BORN TO DIE    ╱    DRACO MALFOY
꒷꒦ · ˚.‧ . written by ella . . . © -lostgardens
041 ━━━━━━ ❛ third time's a charm ❜

"Olivia, can you come in here for a moment?"

Olivia looked up from her book, only to meet the eyes of her father, who was standing in the doorway of his study, seeming ever-so stressed. She was sitting on the couch in the sitting room with a mug of hot chocolate that was garnished with small marshmallows and shaven peppermint flakes, resting on the table next to her alongside a tray of snickerdoodles. She knew those were certainly an odd choice for an end-of-summer treat, but she wanted to soak in as much as she could before she returned to Hogwarts for her third year.

Her eyes flickered all over her father's face, searching for what he might need from her. She was never asked to join him and her mother in the study. He seemed to be in a mix of calm and stress—maybe even a little worried around the brows, but calm and stressed nonetheless. She was sure her mother was in their as well, impatiently waiting on her.

She and her mother had never had a good relationship; that was clear to everyone, but after Olivia stepped off the train at the end of her second year and told her off about the Malfoys, their dynamic became even more strained than ever before. Both, being way too stubborn, didn't do anything to try and resolve it.

It was actually quite comedic when one thought about it. With an almost-thirty-eight-year-old woman and an almost-fourteen-year-old girl—a mother and a daughter—having an unspoken argument, one could argue that they both were immature in a sense, and they thought the same of each other but otherwise of themselves. It was a never-ending battle.

Sighing, Olivia closed her book with a snap and set it down next to her. She ran a hand through her freshly trimmed hair, which fell once she reached a couple of inches past her shoulder. It was medium length, which was perfect for her. She'd been growing rather tired of her long and annoying hair, and this way, she barely had to do anything to it to make herself look presentable.

Swinging her left leg off her right knee from where they were crossed, she stood up from her seat, cracking her knuckles as she made her way over to her father, whose expression didn't falter from its calm-slightly-stressed mixture. She brushed past him as she entered the study and turned so that his back was against the door and she could easily move by.

Her suspicions about her mother were confirmed as she took in the room and her father shut the door behind them. The woman with her hair pinned up like usual, dressed in a long black dress, sat in a chair just left of the desk, watching her daughter carefully with a slight calculation burning in her pupils, just as always. She had her hands clasped on her right knee, which crossed over her left, and she sat with her spine stiffer than a board, steeled straight.

Always so serious, Olivia rolled her eyes. She focused on her father instead of Clodagh as he made his way past her and to his desk. The tension in the air grew thick as he sat down in his seat, adjusting it so that he sat closer to the desk. Then he messed with some papers on his desk, not speaking.

Olivia took a moment to glance around the study. She'd been in there before, when she believed dear Tommy had wandered in there when she was home for Yule, but this study was ever-changing, and it already looked slightly different from that time. The tables were cleaner, not littered with random scrolls, papers, and books. Her father's desk was a mess, like he and perhaps her mother had spent many late nights there working. And she noticed that the bookshelves were a little fuller, and that book was still there, drawing her towards it.

"We brought you in here," her father began, dragging her attention to him. His words fell short, and he glanced over to Clodagh before looking down at his desk and picking up one of the papers. It wasn't just any paper, though; it was the Daily Prophet. "We brought you in here because we want to make sure you'll be safe when returning to Hogwarts," he admitted, causing Clodagh to roll her eyes.

Olivia ignored her mother's mood and furrowed her brows, keeping focused on her father. She was quite surprised that her mother was letting him speak instead of taking over the conversation like she usually did. "What? What do you mean 'be safe'?" she asked, confusion lacing her words.

He breathed in and out for a moment, looking away from Olivia and focusing on whatever the paper read. "Sirius Black has escaped from Azkaban," he informed her, flipping over the newspaper so that she could see the front.

Olivia's brows shot up to her hairline as she stepped closer, leaning in so that she could get a better look. On the front of the Daily Prophet was a picture of Sirius Black, Malfoy's second cousin, but it wasn't just any picture. Not from his school days at Hogwarts, not when he was friends with Lily and James Potter—no, it was his prisoner photo, moving wild as he screamed and held up his prisoner number for the camera to see. Escaped from Azkaban! was what the headline read. The man looked crazed, like just stepping into the prison had caused him to lose his mind.

