The Heartstrings
Ophelia Malfoy
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"Hello, Hermione," Ophelia breathes.
Hermione stands up from her table with a huge grin adorning her face. She holds her arms out and catches Ophelia in a tight embrace.
"My love, how are you?" Hermione asks. Ophelia feels the familiar warmth fill her stomach when she hears those words and that voice.
They pull away. Lovingly but shyly, Ophelia gives her a soft kiss.
"I'm okay, pretty girl."
Hermione sits back down and Ophelia takes a seat next to her.
"I read your book," Ophelia says. "The Stranger." Hermione's face lights up.
"Oh, I'm so glad! What did you think?"
"I thought it was really interesting," she says. "I don't think I've ever read a muggle book before."
"Well, I have so many recommendations," she replies. "I'll ask my parents to send more for you."
"That reminds me," Ophelia says. "Have you... asked them about the holidays?"
"Oh yes!" Hermione says. "I sent the owl today after dinner. I didn't quite say that you were... my girlfriend, but I just said that we got really close over the last few years and that I wanted you to meet them."
"Oh, okay."
"And have you held up your end of this?" Hermione asks. Ophelia sighs. Hermione sucks in a breath. "You haven't."
"It's really hard," she says. "I've never, you know. Broken up with somebody before."
"It's okay. What are we studying tonight?" Hermione asks.
"Are you sure you don't want to keep talking about this?"
"It's okay, I trust that you'll break things off with him soon. What are we studying?"
Ophelia kisses her on the cheek before pulling out her notes and quills.
"Arithmetics," Ophelia says. "I'm really stuck on the fifteenth chapter."
"I think the hardest part is memorizing these equations. You have to start with the first variable for this particular problem because... do you know why?"
A look of panic flashes across Ophelia's face. "You mean you don't know either?!"
Hermione bursts out laughing and covers her mouth so as not to be too loud. "No, darling, I do know! I was testing you."
Ophelia laughs. "Hermione, don't scare me like that!"
"Oh, you should've seen your face."
They return to the equation. Hermione is explaining the process very expertly, but Ophelia gets distracted by how beautiful her voice is. How gracefully her fingers move across the papers as she turns the pages of the textbook. How her perfume smells like strawberries and it makes Ophelia want to feel her lips on her own once more.
She reaches out and gently turns Hermione's chin to face her.
"May I kiss you again?" she asks. Hermione smiles. She leans in and kisses her, trailing her hand around to the back of Ophelia's neck and running her fingers through her hair. Ophelia sighs at her touch.
"Okay," Hermione says. "Time to work."
"You're evil."
They work through ten pages of practice problems. Ophelia's mind becomes a jumble of numbers and letters. She groans and lays her head on the table. Hermione gently scratches Ophelia's head and smiles.
"You're really cute when you're sleepy," she says.
The door opens. Ophelia bolts up.
"Ophelia?"
It's Draco's voice.
"What the fuck is he doing here?" Ophelia whispers. Hermione immediately ducks to the floor and crawls to an aisle of books, hidden behind the shelves.
"Ophelia?" Draco asks. He walks over to her. "Is anyone with you?"
"Nope," she says. "Just doing some practice problems."
"Well, are you quite finished?" he says impatiently. "Theodore wants me to speak with you."
"Um, yeah, I can be finished," she says.
"Let's go for a walk."
The Malfoy twins walk out into the courtyard. It is silent, dark, and cold, but the moonlight illuminates the field just right. Draco leans against the stone archway and Ophelia imitates him.
"Do you want a smoke?" Draco asks.
"What?"
He pulls out a pack of Morcott Cigarettes. Ophelia scoffs.
"Doesn't father smoke those?" she asks.
"Why did you have to bring him up? Just take one."
"I've never..."
Draco rolls his eyes. "Do I have to teach you everything?"
He places one in her mouth and lights it for her. She inhales and coughs. He pats her back.
"You're alright," he says. "It's okay."
They stand there for a few moments, smoking and looking up at the stars. Ophelia wonders if Hermione got back to her dorm okay. She feels guilty for leaving her there without saying "goodnight" or "I love you". She wonders why Draco came to find her, and why they're smoking together.
"We haven't really spoken in a while," Ophelia says. "Is everything okay?"
"Yeah, I'm not speaking to you because I want to. It's because Theodore is making me."
She feels a sting in her chest. "Great."
"Mhm. He's convinced that you're sneaking around with some boy instead of actually studying in the library. Which, frankly, I understand. You hardly look at the poor bastard, and I can't imagine the last time you two went on a date."
"It was a couple weeks ago," Ophelia says.
Draco just nods.
She looks down at the ground. Her black Mary Janes are sprinkled with small drops of dew from the grass. She nudges his foot with hers.
"I think I need to break up with him," she confesses. "I don't know why I'm telling you that."
"Why do you need to break up with him?"
"I don't..." She sighs. "I don't really think I love him. But I don't know how to tell him."
"Say it just like that."
"It's not that easy." Ophelia takes another drag. It's getting easier.
"So... you have been sneaking around with a boy," Draco says.
"No! No. It's not... it's not like that."