Avoiding the End || Malfoy *discontinued*

16

16

As he flicked through the letters, a small, envelope seemed to have caught his attention. I watched curiously over at Draco who sat dead still in front of me, staring down at the letter forgetting about the others that lay upon the table.

Soft chattering filled the Great Hall on the first morning of April. Owls hooted happily, dropping their packages and letters to their rightful owners. I hadn't got anything, but Draco did.

I notice his hands are shaking slightly while holding the yellowed envelope. His shoulders were tense and the paper was beginning to dent where his fingers started to grip harder. I pop a grape into my mouth, chewing softly wondering if I should ask Draco about the letter. Swallowing, I look over my shoulder looking at the Gryffindor table where Harry Potter sat with his friends.

It had been three months since we agreed to end our disliking for each other. We have not spoken since then. It felt odd not insulting each other whenever we walked past each other. Even though we have stopped our bickering, we were still on last name basis and I had a feeling that's how it would always be.

My lips turn into a small grin once I catch Harry's eyes. He nods his head at me before continuing his conversation with Neville Longbottom. My heart sinks and I feel guilty remembering the way I treated Neville on the train. He still hasn't spoken to me; I think I may have scared him once again.

"Who are you looking at?" I turn my head back and shrug my shoulders as Draco looks at me with a look in his eye.

"No one in particular."

"Mclaggen has been staring at you this entire time." I look over at the Gryffindor table once more and nearly laugh seeing that he wasn't looking at me, but instead flirting with Romilda Vane who had a disgusted look on her face.

"What's gotten into you?" I laugh lightly shaking my head at Draco. He only glares down at the unopened envelope and mumbles,

"They always stare at you, as if you are going to do something unforgivable."

"Draco, they stare at all of us like that. It's one of the negatives of being a Slytherin. Even you should know this by now." I pick another green grape from the stem on my plate and place it in my mouth. "Are you alright? You're acting funny." I question while chewing.

"Yes I'm alright - stop tha- " I throw another grape at him making him scowl. "Caroline." He gave me a look of warning as he picked out the grapes that had landed inside his hood.

"Oh come on, I'm just having fun." I huff standing from the table and throwing one last grape at Draco, running out of the Great Hall before he could hex me.

...

As the weeks rolled by slowly, and classes began to get harder I could feel the energy at Hogwarts turn even more darker. It was an uneasy feeling and everyone would be lying if they said nothing was wrong. Even the Professors seemed to be cautious, having students go in pairs whenever they needed to use the restroom. All I could say is, Hogwarts was changing and it was not for the good.

During these weeks, Draco became unbearable to be around. He was shut off, rude, snarky, and churlish. He became impatient, always drumming his fingers with a scowl on his face. Every time I would speak to him he would always snap at me and act as if I were a bother to him. So after a few weeks I stopped trying to speak to him, giving him his space. It wasn't odd for Draco to fall into one of his moods, but for this long and this bad?