The Thestral (Draco Lucius Malfoy)

3

It was pure curiosity - or was it enticement - that forced me down the winding stairs and into the courtyard. The desire for Harry's cloak of invisibility was sublime as I spent nearly the whole journey keeping my face hidden from anyone who may ask about earlier.

When my shoes finally touch the grass, I lift myself off the ground and into the sky. My hands fumble slightly as the broomstick carries me upwards. It had
been nearly two months since I had used it.

"The trick is to balance." a voice says from besides me. I turn my head and see Draco, his stature confident yet endearing. My eyes trace his perfectly sculpted face for a moment.

"Thanks for telling me. I hadn't a clue."

"Obviously," he scoffs, then beckons an arm to me. "Come along."

I stay quiet as I follow behind him for a brief moment, both of us riding the wind towards the black lake. It grows closer and closer as seconds pass, and soon the small Hogsmeade Village just barely comes into sight.

"Where are we going?" I half yell, half scream over the gusts of air between us. His white and green striped scarf nearly flies off as he turns his head towards me, but he grabs it with a swift move of his arm.

Impressed with his catch, he smirks.

"Hogsmeade," he responds. "Don't you want to have a little fun?"

I question what the word 'fun' means to him as I stare at the dark waters that glitter below our feet. Uncertainty becomes me as we approach the community; has he forgotten we have agreed to not be seen around each other? Him for his reputation, and I for the sake of those I plan to keep close.

Swiftly Draco changes his direction, heading for the ground just meters after the end of the black lake. I follow promptly but uneasily as we begin to skim the ground, my feet finally touching as we both dismount.

I glance at him, his hands fixing the way his scarf lay around his neck.

"So, what exactly are we doing here?" I question to him.

He props his hood over his head and tucks back the remnants of his white-blonde hair. Then he steps closer to me, just by a foot or so, and takes hold of the blue and black cloak that hangs on my shoulders. Effortlessly he tosses my hood above my head.

I shutter inside as his hands come to rest besides my head and on my shoulders; too intimate of a touch from Draco.

"Don't you dare let anyone see us," he begins. "I'm leaving the second anyone notices either of us. Got it?"

His demeanor is off-putting for someone who had quite literally showed up at my dormitory window, but I stayed loyal regardless. As much as I sometimes despised Draco, his ability to keep me on my toes was more than enough entertainment than I'd needed. Although to say I enjoyed it was, at times, an exaggeration.

He strides towards the village but I keep myself locked in place, my arms crossing in front of me as I debate whether or not to follow. When he notices he is alone, he stops.

"What are you waiting for, Ravenclaw?" He questions. "Do you want a new wand or what?"

My heart thumps a little, just enough for me to notice. A new wand?

I begin faster after him, merely out of curiosity. His face crinkles into a smug grin as my pace picks up.

"A new wand?" I ask when I am finally close enough. "Why?"

He doesn't bother to look at me as he answers.

"You want McGonagall to have your wand forever? Just a defenseless witch with no wand?" He's taunting me now but I almost feel nothing as he does so. It's hard to tell sometimes how he feels towards me. "After your little incident in the courtyard today, you clearly have enemies. At least have the decency to protect yourself, for Godric's sake."