BORN TO DIE    ╱    DRACO MALFOY
꒷꒦ · ˚.‧ . written by ella . . . © -lostgardens
042 ━━━━━━ ❛ she's off her rocker ❜

The air was fresh, the breeze was relaxing, and the birds were chirping. So why did Olivia, in her ready-for-the-day, already-awake-for-hours state, despise the fact that she had to go to Trelawney's class?

It was such an odd feeling for her. Usually, she enjoyed her classes, for the most part, given that she already knew most of the material they would be learning. But Divination was different; she knew barely anything—only the things she could learn in a book, which were only the surface-level things. She had no idea what the professor was going to ramble on about.

Even as she walked down the corridor alongside her group, she felt annoyed with a lingering sense of dread in the front of her mind. Her boots sounded against the stone floors, her bag's strap sat digging in her shoulder from the pulling grip she had on it, and she nibbled at her bottom lip, trying to distract herself. Her friends voices echoed around behind her, but she couldn't hear them—not that she was even in the conversation. She never knew what nonsense they were going on about, and they were muffled like just background noise in a movie.

The thoughts were so loud in her mind that she hadn't even realized they turned the corridor, meeting the winding staircase that led to Trelawney's classroom, even though her feet had led her there. She ascended the stairs, still lost in her mind and weaving her way past other students who were also going to Divination—Gryffindors mostly.

Everyone seemed to have the same idea of entering the classroom at the same time. Because the number of people bumping shoulders with Olivia knocked her back into reality as she glared at the backs of their heads as they moved in front of her and into the classroom. After a moment of annoyance, she reluctantly followed after Draco tapped on her shoulder, directing her to move forward.

When they entered the very dim classroom, Pansy and Daphne found a table, as did Theodore and Blaise and Crabbe and Goyle, leaving Olivia and Draco to sit at one of their own and across from each other.

Surprisingly, Olivia didn't mind it—he was easy to tease, so maybe the class wouldn't have been as bad as she thought it'd be. She let out a sigh despite the hope and retrieved her things for this class from her bag, setting them on the table. There were already tea cups on the table, sitting on saucers beside a teapot, ready for whatever they were meant to be doing that day.

When she looked up, meeting Draco's eye, he sent her a small smile, which she tried to return. She wasn't quite feeling in the smiling mood, so it wasn't a very bright one—more like a flat line. Then she looked around the classroom, seeing, once again, mostly Gryffindor. However, there were some Hufflepuffs, Ravenclaws, and Slytherins lingering around here and there. Trelawney, the dear professor, was nowhere in sight. Olivia had never taken Divination since it was an elective and only taught in third, fourth, and fifth year, meaning she had never dealt with the woman first-hand, but she wouldn't have been surprised if she made a grand entrance like Snape liked to do.

But she was quickly proven wrong when the professor sheepishly, almost nervously, walked in through her private office door off to the left of the dim-ish room. There was definitely nothing grand about her entrance. She quietly made her way over to the front of the room as the rest of the students settled down in their seats, slowly but surely ending their conversations with their classmates. And once everyone was settled, Trelawney sent them a smile that somewhat looked crazed.

"Please pour some tea in your cups and drink up," the professor began, clearing her throat. "And once your done, flip your cup upside down, set it back on the saucer, and let the rest of the liquid drip out," she instructed. And with that said, she moved to her rather small, patterned table with a teapot, tea cup, vial, and book sitting on top of it. She rounded the table and sat down in her rather large, blood-red cushioned chair, focusing on the students as they did what she said.

Olivia gave Draco a curious look, to which he just shrugged, and then they both reached for the tea pot in front of them. Their hands brushed for a brief moment, and Olivia ignored the feeling that ran over her skin and throughout her body. She watched as he quickly pulled his hand back, gesturing for her to grab it first.

She was never one to turn down an offer. So, after rolling her eyes and shaking her head in amusement at his awkwardness, she picked up the teapot by its handle, making sure to put pressure on the lid so that it didn't fall off, and poured herself a small cup of tea. Then she set it back down on the table, and Draco copied her steps.