Inhaling deeply, Olivia took a step back, and Andrew folded the newspaper before setting it on his desk. "Your mother and I are rather worried he'll try something. As you know, he betrayed the Potters and was quite the loyal follower of Voldemort, so sure enough, he'll try to go after the boy now that he's free," he continued.

"You mean Harry?" Olivia inquired, creasing her brows.

"Yes," he replied. His mouth opened once, then snapped shut as he clenched his jaw, rubbing his hands together and sending a glance to his wife, who looked like she had something to say but didn't want to say it. Looking back at Olivia, he ran a hand over his styled hair. "If the past two years have proven anything, Hogwarts is not foreign to danger. First, it was that troll and Quirrell, then Tom Riddle, the Chamber of Secrets, and the Basilisk; now we're worried because of Black," he explained, leaning back in his chair. It was like he was trying to relax, but the tension in his muscles was very apparent.

"We trust Dumbledore to do his job," he reassured, glancing over at his wife once more, seeing her roll her eyes again as Olivia matched it. "And we know that you can take care of yourself," he went on, focusing on his daughter, "but try to look out for yourself and Lucas."

"Of course." Olivia nodded. "I would do that even if you weren't telling me too," she added, always looking for a time to add a bit of cheek. "Sirius Black is on the loose; he's dangerous, and I need to watch my back—anything else I should know?" She met her mother's annoyed gaze, giving her a knowing look with raised brows. "Something you'd like to add, mother?"

Clodagh just glared at her for a moment, breathing in and out with deep breaths. Then she slowly stood from her seat, placing her hands on her knees as she straightened her spine, her icy eyes never leaving Olivia's. She offered her a small smile that looked nothing short of unpleasant as she leaned against the corner of the dark wooden desk. She opened her mouth to speak but seemed to think better of it for a moment. Looking away from Olivia, she squeezed her eyes shut, probably thinking of her next words. "I'm... I'm sorry," she finally said after a long pause, her eyes falling back on her daughter.

To say Olivia was shocked would be an understatement. She was sure her eyes were bulging out of her skull at this moment, and she couldn't tell if her mother was being serious or not. She never, ever apologized for anything; that was one of the many traits Olivia had inherited from her mother, for better or worse.

Olivia needed some smelling salts because she believed she had been knocked over the head and fell unconscious, because there was no way her mother had just uttered those two words or anything remotely close to them. Words tried to fall from her agape lips, but nothing came out as she stared at her mother with confusion and blatant surprise.

"You were right," Clodagh reluctantly admitted.

Another punch to the gut, that was.

"I shouldn't try to control who you are friends with, even if that person is the child of the Malfoys," she trailed off, looking around the room as she waved around an offering hand.

"Clodagh..." Andrew muttered, hinting for her to get back on track.

Taking the hint, she cleared her throat, giving Olivia another smile. This one looked painful, like the words and action were physically hurting her.

Olivia just stood there, still stunned from the first wave of shock.

Her mother sighed, running a hand over her dress-covered legs. "I suppose I can get over you being friends with the Malfoy boy. I may not like it, but... please, for the love of Merlin, don't let it go past that." She paused, her face twisting in disgust at the thought, and then raised a telling finger. "Friends only."

Those words threw Olivia right back into reality. "Like that would happen." She sniffled a laugh, looking at her mother with bewilderment. "I don't even consider him a friend," she admitted, like that should've been known. "I just don't like you trying to control my life."

"Good." Clodagh gave her a short nod, standing up straight and rubbing her hands over the front of her dress. She glanced back at her husband, who was watching the interaction with a little amusement in his gaze as his chin rested in his hand and he rubbed the light stubble on his face, then she began toward the door. Brushing past her daughter, she didn't wait for her to say anything and opened the door, leaving the room without another word.

Olivia watched her for a moment as she paced away from the study, her heels clicking against the tiled floor, then she turned to face her father with a curious look. "I get that Mother doesn't like the Malfoys because of their past and beliefs; I don't either, but is there another reason she is so against them?" She raised her brows, gesturing out the door, where the woman had just been but wasn't anymore. "It seems like there's a deeper reason for her hatred."

"It's not my reason to tell you," Andrew responded, looking down at the parchment on his desk.

The realization was quick to dawn on Olivia, and she raised her brows even higher, taking a step closer to the desk. "So there is a reason." She hummed, looking around the room in thought as she tapped her finger on the wood of the desktop. She wondered what the reason was.

"Olivia," Andrew warned. "Don't go digging into your mother's past. You know she won't like that, and it'll just cause more problems than solutions." He picked up a quill and dipped it in ink, having said his peace and done with this conversation.

