Chapter 9
"Nott..." Grace called across the hallway, cringing at the way her voice came out, as if she had hoped for him not to hear her at all. But of course, the green eyes linked with hers as he turned away from his friends, his eyebrows rising slightly as he waited for her next words. "Our charms project... when do you want to work on it?"
"Whenever you want to, bellissima." He drawled, his voice dropping lower as if his friends were paying the two of them any attention.
Grace pressed her lips together in annoyance, taking a step away from the brunette. She wasn't sure exactly what he'd said, but she could take a guess from the smirk painted across his face.
"Alright, maybe I should just do it on my own-"
"Gracie," Theo muttered, his fingers circling her wrist and pulling her back towards him, his green eyes dark in the dim hallway. "Come on. Only joking..." He paused, watching her, jaw set as she waited for him to continue. "Tonight? After Quidditch? I'll come to your dorm."
"You can't get in." She countered, "I told Flitwick the riddles had to be more difficult." She lied.
"Sure you did." He nodded, the ghost of a smile pulling at his lips. "I'll still try my luck. I'll be there at 8."
She considered for a moment before nodding, "8. Fine."
"See you then." He smiled, though she had already turned from him and started up the stairs. If she had to wait to work on this, she would get the rest of her assignments done before dinner at least.
Grace glanced at the watch on her wrist and rolled her eyes. Theo was now fifteen minutes late, and despite checking the hallway every few minutes to see if he really couldn't figure out today's riddle, she was truly beginning to think he had forgotten completely.
She pulled her charms book from the bag at her feet and flipped to the chapter, it's header reading:ย Disillusionment Charm's & Their History.
She glanced once more at the door, rubbed her eyes and began gathering her parchment and quill. She should at least start the paper. She could hand it over to Theo tomorrow to add to it if he wanted, but with the way her eyes were already itching for sleep, she couldn't wait around all night for the Slytherin boy.
"Sorry!" His voice rang out just as the door slammed shut behind him, "Sorry, I'm here." He winced as he checked his watch on his way to the couch that Grace had staked out in the nearly empty common room.
"You're late."
"I know... Practice ran a bit-"
"Your hair's wet." She pointed out, inching over on the couch to give herself a bit more space between their knees.
"Well, yeah... I had to shower."
"Right." She shrugged, pulling out her notes. "I jotted down some ideas for an outline. I know Flitwick said he wanted six pages and this ought to do it, unless you can think of anything-"
"Good lord, Gracie." Theo took the slip of parchment from her hand, scanning it over quickly. "We can't write about all of this, we'll be up all night."
"Well, then we'd better get started." She suppressed a smile as he groaned and sunk deeper into the couch. She leaned forward and dipped the quill into the inkwell on the table in front of them and set to work, Theo's eyes flicking over her words lazily for a few minutes.
"Alright, alright. Can't all be in your handwriting, give it here." He ordered, reaching out for the quill and yanking the parchment into his lap.
"Okay, be sure to mention the effect on wizard and muggle relations, because I think that's a big part of it, how they were able to keep magical creatures even in muggle towns if they were concealed-"
"I know."ย Theo snapped, grouchily and Grace huffed, leaning back to watch over his work.
"How was Quidditch?" She asked, finally, interrupting the silence of the common room and watching as Theo's fingers stalled at her question.
"Fine. Chilly." He answered, resuming his work.
They fell back into silence again for a while, taking turns writing paragraphs, though Grace was certainly more enthralled in watching over Theo's work than he was with hers, certain that he didn't care half as much as she did about their grade.
Her eyes felt heavy now as she inched a bit closer, her arm brushing against the soft fabric of Theo's sweater as she handed over the paper.
"Okay, and then-" She stifled a yawn with the back of her hand, letting her face fall against her fist to prop herself up. "About invisibility cloaks."
"Yes, ma'um." Theodore chuckled, though Grace hardly noticed, her blinks becoming longer now. She watched his swirling handwriting start the paragraph she had planned out and her head began to sink onto the boys shoulder without her even noticing.
Theo's eyes flickered to her face for only a second as he felt the added weight at his side, but forced them forward again at once.ย She's just tired. She doesn't realize it.
"You know they say Dumbledore can actually use this charm toย beย invisible, not just camouflaged." He hurried to think of something to say and she nodded against his shoulder.
"I'm sure Dumbledore can do almost anything."
"Don't let your fiancรฉ hear you say that." He chuckled, his chest tight as he waited for her response. He wasn't sure he had said that word out loud yet... Fiancรฉ... Engaged... Marriage.