Trelawney stayed quiet and unmoving like a statue (which somewhat freaked Olivia out) as everyone drank their tea. Olivia was done after about four sips, since the amount of tea she'd given herself was barely any, and she flipped her cup over, setting it back on the saucer, like she had been instructed to do. Draco finished his tea soon after, doing the same thing. And then the two sat in silence with the rest of the room, while everyone else finished up their tea with only a few mutters of conversation here and there.

The professor at the front of the class continued to watch the students through her large, circular, thick-lens glasses, which made her eyes look rather bug-like, and that somehow went quite well with her rather large, frizzy locks of curls. She wasn't speaking, barely-blinking, and still as straight as steel. She was dressed in fun-looking clothes, wearing mismatched patterns made from many different kinds of fabrics. She was a rather unique woman, or so Olivia had heard.

But finally, once Trelawney assumed the majority were done, she cleared her throat, catching everyone's attention. "Welcome, my children." She greeted them in her soul-stirring voice when all eyes were on her. "In this room, you shall explore the noble art of Divination. In this room, you shall discover if you possess the Sight," she continued, her voice still ever-so haunting. As she stood, she bumped into her table, too excited about her words. Some of her things rattled, almost falling to the floor as she braced herself on the woodtop, and students giggled.

She definitely was a strange woman; Olivia would give her that. The girl covered her mouth, stifling a small laugh along with the rest of the class. "She definitely doesn't have 'the Sight,'" she muttered, eating her laugh with words as she focused on the boy in front of her, who quietly laughed as well.

"Hello. I am Professor Trelawney," she introduced with a slightly beaming tone, as if they all didn't already know who she was. Trelawney was one of the few professors everyone knew, and it was mostly because of her oddness. She moved past the table that had so rudely gotten in her way, going to stand closer to the students. "Together, we shall cast ourselves into the future!" She lifted her hands and looked up as if she were envisioning something, her tone growing louder with wisdom—or what seemed to be wisdom. She let out a small chuckle with a bright smile on her face. "This term, we shall be focusing on tasseomancy, which is the art of reading tea leaves," she explained, pushing her hands forward as she spoke. "So please, take the cup of the person sitting opposite you." She crossed her arms in an X, demonstrating the switch of cups.

That made a little more sense to Olivia. Of course, she had assumed that was what they were going to be doing. She had totally assumed that. She wasn't dull. Not completely, anyway.

With the reassurance of her non-dullness in her anything-but-dull mind, Olivia leaned forward, grabbing Draco's cup as he grabbed hers. She flipped it over, looking down at it to see what she was supposed to see. Then she met his gaze, giving him a teasing look. "Are you ready to see the future?" she questioned with a breathy, cannot-believe-what-she-was-seeing tone.

He rolled his eyes as Trelawney asked, "What do you see?" The woman paused as everyone fumbled with their tablemate's tea cup. "The truth lies buried like a sentence deep within a book, waiting to be read," she went on, moving towards the students in front. She placed her hand on Finnigan's shoulder, using him as a helping hand as she stepped on the step. "But first, you must broaden your minds." She looked down at the boy, ruffling his short hair with her hands. "First, you must look beyond!" The turn that she took next was something theatrical, one of a performance, as she stuck out her arms and looked at the wall behind her, like she was seeing the future.

Everyone, including Olivia and Draco, looked to where she was, seeming confused by her dramatics. Olivia then glanced at the tea cup in her hand once more, still not knowing what to make of whatever she was supposed to be seeing, and if Trelawney kept talking, she never would.

"You, boy, is your grandmother quite well?" Trelawney inquired, moving towards Longbottom.

"Uh, I-I think so," he stammered, sounding unsure as Olivia looked up and focused on him.

"I-I wouldn't be so sure of that," the professor warned, waving her bony finger. "Give me the cup." She reached her hand out to the boy sitting opposite him—Dean Thomas, Olivia believed his name to be—gesturing towards the black, gold-rimmed porcelain. It only took a second of looking in the cup to determine something, which wasn't jaw-droppingly shocking since it was her profession. "Oh... hmm...." She glanced over at the Gryffindor boy with a worried expression on her face. "Pity," she muttered, moving away from his table. "Broaden your minds," she reminded, moving closer to Potter's table.