"I suppose," she said, looking down at her feet for a moment.

When she raised her head, her father was already looking at her, knowing what she was thinking. He sent her another pointed look, warning her not to go there. She knew it was best for everyone, but she couldn't help but let the curiosity bubble in her mind. She wondered if Snape knew what the reason (or reasons) was.

"Go on, you need to begin packing your things," her father instructed, nodding towards the door. "There's only a few more days until you leave for Hogwarts, and you don't want to be running behind schedule."

Inhaling a sharp breath, Olivia nodded, the thoughts still lingering in her mind. And with that, she left the study, closing the door behind her and making her way back over to the couch. She picked up her book as she plopped down. She didn't open it, though. No, her attention was somewhere else.

What was her mother hiding?

≀⋆⁺₊⋆ ꗃ 𖦹⨳✺

Her father had been right; there was no time for her to get behind schedule. Luckily for her, she was an exceptionally fast packer. It was true; she deserved an award for it or something. After lingering in the sitting room for a little bit, trying to come up with the deeper reason her mother would hate the Malfoys, she gave up and went to her room to pack.

That was a few days ago. Now that she was all packed, so was Lucas, and they walked across the platform, right to the train. Unlike the past few years, Olivia didn't have to lug her trunk around until her father noticed and took it from her. It had only taken three years to the day, but she finally had wheels on her trunk, and so did her brother. It was the best thing to ever exist. Well, maybe not the best, but it was coming in close.

Andrew and Clodagh trailed behind their children, looking just as they always did, picture-perfect with gazes that could kill. They were dressed in sleek black clothes; Clodagh's hair was pinned up as usual, and Andrew matched it with his gelled, not-a-hair-out-of-place-styled hair. They looked so pristine and elegant, Olivia hated it.

But despite her parents' coldness, the wandering eyes of somewhat strangers, and the thoughts hanging around in her skull like students did in the common rooms, everything was fine and dandy, and Olivia was ready to return to Hogwarts. And once they came to a stop just right to the side of the train, the emotions of finally being back hit her.

She turned to her parents, keeping her expression void of anything. "We should be going now," she stated, grabbing Lucas's wrist, ready to drag him onto the train without another thought. And so she did. She pulled her brother with her, not missing the frustrated look she was receiving from her mother and the surprise swirling in Lucas's eyes.

Her father called out, "Remember what we talked about, Olivia!" He was trying not to be loud enough to catch attention from others, though it was so busy that he probably didn't, but he also wanted to be loud enough for her to hear him.

"Yeah, yeah." She waved a dismissive hand, not even glancing back.

Wasting not another second, she and Lucas rolled their trunks over to the luggage carrier and then climbed aboard. She finally let go of his wrist once they were on the train, and they began searching for their compartment. It didn't take them long to find it, since it was the one they sat in every time they were on the Hogwarts Express.

As they came to a stop, they saw through the glass of the door their usual group, excluding Crabbe and Goyle, sitting in there. Well, it was their usual group plus one more. Just to the right of Daphne, who sat to the right of Pansy on the left side of the compartment, was a little girl, perhaps just a couple years younger than Olivia. The girl had long, ash brown hair that was tied back into two pigtail braids. She wore her plain Hogwarts robes with a bright smile on her face and dazzling blue eyes.

It didn't take Olivia long to conclude that this was Astoria, Daphne's sister. She remembered her blonde roommate saying something about her being just a couple of years younger than them, which meant that this year was Astoria's first.

"I didn't mean to blow her up. I just... I lost control," Olivia heard an all-too-familiar voice say, growing nearer as its owner walked closer to her.

Glancing to her right, she saw none other than Potter walking alongside his two sidekicks. They seemed to be in search of a compartment. Olivia's focus broke away from the younger girl who was joining the school this year and paid attention to the three Gryffindors that always seemed to be getting into some sort of trouble.

"Brilliant!" Weasley replied, chuckling.

"Honestly, Ron, it's not funny," Granger retorted as her focus fell onto Olivia and Lucas, who were watching them closely. She met Olivia's gaze as she said, "Harry was lucky not to be expelled." Her voice grew quieter as they three brushed past the siblings, giving them small smiles.

"I think I was lucky not to be arrested, actually," Potter corrected as he continued his search for an empty compartment.