He had finished the paragraph without even realizing, scanning over it quickly to make sure it wasn't nonsense before his eyes flickered to the blonde hair pooling down the front of his sweater.
"Your hair's really pretty... Did you know that?" He muttered, waiting for a moment before registering her breathing, soft and slow against him. "Grace?" He shifted slightly, taking in her sleeping appearance and fighting off an eye roll. "Oh, fucking hell..." He groaned, kicking his bag closer to his feet and pulling it onto the couch, tucking the start of their project inside and capping her inkwell on the table.
He finally turned, partially in awe that she had been able to fall asleep this fast, or that she hadn't woken up as he had cleaned up their things.
"Come on, then." He sighed, forcing one hand beneath her knees and pulling her into his arms, starting towards the familiar path to the girls dorms. "You'd better not wake up." It wasn't quite curfew yet, and he resisted the cuss words rising to his tongue at the thought of seeing either of her roommates this way. He reached her doorway, pausing for a second to listen through the wooden door before deciding to push inside, catching the swinging door with his foot and letting out a sigh of relief at the empty dormitory.
"Idiot." He muttered as he started towards her bed, lying her down gently and scanning over her night stand, his eyebrows furrowing at the lack of flowers before he noticed the desk across the room. She had changed the water since he'd dropped them off a few days before, he could tell. The vase was filled higher now, and even in the dark room, the only light shining in from the hallway, he could make out the bright yellow color of the tulips.
He looked back to her, acutely aware that her roommates would be back any time now, yet his fingers fell to her hair, sprawled messily over her pillow. He brushed it away from her face and let out a deep sigh before heading back to the hallway, shutting the door behind him with a soft click and hurrying back downstairs.
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Grace didn't know what time it was, only that it was late. And she should be getting back. Any minute, she would get up. Drag herself from her warm spot on the couch beside Draco. She had been telling herself this for at least half an hour.
"Ugh..." Daphne flopped back deeper into the couch across from Grace, swirling the remaining liquid at the bottom of her glass. "We'd better start thinking about OWL's then, huh?"
Draco let out a short, booming laugh from beside Grace, his fingers landing lazily on the blonde girl's knee, though he didn't seem to notice, which she was grateful for as her heart sped up inside her chest.
"Start? Greengrass, they're in less than four months! If you haven't even started thinking about them, I'll send my father a letter to see if the Ministry needs any janitors."
Her jaw dropped dramatically as she flung her glass towards Malfoy, Grace flinching away before Draco flicked his wand at his side, sending the crystal glass against the stone wall beside them where it shattered into thousands of glittering pieces on the floor.
"Daphne!" Blaise attempted to scold the girl, though everyone could hear the laughter he was poorly hiding behind a glare.
"Blaise," She jutted out her bottom lip to the boy at her side. "If I fail all my OWL's, you'll marry me, won't you?"
"In a heartbeat." He answered, shaking his head as an amused smile spread over his lips. "But you'll have a strict allowance. I've seen you after a shopping trip."
"God, my life is starting to look more miserable by the second." She groaned, the rest of the Slytherins falling into laughter as Draco looked down to his empty cup.
"You want anything?" He asked, finally noticing his hand on Grace's leg and pulling it back to his lap before standing from the couch, his absence sending a noticeable chill through Grace's legs beneath her tights.
"I'm alright... I should head up soon."
"No, stay." He ordered, "I'll walk you back in a bit. Let me know when you're tired. I'll be back."
Grace nodded, forcing her eyes off the tall blonde as he disappeared deeper into the common room where the Slytherin's had been making themselves drinks all night. It was late, and likely much past curfew, which explained why most of the younger students were already up in bed.
"Bit past your bedtime, isn't it Tori?" Enzo asked, not bothering to keep his voice down as he leaned closer to the small brunette at Daphne's side. She smiled, raising one eyebrow slowly and giving him a look.
"If you're tired, you should get to bed, Berkshire." She shrugged playfully and Blaise and Theo shared a matching grin.
"God, she's so smart." Blaise said, looking to Daphne. "You've taught her so well."
"All of you can piss off." Enzo raised his middle finger and gestured around the group, everyone erupting into laughter once again as Draco returned, sipping from his new drink, though he stood at the side of the couch beside Enzo and Astoria.
"Astoria, we can come up with some sort of signal if you ever need help with him." He nodded to Enzo as if the boy was deaf.
