystery of the new girl, Draco observed her in the last few weeks. She was friends with Potter and his friends but she also seemed to keep her distance, for some odd reason.

The dungeons were quite a cold place and the Slytherin Common Room was no exception, giving a view to the depts of the nearby lake. But there was some warmth he could feel that Halloween night. It comforted him in the dark parts of the castle. His whole body cold from winter and his right hand near the heat of a crinkling fireplace. A little tingle from the tips of his fingertips, he stretched his hand to sweep off from him. The hand he held Wendy's with.

---

"What did Malfoy say to you?" Harry asked impatiently.

Wendy shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly, pondering whether or not she should tell him about it. She knew the rivalry between the two was high, especially during that year as the Malfoy's would be the cause of the death sentence of an innocent magical creature Harry learned to love and respect.

"Just asked me about my health, that's all."

"Why would he care?" Ron seemed genuinely confused, and Wendy noticed how she never told anyone that it was Draco who found her in the train.

"He was the one who found me and brought me to the hospital—I think he was just," she paused searching for a better word, but settled for—"curious."

Wendy started to walk towards their Common Room leaving the Golden Trio, the twins, and the only Weasley girl behind. Fred and George knew about her situation but Wendy never mentioned about this little fact, leaving them just as startled as the others were. They all followed up and started asking her questions and details of the incident.

"Was that why he wasn't there during the first night in the Great Hall?" Hermione asked.

"Is that why he wasn't in class the day you arrived either?" This question was from Harry.

"How come he was the one who found you?" Ginny finally spoke.

All six of them didn't give enough time for Wendy to answer any of their questions. She just sighed and regretted telling them of the events of that night, but she didn't want to lie to her friends. She walked back to her room with the group behind her still asking questions and making up their own answers.

The six Gryffindors seated in the couches of the Gryffindor Common Room discussing about Draco Malfoy, forgetting that they were actually asking Wendy questions. They all were catching glances from passing Gryffindors, who could only guess what the was the Slytherin's latest hit. This allowed Wendy to enter the girl's dormitory and get ready for bed. She untied her braids and put down her red ribbons on the nightstand beside her bed together with the many others she had.

"You should be careful, Wendy, Malfoy is not a friend of ours." Hermonie told her before falling asleep.

Wendy thought about her words. She didn't believe Draco to be an bad person; people weren't evil per se. Hate was taught and Wendy knew she could teach Draco differently. The strawberry chocolate is a very simple concept, like love and family. The works and care behind it made it a much sweeter dessert than it already is. Draco just needed a bit of that.