Poppies & Promises

-ˏˋ ★ ˎˊ˗

"Mr Malfoy,"

Madame Pomfrey said as she walked down to the edge of his bed in the hospital wing.

"You have a visitor." She said and Draco sat up slowly, wincing at his healing wounds. He placed a hand on his lower stomach as he stared at the girl behind the healing witch. His eyes narrowed at her.

"What are you doing here?" He snapped.

Pomfrey looked between the two students and she could sense the rising tension between the two. "Well," She said briskly, "I think I'll give the two of you some time alone." She added as she turned to leave.

"I asked you a question." Draco snapped, glaring up at her.

"Did you have something to do with this?" He added as he gestured to his wounds. "You did, didn't you? First you threaten me and then you send Potter after me to kill me. Well you weren't so lucky were you?"

"Draco stop talking."

Emerald said flatly. He followed her orders but not without a glare up at her.

"You really are a pompous idiot, you know that?" She said. "Obviously, I didn't have anything to do with this. If I have a score to settle with you, I'll come after you myself." She said. "I don't send someone else to do my bidding." Emerald stated.

"How are you feeling." She asked and Draco scoffed. "As if you care." "Why else would I come visit you." Emerald replied. She dropped a bouquet of red flowers in his lap.

Poppies.

"What are these for?" "My condolences." She said. "What else?" Hesitantly Draco took the flowers. He looked down at them, taking in the sight of the vibrantly red petals.

"Why Poppies?"

"They're my favorite." She said. "And I didn't know what you liked so I just went with what I liked."

"Well I don't need your condolences." "Did I ask?" He sighed.

"I'll ask you one last time, Draco, and after I leave it's over. I'll ask you no more." She said as she sat on the edge of his bed and looked at the wizard in the dim light of the hospital wing.

"The Dark Lord or me?"

Draco was silent as he stared back at her. He looked into her grassy green eyes and finally he sighed, his head hanging low. "I think you know the answer." "I see." Emerald stood. She looked down at him, eyes emotionless.

"Goodbye Draco." And with that she left him for the last time.

✮ ⊹₊ 𓍊𓋼𓍊𓋼𓍊 𓆏 𓍊𓋼𓍊𓋼𓍊₊ ⊹ ✮

"Harry?" Emerald stopped in her tracks.

"What- what in Oz are you doing up and out? It's late." "Oh I know." Harry replied.

"It's just a good evening to be up and out." He said with a giddy grin. Emerald scrunched her nose up in disgust.

"Why are you so unusually bubbly?" "You don't like it?" He asked with a fake frown, teasing her obviously.

"I'm just such a lucky man, is all." He said and took her arms and led her around in a mock waltzing twirl.

"Oookkaaayyy." Emerald said as she took a step back from him.

"I never had the courage to say it before but you really are beautiful, Emerald." He said as he stepped back over to her, cornering her in the torch lit hallway. Her back was against the wall as she looked up at him.

He cupped her cheeks once more and pressed a kiss to her lips. This one was not so soft and gentle as the last kiss they shared. It was passionate and bold and made her weak in the knees.

He infact, had his knee between her thighs as he pinned her there and kissed her fiercely. He pressed his forehead against hers when he was done kissing her.

"Such beauty." He breathed against her skin.

"Harry..." She breathed. He pulled away from her completely leaving Emerald completely dazed and confused.

"Gotta go." He said. "Harry wait." "You too." He added. "Can't be caught out of bed." Emerald placed a hand on her lips as she watched him saunter off. Her cheeks were blushing bright green as he went.

✮ ⊹₊ 𓍊𓋼𓍊𓋼𓍊 𓆏 𓍊𓋼𓍊𓋼𓍊₊ ⊹ ✮

Finally, Ron and Lavender had broken up.

He was back around Harry and Hermione again and had seemed to take a rather high interest in Hermione.

"So that's what that was?" Emerald asked as she joined the others for breakfast.

"Felix Felicious?" "What what was?" Hermione asked with a raised brow and Harry looked to Emerald with alarm.

"Oh," Emerald said as she flipped a page in the Grimmerie, which she had brought to breakfast with her to study,

"I saw Harry in the corridors last night and he-"

Harry's eyes were pleading with her not to say anything, not yet.

"He was acting rather strange. Seemed overly happy." Ron chuckled. "Yeah you did seem a bit overly giddy, mate." He teased and Harry breathed a sigh of relief.

"I was just trying it out, I didn't know how I'd react to it." He explained. Emerald chuckled and her eyes returned to the spell book where she studied the Frexing spell Elphaba would use to disappear.

"Hey thanks." Emerald looked to see Harry received a note from another student. He read it over and looked most troubled.

"What is it?" Hermione asked. "It's Dumbledore." Harry said "He wants to see me." He added. "About-" Harry nodded, answering Ron's question before it was asked. "Blimey you don't think he found-" Harry nodded again.

"Found what?"

The three looked to Emerald. "Something to help stop you know who for good." Hermione answered. Emerald shifted in her seat. "If it's to stop him then I'm all for it." She said with approval. "Good." Harry said. "I leave tonight."

✮ ⊹₊ 𓍊𓋼𓍊𓋼𓍊 𓆏 𓍊𓋼𓍊𓋼𓍊₊ ⊹ ✮

Emerald returned to the Slytherin common room between classes. She forgot a book that she had so foolishly left by her chair where she faithfully read her grandmother's diary.

She walked back over to her spot and spotted the charms book exactly where she had left it. But then her eyes caught something next to her textbook.

A piece of parchment, it's backside faced her, hiding it's contents from her. It was wrinkled like it had been clutched in someone's hand tightly.

Then Emerald realized what it was, it was the note that Draco had the night she had returned to the castle. The note he had hidden from her. The letter from her father. She was already filled with doubts about him and his character. The more she thought about Draco the more she thought about his character and her disbelief in him.

She picked up the note and slowly turned it over in her hands.. She almost couldn't read it, she was too eager. But then her eyes focused on the simplicity of the note.

Its contents were only two words. Hesitantly read it to herself, her eyes scanning painfully over that sickening phrase repeatedly, letting it sink in, letting it hurt her over and over again.

"Use her."

Was all his father had wrote. There was no questioning who it had been about. It was about her. It had always been about her. He never cared for her, not truely. Draco wanted to use her to gain favor with the dark lord, that's how it had always been from start to finish. She was an object to him, a pawn, just like Dorothy.