"I'm getting a new friend group. Officially. This time next week, you lot will never hear from me again." He threw his hands into the air, jumping from his spot beside the younger Slytherin and dropping into the vacant seat at Grace's side.
"It's going to take you a whole week to find a single new friend?" Blaise asked, his eyes following the brunette.
Theo scoffed under his breath, though his hazel eyes hadn't left Enzo since he had moved across the room.
"I'm sorry they're so mean to you, Lorenzo." Grace said softly, patting the boy's shoulder sympathetically with a small smile.
"Thank you, Grace." He pushed his lip out, dramatically, throwing his right arm over her shoulder and pulling her deeper into his side. "You can come with me to my new friend group. You're the only one I'll allow."
"Oh, how kind." She grinned, breathing in the scent of his rich cologne. She tried to keep the finances of her friends off of her mind for the most part, changing the subject whenever Leah brought up the Malfoy family's legacy or nodding along politely when Daphne droned on about the newest handbag she was looking at, but it was sometimes hard not to notice it at times like these. When Draco never seemed to wear an outfit twice, all personally tailored to fit him perfectly, Theo's golden watch always sparkling on his wrist, and now, Enzo's cologne which she was sure she would be smelling on her all night.
Her eyes finally returned to the person they'd been searching out all night, practically since dinner, where it was only too easy to spot his blonde hair against the crowds of black and green. Though she didn't mind Enzo, and in fact often found her stomach hurting from laughing at some of his jokes, her chest ached a bit when she had realized Draco wasn't coming back to her.
"Could maybe try to befriend some Hufflepuffs... Maybe they're a bit dull, but they usually know how to party and at least they'll be nice to us, right?" Enzo's voice was falling on deaf ears as he continued his rant, though all Grace could focus on was Draco, now perched on the arm of the couch, looking down on Astoria with a curved smile across his lips.
"How are your classes?" She could make out his voice from across the coffee table separating them and watched as the brunette looked up to him with her sparkling blue eyes, nodding and responding so softly that try as she might, Grace could no longer pick up their conversation.
"Enz..." She muttered, meeting the light brown eyes beside her and realizing she had surely just interrupted him mid-sentence. "Sorry, I'm a bit tired... I'm going to head up."
"Oh, yeah..." He glanced at his wrist, the silver watch glimmering in the light filtering in from the lake above them. "Yeah, it is late, damn. I'll walk you up." He tried to move off the couch, though Grace was already up and shaking her head.
"It's fine. I know the way." She teased, though her chest felt heavy and she blinked quickly to ensure her eyes weren't beginning to water.
"I really don't mind." He shrugged, "It'll get me away from these tossers for a bit."
"I'm alright. I could use a quiet walk before bed..." She waved him off easily, bidding the rest of the group a quiet goodnight and hurrying towards the door before waiting for any responses. The stone slid aside as she neared the exit and she turned at once, wanting to be out of sight before letting out a deep sigh and letting her mind wander back to Draco's smile, looking down to the younger witch. She wasn't sure she had ever seen his eyes lit up like that.
She shut her eyes, leaning against the wall for only a second and letting the warm tears fall over her cheeks. It would have been one thing if they weren't supposed to be engaged in a few months... a silly crush. One that she had been harboring secretly for over a year. One that she had never planned to act on. It wouldn't have mattered, who Draco looked at. Who Draco thought about. Who he wanted to be with.
But now that she knew that they were stuck, trapped... She was stupid to hope that they would have grown to love each other... That he might grow to love her. He was just as trapped as she was, and knowing that there was someone else he wanted to be with...
Her eyes flashed open at the sound of the stone door sliding open once again and she jumped away from the wall, racing down the hallway and running the back of her hand against her cheek before she felt the warm fingers surround her wrist.
"Gracie..."
She pulled her arm back lightly, though it did nothing to rip Theo's grip from her.
"Look at me." He ordered, his voice low in the silent hallway and she took a slow breath, blinking a few more times before turning towards the brunette, her eyes planted at his feet. Theo nodded twice, his fingers trailing over the skin along her wrist and pulling her roughly so she stumbled against him, his arms surrounding her easily at her waist.
She paused for a moment, ready to push him away before giving in. She linked her arms over his shoulders, burying her face into his chest and letting out a quiet sob, the weight in her chest lessening at once.
"It's alright. You're alright." He murmured against her hair, wrapping her tighter against him for a few moments. "Come here." He didn't let himself linger on her face as he pulled away, taking her hand in his again and pulling her down the hallway, the darkness engulfing them every few feet as they crossed each window pane along the tall dungeon walls.
