Song: Play With Fire by Sam Tinnesz and Yacht Money

T/W: bullying

I wake up to the sun shining through my window, hitting my face with its warmth and ode of morning-time. Stretching out my aching limbs, I sit up more on my bed, feeling strange without waking up with Hannah or Susie in their beds on either side of mine.

Getting up, I grab my uniform, consisting of a button-up shirt and black skirt along with a gold and black tie, and begin putting it on.

I decide to spend more time on my hair since it is the first day of classes, so I just grab some savoury biscuits from my desk that were left over from the train ride for my breakfast. I know I'll have to help out the first years a lot today, so skipping breakfast in the Great Hall will be for the better.

My first class of the day is Transfiguration with Professor McGonagall: one of my favorite classes aside from Herbology. Susie and Ernie both have that class and I think a couple other Hufflepuff fifth years, from what I heard in the common room before getting whisked away to help redirect first years to their correct classrooms.

After showing a couple first years where Professor Flitwick's classroom is located, I rush towards McGonagall's classroom, hoping to snag a spot either by Susie or maybe Justin. Upon walking in I notice Susie is sitting next to Ernie.

Of course, I roll my eyes. I search for Justin's face and finally spot him... sitting with Megan Jones. I feel my stomach drop slightly at the sight. She's clearly flirting with him as she twirls her dark hair around her finger.

I spot an open seat near them, but it's right next to Blaise Zabini. He's not looking at me, thankfully, but even just looking at him gives me a strange feeling. He's handsome don't get me wrong, but he's more sinisterly handsome. Just looking at his eyes tells you he isn't any good...I could be misinterpreting him though .

"Lily! There's an open seat here!" I hear a voice call out. I turn my head to see the familiar, bushy-haired Gryffindor smiling whilst beckoning me to come sit next to her.

I sigh in relief as I sit in the chair next to her. "Thanks, Hermione. I was worried I'd have to take a seat next to Blaise." I motion over towards Blaise who's still sitting by himself; he's calmly paging through his Transfiguration book. Just then, I see Draco walk in and take a seat next to him.

Figures he would be in this class.

Hermione doesn't notice him but rather asks how last night with the first years went, since it was apparently crazy for her and Ron. I tell her about how a couple of them almost got lost from the group by following one of the ghosts. This causes her to laugh loudly, a trait many Gryffindors seem to have acquired. I love it though as it gets me to laugh beside her.

"Shut up, Granger. No one wants to hear your squawking." We both turn our heads to the source. Draco is leaning back in his chair, with his feet up on the desk and hands behind his head. A scowl is on his pink lips as he stares at us.

Before Hermione has time to answer, I find myself saying, "and no one wants to see your face, Draco, yet you still show up."

Everyone in the class seems to have heard as many around us audibly gasp or laugh. I feel my cheeks burn as I've never received this much attention in my life. Even Blaise finds it funny as he sniggers next to Draco, whose eyes are staring directly at me with deadly intent.

If looks could kill, I probably would be dead right now.

"Nice one." I hear Hermione say with a snicker, she looks impressed which is a rare sight to see from her.

"Watch your back, Lizzy," he sputters out menacingly with his jaw taut which causes a shiver of strange delight. Why am I feeling flustered rather than upset? I ask myself before I finally speak out.

"For the last time my name is Lil—"

"Alright class, settle down—" Professor McGonagall cuts in before I can finish my sentence. I slouch in my seat as Draco shoots me a smirk as if he 'won this round.' "—and Mr. Malfoy, take your feet off the desk!"

He rolls his eyes as he takes his feet off the desk, earning a nod in approval from McGonagall.

"This year we will be touching further into the branches of Transfiguration denoted as Vanishment and Conjuration. Now, who can tell me what either of these mean before we begin?"

Immediately, Hermione shoots her hand up. Draco snorts upon seeing it. A notice a few others roll their eyes as well. Hermione is known in the school as the "know-it-all," but I like to think she's just incredibly knowledgeable and likes partaking in class.

McGonagall spots her and nods. "Yes, Miss Granger?"

"Well, the branch of Vanishment is the art of causing things to vanish or go into non-being. The branch of Conjuration is the opposite of Vanishment as it is the art to bring things back into being." She lifts her nose proudly after speaking.

"Very good, Miss Granger," McGonagall replies, earning a bright smile from Hermione. "While these branches are some of the most fascinating ones, they are also some of the most difficult. I don't expect everyone to master it at the end of the year, but I do hope you gain sufficient knowledge that can help you later on after years of practice."

