Mr Loverman: a Draco Malfoy Fanfic

Chapter 40

Days went by so fast, so monotonous, that they suddenly became weeks, and those weeks months.

Y/n's head girl duties hadn't been called upon yet, which for she was thankful. The classwork and the stress of lessons for now were more than enough.
They no longer had DADA, but plainly Dark Arts Class. It was a neat system of physical and psychological torture. Harm others, or be punished. The 'Professor' had no brain to teach, just to force them to torture.

The once cheerful and warm and welcoming ambiance of the castle was long gone, as though a black veil of hopelessness and dread had been placed over it.

Small children and people of other houses in general parted way when any Slytherin came around, the underclass students were starting to get depressed with that behavior towards them.

The Winter and Holidays spirit seemed to be deeply tarnished, like a fever dream, but long gone. Even tho the calendar marked the celebration, nobody seemed to have spirit, energy or intention to celebrate. Life seemed rather dull in every corner, and the screams of the unruly punishment of the cruciatus curse on "rule breakers" had completely stripped everything and everyone of even the faintest hint of happiness or happy memories.
And so too, the ghost of haunting war that seemed to swish the places, after news of more deaths and disappearances.

On the other hand was Draco Malfoy. Y/n kept putting her energy on keeping the largest amount of distance she could manage. But at times it seemed physically impossible.
For one, now all Slytherins were constantly separated from other houses, nobody wanted to do with them, even the innocent ones whose family held no guilt. So for some classes, assignments and work, the options were reduced to her friends, and indeed, him...

She managed not to directly speak to him. But there were moments when their eyes met for mere seconds, but held a severe and heavy amount of memories, that now seemed from another lifetime. She could tell these passed through his head too. Sometimes while she briefly examined his exhausted, pale, and hollow face, nearly a ghost of once extremely handsome features.
It made her feel a little dead inside. Each time everything dawned on her, when the numbness of the world momentarily disappeared.

***

In the blink of an eye, she was back on the train, back on her way to Hogwarts, from her short visit home, where her family barely left her side, barely allowed her even to the garden. They were now stationed in Zabini Manor, far from the Malfoy Manor, and under a severe amount of protection and the Fidelius Charm, to keep her family from being found and murdered.

She sat lonely on the train. No one dared to sit with her but Daphne, who looked rather ill, her skin no longer glowing but dry and waxy. The Greengrass' had been officially been dragged into war.
Blaise was nowhere to be seen.

***

"Uh, I'm excuse me, Miss Lyron? This- t-this is f-for you" trembled a small Ravenclaw boy.

"Oh, thank you" she said as kind as she managed. Kids were terrified of her, specially for her role of Head Girl and the fact all her pals were prefects.
She unrolled the parchment, it was a note from Snape, saying she was requested to go on that evening for an appointment of the head boy and girl...

She made her way into the office, already knowing she was not needed for any academic purpose.

"In"

"Good evening sir" she said plainly.

"Miss Lyron, your help is currently required.." said Dumbledore's portrait.

"How may I be of assistance" she replied hardly concealing her dulled voice.

"Mr Ronald Weasley had a fight with Harry, and separated momentarily, but he requires assistance to find his way back to his friends" said Dumbledore calmly

Stupid gryffindors and their anger issues, she thought. Snape seemed to have read her mind. For he gave her and understanding look.

"What may I do to help?"

Snape and Dumbledore explained a rather simple plan, to help Weasley realize he needs to use the deluminator to find his way, she just needed to 'give him a push'.

Under the pretense of falling sick, she was sneaked out of Hogwarts by apparition beyond the boundaries, to the place Ron lay lost, hidden by a concealment so to plant the thought on Ron's head. She was to use an invisibility cloak, and plant clues for him to connect the dots. She had a week to manage.

And so she followed him closely, planting clues on the prophets he collected and the places he visited, yet he seemed not to get the catch. She was running out of time.

And at last, he caught up and he took out the diluminator. The most bizarre sight met their eyes. A ball of light came out of it, floated lingering for a moment, then straight up went inside Ron's chest. She waited for it to come through his back, but it didn't.

"Hermione?" He asked to the wind.

What the bloody hell is going on, Y/n asked herself. He seemed to have been hit by a wisdom she knew not, and thought her deed was done. So she apparated back to the front gates of Hogwarts, and sent her patronus with the message to Snape, to let her in.
Under a concealment charm, she was brought into the castle, and returned to her common room as for her health recovery.

"Y/n?"

"Go back to sleep Daph"