Too Sweet // Draco Malfoy

6

TW: Very briefly mentions scars, but not where she got them from

Celeste's pov:

     Three months had passed since the first task, and it was now December. Snow had covered the grounds of Hogwarts beautifully. I had always loved the snow and cold; my grandmother put me into figure skating when I was five. I fell in love with it when I put the ice skates on and stepped foot on the ice. Cedric had yet to figure out the clue for the next class and even showed me the horrid screech it let out when you tried to open it. Earlier this week, we had a class with Professor McGonagall; she informed us that Hogwarts would be hosting the Yule Ball. She had taught us how to dance, even using Ron as an example. Many of us found that hilarious. I had partnered up with Draco, which was nice but definitely nerve-racking. Many people kept staring at us. He was sweet and seemed to have danced this way his whole life. With how wealthy his family was, I'm sure he had been.

     Over the past few months, I have met with Draco at the pond nearly every night. At first, it seemed like run-ins, but I soon thought he had been coming this way on purpose. One night, I mentioned that, and he admitted that he had been walking by every night to see if I was there. I thought it was sweet. He had even started addressing me in the hallway; even if it was just a simple 'hello,' I thought it was sweet. As the nights got colder, the closer we sat to one another. Soon enough, our bodies were beside each other, with my head resting on his shoulder.

----- Flashback (a few weeks prior: November)

     "I can't believe Longbottom tripped and fell down the stairs," Draco said, laughing.

     "Oh shush, ferret boy, Neville is a sweetheart," I said, smacking his arm playfully.

     "Wowwww, I'm just 'ferret boy' now." He asked, placing a hand over his heart, pretending to be sad.

     "You heard me," I said, laughing. I thought I heard a voice but ignored it initially, just thinking I was hearing things.

     "I'm still mad at Professor Moody for doing that," Draco says, and just then, I heard the voice again. "I mean, come o-" Draco went to say before I cut him off.

     "Shh," I said, shushing him. There was the voice again.

   "Help me, please," The voice said.

     "Celeste, what is it?" Draco asked.

      I didn't answer him; I just stood up and grabbed my wand. "Lumos," I said softly, turning my wand into a light source. I lit up the grass before us and saw where the voice was coming from a small tortoise. I walked away from Draco and crouched down. "Hi, were you the one saying help me?" I ask quietly.

    "You can- you can understand me?" The tortoise asked, moving its head up to look at me.

     "It's a gift; what do you need help with?"

     "I need to return to my children, but I'm cold and tired."

     "Would you like me to warm you up with my blanket? Then you can tell me where to take you?"

     "Oh yes, please, that would be lovely."

     I gently pick her up and bring her back towards the bench with Draco. He had a confused look on his face. "Do I need to take you to Madam Pomfrey?" He asks.

     "No, it was just a tortoise. She was asking for help," I say, gesturing to the tortoise in my hand. I sit back down next to Draco and gently wrap her up in the blanket. "I'm Celeste, and this is Draco. What is your name?" I ask.

    "Draco? as in Draco Malfoy?" She questions before ducking into her shell.

     "Wow, Draco, your reputation stands even in the animal world. She's scared of you." I say, looking at him. "Yes, Draco Malfoy, but I promise he will do no harm," I tell her.

     "My name is Ismene," she says as she slowly brings her head out of the shell.

     "That's a beautiful name, Ismene," I say. After a few minutes, she tells me she is warm enough, and I bring her to a small burrow near the lake's edge. I place her in front of it, and she thanks me and heads in. I walk back towards Draco.

     "I can't believe that just happened," He says.

     "Believe it, Draco," I say as I sit beside him. I let out a soft yawn and placed my head on his shoulder. I've never done this before, so he tenses up. He soon relaxes and puts his arm around the back of the bench.

     "Are you tired? Would you like me to walk you back to your common room?" He asks.

     "Yes please," I say.

------

     It was now about a week before the Yule Ball, and Luna, Ophelia, and I had decided to go together. Someone from Durmstrang had asked Luna to accompany her, but she insisted on coming with us. Even when we insisted she should go with him. Today, we were headed into Hogsmeade to get our dresses; even Hermione was coming. She had told us that Viktor Krum had asked her. "I told you he fancied you," I said, nudging her. This caused all of us to giggle as we walked down the streets.

     Luna picked out a beautiful dark purple dress; it fit her waist perfectly and flared out to a lovely skirt with a small train. Ophelia had picked a pale green dress with flowers embroidered all over it. It had off-the-shoulder puffy sleeves and looked beautiful on her. Hermione had picked a pink dress with different shades of pink going down from her waist. It had sheer sleeves, and it fit her personality perfectly. Finally, I chose a pearl white off-the-shoulder satin dress. It accentuated my waist just enough and flared down just enough. This was perfect because I was never one for big, poofy dresses. It had long fabric sleeves that didn't cling to my arm but gave enough coverage. I insisted on getting a long-sleeved dress. When Hermione questioned, I told her it was my preference; I always wore long sleeves. Ophelia and Luna knew the real reason, to hide some of my scars. My grandmother told me she had been saving for me to be invited to a ball for years. I knew she would appreciate this dress, and I would send her a moving photo of Ophelia, Luna, and me. Once we all paid for the dresses, we decided to stop by Honeydukes and pick up some sweets before heading back to school. Once we returned to school, I decided to write to my grandparents, inform them of the dress I had chosen, and assure them that I would send them a photo when the day came.

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A/N Sorry for the shortish chapter, I figured it would be to long if I included the actual dance.