BORN TO DIE    ╱    DRACO MALFOY
꒷꒦ · ˚.‧ . written by ella . . . © -lostgardens
013 ━━ ❛ snowy sleds and fresh cookies ❜

The past couple of days had been nothing but quiet and calm for the Mallard siblings. They've lounged around not doing much of anything—Olivia endlessly reading and Lucas sketching and painting. They had dinner together every night since she'd returned—sitting in the sitting room instead of in the dining hall like they would if their parents were there.

The silence has been nice for Olivia, but also strange in a way. She was used to the chaos of Hogwarts and, more specifically, the Slytherin common room. There was always something going on there; silence was rare.

It was nice because she could actually hear her thoughts and read without being interrupted by the boys rambling or disagreement that they wanted her opinion on, but she also couldn't help but—dare it be said—miss those moments.

The manor was too quiet. Lucas was too quiet. She was too quiet. And she didn't have any clue as to how to change that. All of the ideas she had lasted no longer than an hour at most, and she was running out of ideas.

She had two weeks short of three days left at the manor—left of the silence—and she needed something to occupy it. Hogsmeade was an option, but she hated shopping with a burning passion unless it was for books, so that was an immediate no. Though she was sure Lucas was going to force her there so that she could get her friends gifts before Christmas,

Her next thought was to practice some wandless magic with her brother, but she realized that he might find that boring and entirely Olivia—practicing magic when on break. She would've found it fun, but she wanted him to enjoy it as well.

Then the memories of her friends and Malfoy making her try so many new things over the past months came flooding back to her, and she realized just how much more she had done than Lucas. And that was when an idea that she thought was brilliant came to mind.

Snow sledding—that was her idea.

Despite it being a normal thing to do, she and her brother had yet to do it. When the thought came to her, she was sure she was wrong, but then again, she was never wrong. The idea of never going sledding was preposterous to the outside eye, but thinking about how they were raised, Olivia sighed in realization that it was entirely normal for them.

They were never the 'go outside and have fun' type of children; they were the 'stay inside and read your books so that you can be the best type of children, which was all thanks to their parents. Studying was the act they did most from the time they could read. They had to be the best. Represent the family name with pride and honor. Show everyone what they're made of. Make them fear their minds and abilities.

Don't show weakness. Don't have weaknesses. Never have weaknesses.

With a sigh, Olivia stood up from her desk in her room. Tommy was curled up on her bed, sound asleep. She swore that all that furball did was sleep, and when he wasn't doing that, he was causing chaos at all hours of the night—knocking off books from her desk, swatting her inkwell into the floor, and trying to claw the portraits until they were screaming for help.

She walked to her door and stepped into the dark hallway. She eagerly walked to her brother's room, hearing the paintings mutter as she walked past them—the O'Sheas mostly. Ignoring them, she stopped in front of Lucas's closed door and knocked on it three times.

Listening, she heard some shuffling from inside the room, and then the door swung open. Lucas stood in front of her, his brows raised in curiosity. "Hi," he said, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Hi," she replied, a smile tugging at her lips. "Are you busy?" It was an odd question to ask a ten-year-old, but Lucas was an odd boy.

He shook his head, answering with, "No."

"Good, because I have an idea of something fun we could do." She rolled on her feet—flat on the ground to her tiptoes and then flat again. Excitement was in her expression; she was glad to have found something she thought they would both enjoy.

"Oh?" He raised his brows.

"Snow sledding," she replied. "It's something neither of us have ever done, and we have a perfectly steep, snow-covered hill just outside," she continued, gesturing with her hand to his window that looked out to the front of the manor.

"Do we even have sleds?" he asked.

"I don't know, but I'm sure we can find some. And if not, we can get Bobbin or Trinky to conjure up some," she replied. He stared at her with a look that told her that he wasn't so sure, and she sighed. "Come on, Lucas, we'll have fun; I'm sure of it!"

"Wow," he muttered, running a hand through his curls.

She raised her brows with a questioning look.

"Hogwarts really has changed you," he elaborated, watching as confusion overtook her expression. "You want to have fun, and you are quite literally begging me to go sledding with you," he added, amusement in his features.

She scoffed, placing a hand on her hip. "I am not begging. I was just asking."

"My point still stands," he chuckled.

"Fine, if you dont want to—"

"No, I'll do it." He cut her off.

≀⋆⁺₊⋆ ꗃ 𖦹⨳✺

The siblings stood outside, bundled in winter-friendly clothes and holding sleds in their hands. The cold didn't bite at their skin, seeing as though Olivia had wandlessly cast warming charms on them.

