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She went dancing alone.
She imagined how easy it would be, to not be torn between two incompatible worlds, just dancing and looking forward to college.
A handsome muggle boy about her age caught her eye. Music was fast, some kind of eurodance electronic remix of a much older song her dad used to like. He caught her hand, smiled, and they started to dance together.
The moment was perfect and sweet, but it wasn't him.
After the song ended, he tried to tell her something, but the music was awfully loud. She could see his curly hair changing under the disco lights - red, blue, yellow, moving lips and kind eyes as he stood in the middle of the dance floor. She was breathless, and the absurdly revealing dress Ginny chose for her, felt really uncomfortable.
She kissed his cheek and waved him goodbye.
Their booth in the corner of the muggle bar was almost full. It was their farewell party - everybody came, all snakes, badgers, eagles and lions, no matter the blood status or past rivalries.
Since Ron and Pansy started dating in January, all animosity died down and Gryffindors and Slytherins formed an unlikely alliance. The union was a disaster for professors but proved especially tragic for Filch.
This was probably their last trick - a trip across the Highlands to Aberdeen for what Seamus called a truly magical place with great music, but was just a tacky bar with passable beer.
Some were still dancing; Ron was hugging a sleepy Pansy, Harry and Theo were arguing about Quidditch, which Theo had no interest in at all but had a strong opinion about, Luna, Ginny and Cho were listening with interest to Blaise Zabini.
She sat next to him, close to his cool tailored shirt.
“I knew she was there somewhere,” said Pansy, leaning on Ron's shoulder. Her sleepy eyes and smoky eyeshadow painted a picture of a very satisfied cat.
“Who?” asked Ron.
“Well, this smokeshow, of course,” Pansy pointed at her with her sharp black nails.
“We have to find someone for you, otherwise the dress will be utterly pointless. What was wrong with that skinny clerk you danced with? He seemed nice.”
She sipped her cold beer and shrugged.
“Well, he was nice,” she said, sensing him tense beside her. “I won't have time for that, so...”
“Nonsense, You have to live a little, Draco tell her,” demanded Pansy, and he turned to her and looked at her rather impartially.
“You heard the boss Granger.”
“Yes, You have to come to our summer soirée. I will lend You one of my dresses, better than You have right now. Now, that will be a party. Draco, Astoria will come too. You won't believe who I managed to book...”
Pansy went into a long monologue about her party planning and how amazing Astoria Greengrass was. She hated it but knew very well she had to look interested. Wizarding world was small and people like Pansy were the ones running it. She could use a friend like her.
Although everyone claimed that no one discriminated because of their blood status anymore, she noticed that many of her muggleborn classmates didn't land any good jobs. In such a small world connections were everything and muggleborns couldn't rely on anyone.
Absent - minded, she leaned into him. It was a force of a habit. When she realised, she tensed up.
His family was filthy rich and inaccessible, he had a cushy job ready for him at the Department of the International Relations and was practically engaged to Astoria Greengrass. She could hardly imagine herself be intorduced to his parents at Pansy's soirée.
She was a secret and will probably remain one.
“I am looking forward to it Pansy,” she said.
Conversation turned to other things - their plans after school, jobs, masteries - Ginny hadn't graduated yet and was already being considered by several teams, Harry was about to intern with his father, the Head of the Auror Office. She got herself a double whiskey and talked to Neville.
The rest of the night felt bittersweet.
The bar was closing, and the whole group found themselves outside, drinking a sobering potion under the dim lamplight. It was disgusting, but necessary if they wanted to safely apparate in front of the school gates. Harry and Ron had taken their brooms, the madmen.
She was among the last, waiting for everyone to leave.
He stood under the lamplight, his fair hair shinning. It was strange that something so impossible felt so inevitable.
He didn't say a thing. For the whole time they spent together at the school, they hardly spoke a few words to each other, mostly childish insults when they were younger.
She hardly knew how they found themselves in love. It started fast and without any sense, one Rokville weekend behind the pub.
She thought of endings as she stood leaning against the cold stone wall, his hands on her waist and his mouth on her neck. This could be their last night.
He kissed her like a man starving, his cold demeanor and indifference shattered and discarded. His hands were in her hair, and he pulled her close, feeling her body.
She heard a howl, and they both pulled away as a group of drunken muggles passed them by, whistling. He leaned into her more and smiled against her neck.
“Well, they got us,” he said as he turned to the drunkards and showed them awkward thumbs up. She shivered a bit from the lack of his warmth, and when he noticed it he took off his expensive coat and wrapped her in it. He held her hands, his hair falling over his forehead, and his gray eyes were shining with a smile.
“Draco, they will know,” she protested. They had an expiration date, even if she didn't like it. He knew it too. She hoped she didn't shatter the moment.
He took her face into his warm hands and stroked her cheek.
“I want them to.”
His hands were soft and warm and suddenly, despite all everybody could ever say, she felt certain.
This was just a beginning.