She dives into different basic spells for Vanishment, yet we only take notes today. She says that even the most basic spells for Vanishment are difficult to master. After a very informative first class, she assigns us a couple readings from our textbooks about the art of Vanishment.

I say a quick goodbye to Hermione as I rush off to my next class, Herbology, in Greenhouse Three. I want to get there before everyone else to talk to Professor Sprout and thank her for making me a Prefect.

...

The many smells of Greenhouse Three overcomes my senses as I step in. I'm one of the first ones here as no one besides Professor Sprout is seated within the Herbology classroom. Her plump figure is seated at her desk near the front of the room as she is skimming through a book of different types of magical flowers. If I remembered correctly from talking to her last year, she said the fifth years get to work with Fanged Geraniums.

Almost on cue, I see Neville come rushing in from the back room holding a pot with a Mandrake Root and earmuffs around his collar. He's typically seen hanging around Greenhouse Three helping Professor Sprout with set up and other alike things. He glances up at me and smiles.

"Hi Lily!" At the mention of my name, Professor Sprout looks up, a twinkle in her eye.

"Hi Neville! Hello Professor!" I smile sweetly at them both.

"My dear, come here." She beckons me over to her desk before turning to Neville. "How is it going with the Mandrake set up for the second years?"

Neville grimaces as he holds the pot out to her. "Good besides this one. It didn't flinch or scream when I pulled it up."

Sprout frowns as she takes the pot. She pulls the Mandrake up to which I instinctively place my hands over my ears.

Their screams are incredibly loud and annoying, causing those to pass out many times from how piercing their cries are, but they are quite useful, especially in curing those who have been Petrified, like what had happened a lot during my second year when the Chamber of Secrets opened.

The Mandrake doesn't make a sound. In fact, it seems to droop. Sprout shakes her head with an all-knowing frown.

"Place the pot near my workstation...I'll have to grind this one up for Snape to make another healing potion." She says shoving the Mandrake back into its spot and handing the pot back to Neville. "Thank you, Neville. You can head to your next class after." She smiles sweetly at him as he nods.

"Sounds good, Professor. Nice seeing you, Lily," he smiles at both of us before heading back into the back room.

I sit at the seat closest to Professor Sprout, crossing my legs as a smile forms on my lips. "I want to thank you again for giving me this opportunity of being a Prefect. It means so much to me."

She smiles brightly at my statement. "Oh Lily, I knew ever since your second year that you would be one. You're an incredible leader and set a great example for many, both academically and socially." I feel myself beaming proudly at her kind words.

"Thank you, Professor." I say sincerely.

A few students trickle into the classroom as her eyes glance up at the slight disturbance before looking back at me. "You know, your sister would have been one too. She excelled in all of her classes and had many great leadership qualities as well."

"Really?" I say, a bit surprised at the new information.

She nods. "Oh yes. But, she liked to cause a little trouble now and then, so I had to pick someone else. But, you didn't hear that from me" She winks and stands up. "Now, I need to go grab a couple things before class starts."

I smile at her as she leaves to go into the back room before turning towards the incoming students. I see a few familiar faces; Luna Lovegood and Padma Patil from Ravenclaw who smile and wave at me, as well as Dean Thomas from Gryffindor. I then spy Justin walking in and catch his eye. He hurriedly rushes over to the seat next to mine.

My cheeks flush as I feel the heat from his body when he sits down, pulling his seat closer to mine. He places his books in front of him on the counter before speaking. "How have you been? I'm sorry I didn't get to speak with you much yesterday or earlier this morning."

He seems sincere as he gives me a charming smile. "I've been well. And that's alright, I was preoccupied with the first years anyway. You know how it goes with them." He nods along, glancing around the room before looking back at me.

He bites his lip nervously before whispering, "I've missed you."

My heart flutters at his words. I didn't think he actually cared enough to miss me, but there is no denying he's telling the truth based upon the look he is giving me.

I place my hand on his. "I've missed you too, Justin. Let's start over this year. Clean slate?" I offer, and his smile perks up more at my request.

"Yeah...a clean state it is." He places his other hand on top of ours, and I realize I missed this. The feeling of his warm hands on mine, and his caring and loving smile whenever he looks at me.

Just then, his voice rings throughout the greenhouse.

"Bloody hell... are you an idiot, Goyle?" Draco strides in with Gregory Goyle following close behind him, a scowl present on his face. Goyle's head droops at Draco's words.

They both take a seat at the far end of the table, tossing their books on the counter in front of them with annoyance. It's old news that many of the Slytherins, especially Draco and his minions, hate Herbology with a passion. They say it's a waste of time, but I'd have to highly disagree with them.

