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“Well then, Mr. Malfoy, what are you standing around for? Take your seat.” Warned Professor Flitwick.
Draco sighed as he walked to the only available seat left in the room. Of course, it had to be next to her.
Sleeping in class? Unbelievable. The blonde teen scoffed inwardly. He placed his items on the table gently as he slid onto his seat, careful not to shake the table. Draco may find disdain in this nonchalant attitude towards education, but he treasures his life even more. No one in their right mind would dare to wake this oddity in the form of lightly snoring Hufflepuff.
He recalled last year when some ill-lucked 7th year Gryffindors tried waking the Hufflepuff up for sleeping on their usual spot in the courtyard. Rumour has it that she refused to share and challenged the 7th years to duel, resulting in her narrow victory. But, if you asked Draco, an actual witness to the scene, he saw her jinxed the two seniors wordlessly whilst half asleep.
At last, one must eventually face their fears and Draco’s current dread was sleeping on her arms, facing away, twitching ever so slightly.
The class was now switching to the practical part of the lesson. Professor Flitwick, and the rest of his classmates, were packing up their items in preparation to clear the area to practice the Banishing charm.
“Just wake her up,” advised Theo who just finished putting away his books.
That calls for a quick death stare. Per usual, Theo is unhelpful at times like this.
“Either she gets mad at you for waking her up or she gets mad at you for not waking her up,” Theo paused, glancing towards their professor who was talking to another slytherin, “when Flitwick does.”
Point.
At least if Draco wakes her up, and she gets mad, she won’t jinx him in class in front of the professor. Or he hopes so. Let's not think too much about it.
“Students, time to put 1st year lessons into use, yes? Lift your table and benches and set it aside.” Called Professor Flitwick, before another student came up to him again.
“Now or never,” said Theo, before standing up.
“Shut up.” Draco replied.
The blonde slytherin shifted his attention back to the sleeping hufflepuff next to him. Just as his hand was about to reach her, she moved. Following a deep breath, she turned her head towards Draco, still asleep.
She looked so peaceful. How beautiful, no, irritating. The usual frown line between her eyebrows was nonexistent in her sleep, her cheek slightly rosy with sleep lines from where it had pressed onto the sleeves of her robe. Something powdery and brown smeared a small part of her chin and ran along to her jaw. What had she been up to this time?
All the time he had stared at her during classes or in between meals, not that he would acknowledge, the teen never noticed the faint scar above her left eyebrow. Now that he truly looked at her, her hair seemed to be shorter than last he saw her. Bangs tucked neatly behind her ears, with the rest secured in a loose ponytail. The Hufflepuff would rarely tie her hair this way, preferring to braid it or let it loose quite wildly. It was a new and good look, especially with several feathers sticking out from parts of her hair.
Draco smiled, no, sneered as he observed her. Wait– feathers? He looked at her hair again. He plucked one of the soft, fringed plumes out of her hair, slowly. Yep, feathers. Alright, what had she been up to, really?
Time might have seemed to move slowly. It always does whenever she's concerned. In reality, it hasn't even been a minute. The loud thump of two tables clashing brought Draco back to the present. His head snapped to the direction of the sound; a hufflepuff profusely apologising to a slytherin with their tables still hovering next to them.
Enough is enough. It was time to nudge her awake. Draco turned back, hand ready to poke her when at that same time the sleeping girl rose from her seat. Draco didn't flinch, no flinching is for the weak, he was just surprised. The thought left his movement, his hand remained suspended in the air as she packed her books nonetheless and ready to slide off the bench.
The hufflepuff shot him a look. There. That frown line again. Was she angry because Draco didn't wake her up? She stood there, a hand on her hip and the other hugging her books, still looking intensely at him. It was quite hard to find her intimidating with that pose and a few feathers sticking out from her hair.
The blonde slytherin wanted to throw a remark. Yet the low afternoon light filling the room and the way it shined directly behind her, forming a halo or sort, made him swallow his words– quite literally, he gulped. He brought his hand to his chest.
The sunlight made her look unbelievably magical.
What a dumb thought. They are in a magic boarding school. Everything looks, and is, magical.
She looked away and after several moments she cleared her throat. She glanced at the table and back to Draco. Cheeks still rosy from sleep.
Ah, yes.
Quickly, Draco slid off the bench, grabbing his books with him. He then said, “I’ll lift the table. You, bench.”
She nodded. Strands of her hair fell out from the movement, now framing her face. She tucked them back behind her ears before whipping out her wand and muttering the spell.
How beautiful.
The hufflepuff cleared her throat again. Then in a fluid movement, they set aside the table and bench in a matter of seconds. Draco considered this a win. It was one of those rare moments where they work together, alone, and no single insults were thrown.
Call it a trick of the light, but he could've sworn the girl’s eyes flickered to him for a long moment before they settled into place, ready to test out Banishing Charm to their assigned partner.
To Draco’s disappointment, no, good riddance, the girl was partnered together with Longbottom. He watched her quick-stepped to her partner, greeting him with a sweet smile. It annoyed him– for some reason.
Whatever. It doesn't matter.
Pacing in the center of class was Professor Flitwick babbling about caution and safety. At the very least, he wouldn't need to hold back; considering his own partner was Crabbe. Caution and safety be damned, he was now in a foul mood.
Whatever. Better luck next time.