Before Olivia could even ponder what he was talking about, the door in front of them slid open, and she came face-to-face with Pansy, who had a bit of a summer tan lingering on her skin. "Are you two going to stand out here all bloody day or what?" she asked, placing her hands on her hips and raising her brows in question.

"We were thinking about it," Olivia replied, shrugging her shoulders.

"Haha, very funny." Pansy rolled her eyes, then stuck her arms out. "Come here," she muttered, bringing in Olivia for a tight hug. "I've missed you, mon petit diable," she confessed as her face buried itself in the girl's dark hair.

Olivia quickly pulled back, ignoring all of the other lingering eyes on her. "Mon petit diable?" She raised her brows, giving the girl a questioning look, slightly amused by what she had been called. It was a rather odd nickname, very fitting for her though, she supposed. Or, at least, it was fitting based on what others thought of her.

"Just a little something I came up with while studying French." Pansy offered her a warm smile, shrugging her shoulders as she dropped her arms from the girl's shoulders. "It means..."

"My little devil," Olivia interrupted, nodding as Lucas brushed past her and sat down beside Theodore. "Yes, I know what it means," she confirmed with a small chuckle. "Why must that be my nickname?"

"Because," Pansy dragged out, pulling Olivia into the compartment, "you're my little devil."

Olivia shut the door behind them before they walked over to the left cushioned bench and sat, Pansy next to Daphne and Olivia next to her with her back to the blonde and her sister.

"So... how was your summer?" Pansy inquired.

"Uh," Olivia muttered as she looked around at all the lingering gazes. Her eyes stopped when she found a particular blonde boy that was sitting across from her and looking at her with those same admiring, cloudy gray eyes. "It was uneventful," she admitted, turning back to face Pansy with a small smile.

"How boring," Pansy teased, playfully rolling her eyes.

"Yes, well, not all of us can travel the world on a whim," Olivia replied knowingly.

Pansy just shrugged her shoulders and fell silent along with everyone else. She continued to study Olivia, though, whose eyes kept falling over to the boy across the compartment from her. Something was different about him; he looked different. Dare she say good? Shaking the thought from her mind, Olivia looked at her roommate again, seeing the girl studying her closely, almost seeming suspicious about something.

"What?" Olivia questioned, creasing her brows in confusion.

Pansy remained silent, staring at her for a long, studying moment, as if she were searching for something in Olivia's expression or eyes. "Something's different about you," she finally noted, leaning back to take in the girl a little better as she narrowed her eyes and continued to examine her.

Olivia watched her with the same curiosity and shot her a perplexed glance.

And then it dawned on Pansy.

She lifted her hand, waving her finger like a light bulb had gone off in her head. "You cut your hair," she stated, seeming relieved to have found the answer to the question on her mind. "Yes, that's it; you cut your hair."

"Yeah, it was getting too long," Olivia confirmed, sitting up straighter.

"It looks good," Draco complimented, breaking through the two's conversation.

Olivia was so engrossed in talking to Pansy that she had almost forgotten the others were present, and she was sure the other girl felt the same. Both girls looked over at him, and the others followed their movements.

"Thank you, Draco." Olivia smiled, meeting his gaze. She knew that calling him by his name would've been a shock to most, but the looks on her friends' faces were quite priceless, as was the one on Draco's as well. Still, her smile didn't falter as she continued to stare at him, and everyone continued to stare at her.

The compartment was silent for a tension-filled moment, no one knowing what to say.

Then Daphne cleared her throat. "Olivia, Lucas, this is my little sister, Astoria," she mentioned, gesturing to the girl who was sitting next to her.

Olivia and Lucas focused on the girl, who looked like the spitting image of her sister, just with darker hair. "Nice to meet you, Astoria," they greeted her in unison, smiling.

"You too," Astoria muttered shyly, returning their smile.

The air around them fell silent after that; it was almost awkward, again with the tension that always seemed to linger about. It, once again, seemed like no one knew what to say or if they wanted to say anything at all. Olivia, sure enough, didn't want to. Well, it was more so because she didn't have anything to say. She just scooted back so that she sat right against the cushioned back of the seat and stared out the window, watching the passing scenery go by in blurs.

"So are we just going to ignore the fact that Olivia called Draco, well, Draco?" Theodore asked, sounding astonished and a bit confused. Olivia glanced over at him, seeing his furrowed brows, raised and questioning arms, and an anything but cheerful smile. "Since when does she do that?"

"It's his name, Theodore; is it not?" Olivia countered, her face twisting in confusion at his somewhat annoyance. It was just a name.