Olivia rolled her eyes. Her mind was as broad as it could be, and she still didn't know what to make of Draco's cup, not that she was really trying.

"Oh!" Trelawney gasped, almost causing Weasley to drop his cup. "Your aura is pulsing, dear," she told him, sounding aspirated. "Are you in the beyond?" she questioned, but didn't give him a second to answer. "I think you are!"

"Sure," Weasley replied, slightly nodding.

"Look at the cup," the woman instructed. "Tell me what you see."

"Oh, yeah, um, well..." he began, looking down at the cup in his hand. He couldn't seem to determine what he saw, and that annoyed Olivia. She was not going to be like Weasley! She would learn the art of Divination, and she would be the best at it!

The boy quickly turned to his book, flipping hastily through the pages as Olivia heard Draco snickering. "Harry's got sort of a wonky cross. That's trials and suffering," he continued, and Trelawney hummed in understanding. "And, uh, that there could be the sun, and that's happiness." He met the woman's wide-eyed gaze. "So, uh, you're gonna suffer..."—he faced Potter—"but you're gonna be happy about it." That sounded more like a question than a statement.

Olivia sighed and rolled her eyes as she focused on Draco, who was trying (and mostly failing) to contain his laughter. He had a hand over his mouth, watching the interaction between the Gryffindors and their ol' wise professor.

"Give me the cup," Trelawney ordered, taking the cup from Weasley. In an instant, she dropped the cup on the table, gasped loudly like someone who had just found a dead body, and backed away quickly, seeming nothing short of frightened. Olivia looked over at her, her brows furrowed and her heart skipping a beat from the sudden movement. "Oh, my dear boy." Her breathing was still labored as she stayed back, holding her hands to her chest. "My dear..." she inched closer. "You have... the Grim."

Students gasped and murmured all around the room as Olivia's eyes went wide.

"The grin? What's the grin?" Finnigan asked, confused.

"Not the grin, you idiot, the Grim," a boy corrected, no doubt rolling his eyes. He fumbled with his book for a moment, flipping through the pages as he looked for a certain page. Once he landed on it, he sighed. "Taking form of a giant spectral dog, it's among the darkest omens in our world." He glanced up as everyone continued to mutter about Potter. "It's an omen..."—he went quiet, trying to find how to say his next words—"of death."

Olivia quickly looked down at her—at Draco's cup. Her eyes went wide as she studied the bits at the bottom of the cup that, when she'd first seen them, she thought looked oddly like a dog—well, she hadn't really looked at them that well. It couldn't be, though. It couldn't possibly be.

She looked up at Draco, who had gone quiet, still not looking her way, and then she focused on her book, flipping open the pages. Once she found the Grim, she studied it, glancing between the page and the cup. It couldn't be. And it wasn't. When she studied the leaves this time, now side-by-side with the picture in the book, she realized that she was wrong (rare admission). It wasn't a dog, luckily, but she still couldn't really tell what it was. She really hated Divination.

"You, child," Trelawney gasped, causing Olivia to look up. The woman was making her way towards her, looking concerned as Olivia's brows furrowed. "You seemed troubled, dear," she noted, cautiously moving towards her.

Rolling her eyes, knowing that she was most certainly not troubled, Olivia didn't quite anticipate the speed at which Trelawney could cross a room. "Hey!" she blurted as the cup was snatched from her hands.

The professor gasped as she looked at the cup, dropping it down on the table like she had with Potter's.

So dramatic, Olivia fought the urge to roll her eyes again.

"A skull," the woman murmured loud enough for everyone to hear.

A skull. Of course! Olivia totally knew that.

Trelawney's frightened eyes danced between Olivia, who was staring at her with annoyance, and Draco, who was looking at her as if she had three heads. "Danger is in your path," she breathed, looking at the boy with concerned eyes. Then she moved—no, more like jumped towards him, snatching the cup he held out of his hands. Another loud gasp fell from her lips as she focused on Olivia. "A cross. Trials and suffering," she whispered to herself like a mad woman, looking up at the girl.