Theo slowed at last near a dark stairway and Grace silently thanked him for finding them a spot out of the way of prefects, or Filch, or any late night ghosts wandering the castle. He dropped easily to one of the steps and nodded for her to join him, and she sat carefully on the other side of the staircase, her back pressed against the chilly wall.
"I'm not sure how I'm going to cheer you up if you're way over there." He remarked and Grace shook her head, wiping along her nose with the back of her hand.
"I'm alright." She nodded.
"Yeah, you look it." He joked, watching her face and sighing to himself when she didn't respond. Not even one of the familiar eye rolls he had been growing so used to the past few weeks.
"Why'd you follow me?" She asked, finally meeting his eyes and he shrugged, giving himself time to think of his answer.
"Maybe the rest of them can't tell when you're upset..." He started, his voice clear in the echoey stairwell. "But I know you."
"I'm not... I'm fine. It's stupid." She forced out, dropping her head into her hands, hearing the way her words spilled out so ridiculously. The two fell into silence for a few moments until Theo knew he could no longer keep his next question from spilling out.
"Do you like him? Like... not a part of this whole charade you two've got going on... Do you have feelings for him?"
His stomach dropped the moment her blue eyes met his, his lips pressed together as she shrugged, pausing a moment before her eyes welled up again and she wrapped her arms over her chest, forcing her gaze back to the floor.
"Hey," Theo muttered, cursing himself for asking her in the first place. He hadn't wanted to know, and he wished he hadn't made her say. "Gracie... please don't cry." He pressed himself up and moved beside her on the cold step, ignoring the way his heart skipped as she let him pull her back into his chest, small sobs still wracking her body as he tucked her head into his neck. "Please don't cry."
He let one hand fall onto her back, trailing over the ends of her hair and tracing small circles against the soft fabric along her back until she fell silent and he believed she had cried herself out.
"You've got yourself into quite a mess, haven't you?" He whispered, feeling her nod softly against his chest. "It's gonna be alright... I promise."
"Just... everything's..." She muttered, looking down to her fingers in his lap, his chin still resting at the top of her head. "Feel stupid." She finally forced out, picking nervously along the tip of her fingernail.
"You're not." He leaned back slightly, though she wouldn't meet his eyes. "You're not stupid, Grace."
The two fell into silence, and Theo glanced at his watch. She might not have anything in the morning, but he knew he'd be up bright and early for Quidditch practice, and at the moment, he couldn't bring himself to care about anything less.
"Are you still mad at me?" He asked at last, breaking the silence and hoping to pull her mind from Malfoy.
Her face lit up in the moonlight from the staircase above them as she finally looked up and shrugged. "I don't know..."
"You can be. If you want." He said, his mouth pulling into a grin as she let out a laugh at last, dropping her face back into her hands again.
"You're so terrible." She spoke finally, forcing her words out through the last of her laughter.
"I know," He whined, dramatically, "So bloody terrible." He was thankful for once that she wasn't looking at him, that she couldn't see the smile he wore. He watched for a few more seconds as she finished evening out the jagged tip of her pinky-nail before he met her eyes once more.
"Thank you... for sitting with me." She was whispering again, as if anyone was awake at this hour to overhear them. "It's nice... talking with you."
"Mmm..." He nodded, "It's nice kissing me too." He dropped his voice low, turning his face so his lips were against her ear, a smirk rising to his face when her eyes snapped to his.
"Oh, you know that for a fact, do you?" She teased back, and he felt a warmth creep through his chest, just the fact that she was talking again, smiling again.
"I've had some positive feedback, yeah." He grinned and she shook her head, running her thumb beneath each eye quickly and standing from their shared step.
"Alright, Romeo. I'm headed to bed." She announced, wrapping one arm over the other, and Theo was sure she was trying not to meet his eye now.
"I'll walk you up, bellissima." Theo stood, stepping closer to her again, enjoying the way she stepped back instinctively, sure that he could just make out a light pink rising beneath her cheeks.
"Some might consider it rude to keep speaking a foreign language when the other person doesn't understand-" She started, forcing her voice into a lecturing tone.
"Beautiful. I'll walk you up, beautiful." He clarified, smirking down at her and watching as her lips moved silently for a second, her eyes wide.
"You... I can walk on my own..." She finally answered, Theo enjoying watching her squirm under his gaze.
"I'd like to. Please?" He asked, though he had already nudged her along towards the steps again, falling into place at her side and feeling more awake than he had all term.
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