"Lily." I snap my gaze back onto Justin who's looking at me with curiosity. "I asked how your summer was."

I remove my hands from his, tucking a couple loose strands of my hair behind my ear in embarrassment. I had been staring at Draco, who was in a supposed dispute with Goyle.

"Oh, sorry...it was good. How was yours?" I try to keep my attention fully on Justin as he talks about his summer spent mainly with his brother in London. Though, I do catch myself taking glances at Draco.

How could I not?

He is now smiling and laughing with Goyle and a couple other Slytherins around them, and seeing him smile and not simply just smirk is incredibly rare. He looks at ease for once as he places his arms behind his head.

I turn my attention back to Justin who is still explaining his brother's job as an auror as if I don't know what it all entails. He's close to his older brother like I am with Nymphi. It was one reason we bonded so well last year.

"Nymphadora is an auror as well, correct?" Justin asks. I'm pretty sure he knows this, but he's not the most attentive person. He's someone that usually likes to talk rather than listen.

"Yes, she is." I don't say anything more as she's supposed to keep some things private: like the fact that she is a part of the Order of the Phoenix. She only told my parents and I, and begged us to keep it that way. I know she's constantly put in dangerous situations which worries me greatly. I really don't know what I would do without her.

"Okay, I thought I had remembered correctly." He nods before gently grabbing my hair, letting his fingers run through it and softly playing with each strand. It was something he used to always do when we dated last year. I know he's not really thinking as he does it, so he must already feel comfortable around me.

I hesitantly smile, enjoying the feeling a little before taking a glance around the room, seeing people give us strange looks as though they are judging us. I take his hand out of my hair, patting it before setting it back down on the table.

He gives me a sheepish smile, blushing slightly as he says, "sorry about that."

"It's alright," I begin saying and playfully brush my thick, wavy strands from my shoulders, "I know my hair is amazing." I wink at him, easing the awkwardness around us as we both laugh.

I wasn't lying before when I told him I missed him too. We have always gotten along well, so well in fact, that many believe that we will end up together.

As Professor Sprout starts class, I can't help but to think that maybe they're right as I look at Justin. He makes me feel at ease and comfortable, and I can see myself growing old with him.

But as my gaze keeps drifting over to Draco... I can't help but to wonder if that's what I really want.

...

At lunch I find myself hardly being able to eat, as many of the first years come up to me and ask questions about literally everything. One even asked me if I was single to which I had to gently scold was "none of his business."

After finishing up my meal, I take a long gulp of pumpkin juice before getting up with my books and heading towards Snape's classroom for Potions.

One reason I don't like Potions that much is that the classroom is within what we call "Slytherin territory." The classroom is located in the dungeon like the Slytherin common room, so many of them are there. I usually rush into the classroom, ignoring the glares and dark stares I typically receive walking through.

The other reason is that Potions has always been a bit of a difficult subject for me. I usually pass it, but each year it's just been getting more and more challenging. To say I'm nervous for this year is a bit of an understatement.

As I'm rushing down the corridors to Potions, I happen to see the "Prince of Slytherin"  himself with his two big bodyguards, Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle, looming over a small second year Gryffindor.

Gryffindors, out of all the houses, are typically the ones getting bullied or picked on by the Slytherins. Well, that's at least been the norm since Draco Malfoy and Harry Potter started school here. Their hatred for one another is known throughout Hogwarts, even by some outside of it.

Us Hufflepuffs typically place bets on who will win a fight when either of them go at it. I usually place my money on Draco since he's quick and witty with his words; I've lost a lot, but I've also won quite a few too.

I see Draco shove him and throw his books down, while his "bodyguards" snicker beside him. "Think you're going somewhere you little twit!"

I feel my heart hurt for the boy as he stumbles back, looking as if he's seen his worst nightmare, or perhaps Boggart, come to life. Just as I'm about to say something, Neville rushes over and pushes the kid behind him while looking at Draco.

"Knock it off, Malfoy. He's just a kid." Neville keeps his stance tall as Draco narrows his eyes at him.

The kid behind Neville grabs his things and rushes away as Draco takes a predatory step forward. He makes Neville look like a child himself with his height.

"Or what, Longbottom? Going to eat me?" Draco sneers, causing a flash of hurt to cross Neville's face.

One thing he's always been self-conscious about besides being a little too goofy at times is the fact he was a chubby kid. He's thinned out a considerable amount due to puberty, but if weight is ever mentioned to him, he still gets upset which I find completely understandable. It was a definite low blow, even from Draco.

