after dusk - draco malfoy

xi. | eleven

AS WE MADE OUR WAY DOWN to the Shrieking Shack, we found Stella, Poppy, and Tommy there. As we approached, Stella turned around at the sound of our footsteps and shook her head at me. I furrowed my brows as she nudged Poppy, who's gaze landed on me seconds later.

The trio began walking towards us, not saying a word. Poppy and Stella linked with either one of my arms and dragged me away. "We will return her in one moment," Poppy told Hermione and Ron who looked just as confused as I did.

We trudged through the snow and sat at a bench at the top of the hill. Tommy removed all the snow so we could sit on it without getting too wet or cold. "We have a bone to pick with you," Tommy started crossing his arms over his chest.

The look on his face looked more jokingly than Poppy and Stella's, almost as though he was mocking them. I turned to Poppy and Stella, almost to encourage them to explain. "Well," Stella spoke up, clearing her throat. "We couldn't find you anywhere and the last time that happened you were with the twins."

"So," Poppy took over, beginning to finish Stella's sentence. "We went to Zonko's to find out where you were or if they'd seen you anywhere," she added on, making me even more oblivious as to where this conversation was headed. "Fred and George saw you through the window, sitting with Malfoy in the Three Broomsticks."

My gaze turned to Tommy, who obviously saw the girls were about to overreact, trying to keep his laughter in. "Okay..." I trailed out, trying to get to the bottom of where they were coming from. At this, Poppy groaned, beginning to get in a strop. "He needed help with his Defence Against the Dark Arts, so I have been tutoring him. He bought me a Butterbeer to say thank you."

Stella let out a cold laughter. "And what happened to us telling you he was bad news?" She asked me, putting her bag of sweets from Honeydukes on the bench. I didn't know what to say to them. I didn't see what I had done wrong so I didn't really react. Stella exhaled sharply before shaking her head. "It might seem like we're faulting you or having a go at you, but all we're really doing is looking out for you."

She motioned to the three of them and Tommy held his hands up by his chest. "Honestly, Stell, I couldn't care less whether she sees him or not," he admitted, a smile playing on his lips. She sent a cold glare his way and he let out a sigh of defeat. He turned to me and paused, trying to think of what words to use. "All I'm saying is if you get hurt by him, I don't want to hear it. We've warned you and it's your choice whether you listen to us or not."

At this, I didn't reply, just kept my eyes fixed of Tommy's gaze. "While I'm sure the girls will be there for you regardless, if you don't listen to my advice and your own actions blow up in your face, I'm not particularly going to be sympathetic," he explained to me. Part of me understood where he was coming from so I just nodded my head.

"But," he started again, turning his gaze to Stella and Poppy, "I do believe that the girls may be overreacting, slightly." At this, they both shake their heads at him and let out a sharp huff. "You are free to live your own life and make your own choices, even if we see them as mistakes."

I stood up, not wanting to hear any more. "I've listened to what you guys have to say so now it's your time to listen to me," I confidently spoke up, now standing in front of them. "As I told you before, I am tutoring him and he bought me a drink to say thank you. It's nothing more than that and nothing less. So if you don't mind, I'm going to join Ron and Hermione, again, and enjoy my day."

I started to walk away before I stopped in my tracks, thinking that was probably not the best note to leave it on. "Look, I'll see you all back in the Common Room, later," I said before they all nodded, as though what I had said had sunk in and they were beginning to understand.

I turned back to head towards the Shrieking Shack before seeing chaos unravelling before my eyes. Draco and all of his friends were getting attacked. Attacked by nothing... Snowballs were flying everywhere before they all ran off, not giving me a second glance as they clambered up the hill.

I ran up to Hermione and Ron, who were laughing, hysterically. "Harry!" Hermione exclaimed before Harry appeared out of nowhere, literally. My eyes widened at the sight, very confused.

He had obviously seen the confusion on my face and he laughed, holding up an aged cloak. "It's an invisibility cloak," he told me, a smile still on his face. "It was my Dad's. I was given it in the First Year for Christmas from Dumbledore."

Without even giving it a second thought, I just nodded my head. There had been weirder things I had come across in the Wizarding world - despite how rare an Invisibility Cloak was. Harry started to explain how Fred and George had given him a map of Hogwarts, the Marauder's Map, and Ron complained about how he never was told about it, while Hermione claimed Harry was going to hand it in.

I could see Fred and George leaving Zonko's and heading back up to school, so I decided to leave the blistering cold as the snow started to get heavier. I said goodbye to Harry, Ron, and Hermione, hearing comments about how Ron fancies Madam Rosmerta as I began walking away.

I caught up with Fred and George, jumping up to hit the back of their heads. They both yelped in pain before turning around. I raised a brow at them and George turned to Fred. "I have a feeling we may have deserved that," George said to Fred, pointing at me with his finger.

Fred scrunched up his nose and nodded his head, once. "I have a feeling that you may be right, George," he agreed before jokingly getting down on his knees. "Oh, how can we ever repay you?" He fake begged, causing me to laugh.

I paused for a moment, wondering how I could make the most of the situation. I decided my feet were too cold and forced Fred to give me a piggyback the whole way back up to school. The two boys already felt like brothers to me and they always managed to brighten up my day.

All thoughts of Draco were pushed to the back of my head, completely forgetting the confrontation with my friends earlier on. Fred and George started skipping along, singing 'Hoggy Warty Hogwarts', making me feel sick from being so high up and being knocked about from the skipping.

I began to feel as though I belonged in Hogwarts. I believed it was where I was meant to have been, all along. It was a strange feeling but I started to slowly forget about Beauxbatons and the friends that hadn't written to me since leaving. It had been a difficult transition from first moving, but that day was the day I knew Hogwarts was and always would be like home to me.