Bobbin and Trinky stood behind them, their big eyes watching the two as they waited for them to go down the hill. The house elves were wrapped in winter-friendly scarves and small jackets.

Oliva glanced over at her brother, seeing him in his thick navy-blue coat with a matching scarf, pants, hat, and earmuffs. She wore the same, but hers were black. Snow boots covered their feet as they were buried under the thick layer of snow.

It turned out that they did in fact have snow sleds, but they had to dig for them in a vacant room full of random things their parents didn't need. The bright red of the sleds was almost blinding—the cherry color of Christmas.

"Are you ready?" Olivia asked her brother as some snowflakes fell on their hats, contrasting against the dark colors.

He nodded in response.

The two set their sleds on the snowy ground and then sat on them. Getting comfortable on the wood, Olivia glanced over at her brother once more. He met her eyes and sent her a small smile. "Ready?" she repeated.

"Yeah," he replied, placing his hands on the sides.

She did the same, and then the two house elves moved forward. Slim-fingered hands were placed on the back of each sled, and Bobbin and Trinky pushed the two down the hill. The sleds moved fast through the snow, causing two straight indents.

Olivia and Lucas felt the rush of the cold wind run over their faces, the warming charms fighting against it as they rushed down the hill. It was almost refreshing—calming, even. But once they reached the bottom of the hill, a large buildup of snow caught their sleds, and they went flying forward.

Landing face-first in deep, cold snow was not fun. Olivia and Lucas were now aware of that.

With a muffled groan, Olivia rolled over to face her brother. He was lying beside her, his face still in the snow. "Lucas," she mumbled, causing him to hum in response. She didn't say anything more as Bobbin and Trinky apparated next to them.

The creatures' eyes were wide with worry as Lucas rolled on his back, his eyes squeezed shut.

"Miss Olivia and Mr. Lucas are hurt!"

"No, no, Bobbin, we're not—or at least, I'm not," Olivia interrupted before the elf could continue. She sat up, trying to show them that she was indeed alright, and Lucas slowly did the same thing. "However, I do not want to do that again," she added, running a hand over the hair sticking out from the bottom of her hat.

"Yeah, me neither," Lucas sighed. He stood up and brushed off his pants and coat, then reached his hand out to help his sister up.

She kindly took it, and he pulled her up from the ground. She let go of his hand and brushed off her own clothes. "Well, at least we did it once," she offered.

"Yeah."

And with that, they grabbed the sleds and walked back to the manor. They left wooden death traps next to the back door leading into the estate and then went inside. Before either child could blink, Trinky snapped her fingers, and all of the snow coating their clothing and boots was gone.

"Thank you." Olivia smiled at the house elf.

"Trinky is welcome, Miss Olivia!" Trinky gleamed.

And with a snap, both house elves disappeared. Olivia let out a breath, shrugging off her coat as she turned to face Lucas, who was doing the same. She moved onto her scarf, earmuffs, and hat, which she set on the coat rack next to the door.

Moving further into the manor, she made her way back to the sitting room, and her brother followed her. The warming charm was slowly wearing off, and she felt the chilliness that was always lingering about in the manor like a ghost breathe on her skin like a whisper. A small shiver went down her spine as she sat down on the couch, and Lucas sat beside her.

The fire was ablaze, and she was sure Trinky or Bobbin was to thank for that. She let the warmth coat her skin, fighting away the cold. She watched the flames dance around in a flickering light, almost like a ballet.

The room was silent, and neither sibling broke it.

Her plan had failed. Well, not entirely. That had accomplished their ultimate goal—snow sledding for the first time—but it didn't go as she had hoped it would. Face-planting snow was not on her bucket list of things to do in her long lifetime, but she could add it and cross it off if she wanted.

"We should do something," Lucas muttered. His voice was soft and barely above a whisper, and Olivia almost didn't catch it.

She hadn't known why he was whispering, though he was already a soft-spoken person as it was. Her eyes found him, and she furrowed her brows, waiting for him to elaborate.

He didn't meet her stare as he continued watching the flames, pulling his knees up and wrapping his arms around them. Resting his chin on his knees, he sighed. "We could bake cookies like we used to," he suggested.

"That's a great idea," Olivia replied.

He looked at her as his face twisted in surprise. "Really?" he asked, his voice soft.

"Yes." She stood up from the couch, a smile tugging at her lips. "Come on," she told him, gesturing for him to get up.