I make my way over, ignoring Draco and his minions as I tug on Neville's sleeve. "Neville, there you are. Let's get going to Potions. We don't want to waste anymore time with this prick," I state without giving a glance over to Draco. Neville faces me with an appreciative look as he nods. I pull lightly on his sleeve, and we begin walking towards the Potions classroom.

Neville finally glances down at me and says, "thank you. His comments usually don't affect me but whenever he brings up—you know—"

I place my other hand gently up on his shoulder. "You don't need to thank me. I just couldn't stand the way he talked to you. He really needs to get a life."

Neville chuckles softly at my last comment. "Yeah...I just hate when he picks on the younger ones. They're already scared of him as it is...I don't know why he needs to constantly bully them."

"I'm not sure. Maybe he has a hard home life?" I say, trying to understand the reason why Draco bullies others. I try to find the best in people; with Draco though, it's a little more challenging.

Neville shakes his head. "I don't know, he still has both his parents that love him and give him whatever he wants."

My heart pangs with sadness at his remark as I know Neville lost both of his parents at a young age—well, they're still alive, but were tortured horrendously to the point of insanity by a Death Eater years ago, so they're just empty shells of what used to be his parents. I rub his arm sympathetically as tears form briefly in his eyes.

Just as I'm about to reply, I hear Draco's voice booming behind us. I can even hear his expensive shoes clacking away on the hard, tiled ground.

"Lizzy!"

I ignore him.

"Lizzy!!"

I still ignore him, even with Neville's look of concern.

"Ugh!" I hear him groan before yelling, "Tonks!!!" I turn around at the mention of my last name.

Draco's eyes are blazing with anger, and his fists are clenched at his sides as he strides down towards us. I nudge Neville to tell him to keep going. He hesitates at first, but after I give him a small smile, he obliges and continues on towards class.

I wait for Draco as he storms up so he's standing right in front of me. For some reason, I don't find his anger towards me 'scary' or even 'alarming,' rather, I find it almost a turn on?

I try to shake off the feeling, but I can't. His clenched jaw and simmering gray eyes, that almost appear silvery, make me go weak in the knees. There's also a strand of hair that keeps getting out of place, and he keeps brushing it aside angrily. I have the urge to fix it for him, but I keep my stance still and my hands to myself.

"How dare you speak about me like that," he spews out, eyes still blazing. I find myself biting my lip nervously before I see his eyes dart to my mouth. I stop immediately once I see him do that.

"Well I did. What are you going to do about it?" I daringly ask while crossing my arms, wanting a reaction out of him for some reason.

I'm playing with fire with no way of putting it out.

With this he smirks, almost happy I said that. He keeps getting closer, and with each step of his, I step backwards. This goes on until my back hits the wall, and I'm stuck with no way out.

He leans down, placing both his hands on either side of my head with his right knee locking me in place between him and the cool wall. My heart is beating wildly, so wildly that I'm afraid he can hear it.

He lowers his mouth so it's only a couple centimeters from my left ear.

"You would like to know. Wouldn't you?" His voice is a bit calmer than before, and seems almost huskier too. His breathing is slower as his eyes frequently shift across my face. We stare into each other's eyes for a moment—the fire in his eyes seemingly erupting flames within me—before he pushes himself away from me. I can't help but to feel disappointed at the action.  "Better hurry and get to class, Lizzy."

With that he walks in the opposite direction of the Potions classroom, leaving me incredibly hot and bothered. I wipe the beads of sweat from my forehead as I run into Potions; my mind is still whirling from what just happened.

I step inside the classroom right as the bell goes off. Most everyone's eyes are on me, even Professor Snape's as his beady, black eyes give me a bored and slightly irritated look.

"Miss Tonks, please take a seat next to Miss Bones. I suspect you were helping the first years out in the hall?" Snape gestures over towards the table where Susan, Hannah and Neville are sitting.

I feel the heat rise into my cheeks. "I-I yes, Professor." I swiftly make my way over to my seat beside Susie who is bearing a look of curiosity.

After Snape goes over his expectations for the year, he passes out our textbooks and assigns us the first potion to read over and begin writing up our essays on. Next class we would be making it in our cauldrons. I flip open the textbook to the correct page, feeling Susie staring at me.

Glancing up at her, I ask in a hushed whisper, "what?"

"Are you okay? You look a bit flushed."

Before I can answer, Hannah chimes in. "Yeah... you are quite red in the cheeks."

Neville pokes his head up from his textbook. "I reckon it's what Malfoy said to you when I left?" This makes both Hannah and Susie shrill, causing Snape to give our table a look of annoyance before resuming his reading at his desk.

