after dusk - draco malfoy

vii. | seven

THE FIRST WEEK OF SCHOOL HAD finished, meaning it was finally the weekend. I had been looking forward to the weekend as I could go to the small village near the school, Hogsmeade. Fred and George kept telling Hermione, Harry, Ron and me everything there was in Hogsmeade.

Unfortunately, Harry hadn't gotten his permission slip signed, meaning he wasn't allowed to go to Hogsmeade. Poppy and Stella excitedly dragged me away from the school and we travelled to the village, following all the older kids. Fred and George had told me earlier on in the week that they would take me to Zonko's and Honeydukes but I couldn't see them while we were walking.

We arrived in Hogsmeade, but I had lost all of my friends in the crowd. Shrugging it off, I decided to make my way into Honeydukes and hope I would find people in there. "All alone are we?" A smug voice sounded. I hadn't hoped to find him, that's for sure. I ignored Draco, trying to keep calm.

My eyes scanned over the stands of sweets, wanting to get a selection for Harry - since he wasn't able to get his permission slip signed. "Come on, Delaney," Draco mused, relishing every moment he could of taunting me and teasing me. "Why have you got to be so ignorant?"

Pinch of salt. Just a pinch of salt. I turned my head to him and shrugged my shoulder. "I've heard I get it off my Uncle," I replied, casually, not wanting him to get a reaction. However, he'd only scratched the surface. I could feel my blood boiling and if he dug any deeper then he would find it.

"Hmm," he hummed to himself. I finally looked up, to see he was alone as well. No Crabbe, Goyle, or Blaise in sight. "I can see the resemblance," he noted, scanning all my features. For a moment, I almost felt trapped in his gaze, unable to look away. It felt dangerous. Then again, who played things safe anyway?

"This your new boyfriend, squirt?" A voice sounded from behind me. I turned around to see Fred and George with a bagful of new Zonko products. No doubt they would be using those around the school and in the common room. "Didn't take you as the dating type," George added on.

I scoffed and shook my head, going to pay for mine and Harry's sweets, Fred and George following shortly behind. Draco, however, seemed to disappear. Part of me was glad, though, I'm not sure what the other part was feeling. "I'm not dating anyone," I cleared up for Fred and George.

Fred and George looked at one another then back at me, giving me a look of disbelief. "Hmm, I don't know. There seemed to be a lot of..." George trailed off, almost looking for the word before they both spoke up again. "Sexual tension," they said in unison.

I broke out into laughter at the two of them. "Sexual tension?" I repeated, shaking my head at the two of them. "I'm barely even 15," I added on, to which they didn't seem to take as an answer but moved on anyway.

Fred grabbed one of the bags of sweets out of my hand as I begin to put them in my bag. "You're being greedy aren't you?" He questioned, handing me the bag of sweets back after I began standing on my tiptoes to try and take them out of his hand, holding it out of my reach.

"Actually," I started, putting them in my bag and shutting it, securely, so it couldn't happen again. "I'm being a nice friend." Fred and George followed me out of Honeydukes, into the cold, and absentmindedly lead me to the Three Broomsticks. "Harry couldn't come because his Aunt and Uncle didn't sign his permission slip."

We stepped into Honeydukes and it seemed a lot warmer in there. George guided me to the table and I couldn't help but take in the atmosphere. It was quite crowded, yet clean. The mirror on the back of the bar gave the building a welcoming feel. I took a deep inhale in and took in the smokey aroma.

After a few moments, Fred came back with three drinks, all the same. "Butterbeer," he told me, noticing I was staring at the glass. He slid it across the table and I picked it up, taking a sip. It was extremely sweet but the best drink I had ever tasted.

It tasted like cream soda, with a hint of butterscotch. The foamy top was very thick and creamy but it was by far the most delicious drink I had ever tasted. "That is gorgeous," I revelled in the drink.

Fred and George looked rather pleased with themselves. "That's the treatment you get on the Weasley Twin Tour of Hogsmeade," George told me, crossing his arms over his shoulders in delight. Fred quickly finished his Butterbear, George doing the same a few moments after.

"When you finish that, we'll take you to the next stop on our tour," Fred explained, beginning to stand up. I quickly downed my drink and grabbed all three empty glasses, taking them over to the bar. "See you later, Madam Rosmerta!" Fred called to the woman behind the bar.

She looked up and beamed at the twins, obviously taking a liking to the pair. "I'll see you later, it was nice to see you both again," she waved them off. I followed shortly behind them. After a few moments of walking, we made our way to Zonko's Joke Shop.

We entered the shop and almost immediately, the twins' faces lit up, as though it was Christmas. I laughed at the pair of them, wandering around the shop. I ended up buying a Sugar Quill and leaving, not really the one for pranks. Fred and George, despite buying things before finding me, had left with an extra bagful of tricks and pranks, which was more their forte.

Fred and George wanted to take me to the shrieking shack, but I had promised Hermione and Ron we would all go together, so we turned around and went back to the castle. Hogsmeade would from then on become one of my favourite places to go.