He did just that. Following her to the kitchen, they pushed through the doors, catching the attention of the many house elves. Bobbin and Trinky rushed to them with worried looks on their faces.

"Can Trinky and Bobbin help Miss Olivia and Mr. Lucas with something?" Trinky blurted, her voice high in pitch.

"No, no, Trinky." Olivia waved her hand dismissively. "We just wanted to bake some cookies."

"Oh, Bobbin can do that right now!" Bobbin cheered, moving away from them and towards the fridge. "Bobbin will make snickerdoodles, Miss Olivia and Mr. Lucas's favorite!" She added, digging in the fridge for the ingredients.

"No, Bobbin, we wanted to do it ourselves,"  Olivia explained, moving closer to the house elves. All of the elves in the room looked at her with confusion, and she could've sworn that she heard a few gasps. "Like old times," she added, glancing at each of the big eyes.

"Is Miss Olivia sure?" Trinky chimed in, clutching her hands together.

"Yes, Bobbin." Olivia nodded, her voice soft in tone, moving towards the fridge.

Bobbin had already pulled out the eggs and butter, so Olivia moved over to the large pantry, looking for the rest of the ingredients. Once she found them, she carried them to the counter, where some house elves stood.

They watched her closely as Lucas came up beside her. She began sorting everything, not paying any mind to the watching eyes. She wasn't exactly sure if she remembered how to make snickerdoodles, but she was sure she could manage.

"Does Miss Olivia need Bobbin's help?" The house elf stepped forward, standing next to Olivia. She looked up at the girl with big green eyes, her face still twisted in worry.

"I don't, but thank you for offering, Bobbin," Olivia responded, not facing her. There was silence again as Olivia thought, trying to remember exactly how to make the cookies. It had been so long.

But then it clicked, and she began working. Lucas stood beside her, handing her ingredients, getting her the utensils she needed, and assisting her in any way he could, while Bobbin and Trinky watched closely.

Olivia knew that they had probably felt out of place, not working, but she and Lucas wanted to make the cookies on their own. Even in the end, when the cookies hadn't turned out the best—not tasting nearly as good as Bobbin's—they were happy.

They had made their way back to the sitting room with a plate of cookies and hot chocolate on a tray. Sitting down on the couch, they ate their cookies and drank their hot chocolate. Olivia caught Lucas up on everything that had happened during her first couple of months at Hogwarts. He laughed at each story, astounded by how many she had.

"I think I'd get along with this Theodore guy," he chuckled, covering his mouth with his hand.

"Oh, most definitely. Theodore's something entirely different," Olivia replied.

≀⋆⁺₊⋆ ꗃ 𖦹⨳✺

Later that night, Olivia entered her room, preparing to crash and burn on her. She closed the door behind her, running a hand through her long hair. She made her way over to her desk, and there sat a letter she didn't recognize.

Picking it up, she ran her hand over the wax seal. She peeled open the letter, seeing familiar handwriting. Pansy.

Dear Olivia,

          I so wish you were here! France is amazing, and Blaise's mom is who I aspire to be when I'm older and grown. Did you know she's had three husbands already? Yes, you read that correctly—three. It's bloody brilliant.

          How is your Yule going so far? Are you having fun with Lucas? I hope you are! You deserve a break from all of the studying and reading you do—though I'm sure you're still doing that at home.

          I wish you the best! And look out for something special from France at Christmas!

          P.S. The boys say Hi.

Love, Pansy

A soft smile took over her face as she set the letter down. She didn't know why it had made her so happy that Pansy had thought to write to her over the break, but she was glad for it.

Too tired to respond that night, she walked over to her bed. She'd write back to Pansy in the morning. Curling up in her bed, she draped the soft comforter over her body, cuddled up to Mr. Snake, and closed her eyes.

A moment later, Tommy jumped onto her bed and laid down next to her. Wondering where he'd been hiding all day was the last thought in her mind as her heavy eyes stayed shut and she drifted off to sleep.

It was not peaceful, but it was sleep nonetheless.

≀⋆⁺₊⋆ ꗃ 𖦹⨳✺

━━━━ ella's speaking !
happy september 1st !!

i wish my hogwarts letter hadn't gotten lost in the mail 🙄

this was lowkey a boring ass chapter and it's not entirely my favorite thing- but hey, we got more lucas and olivia 🦅🦅

n e ways, i hoped you enjoyed, and make sure to comment and vote; it truly means a lot to me !!

kisses.

━━━━━━━━━━ born to die,
© -LOSTGARDENS,          sep 2023

word count: 2771.   written: 9.1.23.   published: 9.1.23.