"Well, I know," he continued, dropping his hands to his lap as he sat up. "It's just... you've never called him that before, so it's just a bit confusing." He looked away from her for a second as his eyes wandered the faces of their friends, trying to see if they were thinking the same thing.

They were.

"That is not true, Theodore," Blaise interjected, sounding pleased at the memory. "You're forgetting that time on the platform." He wagged his finger in remembrance. Then he faced Olivia, giving her a knowing look that was full of deviousness and amusement. "What was it you said again, Olivia?"

"I think it was something along the lines of 'just because you hate Lucius and Narcissa doesn't mean I have to hate Draco!'" Pansy recalled dramatically mocking Olivia's voice. She was, in every way, helping Blaise with his teasing of the girl as she bumped shoulders with her.

Olivia boredly looked over at her best friend. "Haha, yes, very funny."

"Why is it you said that?" Blaise inquired, his knowing gaze never faltering.

"You all know I would do anything to annoy my mother," Olivia reminded them, shrugging her shoulders like the conversation was just some other news reported in the papers.

"You two bicker like two teenage girls," Lucas snorted, alluding to Olivia and their mother.

"Well, I am a teenage girl; she, however, is not." Olivia lifted her chin with pride, like her retort had any power in the situation. Then she remembered her mother's words from a few days prior. "Actually, she..." Her voice fell short as she glanced around the compartment, meeting every curious face. "Nevermind."

Draco sat up straighter in his seat, his gaze trained on Olivia. "Why is it your mother dislikes me so much?" He actually sounded quite curious about the answer, and the truth was, Olivia didn't know.

When all else fails, come up with something. "Well, it's not so much you, per se. It's rather your family and their beliefs... or former beliefs, whatever things you lot are spewing these days," Olivia explained, muttering the last part. "But I feel as if there's a deeper reason," she added, looking out the window as she thought of her next words. She didn't have any, so she focused on Draco again. "Or maybe its just the fact that you have overly blonde hair—like, blinding blonde hair," she joked, though her face didn't show it.

"Ah, yes, very funny," he remarked, rolling his eyes as he bit back a smile.

"I'm completely serious." Olivia raised her hands in defense, also fighting a smile. She didn't know why she was fighting a smile, but she was, and she didn't plan on thinking about it for too long. "You need to put a warning sign next to it; someone could get hurt because it's so bright," she teased, lifting her hand to shield her eyes like his hair was blinding her.

After a moment, she dropped her hands down to rest next to her legs on the seat as she continued to stare at him. Clearly, she wasn't too scared of going blind from his hair. And apparently, she wasn't the only one who decided to change their hair that year.

"Also," she added after a brief pause. Her words were cut short when they heard the squealing of the train's wheels coming to a halt. She and everyone else quickly forgot what they had been talking about as they glanced around the compartment.

"Why are we stopping?" she asked mostly to herself, her voice full of confusion. Before she or any of the others could even utter a word or make a move, the train shuddered, causing all of them to tip over into one another. "Odd," she mumbled, sitting up straight again. Then the lights went out, and she heard Astoria squeak out a frightened noise, leaning closer to her sister.

Olivia stood up as the lights came back on. She glanced back and forth between the compartment door and the window while everyone sat scared and still, like they were frozen in time. The lights flickered off again as she moved closer to the door. The train jerked again, almost causing her to lose her balance. Instinctively, she drew out her wand, pointing it forward as she stepped towards the door.

"You're braver than I," Theodore mumbled, causing her to glance back at him.

Shaking her head, Olivia faced the door. And then a chill crept down her spine, and the fog of her breath clouded in front of her mouth as she breathed in and out slowly. She could practically hear the shuddering of her friends, as well as Daphne and Astoria behind her, but she ignored it and focused on the door. Then she looked out the window when she heard a crackling noise. Everyone else hastily glanced around, also confused, while she saw the glass of the window frosting up like it was being frozen from outside.

It was the first day of September. There was no reason for the glass to freeze.

Her brows furrowed, studying the odd occurrence with her curious gaze. Caught up in her curiosity, she almost fell when the train jerked forward again, causing Pansy and Astoria to squeal, moving closer to Daphne in the process. Olivia grabbed ahold of the wall, keeping herself upright as another chill ran down her spine.

"Bloody hell, what is that thing?" Theodore stammered.