He had to bring that up, I mentally groan, but out loud I respond with, "he was being his usual arrogant and annoying self. I bet that kid was happy you butted in when you did, Neville." I try to get the spotlight off me by bringing up Neville's act of heroism. His cheeks flush as Hannah smiles and places a hand on his.

"Wow, Neville..." she sighs, batting her eyelashes up at him. Hannah and Neville begin to converse separately leaving Susie and I to read our books.

I think I'm off the hook until Susie says, "what happened with Malfoy?" Her eyes probe me for an answer, but I don't really want to tell Hannah or even Neville about the encounter that left me wanting more.

"I'll tell you on our way to Charms," I whisper to her. She scrunches her eyebrows before nodding.

"Alright... I guess." She doesn't ask me any further as we all fully engross ourselves with our textbooks and begin writing our essays.

After an excruciating hour and a half of writing and reading, with my hand cramping up halfway through, Susie and I walk to Charms which is taught by Professor Flitwick.

As the students brush past us in the halls, we wave and say hello to people we know, briefly discussing the extra essay Snape gave us.

"I swear, Snape thoroughly enjoys punishing his students. It's our first day back and he already gave us two essays to do!" She's clutching her books to her chest as she scrunches up her face.

Her angry faces honestly are too adorable. I really don't think Susie has a mean bone in her body...I mean, just looking at her now is making me want to chuckle.

"Snape has nothing else better to do," I remark matter-of-factly. All he seems to do is brood, punish children, and mix up concoctions. The man is also so secretive, it makes me wonder if he is a part of some secret organization. I would assume he was a Death Eater, but I feel like Dumbledore wouldn't let him roam the halls and be a professor if he were.

Susie snorts, covering her mouth. "Very true!" As we turn down another corridor, she then asks, "Aren't you supposed to tell me what happened with you know-" she looks around before whispering, "Malfoy?"

I look at my wristwatch, noticing we still have a good ten minutes before having to be in class, so I drag her down to an emptier hallway, sitting down on a bench near a windowsill and pat for her to sit down. She does and shifts her body towards mine.

I take a deep breath, wondering if I should even admit my true feelings during that moment with Draco because once I say it out loud, it's real.

"He...he was angry at me for getting Neville out of a possible fight with him and calling him a 'prick.'" She gasps, placing a hand over her mouth. I'm not one to say mean things back to people, even if those people are mean themselves. "That's not even the worst part, Susie." I shift nervously while biting the inside of my cheek.

"Oh no, Lily. What could be worse than calling Draco Malfoy a bad name to his face?!"

I gulp. "Well, he was angry at me and rightfully so. I told Neville to head to class as Draco was charging towards us." Her eyes are wide, so wide that I'm afraid they'll pop out of their sockets. "I wasn't scared or even alarmed. I...I sorta liked it. I liked how angry he was. I liked how he made me feel. Oh Merlin! Saying it out loud makes me sound like a lunatic!"

I groan, sliding a hand down my face. She's probably wondering whether or not she should send me to Madam Pomfrey.

She tilts her head in thought. "What else happened?"

"He-he got up in my face and caged me between him and the wall after I said some daring choice words. The way he looked at me and spoke to me was-"

"-alluring? Leaving you wanting more?" She finishes my sentence for me and I nod along, feeling my cheeks heat up.

"Y-yeah—am I crazy, Susie? I feel like it's wrong to be feeling this way."

"Does it feel wrong?" she inquires.

I think about it for a moment before replying truthfully, "no. It feels...good." She nods her head before a soft smile appears on her lips.

"I think you fancy him."

Scoffing, I say a little too defensively, "No! Dear Merlin, no!" She giggles before standing and pulling me up with her.

"Oh, you say that now, but you'll be singing a different tune in no time."

We resume walking to Charms as I admit, "I shouldn't have told you that." She laughs beside me, shaking her head.

"Aren't you glad you told me and not Hannah? I can actually keep a secret." I laugh along with her because it's true. Once Hannah gets word of something, it spreads like wildfire.

As we make it to the entrance of the Charms classroom, I tug at Susie's sleeve, stopping her in her tracks. "Please please keep it between us. If anyone—and by anyone I mean Hannah, asks about it, just tell them the first part...that I called Draco a 'prick,' and he got mad at me." She pats my shoulder in understanding.

"Your secret is safe with me." I sigh in relief as we walk in and take our seats next to each other.

Throughout the whole class, Flitwick goes over the many different charms we will be discussing and going over for the year, but my mind is elsewhere.

It keeps replaying that moment with Draco in the hall: his gleaming gray eyes, his clenched jaw and fists, and his fiery, demanding words.

"You would like to know. Wouldn't you?"

Yes, Draco. I would like to know.