Olivia and Draco shared a glance, already knowing what the other was thinking.

Then, after a moment, Olivia focused on the professor, ignoring the lingering whispers coming from everyone around them. "This is bloody stupid," she admitted, narrowing her eyes at the professor. It truly was stupid—none of it meant a thing. It didn't. "You are off your rocker if you think we're meant to believe in any of this."

"Thoughts like those will put you in grave danger, my child."

≀⋆⁺₊⋆ ꗃ 𖦹⨳✺

"And then she tries to tell me that I will suffer and that Draco has danger in his path," Olivia scoffed, shaking her head as she looked away from Snape, who was sitting at his desk, grading assignments. "Can you believe that?"

"She—"

"Oh! And she tried to tell Potter that he had the Grim, an omen of death," she continued, cutting off his words as she grabbed the back of a chair in front of his desk, pulled it out, and sat down. Sighing, she ran a hand through her hair, giving him a look of disbelief. "It's quite stupid."

Snape inhaled deeply, then set his quill down before looking up at Olivia. She was already staring at him as he sat up straight. "Sybill is a very wise woman, in her own way," he began, glancing away as he said the last part. "Perhaps she made the readings a little more dramatic than they should've been, but it doesn't mean they were wrong."

Olivia leaned forward with furrowed brows, looking at him like he was being ridiculous. How could he possibly say that? If they "weren't wrong," as he put it, then that meant that she'd be suffering soon and Draco would be in danger. It simply was not true. She would never believe it. "But she—"

Snape raised his hand, stopping her from going any further. "Olivia, I'm sure nothing will happen," he reassured, dropping his hand to pick up his quill again. He studied the assignment in front of him for a quiet moment, then he met her gaze. "It's just an art—it can be rather dramatic, like most forms of expression."

"Exactly," she agreed, lifting her hands.

"But..." he sighed, looking away from her.

She furrowed her brows. "But?"

"Never mind," he drew out in his usual tone, focusing on her again. He clasped his hands together in front of him, resting them on his desk as he leaned forward slightly. "Tell what happened on the train," he ordered with a flat tone, narrowing his eyes as he studied her.

She sat up straighter, giving him a confused look. How did he possibly find that out?

As if he were reading her mind, he said, "I have my ways."

She stared at him curiously for a moment, then sighed. "A couple of dementors came on the train, hunting for Black, and one attacked me and, supposedly, Potter," she admitted, like it was the most causal thing to talk about in the world. She was acting like it didn't matter to her when, in fact, it did. The curiosity about why she was attacked out of everyone in that compartment, including none other than Sirius' second cousin, was something that lingered in her mind constantly.

He hummed to himself, leaning back in his seat, not looking at her any longer. He went quiet for a moment, and Olivia could swear she could see the wheels turning in his brain. Letting out a breath, he sat up straight again. "Alright, you can leave now," he told her, focusing on his papers.

She tried not to seem offended by his nonchalant dismissal, and she went to move from her seat. But his voice stopped her, and she stilled.

"Oh, and Olivia?" He looked up from his desk. "Since when did you start referring to Draco by his first name?" For once, his voice was not completely monotone. No, there was a little curiosity laced in his words, and it was so apparent that it shocked Olivia just a little.

But that shock didn't stop her annoyance.

"Oh, bloody... It's his name!" She practically jumped up from her seat, turning away from him and storming over to the door. "It's just a name, for Merlin's sake," she added, lowing her voice as she grabbed the doorknob, looking at Snape with a glare. And with that, she swung the door open and left, leaving him to watch where she had just been from his desk with confusion from her outburst.

After a moment, he hummed to himself and returned to his task, not particularly caring.

≀⋆⁺₊⋆ ꗃ 𖦹⨳✺

━━━━ ella's speaking !
i finally got around to editing this chapter... i hope you liked it!!

so far i'm enjoying writing act three so much more than acts one & two (i still enjoyed writing those but yk)

make sure to comment & vote !!

kisses.

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

word count: 3258. written: 11.7.23. published: 11.16.23.