Olivia looked over at him, seeing him pointing behind her. She quickly turned around, coming face-to-face—or somewhat face-to-face (did they even have faces?)—with a dementor. Her eyes went wide as she lifted her wand, taking a step back and almost tripping over Lucas's feet. She watched as the door slowly slid open, and she froze while everyone else scooted back and away from the deathly creature.

She had her wand raised, but she wasn't doing anything. She wasn't casting any spells; she wasn't even thinking of casting any spells. She was frozen in place with a blank mind and a racing heart. The knowledge of what to do was in her mind; it always was, but she wasn't doing it, and neither was anyone else, for that matter.

The dementor floated closer to her as she moved further back, her wand still raised and gripped in her shaking left hand. Then she felt like she couldn't breath. It was a sudden feeling, one she wasn't expecting and hadn't prepared for. It took over her body in an instant as her mind went blank, and she continued to stare at the creature in front of her.

She gasped, drawing in short breaths, but didn't move in her spot. She truly was frozen. The dementor moved, however, leaning closer to her as it took her life force. Her vision started to blacken, going splotchy as she felt herself leave her body. Still, she didn't do a thing.

Then, in an instant, there was a bright light and then nothing.

Nothing but complete and utter darkness.

"Olivia," a voice echoed in her skull. "Olivia, get up. Are you alright?" The voice continued as Olivia's eyes peeled open, the shift from darkness to light raging in her head.

Olivia groaned in pain, her head throbbing as she blinked repeatedly, trying to get used to the light again. Her whole body ached, and she didn't remember why. Slowly, she looked at all of the faces peering down at her, looking ever-so-worried. All of her friends and Daphne were staring down at her with furrowed brows and concerned eyes.

"What happened?" she asked, sitting up as they moved out of the way. She rubbed her head, biting back another pained groan. And then it hit her. "Bloody hell," she cursed under her breath, placing her head in her hands. "Tell me it was just a dream." She rubbed her eyes, trying to wake herself from what felt like a deep sleep, just before slightly turning to meet Lucas's eyes.

"A bloody dream?" Theodore blurted, looking at her as if she had gone mad. "A dream? A dementor attacked you! It wasn't a dream!" His voice was so loud that it caused her to wince, her head still throbbing as her brain pounded against her skull. "If anything, that would be a nightmare!"

"Not so loud, please," she grimaced, massaging her temples.

"Sorry," he muttered, lowering his volume.

A quiet moment fell on them like an itchy blanket, something no one wanted but was the only thing that could keep them warm in a time of need, as Olivia glanced around once more. "Where's Astoria?" she inquired, not noticing the girl anywhere in the compartment.

"She got quite frightened and ran off to another compartment," Daphne explained, sounding rather scared.

"Oh," Olivia breathed, slowly nodding her head. She opened her mouth to speak again, but before she could, the door of the compartment slid open. She turned, expecting to see Astoria returning, but instead she was met with a familiar face, who was looking down at her with curiosity all over his scarred face.

"Olivia?" Lupin raised his brows, looking down at her. Then he looked at her brother. "Lucas?" He sounded surprised, yet not at the same time. Olivia wasn't sure how that was possible, but right then, she wasn't sure about much of anything. His eyes cast around the other faces, taking them in with studying eyes, then he focused on Olivia. "What are you doing on the floor?"

"No reason of choice," she answered, slightly grumbling as she stood up.

Once she was closer to eye level with the man, she took in his appearance. He was wearing a tailored suit with a long, black wool coat over top, and his hair was slightly disheveled, which didn't go well with his nicely polished shoes.

She met his gaze again after a second of analysis. Letting out a sigh, she looked back at the others, who had begun to stand, giving the man skeptical looks, all but Lucas. "A dementor attacked me," she elaborated, her gaze fixed on him.

"Ah." He lifted his head in understanding, then began digging around in his coat pocket. He pulled out a gold-wrapped something, paying all his attention to it and not the students staring at him with curiosity. "Here you go," he finally said, handing her the gold-wrapped something. "This should help." He nodded to the thing in her hand. "It's only chocolate, and it'll help you feel better," he added, giving her a small smile. "Now, I'm off to have a word with the driver." And with that, he walked away.

"Odd fellow, he is," Blaise added once he was sure the man was out of earshot.

Olivia and Lucas gave each other a knowing look, then focused on the boy. "You have no idea," they admitted in unison.

After that, all of them sat down again, still sort of rattled by what had happened. Olivia ate some of her feel-better chocolate as everyone watched her curiously while she stared at the ground in thought.

Only the cast of light could dismiss a dementor—a patronus. She'd somewhat remembered seeing a bright light, but she didn't remember where it had come from. She hated to think about it, but she was sure none of her friends or even Daphne knew how to cast a patronus. She was sure they'd be able to if they tried, but not in that moment, under all that pressure while scared.

And that only left one person.

After a long pause of silence and eating the chocolate, which, despite Lupin's words, made her feel a little worse since it was on a mostly empty stomach, she looked up. When she told Dumbledore she wasn't a sweets or treats kind of girl, she hadn't been lying—she only liked hot chocolate, snickerdoodles, and chocolate frogs. "What made the dementor go away?" she asked, glancing at everyone.

"Lucas cast a patronus," Draco responded, confirming her suspicions as he rubbed his hands on his knees.

"Yeah, the first I've ever seen," Theodore added, clamping a hand down on Lucas's shoulders, completely missing the red on his face. He hated attention.

Olivia smiled at her brother, giving him reassurance that he did well and that she was okay. "I told you that you could do it." She thought back to their many training sessions on casting patronuses. He never thought that he could do it. She told him that he could; he just needed to put his heart into it. "What is your patronus?" she inquired, dismissing the other topic.

"Borzoi," Lucas replied with a small smile.

"Ah," she nodded. "Brilliant. Borzois are athletic, gentle, smart, and protective; that's quite fitting for you," she explained, noticing the throbbing in her head slowly dying down. Perhaps Lupin's chocolate wasn't completely useless.

"Wait, Olivia... Can you cast a patronus?" Draco leaned forward slightly.

"Who do you think taught Lucas?" She retorted, giving him a snarky smile that had a hint of something else in it.

"What is it? Your patronus?" he continued, ignoring the sass in her remark.

A smile fell on her face as the answer to his question popped into her mind. She glanced over at Lucas, who gave her a returning smile, and then she focused on Draco as she sat up a little bit straighter. "It's a dragon," she bragged, not missing how Theodore's mouth fell open and shocked looks took over everyone's, except for Lucas, once-worried features.

"So, let me get this correct," Theodore began, waving his hands around as he thought. He gestured to Lucas but still looked at Olivia. "He has a brilliant and very large dog as his patronus? And you have one of the rarest out there?" He gaped, looking between the siblings, who just nodded in response. "And they say I have all of the fun." The boy threw his hands down in defeat as he leaned back in his seat.

Everyone laughed, the concern and tension falling out of the compartment with the snap of fingers. And Olivia was glad for it. Why was it that she almost died every year? It was getting quite old and repetitive for her liking. She just wanted one year of normalcy. Was that too much to ask for?

Oh, if only she'd known.

≀⋆⁺₊⋆ ꗃ 𖦹⨳✺

In the cauldron, boil and bake
Fillet of a fenny snake
Scale of dragon; tooth of wolf
Witches, mummy, maw, and gulf
Double, double
Toil and trouble
Fire burn
And cauldron bubble

Double, double, toil and trouble
Fire burn and cauldron bubble
Double, double, toil and trouble
Fire burn and cauldron bubble
Something wicked this way comes.

The choir finally finished their song as their giant frogs croaked and everyone around them applauded. Olivia wondered when they had time to learn all of that. She had to give them props, and she would've if her massive headache hadn't returned the second she stepped out of the carriage and entered Hogwarts doors. Flitwick moved from his spot in front of the choir while they moved out of the way, going back to their seats.

Dumbledore stepped forward, moving to his golden owl-clad podium. "Welcome, welcome to another year at Hogwarts," he announced, lifting his arms as the applause quickly died down. He dropped his arms, resting his hands on the podium. "Now, I'd like to say a few words before we all become too befuddled by our excellent feast," he continued. "First, I am pleased to welcome Professor R.J. Lupin, who's kindly consented to fill the post of Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher."

Olivia's eyes shot over to Lucas, who sat across from her next to Pansy and Theodore and was giving her the same confused and shocked look. It would've been nice of her parents to let her know that Lupin was going to be joining the school when they gave her that little pep talk a few restless nights before leaving for the train. Perhaps they didn't know. Who was she kidding? They were Andrew and Clodagh Mallard; of course they knew.

"That's the same bloke who helped you, Olivia," Blaise reminded.

"Good luck, Professor," Dumbledore added, gracefully gesturing his hand to the newest addition to the Hogwarts professors.

The Great Hall burst into a fit of welcoming applause as Lupin rose from his seat with a half-there smile on his face. Olivia's eyes flickered over to Snape, who sat to her left of the professor, who was bowing in gratitude, and she saw nothing but a blank expression and stiff claps. Shaking her head, she scoffed in amusement. He was still annoyed about not being made the Dark Arts professor once again. Well, she couldn't blame him; it was his dream job after all.

Before she could think about anything else, she felt Draco tap her arm. Turning to him, she saw a hint of deviousness sparking in his eyes, like stars behind storm clouds. He gestured over to the table to their left, where she saw the backs of Potter and Weasley's heads when she faced where he was nodding. She moved her left leg so that it was on the outside of the bench, while her right stayed underneath the table. 

"Potter. Potter!" Draco called in a hushed tone. The applause died down just as the two Gryffindor boys turned to face them. "Is it true you fainted?" he asked as Olivia fake fainted, lying back against him with the back of her left hand on her forehead. Draco looked down at her with amusement, smiling brightly as she looked at him, and then he focused on Potter. "I mean, you actually fainted?" he repeated, a little more mocking this time.

"Shove off, Malfoy!" Weasley retorted as Olivia sat up right with a smirk on her face. He grabbed Potter's robes, turning himself and the other boy around to face Granger, who was giving Olivia the evil eye.

"Didn't you faint as well, Olivia?" Daphne chimed in, giving the girl a curious look.

Olivia quickly turned to her, not missing the fact that Potter and Weasley glanced back—she could feel their eyes on her, no doubt lingering with shock and an interest in more information. Too bad they weren't going to get any. Olivia just glared at Daphne, whose expression was slightly faltering, and then she faced away and stayed silent while focusing on Dumbledore.

"Our Care of Magical Creatures teacher, for many years, has decided to retire in order to spend more time with his remaining limbs," the headmaster continued. "Fortunately, I'm delighted to announce that his place will be taken by none other than our own... Rubeus Hagrid," he explained, sounding more than pleased with the change.

"Bloody hell," Olivia heard more than a few Slytherins mutter, including Draco, Theodore, and Blaise, as Dumbledore gestured to the large man behind him and applause broke around the Great Hall once again.

Olivia focused on Hagrid as he stood, moving the entire professors' table in the process. Goblets and silverware fell to the floor, and the other professors looked a little rattled. The cheers and applause continued, and Hagrid looked more than grateful. Then McGonagall pulled him back down to sit as Dumbledore began speaking again.

"Finally, on a more disquieting note, at the request of the Ministry of Magic, Hogwarts will, until further notice, play host to the dementors of Azkaban," he paused as whispers began to swirl around the hall, "until such a time as Sirius Black is captured," the bearded man informed them.

Olivia leaned closer to Draco, whispering, "It seems everyone in your family is bloody crazy."

He glared at her as she gave him a sweet, slightly devilish smile. "You're the one to talk," he replied, whispering as well, with a smirk on his face.

She gave him an offended look as she placed a hand over her heart, ignoring the eyes lingering on them. "None of my family is in Azkaban; thank you very much."

"Apparently, only my aunt is now," he countered.

"Still one too many."

"The dementors will be stationed at every entrance to the grounds," Dumbledore went on as Olivia focused on him once more, turning so that her back was to the boy beside her. "Now, whilst I've been assured that their presence will not disrupt our day-to-day activities, a word of caution—dementors are vicious creatures. They will not distinguish between the one they hunt and the one who gets in their way," he explained as Olivia's heart began to race. She wasn't scared—no, of course not. "Therefore, I must warn each and every one of you to give them no reason to harm you," he assured, not helping the tightness in Olivia's chest.

He paused, letting the words sink in for a moment. "It is not in the nature of a dementor to be forgiving," he warned, then lifted the first fingers of both of his hands. "But, you know, happiness can be found, even in the darkest of times"—he waved his hands over the flame of a candle, putting it out—"if one only remembers to turn on the light." His hand countered his previous move, waving over the candle again and lighting the flame.

Just another year of ominous words and near-death for Olivia; it should be fun.

She hoped it would be fun.

≀⋆⁺₊⋆ ꗃ 𖦹⨳✺

━━━━ ella's speaking !
they're back!! and olivia is finally calling draco by his name 🤭

act three is when their relationship really begins to develop into something more... but that's all i'm gonna say for now. you'll just have to continue reading to see what i mean!

make sure to comment and vote

kisses.

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

word count: 7320. written: 11.5.23. published: 11.9.23.